Chips shook his head. “Never set eyes on him before. You know what I think? He’s a tramp!”
“Say, he did look like one!” Babe cried, although he had been too far back to catch more than a glimpse of the shadowy figure.
“And I bet a cookie he has no business being in this house!” Chips went on excitedly. “The nerve of him ordering us away! Why, he may have broken in and be living there!”
“Without the contractor or the owner knowing anything about it,” agreed Dan soberly. “Say, we ought to tell Mr. Hatfield about this.”
At that moment, the Cub leader joined the group. He had been too far away to see the stranger or to hear any of the conversation. However, from the excited comment of the boys, he knew something was amiss.
“What goes on?” he asked, hurrying up.
Brad told him what had happened.
“I’m certain the man isn’t a workman,” he added. “We think he must be a tramp who broke into the house and is camping there.”
Mr. Hatfield noted a nearby sign which bore the name and telephone number of the contractor who had built the dwellings.
“I’ll telephone him as soon as we get back to Webster City,” he announced. “These houses are supposed to be boarded up. We have no authority to order anyone away, so we’ll just clear out.”