“Cuc-come on,” said Springer, leading the way toward the stable.
“Seen anything of my dog, fellows?” asked Berlin.
“I haven’t,” answered Phil.
“Nor I,” said Sleuth. “Lost him?”
“He chewed off his rope and got out. It’s the second time he’s done it this week. Sawyer lets his old hound run loose, and when Silver Tongue gets out they go off into the woods together and run rabbits. I don’t like it. I’ll have to get a chain for Silver Tongue, and I’m going to tell Sawyer he’d better keep his hound tied up. It spoils a young dog to range the woods without his master. Going to snow, isn’t it?”
“My deduction is that it will,” nodded Sleuth. “By the inclement aspect of the weather, I should say we were due to get a stiff old storm.”
“That will spoil the sus-sliding,” complained Springer. “The hill has just got into good shape, too. Don’t seem as if a fellow can more than begin to have good fuf-fun before something happens to spoil it. Snow fixed our skating, and now if we get a big lot of it it will put our sliding on the punk for a while. Then what will we do?”
“We’ll have to get our fun indoors. There’s basketball, you know, and it’s time we were at it. Wonder if Stone is going to play?”
“I dunno,” said Sleuth; “but my deduction is——”
“Your deductions are generally bad.”