"It was all in silver and notes, and we hadn't taken the numbers," Roger explained.
The inspector shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, young gentlemen, but recovering cash is like getting butter out of a dog's throat. I've made a note of the totals, and we'll do our utmost, but——"
"Oh, we quite understand, thank you, inspector," said Dick. "It's 'good-bye for ever, good-bye', to quote Tosti's song. Hope you'll have luck with the Head's stuff, anyhow—that's far more important. He's fearfully cut up about it."
The two chums walked off together in silence. Both feared to voice the dread that was in their minds, and it was a relief to come across Hadwin, the school librarian and sports' secretary, who was pinning three announcements on the hall notice-board.
Hadwin was a quiet boy, exceedingly tactful always, and he left them at once, saying as he went:
"There's something there which will interest you chaps, I think. We're all awfully sorry to hear of what happened last night. Mr. Rooke told us you'd lost everything. Hard lines!"
Not too pleased that everybody knew, they thanked the librarian, and turned to read what he had fastened on the board.
One paper announced that, owing to the urgency of commencing structural alterations within the School, the Christmas holidays would begin a week earlier than usual.
"Good biz!" commented Roger. "That should save us publishing a Christmas Number, anyhow."
Another paper asked that boys who had seen or heard anything suspicious on the previous night would at once communicate with the Headmaster, so that the police might be given every possible clue.