“Ralph, you’re right,” assented the pleased scout master, “that man is wearing old shoes, and one of them seems to have a torn sole, for it makes a queer mark every time he puts a foot down. See here, and here, you can notice it.”
“One, two, three, all told,” said Ralph, with thrilling emphasis. “Hugh, doesn’t that just seem to fit in with my theory to a dot?”
“There were that many of the ugly guards came back, for a fact,” admitted Hugh.
“I’ve settled that part of it without a question,” said the other boy firmly; “and now the things we’ve still got to figure out are, what object these desperate men had in view when they stole the boy; and how can we find them?”
“Good for you, son!” chuckled the interested sheriff, leaning from the open window. “I want to say that this is worth all the trip out here to learn. My two men never bothered looking for tracks; they asked some questions, and then went hurrying off, saying they believed they knew where the dagoes had taken the boy. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re wasting their time over at the settlement rummaging around.”
Neither of the boys took much notice of this praise from the sheriff. The fact of the matter was they were too deeply engrossed in the carrying out of their plan of campaign to bother with side issues. After it was all over, no doubt, they might feel highly gratified to hear such expressions of appreciation from an officer of the law.
“I’ll step around and fetch the rest of the boys,” suggested Hugh, “while you’re making a start along the trail, Ralph.”
“Wish you would, Hugh,” muttered the other, already moving off, and bending low, as he followed the tracks with his practised eye.
So the scout master speedily appeared in the midst of the other members of the troop, who, with Nurse Jones, had been impatiently waiting just outside the office. Of course all of them were rather surprised when Hugh spoke, for they had believed him inside the building all this time.
“We’ve found the trail,” he told them quickly, and thinking it best that every one should know the facts without delay, Hugh went on to add: “There were three of the abductors, just the same number of guards Ralph saw hiding in the brush and watching the plant this afternoon. Come along with me, all of you!”