Leaving his companions, George telephoned his father. The conversation lasted several minutes and when at last George rejoined his friends he said glumly, “My father says the best thing for us to do is to come home by train. He told us to look out and not lose the train.”
“I guess,” laughed Grant, “it would be a little more expensive for him if we should lose the train than to have us lose the cars.”
“If we keep this up much longer,” said Fred, “we’ll have a good big bill to pay. I never knew anybody in my life that ever had a car stolen and here we lose two inside of a week.”
“You must remember,” said John soberly, “that we are the Go Ahead boys. It doesn’t make any difference what we start in we have got to leave the rest of them behind us. If it’s looking for smugglers or digging for a pirate’s chest or having our automobiles stolen, it doesn’t make a particle of difference which, we are bound to go ahead, get ahead and keep ahead.”
“I’m glad to hear you talk that way,” said George grimly. “I have been looking in my pockets to see if I have money enough to get a ticket home. Have any of you got money?”
“I’ll take up a collection,” suggested John, seizing his cap as he spoke. The result of his efforts, however, when the sum was counted, was not quite sufficient to purchase the tickets required by the four boys on their return trip.
“I don’t see anything for us to do,” said Fred glibly, “except to leave String here. He’s the one who is responsible for the loss of the car to-day and if anybody has to stay behind I think he ought to be the one.”
“I agree with you,” said John meekly. “I’m willing to stay, for I confess I would like to find out what has become of that lost car.”