But Fred was mistaken. He had not yet seen the last of Andy Shanks.
CHAPTER XXVII
THE BASEBALL TEAM
The rest of the winter passed rapidly, and Fred, with the load off his mind, pitched into all the winter sports, making up royally for all he had missed in the dark days when he was under suspicion.
He and Teddy had gone home for the Christmas holidays, taking with them Bill Garwood and Lester Lee, to whom they had become warmly attached. Mr. and Mrs. Rushton had outdone themselves to give them a good time, and Martha, her black face shining, had made the table fairly groan with the good things she heaped upon it for her “lambs” and their friends.
The days had slipped away like magic. The visitors had had the time of their lives, and both Bill and Lester had insisted that the boys should come to see them in the summer vacation. They had a partial promise to this effect, but the matter was left for final decision later on.
Uncle Aaron had not been in Oldtown at the time, for which the boys were profoundly thankful. They could easily do without him any time, but now, with the watch and papers still missing, they cared less than ever to see him.
Nothing had been heard of the stolen watch, nor had the papers turned up, and every day that passed made it less likely that they ever would.
“Those papers!” sighed Teddy. “And that watch! Oh, if I’d only nabbed that tramp when I saw him!”
“Cheer up, old scout,” said Bill. “While there’s life, there’s hope.”