"Dere's monkey-doodle pitzness somevere," muttered Carl, shaking his head ominously. "Vell, let's see vat dot ledder say, den ve know pedder vat to do."
The letter was short, but its contents were amazing.
"Jim: Got your note this morning. Glad to hear the pearls are on the way. Count on me. Will cut loose from Wienerwurst to-night, check trunk through to the Needles and leave on night train, getting off at Brockville and meeting you there.
Pringle."
"Pringle!" gurgled Carl. "Py shiminy grickets, dot's der feller vat run avay und took all vat I hat! Vell, vell! Vouldn't dot gif you a twist!"
"This note," murmured Matt, as several things dawned on his mind, "was written in answer to the one you found on the floor of Pringle's room, the morning you discovered he had skipped."
"Sure!" averred Carl. "Dot's as blain as anyt'ing. Und Pringle say somet'ing aboudt der bearls, doo. Say, look here vonce! I bed you dot Drymore und Pringle put oop some chobs to rop Domlinson oof dose bearls, und Domlinson vas doo sharp for dem. He sailed avay from der roppers und dey don'd ged nodding! Vell, led's be jeerful. I like pooty goot to see dot kind oof luck hit Pringle, afder vat he dit py me. Yah, you bed you!"
Carl couldn't see very far ahead. But Matt could, and he began to open up a line of speculation that took Carl's breath.
"The question is, Carl, how did that letter get under the rubber mat in the tonneau of the Red Flier? Tomlinson says he didn't stop, when the robbers commanded him to, but hit it up and sailed away from them. Now, if Trymore had that letter, and if he and Pringle were the robbers, how could the letter get out of Trymore's pocket and into the car? That had to happen in some way."
"I'm oop a shtump," admitted the puzzled Carl, shoving his fingers through his hair. "I nefer vas mooch oof a feller ad guessing oudt cornundums. Vat you t'ink, Matt?"
"I think Tomlinson must have been mixed up in it, in some way."