Chapter 12

BRISTLES HAS AN IDEA

The following morning, as Fred was tinkering around, fixing up some of his traps, he heard the whistle of one of his chums outside. Poking his head out of the window, and wondering why, if it should be Sid, he did not come upstairs without any knocking at the door, he saw to his surprise that it was Bristles.

"Hello! Fred! Can I climb up, or will you come down here?" the latter called out.

"Walk right into my parlor, said the spider to the fly," replied Fred, being in rare good humor himself, and wishing he could do something to help Bristles.

The other boy soon made his appearance in Fred's little den of a room; which, however, was mighty comfortable, and as neat as wax. Mrs. Fenton was a good housekeeper, and she had always trained her children to never leave things "at sixes and sevens," as she termed it.

Fred saw that Bristles was considerably excited over something or other. And of course the chances were that it must concern his own personal affairs. Having made a confidant of Fred, and gained more or less benefit because of his sympathy and advice, Bristles was rushing over the first thing with further news.

"You look worked up, Bristles," Fred remarked, as the other threw his cap on the table, and dropped down in the rocker.

"Well, I am, for a fact," the visitor replied, nodding his head to emphasize his remark.

"Anything happened to make you feel better?" suggested Fred; "has there been another mysterious robbery over at your aunt's house, so that she can understand you didn't do it, because you were far away this time?"

Bristles heaved a big sigh.

"Huh! no such good luck as that, Fred," he remarked; "I only wish it was that way. P'raps it will be, just as you say. But an idea hit me in the night, when I was a-lyin' there, trying to get to sleep again. I don't like to be awake when it's only three o'clock, you know. Makes me feel bad in the morning. And I was tired as all get-out last night, after what we did yesterday up at camp and on the way down, when we beat Buck's bunch so neat in that race."

"Hold on, stick to the text," remarked Fred; "you're the greatest fellow to ramble all over the lot when you start to telling anything. Now you said you had run across an idea; let's hear it, then; for I reckon it must have something to do with your trouble, Bristles?"

The other actually grinned, showing that he was feeling more hopeful on this bright, sunshiny, summer morning, at any rate.

"That's right, Fred, it had a whole lot to do with it!" he burst out. "Say, I've discovered who's been cribbing all those pretty little stones up at my aunt's!"

"You don't mean it?" cried Fred, really taken aback.

"Yes, I do, now," went on the excited Bristles; "and you couldn't guess it in a year of Sundays. It just seemed to pop into my head while I was lying there on my back, grunting because I couldn't get to sleep, or take my mind off Aunt Alicia and her queer old house."

"Now, don't stop like that, and chuckle, Bristles; but go on telling, if you want me to sit here and listen." Fred prodded his chum with his finger as he said this, to bring him to his senses.

"It's playing a mean game on the old lady, too, to take those opals so slick, and give her all that bad feeling; but if she _will_ keep such tricky pets, why she's got to pay for it, that's all, Fred."

"Pets!" burst out the other.

"Sure thing," laughed Bristles; "that wise old crow's the guilty thief!"

"The black raven that she brought over from England, you mean?" Fred went on, rather staggered himself by what Bristles had said, and yet discovering an element of possible truth in it.

"Yes, the old chap that cocks his head on one side when you come in, and examines you over from head to foot, just like he meant to say, 'If you're not good looking you're not wanted here!' Oh! he's a gay old villain, I just tell you! And, Fred, mark my words, he's the scamp who's been taking Aunty's opals."

"Why, I do remember reading, more than a few times, that crows and ravens have been known to fly away with bright spoons, and all sorts of things that seem to catch their fancy; but I never heard of a bird stealing from its mistress, and opals at that."

"Well, that's what this one is doing, you mark me," Bristles said, positively. "Why, just see what a great chance the old boy has. He finds the door open into the parlor once in a while, and just hops in, takes up one of the shiny stones, and carries it away to some place where he keeps his treasures. I just bet you now he's been carryin' on that way a long time, and Aunty never noticed that things were disappearing till I began to come over to see her."

"You think so, do you, Bristles?" remarked Fred, still pondering over the matter, and wondering in his mind whether it could really be an explanation for the peculiar little mystery that had given his chum so much heart-pain.

"Why, it's a dead open-and-shut cinch that the answer to the conundrum lies in that silly old black bunch of feathers," declared the other, conviction in his voice. "I looked up all about ravens in our big 'cyclopædia as soon as I got downstairs this morning; and the more I read, the stronger my mind got that Black Joe _must_ be the guilty one."

"Will you go and tell your aunt, and ask her to make a search for his hiding-place?" Fred inquired.

"Well--er--no; not just that," answered the other, slowly, and watching Fred out of the tail of his eye; "fact is, I'm afraid she'd laugh at me, and say it was only another excuse for me to get inside her house. Now, if _you_ could drop in to see Aunt Alicia on some excuse or other, Fred, perhaps you might get a chance to look around, and find out where Black Joe keeps his little crop of treasures hid."

Fred burst out into a laugh.

"Oh! I see, you want me to be the one to take chances; is that it, Bristles?" he demanded.

"Well, I didn't think you'd mind doing a little more for a poor fellow, as you've been such a help already to me, Fred; and then, she won't accuse you of wanting to do anything wrong like she might me. Fact is," he went on eagerly, so as to better carry his point, "she once said she kind of liked your looks, after you'd been in there with me. I sure believe you made a hit with Aunt Alicia; because, as a rule, she doesn't care much for boys, you know."

"Hold on, Bristles," said Fred, laughingly; "that won't wash a bit. You're giving me some taffy now, just to make me agree to visit your aunt. But, honest, I don't care to take the chances. My reputation is pretty good up to now; but it might go to flinders if anyone said I was taking things that did not belong to me."

"But, good gracious! Fred, she wouldn't have any reason to accuse you!" Bristles burst out, very much disappointed because his pet scheme promised to meet with a hitch so early in its development.

"You forget one thing?" said Fred, soberly.

"Perhaps I have, because, you see, I'm all excited; and it isn't apt to leave a fellow in decent trim for thinking. But what was it I forgot, Fred; tell me that?"

"Why, perhaps one or two of the balance of those opals might take a notion to disappear about the same time I dropped in to see your aunt, without any invitation to do it. And in that case she'd just naturally think you'd put me up to keeping the queer business going. I'd hate to have her think that of me, and much worse send word to my father and mother that I was a thief!"

"I should say so," declared Bristles, gloomily. "Bad enough to have her say that I was; and that's all in the family, you see. I never once thought of that, believe me, Fred. Wouldn't have asked you to take such chances, if I had. 'Course it wouldn't be fair, and I'm a selfish feller for hinting at it."

"I don't think so, Bristles," Fred went on, consolingly. "It looked good to you, because you never thought of the chances of another raid being made on your aunt's opals. But perhaps you might have your mother go over and see Miss Alicia. She could mention what you thought, and even if the old lady did pretend to scoff at the idea, it would put a flea in her ear, so perhaps she'd keep an eye on Black Joe."

"I'll think about it, Fred. I don't fancy dragging my mother into the game if it can be helped. I'd like to lift the lid myself, and then have the laugh on Aunt Alicia. Some day, perhaps, she'll be sorry she thought so mean of me, and wouldn't listen to my defense. You wait and see. I'm going to get at the bottom of this thing if it takes me all summer."

"Well, General Grant got there in the end, and let's hope you'll be as lucky, old fellow," said Fred, cheerfully. "Anyhow, that was a bright thought about Black Joe; and it would be a jolly story to tell if it did turn out that way."

"Why, right now you more'n half believe it yourself, Fred!" cried Bristles.

"It's worth thinking about," was the noncommittal answer Fred made.

"Oh! by the way," his visitor suddenly exclaimed, "while I was on my way over here I met Corney, who said he'd heard the Mechanicsburg fellows got their boat last night."

"Good for that," remarked Fred, with satisfaction. "Now both crews can get busy, and whip themselves in shape for that big race later on. I expect we'll do much better next time. Colon wasn't himself at all, after being nearly drowned only the day before. But he'll come around all right; and when he's in trim there isn't a huskier fellow in the Riverport school."

"We practice again this afternoon, don't we?" asked Bristles.

"That was the programme last night, Brad told us," replied Fred.

"Well, I only hope I get relief from this cloud that's hangin' over my head all the time," Bristles went on, sighing again. "It's just like the toothache, Fred; you suffer, and know it means goin' to the dentist's chair; but how you hate to go and get her yanked out! But once you make up your mind, and the job's done, how glad you feel you went; eh? Well, some bright day, I'm hoping, I'll feel just as happy as if I'd had a tooth drawn," and Fred was compelled to smile at the homely way his chum illustrated the condition of his feelings, though he understood just how Bristles felt.