CHAPTER XXV

SOLVING THE MYSTERY

Just whom Mr. Salper had got the radio boys could not tell with certainty, but they had a shrewd suspicion that Mohun was the hapless individual.

The financier walked happily and springily about the office, chuckling to himself, and Jimmy declared afterward that if they had not been there he would have danced a jig.

At last, when he had given sufficient vent to his elation, Mr. Salper turned to Bob.

"I'm sure I can't tell you how I thank you," he declared, with a cordiality and heartiness that they had never yet seen in him. "This matter was one of the most important that has come to me in the whole course of my life. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were involved in it, and I'd surely have lost out if I hadn't had your services in this extremity. And now I'm going to prove my gratitude. A check--"

"No, thank you, Mr. Salper," interrupted Bob hastily. "We don't want money for the service we've been to you. It's been exciting and interesting work for us, and I, at least, have been more than paid in the experience I've got through sending."

"Well then I'm going to get you the finest radio set that money can buy," persisted Mr. Salper.

"Not even that, thank you," returned Bob, smiling. "It's awfully good of you, and we appreciate it, but we've learned more of radio by building our own sets than we possibly could have done in any other way. If you want to send a check to the Red Cross or some other society of the kind, it would suit us better than anything else."

"You're a stubborn young rascal," said Mr. Salper, with a smile, "and I suppose I'll have to let you have your way. But just bear in mind that you boys have a friend in me for life, and if I can ever be of service to any of you in business or anything else, let me know and I'll be only too glad to do it."

He bade them good-by and went off briskly toward his bungalow to tell his family of the news that had lifted such a heavy burden from his brain and heart.

The third day after the episode at the radio station the radio boys had gone further afield than usual and came upon a little shack that had evidently been used by workmen as a place for storing their tools. It was little more than a shed, and the boys, bestowing on it only a casual glance, had come nearly abreast of it when Bob, who was slightly in advance, heard a voice that he recognized as that of Buck Looker.

He stopped dead in his tracks, and his companions did the same as he held up his hand in warning.

"We certainly did put it over on those boobs all right," Buck was saying, and the remark was followed by laughs of satisfaction.

"Yes, but we're not yet out of the woods," came the voice of Carl Lutz, with a touch of uneasiness in the tone. "Suppose when they put us on the stand to testify that we found Bob Layton and the other fellows in the cottage the evening before it burned, their lawyer asks us if we were in it too?"

"Well, let them ask," replied Buck. "All we'll have to do is to deny it. We know they were in it. They don't know we were in it. Who knows that we slipped in later and sat there until nearly midnight smoking cigarettes?"

With a bound Bob was at the door of the shack.

"I know it!" he cried. "I didn't know it till just this minute, but now I know it by your own confession."

"We all heard it," echoed Joe, as he, with Herb and Jimmy, followed Bob into the shack.

Consternation and conscious guilt was written on every one of the three faces.

Buck was the first of the cronies to recover some measure of self-possession.

"Think you've put something over, don't you?" he sneered. "Well, you've got another think coming to you. This won't do you a bit of good in court. I'll simply swear that I didn't say anything of the kind and that you've made up the story out of whole cloth. It'll be simply my word against yours, and you'd be interested witnesses trying to help your fathers out by cooking up this story. So what are you going to do about it?"

"I'll show you what we're going to do about it!" cried Joe, starting forward.

But Bob stopped him.

"Wait a minute, Joe," he said. Then he turned to Buck. "Do you mean to say," he demanded, "that you'd take a solemn oath in court to tell the truth, and then go on the stand and swear to a downright lie?"

The contempt in his tone stung Buck into fury.

"You can put it any way you like," he shouted. "I'm simply not going to let you get the best of me. Who cares for the old confession as you call it? You can have as many of those as you like and it won't do you any good. Here's another one now for good measure. We were in the house late that night. We were smoking cigarettes. Probably that's what caused the fire to break out later. I tell you these things just because it won't do you any good. In court I'll deny that I ever said them. You'll say I did. But the court will know that you have as much interest in lying as I have, and it'll just be a standoff. You'd have to have a disinterested witness, and that you haven't got."

"Oh, yes, they have," came a voice from the doorway, and Mr. Salper stepped into the shack.

An exclamation of delight broke from the lips of the radio boys, while Buck and his cronies slunk back in terror and confusion.

"I was out taking a stroll," explained Mr. Salper, "and as I heard loud voices coming from the shack I stepped up to see what was the matter. I was just in time to hear the full confession of this estimable young man"--here he turned a withering glance on Buck--"and while I'm here, I guess I'll take it down."

He drew from his pocket a notebook and a fountain pen and wrote rapidly, while Buck and his companions looked at each other like so many trapped animals.

In a few minutes Mr. Salper had finished. Then he read in a clear voice just what he had written. It was a complete confession similar to that which Buck had made, with date and place affixed. He handed this over to Buck with the fountain pen, with a crisp demand that he sign it.

Buck hesitated as long as he dared, but with those keen eyes used to command fixed upon him from beneath Mr. Salper's beetling brows, he finally signed his name, and Lutz and Mooney shamefacedly followed suit.

"I guess that will settle the law case," Mr. Salper remarked, with a smile, as he handed the precious document to Bob, who folded it carefully and put it in his breast pocket. "Now perhaps we would better go and leave these worthy young gentlemen to their meditations. I don't think they'll be especially pleasant ones."

The radio boys left the shack, followed by the black looks of the discomfited conspirators.

"You certainly came along in the nick of time, Mr. Salper," said Bob. "We're very grateful to you."

"I'm glad if I've been able to be of service to you," replied Mr. Salper. "It's only paying back in small measure what you've done for me. The bulk of the obligation is still on my side."

It was a happy group of radio boys that returned to the Mountain Rest Hotel that afternoon.

"Adventures have surely crowded in on us lately," remarked Bob.

"More than they ever will again," prophesied Joe.

But that he had not foretold the future correctly will be seen by those who read the following volume of this series, entitled: "The Radio Boys Trailing a Voice; Or, Solving a Wireless Mystery."

That very night they sent the news of the confession to Dr. Atwood with the request that he would communicate the tidings to the fathers of the rest of the boys. The lawsuit, of course, was dropped at once, and Buck and his cronies slunk home in disgrace.

"Radio is lots of work, but it's also lots of fun," remarked Joe that night, as they sat late reviewing the events of the day.

"Radio," repeated Bob. "It's more than fun. It's excitement. It's romance. It's adventure. It's life!"

THE END

_This Isn't All!_

Would you like to know what became of the good friends you have made in this book?

Would you like to read other stories continuing their adventures and experiences, or other books quite as entertaining by the same author?

On the _reverse side_ of the wrapper which comes with this book, you will find a wonderful list of stories which you can buy at the same store where you got this book.

_Don't throw away the Wrapper_

_Use it as a handy catalog of the books you want some day to have. But in case you do mislay it, write to the Publishers for a complete catalog._

THE RADIO BOYS SERIES

(Trademark Registered)

By ALLEN CHAPMAN

Author of the "Railroad Series," Etc.

Individual Colored Wrappers. Illustrated.

Every Volume Complete in Itself.

A new series for boys giving full details of radio work, both in sending and receiving--telling how small and large amateur sets can be made and operated, and how some boys got a lot of fun and adventure out of what they did. Each volume from first to last is so thoroughly fascinating, so strictly up-to-date and accurate, we feel sure all lads will peruse them with great delight.

Each volume has a Foreword by Jack Binns, the well-known radio expert.

THE RADIO BOYS' FIRST WIRELESS THE RADIO BOYS AT OCEAN POINT THE RADIO BOYS AT THE SENDING STATION THE RADIO BOYS AT MOUNTAIN PASS THE RADIO BOYS TRAILING A VOICE THE RADIO BOYS WITH THE FOREST RANGERS THE RADIO BOYS WITH THE ICEBERG PATROL THE RADIO BOYS WITH THE FLOOD FIGHTERS THE RADIO BOYS ON SIGNAL ISLAND THE RADIO BOYS IN GOLD VALLEY

GROSSET & DUNLAP, _Publishers_, NEW YORK

THE DON STURDY SERIES

By VICTOR APPLETON

Individual Colored Wrappers and Text Illustrations by

WALTER S. ROGERS

Every Volume Complete in Itself.

In company with his uncles, one a mighty hunter and the other a noted scientist, Don Sturdy travels far and wide, gaining much useful knowledge and meeting many thrilling adventures.

DON STURDY ON THE DESERT OF MYSTERY;

An engrossing tale of the Sahara Desert, of encounters with wild animals and crafty Arabs.

DON STURDY WITH THE BIG SNAKE HUNTERS;

Don's uncle, the hunter, took an order for some of the biggest snakes to be found in South America--to be delivered alive!

DON STURDY IN THE TOMBS OF GOLD;

A fascinating tale of exploration and adventure in the Valley of Kings in Egypt.

DON STURDY ACROSS THE NORTH POLE;

A great polar blizzard nearly wrecks the airship of the explorers.

DON STURDY IN THE LAND OF VOLCANOES;

An absorbing tale of adventures among the volcanoes of Alaska.

DON STURDY IN THE PORT OF LOST SHIPS;

This story is just full of exciting and fearful experiences on the sea.

DON STURDY AMONG THE GORILLAS;

A thrilling story of adventure in darkest Africa. Don is carried over a mighty waterfall into the heart of gorilla land.

GROSSET & DUNLAP, _Publishers_, NEW YORK

THE TOM SWIFT SERIES

By VICTOR APPLETON

Uniform Style of Binding. Individual Colored Wrappers.

Every Volume Complete in Itself.

Every boy possesses some form of inventive genius. Tom Swift is a bright, ingenious boy and his inventions and adventures make the most interesting kind of reading.

TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR CYCLE TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR BOAT TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRSHIP TOM SWIFT AND HIS SUBMARINE BOAT TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RUNABOUT TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIRELESS MESSAGE TOM SWIFT AMONG THE DIAMOND MAKERS TOM SWIFT IN THE CAVES OF ICE TOM SWIFT AND HIS SKY RACER TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RIFLE TOM SWIFT IN THE CITY OF GOLD TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR GLIDER TOM SWIFT IN CAPTIVITY TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIZARD CAMERA TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT SEARCHLIGHT TOM SWIFT AND HIS GIANT CANNON TOM SWIFT AND HIS PHOTO TELEPHONE TOM SWIFT AND HIS AERIAL WARSHIP TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG TUNNEL TOM SWIFT IN THE LAND OF WONDERS TOM SWIFT AND HIS WAR TANK TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR SCOUT TOM SWIFT AND HIS UNDERSEA SEARCH TOM SWIFT AMONG THE FIRE FIGHTERS TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE TOM SWIFT AND HIS FLYING BOAT TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT OIL GUSHER TOM SWIFT AND HIS CHEST OF SECRETS TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRLINE EXPRESS

Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York

THE RIDDLE CLUB BOOKS

By ALICE DALE HARDY

Individual Colored Wrappers. Attractively Illustrated.

Every Volume Complete in Itself.

Here is as ingenious a series of books for little folks as has ever appeared since "Alice in Wonderland." The idea of the Riddle books is a little group of children--three girls and three boys decide to form a riddle club. Each book is full of the adventures and doings of these six youngsters, but as an added attraction each book is filled with a lot of the best riddles you ever heard.

THE RIDDLE CLUB AT HOME

An absorbing tale that all boys and girls will enjoy reading. How the members of the club fixed up a clubroom in the Larue barn, and how they, later on, helped solve a most mysterious happening, and how one of the members won a valuable prize, is told in a manner to please every young reader.

THE RIDDLE CLUB IN CAMP

The club members went into camp on the edge of a beautiful lake. Here they had rousing good times swimming, boating and around the campfire. They fell in with a mysterious old man known as The Hermit of Triangle Island. Nobody knew his real name or where he came from until the propounding of a riddle solved these perplexing questions.

THE RIDDLE CLUB THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS

This volume takes in a great number of winter sports, including skating and sledding and the building of a huge snowman. It also gives the particulars of how the club treasurer lost the dues entrusted to his care and what the melting of the great snowman revealed.

THE RIDDLE CLUB AT SUNRISE BEACH

This volume tells how the club journeyed to the seashore and how they not only kept up their riddles but likewise had good times on the sand and on the water. Once they got lost in a fog and are marooned on an island. Here they made a discovery that greatly pleased the folks at home.

GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK

FOOTBALL AND BASEBALL STORIES

Durably Bound. Illustrated. Colored Wrappers.

Every Volume Complete in Itself.

The Ralph Henry Barbour Books for Boys

In these up-to-the-minute, spirited genuine stories of boy life there is something which will appeal to every boy with the love of manliness, cleanness and sportsmanship in his heart.

LEFT END EDWARDS LEFT TACKLE THAYER LEFT GUARD GILBERT CENTER RUSH ROWLAND FULLBACK FOSTER LEFT HALF HARMON RIGHT END EMERSON RIGHT GUARD GRANT QUARTERBACK BATES RIGHT TACKLE TODD RIGHT HALF HOLLINS

The Christy Mathewson Books for Boys

Every boy wants to know how to play ball in the fairest and squarest way. These books about boys and baseball are full of wholesome and manly interest and information.

PITCHER POLLOCK CATCHER CRAIG FIRST BASE FAULKNER SECOND BASE SLOAN PITCHING IN A PINCH

THIRD BASE THATCHER, By Everett Scott

GROSSET & DUNLAP, _Publishers_, NEW YORK

End of Project Gutenberg's The Radio Boys at Mountain Pass, by Allen Chapman