CHAPTER VII

A STRANGE LETTER BOX

"It won't be long now before we'll have to get back to Putnam Hall,"

observed Sam, as they drove along. "Dear old school! How I love it!"

"It's too bad that we are getting too old to go there," said Tom. "But

we can't be boys always."

"I shall be glad to see the other fellows again," came from Dick.

"Do you know what I think?" declared Tom. "I think the Putnam Hall

cadets are the finest lot of boys in the world!"

"Throwing bouquets at yourself, Tom?" said Sam, with a laugh.

"Well, don't you agree with me?"

"I certainly do, Sam, and Captain Putnam is the best teacher in the

world. My, but won't we have fun when we get back!"

"We'll have to have a feast in honor of our return," said Dick, and

smiled that quiet smile of his which meant so much.

The distance to the cave was soon covered, and the boys tied their team

to a tree in that vicinity. They went inside and found that everything,

even to the empty boxes, had been taken away. The place had been

explored by a number of curiosity seekers.

"It is queer that this cave wasn't discovered before," was Dick's

comment, after they had spent half an hour in walking around.

"Perhaps the opening to the road wasn't so large formerly," suggested

Tom. "Dangler may have enlarged it, so he could drive in."

"That is true. Well, it will be a regular picnic place after this. Its

fame will spread for miles around." And Dick was right, and the cave is

a well-known spot in that portion of New York state to this day.

The boys had brought with them two electric pocket lights, as they are

called--lights they had purchased while on their river outing--and with

these turned on they walked to the extreme rear of the cave and along

the various passageways running up the mountainside.

"Here is where we dropped in," said Dick, pointing out the spot.

"I wish we could drop out--and land up on the mountain outside,"

returned his youngest brother. "Then, maybe, you could locate that tin

lunch box, or whatever it was."

"I'd get up,

Very soon

If I had,

A big balloon!"

sang out Tom, merrily. "But as there doesn't seem to be a balloon handy,

what's the matter with trying to climb up?" he added.

"And pull down several tons of dirt and rock on your head," said Dick.

"Better go slow. We already know how treacherous these holes are. You'll

get out of one by getting into another that's worse."

"I brought a lariat along," said Sam.

"A lariat?" queried the others.

"Sure,--the one I bought when we were out west. I thought we might use

it for climbing purposes. It is light but strong, and we can lasso a

tree or stump up there with it."

"Hurrah! Sam has solved the problem of how the Rover boys shall rise in

the world!" exclaimed Tom, gaily. "Sam, try your skill by all means."

"Show me the tree or stump and I will," answered his brother readily.

As well as they were able, they crawled from one part of the hole to a

spot that was somewhat higher. Then they found a projecting rock above

them and Sam threw the noose of his lariat over this.

"Will it hold?" queried Dick. "You don't want to try to climb up and

fall."

With caution Sam pulled on the lariat. It held, and he went up hand over

hand, for he was a fair athlete. Then his brothers followed. They now

stood on a ledge of rock, and the top of the hole was still twelve feet

above them.

"There is a small tree, Sam," said Tom, looking upward. "If you can

lasso that I think we'll be all right."

Once more the youngest Rover started to use the lariat. As it swung

upward it missed the tree and swished out of sight over the edge of the

hole.

"Ouch!" came the unexpected cry from above. "Oh, my eye!"

"Hullo! you've lashed somebody!" ejaculated Dick.

"I didn't know there was anybody up there," answered Sam, as the noose

of the lasso slipped downward.

The three Rover boys looked upward. They heard a hasty movement in the

bushes and caught a brief glimpse of a man's face. On the instant the

man disappeared, muttering something to himself.

"It was Dangler!" ejaculated Dick.

"Are you sure?" asked both of the others, in a breath.

"Almost positive."

Dick had scarcely spoken the last words when down into the hole came a

shower of dirt and stones, shoved over the edge above. The boys were

struck by the stones and got some of the dirt in their eyes. Then down

came a second mass of the same sort.

"Sto--stop that!" spluttered Tom, when he could speak. "Do you want to

kill us?"

There was no answer, but down came more dirt and stones, until the boys

were almost covered. What to do they did not know, until Dick suggested

they drop from the ledge and seek safety in the cave. As they went down,

a fair-sized rock followed, scraping Tom's shoulder and causing him to

utter a sharp cry of pain.

"Are you hurt, Tom?" asked his two brothers.

"Oh, it isn't much," panted Tom. "But I wish I could get my hands on

that rascal, that's all!"

"I am sure now that it must be Dangler," said Dick. "Nobody else around

here would try to injure us. He is mad because we have exposed him. He

must know the officers of the law are looking for him."

"I wish we could catch the rascal," muttered Tom.

"Supposing we climb the mountain from the outside?" suggested Sam. "It

is a perfectly clear day and is early yet. We'll know enough to look out

for pitfalls. If we can catch this Dangler the three of us ought to be

able to manage him."

"If we are going to try anything like that we want to hurry," returned

Dick. "He won't remain in this locality long--now he knows he is

discovered."

"Maybe he thinks we didn't see him," came from Tom.

"Well, that will be in our favor. But he'll know somebody will be after

him, for throwing down the dirt and stones."

Having eaten a hasty lunch and washed it down with water from a nearby

spring, the three lads began the ascent of the mountain. This was hard

work and caused them to perspire freely.

"I'm glad I'm not fat," said Tom. "If I was I'd be winded sure."

"I think we'd better keep quiet as soon as we reach the vicinity of the

holes," cautioned Dick.

Half an hour of hard climbing brought the boys to the vicinity where

they had first fallen into the holes leading to the cave, and then they

advanced cautiously and in almost absolute silence. They stopped to

listen several times, but heard nothing but the calls of some birds and

the trickling of water over the rocks.

Arriving at the top of the hole from where the dirt and stones had been

thrown, they gazed around with interest. Where the soil was soft they

could see the footprints of shoes much larger than those they themselves

wore.

"Here is his trail, going away," said Dick, after a close examination.

"There is your tin box!" cried Sam, pointing to the object, still

dangling from a distant tree.

"Wait till I see what is in it," answered his big brother. "It won't

take but a minute or two."

"Beware of holes!" cautioned Tom.

Feeling his way through the brushwood, Dick approached the dangling tin

box. It was a small affair and now hung open. He felt certain in his

mind that when he had seen it before it had been closed.

The box proved to be empty and Dick was, somehow, disappointed. He

glanced on the ground and saw a number of bits of paper, some old

looking and some new. He picked up some of the bits and saw they had

been written on in pencil, but the words or parts of words were

undecipherable.

"Well, what do you make of it?" questioned Sam, as he and Tom came up.

"I think I know what this is," answered Dick.

"What?"

"A sort of a private post-office. Somebody was in the habit of leaving

messages here, and Dangler or somebody else got the messages from time

to time."