Teddy and Carrots: Two Merchants of Newpaper Row Part 25

The three arrived at home without having seen anything of their enemies, and in a short time were busily engaged discussing their future.

"I'll tell you what it is, Teddy, Ikey'll make an awful good clerk for us when we buy our stand, an' after we get him mended. He can sell papers or shine boots with the best of 'em, for I've seen him work."

Teddy suggested that they might not have a sufficient amount of business to warrant their hiring a clerk; but Carrots had his own ideas on the subject, and could not easily be persuaded that an a.s.sistant would not be an absolute necessity when the green-painted establishment with its bootblacking outfit was opened.

The idea that he was to have an opportunity for working, without being forced to run around the streets, pleased Master Cain wonderfully, and this, in addition to the relief from pain, served to put him in the best possible humor.

He promised to repay the boys, not only the twenty-five cents which was to be given the doctor in the form of boot-polishing, but also for such provisions as he might eat while one of their household; and agreed, in case Teddy finally concluded it would be desirable to hire him as a clerk, to do his work faithfully and honestly.

"We'll have the stand before two weeks go by, an' I reckon you'll be right there helpin' us with it," Carrots said, enthusiastically, as he once more prepared the bed for the invalid, and saw to it that there was food enough on hand to satisfy his wants during the coming day.

It was later than their usual time for retiring when the boys finally lay down to sleep; but, despite this fact, they were awake next morning as early as on any previous occasion, and, before leaving, Carrots again cautioned Ikey against allowing his presence in the box to be known.

"You needn't be worried," the invalid replied. "Now my leg doesn't ache so bad, I can keep mighty still, no matter what happens. Yesterday I had to turn over pretty often to rest it, an' was 'fraid sometimes the folks would hear me."

Then the boys clambered over the fence once more, and another day's work was begun.

CHAPTER XIV.

THE PLOT.

Shortly after the boys arrived at City Hall Park, and before the business of the day had fairly begun, Teenie Ma.s.sey approached to inquire if they had lately heard anything regarding Skip.

"Haven't seen nor heard of him," Carrots replied. "What makes you ask?"

"Nothin', only I heard he was tearin' round dreadful yesterday, tellin'

what he was goin' to do to you fellers."

"I guess he'll keep under cover for a while," Carrots replied, confidently; and Teenie said, as he shook his head warningly:

"Now don't be too sure of that, old man. I guess you want to keep your eyes open all the time, an' if you get to thinkin' he can't do any harm, you'll find him jumpin' right down on you some day."

"I'll risk all the harm he can do," Carrots replied, with a laugh. "He's too much 'fraid the police will 'rest him for stealin', to come 'round where we are."

"Well, I happen to know, from what Reddy Jackson said, that he hasn't given up hopes of drivin' you off yet."

Carrots did not think this warning worthy his attention; but yet he repeated the same to Teddy when he found an opportunity.

"I reckon Teenie's not far wrong," Master Thurston said, greatly to the surprise of his partner. "It didn't stand to reason that we was goin' to scare Skip so quick, an' I think he'll make one more try to git rid of us."

"I don't see what he can do," Carrots said, musingly; and Teddy chimed in:

"Neither do I, an' that's just why we're bound to be pretty careful. You see, if we could know what he was up to, it would be different."

There was no further opportunity to discuss the matter, owing to the sudden demand for the bootblack's services, and by noon both the partners had almost forgotten the warning given by Teenie.

This day's business brought them more money than the previous one, but not so much as on the occasion when Skip last made his threats.

On counting up the cash immediately after their return home, it showed an addition of a dollar and seventy-one cents to the fund, and when this had been ascertained, Carrots found time to inquire as to the condition of their invalid friend.

"I'm feelin' first-cla.s.s," Ikey said, "an' reckon my leg'll be all right to-morrow. Say, who do you s'pose has been sneakin' 'round here to-day?"

"It can't be Skip Jellison?" Carrots replied, quickly.

"That's jest who it was, an' Reddy Jackson come with him. Course they didn't know I was in here, an' I lay low and I heard every word they said."

"What did they talk 'bout?"

"You see, I was thinkin' how nice it felt to be out er pain, when there was a rattlin' among the boxes, as if somebody was a-walkin' on 'em.

First, I thought one of the men from the store had come out, an' I kept mighty quiet. Then two fellers began to talk, an' I knew who it was the minute they spoke; so I listened. Reddy he said to Skip, 'Here's where them fellers live.' Skip he 'lowed he couldn't see any place, an' Reddy said he knowed it was, 'cause he followed you home last night. Then he figured out that you slept in one of the boxes, an' that satisfied Skip."

"Did they hunt to see if they could find where we stopped?"

"No; I reckon they didn't dare, for fear somebody'd catch 'em. They was settin' up there on the fence, an' if one of the clerks had showed his nose they could have jumped over on the other side mighty quick. I tell you them fellers are up to some mischief."

"What do you mean?" Teddy asked, quickly.

"I heard Skip say he was goin' to burn you out, an' Reddy asked if he counted on doin' it to-night. He 'lowed he wouldn't, 'cause he'd got to go over to Jersey City; but he's bound to, the very first evenin' he can get away without anybody's knowin' what he's up to. He says he could put a lot of papers an' shavin's in these boxes, an' you'd be scorched some before you got out."

Carrots was on the point of laughing at this revelation of Skip's plot, much as if he questioned the latter's courage to do such a thing, when he observed Teddy, who was silent and looking very grave.

"Why, you don't b'lieve they'd dare to burn us out?" he asked in surprise.

"I ain't so sure 'bout that. Skip Jellison's a feller that dares to do 'most anything, if he thinks he can get through with it an' not be caught. It would be a mighty serious sc.r.a.pe for us if the boxes should get on fire while we were here. If any one saw us comin' out they'd say sure we did it. You might talk till you were blue in the face, if they knew that we had had candles here, an' not make 'em think we didn't do the mischief."

"By jiminy! you're right!" Carrots exclaimed, as he began to realize what their position would be under such circ.u.mstances. "Don't you think we'd better tell the folks in the store what Skip's countin' on doin'?"

"That wouldn't do any good. He'd swear it wasn't so, an' all we'd make out of it would be our havin' to leave."

"It seems as if that was what we'd got to do anyhow, if he's goin' to set this place on fire."

"Of course."

Carrots was surprised that his partner should agree with him so readily, and asked:

"Do you really think we ought ter go away from here?"

"That's jest the size of it. 'Cordin' to my way of figurin', we're apt to get ourselves into a fuss by stayin'; an', although it'll be hard work to find as snug a place, I reckon it's safer to go."

Carrots was instantly plunged into the lowest depths of sorrow.

Never before had the packing-case home seemed so beautiful as now, when it appeared necessary to leave it.

"I'd like to see somebody thrash that Skip! He's hardly fit to live!"