The Girls of Central High on Lake Luna Part 30

"But we never did anything to the crews of the other schools to make them hate us so," cried the doctor's daughter.

"Only threatening to beat them in the race," said Laura, doubtfully.

"That shouldn't be a sufficient reason for them to hate us," one of the Lockwood twins declared. "It does just seem as though it was done out of spite."

"And who's so spiteful toward the Central High eight?" demanded Bobby, keenly.

"Now, Bobby!" cautioned Laura.

"That's all right, Mother Wit. You see the point just as clearly as I do," declared Bobby. "You know who's been 'knocking' our crew all the time----"

"Why--you don't mean----" began Jess, in wide-eyed wonder; but Laura said:

"Hush! Don't say such a thing. We must not accuse people without some ground for suspicion."

"How much ground do you want--the whole earth?" snapped Bobby, in deep gloom.

So the name of the suspected culprit was not mentioned; but the little coterie of friends looked wisely at each other, and nodded.

For, you see, when a girl is disloyal to her school and cla.s.smates, how can they help suspecting her if evil should arise? A girl who will not accept the decision of the majority in school affairs, who scoffs at the efficiency of the various athletic teams--who never will be contented unless she is in the lead of everything--can neither be popular nor trusted. Disloyalty is a crime that every right-minded person abhors; and although these girls did not mention the name of the person they suspected, all realized who was meant when Bobby said:

"Well, the time is coming when she'll fly her kite too high! Everybody will see what she is, and then she'll never be able to fool anybody again--neither teachers, nor students of Central High. That's one satisfaction."

"And yet, not very satisfactory at present," returned Laura Belding, thoughtfully.

"Put on your thinking cap, then, Mother Wit, and catch her," said Bobby, in a whisper. "You did it before, you know."

The parents of some of the girls were intensely interested in the outcome of the races on the Big Day, too; and somebody with influence had induced the Chief of Police to put detectives on the trail of the lost sh.e.l.l. This, however, beside a search of the lake sh.o.r.e by the police launch, as already reported, did nothing toward uncovering the hiding place of the sh.e.l.l, or the ident.i.ty of the thieves.

It seemed ridiculous to suppose that one girl--no matter how spiteful she might feel--could have accomplished the crime of stealing the eight-oared sh.e.l.l alone. Yet Bobby Hargrew's insistence had impressed Laura Belding.

Perhaps, too, the fact that the other girls of Central High expected something brilliant in the way of detective work from Mother Wit spurred the jeweler's daughter to attempt to find the lost sh.e.l.l.

Instead, she attempted to make the guilty person return the new boat in time for the boat race. And to do this she tried a scheme that might have been fruitless had the culprit not been an amateur in deceit and wrongdoing. No real thief would have fallen into Laura Belding's trap.

She caused to be printed and posted upon the bulletin boards all over the Hill section of Centerport a quarter-sheet handbill which read in part that the person having caused the disappearance of the new eight-oared sh.e.l.l belonging to the Girls' Branch Athletic League of Central High was known, and that person would be publicly exposed if the sh.e.l.l was not returned, or the place of its hiding revealed, in season for the races. And she signed the bill with Professor Dimp's name, he having agreed to lend it for the occasion.

This was not many hours before the dawning of the day of the races; but Laura saw to it that the way to and from school for the person suspected was fairly plastered with those notices! Printed in their black type, they could not fail to be seen by the right eyes.

"What do you expect will come of _that_?" demanded Chet, rather inclined to scoff at his sister's plan.

"I hope it will cause a change of heart on the part of the person guilty of the outrage," declared Laura, laughing.

"Huh! If I knew who it was that stole the sh.e.l.l I'd go to 'em with a policeman."

"And then it would be denied, and we'd never get our sh.e.l.l back in time.

We don't know where it is," said Laura.

"And you evidently don't know just who is guilty," responded Chet.

"Moral certainty would not hold good in court," his sister returned, slily.

"Bet you nothing comes of it!" growled Chet.

But Laura would not wager anything with him. Perhaps she was not very certain in her own mind, at that, that she had gone about the matter in the right way.

The night before the Big Day arrived, and nothing was heard of the sh.e.l.l. The girls were hopeless. Even Bobby lost her last atom of cheerfulness. They were confident that, if they had to row in the old boat, Keyport, at least, would beat them in the race.

But when the new watchman opened the boat-House doors early on the morning of the race day he found pinned to the door a paper which bore in scraggly lettering this admonition:

"_Look under the east float._"

He proceeded to do this at once; and there was the sh.e.l.l, missing for so many anxious days, somewhat sc.r.a.ped by being washed by the current against the timbers underneath the float, but otherwise quite fit for use!

All the girls of Central High did not hear this welcome news until noon, when the schools of Centerport let out for the day. The afternoon was to be given up to the aquatic contests, and troops of boys and girls, as well as grown folks, went to the sh.o.r.e, or crowded the boats that were stationed along the racing course.

After all the Lockwood twins did not have to give up the canoe contest.

Aunt Dora would not hear of their losing practise; and she was so much improved that Mr. Lockwood hired an easy carriage and took her to the races that she might see Dora and Dorothy do their best to win both the canoeing and eight-oared trophies.

"They are real good girls, after all, Lemuel," said Aunt Dora, reflectively. "Now both of them have offered to go home with me."

"No!" cried the flower lover. "I can't spare them, Dora."

"I know you can't," admitted his sister, rather mildly for her. "And although they only said they would come to me for a little while, one at a time, I am not going to accept their sacrifice. I see plainly how much they are to each other--and to you. I guess they are yours, Lemuel, and if you have made mistakes in bringing them up, they are too sweet of disposition naturally to be spoiled by your foolishness.

"No," said Aunt Dora, conclusively, "the place for Dora is with Dorothy, and the place for Dorothy is with Dora. Besides," she added, "it would certainly trouble me to have them about I never _could_ be sure whether my namesake was visiting me, or the other one!"

CHAPTER XXV

THE RACE IS WON

Lake Luna was a blaze of glory between Centerport and Cavern Island--the June sunshine over all and every boat along the racing course bright with pennants and streamers. The two fussy little launches bearing the officers who managed the races puffed up and down the open water, and the big police launch kept the spectators' boats back of the line.

Ash.o.r.e the highlands were black with spectators, while the driveway was crowded with vehicles of every description. Keyport and Lumberport had been drawn upon to swell the crowds of lookers-on. The railroads and steam-boats had brought crowds to the race. It was indeed a gala day.

Promptly at one o'clock the events began. The trial of speed between the boys' eight-oared sh.e.l.ls was the first of the juvenile contests, and these latter trials gained almost as much interest from the crowds as did the first races.

The boys of Central High, with Chet and Lance and six others at the sculls, and Short and Long to steer, pulled a splendid race, and came in second--the junior crew of the famous Luna Boat Club being the winner.

At least the boys of Central High won over the crews of all the other high schools on the lake.

The canoe race was a mixed event, for there was no s.e.x limitation in canoeing. The Lockwood twins had been chosen, after all, to represent Central High, and Hester Grimes and Lily Pendleton were not even among the spectators at the races. They had accused Mrs. Case of "favoritism,"

although their record for speed was much below that of the twins.

Dora and Dorothy did their very best; but they could scarcely expect to win over all comers in this race. Like the boys' eight, however, they came in ahead of all the other school crews, being Number 3 at the finish. The race was won by grown men belonging to the Luna Boat Club.