The Hilltop Boys Part 20

CHAPTER XV

FUN AND EXCITEMENT

The new number of the _Gazette_ was liked by all the boys with a few exceptions, which were to be expected and nowhere was anything but praise heard in regard to Jack Sheldon's first appearance as an editor for the disaffected ones were wise enough to remain quiet after the first outbreak of disapproval.

"Herring will keep still," said d.i.c.k to a few of his chief cronies who were in the secret. "He does not understand just how the thing happened, but he knows that he is suspected and will keep under cover for a time.

Don't say anything to arouse his suspicions."

"I came pretty near letting the cat out of the bag," laughed Harry, "but I will be careful after this."

"Yes, you must be. You are too apt to sputter out what you think without any regard to the consequences."

The _Gazette_ was circulated among the boys of the Academy and also sent to their parents and to many other schools which exchanged with them, so that it had a considerable circulation.

In a short time there were complimentary notices of the latest number of the _Gazette_ in several of the school periodicals, all of them noticing its improvement and speaking highly of the new editor.

"Somebody thought that the _Gazette_ would be a dead one," laughed Billy Manners one afternoon when reading over one of the other papers with a number of his chums, "but it will be livelier than ever now. Jack is just the boy to run it and make it one of the best there is."

Billy Manners was one of the chief funmakers of the Academy, although he was a good student as well and stood high in his cla.s.ses.

He was fond of a joke even if it happened to be at his own expense but more often it was at that of some one else.

Billy and the others were so much interested in reading the complimentary notice of the _Gazette_ that they failed to observe the coming of Colonel Bull, the military instructor of the Academy.

Now the Colonel was a bit of a stickler for ceremony and the boys were always obliged to salute him when they met him.

Failing to notice his approach, however, he was upon them before they saw him and the only warning of his coming was the hearing of a sharp command:

"Attention! Where are your manners, you cubs? Salute me this instant and keep your eyes about you another time."

The boys were at attention in a moment and gave the salute in the customary stiff and wooden fashion to which they were used.

"What are you reading?" demanded the Colonel. "Some sentimental rubbish, I suppose. Let me see it."

Billy handed over the magazine and the Colonel looked at it, being obliged to put on his gla.s.ses in order to read it, however.

"H'm! foolish but not as bad as I thought. Now you may go but at another time keep your eyes about you. Break ranks!"

The boys a.s.sumed a natural att.i.tude and Billy stooped to pick up the paper which the Colonel had thrown contemptuously upon the ground.

Billy was not a ventriloquist but he did have a way of altering his voice and now, feeling a bit sore at the pompous Colonel and desiring to be revenged suddenly shouted in an ear-piercing tone:

"Look out! Mad dog!"

At once the Colonel, who was fat and more than forty, let out a sudden e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n and bolted for the nearest tree.

His hat flew off, his gla.s.ses dangled at the end of their cord and thrashed around like mad and the colonel's short, fat legs ate up s.p.a.ce in a most remarkable manner.

There was a tree in the way which the colonel had not noticed and he ran into it with considerable force, knocking off his wig which the boys, up to that time, had never seen except upon his head.

He got up in great haste, grabbed his wig from the ground, clapped it on his head hind side before and at once started to climb the tree.

The sight of the short, fat, bald drillmaster, with his wig awry, endeavoring to climb a little tree was too much for the dignity of the boys and they burst into a roar of laughter.

They had no thought of consequences, no fear of future punishment, but just laughed as hard as they could.

Then there was a sudden cry of alarm around a turn in the road.

"Hallo! what's that?" cried Arthur.

"Great Scott! there is a mad dog after all!" gasped Harry.

A number of the smaller boys of the Academy suddenly appeared in full flight pursued by a panting, yelping, foam-covered dog whose every look showed that he was mad.

"H'm! the alarm was not given for nothing after all," muttered Billy, looking for a place of safety.

Harry and Arthur turned toward the Academy and ran as fast as they could, thinking nothing of fun now.

"Here, here, I must do something for those kids!" cried Billy, pausing in his flight.

There was some one else ready to do something for them, however.

The dog had almost reached the hindmost and smallest of the boys when Jack Sheldon suddenly came out of one of the cottages.

He saw the danger of the boys in an instant and plunged forward as if making a tackle in a game of football.

The dog was right in front of him at this moment and six feet away.

Suddenly the weight of a boy of a hundred and twenty-five pounds was dropped upon the dog's back with a force that laid him flat and gave him a start for which he was not looking.

In an instant he was flat on his belly on the ground with all the breath and the greater part of his desire to injure some one knocked out of him.

He was able to give one yelp and then Jack suddenly sprang off his back, gave him a contemptuous shove with his foot and said:

"Get out of here and go about your business!"

With his tail between his legs and a yelp of fright the dog suddenly turned and went down the road as fast as he had come up.

"Well! that was some way of dealing with a mad dog!" said Billy, with a laugh. "You knocked all the fight out of him in a jiffy."

"Has he gone for sure?" asked one of the small boys of Jack.

"Yes, and you need not be afraid. Whose dog was it and what brought him up here?"

"H'm, has he gone?" asked the Colonel who had reached the crotch of the tree, fortunately not far from the ground and now turned a very red and sweaty face upon the group below.

"Yes, sir," said Jack, saluting and at the same time having the greatest difficulty to refrain from smiling or even laughing outright at the comical appearance of the doughty warrior.