at the girls again!" said Dave sternly. "It was a cowardly thing to do, and you know it."
"If you do it again, we'll land on you ten times harder than we did just now," added Ben.
"And don't you get any more of those roughs to take a hand," continued Dave. "If you do, they'll find themselves in the lock-up, and you'll be there to keep them company."
"You just wait!" muttered Nat, wrathfully. "I'll fix you yet—you see if I don't!" And then he turned and hurried away, but not in the direction his companions had taken. He wanted to escape them if possible, for he had promised each a dollar for aiding him and he was now in no humor to hand over the money. But at another corner the roughs caught up to him and made him pay up, and this added to his disgust.
When Dave and the others got back to the house they were considerably "roughed up," as Roger expressed it. But they had vanquished the enemy and were correspondingly happy. They found that the girls had not been much hurt, for which everybody was thankful.
"Maybe they'll lay for you when you go home," whispered Ben to Dave, when he got the chance.
"I don't think they will," answered Dave. "But we'll be on our guard."
"Why not take a cane or two with you?"
