rince has found an
eavesdropper!"

They rushed out, they sprang down the stairs, and at the foot they found
the dog, apparently in a dazed condition, but with a piece of cloth in
his mouth.

"Good dog!" cried Jack. "Where is he?"

Prince growled and chewed away at the piece of cloth.

"He got away," said Frank. "He must have struck Prince with a heavy
cane, or a club, for we heard the blow. The dog was stunned, but he held
fast to this piece of the fellow's trousers."

"After him!" spluttered Rattleton. "He may not be able to get away!
We'll try to capture him!"

But the effort was vain. The eavesdropper had made good his escape.

After a little time the boys all came back to Diamond's room. They found
Jack examining the piece of cloth, which he had taken from the bulldog
with no small difficulty.

"It is from somebody's trousers," said Jack, seriously. "Whoever the
sneak was, he'll have to buy a new pair. He hit Prince a frightful blow
behind the ear, but the good old fellow held fast to this trophy."

"If we'd nabbed the fellow, we wouldn't have done a thing to him--not a
thing!" cried Griswold.

"See if any of you fellows recognize this piece of cloth as belonging to
the clothing of any chap you know," invited Diamond.

They all examined it.

"If I mistake not," said Dismal Jones, "this came from a certain section
of a certain individual's trousers, and the section to which I refer is
located about eight inches south of the back strap."

"And the fellow," exclaimed Robinson, "the fellow is----"

"Roland Ditson!" finished Rattleton.

"In that case," said Diamond, "Merriwell's enemies have received a good
tip concerning his fondness for Nemo. You will have to be doubly careful
about that horse after this, Frank."

CHAPTER VII.

THE PLOT.

If Roland Ditson was the person from whose trousers the piece of cloth
had been torn he took good care to destroy what he had retained of the
breeches without delay, for they were never again seen in his
possession.

The figure on the cloth was not pronounced enough to distinguish it in a
manner to make it absolute proof that it came from a garment owned by
Roland.

Nevertheless Diamond accused Ditson of listening at his door, but Roll
vigorously denied that he had done so. Diamond told him he was a
natural-born prevaricator, and let it go at that.

But Ditson was watched like a hawk by the boy from Virginia, for Jack
felt sure the fellow was up to