merrily among themselves and with friends in the water.

"Dere oughter peen some law for dot," muttered Hans.

Leaving the canal, they set out upon the sand-plain, the undertaker's
burro crawling along at an aggravating pace, its master refusing to whip
it up, despite urging.

The sun had set, and darkness was settling in a blue haze on the plain
when the hut was reached.

Frank lighted a pocket lamp he always carried, and entered.

A cry of astonishment broke from his lips.

"Professor! professor!" he called; "the body is gone!"

CHAPTER III.

HELD FOR RANSOM.

"Gone!"

The professor was astonished.

"Shimminy Gristmas! I don'd toldt you dot!" came from Hans Dunnerwust.

"Yes, gone," repeated Frank, throwing the light about the room and
finally bringing it back to the bed of grass.

"But--but it's impossible."

"Impossible or not, it is true, as you may see."

"But the man was dead--as dead as he could be!"

"Yah!" snorted Hans. "Py shingoes! dot peen der trute. Dot man vos
teader as a goffin nail, und don'd you vorget him!"

The trio were silent, staring in stupefied amazement at the bed of
grass.

An uncanny feeling began to creep over Frank, and it seemed that a chill
hand touched his face and played about his temples.

Hans' teeth began to chatter.

"I am quite ill," the professor faintly declared, in a feeble tone of
voice. "The exertions of the day have been far too severe for me."

"Yah, yah!" gurgled the Dutch lad. "You vos anodder. Oxcuse me while I
go oudt to ged a liddle fresh air."

He made a bolt for the open door, and Professor Scotch was not long in
following. Frank, however, was determined to be thoroughly satisfied,
and he again began looking for the body of the dead man, once more going
over the entire hut.

"The body is gone, beyond a doubt," he finally muttered.

"There is no place for it to be concealed here, and dead men do not hide
themselves."

He went out, and found Professor Scotch and Hans awaiting his appearance
with no small amount of anxiety.

"Ah!" said the professor, with a deep breath of relief, "you are all
right."

"All right," said Frank, with amusement; "of course I am. What did you
think? Fancy I was going to be spirited away by spooks?"

The little man drew himself up with an assumption of great dignity.

"Young man," he rumbled, in his deepest tone, "don't be frivolous on
such an occasion as this. You are quite aware that I do not bel