Claflin School was set down in the very middle of the town, a quiet,
rambling, overgrown village too near New York to ever become more than a
residence place. The school was spread over many acres and its
buildings, most of which had been there many years, had a look of mellow
antiquity which the newer Brimfield halls had not had time to acquire.
Wide-spreading elms shaded the walks in Summer and even today their
graceful branches added beauty to the campus. Brimfield, nearly a
hundred and fifty strong, took possession of the school grounds and went
sight-seeing before they poured out on the further side and made their
way to the athletic field.

Amy and Bob Chase, pausing to translate a Latin inscription over the
entrance to one of the buildings, became detached from the others and
were discovered by Mr. Detweiler, who, having made an unsuccessful
attempt to find a college friend who was instructing at Claflin, was on
his way to the gymnasium. He listened, unseen, for a moment to Amy's
extremely literal and picturesque translation, and then a laugh revealed
his presence and Amy looked around a bit sheepishly.

"That's fine, Byrd," said Mr. Detweiler. "You certainly reflect credit
on 'Uncle Sim'!"

"I guess," observed Bob Chase, "'Uncle Sim' would have had a fit if he'd
heard that!"

They strolled on together, speaking of the buildings they passed, until,
opposite the gymnasium, Mr. Detweiler started to leave them, thought
better of it and said: "By the way, Byrd, I wonder if I was pledged to
secrecy the other day."

"The other day?" repeated Amy questioningly.

"The day I met you and Thayer and--" He looked doubtfully at Chase.

"Bob's all right," Amy reassured him. "I know when you mean, sir. But I
don't understand about being pledged--"

"I'll tell you." Mr. Detweiler looked hurriedly at his watch. "I
happened to hear from Mr. Daley yesterday that your friend Durkin had
got in trouble. You knew that?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, it seemed that Mr. Fernald thought Durkin had either picked the
quarrel or--well, we'll say welcomed it. Daley told me Durkin was on
probation and stood a pretty fair chance of losing a scholarship he was
after. So, as I hadn't been, as I thought, pledged to secrecy, I told
Daley what I knew of the start of the trouble. That seemed to put a
different complexion on the matter and Daley went to Mr. Fernald and
told him about it. Since then I've wondered whether I ought to have kept
my m