oss lots to Bristles's shack, I reckon?" ventured the tall boy,
as he reached the side of his friend.

"Just what I'm meaning to do," he was told. "Bristles called up before I
was ready to start across, and wanted me to hurry over. Said he had
something to tell me that was simply great."

"You don't say!" exclaimed Colon.

"And I've been wondering whether he could have learned about that man
being in town," continued Fred.

"Meaning Corny?" queried Colon.

"Yes," Fred replied, still sitting on the rail of the fence. "If you saw
him, there'd be a chance that Bristles might have heard something along
those lines. You know he's the greatest fellow going for picking up
information about all sorts of things."

"It might be," mused the other, "and we could have some fun with Bristles
by springing the racket on him before he got a chance to let the cat out
of the bag."

"You'll go over with me, then?" asked Fred.

"That's my present intention," said Colon. "Fact is, I strolled around
to see if you expected to drop in on Bristles, and put him wise. Didn't
have anything else to do, this being Friday night, you know. And I'm
that full of the race I seem to want to talk it over all the time. But
what are you carrying that heavy walking-stick for? Hope there wasn't
any truth in what Flo Temple said, and that you're getting weak in the
knees, Fred?"

"I just happened to remember all that joshing," Fred told him, "when I
saw dad's stick. So I picked it up, thinking I'd play a joke on
Bristles, and make out to be lame. But looks a little as if we mightn't
have Bristles along with us to-morrow."

"How's that?" Colon wanted to know, instantly.

"Why, it seems he's gone and taken a terrible cold all of a sudden," Fred
told him. "You'd never have guessed who it was talking over the wire to
me. He had to tell me who it was."

"When was this?" asked Colon, "because I called him up after I got home
this evening, to sort of say we _might_ be around, and I didn't notice
anything out of the way with him then."

"Is that so?" remarked Fred, as though a little puzzled. Then he added,
"Oh! these colds in the head come on with a rush, sometimes. He barked
like a dog, and I even had to hold the receiver away from my ear. I told
him he'd give it to me over the wire. But chances are he'll not be in a
fit state for a twenty-five mile run to-morrow, more's the pity. It's
queer about that heavy cold taking him so sudden