at on the ground. When they could
see that he had his hands held behind his back, and conveniently
crossed at the wrists, four of the boys advanced.

"Keep your gun aimed at him, Lil Artha," commanded the scout-master,
"and if he tries any funny business let him have it in the legs. Here,
Landy, you and Chatz sit on him while I secure his hands."

The man attempted no resistance, for he realized the folly of it. He
did groan, however, when Landy squatted down on his legs, and the other
fellows could hardly blame him for grunting. It was like a thousand of
brick dropping from a second story building, as Lil Artha afterwards
described it.

The job was quickly and neatly dispatched, Elmer wrapping his cord many
times around the wrists of the prisoner. By this time Joe seemed to
have recovered his nerve, and made out to consider the whole thing more
in the light of a big joke than anything else.

Meanwhile, there was Hen standing near by, and hardly knowing whether
to look delighted at seeing his cruel boss thus being tied up, or show
the dreadful fear that was gripping his soul as he contemplated what
must follow.

"Cheer up, Hen, old fellow," said Toby, stepping over to grasp his
hand; but to his amazement Hen immediately broke down, and began to sob
as if his heart were broken.

"You don't know the worst, that's what," he said, plaintively. "That
stealing the money from my uncle was bad enough, but oh! will they
really hang me for the other? I sure didn't mean to do such a terrible
thing when I threw that stone and hit the tramp that day! I've had no
peace of mind ever since he told me his pal had really died. He said
he'd keep still about it if I'd go with him, and do everything he told
me to. And I've just had to, even when I felt sick enough to want to
lay me down and die."

"What's this yarn you've been giving the boy, Joe?" demanded Elmer,
sternly, as he faced the man, who with his hands tied behind his back
had been propped up against a convenient tree.

The man looked at Elmer and then burst into a derisive laugh.

"I knew he was a soft subject when I met him that day," he said, "and I
made up my mind I'd work him for fair. He did throw a stone and hit a
fellow I was with on the head. We chased after him but he was too
speedy for us. Later on when I was all alone I set up that slick game
on him, telling him my pal had actually died, and I'd buried him in the
woods. Oh! it was almost too ea