dressed and equipped, for he had on even his cowhide boots, and
was minus only a hat. Of course, the boy was fairly brimming over with
intense excitement.

"Didn't yuh hear him yell?" he was crying. "We've kotched the chicken
thief fur sure, fellers. Whoop la! kim on, everybody, and nab him
afore all the blood runs tuh his head!"

Lil Artha and Elmer, of course, had snatched up their guns, although
they hardly believed they would find any use for the weapons. All of
them started on the run toward the spot where the turkeys roosted in
the favorite tree.

The sky was clouded over, and while it was not actually dark the boys
had some little difficulty in seeing as well as they might have liked.
Now and then one of the sprinters would stumble over some impediment,
and perhaps measure his length on the ground, only to scramble erect
again and tear after the rest.

It was usually clumsy Landy who met with these mishaps; but even such
things did not seem to subdue his ambition to keep after the crowd.

Elmer was listening as he ran. He wondered why they did not already
hear the groans or whines of the wretched thief who had been hung up by
the heels without receiving a second's warning.

Remembering how Johnny had been whisked aloft, Elmer felt sure no one
could be blamed for letting out that shriek when the catastrophe came
about. Nor would he have thought it queer if the suspended rascal kept
up his groans as he writhed and twisted in a vain effort to reach up to
the limb; which only a circus contortionist would have been able to do.

He imagined he heard some sort of sound ahead of them. But even at
that Elmer could not be certain. It might be the night breeze sighing
through the upper branches of the tall tree, or the alarmed turkeys
holding a confab among themselves, for all he could tell.

But they were rapidly bearing down upon the spot now, and in another
half minute ought to be where they could see the swaying figure of the
caught thief.

"I don't seem to get him, Johnny!" ventured Lil Artha, in a
disappointed tone.

"Huh! somethin' gone wrong I guess!" grunted the inventor; and if the
tall scout could feel chagrin, fancy what a shock it must have been to
Johnny when he realized that there was no dangling figure to greet him,
despite that wild yell so full of mortal agony.

Perhaps already wise Elmer had begun to hazard a shrewd guess as to the
why and wherefore of this vacancy. He was a great ha