h the police station. And woe unto you if you start anything
funny!"

So it happened that, within five minutes, Mr. Fits was turned over to
the members of a rejoicing police force. At the station house Mr. Fits
described himself more especially as being one John Clark. Whether that
was really his own name no one in Gridley ever found out.

Clark took his arrest philosophically enough. Now that he was behind
bars, with no help for his situation, he became almost goodnatured. Ere
long he admitted all of the charges against him. It was he who had
entered the Prescott flat and had taken away Dick's watch and the fan
intended for Dick's mother. Clark told freely how he and his
confederates had taken toll from the Christmas shoppers, confessing also
that they had had a number of houses "located" for burglary.

The prisoner told, also how he had found a megaphone in the little
"lumber loft" of the cook shack, and how, with this, he had improvised
the ghostly sounds. He had also found in that loft the snowshoes on
which he had escaped from Constable Dock.

Clark--Mr. Fits--went away to prison for a long term, and Gridley heard
no more about him. The recovered stolen property was turned over to the
owners after the trial. Dr. Bentley was so overjoyed at the recovery of
his prized heirloom watch that he presented each member of Dick & Co.,
except the leader, with a silver watch and chain. As Dick now had the
watch bought for him by his parents, he received from Dr. Bentley a
handsome pair of racing skates.

Mrs. Prescott wore her fan proudly the next time that she attended a
performance at the local opera house. Other Gridley folks whose property
had been recovered by the Grammar School boys were equally delighted.

The reader may be disappointed that Fred Ripley was not immediately
punished for his meanness to the young campers, but it may be remarked
in passing that fellows of Ripley's kind are always caught up with and
punished sooner or later.

* * * * *

Boys filed in from one coatroom, girls from another, at the stroke of
nine on the following Monday morning.

Tap! sounded a bell, and instantly the young people in their seats came
to order, hands folded on desks before them.

"Young ladies and gentlemen," began Old Dut, in his usual schoolmaster
tone, "I trust that you have all enjoyed your mid-winter vacation
immensely. I hope that you have brought back here refreshed bodies and
m