d with
chemical fire extinguishers in their hands.

"Where is the fire?"

"Shall I telephone for the Cedarville fire department?"

"Has anybody been burnt?"

"What room is it in?"

Such were some of the questions asked. Then Captain Putnam rushed on the
scene.

"It's the snake again!" wailed one of the cadets, who now stood bolt
upright on his bed, his eyes bulging from his head.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, the snake is in here," answered Tad Sobber. "Why, it fairly jumped
over my bed!"

"He tried to bite me in the face!" came from Nick Pell, who was so
excited he scarcely knew what he was saying.

More lights were lit, and Captain Putnam went off to get a shotgun.

"If I catch sight of it, I'll blow it to pieces," he said to George
Strong.

A long search followed, and then came a sudden cry from a corner of the
dormitory.

"There he is!"

"Shoot him, Captain Putnam!"

The master of the Hall took aim and came up slowly. Then he suddenly
dropped the barrel of his shotgun, stepped forward, and took hold of the
snake by the tail.

"It's a stuffed snake," he said. "It belongs in the case in the
laboratory."

"A stuffed snake?" queried Tad Sobber, and when he realized the truth he
was the maddest boy in that school.

"See here," said the master of the Hall, turning to Dick. "Was this what
you saw last night?"

"No, sir," was the prompt reply. "What we saw was a real, live snake."

"Indeed it was," said George Strong.

"Are you sure this one is from the case in the laboratory, Captain
Putnam?" questioned Andrew Garmore, one of the teachers.

"Yes, I know it well. Besides, here is the label on it."

"Well, I looked at the case early this morning and it was filled as it
has always been."

"It's a trick on me!" roared Tad Sobber, angrily. "Just wait, I'll get
square with somebody for this!" And he looked sharply at the Rovers.

"Sobber must like snakes--I saw him at the museum in Cedarville one
day," answered Dick, and eyed the bully boldly. At this Sobber grew red
in the face and slunk out of sight.

"Get to bed, all of you," said Captain Putnam sharply. "I'll investigate
this in the morning."

As on the night before, it took the school a long time to quiet down.
The Rover boys and their chums had a hearty laugh over the success of
the trick.

"My! but Sobber is mad," said Fred. "You want to watch out, he'll do
almost anything to get square."

The promised investigation the next day did not