form clad in a dark suit of clothes. His head was partly bald on top
and his hair was gray. There was a closely-trimmed mustache of the same
color on his upper lip, and his flesh, although pallid, had not yet
changed to the waxen hue of death.

It was evident that he was a victim of foul play, for his hands were
bound behind his back, and his ankles tied together, while a gag was
secured over his mouth as if to stifle his outcries.

The detectives had no chance to observe any more, just then, for there
suddenly sounded a quick danger signal of the locomotive's whistle.

The engineer shut off steam, put on the brakes, and the startled
conductor rushed from the car with the lantern, leaving the place in
gloom.

"What can be the matter?" muttered Old King Brady.

"There's a fire on the track ahead!" said Harry, peering out the side
door.

"Where are we?" queried the baggage master, hastily.

"Next to a big swamp," replied Harry. "And, by Jove--see--see! There's
an obstruction--a heap of sleepers piled across the rails beyond the
bonfire."

"What the deuce can that mean?" muttered Old King Brady. "Bandits
trying to rob this train? It don't seem possible, in this
neighborhood."

The train paused and they all alighted.

Some of the brakemen ran ahead, and under the conductor's direction
they removed the obstructions from the rails.

The fire seemed to have been built where it was to show the engineer
the pile of sleepers, and the brakemen scattered it, when the barrier
was removed.

As the bell rang, every one got aboard and the cars slowly went ahead.

The Bradys and the baggage master returned to the latter's car.

"We'll finish our examination of that body," said Old King Brady.

"Yes," said Harry, "and----Good gracious! Where's the box gone?"

Box and body had vanished.

Every one was astounded.

Then, like a flash, the truth suddenly dawned upon Harry's mind, and he
cried:

"Now I see through it. Those obstructions were put on the rails to stop
the train at this point so that the body could be removed from this
car."

"By whom?" demanded the startled baggage master.

"Accessories of the villain who killed that man!" cried the boy.
"They've carried the body off in the swamp to hide the evidence of
their crime. Come, Old King Brady, alight here and see if we can trace
it."

The detectives made a rush for the door and leaped from the train.

They landed beside the roadbed, and the cars went o