The rascals had dropped their tools in their hurry, and Jack picked
these up and examined them carefully.

"I can't tell where these were bought," he said to Dick, "and many
of the boys have tools just like them. I will keep them for further
use."

"Wait till some one wants to borrow something like this," said
Percival, "and then we may find out something. It was a dirty
trick, whoever did it, and I wish that Jesse W. had seen them
plainer."

"They were big fellows," said young Smith quietly to Jack and Percival,
"but there are a good many big fellows among the boys, and that does
not tell us much. I only wish I could have seen their faces."

"Well, I am glad you drove them away," said Jack. "They might have
done considerable damage. Still, it is likely that I would have
seen the hole when I went to put the boat in the water unless they
plugged it up with sand, which they might have done."

"If any of our boys are doing things like this, which I would be
very sorry to know," added Percival, "we are in a pretty bad way.
If it was done by strangers we shall have to set a guard at night."

"H'm! standing guard duty is not very pleasant," said Billy Manners
dolefully. "I am too fond of sleeping to do that."

"Nobody will like it," rejoined Dick, "but we shall have to do it if
this sort of thing continues. I hate to think that any of our
fellows are mean enough to do it."

There were many of the boys who thought that there were some of their
number who were just mean enough, but no one was accused, the matter
being too serious an affair for one to make charges unless they
could be proved conclusively.

"Did you see which way the rascals went, J.W.?" asked Percival when
the three were quite alone. "That might tell us something."

"Well, you know that it is dark along shore, Dick," returned young
Smith, "and they made very little noise. They started to run the
minute I spoke, and when I turned the light on them they were going
pretty fast. All I could tell was that they were big boys, but I
could not say now just which way they went, it was so dark."

"Well, they won't try it again, that is certain, but it may come to
having a regular guard at night, and none of the boys will like that."

"I told Buck and the others that I would give them a dollar apiece to
keep watch to-night, Dick."

Both Jack and Dick laughed at the young fellow's earnestness, and
Jack said pleasantly:

"That was kind of you, J.W