side of the boat. Someone
pulled him down upon a seat.

"All right!" whispered the voice.

"All right, fellows!" called someone in the next boat softly. And there
came the sound of creaking rowlocks.

"Got your oar?" whispered the fellow who shared Roy's seat. Roy felt
around and found it and began to row.

"Look out, you fellows!" called a voice from the darkness beside them,
and they ceased rowing while another boat crossed ahead of them.

"More to the right," commanded a boy behind Roy and Roy pulled hard on
his oar. Presently a little breeze came into their faces and Roy guessed
that they were rounding the lower end of the island. Very silently they
went. After a little Roy turned his head and saw a light here and there
on the farther shore. He judged that they were by this time about half
way across. The fellows about him began to converse in whispers,
gradually forgetting caution as they left the island farther and farther
behind.

"Won't they be a surprised lot of chumps in the morning!" asked someone
with a laugh.

"They sure will," answered another Hammondite. "They'll be 'very ill'
for a long while."

"I never thought we'd do it," said the boy who was working an oar next
to Roy. "I don't see yet why they didn't hear us."

"They weren't expecting us," said another. "I tell you that was a foxy
idea of Jim's, to find out where they kept the boats from the other
shore, now wasn't it?"

"Who went over, Jim?" asked Roy's companion. Roy's heart sank, but
luckily someone behind answered for him.

"He went over himself, he and Smith. Rowed over a mile up-river, left
the boat, came down across the fields. They watched for an hour and saw
the Ferry Hill fellows come back from school and haul the boats out. Oh,
it was an all-right scheme!"

Roy looked at the sky, hoping mightily that the moon wouldn't come out
until they had reached the other shore. There was still a lighter
patch up there, but the moon seemed pretty well extinguished for the
time being. If only they wouldn't insist on his talking!

[Illustration: "Roy held his breath and waited."]

"Do we have to give the boats back right away, Jim?" asked a voice from
the bow. Roy hesitated, hoping that as before someone would answer for
him. But no one did. So he plucked up his courage.

"Guess so," he replied, rather huskily.

"Say, you've got a peach of a cold, haven't you?" asked his neighbor.
"Did you get wet?"

"Sopping," growled Roy.

"To