ut I don't believe a word of it," interrupted Dick.
"You have committed a serious crime, and the only way in which you can
help yourself at all is by helping us."

"Will you let me go if I help you?" demanded the chauffeur, eagerly.

"We'll see about that later," answered Dick, briefly. "For the present
we intend to keep you a prisoner."

"A prisoner! You haven't any right----"

"We'll take the right."

"That's the talk!" put in Tom.

By this time the party had reached the automobile. As Dick had surmised,
several straps and ropes lay in the box under the back seat, and with
these they bound the man's hands behind him. Once he started to resist,
but when Tom raised his shining pistol he wilted.

"Now you tell me where they took the young ladies," said Dick, after the
fellow had been strapped fast to his own automobile.

"They took 'em up to the house."

"What house?"

"The old mansion back there on the hill."

"Who was in the crowd?"

"The old man and the old lady, and the two young ladies, and the three
young men, and the doctor."

"The old lady!" cried Dick. "Who was she? What was her name?"

"I think they called her Sobber, same as one of the young fellows. They
had her along to look after the girls."

"It must be the one from Boston!" cried Sam. "Tad's aunt, or whatever
she is."

"Where did they pick her up?" asked Dick.

"Down at Fremville. She was waiting with one of the young men, a chap
they called Koswell."

"Are they all up at that old mansion now?"

"I suppose so. They were there when I left."

"Who lives at the place?"

"I don't know,--I didn't see anybody."

CHAPTER XXVIII

AT THE OLD MANSION

After that the chauffeur became more communicative, and in a few words
told how he had been engaged by Koswell and Larkspur to do a certain job
that they said might take the best part of the afternoon and night. They
had told him that a certain college professor at Brill had a wayward
stepdaughter and that the daughter and her school chum had grossly
insulted a lady teacher and were in danger of being arrested. The old
professor wanted to get the two girls away and place them under the care
of an old lady, a distant relative, who would know how to manage them.
He had been promised fifty dollars if he would do the work and say
nothing about it to anybody, he being informed that the old professor
wanted to avoid all publicity and also wished to shield his
stepdaughter.

"They t