hing doing around here?" asked Jack, cautiously as they joined
forces.

"Haven't seen a blessed thing but a young rabbit, that came nosing
around. Guess that swift bunch hasn't showed up yet," returned the
sentry.

"It's just as well," remarked Paul; "and please talk in whispers. Here's
the door, so just wait till I unlock it."

A minute later and they found themselves inside the basement of the
church, which was used as a gymnasium for the boys; there being no
Y. M. C. A. in the town.

"Do we get a light?" asked Bobolink, as he stared into the darkness.

"Better not," advised Paul, "for that would give the whole thing away.
The whole stack of things is piled up in the center, so we needn't
tumble over it. And William, you know where to put your hand on those
clubs, don't you?"

"That's a cinch," chuckled the other, quickly. "You fellows just hang
out here, and let me get busy. Oh! what a chance it looks like to try my
little game of tag. Talk to me about baseball! Why, it won't be in the
same class with what we'll do to the other fellows, if they give us half
a chance! Oh! me, oh! my! yum, yum!"

William came back presently, and handed each of his mates one of the
padded clubs he had worked on so industriously, in the expectation that
some fine day they might come in useful. Perhaps that hour had arrived;
at least William had high hopes.

Paul, meanwhile, had secured some blankets from the pile, and each of
them made as comfortable a bed as was possible in the darkness.

"Nothing like getting used to bunking on the hard floor?" grunted
Bobolink, after he had fussed around for fully ten minutes, complaining
that the boards hurt his bones when he lay on his side.

"Now silence!" came from Paul, in a tone of authority; and after that no
one dared to utter a single word in the way of conversation.

CHAPTER VII

"BE PREPARED"

"Paul!"

Jack's groping hand gripped the arm of his chum as he gave vent to this
whisper.

"Yes," came the low reply close at hand, showing that Paul was awake,
and alert.

"Did you hear it?" asked Jack, eagerly.

Bobolink was breathing heavily on his blankets, and it seemed as though
he must have been the first one to get to sleep, after all his
complaining about the hardness of his bed.

"Yes. Some one shook the door," answered the patrol leader, still
whispering.

"That was what I thought. Shall I wake Bobolink and William?" asked
Jack.

"Let me do it. If one of