and private rooms for the scholars. Close by
was a smaller brick building, occupied by Colonel Colby and his family
and some of the professors.

On the opposite side was an up-to-date gymnasium, while at the water's
edge were a number of small buildings used as boathouses and bathing
pavilions. Behind the hall were a stable and barn, and also a garage,
and further back were a large garden and several farm fields and a
great athletic field where the boys played baseball in the spring and
football in the fall.

On arriving at Colby Hall the young Rovers had found several of their
friends awaiting them, one of these being Dick Powell, the son of
Songbird Powell, a former schoolmate of their fathers. Dick was always
called Spouter because of his fondness for long speeches. Another was
Gifford, the son of Fred Garrison, after whom Fred Rover had been
named. There was also Walter Baxter, a son of Dan Baxter, who years
before had been an enemy of the older Rovers, but who had now reformed
and was doing very well.

Before coming to Colby Hall, Jack Rover had had a quarrel in New York
City with a tall, dudish youth, named Napoleon Martell. Nappy Martell,
as he was called by his cronies, was a cadet at the military academy,
and he and his crony, an overgrown bully named Slugger Brown, did what
they could to make trouble for the Rovers. But one of their
underhanded transactions was exposed, and they were sent away from the
academy for the time being.

As mentioned, Colby Hall was located about half a mile beyond Haven
Point. On the opposite side of the town was located Clearwater Hall,
a boarding school for girls. During a panic in a moving-picture
theater Jack and his cousins became acquainted with a number of these
girls, including Ruth Stevenson, May Powell, Alice Strobell, and Annie
Larkins. They found out that May was Spouter Powell's cousin, and the
whole crowd of young people soon became friends. Later on Mary and
Martha Rover became pupils at the girls' school.

Ruth Stevenson had an old uncle Barney, who in times past had had a
bitter quarrel with Ruth's parents. The Rover boys once went out
hunting, and on this occasion saved the old man's life, as related in
"The Rover Boys on Snowshoe Island." For this the old man was
exceedingly grateful, and as a result he invited them to spend their
winter holidays on Snowshoe Island, a place which he said he owned and
of which he was very proud.

The boys traveled to this