vacation took a long trip on land and sea. Then they
returned home, and during another vacation sailed down the Ohio River
in a houseboat, spent some time on the plains, took an unexpected trip
to southern waters, and then came back to the farm.

On getting back home, as related in the twelfth volume of this series,
called "The Rover Boys on the Farm," the boys had imagined that
adventures for them were a thing of the past. They were willing to
take it easy, but this was not to be. Some bad men, including a
sharper named Sid Merrick, were responsible for the theft of some
freight from the local railroad, and Merrick, by a slick trick,
obtained possession of some traction company bonds belonging to
Randolph Rover. The Rover boys managed to locate the freight thieves,
but Sid Merrick got away from them, dropping a pocketbook containing
the traction company bonds in his flight. This was at a time when
Dick, Tom and Sam had returned to Putnam Hall for their final term at
that institution. At the Hall they had made a bitter enemy of a big,
stocky bully named Tad Sobber and of another lad named Nick Pell. Tad
Sobber, to get even with the Rovers for a fancied injury, sent to the
latter a box containing a live, poisonous snake. The snake got away
and hid in Nick Pell's desk and Nick was bitten and for some time it
was feared that he might die. He exposed Tad Sobber, and fearing
arrest the bully ran away from the Hall. Later, much to their
surprise, the Rover boys learned that the bully was a ward and nephew
of Sid Merrick, and when the sharper disappeared, Tad Sobber went with
him.

"They are certainly a bad pair," said Dick, but how bad the Rovers
were still to find out.

With the boys on the train were John Powell, better known as
"Songbird," because he had a, habit of reciting newly made doggerell
which he called poetry, Hans Mueller, a German youth who frequently
got his English badly twisted, Fred Garrison, who had graduated with
the Rovers, and some others.

"Dick, you haven't told me yet what you intended to do this summer,"
remarked Fred Garrison, as the train rolled on.

"Because I don't know, Fred," answered the elder Rover. "My father has
something in store, but I don't know what it is."

"Can't you guess?"

"No."

"I wish we could take another trip like that on the houseboat--it
was certainly a dandy."

"The best ever!" put in Tom. "Even if we did have trouble with Lew
Flapp, Dan Baxter and some others.