d Jack; and a minute later, as the others who had
been mentioned came into sight, he continued in a loud voice: "Go
ahead, Randy, it's your turn. Have you been asleep?"

"No; I'm not asleep," answered Randy, and caught a ball which was being
pitched around.

Fred began to practise on an exercising machine, and acted as if he had
been at it for some time.

Soon Slugger, Nappy and Codfish came down and passed the crowd, eyeing
all of them closely. Then Slugger winked to the others, and the three
made their way slowly from the gymnasium building.

"Now then, I'll tell you fellows something," announced Fred; and
thereupon he and his cousin related to the others what they had
overheard in the upper room of the building.

"So that's their game, is it?" cried Jack wrathfully. "That's the way
they are going to pay us back for agreeing to give them another chance
at this school!"

"You ought to tell Colonel Colby about this at once," put in Spouter,
who had listened to what was being said. "Then he can have those rascals
watched."

"I don't like the idea of going to Colonel Colby," Jack answered. "I
feel more like taking the matter in my own hands."

"Don't you do it, Jack," advised Gif. "Your idea would be all well
enough if they were ordinary cadets. But they are not. They should have
been dismissed from this school long ago. If I were you, I wouldn't
dirty my hands on them. Report the matter to the colonel, and let him
take charge of it."

"What is this you are saying, Garrison?" demanded a voice from close
behind the cadets, and Professor Brice appeared in the doorway of the
washroom of the gymnasium. "What is this you just said about Brown and
Martell?"

"I said they were not fit to be cadets in this institution," answered
Gif flatly.

"From what you young gentlemen have been saying, I should judge that you
know something concerning Brown and Martell," went on the young teacher,
with a glance around the crowd.

"We do know something," answered Walt, after a somewhat painful silence.
"That is, two of the crowd here know. We have been urging them to speak
to Colonel Colby about it."

"Who are the two, and what do you know?"

Again there was a silence, and then Spouter came to the front.

"Professor Brice, I'd like to ask a question," he said. "Two of the
cadets here overheard a talk between Brown, Martell and Stowell. Those
three proposed to play a most outrageous trick on Colonel Colby, and
then make it