The Hilltop Boys Part 17

"No, but I mean to find out who is."

CHAPTER XIII

TRYING TO FIX THE BLAME

Saving out two or three of the sheets containing the spurious article, folding them neatly and putting them carefully in the inside pocket of his coat, Jack ordered the rest to be burned in the office stove and personally witnessed their destruction.

Then the missing lines were put in the form, the latter locked up and the printing proceeded, the inserted lines being speedily put into "pi."

"Send the bundle addressed to me at the Academy to-morrow morning," Jack said, "and remember that if there is any change whatever, the editors will not be responsible for the payment."

"But you don't hold me responsible for this rascality?" sputtered Brooke in the same nervous manner he used when pecking at his typewriter. "You can't expect that----"

"I have said all that I have to say at present," replied Jack.

"Yes, but I want to understand the situation."

"I have said nothing about what has already happened. I allude to any future happenings. Send me the bundle in the morning."

"Couldn't you call for it? That is generally done. It won't take you any time at all to run down in the car and to-morrow is Sat.u.r.day and a holiday. With me it is a busy day."

The editor seemed to be in such real distress that Jack answered:

"I will flash you an answer to-night at ten o'clock by the Morse international."

The boy and the editor were now in the latter's sanctum and not in the main office so that there were no hearers to the conversation.

"International, not American?" asked the editor.

"Yes. Every one does not know the International but every local telegrapher knows the American."

"Yes, but I don't see why----"

"If some unscrupulous person should send you a message purporting to come from me you would know that it did not if my instructions were not carried out, wouldn't you?"

"Certainly, but have you any apprehension that----"

"It is possible. I will let you know to-night. I do not want to telephone and will flash you instead."

"Very good."

Jack then left the building, entered the car and in a quarter of an hour was at the Academy.

He saw Harry and Arthur on the grounds and called to them to go with him as soon as he put up the car.

The three went to Percival's room where they found the young fellow busy over a Greek translation.

"Read this, you fellows," said Jack, distributing the printed sheets he had brought up from the office of the _News_.

"But, I say, Jack!" exclaimed Percival. "You don't mean----"

"Why, this is positively awful!" gasped Harry.

"There will be no more _Gazettes_ after this," wailed Arthur.

"You don't imagine, any of you, that I wrote that?" asked Jack in his coolest tone. "Here, let me have one of the sheets."

"But how did it get in then?"

"This is not the revised sheet. In the first place I do not sign my articles 'Jack Sheldon,' do I?"

"I never knew that you did."

"And in the next a very careless compositor set this up. It is badly s.p.a.ced, has many errors and is ungrammatical."

"Yes, I can see that but I don't know anything about the s.p.a.cing."

"It looks as if a green hand had set it up and that gives me an idea."

"Yes, but Jack, how did it get in at all?" asked Percival, still in the dark regarding the article.

"It won't be in the paper to-morrow," and then Jack told of his accidental discovery of the obnoxious article and what he had done about it.

Percival thought a few minutes and said:

"Some one who doesn't like you has done this, Jack, or had it done. You don't suspect Brooke?"

"No, for it would mean the loss of all our patronage to him. He is not such a fool."

"No, of course not. Who is it then?"

"That I don't know. There was collusion with some one in the _News_ office, of course, and it will be difficult to find just where it comes in. This thing was done to throw discredit on me and to stop the life of the _Gazette_."

"That's just what it would mean if the thing had gone through."

"It was done by some one who knows the Academy and the fellows,"

declared Harry. "It was aimed at Jack, princ.i.p.ally. We know who does not like him here and it should not be a hard matter to find who is responsible."

"It may be one for all that," replied Jack. "This is a serious business and the perpetrators will cover their tracks. One thing is certain. You must watch every boy that reads the _Gazette_ to-morrow. Shall I have the bundle sent up here or go after it?"

"We have generally gone after them and done the distributing ourselves in the past," said Percival. "If we do that now the fellow who engineered this business will be the first to get a copy of the paper and to make it public. Did any one see you leave this afternoon or did any one know why you went to Riverton?"

"No, there was no one around when I left except yourself and only Hal and Art saw me return."

"Then no one suspects that you have discovered this article and suppressed it. I will take a run down in the morning and get the papers.