Under the Ocean to the South Pole Part 6

"This place is going to be crowded with people from the burned hotel,"

objected the sergeant. "There will be no room for you. Besides, how do I know these boys are anarchists?"

"Look in their valise," cried the stranger. "It is filled with bombs."

"You can't look in this satchel," exclaimed Jack, for he remembered the valise contained parts of the professor's secret machines.

"What did I tell you?" cried the Englishman with triumph in his tones.

"They are the guilty ones. They are afraid to open their valise."

"We are, but not because it has bombs in it," said Mark. "It has parts of an unpatented machine and the owner does not want any one to see them," for Mark remembered Mr. Henderson's strict injunctions to let no one but the mechanist to whom they had gone catch a glimpse of the parts that were to be duplicated. The machinist was sworn to secrecy.

"It's none of our affair," said the sergeant, though he seemed a little impressed by the Englishman's words and the reluctance Mark and Jack showed to letting the valise be opened. "The boys will be here until morning, and then you can see the judge. Now you'll have to get out. You boys get to bed."

Muttering threats, the stranger went from the station house, and Mark and Jack, in response to a nod from the doorman, followed him upstairs to a part of the police station used to detain witnesses. They were shown to a small room with a single bed.

"Are ye really anarchists?" asked the doorman.

"Not a bit," replied Jack, and he told as much of their story as he dared.

"I was kind-of hopin' ye was," said the officer with a twinkle in his eye. "It wouldn't do any harm to scare that uppish Englishman a bit.

Sure he an' his kind have done enough to poor old Ireland."

"I'm sorry we can't oblige you," said Mark with a laugh.

"I guess ye're all right," went on the doorman. "I hope ye sleep good the rest of the night."

Then he left them alone. What with the excitement of the fire and the startling accusation against them, the boys' brains were too excited to let them sleep much. They had a few fitful naps throughout the remainder of the night.

It was just getting daylight when Mark was awakened by some one shaking him.

"What is it?" he asked. "Another fire?"

"Not this time," replied a voice, and Mark, now that his eyes were fully opened, saw the doorman bending over him.

"What's the matter?" asked Jack waking up in his turn.

"Easy!" exclaimed the doorman in a whisper. "I happened to think ye might want to be leavin'."

"Leaving?" asked Mark in bewilderment.

"Yes. Ye know that Englishman is liable to be back any minute, an' he may make trouble for ye. I know ye're innocent lads, an' I'd hate to see ye mixed up in a mess with that fellow. So I slips up here early, an' ye can leave by the back door if ye want to, an' the officer of His Imperial Majesty, King Edward VII, will never know a thing about it."

"It looks like running away," objected Jack.

"Sure there's no charge agin ye," went on the doorman. "Ye're free to come an' go as far as we're concerned, an' ye'd better go whilst ye have the chance."

Jack reflected. It was true that the charge of the Englishman, baseless as it was, might make trouble for them, and cause them endless delays in getting back to Professor Henderson. Suddenly Jack made up his mind.

"Come on Mark," he said.

CHAPTER VI

ON A RUNAWAY TROLLEY

"Are you going to leave?" asked Mark.

"Certainly. There is no use staying here and getting mixed up in something that Englishman thinks we have done. It's easier to go away quietly and let him find out his mistake."

"All right," agreed Mark. "I wonder who he is, anyhow?"

"He thinks he owns the earth, whoever he is," returned Jack.

"He's some sort of a special detective traveling with Lord Peckham's party," explained the doorman. "He told us a lot about himself last night after you boys went to bed. He came back to inquire how early the judge would be here.

"He went on to tell how some English anarchists have vowed to kill Lord Peckham because he foreclosed a lot of mortgages on some poor people in Ireland where he owned property," added the doorman. "There was some sort of explosions in the hotel, near where Lord Peckham had his rooms.

Maybe it was a bomb and, maybe ag'in it was only the boiler. Anyhow, this detective jumped to the conclusion that anarchists had done it, and he thinks you are responsible. But you'd better be goin' now. It's gettin' daylight."

So Mark and Jack, with what scanty clothes they had, and carrying their valise, went quietly out of the back door of the police station.

"We'd better go to the machine shop for the rest of the stuff,"

suggested Mark, "and then we can take the first trolley we see and get back to the professor."

Through quiet side streets the boys made their way toward the machine shop. They were somewhat amused to think how they had fooled the detective, but they would not have felt so jolly had they seen the roughly dressed man who had darted after them as soon as they left the police station.

"I'll get you yet," the man muttered. "You needn't think to escape with the aid of these bloomin' American police."

The lads found the machinist just opening his shop though it was quite early. The pieces of apparatus were finished and, after paying for them Mark put the parts in the valise.

"Quite a fire in town," observed the machinist.

"Yes," answered Mark, not wis.h.i.+ng to get into a long conversation.

"Heard the hotel was blowed up by anarchists and that the police are after 'em," proceeded the man.

"I believe I did hear something like that," admitted Mark. "I guess we'll be going."

He signalled to Jack, and the two hurried out of the shop. As they did so, the trampish-looking man glided from behind a tree where he had been hiding and took after them.

"Say," exclaimed Jack, "I forgot we haven't had any breakfast yet."

"That's so," said Mark, rubbing his stomach and making a wry face.

Near by was a bakery, and there the lads got some coffee and rolls which tasted fine. When they finished their simple meal a trolley came past and they ran to catch it. So did the man who had been following them, but this person bore no resemblance to the spruce little detective who had wanted to arrest the boys.

"A couple of hours now and we'll be back at the cabin," spoke Mark. "My, but I must say we have had strenuous times since we started away!"