The Putnam Hall Rivals

“Hurrah! here it is!” cried Andy. “Bring it up, Jack!”

It was no easy matter to bring up the iron pot, which was heavy, but at last they had it out on the grass. The lid was rusted fast, but they speedily pried it off.

“Empty!” ejaculated Pepper, looking into the receptacle, and his face fell.

“All our work for nothing,” murmured Andy.

“No, it is not empty,” said Jack. “That is an iron plate resting near the bottom. Wait till I pry it up with my knife blade.”

He set to work, and soon the iron plate came up. Beneath lay some dull yellow round pieces of metal.

“Gold!” shouted the young major. “Old English and Spanish gold!”

“Are you sure it is gold?” queried Pepper.

“Yes. Look for yourself,” and Jack brushed off one of the pieces on his coat-sleeve. “Boys, we’re in luck! We have certainly found the pot with gold in it that Mr. Strong has been looking for so long!”

“Not very much gold,” said Andy. “I thought there would be a pot full.”

“It doesn’t take much gold to make quite a sum, Andy. You know a ten-dollar gold piece isn’t very large.”

“That is true.”

The boys inspected the pieces with interest and counted them up. All told there were four hundred and twenty-three pieces, some large and some small, English, French, and Spanish gold, as they made out by some of the tarnished markings.

“Let us take the pot and all along,” said Pepper. “Mr. Strong will wish to see the whole thing.”

“And let us mark this place, so we can find it again,” added Andy.

They hung the pot with its contents on a stout stick, and two carried it at a time. Having marked the neighborhood, they set off along the trail, and after a rather tedious walk reached the highway running into Cedarville.

“I know where we are now,” said Jack. “We needn’t go all the way to Cedarville. We can branch off a little way below here and go directly to Putnam Hall.”

They followed his advice, and half an hour later, just as the sun was setting, came in sight of the school. They were soon seen, and a shout went up.

“There are Jack, Andy, and Pepper now!”

“Did you get hurt on your balloon trip?”

“Where did you leave the balloon?”

“We were afraid you were all killed.”

Such were some of the remarks and questions uttered by those who had returned to the Hall after the departure of the balloon with the boys.

“We are safe and sound,” said Jack, speaking for himself and his chums.

“What have you got there?” asked Dale.

“Something for Mr. Strong,” whispered Pepper. “Where is he?”

“In the Hall. Captain Putnam is out hunting for you. He said if you were found, to fire the cannon.”

“All right, then fire it,” said Andy.

The three boys marched into the Hall with their precious burden. They were told that Mr. Strong had gone to his room, and so followed up the stairs and knocked on the door.

“What! back, safe and sound!” cried the teacher. “I am more than glad to hear it.”

“We are glad to be back,” answered Jack.

“But what made you run off?”

“We didn’t run off. We were carried off against our will.”

“Well! well! I suppose – What is that thing?”

“This, Mr. Strong, is something we suspect belongs to you,” said Jack, proudly. “It is the missing pot of gold – only it isn’t full by any means.”

“The pot of gold? Surely I must be dreaming!” gasped the teacher. “Where did you get it?”

Their tale was speedily told in detail, and the gold was examined with much interest.

“It must be true,” said George Strong. “What an extraordinary ending to an extraordinary adventure!”

Just then the cannon on the campus boomed out – the signal that the boys had returned to Putnam Hall.

The shot soon brought Captain Putnam back to the school, and he listened to the cadets’ story with as close attention as had George Strong. He had already heard from Dale, Stuffer, Hogan, and Joe Nelson how the balloon had started away, and so could not blame the boys very much.

“It was imprudent for you to get into the basket,” said he. “But as nobody was hurt, we will let it pass. But the balloonist wants his balloon back.”

“He can have it, and welcome,” said Jack. “After this I’ll do my ballooning on the ground!”

“Ditto here,” said Pepper.

“I rather enjoyed it,” said Andy. “I’d go again – if I got the chance.”

“Not while you are a pupil under my care,” said Captain Putnam, decidedly.

On the following day the balloon was located by those who owned it and brought over to Cedarville, and on Monday the professor gave an exhibition to which Captain Putnam and his pupils contributed liberally. This satisfied Professor Aireo and he departed for parts unknown, and that ended the matter.

As soon as possible George Strong found out the value of the coins the iron pot had contained, and had the boys take him to the spot where the treasure had been located.

“The gold is worth exactly six thousand and two hundred dollars,” said the teacher. “I shall divide it up with my relatives. The question is, What part of the sum do you think you ought to have for finding it?”

“We’ll leave that to you?” said Andy, who was not overly rich.

“Would a hundred dollars each suit you?”