Page:Dick Hamilton's Cadet Days.djvu/101

Rh "Yes, sir."

"Then you broke one of the rules."

"Yes, sir, but I thought that if it rained, and my book got wet, I'd get a demerit for that, so I decided I would take a chance on going after taps. I started before the bugle sounded."

"Ha! I will look into that afterward. You are sure you were not near the gun?"

"Yes, sir."

"I might add," went on Stiver, "that, after I called to Hamilton to halt, and he would not, I saw his dog running after him, and the animal seemed to have something tied to its tail."

"To it's tail?"

"Yes, sir."

"What was it?"

"It seemed like a piece of string."

"A piece of string. That may explain it. Hamilton, what do you know of this?"

"Nothing, Captain Hayden. Grit was not with me. I left him in his kennel, in the stable, chained up."

"We must look into this. Lieutenant Stiver, tell Sander to bring the bulldog here."

"Perhaps I had better go along," suggested Dick. "Grit might make a fuss."

"If he goes, you had better make sure he doesn't slip the string off the dog's tail," put in Dutton, with a sneer.

Dick started, and looked angrily at his enemy.

"That will do, Dutton," said Captain Hayden