Page:Young Hunters of the Lake.djvu/47

Rh usual amount of noise. During the morning Snap heard from another lad how Ham and Carl were boasting of their fireworks.

"Finest fireworks the town ever saw," Ham had said. All the boys were invited to "hang on the Dudder fence" and see them set off that evening at nine o'clock.

"Now is the time for us to do something," said Snap to his chums, a little later.

The evening before they had visited the Dudder barn but had failed to locate the fireworks.

"That's right," said Giant. "The fireworks are there now—I saw Carl and Ham bringing them from the express office."

With caution the four boys walked down a side street, which connected, by an alleyway, with the Dudder barn. Nobody was in sight, and they slipped into the barn with ease. In a corner, on the floor, they saw a long, flat box, marked "Fireworks! With care!"

"We mustn't take them all!" said Shep. "We must leave a top row—just to fool 'em."

The others understood and went to work with care. In a very few minutes they had most of the fireworks—pinwheels, rockets, Roman candles, flower pots and others—in their possession.