He said, "Well now, Sonny, you see I haven't got any say about it. I get a bill and that's all there is to it. There might be a freight out of Slopson to-morrow or the next day, and then again, there might not. You could come near sending the whole of Slopson by Parcels Post. I've heard about you kids and I've got word to look after you. You're mighty lucky you didn't all go kerflop into the lake." "How soon is there another train through here?" the sheriff asked him. "Twelve-fifteen, if she's on time," the conductor said; "she's a through from Buffalo." "Believe me," I said; "that's one town I know something about--Buffalo. I'll never forget Buffalo, 398 Mls." They all laughed. "She doesn't stop here, does she?" the sheriff asked. "Stops at Skiddyunk for water," the conductor said. "She passes us down at Red Hill siding." The sheriff said, "I guess two of us had better watch the station here and be on the safe side in case she slows down, and the other two will go down in one of the machines and keep an eye out at Skiddyunk. They might get on there. We'll probably beat you to Skiddyunk, but if we don't, nab 'em if they get on. They're going to try to get away from these parts, I know that." I was just thinking we'd have to hike back along the road to our little Home Sweet Home, when the conductor said, "Hop on, you boys." * * * * * When we got to Skiddyunk, the sheriff and one of his men were already there. But there wasn't any sign of the two fellows. Then the train started backing up along the Slopson Branch and the two sheriffs stayed on it. Pretty soon we were back almost to where we had started from. There wasn't any station at Ridgeboro, but the sheriffs looked all around the closed-up store, in the wood-shed and under the platform. Then the train backed down the siding and very gently bunked into the Brewster's Centre car. There were men swinging lights and shouting to each other, while one coupled our car to the train. Then there was a lot more shouting and swinging lights and then we started. We stood on the back platform of our own car and I could see the moon just beginning to shine on the part of the lake that we were moving away from. The wheels rattled, rattled; and it seemed kind of as if the car was saying _so long, so long, so long_---- Pretty soon, away across the lake, we could see a light and we knew it was the fire at _Camp Smile Awhile_. Then we passed the store that was all closed up tight and I said, "so long, store. So long, _Camp Smile Awhile_." And while we stood out there on the back platform, the wheels kept saying, "S'long, s'long, s'long, s'long, s'long...." Gee whiz, I was sorry. CHAPTER XXIII CRAZY STUFF