“Could he have fallen into the brook?” asked Rose. “If he did, all that could happen would be that he got wet,” her father answered, with a laugh. “And if Laddie fell into the brook I guess he’d yell and we would hear him,” Rose said, nodding her head. “’Tisn’t very deep, anyhow,” added Russ. They looked farther in the garden for Laddie and called his name, but there was no answer. Mr. Bunker was just beginning to get worried when the telephone in the house suddenly rang. “Maybe that’s some news of him!” exclaimed the mother of the missing little fellow. She started toward the telephone, but Laddie’s father reached it first. “Hello! Hello!” called Mr. Bunker into the telephone. The others listened to what he had to say. “Yes! Yes,” he went on. “Oh, then he’s all right. I’m glad of that. Thank you! Yes, I’ll be right down after him.” “Evidently it’s about Laddie?” said Mrs. Bunker in a questioning voice. “Yes,” answered her husband, as he hung up the receiver. “Laddie is in the police station.” “The _police station_!” cried Russ. “Is he arrested? What for?” Rose queried wonderingly. Daddy Bunker laughed, which let them all know it could not be very serious. “What is it?” asked his wife. “As nearly as I can make out,” said Mr. Bunker, “Laddie wandered away from here and went to the police station about some riddle.” “A _riddle_!” cried Adam North. “Good gasoline! That boy must dream of riddles!” “I sometimes think he does,” sighed his mother. “But what sort of riddle is it this time?” she asked her husband. “The officer at the police station didn’t just know,” was Mr. Bunker’s answer. “He said they had Laddie there and asked me to come and get him, as they didn’t want to send him home with a policeman for fear the neighbors would think something had happened. As nearly as I can make out, Laddie must have thought of a riddle and have gone to the police station to see if any one could guess it.” “Why didn’t he ask one of us?” his mother wanted to know. “He generally does ask us first.” “We’ll find out all about it when I bring him home,” replied Mr. Bunker. “I’ll go right after him.” “Will you take the car?” asked Mrs. Bunker. “Yes, I think I’d better. Laddie may have fallen asleep, and he’s pretty heavy to carry.” “I’ll go with you,” offered Adam, and soon they were at the police station. There they found Laddie wide awake, sitting in the assembly room of the station house, while several officers, who were on reserve duty, were laughing and joking with him. “He’s far from being asleep,” said Mr. North. “I should say so!” agreed Mr. Bunker. “Laddie boy, what in the world are you doing down here?” he asked the little fellow. “I came down to find out about a riddle,” he answered. “And he’s had us all guessing riddles ever since he walked in here about an hour ago,” chuckled the police sergeant in charge of the station. “He’s a great boy!”