“I don’t believe you can,” said Dick. “I think whoever threw that lasso ran away right after they tossed it at you, Teddy. We won’t find anyone at the other end of this rope. But Fatty’s idea is a good one. We’ll follow the rope and see.” “I used to belong to the Boy Scouts where I lived before we came here,” Fatty said a bit proudly. “I’m going to join again if there’s a troop here.” “Sure there is,” Teddy said. “We all belong.” Just as Dick had predicted, there was no one at the end of the lasso when the boys had trailed it to the bushes. There it lay, stretched out like a hempen snake. “Take it easy now, fellows,” cautioned Teddy as his chums crowded around the end of the rope. “Why?” asked Joe. “Do you think the lasso man is hiding around here?” “No, I think he’s far enough away by this time,” Teddy replied. “But I was going to see if I could find his footprints. Maybe we could trace him that way.” “That’s right!” Fatty agreed. “Let Teddy look alone. If we all walk around here there’ll be so many footprints he won’t be able to tell one from another.” “I don’t know that I’ll be able to detect any marks as it is,” Teddy said. “This ground is sort of hard. But maybe there will be traces of some shoe prints.” Teddy knelt down and began to use some of his Boy Scout knowledge in trailing. At first, he saw nothing unusual. As he had said, the ground was too hard. But, after scouting about a bit, Teddy uttered a cry of surprise. “I think I’ve found it!” he exclaimed. “Come over here! Careful, fellows! Look!” and he pointed to a little patch of soft earth in which was imbedded several impressions of a small star. “What does that mean?” asked Dick. “That an astronomer has been here?” “No,” Teddy answered. “But it means somebody that wears metal heel plates in the shape of a star has been here. And I think they were on the shoes of the man who lassoed me.” “What do you mean by heel plates?” asked Fatty. “Why, some men, who wear down the heels of their shoes faster than the soles, put metal plates on the heels to stop the wear,” Teddy explained. “Mr. Crispen, the cobbler on Main street, has lots of heel plates. They come in different shapes. Maybe he has some like these stars and can tell us who bought them.” “That’s a dandy clue,” said Joe. “But it doesn’t help us find the mysterious deer,” Dick stated. “Unless the deer wore heel plates.” “Well, if the deer did wear heel plates, he certainly didn’t lasso me,” declared Teddy. “Though the lasso man who ran away and the mysterious deer must be mixed up in some way.” “Why do you think he lassoed you?” asked Fatty Nolan. “Haven’t the least idea,” Teddy answered. “Unless maybe he wanted to scare us away from following him.” “But if he wanted to do that, he wouldn’t run away and leave a good lasso, would he?” asked Joe.