“Why,” replied Bar, “up there, on one side of the bell, is an old pulley-wheel. I’ll have to oil it before it will run well. Now, I’ll hitch the end of this rope to the bell-hammer, and pass it over that wheel. It’ll come down at the east side, close to the timbers, where nobody can see it with a telescope. Then I’ll pass it under this wheel here and hitch it to the lower arm of our van. Then, if there comes a good wind, that bell’s bound to toll every time the van is blown in.” “It would take a west wind for it,” said Val. “Perhaps, to work it regularly,” replied Bar, “but ’most any wind may do some good. Now, I’ve a pokerish job before me.” It looked like it, indeed! Val Manning was brave enough, but he would hardly have liked to undertake that climb in the dark. Not every boy would have cared for it in broad daylight. Up went Bar, however, as surely and as rapidly as if he had served an apprenticeship at sea, and Val waited for him in almost breathless expectation till he saw him once more emerge into the moonlight, which was now beginning to stream through the bell-tower. “It’ll work,” said Bar, “but I came pretty near losing my hold once. That would have been a bad piece of business.” “Killed you!” exclaimed Val. “Maybe not,” said Bar. “I fell as far as that once, but I came down on my feet. Made me lame for a month.” Val made up his mind that he would know more about his chum’s adventures some day, but just now there was too much work on hand for any further talking. Bar’s mechanical genius had not been altogether neglected, although he did not know anything of “book” mathematics, and in half an hour more he was able to show Val how that van would be sure to make a good pull on the rope if the wind would only do its share of the work. “Glad there’s none blowing now,” said Val. “There will be, before long,” said Bar; “there was a halo round the moon last night. Now we must manage to get back to bed again without being seen. Nobody’ll suspect new boys like us, anyhow.” “But won’t they be after poor Zeb Fuller!” exclaimed Val. “I must get acquainted with that fellow,” replied Bar. “He’ll take care of that,” said Val. “They’re going to play ball on the green to-morrow, and we can take a look at him then. Only we’re sure to get into some kind of a muss.” “The sooner the better, then,” said Bar. “We can’t settle matters with a crowd like his a day too soon.” “We’d better go home around by the river, anyhow,” said Val. The process of getting out of the building was a good deal like that of getting in, for Bar would not listen to Val’s proposition to slide down the lightning-rod. “Not,” he said, “till you’ve had some sort of practice first. It isn’t so safe and easy as it looks, and you mustn’t run any unnecessary risk.” “But you do,” said Val. “No, it isn’t any kind of risk for me,” replied Bar, “so long as the rod’s strong enough to hold me.”