Pretty Falls river was a good quarter of a mile from Bartlett College. It was wide and deep and swift! Unhappily for lovers of canoe riding the river possessed too many little falls or jagged, protruding rocks, to make this sport safe. However, there were certain swimming holes which were popular in the late spring and summer weather.

On this particular moonlight night, although the air was chilly, every member of the Bartlett second team gathered for a celebration near the bank of the Pretty Falls. The first arrivals had built a huge bonfire and the entire squad crowded around it. Speeches and music of all sorts seemed to be the main program of the evening.

While the seconds were, as they thought, secretly enjoying themselves, Benz was busy about the campus plotting their destruction. In some mysterious way the news of the would-be celebration had leaked out. It was easy to get some fifty students to co-operate with him in the scheme. In fact, most of the first team were so enthusiastic over the idea that they led the army on the march to attack the unsuspecting scrubs.

McCabe was last speaker and he was discoursing highly upon the merits of the second team, the honors that it had won, et cetera.

"Gentlemen," said McCabe, "To-day has marked a great day in the history of the second football team. Well may we say with Caesar, 'I came; I saw; I conquered.' We sent the enemy home with drooping heads, flushing with shame! Their retreat to the locker room was the saddest sight I ever hope to witness. The tears shed by the vanquished would have kept Noah's ark afloat for thirty years. It is with sincere regret that I order the camp fire to be smothered; the arms to be stacked; and the last bugle call to be sounded. We are out of provisions. We must retreat, … hey! Beat it, fellows! We are discovered!"

With wild whoops and yells the foe, half a hundred strong, charged down upon the unprepared enemy. McCabe didn't stop to review his troops or present a battle front. He fled like Antony from the clutch of Caesar. Judd was slow in getting under way but gave a good account of himself until overpowered by sheer force of numbers.

"Tie those legs!" cried one of the enemy, holding his stomach, "He kicks worse than a mule!"

Benz threw a noose over Judd's feet and drew it tight, until he quieted down.

"This is a new game to me," Judd grinned, "But I reckon it's all right."

The enemy laughed. Outposts came up dragging other prisoners. McCabe had almost gotten away but was captured on a fierce tackle by Bartz, who played left end on the varsity.

"What shall we do with 'em, sir?" asked Bartz, turning and saluting
Benz, respectfully.

"How many have you captured?"

"Six, sir, not counting Rube and McCabe."

"Good! Make them run the gauntlet and release them!"

"And what shall we do with the other two?"

"Hold them until further orders!"

"Very well, sir."

The other six were forced to run the gauntlet, very unwillingly indeed, for it consisted in crawling upon hands and knees between some thirty pairs of legs, and to receive, upon passing between each pair, a tremendous whack from the palm of the hand of the owner of said pair of legs.

When the unfortunate members of the second team completed the running of the gauntlet not one of them complained of the cold. The heat created was perfectly sufficient to keep them warm all the way home. In fact it was far more penetrating than the soft warmth thrown off by the camp fire.

"Now, skidoo!" yelled some fifty voices, and the six seconds each took a second in making their exit from the scene of the disaster.

"I wonder what they can be going to do with us?" grinned McCabe, to
Judd. "Say, … do I look like a defeated general?"

"Never give up the ship!" kidded Judd, then to the three fellows who were holding him down: "What's the idea of tyin' my feet?"

"General's orders, sir, General's orders!"

Benz strode up.

"Escort or carry the prisoners down to the old bridge. Forward march, men!"

It did not take long to reach the bridge.

Bartz ran up to Benz. "What are you going to do?" he asked, suspiciously. "Surely you're not thinking of ducking 'em this time of year!"

"No, … only scare 'em! We'll hold 'em over the rail an' make believe we're going to drop 'em. Savvy?"

"I getcha. I thought that's what you were up to all the time," apologized Bartz, then in a louder voice; "Which one first, general?"

"Rube!" Benz shouted, sternly. "Here's where he shows the yellow streak," he said to himself. "Before all these fellows, too! … Rube, you being the main offender, you must pay the penalty with your life. Carry him up to the rail, men!"

The fellows obeyed, soberly.

"You're not goin' to throw me in with my feet tied, are you?" asked Judd, calmly, without an effort to struggle. It was quite dark save for the reflection cast by the moon.

"We sure are!" Benz winked at the crowd that stood just behind, watching proceedings. "Any word you wish to leave for friends or relatives? Any directions as to how you want your earthly goods disposed of?"

"No, I reckon I'm ready to die now. The sooner the better," replied
Judd, undaunted.

Benz hesitated. His bluff was not having the desired effect. "Why don't he beg for mercy?" Benz asked himself. "Isn't that guy afraid of anything?"

Then Benz did a daring thing. Without stopping to think of the consequences he seized Judd's shackled feet and lifted them over the low rail. A dozen hands assisted in hoisting Judd's big body up and over. Here was the critical moment. Would he beg now? If not, the fellows must pull him back and acknowledge that he was real stuff.

"How about it, Rube?" asked Benz, watching Judd's face closely, as he helped hold him, suspended, over the river. Not a muscle in Judd's body so much as quivered.

"You might untie my legs,…" he said again, quietly. "I never tried to swim that way."

Splash! It was done! Judd had dropped, how, no one knew, … except Benz. There were wild cries and shouts; fellows crossed on both sides of the river to try and get trace of him. It was so dark no one saw him reappear, if he did reappear; after he struck the water. Benz, his teeth chattering with fright, ran back and forth upon the bridge not knowing what to do.

"He's drowned!" shouted McCabe, "No man can swim with his feet tied in that river! Benz, your practical joke worked this time!"

"The falls!" somebody shrieked. "They're just a little below that bend. He'll go over them and into the mill pond sure!"

Fellows began running along the river bank below the bend.

"If we only had a lantern!" another cried, frantically.

Several commenced calling Judd's name in the hope that he might hear and answer them.

"I can never go back to college after this!" Benz breathed,
hysterically. "He's drowned and of course, I'll be blamed, … but no!
No one can prove that I let him drop! We'll all be held to account;
… Oh why, why did I do it?"

* * * * *

It was one o'clock and still no signs of Judd. Cateye was growing anxious. He got up, slipped on a bathrobe, and hobbling over to a chair, sat by the window looking out upon the campus.

"Judd said that he and Benz had almost clashed. I wonder if something has happened to one or both?" Cateye shuddered nervously at the thought.

Suddenly he glimpsed a lone figure running swiftly across the campus, rapidly nearing the dormitory. It was so dark that Cateye could not make out who it was but the very fact that the person was running coupled with the time of night, signified that something unusual had happened.

Whoever it was, was climbing the stairs at a terrific rate. Cateye grasped his crutch and hobbled toward the door. As he did so the door flung open with a bang.

"Cateye!"

"Judd! … Why! You're soaked to the skin and blue with cold! What on earth has happened?"

"I reckon they tried to drown me," replied Judd, stepping in and closing the door. "But I fooled 'em! It was a narrow squeak though. If I hadn't struck a big rock I'd have gone over the falls!"

"But I thought you could swim, Judd?"

"Hump! Me swim? With my feet tied? Say, it was enough to keep my head above water in that current!"

"Your feet tied!" exclaimed Cateye, "You don't mean to tell me the fellows …!"

"Yep, … nope,… It was Benz! … Benz, that's who 'twas!" Judd was quite excited now and shivering with cold. He tried to remove his dripping shirt.

"Let me help you!" Cateye ripped the shirt off. "But surely Benz wouldn't do that! He wouldn't dare for one thing, … and he isn't quite a fool!"

"You'd hardly think it of it, would you?" Judd grinned, water trickling down his forehead. "If I hadn't hit that rock….! Somehow I made a grab as I went by an' caught it. Then I hung for dear life with one hand an' untied my feet with the other. You know, Cateye, I always did grip pretty hard. But just the same I thought that current would rip my arm right off at the shoulder before I got my feet loose! After I'd got free I hung on for a few minutes more till the fellows went on down the river searchin' for me. Then I struck out for shore an' believe me, I hit the high spots comin' home!"

"And doesn't anyone know but what you're drowned?"

"Only you, … an' I!"

"Good! We'll teach the guys a lesson. Here, let me give you a good rub down. Darn this injured knee, anyhow. Just when a fellow needs help the most I can't be of much assistance. Now listen, you lay low when the bunch comes back. Get under the bed or somewhere. I'll pretend I don't know where you are. We'll teach them to play any more practical jokes!"

Judd grinned. "That 'ud kind of be turnin' the tables, eh?"

"Kind of, you bet! I hear somebody coming upstairs now! Take this alcohol bottle and rub yourself good to keep from catching cold. Get into the closet out of sight. Quick!"

Cateye waited until the footsteps reached the head of the stairs, then flung open the door and limped into the hall on his crutch. He met face to face with Benz.

"Rather late turning in, aren't you? Say, … do you know where Judd is? I'm getting rather anxious. It's two o'clock and after, … and he never kept very late hours!"

Benz's face was a pale white; his lips were trembling; he seemed near collapse.

"He's, … he's, … I think he's drowned!"

"What!" Cateye's concern was extremely realistic. "Drowned!"

"Shss!" warned Benz, glancing about nervously, "Don't wake the whole dorm! Step in your room here and I'll tell you the whole story."

Cateye backed in and sat down, turning on the light. Benz seated himself on the edge of the bed and clutched the bed sheets despairingly.

"Great heavens, man, don't keep me in suspense!" groaned Cateye, "Judd drowned! How'd it happen?"

"Well, …" began Benz, "It all came out of a little joke!"

"So it was one of your pranks, eh? Drowning a man!" Cateye's voice was hard and cruel.

"I didn't mean it, Cateye, honest! I mean, … the joke to go so far," Benz hastened to add, realizing that he had almost confessed. "We broke up a celebration the second team was having; captured Rube and McCabe and planned on giving 'em a good scare. So we carried 'em down to the bridge an' held Rube over the rail. I, … we never meant to drop him, honest, but, …"

"Why did you tie his feet?" As soon as Cateye asked the question he realized that he had pulled "a bone."

"Why did I? … Did I tell you that?" Benz asked, wild-eyed.

"You sure did!" insisted Cateye, seeing a way out.

"Well, … he put up such a fight we had to do something," explained
Benz, weepingly, "And I just said we never meant to drop him!"

"Is anybody down at the river now?"

"Yes, the whole bunch. They're going to keep up the search till
morning. I sent Bartz down to Tarlton to see the sheriff and get help.
We're goin' to drag the river for his body in the morning, …" Here
Benz broke down completely.

Cateye heard Judd choking a laugh and realized he had to say something or the jig was up.

"And what are you doing here?" he demanded, savagely, "You, … you who are probably more to blame for this, … this murder than anyone else! Why aren't you out doing something to help recover his body?"

"I, … I, … oh Cateye, don't rub it in so! I couldn't stand it any longer. I had to come away. Oh, it's all a terrible nightmare to me. He can't be dead, … he must be alive! Let me go, … I've got to be by myself!"

Cateye did not try to restrain Benz. In fact he was mighty glad to have him go!

As soon as Benz had disappeared up the hall Judd stepped softly from the closet, the towel stuffed in his mouth, and fell upon the bed, shaking with laughter.

"How's that for real acting?" grinned Cateye.

"Gee, that's worth getting drowned to listen to!" howled Judd, "They're going to drag the river for me in the mornin'! Did you hear that? Well, … I wish 'em luck. I hope they find me. I reckon it's rather awkward for a ghost like me not to know where my body is, … floatin' around somewhere on the bottom of the river!"

"Shss! Judd, don't make so much noise! This will be the richest joke on Benz and the fellows for that matter, that ever came off. It'll teach Benz a lesson he'll never forget. You keep out of sight till after breakfast today. The whole college will know about it by that time!"

"Trust me, pal," assured Judd, "Most people can't see ghosts, anyhow!"