"I haven't got any boxes," grumbled the young cadet. Since the departure of Slugger Brown and Nappy Martell from the Hall, Codfish had kept a good deal to himself. But he was as much of a sneak as ever, and did many mean things which were exceedingly irritating to the other cadets.

"You haven't any boxes?" said Randy, in apparent surprise. "What's the use of talking like that? You know better;" and then he winked at his brother.

"I'm on," whispered Andy quickly. "Bring him up to his room in about ten minutes." And then he ran away at top speed.

"It's a waste of good money to burn up boxes and barrels like that,"

was Codfish's comment. "I don't see why Colonel Colby allows it.

Those boxes and barrels could be used to pack all sorts of things in."

"Well, if you don't like to see the boxes and barrels burned up, why don't you furnish us with a little cord wood?" inquired Gif Garrison, who had come up.

"That's the talk!" said Jack quickly. "Show us where you've got your cord wood stored, Codfish," he went on, after Randy had whispered in his ear. Then Randy ran off in the direction his twin had taken.

"I haven't any cord wood, I tell you!" stormed Codfish. "And I haven't any boxes or barrels, either!" and then he walked away to get clear of his tormentors.

But Jack remembered what Randy had said to him, and did not allow Codfish out of his sight. He kept the sneak in view, and quickly gathered Spouter, Gif, Fatty, Walt, and a number of others around him.

"We're going to take Codfish up to his room in a few minutes and treat him to the surprise of his life," he explained. "Don't forget to come along and see the fun."

CHAPTER VII

FUN WITH CODFISH

The idea of having a little fun with Codfish had occurred to Andy and Randy on the day previous, when they had been out collecting some boxes and barrels for the bonfires which they hoped to have--provided, of course, that Hixley High was beaten in the baseball contest. They had talked the matter over for some time, and had then set to work, laying their plans to give the sneak of the school the surprise of his life.

"What's doing, Jack?" questioned Walt Baxter, in some surprise.

"Going to put one over on Codfish?" questioned Gif.

"Just you wait and see," announced Jack. And then, turning to Spouter, he continued: "In about five minutes I wish you would go over to Codfish and tell him somebody wants to see him up in his room without delay. Put it to him good and strong so that he goes up at once."

"Trust me for that," answered Spouter, with a grin. "I'll tell him his grandfather has just died and the lawyer is up there waiting to hand him an inheritance of a million dollars."

"Don't pile it on as thick as that!" cried Fred. "If you do, he'll take it for another joke, and won't go at all."

All of the crowd kept their eyes on Codfish, and when the time was up Spouter approached Stowell as if in a great hurry.

"I say, Henry," he said in an earnest voice, "there's a man wants to see you. They just sent him up to your room."

"To see me! What for?" questioned Codfish in surprise.

"I don't know. He seemed to be a very nice man, though. He was in a great hurry. You had better not keep him waiting. He said it was very important," and without waiting to be questioned further, Spouter hurried away.

Codfish looked after the other cadet rather doubtfully, and stood still for a moment. Then, however, his curiosity got the better of him, and he hurried off in the direction of the Hall.

"Come on, fellows!" cried Jack in a low voice. "But don't let him suspect that you are following him, or it may spoil the fun."

Stowell entered the school by a side door and ran up the nearest stairway to the main corridor above. The others hastened around to the front entrance and came up by another staircase. They were just in time to see the sneak hurrying into the room he occupied.

"Hist!" came in a low voice from the other end of the corridor, after the door had closed upon Codfish, and then from a shadowy recess Andy and Randy appeared.

"Did you get everything fixed up?" questioned Jack hurriedly.

"All fixed," answered Andy laconically. "Come on in here," and he motioned to a room next to that occupied by Stowell. This belonged to a student who, for the time being, was away from the school.

Once inside of this room, Randy and Andy took the others to where there was a door connecting that apartment with the one occupied by the sneak. This was partly open, so that they could look into Stowell's room with ease.

"h.e.l.lo there!" they heard the sneak exclaim. And then followed the switching on of an electric light. "It's only one of their rotten jokes! I knew it all along!" murmured the cadet.

He looked around the room, and then a cry of astonishment burst from his lips. In the center of the floor were piled at least ten boxes of various sizes and shapes. Some of the boxes had had straw in them and others excelsior, and part of this was strewn on the floor.

"Huh! Some of those fellows are mighty smart, putting these boxes in my room!" growled Codfish to himself. "I'd just like to know who did it! If it was that Spouter Powell, I think I'll go and tell on him!"

"Here is where I got in fine!" murmured Spouter.

Codfish glanced further, and his eyes fell on the interior of the closet of the room, the door to which stood wide open. Then he gave a gasp.

"My gracious! if they haven't taken all my clothing, and my hats, and even my shoes!" he groaned. "This is the worst yet!" He rushed to the closet, and another look convinced him that the place was entirely empty. Then he ran to a corner where stood a clothes tree, which had contained some of his athletic outfit. This was likewise empty. Then he rushed to his chiffonier.

"Gone! Everything gone! Not a thing left!" he groaned. "Oh, if this isn't the worst yet! If I don't tell on somebody for this!"

Coming back to the middle of the room, he surveyed the pile of boxes suspiciously. Then a sheet of paper resting on the top box claimed his attention.

"'For anything that is missing look in the boxes,'" he read from the slip of paper. "Oh, dear! I suppose those fellows were just mean enough to stuff all my things in those packing cases. I wonder what they did that for? Maybe they thought they were going to cart them down to the bonfire and burn them up, and burn all my stuff, too. Just wait and see if I don't fix somebody for this!"

There was rather a small box on top of the others, and this Codfish started to open first. One end of the lid was nailed down, but the other was loose, and he pulled up on this with vigor.

And then the sneak got the first of a series of surprises. The lid of the box held down a large rubber frog, and this bounced out of the box, hitting him full in the face. He staggered back and fell over on his bed.

"Hurrah! First round!" whispered Andy delightedly.

"Just wait for the second," said Randy.

There was nothing else in the box but excelsior, and having rummaged about in this, Codfish threw the box aside and started to investigate the next receptacle.

The lid to this was screwed on, and he had quite a job opening it. The other cadets watched with interest, doing their best to keep from laughing. When the box was opened, Codfish found that it contained a layer of excelsior. Under this, however, were a number of bundles wrapped in newspapers, each containing a small portion of the stuff taken from his chiffonier.

"Huh! thought they were smart, didn't they?" he muttered, as he put the things where they belonged. "Just wait! I'll fix 'em for this."

The next box contained some of his clothing, which he hung in the closet. Then he tackled a rather large box which was bound up with an old clothesline. He had to tug at the line quite a little to get it loose, not thinking in his excitement that it would be easier to cut the line. The top of the box was filled with all sorts of rubbish.

Beneath this were some more of his things, and then at the very bottom a rather small wooden box with a sliding cover.

Any ordinary school boy would have suspected some trick in connection with this box. But not so Codfish. He looked at it carefully, and then, bringing it close under the light, proceeded to pull the sliding cover back.

And then he was treated to another surprise, this time far more disagreeable than the other. The box contained a large codfish, one which, as Andy afterwards explained, had seen better days.