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to get my business away from me!" stormed the hotel man. "I won't stand for it!"

      "I didn't send the messages, and I either want the spread or I want my money back," declared Phil, stubbornly. And then more words followed, until it looked as if there might be a fight. Finally, in a rage, Jason Sparr ordered the students from his place.

      "All right, we'll go, but you haven't heard the end of this!" cried Phil.

      "You'll catch it, for treating us so meanly," added Ben.

      "Don't you threaten me, or I'll have the law on you!" roared Jason Sparr.

      "Perhaps I'll call on the law myself," answered Phil, and then, unable to control himself, he shook his fist at the hotel man. Then all the boys filed out of the place, some bystanders looking on in wonder.

      "Well, what do you think of this!" cried Gus, when outside.

      "Phil, I wouldn't say anything more just now--you are too excited," said Dave, catching his chum by the arm.

      "Yes, but that fellow is as mean as--as dirt!" answered the shipowner's son.

      "He hasn't any right to keep Phil's money," said one student.

      "Then the feast is called off, is it?" said Buster, with something like a groan in his voice.

      "And somebody is going to have the laugh on us!" added Shadow. "Say, this puts me in mind of a story," he added, brightening. "Once some boys were going----"

      "Oh, stow it, Shadow!"

      "This is no time for stories!"

      "I'd rather go down to the cemetery and weep."

      "Nobody is going to have the laugh on me," cried Phil. "We'll get something somewhere."

      "Right you are!" cried Dave. "I've got it!" he added. "Let us drive over to Rockville and get something at the hotel there. I know the proprietor and he's a nice man."

      "Better telephone to him first and make sure," suggested Roger.

      "I'll do it," said Phil.

      The carryall was brought around again and all piled in and drove down to a drug store where there was a telephone booth. Into the booth went Phil, to communicate with the hotel in Rockville. He came out smiling.

      "It's all fixed up and I guess we'll have something this time," he said. "But just wait; I'll fix that mean Jason Sparr, see if I don't!"

      "It's quite a drive to Rockville," protested Horsehair, when they told the driver what was wanted.

      "Never mind, it will do the horses good," cried Roger. "They are getting too fat standing still."

      "Say, Phil," whispered Dave. "If you haven't got money enough along, I can let you have some."

      "Good," was the whispered return. "I was going to speak of that, as soon as I got a chance."

      The affair at the Oakdale hotel had put something of a damper on the crowd, and all the talk was of how Jason Sparr had acted and who had been mean enough to play such a trick.

      "Maybe it was Nat Poole," said Chip.

      "What makes you think that?" asked Phil.

      "Oh, he is mean enough for anything."

      "If Nat did this I'll--I'll mash him!" cried Phil, with energy.

      "Can't you find out?" asked Roger.

      "I'll try--but most likely the fellow who did it took care to cover up his tracks. Sparr didn't know where the messages came from."

      On and on rolled the carryall, until the lights of Rockville appeared in the distance. By this time all of the students were decidedly hungry. They rolled up to the little hotel and those with horns gave a couple of shrill blasts.

      This time there was a warm welcome by the host. He came out, bowing and smiling.

      "Did the best I could for you, on such short notice," he said, as they entered. "Next time, if you'll only give me a little more time----"

      "That's all right, let's have what you've got," cried Buster. He was hungry enough to eat anything.

      They were ushered into what was usually the private dining-room of the little hostelry. The table had been spread out and was tastefully decorated with paper chrysanthemums, made by the hotel man's daughter. A parlor-lamp and several others shed light on the scene.

      "This looks good!" murmured Roger.

      "Wait till you see what we get to eat," answered Sam. "It may be slim--on such short notice."

      But he was agreeably mistaken, the spread was all that could be desired. There were oysters on the half-shell, tomato soup, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, lettuce salad, olives, and also coffee, pie, and various cookies. It was served in home style, by the hotel man's daughter and a hired girl.

      "Say, this is fine!" cried Buster, smacking his lips.

      "Better, maybe, than if we had stayed at the other place," added Dave.

      "Only we haven't got the music," said Phil. He was glad that matters had taken such a nice turn, but still angry over what had gone before.

      As they had already lost so much time, the boys did not dare linger too long over the spread. Horsehair was given something to eat in another room, and then they set out on the return. Songs were sung and jokes cracked, and Shadow was permitted to tell half a dozen of his best stories. Yet, with it all, the edge had been taken off the celebration, and Phil knew this as well as anybody, and was correspondingly chagrined.

      "I'll make that man square up with me, see if I don't," he said to Dave, as they arrived at the school. "I'm not going to lose all that money."

      "Well, be careful of what you do, Phil," warned our hero. "Don't get into a fight."

      The next day the shipowner's son sent out two sharp letters, one to Jason Sparr and the other to Professor Smuller. He stated that he was not responsible for the trip-up that had taken place, and demanded his money be returned to him, otherwise he would put the matter in the hands of the law.

      To these letters came speedy replies. The musical professor said he was sorry a mistake had been made, and he returned the amount paid to him, and he further stated that if he could discover who had played the trick he would make that party settle up.

      "That's decent of him," said Phil. "I am going to send him back five dollars for his trouble." And this he did, much to Professor Smuller's satisfaction.

      The letter from Jason Sparr was entirely different. He berated Phil for the stand taken, and stated that he would pay back nothing. He added that he had learned how the crowd had gone to Rockville to dine, and said he was satisfied that it was all a trick to get patronage away from his hotel. He added that he had had trouble enough with people from Oak Hall school and he wanted no more of it.

      "I guess I'll have to sue him," growled Phil, on showing the letter to Dave and Roger.

      "I don't think I'd bother," answered Dave. "Put it down to Experience, and let it go at that."

      "If you sued him it would cost as much as you'd get, and more," added the senator's son.

      "Humph! I don't feel like swallowing it," growled Phil. "I'll get it out of him somehow."

      "He must have lost something--if he got ready for the spread," said Dave.

      "Oh, I don't think he lost much. He's a close one--to my way of thinking," responded the shipowner's son.

      CHAPTER XVI

      THE

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