"I do, sir. As soon as Captain Putnam arrives I shall lay this whole matter before him, and learn if you have any authority for placing my brother in a place where he is liable to catch a cold which may give him pneumonia and be the cause of his death. As it is, my brother suffered a great deal, and so did Tubbs, and if they get sick from it you may be sure that you will be held legally accountable. It was an inhuman thing to do."
As Dick finished there was a murmur, and then a number of the students broke out into applause, while Tom clapped his hands as hard as he could. Jasper Grinder stood at his desk dumbstruck, with his face growing paler each instant.
"Silence! silence!" he exclaimed, when he could control his voice. "Silence, I say, or I will cane you all! This is—is most unseemly—it is—er—mutiny! Silence!"
"I mean just what I say, Mr. Grinder," went on Dick, when he could be heard. "You are master here, and we are bound to obey you, in certain things. But you shan't keep my brother in an icy room all night, and on a supper of stale bread and cold water. Such treatment would almost make a mule sick."
"Rover, will you be silent, or must I get the cane?" gasped Jasper Grinder, almost beside himself with rage.
