"All right," Fido Norton shot back, "they might all be at the North
Pole, but these prints were made by scout shoes _to-night_. That's what
I'm telling you."

"All right," said Nick with a tolerant sneer in his voice, "the car was
stolen by a boy scout, probably a tenderfoot. Maybe it was stolen by a
girl scout--"

"No, they're scout shoe prints," said Norton, ignoring his friend's
sarcasm, "and they're not an hour old, not a half hour, that's what I
think."

"Well, actions speak louder than footprints," said Nick; "what are we
going to do, that's the question?"

"Whatever you say," said Norton cheerfully.




CHAPTER XVII

ACTION


"Well then I say let's send up a signal," said Nick hurriedly, "the
fellows at camp will see it and everybody else for miles around will see
it. Every telegraph operator along the railroad can read it. Forget
about scouts stealing cars and do what I tell you. Hustle up to the
police station and tell them about it so they can't say we didn't report