"In the meantime," Tommy continued, "do you think you could send one
of the county officers out to round up this bum detective?"

"You mean that you want him watched?" asked Canfield.

"Sure!" answered Tommy. "He sawed the rungs in the shaft, didn't he?
He could get ten years for that!"

"All right," replied Canfield. "I'll send word out and have him
arrested if you are positive that he is the man that did the cutting."

"We are positive that he's the man," replied Will, "but it'll spoil
everything if you have him arrested. We want to give him a free hand
for a time, and see what he will do. He's a crook, and he's bound to
show it! And another thing," the boy went on, "we don't want anyone
to know that he is under suspicion. We just want him watched."

"You're handling the case," smiled Canfield, "and I'll take any steps
you advise. I can't tell you how sorry I am that I brought the
detective in here this morning!"

"Well," Will said, "we put up a bluff about getting out of town and
perhaps we can make that stick. We can take a train out and come back
in on a lonely freight, and get into the mine without his knowing
anything about it. The mine is the best place to work from, anyway!"

"That's why I wanted to know how soon the mine could be pumped out!"
stated Tommy. "I don't care about wading around in a mess of water
that's blacker than a stack of black cats."