l of fright unnerved the other Cubs for an instant. But they did not give way to panic. Chips grasped the younger boy’s arm, holding him as he would have fled from the church grounds.

“Take it easy,” he advised. “There aren’t any ghosts and we all know it.”

“I-I heard something,” Chub said, half ashamed. “It sounded like a bell tapping.”

The Cubs stood gazing up at the belfry. So far as they could see, the rusty old bell hung absolutely motionless.

“You imagined it,” Red said gruffly. “How could that bell jingle?”

“I thought I heard it tap myself,” Midge said.

“Maybe the wind moved the bell,” Red offered as an explanation. “It’s blowing fairly strong from the direction of the river.”

The other Cubs nodded agreement, satisfied that the mystery was solved. Dan remained silent. He too had heard the metallic sound which had startled Chub, and has assumed it to be a tapping bell. But to theorize that the wind had been responsible, seemed silly.

Nevertheless, not caring to further alarm the Cubs, he did not reveal his thoughts.

“Come on, let’s practice basketball,” Red urged to break the uneasy silence which had fallen upon the group. “Here, Midge, catch!”

He tossed the ball to his friend, who passed it back. The boys spread out, palming the basketball from one to another, faster and faster. Then they played “keep away” for a few minutes. Chub was less skillful than the other Cubs, frequently letting the ball slip from his fingers.

“I don’t know why I’m so awkward,” he said miserably.

“You’ll catch on all at once,” Dan encouraged him. “Here, pass me a fast, hard one now.”

Chub swung the b