"Wh—what on earth is going on here?" Hannah asked.

Before anyone could answer, Nancy's bullterrier Togo slipped into the room behind the housekeeper. As soon as he spied the little reptile, he began to bark wildly. He jumped up in the air, trying to reach the crocodile with his paws.

"Don't hurt it!" Nancy exclaimed. She grabbed Togo by his collar and tried to keep him from nipping the little creature.

"I'll take Togo," Hannah offered.

Nancy walked up to the table and turned the shoe carton on its end. Then, with the lid, she gently pushed the crocodile back toward it. Apparently the dog's barking and yapping had frightened it, and the little reptile willingly crawled into the box.

"Thank goodness!" Hannah Gruen said with a sigh of relief as Nancy put the lid back on.

"I'm glad that's over!" Bess added. "If one little baby can scare us like that, what'll we do when we get to a farm full of great big crocs?"

Mrs. Gruen laughed. "No doubt the reptiles are kept in pits and can't get out," she said. "Don't worry, Bess."

Togo continued to bark and jump, so Nancy led him outside and put him in his run. The dog had helped her many times in her detective work, which had started with The Secret of the Old Clock. Recently she had unraveled The Strange Message in the Parchment.

Meanwhile, Hannah had found a sturdy cord to secure the shoe box. When Nancy returned to the living room, she suggested that tie three girls go downtown and deliver the baby crocodile to its owner.

"I second the motion," Bess said. "The sooner we get this creature out of here, the better I'll like it!"

When they reached the store, Bess stayed in the car, while Nancy and George went inside the shop. The owner, Noly Reareck, greeted the girls with a look of relief.