ey must have dropped them from their automobile," said Jess.

"Or, more likely, from the pockets of one of them. See, the ground is
trampled about here. It looks to me as if they had had a break-down, and
were fixing it when the papers fell out and were left behind unnoticed.
Oh, what a bit of luck! If they had had those papers, it would have
meant----"

A shrill cry from Jess interrupted her. At the same moment Peggy became
conscious of a presence behind her. She wheeled sharply and found herself
facing two bloated-faced individuals, one of whom carried a heavy cudgel.
Their clothes and broken boots, and their leering, odious appearance at
once proclaimed them of the genus tramp.

"Waal!" growled one of the men, with an ugly leer, "we didn't hardly
expec' ter run inter such luck ez this. Foun' suthin' vallerable, hev yer?
Reckin' it must hev bin dropped by that auto that jes' went round the
corner beyond. We'll hev ter trouble you for it, miss."

He held out a filthy hand, while Peggy, with a beating heart, fell back
toward the car.

"Frum what we hearn' yer sayin', I guess the papers is vallerable, all
right," chimed in the first speaker's companion. "Come on, now. Fork over.
You know it ain't honest ter take wot don't berlong ter ye, an' by yer own
confession them papers don't."

"What right have you to demand them?" asked Peggy boldly enough, despite
her inward terror; "you had better go on at once, or----"

"Waal, or what?" sneered the other. "We've got ye here on a lonely road.
You can't escape us. Come on, hand over them papers. We'll see that ther
rightful owners git 'em, and that we git er reward beside. See?"

Peggy's reply was to leap nimbly into the machine. But to her horror the
two tramps followed instantly. Jess cowered back in her seat. Her pale
lips moved, but she said nothing.

"Tell yer wot," burst out the man with the club, "you gals give us ten
bones a piece--the money don't mean much to folks like you--an' we'll let
yer go. If not----"

A sudden inspiration came to Peggy--a flash of recollection.

"Why didn't you say that before?" she said cheerfully. "I'll be glad to
give you the money. Wait a minute while I get it out."

She raised the cushion of the front "bucket seat," and dived beneath it
with one hand. The men watched her with greedy, yet suspicious eyes.

"Ain't tryin' ter fool us, are yer?" growled one of them, "'cos ef you
air----"

He raised his club threateningly, just as