lt of dress
goods?"

"Look at the cloth very closely," Penny urged. "Now don't you see?"

"No, I don't."

"Have you forgotten the wick of the toy lantern?"

"The wick----" repeated Susan slowly. "Oh! The cloth is the same!"

"It's the very same weave," Penny nodded. "At least that would be my
guess. The wick of that toy lantern might have been made from a scrap
of cloth sold from this very bolt of goods!"

"I'd never have noticed a thing like that in a million years," Susan
murmured in awe. "Penny, you've uncovered an important clue in your
father's case."

"I may be wrong about it," Penny admitted.

She lowered her voice for the storekeeper was coming toward the girls.

"May I show you something in yard goods?" he inquired. "That bolt on
the counter is one of our popular pieces."

"Have you sold very much of it?" Penny asked quickly.

"Oh, yes, indeed. A great many women in Kendon have had suits made
from this particular pattern. It is very reasonably priced too--only
thirty-nine cents a yard."

"Could you give me a list of the persons who have bought material from
this bolt?" Penny questioned eagerly.

The storekeeper regarded her rather blankly for the request was a
strange one.

"Well, no, I'm afraid I can't," he replied. "Half the women in town
buy yard goods from me. But I'm sure you can't go wrong in making this
selection."

"I'll take a quarter of a yard," Penny told him.

"Only a quarter of a yard?"

"Yes, that will do for a sample. I may want more later on."

The storekeeper cut off the material and wrapped it up. Penny and
Susan left the store with their purchases.

"I'm going straight back to the cottage and compare this cloth with the
wick of the toy lantern!" Penny exclaimed when they were beyond the
storekeeper's hearing.

"It's a pity so many persons bought the material," Susan commented.
"Otherwise it might be possible to trace the buyers."

"Yes," agreed Penny, "but the clue may prove to be a valuable one
anyway. If this cloth is the same as the toy lantern wick, it's very
possible that the thief who stole the Kirmenbach jewels lives right in
this town."

"Aren't you forgetting that other stores may have the same kind of
material for sale," Susan remarked.

"That's possible of course. Oh, Dad may not consider the clue of much
value, but at least it's worth reporting."

Mr. Nichols was sitting on the front porch when the girls reached the
cottage. Making