ter the men came with the cot and Eleanor was carried to
the Preston home. Everybody, except David, followed her in triumph.

For David Brewster did not go back home with the others; he wished to
find out about an old coal mine which he had been told was in this
vicinity. He did not, of course, dream of Eleanor's connection with the
place, but he had his own reasons for wishing to discover it.

An hour later the man and the old gypsy woman were startled by another
visitor. David crept into the opening in the side of the hill. When he
left, the man and woman in the mine had promised the lad to leave the
countryside as soon as possible. They had also agreed to return to
David the silver and the greater part of the money stolen from the
Preston house on the night of the corn roast. It remained for David to
see that the stolen goods were returned to the house without suspicion
falling on any one. David believed that he could save the evil-doers
from disgrace and detection. But how was he to save himself?

CHAPTER XVI

THE BETTER MAN

"Eleanor, dear, do you know who the two Indian Chiefs were who appeared
so mysteriously at our 'Feast of Mondamin'? They followed Lillian and me
about all evening and wouldn't take off their masks."

Eleanor was propped up in a big, four-post mahogany bed with half a
dozen pillows under her lame shoulder. One arm and shoulder were tightly
bandaged. Eleanor had had a serious time since her accident. For
rheumatism, caused by her exposure to the rain, had set in in the
strained shoulder. She was now much better, though still feeling a good
deal used up, and she found it very difficult to move.

Eleanor turned her head and smiled languidly at the excited Madge.

"Of course I don't know who the Indians were. Dear me, I had forgotten
all about them. I suppose they must have been Mrs. Preston's and Miss
Betsey's burglars. Has any one caught them?" Eleanor was getting
interested.

"I should say not," giggled Madge cheerfully. "Those Indian braves were
no other persons than our highly respected friends, Mr. Tom Curtis and
Mr. George Robinson! The sillies came all the way here just to be
present at the corn roast, and then rushed off without telling us who
they were. Tom was awfully cross because I never mentioned their
appearance at the feast in any of my first letters. But I forgot all
about them, there has been so much else going on. Only in my last letter
I just happened to say tha