g than to be
gadding about?" said his mother.

"Well, you know a boy can't be always reading," observed Philip.

If Mrs. Ross had been a close observer, she might have noticed that
Philip got over wonderfully few pages. Indeed, he sometimes held the
book open at the same place for half an hour together. The fact was that
Philip cared very little for reading, unless he could get hold of some
highly sensational story about highwaymen or pirates. He simply used the
book as a cover.

The Colonel, his father, was sitting in a room which he called his
office, opening out of the family sitting-room, and Philip had seated
himself so that he could look into that room, and watch what his father
was doing.

Near his desk, Colonel Ross kept a small, iron-bound trunk, which he
used as a sort of safe, or a repository for valuable papers, and
sometimes for bonds and securities. It was imprudent, for anyone might
readily have carried it off; but the Colonel didn't think of this, or,
at any rate, didn't feel inclined to go to the expense of a safe.
Indeed, most of his bonds and securities were deposited in the strong
room of the county bank, and, therefore, his imprudence was less.

Philip's eager attention was roused when he saw his father rise from his
desk, take up the trunk and open it, as it lay on the desk where he
placed it.

"Now, I may find out what he has inside," thought Philip.

Colonel Ross opened it, as I have said, and took out several envelopes.
Opening one of these, he drew therefrom what Philip recognized to be
government bonds, and spread them out before him.

What was the object of this examination, Philip could not divine, nor
did he particularly care, though he might had he known that his father
was considering the expediency of selling them, and buying another
security--the stock of a certain railroad--which would pay larger
dividends. His main interest was to ascertain whether his father had any
government bonds, and this question he was now able to answer in the
affirmative.

After a brief inspection, Colonel Ross replaced in the trunk the
securities he had taken from it, and locked the trunk. The bunch of
keys, one of which opened the trunk, he laid on the desk, unconsciously,
probably.

"I hope he'll forget 'em," said Philip to himself. "It'll save me a good
bit of trouble."

It seemed likely that the keys would be forgotten, for Colonel Ross, as
though his business were ended, took the lamp fro