he would have witnessed an extraordinary
scene.

CHAPTER XXIX

THE BATTLE IN THE ATTIC

About ten minutes after Bill Benton left his little chamber an
ill-looking man, whose garb and general appearance made it clear that he
was a tramp, came strolling across the fields. He had made some
inquiries about the farmers in the neighborhood, and his attention was
drawn to Nathan Badger as a man who was likely to keep money in the
house.

Some tramps are honest men, the victims of misfortune, not of vice, but
Tom Tapley belonged to a less creditable class. He had served two terms
in a State penitentiary without deriving any particular moral benefit
from his retired life therein. His ideas on the subject of honesty were
decidedly loose, and none who knew him well would have trusted him with
the value of a dollar.

Such was the man who approached the Badger homestead.

Now it happened that Mrs. Badger and Andrew Jackson had gone to make a
call. Both intended to be back by nine o'clock, as neither wished to
lose the gratification of being near by when Bill Benton received his
flogging. As for Mr. Badger, he was at the village as usual in the
evening.

Thus it will be seen that as Bill also had left the house, no one was
left in charge.

Tom Tapley made a careful examination of the house from the outside, and
his experienced eyes discovered that it was unprotected.

"Here's luck!" he said to himself. "Now what's to prevent my explorin'
this here shanty and makin' off with any valuables I come across?"

Two objections, however, occurred to the enterprising tramp: First, it
was not likely at that time in the evening that he would be left alone
long enough to gather in his booty, and, secondly, the absent occupants
of the house might have money and articles of value on their persons
which at present it would be impossible to secure.

The front door was not locked. Mr. Tapley opened it, and, finding the
coast clear, went upstairs. Continuing his explorations, he made his way
to the little attic chamber usually occupied by the bound boy.

"Nobody sleeps here, I expect, though the bed is rumpled," he said to
himself. "There's two boys, I've heard, but it's likely they sleep
together downstairs. I guess I'll slip into bed and get a little rest
till it's time to attend to business."

The tramp, with a sigh of enjoyment, for he had not lately slept in a
bed, lay down on Bill's hard couch. It was not long before drows