since."

"There must be something mysterious about the man, then," remarked Fred.
"And it might pay for someone to get in touch with the people over in New
Brunswick, so as to find out whether he did live there once, a rich man,
and why he cleared out."

"That's right, Fred," observed Bristles. "When people fight shy of their
native place, it pays to learn the reason. Course sometimes they have a
good cause for keeping away, but lots of 'em do so because they dassen't
go back. But I'm meaning to keep this queer little pin."

"And if you happen to run across Sadie Ludson again, you'll give it back
to her, won't you?" Fred asked him.

"Just what I had in mind, to a dot," admitted Bristles. "I might tell
her where I picked it up, too, and see what she'd say."

"Well, even if you did get her to admit that she'd been here, that
wouldn't prove anything, would it?" queried Colon.

"We'd know Corny had been camping in this cave," said Bristles, sturdily,
"and from the fact that we picked up this same tin box, _empty_, it'd
look pretty much as if he ought to know something about it. They'd call
that circumstantial evidence."

"And if the boy and girl had to be questioned by Judge Wallace they might
he coaxed to confess that they'd seen their uncle handling this tin box,"
added Fred. "That would fix the blame without any question."

"Something may come of our find," Colon went on to say, now feeling that
he had a perfect right to count himself in the game, "and on that account
I reckon you'd be doing the right thing to keep both the pin and the box,
boys."

"And all we ask of you, Colon," Bristles suggested, "is that you stick
mum. Let Fred run the thing. If he wants any help, he'll tell us, so we
c'n assist."

"Oh! I'll be a clam," asserted the tall runner with a chuckle, "and once
I give my word, nobody ever knew me to break it. But say, doesn't it
feel kind of chilly down here? Remember we haven't any too much on in
the way of clothes, and for one I was a little heated after my run to
catch up with you fellows."

"That's where your head is level, Colon," Fred told him, "and so we might
as well climb out of this. I'm happy to know I didn't even sprain an
ankle when I dropped down through that hole."

They found no great difficulty in gaining the outside world again, for
the stones offered a substantial footing. So it came about that
presently the three chums were once more moving along at a fair pac