o on the way, and ketch him with the goods
on. If he'll only give me back my money I'll agree not to prosecute, on
account of his poor old mother, if nothing else. But I'm as bad off as a
beggar if I lose all that hard earned cash."

Without saying anything to Mrs. Rollins or the neighbors, they hurried
away, the boys keeping in a cluster around the farmer. If any of the
scouts began to feel twinges in the muscles of their legs, already hard
pushed, they valiantly fought against betraying the weakness. Besides,
the excitement acted as a tonic upon them, and seemed to lend them
additional powers of endurance, just as it does in foot races where the
strain is terrific.

"It looks bad for Jo Davies, I should think, Paul," Andy managed to say,
as they pushed resolutely along.

"Well, he is the one fellow who may have known about the money,"
admitted the scout master, "and if the temptation ever came to him, he
could easily watch his employer, and learn where he hid the cash. How
about that, Mr. Rollins?"

The farmer had heard what was being said, and immediately replied:

"If Jo was bent on robbery, p'raps he could have watched me some time,
and seen where I hid that little tin box away in the attic. I used to go
there once a week to add some money to the savings that I'd foolishly
drawn out of bank long before I needed 'em, just to see how it felt to
be rich for a little while."

"When was the last time you went up there to look at it?" Paul asked.

"Let me see, when Web Sterry paid me for the heifer I sold him I put the
money away; and that was just ten days back."

"And it was all there then, you say?" questioned Paul.

"Surely," replied the farmer.

"Was Jo working near the house then, can you remember, sir?"

Mr. Rollins appeared to reflect.

"When was the day we did some carpenter work on that extension--as sure
as anything it was the day Webb paid me! Yes, I remember, now, that Jo
came around from his work on the plane, and told me Webb was there."

The farmer's excitement was increasing. Things, under the clever
questioning of the young scoutmaster, seemed to be fitting in with each
other, just as a carpenter dovetails the ends of a box together.

"It looks as though Jo might have spied on you when you went up to the
attic to put that new money away with the rest. If he suspected that you
were keeping a large sum in the house that's what he would most likely
do when he knew you had just taken in some