16 



I'd like to know liow 't would seem to have 

 a little money in my pocket once more, an' 

 I'm in for trvin- onr Inck tonight an' seein' 

 if we can't relieve the old maid of some of 

 her cash. If we don't find any, no harm's 

 done, an' I reckon we can get a fiU-np ont 

 of her pantry, if we don't get anything 

 else. I'd like to clean ont the whole ranch, 

 to pay her for her stinginess, an' get even 

 with her for the mean things she said."' 



•'I s'pose we conld try it," was the reply. 

 **I wouldn't care to. thongh, if there was 

 likely to he any men 'ronnd. Yon're snre 

 that man she told the girl to go after don't 

 pnt np at the honse, nights ?" 



'°Yes, pretty snre," was the reply. ^'Bnt 

 we can make quite snre of how the land 

 lays before night comes. We'll go down to 

 the village that we saw two or three miles 

 back, an' pick np the information we want. 

 It's easy to find ont all we need to know. 

 Any ten-year-old boy we come across can 

 tell ns. I'd like to rnn across a snack of 

 somethin' before long, for my stomach's 

 gettin' as empty as my pocket is. I reckon 

 we can make a raise of somethin' to eat 

 somewhere between here an' the village, 

 an' find time to take a snooze before we 

 call on the old lady. We won't want to 

 stay long in the neighborhood after we've 

 paid her onr respects, so what sleep we get 

 we'll have to get before we go there. Ten 

 or 'leven o'clock'll be early enough. By 

 that time ev'rybody'll be abed an' asleep, 

 an' we'll have the coast all to ourselves." 



'•'I wonder what Aunt Betty would say 

 if she could hear that?'' thought Mary. 

 "I wonder what she'll do about it when I 

 tell her?" 



She heard the men stirring about on the 

 other side of the wall, and presently they 

 went away. 



Then she started for home as fast as she 

 could go. 



^*0h, Aunt Betty I" she cried, bursting 

 into the kitchen so abruptly that her aunt 

 jumped out of her chair, very much 

 startled by her excited appearance, and 

 thinking perhaps she was craizy, or next 

 thing to it. Miss Betty had not fully 



recovered from the fright she had had over 

 the little girl's fainting fit, and for all she 

 knew this might be some new phase of the 

 case. "Oh, Aunt Betty I I've found out 

 something I The tramps that were here 

 this morning are coming back tonight to 

 rob you I" 



"Fer the lan's sake !" cried Miss Bettv. 

 "Who told ye?" 



"T heard them talking about it," an- 

 swered Mary. Then she proceeded to tell 

 her story as Cjuietly as she could, but the 

 more she had to say about it the more 

 excited she got, and by the time she had 

 got to the end of it she could almost im- 

 agine that the tramps were ai the door. 

 "You're sure y'u've got it straight, ar' ye 

 asked Miss Betty. "Y'r so excited now 

 that I don't know jest how much stock 

 it's safe to take in what wr sayin"." 



"Oh, I'm sure," answered Mary. Then, 

 by a great effort, she composed herself, and 

 went over the ground again. The two ver- 

 sions of her story agreed, and Miss Bettw 

 was satisfied that it was safe to form her 

 plans on the strength of the information 

 thus received. 



"']\Iebbe they'll git somethin' an' mebbe 

 they won't," she said, grimly. "'^lebbe 

 they'll git somethin' they don't want — 

 somethin' they ain't lookin' fer. They're 

 welcome to all they can git out o' any oF 

 teapots they find standin' 'round this 

 place. An' ef they find any money lavin' 

 'round loose in my bureau drawers. I hope 

 they'll let me know about it,'' she added,, 

 with a chuckle. 



"But what'll you do ?" ' asked Marv. 

 "Go over to John's and stay all night ?'' 



"An' let 'em ransack the house from 

 cellar to garret ?" cried Miss Betty. "'Xot 

 if I Imow myself I" 



"'But they might do something dreadful 

 if you interfered with them." said ]\Iary^ 

 drawing a long breath at the fearful pros- 

 pect ahead. 



"I'll hev to take chances on that," said 

 Miss Betty, "but one thing's certain,, 

 they'll be interfered with I The lazy, shif- 

 less, good-fer-nothin' critters I To go 



