The Tin Box, and What it Contained

"I do believe Phil's getting fond of reading," she said.

"I hope he is," returned the father.

"Phil," said his mother, "the servant is out tonight. A cousin of hersis sick, and I gave her permission to stay with her all night. Are youwilling to close up the house?"

"Oh, yes," answered Phil, briskly. "I'm glad she's away," he thought. "She won't be spying round and see what I'm about. Besides, I can leavethe door open, so that it will be easier to accuse Harry Gilbert."

"Good-night," said his mother.

"Good-night, mother."

"Don't stay up too late reading."

"No, I won't."

"How many more pages are there, Philip?" asked his father.

"About four hundred," answered Phil, looking over to the end.

"Then I wouldn't advise you to sit up till you've finished the book," hesaid, jocosely.

"I guess not. I shan't sit up more than half an hour."

So Colonel and Mrs. Ross went upstairs, and the coast was clear.

When he was left alone, and felt that the hour so long anticipated hadcome, Philip's heart beat fast.

"Come; it's easier than I hoped," he said to himself. "And father lefthis keys, too, on the desk. I hope he won't think of them, and comedownstairs after them. That might upset my plans, though I've got a lotof old keys in my pocket, and one of them might answer. However, there'snone so good as the real thing."

Philip had to consider whether he would wait till his father and motherwere asleep, or act sooner. He at length decided, in the words ofShakespeare, though he was not familiar with them:

"If 'twere done with when 'tis done,

Then, 'twere well it were done quickly."

The argument was this: If he acted soon, he could make use of hisfather's keys, and that would save him trouble. On the other hand, therewas some risk that his father might think of them, and, comingdownstairs, surprise him. However, Philip didn't think this was likely, and, in any event, he resolved to take the risk. He could pretend thathe had just caught sight of his keys, and was going to carry themupstairs for safekeeping.

Indeed, Philip did not wait more than ten minutes.

"Father must be in bed by this time," he said to himself.

He took the small lamp by which he was reading, and entered his father'soffice.

There lay the keys, and there stood the trunk.

He took the bunch of keys and selected a small one, which he thoughtlikely to fit the trunk.

It did.

The lid was lifted, and Philip, with eager hand, took the envelope whichhe knew contained the government bonds. It was a bulky envelope, andcontained probably eight or ten bonds.

Of course, Philip didn't venture to take all. He selected two, of onehundred dollars each, and replaced the others in the envelope, andafterward in the trunk.

He put the bonds in his inside coat pocket, and, hastily refastening thetrunk, replaced the keys on his father's desk.

He breathed a sigh of relief to think the thing was done, and walkedover to the window.

What was his gratification to see Harry Gilbert walking by on the otherside of the street.

"All happens right," he said. "Now, Harry can't say he was at home. I'llfix him. I'll say I saw him at the window, looking in, and his denialwon't amount to much, when he admits, as he will, that he was near thehouse."

He would have felt differently had he seen the face of Tom Calderpeering in at one of the side windows. Tom had spent the evening in thevillage, and was now on his return to his chamber, on the second floorof the stable. His attention was attracted by the light in the room, and, as the curtain was partly raised, he took the liberty of peeringin, unobserved.

"By gracious!" he exclaimed, in amazement. "Phil is stealing gov'mentbonds from his father. He's a bad one, but I didn't think that of him."

Tom slipped out, resolved to consider at his leisure what he had betterdo about imparting his secret information. It was well he did, for Philhimself almost immediately came to the same window.

CHAPTER XXXIV

PHILIP GETS RID OF HIS PLUNDER

"Philip," said his mother, at the breakfast table the next morning, "theservant tells me she found the outside door unlocked this morning. Didn't I ask you to lock it before you went to bed?"

"So you did, mother. I really hope you'll excuse me. When I got ready togo to bed, I forgot all about it."

"It might have proved serious," remarked his father, "for I found thismorning that I had left my bunch of keys on my desk. I don't see how Icame to be so negligent."

"It's lucky no burglar or dishonest person knew of it," said Mrs. Ross.

"You might have met with a serious loss."

"So I might, for I had about a thousand dollars' worth of governmentbonds in my trunk, besides certificates of various kinds of stock. Thelatter would have done no one any good, though the loss would haveannoyed me, but the government bonds might readily be sold."

"I shouldn't think you'd keep the trunk downstairs, father," saidPhilip, who felt easy, as there seemed no likelihood of suspicion beingfixed upon him.

He resolved so to act as to divert any future suspicion.

"I don't know but it is imprudent," said Colonel Ross.

"Of course it is," said his wife. "You deserve to suffer loss."

"I will take it upstairs hereafter," said her husband, "especially," headded, jocularly, "if Philip is to be trusted to lock the front door."

Philip smiled, but his smile was not exactly an easy one, for he wasevery minute apprehensive that it would occur to his father to open thetrunk and examine the contents. He did not want this to happen till hewas out of the way, for it would be rather a trial to his nerves to hearthe announcement made of the loss, while he knew that the missing bondswere concealed in his inside coat pocket.

Philip was in a hurry to see Congreve, and get rid of his troublesomedeposit. He hurried through his breakfast, therefore, and rose from thetable.

"You've eaten very little, Phil," said his mother.