Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1883-09-27

/ lie dashed alter It, anu Leo pore MN
eomuant Up through The dark gar
den bird. hoy and dog sped. Presently
Ford slinued and fell He uttered a
cry when he rose. and found THAT he
could put his left foot to the ground on
! lv with pain that sickened him. SO
severely had his fall strained it.
Very slowly and painfully Ford
! limped into the garden again, his I'M
lucky foot feeling more miserable every
step. All at once he looked through the
trees aud saw i;ohiS in the diniug-room
of his uneIe's house
Major Pepper and Aunt Helen were
back. doubtless much disturbed to
know where in the world Ford and
Leo had gone, or since what hour Of the
day.
As he drew nearer the closed shutters
he caught the sound of low strange
voices. the faint clut of hammer
Could il be possible that anything was
amiss? Ford was frightened, but pru-
dent.
Leo, said be very softly, but al
most stornly, to the dog, whose ears
Were on the alert too. lie down!'
Leo obeyed
Forgetting his painful foot in his
! breathless excitement, Ford crypt down
along the back OF the house. The voices
came clearly from within. And we d
better be quick about it, somebody
was saying.
4 robbery it surely was. Ford turned
the blind and looked within the dining
room. A lamp was ill., the safe where
in Major Pepper usually kept his papers
aud any large sum OF money he happen
ed to have in the house for day or SO,
was rolled ont TO the middleof the room,
Over 20 leaned tall, well-dressed man,
impatcntly directing another man, who
knelr before il, and was working at
the old-fashioned lock with some tools
he had evidently brought for the pUr-
pose.
Ford caught sight OF profile, and the
sound of Zone more river to cross, r
whistled very gently. The man work
inc al the safe door was Mr.. Alexander
Kingbolt An exceedingly frightened
boy was Ford Bonner
80, then, they cannot possibly Q 1T
over the bridee? said Mr.. kingoolt,
plying his chisel.
..All the planks are mp and hid away
till we 90 down. ] tell You, replied the
other ''and a red lantern hung across
it,"
"The bridge" Ford knew mt once.
must mean narrow, rough structure
across the stream just before the road
from town wound up the mountain
They're likely on their way around
by the other one. tn take them till
midnight"
Tuare was o pause, Then said Mr..
! KingDolt, out of heath, Where do
you suppose tnat boy and the dog
are2'
Lost on Tie mountain, | dare say.
But if they come back before we get
through. we can hx them somehow.
Ford slipped from below the window.
The boy understood all. Many house;
in the town had been robbed lately
The gang had in some way learncC
that Major Pepper was occasionally
obliged to keep large amounts of money
in his lonely country house. They had
chosen their day carefully, madeor else
altered their plans that very morning,
thanks to Ford S own politeness in an
swering Mr. kingbolts Questions. By
a trick they had sent Major and Mrs.
Pepper around by their longest route
for home. The whole thing was g
hastily, but cleyerly, planned scheme
And Ford could do nothing alone; the
nearest houses in the village two miles
up the mountain; his swollen foot!
Had he forgotten Leo? The thought
darted into his confused mind like s
flash. He leaned forward into a ray OF
light and gently drew out his pencil,
and the envelope, still undirected, II
which was his letter to Harry North
He managed TO control his excite
meut and terror enough to scrawl upon
it,
"Ihere are burglars in our house. Come
q"''N' So''''''' FORD BONNER"
The envelope was secured by Ford
shoe-string to the greyhound 5 neck
''Bo very quiet, Leo he kept whisper
inc, almost beseechingly, as he led th'
dog as well as he could down the fal
side Of the garden, along the fence, anc
some distance up the road, lest Lee
should bark.
Quick, Leo, to the post-oilice t.
the pos,-oilicel he cried, tremblingly,
pushing and pointing the dog off.
Leo refused to 90 lie did not I'M
derstand all this mystery. Ford feltfoi
a stick and shook it athim. Leo bound
ed away silently up the steep Fordfell,
half sat down, on the grass.
He never knew how long it was be-
fore he was started from his stupor by
hearing stealtIy steps approach down
the road He strained bis young eyes
to make out dozen tall figures moving
noiselessly toward his hiding place.
They were the astonished men from the
village, reused from their circle Of Cos
sip around the stoop of the store by
Leo's advent and extraordinary excite
ment.
The letter had been discovered at
once bv Amzi's brother himself, who,
like the rest, with stockings drawn over
his boots, headed the party. Ford in
tercepted them and made his hurried
explanation.
"Stay here" said Lot Spinner, "till
we call Won
They leaped the garden wall Afew
. minutes later Ford heard shouts, and