"You may thank Cornelius for it," he told her. "I met him down on Grant Street, and—I don't know what made me—I happened to speak of your losing this. He was interested all at once, and wanted me to tell him just how it looked. When I said the locket was set with turquoises, he clapped his hand on his side and cried out, 'I bet yer that was it! I bet yer 't was!' It seems he'd seen a boy—only this morning—showing a locket to a little kid, and he thought then it was queer he should be having a girl's locket round that way. Cornelius said he could get it easy enough of the boy had it with him. So we went round to the school, and waited till 't was out. He had to go on an errand for his father this afternoon, and so was excused early.
"Burt Sehl is the boy's name, and Cornelius and I walked along with him till we got off the street—Cornel' was sharp enough not to tackle him near the school. As soon as the crowd thinned out, he asked him if he had that locket, and at first Burt put up a bluff. Finally he admitted that he got it from Greg. Simpson; said he swapped a lot of tops and marbles for it."
"I should n't suppose he'd have given it up," cried Polly excitedly.
David laughed. "He did n't without a tussle; but Cornelius was more than a match for him—my! Don't I wish I were as strong as he!"
"You will be some day," encouraged Polly. "But I'm glad I chose that book for Cornelius—it's all about a knight!"
"What book?" queried David.
"Oh, the book I left at his home for him this afternoon! I forgot," and she caught up the long parcel for David. "I hope you'll like that," she said.
The boy's eyes glistened when he saw what it was.
"Oh, you don't know how many times I've wished I had a flute!" he cried, fingering the little instrument delightedly.
"What's going on here?" called Dr. Dudley, from the open door.