The Mail Carrier

by Harry Castlemon

Up to this time David had stood motionless on the hearth-stone, revolving in his mind a thousand wild schemes for saving his money. He closely watched every move his father made, hoping that the latter would go to the other end of the cabin and give him an opportunity to raise the stone, seize the box, and rush out into the darkness; but Godfrey, who probably suspected some such design on David’s part, was careful to keep between him and the door. There was but one hope to which the boy could cling, and that was that his father might not find the money. The box had been pressed into the soft earth, and now David noticed, with no little satisfaction, that the heavy stone was as firmly and evenly settled in its place as it was before he raised it. It is possible that Godfrey might have overlooked this hiding-place in his frantic search, had it not been for the fact that he had a sharp-eyed ally close at hand.

Dan still kept his face pressed close against the crack in the rear wall of the cabin, and he saw what David did with his money. He did not want to say anything about it, however, for he feared that if he did, he would never be permitted to enter the cabin again. He did not want to become a hermit, as his father was. It was a part of his plans to live at home and enjoy morning gallops on his circus horse, and evening trips about the lake in his fine sail-boat. All the nice things he intended to purchase would be useless to him if he were compelled to live in the woods, as Godfrey did. He meant to conduct himself in such a manner that his mother and David would not suspect that he was in any way concerned in the robbery; but when he saw that his father was looking in the wrong place for the money, his excitement and impatience got the better of him, and he shouted out his advice before he knew it.

“Shove Dave off’n that thar rock an’ hist it up,” said he. “Then ye’ll find ’em, kase I seed him put ’em thar!”

Godfrey was prompt to act upon the suggestion, and David was as prompt to take the warning. With a wild cry of alarm the boy sprang off the rock, and stooping quickly made a frantic effort to secure his treasure; but the stone was firmly imbedded in its place, and his fingers seemed to have lost all their strength. His first attempt failed, and before he could make a second his father seized him by the collar, and with a quick, strong jerk sent him backward almost to the other end of the cabin. Then fiercely throwing off his wife, who tried to seize him by the arm, Godfrey pulled up the stone, and, with a loud shout of triumph, seized the box, sprang through the door, and disappeared. He ran around the end of the cabin, where he was joined by Dan, and the two fled as if all the officers of the law in the county were close at their heels. Like specters they glided through the woods, never once pausing or saying a word to each other, until they reached the camp. Then they breathed easier.

Godfrey at once proceeded to rake over the coals and mend the fire, and Dan noticed that his hands trembled violently. “Wal, pap, we done it, didn’t we?” said the boy, who was the first to speak.

“Yes, sar, we did; and now I’ll take a smoke.”

While Godfrey was filling and lighting his pipe, Dan threw himself on the ground beside the fire and looked steadily into the flames, evidently very much occupied with his own thoughts. He was not as well pleased with the result of their expedition as he had expected to be. He could not imagine how he was going to enjoy his money, now that he had got it. In spite of his firm determination to keep in the back-ground, and let his father do all the work and bear all the blame, he had exposed himself, and now his mother and David knew that he had had as much to do with the robbery as Godfrey himself. Dan was sorry for that, and would have given almost anything to be able to undo the mischief he had done. But, after all, he was the possessor of a larger pile of greenbacks than he had ever expected to own, and in that he found a few grains of consolation.

“Pap,” said he, suddenly, “we haint seed that thar money yet, and my eyes is just achin’ for a look at it!”

Without saying a word, Godfrey drew the box from his pocket, and Dan arose and took a seat by his side. Godfrey took off the cover, and exposed David’s treasure to Dan’s gaze; but, when the latter stretched his hand to touch the bills, his father hastily snatched away the box, and held it out of his reach.

“What made ye do that for?” demanded the boy, greatly astonished.