"A thousand dollars!" answered Dunham in a spiritless way.
Dean and Mr. Gould looked at each other in amazement. The same thought came to each. That the carpenter could have had in his possession a thousand dollars seemed preposterous. His mind must suddenly have gone astray.
"Did you say a thousand dollars, neighbor Dunham?" asked Mr. Gould.
"Yes," said poor Adin, bursting into tears. "A man sprang at me when I was riding through the woods, jumped into the buggy and searched my pockets. I think I must have fainted away. When I came to the horse was gone, and I was lying under a tree by the roadside."
This story, though strictly correct, seemed a wild dream to Mr. Gould and Dean.
"How did you happen to have a thousand dollars with you? Was it yours?" asked Mr. Gould, almost with a smile.
"I received it to-day at Rockmount, for the land I sold the hotel people."
"Have you any idea who robbed you of the money?"
"It was Squire Bates. I knew him by his teeth."