“And you went into the church the second time, to-day, Danny, did you?” asked the deacon.
“Yes, sir. I went to see if I could find my ring. And if I found it I was going to tell that I broke the window—and that it wasn’t Bert.”
“Better late than never,” the deacon said. “Well, I guess Bert is cleared now.”
“Yes, I’ll tell everything,” sobbed Danny. “I wouldn’t have let it be thought Bert did it, only Sam said he saw Bert throw the same time I did, and I thought, maybe, after all, Bert’s ball broke the glass.”
“It didn’t!” exclaimed Bert. “For I only threw my snowball on the ground.”
Mr. Rugg placed the ring on the table. Danny was still sobbing brokenly in one corner of the room.
“I am very sorry this has happened,” said Mr. Rugg. “I will punish Danny for his part in it, and I will pay for the broken window, Mr. Ander. I will also make Danny get up in front of the whole school and confess so Bert’s name will be cleared.”
“If you do that and the window is paid for, I think Danny will have been punished enough,” suggested the deacon. “I don’t believe he will ever do a thing like this again. Will you, Danny?”
“Oh, no, never! Never! Not as long as I live!” sobbed the boy, and Bert felt sorry for him.
“Well, this is what we came for, and I’m glad it’s over with,” announced Mr. Ander. “I’ll trust you to pay for the stained-glass window, Mr. Rugg, and also see to it that Danny tells the truth as soon as school opens again.”