“It would save the Festival!” cried Penny. “You’re not well enough to go through with it, though!”
“Fiddlesticks!” Mrs. Marborough snapped, her spirits reviving. “I’d like nothing better than a big party. What pleasure is it sitting in a wheel chair staring at a cracked wall? Now you go ahead and plan it just the way you like.”
With time so short, Penny flew into action. She contacted members of the Festival Committee and immediately a new publicity campaign was launched. It was announced that Rose Acres would be included in the Pilgrimage and that a grand costume ball at the mansion would be open to the public.
“The affair is certain to be a success,” Penny told her father enthusiastically. “I wish though that the Indian Show wasn’t playing Riverview at the same time. By the way, have you made any further progress in proving that Jay Franklin’s record stones are fakes?”
“Not very much,” Mr. Parker ruefully admitted. “A report came back on that tool you picked up at Truman Crocker’s shack.”
“What was the verdict, Dad?”
“Professor Anjus, the expert who examined the chisel, says he believes the stones could have been marked with it.”
“Then Truman Crocker may be the guilty person!”
“It’s not at all certain. In all events, I still hold to my original theory that the hoax was planned by Bill McJavins of the Indian Show.”
“I certainly hope Mr. Franklin fails in trying to sell the stones to the museum.”