“It’s nothing but a lot of numbers,” he exclaimed disappointedly.
“I know it,” said George. “Just a lot of old faded numbers written on a piece of parchment.”
“What’s it supposed to be?” asked John curiously.
“Petersen thinks it’s some sort of a code. Maybe it is but I think myself it is nothing at all, and that it might as well be thrown overboard.”
“What makes him think it’s a code?” said Grant.
“Nothing much that I know of,” replied Pop. “He said it was found sewed inside the lining of a coat his father used to have and so he thought it must be valuable. He said that the neighbors used to tell some kind of weird stories about his father having been connected with buried treasure or something like that, and he is sure this has something to do with it. Personally I think he is mistaken about it.”
“If he thinks it so valuable why did he give it to you?” demanded Fred.
“He didn’t really give it to me to keep. He wanted me to try and decipher the code and tell him what it says.”
“Did you do it?” laughed John.
“No, you Son of Neptune,” exclaimed George. “I did not. I offered to read the numbers to him, but he said he could do that much himself.”