"You're allowing your friendship to run away with your better judgment. What am I to do? Just drop this business, right here?"
"Of course not. All I want you to do is to leave Carl alone and let the motor boys find the thief."
"I want that money," said Burton, with a black frown, "and I'm satisfied this Dutchman knows where it is."
"And I'm satisfied he doesn't know a thing about it," said Matt warmly.
"How did that bag get into his pocket?"
"If you come to that, why isn't there some of the stolen money in the bag? Do you think for a minute, Burton, that Carl would be clever enough to plan such a robbery, and then be foolish enough to carry around with him the bare evidence of it? You don't give him credit for having much sense. Why should he keep the bag, and then come in here with it in his pocket?"
Burton remained silent.
"Furthermore," proceeded Matt, "if Carl is one of the thieves, or the only thief, why did he come in here at all? Why didn't he make a run of it as soon as he got his hands on the money?"
"Every crook makes a mistake, now and then," muttered Burton. "If they didn't, the law would have a hard time running them down."
"I'll tell you what I'll do," said Matt. "Leave Carl alone. If I can't prove his innocence to your satisfaction, I'll agree to stay four weeks with your show for nothing. You'll be making more than two thousand dollars, and you've only lost eighteen hundred by this robbery."