irls were soon attracted to the game, though Barbara was entirely
oblivious of what was going on. The girls gathered noiselessly about
Mollie and Tom, shaking with silent laughter, taking care not to awaken
the sleeping boy.

Tom's face twitched nervously. After a little one eye opened ever so
little then closed warily. The girls did not observe the movement of the
eyelid. Then all of a sudden things began to happen. Tom, with
incredible quickness, leaped to his feet, and began laying about him
with a folded bed spread. Mollie was the first to go down under the
attack. The others tried to get away from that sturdily wielded spread,
but were not quick enough, however. Tom did considerable execution with
his unwieldly weapon before the girls finally threw themselves upon him.
Then Tom went down and out. The girls dragged him to the stairway and
started him sliding down the stairs, feet first. With faces flushed,
eyes sparkling, brushing truant wisps of hair from their foreheads, the
girls returned to their exploration of the old chests. First Olive
closed and locked the door that opened onto the staircase.

"There! I think we shall have peace now," she announced.

Suddenly Barbara uttered a sharp little cry.

"Girls! Girls! Come here! Oh, come here!"

The girls with one accord rushed pell-mell across the garret. Excitement
reigned for a few seconds.

"I've found it! I've found it!" shouted Barbara.

"Found the treasure?" cried a chorus of voices.

"It's here, here!" she exclaimed, waving the little leather-bound
journal above her head.

"What have you found?" demanded Olive, showing less excitement than her
companions.

"This entry. It means something. I don't know just what, but I know it
means something."

"Read it, read it!" demanded the girls.

"The item is a month later than the one I found in the journal in which
they were afraid the Indians were going to make trouble. Listen to this.
If you don't think I have found something you are not half so smart as I
had thought." Barbara hitched a little closer to the window and with her
back to the light read from the journal the following entry:

"'To My Heirs: I am fleeing with my family, to the fort. The future
looks dark. Should I not return, others of my family one day will come
here and take possession, provided the savages do not destroy the old
place, which is not probable, as the spirit of a long dead Indian chief
is said to make his home here.'"