ames
were extinguished before they did material damage. Finally the
wind veered around, blowing the sparks toward a cleared spot in
the woods, and then all saw that the worst of the affair was over.
But men and boys kept at their labors, and did not stop until
every spark of the conflagration had been extinguished.

"Now it is over, I am going down to the river and wash up," said
Snap to Shep, and they walked to the edge of the stream, followed
by Whopper and Giant. "I feel dirty from head to foot."

"Your father can be thankful that the mill didn't go," said Whopper.
"Gosh, what a blaze! I thought the whole county was going to burn
up. I got burnt in about 'leventeen hundred spots."

"And I let a bucket of water drop on my foot," put in Giant.
"Say, but didn't the edge of the bucket feel nice on my little
toe!" and he limped along to the water's edge.

Having washed up, the boys returned to the scene of the fire.
They found the mill master, Tom Neefus, in earnest conversation
with Mr. Dodge.

"You saw the rascal do it?" asked Snap's father.

"I certainly did," replied Tom Neefus. "I started to catch him,
but then I came back to put out the blaze. I made up my mind
it would be better to stop the fire than catch the man, even though
he was such a villain."

"Who's a villain, father?" asked Shep.

"The man who started this fire."

"Did a man start it?" asked the boy, while several others drew
closer to listen.

"So Mr. Neefus says. He caught the fellow at the office desk.
In a corner the fellow had thrown a pile of shavings and saturated
it with oil. As he ran away he threw a handful of lighted matches
into the shavings and they caught instantly."

"I suppose he did that so that he could get away. He knew the
men around here would try to save the property instead of going
after him."

"Exactly, Charley. He must have been a cold-blooded villain to
do such a thing, for it might have been the means of burning down
everything," continued Mr. Dodge.

"What was he doing at the desk, Mr. Dodge?" asked Shep.

"He was evidently looking for money or something of value."

"Did he get anything?"

"Nothing, so far as Mr. Neefus knows. The safe was locked up,
I believe."

The strong-box mentioned stood in a corner of the office, and
the fire had swept all around it. It was quite hot, but after
some more water had been poured over it the master of the mill
threw it open.

"The books are all right--