been disturbed.
Shrewdly mindful of the fact that our keen nostrils might smell out his
preserve, he cunningly set an old pan with a few refuse pippins in it on
a bench close beside the place.

Gram's hoard was hidden, with equal cunning, in the "yarn cupboard,"
where were kept the woollen balls and yarn hanks, used in darning and
knitting,--a small, high cupboard, with a little panel door, set in the
wall of the sitting-room next to the fireplace and chimney. The bottom
of this cupboard was formed of one broad piece of pine board, which
seemed to be nailed down hard and fast; but the old lady, who knew that
this board was loose, had raised it and kept her apples in a yarn-ball
basket beneath it.

She often had occasion to go to the cupboard to get or replace her
knitting, and for a long time none of the girls suspected her
hiding-place. The plain fact was that those girls, as a rule, steered
clear of the yarn cupboard, for they none of them very much liked to
knit or darn. But at last Ellen happened to go to it one day for a
darning-needle, and smelled the apples. Even then she could not discover
the hoard, but she went in search of Theodora, who penetrated the secret
of the loose bottom board.

They came with great glee to tell us of their discovery, and we were
thereby stimulated to renewed efforts to unearth the Old Squire's
preserve. The girls promised to say nothing of their discovery for a day
or two, and at Ellen's suggestion we agreed that if we could find
Gramp's hoard, we would rob both hoarding-places at once and have the
laugh on them both at the same time.

We had watched the Old Squire closely, and felt sure that he did not go
to his hoard at any time during the day. As he was an early riser, it
seemed probable to us that he did his apple-hoarding before we were
astir. Addison and I accordingly agreed to get up at three o'clock the
following morning and secretly watch all his movements. By a great
effort we rose long before light, and dressing, stole out through the
wood-house chamber and down the wagon-house stairs into the stable. Here
I concealed myself behind an old sleigh, while Addison went back into
the wood-house and posted himself on the high tier of wood that fronted
on the passageway, lying there in such a posture that he could get a
peep of the long walk.

It had hardly begun to grow light, when we heard the old gentleman astir
in the kitchen. Presently he came out through the stable and