heft was boot tracks in the soft earth
and these were not sufficiently distinct to avail as evidence. In a
general way we attributed it to the bibulous set at the Corners. The Old
Squire and Addison had incurred the displeasure of Tibbetts and his
cronies, from their avowed sentiments upon the Temperance question. I do
not think that Halse knew anything of the honey robbery. I asked him the
next day, whether he supposed the honey boxes had gone in search of his
three dollars and a half. He saw that I suspected him, and flatly denied
all knowledge of it; but he added, that if Gramp and Addison did not
have less to say about rum-sellers, they might find themselves watching
a big fire some night!

I asked him if he thought that Tibbetts and his crew were bad enough to
set barns on fire.

"Well, isn't the old gent and Ad trying to break up Tibbetts' business,
all the time!" retorted Halse.

"But do you stand up for them?" said I.

"I stand up for minding my own business and letting other folks alone!"
exclaimed Halse. "And that's what the old man and Ad had better do."

"Maybe," said I, for I was not altogether clear in my mind on that
point. "But they are a bad lot, out there at Tibbetts'; you say so,
yourself."

"I didn't say so!" Halse exclaimed.

"Why, you told me that you thought they took your money, didn't you?" I
urged.

"I said perhaps I lost it there," replied Halse in a reticent tone.

Addison believed that if Gramp would get a search warrant, a part of the
honey might be found in one of two houses, at the Corners; but the Old
Squire would not set the law in motion for a few boxes of honey. We
young folks, however, were much exasperated over the loss of the sweets.

Two cosset lambs were also missing from our pasture at about this time;
and as Addison and I drove past the Corners, on our way to the mill with
another grist of corn, the day after the lambs were missed, we saw
Tibbetts' dog gnawing a bone beside the road.

"Take the reins, a minute!" exclaimed Addison, pulling up. He then
leaped out of the wagon with the whip, so suddenly, that the dog left
the bone and ran off. Addison picked it up and examined it attentively.
"It's a mutton bone, fast enough," said he. "It is one of the leg bones;
the hoof is on it and there's enough of the hide to show that it was
smut-legged, like ours. But of course we cannot prove much from it," he
added, throwing the bone after the dog and getting into the wagon.