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CHAPTER I PETTIGREW’S FOLLY

C OME, Enid! It’s time we were going. home.”

CHAPTER II LEILA’S POINT OF VIEW

M ISS Leila Speer, the Shoe King’s. daughter, sat in her bedroom at. Grandma Fletcher’s house in Burton and indignantly. reviewed the prospect. The rest of her. family—indeed, the entire household—had long. since gone to bed, but there was no sleep yet in. prospect for the disgruntled daughter of the. shoe millionaire.

CHAPTER III THE SUN-DIAL

I N the few days that had passed since the. coming of the Speers, many things had happened.. Naomi and Enid discussed them as they. leaned over the rail of the narrow little foot-bridge. across Fletcher’s Cove, the following. Saturday morning. They were on their way to. the village to get the morning mail and do the. week-end errands for the household, and they. had stopped to stare down into the swirling. brown water of the incoming tide while they reviewed. the unusual events of the week.

CHAPTER IV A RECORD OF THE PAST

W HEN Ronny had tiptoed over to the chest. and glanced into it, he turned to the. girls with a look of disgust and disappointment. on his pale, expressive little face.

CHAPTER V LEILA PRESENTS SOME DIFFICULTIES

I T was obvious, that evening, that Miss Leila. Speer, the Shoe King’s daughter, was still. in anything but an amiable humor, and that. not a little envy and suspicion was added to. her other dissatisfactions. She was still on the. veranda when the trio returned from their expedition. and was gloomily regarding a letter. lying in her lap.

CHAPTER VI LEILA IMPROVES AN AFTERNOON

W HEN the trio had departed that afternoon. on their ponies and Hannah, they. left Miss Leila Speer in bed in a darkened. room, and ministered to at intervals by a concerned. Grandma Fletcher, with aromatic spirits. of ammonia and smelling-salts. Inactivity and. a prolonged diet of chocolates had done their. work, and the afflicted young lady found herself. suffering with a violent sick headache of. the most humiliating type.

CHAPTER VII RONNY GETS DOWN TO BRASS TACKS

I T was late that afternoon when the three left. Pettigrew’s Folly. It had not been a particularly. profitable afternoon as far as their researches. had gone. Apart from the disclosure. of Grandma Fletcher’s relationship to Judge. Cotesworth, Ronny had learned nothing new,. though they had spent several hours in the secret. room and had gone over the old paper very. carefully.

CHAPTER VIII LEILA PROVIDES SOME SURPRISES

T HE afternoon waned and shadows began. to creep into that upper room of Pettigrew’s. Folly, finding the three still bent, each. over a dusty law-book or ancient ledger once. belonging to old Judge Cotesworth. Finally. Naomi glanced up.

CHAPTER IX EVENTS MOVE ON

B UT as it turned out later, Leila and Ronny. did not ride over to Pettigrew’s Folly the. next morning. Instead, Leila made another expedition,. quite on her own responsibility and. unknown to the others until it was over. It. happened that that morning Grandma Fletcher. suddenly found her kitchen supplies lacking in. baking-powder, at a critical moment when. Hagar was otherwise occupied. Leila, who was. idling on the porch, saw Grandma Fletcher. preparing to hurry away in the direction of the. village and was prompted to ask the reason.. And hearing it, she herself volunteered to go. on the errand, as she knew Grandma Fletcher. begrudged the time it would take from her. morning’s work.

CHAPTER X COUSIN FRANCES ENTERTAINS

M ISS Frances Marvin was not expecting. company that afternoon. Her. front hair was still in kid curlers and she sat at. ease, in a wrapper and comfortable old slippers,. on her back piazza, fixing the greens for supper.. (Every one in Burton dined at noon and had. supper as the evening meal.) The only other. member of her family, her rheumatic elder. brother, sat hunched up in a chair in the kitchen. and fretfully complained at intervals or asked. the same question over and over again.

CHAPTER XI RONNY FINDS HIMSELF UP A TREE

O N the afternoon of the same day on which. Leila had made her visit to Miss Frances. Marvin, Ronny had planned an expedition of. his own. Naomi and Enid were to play in a. school basket-ball team match that afternoon,. and Leila had confided to him that she was off. in the direction of the redoubtable Cousin Frances,. on a quest for information, so Ronny was. left with time hanging heavy on his hands and. he determined to put it to a good use. He had. not yet been able to make much progress with. Coosaw, and here was a chance to cultivate the. amiable old darky’s acquaintance—perhaps to. some profit. Ronny went out and saddled the. pony Spot, and cantered away in the direction. of Pettigrew’s Folly.

CHAPTER XII ONE DRAMATIC DAY

T HE lure of a perfect early-spring morning. on the South Carolina coast! Ronny. couldn’t resist it. He stood on the edge of the. bluff after breakfast and sniffed the fragrant. salt breeze blowing in from the ocean, over the. marsh islands. The river was an intense blue.. The tide was high and every indented cove or. “skid,” as it was called, was filled to the brim.. A mocking-bird trilled a complicated melody. in a near-by clump of palmettos.

CHAPTER XIII A CONFERENCE WITH COOSAW

I T was the following morning, Sunday, and. Grandma Fletcher and Naomi had just returned. from a call on Cousin Frances, who was. confined to her bed with the sprained ankle. which had resulted from her tumble over the. bluff, the day before. When Grandma Fletcher. had disappeared into the kitchen to superintend. Hagar with the Sunday dinner, Naomi was. captured and led away by the three other young. people and guided down to a secluded nook below. the bluff where they could be well out of. sight of the house. There they seated her on. an old overturned boat, and Ronny pulled something. out from beneath it and laid it in her lap.

CHAPTER XIV THE BEGINNING OF THE END

W HEN Ronny turned in at Grandma. Fletcher’s gate, he was met by Enid,. who came flying out at his approach.

CHAPTER XV GRANDMA FLETCHER COMPLETES THE RECORD

I T’S a part of the story,” went on Grandma. Fletcher, gazing once more into the fire,. “that I know very little about; I can only surmise. the details. Harriet Stepney Cotesworth,. of course, I never knew, personally,—she died. before I was born,—but from what I’ve heard. of her, she must have been a rather selfish,. self-centered, scheming woman. People said she. had the old judge wound round her little finger,. although he was a very forceful personality.. It was common talk that she tried in every way. to influence him against his son, and I’m pretty. certain now that she succeeded beyond what. any one surmised.

CHAPTER XVI THE SHADOW ON THE DIAL

T HE hours are never so long as when one. is waiting for them to pass in order that. a mystery may be solved. The four young people. found this to be the case on the morning. after they had taken Grandma Fletcher and. Alan Carter into their secret. To tell the truth,. Grandma was nearly as impatient as the others.. Mr. Speer had much business on his mind that. morning, before he left for Florida, and Alan. was kept closely shut in with him while he went. over his affairs. But at last the Shoe King was. driven to Hardeeville, where he was to catch. the Florida express, and Alan returned to give. his whole attention to the problem of the sun-dial.