How John Became a Man | Page 7

praised by Will, and was encouraged to make
other plans.
Being encouraged by his cousin's praise, the child's brain became even
more active, and he said, "If we just cut a little piece from each plug,
Uncle won't be so apt to miss the tobacco."
"That's just it again!" emphatically assented Will. "I declare, John, you
surprise me! And now, we must have everything all ready so that the
minute they leave we can get busy. Let's see, what'll we need? A
screw-driver--and will we need a hammer?"
"We'll need a real sharp knife to cut the tobacco," John suggested.

"I'll get the things ready," Charley volunteered; and so they planned
and waited for the time to come when they could carry out their
scheme.
The time came on the following Saturday. Early in the morning the
uncle and aunt drove away in the "buckboard," and were on their way
to the city where they were to do their trading. All three of the boys had
been unusually anxious to help their elders get started, forgetting in
their eagerness that they might be thus revealing some of their plans.
Scarcely did they give the uncle and aunt time to disappear in the
distance before they had commenced their evil work.
"Here's the tools," Charley said, as he brought forth the screw-driver,
hammer, and sharp knife. "Where shall I put them?"
"Oh, anywhere so they'll be handy!" Will told him; and then the three
boys hastened to the room containing the chest and were soon kneeling
on the floor, examining carefully the object of their interest.
The chest, a long, narrow, flat box somewhat darkened with age, was
closed and securely fastened; and the tiny padlock that hung from its
side seemed to say, "If you please, I am here to protect my master's
property from the hand of any thieves; and to the extent that it is within
my power, I shall perform my duty." Its bold front and defiant
appearance did not, however, daunt the purpose of the boys. After
giving it a brief examination, they slipped around to the opposite side
of the chest, and by the aid of the screw-driver, removed the lower half
of the rusty hinges.
"Thank goodness, this chest is old!" Will exclaimed as he brushed from
his forehead the large beads of perspiration. "If these screws turned any
harder, I never could get them out. Guess we'll earn our tobacco this
time all right!"
[Illustration: Opening the Chest]
Scarcely had the last screw been removed when up came the lid; and
almost instantly three pairs of eager eyes were greedily gazing down

upon the contents of the wooden chest. There were in it a package of
old letters, various articles of clothing, a few trinkets, etc.; but only that
part of the contents that was carefully packed in one corner claimed the
attention of the boys. This, a pile of long brown strips, or plugs, of
tobacco, was what they wanted; and soon Will was busily engaged in
cutting a narrow slice from each plug and John and Charley were
dividing the slices into three equal parts. But in their haste and
excitement, none of the boys forgot to fill their mouths with the filthy
stuff, and to chew while they worked.
As Will cut a piece from the last plug, he glanced about over the piles
and said with a look of satisfaction: "Now that ain't so bad, is it, boys?
That ought to last quite a spell; and when it's gone, we can come back
here, or maybe something else will turn up." And then, when he saw
the boys rearranging the tobacco in the chest, he said, "Look out there!
You'll have to get everything just like it was, or we'll be caught and
have had our fun for nothing!" When the chest was repacked, the last
screw in its place, and the tiny scraps of tobacco that had fallen upon
the floor had been carefully preserved, the boys looked at one another
with satisfaction, and Will said, "That's a pretty slick job all right, if I
do say so; and its a lot better than breaking the lock would have been.
I'll tell you it takes some brains to do up a thing like that, and it makes
me feel as if I'd like more of them."
To this John smiled and said: "Hey, Will, do you know what's in that
trunk?" John referred to a large trunk that was sitting near the bed on
the opposite side of the room.
"Couldn't tell you all that's in it, but it's locked; and it's in that trunk that
Dad keeps his revolvers. There's two of them, because I saw inside the
trunk the other day." And then as the new thought presented