THE next morning after breakfast, the girls, bundled in furs, left the house for their ride to Treasureholme. Mr. Stuart had done what he could by telephone, but had not yet gone downtown, for there was nothing further to be accomplished until the opening of the market. Just before he helped the girls into the car he thrust a finger into his vest pocket and said:
"I almost forgot. The men at the garage found this in the bottom of the car. I think it's your lost memorandum, Barbara."
"Oh, thank you! I'm so glad!" cried Bab.
"Ruth," said Barbara, after the girls had reached the outskirts of the city, "do you think there really is a hidden treasure and if we could find it your father——"
"I haven't much faith in the treasure, and if one should come to light, it would be Mr. Presby's and not father's."
"Mr. Presby would use it to help himself, and that would draw your father out, too."
"Bab, you ought to be on the Exchange; you'd make a good trader," laughed Ruth.Then she went on: "No, Bab, I'm afraid we'll lose all we have. I don't care for myself. I can be poor, just as daddy and my mother were once. But I grieve for father."
"Ruth, darling," whispered Bab.
On their arrival at Treasureholme the girls found that Mr. Stuart had telephoned to Miss Sallie about what Bab had tried to do for her two hosts. The girls tried to make a heroine of her, but she steadfastly refused to think she had done anything extraordinary.
When Barbara was finally alone in her room she drew out of her pocket the slip of yellow paper, spread it on her lap and regarded it intently.
"'The span of a minute is sixty seconds,'" she read. "What can that mean?"
She got up and paced the floor thinking deeply, trying to solve the meaning. She at last went to a window and spread the paper on the pane for the purpose of getting a better light on it. Her gaze, at first careless, suddenly became keen. All at once she whirled about and dashed from the room.
"Girls, I have it!" she screamed, bursting in on the others, who were in Ruth's room. "I've solved the mystery! I've found the key! We must get Mr. Stevens! We mustn't lose a minute! Everything's at stake!"
"What is it, Bab? Are you certain?" demanded Grace, springing to her feet.
"Oh, I can't tell you now! Let's get Mr. Stevens, can't we?"
"Mr. A. Bubble!" cried Ruth, and flew from the room.
The girls rushed pell-mell for the car, dragging Miss Stuart with them, none knowing what Bab had in mind, but all eager and excited. Ruth drove at top speed, and the girls burst in on Bob Stevens whom they found in his shop.
"See this!" cried Bab, holding the bit of paper out to the young man. "Put it against the window." He did so wonderingly, then turned and looked at the girls. "What did you see?" demanded Bab impatiently.
Bob had seen a line drawn from the top of a toadstool extending to the right. At the end of the line was the sign "60".
"What do those little marks after the sixty mean?" demanded Bab.
"On building plans they would mean inches. Expressing time, they would indicate seconds."
"You have it! If we face the woods and start to measure from the top of the 'toadstool,' that undoubtedly represents the mound under which lies the big chief, and measure off 'sixty seconds' which means sixty inches, or five feet, we'll find the treasure."
No one stopped to question the probability of Barbara's deductions. Bob summoned a man who worked for him, sent a boy to get two more from Treasureholme, and, taking picks, shovels, and a coil of rope, drove off with the girls in Mr. A. Bubble as fast as they could go to the Indian burying ground. It was nearly dark when they reached there and sprang from the car, neither Bab nor Bob waiting for it to come to a full stop.
"William, bring me something I can drive in here for a marker," Bob called to his man who was hurrying toward them from the direction of the woods.
"There's a fellow over there in the woods," announced William. "He was kind of hiding."
"Never mind that. Let's get to work here."
The two hands from Treasureholme arrived, and, the measurements having been taken, the men set to digging. Lanterns had been brought and when dark fell these were lighted and held by the girls.
In an hour's time the men had opened a hole six feet deep, as broad at the top, narrowing toward the bottom.
"It begins to look dubious," said Bob. "Say, Barbara, we'll try another way!"
Following Bob's directions, Bab placed one end of the steel tape in the middle of the bigmound and again the exact distance was measured. Bob took the stake that William had brought up to measure with and drove it with the back of his shovel little by little down in the exact center of the hole he had dug. He had forced the stake down about three feet when he uttered an exclamation.
"What is it?" cried the girls in chorus.
"Maybe a stone. I hardly think it is," and he began to dig frantically. In a few moments came the shout: "I've struck metal! There is something here!"
The girls danced with impatience, but a half hour went by before the men unearthed an iron box with bands of the same material about it and the cover soldered to the box to make it air tight.
Bab put her arms about Ruth and whispered:
"It will be all right now, Ruth. Oh, I'm so glad!" while the other girls laughed and shouted in their excitement.
It was the work of another half hour before the four men got a rope around the heavy box and, by the aid of the automobile, drew it out of the deep hole, after which, with great labor, it was got into the car.
Once at the house, it was left to Mrs. Presby, as the representative of the family, to say what should be done with the chest.
"Open it," was the command.
This was not easily done, but when the work was finally accomplished, what a sight met their eyes!
There was at least a bushel of gold coins. There was valuable family plate. In a sealed receptacle they found a quantity of jewels and a bundle of papers. The papers Mrs. Presby put away until her husband should have an opportunity to go over them.
"There's a fortune here. I think Treasureholme need not be lost now," said Stevens.
"It comes too late," said Mrs. Presby bitterly. "Mr. Presby telephoned me after the close of the market that to-morrow would end all, as he and Robert could not meet their obligations when it opened in the morning."
"To-morrow morning!" exclaimed Bab. "Then we must get this treasure to them to-night! We must do it some way!"
"Impossible," said Olive.
"No, it's not!" declared Ruth. "I'll take the chest to Chicago in the car."
"But it's nearly midnight, Ruth. You can't do it," protested Mrs. Presby.
There was little time for discussion and objection, and in the end the chest was again loaded into the car and the four "Automobile Girls" and Bob Stevens set off for Chicago, MissSallie promising to telephone to Mr. Stuart that the girls were on their way.
It was a wild midnight ride into Chicago. The girls became convinced that they were being followed, but by turning off her lights and driving into a private lane until the following car had flashed by and then taking a longer but little-used road into the city, Ruth evaded the pursuers, if such they were. Nor did they see the car again until they drew up in front of the Stuart house in the brilliantly light street and with a policeman in plain sight.
Mr. Stuart and Mr. Presby spent the night in making an inventory and the morning before the opening of the market in calling up their bankers and lawyers. They were tired and worn when the opening hour came, but the day was saved, and while neither made the fortune he had anticipated, each had added materially to his wealth. For this they gave credit to Barbara Thurston, but she steadfastly refused the reward they offered her. The money reward she refused, but she could not refuse the admiration and love they gave her.
They learned later that Nathan Bonner had had a private detective on the grounds of Treasureholme, and it was he who had followed Mr. A. Bubble into the city. Bonner lost heavily in the crash, but still retained enough of his fortune to be a financial power.
A week of pleasure followed the finding of the treasure. On the evening before the departure of Bab and Mollie and Grace for Kingsbridge, Ruth gave a large reception in honor of her guests.
On the evening of the affair the four girls, when they repaired to their rooms in the Stuart home to dress for the reception, found four exquisite frocks, the gifts of Mr. Stuart and Mr. Presby, who would not be denied this method of showing their appreciation. The gowns were white filmy chiffon over soft white silk. White shoes, white silk chiffon hose, everything needed to complete their toilet that night lay ready at hand. None of the three girls from Kingsbridge had dreamed that they would ever possess such beautiful and exquisitely designed dresses.
But this was not their only surprise. A great box of roses was delivered to the house while the girls were dressing. It was addressed to Miss Barbara Thurston. With it there was a note reading:
"I always did love a fighter. What a trader you would make! It was a fair fight, and you won.Nathan Bonner."
"I always did love a fighter. What a trader you would make! It was a fair fight, and you won.
Nathan Bonner."
"No, it wasn't a fair fight. It was distinctlyan unfair one," declared Barbara. "I think I shall send these flowers back."
"I don't believe I would do that," advised Miss Sallie. "The flowers are plainly intended as a tribute to you as a fighter, Bab, and the acceptance of flowers is unlike the acceptance of any other gift."
So Barbara kept the roses.
The next day the "Automobile Girls'" party was broken up. The time for Grace, Bab, and Mollie to return to Kingsbridge had arrived, to the keen regret of both the young people and their elders. Mr. Stuart, with a twinkle in his eyes, kept talking vaguely about "Easter," but what his plans were, he would not say.
The wonderful Easter vacation that these plans developed into may be read about in a following volume entitled, "The Automobile Girls at Palm Beach; or, Proving Their Mettle Under Southern Skies," a vacation never to be forgotten by the "Automobile Girls".
THE END
You will find other books listed on the three following pages that will prove just as interesting reading as this book. They can all be procured at the same store where you got this book.
You will find other books listed on the three following pages that will prove just as interesting reading as this book. They can all be procured at the same store where you got this book.
Transcriber's Note:Clicking on the images of the books will reveal a larger version of the image.
By H. IRVING HANCOCKPRICE, $1.00 EACH
Dave Darrin's First Year at Annapolis
Dave Darrin and Dan Dalzell proved their mettle at the U. S. Naval Academy and gave promise of what might be expected of them in the great war that was even at that moment hovering over the world.
1. DAVE DARRIN'S FIRST YEAR AT ANNAPOLIS; or, Two Plebe Midshipmen at the U. S. Naval Academy.
2. DAVE DARRIN'S SECOND YEAR AT ANNAPOLIS; or, Two Midshipmen as Naval Academy "Youngsters."
3. DAVE DARRIN'S THIRD YEAR AT ANNAPOLIS; or, Leaders of the Second Class Midshipmen.
4. DAVE DARRIN'S FOURTH YEAR AT ANNAPOLIS; or, Headed for Graduation and the Big Cruise.
By H. IRVING HANCOCKPRICE, $1.00 EACH
Dick Prescott and Greg Holmes are not human wonders, but a pair of average bright American boys who had a hard enough time working their way through West Point. Their experiences will inspire all other American boys.
1. DICK PRESCOTT'S FIRST YEAR AT WEST POINT; or, Two Chums in the Cadet Gray.
2. DICK PRESCOTT'S SECOND YEAR AT WEST POINT; or, Finding the Glory of the Soldier's Life.
3. DICK PRESCOTT'S THIRD YEAR AT WEST POINT; or, Standing Firm for Flag and Honor.
4. DICK PRESCOTT'S FOURTH YEAR AT WEST POINT; or, Ready to Drop the Gray for Shoulder Straps.
By FRANK GEE PATCHINPRICE, $1.00 EACH
The Pony Riders in the Rockies
This unusual and popular series tells vividly the story of four adventure-loving lads, who, with their guardian, spent their summer vacations in the saddle in search of recreation and healthful adventure. Long journeys over mountain, through the fastness of primitive forest and across burning desert, lead them into the wild places of their native land as well as into many strange and exciting experiences. There is not a dull moment in the series.
1. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN THE ROCKIES; or, The Secret of the Lost Claim.
2. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN TEXAS; or, The Veiled Riddle of the Plains.
3. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN MONTANA; or, The Mystery of the Old Custer Trail.
4. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN THE OZARKS; or, The Secret of Ruby Mountain.
5. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN THE ALKALI; or, Finding a Key to the Desert Maze.
6. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN NEW MEXICO; or, The End of the Silver Trail.
7. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN THE GRAND CANYON; or, The Mystery of Bright Angel Gulch.
8. THE PONY RIDER BOYS WITH THE TEXAS RANGERS; or, On the Trail of the Border Bandits.
9. THE PONY RIDER BOYS ON THE BLUE RIDGE; or, A Lucky Find in the Carolina Mountains.
10. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN NEW ENGLAND; or, An Exciting Quest in the Maine Wilderness.
11. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN LOUISIANA; or, Following the Game Trails in the Canebrake.
12. THE PONY RIDER BOYS IN ALASKA; or, The Gold Diggers of Taku Pass.
By JESSIE GRAHAM FLOWER, A. M.PRICE, $1.00 EACH
Grace Harlowe's Plebe Year at High School
The scenes, episodes, and adventures through which Grace Harlowe and her intimate chums pass in the course of these stories are pictured with a vivacity that at once takes the young feminine captive.
1. GRACE HARLOWE'S PLEBE YEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL; or, The Merry Doings of the Oakdale Freshmen Girls.
2. GRACE HARLOWE'S SOPHOMORE YEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL; or, The Record of the Girl Chums in Work and Athletics.
3. GRACE HARLOWE'S JUNIOR YEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL; or, Fast Friends in the Sororities.
4. GRACE HARLOWE'S SENIOR YEAR AT HIGH SCHOOL; or, The Parting of the Ways.
By JESSIE GRAHAM FLOWER, A. M.PRICE, $1.00 EACH
Every school and college girl will recognize that the account of Grace Harlowe's experiences at Overton College is true to life.
1. GRACE HARLOWE'S FIRST YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.2. GRACE HARLOWE'S SECOND YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.3. GRACE HARLOWE'S THIRD YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.4. GRACE HARLOWE'S FOURTH YEAR AT OVERTON COLLEGE.5. GRACE HARLOWE'S RETURN TO OVERTON CAMPUS.6. GRACE HARLOWE'S PROBLEM.7. GRACE HARLOWE'S GOLDEN SUMMER.
Transcriber's Note:Obvious punctuation errors were corrected.The remaining corrections made are indicated by dotted lines under the corrections. Scroll the mouse over the word and the original text willappear.
Obvious punctuation errors were corrected.
The remaining corrections made are indicated by dotted lines under the corrections. Scroll the mouse over the word and the original text willappear.