“Do you know where the barrel is?” asked Clarence. “Course he does,” exclaimed Godfrey, “kase he’s the one that kivered it up. Whar is it, Jordan? Pint out the spot, an’ ye shall go free without no harm bein’ done to ye; but if ye don’t tell----” “Hol’ on dar, boss!” cried the old negro, as Godfrey once more drew back his spade. “Do you know where the barrel is?” asked Clarence. “Answer that question!” “I reckon I does, boss!” “Well, where is it?” “O, I didn’t say I’d tell dat, did I? It ’longs to my ole marse, Gen’ral Gordon.” “He’s got more’n his share already,” said Godfrey. “Den I reckon I’se got jest as much right to dat bar’l an’ what’s into it, as anybody,” said the negro; “mebbe more, kase I’se the one that hid it!” “Hold on a minute, Godfrey,” said Clarence, as his companion raised the shovel threateningly. “Step this way, a moment. Old man, you stay right where you are. If you make any attempt to run, I’ll throw this shovel at you!” Clarence and Godfrey drew off on one side, just out of ear-shot of the negro, and the former said, in a suppressed whisper: “Are you sure that’s old Jordan?” “Just as sure as I can be,” replied Godfrey. “’Tain’t his haunt--I can see that now--but ole Jordan his own self.” “I am glad you are so positive, for there is something about this business that doesn’t look just right to me. If it is he, he has come back to dig up that barrel himself. I wonder if it is somewhere about the spot where he was digging! How are we going to make him tell?” “Lick it outen him,” suggested Godfrey. “O, that would never do in the world. He’d raise the neighborhood with his howling.” “Wal, mebbe goin’ without grub an’ water fur a few hours will loosen up his tongue.” “That’s the idea,” said Clarence, joyfully. “No one will miss him, for those who have seen him since he came back think he is a ghost. Where can we take him and keep him safe until he tells us what we want to know?” “I reckon my tater-hole is as good a place as any,” said Godfrey, after thinking a moment. “I don’t have nothing to put in it now, an’ nobody ever goes nigh it.” “Can we lock him up there?” “No, but we can tie him up, an’ that will do jest as well. Howsomever, I don’t much keer to go into any sich business as that, Mr. Clarence. S’pose it should come out on us?” “How in the world is it going to come out on us?” asked Clarence, impatiently. “You’ll not tell, will you?” “No, sar,” answered Godfrey, with great emphasis. “I couldn’t live here if I did.” “Well, I shall not tell, either. You may be sure of that; so I don’t see how it can become known. We can starve old Jordan into opening his mouth, and when he gets ready to tell us where the barrel is, we’ll dig it up, divide the contents, and the first boat that comes along will take me away from here. I don’t care whether I go up or down the river, so long as I have my pockets full of money.” “An’ what’ll I do?” asked Godfrey.