"I'll sort of hate to see the old barn go, useless as it is," said the farmer. "It was one of the first buildin's on the farm, and Uncle Isaac used to be terrible fond of stayin' out here. In fact before he died he spent a lot of time out here after th' accident, sittin' all by himself, and sometimes talking a lot of nonsense. His mind was goin' then, I reckon, only none of us knowed it. Yes, poor Uncle Isaac was terrible fond of this old barn, and I sure will hate to see it go up in smoke." "I wish Uncle Isaac had been fonder of business, an' had left some word where his money went--and ours, too," observed Sandy. "I don't want to blame him for what he couldn't help, but it sure is hard for us!" The carpenter was chopping away, taking off a section of the roof, to afford easy egress for Ruth and Alice when the time should come. Suddenly he uttered a cry of surprise. "What's the matter--cut yourself?" called Sandy. "No, but I've cut into something queer. Better come up here and see what it is--I don't want to touch it." "I hope it isn't a hornet's nest!" exclaimed Sandy. "No, it isn't that." The others wondered what the queer find might be, as Sandy and Russ hurried up the ladder. As they reached the roof, which at this point was nearly flat, they saw that the carpenter, in taking off a section, had uncovered what proved to be a small secret room. It was built into the barn in such a manner, between false walls, that its existence had never in the past been suspected. It was a small place, just large enough to contain a table and a chair, and there were no openings or windows on the sides. It must have been a dark place, but there was an old lantern on the table, showing that the occupant, whoever he had been, was not left in the gloom. But there was something else on the table besides the lantern. This was a large tin box, the sort that valuable papers are usually kept in, and at the sight of it, as Sandy gazed down into the secret room, through the hole in the roof, the young farmer cried: "There it is! There's Uncle Isaac's money box! The lost is found, and now, if there's only the money and papers in it we'll not lose our farm after all! The Lord be praised! If only the money is there!" "You can soon tell!" remarked Russ. "Drop down in there and take a look." "What is it? What have you found?" called Mr. Pertell from the ground. "We want to get the pictures." "Wait a minute!" Sandy begged. "We've found----" "Wait, don't tell them yet," suggested Russ. "It won't do to raise the hopes of the old people, and then disappoint them. The box may be empty." "That's right," agreed Sandy. "I'll soon know, though." He hung by his hands to the edge of the opening, and then dropped down into the secret room, so strangely revealed. "The box is locked!" he cried. "Here's my hatchet--break it open," suggested the carpenter.