And Prudence leaped out of bed and started for the door, followed by
Fairy, with the twins creeping fearfully along in the rear.

"She was asleep," muttered Carol.

"We didn't want to scare her," added Lark.

Prudence was careful to turn the switch by the door, so that the room
was in full light before she entered. The closet door was wide open.
Connie was soundly sleeping. There was no one else in the room.

"You see?" said Prudence sternly.

"I'll bet he took our ruby rings," declared Lark, and the twins and
Fairy ran to the dresser to look.

But a sickening realization had come home to Prudence. In the lower
hall, under the staircase, was a small dark closet which they called
the dungeon. The dungeon door was big and solid, and was equipped with
a heavy catch-lock. In this dungeon, Prudence kept the family
silverware, and all the money she had on hand, as it could there be
safely locked away. But more often than not, Prudence forgot to lock
it.

Mr. Starr had gone to Burlington that morning to attend special revival
services for three days, and Prudence had fifty whole dollars in the
house, an unwonted sum in that parsonage! And the dungeon was not
locked. Without a word, she slipped softly out of the room, ran down
the stairs, making never a sound in her bare feet, and saw, somewhat to