“Some one was telling me the other day that old oak furniture is worth a tremendous lot of money now,” continued Percy, his eye roving round the room with an air almost of future proprietorship.  “If that’s so these things of Aunt Harriet’s are a little gold mine.  There was an account of a sale in the newspaper, with a picture of a cupboard that fetched two hundred pounds.  It was first cousin to that!” nodding at a splendidly carved old piece which faced him.

Miss Beach’s household goods were inherited from her great-grandfather, and included some fine specimens of oak, as well as rare Chippendale.  Winona was too young to be a connoisseur of antiquities, but she had the curiosity to rise from her chair and join Percy in his inspection of the article in question.

“I tell you they’re as alike as two peas!” he declared.  “Same shape, same sort of carving, same knobs at the end!  The reason why I remember the thing is that the buyer found a secret drawer in it after he’d got it home, with some old rubbish inside, and there was a lawsuit as to who owned these.  He claimed he’d bought the lot with the cupboard, but the judge made him turn them up to the family of the original owner.  That was why there was a picture of the cupboard in the newspaper.  It put an arrow showing the place of the secret drawer.  I wonder if there’s one here, too?  I’m going to have a try!  By Jove, there is!”

A vigorous pull had dislodged a drawer in a very unexpected situation.  Winona would certainly never have thought of its existence, nor would Percy, if the newspaper had not given away the secret.  He looked eagerly inside.

“No treasures hidden in here!  Absolutely nothing at all, except this piece of paper.”

“Perhaps Aunt Harriet has never found it out,” ventured Winona.

Percy did not answer immediately.  He was reading the writing on the paper.

“You bet she has!” he cried at last, flushing angrily.  “I never thought she’d much opinion of me, but I call this the limit!  It’s going where it deserves!” and acting on a sudden impulse he flung the cause of offense into the fire.

For a moment Winona did not realize what he had done.  By the time she reached the hearth the paper was already half consumed.  She made a snatch at it with the tongs, but a flame sprang up and forestalled her.  She had just time to read the words “last Will and Testament of me Har—­” before the whole sank into ashes.  She turned to her brother with a white, scared face.

“Percy!  You’ve never burnt Aunt Harriet’s will?”

Ashamed already of his impetuous act the boy nevertheless tried to bluff the matter off.

“It was an abominable shame!  When I’m named Beach after her too!  I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t read it myself!” he blustered.

“Read what?”

“I shan’t tell you!  Look here, Win, you must promise on your honor that you’ll never breathe a word about this.”