Clarence was almost overwhelmed by the discovery he had just made.  It was an opportunity too good to be lost, and he at once resolved that if there were eighty thousand dollars buried in that field, he must have a share of the money when it was brought to light.  In order to bring this about, he must find out who this man and boy were.  He had a very slight cue to guide him, but he followed it up so skillfully that by noon of the next day he knew as much about the eighty thousand dollars as Godfrey did, and had formed a partnership with that worthy, Dan being dropped as a useless encumbrance.  They met, according to agreement, as soon as it grew dark.  It happened that there was one who witnessed their interview, and heard all that passed between them, and that was Don Gordon, who had just returned from the landing, whither he had been to mail a letter to his cousin.  Not finding the hostler about when he came back, Don attended to his pony himself, and was about to shut up the barn for the night, when he discovered what he supposed to be a thief prowling about.  The lighted end of a cigar glowed through the darkness a moment later, and then Don saw that the prowler was his cousin Clarence.  Greatly amused at his mistake, he was about to make his presence known, when it occurred to him that since Clarence had taken so much pains to get out of sight of the family, in order that he might enjoy his cigar, perhaps he would not like it if Don caught him in the act; so Don remained in his place of concealment, heard every word that was said when Godfrey came up, saw both of them get over the fence in the potato-patch, and followed and watched them while they were digging for the barrel.

Now, Don was one of the most inveterate practical jokers in the world, and the most accomplished one we ever saw.  Godfrey had received more than one proof of his skill.  He had been tripped up when there was no one near him; his hat had been knocked off his head by invisible hands, and he had seen horrid great things with eyes of fire staring at him from fence-corners, until he had become fully satisfied that the General’s lane was haunted, and he would go a mile around through the fields before he would pass through it after nightfall.  Here was another opportunity to frighten him, and Don knew just how to do it.  Before he went to sleep that night, he had thought of something that beat all the other tricks he had heard of far out of sight.

CHAPTER II.

David’s visitors.

The trouble began the very next morning.  While Godfrey was sitting on the bench in front of his cabin, deeply engrossed with his own thoughts, Dan came rushing up with a face full of terror, and conveyed to him the startling intelligence that a “haunt”—­a Northern boy would have called it a ghost—­had been seen at General Gordon’s barn.  It looked exactly like old Jordan, the negro, who had