The Witch Tree Symbol Part 5

"She's restored lots of people to their families," Bess explained, "and brought others peace of mind."

The farmer was silent, then he said, "If you can find missing persons, please bring my daughter home. I want her here."

Nancy promised she would do her best.

"Mind you, I do not approve of this girl-detective business," Mr. Kreutz went on, suddenly more cheerful. "Find Manda and maybe I change the mind over. Tell me what you do when you work."

"If you feel well enough to go outside, I'll be glad to give you a lesson," Nancy said, explaining that they ought to search the farm for clues to where Manda might have gone.

Mr. Kreutz said some exercise would help to ease the stiffness in his strained muscles. He took a kerosene lantern from under the closed-in sink, lighted it, and led the girls outside. Mrs. Kreutz joined them.

The Amish farmer first showed the visitors his spotless dairy. Since there was no indication that Manda had been there, the group went to the hay barn. Nancy walked back and forth with the lantern, examining every inch of the clean board floor.

"This barn is immaculate!" Bess exclaimed.

Mrs. Kreutz smiled. "We House Amish hold our religious services in the barn when there are too many people for the house," she explained. "Perhaps our barns are cleaner than our homes!"

"I'd like to climb into the loft," Nancy said. "Once when I was a little girl and got hurt on a farm we were visiting, I went to the haymow to have a good cry all by myself. Maybe Manda did the same thing."

"Go ahead," the farmer said.

Nancy scrambled up the ladder. A few moments later she called out excitedly, "I've found something!" She climbed down, holding a piece of paper. Bess and George gasped as they read: WITCH TREE.

"Do you know anything about this? Have you ever heard of a witch tree?" Nancy asked the couple.

She watched their expressions as they read the strange words and shook their heads. "It is a due to Manda, you think?" Mr. Kreutz asked.

"Possibly," Nancy replied, "but it's like the one dropped by the furniture thief." She reminded them of the hex sign she had found at the Follett mansion.

The group inspected the rest of the buildings but found no clue to Manda's whereabouts. They returned to the house, sleepy and ready to retire.

The girls were given two upstairs rooms, which were as plair as those on the first floor. Each contained a rope double bed, two small wooden chairs, a little chest, and a curtained part.i.tion where clothes might be hung.

In the candlelight the girls saw that the furniture was gaily painted with designs of doves and flowers. The beds were covered with patchwork quilts made of pieces of vivid red, green, purple, yellow, and black cloth.

Nancy roomed alone and slept from the moment she got into bed until a crowing rooster roused her the next morning. Her mind refreshed, she began at once to think about the two puzzling mysteries. She was intrigued by the piece of paper she had found in the Kreutz hayloft. What did it mean? Manda?Hoelt? Had the two met?

When Nancy entered the cozy kitchen she asked Mr. and Mrs. Kreutz if they had ever heard of Roger Hoelt. The farmer said he had once known such a man.

"The fellow lived in Lancaster. When he was very young, I caught him in my barn stealing tools. Could this be the same man?"

Nancy said it no doubt was, because she had learned from the police that Roger Hoelt had once lived in Lancaster. She added that recently he had been imprisoned in New York as a thief.

"I suspect he's the one who stole the valuable antique furniture in our town and accidentally dropped the paper with the witch tree symbol on it. Hoelt knows I'm searching for him and has tried to scare me off the case."

Bess declared that probably it was Hoelt and not Manda who had left the witch tree symbol in the hayloft. "He's still trying to hex you, Nancy," she said, worried.

The young detective thought this was impossible as he had no way of knowing she was going to visit the Kreutzes.

The farmer looked at Bess disapprovingly. "We Amish do not believe in hexing," he said. "There are some non-Amish people in the back country who practice witchcraft."

"They do not all live in the back country, Papa," his wife spoke up. "I was talking to Mrs. Dyster at market. She told me about some people in town who think there are certain persons, especially women and girls, who practice witchcraft in secret. If these people hear that someone is a witch, they may be frightened into doing her bodily harm."

Nancy smiled. "Don't worry. My friends and I don't believe in such things," she said, looking straight at Bess.

After breakfast, the girls helped Mrs. Kreutz clean up the kitchen, then said they must be going. When they appeared in the kitchen a short time later, carrying their suitcases, Mrs. Kreutz was amazed.

"You are taking everything with you?" she asked. "Could you not stay by us while you are solving your mystery?"

"We mustn't impose," said Nancy, smiling.

Mrs. Kreutz put her hands on her hips. "Such an idea!" she said. Then she smiled. "If you come back here each evening for supper, I can hear how you make about my daughter."

"Well, under those conditions we'll accept your invitation," said Nancy.

They would have to do some expert sleuthing, the young detective thought, to find MandaKreutz. She had not voiced her lack of confidence, but she had a feeling that this time the Amish girl had indeed disappearedl

CHAPTER V.

A Surprising Find

"WE'RE heading for Lancaster," Nancy told her friends as they drove away from the Kreutz farm. "I'd like to look for Manda, first of all."

"Let's check the bakeries there," Bess said. "I wouldn't mind a few samples!" The others laughed but agreed.

Once in Lancaster, they consulted a telephone directory and listed the town bakeries. One by one they visited them, but replies about Manda were negative until they reached Stumm Bakery.

Mrs. Stumm said that Manda had worked there until two days before. "Then she quit. Manda may have gone home or perhaps to work for those people that were in here."

"Who were they?" Nancy asked. "Can you describe them?"

"It was a couple. I think they're out-of-town Amish," the woman answered. "I gathered from their conversation that they had just moved to a farm in this area and wanted an Amish girl to help with housework."

Nancy inquired if Mrs. Stumm had ever heard Manda mention a witch tree. Looking surprised, the woman shook her head. Nancy thanked her for the information she had given, bought a bag of fasnachts, and left.

The young detective told her friends that she had a hunch Manda had obtained employment with this couple. Referring once more to a cla.s.sified telephone book, Nancy copied names of local real-estate agents. The girls then divided the work of calling on them and met later at the car. None had found a single clue to anyone who had recently purchased a farm.

"However," Nancy said, "one man told me that old farms sometimes change hands in direct sale. We'll keep asking. Now let's go to Mr. Zinn's."

For a change George drove, and Nancy gave directions. They found Alpha Zinn's farm easily.

"We'll pretend to be interested in antiques," Nancy suggested, as the girls walked into a small building marked OFFICE.

Alpha Zinn's appearance bore out his cousin's remark about his love of eating. But the rolypoly smiling man did not look dishonest. Nancy, nevertheless, was cautious as he led the way to a large barn, where furniture was on display on the main floor and in two haylofts.