Gas Thieves

     Since Daddy had started a woodworking shop he had bought several fuel tanks and set them up under our pine trees behind the house. He had allowed us children to paint them a shiny silver and once they were dry he wrote GAS in big black letters on one of them in order to not confuse it with the one holding diesel fuel right next to it.

     It took quite a lot more diesel than gas to run the machinery in the shop but somehow the gas tank got empty before the diesel. Daddy asked all of us if we had opened the valves or if we have any idea why the tank was empty already. We were all clueless about what could be happening to the gas.

     Daddy kept having to fill the gas tank once a month, and then winter came and one morning we woke up to fresh tracks in the snow in front of the gas tank. Daddy wasn't very happy about the idea that someone was stealing gas and decided he is going to try to watch the tank and catch the thieves in the act.

    Sure enough several nights later as he peeped out the kitchen window he saw our neighbors two teen-aged boys filling their gas cans. He hurried down to the basement and out through the shop stopping in the engine room long enough to pick up our gas can.

     He walked up to them and said "Here's some more gas you can have." They jumped and turned around to see who was there. Daddy repeated. "Here is another can of gas for you," and held it out to them. They stammered around a bit and refused to accept it.

     They offered to pay for the gas in their cans but Daddy refused to take any of their money and told them the next time they really need gas to come to the house and he will be glad to give them what ever they need.

     He told them goodnight and came back into the house. They stood there for awhile and then walked home with their gas. But from that night on we never had any problems with gas disappearing and they never came to accept Daddy's offer of free gas either.