Cedric Sells Chances

Originally Aired: March 28, 1938

Lum #13, "Cedric Sells Chances,"

Lum and Abner are still reeling from their recent disappointment when a professor from the State University identified their supposed dinosaur fossil as nothing more than a dead mule, dashing their dreams of fortune and fame. When Lum discovers Abner and Grandpappy Spears hiding in the feed room of the Jot 'Em Down Store playing checkers instead of minding the business, he's furious that customers are being ignored. Grandpappy, taking his role as chief of police a bit too seriously, nearly pulls his gun on Lum during a heated exchange about potential robberies in Pine Ridge.

Just as Lum hypocritically settles in for his own checker game with Grandpappy, young Cedric arrives at the store carrying a punchboard and selling chances at five cents apiece. Lum and Grandpappy immediately recognize this as illegal gambling and warn Cedric he could get himself in serious trouble. When Cedric insists he's not profiting from the scheme himself, the question arises: who put him up to this, and where is the money really going?