In "The Theft" we see John repairing a refrigerator belonging to a wealthy family named Claybourne, which consists of a woman, her adult son and a high-school-aged daughter, who live in a fancy house with pillars, and have a butler/servant. After John spends a lot of time getting the machine repaired, the son, Stuart Lee (never simply called "Stuart") offers to drive him home.
At supper that night, John tells about how Stuart Lee paid him just like his daddy had always done long ago—in a sealed envelope. Only this night, they are disappointed to learn the envelope only contains one dollar.
This is troublesome because John has many customers who are behind in their bills and his truck badly needs new tires. Obviously, if he can't deliver wood in his truck, he's out of business.
A day or two later, after finishing more repair work at the Claybourne house, we see John buying two tires for his truck. When he comes home, he refuses to explain to Livvy where he got the money, but instead gives her a present.
Soon enough, we see the Claybourne matriarch all upset because two valuable Paul Revere goblets are missing. Because nobody who isn't family has been to the house since she last saw them, she reluctantly thinks it must have been John.
The crux of the story is about how the Waltons all were sure that John didn't take any goblets, but couldn't understand why he refused to explain where he went for a few hours that day, or where he got the money for the tires and the gift. We viewers had a good clue, but did not know for sure what happened.
John-Boy in particular is upset at his father for not trusting him enough to let him know, and John gets sore at John-Boy for not letting him decide for himself when the time is right to talk about it.
Everyone is on edge as the accusation of theft causes trouble at home, and for the children at school. It finally gets resolved, partly because of some shrewd observations Ben makes, one of which he credits to remembering a similar observation in a Charlie Chan movie.
I thought all the actions of the characters, including the guest stars seemed logical and understandable. It is easy to see how people can lose faith in someone they trust and it was good to see the way the Walton family reacted when John was at the center of the accusation of being a thief and refused to explain his actions. A good, solid episode, making it an 8 in my book.
At supper that night, John tells about how Stuart Lee paid him just like his daddy had always done long ago—in a sealed envelope. Only this night, they are disappointed to learn the envelope only contains one dollar.
This is troublesome because John has many customers who are behind in their bills and his truck badly needs new tires. Obviously, if he can't deliver wood in his truck, he's out of business.
A day or two later, after finishing more repair work at the Claybourne house, we see John buying two tires for his truck. When he comes home, he refuses to explain to Livvy where he got the money, but instead gives her a present.
Soon enough, we see the Claybourne matriarch all upset because two valuable Paul Revere goblets are missing. Because nobody who isn't family has been to the house since she last saw them, she reluctantly thinks it must have been John.
The crux of the story is about how the Waltons all were sure that John didn't take any goblets, but couldn't understand why he refused to explain where he went for a few hours that day, or where he got the money for the tires and the gift. We viewers had a good clue, but did not know for sure what happened.
John-Boy in particular is upset at his father for not trusting him enough to let him know, and John gets sore at John-Boy for not letting him decide for himself when the time is right to talk about it.
Everyone is on edge as the accusation of theft causes trouble at home, and for the children at school. It finally gets resolved, partly because of some shrewd observations Ben makes, one of which he credits to remembering a similar observation in a Charlie Chan movie.
I thought all the actions of the characters, including the guest stars seemed logical and understandable. It is easy to see how people can lose faith in someone they trust and it was good to see the way the Walton family reacted when John was at the center of the accusation of being a thief and refused to explain his actions. A good, solid episode, making it an 8 in my book.