- Opie joins a secret club and is in charge of the candle they use in their meetings. After the barn where they meet burns down, he is accused by the owner of starting the fire.
- After joining the Wildcats, a secret club, Opie is made the keeper of the flame, the boy who will be responsible for hanging on to the candle and matches that they use during their meetings. They've taken to meeting in Jubal Foster's barn and he runs them off regularly, even complaining to Andy about the trespassers. Jubal has his own reasons for keeping them out of the barn - he runs a still in the back room. When Jubal accidentally sets his barn on fire, he blames the Wildcats; so, when Aunt Bee finds the candle in Opie's room, Andy blames the boy for setting the fire. Andy is prepared to make restitution, since he thinks it's his son who's responsible, but it's another of Barney's blunders that sorts it all out in Opie's favor.—garykmcd
- Opie is initiated into a secret club called The Wildcats, run by some older kids, and is sworn on "The Curse of the Claw" never to tell anyone about it. The secret is safe with him, especially since the club holds its meetings in the barn of mean old Jubal Foster who chases the kids off his land. Opie's position in the club is The Keeper of the Flame, the person whose job it is to keep up with the club's ceremonial candle. Jubal comes to town to complain to Andy and Barney and spots Opie and accuses him of trespassing, which Andy won't believe. The next day, the boys are chased off of Foster's property again; Opie blows out the candle and takes it with him. Once they're gone, Foster goes into the secret room in his barn where he hides his moonshine still. While giving his latest batch a taste-test, he accidentally knocks over his lantern and starts a fire that burns the barn to the ground. When Andy comes to investigate, Jubal blames the kids, but Andy won't hear it. Later, at home, Aunt Bee finds the matches and the candle under Opie's pillow and, when she gives it to Andy, he puts two and two together and assumes that Opie started the fire. Opie claims several times that he was there but didn't start the fire, but Andy won't believe him. When Andy and Barney return to Foster's farm so Andy can pay for the barn, Barney wanders off to get a drink of water from a bucket and discovers Jubal's moonshine. Staggering back to Andy drunk, Andy discovers the problem and promptly arrests Jubal for running a still and setting fire to his own barn. Later Andy apologizes to Opie and suggests that instead of a Sacred Flame, he use the much safer sacred flashlight.—Jerry Dean Roberts <armchairoscars@hotmail.com>
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