The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1864-05-13


| lay still, thinking it was the boots
come to fetch my clothes to brush.
Next moment the door gently opened,
and man entered on tiptoe He was
barefoot, as j could see with one eye
over the bedclothes, and was too well
dressed to be the boots. He must be
a thief, / thought, and / watched.
The man advanced with a velvet
tread like the tread of a cat, TO the
chair where my clothes were, and TAX
ing up first my coat and then my trous-
ers, felt the pockets; luckily, ! had my
purse under my pillow. He then
stepped to the dressing table, and
quietly slipped my watch in his pocket.
l could not see the fellows face, for he
wore a fiat fur travelling cap with loose
pendant ear-faps that hid his features.
could not summon up philosophy
enough to bear the abduction of my
gold repeater in silence, so / turned in
my bed, coughed loudly, and groaned
and yawned as if had Just awoke
The man started, dropped my watch,
and stammered out something about
Come for your boots, sir' with a
drunken gait, evidently affected, made
for the door
don't know what impulse it was
that made me run to the window and
not to the door. | didn't seize the
rogue, but ran to the window, and
pulled up the blinds so as to let in a
stream Of cold light upon the man S
face.
Could l believe my eyes? The thief
was Brancher. We both fell back like
two duelists who had exchanged NOR
tai shots.
'Brancher 7
'Gregson 7 He gave me q CHASTITY
look, and fled, slamming the door be-
hind him swiftly, but with practiced
dexterity, for it shut without sound.
returned to London next day, pom
dering over the strange event. could
find no clue to Branchers fall He
could not be a practiced thief; yet it
was impossible that he could at once
have plunged into crime. I thought
of his wife and children, and of his
pleasant home.
Afew hours brought me to Bybridge.
Lucy received me with rather sad
face.
% Arthur she said, dear Mrs.
Brancher is III such trouble! Her hus-
band has written to her from some
where in the North, to sell everything
directly, let the house, and join him at
Liverpool. Do go in and comfort her.
l went into Willow Cottage, and
found Mrs. Brancher in great distress.
She either would not, or could not, tell
me anything about her husbands rea-
son for removing. Invent the next day
and arranged the sale for her. The
sale took place. She came to wish us
goodbye, and left.
We heard no more of the Branchers
for two months, One day, when ]
came from the city, Lucy ran to meet
me, with large letter in her hand. II
was closed with great black seal
bearing a coat of arms, of which palm
tree was the most conspicuous feature
%, do see what it is, Arthur !! cried
Lucy; I'm sure it is poor Mr. Branch
er's writing.
Ihad never told Lucy the story OF
what had happened to me at the Don
caster hotel
l stood leaning on my garden gate,
as l opened the letter, and read il
aloud. 1t ran thus
LANCASTER CASTLE, Nov. ID, 1858.
My dear Gregson,--I dare say you
little expected ever to see my hand
writing again after our unpleasant en-
counter at Doncaster | write to you
because | know you to be good, kind
hearted fellow, who once had regard
for me- Fortune has been hard upon
me, though not perhaps harder than
have deserved, for to tell you the plain
truth, old boy, L am, and always was q
consummate scoundrel; but even scoun-
drels are, suppose, sometimes to be
pitied, and then, my poor wife and
children! / cannot tell you more now,
but l beg you to come and see me be-
fore / leave England (this is delicate
way of telling you that | am safe to be
transported for life | do not ask you
for my own sake, but the sake of poor
Lizzy and the children, to whom you
may be of use in a way you are not
aware of. Kindest remembrance to
Mrs Gregson.
Believe me to be yours most truly,
HENRY FITzosMoND BRANcHER.
Lucy was paralyzed with astonish-
ment at this strange letter. at once SO
regretful. Her curiosity was especial
ly excited by those words of the letter
so mysterious to her unpleasant rem
confer
What does he mean, Arthur ? she
asked, with that ross-examining air,
not, perhaps, quite unknown to my
married readers. But for once l was
infexible. 1 positively refused to tell
her until / should return from Lancas-
ter.
Next day, at five o'clock, / stepped
out of railway carriage on the plat
form of the Lancaster station. Driv-
ing first to the hotel to deposit my car
petbag (for / meant to sleep in Ian
CASTER, l got into the fly again, and
told the driver to set me down at the
prison gate.
AS / stood waiting at the door until
an under turnkey had run to take nay
| oorl 10 Al, ..o,..,-,,r,. q. Ia Iracca1 IN,