The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1881-08-30

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examined the girl She talked freely, said
she always had presentiment that the
money would be stolen--in fact, had .
presentiment that night. but feared to tell
the old lady for fear of alarming her. I
soon, learned that Mollie had key which
fitted the bedroom containing the bureau,
hence my suspicious were strengthened
that Mollie had arisen in the night, either
unlocked the door with her own key, or
taken the one in the wardrobe, and, secur-
ing the money hid it either in or out Of the
house without awakening the old lady. l
finally told Mollie that should have to
search her and make a thorough examina-
ton of the house.
"'Well,' she naively remarked, if you
do find any money about the house it
wont prove that stole it, will itP'
est will be prima facie evidence 1
said.
II locked her up in her bedroom and
began the search; band-boxes pried into,
bureau-drawers pulled out, cupboards
ransacked, and finally went through her
own room"
" Under the carpet, under her bed l
found in compact wad twelve 800 bills.
Now the total amount known to be miss
ing was only $lo45. Where had the
$l55 gone? Where had the gold coins
gone to? Was the bureau drawer paying
interest on its deposits9"
"'Now Pye got you, Mollie,' l said,
as confronted her.
Mollie tainted.
A bottle of camphor and little cold
water brought her speedily to, yet she
sturdily proclaimed her innocence
81 didn't take Miss Smiths money; no
did not she convulsively exclaimed be-
tween her sobs.
"Miss Smith would not allow me to
take her to Jail, where reasoned confine-
ment would soon compel her to confess.
"My work, however, was but partially
done, for the gold coins had not turned
up.
81 determined that those coins must be
in the house and resolved upon thorough
search from cellar to garret. The cellar
disclosed nothing, and at last l stumbled
upon a small stairway leading to the gar
ret, the door to which was common trap
door, securely fastened by paddock to
which was attached three links of a chain.
%'Giye me the key 1 said to Miss
Smith, 'to that trap-door up in the at
tic.'
%'Oh, no use of looking there, the keys
have been lost for over five years, and no
one has ever been up there since There
were cobwebs on the door, but noticed
that over the crack of the doors edge
they appeared to have been broken
away, caused by the door having been
recently opened. With an ak speedily
got the door open and saw large foot
prints in the dust. By the aid of lamp
/ followed the course of the tracks over
the boards, which lay across the shaky
rafters to the furthest part of the garret,
where over an old cross beam hung pair
Of old-fashioned saddle bags The dust
on the bags had been recently disturbed.
In one of the pockets found the five
800 bills which disappeared on the night
of the sOth of May, the 1855 that was
missed in the summer of 1879, the $500
that was lost in 1880, and, better than all,
the rare old gold coins upon which Miss
Smith set such store as an heirloom. l
had found the money, but / found $1,000
too much. The mystery deepened. Ire
solved upon one thing, and that was that
Mollie must know something about the
money that was hid under the carpet be-
meath her bed. 1 talked kindly to her,
told her that Miss Smiths money had
been found, and urged her to tell me how
the $1,000 came under the carpet of her
bed
"'You will not believe me if tell you,
but if Miss Smith will go out will ex-
plain. ! put that money there; it was my
lovers He had saved it out Of his
wages and given it to me to keep. ] de-
stroyed his letters, for fear my aunt
would find it out There's the story"
" But how did the old lady's money
get into the garrett
"She carried it there herself She was
a somnambulist and walked in her Sleep"
Chow did you prove it Mr.. Norris
Did the old lady let you occupy the bed
room and catch ber?''
"Oh, no; / got the old lady to take
off her shoes and stockings and place her
No. foot down on sheet of white pa
per. With pair of scissors carefully
cut the exact shape Of the old lady's foot,
which fitted exactly in the tracks in the
dust on the garret boards. Besides that,
Mollie's foot was much smaller, she only
wearing No. u shoe. and would not fit
the track. also on careful examination
fonnd traces of cobwebs in the frill Of the
old lady's night-cap, while MoIlie wore no
night-cap. So you see ! proved it by
both ends--the old lady's head and by
her feet. ] explained all to the satisfac-s
ton of the old lady: she paid me my