Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1881-06-18
"D1d you know him Z" asked, with

shall hear how ut another time. | sup,
pose felt presentiment that the boy
would have some evil influence over
me. At any rate, when l accidentally
touched him 1 trembled as if l had
touched serpent. You will think me
superstitious; but, after what you have
said, it is certainly true that he has been
the indirect cause of the misfortune
that has fallen ON me. How came he to
steal the papers? Did you ask the
rector when you went to Belhaven?
at asked the rector nothing. But
he thought it his duty to tell me all
that he knew of the theft"
She drew her chair nearer to me.
"Let me hear every word of it 2' she
pleaded, eagerly.
felt some reluctance to comply with
the request.
els it not fit for me to hear?" she
asked.
This forced me to be plain with her.
eff repeat what the rector told me-"
I said, 81 must speak of my wife"
She took my hand. "You have
pitied and forgiven her." she answered.
"Speak Of her, Bernard, and don't, for
Gods sake, think that my heart is harder
than yours"
kissed the hand that she had given
to me-even her "brother" might do
that
1t began" said, Gin the grateful
attachment which the boy felt for my
wife. He refused to leave her bedside
on the day when she dictated her con-
fession to the rector. AS he was en-
tirely ignorant of the English language,
there seemed TO be no objection to let.
ting him have his own way. He became
inquisitive as the writing went on. His
questions annoyed the rector, and, as
the easiest way of satisfying his curl
osity, my wife told him that she was
making her will. He knew just enough,
from what he. had heard at various
times, to associate making will with
gifts of money, and the pretended ex-
planation silenced and satisfied him."
"Did the rector understand it,"
Stella asked.
eyes. Like many other Englishmen
in his position, although he was not
ready at speaking French, he could read
the language, and could fairly well un-
derstand it when it was spoken. After
my wife's death he kindly placed the
boy for few days under the care of his
housekeeper. Her early life had been
passed in the island of Martinique; and
she was able to communicate with the
friendless foreigner in his own language.
When he disappeared she was the only
person who could throw any light on
his motive for stealing the papers. On
the day when he entered the house she
caught him peeping through the key
hole of the study-door. He must have
seen where the confession was placed,
and the color of the old-fashioned blue
paper on which it was written would
help him to identify it. The next morn
ing, during the rector's absence, he
brought the manuscript to the house
keeper and asked her to translate it into
French, so that he might know how
much money was left to him in 'the
will She severely reproved him, made
him replace the paper in the desk from
which he had taken it, and threatened
to tell the rector if his misconduct was
repeated. He promised amendment,
and the good-natured woman believed
him. Two days afterward the locked
door of the cabinet in which the papers
had been secured was found open, and
they and the boy were both missing
together"
"Do you think he showed the con-
fession to any other person?" Stella
asked. 81 happened to know that he
concealed it from his mother"
"After the housekeeper's reproof,"
replied, he would be cunning enough,
in my opinion, not to run the risk of
showing it to strangers. 1t is far more
likely that he thought he might learn
English enough to read it himself"
There the subject dropped. We were
silent for a while. She was thinking
and was looking at her. On a sudden
she raised her head. Her eyes rested on
me gravely.
"It is very strange" she said.
"What is strange ~
ct have been thinking of the Locings.
They encouraged me to doubt you.
They advised me to be silent about what
happened at Brussels. And they, too,
are concerned in my husbands desertion
of me. He first met Father Benwell at
their house. From that time I see the
circumstances in my mind, all following
one on another, until the priest and the
French boy were brought together, and
the miserable end came which has left
me deserted wife" Her head dropped
again her next words were murmured
to herself. "I am still a young woman,'
she said, "Oh, God what is my future
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