Morning journal and courier., 1886-03-12

it when I left my hotel, but could not rec
 ollect noticing it's presence at any subsequent
 time; so went to every place I had visited
 since came out, the cafe where had dined,
 the shop where I had bought some cigars,
 the streets l had traversed, looking every
 where for some trace of my lost jewel, and
 inquiring of everyone to whom had previ-
 ously spoken if they had seen anything of it.
 felt dreary conviction that my treasured
 ornament was gone forever, when, last
 resource, went to a bureau de police and
 gave description of the lost ring to the of
 fcer there. The officer was polite, but gave
 me small hope of ever seeing my diamond
 again. gave it up as gone forever.
 I was sitting in my hotel dull and de- pressed, angry at my own carelessness and inclined to give up any further holiday and forget my annoyance by speedy return to my professional duties in London, when my friend of the police office entered.
 "1 am happy" he said, lowing politely
 and smiling with, as I thought, anticipation of handsome reward-'I am happy to in form monsieur that we hope soon to place his ring in his hands. One answering to the de- scription you gave was brought to our office l by the finder, countryman of your own. The ring being rather uncommon one, l l felt assured that it could be no other than | the one you had lost. You described it, ! think, as consisting of five diamonds set in | the shape of violet, with smaller bril-
  | able jewel"
 "Yes, that's it," replied curtly, wonder 1 ing why he could not give me back my prop | erty without so many words.
 s'Then I may safely assume that this is the ring in question:" He brought out my ring | from his pocket and showed it to me.
 ''It is," said, stretching out my hand; but l he did not restore the jewel, only stood there | holding it and smiling more than ever. I | supposed that he wanted to see some sign of l the reward he expected to receive before parting with the trinket. I took out my purse and, opening it, made some remark l about showing the appreciation of his hon. l esty, but he shook his head, smiling, if pos sible, more broadly than before.
 ''Do you not wish to know, monsieur, how your ring was found?' he asked with 8 leer which thought was disagreeable.
 "Well, how was it found?' said tartly. My policeman drew himself up to deliver his great effect. ''AIonsieur, your ring was found in another mans pocket" I stared at him in bewilderment, mingled with an in definite fear, while he continued his narra- tive in less courteous and more eonfiden- tial tone than he had hitherto assumed. "Ahl mon ami, one may be too clever; ones dexterity may lead one astray if it be not balanced by discretion. You had not long left the office when another Englishnan came in complaining that he had lost pock- etbook containing all his money. He had put his hand in his pocket to bring it out, meaning to pay for something, but found it gone, and in it's place a diamond ring-your ring. For my own part do not doubt your honesty-even your generosity. You be- lieved, doubtless, that exchange is no rob bery, and that in leaving your ring in ex-
 change for his portmonnaie you would at once obtain a memento of compatriot and do him a practical benefit. That is the in depreciation should wish to put on the af- fair; but the owner of the pocketDook will not see it in that light-he lacks imagina- ton, as so many English do. Of course your coming to ask us to try to recover your lost ring tends to give color to his version of the matter, which is that, while you were robbing him of his money, the ring slipped from your hand and remained in his pocket, and with 8 lack of sympathy for a country man, which 1 grieve to recount, he demands that you should be arrested, duty which l
 am reluctantly compelled to fulfill"
 1 was absolutely dumb with surprise and
 anger. Had I had my wits about me I might
 though circumstances were against me
 have brought some counter charge of theft
 against my accuser; but I was so stupefed
 by the strange turn events had taken that I
 submitted meekly to be searched, to have the
 fatal pocketbook taken from me and to be
 led away to prison. Somehow, too, l was
 unable to secure possession of the ring that
 the cause of my undoing, and l have
 not seen it since my arrest.
 So here I sit in my cell, depressed and
 weary, a victim to the bitterest self-reproach.
 I could almost wish to be condemned to life
 long imprisonment, for what is freedom
 worth to me. After such piece of suicidal
 folly as I have been guilty of I shall never
 dare to lift up my head among my profes-
 sional brethren, and I fear that nothing will
 be left for me but to take to honesty when
 my term expires.