Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-04-25
R E T R I B U IT 0 N
BY tsTHE DUCHESS"

BY tTHE DUCHESS" The handkerchief is large, coarse, comlnon one, white in color, and of such texture as might be used by Q respect aple artisan on 8 holiday making. It IS clew," says the doctor trium- phantly; but Millicent, though she could not have put her conviction into words, feels that it will never help to bring the real offender to justice.
 But what brought the man here that is what want to know?'' demands Mrs. Brand, with little spreading of her hands, when the doctor has called some hours later to find his patient has been sleeping quietly during his absence, and has only reused to consciousness again upon his entrance.
 Mot a word have let her speak-not a word, says Mrs Brand, with very par donable pride, considering the extent of her curiosity.
 Well, l must speak now,n murmurs Millicent, still very feebly, but with a decided increase of strength that the doctor finds very satisfactory.
 Why, we shall have her downstairs in no time," declares he jovia1ly.
 Then Millicent launches into descrip- tion of the man who had thrown a hand kerchief over her face and left her to live or die, as chance dictated, while he made good his escape. It is this infor- nation that calls forth from Mrs. Brand the question as to what brought him into her house at all that unseemly midnight hour.
 'Ah! auntie!'' says the girl, looking at her out of her cushioned arm chair, with great pathetic eyes that have grown OrnQfar of f1., e,,1 that are filling them. 'sDo you not know9 Do you not guess9 When you opened my hand, and the sapphire locket dropped out, did you guess nothing then?'
 "No, child-no.''
 "That locket is gift to me.'''
 "A gift? I know that" impatiently "A gift from your Ucnle Timothy, with all the rest of those very beautiful stones. A magnificent gift, truly"
 "No!-a gift from the man who has stolen all those unrivaled stonesp'
 "Stolen!'' Mrs. Brand falls back in her chair, and gazes at Millicent with hor- TOT stricken eyes.
 ''What! Gonel Those priceless sap phiresP' ;ries Dr. Thesby, who is an old friend of Mrs. Brands, and had been shown the sumptuous gift of Timothy Boyle when first presented to Miss Grey
 "Ahp' says Millicent, laughing hyster- ically, "the burglar evidently did not think them, as you do, priceless No doubt he is already pricing them-is ar- ranging how to break them up and sell them-breaking up-my-lovely-ne let-my beautiful''- Here, being still very weak, she gives up her mournful de- scription, and subsidies into a storm of tears.
 'There, there, darling! Oh, don't cry like that! Think of your weak state. But what an audacious thing! Bless me, what will your uncle say? Now, my dearest love, I imrlore you to control yourself. Remember how that unmiti- gated villain nearly deprived you of your life only few short hours ago. In this very chamber, Dr. Thesby. Oh! to think of it! It must have almost happened on this very spotr' Here she grows tragic, and speaks in deep bass tone that she believes befits the occasion. "Oh! Milli- cent, darling, you will break my heart your old auntie's heart-if you keep on sobbing like that. Dear! dear! dear! to think that those sapphires doctor-and the finest in Engnand-in- deed, in Europe, might safely say are now being melted down-that is, broken up, or whatever it is those terrible men do to them-while we are sitting in eeOoi'o AoIo! Cibu uOGulnS De uOne! On! doctor-Dr. Thesby! What is the mat ter with her now?-has that wretch suc- ceeded in killing her after all?''
 Millicent, in fact, driven to despair by this prolonged lament, has gone into vio lent mysteries.
 'No, mann, he hasn't," says the doc tor, with severe meaning, who had tried to stem the flow of Mrs. Brands elo- quehce, eagerly but Intellectually, during the past five minutes.