Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1888-07-26

No, he said At last, that's not
mine. My gracious, where is mine
Good heavens. what will happen
Where Oh earth can my box have 60,
to-
| Don't trouble yourself on that &C.
count. said Dick, grimly my wife
has it safe enough
'Eh? Your wife p? exclaimed Mr.
Skelton. She didn I open it, trust ?
'.Oh, yes, she did. replied Dick
andsaw the kind OF Outrages you are
capable Of
Good God said Mr.. Skelton, quite
Mortified. i hope she wasn't much
frightened
Frightened replied Dick. angrily.
What the deuce should she be fright.
ened at ? Do you think she never saw
powder and paint and dress !mprovers
sni-ani-the rest before She does
not use them herself. OF course, but do
you suppose she never saw or heard
Of them till now ,
But my box didn't contain powder
and dress iuproyers, replied Mr..
Skelton, aston!shed.
Didn't il, though ,
No, really, air, il dldn: contain
anything of the kind
What did it contain, then . said
Dick. ironically.
1t contained and here Mr.
Shelton dropped his voice and whls-
pered something to Dick.
A what demanded Dick
Mr.. SHELTON again whispered some
thing in Dicks ear.
Heaven forbid exclaimed Dick
| hope she hasr t come on that vet, or
there'll be the deuce to pay. Look
here, Shelton or Jones or whatever
your confounded name is, are you
humbugging me, or are you not?
I'm not-I swear I'm not, Mr..
Peppercorn, protested Mr.. SHELTON.
Well, then, come with me to the
Norfolk, and see the box that is there.
If it's not yours. both you and l have
been victimizsd by that rascal Crabb,
and you'll know what to do
Away the two men set off for the
Norfolk with Mrs. Dicks box in the
fly beside them. Arrived there, Mrs.
Dick received back her box with de-
light, and Mr.. SHELTON vehemently
protested that the box she had was
not his.
Mine, he said, must have been
taken BY the man Crabb you speak of
in mistake for yours. swear l never
saw that one before.
Well, put in Mrs. Dick, we've got
ours all right anyway. If this gentle.
man wants his, give him Mr.. Crabb's
address, and let him 90 there.
Dick rather grumbled at this pro-
posal. He was not altogether con.
vinced that Mr. Shelton was 80 limo.
cent as he pretended to be but still
il seemed the only course open, and
SO, after some little discu .sion, it was
agreed that Dick should give Mr..
Skelton Crabb's address, that Mr..
SHELTON should return TO London at
once, and that when he had seen
Crabb he should le. Dick know the
result.
Three hours later a telegram reached
Dick. l; was from Mr.. Shelton, and
came from London 1t ran as fol,
lows
Have Just recovered my box Went
to Crabbs lodging. and thought at
first l i found two subjects instead of
one Crabb. on opening box had come
upon it, and the shock made him un-
conscious Took me nearly an hour
TO bring him round Hes still awfully
bad.
What does he mean by IT, dear ?
asked Emma, on reading the telegram.
oh. nothing love. replied Dick.
'Its all right
BY George thought Dick to him.
self. What q narrow escape. II she
had only got that medical students
box. with dead mans head and
shoulders in 1t, what an awful thing
i, would have been. Crabbs ia;nting
would have been nothing to It. Still,
Mr.. Crabb has been nicely caught this
time. He wont be so fond of playing
spiteful tricks in the future. Ishould
l,t-Nl