The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1893-07-08

great haul then
at is the thief who will have the grea
haul But | can see you don't believe that
there is thief"
He scarcely did He himself NIGH
have made mistake, or his wife might
or perhaps Vickers. 1t was so easy tc
make a mistake.
"The money is stolen, Edward 1t be
hooves you to be on your guard Father
Urquhart knows it. That is what is max
ing him so ILL.,"
Then he should have spoken to me al
once said Mr.. Blencowe, beginning tc
be a little more convinced alt was
his duty to tell me, and then we could
have employed detectives and had the
church watched"
"Don't you see that the very thought ol
such thing being necessary is torture tc
Father Urquhart-he is so sensitive, SC
high-minded =
at will have to be done | must speak
to him at once-or stay, shall doa httle
detective business on my own account 2"
"Ah 1t is getting just like Boisgo-
bey novel! But Boisgobey's amateur de-
tectives always impart their suspicious, and
conide each important step that they in
tend to take to the criminal himself, and
he is always the most unlikely person in
the book. Who is the most unlikely per-
son in Slagborough ?''
"Mr. Scrope-Browne. Write a novel
about it yourself, Agnes, and make him
the villain.
"Oh, no; that is clumsy should make
Father Urquhart the criminal. Some alb
solutely imperative need for money shall
have suddenly arisen, and his honor and
honesty shall have been overmastered by
necessity. He shall so about in state of
gloomy despair which shall be visible to
all, though none shall suspect the cause.
"Just as Father Urquhart is doing nowP
said Mr.. Blencowe dryly.
"Good heavens, Edward did not fol
moment mean that =
"Of course not 1t is a capital subject
though. l wonder what we on the bench
should think of honor and honesty having
been suddenly overmastered by necessity, il
that phrase were used to us as an excuse p
81 really cannot believe that the money
is stolen, Agnes" he said after pause
At the same time when once the idea has
been put into my head by you, | should be
a fool if l did not take some precautions.
"What shall you do ?"
'In the first place-my dear, don't be
offended-I shall take your hint about
Boisgobey, and be very careful to hold my
tongue. I shall not even take my wife
into my confidence"
Next day Mr.. Blencowe went to the
church, and availing himself of an oppor
tunity when he could do it unobserved, put
into the poor-box a fve-pound note, oi
which he had carefully taken the number
and 0 marked sovereign.
eAlT II.
Father Urquhart's former nurse and
present housekeeper (who oddly enough
had been born in the North and had lived
there till she was "a woman grown wai
as much perplexed as the Blencowes, ant
infinitely more anxious. Her master was
not like the same man. Until lately he
though working like galley slave, had
always been happy and cheerful, with {
word of praise for any little dish she SCI
before him, and Of kindness for herself
whenever she "came across" him. Now
he was moody and silent, ate without seem
jag to care whether his food were good ol
bad, and passed her without so much al
knowing that she was there. His bed
too, showed the perturbation Of his mind
She had "but to look at it to see how very
little sleeping had been done In IT," A
change must come soon or he would, "frel
himself away" so the day after the Can
dlemas sepmoR she Yaylaid him as he wa
going out. aMy dear boy she said pite
ously-''sir, l mean-my heart aches
when l see you; you are taking on that
badly aboHt something that you neither
eat nor sleep
81 am all right" he said, trying to gei
ont of the house, but the passage was mar
row and stout, and he could not reach the
door unless she turned sideways ant
crushed herself up against the wall, which
she did not seem to intend to do.
"You must let me speak, sir. You aff
fairly throwing away your health, to say
nothing of your comfort, for comforts {
thing you never take into account. You
don't eat enough to keep even sparrow
goingl You don't sleep, and yon aft
walking about upon those poor feet ol
yours with an empty stomach from early
morning till late night
To her delight, her words made hin
smile and return to the speech of Other
days "Nurse, dear, I'm all right! One
or two things are rather worrying me
that's all,
sIf could be certain that he was wor
ried about one or two things, ] wouldn'i
mind so much, she thought, "but | feal
it's only one"
"Will you promise to be in by half-pas'
seyen p she said, for she wanted to make
a certain pudding that he liked.