Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-06-01
Ill
TIE sHERD OF AMENARTAs.

On the day preceding Leo's twenty.
fifth birthday we both p oceeded TO Lon
don. and extracted the mysterious chest
from the bank where | had deposited 1t
twenty years before 1t was, ! remember,
brought up by the same clerk who had
taken il down. He perfectly remembered
having hidden it away. Had he not done
So he said. he should have had difficulty
in finding it, it was so covered up with
cobweOs.
In the evening we returned with our
precious burden 10 Cambridge, and think
that we might both Of us have given away
all the sleep that we got that night and
not have been much the poorer, AT day
break Leo arrived in my room in dress
ing gown, and suggested that we should
at once proceed to business. secuted the
idea as showing an unworthy curiosity
The chest has waited twenty years. | said
it could very well continue TO wait until
after breakfast. Accordingly at nine-an
unusually sharp nlne-we breaktasted /;
and so occupied was | with my own
thoughts that | regret To state that | put a
piece Of bacon into Leos tea in mistake
for a lump of sugar. Job, too, TO whom
the contagion of excitement had Of course
spread, managed TO break the handle off
my Sevres china tea.cup, the Identical one,
| believe, that Marat had been drinking
from just before he was stabbed in his
bath.
At last, however breakfast was cleared
away, and Job, at my request, fetched the
chest, and placed it upon the table in a
somewhat gingerly fashion, as though he
mistrusted 1t. Then he prepared 10 leave
the room
stop a moment. Job" / said: "if Mr..
Leo has no objection, | should prefer to
have an independent witness to this bust
mes, who can be relied upon to hold his
tongue unless he is asked 10 speak.
Certainly, Uncle Horace" answered
Leo, for had brought him up TO call me
uncle, though he varied the appellatlon
somewhat disrespectfuly by calling me
'old fellow" or even my avuncular
relative"
Job touched his head, not having his
hat on.
Lock the door, job" | said, land
bring me my dispatch box"
lie obeycd. and from the box took
the keys that poor Vincey Leo's father
had given me on the night of his death
There were three Of them; the largest a
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES key the second an
exceedingly ancient one. and the third en-
tirely unlike anything OF the sort that we
had ever seen before, being fashioned APP
parently from strip OF solid silver, with a
/ bar placed across to serve as a handle, and
some hicks cut in the edge of the bar. Ii
was more like the model of some antedi
luvian railway key than anything else
Now are you both ready?" | said a,
people do when they are going to fire a
mine. There was no answer, so | took
the big key. rubbed some salad oil into the
wards. and after one or two bad shots. fol-
my hands were shaking, managed to fit it
and shoot the lock. Leo bent over anC
caught the massive lid in both hands. and
with an effort. for the hinges had rusted
leaned II back. It's removal revealed an.
other case covered with dust. This we
extracted from the iron chest without any
difficulty. and removed the accumulated
filth Of years from it with a clothes brush
1t was, or appeared to be Of ebony, OF
some such close grained black wood. and
was bound in every direction with fla
bands of iron Its antiquity must hay,
been extreme. for the dense, heavy woed
was actually in parts commencing TO crum
bic away from age.
Now for it," said, inserting the sec
ond key.