Evening star., 1903-07-01

in sparsely through the half-open shutter she
had loosened for this task. This was the
shutter which had never again been fast
ened and whose restless blowing to and fro
had first led attention to this house and
the crime 1t might otherwise have concealed
indefinitely. Had some glimpse of the rank
grass growing underneath this window
lured her eye and led her to cast away the
ring which she had no longer any right to
keep? It would be like a woman to yield
to such an impulse, and on the strength Of
the possibility 1 decided to search this
small plot for what it might very reason
ably conceal
But l did not wish to do this openly.
was not only afraid of attracting Durbins 8
attention by an attempt which could only
awaken his dsdain, but I hesitated to
interest in his newly acquired property
made him very properly alert to any tres
pass upon it.
The Undertaking, therefore, presented diff
f1culttes. but it was my business to over
come these, and before long 1 conceived a
plan by which every blade Of grass in the
narrow strip running In front of this house
might be gone over without rousing any
thing more serious than Uncle David's ire.
Calling together posse of street urchins
l organized them into a band, with the
promise of good supper all around if one
of them brought me the pieces of broken
ring which had lost in the grass plot of a
house where had been called upon to stay
all night That they might win the supper
in the shortest possible time and before
the owner of this house. who lived oppo
site, could interfere, l advised them to start
at the fence in long line and. proceeding
on their knees. to search. each one, the
ground before him to the width of his own
body. The fortunate one was to have the
privilege of saying what the supper should
consist of. To give plausible excuse for
this search ball was to be tossed up and
down the street till 1t lighted in the Moore
house inclosure.
street boys soul, and 1 was only
afraid Of failure from the overenthu-
siasm it aroused. But the injunctions
which 1 gave them u scare the shrubs and
not to trample the & ass any more than
was necessary were SO 81 - tie and impress
sive that they moved aw to their task in
unexpected order and with subdued cheer
fulness highly promising Of success.
I did not accompany them. jimmy. who
has such an innocent air on the street, took
my place and promenaded up and down the
block, just to that Mr.. Moore did not
make too much trouble. And 1t was well
she did SO. for, though he was not at
homeI had chosen the hour of his after
noon rfde-his new man servant was; and
he no sooner perceived this crowd of urchins
making for the opposite house than he
them far and wide In a twinkling IL the de-
mure dimples of my little ally had not
come into play and distracted his attention
so completely as to make him forget the
bound to invade his masters property.
She was looking for Mr.. Moores house, she
told him. Did he know Mr.. Moore, and his
house which was somewhere near? Not his
new, great big house. where the horrible
things took place Of which she had read in
the papers. but his little old house, which
she had heard was soon to be for rent. and
which she thought would be just the right
size for herself and mother. Was that It?
That dear little place all smothered in
vines? How lovely! and what would the
rent be, did he think? and had 1t back
yard with garden room enough for her to
raise pinks and nasturtiums7 and so on
and 50 on. while he stared with delighted
eyes, and tried to put in word edsewise
and the boys-weT. they went through that
strip of grass in just ten minutes. My
brave little Jimmy had just declared with
her most rogufsh smile that she would run
home and tell her mother all about this
sweetest Of sweet little places, when
shout rose from the other side OF the street.
and that collection OF fifteen or twenty