The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-05-19

she and Lizzie, with only one interview,
 became warm friends, which was sngu- lar for such a cold-hearted, mercenary creature as Bella believed herself to be
 and tried to make herself.
 But Eugene Wrayburn did not know, and Bradley Headstone did not know; and Bradley followed Eugene all over London. night after night, under the mis- taken suppositlon that the lawyer had se- creted Lizzie somewhere and was going to see her.
 Meanwhile MT. Wegg had succeeded beyond his most sanguine expectations in getting Into a position to bring to the grindstone the nose of the Minion of
 Fortune and the Worm of the Hour =
 as he gracefully expressed it always. He found in the dust heaps 6 will made by old Harmon six months after he had
 made the will which had been proved at Doctors Commons by virtue of which the Golden Dustman held his gold. The precious document thus discovered by Wegg had been hidden. inclosed in a f tin box, In one of the dust heaps at Boffin's Bower, and the literary man had struck against 1t with his iron probe. This will read that he, Old Harmon. gave to Nicodemus Boffin the little mound among the dust piles, which Is quite enough for him, and the rest of my money to the Crown"
 Nov" said MT. Wegg to MT. Venus as the two cronies sat over their rum ana water at Boffin's Bower, well come down on him, partner; we'll come down on him. One night, MT. Venus, when he was a-pokin' around among the dust piles, you remember that you and me seen him dig LID a Dutch bottle. What was in that Dutch bottle, MT. Venus? We'll have 1t out of hims we'll have 1t out of him. Hes picked up a feller as he calls his sec
 tary and placed him above me, MT. Venus. Fust thing he does he discharges that sectary. Then, sir, me and you Will share our rightful property. l said I'd give you half of anything I found. and I'll stand by it, MT Venus
 Mir Venus had been thus taken into partnership by the amable Wegg in consideration of the said Venus return ing to the said Wegg the missing leg, or what remained of It. which had once been the property of Mir. Boffin's literary man. MT. Venus was In the taxidermist's line of business and also made a spec ialty of putting together and piecing to- ge.ner skeletons, the different parts of what he called human various Into this collection MT. Vegas leg had gone after the accident which had deprived him of 1t, and when he became prosper ous through MT. Boffin's generosity, MT. Wegg longed to rescue that leg, useless
 
 wanted 1t as another literary man might have longed for first folio.
 Now that he had found the will, Wegg would have crawled out of paying up; but Venus was so sharp that he surprised the secret of the discoverey from his partner almost before the partner knew It.
 "Now," said MT. Wegg, "we'll give the Minion a few days grace to see If we can find anything else in the mounds and then we'll come down on him.
 MT. Venus assented rather gruffy and insisted upon being made the custodian of the will. proposition to which Wegg assented with a very bad grace.
 While the loss of fortune was thus impending over the Golden Dustman. q very serious affair took place in his household. Bella had once confded to Mrs Lammle that the secretary had pro- posed to her. Now. MT. and Mrs Lam mle, being at the end of their resources. conceived that 1t would be a paying in- vestment for Mrs. Lammle to inform MT Boffin of his secretary's presumptuous act It would bring about Rokesmith's discharge and his places could be filled with profit by Mrs. Lammles dear AL fred" So she caught Mir. Boffin alone and
 told. She caught him, in fact, when he