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

spite of all her imperfections, which he knew, the secretary fell in love with Bella. More than that he had the pre- sumption to tell the young lady about it, and she gave him to understand at once that she was for his betters. The idea of marrying a secretary with a salary of 100 pounds a year--it was too ridicu- lousi But she did not tell MT. and Mrs. Boffin about it.
 Shortly after this episode Bella noticed that her dear patron, for whom she had really begun to have an affection-she had begun to love Mrs. Boffin from the frst-began to change in his character. His manner toward Rokesmith was espe- cially harsh. He had spoken of him when the Boffins first came to the Wilfer house to take away Bella as "Our Mutual Frlned.' Now he alluded to him as Roke- smith and was mighty gruff about it, too besides ''coming down on' the sec retary in Bellas presence at every op- portunity. Tn addition, MT. Boffin began to grow horribly miserly and talked much about coming to the workhouse The books he made wegg read for him now were biographies of celebrated misers-Blewbery Jones' Dancer, Hop kins and like characters.
 Bella was much distressed at this change. She was mercenary herself, to be sure, but seeing that--quality in an-
 
 for Wegg, he smiled smile which said, "Just what I expected and went prod ding about the dust heaps at Boffin's 8 Bower in search of buried treasure more industrously than ever.
 Though John Rol<esmith did not meet the company which came to dine with the Golden Dustman, he heard nevertheless at second hand some of the gossip talked at the table, and thus came to know that Rogue Riderhood had spread report that Gaffer Hexam, who had found the body of John Harmon, had fallen under grave suspicion that he had really mur- dered John Harmon and that he had es- capped arrest only because the police, who went to investigate him, had found him drowned in the river. Rokesmlth heard furthermore that poor Lizzie after her fathers death had found refuge with a curious little creature, Jenny Wren, who made dresses for dolls. Jenny Wren was crooked in the back and "queer' in the legs and supported by her industry a bad child'' in the shape of drunken old fatehr.
 The suspicion which attached to the memory of her father weighed heavily on Lizzie and 1t was with the idea of relieving her from this sorrow that a rough looking seafaring looking man called one night at the abode of Rogue Riderhood and by confronting that in-
 
 to both of them concerning the liar mon murder" extracted from the Rogue a written statement to the effect that, as far as he knew and believed. Gaffer He-am had been innocent of the charges brought against him-this to be forwarded to Lizzie
 When the rough-appearing. seafaring- looking person left Riderhoods tumbled- down dwelling, he pulled off his false whiskers and, aside from being wrap ped in his nautical overcoat looked for all the world like that Julius Handford who had so mysteriously appeared and disappeared at the time of the finding of John Harmon's body. Strange to say, he also looked exactly like John Roke- smith, secretary to the Golden Dustman.
 Let me try to think my way through this great perpexity," said the stranger to himself. putting his thoughts into words to help himself through the maze of strange events in which he had be- come involved. 'I have no clue to the scene of my own death. When I came hack to England. there wal on board the ship as third mate. one George Rad foot. We looked so much alike as to be, upon occasions. mistaken for each other We became friends and he learned