Year: 1878

the earring on our way, and arrived
home about half past 9 O'Clock. AS II
was taking off my bonnet, godmother
came into the room Lillian, said
she, ~ can not find the case of dia-
monds anywhere. Did | leave it in the
drawer in my dressing-glass before
went out? l went to put in the other
earring now, and it was not there. Who
can have taken it.


:" You certainly left it IN the dressing
glass drawer" said. "Could any of
the servants have taken it, do you
think?"


Il am sure they would not" she an
sWered. 6 have had them with me for
years, and never missed any thing be-
fore.''


Are there any strangers about that
could have come in through the Win
low?" ti!.


"No, Lillian; there are no strangers
about the place except the gardener,
and he seems most respectable man.
| got very high character of him from
his last place,in fact, we are told he was
most Trustworthy person.


Next day there was wonderful COM
motion about the missing jewel-case.
The police were sent for, and every
place was searched over and over again,
but to no purpose. One thing, howev-
er,puzzled us; on the window-sill was a
foot-mark, and near the dressing table
a little bit of earth, as if off shoe or
boot, which led us to think that the
thief must have come in through the
window. But how did he get up to it?
1t was good height from the ground,
and the creeping plants were not in the
least broken, as would have been the
case had any body climbed up by them
A ladder must have been employed, and
it was little to the credit of the police
that this. fact had not been properly
considered. AS the matter stood it was
a mystery, and seemed likely to remain
so, and only one earring was left of the
valuable set


In few days I left for school, where
/ remained for four years. / spent
every vacation between my home and
my godnlother's We often spoke of
the stolen diamonds, but nothing had
ever been heard of them, though re-
ward of ESQ had been offered by Mr..
Hall for any information that would
lead to the detection Of the thief. On
my sixteenth birthday. my godmother
gave me beautiful watch and chain and
the diamond earring, which she had got
arranged as necklet.


81 am so sorry Lilian,'' said she,
''that ] have not the rest of those dia-
monds to give you; but if ever they are
found, they shall be yours, my dear
must now pass over six years, (which
went by quietly and happily, nothing
very Important taking place until the
last year, during which time had been
married. My husband was barrister.
+ We lived in the north of England. My
mother-in-law, Mrs. Benson, and Mary,
one of her daughters lived some miles
away from us, near the sea-coast. 1t
was a very lonely, place, a long way
from the little fishing-town, or rather
village, of Burnleys / confess | often
felt very nervous about Mrs. Benson and
her daughter living alone Cher husband
being dead many years.. Except three
women-servants in the house and the
coachman and his family, who lived in
the lodge, there was no one nearer than
Burnley, four miles off. Besides, it was
known that there was a large quantity
of plate in the house; and the little sea-
side village was often the resort of
smugglers and other wild and lawless
characters. One day, while thinking of
them, 1 felt so uneasy that said to my
husband: II hope, Henry, that there is
nothing wrong with your mother; she
has been in my mind all day.n


"Oh," said he, ''why should you feel
so anxious about her to-dayP l saw her
last Tuesday; and if she were i'll, Mary
would be sure to let us know. 1t is
only one of your 'fancies, little wife. y


Still did not feel easy, for more than
once before my SO called fancy had
proved to be a Ike reality 50 / deter
mined that in few days would go and
see Mrs. Benson. All that evening /
could not get her out of my thoughts,
and it was long time before went to
sleep. / think it must have been about
3 o'clock in the morning that l woke in
a state of terror. l had dreamed that l
saw Mrs. Benson standing in the Win
dow of her bedroom, beckoning me to
come to her, and pointing to a female
figure who was stealing along under the
shade of the trees in the avenue, for the
moon was shining brightly.


l started up, thinking heard her call
ing me- And here is the most extraor-
dinary part of it although | was now
quite awake, / heard, as | thought, a
voice saying to me: &c Go tell Mrs. Ben
son Martha is deceiving her; tell her to
send her away at once"


Three times these words seemed to be
repeated in my ear, can't describe
exactly what the voice was like; it was
not loud, but quite distinct; and felt as