Year: 1870

his hand, and gold lying about him.


DR.. Gryant hesitated between the cash
box and the patient A few moments
could make little difference, after all, to a
man In my fathers condition. He looked
in the cash box-saw there packet OF
thirteen notes, each for thousand pounds
many for smaller sums, and numerous
rolls in which sOvereigns were done up in
rouleaux of fifty. He looked at the para
lytic, then at the gold, then quickly from
one to the other. One was little to him
little, perhaps, to anybody, he thought
the other, the purchase of freedom from
annoyance, luxury-at least tranquility.
Then he placed the packet of notes and
four of the rouleaux of soveregns in his
own pocket, still glancing at the sick man.
But there was no sign of consciousness,
only heavy stentorous breathing. Lower
down in the cash-box was villa mere
sheet of note paper, but duly signed and
attested, and it ran thus:


81, Isaac Morley, of sound mind and
body, do give and bequeath all my real
and personal estate of which | may die
possessed to my son Thomas Morley,
whom l hereby appoint sole executor to
this, my last will and testament"


A more blundering thief would have
taken the whole and destroyed the will
Doctor Gryant contented himself with the
packet of notes and four rolls Of gold
He left all the rest in the disorder in which
he found it, and relying on the fact that
Isaac Morley's wealth was not known even
to his son, he then turned to his patient.
Only one circumstance was ever likely
| to discover the theft. That was should
Isaac Morley recover. There was no
danger of this, as it happened, for in three
minutes my father had breathed his last,
probably without pain or consciousness.


Doctor Gryant, frightened at what he
had done, rang the dining room bell vio-
lently for the hOusekeeper. Its very sound
was better to him than the silence, but
| the old woman was so deaf and slept so
heavily she did not hear, so the echoes
died away, and there was silence once
more, with the dead man still clutching
the gold, and the doctor longing to see
live man or woman again. Doctor Cry
ant was not usually nervous with the
dead, but he feared my father as if the
dead man could get up and strangle the
money away from him. At last he could
bear it no longer He ran from the
room, up stairs, and hammered at the
housekeeper's door: "FOr mercy's sake,
come down, for Mr. Morley is dying !"
4
serious was the matter. But he waited
for her-DoetOr Gryant did He had seen
death from al! points of view but one, and
never uuailed, but he feared to enter that
dining room alone.


The housekeeper hurriedly threw on a
few articles of clothing and followed him.
The doctor let her go in first Never
needing the gold, she went straight to the
| dead.


"Oh, bless met bless mef' cried
the old soul "Go and get cordial or
something, do, and don't stand staring
there, or he'll be gone %


Dr. Gryant was glad of any excuse to
get out of the house with the money. He
went to his surgery, deposited the money
there, and quickly returned with stimu-
lants. Of course they were useless. He
told the old lady her master was gone, and
past surgical aid. Then he related how
he had been summoned as usual, and had
found Mr. Morley smitten with paralysis
in the very article of death as he entered
the room. The old woman paid little
heed to what he said-her whole mind was
taken up just then with simple and sim
cere grief at the loss of her master, whilst
she rather resented what little the doctor
said as exemplifying to her beliefthe igno-
rance of "bO0k learned" about anything
practical. She believed she could have
saved him, if she had only seen him
"when he was first took"-that was about
all the housekeeper had to say.


DR.. Gryant then did perhaps the wisest
thing he could have done. Pointing out
the notes and gold and the open cashb box
to the old woman, he said he would go
and fetch MIR. Naresby, the lawyer, who
lived in the same street, that the property
might be duly restored to the box and
sealed up by anindependent person, pend
ing inquiry. The housekeeper seemed
nettled at this, and wanted to know
whether "she would steal from the dead
who never robbed the living?" He ex-
planned that it was simply ordinary pre-
caution, as much for the sake of his own
character as hers, and with that went for
Mr. Naresby.


The lawyer was rather surprised than
otherwise at the amount of my fathers
property. He was one of those who never
believed Isaac Morley to have been a man
with more than bare competency to live
upon, SO that when he found five or six
thousand pounds in gold and notes in the
cash-box, together with the WILL he had
no suspicion whatever that money had
been extracted thsrefrom. He counted
the money in DR.. Gryant's presence,
noted the amount on slip of paper, of
which he gave the Doctor copy, and
then sealed up the box and took charge
of it.


An inquest was held upon the body the
following day, but adjourned in order that
a post mortem examination might be made.
DR.. Gryant was requested To- undertake
the duty, but he himself requested since
he was alone with the deceased at the
time of death, that DR.. Ross might be
allowed to assist in the examination. AT
the adjourned inquest, DR.. Gryant stated
that he had for some months past been
treating the deceased for incipient paral
ysis, while Dr. Ross depOsed IL spare you
technicalities) that there was no doubt o
Mr.. Morley's having suffered from thai
disorder; that considerable part of the
brain and the whole of the right side o
the body were found to be affected, ant
that, though a somewhat uncommon Oc
currence for person to- die from the frs


stroke of this disease, it was by no means
an unheardof event; that, in the opinion
of himself and his brother practitioner
the deceased had evidently come to hi
death by stroke of paralysis, of which
abundant evidence was noticeable. A


verdict was therefore recorded in accord
, ance with the medical testimony: "Die.
;. by the visitation of God"


3 DR.. Gryant's theft appeared in all human
s probability likely to escape detection. !
4 is certain that not a soul suspected him q
: it at the time of the inquest. The amoun
: of money found in the cash box was jus
:. sufficient to satisfy everybody's curiosit
v without suggesting suspicion.


| came down to my fathers funeral, an
/ when that was over Mr. Naresby, VIII
If had constituted himself my solicitor, rea
y the will, and came into my property.
8 certainly never expected so large SUI
e from my father, and had not the vague,
7, suspicion of anything or anybody.
n L have a parrot-a queer bird. III
o name is Bob. l believe he knows it, Y,
II ho1. .lsfit fxlx u...a.