. I
hope by the morning you will be able to look at matters more calmly."

Some time later Mrs. Cunningham came down again.

"She has cried herself to sleep," she said. "She is much grieved about
this money being lost."

"It is annoying; still I cannot help thinking that the Colonel must have
taken some such precaution to prevent the treasure from being lost."

"One would certainly think so," Mrs. Cunningham agreed; "the Colonel
seemed to me a methodical man. I know that he had the reputation of
being one of the most particular men in the service as to all petty
details. His instructions to me before I left him were all very minute,
and he gave me a sealed packet which he told me contained instructions
and a copy of the register of his marriage and of Millicent's birth, and
he said that in case of his death I was to take it to your father. He
said that there was a letter inclosed in it to him, and also a copy
of his will. The letter was directed to your father, and not to me.
I handed it over to him when he asked me to come here. He told me
afterwards that the letter contained the request that his brother lived
to make personally to him--that the child should be brought up as his
ward; and that he had handed the certificates to a lawyer, who had,
however, received copies of them from the Colonel himself before he went
down to see your father. So, as he took these precautions to insure
his wishes being carried out in the event of his sudden death, I should
think that he must have done something of the sort with regard to this
treasure."

"I should think that extremely likely, Mrs. Cunningham. I certainly had
not thought of that before, and I hope that for Millicent's sake and my
own it may turn out to be so. I can get on extremely well without
it, but at the same time I don't pretend that 50,000 pounds are to be
despised."

The next morning Mr. Prendergast, who had arrived at Reigate late the
evening before, and had put up at an inn, came up to the house an hour
before the time named for the funeral. He learned from Mark that he had
already acquainted Millicent with her change of circumstances. A few
minutes after he arrived, a servant told him that Miss Conyers would be
glad if he would see her alone for a few minutes in the drawing room.
Mark had already prepared him for her request.

"Mark has told you that he told me about this hateful thing last night,
I suppose, Mr. Prendergast?"

"He has," the old lawyer