finding himself alone, did an
unwise thing; he came and contemplated Wardlaw's cases of metal and
specie. (Men will go too near the thing that causes their pain.) He eyed
them with grief and with desire, and could not restrain a sigh at these
material proofs of his rival's wealth--the wealth that probably had
smoothed his way to General Rolleston's home and to his daughter's heart;
for wealth can pave the way to hearts, ay, even to hearts that cannot be
downright bought. This reverie no doubt, lasted longer than he thought,
for presently he heard the loud rattle of shutters going up below. It was
closing time; he hastily closed and locked the iron shutters, and then
went out and shut the door.

He had been gone about two hours, and that part of the street, so noisy
in business hours, was hushed in silence, all but an occasional footstep
on the flags outside, when something mysterious occurred in the
warehouse, now as dark as pitch.

At an angle of the wall stood two large cases in a vertical position,
with smaller cases lying at their feet. These two cases were about eight
feet high, more or less. Well, behind these cases suddenly flashed a
feeble light, and the next moment two brown and sinewy hands appeared on
the edge of one of the cases--the edge next the wall; the case vibrated
and rocked a little, and the next moment there mounted on the top of it
not a cat, nor a monkey, as might have been expected, but an animal that
in truth resembles both these quadrupeds, viz., a sailor; and need we say
that sailor was the mate of the _Proserpine?_ He descended lightly from
the top of the case behind which he had been jammed for hours, and
lighted a dark lantern; and went softly groping about the store with it.

This was a mysterious act, and would perhaps have puzzled the proprietors
of the store even more than it would a stranger. For a stranger would
have said at once this is burglary, or else arson; but those acquainted
with the place would have known that neither of those crimes was very
practicable. This enterprising sailor could not burn down this particular
store without roasting himself the first thing; and indeed he could not
burn it down at all; for the roof was flat, and was in fact one gigantic
iron tank, like the roof of Mr. Goding's brewery in London. And by a neat
contrivance of American origin the whole tank could be turned in one
moment to a shower-bath, and drown a conflagration in thirty seconds or
there