only to the members of some band of villains,
by whom the signs had been adopted as mediums of communication. At the
bottom of all was a line to this effect:

"P.S. What will the old man say when he is gone? It will be using him right
for the scaly trick he served you so recently; eh!"

What a change the perusal of this document brought about in the mind of Mr.
Mandeville! The softened expression of benevolence, which had lit up his
countenance with a glow, left it in a moment. A dark frown settled upon his
brow and clouds of blackness over his face.

All his former prejudice against Hadley returned in ten-fold strength; for
had he not the most positive proof of his villainy? Not a moment longer
waited he for an interview, but with the letter carefully stowed away in a
side pocket for future reference and use, he bent his steps back to his
house, revolving in his mind how to proceed in the present emergency. That
some great scheme of theft and robbery had been planned, with a design to
be speedily executed, was evident from the contents of the letter; but
where and when the act or acts were to be committed, it was impossible to
tell, and consequently, a very difficult matter to decide upon a course of
policy likely to thwart the designs of the rogues. After much reflection,
Mr. Mandeville concluded it was best to lay the case before the magistrate
and take legal advice how to proceed He did so. In a private conference
with that functionary, they talked over the matter. The justice was a
worthy man and a friend to Hadley, and though the evidence was overwhelming
and nearly positive of his guilt, yet he could not find it in his heart to
condemn the young man without a hearing, and was equally unable to get the
consent of his mind to make the matter public, thereby injuring the
reputation of his friend, until he could see and converse with him on the
subject. He advised Mr. Mandeville thus:

"I think the best thing we can do is to keep an eye on the movements of
this young man, Hadley, as well as upon others who may be associated with
him, if he is the villain he is here made to appear. If we institute
proceedings against him, we have only this letter to rely upon, which is
not sufficient to convict him, as there is no legible name at the bottom of
it, and no witness to corroborate the statements. If he is guilty,
premature action will give him all advantages, and enable him to clear
himself; whereas, by instituting a st