wers and green trees, I
suppose."

"But I suppose Mr Wharncliffe will come," continued I, "so I must wait
for him."

"You can do just as you like," replied the old woman, about to shut the
gate in my face.

"May I request a favour of you, ma'am, before you shut the gate--which
is, to bring me a little water to drink, for the sun is hot, and I have
had a long pull up here;" and I took out my handkerchief and wiped my
face.

"Yes, I'll fetch you some," replied she, shutting the gate and going
away.

"This don't seem to answer very well," thought I to myself. The old
woman returned, opened the gate, and handed me a mug of water. I drank
some, thanked her, and returned the mug.

"I am very tired," said I; "I should like to sit down and wait for the
gentleman."

"Don't you sit down when you pull?" inquired the old woman.

"Yes," replied I.

"Then you must be tired of sitting, I should think, not of standing; at
all events, if you want to sit, you can sit in your boat, and mind it at
the same time." With this observation she shut the door upon me, and
left me without any more comment.

After this decided repulse on the part of the old woman, I had nothing
to do but take her advice--viz., to go and look after my boat. I pulled
down to Mr Turnbull's, and told him my good and bad fortune. It being
late, he ordered me some dinner in his study, and we sat there
canvassing over the affair. "Well," said he, as we finished, "you must
allow me to consider this as my affair, Jacob, as I was the occasion of
our getting mixed up in it. You must do all that you can to find this
young man, and I shall hire Stapleton's boat by the day until we
succeed; you need not tell him so, or he may be anxious to know why.
To-morrow you go down to old Beazeley's?"

"Yes, sir; you cannot hire me to-morrow."

"Still I shall, as I want to see you to-morrow morning before you go.
Here's Stapleton's money for yesterday and to-day and now good-night."

I was at Mr Turnbull's early the next morning, and found him with the
newspapers before him. "I expected this, Jacob," said he; "read that
advertisement." I read as follows:--"Whereas, on Friday night last,
between the hours of nine and ten, a tin box, containing deeds and
papers, was handed into a wherry from the grounds of a villa between
Brentford and Kew, and the parties who owned it were prevented from
accompanying the same. This is to give notice, that a reward of twenty
poun