o noted cracksmen,
who had headquarters in the city, and were famous in their day, but who
were compelled to withdraw in the midst of their high career, one dying
of a malignant fever, the other being killed by a woman.

"To replace these departed worthies, Ezras, who was always on the alert
for pals, and who had had various crooked dealings with Jerry Belknap,
brought this gentleman and Mr. Lamotte, or Lucky Jim together.

"Belknap proved the right man in the right place, and was soon admitted
into the Coterie. Next to come under the favorable notice of Ezras, was
John Burrill, who had come over from England, bringing with him some
ill-gotten gains, and who set himself up in New York as a swell
cracksman.

"Now, Burrill, the English boor, had an ambition. In this easy-going
America, he hoped in some way to build himself into an aristocrat, and
to shine as one of the lords of the land. To this end he hoarded his
share of all the spoils, and, adding it to the sum brought from England,
he began to find himself a rich man.

"Meantime, Mr. Lamotte had speculated a little too freely; he had built
a mansion, and built his factories. He had been living like a prince,
and some of his late ventures had failed. Something must be done. And
then his eye fell upon Burrill; he coveted the Englishman's hoarded
dollars.

"He found it easy to persuade Burrill to come to W----, ostensibly to
take the position of overseer at the factories; really to be more
readily duped by Lucky Jim. Burrill came; he saw how his comrade was
respected and bowed down to by all W----. He had always admired Lucky
Jim for his gentlemanly polish and his aristocratic manners; and he now
concocted a scheme for his own aggrandisement. The Lamottes had made
themselves aristocrats, they should make an aristocrat of him.

"You all know the result; John Burrill divorced his wife; Jasper Lamotte
sold his daughter.

"While Frank Lamotte felt tolerably sanguine of winning the heiress of
Wardour, the Wardour jewels were left unmolested. But when a rival came
into the field, they determined to have the jewels, even if they lost
the heiress.

"Accordingly they planned the robbery and the elopement, and you all
know the afterpart.

"Miss Wardour, you once offered a reward for the arrest of the robbers
who invaded Wardour Place, _not_ to recover your diamonds, but for the
sake of justice. It is for the sake of justice and for the future safety
of peaceable citize