uld surely have been
discovered. Miss Holladay, of course, rigidly refused herself to all
inquirers, and here, again, I found myself on the horns of a dilemma.
Doubtless, she was very far from wishing the discovery of the guilty
woman, and yet I felt that she must be discovered, if only for Miss
Holladay's sake, in order to clear away the last vestige of the cloud
that shadowed her.

Then came new developments with a startling rapidity. It was toward
quitting time one afternoon that a clerk brought word into the inner
office that there was a woman without who wished to see Mr. Royce at
once. She had given no name, but our junior, who happened to be at
leisure for the moment, directed that she be shown in. I recognized
her in an instant, and so did he--it was Miss Holladay's maid. I saw,
too, that her eyes were red with weeping, and as she sat down beside
our junior's desk she began to cry afresh.

"Why, what's the matter?" he demanded. "Nothing wrong with your
mistress?"

"She aint my mistress any more," sobbed the girl. "She discharged me
this afternoon."

"Discharged you!" echoed our junior. "Why, I thought she thought so
much of you?"

"And so did I, sir, but she discharged me just the same."

"But what for?" persisted the other.

"That's just what I don't know, sir; I begged and prayed her to tell
me, but she wouldn't even see me. So I came down here. I thought maybe
you could help me."

"Well, let me hear about it just as it happened," said Mr. Royce
soothingly. "Perhaps I _can_ help you."

"Oh, if you could, sir!" she cried. "You know, I thought the world and
all of Miss Frances. I've been with her nearly eight years, and for
her to go and treat me like this--why, it just breaks my heart, sir! I
dressed her this afternoon about two o'clock, and she was as nice to
me as ever--gave me a little brooch, sir, that she was tired of. Then
she went out for a drive, and about an hour ago came back. I went
right up to her room to undress her, and when I knocked, sir, a
strange woman came to the door and said that Miss Frances had engaged
her for her maid and wouldn't need me any more, and here was a month's
wages. And while I stood there, sir, too dazed to move, she shut the
door in my face. After I'd got over it a bit, I begged that I might
see Miss Frances, if only to say good-by; but she wouldn't see me. She
sent word that she wasn't feeling well, and wouldn't be disturbed."

Her sobs mastered her again and