down the number of her house,
and giving her his address, and begging her to let him know if, at any
time, she and her husband should move from that neighborhood.

"Should _what_, sir?"

"Should _move_--go to live in another place."

"Not we," she replied, proudly. "We live here, we do sir, John and
myself, and the four children. His work's near by, and here we'll be for
many's the day yet, the Lord willing. No, _no_, please never think of
such a thing as that," she continued, as Donald diffidently thrust his
hand into his pocket. "Take the cloth with you, sir, and welcome; but my
children shall never have it to say that their mother took pay for three
old pieces of cloth--no, nor for showing kindness either" (as Don
politely put in a word), "above all things, not for kindness. God bless
you, young master, an' help you in findin' her--that's all I can say,
and a good-day to you."

"That French nurse probably went home again to France," mused Donald,
after gratefully taking leave of the good woman and her rag-bag. "As we
twins were born at Aix-la-Chapelle, in Prussia, most likely mother
obtained a nurse there. But it needn't have been a Prussian nurse. It
was this same French girl, I warrant. Yes, and this French nurse very
naturally found her way back to France after she was landed at
Liverpool. But, for all that, I _may_ find some clew to her at
Aix-la-Chapelle."

Before going to that interesting old Prussian city, however, he decided
to proceed to London and see what could be ascertained there. In London,
though he obtained the aid of one James Wogg, a detective, he could find
no trace of the missing Ellen Lee. But the detective's quick sense drew
enough from Donald's story of the buxom matron and the two gowns to
warrant his going to Liverpool, "if the young gent so ordered, to work
up the search."

"Had the young gent thought to ask for a bit like the new gown that was
put onto Ellen Lee? No? Well, that always was the way with
unprofessionals--not to say the young gent hadn't been uncommon sharp,
as it was."

Donald, pocketing his share of the compliment, heartily accepted the
detective's services, after making a careful agreement as to the scale
of expenses, and giving, by the aid of his guide-book, the name of the
hotel in Aix-la-Chapelle where a letter from the detective would reach
him. He also prepared an advertisement "on a new principle," as he
explained to the detective, very much to that worthy's