tle, he allowed them to deceive
themselves, and to address him and speak of him as Lord Arondelle, the
heir.

He related the incident of his first accidental meeting with Rose
Cameron, who, like all the other tenantry, mistook him for the young
marquis, and so had her head turned by his attentions, and followed him
to London, where he secretly married her.

This brought him to the time when the extravagance of his companion,
added to his own expensive vices, brought him deeply into debt. He knew
that his father had placed a large amount of money in the hands of Sir
Lemuel Levison to be invested for his (John Scott's) benefit. He applied
for a part of this money to pay his debts, but was refused by the
trustee. Whereupon a quarrel ensued, which resulted in Sir Lemuel
Levison's resolution to take the money down to Lone Castle and restore
it to the original donor, that the latter might dispose of it at his own
discretion.

This move maddened the penniless spendthrift. It drove him to
desperation. He resolved to get possession of his money by foul means
since he could not do so by fair ones; by violence, if not by peace.
Circumstances had brought him to acquaintance with a pair of desperate
thieves and burglars.

He sought them out, tempted them by the prospect of great booty for
themselves, and arranged with them the whole plan of the robbery of Lone,
stipulating that there should be no bloodshed at all; but that if the
burglars were discovered before completing the robbery, they should seek
rather to make their escape than to secure their booty.

But who can unchain a devil and say to him, "Thus far, no farther shalt
thou go?" The instigator of the crime had no power over his instruments;
on the contrary, they had power over him from the moment he called in
their aid and became their confederate.

John Scott continued his confession by relating that he took the men down
to Lone, disguised as countrymen, and led them to the castle grounds,
where, lost in the great crowd that came to see the preparations for the
wedding festivities, their presence as strangers was unnoticed; that at
night he drugged the drink of the valet, stole the pass-key from his
pocket, and through the secret passage under Malcolm's Tower he admitted
the thieves into the castle, and by means of the valet's key passed them
into Sir Lemuel Levison's bedroom.

He shuddered, failed, and seemed about to faint, as he recalled the
horrible tragedy en