tear-stained--of the dress whose
elegance had so surprised her friends and made me for a short time
regard her as the daughter of wealthy parents. An enormous bill, which
must have struck dismay to the soul of this self-supporting girl, who
probably had no idea of how a French dressmaker can foot up items. Four
hundred and fifty dollars, and for one gown! I declare I felt indignant
myself, and could quite understand why she heaved that little sigh when
Mr. Deane spoke of the five hundred dollars he expected from Mrs.
Burton, and, later, when, in following the latter's footsteps up the
driveway, she stumbled upon this same jewel, fallen, as it were, from
his pocket into her very hands, how she came to succumb to the
temptation of endeavouring to secure this sum for herself.

That he would shout aloud his loss, and thus draw the whole household
out on the porch, was, naturally, not anticipated by her. Of course,
when this occurred, the feasibility of her project was gone, and I only
wished that I had been present and able to note her countenance, as,
crowded in with others on that windy porch, she watched the progress of
the search, which every moment made it not only less impossible for her
to attempt the restoration upon which the reward depended, but must have
caused her to feel, if she had been as well brought up as all
indications showed, that it was a dishonest act of which she had been
guilty, and that, willing or not, she must look upon herself as a thief
so long as she held the jewel back from Mr. Deane or its rightful owner.
But how face the publicity of restoring it now, after so elaborate and
painful a search, in which even the son of her hostess had taken part!

That would be to proclaim her guilt, and thus effectually ruin her in
the eyes of everybody concerned. No, she would keep the compromising
article a little longer, in the hope of finding some opportunity of
returning it without risk to her good name. And so she allowed the
search to proceed.

I have entered thus elaborately into the supposed condition of this
girl's mind on this critical evening that you may understand why I felt
a certain sympathy for her, which forbade harsh measures. I was sure,
from the glimpse I had caught of her face, that she longed to be
relieved from the tension she was under, and that she would gladly rid
herself of this valuable jewel if she only knew how. This opportunity I
proposed to give her; and this is why, on retur