lder Gunn had only heard of it through the
criminal disclosure of his relative, and only wished to absorb it
through his son in time, and thus obliterate all trace of Flint's
outrage. I recognized the room perfectly--thanks to our dear Kitty, who
had taken up the carpet, which thus disclosed the loose plank before the
closet that was hidden by the partition. Under pretext of rearranging
the room--for which Kitty will forgive me--I spent the day behind a
locked door, making my way through the partition. There I found the
rifled closet, but the papers intact. They contained a full description
of the sum taken by Flint, and also of a larger sum buried in a cask
beside this chimney. I had just finished unearthing it a few moments
before you came. I had at first hoped to offer it to the family as a
Christmas gift to-morrow, but"--He stopped and sucked slowly at his
pipe.

"We anticipated you," said Gabriel laughing.

"No," said Uncle Sylvester coolly. "But because it don't happen to
belong to YOU at all! According to the paper I have in my pocket, which
is about as legal a document as I ever saw, it is father's free gift to
Miss Marie du Page."

Kitty threw her arms around her white and breathless friend with
a joyful cry, and honest Gabriel's face shone with unselfish
gratification.

"For yourself, my dear Gabriel, you must be satisfied with the fact that
Messrs. Peter Gunn & Sons will take back your wildcat stock at the price
you paid for it. It is the price they pay for their share in this little
transaction, as I had the honor of pointing out to Mr. Gunn on our way
to the station this morning."

"Then you think that young Mr. Gunn knew that Flint was his relation,
and that he had stolen father's money," said Kitty, "and that Mr. Gunn
only wanted to"--She stopped, with flashing eyes.

"I think he would have liked to have made an arrangement, my dear,
that would keep the secret and the property in the family," said Uncle
Sylvester. "But I don't think he suspected the existence of the second
treasure here."

"And then, sir," said Cousin Jane, "it appears that all these wretched,
unsatisfactory scraps of stories you were telling us were nothing after
all but"--

"My way of telling THIS one," said Uncle Sylvester.

As the others were eagerly gathering around the unearthed treasure,
Marie approached him timidly, all her audacity gone, tears in her eyes,
and his ring held hesitatingly between her fingers. "How can I