his
hand warmly, and entered into his plans for beginning life in
Melbourne, as neither Sinclair nor MacFarlane had done. "There's good
work to be done in Australia, Mr. Francis, and there's one there that
will help you to do it. There's no doubt Providence intends to make
something of you. After all this chopping and changing, it would be a
queer thing if you would not rise as high at the other end of the world
as you have done in this."

Chapter XIII.

Not So Bad, After All

Perhaps there never was a romantic communication made to five more
prosaic-looking people than the accredited agents of the societies.
Middle-aged and elderly men, who, if they ever took up a novel, skipped
the love passages, and in all instances preferred to read newspapers.
They were very much bewildered at the purpose of their being called
together. They had thought there must have been a codicil found to the
very strange will of which they had had a copy sent to their societies,
as being, though in a very unlikely contingency, possibly interested,
and that it was possible they were to receive a small sum IN ESSE,
instead of the large one IN POSSE. But when Mr. MacFarlane produced no
codicil, but read to them gravely Mrs. Peck's confession instead, and
paused at the conclusion, as if he expected them to express an opinion,
they looked at each other for a few seconds, unwilling to commit
themselves by initiating any remark whatever. At last the boldest of
the number observed that it was a strange story, which the others
agreed to unanimously.

"Do you think it is true?" said Francis.

"Perhaps it is," said the director of the Blind Asylum; "there is no
saying."

"Of course it does not at all invalidate Mr. Hogarth, my client's right
to the estate, moveable and heritable, of the late Hogarth, of Cross
Hall," said Mr. MacFarlane, "for you know that was left to him by will."

"Of course not," said the director of the Blind Asylum; "one can see
that."

"But what was the use of calling us all here," said the representative
of the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, "to tell us that Cross Hall left his
property perhaps by a mistake? Had he claimed as heir-of-entail or as
heir-at-law the case would have been different; but it would have been
our business to have found out that, or the next heir's, and certainly
not the present possessor's."

"You will observe," said Francis, "that I hold the property under
conditions--one is, that I shall not m