escorted Mistress Pamela to the Governor's boat, thence returning to my
own cabin feeling strangely lonely and melancholic.

This was about half-past two o'clock in the afternoon; at about four a
small boat came alongside, and a young man of some twenty-three years
of age stepped upon the deck, who introduced himself as Mr. Whitcomb,
the Governor's secretary. He brought a written message from the Governor
requesting my immediate presence at the Residency upon a matter of the
very first importance. I turned to Mr. Whitcomb and asked if he knew
what was the nature of the business the Governor would have with me.

He said no, but that the Governor and Mr. Elliott, the Company's agent,
had been closeted together with Mr. McFarland and Mr. Hansel, of the
banking-house, for some time, and then had sent this message to me by
him, which was plainly one of very great consequence.

I immediately entered the boat with the secretary, and was rowed to the
shore, where, when we had come to the Residency, I found the four
gentlemen waiting for me. They were seated around a table, whereon was
the despatch-box and my written report, which consumed some six or eight
sheets of paper. The Governor invited me to be seated, which I had
hardly done when one of the company, whom I afterwards found to be Mr.
Elliott, began questioning me. I answered fully to everything he asked,
the others listening, and now and then putting in a word, or asking for
fuller particulars upon some point or other which was perhaps more
obscure. When I came to the part that related to Captain Leach I saw
them glance at one another in a very peculiar way; but I continued
without stopping until I had told everything concerning the matter from
the beginning to the end. No one said anything for a little time, until
at last Mr. Elliott spoke:

"Do I correctly understand from this report," says he, touching the
papers which lay upon the table as he spoke, "that Mr. Longways betrayed
the nature of the contents of the despatch-box both to you and to
Captain Leach?"

"Yes, sir," said I.

"And you are sure that no one knew of the presence
of the jewel but you and he?"

"Yes, sir," said I, again.

At this the gentlemen exchanged glances, and Mr. Elliott continued his
questioning.

"And did you not know that Captain Leach had been left behind when you
quitted the _Cassandra_?"

"Why, no, sir," said I. "It was intended that he should go in the first
passage of the