roughly ashamed of
themselves. When their father left the room they began to discuss the
subject in all its bearings.

"I don't want to abuse Lewis as he is ill," said Madge. "That would be
mean. But I must tell you both something very suspicious that
happened. When I was standing by him just after he fell from the loft
I happened to step on something hard. I stooped to see what it was,
picked it up, and here it is!"

"One of my marbles!" cried John. "One of those I lost out of the
treasure-house! I am quite sure it is, because of the funny red mark I
painted myself on the side."

"You did it with my new paints," chimed in Betty.

"But how did the marble come there?" asked John, much bewildered, but
holding tightly on to his newly-recovered treasure for fear it should
again disappear.

"Well, of course I can't tell for certain," said Madge. "I can only
guess. But it seems as if it must have fallen out of Lewis's pocket."

"Then you think he took our things out of the treasure-hole?" cried
Betty. "He never could have been so wicked as to steal them, and then
come pretending he was so sorry for our loss and wondering where they
had gone!"

"Perhaps he didn't actually mean to steal them, only to tease us,"
suggested Madge. "And I feel sure now that he took the rope-ladder,"
she continued. "You know he pretended at the time that he couldn't get
up the wall without it; but that was only to deceive us. He had those
iron railings for ladders, though he said nothing about them until
later."

"Oh, Madge!" exclaimed the twins. They could think of nothing else to
say. The contemplation of such deliberate perfidy was too
overpowering. The more they recalled Lewis's dark hints and malicious
suggestions about other people, the more disgusted they felt with him,
and the more vexed with themselves for having been so completely
deceived. "We might have known there was something wrong when he made
us promise not to say anything about him!" they said. "Never again
will we have a secret friend!"

Captain West went several times to see Lewis during his long illness,
and did his best to make the unfortunate boy understand the reason why
he was an unfit companion for other children. At first Lewis seemed to
regard his untruths and deceptions merely in the light of very clever
jokes; but gradually some faint sense of shame appeared to steal over
him, though whether on account of his faults or only because they ha