e,' said John Evenson to himself, after
waiting with exemplary patience for nearly an hour after Mr. Gobler had
left the drawing-room. He listened for a few moments; the house was
perfectly quiet; he extinguished his rushlight, and opened his bedroom
door. The staircase was so dark that it was impossible to see anything.

'S-s-s!' whispered the mischief-maker, making a noise like the first
indication a catherine-wheel gives of the probability of its going off.

'Hush!' whispered somebody else.

'Is that you, Mrs. Tibbs?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Where?'

'Here;' and the misty outline of Mrs. Tibbs appeared at the staircase
window, like the ghost of Queen Anne in the tent scene in Richard.

'This way, Mrs. Tibbs,' whispered the delighted busybody: 'give me your
hand--there! Whoever these people are, they are in the store-room now,
for I have been looking down from my window, and I could see that they
accidentally upset their candlestick, and are now in darkness. You have
no shoes on, have you?'

'No,' said little Mrs. Tibbs, who could hardly speak for trembling.

'Well; I have taken my boots off, so we can go down, close to the
store-room door, and listen over the banisters;' and down-stairs they
both crept accordingly, every board creaking like a patent mangle on a
Saturday afternoon.

'It's Wisbottle and somebody, I'll swear,' exclaimed the radical in an
energetic whisper, when they had listened for a few moments.

'Hush--pray let's hear what they say!' exclaimed Mrs. Tibbs, the
gratification of whose curiosity was now paramount to every other
consideration.

'Ah! if I could but believe you,' said a female voice coquettishly, 'I'd
be bound to settle my missis for life.'

'What does she say?' inquired Mr. Evenson, who was not quite so well
situated as his companion.

'She says she'll settle her missis's life,' replied Mrs. Tibbs. 'The
wretch! they're plotting murder.'

'I know you want money,' continued the voice, which belonged to Agnes;
'and if you'd secure me the five hundred pound, I warrant she should take
fire soon enough.'

'What's that?' inquired Evenson again. He could just hear enough to want
to hear more.

'I think she says she'll set the house on fire,' replied the affrighted
Mrs. Tibbs. 'But thank God I'm insured in the Phoenix!'

'The moment I have secured your mistress, my dear,' said a man's voice in
a strong Irish brogue, 'you may depend on having the money.'

'Bless my soul, it's