drop, I felt as cold as ice, and I was afraid I should drop too before I
could get to the library."

"Did you see him fall, Nellie?" asked her father.

"Yes; he gave a kind of groan, and then fell; he was--"

"Gracious!" exclaimed Captain Patterdale, interrupting her all of a
sudden.

He turned on his heel, and walked rapidly into the library. Nellie was
startled, and was troubled with a suspicion that her father had a _coup
de soleil_, or _coup de_ something-else; for he did not often do
anything by fits and starts. She followed him into the library. It was a
fact that the captain had left his hat there; but it was not for this
article, so necessary in a hot day, that he hastened thus abruptly into
the room. Nellie found him flying around the apartment in a high state
of excitement for him. He was looking anxiously about, and seemed to be
very much disturbed.

"What in the world is the matter, father?" asked Nellie.

"Where is your mother?"

"She has gone over to Mrs. Rodman's."

"Hasn't she been back?"

"No, certainly not; I was just going over to tell her what had happened
to Michael, when you came down."

"Who has been in here, Nellie?"

"I don't know that anybody has. I haven't seen any one. What's the
matter, father? what in the world has happened?"

"I left my tin box here when I went out to see to Michael, and now it is
gone," answered Captain Patterdale, anxiously. "I didn't know but that
your mother had come in and taken care of it."

"The tin box gone?" exclaimed Nellie. "Why, what can have become of it?"

"That is just what I should like to know," added the captain, as he
renewed his search in the room for the treasure chest.

It was not in the library, and then he looked in the great hall and in
the little hall, in the drawing-room, the sitting-room, and the
dining-room; but it was not in any of these. He knew he had left it on
the chair near where he was sitting when he went out of the room. Then
he examined the spring-lock on the door of the library which led into
the side street. It was closed and securely fastened. The door shut
itself with a patent invention, and when shut it locked itself, so that
anybody could get out, but no one could get in unless admitted.

"Where were you when I was up stairs, Nellie?" asked Captain Patterdale,
as he seated himself in his arm-chair, to take a cool view of the whole
subject.

"I was in the hall most of the time," she replied.

"Who has bee