y the aid
of the mystery with which he surrounded it. It put her on her good
behavior at once, lest she should lose the promised revelation. She
spoke even affectionately to Ellen, and declared she should not let her
remain in the house alone, but she must go home with her.

Before the two left Sudbury, Joel had a very long interview with Ellen.
What passed at that interview never transpired, but the young girl's
countenance, though very sad, did not wear the desolate and despairing
expression which it exhibited before.

The stage now drew up, the ladies got in, and it rolled away, leaving
Joel and the deputy-sheriffs the sole possessors of the premises.

CHAPTER VI.

A few miles to the north-east of Sudbury the country, at the time I
speak of it, had a wild and forbidding appearance. This was partly owing
to the immense forest which stretched along a continuous ridge of land
covering both sides of it and the plain below. On one side of this ridge
the face of the country was very rough; on the other side, through a
fine intervale, flowed a stream of respectable size called Pine Creek,
which took its rise in the mountains at some distance, and was fed by
innumerable springs and rivulets from the surrounding hills. Nearly a
thousand acres of these lands were owned by an old merchant in New-York,
who had taken them for debt many years before, and had become, as he
said, tired of paying taxes on them.

Joel had had his eye on the property for two or three years. What his
views were, we shall presently see, for no sooner did Miss Bellows quit
Sudbury with her aunt, than Joel, after remarking to the sheriff that he
did not propose to interfere with him in any way, proceeded to pack his
trunks, which he removed to the inn. Then he hired a horse and wagon for
a week, and set off no one knew whither. He came back within the time
limited, and found a committee of creditors awaiting his return. They
wanted to engage him to sell out the stock of goods and to close up Mr.
Bellows' affairs. Joel declined the service, although the offers were
liberal and coupled with the intimation that it would be the means of
starting him in business as the successor of Mr. Bellows. Joel
resolutely declined. He knew the estate was hopelessly insolvent, and
that he could not be of the least service to Ellen by any labors he
should undertake; and besides, he did not care to even appear to thrive
out of the broken fortunes of his patron. When st