n't know something about--"

"I beg your pardon, sir," said the old man; "we had betther go into the
next room. Here, Polly," he shouted to his wife, who was inside, "will
you come and stand the shop awhile?"

"To be sure I will," replied the old woman, making her appearance. "How
do you do, sir," she added, addressing the stranger; "I am glad to see
you looking so well."

"Thank you, madam," replied the stranger: "I can return the compliment,
as they say."

"Keep the shop, Polly," said the old man sharply, "and don't make the
same mistake you made awhile ago--give away a stone o' meal for half a
stone. No wondher for us to be poor at sich a rate of doin' things as
that. Walk in, if you plaise, sir."

They accordingly entered the room, and the stranger, after they had
taken seats, resumed,

"I was going to say, Corbet, that nothing can convince me that you don't
know more about the disappearance of Lady Gourlay's heir than you are
disposed to acknowledge."

The hard, severe, disagreeable expression returned once more to his
features, as he replied,

"Troth, sir, it appears you will believe so, whether or not. But now,
sir, in case I did, what would you say? I'm talkin' for supposition's
sake, mind. Wouldn't a man desarve something that could give you
information on the subject?"

"This avaricious old man," thought the stranger, pausing as if to
consider the proposition, "was holding us out all along, in order to
make the most of his information. The information, however, is already
in our possession, and he comes too late. So far I am gratified that we
are in a position to punish him by disappointing his avarice."

"We would, Corbet, if the information were necessary, but at present it
is not; we don't require it."

Corbet started, and his keen old eyes gleamed with an expression between
terror and incredulity.

"Why," said he, "you don't require it! Are you sure of that?"

"Perfectly so. Some time ago we would have rewarded you liberally, had
you made any available disclosure to us; but now it is too late. The
information we had been seeking for so anxiously, accidentally came to
us from another quarter. You see now, Corbet, how you have overshot the
mark, and punished yourself. Had you been influenced by a principle of
common justice, you would have been entitled to expect and receive a
most ample compensation; a compensation beyond your hopes, probably
beyond your very wishes, and certainly beyond yo