key from his pocket, and knelt beside the
trunk. He fitted the key to the lock, turned it, and threw open the lid,
revealing to our eager gaze some articles of clothing, and a few letters
and papers tied in a packet. He opened the bunch, selected one of the
letters, and handed it to the law clerk.

With trembling hands Christopher Burley took the inclosure from the
envelope, and glanced over it briefly.

"Written in 1785," he exclaimed, "to Osmund Maiden by his mother, when
he was at the University of Oxford! Gentleman, my quest is at an end. I
have found the missing--" His face suddenly turned deathly pale. He
staggered, and would have fallen, but for Macdonald, who caught and
supported him. "It is nothing," he muttered faintly. "The
excitement--the shock; I shall be better in a moment."

Just then I happened to glance at Flora, and was startled by her
appearance. She was gazing at the letter, which was still in the law
clerk's hand; her cheeks were deeply flushed, and her expression was one
of incredulous amazement.

"What is the matter?" I said anxiously.

"Don't be foolish, Denzil!" she replied, turning her eyes in another
direction, and making an effort to speak calmly. "I thought I saw--No, I
was mistaken."

The words were so low that none heard them but myself. I attached no
meaning to them at the time, thinking that she was slightly unnerved by
the dramatic scene we were witnessing.

But Captain Rudstone--as I remembered afterward--seemed to notice
Flora's agitation. At all events he quickly recovered the letter from
the law clerk and restored it to the packet. That he tossed into the
trunk, closing and locking the lid, and putting the key in his pocket.
Then he rose to his feet.

"I think," he said, "that I have fully proved my claim"--to which
undeniable statement Macdonald and I nodded assent.

"And in the future we are to call you Mr. Osmund Maiden," said Flora,
with a mocking flash in her eyes.

"Yes, he is Osmund Maiden," hoarsely declared Christopher Burley. "But
do you know all--all, sir?" he inquired eagerly.

"I think I do," replied the captain.

"When we first met in Quebec, months ago, Mr. Burley, I suspected what
had brought you to the Canadas. Your own words, you will remember, gave
me the clew. I can assure you that I have managed to keep an eye on the
London papers for years past. No news of importance has escaped me."

"But--but why did you not--"

"Why not reveal myself befor