and hastened to get it quickly off the hooks. It had been caught more
tightly by accident than it could have been placed there by human
hands. It was tight on the hooks, and he had to tear the shawl to get it
off. He lost no time opening it, and there was a little, fair child,
drowned and dead.

"It was not a pleasant sight, sir, on a bright morning, when the
sunshine was dancing over the waves. Jim said his heart turned quite
faint when he saw the little white body--such a fair little mite, sir,
it was enough to make the very angels weep! Some woman, sir--Heaven
forbid that it was the mother--some woman had dressed it in pretty white
clothes. It had a white gown, with lace, and a soft white woolen cap on
the little golden head. A sorry sight, sir--a sorry sight! Jim said that
when he thought of that little tender body swinging to and fro with the
waves all the night, he could not keep the tears from his eyes.

"It was meant to sink, you see, sir," continued the man, with rough
energy; "it was never meant to be caught. But the great God, He is above
all, and He knows the little one was not to sink to the bottom, like
lead. It is true, sir, and murder will out."

"But is nothing known?" I asked. "Surely such a thing could never be
done without some one seeing or knowing something about it."

"I am afraid, sir, no one knows but the one who did it. Some woman, sir,
had dressed the little thing--a man would never have thought of the soft
woolen cap. And I can tell you another thing, sir--a man would never
have killed a child like that; not that I am upholding men--some of them
are brutes enough--but I do not think any man would throw a little babe
into the water. When a woman is bad, she is bad, and there is nothing
vile enough for her."

I though of the beautiful and desperate face. Heaven grant that she
might have nothing to do with this! And yet--the black and gray shawl!

"Whereabouts was it?" I asked.

He pointed with his hand to the very spot where she had stood.

"Just there," he said. "It was there the little bundle was thrown, and
there, just below the line of the jetty, it was caught by the hooks."

The identical spot where she had stood. Oh, beautiful, despairing face,
what was hidden underneath your mask of stone?

"You should go on the pier, sir, and see for yourself," said the old
man. "The superintendent of the police is there now; but they will never
find out who did that. Women are deep when they