rlowe; but this being the case, I am greatly at a loss to know why
either you or these legal gentlemen are here?"

The brilliant eyes of the Italian flashed with triumphant scorn, and a
smile of contemptuous irony curled her beautiful lip as she
replied--"These legal gentlemen will not have much difficulty in
explaining my right to remain in my own house."

"_Your_ house?"

"Precisely, sir," replied Mr. Quillet. "This mansion, together with all
other property, real and personal, of which the deceased Henry Harlowe
died possessed, is bequeathed by will--dated about a month since--to this
lady, Giulletta Corelli."

"A will!" exclaimed Mr. Ferret with an explosive shout, and turning to
me, whilst his sharp gray eyes danced with irrepressible mirth--"Did I
not tell you so?"

"Your usual sagacity, Mr. Ferret, has not in this instance failed you.
Perhaps you will permit me to read the will? But before I do so,"
continued Mr. Quillet, as he drew his gold-rimmed spectacles from their
morocco sheath--"you will allow me, if you please, to state that the
legatee, delicately appreciating the position of the widow, will allow
her any reasonable annuity--say five hundred pounds per annum for life."

"Will she really though?" cried Mr. Ferret, boiling over with ecstacy.
"Madam, let me beg of you to confirm this gracious promise."

"Certainly I do."

"Capital!--glorious!" rejoined Ferret; and I thought he was about to
perform a salutatory movement, that must have brought his cranium into
damaging contact with the chandelier under which he was standing. "Is
it not delightful? How every one--especially an attorney--loves a
generous giver!"

Mr. Richards appeared to be rendered somewhat uneasy by these strange
demonstrations. He knew Ferret well, and evidently suspected that
something was wrong somewhere. "Perhaps, Mr. Quillet," said he, "you had
better read the will at once."

This was done: the instrument devised in legal and minute form all the
property, real and personal, to Giulletta Corelli--a natural-born subject
of his majesty, it appeared, though of foreign parentage, and of
partially foreign education.

"Allow me to say," broke in Mr. Ferret, interrupting me as I was about to
speak--"allow me to say, Mr. Richards, that that will does you credit: it
is, I should say, a first-rate affair, for a country practitioner
especially. But of course you submitted the draught to counsel?"

"Certainly I did," said Richards tar