ey had not received any
of importance, and that Miss Carmichael was the first to arrest the
flight of the robber.

The household was aroused. The colonel came down with his pistols.
Timotheus, Rufus and Maguffin awaited orders, so he ordered them to arm,
and posted them as sentries, relieving Mr. Terry from his watch on the
windows. Then the examination of the prisoner began. He was the youth
who had driven the buckboard over for the doctor on the eventful Monday
morning. His name was Rawdon, but he was not the son of Altamont Rawdon.
His father's name was Reginald, who was Altamont's brother.

"Where is your fether?" asked Mr. Bangs.

"I dunno," he answered, sulkily.

"Then I ken tell you. He is dead, berned to death by yore precious encle
Eltemont."

"O my God!" exclaimed the youth; "is that so?"

"Esk any of these gentlemen, end they will tell you that yore fether end
old Flower were berned to death, end thet a keroner's jury set on their
remains, which are buried."

"You say as 'ow my huncle Haltamont did that?"

"Yes, I do, end, whet's more, you know it."

Having terrorized his victim, and antagonized him to Rawdon, the
detective drew from him the information that five men, three of Rawdon's
old employees, the tavern-keeper Matt, and Newcome, were coming at
midnight to burglarize the house and get possession of the dug-up
treasure. He confessed that he had slipped into the house while the
party was away picnicking, and, knowing that Coristine had left without
his knapsack, had looked round till he found a room with knapsacks in
it. There he intended to remain till his confederates should require his
services to open the house to them.

"Who towld you thet awful lie ebout Rawdon's meney being in this house?"

"Matt knew. Uncle Monty guv it 'im by signs, I guess. Oh, he's O.K., he
is."

"Well, sir, yore a prisoner here, end if things don't turn out es you
sey, I'll blow yore brains out."

"For goodness sake don't be aisty, mister. I've told you the 'ole truth,
I swear."

Mr. Bangs next found out that the robbers were coming in a waggon, which
would halt some distance to the left of the house, and that their plan
was to set one man at the end of the hall to hinder communication with
the servants' quarters, and two on the upper landing to command the
front and back stairs, while the remaining burglars ransacked the office
and any other rooms in which plunder might be found. The youth's
appointed miss