fruition. A man in the position of a
servant has plenty of opportunity of watching his betters and forming
opinions regarding them. Oolanga was in his way a clever, unscrupulous
rogue, and he felt that with things moving round him in this great
household there should be opportunities of self-advancement. Being
unscrupulous and stealthy--and a savage--he looked to dishonest means. He
saw plainly enough that Lady Arabella was making a dead set at his
master, and he was watchful of the slightest sign of anything which might
enhance this knowledge. Like the other men in the house, he knew of the
carrying to and fro of the great chest, and had got it into his head that
the care exercised in its porterage indicated that it was full of
treasure. He was for ever lurking around the turret-rooms on the chance
of making some useful discovery. But he was as cautious as he was
stealthy, and took care that no one else watched him.

It was thus that the negro became aware of Lady Arabella's venture into
the house, as she thought, unseen. He took more care than ever, since he
was watching another, that the positions were not reversed. More than
ever he kept his eyes and ears open and his mouth shut. Seeing Lady
Arabella gliding up the stairs towards his master's room, he took it for
granted that she was there for no good, and doubled his watching
intentness and caution.

Oolanga was disappointed, but he dared not exhibit any feeling lest it
should betray that he was hiding. Therefore he slunk downstairs again
noiselessly, and waited for a more favourable opportunity of furthering
his plans. It must be borne in mind that he thought that the heavy trunk
was full of valuables, and that he believed that Lady Arabella had come
to try to steal it. His purpose of using for his own advantage the
combination of these two ideas was seen later in the day. Oolanga
secretly followed her home. He was an expert at this game, and succeeded
admirably on this occasion. He watched her enter the private gate of
Diana's Grove, and then, taking a roundabout course and keeping out of
her sight, he at last overtook her in a thick part of the Grove where no
one could see the meeting.

Lady Arabella was much surprised. She had not seen the negro for several
days, and had almost forgotten his existence. Oolanga would have been
startled had he known and been capable of understanding the real value
placed on him, his beauty, his worthiness, by