made himself believe that he intended--to
restore the box to its owner without opening it; but now that it was in
his own possession, he felt an almost irresistible desire to see what
it contained.

"Belike it's nae treasure, after a'," said he to himself; "but only
some auld trash not worth a groat."

With that he placed his hand on the lid and shook it gently, scarcely
dreaming that it would yield without hammer and chisel; but both the
rust-eaten lock and hinges gave way at once, and the cover fell to the
floor with a startling crash.

Enclosed within the box were the gold and silver plate of the Lanark
family.

Forth from their long burial they came to glitter once more in the
sunlight, though the eyes that looked upon them last were years since
closed upon all earthly scenes, and the soul of him who placed them
there had gone, let us trust, to find a better treasure, where neither
moth nor rust corrupts, nor thieves break through and steal.

From the time that Davie Cameron found the buried treasure he was a
changed man. He who was once so genial and light-hearted was now moody
and sullen. Once home had been to him the pleasantest spot in all the
world; but burdened with a consciousness of guilt, he could not bear to
look in the faces of his unsuspecting family, and by degrees he fell
into the habit of passing his evenings at the ale-house.

At first he took no part in the carousals of the place; but in the
nature of things this could not last, and in the end he became as
reckless and as riotous as any of his companions.

It was thus he formed an intimacy with Andy Ferguson. That he was a
wild and dissipated young man was well known, and much was darkly
hinted, which never came to light.

This man soon discovered that Davie had something on his mind, and
taking advantage of the confiding mood produced by liberal libations of
Scotch whiskey and strong beer, he succeeded in drawing the secret from
him. He at once proposed that they should dispose of the treasure and
divide the proceeds, ridiculing the scruples and laughing at the fears
of his more timid companion. He avowed his readiness to take all the
risk, and threatened, if he were thwarted in his plans, to make the
matter public.

So Davie, feeling that he was fairly caught within the toils, yielded.
But though tempted, weak and erring, he was not hardened, and the
thought of the crime he was about to commit weighed heavily on his
spirits. He became