1171 GRIAT RUBY ROBDBIRY. 335
were domg down there, prying mto other people’s letters with the postman 2”7
Bertha looked up at her, ever bland @ she ans\\'crul at once, without a sccond’s hesi tation : *'The postman’s my voung man, miss;: and we hope before very Tong now to gt marricd.”
“ Odious thing 7 Persis thought, = X ohl) e alwavs ready on the tip of her tongue for CVCTY CINCTZeney.
But Bertha's full heart was heating violent]y, Beating with love and hope and deferred anxicty.
A httde later in the day Persis mantioned the meident casually to Lady Maclure mainly in order to satisfy herself that the wirl had been Iving, Lady Maclure, however, ginve a qualificd assent
1 bedicre she's engaged to the postman,” she saad. 1 2270 T've heard so o though | make 1t a rule, you see, my dear, to know as little as I can of these people’s love affairs. Thevre so very uninteresting. But Dertha certainly told me she wouldn't leave me to get marrted for an mdcefinite period. That was only ten days ago. She satd her voung man wasn't just yet im a position to make a home for her.”
“ Perhaps,” Persis suggested, grimly, “somcthing has occurred meanwhile to
Such have
things mto o
position. She may
better her crop up. fortunc !'”
“Perhaps so,” Lady Maclure replied, lan- cuidly. ‘T'he subject bored her. = Though, if so, 1t must really have been very sudden for I think it was thce morning before vou lost vour jewels she told me so.”
Persis thought that odd, but she comment.
Betore dimner
strange come
n:de no
that cvening she burst suddenly into Lady Maclure's room for a minute. Bertha was dressing her lady's hair. I'riends were coming to dine among them Sir Justine low do these pearls go with my complexton, Lady Maclure 27 Persis asked rather anxiously @ for she specially wished to look her best that evening, for one of the party.
“Oh, charmimg 7 her hostess answered, with her society smile. “ Never saw any- thing suit vou better, Persis,”
“L\(L])L my poor rubies 1 Persts eried rather rucfully, for coloured CCWZAWs are dear to the savage and the woman. = [ wish
I could get them back ! I wonder that man Gregory hasn't succeeded in finding them.” “Oh! my dear,” Tady Maclure drawled
out, “you may be sure by this time theyre
safe at Amsterdam. That's the only place in urope now to look for them.”
“Why to Amsterdam, my lady 27 Bertha mterposed suddenly, with a quick s](l -glance at Persis.
Lady Maclure threw her head back in sur- prisc at so unwonted an infrusion. “What do vou want to know thnt for, child 2”7 she asked, somewhat curtly, W h\ to be cut, of course. Al the diamend-cutters in the world are concentrated i Amsterdam ; and the first thine a thief does when he stLals big Jewels s to send them across, and have th(m) cut 1 new shapes so that they can’t be rdentified.”
- [ shouldn’t have thought,” Bertha put in,
calmlv, “ they'd have known who to send them to.”
Lady Maclure turned to her sharply. “Why, these thin s,” she said, with a calm
air of knowledee, cuc a]ways done by ex- perienced thu\u who know the ropes well, and arc in league with reccivers the wholc world over. But Gregory has his eye on Amsterdam, I'm sure, and wc'll soon hear something.”
“Yes, my lady,” Bertha answered, in her acquiescent tone, and relapsced into mlencc.
V1.
I‘otr days later, about nine at night, that hard-worked man, the posty on the beat, stood loitering outside Sir ISverard Maclure’s house, openly defying the rules of the ('lq artment, m close conference with Bertha.
Sl any news?” Bertha asked, trembling over with excitement, for vhe was a very different person outside with her lover from the demure and imperturbable model maid who waited on my lady.
“Why yes,” the posty answered, with a low Tlaugh of triumph. “A letter from Amsterdam ! And I think we've fixed 1£17”
Bertha almost flung hersell upon him. “ Oh, Harry!” she eried, all cagerness, “this 15 too good to be true! Then in just one other month we can 1'0&1])’ get married !
‘There was a minute’s pause, inarticulately lled up by sounds unrepresentable through the art of the type-founder. Then Harry spoke again. “It’s an awful lot of money !” he said, musing. A\ regular fortune ! And what's more, Bertha, 1f it hadn’t been for your cleverness we never should have got it
Bertha pressed Tias hand Jtlutlunately [oven ladiesmands are human.
“Welly if T hadn’t been so much in love with you,” she answered, frankly, “1 don’t think T could cver have had the wit to manage
Vol ivi—so.