fancy, no matter how hard a thing you have to go through, that your experience is unique. This old world has been going on a good many hundred years, and there are precious few situations that haven’t happened over and over again. Cheer up, child; that’s a model letter, and you’re a good little sport!”
Miss Catherwood handled the return of the presents in a masterly manner. Her secretary and Sherrill wrote the notes while Gemmie and the butler under her supervision repacked the gifts. It was amazing how quickly the things were marshaled from the tables into their neat original packages, each with its dainty note attached. Sherrill grew so interested in seeing how much she could accomplish that she almost forgot her anxiety about the emeralds.
It comforted her greatly that the necklace had not been lost while she was out with Copeland. But later in the day something occurred which brought back her uneasiness and that nameless fear again. Oh, to know certainly, who if anyone was connected with the disappearance of the jewels!
It was late in the afternoon and Miss Catherwood had just said they had done enough for today and must stop and rest. Just then the hall door opened timidly and Lutie showed a deprecating face.
“Please, Miss Catherwood, might I come in and speak to you a moment?” she asked shyly.
“Why, of course, Lutie. Come right in,” said the old maid cheerily. “What is it?”
“Why, Miss Catherwood, I found something,” she said earnestly, holding her two hands cupped, the one in the other. “Maybe it isn’t much account, but it looked to me as if it might be something real. It’s only a little thing, and I thought if I gave it to any of the other servants they might laugh, but I knew you would know whether it was valuable or not.”
Lutie dropped a delicate bit of brightness into the old lady’s hand and stood back waiting shyly.
Aunt Pat held the bit of jewelry in her delicate old hand for an instant and examined it carefully. Then she looked up at the girl.
“Where did you find this, Lutie, and when?”
“Just now, ma’am, in the little back room off the servants’ hall. It was on the floor just under the edge of the little writing table, and I almost swept it up, but then I saw it glittering, and it first looked like a bit of Christmas-tree tinsel, but when I looked closer it seemed like something real.”
“Hmm!” said Aunt Pat significantly and, looking up at Sherrill, added: “It’s from the emerald necklace, Sherry, a whole inch of chain and part of the clasp!”
Sherrill gave a startled exclamation, and the old lady turned to Lutie again.
“Thank you, Lutie, for bringing it straight to me. Did you speak to any of the other servants about it?”
“No,” said Lutie. “I was afraid they’d laugh at me. They tell me I’m fussy about little things.”
“Well, that’s a good trait sometimes,” said the old lady. “I’m glad you brought it straight to me. Yes, it’s valuable. It’s part of something we had lost. You might keep your eye out while you’re cleaning to see if you find any more of it. Now, suppose you come and show us just where you found this.” They followed Lutie to the little room in the servants’ hall.
“Thank you, Lutie,” said Miss Catherwood when she had showed them the exact spot. “I shan’t forget this!”
“Oh, that’s all right, ma’am. I’m glad you weren’t angry at my bothering you.”
Lutie withdrew with a shy flame blazing in her cheeks.
Aunt Pat turned to Sherrill, who was searching the room over, vainly hoping to find more of the necklace.
“Now, Sherrill,” said Aunt Pat, “tell me just who was in this room and where each one stood. What were they here for, anyway, in this back room?”
“They came to get the license fixed up with the right names,” said Sherrill, half shivering at the memory. “We sent for the clerk and he sat right there in that chair all the time he was here.”
“And where did you stand?”
“Most of the time over there by the door. Once I stepped over to the table while I was explaining to him that I had changed my mind about marrying Carter.”
The old lady gave her a swift look.
“Where was Carter at the time?”
“He stood just back of me.”
“Hmm! How did he look when you explained that you had changed your mind about marrying him?”
“I didn’t look at him. I was trying to