each time she called aloud to offer, as Hewitt had heard, a reward to anybody who should bring the police or communicate her situation to Hewitt. Day broke and still she waited, sleepless and unfed, till Hewitt at last arrived and released her. On Mrs. Mallett’s arrival at her house Mrs. Rudd’s servant was at once despatched with reassuring news, and Hewitt once more addressed himself to the question of the burglary. “First, Mrs. Mallett,” he said, “did you ever conceal anything--anything at all, mind--in the frame of an engraving?” “No, never.” “Were any of your engravings framed before you had them?” “Not one that I can remember. They were mostly Uncle Joseph’s, and he kept them with a lot of others in drawers. He was rather a collector, you know.” “Very well. Now come up to the attic. Something has been opened there that was not touched at the first attempt.” Mrs. Mallett’s indignation at the second burglary was something to see. But there was triumph in her manner; she still had the snuff-box. “See now,” said Hewitt, when the attic was reached, “here is a box full of papers. Do you know everything that was in it?” “No, I don’t,” Mrs. Mallett replied. “There were a lot of my uncle’s manuscript plays. Here, you see, ‘The Dead Bridegroom, or the Drum of Fortune,’ and so on; and there were a lot of autographs. I took no interest in them, although some were rather valuable, I believe.” “Now bring your recollection to bear as strongly as you can,” Hewitt said. “Do you ever remember seeing in this box a paper bearing nothing whatever upon it but a wax seal?” “Oh yes, I remember that well enough. I’ve noticed it each time I’ve turned the box over--which is very seldom. It was a plain slip of vellum paper with a red seal, cracked and rather worn--some celebrated person’s seal, I suppose. What about it?” Hewitt was turning the papers over one at a time. “It doesn’t seem to be here now,” he said. “Do you see it?” “No,” Mrs. Mallett returned, examining the papers herself, “it isn’t. It appears to be the only thing missing. But why should they take it?” “I think we are at the bottom of all this mystery now,” Hewitt answered quietly. “It is the Seal of the Woman.” “The _what_? I don’t understand.” “The fact is, Mrs. Mallett, that these people have never wanted your Uncle Joseph’s snuff-box at all, but that seal.” “Not wanted the snuff-box? Nonsense! Why, didn’t I tell you Penner asked for it--wanted to buy it?”