"His conduct has been quite exemplary--I have not heard anything but the best reports of him. He does not, even at times, drink to excess; he does not gossip; and he pays his debts without being dunned, which is much to his credit. He borrowed two hundred pounds from me, after his arrival--having lost everything in the shipwreck, you remember--and repaid it, the other day, immediately upon his return to Annapolis. And he apologized for keeping it so long. Damned decent, I call it!" Richard Maynadier pulled on his pipe, and gazed through the windows, across the esplanade to the dock, where a ship had just let go her anchor. "Yes!" he said, "yes! decidedly decent.--It is a pity some of our young men do not emulate him." His eyes came back to the Governor's. "Do you happen to have any of the money handy, sir?" "You mean, the money he paid me?--I will lend it to you gladly, Maynadier." "I do not want to borrow, thank you, Colonel," was the smiling answer. "I want simply to see it--the coins, I mean." The Governor turned to his writing desk, unlocked a drawer, and, taking out a bag, passed it over. "It is just as he gave it to me," he said; "indeed, I did not even count it, I took it on faith.--You do not think he tricked me, Maynadier?" "Oh, no--not you. I want to see----" He emptied the gold into a shining heap, on the table before him, and spread it out with his hands. There were guineas, pistoles, and Spanish doubloons, in all, making up the two hundred pounds. "I want to see if there are any pieces which might be remembered--any--with--Ah!"--he picked out a doubloon, with a star and a crescent cut deep upon its face. "I wonder if Marbury can by any chance recall--I beg your pardon, Colonel! Marbury had some gold stolen during the house-party, at Hedgely Hall. He kept no list, but he might recognize this one, it is sufficiently distinctive, surely." The Governor blew a cloud of smoke toward the ceiling and watched it slowly vanish. "You think that Parkington may be guilty?" he said--"that we may catch a thief, as well as an impostor? Very good! you have added a motive for his imposition. If you can prove it, we will give the sheriff a job with the halter. Where is Marbury?" "He was in Annapolis, yesterday--he came that far with the young people. I will go up and see him." "No--I will send for him.--I suppose there was card playing at Hedgely Hall?" "Every night, while I was there, and I take it every night." "Then, even if Marbury recognizes the coin, it will prove little, for Parkington can say he won it at cards."