Thereupon I gave him a full report of my excursion with Mr Coningham,
and the after reading of the letters, with my reason for wishing to
examine the register again; telling him that I had asked Mr Coningham
to ride with me once more to Umberden Church.
When Styles returned, he informed me that Mr Coningham at first
proposed to ride back with him, but probably bethinking himself that
another sixteen miles would be too much for my mare, had changed his
mind and sent me the message that he would be with me early the next
day.
After Charley was gone, I spent the evening in a thorough search of the
old bureau. I found in it several quaint ornaments besides those
already mentioned, but only one thing which any relation to my story
would justify specific mention of--namely, an ivory label, discoloured
with age, on which was traceable the very number Sir Giles had read
from the scabbard of Sir Wilfrid’s sword. Clearly, then, my sword was
the one mentioned in the book, and as clearly it had not been at
Moldwarp Hall for a long time before I lost it there. If I were in any
fear as to my reader’s acceptance of my story, I should rejoice in the
possession of that label more than in the restoration of sword or book;
but amidst all my troubles, I have as yet been able to rely upon her
justice and her knowledge of myself. Yes--I must mention one thing more
I found--a long, sharp-pointed, straight-backed, snake-edged Indian
dagger, inlaid with silver--a fierce, dangerous, almost
venomous-looking weapon, in a curious case of old green morocco. It
also may have once belonged to the armoury of Moldwarp Hall. I took it
with me when I left my grannie’s room, and laid it in the portmanteau I
was going to take to London.
My only difficulty was what to do with Lilith; but I resolved for the
mean time to leave her, as before, in the care of Styles, who seemed
almost as fond of her as I was myself.
CHAPTER XLIX.
A DISCLOSURE.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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