Laura Brayton — page 177: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

168 LAURA BRAYTON. scription seemed familiar. It had written on it— “Bombay mail, by Suez route;” then a stamp and English postmark. “Excuse me,” said he; “here is a letter from abroad, though I have no correspondents whom I know of in foreign lands.” He opened the letter hastily, and a vivid flush came over his face as he read it. There was no signature, and only these words: “Prepare for a great surprise. One is on the way to meet you whom you must have forgotten. ‘T'he ways of the world are» mysterious. The dove has flown far and wide, but has found no resting- place. May this find you well, better than it leaves— As if unintentionally, the letter, or paper, closed here without any other word, the line ending in the middle of the paper. Mr. Withers looked at it long and earnestly. “The writing 1s very like. But if it were his and he lived, he surely would have said more and signed his name.” | “Whose writing does it resemble, if Iam not im- pertinent?” asked Mr, Johnson, noticing how the sight of the letter affected Mr. Withers. “That of my lost brother. But were he alive he never would have sent me an unfinished letter, nor one without his name signed. He was always very particular. It must be some cruel attempt to quiz me. 99 “No person fora mere joke would go to Bombay £0 mail a letter,” said Mr. Johnson. “Permit me to look at it. The foreign marks are not easily counter- feited.” The letter underwent the inspection of as sharp a comicbooks co