The Argosy — page 205: what you’re looking at

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

188 The Mystery of Allan Grale. ‘Where did you find that ?” asked the Doctor. “ It makes a great show beside Letty’s cracked old vasculum.” “T always said you should get me something new in that line, papa,” she retorted, ‘‘and now, you see, the fates have done your duty for you. But I suppose we must make due inquiries after the owner of this very pretty thing.” “You have not yet told us where you found it,” persisted the Doctor. “That is the queer part,” said Agnes. “It was in the woods of the Camp, not very far from the lodge of Dering Court.” “Yes,” said Lettice, “‘I was stooping to cut out a rich cushion of moss, when I saw the yellow wicker basket show from under the heavy fronds of bracken.” ‘“And then we were afraid to open it,” laughed Agnes. ‘So. Charles kicked it over, and said it was very light, and then the lid came open, and we saw there was nothing inside.” “Well,” said the Doctor, “‘it’s quite true that one may come across awkward finds in such a way and discovery of some terrible crime.” “But scarcely in such a place as Dering, papa,” dissented Lettice, who believed her native village to be a kind of modern Eden. ‘This was harmless enough, at any rate,” said Agnes. ‘‘ But who could have thought of hiding an empty basket ?” ‘And a new basket, too,” remarked Maria. ‘‘ Does not that look like a G upon it ?” “Yes, it 1s a G,” answered Charles. “It may belong to the Grales.” “No, the Grales’ hampers are of the lumbering old-fashioned sort, and their name is always stamped in full inside the lids,” said Agnes. ‘But I’m sure whoever put the basket there intended to hide it.” The ferns and basket were carried away, and nothing more was said or thought about them. After tea, Dr. Palmer set off to walk to the Court with Maria. They took the lower road, leading past the Church, and had not gone many yards, when Webster, of the “Knight’s Arms,” drove up in his chaise. He had been taking down. a passenger for the evening train. ‘Touching his hat, he pulled up to enquire after the General. He was told that his old master had been getting better for some little time now; had recovered consciousness, and in a degree, memory, except so far as the period of his attack was concerned. “He recollects leaving your place, Webster,” said Dr. Palmer. “For he says he ought to have taken your wife’s advice and rested a little longer—those were the last words she said to him as he mounted. his horse. All beyond that is quite a blank.” “Tt’s queer,” remarked Webster, ‘‘that we’ve never heard who the gentleman was that first came across the General after the accident. As I said to you, ma’am, at the time, it didn’t seem like a stranger, perhaps the first step to the unearthing: CONNIE OOO KS (E(0)