A footman entered the room, to whom Sir Oswald spoke.
"Go to my study," he said, "and bring me a black ebony box that you will find locked in my writing-table. Here are the keys."
The man returned in a few minutes, bearing the box in his hands. Sir Oswald took it to the table where the lamps shone brightly.
"Aubrey," he said, "will you come here? I have a commission for you."
Captain Langton followed him to the table, and some remark about the fashion of the box drew the attention of all present to it. Sir Oswald raised the lid, and produced a diamond ring.
"You are going over to Audleigh Royal to-morrow, Aubrey," he said; "will you leave this with Stamford, the jeweler? I have chosen a new setting for the stone. I wish to present it to Miss Hastings as a mark of my deep gratitude to her."
Miss Hastings looked up in grateful wonder. Sir Oswald went on talking about the contents of the ebony box. He showed them many quaint treasures that it contained; among other things he took out a roll of bank-notes.
"That is not a very safe method of keeping money, Sir Oswald," said Miss Hastings.
"No, you are right," he agreed. "Simpson's clerk paid it to me the other day; I was busy, and I put it there until I had time to take the numbers of the notes."
"Do you keep notes without preserving a memorandum of their numbers, Sir Oswald?" inquired Aubrey Langton. "That seems to me a great risk."