"It was hard enough work to live," he answered. "I tried many things,—failures, all of them!"
"Until the Little Anna Gold-Mine," she remarked.
"Until the Little Anna Gold-Mine," he assented, "and that, at first, seemed hopeless enough. The mine had been deserted twice. The natives there had a name for it which means the Grave of Dead Hopes!"
They turned into the avenue, and the house was at once visible, standing on the edge of a lake, large and a little bare. The lawns and gardens were brilliant with color, and the hills on the other side of the water were purple with heather.
"Well, here is all the rest you want," she said. "We haven't a neighbor within six miles, and a most harmless lot of guests."
He drew a long sigh of content. The tragedy, indeed, of the last few weeks seemed to lie far behind in some other world!
CHAPTER XXI
RUBY IS DISAPPOINTED
The solicitor hung up his silk hat, motioned his two visitors to seats, and took his accustomed place in front of his writing-table. "I am afraid," he said, turning toward Mr. Sarsby, but in reality addressing his niece, "that your visit to town has been, in some respects, a disappointment to you, especially," he continued, "bearing in mind the letter which you, my dear young lady, have just shown me. Still, there is no getting away from facts. We have carefully examined every paper and every portion of the personal belongings of the deceased, and I am afraid we must come to the decision that there is nothing in those effects worth taking away."