"Here they found all in confusion." See [page 122.]
Here they found all in confusion. The safe doors had been blown open with gunpowder, and the explosion had damaged the entire office. The plaster from the ceiling had come down, and this lay over a mass of letters, papers and wrecked furniture.
In the midst of the mass was the postmaster and his clerk, Henry Bott, doing what they could to straighten matters out and ascertain the exact loss sustained.
Squire Paget was also present. He seemed particularly anxious about the registered letters which had been ready for the morning mail, and groaned aloud when he heard that all of them had disappeared.
"Not one of them left?" he asked, of Henry Bott. "You don't see anything of the one I addressed to New York?"
"No, squire; all have disappeared together," replied the clerk.
"Too bad! That letter was worth a small fortune to me."
"What did it contain?" asked the clerk.
The squire did not answer, but walked away in deep perplexity.