“It surely was meant for a Sobrante man, for they’re few besides who ride this way,” answered “Forty-niner,” thoughtfully. “And, Atlantic! Here’s the mail pouch! Maybe ’twas robbery, pure and simple. Was it a money day, for supplies or such?”
“Reckon it was. The mistress herself locked and gave the bag to me, bidding me be careful. As if I was ever careless; but there was one letter in it I heard about, that the little captain wrote to Ninian Sharp. Wrote herself, an invite to the Christmas doings. Try it.”
Examination proved that the bag had been tampered with, though the lock was a spring and now securely fastened; but a small leather flap, intended to cover the keyhole, had been torn from its fastenings and lay on the ground. The pouch itself had been flung slightly out of the way, under the bushes, as if the trespasser had satisfied himself with and concerning it and had no further use for it.
“Well, there used to be three keys to this concern. One the mistress has; one the postmaster keeps at the office; and the other was Antonio’s, since he always was wanting to open and put something extra in the bag after Mrs. Trent had done with it. I never liked the look of that, and it’s my opinion that it’s the very key has unlocked this bag, if unlocked it’s been. Which is more’n likely.”
Cromarty’s head was again beginning to grow dizzy, and he sat again upon the rock to recover himself, making no answer to Ephraim’s words than the exclamation:
“How am I going to get that bag to post in time?”