He listened attentively, and repeated that he did not see any such letters as those I had described.
"Well, Sir," I observed, "we must now trouble you to show us the money you have about you."
He readily complied with this requisition, by handing me his pocket-book. It was well filled, but among a tolerably large roll of bank-notes, none of those included in the decoy letter appeared. His knowledge, of the absence of these important witnesses against him, easily accounted for his promptness in submitting to the examination, and as he received the wallet from me again, and returned it to his pocket, his air of assurance, which for the moment had been dimmed, reappeared in all its native lustre, and with an assumed expression of wounded pride, he requested to know if he was to understand that I suspected him of interfering improperly with the letters I had been inquiring about. To this I answered.
"Yes, Sir; you are so to understand me; and further, that I believe you have robbed and destroyed those letters!"
The Marshal was looking on all this while, evidently somewhat incredulous as to the justice of my accusations, for he had long known by reputation the young man against whom they were made, being an acquaintance of the family, and always supposed him to be an enterprising, honest person. Indeed, he told me afterwards, that he really thought, to use his own expression, that I "had put my foot in it." In fact. I began to think myself, that however certain B.'s guilt might be, it was likely to prove more difficult than I had supposed, to establish the fact legally.
One thing, however, remained,—to examine a quantity of specie, which I knew he had in his pocket, as he had frequently exhibited it during the day in the way of making change at his office. This also, amounting to some six or eight dollars, was promptly produced at my request, and laid on the table.
"Now," thought I, "the last card is dealt; let us see whether it will turn up a trump."
The evil spirit, which so enticingly leads people into scrapes, and is so reluctant to get them out again, true to its fatal instincts, had safely preserved the evidence of guilt in the present case. A moment's inspection of the different coins, brought to light one of the identical pieces which had been placed in the missing letter! It was thus described in the original memorandum to which I referred: "American quarter—dot over left wing of eagle; slightly filed on lower edge under date, 1850."
"Here is one of the quarters," said I, holding it up, "that was in the Rouse's Point letter,—marked and described in my memorandum, so that I could swear to it anywhere."
"Well, Mr. H.," said the post master, "I suppose this circumstance appears to you very strongly against me, and perhaps it is. But I should like a few moments' private conversation with you, if you have no objection."