had brought to light? A box-a dark box, which looked like iron! At last! at last! it must be the plate this time!

The box was too heavy for Stella to move, but she managed to pull the other saddle off the top of it, and without any resistance the lid, which was only fastened down by a clasp, opened at her touch. It was quite full of dark-looking things whose shape she could not all at once see, and among them, here and there, shone-yes, something yellow.-Gold! the gold and silver, she doubted not, that she had longed and hunted for, the silver tarnished and black with age, but the gold still preserving its colour. Stella could wait no longer now. Shutting the lid hastily, she rushed out of the stone closet and ran with all speed up to the Hall, without stopping to breathe. Throwing open the door of Sir John's study, she ran up to where he sat writing letters,—‘Quick, Grandpa, quick!-come with me! I have found it!'

'Found what?' Sir John repeated, amazed at her state of excitement and at the unwonted interruption. 'My dear child, what is the matter?'

'The Desmond Plate-the ruins-oh, I have been hunting so long!' and poor Stella, overcome with fatigue and excitement, burst into tears. Mrs. Cooper was passing the open door at the moment, and Sir

H

John called her in to help. But Stella's tears were soon over, and, as soon as she regained her composure, she explained more clearly what had taken place, and, in so doing, opened Sir John's eyes fully to what had been going on during all these weeks, and to her long labour of patient search. Then she eagerly entreated him not to wait a moment longer, but to come with her to the ruins and examine what she had found.

Mrs. Cooper, of course, came too, and Sir John took the butler, who was an old confidential servant, also with them, that he might help in moving and examining the box.

Stella ran on in front, and only wished that her grandfather could run too; but though he could not do this, he was so intensely interested in her discovery that he walked as fast as he could, and soon reached the castle. With Johnson's help the door was now wrenched still farther open, and the light let more fully into the room. There was nothing there besides the saddles and the wonderful box, and this was now dragged out from the hiding-place where it had lain for upwards of two hundred years, and brought into the open air. Stella herself raised the lid again. 'Look, Grandpapa,' she exclaimed eagerly; 'do look!' And Sir John, kneeling down beside her, examined the contents.

They were, as she had hoped, silver-flagons and cups and dishes, some of them of very beautiful old design, though, of course, quite black from want of cleaning, and some of them dating before the reign of Charles the First. Three or four of the cups were of gold, the gold that had at once struck Stella's eye.

Sir John decided that the best plan would be to take them out of the box and carry them, two or three at a time, to the house, leaving the box and the saddles to be brought up later. He was delighted with the beauty of the recovered plate, and very anxious to have it cleaned without loss of time, that he might see it to perfection.

Stella, armed with two of the gold cups, and beside herself with delight, followed by the others, each carrying something, rushed back to the house and deposited her treasures in Sir John's room, returning directly for more. The second journey sufficed to bring away the whole contents of the chest; and then Johnson, taking a footman into his confidence, proceeded to clean it all, bringing bit by bit into Sir John's room, and placing it on a table which Stella cleared for the purpose. It really looked beautiful, when it was all washed and cleaned, though it would take a long time to restore it entirely to its original