married life; my uncle told me something, but I have reason to believe
that he kept back much that I ought to know," and Mona proceeded to
relate all that Mr. Dinsmore had revealed to her on her eighteenth
birthday, while the lawyer listened with evident interest, his face
expressing great sympathy for his fair young visitor.

"I am very glad to have you confide in me so freely," he remarked, when
she concluded, "and I will deal with equal frankness with you so far as I
may. Our reason for advertising for information regarding Miss Mona
Forester was this: I received recently a communication from a lawyer in
London, desiring me to look up a person so named, and stating that a
certain Homer Forester--a wool merchant of Australia--had just died in
London while on his way home to America, and had left in his lawyer's
hands a will bequeathing all that he possessed to a niece, Miss Mona
Forester, or her heirs, if she was not living. The date and place of her
birth were given, but further than that Homer Forester could give no
information regarding her."

"Where was she born?" Mona here interposed, eagerly, "Oh, sir, it is
strange and dreadful that I should be so ignorant of my own mother's
history, is it not?"

"Miss Forester, according to the information given in her uncle's will,
was born in Trenton, New Jersey, March 10th, 1843, but that is all that I
can tell you about her," bestowing a glance of sympathy upon the
agitated girl. "You say that she died at the time of your birth. I wish
you could bring me proof of this and that you are her daughter; but of
course your mere assertion proves nothing, nor your possession of this
picture, which may or may not be her. Believe me, I should be very glad
to surrender this property to you if it rightly belongs to you."