Dick looked positively glum as he listened. 'Bad luck!' he exclaimed. So the will's gone. Lost somewhere between this and Pekin.'
But the Professor chuckled loudly. 'That document is as good as any other,' he cried. 'Put alongside with the letter which was before the courts in England, it clearly shows Edward Harbor's wishes. See, it is clearly dated. David, you are to be heartily congratulated.'
No need to say that our hero was delighted. It pleased him wonderfully to know that in spite of many difficulties he had carried out his intentions. He smiled even when he considered what his stepmother would have to say, not a satirical smile, nor one of triumph, merely one expressive of pleasure.
'She'll put it down to my obstinacy and to good luck,' he thought. 'She won't know anything about the dangers and difficulties the Professor and all of us have gone through. Heigho! I'm glad it has turned out like this.'
Three months later he received a note from Mr. Jones in reply to the one he had sent. There were hearty congratulations and an assurance of the writer's good feeling. Then came an announcement of the utmost moment.
'You have done well, David,' ran the letter, 'but when you ask me of what value is the document you sent me, I say none, for circumstances have arisen which alter everything. Mr. Ebenezer Clayhill died soon after you quitted the country, while I regret to say that your stepmother followed him swiftly.'
'Then, after all, the journey wasn't necessary,' cried our hero. 'I'm awfully sorry to hear about the step-mater and Mr. Ebenezer. But--no, I'm not a bit sorry I came to China. I've enjoyed nearly every moment of this trip, and excavating is a job which suits me admirably.'
A year later he returned to England with his comrades, and by then had imbibed such a fondness for investigating ruins and ancient places that he decided to follow in the footsteps of his father and the Professor. David made a handsome allowance from his income to a home for the sick and needy; for those scenes he had witnessed had made a lasting impression on him. Then he went again to China. He is there at this moment, prying into the secrets left by the ancients.
_At the Villafield Press, Glasgow, Scotland_