The seal which had secured the
envelope was found, on examination, to have been broken.
"I would not have broken the seal myself," our host added. "But, as
things were, I thought it my duty to look at the inclosures. They refer
to private affairs of Mr. Winterfield, in which he is deeply interested,
and they ought to have been long since placed in his possession. I
need hardly say that I consider myself bound to preserve the strictest
silence as to what I have read. An envelope, containing some blank
sheets of paper, was put back in the boy's waistcoat, so that he might
feel it in its place under the lining, when he woke. The original
envelope and inclosures (with a statement of circumstances signed by my
assistant and myself) have been secured under another cover, sealed with
my own seal. I have done my best to discover Mr. Bernard Winterfield. He
appears not to live in London. At least I failed to find his name in the
Directory. I wrote next, mentioning what had happened, to the English
gentleman to whom I send reports of the lad's health.
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