"My adored Rachel," wrote Burton that night. "I am having a very curious experience. I have dropped into a regular melodrama. I suppose there is a plot to it, but so far I have chiefly been kept guessing. You will be interested in it, though I know melodrama is not your favorite style of literature, because it nearly involves the Underwood family. In fact, they are supposed to be the whole head and front of the offending.

"I told you that there was some vague accusation of Dr. Underwood in the town, which I felt under obligations, as your ambassador, to investigate, in carrying out the mission with which I was charged. That matter has almost been lost sight of, in the popular excitement over subsequent events. A house burned down the next night, and the police said the fire was of incendiary origin. Thereupon the public jumped to the conclusion that it was set either by Dr. Underwood or his son Henry, though as to the doctor I can personally testify that he was laid up with a sprained ankle that night, and could hardly hobble about his room. But a trifle like that would cut no figure with an excited public, eager only to hear some new thing that would make its hair stand on end. Then the following night a man was assaulted in his own house,--tied to his bed, and warned not to talk about people as recklessly as he had been doing. This time suspicion was directed to Henry Underwood, and he has been arrested. The young man refuses bail, on the ground that he wants to be locked up so as to leave no room for charging him with the next eccentric thing that may happen in High Ridge. I hope you agree with me that this shows a good deal of spirit and pluck, especially as the town jail is a place that no one who was looking for downy beds of ease would choose for a summer resort. I must tell you that this young man interests me extremely. There is no vanity in this, for I cannot say that the interest is reciprocated. He treats me with a haughty tolerance that would wound my self-esteem, if I did not see that it is merely his manner to everybody. He seems to go on the theory that all men are in a conspiracy against him, and he will neither ask nor give quarter. You will gather from this that I do not believe he assaulted the old gentleman in his bed. I don\'t. Use your judgment as to how much of all this you should tell Philip. And speaking of that, I am not sure that I fully expressed, in my last letter, my great enthusiasm for Philip\'s sagacity. My admiration for the young lady in question has grown with my more extended acquaintance. She is not only beautiful,--as I told you in my first report,--but she has a lot of personality. That is an attribute which it is hard to more specif............