The novels of Charles Brockden Brown, consisting of Wieland;or, The transformation. Arthur Mervyn; or, Memoirs of the year 1793. Edgar Huntly; or, Memoirs of a sleep-walker. Jane Talbot. Ormond; or, The secret witness. Clara Howard; or, The enthusiasm of love. With a memoir of the author.

14 ORMOND; OR, P
Complimentary and customary topics were discussed.
Mrs. Dudley and her daughter were likewise present.
The uneasiness which the incident just mentioned had
occasioned in the mind of Mr. Dudley was at first dispelled by the disembarrassed behaviour of his partner;
but new matter of suspicion was speedily afforded him.
He observed that his partner spoke of his present entrance
as of the first since his arrival, and that when the lady
mentioned that he had been the subject of a curious mistake, a letter being directed to him by a strange name
and left there during his absence, he pretended total
ignorance of the circumstance. The young lady was
immediately directed by her mother to bring the letter,
which lay, she said, on the mantel-tree in the next room.
During this scene Mr. Dudley was silent. He anticipated the disappointment of the messenger, believing the
letter to have been removed. What then was his surprise
when the messenger returned bearing the letter in her hand!
Craig examined and read it, and commented, with great
mirth, on the contents, acting all the while as if he had
never seen it before. These appearances were not qualified to quiet suspicion. The more Dudley brooded over
them, the more dissatisfied he became. He, however,
concealed his thoughts as well from Craig himself as his
family, impatiently waiting for some new occurrence to
arise by which he might square his future proceedings.
During Craig's absence, Mrs. Dudley had thought this
a proper occasion far cleaning his apartment. The furniture, and, among the rest, a large chest strongly fastened,
was removed into an adjoining room, which was otherwise
unoccupied and which was usually kept locked. When
the cleansing was finished, the furniture was replaced,
except this trunk, which its bulk, the indolence of the
servant, and.her opinion of its uselessness, occasioned
her to leave in the closet.
About a week after this, on a Saturday evening, Craig
invited to sup with him a friend who was to embark, on
the ensuing Monday, for Jamaica. During supper, at
which the family were present, the discourse turned on
the voyage on which the guest was about to enter. In
the course of talk, the stranger expressed how much he