’The next day, Arthur, though still feeble, was able to walk about his apartments.  Toward dusk, a letter arrived from Adele.  She announced her safe arrival at Toluca, spoke in terms of praise of Pepito’s devotion and attention, and expressed herself agreeably surprised at the hospitality she had received from his sister.  The receipt of this letter produced a marked improvement in my patient’s health.  In a postscript, reference was made to an accident which had happened to poor Pepito, who was prevented from being the bearer of this letter, by having sprained his ankle.  This would retard his return to the city for a day or two; nevertheless, she begged her ‘dear Arthur’ not to be uneasy, as even this delay, annoying as it was, might prove of advantage, as it would give him time to recover from the effects of the excitement of the past few days.

’After Adele’s departure, I again fastened up the door of communication, and although I saw him at least once every day, to some extent I carried out my determination of ceasing to be on such intimate terms with Mr. Livermore.  I fell back into my former course of life, and yet I felt a certain envy of the colossal fortune upon which he had, as it were, stumbled.  Though I sincerely wished my poor sick neighbor might succeed in his enterprise, I gradually grew restless and morose.  The opal-mine became a painful and distasteful topic of conversation, and as Arthur invariably adverted to it in some way or other, I by degrees made my visits of shorter and shorter duration.

’In vain I strove to divert my mind from this one absorbing idea.  I visited the theatres, attended cock-pits and bull-fights, in the hope that the excitement would afford me relief from the fascinating spell:  but it was useless, I was a haunted man.

’One night, returning from the opera, at about ten o’clock, I was stopped by a large crowd at the corner of the Calle Plateros.  From an officer near me, I ascertained that a foreigner, believed to be a heretic, had been stabbed, and was either dead or dying.

’The next morning, in the Diario de Gobierno, which Donna Teresa brought up with my chocolate, I learned that ’at about ten on the previous night, an American, named Percival, recently arrived from New-Orleans, was murdered in the Calle Plateros.’  His watch and purse were missing; it was therefore inferred that robbery and not revenge had prompted the foul deed.

’I instantly summoned Donna Teresa, and requested her to take the paper, which I marked, to Mr. Livermore; and as soon as my breakfast was over, I hastened to make my usual call.  I found him looking very sombre.

‘’God is my witness!’ he exclaimed, the instant I entered the room, ’that I did not seek this poor unfortunate man’s death; but it relieves Adele from all fear.  Have you heard any details of the event?’

’’I have not; but assassination is not so rare here that you need be under any fear about it.  No suspicion can possibly attach to you.’