“I have here,” he said, “a letter that I got yesterday from widow Ericson.  It is a letter addressed to her husband, Sandy Ericson, and it was written by Ephraim Quendale on the eve of his departure from Kirkwall to Copenhagen.  I will read it: 

“’Pilot Ericson—­

“’I have been fortunate enough to find a ship in this port bound for my own land.  We sail this morning for Copenhagen, and I shall not be able to see you to thank you personally for what you have done for me in my hour of misfortune.  But I shall be back again in your island, please God, in a few weeks’ time.  I beg that you will do me the goodness to have my beloved wife’s name, Thora Quendale, inscribed on the tombstone, and also that you will take charge of all wreckage that may be gathered from the remains of my poor ship.  I grieve sorely that you were unable to find the body of the other child; for I still have my doubts, notwithstanding that the woman Kinlay was so positive that the child we buried was not her own.  It was sad that the little head was so disfigured.  The eyes would have proved all to me.  My own darling’s eyes were heavenly blue, like her mother’s.  Should you discover the other body, I beg you will write me a full description of its appearance and forward it by the first ship to me, at Copenhagen, in Denmark.

“‘Ephraim Quendale’”

The schoolmaster handed the letter to Bailie Duke, who read it over to himself and asked a few questions regarding its contents.

“Mr. Quendale never returned to Orkney?” said he.

“No,” replied the dominie.

“Strange.  And did Pilot Ericson never hear from him?”

“Never.”

“And what about the wreckage?”

“There was none of special value,” said Andrew.  “This box that we have here is, I believe, the only thing of value that remained, and, as you know, it was only discovered a few days since.”

“But Kinlay appears to have known of it,” observed Mr. Duke.

“Certainly he knew of it,” the dominie returned; “but its value consists in the papers it contains, most of them being in the Danish language, which Kinlay was ignorant of.  Had he known that tongue he would doubtless have seen that a large number of the documents are drafts upon the National Bank of Denmark, and other claims of value.”

“Very good, Andrew; we’ll examine them afterwards,” said the magistrate.  “There was no other wreckage? no other bodies washed ashore?”

“No.  It was while he was looking out for further remains of the wreck that Sandy Ericson discovered Carver Kinlay in the Gaulton Cave, and with him the child we know as Thora.”

“Kinlay’s own child, that is,” observed the bailie.

“I believe not, Mr. Duke,” said Andrew.  “She is the daughter of this Mr. Quendale, the owner of the wrecked ship.”

“Indeed!  You believe that, Andrew?”

“I firmly believe it.”

“Had we not better send for Mrs. Kinlay, to hear what she has to say on the matter?” said Mr. Duke.