ON THE WATCH. 
low, under the mattress, under the bed, he even put 
his fingei’ into some large rat holes, about the corners 
of the room, and said tiie rcits must have run off with 
it. Our reply was ; Time’s up. Coiue out into th© 
verandah and be tied up for your march ; the ropes 
are ready.” On hearing this, he frantically pulled out 
the dressing-table drawery and says, “Master, look,” 
and inside the drawer, sure enough, ticking away in 
calm repose, lay the watch ! The watch was found, 
much to our joy, and the coolies dismissed to their 
work, much to their sorrow! 
We saw through the whole affair at a glance.^ When 
absent at muster, Pieris had put the watch in the 
drawer, and if, as was customary, we had gone out 
with the coolies over the bill, both Pieris and the watch 
would have disappeared, and never more been heard 
of, and the reason he was so unusually busy sweep- 
ing the verandah was to watch master’s motions. 
The affair of the watch put us on th© watch. So one 
Sunday Pieris was sent down to make some purchases 
in the bazar, and told not to tie up the kitchen 
door, as he would be at home all day,, and would require 
a fire-stick occasionally. After he was fairly gone, 
we made a thorough examination of the kitchen, but 
found nothing, only a goed big strong wooden box be- 
longing to Peris, which was locked. We all know what 
sort of locks some of these people used to have, and 
perhaps still have, on their boxes ; any key that will 
go into the hole and turn round will unlock it, so we pull 
out our own bunch of keys, and try them on the lock. One 
won’t go in, another is too small, another turns round 
and round in the lock, w^e are beginning to dfspair, 
when the next opens it with a click, just as if it had 
been made for it. The box was well filled, shirts, 
pocket handkerchiefs, under ffannel shirts, in fact a mis- 
cellaneous supply of everything, and all our property!; 
and if there could be any doubt about it that was 
solved by the marking of the initials in the corners,. 
The box is locked, and we keep our own counsek 
On the return of Pieris nothing at all is said on the 
subject. The next morning, after muster, a eooly is 
sent off to Pus^ellawa for a policeman, privarely. 
On bis arrival the whole circumstance is explained, 
upon which, two coolies are called to the bun- 
galow as witnesses,, Peris, who is sitting smoking 
in the kitchen, is suddenly pounced upon, and 
ordered to open his box, which he refuses to do, and 
is extremely indignant. The key however is dangling 
from bis waist belt, and is taken oy the constable, wha 
opens tbe box and reveals all. Pieris now bewails his 
hard fate that some enemy must have done this to ruin 
him, for he bad uot looked into that box for many a 
