"Yes, quite so; now do you think that any lady wears feathers on the
right side of her hat?"
"No,--now I come to think of it, ladies usually wear feathers on the
left side of their hats," Monk said, looking uncertainly at us both.
"_Usually_, do you say? Not at all! No lady ever wears feathers on the
right side."
"There may be something in what you say, Mrs. Viller," Monk's voice was
still somewhat uncertain; "but this is of course only the little wing of
a woodcock, and Evelina--Miss Frick--I mean the lady in the
photograph--might for once have placed it on the other side."
"Not to mention," I added, "that the lady in a hurry might have put on
the hat the wrong way."
"That is exactly the argument I expected!" shouted Clara, triumphantly.
"That's just the way men argue; but see here! Here is the selfsame hat
which Evelina and Sigrid wore that day the diamond was stolen. Now you
can see for yourselves!"
She tore the paper off the parcel and drew out a little green felt hat
with a brown wing in it, and showed it to Monk.
Monk jumped up and clutched the hat greedily. His hands trembled with
excitement.
"I have bought it from Mrs. Reierson to-day," continued Clara. "I
pretended that a rich English lady was collecting curiosities from
celebrated trials. As it was fortunately rather far on in the quarter, I
could see that Mrs. Reierson was apparently in great need of money. She
was even sober."
Monk sat with the hat in his hand, staring at it; I went up to him.
"The feather is sewn fast," he muttered, "and there are no signs that it
has ever been fixed on the other side."
"But what if she had put on the hat the wrong way?"
Clara laughed heartily.
"Here, you shall see for yourselves!" She snatched the hat out of
Monk's hand and set it on her own head.