We did not lose any time in examining the chests.

With the tools which we had brought with us we opened them, one by one, and treated them as we had treated those others in the old chapel.

It was evident to us that the Count was not at present in the house, and we proceeded to search for any of his effects.
After a cursory glance at the rest of the rooms, from basement to attic, we came to the conclusion that the dining room contained any effects which might belong to the Count.

And so we proceeded to minutely examine them.

They lay in a sort of orderly disorder on the great dining room table.
There were title deeds of the Piccadilly house in a great bundle, deeds of the purchase of the houses at Mile End and Bermondsey, notepaper, envelopes, and pens and ink.