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diff --git a/44751.txt b/44751.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ed3f674..0000000 --- a/44751.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,10085 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Search Party, by G. A. Birmingham - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Search Party - -Author: G. A. Birmingham - -Release Date: January 25, 2014 [EBook #44751] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SEARCH PARTY *** - - - - -Produced by Robert Cicconetti, Fred Salzer and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - - THE SEARCH PARTY - - BY - - G. A. BIRMINGHAM - - AUTHOR OF "SPANISH GOLD," "LALAGE'S LOVERS," - "THE SIMPKINS PLOT," ETC. - - [Illustration] - - HODDER & STOUGHTON - - NEW YORK - - GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY - - - - -THE SEARCH PARTY - - - - -THE SEARCH PARTY - - - - -CHAPTER I - - -Dr. O'Grady, Dr. Lucius O'Grady, was the medical officer of the Poor -Law Union of Clonmore, which is in Western Connacht. The office is -not like that of resident magistrate or bank manager. It does not -necessarily confer on its holder the right of entry to the highest -society. Therefore, Dr. O'Grady was not invited to dinner, luncheon, -or even afternoon tea by Lord Manton at that season of the year when -Clonmore Castle was full of visitors. Lady Flavia Canning, Lord -Manton's daughter, who was married to a London barrister of some -distinction, and moved in smart society, did not appreciate Dr. -O'Grady. Nor did those nephews and nieces of the deceased Lady Manton -who found it convenient to spend a part of each summer at Clonmore -Castle. They were not the sort of people who would associate with a -dispensary doctor, unless, indeed, he had possessed a motor car. And -Dr. O'Grady, for reasons which became obvious later on, did not keep a -motor car. - -On the other hand, he was a frequent guest at the Castle during those -early summer months when Lord Manton was alone. In April and May, for -instance, and in June, Dr. O'Grady dined once, twice, or even three -times a week at Clonmore Castle. The old earl liked him because he -found him amusing; and Dr. O'Grady had a feeling for his host as -nearly approaching respect as it was in his nature to entertain for -any man. This respect was not of the kind which every elderly earl -would have appreciated. The doctor was constitutionally incapable of -understanding the innate majesty of a peerage, and had not the smallest -veneration for grey hairs in man or woman. Nor was he inclined to bow -before any moral superiority in Lord Manton. In fact, Lord Manton, -though grown too old for the lavish wildness of his earlier years, -made no pretence at morality or dignity of any kind. What Dr. O'Grady -respected and liked in him was a certain cynical frankness, a hinted -contempt for all ordinary standards of respectability. This suited -well enough the doctor's own volatile indifference to anything which -threatened to bore him. - -When Lord Manton returned to Clonmore in May, 1905, after his usual -visit to his daughter in Grosvenor Street, he at once asked Dr. -O'Grady to dinner. There was on this occasion a special reason for the -invitation, though doubtless it would have been given and accepted -without any reason. Lord Manton wanted to know all that could be known -about a new tenant who had taken Rosivera for six months. Rosivera, -long used as a dower house by Lord Manton's ancestors, was not an easy -place to let. It stood eight miles from the village of Clonmore, on -the shore of a small land-locked bay. It was a singularly unattractive -building, rectangular, grey, four storeys high, and lit by small -ineffective windows. There was no shooting connected with it nor any -fishing of the kind appreciated by a sportsman. There were, it was -believed, small flat fish to be caught in the bay, but no one thought -it worth while to pursue these creatures earnestly. Occasionally an -adventurous Englishman, cherishing some romantic idea of the west of -Ireland, rented the house for August and September. Occasionally a -wealthy Dublin doctor brought his family there for six weeks. None of -these tenants ever came a second time. The place was too solitary for -the social, too ugly for the amateurs of the picturesque, utterly dull -for the sportsman, and had not even the saving grace of an appeal to -the romantic. The mother and grandmother of Lord Manton had died there, -but in the odour of moderate sanctity. Their ghosts wandered down no -corridors. Indeed, no ghosts could have haunted, no tradition attached -itself to a house with the shape and appearance of Rosivera. - -There was, therefore, something interesting and curious in the fact -that a tenant had taken the place for six months and had settled down -there early in March, a time of year at which even a hermit, vowed to a -life entirely devoid of incident, might have hesitated to fix his cell -at Rosivera. - -"The first thing that struck me as queer about the man," said Lord -Manton, after dinner, "was his name. Did you ever hear of anybody -called Red? Scarlett, of course, is comparatively common." - -"So is Black," said Dr. O'Grady, "and Brown, and Grey, and White. I've -heard of Pink, and I once met a man called Blue, but he spelt it 'ew.'" - -"Guy Theodore Red is this man's name. Guy and Theodore are all right, -of course, but Red----!" - -"Is he safe for the rent, do you think?" - -"He has paid the whole six months in advance," said Lord Manton, "and -he never asked a question about the drains. He's the only tenant I ever -heard of who didn't make himself ridiculous about drains." - -"He hasn't got typhoid yet," said Dr. O'Grady. "If he's the kind of man -who pays six months' rent in advance and asks no questions, I hope he -soon will." - -"Unfortunately for you he seems to have neither wife nor children." - -"No, nor as much as a maid-servant," said Dr. O'Grady. "And from the -look of him, I'd say he was a tough old cock himself, the sort of man a -microbe would hesitate about attacking." - -"You've seen him, then?" - -"I happened to be standing at Jimmy O'Loughlin's door the day he drove -through in his motor car." - -"You would be, of course." - -"But I've never seen him since. Nobody has. He has a servant, an -Englishman, I'm told, who comes into the village every second day in -the motor, and buys what's wanted for the house at Jimmy O'Loughlin's." - -"Jimmy makes a good thing out of that, I expect," said Lord Manton. - -"Believe you me, he does. Jimmy's the boy who knows how to charge, and -these people don't seem to care what they pay." - -"I hear he has two friends with him." - -"He has, foreigners, both of them. Jimmy O'Loughlin says they can't -either of them speak English. It was Jimmy who carted their things down -to Rosivera from the station, so of course he'd know." - -"Byrne told me that," said Lord Manton, chuckling as he spoke. "There -seems to have been some queer things to be carted." - -The conversation turned on Mr. Red's belongings, the personal luggage -which the English servant had brought in the train, the packing-cases -which had followed the next day and on many subsequent days. Byrne, -it appeared, had also met Mr. Red and his party on their arrival; but, -then, Byrne had a legitimate excuse wherewith to cover his curiosity. -He was Lord Manton's steward, and it was his business to put the new -tenant in possession of Rosivera. He had given a full report of Mr. -Red, the foreign friends and the English servant, to Lord Manton. He -had described the packing-cases which, day after day, were carted from -the railway station by Jimmy O'Loughlin. They were, according to Byrne, -of unusual size and great weight. There were altogether twenty-five -of them. It was Byrne's opinion that they contained pianos. The -station-master, who had to drag them out of the train, agreed with him. -Jimmy O'Loughlin and his man, who had ample opportunities of examining -them on the way to Rosivera, thought they were full of machinery, -possibly steam engines, or as they expressed it, "the makings of some -of them motor cars." - -"No man," said Lord Manton, commenting on this information, "even if -his name happens to be Red, can possibly want twenty-five grand pianos -in Rosivera." - -"Unless he came down here with the intention of composing an opera," -said Dr. O'Grady. - -"Even then--three, four, anything up to six I could understand, but -twenty-five! No opera could require that. As for those cases containing -steam engines or bits of motor cars, what on earth could a manufacturer -of such things be doing at Rosivera?" - -"My own belief," said Dr. O'Grady, "is that the man is an artist--a -sculptor, engaged in the production of a statue of unusual size." - -"With blocks of marble in the packing-cases?" - -"Yes, and the two foreigners for models. They look like models. One -of them had a long black beard, and the other was a big man, well -over six foot, blond, seemed to be a Norwegian; not that I ever saw a -Norwegian to my knowledge, but this fellow looked like the kind of man -a Norwegian ought to be." - -"It will be a pretty big statue," said Lord Manton, "if it absorbs -twenty-five blocks of marble, each the size of a grand piano." - -"He looked like an artist," said Dr. O'Grady; "he had a pointed beard, -and a wild expression in his eye." - -"A genius escaped from somewhere, perhaps." - -"He very well might be. Indeed, I'd say from the glimpse I had of him -that he's worse than a genius. He had the eye of a mad gander. But, -of course, I only saw him the once, sitting in his motor, the day -he arrived. He hasn't stirred out of Rosivera since, and, as I said -before, I haven't been sent for to attend him for anything." - -"The queerest thing about him was the message he sent me," said Lord -Manton. "By way of doing the civil thing, I told Byrne to say that I -should make a point of calling on him as soon as I got home." - -"And he sent you word that he'd be thankful if you'd stay away and not -bother him. I heard all about that. Byrne was furious. That is just one -of the things which makes me feel sure he's a genius. Nobody except a -genius or a socialist would have sent a message of that kind to you; -and he clearly isn't a socialist. If he was, he couldn't afford to pay -six months' rent in advance for Rosivera." - -Dr. O'Grady spoke confidently. He was not personally acquainted with -any of the numerous men of genius in Ireland, but he had read about -them in newspapers and was aware that they differed in many respects -from other men. No ordinary man, that is to say, no one who is -perfectly sane, would refuse to receive a visit from an earl. Mr. Red -had refused, and so, since he was not a socialist, he must be a genius. -The reasoning was perfectly convincing. - -"I expect," said Lord Manton, "that his statue, in spite of its -immense size, will be a melancholy object to look at. Rosivera is the -most depressing place I know. It was built to serve as a dower house -by my grandfather, and he evidently chose the site and the style of -architecture with a view to making his widow feel really sorry he was -dead. If I had a wife whom I disliked intensely I should try to die -at once so that she should have as long a time as possible to live at -Rosivera." - -"I wouldn't care to spend a winter alone there," said Dr. O'Grady, "and -I'm a man of fairly cheerful disposition." - -"I suppose there's a lot of talk about Red in the village?" - -"There was at first; but the people are getting a bit sick of him now. -It's a long time since he's done anything the least exciting. About a -fortnight after he came he sent a telegram which had the whole place -fizzing for awhile." - -Telegrams in the west of Ireland, are, of course, public property. So -are postcards and the contents of the parcels carried by his Majesty's -mails. Lord Manton, whose taste for the details of local gossip was -strongly developed, asked what Mr. Red's telegram was about. - -"That's what nobody could tell," said Dr. O'Grady. "It began with -four letters, A.M.B.A., and then came a lot of figures. Father Moroney -worked at it for the best part of two hours, with the help of a Latin -dictionary, but he could make no more out of it than I could myself." - -"Cipher," said Lord Manton; "probably quite a simple cipher if you'd -known how to go about reading it." - -"At the end of the week, another packing-case arrived, carriage paid -from London. It was as big as any of the first lot. Byrne and I went -up to the station to see it before Jimmy O'Loughlin carted it down to -Rosivera. He seemed to think that it was another piano. Since then -nothing of any sort has happened, and the people have pretty well given -over talking about the man." - -Lord Manton yawned. Like the other inhabitants of Clonmore he was -beginning to get tired of Mr. Red and his affairs. A stranger is only -interesting when there are things about him which can be found out. If -his affairs are public property he becomes commonplace and dull. If, on -the other hand, it is manifestly impossible to discover anything about -him, if he sends his telegrams in cipher, employs a remarkably taciturn -servant to do his marketing, and never appears in public himself, he -becomes in time quite as tiresome as the man who has no secrets at all. - -"Any other news about the place?" asked Lord Manton. "You needn't -mention Jimmy O'Loughlin's wife's baby. Byrne told me about it." - -"It's the tenth," said Dr. O'Grady, "the tenth boy." - -"So I believe." - -"Well, there's nothing else, except the election of the inspector of -sheep dipping. I needn't tell you that there's been plenty of talk -about that." - -"So I gathered," said Lord Manton, "from the number of candidates for -the post who wrote to me asking me to back them up. I think there were -eleven of them." - -"I hear that you supported Patsy Devlin, the smith. He's a drunken -blackguard." - -"That's why I wrote him the letter of recommendation. There's a lot of -stupid talk nowadays about the landlords having lost all their power -in the country. It's not a bit true. They have plenty of power, more -than they ever had, if they only knew how to use it. All I have to do -if I want a particular man not to be appointed to anything is to write -a strong letter in his favour to the Board of Guardians or the County -Council, or whatever body is doing the particular job that happens to -be on hand at the time. The League comes down on my man at once and he -hasn't the ghost of a chance. That's the beauty of being thoroughly -unpopular. Three years ago you were made dispensary doctor here chiefly -because I used all my influence on behalf of the other two candidates. -They were both men with bad records. It was just the same in this -sheep-dipping business. I didn't care who was appointed so long as it -wasn't Patsy Devlin. I managed the labourers' cottages on the same -principle. There were two different pieces of land where I particularly -objected to their building cottages. I offered them those two without -waiting to be asked. Of course, they wouldn't have them, insisted in -fact on getting another bit of land altogether, thinking they were -annoying me. I was delighted. That's the way to manage things nowadays." - -"Do you suppose," said Dr. O'Grady, "that if I wrote to Mr. Red saying -I sincerely hoped he wouldn't get typhoid for a fortnight, because I -wanted to go away for a holiday--do you suppose he'd get it to spite -me?" - -"That's the worst of men in your profession. You're always wanting -everybody to be ill. It's most unchristian." - -"I want Red to get typhoid," said Dr. O'Grady, "because he's the only -man in the neighbourhood except yourself who would pay me for curing -him." - - - - -CHAPTER II - - -Dr. O'Grady spoke the simple truth when he said that the people of -Clonmore had ceased to take any interest in Mr. Red and his household. -The election of an inspector of sheep dipping, a man from their own -midst to a post with a salary attached to it, was a far more exciting -thing than the eccentricity of a chance stranger. When the election was -over a new and more thrilling matter engaged their attention. Mr. Red -was entirely forgotten. The monotonous regularity of the visits of the -silent English servant to Jimmy O'Loughlin's shop no longer attracted -attention. The equally monotonous regularity of his cash payments for -the goods he took away with him was extremely satisfactory to Jimmy -O'Loughlin, but gave absolutely no occasion for gossip. The man who -makes debts and does not pay them is vastly more interesting to his -neighbours than the morbidly honest individual who will not owe a penny. - -Dr. O'Grady owed a good deal, and just at the time of Lord Manton's -return to Clonmore, his money difficulties reached the point at which -they began to attract public attention. Like most good-humoured and -easy-going men, Dr. O'Grady lived beyond his income. There was a good -deal of excuse for him. He enjoyed, as dispensary doctor, a salary of -L120 a year. He received from Lord Manton an additional L30 for looking -after the health of the gardeners, grooms, indoor servants and others -employed about Clonmore Castle. He would have been paid extra guineas -for attending Lord Manton himself if the old gentleman had ever been -ill. He could count with tolerable certainty on two pounds a year for -ushering into the world young O'Loughlins. Nobody else in his district -ever paid him anything. - -It is unquestionably possible to live on L152 a year. Many men, -curates for instance, live on less; face the world in tolerably -clean collars and succeed in looking as if they generally had enough -to eat. But Dr. O'Grady was not the kind of man who enjoys small -economies, and he had certain expensive tastes. He liked to have a -good horse between the shafts of a smart trap when he went his rounds. -He liked to see the animal's coat glossy and the harness shining. He -preferred good whisky to bad, and smoked tobacco at 10_s._ 6_d._ a -pound. He was particular about the cut of his clothes and had a fine -taste in striped and spotted waistcoats. He also--quite privately, -for in the west of Ireland no one would admit that he threw away his -money wantonly--bought a few books every year. The consequence was -inevitable. Dr. O'Grady got into debt. At first, indeed for more than -two years, his debts, though they increased rapidly, did not cause any -uneasiness to his creditors. Then a suspicious tailor began to press -rudely for the payment of a long account. Other tradesmen, all of -them strangers who did not know Dr. O'Grady personally, followed the -tailor's example. A Dublin gentleman of large fortune and philanthropic -tastes, a Mr. Lorraine Vavasour, having somehow heard of these -embarrassments, offered to lend Dr. O'Grady any sum from L10 to L1000 -privately, without security, and on the understanding that repayment -should be made quite at the borrower's convenience. - -There was an agreeable settlement with the tailor who lost Dr. -O'Grady's custom for ever, and with several others. Life for a time -was pleasant and untroubled. Then Mr. Lorraine Vavasour began to act -unreasonably. His ideas of the payment of instalments turned out to -be anything but suitable to Dr. O'Grady's convenience. The good horse -was sold at a loss. The competent groom was replaced for an inferior -and cheaper man. Mr. Lorraine Vavasour showed no signs of being -propitiated by these sacrifices. He continued to harass his victim with -a persistency which would have made most men miserable and driven some -men to excessive drinking. Dr. O'Grady remained perfectly cheerful. -He had the temperament of an unconquerable optimist. He used even to -show Mr. Vavasour's worst letters to Jimmy O'Loughlin, and make jokes -about them. This, as it turned out afterwards, was an unwise thing to -do. Jimmy himself had a long account against the doctor standing in his -books. - -After awhile the miserable screw which succeeded the good horse in -Dr. O'Grady's stable was sold. The smart trap and harness were sold. -The incompetent substitute for the groom was dismissed. Dr. O'Grady -endeavoured to do his work with no better means of getting about than -a dilapidated bicycle. It was generally known that his affairs had -reached a crisis. His housekeeper left him and engaged a solicitor -to write letters in the hope of obtaining the wages due to her. It -seemed very unlikely that she would get them. Mr. Lorraine Vavasour -was before her with a claim which the furniture of Dr. O'Grady's house -would certainly not satisfy. Jimmy O'Loughlin was before her too. -He would have been willing enough to wait for years, and if left to -himself would not have driven a friend to extremities for the sake of -a few pounds. But when he saw that Mr. Vavasour meant to use all the -resources of the law against Dr. O'Grady he thought it a pity to let -a complete stranger get the little there was to get. He apologized to -Dr. O'Grady and summoned him before the County Court judge. The usual -things happened. The end appeared to be at hand, and the Board of -Guardians began to discuss the appointment of a new dispensary doctor. - -It is very much to the credit of Dr. O'Grady that, under these -circumstances, he slept soundly at night in his solitary house; rose -cheerful in the morning and met his fellow-men with a smile on his -face. He continued to dine frequently at Clonmore Castle, and Lord -Manton noticed that his appetite improved instead of failing as his -troubles increased. In fact, Dr. O'Grady frequently went hungry at -this time, and Lord Manton's dinners were almost the only solid meals -he got. Then, just before the bailiffs took possession of his house -a curious way of escape opened. It was at the beginning of August. -Dr. O'Grady spent the evening reading a new book about germ plasm, -pan-genesis, determinates, and other interesting things connected with -the study of heredity. He was obliged to go to bed early because his -lamp went out at ten o'clock and he had no oil with which to refill -it. Once in bed he went comfortably to sleep. At two o'clock in the -morning he was roused by a ponderous, measured knocking at his door. He -used the sort of language commonly employed by doctors who are roused -at unseemly hours. The knocking continued, a series of heavy detached -blows, struck slowly at regular intervals. Dr. O'Grady got up, put his -head out of the window, and made the usual inquiry-- - -"Who the devil's that? And what do you want?" - -"It is I. Guy Theodore Red." - -Even then, freshly roused from sleep, Dr. O'Grady was struck by the -answer he received. Very few men, in search of a doctor at two o'clock -in the morning, are so particular about grammar as to say, "It is -I!" And the words were spoken in a solemn tone which seemed quite -congruous with the measured and stately manner in which the door had -been hammered. Dr. O'Grady put on a pair of trousers and a shirt, ran -downstairs and opened the door. Mr. Red stood rigid like a soldier at -attention on the doorstep. In the middle of the road was the motor car -in which the English servant used to drive into Clonmore to do his -marketing. - -"Is it typhoid?" said Dr. O'Grady; "for if it is I ought to have been -sent for sooner." - -"No." - -"It can't be a midwifery case in your house?" - -"No." - -"You're very uncommunicative," said Dr. O'Grady. "What is it?" - -"A gun accident." - -"Very well. Why couldn't you have said so before? Wait a minute." - -Dr. O'Grady hurried into his surgery, collected a few instruments -likely to be useful, some lint, iodoform, and other things. He stuffed -these into a bag, slipped on a few more clothes and an overcoat. -Then he left the house. He found Mr. Red sitting bolt upright in the -motor car with his hands on the steering wheel. Dr. O'Grady got in -beside him. During the drive Mr. Red did not speak a single word. He -did not even answer questions. Dr. O'Grady was left entirely to his -own thoughts. The fresh air had thoroughly awakened him, and, being -naturally a man of active mind, he thought a good deal. It occurred to -him at once that though gun accidents are common enough in the daytime -they very rarely occur in the middle of the night. Good men go to bed -before twelve o'clock, and no men, either good or bad, habitually clean -guns or go out shooting between midnight and two A.M. Dr. O'Grady began -to wonder how the accident had happened. It also struck him that Mr. -Red's manners were peculiar. The man showed no sign of excitement. He -was not exactly rude. He was not, so far as Dr. O'Grady could judge, in -a bad temper. He was simply pompous, more pompous than any one whom Dr. -O'Grady had ever met before. He seemed to be obsessed with an idea of -his own enormous importance. - -The impression was not removed when the car drew up at Rosivera. -Mr. Red blew three slow blasts on the horn, stepped out of the car, -stalked up to the door, and then stood, as he had stood in front of Dr. -O'Grady's house, upright, rigid, his arms stretched stiffly along his -sides. The door was opened by the foreigner with the long black beard. -No word was spoken. Mr. Red raised his left hand and made some passes -in the air. His bearded friend raised his left hand and imitated the -passes with perfect solemnity. Mr. Red crossed the threshold, turned, -and solemnly beckoned to Dr. O'Grady to follow him. - -"I see," said the doctor, in a cheerful, conversational tone, "that you -are all Freemasons here. It's an interesting profession. Or should I -call it a religion? I'm not one myself. I always heard it involved a -man in a lot of subscriptions to charities." - -Mr. Red made no reply. He crossed the hall, flung open a door with -a magnificent gesture, and motioned Dr. O'Grady to enter the -dining-room. The doctor hesitated for a moment. He was not a nervous -man, but he was startled by what he saw. The room was brightly lit with -four large lamps. The walls were hung with crimson cloth on which were -embroidered curious beasts, something like crocodiles, but with much -longer legs than crocodiles have, and with forked tongues. They were -all bright yellow, and stood out vividly from their crimson background. - -"Enter," said Mr. Red. - -Dr. O'Grady faced the crocodiles. In the course of his medical -experience he had often met men who had seen such beasts in unlikely -places and been haunted by them unpleasantly; but his own conscience -was clear. He was strictly temperate, and he knew that the pictures on -the walls in front of him could not be a symptom of delirium. Mr. Red -followed him into the room and shut the door. It was painted crimson on -the inside, and a large yellow crocodile crawled across it. - -"I suppose," said Dr. O'Grady, "that you got leave from Lord Manton to -paper and paint the house. I dare say this sort of thing"--he waved his -hand towards the crocodile on the door, which was surrounded with a -litter of repulsive young ones--"is the latest thing in art; but you'll -excuse my saying that it's not precisely comfortable or soothing. -I hope you don't intend to include one of those beasts in your new -statue." - -Mr. Red made no reply. He crossed the room, opened a cupboard, and -took out of it a bottle and some glasses. He set them on the table and -poured out some wine. Dr. O'Grady, watching his movements, was inclined -to revise the opinion that he had formed during the drive. Mr. Red was -not merely pompous. He was majestic. - -"Drink," said Mr. Red. - -Dr. O'Grady looked at the wine dubiously. It was bright green. He was -accustomed to purple, yellow, and even white beverages. He did not like -the look of the stuff in the glass in front of him. - -"If," he said, "that is the liqueur which the French drink, absinthe, -or whatever they call it, I think I won't venture on a whole claret -glass of it. I'm a temperate man, and I must keep my hand steady if -I'm to spend the rest of the night picking grains of shot out of your -friend." - -"Drink," said Mr. Red again. - -Dr. O'Grady felt that it was time to assert himself. He was a friendly -and good-tempered man, but he did not like being ordered about in -monosyllables. - -"Look here," he said, "I'm not a Freemason, or a Rosicrucian, or -an Esoteric Buddhist, or the Grand Llama of Thibet, or anything of -that kind. I don't deny that your manner may be all right with other -sculptors, or with those who are initiated into your secrets, and I -dare say you have to live up to this thing in order to produce really -first-rate statues. But I'm only an ordinary doctor and I'm not -accustomed to it. If you have whisky or any other civilized drink, I -don't mind taking a drop before I see the patient; but I'm not going -to run the risk of intoxicating myself with some strange spirit. And -what's more, I'm not going to be talked to as if you were a newly -invented kind of automatic machine that can only utter one word at a -time and won't say that unless a penny has been dropped into the slot." - -"Your fee," said Mr. Red, laying an envelope on the table. - -Dr. O'Grady took it up and opened it. It contained a ten pound Bank of -England note. His slight irritation passed away at once. Never before -in the course of his career as a doctor had he received so large a fee. -Then a sharp suspicion crossed his mind. A fee of such extravagant -amount must be meant to purchase something else besides his medical -skill. Men, even if they are as rich as Mr. Red appeared to be, even -if they have the eyes of a mad gander and an eccentric taste in house -decoration, do not pay ten pounds to a country doctor for dressing a -wound. Dr. O'Grady began to wonder whether he might not be called upon -to deal with the victim of some kind of foul play, whether he were -being paid to keep his mouth shut. - -"Follow me," said Mr. Red. - -Dr. O'Grady followed him out of the dining-room and up two flights of -stairs. He made up his mind that his silence, supposing silence to be -possible, was worth more than ten pounds. He determined to keep Mr. -Red's secret if it did not turn out to be a very gruesome one, but -to make Mr. Red pay handsomely. One hundred pounds was the amount he -fixed on. That sum, divided between Mr. Lorraine Vavasour and Jimmy -O'Loughlin, would pacify them both for a time. - -Mr. Red stopped outside a bedroom door, and Dr. O'Grady saw on it four -large white letters, A.M.B.A. Mr. Red opened the door. On a bed at the -far end of the room lay the servant who used to drive into Clonmore and -buy things at Jimmy O'Loughlin's shop. He was lying face downwards and -groaning. - -"Exert your skill as a physician," said Mr. Red, waving his hand in the -direction of the bed. - -"Don't you be a damneder ass than you can help," said Dr. O'Grady -cheerfully. - -He crossed the room and examined the man on the bed. - -"Look here," he said, turning to Mr. Red, "you told me that this man -was suffering from the result of an accident he had had with a gun. -Well, he isn't. I defy any man to scorch the skin off the backs of both -his own legs with a gun. The thing simply couldn't be done." - -"Exert your skill as a physician, and be silent," said Mr. Red. - -"You may fancy yourself to be the Cham of Tartary," said Dr. O'Grady, -"or Augustus Caesar, or Napoleon Bonaparte, or a Field Marshal in the -army of the Emperor of Abyssinia, but you've got to give some account -of how that man flayed the backs of his legs or else I'll have the -police in here to-morrow." - -Mr. Red smiled, waved his hand loftily, and left the room. - -Dr. O'Grady, his professional instinct aroused, proceeded to dress the -man's wounds. They were not dangerous, but they were extremely painful, -and at first the doctor asked no questions. At length his curiosity -became too strong for him. - -"How did you get yourself into such a devil of a state?" he asked. - -The man groaned. - -"It looks to me," said Dr. O'Grady, "as if you'd sat down in a bath of -paraffin oil and then struck a match on the seat of your breeches. Was -that how it happened?" - -The man groaned again. - -"If it wasn't that," said Dr. O'Grady, "you must have tied a string -round your ankles, stuffed the legs of your trousers with boxes of -matches, and then rubbed yourself against something until they went -off. I can't imagine anything else that could have got you into the -state that you're in." - -"I was smoking," said the man at last, "in the Chamber of Research." - -"In the what?" - -"It's what 'e calls it," said the man. "I don't know no other name for -it." - -"Perhaps the floor of the Chamber of Research was covered with -gunpowder behind where you were standing, and you dropped a lighted -match into it." - -"'Ow was I to know the stuff would go off?" - -"If you knew it was gunpowder," said Dr. O'Grady, "you might have -guessed it would go off if you dropped a match into it." - -"It weren't gunpowder, not likely. It were some bloomin' stuff 'e made. -'E's always messing about making stuff, and none of it ever went off -before." - -"If you mean Mr. Red," said Dr. O'Grady, "I can quite imagine that the -stuff he made wouldn't go off. Unless, of course, it was intended not -to. From what I've seen of him so far, I should say that his notion -of manufacturing dynamite would be to take a hundredweight or so of -toothpowder, and say to it, 'Powder, explode.' Still, you ought to have -been more careful." - -"'E's a damned ass," said the man. - -"He is," said Dr. O'Grady. "Still, even an ass, if he goes on -experimenting for four months in a chamber specially set apart for -research, is sure to hit upon something that will explode by the end -of the time. By the way, do you happen to know where he got that -dining-room wall-paper with the crocodiles on it?" - -The door opened and Mr. Red stalked into the room. - -"Follow me," he said to Dr. O'Grady. - -"All right. I've finished with this fellow's legs for the present. I'll -call again to-morrow afternoon, or rather, this afternoon. He'll get -along all right. There's nothing to be frightened about. You may give -him a little beef-tea and---- Damn it all! Augustus Caesar has gone! -Good-bye, my man. I'll see you again soon. I must hurry off now. It -won't do to keep the Field Marshal waiting. The crocodiles might get on -his nerves if he was left too long in the room alone with them." - - - - -CHAPTER III - - -Dr. O'Grady left the room and closed the door behind him. His spirits, -owing to the ten-pound note which lay in his breast pocket, were -cheerful. He whistled "The Minstrel Boy" as he walked along the -passage. Just as he reached that part of the tune which goes with the -discovery of the boy in the ranks of death he stopped abruptly and -swore. He was seized from behind by two men, flung to the ground with -some violence, and held there flat on his back. A few useless struggles -convinced him that he could not make good his escape. He lay still and -looked at his captors. The foreign gentleman with the long black beard -was one of them. The other was the man whom Dr. O'Grady had declared -to be a Norwegian. He was a powerful man, adorned with a mass of fair -hair which fell down over his forehead and gave him a look of unkempt -ferocity. Behind these two who knelt beside and on Dr. O'Grady stood -Mr. Red. - -"Hullo, Emperor!" said the Doctor, "what's the game now? If you want -a gladiatorial show, with me and these two swashbucklers as chief -performers, you ought to have given me fair notice. You can't expect a -man to put up much of a fight when he's caught from behind just as he's -in the middle of whistling a tune." - -"You have learned too much," said Mr. Red, with fierce intensity. -"It is necessary in the interests of the Brotherhood to secure your -silence." - -"Right," said Dr. O'Grady. "You shall secure it. One hundred and fifty -pounds down and the secrets of the Brotherhood are safe. Or if prompt -cash inconveniences you in any way, I'll be quite content with your -name on the back of a bill. Jimmy O'Loughlin would cash it." - -"I have passed judgment on you," said Mr. Red, "and the scales are -depressed on the side of mercy. Your life is spared. You remain a -captive until the plans of the Brotherhood are matured and discovery -can be set at defiance. Then you will be released." - -"If that's all," said Dr. O'Grady, "you needn't have knocked me down -and set these two brigands to kneel on my chest and legs. I haven't -the slightest objection to remaining a captive. I shall enjoy it. Of -course, I shall expect to be paid a reasonable fee for my time. I'm a -professional man." - -"Number 2 and Number 3," said Mr. Red, "will bind you and convey you to -the place of confinement." - -He spoke a few words to his assistants in a language which Dr. O'Grady -did not understand. Two ropes were produced. - -"If you choose to tie me up," said Dr. O'Grady, "you can do it of -course. But you'll simply be wasting time and energy. I've told you -already that I don't in the least mind being a captive. Just you tell -me the place you want me to go to, and if it isn't an insanitary, -underground dungeon, I shall step into it with the greatest pleasure, -and stay there without making the least attempt at escape as long as -you choose to go on paying me my fees." - -"Give your parole," said Mr. Red. - -"Parole? Oh, yes, of course; I know the thing you mean now. I'll give -it, certainly--swear it if you like. And now, like a good man, tell -your fair-haired pirate to get off my legs. He's hurting my left ankle -abominably." - -Mr. Red gave an order, and Dr. O'Grady was allowed to stand up. - -"Now for the cell," he said. "I know this house pretty well, and I -should suggest that you give me the two rooms on the top floor which -open into each other. And look here, Emperor, I'm a first-class -political prisoner, of course. I'm not going to do any hard labour, or -get out of bed before I want to in the morning. I must be decently fed, -and supplied with tobacco. You agree to all that I suppose?" - -"Lead the prisoner upstairs," said Mr. Red. - -"One minute," said Dr. O'Grady. "We haven't settled yet about my fee. -Let me see, what would you say--my time is valuable, you know. I have -a very extensive practice, including the nobility and gentry of the -neighbourhood; Lord Manton, for instance, and Jimmy O'Loughlin's wife. -What would you say to----? Good Lord! Emperor, put that thing down, it -might go off!" - -Mr. Red had taken a revolver from his pocket, and pointed it at Dr. -O'Grady's head. - -"Lead the prisoner upstairs," he said. - -"I'm going all right," said Dr. O'Grady. "But, like a good man, put -down that pistol. I dare say it's not loaded, and I'm sure you don't -mean to pull the trigger; but it makes me feel nervous. If you injure -me you will be in a frightful fix. There isn't another doctor nearer -than Ballymoy, and he's no good of a surgeon. Do be careful." - -Mr. Red took no notice of this remonstrance. He held the revolver at -arm's length, pointed straight at Dr. O'Grady's head. The doctor turned -quickly and walked upstairs. He was ushered into a large empty room, -and bidden to stand in a corner of it. Still covered by the threatening -revolver he watched various preparations made, first for his security, -then for his comfort. There were two windows in the room. The -black-bearded foreigner nailed barbed wire across them in such a way as -to make an entanglement through which it was impossible to thrust even -a hand. - -"That's quite unnecessary," said Dr. O'Grady. "I'm familiar with this -house, have been over it half a dozen times with Lord Manton, and I -know that there's a sheer drop of thirty feet out of those windows on -to the paved yard at the back of the house. I shouldn't dream of trying -to jump out." - -Mr. Red stood with the revolver in his hand glaring at Dr. O'Grady. His -two assistants left the room. - -"I do wish," said the doctor plaintively, "that you'd put that gun -down." - -By way of reply, Mr. Red settled himself in an heroic attitude, -something like that usually adopted by the hero on the cover of a -sixpenny novel when he is defending his lady from desperate villains. -He kept the revolver levelled at Dr. O'Grady's head. The bearded man, -Number 2, returned, dragging a small iron bedstead after him. Number 3 -followed him with a mattress, pillows, and some blankets. - -"For me?" said Dr. O'Grady. "Thanks. Now fetch a washhand-stand, a jug -and basin, a table, a couple of chairs, some food, tobacco, and a few -books. Then I'll be able to manage along all right." - -One thing after another was added to the furniture of the room until -it began to look fairly comfortable. Dr. O'Grady observed with -satisfaction that a substantial meal was spread on the table, and a box -of cigars laid on the washhand-stand. - -"Would it be any harm my asking," he said, "how long you intend to keep -me here? I have some rather pressing engagements just at present, and -I should like to have an idea when I'll get home. Of course, I don't -press the question if it inconveniences the Brotherhood to answer it -before the plans are matured." - -"You shall be paid at the rate of L4 a day during the time that you are -detained," said Mr. Red. - -"Make it L5," said Dr. O'Grady, "and I'll stay a year with you and -settle my own washing bills." - -"In four weeks," said Mr. Red, "the plans of the Brotherhood will be -matured, and you can be released." - -"I'm sorry it's no longer," said Dr. O'Grady. "The arrangement is -perfectly satisfactory to me. But look here, Emperor, have you taken -into consideration that I shall be missed? Before four weeks are out -they'll be certain to start out looking for me. Search parties will go -out with lanterns and bloodhounds. You know the kind of thing I mean. -They won't come straight here, of course; nobody has any reason to -suppose that I'm in this house; but sooner or later they certainly will -come. I don't mind telling you that there are a couple of men--Jimmy -O'Loughlin for one, and Lorraine Vavasour for another--who will be -particularly keen on finding me. What will you do when they turn up?" - -"The waters of the bay are deep," said Mr. Red grimly. "Your body will -not be found." - -"I catch your meaning all right," said Dr. O'Grady, "but I think -you'll make a mistake if you push things to extremes in that way. -You've got the usual idea into your head that Ireland is a country -in which every one kills any one they don't like, and no questions -are ever asked. I don't in the least blame you for thinking so. Any -intelligent man, reading the newspapers, would be forced to that -conclusion; but, as a matter of fact, Ireland isn't that sort of -country at all. We have our little differences with each other, of -course; all high-spirited people quarrel now and then, but we really -hardly ever drown anybody. We don't want to; but even if we were ever -so keen we couldn't without great risk. The country is overrun with -police, and---- I beg your pardon, did you speak?" - -Mr. Red had not actually spoken. He had snarled in a curious and -vicious way. - -"The police----" said Dr. O'Grady. - -Mr. Red snarled again. - -"If you object to my mentioning them by name," said Dr. O'Grady, -"I won't do it. All I wanted to say was that in Ireland they live -extremely dull lives, and any little excitement--a cattle drive, or -an escaped lunatic--is a positive godsend to them. A murder--perhaps -I ought to say an informal execution, such as you contemplate--would -bring them down to this neighbourhood in thousands. There'd be so many -of them that they simply wouldn't be able to help tripping over my body -wherever you hid it. Don't imagine that I'm saying all this with a view -to preventing your cutting my throat. What I'm really thinking about, -what you ought to be thinking about, is the Brotherhood. How will its -plans ever be matured if you get yourself hanged? And they will hang -you, you know." - -"I am prepared to die," said Mr. Red majestically, "in the cause of the -Anti-Militarist Brotherhood of Anarchists." - -"Of course you are. Anybody who knows anything about military -anarchists knows that. My point is that your life is too valuable -to be thrown away. How would poor Long Beard get on? And the other -fair-haired highwayman? Neither of them knows a word of English." - -"If the accursed minions of an effete tyranny seize me----!" - -"Quite so. I see your point. Death before dishonour, and all that kind -of thing. But why let it come to that? I am perfectly willing to stay -here as long as you like at the liberal salary you offer, cash down -every evening. I'm quite as anxious as you are to keep the accursed -minions of the what-do-you-call-it away from Rosivera. I don't mind -telling you in confidence that I have reasons of my own for avoiding -any contact with the law at present. In my particular case it isn't -nearly so effete as you appear to think it ought to be. But I needn't -go into all that. It wouldn't interest you, and it's no pleasure to -me to talk about that beast Lorraine Vavasour. What I want to suggest -is a simple and practicable way of avoiding all fuss, and keeping the -accursed minions quiet in their barracks." - -"Speak," said Mr. Red. - -"I am speaking. For a man who hasn't had any breakfast this morning, I -flatter myself I'm speaking pretty fluently. Don't be captious, Field -Marshal. I don't mind your manner a bit, now that I'm getting used to -it. I know that it's quite the right kind of manner for a military -anarchist, but there's no use over-doing it." - -"Your plan?" said Mr. Red, fingering the revolver. - -"I wish you'd lay that weapon down, Emperor. I've told you half a dozen -times that I haven't the least intention of trying to escape, and it -will be a horrid nuisance if the thing goes off and injures me. My -suggestion is simply this. I'll write a letter blotted all over with -tears, saying that driven to desperation by Lorraine Vavasour and Jimmy -O'Loughlin I've committed suicide, and that all search for my body will -be vain. Owing to circumstances which I need not explain, circumstances -not unconnected with Lorraine Vavasour, the story will be believed in -Clonmore and no further steps will be taken in the matter. All you will -have to do is to drop the letter into the pillar-box which is only half -a mile from your gate. I happen to know that that box is cleared at -eight P.M., so any time to-day will do. I'll address it to the police -sergeant." - -Mr. Red gave an order to one of the two foreigners. The man left the -room and returned in a few minutes with a supply of note-paper, a pen, -and a bottle of ink. He laid them beside the food on the table in the -middle of the room. - -"Write," said Mr. Red. - -"I forgot to mention," said Dr. O'Grady, "that I'm engaged to be -married to a young lady in Leeds. Miss Blow is her name--Adeline Maud -Blow. I dare say you've heard of her father in connection with cigars. -He's a tobacconist and advertises a good deal. 'Blow's beauties, -twopence each.' You must have heard of them. They're beastly things as -a matter of fact, and I don't recommend them to friends, but they're -amazingly popular." - -"Write," said Mr. Red. - -"I am going to write. Don't hustle me, like a good man. What I want to -say to you is this, that I must send a line to Adeline Maud as well as -to the police sergeant. I want to tell her that I'm not really dead, -only bluffing." - -"That," said Mr. Red, "is impossible." - -"Nonsense. There's nothing impossible about it. It's just as easy to -write two letters as one. I shan't mention the Brotherhood to her, and -if I did she would have more sense than to talk about it. If you don't -believe me you can read the letter yourself." - -"I trust no woman." - -"That," said Dr. O'Grady, "is a most illiberal sentiment, and I'm -surprised to hear you utter it. If you'd been an old-fashioned Tory -now, or an Irish landlord, or a Liberal Cabinet Minister, I could have -understood your position; but in a military----" - -"Anti-militarist," said Mr. Red. - -"That's what I meant. In an anti-militarist, that sort of prejudice -against women is most inconsistent. Who was it that hammered a nail -into Sisera's head? A woman, and an anti-military woman. Who was it -that stuck a knife into that horrid beast Marat, when he was sitting -in his bath? A woman again. Who was it that shot that Russian governor -the other day? I've forgotten her name for the minute, but you know who -I mean. It was a woman. She did for him on a railway platform. And yet -you stand up there calling yourself an advanced kind of anarchist, and -say that you can't trust a woman. Emperor, you ought to be ashamed of -yourself. Just think the matter out and you'll see that when it comes -to thorough-going, out-and-out revolutions women are quite the most -trustworthy kind of people there are." - -Mr. Red gave another brief order in his foreign language. The -fair-haired anarchist stepped forward and took away the note-paper, pen -and ink. - -"What are you at now?" said Dr. O'Grady. "Surely to goodness you're not -going back on the suicide plan? Oh, very well. I can't help it. But -you'll be sorry afterwards when the police come here looking for me." - -"I have spoken," said Mr. Red. - -"You have not. You've growled occasionally, but nobody could call your -remarks speaking." - -"I leave you," said Mr. Red. "Remember." - -"Remember what? Oh, you're going, are you? Just wait one instant. You -refuse to let me write to Adeline Maud. Very well. You don't know -Adeline Maud, but I do. Even supposing the police can't find me, or my -body after you've cut my throat, and supposing that Jimmy O'Loughlin -and Lorraine Vavasour give up the pursuit--from what I know of Lorraine -I think it most unlikely that he will--you'll still have to reckon with -Adeline Maud. She's a most determined young woman. All the perseverance -which has gone to making 'Blow's beauties' the popular smokes they are -at twopence each has descended from her father to her. When she finds -out that I've disappeared she'll go on searching till she finds me. -The ordinary sleuth-hound is absolutely nothing to her for persistence -in the chase. It will be far wiser for you--in the interests of the -Brotherhood I mean--to let me head her off, by telling her that I'll -turn up again all right." - -"Farewell," said Mr. Red. - -"I ought to mention before you go," said Dr. O'Grady, "that Adeline -Maud may be in Clonmore to-morrow. I'm expecting a visit---- Damn it! -The fool is gone and shut the door behind him." - -Mr. Red had, in fact, entirely ignored the announcement of Miss -Blow's impending arrival. He and his two friends left the room, and, -distrustful of the parole which had been given, locked the door behind -them. Dr. O'Grady turned to the breakfast provided for him with an -excellent appetite. - -"Silly old ass that Emperor is," he murmured. "I suppose now he'll go -and sit down beside his yellow crocodiles in the dining-room and try to -invent some new kind of dynamite. He ought, as a matter of fact, to be -in an asylum. Some day he will be if he doesn't blow himself up first. -Anyhow this is a jolly good business for me. If he chooses to pay me -four pounds a day for sitting here twiddling my thumbs, I'm quite -content. I only hope it will be some time before they think of looking -for me at Rosivera. I must try and hit on a plan for putting the police -off the scent. I wonder how long it will last. The Field Marshal -suggested four weeks. Seven times four--even putting it as low as four -pounds a day--and I'll try to screw him up a bit--seven times four are -twenty-eight. And four times twenty-eight is a hundred and twelve. That -with the tenner I've got will make L122. I'll make a clear L100 out of -it anyway, and they won't have time to elect another dispensary doctor -before I get out." - - - - -CHAPTER IV - - -Patsy Devlin strolled into the Imperial Hotel at noon. He found Jimmy -O'Loughlin, the proprietor, behind the bar, and was served at once with -a pint of porter. - -"It's fine weather for the hay, thanks be to God," he observed. - -In Connacht the hay harvest is gathered during the month of August, and -Patsy's comment on the weather was seasonable. - -"I've seen worse," said Jimmy O'Loughlin. "But what's on you at all, -Patsy, that you haven't been next or nigh the place this two months or -more?" - -"Be damn! but after the way you behaved over the election of the -inspector of sheep dipping, the wonder is that I'd ever enter your door -again. What would hinder you giving me the job as soon as another?" - -Jimmy O'Loughlin did not wish to discuss the subject. He was, as a -trader ought to be, a peaceful individual, anxious to live on good -terms with all possible customers. He realized that the election was a -subject on which Patsy was likely to feel bitterly. He filled another -glass with porter from the tap and handed it silently across the -counter. Patsy tendered a coin in payment. - -"I'll not take it from you," said Jimmy O'Loughlin heartily. "It would -be a queer thing if I wouldn't give you a sup at my own expense now -that you are here after all this length of time. How's herself?" - -Patsy Devlin took a pull at the second pint of porter. - -"She's only middling. She was complaining these two days of an -impression on the chest, and a sort of rumbling within in herself that -wouldn't let her rest easy in her bed." - -"Do you tell me that? And did you fetch the doctor to her?" - -"I did not then." - -"And why not?" - -Patsy Devlin finished the porter and winked across the bar at Jimmy -O'Loughlin. Jimmy failed to catch the meaning of the wink. - -"If it was a red ticket you wanted," he said, "you know very well that -you've nothing to do but ask me for it. But Dr. O'Grady, the poor man, -would go to you without that." - -"If I did be wanting a red ticket," said Patsy, "it wouldn't be you I'd -ask for it. There's them would give it to me and maybe something along -with it, and what's more, did give it to me no later than this morning." - -"Well," said Jimmy, who guessed at the identity of the unnamed -benefactor, "and if so be that his lordship is after giving you the -ticket, why didn't you go and fetch the doctor to herself?" - -"I went for him right enough." - -"And do you mean to tell me that he refused to attend the call and you -with the red ticket in your hand? For if he did----" - -"He wasn't within when I went for him." - -The explanation was perfectly simple and natural; but Jimmy O'Loughlin, -noting the manner in which it was given, realized there was something -behind it. - -"What do you mean?" he asked. - -Patsy Devlin winked again. Jimmy, vaguely anxious, but not knowing what -to fear, handed his visitor a third pint of porter. - -"I'm thinking," said Patsy, "that it's about time for us to be making a -move in the matter of collecting funds for the horse races and athletic -sports. The season's going on and if we don't have them before the end -of the month the days will be getting short on us. I suppose now I may -put you down for a pound the same as last year?" - -"You may," said Jimmy. "But what was it you were after telling me about -Dr. O'Grady?" - -"Does he owe you any money?" - -"He does, a power." - -"Then you'll not see it. Devil the penny of it ever you'll handle, no -matter how you try." - -Patsy chuckled. He had nourished a grudge against Jimmy O'Loughlin ever -since the election of the inspector of sheep dipping. - -"And why will I not?" - -"Because the doctor's gone, that's why. He's off to America, and every -stick of furniture he owns is gone along with him." - -"He is not," said Jimmy. "He couldn't. It was only last night he passed -this door, looking the same as usual. I was speaking to him myself, and -him on his way home after being out beyond in the bog." - -"It was last night he went." - -"He couldn't. Sure you know as well as I do there's no train." - -"There's the goods that passes at one o'clock. What would hinder him -getting into one of them cattle trucks? Who'd see him? Anyway, whether -it was that way he went or another, he's gone. And you may be looking -for your money from New York. Be damn! but I'd take half a crown for -all of it you'll ever get." - -"I don't believe you," said Jimmy; but it was evident that he was -fighting desperately against conviction. - -"Go round to the house then yourself and you'll see. He's not in it, -and what's more he didn't leave it this morning, for old Biddy Halloran -was watching out for him along the road the way he'd renew the bottle -he gave her for the rheumatism, and if he'd gone out she'd have seen -him." - -"It might be," said Jimmy, "that he was called out in the night and -didn't get back yet." - -"It might; but it wasn't. I'm after spending the morning since ten -o'clock making inquiries here and there, and devil the one there is in -the parish sick enough to be fetching the doctor out in the middle of -the night. If there was I'd have heard of it. And Father Moroney would -have heard of it, but he didn't, for I asked him this minute." - -"And what did he say?" - -"He said very much what I'm saying myself, that the doctor's gone. -'And small blame to him,' says Father Moroney, 'with the way that old -reprobate of a Jimmy O'Loughlin, who's no better than a gombeen man, -has him persecuted for the trifle of money he owes.' It's the truth I'm -telling you." - -It was not the truth, but it could scarcely be called a lie, for the -essence of a lie is the desire to deceive, and Patsy Devlin invented -the speech he put into the priest's mouth without the least hope of -its being believed. The best he expected was to exasperate Jimmy -O'Loughlin. Even in this he failed. - -"If so be he's gone," said Jimmy, "and I wouldn't say but he might, -I'd as soon he got clear off out of this as not. I'll lose upwards -of thirty pounds by him, but I'd sooner lose it than see the doctor -tormented by that bloodsucker of a fellow from Dublin that has a bill -of his. I've a great liking for the doctor, and always had. He was an -innocent poor man that wouldn't harm a child, besides being pleasant -and agreeable as e'er a one you'd meet." - -Patsy Devlin felt aggrieved. He had sprung his mine on Jimmy -O'Loughlin, and the wretched thing had somehow failed to explode. He -had looked forward to enjoying a torrent of oaths and bitter speeches -directed against the absconding debtor. He had hoped to see Jimmy -writhe in impotent rage at the loss of his money. - -"Be damn!" he said helplessly. - -"And anyway," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, "there's the furniture of the -house left, and it'll be a queer thing if I don't get a hold of the -best of it before ever the Dublin man--Vavasour or some such they call -him--hears that the doctor's gone." - -There was no more spirit left in Patsy Devlin. He did not even repeat -the obviously incredible statement that the doctor had secretly carried -his furniture away with him in the middle of the night. - -"The train's in," he said, changing the subject abruptly, "for I hear -the cars coming down from the station. If so be now that there should -be a traveller in belonging to one of them drapery firms, or Campbell's -traveller with the flour, you might give me the word so as I can get a -subscription out of him for the sports. The most use those fellows are -is to subscribe to one thing or another where subscriptions is needed." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin nodded. He realized the importance of the commercial -traveller as a contributor to local funds of every kind. He left the -door and reached the bar of the hotel just as his bus, a ramshackle, -dilapidated vehicle drawn by a sickly horse, drew up. It contained a -lady. Jimmy O'Loughlin appraised her at a glance as she stepped out of -the bus. She was dressed in a grey tweed coat and skirt of good cut and -expensive appearance. She wore gloves which looked almost new, and she -had an umbrella with a silver handle. She was tall and carried herself -with the air of one who was accustomed to command service from those -around her. Her way of walking reminded Jimmy O'Loughlin of Lady Flavia -Canning, Lord Manton's daughter; but this lady was a great deal younger -and better looking than Lady Flavia. Jimmy O'Loughlin allowed his eyes -to leave her for an instant and seek the roof of the bus. On it was a -large travelling trunk, a handsome bag, and a bundle of rugs and golf -clubs. Jimmy's decision was made in an instant. He addressed his guest -as "my lady." - -She made no protest against the title. - -"Can I get a room in this hotel?" she asked. - -"Certainly, my lady. Why not? Thomas, will you bring the lady's luggage -in at once and take it up to number two, that's the front room on the -first floor. Your ladyship will be wanting a private sitting-room?" - -"If I do," she said, "I shall ask for it." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin was snubbed, but he bore no malice. A lady of title -has a right to snub hotel-keepers. He stole a glance at the label -on her luggage as Thomas, the driver of the bus, passed him with the -trunk on his shoulders. He discovered that she was not a lady of title. -"Miss A. M. Blow," he read. "Passenger to Clonmore." The name struck -him as being familiar, but for a moment he could not recollect where he -had heard it. Then he remembered. Miss Blow passed upstairs guided by -Bridgy, the maid. Patsy Devlin emerged from the bar. - -"It's the doctor's young lady," whispered Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"Is it, be damn? How do you know that?" - -"Didn't he often tell me," said Jimmy, "that he was to be married to -a young lady out of Leeds or one of them towns beyond in England, and -that her name was Miss Blow? And didn't I see it on her trunk, 'Miss A. -M. Blow'? Would there be two in the world of the name?" - -"And what would bring her down to Clonmore?" - -"How would I know? Unless maybe she's heard of the misfortunes that has -the doctor pretty near bet. She might have seen his name in the paper -when the judgment was gave against him." - -"She might; but if she did wouldn't she keep away from him as far as -ever she could?" - -"She would not," said Jimmy O'Loughlin. "That's not the sort she is. I -seen her and you didn't." - -"I did." - -"Well, and if you did you might have known that she'd be the sort that -would come down after him the minute she got word of the trouble that -was on him. Believe you me, Patsy Devlin, that's a fine girl." - -"She's a good-looking one anyway," said Patsy, "but mighty proud, I'd -say." - -"You may say that. I'd sooner she married the doctor than me, and -that's the truth." - -"What'll she do now," said Patsy, "when she finds that the doctor's -gone and left her?" - -"It'll be best," said Jimmy, "if we keep it from her." - -"How can you keep it from her when the man's gone? Won't she be asking -to see him?" - -"There's ways of doing things. What would you say now if I was to tell -her that the doctor had gone off on a holiday for six weeks with the -permission of the Board of Guardians and that there'd have to be a -substitute appointed in his place? Would she be contented with that, do -you think?" - -"She might," said Patsy, "but she might not. She'd be wanting his -address anyway." - -"If she wanted it, it would be mighty hard to keep it from the like of -that one." - -"You haven't got it to give, and so you can't give it," said Patsy. - -Miss Blow came downstairs as he spoke and walked up to Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"Will you kindly have some luncheon ready for me," she said, "at two -o'clock?" - -"Certainly, miss, why not? Is there any particular thing that your -ladyship would fancy, such as a chop or the like?" - -He reverted to the "ladyship" again, although he knew her name and -degree. The girl's manner seemed to force him to. She deserved -something better than a mere "miss." - -"In the meanwhile will you be so good as to tell me where Dr. O'Grady -lives?" - -"Is it Dr. O'Grady? Well, now, never a nicer gentleman there is about -the place, nor one that's more thought of, or better liked than Dr. -O'Grady. It's him that does be taking his dinner up at the Castle with -the old lord and attending to his duties to the poor the same as if he -was one of themselves. Many's the time I've said to him: 'Dr O'Grady,' -says I, 'if anything was to take you away out of Clonmore, and I don't -deny but what you ought to be in a less backward place, but if ever---- -'" - -"Will you be so good as to tell me where he lives?" said Miss Blow. - -Patsy Devlin interposed at this point of the conversation with an air -of contempt for Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"Can't you stop your talking," he said, "and tell the lady where the -doctor lives?" - -Jimmy cast a venomous glance at him. - -"I will tell your ladyship to be sure. Why not? But it will be of no -use for you to go to call on him to-day. Patsy Devlin here is after -telling me this minute that he's not at home." - -Miss Blow turned to Patsy. - -"Do you know," she asked, "when he's likely to be back?" - -"I do not, my lady. But I'd say it wouldn't be for a couple of days -anyway." - -"A couple of days! Where has he gone to?" - -"It's what Mr. O'Loughlin there was just after telling me, your -ladyship, and he's the Chairman of the Board of Guardians, that the -doctor did ask for leave to go on a holiday. But I wouldn't say that -he'd be away for very long." - -"When did he ask for a holiday?" said Miss Blow to Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"It was Patsy Devlin told me," said Jimmy; "and six weeks was the time -that he mentioned." - -Miss Blow turned again to Patsy Devlin; but he had vanished. Having -committed Jimmy O'Loughlin, as Chairman of the Board of Guardians, to -the fact of the doctor's holiday, he slipped quietly into the bar. - -"I don't believe," said Miss Blow, "that you're telling me the truth." - -"He was not," said Jimmy, sacrificing his friend with the utmost -promptitude. "It's seldom he does that same. Devil the bigger liar, -begging your ladyship's pardon for the word, devil the bigger liar -there is in Connacht than that same Patsy Devlin, and it's what every -one that knows him would tell you." - -"I don't," said Miss Blow severely, "see very much to choose between -you and him." - -In England people have a great regard for the truth so long as it -does not interfere with business. Miss Blow expressed her scorn for -the two men who had tried to deceive her quite plainly both by her -words and the tone in which she spoke them. In Connacht truth is less -respected. Good manners and consideration for other people's feelings -are looked upon as virtues superior to blunt accuracy of statement. -Jimmy O'Loughlin lied feebly, but he lied with the best intentions. He -wanted to spare Miss Blow the knowledge that her lover had deserted -her. In return she insulted him; but even under the sting of her words -he recollected that courtesy is due to every lady, especially to one as -good-looking as Miss Blow. It was not until she had turned her back on -him and left the hotel that he murmured under his breath-- - -"May the Lord help the poor doctor if it ever comes to his being -married by the like of her!" - - - - -CHAPTER V - - -Miss Blow came back for her luncheon, and then, asking no more help -or advice from Jimmy O'Loughlin, went out and made her way to Dr. -O'Grady's house. It stood a few hundred yards from the village in the -middle of a small field. Miss Blow knocked and rang at the door, though -she had no real expectation of its being opened to her. She walked -round the house and peered in at the windows. The rooms on the ground -floor showed every sign of having been recently occupied by a person -of untidy habits. She reached the yard, surveyed the coach house and -the stable which had once sheltered a good horse. She tried the kitchen -door and found it bolted against her. The kitchen had a disused and -neglected appearance which puzzled her. She returned to the front of -the house and sat down on a stone to think out the position in which -she found herself. - -Patsy Devlin, who had followed her from the hotel, watched her -proceedings from a distance with great interest. He afterwards made -a report to Jimmy O'Loughlin, a masterly report which interpreted -her actions, and added a picturesque touch at the end. Patsy Devlin -would have written good histories if fortune had made him a university -professor instead of a blacksmith. - -"You'd have been sorry for the creature," he said, "if you'd seen her -sitting there on a lump of a stone with the tears running down the two -cheeks of her the same as if you were after beating her with a stick." - -"I am sorry for her," said Jimmy. "It's herself has her own share of -trouble before her when she finds out that the doctor's off to America -without so much as leaving word for her to go after him." - -It did not seem likely that Miss Blow would easily arrive at a -knowledge of the full extent of her misery. Biddy Halloran, the -rheumatic old lady who had waited long on the roadside for the doctor -in the morning, was still lurking near the house when Miss Blow reached -it. She, like Patsy Devlin, watched the examination of the premises -with deep interest. When Miss Blow sat down on the stone, Biddy -Halloran hobbled up to her. - -"Is it the doctor you're looking for?" she said. "For if it is, it's -hardly ever you'll see him again." - -Miss Blow was startled, and demanded an explanation of the words. -Biddy, who was slightly deaf, pretended to be very deaf indeed. Miss -Blow's clear voice and determination of manner subdued her in the end. -She professed to be the only person in Clonmore who really knew what -had happened to the doctor. - -"Holidays, is it?" she said, recollecting what Patsy Devlin had told -her, "no, nor work either. It's to Dublin he's gone, and it's little -pleasure he'll find there. Och, but he was a fine man and it's a pity -of him!" - -"Tell me at once," said Miss Blow, "what he went to Dublin to do." - -"There was a lump in the inside of him," said Biddy, "a gathering like; -and many's the time he told me of that same. It was the size of a young -pullet's egg, and you'd feel it lepping when you put your hand on it, -the same as it might be a trout. 'Biddy, agra,' he says, speaking to -me, as it might be to yourself or to some other young lady that would -be in it, instead of an old woman like myself, 'medicine's no good,' -says he, 'but the knife is what's wanted.' 'Would you not be afeared,' -I said, 'to be trusting yourself to them murdering doctors up in -Dublin, and maybe a young lady somewhere that would be crying her eyes -out after you, and you dead?' 'I would not be afeared,' says he--och, -but he was a fine man!--'only I wouldn't like the girl that's to be -married to me to know,' says he; 'I'd be obliged to you if you'd keep -it from her,' says he; 'and what's more, I'll go to-morrow.'" - -Miss Blow did not believe a word of it, but old Biddy Halloran reaped -her reward. Jimmy O'Loughlin, when the conversation was reported to -him, sent her a present of a bottle of patent medicine which had been -a long time in the shop and appeared to be unsaleable. It professed to -cure indigestion, and to free the system from uric acid if taken in -teaspoonfuls after meals. Biddy Halloran rubbed it into her knees and -felt her rheumatic pains greatly relieved. - -Miss Blow sought and, after many inquiries, found the woman who had -acted as Dr. O'Grady's house-keeper, and had basely deserted him in -the hour of his extremest need. She had taken refuge, as a temporary -lodger, with Patsy Devlin's wife. It was understood that she would pay -for her board and lodging when her solicitor succeeded in recovering -the wages due to her. The news of the doctor's flight had depressed -her. She felt that she was greatly wronged; but even when smarting from -her loss, she was not so heartless as to revenge herself by telling the -terrible truth to an innocent and beautiful creature like Miss Blow. -She gave it as her opinion that the doctor, driven to desperation, -perhaps almost starved, had poisoned himself. He had, she asserted, -bottles enough in his surgery to poison the whole country. His body, -she believed, was lying in the house behind the locked doors. - -"If so be," she added, "that the rats haven't him ate; for the like of -that house with rats, I never seen. Many's the time, when the doctor -would be out, I've sat the whole evening on the kitchen table, with my -legs tucked up under me, and them running across the floor the same as -hens would come to you when you'd be calling them. You couldn't put -down a dish out of your hand, but they'd whip the bit off of it before -your eyes, without you'd have some sort of a cover to put over it." - -No one who was even slightly acquainted with Dr. O'Grady could suppose -him capable of suicide under any conceivable circumstances. Miss Blow, -who of course knew him well, was quite unimpressed by the housekeeper's -horrible suggestion. But she realized that the truth, whatever it was, -was not to be reached by inquiries. Jimmy O'Loughlin and Patsy Devlin -lied to her. So did Biddy Halloran. So did the house-keeper. There was -evidently an organized conspiracy among the people of Clonmore for -the concealment of the truth. Miss Blow had a logical mind. It seemed -plain to her that if everybody agreed to tell lies the truth must be -something of a dangerous or uncomfortable kind. She had some knowledge -of Ireland, gleaned from the leading articles of English newspapers. -She knew, for instance, that it was a country of secret societies, of -midnight murders, of defeated justice, of lawlessness which scorned -the cloak of hypocrisy. She had heard of reigns of terror, emphasized -by the epithet "veritable." She was firmly convinced that the lives -of respectable people were not safe on the west side of the Shannon. -Her father, Mr. Blow of the cigars, was an earnest politician, and at -election times his house was full of literature about Ireland which his -daughter read. Her experience of the people of Clonmore went far beyond -her worst expectations. She made up her mind that Dr. O'Grady had been -murdered; that everybody in the place knew the fact; and that, either -through fear or an innate fondness for crime, no one would help to -bring the murderers to justice. - -It is very much to her credit that she did not take the next train -home; for she must have thought that her own life was in great danger. -But she was a young woman of determination and courage. She made up her -mind to discover and bring to the scaffold the men who had done away -with Dr. O'Grady. Her suspicions fastened, in the first instance, on -Jimmy O'Loughlin and Patsy Devlin. - -"Mr. O'Loughlin," she said, when she returned to the hotel after her -interview with the housekeeper, "kindly tell me who is the nearest -magistrate." - -"You haven't far to go to look for a magistrate, miss, if that's all -you want. I'm one myself." - -"I don't believe you," said Miss Blow, rudely. - -"Maybe not," said Jimmy; "but I'm telling you the truth for all that. -Let you go into the Petty Sessions Court to-morrow, and see if I'm not -sitting there on the bench; with the police and Mr. Goddard himself, -that's the officer, if he happens to be over from Ballymoy, doing what -I bid them, be that same agreeable to them or not; and oftener it's -not, for them police think a lot of themselves. When you see me there -administering the law you'll be sorry for what you're after saying. -It's the Chairman of the Urban District Council I am, and an ex-officio -magistrate, thanks be to God." - -"Is there any other magistrate in the neighbourhood?" - -"There is not; for the R. M. lives away off at Ballymoy, and that's -better than twelve miles from this. There's ne'er another, only myself -and Lord Manton up at the Castle, and he never sits on the bench from -one year's end to another, unless maybe there's a job on that he'd like -to have his finger in." - -The title produced its effect on Miss Blow. Earls are much less common -in the industrial districts of England than they are in Ireland. -The statistics have never been exactly worked out, but there can be -little doubt that there are far more earls to every thousand common -men in Ireland than in any other part of the three kingdoms. This is -not because governments are more generous to the Irish in the matter -of titles. The explanation is to be found in the fact that untitled -people in Ireland tend to disappear, thinned out by famine, emigration, -and various diseases, while the earls survive. In England it is the -noblemen who die away, being, as every reader of popular English -novels knows, a degraded set of men, addicted to frightful vices, -whereas the working men and the great middle class increase rapidly, -their morality being of a very superior kind. Curiously enough, the -English, though perfectly aware of the facts, respect their debauched -earls greatly, on account, it may be supposed, of their rarity. The -Irish, on the other hand, think very little of an earl, regard him as -in many respects similar to an ordinary man; earls being, as has been -said, comparatively common in Ireland. Miss Blow, who had never to her -knowledge seen an earl, brightened up at the mention of Lord Manton. - -"I'll go up to the Castle," she said, "and see him to-morrow morning." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin sent a message to Patsy Devlin, asking him to call -at the hotel that evening. The fact that he had not been elected -inspector of sheep dipping still rankled in Patsy's mind. He blamed -Jimmy O'Loughlin more than any one else for his rejection. He made up -his mind to obey the summons, but not to be seduced from the path of -righteous wrath by porter or whisky. He would refuse contemptuously to -oblige Jimmy in any way. - -He was received in Jimmy O'Loughlin's private office, a small room -at the back of the hotel, which looked out on the yard. The walls -were adorned with two pictures, enlarged photographs of eminent -ecclesiastics with small eyes and puffy cheeks. The table was mahogany -and was covered with circular stains of various sizes. There was a -sideboard with a very dilapidated cruet-stand and two teapots on it. -The chairs were all rickety. A writing-desk, which stood under the -window, was littered with a number of exceedingly dirty papers. On the -table in the middle of the room, by way of preparation for Patsy's -visit, were arranged a jug of porter, a bottle of whisky, a water -croft, and several tumblers. - -"Fill your glass," said Jimmy hospitably, "and light your pipe. You can -start on the porter, and finish up with the spirits." - -Patsy poured out the porter suspiciously, and drank a tumbler full -without any sign of appreciation. - -"There isn't one about the place," said Jimmy, "that's better -acquainted with the old earl up at the Castle than yourself. He thinks -a deal of you, and well he may." - -"He gave me a letter," said Patsy, "at the time of the election. But -it's little heed you or the rest of them paid to it." - -Jimmy was anxious to avoid the subject of the election. - -"I'm told," he said, "that whatever you might ask of him, he'd do." - -Patsy was susceptible to flattery of this kind. - -"He always thought a deal of me and my father before me," he said. -"You could tell the opinion he had of me by the letter he wrote. And -why wouldn't he when either my father or myself put the shoes on every -horse that's come and gone from the Castle this fifty years." - -"I could tell what he thought of you," said Jimmy. "Sure anybody could." - -"You could tell it, if so be you read the letter." - -"The doctor's young lady," said Jimmy, "is going up to see the earl -to-morrow. The Lord save her! but she's half distracted with grief this -minute." - -"And what good will going to the Castle do her? Sure he doesn't know -where the doctor is no more than another." - -"He might tell her the truth," said Jimmy. - -"Be damn! but he might, not knowing." - -"And if he did, the girl's heart would be broke." - -"It would surely." - -"We've kept it from her," said Jimmy, "and may the Lord forgive us for -the lies we're after telling, fresh ones every hour of the day. And if -so be that now, at the latter end, she hears how the doctor has gone -and left her it'll go through her terrible, worse than the influenza." - -"And what would you consider would be best to be done?" asked Patsy. - -"I was thinking that maybe, if you was to see him to-morrow, early, -before ever she gets at him with her questions, and if you were to give -him the word, that it might be, coming from a man like yourself that he -has a respect for, that he'd hold off from telling her." - -"He might." - -"And will you do it, Patsy Devlin? Will you do it for the sake of the -fine young girl that's upstairs, this minute, heart scalded with the -sorrow that's on her?" - -"It's little you deserve the like from me," said Patsy, "you nor the -rest of the Guardians. But I'll do it for the sake of the girl." - -"I knew you would," said Jimmy. "It's a good heart you have in you, -Patsy Devlin, and a feeling for them that's in distress. But the -porter's finished. Will I draw you another jug of the same, or will you -try the whisky for a change?" - -Patsy indicated the whisky bottle with his thumb. He remained lost in -deep thought while the cork was drawn and a considerable quantity of -the spirit poured into the tumbler before him. Indeed, so complete was -his abstraction that the glass might have been absolutely filled with -undiluted whisky if Jimmy had not, of his own accord, stayed the flow -of it. - -"I'm collecting the town and the neighbourhood," said Patsy, "for the -sports, and there's no reason that I can see why I shouldn't call on -his lordship to-morrow and ask for a subscription." - -"You might." - -"And in the course of conversation I could draw down about the doctor -and the young lady and give him the word." - -"Take care now would she be beforehand with you, if so be you were a -bit late in going." - -"Let you see to that," said Patsy. - -"I might try," said Jimmy; "but she's that headstrong and determined -it's hard to stop her once she takes the notion into her head." - -"Be damn!" said Patsy, "but however you manage you'll have to stop her. -The old earl doesn't have his breakfast took till near ten o'clock, and -if I was to try to see him before half-past ten, he'd eat the face off -me." - -"I'll do the best I can," said Jimmy. "I'll tell Bridgy to have the -breakfast late on her. She does be wanting it at half-past eight." - -"Let her want. If she gets it by half-past nine itself oughtn't she to -be content? There's many a house where she wouldn't get it then." - -"Content or not," said Jimmy heroically, "it's at half-past nine she'll -have it to-morrow anyway." - -"And after that," said Patsy, "it could be that the horse might be lame -the way she'd have to walk." - -"It could." - -"And if you sent her round by the big gate," said Patsy, "it would put -a couple of miles on her beyond what she'd have to walk if she was to -go up through the deer park." - -"It would," said Jimmy; "but the talk she'll give after will be -terrible to listen to." - -"Don't tell me. A young lady like her wouldn't know how to curse." - -"It's not cursing," said Jimmy, "but it's a way she has of speaking -that would make you feel as if the rats beyond in the haggard was -Christians compared to you." - -"Let her talk." - -"And she looks at you straight in the face," said Jimmy, "the same as -if she was trying to see what would be in the inside of your head, and -feeling middling sure all the time that there wasn't much in it, beyond -the sweepings of the street." - -"It's for her own good you're doing it," said Patsy. - -There was some consolation in the thought. But Patsy, even while making -the suggestion, felt that a good conscience is not always a sufficient -support in well-doing. - -"You might," he added, "be out about the place and let herself talk to -her till the worst of it was over." - -This plan, which perhaps would not have suited Mrs. O'Loughlin, -commended itself to Jimmy; but it did not make him altogether -comfortable about the future. - -"I might," he said, "and I will, but she'll get me for sure at the -latter end." - -If he had done as his conscience suggested, Patsy Devlin would have -gone home at once after settling Miss Blow's business for her. But the -whisky bottle was still more than half full, and it seemed to him a -pity to break up a pleasant party at an early hour. He started a fresh -subject of conversation, one that he hoped would be interesting to his -host. - -"Tell me this now," he said. "Do you think that fellow down at -Rosivera, the same that brought the pianos along with him, would give a -subscription to the sports?" - -"I don't know," said Jimmy. "He's queer. I never set eyes upon him -myself since I finished carting the packing-cases down to Rosivera." - -"They tell me that he does be calling at your shop for his bread and -the like, and leaving a power of money with you." - -"I wouldn't say he left so much at all," said Jimmy cautiously. "And -anyway it's a servant that did be coming every day till to-day, and -then it was some sort of a foreigner with a written order, him not -being able to speak English." - -"Would you see your way to asking him for a subscription?" - -"How would I do it, when he can't know a word I say to him, nor him to -me? Why won't you talk sense?" - -"And where's the man himself, and the fellow that did speak English?" - -"How would I know? If it's a subscription you want from him, you'd -better go over to Rosivera and ask for it." - -"They say," said Patsy thoughtfully, "that he has plenty to give. A -man like that with a motor car running on the road every day, and two -foreign gentlemen, let alone an Englishman, to wait on him, must have a -power of money. I wouldn't wonder now, if I took him the right way, but -he'd give five pounds. I might drop him a hint that five pounds is the -least that any of the gentry would give to the sports." - -"Let you see what you can get out of him," said Jimmy, "and the more -the better." - -Jimmy had got all he wanted out of Patsy Devlin. He did not care very -much whether Mr. Red subscribed to the sports or not. He took the -whisky bottle and drove the cork home into its neck with a blow of his -fist. Patsy looked regretfully at it, but he was a man of self-respect. -He would neither ask for, nor hint that he wanted, a drink which his -host did not seem inclined to offer him freely. He realized what the -decisive blow given to the cork meant. There would be no more whisky -for him unless he chose to go out to the bar and pay for it there in -the usual way. This he was unwilling to do. Later on in the month, -when the collection for the sports was complete, he might be in a -position to spend lavishly; but for the present he felt it necessary to -economize. - -"It'll be off with me," he said. "It'll be best, seeing I have to be -up at the Castle early to-morrow. Later on in the day I might be going -over to Rosivera to see what's to be got out of the man that's there. -If he's as rich as you're after telling me he'll never miss a pound, or -for the matter of that five pound. I'll have a try at him anyway." - - - - -CHAPTER VI - - -"Is there any news of the doctor?" asked Lord Manton. - -He was standing on the steps outside the door of Clonmore Castle. -He had just given Patsy Devlin a sovereign for the Horse Races and -Athletic Sports, and was endeavouring to cut short the thanks with -which the subscription was received. - -"There is not, your lordship, devil the word; and why would there? It -could be that he's on the sea by this time, and, anyway, why would he -be wanting to tell us where he is? Isn't it enough of their persecuting -he had without going out of his way to ask for more?" - -Lord Manton, like everybody else, regarded Dr. O'Grady's flight to -America as the natural result of his financial embarrassment. He was -sorry; but he recognized that the doctor had taken the wisest course. - -"Might I be speaking a word to your lordship about the doctor?" - -"Certainly, Patsy." - -"It's what Jimmy O'Loughlin was saying to me that there'd be no need, -if your lordship was agreeable to the same, to be telling the young -lady the way the doctor is gone off and left her without a word. She -has trouble enough, the creature, without that." - -"What young lady?" - -"Be damn!" said Patsy hurriedly, "if there isn't herself coming up the -avenue. It wouldn't do for her to see me talking to your lordship. I'd -better be going before she's on top of us." - -Patsy Devlin slipped round the corner of the Castle, and dodging -through a plantation of laurels, made his way to the stable-yard. -Lord Manton was left to watch the approach of Miss Blow, without any -very clear idea of what she was likely to want of him; or how Jimmy -O'Loughlin and Patsy Devlin expected to keep the doctor's flight a -secret from her. He observed with pleasure that she was more than -commonly good-looking, that she carried herself well, and wore clothes -which set off a fine figure. He had heard from Dr. O'Grady of the -daughter of the Leeds tobacconist, and had formed a mental picture of -her which in no way corresponded to the young lady who approached him. -He reflected that she was probably in deep distress, and he looked -forward with some pleasure to an interview in the course of which she -was almost certain to cry. He had no objection to playing the part of -comforter to a charming girl. His face expressed fatherly benignity -when Miss Blow reached him. - -"Am I addressing Lord Manton?" she asked. - -"Certainly. Is there anything I can do for you?" - -He almost added the words "my dear," but there was a look in Miss -Blow's fine eyes which checked him. He decided that paternal affection -would come in more appropriately after she began to cry. - -"I am Miss Blow," she said. - -"Come in," said Lord Manton, "come in. You must be tired after your -walk. Let me lead the way into the library. I have often heard of you -from my friend Dr. O'Grady, and if there is anything I can do to help -you I shall be most happy to do it." - -He set Miss Blow in a deep chair near the window, pulled over another -chair for himself, and sat down beside her. - -"I am entirely at your service," he said. "It will be a pleasure to me -to give any help in my power to a charming young lady. I----" - -Miss Blow's eyes warned him again. There was a hard glitter in them -very little suggestive of tears. He stopped abruptly. - -"I understand that you are a magistrate," she said. - -Lord Manton bowed. Then he sat up straight in his chair and tried to -express in his attitude a proper judicial solemnity. - -"I want," said Miss Blow, "to have Dr. O'Grady found at once." - -"A very natural and a very proper wish," said Lord Manton. "I am in -entire sympathy with you. I should like very much to find Dr. O'Grady. -But----" - -"Dead or alive," said Miss Blow firmly. - -"My dear Miss Blow!" The "my dear" came quite naturally to his lips -this time. The words expressed sheer astonishment. There was no -suggestion of affection, paternal or other, in the way he uttered them. - -"Dead or alive," said Miss Blow again. - -"Don't make such horrible suggestions, Miss Blow. I assure you there's -not the slightest reason for supposing that Dr. O'Grady is anything but -alive and well." - -"Then where is he?" Miss Blow spoke sharply, incisively. Lord Manton -began to think that she must be some new kind of girl, quite outside of -his experience, one who felt more indignation than sorrow at the loss -of her lover. - -"I understand," he said, "that he is absent from home, temporarily -absent. I have no doubt----" - -Miss Blow rose from her chair and took up her umbrella. - -"You're like all the rest," she said. "You are as bad as the -hotel-keeper and his friend. You are simply trying to put me off with -lies. Good morning." - -"Wait a moment. Please do not hurry away. I am not like all the rest, -really. I assure you I'm,--compared to Patsy Devlin, for instance,--I'm -a miserably inefficient liar. Please sit down again." - -Miss Blow allowed herself to be persuaded. - -"Tell me the truth," she said; "and then find his body." - -"The truth," said Lord Manton, "is painful--very painful. But it's not -so bad as that. Dr. O'Grady has been for some time past in a position -of considerable pecuniary embarrassment." - -"He was up to his neck in debt," said Miss Blow bluntly. "I know that. -That's what brought me here. And now I find he's gone." - -There was just a hint of a break in her voice as she spoke the last -words. Lord Manton thought that tears were at last imminent. He felt -more at his ease, and ventured to take her hand in his and to stroke it -gently. She snatched it from him. - -"You're worse than the others," she said. "How dare you?" - -For a moment Lord Manton thought that she was going to box his ears. He -drew away from her hurriedly and attempted an apology. - -"I am sincerely sorry," he said. "For the moment I forgot that you -were not my daughter. She always came to me with her troubles ever -since she was quite a child. I got into the way of taking her hand----" - -"Never mind about my hand. Tell me the truth about Dr. O'Grady." - -Lord Manton saw that she was mollified. To be mistaken for the daughter -of an earl is a soothing thing under any circumstances. He thought -for an instant of trying to repossess himself of her hand; but Miss -Blow's eyes, though no longer passionate, were steely. He felt himself -aggrieved, and spoke with brutal directness. - -"To put the matter plainly," he said, "Dr. O'Grady has run away from -his creditors." - -"I don't believe a word of it," said Miss Blow. - -"I have no doubt that he intended to let you know where he was going. -I expect he wants you to go after him and join him there--make a fresh -start, you know, in the New World, and build up a happy home, where the -miserable past may be forgotten. That's what he means. I'm convinced -of it. Only he had to leave this rather hurriedly in the middle of the -night. But don't be despondent, Miss Blow; you'll get a letter from him -soon." - -"That's all nonsense," said Miss Blow. "He's done nothing of the sort." - -"But, my dear young lady, how can you possibly speak so confidently? -He's not the first man who has run away under such circumstances. -Plenty of people do it, I assure you. It's not even considered -disgraceful." - -"I know he didn't." - -"But how do you know?" - -"Because I wrote to him a week ago, when I first heard he was in -trouble, and told him I was coming over here to see him. I said that -father would help him out of his difficulties, whatever they were. Do -you think that, after that, he'd run away and not so much as tell me he -was going?" - -Lord Manton did not know what to think. Dr. O'Grady had disappeared. -There was no getting out of that. It was a patent fact. On the other -hand, if Mr. Blow had really offered to pay the doctor's debts, there -seemed to be no reason why he should disappear. No doubt the wealthy -proprietor of the well-known twopenny Beauties could afford to pay Mr. -Lorraine Vavasour's bill twenty times over if necessary. Still, Dr. -O'Grady had disappeared. - -"You are all," said Miss Blow passionately, "a lot of slanderous -busy-bodies, telling lies and meddling with everybody's business -because you have no business of your own to attend to. My poor Lucius -has been murdered among you, and now not one of you will help me to get -at the truth; but I'll do it in spite of you." - -Lord Manton looked at her. She was undeniably handsome; handsomer than -ever now that she was in a rage. It occurred to him suddenly that Dr. -O'Grady might have a reason for disappearing, quite unconnected with -the money he owed. He was engaged to be married to Miss Blow. It was -possible that the idea of home life with this masterful and passionate -young woman for a partner might be rather terrifying. Besides, the -wife who pays her husband's debts for him has a hold over him ever -afterwards; and Miss Blow seemed exactly the kind of lady who would -take advantage of such a position. She would certainly make him aware -of the fact. Lord Manton thought he understood at last why Dr. O'Grady -had run away. Miss Blow's face was buried in her handkerchief. She -was not crying, but she was flushed after her outburst, and preferred -to keep her face covered. Lord Manton ventured on a smile and a gentle -chuckle. - -"I assure you," he said soothingly, "that he hasn't been murdered. -Who would murder him? Everybody in the neighbourhood was fond of him. -I don't think there was a man, woman, or child but loved him. I did -myself." - -"If you loved him," said Miss Blow, "show it now." - -"I will, with pleasure; but how?" - -"Give me a search warrant." - -"A search warrant! But----" - -"Yes, a search warrant; and I shall insist upon the police executing -it." - -"I haven't the least doubt you will; but--but what do you mean to -search?" - -"Every house in the neighbourhood. Every house until I find him." - -"But he isn't in a house. Do try to be reasonable, Miss Blow. Even -if he's murdered--and I'm quite sure he's not--he wouldn't be in a -house. His body would be hidden in a wood or a bog-hole or a river, or -wherever it is that murderers usually do hide bodies." - -"You admit then that he has been murdered." - -"No, I don't. You mustn't catch up my words like that. All I said was -that, if he had been murdered, he wouldn't be living in a house, and -so a search warrant wouldn't be any use to you. You don't really want -a warrant at all. You don't even want the police. All you have to do -is to go prowling round the country, poking into any shadowy-looking -hole you see with the point of your umbrella until you come across his -body." - -The interview was beginning to tire Lord Manton. He was not accustomed -to being bullied by handsome girls, and he did not like it. - -"Perhaps you'd like to start at once," he said politely. - -"It's impossible," she said, "for me to search the country by myself." - -"Not at all. Nothing is impossible for a young lady of your energy. -Start with the wood behind this house; it's very thick in parts, quite -a likely spot for a corpse; and come in here for lunch when you've -finished." - -"Give me a written order to the police," said Miss Blow, "commanding -them to aid me in my search." - -"It wouldn't be the least use to you, I assure you. You've no idea what -independent people the police are. An order from me would simply put -their backs up and make them determined not to help you." - -"Give me the order, and I'll see that they execute it." - -"My dear Miss Blow, I can't, I really can't. Try the Chief Secretary. -You'll find him in his office at Dublin Castle. He's a most agreeable -man. You needn't be the least bit afraid of him. Not that it's likely -you would be. He's much more likely to be afraid of you. It won't take -you long. You can run up by the night mail and----" - -"Give me the order." - -Lord Manton surrendered. He crossed the room, sat down at his desk, and -wrote-- - -"Sergeant Farrelly, R.I.C. Kindly give all the assistance in your power -to Miss Blow, the bearer of this note, who wishes to search the country -for a dead body.--MANTON." - -"If that is any use to you," he said, "you're welcome to it. Let me -know how you get on. Any time you happen to find yourself near this -house, drop in for luncheon or tea. Good-bye." - -Miss Blow rose, bowed, and left the room. Lord Manton rang the bell. - -"Wilkins," he said to his butler. - -"Yes, my lord." - -"You saw that young lady who left the house just now? Very well, if -she calls again and I happen to be out, you are to give her breakfast, -luncheon, tea or dinner according to the hour of the day. If I happen -to be at home you are to stay in the room during the time she is with -me, as a chaperone. You understand, Wilkins?" - -"Yes, my lord." - -"She doesn't require a chaperone, but I do. I don't feel safe when -I'm alone with her. And Wilkins, if she brings a corpse along with -her, either Dr. O'Grady's corpse or any other, you will provide proper -accommodation for it. Put it on the table in the servants' hall with a -sheet over it, and send out to the garden for flowers--white flowers." - -"Yes, my lord." - -"One thing more, Wilkins; if Sergeant Farrelly or any policeman comes -up here from the barracks either to-day or to-morrow and asks to see -me, tell him I'm out, and that it won't be the least use his waiting -because I won't be in before midnight and probably not then." - -"Yes, my lord." - -Wilkins left the room, and Lord Manton, taking the chair in which Miss -Blow had been sitting, lit a cigarette. There was a stealthy step on -the gravel outside. He looked up and saw Patsy Devlin's face pressed -against the window. He rose, opened the window, and asked Patsy what -he wanted. - -"Might I be so bold as to put a question to your lordship?" - -"Is it about Miss Blow or Dr. O'Grady?" - -"It is," said Patsy. "It's about the both of them." - -"Out with it, then. That young woman and her relations with the doctor -form quite the most interesting subject I know at present." - -"Did your lordship keep the truth from her?" - -"I did my best not to, Patsy; but I think I may safely say that I did." - -Patsy pondered this saying. The meaning was not immediately obvious to -him. - -"It's what Jimmy O'Loughlin was saying to me last night," he said, -"that if so be she heard that the doctor had left her, the creature's -heart would be broke, and her as handsome a young girl as any you'd -see." - -"At the present moment," said Lord Manton, "she believes that you and -Jimmy O'Loughlin have murdered the doctor and concealed his body in a -bog hole." - -"The Lord save us and deliver us! Was there ne'er another story you -could tell her only that? Sure the police will be out after us." - -"She went straight from this house to the barracks," said Lord Manton, -"and I shouldn't wonder if you were arrested before night." - -"Be damn!" said Patsy, "saving your lordship's presence; but they -couldn't take me for the like of that. There isn't one in the country -but knows that I wouldn't lay a hand on the doctor, drunk or sober, not -if it was to save my soul." - -"Don't you be too sure," said Lord Manton. "My own belief is that if -Miss Blow doesn't come across the doctor in the course of the next -twenty-four hours, she'll have you hanged for murdering him." - -"It's joking you are. She couldn't do it." - -"I am not joking. I defy any man to joke after spending half an hour -with Miss Blow. She is the most determined young woman I ever met. She -could do anything, absolutely anything. There isn't a judge or a jury -could stand out against her for an hour. If I were you, Patsy, I'd make -a bolt for it and join the doctor in America. Your life's not safe in -this country. I expect by this time you have as much collected for the -sports as would pay your passage out." - -"I have," said Patsy; "but I'll not go. I'll stand my trial, if it -comes to that, sooner than have people saying it of me that I ever laid -a hand on the doctor." - -"It's all very fine talking that way, but you won't feel at all so -confident when you see the judge putting on the black cap; and a little -later on, when the rope's round your neck, you'll be sorry you didn't -take my advice. The thing for you to do is to skip while you've time. -It'll take Miss Blow a good while to persuade the police to arrest you, -but she'll do it in the end." - - - - -CHAPTER VII - - -A poet, writing, as some of them will, a parody on the work of another -poet, has these words-- - - "To every Irishman on earth - Arrest comes soon or late." - -Patsy Devlin did not read much poetry, and had never come across the -lines. If he had met them, he would have recognized at once that they -express a great truth. His experience of life convinced him that -the law in Ireland, though erratic in its methods, may be relied on -in the end to get the upper hand of either daring or innocence. The -proceedings of the police, depending as they do on the view which -some complete stranger has promised his constituents in England to -take of Irish affairs, are quite incalculable. Patsy himself had been -praised by political orators, had been favourably mentioned by eminent -statesmen in the House of Commons itself, for actions which he would -have kept concealed if he could. What seemed to him to be serious -misdemeanours, if not actual crimes, had more than once turned out to -be virtuous deeds. It seemed likely, therefore, that the law might -occasionally regard entire innocence as highly culpable. He would -have been indignant, but he would not have been greatly surprised, -if the Government, that remote deity from which there is no appeal, -had decreed his arrest, trial, and execution for the murder of Dr. -O'Grady. Patsy reasoned the matter out with himself. If, he thought, -a man is not punished for the crimes he does commit, it is probable -that he will be punished for those he has avoided committing. This -consideration, coming on top of Lord Manton's friendly warning, made -him uneasy. He determined to keep clear of the police barrack when he -left Clonmore Castle. - -Rosivera is a remote and lonely spot. It was extremely improbable that -there would be any police lurking near it. It was not the sort of -place to which a police sergeant would think of going if he were bent -on the arrest of a murderous blacksmith. Patsy felt that he might, -without running any undue risk, venture on a visit to Mr. Red. He was -not willing to forego the chance of getting an additional subscription -to the sports fund. He had in his pocket money enough to take him to -America, but another pound, two pounds, perhaps even five pounds, would -be very welcome to him. He was a good man, with a tender heart and a -strong sense of his duty to those dependent on him. He wanted to be -in a position to make some provision for the support of his wife and -family when he left them. Mr. Red's subscription, if Mr. Red turned out -to be a generous man, would enable him to leave Mrs. Devlin and the -children comfortably provided for. - -He went to Rosivera by a circuitous route, avoiding the public roads as -much as possible, walking over fields and finally along the sea-shore. -When he came in sight of the house, he reconnoitred it carefully, and -approached it very much as a skilful scout might advance on an enemy's -camp, availing himself of all the cover which the country afforded. -Satisfied at last that there was no police patrol in the neighbourhood, -he made a circuit of the house, and finally reached the yard gate -by way of the kitchen garden. He entered the yard and made sure that -there was no one in it. He peeped into the stable and the cow-house and -found that they were both empty. He opened the door of the coach-house -and took a long look at the motor car which stood there. It was well -cleaned; its lamps and other metalwork shone brilliantly; it was a very -handsome vehicle. Patsy felt reassured. Mr. Red might be eccentric, -as Jimmy O'Loughlin hinted, might even be vicious, but he was -unquestionably opulent. No one but a rich man could keep such a motor -car. Patsy closed the coach-house door quietly and took a long look at -the back windows of the house. They were all shut and veiled with drawn -blinds; all of them, except one small window in the top storey. It was -wide open. Patsy stared at it. - -Suddenly, something flew from the window and dropped at Patsy's feet. -It was a pellet of paper. Patsy looked round him cautiously and then -stooped down and picked it up. He unwrapped the paper and discovered -that it contained a small piece of china, apparently a fragment of a -broken saucer. He put this into his waistcoat pocket and examined the -paper in which it had been wrapped. He discovered a few words on it -scribbled in pencil-- - -"Come back into the yard in twenty minutes. Don't wait -now.--O'GRADY." - -"Be damn," said Patsy softly, "it's the doctor himself!" - -Being a man of high intelligence, with a natural taste for conspiracy, -he acted in the wisest possible way. Without the smallest display of -emotion, or a single glance at the window from which the communication -had come, he turned and slouched carelessly towards the yard gate. -It was flung open before he reached it, and Mr. Red, a revolver in -his hand, strode forward. Patsy displayed great presence of mind and -resource. - -"I'm just after knocking at the back door, your honour," he said, -"thinking that it might be more agreeable if I didn't go round to the -front, where maybe you'd be entertaining company. It was that I was -collecting a trifle from the gentry round about for the grand annual -horse races and athletic sports that does be held every year up beyond -in Jimmy O'Loughlin's big field. And the committee would feel pleased, -your honour, if you'd act as a vice-president or a starter, or the -like, along with Lord Manton from the Castle." - -Mr. Red raised the revolver and pointed it at Patsy's head. - -"Hand me that note," he said. - -"Sure your honour's joking. What would a poor man like me be doing with -a note? If you're the gentleman they say you are, it's yourself will be -giving a note to me, and maybe a five-pound note, for the sports." - -Mr. Red took four steps forward, and stood so that Patsy had every -opportunity of looking into the barrel of the revolver. - -"Right about turn," he said; "march!" - -"I was in the militia one time," said Patsy, "and I know well what -you're saying. If it's into the house you want me to go through the -back door, I'm willing. But there's no need for you to be looking at me -that way or to be reaching out at me with your pistol. If you think I'm -here trying to steal a motor car on you, you're making a big mistake. -Anybody can tell you that I wouldn't do the like. If I wanted to itself -I wouldn't be able. I couldn't drive one of them things no more than -fly." - -"March!" said Mr. Red. - -He held the revolver within a couple of inches of Patsy's head. - -"A gentleman like yourself," said Patsy, "likes his bit of a joke. I -know well it's only funning you are and that it's not loaded; but I'd -be obliged to you if you'd point it the other way. Them things goes off -sometimes when you're not expecting them." - -By way of demonstrating that it was loaded, and that he was not -"funning," Mr. Red fired a shot. The bullet went quite close to Patsy's -head and buried itself in the kitchen door. Patsy, convinced that he -had to do with a dangerous lunatic, turned quickly and walked into the -kitchen. From the kitchen he was forced, at the point of the revolver, -up several flights of stairs. He was bidden to halt at last opposite a -door. Mr. Red produced the key from his pocket, and, still keeping the -revolver levelled at Patsy, opened the door. - -"Enter," he said. - -"Be damn! but I will, and I'll be all the better pleased if you'll stay -outside yourself." - -This was exactly what Mr. Red did. The door was locked again, and Patsy -found himself face to face with Dr. O'Grady. - -"I'm sorry," said the doctor; "I'm infernally sorry. I was an ass to -throw you out that note. I might have known that the Field Marshal -would be spying round somewhere. It's just the kind of absolutely -idiotic thing he does rather well." - -"You needn't be sorry at all. Now that I know I'm not shot, I'd as soon -be here as anywhere else." - -"Would you? I'm glad you're satisfied. All the same I wish you were out -of it. Now that there are two of us here, the police are bound to come -after us and find us." - -"They're out after me, anyway," said Patsy. "That's why I say I'd as -soon be here as anywhere else." - -"And what do they want you for? Is it any of your League work?" - -"It is not. It's nothing to do with the League, good or bad. It's for -murdering you and concealing your body after." - -"Can't you talk sense, Patsy Devlin?" - -"It's the truth I'm telling you, and I couldn't say different if I was -put on my oath this minute." - -"But, damn it all, I'm not murdered; I'm alive." - -"That may be," said Patsy. "All I know is that Lord Manton's after -telling the young lady that you are murdered; and what's more, he said -it was Jimmy O'Loughlin and myself that done it." - -"Tell me the truth now, Patsy. Is Miss Blow in Clonmore?" - -"She is." - -"You're sure of that?" - -"I am sure. She came the day after you went to America. Why wouldn't I -be sure when she has the whole of us riz ever since with the questions -she did be asking about you; and not one in the place but told her -lies, be the same more or less, for fear the creature would break her -heart if she heard what you were after doing. And at the latter end -his lordship told her we had murdered you, to quiet her like, for fear -she might hear that you had gone to America, leaving her behind you, -without ever a word to her, good nor bad." - -"Good God, man! But I haven't gone to America." - -"I see that well enough now. But tell me this, doctor, why didn't you -send us word, so as we'd know what to say to her?" - -"I couldn't. The first chance I got was when I dropped that note out of -the window to you. If you'd come back to the yard the way I told you, -I'd have had a letter written to Jimmy O'Loughlin that you could have -taken back with you. I'd have explained the whole situation." - -"I was meaning to come back just as you bid me. Wasn't I walking out -of the yard quiet and easy, so as I'd be able to come back at the end -of half an hour or thereabouts, when that murdering villain came at me -with a pistol and went very near shooting me dead?" - -"I'll tell you what it is, Patsy. The sooner you're out of this the -better. There's not the least difficulty about escaping. The Field -Marshal thinks he's a tremendous swell at conspiracies of all sorts; -but as a matter of fact he's a perfect fool, and I have the lock -loosened on the door this minute. You can walk out any time you like; -and the best time in my opinion will be to-night." - -"And why wouldn't you go yourself, doctor, if it's as easy as all that?" - -"I don't want to go," said the doctor. "I'm very well contented where I -am. It's much better for you to go." - -"How would it do if the both of us went?" - -"It wouldn't do at all. I tell you I want to stay. I don't want to -escape. But you must. I don't want the police here searching for me." - -"Be damn, then, but I won't go either! As sure as ever I went they'd -have me hanged for murdering you and that wouldn't suit me at all." - -"Don't be a fool, Patsy. How can they hang you for murdering me when -I'm alive?" - -"But--but--without I'd bring them here to see you they'd never believe -that you weren't dead. What with the young lady going round the country -cursing like mad at them that killed you, and the old lord telling the -police it was me and Jimmy O'Loughlin done it, what chance would a poor -man like myself have against them? They'd have me hanged, I'm telling -you." - -"I'll give you two notes," said Dr. O'Grady; "one to Lord Manton, and -one to Jimmy O'Loughlin, and between the three of you it'll be a queer -thing if you can't keep the police quiet and stop all this silly rot -about my being murdered." - -"Will you give me a writing to the young lady herself?" - -"I will not. I know very well what she'd do if she heard I was here. -She'd come straight down after me." - -"I'm not saying but what she might. From what I seen of her I'd say -she's just the sort of a young lady that would." - -"Well, then, can't you understand that the last thing in the world I -want is for her to know where I am? If I could have got a note to her -at the first go off, before she came to Clonmore, it would have been -all right. I'd have told her that I was detained here in attendance -on an important case, and that she was to stay at home and not come -near Clonmore till I sent her word. But that silly old ass of a Field -Marshal thought he knew better than I did how to deal with a girl, and -he wouldn't let me send the note. Then you and Jimmy O'Loughlin and -Lord Manton, and I suppose every soul about the place, go stuffing her -up with a pack of lies until----" - -"Be damn, doctor! but that's a hard word. What we did was for the best. -You wouldn't have us tell the creature the truth, and her thinking all -the time that you'd rather die than desert her?" - -"Tell her the truth! What truth?" - -"That you were off to America so as you wouldn't have to pay Jimmy -O'Loughlin what you owed him." - -"But--oh, damn it all, Patsy, what a fool you are! That's not the -truth. Can't you see that it's not the truth? Will I be obliged to -leave a mark on your ugly face with my fist to prove to you that I'm -not in America?" - -"It was all the truth we had for her, anyway. But we wouldn't tell her. -And why not? Because she was a fine girl, and we didn't want to see her -going off into a decline before our eyes and maybe dying on us. And -because we had a respect for your memory; and that's more than you had -for yourself, hiding away here from a girl that any man might be proud -to own. And it's more than you have for us, putting the hard word on -us, and we doing the best we could from the start." - -Dr. O'Grady was a reasonable man. His anger cooled. He came to see -that his friends had acted with the best intentions. He apologized -handsomely to Patsy Devlin. - -"All the same," he added, "you will have to go. I tell you what it is, -if the police do come here, the Field Marshal will shoot the two of us. -He told me himself that that's what he'd do. And, whatever else he may -be, he's a man of his word." - -"He dursn't, not with the police in the house. He'd be hanged." - -"He doesn't care a pin whether he's hanged or not. As a matter of fact, -I expect he'd rather like to be hanged. He's an anti-militarist." - -"I was just thinking," said Patsy, "when he gave the word of command to -me there in the yard, that he'd been in the militia himself some time." - -"Well, he hasn't, so you're out there. So far as I can make out, one -of his main objects in life is to blow up the militia, and the regular -army along with it. He's an anarchist of the most advanced kind." - -"Be damn, and is he that?" - -"He is. And I can tell you an anarchist isn't what you'd call a -playboy. Anarchism isn't a bit like your futile old League. It doesn't -go about the country making speeches and pretending it's going to -boycott people that it hasn't the least notion of doing any harm to. A -genuine anarchist, a man like the Field Marshal, for instance, doesn't -say a word to anybody, but just goes quietly and blows up a town." - -"I'll not have you speaking against the League, doctor. I've been a -member of it since ever there was a branch started in Clonmore. I'd -be a member of it still, if it wasn't that they went against me the -time of the election of the inspector of sheep dipping. I can tell you -there's them in it would think very little of making the country hot -for the man that went against the will of the people in the matter of -grazing ranches or the like." - -"I don't want to argue about the League either on one side or another. -What I'm trying to get you to understand is simply this. You've got to -go, and to go to-night, as soon as ever the Field Marshal is tucked up -in his little bed and the house quiet. Listen to me now, and I'll make -the position plain to you. As long as I was here by myself I was more -or less safe. The disappearance of one man doesn't make much difference -in a neighbourhood like ours; but when it comes to two men vanishing in -the inside of one week there's bound to be a fuss. The police will take -the matter up to a certainty. If they come here--and they will come -here when they've tried everywhere else--you and I will be shot by the -Field Marshal." - -He looked at Patsy as he spoke, and noticed with regret that he was -producing little or no impression. - -"And what's more, I'll lose well over a hundred pounds; a hundred -pounds that I want badly." - -"Why didn't you tell me that before?" said Patsy. "Is it likely now -that I'd want to stand between you and a lump of money like that? I -wouldn't do it to any man, much less one like yourself, that I have a -respect for. Give me the writings now that we were speaking of, and -I'll start at once." - -"You can't start till night; but I'll write the notes at once if you -like." - -"And the one to the young lady along with the other two." - -"I told you before," said Dr. O'Grady, "that I won't give you a note to -her." - -"Then I'll stay where I am. It's more than I dare to go back without a -line of some sort to quiet her. Don't I tell you she'd have me hanged? -And when that's done she'll be down here after you with the police, and -you'll be as badly off as you were before." - -"She'll not be able to do that. Lord Manton would stop the police." - -"She'll come without them, then. That sort of a young lady would do -anything." - -"If she does," said Dr. O'Grady, "the Field Marshal will shut her up -too. He won't do her any harm, and I'll be delighted to have her here." - -"You want her here along with you?" - -"I'd be glad to have her, of course. Don't you know that she and I are -engaged to be married?" - -"Well, aren't you the queer man? Anybody'd think you were trying to -hide yourself from her for fear she'd marry you against your will." - -"Is that one of the lies you and Jimmy O'Loughlin have been telling -Miss Blow?" - -"It is not, of course." - -"Well, don't let me catch you saying anything of the sort, or it'll be -the worse for you. Now, leave me in peace till I write the notes." - -"I'm not going with them," said Patsy; "so you needn't trouble yourself -to be writing." - -"All right. If you prefer to stay here and be shot, you can. You'll be -sorry afterwards, that's all. I tell you the Emperor is not a man to be -trifled with. There's a fellow downstairs here that's sick, and I go -twice every day to attend him. I give you my word, Patsy, all the time -I'm dressing his wounds I have the muzzle of that revolver stuck up -against the back of my neck. I'd be uncommonly nervous if I didn't know -that the poor old Emperor is a good sort and reliable, in spite of his -fondness for yellow crocodiles." - -"Is there crocodiles in this house?" - -"There are; large yellow ones. The dining-room is crawling with them." - -"That settles it, then," said Patsy. "If I was ever so keen to get out -of this, I wouldn't do it after that. I'd be in dread of them beasts; -and I dursn't face them. They'd be out after me, and me going down the -stairs in the dark; and I wouldn't know how to speak to them the way -they wouldn't bite." - -"Don't be an ass, Patsy. They're not real crocodiles. They're dead." - -"Alive or dead, I'll not face them; so it's no use your talking. -They're not what I'm used to, and I'd rather stay here along with you -where I'd be safe." - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - - -Miss Blow went straight from Clonmore Castle to the police barrack. -She was received at the door by Constable Moriarty, who happened to be -on duty at the time. He was a young man who had only recently joined -the force. Miss Blow, after a glance at his smooth boyish face, asked -to see the sergeant. She was shown into a small room, known as the -office, and kept waiting while Sergeant Farrelly, who was digging -potatoes in the garden, "cleaned himself." Her manner, when he joined -her, was peremptory. She demanded that a search party should start at -once and scour the country for Dr. O'Grady's body. Sergeant Farrelly -was puzzled, and scratched his head. Miss Blow handed him Lord Manton's -note. He read it, was very perplexed, and scratched his head again. -Miss Blow pressed her demand. - -"It will be better," said the sergeant at last, "if I go up to the -Castle, and speak to his lordship myself. If you'll have the kindness, -miss, to leave your name and address, I'll communicate with you." - -"I'll wait here," said Miss Blow, "till you return." - -"Is it in the barrack, miss?" - -"Here," said Miss Blow firmly. - -Sergeant Farrelly looked at her helplessly. He did not want a handsome -young lady in the barrack; he thought his office an unsuitable place -for Miss Blow; but he saw no way of altering her determination. He left -her and summoned Constable Moriarty. - -"The young lady within," he said, "will wait in the office until such -time as I come back from the Castle, where I'll be speaking on business -to his lordship. I leave it to you, Constable Moriarty, to see that -she's treated with proper respect." - -"Is it me?" said Moriarty. - -"It is you. You can take her in yesterday's paper, and if it happens -that she's read it already, you can talk to her, making yourself as -pleasant and agreeable as you know how." - -Wilkins, Lord Manton's butler, was a good servant. He opened the door -to Sergeant Farrelly at about twelve o'clock, and blandly gave the -message with which he had been charged. - -"His lordship is out, and it is uncertain at what hour he will return." - -Sergeant Farrelly was baffled. He went back to the barrack. He -found that Miss Blow had moved from the office, which was small and -incommodious, and had settled herself in the men's day room. Constable -Moriarty, embarrassed and very pink about the face, stood in front -of her. Constable Cole, who was off duty, was grinning in a corner. -Miss Blow at once reiterated her demand that a party should go out to -look for Dr. O'Grady's body. Sergeant Farrelly reasoned with her. When -reason failed, he tried to impress her with the majesty of the law. He -was a portly man and over six feet in height. On patrol duty, on guard -over a public-house on Sunday, or giving evidence in court as to the -amount of drink taken by a prisoner, he was an impressive man. He did -not impress Miss Blow. Being an English woman, she held the curious -theory that the police exist for the protection of the public, and -that they ought to engage willingly in the investigation of crime. -Sergeant Farrelly knew, of course, that this was not true; but he was -unable to explain his position to Miss Blow, because she would not -listen to what he said. - -At two o'clock, Miss Blow being still immovable in the day room of the -barrack, Sergeant Farrelly started again for Clonmore Castle. This -time he was accompanied by Constable Moriarty, who, reckless of the -consequences of not obeying orders, refused to be left to entertain -Miss Blow. Constable Cole slipped quietly out into the garden and took -a turn at the potatoes which the sergeant had been obliged to leave -undug. - -Wilkins said politely what he had said before. Sergeant Farrelly and -Moriarty sat down in the hall to wait. They waited till four o'clock. -Then they returned to the barrack, hoping that Miss Blow would have -gone home. They found that she had not gone and showed no signs of -going. She was sitting in the men's room, eating biscuits out of a -paper bag. It appeared afterwards that Constable Cole had gone out and -bought the biscuits for her, fearing that she might be hungry. Sergeant -Farrelly reprimanded him sharply for this. - -Miss Blow gave the sergeant and his men her opinion of the Royal Irish -Constabulary. She used plain and forcible language, repeating such -words as incapacity, inefficiency, and cowardice at frequent intervals. -She spoke for nearly half an hour, and then demanded again that the -whole force should set out at once and search for Dr. O'Grady's body. -Constable Cole grinned, and was caught in the act. The sergeant snubbed -him promptly. Miss Blow took off her hat and jacket, and said she -intended to stay where she was until a search party went out. - -Sergeant Farrelly and his men withdrew and held a counsel in the -kitchen. Constable Moriarty suggested that Miss Blow should be arrested -on a charge of drunkenness, and locked up for the night. - -"If she isn't drunk," he argued, "she wouldn't be behaving the way she -is." - -His advice was not taken. In the first place, she was a well-dressed -and good-looking young woman; and Sergeant Farrelly, being unmarried, -was a courteous man. In the second place, she had come to the barrack -bearing a note from Lord Manton, and however unintelligible the note -might be, it had unquestionably been written by a peer of the realm. In -the third place, as Constable Cole pointed out, their object was not to -keep Miss Blow in the barrack, but to get her out. Pressed by Moriarty -and the sergeant for an alternative scheme, Cole suggested vaguely that -they should resort to what he called a "stratagem." This sounded well; -but it turned out in the end that he had nothing better to suggest than -that Jimmy O'Loughlin should be induced to send a message to her to -the effect that her dinner was ready and would be spoiled if she kept -it waiting. The plan received no support. Sergeant Farrelly pointed -out that it would be most unwise to confess their difficulty to Jimmy -O'Loughlin. - -"That fellow," he said, "would take a delight in turning the police -into ridicule, and setting the whole country laughing at us. And -besides," he said, with a look of withering contempt at Constable Cole, -"it's not likely she'd be caring about her dinner after you giving her -sixpennyworth of biscuits and more. Believe you me, she wouldn't mind -this minute if she never saw dinner again." - -Half an hour later Sergeant Farrelly himself offered Miss Blow a cup -of tea. He was a kindly man, as most police sergeants are, and it -grieved him to think that the young lady who had established herself -in his barrack was spending a whole day with nothing to eat except dry -biscuits. She took the tea without thanks, and again demanded that -the search for Dr. O'Grady should begin. Sergeant Farrelly became -desperate. He set out at once again for Clonmore Castle. This time he -was accompanied by both constables, and Miss Blow was left in sole -possession of the barrack. He learned that Lord Manton was still out. -After a short consultation, he and the two constables sat down in the -hall to wait. They waited till ten o'clock, and would have waited -longer still had not Wilkins informed them that it was his duty at that -hour to lock up the house for the night. The police returned to their -barrack, disputing hotly about the best way of disposing of Miss Blow -for the night. To their immense relief they found that she had gone. - -At nine o'clock next morning she walked into the barrack again and took -her seat in the men's day room. This time she had with her a brown -paper parcel. Constable Cole gave it as his opinion that it contained -provisions for the day. - -"I shall stay here," she said firmly, "until you choose to do your -duty." - -Sergeant Farrelly, who was refreshed and invigorated by his night's -sleep, began to argue with her. The two constables stood near the -door of the room and admired him. Miss Blow, adopting a particularly -irritating kind of tactics, refused to pay any attention to his -remarks. Whenever he paused to give her an opportunity of stating her -case, she said-- - -"I shall sit here until you choose to do your duty." - -She had just repeated her formula for the ninth time when a groom rode -up to the door of the barrack. He brought a note from Lord Manton. - -"Sergeant Farrelly, R.I.C. Lord Manton is seriously annoyed to hear -that the police spent the greater part of yesterday afternoon and -evening in the hall of Clonmore Castle. Lord Manton has not asked -for police protection, and knows no reason why it should be forced -on him. Lord Manton will not be at home to-day, and he requests that -any communication by way of apology or explanation be made to him in -writing." - -The note was passed round and read with dismay. Sergeant Farrelly and -the two constables, moved by a common impulse, withdrew together to the -kitchen. For a time they stood silent and dejected. Then the sergeant, -assuming an air of confident authority, gave his order. - -"Constable Moriarty," he said, "you will take that note over to -Ballymoy and hand it to the District Inspector. You will kindly explain -at the same time the way we find ourselves fixed here." - -"Maybe," said Moriarty, "it would be as well if I was to take the other -note along with it--the one his lordship was after sending with the -young lady about the corpse of Dr. O'Grady." - -"It would be as well," said the sergeant; "I'd be glad he'd see that -note too. But it's the young lady has it and not me. Did you happen to -think now of e'er a way that it could be got from her?" - -"Would you ask her for it?" said Constable Moriarty. - -"I might ask her for it, and I might ask the King if he'd lend me the -loan of his crown to go courting in. I'd be as likely to get the one as -the other by asking. If you can think of no better way of getting it -than that, Constable Moriarty, you may go and ask for it yourself; and -you can come back here and let us have a look at you, when she smacks -your face." - -"We might try a stratagem with her," said Constable Cole, who had made -a similar suggestion the day before. "I was reading a book one time -about a man that was great on stratagems. There wasn't a thing would -happen but he'd---- I'm sorry now I haven't the book by me." - -"Stratagems be damned," said Sergeant Farrelly. "What stratagem -would you be proposing to try? Maybe you'd like me to send for Jimmy -O'Loughlin and him to tell the young lady that his wife was wanting the -note the way she could use it for lighting the kitchen fire to boil the -kettle for tea. Is that your stratagem? Tell me now." - -"It is not," said Constable Cole, with dignity, "nor it isn't like -it. If I was the sergeant here, I'd go to the young lady and I'd tell -her, speaking civil and pleasant, that the District Inspector beyond -in Ballymoy had sent a man over for the note, so as he could set the -police all over the country looking for Dr. O'Grady, and that he -wouldn't be able to do that same without he got the note, on account of -the way the law does be at the present time." - -"Is that what you call a stratagem?" said the sergeant. "It's a lie I'd -call it myself, a whole pack of lies, and it's just what they might -take the stripes off me for saying, if so be I was fool enough to say -it. Is it looking to be sergeant yourself in the place of me you are, -that you'd suggest the like of that?" - -"All stratagems is lies," said Constable Cole soothingly. "The one I'm -suggesting is no worse than another." - -"Go and try her with it yourself, then," said the sergeant, "and see -what you'll get out of it." - -Constable Cole, pursued by the sniggering laugh of Moriarty, left the -kitchen and went into the day room. Miss Blow had made herself quite -at home. On the iron-legged table with which the police barrack was -provided lay her hat, her jacket, and her gloves. She was knitting a -silk tie, meant perhaps as a present for her father, perhaps as an -adornment for the corpse of Dr. O'Grady when she found it. Constable -Cole drew himself up stiffly to attention and addressed her-- - -"I beg your pardon, miss, but Sergeant Farrelly will be obliged to you -if you'll lend him the loan of the note that Lord Manton gave you. He's -thinking of sending a man over to Ballymoy to the D. I." - -"What's a D. I.?" asked Miss Blow. - -"He's an officer, miss, a gentleman by the name of Mr. Goddard." - -"Is he your superior officer?" - -"He is, miss." - -"Then I'll go and see him myself, and take the note with me." - -The reply was quite unexpected. Constable Cole hesitated. - -"It's better than twelve miles of a drive," he said, "and the road's -none too good. And it could be, miss, that the D. I. might be off -somewhere, shooting or the like, when you got there, and then you -wouldn't find him." - -"If he is out, I shall wait for him." - -"I wouldn't doubt you, miss; but it could be----" - -"No, it couldn't," said Miss Blow. "At all events, it won't. Kindly go -and get the car at once." - -Constable Cole returned to the kitchen grinning broadly. - -"It's yourself that's in luck this day, Moriarty," he said. "It's not -every man that gets the chance of driving round the country on a car -with the like of that one. Be careful now what you're saying to her, or -you'll have the doctor out after you with a stick if he has to come all -the way back from America for the purpose." - -"What do you mean?" said Moriarty. - -"She said she'd go with you to Ballymoy, as soon as ever she heard -it was you that was going. But if I hear tell of any impropriety of -conduct, I'll send word to the red-haired girl that you used to be -walking out with on Sundays when you were up in the depot learning your -drill. I heard of you." - -Moriarty was young, very young. He blushed hotly. - -"I'd be ashamed of my life to be seen with her," he said. "I'd never -hear the last of it." - -"Off with you at once and get the car," said the sergeant. "In the name -of God, if the girl's willing to go out of this, will you take her -along with you before she changes her mind? Haven't we had enough of -her this two days?" - -In less than half an hour the car--Jimmy O'Loughlin's car--was at the -door of the barrack. Constable Moriarty, in full panoply, his grey cape -rolled round his chest, his carbine between his knees, sat on one -side. Miss Blow, looking very handsome, got up on the other. Sergeant -Farrelly wrapped a rug round her knees and tucked the end of it under -her feet. Then he presented her with a sixpenny box of chocolates. He -had gone round to Jimmy O'Loughlin's shop and bought this offering -while the horse was being harnessed. - -"It's a long drive you have before you," he said, "and I was thinking -maybe you'd like something to comfort you on the way. It's no more -than a trifle, and not what you'd be accustomed to, but Clonmore is a -backward place, and it's the most thing of the kind there was in Jimmy -O'Loughlin's shop." - -Constable Cole rushed from the barrack bareheaded, just as the car was -starting. He had Miss Blow's brown paper parcel in his hand. - -"You've forgotten your lunch, miss," he shouted. "You'll be wanting it -before you're back." - -He stowed the parcel in the well of the car, and was able as he did so -to still further embarrass the unfortunate Constable Moriarty. - -"By rights," he whispered, "you ought to be sitting on the same side -with her. It's what she'd expect of you; and if you don't do it when -you get off to walk up Ballyglunin Hill, she'll be in a mighty bad -temper against you have her safe with the D. I. If you're half a man, -Moriarty, you'll do it." - -There was a good deal of excitement in the town when Miss Blow drove -off under the escort of Constable Moriarty. The news that Jimmy -O'Loughlin's car had been ordered for her and the constable spread so -rapidly that by the time the start was actually made a small crowd -had gathered in the street to see it. Afterwards, for more than an -hour, men stopped casually at the barrack door, chatted on indifferent -subjects with Sergeant Farrelly or Constable Cole, and then asked one -or two leading questions about Miss Blow and her business. The police -were very reticent. Sergeant Farrelly was an impressive man with a -great deal of personal dignity. He knew that contemptible witticisms -would be levelled at him and the force of which he was a member, if -it came to be known that Miss Blow, a solitary young woman, had held -up the police of Clonmore for the whole of one day and a part of the -next. He dreaded the remarks of irreverent small boys if they heard how -nearly he and his men had been forced to go in search of Dr. O'Grady's -body. He was haunted by a terrible fear that the story might get into -the newspapers. - -"There's them," he said to Constable Cole, "who'd be only too glad to -get a handle against the police--fellows up in Dublin writing for low -papers. Believe you me, it'll be mighty unpleasant for us if you aren't -able to keep your mouth shut." - -Cole was no more willing than the sergeant to give information. The -inquirers, baffled at the barrack, moved on to the bar of the hotel, -and asked their questions there. Jimmy O'Loughlin had no information to -give them. He did not know, any better than his customers, the reason -for Miss Blow's expedition; but he liked to pose as being well up in -the whole business. He shook his head gravely, made cryptic remarks, -parried questions with other questions, and at last, without in the -least meaning to, conveyed the impression that Miss Blow, by some -mysterious process of law, had been arrested for Dr. O'Grady's debts. -The opinion gained ground in the town as one after another of the -inquirers emerged from the bar. Strong sympathy was felt with Miss -Blow, and there was some talk of summoning a special meeting of the -League to consider her case. It was generally agreed that a unanimous -resolution would be appropriate, and that a series of questions might -very well be asked in the House of Commons by one of the members for -the county. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - - -Before any definite action was taken, the public interest was diverted -from Miss Blow and her affairs by a new sensation. At about half-past -one o'clock Mrs. Patsy Devlin was seen advancing along the street -towards the barrack with a crowd of women and children after her. Her -appearance suggested that she was suffering from an extremity of grief. -Her hair hung loose over her shoulders in picturesque grey wisps. Her -bodice had only one fastening, a white pin, driven through it near the -neck. Below the pin the garment gaped, down to the point at which, -still gaping, it was tucked into a crimson petticoat. Her boots, a pair -so large that they might have been, and probably were, her husband's, -were unlaced, and clattered on the ground every time she lifted her -feet. - -"Himself is gone from me," she wailed, when she reached the door of the -barrack, "gone and left me, and me sick in my bed with an impression -on my chest and a rumbling within in the inside of me as it might be -a cart, or two carts, and they with turf in them going along on the -street." - -"My good woman," said Sergeant Farrelly, "go home out of this, and -don't be making a disturbance on the public street." - -"Home, is it?" wailed Mrs. Devlin; "and where will I find a home when -himself is gone from me?" - -"Go to your bed," said the sergeant; "and if so be that you're sick -the way you're after telling us, get the doctor to attend you." - -Then he recollected that there was no doctor in Clonmore, and suggested -as an alternative that she should send one of the children up to Jimmy -O'Loughlin's shop to buy "some sort of a bottle that would do her good." - -"And what good would a bottle be to me, if I had the money to pay for -it itself, and where would I get the money, with himself gone from me? -It was a bad head he was to me, and many's the time I've been sorry -that ever I married him, but sure it's worse I'll do without him now -he's gone." - -"And that's true for her, the creature," said old Biddy Halloran from -the outskirts of the crowd. - -"Where is he gone to?" asked the sergeant. - -"Is it where has he gone? If I knew that, would I come to you to find -him for me? Where has he gone? Och! but I'd be the thankful woman this -day if I could lay my eyes on him." - -Mrs. Devlin wept wildly. - -"Stop your crying, woman dear," said a sympathizer; "sure the police -will have him found for you in two twos. Isn't that what they're here -for?" - -"When did you miss him?" asked the sergeant. - -"Miss him! Amn't I missing him every minute since he went from me, and -the children along with me crying for their da, and them with no da -left them?" - -"When did you see him last?" said the sergeant, varying the form of his -question. - -"I seen him," said Mrs. Devlin, "e'er last night. He came home, and him -after spending the evening at Jimmy O'Loughlin's." - -"Had he drink taken?" - -Mrs. Devlin hesitated. One of her supporters in the crowd encouraged -her to speak out boldly. - -"Don't be afeard, Mrs. Devlin, ma'am. Speak up to the sergeant when he -asks you the question. It's for your own good that he's trying to get -the truth out of you." - -"I won't," said Mrs. Devlin at last, "be telling lies to you. He had -not. There wasn't a sign of it on him, though I won't deny that he -might have had a glass of porter or the like." - -"And did he spent the night with you in the house?" - -"He did--he did," wailed Mrs. Devlin, overcome afresh by the -recollection. "And in the morning, as it might be yesterday morning, -when he had his breakfast took, 'I'm off,' says he, 'up to the Castle,' -says he, 'to see the old lord that always was a good friend to me and -my father before me.' And I never seen him since." - -"Did he go to the Castle?" asked the sergeant. - -"How would I know whether he did or not? Amn't I after telling you that -I was sick in my bed?" - -"He did go," said a man from the crowd, "for I seen him getting over -the wall into the deer park, and him looking most determined, the same -as if he had business to do." - -"And why didn't you come up and tell me before?" said the sergeant. -"He's gone for twenty-four hours and more, and it's only now you find -it out." - -"I was expecting him to step into the house every minute," said Mrs. -Devlin, "and I wasn't willing to lay my mind down to it that he was -gone, till there was no help for it." - -"The Lord save us!" said old Biddy Halloran. "It's an afflicted -creature you are this day, Mary Devlin." - -Sergeant Farrelly buttoned his tunic and took his cap. He summoned -Constable Cole and they marched together down the street towards Jimmy -O'Loughlin's hotel. The crowd, Mrs. Devlin at the head of it, followed -them. Constable Cole turned. - -"Go home out of that the lot of you," he said, "and take Mrs. Devlin -along with you. The matter is in the hands of the police now, and that -ought to content you." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin's customers deserted him as soon as the noise of -Mrs. Devlin's wailing was heard in the street. He stood alone behind -his bar when the police entered the hotel. He greeted the sergeant -heartily, for he was a man of good conscience and unaware of any reason -why he should dread a visit from the police. He was struck by the -solemn severity with which Sergeant Farrelly replied to his greeting, -and became vaguely uneasy. The business of a publican is beset with -legal snares which only the most fortunate men succeed in avoiding -altogether. Jimmy examined himself rapidly, but failed to discover -anything in his immediate past which could bring him under the lash of -the law. He was quite sure that batch of convivial friends who absorbed -a few dozen bottles of porter on the previous Sunday had entered his -house unseen. They had certainly entered it cautiously--by the back -door, after climbing over a wall into his yard. His mental attitude was -that of the people of the town of Bethlehem when the prophet Samuel -came unexpectedly among them. They were not conscious of deserving any -kind of denunciation, but they were anxious, and said to the great -man: "Comest thou peaceably?" Jimmy O'Loughlin might have repeated -their exact words, but he had never heard the story, and was therefore -unable to quote from it. His face wore an expression of anxious -interrogation. - -"Did you hear," said Sergeant Farrelly, "what they're after telling me -about Patsy Devlin?" - -"What about him?" said Jimmy cautiously. - -"He's left the town, and deserted his wife and family." - -"Do you say that now?" - -"It's not me that says it," said the sergeant; "but it's being said." - -"I wouldn't wonder," said Jimmy, "but there might be some truth in it." - -Neither he nor his public-house could be held in any way responsible -for the disappearance of Patsy Devlin. He felt free to discuss -the event in a friendly way with the police and to give them any -information he could so long as he said nothing likely to lead to the -capture of Patsy. - -"I'm told," said the sergeant, "that the last night he was in Clonmore -he spent the most of it along with yourself." - -"He might," said Jimmy. - -He did not quite see the point of the sergeant's remark, and felt that -he must be cautious. - -"Could you give me any information about what he intended doing with -himself the next day?" - -"He told me," said Jimmy, after thinking the matter over, "and it -could be that he was telling me the truth--he told me he was going up -to the Castle to try if he could get a pound, or maybe two pounds, -out of Lord Manton for the sports. He was collecting the town and the -district; and he said to me himself that he'd done well. The money was -coming in better than ever it did." - -"Ah!" said the sergeant with deep meaning. - -"Just so," said Jimmy. - -"And was that what you meant this minute when you said that you -wouldn't wonder if there might be some truth in what they're saying -about him being gone?" - -"He's not the first," said Jimmy, "nor he won't be the last. There was -Cooney that was treasurer of the League, and nobody ever heard of him -after. It was upwards of twenty pounds he had. There was----" - -"It's larceny," said Constable Cole. - -"You're wrong there," said the sergeant. "It's misappropriation of -public funds under trust, besides the charge that might be brought by -the subscribers of obtaining money under false pretences." - -"You'll never get him," said Jimmy. - -"It isn't him I'm thinking of," said the sergeant, "but his wife that's -left with a long family dependent on her and not knowing where to look -for the bit to put into their mouths." - -"It's a pity of the creature," said Constable Cole. "It's badly she'll -be able to do without him." - -"If so be," said Jimmy, "that Patsy's gone the way you say, he'll have -left a trifle behind him for the widow, be the same more or less. He -always had a good heart, and it wouldn't be like a thing he'd do to -leave his children to starve." - -"Devil the penny she owned up to anyway," said the sergeant. - -"Then he'll send it," said Jimmy; "he'll send it from America." - -"He might," said the sergeant. - -"The world," said Constable Cole, "is full of trouble, any way you look -at it." - -"Does Father Moroney know he's gone?" asked Jimmy. - -"I'm thinking he must," said the sergeant; "he could hardly miss -hearing the way the creature was going on in the street, crying all -sorts." - -"He'll be apt to be raising a subscription for her," said Jimmy, "to -put her over until such time as Patsy sends home the trifle he has for -her." - -"I'll give something towards it myself," said the sergeant, "and I'll -see that the men in the barrack contributes." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin was not to be outdone in generosity by the members of -the constabulary. - -"I have the pound by me," he said, "that I'd promised Patsy Devlin, the -poor boy, for the sports. I hadn't it paid over to him, thanks be to -God. I'd be thankful to you, sergeant, if you'd take it and hand it on -to Father Moroney. It's no more than due to the woman, seeing that her -husband could have had it if he'd thought of taking it, and I'll add -another five shillings to it from myself." - -He handed the whole sum over to Sergeant Farrelly, who put it in his -pocket. - -"He was always a bit of a lad, that Patsy Devlin," said Constable Cole. - -"He might be a bit foolish at times," said Jimmy; "but there was no -harm in him." - -"It's as good for you," said the sergeant, "that you didn't make him -the inspector of sheep dipping that time." - -"It was that preyed on his mind," said Jimmy. "He never rightly got -over it. I don't say he'd have been elected--there was better men up -for the job than him--but he destroyed himself altogether when he went -getting a testimonial to his character from Lord Manton. The League -wouldn't stand the like of that, and small blame to them. It couldn't -be expected that they would." - -"We'll go up to the Castle," said the sergeant to Constable Cole, "and -find out whether Patsy went there before he left, if so be that his -lordship has come home." - -"I didn't hear any talk of his being away," said Jimmy. - -"Well, he was away. Yesterday and to-day." - -"That's queer now," said Jimmy, "for it was only this morning I was -talking to Byrne the steward, and he told me that his lordship was -walking round yesterday afternoon looking into the new drain he's -thinking of making across the top of the deer park, and that he went in -for his tea the same as usual. What's more, he was speaking to Byrne -this morning about the disgraceful way the roads is kept by the County -Council, and the rates being so high and such-like." - -"It couldn't be," said the sergeant, "for I was up there three times -yesterday, and I wasn't able to see him." - -"Take care but he didn't want to see you." - -"And I had a letter from him this morning telling me that he'd be away -from home all the day." - -"Take care," said Jimmy again, "but he mightn't have wanted to see -you." - -"And why wouldn't he?" - -"I'm not saying it is, mind you," said Jimmy; "but it might be that he -knows more about Patsy Devlin than he'd care to tell. Him and Patsy was -mighty thick." - -"Talk sense, can't you?" said the sergeant. "Is it likely now that a -man like his lordship would be conniving at the escape of a criminal -from justice?" - -"I said no such thing," said Jimmy; "and I'll thank you, Sergeant -Farrelly, not to be putting it out that I did. What I said was that -he might know more than he'd care to tell. Would you think now that a -gentleman like him--and I'll say this for him, that he always was a -gentleman--do you think now that, if so be he did know where Patsy was -gone, he'd be wanting to tell you and maybe get a poor man into trouble -that he had a liking for? Didn't you tell me this minute that he had -himself hid away from you when you were up at the Castle looking for -him? Why would he do the like? Tell me that now. Why would he do it?" - -"Come along out of this," said the sergeant to Constable Cole. "We've -no business standing here listening to such talk. I'm going up to the -Castle now, Mr. O'Loughlin, and if I hear so much as another word of -that nonsense out of your head I'll tell his lordship what you're after -saying." - -"You may tell him," said Jimmy, "when you get a hold of him to tell; -but it's my belief that if he hid on you yesterday, he'll hide on you -again to-day." - -It turned out that Jimmy O'Loughlin was perfectly right. Constable Cole -said that he was prepared to swear, if necessary, that he saw Lord -Manton looking out of one of the windows of the Castle. But Wilkins -was as impenetrably suave as he had been the day before. - -"His lordship left word," he said, "in case you called, that he was -away from home and couldn't say precisely when he might return." - - - - -CHAPTER X - - -Mr. Goddard, the District Inspector of Police, was a young man and -stood on the lowest rung of his professional ladder. It was recognized -by his superiors, it was even feared by the man himself, that he was -never likely to rise very high in the service. He was, in fact, an -inefficient officer. He had a natural sense of humour, which was a -great misfortune, because it led him to see situations like those of -comic operas in the course of the duties which he was called upon to -perform. He was wise enough not to laugh loudly at the things which -happened; but the fact that a great deal of what he had to do struck -him as ludicrous prevented his doing his duty heartily and thoroughly. -An Irish police officer ought to have a good opinion of himself and -his position. He ought to recognize his official kinship with the -potentates who draw large salaries for administering the affairs of the -Indians, the Egyptians, and other barbarous peoples. He is humbler, of -course, and is paid less; but he is engaged in the same kind of work. -He is securing to a conquered people the blessings of law and order. -Unfortunately, Mr. Goddard could never see himself steadily in this -light. Another cause of his inefficiency was indolence. The duties -which did not strike him as comic bored him intolerably; but like many -lazy men, he was subject to spasms of vigour when irritated. It was his -custom to avoid doing anything for as long as possible, and at last, -if goaded beyond endurance, to act with a violence which surprised his -subordinates. He had a taste for literature, even when it took the form -of poetry, and used to read a good deal in the evenings. - -He was reading a novel when Miss Blow and Constable Moriarty drove up -to his house. He received them in his dining-room, and was chiefly -anxious at first to get rid of them as soon as possible. He did not -realize for some time that Miss Blow was the kind of woman who ought to -be offered a chair and invited to sit down on it. She came, apparently, -in the custody of a policeman, and Mr. Goddard did not look closely at -her. She saved him from any embarrassment he might afterwards have felt -by walking over to an armchair and settling herself comfortably in it. - -Constable Moriarty produced Lord Manton's note of complaint and handed -it over to his officer. He explained that Sergeant Farrelly had called -three times at Clonmore Castle and had waited in the hall for some -hours in the hope of seeing Lord Manton. Mr. Goddard read the note -and asked a number of questions. He succeeded in greatly embarrassing -Constable Moriarty. That young man had the feelings of a gentleman. He -would not say anything likely to cause pain or discomfort to a lady. -He hesitated in his account of Miss Blow's invasion of the barrack. He -contradicted himself three times in trying to explain the views of the -police about the disappearance of Dr. O'Grady. - -Miss Blow cut into the conversation sharply. - -"I demand," she said, "that the police should investigate a case of -murder, and they refuse to do so." - -Mr. Goddard, for the first time, took a good look at her. He realized -at once that she was an extremely handsome girl. Even so it seemed -improbable that any one would murder a dispensary doctor well known to -be very popular. - -"Murder," he said tentatively, "is perhaps too strong a word." - -"Lord Manton agrees with me," said Miss Blow, "that he has been -murdered." - -She took Lord Manton's note from her pocket and handed it to Mr. -Goddard. He read it, reread it, and then turned inquiringly to the -constable. Moriarty reluctantly admitted that Lord Manton's words might -bear the interpretation which Miss Blow put on them. - -"Then why on earth did you not investigate the matter?" said Mr. -Goddard. - -Constable Moriarty became very confused. With Miss Blow's fine eyes -fixed on him he could not bring himself to blurt out the naked truth. -He was as unwilling as everybody else had been to break the heart of a -beautiful girl by saying that her lover had basely deserted her. - -"It could be," he said feebly, "that the doctor's alive and well yet." - -This was very much Mr. Goddard's own opinion. He read Lord Manton's -note again, and then turned to Miss Blow. - -"I am very sorry," he said, "that you should have been put to so much -trouble and inconvenience. I hope I am not tiring you too much, but -would you mind telling me what reasons you have for supposing that Dr. -O'Grady has been murdered?" - -Miss Blow's eyes suddenly filled with tears. She caught at her skirt -with both hands, clenching the folds of it tightly. - -"We were to have been married this year," she said, "and oh----" - -Then, fumbling hurriedly for her pocket-handkerchief, she burst into -a flood of tears. There was every excuse for her. She had been driven -to the belief that her lover was murdered. She had gone through three -trying days, the last two of them very trying. She was a stranger among -people who seemed heartless and cruel to an extraordinary degree. She -had every right to an outbreak of hysterical weeping. Yet it should -be noted to her credit that she chose as the witness of her breakdown -the man, of all those whom she had met, most likely to be influenced -by tears. Lord Manton, if she had wept in his study, would have -comforted her; but he would also have enjoyed his task and would have -appreciated the appearance of her slobbered cheeks. Sergeant Farrelly -would have sympathized with her if she had wept in the police barrack, -but he would not have gone out to search for Dr. O'Grady's body merely -because she made a sponge of her pocket-handkerchief. Mr. Goddard was -different. He was young, and though he had a sense of humour, the sight -of a beautiful girl shaken with sobs embarrassed him. - -He did not exactly know what he ought to do. He looked round, hoping -for some suggestion from the constable; but Moriarty had slipped -quietly from the room. Mr. Goddard made a hasty and impassioned vow -that he would give Constable Moriarty a severe lesson in the respect -due to his superior officer. Then he looked at Miss Blow again. She was -sobbing convulsively. He watched her helplessly for several minutes, -and then asked her if she would like a cup of tea. He had to repeat -the question twice, because, owing to nervousness, he was inaudible -the first time he asked it. Miss Blow, when she heard what he said, -shook her head vigorously. Mr. Goddard felt that there must have been -something insulting about the suggestion, and was sorry he had made it. -He wished very much that he knew how to behave under the circumstances. -By way of relieving the tension of the situation he got up and stood -behind Miss Blow. Then he walked round her chair and stood in front -of her. Neither position availed to check her weeping. Her head was -bowed almost to her lap and her face was covered with her hands. It -occurred to him that it might soothe her if he patted her back and -shoulders gently. He stretched out his hand. Then he paused. He was a -man of chivalrous feeling towards women, the result perhaps of reading -Tennyson's poetry, and it struck him that it would be unfair to pat a -girl who was obviously incapable of resisting. He stood irresolute, his -hand still stretched out. His attitude was not unlike that of a priest -who bestows a benediction upon a deeply contrite penitent. - -"Miss Blow," he said at last, "please stop crying." - -Curiously enough this appeal produced its effect upon her. - -"How can I help crying," she said, though her utterance was broken with -sobs, "when he's dead, and no one will help me even to find his body?" - -Mr. Goddard's resolution was taken in an instant. He did not believe -that Dr. O'Grady was dead. He knew that he was laying up trouble for -himself in the future; but it was absolutely necessary to stop Miss -Blow crying and, if possible, to get her out of the house. - -"I'll help you," he said. "I'll do all that can be done to find him. I -shall put all the men in my district to work. I shall leave no place -unsearched until I find him, alive or dead." - -Miss Blow looked up at him, and smiled through her tears. Even an -ordinary girl, with no particular pretensions to beauty, looks very -charming when she succeeds in smiling and crying at the same time. -Miss Blow seemed radiantly lovely. Mr. Goddard felt that he was losing -command of himself. He felt strongly inclined to quote some poetry. He -knew that there must be poetry suitable to the situation, but for the -moment he could think of nothing except four lines out of _Maud_. - - "Oh, that 'twere possible - After long grief and pain, - To feel the arms of my true love - Around me once again." - -There was a certain appropriateness about the verses, and yet he -hesitated to quote them. He was not sure that Miss Blow would care to -admit in plain words to a total stranger that she wanted Dr. O'Grady's -arms round her. Miss Blow saved him from his uncertainty. She gave her -eyes two rapid dabs with her wet pocket-handkerchief, and said-- - -"When shall we start?" - -"Some day next week," said Mr. Goddard. "Suppose we say----" - -Miss Blow collapsed again, and showed every sign of more tears. - -"Sooner, if you like," said Mr. Goddard hurriedly. - -"At once, then," said Miss Blow, rallying; "at once; this very moment." - -Mr. Goddard looked at his watch. It was three o'clock. It would take -him at least two hours to drive to Clonmore. He could do very little -there that evening. - -"At once," repeated Miss Blow; "this very instant." - -Mr. Goddard gave in. He believed that he was going to make a fool of -himself, but saw no way of escape. Miss Blow's vigorous manner of -crying convinced him that she was quite capable of sitting in his -dining-room and continuing to cry until he set out in search of Dr. -O'Grady's body. - -"Will you excuse me," he said, "while I go upstairs and put on my -uniform?" - -Miss Blow nodded and smiled again. The thought of a uniform comforted -her. A man can hardly fail in his duty when he puts on a uniform for -the express purpose of performing it. Mr. Goddard took courage from her -smile. - -"I shall tell my housekeeper," he said, "to bring you a cup of tea. I -am sure you must need it. You can drink it while you are waiting. I -shall have my horse harnessed and drive you back with me to Clonmore." - -This time Miss Blow did not refuse the tea. She drank two cups of it -when it was brought to her, and finished a plate of bread-and-butter. -It took Mr. Goddard some time to array himself, because he paused -frequently to try and hit upon some way of getting rid of Miss Blow -without driving her into Clonmore. He tried in vain. Miss Blow, after -drinking her tea, was able to devote a few minutes to her hair and the -position of her hat. There was a mirror over the chimney-piece in Mr. -Goddard's dining-room. - -Mr. Goddard's horse was a good one, and could undoubtedly have done the -journey to Clonmore in less than two hours, but Mr. Goddard did not -press him. He found the drive agreeable. Miss Blow had quite stopped -crying before she got into the trap, and she talked with the utmost -frankness about her affairs. There is something very delightful in the -confidences of a beautiful girl. Miss Blow had a way of looking up with -her eyes wide open, which sent a curious thrill of pleasure through -Mr. Goddard. There was only one thing which marred the enjoyment of -the drive. Her confidences were of the most puzzling and embarrassing -kind. She told how everybody in Clonmore had lied. And so far, Mr. -Goddard sympathized with her. But he could not help asking himself why -they lied. Even Jimmy O'Loughlin, as Mr. Goddard understood, would -not lie persistently without a motive of some kind. Of course, Miss -Blow had an explanation ready at hand. Dr. O'Grady was murdered, and -everybody was interested in concealing the fact. But Mr. Goddard could -not believe this. He did not attempt to argue with her, for he had no -wish to reduce her to tears again; but he knew very well that nobody in -the neighbourhood would murder Dr. O'Grady. He was inclined at first -to think, as every one else did, that the doctor had run away from his -creditors; but Miss Blow demonstrated the absurdity of this theory. -She had come to Clonmore with a blank cheque signed by her father, and -full authority to pay every penny the doctor owed. She had told him -beforehand in a letter that he might expect some relief. Mr. Goddard -was forced to admit that under the circumstances it was very unlikely -that Dr. O'Grady had allowed himself to be chased away to America by -his creditors. - -At the same time, the doctor had undoubtedly disappeared. That seemed -the one solid fact there was. Miss Blow referred frequently to Lord -Manton's note. It puzzled Mr. Goddard quite as much as anything else -did. He knew Lord Manton, and he could not understand how he came to -believe, as apparently he did believe, in the murder of Dr. O'Grady. -Mr. Goddard made up his mind that he would go up to Clonmore Castle -and talk the whole matter over with Lord Manton. This was the solitary -decision he was able to come to; though he was obliged to pledge -himself over and over again to institute a strict search for the -doctor's body. He arrived at last in Clonmore and drove straight up to -the hotel. - -"You must be very tired," he said to Miss Blow, "quite worn out. Now -that the matter is in my hands, you need have no further anxiety. I -hope you will stay quietly in the hotel and rest till I see you again." - -He spoke quite sincerely. He did hope that Miss Blow would go into the -hotel and stay there. He feared that she might feel it necessary to -follow him about and watch what he did. - -"I shall inform you at once," he went on, "of everything which -transpires. I must spend this evening in making some preliminary -inquiries; but there is no necessity for you to fatigue yourself -further." - -Miss Blow looked at him long and searchingly. Mr. Goddard felt that she -was judging of his strength and determination, was deciding whether she -could fully trust him or not. He endeavoured to assume the expression -of face which he believed to be common to those strong, silent -Englishmen, whom the heroines of novels learn, after other people have -turned out to be frauds, to trust to the uttermost. He was, apparently, -quite successful in his effort. He deserved to be; for he really felt -for the moment, with Miss Blow's eyes on him, that he was exactly the -kind of man he wished to appear. Miss Blow, without a word, stretched -out her hand to him. He took it and ventured to press it slightly. He -would have carried it to his lips and pressed a reverent kiss upon it, -if Jimmy O'Loughlin had not been standing at the door of the hotel. -Afterwards he was sorry that he had not defied Jimmy O'Loughlin. A -reverent kiss, even if it had to soak through a glove, would have been -most appropriate to the occasion. - -Miss Blow got out of the trap and went into the hotel. Mr. Goddard -drove on to the police barrack. - -He found Sergeant Farrelly and Constable Cole drawn up before the door. -They had seen their inspector drive into the town and were ready for -him. Mr. Goddard at once ordered the sergeant to follow him into the -barrack. Constable Cole mounted guard over the horse and trap. - -"Now, sergeant," said Mr. Goddard, "what have you to tell me about the -disappearance of Dr. O'Grady?" - -"There's another man gone since then, sir," said the sergeant gloomily. - -"What do you mean? Who's gone?" - -"I thought it right to let you know, sir--I was within writing a -report on the matter when I seen you drive into the town--that Patsy -Devlin the smith is gone. His wife was up at the barrack shortly after -Constable Moriarty left with the young lady, and she says he's missing." - -"It's a queer thing," said Mr. Goddard, "that two men should disappear -in this sort of way within a couple of days of each other. It looks -bad. Let's take them one at a time and see what we can make out of -them. What have you to say about the doctor?" - -"Everybody knows the reason he's made off," said the sergeant, "only -nobody'd like to be telling the young lady, and that's what has us all -put about the way we are." - -"Do you mean debt?" - -"I do, sir. It's common talk. Jimmy O'Loughlin told me himself----" - -"It's not true anyhow, whether Jimmy O'Loughlin said it or not. -Whatever it was made the doctor bolt, it wasn't that." - -"Then I don't know what it would be." - -"No more do I; but I'm going to see Lord Manton and talk to him about -it." - -"It could be," said Sergeant Farrelly, "that he'd know. Did you take -notice of the note that he gave to the young lady?" - -"Yes; I saw it." - -"Well now, his lordship couldn't be believing that the doctor's -murdered, and whatever made him write that note it's my opinion that -there was something behind it. And what's more, Jimmy O'Loughlin -says----" - -"Damn Jimmy O'Loughlin!" - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin says," went on the sergeant, "that his lordship knows -something, be the same more or less, about Patsy Devlin. I wouldn't -wonder now if he'd be able to tell you where the both of the two of -them is gone and why." - -"What about Patsy Devlin?" asked Mr. Goddard. "What sort of a man is -he?" - -"He's no great things any way you take him. He's a bit foolish at -times, and takes more than is good for him. I hear them say that he -fretted a deal when they didn't make him the inspector of sheep -dipping. It might be that the disappointment preyed on him, that and -the drink, so as he wouldn't be rightly responsible for what he did." - -"Was he mixed up with the League?" - -"He was one time, but there was a falling out between him and them over -the sheep dipping. Patsy wasn't what you'd call great with the League -since then. I'm told he had a deal of money collected for the sports. -Jimmy O'Loughlin let out to me that----" - -"It seems to me," said Mr. Goddard, "that Jimmy O'Loughlin knows more -about these disappearances than anybody else about the place." - -"Unless it would be Lord Manton," said the sergeant. - -"I'll see Lord Manton anyhow," said Mr. Goddard. "You can tell the -constable to take my horse and trap round to the hotel. I'll walk up to -the Castle." - -"It'll be well," said the sergeant, "if you get seeing his lordship." - -He spoke meaningly. Mr. Goddard, who was half way to the barrack door, -turned back. - -"What's that you say?" - -"It'll be well," said the sergeant, "if you're not told that his -lordship's away from home." - -"What do you mean by that?" - -"I was up there yesterday," said the sergeant; "off and on I was there -for the most of the day; and I was up there again to-day, and all I got -by it was word that his lordship was away from home. Jimmy O'Loughlin -was saying----" - -"Go on," said Mr. Goddard; "Jimmy O'Loughlin's remarks are always -valuable." - -"He was saying that his lordship was within all the time. It was his -opinion--I'm not saying was he right or wrong--but it was his opinion -that his lordship didn't want the police next or nigh him." - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin," said Mr. Goddard, "appears to be as big a fool as -anybody about Clonmore." - - - - -CHAPTER XI - - -Wilkins was a little puzzled when he opened the door to Mr. Goddard. -His orders were definite. Lord Manton was not at home when the police -called. Mr. Goddard in his uniform, complete to the sword, the whistle -and the spurs, was undeniably a policeman. But Wilkins was a good -servant, a very good servant. He was accustomed to interpreting his -orders as well as obeying them. He knew that Mr. Goddard was a superior -kind of policeman. He dined occasionally at Clonmore Castle, and -Wilkins waited on him. After a moment's hesitation, Wilkins offered to -go and find out whether Lord Manton was at home or not. Mr. Goddard -was shown into a large, desolate drawing-room, and left there. Wilkins -was glad afterwards that he had appreciated the difference in standing -between a district inspector and a sergeant. It appeared that Lord -Manton was quite willing to see this visitor. Mr. Goddard was shown -into the library. - -"Sit down," said Lord Manton. "I'm very glad to see you. You'll stay -and dine, won't you? Since poor O'Grady left us I haven't had a soul to -speak to at meals." - -"It was about Dr. O'Grady's disappearance that I called to see you," -said Mr. Goddard. - -"There's no use coming to me about that. I'm a magistrate, I know; but -I very seldom act. Why not go to Jimmy O'Loughlin? He loves signing -papers." - -"I'm rather puzzled over the case. The fact is----" - -"My advice to you is to leave it alone. Don't do anything. Masterly -inactivity is plainly the policy for you." - -"That's all well enough. I'd be very glad to leave it alone. There's -nothing I'd like better. But the fact is, I can't. I'm more or less -pledged to---- My hand has been, so to speak, forced." - -"Had a visit from Miss Blow?" - -"Yes." - -"She's a wonderful woman. She was here yesterday; spent half an hour -with me in this very room." - -"She's a very good-looking girl," said Mr. Goddard. - -"She is. I admit that. Her eyes, for instance. Grey, I thought them; -but they looked quite blue in certain lights; and a very good figure, -a remarkable figure. All the same I couldn't have her settling herself -down for good and all in my house. I had to get her out of it somehow. -I gave her a note for Sergeant Farrelly." - -"Oh! That's the meaning of your note. It rather puzzled me." - -"I'm afraid it must have rather puzzled Sergeant Farrelly too. I felt -sorry for him; but what could I do? She evidently meant to stay here -till I gave her a note of the sort she wanted. I thought it better to -shift the responsibility of dealing with her on to the sergeant. After -all, he's paid for looking into things of the kind. I'm not." - -"The sergeant sent her on to me. It was extremely awkward. She cried -like anything." - -"I thought she'd have cried here," said Lord Manton; "but she didn't. -Did you comfort her?" - -"No, I didn't. At least I suppose I did in the end. I didn't know what -to do. I'm not a married man, and I'm not accustomed----" - -"How did you comfort her in the end? It would interest me very much to -hear, if the details are of the sort that will bear repeating without -giving Miss Blow away. Did you hold a pocket-handkerchief to her eyes?" - -"No, nothing of that kind. I----" Mr. Goddard hesitated. - -"Go on," said Lord Manton. "I'll treat whatever you say as strictly -confidential." - -"Well, I promised to do what she asked." - -"Do you mean to say that you've pledged yourself to go searching the -country for Dr. O'Grady's body?" - -"I couldn't help it. What on earth else could I do?" - -"And when do you start?" - -"I don't mean to start at all." - -Lord Manton pretended not to hear this remark. - -"Do the thing in style if you do it at all," he said. "Get bloodhounds. -I'll give you the address of a man in England who breeds them. Fish out -an old sock of the doctor's; let the bloodhound get the scent, and then -we'll be off across country." - -"I don't mean to do any such fool thing." - -"We'll have glorious paragraphs in all the papers," said Lord Manton. -"MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE OF A DOCTOR. VIGOROUS ACTION OF THE ROYAL -IRISH CONSTABULARY. DISTRICT INSPECTOR GODDARD THINKS HE HAS A CLUE. -BLOODHOUNDS USED. FIANCEE IN TEARS. Your portrait will appear -along with Miss Blow's." - -"It's all very fine to laugh," said Mr. Goddard; "but of course I'm not -going----" - -"You'll have to. You've promised. You can't go back on a promise made -to a lady. Her portrait will be published in the papers and everybody -will see how charming she is. You'll be an object of universal hatred -and contempt if you go back on your word." - -"If ever it gets into the papers at all, you'll look quite as great a -fool as I shall. Your note will be published. And, after all, you know, -the girl has something to say for herself. The doctor's gone. Now, why -the devil did he go, and where has he gone to?" - -"Can't you give a guess at his motives?" - -"No, I can't. It wasn't debt. Miss Blow told me herself that she was -ready to pay every penny that he owed." - -"No; it's not debt. I thought it was at first, but it appears I was -wrong." - -"He didn't drink," said Mr. Goddard, "that ever I heard of. Besides, -even if he did, that would be no reason for bolting. Whisky's as plenty -here as anywhere in the world." - -"No; it's not drink. Try the other thing. There's only one more. 'Love, -or debt, or whisky'--you know the old saying. If it isn't either of the -last two, it must be the first." - -"Love!" said Mr. Goddard. - -"Precisely." - -"But, hang it all! Miss Blow's quite ready to marry him." - -"Too ready," said Lord Manton; "that's my point." - -Mr. Goddard thought hard for a couple of minutes. - -"Do you mean to suggest," he said at last, "that he's run away from -her?" - -"In the absence of any other conceivable reason for his bolting," said -Lord Manton, "I am unwillingly driven to the conclusion that he wants -to escape from Miss Blow." - -"But, hang it all! why should he? The girl's uncommonly good-looking." - -"Good looks aren't everything," said Lord Manton; "when you come to -my time of life, you'll understand that. Just put yourself in the -doctor's place for a minute. You've had some little experience of Miss -Blow. So have I. But the poor doctor knew her a great deal better than -we do. Just think of what his feelings must have been when he heard -that she was coming over here to pay his debts. He'd be bound to marry -her straight off after that. And then--just think of sitting down to -breakfast every morning opposite a young woman of her character. I -admit her good looks, but she's masterful. She'd bully a prize-fighter. -The poor doctor wouldn't have had the ghost of a chance, especially as -married life would begin by her paying his debts. That would give her -the whip hand of him at once; and she's just the sort of girl who would -make the most of her opportunities." - -"I don't know--it's possible, of course." - -"It's certain, man. Be reasonable. Here's a fact, a perfectly -undeniable fact. The doctor's gone. Unless you're going to adopt Miss -Blow's hypothesis----" - -"Oh, he's not murdered, of course. I know that." - -"Very well, then, my explanation of his disappearance is the only one -that's left. And it's quite a probable one in itself. Nine men out of -ten in the doctor's position would do exactly what he's done." - -"Then what the devil am I to do?" - -"You're in a deuced awkward position. I don't know what the end of it -will be. The authorities certainly won't stand your taking the police -away from their ordinary duties, and setting them to scour the country -for the body of a man who isn't dead. There'd be questions asked in -Parliament about it, and all sorts of fuss. Besides, you'd look such an -ass." - -"I know I should." - -"All the same, you're in for it now. Unless you choose to go and tell -Miss Blow the truth. She might believe you, though I very much doubt -it." - -"I couldn't possibly do that. No man could tell a girl that her---- -But, look here, Lord Manton, your theory may be all very well so far as -O'Grady is concerned; but there's another man gone now." - -"Patsy Devlin," said Lord Manton. "I heard about that." - -"Do you think he has run away through fear of his wife?" - -"No, I don't. There are plenty of other ways of accounting for his -disappearance. Besides, in the case of Mrs. Devlin--you know her, -perhaps?" - -"No; I never set eyes on the woman in my life." - -"Well, she's not equal to Miss Blow in personal appearance; but she has -a certain charm of her own. You wouldn't meet a quieter, less obtrusive -sort of woman anywhere. Nobody would run away from her unless he was -forced to. You take my word for it, Patsy will send for her to follow -him wherever he's gone to. I knew both Patsy and his wife well, and -they always got on splendidly together. The poor fellow was something -of a _protege_ of mine. I think he regarded me as a friend, and was -inclined to confide in me. I gave him a letter of recommendation to the -Board of Guardians, at the time of the election of the inspector of -sheep dipping." - -"I understood from Sergeant Farrelly," said Mr. Goddard, "that the man -was rather a blackguard." - -"A horrid blackguard," said Lord Manton. "That's why I didn't want them -to elect him." - -"But I thought you said----" - -"So I did; but there's no use discussing that now. It's all over and -done with. Poor Patsy will never inspect the dipping of a single sheep -now. Besides, it's almost dinner-time. You'll stay, of course. Never -mind about dressing." - -Mr. Goddard was tempted. Lord Manton would give him a good dinner; -Jimmy O'Loughlin--and the choice lay between the two--would almost -certainly give him a bad one. Inclination struggled with conscience. In -the end conscience prevailed. - -"I can't," he said. "I must see Miss Blow this evening." - -"Oh, of course, if you have an appointment with Miss Blow--I suppose -the poor doctor won't mind now." - -"You're quite wrong. I haven't that sort of an appointment at all. The -simple fact is that I'm afraid of her. If I don't see her and manage to -keep her quiet somehow, she'll be over at the barrack again making a -nuisance of herself. You couldn't tell what she'd do." - -"She might take it into her head that you were murdered, and set -everybody searching for your body." - -"She might do anything. That's the reason I won't stay to dine with -you, though I'd like to." - -"Good night," said Lord Manton. "Let me know how things go on; and if -you are driven to bloodhounds, remember that I can put you on to the -best in England." - -When Mr. Goddard got back to the hotel, he found that his -self-sacrifice was wasted. Miss Blow had retired to her room for the -night. - -"It could be," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, "that the young lady was tired. -'Bridgy,' says she, when she came in, 'I'm off up to my bed; and I'd be -thankful to you if you'd bring me up a cup of tea when it's convenient -to Mrs. O'Loughlin to wet it.'" - -This did not sound like a thing Miss Blow would have said. Mr. Goddard -felt that Jimmy O'Loughlin was adding a varnish of politeness to the -original remark. The next words reassured him. There was at least a -foundation of fact beneath the version of the story which he had heard. - -"'And take care,' says she, 'that the kettle's boiling, for the last -cup you made for me was poison, and smoked at that.'" - -The words were not yet the words of Miss Blow, but the meaning might -very well have been hers. - -"She's mighty particular about her tea," said Jimmy. "She has the life -fair plagued out of Bridgy; not but what Bridgy deserves it. And what -would you be wishing for yourself, Mr. Goddard?" - -Mr. Goddard wished that he had accepted Lord Manton's invitation. Since -it appeared that Miss Blow was safely in her room, perhaps actually in -bed, he might just as well have dined in comfort at Clonmore Castle. -But he did not make this reply to Jimmy O'Loughlin. He said that what -he was wishing for himself was a chop and a bottle of porter. He might -have said whisky instead of porter, but he knew that there was no hope -of getting anything else in the way of food except the chop. Jimmy -O'Loughlin accepted the order and ushered his guest into the commercial -room, which happened to be empty. - -In due time Bridgy entered with the chop. It was served on a plate -with a round tin cover over it; a cover which meant well, but failed -to keep the chop warm. Mr. Goddard contemplated the frozen grease -which clung round the edges of the plate, and then, lest it too should -freeze, plunged his knife and fork into the chop. Bridgy uncorked his -bottle of porter, and set it on the table beside a dish of potatoes. -Yellow froth oozed rapidly from the mouth of the bottle and ran down -on to the tablecloth. It added one more brown stain to those which -the last four commercial travellers, eating in haste, had made with -Worcester sauce, mustard, or gravy. Mr. Goddard, who had a fastidious -dislike of dirty table linen, seized the bottle, and then discovered -that he had no tumbler. He set the bottle in the fender, and rang the -bell furiously. Bridgy half opened the door, and put her head into the -room. The rest of her body remained outside. This was her ordinary way -of presenting herself to people who rang bells. She looked as if she -expected to have plates thrown at her, and meant to be ready for a -swift retreat. - -"A tumbler," said Mr. Goddard. - -Bridgy smiled pleasantly. "It's hardly ever," she said, "I lay the -table but I do be forgetting something. It might be the salt, or--have -you the salt? Glory be to God! you have, and the spoon along with it." - -There was a pool of considerable size in the fender round the porter -bottle, and the froth was still oozing out persistently. - -"A tumbler," said Mr. Goddard again. - -His tone startled Bridgy. She disappeared, closing the door behind her. -In a few minutes she was back again without the tumbler. - -"Where is it?" said Mr. Goddard. - -"The mistress is giving it a bit of a rinse the way it'll be clean for -you; and I came back to tell you that Mr. Moriarty from the barrack -below is at the door, and he says he wants to see you. I'm thinking -it's a telegram he has in his hand." - -Mr. Goddard rose. "Get a cloth," he said, "if there is a cloth in the -house----" - -"Sure there is," murmured Bridgy, "there's dozens." - -"And mop up that abominable mess. Take the chop down to the kitchen and -heat it up again. Get another bottle of porter; and for heaven's sake -let me have a meal I can eat when I come back." - -He went out and discovered Constable Moriarty, who had, as Bridgy -observed, a telegram in his hand. - -"It came, sir," said the constable, "and you just after leaving -Ballymoy with the young lady. The sergeant beyond said I'd better bring -it with me the way you'd get it at once, in case it might be important." - -Mr. Goddard opened it. "From Inspector-General, Dublin Castle," he -read. "Party of Members of Parliament arrive Clonmore to-morrow, noon, -from Dublin. On tour. Provide vehicles to meet train. Show every -attention. Five in party." - -"Damn it!" said Mr. Goddard. - -Every one in Ireland had heard of the tour of the Members of -Parliament. It was well advertised by means of paragraphs in all -the daily papers, so well advertised that an exaggerated opinion -was formed in Ireland of the importance of the party. It was -generally believed--and the language of the newspapers fostered the -delusion--that at least two Cabinet Ministers were coming, ten or -twelve influential politicians, and that more than the usual number of -journalists would be in attendance. It was felt that the tour offered -a unique opportunity for producing a lasting effect on English public -opinion. There was, consequently, a severe struggle in Dublin among -the numerous people who wanted to conduct the strangers round Ireland. -Not only all the heads of all the Boards and Departments, but all the -Presidents and Secretaries of the Leagues and Associations unconnected -with the Government were anxious to secure the honour. In the end it -fell to a high official, who, in order to obtain it, made what was felt -to be an unfair use of the influence he possessed in England. When he -found at the last moment that the party consisted after all of only two -Members of Parliament, and they men of inferior calibre and no real -standing, he was disgusted and withdrew his offer of a motor car. When -he found, further, that there were to be no journalists, and that the -Members of Parliament were to be accompanied only by three women, two -wives and one aunt, he lost his temper and offered the party to any -League which liked to apply for it. In the end he made over his whole -responsibility to the police. The party went from place to place in -the usual way. It was met at railway stations by polite inspectors of -police, allowed to ask questions of the people who could be relied upon -to supply the proper answers, and given every opportunity of seeing -with its own eyes the things that inquiring Englishmen ought to see. -The Members enjoyed themselves immensely, and insisted on prolonging -their tour after all the places originally marked out for them had been -visited. Then the Inspector-General of Police, who was getting tired -of making arrangements for them, sent them to Clonmore. It was a very -distant place, the terminus of the line of railway on which it stood, -and it was supposed that no harm could possibly come of their visiting -it. They were told to drive from Clonmore round a particularly -desolate coast, to stop at hotels which were quite abominable, and to -pick up another railway fifty miles off. The Inspector-General reckoned -that the trip would take at least four days, and that at the end of it -the party would have had enough of Ireland. In any case he would not -be bothered with them again until they reached the fifty miles distant -railway station. - -When Mr. Goddard read the telegram he was greatly irritated. He did not -want to conduct a party of Members of Parliament round Clonmore, and -their coming would certainly not help him to deal with Miss Blow. He -foresaw frightful complications. It was possible that the Members of -Parliament, rejoicing in the unexpected discovery of a side of Irish -life hitherto unknown to them, might insist on joining in the search -for the body of Dr. O'Grady. He determined, if he possibly could, to -prevent their arrival. He went back into the hotel and wrote a telegram. - -"Inspector-General of Police, Dublin. This district quite unsuited -to Members of Parliament. Am investigating cases of mysterious -disappearance. Inhabitants greatly excited. Disaffection feared. Send -party elsewhere." - -"Take this," he said to Constable Moriarty, "and dispatch it at once." - -"The office shuts at eight, sir," said the constable; "but I'll see -that it's sent off first thing in the morning." - -Mr. Goddard looked at his watch. It was twenty minutes to nine o'clock. -At eight the next morning the party would leave Dublin. He swore again -and tore up his telegram. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - - -Mr. Goddard met Miss Blow at breakfast next morning, and nerved himself -to the task of telling her that the search for Dr. O'Grady's body must -be put off for twenty-four hours on account of the visit of the Members -of Parliament to the district. He did not know exactly how she would -take the news. He half hoped she might get angry and say something -which would give him an excuse for washing his hands of her affairs. -He feared that she might cry again as she had cried in his dining-room -the day before. He did not want to comfort her under Jimmy O'Loughlin's -roof. Either Bridgy or Mrs. O'Loughlin might enter the room at any -moment. Even Jimmy himself, under some pretext, might interrupt the -affecting scene. Mr. Goddard was conscious that an account of his -dealing with a tearful Miss Blow given by Jimmy O'Loughlin would add -to the gaiety of the neighbourhood. His hope, as it turned out, was -quite vain and his fear unfounded. Miss Blow took the news in a most -unexpected way. - -"I'm glad to hear it," she said. - -Mr. Goddard was surprised. Miss Blow explained herself, and he came to -see that she had not given up her plan of a search party. It appeared -that she had a very high regard for Members of Parliament. Next to the -Habeas Corpus Act, which did not apply in Dr. O'Grady's case because no -one knew who had the body, and trial by jury, a notoriously uncertain -thing in Ireland, she looked to Parliament as the great safeguard of -individual rights and liberties. - -It became obvious to Mr. Goddard that Miss Blow expected the touring -Members to take up her case at once and vigorously, perhaps to make -a special law about it on the spot. He tried to explain that these -particular Members were travelling unofficially. Miss Blow did not -seem to think that fact made any difference. A Member of Parliament, -according to her view, is a Member of Parliament, whether he is -actually delivering a vote at Westminster or not. Mr. Goddard then gave -it as his opinion that there were too few Members of Parliament in the -party to do anything effective. - -"It isn't," he said, "as if we had enough of them to constitute a -majority of the House." - -Miss Blow, by way of reply, stated her intention of meeting the party -at the railway station. She said she was sure that as soon as they -heard her story they would bestir themselves just as Lord Manton -and Mr. Goddard had, but rather more vigorously. She even suggested -that a telegram might be sent to the Prime Minister. Mr. Goddard -discouraged her. He felt that he was being rapidly edged into a very -awkward position. It was utterly impossible to calculate the effect -that a story like Miss Blow's might produce on an enthusiastic Member -of Parliament. Almost anything might happen. Publicity, newspaper -paragraphs, and questions in the House of Commons would be certainties. -And he had been warned to show the approaching party every civility. It -would certainly not be civil to plunge them into a vortex of mysterious -crime. The Inspector-General would naturally be vexed if such a -thing happened, and Mr. Goddard's prospects of promotion, never very -brilliant, would be injured. - -"I don't think it would do," he said, "for you to meet them at the -railway station." - -"Why not?" - -The Miss Blow at the other side of the breakfast table with a teapot in -front of her and a decisive way of handling it seemed quite different -from the Miss Blow who had wept so pleasingly in his dining-room the -day before. - -"I rather think," he said feebly, "that they have ladies with them." - -"All the better," said Miss Blow. - -"And their tour is quite unofficial. We're not supposed to know that -they are Members of Parliament." - -"But we do know," said Miss Blow. - -The argument ended by Mr. Goddard promising to lay the case before the -Members. It was only by making the promise that he was able to induce -Miss Blow to refrain from going to the railway station. Having made -it, he slipped out of the room. It was after ten o'clock, and he still -had to make arrangements for the comfort of the party. He found Jimmy -O'Loughlin in the yard behind the hotel. - -"There's a party coming in by the train to-day," he said, "and I -want a brake and four horses to meet them. They'll be driving to -Pool-a-donagh." - -"Is it the Lord Lieutenant?" said Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"No, it's not. It's a private party." - -"I asked the question," said Jimmy, "because, if it was the Lord -Lieutenant itself, he couldn't get the brake." - -"Oh, well, that's all right. It's not the Lord Lieutenant." - -"And if the Lord Lieutenant wouldn't get it," said Jimmy, "you may take -your oath that another won't." - -"And why not?" - -"Because the two front wheels is off the only brake there is in the -town, and Patsy Devlin has them up at the forge fixing them, and he's -gone from us. That's why." - -"And there isn't another brake?" - -"There is not." - -"There are five in the party," said Mr. Goddard. "We'll have to get two -cars." - -"It's a good eight miles to Rosivera," said Jimmy, "and better than ten -on from that to Pool-a-donagh. I wouldn't say that there was a horse in -the town fit to do the journey with four on the car, and there'll have -to be four on one of the cars, if there's five in the party, that'll be -counting the drivers. My own mare was over at Ballymoy yesterday with -Constable Moriarty and the doctor's young lady. It's a day's rest she -ought to have by rights, and not to be going off on the road again." - -"It can't be helped," said Mr. Goddard. "I must have the horses." - -"There isn't another gentleman about the country," said Jimmy, "that -I'd do it for only yourself; but seeing that the party is friends of -your own, I'll let my mare go, and I'll get Patsy Devlin's grey pony -that was promised to Mr. Byrne for the day to be carting home the turf, -the same pony that the priest was thinking of buying. It's little use -Patsy's widow will have for a pony now her husband's gone from her, the -creature. I don't know another that you could put under a side car for -a gentleman to sit behind, and it's badly able for the road the grey -pony will be this minute." - -"Give her a feed of oats between this and the time the train comes in," -said Mr. Goddard. - -"I will; and I'll see if I can't get the loan of the priest's cushions -for the old car. The ones that are on it are terrible bad." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin was certainly not guilty of raising any false hopes -about the quality of his cattle or his vehicles; but Mr. Goddard had -a feeling of cold disgust when he saw the two cars standing together -outside the railway station. Jimmy O'Loughlin's mare was the better of -the two animals, and she looked extraordinary feeble and depressed. The -grey pony, which should have been drawing home Mr. Byrne's turf, was -clearly unfit for the journey before him. He may have been fretting -for the loss of Patsy Devlin. He may have been insufficiently fed by -Mrs. Devlin. He looked as if his spirit was completely broken either by -starvation or great grief. The cars were dilapidated, and the harness -evidently untrustworthy. On the other hand the drivers were full of -life and vigour. They looked forward to receiving handsome tips from -the strangers at the end of their day's work, and were quite prepared -to earn them by saying all the things which tourists expect from Irish -car drivers. They were primed with stories of the most popular kind -about every point of interest along the road. They had a store of bulls -and humorous repartees ready to their lips. They touched their hats -jauntily to Mr. Goddard as he passed them. He was a benefactor, and -they owed him respect and thanks. - -The train drew up at the platform. The door of a first-class -compartment was flung open, and a gentleman bounded from it. His face -expressed a feeling of irresponsible holiday happiness. His movements -and the pose of his body suggested abundant vitality and energy. He -turned and assisted three ladies to alight. One, the youngest of them, -he lifted out in his arms and deposited three or four paces from the -carriage door. He laughed merrily as he did so. She also laughed. The -other two ladies, who had not been embraced, laughed. The holiday -spirit was strong in all of them. Then, still laughing, he turned to -the carriage again, and received from some one inside a number of -bags, boxes, coats and parcels. He took them two by two and laid them -in a long row at the feet of the ladies. Then a second gentleman got -out of the train, a long, lean man, of sallow complexion and serious -expression. - -Mr. Goddard felt that it was time to introduce himself. He approached -the party cautiously, skirting an outlying hold-all. The first -gentleman, who was also a good deal the younger of the two, spied him -coming and bounded forward to meet him. - -"You are Mr. Goddard," he said joyously. "I'm sure you must be. I'm -delighted to meet you. My name is Dick, surname, you know. Christian -name similar--Richard Dick, M.P., not yet in the Cabinet." - -He had to the highest possible degree that air of breezy joviality -assumed by many Englishmen when they cross St. George's Channel. It -was as if, having at last reached the land of frolicsome recklessness, -he was determined to show himself capable of wild excess and a very -extremity of Celtic fervour. - -Mr. Goddard bowed, and murmured that he felt it a pleasure and an -honour to make Mr. Dick's acquaintance. - -"This," said Mr. Dick, "is Mr. Sanders. Sorrowful Sanders we call him, -on account of the expression of his face. He's not in the Cabinet -either; but he soon will be." He caught Mr. Goddard by the arm and -whispered a clearly audible aside. "He's a Scot, and that's nearly the -same thing, you know." - -"Shut up, Dick!" said Mr. Sanders. - -"How can you talk such nonsense?" said the eldest of the three ladies, -whose appearance suggested some strength of character, and suddenly -brought back Miss Blow to Mr. Goddard's mind. - -"This," said Mr. Dick, indicating the lady, "is Miss Farquharson, -Sanders' aunt. This"--he pointed to another lady--"is Mrs. Sanders, -his wife. And this"--he drew forward by the hand the lady whom he had -lifted out of the carriage--"is Mrs. Dick, the 'woman that owns me.' -Isn't that the way you express it in this country?" - -Mr. Goddard bowed three times, and then glanced doubtfully at the bags -which lay on the platform. - -"I've only been able to get two cars for you," he said. "Have you much -more luggage in the van?" - -"Oh, but an Irish car can carry any quantity of luggage," said Miss -Farquharson. "I've seen them absolutely packed, and still there was -room for more." - -Mr. Goddard admitted that this was true; but he thought of Patsy -Devlin's grey pony and the long miles between Clonmore and -Pool-a-donagh. - -"And if there isn't room," said Mrs. Dick, "I'd like to sit in the -middle--on the well--isn't that what they call it?--with my back -against the driver. I saw a boy sitting like that the other day, and it -looked lovely." - -"It's all right," said Mr. Dick. "We have two bikes with us. Sanders -and I will ride. You shall have my machine, Sanders, and I'll take my -wife's. Come along. The spin will do you all the good in the world. -We'll pedal along and let the ladies have the cars." - -Mr. Sanders protested strongly against this plan. He had, he said, a -weak heart, and cycling did not agree with him. He was overborne by a -command from his aunt, and towed down the platform towards the luggage -van by Mr. Dick. Miss Farquharson confided to Mr. Goddard that her -nephew's heart was not nearly so bad as he thought it was, and that -the exercise would do him good. She was, unquestionably, a lady of -commanding character. - -"He's so full of energy," said Mrs. Dick, watching her husband's -progress admiringly. "I say the air of Ireland has got into his head." - -"Is he not so energetic at home?" asked Mr. Goddard. - -"Indeed he isn't. Just fancy if he was!" - -She giggled convulsively at the thought. It was evident that Mr. -Dick, though not a Scot, belonged to some part of the country where -decorum of demeanour and a certain gravity are expected from Members of -Parliament. - -"'Fare thee well,'" shouted Mr. Dick from the end of the platform, -"'and if for ever, still for ever fare thee well.'" - -He was wheeling the two bicycles out of the station, and was followed -by the obviously reluctant Mr. Sanders. - -"Richard, Richard!" said his wife. - -Mr. Dick paused and looked round. - -"Have you got your sandwiches? Don't go without your sandwiches. I'm -sure they're in my hold-all." - -But Mr. Dick patted his coat pocket triumphantly. He had the -sandwiches. He was not the kind of man, so his attitude suggested, -the feeble and inefficient kind of man, who goes off without his -sandwiches. A moment later, having compelled Mr. Sanders to mount, he -was cycling gaily down the road towards Clonmore. - -"Richard, Richard!" shouted his wife again. But it was too late. Her -voice did not reach him. - -"I'm sure," she said, turning to Mr. Goddard, "that he doesn't know the -way. He has never been here before. He'll get lost. Whatever are we to -do?" - -Mr. Goddard consoled her. He pointed out that Mr. Dick had started in -the right direction; that it was generally possible to make inquiries -when in doubt; that, as a matter of fact, once clear of Clonmore, there -was only one road on which anybody could ride a bicycle, and that it -led straight to Pool-a-donagh. Miss Farquharson helped to reassure her. - -"Where there's a will there's a way," she said sententiously. - -"Do stop him," said Mrs. Dick. "You must stop him. He's got my -pocket-handkerchief in his pocket. I gave it to him to keep for me in -the train." - -"I can't," said Mr. Goddard. "He's gone. He's out of sight. Even if -he wasn't, I don't think that I could stop him. But I can lend you a -pocket-handkerchief. I have two. This one is quite clean." - -Then came the business of packing the ladies and their belongings on -the cars. Mr. Goddard, after consultation with the station master and a -porter, gave all the luggage to the driver of Patsy Devlin's grey pony. -Jimmy O'Loughlin's mare was the more likely of the two animals to reach -Pool-a-donagh, and the station master pointed out that if there were -to be a break down it would be better for the ladies to arrive without -their luggage than for the luggage to arrive while the ladies were left -on the side of the road. Mrs. Dick, recovering her spirits, insisted -on carrying out her plan of sitting on the well of the car. There was -a small crowd outside the railway station, which watched with reverent -wonder her climbing and wriggling. She waved both hands to Mr. Goddard -as soon as she had settled herself comfortably, and was very nearly -thrown off the car when the mare started with a jerk. Afterwards she -clung to Miss Farquharson and Mrs. Sanders, who sat one on each side of -her. - -It was not until the two cars were well on their way down the road that -Mr. Goddard recollected the promise he had made to Miss Blow. He had -really intended to fulfil it. He had it in his mind to say something -of a light and jocular kind about the disappearance of the doctor, -something which would redeem the letter of his promise without exciting -the Members of Parliament. It was not, he reflected, in any way his -fault that he had failed. He had no opportunity of speaking. Mr. Dick's -impetuous energy had made it quite impossible to approach the subject -of Dr. O'Grady. But, while his own conscience absolved him, he was -quite sure that he would not be able to explain himself satisfactorily -to Miss Blow. She would not believe that Members of Parliament could -possibly behave as Mr. Dick had behaved. She would not understand -the effect of the Irish air upon naturally staid men. There was some -comfort for him in the thought that the cars, with Mrs. Dick's legs -swinging off the foremost one, must have passed the hotel, and that -Miss Blow might have seen for herself that the party was in no mood for -investigating murders. The bicyclists, unless they deliberately turned -aside before reaching the town, must also have passed the hotel. Mr. -Dick very probably sang some song of the open road as he sped through -Clonmore. Miss Blow might have heard it, might have seen for herself -the sort of people these tourists were. If she did, Mr. Goddard's -reputation as a man of honour would be safe. She could not possibly -expect him to redeem his promise. - -Then a fresh and most depressing thought attacked him. The Members of -Parliament had come and were gone; but there was another promise of -his unfulfilled. Miss Blow would certainly expect him to start at once -and search for Dr. O'Grady. He knew that he could not postpone the -matter any longer. She would pin him to his word, insist upon immediate -action, refuse to rest satisfied with excuses. He walked very slowly -down the hill from the station. - -A cowardly way of escape presented itself to him at the last moment. -His horse and trap were in the hotel yard. If he could get them -without being seen by Miss Blow he might drive back to Ballymoy. Miss -Blow, since the Members of Parliament had got the only available -cars, could not follow him. Forgetful of honour and chivalry, of Miss -Blow's tear-stained face, of the pressure of her hand, of the kiss -which he had nearly given to her glove, he made up his mind to fly. He -approached the hotel very cautiously. - -Like a thirsty man on a Sunday who has not been able to travel the -number of miles which make drinking legal, he climbed over a back wall -into the yard. He glanced nervously at the windows, hoping that Miss -Blow's room looked out on the front and that she would be expecting him -to reach the hotel along the road. He caught sight of Bridgy staring -out of the scullery window. She had watched him climb the wall and was -most anxious to discover what he intended to do next. It seemed to her -unnatural that an officer of police should enter an hotel in such a -way. Mr. Goddard, taking shelter in the stable, beckoned to her through -the door. Filled with curiosity, she crossed the yard and joined him in -the stable. - -"Bridgy," he said, "here's a shilling for you. Is Mr. O'Loughlin -inside?" - -"He is, sir," said Bridgy. - -"Then tell him to come out here. I want to speak to him." - -"Is it out to the stable?" - -Mr. Goddard had sacrificed his own self-respect when he yielded to -temptation and made up his mind to escape. He now flung away all hope -of ever being respected by Bridgy. - -"Yes; here in the stable. And if you meet Miss Blow, don't tell her -where I am." - -"I will not. Why would I? But sure----" - -"Go on now, like a good girl, and don't waste your time talking to me." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin was a man of tact and good manners. He greeted Mr. -Goddard cheerfully as if then were nothing surprising in the choice of -a stable for the scene of an important interview. He had been warned -by Bridgy that Mr. Goddard, for some reason, stood in terror of Miss -Blow; but he made no allusion to her. He opened the conversation with a -remark on a safe, indifferent topic. - -"Them was queer people," he said, alluding to the Members of Parliament -and their party. - -"I want my horse and trap," said Mr. Goddard, "and I want to pay my -bill. I am going back to Ballymoy at once." - -"I wouldn't say but you're right," said Jimmy, "if them ones is likely -to be back here in the course of the day." - -"It's not that. I don't mind about them. It's business that's taking me -home--important business." - -This was too much for Jimmy O'Loughlin. His tact and manners were good, -but he was not going to allow Mr. Goddard to escape without an allusion -to Miss Blow. - -"The doctor's young lady is within, waiting for you," he said. - -"I know that; but I haven't time to talk to her now. In fact, it is -most important that I should get away without her seeing me--on account -of my business." - -"I wouldn't say but you might be right there too," said Jimmy. - -They set to work together and harnessed Mr. Goddard's horse. They -led him into the yard and put him between the shafts of the trap as -silently as possible. - -"I'm thinking," said Jimmy, "that maybe it would be better for you not -to be paying me the trifle that's due for your bed and your dinner -until the next time you're over." - -"Very well. Then I'll be able to start at once." - -"You will. And, what's more, when the young lady asks me what's -happened to you, I'll be able to say that I don't know because you went -off without paying your bill." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin had a sensitive conscience. He could lie without -hesitation when circumstances required it of him, but he preferred, -where possible, to deceive without departing from the literal truth. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - - -Mr. Dick, who was a man of energy, rode fast. Mr. Sanders toiled behind -him, but was able to keep him in sight because Mr. Dick dismounted -and waited for him at the top of every hill. The day was hot, and -there was very little breeze. Neither of the men was in good training. -Both of them became thirsty. Five miles outside of Clonmore the road -crosses a small river. Mr. Dick stopped on the bridge, and, when Mr. -Sanders overtook him, proposed that they should take a drink. They -made their way down to the stream, lay on their stomachs, and sucked -up large quantities of luke-warm water. Then they rode on again, and, -as might have been expected, became much hotter and thirstier than -they were before. Mr. Dick stopped again, this time at a pool. Mr. -Sanders, though very thirsty, expressed doubts about the wholesomeness -of the water. Mr. Dick explained briefly that, as there was no human -habitation in sight, the pool could not possibly be polluted by drains. -Then he lay down and drank as eagerly as a camel at an oasis. The pool -was shallow, and the violence of his sucking stirred up a good deal -of mud. Mr. Sanders, realizing that every moment's delay increased -the chance of his getting typhoid fever from his draught, chose the -cleanest corner of the pool and drank a great deal more than was good -for him. The water of the pool was even warmer than that of the river. - -Then it was discovered that one of the tyres of the bicycle ridden by -Mr. Dick had burst. He had pumped it too vehemently, and the heat of -the sun had swelled the air inside until the strain was too great for -the cover. Both tool-bags were examined, but no materials for repair -were found in them. Even under these circumstances Mr. Dick remained -cheerful. - -"We'll walk on," he said, "until we come to a police barrack. We're -bound to come to one soon." - -"What good will that be?" - -Mr. Sanders did not want to walk on if he could help it. - -"In Ireland," said Mr. Dick, "the police are experts at repairing -bicycles. One of the people we met last week told me that. He was an -inspector of something, and was always going about the country, so he'd -be sure to know." - -"In any case," said Mr. Sanders, "there isn't likely to be a police -barrack about here. There are no houses. We haven't passed a single -human habitation for the last twenty minutes." - -Mr. Dick overruled this objection at once. He had been studying the -Irish question for a whole fortnight, and he thoroughly understood the -country. - -"In Ireland," he said, "the most likely place to find a police -barrack is where there are no houses. The reason for that is that the -uninhabited districts of the country are those from which the people -have been evicted. They naturally want to get back again, and so police -barracks are built to prevent them doing so. You will always find a -barrack where there are no people. A man who was greatly interested in -the land question told me that the day before yesterday." - -"I think," said Mr. Sanders, "that I'll sit down here and wait till -the cars overtake me. You can take your own bicycle and go on if you -like." - -"You'd better not, because the cars may never overtake you. We may be -on the wrong road altogether. I didn't ask the way. I simply steered a -course by the sun like an explorer in central Africa." - -"What an ass you are, Dick!" - -"Not an ass, Sanders, not an ass, an adventurer. I love risk for its -own sake. The blood of the ancient Bersekers is in my veins. I feel -like the man in the song 'Fiddle and I,' that is to say, in this case, - - 'Biky and I - Wandering by - Over the world together.' - -If you don't come on with me, Sanders, you will get lost like a babe in -the wood, and then - - 'When you are dead - The robins so red - Will take strawberry leaves and over you spread.'" - -Mr. Sanders shrank from such a fate. Also he had sat down during the -discussion and felt rested. He agreed to go on. Mr. Dick, the Berseker -spirit strong in him, wheeled both bicycles. They climbed a long hill -and found walking even hotter work than bicycling. But they had their -reward. From the top of the hill the entrance gate and the trees of -Rosivera were visible. - -"A sail, a sail!" cried Mr. Dick. "We are saved! - - 'We shall hear the sweet music of speech, - Nor finish our journey alone.'" - -"It looks like a gentleman's place," said Mr. Sanders, "a dilapidated -gentleman's place. I mean to say, of course, the dilapidated place of a -gentleman." - -Mr. Dick was not a stickler for the nice arrangement of adjectives. - -"Of course," he said, "it's a dilapidated gentleman's place. All -gentlemen's places in Ireland are dilapidated. That is one of the -consequences of the recent land legislation." - -"Rents," said Mr. Sanders, who took a special delight in all kinds of -figures, "were reduced twenty per cent. all round on an average at the -first fixing. Then they were reduced again by----" - -"Come on," said Mr. Dick. "The proprietor, whoever he is, must have -enough left to buy a repair outfit. Let's go and borrow it." - -He had heard quite as much as he wanted to hear about rent fixing and -land purchase during the fortnight he had spent in Ireland. He did not -want to go into the matter again. It required intricate calculations, -and Mr. Dick had no taste for arithmetic. Mr. Sanders sighed and -followed his friend down the hill. - -They passed through the gate of Rosivera and went down the avenue, Mr. -Dick leading the way with the two bicycles. Turning a corner, they came -suddenly upon a view of the house. Beyond it, at the bottom of the -lawn, lay the bay. - -"Dilapidated!" said Mr. Sanders, in disgust. "I knew it would be -dilapidated, but I didn't expect it to be as bad as this. It looks to -me as if it were uninhabited." - -Mr. Dick paid no attention to the appearance of the house. The sight of -the sea seemed to intoxicate him. He was very hot and very dusty. The -idea of bathing in cold water was delightful. - -"We'll have a swim," he said. "First we'll knock up the proprietor, -borrow the repair outfit, and mend the tyre. Then we'll go round the -corner, out of sight of the house, and wallow in the briny wave." - -But Mr. Sanders was cautious, more cautious than he had been about -drinking the water out of the pool. - -"You've no towel," he said. - -"What do we care for towels? We are primitive men, savages on our -native wild, cave dwellers of the paleolithic age. I should spurn a -towel if it was offered me." - -"That's all very well for you, Dick; but I have a weak heart, and I -have to be careful. In the heated state in which I am at present, I -daren't risk bathing, especially without a towel." - -"Then I'll bathe by myself. You can get the bicycle repaired. By the -time you have it settled I shall be ready to start again." - -They reached the house. Mr. Dick commented, laughing, on the fact that -there was no electric bell. Mr. Sanders sighed at this fresh evidence -of dilapidation. There was no knocker either. Mr. Dick hammered on the -door with his fist until he thought he had made noise enough to attract -attention. Then he walked on towards the shore, leaving his friend -alone to enjoy the hospitality or face the wrath of the inmates of the -house. Mr. Sanders waited for some time and then knocked again. After -another pause he tried kicking the door. Then he rang both the bicycle -bells. At last he began to despair of attracting attention. Some -men, under the circumstances, would have gone away. Mr. Sanders was -persevering and little troubled with delicacy of feeling. He pushed -open the door and walked in. - -Mr. Dick, yearning for a swim, soon found a spot which seemed -sufficiently secluded. It was not particularly attractive as a -bathing-place. The beach was covered with small rough stones; and, the -tide being out, there was a considerable stretch of beach. The water -near the shore was full of jellyfish and brown seaweed. But Mr. Dick -was too hot and too eager to care much about these inconveniences. His -desire was to get as quickly as possible into the sea. He undressed -beside a large stone which lay just above high-water mark. Then his -troubles began. He had never before walked on such trying stones. -The pain which they gave his feet caused him to stumble and fall -suddenly forward on his hands. Part of the journey he accomplished on -all-fours. The seaweed was a relief when he reached it. The jellyfish -were deliciously soft under his feet. He floundered out through them -and over them until the water reached his knees. Then he flung himself -forward and struck out. The weed brushed his limbs and body. The -jellyfish, incredible numbers of them, slipped past him. - -"This," he said, "is delicious." - -He got past the belt of weed and jellyfish into deep water. He shouted -aloud in his joy--a wild inarticulate whoop which went sounding across -the waters of the bay. He lay on his back. He kicked with his legs, -raising what seemed to him splendid fountains of water. He shouted -again. Then he swam further out, using a side stroke which he had -learned in a swimming-bath, burying his head each time his arm left -the water, and then turning his face up and snorting like a porpoise. -After awhile he lay on his back again and began to sing-- - - "Rule, Britannia! Britannia rules the waves." - -The ditty was appropriate enough. Mr. Dick M.P., represented in -Rosivera Bay the world's greatest maritime power, and he had, plainly, -so far got the better of the sea that it was obliged to bear him on its -breast and minister to his delight. He ruled it. There were, indeed, no -waves; but that was not Mr. Dick's fault. If there had been waves, he -would have ruled them. - - "Rule, Britannia!" he sang again, "Britannia rules the waves. - Britons never, never, never shall be slaves." - -Mr. Dick had a poor ear for music, and his rendering of the tune -was far from correct; but he had a fine voice and it rang out -satisfactorily. He felt more than ever like an ancient Berseker. His -song was a kind of triumphant challenge to man and nature alike. - -"This," he said breathlessly, when he had finished the song for the -third time, "is better than mending bicycles. I wonder how poor Sanders -is getting on?" - -He wallowed round and faced the shore. He saw a man approaching from -the direction in which the house lay. - -"Hullo--lo--o!" he shouted. "Coo--ee, Sanders!" - -Then he saw that it was not Mr. Sanders. He came to the conclusion that -it must be one of the inhabitants of the house. He was perfectly right. -It was Mr. Red. - -"Funny-looking old cock he is," said Mr. Dick. - -Mr. Red stalked majestically along the shore. Mr. Dick swam to meet -him. His heart was light. He broke into a song of greeting-- - - "Come o'er the sea, - Stranger to me, - Mine through sunshine, storm and cloud!" - -Mr. Red walked straight to the place where Mr. Dick's clothes lay. It -seemed possible that he was bringing down a towel. Mr. Dick swam on -towards the shore, intending to express his gratitude for the civility. -Mr. Red reached the clothes, picked them up one by one and walked -away with them. Mr. Dick shouted after him, but without effect. He -swam for the shore as quickly as he could. If the proprietor of the -place objected to people bathing on the shore, Mr. Dick was prepared -to apologize. He would apologize humbly, get back his clothes, and -then point out that a notice ought to have been erected to warn the -public not to bathe. Mr. Red deposited the clothes on the grass at -some distance from the beach, turned round, and walked towards the sea -again. Mr. Dick felt bottom with his feet, and plunged forward until he -stood in water which only reached his knees. Mr. Red, standing on the -very brink of the sea, took a revolver out of his pocket and pointed it -at Mr. Dick. - -"Come on shore," he said. - -By way of reply Mr. Dick sat down suddenly, rolled over on his side, -and lay with no part of him above water except his head. He did not -like standing naked in front of a revolver which might be loaded. - -"Come!" said Mr. Red. - -Mr. Dick put his head under water, and kept it there as long as he -could. When he came up, gasping, he saw the revolver still levelled at -him. - -"Come at once," said Mr. Red, "or I shall fire!" - -Mr. Dick struggled to his feet and stumbled forward a few steps. Then -his self-respect, the self-respect which is the birthright of every -free-born Briton, asserted itself within him. - -"I presume," he said, speaking with a certain cold dignity, "that this -beach is private property, and that I have trespassed by bathing here. -If so, I offer my apologies; but I cannot refrain from saying at the -same time that the aggressive violence of your conduct----" - -Mr. Red pulled the trigger of the revolver. A bullet struck the water -so close to Mr. Dick that his leg was splashed. He stopped short in his -protest and waded as rapidly as possible towards the shore. He pushed -his way through the seaweed and jellyfish and stood at last, a pitiful, -dripping figure, on dry land. - -"Go on," said Mr. Red, fingering the revolver. - -The fear of instant death impelled Mr. Dick over the sharp stones. He -travelled rapidly for five or six yards, and then collapsed suddenly on -to all-fours. - -"Go on quickly," said Mr. Red. - -Mr. Dick went on as quickly as he could on his hands and feet. He -looked like a large hairless ape of some bleached kind. Then, overcome -by the pain of both hands and feet, he sat down and faced Mr. Red. - -"This is an outrage," he said. "I protest against it in the strongest -possible manner. You have absolutely no right----" - -"Get up," said Mr. Red, "and precede me to the house." - -Mr. Dick got up with a groan. He was really suffering considerably. -The Berseker spirit, active in him during an earlier part of the day, -was almost dead. He staggered on a few steps. Then a new notion seized -him, a fear which was actually stronger than the fear of death. He -understood suddenly that he was not, as he had boasted, a primitive -man; that he was, on the contrary, highly civilized. He turned on Mr. -Red and faced the revolver without a tremor. - -"I won't go to the house without my clothes," he said. "There may be -ladies. There may be servants." - -There was a determination in the way he spoke and in the expression of -his face which was quite unmistakable. Mr. Red tried to bully him, but -failed. No threat was of any avail. - -"I won't go," said Mr. Dick, "unless I can have my shirt at least." - -"You can have your shirt," said Mr. Red. "Go and get it." - -Mr. Dick made his way slowly across the beach. He looked over his -shoulder from time to time, and saw that Mr. Red was following closely -with the revolver. He reached the grass, felt it soft under his feet, -and moved more easily. It occurred to him that he might make a dash for -liberty. Mr. Red would shoot, no doubt; but he might miss. He might -hit, and still only wound--wound in some trifling way which would not -prevent further flight. There was a grove of trees not fifty yards -distant. They were small, scrubby trees, but they would afford some -shelter. He made up his mind to risk it. Then the awful prospect before -him made him pause. How could he--even supposing that he was not shot -dead at once--wander stark naked through a strange country? - -He reached the pile of clothes, stooped down and picked up his shirt. -Then he took up his trousers. - -"Drop that," said Mr. Red. - -Dean Swift noted the fact that an unarmed man in his shirt is likely -to get the worst of a struggle with eight armed men who are fully -dressed. The chances are more equal, if there is only one armed man, if -the unarmed man gets his trousers on. Mr. Red knew this, and strictly -limited Mr. Dick's clothing. He was not prepared to run any unnecessary -risk with his prisoner. The warmth of the shirt, which was flannel, -restored Mr. Dick's self-respect and courage. He turned on Mr. Red once -more. - -"If this is the way that Irish landlords habitually behave," he said, -"I don't wonder that there has been an agrarian revolution in the -country. I always had a certain sympathy with your class before, but -now that I know what you really are I shall vote for the next Land Bill -that is brought in, whatever it is." - -"Precede me to the house," said Mr. Red. - -Mr. Dick walked on. He crossed the grass rapidly and came to the gravel -sweep in front of the house. Here his feet began to give him great pain -again. The gravel was in some ways worse than the stones on the beach -had been. Mr. Dick felt it severely. - -"I've heard stories," said Mr. Dick, "of the way you Irish landlords -treated your tenants in the past. I know now that I didn't hear half -the truth. Anything more abominable, more outrageous, more utterly -illegal----" - -He reached the door of the house as he spoke, and stepped with a sigh -of relief on to the smooth step. - -"Look here," he said, "where's Sanders? Have you murdered Sanders?" - -He went forward again, passed through the door, and stood in the hall. - -There, in front of him, bound hand and foot, guarded by the -long-bearded anarchist, lay Mr. Sanders. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - - -Mr. Red treated Dr. O'Grady and Patsy Devlin very well. They could -not have fared better if they had been political prisoners awaiting a -trial for inciting people to boycott each other. They had abundance -of excellent food, three meals a day, brought up to them by one of -the foreign anarchists. They had a sufficiency of whisky and tobacco. -A second bed was supplied when the doctor objected to sleeping with -Patsy Devlin. Twice every day Dr. O'Grady was taken downstairs and -allowed to attend the injured man, who was recovering rapidly. Every -evening Mr. Red, adhering honourably to his bargain, handed over five -sovereigns to the doctor. A large number of books was supplied to the -prisoners. They were chiefly treatises on the theory and practice of -anarchism, accounts of the revolution in Russia, and kindred matters. -Dr. O'Grady was perfectly content with them. The subject was new to -him, and he read with excited curiosity. It was a favourite boast of -his that no book of any kind bored him, provided he understood the -language in which it was written. Unfortunately, Patsy Devlin did not -like reading. He worked slowly through the accounts of the murders of -a few Grand Dukes, and displayed some slight interest in the tortures -inflicted on a female anarchist. Then he became bored and refused to -read any more. He used to walk about the room whistling loudly. There -were only two tunes which he cared to whistle--"The wearing of the -Green" and "God save Ireland." The constant repetition of them began to -irritate Dr. O'Grady at the end of the second day of Patsy's captivity. -He expostulated, and Patsy agreed to stop whistling. He was a man of -kindly heart and had a real affection for the doctor. - -"I wouldn't," he said, "be doing what might annoy you; and if so be -that the tunes is disagreeable, there won't be another note of them -heard from this out." - -He meant what he said, but he promised more than he was able to -perform. It soon appeared that he could not help whistling. He did not, -in fact, know when he was whistling. The tunes came bubbling from his -pursed lips against his will. - -Dr. O'Grady recognized that Patsy could not accomplish the impossible. -He gave up reading about anarchists, and asked Mr. Red for a pack of -cards. The request, a reasonable one, was refused, and Dr. O'Grady -snubbed for making it. Mr. Red disapproved of card-playing on -principle. He said that games of chance were demoralizing to the human -race. As a consistent anarchist he could not and would not allow them -to be played in his house. Then Dr. O'Grady invented a game which could -be played with coins on a table. A penny was placed at a short distance -from the edge of the table and driven along by the impact of another -penny flipped at it from the edge. The object was to hit the first -penny as frequently as possible before it was driven over the opposite -edge of the table. Patsy displayed a great aptitude for the game. After -an hour's play he was fairly expert. Before the end of the afternoon -he had won ninepence from Dr. O'Grady. He practised assiduously next -morning while the doctor read anarchist books. During the afternoon -and evening he won, to his great delight, sums which amounted -altogether to one-and-sevenpence. He did not whistle while he practised -or played. In order to concentrate his whole energy on the game he was -obliged to keep his mouth wide open. - -A game was in full swing on the third afternoon of Patsy's captivity -when the key turned in the lock and the door of the room was flung open. - -"Now what," said Dr. O'Grady, "can the Emperor possibly want with us at -this hour of the day? It's not tea-time." - -Mr. Dick, clad only in his grey flannel shirt, walked in. - -"Hallo!" said Dr. O'Grady, "are you an anti-military anarchist getting -into training for the simple life? Or are you a new recruit undergoing -the ceremony of initiation into the brotherhood? Or is it nothing but -the heat of the day?" - -Mr. Red and the bearded anarchist dragged Mr. Sanders into the room and -deposited him, still bound, on the floor. - -"Oh," said the doctor, "another captive! Good. But don't overdo the -thing, Emperor. You can't you know, go on storing up men in this way -without attracting public attention. Patsy Devlin and I are all right, -of course. We're not important people. Nobody misses us in the least. -But that man on the floor looks to me like a commercial traveller, and -if he happens to belong to any English firm, a search will sooner or -later be made for him." - -"We are Members of Parliament," said Mr. Dick. - -"You don't look as if you were," said the doctor. "Does he, Patsy?" - -"Be damn, but he does not! I've seen some queer fellows made members of -Parliament in my day. There was one time I was very near going in for -it myself; but I never heard tell of e'er a one yet but owned a pair of -breeches--to start with, anyway." - -"You hear what Patsy Devlin says," said the doctor. "He quite agrees -with me that you don't look like a Member of Parliament." - -Mr. Red, with his assistant anarchist, left the room and locked the -door behind him. Dr. O'Grady shouted after him. - -"Hullo! Emperor! I say, are you there? Wait a minute before you go -away. Are you listening to me?" - -"I hear." - -Mr. Red's voice, coming through the shut door, sounded more solemn than -usual. - -"I'm glad you do," said Dr. O'Grady. "Don't go away now till I've -finished speaking. I want you to understand that we can't possibly have -these two fellows billeted here on us. It's all very fine for you to go -about picking up all sorts of people off the public roads and dumping -them down here; but Patsy Devlin and I don't like it. It's not fair. I -told you before that we don't in the least object to being imprisoned; -but we bar having an escaped lunatic with nothing on but a shirt, and a -wretched commercial traveller shoved in here into a room which we have -come to regard as our private apartment." - -"We are Members of Parliament," said Mr. Dick. "We demand to be taken -at once before the British Consul." - -He appeared to think, not at all unnaturally, that he had strayed -beyond the bounds of His Majesty's dominions. - -"Do shut up," said Dr. O'Grady, in a whisper. "We don't believe you're -Members of Parliament. Nor does the Emperor. As a matter of fact, -you're not up to the level of the average county councillor in the way -of respectability. Saying absurd things like that will simply enrage -the Emperor. He's frightfully touchy, and the moment he loses his -temper he shoots off his pistol. I say," he went on in a loud tone, -"are you there still? Hang it, I believe he's gone. That's your fault." -He addressed Mr. Dick. "Why didn't you keep your mouth shut and let me -talk to him? Now the Emperor won't be back till tea-time, and we'll -have to put up with you till then. Perhaps, as you are here, you'll -kindly explain what you mean by bursting in on us unannounced in this -way. You might at least have knocked at the door." - -"I was bathing----" began Mr. Dick. - -"Where?" - -"I don't know. Just outside the house. He came and took away my -clothes." - -"Serves you jolly well right," said the doctor. "What made you come -here, of all places in the world, to bathe? Surely to goodness the -Atlantic Ocean is big enough to bathe in without your picking out the -exact spot in which the Anti-Military Anarchists are maturing their -plans. Why did you do it?" - -"Anarchists?" said Mr. Dick. - -"Yes, Anti-Military Anarchists--the very worst sort there is." - -"I thought he was a landlord." - -"Well, he isn't. He's as nearly as possible the exact reverse." - -"Are you an anarchist too?" - -"No, I'm not," said Dr. O'Grady, "nor is Patsy Devlin. So far we -haven't been asked to join the organization. We're simply prisoners. -We've been captured by the brotherhood. But we had sense enough to wear -our ordinary clothes. You may think it's the proper thing to go about -in nothing but your shirt because you happen to be in the house of an -anarchist, but I can tell you----" - -Mr. Sanders, who still lay on the floor, groaned dismally. - -"Loose that fellow, Patsy," said the doctor. "He appears to be in pain -of some sort." - -"Anarchists!" said Mr. Dick. "Good heavens! How frightful! My wife! My -poor wife!" - -"She'll be all right," said the doctor. "The Emperor won't do her any -harm. He's a thorough gentleman in every way, a chivalrous gentleman, -and I'm perfectly certain he wouldn't ill-treat a woman. You may -rely on it that she'll be made quite comfortable. She was with you, -I suppose. If so, I don't in the least wonder that you were run in. -The Emperor has frightfully strict, old-fashioned ideas about lots -of things. He objects to cards, for instance, as demoralizing. I'm -sure that mixed bathing would simply horrify him. There's no greater -mistake than to think that just because a man's an anarchist, you can -do what you like without shocking him. You can't. The Emperor has his -prejudices just like the rest of us." - -Patsy Devlin set Mr. Sanders on his feet and rubbed him down carefully. -The poor man seemed dazed and bewildered. - -"Do you belong to the bathing party too?" asked Dr. O'Grady. "Or are -you a separate and distinct capture, unconnected with the gentleman in -the flannel shirt?" - -"I don't bathe," said Mr. Sanders, "because I have a weak heart and it -doesn't agree with me." - -"Then what were you doing? You must have been doing something which -annoyed the Emperor. He may be a bit touched in the head. Most of us -are, more or less; but he's not so mad as to saddle himself with the -expense of boarding and lodging a fellow like you unless you have been -doing something he dislikes. What were you at?" - -"I was mending a bicycle, Mrs. Dick's bicycle; at least----" - -"Who is Mrs. Dick?" asked Dr. O'Grady. "The lady who was bathing?" - -"She wasn't bathing," said Mr. Dick. - -"All right. Don't get angry. I thought your name might be Dick and that -the lady might be your wife." - -"My name is Dick, and she is my wife." - -"I don't understand you in the least," said Dr. O'Grady. "Have you got -two wives? Has that anything to do with the way you're going about with -nothing on you but your shirt?" - -"No, it hasn't; and I've not got two wives." - -"You must have two wives," said Dr. O'Grady. "You told me this instant -that your wife was bathing with you on the shore. And now you say Mrs. -Dick wasn't bathing. Those two statements can't possibly both be true -about the same woman. But I won't go into that yet. Later on you shall -have an opportunity of clearing yourself if you can. First of all, I -want to get to the bottom of this bicycle business, which seems to be -less complicated." - -He turned to Mr. Sanders. "You say that you were engaged in mending -Mrs. Dick's bicycle when the Emperor came on you." - -"Yes," said Mr. Sanders. "At least I wanted to mend it." - -"That's not exactly the same thing. I wish you'd try to be accurate. -There's no use my attempting to unravel this tangle and get at the -truth for you if you won't be careful what you say. Go on." - -"I knocked for some time at the door, but nobody came to me. Then I----" - -"I expect," said the doctor, "that the Emperor was in the Chamber of -Research at the time, concocting some new kind of dynamite. That's his -favourite occupation." - -"Good God!" said Mr. Sanders. - -"It's all right. Don't be afraid. The mixtures he makes hardly ever -go off. And in any case he won't want to blow you up unless you are -a soldier. You're not in the army, are you? You don't look as if you -were." - -"No." - -"Or in the militia? The Emperor has a perfect horror of militiamen. -Hasn't he, Patsy?" - -"He damn nearly shot me," said Patsy, "when I told him I'd been in the -militia." - -"Let's get back to the bicycle," said Dr. O'Grady. "Mrs. Dick's -bicycle, as I understand, which you wanted to mend. When you found -that nobody took any notice of your knocking, what did you do?" - -"I pushed the door open--it wasn't locked or bolted--and stepped in." - -"That strikes me," said Dr. O'Grady, "as pretty fair cheek on your -part, considering that you're not an Anti-Military Anarchist. You might -have guessed that it would irritate the Emperor, especially as he was -making dynamite at the time. What happened next?" - -"I looked round and saw no one. I rang the dinner gong, which was -standing in a corner of the hall. When that didn't attract anybody's -attention I tried the door on the right, and found it locked." - -"It's a pity you didn't try the one on the left. If you had, you'd have -seen the yellow crocodiles, and they'd have frightened you out of the -house." - -"Then, just as I was turning to go away, two men sprang on me and bound -me. After that I knew no more until----" - -"I wish," said Mr. Dick, interrupting his friend's story, "that -somebody would lend me a pair of trousers." - -"I haven't got any spare trousers," said Dr. O'Grady, "and if I had, -I'm not at all sure that I'd lend them to you. You say you're a Member -of Parliament; but I've no proof of that. And even if you are it -doesn't seem to me to follow that you'd return the trousers." - -"What am I to do?" said Mr. Dick. "I can't go about in this state all -day." - -"You won't go about much in any case," said the doctor. "But for the -immediate present I think you'd better get into Patsy Devlin's bed. -It's no pleasure to us to see you standing about in your shirt. When -you're in bed I shall ask you a few questions, and if it turns out that -the Emperor really has got your clothes, I'll do my best to persuade -him to give them back to you when he comes up here at tea-time. I -suppose you don't mind his getting into your bed, Patsy, just for the -present?" - -"I do not," said Patsy, "so long as he's out of it before I'm wanting -it myself." - -Mr. Dick crept in between the blankets. - -"Now," said the doctor, "we'll take up your story. You have, as I -understand, two wives, one of whom bathes, and the other owns a -bicycle." - -Mr. Dick sat up and protested strongly. He appealed to Mr. Sanders to -clear him of the charge of bigamy. - -"All right," said Dr. O'Grady; "I'll accept the statement that you've -only one. Was she, or was she not, bathing with you when the Emperor -came on you? Be careful how you answer." - -"Certainly not. She's--I trust she's miles away, and safe." - -"Then why did you express anxiety about the way the Emperor was likely -to treat her?" - -"I didn't." - -"You did. You kept saying, 'My poor wife.' What did you mean by that, -if you didn't mean that the Emperor had captured her?" - -"I meant that she'd be anxious about me." - -"She can't be as fond of you as all that," said the doctor. "Nobody -could." - -"She's very fond of me. We're only quite lately married." - -"Have you a wife too?" said the doctor to Mr. Sanders. - -"Yes. I have a wife and an aunt. They're both with me in Ireland." - -"Do you suppose that your wife is as fond of you as Mrs. Dick is of her -husband?" - -"I don't know. How could I know that?" - -"The reason I ask the question," said Dr. O'Grady, "is this. There's -a girl I'm engaged to be married to, a Miss Adeline Maud Blow, who -is probably scouring the country in pursuit of me this minute. Patsy -Devlin has a wife who may be out looking for him." - -"The minute she'd find out I was gone," said Patsy, "she'd be up at the -barrack telling the police, the way she'd have me brought back to her." - -"And now," said the doctor, "it turns out that Mr. Dick has a wife, or -perhaps two, of an unusually affectionate kind. And you have a wife and -an aunt who have some regard for you. That makes five women altogether, -all of them more or less energetic, and all of them bent on finding us. -The question is, how long will it be before they think of coming to -Rosivera?" - -"Not long," said Mr. Sanders, "not long, I hope." - -"For the sake of my poor wife," said Mr. Dick, who had covered himself -with the bed-clothes again, "I trust it will not be long." - -"Be damn," said Patsy Devlin, "but to listen to the way you're talking, -a man would think nobody in the world but yourself ever had a wife. I -have one myself, as the doctor was saying this minute, and I wouldn't -wonder but she might be a better one than yours. But you don't hear me -lamenting over her every time I open my mouth." - -"Tell me this," said the doctor: "did you ever escape from your wife -before?" - -"Escape from her!" - -"I mean, did you ever temporarily desert her, either through being -taken prisoner or otherwise?" - -"Never," said Mr. Dick. "We've only been a year married, and we've -never been parted, even for a single day." - -"That's all right," said the doctor. "Then she won't have had any -practice in looking for you. Patsy Devlin's wife, as you heard, is -likely to go straight to the police barrack when she misses him. But -then she's more or less accustomed to his not turning up regularly." - -"I wouldn't say," said Patsy, "that the police would be paying too much -attention to what she might tell them." - -"What about your wife, and your aunt?" said the doctor to Mr. Sanders. -"Are they accustomed to having to hunt you up?" - -"Do I gather from what you say," said Mr. Sanders, "that you don't want -to be rescued?" - -"We certainly do not," said the doctor. "Patsy and I are perfectly -comfortable where we are. We know when we are well off." - -"Good God!" said Mr. Sanders. "In the hands of a bloodthirsty -anarchist!" - -"Don't abuse the Emperor," said the doctor, "for I won't stand it. He -may be an anarchist, but he's a thoroughly good sort." - -"I'm thankful to say," said Mr. Sanders, "that my aunt is a woman of -great vigour and determination. She will do everything that can be done -to discover where we are and to rescue us. I place implicit confidence -in her. Nothing will daunt her." - -"If, as I gather from your description of her, she is any kind of -Suffragette," said the doctor, "I hope, for her own sake, that she'll -keep clear of the Emperor. He has the strongest possible prejudice -against advanced women. I happened one day to mention the name of Jael -to him in the course of conversation. You know the woman I mean, the -one who hammered the nail into the man's head. I naturally thought he'd -admire her immensely, but he didn't in the least. He flew into the most -frightful rage. Didn't he, Patsy?" - -"I heard you saying so," said Patsy, "and of course I believed you. But -I wasn't here myself at the time. You know that, doctor." - -Mr. Sanders brightened up suddenly. - -"Are you a doctor?" he said. - -"I am, or I was, the dispensary doctor of Clonmore Poor Law Union. By -the way, Patsy, was there any talk of their electing a new man when -they found out that I'd gone?" - -"I wouldn't be telling you a lie. There was." - -"If you're a doctor," said Mr. Sanders eagerly, "you'll be able to -certify that I have a weak heart, and that confinement will seriously -injure my health. Then he'll be bound to let me go." - -"I haven't a stethoscope with me," said the doctor, "so I can't. But -even if I wrote you out quite a long certificate I don't suppose that -it would influence the Emperor in the least. He doesn't care about your -health. Why should he?" - -"But I've always understood---- Why, the Home Secretary only the other -day----" - -"And I may as well tell you straight," said the doctor, "that if I had -a stethoscope, and if the Emperor would let you out on my certificate, -I wouldn't give it. In fact, if I certified at all, I'd certify that -you are a particularly strong and enduring kind of man, and that a -little imprisonment would do you good." - -"But why----? Why should----?" - -"Because the first thing you'd do when you got out would be to bring -the police down on us here, and that's exactly what we don't want." - - - - -CHAPTER XV - - -Miss Blow stood at the window of her bedroom in Jimmy O'Loughlin's -hotel, and saw Mr. Dick and Mr. Sanders ride by on their bicycles. She -did not for a moment suppose that they were the Members of Parliament -who had arrived by the train. They looked like hilarious but shabby -tourists. It is not with such faces or in such clothes that candidates -for election woo their constituents in Merrie England. She afterwards -saw the three ladies drive by, followed by the car which carried their -luggage. She did not see Mr. Goddard. She supposed, very naturally, -that he and the Members of Parliament were consulting together -somewhere, perhaps in the waiting-room at the railway station, devising -plans for the rescue of what still might remain of Dr. O'Grady's body. -She waited patiently, sustained by the hope of heroic measures to be -taken in the near future. - -At half-past one Bridgy knocked at the door, and told her that her -dinner was ready for her. - -"Will Mr. Goddard be in for dinner?" asked Miss Blow. - -Bridgy did not feel that it was her duty to disclose the fact that Mr. -Goddard had driven away in the direction of Ballymoy. She answered -cautiously. - -"He might," she said. - -This was unquestionably true. It was possible that Mr. Goddard would -repent as he went on his way, and come back to dine with Miss Blow. It -was not, in Bridgy's opinion, at all likely that he would; but she did -not say this to Miss Blow. - -"Will the other gentlemen be with him?" - -"Well, I don't know, miss." - -She did know, but she held charity to be a higher virtue than truth. If -Miss Blow hoped for the company of other gentlemen, Bridgy would not -subject her to a disappointment sooner than was absolutely necessary. - -Miss Blow dined alone. After dinner she waited another half-hour. Then -she rang the bell for Bridgy. - -"Has Mr. Goddard come back yet?" - -"Well, I don't know, miss." - -"Are the other gentlemen in the hotel?" - -"Well, I don't know." - -"Go and find out, then," said Miss Blow. - -Bridgy went downstairs and summoned Jimmy O'Loughlin from behind the -bar. - -"The young lady above," she said, "is asking me this two hours if Mr. -Goddard is come back." - -"You know as well as I do," said Jimmy, "that he hasn't, and, what's -more, won't." - -"Sure, I do know that. Didn't I see him making off out of the yard by -the back gate the way she wouldn't see him go?" - -"Well, then, go and tell her so." - -"Is it me? I dursn't." - -"Do it at once," said Jimmy. "It was you she asked, and it's you that -ought to answer her. Off with you now, and not another word out of your -head." - -Bridgy, who saw no reason why she should face the wrath of Miss Blow, -retired to a small room which opened off the scullery, and spent an -hour cleaning her own boots. Miss Blow waited, and after a while got -tired of waiting. She rang the bell again. Bridgy heard it, and, for -greater security, went into the yard and concealed herself in the cow -byre. Miss Blow came downstairs and found Jimmy O'Loughlin. He had not -thought of hiding, and was caught unawares. - -"Is Mr. Goddard in the hotel?" she asked. - -"He is not," said Jimmy. "It's himself was sorry to go; but there -came a messenger over from Ballymoy, a police sergeant, to say he was -wanting, and wanting badly. It might be cattle driving that's in it, or -it might be a meeting about the land or maybe an eviction. They're a -queer lot down in them parts. Anyway, he was wanting, and he went." - -"It's a curious thing," said Miss Blow, "that he went off without -saying a word to me." - -"Well, now," said Jimmy, "if I amn't the fool this day; but I thought -Bridgy would be sure to tell you." - -"Tell me what?" - -"The last words he said to me as he was getting up into the trap was -these; 'Jimmy,' says he, 'it goes to my heart to be leaving Miss Blow -behind me, and her in trouble. She'll never forgive me.' 'Believe you -me,' says I, striving to encourage him, for I could see he felt it, -'she will.' 'She will not,' says he. 'Don't I know she won't?' 'She -will,' says I. 'There isn't a young lady ever I met with a better -heart.' 'Will you tell her,' says he, 'that it was forced on me or I -wouldn't do it, not if you was to give me the full of my hat of golden -sovereigns?' 'I'll tell her,' says I; 'I'll break it to her quiet and -easy the way she won't be feeling it.' And, glory be to God, I have." - -"You might have done it a little sooner," said Miss Blow. - -"I might, and that's a fact," said Jimmy apologetically. - -"Where are the other gentlemen?" said Miss Blow. - -"The other gentlemen! Is it them ones that come in on the train? Did -you not see them going by on their bicycles? They're the most of the -way to Pool-a-donagh by this time." - -It occurred to Miss Blow that she had been deceived, tricked, -abominably insulted by Mr. Goddard. She distinctly remembered the -bicyclists. They had passed down the street almost immediately after -the arrival of the train. It was quite impossible for Mr. Goddard to -have had any serious conversation with them. She hesitated, on the -verge of tears. Then the utter futility of weeping in the presence of -Jimmy O'Loughlin struck her. She pulled herself together and, with -prompt decision, settled her course of action. - -"Get the car," she said, "at once. I shall drive over to Ballymoy and -see Mr. Goddard." - -"The car's not in it," said Jimmy. - -Miss Blow stamped her foot. - -"Get any car," she said. "I don't care whether it's your own or -another." - -"Divil the car there is in Clonmore this minute," said Jimmy. "The -ladies that came in by the train has the both of them took, and they're -away off with them to Pool-a-donagh, if so be that the horses can do -the journey." - -"Do you mean to say that there isn't a horse and car to be got in the -place?" - -"There is not. It's the truth I'm telling you; and if you don't -believe me, go up and ask Sergeant Farrelly at the barrack." - -"Then," said Miss Blow, "I'll walk." - -"Is it to walk to Ballymoy? You'd never over it, and the weather as hot -as it is. It's better than twelve miles." - -"I'll do it," said Miss Blow. - -She did. A little footsore, very tired, but still blazing with -indignation, she arrived in Ballymoy at a quarter to six o'clock. - -Just outside Ballymoy, close to the Clonmore road, is the ground -belonging to the tennis club. There are three courts and a galvanized -iron hut, known as the pavilion. On club days, when some lady gives -tea to the players, there are usually twenty or thirty people on -the ground. On other days only a few enthusiasts go to the club. It -happened that when Miss Blow came in sight on the road there was no -one at the club except Mr. Goddard and Captain Fielding, the Resident -Magistrate. They were playing a vigorous game, having a final practice -in preparation for the tournament which was to be held next day. Mr. -Goddard was serving in the fifth game of the set when he caught sight -of Miss Blow. He paused, stared at her, dropped the two balls which he -held in his hand, and fled without a word into the pavilion. - -Captain Fielding gaped with astonishment, looked up and down the road, -saw nothing very alarming, and followed Mr. Goddard into the pavilion. - -"What the devil----" he began. - -Mr. Goddard took no notice of the remark. He was staring out of a small -window which commanded a view of the road. - -"What the----" said Captain Fielding again. - -Mr. Goddard turned suddenly. - -"Fielding," he said, "jump on your bicycle and ride like hell to my -house. Don't lose a moment. Get a hold of my housekeeper, and tell her -that if any lady calls she's to say I've gone away on leave and won't -be back for six weeks. Don't stop to ask questions. I'll explain it all -to you when you get back." - -He pushed Captain Fielding out of the pavilion. - -"You'll be in time," he said, "if only you'll go. Thank goodness my -house is at the far end of the town." - -Captain Fielding did as he was told. He rode fast, because he was most -anxious to hear Mr. Goddard's explanation as soon as possible. He -delivered his message to the housekeeper, and then rode back. - -"Did you pass a girl walking along the road?" said Mr. Goddard. - -"I did; a pretty girl in a grey dress, a stranger." - -"Well, she's mad--stark mad. She's been bothering me out of my life -these two days. I'm sick and tired of talking to her. If she catches me -now I'm done." - -"If she's mad," said the R. M., "why don't you have her locked up? I'll -sign the papers for you if you get a medical certificate." - -"She's not mad in that sort of way," said Goddard, "although she is -mad." - -"I see," said the R. M.; "temper. It's not a breach of promise case, is -it, Goddard?" - -"Nothing of the sort. I never set eyes on her in my life till -yesterday. In fact, she's engaged to quite another man." - -"I see," said the R. M. doubtfully. - -"The fact is," said Goddard, "she has a theory that there has been a -murder over at Clonmore. There hasn't, of course; but she thinks there -has--and--well, the fact is, I promised to investigate it. She cried, -you know, and that sort of thing. The whole business is utterly absurd -from start to finish." - -"And what do you propose to do now?" - -"I don't know. Perhaps she'll go away when she gets the message about -my being on leave. I shall stay here till after dark, anyhow, and then -sneak down to the house and find out what's happened." - -"I think," said Captain Fielding, "that I'll stay with you. I'd rather -like to see this business through. Besides, when she finds she can't -get you she'll probably go up to my house for me." - -Miss Blow received the message from Mr. Goddard's housekeeper with open -incredulity. - -"I shall wait here," she said, "until Mr. Goddard comes home." - -The servant was in a difficult position. She recognized Miss Blow as -the lady to whom she had given tea the day before, who had driven -off, apparently on the most friendly terms, with Mr. Goddard. It was -plainly impossible to slam the door as doors are slammed in the faces -of drunken tramps. She was a woman of kindly disposition. She saw -that Miss Blow was dusty, tired, in need of rest and refreshment. Her -natural impulse was to be hospitable. At the same time she had no doubt -as to what Mr. Goddard's wishes were with regard to this particular -visitor. She was a woman of intelligence, and she realized that the -message delivered by Captain Fielding was urgent and important. She -hesitated, standing in the middle of the doorway. Miss Blow put an end -to all uncertainty by walking past her into the house, opening the -dining-room door, entering the room, and sitting down. - -Mr. Goddard's housekeeper retired to the kitchen and meditated on the -situation. It was plainly impossible to remove Miss Blow without the -use of actual force. At seven o'clock pity triumphed over her sense of -duty to her master. She made some tea and took it in to Miss Blow on a -tray. At eight o'clock a police constable came to the door and asked -to see Mr. Goddard. He refused to believe that the District Inspector -had gone on leave. The housekeeper, despairing of anything except the -actual truth, confessed that there was a young lady in the house, and -gave it as her opinion that Mr. Goddard was afraid to meet her. The -constable disappeared, grinning. The housekeeper was uneasily conscious -that he was putting a wrong meaning into the fact of Miss Blow's -presence in the house. - -At nine o'clock Mr. Goddard, still in tennis flannels, and accompanied -by Captain Fielding, climbed over the wall of his own back garden, and -slipped through the yard into the kitchen. - -"Mary," he said to the housekeeper, "is that young lady gone?" - -"She is not; and, what's more, it's my opinion that she won't go." - -"There," said Mr. Goddard to Captain Fielding, "what did I tell you? -She's an amazingly persistent woman." - -"Go and turn her out," said Captain Fielding. "Tell her it's highly -improper for her to be sitting here in your house in the middle of the -night." - -Mr. Goddard sighed. The advice was well meant, but it was useless. He -knew Miss Blow, and Captain Fielding did not. - -"Mary," he said, "slip upstairs as quietly as you can, and get my -pyjamas and tooth brush. I'll have to go to the barrack for the night. -They'll give me some sort of a shake-down." - -"And will the young lady be sleeping here?" asked Mary. - -"I expect so," said Mr. Goddard. "If she does, she'll tell you so -beforehand quite plainly. Make her as comfortable as you can." - -Mary went upstairs on tiptoe. Unfortunately, owing to nervousness -induced by excess of caution, she upset a hot-water can, which fell -with a hideous clatter against Mr. Goddard's bath. She hastened from -the bedroom, and was met on the stairs by Miss Blow. - -"What have you got there?" said Miss Blow, eyeing the pyjamas -suspiciously. - -"It's clothes from the wash," said Mary. "Now that the master's away, I -thought I might as well be doing that as nothing." - -"You can tell him," said Miss Blow, "that I'm going to the hotel now, -and that I'll be round to see him the first thing in the morning." - -She left the house, slamming the door behind her. Mary carried the -pyjamas and the tooth brush upstairs again. Then she went into the -kitchen and broke the happy news to her master and Captain Fielding. - -"Thank God!" said Mr. Goddard. "I'm safe for to-night, anyway." - -"She'll be back with you in the morning," said Captain Fielding, -grinning. "I don't see that you've much to congratulate yourself -about." - -"Something may happen before then," said Mr. Goddard. - -It is very seldom that things happen just when they are wanted to. The -prisoner on the verge of execution hopes, but as a rule hopes in vain, -for an earthquake at early dawn. The debtor whose bill is due the next -day prays for, but scarcely expects, a fire in the bank premises during -the night, an effective fire destructive of iron safes. Mr. Goddard's -feeling that something might happen before Miss Blow caught him again -was hardly a hope. Nothing short of some wholly unprecedented event -would be any use to him. But Mr. Goddard was exceptionally fortunate. -Something did happen. He was roused at six o'clock in the morning by -a violent knocking at his door. He looked out of his window and saw -Constable Moriarty standing in the street with a bicycle. - -"What on earth do you want at this hour?" said Mr. Goddard. - -He had slept badly during the early part of the night, and was greatly -annoyed at being roused from a doze at six o'clock. - -"If it's Miss Blow you're after," he went on, "I haven't got her here. -She's at the hotel. Go there and get her. Take her with you, if you -want her. She's no use to me." - -Constable Moriarty grinned. He did not want Miss Blow any more than his -officer did. Then, in the very middle of his grin, he grew grave again. - -"It's what Sergeant Farrelly is after sending me over to tell you, sir, -that the two English gentlemen that went off to Pool-a-donagh on their -bicycles is after getting lost." - -"Lost! What do you mean by lost?" - -"According to the word that came to the barrack at Clonmore, sir, the -ladies arrived at Pool-a-donagh at four o'clock or thereabouts and -didn't find the gentlemen. It was thought that maybe they'd taken a -wrong turn, though it's hard to know how they could, seeing there isn't -a wrong turn to take, and that they might have come back to Clonmore. -So the sergeant at Pool-a-donagh sent a wire to Sergeant Farrelly; but -he didn't know where they were, and no more did Jimmy O'Loughlin, for -we asked him. We sent a few more wires to the barracks round about, but -we got no tidings of them good nor bad. There was men out searching -all night from Pool-a-donagh, and Constable Cole and the sergeant took -a look round when they were on patrol. They do say the ladies was in -a terrible state. There was a mounted man came into Clonmore between -three and four this morning, and Sergeant Farrelly sent me over to you -on a bicycle the way you'd be able to tell him what he'd better do." - -"I never heard of such a thing in my life," said Mr. Goddard. "How -can they be lost? The thing is impossible. Hang it all! they must be -somewhere." - -"So you'd say, sir. But there isn't a police station anywhere round but -it's been wired to, and not one has seen the gentlemen, dead or alive." - -"Don't talk about their being dead," said Mr. Goddard. "Good heavens, -man! They're Members of Parliament. If they've gone and committed -suicide there'll be a most frightful row, and everybody will say it's -the fault of the police. They must be found at once." - -Mr. Goddard was in his pyjamas and dressing-gown. He told Constable -Moriarty to go into the yard and harness the horse while he shaved -and dressed. He was inclined at first to be angry with the Members of -Parliament. It is a stupid thing to get lost, and men have no right to -be stupid. He did not want to spend the day searching bohireens and -bog-holes. He wanted to play in the Ballymoy tennis tournament. He had -engaged himself as partner to Mrs. Fielding, the Resident Magistrate's -wife, and it vexed him to have to disappoint the lady. By degrees the -matter began to present itself to him in a brighter light. He was now -obliged, absolutely forced, to leave Ballymoy, and by leaving early -he would escape Miss Blow, escape her for a time at all events. He -reflected that if she sought him out with her usual relentlessness he -would, in any case, have been unable to play in the tournament. A man -cannot with any decency appear on a tennis court while a beautiful -and angry girl hurls reproaches at him from the side lines. Even if -he succeeded in evading her, his nerve would be shattered by the -consciousness that she might appear beside him at any moment. It seemed -to him that the loss of the Members of Parliament was, after all, a -blessing in disguise; that, in fact, his wish had been fulfilled beyond -his hope--something had happened. - -He sat down and scribbled a note of apology for his absence. - -"Dear Fielding," he wrote, "will you ask your wife to be so kind as to -excuse me. I am exceedingly sorry to disappoint her, and I assure you I -would not do it if I could possibly help it. Two Members of Parliament -have disappeared during the night, and I have to go out and look for -them. Perhaps the rector would play with Mrs. Fielding if you asked -him. He's no earthly good, but he's on the handicapping committee, and -would let himself in soft. In any case she would get a game of some -sort. If you happen to come across that good-looking girl in the grey -dress, you might tell her that I promised to play to-day with Mrs. -Fielding, and that you expect me up at the club between twelve o'clock -and four. That will keep her in Ballymoy for most of the day, anyhow. -The Lord knows I don't want her on my track. I shall have worry enough -without that." - -He stuffed some biscuits into his pocket and went out into the yard. -Constable Moriarty promised to deliver the note to Captain Fielding. -Mr. Goddard got into his trap and drove off. He had to pass the hotel -on his way, and was half afraid that Miss Blow might sally out and -seize the horse's head. She did not. It was not yet seven o'clock, and -the blinds of all the upstairs rooms were drawn down. Miss Blow was, -apparently, sleeping off the fatigue of the day before. - -Mr. Goddard reached Clonmore at half-past eight. He found Sergeant -Farrelly and Constable Cole at breakfast. They had been up all night, -and were looking fagged, nervous, and harassed. - -"There's two more wires, sir, that's come in since eight this morning. -The one of them says that there's no further news of the missing -gentlemen in Pool-a-donagh, and the other says that the ladies started -back to Clonmore at seven this morning, and is in hopes that you'll be -here to meet them when they arrive. - -"If I'm not," said Mr. Goddard--"and it's quite possible that I -won't--if I'm not, you'll have to see them, sergeant. They're very nice -ladies," he added, noticing a gloom on Sergeant Farrelly's face, "not -the least like Miss Blow." - -"It's a queer thing," said Sergeant Farrelly, "that a man could get -lost between this and Pool-a-donagh. It's a straight road, and they got -started right on it. Jimmy O'Loughlin was telling me last night that he -seen them going through the town, and them heading straight on the same -as if they knew the place all their lives. Without they took a boat and -went out to sea in it--and I don't know where they'd get a boat along -that road--it's a queer thing." - -"It is a queer thing," said Mr. Goddard. "But what's the use of -spending the morning saying so? Show me all the telegrams that came -last night." - -He worked his way through a sheaf of pink forms. The messages were, -for the most part, very monotonous. In language which hardly varied -and with a strict attention to the number of words which can be sent -for sixpence, the sergeants of all the police barracks within a wide -circle disclaimed any knowledge of the missing gentlemen. No one had -seen them. The most careful inquiries brought no information. Here and -there, among these cold, official statements, Mr. Goddard came upon a -message which breathed anxiety, heartbreak, and despair, a despatch -from a wife or an aunt. These were verbose, reckless of expense, and -always ended by urging the necessity of immediate action on the part of -the police. - -"I can't do anything," said Mr. Goddard; "at all events, I won't do -anything till I've had some breakfast. It's after nine now. I'll go -down to the hotel and see what I can get out of Jimmy O'Loughlin." - -He found, when he reached the hotel, that the table in the commercial -room was laid for breakfast. A pleasant scent of frying bacon reached -him from the kitchen. He became aware that he was extremely hungry. - -"Jimmy!" he called. "Jimmy O'Loughlin!" - -"Is that yourself, Mr. Goddard?" said Jimmy, speaking from the top of -the stairs. "They're just getting the breakfast ready for the doctor's -young lady. I'll tell them to fry a couple more eggs for you. She'll be -glad of your company. It's lonely for the creature taking her meals by -herself, and her in trouble about the loss of the doctor and all." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin in his shirt-sleeves and without a collar leaned over -the banisters as he spoke. The grin on his face was malicious. - -"Is Miss Blow here?" said Mr. Goddard. "I don't believe she is. How -could she?" - -"She is not here," said Jimmy, "but I'm just after getting a wire from -her to say that she'll be in for her breakfast at half-past nine. It -must be that now, if it isn't past it. Bridgy! Are you there, Bridgy? -I say, will you fry a couple of eggs and some rashers for Mr. Goddard? -He'll be taking his breakfast along with the doctor's young lady as -soon as she comes." - -"Look here," said Mr. Goddard, "there's no use your trying to pull my -leg in this way. Miss Blow can't be here. She was sound asleep when I -left Ballymoy at seven, and she couldn't possibly do the drive in the -time." - -"Not if she drove," said Jimmy; "but she'd do it on a bicycle." - -"How do you know she has a bicycle?" - -"I don't know. How would I? All I say is that, being the sort of a -young lady she is, it's likely she'd get a bicycle, or for the matter -of that a motor car, if so be she wanted one. Anyway, she'll be here -at half-past nine, for that's what she said." - -"Then," said Mr. Goddard, "I'll not stay for breakfast. I'm going up -to the Castle. I have business with Lord Manton. And look here, Jimmy, -when Miss Blow arrives, if she does arrive, there'll be no need for you -to say anything about my being here. It would only upset her." - -"I will not. Why would I? Hasn't she trouble enough without that? But -tell me now, Mr. Goddard, is it true what I hear them saying about them -gentlemen that was through the town yesterday on their bicycles?" - -"Is what true?" - -"That they're off." - -"They're lost," said Mr. Goddard, "if that's what you mean." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin winked. "The same as the poor doctor," he said, "and -Patsy Devlin." - -"Not in the least the same. We know what happened to them well enough. -But these fellows are quite different. But I can't stop here talking -to you all morning. I've something else to do. Don't say anything to -anybody about my being up at the Castle." - -"I will not. If I open my mouth about you at all, I'll say you're -searching high and low for the men that's gone." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - - -"His lordship is still at breakfast, sir," said Wilkins. - -"Will you ask him if I can speak to him for a few minutes as soon as he -has finished?" said Mr. Goddard. - -He was shown into the library, where Lord Manton's letters and -newspapers were arranged on a table near the window. He was an old -gentleman who declined to do business of any kind, even open a letter, -before breakfast. He attributed his good health to his habit of facing -the kind of worries which the post brings only when he was fortified by -a solid meal. Mr. Goddard glanced at the columns of a Dublin evening -paper of the day before, half fearful of a scare headline announcing -the loss of two Members of Parliament in Connemara. He was delighted to -find that the editor had been able to discover nothing more exciting -than a crisis in the Balkans and a speech by the Prime Minister. -Wilkins entered the room. - -"His lordship's compliments," he said, "and he will be pleased if you -will join him at breakfast." - -Mr. Goddard accepted the invitation gladly. The smell of Jimmy -O'Loughlin's bacon and eggs had whetted his appetite. He was conducted -to the dining-room by Wilkins, and found Lord Manton seated by himself -at the end of a large table. The dining-room in Clonmore Castle is -a spacious and well-proportioned apartment. A tradition exists that -in the time of Lord Manton's father, on the occasion of a county -election, fifty gentlemen once sat down in it together at dinner. In -those days, no doubt, people did not object to being crowded. But even -to-day thirty people could very comfortably have dined in the room, -and there would still have been space for the servants to make their -way about. It was the largest room in the Castle, and its present -proprietor looked singularly small, even insignificant, seated alone in -the middle of it. Lord Manton greeted his guest cheerfully. - -"Good morning, Mr. Goddard. This is an early visit. Have you by any -chance come across the body of Dr. O'Grady? Won't you help yourself to -something to eat? You'll find whatever there is on the side table." - -Mr. Goddard secured a kidney and some bacon. - -"No," he said; "there's no news of Dr. O'Grady." - -"Have you got engaged to be married to Miss Blow?" said Lord Manton. -"That's the way this business will end, I expect. That young woman came -over here for a husband, and now that the doctor has bolted there is -only you or me for her to choose. So far as I can see at present, she -seems to prefer you. I'm very glad she does. In fact, I'm keeping out -of her way as much as I can." - -"So am I; but it's rather difficult." - -"I suppose it is. I hear that she went the whole way over to Ballymoy -after you last night; walked every step of it. I'm surprised that you -escaped her after that. How did you manage it? I should have thought -you could hardly have refused to marry her without being actually rude. -But perhaps that story is only gossip." - -"It's quite true," said Mr. Goddard. "But, Lord Manton, I came up here -this morning to speak to you about--the fact is, I am in a serious -difficulty." - -"You are. I can scarcely imagine anything more serious." - -"I wanted," said Mr. Goddard, "to ask your advice about----" - -"You shall have it. Give in and marry her at once with a good grace. -That's my advice. After all, you might do a great deal worse. She's a -very good-looking girl, and by her own account she'll have some money. -It's far better for you to pretend you like it. It's no earthly use -your trying to escape if her mind is made up. Your plan of dodging -up and down between Clonmore and Ballymoy can't be kept up for ever. -Sooner or later she'll overtake you in one place or the other; or else -she'll meet you on the road between the two, where you'll be quite at -her mercy." - -"I dare say you're right," said Mr. Goddard. "But it's not about Miss -Blow that I want to consult you this morning. Did you hear about the -Members of Parliament?" - -"I heard that two Members of Parliament went through the town on -bicycles yesterday," said Lord Manton, "with a lot of women after -them on cars; Suffragettes, I suppose, pursuing them for votes. It's -astonishing how they track those poor fellows to the remotest ends of -the earth." - -"They've disappeared," said Mr. Goddard. - -"Sensible men. That was by far the wisest thing they could do. But I -wonder how they managed it? You haven't been able to disappear from -Miss Blow. We must find out about it. I may have to disappear myself -when that question comes up to the House of Lords." - -"You've not got it right," said Mr. Goddard. "The women on the cars -were their wives. Or rather two of them were. The other was their aunt." - -"Dear me! Is that legal? That sort of group marriage with a common aunt -doesn't seem to me quite the thing for Members of Parliament." - -"They had one wife each, of course," said Mr. Goddard, "and the aunt -only belonged to one of them. They have the police roused all over the -country looking for them. That's what brings me here this morning. I've -got to do something to find them." - -"Do you mean to tell me that these two men have got lost in such a way -that they can't be found?" - -"They have. It's really a most extraordinary thing. They started -on bicycles yesterday from Clonmore to ride to Pool-a-donagh. They -never arrived. That's really all we know about the matter. The ladies -followed them on a car and didn't overtake them. We've telegraphed to -every police barrack in the neighbourhood, and they haven't turned up -anywhere." - -"I'll tell you what it is, Goddard. This is an uncommonly awkward -business for you. Here you are, responsible for the safety of the -inhabitants of this district, and no less than four men disappear -completely in the inside of a single week. First there was Dr. O'Grady. -Then poor Patsy Devlin vanished, leaving a wife and family behind him." - -"We know all about them," said Mr. Goddard. - -"And now no less than two Members of Parliament. It doesn't look at -all well. I'm greatly afraid there'll be a fuss when it gets into the -newspapers. The public will take the keenest interest in it. We shall -have columns and columns every day. Do you happen to know whether -these men were Liberals or Conservatives?" - -"No, I don't. I don't see that it makes any difference. I've got to -find them whichever they are." - -"It makes the greatest difference," said Lord Manton. "If they're -supporters of the Government, there'll be a much bigger fuss than if -they're on the Opposition side. The Prime Minister isn't likely to -sit down quietly under the loss of two votes, especially with the way -bye-elections are going at present. You'll simply have to find them." - -"I wish I could," said Mr. Goddard. "I'd do it quick enough, whatever -their politics are, if I knew how to go about it." - -"Of course, if they belonged to the Opposition," said Lord Manton, "the -matter won't be pressed by the Government. But even so you'll have the -newspapers to reckon with, and the curiosity of the general public. Why -don't you go and look for them?" - -"I would go at once, if I had the remotest idea where to look. But I -haven't. That's what I want your advice about." - -"You say," said Lord Manton, "that there are three ladies belonging -to them. If I were you, I should begin by introducing them to Miss -Blow. Then get a hold of Mrs. Patsy Devlin and let her talk to the -whole party. You could put them all together into a room in Jimmy -O'Loughlin's hotel. They'll interest each other. They have so much in -common." - -"I might do that, of course. But I don't see what good it would be. I -shouldn't be any nearer finding the men." - -"No, you wouldn't; but you'd have time to turn round and think things -out a bit. They'd be sure to talk for a good while once you get them -started, and it's quite possible that by the time they'd finished, the -two men might have turned up somewhere or other." - -"I don't see what can possibly have happened to them," said Mr. -Goddard. "After you pass Rosivera the road runs the whole way between -the bog and the sea. They couldn't get off it if they tried. And they -must have got as far as Rosivera when they started right, for there -isn't a cross road between this and there. Even if they were fools -enough to go up some bohireen or other, they'd only have to turn around -and come down again." - -"That seems to me," said Lord Manton, "to knock the bottom out of the -theory that they've got lost. As you say, they can't be lost. They -might sit down on the side of the road and cry; but if they did the -women on the cars would have seen them." - -"I've thought all that out. I can't see how they've got lost; but the -fact is they are lost." - -"I don't believe it," said Lord Manton. - -"Surely you don't suppose that they're playing off a practical joke on -us." - -"Come into the library and have a smoke," said Lord Manton. - -"I'm not sure that I ought to. With this business on my hands I -scarcely feel justified--I think I should----" - -"Oh, nonsense. You can't do anything until you've thought. Premature -and imperfectly considered action in a case like this is always a -mistake, and you can't possibly think properly without tobacco." - -Lord Manton kept excellent cigars for his guests. Mr. Goddard, who had -smoked them before, lit one with pleasure, and stretched himself in a -deep chair. He had breakfasted heartily, in spite of anxiety and worry. -He felt that a short rest was due to him. He was prepared to believe -that a period of calm reflection was due to the case of the two errant -Members of Parliament. Lord Manton did not smoke his own cigars, and -rarely lay back in his own very comfortable chairs. He preferred an -upright kind of seat, and he smoked cigarettes, lighting them one after -another in rapid succession, while he talked, wrote or thought. On this -occasion he did not remain seated for more than a couple of minutes. -Before his first cigarette was half smoked he stood up and talked down -to Mr. Goddard from a commanding position beside the chimney-piece. - -"I don't believe," he said, "I don't for one moment believe, that those -Members of Parliament are lost." - -"Lost or disappeared or stolen," said Mr. Goddard, "it's all the same -so far as I am concerned. I've got to find them." - -"It's not in the least the same thing. If they were simply lost in -the way a child or a dog or a collar stud gets lost, then you'd know -where to look for them. Draw a circle of, say, ten miles in diameter, -with Rosivera for its centre, and they must be inside of it somewhere. -You've only got to put men enough on the job and you're bound to find -them. But if they have disappeared of their own accord, vanished -intentionally and deliberately, then you will have to proceed in quite -a different way." - -"It's all very well to talk of Dr. O'Grady and Patsy Devlin -disappearing like that; but it's different with these men. Why the -devil should they disappear?" - -"They can't have got lost," said Lord Manton. "You satisfied me, if -you did not satisfy yourself, about that; and if they're lost they must -have bolted. How else can you account for their not turning up?" - -"But why should they? What had they to run away from?" - -"That, of course, I can't say for certain, for I don't know the men. -But, taking into consideration the little I do know about them, I can -make a guess. Can't you imagine it? They had with them three women, two -wives and an aunt. The one who hadn't his aunt with him very probably -has one at home, and it's quite possible that they both have sisters." - -"I dare say they have. I didn't ask." - -"Well now, think. They were English Members of Parliament, and -therefore presumably pretty well to do. They probably had businesses -somewhere, and residences in a suburban district. What does all that -mean? Respectability. Imagine to yourself the appalling weight of -respectability involved in the possession of a wife, an aunt, a sister, -a business, investments, and a seat in Parliament. Can't you fancy -the poor fellows coming to find it all perfectly intolerable; saying -to each other: 'Hang it, let's get off and run loose for a while'? I -don't say I'm right. I can't be sure, because I don't know the men, and -I didn't see the women; but what I'm offering you is an intelligible -explanation. What sort of women were they? What were they like?" - -"I don't know. I didn't notice anything particular about them. They -were just ordinary women." - -"There you are," said Lord Manton. "It's your ordinary, well-behaved -woman who drives a man perfectly frantic if he has any spirit in him. -I couldn't live with an ordinary woman for three months at a stretch. -Look at my daughter, for instance. How long do you suppose I could -stand her? Certainly not three months, not two months. I'm at the end -of my tether after a six weeks' visit to her. And I'm not married to -her. I haven't got to be very close to her. I haven't got to see her -in a red dressing-gown combing her hair. I haven't got to listen to -the noise she makes when she's washing her teeth. You don't understand -these things because you're not married. Very likely you never will -understand them, because Miss Blow's not an ordinary woman----" - -"She is not," said Mr. Goddard. - -"But these two poor fellows," said Lord Manton, "had got to do with -ordinary women. They had to give their opinions on new hats, had to -listen to stories about the things which the servants did or didn't do. -Of course they bolted." - -"I wish to goodness they'd have bolted out of some other district, -then, if they had to bolt. Why should they come here? You'd think it -would be much more convenient to run away from a place like London than -from Clonmore. But I don't believe they have bolted." - -"They can't have got lost. The thing's absurd on the face of it. Take -a single point in addition to all those that you've made already. -Take their bicycles. A man might accidentally lose himself, but his -bicycle couldn't possibly get lost. He must leave it on the side of -the road somewhere, and wherever he leaves it you're sure to find it. -You can get rid of a bicycle on purpose, though even that's not so -easy. Sinking it in the sea is about the only way I can imagine of -effectually disposing of it. But you can't lose it and yourself. Nobody -could lose both himself and a bicycle unless he did it on purpose." - -"But----" said Mr. Goddard. - -He had a whole series of criticisms utterly destructive of Lord -Manton's hypothesis. He had seen the Members of Parliament. He felt -that he knew them. He found it impossible to imagine their breaking out -into wild Bohemianism, sickening of respectability, rebelling against -the monotony of any woman, however ordinary. There was Mr. Dick, who -had bounded out of the railway carriage, volatile, debonnair, gay -with familiar quotations. There was Mr. Sanders, rigid, mathematical, -a little morose on account of his weak heart. Lord Manton might -conceivably find an ordinary woman maddening; but Mr. Dick, once he -began, would go on kissing her contentedly for years and years. He -would appreciate the way in which his dinner was cooked for him. Mr. -Sanders would appreciate that too. He might be a little exacting, -would, no doubt, expect his weak heart to be taken seriously, would -put a woman in her proper place in the settled order of things, and -keep her there. But both Mr. Dick and Mr. Sanders would recognize that -a woman must be allowed to wash her teeth. They would not resent the -noise of the water gurgling in her mouth. They would both know that -women must comb their hair, and that a red dressing-gown is a suitable -and convenient garment under certain circumstances. They would not be -angry when they were told about the misdeeds of maid-servants, a trying -and exhausting class to deal with. They were men with well-balanced -minds, men of practical common sense, men who would not fly blindly in -the face of facts. They were not the men to run away from their wives, -or even from their aunts. - -"But----" he began again. - -Lord Manton lit a fresh cigarette, his fourth, and waited. Mr. Goddard -sought for words in which to express his feelings. He might have found -them in time, but time was not given him. Wilkins entered the room. - -"There is a lady to see you, sir," he said to Mr. Goddard. "I showed -her into the small drawing-room. She said she wished to see you -particular." - -"Good God!" said Mr. Goddard. "It's Miss Blow!" - -"Is it Miss Blow?" said Lord Manton to Wilkins. "Don't attempt to break -the news to him if it is. Tell him straight out. It's kinder in the -end." - -"It's the same young lady," said Wilkins, "that called on your lordship -two days ago." - -"The young lady that was talking about bringing a corpse here? I told -you, I remember, to get white flowers from the gardener. Is it that -young lady?" - -"Yes, my lord." - -"And has she brought it this time?" - -"Not that I saw, my lord." - -"If you didn't see it, Wilkins, I think we may take it for granted that -it isn't there." - -"Damn that girl!" said Mr. Goddard. "You'd think I had enough on my -hands without her." - -"From the way you're speaking of her," said Lord Manton, "I suppose -you don't feel inclined to go into the drawing-room and offer to marry -her. That, as I said before, is the proper thing for you to do. If you -won't, the only other course I see open to you is to get away out of -this as fast as you can." - -"What's the good? She'd be after me again at once." - -"Not at once," said Lord Manton. "I think I can arrange to give you a -good long start. Wilkins will go back and ask her to be good enough -to remain where she is for a few minutes. You could tell her, Wilkins, -that Mr. Goddard is engaged with me at present, discussing very -important business, but that he'll be with her in less than a quarter -of an hour. You could do that, Wilkins, couldn't you?" - -"Yes, my lord." - -"Then Mr. Goddard could get out of the house and walk across the deer -park. You could run if you like, Goddard, keeping carefully out of -sight of the drawing-room windows. After a time, say at the end of half -an hour, Miss Blow will begin to get impatient. What do you suppose -she'll do when she gets impatient, Wilkins?" - -"I'd say, my lord, that's she's likely to ring the bell." - -"Exactly. That's what I thought myself. I suppose, Wilkins, that you -could arrange for the under housemaid to go to her when she rings." - -"Yes, my lord." - -"And the under housemaid would, of course, know nothing about Mr. -Goddard. What would the under housemaid do, Wilkins, when she was asked -about Mr. Goddard, and knew nothing about him?" - -"I'd say, my lord, that she'd tell the young lady she'd go to make -inquiries." - -"Quite so. She'd be sure to do that. But she needn't go back again to -Miss Blow. She could resume her interrupted duties. She could start -off under-housemaiding again at the place she left off when Miss Blow -rang the bell. I presume that, after a decent interval, say a quarter -of an hour, Miss Blow would ring the bell again; this time the upper -housemaid could go to her. That could be arranged, I suppose, Wilkins?" - -"Certainly, my lord." - -"She, of course, would know nothing about Mr. Goddard; but she would -promise to go and make inquiries. She would then get back to her -upper-housemaiding and completely forget about Miss Blow. After another -interval, this time probably a shorter one, say ten minutes, Miss Blow -would ring the bell again. Then the cook could go to her, and, of -course----" - -"Beg pardon, my lord, but the cook wouldn't go." - -"Couldn't you arrange it, Wilkins?" - -"No, my lord; it's not the cook's place to answer bells." - -"I forgot that," said Lord Manton. "It was stupid of me. I should have -remembered. I'm afraid, Wilkins, that you'd have to go yourself the -third time. You would tell her that Mr. Goddard had left the house an -hour before. It would be about an hour, wouldn't it, Wilkins?" - -"As near as I can go to it, it would be about that, my lord." - -"After that I should recommend you to leave the room at once, Wilkins. -You can stay if you like and see what happens, but I rather recommend -you to leave at once." - -"Yes, my lord." - -"Very well. That gives you a clear hour's start, Goddard. You'd better -be off at once." - -"Where am I to go to?" - -"I really don't know. I'm not advising you to run away. I think it -would be wiser for you to stay here and marry Miss Blow without any -further resistance. If you act contrary to my advice, you mustn't -expect me to make your plans for you." - -Mr. Goddard and Wilkins left the room together. Lord Manton lit a -fresh cigarette and tried to make up his mind whether he would like -to see Miss Blow before she left the house. He felt sure that the -interview, if he ventured on it, would be an interesting one, and that -Miss Blow would say very amusing things. On the other hand, he had a -vivid recollection of the masterful way in which she compelled him to -write a note to Sergeant Farrelly. It seemed likely that she would -attempt something of the same sort again. He was most unwilling to get -further entangled in the mystery of Dr. O'Grady's disappearance. He -was still turning the question over in his mind when Mr. Goddard burst -noisily into the room. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - - -"Hullo!" said Lord Manton. "Back again. What have you forgotten? It's -rather rash of you to venture, I think. If it's only your cigar-case or -something of that sort that you've left behind, I should have had it -posted after you as soon as you sent me your address. I can't keep Miss -Blow here permanently, you know. In dealing with a lady like her you -ought not to take these risks." - -"The others are coming," said Mr. Goddard breathlessly. - -"Oh, indeed! What others?" - -"I met them in the deer park. They are coming up here. They had Jimmy -O'Loughlin's boy with them to show them the way." - -"What others?" - -"I turned at once and ran back," said Mr. Goddard. "I don't think they -saw me; in fact, I'm sure they didn't. But what are we to do now?" - -"I'd stand a better chance of answering that question," said Lord -Manton, "if I knew who you were talking about." - -"The other women, Mrs. Dick and----" - -"Oh, the wives of the lost Members of Parliament." - -"Yes. What shall we do?" - -"Don't say, what shall _we_ do," said Lord Manton. "I'm not going to -do anything except sit here and watch the progress of events. I think -that's as much as can be expected of me. Many men wouldn't do even -that. I know lots of people who'd object to your way of filling up -their houses with strange women; but I'm giving you every latitude. If -you choose to interview your lady friends in my drawing-room, I make no -objection. But I won't be dragged into any complications myself. That's -the reason I don't like your saying 'we.' The question is not what -shall we do, but what will you do." - -"What shall I do, then?" said Mr. Goddard. - -"If you'd taken my advice," said Lord Manton, "and married Miss Blow -half an hour ago, you wouldn't be in this difficulty now. Your course -would have been perfectly plain. You'd simply have referred the other -ladies to Miss Blow. She would have dealt with them, and not allowed -them to do you any harm. However, I don't want to rub in your past -mistakes. The only course open to you now is to introduce these three -to Miss Blow and let them talk the matter over quietly together while -you get Mrs. Patsy Devlin to join them." - -Wilkins entered the room while Lord Manton was speaking. - -"There are some ladies to see your lordship," he said. - -"To see me? To see Mr. Goddard, you mean." - -"It was your lordship they asked for." - -"There must be some mistake," said Lord Manton. "Go to them again, -Wilkins, and say that Mr. Goddard is here and will be delighted to see -them." - -"I don't see what good that will be," said Mr. Goddard. "Wait a minute." - -But Wilkins was gone. Mr. Goddard made a protest. - -"Why did you give me away like that?" he asked. "If you hadn't told -them I was here, they would never have thought of asking for me." - -"I gave you away to save myself," said Lord Manton. "I always give -other people away when there's any kind of unpleasantness going on. -That has been a fixed rule of mine through life, and I've always found -it work well." - -"Beg pardon, my lord," said Wilkins, who returned, "but the ladies say -it's your lordship they want to see; but they'll be very glad to meet -Mr. Goddard too." - -"Did you ask their business, Wilkins?" - -"I did, my lord. They said they heard that you were a magistrate, -and----" - -"That," said Lord Manton, "sounds about as bad as anything could be. -How many ladies were there, Wilkins?" - -"Three, my lord." - -"The whole three," said Mr. Goddard. "I told you so." - -"Where have you put them, Wilkins?" - -"I showed them into the big drawing-room, my lord. The other lady was -in----" - -"Well, go and change them out of that into the small drawing-room. Or, -wait a minute. It may be easier to move Miss Blow. Go and put her into -the big drawing-room along with the other three. Then shut the door and -leave them. Do you think you can manage that, Wilkins?" - -"I could try, my lord." - -"Very well. Go and try. And if you succeed, don't go to them again -until they've rung the bell at least a dozen times." - -"Certainly not, my lord." - -"It's rather hard on a man of my age," said Lord Manton, "to be hunted -out of my own house in this way by a lot of strange women. I'm not -blaming you, Goddard. All the same, if you had been reasonable about -Miss Blow we wouldn't be in the position we are. Now, of course, -there's nothing for it but to fly. It's very undignified for me, being -a peer and that sort of thing. It will also, I'm afraid, be most -uncomfortable. I mind that much more than the humiliation. But there's -nothing else for it. If I stay here they'll catch me sooner or later." - -"What will you do?" - -"I shall get out a horse and trap if I can without being noticed. I -shall drive down to the station, and lie hid in the ticket office until -the next train is due. Then I shall go to London. You'd better come -with me." - -Lord Manton's idea was to reach the stable-yard by way of the servants' -quarters, so as to avoid passing the doors of either the big or the -small drawing-room. To do this from the library it was necessary to -go along a corridor and then cross an angle of the central hall off -which both the drawing-rooms opened. The corridor was safe. The passage -across the hall was dangerous. Unless Wilkins actually locked the -ladies in, a door might be opened at any moment. - -Lord Manton and Mr. Goddard went on tiptoe along the corridor. A voice -reached them from the hall. It was Wilkins' voice. - -"This way, miss, if you please." - -"One of them has escaped," said Mr. Goddard. - -"No," whispered Lord Manton; "it's only Wilkins moving Miss Blow into -the big drawing-room. Wait a minute." - -They heard Wilkins' voice again. This time it was nearer than it had -been. - -"I beg your pardon, miss, but if you'll allow me to show you the way. -You're going in quite the wrong direction, miss." - -Mr. Goddard clutched Lord Manton's arm. "She's coming down here," he -said. "We'd better----" - -"It's all right," whispered Lord Manton. "Wilkins will head her off." - -"I'm going in the direction in which I mean to go." - -This voice was unmistakably Miss Blow's. It was clear, resonant, -determined, and sounded very near at hand. - -"Good heavens!" said Mr. Goddard. - -"She's quite right," said Lord Manton. "She is going in the direction -in which she means to go. I rather respect her for it." - -Wilkins, walking sideways, and expostulating vehemently, appeared -at the end of the corridor. Behind him, mistress of herself and the -situation, strode Miss Blow. She caught sight of Lord Manton and Mr. -Goddard at once. She pointed to them with a finger and fixed her eyes -upon them with a terrible glare. They stood still, fascinated. The idea -of escape by running and a leap through the library window occurred -to Lord Manton. But with Miss Blow's eyes on him he was incapable of -the effort. Wilkins, faithful to the last, walked backwards along the -corridor, in front of Miss Blow. He looked as if he meant to sacrifice -himself in order to stand between his master and Amazonian violence. He -was a good servant. - -"So there you are," said Miss Blow. "You----" Her finger, pointed at -Mr. Goddard, trembled with indignant scorn. "And you, my lord." - -There was a fine note of contempt, bitter and furious contempt, in her -voice, as she uttered the words "my lord." There was something terrible -in the association of a title reckoned honourable by the world with the -baseness which she evidently attributed to Lord Manton. - -"Yes," said Lord Manton; "we're both here. But why aren't you in the -big drawing-room with the other ladies? You oughtn't to come down here, -you know, especially without a chaperone." - -"You call yourselves gentlemen," said Miss Blow. - -"No," said Lord Manton; "we don't. I certainly don't. And I should -be surprised to hear that Mr. Goddard did. The word is quite out of -fashion, I assure you. Nobody uses it nowadays. Don't bring unjust -charges against us, Miss Blow. There are lots of things we may be -accused of with truth. We're not the men we ought to be, especially -Mr. Goddard. Charge us with the things we've done, and we'll confess -at once and apologize. But don't be unjust. We never called ourselves -gentlemen." - -"You ran away from me yesterday," said Miss Blow, addressing Mr. -Goddard, "after promising faithfully that you'd help me. You ran away -again to-day. You would be running away now if I hadn't caught you in -the act." - -"He did and he would," said Lord Manton. "I've just been speaking to -him about it. I told him his conduct was disgraceful. I'm glad now that -he'll hear what you think of it from your own lips. It'll do him good." - -Mr. Goddard frowned and shuffled uneasily. Even though he had been -fairly warned of the principle on which Lord Manton treated his friends -in emergencies, he did not expect to be sacrificed so completely and -remorselessly. - -"You're as bad yourself," said Miss Blow. - -"No," said Lord Manton; "I'm not. Try to be just, Miss Blow. I didn't -run away from you." - -"You're just as bad as he is," said Miss Blow. - -Her voice was clear and loud. Lord Manton glanced anxiously towards the -hall. It was quite possible that the noise of the denunciation might -reach the drawing-room. - -"Wilkins," he said, "did you shut the door of the big drawing-room?" - -"No, my lord; I understood your lordship to say that this lady----" - -"Then go and do it at once. I can't have the other three---- Miss Blow -is speaking to us in a confidential manner and doesn't want----" - -"Who are you shutting up?" said Miss Blow. "Who is your lackey going to -imprison?" - -"Some ladies," said Lord Manton. "There are, I believe, three of them. -But I'm not imprisoning them. I'm only trying to keep them where they -are for a few minutes. I'm doing it entirely on your account. They -wouldn't be at all cheering company for you. They have, unfortunately, -just lost their husbands under the most mysterious and trying -circumstances. Members of Parliament, you know. Excellent fellows every -one of them. The whole thing is unspeakably sad." - -"Are those the ladies----?" said Miss Blow. "But of course they are. -I heard about that. Do you mean to say that you're going to sit here -and do nothing, nothing whatever, while men are being murdered in -this wholesale manner every day? Will you make no effort to bring the -criminals to justice and prevent the loss of more human life? You, -sir," she addressed Mr. Goddard, "you wear his Majesty's uniform; you -are an officer in what is supposed to be a police force----" - -"It is a police force," said Mr. Goddard feebly. "It really is, -although I am an officer in it." - -"And you," she went on, turning to Lord Manton, "you are a magistrate -besides being a peer." - -"Miss Blow," said Lord Manton, "won't you come into the library and sit -down? We could talk so much more comfortably if we were sitting down. -Besides, this is rather a public place for the discussion of private -affairs." - -He looked past Miss Blow towards the end of the corridor. Something -in his expression made Miss Blow turn her head. She saw, gathered in -a knot in the hall, the cook, the kitchen-maid, the upper and under -house-maid, and Wilkins. All of them, except Wilkins, were grinning. -They had forgotten all decency and the respect due to their master. -They were eagerly listening to every word Miss Blow said. She allowed -herself to be led into the library. - -"Now sit down," said Lord Manton. "You must be thoroughly tired out -after your long walk yesterday and all this excitement to-day. Will you -allow me to offer you a glass of wine and a biscuit? Goddard, ring the -bell, like a good man." - -"No," said Miss Blow. - -"A cup of tea, then? No? Or an egg flip? The cook would have it -ready in a moment. I often have an egg flip myself when I'm feeling -over-done. It's an excellent thing, I assure you." - -"No," said Mrs. Blow; "I'll take nothing--nothing from you. I----" - -"Well, just allow me to say one word," said Lord Manton, "before you -begin again." - -"If you've any excuse to make for your behaviour," said Miss Blow, -"make it. I shall listen to you." - -"I haven't," said Lord Manton. "Not a shred. Nor has Mr. Goddard. Don't -interrupt me, Goddard. You haven't any real excuse, and you know it. -But you mustn't be too hard upon us, Miss Blow. Try to put yourself in -our position, in Mr. Goddard's position, for I really haven't anything -to do with the business one way or other. It wasn't his fault about -those Members of Parliament. He's just as sorry about it as anybody -else. If he'd known that they intended to run away from their wives -he'd have stopped them; but how could he know?" - -"Oh!" said Miss Blow. "That is the latest theory, is it? Their husbands -ran away from them? Do you expect to get any one to believe that? I -suppose the husband of that poor woman down in the village ran away -from her. I suppose you mean to try and prove that she ill-treated -him, that she, a half-starved, delicate woman, bullied a great hulking -blacksmith. I suppose you'll say that Dr. O'Grady ran away from me. -Last time I was here you said he ran away from his creditors. When I -proved that to be a lie, you have the assurance to say that he ran away -from me." - -"I hadn't mentioned you or Dr. O'Grady," said Lord Manton. "But come -now, Miss Blow, be reasonable. If he has run away from you, he wouldn't -be the only man that has. You can't deny that Mr. Goddard ran away -from you. He did it twice. You said so yourself. In fact, you more than -hinted that he was in the act of a third flight when you caught him. -There's nothing inherently absurd in supposing that one man would do -what another man has done several times. I needn't say I wouldn't do -it myself. But that's another matter. It's far better for you to look -facts straight in the face, however unpleasant they are." - -Whether Miss Blow looked at the facts or not, the facts as Lord Manton -represented them, she certainly looked at Mr. Goddard. It seemed for -a moment as if she was about to re-open the question of his flight -to Ballymoy and his subsequent flight back again to Clonmore. He -felt greatly annoyed with Lord Manton for calling fresh attention to -these performances. There ought, he was convinced, to be some limit -to the extent to which a man may give away his friends. But Miss Blow -recognized that these hurried flittings of his and the causes of them -were side issues. She got back, with an evident effort, to the main -point immediately under discussion. - -"And why should you suppose that the husbands of the ladies you have -shut up in your drawing-room have run away from them?" - -It was of Lord Manton that she asked the question; but Mr. Goddard -answered her. He saw his opportunity and seized it. Having been -sacrificed more than once as a burnt-offering to Miss Blow's wrath, he -was perfectly ready, now he got the chance, to show up Lord Manton, as -a man who also deserved strong denunciation. - -"Lord Manton says," said Mr. Goddard, "that their husbands couldn't -bear to live with them any more, because they were ordinary women -and----" - -"As well as I recollect," said Lord Manton, "it was you who used the -word 'ordinary.' I hadn't seen the ladies at the time. For that matter, -I haven't seen them yet." - -"And," said Mr. Goddard, speaking slowly and with emphasis, "because -they wear red dressing-gowns and wash their teeth." - -He glanced at Lord Manton with an expression of triumph on his face. -Miss Blow stared first at one of the men before her and then at the -other. She was amazed. In spite of the white heat of her virtuous -indignation she was reduced for the moment to a silence of sheer -astonishment. The nature of the charge brought against the wives of the -Members of Parliament took her aback. It was totally unexpected. - -"Those," said Mr. Goddard, striking home after his victory, "are the -exact expressions Lord Manton used." - -"Of course," said Lord Manton, in an explanatory and half-apologetic -tone, "I didn't mean to suggest that those were Patsy Devlin's reasons -for absconding. I don't suppose that his wife has a dressing-gown of -any colour, and as for her teeth----" - -Miss Blow began to recover a little from her first shock. - -"Do you mean to say," she said, "that you consider a man is justified -in deserting his wife because she wears a red dressing-gown and washes -her teeth?" - -"Certainly," said Lord Manton. "If you consider the matter fairly -and impartially, without bias in favour of either sex, you will see -that there can't be two opinions about it. The mere act of wearing -a dressing-gown, red or blue, is of course nothing in itself. But -considered as an expression of a certain spirit, of what I may perhaps -call the spirit of persistent, puritanical domesticity; regarded as an -evidence of an oppressive kind of civilized respectability, taken in -conjunction with a whole series of trifling, or apparently trifling, -mental and physical habits,--ordering dinner, for instance, engaging -servants, doing needlework, paying weekly bills, keeping a visiting -list, taking a holiday every year at the seaside--you will, I am sure, -understand the sort of things I mean--taken in conjunction with these -and regarded as an expression of the kind of spirit which takes a -delight in doing these things and doing them continuously year after -year--considered in this way, the wearing of a red dressing-gown does -justify a man, a certain sort of man, in deserting his wife. You catch -my meaning, I am sure, Miss Blow." - -Once more Miss Blow was silent from sheer astonishment. Then, after a -pause, she spoke, and Mr. Goddard, like the governor Felix before the -Apostle Paul, trembled. Lord Manton, although it was to him that her -remark was specially addressed, bore himself more bravely. - -"You think it very fine," she said, "to bully and badger a helpless -girl, and to allow innocent men to be murdered under your very eyes. -But you'll have to answer for it. You'll be held responsible, both of -you. It's--it's intolerable." - -"My dear Miss Blow," said Lord Manton. - -"Don't dare to say 'my dear' to me." - -"I didn't mean it," said Lord Manton, quite truthfully. "Nothing was -further from my mind than any idea of expressing affection, although -of course I have a great regard and esteem for you. But do try to be -reasonable. We're quite ready, both of us--I'm sure I may speak for Mr. -Goddard as well as myself--to do anything in our power. But what can we -do? What do you suggest our doing? What do you want us to do?" - -"Arrest the murderers," said Miss Blow. - -"Certainly," said Lord Manton. "Goddard, go at once and arrest the -murderers. You're a policeman. It's your business to arrest murderers. -Don't waste time. Do it." - -"Who am I to arrest?" said Mr. Goddard. "I don't know any murderers. I -don't so much as know the name of a single murderer. If I did, I'd be -off after him at once." - -"Who is he to arrest, Miss Blow?" said Lord Manton. "You'll have to -give him the name and address of your murderer. I suppose you know who -he is and where he lives." - -"Yes, I do," said Miss Blow. "I didn't at first, but now I do." - -Wilkins entered the room as she spoke. "I beg your pardon, my lord," he -said. - -"Yes, Wilkins, what is it? Be as quick as you can, Wilkins. We are at a -most interesting point of our conversation. Miss Blow is just going to -reveal to us the name of a murderer, and then Mr. Goddard is going out -to arrest him." - -"I beg pardon, my lord, but the ladies in the big drawing-room have -been ringing the bell." - -"Much, Wilkins? I mean to say, have they been ringing it an excessive -number of times, or very hard? There is no harm in their ringing -moderately. I should wish them to ring when they want anything." - -"They've been ringing a good deal, my lord." - -"Are they still ringing?" - -"Yes, my lord. That's the reason I mentioned it. I thought there might -be something you would wish me to say to them." - -"Quite right," said Lord Manton. "I'm very glad you told me. My idea -would be for you to offer them a cup of tea or something of that -sort to keep them quiet. Or what would you say, Miss Blow, if we had -them down here? They might take to smashing up the furniture and the -ornaments if I keep them there much longer. There's some china in the -room that I'd be sorry to lose. Not very valuable, you know, but still -things that it would be difficult to replace. Don't tell us the name -of your murderer for a minute or two. Mr. Goddard and I will restrain -our impatience. I'd like the other ladies to be here when you make the -revelation. I'm sure they'd enjoy hearing all about it. Wilkins, will -you kindly go to the big drawing-room and ask the three ladies to be -good enough to come down here?" - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII - - -After a delay of about five minutes Wilkins opened the door of the -library again. - -"Miss Farquharson, Mrs. Sanders, and Mrs. Dick," he announced, giving -the names in the order in which he had received them from Miss -Farquharson, who had taken command of the party. - -She entered the room first. Her face was pale with anxiety. Her manner -and expression were those of a woman who was very much in earnest. Her -hat, a severe garment of grey felt adorned with a single bow of black -ribbon, was pushed to one side of her head. Her hair, hurriedly pinned -into place early in the morning, was untidy. She looked as if she had -been working so hard as to have had scant leisure for attention to the -details of her toilet. Mrs. Dick followed her. She was tremulous and -showed signs of having wept frequently and bitterly during the earlier -part of the day. Mrs. Sanders, a sallow, lean woman of about five and -thirty, seemed frightened and bewildered. - -"I hope," said Miss Farquharson, "that we are not intruding on you. Our -business is really very important. That must be our excuse." - -"Not in the least," said Lord Manton. "We are delighted to see you. -As a matter of fact, you couldn't have come at a more appropriate -moment. Miss Blow is just--but won't you sit down? You'll be much more -comfortable sitting down." - -He pulled a chair forward towards Mrs. Dick, who collapsed into it -and took out her pocket-handkerchief. Mrs. Sanders perched herself -uncomfortably on a corner of the sofa. Miss Farquharson sat upright in -the writing-chair which stood in front of Lord Manton's desk. - -"Miss Blow," said Lord Manton, "is just going to tell us the name of -the man who has murdered your husbands." - -Mrs. Dick gave a queer cry, half wail, half whoop, a loud cry, ending -in a gasp. - -"Murdered;" she cried. "Murdered! Oh, no, no, not murdered!" - -"Certainly not murdered," said Lord Manton. "That's only what Miss Blow -says. I don't believe they're murdered. Neither does Mr. Goddard, and -if anybody knows the ins and outs of this unfortunate business it's Mr. -Goddard. He's a policeman, the chief policeman of this district. It -stands to reason that he must know. Don't be the least uneasy, ladies. -There's no necessity for tears. Nobody is murdered." - -Mrs. Dick allowed herself to be a little comforted by this strong -assurance. She stopped making any very loud noise and let her crying -subside into a subdued and inoffensive whimper. On the other hand, Miss -Blow was evidently enraged by Lord Manton's scepticism. Her voice, when -she spoke, sounded defiant and extremely angry. - -"I denounce the inhabitants of the house called Rosivera," she said, -"especially the man Red. I denounce them as the murderers of Dr. -O'Grady, Patrick Devlin, and of the husbands of these ladies." - -"Go," said Lord Manton to Mr. Goddard, "and arrest the man Red at -once." - -He liked the phrase "the man Red." It sounded as if it came out of a -newspaper report of a criminal trial. It was evident that Miss Blow had -a feeling for appropriate expression. - -"Arrest the man Red," repeated Lord Manton, seeing that Mr. Goddard had -not moved. - -He was perfectly willing that Mr. Red should be arrested, tried, -imprisoned, hanged; or arrested, imprisoned, and hanged without a -trial, on a charge of murder or any other charge. The really important -thing was not to obtain justice for Mr. Red or anybody else, but to get -Miss Blow out of his house. - -"Do go and arrest the man Red, Goddard," he said again. - -"I can't," said Mr. Goddard. "How can I possibly go and arrest a man -without a single scrap of evidence against him?" - -"You hear what he says," said Lord Manton to Miss Blow. "He won't -act without evidence. Why don't you produce your evidence? You have -evidence, of course." - -"You shall hear the evidence," said Miss Blow. "I have evidence that -four, if not five abominable murders have been committed by this man -and his confederates." - -"There now, Goddard," said Lord Manton, "what more can you want? Good -gracious, what's that?" - -It was Mrs. Dick. Miss Blow's last words had been too much for her. -She was uttering a series of wild shrieks. Mrs. Sanders was sobbing -convulsively on the sofa. - -"We'll have to go into another room," said Lord Manton, "to hear the -evidence." - -"No," said Miss Farquharson. "Now we are here we'll stay here. I am -anxious to hear what this lady has to say." - -"But," said Lord Manton, "we can't possibly hear anything while----" - -Miss Farquharson approached Mrs. Dick, grasped her two hands, and spoke -sternly to her. She repeated the treatment with her niece. It was -most efficacious. Both the younger ladies seemed to be afraid of Miss -Farquharson. They had a cowed, terrified look when she left them; but -they had stopped making a noise. - -"Thank you," said Lord Manton. "Now, Miss Blow." - -"I begin," said Miss Blow, "with the two latest cases. These gentlemen, -Members of Parliament, as I understand, set out on their bicycles, to -ride to Pool-a-donagh. They did not arrive there. They were seen in -safety three miles out of Clonmore by a man who was carting turf." - -"How do you know that?" said Mr. Goddard. - -"The hotel-keeper told me," said Miss Blow. - -"Oh, Jimmy O'Loughlin! I see. I wouldn't take every word he says for -gospel if I were you, Miss Blow." - -"I don't see," said Miss Blow, "that there's much difference between -him and the rest of you. I haven't heard six consecutive words of truth -since I came to Clonmore." - -"There you are now, Goddard," said Lord Manton. "That's what you get by -interrupting. Don't mind him, Miss Blow. Please go on. What you say is -most interesting." - -"There is just one house between the spot at which they were seen and -Pool-a-donagh," said Miss Blow. "The hotel-keeper told me that too." - -"I think that's true," said Miss Farquharson. "I noticed that there -were very few houses while we drove along yesterday." - -"Therefore," said Miss Blow, "they were murdered in that house." - -Mr. Goddard started violently. The sequence of Miss Blow's reasoning -had the effect of a strong electric shock on him. He would have -protested if Mrs. Dick had not begun to wail again. When she was -pacified by Miss Farquharson's scowls, Lord Manton began to speak. - -"Perhaps----" he said. - -"I know what you're going to say," said Miss Blow. "You are going to -suggest that they are not murdered, but that they have deserted their -wives." She glanced at Miss Farquharson as she spoke. - -"I wish you wouldn't talk of us as if we were all their wives," said -Miss Farquharson. "I am not a married woman. I am Mr. Sanders' aunt. -That is his wife." - -She pointed to the pale Mrs. Sanders, leaving Miss Blow to infer that -the lady who shrieked was the wife of the other Member of Parliament. - -"That they have deserted these ladies," said Miss Blow, accepting the -correction, "because they wear red dressing-gowns, and----" - -"But I don't," wailed Mrs. Dick; "I've never had a red dressing-gown. -Richard always liked me in blue. He couldn't bear red. He used to -say---- Oh, poor Richard!" - -"There!" said Lord Manton, with an air of triumph; "what did I tell -you, Miss Blow? You see for yourself now that the man had the strongest -possible objection to a red dressing-gown." - -"And," said Miss Blow firmly, ignoring the interruptions, "because they -washed their teeth." - -"I never in my life," said Miss Farquharson, "heard such a pack -of nonsense. Are you all mad, or am I? What on earth have red -dressing-gowns or that unfortunate little Mrs. Dick's teeth got to do -with the disappearance of my nephew and Mr. Dick?" - -"Shall I ring for some tea?" said Lord Manton. "I think we'd all be the -better for a cup of tea. Then we could go on. We'd be much better able -to understand each other afterwards." - -"I pass on to the next case," said Miss Blow calmly; "that of Patrick -Devlin. He is, I am informed----" - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin again," said Mr. Goddard. - -"By others as well as the hotel-keeper," said Miss Blow, showing that -she placed no implicit trust in Jimmy O'Loughlin's statements. "I am -informed that he is a blacksmith. He was, it appears, collecting money -for some local sports." - -"Grand Annual Regatta and Horse Races," said Lord Manton. "I'm a -member of the committee, and so I know. Please excuse me interrupting -you, Miss Blow, but in a case like this it's as well to be perfectly -accurate." - -"He informed the hotel-keeper in Clonmore----" said Miss Blow. - -"I propose," said Mr. Goddard, "that we send down for Jimmy O'Loughlin, -and let him give his evidence himself." - -"That he intended to call on Lord Manton for a subscription and then go -on to Rosivera to see what he could get from the man Red. Did he call -here?" - -"Certainly," said Lord Manton. "I gave him a sovereign." - -"After that," said Miss Blow, "he was seen no more. It seems to me -perfectly obvious that he went on to Rosivera and was there murdered." - -Poor Mrs. Dick wailed again, and was again suppressed, this time very -rapidly, by Miss Farquharson. - -"There remains," said Miss Blow, "the case of Dr. O'Grady; but before I -go into that I have to inform you that there is another man missing." - -"My goodness!" said Lord Manton. "The thing is becoming a perfect -epidemic. Who is it now?" - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin, I hope and trust," said Mr. Goddard. "He's been -dragged into this business by everybody that has said anything. It's -always Jimmy O'Loughlin told me this or Jimmy O'Loughlin told me that. -If he's gone off himself now it serves him jolly well right." - -"It's not Mr. O'Loughlin," said Miss Blow, "but the man Red's own -servant, an Englishman. This man used to drive the motor car into -Clonmore to do the marketing for the party at Rosivera." - -"At Jimmy O'Loughlin's shop, of course," said Mr. Goddard. - -"He did so for the last time the day before Dr. O'Grady's -disappearance. The inference is perfectly plain. The man was mortally -wounded. Dr. O'Grady was decoyed to Rosivera because his services as -a medical man were required. Then he too, to secure his silence, was -foully murdered." - -Mr. Goddard gasped. For the second time Miss Blow's logic took away -his breath. He tried to speak, but failed. Three times he got as far as -uttering the word "but" and then stuck fast. Lord Manton, who remained -comparatively calm, offered a mild criticism. - -"There is just one point," he said, "in the course of your extremely -able and lucid statement, on which I should like to have a word of -explanation. I have no doubt that you have thought the matter out -carefully, and will be able to meet my difficulty at once. You say--and -of course I don't contradict you--that Mr. Red, I mean the man Red, of -course, first tried to murder his own servant and then sent for Dr. -O'Grady to cure him. Now, why should a man get a doctor for the person -he's trying to kill? Wouldn't it have been simpler--I mean to say, do -murderers generally summon medical assistance for their victims?" - -"I am not concerned with his reasons for acting as he did," said Miss -Blow. "I am dealing simply with what has occurred, with plain facts. -Now, perhaps, you will do your duty, Mr. Goddard, and arrest the -murderers." - -"But," said Mr. Goddard, "you haven't given us any evidence at all. -You've spun out a lot of wild hypotheses, supported by information -given you by Jimmy O'Loughlin, who is the biggest liar in Connacht. -It's perfectly absurd to suppose----" - -"I join with this lady," said Miss Farquharson, "with this lady whose -name, as I understand, is Miss Blow, in demanding the arrest of the -suspected persons." - -"Oh, no, no," wailed Mrs. Dick. "Don't arrest them. Let us forgive -them; but bring Richard back to me. It's cruel, cruel. I can't -live--oh, I can't----" - -Her voice died away to a whisper. Miss Farquharson was gazing at her -with a very stern expression. - -"I can't," said Mr. Goddard, "and won't allow myself to be hustled into -a perfectly illegal act. The thing's----" - -"You'll have to do it sooner or later," said Lord Manton. "Why not do -it at once? After all, what does it matter about the man Red? It won't -do him any harm to be arrested. If he doesn't deserve it for murdering -Dr. O'Grady and the rest of them, he's sure to deserve it for something -else that we know nothing about." - -"I'm not thinking about Mr. Red's feelings in the matter. I don't care -if he's hanged, drawn, and quartered, so long as Miss Blow does it -herself. But I'm not going to be dragged into a----" - -"Look here," said Lord Manton in a whisper, "you must do it, Goddard. -If you don't, I shall never get these ladies out of the house." - -"Very well," said Mr. Goddard, "I'll do it; but I'll do it on your -authority. Make out a warrant in proper form and sign it. Then I'll go -and arrest Red." - -"Certainly," said Lord Manton. "I haven't got the--ah--the necessary -papers here, you know. I don't keep them in the house. Go down to the -Clerk of Petty Sessions, Miss Blow. You'll find him in his office. Get -him to fill the form in the proper way. He'll understand. Then send -it up to me by one of the police. I'll sign it and hand it on to Mr. -Goddard. I think that will be the most satisfactory arrangement we can -make. Don't you?" - -He appealed to Miss Farquharson, carefully avoiding Miss Blow's eye. - -"Certainly," said Miss Farquharson. "Everything ought to be done in a -strictly legal manner." - -"Then I suppose," said Lord Manton, "that our interview is at an end. -Shall I order the carriage, Miss Blow, to take you down to Clonmore? It -will save time." - -"It would be very kind of you to do so," said Miss Farquharson. "I am -quite able and willing to walk, but my niece and Mrs. Dick are upset -and greatly tired." - -"I shall stay here," said Miss Blow; "I shall not let Lord Manton out -of my sight till the warrant is signed." - -Miss Farquharson started. This expression of want of faith in the -good will of a peer shocked her. She expostulated with Miss Blow, but -without effect. - -"I shall then go with Mr. Goddard," said Miss Blow, "and see that he -executes the warrant." - -"Really," said Miss Farquharson, "I don't understand--I altogether -refuse to associate myself with this discourteous language." - -"I know these gentlemen," said Miss Blow, "and you don't. I've had some -experience of the way they keep their promises." - -"I dissociate myself entirely----" said Miss Farquharson. - -"I appreciate Miss Blow's feeling," said Lord Manton. "I quite -understand it. I even sympathize with it. There has been a good deal -in Mr. Goddard's conduct during the last few days which justifies her -suspicions. I----" - -"And in your own conduct," said Miss Blow. - -"And in my own conduct, of course," said Lord Manton. "Didn't I say -that? I meant to. We have acted for the best. You, at least, will -believe that, Miss Farquharson. If Miss Blow has not fully realized our -difficulties, that is not her fault. I don't in the least blame her for -the attitude she has taken up. Nor does Mr. Goddard." - -Mr. Goddard looked as if he did blame her, but he said nothing. The -swift glances of appeal which Lord Manton shot at him were sufficient -to keep him silent. - -"What I propose now," said Lord Manton, "is that Mr. Goddard and I -should accompany you to the village, so that Miss Blow shall have the -opportunity of seeing with her own eyes that her wish with regard to -the man Red is carried out." - -"That will be giving you far too much trouble," said Miss Farquharson. - -"Not at all," said Lord Manton. "I'm delighted to do it. Mr. Goddard, -the bell is just beside you; will you be so good as to ring it? I shall -order the waggonette to take us down. And I think you must allow me -to offer you some tea. You can drink it while the horses are being -harnessed, and so waste no time." - -"It's very kind of you," said Miss Farquharson, "most kind; we shall be -very glad----" - -"I shall neither eat nor drink in this house," said Miss Blow. - -"I quite understand your feeling," said Lord Manton. "There was a -prophet once who said the same thing. As well as I recollect, a lion -ate him afterwards; but of course that won't happen in your case, Miss -Blow. There aren't any lions in Connacht." - -"_I_," said Miss Farquharson, with strong emphasis on the pronoun, -"shall be very pleased to accept Lord Manton's hospitality in the -spirit in which it is offered." - -"Thank you," said Lord Manton. "And I'm sure Miss Blow won't have the -least objection to your doing so. She holds her own opinions, as we all -do; but from what I know of her I'm convinced that she doesn't want to -force them upon other people." - -"It is understood," said Miss Blow, "that I accompany Mr. Goddard when -he goes to arrest the murderers." - -"He may not go himself," said Lord Manton. "You will understand, Miss -Blow, that it is not usual for a man in Mr. Goddard's position, for an -officer, to make arrests in person. It is probable that he will send -Sergeant Farrelly and perhaps one of the constables." - -"I shall accompany the sergeant, then," said Miss Blow. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX - - -Lord Manton's waggonette was a roomy vehicle, used chiefly for picnic -parties in the summer, when Lady Flavia and her children were at -Clonmore Castle. The four ladies, Lord Manton, and Mr. Goddard packed -themselves into it quite comfortably. Lord Manton gave his order to the -coachman. - -"Down to the village, Thomas, and stop at the hotel." - -Miss Blow was alert and suspicious. "Why the hotel?" she asked. - -"I'll go to the police barrack if you like," said Lord Manton. "I only -suggested the hotel because it is a convenient central sort of place -with a room in it large enough to hold the whole party." - -"The hotel is decidedly the most suitable place," said Miss Farquharson. - -She was beginning to dislike Miss Blow, whose manner struck her as -aggressive to a degree quite unsuitable in a young woman. On the other -hand, she highly approved of Lord Manton, who was most courteous and -had given her tea, which she wanted badly. - -"Besides," said Mr. Goddard, "we shall be sure of seeing Jimmy -O'Loughlin at the hotel." - -"I don't see why Mr. O'Loughlin should be mixed up in our business," -said Miss Blow. - -"Nor do I," said Mr. Goddard. "I've always protested against the way -he's dragged in. But everybody does it. Sergeant Farrelly can't say a -simple sentence without quoting Jimmy as his authority; and you did the -same thing yourself repeatedly when you were elaborating your theory of -murder." - -"Besides," said Lord Manton, "Jimmy O'Loughlin is a magistrate. He's -really far more of a magistrate than I am." - -"If he's a magistrate," said Miss Farquharson, "we ought to consult -him." - -"He's a liar," said Miss Blow definitely. - -"Really!" said Miss Farquharson. - -Then she turned her back on Miss Blow, who sat next her, and looked -with great interest at the horses. Mr. Goddard leaned across the -waggonette and whispered to Lord Manton. - -"What do you mean to do when we get to the hotel?" - -"Hush!" said Lord Manton. - -Miss Blow's eyes were fixed on him, and he felt that confidences were -dangerous. - -Jimmy O'Loughlin greeted the party at the door of his hotel. He was -surprised to see them. He was still more surprised when Lord Manton -demanded the use of a private sitting-room. - -"There's the commercial room," he said, "and there's the drawing-room. -You can have the two of them if I you like, for there isn't a soul -stopping in the house this minute barring the doctor's young lady. -It'll be better, maybe, for you to take the commercial room by reason -of there being a key to the door, so as you'll be able to lock it if -you heard Bridgy coming along the passage." - -"What are you going to do now?" said Mr. Goddard, catching Lord Manton -by the arm, as the ladies entered the commercial room. - -"I'm going to persuade Jimmy O'Loughlin to sign the warrant, if I -possibly can," said Lord Manton. - -"He'll not do it. Jimmy O'Loughlin's not a born fool." - -"Then I'm afraid," said Lord Manton, "that you'll have to arrest the -man Red without a warrant." - -"I won't," said Mr. Goddard. - -"Send the sergeant, then." - -"I won't." - -"Couldn't you send the sergeant and a constable and tell them to -inquire civilly of Mr. Red whether he'd seen anything of the Members -of Parliament? It's quite a natural thing to ask. They passed his gate -yesterday, and he might have seen them. We could give the sergeant some -sort of a blue paper in the presence of Miss Blow and pretend that he -was going to make the arrest." - -"That's no good," said Mr. Goddard. "She said she'd go and see the -arrest made herself, and she'll do it." - -"Send the men on bicycles," said Lord Manton, "then she won't be able -to keep up with them." - -"The objection to that is that she has a bicycle herself. I don't know -how she got it, but she rode over on it from Ballymoy this morning. -Moriarty might get ahead of her, but she'd knock spots out of the -sergeant in a race; he's fat." - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin," said Lord Manton, "come here." - -Jimmy was leaning in a careless attitude against the doorpost of his -hotel. He appeared to be entirely uninterested in what was going on, -and was surprised when Lord Manton called him. - -"Jimmy O'Loughlin," said Lord Manton, "Mr. Goddard is sending a couple -of police over to Rosivera to see if there's any news there of the -gentlemen that have got lost, and he doesn't want Miss Blow to go with -them. Can you think of any way of stopping her?" - -"Her mind's made up to go," said Mr. Goddard. - -Jimmy meditated on the problem. - -"If so be," he said at last, "that I could get the boots off of her, -and had them hid in the haggard where she wouldn't find them easy, she -couldn't go." - -"She could not," said Mr. Goddard. "But how do you propose to get them -off her?" - -"I was thinking," said Jimmy, "that if his lordship here would draw -down the subject of boots, and was to say that all boots was the better -of being cleaned, and then if I was to say that Bridgy was doing -nothing particular and would be glad to give a rub to any lady's boots -that liked, that maybe she'd take them off herself." - -"If that's the best you can do in the way of a suggestion," said Mr. -Goddard, "you might as well have kept it to yourself. Is it likely -she'd take off her boots at this hour of the day to please you?" - -"It wouldn't be to please me," said Jimmy; "it would be his lordship -that would ask her at the latter end." - -"I'm afraid," said Lord Manton, "she wouldn't do it for me. She doesn't -like me. You'd think she would, but as a matter of fact she doesn't." - -"How would it be," said Jimmy, "if I was to have a telegram for her? -The young lady that minds the post-office is a niece of my own. It -might be in it that it was from the doctor himself and came from New -York. That would turn her mind away from the police." - -"She wouldn't believe it," said Mr. Goddard. "Not if you were to go in -and swear to it on a Bible. She says you're an awful liar." - -"Begad, then, I don't know what it would be best to do." - -Sergeant Farrelly, Constable Cole, and Constable Moriarty arrived at -the door. They had been summoned by Lord Manton's coachman after he had -deposited the party at the hotel. The situation was explained to them -by Mr. Goddard. Sergeant Farrelly expressed perfect readiness to go to -Rosivera and make any inquiries that were considered necessary. When -asked whether he could escape without Miss Blow, he looked blank. As a -matter of fact, Miss Blow had opened the door of the commercial room -and was watching the party in the hall with suspicious eyes. - -"Unless," said Constable Cole, "we could hit on some kind of a -stratagem." - -"You and your stratagems," said the sergeant; "we've heard enough of -them." - -"If you have a stratagem in your mind," said Mr. Goddard, "trot it out. -But there's no use your suggesting taking her boots, or sending her a -bogus telegram. We've discussed those two plans already." - -"Don't you give heed to him," said the sergeant. "Stratagems is never -out of his mouth, and there's no sense at all in what he says." - -"How would it be," said Constable Cole, "if the sergeant and myself was -to go off to Rosivera on our bikes?" - -"That's been suggested before," said Mr. Goddard, "and it's no good. -She has a bicycle herself, and she'd go with you." - -"Sure he knows she has a bicycle," said Jimmy O'Loughlin. "Didn't he -see her riding in on it this morning, the time you were off up at the -Castle? And didn't he remark on its being mighty like the machine that -the sergeant's wife beyond in Ballymoy is after buying?" - -"I did," said Constable Cole. - -"If you knew all that," said Mr. Goddard, "what on earth was the good -of your suggesting that you and the sergeant should go on bicycles? -Don't you know she'd be after you?" - -"Stratagems!" said Sergeant Farrelly scornfully. "Do you call them -stratagems?" - -"How would it be," said Constable Cole, "if you was to go in to her -and tell her that it was Constable Moriarty that was to go with the -sergeant to Rosivera?" - -"I dislike telling gratuitous and entirely useless lies," said Mr. -Goddard. "She simply wouldn't believe me." - -"She'd believe Moriarty," said Cole. "She has a great wish for Moriarty -since the day he took her for a drive on Jimmy O'Loughlin's car. If -Moriarty was to go in as soon as ever you were done telling her, and -was to say he'd be glad if she'd go along with him----" - -"I couldn't say the like to a young lady," said Moriarty. "I'd be -ashamed." - -"Be quiet, Moriarty," said Mr. Goddard. "And let's hear the rest of the -stratagem." - -"And if he was to say at the same time----" said Cole. - -"If who was to say?" asked Lord Manton. "I'm getting mixed." - -"Constable Moriarty," said Cole; "if he was to say that it would be a -pleasure to him to go round to the yard and get her bicycle for her the -way she'd be ready to go with him and the sergeant----" - -"I see," said Lord Manton. - -"She'd go with him to the yard," said Mr. Goddard. "Don't forget that." - -"She would," said Cole, "and on the way there she'd see Moriarty's -bicycle and another, as it might be the sergeant's." - -"But of course it wouldn't be the sergeant's," said Lord Manton. - -"It would not. The sergeant and myself might be off by that time a good -bit along the road to Rosivera. But the bicycle she'd see would have a -look about it as if it might be the sergeant's. It could have his cape -strapped on it and maybe his name somewhere about so as she'd notice -it." - -"It's just possible," said Mr. Goddard, "that if she has the sort of -confidence you say she has in Moriarty she'll be taken in for five -minutes; but at the end of that time she'll be off after you." - -"I wouldn't wonder," said Cole, "but the back tyre of her own bicycle -might be flat." - -He looked at Jimmy O'Loughlin as he spoke. His face was entirely devoid -of any expression, but Jimmy was a man of quick wit. - -"Bridgy?" he said. - -"Bridgy'd do," he said. - -"Do what?" said Lord Manton. "I'm getting mixed again." - -"With the blade of a knife?" said Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"That, or a three-pronged fork," said Cole, "unbeknown to any but -herself." - -"It could be done," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, "and Bridgy's the girl for -the job." - -"Constable Moriarty," said Cole, "would offer to mend it for her, -while they'd be waiting for the sergeant, who'd be down at the barrack -getting the handcuffs." - -"Oiling them," said Lord Manton. - -"Oiling or such," said Cole. - -"Where's the use of oiling handcuffs?" said the sergeant. - -"Shut up, sergeant," said Mr. Goddard. "That's part of the stratagem." - -"Constable Moriarty," said Cole, "would be talking to her pleasant and -agreeable the way he'd distract her mind and him mending the tyre. It's -himself knows how to talk to a young lady." - -"I do not," said Moriarty. "She'd be laughing at me." - -"She'll not laugh," said Mr. Goddard. "That's one thing you may feel -quite sure about. Whatever else she does, she'll not laugh." - -"I'm not fit to talk to her," said Moriarty. - -"You're not fit to mend a tyre either," said Cole; "mind that now. When -you have the hole there is in it with a patch on it, and you're putting -back the cover on the wheel you'd nip the inner tube so as there be a -bit took out of it." - -"Do you take me for a fool?" said Moriarty. "Haven't I mended----" - -"I'll take you for a fool," said Mr. Goddard, "if you don't do exactly -what you're told." - -"After that," said Cole, "you'll have to mend the tyre again; and I'd -say, if you're any kind of good at all, that by the time you've done -with it it'll be beyond the help of man in the way of holding the air." - -"It's a great stratagem," said Lord Manton; "I never heard a better." - -"It's what I was reading in a book one time," said Cole. "You know the -book, sergeant----" - -"I've heard you speaking about it," said the sergeant, "many a time." - -"Well," said Cole, "that stratagem was in it. It was a young fellow -that was off with a girl that he was wishing to marry and her father -was after them. It was bicycles they had. And the young fellow gave -half a crown to the man in the hotel to do the like to the old chap's -bicycle the way he'd get off with the girl." - -"Whether the idea is absolutely original or not," said Lord Manton, -"you deserve the greatest credit for applying it to this particular -case." - -"It was in my mind," said Cole, "and I just said to myself that maybe, -if I didn't forget it, it might come in handy some day." - -"At the latter end," said Moriarty, "she'll be asking where the -sergeant is." - -"At the latter end," said Mr. Goddard, "when the bicycle's quite past -mending, you can tell her that he was obliged to start to Rosivera -without her and take Cole along with him." - -"She'll have the face ate off me when I do," said Moriarty. - -"If she does," said Mr. Goddard, "it won't make much matter to you or -any one else. The new one you'll get can't be worse to look at than the -one you have." - -"I don't know," said Sergeant Farrelly, "how will the sergeant's wife -at Ballymoy like having them tricks played with her bicycle. She's a -cousin of my own." - -He had never had a high opinion of Cole's stratagems, and it pained him -to have to listen to the praise bestowed on this one. - -"She can get a new tyre," said Mr. Goddard; "and serve her jolly well -right for lending her bicycle to Miss Blow. She ought to have had more -sense." - -A few minutes later Lord Manton and Mr. Goddard entered the commercial -room of the hotel. They had with them a warrant for the arrest of -Theodore Guy Red of Rosivera on a charge of wilful murder. They spread -this out on the table and invited Miss Blow to inspect it. She did so, -scanning every line carefully. - -"It's not signed," she said. - -"No," said Lord Manton. "We thought you'd prefer to have it signed in -your presence. Kindly ring the bell, Mr. Goddard." - -"What for?" said Miss Blow. - -"I want a pen and ink, for one thing," said Lord Manton. "And I want -Jimmy O'Loughlin. He's going to sign it too." - -Miss Blow sniffed, but she made no objection to the second signature. - -"Now," said Lord Manton, when he and Jimmy O'Loughlin had signed their -names, "call in the sergeant and the constable." - -Mr. Goddard opened the door and summoned the police. They marched into -the room and stood upright, rigid and impressive, near the door. They -made a great impression on Miss Farquharson. Sergeant Farrelly, in -particular, struck her as a kind of embodiment of the spirit of law -and order. Mr. Goddard held the warrant in his hand and addressed the -men. - -"Sergeant Farrelly," he said, "will take this warrant, proceed at once -to Rosivera, and effect the arrest of Theodore Guy Red, the person -named in it." - -He looked round as he finished his sentence, and noticed with pleasure -that Miss Blow was listening intently to what he said. - -"Constable Moriarty," he went on, "will accompany the sergeant, and -will be prepared to act vigorously in the event of the use of force -being necessary to effect the capture of the prisoner." - -He looked round again at Miss Blow. Her face was beginning to assume -quite an amiable expression. - -"With a view to saving time," said Mr. Goddard, "the police will -proceed to Rosivera on bicycles, starting as soon as possible. Sergeant -Farrelly, is your bicycle ready?" - -"It is, sir," said the sergeant. "It's at the door of the hotel this -minute, and my cape is strapped on to the handle bars." - -"Is Constable Moriarty's bicycle ready?" asked Mr. Goddard. - -"It is, sir," said the sergeant. - -"The police," said Mr. Goddard, "will be accompanied on this expedition -by Miss Blow. Every effort, consistent with the effecting of the -arrest, will be made by the police to protect Miss Blow in the event of -riot." - -"It will, sir." - -"By the way, Miss Blow," said Mr. Goddard, "have you got a bicycle?" - -"Yes," said Miss Blow. "I borrowed one this morning in Ballymoy. It's -in the hotel yard now." - -"It's in the stable," said Jimmy O'Loughlin. "I'm after telling Bridgy -to give it a bit of a rub over with a soft cloth the way it'll be -decent like, when the young lady wants it." - -"Sergeant Farrelly," said Mr. Goddard, "will now proceed to the barrack -and provide himself with handcuffs." - -"Carefully oiled," said Lord Manton. - -"He will be accompanied by Constable Cole, who will remain on guard -at the barrack. Having obtained the handcuffs, Sergeant Farrelly will -return to the hotel and join the rest of the party. Constable Moriarty -will proceed to the back yard, take Miss Blow's bicycle and wheel it -round to the front door, so that everything will be in readiness for an -immediate start when Sergeant Farrelly returns with the handcuffs." - -"I can get my bicycle for myself," said Miss Blow. - -"It would be too much trouble for you, miss," said Jimmy O'Loughlin. -"But of course, if the young lady's doubtful about the way Moriarty -might handle it, she's right to go. It's a good bicycle," he added, -"though I'd say that maybe the back tyre of it was a bit worn." - -Miss Blow, accompanied by Moriarty, who looked extremely uncomfortable, -left the room. Sergeant Farrelly and Constable Cole marched rapidly -down the street towards the barrack. - -"I think, ladies," said Lord Manton, "that Mr. Goddard and I will leave -you for the present. We shall see you this evening again, so we need -not say good-bye." - -"That," said Lord Manton to Mr. Goddard as they walked together across -the deer park, "was a good stratagem. I don't altogether envy Moriarty -when it comes to its climax; but Cole certainly deserves promotion." - -"I don't see that it's much use in reality," said Mr. Goddard. "It's -only putting off the evil day, you know. When the sergeant comes back -from Rosivera we'll have the whole thing to do over again." - -"You told him not to hurry, I hope," said Lord Manton. - -"I told him to spend as long over the job as he possibly could. I told -him not to be back before six this evening at the very earliest. But -what's the good of that? He's bound to come back some time." - -"Still, it's always so much time gained. We may hear something of the -missing men before then. You'll telegraph all over the country, of -course." - -"I'll go back at once," said Mr. Goddard, "and take entire possession -of the telegraph office." - -"Come up and have some luncheon first. The afternoon will be time -enough for the telegrams." - - - - -CHAPTER XX - - -There are, as Patsy Devlin reminded Jimmy O'Loughlin on the occasion -of Miss Blow's first visit to Lord Manton, two ways of getting to the -Castle from the village of Clonmore. There is the longer way by the -great avenue which leads through the demesne and is remarkable for its -fine rows of beech trees. By it all visitors who drive must go. They -leave the public road a mile to the east of the village, having passed, -supposing them to start from Jimmy O'Loughlin's hotel, both the police -barrack and the railway station. There is also the shorter way through -the deer park, available only for foot passengers, because it is -necessary in the first place to climb a boundary wall. The visitor who -goes by this route, supposing once more that he starts from the hotel, -leaves the village, and walks in a westerly direction until he comes to -the spot where the wall is partially broken down and therefore easy to -climb. He passes no building of any importance on his way, because the -hotel is almost the last house at the west end of the village street. - -When luncheon was over Mr. Goddard spoke of going down to Clonmore to -send off his telegrams. Lord Manton offered to order the dog-cart and -have him driven down. Mr. Goddard refused. - -"You'd much better let me," said Lord Manton. "It will save you a lot -of time and do the cob good. He hasn't been out for two days. I've -been afraid to put my nose outside the place for fear of meeting the -police." - -"I'd like to drive well enough," said Mr. Goddard, "but I daren't. The -fact is, I want to get into the telegraph office without being seen, -if possible. Miss Blow is sure to be at the barrack, and I'm a little -nervous about passing the door." - -The post-office in Clonmore is a sort of bye-product of Jimmy -O'Loughlin's commercial activity. The business is carried on in a -corner of his shop, and the shop itself is an adjunct of the hotel. -Approaching the village from the west you come upon the shop door -first, then that of the hotel. - -"I dare say you're right," said Lord Manton. "Unless Moriarty is a -young man with quite remarkable powers of persuasion, Miss Blow's -temper is likely to be very bad indeed." - -"She'll find out, of course," said Mr. Goddard, "that the sergeant -really has gone off in the direction of Rosivera, and taken Cole with -him. That ought to pacify her to some extent. Still, I think I'll avoid -an interview as long as I can." - -By walking through the deer park and approaching the village -cautiously, Mr. Goddard succeeded in getting into the post-office -unseen. After a short search he discovered Jimmy O'Loughlin's -niece, a red-haired girl, who sold stamps and sent off and received -telegrams. She was indulging in what looked like a flirtation with the -station-master, in the millinery department of the shop. Mr. Goddard -called her away from her companion. - -"Susy Lizzie," he said, "come here. I want you." - -"Is it stamps?" she asked, "or is it a postal order?" - -"It's neither the one nor the other," said Mr. Goddard; "it's a -telegram. In fact, it's as many telegrams as will keep you busy for the -rest of the afternoon, so there won't be any use the station-master -waiting for you till you've done." - -Susy Lizzie tossed her head and walked defiantly down the shop to her -proper counter. She established herself behind a sort of wire screen -and pushed a sheaf of telegraph forms towards Mr. Goddard. - -"Take those things away," he said. "I'm coming inside there to watch -you send off my wires and to wait for the answers." - -Susy Lizzie by way of reply drew Mr. Goddard's attention to a printed -notice which forbade members of the general public entering the inner -precincts of the office. - -"If you go on with any more of that nonsense," said Mr. Goddard, -"I'll tell your uncle the way I found you this minute with the -station-master." - -It was one thing to be bullied by Miss Blow, quite another thing to -endure the official insolence of Susy Lizzie. Mr. Goddard felt that he -was man enough to make a stand against that. - -"There'd be nothing to tell if you did," said Susy Lizzie. - -"Wouldn't there? I suppose you'd try and make out he was talking to you -about buying a new hat for his mother, and you were showing him the way -it ought to be trimmed." - -Susy Lizzie grinned. Then she removed the official notice of no -admission, lifted up a slab of her counter, and invited Mr. Goddard -to enter. The first telegram he handed her completely restored her -good-humour. It was a message of a delightfully exciting kind. - -"To the Inspector-General of Police, Dublin Castle. Your Members of -Parliament are unfortunately lost. Am making inquiries. Goddard, -District Inspector." - -After this came eight much longer messages. They were addressed to -detective sergeants in Derry, Larne, Belfast, Greenore, Dublin, -Kingstown, Rosslare, and Queenstown. They contained inadequate -descriptions of the appearance of Mr. Dick and Mr. Sanders; and an -earnest request that all steamers leaving for America, Scottish, or -English ports might be watched. While Susy Lizzie was tapping her -way through these messages, Mr. Goddard unrolled an ordnance survey -map, and made a list of all the railway stations within fifty miles -of Clonmore. He then wrote out a series of messages to the police -sergeants of these places, directing them to make inquiries at the -railway stations about all strangers who had left by train that day. He -appended, for the further guidance of the police, his descriptions of -the Members of Parliament, and a note to the effect that one of them -was riding a lady's bicycle. - -Susy Lizzie handed him a reply to his first message. - -"From Under Secretary, Dublin Castle. Inspector-General of police in -Belfast quelling riot. Wire forwarded. Lord Lieutenant anxious to know -whether ladies of party safe." - -Mr. Goddard replied at once, "Ladies perfectly safe, but anxious and -tearful." - -Susy Lizzie, by this time in a state of extreme excitement and perfect -good temper, set to work again at the seaport messages. She had got -as far as Greenore when she had to stop to receive another incoming -message. - -"From Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle. Please explain first wire. -Unintelligible here." - -This was followed immediately by one from Belfast. - -"Inspector-General supposes mistake in transmission of wire. Kindly -repeat." - -Mr. Goddard wrote out two replies. - -"To Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle. Members of Parliament completely -lost during night. Deeply regret occurrence. Goddard, District -Inspector." - -"To Inspector-General of Police, Belfast. First message probably -correctly transmitted. Members of Parliament cannot be found. Goddard, -District Inspector." - -Susy Lizzie, working at high speed, got these messages despatched and -went on with those to Dublin, Kingstown, Rosslare, and Queenstown. Then -Mr. Goddard handed her a bundle of forms which contained his appeals -to the police at the railway stations. He felt that he had done all -that could be done to discover the escaped gentlemen. It is impossible, -as Mr. Goddard knew, to get out of Ireland without going either to -Great Britain or America. Derry and Queenstown were the ports of exit -westwards. If, as was far more likely, the fugitives had made a rush -for England or Scotland, he would get news of them at one of the other -places. It was possible, of course, that they were still loitering -about Ireland. In that case he would hear of them from one of his -railway stations. Even the most energetic Member of Parliament would -not be likely to do more than fifty miles on his bicycle over west of -Ireland roads, and Mr. Sanders was afflicted with a weak heart. - -"Isn't there some way of getting from the hotel to the shop," said Mr. -Goddard, "without going out into the street? I want to speak to your -uncle." - -"There is surely," said Susy Lizzie. "If you step across to the grocery -counter, the young gentleman that's there will show you the door." - -The door, as Mr. Goddard found when the young gentleman opened it for -him, led directly to the hotel bar. Jimmy O'Loughlin was serving out -bottles of porter to about a dozen customers. There was a babble of -talk, which ceased abruptly as Mr. Goddard entered. - -"Jimmy," he said, "I want to speak to you for a minute." - -"Affy Ginnetty," said Jimmy, "come here and attend the bar." - -The young gentleman who had opened the door for Mr. Goddard left the -care of the bacon, flour, and tobacco which strewed his counter, and -took his place behind the bar. Jimmy led the way to the ironmongery -corner of his shop. - -"We'll have this place to ourselves," he said. "There's nobody comes -to buy them things"--he indicated an assortment of lamps, pots, and -rat-traps--"unless it would be of a fair day." - -"Jimmy," said Mr. Goddard, "where are the ladies?" - -"There's two of them," said Jimmy, "that's in their beds." - -"In their beds?" - -"I suppose it's in them they are. Anyway, they said they were going to -lie down, and Bridgy brought up a can of hot water apiece for them, and -I didn't see them since. There was talk," he added, "of their being up -and dressed again to be down ready at the barrack at four o'clock, -that being the hour at which they were expecting Sergeant Farrelly to -be back." - -"Those," said Mr. Goddard, "are probably Mrs. Dick and Mrs. Sanders." - -"They might be." - -"And what about the other two?" - -"There's one of them that's writing letters above in the drawing-room. -She sent Bridgy for twopenny-worth of paper and envelopes, and I gave -her the loan of a bottle of ink and a writing pen. I heard her say -she'd be down along with the other two at the barrack at four o'clock -to see the sergeant." - -"That's most likely to be Miss Farquharson." - -"I wouldn't say," said Jimmy, "whether the sergeant would be back at -four." - -"He will not, nor yet at five." - -"I was thinking as much." - -"Where's Miss Blow?" - -"The doctor's young lady," said Jimmy, "is down at the barrack along -with Moriarty." - -"I'm glad to hear that." - -"She wasn't as much put out as you'd expect," said Jimmy, "when she -found she couldn't go on the bicycle. I was thinking she might be in a -bad way and that maybe she'd be too much for Moriarty, so I sent Bridgy -into the yard to her, not caring to go myself----" - -"You were right there," said Mr. Goddard. - -"Bridgy told me after, that she never saw in all her born days anything -to equal the state that Moriarty had the tyre in. 'You could have run -the wisps of it,' she said, 'through the teeth of a fine comb.'" - -"Get Bridgy," said Mr. Goddard. "I'd like to hear the story from -herself." - -"I'm not sure could I get her, for she's busy with the pig's food and -would be wanting to clean herself before she'd come. But there's no -need anyway, for I can tell you the way she quietened the doctor's -young lady as well as she'd tell it herself, and maybe better, for she -might be backward in speaking out before a gentleman. 'The sergeant bid -me say,' says Bridgy, 'that he's off this quarter of an hour, and has -took Constable Cole along with him.' Only for Moriarty being there and -listening to her Bridgy says the young lady would have cursed awful -at hearing that. 'Wild horses,' says Bridgy, 'wouldn't have held the -sergeant back from going, he was that set on catching the blackguards -that ill-treated the poor doctor.' Bridgy says the young lady seemed -more pacified at them words. 'The sergeant,' says Bridgy, 'is a -terrible man when his temper is riz, and riz it is this day if ever -it was. I'd be sorry for the man that faces him.' And so she went on -telling stories about the sergeant and Constable Cole that would make -you think they were the blood-thirstiest villains in Ireland, and that -nothing delighted them only getting a hold of murderers and the like." - -"And did Miss Blow believe all that?" - -"I'm not sure did she, but it quietened her. She didn't say a word to -Moriarty, good nor bad, but she went out into the street and she asked -the first three men she met where was Sergeant Farrelly and Constable -Cole." - -"Well, and what did they tell her?" - -"They told her the truth, of course. They told her they'd seen the -sergeant and Cole going off on their bicycles back west in the -direction of Rosivera. I'm thinking that after that she began to be -of opinion that there was, maybe, some truth in what Bridgy had been -saying. Anyway, she went off down to the barrack, and Moriarty after -her, and she's there yet." - -Susy Lizzie emerged from behind the wire screen of the post-office -counter while Jimmy O'Loughlin was speaking. She held in her hand a -bundle of telegraph forms. Her uncle caught sight of her. - -"What is it you're wanting, Susy Lizzie?" he said. "Why wouldn't you -stay where you're paid to stay and attend to the wants of the public?" - -"It's a dozen wires and more," said Susy Lizzie, "that's after coming -for Mr. Goddard, and I thought maybe he'd like to get them at once." - -"You thought right," said Mr. Goddard. "Hand them over." - -The first he looked at was from Derry. - -"Two men, answering the description given, but without bicycles, left -this last night at eight P.M., on steamer _Rose_ for Glasgow. -Have wired Chief of Police there." - -"That'll hardly be them," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, who was looking over -Mr. Goddard's shoulder. - -"It can't possibly be them," said Mr. Goddard. "I defy them to get -from this to Derry between twelve o'clock yesterday and eight in the -evening. I hope to goodness those silly asses won't go and arrest two -total strangers and dump them down on us here. We have worry enough -without that." - -"I don't know," said Jimmy, "if so be the men they got were decent sort -of men, it might be----" - -"What's that you're saying?" said Mr. Goddard. - -He had glanced at five more telegrams which came from the police who -lived in towns where trains stopped. They all denied any knowledge of -the Members of Parliament. - -"I was saying," said Jimmy, "that maybe since the gentlemen that's -wanted can't be found, the ones they'd be sending over to us from -Glasgow might be some comfort to the ladies. Susy Lizzie, what are you -doing standing there with a grin on your face that a man could post a -letter through? Aren't you ugly enough the way God made you without -twisting the mouth that's on you into worse than it is? Get back with -you and mind the telegraph machine. I hear it ticking away there as if -the devil was in it. Be off with you now, and don't let me be obliged -to speak to you twice. I was saying, Mr. Goddard----" - -"I heard what you were saying," said Mr. Goddard, "and I never heard -greater nonsense in my life." - -He was scattering more pink papers on the floor as he spoke. Every -railway station about which he inquired had been drawn blank. - -"Do you suppose," he went on, "that a lady like Mrs. Dick, who has been -crying the whole day because she's lost her husband, would take up -straight off with any strange man the police happened to send her over -from Glasgow? Have some sense, Jimmy." - -"It's them ones that cries the most," said Jimmy, "that is the quickest -to get married again if so be there's anybody willing to take them." - -"I don't deny that," said Mr. Goddard; "but, hang it all! you must give -her time to make sure that the first one's really dead. I don't believe -he is myself. Damn it all! look at this." - -He held out a telegram, the last of his batch, to Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"From Inspector-General of Police. Matter of disappearance of Members -of Parliament serious. Keep news out of papers if possible. Am leaving -Belfast to-night. Shall reach Clonmore to-morrow noon. Meet train and -report." - -"I don't know," said Jimmy, "will he be expecting to stay the night at -the hotel, for if he is there's no place for him to sleep. There's the -doctor's young lady has the big front room, and yourself and the other -three ladies has all the rest of the bedrooms there is in it, and the -like of a high-up man such as the Inspector-General will be looking for -something better than a sofa in the drawing-room. I don't know either -is Bridgy fit to cook the sort of dinner he'd be accustomed to." - -"I don't care a straw where he sleeps. What I'm thinking about is the -abominable fuss there'll be when he arrives. One comfort is he won't be -able to find these wretched Members of Parliament any more than I can -myself." - -"He might, then," said Jimmy hopefully. - -"He will not; but I tell you what he'll do. He'll find out about the -doctor being gone and Patsy Devlin. Then he'll come to the conclusion -that there's some sort of a conspiracy on foot in the country. He'll -draft in a lot of extra police, and he'll have the life worried out of -me. Look here, Jimmy, I can't stand much more of this sort of thing -to-day. You'll have to keep those women off me somehow. I'll count on -you to do it. I shall go and shut myself up in the telegraph office -along with Susy Lizzie, and if you let one of them in on me I'll never -forgive you. Let them fight it out with Sergeant Farrelly when he gets -back. Let Cole try them with another stratagem if he likes. All I ask -is to have them kept off me." - -"I'll do the best I can," said Jimmy; "and if you send Susy Lizzie into -the hotel any time, Bridgy'll give her a cup of tea for you. You'll be -wanting it." - - - - -CHAPTER XXI - - -At four o'clock Miss Farquharson, Mrs. Dick and Mrs. Sanders went down -to the police barrack. They found Miss Blow seated by herself in the -men's day room. Constable Moriarty was digging potatoes in the garden -at the back of the house. He had been questioned and cross-questioned -by Miss Blow for more than an hour after he had completed the -destruction of the bicycle tyre. He felt jaded and nervous. He stood on -the brink of a frightful exposure. A trifling accident, an incautious -word, might at any moment betray the part he had played in Constable -Cole's stratagem. Some men under the circumstances would have steadied -themselves with whisky, but Moriarty was a strict teetotaller. Others -would have smoked pipe after pipe of strong tobacco. Moriarty, much -wiser, went out and dug potatoes. There is nothing more soothing -to racked nerves than digging in the ground, and there is a mild -excitement about driving a spade into potato ridges which distracts the -mind from painful thoughts and terrifying anticipations. The turning up -of the roots of any particular plant may display an amazing wealth of -tubers, may expose to the gaze of the delighted gardener some potato of -huge size or very unusual shape. You cannot tell beforehand what will -be unearthed. Expectations and hope run high. There is also present a -certain fear. It is always possible, unless you are very skilful at the -work, that a spade may slice a potato, leaving you face to face with -two reproachful, earth-soiled, flat surfaces, useless for the pot, a -manifest disgrace to your digging. Moriarty was not a highly skilled or -very experienced potato digger. He enjoyed to the full the pleasures of -anticipation. He suffered from the bitterness which follows mistakes. -He almost forgot Miss Blow and the torment of her questioning. - -Then, at a quarter past four, Miss Blow's voice brought him back from -his security. She called him by name from the back door of the barrack. -Moriarty scraped the clay off the sides of his boots, shuffled on his -coat, and gave his hands a rub on the front part of the legs of his -trousers. Then he joined Miss Blow and the other ladies in the day room. - -"Why isn't Sergeant Farrelly back?" asked Miss Blow. - -"I don't know, miss." - -"It's after four," said Miss Blow. - -"Well, now," said Moriarty, "that's a queer thing, so it is." - -"He started, I am told, at about half-past twelve." - -"It might have been that," said Moriarty, "or it might have been more. -I didn't take notice on account of being engaged in mending your tyre -at the time." - -"It's eight miles to Rosivera. Allow three-quarters of an hour to get -there----" - -"It could be," said Moriarty, "that he was punctured on the way. It's a -bad road." - -"Allowing for all possible accidents, even supposing he walked the -whole way there and back, they should be here by this time." - -"They should. You're right, there, miss. They should." - -"Will you," said Miss Blow, "kindly go and fetch Mr. Goddard, your -officer? He ought to know that his men have not returned." - -"I don't know will I be able to find him." - -"Go and try." - -"I will," said Moriarty. "I'll go and ask Jimmy O'Loughlin. If anybody -knows where the officer is, it'll be Jimmy O'Loughlin." - -Jimmy O'Loughlin told Moriarty to go back to the ladies and keep them -amused for a while by showing them over the barrack. Moriarty refused -to do this. He said that the situation was urgent and critical, and -that he would not take the responsibility of dealing with Miss Blow -without help. Jimmy O'Loughlin reluctantly went down to the barrack. -Miss Blow attacked him at once. - -"Where is Mr. Goddard?" she said. - -"He's beyond," said Jimmy, "in the post-office, and he left word that -he wasn't to be disturbed on account of his being terrible busy." - -"He ought to be told that his men have not returned from Rosivera." - -"I'd be in dread to go near him. It's telegrams he's sending, telegrams -to the Lord Lieutenant and more of them high-up gentlemen, and that's -the kind of work that would be preying upon a man." - -"Sergeant Farrelly left this at a quarter past twelve," said Miss Blow; -"and he's not back yet." - -"It's a long road," said Jimmy, "longer maybe than you'd think." - -"It's eight miles." - -"And eight back along with that." - -"That only makes sixteen," said Miss Farquharson, who shared her -nephew's fondness for intricate calculations. - -"So they ought to be here by this time," said Miss Blow. - -"It could be," said Jimmy, "that they might be a long time looking -for the gentleman they're after before they'd find him. A fellow like -that would be as cunning as an old fox, hiding himself when he saw the -police after him." - -"Oh," said Mrs. Dick, "I do hope nothing has happened to them. It would -be too terrible." - -"The sergeant," said Jimmy, "is a heavy man. He wouldn't be as quick as -another at doing a run on a bicycle." - -"Still," said Miss Blow, "he's had four hours and it's only sixteen -miles." - -"He'll have to walk back," said Jimmy, "and if so be the prisoner -wasn't willing to come with him it might be a long time before he got -him along the road, for he wouldn't like to be beating him. He has a -kind heart, the sergeant; it's hardly ever you'd see him as much as -laying a stick across a child." - -Miss Blow seemed more or less satisfied. The idea of Mr. Red driven by -threats of violent batoning along a dusty road comforted her. Jimmy -O'Loughlin made his escape from the barrack. - -He found Mr. Goddard scribbling a fresh telegram in the post-office. - -"Look at that," he said, handing a form to Jimmy. - -"From Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle. Why have you not reported -recovery of Members of Parliament?" - -"That's not what I'd call a civil message," said Jimmy. "What did you -say to him?" - -"Susy Lizzie," said Mr. Goddard, "give your uncle the answer I sent to -the last telegram but two." - -Susy Lizzie fumbled among a pile of papers and finally handed one over -to Jimmy. - -"To Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle. Impossible to report recovery of -Members of Parliament with any truth because still at large. Goddard, -District Inspector." - -"Be damn," said Jimmy, "but you had him there, as neat as ever I seen." - -"He's not satisfied, though. Look at this." - -He handed another form to Jimmy. - -"From Chief Secretary, Dublin Castle. Lord Lieutenant requests -explanation of disappearance of Members of Parliament." - -"Here's the answer to that," said Mr. Goddard. "Read it out to your -uncle, Susy Lizzie, before you send it off." - -Susy Lizzie grinned broadly. - -"Go on," said Jimmy, "and do what the gentleman bids you. You've no -right to be laughing at the business of the Government." - -"Theory current locally," read Susy Lizzie, "that Members of Parliament -have deserted their wives and aunt." - -"That'll give him his 'nough of telegraphing for this day anyhow," said -Jimmy. "I'd like to see the way he'll be rampaging up and down the -stairs of the Castle when he gets that. It'll show them fellows that -you think mighty little of them anyway, Mr. Goddard." - -"How are the ladies getting on?" - -"I've quietened them for a bit. They were annoyed on account of -Sergeant Farrelly not coming back; but I told them it would take him -a long time to be dragging Mr. Red along the road by the hair of his -head, and I didn't think he'd come without. They'll be all right for -another hour, anyway. Will I be going into the hotel and telling Bridgy -to fetch you over a cup of tea? It's after five o'clock." - -It was nearly six o'clock before Bridgy came to the shop with a tray -in her hands. She was followed by Affy, the young gentleman from the -grocery department, who carried a loaf of bread and a pot of jam. Mr. -Goddard and Susy Lizzie began a comfortable meal together. They were -interrupted twice by telegrams from Dublin, but they did not allow -these to trouble them much. A very much more serious interruption was -caused by a breathless whisper from Affy to the effect that four ladies -were entering the shop. Mr. Goddard, carrying his teacup with him, -concealed himself behind a screen of muffed glass, originally erected -by the post-office authorities in order that letters might be sorted -out of sight of the public. - -"Susy Lizzie," he whispered, "run like a good girl and get your uncle. -Tell him that the ladies are here, and that he'll have to come at once -and pacify them." - -Susy Lizzie ran. She was enjoying her afternoon immensely. The monotony -of her life was seldom broken in any way half so agreeable. - -"If the thing is to be done, I'll do it," said Jimmy, when he received -the message. - -He left his bar and went into the shop. He faced Miss Farquharson, who -was asking Affy where Mr. Goddard was likely to be found. - -"I was thinking, my lady," said Jimmy, "that maybe you'd be wanting -a bit of supper. What would you say now to a chop, or a couple of -rashers and some eggs? I could have them got for you in a minute." - -"I want Mr. Goddard, the police officer," said Miss Blow, who stood -beside the post-office counter. - -"Wouldn't it be better for you now," said Jimmy, turning to her, "to -be eating your supper quietly instead of rampaging about the town -frightening the wits out of a poor man that's doing his best for you? -Come now, sure I'm old enough to be your father, and I know what's good -for you. It's moidered you are with the trouble that's on you, and -there isn't one in the place but is sorry for you and for all the rest -of the ladies this night. But what's the good of making yourselves sick -over it, and tormenting the officer? If they're gone, they're gone, and -all the talking in the world won't bring them back to you." - -"Man----" said Miss Blow. - -"Look at poor Susan Devlin," said Jimmy, "she's lost a husband as well -as the rest of you, and barring that she might be crying an odd time -when she'd be thinking of him, she's as quiet as a lamb. Why can't you -behave yourselves like her? I'm not setting up to teach ladies like -yourselves what ought to be and what ought not, but I'd say myself that -the men that would run away from yez, from the like of yez"--he spoke -with a smile that was meant to flatter--"isn't worth looking after." - -"Do you dare to suggest----" said Miss Farquharson. - -"It's not the first time that suggestion has been made," said Miss -Blow. "It's part of the scandalous conspiracy in which every man, woman -and child in this place is involved." - -"If you won't take your supper when it's offered you," said Jimmy, -"maybe you'll sit inside in the hotel. You're interrupting the business -of the shop standing where you are, let alone preventing the public -from buying the stamps they have a right to buy to put on their -letters." - -The appeal produced its effect on Miss Blow. She had the blood of a -business man in her veins. She understood that her father would have -resented any interference with the sale of his twopenny Beauties, and -would not have admitted either grief or anger as legitimate reasons -for damming the flow of trade. Also she and her companions belonged -to a law-abiding race. They had a natural respect for any department -of the State. They felt it wrong to stop the sale of postage stamps. -They trooped into the hotel and sat down in the commercial room. Once -there Miss Farquharson's strong common sense asserted itself. She -suggested that it might be wise after all to order bacon and eggs, -quoting the advice given by St. Paul to the sailors who were threatened -with shipwreck. Mrs. Dick and Mrs. Sanders declared with tears that -it was impossible for them to eat in their heart-broken condition. -This confirmed Miss Farquharson in her resolve to have a regular meal. -She gave the necessary order to Jimmy O'Loughlin. Miss Blow agreed -to eat on condition that the meal was served in the commercial room, -the windows of which looked out on the street. She knew that Sergeant -Farrelly, Constable Cole, and the prisoner must pass the hotel on their -way to the barrack. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII - - -At eight o'clock Mr. Goddard, who had enjoyed some fried bacon and a -bottle of porter in the telegraph office, began to feel surprise at -the prolonged absence of Sergeant Farrelly. It was all very well to go -slowly to Rosivera and to return without undue hurry, but it was hard -to imagine how eight hours could possibly be occupied in travelling -sixteen miles. He sent Susy Lizzie, who remained in attendance on him, -to call her uncle. - -"I'm doing the best I can," said Jimmy, "to keep them quiet; but -they'll be out after you in spite of me soon. I left herself and Bridgy -talking to them; but what use are they against the four? And the -doctor's young lady is the worst of them." - -"It's not the ladies I'm bothered about now," said Mr. Goddard. "Why -the devil isn't Sergeant Farrelly back? What's keeping him?" - -"Faith, I don't know, unless maybe he'd be in dread!" - -"Nonsense. I told him not to hurry, but I didn't tell him to stay out -all night." - -"It's queer, so it is," said Jimmy. "What would you think now of -sending Constable Moriarty out a bit along the road to look and see if -there's e'er a sign of them coming?" - -"I'll go myself," said Mr. Goddard. - -"I wouldn't say," said Jimmy, "but what it might be just as well if you -did. The ladies is sure to be here in a couple of minutes now. I can't -keep them." - -Mr. Goddard walked a mile along the road towards Rosivera, and then -sat down on a ditch. There was no sign of Sergeant Farrelly. At nine -o'clock he got up, and walked another mile and sat down again. Still -there was no sign of the missing policemen. He walked a third mile and -once more waited. He was puzzled and began to be uneasy. He turned and -walked back towards Clonmore. Half a mile outside the town he climbed -the demesne wall and crossed an angle of the deer park to the Castle. -It was a quarter past ten when he reached the door. - -He found Lord Manton in the library with a book in his hand and a glass -of whisky and soda water on the arm of his chair. There was a pile of -cigarette ends on the tray which stood within reach. - -"Well, Goddard," he said, "I suppose you've tucked all your ladies up -in bed and come up here for a quiet smoke. You deserve it." - -"No," said Mr. Goddard; "I've come to consult you. I don't -understand----" - -"Surely nobody else has bolted?" - -"Sergeant Farrelly and the constable have not returned from Rosivera." - -"Dear me! I always heard that these things were infectious, like -measles. One suicide, half a dozen suicides. We appear to be in for -an epidemic of bolting. But I'd never have suspected the sergeant. He -seemed such a solid sort of man, not the least hysterical; but you can -never tell. I hope you won't vanish to-morrow, Goddard. If you feel it -coming on you, you'd better put yourself under arrest at once. Was the -sergeant a married man?" - -"No, he wasn't." - -"Then there'll be no widow to make lamentation in his case. That's a -good job for you, Goddard. I don't see how you could have got on with -another woman running round after you. What about the constable?" - -"He's not married either. He's not long enough in the service." - -"Poor fellow!" said Lord Manton. "I suppose now that this will ruin his -prospects, even if he comes back." - -"Lord Manton," said Mr. Goddard, "what do you know about that tenant of -yours at Rosivera?" - -"Surely you're not coming round to Miss Blow's murder theory, are you?" - -"I don't know. It's a very queer business. Is Red--that's the man's -name, isn't it--respectable?" - -"I don't know. I never saw the man in my life. I know nothing about him -except that he paid his rent and came here in a motor-car. That looks -as if he had money, doesn't it?" - -"I don't understand it," said Mr. Goddard. "The sergeant and Cole -certainly went to Rosivera to-day. I don't see what was to stop them -getting there. They weren't likely to lose their way. They certainly -haven't come back." - -"What does Jimmy O'Loughlin say? I suppose you've consulted him." - -"Jimmy thinks," said Mr. Goddard, "that the sergeant's afraid to come -back on account of Miss Blow. But that's all rot, of course." - -"I'm not at all sure that Jimmy's not right. He's a very shrewd man, -Jimmy O'Loughlin. I shouldn't wonder a bit----" - -"But what the deuce am I to do?" - -"I'll tell you what it is," said Lord Manton. "We'll make a descent -in force on Rosivera to-morrow. You shall collect all the police you -possibly can, fifty of them, if there are fifty available. We'll -take all the ladies interested in the matter in my waggonette. Jimmy -O'Loughlin and I will accompany the army in the capacity of civil -magistrates, each of us armed with a Riot Act and a writ of Habeas -Corpus. We'll make that fellow Red sit up if he's been at any games." - -"I really think we'll have to. It seems very absurd, but what else are -we to do? I've been harried with telegrams from everybody in Dublin -Castle all day. The Inspector-General is coming down here to-morrow, -though I don't see what on earth he thinks he'll be able to do." - -"We'll forestall him," said Lord Manton. "He can't possibly get here -before noon. We'll start at eleven A.M. sharp. We'll have the mystery, -whatever it is, probed to its inmost recesses before he gets at it. The -whole credit will be yours, Goddard." - -"I'll make any one that likes a present of the credit." - -"In the meanwhile," said Lord Manton, "you'd better sleep here. I -expect Jimmy O'Loughlin's hotel is pretty well full up." - -"Thanks," said Mr. Goddard. "The fact is, I don't particularly care -about going back to the village to-night." - -"Will they be waiting up for you?" - -"They will." - -"Miss Blow," said Lord Manton, "is a wonderful woman." - -"She's not bad looking," said Mr. Goddard magnanimously, "but she's -rather----" - -"I know what you're going to say--vehement, wasn't that it? A good deal -of life force about her? I quite agree with you. Now, what do you -think? Supposing it turns out that the man Red has really been up to -any kind of tricks; supposing he's engaged in a business of kidnapping -dispensary doctors, blacksmiths, Members of Parliament and policemen, -for the purpose of shipping them off as slaves to the Sultan of -Zanzibar. I don't say for certain that that's exactly what he's doing. -I don't know yet. But if he's at anything of the sort it would serve -him jolly well right if we made him marry Miss Blow." - -"He wouldn't do it." - -"He might. He seems to be a man of adventurous disposition. If he -doesn't like her, we could offer him Miss Farquharson." - -"I should think he'd refuse them both. He'd see Miss Farquharson, and -he'd be absolutely certain to hear Miss Blow." - -"I think we could put pressure on him," said Lord Manton. "In fact, it -would be a choice for him between marrying and a criminal prosecution. -A man can't kidnap people in this wholesale sort of way without -suffering for it. He'll understand that when we put it to him. But -you've had an exhausting day, Goddard, and I dare say you'd like to -toddle up to bed. Wilkins will leave you whatever you want. We'll have -a great time to-morrow, raiding Rosivera." - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII - - -Miss Blow was very angry when she discovered that Mr. Goddard was not -in the telegraph office. Nothing Jimmy O'Loughlin said soothed her in -the least. He pointed out that the officer's absence was caused by his -excessive zeal for the cause they all had at heart; that he had in -fact gone in person to investigate the mystery of Rosivera. Miss Blow -refused to believe him, and expressed her contempt for habitual liars -in plain language. - -"If you don't believe me, miss, ask Constable Moriarty, and he'll tell -you the same." - -"I shouldn't believe him either," said Miss Blow; "and in any case -Constable Moriarty is a fool." - -"He was standing by," said Jimmy, pursuing the subject without -regarding the interruption, "the same as it might be yourself, and he -heard every word that passed between us. 'Mr. Goddard,' I says, 'them -ladies is in a terrible state, and getting worse. It's hardly ever -they were able to take the cup of tea I had wetted for them.' 'I know -it, Jimmy,' says he; 'I know it well; and if cutting off my right hand -would be any ease to them I'd do it this minute.' 'You would,' I says, -for I knew well the way it was going through him; 'but what good would -that be? Wouldn't it be better now if you was----' 'If I was to what?' -says he, catching me up like. 'If you was to send Moriarty for a bit of -a stroll along the road,' I says, 'to see could he hear any news of -the sergeant.' 'I'll not do it,' says he, looking terrible determined. -'I'll not do the like. What's Constable Moriarty but a boy, Jimmy? A -boy with maybe a mother breaking her heart after him somewhere. If -there's murder going,' says he, 'it's not Constable Moriarty it'll -light on, but myself.' 'Do you mean that?' says I. 'I do,' he says; 'I -mean it; I'll go myself. What murder's done to-night will be done on -me, for I'll not take it on my conscience to be the cause of Moriarty's -death.' 'Mr. Goddard,' says I, 'you're a fine man. I'll give it in -to you that you're as brave as any one ever I met; but you'll be -taking your sword with you, promise me that now.' 'I will, Jimmy,' -says he; 'I'll take my sword, and I'm thankful to you for making the -suggestion.' And with that, miss, he was up and off out of the door, -and that was the last I seen of him." - -"If you hadn't been telling me lies ever since I've been in Clonmore," -said Miss Blow, "there'd be some chance of my believing you now." - -"There's a man going past the door of the hotel this minute," said -Jimmy, "with an ass load of turf that he's after fetching in off the -bog. Will you go out now and ask him did he meet Mr. Goddard on the -road? Maybe you'll believe him when he tells you." - -Miss Blow accepted the challenge. She waylaid the man with the donkey, -who proved to be very deaf. She raised her voice and shouted at him. He -replied in a low tone. She shouted again, and the man made what seemed -a long answer. Miss Blow returned to Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"You've told me the truth for once," she said ungraciously. "That man -met the officer a mile out of town on the road to Rosivera." - -Jimmy was generous. He did not attempt to humiliate Miss Blow. He -pursued his policy of trying to soothe her. An hour passed. Two hours -passed. Even Miss Blow's anger began to give way to anxiety. What if -Mr. Goddard was himself a victim to the mysterious gang which had -already made away with seven men? He might have gone the whole way to -Rosivera. He might have fallen into some craftily arranged ambush on -the road. Fear laid hold on her heart. Jimmy O'Loughlin, who was a -little puzzled but not particularly anxious, seized his opportunity. - -"It'll be better for you," he said, "to go to your bed, you and the -rest of the ladies, where you'll be safe till the morning. You'll -hardly be expecting any other man to be going out into the darkness of -the night, risking his life maybe, to satisfy you. Not but what there's -many a one would do it. I'd do it myself if I saw any good would come -out of it." - -Miss Blow and Miss Farquharson consulted together anxiously. This -fresh disaster had gone a long way towards cowing them. They were not -prepared to insist on the sacrifice of more human life. Mrs. Dick wept -noisily and unrebuked. Mrs. Sanders became very white and her hands -trembled. - -"You'll be safe in your beds anyway," said Jimmy. "You can turn the -key in the door of every room in this house barring the one I sleep in -myself, for the lock of it is gone wrong on me, and since poor Patsy -Devlin went from us there isn't a man about the place fit to settle it." - -"Let us go," said Mrs. Dick, sobbing. "I want to be somewhere at peace. -I don't care---- Oh, poor Richard!" - -"You're right, ma'am," said Jimmy; "it'll be better for you. I have a -dog in the yard that'll bark fit to wake the dead if e'er a one comes -near the house during the night; and I'll leave word with Bridgy that -she's to waken you in good time if so be anything was to happen; but -with the help of God there'll be no need for that." - -"Come," said Miss Blow at last; "we can do no more to-night. Let us -get some sleep, if any of us are able to sleep." - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV - - -It was three o'clock in the afternoon of the day which followed their -capture, and the two Members of Parliament showed no signs of becoming -reconciled to their situation. Mr. Sanders grumbled and occasionally -swore. Mr. Dick passed from bursts of violent rage to fits of -lamentation over the desolate condition of Mrs. Dick. Dr. O'Grady and -Patsy Devlin bore with them patiently for a long time. But there are -limits to human endurance. After a consultation with Patsy, the doctor -undertook to speak seriously to the unreasonably afflicted men. The -bearded anarchist who usually attended to the wants of the prisoners, -carried off the dinner things. Dr. O'Grady pulled Mr. Dick's bed out to -the middle of the floor. - -"Now," he said, "sit down on that, the two of you in a row, till I try -if I can't talk sense into you." - -"Why," said Mr. Sanders sulkily, "why should we sit there and be talked -to by you?" - -"There are two reasons why you should," said Dr. O'Grady. "The first is -because I want to talk to you, and I can do that much more conveniently -if you're seated in a row in front of me than if you're scattered about -all over the room. Does that satisfy you, or must I give you the second -reason?" - -"I won't be talked to by you," said Mr. Dick. "You're in league with -the infernal scoundrels who have locked us up here." - -"My good man----" said Mr. Sanders. - -This pacific form of address produced no more effect on Dr. O'Grady -than Mr. Dick's blunt denunciation did. Mr. Sanders was given no time -to finish his remark. - -"The second reason why you should is because it will be the worse for -you if you don't." - -"Do you mean to threaten us with violence?" said Mr. Dick. - -"Patsy," said Dr. O'Grady, "take off your coat, roll up your sleeve -and show your arm. I may mention, gentlemen, that Patsy Devlin was a -blacksmith by trade before he took to being a captive. He's used to -hammering." - -Mr. Dick and Mr. Sanders watched Patsy Devlin bare his arm, but they -made no move towards the bed. - -"Patsy," said Dr. O'Grady, "roll up your other sleeve. If you want to -fight, gentlemen, I'd recommend you to take off your coats." - -"I can't fight," said Mr. Sanders, "on account of my heart. It's weak, -and the doctor expressly forbade any form of excitement or violent -exercise. If it wasn't for that----" - -He sat down on a corner of the bed. - -"I haven't fought for years," said Mr. Dick with spirit; "but I'm not -going to be bullied by a damned Irish doctor. Come on." - -The speech was worthy of a man who had once at least felt the blood of -the ancient Bersekers coursing through his veins. It was followed by -prompt action. He took off his coat. Patsy Devlin spat on his hands and -then rubbed them together. - -"Mr. Dick," said Dr. O'Grady, "I don't want to have you smashed up, -partly because from what you've told us about your wife I expect she'd -be sorry, and partly because it'd be a nuisance to me to have to fit -you together again. If you don't sit down on that bed, I'll ring the -bell for the Emperor and get him to take away your clothes. You didn't -like going about in nothing but your shirt yesterday evening. Just -recollect that, and be careful." - -Mr. Dick thought better of his resolution. It may have been the -business-like way in which Patsy spat on his hands which daunted him, -or it may have been Dr. O'Grady's second and very horrible threat. He -sat down sulkily beside Mr. Sanders. - -"Now," said Dr. O'Grady, "I'm going to speak plainly to you for your -own good. You've behaved uncommonly badly since you came here. You've -sulked and you've whimpered, and you've raved in such a way as to make -Patsy Devlin and me quite uncomfortable. We made every excuse for you -yesterday afternoon. We recognized that Mr. Dick couldn't be expected -to be cheerful when he hadn't got any trousers. We knew that what had -happened would upset Mr. Sanders' heart and bring on palpitations. We -did our best to make things easy for you. When the assistant anarchists -brought up your beds, we made them for you, and allowed you to get into -them, although it was barely five o'clock, and the habit of going to -bed at that hour is most unsociable. Patsy brought your tea over to you -later on before he drank a drop himself, to save you the trouble of -getting out of bed. That was pure kindness of heart on Patsy's part, -and you didn't so much as say 'thank you.'" - -"They did not," said Patsy, who stood behind the bed with sleeves -still rolled up; "and it will be long enough before I do the like -again." - -"After tea," said Dr. O'Grady, "I sent for the Emperor and persuaded -him to let Mr. Dick have his clothes back. I needn't have done that. It -didn't matter to me if he had to go about stark naked for the rest of -his natural life. Did you show any gratitude this morning? Not a bit. -You sulked and whimpered again in the most unbearable manner. We put up -with it. We tried to cheer you. There was an egg short at breakfast. -Who did without? Patsy again; although he deserved an egg a great deal -more than either of you. When breakfast was over, I suggested that we -should all join in the game of flipping pennies across the table. I -didn't do that because I wanted to play. As a matter of fact, I don't -usually play in the morning; I read. Patsy will bear me out in that. I -was prepared to sacrifice my own time and inclination to amuse you. How -did you receive the proposal? You sulked again." - -"I was brought up strictly," said Mr. Sanders; "I belong to the Free -Kirk, and my conscience will not allow me to gamble." - -"That," said Dr. O'Grady, "is a paltry excuse, which you ought to be -ashamed to make. No man could be brought up to think it wrong to flip -pennies. Besides, what is it that's wrong about gambling? It's the -excitement created by the element of risk associated with all gambling. -Now, in this case, as you know perfectly well, there would have been -no excitement, because there was no element of risk. The thing was a -dead certainty. Patsy would have given you ten points in every game and -beaten the head off you. If you had to make an excuse, why didn't you -trot out your weak heart again? That would have been more reasonable. -When you wouldn't play that, I proposed another game, called Moggy, at -which you wouldn't have had a chance of winning either. You refused it -too. Then I said that if you liked we'd have a debate on Home Rule or -Tariff Reform. I said that you two could choose your own side and that -Patsy and I would take the other, whatever it was. I thought that would -interest you. It would have bored both Patsy and me frightfully; but we -were prepared to put up with that for your sakes." - -"How could you expect us to take an interest in Tariff Reform," said -Mr. Dick, "when our minds were full of----" - -"Patsy," said Dr. O'Grady, "if that man mentions his wife again, hit -him with the flat of your hand on the side of the head. Now go on, Mr. -Dick." - -"When--when we were imprisoned," said Mr. Dick. - -"That ought not to have stopped you," said Dr. O'Grady. "The great -problems of your country's welfare ought to come before considerations -of your personal convenience. Think of the ancient Romans. Remember -Horatius, and Coriolanus, and the fellow that jumped into the hole in -the Forum. That's the way you ought to be behaving instead of grumbling -and growling. Now I'm going to give you another chance. If you choose -to behave like reasonable human beings, well and good. Patsy and I will -do everything in our power to make your stay here pleasant for you. If -you won't, you shan't have a bite or sup until you do. I'll give you -three minutes by my watch to make up your minds. Will you or will you -not be sociable and pleasant? Will you join us in a game of Hunt the -Slipper? Come over to the window, Patsy, and leave them to make up -their minds together." - -Patsy and Dr. O'Grady stood looking out at the yard; the doctor held -his watch in his hand; there was dead silence in the room. - -"One minute gone," said Dr. O'Grady. - -There was a sound of whispering which ceased abruptly. - -"Two minutes gone." - -There was more whispering. Then Mr. Sanders spoke. - -"Don't choose such a silly game," he said. "We can't play Hunt the -Slipper. We really can't. Dick says he'd rather starve." - -"I'm not particular about what game you choose," said Dr. O'Grady, -"so long as it's a possible game. There's no use your saying golf or -cricket or lawn tennis, because we've no way of playing them here. You -can have Drop the Handkerchief, if you like, or Oranges and Lemons." - -This time there was a good deal of whispering, a kind of debate -conducted with great earnestness. - -"I'll play Hop Scotch, if you like," said Mr. Sanders; "but Dick won't." - -"Never mind about Mr. Dick," said the doctor. "He'll join in when he -sees how pleasant it is. You can play Hop Scotch, I suppose, Patsy?" - -"I cannot," said Patsy. "I never heard tell of it." - -"I can't either," said the doctor. "But it'll be all right: Mr. Sanders -will teach us." - -"I shall want a piece of chalk," said Mr. Sanders. - -"There's no chalk here," said Dr. O'Grady. "Will nothing else do you? -What's the chalk for?" - -"I have to mark out a figure on the boards," said Mr. Sanders. - -"I've a small bottle of Condy's Fluid in my bag," said the doctor, -"that I carry about with me for disinfecting my hands. You could manage -with it, I dare say." - -"You can stain the floor with Condy's Fluid," said Mr. Dick, who was -really a sociable man, and was beginning to be interested in the -proceedings. "When we were first married and went into our new house, -my wife----" - -"Now, don't start talking about your wife," said Dr. O'Grady, "just as -you're beginning to cheer up. You'll upset yourself again." - -Mr. Sanders went down on his hands and knees. He made a little pool of -Condy's Fluid on the floor and drew lines from it with his forefinger. -The rest of the party watched with great interest. Suddenly he stopped -and knelt bolt upright. - -"What's that noise?" he said. - -"I didn't hear any noise," said Dr. O'Grady. "There wasn't any noise. -Go on Hop Scotching." - -"There was a noise. I heard it. A noise like a fall. I have very sharp -hearing." - -"That always goes with a weak heart," said Dr. O'Grady. "But----" - -He stopped abruptly. This time there was an unmistakable noise, a shout -uttered somewhere in the lower part of the house, which reached even -the remote room where the captives were. They drew together and waited, -breathless. Mr. Sanders grew very white. - -"They're fighting downstairs," he said. - -"Perhaps the police have come," said Mr. Dick. "Perhaps we shall be -rescued. I knew that my wife would do everything to find me. I knew she -would find me." - -"You didn't seem to think so yesterday," said Dr. O'Grady. "And I -wouldn't make too sure now, if I were you. If they are fighting -downstairs, and I can't hear plainly enough to be certain----" - -"I can," said Mr. Sanders. - -"I expect," said Dr. O'Grady, "that the Emperor will get the best of -it. He'll probably be in on us here in a minute or two as proud as -Punch at having bagged another chance traveller. If the Emperor has a -fault at all, it's his extraordinary fondness for kidnapping people. I -can't think why he does it." - -"They're coming upstairs," said Mr. Sanders. "I hear them distinctly." - -"They are," said Dr. O'Grady; "a whole lot of people. I wonder who he -has got this time." - -The door of the room was unlocked. There was a short scuffle outside, -and then Sergeant Farrelly and Constable Cole were thrust in. They both -looked as if they had been roughly handled. The sergeant's tunic was -torn, his right eye was beginning to swell, and there was blood on his -lower lip. Mr. Red, looking very grim and determined, stalked into the -room behind them. - -"Emperor," said Dr. O'Grady, "this is too much. I complained to you -yesterday about the habit you have got into of thrusting strange people -in on top of me and Patsy. I put up with the last two, but this is more -than I am going to stand." - -"They remain here," said Mr. Red, "as captives." - -"Not at all," said Dr. O'Grady. "Think it over, Emperor, and -you'll come to see that you can't possibly leave them here. You -are an anarchist, an anti-military anarchist. You've often told -me so yourself. Now, an anarchist, as I understand his position, -is absolutely pledged to every kind of social reform. Whatever -anybody else may do, an anarchist can't consistently go in for the -over-crowding of tenement houses, or tolerate insanitary prisons. You -see that, don't you? If ever it got out that you'd shut up six men in -one room and kept them there, your reputation would be gone. There -wouldn't be a decent anarchist anywhere in the world who'd recognize -you as belonging to his party or so much as speak to you. You'd be a -sort of Suraja Dowlah with a horrible Black Hole of Calcutta story -cropping up against you at every turn. You simply must give these two -men---- Oh, you're going, are you? Very well. But think over what I've -said. You'll realize that I'm right." - -Mr. Red shut the door and locked it. Sergeant Farrelly turned fiercely -on Constable Cole. - -"You born fool," he said, "why didn't you strike him when I had him -down?" - -"I'd have----" - -"I suppose it was planning a stratagem you were," said the sergeant, -"instead of striking when you got the chance." - -"I'd have broke his head," said Constable Cole, "if so be I'd struck -him and me in the rage I was in at the time. How would I know but that -it might be murder?" - -"Serve you right if he broke yours," said the sergeant. - -"Come now," said Dr. O'Grady, "there's no use making a fuss. You put up -a middling good fight to judge by the look of you, and you ought to be -content. None of the rest of us did as much." - -"Is that yourself, doctor?" said the sergeant. - -"It is." - -"And, by the holy," said Constable Cole, "he has Patsy Devlin along -with him!" - -"And us thinking that the two of yez was off to America," said the -sergeant. - -"I heard that you thought I'd gone," said Dr. O'Grady; "but what made -you suspect poor Patsy?" - -"Hadn't he the funds collected for the sports?" said the sergeant. - -"Be damn!" said Patsy, "but that wasn't the cause of my going off, and -well you know it, sergeant. It's little call you have to be saying -that about me, and you out after me at the time for the murder of the -doctor. Wasn't that enough for you to be saying, without the other?" - -"My wife?" said Mr. Dick. "Did you see her? Was she well?" - -"She's distressed," said the sergeant. "The whole of them's distressed, -and small blame to them. I couldn't rightly tell this minute which of -the ladies was your wife; but they were all round at the barrack this -morning, and it would have gone to your heart to see the way they were." - -"As we're on the subject of ladies," said Dr. O'Grady, "I suppose -Miss Blow is out after me. I heard from Patsy that she'd arrived in -Clonmore." - -"You may say she is," said the sergeant. "She has the officer's heart -fair broke, pursuing him here and there, and not letting him rest in -his bed at night the way he'd have us all scouring the country for your -dead body." - -"And was it looking for me that brought you here, sergeant?" said Dr. -O'Grady. - -"It was after they left the barrack," said the sergeant, "that the -ladies went up to the Castle--Jimmy O'Loughlin's boy showing them the -way--thinking that maybe, being a magistrate, Lord Manton would help -them to find yez. What happened there I couldn't say; but it wasn't -long after us eating our dinner when the officer came down and Lord -Manton along with him and Miss Blow and the other ladies. Such language -you never heard. There was one lady, tall she was, and dark, with a -kind of a grey dress on her, and a big umbrella under her arm with a -stone knob on the end of the handle of it----" - -"My aunt, I think," said Mr. Sanders. - -"She might be. Anyway, barring the doctor's young lady, she was the -worst of them for wanting to have Mr. Red hanged for murdering the lot -of yez." - -"I wouldn't wonder if he was hanged," said Constable Cole, "the way -he's conducting himself. It's scandalous." - -"The orders I got," went on Sergeant Farrelly, "was to proceed -to Rosivera, and ask Mr. Red whether he'd noticed two Members of -Parliament going by his gate on bicycles the day before." - -"And not to be in too great a hurry over the job," said Constable Cole, -"because you was only doing it to satisfy the ladies." - -"Whisht!" said the sergeant; "what call have you to be repeating -confidential orders? So we came along----" - -"Wait a minute," said Dr. O'Grady. "How did you get off without taking -Miss Blow with you? I'd have expected her to insist on going too." - -"She did," said the sergeant; "and it was only by means of a stratagem -we got clear of her. It was Constable Cole invented the stratagem. -He's great at that." - -"How did he manage?" - -"Never mind about the stratagem," said Mr. Sanders; "go on with your -narrative." - -"I'll tell you about it after," said the sergeant to Dr. O'Grady in a -whisper. Then he went on delivering himself of his tale very much as if -he were giving evidence in a court of law. - -"We reached Rosivera at half-past three P.M. We then knocked at the -door and asked for Mr. Red. We stepped into the hall of the house, -Constable Cole being about two paces behind me. A tall man with a black -beard, whom I can identify and swear to if necessary, came out of a -door on the left, and without warning struck at my head with a stick. I -aimed a blow at him with my fist, not having time to draw my baton, and -knocked him down. I was then engaged by two other men. One of them was -Mr. Red, to whom I am prepared to swear. I shouted to Constable Cole -to strike the man on the ground with his baton, in order to keep him -quiet. Constable Cole did not obey my order." - -"I did not," said Constable Cole; "sure I might have killed him." - -"We were then overpowered," said the sergeant, "the man whom I knocked -down coming to the assistance of his comrades. That's all, gentlemen." - -"I suppose," said Mr. Dick, "that your officer will immediately -telegraph for the military?" - -"He might," said the sergeant; "but he won't do it sooner than -to-morrow, anyway. He won't be expecting us home till late to-night." - -"I must warn the Emperor," said Dr. O'Grady. "He had better clear out -at once. I shouldn't like any harm to happen to the Emperor, and I -know he hates soldiers. His whole life is given up to the destruction -of standing armies. He'd break his heart if the military captured him -in the end." - -"Do you mean to say that you intend----" said Mr. Sanders. - -"Of course I do," said Dr. O'Grady. "The Emperor is a thoroughly decent -sort, and has always treated me well. I'm not going to allow him to be -bullied simply to gratify your passion for revenge. You pretend you -think it wrong to gamble, but you're not above entertaining a spite -against the poor Emperor and wanting to stick a knife into him. I -can tell you, Mr. Sanders, that sort of spirit is a jolly sight more -unchristian than losing a few pence to Patsy Devlin over an innocent -game." - -"The police," said Mr. Sanders, confidently, "will see that you do not -assist this criminal to escape from justice." - -He looked at Sergeant Farrelly as he spoke. The sergeant scratched his -head. - -"Tell me this now," he said to Dr. O'Grady; "is this any kind of League -work?" - -"It is not," said the doctor. "I don't suppose the Emperor ever heard -of the League till I mentioned to him the other day that Patsy was a -member of it." - -"If it's not the League," said the sergeant, "and if the doctor will -answer for it that the man's a respectable man----" - -"He is," said the doctor. "Why, my goodness, sergeant, he owns a -motor-car. You've seen it yourself, a remarkably fine motor-car; one -that couldn't have cost less than eight hundred pounds." - -"I don't know," said the sergeant, "that there's any call for me to -interfere with the doctor in the matter. It would be a queer thing now, -and a thing that wouldn't suit me at all, if I was to be preventing the -doctor from speaking to a friend of his anyway that pleases him." - -"He attacked you," said Mr. Sanders; "he knocked you down. He has -imprisoned you, and yet you say----" - -"If he's brought up before the Petty Sessions," said the sergeant, -"I'll tell what he's done; but till he is I don't see what right I -have to put the handcuffs on the doctor on account of what might be no -more than some kind of a joke that's passing between him and another -gentleman...." - - - - -CHAPTER XXV - - -At ten o'clock next morning Jimmy O'Loughlin entered the commercial -room of his hotel. Miss Blow was breakfasting by herself. Miss -Farquharson, who had finished her breakfast an hour earlier, was -writing letters at one end of the long table, having folded back the -white cloth. Mrs. Dick and Mrs. Sanders were still in their bedrooms, -mourning for their husbands. - -"There's five police after coming into the town from Ballymoy," said -Jimmy excitedly; "and it's what I'm after hearing from Moriarty that -there's more expected." - -Miss Blow looked up from her breakfast. Her face expressed irritation -and incredulity. - -"It's the truth I'm telling you," said Jimmy. "Begad, but Mr. Goddard's -the fine man." - -"You told us last night," said Miss Farquharson, "that Mr. Goddard had -vanished like every one else. Has he appeared again?" - -"He never was lost, thanks be to God! He was up with Lord Manton -beyond at the Castle, devising plans and concocting stratagems for the -settling of the matter that's been troubling you; and settled it'll be -now the one way or the other." - -"I know the sort of plans he and Lord Manton would be likely to -devise," said Miss Blow, scornfully. "I've had some experience of them." - -She poured out a cup of tea as she spoke and devoted herself to -her breakfast. Bridgy burst into the room. She appeared to be in a -condition of violent excitement. - -"There's four police on a car," she said, "driving up to the barrack, -and two more along with them on bicycles." - -"Is that four more on top of the first five?" asked Jimmy O'Loughlin. - -"It is, it is," said Bridgy. "The Lord save us and help us! There'd -hardly be more of them if there was to be a Member of Parliament making -speeches about the land!" - -"There now," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, reproachfully, to Miss Blow. "What -did I tell you? Sure, Mr. Goddard's as fine a man as e'er a one that's -in it. It's himself will do a job in fine style when once he takes it -in hand at all. That's eleven men, and Constable Moriarty makes twelve, -and there was a sergeant with the first lot that I seen myself. Was -there e'er a sergeant on the other car, Bridgy?" - -"There was," said Bridgy. "I took notice of him passing, and one of -them two that came on bicycles had two stripes on his arm." - -"That makes two sergeants and an acting sergeant," said Jimmy -O'Loughlin. "What more would you expect? What more would anybody want, -unless it would be a gunboat sent round from Cork? And that's what you -could hardly expect, unless it might be for an eviction on one of the -islands." - -"I'll see what all these men are going to do," said Miss Blow, "before -I give an opinion about them. I've been----" - -"Here's Mr. Goddard himself," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, who was standing -near the window, "and his lordship along with him. And they have the -big waggonette from the Castle and the dog-cart with the yellow cob in -it. Be damn, but it's great!" - -Miss Farquharson stood up and looked out of the window. Miss Blow, -obstinately sceptical, continued to eat her breakfast. Mr. Goddard and -Lord Manton entered the room. - -"Ladies," said Mr. Goddard. "In a quarter of an hour we start for -Rosivera." - -"At the head of a small army," said Lord Manton. "Twelve men armed with -carbines, not counting Mr. Goddard, who wears a sword." - -"Fifteen men," said Mr. Goddard. "I'm expecting three more. They may -arrive at any minute." - -"I suppose," said Miss Blow, "that this is some new kind of trick." - -"Come and see," said Mr. Goddard. "Lord Manton has placed his -waggonette at your disposal. We invite your presence. We insist upon -it." - -"My niece and Mrs. Dick," said Miss Farquharson, "are still in their -bedrooms." - -"Get them out," said Lord Manton, "as quickly as possible. There is no -time to be lost. Military expeditions of this sort cannot possibly be -delayed." - -"If so be," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, "that you'll be wanting me, as a -magistrate, to be taking depositions or the like----" - -"We don't absolutely require you," said Lord Manton; "but we'll be glad -to have you with us." - -"It'll be better, then," said Jimmy, "if I go upstairs and put on a -decent coat and shave myself. Bridgy, will you run like a good girl and -get me a cup of hot water?" - -"You may change your coat," said Mr. Goddard, "but you can't shave. -There isn't time." - -Miss Blow and Miss Farquharson left the room together. - -"Would you have any objection to telling me," said Jimmy O'Loughlin, -"what is it that you're thinking of doing?" - -"It's Lord Manton's plan," said Mr. Goddard, "not mine. The fact is, -we're going to Rosivera to marry Mr. Red either to Miss Blow or Miss -Farquharson." - -"And is that the reason you have the police gathered from the four -corners of the county?" - -"It is," said Mr. Goddard. - -"I wouldn't wonder but you're right. It's ten to one he won't care for -the notion; not but what Miss Blow is a fine-looking young lady, and -that's what I've always said since the first time ever I set eyes on -her." - -The street of Clonmore, the single street which runs from end to end -of the village, presented a most unusual appearance when Miss Blow, -followed by the other three ladies, emerged from the hotel. A long -line of vehicles stretched from the door of the post-office to the -barrack. There were two cars, each holding four policemen. They had -their carbines between their knees and presented a most warlike and -determined appearance. Next came a third car, Jimmy O'Loughlin's, with -two policemen on one side of it, the side left vacant being intended -for Mr. Goddard. Behind it was Lord Manton's dogcart. Jimmy O'Loughlin -was on the back seat, Lord Manton sat beside the groom in front. Next -came the waggonette with Mrs. Patsy Devlin in it. The acting sergeant -and the constable who had arrived on bicycles stood beside their -machines immediately behind the waggonette. They formed a kind of -rear-guard, and could be counted on to frustrate any attempt which Mr. -Red might make to attack the party from behind. - -An eager crowd thronged the footpaths and broke into a cheer when the -ladies appeared. - -"Miss Blow, Miss Farquharson and ladies----" said Mr. Goddard, when the -noise of the cheering had subsided. - -"We thought you were murdered too," said Mrs. Dick. - -"Kindly do not interrupt me," said Mr. Goddard. He felt that he was at -last in a position to assert himself even in the face of Miss Blow. A -man acquires self-confidence when he is in command of an armed force. - -"We start," he said, "for Rosivera, to discover whether Mr. Red, the -man Red, as he has been well described, the tenant of that house, has -anything to do with the extraordinary series of disappearances which -have disturbed the peace of this neighbourhood." - -Lord Manton said, "Hear, hear!" from his seat in the dogcart, and the -crowd cheered again. - -"We invite your presence, ladies, and place the waggonette which you -see at your disposal. When you are seated in it we start at once. God -save the King!" - -"Hear, hear!" said Lord Manton again. - -The four ladies, a little bewildered by this oration, took their seats -in the waggonette. Mr. Goddard got up on his car and gave the order to -march. The expedition started. - -An hour's steady driving brought the party to the top of the hill from -which the gate of Rosivera is visible. Mr. Goddard gave the order to -halt. It was passed forward to the leading car, and the expedition came -to a standstill on the summit of the hill. Mr. Goddard got down from -his car and walked up to Lord Manton. - -"It's a damned awkward thing," he said, "to march up to a man's house -at the head of a body of men like this." - -"Don't say you're thinking of going back," said Lord Manton. "It would -be a shame to disappoint Miss Blow." - -"I'm not going back; but all the same it's awkward. What excuse shall I -make?" - -"If he's been kidnapping people," said Lord Manton, "he won't expect -you to make any excuse." - -"Oh, of course, if he really has. But has he?" - -"The only way of finding out for certain is to go and see. Miss Blow -won't be satisfied with anything less." - -"Damn Miss Blow. Anyhow, we needn't drive up to the house as if we were -a funeral." - -He gave an order to the police, who dismounted. Mr. Goddard marched -at the head of them down the hill. Lord Manton and Jimmy O'Loughlin -followed. The ladies, led by Miss Blow, also followed. At the gate of -Rosivera, Mr. Goddard halted his party. He ordered the police to remain -outside the gate. He invited Lord Manton to accompany him to the house. -Then with a glance at the ladies he told one of the sergeants not to -allow any one else to pass the gate. - -Miss Blow reached the bottom of the hill and prepared to follow Mr. -Goddard along the avenue. She was stopped by the sergeant. Suspecting -some trick to be played on her at this last and critical moment, she -suggested to Miss Farquharson that they should force their way through -the cordon of police, by making, all four of them, a simultaneous rush. -Miss Farquharson refused to do anything of the sort, and gave it as -her opinion that Mrs. Sanders and Mrs. Dick would be quite useless in -a hand-to-hand conflict. Miss Blow left her, walked a little way along -the road, crossed a ditch, and began to climb the wall which enclosed -the Rosivera grounds. The police eyed her doubtfully. They did not want -to lay violent hands on Miss Blow. They excused themselves to their own -consciences. Their orders were to prevent her passing through the gate. -Mr. Goddard had said nothing about what was to be done if she climbed -the wall. - -Mr. Goddard and Lord Manton surveyed the house. It looked peaceful, too -peaceful. There was no sign of its being inhabited. - -"Are you sure," said Mr. Goddard, "that there's anybody here?" - -"I'm not sure," said Lord Manton. "I only know that I let the house to -the man Red. He may or may not be living in it. I never saw him." - -Mr. Goddard walked up to the door and knocked. There was no answer. -He knocked again. Still there was no answer. He turned the handle and -pushed. The door resisted his push. It was locked. - -"What shall we do now?" he said to Lord Manton. - -Then he caught sight of Miss Blow, who was crossing the gravel sweep. - -"Go back," he said; "go back at once. This is no place for ladies." - -"I won't go back," said Miss Blow. "If I did you'd not enter the house -at all. You would come back in ten minutes and say you had searched it -and that there was nobody inside." - -"My dear Miss Blow," said Lord Manton, "Mr. Goddard may perhaps -deserve that, but surely I don't. Be just. Give me credit for common -honesty." - -"I'm sorry I can't do that," said Miss Blow. - -"You might," said Lord Manton. "I gave you tea yesterday." - -"You can come with us if you like," said Mr. Goddard; "but how do you -propose to get in? The door is locked." - -"The top of that is open," said Miss Blow, pointing with her finger to -the window at the left side of the door, "so I suppose the bottom can -be pushed up." - -Mr. Goddard felt like a burglar, which is an unpleasant sensation for a -police officer, but one which he was getting gradually accustomed to. -He had experienced it when he hid in the stable of Jimmy O'Loughlin's -hotel and when he entered his own house by way of the back garden. -He had experienced it when he drove out of Ballymoy in the early -morning and when he tried to escape from Lord Manton's library. He -had experienced it again when he concealed himself in the Clonmore -post-office. He opened the window and climbed in. Miss Blow followed -him. Lord Manton, moving rather stiffly, for he was not used to -climbing, followed her. They stood together in the dining-room. - -"Dear me," said Lord Manton, "what a very remarkable taste Mr. Red has -in wall decoration! Yellow dragons on a crimson ground! Did you ever -see anything like that before, Miss Blow?" - -Miss Blow made no answer. She was opening the doors of the small -cupboards in the sideboard, in the hope, perhaps, of discovering the -mutilated remains of some of Mr. Red's victims. She found nothing but -empty bottles and some wine-glasses. - -"Even the door," said Lord Manton, "has been painted, and there is a -large yellow dragon on it, a mother dragon with several young ones. -You'd better follow her, Goddard." - -He added this hurriedly, and obviously did not refer to the female -dragon. Miss Blow had opened the door and passed through it into the -hall. - -"The door opposite to you," said Lord Manton, "leads into the -drawing-room." - -It did not look like a drawing-room when they entered it. A heavy deal -table, like a carpenter's bench, stood in the middle of the floor, and -on it were a number of curiously shaped metal flasks. There was a pile -of long brass tubes in one corner of the room, which looked like empty -cartridge cases, intended to contain ammunition for some very large -gun. There were wooden shelves all round the walls stocked with thick -glass bottles, such as are seen in chemists' shops, bottles with glass -stoppers. In one corner the floor was charred, as if a fire had been -lighted on it. - -"Nobody here," said Mr. Goddard, looking round. - -Lord Manton was staring curiously at the things about him. He picked up -one of the brass tubes. - -"A.M.B.A.," he read. "What do you suppose that means, Miss Blow? Hullo! -She's gone again. After her, Goddard! We can't allow her to escape. -There may be an explosion at any moment. This place looks uncommonly -explosive, and if she is shattered into little bits her father will -hold us responsible." - -Miss Blow stood at the bottom of the stairs, listening intently. - -"I hear a noise in the upper story," she said. "The house isn't empty." - -Mr. Goddard and Lord Manton listened. - -"There is a noise," said Lord Manton. "Goddard, unsheathe your sword -and proceed cautiously up the first flight of stairs. We will protect -your rear." - -They reached the first floor of the house and the noise became much -more plainly audible. - -"It sounds to me," said Lord Manton, "as if Mr. Red--the man Red, I -mean--and his friends were having a hurdle race in the attics." - -"Go on," said Miss Blow. - -"Let us pause for a moment," said Lord Manton, "and consider the -situation before we rush headlong into some unknown danger. I am -inclined to think that several men are jumping hurdles, and from the -occasional violence of the bumps I should say that one of them is a -heavy man, much heavier than the others. Can you infer anything else -from the noise we hear, Miss Blow? Or you, Goddard? Very well, if -neither of you can, we may as well go on, bearing in mind that there -are several men and that one of them is large." - -They climbed two more flights of stairs and reached the top story of -the house. The noise sounded very loud. Guided by it they reached the -door of a room at the end of the passage. Mr. Goddard knocked. There -was no reply, but this did not surprise him, for the noise inside was -so great as to drown the knock. - -"Go in," said Miss Blow. - -Mr. Goddard turned the handle. "The door is locked," he said. - -"The key is on the outside," said Miss Blow. "Turn it." - -"As landlord of the house," said Lord Manton, "allow me." - -He turned the key and flung open the door. Inside were Dr. O'Grady, Mr. -Dick, Patsy Devlin, Sergeant Farrelly and Constable Cole. They were -playing leapfrog. Mr. Sanders sat on a bed in the corner and watched -them. Dr. O'Grady, executing a splendid bound over Sergeant Farrelly's -broad back, landed on his feet opposite the door just as it opened. - -"Adeline Maud," he said, "I'm delighted to see you. Have you been here -long? I hope you weren't kept waiting at the door." - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI - - -"Dear me!" said Lord Manton; "all our lost sheep found again. One, two, -three, four, five, six. Yes, the whole six of you." - -"You're not dead," said Miss Blow, clutching at Dr. O'Grady's arm; -"you're not dead then, after all." - -"My wife," said Mr. Dick, "my poor wife. Can any of you tell me----" - -"Sergeant Farrelly," said Mr. Goddard. "Will you kindly explain how it -is that I find you here playing leapfrog with----" - -"I thought it was a hurdle race," said Lord Manton. "It sounded exactly -like a hurdle race." - -Sergeant Farrelly drew himself up to attention. - -"In obedience to your orders, sir," he said, "Constable Cole and I -proceeded to Rosivera on our bicycles, leaving Clonmore at a few -minutes after twelve o'clock. Acting on instructions received, we rode -as slowly as possible----" - -"You can leave out that part," said Mr. Goddard, with a glance at Miss -Blow, "and go on." - -"We have been kidnapped and imprisoned here," said Mr. Sanders; "and I -demand that the police shall instantly pursue----" - -"Lucius," said Miss Blow, "have you been imprisoned?" - -"Certainly not," said Dr. O'Grady; "we've been the guests of Mr. Red; -haven't we, Patsy?" - -"We have, be damn!" said Patsy Devlin. "What was there to hinder us -going off any time we wanted?" - -"I don't understand," said Miss Blow. - -"I demand----" said Mr. Sanders again. - -"We were prisoners," said Mr. Dick; "and I join with my friend Sanders -in insisting that the men who captured us shall be brought to justice. -I insist upon it for the sake of my poor wife----" - -"You shut up," said Dr. O'Grady. "If either you or that ass Sanders -says another word, I'll tell how you came to be here." - -"I demand----" said Mr. Sanders. - -"Very well," said Dr. O'Grady. "Excuse me, Adeline Maud, but would you -mind leaving the room for a moment? The story I have to tell is not -exactly one for a lady to listen to." - -"If it's very improper," said Lord Manton, "perhaps I'd better go too. -I was very carefully brought up when I was young." - -"It's simply this," said Dr. O'Grady, "that Mr. Dick was found by the -Emperor bathing on the shore in company with----" - -"I wasn't," said Mr. Dick. - -"You may try to wriggle out of it now," said Dr. O'Grady; "but you -told me at the time that you were, and the other fellow, who says he's -a Member of Parliament, but looks like a commercial traveller, was -mending a bicycle for a lady, who----" - -"If these stories," said Lord Manton, "are the sort which are likely to -break up the happiness of two homes, I hope you won't tell them. Mrs. -Dick and Mrs. Sanders are outside, as well as Miss Farquharson, who is -an aunt." - -"I don't want to tell them," said Dr. O'Grady. "I'd much rather keep -them to myself. But I won't have the Emperor pursued." - -"Sergeant," said Mr. Goddard, "proceed with your evidence, leaving out -all the part about my orders." - -"Why?" said Miss Blow. "Are you ashamed of your orders? What were they?" - -"If you've anything to be ashamed of in the orders you gave, Goddard," -said Dr. O'Grady, "you'd better not have that story told either. I warn -you fairly that if any attempt is made to molest the Emperor, I shall -have those orders of yours, whatever they are, produced in court." - -"We might get on a little," said Lord Manton, "if some one would tell -us who the Emperor is." - -"He's an anarchist," said Mr. Sanders. - -"An anti-military anarchist, a most dangerous man," added Mr. Dick. - -"I've warned you once already," said Dr. O'Grady, "what will happen if -you persist in talking that way. Even supposing the poor old Emperor is -all you say, isn't it a great deal better to blow up a few armies, than -to go about the country deceiving innocent women when each of you has a -wife at home? Patsy Devlin will bear me out in saying that the Emperor -is a most respectable man, large-hearted, generous to a fault; a little -eccentric, perhaps, but a thoroughly good sort." - -"Do explain," said Lord Manton, "who the Emperor is, and how you and -Patsy Devlin and the Members of Parliament and the police all come to -be here, playing leapfrog in an attic." - -"The Emperor," said Dr. O'Grady, "is Mr. Red. He sent for me to -attend a servant of his who had unfortunately scorched the back of his -legs while assisting in some scientific experiments in the Chamber of -Research." - -"The drawing-room?" asked Lord Manton. - -"The room that used to be the drawing-room," said Dr. O'Grady. "I have -been in attendance on the man ever since, earning a fee of five pounds -a day. That doesn't look as if I was badly treated, does it; or as if I -was kept here against my will? There's no other reason, so far, why the -poor Emperor should be ruthlessly pursued, as these gentlemen suggest." - -"No," said Lord Manton. "So far his record is clear. Go on." - -"Patsy Devlin," said Dr. O'Grady, "came here to take refuge from the -police. He hadn't done anything particularly wrong, nothing worse than -usual; but some one had put out the absurd story that he had murdered -me, and advised him to fly to America." - -"I'm afraid I was responsible for that," said Lord Manton. "I -wanted----" - -"Very well," said Dr. O'Grady. "If the Emperor is pursued and caught, -that story will come out too. You will have to explain in open court -why you treated Patsy Devlin in such a way." - -"And why you treated me as you did," said Miss Blow. - -"And why you treated Adeline Maud as you did," said Dr. O'Grady. "I -don't exactly know how you did treat her, but if you pursue the Emperor -I'll insist on finding out." - -"I won't pursue him," said Lord Manton. "I promise not to. As a matter -of fact, I don't want to pursue him in the least. He paid his rent in -advance." - -"Patsy Devlin," said Dr. O'Grady, "was sheltered, lodged, and fed by -the Emperor, and has no complaint whatever to make. Have you, Patsy?" - -"I have not. Only for him, they'd have had me hanged for murdering you, -doctor; which is what I wouldn't do, and never thought of." - -"And you don't want to have the Emperor pursued?" - -"I do not," said Patsy. - -"We pass on," said Dr. O'Grady, "to the case of the two Members of -Parliament--if they are Members of Parliament. I don't want to make -myself unnecessarily unpleasant, especially as I understand that their -wives, their real wives, are waiting for them----" - -"I protest----" said Mr. Dick. - -"I always told you, Goddard," said Lord Manton, "that there was -something of this sort, something uncommonly fishy behind the -disappearance of these two gentlemen. You'll recollect that. But I must -say I didn't expect it to be as bad as this." - -"I protest----" said Mr. Dick and Mr. Sanders together. - -"I need say no more about them," said Dr. O'Grady. "The Emperor, out of -sheer kindness of heart, saved them from what might have been a very -ugly scandal. I don't want to drag the whole thing into the light of -day; but if they insist upon the pursuit of the Emperor, I shall tell -the truth so far as I know it, and the Emperor, when you catch him, -will fill in the details." - -"There's nothing," said Mr. Dick, "absolutely nothing----" - -"There may be nothing," said Lord Manton; "but from the little I've -heard I should say that Mrs. Dick will have a distinct grievance; -and as for your aunt, Mr. Sanders--you know her better than I do, of -course, but she doesn't strike me as the kind of lady who will treat -the doctor's story as a mere trifle." - -"As to the police," said Dr. O'Grady, "I don't profess to explain -exactly how they came here. Goddard seems to have given them some -very peculiar orders, orders that won't bear repeating. I don't want -to probe into the secrets of the force. I have a respect for Sergeant -Farrelly; I used to have a respect for Goddard----" - -"You won't have any respect for him when you hear how he has treated -me," said Miss Blow. - -"You hear that, Goddard?" said Dr. O'Grady. "Adeline Maud says you've -been ill-treating her. That's a thing I can't and won't stand from any -man living, and if you make the smallest attempt to annoy the Emperor -in any way, I'll publish her story in the newspapers, and what's more, -I'll hire the best barrister in Dublin to cross-examine you about the -orders you gave to Sergeant Farrelly and Constable Cole." - -"What you suggest, then," said Lord Manton, "is to leave the whole -matter wrapped in a decent obscurity--to let the dead past bury its -dead. I quite agree. None of us want our share in the proceedings of -the last few days made public. But will Miss Blow consent to allow the -man Red--it's her phrase, doctor, not mine; so don't be angry with -it--to allow the man Red to escape scot free? After all, it was she who -urged us on to have him hanged." - -"Adeline Maud," said Dr. O'Grady, "has more sense than to quarrel with -a man who has been paying me five pounds a day. He suggested four -pounds at first; but he sprang it to a fiver the moment I made the -suggestion." - -"Of course, if Miss Blow is satisfied----" said Lord Manton. - -"She is," said Dr. O'Grady. "Aren't you, Adeline Maud?" - -"Now that I know you're safe----" said Miss Blow. - -"In any case," said Dr. O'Grady, "your pursuit would be quite useless. -The Emperor started at ten o'clock last night in his motor-car. It must -be after twelve now, so he has fourteen hours' start of you. By the -time you get back to Clonmore and send off telegrams----" - -"I shall insist," said Mr. Dick; "I shall never consent----" - -"You go out at once to your wife," said Dr. O'Grady. "Didn't you hear -Lord Manton say that she is outside waiting for you? You've been -swaggering about the way you loved her ever since I first met you -walking about with nothing on you but your shirt. I don't believe you -care a pin about her. If you did, you'd be with her now, relieving her -anxiety, instead of standing about here talking like a born fool. As I -was saying, Goddard, by the time you've sent off telegrams----" - -"I don't want to send off any more telegrams," said Mr. Goddard; "I had -enough of that yesterday." - -"In any case," said Dr. O'Grady, "I don't think you'd catch him, when -he'd have fifteen or sixteen hours' start of your telegrams. It was a -good car, and I don't believe you so much as know the number of it." - -"The only thing that troubles me," said Mr. Goddard, "is the -Inspector-General. He'll be in Clonmore by this time." - -"Is he mixed up in it?" - -"Yes," said Lord Manton. "He and the Lord Lieutenant, and the Chief -Secretary, and the Prime Minister; though I'm not quite sure about the -Prime Minister. It's a State affair. The whole Empire is on the tip-toe -of excited expectation to find out what has happened." - -"All you can do," said Dr. O'Grady, "is to tell them the truth." - -"The truth?" said Lord Manton. - -"Yes; the simple truth, just as I've told it to you; doing your best, -of course, to spare Mr. Sanders and Mr. Dick, especially Mr. Dick, on -account of his poor wife." - -"I'm not sure," said Mr. Goddard, "that they'd believe--I mean to say, -I'm not sure that I could venture to tell them the truth--that exact -kind of truth, I mean." - -"If you don't care to tell it yourself," said Dr. O'Grady, "get Jimmy -O'Loughlin to tell it for you. He'd do it; wouldn't he, Patsy?" - -"Be damn, but he would," said Patsy Devlin. "He'd tell it without as -much as turning a hair, so soon as ever he knew what it was you wanted -him to tell." - - -THE END - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES - -This text has been preserved as in the original, including archaic and -inconsistent spelling, punctuation and grammar, except as noted below. - -Obvious printer's errors have been silently corrected. - -Illustration notation has been moved to below any enclosing paragraph. - -Text in italics in the original work is represented herein as _text_. - -Small capitals in the original work are represented herein as all -capitals. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Search Party, by G. A. 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