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diff --git a/old/thorn10.txt b/old/thorn10.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f87776b --- /dev/null +++ b/old/thorn10.txt @@ -0,0 +1,13937 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Colonel Thorndyke's Secret, by G. A. Henty +#18 in our series by G. A. Henty + +Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the +copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing +this or any other Project Gutenberg eBook. + +This header should be the first thing seen when viewing this Project +Gutenberg file. Please do not remove it. Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Colonel Thorndyke's Secret + +Author: G. A. Henty + +Release Date: May, 2005 [EBook #8155] +[Yes, we are more than one year ahead of schedule] +[This file was first posted on June 21, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COLONEL THORNDYKE'S SECRET *** + + + + +Produced by Martin Robb + + + + +Colonel Thorndyke's Secret +by G. A. Henty. + + + +PUBLISHER'S INTRODUCTION. + + +"Colonel Thorndyke's Secret" is a story so far out of the ordinary +that it will not be inappropriate to speak a few words regarding +the tale and its unusually successful author, Mr. George Alfred +Henty. + +The plot of the story hinges upon the possession of a valuable +bracelet, of diamonds, stolen from a Hindoo idol by a British +soldier in India. This bracelet falls into the possession of Colonel +Thorndyke, who, shortly afterward, is sent home to England because +of his wounds. The secret concerning the bracelet is told to the +Colonel's brother, a country squire, and the treasure is left to +younger members of the Thorndyke family. + +As is well known today, the theft of anything from a Hindoo temple +is considered an extraordinary crime in India, and when this occurs +it becomes a religious duty for one or more persons to hunt down +the thief and bring back the property taken from the heathen god. + +The members of the Thorndyke family soon learn that they are being +watched. But this is at a time when highwaymen are numerous in +this part of England, and they cannot determine whether the work +is that of the "knights of the roads" or that of the Lascars after +the famous bracelet. A mysterious death follows, and the younger +members of the family are almost stunned, not knowing what will +happen next. They would give the bracelet up, but do not know where +it is hidden, the secret having been in the sole possession of the +member now dead. In this quandary the young hero of the tale rises +to the occasion and determines to join the London police force and +become a detective, with the hope of ultimately clearing up the +mystery. Thrilling adventures of a most unusual kind follow, and +at last something of the mystery is explained. The bracelet and. +other jewelry are unearthed, and it is decided to take the bracelet +to Amsterdam and offer it to the diamond cutters at that place. +But the carrying of the bracelet is both difficult and dangerous. +How the mission is brought to a conclusion, and what part the +Lascars played in the final adventure, will be found in the pages +that follow. + +It can truthfully be said that Mr. Henty is easily the most +popular of all English story tellers, his books for boys enjoying +a circulation of from a hundred and fifty thousand to two hundred +and fifty thousand per year. His tales are all clean, and although +some are full of exciting situations and thrilling to the last +degree, they are of a high moral tone, while the English employed +is of the best. + +The present story is of peculiar value as giving a good insight +into country and town life in England over a hundred years ago, when +railways and telegraph lines were unknown and when the "knights of +the road" were apt to hold up any stagecoach that happened to come +along. It also gives a truthful picture of the dark and underhanded +work accomplished at times by those of East Indian blood, especially +when on what they consider a religious mission. + + + +CHAPTER I. + + +Squire Thorndyke, of the Manor House of Crawley, was, on the 1st +of September; 1782, walking up and down the little terrace in front +of the quaint old house in an unusually disturbed mood. He was a +man of forty three or four, stoutly and strongly built, and inclined +to be portly. Save the loss of his wife four years before, there +had been but little to ruffle the easy tenor of his life. A younger +son, he had, at his mother's death, when he was three and twenty, +come in for the small estate at Crawley, which had been her jointure. + +For ten years he had led a life resembling that of most of his +neighbors; he had hunted and shot, been a regular attendant at any +main of cocks that was fought within fifteen miles of Crawley, had +occasionally been up to London for a week or two to see the gay +doings there. Of an evening he had generally gone down to the inn, +where he talked over, with two or three of his own condition and +a few of the better class of farmers, the news of the day, the war +with the French, the troubles in Scotland, the alarming march of +the Young Pretender, and his defeat at Culloden--with no very +keen interest in the result, for the Southern gentry and yeomen, +unlike those in the North, had no strong leanings either way. They +had a dull dislike for Hanoverian George, but no great love for the +exiled Stuarts, whose patron, the King of France, was an enemy of +England. + +More often, however, their thoughts turned upon local topics--the +holding up of the coach of Sir James Harris or Squire Hamilton by +highwaymen; the affray between the French smugglers and the Revenue +men near Selsea Bill or Shoreham; the delinquencies of the poaching +gangs; the heaviness of the taxes, and the price of corn. + +At the age of thirty-three Squire Thorndyke married the daughter +of a neighboring landowner; a son was born and three years later +Mrs. Thorndyke died. Since then the Squire had led a more retired +life; he still went down to smoke his pipe at the inn parlor, +but he gave up his visits to town; and cock fights, and even bull +baiting, were no longer attractions to him. He was known as a good +landlord to the three or four farmers who held land under him; was +respected and liked in the village, where he was always ready to +assist in cases of real distress; was of an easygoing disposition +and on good terms with all his neighbors. + +But today he was unusually disturbed in his mind. A messenger had +ridden up two hours before with a letter from London. It was as +follows: + +"MY DEAR BROTHER JOHN: + +"You will be surprised indeed at this letter from me, who, doubtless, +you suppose to be fighting in India. I have done with fighting, +and am nearly done with life. I was shot in the battle of Buxar, +eighteen months ago. For a time the surgeons thought that it was +going to be fatal; then I rallied, and for some months it seemed +that, in spite of the ball that they were never able to find, I was +going to get over it, and should be fit for service again. Then I +got worse; first it was a cough, then the blood used to come up, +and they said that the only chance for me was to come home. I did +not believe it would be of any use, but I thought that I would +rather die at home than in India, so home I came, and have now been +a week in London. + +"I thought at first of going down to my place at Reigate, and having +you and your boy there with me; but as I have certainly not many +weeks, perhaps not many days, to live, I thought I would come down +to you; so the day after you receive this letter I shall be with +you. I shall not bring my little girl down; I have left her in good +hands, and I shall only bring with me my Hindoo servant. He will +give you no trouble--a mat to sleep on, and a little rice to eat, +will satisfy his wants; and he will take the trouble of me a good +deal off your hands. He was a Sepoy in my regiment, and has always +evinced the greatest devotion for me. More than once in battle +he has saved my life, and has, for the last three years, been my +servant, and has nursed me since I have been ill as tenderly as a +woman could have done. As I shall have time to tell you everything +when I arrive, I will say no more now." + +The news had much affected John Thorndyke. His brother George was +five years his senior, and had gone out as a cadet in the company's +service when John was but thirteen, and this was his first home +coming. Had it not been for a portrait that had been taken of him in +his uniform just before he sailed, John would have had but little +remembrance of him. In that he was represented as a thin, spare +youth, with an expression of quiet determination in his face. From +his father John had, of course, heard much about him. + +"Nothing would satisfy him but to go out to India, John. There was, +of course, no occasion for it, as he would have this place after +me--a fine estate and a good position: what could he want more? +But he was a curious fellow. Once he formed an opinion there was +no persuading him to change it. He was always getting ideas such +as no one else would think of; he did not care for anything that +other people cared for; never hunted nor shot. He used to puzzle me +altogether with his ways, and, 'pon my word, I was not sorry when +he said he would go to India, for there was no saying how he might +have turned out if he had stopped here. He never could do anything +like anybody else: nothing that he could have done would have +surprised me. + +"If he had told me that he intended to be a play actor, or a Jockey, +or a private, or a book writer, I should not have been surprised. +Upon my word, it was rather a relief to me when he said, 'I +have made up my mind to go into the East India Service, father. I +suppose you can get me a cadetship?' At least that was an honorable +profession; and I knew, anyhow, that when he once said 'I have +made up my mind, father,' no arguments would move him, and that if +I did not get him a cadetship he was perfectly capable of running +away, going up to London, and enlisting in one of their white +regiments." + +John Thorndyke's own remembrances were that his brother had always +been good natured to him, that he had often told him long stories +about Indian adventures, and that a short time before he went away, +having heard that he had been unmercifully beaten by the schoolmaster +at Reigate for some trifling fault, he had gone down to the town, +and had so battered the man that the school had to be closed for +a fortnight. They had always kept up a correspondence. When he +received the news of his father's death George had written to him, +begging him to go down to Reigate, and to manage the estate for +him. + +"Of course," he said, "you will draw its income as long as you are +there. I mayn't be back for another twenty years; one gets rich +out here fast, what with plunder and presents and one thing and +another, and it is no use to have money accumulating at home, so +just live on the place as if it were your own, until I come home +to turn you out." + +John had declined the offer. + +"I am very well where I am," he wrote, "and the care of the estate +would be a horrible worry to me; besides, I have just married, and +if I ever have any children they would be brought up beyond their +station. I have done what I can for you. I have seen the family +lawyers, who have engaged a man who has been steward to Sir John +Hieover, and looked after the estate during his son's minority. +But the young blade, on coming of age, set to work to make ducks +and drakes of the property, and Newman could not bear to see the +estate going to the Jews, so, as luck would have it, he resigned +a month ago, and has been appointed steward at Reigate. Of course, +if you don't like the arrangement you must write and say so. It will +be a year before I get your answer, and he has only been engaged +for certain for that time; it must lie with you as to permanent +arrangement." + +So Newman had taken charge of the Reigate estate, and had continued +to manage it ever since, although George had written home in great +displeasure at his offer being refused. + +Inside the Manor the bustle of preparations was going on; the spare +room, which had not been used for many years, was being turned +out, and a great fire lighted to air it. John Thorndyke had sent +a letter by the returning messenger to a friend in town, begging +him to go at once to Leadenhall Street and send down a supply +of Indian condiments for his brother's use, and had then betaken +himself to the garden to think the matter over. The next day a +post chaise arrived, bringing the invalid and his colored servant, +whose complexion and Indian garb struck the maids with an awe not +unmingled with alarm. John Thorndyke could hardly believe that the +bent and emaciated figure was that of his brother, but he remembered +the voice when the latter said, holding out his hand to him: + +"Well, brother John, here I am, what is left of me. Gracious, man, +who would have thought that you were going to grow up such a fine +tall fellow? You are more fitted to be a soldier than I am. No, +don't try to help me out; Ramoo will do that--he is accustomed +to my ways, and I would as soon trust myself to a rogue elephant +as to you." + +"I am sorry to see you looking so bad, brother George." + +"What must be must. I have had my fling; and after thirty years +of marching and fighting, I have no right to grumble if I am laid +upon my back at last." + +Leaning on Ramoo's arm, Colonel Thorndyke made his way into the +house, and when the Hindoo had arranged the cushions of the sofa, +took his place there in a half reclining position. + +"I am not always as bad as this, John," he said; "the jolting +of your confounded roads has been too much for me. If I were the +King I would hang every fellow who had anything to do with them-- +contractors, boards of county magistrates, and the whole lot. If I +had known what it was going to be like I would have hired a sedan +chair, and had myself carried down. That is what I have been doing +in London; but I would rather have had an Indian palkee, that one +could have lain down comfortably in." + +"What shall I get you first, George? I have got some lemons." + +"I want something better than lemons, John. Have you any Burgundy +handy?" + +"Yes, plenty." + +"If you give a bottle to Ramoo he will know how much water I want." + +Here the servants entered with a tray with a chicken and a dish of +kidneys. + +"I sent up yesterday for some of the Indian things that you are +accustomed to, George, but they have not come down yet." + +"I brought a store down with me. This will do capitally for the +present. Ramoo will do the cooking for me in future. He need not +go into the kitchen to scare the maids. I could see they looked at +him as if he had been his infernal majesty, as he came in. He can +do it anywhere; all he wants is an iron pot with some holes in it, +and some charcoal. He can squat out there on the veranda, or, if +it is bad weather, any shed will do for him. + +"Well, it is nice to be home again, John," he went on, after he had +eaten a few mouthfuls of chicken and drunk a tumbler of Burgundy +and water. "I am glad to be back, now I am here, though I dare say +I should not have come home for another ten years if it had not +been for this rascally bullet. Where is your boy?" + +"He is away at school." + +"Well, I think I will go up to bed at once, if you don't mind, +John. I shall be fitter to talk in the morning." + +The next day, indeed, Colonel Thorndyke was materially better. His +voice was stronger and more cheery, and when he came down after +breakfast he took his seat in an easy chair instead of on the sofa. + +"Now, brother," he said, "we will have a cozy chat. There are several +things I want done, but the chief of these is that when I am gone +you should go down to Reigate, as I wanted you to do ten years +ago. I want you to seem to be its master, as well as be its master, +until Millicent comes of age, if not longer. Her name is Millicent +Conyers Thorndyke. I wish her to be called Millicent Conyers, and +to appear as your ward, and not as your niece and heiress of the +property. If there is one thing in the world I have a greater horror +of than another, it is of a girl being married for her money. I +don't suppose that anyone knows that I have a daughter--at any +rate, none beyond a few Indian chums. She was sent home with an +ayah under the charge of the widow of a comrade of mine. I had been +away for months, and only went back to Calcutta in time to see her +mother die. So that is all right." + +"I could not do such a thing as that, George. I should be living +under false colors. It is not that I mind so much leaving here +and looking after the child's interest at Reigate, but I could not +possibly take possession of the place as its owner when I should +not be so. Besides, there are other objections. Mark would grow up +supposing himself to be the heir." + +"Mark will be all right. I have, since I have been in London, +signed a will, leaving the rest of my fortune between them. I had +it drawn up by our father's solicitors, relying upon your consent +to do what I asked you. I have explained the matter to them, and +given them the assignment, or whatever they call it, of the Reigate +estate to you, until my daughter comes of age, appointing them her +guardians should you die before that. Thus, you will be placed in +a proper position; and should it be known by any means that the +child is my daughter, that deed will still be a proof that you +are carrying out my wishes, and are absolute master of the estate +until she comes of age." + +"I must think it all over, George. It is a singular proposal, and +I own I would rather things went on in their regular course." + +"Yes, yes, I understand that, John; but you see I have altogether +set my mind on this matter. I want to know that my girl is not going +to be married for her money; and, at any rate, that deed makes you +master of the Reigate estates for the next thirteen years; so the +only thing that I really want of you is to let the girl be called +your ward instead of your niece, and that she and everyone else +shall be in ignorance that she is an heiress. So far from doing +the girl a wrong, you will be doing her a benefit; and as I have +explained the whole matter to our lawyers, no one can possibly think +that the thing has been done from any motive whatever except that +of affording me satisfaction." + +"I will think the matter over," John repeated. "Of course, brother, +it has been in your mind for some time, but it comes altogether +fresh to me, and I must look at it in every light. For myself, +I have no wish at all to become master of our father's estate. I +have been going in one groove for the last twenty years, and don't +care about changing it. You wished me to do so ten years ago, and +I declined then, and the ten years have not made me more desirous +of change than I was before." + +"All right; think it over. Please send Ramoo in to me; I have tired +myself in talking." + +John Thorndyke smoked many churchwarden pipes in the little arbor +in his garden that day. In the afternoon his brother was so weak +and tired that the subject of the conversation was not reverted +to. At eight o'clock the Colonel went off to bed. The next morning, +after breakfast, he was brighter again. + +"Well, John, what has come of your thinking?" he asked. + +"I don't like it, George." + +"You mayn't like it, John, but you will do it. I am not going to +have my girl run after by ruined spendthrifts who want her money +to repair their fortunes; and I tell you frankly, if you refuse I +shall go up to town tomorrow, and I shall make a new will, leaving +all my property to your son, subject to a life annuity of 200 pounds +a year to the child, and ordering that, in the event of his dying +before he comes of age, or of refusing to accept the provisions +of the will, or handing any of the property or money over to my +daughter, the whole estate, money, jewels, and all, shall go to +the London hospitals, subject, as before, to the annuity. + +"Don't be an ass, brother John. Do you think that I don't know what +I am doing? I have seen enough of the evils of marrying for money +out in India. Every ship that comes out brings so many girls sent +out to some relation to be put on the marriage market, and marrying +men old enough to be pretty nearly their grandfathers, with the +natural consequence that there is the devil to pay before they +have been married a year or two. Come, you know you will do it; +why not give in at once, and have done with it? It is not a bad +thing for you, it will be a good thing for your boy, it will save +my girl from fortune hunters, and enable me to die quietly and +comfortably." + +"All right, George, I will do it. Mind, I don't do it willingly, +but I do it for your sake." + +"That is right," Colonel Thorndyke said, holding out his thin bronzed +hand to his brother; "that is off my mind. Now, there is only one +other thing--those confounded jewels. But I won't talk about them +now." + +It was not indeed till three or four days later that the Colonel +again spoke to his brother on any than ordinary matters. He had +indeed been very weak and ailing. After breakfast, when, as usual, +he was a little stronger and brighter than later in the day, he +said to his brother suddenly:-- + +"I suppose there are no hiding places in this room?" + +"Hiding places! What do you mean, George?" + +"Places where a fellow could hide up and hear what we are talking +about." + +"No, I don't think so," the Squire replied, looking round vaguely. +"Such an idea never occurred to me. Why do you ask?" + +"Because, John, if there is such a thing as a hiding place, someone +will be sure to be hiding there. Where does that door lead to?" + +"It doesn't lead anywhere; it used to lead into the next room, but +it was closed up before my time, and turned into a cupboard, and +this door is permanently closed." + +"Do you mind stepping round into the next room and seeing if anyone +is in the cupboard?" + +Thinking that his brother was a little light headed, John Thorndyke +went into the next room, and returned, saying gravely that no one +was there. + +"Will you look behind the curtains, John, and under this sofa, and +everywhere else where even a cat could be hidden? That seems all +right," the Colonel went on, as his brother continued the search. +"You know there is a saying that walls have ears, and I am not +sure that it is not so. I have been haunted with the feeling that +everything I did was watched, and that everything I said was listened +to for years; and I can tell you it is a devilishly unpleasant +thought. Draw your chair quite close to me. It is about my jewels, +John. I always had a fancy for jewels--not to wear them, but to +own them. In my time I have had good opportunities in that way, both +in the Madras Presidency and in the Carnatic. In the first place, +I have never cared for taking presents in money, but I have never +refused jewels; and what with Rajahs and Nabobs and Ministers that +one had helped or done a good turn to somehow, a good deal came to +me that way. + +"Then I always made a point of carrying money with me, and after +a defeat of the enemy or a successful siege, there was always lots +of loot, and the soldiers were glad enough to sell anything in the +way of jewels for a tithe of their value in gold. I should say if +I put the value of the jewels at 50,000 pounds I am not much wide +of the mark. That is all right, there is no bother about them; +the trouble came from a diamond bracelet that I got from a soldier. +We were in camp near Tanjore. I was officer of the day. I had +made my rounds, and was coming back to my quarters, when I saw a +soldier coming out of a tent thirty or forty yards away. It was a +moonlight night, and the tent was one belonging to a white Madras +regiment. Suddenly, I saw another figure, that had been lying down +outside the tent, rise. I saw the flash of the moonlight on steel; +then there was a blow, and the soldier fell. I drew my sword and +rushed forward. + +"The native--for I could see that it was a native--was bending +over the man he had stabbed. His back was towards me, and on the +sandy soil he did not hear my footsteps until I was close to him; +then he sprang up with a cry of fury, and leaped on me like a +tiger. I was so taken by surprise that before I could use my sword +the fellow had given me a nasty stab on the shoulder; but before +he could strike again I had run him through. By this time several +other, men ran out of the tent, uttering exclamations of rage at +seeing their fallen comrade. + +"'What is it, sir?' they asked me. + +"'This scoundrel, here, has stabbed your comrade,' I said. 'He did +not see me coming, and I ran up just as he was, I think, rifling +him for booty. He came at me like a wild cat, and has given me a +nasty stab. However, I have put an end to his game. Is your comrade +dead?' + +"'No, sir, he is breathing still; but I fancy there is little chance +for him.' + +"'You had better carry him to the hospital tent at once; I will +send a surgeon there.' + +"I called the regimental surgeon up, and went with him to the +hospital tent, telling him what had happened. He shook his head after +examining the man's wound, which was fairly between the shoulders. + +"'He may live a few hours, but there is no chance of his getting +better.' + +"'Now,' I said, 'you may as well have a look at my wound, for the +villain stabbed me too.' + +"'You have had a pretty narrow escape of it,' he said, as he +examined it. 'If he had struck an inch or two nearer the shoulder +the knife would have gone right into you; but you see I expect he +was springing as he struck, and the blow fell nearly perpendicularly, +and it glanced down over your ribs, and made a gash six inches long. +There is no danger. I will bandage it now, and tomorrow morning I +will sew the edges together, and make a proper job of it.' + +"In the morning one of the hospital attendants came to me and said +the soldier who had been wounded wanted to speak to me. The doctor +said he would not live long. I went across to him. He was on a bed +some little distance from any of the others, for it was the healthy +season, and there were only three or four others in the tent. + +"'I hear, Major Thorndyke,' he said in a low voice, 'that you +killed that fellow who gave me this wound, and that you yourself +were stabbed.' + +"'Mine is not a serious business, my man,' I said. 'I wish you had +got off as easily.' + +"'I have been expecting it, sir,' he said; 'and how I came to be +fool enough to go outside the tent by myself I cannot think. I was +uneasy, and could not sleep; I felt hot and feverish, and came out +for a breath of fresh air. I will tell you what caused it, sir. +About two years ago a cousin of mine, in one of the King's regiments, +who was dying, they said, of fever (but I know the doctors thought +he had been poisoned), said to me, "Here are some things that +will make your fortune if ever you get to England; but I tell you +beforehand, they are dangerous things to keep about you. I fancy +that they have something to do with my being like this now. A year +ago I went with some others into one of their great temples on +a feast day. Well, the god had got on all his trinkets, and among +them was a bracelet with the biggest diamonds I ever saw. I did not +think so much of it at the time, but I kept on thinking of them +afterwards, and it happened that some months after our visit we +took the place by storm. I made straight for the temple, and I got +the jewels. It don't matter how I got them--I got them. Well, +since that I have never had any peace; pretty near every night one +or other of our tents was turned topsy turvy, all the kits turned +out, and even the ground dug up with knives. You know how silently +Indian thieves can work. However, nothing was ever stolen, and as +for the diamonds, at the end of every day's march I always went +out as soon as it was quite dark, and buried the bracelet between +the tent pegs; it did not take a minute to do. When we moved, of +course, I took it up again. At last I gave that up, for however +early I turned out in the morning there was sure to be a native +about. I took then to dropping it down the barrel of my gun; that +way I beat them. Still, I have always somehow felt myself watched, +and my tent has been disturbed a great deal oftener than any of +the others. I have had half a mind to throw the things away many +a time, but I could not bring myself to do it." + +"'Well, sir, I have carried the bracelet ever since. I have done +as he did, and always had it in my musket barrel--When we had +fighting to do I would drop it out into my hand and slip it into +my ammunition pouch; but I know that I have always been followed, +just as Bill was. I suppose they found out that I went to see him +before he died. Anyhow, my tent has been rummaged again and again. +I have no doubt that fellow whom you killed last night had been +watching me all the time, and thought that I had come out to hide +the things. However, there they are, sir. One of my mates brought +my musket here a quarter of an hour ago, and emptied the barrel +out for me. Now, sir, you did your best to save my life last night, +and you killed that fellow who did for me, and you pretty nearly +got killed yourself. I have got no one else I could give the things +to, and if I were to give them to one of my mates in the regiment +they would probably cost him his life, as they have cost me mine. +But you will know what to do with the things; they are worth a lot +of money if you can get them home. Mind, sir, you have got to be +careful. I have heard tales of how those priests will follow up +a temple jewel that has been lost for years, and never give it up +until they get it back again.' + +"'I ought to give it up,' I said. + +"'You don't know where it came from, sir,' he replied. 'I was one +of a party of convalescents who were sent up just before that fight, +and my own regiment was not there: it might have been here, and it +might have been in the Carnatic. Bill never told me, and I have no +more idea than a babe unborn.' + +"The gems were certainly magnificent; and though I knew well enough +that these untiring Brahmins would not be long in guessing that the +things had come into my possession, I took the bracelet. I thought, +anyhow, that I might have a few hours' start; the fellow I had +killed might, of course, have one or two others with him, but I had +to risk that. I got leave an hour later, and went down to Madras, +and got them put into a place of safety. That I was watched all +the time I was in India afterwards I have no doubt, but no attempts +were made to assassinate me. They would have known that I went +straight away, but whether I had buried them somewhere on the road, +or had given them to someone's care at Madras they could not know, +and there was, therefore, nothing for them to do but to wait till +I made a move. + +"I have no doubt whatever that they came over in the same ship +with me. Two or three times during the week I was in London I saw +colored men in the street outside the hotel. Once it was a Lascar +seaman, another time a dark looking sailor in European clothes: he +might pass for a Spaniard. Several times as I was going about in a +sedan chair I looked out suddenly, and each time there was a dark +face somewhere in the street behind. I had a letter this morning +from the lawyer, and he mentioned that two days ago his offices +had been broken into, and every strong box and drawer forced open, +but that, curiously enough, they could not find that anything had +been stolen, though in the cashier's box there were 30 pounds in +gold. Of course it was my friends. I have no doubt that one or two +of them have followed me down here; and for anything I know they +may be lurking somewhere in your garden at the present moment-- +that is, if they are not standing beside us in this room." + +John Thorndyke looked round with an uncomfortable feeling. + +"How do you mean, George?" + +"I mean some of those Indian fellows can do all sorts of wonderful +conjuring tricks. I have seen them go up into the air on a rope +and never come down again, and for aught I know they may be able to +render themselves invisible. Seriously, I think that it is likely +as not." + +"Well, and where are the things to be found now, George?" + +"That I won't tell you, John. Before I go I will whisper it in your +ear, and give you the means of finding them, but not till then. +No, I will write it down on a piece of paper, and slip it into your +hand. As soon as you get out of the room you glance at it, and then +put the piece of paper into your mouth, chew it up and swallow it. +I tell you I dare not even whisper it; but whatever you do, take +no steps in the matter until your son comes of age." + +"There can surely be no danger in another twelve years, George; +they will have given up the search long before that." + + +"Not they," the Colonel said emphatically. "If they die others will +take their places: it is a sacred business with them. My advice to +you is, either sell them directly you get them into your hands, or +go straight to Amsterdam and sell them there to one of the diamond +cutters, who will turn them out so that they will be altered beyond +all recognition. Don't sell more than two stones at most to any +one man; then they will never come out as a bracelet again, and +the hunt will be over." + + +"I would almost rather leave them alone altogether, George." + +"Well, they are worth 50,000 pounds if they are worth a penny, and +a great deal more I should say; but you cannot leave them alone +without leaving everything alone, for all my gems are with them, +and 52,000 pounds in gold. Of course, if you like you can, when +you get the box, pick those diamonds out and chuck them away, but +if you do you must do it openly, so that anyone watching you may +see you do it, otherwise the search will go on." + +Two days later, as Ramoo was helping the Colonel to the sofa, the +latter was seized with a violent fit of coughing, then a rush of +blood poured from his lips. His brother and Ramoo laid him on the +sofa almost insensible. + +"Run and get some water, Ramoo," John Thorndyke said. + +As Ramoo left the room the Colonel feebly placed his snuffbox in +his brother's hand with a significant glance; then he made several +desperate efforts to speak, and tried to struggle up into a sitting +position; another gush of blood poured from him, and as it ceased +he fell back dead. + +John Thorndyke was bitterly grieved at the death of his brother, +and it was not until he went up to his room that night that he +thought of the snuffbox that he had dropped into his pocket as his +brother handed it to him. He had no doubt that it contained the +instructions as to the treasure. It was of Indian manufacture. He +emptied the snuff from it, but it contained nothing else. He was +convinced that the secret must be hidden there, and after in vain +endeavoring to find a spring, he took a poker and hammered it, +and as it bent a spring gave way, and showed a very shallow false +bottom. + +In this was a thin gold coin, evidently of considerable antiquity, +and a small piece of paper, on which was written the word "Masulipatam." +John Thorndyke looked at it in bewilderment; that it was connected +with the secret he felt certain, but alone it was absolutely +useless. Doubtless his brother had intended to give him the key of +the riddle, when he had so desperately striven to speak. After in +vain thinking the matter over he said: + +"Well, thank goodness; there is nothing to be done about the matter +for another thirteen or fourteen years; it is of no use worrying +about it now." He went to an old fashioned cabinet, and placed the +coin and piece of paper in a very cunningly devised secret drawer. +The next morning he went out into the garden and dropped the battered +snuffbox into the well, and then dismissed the subject from his +mind. + + + +CHAPTER II + + +Standing some two miles out of Reigate is the village of Crowswood, +a quiet place and fairly well to do, thanks in no small degree to +Squire Thorndyke, who owned the whole of the, parish, and by whom +and his tenants the greater portion of the village were employed. +Greatly had the closing of the Manor House, after the death of old +Squire Thorndyke, been felt. There were no more jellies, soups, and +other comforts to be looked for in time of sickness, no abatement +of rent when the breadwinner was sick or disabled, no check to +the drunkards, whom the knowledge that they would be turned out of +their cottage at a week's notice kept in some sort of order. When, +therefore, after ten years of absence of all government, John +Thorndyke, after the death of his brother, the Colonel, came down +and took possession, he found the place sadly changed from what +it had been when he had left it twenty years before. His first act +was to dismiss Newman; who, completely unchecked, had, he found, +been sadly mismanaging affairs. It was not long, however, before +his hand made itself felt. Two out of the three public houses were +shut up in six months, a score of their habitual frequenters had, +weeks before, been turned out of their houses, an order had been +issued that unless a cottage was kept in good order and the garden +bright and blooming with flowers in the summer a fresh tenant would +be found for it. Every child must be sent to the village school; +the Squire was ready to do what there was to be done in the way of +thatching and whitewashing, repairing palings and painting doors +and windows, but, as he told the people, the village had to be kept +clean and decent, and anyone who would not conform to the rules +was at liberty to leave without a day's notice. + +Many of the villagers grumbled under their breath, but public opinion +was, on the whole, favorable. There was someone to look after them +now, someone who would see that the greater portion of the wages +was not spent at the alehouse, who would take an interest in +the people, and would lend a helping hand in bad times. There was +a feeling of regret that the Squire was a widower, but the post +of visitor and almoner was well supplied by the lady who acted as +companion and governess to the Squire's little ward and regulated +the affairs of his household. + +John Thorndyke had never had much occasion for the display of energy +before, but he had an abundance of it, although hitherto latent. +He had come into this business against his will, but he took it up +with a determination to do well in it. The income was legally his +until his niece came of age, but he was determined he would take +nothing out of the estate beyond the necessary expenses of the +position, and that all surplus should be expended in improving it +in every way possible, so that he could hand it over to her in the +most perfect condition. Therefore, when he came into possession +he made a close inspection of the farms, with their houses, barns, +and other tenements. Where he saw that the men were doing their best, +that the hedges and fields were in good order, he did everything +that was necessary without a word; but where there were slovenly +farming and signs of neglect and carelessness, he spoke out his +mind sharply. + +"This has all got to be amended," he said. "What must be done I +will do, but unless I see things well kept up, the fences in good +order, the hedges cut, the cattle in good condition, and everything +going on as it ought to be, out you go next Christmas. The estate +at present is a disgrace to the county, but it shall not be so any +longer if I can help it. I shall do my share, and anyone who is not +prepared to do the same had better look out for another holding at +once." + +No one rejoiced more at the coming home of the Squire than Mr. +Bastow, the Rector. He had had a pleasant time of it during the +life of the old Squire. He was always a welcome guest at the house; +Mr. Thorndyke had been ever ready to put his hand into his pocket +for any repairs needed for the church, and bore on his shoulders +almost the entire expense of the village school. In the latter +respect there had been no falling off, he having given explicit +instructions to his solicitors to pay his usual annual subscriptions +to the school until his son's return from India. But with the death +of the Squire the Rector had gradually lost all authority in the +village. + +For a time force of habit had had its effect, but as this wore +out and the people recognized that he had no real authority things +went from bad to worse. Drunken men would shout jeeringly as they +passed the Rectory on their way home from the alehouse; women +no longer feared reproof for the untidiness of their houses and +children; the school was half emptied and the church almost wholly +so. + +For seven or eight years Mr. Bastow had a hard time of it. It +was, then, both with pleasure as an old friend, and with renewed +hopefulness for the village, that he visited John Thorndyke on his +return. The change in the state of affairs was almost instantaneous. +As soon as it became known that the Rector was backed, heart and +soul, by the Squire's authority, and that a complaint from him was +followed the next day by a notice to quit at the end of a week, +his own authority was established as firmly as it had been in the +old Squire's time, and in a couple of years Crowswood became quite +a model village. Every garden blossomed with flowers; roses and +eglantine clustered over the cottages, neatness and order prevailed +everywhere. + +The children were tidily dressed and respectful in manner, the +women bright and cheerful, and the solitary alehouse remaining had +but few customers, and those few were never allowed to transgress +the bounds of moderation. The Squire had a talk with the landlord +a fortnight after his arrival. + +"I am not going to turn you out, Peters," he said. "I hear that +you make some efforts to keep your house decently; the other two I +shall send packing directly their terms are up. Whether you remain +permanently must depend upon yourself. I will do up your house for +you, and build a bar parlor alongside, where quiet men can sit and +smoke their pipes and talk and take their beer in comfort, and have +liberty to enjoy themselves as long as their enjoyment does not +cause annoyance to other people or keep their wives and children in +rags. I will do anything for you if I find the place well conducted; +but I warn you that I will have no drunkenness. A man who, to my +knowledge, gets drunk twice, will not get drunk a third time in +this parish, and if you let men get drunk here it is your fault as +much as theirs. Now we understand each other." + +Things once placed on a satisfactory footing, the Squire had but +little more trouble, and it soon came to be understood that he was +not to be trifled with, and that Crowswood was no longer a place +for the idle or shiftless. Two or three of the farmers left at the +termination of their year, but better men took their places, and +John Thorndyke, having settled matters to his satisfaction, now +began to attend more to other affairs. He had been, when he first +came back, welcomed with great heartiness by all the gentry of the +neighborhood; his father had been a popular man, and young Thorndyke +had been regarded as a pleasant young fellow, and would in any case +have been welcomed, if only because Crowswood had become a nuisance +to the whole district. It was, indeed, a sort of rendezvous for +poachers and bad characters, it was more than suspected that gangs +of thieves and burglars made it their headquarters, and that even +highwaymen found it a convenient and quiet resort. + +Thus, then, the transformation effected within a few months of Mr. +Thorndyke's return caused general and lively satisfaction, and a +year later he was put on the Commission of the Peace, and became +one of the most regular attendants at the Bench of Magistrates. +Reluctantly as he had taken up his present position, he found it, +as time went on, a pleasant one. He had not been conscious before +that time hung somewhat heavily on his hands, but here he had +duties to perform and ample employment. His nature was naturally +somewhat a masterful one, and both as a magistrate and a landlord +he had scope and power of action. Occasionally he went up to London, +always driving his gig, with a pair of fast trotting horses, and +was known to the frequenters of the coffee houses chiefly patronized +by country gentlemen. Altogether, John Thorndyke became quite a +notable person in the district, and men were inclined to congratulate +themselves upon the fact that he, and not the Indian officer, his +brother, had come into the estate. + +The idea of an old Indian officer in those days was that he was +almost of necessity an invalid, and an irritable one, with a liver +hopelessly deranged, a yellow complexion, and a hatred of the +English climate. The fact that, instead of leaving the army and +coming home at his father's death, George Thorndyke had chosen to +remain abroad and leave the estate to the management of agents, had +specially prejudiced him in the eyes of the people of that part, +and had heightened the warmth with which they had received his +brother. John Thorndyke had upon the occasion, of his first visit +to the family solicitors spoken his mind with much freedom as to +the manner in which Newman had been allowed a free hand. + +"Another ten years," he said, "and there would not have been +a cottage habitable on the estate, nor a farm worth cultivating. +He did absolutely nothing beyond collecting the rents. He let the +whole place go to rack and ruin. The first day I arrived I sent him +out of the house, with a talking to that he won't forget as long +as he lives." + +"We never heard any complaints about him, Mr. Thorndyke, except +that I think we did once hear from the Rector of the place that +his conduct was not satisfactory. I remember that we wrote to him +about it, and he said that the Rector was a malignant fellow, on +bad terms with all his parishioners." + +"If I had the scoundrel here," John Thorndyke said with indignation, "I +would let him have a taste of the lash of my dog whip. You should +not have taken the fellow's word; you should have sent down someone +to find out the true state of things. Why, the place has been an +eyesore to the whole neighborhood, the resort of poaching, thieving +rascals; by gad, if my brother George had gone down there I don't +know what would have happened! It will cost a couple of years' rent +to get things put straight." + +When the Squire was at home there was scarce an evening when the +Rector did not come up to smoke a pipe and take his glass of old +Jamaica or Hollands with him. + +"Look here, Bastow," the latter said, some three years after his +return, "what are you going to do with that boy of yours? I hear bad +reports of him from everyone; he gets into broils at the alehouse, +and I hear that he consorts with a bad lot of fellows down at +Reigate. One of my tenants--I won't mention names--complained +to me that he had persecuted his daughter with his attentions. They +say, he was recognized among that poaching gang that had an affray +with Sir James Hartrop's keepers. The thing is becoming a gross +scandal." + +"I don't know what to do about him, Squire; the boy has always +been a trouble to me. You see, before you came home, he got into +bad hands in the village here. Of course they have all gone, but +several of them only moved as far as Reigate, and he kept up their +acquaintance. I thrashed him again and again, but he has got beyond +that now, you see; he is nearly eighteen, and openly scoffs at my +authority. Upon my word, I don't know what to do in the matter." + +"He is growing up a thorough young ruffian," the Squire said +indignantly, "and one of these mornings I expect to see him brought +up before us charged with some serious offense. We had to fine him +last week for being drunk and making a disturbance down at Reigate. +Why do you let him have money? You may have no authority over him; +but at least you should refuse to open your purse to him. Don't +you see that this sort of thing is not only a disgrace to him, but +very prejudicial to the village? What authority can you have for +speaking against vice and drunkenness, when your son is constantly +intoxicated?" + +"I see that, Squire--none better; and I have thought of resigning +my cure." + +"Stuff and nonsense, Parson! If the young fellow persists in his +present course he must leave the village, that is clear enough; +but that is no reason why you should. The question is what is to +be done with him? The best thing he could do would be to enlist. He +might be of some service to his country, in India or the American +Colonies, but so far as I can see he is only qualifying himself +for a jail here." + +"I have told him as much, Squire," Mr. Bastow said, in a depressed +voice, "and he has simply laughed in my face, and said that he was +very comfortable where he was, and had no idea whatever of moving." + +"What time does he go out in the morning?" John Thorndyke asked +abruptly. + +"He never gets up till twelve o'clock, and has his breakfast when +I take my dinner." + +"Well, I will come in tomorrow morning and have a talk with him +myself." + +The next day the Squire rode up to the door of the Rectory soon +after one o'clock. Mr. Bastow had just finished his meal; his son, +a young fellow of between seventeen and eighteen, was lolling in +an easy chair. + +"I have come in principally to speak to you, young sir," John +Thorndyke said quietly. "I have been asking your father what you +intend to do with yourself. He says he does not know." + +The young fellow looked up with an air of insolent effrontery. + +"I don't know that it is any business of yours, Mr. Thorndyke, what +I do with myself." + +"Oh, yes, it is," the Squire replied. "This village and the people +in it are mine. You are disturbing the village with your blackguard +conduct; you are annoying some of the girls on the estate, and +altogether you are making yourself a nuisance. I stopped at the +alehouse as I came here, and have ordered the landlord to draw no +more liquor for you, and unless you amend your conduct, and that +quickly, I will have you out of the village altogether." + +"I fancy, Mr. Thorndyke, that, even as a justice of the peace, you +have not the power to dictate to my father who shall be the occupant +of this house." + +"What you say is perfectly true; but as you make your father's life +a burden to him, and he is desirous of your absence, I can and will +order the village constable to remove you from his house by force, +if necessary." + +The young fellow cast an evil glance at his father. "He has not +been complaining, has he?" he said, with a sneer. + +"He has not, sir," John Thorndyke said indignantly. "It is I who +have been complaining to him, and he admits that you are altogether +beyond his authority. I have pointed out to him that he is in no +way obliged to support you at your age in idleness and dissipation, +and that it were best for him and all concerned that he should +close his doors to you. I don't want to have to send the son of my +old friend to prison, but I can see well enough that that is what +it will come to if you don't give up your evil courses. I should +think you know by this time that I am a man of my word. I have +taken some pains to purge this village of all bad characters, and +I do not intend to have an exception made of the son of the clergyman, +who, in his family as well as in his own person, is bound to set +an example." + +"Well, Mr. Thorndyke, I utterly decline to obey your orders or to +be guided by your advice." + +"Very well, sir," the magistrate said sternly. "Mr. Bastow, do I +understand that you desire that your son shall no longer remain an +inmate of your house?" + +"I do," the clergyman said firmly; "and if he does so I have no +other course before me but to resign my living; my position here +has become absolutely unbearable." + +"Very well, sir, then you will please lock your doors tonight, and +if he attempts to enter, I, as a magistrate, should know how to +deal with him. Now, young sir, you understand your position; you +may not take my advice, nevertheless, I shall give it you. The best +thing you can do is to take your place for town on the outside of +the coach that comes through Reigate this afternoon, and tomorrow +morning proceed either to the recruiting officer for His Majesty's +service, or to that for the East India Company's. You have health +and strength, you will get rid at once of your bad associates, and +will start afresh in a life in which you may redeem your past and +be useful to your king and country." + +Young Bastow smiled. + +"Thanks," he said sarcastically. "I have my own plans, and shall +follow them." + +"I would think, Mr. Bastow," the Squire said quietly, "it would +just be as well for you to come home with me. I don't think that +the leave taking is likely to be an affectionate one." + +The Rector rose at once. + +"I will come with you, Squire. I may tell you now, what I have not +told you before, that my son has more than once raised his hand +against me, and that I do not care to be left alone with him." + +"I judged him capable even of that, Mr. Bastow." + +"Goodby, Arthur," his father said. "My heart is ready to break +that it has come to this; but for both our sakes it is better so. +Goodby, my son, and may Heaven lead you to better ways! If ever +you come to me and say, 'Father, I have turned over a new leaf, and +heartily repent the trouble I have caused you,' you will receive +a hearty welcome from me, and no words of reproach for the past." + +The young man paid no attention to the offered hand, but laughed +scornfully. + +"You have not got rid of me yet," he said. "As for you, Squire +Thorndyke, I shall not forget your meddlesome interference, and +some day, maybe, you will be sorry for it." + +"I think not," John Thorndyke said gravely. "I am doing my duty to +the village, and still more I am doing my duty to an old friend, +and I am not likely ever to feel any regret that I have so acted. +Now, Parson, let's be off." + +After leaving the house with the clergyman, the Squire stopped at +the house of Knapp, the village constable; and said a few words to +him, then, leading his horse, walked home with Mr. Bastow. + +"Don't be cast down, old friend," he said. "It is a terrible trial +to you; but it is one sharp wrench, and then it will be over. +Anything is better than what you must have been suffering for some +time." + +"I quite feel that, Squire; my life has indeed been intolerable of +late. I had a painful time before, but always looked forward with +hope to your brother coming home. Since you returned, and matters +in the parish have been put straight, this trouble has come in to +take the place of the other, and I have felt that I would rather +resign and beg for charity than see my son going from bad to worse, +a scandal to the parish, and a hindrance to all good work." + +"It is a bad business, Bastow, and it seems to me that two or +three years in prison would be the best thing for him, as he will +not take up the only trade open to him. At any rate, it would +separate him from his evil associates, and give you peace while he +is behind the bars. Where does he get his money?" + +"That I know not, Squire. He takes some from me--it used to be +done secretly, now it is done with threats, and, as I told you, +with violence--but that would not account for his always having +money. He must get it somewhere else, for when I have paid my bills, +as I always do the hour that I receive money, there is but little +over for him to take. He is often away all night, sometimes for +two or three days together, and I dare not think what he does with +himself; but certainly he gets money somehow, and I am afraid that +I cannot hope it is honestly obtained." + +"I do not well see how it can be," the Squire agreed. + +"If I had before known as much as you tell me now, I would have +taken some steps to have him watched, and to nip the matter before +it went too far. Do you think that he will take your notice, and +come no more to the house?" + +Mr. Bastow shook his head. + +"I fear that the only effect will be to make him worse, even when +he was quite a small boy punishment only had that effect with +him. He will come back tonight probably half drunk, and certainly +furious at my having ventured to lay the case before you." + +"You must lock the doors and bar the windows." + +"I did that when he first took to being out at night, but he always +managed to get in somehow." + +"Well, it must be all put a stop to, Bastow; and I will come back +With you this evening, and if this young rascal breaks into the +house I will have him down at Reigate tomorrow on the charge of +house breaking; or, at any rate, I will threaten to do so if he +does not give a promise that he will in future keep away from you +altogether." + +"I shall be glad, at any rate, if you will come down, Squire, for, +to say the truth, I feel uneasy as to the steps he may take in his +fury at our conversation just now." + +John Thorndyke took down from a wall a heavy hunting whip, as he +went out with the parson at nine o'clock. He had in vain endeavored +to cheer his old friend as they sat over their steaming glasses of +Jamaica. The parson had never been a strong man; he was of a kindly +disposition, and an unwearied worker when there was an opportunity +for work, but he had always shrunk from unpleasantness, and was +ready to yield rather than bring about trouble. He had for a long +time suffered in silence, and had not the Squire himself approached +the subject of his son's delinquencies, he would have never opened +his mouth about it. Now, however, that he had done so, and the +Squire had taken the matter in hand, and had laid down what was to +be done, though he trembled at the prospect, he did not even think +of opposing his plan, and indeed could think of no alternative for +it. + +"I have told John Knapp to be here," the Squire said, as they +reached the house. "It is just as well that he should be present +if your son comes back again. He is a quiet, trustworthy fellow, +and will keep his mouth shut if I tell him." + +Mr. Bastow made no reply. It was terrible to him that there should +be another witness to his son's conduct, but he saw that the Squire +was right. An old woman opened the door. + +"Are all the shutters closed and barred?" John Thorndyke asked her. + +"Yes, sir; I always sees to that as soon as it gets dark." + +"Very well; you can go to bed now, Elisa," her master said. "Is +John Knapp here?" + +"Yes, he came an hour ago, and is sitting in the kitchen." + +"I will call him in myself when I want to speak to him." + +As soon as the old servant had gone upstairs the Squire went into +the kitchen, Mr. Bastow having gone to the cellar to fetch up +a bottle of old brandy that was part of a two dozen case given to +him by the old Squire fifteen years before. + +"Do you go round the house, John, and see that everything is properly +fastened up. I see that you have got a jug of beer there. You had +better get a couple of hours' sleep on that settle. I shall keep +watch, till I am sleepy, and then I will call you. Let me know if +you find any of the doors or windows unbarred." + +Five minutes later the constable knocked at the door of the parlor. +"The door opening into the stable yard was unbarred, Squire." + +"I thought it likely that it would be so, Knapp. You have made it +fast now, I suppose? That is right. Now lie down and get an hour or +two of sleep; it is scarce likely that he will be back until late. + +"That was the old woman, of course," he went on to his companion, +when the door closed behind the constable. "I thought it likely +enough that he might tell her to leave a way for him to come in. +You told me that she had been with you a good many years. I dare +say she has left that door unbarred for him many a time. I should +advise you to get a man to sleep in the house regularly; there +are plenty of fellows who will be glad to do it for a shilling or +two a week, and I do not think that it is safe for you to be here +alone." + +An hour later he said to the Rector: "Now, Bastow, you had best go +to bed. I have taken the matter into my own hands, and will carry +it through. However, I won't have him taken away without your being +present, and will call you when we want you. Of course, if he will +give a solemn promise not to molest you, and, even if he won't +enlist, to leave this part of the country altogether, I shall let +him off." + +"There is one thing, Mr. Thorndyke, that I have not told you," the +Rector said hesitatingly. "Sometimes, when he comes home late, he +brings someone with him; I have heard voices downstairs. I have +never seen who it was--for what could I have done if I went down? +--but I have heard horses brought round to the stable yard, and +heard them ride away:" + +"It is just as well you told me," the Squire said dryly. "If you +had told me this evening at the house, I would have dropped a brace +of pistols into my pocket. However, this hunting crop is a good +weapon; but I don't suppose they will show fight, even if anyone +is with him. Besides, Knapp has a stout oaken cudgel with him-- +I noticed it standing against his chair as I went in--and as he +is a strong active fellow, and we shall have the advantage of a +surprise, I fancy we should be a match even for three or four of +them." + +At one o'clock the Squire roused John Knapp. "It is one o'clock, +John; now take off your boots. I don't want him to know that there +is anyone in the house till we get hold of him. I am going to lie +down on the sofa in the parlor. The moment you hear footsteps you +come and wake me." + +The clock in the kitchen had just struck two when the constable +shook John Thorndyke. "There are two horses just coming into the +yard." + +"All right. I opened a window in the room looking down into the +yard before I lay down. I will go up and see what they are going +to do. If they try to break in anywhere down here, do you come at +once quietly up to me." + +The Squire had taken off his boots before he lay down, and, holding +his heavy hunting crop in his hand, he went quietly upstairs. As +he went to the window he heard Arthur Bastow say angrily: + +"Confound the old woman! she has locked the door; she has never +played me that trick before. There is a ladder in the stable, and +I will get in at that window up there and open it for you. Or you +may as well come up that way, too, and then you can stow the things +away in my room at once, and have done with it." + +The Squire went hastily down. + +"Come upstairs, Knapp," he whispered to the constable. "There are +three of them, and I fancy the two mounted men are highwaymen. Let +them all get in, keeping yourself well back from the window. The +moon is round on the other side of the house, but it will be light +enough for us to see them as they get in. I will take the last +fellow, and I will warrant that he will give no trouble; then I +will fall upon the second, and do you spring on young Bastow. The +two highwaymen are sure to have pistols, and he may have some also. +Give him a clip with that cudgel of yours first, then spring on +him, and hold his arms tightly by his side. If I call you give him +a back heel and throw him smartly, and then come to my aid. I don't +think I shall want it, but it is as well to prepare for everything." + +They went upstairs and took their places, one on each side of the +window, standing three or four feet back. Just as they took up their +positions the top of the stable ladder appeared above the sill of +the window. Half a minute later young Bastow's head appeared, and +he threw up the sash still higher, and stepped into the room; then +he turned and helped two men in, one after the other. + +"Follow me," he said, "then you won't tumble over the furniture." + +As they turned, the heavy handle of John's Thorndyke's whip fell +with tremendous force on the head of the last man. + +"What the devil is that?" the other exclaimed, snatching out a +pistol and turning round, as the falling body struck him, but he +got no further. Again the heavy whip descended, this time on his +right arm; it dropped useless by his side, and the pistol fell +from his hand. Then John Thorndyke fell upon him and bore him to +the ground, snatched the other pistol from his belt, and held it +to his head. + +"Now, my man," he said quietly, "if you don't surrender I will blow +out your brains." + +"I surrender," the man moaned. "I believe that you have broken my +arm. Curse you, whoever you are." + +The struggle between John Knapp and young Bastow was soon over. +The young fellow was lithe and sinewy, but he was no match for the +constable, who, indeed, had almost overpowered him before he was +aware what had happened. + +"Has he got pistols, Knapp?" the Squire asked. + +"Yes, sir, a brace of them; I have got them both safely in my +pocket. There," he went on, as a sharp click was heard, "I have +got the darbys on him. Now shall I help you, sir?" + +"You had better run downstairs first and light a couple of candles +at the kitchen fire: you will find a pair standing on the parlor +table. Don't be long about it; the first fellow I hit was stunned, +and he may come round any moment." + +"I will make sure of him before I go, Squire. I have got another +pair of darbys in my pocket." + +As soon as he had fastened these upon the wrists of the insensible +man he ran downstairs, and in a minute returned with the candles. + +"I am glad that you are back," the Squire said. "I was afraid that +young rascal would try to escape." + +"I took good care of that, Squire; you see I put one of his arms +round the bedpost before I slipped the darbys on, and he cannot get +away unless he takes the whole bed with him; and as I don't think +he would get it out either by the window or the door, he is as +safe here as he would be in Newgate. What is the next thing to do, +Squire?" + +"You had better tie this fellow's legs. I will leave you a candle +here, and you can keep guard over them while I go and wake Mr. +Bastow." + +The Rector needed no waking; he was walking up and down his room in +great distress. He had not undressed, but had thrown himself upon +his bed. + +"What has happened, Thorndyke?" he asked as the Squire entered. +"I heard two heavy falls, and I felt that something terrible had +taken place." + +"Well, it has been a serious matter--very serious. That unfortunate +son of yours is not hurt, but I don't know but that the best thing +that could have happened would have been for him to have got a +bullet through his head. He brought home with him two men who are, +I have little doubt, highwaymen; anyhow, they each had a brace of +pistols in their belt, and from what he said I think they have been +stopping a coach. At any rate, they have something with them that +they were going to hide here, and I fancy it is not the first time +that it has been done. I don't expect your son had anything to do +with the robbery, though he was carrying a brace of pistols, too; +however, we have got them all three. + +"Now, you see, Bastow, this takes the affair altogether out +of our hands. I had hoped that when we caught your son in the act +of breaking into your house after you had ordered him from it, we +should be able to frighten him into enlisting, or, at any rate, +into promising to disturb you no more, for even if we had taken him +before the bench, nothing could have been done to him, for under +such circumstances his re-entering the house could not be looked +upon as an act of burglary. As it is, the affair is altogether +changed. Even if I wished to do so, as a magistrate I could not +release those two highwaymen; they must appear as prisoners in +court. I shall hear down in the town tomorrow morning what coach +has been stopped, and I have no doubt that they have on them the +proceeds of the robbery. Your son was consorting with and aiding +them, and acting as a receiver of stolen goods, and as you have heard +horses here before it is probable that when his room is thoroughly +searched we shall come upon a number of articles of the same sort. +I am sorry that I ever meddled in the matter; but it is too late +for that now. You had better come downstairs with me, and we will +take a turn in the garden, and try to see what had best be done." + + + +CHAPTER III. + + +John Thorndyke opened the shutters of the parlor window, and +stepped out into the garden alone, for the Rector was too unnerved +and shattered to go out with him, but threw himself on the sofa, +completely prostrated. Half an hour later the Squire re-entered the +room. The morning was just beginning to break. Mr. Bastow raised +his head and looked sadly at him. + +"I can see no way out of it, old friend. Were it not that he is in +charge of the constable, I should have said that your only course +was to aid your son to escape; but Knapp is a shrewd fellow as well +as an honest one. You cannot possibly get your son away without +his assistance, for he is handcuffed to the bed, and Knapp, in so +serious a matter as this, would not, I am sure, lend himself to +an escape. I have no doubt that with my influence with the other +magistrates, and, indeed, on the circumstances of the case, they +will commit him on a minor charge only, as the passengers of the +coach will, I hope, give evidence that it was stopped by mounted +men alone. I think, therefore, that he would only be charged with +consorting with and aiding the highwaymen after the event, and of +aiding them to conceal stolen goods--that is, if any are found +in his room. + +"That much stolen property has been hidden there, there is little +reason to doubt, but it may have been removed shortly afterwards. +It was, of course, very convenient for them to have some place +where they could take things at once, and then ride on quietly to +London the next day, for, if arrested; nothing would be found upon +them, and it would be impossible to connect them with the robbery. +Later on they might come back again and get them from him. Of +course, if nothing is found in his room, we get rid of the charge +of receiving altogether, and there would be nothing but harboring, +aiding, and abetting--a much less serious business. Look here, +old friend, I will strain a point. I will go out into the garden +again and walk about for an hour, and while I am out, if you should +take advantage of my absence to creep up to your son's room and to +search it thoroughly, examining every board of the floor to see if +it is loose, and should you find anything concealed, to take it and +hide it, of course I cannot help it. The things, if there are any, +might secretly be packed up by you in a box and sent up to Bow Street, +with a line inside, saying that they are proceeds of robbery, and +that you hope the owners will be traced and their property restored +to them. Not, of course, in your own hand, and without a signature. +There might be some little trouble in managing it, but it could, +no doubt, be done." + +John Thorndyke went out into the garden without another word. The +hour was nearly up when Mr. Bastow came out; he looked ten years +older than he had done on the previous day. He wrung his friend's +hand. + +"Thank God I have been up there," he said. "I do not think they +will find anything." + +"Say nothing about it, Bastow; I don't want to know whether you +found anything. Now I am going to fetch two or three of the men from +the village, to get them to aid the constable in keeping guard, and +another to go up to the house at once and order a groom to saddle +one of my horses and bring it here." + +As it was now past five o'clock, and the Squire found most of the +men getting up, he sent one off to the house with the message, and +returned with two others to the Rectory. He told them briefly that +two highwaymen had been arrested during the night, and that as young +Mr. Bastow was in their company at the time, it had been necessary +as a matter of form to arrest him also. He went upstairs with them. + +"I have brought up two men to sit with you, Knapp, until the Reigate +constables come up. You can take those handcuffs off Mr. Bastow, +but see that he does not leave the room, and do you yourself sit +in a chair against the door, and place one of these men at the +window. How about others?" + +"The man you hit first, Squire, did not move until a quarter of +an hour ago; he has been muttering to himself since, but I don't +think he is sensible. The other one has been quiet enough, but +there is no doubt that his arm is broken." + +"I am going to ride down to Reigate at once, and will bring back +a surgeon with me." + +"You will repent this night's business, Thorndyke!" Arthur Bastow +said threateningly. + +"I fancy that you will repent it more than I shall, Bastow; it is +likely that you will have plenty of time to do so." + +It was not long before the groom with the horse arrived. John +Thorndyke rode at a gallop down to Reigate, and first called on +the head constable. + +"Dawney," he said, as the man came down, partially dressed, at his +summons, "has anything taken place during the night?" + +"Yes, Squire, the up coach was stopped a mile before it got here, +and the passengers robbed. It was due here at one, and did not come +in till half an hour later. Of course I was sent for. The guard was +shot. There were two of the fellows. He let fly with his blunderbuss, +but he does not seem to have hit either of them, and one rode up +and shot him dead; then they robbed all the passengers. They got +six gold watches, some rings, and, adding up the amounts taken from +all the passengers, about a hundred and fifty pounds in money." + +"Well, I fancy I have got your two highwaymen safe, _Dawney." + +"You have, sir?" the constable said in astonishment. + +"Yes. I happened to be at the Rectory. Mr. Bastow had had a quarrel +with his son, and had forbidden him the house." + +The constable shook his head. "I am afraid he is a very bad one, +that young chap." + +"I am afraid he is, Dawney. However, his father was afraid that he +might come in during the night and make a scene, so I said I would +stop with him, and I took our village constable with me. At two +o'clock this morning the young fellow came with two mounted men, +who, I have no doubt, were highwaymen. We had locked up down below. +Bastow took a ladder, and the three got in at a bedroom window +on the first floor. Knapp and I were waiting for them there, and, +taking them by surprise, succeeded in capturing them before the +highwaymen could use their pistols. The constable and two men are +looking after them, but as one has not got over a knock I gave him +on the head, and the other has a broken arm, there is little fear +of their making their escape. You had better go up with two of your +men, and take a light cart with you with some straw in the bottom, +and bring them all down here. I will ride round myself to Mr. +Chetwynde, Sir Charles Harris, and Mr. Merchison, and we will sit +at twelve o'clock. You can send round a constable with the usual +letters to the others, but those three will be quite enough for +the preliminary examination." + +"Well, Squire, that is good news indeed. We have had the coach held +up so often within five miles of this place during the past three +months, that we have been getting quite a bad name. And to think +that young Bastow was in it! I have heard some queer stories about +him, and fancied before long I should have to put my hand upon his +shoulder; but I didn't expect this." + +"There is not a shadow of proof that he had anything to do with +the robbery, Dawney, but he will have difficulty in proving that +he did not afterwards abet them. It is serious enough as it is, +and I am terribly grieved for his father's sake." + +"Yes, sir; I have always heard him spoken of as a kind gentleman, +and one who took a lot of trouble whenever anyone was sick. Well, +sir, I will be off in twenty minutes. I will run round at once +and send Dr. Hewett up to the Rectory, and a man shall start on +horseback at seven o'clock with the summons to the other magistrates." + +John Thorndyke rode round to his three fellow magistrates, who, +living nearest to the town, were most regular in their attendance +at the meetings. They all listened in surprise to his narrative, +and expressed great pleasure at hearing that the men who had been +such a pest to the neighborhood, and had caused them all personally +a great deal of trouble, had been captured. All had heard tales, too, +to Arthur Bastow's disadvantage, and expressed great commiseration +for his father. They agreed to meet at the court half an hour before +business began, to talk the matter over together. + +"It is out of the question that we can release him on bail," the +gentleman who was chairman of the bench said. "Quite so," John +Thorndyke agreed. "In the first place, the matter is too serious; +and in the next, he certainly would not be able to find bail; and +lastly, for his father's sake, it is unadvisable that he should be +let out. At the same time, it appears to me that there is a broad +distinction between his case and the others. I fear that there can +be no question that he had prior acquaintance with these men, and +that he was cognizant of the whole business; something I heard +him say, and which, to my regret, I shall have to repeat in court, +almost proves that he was so. Still, let us hope none of the stolen +property will be found upon him; whether they had intended to pass +it over to his care or not is immaterial. If they had not done so, +I doubt whether he could be charged with receiving stolen goods, and +we might make the charge simply one of aiding these two criminals, +and of being so far an accessory after the crime. + +"If we could soften it down still further I should, for his father's +sake, be glad; but as far as he himself is concerned, I would do +nothing to lighten his punishment. He is about as bad a specimen +of human nature as I ever came across. His father is in bodily fear +of him. I saw the young fellow yesterday, and urged him to enlist, +in order to break himself loose from the bad companionship he had +fallen into. His reply was insolent and defiant in the highest +degree, and it was then that in his father's name I forbade him +the house, and as his father was present he confirmed what I said, +and told him that he would not have anything more to do with him. +This affair may do him good, and save his neck from a noose. A few +years at the hulks or a passage to Botany Bay will do him no harm; +and, at any rate, his father will have rest and peace, which he +never would have if he remained here." + +A somewhat similar conversation took place at each house. John +Thorndyke breakfasted at Sir Charles Harris', the last of the three +upon whom he called, and then mounting rode back to Reigate. + +"We have found the plunder on them," the head constable said, coming +out of the lockup as he drew rein before it, "and, fortunately for +young Bastow, nothing was found upon him." + +"How are the two men?" + +"The fellow you hit first is conscious now, sir, but very weak. The +doctor says that if he hadn't had a thick hat on, your blow would +have killed him to a certainty. The other man's arm is set and +bandaged, and he is all right otherwise. We shall be able to have +them both in court at twelve o'clock." + +The Squire rode up to his house. He was met at the door by his son, +in a state of great excitement. + +"Is it all true, father? The news has come from the village that +you have killed two men, and that they and Arthur Bastow have all +been taken away in a cart, guarded by constables." + +"As usual, Mark, rumor has exaggerated matters. There are no +dead men; one certainly got a crack on the head that rendered him +insensible for some time, and another's arm is broken." + +"And are they highwaymen, father? They say that two horses were +fastened behind the cart." + +"That is what we are going to try, Mark. Until their guilt is +proved, no one knows whether they are highwaymen or not." + +"And why is Arthur Bastow taken, father?" + +"Simply because he was in company with the others. Now, you need +not ask any more questions, but if you like to get your pony saddled +and ride down with me to Reigate at eleven o'clock, I will get you +into the courthouse, and then you will hear all about it." + +At greater length the Squire went into the matter with Mrs. +Cunningham, his lady housekeeper, and his ward's governess. + +"It is a bad business, Mr. Thorndyke," she said, "and must be +terrible for poor Mr. Bastow." + +"Yes, it is a bad business altogether, except that it will rid him +of this young rascal. If I were in his place I should be ready to +suffer a good deal to obtain such a riddance." + +"I suppose that you won't sit upon the bench today?" + +"No; at least I shall take no part in the deliberations. I shall, +of course, give evidence. The affair is not likely to last very long; +my story will take the longest to tell. Knapp's will be confirmatory +of mine, and the Reigate constable will depose to finding the +watches, rings, and money upon them; then, of course, the case +will be adjourned for the attendance of the coachman and some of +the passengers. I don't suppose they will be able to swear to their +identity, for no doubt they were masked. But that is immaterial; +the discovery of the stolen property upon them will be sufficient +to hang them. No doubt we shall have some Bow Streets runners down +from town tomorrow or next day, and they will most likely be able +to say who the fellows are." + +"Will Mr. Bastow have to give evidence against his son?" + +"Not before us, I think; but I imagine he will have to appear at +the trial." + +"It will be terrible for him." + +"Yes, terrible. I sincerely hope that they will not summon him, but +I am afraid that there is very little doubt about it; they are sure +to want to know about his son's general conduct, though possibly +the testimony on that point of the constable at Reigate will be +sufficient. My own hope is that he will get a long sentence; at +any rate, one long enough to insure his not coming back during his +father's lifetime. If you had seen his manner when we were talking +to him yesterday, you would believe that he is capable of anything. +I have had a good many bad characters before me during the year and +a half that I have sat upon the bench, but I am bound to say that +I never saw one who was to my eyes so thoroughly evil as this young +fellow. I don't think," he added with a smile, "that I should feel +quite comfortable myself if he were acquitted; it will be a long +time before I shall forget the expression of his face when he said +to me this morning, 'You will repent this night's work, Thorndyke.'" + +"You don't mean that you think he would do you any harm, Mr. +Thorndyke?" + +"Well, I should not care to meet him in a lonely place if he was +armed and I was not. But you need not be nervous, Mrs. Cunningham, +there is not the smallest chance of his being out for years; and +by that time his blood will have had time to cool down, and he will +have learnt, at any rate, that crimes cannot be committed in this +country with impunity." + +"It is all very shocking," the lady said. "What will poor Mr. Bastow +do? I should think that he would not like to remain as clergyman +here, where everyone knows about it." + +"That must be for him to decide," the Squire said; "but if he wishes +to resign I certainly shall not press him to continue to hold the +living. He is a very old friend of mine. My father presented the +living to him when I was nine or ten years old, and I may say I +saw him daily up to the time when I went down into Sussex. If he +resigns I should urge him to take up his residence here and to act +as Mark's tutor; and he might also relieve you of some of Millicent's +lessons. You have plenty to do in looking after the management of +things in general. However, that is for the future." + +At eleven o'clock the Squire drove down to Reigate, taking Mark +with him, as it would save all trouble about putting up the horse +and pony. On arriving he handed Mark over to the head constable, +and asked him to pass him into a seat in the courthouse, before +the public were let in. + +Reigate was in a state of unusual excitement. That the coach should +have been stopped and robbed was too common an event to excite much +interest, but that two highwaymen should have been captured, and, +as was rumored, a young gentleman brought in on a charge of being +in connection with them, caused a thrill of excitement. Quite a +small crowd was assembled before the courthouse, and the name of +Squire Thorndyke passed from mouth to mouth. + +"There is some talk of his being mixed up with it in some way or +other," one said. "I saw him myself ride in here, about half past +five, and I wondered he was about so early. Some do say as he caught +the two highwaymen single handed; but that don't stand to reason. +Besides, what could he have been doing out at such an hour as that? +He is a good landlord, and they say that Crowswood has been quite +a different place since he came to be master. He is a tight hand +as a magistrate, and cleared out half the village the first two +or three months he was there; but he spent a mint of money on the +place, and the people there say that they could not have a better +master. Ah, here is Squire Chetwynd. He was sure to be here. There +is Sir Charles' gig turning the corner. I expect most of them will +be on the bench; they don't get such a case as this every day." + +"It may be there will be nothing for us to hear when the court +opens," another said. "I hear both the fellows have been shot or +knocked about so bad that they cannot be brought up. Of course the +court cannot sit if they aint before it." + +"That is not so, Master Jones. I spoke to one of the constables +half an hour ago--he lives next door to me--and he said that +they would be well enough to appear. Neither of them have been +shot, though they have been hurt pretty bad." + +All this added to the desire of those around to get into the court, +and there was quite a rush when the doors were opened two minutes +before twelve, and it was at once crammed, the constable having +some difficulty in getting the doors shut, and in persuading those +who could not get in that there was not standing room for another +person. There was a buzz of talk in court until the door opened +and six magistrates came in. It was observed that John Thorndyke +did not seat himself with the others, but moved his chair a little +apart from them, thus confirming the report that he was in some way +connected with the matter, and did not intend to take any part in +the decision. Then another door opened, and the three prisoners +were brought in. The two first were pale and evidently weak; one +had his head wrapped in bandages, the other had the right sleeve +of his coat cut off, and his arm bandaged and supported by a sling. +Both made a resolute effort to preserve a careless demeanor. The +third, who was some years younger than the others, looked round +with a smile on his lips, bowed to the magistrates with an air of +insolent bravado when he was placed in the dock, and then leaned +easily in the corner, as if indifferent to the whole business. A +chair was placed between his comrades for the use of the man whose +head was bandaged. Many among those present knew Arthur Bastow by +sight, and his name passed from mouth to mouth; but the usher called +loudly for silence, and then the magistrates' clerk rose. + +"William Smith and John Brown--at least, these are the names +given--are charged with stopping the South Coast coach last night, +killing the guard, and robbing the passengers; and Arthur Bastow +is charged with aiding and abetting the other two prisoners, and +with guilty knowledge of their crime." + +It was noticed by those who could see the prisoners' faces that, +in spite of Bastow's air of indifference, there was an expression +of anxiety on his face as the charge was read, and he undoubtedly +felt relief as that against himself was mentioned. The first witness +was John Knapp, and the constable stepped into the witness box. + +"What do you know of this business, Knapp?" the chairman asked. +"Just tell it your own way." + +"I am constable of Crowswood, your honor, and yesterday Squire +Thorndyke said to me--" + +"No, you must not tell it like that, Knapp; you must not repeat +what another person said to you. You can say that from information +received you did so and so." + +"Yes, your honor. From information received I went to the Rev. Mr. +Bastow's house, at a quarter to nine last night. At nine o'clock +Squire Thorndyke and the Parson came in together. They sent the +servant up to bed, and then the Squire sent me round to examine the +fastenings of the doors. I found that one back door had been left +unfastened, and locked and bolted it. The Squire told me to lie +down until one o'clock, and he would watch, and Mr. Bastow went up +to bed." + +"Do you know of your own knowledge why these precautions were +taken?" + +"Only from what I was told, your honor. At one o'clock the Squire +woke me, and he lay down in the parlor, telling me to call him if +I heard any movement outside. About two o'clock I heard two horses +come into the Parson's yard. I called Squire Thorndyke, who went +upstairs to an open window; presently someone came and tried the +back door. I heard voices outside, but could not hear what was +said. The Squire came down and called me upstairs. I went up and +took my place at one side of the window, and the Squire took his on +the other. I had this cudgel in my hand, and the Squire his riding +whip. A ladder was put up against the window, and then someone came +up, lifted the sash up high and got in. There was light enough for +me to see it was young Mr. Bastow. Then the two other prisoners came +up. When the third had got into the room Mr. Bastow said, 'Follow +me, and then you won't tumble over the furniture.'" + +"How was it that they did not see you and Mr. Thorndyke?" the +chairman asked. + +"We were standing well back, your honor. The moon was on the other +side of the house. There was light enough for us to see them as +they got in at the window, but where we were standing it was quite +dark, especially to chaps who had just come in from the moonlight. +As they moved, the Squire hit the last of them a clout on the head +with his hunting crop, and down he went, as if shot. The man next +to him turned, but I did not see what took place, for, as the Squire +had ordered me, I made a rush at Mr. Bastow and got my arms round +him pretty tight, so as to prevent him using his pistols, if he +had any. He struggled hard, but without saying a word, till I got +my heel behind his and threw him on his back. I came down on the +top of him; then I got the pistols out of his belt and threw them +on the bed, slipped the handcuffs onto one wrist, lifted him up a +bit, and then shoved him up against the bedpost, and got the handcuff +onto his other wrist, so that he could not shift away, having the +post in between his arms. + +"Then I went to see if the Squire wanted any help, but he didn't. +I first handcuffed the man whose head he had broken, and tied the +legs of the other, and then kept guard over them till morning. When +the constables came up from town we searched the prisoners, and on +two of them found the watches, money, and rings. We found nothing +on Mr. Bastow. I went with the head constable to Mr. Bastow's room +and searched it thoroughly, but found nothing whatever there." + +The evidence created a great sensation in court. John Thorndyke +had first intended to ask Knapp not to make any mention of the fact +that Arthur Bastow was carrying pistols unless the question was +directly put to him. But the more he had thought over the matter, +the more convinced was he that the heavier the sentence the better +it would be for the Rector; and when he had heard from the latter +that there was nothing left in his son's room that could be brought +against him, and that he could not be charged with the capital +crime of being a receiver, he thought it best to let matters take +their course. + +The head constable was the next witness. He deposed to the finding +of the articles produced upon the two elder prisoners and the +unsuccessful search of the younger prisoner's room. + +"You did not search the house further?" the chairman inquired. + +"No, sir; I wanted to get the prisoners down here as fast as I +could, seeing that two of them were seriously hurt." + +The chairman nodded. + +"You will, of course, make a careful search of the whole house, +constable." + +"Yes, sir; I left one of my men up there with instructions to allow +no one to go upstairs until I returned." + +"Quite right." + +John Thorndyke was the next witness, and his evidence cleared up +what had hitherto been a mystery to the general body of the public, +as to how he and the constable happened to be in the house on +watch when the highwaymen arrived. The most important part of his +evidence was the repetition of the words young Bastow had used as +he mounted the ladder, as they showed that it was arranged between +the prisoners that the stolen goods should be hidden in the house. +The Squire was only asked one or two questions. + +"I suppose, Mr. Thorndyke, that you had no idea whatever that the +younger prisoner would be accompanied by anyone else when he returned +home?" + +"Not the slightest," the Squire replied. "I was there simply to +prevent this unfortunate lad from entering the house, when perhaps +he might have used violence towards his father. My intention was +to seize him if he did so, and to give him the choice of enlisting, +as I had urged him to do, or of being brought before this bench for +breaking into his father's house. I felt that anything was better +than his continuing in the evil courses on which he seemed bent." + +"Thank you, Mr. Thorndyke. I must compliment you in the name of my +brother magistrates, and I may say of the public, for the manner +in which you, at considerable risk to yourself, have effected the +capture of the two elder prisoners." + +After consulting with the others the head constable was recalled. + +"Do you know anything about the character of the youngest prisoner?" + +"Yes, sir. We have had our eye upon him for some time. He was +brought before your honors a week ago charged with being drunk and +disorderly in this town, and was fined 5 pounds. He is constantly +drinking with some of the worst characters in the place, and is +strongly suspected of having been concerned in the fray between +the poachers and Sir Charles Harris' gamekeepers. Two of the latter +said that they recognized him amongst the poachers, but as they +both declined to swear to him we did not arrest him." + +John Knapp was then recalled, and testified to Bastow's drinking +habits, and that the landlord of the alehouse at Crowswood had been +ordered by the Squire not to draw any liquor for him in future on +pain of having the renewal of his license refused. + +"Have you any more witnesses to call?" the chairman asked the head +constable. + +"Not at present, your honor. We have sent up to town, and on the +next occasion the coachman will be called to testify to the shooting +of the guard, and we hope to have some of the passengers there to +identify the articles stolen from them." + +"It will be necessary that the Rev. Mr. Bastow should be here. He +need not be called to give evidence unless we think it to be of +importance, but he had better be in attendance. The prisoners are +remanded until this day week." + +An hour later the three prisoners, handcuffed, were driven under +an escort of three armed constables to Croydon Jail. When again +brought up in court the passengers on the coach identified the +articles taken from them; the coachman gave evidence of the stopping +of the coach, and of the shooting of the guard. The head constable +testified that he had searched the Rectory from top to bottom, and +found nothing whatever of a suspicious nature. None of the passengers +were able to testify to the two elder prisoners as the men who had +robbed them, as these had been masked, but the height and dress +corresponded to those of the prisoners; and the two Bow Street +runners then came forward, and gave evidence that the two elder +prisoners were well known to them. They had long been suspected of +being highwaymen, and had several times been arrested when riding +towards London on occasions when a coach had been stopped the night +before, but no stolen goods had ever been found upon them, and in +no case had the passengers been able to swear to their identity. +One was known among his associates as "Galloping Bill," the other +as the "Downy One." At the conclusion of the evidence the three +prisoners were formally committed for trial, the magistrates having +retired in consultation for some time upon the question of whether +the charge of receiving stolen goods ought to be made against Arthur +Bastow. + +"I think, gentlemen," the chairman said, after a good deal had been +urged on both sides of the question, "in this case we can afford +to take a merciful view. In the first place, no stolen goods were +discovered upon him or in the house. There is strong presumptive +evidence of his intention, but intention is not a crime, and even +were the evidence stronger than it is, I should be inclined to +take a merciful view. There can be no doubt that the young fellow +is thoroughly bad, and the bravado he has exhibited throughout the +hearing is at once unbecoming and disgraceful; but we must remember +that he is not yet eighteen, and that, in the second place, he is +the son of a much respected clergyman, who is our neighbor. The +matter is serious enough for him as it stands, and he is certain +to have a very heavy sentence. + +"Mr. Thorndyke, who takes no part in our deliberations, is most +anxious that the prisoner's father should be spared the agony of +his son being placed on trial on a capital charge, though I do not +think that there would be the smallest chance of his being executed, +for the judges would be certain to take his youth into consideration. +Had there been prima facie evidence of concealment, we must have +done our duty and sent him to trial on that charge; but as there is +no such evidence, I think that it will be in all respects better to +send him on a charge on which the evidence is as clear as noonday. +Moreover, I think that Mr. Thorndyke's wishes should have some weight +with us, seeing that it is entirely due to him that the important +capture of these highwaymen, who have long been a scourge to this +neighborhood, has been effected." + +Mr. Bastow had not been called as a witness. John Thorndyke +had brought him down to Reigate in a closed carriage, and he had +waited in the justices' room while the examination went on; but +the magistrates agreed that the evidence given was amply sufficient +for them to commit upon without given him the pain of appearing. +John Thorndyke had taken him to another room while the magistrates +were consulting together, and when he heard the result drove him +back again. + +"I have fully made up my mind to resign my living, Thorndyke. +I could not stand up and preach to the villagers of their duties +when I myself have failed so signally in training my own son; nor +visit their houses and presume to lecture them on their shortcomings +when my son is a convicted criminal." + +"I quite see that, old friend," the Squire said. "And I had no +doubt but that you would decide on this course. I will try not to +persuade you to change your decision, for I feel that your power of +usefulness is at an end as far as the village is concerned. May I +ask what you propose to do? I can hardly suppose that your savings +have been large." + +"Two years ago I had some hundreds laid by, but they have dwindled +away to nothing; you can understand how. For a time it was given +freely, then reluctantly; then I declared I would give no more, but +he took it all the same--he knew well enough that I could never +prosecute him for forgery." + +"As bad as that, eh?" Thorndyke said sternly. "Well, we won't talk +further of him now; what I propose is that you should take up your +abode at the Hall. I am not satisfied with the school where Mark +has been for the last two years, and I have been hesitating whether +to get a private tutor for him or to send him to one of the public +schools. I know that that would be best, but I could not bring +myself to do so. I have some troubles of my own that but two or +three people know of, and now, that everything is going on smoothly +on the estate and in the village, I often feel dull, and the boy's +companionship does me much good; and as he knows many lads of his +own age in the neighborhood now, I think that he would do just as +well at home. + +"He will be taking to shooting and hunting before long, and if he +is to have a tutor, there is no one I should like to have better +than yourself. You know all the people, and we could talk comfortably +together of an evening when the house is quiet. Altogether, it will +be an excellent arrangement for me. You would have your own room, +and if I have company you need not join us unless you like. The +house would not seem like itself without you, for you have been +associated with it as long as I can remember. As to your going out +into the world at the age of sixty, it would be little short of +madness. There--you need not give me an answer now," he went on, +seeing that the Rector was too broken down to speak; "but I am sure +that when you think it over you will come to the same conclusion +as I do, that it will be the best plan possible for us both." + + + +CHAPTER IV. + + +The trial of the two highwaymen and Arthur Bastow came off in due +course. The evidence given was similar to that offered at Reigate, +the only addition being that Mr. Bastow was himself put into the +box. The counsel for the prosecution said: "I am sorry to have to +call you, Mr. Bastow. We all feel most deeply for you, and I will +ask you only two or three questions. Was your son frequently out +at night?" + +"He was." + +"Did you often hear him return?" + +"Yes; I seldom went to sleep until he came back." + +"Had you any reason to suppose that others returned with him?" + +"I never saw any others." + +"But you might have heard them without seeing them. Please tell us +if you ever heard voices." + +"Yes, I have heard men's voices," the clergyman said reluctantly, +in a low voice. + +"One more question, and I have done. Have you on some occasions +heard the sound of horses' hoofs in your yard at about the time +that your son came in?" + +Mr. Bastow said in a low voice: "I have." + +"Had you any suspicion whatever of the character of your son's +visitors?" + +"None whatever. I supposed that those with him were companions with +whom he had been spending the evening." + +Mr. Bastow had to be assisted from the witness box, so overcome +was he with the ordeal. He had not glanced at his son while giving +his evidence. The latter and his two fellow prisoners maintained +throughout the trial their expression of indifference. The two +highwaymen nodded to acquaintances they saw in the body of the +court, smiled at various points in the evidence, and so conducted +themselves that there were murmured exclamations of approval of +their gameness on the part of the lower class of the public. The +jury, without a moment's hesitation, found them all guilty of the +offenses with which they were charged. Bastow was first sentenced. + +"Young man," the judge said, "young as you are, there can be no +doubt whatever in the minds of anyone who has heard the evidence +that you have been an associate with these men who have been found +guilty of highway robbery accompanied by murder. I consider that a +merciful view was taken of your case by the magistrates who committed +you for trial, for the evidence of your heartbroken father, on +whose gray hairs your conduct has brought trouble and disgrace, +leaves no doubt that you have for some time been in league with +highwaymen, although not actually participating in their crime. +The words overheard by Mr. Thorndyke show that you were prepared +to hide their booty for them, and it is well for you that you +were captured before this was done, and that no proceeds of other +robberies were found in the house. The evidence of the Bow Street +officers show that it had for some time been suspected that these +men had an accomplice somewhere in the neighborhood of Reigate, +for although arrested several times under circumstances forming a +strong assumption of their guilt, nothing was ever found upon them. +There can now be little, doubt who their accomplice was. Had you +been an older man I should have sentenced you to transportation for +life, but in consideration of your youth, I shall take the milder +course of sentencing you to fifteen years' transportation." + +The capital sentence was then passed in much fewer words upon the +two highwaymen. As they were leaving the dock Bastow turned, and +in a clear voice said to John Thorndyke, who had been accommodated +with a seat in the well of the court: + +"I have to thank you, Thorndyke, for this. I will pay off my debt +some day, you make take your oath." + +"A sad case, Mr. Thorndyke--a sad case," the judge, who had +greatly complimented the Squire on his conduct, said to him as he +was disrobing afterwards. "I don't know that in all my experience +I ever saw such a hardened young villain. With highwaymen it is a +point of honor to assume a gayety of demeanor on such occasions; +but to see a boy of eighteen, never before convicted, exhibiting +such coolness and effrontery is quite beyond my experience. I +suppose his record is altogether bad?" + +"Altogether," the Squire said. "His father has, during the last +two years, been quite broken by it; he owned to me that he was +in bodily fear of the lad, who had on several occasions assaulted +him, had robbed him of his savings by means of forgery, and was +so hopelessly bad that he himself thought with me that the only +possible hope for him was to get him to enlist. I myself recommended +the East India Company's service, thinking that he would have less +opportunity for crime out there, and that there would be a strong +chance that either fever or a bullet would carry him off, for +I own that I have not the slightest hope of reformation in such a +character." + +"I would have given him transportation for life if I had known all +this," the judge said. "However, it is not likely that he will ever +come back again--very few of them do; the hulks are not the most +healthy places in the world, and they have a pretty rough way with +men who give them trouble, as this young fellow is likely to do." + +Mr. Bastow, as soon as he had given his evidence, had taken +a hackney coach to the inn where he and the Squire had put up on +their arrival in town the evening before, and here, on his return, +John Thorndyke found him. He was lying on his bed in a state of +prostration. + +"Cheer up, Bastow," he said, putting his hand upon the Rector's +shoulder. "The sentence is fifteen years, which was the very amount +I hoped that he would get. The more one sees of him the more hopeless +it is to expect that any change will ever take place in him; and +it is infinitely better that he should be across the sea where his +conduct, when his term is over, can affect no one. The disgrace, +such as it is, to his friends, is no greater in a long term than in +a short one. Had he got off with four or five years' imprisonment, +he would have been a perpetual trouble and a source of uneasiness, +not to say alarm; and even had he left you alone we should always +have been in a state of dread as to his next offense. Better that +he should be out in the colonies than be hung at Tyburn." + +"How did he take the sentence?" + +"With the same bravado he had shown all through, and as he went out +of the dock addressed a threat to me, that, under the circumstances, +I can very well afford to despise. Now, if you will take my advice, +you will drink a couple of glasses of good port, and then go to +bed. I will see to your being awakened at seven o'clock, which will +give us time to breakfast comfortably, and to make a start at nine." + +"I would rather not have the wine," the Rector said feebly. + +"Yes, but you must take what is good for you. I have ordered up a +bottle of the landlord's best, and must insist upon your drinking +a couple of glasses with me. I want it almost as much as you do, +for the atmosphere of that court was enough to poison a dog. I have +got the taste of it in my mouth still." + +With much reluctance the Rector accompanied him to the private sitting +room that the Squire had engaged. He sat down almost mechanically +in an easy chair. The Squire poured out the wine, and handed him a +glass. Mr. Bastow at first put it to his lips without glancing at +it, but he was a connoisseur in wine, and the bouquet of the port +appealing to his latent senses, he took a sip, and then another, +appreciatingly. + +"The landlord said it was first rate, and he is not far wrong," +John Thorndyke remarked, as he set down his own glass. + +"Yes, it is a fine vintage, and in perfect condition," Mr. Bastow +agreed. "I have drunk nothing better for years, though you have +some fine bins." + +"I would take a biscuit, if I were you, before I took another glass," +the Squire said, helping himself from a plate on the table. "You +have had nothing to eat today, and you want something badly. I have +a dish of kidneys coming up in half an hour; they cook them well +here." + +The Rector ate a biscuit, mechanically sipped another glass of +wine, and was even able to eat a kidney when they were brought up. +Although September was not yet out, the Squire had a fire lighted +in the room, and after the meal was over, and two steaming tumblers +of punch were placed upon the table, he took a long pipe from the +mantel, filled and lighted it, then filled another, and handed it +to the Rector, at the same time holding out a light to him. + +"Life has its consolations," he said. "You have had a lot of troubles +one way and another, Bastow, but we may hope that they are all over +now, and that life will go more smoothly and easily with you. We +had better leave the past alone for the present. I call this snug: +a good fire, a clean pipe, a comfortable chair, and a steaming bowl +at one's elbow." + +The Rector smiled faintly. + +"It seems unnatural--" he began. + +"Not at all, not at all," the Squire broke in. "You have had a tremendous +load on your mind, and now it is lifted off; the thundercloud has +burst, and though damage has been done, one is thankful that it +is no worse. Now I can talk to you of a matter that has been on my +mind for the last three weeks. What steps do you think that I ought +to take to find a successor for you? It is most important to have +a man who will be a real help in the parish, as you have been, would +pull with one comfortably, and be a pleasant associate. I don't +want too young a fellow, and I don't want too old a one. I have +no more idea how to set about it than a child. Of course, I could +ask the Bishop to appoint, but I don't know that he would appoint +at all the sort of man I want. The living is only worth 200 pounds +a year and the house--no very great catch; but there is many a +man that would be glad to have it." + +"I have been thinking it over, too, Thorndyke, when I could bring +my mind to consider anything but my own affairs. How would Greg +do? He has been taking duty for me since I could not do it myself. +I know that he is a hard working fellow, and he has a wife and +a couple of children; his curacy is only 70 pounds a year, and it +would be a perfect godsend, for he has no interest in the Church, +and he might be years without preferment." + +"I should think he would do very well, Bastow. Yes, he reads well, +which I own I care for that a good deal more than for the preaching; +not that I have anything to say against that. He gives sound and +practical sermons, and they have the advantage of being short, +which is a great thing. In the first place, it is good in itself, +and in the second, specially important in a village congregation, +where you know very well every woman present is fidgeting to get +home to see that the pot is not boiling over, and the meat in the +oven is not burnt. Yes, I will go down tomorrow afternoon and ask +him if he would like the living. You were talking of selling the +furniture; how much do you suppose it is worth?" + +"I don't suppose it will fetch above seventy or eighty pounds; it +is solid and good, but as I have had it in use nearly forty years, +it would not go for much." + +"Well, let us say a hundred pounds," the Squire said. "I will +give you a check for it. I dare say Greg will find it difficult to +furnish, and he might have to borrow the money, and the debt would +be a millstone round his neck, perhaps, for years, so I will hand +it over with the Rectory to him." + +So they talked for an hour or two on village matters, and the Squire +was well pleased, when his old friend went up to bed, that he had +succeeded in diverting his thoughts for a time from the painful +subject that had engrossed them for weeks. + +"You have slept well," he said, when they met at breakfast, "I can +see by your face." + +"Yes, I have not slept so soundly for months. I went to sleep as +soon as my head touched the pillow, and did not awake until the +chambermaid knocked at the door." + +"That second glass of punch did it, Bastow. It is a fine morning; +we shall have a brisk drive back. I am very glad that I changed my +mind and brought the gig instead of the close carriage." + +In the afternoon the Squire drove into Reigate. He found the curate +at home, and astonished and delighted him by asking him if he would +like the living of Crowswood. It came altogether as a surprise to +him, for the Rector's intentions to resign had not been made public, +and it was supposed in the village that he was only staying at +the Squire's until this sad affair should be over. Greg was a man +of seven or eight and twenty, had graduated with distinction at +Cambridge, but, having no influence, had no prospects of promotion, +and the offer almost bewildered him. + +"I should be grateful indeed, Mr. Thorndyke," he said. "It would +be a boon to us. Will you excuse me for a moment?" + +And opening a door, he called for his wife, who was trying to keep +the two children quiet there, having retired with them hastily when +Mr. Thorndyke was announced. + +"What do you think, Emma?" her husband said excitedly, as she came +into the room. "Mr. Thorndyke has been good enough to offer me the +living of Crowswood." + +Then he recovered himself. "I beg your pardon, sir, for my +unmannerliness in not first introducing my wife to you." + +"It was natural that you should think of telling her the news first +of all," the Squire said courteously. "Madam, I am your obedient +servant, and I hope that soon we shall get to know each other well. +I consider it of great importance that the Squire of a parish and +the Rector should work well together, and see a great deal of each +other. I don't know whether you are aware, Mr. Greg, that the living +is worth 200 pounds a year, besides which there is a paddock of +about ten acres, which is sufficient for the keep of a horse and +cow. The Rectory is a comfortable one, and I have arranged with +Mr. Bastow that he shall leave his furniture for the benefit of +his successor. It will include linen, so that you will be put to +no expense whatever in moving in. I have known these first expenses +to seriously cripple the usefulness of a clergyman when appointed +to a living." + +"That is good of you indeed, Mr. Thorndyke," the curate said. "We +have been living in these lodgings since we first came here, and +it will indeed make matters easy to have the question of furniture +so kindly settled for us." + +"Will your Rector be able to release you shortly?" + +"I have no doubt that he will do that at once. His son has just +left Oxford and taken deacon's orders; and the Rector told me the +other day that he should be glad if I would look out for another +curacy, as he wanted to have his son here with him. He spoke very +kindly, and said that he should make no change until I could hear +of a place to suit me. His son has been assisting him for the last +month, since I took the services at Crowswood, and I am sure he +would release me at once." + +"Then I should be glad if you will move up as soon as possible to +the Rectory. I know nothing about the necessary forms, but I suppose +that Mr. Bastow will send in his resignation to the Bishop, and +I shall write and tell him that I have appointed you, and you can +continue to officiate as you have done lately until you can be +formally inducted as the Rector. Perhaps you would not mind going +round to your Rector at once and telling him of the offer you have +had. I have one or two matters to do in the town, and will call +again in three quarters of an hour. I shall be glad to tell Mr. +Bastow that you will come into residence at once." + +On returning at the appointed time he found that the curate had +returned. + +"Mr. Pilkington was very kind, and evidently very pleased; he +congratulated me most warmly, and I can come up at once. We don't +know how to thank you enough, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"I don't want any thanks, I can assure you, Mr. Greg. Tomorrow I +will send a couple of women in from the village to get the place +in order, and no doubt Mr. Bastow will want to take away a few +things. He is going to remain with me as tutor to my son. I am sure +you and I will get on very well together, and I only hope that your +sermons will be no longer when you are Rector than they have been +while you have been assisting us. Long sermons may do for a town +congregation, but in my opinion they are a very serious mistake +in the case of a village one. By the way, I think it would be as +well for you to get a servant here, and that before you go up. Mr. +Bastow's servant was an old woman, and in a case like this I always +think it is better not to take one's predecessor's servant. She +generally resents any change, and is always quoting how her last +master had things. I mention this before you go, because she is +sure to ask to stay on, and it is much easier to say that you are +bringing a servant with you than to have to tell her she is too +old or too fat. Don't you think so, Mrs. Greg?" + +"Yes, I think it will be much better, Mr. Thorndyke. Even if I cannot +hear of one likely to suit us permanently, I will take someone as +a stop gap. One can easily change afterwards." + +"The old woman will do very well," the Squire said. "She has two +married daughters in the village, and with a shilling or two from +the parish she will manage comfortably. At any rate we shall look +after her, and I have no doubt Mr. Bastow will make her an allowance." + +Never were a pair more delighted than Parson Greg and his wife +when two days later they took possession of their new home. Half +a dozen women had been at work the day before, and everything was +in perfect order. To Mrs. Greg's relief she found that the old +servant had already gone, the Squire having himself informed her +that Mrs. Greg would bring her own maid with her. Mr. Bastow said +that he would allow her half a crown a week as long as she lived, +and the Squire added as much more, and as the woman had saved +a good deal during her twenty years' service with the Rector, she +was perfectly satisfied. + +"It is a good thing that she should be content," the Squire said +to Mr. Bastow. "She has a lot of connections in the village, and if +she had gone away with a sense of grievance she might have created +a good deal of ill feeling against your successor, and I am very +anxious that he should begin well. I like the young fellow, and I +like his wife." + +"We are fortunate, indeed, Ernest," Mrs. Greg said the following +morning, as with the children, two and three years old, they went +out into the garden; where the trees were laden with apples, pears, +and plums. "What a change from our little rooms in Reigate. I should +think that anyone ought to be happy indeed here." + +"They ought to be, Emma, but you see Mr. Bastow had trouble enough; +and it should be a lesson to us, dear, to look very closely after +the boys now they are young, and see that they don't make bad +acquaintances." + +"From what we hear of the village, there is little fear of that; +the mischief must have begun before Mr. Thorndyke came down, when +by all accounts things had altogether gone to the bad here, and of +course young Bastow must have had an exceptionally evil disposition, +Ernest." + +"Yes, no doubt; but his father could not have looked after him +properly. I believe, from what I hear, that Bastow was so dispirited +at his powerlessness to put a stop to the state of things here, +that, except to perform service, he seldom left the house, and +the boy no doubt grew up altogether wild. You know that I was in +court on the second day of the examination, and the young fellow's +insolence and bearing astonished and shocked me. Happily, we have +the Squire here now to back us up, the village has been completely +cleared of all bad characters, and is by all accounts quite a model +place, and we must do our best to keep it so." + +The news of the change at the Rectory naturally occasioned a great +deal of talk. At first there was a general feeling of regret that +Mr. Bastow had gone, and yet it was felt that he could not have +been expected to stay; the month's experience that they had had of +the new parson had cleared the way for him. He and his wife soon +made themselves familiar with the villagers, and being bright +young people, speedily made themselves liked. The Squire and Mrs. +Cunningham called the first afternoon after their arrival. + +"You must always send up if anything is wanted, Mr. Greg; whenever +there is any illness in the village we always keep a stock of +soups and jellies, and Mrs. Cunningham is almoner in general. Is +there anything that we can do for you? If so, let me know without +hesitation." + +"Indeed, there is nothing, Mr. Thorndyke. It is marvelous to us +coming in here and finding everything that we can possibly want." + +"You will want a boy for your garden; and you cannot do better than +take young Bill Summers. He was with me for a bit last year, when +the boy I have now was laid up with mumps or something of that +sort, and he was very favorably reported on as being handy in the +garden, able to milk a cow, and so on. By the way, Mrs. Greg, I +have taken the liberty of sending down a cow in milk. I expect she +is in your meadow now. I have seven or eight of them, and if you +will send her back when her milk fails I will send down another." + +"You are too kind altogether, Mr. Thorndyke!" Mrs. Greg exclaimed. + +"Not at all. I want to see things comfortable here, and you will +find it difficult to get on without a cow. I keep two or three for +the special use of the village. I make them pay for it, halfpenny +a pint; it is better to do that than to give it. It is invaluable +for the children; and I don't think in all England you see rosier +and healthier youngsters than those in our schools. You will +sometimes find milk useful for puddings and that sort of thing for +the sick; and they will appreciate it all the more than if they +had to look solely to us for their supply." + +"How is Mr. Bastow, sir?" + +"He is better than could be expected. He himself proposed this +morning that my boy Mark should begin his studies at once; and, +indeed, now that the worst is over and he has got rid of the load +of care on his shoulders, I hope that we shall have him bright and +cheerful again before long." + +Such was indeed the case. For some little time Mr. Bastow avoided +the village, but John Thorndyke got him to go down with him to +call upon Mr. Greg, and afterwards to walk through it with him. At +first he went timidly and shrinkingly, but the kindly greetings of +the women he met, and the children stopping to pull a forelock or +bob a courtesy as of old, gradually cheered him up, and he soon +got accustomed to the change, and would of an afternoon go down to +the village and chat with the women, after he had ascertained that +his successor had no objection whatever, and was, indeed, pleased +that he still took an interest in his former parishioners. Mark +was at first disappointed at the arrangement, for he had looked +forward to going to a public school. His father, however, had no +great trouble in reconciling him to it. + +"Of course, Mark," he said, "there are advantages in a public +school. I was never at one myself, but I believe that, though the +discipline is pretty strict, there is a great deal of fun and sport, +and you may make desirable acquaintances. Upon the other hand, +there are drawbacks. In the first place, the majority of the boys +are sons of richer men than I am. I don't know that that would +matter much, but it would give you expensive habits, and perhaps +make you fonder of London life than I should care about. In the next +place, you see, you would be at school when the shooting begins, +and you are looking forward to carrying a gun next year. The same +with hunting. You know I promised that this year you should go to +the meets on your pony, and see as much of them as you can, and of +course when you were at school you would only be able to indulge +in these matters during your holidays; and if a hard frost set in, +as is the case three times out of four, just as you came home, you +would be out of it altogether. + +"I must say I should like you to have a real love of field sports +and to be a good shot and a good rider. A man, however wide his +acres may be, is thought but little of in the country if he is not +a good sportsman; and, moreover, there is nothing better for developing +health and muscles than riding, and tramping over the fields with +a gun on your shoulder; and, lastly, you must not forget, Mark, +that one of my objects in making this arrangement is to keep Mr. +Bastow with us. I am sure that unless he thought that he was making +himself useful he would not be content to remain here; and at his +age, you know, it would be hard for him to obtain clerical employment." + +"All right, father. I see that the present plan is the best, and that +I should have but little sport if I went away to school. Besides, +I like Mr. Bastow very much, and I am quite sure that I shan't get +so many whackings from him as I used to do from old Holbrook." + +"I fancy not, Mark," his father said with a smile. "I am not against +wholesome discipline, but I think it can be carried too far; at +any rate, I hope you will be just as obedient to Mr. Bastow as if +he always had a cane on the table beside him." + +Mark, therefore, went to work in a cheerful spirit, and soon found +that he made more progress in a week under Mr. Bastow's gentle +tuition than he had done in a month under the vigorous discipline +of his former master. Mr. and Mrs. Greg dined regularly at the +Squire's once a week. + +"Have you had that Indian servant of yours long, Mr. Thorndyke?" +Mrs. Greg asked one day. "He is a strange looking creature. Of +course, in the daytime, when one sees him about in ordinary clothes, +one does not notice him so much; but of an evening, in that Eastern +costume of his, he looks very strange." + +"He was the servant of the Colonel, my brother," the Squire replied. +"He brought him over from India with him. The man had been some +years in his service, and was very attached to him, and had saved +his life more than once, he told me. On one occasion he caught a +cobra by the neck as it was about to strike my brother's hand as +he sat at table; he carried it out into the compound, as George +called it, but which means, he told me, garden, and there let it +escape. Another time he caught a Thug, which means a sort of robber +who kills his victims by strangling before robbing them. They are +a sort of sect who regard strangling as a religious action, greatly +favored by the bloodthirsty goddess they worship. He was in the +act of fastening the twisted handkerchief, used for the purpose, +round my brother's neck, when Ramoo cut him down. The closest shave, +though, was when George, coming down the country, was pounced upon +by a tiger and carried off. Ramoo seized a couple of muskets from +the men, and rushed into the jungle after him, and coming up with +the brute killed him at the first shot. George escaped with a broken +arm and his back laid open by a scratch of the tiger's claws as it +first seized him. + +"So at George's death I took Ramoo on, and have found him a most +useful fellow. Of course, I was some little time before I became +accustomed to his noiseless way of going about, and it used to +make me jump when I happened to look round, and saw him standing +quietly behind me when I thought I was quite alone. However, as +soon as I became accustomed to him, I got over all that, and now +I would not lose him for anything; he seems to know instinctively +what I want. He is excellent as a waiter and valet; I should feel +almost lost without him now; and the clumping about of an English +man servant would annoy me as much as his noiseless way of going +about did at first. He has come to speak English very fairly. Of +course, my brother always talked to him in his own tongue; still, he +had picked up enough English for me to get on with; now he speaks +it quite fluently. When I have nothing whatever for him to do he +devotes himself to my little ward. She is very fond of him, and it +is quite pretty to see them together in the garden. Altogether, I +would not part with him for anything." + +For some years life passed uneventfully at Crowswood. It was seldom +indeed that the Squire's authority was needed to set matters right +in the village. The substitution of good farmers for shiftless +ones in some of the farms, and the better cultivation generally, +had given more employment; and as John Thorndyke preferred keeping +two or three cottages shut up rather than have them occupied by +men for whom no work could be found, it was rare indeed that there +were any complaints of scarcity of work, except, indeed, on the +part of the Rector, who declared that, what with the healthiness +of the village and the absence of want, his occupation, save for +the Sunday duty, was a sinecure. Mr. Bastow was more happy and +much brighter than he had been for many years. The occupation of +teaching suited him, and he was able to make the work pleasant to +his pupil as well as to himself; indeed, it occupied but a small +portion of the day, the amount of learning considered necessary +at the time not being extensive. A knowledge of Greek was thought +quite superfluous for a country gentleman. Science was in its +infancy, mathematics a subject only to be taken up by those who wanted +to obtain a college fellowship. Latin, however, was considered an +essential, and a knack of apt quotation from the Latin poets an +accomplishment that every man who was a member of society or aspired +to enter Parliament was expected to possess. Thus Mark Thorndyke's +lessons lasted but two or three hours a day, and the school term +was a movable period, according to the season of the year and the +engagements of the Squire and Mark. In winter the evening was the +time, so that the boy shot with his father, or rode to the hounds, +or, as he got older, joined in shooting parties at the houses of +neighbors. + +In summer the work was done in the morning, but was not unfrequently +broken. Mark went off at a very early hour to drive perhaps some +twenty miles with his great chum, Dick Chetwynd, for a long day's +fishing, or to see a main of cocks fought or a fight between the +champions of two neighboring villages, or perhaps some more important +battle. + +When Millicent Conyers was ten years old she came regularly into the +study, sitting curled up in a deep chair, getting up her lessons +while Mark did his, and then changing seats with him while he +learned his Horace or Ovid by heart. At this time she looked up +greatly to him, and was his companion whenever he would allow her +to be, fetched and carried for him, and stood almost on a level +with his dogs in his estimation. Five years later, when Mark was +eighteen, these relations changed somewhat. He now liked to have +her with him, not only when about the house and garden, but when +he took short rides she cantered along on her pony by his side. She +was a bright faced girl, full of life and fun, and rejoicing in a +far greater amount of freedom than most girls of her age and time. + +"It is really time that she should learn to comport herself more +staidly, instead of running about like a wild thing," Mrs. Cunningham +said, one day, as she and the Squire stood after breakfast looking +out of the open window at Mark and Millicent. + +"Time enough, my dear lady, time enough. Let her enjoy life while +she can. I am not in favor of making a young kitten behave like an +old tabby; every creature in nature is joyful and frolicsome while +it is young. She is as tall and as straight as any of her friends +of the same age, and looks more healthy; she will tame down in +time, and I dare say walk and look as prim and demure as they do. +I was watching them the other day when there was a party of them +up here, and I thought the difference was all to her advantage. +She looked a natural, healthy girl; they looked like a set of +overdressed dolls, afraid to move or to talk loud, or to stretch +their mouths when they smile; very ladylike and nice, no doubt, but +you will see Millicent will throw them into the shade when she is +once past the tomboy age. Leave her alone, Mrs. Cunningham; a girl +is not like a fruit tree, that wants pruning and training from its +first year; it will be quite time to get her into shape when she +has done growing." + +John Thorndyke had occasionally made inquiries of Mr. Bastow as +to the whereabouts of his son. At the time the sentence was passed +transportation to the American colonies was being discontinued, +and until other arrangements could be made hulks were established +as places of confinement and punishment; but a few months later +Arthur Bastow was one of the first batch of convicts sent out to +the penal settlement formed on the east coast of Australia. This +was intended to be fixed at Botany Bay, but it having been found +that this bay was open and unsheltered, it was established at +Sydney, although for many years the settlement retained in England +the name of the original site. As the condition of the prisoners +kept in the hulks was deplorable, the Squire had, through the +influence of Sir Charles Harris, obtained the inclusion of Bastow's +name among the first batch of those who were to sail for Australia. +Mr. Bastow obtained permission to see his son before sailing, but +returned home much depressed, for he had been assailed with such +revolting and blasphemous language by him that he had been forced +to retire in horror at the end of a few minutes. + +"We have done well in getting him sent off," the Squire said, when +he heard the result of the interview. "In the first place, the +demoralizing effect of these hulks is quite evident, and it may be +hoped that in a new country, where there can be no occasion for the +convicts to be pent up together, things may be better; for although +escapes from the hulks are not frequent, they occasionally take +place, and had he gained his liberty we should have had an anxious +time of it until he was re-arrested, whereas out there there is +nowhere to go to, no possibility of committing a crime. It is not +there as it was in the American colony. Settlements may grow up in +time, but at present there are no white men whatever settled in +the district; and the natives are, they say, hostile, and were a +convict to escape he would almost certainly be killed, and possibly +eaten. No doubt by the time your son has served his sentence +colonies will be established out there, and he may then be disposed +to settle there, either on a piece of land of which he could no +doubt take up or in the service of one of the colonists." + + + +CHAPTER V. + + +The scene in the convict yard at Sydney, five years after its +foundation as a penal settlement, was not a pleasant one to the +lover of humanity. Warders armed to the teeth were arranging gangs +that were to go out to labor on the roads. Many of the convicts had +leg irons, but so fastened as to be but slight hindrance to their +working powers, but the majority were unironed. These were the +better behaved convicts; not that this would be judged from their +faces, for the brutalizing nature of the system and the close +association of criminals had placed its mark on all, and it would +have been difficult for the most discriminating to have made any +choice between the most hardened criminals and those who had been +sent out for what would now be considered comparatively trivial +offenses. The voyage on board ship had done much to efface distinctions, +the convict life had done more, and the chief difference between +the chained and unchained prisoners was that the latter were men of +more timid disposition than many of their companions, and therefore +less disposed to give trouble that would entail heavy punishment. +But it was only the comparatively well conducted men who were +placed upon road work; the rest were retained for work inside the +jail, or were caged in solitary confinement. Each morning a number, +varying from half a dozen to a dozen, were fastened up and flogged, +in some cases with merciless severity, but it was seldom that a +cry was uttered by these, the most brutal ruffians of the convict +herd. This spectacle was just over: it was conducted in public +for the edification of the rest, but, judging from the low laughs +and brutal jests, uttered below the breath, it signally failed in +producing the desired impression. Two of those who had suffered +the severest punishment were now putting on their coarse woolen +garments over their bloodstained shoulders; both were comparatively +young men. + +"I shall not stand this much longer," one muttered. "I will brain +a warder, and get hung for it. One can but die once, while one can +get flogged once a week." + +"So would I," the other said bitterly; "but I have some scores to +settle in England, and I am not going to put my head in a noose +until I have wiped them out. The sooner we make arrangements to +get back there the better." + +"Yes, we have talked of this before," the other said, "and I quite +agreed with you that if we all had the pluck of men we ought to +be able to overpower the warders, in spite of their firearms. Of +course some of us would get killed, but no one would mind that if +there was but the remotest chance of getting away. The question +is what we should do with ourselves when we were once outside +the prison. Of course I know that there are two or three hundred +settlers, but there would not be much to be got out of them, and +life among those black fellows, even if they were civil to us, +which I don't suppose they would be, would not be worth having." + +"We might not have to stay there long; ships with stores or settlers +arrive occasionally, and if a lot of us got away we might seize one +by force, turn pirates for a bit, and when we are tired of that +sail to some South American port, sell our capture, and make our +way home to England. If we were not strong enough to take her, we +could hide up on board her; we should be sure to find some fellow +who for a pound or two would be willing to help us. The thing can +be done if we make up our minds to do it, and I for one have made +up my mind to try. I haven't chalked out a plan yet, but I am +convinced that it is to be done." + +"I am with you, whatever it is," the other said; "and I think there +are twenty or thirty we could rely on. I don't say there are more +than that, because there are a lot of white livered cusses among +them who would inform against us at once, so as to get their own +freedom as a reward for doing so. Well, we will both think it over, +mate, and the sooner the better." + +The two men who were thus talking together were both by birth +above the common herd of convicts, and had gained a considerable +ascendency over the others because of their reckless indifference +to punishment and their defiance of authority. Few of the men knew +each other's real names; by the officials they were simply known +by numbers, while among themselves each had a slang name generally +gained on board ship. + +Separation there had, of course, been impossible, and when fastened +down below each had told his story with such embellishments as he +chose to give it, and being but little interfered with by their +guards, save to insure the impossibility of a mutiny, there had +been fights of a desperate kind. Four or five dead bodies had been +found and thrown overboard, but as none would testify as to who had +been the assailants none were punished for it; and so the strongest +and most desperate had enforced their authority over the others, +as wild beasts might do, and by the time they had reached their +destination all were steeped much deeper in wickedness and brutalism +than when they set sail. + +The two men who were speaking together had speedily become chums, +and, though much younger than the majority of the prisoners, had +by their recklessness and ferocity established an ascendency among +the others. This ascendency had been maintained after their arrival +by their constant acts of insubordination, and by their apparent +indifference to the punishment awarded them. At night the convicts +were lodged in wooden buildings, where, so long as they were not +riotous, they were allowed to talk and converse freely, as indeed +was the case when their work for the day was done. + +As to any attempt at escape, the authorities had but small anxiety, +for until the arrival of the first settlers, three years after that +of the convicts, there was nowhere a fugitive could go to, no food +to be obtained, no shelter save among the blacks, who were always +ready for a reward of tobacco and spirits to hand them over at +once to the authorities. The case had but slightly changed since +the settlement began to grow. It was true that by stealing sheep or +driving off a few head of cattle a fugitive might maintain himself +for a time, but even if not shot down by the settlers or patrols, +he would be sure before long to be brought in by the blacks. + +The experiment had already been tried of farming our better +conducted convicts to the settlers, and indeed it was the prospect +of obtaining such cheap labor that had been the main inducement +to many of the colonists to establish themselves so far from +home, instead of going to America. As a whole the system worked +satisfactorily; the men were as much prisoners as were the inmates +of the jail, for they knew well enough that were they to leave the +farmers and take to the bush they would remain free but a short +time, being either killed or handed over by the blacks, and in the +latter case they would be severely punished and set to prison work +in irons, with labor very much more severe than that they were +called upon to do on the farms. + +Some little time after the conversation between the two convicts +the prison authorities were congratulating themselves upon the fact +that a distinct change had taken or was taking place in the demeanor +of many of the men who had hitherto been the most troublesome, and +they put it down to the unusually severe floggings that had been +inflicted on the two most refractory prisoners in the establishment. +When in the prison yard or at work they were more silent than +before, and did their tasks doggedly and sullenly; there was no open +defiance to the authorities, and, above all, a marked cessation of +drunkenness from the spirits smuggled into the place. + +Only the two originators were aware of the extent of the plot; +for they had agreed that only by keeping every man in ignorance as +to who had joined it could they hope to escape treachery. In the +first place, they had taken into their confidence a dozen men on +whom they could absolutely rely. Beyond this they had approached +the others singly, beginning by hinting that there was a plot for +escape, and that a good many were concerned, and telling them that +these had bound themselves together by a solemn oath to kill any +traitor, even if hanged for it. + +"No one is to know who is in it and who is not," the leaders said +to each recruit. "Every new man will be closely watched by the +rest, and if he has any communication privately with a warder or +any other official he will be found strangled the next morning; +no one will know who did it. Even if he succeeded in eluding the +vigilance of his comrades at the time, it would soon be known; for +if indulgence of any kind was shown towards one man, or he was +relieved from his ordinary work, or even freed altogether and suddenly, +he would be a dead man in twenty-four hours, for we have friends +outside among the ticket of leave men who have bound themselves to +kill at once any man set free." + +To the question, "What do you intend to do when we get off?" the +answer was, "We shall go straight to the bush, so as to avoid a +fight with the soldiers, in the first place; then we shall join that +night, and drive off all the cattle and sheep from the settlements, +take possession of every firearm found in the houses, then move +off a couple of hundred miles or so into the bush, and establish +a settlement of our own. + +"Of course, we shall take horses and clothes and any spirits and +food we may find. If the soldiers pursue us, we will fight them; +but as there are only three or four companies of them, and we shall +be eight hundred strong, we shall very soon show them that they +had better leave us alone. + +"Oh, yes, no doubt they will send more soldiers out from England, +but it will be over a year before they can get here; and we propose +after we have done with the fellows here to break up into parties +of twenty and thirty, dividing the sheep and cattle among us, and +each party going where it will. The place is of tremendous size, +as big as a dozen Englands, they say, and each party will fix a +place it fancies, where there is good water and a river with fish +and so on, and we may live all our lives comfortably, with just +enough work to raise potatoes and corn, and to watch our stock +increasing. Anyhow, we might calculate on having some years of +peace and freedom, and even if in the end they searched us all out, +which would be very unlikely, they could but bring us back, hang a +few, and set the rest to work again; but we think that they would +most likely leave us alone altogether, quite satisfied with having +got rid of us." + +"Those who liked it could, no doubt, take wives among the blacks. +The convict women who are out on service with the settlers would, +you may be sure, join us at once, and an enterprising chap who +preferred a white woman to a black could always make his way down +here and persuade one to go off with him to his farm. That is the +general plan; if many get tired of the life they have only to come +down to Sydney, hide up near the place on some dark night, and go +down to the port, seize a ship, and make off in her, compelling the +officers and sailors to take them and land them at any port they +fancy, either in Chili, Peru, or Mexico, or, if they like, sail +west and make for Rio or Buenos Ayres or one of the West Indian +islands. As to when it is going to be done, or how it is going to +be done, no one will be told till it is ready to be carried out. We +have not settled that ourselves, and thus one who was fool enough +to risk certain death could tell the Governor no more than that +there was a plot on hand, and that the man who had sworn him in +was concerned in it." + +So one by one every man in the prison was sworn by a terrible oath +to secrecy, to watch his companions, and to report anything that +looked suspicious. Many joined willingly, the prospect of relief, +even should it only be temporary, being too fascinating to be +resisted. Some joined against their, will, fearing that a refusal +to do so would be punished by death; and the fact that two or three +men were found strangled in bed had a very great effect in inducing +others to join in the plot. + +These deaths caused some uneasiness to the authorities. Their +utmost endeavors failed to discover who were the perpetrators of +these murders; and even when everyone in the same hut was flogged +to obtain information, not one opened his lips. + +One night the word was passed round that the time had come. One only +in each hut was familiar with the details, and he gave instructions +to each man individually as to what he was to do. The date had been +determined by the fact that the time which they had been sentenced +to wear irons had terminated the day before, and their unusually +subdued and quiet demeanor having carried them through the interval +without, as usual, fresh punishments being awarded them before the +termination of the former one. + +In the morning the whole of the convicts were drawn up to witness +the flogging of the inmates of one of the huts, where a man had +been found strangled the morning before. The first prisoner was +taken to the triangle, stripped to the waist, and tied up. There +was a dead silence in the ranks of the convicts, but as the first +blow fell upon his shoulders there was a loud yell, and simultaneously +the whole ranks broke up, and a number of men sprang upon each of +the warders, wrested their muskets from them, and threw them to the +ground. Then there was a rush towards the Governor and officers, +who were assembled in front of the stone house that faced the open +end of the square. Firing their pistols, these at once took refuge +in the house, three or four falling under the scattered fire that +was opened as soon as the muskets of the warders fell into the +hands of the convicts. + +Directly the doors were closed the officers appeared at the windows, +and opened a rifle fire upon the convicts, as did the guards near +the gate. As comparatively few of the convicts had muskets, they +began to waver at once. But, headed by the two ringleaders, the +armed party rushed at the guard, shot them down, and threw open +the gate. + +Then an unexpected thing occurred. The soldiers from the barracks +happened to be marching down to do target practice on the shore, +and were passing the convict prison when the firing broke out. They +were at once halted, and ordered to load, and as the convicts, with +exultant shouts, poured through the gate they saw a long line of +soldiers, with leveled muskets, facing them. + +"At them!" one of the leaders shouted. "It is too late to draw back +now. We have got to break through them." + +Many of the convicts ran back into the yard; but those armed with +muskets, the more desperate of the party, followed their leaders. +A moment later a heavy volley rang out, and numbers of the convicts +fell. Their two leaders, however, and some twenty of their followers, +keeping in a close body, rushed at the line of soldiers with clubbed +muskets, and with the suddenness and fury of the rush burst their +way through the line, and then scattering, fled across the country, +pursued by a dropping fire of musketry. + +The officers in command, seeing that but a fraction had escaped, +ordered one company to pursue, and marched the rest into the prison +yard. It was already deserted; the convicts had scattered to their +huts, those who had arms throwing them away. Dotted here and there +over the square were the bodies of eight or ten convicts and as +many warders, whose skulls had been smashed in by their infuriated +assailants as soon as they had obtained possession of their muskets. +Close to the gate lay the six soldiers who had furnished the guard; +these were all dead or mortally wounded. + +The Governor and the officials issued from the house as soon as +the soldiers entered the yard. The first step to do was to turn +all the convicts out of the huts and to iron them. No resistance +was attempted, the sight of the soldiers completely cowing the +mutineers. When the bodies of the convicts that had fallen were +counted and the roll of the prisoners called over, it was found that +eighteen were missing, and of these six were during the course of +the next hour or two brought in by the soldiers who had gone in +pursuit of them. The rest had escaped. + +The convicts were all questioned separately, and the tales they +told agreed so closely that the Governor could not doubt that they +were speaking the truth. All had been sworn in by one of two men, +and knew nothing whatever of what was intended to be done that day, +until after they were locked up on the evening previous. Each of +those in the huts had received his instructions the night before +from the one man. + +There were eighteen huts, each containing fifteen convicts. Of the +men who had given instructions six had fallen outside the gate, +together with sixteen others; five had been overtaken and brought +in; altogether, twelve were still at large. Among these were +the two leaders. The next day six of the prisoners were tried +and executed. The rest were punished only by a reduction in their +rations; sentence of death was at the same time passed upon the +twelve still at large, so as to save the trouble of a succession +of trials as they were caught and brought in. + +The two leaders had kept together after they had broken through +the line of soldiers. + +"Things have gone off well," one said as they ran through. "Those +soldiers nearly spoilt it all." + +"Yes, that was unlucky," the other agreed; "but so far as we are +concerned, which is all we care about, I think things have turned +out for the best." + +Nothing more was said until they had far outstripped their pursuers, +hampered as these were by their uniforms and belts. + +"You mean that it is not such a bad thing that they have not all +got away?" + +"Yes, that is what I mean. It is all very well to tell them about +driving off the sheep and cattle and horses, and going to start a +colony on our own account, but the soldiers would have been up to +us before we had gone a day's journey. Most of the fellows would +have bolted directly they saw them. As it is, I fancy only about a +dozen have got away, perhaps not as many as that, and they are all +men that one can rely upon. One can feed a dozen without difficulty +--a sheep a day would do it--and by giving a turn to each of +the settlers, the animals won't be missed. Besides, we shall want +money if we are ever to get out of this cursed country. It would +not be difficult to get enough for you and me, but when it comes to +a large number the sack of the whole settlement would not go very +far. + +"My own idea is that we had best join the others tonight, kill +a few sheep, and go two or three days' march into the bush, until +the heat of the pursuit is over. We are a11 armed, the blacks would +not venture to attack us, and the soldiers would not be likely to +pursue us very far. In a week or so, when we can assume that matters +have cooled down a bit, we can come down again. We know all the +shepherds, and even if they were not disposed to help us they would +not dare to betray us, or report a sheep or two being missing. +Of course, we shall have to be very careful to shift our quarters +frequently. Those black trackers are sure to be sent out pretty +often." + +"As long as we are hanging about the settlements there won't be +much fear of our being bothered by the blacks. Of course, we shall +have to decide later on whether it will be best for us to try and +seize a ship, all of us acting together, or for us to get quietly +on board one and keep under hatches until she is well away. That +is the plan I fancy most." + +"So do I. In the first place the chances are that in the next two +or three months at least half the fellows will be picked up. To +begin with, several of them are sure to get hold of liquor and make +attacks upon the settlers, in which case some of them, anyhow, are +sure to get killed. In the next place, most of them were brought +up as thieves in the slums of London, and will have no more idea +of roughing it in a country like this than of behaving themselves +if they were transported to a London drawing room. Therefore, I am +pretty sure that at the end of three months we shall not be able +to reckon on half of them. Well, six men are not enough to capture +a ship, or, if they do capture it, to keep the crew under. One must +sleep sometimes, and with only three or four men on deck we could +not hope to keep a whole ship's crew at bay." + +"Then there is another reason. You and I, when we have got a decent +rig out, could pass anywhere without exciting observation; while if +we had half a dozen of the others, whatever their good qualities, +they would be noticed at once by their villainous faces, and if +questions were to be asked we should be likely to find ourselves +in limbo again in a very short time. So I am all for working on +our own account, even if the whole of the others were ready to back +us; but, of course, we must keep on good terms with them all, and +breathe no word that we think that each man had better shift for +himself. Some of those fellows, if they thought we had any idea +of leaving them, would go straight into Sydney and denounce us, +although they would know that they themselves would be likely to +swing at the same time." + +As none of the convicts were acquainted with the bush, they had been +obliged to select as their rendezvous a hut two miles out of the +town, where the convict gangs that worked on the road were in the +habit of leaving their tools. On the way there the two men killed +a couple of sheep from a flock whose position they had noticed +before it became dark. These they skinned, cut off the heads, and +left them behind, carrying the sheep on their shoulders to the +meeting. + +"Is that you, Captain Wild?" a voice said as they approached. + +"Yes; Gentleman Dick is with me." + +"That is a good job. We had begun to think that the soldiers had +caught you." + +"They would not have caught us alive, you may take your oath. How +many are there of us here?" + +"Ten of us, Captain. I think that that is all there are." + +"That is enough for our purpose. Has anyone got anything to eat?" + +There was a deep growl in the negative. + +"Well, we have brought a couple of sheep with us, and as we have +carried them something like a mile, you had better handle them by +turns. We will strike off into the bush and put another three or +four miles between us and the jail, and then light a fire and have +a meal." + +Two of the men came forward and took the sheep. Then they turned +off from the road, and taking their direction from a star, followed +it for an hour. + +"I think we have got far enough now," the man called Captain Wild +said. "You had better cut down the bushes, and we will make a fire." + +"But how are we to light it?" one of them exclaimed in a tone +of consternation. "I don't suppose we have got flint and steel or +tinder box among us." + +"Oh, we can manage that!" the Captain said. "Get a heap of dried +leaves here first, then some wood, and we will soon have a blaze." + +His orders were obeyed. Some of the men had carried off the warders' +swords as well as their muskets, and now used them for chopping +wood. As soon as a small pile of dried leaves was gathered the +Captain broke a cartridge and sprinkled half its contents among +them, and then dropped the remainder into his musket. He flashed +this off among the leaves, and a bright flame at once shot up, and +in five minutes a fire was burning. + +One of the sheep was soon cut up, the meat hacked in slices from +the bones, a ramrod was thrust through the pieces, and, supported +by four sticks, was laid across the fire. Three other similarly +laden spits were soon placed beside it, and in a short time the +meat was ready for eating. Until a hearty meal had been made there +was but little talking. + +"That is first rate," one of the men said, as he wiped his mouth +with the back of his hand. "Now one only wants a pipe and bacca +and a glass of grog, to feel comfortable." + +"Well, Captain, are you satisfied with the day's work?" + +"It would have been a grand day had it not been for the soldiers +passing just at the time. As it is, Gentleman Dick and I have been +agreeing that as far as we are all concerned it has not turned out +so badly. There would have been a lot of difficulty in finding food +if we had all got away, and some of those mealy mouthed fellows would +have been sure to go back and peach on us at the first opportunity. +A dozen is better than a hundred for the sort of life we are likely +to lead for some time. We are strong enough to beat off any attack +from the black fellows, and also to break into any of these settlers' +houses. + +"We can, when we have a mind to, take a stray sheep now and then, +or even a bullock would scarcely be missed, especially if our pals +in the settlement will lend us a helping hand, which you may be +sure they will do; in fact, they would know better than to refuse. +Then a large party could be traced by those black trackers at a +run, while a small one would not; especially if, as we certainly +will do, we break up into twos and threes for a time. First of +all, though, we must go well into the bush; at daybreak tomorrow +morning we will drive off twenty sheep, and go right away a hundred +miles, and wait there till matters have settled down. They will +never take the troops out that distance after us. Then we can come +back again, and hang about the settlement and take what we want. The +wild blacks don't come near there, and we shall be safer in pairs +than we should be if we kept together; and of course we could meet +once a week or so to talk over our plans. We must borrow some whisky, +flour, tea, tobacco, and a few other items from the settlers, but +we had better do without them for this trip. I don't want to turn +the settlers against us, for they have all got horses, and might +combine with the troops to give chase, so it would be best to leave +them alone, at any rate till we get back again. Another reason for +treating them gently is that even if they did not join the troops +they might get into a funk, and drive their sheep and horses down +into Sydney, and then we should mighty soon get short of food. It +will be quite time enough to draw upon them heavily when we make +up our minds to get hold of a ship and sail away. Money would be +of no use to us here, but we shall want it when we get to a port, +wherever that port may be." + +"That sounds right enough, Captain," one of the convicts said, +"and just at present nothing would suit me better than to get so +far away from this place that I can lay on my back and take it easy +for a spell." + +There was a general chorus of assent, and there being neither +tobacco nor spirits, the party very soon stretched themselves off +to sleep round the fire. + +In the morning they were up before daylight, and half an hour later +arrived at one of the farms farthest from Sydney. Here they found +a flock of a hundred sheep. The shepherd came to the door of his +hut on hearing a noise. + +"You had best lie down and go to sleep for the next hour," the +leader of the convicts said sharply. "We don't want to do an old +pal any harm, and when you wake up in the morning and find the flock +some twenty short, of course you won't have any idea what has come +of them." + +The man nodded and went back into the hut and shut the door, and +the convicts started for the interior, driving twenty sheep before +them. + +During the first day's journey they went fast, keeping the sheep at +a trot before them, and continuing their journey through the heat +of the day. + +"I tell you what, Captain," one of the men said when they halted +at sunset, "if we don't get to a water hole we shall have to give +up this idea of going and camping in the bush. My mouth has been +like an oven all day, and it is no use getting away from jail to +die of thirst out here." + +There had been similar remarks during the day, and the two leaders +agreed together that it would be madness to push further, and that, +whatever the risk, they would have to return to the settlements +unless they could strike water. As they were sitting moodily round +the fire they were startled by a dozen natives coming forward into +the circle of light. These held out their hands to say that their +intentions were peaceful. + +"Don't touch your muskets!" Captain Wild exclaimed sharply, as +some of the men were on the point of jumping to their feet. "The +men are friendly, and we may be able to get them to guide us to +water." + +The natives, as they came up, grinned and rubbed their stomachs, +to show that they were hungry. + +"I understand," the Captain said; "you want a sheep, we want water;" +and he held up his hand to his mouth and lifted his elbow as if in +the act of drinking. + +In two or three minutes the natives understood what he wanted, and +beckoned to the men to follow. The tired sheep were got onto their +legs again, and half a mile away the party arrived at a pool in what +in wet weather was the bed of a river. A sheep was at once handed +over to the natives, and when the men had satisfied their thirst +another sheep was killed for their own use. + +After a great deal of trouble the natives were made to understand +that the white men wanted one of their party to go with them +as a guide, and to take them always to water holes, and a boy of +fifteen was handed over to them in exchange for two more sheep, and +at daybreak the next morning they started again for the interior, +feeling much exhilarated by the piece of luck that had befallen +them. They traveled for four days more, and then, considering that +the soldiers had ceased their pursuit long ago, they encamped for +ten days, enjoying to the utmost their recovered freedom and their +immunity from work of any kind. Then they returned to the neighborhood +of the settlements, and broke up, as their leader proposed, into +pairs. + +They had been there but a short time before the depredations committed +roused the settlers to band themselves together. Every horse that +could be spared was lent to the military, who formed a mounted +patrol of forty men, while parties of infantry, guided by native +trackers, were constantly on the scent for the convicts. + +"This is just what I expected," Captain Wild said to his lieutenant. +"It was the choice of two evils, and I am not sure that the plan we +chose was not the worst. We might have been quite sure that these +fellows would not be able, even for a time, to give up their old +ways. If they had confined themselves, as we have done, to taking +a sheep when they wanted it, and behaving civilly when they went +to one of the houses and begged for a few pounds of flour or tea, +the settlers would have made no great complaint of us; they know +what a hard time we have had, and you can see that some of the +women were really sorry for us, and gave us more than we actually +asked for. But it has not been so with the others. They had been +breaking into houses, stealing every thing they could lay their +hands upon, and in three or four cases shooting down men on the +slightest provocation. + +"The money and watches were no good to them, but the brutes could +not help stealing them; so here we are, and the settlement is like +a swarm of angry bees, and this plan of handing over most of their +horses to the military will end in all of us being hunted down +if we stay here. Two were shot yesterday, and in another week we +shall all either be killed or caught. There is nothing for it but +to clear out. I am against violence, not on principle, but because +in this case it sets people's backs up; but it cannot be helped +now. We must get a couple of horses to ride, and a spare one to +carry our swag. We must have half a sack of flour and a sheep-- +it is no use taking more than one, because the meat won't keep-- +and a good stock of tea and sugar. We must get a good supply of +powder, if we can, some bullets and shot. We shall have to get our +meat by shooting. + +"There is no time to be lost, and tonight we had better go to that +settler's place nearest the town. He has got two of the best horses +out here--at least so Redgrave, that shepherd I was talking +to today, told me--and a well filled store of provisions. If he +will let us have them without rumpus, all well and good; if not, +it will be the worse for him. My idea is that we should ride two +or three hundred miles along the coast until we get to a river, +follow it up till we find a tidy place for a camp, and stop there +for three or four months, then come back again and keep ourselves +quiet until we find out that a ship is going to sail; then we +will do a night among the farmhouses, and clean them out of their +watches and money, manage to get on board, and hide till we are +well out to sea. We must get a fresh fit out before we go on board; +these clothes are neither handsome nor becoming. We must put on +our best manners, and tell them that we are men who have served our +full time, and want to get back, and that we were obliged to hide +because we had not enough to pay our full passage money, but that +we have enough to pay the cost of our grub, and are ready to pull +at a rope and make ourselves useful in any way. If we are lucky we +ought to get enough before we start to buy horses and set ourselves +up well in business at home." + +"I think that is a very good plan," the other agreed, "and I am +quite sure the sooner we make ourselves scarce here the better." + + + +CHAPTER VI. + + +While arranging for young Bastow being sent out with the first +batch of convicts John Thorndyke had been introduced to several of +the officials of the Department, and called upon them at intervals +to obtain news of the penal colony. Three years after its establishment +a Crown colony had been opened for settlement in its vicinity. As +the climate was said to be very fine and the country fertile, and +land could be taken up without payment, the number who went out was +considerable, there being the additional attraction that convicts +of good character would be allotted to settlers as servants and +farm hands. + +Six years after Arthur Bastow sailed the Squire learned that there +had been a revolt among the convicts; several had been killed, and +the mutiny suppressed, but about a dozen had succeeded in getting +away. These had committed several robberies and some murders among +the settlers, and a military force and a party of warders from the +prison were scouring the country for them. + +"Of course, Mr. Thorndyke," the official said, "the Governor in +his report does not gives us the names of any of those concerned +in the matter; he simply says that although the mutiny was general, +it was wholly the work of a small number of the worse class +of prisoners. By worse class he means the most troublesome and +refractory out there. The prisoners are not classified according to +their original crimes. A poacher who has killed a game keeper, or +a smuggler who has killed a revenue officer, may in other respects +be a quiet and well conducted man, while men sentenced for +comparatively minor offenses may give an immense deal of trouble. +I will, however, get a letter written to the Governor, asking him +if Arthur Bastow was among those who took part in the revolt, and +if so what has become of him." + +It was more than a year before the reply came, and then the Governor +reported that Arthur Bastow, who was believed to have been the +leading spirit of the mutiny, was among those who had escaped, and +had not yet been recaptured. It was generally believed that he had +been killed by the blacks, but of this there was no actual proof. + +Mr. Bastow was much disturbed when he heard the news. "Suppose he +comes back here, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"I won't suppose anything of the sort," the Squire replied. "I +don't say that it would be altogether impossible, because now that +vessels go from time to time to Sydney, he might, of course, be +able to hide up in one of them, and not come on deck until she was +well on her way, when, in all probability, he would be allowed to +work his passage, and might be put ashore without any information +being given to the authorities. I have no doubt that among the sailors +there would be a good deal of sympathy felt for the convicts. No +doubt they have a hard time of it, and we know that the gangs working +on the roads are always ironed. Still, this is very unlikely, and +the chances are all in favor of his being in hiding in the bush. + +"The shepherds and other hands on the farms are chiefly convicts, +and would probably give him aid if he required it, and there would +be no difficulty in getting a sheep, now and then, for, as all +reports say, one of the chief troubles out there are the wild dogs, +or dingoes, as they are called; any loss in that way would readily +be put down to them. As to money, he would have no occasion for it; +if he wanted it he would get it by robbing the settlers, he would +know that if he came back here he would run the risk of being seized +at once on landing or of being speedily hunted down as an escaped +convict. I don't think that there is the slightest occasion for us +to trouble ourselves about him." + +But though the Squire spoke so confidently, he felt by no means +sure that Arthur Bastow would not turn up again, for his reckless +audacity had made a great impression upon him. The proceeds of the +robberies in the colony, in which he had no doubt played a part, +would have furnished him with money with which he could bribe a +sailor to hide him away and, if necessary, pay his passage money +to England, when discovered on board, and perhaps maintain him +when he got home until he could replenish his purse by some unlawful +means. Lastly, the Squire argued that the fellow's vindictive +nature and longing for revenge would act as an incentive to bring +him back to London. He talked the matter over with Mark, who was +now a powerful young fellow of twenty, who, of course, remembered +the incidents attending Bastow's capture and trial. + +"I cannot help fancying that the fellow will come back, Mark." + +"Well, if he does, father, we must make it our business to lay him +by the heels again. You managed it last time, and if he should turn +up you may be sure I will help you to do it again." + +"Yes, but we may not hear of his having returned until he strikes +a blow. At any rate, see that your pistols are loaded and close at +hand at night." + +"They always are, father. There is no saying when a house like this, +standing alone, and containing a good deal of plate and valuables, +may be broken into." + +"Well, you might as well carry them always when you go out after +dark. I shall speak to Knapp, and request him to let me know if he +hears of a suspicious looking character--any stranger, in fact +--being noticed in or about the village, and I shall have a talk +with Simeox, the head constable at Reigate, and ask him to do the +same. He is not the same man who was head at the time Bastow was up +before us, but he was in the force then, and, as one of the constables +who came up to take the prisoners down to Reigate, he will have +all the facts in his mind. He is a sharp fellow, and though Bastow +has no doubt changed a good deal since then, he would hardly fail +to recognize him if his eye fell upon him. Of course we may be +alarming ourselves unnecessarily, but there are several reasons +why I should object strongly to be shot just at the present time." + +"Or at any other time, I should say, father," the young man said +with a laugh. + +"I shall know him, Squire, safe enough," the head constable replied +when John Thorndyke went down to see him on the following day; "but +I should think that if he does come back to England he will hardly +be fool enough to come down here. He was pretty well known in town +before that affair, and everyone who was in the courthouse would +be sure to have his face strongly impressed upon their minds. You +may forget a man you have seen casually, but you don't forget one +you have watched closely when he is in the dock with two others +charged with murder. Five out of my six men were constables at +that time, and would know him again the minute they saw him; but +anyhow, I will tell them to keep a sharp lookout in the tramps' +quarters, and especially over the two or three men still here that +Bastow used to consort with. I should say that Reigate is the last +place in the world where he would show his face." + +"I hope so," the Squire said. "He has caused trouble enough down +here as it is; his father is getting an old man now, and is by no +means strong, and fresh troubles of that kind would undoubtedly +kill him." + +A month later the Reigate coach was stopped when a short distance +out of the town by two highwaymen, and a considerable prize obtained +by the robbers. Soon afterwards came news of private carriages being +stopped on various commons in the South of London, and of several +burglaries taking place among the houses round Clapham, Wandsworth, +and Putney. Such events were by no means uncommon, but following +each other in such quick succession they created a strong feeling +of alarm among the inhabitants of the neighborhood. John Thorndyke, +going up to town shortly afterwards, went to the headquarters of +the Bow Street runners, and had a talk with their chief in reference +especially to the stoppage of the Reigate coach. Mr. Chetwynd had +lately died, and John Thorndyke had been unanimously elected by +his fellow magistrates as chairman of the bench. + +"No, Mr. Thorndyke, we have no clew whatever. Our men have been +keeping the sharpest watch over the fellows suspected of having +a hand in such matters, but they all seem keeping pretty quiet at +present, and none of them seem to be particularly flush with money. +It is the same with these burglaries in the South of London. We +are at our wits' end about them. We are flooded with letters of +complaint from residents; but though the patrols on the common have +been doubled and every effort made, we are as far off as ever. As +far as the burglaries are concerned, we have every reason to think +that they are the work of two or three new hands. The jobs are not +neatly done, and certainly not with tools usually used by burglars. +They seem to rely upon daring rather than skill. Anyhow, we don't +know where to look for them, and are altogether at sea. + +"Of course it is as annoying to us as it is to anyone else; more +so, because the Justices of the Peace are sending complaints to +the Home Secretary, and he in turn drops on us and wants to know +what we are doing. I have a sort of fancy myself the fellows who +are stopping the coaches are the same as those concerned in the +burglaries. I could not give you my reasons for saying so, except +that on no occasion has a coach been stopped and a house broken +into on the same night. I fancy that at present we shan't hear +much more of them. They have created such alarm that the coaches +carry with them two men armed with blunderbusses, in addition to +the guards, and I should fancy that every householder sleeps with +pistols within reach, and has got arms for his servants. At many +of the large houses I know a watchman has been engaged to sit in +the hall all night, to ring the alarm bell and wake the inmates +directly he hears any suspicious sounds. Perhaps the fellows may +be quiet for a time, for they must, during the last month, have got +a wonderful amount of spoil. Maybe they will go west--the Bath +road is always a favorite one with these fellows--maybe they will +work the northern side of the town. I hope we shall lay hands upon +them one day, but so far I may say frankly we have not the slightest +clew." + +"But they must put their horses up somewhere?" + +"Yes, but unfortunately there are so many small wayside inns, that +it is next to impossible to trace them. A number of these fellows +are in alliance with the highwaymen. Some of them, too, have small +farms in addition to their public house businesses, and the horses +may be snugly put up there, while we are searching the inn stables +in vain. Again, there are rogues even among the farmers themselves; +little men, perhaps, who do not farm more than thirty or forty +acres, either working them themselves, or by the aid of a hired +man who lives perhaps at a village a mile away. To a man of this +kind, the offer of a couple of guineas a week to keep two horses +in an empty cowshed, and to ask no questions, is a heavy temptation. + +"We have got two clever fellows going about the country inquiring +at all the villages whether two mounted men have lately been heard +going through there late at night, or early in the morning, so as +to narrow down the area to be searched, but nothing has come of it, +although I am pretty sure that they must have three or four places +they use in various directions. My men have picked up stories +of horsemen being heard occasionally, but they come from various +directions, and nowhere have they been noticed with any regularity. +Besides, there are other knights of the road about, so we are no +nearer than we were on that line of inquiry." + +A month later John Thorndyke had occasion to go up again to town. +This time Mark accompanied him. Both carried pistols, as did the +groom, sitting behind them. The Squire himself was but a poor shot, +but Mark had practiced a great deal. + +"'Tis a good thing to be able to shoot straight, Mark," his father +had said to him three years before. "I abhor dueling, but there is +so much of it at present that any gentlemen might find himself in +a position when he must either go out or submit to be considered a +coward. Then, too, the roads are infested by highwaymen. For that +reason alone it would be well that a man should be able to shoot +straight. You should also practice sometimes at night, setting up +some object at a distance so that you can just make out its outline, +and taking a dozen shots at it. I know it is very difficult when +you cannot see your own pistol, but you can soon learn to trust to +your arm to come up to the right height and in the right direction. +Of course you must wait until morning to find out where your bullet +has gone." + +Two days after they had reached town the Squire received a letter +from Mrs. Cunningham. + +"DEAR MR. THORNDYKE: + +"Knapp has been up this morning to tell me that a stranger dismounted +yesterday at the alehouse, and while his horse was being fed he +asked a few questions. Among others, he wished to be told if you +were at home, saying that he had known you some fifteen years ago, +when you lived near Hastings, and should like to have a talk with +you again. In fact, he had turned off from the main road for the +purpose. He seemed disappointed when he heard that you had gone up +to town, and hearing that you might not be back for three or four +days, said he should be coming back through Reigate in a week or +ten days, and he dared say he should be able to find time to call +again. Knapp did not hear about it until this morning; he asked the +landlord about the man, and the landlord said he was about thirty, +dark, and sparely built. He did not notice his horse particularly, +seeing that it was such as a small squire or farmer might ride. He +carried a brace of pistols in his holsters. The landlord was not +prepossessed with his appearance, and it was that that made him +speak to Knapp about him. I have told the men to unfasten the dogs +every night, and I have asked Knapp to send up two trustworthy men +to keep watch." + +"It may mean something, and it may not," the Squire said, as he +handed the letter to Mark. "It is a suspicious looking circumstance; +if the fellow had been honest he would surely have said something +about himself. There is no doubt these housebreakers generally find +out what chance there is of resistance, and, hearing that we were +both away, may have decided on making an attempt. I have pretty +well finished our business and ordered nearly all the provisions +that Mrs. Cunningham requires. But I have to call at my lawyer's, +and that is generally a longish business. It is half past two +o'clock now; if we start from here at five we shall be down soon +after eight, which will be quite soon enough. We shall have a +couple of hours' drive in the dark, but that won't matter, we have +got the lamps." + +"I am quite ready to start, father. I am engaged to sup with Reginald +Ascot, but I will go over this afternoon and make my excuses." + +At five o'clock they started. "You have got your pistols in order, +Mark?" the Squire asked, as they drove over London Bridge. + +"I have them handy, father, one in each pocket." + +"James, are your pistols charged?" + +"Yes, sir." + +At six o'clock it was beginning to get dusk, and they stopped while +the groom got down and lit the lamps; then they resumed their journey. +They were within five miles of Reigate when suddenly two horsemen +rode out from a side road with a shout of "Stand and deliver!" + +The Squire lashed the horses, and a moment later a pistol was fired, +and the ball went through his hat. By the light of the lamps Mark +saw the other man raise his hand, and, leveling his pistol, fired on +the instant; then, as there was no reply to his shot, he discharged +the second barrel at the first who had fired, and who had at +once drawn another pistol. The two reports rang out almost at the +same moment, but Mark's was a little the first. There was a sharp +exclamation of pain from the highwayman, who wrenched round his +horse and galloped down the lane from which he had issued, the +groom sending two bullets after him. + +"Where is the other man?" Mark exclaimed, as his father reined in +the horses. + +"Somewhere on the ground there, Mark; I saw him fall from his saddle +as we passed him." + +"Is it any use pursuing the other, father? I am pretty sure I hit +him." + +"I am quite sure you did, but it is no good our following; the side +roads are so cut up by ruts that we should break a spring before we +had gone a hundred yards. No, we will stop and look at this fellow +who is unhorsed, Mark." + +The groom got down, and, taking one of the carriage lamps, proceeded +to a spot where the highwayman's horse was standing. The man was +already dead, the bullet having hit him a few inches above the +heart. + +"He is dead, father." + +"I think you had better lift him up on the foot board behind; James +can ride his horse. We will hand the body over to the constable +at Reigate. He may know who he is, or find something upon him that +may afford a clew that will lead to the capture of his companion." + +"No, I don't know him, Squire," the constable said as they stopped +before his house and told him what had happened. "However, he +certainly is dead, and I will get one of the men to help me carry +him into the shed behind the courthouse. So you say that you think +that the other is wounded?" + +"I am pretty sure he is. I heard him give an exclamation as my son +fired." + +"That is good shooting, Mr. Mark," the constable said. "If every +passenger could use his arms as you do there would soon be an end +to stopping coaches. I will see what he has got about him, and will +come up and let you know, Squire, the first thing in the morning." + +"I will send Knapp down," John Thorndyke said, as they drove +homewards. "I am rather curious to know if this fellow is the same +Mrs. Cunningham wrote about. I will tell him to take Peters along +with him." + +"I hardly see that there can be any connection between the two. +Highwaymen don't go in for house breaking. I think they consider +that to be a lower branch of the profession." + +"Generally they do, no doubt, Mark; but you know I told you that the +chief at Bow Street said that he had a suspicion that the highway +robbers and the house breakers who have been creating so much alarm +are the same men." + +"It is curious that they should have happened to light on us, +father, if they were intending to break into our house." + +John Thorndyke made no reply, and in a few minutes drove up to the +house. Their return, a couple of days before they were expected, +caused great satisfaction to Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent. The +former, however, had wisely kept from the girl the matter on which +she had written to the Squire, and the suspicion she had herself +entertained. + +"It is very dull without you both," Millicent said. "I was telling +Mrs. Cunningham that I thought it would be a good thing, when you +got back, for us two to take a run up to town for a week, just to +let you see how dull the place is when two of us are away. You are +looking quite serious, uncle. Is anything the matter?" + +"Happily nothing is the matter with us, dear, but we have had an +adventure, and not a very pleasant one." + +"What was it?" the girl asked. + +"If you examine my hat closely, Millicent, it will tell you." + +The girl took up the hat from a chair on which he had put it, and +brought it to the light. "There are two holes in it," she said. +"Oh, Guardy, have you been shot at?" + +"It looks like it, dear. Two gentlemen highwaymen--at least, that +is what I believe they call themselves--asked us pressingly to +stop, and as we would not comply with their request, one fired at +me, and, as you see, it was an uncommonly good shot. The other was +about to fire when Mark's pistol put a stop to him, and his second +barrel stopped the fellow who had fired first; he was hit, for we +heard him give an exclamation of pain, but before any more shooting +could be done he turned and rode off down a narrow lane where we +could not follow." + +"And what became of the first?" Millicent asked with open eyes. + +"He was dead before we could get down to examine him; he will not +disturb the King's peace again. It happened about four miles from +home, so we brought him in and gave him and his horse into the +charge of the constable at Reigate." + +"And you have really killed a man?" Millicent said, looking up with +an awestruck expression to Mark. + +"Well, as the man would have killed us if I hadn't, I cannot say, +Millicent, that his death weighs in any way heavily on my mind. If +he were as good a shot as the other, my father's life would not have +been worth much, for as we were driving fast, he was not above half +as far away as the other had been when he fired. Just the same, I +suppose, as it would be in a battle; a man is going to shoot you, +and you shoot him first, and I don't suppose it ever troubles you +afterwards." + +"Of course I don't mean that I blame you, Mark; but it does seem +shocking." + +"I don't suppose you would think that, Millicent, if a burglar, who +had taken one shot at you and was about to finish you with another, +was cut short in the operation by a shot from my pistol. I believe +that your relief and thankfulness would be so great that the idea +that it was a shocking thing for me to do would not as much as +enter your head." + +"I wish you had shot the other man as well as the one you did, +Mark," the Squire said, as he walked with his son down to Reigate +to attend the inquest the next morning on the man he had brought +in. Mark looked at his father in surprise. + +"There is no doubt I hit him, father," he said; "but I should not +think that he will be likely to trouble us again." + +"I wish I felt quite sure of that. Do you know that I have a strong +suspicion that it was Arthur Bastow?" + +Mark had, of course, heard of Bastow's escape, but had attached +no great importance to it. The crime had taken place nearly eight +years before, and although greatly impressed at the time by the ill +doings of the man, the idea that he would ever return and endeavor +to avenge himself on his father for the part he had taken had not +occurred to him. Beyond mentioning his escape, the Squire had never +talked to him on the subject. + +"It was he who bade us stand and deliver, and the moment he spoke +the voice seemed familiar to me, and, thinking it over, I have an +impression that it was his. I may be mistaken, for I have had him +in my mind ever since I heard that he had escaped, and may therefore +have connected the voice with him erroneously, and yet I cannot but +think that I was right. You see, there are two or three suspicious +circumstances. In the first place, there was this man down here making +inquiries. Knapp went down early this morning with the innkeeper, +and told me before breakfast that Peters at once recognized the +fellow you shot as the man who had made the inquiries. Now, the +natural result of making inquiries would have been that the two men +would the next evening have broken into the house, thinking that +during our absence they would meet with no resistance. Instead of +doing this they waylaid us on the road, which looks as if it was +me they intended to attack, and not the house." + +"But how could they have known that it was us, father? It is certainly +singular that one of the two men should have been the fellow who +was up at the inn, but it may be only a matter of coincidence." + +"I don't know, Mark; I don't say that singular coincidences don't +occur, but I have not much faith in them. Still, if they were +journeying down to attack the house last night they would hardly have +stopped travelers by the way when there was a rich booty awaiting +them, as they evidently believed there was, or that man would not +have come down specially to make inquiries. My own impression is +that when they heard that we should return in two or three days one +of them watched us in London, and as soon as they learned that we +were to start for home at five o'clock they came down here to stop +us. They would hardly have done that merely to get our watches and +what money we had in our pockets." + +"No, I should think not, father; but they might be friends of men +who have got into trouble at Reigate, and, as you are chairman +of the bench, may have had a special grudge against you for their +conviction." + +"That is, of course, possible, and I hope that it is so." + +"But even if Arthur Bastow had escaped, father, why should he come +back to England, where he would know that he might be arrested +again, instead of staying quietly out in Australia?" + +"There are two reasons. In the first place the life out there would +not be a quiet one; there would be nothing for him but to attack +and rob the settlers, and this, as they are sure to be armed, is a +pretty dangerous business. Then there are perils from the blacks, +and lastly, such a life would be absolutely devoid of comfort, +and be that of a hunted dog; living always in the bush, scarcely +venturing to sleep lest he should be pounced upon either by the +armed constables of the colony or by the blacks. It is not as if +the country were extensively populated; there are not a very large +number of settlers there yet, and therefore very small scope for +robbers. These people would keep very little money with them, and +the amount of plunder to be got would be small indeed. Therefore, +I take it that the main object of any escaped convict would be to +get away from the place. + +"That is one of the reasons why the fellow might come back to +England in spite of the risks. The other is that I believe him to +be so diabolically vindictive that he would run almost any peril +in order to obtain revenge upon me or his father. Twice he has +threatened me, the first time when we captured him, the second time +as he left the court after he had received his sentence. I am not +a coward, so far as I know, Mark, but I am as certain as I stand +here that he meant what he said, and that, during these years of +imprisonment and toil out there, he has been cherishing the thought +of coming home some day and getting even with me. You see, he is +said to have been the leader of this convict revolt. There is no +doubting his daring, and to my mind the attack upon us last night, +when they knew that they could have managed a successful robbery here, +points to the fact that it was the result of personal animosity, +and strengthens my belief that it was Arthur Bastow who called upon +us to stand and deliver." + +"It is a very unpleasant idea, father." + +"Very unpleasant, and it seems to me that we should at any rate +spare no pains in hunting the man you wounded down." + +"I will undertake that if you like. I have nothing particular to +do, and it would be an excitement. You have a lot to keep you here." + +"I don't fancy that you will find it an excitement, Mark, for of +course the detectives will do the hunting, but I should certainly +be glad if you would take a letter for me to the head of the Detective +Department, and tell him what I think, and my reasons for thinking +so, and say that I offer a reward of a hundred pounds for the +capture of the man who tried to stop us, and who was, we are certain, +wounded by you. Unless he has some marvelously out of the way hiding +place, it ought not to be difficult. A wounded man could scarcely +lie hidden in the slums of London without it being known to a good +many people, to some of whom a reward of the sum of a hundred pounds +would be an irresistible temptation." + +By this time they had reached Reigate. The inquest did not last +many minutes, and the jury without hesitation returned a verdict +of justifiable homicide. + + + +CHAPTER VII. + + +The next morning Mark went up to London. + +"Of course, Mr. Thorndyke," the chief at Bow Street said, +"your father's suspicions as to the man's identity may or may not +be justified; that, however, makes no difference to us. Here is a +highwayman who has been wounded, and would certainly be a valuable +capture: I will set my men to work at once; if he is in London they +will get news of him before many days. My men in any case would do +their duty, but your father's offer will certainly stimulate their +energy. Where are you stopping?" + +"At the Bull, in Holborn." + +"Very well; I will be sure to let you know as soon as we get any +clew to the man's identity." + +Mark remained in London a week, and at the end of that time +he received a note from Bow Street saying that the superintendent +wished to see him. + +"I am sorry that I have no news for you, Mr. Thorndyke," the officer +said, when he called upon him. "Every place where such a man would +be likely to be in hiding has been searched, and no clew whatever +has been obtained. We shall now circulate notices of the reward +throughout the country. If the man was at all severely hit, we may +assume that he must be somewhere in the neighborhood of London, +whereas, if the wound was a slight one, he might be able to go a +long distance, and may be now in York, for aught we know. However, +now that the search in London has terminated, I can really see no +use in your staying here any longer; we will let you know directly +we have any news." + +Three months later John Thorndyke received a letter from the +Detective Office asking him to call the next time he came up to +town, as although no news had been obtained that would lead to the +man's immediate arrest, news had at any rate been obtained showing +that he was alive. It happened that Mark was intending to go up +on the following day, and his father asked him to call for him at +Bow Street. + +"Well, Mr. Thorndyke, we have heard about your man, and that after +we had quite abandoned the search. I had come to the conclusion +that the wound you gave him had been a fatal one, and that he had +been quietly buried by some of the people with whom he was connected. +The discovery was, as half these discoveries generally are, the +result of accident. Last week a gentleman entered the Bank and asked +for change in gold for a fifty pound note. The cashier, looking +at the number, found that it was one of those that had been stolen +from a passenger by one of the south coaches several months ago. The +gentleman was at once taken into a private office, and questioned +as to how he had obtained the note. The account that he gave was +that he was a surgeon in practice at Southampton. A gentleman had +arrived there on a date which we found to be the day after that on +which you were stopped; he was well dressed, and had the air of a +gentleman; he had come down by coach, and was evidently very ill. +He told the surgeon that he had been engaged in a duel, that the +pistols had been discharged simultaneously, and that he had killed +his man, but had himself been severely wounded. He said that the +person whom he had killed had influential connections, and that it +would be necessary for him to remain in seclusion for a time, and +he asked him to take charge of his case, as he had ample means of +paying him handsomely. The surgeon examined the wound, and found +it to be indeed a serious one, and, as he thought, probably fatal. +However, having no doubt as to the truth of the story, he had taken +the gentleman in, and he remained under his charge until a week +before he came up to town. + +"For the first month he had been dangerously ill, but he completely +recovered. The surgeon had no reason whatever for doubting his +patient being a gentleman; he was fashionably dressed, and had +evidently changed his clothes after the duel, as there were no +bloodstains upon them. He was, however, glad when he left, as his +conversation did not please him from its cynical tone. The Bank +sent to us directly the man presented the note, which he stated +had been given to him in part payment for his medical services and +the board and lodging of the patient; the total amount had been 75 +pounds, and the balance was paid in gold. As he was able to give +several good references, and was identified by three gentlemen, he +was, of course, released. I have no doubt whatever that the fellow +he attended was your man. The surgeon said, whoever he was, he must +have been a man of iron resolution to have made such a journey in +the state he was. + +"No doubt he must have ridden straight to the place he used as his +headquarters, where he had his wound roughly bandaged, changed his +clothes, and had ridden in the morning to some point that the coach +passed on its way to Southampton. Of course we obtained a minute +description from the surgeon of the man's appearance. We found that +the people at the coach office had no remembrance of there being +anyone answering to that description among the persons who traveled +by the coach, but of course that would not go for much, for over +three months have elapsed. + +"When the coachman who had driven the down coach that day came up +to town, we saw him, and he remembered perfectly that on or about +that day he had picked up a passenger at Kingston--a gentleman +who was in very weak health. There were only three inside passengers +besides himself, and he had to be assisted into the coach. The way +bill, on being turned up, showed that an inside passenger had been +taken up at Kingston. I have already sent down men to make inquiries +at every village in the district between Reigate and Kingston, and +I trust that we shall lay hands on him, especially now we have got +an accurate description of him, while before we were working in +the dark in that respect." + +"What is the description, sir? My father is much interested on that +point, for, as I believe I told you, he has a strong suspicion that +the fellow is the man who was transported more than eight years +ago to Australia, and who made his escape from the prison there." + +"Yes, I know. At first it appeared to me very improbable, but I am +bound to say the description tallies very closely with that given +of him. The surgeon took him to be nearly thirty; but after what +he has gone through he may well look three or four years older than +he is. He had light hair, rather small gray eyes, and a face that +would have been good looking had it not been for its supercilious +and sneering expression." + +"I can remember him," Mark said; "and that answers very closely to +him. I should say that it is certainly Bastow, and my father made +no mistake when he asserted that he recognized his voice." + +The officer added a note to the description in his register: "Strongly +suspected of being Arthur Bastow, transported for connivance with +highwaymen; was leader of a mutiny in convict jail of Sydney two +years and a half ago. Made his escape." + +"There is no doubt," he went on, "that he is a desperate character. +No doubt he is the man who has been concerned in most of these +robberies in the southern suburbs. We must get hold of him if we +can, and once we do so there will be an end of his travels, for the +mutiny in prison and escape is a hanging business, putting aside +the affairs since he got back. Well, sir, I hope he will give you +and your father no more trouble." + +"I am sure I hope so," Mark said. "I suppose that the fellow who +was shot was one of the men who escaped with him from the convict +prison." + +"That is likely enough. Two would get home as easily as one, and +the fact that they were both strangers here would account for the +difficulty our men have had in their search for him. You see, we +have had nothing whatever to go on. You must not be too sanguine +about our catching the man in a short time: he is evidently a +clever fellow, and I think it likely that once he got back he lost +no time in getting away from this part of the country, and we are +more likely to find him in the west or north than we are of laying +hands on him here. We will send descriptions all over the country, +and as soon as I hear of a series of crimes anywhere, I will send +off two of my best men to help the local constables." + +On his return home Mark told his father what he had done. + +"I thought that I could not have been mistaken, Mark; we have +got that rascal on our hands again. I hope now that they have got +a description of him to go by, they will not be long before they +catch him; but the way he escaped after being badly wounded shows +that he is full of resources, and he may give them some trouble +yet, if I am not mistaken. At any rate, I will have a talk with the +Reigate constable, and tell him that there is very little doubt +that the man who attacked us was Arthur Bastow, who has, as we have +heard, escaped from Botany Bay, and that he had best tell his men +to keep a sharp lookout for him, for that, owing to his animosity +against us for his former capture and conviction, it is likely +enough that sooner or later he will be in this neighborhood again. +After his determined attempt at my life when pretending to rob +us, I shall certainly not feel comfortable until I know that he is +under lock and key." + +"I wish, Guardy, you would give up this magistrate's business," +Millicent said at dinner. "I am sure that it is worrying you, and +I can't see why you should go on with it." + +"It does not worry me, as a rule, Millicent; indeed, I like the +duty. Besides, every landowner of standing ought to take his share +in public work. There are only two of the magistrates younger than +I am, and whatever you may think of me, I feel myself capable of +doing what work there is to do. When Mark gets a few years older +I shall resign, and let him take my place on the bench. I own, +though, that I should be glad if these highway robberies could be +suppressed. Poaching and the ordinary offenses of drunkenness and +assaults are disposed of without any trouble; but this stopping +of the coaches, accompanied occasionally by the shooting of the +coachman or guard, gives a great deal of trouble, and the worst of +it is that we are practically powerless to put such crimes down. +Nothing short of patrolling the roads in parties of three or four +between sunset and sunrise would put a stop to them, and the funds +at our disposal would not support such an expenditure." + +"It is a pity that you cannot get up a corps like the yeomanry, and +call it the Mounted Constabulary," said Mark. "There are at least +a dozen fellows I know who would, like myself, be glad to join it, +and I dare say we could get a score of young farmers or farmers' +sons." + +"It is not a bad idea, Mark, and I dare say that for a time the +duty would be zealously performed, but before very long you would +tire of it. A few wet nights or winter's cold, and you would cease +to see the fun of it, especially as you may be sure that the news +that the roads are well patrolled would soon come to the ears of +these scoundrels, and they would cease to work in the district." + +"Perhaps you are right, sir; but I think that a few of us would +stick to it." + +"Perhaps so, Mark, but I should be sorry to wager that the work +would be thoroughly done. The first county or hunt ball, or even +dinner party, more than half of them would be away. I don't say +that you personally might not for some considerable time persist +in patrolling the roads, for you have a sort of personal interest +in the matter; but I would wager that before two months have passed +you would find you were the only one who attended at the rendezvous +regularly." + +A fortnight later the party were seated round the fire in the dusk. +Mr. Bastow was sitting next to the Squire, and was in unusually good +spirits. He had heard no word of what the Squire had discovered, +nor dreamed that his son was again in England, still less that he +was suspected of being one of the men who had endeavored to stop +the Squire and his son on their drive from London. Suddenly there +was the crack of a pistol outside, and a ball passed between him +and the Squire. Without a word, Mark Thorndyke rushed to the door, +seized a pistol from his riding coat, and, snatching up a heavy +whip, dashed out into the garden. + +He was just in time to see a figure running at full speed, and he +set off in pursuit. Good runner as he was, he gained but slightly +at first, but after a time he drew nearer to the fugitive. The +latter was but some sixty yards away when he leaped a hedge into +a narrow lane. Mark followed without hesitation, but as he leaped +into the road he heard a jeering laugh and the sharp sound of +a horse's hoofs, and knew that the man he was pursuing had gained +his horse and made off. Disgusted at his failure, he went slowly +back to the house. The shutters had been put up. + +"I have lost him, father. He ran well to begin with, but I was +gaining fast on him when he leaped into a narrow lane where he had +left his horse, and rode off before I could get up to him. I need +hardly say that there was no use attempting to follow on foot. He +missed you all, did he not?" + +"Yes, Mark. It is not so easy to take an accurate aim when it is +nearly dark. The bullet passed between myself and Mr. Bastow, and +has buried itself in the mantelpiece." + +"Something ought to be done, Guardy," Millicent Conyers said +indignantly. "It is shameful that people cannot sit in their own +room without the risk of being shot at. What can it mean? Surely +no one can have any enmity against you." + +"I hope not, my dear," John Thorndyke said lightly. "Some of the +fellows we have sentenced may think that we were rather hard on them, +but I do not think that any of them would feel it sufficiently to +attempt to murder one; besides, Mark says that the fellow had a +horse waiting for him, and none of our poachers would be likely to +be the owner of a horse. It may be that the highwayman Mark shot +at and wounded has come down to give us a fright. It is no use +worrying about it now; in future we will have the shutters closed +at sunset. It is hardly likely that the thing will be attempted +again, and Mark's chase must have shown the fellow that the game +is hardly worth the risk." + +"He might have shot you, Mark; you had no right to risk your life +in that sort of way," the girl said to him, later, as they were +seated together in front of the fire, while the Squire was reading +the Gazette at the table, Mrs. Cunningham was working, and Mr. +Bastow, who had been greatly shaken by the event, had retired to +bed. + +"Do you think that he really meant to kill your father?" + +"I should imagine he did; a man would hardly run the risk of being +hung merely for the pleasure of shooting. I would give a good deal +if I had caught him, or better still, if I had shot him," said +Mark. "However, I will make it my business to hunt the fellow down. +After this evening's affair, we shall never feel comfortable until +he is caught. I have no doubt that he is the fellow we have been +hunting for the last four months. The people at Bow Street seem no +good whatever; I will try if I cannot succeed better." + +"Don't do anything rash, Mark," said Millicent, in a low voice; +"you have no right to put yourself in danger." + +"But our lives are in danger now, Millicent--in much greater +danger than mine would be when looking out for him. But there seems +no guarding against attacks like this; I mean to hunt him down, if +it takes me a year. I have nothing special to do, and cannot employ +my time more usefully." + +When the ladies went up to bed the Squire said: + +"Come into the library, Mark, and we will smoke a pipe, and have +a talk over this business." He touched the bell. "Have you got a +good fire in the library, Ramoo?" + +"Yes, sahib, very good." + +"Then take a bottle of number one bin of port there--and a couple +of glasses." + +When they were quietly seated, glasses filled, and the long pipes +alight, the Squire said: "I want to have a serious talk with you, +Mark. What I am going to say will surprise you a good deal. I had +not intended to tell you for another four years--that is to say, +not until Millicent came of age--but after that affair tonight, +I feel that my life is so uncertain that I ought not to delay letting +you know the truth. I suppose you agree with me that it was Bastow +who shot at me this evening?" + +"I have not the least doubt about that, father." + +"I will not say that he shot at me," the Squire said, "for he may +have shot at his father; the villain is quite capable of that. It +was his father who brought me upon him, and though I effected his +capture eight years ago I don't suppose he cares which of us he +killed. However, the point is not what he aimed at, but whether +it was he, and that I take there is no doubt about. He missed me +this time, but his next shot may be more successful, At any rate, +I think that it is high time that I told you the story." + +And, beginning with the arrival of Colonel Thorndyke at his place, +he repeated the conversation that he had had with him. Several +times in the early portion of his narrative he was interrupted by +exclamations of surprise from his son. + +"Then Millicent is really my uncle's heiress!" exclaimed Mark, when +he heard the request the Colonel had made of the Squire. + +"That is so, Mark. She does not know it herself, and it was my +brother's urgent wish that she should not know it until she came +of age or until she married. I fought against it to the utmost, but +it was his dying prayer, and I could not refuse it. My solicitor +knows the facts of the matter, and so does Mrs. Cunningham, who +brought Millicent over from India when she was only about a year +old. I may say that I especially urged that it would not be fair +to you to be brought up to consider yourself to be heir to the +property, but he said: + +"'Putting aside the estate, I have a considerable fortune. In the +first place, there are the accumulations of rent from the Reigate +place. I have never touched them, and they have been going on for +twelve years. In. the next place, the shaking of the pagoda tree +has gone on merrily, and we all made a comfortable pile. Then I +always made a point of carrying about with me two or three hundred +pounds, and after the sacking of some of the palaces I could pick +up jewels and things from the troops for a trifle, being able to +pay money down. Even without the rents here, I have some 50,000 +pounds in money. I should think the jewels would be worth at least +as much more, irrespective of a diamond bracelet which is, I fancy, +worth more than the rest put together. It was stolen from the arm +of some idol.' He then explained how he got it, and the manner +in which he had placed it and the rest of his wealth in a secure +position. + +"'Things stolen from a god are frightfully dangerous,' he said, +'for the Brahmins or priests connected with the temples have been +known to follow them up for years, and in nine cases out of ten they +get possession of them again. Murder in such a case is meritorious, +and I would not have them in the house here, were they ten times the +value they are. I know that my clothes, my drawers, and everything +belonging to me have been gone through at night a score of times. +Nothing has been stolen, but, being a methodical man, I could +generally see some displacement in the things that told me they had +been disturbed, They gave it up for a time, but I haven't a shadow +of a doubt that they have been watching me ever since, and they may +be watching me now, for anything I know. Now, half of that fortune +I have left by my will to your son; half to the girl. I will tell +you where the things are the last thing before I die. + +"'Now, mind, you must be careful when you get them. When I am dead +you are almost certain to be watched. You don't know what these +fellows are. The things must remain where they are until your boy +comes of age. Don't let him keep those diamonds an hour in his +possession; let him pass them away privately to some man in whom +he has implicit confidence, for him to take them to a jeweler's; +let him double and turn and disguise himself so as to throw everyone +that may be spying on him off his track. If you can manage it, the +best way would be to carry them over to Amsterdam, and sell them +there.' + +"I confess it seemed absurd, but it is a matter about which he +would know a great deal more than I do, and he was convinced that +not only was he watched, but that he owed his life simply to the +fact that the fellows did not know where the diamonds were hidden, +and that by killing him they would have lost every chance of +regaining them. + + +"So convinced was he of all this, that he would not tell me where +he had stowed them away; he seemed to think that the very walls +would hear us, and that these fellows might be hidden under the +sofa, in a cupboard, or up the chimney, for aught I know. He told +me that he would tell me the secret before he died; but death came +so suddenly that he never had an opportunity of doing so. He made +a tremendous effort in his last moment, but failed, and I shall +never forget the anguish his face expressed when he found himself +powerless to speak; however, he pressed his snuffbox into my hand +with such a significant look that, being certain it contained some +clew to the mystery, and being unable to find a hidden spring or +a receptacle, I broke it open that night. + +"It contained a false bottom, and here are what I found in it. I +stowed them away in a secret drawer in that old cabinet that stands +by my bedside. It is in the bottom pigeonhole on the right hand +side. I bought the cabinet at a sale, and found the spring of the +secret drawer quite accidentally. I shall put the things back tonight, +and you will know where to look for them. You press against the +bottom and up against the top simultaneously, and the back then +falls forward. The opening behind is very shallow, and will hold +but two or three letters. But, however, it sufficed for this;" and +he handed Mark the coin and slip of paper. + +"But what are these, father?" + +"These are the clews by which we are to obtain the treasure." + +As Mark examined them carefully the Squire stood up with his back +to the fire, and looking round walked to the door and said: "I +thought there was a draught somewhere; either Ramoo did not shut +the door when he went out or it has come open again. It has done +that once or twice before. When I go into town tomorrow I will +tell Tucker to send a man up to take the lock off. Well, what do +you make out of that?" + +"I can make out nothing," Mark replied. "No doubt the coin is +something to be given to whoever is in charge of the treasure, and +Masulipatam may be the place where it is hidden." + +"Yes, or it may be a password. It reminds one of the forty thieves +business. You go and knock at the door of a cave, a figure armed +to the teeth presents itself, you whisper in his ear 'Masulipatam,' +he replies 'Madras,' or 'Calcutta,' or something of that sort, you +take out the coin and show it to him, he takes out from some hidden +repository a similar one, compares the two, and then leads you to +an inner cave piled up with jewels." + +Mark laughed. + +"Well, it is no laughing matter, Mark," the Squire went on seriously. +"The little comedy may not be played just as I have sketched it, +but I expect that it is something of the kind. That coin has to be +shown, and the word 'Masulipatam' spoken to the guardian, whoever +he may be, of your uncle's treasure. But who that guardian may be +or how he is to be found is a mystery. I myself have never tried +to solve it. There was nothing whatever to go upon. The things may +be in England or, it may be, anywhere in India. To me it looked an +absolutely hopeless business to set about. I did not see how even +a first step was to be taken, and as I had this estate and you and +Millicent to look after, and was no longer a young man, I put the +matter aside altogether. You are young, you have plenty of energy, +and you have your life before you, and it is a matter of the greatest +interest to you. + +"Possibly--very improbably, mind, still possibly--when Millicent +comes of age and learns who she is, Mrs. Cunningham may be able to +help you. I have no idea whether it is so. I have never spoken to +her about this treasure of George's, but it is just possible that +while he was in town before he came down to me he may have given +her some instructions concerning it. Of course he intended to give +me full particulars, but he could hardly have avoided seeing that, +in the event of my death, perhaps suddenly before the time came for +seeking the treasure, the secret would be lost altogether. Whether +he has told her or his lawyer or not I cannot say, but I have all +along clung to the hope that he took some such natural precaution. +Unless that treasure is discovered, the only thing that will come +to you is the half of the accumulated rents of this estate during +the ten years between my father's death and George's; these rents +were paid to our solicitors, and by them invested. + +"The rentals amount to about 2500 pounds a year, and of course +there is interest to be added, so that I suppose there is now some +25,000 pounds, for I had out 2000 pounds when I came here, to set +matters straight. I had a great fight with the lawyers over it, but +as I pointed out they had failed altogether to see that the agent +did his duty, and that at least a couple of hundred a year ought to +be expended in necessary repairs, I had a right to at least that +sum to carry out the work that ought to be done from year to year. +In addition to that sum I laid out about 1000 pounds a year for +the first three years I was here; so that practically 5000 pounds +was expended in rebuilding the village and doing repairs on the +homesteads; that, however, is not the point now. Altogether, then, +there is some 25,000 pounds to be divided between you and Millicent +when she becomes mistress of this property. + +"According to the terms of my brother's will, I am still to remain +here until she marries; when she does so I shall, of course, go back +to my own little place; the income of that has been accumulating +while I have been here, my only expenses having been for clothes. I +have taken nothing out of this estate since I came here, and each +year have paid to the solicitors all balances remaining after +discharging the household expenses, these balances averaging 700 +or 800 pounds a year. Of course the income was absolutely left to +me during the time I remained ostensible owner, but I had no wish +to make money out of a trust that I assumed greatly against my will. +That money is Millicent's; of course the house had to be kept up +in proper style whether I were here or not. Had she at once come +into possession, there must have been horses, and carriages, and so +on. I don't say that I have not had all the expenses of our living +saved; that I had no objection to; but I was determined at least +not to take a penny put of the estate beyond those expenses. You +see, Mark, you will have your 12,500 pounds anyhow, as soon as +Millicent comes of age--not a bad little sum--so that even if +you never hear anything more of this mysterious treasure you will +not be penniless, or in anyway dependent upon me. At my death, +of course, you will come into the Sussex place, with what savings +there may be." + +"I am sure I have no reason to grumble, father," Mark said heartily. +"Of course it came upon me at first as a surprise that Millicent +was the heiress here, and it flashed through my mind for the moment +that the best thing would be to take a commission in the army, or +to follow my uncle's example, and get a cadetship in the Company's +service. I have no doubt that I should have enjoyed life either way +quite as much or possibly more than if I had gone on a good many +years as heir to these estates, and afterwards as Squire. Of course, +now I shall make it my business to see if it is possible to obtain +some sort of clew to this treasure, and then follow it up; but +the first thing to which I shall give my mind will be to hunt down +Bastow. We shall never feel safe here as long as that fellow is +alive, and that will be the first thing I shall devote myself to. +After that I shall see about the treasure." + +"As to that, Mark, I cannot impress upon you too strongly what your +uncle said. It may, of course, be a pure delusion on his part; but +if he is right, and some of these Hindoo fellows are still on the +watch to obtain that bracelet, you must use extraordinary precautions +when you get it into your hands; he advised me to take it across +to Amsterdam, and either get the stones recut or to sell them +separately to different diamond merchants there. He said that my +life would not be worth an hour's purchase as long as the stones +were in my hands." + +"That rather looks, father, as if the things were somewhere in +England; had they been in India, you would have had them some months +in your hands before you could get them to Amsterdam." + +"I did not think of that before, Mark, and it is possible that you +are right; but I don't know; he might have thought that it would +be impossible for me to dispose of them at Madras or Calcutta, and +may have assumed that I should at once deposit them in a bank to +be forwarded with other treasure to England, or that I should get +them packed away in the treasure safe in the ship I came back by, +and that I should not really have them on my person till I landed +in England, or until I took them from the Bank. Still, I see that +your supposition is the most likely, and that they may all this time +have been lying somewhere in London until I should present myself +with a gold coin and the word 'Masulipatam.'" + +Suddenly Mark sprang to his feet, and pulled back the curtains +across a window, threw it up, and leaped into the garden, and there +stood listening for two or three minutes, with his pistol cocked +in his hand. He stepped for a moment into the room again. + +"You had better put that light out, father or we may have another +shot." + +"Did you hear anything, Mark?" + +"I thought I did, father. I may have been mistaken, but I certainly +thought I heard a noise, and when I pulled the curtains aside the +window was not shut by three or four inches. I will have a look +through the shrubbery. That fellow may have come back again. Pull +the curtains to after me." + +"I will go with you, Mark." + +"I would rather you didn't, father; it would only make me nervous. +I shan't go into the shrubbery and give them a chance of getting +first shot. I shall hide up somewhere and listen. It is a still +night, and if there is anyone moving I am pretty sure to hear him." + +The Squire turned down the lamp, drew the curtains, and seated +himself by the fire. It was three quarters of an hour before Mark +returned. He shut the window, and fastened it carefully. + +"I fancy you must have been mistaken, Mark." + +"I suppose that shot through the window has made me nervous. +I certainly did fancy I heard a noise there; it may have been a +dead bough snapping, or something of that sort; and of course, the +window being partly open, even though only three or four inches, +any little noise would come in more plainly than it otherwise would +do. However, everything has been perfectly quiet since I went out, +and it is hardly likely indeed that the fellow would have returned +so soon after the hot chase I gave him." + +"It is very stupid--the window being left open," the Squire said. +"I shall question Martha about it in the morning; it was her duty +to see that it was shut and fastened before drawing the curtains. +Just at present one can scarcely be too careful. I don't mean +to deny that whether there was a window open or not a burglar who +wanted to get into the house could do so, still there is no use +in making their work more easy for them. I know, as a rule, we are +careless about such things; there has not been a burglary in this +part for years, and until lately the front door has never been +locked at night, and anyone could have walked in who wanted to. Of +course the servants don't know that there is any reason for being +more careful at present than usual. + +"I was thinking the other day of having shutters put to all these +downstair rooms. Some of them have got them, and some have not; +still, even with shutters, burglars can always get in if they want +to do so. They have only to cut round the lock of a door or to make +a hole in a panel to give them room to put an arm through and draw +back a bolt, and the thing is done. I know that all the silver is +locked up every night in the safe, for Ramoo sees to that, and I +have never known him neglect anything under his charge. Well, Mark, +I don't know that it is any use sitting up longer, we have plenty +of time to talk the matter over; it is four years yet before Millicent +comes of age, though, of course, there is nothing to prevent your +setting out in quest of the treasure as soon as you like. Still, +there is no hurry about it." + +"None whatever, father; but I don't mean to lose a day before I +try to get on the track of that villain Bastow." + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + + +Mark was some hours before he went to sleep. The news that he had +heard that evening was strange and startling. Full of health and +strength, the fact that he was not, as he had always supposed, the +heir to the estate troubled him not at all. The fact that in four +years he would come in for some twelve thousand pounds was sufficient +to prevent his feeling any uneasiness as to his future; and indeed +in some respects it was not an unpleasant idea that, instead of +being tied down to the estate, he should be able to wander at will, +visit foreign countries, and make his own life. + +In one respect he was sorry. His father had in the last year hinted +more than once that it would be a very nice arrangement if he were +to make up a match with his ward; he had laughed, and said that +there would be plenty of time for that yet. But the idea had been +an agreeable one. He was very fond of Millicent--fond, perhaps; +in a cousinly way at present; but at any rate he liked her far +better than any of the sisters of his friends. Of course she was +only seventeen yet, and there was plenty of time to think of marriage +in another three years. Still, the thought occurred to him several +times that she was budding out into a young woman, and every month +added to her attractions. It was but the day before he had said to +himself that there was no reason to wait as long as three years, +especially as his father seemed anxious, and would evidently be glad +were the match to take place. Now, of course, he said to himself, +that was at an end. He had never given her any reason to suppose +that he cared for her, and now that she was the heiress and he +comparatively poor, she would naturally think that it was for the +estate, and not for herself, that she was wooed. Then there was +the question of this curiously lost treasure, with the mysterious +clew that led to nothing. How on earth was he to set about the +quest? He puzzled for a long time over this, till at last he fell +asleep. He was roused by Ramoo entering the room. + +"What is it, Ramoo?" + +"Me not know, sahib. Massa Thorndyke's door shut. Me no able to +make him hear." + +"That is curious, Ramoo," Mark said, jumping hastily out of bed. +"I will be with you in a minute." + +He slipped on his trousers, coat, and slippers, and then accompanied +Ramoo to his father's door. He knocked again and again, and each +time more loudly, his face growing paler as he did so. Then he +threw himself against the door, but it was solid and heavy. + +"Fetch me an ax, Ramoo," he said. "There is something wrong here." + +Ramoo returned in a short time with two men servants and with the +ax in his hands. Mark took it, and with a few mighty blows split +the woodwork, and then hurling himself against the door, it yielded. +As he entered the room a cry broke from his lips. Within a pace +or two of the bed the Squire lay on the ground, on his face, and +a deep stain on the carpet at once showed that his death had been +a violent one. Mark knelt by his side now, and touched him. The +body was stiff and cold. The Squire must have been dead for some +hours. + +"Murdered!" he said in a low voice; "my father has been murdered." + +He remained in horror struck silence for a minute or two; then he +slowly rose to his feet. + +"Let us lay him on the bed," he said, and with the assistance of +the three men he lifted and laid him there. + +"He has been stabbed," he murmured, pointing to a small cut in the +middle of the deep stain, just over the heart. + +Ramoo, after helping to lift the Squire onto the bed, had slid down +to the floor, and crouched there, sobbing convulsively. The two +servants stood helpless and aghast. Mark looked round the room: the +window was open. He walked to it. A garden ladder stood outside, +showing how the assassin had obtained entrance. Mark stood rigid +and silent, his hands tightly clenched, his breath coming slowly +and heavily. At last he roused himself. + +"Leave things just as they are," he said to the men in a tone of +unnatural calmness, "and fasten the door up again, and turn a table +or something of that sort against it on the outside so that no one +can come in. John, do you tell one of the grooms to saddle a horse +and ride down into the town. Let him tell the head constable to +come up at once, and also Dr. Holloway. Then he is to go on to Sir +Charles Harris, tell him what has happened, and beg him to ride +over at once. + +"Come, Ramoo," he said in a softer voice, "you can do no good here, +poor fellow, and the room must be closed. It is a heavy loss to +you too." + +The Hindoo rose slowly, the tears streaming down his face. + +"He was a good master," he said, "and I loved him just as I loved +the Colonel, sahib. Ramoo would have given his life for him." + +With his hand upon Ramoo's shoulder, Mark left the room; he passed +a group of women huddled together with blanched faces, at a short +distance down the passage, the news that the Squire's door could +not be opened and the sounds made by its being broken in having +called them together. Mark could not speak. He silently shook his +head and passed on. As he reached his room he heard shrieks and +cries behind him, as the men informed them of what had taken place. +On reaching his door, the one opposite opened, and Mrs. Cunningham +in a dressing gown came out. + +"What is the matter, Mark, and what are these cries about?" + +"A dreadful thing has happened, Mrs. Cunningham; my father has been +murdered in the night. Please tell Millicent." + +Then he closed the door behind him, threw himself on his bed, and +burst into a passion of tears. The Squire had been a good father +to him, and had made him his friend and companion--a treatment +rare indeed at a time when few sons would think of sitting down +in their father's presence until told to do so. Since he had left +school, eight years before, they had been very much together. For +the last two or three years Mark had been a good deal out, but in +this his father had encouraged him. + +"I like to see you make your own friends, Mark, and go your own +way," he used to say; "it is as bad for a lad to be tied to his +father's coattail as at his mother's apron string. Get fresh ideas +and form your own opinions. It will do for you what a public school +would have done; make you self reliant, and independent." + +Still, of course, a great portion of his time had been with his +father, and they often would ride round the estate together and +talk to the tenants, or walk in the gardens and forcing houses. +Generally Mark would be driven by his father to the meet if it took +place within reasonable distance, his horse being sent on beforehand +by a groom, while of an evening they would sit in the library, +smoke their long pipes, and talk over politics or the American and +French wars. + +All this was over. There was but one thing now that he could do for +his father, and that was to revenge his death, and at the thought +he rose from his bed impatiently and paced up and down the room. +He must wait for a week, wait till the funeral was over, and then +he would be on Bastow's track. If all other plans failed he would +spend his time in coaches until at last the villain should try to +stop one; but there must be other ways. Could he find no other he +would apply for employment as a Bow Street runner, serve for a year +to find out their methods, and acquaint himself with the places +where criminals were harbored. It would be the one object of his +life, until he succeeded in laying his hand on Bastow's shoulder. +He would not shoot him if he could help it. He should prefer to see +him in the dock, to hear the sentence passed on him, and to see it +carried out. As to the treasure, it was not worth a thought till +his first duty was discharged. + +Presently a servant brought him a cup of tea. He drank it mechanically, +and then proceeded to dress himself. Sir Charles Harris would be +here soon and the others; indeed, he had scarcely finished when he +was told that the doctor from Reigate had just arrived, and that +the constable had come up half an hour before. He at once went down +to the library, into which the doctor had been shown. + +"You have heard what has happened," he said, as he shook hands +silently. "I expect Sir Charles Harris here in half an hour. I +suppose you will not go up till then?" + +"No, I think it will be best that no one should go in until he comes. +I have been speaking to Simeox; he was going in, but I told him I +thought it was better to wait. I may as well take the opportunity +of going upstairs to see Mr. Bastow. I hear that he fainted when +he heard the news, and that he is completely prostrate." + +"Two such shocks might well prove fatal to him," Mark said; "he +has been weak and ailing for some time." + +"Two shocks?" the doctor repeated interrogatively. + +"Ah, I forgot you had not heard about the affair yesterday evening: +a man fired at us through the window when we were sitting round +the fire, before the candles were lit. The ball passed between my +father's head and Mr. Bastow's; both had a narrow escape; the bullet +is imbedded in the mantelpiece. I will have it cut out; it may be +a useful item of evidence some day." + +"But what could have been the man's motive? Your father was +universally popular." + +"Except with ill doers," Mark said. "I ran out and chased the +fellow for half a mile, and should have caught him if he had not +had a horse waiting for him in a lane, and he got off by the skin +of his teeth. I hope that next time I meet him he will not be +so lucky. Mr. Bastow was very much shaken, and went to bed soon +afterwards. I am not surprised that this second shock should be too +much for him. Will you go up and see him? I will speak to Simeox." + +The constable was out in the garden. + +"This is a terrible business, Mr. Thorndyke. I suppose, after what +you told me, you have your suspicions?" + +"They are not suspicions at all--they are certainties. Did you +hear that he tried to shoot my father yesterday evening?" + +"No, sir, I have heard nothing about it." + +Mark repeated the story of the attempt and pursuit. + +"Could you swear to him,' Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"No, there was not much light left; besides, as I have not seen +him for the last eight years, I should certainly not be able to +recognize him unless I had time to have a good look at him. Had it +only been last night's affair it might have been anyone; but the +shooting through the window was not the act of a thief, but of an +assassin, who could only have been influenced by private enmity. I +quite see that at present I have no legal evidence against. Bastow; +I am not even in a position to prove that he is in the country, +for it cannot be said that my father's belief that he recognized +the voice of the man who said 'Stand and deliver!' is proof. I +doubt if anyone could swear that, when he only heard three words, +he was absolutely sure that it was the voice of a man he had not seen +for some years. However, fortunately, that will make no difference; +the man is, as I told you, wanted for his heading the mutiny in the +convict prison at Sydney, which will be quite sufficient to hang +him without this business. But I own that I should prefer that +he were hung for my father's murder if we could secure sufficient +evidence. Moreover, there is the attack upon us three or four +months ago, and with the evidence of the surgeon who attended him +as to his wound, that would be enough to hang him. But we have first +got to catch him, and that I mean to make my business, however long +the search may take me." + +"Was anything taken last night, sir?" + +"I don't know; I did not look. We shall see to that when we go +upstairs. We may as well go indoors now; Sir Charles may be here +in a few minutes, and I want to hear Dr. Holloway's report as to +Mr. Bastow." + +"He does not suspect, I hope, sir?" + +"No, thank God; my father never mentioned to him anything he +heard about his son, or his suspicions, therefore he has no reason +to believe that the fellow is not still in the convict prison at +Sydney. We shall keep it from him now, whatever happens; but it +would, for his sake, be best that this shock should prove too much +for him. He has had a very hard time of it altogether." + +"He is terribly prostrate," the doctor reported when Mark joined him. +"I don't think that he will get over it. He is scarcely conscious +now. You see, he is an old man, and has no reserve of strength to +fall back upon. Your father has been such a good friend to him that +it is not surprising the news should have been too much for him. +I examined him at the Squire's request some months ago as to his +heart's action, which was so weak that I told the Squire then that +he might go off at any time, and I rather wonder that he recovered +even temporarily from the shock." + +In a few minutes Sir Charles Harris drove up. + +"This is terrible news, my dear Mark," he said, as he leaped from +his gig and wrung Mark's hand--"terrible. I don't know when I +have had such a shock; he was a noble fellow in all respects, a warm +friend, an excellent magistrate, a kind landlord, good all round. +I can scarcely believe it yet. A burglar, of course. I suppose +he entered the house for the purpose of robbery, when your father +awoke and jumped out of bed, there was a tussle, and the scoundrel +killed him; at least, that is what I gather from the story that +the groom told me." + +"That is near it, Sir Charles, but I firmly believe that robbery +was not the object, but murder; for murder was attempted yesterday +evening," and he informed the magistrate of the shot fired through +the window. + +"Bless me, you don't say so!" the magistrate exclaimed. "That alters +the case altogether, and certainly would seem to make the act one +of premeditated murder; and yet, surely, the Squire could not have +had an enemy. Some of the men whom we have sentenced may have felt +a grudge against him, but surely not sufficient to lead them to a +crime like this." + +"I will talk of it with you afterwards, Sir Charles. I have the +very strongest suspicions, although no absolute proofs. Now, will +you first come upstairs? Doctor Holloway is here and Simeox, but +no one has entered the room since I left it; I thought it better +that it should be left undisturbed until you came." + +"Quite so; we will go up at once." + +An examination of the room showed nothing whatever that would afford +the slightest clew. The Squire's watch was still in the watch pocket +at the head of the bed, his purse was on a small table beside him; +apparently nothing had been touched in the room. + +"If robbery was the object," Sir Charles said gravely, "it has +evidently not been carried out, and it is probable that Mr. Thorndyke +was partly woke by the opening of the window, and that he was not +thoroughly aroused until the man was close to his bed; then he +leapt out and seized him. Probably the stab was, as Dr. Holloway +assures us, instantly fatal, and he may have fallen so heavily that +the man, fearing that the house would be alarmed at the sound, at +once fled, without even waiting to snatch up the purse. The whole +thing is so clear that it is scarcely necessary to ask any further +questions. Of course, there must be an inquest tomorrow. I should +like when I go down to ask the gardener where he left the ladder +yesterday. Have you examined the ground for footmarks?" + +"Yes, Sir Charles, but you see it was a pretty hard frost last +night, and I cannot find any marks at all. The ground must have +been like iron about the time when the ladder was placed there." + +The gardener, on being called in, said that the ladder was always +hung up outside the shed at the back of the house; there was a chain +round it, and he had found that morning that one of the links had +been filed through. + +"The Squire was most particular about its being locked, as Mr. Mark +knows, so that it could not be used by any ill disposed chaps who +might come along at night. The key of the padlock was always hung +on a nail round the other side of the shed. The Squire knew of it, +and so did Mr. Mark and me; so that while it was out of the way of +the eyes of a thief, any of us could run and get it and undo the +padlock in a minute in case of fire or anything of that sort. I +have not used the ladder, maybe, for a fortnight, but I know that +it was hanging in its place yesterday afternoon." + +"I expect the fellow was prowling about here for some time," Mark +said. "I was chatting with my father in the library when I thought +I heard a noise, and I threw open the window, which had by some +carelessness been left a little open, and went out, and listened +for nearly an hour, but I could hear nothing, and put it down to +the fact that I was nervous owing to what had happened early in +the evening, and that the noise was simply fancy, or that the frost +had caused a dry branch of one of the shrubs to crack." + +"How was it you did not notice the window was open as you went in?" + +"The curtains were drawn, sir. I glanced at that when I went into +the room with my father. After being shot at once from outside, +it was possible that we might be again; though I own that I did +not for a moment think that the fellow would return after the hot +chase that I gave him. I suppose after I went in he looked about +and found the ladder; it is likely enough that he would have had +a file with him in case he had any bars to cut through to get into +the house, but to my mind it is more likely that he knew where to +find the ladder without any looking for it; it has hung there as +long as I can remember." + +"Yes, sir," the gardener said, "I have worked for the Squire ever +since he came here, and the ladder was bought a week or two after +he took me on, and the Squire settled where it should be hung, +so that it might be handy either in case of fire or if wanted for +a painting job. This aint the first ladder; we got a new one four +years ago." + +"It is singular that the man should have known which was the window +of your father's room." + +"Very singular," Mark said. + +Shortly after the doctor left, and Mark had a long talk with the +magistrate in the library, and told him his reasons for suspecting +that the murderer was Arthur Bastow. + +"It certainly looks like it," the magistrate said thoughtfully, after +he had heard Mark's story, "though of course it is only a case of +strong suspicion, and not of legal proof. Your father's recognition +of the voice could have scarcely been accepted as final when he +heard but three words, still the whole thing hangs together. The +fellow was, I should say, capable of anything. I don't know that +I ever had a prisoner before me whose demeanor was so offensive +and insolent, and if it can be proved that Bastow is in England I +should certainly accept your view of the case. He would probably +have known both where the ladder was to be found and which was the +window of your father's bedroom." + +"I should certainly think that he would know it, sir. The bedroom +was the same that my grandfather used to sleep in, and probably +during the years before we came here young Bastow would have often +been over the house. The first year or two after we came he was +often up here with his father, but I know that my father took such +an objection to him, his manner and language were so offensive, +that he would not have me, boy as I was--I was only about eleven +when he came here--associate with him in the smallest degree. +But during those two years he may very well have noticed where the +ladder was." + +"Do you intend to say anything about all this tomorrow at the +inquest, Mark?" + +"I don't think I shall do so," Mark said moodily. "I am certain +of it myself, but I don't think any man would convict him without +stronger evidence than I could give. However, that business in +Australia will be sufficient to hang him." + +"I think you are right, Mark. Of course, if you do light upon any +evidence, we can bring this matter up in another court; if not, +there will be no occasion for you to appear in it at all, but leave +it altogether for the authorities to prove the Sydney case against +him; it will only be necessary for the constables who got up the +other case against him to prove his sentence, and for the reports +of the Governor of the jail to be read. There will be no getting +over that, and he will be hung as a matter of course. It will be +a terrible thing for his unhappy father." + +"I do not think that he is likely to come to know it, sir; the shock +of the affair yesterday and that of this morning have completely +prostrated him, and Dr. Holloway, who was up with him before you +arrived, thinks that there is very little chance of his recovery." + +When the magistrate had left, Mark sent a request to Mrs. Cunningham +that she would come down for a few minutes. She joined him in the +drawing room. + +"Thank you for coming down," he said quietly. "I wanted to ask how +you were, and how Millicent is." + +"She is terribly upset. You see, the Squire was the only father +she had ever known; and had he been really so he could not have +been kinder. It is a grievous loss to me also, after ten years of +happiness here; but I have had but little time to think of my own +loss yet, I have been too occupied in soothing the poor girl. How +are you feeling yourself, Mark?" + +"I don't understand myself," he said. "I don't think that anyone +could have loved his father better than I have done; but since I +broke down when I first went to my room I seem to have no inclination +to give way to sorrow. I feel frozen up; my voice does not sound to +me as if it were my own; I am able to discuss matters as calmly as +if I were speaking of a stranger. The one thing that I feel passionately +anxious about is to set out on the track of the assassin." + +"There is nothing unusual in your state of feeling, Mark. Such a +thing as this is like a wound in battle; the shock is so great that +for a time it numbs all pain. I have heard my husband say that a +soldier who has had his arm carried off by a cannon ball will fall +from the shock, and when he recovers consciousness will be ignorant +where he has been hit. It is so with you; probably the sense of +pain and loss will increase every day as you take it in more and +more. As for what you say about the murderer, it will undoubtedly +be a good thing for you to have something to employ your thoughts +and engage all your faculties as soon as this is all over. Is there +anything that I can do?" + +"No, thank you; the inquest will be held tomorrow. I have sent +down to Chatterton to come up this afternoon to make the necessary +preparations for the funeral. Let me see, today is Wednesday, is +it not? I seem to have lost all account of the time." + +"Yes, Wednesday." + +"Then I suppose the funeral will he on Monday or Tuesday. If there +is any message that you want sent down to the town, one of the +grooms will carry it whenever you wish." + +"Thank you; 'tis not worth sending particularly, any time will do, +but I shall want to send a note to Mrs. Wilson presently, asking +her to come up the first thing tomorrow morning." + +"He can take it whenever, you like, Mrs. Cunningham. I have nothing +to send down for, as far as I know. I suppose you have heard that +the doctor thinks very badly of Mr. Bastow?" + +"Yes. Ramoo is sitting with him now." + +"Then I think, if you will write your note at once, Mrs. Cunningham, +I will send one down to Dr. Holloway, asking him to send an experienced +nurse. He said he should call again this afternoon, but the sooner +a nurse comes the better." + +That afternoon Mark wrote a letter to the family solicitors, telling +them of what had taken place, and stating that the funeral would +be on the following Tuesday, and asking them to send down a clerk +with his father's will, or if one of the partners could manage to +come down, he should greatly prefer it, in view of the explanations +that would be necessary. He had already sent off a letter to the +head of the Detective Department, asking him to send down one of +his best men as soon as possible. Then he went out into the garden, +and walked backwards and forwards for about two hours, and then +returned to what he thought would be a solitary meal. Mrs. Cunningham, +however, came down. She had thoughtfully had the large dining table +pushed on one side, and a small one placed near the fire. + +"I thought it would be more comfortable," she said, "as there are +only our two selves, just to sit here." + +He thanked her with a look. It was a nice little dinner, and Mark, +to his surprise, ate it with an appetite. Except the cup of tea +that he had taken in the morning, and a glass of wine at midday, +he had touched nothing. Mrs. Cunningham was a woman of great tact, +and by making him talk of the steps that he intended to take to +hunt down the assassin, kept him from thinking. + +"Thank you very much, Mrs. Cunningham," he said, when the dinner +was over. "I feel very much better." + +"I have brought down my work," she said, "and will sit here while +you drink your wine and smoke a pipe. Millicent has gone to bed, +completely worn out, and it will be pleasanter for us both to sit +here than to be alone." + +Mark gladly agreed to the proposal. She turned the conversation +now to India, and talked of her life there. + +"I was not out there very long," she said. "I was engaged to my +husband when he first went out, and six years afterwards joined +him there, and we were married. Your uncle, who was a major of +his regiment, gave me away. My husband got his company six months +afterwards, and was killed three years later. My pension as his widow +was not a large one, and when your uncle offered me the charge of +his daughter I was very glad to accept it. He gave some idea of +his plans for her. I thought they were very foolish, but when I saw +that his mind was thoroughly made up I did not attempt to dissuade +him. He said that when he came home to England (and he had no +idea when that would be) he should have me here, as head of his +establishment, and it would be given out that the child was his +ward. I hoped that he would alter his mind later on, but, as you +know, he never did." + +"Well, of course, she will have to be told now," Mark said. + +"Do you think so? It seems to me that it were better that she would +go as she is, at any rate, until she is twenty-one." + +"That would be quite impossible," Mark said decidedly. "How could +I assume the position of master here? And even if I could, it would +be a strange thing indeed for me to be here with a girl the age of +my cousin, even with you as chaperon. You must see yourself that +it would be quite impossible." + +"But how could she live here by herself?" + +"I don't think she could live here by herself," Mark said, +"especially after what has happened. Of course, it has all got to +be talked over, but my idea is that the place had better be shut +up, and that you should take, in your own name, a house in London. +I suppose she will want masters for the harp, and so on. For a time, +at any rate, that would be the best plan, unless you would prefer +some other place to London. We have done our best to carry out my +uncle's wishes, but circumstances have been too strong for us, and +it cannot be kept up any longer; but there is no reason, if you +and she prefer it, why she should not be known, until you return +here, by her present name. Of course the affair will create a +great deal of talk down here, but in London no one will know that +Millicent is an heiress, though it is hardly likely that you will +make many acquaintances for a time." + +"Have you known it long, Mark? I thought that you were kept in +ignorance of it." + +"I only heard it yesterday evening, Mrs. Cunningham; after that +shot through the window my father thought I ought to know all about +it, for the attempt might be repeated more successfully. He told +me all about her, and about the treasure." + +"What treasure?" Mrs. Cunningham said. "I don't know what you mean." + +He then told her of the story his uncle had related, and how he +had been prevented from giving full instructions for its discovery, +the only clew being a gold coin and the word Masulipatam, and +that this treasure had been left equally divided between him and +Millicent by his will. + +"He told me that he should provide for you," Mrs. Cunningham remarked, +"when I said that it would be unfair that you should be brought up +believing yourself the heir. I never heard any more about it, but +I am glad that it is so." + +"I fancy the chance of its coming to either of us is very small," +Mark said; "a coin and a word are not much to go upon. I have not +the most remote idea what they mean, and whether the treasure is +in England or in India, Heaven only knows." + +"Possibly, when he made the will, he may have told the solicitors +where it was, and instructed them to keep it secret until the time +that Millicent came into possession of the estate." + +"It is just possible he did so, Mrs. Cunningham, but the efforts +he made to speak at the last moment would almost seem to show that +he had not told them, for, if he had, the matter would have been +of no vital importance one way or the other. Will Millicent be well +enough to come down in the morning?" + +"I hope so." + +"I hope so, too; but, at any rate, keep her up in her room till the +afternoon. The inquest will be at eleven o'clock, and it is better +that she should not come down until everyone has gone away." + + + +CHAPTER IX. + + +Directly after breakfast was over the next morning the Rector came +in. + +"I would not come in yesterday, Mark," he said. "I knew that you +would be best alone; and, indeed, I was myself so terribly upset +by the news that I did not feel equal to it. I need not say how +deeply I and my wife sympathize with you. Never did a kinder heart +beat than your father's; never have I seen people so universally +grieved as they are in the village. I doubt whether a man went to +work yesterday, and as for the women, had it been a father they +had lost they could not be more affected." + +"Yes, he will be greatly missed," Mark said unsteadily; "and, between +ourselves--but this must go no further--I have a suspicion, +amounting almost to a certainty, that the hand that dealt this blow +is the same that caused the vacancy that brought you here." + +"Do you mean Arthur Bastow?" Mr. Greg said in amazement. "Why, I +thought that he was transported for fifteen years." + +Then Mark told the Rector the inner history of the past six months, +and of the report they had had from the officer at Bow Street of +the personal appearance of the wounded man. + +"Other things are in favor of it," he went on. "My father's watch +and purse were untouched, and a stranger on a dark night would be +hardly likely to have discovered the ladder, or to have had a file +in his pocket with which to cut through a link, though this might +have been part of the apparatus of any burglar. Then, again, an +ordinary man would hardly have known which was my father's bedroom, +except, indeed, that he saw the light there after those in the +ladies' rooms were extinguished; but, at any rate, he could not +have told which was my father's and which was mine. But all this +is, as I said, Mr. Greg, quite between ourselves. I had a long +talk yesterday with Sir Charles Harris, and, as he said, there is +no legal proof whatever, strong as the suspicion is; so I am going +to say nothing on the subject at the inquest. The scoundrel's poor +father is dying, happily in ignorance of all this. Dr. Holloway +was up with him all night, and told me this morning before he drove +off that it is very unlikely that he will get through the day." + +"It is all very terrible, Mark; but I cannot deny that everything +points to the man. Surely no one else could have cut short so useful +a life, for certainly no ordinary degree of hatred would drive a +man, however brutal his nature, to commit such a crime, and to run +the risk of hanging for it. Let us take a brisk walk in the garden +for an hour--that will be the best thing for you. I will stop +with you until the inquest is over, and then you had better come +over and have lunch with us." + +"Thank you; I cannot do so," Mark said, "though I should like to. +In the first place, Millicent will come downstairs this afternoon, +and I should like to be in to meet her. Had it not been for that +I might have come, as I can walk across the fields to the Rectory +without passing through the village. There is another reason. I +sent up yesterday by the coach a letter to be delivered at once by +hand, and I expect a detective down here by one o'clock. I don't +know that he will do any good; but at the same time it will give +me something to do, and at present there is nothing I dread so much +as sitting alone. Fortunately, yesterday evening Millicent went +to bed at five o'clock, and Mrs. Cunningham sat with me all the +evening, and her talk did me a great deal of good." + +The inquest occupied a very short time, the only point on which +many questions were asked being as to the firing through the window. +Mark stated that it was already so dark that although he was within +fifty yards of the man when he mounted and rode off, he could not +give any very distinct description of his figure. It struck him as +being that of a man of medium height. + +"You have made out that the bullet was intended for pour father?" + +"I cannot say that, sir, it went between his head and that of Mr. +Bastow, but it might have been meant for either." + +"Was your father impressed with the idea that it was an attempt to +murder him?" + +"He naturally thought so. Mr. Bastow can assuredly have no enemies, +while my father, as a magistrate, may have made some. He certainly +thought it was an attempt to murder him, and was so impressed by +the fact that when we went to the library later on he went into +certain family matters with me that he had never communicated before, +and which, had it not been for this, he would not have entered into +for some years to come." + +"He had his opinion, then, as to who was his assailant?" + +"He had, sir, but as it was but an opinion, although there were +several facts that seemed to justify the conviction, there was no +proof whatever, and therefore I do not think myself justified in +saying what that opinion was." + +"Do you entertain the same opinion yourself?" + +"I do," Mark said emphatically; "but until I can obtain some evidence +in support of what is really but a matter of opinion, and because, +were I to give the name, it would lessen my chance of obtaining +such evidence, I decline to mention the name." + +"You have no doubt that the author of the second attempt is the +same as that of the first?" + +"Personally, I have no doubt whatever; it stands to reason that it +is barely possible that two men could have, unknown to each other, +made up their minds to murder my father on the same evening." + +The constable's evidence added nothing to that given by Mark. He +had been down to the lane where the man pursued had mounted. The +reins of the horse had apparently been thrown over a gatepost, and +he thought it had been standing there for some little time, for +there were marks where it had scraped the ground repeatedly. He had +followed the marks of its hoofs for some distance; it had gone at +a gallop for about half a mile, and then the pace had slackened +into a trot. It continued until the lane fell into the main road, +but beyond this he had been unable to distinguish it from the marks +of the traffic in general. + +"You found no footprints whatever near the foot of the ladder, or +anywhere else round the house?" + +"None whatever, sir." + +"There were no signs of any other window or door save that of Mr. +Thorndyke's room being attempted?" + +"None at all, sir." + +There was but a short consultation between the jurors, who at once +returned a verdict of "Willful murder by some person or persons +unknown." + +Dr. Holloway had, after giving evidence, returned at once to Mr. +Bastow's room. The only point of importance in his evidence was the +statement that the wound must have been fatal at once, the heart +itself having been penetrated. It had been inflicted by a dagger +or a narrow bladed knife. + +"Do you mean that it was an unusually small dagger, Dr. Holloway?" + +"I should say it was a very fine dagger; not the sort of weapon that +you would expect to find a highwayman carry, if he carried one at +all, but rather a weapon of Spanish or Italian manufacture." + +"Not the sort of wound that a rapier would make?" + +"Yes, the wound itself might have been very well made by a light +rapier, but there was a slight bruise on the flesh on each side of +the wound, such a mark as might be made by the handle or guard of +a dagger, and sufficiently plain to leave no doubt in my mind that +it was so made." + +"Had the wound a downward course, or was it a straight thrust?" + +"A straight thrust," the doctor replied. "My idea is that the two +men were grappling together, and that as Mr. Thorndyke was a very +powerful man, his assailant, who probably was approaching the bed +with the dagger in his hand, plunged it into him; had he struck +at him I should certainly have expected the course of the wound to +be downward, as I fancy a man very seldom thrusts straight with a +dagger, as he would do with a rapier." + +When the inquest was over, Mark, going out into the hall, found +the doctor waiting there for him. + +"Mr. Bastow breathed his last some ten minutes ago. I saw when I +went up to him just before I gave my evidence that it was likely +that he would die before I returned to the room." + +"I am very sorry," Mark said, "although I expected nothing else +from what you told me: He was a very kind hearted man; no one could +have had a kinder or more patient tutor than he was to me, while +my father regarded him as a very dear and valued friend. I am +expecting the undertaker here in a few minutes, and they can both +be buried at the same time." + +It was late in the afternoon before Millicent came down with Mrs. +Cunningham. The news of Mr. Bastow's death had set her tears flowing +afresh; she had been very fond of him, and that he and the Squire +should have been taken at once seemed almost beyond belief. She +had, however, nerved herself to some degree of composure before she +went down to meet Mark; but although she returned the pressure of +his hand, she was unable for some time to speak. Mrs. Cunningham +thought it best to speak first on the minor grief. + +"So Mr. Bastow has gone, Mark?" + +"Yes, Dr. Holloway thought very badly of him yesterday, and said +that he had but very faint hope of his rallying. I cannot help +thinking that it was best so. Of course, he was not a very old +man, but he has for some years been a very feeble one, and now that +Millicent and I have both given up our studies with him, I think +that he would have felt that his work was done, and would have gone +downhill very fast." + +"I think so, too," Mrs. Cunningham agreed. "I am sure that even had +the Squire's death come quietly, in the course of nature, it would +have been a terrible blow to him. He was fond of you and Millicent, +but his affection for your father was a passion; his face always +lit up when he spoke to him. I used to think sometimes that it was +like an old dog with his master. It was quite touching to see them +together. I think, Mark, with you, that it is best that it should +be as it is." + +Gradually the conversation turned to other matters. Millicent was, +however, unable to take any part in it, and half an hour later she +held out her hand silently to Mark and left the room hurriedly. +The next day she was better, and was able to walk for a time with +Mark in the garden and talk more calmly about their mutual loss, +for to her, no less than to Mark, the Squire had been a father. + +"'Tis strange to think that you are the Squire now, Mark," she said +as they sat together in the dining room on the evening before the +funeral. + +"You will think it stranger still, Millicent," he said, "when I +tell you that I am not the Squire, and never shall be." + +She looked up in his face with wonder. + +"What do you mean, Mark?" + +"Well, dear, you will know tomorrow, as Mr. Prendergast, one of +the family solicitors, is coming down; but I think it is as well +to tell you beforehand. It has been a curious position all along. +I never knew it myself till my father told me when we went into +the library after the shot was fired. The news did not affect me +one way or the other, although it surprised me a great deal. Like +yourself, I have always supposed that you were my father's ward, +the daughter of an old comrade of his brother's. Well, it is a +curious story, Millicent. But there is no occasion for you to look +frightened. The fact is you are my uncle's daughter and my cousin." + +"Oh, that is not very dreadful!" she exclaimed in a tone of relief. + +"Not dreadful at all," Mark said. "But you see it involves the fact +that you are mistress of this estate, and not I." + +Millicent stood up suddenly with a little cry. "No, no, Mark, it +cannot be! It would be dreadful, and I won't have it. Nothing could +make me have it. What, to take the estate away from you when you +have all along supposed it to be yours! How could I?" + +"But you see it never has been mine, my dear. Father might have +lived another five-and-twenty years, and God knows I have never +looked forward to succeeding him. Sit down and let me tell you the +story. It was not my father's fault that he reigned here so long as +master, it was the result of a whim of your father's. And although +my father fought against it, he could not resist the dying prayer +of my uncle." + +He then related the whole circumstances under which the girl had +been brought up as Millicent Conyers, instead of Millicent Conyers +Thorndyke, and how the estate had been left by Colonel Thorndyke's +will to his brother until such time as Millicent should come of +age, or marry, and how he had ordered that when that event took +place the rest of his property in money and jewels was to be divided +equally between Mark and herself. + +"It must not be, Mark," she said firmly. "You must take the estate, +and we can divide the rest between us. What is the rest?" + +"To begin with," Mark said cheerfully, "there are 25,000 pounds, +the accumulations of the rents of the estate after the death of my +grandfather up to the time when the Colonel returned from India; +and there are, besides, a few thousands, though I don't exactly +know how many, that my father paid over to the solicitors as the +surplus of the rents of the estates after paying all expenses of +keeping up this house. He very properly considered that although +he had accepted the situation at your father's earnest wish, he +ought not to make money by doing so. If we put it down at 30,000 +pounds altogether, you see there is 15,000 pounds for each of us. +A very nice sum for a young man to start life with, especially as +I shall have my father's estate near Hastings, which brings in 500 +pounds a year; and as the rents of this have been accumulating for +the last ten years, my share will be raised from 15,000 pounds to +20,000 pounds. Besides this, there is the main bulk of the Colonel's +fortune made in India. That seems to be worth about 100,000 pounds +but I must own that the chance of getting it seems very small." + +"How is that, Mark?" + +Mark told her the whole story. + +"I mean to make it my business to follow the matter up," he said. +"I think that the chance of ever finding it is very small. Still, +it will give me an object to begin life with." + +"Oh, I hope that you will never find it!" she exclaimed. "From what +you say it will be a terrible danger if you do get it." + +Mark smiled. + +"I hardly think so, Millicent. I cannot believe that people would +be following up this thing for over fifteen years, for it was many +years before the Colonel came home that he got possession of these +diamonds. Even Hindoos would, I think, have got sick of such a +hopeless affair long before this; but as they may ever since your +father's death have been watching us, although it hardly seems +possible, I shall follow out the Colonel's instructions, and get +rid of those particular diamonds at once. I shall only keep them +about me long enough to take them to Amsterdam and sell them there. +The. Colonel said they were the finest diamonds that he ever saw, +and that he really had no idea of what they were worth. However, +that is for the future." + +"Mrs. Cunningham has known this all along, Mark?" + +"Not about the money affairs, but of course she knew that you were +my cousin. She brought you from India, you see, and has known all +along that the Colonel was your father. She knows it, and the family +solicitors know it, but I believe no one else, except, perhaps, +Ramoo. I am not sure .whether he was in uncle's service when +you were sent over in Mrs. Cunningham's charge. He may know it or +he may not, but certainly no one else does, except, as I say, the +solicitors and myself. Possibly some other of the Colonel's old +comrades knew that there was a child born; but if they were in +England and happened to hear that my father had succeeded to the +estate, they would, of course, suppose that the child had died." + +"Then," Millicent said, in a tone of relief, "there can be no +reason why anyone else should know anything about it. I will see +Mr. Prendergast when he comes down tomorrow, and beg him to say +nothing about it; 15,000 pounds is quite enough for any girl; and +besides, you say that my father's greatest wish was that I was not +to be married for money, and after all the pains that have been +taken, his wish will not be carried out if I am to be made owner +of the estate." + +"You won't be able to persuade Mr. Prendergast to do that," Mark +said, smiling. "It is his duty simply to carry out the provisions +of your father's will, and to place you in possession of the estate; +and if he would keep silence, which he certainly won't, you don't +suppose that I would." + +"Then I shall hate you, Mark." + +"I don't think you will, Millicent, and I would rather that you +did that than that you should despise me. At the present moment +you may think that this estate would be only a burden to you, but +some day when you marry you might see the matter in a different +light." + +The girl looked at him reproachfully. + +"I should never think so!" she burst out. "What would you have me +do? Live here in this great house, with only Mrs. Cunningham, while +you are going about the world seeking for this treasure? Never!" + +"No, I don't think that it would be nice for you to do that, +Millicent," Mark said. "Mrs. Cunningham and I have been talking +it over. We thought that the best plan would be for her to take a +house in London, and go there with you; you would have the advantages +of good masters. + +"Then you were saying only a short time since that you would like +to learn the harp and take lessons in painting. There would be +time enough to think about what you would do with respect to this +house afterward." + +"It is all horrible," Millicent said, bursting into tears, "and I +shall always feel that I have robbed you." + +"But I don't feel so in the least," Mark urged. "I was not in the +smallest degree put out when my father told me about it. I have +always had a fancy for wandering about the world, as my uncle did, +and doing something to distinguish myself, instead of settling +down for life to be a country magistrate and a squire. Of course +it came as a surprise, but I can assure you that it was not an +altogether unpleasant one. What can a man want more than a nice +little estate of 500 pounds a year and 20,000 pounds in money?" + +"It is all very well to say that, but as you said to me just now, +you may see it in a different light some day." + +Then she sat thinking for some time. "At any rate," she went on +at last, "I don't see why anyone should know about it now. If the +house is to be shut up and you are going away, why need anyone +know anything about it? My father's wish was that I should not have +people making love to me just because I was an heiress; after all +that has been done, it would be wicked to go against his wishes. +I suppose the interest of this 15,000 pounds would be enough for +Mrs. Cunningham and I to live comfortably on in London?" + +"Yes," Mark said; "it will, at 5 per cent, bring in 750 pounds a +year." + +"Then I shall remain Millicent Conyers to the world. There is +nothing to prevent that, is there?" she said almost defiantly. + +"No," he replied thoughtfully. "The rents of this estate might +accumulate. I suppose the solicitors would see after that; and as +I shall be away it will, of course, make no difference to me. Were +I to stay in the neighborhood I could not consent to live as my +father did, in a false position; but even then I might give out that +the property had only been left to my father during his lifetime, +and that it had now gone elsewhere, without saying whom it had gone +to. However, as I shall be away there will be no occasion even +for that. When the will is read there will be no one present but +ourselves, and I don't see why its contents should not be kept a +secret for a time; at any rate, we can ask Mr. Prendergast's opinion +upon that subject." + +At this moment, Mrs. Cunningham coming into the room, Millicent +ran to her and threw her arms round her neck. + +"He has made me most miserable," she said. "I thought I could not +have been more miserable than I was before he told me all about +it." + +"I knew that he was going to do so, and I was quite sure that you +would not be pleased at the news. I have all along thought that +it was a mistake on the part of your father; but as it was his +decision, and not mine, I only had to carry out his wishes." + +"It is cruel," Millicent sobbed. "I don't mean it is cruel of my +father; of course he could not have known, and he thought he was +doing the best thing for my happiness, but it has all turned out +wrong." + +"For the present you may think so, dear; but you must remember that +up to the present time it has turned out well. I know that your +uncle did not like it at first, but I think that he passed ten +happy years here. It gave him a great power for doing good, and +he worthily availed himself of it. We have all spent a happy time; +he was universally liked and respected. I think all of us have +benefited by it. It would not have been half as pleasant if it had +been known that you, my child, were the real owner of the estate, +and he was acting merely as your guardian. Let us hope that everything +will turn out as well in future. Colonel Thorndyke told me that he +had left a considerable sum in addition to the estates, and that +this was to be divided between you and Mark; so you see your cousin +will not go out into the world a beggar." + +"It is most of it lost," Millicent said with an hysterical laugh. +"It is all hidden away, and no one can find it; everything has gone +wrong together." + +"Well, I think, dear, that you had better go up to bed. I will go +with you. At the present time this, of course, has come upon you +as an additional shock. I would gladly have shielded you from it +for a time if I could have done so, but you must have learned it +tomorrow, and I quite agree with Mark that is was better that he +should tell you this evening. I sent down to the town today to the +doctor's and asked him to send me up a soothing draught, thinking +that you might be upset by the news. I hope by the morning you will +be able to look at matters more calmly." + +Some time later Mrs. Cunningham came down again. + +"She has cried herself to sleep," she said. "She is much grieved +about this money being lost." + +"It is annoying; still I cannot help thinking that the Colonel +must have taken some such precaution to prevent the treasure from +being lost." + +"One would certainly think so," Mrs. Cunningham agreed; "the Colonel +seemed to me a methodical man. I know that he had the reputation +of being one of the most particular men in the service as to all +petty details. His instructions to me before I left him were all very +minute, and he gave me a sealed packet which he told me contained +instructions and a copy of the register of his marriage and of +Millicent's birth, and he said that in case of his death I was to +take it to your father. He said that there was a letter inclosed +in it to him, and also a copy of his will. The letter was directed +to your father, and not to me. I handed it over to him when he asked +me to come here. He told me afterwards that the letter contained +the request that his brother lived to make personally to him-- +that the child should be brought up as his ward; and that he had +handed the certificates to a lawyer, who had, however, received +copies of them from the Colonel himself before he went down to see +your father. So, as he took these precautions to insure his wishes +being carried out in the event of his sudden death, I should think +that he must have done something of the sort with regard to this +treasure." + +"I should think that extremely likely, Mrs. Cunningham. I certainly +had not thought of that before, and I hope that for Millicent's +sake and my own it may turn out to be so. I can get on extremely +well without it, but at the same time I don't pretend that 50,000 +pounds are to be despised." + +The next morning Mr. Prendergast, who had arrived at Reigate late +the evening before, and had put up at an inn, came up to the house +an hour before the time named for the funeral. He learned from +Mark that he had already acquainted Millicent with her change of +circumstances. A few minutes after he arrived, a servant told him +that Miss Conyers would be glad if he would see her alone for a +few minutes in the drawing room. Mark had already prepared him for +her request. + +"Mark has told you that he told me about this hateful thing last +night, I suppose, Mr. Prendergast?" + +"He has," the old lawyer said kindly; "and he tells me also that +you are not at all pleased at the news." + +"Pleased! I should think not, Mr. Prendergast," she said indignantly. +"I am not going to rob my cousin of what he has always been taught +to think as his inheritance. It is abominable, I call it, and most +unnatural." + +"But, my dear young lady, it is yours, and not his. I do not wish +to discuss whether the arrangement was altogether a wise one, but +I think that so far it has turned out well for all parties. Your +estate has profited greatly by the management of your uncle, the +tenants and all connected with it have benefited greatly, he himself +has had active employment afforded him, of which he was fond. Your +cousin has, I believe, enjoyed the advantages of the position, +and has become acquainted with the best people in this part of the +country, and will now obtain the benefit of something like 15,000 +pounds--a comfortable little sum, especially as he inherits, I +believe, his father's property in Sussex. You yourself will have +obtained what I cannot but consider the advantage of having been +brought up without knowing that you were an heiress, and therefore +without being spoiled, which is, in my opinion, the case with many +young ladies in such a condition; therefore I cannot but think +that, if unwise in its conception, the matter has so far worked out +well. I am bound to say that Mr. Mark Thorndyke has been speaking +to me very handsomely on the subject, and that he appears in no +way disappointed at finding that you are the heiress of the estate, +and is really concerned only at your unwillingness to accept the +situation." + +"I wanted to know, Mr. Prendergast," she said, but in a tone that +showed she was convinced by his manner that her request would be +refused, "if you could arrange so that things would not be disturbed, +and he should come into possession as his father's heir in the +natural way." + +"But you see he is not his father's heir, Miss Thorndyke. His +father only had the use, as we call it, of the property until you +came of age, or marriage; it was not necessary for it to come to you +on your coming of age, but only, as your father explained to me, +in the event of your marriage; that is to say, it was not to become +public that you were entitled to the estate until your marriage. +If you married before you were twenty-one the property was then +to come to you. If you did not your were to be informed of the +circumstances or not, as Mr. Thorndyke might decide was best, but +you were not to come into the property until you married. Your cousin +was also to be informed when you came to the age of twenty-one, +and as at that time he was to take his half share of the remainder +of the property, he would then be able to arrange his life as he +liked. If your uncle died, as unfortunately he has done, before +you reached the age of twenty-one, you would then be placed in your +proper position; but your father desired us to say to you that it +was his wish, that if it could be arranged, your having succeeded +to the ownership should not be publicly known until you divulged +it to your husband after marriage. The other portions of the will +must be carried out. This being only a request, you are at liberty +to follow it or not as you may choose." + +"Certainly I should choose," the girl said. "After all this trouble +to prevent my being run after as an heiress, it would be wicked +to upset it all and to fly in the face of his wishes by setting up +as mistress of this estate. Still you understand, Mr. Prendergast, +that I don't mean to take it." + +The lawyer smiled indulgently. "There is one way in which it might +be managed," he said. "Perhaps you can guess what it is?" + +A flush of color rose over the girl's face. "Don't say it, I beg +of you, Mr. Prendergast. Mrs. Cunningham hinted at it this morning, +and I told her that my own wish entirely agreed with that of my +father, and that I was determined not to be married for money; and +I am quite sure that Mark would be as unwilling as I am that the +estate should change hands in that way. No, Mr. Prendergast, you +must find some other way of doing it than that. Surely an estate +cannot be forced upon anyone who is determined not to take it." + +"Well, we must think it over," Mr. Prendergast said quietly. "And +now I think that it is time for me to join the others." + + + +CHAPTER X. + + +The funeral of Squire Thorndyke and Mr. Bastow was over, and all +agreed they had never seen a more affecting spectacle than that at +the churchyard when the two coffins were brought in. The distance +was short, and the tenants had requested leave to carry the Squire's +bier, while that of Mr. Bastow was borne by the villagers who had +known and loved him. Behind followed all the magistrates and a great +number of the gentry for miles round; the churchyard was crowded +by every man, woman, and child in the village, and the women, as +well as many of the men, wept unrestrainedly as the coffins passed +by. Besides these, a large number of people from Reigate and the +surrounding villages were present, attracted rather by the crime +that had caused the death than by the loss of the Squire himself. +The church was crowded, and it was with difficulty that Mr. Greg +read the service. The Squire was laid by the side of his father, +Mr. Bastow in the spot where many of his predecessors had slept +before him. + +Mark had been greatly affected, not only by his own loss, but by +the sight of the general grief among those for whom the Squire had +done so much. Even Mr. Prendergast, who had taken part in many such +functions over departed clients, was much moved by the scene. + +"I have been at many funerals," he said to Mark as they walked +back to the Hall, "but I never have been at one that so affected +me. No monument ever raised, sir, did such credit to him who was +laid beneath it as the tears of those simple villagers." + +Mark did not reply; his heart was altogether too full to speak. As +they entered the house he said, "The ladies will have their lunch +upstairs, Mr. Prendergast; we may as well have ours at once, and +then you can call them down if there is any business to be done." + +"That will not take long," the lawyer said. "I have brought down +the wills of both your uncle the Colonel, and your father, and I +think that it would be as well for me to read them both. That of +your father is a very short and simple document, extending, indeed, +only over a few lines. Your uncle's is longer and more complicated, +but as you are well aware of the gist of it, it will take us but +a short time to get through it." + +Mark took his meal in a perfunctory manner. For himself he would +have eaten nothing, but he made an effort to do so in order to keep +his guest company. When it was over he said: + +"We may as well go into the library at once, and I will send up +for the ladies. It is as well to lose no time, for I know that you +want to catch the afternoon coach up to town." + +Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent joined them in a minute or two, the +girl looking very pale in her deep mourning. + +"I am about," Mr. Prendergast said quietly, "to read the wills of +Colonel Thorndyke and Mr. John Thorndyke, and I will ask you, if +there is any phrase that you do not understand, to stop me, and I +will explain to you its purport." + +The three persons present were acquainted with the main provisions +of the Colonel's will. It began by stating that, being determined +that his daughter, Millicent Conyers Thorndyke, should not be +married for her money, he hereby bequeathed to his brother, John +Thorndyke, his estate in the parish of Crowswood, to be held by him +until his daughter Millicent came to the age of twenty-one, or was +married; if that marriage did not take place until she was over the +age of twenty-one, so long was it to continue in John Thorndyke's +possession, save and except that she was, on attaining the age of +twenty-one, to receive from it an income of 250 pounds a year for +her private use and disposal. + +"To Jane Cunningham, the widow of the late Captain Charles +Cunningham, of the 10th Madras Native Infantry, should she remain +with my daughter until the marriage of the latter, I bequeath an +annuity of 150 pounds per annum, chargeable on the estate, and to +commence at my daughter's marriage. All my other property in moneys, +investments, jewels, and chattels of all sorts, is to be divided in +equal portions between my daughter, Millicent Conyers Thorndyke, and +my nephew, Mark Thorndyke. Should, however, my daughter die before +marriage, I bequeath the said estate in the parish of Crowswood +to my brother, John Thorndyke, for his life, and after him to his +son Mark, and to the latter the whole of my other property of all +kinds, this to take effect on the death of my daughter. Should my +brother predecease the marriage or coming of age of my daughter, she +is at once to come into possession of the said estate of Crowswood. +In which case my nephew Mark and Mr. James Prendergast, of the +firm of Hopwood & Prendergast, my solicitors, are to act as her +trustees, and Mrs. Jane Cunningham and the said James Prendergast +as her guardians." + +All this was, of course, expressed in the usual legal language, +but the purport was clear to those previously acquainted with its +bearing, the only item that was new to them being the legacy to +Mrs. Cunningham. John Thorndyke's testament was a short one. He left +all his property to his son Mark, with the exception of a hundred +pounds to his niece to buy a mourning ring or brooch or other +ornament in memory of him, and fifty pounds to Mrs. Cunningham for +a similar purpose, as a token of his great esteem for her character, +and 200 pounds to Ramoo for his faithful services to his brother and +himself. When the lawyer had folded up the wills Millicent said: + +"On my part, I have to say that I absolutely renounce the legacy +of the estate in favor of my cousin Mark, who has always believed +that it would be his." + +"And I as absolutely refuse to accept the sacrifice," Mark said. + +"My dear young lady," Mr. Prendergast said quietly, "at present, +at any rate, you have no power whatever to take any action in the +matter; you are, in the eye of the law, an infant, and until you +come of age you have no power to execute any legal document whatever. +Therefore you must perforce remain mistress of the estate until you +attain the age of twenty-one. Many things may happen before that +time; for example, you might marry, and in that case your husband +would have a voice in the matter; you might die, in which case Mr. +Mark Thorndyke would, without any effort on your part, come into +possession of the estate. But, at any rate, until you reach the age +of twenty-one your trustees will collect the rents of the estate +on your behalf, and will hold the monies in trust for you, making, +of course, such payments for your support and maintenance as are +fit and proper for your condition." + +The tears came into Millicent's eyes as she resumed the seat from +which she had risen, and she did not utter another word until Mr. +Prendergast rose to leave. + +"I shall doubtless learn your wishes as to the future, Miss Thorndyke, +from your cousin," he said. "I hope that you will not cherish any +malice against me, and that when you think it over you will come +to the conclusion that second thoughts are sometimes the wisest, +and also that you should have some consideration for your father's +wishes in a matter of this kind. He worked hard and risked his +life to build up the fortune that he has left. He evidently thought +greatly of your welfare, and was, above all things, anxious to +insure your happiness. I am sure that on thinking it over you will +see that you should not thwart his wishes." + +"My dear boy," he said to Mark, as they stood on the doorstep +waiting for the carriage to come round, "the best plan by far in +this business would be for the interests of your cousin and yourself +to be identical. She is a very charming young lady, a little +headstrong in this matter, perhaps, but I do not think that that +is altogether unnatural." + +"That might have come about if it had not been for the property, +Mr. Prendergast," Mark said, "but it cannot be now. If she and I +had been engaged before all this happened the case would have been +different; but you see yourself that now my lips are sealed, for +it would seem as if I had not cared for her until she turned out +to be an heiress." + +"You are a silly young couple," the lawyer said. "I can only hope +that as you grow older you will grow wiser. Well, you had better +come up and have a talk with me about the assets your uncle mentions +in his will." + +"Then you don't know anything about them, sir?" + +"Nothing at all, except as to the accumulations in his absence. He +mentioned vaguely that he was a wealthy man. I thought that, as a +matter of course, he had told his brother all about it." + +"It is a curious business, sir, and I doubt if there will ever be +anything besides the accumulations you speak of." + +"Bless me, you don't say so! Well, well, I always thought that it +was the most foolish business that I ever heard of. However, you +shall tell me all about it when you come up. I shall miss my coach +unless I start." + +So saying, he shook Mark's hand, took his place in the gig, and +was driven away. Millicent did not come downstairs again that day. + +"She is thoroughly upset," Mrs. Cunningham said, "and it would be +best to let her have her own way for a time. I think the sooner +I can get her away from here the better. The house is full of sad +memories, and I myself feel shaken and in need of a change." + +"I can quite understand her feeling and yours, Mrs. Cunningham. I +do hope you will be able to disabuse her mind of the idea that I +have any shadow of feeling of regret that she instead of I has the +estate, and please try to work upon her on the ground of her father's +wishes. I could see that her face changed when Mr. Prendergast +put the matter in that light, which I do not think had occurred to +her before. I am thinking of going up to town in a couple of days; +I was thinking of doing so tomorrow, but a day or so will make no +difference. I propose that you both go with me, and that I then +help you look for a house. Even if you don't get one at once, a +week in London will be a change, and you can then, if you like, go +somewhere for a time. Of course Bath would be too gay at present; +but you might go to Tunbridge Wells, or, if she would like a +seaside place, as she has never been near the sea since she was a +baby, that would be the greatest change for her. You might go down +for a month or two to Dover or Hastings. There is no occasion for +you to settle down in London for a time. There is Weymouth, too, if +you would like it better. I believe that that is a cheerful place +without being too fashionable." + +"I think that will be an excellent plan," Mrs. Cunningham said. + +"If you like I will drive you up to town, and the luggage can go +by the carrier; it is more pleasant than being shut up in a coach." + +"Much more cheerful, of course." + +"You will, of course, leave many of your things here, and the packing +them up will give her something to do, and prevent her from brooding." + +"I think that is an excellent idea, Mark." + +Late in the afternoon Ramoo came in in his usual silent manner. +The man had said but little during the past few days, but it was +evident that he was grieving deeply, and he looked years older than +he had done before that fatal night. + +"Of course, Ramoo, you will stay with me for the present. I hardly +know what I shall be doing for a time, but I am sure that until I +settle down, Miss Conyers will be very glad to have you with her." + +"No, sahib, Ramoo will return home to India. Ramoo is getting old; +he was thirty when he entered the service of the Colonel, sahib; he +is fifty now; he will go home to end his days; he has saved enough +to live in comfort, and with what the lawyer sahib told him your +father has left him he will be a rich man among his own people." + +"But you will find things changed, Ramoo, since you left; while here, +you know, we all regard you as a friend rather than as a servant." + +"You are all very kind and good, sahib. Ramoo knows that he will +meet no friends like those he has here, but he longs for the bright +sun and blue sky of India, and though it will well nigh break his +heart to leave the young missie and you, he feels that he must go." + +"All right, Ramoo. We shall all be very sorry to lose you, but +I understand your longing to go home, and I know that you always +feel our cold winters very trying; therefore I will not oppose your +wishes. I shall be going up to town in two or three days, and will +arrange to pay your legacy at once, and will inquire what vessels +are sailing." + +Millicent was unfeignedly sorry when she heard of Ramoo's +determination; she was very fond of him, for when as a child she +first arrived at Crowswood he had been her companion whenever the +Squire did not require his services, and would accompany her about +the garden and grounds, listening to her prattle, carrying her on +his shoulder, and obeying her behests. No doubt he knew that she +was the daughter of his former master, and had to a certain extent +transferred his allegiance from the sahib, whose life he had several +times saved, to his little daughter. Still, she agreed with Mark +that it was perhaps best that he should go. She and Mrs. Cunningham +would find but little occasion for his services when established in +London, and his swarthy complexion and semi-Eastern costume would +attract attention, and perhaps trouble, when he went abroad--the +population being less accustomed to Orientals then than at present +--but still less would they know what to do with him were they +for a time to wander about. Mark said at once that so long as he +himself was engaged in the task that he had set himself, he could +not take Ramoo with him, and as for his staying alone in the house +when it was only in charge of a caretaker, it was not to be thought +of. + +Although not inclined at the present time to agree with Mark in +anything, Millicent could not but acknowledge that it were best that +Ramoo should not be urged further to reconsider his determination, +and she also fell in with his proposal that they should go up to +London for a week, and then go down to Weymouth for a time, after +which they would be guided by circumstances. Accordingly, two +days later, Mark drove Millicent and Mrs. Cunningham up to London. +A groom accompanied them on Mark's favorite horse. This was to be +left in town for his use, and the groom was to drive the carriage +back again. Comfortable rooms were obtained in a quiet inn for the +ladies, while Mark put up at the Bull, saying that he would come +every day to take them out. + +"Why did not Mark stay here, Mrs. Cunningham?" Millicent asked +pettishly. + +"I suppose he thought it better that he should not do so; and I +own that I think he was right." + +"When we were, as we supposed, no relation to each other," Millicent +said, "we could be like brother and sister. Now that we find that +we are cousins we are going to be stiff and ceremonious." + +"Not necessarily because you are cousins, Millicent. Before, you +were his father's ward, and under his father's care; now you are a +young lady on your own account. You must see that the position is +changed greatly, and that what was quite right and proper before +would not be at all right and proper now." + +Millicent shrugged her shoulders. + +"Oh, if Mark wishes to be distant and stiff he can certainly do so +if he likes it. It makes no matter to me." + +"That is not at all fair, Millicent, and very unlike yourself. Had +not Mark suggested his going to another inn, I should have suggested +it myself." + +"Oh, yes; no doubt it is better," Millicent said carelessly. "He +has several friends in town, and of course we cannot expect him to +be devoting himself to us." + +Mrs. Cunningham raised her eyebrows slightly, but made no answer. +Millicent was seldom wayward, but at present things had gone very +hardly with her, and her friend felt that it would be better to leave +her entirely to herself until her humor changed. In the morning, +when Mark came round, Millicent announced that she felt tired with +the drive of the previous day, and would prefer staying indoors. Mark +looked a little surprised, more at the tone than at the substance +of the words, for the manner in which she spoke showed that the +excuse she had given was not her only reason for not going out. + +"Of course, I shall stay at home too," Mrs. Cunningham said quietly, +as he glanced toward her inquiringly. "Millicent is unnerved and +shaken, and perhaps it is just as well for her to have a day's +complete rest." + +"Very well, Mrs. Cunningham; then I will, as I cannot be of any +use to you, set about my own business for the day. I have already +been round to the lawyer's, and have got a check for Ramoo's legacy. +He will be up this afternoon, and I will go round to Leadenhall +Street and find out what ships are sailing and when they start. I +will come in this evening for a chat." + +Millicent sat without speaking for some minutes after he had left +the room. Mrs. Cunningham, whose hands were always busy, took some +work out of a bag and set to work at it industriously. Presently +the girl said: + +"What business is this that Mark is going to occupy himself in?" + +"I do not know much about it," she replied. "But from a few words +which he let drop I believe that he intends to devote himself to +discovering and hunting down your uncle's murderer." + +The listless expression faded out at once of Millicent's face. + +"But surely, Mrs. Cunningham, that will be very dangerous work." + +"No doubt it will be dangerous work, but I don't think that that +is likely to hinder Mark. The man, whoever he may be, is of course +a desperate character, and not likely to be captured without making +a fierce struggle for it." + +"Then he ought to put the matter in the hands of the proper +authorities," Millicent said decidedly. "Of course such men are +dangerous. Very likely, this man may have accomplices, and it is +not against one only that Mark will have to fight. He has no right +to risk his life in so desperate an adventure." + +Mrs. Cunningham smiled quietly over her work. The Squire had often +confided to her how glad he would be if these two should some day +come together. In that case the disclosure after marriage of the +real facts of the case would cause no disturbance or difficulty. The +estate would be theirs, and it would not matter which had brought +it into the partnership; she had thoroughly agreed with him, but +so far nothing had occurred to give any ground for the belief that +their hopes would be fulfilled. + +Till within the last year Millicent had been little more than a +child; she had looked up to Mark as she might have done to a big +brother, as something most admirable, as one whose dictum was law. +During the last year there had been some slight change, but more, +perhaps, on Mark's part than on hers. He had consulted her wishes +more, had asked instead of ordered, and had begun to treat her as +if conscious that she was fast growing up into womanhood. + +Millicent herself scarcely seemed to have noticed this change. She +was little more inclined to assert herself than before, but was +ready to accompany him whenever he wished her to do so, or to see +him go away without complaint, when it so pleased him; but the +last week had made a rapid change in their position. Millicent had +sprung almost at a bound into a young woman. She had come to think +and resolve for herself; she was becoming wayward and fanciful; +she no longer deferred to Mark's opinion, but held her own, and was +capable of being vexed at his decisions. At any rate, her relations +with Mark had changed rapidly, and Mrs. Cunningham considered this +little outburst of pettishness to be a good omen for her hopes, and +very much better than if they had continued on their old footing +of affectionate cousins. + +Mark went back again to the lawyer's, and had a long talk with Mr. +Prendergast over the lost treasure. The old lawyer scoffed at the +idea that there could be any danger associated with the bracelet. + +"Men in India, I suppose, get fanciful," he said, "and imbibe some +of the native superstitions. The soldier who got them from the man +who stole them was stabbed. He might have been stabbed for a thousand +reasons, but he had the bracelet on his mind. He was forever hiding +it and digging it up, and fancying that someone was on his track, +and he put down the attack as being made by someone connected with +it. His manner impressed your uncle. He concealed the diamonds or +sent them off somewhere, instantly. He never had any further trouble +about them, but like many men who have a craze, fancied that he was +being perpetually watched and followed. The unfortunate result of +all this is that these jewels and the money that he accumulated +during his service in India seem to be lost. A more stupid affair +I never heard of. + +"Now, as to the clew, any reasonable man would have given full +instructions as to how the treasure was to be found; or if he did +not do that, would, at least, instead of carrying about an absurd +coin and a scrap of paper with a name upon it, have written his +instructions and put them in that ridiculous hiding place, or, +more wisely still, would have instructed his solicitor fully on the +subject. The amount of trouble given by men, otherwise perfectly +sane, by cranks and fancies is astonishing. Here is something like +100,000 pounds lost owing to a superstitious whim. As to your chance +of finding the treasure, I regard it as small indeed. The things +are hidden in India, in some old tomb, or other rubbishing place. +Your uncle may have committed them to the charge of a native; he +may have sent them to a banker at one of the great towns; he may +have shipped them to England. He may have sent them to the North +Pole for anything I know. How can one begin to search the universe?" + +"I thought, sir, that perhaps he might have sent them to some +London Bank or agent, with instructions to hold them until claimed +by him, and that perhaps an inquiry among such houses would lead +to the discovery that they hold certain property forwarded by him." + +"Well; there is some sense in that suggestion," Prendergast grumbled, +"and I suppose the first thing to be done will be to carry that +out. If you wish, we will do it for you. They would be more likely +to give the information, if they possess it, to a well known firm of +solicitors like ourselves than to any private individual. Besides, +if you were to go yourself, they would in each case want you to be +identified before they would answer any question, whereas I should +write a note to them in the firm's name, with our compliments, +saying that we should be glad to know if the late Colonel Thorndyke, +of whose will we are the executors, had any account at their firm +or has deposited any property in their hands. There are not above +five or six banks doing business with India, and as many agents +in a large way of business; and if he did such a foolish thing, he +would be certain to do it with some houses of good standing--if, +indeed, anything can be taken as certain in the case of a gentleman +with such extraordinary fancies and plans as his." + +"Thank you, Mr. Prendergast," Mark said, with a slight smile at +the lawyer's irritability; "that will be clearing the ground to +a certain extent. If that does not succeed, I think I shall go to +India myself, and shall there make similar inquiries at all the +principal establishments at Calcutta and Madras. Should I fail there, +it seems to me that the only remaining plan will be to find out +from the military authorities the place where my uncle's regiment +was encamped on the day--we have the date on which the jewels +were given to him--and to institute a minute search of all the +old ruins within such a distance as he might have reached within +a day's ride." + +"But you have no certainty that it was a ruin. He might have dug +a hole under his tent and have buried the things there; he might +have taken a shovel and buried them in a clump of bushes a quarter +of a mile away. The thing is more and more ridiculous the more you +look at it." + +"I see it is very difficult, sir, but one might narrow it down +somewhat if one discovered the spot. Probably there are still native +officers in the regiment who were there at the time. If so, they +might possibly know who was my uncle's servant at the time. The man +may be a pensioner, and in that case I might discover his address +through the military authorities, and I could find out from him +whether my uncle often rode out at night, what were his habits, +and possibly where the tent stood, and so on." + +"Well," Mr. Prendergast said, "if you like to undertake a wild +goose chase of this sort it is your business, and not mine; but I +consider the idea is the most Utopian that I ever heard of. As to +where the tent stood, is it likely that a man would remember to +within a hundred yards where a tent stood fourteen years ago? Why, +you might dig up acres and acres of ground and not be sure then +that you had hit upon the right place." + +"There is one other circumstance, Mr. Prendergast," Mark said +quietly, "that has to be taken into consideration, and which renders +it improbable that these diamonds were hidden anywhere by my uncle +himself at that time. He certainly spoke of the whole of this +treasure collectively. It is morally certain that he would not +carry all these jewels that he had been collecting about with him, +and certainly not his treasure in money. He must, therefore, have +sent these diamonds to the person, whoever he may be, who had the +keeping of his other jewels and of his money. This certainly points +to a bank." + +"There is a sensible conjecture. Yes, there is something in that. +He certainly could not have carried about him 50,000 pounds in gold +and as much in jewelry; it would have been the act of a madman, and +Colonel Thorndyke, although eccentric and cranky, was not mad. But, +on the other hand, he may have carried about a banker's passbook, +or what is equivalent to it, for the amount that had been deposited +with a native banker or agent, together with a receipt for the +box containing the jewels, and this he might have hidden with the +diamonds." + +"I don't think that he would have done that; there could have been +no object for his putting the power of demanding his money and +valuables out of his possession." + +"Well, well," the lawyer said testily, "it is of no use arguing now +what he might or might not have done. A man who would have taken +the trouble that he did to prevent his daughter knowing that she +was an heiress, and fancied that he was followed about by black +fellows, might do anything, reasonable or unreasonable, under the +sun. At any rate, Mr. Thorndyke, I will carry out your instructions +as to inquiries in London, and will duly inform you of the result; +beyond that I must really decline to give any advice or opinion +upon the matter, which is altogether beyond me." + +On leaving the lawyer's, Mark went to Bow Street, and related to +the chief the circumstances attending his father's murder. + +"I have heard them from the man I sent down at your request, Mr. +Thorndyke, and taking the attempt early in the evening and the +subsequent murder, there can be no doubt that the affair was one +of revenge, and not of robbery. Had the second attempt stood alone, +robbery might have been the object; the mere fact that nothing +was stolen in no way alters the case. Men are often seized with a +certain panic after committing a murder, and fly at once without +attempting to carry out their original purpose. Your father, no +doubt, fell heavily, and the man might well have feared that the fall +would be heard; but the previous attempt precludes the supposition +that robbery was at the bottom of it. It points to a case of +revenge, and certainly goes a very long way to support the theory +that we talked over when I last saw you, that the highwayman +who endeavored to stop you on the road, whom you wounded, and +who afterwards went down to Southampton, was the escaped convict, +Bastow. Since that time I have had a man making inquiries along the +roads between Reigate and Kingston, but altogether without success. +I should be glad to follow up any other line that you might suggest, +and that might offer any reasonable possibility of success, but I +must own that at present we are entirely off the scent." + +"I am thinking of devoting myself entirely to the quest. I have +no occupation at present. I have an income amply sufficient for +my wants, and for all expenses that I may incur, and I intend to +devote, if necessary, some years of my life to hunting this man +down. As your men have searched without success in the country, +I think for the present my best plan will be to devote myself to +learning something of the ways and haunts of the criminal classes +of London, and it is with that object that I have come to you now. +I should like, for some time, at any rate, to enter the detective +force as an enrolled member. I should, of course, require no +pay, but should be prepared to obey all orders and to do any work +required, as any other member of the corps would do. I am strong, +active, and have, I hope, a fair share of intelligence. I should +not mind risking my life in carrying out any duty that you might +assign to me. I presume that I need not always be on duty, and +could, when not required, employ my time as I liked, and keep up +my acquaintances in town. Should it be otherwise, however, I am +perfectly ready to submit myself in all respects to your rule. I +have a first rate horse and should be available for country duty, +wherever you might think fit to send me. I should not desire any +distinction to be made between me and the paid officers." + +"Your proposal is an altogether novel one, Mr. Thorndyke, but it +is worthy of consideration. I have no doubt that you would make a +very useful officer; the work is certainly interesting, though not +without serious hazards. However, I will think the matter over, +and if you will call in tomorrow you shall have my answer. We are +always glad to have a new hand in the force, for the faces of our +men are so well known among the criminal class that they are liable +to be detected even under the cleverest disguises. There is work, +too, upon which it is absolutely necessary that a gentleman should +be employed, and in the event of your joining us, I should wish +you to keep the matter strictly from all your acquaintances; and it +would certainly be advantageous that you should, when disengaged, +continue to mix with your friends and to mingle in society of all +kinds as freely as possible. There is crime among the upper classes +as well as among the lower, though of a different type; and as Mr. +Thorndyke of Crowswood you would have far better opportunities of +investigating some of these cases than any of my men would have. +You would not object to take up such cases?" + +"Not at all, sir; that is, if it could be arranged that I should +not do the actual work of making an arrest, or have to appear in +court as a witness." + +"That could be managed," the chief said "When you have got to a +certain point the matter of the final arrest could always be handed +over to someone else, but as a rule we keep our officers in the +background as much as possible, because at every trial the court +is half full of men of the criminal class, and the faces of our men +would soon be known to every one of them. Well, if you will call +about ten o'clock tomorrow you shall have my answer; but I should +advise you to think the matter well over before you see me again. +The responsibilities as well as the dangers are great, and indeed +in some of the work you would literally have to carry your life in +your hand; and I can assure you that the task you would undertake +is by no means a light one." + + + +CHAPTER XI. + + +Mark called that evening, as he had promised, upon Mrs. Cunningham. + +"I hope that you feel all the better for your day's rest, Millicent," +he said. + +The girl looked quickly at him to see if there was any sarcasm +in the question, but it was evident that the inquiry was made in +earnest. + +"Yes, I feel better now," she said. "I have dozed a good deal +today. I did not feel up to anything. Mrs. Cunningham's work has +progressed wonderfully. I should say that she has done more today +than she ordinarily finds time to do in a week. What have you been +doing with yourself?" + +"I have been having a long talk with Mr. Prendergast about the lost +treasure." + +"And of course he said that you would never find it, Mark?" + +"Well, yes, he distinctly expressed that opinion." + +"And afterwards?" + +"Afterwards I went to Bow Street and had a long talk also with the +chief officer there." + +"I don't like the idea of your searching for this man, Mark. In +the first place, I don't see why you should hope to succeed when +the men whose business it is to do such work have failed. In the +next place, I think that you may get into serious danger." + +"That I must risk, Millicent. I have already proved a better shot +than he is, and I am quite ready to take my chance if I can but come +upon him; that is the difficult part of the matter. I know that I +shall need patience, but I have plenty of time before me, and have +great hopes that I shall run him to earth at last." + +"But you would not know him if you saw him?" + +"I think I should," Mark said quietly; "at least, if he is the man +that I suspect." + +"Then you do suspect someone?" Mrs. Cunningham said, laying down +her work. + +"Yes, I know of no reason why you should not know it now. I suspect +--indeed, I feel morally certain--that the man who murdered my +father was Arthur Bastow." + +An exclamation of surprise broke from both his hearers, and they +listened with horror while he detailed the various grounds that he +had for his suspicions. They were silent for some time after he had +brought his narrative to a conclusion, then Mrs. Cunningham said: + +"What a merciful release for Mr. Bastow that he should have died +before this terrible thing came out! For after what you have told +us I can hardly doubt that you are right, and that it is this wicked +man who is guilty." + +"Yes, it was indeed providential," Mark said, "though I think that, +feeble as he has been for some months, it might have been kept from +him. Still, a word from a chance visitor, who did not associate +Bastow the murderer with our dear old friend, might have enlightened +him, and the blow would have been a terrible one indeed. It is +true that, as it was, he died from the shock, but he did not know +the hand that struck the blow." + +"Now that you have told me this," Millicent said, "I cannot blame +you, Mark, for determining to hunt the man down. It seems even +worse than it did before; it is awful to think that anyone could +cherish revenge like that. Now tell me how you are going to set +about it." + +"I have promised the chief officer that I will tell absolutely no +one," he said. "I have a plan, and I believe that in time it must +be successful. I know well enough that I could tell you both of it +without any fear of its going further, but he asked me to promise, +and I did so without reservation; moreover, I think that for some +reasons it is as well that even you should not know it. As it is, +you are aware that I am going to try, and that is all. If I were +to tell you how, you might be picturing all sorts of imaginary +dangers and worrying yourself over it, so I think that it will +be much the best that you should remain in ignorance, at any rate +for a time. I can say this, that I shall for the present remain +principally in London, and I think that I am more likely to come +upon a clew here than elsewhere." + +Millicent pouted, but Mrs. Cunningham said: "I think, perhaps, that +you are right, Mark, and it is better that we should know nothing +about it; we shall know that you are looking for a clew, but +of course no danger can arise until you obtain it and attempt to +arrest him. I feel sure that you will do nothing rash, especially +as if any harm befell you he might escape unpunished, and therefore +that when the time comes to seize him you will obtain such help +as may be necessary, and will, if possible, arrest him at a moment +when resistance is impossible." + +"Thank you, Mrs. Cunningham; I shall certainly spare no efforts +in taking him that way, and would far rather he met his fate on a +gibbet than by a bullet from my pistol." + +"I agree with you, Mark," Millicent said; "even hanging is too good +for such a wicked man. When are you going to set about it?" + +"I hope to be able to begin tomorrow," he said. "I am impatient +to be at work, even though I know perfectly well that it may be +months before I can get on his track. I hope to get a good deal of +information as to the habits of men of his kind from the Bow Street +runners, and I have an appointment tomorrow morning to see their +chief, who will give me every assistance in his power." + +"Then you will not be able to take us out?" Millicent said. + +"I trust to do so later on, but I cannot say how long I shall be +engaged. However, I hope to get away so as to go out with you after +lunch, and may possibly be able to postpone my getting regularly to +work until after you have gone, so as to be able to devote myself +to your service." + +"But what sort of work? I cannot make out how you are going to +begin." + +"I can tell you this much, that to begin with I shall go in company +with a constable to various places where such a man is likely to be +found. It will take some time to acquaint myself with all these +localities; the next step will be to find out, if possible, if anyone +at all answering to his description is in the habit of coming there +occasionally, and whom he visits; another thing will be to find +out the places where receivers of stolen goods do their business, +and to watch those with whom highwaymen are suspected of having +dealings. All this, you see, will entail a lot of work, and require +a very large amount of patience. Of course, if nothing whatever +comes of such inquiries, I shall have to try quiet places in the +suburbs; you must remember that this fellow during his time as +a convict must have had opportunities of getting a vast amount of +information likely to be useful to him, such as the addresses of men +holding positions of apparent respectability, and yet in alliance +with thieves. You may be sure that when he returned he took every +imaginable pains to obtain a safe place of concealment before he +began his work; my own opinion is that I am more likely to find +him living quietly in a suburban cottage than in a London slum." + +Millicent was now thoroughly interested in the search. "It seems +a great business, Mark, but going into it as thoroughly as you are +doing I feel sure that you will succeed. I only wish that I could +help you; but I could not do that, could I?" she asked wistfully. + +He saw that she was in earnest, and suppressed all semblance of a +smile. + +"I am afraid, dear, that you would be a much greater source of +embarrassment than of assistance to me," he said gravely. "This is +essentially not a woman's work. I believe that women are sometimes +employed in the detection of what we may call domestic crimes, but +this is a different matter altogether." + +"I suppose so," she sighed; "but it will be very hard to be taking +our ease down at Weymouth while we know that you are, day after +day, wearing yourself out in tramping about making inquiries." + +"It will be no more fatiguing than tramping through the stubble +round Crowswood after partridges, which I should probably be doing +now if I were down there. By the way, before you go we shall have +to talk over the question of shutting up the house. We had too much +to think of to go into that before we came away, and I suppose I +shall have to run down and arrange it all, if you have quite made +up your mind that you don't mean to return for a year or two." + +"Decidedly our present idea is to have a few weeks at Weymouth, +and then when we feel braced up to come back here and look for a +house. Where are you likely to be, Mark?" Mrs. Cunningham asked. + +"I shall consult with Dick Chetwynd; he knows the town thoroughly, +and is more up here than he is down in the country; he will recommend +me to some lodging in a street that, without being the height of +fashion, is at least passable. I have not the least wish to become +a regular man about town, but I should like to go into good society. +One cannot be at work incessantly." + +The next morning the chief of the detective department told Mark +that he had decided to accept his offer. + +"As you will receive no pay," he said, "I shall regard you as a +sort of volunteer. For the first two or three months you will spend +your time in going about with one or other of my men on his work. +They will be able to put you up to disguises. When you have once +learned to know all the thieves' quarters and the most notorious +receivers of stolen goods, you will be able to go about your work +on your own account. All that I require is that you shall report +yourself here twice a day. Should I have on hand any business for +which you may appear to me particularly well suited, I shall request +you to at once undertake it, and from time to time, when there is +a good deal of business on hand, I may get you to aid one of my +men who may require an assistant in the job on which he is engaged." + +"I am sure I am very much obliged to you, sir," Mark said, "and +will, I can assure you, do my best in every way to assist your men +in any business in which they may be engaged." + +"When will you begin?" + +"It is Saturday today, sir. I think I will postpone setting to +until Monday week. My cousin and the lady in whose charge she is +came up with me on Thursday, and will be leaving town the end of +next week, and I should wish to escort them about while here. I will +come on Monday morning ready for work. How had I better be dressed?" + +"I should say as a countryman. A convenient character for you to +begin with will be that of a man who, having got into a poaching +fray, and hurt a gamekeeper, has made for London as the best hiding +place. You are quite uncertain about your future movements, but +you are thinking of enlisting." + +"Very well, sir, I will get the constable at Reigate, who knows me +well, to send me a suit. I might find it difficult to get all the +things I want here." + +Accordingly, for the next week Mark devoted himself to the ladies. +Millicent, in her interest in the work that he was about to undertake, +had now quite got over her fit of ill temper, and the old cordial +relations were renewed. On the Friday he saw them into the Weymouth +coach, then sauntered off to his friend Chetwynd's lodgings. + +Ramoo had already sailed. On his arrival in town he had said that +he should, if possible, arrange to go out as a steward. + +"Many men of my color who have come over here with their masters +go back in that way," he said, in answer to Mark's remonstrances. +"It is much more comfortable that way than as a passenger. If you +go third class, rough fellows laugh and mock; if you go second +class, men look as much as to say, 'What is that colored fellow +doing here? This is no place for him.' Much better go as steward; +not very hard work; very comfortable; plenty to eat; no one laugh +or make fun." + +"Well, perhaps it would be best, when one comes to think of it, +Ramoo; but I would gladly pay your passage in any class you like." + +"Ramoo go his own way, sahib," he said. "No pay passage money; +me go to docks where boats are sailing, go on board and see head +steward. Head steward glad enough to take good servant who is willing +to work his way out, and ask for no wages. Head steward draw wages +for him, and put wages in his own pocket. He very well satisfied." + +On Wednesday he came and told Mark that he had arranged to sail in +the Nabob, and was to go on board early the next morning. He seemed +a great deal affected, and Mark and Millicent were equally sorry +to part with the faithful fellow. + +"Well, old man," Dick Chetwynd said, when Mark entered the room, +where he was still at breakfast, "I was beginning to wonder whether +you had gone to Reigate. Why, when I saw you last Friday you told +me that you would look me up in a day or two." + +"I have been busy showing London to Mrs. Cunningham and Miss +Conyers," he replied--for Millicent had insisted on keeping her +former name, at any rate for the present--and Mark was somewhat +glad that there had been no necessity for entering into any +explanations. It was agreed that when he went down to discharge some +of the servants and called upon his friends he should say nothing +of the change in his position, but should assign as a motive that +he intended to travel about for a long time, and that he felt he +could not settle down in the lonely house, at any rate for two or +three years; and therefore intended to diminish the establishment. + +"You will have some breakfast, Mark?" + +"No, thank you. I breakfasted two hours ago." + +"Then you still keep to your intention to stay in London for a +while?" + +"Yes. I don't feel that I could bear the house alone" Mark replied. +"You see, Mrs. Cunningham and my uncle's ward could not very well +remain in a bachelor's home, and naturally, after what has happened, +they would not like to do so, even if they could. They have gone +down to Weymouth for a few weeks for a complete change; and Mrs. +Cunningham talks of taking a house in town for a time. I am going +to look for lodgings, and I want your advice as to the quarter +likely to suit me." + +"Why not take up your abode here for a time? There is a vacant +room, and I should be very glad to have you with me." + +"Thank you very much, Dick, but I should prefer being alone. You +will have friends dropping in to see you, and at present I should +be poor company. It will be some little time before I shall feel +equal to society." + +"Of course, Mark. I always speak first and think afterwards, as +you know pretty well by this time. Well, what sort of lodgings do +you want?" + +"I want them to be in a good but not in a thoroughly fashionable +street. In time, no doubt, I shall like a little society, and shall +get you to introduce me to some of the quieter of your friends, +and so gradually feel my way." + +"I will do all that sort of thing for you, Mark. As you know, I am +not one of those who see much fun in gambling or drinking, though +one must play a little to be in the fashion. Still, I never go +heavily into it. I risk a few guineas and then leave it. My own +inclinations lie rather towards sport, and in this I can indulge +without being out of the fashion. All the tip top people now +patronize the ring, and I do so in my small way too. I am on good +terms with all the principal prize fighters, and put on the gloves +with one or other of them pretty nearly every day. I have taken +courses of lessons regularly from four or five of them, and I can +tell you that I can hold my own with most of the Corinthians. It +is a grand sport, and I don't know how I should get on without it; +after the hard exercise I was accustomed to down in the country, +it keeps one's muscles in splendid order, and I can tell you that +if one happens to get into a fight in the streets, it is no light +thing to be able to polish off an antagonist in a round or two +without getting a mark on your face that would keep you a prisoner +in your room for a week or more." + +"Yes, I should like very much to take lessons too, Dick; it is one +of the things that I have always wished to do. I suppose one can +do it of an evening, or any time you like?" + +"Yes, any hour suits those fellows. You ought to get either a heavy +middleweight or a light heavyweight; you will be a heavyweight +yourself by the time you have filled out. Let me think; what is +your height--six feet one, if I remember rightly?" + +"Yes, that is about it." + +"Well, with your shoulders and long reach and activity, you ought +to be something out of the way if you take pains, Mark. You see, +I am barely five feet ten, and am something like two stone lighter +than you are. I suppose you are not much under twelve stone and a +half." + +"That is just about my weight; I weighed at the miller's only a +fortnight ago." + +"Good. I will make some inquiries, and see who would be the best +man to take you in hand to begin with. And now about lodgings. +Well, I should say Essex Street, or any of those streets running +down from the Strand, would suit you. The rooms in Essex Street are +bigger than those in Buckingham Street, and you will find anything +between the two in some of the others. I may as well saunter round +there with you. Of course money is no object to you?" + +"No," Mark agreed, "but I don't want big rooms. I think a small +one, when you are sitting by yourself, is more cozy and comfortable." + +Finally two rooms were taken in Villiers Street; they were of +moderate size and handsomely furnished: the last tenant had fitted +them out for himself, but had lived to enjoy them only three +months, having at the end of that time been killed in a duel over +a quarrel at cards. + +"Well, I think you are in luck, Mark; you might look through a good +many streets before you would find rooms so fashionably furnished +as these. I see he went in for driving; that is evident from these +engravings on the walls." + +"They are common, gaudy looking things," Mark said, "and quite out +of character with the furniture." + +"Not at all, as times go, Mark; it is quite the thing for a man +to have prints showing his tastes, riding or driving, shooting or +coaching, or the ring. If you don't like them you can take them +down, or, what will be better, take them out of their frames and +put some of the champions past and present up there instead." + +"I will see about it," Mark said with a laugh. "I may turn out a +complete failure." + +"There is no fear of that, Mark; and as the ring is all the fashion +now, I can assure you it would be considered in good taste, though +I own that in point of art most of these things leave a good deal +to be desired. Now that that important thing is settled, suppose +you come and lunch with me in Covent Garden? I don't belong to a +club yet, though I have got my name down at a couple of them, but +as far as I can see they are slow sort of places unless you know +a lot of people. The coffee houses are much more amusing; you see +people of all sorts there--fellows like myself, who have no clubs +to go to; country gentlemen up for a week; a few writers, who, by +the way, are not the best customers of these places; men whom nobody +knows, and men whom everybody knows. Of course, the best time to +see them is of an evening." + +"Yes, I have generally been in of an evening when I have been up +in towns Dick, and I have always been amused. However, I am quite +ready to lunch there now, for I breakfasted early." + +"I have to make some calls this afternoon, Mark. At seven this +evening I will look in at your lodgings, and you shall go along with +me to Ingleston's in St. Giles'. It is one of the headquarters of +the fancy, and Jack Needham, who taught me, is safe to be there, +and he will tell me who he thinks is best for you to begin with." + +Accordingly, after taking luncheon, they separated, and Mark went +to his inn. + +Ingleston's was at that time regarded as the headquarters of the +fancy. At the back of the house was a large room, with benches +rising behind each other to accommodate the spectators. Here, on +the evenings when it was known that leading men would put on the +gloves, peers of the realm would sit side by side with sporting +butchers, and men of fashion back their opinion on a coming prize +fight with ex-pugilists and publicans. A number of men were assembled +in the bar; among these was Jack Needham. + +"Good evening, Mr. Chetwynd," the man said as they came up to him. +"It's going to be a good night. Tring and Bob Pratt are going to +have a round or two together, and Gibbons will put on the gloves +with anyone who likes to take him on." + +"This gentleman is Mr. Thorndyke, a squire, Jack, whose place is +near mine at Reigate. He has come up to town for a few months, and +wants to learn how to use his mauleys. I told him that you would +advise him as to who would be the best man for him to go to." + +"I can tell you better when I have seen him strip, sir. There is no +one in the big room at present. It won't be open for half an hour. +Ingleston keeps it shut as long as he can so as to give everyone +a fair chance of a good place. If the gentleman will come in there +with me I will have a look at him." + +Mark expressed his willingness to be looked at, and the man having +gone and got the key of the room from Ingleston, went in with them +and locked the door behind. + +"Now, sir, if you will strip to the waist I shall be better able +to say who you should have as your teacher than I can now." + +Mark stripped, and the man walked round and round him, examining +him critically. + +"He's a big 'un," he said to Dick when he had completed his +examination. "He has got plenty of muscle and frame, and ought to +be a tremendous hitter; he is about the figure of Gibbons, and if +he goes in for it really, ought to make well nigh as good a man, if +not quite. I don't think Bill would care about taking him up till +he knows a bit about it. I tell you what, sir; you will be too big +altogether for me by the time you get to be quick on your legs, +and to use your strength, but if you like I will take you on for +a month or so--say, two months; by that time I think you will be +good enough to go to Gibbons. I will just call him in if you don't +mind; he came in just before you." + +In a couple of minutes he came in with a man of similar height and +somewhat similar figure to Mark. + +"This is Gibbons, sir, ex-champion, and like enough he might be +champion now if he chose; as fine a boxer as ever stripped, but he +is ring maker now to the P. C. and it suits him better to do that +and to teach, than to have a chance of getting a battle once a year +or so." + +"Have you a great many pupils, Gibbons?" + +The man shook his head. + +"I am too big, sir; gentlemen like to learn from someone about their +own weight, or perhaps a bit lighter, and there are not many of +them who would care to stand up against a man who has been champion, +and so I have plenty of time on my hands. I am a hard hitter, too, +even with the gloves; that is one reason why Jack had best take +you on until you get a little handy with your fists. I do more in +the dog fancier line than I do with boxing, but there is nothing +I like better than getting the gloves on with an amateur who is +likely to be a credit to me. That is my card, sir; you will find +me in pretty nearly any time of the day, and I have got a place +behind the house where I do teaching when I get a chance. It is +handy in one way, because you can drop in and take a lesson any +time you like." + +"That would suit me exceedingly well," Mark said; "and when I have +had a couple of months with Needham I will come to you." + +Mark now put on his clothes again, and they went out together, and +re-entered a few minutes later, when the door was open. The benches +were soon crowded. Mark had been to several prize fights with Dick +Chetwynd, had often boxed with him and other lads, and had had +lessons from an ex-prize fighter at Reigate, and was therefore able +to appreciate the science shown by the various men who confronted +each other. The event of the evening was the contest between Tring +and Bob Pratt; both were very powerful men, who were about to +go into strict training for matches that had been made for them +against two west countrymen, who were thought very highly of by +their friends, and who were regarded as possible candidates for +the championship. + +Bob Pratt was a stone heavier than his opponent, but far less active, +and owed his position more to his ability to take punishment, and +to hard hitting powers, than to his science. In the two rounds that +were fought, Tring had the advantage, but the general opinion was +that in the long run the other would wear him down. Both fought +with good temper, and were warmly applauded as they shook hands at +the finish. + +"I think I should back Tring in a fight," Mark said, as the meeting +broke up, "but it is difficult to say, for he is in better condition +than the other, and it may be that when both are thoroughly fit +the heavy man might show more improvement than he would do." + +The hat was passed round at the conclusion: Every man dropped in +his guinea, some more, it being understood that the collection was +divided between the two men to pay the expenses of their training. + + + +CHAPTER XII. + + +The next morning Mark commenced work in earnest, and for two months +visited all the worst slums of London in company with one of the Bow +Street men. Both were generally in disguise, but Mark's companion +sometimes went openly to some of the houses inhabited by men well +known as criminals. On such occasions Mark remained within call, +ready to go in if assistance should be required; but there was +small fear of this, the men who were visited were all personally +known to the officer, and generally greeted him with "You aint +wanting me, are you?" + +"Not at all; what I am wanting is a little information for which I +shall be quite willing to pay the first man who enables us to lay +hands on the gentleman I want to find." Then he would describe +Bastow's appearance. + +"He has taken to the road, I fancy, and has given us a good deal +of trouble; if it is the man I think it is, he has been away from +London for some years, and came back eight or ten months ago." + +The reply was always to the same effect: + +"I don't know of such a man, and never heard of him. For my part, I +would not split on a pal, not for anything; but I should not mind +earning five guineas to put you on a cove who is not one of us. +Besides, it aint only the money; you know, you might do me a good +turn some day." + +"Quite so; well, I can tell you it is a good deal more than five +guineas that would be earned if you could put me in the way of +laying my hand on his shoulder. I don't think that he is living in +town. I expect he is in some quiet neighborhood; still, if he is +on the road, he must have a horse somewhere. You might ask among +the stables, and find out whether anyone keeps a horse there who +is in the habit of going out in the afternoon and not coming back +until the next day. You have plenty of time upon your hands, and +it would pay you well if you could bring me the information I want." + +The officer said to Mark at the end of two months: "These knights of +the road don't often mix themselves up with the London housebreakers. +The most likely men to be able to tell you about the doings of +such a fellow would be receivers of stolen goods, but it would be +dangerous to question any of them--they would be sure to put him +on his guard. I will give you a list of some of them, and I should +say that your best way would be to watch their places of an evening, +from the time it gets dark till ten or eleven. Of course, it is +just a chance. You may watch one place for a month and he may happen +to go there the very day you have gone off to watch another crib. +Still, there is just the chance, and I don't see that there is one +any other way." + +During this time Mark had been taking a lesson every evening +with Needham, and had surprised his teacher with the rapidity of +his progress; he had said, the very evening before, when Mark had +countered him with a blow that knocked him for two or three minutes +senseless: + +"We have had enough of this, governor; you have got beyond me +altogether, and I don't want another blow like that. You had better +take on Gibbons now. You are too big altogether for me, and yet you +don't fight like a heavyweight, for you are as quick on your pins +as I am." + +Well pleased at having the day to himself and of having got clear +of his work in the thieves' rookeries, Mark went the next morning +to Gibbons' shop. His entry was hailed by a chorus of barking from +dogs of all sorts and sizes, from the bulldog down to the ratting +terrier. + +"Glad to see you, Mr. Thorndyke," Gibbons said, when he had silenced +the barking. "I saw Jack last week, and he told me that he should +hand you over to me pretty soon, for that you were getting beyond +him altogether, and he thought that if you stuck to it you would +give me all my work to do in another six months." + +"I finished with him last night, Gibbons, and I shall be ready to +come for a lesson to you every morning, somewhere about this hour. +I have brought my bag with my togs." + +"All right, sir, I am ready at once; the place is clear now behind. +I have just been making it tidy, for we had a little ratting last +night, one of my dogs against Sir James Collette's, fifty rats +each; my dog beat him by three quarters of a minute." + +"You will never see me here at one of those businesses. I have no +objection to stand up to a man my own size and give and take until +we have had enough, but to see rats slaughtered when they have not +a chance of making a fight of it is altogether out of my line." + +"Well, sir, I do not care about it myself; there are lots who do +like it, and are ready to wager their money on it, and as it helps +to sell my dogs, besides what I can win out of the event--it +was a wager of twenty guineas last night--it aint for me to set +myself up against it." + +Calling a boy to look after the shop, Gibbons went away into +a wooden building in the back yard; it was about twenty-five feet +square, and there were holes in the floor for the stakes, when a +regular ring was made. The floor was strewn with clean sawdust; a +number of boxing gloves hung by the wall. + +"There is the dressing room," Gibbons said, pointing to a door +at the other end. When both were ready he looked Mark over. "Your +muscles have thickened out a good bit, sir, since I saw you strip. +Before another four years, if you keep on at it, you will be as big +a man as I am. I am about eight years too old, and you are four +years too young. You will improve every day, and I shan't. Now, sir, +let us see what you can do. Jack tells me that you are wonderfully +quick on your feet; there is the advantage you have of me. I am as +strong as ever I was, I think, but I find that I cannot get about +as I used to." + +He stood somewhat carelessly at first, but as they sparred for +an opening he became more careful, and presently hit out sharply. +Mark leaped back, and then, springing forward, struck out with his +left; Gibbons only just stopped it and then countered, but Mark +was out of reach again. + +"That is good enough," Gibbons said; "I can see Jack has taught you +pretty nearly all there is to know. We will just take those hits +again. You were right to get away from the first, but the second +time you should have guarded with your left, and hit at my chin +with your right. That jumping back game is first rate for avoiding +punishment, but you have got to come in again to hit. You took me +by surprise that time, and nearly got home, but you would not do +it twice," and so the lesson went on for three quarters of an hour. + +"That will do for today, sir; I am getting blown, if you are not. +Well, I can tell you I have never had a more promising pupil, and +I have brought forward two or three of the best men in the ring; +no wonder that Jack cannot do much with you. Give me six months, +every day, and you should have a turn occasionally with other men, +and I would back you for a hundred pounds against any man now in +the ring." + +Three or four days later Mark received a message that the chief +wanted to speak with him that afternoon, and he accordingly went +down. + +"I've got a job for you, Mr. Thorndyke; it is just the sort of thing +that will suit you. There is a house in Buckingham Street that we +have had our eye on for some time; it is a gambling house, but with +that we have nothing to do unless complaints are made, but we have +had several complaints of late. It is a well got up place, and +there are a good many men of title frequent it, but men of title +are not always more honest than other people; anyhow, there are some +rooks there, and several young fellows of means have been pigeoned +and ruined. They are mighty particular who they let in, and there +would be very little chance of getting my regular men in there. +Now, you are a stranger in London, but you have friends here, and +no doubt you could get introduced. We want to know if the play is +fair; if it isn't, we would break the place up altogether. We know +enough to do it now; but none of the poor beggars who have been +ruined will come forward, and, indeed, haven't any idea, I think, +that they have lost their money in anything but a run of bad luck. + +"One young fellow blew his brains out last week, and his father +came here with a list of what are called debts of honor, which he +found in his room. There they are, and the names of the men they +are owed to; of course some of them have been fairly won, but I +have a strong suspicion that those I have marked with a cross have +not been. For instance, there is Sir James Flash, a fellow who was +turned out of White's two years ago for sharp practice with cards; +there is John Emerson, he is a man of good family, but all his +friends have given him up long ago, and he has been living by his +wits for the last five years. The others marked are all of the same +sort. Now, what I want you to do is to become a frequenter of the +place; of course you will have to play a little, and as you are a +stranger I expect that they will let you win for a bit; but if not +the old gentleman has placed 200 pounds in my hands for the expenses." + +"I could play with my own money," Mark said rather warmly. + +"You forget, Mr. Thorndyke," the chief said firmly, "that at the +present moment you are a member of my force, and that you go to this +place in that capacity, and not as Squire of Crowswood; therefore +you must, if you please, do as I instruct you. The gentleman will +be ready to pay that sum. As you see, the amounts entered here +total up to nearly 10,000 pounds. He said that it will ruin him to +pay that sum, but that he must do so rather than his son should be +branded as a defaulter. I have advised him to write to all these +people saying that it will take him some time to raise the money, +but that he will see that nobody shall be a loser by his son's +debts. I have told him in the meantime that I will endeavor to get +proof that the play was not fair, and in that case he would, of +course, refuse to pay any of the claims on that ground; and you +may be sure that if unfair play was proved none of those concerned +would dare to press their claims." + +"Then my function would be simply to watch?" + +"Yes, to watch, and to bring me word of anything you may observe. +You see, without making a public scandal, if it could be found that +a man was discovered cheating, and the way in which he was doing +it, one would be able to put so strong a pressure on him, that +not only might he be forced to abstain from going to any club, but +would be frightened into giving up any IOUs he might hold." + +"I shall be glad to do the best I can, sir; but frankly I know next +to nothing of cards, and should have but little chance of detecting +anything that might be going on, when it must be done so cleverly +that experienced gamblers, watching a man closely, fail to see +anything wrong." + +"I quite understand that; but one of my men has made a study of +the various methods employed by gamblers to cheat, and although it +would take you years to learn how to do it yourself, a few hours' +instruction from him would at least put you up to some of their +methods, and enable you to know where to look for cheating. The +man is now waiting in the next room, and if you will take two or +three hours daily with him, say for a week, you ought to be able +to detect the doings of these fellows when to others everything +seems right and above board. You may have no inclination for cards, +but knowledge of that sort is useful to anyone in society, here or +anywhere else, and may enable him either to save his own pocket or +to do a service to a friend." + +Mark was greatly interested in the tricks the man showed him. At +first it seemed to him almost magical, after he himself had shuffled +the cards and cut them the dealer invariably turned up a king. Even +admitting he might have various places of concealment, pockets in +the lining of the sleeve, in the inside of the coat, and in various +other parts of the dress, in which cards could be concealed and +drawn out by silken threads, it did not seem possible that this +could be done with such quickness as to be unobserved. It was only +when his teacher showed him, at first in the slowest manner, and +then gradually increasing his speed, that he perceived that what +seemed impossible was easy enough when the necessary practice and +skill had been attained. The man was indeed an adept at a great +variety of tricks by which the unsuspecting could be taken in. + +"I ought to know," he said. "I was for three years in a gambling +house in Paris, where every other man was a sharper. I have been +in places of the same sort in Belgium, Holland, Germany, and Italy. +At first I was only a boy waiter, and as until evening there was +nothing doing at these places, men would sometimes amuse themselves +by teaching me tricks, easy ones to begin with, and when they saw +I was sharp and quick handed they went on. After a time I began to +work as a confederate, and at last on my own account; but I got +disgusted with it at last. A young fellow shot himself at the table +of the gambling house at Rome, and at another place I was nearly +killed by a man who had lost heavily--do you see, it has left a +broad scar right across my forehead?--so I gave it up. + +"I was in the French police for a time, and used to watch some +of the lower hells. I was nearly killed there once or twice, and +at last I came back here. My French chief gave me a letter to the +chief, and I was taken on at once, for, talking as I do half a dozen +languages, and being acquainted with most of the swell mobsmen of +Paris, I was just the man who happened to be wanted here at the time. +Since I came over I have done a good deal in the way of breaking +up hells where sailors and others are plundered. But, you see, +I cannot be used for the higher class of work; my nose has been +broken, and I have half a dozen scars on my face. I hate the sight +of cards now. I have seen so much of the ruin they do, and have, +I am sorry to say, taken a hand so often in doing it, that save +showing someone who would use the knowledge in the right way how the +tricks are done, nothing would persuade me to touch them again. +However, as a protection, the knowledge is as useful as it is +dangerous when used the other way. It would take you ten years to +learn to do these tricks yourself so well as to defy detection; +but in a very short time, by learning where to keep your eyes, you +would get to detect almost any of them. + +"You see, there are three methods of cheating: the first by hidden +cards, the second by marked cards, the third simply by sleight of +hand, this being generally used in connection with marked cards. +These tricks require great skill and extreme delicacy of touch, +for the marks, which are generally at the edge of the cards, are +so slight as to be altogether imperceptible save to a trained hand. +There are also marks on the back of the cards; these are done in the +printing, and are so slight that, unless attention were attracted +to them, no one would dream of their existence." + +In the course of a week's practice Mark learned where to look for +cheating; he could not indeed follow the fingers of his instructor, +for even when he knew what was going to be done, the movements were +so rapid that his eye could not follow them, and in nine cases out +of ten he was unable to say whether the coup had been accomplished +or not; but he could see that there was a slight movement of the +fingers that could only mean that something was being done. + +"It would be a good thing," he said one day, "if every young fellow +before going out into the world were to have a course of such +instruction as you are giving me; he would learn, at least, the +absolute folly of sitting down to play cards with strangers. He would +see that he could be robbed in fifty different ways, and would be +at the absolute mercy of any sharper. I never had any inclination +for gambling, but if I had been inclined that way you would have +cured me of the passion for life." + +The week's instruction was lengthened to a fortnight, and at the +end of that time Mark went to Dick Chetwynd. + +"Do you know, Dick," he said, "a gambling place in Buckingham +Street?" + +"I know that there is a hell there, Mark, but I have never been in +it. Why do you ask?" + +"I have rather a fancy to go there," he replied. "I hear that, +although a good many men of fashion haunt the place, the crowd is +rather a mixed one." + +"It has a bad name, Mark; I have heard some queer reports about +it." + +"Yes, so have I. I should think that it is a very likely place for +a man like Bastow to go to if he has any liking for play. Of course +he would get up as a gentleman. At any rate, I have been making +what inquiries I can in some of the thieves' quarters, and have +come to the conclusion that he is not likely to have taken up his +abode there, and I don't think I can do better than make a round +of some of these doubtful houses. I should like to begin with this, +and then work downwards." + +"Well, I dare say I could manage it, Mark; I know half a dozen men +who play there; they say there is more fun and excitement to be got +than at White's or Crockford's, or any of those places. Some men, +of course, play high, but a good many who go there only risk a few +guineas; some go because it is the proper thing at present for a +man about town either to play or to bet on horses or cock fights, +or to patronize the ring; and, after all, it is easier to stroll +for an hour or two of an evening into comfortable rooms, where you +meet a lively set and there is champagne always going, than it is +to attend races or prize fights." + +Very few days passed that Mark did not go in for half an hour's chat +with his friend, and two days after this conversation Dick said: + +"By the way, Mark, I have arranged for us to go to that hell tonight; +young Boldero, who is a member of my club, told me some time ago +that he played there sometimes. I met him yesterday evening, and +said that I had a fancy to go and have a look at it, and that a +friend of mine from the country also wanted to go; he said at once +that he would take us there. + +"'I should advise you not to play much, Chetwynd,' he said; +'sometimes they play uncommonly high, and there are some fellows +who have wonderful luck. Of course, on ordinary occasions, when +the play is low, you could stake a few guineas there as well as +elsewhere, but when really high play is on we small fish always +stand out. All I can say is that I have never seen anything that +savors of foul play in the smallest degree; but you understand +how it is, if one man happens to have a big run of luck, there are +always fellows who go about hinting that there is something wrong +in it. However, it is a jolly place to drop into, and, of course +there is no occasion to play always, and if one loses one is likely +to win on the next race or on the next fight.'" + +Accordingly that evening Mark met Boldero, whom he had once or twice +before seen in Dick's company, and the three went together to the +house in Buckingham Street. Boldero nodded to the doorkeeper as he +went in, and they then proceeded upstairs and entered a handsome +room, with comfortable sofas and chairs, on which a dozen men were +seated, for the most part smoking. Several champagne bottles stood +on the tables, and all who liked helped themselves. Boldero was +known to several of those present, while two or three were also +known to Dick. Boldero introduced them both to his friends. One +of these was the Hon. John Emerson, a man of some five and thirty, +with a languid air and a slight drawl. + +"Glad to make your acquaintance, sir," he said to Mark. "Have you +been long in town?" + +"Two or three months only," Mark replied. + +"Is this your first visit here?" + +"Yes, this is my first visit to any place of the sort, but I thought +that I should like to go the rounds before I went home again." + +"Quite so. Going to punt a few guineas, I suppose?" + +"Yes, I suppose that is the right thing to do." + +"Well, everyone who comes is expected to do a little that way; +there is no occasion to play high." + +"Oh, I should not like to do that," Mark said innocently; "indeed, +I know very little about cards." + +"Oh, that is quite immaterial so long as you only play games of +chance; in fact, you don't want to know anything about them. You +see others staking their money, some on one side of the table, and +some on the other; you place your money whichever side you like, +and take your chance. There is no skill in it. Some people play on +what they call a system, but there is nothing in it; you have just +as much chance if you put your money down blindfolded. If luck is +with you, you win; if luck is against you, you lose." + +After chatting for a few minutes Mark went with his two companions +upstairs. The room they now entered was furnished as a drawing room, +except that in the middle was a table, round which some fifteen +people were seated, while as many more looked on; round the room +were several small tables, on which were packs of cards. These +were for those who preferred to play piquet or ecarte, two or three +couples being so engaged. Mark knew enough of cards to know that +hazard was being played at the large table. There was an inner +room, and Mark strolled across and looked in. It was at present +untenanted; it contained a center table capable of holding four, +and two or three small ones, with two chairs set in readiness to +each. + +"That is where the heavy play goes on," Boldero said. "None of your +four or five guineas wagers there, fifties and hundreds are nearer +the mark, and I have seen a thousand wagered many a time. It is +exciting work even looking on, I can tell you; what it must be for +the players I cannot say, but I should think it must be frightful." + +Mark took up his stand at the hazard table, and after looking +on for some little time began to play. Beginning with guineas, he +gradually, as luck favored him, played five guineas, and after half +an hour's play won fifty. Then luck turned, and in a few minutes +he had lost all he won. + +"You ought to have stopped, Mark," Dick said reproachfully, as he +stepped back from his place, which was at once filled by one who +had been standing behind him. + +The play in the inner room had now begun, and Mark went in and joined +those who were looking on. In half an hour one of the players had +had enough, and a young man said to Emerson, who was standing on +the other side of the table: + +"Now, Mr. Emerson, will you give me my revenge?" + +"I would really rather not, Mr. Cotter. The luck has been so one +sided lately that I would rather leave it alone." + +"But it may turn tonight," the other said. "At any rate, I will +try it, if you have no objection." + +There was a certain eagerness in the young man's voice that caused +Mark to watch him closely. He was a good looking young fellow, but +his face was not a strong one; and although he evidently tried to +assume an appearance of indifference as he sat down, there was a +nervous movement of his fingers. Mark took his place behind him as +play began. The game was ecarte, and for a time Emerson lost. + +"I think the luck has changed, Mr. Cotter, but as we generally raise +the stakes after playing for a bit, I am ready to do so. Shall we +make it fifty pounds again?" + +"With pleasure," the young man said. + +He won the next two games, then for some time they won alternately. + +"Shall we say a hundred again?" he said. + +"As you like," Emerson replied. "We don't seem to get much forwarder +either way at present." + +A considerable number of lookers on had now gathered round. So far +Mark, although watching the fingers of the opposite player intently, +had seen no sign whatever of unfair play. He now redoubled his +attention. Cotter won the first game, his adversary the three next. +Mark noticed now that after looking at his hand Emerson looked +abstractedly, as if meditating before taking the next step; there +was no expression in his face, but Mark fancied that his eyes rested +for a moment on the man standing next to himself. He looked at his +watch and then, as if finding the hour later than he had expected, +moved away from his place, and presently joined Dick, who was +standing with Boldero on the other side of the table. + +"Who is that man playing with Emerson?" he asked in a whisper. + +"He is the son of Cotter, the head of Cotter's Bank, in Lombard +Street." + +As the men were standing two or three deep round the table, Mark +could not see the table itself, but this mattered little, for his +attention was entirely directed towards the man standing behind +Cotter's chair. He saw that after glancing down at the young man's +hand he looked across as if seeing what Emerson was going to do; +sometimes his eyes dropped for an instant, at other times there +was no such movement, and after noticing this four or five times, +and noticing the course Emerson took, he had no doubt whatever in +his own mind that the movement of the man's eyes was an intimation +to Emerson of the nature of Cotter's hand. The young man had lost +four games in succession; he had grown very pale, but showed no +other signs of agitation. Presently he said: + +"You have your usual luck again; I will only play one more game +tonight, but we may as well make it worth playing. Shall we say +five hundred?" + +"At your service," Emerson replied. + +This time the face of the man standing behind Cotter's chair was +immovable, and Mark, placing himself behind a short man and straining +his head forward, saw that Cotter scored four. The next time there +was still no sign. Emerson showed a king and scored it, and then +won every trick and the game. + +"That makes nine hundred pounds," the young man said quietly, +writing an IOU for that amount and handing it to Emerson. There was +a general movement of the spectators, and two fresh players took +the seats vacated by the late antagonists. + +"Who was the man standing behind Cotter's chair?" Mark asked Boldero. + +"That is Sir James Flash. He is just going to play, you see; it is +sure to be another hot game, and an interesting one." + +"Well, I think I will go," Mark said; "the heat of the room has +given me a bit of a headache. I will see you tomorrow, Dick." + +"Good night, old man," Chetwynd said; and, shaking hands with +Boldero, Mark went downstairs immediately after Cotter. The latter +went into the room below, drank off a tumbler of champagne, and +then went down, took his hat, and went out. Mark followed him for a +short distance, and joined him as soon as he got up into the Strand. + +"Mr. Cotter," he said, "I have not the pleasure of knowing you +personally, and I must introduce myself. My name is Mark Thorndyke, +and I am the owner of an estate close to Reigate. Would you mind +my exchanging a few words with you?" + +Cotter looked up, and was about to give a flat refusal, but the +expression of Mark's face was so friendly and pleasant that he +changed his mind and said in a hard voice: + +"I really do not know what you can have to say to me, Mr. Thorndyke, +but of course I can hardly refuse to hear you." + +They walked across the road and turned up a quiet street. + +"For certain reasons it is not necessary for me to explain," Mark +said, "I went to that place for the first time tonight, and I +watched the play between you and Mr. Emerson." + +"It does not matter, sir; I lost, and I am not going there again." + +"I hope, on the contrary, that you will go there again, Mr. Cotter. +If I mistake not, from what I heard, you have lost considerable +sums to that man." + +"I imagine, sir, that that is no business of a stranger." + +"In no way personally," Mark replied, not heeding the angry ring in +the voice, "but as an honest man it does concern me. I am absolutely +convinced, sir, that that money has not been won from you fairly." + +The young man gave a start. + +"Impossible!" he said shortly. "Mr. Emerson is a man of good family +and a gentleman." + +"He is a man of good family, I admit, but certainly not a gentleman; +his antecedents are notorious." + +"I have never heard a word against him; he is intimate with Sir +James Flash and other gentlemen of position." + +"I am not surprised, that you have not heard of it; it was probably +to the interest of several persons that you should not do so. Nor +do I suppose that you are aware that Sir James Flash was himself +expelled from White's for cheating at cards." + +"Impossible!" Mr. Cotter replied. + +"I can assure you of the fact," Mark said quietly. "Probably you +have among your acquaintances some members of White's. I am sure +if you ask them they will confirm the fact. Now, sir, I can assure +you that I have no interest in this matter, save to prevent a +gentleman from being ruined by blacklegs. May I ask how much you +owe to Mr. Emerson and Sir James Flash?" + +The young man hesitated. "I believe you, sir," he said at last. "They +hold my IOUs for 29,000 pounds. I need hardly say it is absolute +ruin. My intention is to make a clean breast to my father about it +tomorrow morning. My father will give me the money, in the first +place because he loves me and would save my name from disgrace, and +in the second because were I posted as a defaulter it would strike +a severe blow at the credit of the bank. So he will give me the +money, but he will bid me leave his house forever. That will matter +little, for I shall pay the money, and tomorrow night I shall blow +out my brains." + +"Well, sir, if you will follow my advice you will neither pay +the money nor blow out your brains. I saw enough tonight to feel +absolutely certain that you have been cheated. Sir James Flash stood +behind you, and was, I am sure, signaling your hand to Emerson. I +believe that Emerson played fair otherwise, until the last game, +but I am convinced that he then cheated. You had good hands, but +he had better; and although I did not see him cheat--for I was +on the other side of the table--I am convinced that he did so. +Now, sir, I advise you to go in as usual tomorrow evening, and to +play, raising your stakes as you did tonight. When the times comes +I will expose him. Should I not be able to detect him we must try +another night. I am so much convinced that this is the case, and +that I shall succeed, that whether you play one night or three I +will guarantee that you shall be no loser, but will, on the honor +of a gentleman, place in your hands the amount of your losses; so +that you will not have to ask your father for a check larger than +you would do if you confessed to him tomorrow morning. I only ask +in return that you, on your part, will give me your word of honor +that you will never touch a card again after you rise from the +table." + +"I cannot accept so generous an offer from a stranger," Cotter said +in a low tone. + +"I do not think that it is generous," Mark replied quietly, "because +I am perfectly convinced that I shall not have to pay at all. Have +you any other IOUs out?" + +"I have given them for about 5000 pounds, but that is not in addition +to the 29,000 pounds. Emerson told me that as he knew that I should +have difficulty in paying them at the present moment, he had taken +them up, and held them with his own." + +"Will you give me the names of the persons to whom you gave them +in the first place?" + +"Certainly;" and he mentioned three names, all of which stood with +a black cross against them on Mark's list. + +"Thank you. Then you will go tomorrow night again?" + +"Yes; and I swear to you that I will never touch a card afterwards." + +"I don't think that you need fear," Mark said. "I have not been +long in London, but I happen to have been shown a good many of the +tricks that these blacklegs play on greenhorns, which will account +for my having noticed what has never been observed by the honest +portion of the men who frequent the place. Now I will say good +night, sir. I shall be behind your chair or his tomorrow night." + +"I don't know what to say," Cotter said hesitatingly. + +"There is no occasion to say anything; it is the duty of every +honest man to interfere if he sees another honest man being robbed, +and that is my sole object in this matter. Good night;" and turning +round, he walked rapidly away. + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + + +The next morning, before going round to Gibbons', Mark saw his +chief and told him of what had taken place on the previous evening. + +"I certainly did not think that you would succeed so soon; you +believe that you will be able fairly to expose these fellows?" + +"I have no doubt whatever that I shall be able to expose one of +them; and I have equally no doubt that if the others are arrested, +either false cards or pockets for cards will be found upon them. +What do you wish me to do, sir? I can, of course, expose any fellow +I catch at it, but can do nothing about the others." + +"I must have more than one captured," the chief said. "At even the +most irreproachable club there may be one blackleg, but if it is +clear that this place is the haunt of blacklegs we can break it. +There are half a dozen Acts that apply; there is the 11th Act of +Henry VIII, statute 33, cap. 9, which prohibits the keeping of any +common house for dice, cards, or any unlawful game. That has never +been repealed, except that gaming houses were licensed in 1620. +What is more to the point is that five Acts of George II, the. +9th, 12th, 13th, 18th, and 30th, impose penalties upon the keepers +of public houses for permitting gambling, and lay heavy penalties +upon hazard, roulette, and other gambling games, on the keepers of +gambling houses and those who play there. Having received complaints +of several young men being rooked in the place, we can, if we +prove that some of its frequenters are blacklegs, shut the place up +altogether. We should do it quietly, and without fuss, if possible; +but if we shut it up several others of the same sort will be certain +to close their doors. But mind, there will probably be a desperate +row, and you had better take pistols with you. I will have four +men close at hand from ten o'clock till the time the place closes, +and if they hear a scrimmage, or you fire a pistol out of the window, +they will rush in and seize all engaged in the row, and march them +to the lock up. Of course you will have to be included." + +Mark then went to Chetwynd. + +"Well, what did you think of it last night?" + +"Well, I own that it went against my grain to see that young fellow +being victimized by a sharper." + +"My dear Mark, you must not use such language as that. I fancy +from what I have heard that the Honorable John is not altogether +an estimable character, but to call him a sharper is going too far +altogether." + +"I don't think that it is, for from what I saw last night I am +pretty well convinced that he did not play fair. I mean to go again +tonight." + +"But why on earth should you mix yourself up in such an affair, +Mark? It is no business of yours; you are not an habitue of the +place. Above all, it is extremely unlikely that you are right. +There were some shady people there, no doubt, but there were also +a good many gentlemen present, and as you know nothing of cards, +as far as I know, it is the most unlikely thing in the world that +you should find out that Emerson cheated when no one else noticed +it." + +"It is my business; it is the duty of every honest man to see that +a poor lad like that should not be eaten up by a shark like Emerson. +I don't care if there is a shindy over it. I shall not interfere +unless I can prove that the man is cheating, in which case no man +of honor would go out with him. I shall be glad if you and Boldero +would go with me again this evening. I am not known there, and +you are to a good many men, and Boldero to many more. I only want +that, if I get into a row, you should testify to the fact that I am +a gentleman, and ordinarily sane. If there is a row you will have +an opportunity of seeing how much I have benefited by my lessons." + +"Yes, I heard you were making tremendous progress. Jack Needham +told me a month ago that you had knocked him out of time, and I went +into Gibbons' yesterday morning with a man who wanted to buy a dog, +and he told me that he considered that it was a great misfortune +that you were an amateur, for that you only required another six +months' practice, and he would then be ready to back you for a +hundred pounds against any man in the ring. But about this affair, +Mark. Are you really in earnest?" + +"I am, Dick, thoroughly in earnest; so would you be if you had +spoken to Cotter last night, as I did. I tell you that if I had +not given him a little hope that the thing might come out right, +he would have blown out his brains today." + +"Well, Mark, if you have set your mind on it, of course I will stick +to you, though I have some doubts whether Cotter has any brains +to speak of to blow out, else he would not be mad enough to back +himself against Emerson and other men whom Boldero tells me he has +been playing with." + +"He has made an ass of himself, no doubt, Dick; but I fancy a good +many fellows do that at one time or other of their lives, though +not, I grant, always in the same way." + +"Well, I will go, Mark. I need not ask Boldero, for he told me +that he should look in again at ten o'clock this evening, for he +thought that another night's play would probably bring Cotter to +the end of his tether." + +Accordingly a little before ten they walked into the gambling house +together. + +"Now, Dick, I want you, as soon as you sit down, to take your place +in the front line within a yard or two of Emerson. I don't want you +to be just behind him, but a short distance away; and I want you +to keep your eye upon Sir James Flash, who, if I am not mistaken, +will take up the same position that he did last night, near enough +to Cotter to see his hand. You will remark, I have no doubt, as +I did last night, that whenever Cotter has a bad hand, Flash will +either close his eyes, or put his hand up to his mouth and stroke +his mustache, or make some sign of that sort. When Cotter has a +good hand he will stand perfectly still or look about the room. At +any rate, he will make no sign--that, of course, is a guide to +Emerson whether to propose or to refuse to allow Cotter to do so. I +need not point out to you what a tremendous advantage the knowledge +whether an opponent's hand is good or not gives him. Of course, +while watching an hour's play I can only know that Flash was making +signs, and that when he did so Cotter's hand was a bad one. It +is possible that the manner in which the sign was made, either by +closing his eye or twisting his mustache, or so on, may have been an +intimation as to the suit in which Cotter was strongest or weakest." + +"By Jove, this is a serious thing, Mark." + +"It is a serious thing. I don't want you to get into a row with the +fellow. I should like you to give me a nod when you have satisfied +yourself that I was not mistaken. I will take upon myself to denounce +the fellow, and to say what I noticed yesterday and you can back +me up by saying that you saw the same thing. I have no doubt that +I shall be able to convince every decent man there that my charge +is well founded. I am going to watch Emerson. With the help he gets +from Flash, he won't risk anything by cheating until it comes to a +big stake like the last game yesterday, in which case, if Cotter's +hand happens to be a strong one, he is likely to do so, and I fancy +if he does I shall be able to catch him at it. You had better keep +Boldero near you. You can whisper to him what you are watching Flash +for, and get him to do so too; as, if I catch Emerson cheating, +there is likely to be a row; he can lend a hand if necessary, +and, at any rate, his joining in with you will suffice to show his +friends that the thing is genuine." + +"All right, Mark. I am interested in the matter now, and am ready +for anything." + +Soon after ten Cotter and Emerson again sat down, and, as usual, +a lot of spectators gathered round the table. The game resembled +the one on the previous evening. Mark placed himself' by the side +of Cotter, a stranger stood immediately behind his chair, another +member of the club was on the other side, and Sir James Flash stood +partly behind him, so that although somewhat in the background he +could obtain a view between their heads of Cotter's cards. Mark +saw to his satisfaction that Dick and Boldero had secured the exact +position that he wished them to take. For the first few games the +play was even, and Dick began to think that Mark had been mistaken, +for Flash appeared to take little interest in the game, and made +no sign how Emerson should proceed. + +As soon as the stake rose to a hundred again he distinctly saw +Flash close his eyes and play with his mustache; he called Boldero's +attention to the fact, and found the latter, who had also been +watching, had noticed it. By the time a few games had been played +he verified Mark's assertion that these signs were signals that +Cotter's hand was a bad one, and in each case Emerson played without +giving his opponent the opportunity of discarding and taking in +fresh cards. He and Dick nodded quietly to Mark, who had satisfied +himself that so far Emerson had not cheated in any other way. As +on the previous evening, Cotter, after losing five or six hundred +pounds, proposed a final game of five hundred. Mark bent down his +head, so that the intentness of his gaze should not be noticed, +but from under his eyebrows he watched Emerson's every movement; +suddenly he placed a foot on the edge of the chair of the man +sitting in front of him, and with a sudden spring leaped upon the +table, seized Emerson's hand, and held it up to the full length of +his arm. + +"Gentlemen," he shouted, "this fellow is cheating; there is a card +in his hand which he has just brought from under the table." + +In a moment there was a dead silence of surprise; then Mark forced +the hand open and took Emerson's card, which he held up. + +"There, you see, gentleman; it is a king." + +Then a Babel of sounds arose, a dozen hands were laid upon Emerson, +who was pulled back from his chair and thrown down on a sofa, while +hands were run over his coat, waistcoat, and breeches. + +"Here they are!" a man shouted, and held a dozen cards over his +head. + +The place of concealment had been cleverly chosen; the breeches +apparently buttoned closely at the knee, but in reality they were +loose enough to enable a finger and thumb to be passed between them +and the stocking, and in the lining of the breeches was a pocket +in which the cards had been placed, being held there by two pieces +of whalebone, that closed the pocket. The searchers, among whom +were Dick and Boldero, did not have it all their own way; four or +five men rushed upon them, and endeavored to pull them off Emerson. +The din of voices was prodigious, but Mark, still standing on the +table, stilled it for a moment by shouting: + +"The scoundrel has an accomplice, who this evening and yesterday +has been signaling the strength of the cards in Mr. Cotter's hands." + +"Who is he?" was shouted over the room. + +"It is Sir James Flash," Mark said. "I denounce him as a cheat and +a sharper." + +As pale as death, Flash rushed to the table. + +"I don't know who you are, sir," he said, in a tone of concentrated +rage, "but you are a liar, and you shall answer for this in the +morning." + +"I will answer to any gentleman that calls me to account," Mark said, +in a ringing voice, "but I don't meet a man who has been expelled +from White's for cheating, and who I have no doubt is well stocked +with cards at the present moment, in readiness for the victim that +he is next going to meet after the plucking of Mr. Cotter has been +done. Now, gentlemen, search him and see if I am wrong; if I am I +will apologize for that part of my accusation." + +Flash drew a pistol from his pocket, but in an instant his arm was +seized by those standing round him, and it exploded harmlessly. +Among those who seized Flash was the man who had played with him +the previous evening. In spite of his struggles and curses, and +the efforts of his friends to rescue him, he too was thrown down +and eight court cards were found concealed in his sleeve. The uproar +while this was going on had been tremendous, but it was suddenly +stilled as four men in dark clothes entered the room. Each held +in his hand the well known symbol of his office, the little ebony +staff surmounted by a silver crown. + +"I arrest all present in the name of the king," one said, "for +breaking the laws against gambling, and for brawling and the use +of firearms. Now, gentlemen, resistance is useless; I must request +that you each give me your card, and your word of honor that you +will appear at Bow Street tomorrow morning." + +"What is all this about, sir?" he asked Mark, who was still standing +on the table. + +"Two fellows here have been caught cheating." + +"What is your name and address, sir?" + +"My name is Mark Thorndyke, and I am a landed gentleman at Reigate; +my friends Mr. Chetwynd and Mr. Boldero will bear this out." + +"Who are the two men?" the constable asked. + +"The two fellows with torn clothes," Mark said. "They are Mr. +Emerson and Sir James Flash." + +"You are certain of the charge that you are making?" + +"Quite certain; the cards have been found hidden upon them." + +"Yes, yes!" a score of voices shouted; "they have been caught in +the act of cheating." + +"Take those two men into custody," the constable said to two of +his companions. + +"Who fired that pistol?" he went on. + +A number of voices shouted: + +"Sir James Flash; he attempted to murder Mr. Thorndyke." + +The constable nodded to the man who had laid his hands on Sir James +Flash, and in a moment a pair of handcuffs closed on his wrists. + +"You shall repent this!" Flash exclaimed furiously. + +"Calm yourself, Sir James," the constable said calmly. "We know +our duty, and do it whether a man is a peer or a peasant; you are +accused of card sharping and an attempted murder." + +"What is your address in town, Mr. Thorndyke?" he asked. + +"18 Villiers Street." + +"Is there any charge against anyone else here? A good many of you +seem to have your clothes torn and disarranged." + +"Some fellows attempted to rescue Emerson and Flash while we were +searching them; for what reason we can all pretty well imagine." + +"I shall require the names in the morning of your assailants," the +constable said; "it looks very much as if they were confederates of +the two prisoners. Now, gentlemen, you can all leave. This house is +closed, and will not be opened again until this affair is thoroughly +investigated." + +In five minutes the house was deserted. + +"How can I thank you, Mr. Thorndyke?" Cotter, who was one of those +who had seized Flash's arm, diverted his aim and searched him, +said, when they got outside the house. "You have saved my life. It +did not seem possible to me that you could succeed in showing that +I was being cheated, and I had firmly resolved that, instead of +allowing you to suffer loss, I would tomorrow morning make a clean +breast of the whole affair to my father, as I had intended to have +done this morning." + +"If I might advise you, Mr. Cotter, I should say, carry out your +intention as far as making a clean breast of it is concerned. +Happily, you are free from debt, as those IOUs are worthless, for +they were obtained from you by cheating, therefore you have no +demand to make upon his purse. The police will, I have no doubt, +endeavor to keep this thing quiet, but your name may come out, and +it would be far better that your father should hear this story from +you than elsewhere; and your assurance that you will never touch a +card again, and the heavy lesson that you have had, will doubtless +induce him to look at the matter leniently. It will, no doubt, be +a painful story to tell, but it will be far better told by you." + +"I will do it, sir; as you say, the lesson has been a heavy one, +and henceforth my father shall have no reason to complain of me. +May I call and see you tomorrow evening?" + +"Certainly. I shall be at home from seven to eight, after which +hour I have an engagement. Good night." + +Cotter walked on, and Mark fell back, and joined Dick and Boldero, +who had fallen behind when they saw him speaking to Cotter. + +"Well, Mark, I congratulate you," Dick Chetwynd said. "You did it +wonderfully, though how on earth you knew that fellow had a card +in his hand is more than I can guess." + +"I felt sure he was going to cheat," Mark said quietly; "I saw that +Cotter's hand was a very strong one, and knew that Emerson would +be aware that it was so, because he would receive no signal from +Flash, therefore this was the time, if any, that he would cheat. He +had been playing with both hands upon the table. I saw him withdraw +one, there was a little pause, and then it came up again, and I had +not a doubt in the world that there was a card in it, and that it +had been hidden somewhere in his breeches, which is one of the best +places of concealment, for his hand being under the table while +getting at the card, no one present who was not behind the scenes, +as I was, could detect him doing it." + +"The wonder to me is," Boldero said, "that while there were a number +of men looking on closely, for Emerson has long been suspected of +not playing fair, you, just fresh from the country, if I may say +so, should have spotted him." + +"That is easily explained," Mark said. "Not wishing to fall a victim, +I have of late been put up to a great many of these sharpers' tricks +by a man who at one time had been in the trade himself." + +"That was a capital idea, Mark," Dick said. "I wish you would +introduce me to him." + +"I won't do that, Dick, but I shall be very glad to teach you all +I know myself about it; but I fancy that after this you will be in +no great hurry to enter a gambling hell again." + +"That is so, Mark. I have never had any great inclination for +play; but after this you may be quite sure that I will light shy +of cards altogether. Still, I shall be glad if you will put me up +to some of these tricks, for I may be able to some day save a victim +of card sharpers, as you have done this evening." + +The next morning, when those who had been present at the scene of +the previous evening arrived at the office of the detectives in +Bow Street, they were shown into some private rooms, and asked to +wait. Cotter, Mark, and his two friends first had an interview with +the chief. + +"You will understand," the latter said, "that this is an altogether +informal affair. I propose you first tell me your story as briefly +as possible." + +This was done. + +"Now, Mr. Cotter. I take it that you do not wish to prosecute?" + +"Certainly not. I would, in fact, give anything rather than appear +in it." + +"You have said that, in addition to the IOUs that you have given +to the two men caught cheating, they hold others to the amount +of some five or six thousand pounds, given by you to three other +frequenters of the club. In fact, these papers have been found in +Emerson's pocketbook; he told you, I believe, that he had taken them +up, so that you should not be inconvenienced by them. I understand, +then, that you will be quite content if you get these IOUs back +again; those given to Emerson and Flash are, of course, worthless. +After what has happened, they could not be presented, but probably +you might have trouble about the others, for, though I have no +doubt that the whole of the men were in league together, we have +no means of absolutely proving it." + +"I shall be more than content, sir; I have no wish to prosecute." + +"We are glad," the chief said, "to be able to close a dangerous +place; and as the exposure will put a stop to the career of these +two men, and no doubt alarm a good many others, we don't care about +taking the matter into court. Such gross scandals as this are best +kept quiet, when there is no object in ventilating them. Therefore, +gentlemen, as Mr. Cotter is willing to do so, we shall let the +matter drop. I shall be obliged if you will step into the next +room, however, until I have seen these three men." + +When they had left, the three were brought in. + +"You have been concerned, sirs," the chief said sternly, "in winning +large sums of money from the Hon. William Denton, from Mr. James +Carew, from Mr. William Hobson, and others; in all of these cases +the two men caught cheating last night were also concerned. You all +hold notes of hand of Mr. Hobson. I shall advise that gentleman's +father to refuse to pay those notes, and promise him that if any +further request for payment is made I will furnish him with such +particulars for publication as will more than justify him in the +eyes of the world in refusing to honor them. You, as well as Mr. +Emerson and Sir James Flash, have won large sums from Mr. Cotter, +and the fact that the IOUs he gave you were found on Mr. Emerson +points very strongly to their being in confederacy with you in the +matter; at any rate, they point so strongly that, whether a jury would +convict or not on the evidence that we shall be able to lay before +them, there can be no question whatever as to what the opinion of +men of honor will be. These IOUs are in our hands. Mr. Cotter does +not desire to pursue the case; he will, however, refuse absolutely +to pay those IOUs, and in doing so he will have the approval of +all honorable men. That being so, the IOUs are absolutely useless +to you, and if you will agree to my tearing them up now, he has +most kindly consented to let the matter drop in your cases." + +The three men, who had all turned very white when he was speaking, +now protested angrily against imputations being made on their honor. + +"Well, sirs," the officer said, "in that case the matter can, of +course, go on. You know best what the feeling will be as to these +IOUs. They will form an important item of evidence against you, you +will see. As the matter stands, either you gave them to Emerson to +collect for you, without any money passing between you--a very +strange procedure, which you will find it difficult to explain-- +or else he gave you the coin for them, and you passed them over to +him, and have, therefore, parted with all claim on Mr. Cotter on +your own account. Of course I impound them with the other IOUs as +proof of a conspiracy between you. Now, sirs, am I to tear them up +or not?" + +The three men looked at each other, and then one of them said: + +"We protest altogether against the assertion, sir, but at the same +time, as there can be little doubt that Emerson and Sir James Flash +have played unfairly, and we do not wish any association of our +names with theirs, we are perfectly willing that the IOUs, which, +under the circumstances, we should never have dreamt of presenting, +should be destroyed." + +"I think that you have chosen wisely," the chief said dryly. "It +is a pity that you did not do so at first. These are the IOUs he +gave to one or other of you. Perhaps it would be pleasanter for +you to destroy them yourselves." + +The three men took the papers with their names on them and tore +them up. + +"Thank you," he went on sarcastically. "That will place you in a +better position. You will be able to tell your friends that you felt +so indignant at the manner in which Mr. Cotter had been swindled +by Emerson and Flash that you at once destroyed his IOUs for the +sums that you had won of him. But, gentlemen,"--he spoke sternly +now,--"remember that we have a long list against you, and that +the next victim, or let us say his father, might be more disposed +to push matters to their full length than is Mr. Cotter. Remember, +also, that we keep ourselves acquainted with what is going on, and +that should trouble arise we shall produce all the complaints that +have been made against you, and shall also mention your connection +with this affair, in which, as I understand, you all did your best +to prevent those two fellows from being searched." + +Without saying another word the three men went out of the room, +too crestfallen to make even an attempt at keeping up their air of +indignation. The others were then called in. + +"I am sorry, gentlemen," he said, "that you have had the trouble of +coming here, for the gentleman swindled has declined to prosecute +the swindlers, and you will understand that he is somewhat anxious +that his name should not appear in the matter. Fortunately, as +instead of paying in cash he gave IOUs for his losses, he will not +be a loser to any large amount by these transactions. I may say +that the proprietor of the hell has been there this morning, and +to avoid trouble he has consented to close his place for good. I +have only to remark that I should advise you, gentlemen, in future, +only to indulge in gambling in places where you may be fairly assured +of the character of the men you play with. I think, in conclusion, +that you may all feel grateful to Mr. Cotter for refusing to prosecute. +It has saved you from having to appear in court as witnesses in so +utterly disreputable an affair." + +There was a general murmur of assent, and in a minute or two the +room was clear. Flash and Emerson were then brought in, with a +constable on each side of them. + +"Mr. Cotter has, I regret to say, declined to prosecute, and Mr. +Thorndyke has done the same with regard to Sir James Flash's use +of his pistol. You have, therefore, escaped the punishment due to +swindlers at cards. It is the less matter, as you are not likely +to have an opportunity of making fresh victims, for the story will +be known by this afternoon in every club in London. These IOUs will +be of no use to you--they are not worth the paper on which they +are written. However, I shall take it upon myself to hand them back +to Mr. Cotter, to prevent the possibility of their getting into +other hands and giving him trouble. + +"You can unlock those handcuffs, constable; these men are at +liberty to go, and if they will take my advice they will lose no +time in crossing the water and establishing themselves somewhere +where their talents are likely to be better appreciated than they +are here. They can go; one of you can call a hackney coach for +them if they wish it. They will scarcely care to walk with their +garments in their present condition." + +Then the chief went into the next room. + +"There is an end of that affair, Mr. Cotter. Here are the IOUs you +gave to those two swindlers. Those you gave to the other three men, +who were no doubt their confederates, have been torn up by them +in my presence. They declare that after seeing how shamefully you +had been victimized they had not the slightest idea of ever presenting +them." + +"I am sure that I am extremely grateful to you," Cotter said. "I +know that I have behaved like a madman, and that I don't deserve +to have got off as I have done. It will be a lesson to me for life, +I can assure you." + +On leaving, Dick Chetwynd walked for some distance with Mark--as +far as Gibbons' place in St. Giles. + +"There is one thing which I cannot understand," he said, "and that +is how it was that the constables happened to be so close at hand, +just at the time they were wanted." + +"Well, you see, Dick, my relations with Bow Street are just at +present of a somewhat close nature, for they are aiding me in the +search that I told you that I was making for my father's murderer. +The consequence was that I had only to mention to the chief that I +fancied I had detected cheating at that place, and that there was +a likelihood of a row there last night, and he at once said he +would send four men, to come in if they heard a rumpus; and he was, +indeed, rather glad of an opportunity for breaking up the place, +concerning which he had had several complaints of young men being +plucked to the last feather. Well, it was lucky they came. I don't +say that it would have made any difference, because I think our +side was a great deal stronger than they were, still it would have +led to a nasty row, and perhaps to half a dozen duels afterwards. +Well, I will say goodby now. I am very glad that the affair has been +dropped; it would not have mattered so much to me, as I am single +and my own master, but there were a good many men there who would +have been ready to have paid up handsomely rather than that their +names should appear in connection with a row at a gambling house." + +At seven o'clock in the evening Philip Cotter called at Mark's +lodgings, accompanied by his father, who, as he came in with him, +advanced at once to Mark and shook him warmly by the hand. + +"My son has told me everything, Mr. Thorndyke," he said, "and I +cannot thank you sufficiently for the noble part you took in rescuing +him from the terrible effects of his folly. I have been down here +twice this afternoon, for I felt that I could not rest until I had +shaken you by the hand. It is not the question of money so much, +though that would have been a serious loss to me, but it is the +saving of my son's life, and the saving of the honor of our name." + +"I am glad indeed to have been of service, Mr. Cotter, and I trust +that you have consented to forgive the folly that he has committed, +and which I feel sure will never be repeated." + +"Yes. It was a heavy blow to me, Mr. Thorndyke, when Philip told +me; but as he has sworn most solemnly never to touch a card again, +and as I feel sure that the lesson cannot but be a useful one to +him all his life, I have agreed to say no more about it, and let +the matter drop altogether. He has been fortunate to have escaped +so easily. He has told me of the noble offer you made to pay his +losses if you should not be able to prove that he was being cheated." + +"I was not committing myself heavily," Mark said with a smile. "I +had seen enough to be absolutely certain, and was sure that I should +be able to bring it home to them." + +"But it was at a considerable risk to yourself, Mr. Thorndyke. As +it was, you had a narrow escape of being shot." + +"Not a very narrow escape," Mark replied. "With so many men standing +round him and their attention called to him, it was certain that +he would be seized before he could take aim at me. I had pistols +in my pocket, and was prepared to fire in an instant, but I saw at +once that there was no occasion for that." + +"But I cannot imagine how you should have detected the cheating," +the banker said. "You are younger than my son, and he said that +you told him that you had only recently come up to London. It is +astonishing that while experienced players should never have noticed +that anything was wrong you should have discovered it." + +"The explanation is simple, Mr. Cotter. I have no inclination for +play myself, but I happened a short time since to fall in with a +man who was well acquainted with all the various methods of card +sharping. I thought that a knowledge of that might some day be +useful, and I got him to put me up to a number of the tricks of card +sharpers both at home and abroad. Having these fresh in my mind, +and seeing that your son was playing with a man whose reputation +I knew to be bad, I naturally concentrated my attention upon him, +and was not long in discovering that he had a confederate standing +behind your son's chair. Being a stranger in the place, I could not +denounce him, but the next night I set two friends to watch that +method of cheating, while I kept my eyes fixed on Emerson's hands. +As I anticipated, there was nothing suspicious about his movements +so long as play was comparatively low, for the advantage that he +gained from his confederate enabled him to be sure of winning in +the long run; it was only in the last game, which was a high one, +that, as he knew that your son had a strong hand, he was tempted +to stock his hand with false cards; and watching closely, I had no +difficulty in detecting his method." + +"Well, sir, you have, at any rate, laid us both under the deepest +obligation. Is there any possible way in which we can show our +gratitude?" + +Mark thought for a moment. + +"In one way you might do me a favor, Mr. Cotter. A ward of my +father's, who will inherit some property when she comes of age, +is at present finishing her education in town, and is living with +a lady who has been her friend and companion since childhood. I have +a good many acquaintances, but they are all bachelors; and having +been living down at my father's place, near Reigate, for so many +years, the ladles have no acquaintances in London. They live at +Islington, and their life is a very dull one. I am anxious, for +several reasons, that the young lady should have the advantage +of going somewhat into society. Hitherto I have had no means of +introducing her. If it is not too much to ask, Mr. Cotter, I should +be extremely glad and obliged if Mrs. Cotter would call on them and +give them an introduction into society. The lady with my father's +ward is the widow of a captain in the Indian Army, and is in all +ways a very charming person, and has been at the head of my father's +establishment for the last twelve years." + +"With the greatest pleasure in the world, Mr. Thorndyke. I am only +sorry that it is so slight a thing that you ask of me. I have thought +it but right to tell my wife what has passed, and I had difficulty +in persuading her not to come with me this evening to also express +her gratitude to you. She will be pleased indeed to call upon +your friends at once, and I am sure she will do so tomorrow. I was +going to ask you to dine with us, and I hope that you will do so. +We shall have no one else, and I hope that you will be able to +arrange to meet your friends at our house a few days later." + +The next morning Mark called on Mrs. Cunningham. + +"I think you will have a visitor today," he said. "It has happened +that I have been able to do a service to the son of Mr. Cotter, +a wealthy banker. I am going to dine there this evening. He asked +me about my friends in London, and I mentioned that my only lady +friends were you and Millicent. He asked a few questions as to where +you were living, and so on, and said that his wife would have much +pleasure in calling and introducing Millicent into society. As +your life is very dull here, and it is clearly very desirable that +Millicent should go into society, I gladly accepted the offer, and +I believe that she will call today." + +"That will be very nice indeed, Mark. Millicent is not complaining, +but she must have felt it very dull. I have even felt it so myself +after the cheerful society we had at home." + +"I don't know that I shall like it," Millicent said doubtfully. + +"Oh, yes, you will, Millicent; and besides, it will be good for +you. It is not natural for a girl of your age to be here without +friends, and I shall be very glad to know that you are going to +mix a little with other people." + +Mrs. Cotter called that afternoon, and three days later Mark met +Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent at a dinner party at the banker's, and +Mrs. Cotter introduced them very warmly to several of her friends, +with the result that in a very short time they were frequently +invited out, while they became very intimate with the banker and +his wife, and often spent the day there. + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + + +Some little time after this Mark was intrusted by his chief with +the work of discovering a man who had committed a very atrocious +murder, and was, it was tolerably certain, hiding in the slums of +Westminster. It was the first business of the kind that had been +confided to him, and he was exceedingly anxious to carry it out +successfully. He dressed himself as a street hawker, and took a +small lodging in one of the lanes, being away the greater portion +of the day ostensibly on his business, and of an evening dropped +into some of the worst public houses in the neighborhood. He was +at first viewed with some suspicion, but it was not long before +he became popular. He let it be understood that he had got into +trouble down in the country, and that he was quite ready to take +part in any job that promised to be profitable. But he principally +owed his popularity to the fact that the bully of the locality picked +a quarrel with him, and, to the astonishment of those present, Mark +invited him to go outside. + +"You had better make it up with him, mate," a man sitting by his +side whispered. "He was in the prize ring at one time, and thrashed +big Mike Hartley at Kennington. He had to give it up owing to having +fought a cross. He would kill you in five minutes." + +"I will chance that," Mark said quietly, as he moved towards the +door. "I don't think that he is stronger than I am, and I can use +my fists a bit, too." + +By the time they had taken off their upper garments a crowd had +assembled. The news that a hawker was going to stand up against +Black Jim circulated rapidly, and caused intense excitement. To +the astonishment of the spectators, the bully from the first had +not a shadow of a chance, and at the end of the third round was +carried away senseless, while the hawker had not received a scratch. +A few days later Mark, who, on the strength of his prowess, had +had two or three hints that he could be put up to a good thing if +he was inclined to join, was going down to Westminster when two +men stopped and looked after him. + +"I tell you, Emerson, that is the fellow. I could swear to him +anywhere. What he is got up like that for I cannot tell you, but +I should not be surprised if he is one of that Bow Street gang. +He called himself Mark Thorndyke, and Chetwynd said that he was a +gentleman of property; but that might have been part of the plant +to catch us. I have never been able to understand how a raw countryman +could have caught you palming that card. I believe that fellow is +a Bow Street runner; if so, it is rum if we cannot manage to get +even with him before we go. It seemed to me that luck had deserted +us altogether; but this looks as if it was going to turn again. +Let's go after him." + +Keeping some fifty yards behind him, they watched Mark to his +lodgings, waited until he came out again, and followed him to a +public house. + +"He is acting as a detective, sure enough," Emerson said. "The +question is, what are we to do next?" + +In half an hour Mark came out again. Several people nodded to +him as he passed them, but they saw a big man, who happened to be +standing under a lamp, turn his back suddenly as Mark approached him, +and, after he had passed, stand scowling after him, and muttering +deep curses. Flash at once went up to him. "Do you know who that +fellow is, my man?" The fellow turned savagely upon him. + +"I don't know who he is; but what is that to you?" + +"He is not a friend of ours," Flash said quietly; "quite the +contrary. We have known him when he was not got up like this, and +we are rather curious to know what he is doing here." + +"Do you mean that?" + +"I do; I owe the fellow a grudge." + +"So do I," the man growled. "Just step up this next turning; there +won't be anyone about there. Now, then, what do yer want to know?" + +"I want to know who he is." + +"Well, he calls himself a hawker; but my idea of him is he is one +of the fancy, perhaps a west countryman, who is keeping dark here +till he can get a match on. I have been a prize fighter myself, +but he knocked me out in three rounds the other day." + +"Well, the last time I saw him," Flash said, "he was dressed as a +swell. My idea of him is, he is a Bow Street runner, and he is got +up like this to lay his hands on some of the fellows down here." + +"You don't mean it!" the man said with a deep oath. "Then I can +tell you he has come to the wrong shop. I have only got to whisper +it about, and his life would not be worth an hour's purchase. I had +meant to stick a knife in him on the first opportunity, but this +will save me the trouble." + +"Well, you can have your revenge and five guineas besides," Flash +said. "But we must be there at the time. I should like him to know +that I was at the bottom of his being caught." + +They stood talking together for a few minutes, and then separated, +Flash and his companion going back to a quiet lodging they had +taken until they could finish their arrangements for disposing of +their furniture and belongings before going abroad, while at the same +time they finished plucking a country greenhorn they had met at a +coffee house. Two days later, wrapped up in great coats, and with +rough caps pulled down over their eyes, they entered the thieves' +resort half an hour before Mark's usual time of getting there. A +larger number of men than usual were assembled, and among them was +Black Jim. The men were all talking excitedly, and were evidently +furious at the news that the pugilist had just told them. + +"Those are the gents that have given me the office," he said, as +Flash and his companion entered. "They can tell yer he is one of +that cursed Bow Street lot." + +"That is right enough, my men," Flash said. "He and four of his +mates broke into a place where we were having a bit of play, three +weeks since, marched us all away to Bow Street, and shut the place +up. I don't know what he is down here for, but you may be sure that +it's for no good to some of you. We owe him a heavy one ourselves. +He came spying on us dressed up as a swell and spoilt our game, +and got the darbies put on us, and we have sworn to get even with +him." + +"You will get even, don't you fear," one of the men growled, "and +more than even, strike me blind if you don't." + +"Look here, lads," Flash said. "There is one thing I say--don't +use your knives on him; remember he is a runner, and no doubt his +chief knows all that he is doing, and no doubt ordered him to come +here. There will be a big search, you may be sure, when he don't +turn up to make his report. So don't let's have any bloodshed. Let +the thing be done quietly." + +"We can chuck his body into the river," one said. + +"Yes, but if it is picked up with half a dozen holes in it, you +may be sure that they will be down here, and like enough every man +who has used this place will be arrested; you know that when there +are twenty men in a job the chances are that one will slip his neck +out of the halter by turning King's evidence." + +An angry growl went round the room. + +"Well, you know well enough it is so, it is always the case; besides, +we ought to give him a little time to prepare himself. My idea is +that the best plan will be to bind and gag him first, then we can +hold a little court over him, and let him know what is coming. An +hour later, when the place gets a bit quiet, we can carry him down +to the river--it is not above fifty yards away--tie a heavy +weight round his neck, cut his cords the last thing, and chuck him +over; if his body is found, it will be thought it is that of some +chap tired of life who took pains to drown himself pretty quickly, +and there won't be any fuss over him, and there will be nothing to +come upon any of you fellows for." + +There was a general murmur of assent. Several of those present +had already committed themselves to some extent with the supposed +hawker, and were as eager as Flash himself that he should be killed; +still, all felt that it was as well that it should be managed with +the least possible risk of discovery, for while an ordinary man +could be put out of the way without any trouble arising, the fact +that he was a Bow Street runner added enormously to the risk of +the discovery of his fate. + +There was a little talk, and then two of the men went out and +brought back a couple of strong ropes. A few minutes after their +return Mark Thorndyke came in. He paused as he entered the room, +in surprise at the silence that reigned, for he was accustomed to +be greeted with friendly exclamations. However, as he walked in +the door closed, and then suddenly, with shouts of "Down with the +spy!" the men sprang from their seats and made a sudden rush at +him. For a minute the struggle was tremendous; man after man went +down under Mark's blows, others clung onto him from behind, a rope +was passed round his legs and pulled, and he fell down with a crash, +bringing down five or six of his assailants; a minute later he was +gagged and bound. + +While the struggle was going on no one noticed that a Lascar's +face was pressed against the window; it disappeared as soon as Mark +fell, and ten minutes later a dark faced sailor ran into Gibbons'; +it was a quiet evening at Ingleston's, and Gibbons, after smoking +a pipe with half a dozen of the pugilists, had just returned. + +"Hallo," he said, as he opened the door, "what the deuce do you +want?" + +The man was for a moment too breathless to answer. + +"You know Mr. Thorndyke," he said at last, in very fair English. + +"Yes, I know him. Well, what of him?" + +"He has been attacked by a number of thieves in a public house near +the river, at Westminster, and he will be murdered unless you go +with others to help him." + +"What the deuce was he doing there?" Gibbons muttered, and then, +seizing his cap, said to the Lascar, + +"Come along with me; it aint likely that we shall be in time, but +we will try, anyhow." + +He ran to Ingleston's. + +"Come along, Ingleston," he exclaimed, "and all of you. You all +know Mr. Thorndyke. This man says he has been attacked by a gang +down at Westminster, and will be murdered. I am afraid we shan't +be in time, but it is worth trying." + +The prize fighters all leaped to their feet. Mark had sparred with +several of them, and, being open handed and friendly, was generally +liked. In a moment, headed by Ingleston and Gibbons, they started +at the top of their speed, and in less than a quarter of an hour +were at bank side. + +"That is the house," the sailor said, pointing to the public, where +a red blind had been lowered at the window, and two men lounged +outside the door to tell any chance customer that might come along +he was not wanted there at present. + +Inside a mock trial had been going on, and Mark had been sentenced +to death as a spy, not a voice being raised in his defense. As +soon as he had been lifted up and seated so that he could see the +faces of those present, he recognized the two gamblers, and saw +at once that his fate was sealed; even had they not been there the +chance of escape would have been small. The fact that one of the +detectives had been caught under circumstances when there was but +slight chance of its ever being known how he came to his end, was +in itself sufficient to doom him. Several of the men present had +taken him into their confidence, and he had encouraged them to do +so, not that he wanted to entrap them, or that he intended to do +so, but in order to obtain a clew through them as to the hiding +place of the man he was in search of. + +The savage exultation on the faces of the two gamblers, however, +was sufficient to extinguish any ray of hope. He felt sure at once +that they had been the authors of his seizure, and that no thought +of mercy would enter the minds of these two scoundrels whose plans +he had frustrated, whose position he had demolished, and to whom +he had caused the loss of a large sum of money. Neither Flash nor +Emerson would have taken share in a crime known to so many had they +not been on the point of leaving England. Their names were known to +no one there, and even should some of these afterwards peach they +would at least be safe. Mark had been asked whether he could deny +that he was a member of the detective force, and had shaken his +head. Even if he had told a lie, which he would not do, the lie +would have been a useless one. No one would have believed it, for +the two gamblers would have been witnesses that he was so. + +He had been placed in one corner of the room, so that what light +there was would not fall on his face, and had anyone entered they +would not have noticed that he was gagged. One, indeed, had suggested +that it would be better to lay him under one of the benches, but +Black Jim said, with a brutal laugh: + +"No, no; it is better that we should keep sight of him, and if +anyone asks a question of course we can say that the gentleman has +the toothache." + +Presently Flash spoke to the ruffian in a low voice. + +"Yes, I think you are right," he replied. "Look here," he went on, +raising his voice. "There is no occasion to have such a lot in this +business; Jake Watson, Bill the Tinker, and me are quite enough to +carry him to his bed. I reckon the rest had better make themselves +scarce when the times comes, go home, and keep their mouths shut. +I need not say that anyone who lets his tongue wag about it is +likely to come to a worse end than this bloodhound. We will have +another glass of grog before you turn out; the streets won't be +quiet for another hour yet, and there is another guinea of this +worthy hawker's to be spent. Summers, make another big bowl of +punch. Don't put so much water in it as you did in the last." + +The landlord, a notorious ruffian, was just coming into the room +with a huge bowl when there was the sound of a scuffle outside. + +"You had better see what is up," Black Jim said, and two of the +men nearest the door unbarred and opened it. As they did so there +was a rush, and eight powerful men ran in, knocking to the floor +those who had opened the door. The rest sprang to their feet; +Gibbons looked round, and as his eye fell upon Mark, who had, the +moment the men inside rose, got into a standing position, Gibbons +launched himself towards him, striking four of the ruffians who +endeavored to stop him to the ground with his crushing blows. + +"This way," he shouted to his friends. "Ingleston and Tring, do +you keep the door." + +The moment the six men had closed round Mark, one of them, taking +out his knife, cut the cords, removed the bandage from his mouth, +and extricated the gag. The name of the two prize fighters had +created something like a panic among the crowd, which had increased +when one of them shouted, "It is Charley Gibbons." + +Flash and Emerson sprang to their feet with the rest, and the latter +shouted, "Go at them, men; there are only eight of them, and we +are twenty. Knife them, or you will all hang for this job." + +The knowledge of their danger was evident to all the men, and, +nerved by desperation, they rushed at the prize fighters; but the +eight were now nine, and each of them in a fray of this kind was +equal to half a dozen ordinary men. Scarce a word was spoken, but +the sound of crushing blows and scuffling, and an occasional, oath, +made a confused din in the half lighted room. Mark burst his way +through his assailants to the spot where Flash and Emerson were +standing, somewhat in the rear of the crowd, for they had been +sitting at the other end of the room. Flash had a pistol in his +hand, but the man who was standing in front of him was struck with +such violence that he fell backwards, knocking Emerson to the ground +and almost upsetting Flash, and before the latter could steady +himself Mark struck him with all his force under the chin. A moment +later the landlord blew out the two candies, and in the darkness +the ruffians made a dash for the door, carried Tring and Ingleston +off their feet, and rushed out into the lane. + +"If the man who blew those candles out don't light them again at +once," Gibbons shouted, "I, Charley Gibbons, tell him that I will +smash him and burn this place over his head; he had best be quick +about it." + +The landlord, cowed with the threat, soon returned with a candle +from the kitchen, and lit those that he had extinguished. + +"Well, Mr. Thorndyke, we just arrived in time, I fancy," Gibbons +said. + +"You have saved my life, Gibbons--you and the others. How you +got to know that I was here I cannot imagine. I would have been a +dead man in another half hour if you had not arrived. I thank you +all from the bottom of my heart." + +"That is all right, sir," Gibbons said. "It is a pleasure to give +such scoundrels as these a lesson. Is anyone hurt? I fancy I have +got a scratch or two." + +Several of the men had been cut with knives, but the blows had +been given so hurriedly that no one was seriously injured. Twelve +men lay on the ground. + +"Now sir, what shall we do with these fellows?" + +"I should say we had better leave them alone, Gibbons. I don't +want any row over the affair. It is the work of these two fellows +here. I think I pretty well settled one of them." + +Gibbons stooped over Flash. + +"You have broken his jaw, sir; but he will come round in time. I +believe this other fellow is only shamming. I don't see any of our +handiwork upon his face. The others have all got as much as they +want, I think," and taking a candle he looked at their faces. +"There is not one of them who will want to show up for a week or +so," he said, "and there are two or three who will carry the marks +to their graves. Well, sir, if you don't want anything done to them, +the sooner we are off the better. Those fellows who got away may +bring a lot of others down upon us. As long as it is only fists, +we could march through Westminster; but as they would have knives, +it is just as well to get out of it before there is any trouble. +You are got up in a rum way, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"Yes; I will tell you about it afterwards. I agree with you that +we had best be moving at once." + +But the men who had fled were too glad to have made their escape to +think of anything but to make for their dens as quick as possible, +and the party passed through the lanes into the open space in front +of Parliament House without interruption. + +"We will go up to your place, Ingleston, and talk it over there," +Mark said. "You can get those cuts bound up, and I shall be very +glad to get a drink. That thing they shoved into my mouth hurt my +tongue a good deal, and I have not gone through a pleasant half +hour, I can tell you." + +He walked up past Whitehall with Gibbons and Ingleston, the others +going in pairs, so as not to attract attention. As soon as they +reached Ingleston's place, the latter told the man in the bar to +put the shutters up, led the way into the bar parlor, and mixed a +large bowl of punch. + +"Now, Gibbons, in the first place," Mark said, after quenching his +thirst, "how did you know of my being in danger?" + +"Well, sir, a black sailor chap ran into my place suddenly and told +me." + +"Do you mean a colored man, Gibbons?" + +"Yes, sir, one of those Lascar chaps you see about the docks. I +did not ask any questions, but ran as hard as I could. I had only +left here five minutes before, and knew that Tring and some of the +others would still be here. They did not lose a moment, and off +we went. The sailor chap he kept ahead. I tried to come up to him +two or three times to get to know something about it, but he always +seemed to quicken his pace when I was coming up, and I soon got +too blown to want to do much talking. He led us to the door, and +after that I saw nothing more of him. What became of him I don't +know. I expect he was better at running than he was at fighting." + +"It is curious," Mark said thoughtfully. "He might have been in the +place when I went in, and slipped out while I was making a fight +for it. I have seen a Lascar several times while I have been down +there. I dare say it was the same man, though why he should take +such trouble for the sake of a stranger I don't know. There seems +to be a good many of them about, for now I think of it, I have run +against them several times wherever I have been in town." + +"Now, sir, what did they want to kill you for?" + +"Well, Gibbons, it happened in this way. My father, you know, was +murdered by a man who had a grudge against him, and who is both a +highwayman and a house breaker." + +"They don't often go together," Ingleston said. "The highwaymen +generally look down upon the burglars and keep themselves to +themselves." + +"I hew they do, Ingleston; but this fellow has been a convict, and +is not particular what he turns his hand to. The detectives have +been after him for a long time, but have failed, and I determined +to take the matter up myself, and ever since I have been up here +I have been hunting about in the worst quarters of the town. The +people of Bow Street have aided me in every way they could, and I +suppose some of these men have seen me go in or out of the place. +Of course, when I am going into these bad quarters, I put on a +disguise and manage to get in with some of these thieves, and so +to try to get news of him through them. Three weeks ago I decided +to try Westminster. I was getting on uncommonly well there, principally +because I gave a tremendous thrashing to a fellow they call Black +Jim. He has been a prize fighter." + +"I know him," Tring said; "it was the fellow that was kicked out +for selling a fight. He was not a bad man with his fists, either; +but I expect you astonished him, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"Yes, I knocked him out of time in three rounds. Well, he has been +a bully down there, and everyone was very glad he was taken down. +After that I got to know several of the worst lot down there. They +fancied that I was one of themselves, and several of them made +proposals to me to join them, and, of course, I encouraged the idea +in hopes of coming upon the man that I was after. Then some fellow +in the street recognized me, I suppose, and denounced me to the rest +as being one of the runners. I suppose he told them this evening, +before I went in. + +"The place was a regular thieves' den, which, of course, was why +I went there. Naturally they were furious, especially those who +had been proposing to me to join them. Anyhow, they had evidently +settled among themselves that I was to be put out of the way, and +directly I went in I was attacked. I knocked down a few of them, +but they jumped on my back, and one of them managed to get a rope +round my legs, and down I went with three or four of them, and +before I could get up again they had tied and gagged me. Then they +held a sort of court. Man after man got up and said that I had been +drawing them on to find out what they were up to, and had agreed +to join them, of course with the intention of getting them caught +in the act, and two got up and said that they knew me as one of +the runners. They all agreed that I must be put out of the way. + +"I suppose, as the landlord did not want blood spilt in his house, +they did not knife me at once; however, they told me that they had +decided that as soon as the coast was clear I should be carried +down to the river, and chucked in, with an old anchor tied to my +neck. I had just a gleam of hope a short time before you came in, +for then it had been settled that it was just as well no more should +be engaged in the affair than was necessary, and that Black Jim, +with two others, whom I had been talking to, and the two men who +had told them that I was a runner, should manage it, and the rest +were to go off to their homes. + +"I had been all the time trying to loosen my ropes, and had got one +of my hands nearly free, and I thought that if they waited another +half hour I might have got them both free, and been able to make a +bit of a fight of it, though I had very little hope of getting my +legs free. + +"However, I had my eye on the knife of the man who was sitting next +to me, and who was one of those who was to stay. I thought that +if I had my hands free, I could snatch his knife, settle him, and +then cut the ropes from my legs; that done, I could, I think, have +managed Black Jim and the others. As for the men who denounced me, +they were small men, and I had no fear of them in a fight, unless; +as I thought likely enough, they might have pistols. One of them is +the fellow whose jaw I broke; I hit him hard, for he had a pistol +in his hand." + +"There is no doubt you hit him hard," Gibbons said dryly. "He looked +a better sort than the rest." + +"Yes, the fellow was a card sharper whom I once detected at cheating; +and so was the one who was lying next to him, the man whom you said +you thought was shamming." + +By this time the men's wounds were all bandaged up. Mark told them +that he would be round there again in the morning, and hoped that +they would all be there. + +"I shall go home at once, and turn in," he said. "Straining at +those cords has taken the skin off my wrists, and I feel stiff all +over; it will be a day or two, Gibbons, before I am able to put +the gloves on again. I wish I could find that Lascar; I owe him a +heavy debt." + +As Mark made his way home he thought a good deal about the colored +sailor. If the man had been in the den the ruffians would hardly +have ventured to have attacked him in the presence of a stranger. +Of course, he might have been passing, and have seen the fray +through the window, but in that case he would run to the nearest +constable. How could he know anything about his habits, and why +should he have gone to Gibbons for assistance? That, and the fact +that he had so often observed Lascars in the places he had gone to, +certainly looked as if he had been watched, and if so, it could only +be connected with those diamonds. It was a curious thing altogether. + +The next morning he went early to Bow Street. As soon as the chief +came he related the events of the previous evening, and told him +that it was Flash and Emerson who had denounced him. + +"I know the place," the officer said. "It is one of the worst +thieves' dens in London. However, it is just as well you decided +not to take any steps. Of course, all the fellows would have sworn +that they did not intend to do any harm, but that Flash had put +them up to frightening you, and I doubt whether any jury would have +convicted. As to the other men, we know that they are all thieves, +and some of them worse; but the mere fact that they proposed to you +to join in their crimes won't do, as no actual crime was committed. +However, I shall have the gang closely watched, and, at any rate, +you had better leave Westminster alone; someone else must take up +the work of looking for that man you were on the watch for. Anyhow, +you had best take a week's rest; there is no doubt you have had a +very narrow escape. It is strange about that Lascar; he might not +have cared for going in to take part in the fray, but you would +have thought that he would have waited outside to get a reward for +bringing those men to your rescue." + +As Mark did not care to tell about the diamonds till the time came +for getting them, he made no reply, beyond expressing an agreement +with the chief's surprise at the man not having remained to the +end of the fray. On leaving Bow Street he went up to Ingleston's. +The men who had rescued him the night before were gathered there; +and he presented each of them with a check for twenty-five guineas. + +"I know very well," he said, "that you had no thought of reward +when you hurried down to save me, but that is no reason why I should +not show my gratitude to you for the service you have rendered +me; some of you might very well have been seriously hurt, if not +killed, by their knives. At any rate, I insist upon you taking +it; money is always useful, you know, and it is not often so well +earned as this." + +The men were greatly pleased, and Tring said: + +"Well, sir, if you get into another scrape you may be sure that +you can count upon us." + +"I shall try and not get into any more," Mark laughed. "This has +been a good deal more serious than I had bargained for, and I shall +be very careful in the future." + + + +CHAPTER XV. + + +"The burglary season seems to have recommenced in earnest," Mark's +chief said some nine months after he had been at work. "For a time +there had been a lull, as you know, but I have had three reports +this week, and it strikes me that they are by the same hand as +before; of course I may be mistaken, but they are done in a similar +way, the only difference being that there is ground for believing +that only one man is engaged in them. I fancy the fellow that you +are after has either been away from London for some time, or has +been keeping very quiet. At any rate, we have every ground for +believing that he keeps himself aloof from London thieves, which +is what I should expect from such a man. If one has nerve enough +to do it, there is nothing like working singly; when two or three +men are engaged, there is always the risk of one being caught and +turning Queen's evidence, or of there being a quarrel, and of his +peaching from revenge. + +"If your man has been away from town, he has certainly not been +working any one district; of course, one gets the usual number +of reports from different quarters; but although burglaries are +frequent enough, there has been no complaint of a sudden increase +of such crimes as there would have been judging from the numerous +daring attempts here, had Bastow been concerned; therefore I feel +sure that he has been living quietly. He would have his mate's +share--that man you shot, you know--of the plunder they made +together; he would know that after that affair at your place there +would be a vigilant hunt for him, and it is likely enough that he +has retired altogether from business for a time. + +"However, men of that sort can never stand a quiet life long, and +are sure sooner or later to take to their trade again, if only +for the sake of its excitement. Now that the burglaries have begun +again, I shall be glad if you will devote yourself entirely to this +business. You have served a good apprenticeship, and for our sake +as well as yours I should be glad for you to have it in hand." + +"I shall be very pleased to do so, sir. Although we do not know +where he is to be found, I think I can say that it is not in the +slums of London; it seems to me that he may be quietly settled as +an eminently respectable man almost under our noses; he may show +himself occasionally at fashionable resorts, and may be a regular +attendant at horse races. + +"He would not run any appreciable risk in doing so, for his face +is quite unknown to anyone except the constables who were present +at his trial, and even these would scarcely be likely to recognize +him, for he was then but eighteen, while he is now six or seven +and twenty, and no doubt the life he has led must have changed him +greatly." + +"I quite agree with you," the chief said. "After the first hunt +for him was over, he might do almost anything without running much +risk. Well, I put the matter in your hands, and leave it to you +to work out in your own way; you have given ample proof of your +shrewdness and pluck, and in this case especially I know that you +will do everything that is possible. Of course you will be relieved +of all other duties, and if it takes you months before you can +lay hands upon him, we shall consider it time well spent, if you +succeed at last. From time to time change your quarters, but let +me know your address, so that, should I learn anything that may +be useful, I can communicate with you at once. You had better take +another name than that by which you are known in the force. I shall +be glad if, after thinking the matter over, you will write me a +few lines stating what you propose to do in the first place." + +Mark went back to his lodgings, and sat there for some time, thinking +matters over. His first thought was to attend the races for a time, +but seeing the number of people there, and his own ignorance of +Bastow's appearance, he abandoned the idea, and determined to try +a slower but more methodical plan. After coming to that conclusion +he put on his hat and made his way to Mrs. Cunningham's. + +"Well, Mr. Constable," Millicent said saucily, as he entered, "any +fresh captures?" + +"No, I think that I have for the present done with that sort of +thing; I have served my apprenticeship, and am now setting up on +my own account." + +"How is that, Mark?" + +"There is reason to believe that Bastow has begun his work again +near London. As I have told you, it is absolutely certain that he +is not hiding in any of the places frequented by criminals here, +and there is every reason for supposing that he has been leading a +quiet life somewhere, or that he has been away in the country. As +long as that was the case, there was nothing to be done; but now +that he seems to have set to work again, it is time for me to be on +the move. I have seen the chief this morning, and he has released +me from all other' duty, and given me carte blanche to work in my +own way." + +"Then why don't you leave the force altogether, Mark? You know that +I have always thought it hateful that you should be working under +orders, like any other constable." + +"Of course, women don't like to be under orders, Millicent; but +men are not so independent, and are quite content to obey those who +are well qualified to give orders. I have had a very interesting +time of it." + +"Very interesting!" she said scornfully. "You have nearly been +killed or shot half a dozen times; you have been obliged to wear +all sorts of dirty clothes, to sleep in places where one would +not put a dog, and generally to do all sorts of things altogether +unbecoming in your position." + +"My dear, I have no particular position," he laughed, and then went +on more seriously: "My one position at present is that of avenger +of my father's murder, and nothing that can assist me in the task +is unbecoming to me; but, as I said, it has been interesting, I may +almost say fascinating, work. I used to be fond of hunting, but I +can tell you that it is infinitely more exciting to hunt a man than +it is to hunt a fox. You are your own hound, you have to pick up +the scent, to follow it up, however much the quarry may wind and +double, and when at last you lay your hand upon his shoulder and +say, 'In the King's name,' there is an infinitely keener pleasure +than there is when the hounds run down the fox. One sport is +perhaps as dangerous as the other: in the one case your horse may +fail at a leap and you may break your neck, in the other you may +get a bullet in your head; so in that respect there is not much to +choose between man and fox hunting. There is the advantage, though, +that in the one you have to depend upon your horse's strength, and +in the other on your own courage." + +"I know that you are an enthusiast over it, Mark, and I can fancy +that if I were a big strong man, as you are, I might do the same; +but if you are going now to try by yourself, why should you not +leave the force altogether?" + +"Because, in the first place, I shall get all the information they +obtain, and can send for any assistance that I may require. In the +next place, by showing this little staff with its silver crown, I +show that I am a Bow Street runner, and can obtain information at +once from all sorts of people which I could not get without its +aid." + +"Well, I won't say anything more against it, Mark. How are you +going to begin?" + +"I mean to go the round of all the places near London--say, +within ten miles. I shall stay from a week to a fortnight in each, +take a quiet lodging, give out that I am on the lookout for a small +house with a garden, and get to talk with people of all kinds." + +"But I cannot see what you have to inquire for." + +"I imagine that Bastow will have taken just the sort of house that +I am inquiring for, and in the course of my questions I may hear +of someone living in just that sort of way--a retired life, not +making many friends, going up to London sometimes, and keeping, +perhaps, a deaf old woman as a servant, or perhaps a deaf old man +--someone, you see, who would not be likely to hear him if he came +home in the middle of the night, or in the early morning. Once I +hear of such a man, I should ascertain his age, and whether generally +he agreed in appearance with what Bastow is likely to be by this +time, then get down one of the constables who was at the trial, +and take his opinion on the subject, after which we should only +have to watch the house at night and pounce upon him as he came +back from one of his excursions. That is the broad outline of my +plan. I cannot help thinking that in the long run I shall be able +to trace him, and of course it will make it all the easier if he +takes to stopping coaches or committing murderous burglaries." + +"Then I suppose we are not going to see you often, Mark?" + +"Well, not so often as you have done, Millicent, for some time, at +any rate. I shall not be more than five or six miles away, and I +shall often ride into town for the evening, and return late with +some sort of hope that I may be stopped on the road again; it +would save me a world of trouble, you see, if he would come to me +instead of my having to find him." + +"Which side of London are you going to try first?" + +"The south side, certainly; there are a score of places that would +be convenient to him--Dulwich, Clapham, Tooting, Wimbledon, +Stockwell; the list is a long one. I should say Wimbledon was about +the most distant, and I should think that he would not go so far +as that; if he only acted as a highwayman he might be as far off +as Epsom; but if he is really the man concerned in these burglaries +he must be but a short distance away. He would hardly risk having +to ride very far with the chance of coming upon the patrols. I think +that I shall begin at Peckham; that is a central sort of position, +and from there I shall work gradually west; before I do so perhaps +I shall try Lewisham. He is likely, in any case, to be quite on the +outskirts of any village he may have settled in, in order that he +may ride in and out at any hour without his coming and going being +noticed." + +"You certainly seem to have thought it over in all ways, Mark; +you almost infect me with your ardor, and make me wish that I was +a man and could help you." + +"You are much nicer as you are, Millicent." + +The girl tossed her head in disdain at the compliment. + +"It is all very well, Mark," she went on, ignoring his speech, "but +it seems to me that in finding out things a woman would be able +to do just as much as a man; she can gossip with her neighbors and +ask about everyone in a place quite as well, if not better, than +a man." + +"Yes I don't doubt that," Mark laughed, "and if I want your aid I +shall have no hesitation in asking for it. Until then I hope you +will go on with your painting and harping steadily, like a good +little girl." + +"I am nearly eighteen, sir, and I object to be called a good little +girl." + +"Well, if I were to say a good young woman you would not like it." + +"No, I don't think I should. I don't know why, but when anyone says +a girl is a good young woman or a nice young woman, there always +seems something derogatory about it; it is almost as bad as saying +she is a very respectable young person, which is odious." + +"Then, you see," he went on, "you are quite getting on in society; +since Mr. Cotter's introduction to Mrs. Cunningham and his mother's +subsequent call you have got to know a good many people and go +about a good deal." + +"Yes, it has been more lively of late," she admitted. "At first it +was certainly monstrously dull here, and I began to think that we +should have to change our plans and go down again to Weymouth, and +settle there for a time. Now I am getting contented; but I admit, +even at the risk of making you conceited, that we shall certainly +miss you very much, as you have been very good, considering how +busy you have been, to come in three or four evenings every week +for a chat." + +"There has been nothing very good about it, Millicent; it has been +very pleasant to me; it is like a bit of old times again when I am +here with you two, and seem to leave all the excitement of one's +work behind as I come in at the door." + +"I wonder whether the old time will ever come back again, Mark?" +she said sadly. + +"It never can be quite the old time again, but when you are back +at the old place it may be very near it." + +She looked at him reproachfully. + +"You think that I shall change my mind, Mark, but at heart you know +better. The day I am one and twenty I hope to carry out my intentions." + +"Well, as I have told you before, Millicent, I cannot control your +actions, but I am at least master of my own. You can give away +Crowswood to whom you like, but at least you cannot compel me to +take it. Make it over to one of the hospitals if you like--that +is within your power; but it is not in your power to force me +into the mean action of enriching myself because you have romantic +notions in your mind. I should scorn myself were I capable of doing +such an action. I wonder you think so meanly of me as to suppose +for a moment that I would do so." + +"It is a great pity my father did not leave the property outright +to your father, then all this bother would have been avoided," she +said quietly. "I should still have had plenty to live upon without +there being any fear of being loved merely for my money." + +"It would have been the same thing if he had," Mark said stubbornly. +"My father would not have taken it, and I am sure that I should +not have taken it after him; you are his proper heiress. I don't +say if he had left a son, and that son had been a second Bastow, +that one would have hesitated, for he would probably have gambled +it away in a year, the tenants might have been ruined, and the +village gone to the dogs. Every man has a right to disinherit an +unworthy son, but that is a very different thing from disinheriting +a daughter simply from a whim. Well, don't let us talk about it any +more, Millicent. It is the only thing that we don't agree about, +and therefore it is best left alone." + +The next day Mark established himself at an inn in Peckham, and +for six weeks made diligent inquiries, but without success. There +were at least a dozen men who lived quietly and rode or drove to +their business in town. Many of them were put aside as needing no +investigation, having been residents there for years. Some of the +others he saw start or return, but none of them corresponded in +any way with the probable appearance of the man for whom he was in +search. During this time he heard of several private coaches being +held up on the road between Epsom and London, and three burglaries +took place at Streatham. + +He then moved to Stockwell. Before proceeding there he had his horse +up again from Crowswood, and rode into Stockwell from the west. He +was dressed now as a small country squire, and had a valise strapped +behind his saddle. The inn there was a busy one. + +"I want a room," he said, as he alighted. "I shall probably stay +here a few days." + +Presently he had a talk with the landlord. + +"I am on the lookout," he said, "for a little place near town. I +have come in for a small estate in the country, but I have no taste +for farming, and want to be within easy reach of town, and at the +same time to have a place with a paddock where I can keep my horse +and live quietly. I don't much care whether it is here or anywhere +else within a few miles of town, and I intend to ride about and +see if I can find a place that will suit me. I do not want to be +nearer the town than this, for I have not money enough to go the +pace; still, I should like to be near enough to ride or walk in +whenever I have a fancy for it." + +"I understand, sir. Of course there are plenty of places round here, +at Clapham and Tooting, and I may say Streatham, but most of them +are a deal too large for a bachelor, still I have no doubt you +would find a place to suit you without much difficulty. These sort +of places are most in request by London tradesmen who have given up +business and want to get a little way out of town and keep a gig. +I should say there must be a score of such people living round +here. I am often asked about such places, but I don't know of one +to let just at the present moment. + +"Still, there ought to be, for of late people have not cared so much +to come out here; there has been such a scare owing to highwaymen +and burglars, that men with wives and families don't fancy settling +out of town, though there aint much work about it, for to every +one house that is broken into there are thousands that are not, +and besides, the houses that these fellows try are large places, +where there is plenty of silver plate and a few gold watches, and +perhaps some money to be had." + +Mark soon made the acquaintance of the stablemen, and a few pints +of beer put them on good terms with him. Every day he took rides +round the neighborhood, going out early, stabling his horse, and +after having a chat with the ostlers, strolling round the place. +Clapham, Ewell, and Streatham were also visited. + +"I know of a place that would just suit you," the ostler at the +Greyhound at Streatham said to him, on the occasion of his third +visit there; "but it is let; my old mother is the gentleman's +housekeeper. He took the place through me, for he rode up just as +you have done, one afternoon, nigh a year ago. He was from town, +he was; he told me that he had been going the pace too hard, and +had to pull in, and wanted a little place where he could keep his +horse and live quiet for a time. I told him of a place that I thought +would suit him just outside the town, and he called in the next +day and told me he had taken it. 'Now,' he said, 'I want a woman +as house keeper; an old woman, you know. I cannot be bothered with +a young one. If you speak a civil word to a wench she soon fancies +you are in love with her. I want one who can cook a chop or a steak, +fry me a bit of bacon, and boil an egg and keep the place tidy. I +intend to look after my horse myself.' + +"'Well, sir,' I said, 'there is my old mother. She is a widow, and +it is as much as she can do to keep off the parish. She is reckoned +a tidy cook and a good cleaner, and she could keep herself well +enough if it wasn't that she is so hard of hearing that many people +don't care to employ her.' + +"'I don't care a rap about that,' he said. 'I shall not need to talk +to her except to tell her what I will have for dinner, and if she +is deaf she won't want to be away gossiping. Does she live near +here?' + +"'She lives in the town,' I said. 'I can fetch her down in half an +hour.' + +"'That will do,' says he. 'I am going to have lunch. When I have, +done I will come out and speak with her.' + +"Well, sir, he engaged her right off, and he tipped me a guinea +for finding the place for him, and there he has been ever since. +It was a lucky job for mother, for she says there never was a +gentleman that gave less trouble. He is a wonderful quiet man, and +in general stops at home all the day smoking and reading. He has +a boy comes in two or three times a week to work in the garden. +Sometimes of an evening he rides up to town. I expect he cannot +keep away from the cards altogether." + +"Is he an elderly man?" Mark asked. + +"Lor', no, sir; under thirty, I should say. He is a free handed +sort of chap, and though he aint particular about his eating, he +likes a bottle of good wine, the old woman says, even if it is only +with a chop. He never rides past here and I happen to be outside +without tossing me a shilling to drink his health." + +Mark went into the house and ordered lunch. It would not have +done to have asked any more questions or to have shown any special +interest in the matter, but he felt so excited that he could not +have avoided doing so had he waited longer with the ostler. After +he had finished his meal he strolled out again into the stable +yard. + +"Well," he said to the ostler, "can't you put me up to another +good thing, just as you told that gentleman you were speaking to +me about?" + +"There are two or three places that I know of that might suit you, +sir. There is a house on the hill. I know that it has got a paddock, +but I don't know how big it is; it is in general known as Hawleys +--that is the name of the last people who lived there. Anyone will +tell you which is the house. Then there is another place. You turn +to the right the third turning on the hill; it stands by itself two +or three hundred yards down; it has got a goodish bit of ground. +There is only one house beyond it; that is the one where my mother +lives. That was an old farm once, but this was built later. I +believe the ground belonged to the farm. You will know it by a big +tree in front of it; it stands back forty feet or so from the road." + +"Where does the road lead to?" + +"Well, sir, it aint much of a road beyond the next house; it is +only a lane, but you can get through that way into the main road, +through Tooting down into Balham, and on to Wimbledon." + +"'I think I will go and have a look at both those places," Mark +said. + +"Will you take your horse, sir?" + +"No; I suppose it is not much above half a mile?" + +"About that, sir." + +"Then I will walk; I shall not be likely to find anyone to hold my +horse there." + +Mark had no difficulty in finding the house. It looked as if it +had been untenanted for some time, and in the window was a notice +that for keys and information applications were to be made at a shop +in the High Street. Well pleased to find that there was no one in +the house, Mark entered the gate and passed round into what at one +time had been a kitchen garden behind it; at the bottom of this +was a field of three or four acres. + +The ground was separated by a hedge from that of the house beyond. +This was fully a hundred yards away. A well bred horse was grazing +in the field, a man smoking a pipe was watching a boy doing gardening +work behind the house. Mark remained for nearly an hour concealed +behind the hedge in hopes that he would come nearer. At the end +of that time, however, he went into the house, and after waiting +another ten minutes Mark also left, resisting the temptation to +walk along the road and take a closer look at it, for he felt that +such a step would be dangerous, for should the man notice anyone +looking at the place his suspicions might be aroused. + +It was evident that the lane was very little used; in many cases +the grass grew across it. There were marks of horses' feet, but +none of wheels, and he concluded that when going up to town the +man came that way and rode quietly through Streatham, for the hoof +prints all pointed in that direction, and that on his return at +night he came up the lane from the other road. + +"Well, master, what do you think of the houses?" the ostler asked +on his return to the inn. + +"I have only been to the one in the lane that you spoke of, for I +want to get back to town. I' had a good look at it, but it is rather +a dreary looking place, and evidently wants a lot of repairs before +it can be made comfortable. The next time that I am down I will +look at the other." + +Mounting his horse, he rode at a rapid pace into London, and +dismounted at Bow Street. + +"You have news, I see, Mr. Thorndyke," the chief said when he +entered. + +"I have, sir; I believe that I have marked the man down; at any +rate, if it is not he, it is a criminal of some sort--of that I +have no doubt." + +"That is good news indeed," the chief said. "Now tell me all about +it." + +Mark repeated the story the ostler had told him, and the result of +his own observations. + +"You see," he said, "the man, whether Bastow or not, has clearly +taken the place for the purpose of concealment, for he can approach +it by the lane, which is a very unfrequented one, on his return +from his expeditions. He has taken on a deaf old woman who will not +hear him ride in at night, and will have no idea at what hours he +comes home. Riding out through the main street in the afternoon +he would excite no notice, and the story to the ostler would very +well account for his taking the house and for his habit of coming +up here of an afternoon and returning late. I thought it best to +come back and tell you, and I will adopt any plan that you suggest +for his capture." + +"You say that he has been there for nearly a year?" + +"About a year, the ostler said." + +"Then one of my men, at least, must have been very careless not to +have found him out long ago. Let me see;" and he took down a volume +of reports. "Streatham. Tomlinson has been here a fortnight making +every inquiry. 'No man of suspicious appearance or of unknown +antecedents here.' + +"Humph! That is not the first time that Tomlinson has failed altogether +in his duty. However, that does not matter for the moment. What is +your own idea, Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"My idea is that a couple of good men should go down with me to +Streatham, and that we should be always on the watch in High Street +until we see him ride past. Directly it is dark we will go to his +house, fasten the old woman up, and search it thoroughly. If we +find stolen property so much the better; but in any case we shall +wait inside the house until he returns, and as he comes in throw +ourselves upon him before he has time to draw a pistol. I should +say it would be as well the men should go down in a trap. There is +an empty house next door, and when we go to search the place we +can leave the horse and trap inside the gate. Directly we have him +secure we can fetch up the trap, put him in, and one of the men +and myself can drive him back here, leaving the other in charge of +the house, which can then be searched again next day." + +"I think that will be a very good plan, and will avoid all unnecessary +fuss. I will send Malcolm and Chester down with you tomorrow. Where +will you meet them?" + +"I should say that they had better put up at the Greyhound. I +don't suppose he will go out until six or seven o'clock, but they +had better be there earlier. One should station himself in the main +street, the other concealing himself somewhere beyond the fellow's +house, for it is likely enough that sometimes he may take the other +way. I will go down to the Greyhound at six, and will wait there +until one of them brings me news that he has left." + +"I think you had better come in in the morning, and give your +instructions to the men; there will be less fear of any mistake +being made. I should say you had better put your horse up and come +here on foot; one can never be too careful when one is dealing +with so crafty a rogue as this; he certainly does not work with an +accomplice, but for all that he may have two or three sharp boys +in his pay, and they may watch this place by turns and carry him +news of any stir about the office." + +"I will walk in," Mark replied. "It is no distance from Stockwell." + +Mark slept but little that night. He had believed all along that +he should be finally successful, but the discovery had come so +suddenly that it had taken him completely by surprise. It might not +be the man, and he tried hard to persuade himself that the chances +were against his being so, so that he should not feel disappointed +should it turn out that it was some other criminal, for that the +man was a criminal he had not a shadow of doubt. + +The next morning he was at the office early. The chief arrived half +an hour later, and the two officers were at once called in. + +"You will go with Mr. Thorndyke," the chief said, "and he will give +you instructions. The capture is a very important one, and there +must be no mistake made. We believe the man to be Bastow. I think +you were present at his trial, Chester; he escaped from Sydney +Convict Prison some three years ago, and is, I believe, the author +of many of the highway robberies and burglaries that have puzzled +us so. Of course, you will take firearms, but if he is alone you +will certainly have no occasion to use them, especially as you will +take him completely by surprise. You will order a gig from Morden, +and leave here about three o'clock. I should say you had better +get up as two countrymen who have been up to market. However, Mr. +Thorndyke will explain the whole matter to you fully." + +Mark then went off with the two officers to a private room, and +went into the whole matter with them. + +"I think, Chester," he said, "that you had better watch in the High +Street, because you know the man. At least, you have seen him, and +may recognize him again." + +"I think I should know him, however much he has changed. . I took +particular notice of him at the trial, and thought what a hardened +looking young scamp he was. It is very seldom I forget a face when +once I have a thorough look at it, and I don't think I am likely +to forget his." + +"Malcolm, I think you cannot do better than take your place in +the garden of the house next to his; it is a place that has stood +empty for many months, and there is no chance of anyone seeing +you. His paddock comes up to the garden, and you can, by placing +yourself in the corner, see him as he comes out into the lane. As +soon as you see that he has gone, come back to the Greyhound with +the news. I shall be there, and you will pick up Chester in the +High Street as you come along; of course you won't pretend to know +me, but the mere fact of your coming back will be enough to tell me +that he has gone. As soon as it gets dark we will pay our reckoning, +and drive off in the gig, leaving it in the drive in front of the +house this side of his. I shall have strolled off before, and shall +be waiting for you there. If he does not come out by ten o'clock +we can give it up for tonight. You had better say that you have +changed your mind, and will take beds at the Greyhound; and the +next morning drive off in your gig and put up again at the inn at +the other end of the town, the White Horse. I will come over again +at two o'clock in the afternoon. You will bring handcuffs, and you +had better also bring a stout rope to tie him with." + +When every detail had been arranged, Mark strolled to Dick Chetwynd's +lodgings. + +"Well, Mark what has become of you? I have not seen you for the +last two months, and I hear that you have not been near Ingleston's +crib since I saw you." + +"No, I have been away on business. You know I told you that I was +spending much of my time in endeavoring to hunt down my father's +murderer. I can tell you now that I have been working all the time +with the Bow Street people, and I think I know every thieves' slum +in London as well as any constable in the town." + +"You don't say so, Mark! Well, I should not like such work as that. +The prize fighters are a pretty rough lot, but to go to such dens +as those is enough to make one shudder. But that does not explain +where you have been now." + +"No. Well, having persuaded myself at last that his headquarters +were not in town, I have been trying the villages round, and I +believe that I have laid my hands on him at last." + +"You don't say so, Mark! Well, I congratulate you heartily, both +on your having caught the fellow and for having got rid of such +horrid work. Where is he? Have you got him lodged in jail?" + +"No, we are going to capture him tonight; or if not tonight, tomorrow +night. Two of the Bow Street officers are going down with me, and +we shall have him as he comes home from one of his expeditions +either on the highway or as a house breaker. If he does not go this +evening we shall wait until tomorrow, but at any rate, the first +time that he goes out we shall have him." + +"I have got a special engagement for this evening, Mark, or I would +offer to go with you and lend you a hand, if necessary." + +"There is no occasion for that, Dick. We shall take the fellow by +surprise as he goes into his own house, and have him handcuffed +before he can draw a pistol. Then, when we have got him fairly tied +up, we shall put him into a light cart that we shall have handy, +and bring him straight to Bow Street. To tell you the truth, I am +so excited over the thought that I do not know how I should have +got through the day if I had not come in to have a chat with you." + +"I can quite understand that, old fellow. Well, the best thing +we can do is to take a stroll out and look at the fashions. It is +early yet, but just at present it is all the rage to turn out early. +It will do me good too, for I was at Ingleston's last night, and +the smoke and row has given me a headache. I shall really have to +give up going there, except when there is an important fight on. It +is too much to stand, and the tobacco is so bad that I am obliged +to keep a suit of clothes for the purpose. Let us be off at once." + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + + +At four o'clock Mark put up his horse at the Greyhound, and chatted +for a quarter of an hour with the ostler, who had been making +inquiries, and had heard of one or two other houses in the neighborhood +which were untenanted. Mark then strolled up the town, exchanging +a passing glance with Chester, who, in a velveteen coat, low hat +and gaiters, was chatting with a wagoner going with a load of hay +for the next morning's market in London. He turned into an inn, +called for a pint of the best port, and sat down in the parlor +at a table close to the window, so that he could see all who went +up or down. He entered into conversation with two or three people +who came in, and so passed the time till seven, when he felt too +restless to sit still longer, and went out into the street. + +When he was halfway to the Greyhound he heard the sound of a horse's +hoofs behind him, and saw a quietly dressed man coming along at an +easy trot. Had it not been that he recognized the horse, he could +not have felt sure that its rider was the man whose coming he had +been waiting for, there being nothing in his appearance that would +excite the slightest suspicion that he was other than a gentleman +of moderate means and quiet taste, either returning from a ride or +passing through on his way to town. He had a well built and active +figure, carried himself with the ease of a thorough horseman, and +nodded to one or two persons of his acquaintance, and checking his +horse at the principal butcher's, ordered some meat to be sent in +that evening. + +Mark could trace no resemblance in the face to that of the young +fellow he remembered. It was a quiet and resolute one. If this were +Bastow, he had lost the sneering and insolent expression that was +so strongly impressed on his memory. It might be the man, but if +so, he was greatly changed. Mark's first impression was that it +could not be Bastow; but when he thought over the years of toil +and confinement in the convict prison, the life he had led in the +bush, and the two years he had passed since he returned home, he +imagined that the insolence of youth might well have disappeared, +and been succeeded by the resolute daring and dogged determination +that seemed to be impressed on this fellow's face. + +Mark paused fifty yards before he reached the inn. In a few minutes +he saw Chester coming along. There was no one else in sight. + +"Is it Bastow?" he asked, as the officer came up. + +"It's Bastow sure enough, sir. But he is so changed that if I had +not had him in my mind I should not have recognized him. I calculate +that a man who has gone through what he has would have lost the +expression he had as a boy. He must have learnt a lot in the convict +prison, and the fact that he headed the mutiny and escaped from the +searchers and managed to get home showed that he must have become +a resolute and desperate man. All those burglaries, and the way +in which he has several times stopped coaches single handed, show +his nerve and coolness. I had all that in my mind as he came along, +and his face was pretty much as I expected to see it. He is a cool +hand, and I can understand how he has given us the slip so long. +There is none of the shifty look about his eyes that one generally +sees in criminals, no glancing from side to side; he rode with the +air of a man who had a right to be where he was, and feared no one. +He will be an awkward customer to tackle if we do not take him by +surprise." + +"Yes, I agree with you there. However, he won't have much chance of +using either his pistols or his strength. Here is Malcolm coming, +so I will walk away for a few minutes, and let you go in first. +You can tell the ostler now that you will have your horse put in at +nine o'clock. I have been thinking, by the way, that we had better +take the trap round behind the house instead of leaving it in the +drive. The man may come back this way, and if so, he might hear +the horse stamp or make some movement, and that would at once put +him on his guard." + +As the officers entered the inn Mark went into the yard and told +the ostler that he had met some friends, and should let his horse +remain there for the night. + +"It is possible that they may drive me into the town in the morning," +he said; "and I shall very likely send a man down for the horse." + +At a quarter to nine he went out again, and walked to the house he +had before visited; in ten minutes he heard the sound of wheels, +threw open the gate, and the men, jumping down, led the horse in. + +"You may as well take him out of the trap," he said. "We cannot +very well get that round the house, but there is no difficulty +about taking the horse." + +The officers had brought a halter and a nosebag full of corn. The +horse was fastened to a tree with soft ground round it, the nosebag +put on, and a horse cloth thrown over its back; then Mark and his +two companions went out into the lane, and in a couple of minutes +entered the next gate, treading lightly, and going round to the +back of the house. + +A light burned in the kitchen, and an old woman could be seen +knitting. They lifted the latch and walked in. Dropping her knitting, +she rose with an exclamation of terror. + +Mark advanced alone. + +"Do not be frightened," he said; "we are not going to do you any +harm." He took out his little ebony staff. "We are constables," +he went on, "and have orders to search this house. We must secure +you, but you will be released in the morning. Now, which is your +room?" + +In spite of Mark's assurance, the old woman was almost paralyzed +with terror. However, the two constables assisted her up to her +room, and there secured her with a rope, taking care that it was +not so tightly bound as to hurt her. Then they placed a gag in her +mouth, and left her. + +"Now let us search his room in the first place," Mark said, when +they came downstairs again. "I hardly expect we shall find anything. +You may be sure that he will have taken great pains to hide away +any booty that he may have here, and that it will need daylight +and a closer search than we can give the place now, before we find +anything." + +The search of the house was indeed fruitless. They cut open the bed, +prized up every loose board in the bedroom and the parlor, lifted +the hearth stone, tapped the walls, and searched every drawer; then, +taking a lantern, went out into the stable. The officers were both +accustomed to look for hiding places, and ran their hands along on +the top of the walls, examining the stone flooring and manger. + +"That is a very large corn bin," Mark said, as he looked round, +when they desisted from the search. + +"You are right, sir. We will empty it." + +There were two or three empty sacks on the ground near it, and +they emptied the corn into these, so that there should be no litter +about. Chester gave an exclamation of disappointment as they reached +the bottom. Mark put his hand on the bin and gave it a pull. + +"It is just as I thought," he said. "It is fastened down. I saw an +ax in the woodshed, Malcolm; just fetch it here." + +While the man was away Mark took the lantern and examined the bottom +closely. "We shan't want the ax," he said, as he pointed out to +Chester a piece of string that was apparently jammed in the form +of a loop between the bottom and side. "Just get in and clear those +few handfuls of corn out. I think you will see that it will pull +up then." + +There was, however, no movement in the bottom when Mark pulled at +the loop. + +"Look closely round outside," he said, handing Malcolm, who had +now returned, the lantern. "I have no doubt that there is a catch +somewhere." + +In a minute or two the constable found a small ring between two +of the cobblestones close to the foot of the wall. He pulled at +it, and as he did so Mark felt the resistance to his pull cease +suddenly, and the bottom of the bin came up like a trapdoor. + +"That is a clever hiding place," he said. "If I had not happened +to notice that the bin was fixed we might have had a long search +before we found it here." + +Below was a square hole, the size of the bin; a ladder led down +into it. Mark, with a lantern, descended. Four or five sacks piled +on each other lay at the bottom, leaving just room enough for a +man to stand beside them. + +"The top one is silver by the feel," he said, "not yet broken up; +these smaller sacks are solid. I suppose it is silver that has +been melted down. This--" and he lifted a bag some eighteen inches +deep, opened it, and looked in "--contains watches and jewels. +Now I think we will leave things here for the present, and put +everything straight. He may be back before long." + +Mark ascended, the bottom of the trap was shut down again, the corn +poured in, and the bags thrown down on the spot from which they +had been taken. They returned to the house, shut the door, and +extinguished the light. + +"That has been a grand find," he said; "even if this is not Bastow, +it will be a valuable capture." + +"That it will, Mr. Thorndyke. I have no doubt that this fellow is +the man we have been in search of for the last eighteen months; +that accounts for our difficulty in laying hold of him. He has been +too crafty to try to sell any of his plunder, so that none of the +fences have known anything about him. No doubt he has taken sufficient +cash to enable him to live here quietly. He intended some time or +other to melt down all the rest of the plate and to sell the silver, +which he could do easily enough. As for the watches and jewels, he +could get rid of them abroad." + +"No doubt that is what he intended," Mark agreed. "It is not often +these fellows are as prudent as he has been; if they were, your +work would be a good deal more difficult than it is." + +"You are right, sir; I don't know that I ever heard of such a case +before. The fellow almost deserves to get away." + +"That would be rewarding him too highly for his caution," Mark +laughed. "He is a desperate villain, and all the more dangerous for +being a prudent one. Now, I think one of us had better keep watch +at the gate by turns. We shall hear him coming in plenty of time to +get back here and be in readiness for him. We must each understand +our part thoroughly. I will stand facing the door. It is possible +that he may light that lantern we saw hanging in the stable, but I +don't think it likely he will do so; he will take off the saddle, +and either take the horse in there--there is plenty of food in +the manger--or else turn it out into the paddock. As he comes in +I will throw my arms round him and you will at once close in, one +on each side, each catch an arm tightly, handcuff him, and take +the pistols from his belt. Don't leave go of his arms until I have +lit the candle; he may have another pistol inside his coat, and +might draw it." + +It was now one o'clock, and half an hour later Malcolm, who was +at the gate, came in quietly and said he could hear a horse coming +along the lane. + +"Which way, Malcolm?" + +"Tooting way." + +"That is all right. I have been a little nervous lest if he came +the other way our horse might make some slight noise and attract +his attention; that was our only weak point." + +They had already ascertained that the front door was locked and +bolted, and that he must therefore enter through the kitchen. They +heard the horse stop in front, a moment later the gate was opened, +and through the window they could just make out the figure of a +man leading a horse; then the stable door opened, and they heard a +movement, and knew that the horse was being unsaddled; they heard +it walk into the stable, the door was shut behind it, and a step +approached the back door. It was opened, and a voice said with an +oath, "The old fool has forgotten to leave a candle burning"; then +he stepped into the kitchen. + +In an instant there was a sound of a violent struggle, deep oaths +and curses, two sharp clicks, then all was quiet except heavy +breathing and the striking of flint on a tinderbox; there was the +blue glare of the sulphur match, and a candle was lighted. Mark +then turned to the man who was standing still grasped in the hands +of his two captors. + +"Arthur Bastow," he said, producing his staff, "I arrest you in +the King's name, as an escaped convict, as a notorious highwayman +and house breaker." + +As his name was spoken the man started, then he said quietly: + +"You have made a mistake this time, my men; my name is William +Johnson; I am well known here, and have been a quiet resident in +this house for upwards of a year." + +"A resident, but not a quiet resident, Bastow. I don't think we +are mistaken; but even if you can prove that you are not Bastow, +but William Johnson, a man of means and family, we have evidence +enough upon the other charges. We have been in search of you for a +long time, and have got you at last. You don't remember me, though +it is but eighteen months since we met; but I fancy that I then +left a mark upon you that still remains on your shoulder. I am Mark +Thorndyke, and you will understand now why I have hunted you down." + +"The game is not finished yet," the man said recklessly. "The +hunting down will be the other way next time, Mark Thorndyke." + +"I don't think so. Now, Chester, you may as well tie his feet +together, and then search him. When that is done I will look after +him while you fetch the trap round." + +In his pockets were found two gold watches, forty-eight pounds in +gold, and a hundred pounds in bank notes. + +"We shall hear where this comes from tomorrow," Malcolm said, as +he laid them on the table; "it will save us the trouble of getting +evidence from Australia." + +The prisoner was placed in a chair, and then the two officers went +out to fetch the trap round. + +"So you have turned thief catcher, have you?" he said in a sneering +tone, that recalled him to Mark's memory far more than his face +had done, "and you carry a Bow Street staff about with you, and +pretend to belong to the force: that is a punishable offense, you +know." + +"Yes, it would be if I had no right to use it," Mark said quietly; +"but it happens that I have a right, having been for a year and +a half in the force. I joined it solely to hunt you down, and now +that I have done so my resignation will be sent in tomorrow." + +"And how is the worthy squire?" + +Mark started to his feet, and seized one of the pistols lying before +him. + +"You villain!" he exclaimed, "I wonder you dare mention his name +--you, his murderer." + +"It was but tit for tat," the man said coolly; "he murdered me, +body and soul, when he sent me to the hulks. I told him I would +be even with him. I did not think I had hit him at the time, for +I thought that if I had you would have stopped with him, and would +not have chased me across the fields." + +"You scoundrel!" Mark said. "You know well enough that you came +back, stole into his room, and stabbed him." + +Bastow looked at him with a puzzled expression. + +"I don't know what you are talking about," he said. "I fired at +him through the window--I don't mind saying so to you, because +there are no witnesses--and saw him jump up, but I fancied I had +missed him. I saw you bolt out of the room, and thought it better +to be off at once instead of taking another shot. You gave me a +hard chase. It was lucky for you that you did not come up with me, +for if you had done so I should have shot you; I owed you one for +having killed as good a comrade as man ever had, and for that bullet +you put in my shoulder before. If I had not been so out of breath +that I could not feel sure of my aim I should have stopped for you, +but I rode straight to town." + +"A likely story," Mark said shortly. "What, you will pretend that +there were two murderers hanging round the house that night?--a +likely tale indeed." + +"I tell you that if your father was killed by a knife or dagger, +I had nothing to do with it," the man said. "I am obliged to the +man, whoever he was. I had intended to go down again to Reigate +to finish the job myself; I should scarcely have missed a second +time. So it is for that you hunted me down? Well, I don't blame +you; I never forgive an injury, and I see your sentiments are +mine. Whether I killed your father or not makes no difference; he +was killed, that is the principal point; if I was going to be put +on my trial for that I could prove that at eight o'clock I was in +a coffee house in Covent Garden. I purposely kicked up a row there, +and was turned out, so that if I were charged with that shooting +affair I could prove that I was in London that evening." + +"I can't quite believe that," Mark said; "a fast horse would have +brought you up to town in an hour and a half, and another fast horse +would have taken you back again as quickly; so you might have been +in London at eight and back again at Crowswood by half past twelve +or one, even if you stopped a couple of hours at a coffee house. +However, you won't be tried for that. Those things on the table and +the contents of that corn bin are enough to hang you a dozen times." + +"Curse you! have you found that out?" Bastow exclaimed furiously. + +"We have," Mark replied. "It would have been wiser if you had got +rid of your things sooner. It was a clever hiding place, but it is +always dangerous to keep such things by you, Bastow." + +The man said no more, but sat quietly in his chair until they heard +the vehicle stop outside the gate. Then the two constables came in, +and lifting Bastow, carried him out and placed him in the bottom +of the cart. + +"You can loose the old woman now, Malcolm," Mark said as he took +his seat and gathered the reins in his hand. "By eleven o'clock, +no doubt, one of the others will be down with the gig again, and +you can empty out the contents of that hole, and bring them up with +you. I don't think that it will be of any use searching further. +You might have a good look all round before you come away. There +may be some notes stowed away, though it is likely enough that they +have been sent away by post to some receiver abroad." + +For some time after starting they could hear the prisoner moving +about uneasily in the straw. + +"I suppose there is no fear of his slipping out of those handcuffs, +Chester?" + +"Not a bit; they are full tight for him. I expect that that is what +is making him uncomfortable." + +Presently the movement ceased. + +"He is still enough now, Mr. Thorndyke. I should not be at all +surprised if he has dropped off to sleep. He is hardened enough to +sleep while the gibbet was waiting for him." + +It was four o'clock in the morning when they drove up at Bow Street. +Two constables on duty came out to the cart. + +"We have got a prisoner, Inspector," Chester said. "He is the man +we have been looking for so long. I fancy we have got all the swag +that has been stolen for the last eighteen months--bags of jewels +and watches, and sacks of silver. He is handcuffed, and his legs +are tied, so we must carry him in." + +The officer fetched out a lantern. The other constable helped him +to let down the backboard of the cart. + +"Now, Bastow, wake up," Chester said. "Here we are." + +But there was no movement! + +"He is mighty sound asleep," the constable said. + +"Well, haul him out;" and, taking the man by the shoulders, they +pulled him out from the cart. + +"There is something rum about him," the constable said; and as +they lowered his feet to the pavement his head fell forward, and +he would have sunk down if they had not supported him. + +The Inspector raised the lantern to his face. + +"Why, the man is dead," he said. + +"Dead!" Chester repeated incredulously. + +"Aye, that he is. Look here;" and he pointed to a slim steel handle +some three inches long, projecting over the region of the heart. +"You must have searched him very carelessly, Chester. Well, bring +him in now." + +They carried him into the room, where two candles were burning. +Mark followed them. The inspector pulled out the dagger. It was +but four inches long, with a very thin blade. The handle was little +thicker than the blade itself. Mark took it and examined it. + +"I have not a shadow of doubt that this is the dagger with which he +murdered my father. The wound was very narrow, about this width, +and the doctor said that the weapon that had been used was certainly +a foreign dagger." + +"I don't think this is a foreign dagger," the Inspector said on +examining it, "although it may be the one that was used, as you say, +Mr. Thorndyke. It has evidently been made to carry about without +being observed." + +He threw back the dead man's coat. + +"Ah, here is where it was kept. You see, the lining has been sewn +to the cloth, so as to make a sheath down by the seam under the +arm. I expect that, knowing what would happen if he were caught, +he had made up his mind to do it all along. Well, I don't know that +you are to be so much blamed, Chester, for, passing your hand over +his clothes, you might very well miss this, which is no thicker +than a piece of whalebone. Well, well, he has saved us a good deal +of trouble. You say you have got most of the booty he has collected?" + +"I don't know that we have got all of it, sir, but we have made a +very big haul, anyhow; it was a cunningly contrived place. There +was a big corn bin in the stable, and when we had emptied out the +corn it seemed empty. However, Mr. Thorndyke discovered that the +bin was fixed. Then we found that the bottom was really a trap door, +and under it was a sort of well in which were sacks and bags. One +of the sacks was full of unbroken silver, two others contained silver +ingots, things that he had melted down, and there was a large bag +full of watches and jewels. In his pocket we found a hundred pounds +in bank notes, about fifty guineas, and a couple of gold watches." + +"That he must have got tonight from the Portsmouth coach; we +heard half an hour ago that it had been stopped near Kingston, the +coachman shot, and the passengers robbed. It will be good news to +some of them that we have got hold of their valuables. Well, Mr. +Thorndyke, I have to congratulate you most heartily on the skill +with which you have ferreted out a man who had baffled us for so +long, and had become a perfect terror to the south of London. No +doubt we shall be able to trace a great portion of the property in +that sack. The capture has been splendidly effected." + +"You will understand," Mark said, "that I do not wish my name to +appear in the matter at all. I have, as you know, been actuated +by private reasons only in my search, and I see no occasion why my +name should be mentioned; the evidence of Chester and Malcolm will +be ample. From information received, they went down to this place, +searched it in his absence, discovered the stolen goods, and captured +them. Having handcuffed and bound him, one drove him up to town, +the other remaining to guard the treasure. On his way he got at this +hidden dagger and stabbed himself. My evidence would not strengthen +the case at all." + +"No, I don't see that it will be necessary to call you, Mr. +Thorndyke. The discovery of this hidden booty and the proceeds of +the coach robbery would be quite sufficient. Beyond the coroner's +inquest there will be no inquiry. Had it been otherwise it might +probably have been necessary to call you at the trial. However, as +it is, it will save a lot of trouble; now we shall only need to +find the owners of these bank notes. I will send off a cart for +the things as early as I can get one, and will send a couple of +constables round to the houses where burglaries have been committed +to request the owners to come over and see if they can identify +any of their property; and those who do so can attend the inquest +tomorrow, though I don't suppose they will be called. The chief +will be mightily pleased when he hears what has taken place, for +he has been sadly worried by these constant complaints, and I fancy +that the authorities have been rather down upon him on the subject. +The announcement that the career of this famous robber has been +brought to an end will cause quite a sensation, and people round +the commons on the south side will sleep more quietly than they have +done lately. I expect that if he had not put an end to himself we +should have had to send him across to Newington today, for of course +it is a Surrey business, though we have had the luck to take him. +I suppose we shall not see much of you in the future, Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"No indeed," Mark said. "My business is done, and I shall send in +my resignation this morning. I don't regret the time that I have +spent over it; I have learned a great deal, and have seen a lot +of the shady side of life, and have picked up experience in a good +many ways." + +Mark, after requesting the Inspector to find a man to go over +to Streatham and bring back his horse, and writing an order to +the ostler to deliver it, walked across to his lodgings. Upon the +whole, he was not sorry that Bastow had taken the matter into his +own hands; he had, certainly, while engaged in the search, looked +forward to seeing him in the dock and witnessing his execution, +but he now felt that enough had been done for vengeance, and that +it was as well that the matter had ended as it had. He was wearied +out with the excitement of the last forty-eight hours. It was one +o'clock when he awoke, and after dressing and going into Covent +Garden to lunch at one of the coffee houses, he made his way up to +Islington. + +"Taking a day's holiday?" Millicent asked as he came in. + +"Well, not exactly, Millicent; I have left school altogether." + +"Left school, Mark? Do you mean that you have decided that it is +of no use going on any longer?" + +"I have given it up because I have finished it. Arthur Bastow was +captured last night, and committed suicide as he was being taken +to the station." + +An exclamation of surprise broke from Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent. + +"It seems horrid to be glad that anyone has taken his own life," +the latter said; "but I cannot help feeling so, for as long as he +lived I should never have considered that you were safe, and besides, +I suppose there is no doubt that if he had not killed himself he +would have been hung." + +"There is not a shadow of doubt about that," Mark replied. "We found +the proceeds of a vast number of robberies at his place, and also +in his pockets the money he had taken from the passengers of the +Portsmouth coach an hour before we captured him. So that putting +aside that Australian business altogether, his doom was sealed." + +"Now, please, tell us all about it," Mrs. Cunningham said. "But +first let us congratulate you most warmly not only on the success +of your search, but that the work is at an end." + +"Yes, I am glad it is over. At first I was very much interested; +in fact, I was intensely interested all along, and should have been +for however long it had continued. But, at the same time, I could +do nothing else, and one does not want to spend one's whole life as +a detective. At last it came about almost by chance, and the only +thing I have to congratulate myself upon is that my idea of the +sort of place he would have taken was exactly borne out by fact." + +And Mark then gave them a full account of the manner in which the +discovery had been made and the capture effected. + +"You see, Millicent, I followed your injunction, and was very +careful. Taking him by surprise as I did, I might have managed it +single handed, but with the aid of two good men it made a certainty +of it, and the whole thing was comfortably arranged." + +"I think you have done splendidly, Mark," Mrs. Cunningham said. +"It was certainly wonderful that you should have found him doing +exactly what you had guessed, even down to the deaf servant. Well, +now that is done and over, what do you think of doing next?" + +"I have hardly thought about that," he replied; "but, at any rate, +I shall take a few weeks' holiday, and I suppose after that I shall +settle down to the search for my uncle's treasure. I am afraid +that will be a much longer and a vastly more difficult business +than this has been. Here there were all sorts of clews to work upon. +Bastow ought to have been captured months ago, but in this other +affair, so far, there is next to nothing to follow up. We don't +even know whether the things are in India or in England. I believe +they will be found, but that it will be by an accident. Besides, I +fancy that we shall hear about them when you come of age, Millicent. +There was to have been no change till that time, and I cannot help +thinking that Uncle George must have made some provisions by which +we should get to know about them in the event of his death without +his having an opportunity of telling anyone where they are. + +"He might have been killed in battle; he might have been drowned on +his way home. He had thought the whole matter over so thoroughly, +I do think the possibilities of this could not have escaped him. +As I told you, Mr. Prendergast made inquiries of all the principal +bankers and Indian agents here, and altogether without success. +After he had done that, I got a list of all the leading firms in +Calcutta and Madras, and wrote to them, and all the replies were in +the negative. It is true that does not prove anything absolutely. +Eighteen years is a long time, and the chances are that during +those years almost every head of a firm would have retired and come +home. Such a matter would only be likely to be known to the heads; +and if, as we thought likely, the box or chest was merely forwarded +by a firm there to England, the transaction would not have attracted +any special attention. If, upon the other hand, it remained out +there it might have been put down in a cellar or store, and have +been lying there ever since, altogether forgotten." + +"I don't see myself why you should bother any more about it; perhaps, +as you say, it will turn up of itself when I come of age. At any +rate, I should say it is certainly as well to wait till then and +see if it does, especially as you acknowledge that you have no clew +whatever to work on. It is only three more years, for I am eighteen +next week, and it certainly seems to me that it will be very foolish +to spend the next three years in searching about for a thing that +may come to you without any searching at all." + +"Well, I will think it over." + +"You see, you really don't want the money, Mark," she went on. + +"No, I don't want it particularly, Millicent; but when one knows +that there is something like 50,000 pounds waiting for one somewhere, +one would like to get it. Your father worked for twenty years of +his life accumulating it for us, and it seems to me a sort of sacred +duty to see that his labor has not all been thrown away." + +Millicent was silent. + +"It is very tiresome," she said presently. "Of course my father +intended, as you say, that his savings should come to us, but I am +sure he never meant that they should be a bother and a trouble to +us." + +"I don't see why they should ever be that, Millicent. As it is we +have both sufficient for anything any man or woman could reasonably +want, and neither of us need fret over it if the treasure is never +found. Still, he wished us to have it, and it is properly ours, and +I don't want it to go to enrich someone who has not a shadow of a +right to it." + +On the following morning Mark went to attend the inquest on Bastow. +He did not go into the court, however, but remained close at hand +in the event of the coroner insisting upon his being called. However, +the two men only spoke casually in their evidence of their comrade +Roberts, who had been also engaged in the capture. One of the jurymen +suggested that he should also be called, but the coroner said: + +"I really cannot see any occasion for it; we are here to consider +how the deceased came by his death, and I think it must be perfectly +clear that he came by it by his own act. You have heard how he was +captured, that the spoils of the coach that he had just rifled were +found upon him, and that the booty he had been acquiring from his +deeds for months past also was seized; therefore, as the man was +desperate, and knew well enough that his life was forfeited, there +was ample motive for his putting an end to his wretched existence. +I really do not think, gentlemen, that it is worth while to waste +your time and mine by going into further evidence." + +Finally, a verdict of felo de se was returned, with a strong +expression of the jury's admiration of the conduct of constables +Malcolm, Chester, and Roberts, who had so cleverly effected the +capture of the man who had so long set the law at defiance. + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + + +Four days later Mark, on his return from dinner, found Philip Cotter +sitting in his room waiting for him. They had met on the previous +evening, and Cotter had expressed his intention of calling upon +him the next day. + +"I am here on a matter of business, Thorndyke," the latter said as +they shook hands. + +"Of business!" Mark repeated. + +"Yes. You might guess for a year, and I don't suppose that you would +hit it. It is rather a curious thing. Nearly twenty years ago--" + +"I can guess it before you go any further," Mark exclaimed, leaping +up from the seat that he had just taken. "Your people received a +box from India." + +"That is so Mark; although how you guessed it I don't know." + +"We have been searching for it for years," Mark replied. "Our lawyer, +Prendergast, wrote to you about that box; at least, he wrote to +you asking if you had any property belonging to Colonel Thorndyke, +and your people wrote to say they hadn't." + +"Yes, I remember I wrote to him myself. Of course that was before +you did me that great service, and I did not know your name, and +we had not the name on our books. What is in the box?" + +"Jewels worth something like fifty thousand pounds." + +"By Jove, I congratulate you, old fellow; that is to say, if you +have the handling of it. Well, this is what happened. The box was +sent to us by a firm in Calcutta, together with bills for 50,000 +pounds. The instructions were that the money was to be invested +in stock, and that we were to manage it and to take 100 pounds a +year for so doing. The rest of the interest of the money was to be +invested. The box was a very massive one, and was marked with the +letters XYZ. It was very carefully sealed. Our instructions were +that the owner of the box and the money might present himself at +any time." + +"And that the proof of his ownership was to be that he was to use +the word 'Masulipatam,'" Mark broke in, "and produce a gold coin +that would, probably--though of this I am not certain--correspond +with the seals." + +He got up and went to the cabinet which he had brought up with him +from Crowswood, unlocked it, and produced the piece of paper and +the coin. + +"Yes, that looks like the seal, Thorndyke. At any rate, it is the +same sort of thing. Why on earth didn't you come with it before, +and take the things away?" + +"Simply because I did not know where to go to. My uncle was dying +when he came home, and told my father about the treasure, but he +died suddenly, and my father did not know whether it was sent to +England or committed to someone's charge in India, or buried there. +We did the only thing we could, namely, inquired at all the banks +and agents here and at all the principal firms in Madras and Calcutta +to ask if they had in their possession any property belonging to +the late Colonel Thorndyke." + +"You see, we did not know," Cotter went on, "any more than Adam, +to whom the box belonged. Fortunately, the agent sent in his +communication a sealed letter, on the outside of which was written, +'This is to remain unopened, but if no one before that date presents +himself with the token and password, it is to be read on the 18th +of August, 1789.' That was yesterday, you know." + +"Yes, that was my cousin's eighteenth birthday. We thought if my +uncle had left the box in anyone's charge he would probably have +given him some such instructions, for at that time there was hard +fighting in India, and he might have been killed any day, and would +therefore naturally have made some provisions for preventing the +secret dying with him." + +"We did not think of it until this morning early, though we have +been rather curious over it ourselves. When we opened it, inside +was another letter addressed 'To be delivered to John Thorndyke, +Esquire, at Crawley, near Hastings, or at Crowswood, Reigate, or +in the event of his death to his executors.'" + +"I am one of his executors," Mark said; "Mr. Prendergast, the +lawyer, is the other. I think I had better go round to him tomorrow +and open the letter there." + +"Oh, I should think you might open it at once, Thorndyke. It will +probably only contain instructions, and, at any rate, as you have +the coin and the word, you could come round tomorrow morning and +get the chest out if you want it." + +"I won't do that," Mark said; "the coffer contains gems worth over +50,000 pounds, and I would very much rather it remained in your +keeping until I decide what to do with it. How large is it?" + +"It is a square box, about a foot each way; and it is pretty heavy, +probably from the setting of the jewels. Well, anyhow, I am heartily +glad, Thorndyke. I know, of course, that you are well off, still +100,000 pounds--for the money has doubled itself since we had +it--to say nothing of the jewels, is a nice plum to drop into +anyone's mouth." + +"Very nice indeed, although only half of it comes to me under my +uncle's will. To tell you the truth, I am more glad that the mystery +has been solved than at getting the money; the affair was a great +worry to my father, and has been so to me. I felt that I ought +to search for the treasure, and yet the probability of finding it +seemed so small that I felt the thing was hopeless, and that really +the only chance was that my uncle would have taken just the course +he did, and have fixed some date when the treasure should be handed +over, if not asked for. I rather fancied that it would not have +been for another three years, for that is when my cousin comes of +age." + +"What cousin do you mean?" Philip Cotter asked. "I did not know +you had one." + +"Well, that is at present a secret, Cotter--one of the mysteries +connected with my uncle's will. For myself, I would tell it in the +market place tomorrow, but she wishes it to be preserved at present; +you shall certainly know as soon as anyone. By the way, I have not +seen you at Mrs. Cunningham's for the last week, and you used to +be a pretty regular visitor." + +"No," the young man said gloomily; "I don't mind telling you that +Miss Conyers refused me a fortnight ago. I never thought that I +had much chance, but I had just a shadow of hope, and that is at +an end now." + +"Perhaps in the future--" Mark suggested for the sake of saying +something. + +"No; I said as much as that to her, and she replied that it would +always be the same, and I gathered from her manner, although she +did not exactly say so, that there was someone else in the case, +and yet I have never met anyone often there." + +"Perhaps you are mistaken," Mark said. + +"Well, whether or not, there is clearly no hope for me. I am very +sorry, but it is no use moping over it. My father and mother like +her so much, and they are anxious for me to marry and settle down; +altogether, it would have been just the thing. I do not know whether +she has any money, and did not care, for of course I shall have +plenty. I shall be a junior partner in another six months; my father +told me so the other day. He said that at one time he was afraid +that I should never come into the house, for that it would not have +been fair to the others to take such a reckless fellow in, but that +I seemed to have reformed so thoroughly since that affair that if +I continued so for another six months they should have no hesitation +in giving me a share." + +It was too late to go up to Islington that evening. In the morning +Mark went with the still unopened letter to the solicitor's. The +old lawyer congratulated him most heartily when he told him of the +discovery that he had made. + +"I am glad indeed, Mark; not so much for the sake of the money, +but because I was afraid that that confounded treasure was going +to unsettle your life. When a man once begins treasure hunting +it becomes a sort of craze, and he can no more give it up than an +opium smoker can the use of the drug. Thank goodness, that is over; +so the capital amount is doubled, and you are accordingly worth +70,000 pounds more than you were this time yesterday--a fine +windfall! Now let us see what your uncle says." + +He broke the seal. The letter was a short one, and began: + +"My DEAR JOHN: + +"If you have not, before you receive this, got my treasure, you +will get it on the 18th or 19th of August, 17??89. I have made a +will which will give you full instructions what to do with it. I +may say, though, that I have left it between a little daughter who +was born six months ago, and your son Mark. My own intentions are +to stop out here until I get the rank of general, and I have taken +the measures that I have done in case a bullet or a sharp attack +of fever carries me off suddenly. I hope that you will have carried +out the provisions of my will, and I hope also that I shall have +come home and talked the whole matter over with you before I go +under. + +"Your affectionate brother." + +"A singular man," Mr. Prendergast said, as he laid the letter down +on the table beside him. "What trouble these crotchety people do +give! I suppose you have altogether put aside that folly of his +about the jewels?" + +"Well, no, I can't say that I have, Mr. Prendergast. Do you know +that I have a fancy--it may only be a fancy, but if so, I cannot +shake it off--that I am watched by Lascars. There was one standing +at the corner of the street as I came up this morning, and again +and again I have run across one. It is not always the same man, nor +have I any absolute reasons for believing that they are watching +me; still, somehow or other, I do come across them more frequently +than seems natural." + +"Pooh, nonsense, Mark! I should have thought that you were too +sensible a fellow to have such ridiculous fancies in your head." + +"Of course, I should never have thought of such a thing, Mr. +Prendergast, if it had not been for what my father told me, that +my uncle was desperately in earnest about it, and had an intense +conviction that someone watched his every movement." + +"Don't let us talk of such folly any longer," the lawyer said +irritably. "Now that you have got the money, the best thing you can +do is to go at once and carry out what was the wish both of your +father and your uncle, and ask your cousin to marry you; that +will put an end to the whole business, and I can tell you that I +am positively convinced that the day she gets twenty-one she will +renounce the property, and that if you refuse to take it she will +pass it over to some hospital or other. You cannot do better than +prevent her from carrying out such an act of folly as that, and the +only way that I can see is by your marrying her. I gathered from +what you said when I gave you the same advice at Reigate that you +liked her and should have done it had it not been for her coming +into the estate instead of you. Well, you are now in a position to +ask her to marry you without the possibility of its being supposed +that you are a fortune hunter." + +"I will think about it, Mr. Prendergast. Of course this money does +make a considerable difference in my position; however, I shall do +nothing until I have got the jewels off my hands." + +"Well, a couple of days will manage that," the lawyer said; "you +have only got to take the box to a first class jeweler, and get him +to value the things and make you an offer for the whole of them." + +Mark did not care to press the subject, and on leaving went to +Cotter's Bank. He was at once shown into his friend's room, and +the latter took him to his father. + +"It is curious, Mr. Thorndyke," the latter said heartily, "that we +should have been keeping your money all this time without having +the slightest idea that it belonged to you. We are ready at once to +pay it over to your order, for if you pronounce the word you know +of, and I find that the coin you have corresponds with the seal +on the box, the necessary proof will be given us that you have +authority to take it away. I have had the box brought up this +morning, so that we can compare the seal." + +The box was taken out of the strong safe, and it was at once seen +that the coin corresponded with the seals. + +"I will leave it with you for the present, Mr. Cotter; it contains +a large amount of jewels, and until I have decided what to do with +them I would rather leave them; it would be madness to have 50,000 +pounds worth of gems in a London lodging, even for a single night. +As to the money, that also had better remain as it is at present +invested. As I told your son--that and the jewels are the joint +property of myself and another. I dare say that in a few days half +of the money will be transferred to the name of the other legatee; +that can be easily done. I shall get my lawyer, Mr. Prendergast, to +call upon you, Mr. Cotter. I suppose it would be better that some +legal proof that we are entitled to the money should be given." + +"I shall be glad to see him and to take his instructions," the +banker said; "but in point of fact I regard the property as yours; +I have nothing to do with wills or other arrangements. I simply +received the box and the cash with an order that they should be +delivered to whomsoever should come with the word 'Masulipatam' and +a coin to match the seals. That you have done, and with subsequent +dispositions I have no concern. I shall be happy to keep this box +for you as long as you should think proper; and I have also written +out an acknowledgement that I hold securities of the value, at the +closing prices yesterday, of 103,000 pounds 16 shillings," and he +handed the paper to Mark. + +As the latter left the bank he looked up and down the street, and +muttered an angry exclamation as he caught sight of a rough looking +fellow just turning a corner into a side street. The glance was so +momentary a one that he could not say whether the man was a colored +seaman; but he certainly thought that he was a Lascar. + +"I am going to have trouble about that bracelet," he said to himself, +as he hailed a hackney coach and told him to drive to Islington. +"I am convinced that the Colonel was right, and that there are some +men over in this country with the fixed purpose of seeing what is +done with those jewels, and obtaining them if possible. How they +could tell that they were deposited at Cotter's beats me altogether. +It may be indeed that they really knew nothing about it, and have +simply been watching me. They can hardly have been watching me +for the last nine months, and yet, curiously enough, though I have +never given the matter a thought since, Charley Gibbons said that +it was a dark colored man who brought the news that took them to +my rescue and saved my life. I have often run against Lascars, and +if they have taken this trouble all along, now that they have seen +me come out of the bank, I shall be watched night and day. + +"It is a creepy sort of idea. I should not be afraid of any number +of them if they attacked me openly; but there is no saying what +they might do. I wish Ramoo had been here. I would have consulted +him about it; but as I got a letter from him only last week saying +that he had, on the day of writing it, arrived in Calcutta, it +is of no use wishing that. At any rate, I cannot do better than +stick to the plan that my uncle sketched out, and take them across +to Amsterdam. It would be very unfair to take them to any jeweler +here. He might have them in his possession for a week or ten days +before he made me any definite offer for them, and during that time +I would not give a fig for his life. If I distribute the stones +at Amsterdam they would hardly set about attacking twelve diamond +merchants one after another. Well, at any rate, I must say nothing +about the affair to Millicent and Mrs. Cunningham. It was bad enough +my running risks in the pursuit of Bastow; but this would be ten +times worse, and I know Millicent would be for letting the things +remain for good at the banker's. But I have no idea of allowing +myself to be frightened by two or three black scoundrels into +throwing away 50,000 pounds." + +Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent were sitting in their bonnets in the +parlor. + +"Here you are at last, sir," the girl said. "Another five minutes, +and we should have gone out. You told us that you would come early, +and now it is twelve o'clock; and you are generally so punctual in +your appointments. What have you got to say for yourself?" + +"A good many things have happened since then, Millicent. Last night +your friend Mr. Cotter called upon me." + +"Why do you say my friend? He was your friend, and it was entirely +through you that we knew him at all." + +"Well, we will say 'our friend,' Millicent; and he made a communication +to me that this morning I had to go to Mr. Prendergast and make a +communication to him." + +"What do you mean by your communications?" Millicent asked, laughing. +"You are quite mysterious, Mark." + +"And then I had to go," he went on, without heeding her interruption, +"to Cotter's Bank, where I saw both our friend and his father, and +there is the result of these communications and that interview;" +and he threw the paper to her. + +"What does it mean?" she asked in astonishment, after glancing +through it. + +"It means, dear, that your father took exactly the precautions I +thought he would take, and after sending his money and jewels home, +he sent a sealed letter to the firm with whom he deposited them, +which happened to be Cotter's, with instructions that should no +one present himself with the word and coin by the 18th of August, +1789--that is to say, on your eighteenth birthday--the envelope +should be opened; it was so opened, and it contained a letter that +was to be sent to my father, or, in the case of his death before +that date, to his executors." + +"How wonderful!" the girl said. "I had quite given up all idea of +it. But how is it that it came to be so much? Have they sold the +jewels?" + +"No, you see it is the compound interest going on for seventeen +years, and perhaps some rise in the value of the securities, that +has doubled the original sum invested. As for the jewels, I have +left them at the bank; I should not care about having 50,000 pounds +worth of such things in my rooms and I should not think that you +would like to have them here, either." + +"Certainly not," Mrs. Cunningham said emphatically; "you did quite +right, Mark. I don't think I could sleep, even if you had half a +dozen of your detective friends posted round the house." + +"Still I suppose we shall have a chance of seeing them?" Millicent +said. + +"Certainly. I can make an appointment with Philip Cotter for you +to see them at the bank; or if I take them to a jeweler to value, +you could see them there. But I should think that the bank would +be the best. I am sure that Cotter would put his room at your +disposal, and, of course, if you would like to have some of them +for yourself you could select any you liked, but I expect that +they won't look much in their present settings; the Indian jewelers +have not the knack of setting off gems. However, there is no hurry +about them one way or another. The money, I have told Cotter's +father, shall, for the present, remain as it is invested; it is +all in the Funds, Cotter said, for although the instructions were +that it was to be put into good securities, he did not feel justified +under the peculiar circumstances in going outside Government stock. +Mr. Prendergast is quite of opinion that it would be better to make +no change until you come of age. I did not know whether you would +wait till then, for some purpose or other you might want to use +some of it." + +Millicent shrugged her shoulders. + +"I think I would much rather have had just the money I had before, +Mark; all this will be a great nuisance, I am sure. I think there +ought to be a law against women having more than 20,000 pounds, +whether in money or in land." + +Mark laughed. + +"It would be a bad thing for spendthrift young noblemen, Millicent. +How are they to pay off their debts and mortgages if there were no +heiresses ready to do so in exchange for a title?" + +"It would be a good thing for them, I consider," the girl +said indignantly. "In the first place, they would not impoverish +themselves if they knew that there was no way of building up their +fortune again, and in the next place, if they did ruin themselves +they would have to either set to work to earn an honest living or +blow out their brains, if they have any to blow out. I can assure +you that I don't feel at all exultant at getting all this money, +and I think that my father was quite right in wishing that I should +know nothing about it until I married; but, on the other hand, I am +heartily glad, more glad than I can say, Mark, that you have come +into your share." + +"I am glad for one reason, Millicent; that is, that this must put +an end to the ridiculous idea you have of giving up Crowswood. +Your father has made me rich beyond anything I could possibly have +expected from him. I suddenly find myself a wealthy man, and I can +buy another estate for myself worth more than Crowswood if inclined +to settle down as a squire; therefore your theory that I have +been disappointed in not inheriting what I thought was my father's +estate falls to the ground altogether. In no case would I ever have +accepted your sacrifice. If you had liked to hand it over to St. +Bartholomew's or Guy's Hospital, or to give it away to any other +charity, I would not have prevented you, but I would never have +accepted it for myself. Now, thank goodness, the question cannot +arise; for you must see that, even looking at the matter from +a purely business point of view, I have benefited to an enormous +and altogether unexpected extent by your father's will, and if any +contest between us could arise it should be on the ground that he +has acted unfairly to you by giving me so large a proportion of the +money that, in the course of nature, you should have inherited. It +was not even as if he had known and liked me, for I was but four +years old at the time he wrote the letter saying that I was to +share the money and jewels with you." + +"You are very obstinate and very disagreeable, Mark," she said, +with tears in her eyes. + +"I think the obstinacy has been principally on your side, Millicent; +though certainly I should not think of saying that you have been +disagreeable. It has been an excess of kindheartedness on your +part, and you have resolutely closed your eyes to the fact that, +had I been willing to take advantage of your generosity, I should +have lacked the courage to do so, for I should have been pointed at +wherever I went, as a mean fellow who took advantage of his little +cousin's romantic generosity. Pray, dear, let us say no more about +it. We are two rich young people; we have both an estate; yours, +I grant, is the larger, but if I choose I can increase mine, until +it is quite as large as Crowswood. We can be better friends than +we have been for the last year, because this point of dispute has +always stood between us and made us uncomfortable. Now you will +have to think over what you would like done, and whether you wish +any change made in your manner of living." + +"Did you tell Mr. Cotter," Millicent laughed, after a pause, "that +I had a half share in the money?" + +"No, that was a matter for you to decide, not for me. I told him +that I was only a half shareholder, but there was no necessity to +say who it was who had the other half. When I was talking to Philip +Cotter, the words 'my cousin' slipped out, but he did not associate +it in any way with you. It might have been the son of another +brother or of a sister of my father's." + +"In that case, then, we will certainly make no change, will we, +Mrs. Cunningham?" + +"I think, Millicent, that Mr. Prendergast and Mark will probably +be of opinion that you ought now to be introduced regularly into +society. The fact that you are a rich heiress might, as your father +so much wished, remain a secret. But it is one thing having this +blazoned about and quite another for you to be living quietly here, +where, with the exception of Mr. Cotter and a few other friends, +you have no society whatever. Certainly it was not the wish of your +father that you should remain unmarried. You are quite pretty and +nice enough to be sought for yourself alone, and I must say that +I think, now that you have finished with your various masters, it +would be well that you should go out a good deal more, and that as +a first step we should go down to Bath this year instead of paying +another visit to Weymouth, as we had arranged." + +"I don't want any change at all, Mrs. Cunningham. If I am to get +married I shall be married; if I am not I shall not fret about it." + +"But for all that, Millicent," Mark said, "Mrs. Cunningham is +right. We quite agree that there is no occasion whatever for you +to go about labeled 'A good estate and over 70,000 pounds in cash,' +but I do think that it is right that you should go into society. +With the exception of Philip Cotter, Dick Chetwynd, and two or three +other of my friends, you really know very few people. You have now +gone out of mourning, and I think that Mrs. Cunningham's proposal +that you should go down to Bath is a very good one. I shall not +be sorry for a change myself, for I have been engrossed in my work +for a long time now. I can go down a day or two before you, and get +you comfortable lodgings, and will myself stay at a hotel. Although +I have no intimate friends beyond those from Reigate, I know a large +number of men of fashion from meeting them at the boxing schools +and other places, and could introduce you both, and get you into +society." + +"I am altogether opposed to the idea," Millicent said decidedly. +"You want to trot me out like a horse for sale." + +"No, Millicent," Mark said calmly. "I only want you to have the +same advantages that other girls have, neither more nor less, and +for you to enjoy yourself as others do. There is nothing undignified +or objectionable about that, especially as we are agreed that +nothing shall be said about your fortune. Well, we will think it +over. Mr. Prendergast and I certainly do not wish to act as tyrants, +and there is no occasion to come to a decision in a hurry. We have +only discovered our good fortune today, and can scarcely appreciate +the difference that it will make to us. We can think over what will +be for the best at our leisure, and see if we cannot hit upon some +plan that will be agreeable to you." + +"Thank you, Mark," she said gratefully. "I am afraid that you must +think me very disagreeable and cross; but though you, as a man, +have not the same sort of feelings, I can assure you that I feel +all this money and so on to be a heavy burden; and were it not for +your sake I could wish heartily that this treasure had never been +discovered at all." + +"I can quite understand that," he said quietly. "At the present +moment, even, I do not see that it will be of much advantage to me; +but it may be that some day I shall see it in a different light. It +has come upon me almost as suddenly as it has upon you. I thought +that after I had finished with the Bastow affair I should set to +work to find out this treasure, and that it would probably take me +out to India, occupy me there for some time, and that afterwards I +might travel through other places, and be away from England three +or four years. Now the matter is altogether altered, and I shall +be some time before I form any fresh plans. In fact, these must +depend upon circumstances." + +Mrs. Cunningham had left the room two or three minutes before, +thinking that Mark might be able to talk her charge into a more +reasonable state of mind were he alone with her, and he added: + +"Of one circumstance in particular." + +She looked up inquiringly. + +"Well, Millicent, it depends a great deal upon you. I know you think +that all that has happened during the past year has been a little +hard upon you, and I thoroughly agree with you; you were fond +of Crowswood, and were very happy there, and the change to this +somewhat dull house, just at a time when you are of an age to enjoy +pleasure, has been a trial. Then, too, there has been this question +of the estate upon your mind. But you must remember it has been +somewhat of a trial to me also. I grant that I have had plenty of +occupation which has been in every way beneficial to me, and have +not at all lamented leaving the country, but in one respect it +has been a trial. I don't know whether it ever entered your mind, +before that sad time at home, that I was getting to care for you +in a very different way to that in which I had done before. + +"My father, I think, observed it, for he threw out a very plain hint +once that he would very gladly see us coming together. However, I +never spoke of it to you. I was young and you were young. It seemed +to me that there was plenty of time, and that, moreover, it would +not be fair for me to speak to you until you had had the opportunity +of going out and of seeing other men. Then came the evening before +his death, when my father told me how matters really stood, and +he again said that there was a way by which all trouble could be +obviated. But I saw that it was not so, and that the hope I had +entertained must be put aside. I had never told you I loved you when +I seemed to be the heir of the property and you only the daughter +of an old comrade of his, and I saw that were I to speak now, +when you were the heiress, it could not but appear to you that it +was the estate and not you that I wanted, and I felt my lips were +sealed forever. Mr. Prendergast said that day when he came down to +the funeral, and you told him that you would not take the property, +that it might be managed in another way, and you said that you did +not want to be married for your money; so you see you saw it in +exactly the same light as I did. + +"My first thought this morning, when Mr. Cotter told me that the +money had mounted up to over 100,000 pounds, was that it would unseal +my lips. You were still better off than I was, but the difference +was now immaterial. I was a rich man, and had not the smallest +occasion to marry for money. Whether I married a girl without a +penny, or an heiress, could make but little difference to me, as I +have certainly no ambition to become a great landowner. I still think +that it would have been more fair to you to give you the opportunity +of seeing more of the society of the world before speaking to you, +but you see you are opposed to that, and therefore it would be the +same did I wait patiently another year, which I don't think I should +be able to do. I love you, Millicent. It is only during the past +eighteen months, when I have thought that I had lost you, that I +have known how much I love you, and how much my happiness depends +upon you. I can truly say that were you penniless, it would make no +shadow of difference to me. It is no longer a question of arranging +matters comfortably: it is a question of love. The estate is nothing +to me. It never has been anything, and it does not count at all in +the scale. I hope that you will put it altogether out of your mind +in giving me an answer; and that if you cannot say as truly and +wholly as I do, 'I love you,' that you will say as frankly as you +have always spoken to me, 'I love you very much as a cousin, Mark, +but not in that way.'" + +The girl had sat perfectly quiet while he was speaking. + +He was standing before her now, and he took one of her hands. + +"I love you, dear; I love you with all my heart. Do you love me?" + +Then she looked up and rose to her feet, and placed both hands upon +his shoulders. + +"As you love me, so I love you, Mark." + +After that, conversation languished till Mrs. Cunningham came into +the room, five minutes later. + +"We have come to the conclusion, Mrs. Cunningham," he said, "that +there will be no necessity for the visit to Bath. Millicent is +otherwise provided for; she has promised to be my wife." + +"I am glad, Mark, glad indeed!" and she took Millicent in her +arms and kissed her tenderly. "I have all along hoped for it, but +I began to be afraid that you were both such obstinate young people +that it would never come about. I know that your father wished it, +Mark, and he told me that his brother had said that it would be a +good arrangement if some day you should come to like each other. +I have guessed for the last year, and, indeed, before then, that +Millicent would not say 'No' if you ever asked her; but this stupid +estate seemed to stand in the way. Of late, I have even come to +hope that the obstinate girl would keep to her intention, and that +if, as I knew would be the case, you refused to take the estate, +she would give it away to some charity. In that case, there could +be nothing to prevent your speaking; and even then you would have +been between you very fairly equipped with this world's goods. +However, the present is a far better solution, and the discovery of +the treasure has saved you from three years' waiting before things +were straightened out. I feel as if I were her mother, Mark, having +had her in my charge since she was a baby; and as she grew up it +became my fondest hope to see you united some day, and I think that +I am almost as pleased that my hope has been fulfilled as you are +yourselves." + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + + +After thinking over the best way in which to set about the work of +carrying the diamonds to Amsterdam, Mark decided upon asking the +advice of his late chief. The latter said, as Mark entered his +room: + +"I did not expect to see you here again, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"Well, sir, I have come to ask your' advice about another matter +altogether." + +"What is it now?" + +"I have to convey a diamond bracelet of very great value across to +Amsterdam. I have reasons to believe that there is a plot to seize +it on the way, and that the men engaged will hesitate at nothing +to achieve their object. Under these circumstances I should be very +much obliged if you will tell me what would be the best course to +pursue. I must say that the bracelet is, with many other jewels, +in a strong teak box of about a foot square, at present in the +possession of our bankers; they were brought from India by my uncle. +I imagine that the rest of the jewels are of comparatively little +importance in the eyes of these men, though doubtless they would take +them also if they lay their hands on them. The bracelet, however, +is of special interest to them, not so much for its intrinsic value, +as because it was stolen from one of their sacred idols. + +"This was about twenty years ago; but I have reason to believe +that the search for it on the part of some Hindoos connected with +the temple has never ceased. The soldier who took it was murdered; +his comrade, into whose hands they next passed, was also murdered. +They next came to my uncle, who forwarded it at once to England. +His bungalows were searched again and again, until probably the +fellows came to the conclusion that he must have either buried it or +sent it away. Nevertheless, to the day of his death he was firmly +convinced that he was closely followed, and every movement watched. +He warned my father solemnly that he too would be watched, but +as far as we know it was not so; at any rate, we had no reason to +suppose that the house was ever entered. On the other hand, I am +convinced I have been watched more or less closely ever since I +came up to town, and as I came out from the bank yesterday I saw +a man--a colored fellow, I believe--on the watch. + +"My uncle said that my life would not be worth an hour's purchase +so long as I had the bracelet in my possession, and advised that +it should be taken straight over to Amsterdam, broken up, and the +diamonds sold singly to the merchants there." + +"It is a curious story, Mr. Thorndyke. I own to ignorance of these +Indian thieves and their ways, but it certainly seems extraordinary +that so hopeless a quest should be kept up for so long a time. +You are sure that it is not fancy on your part that you have been +watched? I know you are not the sort of man to take fancies in your +head, but as you have had the matter so strongly impressed upon +you, you might naturally have been inclined to think this would be +the case when it was not so." + +"No, I don't think there is any chance of my being mistaken. It is +only of late that I have thought about it, but when I did so and +thought over what had passed since I came to London, I recalled the +fact that I had very often come across foreign seamen; sometimes +they were Lascars, at others they might have been Italian or Spanish +seamen; and you see, sir, it was, as I told you at the time, some +foreign sailor who came and informed Gibbons that I had fallen +into the hands of a gang of criminals, and that I should certainly +be killed if I was not rescued immediately. Gibbons at once got +together half a dozen fighting men, and, as you know, rescued me +just in time. It was extraordinary that the man never came forward +to obtain any reward." + +"That was a friendly act, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"Yes, I have no reason to suppose that these men would be hostile +to me personally. I was not the thief, I was simply the person who +happened to be in possession, or rather, might come into possession +of the bracelet. From the close watch they had kept, they were, I +imagine, well aware that I had not got it, but may have thought, +and doubtless did think, that I had some clew to its hiding place, +and should sooner or later get it. With my death the clew might be +finally lost, and my life was consequently of extreme importance +to them, and therefore they took steps to have me rescued, and +the fact that they learned this and knew how friendly I was with +Gibbons shows how close was the watch kept over me. No doubt, had +Gibbons refused to help them, they would have come here at once." + +"Certainly, after what you say it would seem that your conjecture is +right, and in this case, if I were you, I should take the bracelet +out of the case and conceal it about me. I would not fetch it myself +from the bank." + +"I don't think I should be much safer so," Mark said thoughtfully. +"In the first place, I must go to the bank to get them, and I +might be murdered merely on the supposition that I had brought the +bracelet away. In the next place, even if I got to Amsterdam safely +and got rid of the bracelet and returned unnoticed by them, a fresh +danger would arise when I got the other gems into my possession, +for they could not be certain whether the diamonds were still among +them or not." + +"I should hardly think that would be the case if they watch you +as strictly as you believe. Even if none of them accompanied you, +they would soon find out what diamond merchants you went to, and the +leader might call upon these men, stating that he was commissioned +to purchase some diamonds of exceptional value for an Eastern +Prince, in which case he would be sure to obtain sight of them. + +"If I had your business to perform, I would not go near the bank +again, but would send some friend I could trust to go and open the +box, and take out the bracelet, and make it into a small parcel. He +should hand it to you privately, as you are on your way to embark +for Amsterdam. Then I would take with me one or two of my men, +and, say, a couple of your prize fighters, and with such a guard +you ought to be fairly safe." + +"I think that is a capital plan," Mark said, "and if I don't go to +the bank there will be nothing to lead them to suppose that I have +taken them out, or that I am just going across to Holland." + +Mark then went straight to Dick Chetwynd's lodgings. + +"I want you to do me a service, Dick," he said. + +"With pleasure, Mark. What sort of service is it? If it is anything +in my power, you know that you can absolutely rely upon me. You +are not going to fight a duel, are you, and want a second?" + +"No; quite another sort of business. I will tell you shortly what +it is. I have to convey an extremely valuable diamond bracelet to +Amsterdam, and I have reason to believe that there will be an attempt +to murder me, and to carry off the jewels before I can dispose of +them. It happened in this way;" and he then related the history of +the diamonds, the reason he was followed, and the suggestions that +the Chief of the Bow Street detectives had given him. + +"That is all right," Dick said, when he concluded. "It is a rum +business, but certainly I will do what you ask me; and, what is more, +I will go over with you to Amsterdam, and see the thing through. +It is an interesting business, if it is a queer one." + +"You know Philip Cotter?" + +"Of course, Mark; why, I have met him with you several times." + +"I will give you a note to ask him to allow you to open the case, +and to take from it the bracelet; I don't know whether it is a +regular gold mounted bracelet, or simply some diamonds that have +been fastened together as a necklace; however, I suppose you are +sure to recognize them; they are altogether exceptional stones, +and will certainly be done up in a packet by themselves, whatever +the others may be. Say that you will call in and take them away +some other time, of which I will give him notice by letter. I will +write the note now, and if you can spare time to go there today, +all the better, for I shall be glad to get the business over; then +I will come again tomorrow morning, and we will arrange the details +of the plan. I will look in the shipping list, and see what vessels +are sailing for Amsterdam. When we have fixed on one, it will +be best for you to take our passages under any names you like, so +that they are not our own. The detectives will take their passages +separately, and so will Gibbons and whoever else goes with us." + +"I will go at once, Mark." + +"Don't go straight there, Dick; if these fellows are dogging my +footsteps everywhere, and saw me coming here, they might take it +into their heads to follow you." + +"Oh, they can never be doing all that sort of thing; that's too +much to believe. However, to please you, I will go into my club +for a quarter of an hour. Shall I come round to your rooms this +evening, or will you come here?" + +"I think I will put off our meeting altogether until tomorrow +morning. I have an engagement this evening that I cannot very well +get out of." + +"All right, Mark, just as you please. What time will you come round +in the morning?" + +"About the time you have finished breakfast. I will go now, and +have a look at the shipping list." + +They parted at the door, and Mark went to the coffee house where +shipping matters were specially attended to, and where master +mariners might often be met, conversing together, or with ship +owners or merchants. On going through the list, he found that the +fast sailing brig, Essex, of 204 tons, and mounting eight guns, +would sail for Amsterdam in three days' time, and would take in +goods for that place, and, should sufficient freight be obtained, +for any other Dutch port. It was also announced that she had good +accommodation for passengers. Information as to cargo could be +obtained from her owners, on Tower Hill, or from the captain on +board, between the hours of ten and twelve. Then, in small type, +it was stated that the Essex was at present lying in the outside +tier nearly opposite Anderson's wharf. + +Mark made a note of all these particulars in his pocketbook, and +then went to Ingleston's public house. + +"Morning, Mr. Thorndyke," the man said; "haven't seen yer for the +last month or so." + +"No; I have been out of town. Do you expect Gibbons. in here this +morning?" + +"It is about his time, sir, when he has nothing in particular to +see about. Like a turn with the mauleys this morning?" + +"Not this morning, Ingleston. I have got some engagements for the +next day or two where I could not very well show myself with a +black eye or a swelled nose; you have given me a good many of both." + +"Well, Mr. Thorndyke, when one stands up against a man who is as +strong as one's self, and a mighty quick and hard hitter, you have +got to hit sharp and quick too. You know my opinion, that there +aint half a dozen men in the country could lick you if you had a +proper training." + +"I suppose you couldn't get away for a week, or maybe two?" he +said. + +"Lor' bless you, no, sir. Who would there be to keep order here +at night? When I first came here I had not given up the ring, and +I fought once or twice afterwards. But, Lor' bless you, I soon +found that I had got either to give up the pub or the ring, and +as I was doing a tidy business here, I thought it best to retire; +since then business has grown. You see, boxing is more fashionable +than it used to be, and there are very few nights when one don't +have a dozen Corinthians in here--sometimes there are twice as +many--either to see some of the new hands put on the mauleys, +and judge for themselves how they are going to turn out, or maybe +to arrange for a bout between some novice they fancy and one of +the west countrymen. No, sir, I could not do it anyhow; I should +not like to be away even for one night, though I know Gibbons would +look after things for me; as for being away for a week, I could +not do it for any money. No, sir, my fight with Jackson last year +was the last time I shall ever go into the ring. I was a fool to +go in for that, but I got taunted into it. I never thought that +I should lick him, though, as you know, sir, I have licked a good +many good men in my time, but Jackson is an out and out man, and +he has got a lot more science than I ever had; my only chance was +that I could knock him out of time or wear him down; but he was +too quick on his pins for me to do the former. Ah, Gibbons, here +is Mr. Thorndyke. He wants to see you; you had best go into my room +behind the bar." + +"Want to get hold of a fresh hand, Mr. Thorndyke?" Gibbons asked +when they had sat down by the fire. + +"No, Gibbons, it is another business altogether. Have you got +anything particular to keep you in town for the next fortnight? It +may not be over a week, but it may be over a fortnight." + +"No, sir," the man said, after taking three or four draws at +his long pipe. "No, sir; they won't want the ropes and stakes for +another three weeks, so I am your man if you want me. What, is it +for, sir?" + +"Well, it is rather a curious affair, Gibbons. I have to take +a very valuable bracelet over to Amsterdam, to sell there, and I +have very strong reasons for believing that if some fellows get an +inkling of it they will try to put me out of the way, and get hold +of the diamonds. I want a couple of good men to go with me." + +"Well sir, I should say you and me could lick a dozen ordinary +chaps, without thinking anything of it." + +"I dare say we could, Gibbons, in a stand up fight without weapons, +but I fancy these fellows will not try that. They are foreigners, +and the first thing they would try would be to put a dagger between +my shoulders as I walked up and down on deck at night, or, more +likely still, creep into my cabin and stab me while I was asleep. +If the voyage were only to last one night I might sit up, pistol in +hand, but if the wind is foul we might be a week. We are a pretty +strong party. Mr. Chetwynd--you know him--is going with me; +there will also be two runners from Bow Street, and I want you +to take another good man with you. Of course, on board we shall +separate. The Bow Street men will watch the passengers, and you and +your mate will smoke your pipes and keep yourselves ready to join +in if you see there is going to be a row. But I rather think that +the passage will be a quiet one. At Amsterdam, until I have got rid +of the diamonds I certainly should not care about going out into +the street after nightfall without having you close behind me." + +"All right, sir. I should say Tom Tring would be as good a man as +one could get at the job. What is the money to be, Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"Well, what do you think yourself, Gibbons?" + +"I take it you pay all expenses, sir?" + +"Yes, everything." + +"Would five and twenty guineas a head be too much?" + +"No; I will do better than that. I will give you five and twenty +guineas each when we get to Amsterdam, and I will give you another +twenty-five each if I come back here safe and sound." + +"Well, I call that handsome. One could not want more, and you can +rely on it that Tring will jump at the offer. He has not been able +to get a fight on lately, and he is rather in low water." + +"Well, you will both get up as quiet traders. I don't know what +other passengers there may be, but I don't want them to know that +you belong to the fancy." + +"I twig, sir. We will get up quiet like." + +"Then I want you tomorrow morning, Gibbons, to go down to Holmes +& Moore, No. 67 Tower Street, and take two first class tickets to +Amsterdam on board the Essex, which sails on Saturday. I don't know +what the passage money will be, but this is sure to be enough; and +we can settle accounts afterwards. You will find out what time of +day she will start." + +"All right, governor. I suppose you will be here again before that?" + +"No, I don't suppose I shall, unless there is some change in the +arrangements. If for any reasons Tring cannot go with you, you will +get somebody else instead. You are sure that you quite understand +your instructions? Here is the name and address of the people in +Tower Street." + +"All right, sir. You may make sure that when you go down to the +ship you will see the two of us on board." + +It needed but a few minutes at Bow Street to inform the chief of +the arrangements that had been made. + +"I have told off Chester and Malcolm; one of them shall go down +and take their tickets. Of course, they will take their passages +in the fore cabin, as the danger, if there is danger, may come from +there, and you will have your other two men with you aft. I fancy +myself that there is hardly any chance of your being in any way +troubled while on board. It will be considered that there will +be a vastly greater chance of carrying out any plan they may have +formed at Amsterdam than there would be on board a ship; you see, +if there were any struggle whatever on board there would be no +escape for them. + +"For myself, of course I cannot give any opinion worth having in +a matter so different from anything we have to do with here, and I +should have unhesitatingly scoffed at the idea of anyone watching +the movements of people for a long number of years in order to +obtain the possession of jewels, however valuable. However, your +uncle was well acquainted with the habits of Hindoos, and was not +a man to be lightly alarmed; you yourself, after your year with us, +should not be deceived in such a matter as being yourself followed; +under these circumstances you are quite right to take every +precaution, and as you pay well for the services of our two men, +even if I had no belief whatever in the existence of danger to you, +I should not feel justified in refusing to let you have them." + +Having arranged these matters, Mark spent the rest of his time that +day and the next at Islington. + +"I am going across to Amsterdam on Saturday with a diamond bracelet +to sell there." + +Millicent looked at him in reproachful surprise. + +"Why, surely, Mark, there can be no hurry about that. I think you +might have stayed a little longer before running away." + +"I should do so, you may be quite sure, Millicent, if I consulted +my own inclinations, but I am bearing out your father's wishes. +This bracelet is the most valuable of all the things he had, and +I believe that it has some sort of history attached to it. He told +my father that he had sent all the gems home principally to get +these diamonds out of his possession; he said that as soon as my +father got hold of the things, he was to take the diamonds straight +over to Amsterdam and sell them there, for he considered that they +were much too valuable to be kept in the house, and that it was +possible that some of the Hindoos might endeavor to get possession +of them. At the time he spoke he believed that my father would, at +his death, go to the bank and get the jewels, as of course he would +have done if he had known where to find them. My father promised +him that they should be taken to Amsterdam at once; and although +so many years have passed since his death, I think I am bound to +carry out that promise." + +"I have never been able to understand, Mark, how it was that +my father, when he gave all these instructions about me and these +jewels and so on, did not at the same time tell uncle where to find +them." + +"It was a fancy of his; he was in very bad health, and he thought +so much over these diamonds that it had become almost a sort of +mania with him that not only was there danger in their possession, +but that he was watched night and day wherever he went. He thought, +even, if he whispered where the hiding place was to be discovered +it might be heard; therefore he deferred telling it until too +late. Of course all this was but a fancy on his part, although it +is probable enough that the possession of the diamonds was a source +of danger in India, and might have been a source of danger here had +any thieves known that such valuable gems were kept in a private +house or carried about. At any rate, I shall be glad to be free of +the responsibility; and although, naturally, I don't like leaving +you at the present time, I think it best to carry out your father's +instructions at once, and to get them off my mind altogether. Dick +Chetwynd is going with me, so it will be a pleasant little trip." + +"Well, I am glad he is going with you, Mark; for although I know +well enough that they could never be watching for those diamonds +to turn up all these years, I feel sure I should fidget and worry +if you were alone. You are not going to take the others with you?" + +"No, only this particular bracelet. None of the others are +exceptionally valuable, so far as I know. At any rate, your father +did not specially allude to them. I have no doubt that there are +some really valuable jewels among them, for my uncle prided himself +on being a judge of precious stones, and as he invested a large +amount of money in them, they are, no doubt, worth a great deal. +Still, I don't suppose there will be any difficulty in selling them +here, and, at any rate, I don't want to be delayed at Amsterdam by +having to sell perhaps fifty or a hundred pieces of jewelry; any +time will do for that. I fancy that I ought to be able to dispose of +the bracelet in three or four days at the outside. I have got from +Bow Street a list of all the principal diamond merchants in Amsterdam. +That is a matter of great interest to the force, as almost all +precious stones stolen in this country are sent across there, and +if there is any special jewel robbery we send over a list of all +the articles taken to the merchants there. As a rule, that would +not prevent their dealing in them, but there are some who will not +touch things that have been dishonestly come by, and we occasionally +get hints that enable us to lay hands upon thieves over there." + +"I hate to hear you say 'the force,' Mark, just as if you were +still a detective; it is bad enough that you should have belonged +to it, even for the purpose you did; but you have done with it +now." + +"Yes; but, you see, it is rather difficult to get out of the habit +when one has been for over a year constantly at work at a thing. +This will be my last absence on business, Millicent; henceforward +I shall be able to be always with you." + +"Well, now that I know what you have been doing all this time, +Mark, I must admit that you have been very good to have been with +us as much as you have. I often used to wonder how you passed your +time. Of course I knew that you were trying to find that man out, +but it did not seem to me that you could be always at that, and +I never dreamt that you had become a regular detective. I am very +glad I did not know it till a short time before you gave it up. In +the first place, I should have been horrified, and, in the second +place, I should have been constantly uneasy about you. However, as +this is to be the last time, I will let you go without grumbling." + +"By the way, Millicent, what do you wish me to say about our +engagement? I don't see that there is the slightest occasion for +us to keep up the farce of your being Miss Conyers any longer. You +cannot be married under a false name, you know, and now that you +have escaped what your father was so afraid of, and are going to +be married for love and not for money, I don't see why there should +be any more mystery about it." + +"But how would you account for my having been called Conyers all +this time?" + +"I should simply tell the truth; that your father, having a great +fear that you might be married for money, left the estate to my +father, to be held by him until you came of age, and that it was +at his particular request that you were brought up simply as his +ward, and dropped the family name and passed by your two Christian +names. I should say that we have all been aware for a long time of +the facts of the case, and I should also say that your father had +left a very large fortune in addition to the estate between us, +and had expressed a hope that we should, when the time came, marry +each other." + +"Then people will think that we have only married to keep the +fortune together, Mark." + +"Well, my dear, I don't suppose there are a great many people who +will be interested in the matter, and those who get to know you +will see at once that as far as I am concerned, there was no great +difficulty in falling in with your father's ideas, while, on the +other hand, they may consider that you made a noble sacrifice of +yourself in agreeing to the plan." + +"Nonsense, sir. I am not going to flatter you, as no doubt you +expect; but, at any rate, I am perfectly content with my share of +the bargain." + +"Well, there is one thing, Millicent; all who knew us down at +Reigate will say that it is a very sensible arrangement, and will +be glad to know that I shall retain the estate they have hitherto +considered to be mine. Well, then, you agree to my mentioning to +my intimate friends that you are my cousin, and that we are engaged?" + +"Yes, I suppose it is the best thing, Mark, and, as you say, I must +marry under my proper name, and it is just as well to get the talk +over down at Reigate now, as for it all to come as a wonder when +we are married." + +"When is that going to be, Millicent?" + +"Oh, I don't know; of course it will be a long time before we even +think of that." + +"I beg your pardon, I am thinking of it now, and I can see no +reason whatever why it should be delayed. We know each other well +enough, I should think, and there is no probability of our changing +our minds on discovering all sorts of faults, that we never dreamt, +in each other. I may be away for a fortnight, and I would suggest +that you had better make your preparations at once, so that we can +be married a fortnight after I come back." + +"You say that there is no fear of our discovering faults in each +other. I can assure you that I have just discovered a very serious +fault, namely, that you are altogether too masterful, too bent +upon having your own way. I know you always were so when you were +a boy, but I hoped you had grown out of it; now I see that I was +altogether mistaken. Seriously, Mark, your proposal is absurd." + +"Where does the absurdity come in, Millicent?" + +"Well, everywhere," she said gravely. + +"Which in the present case means nowhere," he said. "Do you mean +to tell me, Millicent, that in this town there are not a hundred +dressmakers, each of whom could turn you out a wedding dress and +as many other garments as you can possibly require in the course +of a month, or even if that effort were too stupendous, that you +could not divide the work among a dozen of them?" + +"Well, I don't say that could not be done," Millicent admitted +reluctantly. + +"Well, what other objection is there?" + +"Well, you see, one does not, like to be bustled in such a matter +as this, Mark. One likes to think it all over and to realize it to +one's self." + +"Well, dear, you will have a fortnight while I am away to think +and to realize as much as you like. I can see no advantage myself +in waiting a single day longer than there is a necessity for; I +have been for the last year coming here merely as a visitor, and I +want to take possession of you and have you all to myself. I suppose +Mrs. Cunningham will be coming in presently, and I will put the +matter to her. If she says you cannot be ready in a month I must +give you another week, but I don't think that she will say so. By +the way, how about her?" + +"I was thinking of that last night, Mark. It would be very lonely +for her to live by herself now, and you see she has always been as +a mother to me." + +"Quite so, dear; and I am sure that I should have no objection to +her coming back to Crowswood, and living there as a friend, and +helping you in the housekeeping." + +"Thank you very much, Mark; I should like that in every way. You +see, I know nothing whatever about housekeeping; and besides, when +you are out, it would be a great thing to have her with me, for it +would be very lonely by myself in that big house." + +"Well, we will have her there, by all means, dear, if she likes to +come; you had better talk it over with her. Ah! here she is. + +"We were just talking over the time it will take Millicent to get +ready," he said, "and I shall be glad of your opinion. I have been +telling her that I am going away for a fortnight, and have proposed +that the marriage should come off a fortnight later. I cannot see +any use in delay, and she does not either; at least, I suppose not, +for the only objection she has advanced is that there will be but +a short time in which to get her things ready. That strikes me as +being all nonsense. I could get things ready for ten weddings in +that time. What do you think?" + +"I see no reason for delay," Mrs. Cunningham said; "and assuredly +a month ought to be sufficient to get everything made." + +"Thank you, Mrs. Cunningham; then we can consider that settled, +Millicent!" + +"I call this tyranny, Mrs. Cunningham," Millicent protested. "He +says he proposes that we shall be married in a month; it is not +a proposal at all, it is an order. If he had wanted me in such a +hurry he might have said so a year ago, and now that he has made +up his mind at last, he wants everything done in a hurry." + +"It is the nature of men, my dear; they are all alike in that +respect. I think you had better make up your mind to it, especially +as I have no doubt in this case the order is not a very unpleasant +one." + +"You are too bad, Mrs. Cunningham," Millicent said. "I made sure +that I should find you on my side, and it seems you have gone over +altogether to the enemy." + +"Where are you going to?" asked Mrs. Cunningham of Mark. + +"I am going across to Amsterdam to sell that bracelet. My uncle +expressed a particular wish to my father that he should do so +immediately it came into his possession. Dick Chetwynd is going over +with me, and if the weather is fair it will be a pleasant trip." + +"Where are you thinking of going after the marriage?" + +"We have not talked it over yet. My own idea is that, as neither +of us has been abroad, we might as well take this opportunity +for seeing something of the Continent. Of course we cannot go to +France, things are in too disturbed a state there; but we might go +to Brussels, and then into Germany, and perhaps as far as Vienna, +and then down into Italy; but of course, if Millicent prefers it, +we will simply take a tour through England and Scotland." + +"Oh, I am glad that I am to have some voice in the matter," +Millicent said. "However, I should like the tour you propose very +much, Mark. I have often thought that I should like to see Italy +above all places." + +"Well, then, we will consider that settled. And now, what are you +going to do for today?" + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + + +The Essex was to sail at eleven o'clock. Half an hour before that +time Mark's hackney coach drew up at the wharf. Ten minutes later +Dick Chetwynd, who had, like Mark, driven by a circuitous route, +and had made several stoppages, joined him, and as they shook hands +slipped a parcel into his hand, and this Mark at once pocketed, +and buttoned his coat up tightly; then hailing a boat, they went +on board together; they had sent their luggage on the previous +evening. On getting on board Mark saw the two prize fighters walking +up and down the deck aft. They were quietly dressed, and save for +their size would have attracted no attention, and would have been +taken for two countrymen on their way to Holland on business. + +The two detectives were seated forward, their appearance being that +of two quiet business men, commercial travelers or small traders. +The two friends first went below, and saw to the cabin which they +were to share, and found their luggage was all there. Then they +returned on deck. Four or five other passengers were standing watching +the last bales of goods coming on board. The tide was just on the +turn, and a quarter of an hour later the warps were thrown off, +and some of the sails hoisted, and the Essex began to move through +the water. + +"Look there, Dick!" Mark exclaimed. "Do you see that boat lying +on its oars in the middle of the stream? That man sitting in the +stern is a foreigner, either from Southern Europe or from India." + +"He is certainly a dark man, Mark. Still, that may be only a +coincidence." + +"It is rather a curious one," Mark said. "We are too far off to +see his features, but he is apparently watching us off. There, the +oars are dipping into the water, now he sees that we are fairly +under way." + +"Well, Mark, I shall begin to think that you are right. I am bound +to say that hitherto I thought that it was ridiculous to suppose +that you could have been watched as you thought, and that you had +got these diamonds on your brain till you had really become fanciful. +However, it certainly looks as if you were right; but even if you +were, how on earth could they have found out that we were going by +this ship?" + +"That is more than I can tell; if they have been watching me +they must have known that I was intimate with you; they have seen +me come out of Cotter's Bank, and afterwards enter your lodgings; +they would feel sure that I had heard that there would be danger +connected with the diamonds, and might suppose that I should +get some friend to take them from the bank, and may have followed +your movements as well as mine. In that case they would have found +out that you also went to Cotter's Bank; may have followed you to +Tower Street, and found out that you had taken a passage for two +to Amsterdam. They may again have seen you go to the bank this +morning and have guessed that you had the diamonds about you, and +then seeing us together on the wharf would feel pretty certain +that it was so. One of them may have hired that boat and watched +the Essex to see that neither of us went on shore again." + +"Now they see that we are off they will know that their game is +up," Chetwynd said. + +"I am not so sure of that, Dick; there are craft going every day +to Antwerp and Flushing, and for anything we know some of them may +be on board a craft already dropping down like ourselves by this +tide. But even if we had twelve hours' start, by landing, say at +Flushing, they would have time to cross by land to Amsterdam and +get there before us." + +"Yes, I suppose they would; anyhow, it is pretty certain that we +shall not be troubled on the voyage." + +"Yes, I never thought there was much danger of that, because even +if they were on board they would see that you and I, being always +together, could not be got rid of without an alarm being given." + +Not until they were passing Greenwich did either of the detectives +come near Mark, then as he and Dick were standing by the bulwarks, +looking at the hospital, Chester strolled across the deck and, +pointing to the building as if asking him some question about it, +said: + +"There is a colored man forward, dressed as a sailor." + +"Is that so?" Mark said. "I see no one aft here who looks suspicious, +and I don't think they will try anything till we get to Amsterdam. +There was a colored man in a boat watching us as we set sail." + +"I saw him, sir. Can he get to Amsterdam before us?" + +"Yes, I have no doubt he can; if he lands at Flushing or Antwerp, +and takes a post chaise or a diligence, I should say he could get +there twenty-four hours before us. Certainly he could do so if he +landed at The Hague, as we have to go a long way round to get into +the Zuyder Zee. That is where the real danger will be; still you +had better keep a sharp lookout on the man forward." + +No more was said. Mark was not long in getting into conversation +with the other passengers aft, and later on strolled forward with +Dick, asking the sailors some questions as to what sort of passage +they were likely to have, and how the wind suited. The men agreed +that unless the wind shifted they would not be likely to make a +quick passage. + +"The wind is northeasterly," one of them said. "We can only just +lay our course now, and it will be dead against us in some of the +reaches. Still, I think we shall manage to make down to sea with +only a tack or two, but when we are once fairly out of the river +it will be a long leg and a short one, and going up round the Texel +it will be dead against us. Except that it would be a bit worse if +it had a little more east in it, it is about as foul a wind as we +could have, and I don't see any sign of a change, worse luck." + +Presently, moving about among them, he got next to Gibbons. + +"I don't think we shall have any trouble on board," he said; "if +there is any, it will be after we have landed. But you can keep an +eye on that foreign sailor standing alone there up in the bows." + +"All right, sir; if you like, I can manage to get into a quarrel +with him, and can warrant that he won't get out of his berth before +it is time to go ashore." + +"No, I would leave him alone, Gibbons; as long as he is forward he +can do no harm; but if you see him working his way aft, after it +gets dark, it will do him no harm if you manage to stumble against +him and give him a clout on the head." + +"All right, sir; if I hit him once he won't want another. The +fellow seems quiet enough, and as far as strength goes he don't +look stronger than a girl." + +After chatting for some time longer Mark and Dick Chetwynd went +aft again. The Essex did not put into any intermediate port, and +it was only on the sixth day after sailing that she approached +Amsterdam. The voyage had passed off without any incident except +that at nine o'clock one evening there had been a slight noise on +deck and the sound of a fall. The friends went up at once. Several +of the sailors had run aft, and Gibbons was explaining matters to +them. + +"I was walking up and down the deck," he said, "when I saw this +chap staring down through the skylight, and I said to him, 'I don't +call it good manners to be prying down into your betters' cabin.' +He did not answer or move, so I gave him a push, when he turned +upon me like a wild cat, and drew his knife from his girdle. There +it is, on the other side of the deck. As I did not want daylight +put into me, I just knocked him down." + +"Served him right," one of the sailors said. "He had no right to +come aft at all, and if he drew his knife on you, you were quite +right in laying him out. But you must have hit him mighty hard, for +you have knocked the life pretty near out of him. Well, we may as +well carry him forward and throw a bucket of water over him. That +is the worst of these foreign chaps; they are always so ready with +their knives. However, I don't think he will be likely to try his +hand on an Englishman again." + +Mark and his friend went below again. In the morning Mark asked +one of the sailors if the foreigner was much hurt. + +"Well, he is a good bit hurt, sir. That big chap looks as strong +as a bullock, and his blow has flattened the foreign chap's nose. +He cannot see out of his eyes this morning, and is keeping his +bunk. They cannot stand a blow, those foreign chaps; but I don't +suppose that any of us would have stood such a blow as that, without +feeling it pretty heavy. The man who hit him is quite sorry this +morning that he hit him quite so hot, but, as he says, when a +fellow draws a knife on you, you have not got much time for thinking +it over, and you have got to hit quick and hard. I told him he +needn't be sorry about it. I consider when a fellow draws a knife +that hanging aint too bad for him, whether he gets it into a man +or not." + +There was a growl of assent from two or three sailors standing +round, for in those days the use of the knife was almost unknown +in England, and was abhorrent to Englishmen, both as being cowardly +and unfair, and as being a purely foreign crime. + +"It will be dark before we get alongside," Mark said to the two +detectives. "Do you two walk first; we will keep just behind you, +and the others shall follow as close as they can keep to us. If +anyone is looking out for us they will see that we are a strong +party, and that it would be no good to attack us, for even if +they were to stab me it would not be possible to search me for the +diamonds when I am with a party like this." + +It was indeed quite dark when the brig brought up outside a tier +of vessels lying by the wharf. A few oil lamps burning by the quay +showed that there were a good many people still sauntering about. +The party waited until the rest of the passengers had landed. They +learned from one of those who knew the place that the hotel to +which they were going was but three or four hundred yards away, +and obtained directions how to find it. + +"Now we will go," Mark said. "Gibbons, you had better keep a sharp +lookout on your own account. That fellow you knocked down may try +to put a knife into you." + +"I will keep a sharp lookout, sir, never you fear." + +"I think, Tring, you had better watch Gibbons; he is more in danger +than I am. Have you seen the man go on shore?" + +"Yes, he was the very first to cross onto the next vessel," Tring +said. + +The loungers on the quay had gathered together to watch the +passengers as they left the ship, and by the dim light from one of +the oil lamps it could be seen that the majority of them were of +the roughest class. As they were passing through them a man with a +cry of rage sprang at Gibbons with an uplifted knife. Tring's fist +struck him under the ear as he was in the act of striking, and he +fell like a log. There was a cry of "Down with them!" and a rush +of a score of men, most of whom were armed with heavy bludgeons. + +The party was at once broken up, heavy blows were exchanged, the +two pugilists rolling their assailants over like ninepins, but +receiving several heavy blows from their assailants' clubs. A rush +of five or six men separated Mark from the others. Those in front +of him he struck down, but a moment later received a tremendous blow +on the back of the head which struck him to the ground unconscious. +His companions were all too busy defending themselves against +their assailants to notice what had been done, and as the attack +had taken place in the center of the roadway behind the quay, there +was no lamp, and the fight was taking place in almost total darkness. + +By this time many people had run up at the sound of the fray. A +minute later there was a cry that the watch were coming, and four +or five men with lanterns emerged from one of the streets leading +down to the quays, and hurried towards the spot. The fight at once +ceased, the men who had attacked mingled with the crowd, and when +the watch came up they found the five Englishmen clustered together +and ten or twelve men lying on the ground. + +The instant that the fight had ceased Dick Chetwynd asked, "Where +is Mr. Thorndyke?" + +No answer was given. The other four men simultaneously uttered +exclamations of alarm. The crowd was thinning fast as the watch +came up. + +"What is all this about?" one of them asked in Dutch. + +"Do any of you speak English?" Dick asked. + +"I do," one of them said. + +"We landed five minutes ago from that craft," continued Dick, +"and as we came across we were attacked by a band of ruffians. An +Englishman, one of our party, is missing." + +"Whose bodies are these?" the watchman asked, raising his lantern +and pointing to them. + +"Perhaps Mr. Thorndyke is among them," Dick Chetwynd said. + +The fallen figures were examined by the light of the lanterns. +Mark was not among them. The watchmen uttered an exclamation of +astonishment as they looked at the men's faces. + +"What did you strike them with?" the one who spoke first asked. + +"Struck them with our fists, of course," Gibbons replied. "They +will do well enough; you need not bother about them, they will come +round again presently. The question is, Where is Mr. Thorndyke?" + +The whole of the lookers on had dispersed, each fearing that he +might be charged with taking part in the outrage. + +"This is a very serious matter," Chetwynd said. "We have every +reason to believe that the attack was premeditated, for the gentleman +who is missing was known to have some valuables on him; all these +fellows ought to be taken and locked up and made to give an account +of themselves. We are going to the Hotel d'Hollande where you can +find us at any time. I dare say some of these scoundrels are known +to you, and that may give you a clew as to where Mr. Thorndyke is. + +"I have but little hope that he will be found alive; no doubt he +has been stabbed and his body carried off so that they can search +his clothes at their leisure. We came in a strong party to prevent +the risk of an attack upon Mr. Thorndyke. Here is my card. It is +of no use our attempting to search by ourselves, but if you will +get these fellows taken to the watch house, and will call at the +hotel, we will join your party and help you to search the places +you think he has most likely been taken to." + +"I think, sir, you had better come with me to the watch house, and +see the Lieutenant, and tell him what has happened." + +"I will just take my friends to the hotel, and shall be back from +there before you have got men to take these fellows away. If you +go to one of those ships and borrow a bucket, empty it over each +of them; you will find that will bring them to!" + +As soon as they arrived at the hotel Dick ordered a private sitting +room and five bedrooms. + +"We have made a terrible mess of this, lads," he said gloomily. +"I don't say that it is any of our faults, but it is a horrible +affair. I have not the least doubt that Mr. Thorndyke has been +killed, and it is no satisfaction to us that we have pretty nearly +done for a dozen of those scoundrels." + +"I would not have had it happen for a hundred pounds, nor a thousand, +sir. If there had been daylight we could have licked a score of +them in spite of their bludgeons, but they came with such a rush +at us that we got separated before we knew where we were. I don't +think that it was our fault. I feel as much ashamed as if I had +thrown up the sponge in the ring at the end of the first round. +To think that we came over here, four of us, and yourself, sir, on +purpose to take care of Mr. Thorndyke, all well save a few knocks +with those sticks, and Mr. Thorndyke killed and carried off before +we have been on shore five minutes. A better young fellow I never +put on the gloves with;" and Gibbons passed the back of his hand +across his eyes. + +"Well, I must be off now," Chetwynd said. "I feel heartbroken over +it. I have known him since we were boys together; and what makes it +worse is that only three days ago he became engaged to be married. +How we are going to take the news back God only knows!" + +As he hurried down the street towards the wharf he saw a number of +lanterns coming towards him, and ten or twelve watchmen came along +escorting the prisoners, many of whose faces were covered with +blood; then came four other watchmen carrying a body on a stretcher. + +"One of them is dead," the watchman who had before spoken said to +Dick. "A foreign seaman, a Lascar I should say, from his color; we +found an open knife by his side." + +"That is the man who began the fray," Chetwynd said. "He was on the +point of stabbing one of my companions when another hit him under +the ear." + +"What!" the watchman said. "He must have been hit like the kick +of a horse. All these prisoners seem to have been struck but once; +two of them cannot speak. I think their jaws are broken; four of +them have broken noses, and another has had all his front teeth +knocked out, while the others are nearly as bad." + +"I see you have brought with you some of their bludgeons," Dick +said, pointing to one of the watchmen carrying a great bundle of +sticks over his shoulder. + +"Yes, sir, twenty-three of them; it certainly seems to show that +it was a planned thing. Most of these fellows' faces are so bruised +that I cannot say who they are at present, but two or three are +known as the worst ruffians in the city, and I have no doubt we +shall find that they all belong to the same gang." + +By this time they had arrived at the watch house, a building of +considerable size; the prisoners were first lodged in a strong room +with barred windows and very heavy doors, and then the watchman +went with Chetwynd to the Lieutenant's room. The officer had just +returned, having hurried down with a reinforcement to the wharf +as soon as he had heard of the fray, and tried to obtain some +information from the people who had gathered round, attracted by +the lanterns of the watch. He had already learned from the watchmen +all they knew about the affair. As he spoke English well, he at +once addressed Dick: + +"This is a serious affair, sir." + +"A very serious affair, for, indeed, I am afraid that my dearest +friend has been murdered." + +"Will you kindly give me the particulars?" the officer said, sitting +down to the table with a pen in his hand. + +Dick Chetwynd told him the story of how Mr. Thorndyke, having some +very valuable jewels that he wished to dispose of, and believing +that he would be attacked by a band of robbers, had asked him to +accompany him, and had brought four detective officers and pugilists +to protect him against any sudden attack. + +"Ah, that accounts for the terrible blows that these fellows received," +the officer said. "And your friend; was he a strong man?" + +"He was a man exceptionally strong, and a match for either of the +pugilists that he brought over. I have no doubt that he was stabbed, +though of course he might have been brought down by a blow from +one of the bludgeons. He must have been completely insensible when +carried off. + +"The watchman here tells me that three or four of these ruffians +are known, and perhaps if you will give orders for the blood to be +washed off the others' faces some more may be recognized and prove +an aid in enabling you to form an idea where Mr. Thorndyke has been +carried. I trust that you will send out a party to search for him. +I and the four men with me will gladly join them, and may be of +use if any resistance is offered." + +The Lieutenant at once gave orders to the watchman to go down and see +that the prisoners all washed their faces. As soon as he returned +with the report that this was done the officer went down with Dick +Chetwynd to examine them. Three or four of the men with lanterns +also went in. Eight out of eleven men were recognized; the other +three, whose features were so swollen that they could not see out +of their eyes, could not be made out, but their companions, on +being questioned, gave their names. + +"They all belong to a gang of wharf thieves and plunderers. They +live in a slum near the water. I will have men posted in the lanes +leading to it, and will myself go with you to see that a search is +made of every house; but first I will try to find out from these +fellows where he was to be taken. + +"Now, my men," he said, "anyone of you who will tell me where one +of the party you attacked was to be taken to will find things made +easy for him at his trial." + +None of the men spoke for a minute, and then one said: + +"We know nothing about it; how should we, when we were all knocked +stupid?" + +"No, but you might know where he was to be taken." + +"I know nothing about that. We all got word to mind we were on the +wharf when a brig, that was seen coming up, came alongside, and that +we were to have a hundred francs each for attacking some passengers +as they landed. Six of them came along together, and one said, +'These are the men.' A black sailor came up first and spoke to +two or three men in some foreign language. I don't know who the +men were; it was too dark to see their faces. It was one of them +who gave the order. It seemed an easy job enough when there were +twenty-five of us with heavy sticks, but it didn't turn out so. +I only know that I hit one big fellow a blow that ought to have +knocked him down, and the next moment there was a crash, and I +don't know anything more about it until a lot of water was thrown +over me and one of the watch helped me to my feet. I don't know +whether the others know more than I do, but I don't think they do." + +All the others protested at once that they were equally ignorant. +They had gone to earn a hundred francs. They had been told that +the money was all right, but who found it or who were the men to +be attacked they had not the least idea. + +"How was it that you all had these bludgeons--there were no knives +found on any of you?" + +The man who spoke before said: + +"The order was 'No knives,' and before we went down to the wharf +each of us was searched and a stick given to us. I suppose from +that, that whoever paid for the job didn't want blood to be shed; +it suited us well enough, for it was a job there was sure to be a +row over, and I don't suppose any of us wanted to put his head in +a noose. I know that we all said to each other as we went out that +it did not want such sticks as we had to give a man a thrashing, +but the man who hired us, whoever he was, knew his customers better +than we did." + +The officer translated the man's words as they were spoken to Dick, +and on hearing the last speech, the latter said: + +"Then there is still hope that Thorndyke may only have been stunned; +that is a greater reason for our losing no time in looking for him, +for I am afraid that they won't hesitate to kill him when they have +got him hidden away." + +"I expect," the Lieutenant said, "they thought that if any of the +watch came upon them as they were carrying him off, they might be +at once arrested if it was found that they were carrying a dead +man, whilst if he were only stunned they would say that it was a +drunken comrade who had fallen and knocked his head against something. +I agree with you, sir; we had better start on our search at once." + +"Will you pass the Hotel d'Hollande? If not, I will run and bring +my men." + +"Yes, I will go that way; it will be no further." + +Dick walked on fast. + +"We have no news of him," he said, as he entered the room where +the four men were anxiously awaiting him, "but we and the watch +are now going to search the slums where the men who were taken +prisoners all live; come down now, and I will tell you what I have +learned, before the others come up. + +"There is reason for believing that he was not stabbed," he went +on, as they reached the street, "for the men all say that they were +armed only with clubs, and that the strictest orders were given +that none were to carry knives, therefore there is little doubt +that he was at the time only stunned. But I am bound to say that +this gives me very small ground for hoping that we may find him +alive. I fear they only stunned him, so that they might carry him +safely to their haunts, for if stopped they could say that it was +a drunken comrade, who had fallen and hurt himself. I fear that +when they get him into one of their dens they will make short work +of him, therefore it is clear that there is not a moment to be +lost. Ah, here comes the watch." + +There were eight men with the Lieutenant. + +"I have already sent off ten others," he said as he joined Chetwynd, +"to watch the lanes, and let no one go in or out. I thought it best +not to lose a moment about that, for when the men see that we have +learned from the others where the gang came from, and have closed +the avenues of escape, they will hesitate about murdering their +prisoner if he was still alive when my men got there." + +In a quarter of an hour they arrived at the end of a narrow lane, +where two watchmen were standing with lanterns. + +"You have seen nor heard nothing?" the Lieutenant asked him. + +"No, sir, we have not seen a man moving in the lane." + +"There is just one hope that we might be in time," the Lieutenant +said, as he went on down the lane, "and that is, that the fellows +when they gather will be so dismayed at finding that nearly half +their number are missing, and knowing that some of them are pretty +sure to make a clean breast of it, they will hesitate to complete +their crime. It is one thing to rob a man in the streets, quite +another to murder him in cold blood. There is likely to be a good +deal of difference of opinion among them, some of the more desperate +being in favor of carrying the thing through, but others are sure +to be against it, and nothing may have been done. You may be sure +that the sight of my men at the end of the lanes will still further +alarm them. I have no doubt the news that we have surrounded the +district has already been circulated, and that if alive now he is +safe, for they will think it is better to suffer a year or two's +imprisonment than to be tried for murder. We are sure to make some +captures, for it is probable that several of the others will bear +marks of the fight. Each man we take we will question separately; +one or other of them is pretty safe to be ready to say where your +friend was taken to if I promise him that he shan't be prosecuted." + +Every house in the district was searched from top to bottom. Six +men; with cut and bruised faces, were found shamming sleep, and +were separately questioned closely; all declared that they knew +nothing whatever of anyone being carried there. + +"It is of no use your denying your share in the affair," the Lieutenant +said. "Your comrades have confessed that there were twenty-five of +you hired to carry out this, and that you received a hundred francs +each. Now, if this gentleman is not found, it will be a hanging +matter for some of you, and you had better tell all you know. If +you will tell us where he is, I will promise that you shan't be +included in the list of those who will be prosecuted." + +The reply, although put in different words, was identical with that +of the prisoners. + +"We had nothing to do with carrying him off; we were hired only to +knock the men down who were pointed out to us; not a word was said +about carrying them off. He may have been carried off, that we +cannot say, but he has certainly not been brought here, and none +of us had anything to do with it." + +Morning was breaking before the search was concluded. The detectives, +accustomed as they were to visit the worst slums of London, were +horrified at the crowding, the squalor, and the misery of the places +they entered. + +"My opinion. Mr. Chetwynd," Gibbons growled, "is that the best +thing to do would be to put a score of soldiers at the end of all +these lanes, and then to burn the whole place down, and make a clean +sweep of it. I never saw such a villainous looking crew in all my +life. I have been in hopes all along that some of them would resist; +it would have been a real pleasure to have let fly at them." + +"They are a villainous set of wretches, Gibbons, but they may not +be all criminals." + +"Well; I don't know, sir; but I know that if I were on a jury, +and any of the lot were in the dock, I should not want to hear any +evidence against them; their faces are enough to hang them." + +At last the search was over, and they were glad indeed when they +emerged from the lanes and breathed the pure air outside, for all +the Englishmen felt sick at the poisonous air of the dens they had +entered. The prisoners, as they were taken, had been sent off to +the watch house. + +"I begin to think that the story these fellows tell is a true one, +Mr. Chetwynd," the Lieutenant said, "and that they had nothing to +do with carrying your friend off. In the first place, they all tell +the same story: that in itself would not be much, as that might +have been settled beforehand; but it is hardly likely that one of +the lot would not have been ready to purchase his life by turning +on the others. There is very little honor among thieves; and as +they know that we have taken their mates--for no doubt we were +watched as we marched them up the town--they would make sure that +someone would turn traitor, and would think they might as well be +beforehand. I fancy that the men, whoever they are, who hired this +gang to attack you, carried out that part of the business themselves." + +"I am afraid that is so," Dick agreed; "and I fear in that case +that he is in even worse hands than if these ruffians here had +taken him." + +"Well, sir, can you furnish us with any clew?" + +"The only clew is that they were most probably dark men. That man +who was killed was undoubtedly one of them. I should say that they +would probably be got up as foreign sailors." + +"Well, that is something to go upon, at any rate. I will send round +men at once to all the places by the quays where sailors board, +and if three or four of them have been together at any place we +are sure to hear of it, and the moment I have news I will send to +your hotel." + +"Thank you; I don't see that we can be of any use at present, but +you will find us ready to turn out again the moment we hear that +you have news." + +When the party returned to the hotel they sat talking the matter +over for upwards of an hour. All were greatly discouraged, for they +had little hope indeed of ever learning what had become of Mark. As +they had started out Dick had told the night porter that he could +not say what time they might return, but that before the house closed +he must have a couple of bottles of spirits and some tumblers sent +up to their sitting room, together with some bread and cold meat, +for that they might not return until morning, and would need +something before they went to bed, as they had had nothing since +their dinner, at one o'clock. + +"It wants something to take the taste of that place out of one's +mouth," Tring said to Dick, as, directly they entered, he poured +some spirits into the glasses. "I feel as queer as if I had been +hocussed." + +All, indeed, were feeling the same, and it was not until they had +eaten their supper and considerably lowered the spirits in the +two bottles that they began to talk. The two detectives were the +principal speakers, and both of these were of opinion that the only +shadow of hope remaining rested upon Mark himself. + +"Unless they finished him before he came round," Malcolm said, "they +would find him an awkward customer to deal with. Mr. Thorndyke has +got his head screwed on right, and if, as you say, they are Indians, +Mr. Chetwynd, I should think that if he once comes fairly round, +unless he is tied up, he will be a match for them, even with their +knives. That is the only chance I see. Even if the watch do find +out that three or four foreign sailors have been at one of the +boarding houses and did not turn up last night, I don't think we +shall be much nearer. They will probably only have carried him some +distance along the wharf, got to some quiet place where there is a +big pile of wood, or something of that sort, then put a knife into +him, searched for the diamonds, which you may be sure they would +find easily enough wherever he had hidden them, and then make off, +most likely for Rotterdam or The Hague; they could be at either +of these places by this time, and will mostly likely divide the +diamonds and get on board different craft, bound for London or +Hull, or indeed any other port, and then ship for India. From what +Mr. Thorndyke said they did not want the diamonds to sell, but only +to carry back to some temple from which they were stolen twenty +years ago." + +Chester was of precisely the same opinion. + +"I am afraid, Mr. Chetwynd," he added, as they rose to go to their +rooms for two or three hours' sleep, "the only news that we shall +get in the morning is that Mr. Thorndyke's body has been found." + + + +CHAPTER XX. + + +At ten o'clock a constable came with a message from the Lieutenant +to Mr. Chetwynd that he would be glad if he would come down to the +watch house. Dick did not wake the others, but freshening himself +up by pouring a jug of water over his head, went at once with the +constable. + +"Have you news?" he asked eagerly as he entered. + +"Yes, the men returned an hour ago. At four of the houses they +went to a foreign sailor had been lodging there for the last day +or so, but yesterday afternoon all had paid their reckoning and +left. Then the idea struck me that it would be as well to ask if +they had been seen on the quays, and I sent off a fresh batch of men +to make inquiries. A quarter of an hour ago one of them came back +with the news that he had learned from a sailor that he had noticed +a dark colored foreigner, whom he took to be a Lascar sailor, +talking to a boatman, and that they had rowed off together to +a barge anchored a short way out; he did not notice anything more +about him. + +"Now, I should not be at all surprised if the fellow went off to +arrange with the bargeman for a passage for himself and four or +five comrades to some port or other, it might be anywhere. It would +make no difference to them where the barge was bound for. No doubt +he saw the man again after the brig was sighted, and told him that +they should come on board soon after it got dark, and told him to +have the boat at the stairs. You see, in that case they might not +have carried Mr. Thorndyke above fifty yards. They would probably +get him on board as one of their party who had been drunk. The +barge, no doubt, got under way about nine o'clock, which is the +hour when the tide was high last night, and during the night the +Indians could easily drop your friend overboard--and may even +have done so before they got under way, which would have been the +easiest thing to do. There would have been no one at the helm, and +they could have chosen a moment when the crew, probably only three, +were below. I am afraid that this is not a cheering lookout, but +I have little doubt that it is the correct one. + +"I have told my men to find out what barge was lying at the spot +the sailor pointed out, and if we discover her name, which we are +likely to be able to do, there will be no difficulty in finding +out to whom she belongs and where she was bound for. Then we can +follow it up; though there is little likelihood of our finding the +murderers still on board." + +"Thank you very much for the pains that you are taking, sir," +Dick said. "I am afraid that there is no shadow of hope of finding +my poor friend alive. I have no doubt that the thing has happened +exactly as you suggest; the whole course of the affair shows how +carefully it was planned, and I have no hope that any scruple about +taking life would be felt by them for a moment. I will go back to +the hotel, and I shall be obliged if you will let me know as soon +as you obtain any clew as to the barge." + +An hour and a half later the officer himself came round to the +room where Dick Chetwynd and the two pugilists were sitting. The +detectives had started out to make inquiries on their own account, +taking with them a hanger on at the hotel who spoke English. + +"The barge's name was the Julie," he said; "she has a cargo on +board for Rotterdam." + +"I think the best thing would be to take a carriage, and drive +there at once," Dick said. + +"You can do that, sir, but I don't think you will be there before +the barge; they have something like eighteen hours' start for you, +and the wind has been all the time in the east. I should say that +they would be there by eight o'clock this morning." + +"No, I don't know that it would be of any use, but at least it would +be doing something. I suppose we could be there in four hours?" + +"From that to five; but even if the barge were delayed, and you +got there first, which is very unlikely, I do not think that there +would be the remotest chance of finding those villains on board. +I reckon they would, as we agreed, launch the body overboard even +before they got under way here, and they may either have landed again +before the craft got under way, pretending that they had changed +their minds, and then walked across to The Hague or to Haarlem, or +have gone on with the barge for two hours, or even until daybreak. +If by that time they were near Rotterdam, they may have stayed on +board till they got there; if not, they may have landed, and finished +the journey on foot, but they would certainly not have stopped on +board after six or seven o'clock this morning. They would calculate +that possibly we might get on their track at an early hour this +morning, and set out in pursuit at once. + +"However, it will doubtless be a satisfaction to you to be moving, +and at least you will be able to overhaul the barge when you get to +Rotterdam, and to hear what the boatmen say. The chances are they +will not even have noticed that one of the men who came on board +was missing. The men may very well have made up a long bundle, +carried it on shore with them, or three of them may have carried a +fourth ashore; and in the dark the bargemen were unlikely to have +noticed that the number was less than when they came on board. +However, it will be something for you to find out when and where +the fellows landed." + +"Yes; I should certainly like to lay hands on them, though I am +afraid we should find it very hard to prove that they had +anything to do with this affair." / + +"I think that also, Mr. Chetwynd. Morally, we may feel absolutely +certain; but, unless the boatmen noticed that one of their number +was missing when they landed, we have at present no evidence to +connect them with it." + +"We will set out as soon as my other two men return. I told them +to be back soon after twelve. I will write to you this evening from +Rotterdam. Ah! here are the men." + +The door opened, and, to the stupefaction of the party, Mark +Thorndyke entered the room. + +"Good Heavens, Mark!" Dick exclaimed, springing forward and seizing +his hand, "is it really you alive in the flesh? We had given you +up for dead. We have been searching the town for you all night, and +were just going to set out for Rotterdam in search of a barge on +which we believed you were carried. Why, it seems almost a miracle!" + +The two prize fighters also came forward, and shook hands with a +pressure that would have made most men shrink. + +"I am as glad, Mr. Thorndyke," Gibbons said, "as if anyone had +given me a thousand pounds. I have never quite given up hope, for, +as I said to Mr. Chetwynd, if you got but a shadow of a chance, you +would polish off those nigger fellows in no time; but I was afraid +that they never would give you a chance. Well, I am glad, sir." + +"Mark, this is the Lieutenant of the watch here," Dick said. "He +has been most kind, and has himself headed the search that has been +made for you all night. Now tell us all about it." + +"First of all give me something to drink, for, except some water, +I have had nothing since dinner yesterday. You are right, Dick; it +is almost a miracle, even to me, that I am here. I would not have +given a penny for my chance of life, and I can no more account for +the fact that I am here than you can." + +Mark drank off a tumbler of weak spirits and water that Gibbons +poured out for him. Chetwynd rang the bell, and ordered lunch to +be brought up at once. Just at this moment the two detectives came +in, and were astonished and delighted at finding Mark there. + +"Now," he said, "I will tell you as much as I know, which is little +enough. When I came to my senses I found myself lying on the deck +of a craft of some sort; it was a long time before I could at all +understand how I got there. I think it was the pain from the back +of my head that brought it to my mind that I must have been knocked +down and stunned in that fight; for some time I was very vague in +my brain as to that, but it all came back suddenly, and I recalled +that we had all got separated. I was hitting out, and then there +was a crash. Yes, I must have been knocked down and stunned, and +I could only suppose that in the darkness and confusion I had been +carried off and taken on board without any of you missing me; my +hands and feet were tied, and there was something shoved into my +mouth that prevented me from speaking. + +"I should think that it must have been an hour before I quite +recovered my senses, and got the thing fairly into my mind. Then a +man with a knife leant over me, and made signs that if I spoke he +would stab me, and another took the gag out of my mouth and poured +some water down my throat, and then put it in again. I saw that he +was a dark colored man, and I then understood it all; it was those +Hindoos who had got up the attack upon us and had carried me off. +I had no doubt they had got the diamonds I had sewn up in the +waistband of my trousers. + +"I wondered why they were keeping me, but was sure they would stab +me presently and throw me overboard. I knew that they had killed +two soldiers for the sake of the diamonds, and if it hadn't been +that they had given me the water, I should not have had a shadow +of doubt about my fate." + +"I puzzled over why they should have done so, and came to the +conclusion that they dared not do it on board, because of the crew, +and that they intended to take me on shore somewhere, and there +dispose of me. I made many attempts to loosen my ropes, but they +would not give the slightest. At last I think I dozed off for a +time. After I had had the water they drew a blanket or something of +that sort over me. It had been there before, but it had only been +pulled up as high as my nose, and I felt sure that it was only +done to prevent the Dutchmen on the boat seeing that I was bound +and gagged; this time they pulled it right over my face. When they +took it off again I could see it was nearly morning, for there +was a faint light in the sky. They were moving about on the deck, +and presently I saw one of the sailors get into the boat and pull +it along, hand over hand, by the rail, until he was close to me. +Then four Lascar sort of chaps--I could scarcely make out their +features--lifted me and lowered me into the boat and got in +themselves. + +"I did not attempt to struggle. No doubt they had made up some +tale that I was mad or something of that sort, and I thought that +I had best pretend to be quiet and peaceable till I could see some +sort of chance of making a fight for it. It was but a few yards +from the shore. The man lifted me out onto the bank, and the sailor +then started to row back to the barge; they carried me a few yards +away, and then laid me face downwards on some grass. Now, I thought +to myself, it is all over; they are going to stab me and make off. +To my surprise I felt they were doing something--I could not +make out what--to the ropes; then there was quiet. I lay there +I should think for half an hour, wondering why on earth they did +not finish me. At last I made up my mind to move, and turned round +onto my back. As I lay there I could see no one, and, raising my +head, looked round. To my amazement I found that I was alone. It +was now almost light, and as I craned my head in all directions +I assured myself that they had gone; then I began to try again at +the ropes. + +"To my surprise I found that they were much looser than they were +before, although still tight enough to give me nearly an hour's work +before I got my hands free. Then it took me almost as long to get +the ropes off my legs, for they had knotted them in such a fearfully +intricate way that it was a long time before I could even discover +where the ends were. At last I finished the job, stood up, and +looked round. A quarter of a mile off there was a good sized town, +but not a soul could I see. + +"Till now I had hardly thought of the diamonds; I put my hands +to my waistband and found, as I expected, that they were gone. I +think I felt nothing but pleasure: the confounded things had given +trouble enough, and I was well rid of them. Why they should have +spared my life I could not imagine. If they had finished me, which +they could have done without any risk to themselves when they got +me ashore, they could have gone off with the diamonds without the +slightest fear of pursuit, while now there was, of course, a chance +that I might follow and recognize them." + +"Would you know them again?" the Lieutenant interrupted. + +"Not in the slightest; it was light enough to see that they were +dark, but from the time the boat came along the blanket was over +my head, and except when they gave me the water I had no chance +of seeing any of their features. Still, if I had gone straight to +the town I saw and reported the matter to the authorities and sent +mounted men to all the ports to warn them not to let any colored +men embark, I might have given them a lot of trouble, but I don't +suppose any of them would ever have been caught. After the craft +they had shown in the whole matter, it is certain that they would +have laid their plans for escape so well that the law would never +have laid hands upon them. I put my hand mechanically to my watch +to see the time, and to my astonishment discovered that I still +had it in my pocket, and was equally surprised to find that the +money in my trousers' pockets was also untouched. The watch had, +of course, stopped. I first of all went down to the water and had +a good wash; then I proceeded to the town, and, going to a hotel, +ordered breakfast." + +"Why, I thought you said that you had had nothing to eat, Mark." + +"Yes? Well, I had forgotten all about that breakfast. The people +looked a good deal surprised at an Englishman walking in in that +way. While I was eating my breakfast two men--who were, I suppose, +authorities of some kind--who spoke English, came and questioned +me. As I had made up my mind to say nothing more about the affair, +I merely told them that I had come for a sail from Amsterdam, +and that I wanted a carriage to take me back. They were evidently +astonished at my choosing a dark night for such a trip, but I said +that I had some curiosity to see how the boatmen navigated their +vessel when there were no lighthouses or anything to steer by. They +asked a few more questions, and then went away, evidently thinking +that I was a little mad. However, they must have spoken to the +landlord, who in a short time made signs that the carriage was at +the door. + +"I had avoided asking the men either the name of the place or how +far it was from any big town, because that would have made the whole +affair more singular. It was a quarter past eight when I started, +and beyond the fact that I know by the sun we came pretty nearly +due east, I have not the slightest idea of the road. The coachman +could not speak a word of English. I should say we came about seven +miles an hour and stopped once to bait the horses, so I suppose +that it must have been between four and five miles from Rotterdam +when I landed." + +Lunch had by this time been laid on the table, and at Dick's +invitation the Lieutenant joined them. + +"It is an extraordinary story!" he said. "That your life should +have been spared is altogether beyond my comprehension, still more +so why they should have left you your money and watch." + +"The whole story is extraordinary," Dick Chetwynd said; "for we +have every reason to believe that those fellows, or at least one or +two of them, have been patiently watching for a chance of carrying +off those diamonds for twenty years. When my friend told me of it +ten days ago I did not believe that it could be possible; but he +has certainly shown that he was correct in his opinion." + +Mark then related the history of the jewels, surprising the pugilists +and detectives as much as the Lieutenant. + +"It is extraordinary indeed," the latter said. "I should not have +believed it possible that men would devote so many years to such a +purpose, nor that they could have succeeded in tracing the diamonds +in spite of the precaution taken by your uncle, and afterwards by +yourself. It would seem that from the time he landed in England +he, and after him your father and yourself, must have been watched +almost night and day. I can understand now why they did not take +your watch and money. They evidently acted from a sort of religious +enthusiasm, and were no ordinary thieves, but as evidently they +did not hesitate to kill, I cannot understand why they should have +added to their risks by sparing you." + +"No, that is what puzzles me," Mark agreed. "I was thinking it +over while we were driving here. Now let me hear about the fight, +Dick. How did you all come out of it?" + +"As well as could be expected. Gibbons and Tring both got some +heavy blows with the cudgels, as indeed we all did more or less, +but they did great execution. Eleven fellows were left senseless on +the ground, and one of them, that black fellow who came over with +us, was killed. The other ten are all in prison. All of us did our +best, and managed to leave our mark on eight others, who were in +consequence picked out, and are also in jail." + +Dick went on to relate the particulars of the search. + +"You see, our friend here had traced you to the barge and found out +her destination, and if you had come ten minutes later you would +have found that we had all just started for Rotterdam. I was only +waiting for Chester and Malcolm to return to set out. I am sorry, +Mark, that you have lost your diamonds; not so much because they +are gone, for I can well understand you to be thoroughly glad to +be rid of such dangerous articles, but because they have carried +them off in our teeth, after we have been specially retained to +protect you. I certainly thought that with such a bodyguard you +were absolutely safe from any number of Hindoos." + +"Yes, we made a regular mess of it, Mr. Thorndyke," Gibbons said. +"I never felt so certain of winning a battle as I did that you would +not be touched as long as we were looking after you. Tring and I, +if we had been asked, would have said that we could each have taken +on a dozen foreigners easily. Mr. Chetwynd is handy with his fists +too, though he hasn't your weight and reach, and your two other +friends are both pretty well accustomed to deal with rough customers. +As for Tring and me, it makes one feel small to know that we have +been bested by a handful of niggers, or Hindoos, or whatever the +chaps are, whom a good sized boy of twelve ought to be able to +polish off." + +"Now, Mark, what is to be done next?" Dick Chetwynd asked. + +"The next thing will be to get back as soon as we can, Dick. I, +for one, have had enough of Holland to last me for a lifetime." + +"I am afraid, gentlemen," the Lieutenant said, "you will have +to wait a day or two before you can leave. I have nineteen men in +prison, and there will be a meeting of magistrates this afternoon. +Now you have come back, Mr. Thorndyke, the charge against them won't +be as serious as it would have been before, but they are guilty of +a desperate and premeditated assault upon six passengers on their +arrival here; they have already admitted that they were paid for +their work; and as among them are some of the worst characters in +the city, you may be sure that now we have got them fairly in our +hands we shall not let them go. It is so simple an affair that the +investigation ought not to take long, but we shall want to find +out, if we can, who acted as the intermediary between the Hindoos +and the prisoners. I should think that two meetings ought to be +sufficient for the present, but I am afraid that there may then be +a long remand, and that you will either have to remain here or to +come over again." + +"It would be a horrible nuisance," Dick said; "still it would be +better to come back again than to wait here indefinitely, and anyhow +I don't suppose it would be necessary for all of us to come back +again." + +"I should not mind if it could be arranged for me to be here again +in a month's time," Mark agreed, "for, to tell you the truth, I am +going to be married in less than three weeks, and as I had intended +to come to Brussels, and afterwards to travel for a while, I could +make a visit here without greatly putting myself out." + +"I will try and arrange that, Mr. Thorndyke." + +"I shall be glad," Mark said, "if you can manage to get the men +sentenced without going into the question of the diamonds at all, +and treat the matter as a mere attempt at robbery. It surely would +not be necessary to bring the question of my being carried away into +the matter at all; I can give evidence that I was knocked down and +stunned, and that I was robbed of some jewels that I had about me, +which were the object of the attack." + +"I think we should have to admit that," the Lieutenant said; "it +must come out that the attack was an organized one." + +"Well, if it must, it must," Mark said reluctantly; "but then, +you see, no end of questions would be asked, and the thing might +be delayed while a search is being made for the men who stole the +bracelet." + +"Well, we will keep it out of the inquiry if we can," the Lieutenant +said. "The meeting will be at three o'clock. I will send a man to +take you to the Town Hall." + +At the appointed hour the party proceeded to the court, and the +eighteen prisoners, under a strong guard, having been brought in, +six magistrates took their places on the bench; the rest of the +court was crowded, the fray on the wharf and the number of captures +having created quite a stir in the city. They had arranged that +Tring should first give his evidence, which he did, the Lieutenant +of the watch acting as interpreter, though most of the magistrates +understood English. The appearance of the prisoners created quite +a sensation in the court, for the injuries that they had received +were now even more conspicuous than they had been when they were +first captured; some of them had to be led into court, their eyes +being completely closed, others had their heads bandaged, and all +showed signs of tremendous punishment. Tring related that he, with +five others, had come ashore together; one of his companions had +a row on board a ship they had crossed in, with a Lascar sailor, +who was a passenger, and they kept together as they were crossing +the wharf, thinking that possibly the man might attempt to stab +his companion. + +"I was walking behind him," Tring went on, "when the Lascar jumped +suddenly out from among the men standing about, and was about to +stab my companion, when I hit him just in time, and he went down; +then there was a rush, and we all got separated, and did as well +as we could until the watch came up; that is all that I know about +it." + +"Is the Lascar among the prisoners?" one of the magistrates asked +the Lieutenant of the watch. + +"No, sir, when picked up by one of my men he was found to be dead; +the blow had apparently killed him instantly." + +The other five then gave their evidence; it was similar to that +of Tring, save that being in front of him they knew nothing of the +attack by the Lascar. All they knew about it was that there was +a sudden rush upon them by a number of men armed with bludgeons, +that they were separated, and that each defended himself until the +guard came up. + +Some of the watch then gave evidence, and told how on arriving at +the spot eleven of the prisoners were found lying senseless; how, +on recovering, they were all taken to the watch house, where several +of them were recognized as notoriously bad characters; they had +admitted that they were paid to make the attack, which was apparently +the result of the private enmity of some person or persons unknown +to one or more of those attacked. + +The Lieutenant then related the steps that he had taken to capture +others connected with the attack, and that he found eight men +bearing marks of the fray, and that all these were also notorious +characters, and associates of the prisoners first taken. The first +witnesses were again questioned; five of them said that, so far +as they knew, they had no personal enemies. Mark, who was the last +to get into the witness box, said that he himself had no enemies, +but that an uncle of his, who was in the British Indian service, +had a sort of feud with some members of a sect there on account of +some jewels that he had purchased, and which had, they declared, +been stolen from a temple. Two soldiers through whose hands these +things had passed, had been successively killed by them, and his +uncle had to the day of his death believed that their vengeance +would one day fall upon him. + +"I can only suppose," continued Mark, "that I have inherited the +enmity they bore him, as I inherited the jewels, and that the attack +was really designed solely against me, and the consequences might +have been fatal to me had it not been for the strength and courage +of my fellow passengers." + +"Did they come with you for your protection, Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"To some extent, yes. The fact is, that I have for some time +been convinced that I was followed about by natives of India, and +remembering what my uncle had said on the subject, I became to +some degree apprehensive, and thought it as well to leave London +for a short time. That this attack was really instigated by the men +I have no doubt whatever, since, as you have heard, it was begun by +a Lascar, who tried to stab one of my companions and who received +a knockdown blow that caused his death from one of the others. It +is a well known fact that these people will cherish for many years +a determination to avenge any injury. However, I hope that after +the failure of this attempt upon my life I shall hear no more of +them." + +"Were any knives found on the prisoners?" the magistrates asked +the Lieutenant of the watch. + +"No, sir; all carried clubs. And they told me that they had been +especially ordered not to take knives, and had indeed been searched +before they came out." + +"What impression do you gather from that, Mr. Thorndyke?" + +"My impression is, sir, that they desired to overpower those with +me and to beat them down, in order to carry out their revenge upon +me." + +After some consultation the magistrate who had before spoken said: + +"The prisoners will be remanded. It is necessary that we should +find out who was the chief culprit who bribed this gang." + +As soon as the prisoners were taken out of court Mark slipped across +to the magistrates, accompanied by the Lieutenant as interpreter. + +"I hope, gentlemen, that our presence here will not be necessary, +for it would be a matter of extreme inconvenience. I may say that +my marriage is fixed for today three weeks, hence you can well +imagine that I want to return as soon as possible. Two of the men +are, as you have heard, Bow Street officers, whose presence could +not well be spared." + +The magistrates again consulted together. + +"Your evidence has all been taken down by the clerk of the court. +Certainly we should not require your presence at the remand; but +whether we should do so at the trial would, of course, depend upon +whether these men all own their guilt, which, having been taken +red handed, it is likely enough they will do. We will consent, +therefore, to your leaving, if you will give us an undertaking to +return for the trial if your presence is necessary, and that you +will bring with you the man who struck down the Lascar who commenced +the fray, and one of the others." + +"That I will do willingly," Mark replied. "We are much obliged to +you for your consideration. I shall be traveling for a time after +my marriage; but I will as I pass through Belgium after my marriage +give you the route I intend to take and the address at which letters +will find me, and if you send me a sufficiently long notice I will +at once return for the trial." + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + + +"You managed that very well, Mark," Dick said. "You kept well within +the limits of truth without bringing the real facts of the attack +upon us into the case." + +"Well, you see, Dick, after working as a detective, one gets into +the way of telling stories with the smallest amount of deviation +possible from the truth. What will these fellows get done to them, +Lieutenant?" + +"I should say that they will get two or three years imprisonment; +the only charge now is rioting and assault. It is lucky for them +that they had clubs instead of knives, for that would have brought +the matter under the head of attempted murder. The matter of the +gems was not important in the case, but there is sure to be a great +fuss and search for the missing Indians. I suppose you will soon +be off home now?" + +"Yes, I shall find out tonight what vessel leaves for England +tomorrow, and take a berth in the first that sails for London. It +is too late to think of starting this evening, and indeed I feel +that I want a long night's rest, for I did not sleep much last +night, and have not quite recovered from that crack on my head." + +On his return to the hotel Mark sent out a man to inquire at the +shipping offices, and finding that a bark would sail at nine o'clock +the next morning, they went down and took berths, and sailed in +her next day. The voyage home was a rapid one, for the wind blew +steadily from the east, and the vessel made the passage to the +mouth of the river in two days, and the next took them up to London. + +"I will call round tomorrow or next day, Gibbons, with the checks +for you both," Mark said as he prepared to go ashore. + +"No, sir. We are both of one mind that we could not take them. We +went over to prevent you being robbed of those sparklers, and to +see that you came to no harm. Well, the things are lost, and you +got knocked down and carried away. It is no thanks to us that you +are alive now. It is a mortifying job, that with two detectives to +watch over things and with us to fight we should have been fairly +beat by a few black niggers." + +"If there had been any bungling on your part, Gibbons, there might +be something in what you say, but no one could have foreseen that +before we had been on shore two minutes we should have been attacked +in that way. You both did all that men could do, as was shown by +the condition of the fellows who were taken. I was just as much +separated from you as you were from me, and the fact that we were +surprised as we were is really due to my not determining to stay +on board until the morning, which I could no doubt have done with +the captain's permission. It never struck me for a moment that we +should be attacked in force. I thought it probable that an attempt +at assassination would be made, but it certainly did not seem +probable that it would be attempted while you were all with me. +You are not in the slightest degree to blame, for your part of the +agreement was carried out to my satisfaction. I shall certainly +carry out mine, as I have arrived home safe and sound." + +"Well, governor, it is very good of you; but I tell you it will go +against the grain for us to take your money." + +On landing, Mark parted with Dick Chetwynd, who had arranged to +drop Mark's bag at his lodgings on his way home, and at once took +a hackney coach to Islington. Millicent gave a cry of delight as +he entered the room. + +"You are back earlier than I expected, Mark. You told me before +you started that the wind was in the east, and that you might be +a long time getting to Amsterdam unless it changed. I have been +watching the vane on the church, and it has been pointing east ever +since. + +"Well, you have sold the diamonds, I hope?" she said, after the +first greeting was over. + +"No; I have bad news for you, Millicent; the jewels have been +stolen." + +"Well it does not make much difference, Mark. We have much more +than enough without them, so don't bother yourself in the least. +How did it happen?" + +"Well, it is rather a long story. I will tell it you when Mrs. +Cunningham is here, so as not to have to go over it twice. How are +the dresses getting on?" + +"I suppose they are getting on all right," she said. "I have done +nothing for the last two days but try them on. You see, we put them +out to three milliners, and they all three seem to reach the same +point together, and I start after breakfast, and it takes about two +hours at each place. You don't know what trouble you have given me +by hurrying things on so unreasonably." + +"Well, it is better to have it all done and over," he said, "than +to have the thing hanging over you for a couple of months." + +"That is what Mrs. Cunningham says. Now I want to hear about your +adventures, and I will call her down." + + +"Only think, Mrs. Cunningham," Millicent said presently, with a +laugh, after she had returned with her, "this silly boy has actually +let the diamonds be stolen from him." + + +"No, really, Millicent!" + +"Yes, indeed. Fancy his not being fit to be trusted to look after +them! However, I tell him it is of no consequence. I don't know +how they went. He would not tell me the story until you came down." + +"I am sorry to say it is true, Mrs. Cunningham, although I can +assure you that I really cannot blame myself for either carelessness +or stupidity. I knew when I started that there was a very great +risk, and took what seemed to me every possible precaution, for +in addition to Dick Chetwynd going with me, I took two detectives +from Bow Street and two prize fighters." + +Exclamations of surprise broke from both ladies. + +"And yet, in spite of all that, these things were stolen," Millicent +said. "How on earth did they do it? I should have sewn them up in +my pockets inside my dress." + +"I sewed them up in the waistband of my trousers, Millicent, and +yet they managed, in spite of us, to steal them. And now I must +begin by telling you the whole history of those diamonds, and you +will understand why I thought it necessary to take a strong party +with me." + +He then told them, repeating the history the Colonel had given his +father of the diamonds, and the conviction that he had, that he +had been followed by Hindoos, and the instructions he had given +for the disposal of the bracelet. + +"As you know," he said, "nothing happened to confirm my uncle's +belief that there were men over here in search of the diamonds +during my father's life, but since then I have come to the same +conclusion that he had, and felt positive that I was being constantly +followed wherever I went. As soon as I heard where the treasure +was I began to take every precaution in my power. I avoided going +to the bank after my first visit there, and, as you know, would +not bring the things for you to look at. I got Dick Chetwynd to +go there, open the case, and take out these diamonds. He did not +bring them away with him, but fetched them from there the morning +we started. He went down and took the passage for us both at the +shipping office, and the pugilists and the detectives each took +passages for themselves, so that I hoped, however closely I was +followed, they would not learn that I was taking them to Amsterdam." + +"It was very wrong, Mark; very wrong indeed," Millicent broke in. +"You had no right to run such a terrible risk; it would have been +better for you to have taken the diamonds and thrown them into the +Thames." + +"That would not have improved matters," he said; "the Indians would +not have known that I had got rid of them, and would have continued +their efforts to find them, and I should always have been in danger +instead of getting it over once for all. However, I did not think +that there was any danger, going over as I did, with two of the +best prize fighters in England, to say nothing of the detectives, +who were the men who were with me when I caught Bastow. The only +danger was that I might be stabbed; but, as they would know, it +was no use their stabbing me unless they could search me quietly, +and that they could not do unless I was alone and in some lonely +neighborhood, and I had made up my mind not to stir out unless the +whole party were with me. I found out, when we got on board that +in spite of all the precautions I had taken, they had discovered +that I was going to sail for Amsterdam, which they could only have +done by following Dick as well as myself. There was a dark faced +foreign sailor, who, I had no doubt, was a Hindoo, already on board, +and I saw another in a boat watching us start; this was unpleasant, +but as I felt sure that they could not have known that I had with +me detectives and pugilists, I still felt that they would be able +to do nothing when I got to Amsterdam." + +Then he told them the whole story of the attack, of his being carried +away, and of his unexpected release; of the search that had been +made for him and the arrest of eighteen of his assailants. Millicent +grew pale as he continued, and burst into tears when she heard of +his being a prisoner in the hands of the Hindoos. + +"I shall never let you go out of my sight again, Mark!" she +exclaimed when he had finished. "It was bad enough before when you +were searching for that man here, and I used to be terribly anxious; +but that was nothing to this." + +"Well, there is an end of it now, Millicent; the men have got the +diamonds, and will soon be on their way to India, if they have not +started already." + +"Nasty things!" she said; "I shall never like diamonds again: they +will always remind me of the terrible danger that you have run. Isn't +it extraordinary that for twenty years four or five men should be +spending their lives waiting for a chance of getting them back!" + +"I do not expect there were so many as that; probably there was +only one. He would have no difficulty in learning that my father +had not received any extraordinary gems from my uncle, and probably +supposed that they would not be taken out from wherever they might +be until you came of age. After the death of my father he might +suppose that I should take them out, or that, at any rate, I should +go to whoever had them, and see that they were all right, and he +then, perhaps, engaged half a dozen Lascars--there are plenty of +them at the docks--and had me watched wherever I went; and, do +you know, that I believe I once owed my life to them." + +"How was that, Mark?" + +"Well, I was captured by some fellows who suspected me to be a Bow +Street runner, and I think that it would have gone very hard with +me if a party of five or six prize fighters had not broken into +the house, pretty nearly killed the men in whose hands I was, +and rescued me. They said that they had heard of my danger from a +foreign sailor who called at Gibbons', with whom I was in the habit +of boxing, and told him about it. You see, until they learned where +the jewels were, my life was valuable to them, for possibly I was +the only person who knew where they were hidden; so really I don't +think I have any reason for bearing a grudge against them. They saved +my life in the first place, and spared it at what was a distinct +risk to themselves. On the other hand, they were content with +regaining the bracelet, not even, as I told you, taking my watch +or purse. You see, with them it was a matter of religion. They had +no animosity against me personally, but I have no doubt they would +have stabbed me without the slightest compunction had there been no +other way of getting the things. Still, I think that I owe a debt +of gratitude to them rather than the reverse, and, after all, the +loss of the bracelet is not a serious one to us." + +"I am glad it is gone," Millicent said. "You say it had already +caused the death of two men, and if you had succeeded in selling +it I can't help thinking that the money would have brought ill +fortune to us. I am heartily glad that the diamonds are gone, Mark. +I suppose they were very handsome?" + +"They were magnificent," he said. "Dick and Cotter both agreed that +they had never seen their equal, and I fancy that they must have +been worth a great deal more than your father valued them at." + +"Well, it does not matter at all. There is no history attached to +the others, I hope, Mark?" + +"Not in any way, dear. They were bought, as the Colonel told my +father, in the ordinary course of things, and some, no doubt, were +obtained at the capture of some of the native princes' treasuries; +but it was solely on account of this bracelet that he had any anxiety. +You can wear all the others, if you have a fancy for keeping them, +without a shadow of risk." + +"No, Mark, we will sell them every one. I don't think that I shall +ever care to wear any jewels again; and if I am ever presented at +court and have to do so, I would rather that you should buy some +new ones fresh from a jeweler's shop than wear anything that has +come from India." + +"To-morrow you shall both go to the bank with me to see them, and +then I will take them to some first-class jeweler's and get him to +value them." + +The visit was paid next day. Both Millicent and Mrs. Cunningham +were somewhat disappointed at the jewels. + +"It is hardly fair to see them like this," Philip Cotter said. +"They would look very different if reset. No Indian jewels I have +ever seen show to advantage in their native settings; but many of +the stones are very large, and without knowing anything about them +I should say that they are worth the 50,000 pounds at which you say +Colonel Thorndyke valued them. He was not likely to be mistaken. He +was evidently a judge of these matters, and would hardly be likely +to be far wrong." + +"We will go with you to the jeweler's, Mark," Millicent said. "In +the first place, I shall not feel quite comfortable until I know +that they are out of your hands, and in the next place I should +like to hear what he thinks of them." + +"I have a number of Indian jewels that I wish you to value for me," +Mark said, as, carrying the case, he entered the jeweler's shop. +"They were collected by Colonel Thorndyke, an uncle of mine, during +service in India." + +The jeweler took them with him into a room behind the shop. The +case was opened, and the man took out sixty-eight small parcels it +contained, and opened them one after the other. + +"I shall need a very careful examination of these before I can +form any estimate of their value," he said, after inspecting some +of the more important pieces of jewelry carefully. "They are a +most magnificent collection, and had they been properly cut in the +first place they would have been worth a very large sum. Unfortunately, +the Indian princes think more of size than of lustre, and have their +stones cut very much too flat to show off their full brilliancy. +Some of these large ones I should certainly advise to be recut, for +what they will lose in weight they will gain in beauty and value. +However, sir, I will go through them and give you an estimate of +the selling value of each piece. I need not say that they ought +all to be reset in the prevailing fashion; but the gold, which is +in some cases unnecessarily massive, will go some distance towards +defraying the expense." + +"When shall I call again?" Mark asked. + +"I should be glad if you can give me a week," the jeweler said. +"Some of the things, for instance that great pearl necklace, I could +appraise without much difficulty, but all the gems must be taken out +of their settings before I could form a fair idea of their value." + +"Then I will call in a week's time," Mark said. "I am in no +particular hurry about them, but I would rather that they were in +your care than mine." + +"Yes, if the cracksmen got word that there was such a collection +as this in any private house it would need a couple of men with +pistols to keep guard over them." + +A week later Mark again called. + +"I have the list ready for you, sir; you will see that they are +not marked according to their setting, but according to their size +and value. Thus, you see, the largest stones are priced separately; +the smaller ones are in groups according to their weight. The total +comes to 42,000 pounds. I do not know whether that at all equals +your expectations. I may say that I have shown the stones to two +or three of our principal diamond merchants, and that the prices +I have put down are those at which they would be willing to buy +them; possibly some would be worth more. I had the merchants here +together, and they spent some hours going through them, and the sums +put down are those at which one or other were willing to purchase." + +"It quite answers my expectations," Mark said. "My uncle's estimate, +indeed, was somewhat higher, but doubtless he judged them at the +price which they would fetch in India. Well, sir, I authorize you +to close with the offers, and to dispose of them for me. I will +give you a written authority to do so. In the meantime, I wish to +buy a suite of jewels as a wedding present, a tiara, necklace, and +bracelets; but I do not want any diamonds to be among them." + +"I am afraid I have nothing in stock without diamonds; of course, +I have both necklaces and bracelets of almost any stones that you +might select, but I have no complete set without diamonds; the +effect would be somber, and few ladies would like them." + +"We have some unpleasant associations with diamonds," Mark said, +"and on that point I am quite determined; but if you used pearls +instead of diamonds the effect might be as good. I don't care +whether the stones are emeralds or rubies; at any rate, I should +like to see some, and then perhaps you might be able to make me a +set on the same model." + +Several superb sets were brought in; Mark selected one of emeralds +and diamonds. + +"What would be the price of this set?" he asked. + +"That set is 6000 pounds, sir; the stones are exceptionally fine +ones; but if you substituted pearls of equal size for the diamonds, +it would cost considerably less; I could not give you the exact +price until it is made, but I should say that it would be about +4500 pounds." + +"Very well, then, I will take that. How long will it be making?" + +"I should not like to say less than three months at the earliest; +it will require some time to collect as fine a set of emeralds +as these. Indeed, I think that most probably I shall use these +emeralds, or the greater part of them, and collect others to take +their places at my leisure. I do not know whether the best plan +would not be to take the diamonds out and substitute pearls; there +would be no difficulty in getting them, and in that case I might +have it ready for you in a month." + +"I think that will be the best plan; but you need not be in any +particular hurry about them. My marriage will take place in less +than a fortnight, and after that I shall probably be three or four +months before I return to London. I will get you to keep the things +until I come back." + +"I have sold the jewels, Millicent," he said, when he returned to +Islington; "the jeweler has found purchasers for them all, and the +total comes to 42,000 pounds." + +"Whatever shall we do with all our money, Mark?" + +"I rather wonder myself, dear. However, there is one thing, there +are always plenty of people who will be glad to relieve us of +anything that we don't want. I can tell you that in the course of +my search for Bastow I have seen an amount of poverty and misery such +as I never dreamt of, and I certainly should like to do something +to relieve it. The best thing that I know of would be to give a +handsome sum to three or four of the great hospitals. I don't know +of any better means of helping the very poor." + +"Suppose, Mark," the girl said, putting her hand on his arm, "we +give this 42,000 pounds as a thank offering. We never expected +to get it, and my father's jewels have nearly cost you your life. +We have such an abundance without that, I should like, above all +things, to give this money away." + +"I think that is an excellent plan, Millicent, and a very happy +thought on your part. We cannot do it now, as we have not yet got +the money, but as soon as we do we will send off checks for 10,000 +guineas each to St. Bartholomew's, Guy's, and St. Thomas'--those +are the three principal ones; the others we can settle afterwards. +But I should say that the Foundling would be as good as any, and I +believe that they are rather short of funds at present; then there +is the London Mendicity Society, and many other good charities. +Perhaps it would be better to divide the whole among eight of them +instead of four; but we need not settle that until we return." + +"Do you think we shall have to go to this horrid Amsterdam, Mark?" + +"I hope not, dear; but I shall no doubt hear from the Lieutenant +of the watch during the next week or ten days." + +When the letter came it was satisfactory. The prisoners, seeing +the hopelessness of any defense, had all admitted their guilt, and +the name of the man who had dealt with them had also been given up. +Except in his case there would be no trial. The others would have +sentences passed on them at once, and three, who had been promised +comparatively slight punishment, would go into the box to give +evidence against the man who had engaged them. Before starting for +Holland Mark had consulted Millicent as to whether she would prefer +being married in London or at Crowswood. She had replied: + +"I should greatly prefer Crowswood, Mark. Here we know no one, +there we should be among all our friends; certainly if we don't +go we must get Mr. Greg to come up and marry us here. I am sure +he would feel very disappointed if anyone else were asked. At the +same time I should not like to go home. When we come back from our +trip it will be different; but it would be a great trial now, and +however happy we might be, I should feel there was a gloom over +the house." + +"I quite agree with you, Millicent. When we come back we can see +about entirely refurnishing it, and, perhaps, adding some rooms to +it, and we need not go down until a complete change has been made. +We shall be able to manage it somehow or other, and I quite agree +with you that anything will be better than going back to the house +for a day or two before the wedding." + +On the voyage back from Holland Mark had talked the matter over +with Dick Chetwynd, and said that he thought of taking rooms for +Mrs. Cunningham and Millicent at Reigate, and stopping at the hotel +himself, and having the wedding breakfast there. + +"Of course, Dick, you will be my best man." + +"I should think so," Dick laughed. "Why, if you had asked anyone +else I should have made a personal matter of it with him, and have +given him the option of resigning the position or going out with +me. But your other plans are foolish, and I shall take the matter +into my own hands; I shall insist upon the two ladies coming down +to the Park, and I will get my aunt to come and preside generally +over things. I shall fill up the house with bridesmaids, and shall +have a dance the evening before. You can put up at the hotel if you +like, but you know very well that there are a dozen houses where +they will be delighted to have you; there is no doubt that when +they know what is coming off you will get a dozen invitations, and +then after church all those invited will drive off to the Park to +the wedding breakfast. After that is over you can start in a post +chaise to Canterbury or Dover, wherever you may decide to make your +first halt." + +"But, my dear Dick, I could not put you to all this trouble!" + +"Nonsense, man. I should enjoy it immensely; besides, I shall be +really glad of a good reason to try and open the doors of the Park +again. I have been there very little since my father's death, and +I think I shall make it my headquarters in future. I am getting +rather tired of bachelor life in London, and must look out for a +wife; so nothing could be more appropriate than this idea. Don't +bother yourself any further about it. I shall ride down and establish +myself there tomorrow, and spend a couple of days in driving round +to our friends and in sending out invitations. I shall still have +nearly a fortnight for making all preparations. Why, it will cause +quite an excitement in the neighborhood! I shall be hailed as a +benefactor, and I shall let everyone know that your father's ward +was really your cousin, but that by the will of her father she +was to drop her surname until she came of age; and that until that +time your father was to have the entire control of the property. I +shall add that although the estate, of course, is hers, your uncle +has left you a very big fortune, and that nothing could be more +suitable in all respects than the marriage." + +"That will do excellently, Dick; that will be quite enough, without +going into details at all. You can mention that we intend to have +the house entirely refurnished, and on the return from our wedding +trip abroad to settle there. I am sure I am extremely obliged to +you for your offer, which will certainly clear away all sorts of +small difficulties." + +A day or two after his return Mark wrote to Mr. Greg telling him +the relations in which Millicent and he stood to each other, and of +the near approach of their marriage. He said that Millicent would +be married from Dick Chetwynd's, but that it would be at Crowswood +church. In return he received a warm letter of congratulation +from the Rector, telling him that the news was in every respect +delightful, and that his wife and the children were in a state +of the highest excitement, not only at the marriage, but at their +coming down to reside again at Crowswood. + +"The village," he said, "will be scarcely less pleased than I +am, for though everything goes on as you ordered, and the people +get their milk, broths, and jellies as before, they don't look at +it as the same thing as it was in the old days. I cannot say that +the news of your engagement to Miss Conyers--I ought to say Miss +Thorndyke--is surprising, for I had thought that it would be +quite the natural thing for you to fall in love with each other, +and, indeed, my wife declares that she saw it coming on distinctly +during the last few months before you left here. Your postscript +saying that Bastow had been captured and had committed suicide gave +me a distinct feeling of relief, for no one could tell whether the +deadly enmity that he felt for your father might not extend to you. +I have cut this note rather short, but I have just heard the door +shut, and I am quite sure that my wife has gone down to tell the good +news in the village, and I really cannot deny myself the pleasure +of telling some of the people myself, and seeing their faces brighten +up at the news." + +As Dick had foretold would be the case, Mark received a very +warm letter from Sir Charles Harris, congratulating him upon his +approaching marriage, and insisting upon his taking up his quarters +with him. + +"I am sending a man down with this to hand it to the guard as the +up coach goes through the town. Chetwynd told me that his call on +me was the first he had paid, so I feel fairly confident that I +shall forestall the rest of your friends, and that you will give +me the pleasure of your company." + +Mark wrote back accepting the invitation at once, which enabled +him to decline half a dozen others without the necessity of making +a choice. Everything turned out as arranged. Millicent and Mrs. +Cunningham went down in a post chaise, two days before the wedding, +and Mark drove down in his gig with them. Dick Chetwynd met them +on horseback just outside Reigate, and escorted the ladies to his +house, Mark driving on to that of Sir Charles Harris. Millicent +found the house full of her special friends, whom she had asked +to be her bridesmaids. She was almost bewildered by the warmth of +their welcome, and overpowered by the questions poured upon her. + +"The news quite took all our breath away, Millicent," one of +them said. "It seems extraordinary that you should have been Miss +Thorndyke all the time, though I don't think that any of us were +at all surprised that you should take the name now; you must have +been surprised when you heard that you were the heiress of Crowswood." + +"I was a great deal more disgusted than surprised," she said rather +indignantly. "I did not think that it was fair at all that I should +step into Mark's shoes." + +"Well, it has all come right now, Millicent, and I dare say you +thought that it would, even then." + +"I can assure you that I did not; quite the contrary, I thought +that it never would come right. I was very unhappy about it for a +time." + +"Now, young ladies," Dick Chetwynd laughed, "will you please take +Mrs. Cunningham and Miss Thorndyke up to their rooms? I don't +suppose I shall see any more of you before dinner time; there are +those trunks to be opened and examined, talked over, and admired. +Mind, I have fifteen more, for the most part men, coming to dinner, +so those of you who aspire to follow Miss Thorndyke's example had +best prepare yourselves for conquest." + +The ball on the following evening was a great success. Dick +had determined that it should be a memorable one, and there was a +consensus of opinion that it was the most brilliant that had taken +place in that part of the country for many years. + +Crowswood church and village presented a most festive appearance +on the following day; there was not a cottage that had not great +posies of flowers in its windows, and that had not made some sort +of attempt at decoration with flags or flowers. A huge arch of +evergreens, with sheaves of wheat and flowers, had been erected on +the top of the hill, and every man, woman, and child turned out in +their best, and cheered lustily, first, when Mark drove up in his +gig, and equally lustily when the Chetwynd carriage, drawn by four +gray horses, dashed up, preceded by a large number of others with +the bridesmaids and friends. The church was already crowded, and +Mr. Greg was visibly moved at seeing the son and niece of the man +to whom he owed his living made man and wife. When the wedding +breakfast, at which more than fifty sat down, and the necessary +toasts were over, Mr. and Mrs. Thorndyke started for Canterbury. + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + + +It was not until Easter that Mark Thorndyke and his wife returned to +England. They had spent the greater portion of that time in Italy, +lingering for a month at Venice, and had then journeyed quietly +homewards through Bavaria and Saxony; They were in no hurry, as +before starting on their honeymoon Mark had consulted an architect, +had told him exactly what he wanted, and had left the matter in +his hands. Mrs. Cunningham had from time to time kept them informed +how things were going on. The part of the house in which the Squire's +room had been situated was entirely pulled down, and a new wing +built in its stead. Millicent had been specially wishful that this +should be done. + +"I don't know that I am superstitious, Mark," she had said, "but +I do think that when a murder has taken place in a house it is +better to make a complete change. The servants always think they +see or hear something. That part of the house is avoided, and it +is difficult to get anyone to stay there. I think it is very much +more important to do that than it is to get the house refurnished; +we can do anything in that way you like when we get back, but I +should certainly like very much to have the great alteration made +before we return." + +The architect was a clever one, and the house, which was some two +hundred years old, was greatly improved in appearance by the new wing, +which was made to harmonize well with the rest, but was specially +designed to give as much variety as possible to the general outline. +Millicent uttered an exclamation of pleasure when they first caught +a glimpse of the house. As they rode through the village they were +again welcomed as heartily as they were on their wedding day. Mrs. +Cunningham received them; she had been established there for a +month, and had placed the house entirely on its old footing. They +first examined the new portion of the house, and Millicent was +greatly pleased with the rooms that had been prepared for them, +Mark having requested Mrs. Cunningham to put the furnishing into +the hands of the best known firm of the day. + +"I have asked," Mrs. Cunningham said, "the Rector and his wife and +Mr. Chetwynd to dine with us this evening; they can scarcely be +termed company, and I thought that you might find it pleasant to +have these old friends here the first evening. There is a letter for +you on the library table, Mark; it may almost be called a packet; +it has been here nearly a month." + +In our days a newly married couple would find on their return from +foreign travel basketfuls of letters, circulars, and catalogues +from tradesmen of all kinds; happily, our forefathers were saved +from these inflictions, and Mark at once went to the library with +almost a feeling of surprise as to who could have written to him. +He saw at once that it was a ship's letter, for on the top was +written, "Favored by the Surinam." + +"Why, it is Ramoo's writing. I suppose he gave it to someone he +knew, and that instead of its being put in the mail bag in India, +he brought it on with him. What a tremendously long epistle!" he +exclaimed, glancing his eye down the first page, and then a puzzled +expression came across his face; he sat down and began to read from +the first slowly and carefully. + +"HONORED SAHIB: + +"I do not know why I should write to tell you the true history of +all these matters. I have thought it over many times, but I feel +that it is right that you should know clearly what has happened, +and how it has come about, and more especially that you should +know that you need never fear any troubles such as those that have +taken place. I am beginning to write this while we are yet sailing, +and shall send it to you by ship from the Cape, or if it chances +that we meet any ship on her way to England, our letters may be +put on board her." + +"Why, this letter must be more than a year old," Mark said to himself. +There was no date to the letter, but, turning to the last sheet, he +saw as a postscript after the signature the words, "January 26th. +--A ship, the Surinam, is lying a short distance from us, and will +take our letters to England." + +"Yes, it must be a year old; but what he means by the way he begins +is more than I can imagine;" and he turned back to the point at +which he had broken off. + +"I would tell it you in order as it happened. I, Ramoo, am a Brahmin. +Twenty years ago I was the head priest of a great temple. I shall +not say where the temple was; it matters not in any way. There was +fighting, as there is always fighting in India. There were Company's +Sepoys and white troops, and one night the most sacred bracelet of +the great god of our temple was stolen." + +"Good Heavens!" Mark exclaimed, laying down the letter. "Then it has +been Ramoo who has all this time been in pursuit of the diamonds; +and to think that my uncle never even suspected him!" + +Then suddenly he continued, "now I understand why it was my life +was spared by those fellows. By Jove, this is astounding!" Then he +took up the letter again. + +"Two of the Brahmins under me had observed, at a festival the day +before the bracelet was lost, a white soldier staring at it with +covetous eyes. One of them was in charge of the temple on the +night when it was stolen, and on the day following he came to me, +and said, 'I desire to devote my life to the recovery of the jewels +of the god. Bondah will go with me; we will return no more until we +bring them back.' 'It is good,' I said; 'the god must be appeased, +or terrible misfortunes may happen.' Then we held a solemn service +in the temple. The two men removed the caste marks from their +foreheads, prostrated themselves before the god, and went out from +amongst us as outcasts until the day of their death. Two months +later a messenger came from the one who had spoken to me, saying that +they had found the man, but had for a long time had no opportunity +of finding the bracelet. Then Bondah had met him in a lonely place, +and had attacked him. Bondah had lost his life, but the soldier +was, though sorely wounded, able to get back to his regiment. He +had died, but he had, the writer was convinced, passed the jewels +on to a comrade, whom he would watch. Then I saw that one man was +not sufficient for such a task. Then I, too, the Chief Brahmin of +the temple, saw that it was my duty to go forth also. + +"I laid the matter before the others, and they said, 'You are right; +it is you who, as the chief in the service of the god, should bring +back his jewels.' So again there was a service, and I went forth +as an outcast and a wanderer, knowing that I must do many things +that were forbidden to my caste; that I must touch unclean things, +must eat forbidden food, and must take life if needs be. You, sahib, +cannot understand how terrible was the degradation to me, who was +of the purest blood of the Brahmins. I had taken the most solemn +vows to devote my life to this. I knew that, whether successful or +not, although I might be forgiven my offense by the god, yet that +never again could I recover my caste, even though the heaviest +penances were performed. Henceforth, I must stand alone in the +world, without kindred, without friends, without help, save such +as the god might give me in the search. + +"I was rich. The greater part of my goods I gave to the temple, and +yet retained a considerable sum, for I should need money to carry +out my quest, and after I had accomplished it I should hand over +what remained for the benefit of the poor. I should myself become +a fakir. I want you to understand, sahib, that henceforth I had but +one object in life, a supreme one, to accomplish, in which nothing +must stand in my way, and that what would be in others a crime was +but a sacrifice on my part, most acceptable to the god. I journeyed +down to the place where my comrade was, dressed as one of the lowest +class, even as a sweeper, and he and I strove by all the means in +our power to discover what this man had done with the jewels. Night +after night we crawled into his tent. We searched his bed and his +clothes. With sharp rods we tried every inch of the soil, believing +that he had hidden the diamonds underground, but we failed. + +"There my comrade said, 'I must give my life to find out where he +hides these things. I will watch night after night by the door of +his tent, and if he comes out I will stab him; it shall be a mortal +wound, but I will not kill him outright. Before he dies he will +doubtless, as the other did, pass the jewels on to some comrade, +and then it will be for you to follow him up.' 'It is good,' I said. +'This man may have hidden them away somewhere during the time they +have marched through the country. In spite of the watch you have +kept he may have said to himself, "I will return, though it be +years hence." Your plan is good,' I said. 'I envy you. 'Tis better +to die thus than to live in sin as we are doing.' + +"That evening the man was stabbed, but an officer running up killed +my comrade. The soldier was taken to the hospital, and I lay down +beside the tent with my eye to a slit that I had cut, and watched +till morning. + +"Then I took my broom and swept the ground. I had not been hired as +one of the camp sweepers, and so could move about and sweep where +I chose. No one ever asked me any questions. The soldiers heeded +me no more than if I had been a dog, and, of course, supposed that +I was acting by the order of the head of the sweepers. Presently +I saw one of the servants of the hospital go across to the tent of +the officer who had killed my comrade. He came over and went into +the hospital tent. I felt sure that it was the wounded man who had +sent for him. He was in there some time. Presently a soldier came +out and went to the tent of the wounded man, and returned bringing +a musket. Then I said to myself, 'The god has blinded us. He wills +that we shall go through many more toils before we regain the +bracelet.' Doubtless the man had carried the bracelet in his musket +all the time, and we, blind that we were, had never thought of it. + +"Presently the officer came out again. I noticed that as he did so +he looked round on all sides as if to see if he were watched. Then +I knew that it was as I had thought: the soldier had given the +bracelet to him. At this I was pleased; it would be far more easy +to search the tent of an officer than of a soldier, who sleeps +surrounded by his comrades. I thought that there was no hurry now; +it would need but patience, and I should be sure to find them. +I had not calculated that he would have better opportunities than +the soldier for going about, and that, doubtless, the soldier had +warned him of his danger. Two hours later the officer mounted his +horse and rode towards the camp of another regiment, a mile and +a quarter away. There was nothing in that; but I watched for his +return all that day and all that night, and when he did not come +back, I felt that he was doing something to get rid of the diamonds. + +"He was away three days, and when he returned I was almost sure +that he had not the diamonds about him. As he had ridden off he +had looked about just as he had when he left the hospital: he was +uneasy, just as if he was watched; now he was uneasy no longer. +Then I knew that my search would be a long one, and might fail +altogether. I went away, and for three months I prayed and fasted; +then I returned. I bought different clothes, I painted my forehead +with another caste mark, then I bought from the servant of an +officer in another regiment his papers of service: recommendations +from former masters. Then I went to the officer--you will guess, +sahib, that it was the Major, your uncle--and I paid his servant +to leave his service, and to present me as a brother of his who +had been accustomed to serve white sahibs, and was, like himself, +a good servant; so I took his place. + +"He was a good master, and I came to love him, though I knew that I +might yet have to kill him. You have heard that I saved his life +three times; I did so partly because I loved him, but chiefly because +his life was most precious to me, for if he had died I should have +lost all clew to the bracelet. I had, of course, made sure that +he had not got them with him; over and over again I searched every +article in his possession. I ripped open his saddle lest they might +be sewn up in its stuffing. All that could be done I did, until I +was quite sure that he had not got them. He, on his part, came to +like me. He thought that I was the most faithful of servants, and +after the last time I saved his life he took me with him everywhere. +He went down to Madras, and was married there. I watched his every +movement. After that he went down frequently. Then a child was +born, and six months afterwards his wife died. + +"The regiment was stationed at the fort. At that time he was +at many places--the governor's, the other officer sahibs', the +merchants', and others'. I could not follow him, but I was sure by +his manner that he had not taken back the bracelet from whoever he +had sent it to. I knew him so well by this time that I should have +noticed any change in his manner in a moment. At last the child +went away in the charge of Mrs. Cunningham. I bribed the child's +ayah, and she searched Mrs. Cunningham's boxes and every garment +she had, and found no small sealed parcel or box amongst them. +Three years more passed. By this time the Colonel treated me more +as a friend than as a servant. He said one day, laughing, 'It is +a long time since my things have been turned topsy turvy, Ramoo. I +think the thieves have come to the conclusion that I have not got +what they are looking for.' 'What is that, sahib?' I asked. 'Some +special jewels,' he said. 'They are extremely valuable. But I have +got them and a lot of other things so safely stowed that no one will +ever find them unless I give them the clew.' 'But suppose you are +killed, sahib,' I said; 'your little daughter will never get the +things.' 'I have provided for that,' he answered. 'If I am killed +I have arranged that she shall know all about it either when she +comes to the age of eighteen or twenty-one.' + +"A few weeks after that he was wounded very badly. I nursed him +night and day for weeks, and when he came to England he brought me +with him. As you know, sahib, he died. When he was in London he +went to see Mrs. Cunningham and the child, and several times to +the office of the lawyer who attended your father's funeral. Then +he came down to your father, and I know he had long and earnest +conversations with him. I did all I could to listen, but the Colonel +always had the windows and doors shut before he began to speak. +I could see that your father was troubled. Then the Colonel died. +After his death I could never find his snuff box; he had carried +it about with him for some years; once or twice I had examined it, +but it was too small for the diamonds to be hidden in. I suppose +that he had given it to the sahib, your father, but as I could +never find it I guessed that there was some mystery attached to +it, though what I could not tell. + +"Then your father took me down to Crowswood with him, and Mrs. +Cunningham and the little girl came down. I was surprised to find +that your father seemed to be master of the estate, and that no +one thought anything of the child, whose name had been changed. I +spoke one day to Mrs. Cunningham about it; your father seemed to +me a just and good man, and I could not believe that he was robbing +his brother's daughter. Mrs. Cunningham told me that the Colonel +did not wish her to be known as an heiress, and that he had left +the estate to his brother until she came of age. Your father was +as good a master as the Colonel had been. I watched and watched, +and once or twice I overheard him talking to himself in the library, +and discovered that your father himself was altogether ignorant of +the hiding place of the property that the Colonel had mentioned in +his will. I knew then that I should have to wait until the child +was either eighteen or twenty-one. + +"It was a long time, but I had learnt to be patient. I was not +unhappy; I loved your father, I loved the Colonel's little daughter; +and I was very fond of you. All these things were small to me in +comparison to my vow and the finding the jewels of the god, but +they shortened the years of waiting. Then a year before the young +mistress was eighteen came the shot through the window. I did not +know who had fired it, but I saw that your father's life was in +danger, and I said to myself, 'He will tell the young sahib what +he knows about the bracelet.' After you had gone into the library +I opened the door quietly, and listened. I could hear much that +was said, but not all. I heard him say something about a snuff box, +and some means of finding the lost things being hidden in it, and +that he had kept them all these years in a secret hiding place, +which he described. You were to search for the diamonds, and I +guessed from that that he did not know what he was to be told when +the young memsahib came of age, or perhaps when she was eighteen. +It was not until I had thought over what I heard that I came to the +conclusion that if I could find the things he spoke of I might be +able to find the jewels. By that time your father had gone to bed. +I was foolish not to have been patient, but my blood boiled after +waiting for eighteen or nineteen years. The god seemed to have sent +me the chance, and it seemed to me that I should take it at once. +I knew that he generally slept with his window open, and it seemed +to me that it would be easy to slip in there and to get those things +from the cabinet. I knew where the ladder was kept. I took a file +from the tool chest and cut the chain." + +Here Mark dropped the letter in horror. + +"Good Heavens!" he exclaimed. "Then Bastow spoke truly, and he was +not my father's murderer! Never did a single suspicion of Ramoo +enter my head. This is appalling; but I cannot read any more now. +It is time for me to go and dress for dinner." + +"Is anything the matter with you, Mark?" Millicent asked anxiously, +as she met him in the drawing room; "you look as white as a sheet." + +"I have been reading Ramoo's letter, and he has told me some things +that have surprised and shocked me. I will tell you about them +after dinner, dear. It is a long story, but you won't have to wait +until Dick and the Gregs are gone. They are interested in all that +interests us, and shall hear the letter read. No; I think I will +ask them and Dick to come in the morning. I should not like anything +to sadden the first evening of our coming home." + +"Then it is something sad." + +"Yes, but it does not affect us, though it does affect Ramoo. Now +clear your brow, dear, and dismiss the subject from your mind, else +our guests will fancy that our marriage has not been altogether so +satisfactory as they had hoped." + +"As if they could think such a thing as that, Mark," she said +indignantly. "But there is the sound of wheels; it is Mr. Chetwynd's +gig." + +The three visitors all came in together, having met at the door. +Mark, with a great effort, put aside the letter from his mind, +and a cheerful evening was spent. They had much to tell of their +travels, many questions to ask about the parish and their mutual +friends and the neighborhood generally, and when they rose to go +Mark said: + +"Would you mind riding over again tomorrow morning, Dick? I have +a letter to read to you that will interest you greatly." + +"Certainly. What time shall I be here?" + +"Say at eleven o'clock. It is a long epistle, and will take us an +hour to get through; after that we can stroll round, and, of course, +you will stop to lunch. + + +"I should be glad if you and Mrs. Greg can come over too," he +added, turning to the Rector; "you will be much interested also in +the matter." + + +The next day the party met in the library at the hour named. "I may +tell you, Mr. Greg, that I specially asked you and your wife here +because this letter throws some light on Arthur Bastow's connection +with my father's murder; you were friends with his father, and I +think you ought to know. As to you, Dick, the letter will interest +you from beginning to end, and will surprise as much as it will +interest you." + +"Even I don't know what it is, Mrs. Greg," Millicent said. "I know +it quite upset Mark yesterday, but he said he would sooner I did +not know anything about it until today, as he did not want me to +be saddened on the first evening of our return home. Now, please +go on, Mark; you have said quite enough to excite us all." + +Mark had read but a short distance when Dick Chetwynd exclaimed: + +"Then Ramoo was at the bottom of that Indian business, after all. +I almost wonder you never suspected it, Mark." + +"Well, I hardly could do so," Mark said, "when my uncle was so fond +of him, and he had served him so faithfully." + +As he approached the point at which he had laid down the letter on +the previous evening, Millicent's color faded. + +Suddenly an exclamation of horror broke from her when he read the +last line. + +"Oh, Mark," she said, with quivering lips, "don't say it was Ramoo. +He always seemed so kind and good." + +"It was here I stopped last night," he said, "but I fear there +can be no doubt about it. I must say that it is evident from this +letter, that no thought of doing my father harm was in his mind +when he placed that ladder against the window. Now I will go on." + +The letter continued as follows: + +"Having placed the ladder, I clambered to the window and quietly +entered the room. It was quite dark, but I knew the place of every +piece of furniture so well that I was able to go without hesitation +to the cabinet. Your father was speaking very slowly and distinctly +when he told you how it was to be opened, and I was able to do it +easily, but I did not know that the back opened with a sharp click, +and the noise startled me and woke your father. In an instant +he was out of bed and seized me by the throat. Now, he was a much +stronger man than I was. I struggled in vain. I felt that in a +moment I should become insensible; my vow and my duty to the god +flashed across me, and scarce knowing what I did, I drew a little +dagger I always carried, and struck blindly. He fell, and I fell +beside him. For a time I was insensible. When I recovered I was +seized with the bitterest remorse that I had killed one I loved, but +I seemed to hear the voice of the god saying, 'You have done well, +Ramoo. I am your great master, and you are bound to my service.' + +"I got up almost blindly, felt in the cabinet, and found a coin and +a piece of paper, and a feeling of exultation came over me that, +after nearly twenty years, I should succeed in carrying out my vow +and taking his bracelet back to the god. I descended the ladder, +crept in the back door by which I had come out, went up to my room, +where I had kept a light burning, and examined my treasures. Then +I saw that all had been in vain. They were doubtless a key to the +mystery, but until a clew was given they were absolutely useless. I +sat for hours staring at them. I would have gone back and replaced +them in the cabinet and left all as it had been before, but I +dared not enter the room again. The next day I heard you say that +you suspected that the talk with your father had been overheard, +and that the man who had earlier in the evening before shot at him +had returned, and while listening had heard something said about the +hiding place, and thought that he would find some sort of treasure +there. I thought that in the talk your father might have told you +how to use these things, though I had not caught it, and it was +therefore important that you should have them back again, so I went +into the room after the inquest was over, and placed the things in +their hiding place again. + +"Then, thinking it over, I determined to leave your service. You +would be trying to find the treasure, and I must watch you, and +this I could not do as long as I was a house servant; so I came up +to London, and you thought I had sailed for India, but I did not +go. I hired four Lascars, men of my own religion, and paid them to +watch every movement that you made, to see where you visited and +where you went. I paid them well, and they served me well; it was +so that I was able to bring those men to your help when but for +that you would have lost your life. It was for this to some extent +that I had you followed; for I soon found out that you were on the +search for the man who had fired through the window, and who you +believed had killed your father, rather than for the jewels. I knew +that you might run into danger, and partly because I loved you, and +partly because it was possible that it would be essential for that +coin and piece of paper to be produced in order that the treasure +might be obtained, I kept guard over you. + +"When the 18th of August approached we were all on the watch. I +felt sure that you would take every possible precaution while you +had the bracelet in your possession. We knew who were your principal +friends, the banker's son and Mr. Chetwynd. On the 18th of August +everything went on as usual. On the following day the banker's son +came to you, and as soon as he left you, you went to the lawyer's, +and afterwards to the banker's. I felt sure now that it was at +that bank that the jewels had been placed, and that you had been +waiting till the young memsahib's birthday for the news that they +might be taken out; then you went to Mr. Chetwynd's, and he went +to the bank. I had no doubt that he was to take them out for you, +and after that one of the men never took his eyes off him when he +was outside of his house. Afterwards you went to the place where +the men used to fight, and the man who was watching you went in, +and had beer, and saw you talking with the big man you used to +fight with, in the parlor behind the bar. The watcher went out to +follow you, but left another to watch this man. We found that both +Mr. Chetwynd and he went to a shipping office in Tower Street, +and we then guessed that you intended to take the bracelet at once +across the sea. + +"I went myself and found out that a vessel was sailing in two days +to Amsterdam. I took a passage for a man in the cheap cabin, and +asked to look at the list of passengers, as I believed that some +friend would be sailing by her; there were two men's names down +together in one handwriting among the first class passengers, and +I guessed that these were you and Mr. Chetwynd. I also saw the name +of the big man, which I had heard long before, down in the list of +passengers, and another name next to his in the same handwriting. +I did not know his name, but guessed that it was another of the +fighting men, and that they were going to look after you until you +had got rid of the diamonds. On the morning that she was to sail +one of the Lascars was on board; I thought it possible that in +order to throw anyone who might be following you off your scent +you might at the last moment go ashore, and that Mr. Chetwynd might +take the diamonds over, so I watched, and saw you on the deck with +your friend. + +"I and the other three Lascars then took passage that evening in +a craft for Rotterdam, and got to Amsterdam two days before your +ship arrived; we went to different houses, and going separately into +the worst parts of the town, soon found a man who kept a gambling +den, and who was a man who could be trusted. I offered him a +thousand francs to collect twenty-five men, who were to be paid a +hundred francs each, and to be ready, if your ship arrived after +dark, to attack two passengers I would point out to them. I did not +want you to be hurt, so bargained that all knives were to be left +behind, and that he was to supply the men only with clubs. If the +ship came in in daylight you were to be attacked the first time +you went out after dark. You know how that was carried out. You +had two more men with you than I had expected; but I thought that +with a sudden rush you might all be separated. You know the rest. +The moment you were knocked down I and three others carried you to +a boat. It had been lying near the stairs, and we took you off to +the barge in which I had arranged you should be taken to Rotterdam. + +"We told them that you were a drunken man who had been stunned +in a fight in a public house. As soon as we were off, I searched +you and found the diamonds. Then, as you know, we put you ashore. +We all crossed to England that night. Two days later I sailed in +this ship, the Brahmapootra. I am not afraid of telling you this, +because I know that the diamonds will not shine on the god's arm +until all fear of search and inquiry are over. My task will be +done when I hand them over to the man who holds the office I once +held; then I shall bear the penances imposed on me for having broken +my caste in every way, and for having taken life, and for the rest +of my days I shall wander as a fakir through India. I shall be +supported by the knowledge that I have done my duty to my god, and +have sacrificed all in his service, but it will ever be a grief to +me that in so doing it was necessary to sacrifice the life of one +who had ever shown me kindness. You may wonder why I have written +this, but I felt that I must own the truth to you, and that you +should know that if in the course of my duty to the god it was my +misfortune to slay your father, I have twice saved your life, just +as three times I saved that of the Colonel Sahib, your uncle." + +There was silence for some little time after Mark had finished +reading. + +"It is a strange story indeed," Mr. Greg said, "but it is not for +us to judge the man. He has acted according to his lights, and +none can do more. He sacrificed himself and his life solely to the +service of his god, well knowing that even were he successful, his +reward would be penance and suffering, and a life of what cannot +but be misery to a man brought up, as he has been, to consider +himself of the highest and holiest rank of the people. I think, +Mark, we need neither say nor think anything harshly of him." + +"Certainly not," Mark agreed. "I can understand that according +to his view of the matter anything that stood between him and his +goal was but an obstacle to be swept aside; assuredly there was +no premeditation in the killing of my father. I have no doubt that +the man was attached to him, and that he killed him not to save +his own life, but in order that his mission might be carried out." + +"Quite so, Mark; it was done in the same spirit, if I may say so, +that Abraham would have sacrificed his son at the order of his God. +What years of devotion that man has passed through! Accustomed, +as you see, to a lofty position, to the respect and veneration of +those around him, he became a servant, and performed duties that were +in his opinion not only humiliating, but polluting and destructive +to his caste, and which rendered him an outcast even among the +lowest of his people. Do you not think so, Mrs. Thorndyke?" + +Millicent, who was crying quietly, looked up. + +"I can only think of him as the man who twice saved Mark's life," +she said. + +"I understand why you have wished to tell me this story," the Rector +went on to Mark. "You wish me to know that Arthur Bastow did not +add this to his other crimes; that he was spared from being the +murderer of your father, but from no want of will on his part; +and, as we know, he killed many others, the last but an hour or two +before he put an end to his own life; still I am glad that this +terrible crime is not his. It seemed to be so revolting and unnatural. +It was the Squire's father who had given the living to his father, +and the Squire himself had been his friend in the greatest of his +trials, and had given him a shelter and a home in his old age. I +am glad, at least, that the man, evil as he was, was spared this +last crime of the grossest ingratitude." + +"Well, Mark," Dick Chetwynd said cheerfully, in order to turn the +subject, "I am heartily glad that we have got to the bottom of this +jewel mystery. I have been puzzling over it all the time that you +have been away, and I have never been able to understand how, in +spite of the precautions that we took, they should have found out +that the jewels were at Cotter's, and that you had them on board +with you, and, above all, why they spared your life when they could +so easily and safely have put you out of the way. It is certainly +strange that while you were thinking over everything connected +with the jewels, the idea that Ramoo was the leading spirit in the +whole business should never once have occurred to you." + +A month later, when Mark went up to town, he called at Leadenhall +Street. + +"Of course, you have not heard of the arrival of the Brahmapootra +at Madras yet. May I ask when she left the Cape?" + +"She never left the Cape, sir," the clerk replied, "and there are +very grave fears for her safety. She spoke the Surinam and gave +her mails for England when the latter was eight days out from the +Cape, and the Surinam reported that a day later she encountered +a terrible gale, lost several spars, and narrowly escaped being +blown onto the African coast. Since then we have had no news of the +Brahmapootra. A number of Indiamen have arrived since; the latest +came in only yesterday, and up to the time when she left no news +had been received of the ship. Three small craft had been sent up +the coast weeks before to make inquiries for her, but had returned +without being able to obtain any intelligence, and had seen no +wreckage on the coast, although they had gone several hundred miles +beyond where she had spoken the Surinam, therefore there can be +little doubt that she foundered with all hands during the gale. +You had no near relatives on board, I hope, sir?" + +"No near relatives, but there was one on board in whom I was greatly +interested. Here is my card; I should feel greatly obliged if you +would write me a line should you hear anything of her." + +"I will do so, sir. We have had innumerable inquiries from friends +and relatives of those on board, and although of late we have been +obliged to say that there can no longer be any hope that she will +ever be heard of, not a day passes but many persons still come in +to inquire." + +No letter ever came to Mark; no news was ever heard of the +Brahmapootra. Ramoo's sacrifice was in vain, and never again did +the diamond bracelet glisten on the arm of the idol in the unknown +temple. + + + +THE END. + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Colonel Thorndyke's Secret, by G. A. 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