Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 124, No. 2 — page 143: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

fig THREE DAYS OF IT. he exclaimed. ‘ Nothing like it since I’ve been on the line! There’s been a mysteri- ous thief on board—a fellow who has drowned himself, but Mr. Peck reports that there’s not a man forward missing. -And that’s not the worst. That Zingaria woman came to me and asked about the thief, and when I told her he had gone overboard she threw up her hands and informed me the had ‘taken her twenty-thousand-dollar neck- lace and a diamond ring with him. She’s _going to sue the company for her loss.” “ Rot!” I returned. “ The jewelry was not under the ship’s charge. She can’t re- cover.” “No; but she’ll sue, and you will be a witness. The facts will come out, and what will that mean to Savidge, to you, and to me? This is awful, Kent! I am growing gray over it! What’s to be done?” If he was growing gray I ought to have grown white. Here was a new coil, but even then |} did not tell Durand what I knew. The simpler way seemed to be for me to force Dare to disgorge the necklace on threat of instant exposure. ‘Don’t worry about me,” I said. “ [ll pay any fine imposed. It’s too late to do anything, anyhow; I’m going to sleep over it; perhaps there’s a way out. Good night.” And so I left him, myself being too fagged for lack of sleep to think properly. I went to my room in low enough spirits, and as I took off the cursed uniform coat I thought of the ball in its pocket. I took it out. It appeared to be made of several scraps of newspaper rolled up to be thrown away, and as I peeled off the pieces one by one I felt something hard in the center. When I removed the last bit I turned weak in the knees. | ’ For there in my hand lay Mile. Zingaria’s diamond necklace! . I took one Jook at it and my wrath rose as I saw through the whole matter. With- out a minute’s delay, and now fully awake, I hurried to Dare’s room. him now. He opened the door at my knock, and I found him beginning to undress. ‘“‘ Honored, I am sure;” he began, but I cut him off and went for him without perface. “You are a colossal liar as well as a thief, sir,” I said, in a guarded voice. “ You I would have 329 told me you did not take Mile. Zingaria’s necklace.” “ Yes, doctor. I did tell youso. Do you wish me to asseverate—”’ } “Shut up. What do you make of this?’”’ I demanded, holding out the stones. The man appeared to be anything but crushed as he bent over my hand and cool- ly examined them. “ And did she present them to you, doctor?” he asked, with a fine air of innocence. “ No, you rascal, you know she did not.” “No? Then really, doctor, according to the laws of evidence it appears that you must have committed a crime and stolen them.” | ‘ You need not pretend to me, sir,’’ I re- turned. “I am not dull. These stones are worth thousands of dollars. You took them. When I left you you were afraid I was about to expose you, and so you determined to get rid of them through your room port. Had it not been for the intervention of my head you would have been successful.” He looked at me and actually smiled. ‘“ These hit you while you were outside?” “They did.” | “ Ah! How unfortunate—for Mile. Zin- garia!”’ ‘ Do not attempt to play with me, sir,” £ began, but he interrupted: ‘“Pardon me, doctor, if I say that you are singularly inept—even bordering upon foolishness. Easy, sir!’ he exclaimed, as I took a step toward him. ‘“ Do not drive me to do what I have no wish to do. Allow me to open your eyes to a fact you have not discovered. I am astonished at you, doctor! Did you not notice that these stones are all backed? No tre diamond is ever backed, as you should know. That necklace is phony, paste, punk! Examine it.” His statement seemed to jerk some sense into me. I looked closely at the stones. He was right. though the imitation was very good. The fact seemed to give me a better grip on him. ‘And discovering their lack of value, you were more than ready to get rid of them!” “No, doctor, by no means,” he whis- pered, “ but in all probability my wife did. It is like her. She intends to sue the com- pany. for their Joss, and—”’ ECOMNIC HOG The necklace was worthless,. COlini