Air Wonder Stories, August 1929 — page 50: what you’re looking at

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

144 AIR WONDER STORIES Bly bi ote dts a kaa hd ) 5 PRAM are ase lh. “The Bank of England robbed!” Lord Almeric nodded and turned to the young gutardsman, “You're Guy Pennefether, aren't you?” he asked. “Yes, Lord Almeric.” “Permit me to-inttoduce a friend of mine, Mr. James Boon. Mr. Guy Pennefether—Inspector Trueman. Now, let us go to your quarters, Pennefether. You'll come also, inspector. You shall tell me quietly what has happened, then we shall inspect the damage.” The Guardsman’s Tale ss PAHERE isn’t much to tell, Lord Almeric,” said the young fellow, when we had reached one of the rooms occupied by the officers of the nightly guard. This was a neat little mahogany-panelled dining-room in the heart of the building. “Sit down, Pennefether, and compose yourself,” Lord Almeric said kindly. “You, too, inspector. don’t wonder you are shaken. Jimmy, find a seat for yourself, please.” I took a chair-near the table that stood in the middle of the room. “Now, Mr. Pennefether.” “T haven’t much to say, Lord Almeric. We took over at the usual time. The sentries were mounted in the usual way, inspected, changed, all according to orders. Nothing unustial happened until half-past mid- night, when my sergeant came into the room here with me after doing the rounds. I had asked him some- thing about-one of the men.in my platoon—as a matter of fact it was about his chance of winning the cruiser- weight championship of the brigade—when suddenly Sergeant Withers stopped speaking. ‘“What’s the matter, Withers?’ I said. He blinkedat me. ‘Nothing, sir, nothing,’ he said; ‘something passed over me— queerlike.’ Then something queer told hold of me. I began to see the sergeant asthrough:a haze. He got further and further away, his voice becoming fainter— then he seemed to crumple up—like a concertina. I don’t remember- anything more. . , until I woke up. “Thad fallen asleep, or become unconscious, spread across the table and still sitting in the chair. My watch was in front of me—and to my horror, it pointed to a quarter to three. I had been asleep for'a full two hours. I got upina hurry to make for the door, when F stumbled across my sergeant, who was lying stretched on the floor!” “A moment, Mr. Pennefether,” I said. ‘What metal is your watch?” ‘Eh? Oh, gold—gold—a little plain watch I wear with my uniform——” “May I see it, please?” “Tt is still lying on the table beside you there—under that paper.” I found it and turned it over. I nodded to Lord Almeric. “Tarnished,” I said. “Ah,” said Lord Almeric. “Go on, Pennefether.” “Naturally, I was bewildered. I stooped over Withers and shook him. He woke up without effort, and presently was on his feet, stammering out excises, ...” The rest of the young guardsman’s story was as we expected. He had rushed out into the corridor, and had found all his men fast asleep, his sentries fallen at their posts with their rifles beside them. His next thought: was for the vaults. The big steel doors ‘had been cut open and-the interior of the vaults were strewn with the wreckage of cases, In the matter of the Bank of England, the inupectot could bring up no new point. He had been ed by one of his men, having fallen asleep without any premonitory symptoms, and on going his rounds he had found all his points asleep or on the verge-of waking, He had joined Mr. Pennefether at the vault door, But he told us that three of the joint stock banks in Old Broad Street had been forced open and their strong- rooms cleared, : “Our friends hold to their thorough methods,” said Lord Almeric to me. “There is a scope in their ras- cality that takes the breath away.” He turned to the young officer of the Guards. “Tt is useless to beg you not to be concerned, Penne- fether,” he said gently. “That you must inevitably be. But I beg you—and you also, inspector—to be rid of the idea that you are ‘in any way culpable. You could not have foreseen this event, nor could you have helped yourselves if you had. The blame, if any, attaches to me, I should have taken steps to protect the Bank from this outrage. Come—let me see the extent of the damage.” In the Bank premises, everything was scrupulously neat and tidy, until we came to the vault-door, and that had: a section cut through it, It was big enough for Lord Almeric to go through, and I followed him. “They have not been greedy,” said he. “They have taken only million pounds sterling, Jimmy—and have left the remainder. Now, let us see how they have treated our. securities,” He turned to a side-door, which also had heen treated with the flame. Inside the room was a heap of mould- ering papers, and from this there rose a pungent smell, The papers were securities, and they had been destroyed bevond recognition by having had acid poured over emt “The wantonness of it!” cried Lord Almeric. “The sheer damned wanton uselessness of it! Ur-r-r! The theft’ of the gold I can understand—but this !—this means months of work—chaos—endless useless bother and vexation!” “Does it represent much money, sir?” T ventured. “Millions. I-cannot say how much. It will be re- coverable, the greater part of it, perhaps. But when I think of the complications—the damned messiness and bother—ur-r-r!” : He recovered himself quickly, “I beg your pardon, Jimmy. I’m making an exhibi- tion of myself—but the thing is so-unpardonably stupid. ry Come, we'll go to my room and think this out.” “Your pardon, Lord Almeric. There's something I'd like to do before the crowd gets about. Could you put me in charge of a police officer, while I go snooping rout RE find out if the thing links up with Wall ee “Why, of course, Would you oblige. me by taking Mr. Boon round, inspector; and a that te is not interfered with?” “Very good, my lord.” 3: Conjectures I WENT off with the inspector and got outside the buildings, I hunted round the streets about: the Bank in comparative quiet. The London police are nothing if not efficient, and they had drawn round the district a cordon that was impassable. Only a few civilians were about the streets, I found four star-shapped splatters of powdered es Comicbooks-c eT 4) om |