| Show I The J Adventure e of the Second Stain Stain- I PART 2 Copyright 1921 by Harper Bros published by special arrangement with the McClure Newspaper Syndicate Syndicate Syn Syn- THE STORY THUS FAR I Lord Bellinger the premier and the Right flight Hon Trelawney Hope secretary for European affairs visit Holmes r tin lit id great distress to tell him that a valuable valuable valuable val val- paper disappeared the night before before before be be- fore from the locked ed dispatch box in Hopes Hope's bedroom The paper was was vas a lettel letter letter let- let ter tel from a foreign p potentate If lf It was found It would Doubtless cause war TODAY'S INSTALMENT Holmes wrote wrote a a. name upon a a. sl slip P of paper and handed It It to the premier pre pre- mier Exactly It was he And It Is this letter this letter this letter which may well mean the expenditure of a t thousand millions and the lives of ofa a hundred thousand men which men which has become lost lostin lostin lostin in this fashion Have you Informed the sender Yes sir a a. cipher telegram hag has been dispatched Perhaps he desires the th publication of the letter No sir we have strong reason to believe e that he already understands that he has acted In an indiscreet and hot headed manner It would be a greater blow to him and to his country country country coun coun- try than to us If this letter were to come out If this Is so 0 whose int interest r st Is It It that the letter should come out Vl Why Y should anyone desire to steal it or to publish it It There Mr Holmes you take tako me Into regions of high international politics But i if you consider the European sit situation situation situation sit sit- you will wiil have havo no difficulty in perceiving the motive The Tho whole of Europe isan armed camp There is a a. double league which makes a fair bal bat balance balance Great Britain Britain Brit Brit- ance of military power t ain aln holds the scales If Britain were driven into war with one confederacy It would assure the supremacy of the theother theother theother other confederacy whether they joined the aror or not Do you follow Very clearly learly It is Js then the Interest Interest interest Inter Inter- est of Ute the enemies potentate e to secure and publish this letter so as to tomake tomake tomake make a breach a-breach breach between his country and and ours Dun Yes sir sir And to whom would this document be sent If it fell tell into tho ho hands of an enemy To any of the great chancelleries of Europe It is probably speeding on on Its way thither at the present instant it as fast as steam can take Mr Trelawney y Hope dropped hills his aloud loud head on his his' chest and groaned The premier placed his hand kindly upon his shoulder It is your misfortune my dear fel fel- fel low No o one can blame you ou ou There Is no precaution which you jou OU have hae neglected neg neg- Now Mr 11 Holmes you are arc in full possession of the facts What course do you recommend Holmes shook his head mour mournfully fully You think sir that unless this document document doc doc- Is recovered there will be war war II I think it Is very ery probable Then sir pt prepare P. for war war That Is it a hard aying saying Mr Ir Holmes Consider the facts sir sr It is kv in inconceivable inconceivable in- in conceivable that it was taken after II 1130 30 at night since I understand Mr Ir Hope and his wife were both In the room from that hour until the loss 1088 I was found out It was taken then yesterday evening between 7 1 30 and I 11 1130 probably 1130 probably near the earlier hour since whoever took it evidently know knew that it was there and would naturally secure it as early as possible Now lr if a document of this importance were taken at that hour where can It Jt be now now No one has any reason to retain re retain retain re- re tain it It has been passed rapidly on to those who need it What chance have ha we now to overtake o or even to trace It if It Is la beyond our reach The prime minister rose from the settee What hat you say is perfectly lo logical Mr r. r Holmes I feel that the matter IsS IS I indeed out of ot our hands Let u us presume for tor argUments a stake slake that the document was taken by byi bythe bythe i I i the maid or by the valet valet j I j They are arc both old and tried ser ser- 1 i I fl I understand you to say that your I room is on the second floor that there Is no entrance from without and that from within no one could go up unobserved un un- ob observed ned It must then be somebody in the house who has taken it To whom would the thief take It it To Toone Toone Toone one of several international spies and secret agents whose names are tolerably tolerably tolerably toler toler- ably familiar to me Th There re aro arc three who may be said to be at the heads of ot their profession I will begin my re research research re- re search by going around and finding if each of ot them is at his post If one ones is s missing especially if he ho has disappeared disappeared 1 since last night wo we will have bave I some indication as to where tho document document docu docu- i ment has gone Why should he be missing asked I the European secretary lIe He would I take the letter to an embassy in London London Lon Lon- don as likely as not notI Lon Lon-I I I fancy not These agents work I independently and their relations with the embassies are often otten strained The prime minister r nodded his ac acquiescence acquiescence ac- ac quiescence I I believe you are right Mr Ir Holmes He lie would take talce so valuable a a. prize to headquarters with his Ills own hands I 1 think that your course of ot- otac action action action ac ac- tion is an excellent one Meanwhile Hope we cannot neglect all our other duties on account of this one misfortune tu tune tun Should there be bo any fresh developments developments developments de de- during the tho day we shall communicate with you an and J you will no doubt let us know the results of your own inquiries The two statesmen bowed and walked gravely from the room When our illustrious visitors had departed de dep departed de- de p parted Holmes lit his pipe in sU silence nce and sat for some some time lost los in the deepest deepest deep deep- est eat thought I had opened ing paper and was vas immersed in a sensational sensational sensational sen sen- crime crim which had occurred in London tl t the e a night before when my friend gave an exclamation sprang to his feet and laid his pipe down upon the mantelpiece Yes said he there is no better way of approaching it The situation is but not hopeless Even now if it we could be sure which of them has taken It It s is js' js just possible that it has not yet passed out of his hands After After all it is a a question of money with Wi h these fellows and I 1 have bave havethe the tho British treasury behind me If its it's itson Itson itson on the market Ill I'll buy it It it-it if it means another penny penn on the Income tax It ItIs ItIs Its 1 Is s conceivable that the fellow might hold it back to see what bids come from this side before he ho tries his luck on the other There are only those three capable of playing so bold a game there game there are Oberstein La Ho- Ho and Eduardo Lucas I will see each of them theta themI I I glanced at my morning paper Is that Eduardo Lucas of I street I Yes i You will not see seo him I Why not not lIe He was murdered in his house last night My friend has so often orten astonished me In tho the course of our adventures that tha it was with a no sense of exultation that I II I realized how completely I had as astonished astonished as- as I as-I ton I shed him He stared in amazement i and then snatched the paper from my hands This was the paragraph which I I had been enga engaged ed in in reading when he ros rose from r s his chair tr MURDER IN WEST U WESTMINSTER STER I I A crime of mysterious character was committed last rast night at 16 Godolphin Godolphin Go- Go dolphin street one of ot the old fashIoned fashioned fash fash- and secluded rows of eighteenth century houses which lie between the river and the abbey almost in the tho shadow of the tho great tower of the house of parliament This small but select mansion has been inhabited for some years by Mr Eduardo Lucas well Known In society circles both on account account account ac ac- count of his charming channing personality and because ho he has the well deserved reputation reputation reputation rep rep- of best one of the best amateur tenors in the countr country Mr Ir Lucas was an unmarried man 34 years of age and his establishment consists Of Mrs Pringle an elderly housekeeper and of Milton his valet The former retires early and sleeps at the top of the house The rhe valet alet was Vas out for the evening visiting visiting vis vis- a friend at Hammersmith From 10 o'clock onward Mr Lucas had the house to himself What occurred durIng during dur dur- ing that time has not yet jet transpired but at 1145 Police Pollee Cons Constable Barrett Darrett passing along Iong Godolphin street observed observed ob ob- ser served d that the tho door of No 16 was ajar lIe Ho knocked but received no answer an an- an Perceiving a light in the front room he advanced into the passage and again knocked but without reply He lie then pushed open the door and en en- en The room was In a state of wild disorder the furniture being all swept to one side and one chair lying Iving onlay on its back in the center B Besida sida this chair and still grasping one of its legs lay the unfortunate tenant of ot the house He lie had been stabbed to tho the j heart and must have died Instantly The knife with which the crime had been committed was a curved Indian I dagger plucked down from a trophy of of oriental arms which adorned one of the walls Robbery does not ap appear appear ap- ap pear to have been the motive motive ot of the crime crim for there had been no attempt Ito I to remove the valuable contents of the room Mr Eduardo Lucas was so well Known and bo so popular that his violent and mysterious fato fate will arouse painfUl painful pain pain- ful Interest and intense sympathy in a widespread circle of friends Well Watson Vatson what do you 0 make of pause this ause asked Holmes Holmes' atter after a a. along long It HIt Is an amazing coincidence A A coincidence Here is on one of the three men whom we had named as possible actors in this this' drama and he meets a violent d death ath during the very hours when we know that that drama was being enacted The odds are enormously against its being coincidence d dence nce No figures could express them No my dear Watson Vatson the two events are arc must connected be bo connected It is for us to find the connection nut But now th the offIcIal m lal POlice must I know all Not ot at all They know all they see at Godolphin street They Thoy know and I shall know nothing ot of Whitehall terI ter- ter race I Only we know ot of both events and can trace the relation between I them There Is one point that would In any case h have turned my j suSpicions against Lucas Godolphin street Westminster is only no few mIni mIn mIn- i I other utes' utes walk from Whitehall terrace The secret agents named whom I have i live in the named extreme west was end I easier easier the therefore for Lucas than it was r for others other to tt establish a receive connection or a a. message from tho the European j secretary's household household-a a ema small thing thine I f and d y yet r where events are compressed D essed t into a a. few w hours It may prove essen- essen i I I What have we hero The Tomorrow The The Adventure of the Second St Stain ln continued I New York reP reports rt fewer deaths from wood alcohol this year than last Maybe the h human system is getting used to it- it Cleveland eland Press t- t |
