Show A A A. A A AtA A I I IThe i j f The Strange Adventures f o of f Christopher Poe 4 Stories o of 01 f Strange Cases Solved d in Secret by a Detective Danker tI 4 H 4 y By ROBERT CARLTON BROWN 4 R H Hj j i 4 Copyright ISIS 1915 by W 7 Q G. Chapman 4 I l lr 4 4 r THE ROY ROYAL AL RUBY W k IO Paris would p pawn pawn wn her soul for a aj j j. j Tare rare jewel Therefore the following item tucked away in a popular Parisian paper t proved good press work though how the fact leaked out has never been learned x Miss 1 Blondell of ot New York stopping at the Palais dOrsay will wear the Royal Ruby In her box at the Chatelet tomorrow at the opening night of ot the new spectacle The celebrated gem was recently purchased for francs from the Bey o of Tunis by her father the Ameri Amern AmerIcan Amer- Amer n i scan lean capitalist Scores Score of seekers curiosity held in inthe inthe the meshes of ot glittering guttering Paris read v the notice and appeared at the performance performance per- per 0 next night to witness the first public display of ot the jewel They craned their necks and stared at the empty right-hand right stage-box stage for tor information matron mation m tion had oozed out that this was the Blondell box and the knowledge had spread rapidly through the anxious au au- au- au v Would she cot cone That was the question on all sides aides Would she wear the jewel after this advertisement or come without it or stay at home Surely the Royal Ruby would not be seen that night t 4 W When ien this state of ot mind had been t reached r ached the heavy plush curtains atthe at atthe the the rear of ot the watched box suddenly parted and her father ushered Miss Blondell into t the e box removed her ber 4 5 low-cut low sable cloak threw it over the v- v rail in sight of all aU and handed her to toj tor j r the chair nearest the st stage ge Hundreds of ot eyes behind op opera ra glasses noted the smallest detail and seeking curiosity-seeking Paris held its breath breath- as Miss Blondell Si removed the pin tightly securing the scar scarf over her bosom and threw the silk covering from her neck revealing s the Royal Ruby scintillating in the striking setting of a white satin bor bo bo- r dice r M Willie Wille the multitude of ot eyes was pinned on the wondrous pendant slidIng slid slid- ing on a thin gold chain about her neck Miss Blondell leaned slightly toward toward toward to to- ward her father to speak At that l second one half of ot the breathless audience audience au- au was startled to see the light chain slip from her right shoulder A Ati ti broken end dangled for a moment and t then hen the Royal Ruby slid quickly down the severed fevered chain and disappeared from sight below belo the brass rail surmounting sur sur- sur- sur u mounting the upholstered enclosure to the box A series of ot surprised gasps came from the audience a low curious whistle whistle whis whis- tle tie of ot astonishment from a gentleman sitting al alone ne at tl the e far end of ot the box next to the Bl who had leaned forward to see with the rest and at that mom moment nt Mr Blondell noticed the thel J l d dangling end nd of ot chain clinging to a l gardenia in his daughters daughter's bosom and turned as white wax-white as the flower All of which was duly registered by hundreds hundreds hun hun- of oi eyes behind opera At that moment the girl missed the gem snatched up the chain and stooped quickly to the floor It was on when I 1 sat down she said to her father in a low tone which c carried to the tense ears of those near nearby by J It dropped to the floor cried several several sev sev- eral of the awed audience in French giving vent to their excitement in an effort at relieving the situation Meanwhile Blondell and his daughter daugh daugh daugh- ter had been searching the hardwood floor at her feet The head usher hurried hur hur- I vied ried down the way passage-way to the box and the single gentleman in the remote remote re- re mote corner of at the adjoining box rose rosei i as s' s if it to help But Blondell rushed to tot t the e small door and warned back the usher uShe while his daughter upturned chairs and shook out ut her skirts It was no small article to lose A pigeon pigeon blood blood ruby of fifty eight and three-quarters three carats the size of a ai i robins robin's egg bigger than the ball of ot an ordinary black pin hatpin and not quite quit s eo la large g as a cherry with a ring m imbedded im ini i- i bedded at the top through which the chain had slipped With his back to the curtain preventing preventing pre- pre i venting assistance Blondell his face f f still white scanned d the floor which f f slanted down to the upholstered enclosure enclosure en en- closure jutting over the pit Several of tho the audience in n their excitement excitement excitement ex ex- rushed to points of vantage along the aisles and scrutinized i evel every ever movement of the pair in the box One J man in the main body of ot the theater quite near th the rose in his seat and gave a quick sign which attracted attracted at at- J. J tho the capitalists capitalist's attention I A look of ot recognition lighted up his face race and be he cried in a t tense nse tone Poe Poe Poet A second later Come here here Yb r I t i Christopher Poe tucked his hat unC un- un u un under C der his Ms arm and sauntered up the aisle alse turned into the way passage to tors rs the box and edged through those crowding for a look Jook with an air of ot quiet Mr Blondell held beld the curtain back him and Poe stepped into the box His actors actor's mouth twitched and the corners of ot his sensitively shaped nose drew down in two satirical wrinkles to his lips as he put out a Jong long limb like Uke arm to grasp Brondell's Blondell's hand band with slim fingers I was wondering how they would rould get Set t t t. t ta ht said laid simply How they'd get it repeated elderly man with a blank stare his hand quivering What do you mean m an Poe Too bad you didn't see the item in yesterdays yesterday's paper but I suppose you dont don't read any more French than you have to Christopher Poe wen went on casually They announced the first appearance of ot the gem Half Halt the jewel thieves in Paris are in the audience But the ruby cant can't be stolen I saw no announcement The stones stone's here In this very box See he indicated indicated indicated in in- the hardwood floor without a rug and with no possible crevice in which even a pin could lodge We Weare Weare Weare are shut in on all sides with a threefoot threefoot threefoot three- three foot siding There is la no place for the gem to be concealed All AU of ot which proves that it Is not here I 1 doubt if it is even in the theater theater thea thea- ter at this tills moment It was clever very clever replied Poe stepping to the side of the young lady on her knees still searching There Is no use he said to her This is Mr Mr Poe Christopher Poe i her father introduced in a flurried I tone You have heard me speak of him Hes He's just arrived from Hamburg Oh yes es You saw the stone drop j just st now the girl asked quickly her eyes still searching Yes but really there Is no use looking Poes Poe's tone possessed a strange finality He bent to remove the light chain of fine gold which still clung to the gardenia and made a casual examination of it Nipped off ori with will a pair of ot pliers he smiled A common on trick easily executed executed executed exe exe- by fifty men In Paris Your tightly pinned scarf prevented it from dropping or being stolen in the crowd You felt nothing I suppose on the way from the carriage to the entrance I was a bit anxious she admitted turning up her flushed face I pressed the jewel tightly through the scarf Now that you speak of ot it I did feel something cold touch the back of ot my neck for an Instant but I 1 felt quickly for the chain and found it safe only protruding slightly above my scarf in inthe Inthe inthe the back And already severed by a pair of pliers concealed in a clever hand added Poe It has happened often this nipping You were pressing the stone with your hand on the scarf The thief knew he could not get the gem gemin gemin gemin in the crowd he waited for you to unpin unpin un un- pin the scarf when you were safe Inthe in inthe inthe the box and off your guard The stone slid down and dropped the moment you threw the wrap back and leaned forward but naturally rally you did not notice it at the exact instant of falling falling fall fall- ing several seconds passed before the discovery end and nd that was all the thief n needed eded Absurd laughed Miss Blondell You dont don't mean that the thing Is stolen Its It's surely here somewhere It couldn't have disappeared from the box in that instant Certainly no person saw it t disappear disappear disappear pear replied Poe I was watching the curtain myself it t did not move There was no one In the way passage-way behind the box and surely no thief inside inside ineide in- in side eide it It Then how could the stone have disappeared cried the girl Youcan Youcan Youcan You can see at a glance there are no cracks or crevices it could have slipped through or lodged in the only assurance I 1 have that it is stolen answered Poe bendIng bending bend bend- ing his short waist and picking a small splinter of at wood not a quarter of an inch long from the leg of ot a chair near the doorway But its it's absurd to think that anyone anyone any any- one could have stolen the jewel in the second It dropped to the floor before I 1 stooped to find it it As much as ten seconds elapsed after atter the jewel had struck the floor before before be be- fore you began looking for it It Miss Blondell Much can be done in that space of time time time- But the perform performance is is beginning He broke broke off ort abruptly as aa the lights were ere turned out cut In different different differ differ- ent parts of ot the tho houseFather houseFather houseFather house I Father They must leave the lights on cried the girl We cant can't find the jewel in the dark Its quite useless answered Poe with a careless shrug of his shoulders The stone is ia probably on its way to Montmartre by now You see Blondell Blondell Blon Blon- dell ho he turned to the wavering father father father fa fa- fa- fa ther the floor slants down to the Ibe framework in front it t is quite bare The stone could not have ha rolled uphill up uphill hill and out into the tha way passage to so common sense tells us its it's gone alto altogether gether As the chain was cut on the way from the carriage to Jo the door loor we must believe the stone Is stolen But nut It t seems impossible declared Blondell lowering his voice as the curtain wen went up and the audience found itself with diverted interests the majority more concerned in the stage- stage box tableau It ll couldn't have bounced up three feet and over onto the stage it couldn't have been picked up by the gentleman in the adjoining box box box- Poe stopped abruptly his brows shot up on his forehead and the satirical wrinkles again appeared joining the corners ol ot othis his nostrils and lips He nad glanced toward the other er box and found it empty For a second he fingered the splinter of wood In his pocket the wrinkles es deepening and his eyes fixed Turning short he said in a low tone to Blondell Wait for me at Palais Palate Pal Pal- ate ais dOrsay then he be bowed wed absently to the girl du ducked ked through the plush curtains and hurried out an exit As he sat in a cab fI flee five minutes later on his way to a music hall in RU Rue Roe de I Clichy Christopher Poe looked and acted more like a bored Frenchman in search of pleasure than anything else Had the Jehu who drove known the truth about his fare he would have been Seen more particular in his bis work and would never have dared to Juggle Juggie with the little taximeter at his bis side But Poe glad to be relieved of his desk duties and enjoying his holiday in Paris kept no worry-book worry in which to write write down such daily vexations as crooked crooked taximeters As he sat back in the cab and drove through the fascinating streets of old Paris he was vas both sorry and happy that he had stumbled onto so interesting interest interest- interesting ing a crime The cab dropped him before beCore a popular popular popular lar Clichy music-hall music end and nd he stepped into the managers manager's small office in frontI front I want the names of all the legerdemain legerdemain leger leger- demain performers on your jour circuit Only those not working now any act out of the ordinary Monsieur Fleury he said having shaken hands cordially with the friendly little Frenchman at atthe atthe atthe the desk leaving a hundred-franc hundred note in the mans man's palm Monsieur Hardy clardy always pays so sowell sowell sowell well smiled the manager pocketing the note taking down a huge index and beginning to jot down names and addresses rapidly You want sword sword- swallowers snake-charmers snake card- card fakirs all the curious ones in Paris Exactly if they can do sleight of hand as well answered Poe idly toyIng toying toying toy toy- Ing ing with the splinter from the chair and removing several particles from it to examine in detail with the aid of a little pocket A confidence gleamed in those strange eyes and his lips moved expressively In ten minutes' minutes time the manager penetrated Poes Poe's abstraction and they ther the door open and groped his way up rickety flights of stairs to the fourth floor avoiding the debris in the dark like a cat and going instinctively to a adoor adoor door through a crevice in which a dim light shone He knocked on the panel No answer an an- He rapped again The light through the crevice was suddenly blotted blotted blotted blot blot- ted out From Monsieur Fleury about an engagement Gone to bed he called in a deep bass the French slurred in accordance with cheap theatrical theatrical the the- theatrical usage There was a noise inside A match scratched The door swung open and anda a thin hatchet face with a a. prominent forehead and bulging eyes helping to support the flabby bridge of ot a bent nose peered out Seeing that the visitor vis via was was wasa a gentleman with an expression expression sion no not unlike a hall concert-hall man invited him in with a bow and anda a greeting in his native tongue Monsieur will be so good as to pardon pardon par par- don the appearances I 1 was going to tobed tobed tobed bed when you knocked It is about an engagement you come ome He stood dressed only in the ordinary wide ing lag trousers of the Frenchman and a stiff stitt white shirt with a narrow white tie Christopher Poe had stepped in and quickly taken an inventory of the room Disorder was everywhere evident evident evi evi- dent as though things had been hastily hasti hasti- ly concealed A high silk hat and the tail of an evening coat poked from unIl under un un under Il der r a pillow in the corner Beneath a closet door he saw the edge of ot a womans woman's womans womans woman's wom ans an's skirt protruding slightly I am not intruding You are quite alone asked Poe quickly scan scanning ing the mans man's face Quite alone answered with evident relief glancing toward the closet door Poe took a proffered chair and went to the point at once I am an Englishman as you perceive perceive per per- from my looks rather than my accent for I have spent my life lite among the concert people here Monsieur Fleury was so good as to suggest that you can do clever work I am opening 2 e T 1 11 l I r PP l G Ml I I th the e police will call upon you sO soon n ran over oyer the list together Poe asking particularly concerning the act of ot e a ech ch h performer This man he exclaimed his finger suddenly stopping at the name nanie He has bulging eyes a prominent prominent nent forehead and can ca'n can dress like like like- a gentleman on the stage 1 Exactly cried the |