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Show iiMniWMiii ySDj1 fid MADCIN BARBER, , , iif L kA CtHXAarfZt&r WW nJ UrWWrr CZS aaaBaamiaaaaaai an aaaa mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmT mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmMmwmmmmMmwmmmmmmmm r IBS am r L ...... ... .............. work for Mr. Oris wold, and from all I'v beard a fine Job he mad of It, too." "Crazy. It he?" asked Manning. "Mad as they make 'em," Brlti replied, re-plied, "but, aa the doctor say, barm-leas. barm-leas. He couldn't? have made ao good an imitation had he not believed he wa manufacturing a genuine atone. That's his delusion, you understand thinks he's making diamonds." "Well," said the Chief after another pause. "How did Grlswold turn the trick when It came to a showdown?" A faint smile flickered an Instant about Rrltz's Hps, then disappeared. "He never got a chance to turn the trick." the detective replied. "For more than a year now, he's been casting cast-ing covetous eyes on the same paste stones he bad manufactured." Uy a tremendous effort Fitch succeeded suc-ceeded In subduing his excitement, and locking his hands behind his head, he waited with what patience he could for the rest of the detective's detec-tive's story. Manning aeemed to turn to Ice. "Grlswold has been In bad financially financial-ly for over two years," Drill continued. contin-ued. "He's been doing stunts with the books of the Iroquois Trust company. At my request, the directors have had experts on the books for a couple of weeks, and they've got as pretty a cane against Mr. Grlswold as ever you saw. He wanted that necklace In order to get enough money to square his accounts. "Now comes the strangest part of the case." The detective smiled as be made ready to fire the verbal bomb. "The most surprised man In the world, on the nlglit that Mrs. Mis-sioner Mis-sioner discovered her Jewels were mere paste, was Curtis Grlswold." Britx watched the effect of his words pleasant for thee bright young men." Hrits said sarcastically; "but 1 do want to give myself the satisfaction of having them nab the two persons they should have arrested In less than a week after the then of Mrs. Missioned Mis-sioned Jewels was discovered." Manning felt he had no choice save to comply. He wasn't exactly pleased by the Insistence of his lieutenant's request; but when Prltz. at a nod from him, pressed a push button and an attendant appeared In the doorway, Chief Manning ordered the bluecoat to ask Donnelly and Carson to report to him In the lieutenant's room at once. "Right here," Brlti proceeded. "Is where an Interesting side feature of the mystery comet In. Grlswold would have probably been more alert If he bad known that men ten times as adroit as he, and a hundred times more unscrupulous had Journeyed half around the world 'o get one of those very gems he was preparing to steal from the woman he hoped to marry. I don't know exart'y what's at the bottom bot-tom of the Interest those Hindoos have In the greitt Maharanee diamond; dia-mond; but I do know they're willing to go pretty clone to the electric chair to get It. I understand It was not really bought from the wife of an Indian In-dian prince, as Mlssloner told his wife It was. My best Information Is that it came from a Hindoo temple. You know those savages set great store by their idols. At any rate, from a half doren to a dozen Indians of various degrees came bere from Calcutta some time sko and camed on the trail of the Maharanee diamond. dia-mond. They playd a wuttlng game and, apparently, they were on the point of making a gran I effort to get the atone when the bend of this organlza- had the visiting card of Ilruitoa Bands," suggested the doctor hesitantly. hesi-tantly. He disliked to seem over-critical over-critical of a man who had done ao much for Elinor. "Neither have you worked out an explanation of the fact that it was a woman who gave the order to the three French firms for the manufacture manufac-ture of the false diamonds, and thai she gave the name of Elinor Hoi-comb," Hoi-comb," Manning pursued. "You'll have to make that clear to Mott, I'm thinking." "I dou't quite understand why the Hindoos kldnaed you, lieutenant," added Fitch tentatively. Uiits smiled. "Mere details," Brlti replied. "First, Grlswold did cot smuggle the diamond dia-mond Into Miss Holcomb's room. That little trick was pulled off by All. He was the only one who could have done It. and hi reason for wanting want-ing to throw suspicion on the young woman Is plain. He was In the bouse to get the necklace and he also wanted want-ed to make a sure getaway. Therefore, There-fore, he figured. If the Jewels should be missed before be was able to get them out of the house. It would help bis chances of escape to have suspicion suspi-cion thrown on the secretary. The diamond that was found among her things did not belong to the collarette. Hut Its size and luster matched any one of a dor.on of the stones In that magnificent setting, ao that all of us took it for granted it was Mrs. Mlssloner' Mls-sloner' property." "Very good," parried the chief, ' "How about the other points?" "It needs no vivid Imagination," sald Ilrltx, "to picture Curtis Grin wold employing a young woman to take the drawings to the French manufacturers manufactur-ers and telling her to Introduce herself her-self as Kllnor Holcomb, or by any other name he desired." Manning nodded reluctantly, FltiA approvingly. "As for old Martin's possession of Bands' card," continued the lieutenant, lieuten-ant, "I see no explanation about that except that Grlswold handed It to him. There seems to be a streak of malicious mischief In our club friend. As a side exploit In pulling off a big crime, he would enjoy making trouble) for another especially for a man be bad reason to fear aa a rival, which was the case with Bands. It may be he even hoped to cast suspicion permanently per-manently on the millionaire, though that seems hardly possible. Even when Sands acted so mysteriously In regard to that letter be recovered from the Hindoo burglar, be did not make me suspect be had stolen tbe diamonds, tbe strongest suspicion I had was that he might be shielding the thief, and that didn't last long." "And your own little adventure?" asked the chief of detectives with a trace of malice. (TO UK CONTINUED.) "He Made Drawings at First Hand." SYNOPSIS. The story opens with a scream from IVirolhv March In the opera box of Mrs. Mlaxluner. a wealthy widow. It Is occasioned oc-casioned when Mr. Mlaalonar's necklace break, scanning the diamond nil over the floor. Curtis Oriswold and Pruxton Hands, society man In iova with Mr. Mlssloner, Mls-sloner, gather up the irmi Ortewold step on what la supposed to be the celebrated cele-brated Maharanee and rrualies II. A Hindoo Hin-doo declare It was not th genuine. An xpert later pronounce all the stona substitute for the original. One of the missing dlamonda la found In the room of Elinor Hulcomh. confidential companion compan-ion of Mr. Mlsaloner. She I arreated, notwithstanding Mr. Mlssloner' belief In her Innocence. Iatectlv Hrlts takes up the caaa. Ha aak the co-operation of Ir. Fltrh, Kllnor fiance. In running down the real criminal. Hrlts laarna that duplicate of Mr. MItonr' diamond wore made In farts on tha order of Kllnor Holcomb. While walking Hrlts I aalxed, bound and gagged by lilnduoa. Ha la Imprisoned In a deserted house, hut make his earape. Hrlts discovers an Insane In-sane diamond expert whom ha believes wai employed by either Handa or Orts-wold Orts-wold to make counterfeits of tha Mlelon-r Mlelon-r gem Two Hindoo burglarise tha home of Sand and are raptured by Brlti On one of them he find a note algned by "MtUt'ent" and dJred to "Curtl." Writs locate a woman named Mtlllcent Ielarorhe. to whom Oriswold haa been paying marked attention. The Hwaml attend at-tend a bull at Mr. Mlssloner's home, but learn nothing further about the diamond. dia-mond. Hrlts disguised aa a thief, vllt the apartment of MUllcent. He find a box that nnre contained the mlaslng diamond, dia-mond, but it I empty. Tha detective conclude that the Hindoo have antlcl- Fated him In the recovery of the Jewel, le viU their quarter and haa an exciting ex-citing experience with a snake. The Hwaml return all the real diamond to Mr Mlssloner. except the Maharanee, which he Insist mini ha returned to the temple In India, whence It was stolen. CHAPTER XXIV. (Continued.) "The men Gordon has run down." aid the lieutenant, "were the hardest to catch. I call them the secoad batch of thieves because they are the fellows who stole Mrs. MiBbloner'a Jewels long after tbe stones were atolen from her." "And who may they be?" Manning perslKted. "They are the dark men the Hindoos Hin-doos whose connection with the case complicated It much more than was comfortable, and who gave further proof of their Inconsiderate disposition disposi-tion by making the doctor here and me ao uncomfortable Just before we came back to Headquarters." "You mean they are the men who robbed Mrs. Mlssloner of ber Jewels?" "No, the men who stole Mra. Mls-aloner's Mls-aloner's Jewels after she was robbed of them." "They robbed the thieves, then?" "Not thieves thief," said Brlti. "There was only one artist In the first Job." "What's hie name?" the Chief questioned ques-tioned again. "His name?" returned the detective detec-tive nonchalantly. "Oh, I haven't aid it was a 0)0.'" Even Fitch, though he had worke Intimately with the sleuth In the latter lat-ter part of the hnnt for tbe Jewels, was astonished. Manning concealed bis surprise. He said: "Well, I suppose you've got tbe goods on him or her?" "I have and I haven't." the detective detec-tive answered. "While only one person per-son stole the diamonds, there's been a whole troop of potential thieves after the stones. They've been working work-ing at cross-purposes, with the natural result that they played unconsciously Into the hands of the one all of them trusted." Fltrh and Manning eyed each othor quizzically. Britz had worked hard on the case and had succeeded when success aeemed Impossible. If he wished to Indulge In a slightly enigmatical enig-matical preamble, surely It waa not asking too much to humor him. Britz gnawed a black cigar, unllght-ed, unllght-ed, snd whirled about two or three times before he took up the thread of his recital again. "It's a long story," he resumed. "It took a lot of piecing to put It together, to-gether, but tt'a a plala now as a pic ture puxzle when all the cutouts fit. In the first place, Oriswold planned to get the Jewela a long time ago a couple of years, I fancy. He didn't content hlmaelf with mere planning. He did a lot of work while he was waiting for hla opportunity. He knew the value of the Mlssloner necklace, neck-lace, of course, especially the value of the big Maharanee diamond that was Ita central stone. As nearly aa I can make out his scheme, he hoped to steal the collarette and dispose of It months before It should be missed by Mrs. Mlssloner. The only way to do that, of course, waa to substitute an imitation for the genuine article. Naturally, too, the Imitation had to be made without Mra. Mlssloner's Vnowl-ede. Vnowl-ede. and the man he meant to have make It bad to have either the orlg Inal as a copy or a very accurate drawing. It was beyond all possibility possibil-ity that Grlswold could get the necklace neck-lace Into hla possession long enough to have a bogus collarette made. Mrs. Mlssloner. In spite of her many millions, mil-lions, and like all other women of wealth, guarded ber Jewels closely. She msy Intrust her government bonds and other negotable securities to attorneys or banks, but she keeps . ber Jewels under her own eyes. Nans of us knows Juat bow much she thought of Grlswold: but the chances are that, even If b baa bwwn en mured to him. abe wouldn't have let tin have posaeaakm of tbe Mabaraao necklace for any loagth time. My experience Is that thee rich Now Yorkers don't believe In throwing temptation in one another's way anyhow, not at any risk to tbem-elves." tbem-elves." "Your powers of deduction are truly marvelous, Ilrltx," aald Manning with a short laugh. In which Urltx thought he heard a faint note of mockery. "Now, let's don't do any kidding. Chief." Ilrlti rejoined with Just a shade of acid in his voice. "This Is a pretty serious case, and I've been up a few nlghta without any too much Bleep. I'm not on the witness stand now, recollect, and I don't feel as If I'd got to psreel out my words when I'm talktng to friends." There was the least little lift of his eyebrows as be uttered the last word. Manning laughed again apologetically apologetic-ally this time, and the lieutenant, once more unruffled continued: "So Grlswold had to make sketches and diagrams os" the widow's necklace. Even that couldn't have been easy, for I guess he had to use bis pencil j hen Mrs. Mlssloner wasn't in the room. It isn't likely she gave him many opportunities op-portunities of being alone with the Jewels she prized above all the others In her collection. You see. when her husband gave her that necklace and told ber about the Maharanee diamond, dia-mond, he made up a pretty little fairy story that probably gave the big stone much greater value In her eyes than If she'd really known the truth. Women." Wom-en." said Ilrltx solemnly, "are funny. They are about the funniest things In this little old world of ours particularly particu-larly when It comes to Jewels and gowns, with the Jewels leading by a city block." Fitch, In his capacity as a lover, became somewhat restive under the detective's cynical summing up of the sex, and relieved himself with the remark: "If women aro any funnier than men. I'd like you to show me how. Your experience Is all very well, lieutenant; lieu-tenant; but I've seen tbem In their little lit-tle white cots in hospitals both kinds; and I have seen them on the operating table, and I can tell you the woman has yet to be born that can do as many fool stunts as the average man!" After this burst of romance-born frankness he subsided. "Well, we won't quarrel about the sex, doctor," said Urltx, "though I must say I don't like to bear you getting get-ting off these suffragette sentiments. Anyway, It's safe to assume Mrs. Mlssloner Mls-sloner didn't let Curtis Grlswold have time to drape that necklace of her on an art model when be started In to sketch It. He made those drawings by fits and starts, and It must have taken him a good many weeka to finish them." "Unless he drew the necklace from memory," suggested Manning. "That sounds too eaey," Britx returned. re-turned. "He'd have to have a memory like a daylight film to carry all the different sizes and shapes of thosi Jewels In his mind to say nothing of their fire. The fact Is, the drawings he made were not only accurate to the smallest degree of outline, but the luster of every stone seems to have been reproduced with skill that would keep 'em guessing at the Academy of Design. I tell you, Cnrtls Grlswold Is an artist In more ways than one!" Pausing a little. Britx went on: "And that'a what he did; he made the drawings at first hand, and probably prob-ably colored them In the same way. Then he took them over to Paris and farmed out the contract among several sev-eral firms, taking care to split up the drawings so that no one manufacturer of paste Jewell might know they were reproductions of the famous Maharanee Mahara-nee necklace. Logan traced all the drawings In gay Paree, and sent them to me. Here they are." He took several sev-eral small aheets of cardboard from an Inner pocket and spread tbem on bis desk. 'There's something missing from the center," Manning commented when be bad pieced the slips together "This is a picture tf a necklace with a hole In the middle." Prltf railed. "Yes." he aald. "that's where tbe Maharanee diamond was. You aee. Grlswold waa too foxy to have an Imitation of that celebrated atone made anywhere In Europe. He knew there wasn't a man on the Continent Identified In any way with the trade who wouldn't reeognixe a drawing of that diamond on sight. Tho igb the diamond Is not so well known to the public. It's as familiar to every Jew-eler Jew-eler In Euroie aa the Kohlnoor, the Hope, or any other of those great sparklers." "Where could he have gone, then, to have the big stone reproduced?" asked the Chief. "Ask the doctor there. If he's hall tbe detective I think be Is. be knows as well as 1 do." Fltrh smiled nervously, then bis . fare became grave aa the realization of what all thla meant to Elinor i surged back on him. i "1 fancy," he aald to Manning, i "Lieutenant flriti has concluded thi i false Maharanee diamond was mad i by a bannlesa lunatic we traced to th . asylum" "Right ye are. doe!" said Briti i bnwqoefy. "Tow goeeaod It tb) very ' drat time. Little old Mr. Martin wai r tbe gentleman. He did that Job i reasonably sure of a getaway a easily after a murder as after a robbery." rob-bery." "You must have been reading about Ali llaba and the Forty Thieves. Urltx," said Manning with another harsh laugh. "This sounds altogether altogeth-er too much like the Arabian Nlghta to be the gixMla." "Well, there weren't aa many as forty of (he thieves, and the All In this cane wasn't an bonest man. 1'iu giving It to you straight, Chief. I haven't worked day and night on this proposition for nothing You'll find It Just as I'm telllug it to you, and If you'll suspend Judgment until I get through, I'll deliver the goods all right." "I think," remarked Fitch to Manning, Man-ning, "we shall find that Lleuteuant DrlU comes pretty near knowing what he la talking about. I've seen him work on thU cae, and I know something of the facta be has discovered dis-covered If you have ever studied the ways of Orientals you'll be surprised sur-prised at nothing they do. They look at life from altogether a different angle. Llfo Is about tho cheapest thing In life to them." "Very good," said Manning. "I'm willing to be convinced, but it seems hard to believe that a woman worth a hundred million could live for months with death hanging over her bead In her own household, and yet know nothing about It. What's the use of being a multi millionaire If you're no safer than In an elgbteen-dollar elgbteen-dollar flat? For my part, I don't take much stock in your Hindoos." "You'll take a lot of stock In them before the morning Is over, Chief, If you stay with us," IlrlU retorted. "I'm going to show you not only the Hindoos Hin-doos In the act of uttenirting to get away, but I'll turn up tho goods In their possesKlon. They have the diamond dia-mond now, but I'll have loth them and the diamond In a very few hours!" "I believe yon," Filch chimed In. "Ycu BS6, Chief," be explained to Manning, "this lieutenant tjX your has made the capture of the Hindoos more or less of a personal matter." A cboppy laugh from the detective Interrupted the physician. "Yes," be agreed, "I don't mind telling tell-ing you that I'm almost aa eager to get those fellows as I am to i-ecover tbe widow's Jewels. Tbey got Just a little bit too gsy with me for their own good." He flushed slightly as be recalled bow utterly he had been at the mercy of tbe Hindoos when he lay tike a holiday turkey on tha floor of that bare room In the unoccupied uptown apartment. "Tbe Hindoos," said Ilrlti, "went through tbe apartments of Bands and Grlswold with what Bam Welter would call a double million-magnifying microscope. They didn't leave a postage stamp bnsearched. They looked Into every bolo and corner, ransacked every drawer, and turned every place Inside out. I caught 'em at It two of them, anyway In Hands' room, and they're now In the West Thirtieth Street Station. They must have gone through Griswold's apartment first, for It was there, I gtn-HS, they found this note from Mll-llcent Mll-llcent to 'Curtis dear,' and It was this note that gave me a line on how brother Grlswold stood with the lady of the Hotel Itenalssance. I knew Grlswold was In tbe habit of visiting that hotel, but I didn't know whom he went there to see. I felt pretty certain when I got tbe note that It came from somebody In tbe Itenalssance, Itenals-sance, and I got Itawson to send tbe bunch out on tbe bunt ao that I could make certain I'd made do mistake. mis-take. "One of the men reported there was a Mme. belarocbe at tbe Itenalssance. Itenals-sance. That looked good enough to me. I went there that same night, with the doctor on tbe sidewalk, as the lookout. I did a little burglary stunt that would have landed the jewel If the Hindoos bad not got there ahead of me. In some way or other, those fellows learned about t tbe acquaintance between Oriswold and the Delaroche lady about the same time I did. or perhaps a little earlier. One of them got into ber apartment by the fire escape rout and sneaked th Jewels from under ber pillow. What's more, he contented content-ed himself with the diamonds themselves, them-selves, and didn't even take th casket they were In. Tbe Jewel case was , still under her pillow when I got there, and It wann't until 'after the lady, under th Impression tbe gems were In the cae, gave herself away more or leas, that I found the little box was empty. When I looked out on the fire escape, I saw th handkerchief handker-chief the dark skinned cracksman bad dropped In bis hurry. That sent us hot footed to the Swaml's bouse." When Hrits bad sketched the history his-tory of the Mlsaloner case. Manning and Fitch looked at him admiringly. 1Mb hi hearer were thoughtful for , a minute or two. Then the Chief, though be realised IlrlU bad solved th mystery, could not refrain from . picking flaw. "You have not explained fully." he l aald, "Vr Oriswold contrived to I aooul the email diamond Into Mia , Hoi comb's room." "Nor bow th 4 curiosity dealer on hi hearers. They shifted nervously nervous-ly In their seats aa if Impatient of the detective'a pause. "When did the Hindoos steal the Jewela and where did tbey find them?" aaked Manning. "About on hour, or a little more, before I made a try for them myself," i aald Drill. "Tbey nabbed them In the apartment of Mrs. Mtlllcent Delaroche, In the Hotel Renaissance." "And who. If you don't mind taking me Into your confidence. Is Mr. MUllcent Delaroche?" tbe Chief Inquired. In-quired. "Mr. MUllcent Delaroche," ald the detective crisply, "think h I th future Mr. Curtis Grlswold. But as far as Mr. Grlswold la concerned, she may remain Mr. Delaroche for the rest of her natural life. In other worda, Oriswold promised to marry her, and then got very busy In an attempt at-tempt to marry Mrs. Mlssloner. He doesn't know yet. of course, that It will be a very long time before be has a chance to marry anybody. Neither doe Mr. Delaroche know how she ha ben fooled by tbe clubman. ' When she does know which I think will be some time today I think youll ' aee some fur fly." i Fitch, to get tbe upper band of bis nervousness, tapped hi eyeglasses i with a medical looking lead pencil, i and listened very closely to tbe de-' de-' tectlve' story. Manning, too, was absorbed ab-sorbed In what Drill had to tail. Doth , of hi bearer, therefore, were mo i mentartly disappointed when Britx. In- stead of going ahead with hi story, i aaked that Donnelly and Carson be pried apart long enough for on of i then to arret Grlswold. and th otaer ' to bring Mra. Delaroeh to Headquar-i Headquar-i tore. I 1 doal want to snax things too a tlon happened to be In the box next to Mr. Mlssloner at the Metropolitan Opera House on the nigbt when the necklace turned out to be a fake. He then learned that tbe original diamond dia-mond were not in the widow' keeping keep-ing any longer. "Oriswold also was In the Mlssloner Mlsslon-er box that night, as you know, and be must have noticed tbe '.Oriental who butted In during the search for th dlamonda." Brits paused a littl. and then resumed: re-sumed: "These Hindoo worked about as fast a I did. They must bav made up their minds pretty early In the gam that Mis Holcomb knew nothing noth-ing about th necklace, and, of course, nobody would b foolish enough to suspect little Miss March. Our dark friends from the East concentrated their attention on Grlswold and Sanda. For a long time. All had been In Mra. Mlssloner'a employ. II waan't, however, Mr. Mlssloner's employ em-ploy In the true sense of the word. He waa there as one of tbe subordinates subor-dinates of thla SwamI chap, along with the other Oriental fellows, one of whom calls himself Prince Kanan-da. Kanan-da. In fact. All was on the Job from the day be became a member of Mrs. Mlssloner' household. He was aent there for the precis purpose of piping pip-ing off tbe place, and either getting the Mg diamond himself, or tipping the gwaml and all the rest of them when It would be safe for them to talk a try. It stands to reason Mrs. Mia loner watched her J. .els pretty closely, and that her aaf waa a Jim-dandy, Jim-dandy, since thsl necklace la all too kmc monta could mot be lifted by tbe Hindoo aerraat K would bar bees yvrfeeUy willing to throttle throt-tle ber U rdr to got It bad b fH |
