The Delta independent., 1895-09-18

we nave pcSh thlhihS ~ ofSAs any
friend here and I, and we have come to
the conclusion that this secret of yours
is hardly government matter, after
all, but is a private concern of your
own, which of course you have the
power Of disposing of as you think
best. Now, the question is, what price
would you ask for it? We might be in
slined to take it up, and at least look
into it, if we could agree as to terms
He tried to speak in cool, careless
way, but his eyes were shining with
excitement and greed.
"'Why, rs to that, gentlemen I an
swered, trying also to be cool, but feel
ing as excited as he did, there is only
one bargain which man in my posi-
ton can make. I shall want you to
help me to my freedom, and to help my
three companions to theirs. We shall
then take you into partnership, and
give you fifth share to divide be-
tween you.'
"'Humr said he. "A fifth share!
That is not very tempting
"It would come to fifty thousand
apiece said I.
"sBut how can we gain your free
dom? You know very we'll that you
ask an impossibi]ity.'
"'Nothing of the Sort I answered.
4 have thought it all out to the last de-
tail. The only bar to our escape is
that we can get no boat fit for the voy-
age, and no provisions to last us for SO
long a time. There are plenty Of
little yachts and yawls at Calcutta
or Madras which would serve our turn
well. Do you bring one over. We
shall engage to get aboard her by
night, and if you will drop us on any
part Of the Indian coast you will have
done your part of the bargain
''If there were only one,' he said. ,
"None or ALL / answered. We
have sworn it. The four of us must al
ways act together
"sYou see, Morstan,' said he, Small
is man of his word. He does not
finch from his friends. I think we
may very well trust him.
g Its dirty business the other an
swered. Yet, as you say, ~the money
would save our commissions hand
somely.'
"'Well, Small said the major, we
must, suppose, try and meet you. We
r,ust first, of course, test the truth of
your story. Tell me where the box is
hid, and shall get leave Of absence
and go back to India in the monthly
relief-boat to inquire into the affair
"'Not SO FAST said I, growing colder
as he got hot. 4 must have the con-
sent Of my three comrades. tell you
that it is four or none with u.s.
sNonsenser he broke in. What
have three black fellows to do with our
agreementH
".Black or blue said I, they are in
with me, and we all go together
''Well, the matter ended by second
meeting, at which Mahomet Singh, Alb
dullah Khan and Dost Akbar were all
present. We talked the matter over
again, and at last we came to an ar
rangement. We were to provide both
the officers with charts of the part of
the Agra fort and mark the place in
the wall where the treasure was hid
Maj. Sholto was to go to India to test
our story. If he found the box he was
to leave it there, to send out a small
yacht provisionod for a voyage, which
was to lie off Rutland island, and to
which we were to make our way, and
finally to return to his duties. Capt.
Morstan was then to apply for leave of
absence, to meet us at Agra, and there
we were to have final division. of the
treasure, he taking the majors share
as well as his own. All this we sealed
by the most solemn oaths that the
mind could think or the lips utter. 1
sat up all night with paper and ink,
and by morning ! had the two charts
all ready, signed with the sign of four
that is, of Abdullah, Akbar, Mahomet
and.myself.
well, gentlemen, weary you with
my long story, and / know that my
friend Mr.. Jones is impatient to get
me safely slowed in chokey. Ill make
it as short Us can. The villain,
Sholto, went off to India, but he never
came back again. Capt. Morstan
showed me his name among list of
passengers in one of the mail boats
very shortly afterwards. His uncle
had died, leaving him fortune, and he
had left the army, yet he could stoep
to treat five men as he had treated us.
Morstan went over to Agra shortly
afterwards, and found, as we expected,
that the treasure was indeed gone. The
scoundrel had stolen 1t all, without
carrying out one OF the conditions on
which we had sold him the secret.
From that day l lived only for ven
geance. thought of it by day and I
nursed it by night. 1t became an over
;powering, absorbing passion with me.
II cared nothing for the law-nothing
for the gallows. To escape, to track
down Sholto, to have nv hand upon his
throat-that was my one thought. Even
the Agra treasure had come to be a
smaller thing in nv mind than the
Staying Of Sholto.
We'll, have set my mind on many
things in this life, and never one which
j did not carry out. But it was weary
years before my time came. have
told you that / had picked up some
thing Of medicine. One day when DR..
Somerton was down with fever lit
tie Andaman islander was picked up
by convict gang in the woods. He
was sick TO death, and had gone to
~.