The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-27

GarGana
The Phoongyes watched il night and
day, and how anyone had managed to
steal the ruby. VALENTINE could not IN
derstaad
IN the meantime Hpo Thit had glided
silently back through the crotons, and
, into the bugaIow once more.
The very air was full of demoniac
rcjses as Hoo Thit slipped into the
house, for the crows. aroused by the
Phoongyss' uproar, were screaming and
shrieking in a big tamarind that tow
cred high above the chamDac.
Within all was quiet and HDo init
lost no time in making his way to the
box they had so lately searched for the
opium
The little lamp was still burning. so
he could see just where to put the small
round packet he took from the roll in
his cloth at his waist.
He put il down in q corner of the
teakwood box; then, actuated by sud
den resolve, he picked it up, unrolled
the little piece of yellow cloth in which
it was wrapped. and took a long, loving
lcok at it. AS he rolled it in his hand
near the pickering cotton dip, the little
room seemed bathed in flood of warm,
blood-red light. Great ruby-tinted rays
shot hither and thither. until the daz-
Zling brightness lighted up the uncer-
tain gloom. and it was as though red
wine had been thrown high in the
bright, monday sunshine.
1t was the stolen ruby; and night was
being made hideous with the din across
the road in the Phoongye Kyoung.
There was so much of terror, so much
of menace. in the hoarse roar of the
Phoongys and the crowd of Buddhists
who had been attracted by their cries,
that his heart failed him-he dropped
it again in the box, and passed 81
lently, swiftly out into the Burmese
night.
AS he disappeared, a small figure
glided out from behind a Penang mat
which served as a curtain TO a door,
way and, kueeliug over the box, search
ed for that which Hpo Thit had put
there
It was Mi Mira. ''Ho, no. Hpo Thit;
because Moung Ouray told Mi Mira that
you are always smoking at the opium.
and because of that Mi Mira would have
nothing to do with you, you would have
VALENTINE Thakine make a thief of
Moung Ouray."
Then she disappeared behind the cur
tain again, and the oil dip fiickered
lower and lower. and only the outside
clamor crept into the house-it was so
still
Soon there was a steady tramp.
tramp of men that are accustomed TO
marching, and once more the superin-
tendent and the sergeant and the police
came up the steps; and also were
MOung Ouray and Hpo Thit, and the
Phoongys and others there.
I'VE shall find the opium, Hpo INIT
was saying, "or else MOung Ouray has
given il to some one, to some of the
opium eaters to steal the ruby for him
the great ruby which was in the fore
head of the God Beda. If the opium is
gene, we shall find the ruby. If the
ruby is not here, we shall find the
opium 1 do not know all things Ike
the Thakine, but that is the way OF our
people"
81 think that this is no end of a fools
game" said VALENTINE to the sergeant;
but we might as we'll finish our search
while we are at it. Where shall we look
first?"
I'm the box. Thakine,' eagerly inter
posed Hpo Thit- If the opium is not
there. and ne has the ruby, there shall
we find it..
So once more the sergeant continued
his interrupted search of the box. There
was nothing beyond a pOir OF Chlnese
patent leather shoes. a palm lear BUD
dhist Bible and NIoung Ourays sllken
head dresses, many of them packed
away in the bottom
There is nothing here, Hpo INIT,
SAID
.sWhat / really ought to do is arrest
you. Hpo Thit for a dangerous iunatlc'
but I'll see to that tomorrow In the
meantime. sergeant, just beat 10 ire
surrounding country for the puohldsn
that has taken the ruby.
That the ruby was gone was racer
10 Hpo Thit; first, the balls OF OPIUM
had disappeared. but that he had atlrl-
hI;ted TO Moung Ouray; now the ruby
nd MnrnU
hon with the police "ll The tnnr
Then he saw something which gave
him a clue. It was an innocent-lookins
rirclet of jassamine flowers lying IN
front of the box It was such clrclet
as the girls wore on their hair, and IL
hadn't been lying there when they
searched the box before.
@Of certainty Mi MIRA has taken
the ruby" murmured Hpo Thit, and
has gone 10 the house of San Shwe,
who is her father. If San Shwe viii
keep il. there will it rest; but if his
heart fail him. then will he tell her to
take it to the police Thakine. Ihere
was no time to be lost, for it would be
discovered that he had stolen 1t, ana
he would also lose the ruby.
His opportunity to steal the jewel had
come to him just as he was leaving
Moung Ouray's house, after having put
the opium in the box. For some I'M
known reason, probably owing 10 the
poay. he had found the temple deserted
for a few minutes, and had Knocked
The ruby out of the alabaster with his
sword. Then the sudden fear. and the
chance to implicate MOung Ouray as
the thief. his other scheme having
failed, led him to put it in the box.
Now he knew that Mi MIRA must have
seen him put il there. and as he would
be accused of stealing it anyway, he
meant to get the ruby back.
Slipping away from the others as
they came out OF Moung Ouray's house,
he quickly sped to San Shwe's bunga-
low.
AS he approached cautiously, he
could see Nj Mira and her mother and
father sitting on the bamboo floor ear
nestIy discussing something. They Will
decide; 1 will wait" he muttered,
squatting on his heels at the side of
the road.
Then Mi Mira came out and started
off across the dried madam toward the
bungalow.
That was Hpo Thit's chance.
IF you tell about it, he said, as he
left her, I will swear that you and
Moung Ouray stole it and gave it to
me. Then the judge Thakine viii ask
how you should know that l had it,
If you had not given it to me-"
Mi Mira went back to her fathers
house. she wanted to think-wanted
TO do that which was the least trouble.
In the morning she told VALENTINE
about it. and in an hour he and the
sergeant and a file of police We're
chasing after Hpo Thit. But Hpo Thit
had gone. One more dacoit had been
created. His brother, the Thuggie's
gun, had gone with him. The Thuggie
didn't know that, for Hpo Thit had
stolen it, 1t was an fashioned