The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1902-07-22
My Strangest Case
BY GUY BOOTHBY.
Author of cdr. KikoIa,' 1.-THE Beautiful
White Devil, - Pharos, The
Egyptian" Etc.
CHAPTER IX.-CoNr1NuEp.
copyrighted. 1901, by Ward, Lock q Col

'At last l reached the British out
post of Nampoung, on the Burmah-
Chinese border, where the officers
took me in and played the part of
the good Samaritan. When I was
well enough to travel, l made my
way down to Rangoon, where, still
believing my late companions to be
dead, l shipped for England"
Gas Mr.. George Bertram," I said,
quietly. "Why under an assumed
name, when, according to your story,
you had nothing to fear?"
Because 1 had good and sufficient
reason for so doing" he replied.
You must remember that l had
quarter of a millions worth of pre-
cious stones in my possession, and,
well, to put it bluntly, up to that
time I had been living what you
might call a make-shift sort of life.
For the future 1 told myself 1 was
going to be a rich man. That being
so, 1 wanted to start with clean
sheet. You can scarcely blame mel"
1 did not answer him on this point,
but continued my cross-eNamination.
"You reached London, and sold
some of the stones there, later on
you disposed of some more in Am
sterdam. Why did you refuse the
dealers your name and address,"
Once more he was quite equal to
the occasion.
Because if I had told them, every
body would have to know it, and,
to be perfectly frank with you, l
water and Codd were really dead"
"By that [ am to presume that you
intended, if possible. to swindle them
out of their share?" 1 asked, not a
little surprised by his admission.
"Once more, to be frank with you,
I did. I have no desire to be rude,
but 1 rather fancy you would have
done the same had you been sim
ilarly situated. 1 never was much
of a success in the moral business
l could we'll believe this, but I did
not tell him so.
"When did you first become aware
that they were in London?'
Con the day that they landed" he
answered. Il watched every ship
that came in from Rangoon, and at
last had the doubtful satisfaction of
seeing my two old friends pass out
of the dock-gates. Poor beggars,
they had indeed had hard time
of it,
''Then you could pity them? Even
while you were robbing them?"
"Why not?" he answered. ''There
was no reason because I had the
St fhat T chnn1l
for the pain they had suffered. 1
had to remember how near I'd been
to it myself"
This speech sounded very pretty.
though somewhat illogical.
"And pray how did you know that
they had called in my assistance?"
Because kept my eyes on them.
knew Mr.. Kitwater of old, you see.
l watched them go into your Office
and come out from shop on the
other side of the street"
The whole mystery was now ex-
planned. What an amount of trouble
known this before.
You did not approve, then, of my
being imported into the case?"
II distinctly disapproved," he an
swered. Il knew your reputation, OF
course, and l began to see that if
you took up their case for them ]
should in all probability have to
climb down."
1T is doubtless for that reason
you called upon me, representing
yourself to be Mr.. Bayley, managing
director of that South American
Mining company? ] can now quite
understand your motive. You want.
ed to get me out of the way in or.
der that I might not hunt you? Is
that not sop
"You hit the nail upon the head
exactly. But you were virtuous, and
would not swallow the bait. 1t would
have simplitied matters from my
point of view if you had. 1 should
not have been compelled to waste my
money upon those two roughs, MOI
would you have spent an exceedingly
uncomfortable quarter of an hour in
that doorway in Holywell street."
This was news indeed. So he had
been aware of my presence there? ]
put the question to him.
ooh! Yes! knew you were there, y
he said with laugh. Sand l can tell
bit. AS a matter of fact, / found
that it required ell my nerve to pre-
tend that l did not know it. Every
moment I expected you to come out