The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-07-02

he was still watching Raffles, and Kept
an eye on them both without putting In
my word.
You appear to be single handed" OBJ
served Raffles rs that wiser
The note of anxiety was eapitaTy
caught; it was at once personal and pub
lic-sprited, that of the enthusiastic
savant. afraid for a national treasure
which few appreciated as he did himself.
this treasury to ourselves. One or two
others had been there when we enter
ed, but now they We're gone.
I'm not single-handed said the Of
ficer comfortably See that seat by the
door? One of the attendants sits there
all day long"
Then where is he now?''
Talking to another attendant just out
side If you listen you'n hear them for
yourself"
We listened and we did hear them. Sut
not just outside. In my own mins ] even
questioned whether they were in the cor
rdor through which we had come. To
me 1t sounded as though they were just
outside the corridor.
you mean the fellow With the bill
lard cue who was here when we came
in?r pursued Raffles.
That wasn't a billiard cuei 1t was a
pointer the intelligent officer explained.
ut ought to be a javelin," said Rafties
nervously. cit ought to be poleaxe!
The public treasure ought to be better
guarded than this. l shall write to the
Times about 1t. You see if | dont!'
All at once, yet somehow not so sud
denly as to excite suspicion, Raffles had
become the elderly busybody with nerves;
why l could not for the life of me mag
inc, and the policeman seemed equally at
sea.
'L,r bless you, sir" said he, I'm all
right. Don't you bother your head about
me-"
But you haven't even got a trunch-
eonw
mot likely to want one either. You see,
sir, its early as yet In a few minutes
these here rooms will I'LL up, and there's
safety in numbers, as they say
"Oh, it will fill up soon will it?"
ANY minute now, SIR
"Ah!''
1T isn't often empty as long as this
sir It's the jubilee, | suppose.
Meanwhile what if my friend and
had been professional thieves? Why we
could have overpowered you in an in
slant, my good fellow!'
THAT you couldn't; leastways not with
out bringing the whole place about your
ears"
We'll I shall write to the Times all
the same. I'm a connoisseur in all TINS
sort of thing and | won't have unnec-
essary risks run with the nations prop
erty. YJu said there was an attendant
Just outside, but he sounds to me as
though he were at the other end OF the
corridor. | shall write today!
For an instant we all three listened,
and Rafnes was right. Then saw TWO
things in one glance. Raffles had stepped
a few inches backward and stood posted
upon the ball Of each foot. his arms hair
raised a light in his eys. And another
kind of light was breaking over the Grass
features of our friend the constable.
'Then shall tell you what II do?'
he cried with a sudden clutch at the
whistle chain on his chest. The whistle
flew out. but it never reached his lips.
There were a couple of sharp smacks
like double barrels discharged all but
simultaneously, and the man reeled
against me so that | could not help
catching him as he fell.
''Well done Bunny! I've knocked him
out-I've knocked him out! Run you to
the door and see If the attendants have
heard anything, and take them on If they
have"
Mechanically I did as l was told. There
was no time for thought, still less for
remonstrance or reproach, though my
surprise must have been even more COM
plete than that of the constable before
Raffes knocked the sense out of him.
Even in my utter bewllderment. how
ever the instructive caution of the real
criminal did not desert him. / ran to the
door. but | sauntered through 1t to plant
myself before Pompeiian fresco in the
corridor, and there We're the two attend
ants still gossiping outside the further
door; nor did they hear the duh crash