Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-09-30

parting at Naples sat heavily on his
spirit.
He would neither talk to me nor
would he let me go.
stop where you are, Bunny. I've
things to tell you. Can you SWIM?
"a bit"
''Ten miles?''
TEN" l burst out laughing. "Not
ope. Why do you ask"
I'VE shall be within a ten miles
swim of the shore most of the day
What on earth are you driving at.
Raffies?'
Nothing. Only 1 shall swim for it
IL the worst comes to the worst. |
suppose you can't swim under water
at all?"
did not answer his question.
scarcely heard It. Cold beads We're
bursting through my skin.
why should the worst come TO the
worst?" whispered. ave aren't found
out. are we?-
NO"
Then why speak as though we
were?"
I'VE may be. An old enemy of ours
is Oh board t.,'
"An old enemyT"
Mackenzie"
Never
"The man with the beard who came
aboard last"
''Are you sureY'
'Sure. | was only sorry TO see you
didn't recognize him too
r. | took my handkerchief to my face.
Now that / thought of it there had
been something familiar in the old
mans gait as well as something rather
youthful for his apparent years. His
very beard seemed unconvincing now
that | recalled it in the light of this
horrible revelation. | looked up and
down the deck. but the old man was
nowhere To be seen.
That's the worst of It," said Raffles.
II saw him go into the captains cabin
twenty minutes ago
But what can have brought him 2"
] cried miserably. Can it be coinci-
dence. Is il somebody else he's after:"
Rallies shook his head.
Hardly this time"
Then you think he's after your
I've been afraid OF it for some
weeks"
Yet there you stand"
What am TO do? I don't want TO
swim for IL before | must | begin TO
wish I'd taken your advice, Bunny. and
left the ship at Genoa But I've not
the smallest doubt that Mac was
watching both ship and station till the
last moment That's why he ran IL SO
fine"
lie took a cigarette and handed NE
the case, but ! shook my bead impa-
tiently
Il still don't understand" said l.
Why should he be after you? He
couldn't come all this way about
jewel which was perfectly safe for all
he knew. What's your own theory?'
simply that he's been on my track
for some time. probably ever since
friend Crawshay slipped clean through
his fingers last November. There have
been other indications. / am really
not unprepared for this. But ii can
only be pure suspicion. I'll defy him
10 bring anything home. and I'll defy
him 10 ind the pearl. Theory, my dear
Bunny? l know how he's got here as
well as though I'd been inside that
Scotchman's skin. and l know what
he'll do next. He found out I'd gone
abroad and looked for a motive. He
found out about Won Heumann and
his mission, and there was his motive
cut and dried. Great chance-to nab
me on new job altogether. But he
won't do II, Bunny. Mark my words.
he'll search the ship and search US all
when the loss is known. but he'll
search in vain. And there's the skipper
beckoning the whippersnapper TO his
cabin. The fat will be in the fire In
five minutes
Yet there was no confiagration, no
fuss, no searching OF the passengers.
no whisper of what had happened in
the air. Instead OF a stir there was
portentous peace, and ii was clear tn
me that Rallies was not n little dis
turbcd ut the Justification OF all his