Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-02-01

me the Blue Pear. gave him my word of
honor 1t would be taken back to his sister,
and even lent him twenty pounds-and you
can imagine Row little / had left.'
He looked up. as though to ask question,
but she silenced him with her uplifted
hand
slipped down to my cabin, and turned on
the electric light Then l opened the little
case. ami looked at my pendant You know
never liked diamonds, they always seemed
so cold and hard and cruel-well. though
the tears of million women had frozen
Into one drop. But this Blue Pear-Oh.
Jim, it was beautiful thing
meant
'S-h-h-h-h, Not so loud. Yes. that is
just it! There stood trying it in the light,
feastng on it. when a voice said behind me.
voice that made my hair creep at the
roots. "A very unsafe stone to smuggle,
young lady!' And there; just inside my
door, stood the yellow bag. She had stolen
down, 1 suppose, to nose among my lug
gage bit. I could have shaken her-I
almost did try it.
I'VE stood staring at each other: it was
the second battle of the kind between us on
the upper hand in this one. l never saw
such envy and greed and cruelty in a hui
man face. as she ogled that stone.
1T seemed to intoxicate her-she was
drunk to get her hands on it-and she had
enough of her own, too. So. once more. l
had to think as fast I could. for 1 knew
that this time she wculd be relentless.
No. l shan't smuggle it, l said. in
swer to her look.
You pay duty-a thousand two thou
sand dollars!' she gasped at me. still keep
Ing her eyes on the stone, flashing there in
the light Given to YOU she almost Kissed,
by some loving father whose child you
guided into the paths of wisdom? oh, I
know you. you lying huzzy! It's mine" she
cried. like a baby crying for the moon. it's
mine! 1ou-you stole it from me!''
She paused at the memory of the, scene.
and Durkin stirred uneasily nthe seat.
What made the fool say that?" he de-
manded.
why, she meant that she could claim it.
land intended to claim it, insinuating that
she would see that it was declared at the
wharf, if j kept it, and arguing that /
might as well lose it quietly to her. as to
the treasury officers. I knew in a flash,
then. that she didn't know what the Blue
Pear was. l closed the little gun-metal case
with snap. Then ! put it Blue Pear and
all. in her hand. She turned white, and
asked me what 1 meant.
am going to give it to you-for a
while, at least l said as coolly as l could,
ma king a virtue. of course. of what knew
was going to be a necessity.
She looked at me open-mouthed. Then
she tore open the case. looked at the stone
weighed 1t in her fingers, gasped little.
held 1t to the light again, and turned and
looked at me still once more.
This pendant was stolen!' she cried
with sudden conviction. She looked at the
stone again-She couldn't resist a..
You might call it the Robins Egg
when you have 1t re-cut.' told her.
"She gave a jump-that was what she
was thinking Of the shrewd old wretch
She showed the case down in her lean old
breast.
Then you will smuggle 1t in for me-? I
asked her.
Yes, RI get it through, if I have to
"'And you will keep it?' 1 asked; and 1
laughed, 1 don't know why.
You remember my house,? She cried
with a start
Like book told her
But still I'll keep it,! she declared.
ut was challenge, a silly challenge but
I felt at that moment that this was indeed
plunge back into the old ways of life
But, to go She didn't seem to realize
that keeping the Blue Pear was like trying
to conceal a white elephant. or attempting
to hide away Sierra Nevada mountain
Then that cruel old. avaricious oyer-dress-
ed, natural-born criminal had her turn at
laughing. little Historically, 1 think And
for a minute or two, felt that all the
world had gone mad. that were only
two gray gibbering ghosts talking in the
enigmas of insanity. penned up In throbbing
cages of white enameed iron.
Il followed her out Of the cabin, and
walked up and down alone in the moon
light wondering If 1 had done right At
the wharf,I fully intended to risk every
thing and inform on her, then cable to the
Cicelys But she must have suspected
soine' iiis iihe .idt-iny SteWardesS had al
ready told me there were two Treasury De-
partment detectives on board-and got her
innings first For 1 found myself quietly
taken in charge, and my luggage gone over
with microscope-to say nothing of tha
gentle old lady who massaged me so apollo
getically from head to foot and seemed
bit put out to find that 1 had nothing more
dutiable than an extra pair of French
gloves"
Had you expected this beforehand" in
terposed Durkin.
Yes the stewardess had told me there
was trouble fmpending-that's what made
me afraid about the Blue Pear. Just as /
got safely through Customs. though
caught sight of the yellow bag dispatching
her maid and luggage home in four-wheei-
er, While she herself sailed away in another
- Islt so sure she was going straight to
her husbands store. Isaac Ottenheimer e.
Co., the jeweler and diamond man on 9Th
avenue, you know, that 1 scrambled into a