The Sauk Centre herald., 1909-10-21

"You marked It, sir? There's not .
single scratch on this one! Merciful
Providence! Merciful Providence!"
"Yes." Logotheti said gravely. The
girl spoke the truth. She had two
stones much larger than the rest when
she first came to me in Paris, this one
and another. They were almost ex-
actly alike, and she wanted me to
buy both, but I did not want them,
and took the one I thought little
better in color. This is the other, for
she still had 1t; and, so far as know,
1t Is her legal property, and mine is
gone. The thief was one of those
two young fellows who came in just
when Mr.. Van Torp and I went out. I
remember thinking what nice-looking
boys they were!"
He laughed rather harshly, for he
was more annoyed than his considera-
ton for Mr.. Pinney made him care to
show. He had looked forward to Civ
ing Margaret the ruby, mounted just
as she wanted it; and the ruby was
gone, and he did not know where he
was to find another, except the one
that was now in Pinney's hands, but
really belonged to poor Baraka, who
could certainly not sell it at present.
A much larger sum of money was
gone, too, than any financier could
lose with equanimity by such a Pc
culiarly disagreeable mishap as be-
inc rnhhod Thora
sons why Logotheti was not pleased.
81 am deeply humiliated," said the
worthy old jeweler. 'I have not only
been tricked and plundered, but I
have been the means of sending inno-
cent people to prison."
"You had better be the means of
getting them out again as soon as pos
sible," said Logotheti. "And you
must also make an effort to trace
those young men who stole the ruby"
II most certainly SHALL" replied the
jeweler, "and If it is not found we
will make it Sood to you, sir, what
ever price yoM set upon it. 1 am
deeply Inundated, but nobody shall
say that Pinney & Son do not make
good any loss their customers sustain
through them"
Don't worry about that, Mr.. Pin.
ney," said Logotheti, who saw how
much distressed the old jeweler really
was.
So they went out and hailed a han
som and drove away.
1t would be tiresome to give a de-
tailed account Of what they did. Suf-
flee it to say that the prisoners were
set at large; Mr.. Pinney restored the
ruby to Baraka, and all her other be-
longings were given back to her, even
including the smart gray suit of mems
clothes in which she had been ar:
rested; and her luggage and other
things which the manager of the hotel
where she had been stopping had
handed over to the police were all re-
turned; and when Spiro appeared at
the hotel to pay the small bill that
had been left owing, he held his head
as high as an oriental can when he
has got the better of any one, and
that is pretty high indeed. Further
more, Mr.. Pinney insisted on giving
Logotheti formal document by
which Messrs. Pinney & Son bound
themselves to make good to him, his
heirs, or assigns, the loss of a ruby,
approximately Of a certain weight and
quality, which he had lost through
their carelessness.
On the day following Baraka's lib
Grafton, Lady Maud received Marga-
ret's pressing message begging her to
90 to Bayreuth. The message reached
her before noon, about the time when
Margaret and her companions had
come back from their morning walk,
and after hesitatirg for half an hour,
she telegraphed that she would come
with pleasure, and would start at once
which meant that evening.
She had just read the official &C.
count Of the ruby case in its new as
pect, and she did net believe a word
Of the story. To her mind it was quite
clear that Logotheti was still infatu-
ated with the girl, that he had come
to London as fast as he could, and
that he had deliberately sworn that
the ruby was not his, but another one,
IN order to get her out of trouble. II
It was not his 1t had not been stolen
from Pinney's, and the whole case fell
through at once. If she was declared
innocent the stone must be given back
to her; he would take it from her as
soon as they were alone and return
1t to his own pocket; and being an
oriental, he would probably beat her
for robbing him, but would not let her
out Of his sight again till he was tired
Of her. Lady Maud had heard from
her late husband how all Turks be-
lieved that women had no souls and
should be kept under lock and key,
and well fed, and soundly beaten now
and then for the good of their tenn
pers. This view was exaggerated, but
Lady Maud was in a humor to recall
it and accept 1t without criticism, and
she made up her mind that before
leaving town to join Margaret she
would make sure Of the facts. No
friend of hers should marry a man
capable Of such outrageous deeds.
So she went to Logotheti's lodgings
and asked to see him, as regardless Of
what any one should think of her, IL
she were recognized, as she had been
In the old days when she used to go
to Van Torp'S chambers in the Tenn