The Delta independent., 1912-04-19
CHAPTER XXI.

| " IOul ne lhiSW hlLISSll lulO Tue
lower berth and lay there, forearm
flung across his eyes, thinking ex-
citedly, disturbed by formless fore.
bodings.
Beside him Danny was packing In
dustriously. with now and again
pause during which he would stand
reflective. his gaze fixed upon his EN-.
ployer's face, little puzzled and per
picked.
The Poonah was pausing overnight
to discharge and take aboard cargo;
for this reason O'Rourke in his haste
to get ashore had not delayed tos take
his luggage with him :. On
deck fore and aft donkey engines
were putting and chugging and chain
tackles rafting as they lifted freight
to and from the hold and the lighters
alongside.
Abruptly, without moving, O'Rourke
| spoke. I'll want evening clothes,
Danny" said he. "'Tis dining l am
tonight with Mr.. Straker and his
niece, Miss Pynsent who came with us
from Diamond Harbor. Twill save a
bit of bother to dress before l go
ashore"
AVN" said Danny, assimilating.
And the MISUSE" he said
suddenly, some minutes later. Man
in Madam O'Rourke sor. Did We get
no word from her?'
For what else would l be driving
to every hotel. in the town after leav-
ing Mr.. Sypher, Danny, but to inquire
for her? She's not here; but she'll
come, be sure. She's still got several
days-three or four-in which to keep
our tryst. 'Tis disconnected l am not
to find her waiting for me. but I'm
satisfied entirely she'll keep faith"
And" insisted Danny eagerly
"beggin' yer honor's pardon-but what
will we have to tell her, sor?"
O'Rourke sat up. Have to tell
her? What dye mean?"
81 mean. sor. I'm dyin' wild the wish
to know how ut's all turned out.
Phase, yer honor, won't We be tellin'
me? Is ut-is ut all right?"
BLESS your heart. Danny" laughed
O'Rourke, "'Tis SO dazed I've been
that / never thought to tell ye-think.
ing all the time that ye knew. IT'S
all right, indeed. me boy. The Pool of
Flames in Mr.. Sypher's keeping and
the moneys in mine-in the bank,
Danny, payable to me order. Think of
! it-one hundred thousand pounds of
real money. and all me own. 'Tis
ridiculous, It's absurd. 'Tis meself
hardly credits the truth of it all; yet
l was there-saw the man, gave him
the jewel, went to the bank with him
and for the space of five minutes sat
at table, with all that money before
me, counting 1t over, bill by BILL
square hundred of them, each for a
thousand pounds, guaranteed by the
Bank of England, Think OF
that-all that belonging to me-to me,
O'Rourke! :"
Thank Cod" breathed Danny de-
votedly. But did ye Iarn nothin'
about the stone?"
Little enough, Danny-only a part
of the meaning of the whole divilish
business; the rest I'm to know to-
night. Mr.. Sypher II be tellin' me
after we've dined; he wants to hear
me own end of the story. too"
Sypher had very explicitly named
his dinner hour, after the formal Eng
llbH IdshlOll, HOWHtTe anu bODOuJ
more rigidly observed than by the
Englishman in the Orient; eight for
eight-thirty," he had said. And as
O'Rourke, very dignified and impos-
ing O'Rourke in his evening dress,
waited for sampan on the lower
grating OF the Poonah's passenger
gangplank he had a round three-quar-
tiers for an hour for leeway-ample leis-
ure for an interested inspection Of
that part of Rangoon lying between
the floating jetty and Sypher's resi-
dence in a suburb near Dalhousie
Park.
Danny remained aboard ship only
temporarily, being instructed to follow
with O'Rourke's belongings to suitable
accommodations already engaged at q
hotel on the Strand, overlooking the
roadstead; from whose windows
ORourke was promising himself the
pleasure of watching the arrival Of
the steamship bearing his wife to his
arms.
Bless her dear facet" said he soft
ly. "Tis meself will be desolated II
she's not aboard that Messageries boat
due tomorrow-now that ] can 20
back to her, man of property, no
longer pauper ne'er-do-well! Think
of that, ye lucky dog!"
A sampan slid noiselessly in beside
the grating. O'Rourke let himself eau
tiously into it and incontinently col
lapsed upon the rear seat as the boat
slid away toward the shore lights
yielding to the vigorous sweeps of the
single long oar welded by the Bur.
man in the bows.
Ashore, a tikkagharry caught him
up and bore him down the silent road