Evening journal. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1907-1913, 1912-09-10
CHAPTER XVI.
A Slump In Crystal Consolidated.

Slump In Crystal Consolidated.
The week OF my conyalescence was
not eventful. Evelyn and Mrs. Lam
caster called daily, and the reports
from O'Hara came each morning with
unvarying regularity and equally un-
varying lack of import The artist,
after his visit to Yup Sing. had re
turned to his Cos Cob hermitage, &C.
companied by a successor to his for
mer unfortunate Chinese servant, and
now rarely left his own grounds.
+ Grayid with suggestion as his appear
ance in Chinatown had seemed at first,
| soon came to realize that II might
possibly bear no more vital signia-
canoe than that altogether common
place proceeding. the quest OF cook.
And In the absence Of any confrma-
tory evidence to the contrary, and
with the knowledge CLEANED from Miss
Clement that Yup Sing, on occasions.
added TO hts regular business of mer.
chandizing that of an employment
agent, ! saw no reason to attach an
undue importance to the incident.
Nevertheless l relinquished none of
my suspicious regarding Murphy, but
continued the detectives surveillance
with fresh injunction to vigilance
And cid not apologize to Yup Sing
Mis- Clement, to whom I believe
owe my life, visited me at my request.
How | whelmed her with my gratitude
is no more material than how she en-
Ic,h} IF ho1 cnrIriNp
to me, declaring that such offices were
a part of her days work In her chosen
field, and that her days work was her
passion. And yet it was this part OF
our interview which gave me my
strongest insight into her exceptional
ly worthy character Absolutely un-
selfish she joyed in a life that even
religious fanatic might well have
quailed before; finding flowers in
muck heaps and Jewels amid tinsel
In five minutes, too, ! glimpsed her
Astounding magnetism, the moving
agent In that rare efficiency which was
part and parcel Of her. Later, | learned
of the weight of her influence among
the jewellers in the Chinese colony;
not from any direct narrative of what
she had accomplishment she was
chary of speaking Of herself-but By
deduction, purely. Moreover. my
watch, a few trinkets and little
money, taken from me that night in
Doyers street, had all been returned
through Miss Clements good Offices;
and If, thus far, she had afforded us
Oh to oheArhino owl
gency, / felt that ultimately her knowl-
edge, coupled with her resourceful
ness, would prove to us of unbounded
value. And, as events shaped them
selves, was not wrong.
It was now nearly four weeks since
Cameron's disappearance, and fear
that he had met death in some fiend-
ish form at the hands of his abductors
had come to be with me very nearly
an obsession The care | exercised In
/ hiding my real state of mind from
Evelyn could not well be exaggerated.
When | appeared to her most hopeful
| was actually most despairing. With
Miss Clement, however, | had no rea-
son to dissemble. With all frankness
i lOiu Uci VI my dtbPdlI anu N'i~''f
instead of trying to comfort me with
empty words of encouragement she
agreed with me that the chances OF
our ever seeing Cameron again were
at a minimum, | liked her the better
for being Straightforward.
II sometimes feel" | said to her,
making full confession, that we made
icfo in M nOti-
flying the authorities Even now ! am
inclined to lay the matter before them.
Anything would be better than uncer-
tainty. A few arrests and the third
degree might work wonders"
Where would you start?" she asked
in blunt, logical way that reminded
me of Evelyns faculty of going to the
root of things. you see, you know 80
little. The story about the portrait
and the mirror, the police would re-
gard as more amusing than convinc-
ing. And besides, you haven't any
proof Yup Sing, you tell me, has the
only original letter. and by this time
he may have lost 1t or have forgotten
that he ever had It. If you had seen
as much Of the Chinese as l have, you
would appreciate how willy they are.
My belief is that the police would con-
clude that Mr.. Cameron fell overheard
from his yacht and was drowned. In
deed 1t would be fortunate II they did
not take the view that he jumped
overheard and committed suicide. Or,
worse still, 1t would not be beyond
them. Mr.. CLYDE. to charge that you
pushed him over. The yellow papers
would almost certainly intimate such
a possibility" Had some one else
voiced this suggestion l should prob
ably have resented 1t. but l under
stood Miss Clement. She was as kind
as her eyes indicated; and that Is
speaking very strongly
Continued Tomorrow