The Raymer enterprise., 1913-01-23
COPYRIGHT 1911 Iy Bobbs r1ERRILL COMPANY

W so anu COiue us pIeaSeQ. 10 10
this and live meant precarious ex.
plots. This rug represents one Of
them. ! am telling you the family
secret; ! am showing you the skele
ton In the closet, confdentially. |
stole that rug; and when ! say that
the seven labors Of our old friend
Hercules were simple diversions com.
pared, you'll recognize the difficulties
had TO overcome. You know some
thing Of the Oriental mind. hand.
led the job alone. l may not be out
OF the Jungle yet"
George listened entranced. He could
readily construct the scenes through
which this adventurer had gone; the
watchful nights, the untiring patience,
the thirst. the hunger, the heat. And
fyet, he could hardly believe. He was
trife skeptical. Many rogue had
made the mistake Of playing Georges
! age against his experience. He had
made some serious blunders In the
early stages Of the business. how.
ever; and everybody. to gain some
thing In the end, must lose something
at the start.
III that rug is the ons have In
mind. you certainly have stolen 1t.
And II it's copy, Ill tell you quickly
enough"
That's fair. And that's why"
Ryanne declared, II wanted you to
look at it. To me. considering what
have gone through to get 1t, to me It
is the genuine carpet. To your expert
eye it may be only fine copy. / know
this much. that rare rugs and paint
ings have many copies. and that some
one is being hooked. sold. bamboozled,
sandbagged, every day in the week. If
this is the real article, want you to
take It of my hands," the adventurer
finished pleasantly.
There will be a hue and cry"
mo doubt Of It."
"And the DEVILS own Job to get 1t
out of Egypt" These were set phrases
Of the expert, preliminaries to bar.
gaining. "One might as well carry
round stolen elephant"
But man who Is as familiar with
the game as you are would have little
difficulty. Your integrity is an estab.
lished fact. on both sides Of the water.
You could take 1t to New York as a
copy, and no appraiser would know
the difference. It's worth the attempt.
I'd take 1t to New York myself, but
you see, am fiat broke. Come: what
do you or care about son.of.a.gun
Of Turk" drolly.
What do you want for 1t. suppos.
Ing It's genuine?" Georges throat was
dry and his voice harsh. His con-
science reused herself, feebly. for It
had been a long time since occasion
had necessitated her presence.
Ryanne narrowed his eyes, carefully
balancing the possibilities. Say, one
thousand pounds. 1t Is like giving 1t
away. But when the devil drives, you
know. 1t is beyond any set price; 1t
is worth what any collector is willing
to pay for It. l believe I know the
kind Of man you are. Mr.. Jones, and
that is why, when learned you were
in Cairo, I came directly to you. You
would never sell this rug. No. You
would become like miser over his
gold. You would keep It with your
emeralds II have heard about them.
too); draw the curtains, lock the
doors, whenever you looked at It. Eh?
You would love It for its own sake.
and not because 1t Is worth so many
thousand pounds. You are sailing in
few days; that will help. The Pasha
Is in Constantinople, and 1t will be
three or four weeks before he hears Of
the theft. or the cost" with a certain
grimness.
you haven't killed any one?" whis.
pered George.
II don't know; perhaps. Christian.
ity against paganism; the Occidental
conscience permits IT," Ryanne made
gesture to indicate that he would
submit to whatever moral arraignment
Mr.. Jones deemed advisable to make.
But George made none. He rose
hastily, sought his knife and. without
so much as by your leave, slashed the
twlne, flung aside the paper. and threw
the rug across the counterpane. II
was the Yhiordes. There was not the
slightest doubt In his mind. He had
heard 1t described, he had seen
photograph OF It, he knew Its history
and. most vital Of all. he owned
good copy Of II
Against temptation that was robust
and energetic and alluring like the
man who insists upon your having q
drink when you want It and ought not
to have ~, what chance had con.
science, grown innocuous in the long
period Of the young mans good be.
bavior? Collectors arc always honest
before and after that moment arrives
when they want something desperate.
ly; and George was no more sanity
than his kind. And how deep Ryanne
and his confederates had delved into
human nature. how well they could
read and Judge II. was made manifest
In this moment Of Georges moral no
lapse.