Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1914-06-01
A BIT OF
WAX
By WILLARD BLAKEMAN


his private Office and told me that
client of the house desired that carry
Cor him to Boston valuable sapphire.
He would pay me handsomely for its
delivery in that city.
needed the money and accepted the
commission. | called for it the day
sailed, wearing a coat with pocket
in the lining, in which the sapphire
was sewed 10y an Indian woman who
was called in for the purpose, though
she did not see the contents of the
pocket or know that there was pock-
ct there
My route was by Alden, the Suez ca
nal. the Mediterranean and over the
Atlantic to New York. quite a long
journey and all in the same vessel.
made the acquaintance of an Ameri-
can lady, Mrs. Gillette, whose maid
was young Indian woman. The lady
told me that shortly before she sailed
the w0man-Susan she was called. be
cause her Indian name was hard to
tending to sail for America. came and
begged her TO take her With her as her
maid, with no compensation except
paying for her passage. The lady,
who was subject TO seasickness and
wished some one to wait ON her. con-
sented. Mrs. Gillette was i'll in rough
weather. but well on smooth sea.
Susan took very good care of her.
Since ] had told no one that | car
ried a valuable gem and no one ex-
cept myself and the man through
whom it came to me knew where it
was ! felt very little fear of losing it.
! simply wore the coat in which it was
sewed by day and used it for pillow
by night. so that it was always either
On my back or under my head. But
one thing occurred during the voyage
to cause me to suspect the possibility
OF any one being on my track. One
day when about to enter my state
room | noticed something white not
as big as a pea on the floor directly un-
der the lock. have no idea what in
duced me TO pick it up, but | did so
and. crushing it between my thumb
and forefnger. found it to be wax.
Could any one have been taking an
impression of the lock on my state
room door? ! dismissed the sugges-
ton ut once as farfetched.
We had left Gibraltar and were
nearing the Azores when one morning
I awOke with a head swimming SEN
sation. smelled peculiar odor in the
room. l put up my hand to grasp my
coat, for felt that my head was with
out support, and was Mortified to find
the coat was not there. l arose and
looked about the room for it as best /
could. but it was not in the room.
tried the door and found ii locked
The key had concealed under my
mattress. Ii was where had placed it.
The remembrance of the bit of wax l
had found came back to me as the
only clew to this robbery. II an i'm
preston had been made for Il key the
key must have been made aboard the
ship. 1t could not have been filed
without the filing being heard. Doubt
less 1t had been made in the ship's
workshop. went below and asked
the man In charge of the metal work
ing shop II he had been called to make
q key. He said that he had not. but,
after some thought. said that one of
the, stewards had been in the shop
filing something. He remembered the
steward and We found him.
| reported the matter to the captain,
who called the steward before him
and obtained a confession that he had
been tipped by lady's maid to do
some filing Oh a key. When called
upon TO identify the lady's maid he
pointed out Mrs. Gillette's Indian girl
Susan.
Before Susan got wind Of the mat
ter stewardess took her in charge and
another went through her effects.
My coat was found among them, but
the sapphire was missing. We were
obliged to tie a rope around Susan.
N"'N"'Nhiht tN puN htl bNtlDolTu, De-
fore she broke down and told us where
she had concealed Il.
No blame whatever was attached to
Mrs Gillette. She had not the slightest
conception that her maid was not only
n thief, but had entered her service
knowing that she was about to leave
for America on the same steamer as
/ and believing that carried the sap.
phire.
This is the explanation Of how Su-
san acquired this information She
had been chambermaid in the hotel
where the owner Of the sapphire stay
ed and had suddenly entered the room
and had seen him handling It, She
had watched him and had seen him
20 to the bankers. There she had sue
ceeded in making the acquaintance Of
the woman who had done the sew
ing on my coat. This was enough.
A brother OF hers had got from the
passenger list Of the steamer on which
| was TO sail the names OF several
ladies'. Susan had gone to each OF
these ladies, proposing to 20 with her
MS maid. and had been successful with
Mrs. Gillette
Susan was kept In limbo TO the end
OF the voyage. when l went ashore l
learned afterward that she was taken
back to India. being made to do mcnial
l..