Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-10-28

''The Koh l. Moor, as you have
heard is in possession of the English
crown; the Excelsior, or Jubilee Dia-
mond, belonged to Queen Victoria; the
Great Mogul to one of the princes of
India the Florentine is in the jewel box
of the royal house of Austria; the
Lancy, cut for Charles the Bold. was
afterward owned by Queen Elizabeth {;
/ the Dresden Green is in the treasure
chest of the king of Saxony, and the
Star of the South--one of the only two
perfect red diamonds in existence--ls
in the possession of Basil Wharton ~
He paused, as if to hear the applause,
but none came, and the poor gentle
man, ringing the bell, ordered the
servant to serve the gentlemen with
sherry.
While this was going ON I tried to
map out plan of action for myself. My
| final instructions from Bromley Barnes
! bade me consult with him before taking
to locate the diamond and then inform
him of the fact. He had arranged his
movements SO that I might reach him
at any hour of the day or night. |
could not leave Hedgewatcr House at
this critical stage of the proceedings,
and yet / must communicate with
Barnes. I knew there was a telephone
in the hallway adjoining the living room
and | resolved to use it.. Leaving my
place without attracting attention, |
went to the inclosure and called the
number of the veteran investigator. To
my satisfaction he answered himself.
"What news?" he asked.
'"The stars are shining I responded.
That was the form that had been
, agreed upon between us, and it meant
"a hn oJ
From the pause that ensued I could
| tell that this news had caught his
breath.
"Do you think they will shine until
morningF' he asked, presently
Yes" I replied.
DO you want me now"
"No."
CAN right" was the contented CON
clusion. TN see you in the morn
ing"
When l resumed my place the gen
tlemen were still slipping their sherry.
| had not been missed. ! was sure ]
had not been overheard at the telephone.
but even if ] had been no one in the
house would understand my cryptic re
marks. Dora was at the piano, but
one could see with half an eye that she
was dreadfully disturbed. She started
to play something, but stopped in the
midst of it and left the instrument.
She passed the window which over
looked the garden to come over to our
side of the room. Suddenly she gave
a scream, cry of terror ! ran Just in
time to prevent her from falling to the
| floor. Mrs. Crilly and the others were
at her side in an instant.
What is it, DEAR" asked the old
! lady anXiouSly.
''Oh, it's nothing, Aunt Sarah" she
replied with half sob. IN just
nervous and overwrought.'
She recovered with astonishing quick
ness, and when Colonel Wharton urged
her to go to her own room and rest she
declined, saying:
I'm ashamed of myself for causing
you such annoyance and just to prove
that | am all right I shall play your
favorite selection"
Thereupon she sat down at the piano
and played the wedding march from
Lohengrin with a dash and abandon
that elected the hearty applause of
all the guests. I stood by the side
of the piano and my feelings were feel
ings of mingled JOY and sorrow. Two
hours before and | would have been
transported with delight at this sugges E
tive selection, but now it filled me
with misgivings and seemed to be a
mockery of my hopes.
Worst of all. when she spoke to me
it was in a strained and unnatural tone.
To add to the misery of it all my re-
plies were confused and disconnected.
Once she glanced at me out of those
questioning eyes and / was utterly un =
able to return her glance. Luckily.
Aunt Sarah came up at that moment
and urged her to retire for the night.
That gave me time to recover my self
possession. Dora. with the perversity
of her sex, insisted that she was all
right. and the dear old lady was com
PEELED TO abandon her entreaties. As
Mrs. Crilly moved away I turned to
Dora with a trace of anxiety in my
voice.
Have you really recovered?'
Yes" she answered in a low tone.
There were several moments of
strained silence between us. Presently
she looked up at me with that candor
for which her black eyes were dis
tinguished.
Il suppose you are curious to know
the cause of my foolish outburst?"
81 am.
"Well," she said, dropping her voice.
las | passed the window / imagined
I saw man peering into the room.
could not control myself-and so |
screamed"
"Quite natural" | commented. more
disturbed than / was willing to admit.
, l. too, had imagined a face at the
/ window, but I did not mention it to
Dora because it would only cause her
unnecessary alarm.
I'm sure ] was mistaken" she con
tined, "but I'd be glad if you would
take a turn around the veranda.
don't want to speak of it to uncle be-
cause he is not himself tonight"
: ] cheerfully undertook the mission
because | was just as anxious as the
girl TO discover if any one had been
eayesdropping during the time the Red
Diamond was being exhibited to the
S company. Colonel Wharton was en-
. gagged in a noisy discussion about local
Y politics so that | was able to slip out
t of the house unobserved The porches
+ were deserted, The moon was shining
brightly so that it was possible to get
good view of the grounds. Not a
soul was to be seen anywhere. To
make sure I made hasty trip around
the house but without result. Dora was
Time Gettinq Breakfast