Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-04-11
The Red Herring

you are not going back to your cham
bers in Palm Tree Court Give me your
key. slip it into my side pocket quietly
because il is possible we are being
watched. When we get into Fleet
street cali a taxi and drive to your club
the Oriental, isn't it? III send your
bag along to you there. What shall I
throw into it?''
I told him and suggested that he
should put in my revolver as we'll
III you like, but you won't need it,"
II shall feel safer and more adj
venturous,'' l answered.
l drove to the Oriental, dined there,
and in due course left to catch the
boat train. Screed had OF course.
omitted to put into my bag half the
things l had told him, but he had in
cluded my revolver, which i slipped
into my hip pocket
or course, as soon as Screed had left
me l remembered all sorts of ques-
tons l should like to have asked
him. During dinner / realized how
little he had told me, and also how
futile the whole affair seemed l also
speculated whether he was not jeal-
Gus and had sent me to Paris to keep
me out of Betty's teashop for a few
days. l imagine this idea did not
take very deep root, because l began
to take note of my fellow travellers
as soon as / got to Charing Cross.
! did not see the Bohemian, but there
were two men who attracted my at
tention. One stood at the door Of a
first-class carriage apparently wait
ing for late arrival. noticed him
because his face seemed familiar.
The other was foreigner, a rough,
bullying kind of man. the kind who
stands in the middle of the platform
with his legs apart, his hands clasped
behind his back, and doesn't move for
anybody / could not determine his
nationality, and l lost sight of him be-
fore the train started.
l did not see the foreigner on the
boat. but almost the first person l
met as I went down the gangway was
the Bohemian. Screed's description
had been Photographic. The man.
whose face was familiar to me. had
passed along the gangway just in
front OF me: he glanced at the
Bohemian. then turned toward me. 1t
seemed that it was deliberately done
to attract my attention. Where had
l seen him before? Was he the man
Screed had said might try and get
into conversation with me?
He walked away without making
any attempt to do SO. and. following
my instructions, l got as far away as
possible from the Bohemian. whose
interest in me was unmistakable.
He deliberately moved to point of
vantage from which he could watch
my movements.
At Calais the platform was crowd
ed, and it was evident the train would
be full l was off the boat before the
Bohemian and made at once for
carriage II he intended to travel in
the same compartment should soon
be aware OF the fact and have am
pie time to change my seat. He was
close at my heels. but he went far
ther up the train, convinced. ! sup
pose, there was no room for him in
my carriage. The available seats
were quickly secured. The man
whose face knew had taken the one
opposite mine. and the one at the
far end was taken by the bullying
foreigner, who suddenly pushed his
way through the crowd and, having
stumbled over our feet. surveyed US
one after the other as IL we had no
right to be there The man opposite
to me smiled and we began to talk.
He was not inquisitive. Our CONVEX
sation was of a very ordinary kind,
nothing illuminating in 1t. nothing in
1t interesting enough to repeat. l
came to the conclusion he could not
be the man Screed had expected would
speak to me.
The bully. after a period of quies-
cence, during which he seemed in
clined to sleep and snore. began to
make himself Objectionable. He made
some remarks abusive of things in
general in very cultural French. and
then interfered with the man next to
him because he was taking too much
elbow room. This little quarrel hav-
ing subsidized. he persisted in talking
to another man, who wanted to go
to sleep. The would-be sleeper was
quickly irritable. and he and the bully
were quickly abusing each other. The
language became forceful, and an
other passenger entered into the dis
cussion with request to know why
the bully had got into a first class
carriage.
Because I pay you-you--" and