Cheyenne record., 1920-11-04
6M11ia1n
Johnston s

AS"ASN1ySss
hind a faded crayon portrait Of Mrs.
in the little sitting room.
I lifted the picture to the floor and
stood hesitant before the sufe. Should
1. orsshould not, open It? The fact
that they had given me the combina-
tion seemed to imply that had
perfect right to inspect its contents.
"Six to the right. four to the left.
two to the right, eight to the left"
AS turned the knob l repeated the
combination to myself. There was a
little click, and the steel door came
open. Reaching in l drew forth two
old-fashioned Jewel cases of leather,
both securely locked. took from my
pocket the keys my great-uncle had
given me and toyed with them thought
fully. Among them were two tiny
keys that undoubtedly belonged to the
Jewel cases. Had the right to use
them? decided that I had.
The first case opened contained, 80
far as my limited knowledge of prec-
ious stones enabled me to Judge, MOTH
ing but bunch of cheap junk, bits
of f1nery from another century, coral
earrings that Mrs. CASTOR may have
worn when she was a little girl, combs
of jet, amber beads. quaint hoop ear
rings and a ring or two. merely the
trinkets of vain old woman, treas
ured from the time when the money
to buy them was scarce. There was
nothing In the lot that any self-re-
specting thief would take, precious as
they may have been to their owner.
I locked up that case and returned 1t
to the safe and opened the other.
AS l raised the lid an Involuntary
exclamation of amazement and admi-
ration escaped me. There, nesting in
the center of velvet-lined tray. lay
cleaning the most wonderful mass OF
iridescent pearls l ever had laid eyes
on. surely worth a vast fortune. Turn
ing them over and over admiringly in
the light, at last I laid them back in
the tray and began to investigate the
other treasures the casket contained.
In other traps in the box found dia-
monds galore. a great solitaire that
must have been all of seven carats.
dinner rings, bar pins, crescents, stars,
earrings, and in a compartment all
by itself, tiara of rubies and dia-
monds. There was also a variety of
other gems, pins and rings wrought
in curious designs with rubles, dia.
monds, sapphires, and pearls. some un.
set diamonds and loose fragments OF
pieces that had evidently been torn
apart to add to other settings, the
collection of a woman with unlimited
money to spend.
With trembling hands l restored the
jewels to their hiding place. twice test.
Ing the knob to make sure that the
combination had set The unexpected
sight of such a vast fortune In gems
had filled me with strange emotions
with thoughts SO evil hardly dared
admit them to myself. There must
have been nearly half million dollars
worth Of precious stones in that one
casket. The CASTOR pearls In them.
selves were fortune.
If only they were minel
| To every honest man at times come
temptations as great as come to any
criminal. No man knows whether OF
not he is honest until he has been put
to the test. I knew! 1 was tempted
strongly tempted. to take my great
aunt's Jewels. What was to hinder
The old couple were to be absent for
months. They had left me In charge
and had given me their keys and the
safe combination. There would be
abundant time for dlsposing Of the
Jewels before their theft was discov
cred. With the money they would
bring I could satisfy my craving fol
adventure. I could travel the world
over.
Yet, as l look back at it, all the
time I was thinking these thoughts.
knew l would not take the jewels. A
normal man cannot steal. Even when
his desires lead him to theft. his mind
points out the folly and his conscience
the wrong.
Resolutely l put the thought Of the
jewels out of my head-Or tried to
and stretching myself out on a couch
gave myself up to pleasant reveries
about my delightful new acquaintance
the girl who lived just across the hall
I pictured myself finding some way OF
winning her confidence and of helping
her out Of her mysterious trouble. And
what II eventually old Rufus should
make me his heir2 Surely would
need a mate with whom to share the
joys of having a fortune. With Wis
ions Of Barbara Bradford bedecked
with my great-aunt's choicest Jewels
fell asleep.
| 1t was almost dusk when I wal