Evening star., 1921-01-16

say. be other interviews and with
other parties whom 1 do not name
now, but these three / am going to
ask you to be kind enough to arrange
for me at the earliest possible date.
! will drop in at headquarters lust
after tlffin tomorrow. Shall we say 9
O'Clock. sharp? Thank you And now
for about a dozen very leading uues-
ton before you go. Mr.. Inspector,
your answers to which shall not only
be absolutely CONFIDENTIAL but as lot
them down in my notebook they will
be in my own secret system of Chinese
stenography. absolutely meaningless
except to the sacred circle of the five
initiated ones"
When the inspector finished his an
swers and rose to leave. Wang Foos
Chinese cap of woven silk covered all
the leading facts of the robbery.
Within the next few days Wang Foo
! was granted the privilege of the three
interviews which he had requested of
Inspector Higgins; and his courtesy
his gracious manner with the ladies'
and, last OF all. his deep personal in
terest in the case had made for him
new circle of admiring friends.
He. of course. visited the apartment
| where the afternoon-tea had been
served and had Miss Tucker go over
with him carefully every detail of the
consular visit. He examined the room,
the walls. the doors and windows and
made a minute inspection of the ver-
afda with Its exits and entrances
,, Yet. though he did not spare his uues-
tons at all-his piercing eyes seeming
to penetrate into every nook and cor
ner-there was an entire absence in
him of that rough and sometimes verv
! annoying inquisitiveness with which
detective officers conduct such an ex-
animation in western lands. He ap-
peared rather in the role of an inter-
ested personal friend. and thus led the
ladies' to agoid all suspicion of being
cross-examined by the police and to
tel the story as naturally and freely
as they would have to any member of
! their own Immediately family.
What pleased Miss Josephine more
than anything else was his sympa-
| thetic inquiry about her visit to the
shrine at Nagasaki and about the
way in which the mirror Of the gods
was finally secured. He drew out
from her many of her own thoughts
about crystal and mirror gazing and
more than charmed her with his un-
folding of the oriental conception of
these and other esoteric mysteries.
III you will pardon my saying IT.
Miss Tucker. I believe that from my
standpoint as a child of the far east
ern world l am privileged to enter
more feelingly into the sense of your
loss than are my friends of the Hong
kong police force-splendid men and
officers though they be. They would
be rather inclined to measure 1T by
the money value Of the curio than
by its inner worth to you. What to
you-as to so many of my own peo-
ple-seems to be the secret message
of the spirit of the mirror or the
crystal, is to them merely a reflex
of your imagination. subjective sem
sation, not very far removed from
superstition. But to you, Miss"-and
here his voice became gentle and
almost hushed-"to you ] know it
means that if your mind and heart
he spoke this last word very Slow
ly-"are pure and trustfu1 as the Sill
yer surface of that sacred mirror,
you will find there your other self.
your better self that will guide and
mold your life. rejected in the poll
ished metal, is it not so?"
"It is SO! 1t is so. Mr.. Wang; you
have spoken to me as no other per-
son has. You seem to know and un-
derstand that to which they all are
blind. The deep secret longing Of my
of the ancient gods. and until it
flashes itself out to me. I am little
better than a wanderer over the face
of the earth. Oh, sir. find it and
restore it to me if you can Never
mind the punishment of the thief
forgive him. pay him anything he
,, asks. but bring my treasure back
to me-
BE restfully happy. Miss Tucker:
east and west are joining hands to
help you. If we cannot pledge sue
cess. at least we can always hope
for it. AS the sages said Of old: