Evening star., 1924-03-15

self, who or what he was, where he
came from? Think"
oh, well. Yes. he did tell me sonie-
thing. replied Darrell, suddenly, after
a pause. HE said he'd just come from
the west coast Of Africa, and he'd
been out there for several years"
he'd been there?"
Il think he'd been having a deal
inmsomsthing: in Sc, forget what ]
Good? Bad? Come now, Mr.. Tress:
was he well dressed? Had he money
in his pocket?. Had he plenty of be-
longings with him in the shape OF
wardrobe and so on? You must re-
"He hadn't much in the way of
clothes' answered Darrell, simply,
because he'd only Just got back to
You. no doubt, introduced him to
your own tailor?"
Yes, l did,
Let me ask you a very direct ques-
tion-Tm obliged to ask it. Did you
pay >, the bills he incurred in that
mo, I didn't. He paid them himself.
They were sent in to me-but Kest-
even paid them"
Then he had money!?
He'd always plenty Of money from
the time Kne" h1m.
Did he get any Of that money from
you? Now, just let your memory go
back. Did he borrow or win any
money from you on the very first oc-
casion Of your meeting-that night at
Reading?"
not much-at cards. And bit at
billiards. trife. We were playing
billiards all the evening, and we
played cards in my room for an hour
or two later on"
You say-not much. Now. how
much?"
OH don't know! Perhaps a
couple of hundred. And he won lot
of money next day at the races"
so he was a card player and a
he played cards great deal, later
"Yes."
did you lose great deal TO him.
Not exactly to him. Sometimes
L won from him"
II put it to you that from the time
you first knew him until now you
lost a lot of money to this MANI"
mo, l didn't. We played cards a
good deal-with other men-but
|traordinarily lucky at cards. OF course
l lost sometimes"
The auestioner paused, looked at his
notes, and went of on another track.
This man whom you knew as kest-
even lived with you from the time you
made his acquaintance until the time
Of his death-either at your fiat in
London. or at your house here at
Lynne Court?'
"Yes"
Did he never tell you more OF his
antecedents, his history, his family"
Mo- never asked him anything?
1t wasn't my AFFAIR." wasn't interest
ed in that"
you and he got op very well to-
gether?"
we got on all right" replied Oar
rell. He was not nervous any longer.
but he was getting restive and sullen
under the questioning, and he began
to look at his QueStioner with glances
that boded no good.
VERY we'll Now we come to re-
cent events. Some days ago you and
this man went to Boulogne together.
and there you gambled and had good
luck%
"Extraordinary luck"
You came back to Folkstone the
afternoon before Kesteven's death,
and motored home. l think, stopping
at Brighton to dine, and ] believe
Kesteven carried all your winnings
on him?"
yes. Five or six thousand pounds
in French and English notes" re-
piled Darrell. impatiently. "And he had
them on him when I left him and
Ticken that night. I could tell you
all 1 know in two minutes IL you'll
let me tell you in my own way! he
suddenly burst out Il don't under
stand this questioning"
"A little patience. Mr.. Tress." said
the questioner soothingly. Il under
stand that you met Mr.. Tickell at
Brighton and brought him on with
you. That is so? Now, who is Mr.
II don't know
What do you know of Mr.. Tickell?
Tell it in your own way"
"All 1 know of Tickell is that he's
a chap who used to come with Kest-
even to my fat to play cards now and
then, and that I've seen him once or
twice at race courses, answered OAR
relL. II know nothing more about
him in any way"
YOU don't know who he is. what he
is. where he lives
A sudden commotion at the door OF
the schoolroom caused the legal gen.
tleman to pause. A constable came
through the crowd, holding a bun
envelope above the heads of the peo-
pIe. He handed it across the table to
the legal gentleman. who tore 1t open,
read the contents, and turned to the
IT think I had better give you this
news at once, sir" he said blandly.
"The man we were speaking of has
been found" -
CONTINUED in Tomorrow's Starr