Evening star., 1932-06-26

whack on the shoulder, as he always
does when there's something big in
Listen, JIM" he said, have you
ever heard of the Kimsey diamond?"
Had I ever heard of the Kimsey diamond!
And me detectivel Say, back in 1928, when
Big Ike Kane walked into banquet at the
waldorf and lifted that stone off Mrs. Paul
Hardman's shoulders
"Taggart's still got it, hasn't hep" asked
Sullivan.
I'VE hope So" he said
"Whos 'We'?" I asked him.
yours truly and Taggart's grandson,
Claude Carnahan. Maybe you didn't know
Taggart got caught in the market and went
broke and crazy at the same time? He's in
santarium. Canadians his only heir. Carna-
hans trying to sell enough of the old mans
junk to pay off the banks and brokers'
Taggart brokel He had been worth millions!
He always had been a queer egg A collector.
Lived all by himself in a regular castle on
Long Island, and bought up antiques and
jewelry and rare paintings and doodads dug up
in Egyptian tombs and first editions and
tapestries.
He kept them in a sort of museum out there,
all catalogued and labeled. But he never let
anybody in to see them. Just puttered around
among them all by himself
"Carnahan lived in England" Sullivan went
on He'd never seen Taggarts collection until
he came back, last month when he got word
Taggart was batty Since then he's been sort
ing over the stuff with Plat, who was Tag
CARTS curator, or caretaker, or whatever you
call 1t.
'Platt's the only man who knows just where
everything is, and all about 1t. Platt's your
baby"
What do you mean, my baby?"
'~The first thing Carnahan did was to pick
out what would be easiest to turn into cash
with Platt's help, Of course. Then they began
sending the more important stuff into town.
THE first shipment was a load Of rare paint
ings to go down to a dealer. The truck was
held up before it had gone a mile, and the
three most valuable paintings taken. They
didn't touch the rest"
Go on" said
1.-THE next shipment was a box of jewelry
and small valuable curios they were
sending down to sell to Fifth avenue import
ing house. That sent IN Taggart's car,
driven by Taggarts old chauffeur.
1.-TWO masked men in a roadster forced htm
to the curb, shot him and stole the box. Ths
only people who knew in advance when those
shipments were going out were Carnahan and
Platt. That's why when the city detectives
couldn't get anything on Platt Carnahan called
us in"
the works?"
"No," Sullivan explained, land Carnahan
doesn't want them to- In the first place, 1t
may be just coincidence. In the second place
and this is more important-Platt knows
what's what and where's where in that Tag
gart collection, and Carnahan would have the
deuce of q time trying to get along without
hin-provided that he's straight
"On the other hand, If he's crooked, Carna-
han doesn't just want TO fire him on suspicion
he wants to get the goods on him and have
him locked UP where he can't pass out any
more tips"
wait minute" I said Where does the
Kimsey diamond come into the picture?"
at can't be found! Platt claims Taggart had
it in his safe deposit box at the bank. It's not
there. The chauffeur claims Taggart kept it
with the other jewels in his collection But it's
not there either-at least, Carnahan can't find
it, and he's searched the whole house in Platte
absence.
"The city detectives searched Platt's apart
ment-nct sign. Every pawnshop and fence
in New York has been given the once over.
Carnahan claims that even If Platt is a crook,
he's too clever to steal the diamond himself.
"Carnahan thinks it's still in the Taggart
house, somewhere, and that Platt's planning
some deal-that Is, if P1att's phoney. Is he, or
isn't he? It's your job to find out"
Well, you can bet your shirt was interested.
How much have the city dicks done?"
asked
Sullivan grinned
Practically nothing" he said. IAN they're
done is open Platt's mail tap his telephone
line, plant dictaphone in his rooms and
shadow himl'
whistled.
"Platt lives in the Swayne Apartments up in
Morningside," Sullivan went on. Jim, you're
janitor Of those apartments from now on"
Whats this egg Platt hke2" asked sulH-
van, while was reaching for my hat
"Carnahan says he's nice young man who
doesn't drink-hes WOW at the piano. and he
composes music. He's a bachelor, and women
don't seem to mean thing There's five grand
in this for you, Jim. If you land that bozo. Go
to it,"
Wen, 7 went TO 1t. I got my old clothes
and a dirty cap and packed q suitcase full Of
tools and things and went out to the Swayne