Year: 1878

In about week the athletic sports
came of, which meant two half-helidays
for the whole settlement, during which
time Cinnamon devoted their attention
to opium-smoking and sleeping, and
Japanese to drinking and lounging in
wine-shops. On the evening of the last
day, to celebrate the victories won, and
the cessation from the bondage of train
ing, we of the Junior Hong" gave a
big dinner. 1t was cold, wet night in
November, and after good bout at loo
and vingt-et-un, we were seated in the
drawing-room, talking about the funny
phases of our Yokohama life; of the
fires, of the stories of men cut down
and robbed by japanese in lonely places,
of the extremely clever way in which
the Curio-street bankers had been re-
ieved of their gold, of the game laws,
of the absurd opposition offered by the
government to Europeans going up the
country, and of hundred other things,
when boy came in, and whispered in
my ear that the comprador wished to see
me. In the passage / found the old
man, trembling from head to foot with
excitement, and utterly unable to ar
ticulate syllable. He seized me by the
arm, hurried me down stairs through
our strip of garden to the gate, and
pointed to the bungalow opposite. The
rain had changed to snow, and the keen
wind blew down the street in ftful
gusts, driving the snow into our faces.
Through the mist and snowfakes, after
some peering, could make out the oc-
casional CLINT of lantern on the other
side, and when the wind lulled for a
moment, fancied 1 heard grating
sound, as of something being dug and
shoveled up, Immediately under our
feet. If I hadn't been told that such a
noise had been distinctly heard during
the evening by one of the coolies on
watch, l do not suppose should have
noticed it, but as 1 now listened, it was
very palpable.


It was all very mysterious; but / had
long been suspicious, and, as 1 was now
certain that something unusual was
taking place, I came to the conclusion
that the treasury of the bank should be
looked at. So 1 sent upstairs for the
manager, placed the comprador at the
door, ordered all lights to be kept hid
den, dispatched a messenger to the
European police-station for constable
in case of need, and when the manager
arrived, armed myself with a dark
lantern and gently unlocked the treas
ury. As we peered through the iron
bars into the blackness we distinctly
heard the shoveling and digging sound,
now much nearer. Enjoining strict
silence on the part of the Cinnamon
and coolies outside, we entered. We
were, at all events, first in the field.


We trod very gently, the lantern half
darkened, and esconced ourselves be-
hind row of dollar-bags. We waited
fully half an hour; we could still hear
the subterranean noise, but, beyond this
and the occasional howl of the elements
outside, there was not sound. Sud-
denly we heard very gentle tap in the
very middle of the treasury, in about
three feet of our rampant of bags; then
another; then regular series; then
sound as of the application of some
lever power. We turned the lantern
ray round about the floor, and beheld
one of the large plates gradually being
tilted up: the manager nudged me, and
crept gently up to the spot. In couple
of minutes three sides of the plate
were loose; a bony hand appeared, fol-
lowed by Japanese head. In an in
slant the manager had seized the head; l
had jumped forward, turned the light
full on, between us we had dragged up
the remainder of our visitors body, and
in less than a minute / was smiling
with grim satisfaction in the stupifed
face of my slim and inquisitive visitor
of some weeks previous. We gagged
him, and tied him up in the Office under
a guard; the manager run out at the
gate into the garden opposite, taking
with him the English constable, while l
remained in the treasury.


In few seconds I heard the sound of
a scuffle, and subsequent, "Hurrahl
we've got the lotl'' and manager and
constable appeared with the burly COM
panion of the captive now under guard,
and the fair-cheeked young wife who
turned out to be avery ordinary peasant
man.


Our captives secured, I descended the
hole in the treasury, found myself in q
very neatly constructed cavern, which
led under the road into the opposite
garden, and terminated with a shaft on
the opposite side of the azalea-bush.
Everything tended to show that the
whole affair was a carefully laid plan !;
and had il not been for the azalea-bush,
another twenty. four hours would have
seen US the losers of good many thou
sand dollars.


in the bungalow we found boxes ready
for the reception of the dollars and
coin, probably the same i had noticed
being uncarted, but there was no trace
of an accomplice.


However, we handed the three clever
rogues over to their countrymen for
judgment; and they probably found
rough accommodation, with an occasional
taste of torturing thrown in, for some
years at the institution at Tobe Hill.
The old bungalow did not let again, but
was pulled down and substantial block
of shops and offices erected on its site;
SO that nothing remains at present to re-
mind the modern Yokohama banker OF
what we termed, when. we told the
story, " A close shavep