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RIANG]

RTHUR MORRISO

THE LIBRARY

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THE UNIVERSITY

OF CALIFORNIA

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THE RED TRIANGLE

Works of

Arthur Morrison

^

The Red Triangle
The Green Diamond

L* C* Page & Company

New England Building
Boston, Mass.

J

A

^ ^

"'OH, HE IS INNOCENT, MR. HEWITT — HE IS, REALLY!'"

(See t>age 170)

Copyright, rnof
By L. C Vagk & Company

(incorporated)
All rights reserved

Published July, 1903
Eighth Impression, March, 1906.

CONTENTS

hoi

tVHlJ

CHAPTER

I. The Affair of Samuel's Diamonds
II. The Affair of Samuel's Diamonds (Con
tinned)

III. The Affair of Samuel's Diamonds (Con.

tinued)

IV. The Case of Mr. Jacob Mason

V. The Case of Mr. Jacob Mason (Continued

VI. The Case of Mr. Jacob Mason (Continued

VII. The Case of the Lever Key .

VIII. The Case of the Lever Key (Continued

IX. The Case of the Lever Key (Continued

X. The Case of the Lever Key (Continued

XI. The Case of the Burnt Barn

XII. The Case of the Burnt Barn (Continued

XIII. The Case of the Burnt Barn (Continued

XIV. The Case of the Burnt Barn (Continued
XV. The Case of the Burnt Barn (Continued

XVI. The Case of the Admiralty Code .
XVII. The Case of the Admiralty Code (Con

tinued) . . .
XVIII. The Case of the Admiralty Code (Con

tinued)

XIX. The Adventure of Channel Marsh

19

33

55

7*

9i

107

122

137

151

157

162

176

190

204

209

230

250
2,,;9

*******#

199

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

XX. The Adventure of Channel Marsh {Con-
tinued) ....... 264

XXI. The Adventure of Channel Marsh {Con-
tinued) 272

XXII. The Adventure of Channel Marsh {Con-
tinued) 285

XXIII. The Adventure of Channel Marsh {Con-
tinued) 298

THE AFFAIR OF SAMUEL'S
DIAMONDS

» »

■» » »a » » »

CHAPTER I.

THE AFFAIR OF SAMUEl/s DIAMONDS

I have already recorded many of the adventures oi
my friend Martin Hewitt, but among them there
have been more of a certain few which were dis-
covered to be related together in a very extraordinary
manner ; and it is to these that I am now at liberty
to address myself. There may have been others —
cases which gave no indication of their connection
with these ; some of them indeed I may have told
without a suspicion of their connection with the
Red Triangle ; but the first in which that singular
accompaniment became apparent was the matter
of Samuel's diamonds. The case exhibited many
interesting features, and I was very anxious to re-
port it, with perhaps even less delay than I had
thought judicious in other cases ; but Hewitt
restrained me,

" No, Brett," he said, u there is more to come of
this. This particular case is over, it is true, but
there is much behind. I've an idea that I shall see
that Red Triangle again. I may, or, of course, I

4 THE RED TRIANGLE

may not ; but there is deep work going on —
very deep work, and whether we see more of it or
not, I must keep' prepared.' I can't afford to throw
a single cjird upoh'thje table*, So, as many notes as
you please, Brett, for future reference ; but no
publication yet — none of your journalism I"

Hewitt was right. It was not so long before we
heard more of the Red Triangle, and after that
more, though the true connection of some of the
cases with the mysterious symbol and the meaning
of the symbol itself remained for a time undis-
covered. But at last Hewitt was able to unmask
the hideous secret, and for ever put an end to the
evil influence that gathered about the sign ; and
now there remains no reason why the full story
should not be told.

I*" I have told elsewhere of my first acquaintance
/ with Martin Hewitt, of his pleasant and companion-
/ able nature, his ordinary height, his stoutness,
his round, smiling face — those characteristics that
•/ / aided him so well in his business of investigator,
so unlike was his appearance and manner to
/ that of the private detective of the ordinary
^^person's imagination. Therefore I need only re-
mind my readers that my bachelor chambers were,
during most of my acquaintance with Hewitt,
in the old building near the Strand, in which

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 5

Hewitt's office stood at the top of the first flight of
stairs ; where the plain ground-glass of the door
bore as inscription the single word " Hewitt," and
the sharp lad, Kerrett, first received visitors in the
outer office.

Next door to this old house, at the time I am to
speak of, a much newer building stood, especially
built for letting out in offices. It happened that one
day as Hewitt left his office for a late lunch, he
became aware of a pallid and agitated Jew who was
pervading the front door of this adjoining building.
The man exhibited every sign of nervous expectancy,
staring this way and that up and down the busy
street, and once or twice rushing aimlessly half-way
up the inner stairs, and as often returning to the
door. Apprehension was plain on his pale face, and
he was clearly in a state that blinded his attention
to the ordinary matters about him, just as happens
when a man is in momentary and nervous expecta-
tion of some serious event

Noting these things as he passed, with no more
than the observation that was his professional habit,
Hewitt proceeded to his lunch. This done with, he
returned to his office, perceiving, as he passed the
next-door building, that the distracted Jew was no
longer visible. It seemed plain that the person or
the event he had awaited with such obvious nervous-

6 THE RED TRIANGLE

ness had arrived and passed ; one more of the
problems, anxieties or crises that join and unravel
moment by moment in the human ant-hill of London,
had perhaps closed for good or ill within the past
half-hour ; perhaps it had only begun.

A message awaited Hewitt at his office — an urgent
message. The housekeeper had come in from next
door, Kerrett reported, with an urgent request that
Mr. Martin Hewitt would go immediately to the
offices of Mr. Denson, on the third floor. The
housekeeper seemed to know little or nothing of the
business, except that a Mr. Samuel was alone in
Mr. Denson's office, and had sent the message.

With no delay Hewitt transferred himself to the
next-door offices. There the housekeeper, who
inhabited a uniform and a glass box opposite the
foot of the first flight of stairs, directed Hewitt, with
the remark that the gentleman was very impatient
and very much upset. " Third floor, sir, second
door on the right ; name Denson on the door.
There's no lift."

" W.F. Denson " was the complete name, followed
by the line " Foreign and Commission Agent."
This Hewitt read with some little difficulty, for the
door was open, and on the threshold stood that
tame agitated Jew whom Hewitt had seen at the
front door.

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS y

A little less actively perturbed now, he was never-
theless still nervously pale. u Mr. Martin Hewitt ? "
he cried, while Hewitt was still only at the head of
the stairs. u Is it Mr. Martin Hewitt ?"

Hewitt came quietly along the corridor, using
eyes and ears as he came. The Jew was a man of
middle height, very obviously Jewish, and with a
slight accent that hinted a Continental origin.

u 1 have just received your message," Hewitt said,
"and, as you see, I am here with no delay. Is Mr.
Denson in ? "

u No — good heafens no — I would gif anything if
he was, Mr. Hewitt Come in, do ! I haf been
robbed — robbed by Denson himself, wit'out a wort
of doubt. It is terrible — terrible 1 Fifteen t'ousant
pounds I It ruins me, Mr. Hewitt, ruins me 1
Unless you can recover it I If you recover it,
I will pay — pay — oh, I will pay fery well indeed I "

There was a characteristically sudden moderation
of the client's emphasis when he came to the en-
gagement to pay. Hewitt had observed it in other
clients, but it did not disturb him.

" First," he said, " you must tell me your difficulty.
You say you have been robbed of fifteen thousand
pounds "

" Tiamonts, Mr. Hewitt— tiamont* I All from the
case— here is the case, empty "

S THE RED TRIANGLE

" Let us be methodical. We will shut the door
and sit , down." Hewitt pressed his client into a
chair and produced his note-book. u It will be
better to begin at the beginning. First, I should
like to know your name, and a few such particulars
as that/'

" Lewis Samuel, Hatton Garden — 150, Hatton
Garden — tiamont merchant."

" Yes. And what is your connection with Mr„
Denson ? "

" Business — just business," Samuel responded.
He pronounced it "pishness," and it seemed his
favourite word. u Like this ; I will tell you. I haf
known him some time, and did at first small pish-
ness. He bought a little tiamont and haf it set in
pracelet, and he pay — straightforward pishness.
Then he bought some very good paste stones, all set
in gold, and he pay — quite straightforward pishness.
At the same time he says, i I am pishness man
myself, Mr. Samuel,' he says, ' and I like to make a
little moneys as well as pay out sometimes. Don't
you want any little agencies done ? I do all foreign
commissions, and I can forwart and receive and
clear at dock and custom house. If you send any
tiamonts I can consign and insure — very cheapest
rates to you, special. If you want brokerage or buy
*nd sell for you, confidential, I can do it with lowest

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 9

commission. Especially I haf good connection with
America. I haf many rich Americans, principals and
customers/ he says, ' and often I could do pishness
for you when they come over/ "

u By which he meant he might sell them
diamonds ? " Hewitt queried.

"Just so, Mr. Hewitt — reg'lar pishness. And
after that two or three little parcels of tiamonts he
bought — for American customers, he says. But he
says he can do bigger pishness soon. Ay, so he has
— goot heavens, he has I But I tell you. I do also
one or two small pishnesses with him, and that is all
right — he treat me very well and I pay when it suits.
Then he says, * Samuel/ he says, very friendly now
inteet, ' Samuel, could you get a nice large lot of
tiamonts for an American customer I expect here
soon ? ' And I say, ' Of course I can/ ' Enough/
he says, 4 to fit out a rich man's wife — that is, to
pegin. He is not long rich, and he will want more
soon — ah, she will make him pay I But to pegin —
a good fit-out of tiamonts, eh ? '

"I tell him yes, and I offer usual commission.
But no, says Denson, he wants no commission ; he
will make his own profit. That I don't mind so
long as I get mine ; so I agree to put the tiamonts
in at a price. The American, he says, is to come
over about a big company deal, and when it is

io THE RED TRIANGLE

through he will pay well. So last week I pring a
peautiful collection all cut but unset, and I wait
out in that room while Denson shows them to his
customer."

" You mean you let them out of your sight ? *

44 Yes — that is not so uncommon ; reg'lar pish-
ness. You see I was out here — this is the only way
out. Denson was in the inner office with the stones
and the American. Neither could get out without
passing here. And I had done pishness with him
alretty."

"Well?"

44 You see I wait downstairs with my case — this
case — till Denson sends down. He doesn't want
me to show — fery natural, you see, in pishness.
When I sell to make a profit, perhaps for somebody
else, I don't want that somebody to know my cus-
tomer, else he sells direct and I lose my profit — fery
natural. See ? "

44 Of course, I understand. It's a point of business
among you gentlemen to keep your own customers
to yourselves. And often, no doubt, diamonds pass
through several hands before reaching the eventual
customer, leaving a profit in each."

"Always, Mr. Hewitt — always, you might say.
Well, you see, Denson sends down that his cus-
tomer is in, and I come up. Denson comes out

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS ii

from the inner office, takes my case, and I wait in
there."

The case which Samuel showed Hewitt was of
black leather, perhaps eighteen inches long by a foot
wide. The arrangement of the office was simple.
In this, the outer room, a small space was partitioned
off by means of a ground glass screen, and it was in
there that Samuel meant that he had waited.

" Well, he took the case in, and I could hear some
sound of talking — but not much, you see, the door
being shut. After a time the door opens and I hear
Denson say : * Very well, think over it ; but don't
be long or you'll lose the chance. Excuse me while
I put them back in the safe/ Then he shuts the door
and brings the case to me and goes back. But of
course I stay till I haf looked very carefully through
all the tiamonts, in th : different compartments of
the case, in case one might haf dropped on the floor,
or got changed, you know. That is pishness."

" Just so. And they were all right ? "

" All right and same as the list — I know well a
tiamont that I haf seen once. So I go away, and
afterwards Denson tells me that the American liked
much the stones but wouldn't quite come up to
price. That, of course, is fery usual pishness. ' But
he will rise, Samuel/ Denson says. ' I know him
quite well, and them tiamonts is as good as sold with

ia THE RED TRIANGLE

a good profit for me ; and a good one for you, too,
I bet,' he says. I was putting the lot to him for
fifteen f ousant pounds, and it would have been a
nice profit in that for me. And then Denson he
chaffs me and he says, ' Ah ! Samuel/ he says,
' wasn't you afraid my customer and me would
hook it out o' the window with all your stones ? '
I don't like that sort o' joke in pishness, you see,
but I say, ■ All right — I wasn't afraid o' that. The
window was a mile too high, and besides I could
see it from where I was a-sitting.' And so I could,
you see, plain enough to see if it was opened."

The ground-glass partition, in fact, cut off a part
of the window of the outer office, which, being at
an angle with the inner room, gave a side view of
the window that lighted that apartment.

" Denson laughed at that," Samuel went on.

u 4 Ha-ha ! ' says he, ' I never thought of that.

Then you could see the American's hat hanging up

just by the window — rum hat, ain't it ? ' And that

was quite true, for I had noticed it — a big, grey

wideawake, almost white."

' Hewitt nodded approvingly. u You are quite

ight," he said, "to tell me everything you recollect,

even of the most trivial sort ; the smallest thing may

>e very valuable. So you took your diamonds away

the first time, last week. What next ? "

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 13

44 Well, I came again, just the same, to-day, by
appointment. Just the same I sat in that place, and
just the same Denson took the case into the inner
room. ' He's come to buy this time, I can see,
Denson whispers, and winks. ' But he'll fight hard
over the price. We'll see I ' and off he goes into the
other room. Well, I waited. I waited and I waited
a long time. I looked out sideways at the window,
and there I see the American's big wideawake hat
hanging up just inside the other window, same as
last time. So I think they are a long time settling
the price, and I wait some more. But it is such a
very long time, and I begin to feel uneasy. Of
course, I know you cannot sell fifteen t'ousant wort'
of tiamonts in ive minutes — that is not reasonable
pishness. But I could hear nothing at all now —
not a sound. And the boy — the boy that came
down to call me up — he wasn't come back. But
there I could see the big wideawake hat still hanging
inside the window, and of course I knew there was
only one door out of the inner room, right before
me, so it seemed foolish to be uneasy. So I waited
longer still, but now it was so late, 1 thought they
ihould have come out to lunch before this, and then
I was fery uneasy — fery uneasy inteet. So I thought
I would pretend to be a new caller, and I opened
the outer office door and banged it, and walked in

i4 THE RED TRIANGLE

very loud and knocked on the boy's table. 1
thought Denson would come when he heard that,
but no — there was not a sound. So I got more un-
easy, and I opened the window and leaned out as
far as I could, to look in at the other window.
There I could see nothing but the big hat and the
back of a chair and a bit of the room — empty. So
I went and banged the outer door again, and called
out, i Hi ! Mr. Denson, you're wanted 1 Hi 1 d'y'ear V
and knocked with my umbrella on the inner door ;
and, Mr. Hewitt — you might have knocked me down
with half a feather when I got no answer at all —
not a sound 1 I opened the door, Mr. Hewitt, and
there was nobody there — nobody I There was my
leather case on the table, open — and empty 1 Fifteen
t'ousant pounds in tiamonts, Mr. Hewitt — it ruins
me!"

Hewitt rose, and flung wide the inner office door.
u This is certainly the only door," he said, " and that
is the only window— quite well in view from where
you sat. There is the wideawake hat still hanging
there — see, it is quite new; obviousry brought for
you to look at, it would seem. The door and the
window were not used, and the chimney is impos-
sible— register grate. But there was one other way
—there."

The inner wall of each of the rooms was the wall

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 15

of the corridor into which all the offices opened, and
this corridor was lighted — and the offices partly
ventilated — by a sort of hinged casement or fanlight
close up by the ceiling, oblong, and extending the
most of the length of each room. Plainly an active
man, not too stout, might mount a chair-back, and
climb very quietly through the opening. " That's
the only way," said Hewitt, pointing.

" Yes," answered Samuel, nodding and rubbing
his knuckles together nervously. " I saw it — saw it
when it was too late. But who'd have thought o'
such a thing beforehand ? And the American —
either there wasn't an American at all, or he got out
the same way. But, anyway, here I am, and the
tiamonts are gone, and there is nothing here but the
furniture — not worth twenty pound 1 "

44 Well," Hewitt said, "so far, I think I understand,
though I may have questions to ask presently. But
go on."

" Go on ? But there is no more, Mr. Hewitt 1
Quite enough, don't you think ? There is no more
— I am robbed !"

" But when you found the empty room, and the
case, what did you do ? Send for the police ?"

The Jew's face clouded slightly. "No, Mr.
Hewitt," he said, u not for the police, but for you.
Reason plain enough. The police make a great

16 THE RED TRIANGLE

fuss, and they want to arrest the criminal. Quite
right — I want to arrest him, and punish him too,
plenty. But most I want the tiamonts back, because
if not it ruins me. If it was to make choice between
two things for me, whether to punish Denson or get
my tiamonts, then of course I take the tiamonts, and
let Denson go — I cannot be ruined. But with the
police, if it is their choice, they catch the thief first,
and hold him tight, whether it loses the property or
not ; the property is only second with them — with
me it is first and second, and all. So I take no more
risks than I can help, Mr. Hewitt. I have sent for
you to get first the stones — afterwards the thief if
you can. But first my property ; you can perhaps
find Denson and make him give it up rather than go
to prison. That would be better than having him
taken and imprisoned, and perhaps the stones put
away safe all the time ready for him when he came
out."

"Still, the police can do things that I can't,"
Hewitt interposed ; " stop people leaving or landing
at ports, and the like. I think we should see them."

Samuel was anxiously emphatic. " No, Mr.
Hewitt," he said, u certainly not the police. There
are reasons — no, not the police, Mr. Hewitt, at any
rate, not till you have tried. I cannot haf the police
—just yet"

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 17

Martin Hewitt shrugged his shoulders. "Very
well," he said, " if those are your instructions, I'll do
my best. And so you sent for me at once, as soon
as you discovered the loss ? "

- Yes, at once."

" Without telling anybody else f w

* I haf tolt nobody."

"Did you look about anywhere for Denson — in
the street, or what not ? "

• No — what was the good ? He was gone ; there
was time for him to go miles."

44 Very good. And speaking of time, let me judge
how far he may have gone. How long were you
kept waiting ? "

44 Two hours and a quarter, very near — within five
minutes."

m By your watch 1 *

"Yes — I looked often, to see if it was so long
waiting as it seemed."

" Very good. Do you happen to have a piece of
Denson's writing about you ? "

Samuel looked round him. "There's nothing
about here," he said, u but perhaps we can find — oh
here — here's a post-card." He took the card from
his pocket, and gave it to Hewitt.

44 There is nothing else to tell me, then f * queried
Hewitt "Are you sure that you have forgotten

18 THE RED TRIANGLE

nothing that has happened since you first arrived
— nothing at all f * There was meaning in the
emphasis, and a sharp look in Hewitt's eyes.

H No, Mr. Hewitt," Samuel answered, hastily ;
" there is nothing else I can tell you."

"Then I will think it over at once. You had
better go back quietly to your office, and think it
over yourself, in case you have forgotten something ;
and I need hardly warn you to keep quiet as to what
has passed between us — unless you tell the police.
I think I shall take the liberty of a glance over
Mr. Denson's office, and since his office boy still
stays away, I will lend him my clerk for a little. He
will keep his eyes open if any callers come, and his
ears too. Wait while I fetch him."

CHAPTER II.

THE AFFAIR OF SAMUEl/s DIAMONDS (CONTINUED)

It was at this point that my humble part in the case
began, for Hewitt hurried first to my rooms.

"Brett," he exclaimed, "are you engaged this
afternoon ? "

" No — nothing important."

" Will you do me a small favour ? I have a rather
interesting case. I want a man watched for an
hour or so, and I haven't a soul to do it. Kerrett
may be known, and I am known. Besides, there is
another job for Kerrett."

Of course, I expressed myself willing to do what
I could.

" Capital," replied Hewitt. "Come along — you
like these adventures, I know, or I wouldn't have
asked you ; and you know the dodges in this sort
of observation. The man is one Samuel, a Jew, of
150 Hatton Garden, diamond dealer. I'll tell you
more afterwards. Kerrett and I are going into the
offices next door, and I want you to wait thereabout.
Presently I will come downstairs with him and he

20 THE RED TRIANGLE

will go away. An hour or so will be enough,
probably."

I followed Hewitt downstairs. He took Kerrett
with him and locked his office door. I saw them
both disappear within the large new building, and
I waited near a convenient postal pillar-box, pre-
pared to seem very busy with a few old letters from
my pocket until my man's back was turned.

In a very few minutes Hewitt re-appeared, this
time with a man — a Jew, obviously — whom I re-
membered having seen already at the door of that
office more than an hour before, as I had passed on
the way from the bookseller's at the corner. The
man walked briskly up the street, and I, on the
opposite side, did the same, a little in the rear.

He turned the corner, and at once slackened his
pace and looked about him. He took a peep back
along the street he had left, and then hailed a
cab.

For a hundred yards or more I was obliged to trot,
till I saw another cab drop its fare just ahead, and
managed to secure it and give the cabman instruc-
tions to follow the cab in front, before it turned a
corner. The chase was difficult, for the horse that
drew me was a poor one, and half a dozen times I
thought I had lost sight of the other cab altogether ;
but my cabman was better than his animal, and from

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 21

his high perch he kept the chase in view, turning
corners and picking out the cab ahead among a
dozen others with surprising certainty. We went
across Charing Cross Road by way of Cranborne
Street, past Leicester Square, through Coventry
Street and up the Quadrant and Regent Street At
Oxford Circus the Jew's cab led us to the left, and
along Oxford Street we chased it past Bond Street
end. Suddenly my cab pulled up with a jerk, and
the driver spoke through the trapdoor. "That
fare's getting down, sir," he said, u at the corner o'
Duke Street."

I thrust a half-crown up through the hole and
sprang out "'E's crossing the road, sir," the cab-
man finally reported, and I hurried across the street
accordingly.

The man I was watching was strikingly Jewish
enough, and easy to distinguish in a crowd. I had
almost overtaken him before he had gone a dozen
yards up the northern end of Duke Street. He
walked on into Manchester Square. There a small,
neat brougham, with blinds drawn, was being driven
slowly round the central garden. I saw Samuel
walk hurriedly up to this brougham, which stopped
as he approached. He stepped quickly into the
carriage and shut the door behind him. The
brougham resumed its slow progress, and I loitered,

22 THE RED TRIANGLE

keeping it in view, though the blinds were drawn
so close that it was impossible to guess who might
be Samuel's companion, if he had one. I think I
have said that when the Jew came to the office door
with H ewitt I perceived that he was a man 1 had seen
before that day. 1 was now convinced that I had
also seen that same brougham, at the same time ;
but of this presently.

The carriage made one slow circuit, and then
Samuel got out and shut the door quickly again. 1
took the precaution of turning my back and letting
him overtake and pass me on his way back through
Duke Street. At the end of the street he mounted
an omnibus going east, and I took another seat in
the same vehicle. The rest was uninteresting. He
went direct to No. 150 Hatton Garden, and there
remained. I read his name on the door-post among
a score of others, and after a twenty-minutes' wait I
returned to my rooms. I had no doubt that it was
the meeting in the brougham that Hewitt wished
reported, and I remembered his rule was never to
watch a man a moment after the main object was
secured.

Hewitt was out, and he did not return till after
dusk. Then he came straightway to my rooms.
"Well, Brett," he said, "what's the report? As a
matter of fact, Samuel is my client, as I shall

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 23

explain presently. I don't like spying on a client, as
a rule, but I was convinced that he was keeping
something back from me, and there was something
odd about his whole story. But what did you see ? "

I told Hewitt the tale of my pursuit as I have told
it here. " I came away/' I concluded, " after it
seemed that he was settled in his office for a bit.
But there is another thing you should know. When
he first came out with you I recognised him at once
as a man I had seen at that same door a little after
two o'clock — say a quarter past."

" Yes ?" answered Hewitt. "I saw him there
myself a little sooner — something like two, I should
say. What was he doing ? *

" Well," I replied, u he was doing pretty well what
he did in Manchester Square. For as a matter of
fact the brougham also was here then — just outside
the next-door office. I think I might swear to that
same brougham — though of course 1 didn't notice it
so particularly that first time."

Hewitt whistled. "Oh!" he said. "Tell me
about this. Did he get into the brougham this
time?"

"Yes. He came out of the office door with a
black leather case in his hand and a very scared look
on his face. And he popped into the brougham*
leather case, scared look and all."

24 THE RED TRIANGLE

"Ho— ho!" said Hewitt, thoughtfully, and
whistled again. " A black leather case, eh I Come,
come, the plot thickens. And what happened ? Did
the carriage go off ? "

" No ; I saw nothing more — shouldn't have
noticed so much, in fact, if the whole thing hadn't
looked a trifle curious. Nervous, pallid Jew with a
black case — as though he thought it was dynamite
and might go off at any moment — closed brougham,
blinds drawn, Jew skipped in and banged the door,
but brougham didn't move ; and I fancied — perhaps
only fancied — that I saw a woman's black veil
inside. But then I turned in here and saw no
more."

Hewitt sat thoughtfully silent for a few moments.
Then he rose and said, "Come next door, and I'll
tell you how we stand. The housekeeper will let us
in, and we'll see if you can identify that black case
anywhere."

It seemed that Hewitt had by this established a
good understanding with the housekeeper next door.
" Nobody's been, sir," the man said, as he admitted
us and closed the heavy doors. "Office boy not
come back, nor nothing."

We went up to Denson's office on the third floor,
the door of which the housekeeper opened ; and
having turned on the electric light, he left us.

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 25

"Now, is that anything like the case?" Hewitt
asked, when the housekeeper was gone ; and he
lifted from under the table the very black case 1 had
seen Samuel take into the brougham.

1 said that I felt as sure of the case as of the
brougham. And then Hewitt told me the whole
tale of Samuel and his loss of fifteen thousand
pounds' worth of diamonds, just as it appears earlier
in this narrative.

u Now, see here," said Hewitt, when he had made
me acquainted with his client's tale, u there is some-
thing odd about all this. See this post-card which
Samuel gave me. It is from Denson, and it makes
this morning's appointment. See 1 * Be down below
at eleven sharp ' is the message. He came and he
waited just two hours and a quarter, as he tells me,
being certain to the time within five minutes. That
brings us to a quarter-past one — the time when he
finds he is robbed ; and he came downstairs in a
very agitated state at a quarter-past one, as I have
since ascertained. At two I pass and see him still
dancing distractedly on the front steps — certainly
very much like a man who has had a serious mis-
fortune, or expects one. At a quarter-past two —
that was about it, I think?" (I nodded) "At a
quarter-past two you see him, still agitated, diving
into the brougham with this black case in his hand ;

26 THE RED TRIANGLE

and a little afterward — after all this, mind — he tells
me this story of a robbery of diamonds from that very
case, and assures me that he sent for me the moment
he discovered the loss — that is to say, at a quarter-
past one, a positive lie — and has told nobody else.
He further assures me that he has told me every-
thing that has happened up to the moment he meets
me. Then he goes away — to his office, as he tells
me. But you find him posting to Manchester
Square in a cab, and there once more plunging into
that same mysterious closed brougham. Now why
should he do that ? He has seen the person
in that brougham, presumably, an hour before,
and there can be nothing more to communicate,
except the result of his interview with me — a
thing I warned him to keep to himself. It's odd,
isn't it?"

" It is. What can be his motive ? "

* I want to know his motive. I object to working
for a client who deceives me — indeed, it's unsafe. I
may be making myself an accomplice in some
criminal scheme. You observe that he never called
for the police — a natural impulse in a robbed man.
Indeed, he expressly vetoes all communication with
the police."

* Of course he gave reasons."

*■ But the reasons are not good enough. I can't

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 27

stop a man leaving this country anywhere round the
coast except by going to the police."

"Can it be/' I suggested, "that Samuel and
Denson are working in collusion, and have perhaps
insured the stones, and now want your help to
make out a case of loss ? "

" Scarcely that, I think, for more than one reason.
First, it isn't a risk any insurer would take, in the
circumstances. Next, the insurer would certainly
want to know why the police were not informed at
once. But there is more. I have not been idle this
while, as you would know. I will tell you some of
the things I have ascertained. To begin with,
Samuel is known in Hatton Garden only as a dealer
on a very small and peddling scale. A dabbler
in commissions, in fact, rather than a buyer and
seller of diamonds in quantities on his own account
His office is nothing but a desk in a small room he
shares with two others — small dealers like himself.
When I spoke to the people most likely to know, of
his offering fifteen thousand pounds' worth of
diamonds on his own account, they laughed. An
investment of two or three hundred pounds in stones
was about his limit, they said. Now that fact offers
fresh suggestions, doesn't it ? * Hewitt looked at me
significantly.

"You mean," I said after a little consideration,

28 THE RED TRIANGLE

"that Samuel may have been entrusted with the
diamonds to sell by the real owner, and has made
all these arrangements with Denson to get the gems
for themselves and represent them as stolen ? "

Hewitt nodded thoughtfully. "There's that possi-
bility," he said. "Though even in that case the
owner would certainly want to know why the police
had not been told, and I don't know what satis-
factory answer Samuel could make. And more, I
find that no such robbery has been reported to any
of the principal dealers in Hatton Garden to-day ;
and, so far as I can ascertain, none of them has
entrusted Samuel with anything like so large a
quantity of diamonds as he talks of — lately, at any
rate,"

"Isn't it possible that the diamonds are purely
imaginary?" I suggested. " Mightn't there be some
trick played on that basis ? Perhaps a trick on the
American customer — if there was one."

Hewitt was thoughtful. "There are many possi-
bilities," he said, "which I must consider. The
diamonds may even be stolen property to begin
with ; that would account for a great deal, though
perhaps not all. But the whole thing is so oddly
suspicious, that unless my client is willing to let me
a great deal further into his confidence to-morrow
morning I shall throw up the case*"

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 19

u Did you direct any inquiries after Den-
son ? "

" Of course ; which brings me to the other things
I have ascertained. He has not been here long — a
few months. I cannot find that he has been doing
any particular business all the time with anybody
except Samuel. With him, however, he seems to
have been very friendly. The housekeeper speaks
of them as being ' very thick together.' The rooms
are cheaply furnished, as you see. And here is
another thing to consider. The housekeeper vows
that he never left his glass box at the foot of the
stairs from the time Samuel went upstairs first to the
time when he came down again, vastly agitated, at
a quarter-past one, and sent a message ; and during
all that time Denson never passed the box I And the
main door is the only way out"

" But wasn't he there at all ? "

" Yes, he was there, certainly, when Samuel came.
But note, now. Observe the sequence of things as
we. know them now. First, there is Denson in his
office ; I can find nothing of any American visitor,
and I am convinced that he is a total fiction, either
of Denson's or Samuel and Denson together. Den-
son is in his office. To him comes Samuel. Neither
leaves the place till Samuel comes down at a quarter-
past one o'clock. 1 told you he sent some sort of

3o THE RED TRIANGLE

message. The housekeeper tells me that he called
a passing commissionaire and gave him something,
though whether it was a telegram or a note he did
not see ; nor does he know the commissionaire, nor
his number — though he could easily be found if it
became necessary, no doubt Samuel sends the
message, and waits on the steps, watching, in an
agitated manner (as would be natural, perhaps, in a
man engaged in an anxious and ticklish piece of
illegality) for an hour, when this mysterious
brougham appears. He takes this black case into
the brougham, and he obviously brings it out
again, for here it is. Whatever has happened, he
brings it out empty. Then he sends the house-
keeper for me. When at length I arrive, Denson
has certainly gone, but there was an opportunity
for that while the housekeeper was absent on the
message to my office — after all Samuel's agitation,
and after he had carried his case to and from the
brougham."

14 The whole thing is odd enough, certainly, and
suspicious enough. Have you found anything
else ? "

u Yes. Denson lives, or lived, in a boarding house
in Bloomsbury. He has only been there two
months, however, and they know practically nothing
of him. To-day he came home at an unusual time

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 31

letting himself in with his latchkey, and went away
at once with a bag, but the accounts of the exact
time are contradictory. One servant thought it was
before twelve, and another insisted that it was after
one. He has not been back."

u And the office boy — can't you get some infor-
mation out of him ? "

u He hasn't been seen since the morning. I ex-
pect Denson told him to take a whole holiday. 1
can't find where he lives, at the moment, but - no
doubt he will turn up to-morrow. Not that I ex-
pect to get much from him. But I shan't bother.
Unless Mr. Samuel will answer satisfactorily some
very plain questions I shall ask — and I don't expect
he will — I shall throw up the commission. He
called, by the way, not long ago, but I was out. We
shall see him in the morning, I expect"

A look round Denson's office taught me no more
than it had taught Hewitt already. There were two
small rooms, one inside the other, with ordinary and
cheap office furniture. It was quite plain that any
man of ordinary activity and size could have got
out of the inner room into the corridor by the means
which Samuel suggested — through the hinged wall-
light, near the ceiling. Hewitt had meddled with
nothing — he would do no more till he was satisfied
of the bond fides of his client ; certainly he would

3* THE RED TRIANGLE

not commit himself to breaking open desks or cup-
boards. And so, the time for my attendance at the
office approaching — I was working on the Morning
Phctnix then, and ten at night saw my work begin-—
we shut Denson's office, and went away.

CHAPTER III.

THE AFFAIR OF SAMUEl/s DIAMONDS (CONTINUED)

IN the morning I was awakened by an impatient
knocking at my bedroom door. Going to bed at
two or three I was naturally a* late riser, and this
was about nine. 1 scrambled sleepily out of bed,
and turned the key. Hewitt was standing in my
sitting-room, with a newspaper in his hand.

" Sorry to break your morning sleep, Brett," he
said, " but something interesting has happened in
regard to that business you helped me with yesterday,
and you may like to know. Crawl back into bed if
you like."

But I was already in my dressing-gown, and
groping for my clothes. "No, no, come in and
tell me," I said. " What is it ? "

Hewitt sat on the bed. " I'll tell you in due
order/' he said. u First, I saw Samuel again last
night — after you had gone away. You remember
I went back to my office ; 1 had a letter or two to
write which I had set aside in the afternoon. Well,
I wrote the letters, shut up, and went downstair*

c

34 THE RED TRIANGLE

I opened the outer door, and there was Samuel, in
the act of ringing the housekeeper's bell. He said
he was very anxious, and couldn't sleep without
coming to hear if I had made any progress ; he had
called before, but I was out. I half thought of
taking him back to my office, but decided that it
wasn't worth while. So I walked along to the
corner of the Strand, till I got him well under the
lights. Then I stopped and talked to him. ' You
ask about the progress in your case, Mr. Samuel,' I
said. J 'Now, I have sometimes met people who
seem to consider me a sort of prophet, seer, or
diviner. As a matter of fact, I am nothing but a
professional investigator, and even if I were possessed
of such an amazing genius as I lay no claim to, I
could never succeed in a case, nor even make pro-
gress in it, if my client started me with false in-
formation, or only told me half the truth. More,
when I find that such is the state of affairs, and that
if I am to succeed I must begin by investigating my
client before I proceed with his case, I throw that
case up on the instant — invariably. Do you under-
stand that ? Now I must tell you that I have made
no progress with your case, none ; for that very
reason.' "

u He protested, of course — vowed he had told me
the simple truth, and so forth. I replied by asking

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 35

him certain definite questions. First, I asked him
whose the diamonds were. He repeated that they
were his own. To that I simply replied, 'Good
evening, Mr. Samuel/ and turned away. He came
after me beseechingly, and prevaricated. He said
something about another party having an interest,
but the matter being confidential. To that I re-
sponded by asking him with whom he had commu-
nicated before sending for me, and who was the
person in the brougham which he had twice entered.
That flabbergasted him. He said that he couldn't
answer those questions without bringing other
parties into the matter, to which I answered that it
was just those other parties that I meant to know
about, if I were to move a step in the matter. At
this he got into a sad state — imploring, actually
imploring, me not to desert him. He said he
should do something desperate — something terrible
— that night if I didn't relieve his mind, and under-
take the case. What he meant he'd do I didn't
know, of course, but it didn't move me. I said
finally that I would deal only with principals, and
that until I had the personal instructions of the
actual owner of the diamonds, in addition to a
complete explanation of the brougham incident, I
should do nothing, and I recommended him to go
to the police ; and with that I left him."

36 THE RED TRIANGLE

11 And you got nothing more from him than
that?"

" Nothing more ; but it was something, you see.
He admitted, to all intents, that the diamonds were
not his own. And now see here. I suppose I left
him about ten o'clock. Here is a paragraph in one
of this morning's newspapers. It is only in the one
paper ; the matter seems to have occurred rather
late for press."

Hewitt gave me the paper in his hand, pointing to
the following paragraph :

44 Horrible Discovery.— A shocking discovery
was made just before midnight last night, near the
York column, where a police-constable found the
dead body of a man lying on the stone steps. The
body, which was fully clothed in the ordinary dress
of a labouring man, bore plain marks of strangula-
tion, and it was evident that a brutal murder had
been committed. A singular circumstance was the
presence of a curious reddish mark upon the fore-
head, at first taken for a wound, but soon discovered
to be a mark apparently drawn or impressed on
the skin. At the time of going to press, no arrest
had been made, and so far the affair appears a
mystery."

u Well," I said, "this certainly seems curious,

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 37

especially in the matter of the mark on the forehead.
But what has it all to do "

"To do with Samuel and his diamonds, you
mean ? I'll tell you. That dead man is Ben-
son I n

44 Denson ? " I exclaimed. * Den son ? How ?"

44 1 get it from the housekeeper next door. It
seems that when the police came to examine the
body they found, among other things — money and
a watch, and the like — a piece of an addressed
envelope, used to hold a few pins — the pins stuck
in and the paper rolled up, you know. There was
just enough of it to guess the address by — that of
the office next door; and it was the only clue
they had. So they came along here at once
and knocked up the housekeeper. He went with
them and instantly recognised Denson, disguised
in labourer's clothes, but Denson, he says, unmis-
takably."

44 And the mark on the forehead f "

"That is very odd. It is an outlined triangle,
rather less than an inch along each side. It is
quite red, he says, and seems to be done in a greasy,
sticky sort of ink or colour."

44 Was anything found — the diamonds ? *

"No. He says there was money — two or three
five-pound notes, I believe, some small change, a

38 THE RED TRIANGLE

watch, keys and so forth ; but there's not a word of
diamonds."

I paused in my dressing. M Does that mean that
the murderer has got them?" I asked. Hewitt
pursed his lips and shook his head. " It may mean
that," he said, " but does it look altogether like it
when five-pound notes are left ? On the other
hand, there is the disguise ; the only reason that we
know of for that would be that he was bolting with
the diamonds. But the really puzzling thing is the
mark on the forehead. Why that ? Of course, the
picturesque and romantic thing to suppose is that
it is the mark of some criminal club or society.
But criminal associations, such as exist, don't do
silly things like that. When criminals rob and
murder, they don't go leaving their tracks behind
them purposely — they leave nothing that could
possibly draw attention to them if they can help it ;
also, they don't leave five-pound notes. But I'm
off to have a look at that mark. Inspector Plummer
is in charge of the case — you remember Plummer,
don't you, in the Stanway Cameo case, and two or
three others ? Well, Plummer is an old friend of
mine, and not only am I interested in this matter
myself, but now that it becomes a case of murder,
I must tell the police all I know, merely as a
loyai citizen. I've an idea they will want to ask

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 39

our friend Mr. Samuel some very serious ques-
tions."

" Will you go now ?"

44 Yes, I must waste no more time. You get your
breakfast and look out for me, or for a message."

Hewitt was off to Vine Street, and I devoted
myself to my toilet and my breakfast, vastly
mystified by this tragic turn in a matter already
puzzling enough.

It was not a messenger, but Hewitt himself, who
came back in less than an hour. " Come/' he said,
44 Plummer is below, and we are going next door, to
Denson's office. I've an idea that we may get at
something at last The police are after Samuel
hot-foot. They think he should be made sure of in
any case without delay ; and I must say they have
some reason, on the face of it."

We joined Plummer at once — I have already
spoken of Plummer in my accounts of several of
Hewitt's cases in which I met him — and we all
turned into the office next door. There we found
a very frightened and bewildered office boy, whom
Denson had given a holiday yesterday, after sending
him down to Samuel. He had come to his work
as usual, only to meet the housekeeper's tale of the
murder of his master and the end of his business

4o THE RED TRIANGLE

prospects. He had little or no information to
impart. He had only been employed for a month
or six weeks, and during that time his work had
been practically nothing.

Plummer nodded at this information, and sniffed
comprehensively at the office furniture. " I know
this sort o' stuff," he said. " This is the way they
fit up long firm offices and such. This place was
taken for the job, that's plain, by one or both
of 'em."

The boy's address was taken, and he was given a
final holiday, and asked to send up the housekeeper
as he went out. Plummer passed Hewitt a bunch
of keys.

The housekeeper entered. "Now, Hutt," said
Martin Hewitt, " you were saying yesterday, I think,
that the main front door was the only entrance and
exit for this building ? "

u That's so, sir — the only one as anybody can use,
except me."

" Oh I then there is another, then ? *

■ Well, not exactly to say an entrance, sir. There's
a small private door at the back into the court
behind, but that's only opened to take in coals and
such, and I always have the key. This house isn't
like yours, sir ; you have no back way into the court
as we have. If s a convenience, sometimes."

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 41

u Ah, I've no doubt. Do you happen to have the
key with you ? "

" It's on the bunch hanging up in my box, sir.
Shall I fetch it ? "

u I should like to see it, if you will."

The housekeeper disappeared, and presently re-
turned with a large bunch of keys.

" This is the one, Mr. Hewitt/' he explained, lift-
ing it from among the rest.

Hewitt examined it closely, and then placed beside
it one from the bunch Plummer had given him. " It
seems you're not the only person who ever had a
key exactly like that, Hurt," he said. " See here —
this was found in Mr. Denson's pocket."

Plummer nodded sagaciously. " All in the plant,"
he said. " See — it's brand new ; clean as a new pin,
and file marks still on it."

" Take us to this back door, Hutt," Hewitt pur-
sued. u We'll try this key. Is there a back stair-
case?"

There was a small back staircase, leading to the
coal-cellars, and only used by servants. Down this
we all went, and on a lower landing we stopped
before a small door. Hewitt slipped the key in the
lock and turned it The door opened easily, and
there before us was the little courtyard which I
think I have mentioned in one of my other narra-

42 THE RED TRIANGLE

tives — the courtyard with a narrow passage leading
into t}ie next street.

Martin Hewitt seemed singularly excited. " Set
there/' he said, " that is how Denson left the build-
ing without passing the housekeeper's box ! And
now I'm going to make another shot. See here.
This key on Denson's bunch attracted my attention
because of its noticeable newness compared with
most of the others. Most of the others, I say, be-
cause there is one other just as bright — see 1 This
small one. Now, Hutt, do you happen to have a
key like that also ? "

Hutt turned the key over in his hand and glanced
from it to his own bunch. "Why, yes, sir !" he
said presently. u Yes, sir ! It's the same as the ke>
of the fire-hose cupboards 1 *

"Does that key fit them all? How many fire-
hose cupboards are there ? "

" Two on each floor, sir, one at each end, just
against the mains. And one key fits the lot."

" Show us the nearest to this door."

A short, narrow passage led to the main ground-
floor corridor, where a cupboard lettered " Fire
Hose " stood next the main and its fittings. u We
have to keep the hose-cupboards locked," the house-
keeper explained apologetically, "'cause •' mis-
chievous boys in the offices."

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 43

This key fitted as well as the other. A long coil
of brown leather hose hung within, and in a corner
lay a piece of chamois leather evidently used for
polishing the brass fittings. This Hewitt pulled
aside, and there beneath it lay another and cleaner
piece of chamois leather, neatly folded and tied
round with cord. Hewitt snatched it up. He un-
fastened the cord ; he unrolled the leather, which
was sewn into a sort of bag or satchel ; and when
at last he spread wide the mouth of this satchel,
light seemed to spring from out of it, for there lay
a glittering heap of brilliants !

" What 1 " cried Plummer, who first got his speech.
" Diamonds 1 Samuel's diamonds I "

" Diamonds, at any rate," replied Hewitt,
"whether Samuel's or somebody else's. But they
can't have been there long. How often is this cup-
board opened ? "

m Every Saturday reg'lar, sir," replied the house-
keeper ; " just to dust it out and see things is
right."

" Now, see here ! * said Martin Hewitt, " I've had
luck in my conjectures as yet, and I'll try again.
Here is what I believe has happened Every word
that Samuel told me about the theft of those
diamonds was true, except as to their ownership.
Denson has planned all along to rob him of as big

44 THE RED TRIANGLE

a collection of diamonds as he could prompt him to
get together, and he has played up to this for
months. His smaller dealings one way and another
were ground-bait. Very artfully he let Samuel take
the diamonds safely away once, in order that he
should be less watchful and less suspicious the
second time. This second time he does the trick
exactly as we see. He hangs up the imaginary
American's hat, he escapes by the fanlight, and he
goes out by the back way to avoid the housekeeper's
observation. He has arranged beforehand for this,
too. He has seized an opportunity when the house-
keeper has been out of his box to get wax impres-
sions of these two keys, and he has made copies of
them. And here we come on a curious thing. It
is easy enough to understand why he should foresee
and get himself a key for the back door, in order to
make his escape. But why the key of the hose-
cupboard ? Why, indeed, should he leave the
diamonds behind him at all ? It is plain that he
meant to come back for them — probably at night.
He would have been wholly free from observation
in that quiet courtyard, and he could let himself in,
get the diamonds, and leave again without exciting
the smallest alarm or suspicion. But why take all
the trouble ? Why not stick to the plunder from
the beginning? The plain inference i* that he

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 45

feared somebody or something. He feared being
stopped and searched, or he feared being waylaid
sometime during yesterday. By whom ? There's the
puzzle, and I can't see the bottom of it, I confess.
If I could, perhaps I might know something of last
night's murder.

* As to Samuel's prevarications, there is only one
explanation that will fit, now that the rest is made
clear. He must have been entrusted with these
diamonds by a private owner, for sale — secretly.
Some lady of conspicuous position in difficulties,
probably — perhaps unknown to her husband. Such
things occur every day. A common expedient is to
sell the stones and have good paste substituted, in
the same settings. Samuel would be just the man
to carry through a transaction of that sort. That
would account for everything. The jewels are en
suite, cut, but unset — taken from a set of jewellery,
and paste substituted. Samuel arranges it all for
the lady, finds a customer — Denson — who treats
him exactly as he has told us. When he realises the
loss Samuel doesn't know what to do. He mustn't
call the police, being bound to secrecy on the lady's
behalf. He sends her a hasty message, and remains
keeping watch by Denson's office. She hurries to
him with all possible secrecy, keeping her carriage
blinds down ; he dashes into the brougham to

46 THE RED TRIANGLE

describe the disaster, taking his case with him in his
frantic desire to explain things fully. The lady fears
publicity, and won't hear of the police — she instructs
him to consult me : and consequently, of course,
when I recommend communicating with the police
he won't listen to the suggestion. Samuel has
arranged with the lady to hurry off and report pro-
gress as soon as he has consulted me, and this he
does, the lady having appointed Manchester Square
foi the interview. Perhaps she hints some suspicion
of Samuel's honesty — rather natural, perhaps, in the
circumstances. That terrifies him more than ever,
and leads to his frantic appeals to me when 1 throw
the case up. Come, there's my guess at the facts of
the case, and I'll back it with twopence and a bit
more. Eh, Plummer ? "

" I don't take vour bet," answered Plummer.
" The thing's plain enough ; except the murder.
There's something deeper there."

Hewitt became grave. " That's true," he said,
"' and something I can see no way into, as yet. . But
come — you take this parcel of diamonds, as repre-
senting the law. And here comes one of your men,
I ihink."

We had been approaching the front door during
this talk, and now a police constable appeared, and
saluted Plummer. " Samuel's just been brought in,

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 47

sir," he reported. u He's half dead with fright, and

he's sent a message to Lady H in P Square ;

and he says he wants Mr. Martin Hewitt to come
and speak for him."

"Poor Samuel!" Hewitt commented. "Come,
we'll go and make him happy. Here are the
diamonds, and, thost safely accounted for, there's
no evidence to connect him with the murder.
We'll get him out of the mess as soon as possi-
ble."

And so they did. Hewitt's reading of the case was
correct to a tittle, as it turned out, and with very
little delay Samuel was released. But with the
message from the police station, the fat was in the
fire as regarded Lady H . Her husband neces-
sarily became acquainted with everything, and there
was serious domestic trouble.

Samuel was glad enough to get quit of the busi-
ness with no worse than a bad fright, as may well
be supposed. He showed himself most grateful to
Hewitt in after times, giving him excellent confiden-
tial advice and information more than once in
matters connected with the diamond trade. He is
still in business, I believe, in a much larger way, and
I have no doubt he is the wiser for his experience,
and for the lesson which Hewitt did not forget to
rub well in : that it is useless and worse to place a

4t THE RED TRIANGLE

confidential matter in the hands of a man of Hewitfs
profession, and at the same time withhold particulars
of the case, however unessential they may appear
to be.

But meantime, on the way to Vine Street I asked
Hewitt what led him to suppose that the new key on
Denson's bunch fitted a lock in that particular office
building.

"Call it a lucky guess, if you like," Hewitt
answered ; " but as a matter of fact it was prompted
by pure common sense. Plummer showed me the
things found on the body, and I saw at once that
the keys offered the only chance of immediate
information. I went through them one by one*
There was his latch-key — the key with which he had
gone into his lodgings to fetch away the disguise.
There was another largish key, equally old — pro-
bably the key of his office door. There were other
smaller keys, also old — plainly belonging to bags and
trunks and drawers and so forth. And then there
was the large, perfectly new key. What was that ?
It was not the key of any bag or drawer, clearly — it
was the key of a door — a door with a lever lock.
What door ? Had Denson some other office ?
Perhaps he had, but first it was best to begin by
trying it on places we were already acquainted with.

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 49

At once I thought of Denson's disappearance un-
observed by the housekeeper. Could this be the
key of 'some private exit from the office building ?
I resolved to test that conjecture first, and it turned
out to be the right one. Being successful so far, of
course I turned to the other new key and tried that,
as you saw."

u But what of that triangular mark on the man's
forehead 7"

Martin Hewitt became deeply thoughtful. " That,'*
he said, u is a matter wholly beyond me at present,
as indeed is the whole business of the murder.
Whether we shall ever know more I can't guess, but
the matter is deep — deep and difficult and dark. As
to the mark itself, that seems to have been impressed
from an engraved stamp of some sort. It is a plain
equilateral triangle in red outline, measuring about
an inch on each side. It is in a greasy, sticky sort
of red ink, which may be smeared, but is very
difficult, if not impossible, to rub away. What it
means I can't at present conjecture. I have told
you my reasons for not thinking it the sign of any
gang of criminals. But whose sign is it ? Surely
not that of some self-constituted punisher of crime ?
For such a person, with no risk to himself, could
have handed Denson over to the police, if he knew
of his offence. Can he have been murdered by an

50 THE RED TRIANGLE

accomplice ? But he used no accomplice ; if one
thing is plain in all that story of the stolen diamonds
it is that Denson did the thing wholly by himself.
Besides, an accomplice would have taken the keys
and have gone and secured the diamonds for him-
self ; else why the murder at all ? But no keys
were taken — nothing was taken, as far as we can tell.
And why was the body placed in that conspicuous
position ? It is pretty certain that the crime cannot
have happened where the body was found — some-
body must have heard or seen a struggle in such a
place as that. As it is, I should say, the body was
probably brought quietly to the spot in a cab, or
some such conveyance.

M But mystery envelops this crime everywhere.
So far as I can see, there is no clue whatever beyond
the Red Triangle, which, as yet, I cannot under-
stand. The strangling points to the murder being
committed by a powerful man, certainly, and it is a
form of crime that may have been perpetrated
silently. But beyond that I can see nothing. The
apparent motivelessness of the thing makes the
mystery all the darker, and the circumstances we are
acquainted with, instead of helping us, seem to
complicate the puzzle.

" What was it that Denson feared when he left
those diamonds behind him, when he might have

SAMUEL'S DIAMONDS 51

carried them away ? And why should he fear it in
daytime and not at night, since it would seem plain
that he meant to have returned for the stones at
night ? Where did he go to disguise himself
yesterday — we know it was not in his lodgings
— and where has he left the clothes he dis-
carded?"

All these doubts and mysteries were destined to
be cleared up, in more or less degree ; but it was
not till Hewitt and I had witnessed other singular
adventures that the answer came to the problem,
the real meaning of the Red Triangle was made
apparent, and its connection with the theft of
Samuel's diamonds grew clear. For indeed the
connection proved in the end to be very intimate
indeed. Once, a little later, we were allowed to
see a shade farther into the mystery, as I shall
tell in the proper place ; but even then the real
secret remained hidden from us till the appointed
end.

So ended the case of Samuel's diamonds, so far as
concerned Samuel himself and the owner ; but the
case of the Red Triangle had only begun.

THE CASE OF MR. JACOB MASON

CHAPTER IV.

THE CASE OF MR. JACOB MASON

The mystery of Den son's death remained a mystery,
despite all the police could do. The coroner's jury
returned a verdict of " Murder by some person or
persons unknown" — which, indeed, was all that
could be expected of them ; for they had no more
before them than the bare fact that the body,
disguised in the clothes of a labourer, had been
found on the steps near the Duke of York's
column, just before midnight, by a police constable.
But for the housekeeper's identification, even the
name of the victim would have been unknown.
The jury certainly wasted some time in idle specu-
lation as to the strange triangular mark found on
the forehead, without a speck of evidence to help
them ; but in the end they returned their verdict,
and went home.

But the police knew a little more than the jury,
though that little rather confused than helped them.
They exercised their judgment at the inquest in
withholding all evidence of the theft of diamonds

j6 THE RED TRIANGLE

on which the victim had been engaged, the curious
particulars of which I have already related. In this
they followed their usual course in cases where the
evidence withheld could give the jury no help in
arriving at their verdict, and at the same time might
easily hamper further investigations if revealed. For
the theft had been frustrated by Martin Hewitt's
exertions, as we have seen, and in any case the thief
was now dead and beyond the reach of human
punishment. The one matter now remaining for the
police was inquiry into the murder of this same
thief, and the one object of their exertions the
apprehension of the murderer or murderers.

The case, as I have already said, was in the hands
of Inspector Plummer, an intelligent officer and
an old friend of Hewitt's. A few days' work after
the inquest yielded Plummer so little result that he
called at Hewitt's office to talk matters over.

" I suppose," Plummer began, " it's no use asking
if you've heard anything more of that matter of
Denson's murder ? "

Hewitt shook his head. * I haven't heard a
word," he said. " If I had, it would have come on
to you at once. But I hope you've had some luck
yourself ? "

" Not a scrap ; time wasted ; and the few off-
chance clues I tried have Jed nowhere, so that I'm

MR. JACOB MASON 57

where I was at the start The thing is quite the
oddest in all my experience. See how we stand.
Here's a man, Denson, who has just pulled off one
of the cleverest jewel robberies* ever attempted.
He so arranges it that he walks safely off with
fifteen thousand pounds' worth of diamonds,
leaving the victim, Samuel, stuck patiently in an
office for an hour or two before he even begins to
suspect anything is wrong, and then unable to set
the police after him, for the reasons you discovered.
But this Denson doesn't carry the plunder off
straightway, as he so easily might have done — he
conceals it in the very house where the robbery
was committed, taking with him a key by aid of
which he may return and get it. Why ? As you
explained, it was probably because he feared some-
body— feared being stopped and searched on the
day of the robbery — not after, since it was plain he
meant to return for his booty at night. Who could
this have been, and why did Denson fear him ?
Mystery number one. Then this Denson is found
dead that same night disguised in the clothes of a
labourer, in a most conspicuous spot in London —
the last place in the world one would expect a
murderer to select for depositing his victim's body,
for it is evidently not the place where the murder
was committed. More, on the forehead there is this

5$ THE RED TRIANGLE

extraordinary impressed mark of a Red Triangle.
Now, what can all that mean ? Robbery, perhaps
one thinks. But the body isn't robbed 1 There are
three five-pound notes on it, besides a sovereign or
two and some small change, a watch and chain, keys
and all the rest of it. Then one guesses at the
diamonds. Perhaps it was an accomplice in the
robbery, who finds that Denson is about to bolt with
the whole lot. But if there's one thing plain in this
amazing business it is that Denson had no accom-
plice ; he did the whole thing alone, as you dis-
covered, and he needed no help. More than that,
if this were the work of an accomplice why didn't
he get the jewels ? There were the keys to his
hand and he left them ! And would such a
person actually go out of his way to put the body
where it must be discovered at once, instead of
concealing it till he could himself get away with the
diamonds ? Of course not. But there was no
accomplice, and it's useless to labour that farther.
All these arguments apply equally against the theory
that it was the work of some criminal gang. They
would have taken all they could get, notes, keys,
diamonds and all, and they wouldn't have been so
foolish as to exhibit the body with that extraordinary
mark ; criminal gangs are not such fools as to take
unnecessary chances and gratuitously leave tracks

MR. JACOB MASON 59

behind them, as you know well enough. Well then,
there we stand. So far, do you sec any more in it
than I do ? "

Hewitt shook his head. " No," he said, " I can't
say I do. All the considerations you have mentioned
have already occurred to me. I talked them over,
in fact, with my friend Brett. My connection with
the case ceased, of course, with the discovery of the
jewels, and about the murder I know no more than
has been told me. I never saw the body, and so
had no opportunity of picking up any overlooked
clue ; though doubtless you have seen to that. I
know not a tittle more than you have just sum-
marised, and on that alone the thing seems mystery
pure and unadulterated."

11 All there is beyond that was ascertained by the
divisional surgeon on examination of the body.
The man died from strangulation, as you know,
and the natural presumption from that was that
the murderer must have been a powerful man. But
the surgeon is of the positive opinion — he is certain,
in fact — that Denson was strangled with an instru-
ment— a tourniquet."

** A tourniquet?"

u Yes, a surgeon's tourniquet, such as is used to
compress a leg or arm and so stop a flow of blood.
He considers the marks unmistakable. Now that

6o THE RED TRIANGLE

might point to the murderer being a medical
man."

" Conjecturally, yes ; though, of course, it justifies
nothing more than conjecture."

"Precisely. Well, that was something, but
precious little. A tourniquet is a common thing
enough — no more than a band with screw fittings,
and there was nothing to show that the tourniquet
used was any different from a thousand others ; and
I can see no particular reason why a doctor should
commit a murder like this any more than any other
man ; in which the divisional surgeon agreed with
me. And doctor or none, that Red Triangle was
altogether unaccounted for. About that, too, by
the way, the divisional surgeon told me a little, but
a very useless little. The mark was not properly
dried, owing to its slightly greasy nature, and
although it was almost impossible to remove it
wholly, it was possible to scrape off a little of the
ink, or colour. Here is a little of it on a paper —
quite dried now, of course."

Plummer carefully took from his pocket a small
folded paper, unfolded it, and revealed a smaller
paper within. On this were two little smears of a
bright red colour. "There — that's the stuff," he
said. " The surgeon examined it, and he reports it
to be rather oddly constituted — so as to bear some

MR. JACOB MASON 61

affinity of meaning, possibly, to the triangle. For
the stuff is a compound of three substances —
animal, vegetable and mineral ; there is a fine vege-
table oil, he says, some waxy preparation, certainly
of animal origin, and a mineral — cinnabar : vermilion,
in fact. But though there may be some connection
between the triangle and the substances repre-
senting the three natural kingdoms, it gives nothing
practical — nothing to go on."

Martin Hewitt had been closely examining the
marks on the paper, and now he answered, "I'm
not so sure of that, though, Plummer. I think at
least that it gives us another conjecture. I should
guess that the man you want, as well as being
acquainted with the use of the tourniquet, has at
some time travelled in, or to, China."

"Why?"

" Unless I am wider of the mark than usual, this
is the pigment used on Chinese seals. A Chinaman's
seal acts for his signature on all sorts of documents ;
it is impressed or printed by hand pressure from a
little engraved stone die, precisely as this triangle
seems to have been, and the ink or colour is almost
always red, compounded of vermilion, wax, and oil
of sesamum."

Plummer sat up with a whistle. " Phew I Then
it may have been done by a Chinaman 1"

62 THE RED TRIANGLE

Hewitt shrugged his shoulders. " It's possible,"
he said ; " of course, though, the sign, the triangle,
is not a Chinese character. As a character, of
course it is the Greek Delta* But it may be no
character at all. In the signs of the ancient Cabala,
the triangle, apex upward as it was in this case,
was the symbol of fire ; apex downward, it signified
water."

Plummer patted the side of his head distractedly.
44 Heavens 1" he said, "don't tell me I'm to search
all China, and Greece, and — wherever the cabalistic
pundits come from 1 "

44 Well, no," Hewitt answered with a smile. u I
think I should, at any rate, begin in this country
I rather think you might make a beginning at
Denson. That is what I should do if the case were
mine. See if anything can be ascertained of his pre-
vious life — probably under another name or names.
He may have been in China. Yes, certainly, as we
stand at present, I should begin at Denson."

" I think I will," the inspector replied, " though
there's precious little to begin on there. I'd like
to have you with me on this job, but, of course,
that's impossible, since it's purely a police matter.
But something, some information, may come your
way, and in that case you'll let me know at once, of
course,"

MR. JACOB MASON 63

" Of course I shall — it's a serious matter, as well
as a strange one. I wish you all luck ! "

Plummer departed to grapple with his difficulties,
but in fact it was Hewitt who first heard fresh news
of the Red Triangle, and that from a wholly
unexpected quarter.

It was, indeed, only two days after Plummer's
visit that Kerrett brought into Hewitt's private room
the card of the Rev. James Potswood, with a request
for a consultation. Mr. Potswood's name was
known to Hewitt, as, indeed, it was to many people,
as that of a most devoted clergyman, rector of a
large parish in north-west London, who devoted
not only all his time and personal strength to his
work, but also spent every penny of his private
income on his parish. It was not a small income
that Mr. Potswood spent in this unselfish way, for
he came of a wealthy family, and though a good
part of his parish was inhabited by well-to-do
people, there was quite enough poverty and distress
in the poorei quarters to cause this excellent man
often to regret that his resources were not even
larger. He was a spare active grey- whiskered man
of nearly sixty, with prominent and not very hand-
some features, though his face was full of frank and
simple kindliness.

" My errand, Mr. Hewitt," he said, " is of a rather

64 THE RED TRIANGLE

vague, not to say visionary, character, and I doubt if
you can help me. But at any rate I will explain the
trouble as well as I can. In the first place, am I
right in supposing that you were in some way
professionally engaged in connection with that
extraordinary case of murder a week or so ago — the
case in which a man named Denson was found dead
on the steps by the Duke of York's column ? "

" Yes — and no," Hewitt answered. " I was
professionally engaged on a certain matter about
which you will not wish me to particularise — since
it is the business of a client — and in course of it
I came upon the other affair."

"Then before I ask what you know of that
mysterious event, Mr. Hewitt, I will tell you my
story, so that you may judge whether you are able
to reveal anything, or to do anything. Of course,
what I say is in the strictest confidence."

" Of course."

" I have a parishioner, a Mr. Jacob Mason, of
whom T have seen very little of late years — scarcely
anything at all, in fact, till a few days ago. He is
fairly well to do, I believe, living a somewhat retired
life in a house not far from my rectory. For many
years he has laboured at natural science — chemistry
in particular — and he has a very excellently fitted
laboratory attached to his house. He is a widower,

MR. JACOB MASON 65

with no children of his own, but his orphan niece,
a Miss Creswick, lives under his guardianship. Mr.
Mason was never a very regular church-goer, but
years ago I saw much more of him than I have of
late. I must be perfectly frank with you, Mr.
Hewitt, if you are to help me, and therefore I must
tell you that we disagreed on points of religion, in
such a way that I found it difficult to maintain my
former regard for Mr. Mason. He had a curiously
fantastic mind, and he was constantly being led to
tamper with things that I think are best left alone —
what is called spiritualism, for instance, and that
horrible form of modern superstition which we hear
whispers of at times from the Continent — the alleged
devil-propitiation or worship. It was not that he
did anything I thought morally wrong, you under-
stand— except that he dabbled. And he was always
running after some new thing — animal magnetism,
or telepathy, or crystal-gazing, or theosophy, or
some one of the score of such things that have an
attraction for a mind of that sort. And it was a
characteristic of each new enthusiasm with him that
it prompted him to try to convert me ; and that in
such terms — terms often applied to the doctrines
of that religion of which I am a humble minister
— as I could in nowise permit in my presence.
So that our friendly intercourse, though not inter-

■

66 THE RED TRIANGLE

rupted by any definite breaking off, fell away to
almost nothing. For which reason I was a little
surprised to receive a visit from Mr. Mason on the
afternoon of the day on which the newspapers
printed the report of the finding of the body of
Denson. You may remember that only one
morning paper mentioned the matter, and that
very briefly ; but there were full reports in all the
evening papers."

"Yes, the discovery was made very late the
previous night."

"So I gathered. Well, I was told that Mr.
Mason had been shown into my study, and there
I found him. He was in an extremely nervous
and agitated state, and he had an evening paper
in his hand. With scarcely a preliminary word he
burst out, ' Have you seen this in the paper ?
This — this murder ? There — there's the report/
And he thrust the paper into my hands.

" I had not seen or heard anything of the matter,
in fact, till that moment, and now he gave me
little leisure to read the report. He walked
up and down the room, nervously clasping his
hands, sometimes together, sometimes at his
sides, sometimes before him, shaking his head
in a shuddering sort of way, and bursting out
once or twice as though the words were uncon-

MR. JACOB MASON 67

trollable, ' What ought I to do ? What can 1
do?'

" I looked up from the paper, and he went on,
4 Have you read it ? It's a murder — a horrid
murder. The poor wretched fellow was trying to
escape, but he couldn't. It's a murder ! '

m * It certainly seems so/ I said. * But what — did
you know this man, Denson ? '

" ■ No, of course not,' Mason replied, ' but there it
is, plain enough, and here's another paper with just
the same report, but a little shorter.' He pulled the
second paper from his pocket. * I got what different
papers I could, but these are the two fullest. It's
plain enough it's a brutal murder, isn't it ? And
the man was a merchant, or an agent, or something,
in Portsmouth Street, but he was found in labourer's
clothes — proof that he feared it and was trying to
escape it ; but he couldn't — he couldn't — no I nor
anybody. It's awful, awful 1 '

" ' But I don't understand,' I said. * Won't you
sit down ? ' For Mason continued to pace dis-
tractedly about the room. ' What is it you think
this unfortunate man was trying to escape? And
what am I to do in the matter ? '

"He stopped, pressed both hands to his head, and
seemed to control himself by a great effort. 'You
must excuse me,' he said. ' I'm a bit run down lately,

68 THE RED TRIANGLE

and my nerves are all wrong. I'm talking rather
wildly, I'm afraid. I really hardly know why I came
to you, except that I haven't a soul I can talk to
about — well, about anything, scarcely/

" He took a chair, and sat for a little while
with his head forward on his hand and his eyes
directed towards the floor. Then he said, in a musing
way, rather as though he was thinking aloud than
talking to me, ' You were right, after all, Potswood,
and I was a fool to disregard your warnings. I
oughtn't to have dabbled — I should have left those
things alone.'

" I said nothing, thinking it best not to disturb
him, but to leave him free to say what he wanted to
say in his own way. He remained quiet for a
minute or two more, arid then sat up with an
appearance of much greater composure. 'You
mustn't mind me, Potswood,' he said. * As I've told
you, I'm in a bad state of nerves, and at best I'm an
impulsive sort of person, as you know. I needn't
have bothered you like this — I came rushing round
here without thinking, and if the house had been a
bit farther off I should have come to my senses
before I reached you. After all, there's nothing
so much to disturb one's-self about, and this man —
this Denson — may very well have deserved his fate.
Don't you think that likely ? '

MR. JACOB MASON 69

"He added this last question with an involuntary
eagerness that scarcely accorded with the indifferent
tone with which he had begun. I answered
guardedly. I said of course nobody could say what
the unhappy man's sins might have been, but that
whatever they were they could never justify the fear-
ful sin of murder. • And/ I added, ' if you know
anything of the matter, Mason, or have the smallest
suspicion as to who is the guilty person, I'm sure
vou won't hesitate in your duty.'

" \ My duty ? ' he said. i Oh yes, of course ; my
duty. You mean, of course, that any law-abiding
citizen who knows of evidence should bring it out.
Just so. Of course / haven't any evidence— that
paper gave me the first news of the thing.'

"'I think,' I rejoined, 'that anybody who was
possessed of even less than evidence — of any sus-
picion which might lead to evidence — should go at
once and place the authorities in possession of all
he knows or suspects/

"'Yes,' he said — very calmly now, though it
seemed at cost of a great effort — ' so he should ; so
he should, no doubt, in any ordinary case. But
sometimes there are difficulties, you know — great
difficulties.' He stopped and looked at me furtively
and uneasily. ' A man might fear for his own safety
— he might even know that to say what he knew

70 THE RED TRIANGLE

would be to condemn himself to sudden death ; and
more, perhaps, more. Suppose — it might be, you
know — suppose, for instance, a man was placed
between the alternatives of neglecting this duty and
of breaking a — well an oath, a binding oath of a
very serious — terrible — character ? An oath, we will
say, made previously, without any foreknowledge of
the crime ? '

u I said that any such oath taken without fore-
knowledge of the crime could not have contemplated
such an event, and that however wrong the taking
of such an oath might have been in itself, to assist
in concealing such a crime as this murder was in-
finitely worse — infinitely worse than taking the oath,
and infinitely worse than breaking it. Though as to
the latter, I repeated that any such engagement made
without contemplation or foreknowledge of such a
crime would seem to be void in that respect. I went
further — much further. I conjured him to make no
secret of anything he might know, and not to burden
his conscience with complicity — for that was what
concealment would amount to — in such a terrible
crime. I added some further exhortations which I
need not repeat now, and presently his assumed
calmness departed utterly, and he became even more
agitated than when first he came. He would say
nothing further, however, and in the end he went

MR. JACOB MASON 71

away, saying he would ' think over the matter very
seriously.'

" It was quite plain to me that my poor friend was
suffering acutely from the burden of some terrible
secret, and that in his impulsive way he had rushed
to confide in me at the first shock of the news of
this murder, and that afterwards his courage had
failed him. But I conceived it my duty not to allow
such a matter to stand thus. Therefore, giving
Mason a few hours for calm consideration, I called
on him in the evening. I was told that he was not
very well and had gone to bed ; he had, however,
left a message, in case I should call, to the effect
that he would come and see me in the morning. 1
waited the whole of that next morning and the whole
of the afternoon, and saw nothing of him. In the
evening urgent parish work took me away, but next
morning I called again at Mason's house and saw
him. This time he avoided the subject — tried to
dodge it, in fact. But I was not to be denied, and
the result was another scene of alternate agitation
and forced calmness. I will not weary you, Mr.
Hewitt, with useless repetition, but I may say that
I have seen Mason twice since then without bringing
him to any definite resolve. As a matter of fact, I
believe that he is restrained from saying anything
further by fear — sheer terror. He has even gone so

7a THE RED TRIANGLE

far as to deny absolutely that he knows anything of
the matter — and then has contradicted himself a
minute afterwards. At last, this morning, I have
brought him a degree further. In the last few days
I made it my business to acquaint myself, as far as
possible, with the exact circumstances of the tragedy,
so far as they are known, and in course of my in-
quiries I saw the housekeeper of the offices next
door — the man who identified the body as Denson's.
He either could not, or would not, tell me very
much, but he did say that you had been working in
some way in connection with the case, and that you
knew as much of it as anybody. That gave me an
idea. This morning I told Mason that not only he,
but I also had a duty in respect to this matter, and
my duty was to see that nothing in connection with
such a crime as this should be hushed up on any con-
sideration or for anybody's fancies. I said that if he
liked he need tell me no more, but might take you
into consultation professionally, as your client,
allowing me first to see you and to assure you that,
consistently with his own safety, he was anxious to
further the ends of justice. I said that, as your
client, your first duty would be to protect him, that
your professional practice would keep your mouth
absolutely sealed, and that you already knew a
good deal about the crime — perhaps more than bm

MR. JACOB MASON 73

suspected. I protested that this seemed to me the
very least he could do, and I warned him that if he
refused to do even this, I should have to consider
whether it was consistent with my character, as a
clergyman and a loyal citizen, any longer to conceal
the fact that he was keeping back information that
might lead to the apprehension of the murderer.
This frightened him, and between the fear of the
threat and the fear that you might already know
more than he suspected, he authorised me — he was
even eager about it — to come and see you ; always,
of course, under a pledge of strict professional
secrecy."

"So far your account is quite clear, Mr. Pots-
wood," Hewitt said. "You have done your best,
now I must do mine. You wish me to see Mason
at once, no doubt ? "

"I arranged to bring you to his house, if you
were willing and your engagements permitted, at
three this afternoon. Will that do ? I have been
keeping you, I see — it is past one already. Will
you lunch with me at my club ? "

"With great pleasure — more especially as I
have a few questions to ask as we go along. Is
it far?"

" Just at this end of Pall Mall — we will walk, if
you like."

74 THE RED TRIANGLE

"Tell me now," said Hewitt as they went, "any-
thing you know about Mr. Mason's habits, family
connections, and so forth, as fully and as minutely
as you please. Has he any friends connected with
China, for instance ? "

" China ? Why, no, I think not ; except — but
I'll tell you all I know. Mr. Mason has no family
connections, so far as I am aware — at any rate, in
London — except his niece, Miss Creswick. She is
within a few months of twenty-one, a charming girl,
but horribly shut in, for Mason has almost no
visitors. Miss Creswick was his sister's daughter ;
she lost her mother first and then her father, and
was left to the guardianship of her uncle. He was
also trustee under the will, and he has, I believe,
discretion to keep charge of her property, if he
thinks fit, till she reaches the age of twenty-five ;
though in case of his death she is to inherit in the
ordinary way, on coming of age. She is a very
dutiful and, indeed, an affectionate niece ; though I
must say he is scarcely fair to her, keeping her, as
he does, so completely secluded from the society of
young people of her own age. Mere thoughtless-
ness, I think ; he has had no children of his own,
his mind is wholly occupied with his science and his
fads, and he makes himself a recluse without a
thought of the girl. And that brings me to what I

MR. JACOB MASON 75

was about to say at first, when you asked me if
Mr. Mason had any friends connected with China.
There is a young doctor — Lawson is his name —
some very distant connection of the family, I think,
who had a professional appointment of some sort in
Shanghai for a year or two, but who is now in
London trying to work up a small practice of his
own. If you hadn't mentioned China I shouldn't
have thought of him, since he never goes to the
house now — or, at any rate, is supposed not to
go."

" Doesn't go to the house ? And why is that ? "
u Well, there was a disagreement. What it was
I don't quite know, but in the first place it had some
connection with some of Mason's experiments —
something which Lawson declined to help him with
for professional reasons, or else something he
declined to do for Lawson, I don't know which.
But the thing went further, for, as a matter of fact,
there was something between the young people —
Lawson is only twenty-eight — and Mason put an
end to that It had been something like a formal
engagement, I think, but in the quarrel — Mason was
always quarrelling with somebody when he had
friends, and that* s why he has so few now — in the
quarrel things were said that ended in a rupture.
Whether young Lawson was fortune-hunting or

76 THE RED TRIANGLE

not I cannot say, but Mason certainly accused him
of it, and promised to keep back the girl's money as
long as he could. In the meantime Mason declared
an end to the engagement, and poor Helen was
broken-hearted ; for as I have said, she is an affec-
tionate girl, and she hadn't a friend to confide in.
But I'm boring you — you don't want to know all
these things, surely f "

" On the contrary, I can't possibly know too
much, and the particulars can't possibly be too
minute. Nine cases out of ten I bring to an issue
by means of a triviality. You were saying a little
while back that there were almost no visitors at
Mr. Mason's house ; but you said 'almost,' and that
means there are some. Who are they ? "

" Very occasionally — rarely, in fact — there are one
or two members of learned societies with whom he
had been in correspondence, or who are old friends.
There is a Professor Hutton and a Dr. Burge, I
believe ; but they don't appear once in six months ;
and there is Mr. Everard Myatt, who is more
fi equent. He does not profess to be a great man of
science, but he is interested in chemistry as an
amateur, and is, I fancy, a sort of disciple of
Mason's. He has noticed a sad difference in Mason
just lately, and he even called on me yesterday,
though I hardly knew him by sight, in the hope that

MR. JACOB MASON 77

I would back up his urgent suggestion that Mason
should go off for a change and a rest. Beyond
these I don't think I know of a single visitor. But
here we are at the Megatherium."

CHAPTER V.

THE CASE OF MR. JACOB MASON (CONTINUED)

Mr. Jacob Mason's house stood in its own grounds
in a quiet suburban road. It was not a very large
house, but it straggled about comfortably in the
manner of detached houses built in the suburbs at a
time when space was less valuable than now, and
it consisted of two floors only. The front door was
not far from the road, and was clearly visible to
passengers who might chance to look through
either of the two iron gates that opened one on
each end of the semi-circular drive.

All these things Martin Hewitt noticed as the
Rev. Mr. Potswood pushed open one of these gates,
and the two walked up the drive. The front door
stood in a portico, and a French window gave
access to the roof of this portico from a bedroom
or dressing-room. As Hewitt and his companion
approached the house the French window was
pushed open, and a man appeared — a middle-aged,
slightly stoutish man with a short, grey beard ;
commonplace enough in himself, but now convulsed

MR. JACOB MASON 79

with noisy anger, shaking his fists and stamping on
the portico-roof.

* Get out ! " he shouted. u Don't come near my
house again, or I'll have you flung out 1 Go away
and take your friends with you. 1 D'you hear ?
Go away, sir, and don't come here annoying me !
Go ! Go at once ! "

Mr. Potswood absolutely staggered with amaze-
ment. " Why," he gasped, " it's Mason ! He's
mad — clean mad ! Why, Mason, my poor friend,
don't you know me ?"

" Get out, I say I " cried Mason. u Give me no
more of your talk I I won't have you here I " And
now Hewitt caught a glimpse of a girl's face at the
window behind the man — a pale and handsome
face, drawn with anxiety and fear.

Hewitt seized the clergyman quickly by the arm.
"Come," he whispered hurriedly, "come away at
once. There is a reason for this. Get away at
once. If you can answer back angrily, do so, bat
a* any rate, come away.1*

He hurried back to the gate, half dragging the
astounded rector, who was all too honest a soul to
be able to counterfeit an anger he did not feel, even
if his amazement had not made him speechless.
Hewitt closed the gate behind him and said as he
walked, " Where is the rectory ? We will go there.

<k, THE RED TRIANGLE

He may have sent a me s -age while you were
out."

Mechanically the rector took the first turning.
" But he's mad ! " he protested. " Mad, poor
fellow ! Merciful heavens, Mr. Hewitt, his whole
tale must have been a delusion ! A mere madman's
fancy 1 Poor fellow ! We must go back, Mr.
Hewitt — we really must 1 We can't leave that poor
girl there alone with a raving maniac 1 "

"No," Hewitt insisted, "come to the rectory.
That is no madness, Mr. Potswood. Couldn't you
see the colour of the man under the eyes, and the
shaking of his beard ? That was not anger and it
was not madness. It was terror, Mr. Potswood —
sheer, sick terror 1 Terror, or some emotion very
much like it."

* But, if terror, why that outburst ? What does
it mean ? If it were terror, why not rather welcome
our company and help ? "

"Don't you see, Mr. Potswood?" answered
Hewitt. " Don't you guess ? Mason is watched,
and he knows it ! He was acting his anger before
unseen eyes — and he knew they were on him ! "

" God be merciful to us all," ejaculated the clergy-
man. " Poor man — poor sinner I What is this un-
speakable thing which has him in its clutches ? What
had he done to give himself over to such a power ? "

MR. JACOB MASON ti

"We can tell nothing, and guess nothing, as yet,"
Hewitt answered. " Let us see if he has sent you a
message. It seems likely. If he has it may help us.
If not — then I think we must do something decisive
at once. But don't hurry so ! It is hard to restrain
one's self, I know, but there may be eyes on us,
Mr. Potswood, and we must not seem to be persist-
ing in our errand."

So they went through the quiet streets for the
two or three furlongs that seemed so many miles to
the good parson. Arrived at the rectory, Mr.
Potswood pushed impatiently through the gate,
and was hurrying toward the house, when he
perceived a bent little old man standing among
some shrubs with his own gardener, who was
digging.

"There's Mason's gardener!" the rector ex-
claimed, and went to meet him.

The old man touched his hat, looked sharply
towards Hewitt, who was waiting near the rectory
door, and then disappeared round a corner of the
house, the rector following. In a few seconds Mr.
Potswood reappeared, with a slip of paper in his
hand. " Here," he said, " see this ! The old man
was told to give it to nob >dy but me, and in nobody
else's presence. He's been waiting since one
o'clock."

t

82 THE RED TRIANGLE

Scrawled on the paper, in trembling and straggling
letters, were these words : —

u You must not bring Mr. Martin Hewitt to my
house this afternoon. I am watched. It is hope-
less. Do not desert me. Bring him to-night after
dark at eight. I shall want his best skill, and you
shall know all. After dark. Come to the back
gate in the lane, which will be ajar, and through the
conservatory at the side, where my niece will be
waiting at eight, after dark. Burn this and do not
let it out of your sight first. Send a line by this
man to say you will do as I ask, but do not say what
it is, for fear of accidents. Send at once. Do come
at eight, with Mr. Hewitt."

"We must do as he says," remarked Hewitt.
" We know nothing of this matter, and we must be
guided till we do. Just write an unsigned note —
1 All shall be as you request,' or words to that effect,
and be sure the man gives it to him. Let him out
behind through the churchyard, if possible, and tell
him not to go straight from one house to the other.
Is he an intelligent man ? "

" Yes — uncommonly shrewd, I believe. He says
he can't have been followed. He knows several
gardeners hereabout, and he seems to have called

MR. JACOB MASON 83

on each of them on his way — in at the front of the
garden and out at the back each time, after a few
minutes' conversation. Gipps is rather a cunning
old fellow."

- Ah," said Hewitt admiringly, u that's the sort of
messenger I often want. I'll give him half a crown
for himself and the money to pay for a telegram on
his way. He knows nothing essential, of course ? "

M No — only that his master is in some sort of
trouble, and warned him that he might be fol-
lowed."

"That is good. I shall telegraph to Detective-
Inspector Plummer, of Scotland Yard. All right —
I quite understand that all I have heard is con-
fidential. I shall tell Plummer nothing till I may —
indeed, as yet I have very little to tell that would
help him. But I think it will be well to have the
police within call — we may want them at a moment's
notice ; I have no police powers, you see, and
Plummer has the Denson case in hand. I will ask
him to be here, at this house, before a quarter to
eight, if you will allow me."

And so the telegram went to Plummer, and Hewitt,
accepting the rector's invitation to an early dinner
before starting on their visit, resigned himself to
wait. He did not like the waste of time, as he frankly
told Mr. Potswood. He would have preferred to

84 THE RED TRIANGLE

see Mason at once, at any risk, and to take what
means he thought necessary without delay. But as
it seemed that the risk was to be chiefly Mason's,
and as Mason knew all of which both he and the
rector were ignorant, Mason must be allowed to
choose his own time.

The excellent Mr. Potswood endured agonies of
suspense, though he also insisted that Mason's
wishes must be observed exactly. " What is it all —
what can it be ? " he ejaculated again and again.
" What dreadful influence can thus compass a man
about, here in London, in these times ? "

It was autumn, and night fell early. Dinner was
over at last, and they had scarcely left the table
when Plummer arrived, anxious and eager.

"You'll have to trust me a little, Plummer,"
Hewitt said, when he had made him known to the
rector. " 1 can tell you nothing now — know nothing,
in fact, or very little more than nothing. The fact
is, I'm going to see a man who promises information
to me alone, in confidence, as his client, and I don't
know how long I may have to keep you in the dark.
But this is where the trail lies hot, and I know that's
where you want to be. More, if you're wanted
suddenly you'll be at hand. You have a man or
two with you, I suppose, as I suggested ? "

MR. JACOB MASON 85

44 Three of the best of them. They will follow us
up. Is it far ? "

44 No, close enough. It is a house in a walled
garden — not a high wall. We go in at a gate from
the lane behind, and I think you should wait at that
gate, and put your men at hand. We mustn't go in
as a crowd. The rector had better go first, and you
and I will follow on the opposite side of the
road."

So the procession was formed, and it was still
some three minutes short of eight o'clock when
Hewitt and Plummer joined the clergyman at the
door in the garden wall behind Mason's house.
The door was ajar as had been promised in Mason's
note. Leaving Plummer on guard without, Martin
Hewitt and the rector stepped as silently as possible
through the little kitchen garden and across a strip
of lawn toward where a dull light illuminated the
conservatory, at the right-hand end of the house.
The door of the conservatory was ajar also, and this
the rector pushed open.

" Miss Creswick ! " the rector called, in a loud
whisper. " Miss Creswick i * And with that a girl
appeared within.

"Oh, Mr. Potswood," she said, "I'm so glad
you've come I I can't think what's wrong with poor
uncle I I'm afraid he must be going mad 1 He is

86 THE RED TRIANGLE

terrified at something, and he has been getting worse,
till he could hardly speak or walk. Dr. Lawson has
been — about an hour ago, and since then uncle has
been much quieter, in his study."

They were entering the dimly-lighted drawing-
room now. " Dr. Lawson ? " queried the rector.
44 Rather an unusual visitor, isn't he ? How long
has he been gone ? "

Miss Creswick flushed slightly through all her
paleness and grief. " I don't know," she said. " He
let himself out, I fancy. He said he could not stay
long when he came, but I didn't hear him go ; I
have been upstairs, and the servants are in the
kitchen — they say uncle's mad, and I'm really afraid
he is!"

They left the drawing-room, and walked along the
corridor and the hall to the opposite side of the
house, where the study lay. Miss Creswick tapped
gently at the door, but there was no answer. She
tapped again, louder, and then came the faint sound
of a quick step on the carpet, and then a slight
scraping noise, as when a door is closed over a
carpet it will scarcely pass. " That's the window
into the garden," said Miss Creswick. " Why is he
going out ? Uncle ! Uncle Jacob ! •

But now the silence was wholly unbroken. Hewitt
snatched quickly at the door-handle. " Locked 1 "

MR. JACOB MASON 87

he said. u Come — the quickest way into the
garden ! "

They ran out at the front door, and round toward
the study window. It was a French window, exactly
at the opposite end of the house to the conservatory,
and now the gas-light streamed out through one
half of it, which stood curtainless and ajar, while the
curtain was drawn across the other half. Hewitt
was the least familiar with the place, but he was
quickest on his legs, and more seriously alarmed
than the others. He reached the window first — and
instantly turned and thrust the rector back against
Miss Creswick. u Quick I take her away," he said ;
" we are too late 1 " and in the same moment, even
as Hewitt dashed over the threshold, he snatched a
whistle from his pocket, and blew his hardest.

There on the floor lay Mason, his face dreadful
and staring and black ; tight in his neck was the
band of a tourniquet, and fresh and wet on his fore-
head was the Red Triangle.

Hewitt snatched at the screw of the tourniquet
behind the neck, and loosened it as quickly as hands
could turn. But it was too late. Too late, the
examining surgeon afterwards said, by a quarter of
an hour.

Plummer was at the window with his men at his
heels even before the tourniquet was half unscrewed.

88 THE RED TRIANGLE

* Round the wall of the garden," shouted Hewitt,
u and whistle up the police ! He's only this moment
out!"

The house was alive with shouts and screams.
The rector came running back, and Hewitt, busy
with his useless attempt at restoration, called now
for a doctor. People were scampering in the street,
and Hewitt left the victim to the care of the rector,
and himself joined Plummer, all in fewer seconds
than it may be told in.

But Plummer and his men were beaten, for
nothing— not so much as a moving shadow — was
seen in the garden or about the walls. Worse, the
general trampling would obliterate possible tracks.
Plummer set a guard of police about the wall, and
came in for consultation with Hewitt.

The body was carried into another room, and
Hewitt and Plummer began an examination of the
study.

" No signs of a struggle," commented Plummer,
u and there was no noise, they say. That's very odd."

" From what I have seen and heard to-day," said
Hewitt, " it is as I should have expected. I believe
the man was almost killed by terror before he was
strangled — dazed, stricken dumb, paralysed, deafened
by it — everything but blinded, poor wretch. And to
have been blinded would have been a mercy."

MR. JACOB MASON 89

And then, as they made their examination system-
atically, calmly and without flurry, Hewitt told the
whole tale of his day's adventures, together with all
he had heard from the rector. u The man's dead,"
he said, "and his confidence is at an end. Indeed,
I never had it — the case, so far as I am concerned,
is over before I have even touched it. I haven't
had a chance, Plummer ; and the thing is deep and
dark, deep and dark. Oh, if only the man had let
me come to him in the daylight, spite of all I This
might all have been averted. . . . There has been a
close search here, too. See how everything is
turned over. But, stay I "

A low fire smouldered in the grate, and on it lay
ashes of many burnt papers. Hewitt passed the
shovel carefully under these ashes, lifted them out
and placed them gently on the table under the light
of the gas-pendant.

" I must leave you," said Plummer. * There'll be
an inspector here from the station in a moment — he
won't interfere with you, and if anybody can get
information out of this room it's you. The next
thing for me is plain. I must make sure of Dr.
Lawson, if he can be found."

"That is quite right, without a doubt," Hewitt
responded. u I may find anything or nothing in
this room, and, meanwhile, he was the last person

90 THE RED TRIANGLE

known to have been here, and the only visitor, and
he was not heard to go out, unless we heard him go
when we were outside the study door. More, it was
plainly some one familiar with the place who was
able to get away so quickly by the window and the
garden."

41 And his interest in getting rid of Mason, too —
the girl of age in a few months, and all obstacles to
getting hold of her, and her money, removed. And
— and the surgical tourniquet, the Chinese colour
and everything ! "

44 Quite right, you must make sure of him, as you
say. You will get his address from the rector.
Meanwhile I'll try to begin my little contribution to
the case — to begin it as best I can, after all the
chances have made it useless.*

CHAPTER VI.

THE CASE OF MR. JACOB MASON (CONTINUED)

It was after nine when Plummer returned. The
rector had just rejoined Hewitt in the study, having
left poor Miss Creswick, utterly broken down, in
her room, in charge of a scarcely less terrified
servant. Plummer tapped, and pushed the study
door open.

"That's done clean and sure enough," he said,
with professional calmness. "And he's a cool
hand, is that Dr. Lawson. But have you found
anything more ? We shall want all we can get."

"We shall/' Hewitt assented, "and we shall find
more than we've got now, or I'm grievously mis-
taken. But tell me first what you've done."

He removed the blotting pad, on which the paper
ashes still lay, and very carefully shut it away in a
wide drawer where no draught could disturb it ; he
also shut another drawer which stood open.

" We had no difficulty in finding Dr. Lawson,"
Plummer began. "We met him, in fact, leaving
his surgery. I went back with him into the gas-

92 THE RED TRIANGLE

light, and there put it to him plump. Well, he was
staggered, badly. Any man would be, of course.
But he pulled himself together wonderfully soon,
and the first thing he said was that he was just on
his way to Mason's house. I thought at first, of
course, that he meant to deny that he had been there
already, and I gave him the usual warning about
what he said being used in evidence. But he went
on, and I've got it all safely noted. He admired
that he had been here, at about seven o'clock or just
before, and he said he came because Mr. Mason sent
for him. That doesn't seem likely, does it, on the
facts as we know them ? "

"Why, no," said the rector. "The last time he
was here he was ordered out, and I know of no
reason why he should have been asked to come
to-day. We must ask if anybody was sent."

M I have asked," replied Plummer, u just now, and
none of the servants was sent. But Lawson's story
is that he was sent for and came, though he said he
shouldn't say what Mason wanted to see him about
till he knew more of the case. Looks as though he
hadn't quite got his story ready yet, doesn't it ? He
had thought over the point about not being seen to
go away, though ; he said he had let himself out at
about half-past seven, being familiar with the ways
of the house. And he said that Mason was rather

MR. JACOB MASON 93

unwell — nervously upset — when he left him, but
that was all."

H It's terrible," said the rector, " terrible. It seems
impossible to believe it of young Lawson ; and ye*
— and yet ! " And then after a pause — " Good
heavens ! " he burst out again. " Why, I only
realise it now ! There is the other crime, too I
Denson ! Two murders I Two— and most cer-
tainly by the same hand ! Mr. Plummer, I carii
believe it 1 Oh, there's more behind, more behindr
Mr. Hewitt."

" There is more," said Hewitt, H as you will see
when 1 tell you the little 1 have been able to ascer-
tain. There is more behind, though 1 see little of it
yet. First "

There was a sharp knock at the front door,
followed by a ring, muffled in the distant kitchen,
Hewitt started up. " Who is this late visitor at this
unvisited house ? " he said. " If it is the police, well
enough. But if anybody else — anybody — you may
call me Doctor, or anything you please, except
Martin Hewitt. Don't forget that 1 "

There were hurried stops in the hall, a question or
two, and the study door was pushed open. Two
servants — they would not venture from the kitchen
singly this dreadful night — made a confused
announcement of " Mr. Myatt," and were instantly

94 THE RED TRIANGLE

pushed aside by Mr. Myatt himself, anxious and
agitated.

The late Mr. Mason's closest scientific friend
was a palish, black-bearded man, of above middle
height, with stooping shoulders and a very quick
pair of eyes. There was something about his face
that somehow reminded Hewitt of portraits he
had seen of John Knox, and yet it was not such a
face as his ; it seemed oddly unlike in its very
likeness.

" What is this dreadful news, Mr. Potswood ? "
he cried. " I heard people talking in the next
street on my way home. Is it true ? But the
servants have told me so. They say our
poor friend — but there has been an arrest, hasn't
there?"

The rector nodded gravely.

"And who? Tell me about it, Mr. Potswood
—tell me I"

"I think I must see how Miss Creswick is
doing," said Hewitt, speaking across to Plummer
and making for the door.

" Certainly, doctor, certainly ! " answered Plummer
with a nod.

Hewitt closed the door behind him, leaving the
rector in the full tide of his account of the day's
events ; but Hewitt's way took him to the kitchen,

MR. JACOB MASON 95

where the servants were cowering and whispering
together, frightened and bewildered.

u Is there any paint or varnish of any sort in the
place ? " he asked sharply. u Give me anything
there is — black, if possible — and a brush, quickly."

u There's — there's Brunswick black, sir, for the
stove," said the cook.

"That will do; be quick. Oh, there's Gipps,
the gardener I You're just the man I want, Gipps.
Come and find me a board or a plank, quick as you
please 1" And Hewitt pushed the old gardener
before him into the garden by the kitchen door.

A quarter of an hour later, Mr. Everard Myatt,
having heard all that was to be told of his friend's
terrible death and the arrest of Mr. Lawson,
turned to go, meeting Hewitt at the study door
on his way.

"And how is poor Miss Creswick by now,
doctor ? " he asked anxiously.

Hewitt shook his head. " No better than you
could expect," he said, "but, on the whole, no
worse. She mustn't be seen to-night, of course, but,
perhaps, if you could call round in the morning with
the rector "

u Of course — of course ! Poor girl — and Dr

96 THE RED TRIANGLE

Lawson suspected, too — what a terrible blow for
her! Anything I can do, doctor, of course, as I
said to Mr. Pots wood — anything I can do I will do
as gladly as such sad circumstances permit."

The rector had been coming to the door with
Mr. Myatt, but Plummer, catching a sign from
Hewitt, restrained him unseen, and Hewitt and the
visitor walked into the hall together.

"They have put out the light, it seems," Hewitt
said. * I wonder why — unless people from the
crowd have been coming into the garden and
staring in through the glass panels. I wonder if
we can find the door-handle. Yes, here it is. Da; k
outside, too ! Good-night — mind how you go on
the steps I"

Mr. Myatt checked and stumbled in the dark
porch, and reached quickly downward.

"There's a board standing across the porch, " he
said.

" A board ? " replied Hewitt. u So there is. Let
me move it, or it'll upset somebody. Good-night ! "

Mr. Myatt strode off into the dark night, and
Hewitt, noiselessly lifting the board he had himself
placed in position, hastened back to the study.

He swung up the board, all sticky and shiny with
Brunswick black, and laid it across a spread news-
paper, on the table. There on the top, in the midst

MR. JACOB MASON 97

of the black varnish, were the prints of all five
finger-tips of a hand, where Mr. Myatt had felt for
the obstruction in the porch.

Hewitt opened the drawer he had shut a little
while back, and took therefrom a sheet of writing-
paper. And when, with the lens from his pocket,
he began to examine that paper in comparison with
the finger-marks on the board, Plummer and the
rector could see that there were also two distinct
finger-marks on the paper and one faint one — all
red. Plummer came to look.

" What's this ? " he said. " Was this what you
were going to tell us about ? *

Hewitt did not reply for a few moments, but con-
tinued his examination. Then he rose and turned
to Plummer.

"You've still got that piece of paper in your
pocket, I suppose," he said, "with the little red
smudges of colour put there by the police sur-
geon ? "

" Yes — here it is," and the detective took it from
his waistcoat pocket.

" Thanks," said Hewitt. " Now, see here. That
is a little of the red stuff taken from the mark on
Denson's forehead a week ago, and found to consist
of vermilion, oil and wax. You have seen the second
impression of that awful mark on the forehead of

98 THE RED TRIANGLE

your poor friend Mason, Mr. Potswood, to-night,
This room has been searched for papers before we
began, and papers have been burnt. In the search
this drawer was opened — containing, as you see,
nothing but a supply of new headed note-paper.
The note-paper was hastily lifted to see if anything
else lay beneath, and here, on the bottom sheet,
these finger-marks were left in that same adhesive,
freely marking red — a sort of stuff that sticks to and
marks whatever it touches. The hand that lifted
that paper was the hand that impressed that ghastly
mark : and the hand that left its print on this black
varnish was Mr. Everard Myatt's I Now compare
the two ! "

Plummer had snatched the lens, and was narrowly
comparing the marks ere Hewitt had well finished
speaking.

44 They are ! " he cried, as the rector bent excitedly
over him. " They are the same I See — forefinger
and middle finger — the same, every line 1 *

" I needn't tell you," pursued Hewitt, " certainly I
needn't tell Plummer, that that is the most certain
and scientific method of identification known. The
police know that — and use it But now there is
some more. You saw me take that charred paper
from the fire. Sometimes words may be read on
charred paper — it depends on the paper and the ink.

MR. JACOB MASON 99

Most of the cinders were too much broken to yield
any information, though we may try again by day-
light. But one was suggestive. See it ! " Hewitt
very carefully pulled out the flat drawer that held
the cinders.

"You see," he went on, "that one — this — is
different from the rest. It has retained its original
form better, and has been less broken, because of
being of thicker paper. It is a crumpled envelope
Look at the flap — it has never been closed down.
Moreover, on that same flap you may read in em-
bossed letters, still visible, part of the name of this
house. Plain inference — this was an envelope in-
tended for a letter never sent, and so crumpled up
and dropped into the waste-paper basket. But why
should such an apparently unimportant thing as that
be carefully brought from the waste-paper basket
and burnt ? Somebody was anxious that the smallest
scrap of paper evidencing a certain correspondence
should be destroyed. But look closely at the front
of the envelope — the ink shows a rather lighter grey
than the paper. The address is incomplete — at any
rate, no more than some of the first line and a little
of the second is at all visible now ; but it is plain
that the first line begins with an E. The letters
immediately following are not distinct, but next
there is a capital M beginning a name which is

ioo THE RED TRIANGLE

clearly Myatt or Myall. Now, that is why, when
Myatt came here, I took the first steps to hand to
get an impression of his finger-tips, in order to
compare them with the marks on that paper."

" But why," asked the astonished rector, u why
did he come back ? "

" Nothing but a bold measure to see how things
were going — he came as his own spy, that's all. He's
a keen and dangerous man. Don't you remember
telling me how he called on you yesterday, though
you hardly knew him by sight, merely to ask you to
persuade Mason to take a holiday ? It struck me as
a little odd at the time. He was pumping you, Mr.
Potswood — he wanted to find what Mason had been
saying I And he is not alone — plainly he is not
alone, for poor Mason knew they were watching
everywhere. But come — this is no time for specula-
tion. Plummer — you must hold him safely — we'll
pick up evidence enough when you've got him. I
wouldn't leave it, Plummer — I'd take him to-
night ! "

u You're right — right, as usual, Mr. Hewitt,"
Plummer agreed. " More especially as the rector was
— well, a little incautious in talking to him just now."

"I ? What did I say?" Mr. Potswood asked,
astonished. " I had no suspicions — how could I
have ?■

MR. JACOB MASON 101

44 No, Mr. Potswood," the detective replied, " you
had no suspicions, and for ihat: vety;reason, ,in the
excitement of the narrative,, you called^ Mr. o Martin
Hewitt by his right name at least twice V AfteE aftei
I had called him ' doctor/ too 1 " he added regret-
fully.

« Is that so ? " asked Hewitt.

The poor rector was sadly abashed. * But I really
wasn't aware of it, Mr. Hewitt I " he protested. " I
hardly think I could — but, there, perhaps I did 1 Of
course, if Inspector Plummer remembers it "

"He'll be off!" exclaimed Hewitt. "With that
hint, and finding the black stuff on his hands, he'll
smell a rat instantly ! Come, Mr. Potswood — you
can show us the nearest way to his house, at any
rate I Come — we may get him yet I "

But the good rector's slip of the tongue was fatal,
and Myatt was not yet to meet the fate that fitted
him. The house was not far — less than a mile away.
It was a detached house, but quite a small one —
smaller than Mason's. Plummer blocked every exit
with a man, but his caution was wasted. Myatt was
gone.

There was the house and the furniture and two
servants, just as it might have been any day in the

ioi THE RED TRIANGLE

year when Myatt was out for an hour. Bui now he
was out* for good- .The police watched and waited
all nigh tj t and all the next day; they waited and
watched jfor a oweejc^ .and the house was under
observation after that, but Myatt never returned.
He had made his plans, it was plain, for just such
a flight, whenever the necessity might arise ; and
when he was assured that danger threatened, he
simply vanished in the dark of a London night.
Search brought no information — not a scrap of tell-
tale paper lay in Calton Lodge — not a letter, not a
line. Though, indeed, the police were to see more
of Myatt's work yet — and so was Hewitt.

Dr. Lawson's detention did not last the night out.
The unhappy Mason had indeed sent to him, by a
chance messenger, having grown desperate in long
waiting for the return of Gipps from the rectory.
Mason was ready to call in any aid, to recall any of
the friendships he had sacrificed in the past. But
Lawson was long in coming, having received the
note after a long professional round, and when at
last he arrived, Mason was a little reassured by the
promise of Hewitt's visit. Therefore, he did not tell
the doctor so much as he might have done. Never-
theless, he talked wildly and vaguely, so that Dr.
Lawson feared some disturbance of his reason.
The doctor quieted and soothed him, however, and

MR. JACOB MASON 103

when he left he promised to return after his
consultation hour at the surgery was over. He
must have been watched away from the house,
and then the blow fell that sealed for ever the
lips of Jacob Mason.

Poor Miss Creswick was taken from the old
house in which she could no longer remain, and
for a few months she stayed at the rectory, tended
lovingly by the rector's excellent wife — stayed
there, in fact, till her wedding-day, which took place
early the next year ; so that for her and Dr. Lawsoh
the tragedy ended in happiness, after all.

• • • • •

"God forgive me," cried the rector in the grey
of the morning, when it became clear that Myatt
had escaped — " God forgive me 1 Through my
stupidity a horrible creature has been set loose in
the world to work his diabolical will afresh I "

" Never mind," said Hewitt. * It was not stupidity,
Mr. Potswood — nothing but your openness of
character. You were not trained to the cunning
that we must use in my profession. And there
will be more than Myatt to take — he was not
alone ! It is plain that Mason was found to be
wavering in whatever horrible allegiance he had
bound himself, and he was watched. No, Myatt
was not alone 1 "

io4 THE RED TRIANGLE

M No, I fear not/' replied the clergyman. " I fear
not : there is horrible mystery still. The watching
and besetting that terrified him so much ; the fact
that he seems to have yielded up his life without a
struggle — and that with help so near ; and the con-
nection— what could it have been ? — between Mason
and the other victim — Denson. That is a deep
mystery indeed ! And that horrible sign I Mr.
Hewitt, you have done much — but not all 1 "

" No," replied Martin Hewitt, " not nearly all. It
is even doubtful whether or not it will be my lot to
come across the thing again ; but it will be in the
hands of the police. And, after all, we have achieved
something. For we know that if Myatt can be cap-
tured we shall be at the heart of the mystery."

THE CASE OF THE LEVER KEY

CHAPTER VII.

THE CASE OF THE LEVER KEY

In some of the cases which we now know to have
been connected with the Red Triangle, there was
nothing, in the first place, to show any such asso-
ciation. In some of these cases the connection has
become apparent only since the final clearing up of
the whole mystery, and with these cases we have no
present concern ; but in others it revealed itself
during the investigation of the case. It was to this
second category that the next case belonged — the
next at all connectible, that is, after that of the
mysterious death of Mr. Jacob Mason and the flight
of Everard Myatt.

The case was remarkable in other respects also ;
first, because in one of its features it had a resem-
blance to the case of Samuel's diamonds, which first
brought the Red Triangle to Hewitt's notice ; next,
because in its course Hewitt encountered what he
declared to be the most ingenious and baffling
cryptogram that he had ever seen in the length of
his strange experience ; and thirdly, because I was

io8 THE RED TRIANGLE

the means of placing that cryptogram in his hands,
[owing to one of those odd chances that arise again
and again in real life — are, indeed, so common as to
pass almost unregarded — and yet might be thought
improbable if offered in the guise of a mere story.
Hewitt has often alluded to the curious persistence
of such chances in his experience! I think I have
elsewhere mentioned a certain police officer's pro-
longed search after a criminal for whose arrest he
held a warrant, ending in the discovery — because of
a misdirected call — that the man had been living all
the time next door to himself ; and I have also told
of the other detective inspector, who, being sent in
search of a criminal of whom he had but the
meagrest and most unsatisfactory particulars, and
whom he scarcely hoped ever to run down, actually
fell over the man as he was leaving the office where
he had received his information, in the doorway of
which the fellow had stooped to tie his shoe-lace I
But, as Hewitt would say, nothing but the excep-
tional nature of the surrounding circumstances
makes these things seem extraordinary. What
more ordinary experience, for example, than to
meet a friend in some London street — perhaps one
friend of the only dozen or so you have among the
four millions of people about vou ? The odds
against you two, of all the millions, choosing the

THE LEVER KEY 109

one street of the thousands in London to walk down
at the same minute of time, would seem incal-
culable ; and yet the chance comes off so often as
to be a matter of the most ordinary experience.

On this occasion I was expecting orders from
my editor to produce certain articles on the subject
of the London hospitals. It will be remembered
that the matter was very much in the air a few years
ago, and as nothing is professionally more uncom-
fortable than to be called on suddenly for an
accurate and reasonable leading article on a subject
one knows nothing about, I wrote to my friend,
Barton McCarthy, who is house-surgeon at St.
Augustine's, and he replied by an offer to tell me
anything I cared to ask if I would call at the
hospital.

I set out accordingly some little time after a
breakfast even later than ordinary, and called in at
Hewitt's office on my way downstairs, to say that I
should not be lunching at our usual place that
day.

u No," Hewitt answered, u nor shall I, I expect.
I'm off to the City, at once. I have an urgent
message to go immediately to Kingsley, Bell and
Dalton's, in Broad Street, where a big bond
robbery has just been discovered. Perhaps 1 can
give you a lift in my cab ? "

no THE RED TRIANGLE

Wc hurried off together accordingly. Hewitt
knew nothing of the case he had to examine, and so
could tell me nothing, beyond the short urgent
request that he would come at once, and that the
matter involved the loss of bonds to a very large
amount ; and he dropped me at a convenient spot,
whence my walk to the hospital was but a short
one.

I saw my friend McCarthy, and bothered him
very successfully for nearly an hour, getting all the
information I had expected, and more, during a
very interesting walk through the great hospital.

"You get some idea in a place like this," said
McCarthy, as we came at last into the receiving
room for accident cases, "you get some idea, Brett,
of the size of this great London machine working
about us. You might walk about the streets for a
week and never see a serious accident, or even an
accident at all, and yet, you see, here they come all
day long — a stream of people damaged or killed in
the machine."

A decent workman was having a gashed hand
dressed and strapped, and a navvy with bandages
about his head was being led away by a friend.
Nurses and dressers were waiting ready to take their
orderly turns at the incoming casualties, and as we
looked a more serious case was brought in on an

THE LEVER KEY m

ambulance by two policemen. The patient was a
ragged, disreputable-looking fellow of middle age,
in grimy and tattered clothes, whose head had been
roughly bandaged by the policemen who brought
him. He had been knocked down and kicked on
the head by a butcher's cart-horse, it seemed, in
Moorgate Street, and he was quite insensible. A
very short examination showed that the case was
nothing trivial, and McCarthy sent me to sit in his
private room to wait lunch, while he gave the matter
his personal attention.

When he returned he brought a small crumpled
envelope in his hand. " That case is put to bed,"
he said, * still insensible."

" Is it very bad ? " I asked.

" Slight fracture of the occipital, and, of course,
concussion of the brain — probably contusion, too,
I expect we shall find presently. Not so over
serious for a healthy man, but I'm afraid he's an old
soaker — the sort that crumple up at a touch.
Nobody knows him, and there's nothing to identify
him in the pockets — a few coppers, an old knife,
and so on. So we can't send to tell his friends —
unless we bring in your friend Martin Hewitt to
trace 'em out, which would come too expensive.
Besides," McCarthy added, dropping into a seat
before his desk, "if he's got any friends they'll

in THE RED TRIANGLE

come, sooner or later, when they miss him. This is
the only thing he'd got beside what's in the pockets
— he'd been sent on a message, probably."

My friend held up the crumpled envelope and
took from it a small key. u He'd got this envelope
gripped tightly in his hand," he said, "but there
was no address on it, so we tore it open in the hope
of finding one inside. But there was nothing there
but the key. If you were a very promising pupil of
your friend Hewitt, I should expect you to take a
glance at it and tell us the man's address at once,
together with his age, birthplace, when vaccinated,
and the residence of his maternal grandmother.
But you're not, so I'll let you off."

McCarthy turned the key idly about in his hand
and tried it on a lock in his desk. " Stopped up,"
he remarked, withdrawing it, and peeping into the
barrel ; " not dirt, either — stopped up with paper 1
What's that for?"

He took a pin to clear the barrel, and the paper
came away quite readily. It was a tight little roll,
which the surgeon pulled out into a small strip
rather less than three inches long and about half-
an-inch broad.

* Hullo ! " he exclaimed. " Look here ! Here's
a job for Martin Hewitt, after all ! Figures I
What does that mean ? And what an amazing

THE LEVER KEY 113

place to put them in 1 A key barrel I By Jove,
Brett, this looks like one of your favourite adven-
tures. Somebody sends a key in an envelope, and
a row of incomprehensible figures rolled up inside
the key. Look at it I "

I took the key and the paper. The key was of a
good sort ; small, inscribed " Tripp's Patent " on the
bow, and it evidently belonged to a superior lever
lock. The paper which had come from the barrel
was very thin and tough — a kind I have seen used
in typewriters. It had been very carefully and closely
rolled, and then pushed into the key so that its natural
tendency to open out held it tightly within. Written
upon it with a fine pen appeared a series of very
minute figures, thus : —

" Well," inquired McCarthy, " what do you make
of it ? "

" Not much as yet," I admitted. " But it's pretty

n4 THE RED TRIANGLE

certain it must be a cryptogram or code-writing oi
some sort ; and if that's the case, I think I might
back myself to read it — with a little time." For I
well remembered the case of the "Flitterbat Lancers,"
and the lesson in cypher-reading which Hewitt then
gave me.

" Come/' my friend replied, much interested,
" let's see how you do it. Meantime we'll get on
with our lunch."

I took a pencil and a spare sheet of paper, and I
studied those figures all through lunch and for some
little time after. It soon became plain that the
problem was much more difficult than it looked,
and I said so. " At the first glance," I said, " it
looked a fairly easy cypher ; but as a matter of fact,
I don't think it's easy at all. One assumes, of course,
that the figures stand for letters, and on that assump-
tion two or three peculiarities are noticeable. First,
the highest number written here is 23, so that all the
letters indicated, in whatever order they may come,
are within the compass of the twenty-six letters oi
the alphabet. Next, the numbers most frequently
repeated, if we except the noughts, are 5 and 20,
which occur seven times each. Now , the vowel
most frequently occurring in average English
writing is et and you will at once perceive that e is
number five in the alphabet, counting from the

THE LEVER KEY 115

beginning. More, if we go on counting so, we shall
find that 20 is /, which is one of the most frequently
occurring consonants. This would seem to hint
that the cypher is of the very simplest description,
consisting of the mere substitution of figures for
letters in the exact order of the alphabet. But what,
then, of the noughts ? What can they mean ?
More especially when we consider that in three
places there are actually four noughts in succession ;
for, of course, no letter is repeated four times
successively in any English word, nor in any foreign
word that I can imagine. But let us put down the
letters in substitution for the figures, on the supposi-
tion that the figures stand for letters in their alpha-
betical order, leaving the noughts as they are. Then
we get this."

I rapidly pencilled the letters on the spare paper,
thus : — i, hf n, d, t} r, t} i ; 0, s, t, o, c, *', hf t ; cf wt o,
o, e, m, «, s ; s, t, o, o, o, o,/, a ; et tt o, o, o, o, c, v;
a, of o, o, o, o, r, e ; a, h, t, kt r, i, et t ; I, e, w, n, n,

a* *, t-

" See there," I said. u Now, I can make nothing of
thai. When I come to examine the comparative
frequency of the different letters, I find them much
as they might be expected to be in a sentence of
normal English, and any change would destroy the
proportion. E and t are the most frequent, and then

n6 THE RED TRIANGLE

come a, n, i, r, s, and c. But as they stand they all
mean nothing. It is possible that this may be one
of the difficult variable letter cyphers, which Hewitt
might read, but I can't But even then, if the values
of the letters change as they would do, they would
get out of their normal proportions of frequency ;
so that a variable letter cypher seems unlikely. And
there is another oddity. Look, and you will see that,
counting the noughts in, the letters go in groups of
eight, with a semi-colon at the end of each group.
Now, it is impossible that the message can be a
sentence in which every word has exactly eight
letters — or, at least, I should think so. It can
scarcely be that the semi-colon itself means a letter
— it would be singular for one letter to occur with
such curious regularity as that. There is no other
visible division between the words, nor any single
one of the usual aids by which the reader of secret
cypher is able to take a hold of his work. No, I'm
afraid I must give it up ; for the present, at any rate.
But I really think it is a thing that would vastly
interest Hewitt, if I might show it to him. I suppose
I mustn't?"

"Well," McCarthy answered, "perhaps it isn't
strictly according to rule, but I think I might
venture to lend it to you till to-morrow, if that will
do. Indeed, I think, on second thoughts, that 1

THE LEVER KEY 117

may consider myself quite justified, since it may
lead to the man's identification, and it will be a
sufficient answer to any inquiry to say that I have
shown it to Mr. Martin Hewitt for that purpose.
But you'll be careful of it, won't you ? Do you want
the key, too?"

" I think, if I may, I will take the key and the
envelope all together. You can never tell what may
or what may not help him, and the three things may
hang together, and perhaps explain each other in
some mysterious way."

1 Very good — here's the whole bag of tricks. It's
a queer business altogether, and I must say 1 feel
inquisitive ; certainly, if Hewitt can get anything out
of those figures I shall be mighty curious to know
how he does it You'll come in again to-morrow,
then?"

I promised I would, and walked off with the
crumpled envelope, the little key, and the puzzling
strip of figures. Since the lesson from Hewitt
which I have alluded to, I had often amused myself
with cryptogram reading, and I had never found a
cypher message in a newspaper u agony-column "
the meaning of which I could not get at with a little
trouble. But this was something altogether beyond
me ; and if I have any reader who prides himself
on his ability to read secret cypher, I recommend

n8 THE RED TRIANGLE

him to try his skill on this one before he reads
further.

The circumstances, too, seemed as puzzling as
the writing itself. Why, if any person wished to
send a note and a key in a closed envelope, should
he take the trouble to pack the note inside the key ?
Why, especially when the note was already written
in so baffling a cypher ? Whither had this ragged
messenger been going with the mysterious package,
and who had sent him, and why ?

Guessing and musing, I reached home, and found
that Hewitt had returned before me. I made my
way into his office, and came on him sitting at his
desk with a large lens, attentively examining a
broken brass padlock.

" Am I bothering you ? " I asked * Are you on
the bond robbery, now ? "

Martin Hewitt nodded, with a jerk of the hand

oward the padlock. " It's a tough job/' he said,

" and I shall shut myself up presently and think hard

over it ; just now I can't see my way into it at all.

But what have you got there ? "

u Never mind," I said, " you're too busy now.
I came across something very odd at the hospital,
which I thought would interest you — that's all."

" Very well, let me see it. I haven't begun my
bout of cogitation yet Show me,"

THE LEVER KEY 119

I put the envelope, the key and the paper on the
table before him. Hewitt, with a glance of surprise,
picked up the key and examined it. "That's
curious/' he said, and straightway began fitting the
key to the broken padlock on the desk.

"Why, man alive I" he cried, with a sudden burst
of excitement, "where did you get this? This —
this is the article — the key — the very tiling 1 want 1 "
He sprang to his teet and stared in my face in sheer
amazement. " Heavens, Brett, the thing's almost
supernatural ! I've a broken lever padlock here,
and of all things in the world I wanted to find the
one key thai fitted it ; and you calmly walk in and
clap down the very thing under my nose I Where
did you get it ? "

J told him the tale of the man who had been
knocked down in Moorgate Street, and 1 explained
exactly how the paper, the key and the envelope
were found in relation to each other, and why 1 had
brought them.

" And when was the man knocked over ? " Hewitt
asked.

"Some time between one and two o'clock, I
should say," I replied. " They brought him in well
before two, at any rate."

Hewitt stared into vacancy for a moment, think-
ing hard. Then he said, " Brett, I believe you've

120 THE RED TRIANGLE

saved my reputation — not that it could have suffered
much, perhaps, in such a desperate case. But as a
fact I had already advised the calling in of the
police, and should, perhaps, even have given up the
part of the case still left me. But this ought to put
me on the proper track. You see, every one of
these patent lever locks differs in some slight degree
from all the rest, and only its own key will fit it ;
and here, by this amazing piece of good luck, is
the one key for this very lock, and the man who
had it is detained in hospital. Come, I'm off to
see him. Insensible, you say, when you left ? "

" Yes," I answered, " and likely to be so for some
time, McCarthy thinks ; so you probably won't get
much information out of him just yet But the
cypher "

u I'll examine the cypher as I go along, I think.
But I should like to take a look at the man, at any
rate, even if he can't tell me anything. Will you
give me a note to your friend McCarthy ? "

"Of course," I answered, readily, and sat down
to scribble the few lines necessary to introduce
Hewitt

When I had finished, Hewitt, who had been ex-
amining the cryptogram meanwhile, remarked :
"This cypher is something out of the common,
Brett I certainly don't expect to be able to read it

THE LEVER KEY 121

in the cab-journey — perhaps not in a week of study.
The man who devised this is a man of abilities
altogether beyond the average."

" I have had my best try at it," I said, " but it
beats me wholly. I brought it purely as a matter of
curiosity, to show you ; it was the merest chance
that I brought the key as well."

" And if you hadn't I should probably have put
the cypher aside until the case was over, and so have
missed the whole thing. Another lesson never to
despise what seem like trifles. If you have studied
the cypher you have no doubt observed — but there,
we'll talk that over afterwards, and the whole case if
you like. I'll go now, and I'll tell you all about the
business when time permits,"

CHAPTER VIII.

THE CASE OF THE LEVER KEY (CONTINUED)

Here is the case of the bond robbery as it had been
presented to Martin Hewitt that morning, while I
was at St. Augustine's Hospital, and as I learned it
from him later. I had been a little puzzled to hear
Hewitt say that the case had seemed so desperately
hopeless that he advised the calling in of the police,
because my experience had rather been that it was
Hewitt who was commonly called in — often too late
— when the police were beaten, and I had never
before heard of a case in which this order of things
was reversed. It turned out, however, as will be
seen, that in the state of the matter as it first pre-
sented itself the only measures that seemed possible
were such as it was in the power of the police alone
to adopt.

Messrs. Kingsley, Bell, and Dalton were an old-
established firm of brokers whose operations were
not enormous nor much in the eye of the public,
but who carried on a steady and reputable business
in a set of offices high up in a great building in

THE LEVER KEY 123

Broad Street — a building so large that the notice
" Offices to let " was a permanent fixture in the front
porch. The firm's clients were chiefly steady-going
investors of the old-fashioned sort, who wished to
avoid all speculative fireworks, and to deal through
a firm whose habits were conformable to their own.
The last Kingsley had left the firm and soon after-
ward died, some few years back, and now the head
of the firm was Mr. Robert Stanstead Bell, a gentle-
man of some sixty years of age. There were a
couple of sleeping partners — relations — but the one
other active partner was Mr. Clarence Dalton, a
young man but recently advanced to partnership,
and, it was said, likely to become Mr. Bell's son-in-
law whenever the old gentleman'! daughter Lilian
should be married.

The steady, even round of business to which
Kingsley, Bell, and Dalton, and their clerks were
accustomed was suddenly interrupted by an appalling
loss. It was discovered that bonds were missing
from the safe, bonds to the amount of some ^25,000 ;
and whence, how, or when they were taken was an
utter mystery. It was this loss which had occasioned
the urgent message to Hewitt.

When Hewitt reached the spot he was shown at
once into an inner office, where Mr. Bell sat waiting.
The old gentleman was in a sad state of agitation,

124 THE RED TRIANGLE

and it was with some difficulty that Hewitt got
from him a reasonably connected account of the
trouble.

" The loss comes at such a time, Mr. Hewitt," the
•senior partner explained, " that I don't know but it
may ruin us utterly, unless my. clients' property can
be recovered. We have had to pay out heavy sums
of late to the representatives of dead or retiring
partners, and other circumstances combine with
these to make the matter in this way even more
terribly serious than the very large amount of the
loss would seem to suggest. So I beg you will do
what you can."

"That of course," responded Hewitt. "But
please tell me, as clearly as you can, the precise cir-
cumstances of the case. Where were the bonds
taken from ? "

"This safe," Mr. Bell answered, turning toward a
very large and heavy one, which might almost have
been called a small strong room. " They were kept,
together with others, in this box, one of several, as
you see. The box was fastened, like the rest, with a
Tripp's patent lever padlock, the only key of which
I kept, together with the key of the safe."

The box indicated was one of ordinary thin sheet
iron, japanned black — something like what is called
a deed box.

THE LEVER KEY 125

"The padlock has been broken open, I see/'
Hewitt observed.

* Yes, but I did that myself this morning. It had
been blocked up in some way, so that the key
wouldn't turn— doubtless in order to cause delay
when next the box should come to be opened. As
it was I might have desisted and put off opening it
till later, but I had a reason for wishing to refer at
once to a list which was in the box, and so I
decided to break the padlock. It was more
difficult than one might expect, with such a small
padlock."

" And then you discovered your loss f •

* Then I discovered the loss, Mr. Hewitt, though
it was a mere chance even then. For seel All
the bonds have not been taken, and those left are
placed on the top, while the space below is filled
with dummies. I hardly know why I turned them
over — for the list was at the top— but I did, and

then " Mr. Bell finished with a despairing

gesture.

" And this was some time this morning t n

44 At about half-past eleven."

"And when did you last open the box before
that?"

"Ten days ago at least, I should think — and
even then the bonds may have been gone, lot i

126 THE RED TRIANGLE

only opened it to refer to the same list, and 1
examined nothing else."

"You say that some bonds are left and others
are gone. I presume those taken are such as
would be easy to negotiate, and those left are
such as would be difficult. Is that the fact ?"
" Precisely."

u Then the thief evidently knows the ropes, and
altogether the matter would seem awkward. For
anything short of ten days, you see, and quite
possibly for even a longer time than that, these
bonds have been in the undisturbed possession of
some person who could easily dispose of them,
and would certainly do so without a moment's
delay/'

Mr. Bell nodded sadly. * Quite true," he said.

" But now tell me a little more. You say you
yourself keep the only key of the padlock, as well as
the key of the safe. So that you open the safe
every morning yourself and close it at night ?"

44 Just so."

** And do you never entrust the keys to anybody
else ? "

" The key of the safe is on a separate bunch from
the key of the box. This second bunch, with the
key of the box, is always in my pocket, and not
a soul else ever touches it. The other bunch, with

THE LEVER KEY 127

the outer key of the safe, I sometimes hand to my
partner, or to the head clerk, Mr. Foster, if some-
thing is wanted from the safe when I am busy.
Though, as a rule, the safe door is open so long
as I am about the place. Nothing but the books
can be taken out without the use of other keys (or
the drawers and boxes, which I keep on the
private bunch."

11 And would it be possible for anybody — anybody
at all, mind — to get at that private bunch of keys
in such a way, for instance, as to be able to take
a wax impression of the key of that bond-box ? "

m No, certainly not," Mr. Bell answered with
decision. "Certainly not. At any rate, not in
this office," he added.

"Ah, not in this office. Anywhere else ?"

"No, nor anywhere else, I should think," the
other replied, though this time a little more thought-
fully. " There's only my own family at home and
the servants and "

" Anybody who has access to this room of the
office ? " Hewitt asked keenly.

Mr. Bell seemed a little startled.

" Why, no," he said, " nobody at home comes to
the office — not even a visitor, except, of course,
my junior partner, who visits the room pretty fre-
quently."

128 THE RED TRIANGLE

" Very well. You don't remember ever mislaying
the keys temporarily, I suppose, either here or at
home ? "

" No-o,w Mr. Bell replied slowly. u I can't say
that I do remember anything of the sort. No —
and I believe I should be sure to remember if I
had."

"Ah ! And when you realised your loss what
did you do ? Told your partner first, I suppose ? "

u No — he doesn't know of the discovery. He
went out just before I made it, and I don't expect
him in again to day." But as Mr. Bell spoke there
grew plain in his face the pallor of a new fear.

Martin Hewitt observed it, but kept his thoughts
to himself. "Well," he said, "you didn't tell your
partner. Nor the police ? "

" No, Mr. Hewitt. You see, of course, the first
thing the police attempt is to catch and punish the
thief, and they make the recovery of the property a
subsidiary object But for me, Mr. Hewitt, the
recovery of the property, as I have explained, is the
one great consideration. Punish the thief by ail
means, but first save me from ruin, Mr. Hewitt I
That is why I sent for you ; for that, and because I
thought it might be advisable to keep the matter
quiet, till you had taken some steps."

H There is something in that consideration,

THE LEVER KEY 129

certainly. So you have told nobody of the loss,
except me ? "

" Nobody but Foster, my head clerk — an old and
faithful servant. It was he, in fact, who suggested
sending for you. As he put it very forcibly, youN
can act for me and my interests, while the police act rfc
for themselves, and — very properly, of course, as J
police — in the interest of the community."

" Very well. I see you have several clerks in the
outer office. Do they ever come into this room ? "

il Never, unless they are sent for."

"If you and your partner were out, and one of the
clerks came in without being sent for, the rest would
know it, of course ? "

" Certainly."

" I observe three private rooms opening out of
this. What are they ?"

u This is a sort of extra inner room where 1 have
private interviews with clients — I was in there with a
client for half an hour this morning before I dis-
covered the loss. The next is a mere little box of
a room where the correspondence clerk sits and
works. The other is a larger place — it is shared
between my partner, Mr. Clarence Dalton, and the
head clerk, Mr. Foster."

" Now let me have your broken padlock— and the
key. I see you have forced up the front plate with

1

i3o THE RED TRIANGLE

a screw-driver. I will borrow that screw-driver, if
you please, and force it off completely."

Hewitt's client produced a screw-driver from a
drawer, and in a very few moments the interior of
the little padlock lay uncovered. Hewitt examined
the lock attentively for some few minutes, trying
the key several times against the levers. Then he
stood up and said —

" Mr. Bell, you have made a mistake. This is not
your lock at all ! "

" Not my lock 1" exclaimed the broker. " What
do you mean ? I tell you it is the lock of that box,
and I broke it open myself 1 "

" Yes," answered Hewitt calmly, " it was on that
box, and you broke it open yourself ; but all the
same it is not your lock. Let me explain. These
are very good little padlocks, with an excellent lever
action, * dogged against detent/ as the technical
phrase goes ; so that only the key properly made
for each lock will open it. They are so good,
mdeed, as locks, that it would be a waste of time to
try picking them, when, because of their small size,
it is so very easy to break them apart, just as you
have done yourself, and just as I could probably
have done in half the time, having had rather more
experience. Now that is what has been done with
your lock by the person who has your bunds. But

THE LEVER KEY 131

of course a broken lock has one disadvantage as
compared with a skilfully picked lock — it shows at
the first glance what has happened. In this case,
Mr. Bell, your lock has been broken and taken away,
and the thief, having first provided himself with
another padlock of precisely the same make and
size, has substituted that, locked it with its proper
key and so left it I "

" What ! Then that was why *

u That, of course, was why you supposed it to be
out of order when you attempted to open it with
your key. As a matter of fact, it is even now in
perfectly good order, except for the damage we have
jointly committed with the screw-driver. And now,
observe I That lock was shut by another key ; if
the man that did that is as sharp as I suppose he is,
he will have got rid of that key at once. But
perhaps he hasn't ; and if not, then the man who
has that key is the thief. At any rate, the key is
the clue we must hunt for. Let us have your clerks
in one by one, and look at their keys. Some are
out at lunch by this time, probably ? "

"No — I said they might be wanted, so kept them.
I thought you might prefer to see them before they
went out."

"Very well thought of, but perhaps scarcely
judicious, on the whole. Because if there is a

13a THE RED TRIANGLE

guilty person among them it may give him a hint ;
and the odds are rather against its being very useful,
considering the possibility — even probability — that
the bonds and the collateral evidence left here days
ago. But we'll look at their keys, by all means, and
then they may go to lunch as soon as you please.
Let me do the talking, or perhaps you'll start a
•care. Send for the nearest clerks first, then the
others. As each comes in, mention his name, so
that I can hear it. Say, i Oh, Mr. Brown '—or Jones,
or what not — ' have you some keys about you ? '
Don't mention my name, and I will do the rest.
Push to the door of the safe, and lock this drawer in
the table."

Mr. Bell did as Hewitt directed, and then called
the head clerk, Mr. Foster, from his room, with the
prescribed inquiry about keys.

"Yes, Mr. Foster," Hewitt added pleasantly, « I'm
not sure that the lock is quite in order, but I pro-
mised to open it for Mr. Bell, so we'll try."

Mr. Foster, a slim, active old gentleman, grown
grey in the firm's service, pulled a bunch of keys
from his pocket, and Hewitt scrutinised each
narrowly. "No," he said, "I'm afraid none of
these will do. Stay," he added suddenly, and turn-
ing his back, carried the bunch to the window.
" No," he concluded, as he came back to the table

THE LEVER KEY 133

and tried one of the keys fruitlessly. u No, I'm afraid
none of those will do. Thank you, Mr. Foster.
You don't happen to have any more, do you ? *

No, Mr. Foster hadn't any more, and he retired to
his room. Then Mr. Bell called the correspondence
clerk, Mr. Henning. Mr. Henning was a much
younger man than the head clerk — twenty-six or so
— pale and blue-eyed, with weak whiskers and a
straggling moustache. His keys were just as readily
produced as Mr. Foster's, but again Hewitt's
examination was unsuccessful. The only other key
he had belonged to the typewriter, and that did not
fit

Then came Mr. Potter, the book-keeper, round,
and tubby, and puffy, and his keys went under
inspection in the same way, taking a little longer
this time, with two separate dashes to the light of
the window. Then there was Mr. Robson, young
and spruce, Mr. Clancy, older and less tidy, and
four or five more. All the keys were examined, all
with the same lack of success, and all the clerks were
sent away to take their turns at lunch.

" No," Hewitt reported, as soon as he and Mr.
Bell were alone again, "it was certainly none of
those keys. Though indeed, my little attempt was
desperate at best A man would be a fool to keep
that key longer than he needed it, and especially to

i34 THE RED TRIANGLE

string it with his others. Still, of course, it is by
just such blunders as that that nine criminals out of
ten are discovered. And now let me take a good
look at that box and its contents."

He lifted the box from the safe to the table, and
narrowly scrutinised its exterior, especially about
the hasp, where the padlock had been. " Either the
thief was an experienced hand/' he said, "or he
took some steady practice with a few such pad-
locks as this before setting to work. There art
no signs of banging about or slipping of tools any-
where."

u But, of course, banging or anything violent
would have been noticed in a place like this," Mr.
Bell remarked.

* In office hours, yes," responded Hewitt. * But
we mustn't forget that office hours are only seven or
eight out of the twenty-four."

" But you don't suspect burglary, do you ? "

44 I'm afraid, as yet, I've precious little ground for
suspecting anything definite," Hewitt answered ;
" but we must keep awake to every possibility. Now
let us see the dummies." He turned them over, and
loosened them wherever they were tied. " Yes/' he
remarked, "quite neatly done. Filled in with
ordinary blank foolscap, such as, no doubt, you
have in your office — but, then, it is in every other

THE LEVER KEY 135

office, too ; every stationer has it by the ream. No
marks anywhere — no old newspapers, nothing that
could give the shadow of a clue." He dropped the
last of the papers, and turned to his client. " Mr.
Bell," he said, * this tiling has been thought out to
the last inch. There is something like genius in
this robbery — if genius is the capacity for taking
pains. My advice to you is to call in the Scotland
Yard people at once."

"Do you mean you can do nothing?" asked
Mr. Bell despairingly. "Don't tell me that, Mr.
Hewitt I"

" No, I don't mean that," Hewitt answered. u 1
mean that until I have had time to think the thing
over very thoroughly I can't tell what I can or
ought to do. Meantime, I think the police should
know ; not because I think they can see farther into
the thing than I can — for, indeed, 1 don't think they
can ; but simply because the thief is getting a longer
start every moment, and the police are armed with
powers that are not at my disposal. They can get
search warrants, stop people at ports and railway
stations, arrest suspects— do a score of things that
will be necessary. Send to Scotland Yard and get
Detective Inspector Plummer, if he's available — he's
as good a man as they have. Tell him that you've
engaged me, or, better still, write a note to the

136 THE RED TRIANGLE

Scotland Yard authorities, and let me have it, to
send or not as I think best, after I have turned the
thing over in my mind. I shall take one good look
round this office, and then run back to my rooms
for an hour or two's hard consideration of whatever
I may see. One or two small things I have seen
already— though I'd rather not mention them till
I've made up my mind how they bear. Matters
seem likely to have gone so far that perhaps the
regular police course of catching the thief first will
be the best plan, if it can be done. Meantime, it
will be my business to keep my eye first on the
recovery of the bonds. But I think we must have
the police, Mr. Bell. Now, I'll take my general look
round."

CHAPTER IX.

THE CASE OF THE LEVER KEY (CONTINUED)

After Martin Hewitt had rushed off to St. Augus-
tine's Hospital with the key, the envelope, and the
cypher I had brought him, I heard nothing of him
till dusk fell — about six. Then I received this
telegram : —

44 Cypher read. Most interesting case. If you
can spare an hour be outside 120 Broad Street
at six thirty.— Hewitt."

n

I had to be at my office between eight and nine,
and to keep Hewitt's appointment I should probably
have to sacrifice my dinner. But I was particu-
larly curious to know the meaning of that cypher,
and just as curious to know how it could be read ;
and, moreover, I knew that any case that Hewitt
called interesting would probably be interesting
above the common. So I took my hat and sought
a cab.

I was first at the meeting-place — indeed, a little

I3& THE RED TRIANGLE

before my time. No. 120 Broad Street was a great
new building of offices, most, if not all, closed at
this time — a fact indicated by the shutting of one
of the halves of the big front door, where a char-
woman was sweeping the steps under the board
which announced that offices were to be let. I
waited nearly a quarter of an hour, and then at
last a hansom stopped and deposited Hewitt and
another older gentleman before me.

" Hope we haven't kept you waiting, Brett,"
Hewitt said. "This is Mr. Bell, of Kingsley, Bell
and Dalton ; it took me a little longer than 1
expected to reach him. His offices are shut, and
the clerks all gone, but we are going to turn up the
lights for a bit. The lift man is gone too, I expect,
so we shall have a good long stair-climb."

As to the lift man Hewitt was right, and during
our long climb I received, briefly, an account of
the loss Mr. Bell's firm had suffered. " I have told
Mr. Bell," Hewitt said, " that it was you who hap
pened across the key in such an odd fashion, and
when I wired I was sure he would be glad to let you
see the upshot of your strange bit of luck. I was
also pretty sure that you would like to see it, too.
For I really believe that this case — which I confess
seemed pretty near hopeless a few hours ago — is
coming to an issue now, and here,"

THE LEVER KEY 139

* Did you get any information out of the man in
the hospital ? " I asked.

" Not a scrap," Hewitt replied. M He was still
insensible, and though I saw his clothes, and they
told me a good deal about the gentleman's per-
sonal habits — which are not dazzlingly noble, to put
it mildly — they told me nothing else whatever,
except that he had recently been knocked down in
the mud, which I knew already. But the cypher
has told me something, as I will explain presently."

By this time we had reached the high floor in
which the offices stood, and Mr. Bell, all wonder
and pale agitation, unlocked the outer door, and
turned on the electric light

"Now," cried Hewitt, "show me your ven-
tilators!"

There were some, it seemed, in the top panes of
the windows, but these were not what Hewitt
wanted. There were others in the form of upright
chambers or flues, made of metal, and painted the
same colour as the walls about them. They rose
from the floor in corners and wall angles, and could
be shut or opened by means of lids over their upper
ends. These were more to Hewitt's mind, and he
went about from one to another, groping under the
lids, and poking down into the flues with a walking-
stick. There was a wire-grating, or diaphragm, it

i4o THE RED TRIANGLE

seemed, in each of them, two or three feet down,
and we could hear the end of the stick raking on
this at each investigation. One after another of
these ventilators Hewitt examined, till he had
examined them all, in outer and inner rooms, with-
out result ; and I could see that he was disap-
pointed.

"There must be another somewhere," he said,
And hunted afresh.

But plainly he had tried them all, and now he
could do no more than try them all again, with as
little result

"It is a ventilator," he said, positively. "Un-
less " he broke off thoughtfully and stood silent

for a few moments. u Ah 1 of course 1 " he resumed
presently. "We'll send for the housekeeper and
a candle. Which is the nearest empty office — the
nearest office to let? Is there one on this
floor?"

" I think not," Mr. Bell answered. " But there's
one on the floor below, just opposite the lift — I see
the bill on the door every day as I come up."

"We'll try that, then. I'll rake out every venti-
lator in this palatial edifice before I'll call myself
beaten. Come, call the housekeeper. Is there a
•peaking tube ? Tell him to bring a light."

The housekeeper came, wonderingly, with a watch-

THE LEVER KEY 141

man's oil-lantern, and we all went to the floor below.
Opposite the lift was a glass door from which a bill
had recently been torn.

• Why, it's let ! " said Mr. Bell.

m Yes, sir," assented the housekeeper. "Let a day
or two ago to a Mr. Catherton Hunt. Or, at least, a
deposit was paid."

" But see — the door's not locked," Hewitt ob-
served, pushing it open. u I think we'll trespass on
Mr. Catherton Hunt's new offices, since they seem
quite empty, and he hasn't taken possession. Come
— ventilators 1 "

It was a small office— an outer room of moderate
size, and one smaller inner room. Hewitt at once
attacked the ventilators in the larger apartment —
there were two of them — but retired disappointed
from each. There was one ventilator only in the
small room. Hewitt tilted the lid, which was at
about the level of his eyes, thrust in his hand, and
drew forth a bundle of folded papers ; thrust in his
hand again and drew forth another bundle ; did it
again, and drew forth more 1

Mr. Bell fell upon the first bundle almost as a dog
falls upon a bone ; and now he snatched eagerly at
each successive paper or bundle, till Hewitt raked
the grating with his stick, and declared that there
were no more * Is that all ?" he asked.

i4a THE RED TRIANGLE

Mr. Bell went tremblingly from paper to paper,
and, at last, said that he believed it really was. " I
can verify it by the list upstairs," he added, u if you
are sure there are no more."

u No more," repeated Hewitt, rattling his stick in
the ventilator again. " Let us go and verify, by all
means."

We sent the puzzled housekeeper away, and re-
turned to the office above, and presently Mr. Bell,
now beginning so far to recover from his amaze-
ment as to express incoherent gratitude, reported
that the bonds were correct and complete to the last
and least.

"Very well," said Hewitt, "then my part of the
business is done, though I must say I've had luck,
or rather, Brett has had it for me. But the police
must come on now. I think, Mr. Bell, we'll go
along to Scotland Yard when we leave here. They'll
be wanting to see Mr. Catherton Hunt, I expect,
whoever he is — and somebody in your office, too, if
I'm not sadly mistaken."

"Who ?" gasped Mr. Bell.

" That, perhaps, you can help to point out. See
here — do you know whose figures they are ? " and
Hewitt produced the small slip of paper containing
the cypher.

" They're very small," remarked Mr. Bell, putting

THE LEVER KEY 143

on his glasses ; " very small indeed ; but I think —
why they're Henning's, I do believe I "

" Ah I one or two other little things seemed to
point that way. Henning is your correspondence
clerk, I believe, and I expect this thin little slip is a
specimen of your typewriter paper. Have you any
of his written figures for comparison ? "

44 Well no — I hardly think — you see he typewrites
his letters, and although I know his writing very
well I can't at the moment put my hand on any
figures of his."

" Never mind — if s mere matter of curiosity ; the
police will ask him questions in the morning. What
/ believe has happened is this. Our friend Henning
— if he's the man — has a friend outside a great deal
cleverer than himself — though he would seem to
have his share of cunning, too. Between them they
resolved to rob you in the way they have done —
temporarily. Henning was to take advantage of his
position in that little inner room to get at the safe
some day when it was open and when you were
engaged in your own private inner room with a
client, so leaving the safe un watched. He was pro-
vided with a spare patent padlock and key, of the
sort you used on that black box, and his confederate
had drilled him in the trick of breaking that
particular sort of padlock open, with other spare

144 THE RED TRIANGLE

specimens. He got his opportunity this morn-
ing/'

" Only this morning T"

"This morning, I think, else we should never
have got these bonds back, nor even have heard of
them again. I think you said you were engaged
with a client for half an hour ? "

" Yes, from about half-past ten to eleven."

" That was his chance, and he took it. He broke
the padlock, took out the bonds, substituted the
dummies he had already prepared in his own desk,
and locked the box again with the new padlock.
Meantime Hunt had paid a deposit, pending refer-
ences, on the office below — the nearest empty room.
Of course, he wouldn't get the key until the tenancy
was finally accepted — which he never intended it
should be. But he easily arranged to have the door
left unlocked for a day or two, on some convenient
excuse — arranging decorations, or what not. And
the bill was taken down, so that prospective and
prospecting tenants were kept away. The bonds
being stolen, Henning took the first opportunity of
carrying them to the empty office — probably piece-
meal— a thing he could easily manage almost under
your nose, before you were aware of your loss.
There he was to conceal them, either in the chimney,
under the boards, or in the ventilator, as he might

THE LEVER KEY 145

find convenient — and he found the ventilator most
convenient Then he was to apprise his confederate
of the fact that the robbery had been effected in
order that Hunt might come and quietly fetch the
plunder away. The message was to take an in-
genious form. Hunt was to have a fellow waiting
about in the street, and as soon as Henning could
get out — say to lunch — he was just to send the key by
this messenger — the key with which he had locked
the new padlock on the black box. You see the
advantages of that simple arrangement. First, the
key, which is evidence, is got rid of in a safe and
effectual way — a thing that couldn't be done as well
by merely flinging it away on or near the premises,
where it might be found. Next, the message is per-
fectly secret — the messenger could never guess what
the key meant, nor could any other person not in
the confederate's confidence. And, at the same time,
the key tells all that is necessary ; the robbery has
been effected — come and remove the plunder.

u But something unforeseen happens. No sooner
are the bonds stolen and safely hidden than you go
to the box, find something wrong with the lock,
break it open and discover the loss. This was a
thing that they trusted would not happen till after
the bonds were safely got away. More, I am sent
lor, the clerks are kept in from lunch, and so on.

146 THE RED TRIANGLE

Henning gets into a funk, and resolves to send a
message of special urgency to his confederate. For
that purpose he uses a cypher which the two have
agreed upon — the most ingenious cypher I have ever
seen used for the purpose. He doesn't wish to
make his message any more conspicuous than he
need, so he writes his cypher on this scrap of paper
and rolls it inside the key — probably another ex-
pedient agreed upon in case of necessity. Then
the key goes into an envelope, for greater security
of the cypher message, and the messenger gets
it when Henning is at last released for lunch.
What happened to the message we know; and
here it is.

44 Now I will not weary you with a detailed account
of the different ways in which 1 attacked this cypher,
but I will take the shortest possible cut to the true
interpretation. A very short examination of the
cryptogram shows that while no number is included
above 23, the numbers, in their relative frequency,
roughly agree with the relative frequency of the
corresponding letters of the alphabet, a for 1, 6 for
2, and so on."

Here I handed Hewitt the pencilled note I had
made at the hospital, with letters substituted for the
figures, thus : — i, h, n, d, t, r, e, i; 0, s, t, o, e, i, h, e;
c, w, 0,0,4,1*, n, s; s, *, ©, o> ©> o>/, m; *, %, o, o> a,

THE LEVER KEY ?47

o, c, »; a, o, o, o, o, o, r, §; a, h, t, k, r, i, e, t; I, ef

w, n, nf a, a, t.

Hewitt took the paper and went on. "If that
were all the thing would be childishly simple. But
you will see that we seem as far from the solution
as ever ; for the letters as they stand mean nothing,
though in fact they are in normal relative frequency ;
so that if they mean other letters, all the rules are
upset, and we are at a standstill. I admit that for a
long time the thing bothered me. But a peculiarity
struck me. Not only were the figures, or letters,
disposed in groups of eighty but there were also
eight such groups — sixty-four altogether. What did
that suggest ? What but a chessboard ?"

* A chessboard ? " I queried.

44 Just so — a chessboard. Eight squares each way
— sixty-four altogether. So I drew a rough repre-
sentation of a chessboard, and set out the letters on
it, in their order, like this : —

i48

THE RED TRIANGLE

i

h

n

d

t

r

t

i

0

s

t

o

c

i

h

e

c

w

o

o

e

m

n

s

s

t

0

0

o

0

f

a

t

t

o

o

0

o

c

V

a

0

o

o

o

o

r

t

a

h

*

k

r

i

e

t

I

e

w

n

n

a

a

t

44 Now, there was my chessboard with my letters
on it. I tried reading them downward, across, up-
ward and diagonally, in the direction of the moves
of different chess pieces — king, queen, rook and
bishop. Nothing came of that, whatever I did ; the
thing was as unreadable as ever. But there re-
mained one chess -move to try — the eccentric move
of the knight; the move of one square forward,
backward or sideways, and then one square dia-
gonally, or, as it has sometimes been more concisely
expressed, the move to the next square but one of a
different colour from that on which it rests, I tried
the knight's move, and I read the cypher.

" 1 began at the top left-hand coiner, just as one

THE LEVER KEY 149

does in reading a book. I read the moves down-
ward— i to w, e and h, and found that led to nothing.
So I took the one alternative move, and, with a little
consideration, skipped along from * to / in the second
line of squares, t in the top line, h in the second
line, e in the third, r in the top and e in the second.
That gave me an idea. There were the letters i, t, t,
followed by the word here. I tried back from the *
again, and taking in the reverse order the wt e and h
which I had first given up, I read my own name, as
you can see it, from the h on the bottom line but
one, moving upward. So I had the words Hewitt
here. I need not carry you through all the steps,
which will now be plain enough to you. But I
found that the message actually began in the right'
hand corner, and read thus, the noughts counting
for nothing —

u * Invent loss disc take at once Martin Hewitt here
fear watch.'

u The noughts were plainly merely inserted to fill
in unneeded squares, and keep the rest of the figures
in their proper relative places when the cypher was
written in line. At first I was a little puzzled to
understand what seemed to be the first word invent.
But it was quite clear that loss disc meant i loss dis-
covered/ so I concluded that here in the beginning
was a contraction also, and that in was a separate

150 THE RED TRIANGLE

word. In that case vent could be a contraction for
no other word but ' ventilator/ in accordance with
the sense of the words. So I concluded that the
meaning of the whole sentence was simply this:
4 The plunder is in the ventilator, the loss is dis-
covered, take away the booty at once; Martin
Hewitt is here, and I fear I may be watched/
There is the reading, and our little adventure this
evening is what it has led to.

" Of course, the confederate wouldn't go groping
about the squares so painfully as I have had to do.
To him the reading would be simple enough, for the
order of the moves would be preconcerted. Each
of the conspirators would have, as a guide, both to
reading and writing the cypher, a drawn set of
squares, numbered in the order of the moves — i
where we have the i, 2 where we have the n, 3 where
we have the v, and so on. With that before him,
either reading or writing in this extraordinary
cryptogram would be easy and quick enough. And
now for Scotland Yard 1 "

CHAPTER X.

THE CASE OF THE LEVER KEY (CONTINUED)

We learned late on the following day that Henning
had not appeared at the office. From that we
assumed that he must have met his confederate in
the evening, and, finding that he had not received
the message sent, conceived that something was
wrong, and made himself safe. The confederate.
Hunt, however, made his appearance early next
morning, but escaped.

What happened is best told in Plummer's word*
when he called on Hewitt in the afternoon.

44 1 went round this morning," he said, u as I said
I would last night. I took a good man with me,
and we got the dummy bonds that had been put in
Bell's box and popped 'em in the ventilator, where
the real ones had been hidden. You see, we'd got
nothing legal against Catherton Hunt as yet, but if
we could only grab him with those dummy bonds
on him it might help, with the other evidence we
could scrape up (and especially if we could take
Henning), to sustain a charge of conspiracy to steal.

152 THE RED TRIANGLE

Well, he came so quick he was on us before we were
quite ready. We'd got the dummies in their place,
and I was in front of the door telling my man the
likeliest corner to wait in, when suddenly up pops
the lift right in front of me, with a gentleman in it —
clean-shaven. I looked at him and he looked at me.
I had a sort of distant notion that I might have seen
him before, and it's pretty certain he had something
more than a distant notion about me. ' Down
again/ he says to the lift man, before the gate was
swung, 4 I've forgotten something !' And down the
lift went. You'll understand I had no idea he was
the man we wanted ; but as the lift went down and
my eyes were on the man's face, I saw who he was !
When he stood straight before me I had no more
than a vague notion that I'd seen him somewhere
before. But down the lift went, and in the flash of
time when he'd nearly disappeared, and the bottom
part of his face was hidden by the sill of the lift
opening — the part of his face where his beard
had been when we met him last — I saw it was
Myatt l"

" Myatt ? Good heavens ! *

"Everard Myatt, Mr. Hewitt, the man that
murdered Mr. Jacob Mason I Everard Myatt, for
a thousand, with his beard shaved 1 And we've lost
him again 1 What could we do ? We shouted and

THE LEVER KEY 153

ran downstairs, and that was all. He'd gone, of
course. And when we asked the hall porter he told
us that Mr. Catherton Hunt had just come down
the lift and hurried out I*

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN

CHAPTER XI.

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN

Everard Myatt-— or Catherton Hunt — was lost
again. Martin Hewitt had been wholly successful,
for he had recovered Mr. Bell's missing bonds ; but
the police caught neither of the conspirators. In-
vestigation at Henning's lodgings showed that care-
ful preparations must have been made for an
immediate flight if it should become necessary, and
the flight had taken place. The man in the hospital,
who had been knocked down in carrying from one
to the other the extraordinary message that Hewitt
deciphered, remained insensible for a few days, and
could not be questioned till some time later still.
Then he professed to have forgotten all about the
message on which he was going when he met his
accident, and the medical men in attendance
informed the police thai it was quite possible that
the fellow's statement was true. He said that he
did carry messages sometimes, when he could get a
job, but he could remember nothing of the message
of the key, nor of who had sent him, nor where he

ijS THE RED TRIANGLE

was to go. Nevertheless, the police, although they
professed to accept his statement, kept a wary eye
on him after his discharge from the hospital, for
they had a very great suspicion that he knew more
than he chose to tell. But nothing more was heard
of the accomplices till another case of Martin
Hewitt's brought the news, and that in a manner
strange enough.

The matter began, as so many matters of Hewitf s
did, with the receipt of a telegram, followed imme-
diately by another. For the first having been handed
in at a country office not very long before eight the
previous evening, it was not delivered at Hewitf s
office till the morning, in accordance with the
ancient manners and customs observed in the
telegraphic system of this country. It had been
despatched from Throckham, in Middlesex, and it
was simply a very urgently worded request to
Hewitt to come at once, signed "Claire Peytral."
The second telegram, which came even as Hewitt
was reading the first, on his arrival at his office, ran
thus : —

44 Did you receive telegram ? See newspapers.
Matter life or death. Would come personally but
cannot leave mother. Pray answer. — Peytral."

The answer went instantly that Hewitt would

THE BURNT BARN 159

come by the next train, for he had seen the morning
paper and from that knew the urgency of the case.
But a consultation of the railway guide showed that
trains to Throckham were fewer than one might
suppose, considering the proximity of the village to
London, and that the next would leave in about an
hour and a quarter ; so that I saw Hewitt before he
started. He came up to my rooms, in fact, as I was
beginning to breakfast.

* See here," he said, " I am sent for in the
Throckham case. Have you seen the report ? "

As a leader writer, I had little business with the
news side of my paper, and indeed 1 had no more
than a vague recollection of some such heading as :
" Tragedy in a barn," in one evening paper of the day
before, and " Murder at Throckham " in another. So
I could claim no very exact knowledge of the affair.

"Here you have a paper, I see/' Hewitt said,
reaching for it. M Perhaps their report is fuller than
that in mine." He gave me his own newspaper and
began searching in the other. " No," he said pre-
sently, "much the same. News agency report to
both papers, no doubt."

The report which I read ran as follows : —

"Singular Tragedy. — An extraordinary occur
rence is reported from Throckham, a small village

i6o THE RED TRIANGLE

within fifteen miles of London, involving a tragic
fatality that has led to a charge of murder. On
Thursday evening an old barn, for some time dis-
used, was discovered to be on fire, and it was only
by extraordinary exertions on the part of the villagers
that the fire was extinguished. Upon an examina-
tion of the place yesterday morning the body of Mr.
Victor Peytral, a gentleman who had lived in the
neighbourhood for some time, and who had been
missing since shortly before the discovery of the
fire, was found in the ruins. The body was burnt
almost beyond recognition, but not so much as to
conceal the fact that the unfortunate gentleman had
not perished in the fire, but had been the victim of
foul play. The throat was very deeply cut, and there
can be no doubt that the murderer must have fired
the barn with the object of destroying all traces of
the crime. The police have arrested Mr. Percy
Bowmore, a frequent visitor at the house of the
deceased."

" My telegram," said Hewitt, "is plainly from a
relative of this Mr. Peytral who is dead — perhaps a
daughter, since she speaks of being unable to leave
her mother. In that case, probably an only child,
since there is no other to leave."

u Unless the others are too young," I suggested.

THE BURNT BARN 161

"Just so," Hewitt replied. "Well, Brett/' he
added, " to-day is Saturday."

Saturday was, of course, my "off" day, and
I understood Hewitt to hint that if I pleased I
might accompany him to Throckham. " Saturday
it is," I said, " and I have no engagements. Would
you care for me to come ? "

" As you please, of course. I can guess very little
of the case as yet, naturally, beyond what I have
read in the paper ; but the subtle sense of my ex-
perience tells me that there is all the chance of an
interesting case in this. That's your temptation. As
for myself, I don't mind admitting that — especially
in these country cases, where the resources of
civilisation are not always close at hand — I'm never
loth to have a friend with me who isn't too proud to
be made use of. That's my temptation 1 "

No persuasion was needed, and in due time we
set out together.

CHAPTER XII.

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN (CONTINUED)

It is my experience that places are to be found
within twenty miles of London far more rural, far
sleepier, far less influenced by the great city that lies
so near, than places thrice and four times as far
away. They are just too far out to be disturbed by
suburban traffic, and too near to feel the influence
of the great railway lines. These main lines go by,
carrying their goods and their passengers to places
tar beyond, and it is only by awkward little branch
lines, with slow and rare trains, that any part of this
mid-lying belt is reached, and even then it is odds
but that one must drive a good way to his destina-
tion.

Throckham was just such a place as I speak of,
and that was the reason why we had such ample
time to catch the first of the half-dozen leisurely
trains by which one might reach the neighbourhood
during the day. The station was Redfield, and
Throckham was three miles beyond it

At Redfield a coachman with a dogcart awaited

THE BURNT BARN 163

Hewitt — only one gentleman having been expected,
as the man explained, in offering to give either of us
the reins. But Hewitt wished to talk to the coach-
man, and I willingly took the back seat, understand-
ing very well that my friend would get better to
work if he first had as many of the facts as possible
from a calm informant before discussing them with
the dead man's relations, probably confused and dis-
tracted with their natural emotions.

The coachman was a civil and intelligent fellow,
and he gave Hewitt all he knew of the case with
perfect clearness, as I could very well hear.

" It isn't much I can tell you, sir," he said, * be-
yond what I expect you know. I suppose you didn't
know Mr. Peytral, my master, that's dead ? "

" No. But he was a foreigner, I suppose — French,
from the name."

" Well, no, sir," the coachman replied, thought-
fully ; u not French exactly, I think, though some-
times he talked French to the mistress. They came
from somewhere in the West Indies, I believe, and
there's a trifle of — well, of dark blood in 'em, sir, I
should think ; though, of course, it ain't for me to
say."

" Yes — there are many such families in the French
West Indies. Did you ever hear of Alexandre
Dumas ? "

i64 THE RED TRIANGLE

44 No, sir, can't say I did."

44 Well, he was a very great Frenchman indeed,
but he had as much ' dark blood ' as your master
had — probably more ; and it came from the West
Indies, too. But go on."

44 Mr. Peytral, you must understand, sir, has lived
here a year or two — I've only been with him nine
months. He talked English always — as good as you
or me ; and he was always called Mr. Peytral — not
Monsieur, or Signor, or any o' them foreign titles.
I think he was naturalised. Mrs. Peytral, she's an
invalid — came here an invalid, I'm told. She never
comes out of her bedroom 'cept on an invalid couch,
which is carried. Miss Claire, she's the daughter,
an' the only one, and she was hoping you'd ha' been
down last night, sir, by the last train. She's in an
awful state, as you may expect, sir."

" Naturally, to lose her father in such a terrible
way."

" Yes, sir, but if s wuss than that even, for her.
You see, this Mr. Bowmore, that they've took up,
he's been sort of keepin' company with Miss Claire
for some time, an' there's no doubt she was very
fond of him. That makes it pretty bad for her,
takin' it both ways, you see."

M Of course — terrible. But tell me how the thing
happened, and why they took this Mr. Bowmore."

THE BURNT BARN 165

"Well, sir, it ain't exactly for me to say, and,
of course, I don't know the rights of it, bein' only a
servant, but they say there was a sudden quarrel last
night between Mr. Peytral and Mr. Bowmore. I think
myself that Mr. Peytral was getting a bit excitable
lately, whatever it was. On Thursday night, just
after dinner, he went strolling ofi in the dusk, alone,
and presently Mr. Bowmore — he came down in the
afternoon — went strolling off after him. It seems
they went down toward the Penn's Meadow barn,
Mr. Peytral first, and Mr. Bowmore catching him up
from behind. A man saw them — a gamekeeper.
He was lyin' quiet in a little wood just the other side
of Penn's Meadow, an' they didn't see him as they
came along together. They were quarrelling, it
seems, though Grant — that's the gamekeeper —
couldn't hear exactly what about ; but he heard Mr.
Peytral tell Mr. Bowmore to go away. He 'pre-
ferred to be alone ' and he'd ' had enough ' of Mr.
Bowmore, from what Grant could make out. ' Get
out o' my sight, sir, I tell you ! ' the old gentleman
said at last, stamping his foot, and shaking his fist in
the young gentleman's face. And then Bowmore
turned and walked away."

"One moment," Hewitt interposed. "You are
telling me what Grant saw and heard. How did it
come to your knowledge ? "

i66 THE RED TRIANGLE

u Told me hisself, sir — told me every word yester-
day. Told me twice, in fact. First thing in the
morning when they found the body, and then
again after he'd been to Redfield and had it took
down by the police. It was because of that they
arrested Mr. Bowmore, of course."

" Just so. And is this gamekeeper Grant in the
same employ as yourself ? "

" Oh, no, sir ! Mr. Peytral's is only just an acre
or two of garden and a paddock. Grant's master is
Colonel White, up at the Hall."

" Very good. You were saying that Mr. Peytral
told Mr. Bowmore to get out of his sight, and that
Mr. Bowmore walked away. What then ? "

"Well, Grant saw Mr. Bowmore walk away, but
it was only a feint — a dodge, you see, sir. He
walked away to the corner of the little wood where
Grant was, and then he took a turn into the wood
and began following Mr. Peytral up, watching him
from among the trees. Came close by where Grant
was sitting, following up Mr. Peytral and watching
him ; and so Grant lost sight of 'em."

" Did Grant say what he was doing in the
wood ? "

"He said he'd found marks of rabbit-snares there,
and he was watching to see if anybody came to set
any more,"

THE BURNT BARN 167

"Yes — quite an ordinary part of his duty, of

course. What next ? *

" Well, Grant didn't see any more. He waited a
bit, and then moved off to another part of the wood,
and he didn't notice anything else particular till the
barn was on fire. It was dark, then, of course."

"Yes — you must tell me about the fire. Who
discovered it ? "

* Oh, a man going home along the lane. He ran
and called some people, and they fetched the fire-
engine from the village and pumped out of the horse-
pond just close by. It was pretty much of a wreck
by the time they got the fire out, but it wasn't all gone,
as you might have expected. You see, it had beere
out of use for some time, sir, and there was mostly
nothing but old broken ploughs and lumber there ;
and what's more, there was a deal of rain early in
the week, as you may remember, sir, so the thatch
was pretty sodden, being out o' repair and all — and
so was the timber, for the matter o' that, for there's
no telling when it was last painted. So the fire
didn't go quite so fierce as it might, you see ; else I
should expect it had been all over before they got to
work on it."

" Not at all a likely sort of place to catch fire, it
would seem, either," Hewitt commented. "Old
ploughs and such lumber are not very combustible/'

168 THE RED TRIANGLE

44 Quite so, sir ; that's what makes 'em think it so
odd, I suppose. But there was a bundle or two of
old pea-straw there, shied in last summer, they say,
being over bundles from the last load, and there
left."

u And when was Mr. Bowmore seen next ? "

44 He came strolling back, sir, and told the young
lady he'd left her father outside, or something of
that sort, I think; said nothing of the quarrel, I
believe. But he said the barn was on fire — which
he must have known pretty early, sir, for 'tis a mile
from the house off that way " ; and the coachman
pointed with his whip.

44 Nothing was suspected of the murder, it seems,
till yesterday morning ? "

u No, sir. Miss Claire got frightful worried when
her father didn't come home, as you would expect,
and specially at him not coming home all night. But
when the fire was quite put out, o' course the people
went away home to bed, and it wasn't till the
norning that anybody went in to turn the place over.
Then they found the body."

" Badly burnt, 1 believe ? "

44 Horrid burnt, sir. If it wasn't for Mr. Peytral's
being missing, I doubt if they'd have known it was
him at all. It took a doctor's examination to see
clear that the throat had been cut. But cut it had

THE BURNT BARN 169

been, and deep, so the doctor said. And now the
body's gone over to Redfield mortuary."

Hewitt asked a few questions more, and got
equally direct answers, except where the coachman
had to confess ignorance. But presently we were
at the house to which Hewitt had been sum-
moned.

It was a pleasant house enough, standing alone,
apart from the village, a little way back from a loop
of road that skirted a patch of open green. As we
came in at the front gate, I caught an instant's
glimpse of a pale face at an upper window, and
before we could reach the drawing-room door Miss
Claire Peytral had met us.

She was a young lady of singular beauty, which
the plain signs of violent grief and anxiety very little
obscured. Her complexion, of a very delicate ivory
tinge, was scarcely marred by the traces of sleepless-
ness and tears that were nevertheless clear to see.
Her eyes were large and black, and her jetty hair
had a slight waviness that was the only distinct sign
about her of the remote blend of blood from an
inferior race.

" Oh, Mr. Hewitt," she cried, * I am so glad you
have come at last 1 I have been waiting — waiting
so long 1 And my poor mother is beginning to
suspect 1 "

170 THE RED TRIANGLE

"You have not told her, then tm

" No, it will kill her when she knows, I'm sure-
kill her on the spot. I have only said that father is
ill at— at Redfield. Oh, what shall Ido?"

The poor girl seemed on the point of breakdown,
and Hewitt spoke sharply and distinctly.

"What you must do is this," he said. u You must
attend to me, and tell me all I want to know as
accurately and as tersely as you can. In that case
I will do whatever I can, but if you give way you
will cripple me. It all depends on you, remember.
This is my intimate friend, Mr. Brett, who is good
enough to offer to help us. Now, first, I think I
know the heads of the case, from the newspapers,
and, more especially, from your coachman. But
when you sent for me, no doubt you had some
definite idea or intention in your mind. What was
it?"

" Oh, he is innocent, Mr. Hewitt — he is, really !
The only friend I have in the world — the only friend
we all have ! "

" Steady — steady," Hewitt said, pressing her kindly
and firmly into a seat. " You must keep steady, you
know, if I am to do anything. I expected that
would be your belief. Now tell me why you are so
sure."

u Mr. Hewitt, if you knew him you wouldn't ask.

THE BURNT BARN 171

He would never injure my poor father — he went out
after him purely out of kindness, because I was
uneasy. He would never hurt him, Mr. Hewitt,
never, never ! I can't say it strongly enough —
he never would 1 Oh 1 my poor father, and
now •

• Steady again 1 " cried Hewitt, more sharply still.
I could see that he feared the hysterical breakdown
that might come at any moment after the lengthened
suspense Miss Peytral had suffered. u Listen, now
— you mustn't frighten yourself too much. If Mr.
Bowmore is innocent — and you say you are so
certain of it — then I've no doubt of finding a way to
prove it if only you'll make your best effort to help
me, and keep your wits about you. As far as I can
see at present there's nothing against him that we
need be afraid of if we tackle it properly, and, of
course, the police make arrests of this sort by way
of precaution in a case like this, on the merest hint
Come now, you say you were uneasy when your
father went out after dinner on Thursday night
Why?"

"I don't know, quite, Mr. Hewitt It was my
mother that was uneasy, really, about something
she never explained to me. My father had taken to
going out in the evening after dinner, just in the
way he did on Thursday night I don't know why,

i7» THE RED TRIANGLE

but I think it had something to do with my mother's
anxiety."

" Did he dress for dinner f "

" No, not lately. He used to dress always, but he
has dropped it of late."

Hewitt paused for a moment, thoughtfully. Then
he said, u Mrs. Peytral is an invalid, I know, and no
doubt none the better for her anxiety. But if it
could be managed I should like to ask her a few
questions. What do you think ?"

But this Miss Peytral was altogether against. Her
mother was suffering from spinal complaint, it
appeared, with very serious nervous complications,
and there was no answering for the result of the
smallest excitement. She never saw strangers, and,
if it could possibly be avoided, it must be avoided
now.

" Very well, Miss Peytral, I will first go and look
at some things I must see, and I will do without
your mother's help as long as I possibly can. But
now you must answer a few more questions your-
self, please."

Hewitt's questions produced little more sub-
stantial information, it seemed to me, than he had
already received. Mr. Peytral had taken the house
in which we were sitting — it was called "The
Lodge" simply — two years ago. Before that the

THE BURNT BARN 173

family had lived in Surrey, but they had not moved
direct from there ; there was a journey to America
between, on some business of Mr. Peytral's, and it
was on the return voyage that they had met Mr.
Percy Bowmore. Mr. Bowmore had no friends
nearer than Canada, and he was reading for the
Bar — in a very desultory way, as I gathered. Miss
Peytral's childhood had been passed in the West
Indies, at the town of San Domingo, in fact, where
her father had been a merchant. Her mother had
been a helpless invalid ever since Miss Peytral could
remember. As to the engagement with Bowmore,
it would seem to have had the full approval of both
parents all along. But a rather curious change had
come over her father, she thought, a few months
ago. What it was that had caused it she could not
say, but he grew nervous and moody, often absent-
minded, and sometimes even short-tempered and
snappish, a thing she had never known before.
Also he read the daily papers with much care and
eagerness. It was plain that Miss Peytral had no
idea of any cause which might have led to a quarrel
between Bowmore and her father, and Hewitt's
most cunning questions failed to elicit the smallest
suggestion of reason for such an occurrence.

Ten days or so ago, Mr. Peytral had returned
from a short walk after dinner, very much agitated ;

174 THE RED TRIANGLE

and from that day he had made a practice of going
out immediately after dinner every evening regularly,
walking off across the paddock, and so away in the
direction of Penn's Meadow. The first visit of
Percy Bowmore after this practice had begun was
on Thursday, but the presence of the visitor made
no difference, as Miss Peytral had expected it would.
Her father rose abruptly after dinner and went off
as before ; and this time Mrs. Peytral, who had been
brought down to dinner, displayed a singular un-
easiness about him. She had experienced the same
feeling, curiously enough, on other occasions, Miss
Peytral remarked, when her husband had been
unwell or in difficulties, even at some considerable
distance. This time the feeling was so strong that
she begged Bowmore to hurry after Mr. Peytral and
accompany him in his walk. This the young man
had done ; but he returned alone after a while,
saying simply that he had lost sight of Mr. Peytral,
whom he had supposed might have come home by
some other way ; and mentioning also that he had
been told that Penn's Meadow barn was on fire.

When it grew late, and Mr. Peytral failed to
return, Bowmore went out again and made inquiry
in all directions. It grew necessary to concoct a
story to appease Mrs. Peytral. who had been taken
back to her bedroom. Bowmore spent the whole

THE BURNT BARN 175

night in fruitless search and inquiry, and then, with
the morning, came the terrible news of the discovery
in the burnt barn ; and late in the afternoon Bow-
more was arrested.

The poor girl had a great struggle to restrain her
feelings during the conversation, and, at its close,
Hewitt had to use all his tact to keep her going.
Physical exhaustion, as well as mental trouble, were
against her, and stimulus was needed. So Hewitt
said, " Now you must try your best, and if you will
keep up as well as you have done a little longer,
perhaps I may have good news for you soon. I
must go at once and examine things. First, I
should like to have brought to me every single pair
of boots or shoes belonging to your father. Send
them, and then go and look after your mother.
Remember, you art helping ill the time."

CHAPTER XIII.

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN (CONTINUED)

Hewitt examined the boots and shoes with great
rapidity, but with a singularly quick eye for
peculiarities.

H He liked a light shoe/' he said, "and he preferred
to wear shoes rather than boots. There are few
boots, and those not much worn, although he was
living in the country. Trod square on the right
foot, inward on the left, and wore the left heel more
than the right. If s plain he hated nails, for these
are all hand-sewn, with scarcely as much as a peg
visible in the lot; and they are all laced, boots and
shoes alike. Come, this is the best-worn pair ; it is
also a pair of the same sort the maid tells me he
must have been wearing, since they are missing;
low shoes, laced ; we'll take them with us."

We left the house and sought our friend the
coachman. He pointed out quite clearly the path
by which his master had gone on his last walk ;
showed us the gate, still fastened, over which he had
climbed to gain the adjoining meadow, and put us

THE BURNT BARN 177

in the way of finding the small wood and the
barn.

Both within and without the gate there was a
small patch bare of grass, worn by feet ; and here
Martin Hewitt picked up his trail at once.

"The ground has hardened since Thursday night,"
he said ; " and so much the better — it keeps the
marks for us. Do you see what is here ? "

There were footmarks, certainly, but so beaten
and confused that I could make nothing of them.
Hewitt's practised eye, however, read them as I might
have read a rather illegibly written letter.

" Here is the right foot, plain enough," he said,
carefully fitting the shoe he had brought in the
mark. "He alighted on that as he came over the
gate. Half over it is another footmark — Bowmore's,
I expect, for I can see signs of others, in both direc-
tions— going and coming. But we shall know better
presently."

He rose, and we followed the irregular track
across the meadow. Like most such field-tracks, its
direction was plainly indicated by the thin and
beaten grass, with a bare spot here and there.
Hewitt troubled to take no more than a glance at
each of these spots as we passed, but that was all he
needed. The meadow was bounded by a hedge,
with a stile; and at the farther side of this stile

178 THE RED TRIANGLE

my friend knelt again, with every sign of atten-
tion.

"A little piece of luck," he reported. "The left
shoe has picked up a tiny piece of broken thorn-twig
just here. See the mark ? The shoe was a little
soddened in the sole by this time, and the thorn
stuck. I hope it stuck altogether. If it did it may
help us wonderfully when we get to the barn, for
the trouble there will be the trampling all round of
the people at the fire."

So we went on till we reached the edge of the
little wood. The field-path skirted this, and here
Hewitt dropped on his knees and set to work with
great minuteness.

44 Keep away from the track, Brett," he warned
me, " or you may make it worse. The police have
been here, I see, and quite recently, coming from
the direction of Redfield. Here are two pairs of
unmistakable police boots and another heavy pair
with them ; no doubt they brought the game-
keeper along with them, to have things fully ex-
plained."

From the corner of the wood to a point forty yards
along the path ; back to the corner again, and then
into the wood Hewitt went, carefully examining
every inch of the ground as he did so. Then at
last 1m rejoined me.

THE BURNT BARN 179

* 1 think the gamekeeper hat told the truth/' he
said. " It's pretty plain, thanks to the soft ground
hereabout, notwithstanding the policemen's boots.
Here they came together — the thorn-twig sticks to
the shoe still, you see — and here they stopped. The
marks face about, and Bowmore's steps are retraced
to the corner of the wood. Peytral's turn again
and go on, and Bowmore's turn into the edge of
the wood and come along among the trees. You
don't see them in the grassy parts quite as well as
I do, I expect, but there they are. We'll keep after
Peytral's prints. Bowmore's come back in the same
track, I see."

The next stile led to Penn's Meadow. This
meadow — a large one — stretched over a rather steep
hump of land, at the other side of which the barn
stood. From the stile two paths could be discerned
— one rising straight over the meadow in the
direction of the barn, and the other skirting it to
the left, parallel with the hedge.

* Here the footprints part," Hewitt observed,
musingly ; " and what does that mean ? Manoeuvring
— or what ? "

He thought a moment, and then went on : * We'll
leave the tracks for the present and see the barn.
That is straight ahead, T take it."

When we reached the top of the rise the barn

180 THE RED TRIANGLE

came in view, a blackened and sinister wreck. The
greater part of the main structure was still standing,
and even part of the thatched roof still held its
place, scorched and broken. Off to the right from
where we stood the village roofs were visible, giving
indication of the position of the road to Redfield.
A single human figure was in sight — that of a police-
man on guard before the barn.

" Now we must get rid of that excellent fellow,"
said Hewitt, " or he'll be offering objections to the
examination I want to make. I wonder if he knows
my name ? "

We walked down to the barn, and Hewitt, assum-
ing the largest possible air, addressed the police-
man.

u Constable," he said, u I am here officially — here
is my card. Of course you will know the name if you
have had any wide experience — London experience
especially. I am looking into this case on behalf of
Miss Peytral— co-operating with the police, of course.
Where is your inspector ? "

He was a rather stupid countryman, this police-
man, but he was visibly impressed— even flurried —
by Hewitt's elaborate bumptiousness. He saluted,
tried to look unnaturally sagacious, and confessed
that he couldn't exactly say where the inspector was,
things being put about so just now. He might be in

THE BURNT BARN 181

Throckham village, but more likely he was at Red-
field.

"Ah 1 " Hewitt replied, with condescension.
" Now, if he is in the village, you will oblige me,
constable, by telling him that I am here. If he is
not there, you will return at once. I will be
responsible here till you come back. Don't be very
long, now."

The man was taken by surprise, and possibly a
trifle doubtful. But Hewitt was so extremely lofty
and so very peremptory and official, that the inferior
intelligence capitulated feebly, and presently, after
another uneasy salute, the village policeman had
vanished in the direction of the road. The moment
he had disappeared Hewitt turned to the ruined barn.
The door was gone, and the scorched and charred
lumber that littered the place had a look of absolute
ghostliness — perhaps chiefly the effect of my
imagination in the knowledge of the ghastly tragedy
that the place had witnessed. Well in from the
doorway was a great scatter of light ashes — plainly
the pea-straw that the coachman had spoken of.
And by these ashes and partly among them, marked
in some odd manner on the floor, was a horrible
black shape that I shuddered to see, as Hewitt
pointed it out with a moving forefinger, which he
Biade to trace the figure of a prostrate human form.

iSi THE RED TRIANGLE

44 Did you never see that before in a burnt house ? *
Hewitt asked in a hushed voice. "I have, more
than once. That sort of thing always leaves a
strange stain under it, like a shadow."

But business claimed Martin Hewitt, and he
stepped carefully within. Scarcely had he done
so, when he stood suddenly still, with a low
whistle, pointing toward something lying among
the dirt and ashes by the foot of that terrible
shape.

44 See ? " he said. " Don't disturb anything, but
look!"

I crept in with all the care I could command, and
stooped. The place was filled with such a vast con-
fusion of lumber and cinder and ash that at first I
failed to see at all what had so startled Hewitt's
attention. And even when I understood his direction,
all I saw was about a dozen little wire loops, each a
quarter of an inch long or less, lying among a little
grey ash that clung about the ends of some of the
loops in clots. Even as I looked another thing
caught Hewitt's eye. Among the straw-ashes there
lay some cinders of paper and card, and near them
another cinder, smaller, and plainly of some other
substance. Hewitt took my walking-stick, and
turned this cinder over. It broke apart as he did
so, and from within it two or three little charred

THE BURNT BARN 183

sticks escaped. Hewitt snatched one up and
scrutinised it closely.

" Do you see the tin ferrule ? " he said. * It has
been a brush ; and that was a box of colours 1 "
He pointed to the cinder at his feet. "That being
«o," he went on, " that paper and card was probably
a sketch-book. Brett I come outside a bit There's
something amazing here 1 "

We went outside, and Hewitt faced me with a
curious expression that for the life of me I could
not understand.

" Suppose," he said, " that Mr. Victor Peytral is not
dead after all t "

"Not dead?" 1 gasped; "but— but he is 1 We
know "

" It seems to me," Hewitt pursued, with his eyes
still fixed on mine, M that we know very little indeed
of this affair, as yet. The body was unrecognisable,
or very near it. You remember what the coachman
said ? ' If it wasn't for Mr. Peytral's being missing/
he said, ' I doubt if they'd have known it was him at
all.' I think those were his exact words. More, you
must remember that the body has not been seen by
either of Peytral's relatives."

"But then," I protested, "if it isn't his body
whose is it ?"

"Ah, indeed," Hewitt responded, "whose is it

i84 THE RED TRIANGLE

Don't you see the possibilities of the thing ? There's
a- col3ur-box and a sketch-book burned. Who
carried a colour-box and a sketch-book ? Not
Peytral, or we should have heard of it from his
daughter ; she made a particular point of her father's
evening strolls being quite aimless, so far as her
knowledge or conjecture went ; she knew nothing
of any sketching. And another thing — don't you
see what those things mean ? " He pointed toward
the place of the little wire loops*

* Not at all."

" Man, don't you see they've been boot-buttons 1
When the boots shrivelled, the threads were burnl
and the buttons dropped off. Boot-buttons are
made of a sort of composition that burns to a grey
ash, once the fire really gets hold of them — as you
may try yourself, any time you please. You can see
the ash still clinging to some of the shanks ; and
there the shanks are, lying in two groups, six and six.
as they fell 1 Now Peytral came out in laced shoes."

u But if Peytral isn't dead, where is he ? "

u Precisely," rejoined Hewitt, with the curious ex-
pression still in his eyes, u As you say, where is he ?
And as you said before, who is the dead man ? Who
is the dead man, and where is Peytral, and why has
he gone ? Don't you see the possibilities of the case
nowf"

THE BURNT BARN 185

Light broke upon me suddenly. I saw what
Hewitt meant. Here was a possible explanation of
the whole thing — Peytral's recent change of temper,
his evening prowlings, his driving away of Bowmore,
and lastly, of his disappearance — his flight, as it now
seemed probable it was. The case had taken a
strange turn, and we looked at one another with
meaning eyes. It might be that Hewitt, begged by
the unhappy girl we had but just left to prove the
innocence of her lover, would by that very act bring
her father to the gallows,

44 Poor girl 1 " Hewitt murmured, as we stood
staring at one another. u Better she continued to
believe him dead, as she does 1 Brett, there's many
a good man would be disposed to fling these proofs
away for the girl's sake and her mother's, seeing
how little there can be to hurt Bowmore. But
justice must be done, though the blow fall — as it
commonly does — on innocent and guilty together.
See, now, I've another idea. Stay on guard while I
try."

He hurried out toward the farther side of the
broad band of trampled ground which surrounded
the burnt barn, and began questing to and fro, this
way and that, receding farther from me as he went,
and nearing the horse-pond and the road. At last
he vanished altogether, and left me alone with the

186 THE RED TRIANGLE

burnt barn, my thoughts, and — that dim Shape on
the barn floor. It was broad day, but I felt none
too happy ; and I should not have been at all anxious
to keep the police watch at night.

Perhaps Hewitt had been gone a quarter of an
hour, perhaps a little more, when I saw him again,
hurrying back and beckoning to me. I went to meet
him.

" It's right enough," he cried. * I've come on his
trail again I There it is, thorn-mark and all, by the
roadside, and at a stile — going to Redfield — probably
to the station. Come, we'll follow it up ! Where's
that fool of a policeman ? Oh, the muddle they can
make when they really try I "

" Need we wait for him ? " I asked.

" Yes, better now, with those proofs lying there ;
and we must tell him not to be bounced off again as
I bounced him off. There he comes 1 "

The heavy figure of the local policeman was visible
in the distance, and we shouted and beckoned to
hurry him. Agility was no part of that policeman's
nature, however, and beyond a sudden agitation of
his head and his shoulders, which we guessed to be
caused by a dignified spasm of leisurely haste, we
saw no apparent acceleration of his pace.

As we stood and waited we were aware of a sound
of wheels from the direction of Redfield, and as the

THE BURNT BARN 1S7

policeman neared us from the right, so the sound of
wheels approached us from the left. Presently a fly
hove in sight — the sort of dusty vehicle that plies at
every rural railway station in this country ; and as
he caught sight of us in the road the driver began
waving his whip in a very singular and excited
manner. As he drew nearer still he shouted, though
at first we could not distinguish his words. By this
time the policeman, trotting ponderously, was within
a few yards. The passenger in the fly, a thin, dark,
elderly man, leaned over the side to look ahead at
us, and with that the policeman pulled up with a
great gasp and staggered into the ditch.

"'Ere'e is I" cried the fly-driver, regardless of the
angry remonstrances of his fare. " 'Ere 'e is 1 'E's
all right! It ain't 'im I 'Ere he is 1"

" Shut your mouth, you fool I " cried the angry
fare. u Will you stop making a show of me ? "

* Not me ! " cried the eccentric cabman. * I
don't want no fare, sir ! I'm drivin' you 'ome for
honour an' glory, an' honour an' glory I'll make it !
'Ere'e is I"

Hewitt took in the case in a flash — the flabber-
gasted policeman, the excited cabman and the
angry passenger. He sprang into the road and
cried to the cabman, who pulled up suddenly
before us.

(88 THE RED TRIANGLE

"Mr. Victor Peytral, I believe?" said Martin
Hewitt

"Yes, sir/' answered the dark gentleman snappishly,
* but I don't know you ! "

"There has been a deal of trouble here, Mr.
Peytral, over your absence from home, as no doubt
you have become aware ; and I was telegraphed for
by your daughter. My name is Hewitt — Martin
Hewitt."

Peytral's face changed instantly. * I know your
name well, Mr. Hewitt," he said. "There's a matter
—but who is this?"

" My friend, Mr. Brett, who is good enough to
help me to-day. If I may detain you a moment, I
should like a word with you aside."

" Certainly."

Mr. Peytral alighted, and the two walked a little
apart

I saw Hewitt talking and pointing toward the
burnt barn, and I well guessed what he was saying.
He was giving Peytral warning of what he had dis-
covered in the barn, explaining that he must give
the information to the police, and asking if, in those
circumstances, Peytral wished to go home, or to
make other arrangements. Often Hewitt's duty to
his clients and his duty as a law-upholding citizen
between them put him in some such delicate position.

THE BURNT BARN i89

But there was no hesitation in Mr. Victor Peytral.
Plainly he feared nothing, and he was going
home.

"Very well, then," I heard Hewitt say as they
turned towards us, "perhaps we had better go on
slowly and let my friend cut across the fields first
to break the news. Brett — I knew you would be
useful, sooner or later."

And so I hurried off, with the happy though
delicate mission to restore both father and lover to
Miss Claire PeytraL

CHAPTER XIV.

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN (CONTINUED)

Miss Peytral had to be put to bed under care of
a nurse, lor the revulsion was very great, and so
was her physical prostration. Bowmore, now set
free, and in himself a very pleasant young fellow,
came with hurried inquiries and congratulations,
and then rushed off to London to cable to his
friends in Canada, for fear of the effect of news-
paper telegrams.

When at last Hewitt and I sat with Mr. Peytral in
his study, " Mr. Hewitt," said Peytral, " I am not
sure how far explanations may go between us.
There is more in that death in the barn than the
police will ever guess."

Peytral was haggard and drawn, for, as he had
!et slip already, he had scarce slept an hour since
having home on Thursday.

* I am tired," \e said, u and worn out, but that is
not a novelty with me ; and I'm not sure but we may
be of use to each other. Did my daughter tell yon

THE BURNT BARN i9i

why she sent Mr. Bowmore after me on Thursday
night?"

Hewitt explained the thing as briefly as possible,
just as he had heard it from Miss Peytral.

"Ah," said Peytral, thoughtfully. « So she thought
my manner became moody a few months back.
It did, no doubt, for I had memories ; and more,
I had apprehensions. Mr. Hewitt, I think I read
in the papers that you were in some way engaged
in the extraordinary case of the murder of Mr.
Jacob Mason ?"

44 That is quite correct. I was."

"There was another case, a little while before,
which possibly you may not have heard of. A man
was found strangled near the York column, by
Pall Mall, with just such a mark on his forehead
as was found on Mr. Mason's."

" I know that case, too, as well as the other."

M Do you know the name of the murderer ? "

44 1 think I do. We speak in confidence, of course,
as client and professional man ? "

" Of course. What was his name ?

44 1 have heard two — Everard Myatt and Catherton
Hunt."

* Neither is his real name, and I $oubt if anybody
but himself knows it. Twenty years ago and more
I knew him as Mayes. He was a Jamaican. Mr.

i9a THE RED TRIANGLE

Hewitt, that man's foul life has been justly forfeit a
thousand times, but if it belongs to anybody it
belongs to me I "

It was terrible to see the sudden fiery change in
the old man. His lassitude was gone in a flash, his
eyes blazed and his nostrils dilated.

For a little while he sat so, his mouth awork with
passion ; then he sank back in his chair with a
sigh.

u I am getting old," he said, more quietly, " and
perhaps I am not strong enough to lose my temper.
. . . Well, as I said, Mayes was a Jamaican, a rene-
gade white. Do you remember that in the black
rebellion of 1865, there was a traitorous white man
among the negroes ? Eyre hanged a few rebels, and
rightly, but the worst creature on all that island
escaped — probably escaped by the aid of that
very white skin that should have ensured him
a greater punishment than the rest. He escaped
to Hayti. Now you have probably heard some-
thing of Hayti, and of the common state of affairs
there?"

We both had heard, and, indeed, the matter had
been particularly brought to Hewitt's notice by the
case which I have told elsewhere as " The Affair of
the Tortoise." As for me, I had read Sir Spenser
St. John's book on the black republic, and I had

THE BURNT BARN 193

been greatly impressed by the graphic picture it gives
of the horrible, blood-stained travesty of regular
government there prevailing. Nothing in the worst
of the South American Republics is to be remotely
compared to it In the worst periods there was not
a crime imaginable that could not be, and was not,
committed openly and with impunity by anybody
on the right side of the so-called "government";
and the u government" was nothing but an organised
crime in itself.

M Well/' Peytral pursued, "then I need not expa-
tiate on it, and you will understand the sort of place
that Mayes fled to, and how it suited him. He was
a man of far greater ability than any of the coarse
scoundrels in power, and he was worse than all of
them. He was not such a fool as to aim at ostensible
political power — that way generally led to assassina-
tion. He was the jackal, the contriver, the power
behind the throne, the instigator of half the devilry
set going in that unhappy place, and he profited by
it with little risk ; he was the confidential adviser
of that horrible creature Domingue. If you know
anything of Hayti you will know what that
means.

" At this time I was comparatively a young man,
and a merchant at Port-au-Prince. It was a bad
place, of course, and business was risky enough,

M

i94 THE RED TRIANGLE

but, for that very reason, profits were large, and
that was an attraction to a sanguine young man
like myself. I did very well, and 1 had thoughts
of getting out of it with what I had made. But
it was a fatal thing to be supposed wealthy in
Port-au-Prince, unless you were a villain in power,
or partner with one. I was neither, and I was
judged a suitable victim by Mayes. Not I alone,
either — no, nor even only I and my fortune.
Gentlemen, gentlemen, my poor wife, who now
lies "

Peytral's utterance failed him. He rose as if
choking, and Hewitt rose to quiet him. " Never
mind," he said, "sit quiet now. We understand.
Rest a moment"

The old man sank back in his chair, and for a little
while buried his face in his hands. Then he went
on.

44 1 needn't go into details," he said, huskily.
44 It is enough to say that every devilish engine of
force and cunning was put in operation against me.
So it came that at last, on a hint from a hanger-on
of the police-office, who had enough humanity in
him to remember a kindness he had experienced
at my hands, that we took flight in the middle of
the night — my poor wife, myself, and our three
children, with nothing in the world but our bare

THE BURNT BARN 195

lives and the clothes we wore. I might have tried
to get aboard a foreign ship in the harbour, but
I knew that would be useless. I should have been
given up on whatever criminal charge Mayes chose
to present, and my wife and children with me. I
had hope of somehow getting to San Cristobel,
where I had a friend — over the border in the other
Government of the island, the Dominican Republic.
That was eighty miles away and more, across
swamps, and forests and mountains. Well, we did it
— we did it. We did it, Mr. Hewitt, and 1 dream of it
still. They hunted us, sir — hunted us with dogs. We
hid from them a whole day among the rank weeds —
up to our shoulders in the water of a pestilential
fever-swamp ; Claire, the baby, on her mother's back,
and both the boys on mine. They died — they died
next day. My two beautiful boys, gentlemen, died
in my arms, and I was too weak even to bury
them I "

There was another long pause, and the man's
head was bowed in his hands once more. Presently
he went on again, but at first without lifting his
head.

* We did it, gentlemen," he said—" we did it. We
crawled into San Cristobel at the end of rive days ;
and from that moment my dear wife has never once
stood upright on her teet. So we came out of it,

i96 THE RED TRIANGLE

and the baby, Claire, was the one that suffered least
She was too young to understand, and her mother —
her mother saved her, when I could not save the
boysl"

He paused again, and presently sat up, pale, but
in full command of himself. u You will excuse me,
gentlemen, I am sure, and make allowances for my
feelings," he said. " There is not a great deal more
to tell. Mayes did not last long in Hayti. Domingue
was overthrown, and Mayes left the island, I was
told, and made for another part of the world. Years
afterward I heard of his being in China, though
what truth there may have been in the rumour )
cannot say.

u My friend in San Cristobel — he was a cousin, in
fact — put me on my legs again, and after a while he
helped me to begin business at San Domingo, under
my present name, Peytral, which, in fact, was my
mother's maiden name. There came a sudden push
in trade with the United States about this time, and
I went into my affairs with the more energy to dis-
tract my thoughts. In fifteen years— to cut a long
story short — I had made the small competency
which I have brought to England with me, with the
idea of a peaceful end to my life and my wife's ;
though I doubt if I am to have that now. I doubt
it, and I will tell you why. Mr. Hewitt, when I

THE BURNT BARN 197

went away without warning on Thursday night I
was dogging Mayes ! "

Hewitt nodded, with no sign of surprise. " And
the man killed in the barn ? "

44 That is one more of his thousand crimes, with-
out a doubt. Though it differs. Do you know
what drew my attention to the murders of the men
Denson and Mason, and so set me thinking ? In
each case the murder was by strangulation, and the
medical evidence at the inquests showed that it was
effected by means of a tourniquet. In fact, in
the second case, the tourniquet itself was left be-
hind."

"Yes," Hewitt replied, "I loosened it myself —
but, unfortunately, I was too late."

m Well, now," Peytral went on, 4i in Hayti, in my
time, Mayes's enemies had a habit of dying suddenly
in the night, by strangulation, and a tourniquet was
always the instrumert. And just as murder was
quite a popular procedure in that accursed place, so
strangulation by tourniquet became for a while the
most common form of the crime. It was rapid,
effective, and silent, you see. So that a murder by
tourniquet, quite an unknown thing in this country,
took my attention at once, and when another followed
it so soon, I felt something like certainty. And the
triangle was suggestive, too."

i98 THE RED TRIANGLE

"Were Mayes's victims marked in that way in
Hayti?"

" No, there was no mark. But " — here Mr.
Peytral's features assumed a curious expression —
"there are things which are not believed in this
country — which are laughed at, in fact, and called
superstition. You know something of Hayti, and
therefore you must have heard of Voodoo — the
witchcraft and devil-worship of the West Indies.
Well, Mayes was as deep in that as he was in every
other species of wickedness. It sounds foolish,
perhaps, here in civilised England, and you may
laugh, but I tell you that Mayes could make men do
as he wished, with their consent or against it 1 And
he used a thing — it was generally known that he
used a thing marked with a triangle — a Red Triangle
— by the use of which he could bend men to his
will!"

Hewitt was listening intently, with no sign of
laughter at all, notwithstanding his client's apprehen-
sion. And I remembered the case of Mr. Jacob
Mason, and how that victim had so fervently ex-
pressed his wish to the excellent clergyman, Mr.
Pots wood, that he had never dabbled in the strange
devilries of Myatt — or Mayes, as we were now learn-
ing to call him.

u At any rate," Peytral resumed, * you will under-

THE BURNT BARN 199

stand that the conjunction of the tourniquet with
the Red Triangle in the two cases you know of
caused me some excitement. My daughter, as you
have said, noticed a change in my habits from that
time ; my wife did more — she knew the reason. Mr.
Hewitt, I am an older man, but there is hotter blood
in my veins than in yours. My father was English
— though you might scarcely suppose it — but my
mother, to whose name I have reverted, was a
French Creole. So perhaps my natural instincts
come nearer to those of our savage ancestry
than do yours. Whether or not you will un-
derstand me I do not know, but I can tell you
that even now, in cold blood — for my paroxysm
has exhausted itself and me — it seems to me
that it would be my duty, not to say my sacred
duty, to tear that man to pieces with my hands
whenever and wherever I could put them on him 1
My old passions may have slept, I find, but they
are alive still, and I found them waking when
I realised that Mayes was alive and in England.
The words ' sane ' and ' insane ' are elastic in their
application, but I doubt if you would have called me
strictly sane of late. I evolved mad schemes for the
destruction of this wretch, and I was ready to devote
myself and everything I possessed to the purpose.
More than once 1 contemplated coming to you—*

too THE RED TRIANGLE

seeing that you had met the man in one of his
villainies — with the idea of enlisting your aid. But I
reflected that you would probably make yourself no
party to a plan of private revenge, and I hesitated.
And then — then, a little more than a week ago, I
saw the man himself 1 Changed, without doubt, but
not half as much changed as I am myself. Never-
theless, sure as I am of him now, I hesitated then.
For it was here in the meadow that you know, near
the barn, and the thing seemed so likely to be illusion
that I almost suspected my senses. It was dusk, and
he was walking and talking with another man, a
good deal younger. And presently, while I was still
confounded with surprise, and as they passed behind
a clump of trees, Mayes was gone, and I saw
his companion alone. He was a young man — an
artist, it would seem, with sketch-book and
colours."

I started, and Hewitt and I glanced at each other.
Peytral saw it and paused. "Never mind," said
Hewitt. " Please go on."

u After that I came out every night, in the hope
of seeing my enemy again. On several evenings I
saw the young artist waiting by the barn expectantly,
but nobody joined him. I found that this young
man was lodging at a cottage in the village, and I
resolved not to lose sight of him.

THE BURNT BARN 201

"At last, on Thursday night, I saw Mayes again.
Mr. Bowmore was here, and when I left the house
he troubled me much by coming after me. I was
obliged to tell him that I wished to be alone, and I
was in a nervously explosive state when I did it. He
seemed reluctant to go ; my anger blazed out, and I
violently ordered him off. From what he has told
me it seems that he followed me still, but lost
sight of me near Penn's Meadow. Well, be that
as it may, I saw Mayes and the young artist again.
I watched from a rather awkward spot, and
dusk was falling, so that I could not see all that
passed ; but presently I was aware that Mayes
was making off by the road alone, and I followed
him.

" From that moment I think I really was mad,
though my madness did not drive me to attack
him at once. I had a feeling of curiosity to
see where he would go, and a curious cruel idea
of letting him run for a little first — as a cat feels,
I suppose, with a mouse. You may judge that
I was not in my normal state of mind from
the fact that all through yesterday and part of
to-day I never as much as thought of telegraph-
ing home to say that I had gone to London.
For it was to London I followed him. I took no
ticket at the station— I got on the platform by

ioi THE RED TRIANGLE

stealth, and entered the train unobserved, for he
and one boy were the only passengers, and I feared
attracting attention. It was easy enough, in such
a station as Redfield, and I paid my fare at
London. And after all I lost him I Lost him in
London 1 "

* How ? "

" Like a fool. I saw him enter a house, and
waited. Followed him again, and waited at another.
I might have flung him into the river from the
Embankment, and I refrained. And then — whether
it began at a dark corner or in a group of people I
cannot tell, but I suddenly discovered that I was
following a stranger — a stranger of about Mayes's
form and stature. It was what I should have
expected, and provided for, in London streets at
night 1

" If 1 have been mad, it was then I was worst. I
suppose by that time it must have been too late to
get back home, but I never thought of that. I ran
the streets the whole night, like a fool, hunting for
Mayes. I kept on all day yesterday. I waited and
watched hours at the two houses he had visited ; and
it was not till early this morning that I flung myself
on a bed in a private hotel in Euston Road. I
slept a little, and my paroxysm was over. Per-
haps I am more fortunate than I am disposed to

THE BURNT BARN 103

think, since I am as yet in no danger of trial for
murder."

This passionate, wayward, stricken man was
plainly the object of fascinated interest to Hewitt.
My friend waited a moment, and then said — " The
houses he called at — I should like to know them.
And where you lost sight of him."

Peytral sat back, and gazed thoughtfully for fully
half a minute in Hewitt's face. " Do you know," he
said at length, "I don't think I'll answer that ques-
tion now. I'd like to leave it for a day or two.
Yesterday I wouldn't have told you, even on the
rack — no, not a word ! I should have said, ' Take
your own chances, and get him if you can. As for
me, I consider him my prey, and what scent I have
picked up I shall use myself 1 ' A mad fancy, you
will think, perhaps. For me the question is, was I
sanest then or now ? I will take a day or two to
think."

CHAPTER XV.

THE CASE OF THE BURNT BARN (CONTINUED)

In less than a day or two the identity of the victim
of the burnt barn was established. For Hewitt had
his idea, and he communicated with Pluramer, of
Scotland Yard. The man with the buttoned boots
and the sketch-book was the artist who had been
staying at the cottage in the village, but who, singu-
larly enough, had never been seen to draw, and had
left no drawings behind him. He had warned the
people of the cottage that he might be away for a
night or two, and he had stayed away for two nights
before ; so that his disappearance did not disturb
them, and when they heard that Mr. Peytral's body
had been found in the barn they accepted the news
as fact. They recognised at once a photograph pro-
duced by Plummer as that of their late lodger. And
the photograph had been procured from Messrs.
Kingsley, Bell and Dalton, the intended victims in
the bond case, and it was one of Henning, their
vanished correspondence clerk !
That his death would be convenient to Mayes, the

THE BURNT BARN 205

greater scoundrel, was plain enough. The bond
robbery had been brought to naught, thanks to
Martin Hewitt, and Henning was now useless.
Worse, he might be caught, or give himself up, and
was thus a perpetual danger. And probably he
wanted money. This being so, it was a singular fact
that at the inquest the surgeon who had examined
the wound gave it as his most positive opinion that
it had been self-inflicted. And it was inflicted with
a razor, Henning's own, as was very clearly proved
atier inquiry. For the razor was found in the barn
by the police, entangled with the blackened frame of
an old lantern. Here was still another puzzle ; one
to which the final revelation of the mystery of the
Red Triangle gave an answer, as will be seen in due
placft*

THE CASE OF THE ADMIRALTY
CODE

CHAPTER XVI.

THE CASE OF THE ADMIRALTY CODE

Quick on the heels of the case of the Burnt Ban»
followed the next of the Red Triangle affairs.
Indeed, the interval was barely two days. Mr.
Victor Peytral, it will be remembered, had declined
to reveal to Hewitt the addresses of the two houses
in London which he had seen Mayes visit, desiring
to think the matter over for a few days first ; but
before any more could be heard from him, news of
another sort was brought by Inspector Plummer.

It may give some clue to the period whereabout
the whole mystery of the Red Triangle began to b?
cleared up if I say that at the time of Plumuier1*
visit this country was on the very verge of war with
a great European State, It is a State with which
the present relations of England are of the friend-
liest description, and, since the dreaded collision was
happily averted, there is no need to particularise in
the matter now, especially as the name of the coun-
try with which we were at variance matters nothing
as regards the course of events 1 am to relate.

•

no THE RED TRIANGLE

Though most readers will recognise it at once when
I say that the war, had it come to that, would have
been a naval war of great magnitude ; and that
during the time of tension swift but quiet prepara-
tions were going forward at all naval depots, and
movements and dispositions of our fleet were
arranged that extended to the remotest parts of
the ocean.

It was at the height of the excitement, and, as I
have said, two days after the return of Hewitt and
myself from Throckham, when the case of the Burnt
Barn had been disposed of, that Detective- Inspector
Plummer called. I was in Hewitt's office at the
time, having, in fact, called in on my way to learn if
he had heard more from Mr. Victor Peytral, for, as
may be imagined, I was as eager to penetrate the
mystery of the Triangle as Hewitt himself — perhaps
more so, since Hewitt was a man inured to mysteries.
I had hardly had time to learn that Peytral had not
yet made up his mind so far as to write, when
Plummer pushed hurriedly into the room.

" Excuse my rushing in like this," he said, " but
your lad told me that it was Mr. Brett who was with
you, and the matter needs hurry. You've heard no
more of that fellow — Myatt, Hunt, Mayes, whatever
his name is last — since the barn murder, of course ?
Has Peytral given vou the tip he half promised ? "

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 211

Hewitt shook his head again. "Brett has this
moment come to ask the same question/' he said.
" I have heard nothing."

" I must have it," said Plummer, emphatically.
• Do you think he will tell me ? "

Hewitt shook his head again. " Scarcely likely,"
he said. " He's an odd fellow, this Mr. Peytral — a
foreigner, with revenge in his blood. I have done
him and his daughter some little service, and he told
me all his private history ; but he seemed even then
disposed to keep Mayes to himself and let nobody
interfere with his own vengeance. But I will wire
if you like. What is it?"

" I'll tell you," said Plummer, pushing the door
close behind him. " I'll tell you — in confidence, of
course — because you've seen more of this mysterious
rascal than I have, and — equally in confidence, of
course — Mr. Brett may heai, too, since he's been in
several of the cases already. Well, of course, we all
know well enough that we want this creature —
Mayes, we may as well call him, I suppose, now —
for three murders, at least, to say nothing of other
things. That's all very well, and we might have got
him with time. But now we want him for some-
thing else ; and it's such a thing that we must have
him at once, or else " — and Plummer pursed his lips
and snapped his fingers significantly. "We can't

ai2 THE RED TRIANGLE

wait over this, Mr. Hewitt ; we've got to have that
man to-day, if it can be done. And there's more
than ordinary depending on it. It's the country this
time. The Admiralty telegraphic code has been
stolen 1"

"By Mayes?"

Plummer shrugged his shoulders. u Thafs to be
proved/' he said ; " but he was seen leaving the
office at about the time the loss occurred, and that's
enough to set me after him ; and there's not another
clue of any sort Mr. Hewitt, I wish you were in the
official service I n

Hewitt smiled. " You flatter me," he said, u as you
have done before. But why in this case particularly ? "

"It's a case altogether out of the ordinary, and
one of a string of such, all of which you have at
your fingers' ends. And I don't mind confessing
that this man Mayes is a little too big a handful for
one — for me, at any rate. I wish you could work
with me over this; in fact, in the special circum-
stances I've a good mind to ask to have you retained,
as an exceptional measure. But the thing's urgent,
and there's red-tape 1 "

Hewitt had taken a glance at his desk tablet, which
he now flung down.

u I'll do it for love," he said, u if necessary. My
appointment list is uncommonly slack just now, and

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 113

even if it weren't, I'd make a considerable sacrifice
rather than be out of this. This fellow Mayes is a
dangerous man ; and I feel it a point of honour that
he shall not continue to escape. Moreover, I have
begun to form a certain theory as to the Red
Triangle, and all there is at the back of it — a theory
I would rather keep to myself til? I see a little more,
since as it stands it may only strike you as fantastic,
and if it is wrong it may lead some of us off the
track ; but it is a theory I wish to test to the end.
So I'm with you, Plummer, if you'll allow it ; and
you can make your official application for a special
retainer or not, just as you please."

Plummer was plainly delighted.

" Most certainly I will," he said. " Shall I give
you the heads of the case, or will you come to the
Admiralty and see for yourself ? "

"Both, I think," said Hewitt "But first I will
send a telegram to Peytral. Then you can give me
the heads of the case as we go along, and I will
look at the place for myself. I am in this case
heart and soul, pay or no pay — and I expect my
friend Brett would like to be in it, too. Is there
any objection ? "

"Well," Plummer answered, a little doubtfully,
"we're glad of outside help, of course, but I'm not
sure, officially "

li4 THE RED TRIANGLE

" Of course you arc always glad of outside help,"
Hewitt interrupted, "and in this case we may
possibly find Brett more useful than you think.
Consider now. He has seen a good deal of these
cases— quite as much as you, in fact — but he is the
only one of the three of us whom Mayes does not
know by sight. Remember, Mayes saw us both in
the affair of Mr. Jacob Mason, and he saw you
again in the case of the Lever Key — escaped, in
fact, because he instantly recognised you. I'll
answer for Brett's discretion, and I'm sure he'll be
glad to help, even if, for official reasons, you may
not find it possible to admit him wholly into your
counsels."

Of course I willingly assented, and the conditions
understood, Plummer offered no further objection.
Hewitt despatched his telegram, and in a very
few minutes we were in a cab on the way to the
Admiralty.

"This is the way of it," Plummer said. "You
will remember that when we lost Mayes at the end
of the Lever Key case, I was waiting for him in that
city office, with an assistant, and that we only saw
him for an instant in the lift. Well, that assistant
was a very intelligent man of mine, named Corder
— a fellow with a wonderful memory for a face.
Now Coi der is on another case just now, and we'd

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 215

put him on, dressed like a loafer, to hang about
Whitehall and the neighbourhood, watching for
some one we want. Well, this morning there came
an urgent message to the Yard from the Admiralty,
to ask for a responsible official at once, and I was
sent. As I came along I saw Corder lounging
about, and of course 1 took no notice — it would not
do for us people from the Yard to recognise each
other too readily in the street. But Corder came
up, and made pretence to ask me for a match to
light his pipe ; and under cover of that he told me
that he had seen Mayes not an hour before, coming
out of the Admiralty. At this, of course, I pricked
up my ears. I didn't know what they wanted me
for, but if there was mischief, and that fellow had
been there, it was likely at least that he might have
been in it Corder was quite positive that it was
the man, although he had only seen him for a
moment in the lift. He hadn't seen him go into the
Admiralty office, but he was passing as he came out,
and noted the time exactly, so that he might report
to me at the first opportunity. The time was 11.32,
and Mayes jumped into a hansom and drove off.
He walked right out into the middle of the road to
stop the hansom — you know how wide the road is
there — so that Corder couldn't hear his direction to
the cabman, but he took the number as the cab

2i6 THE RED TRIANGLE

went off. Corder ought to have collared him then
and there, I think, but he was in a difficult position.
It would have endangered the case he was on,
which is very important; and besides, he didn't
realise how much we wanted him for, having only
been brought in as an assistant at the tail of our
bond case. Still less did he guess — any more than
myself — what I was going to hear at the Admiralty
office."

"At any rate," interrupted Hewitt, "you've got
the number of the cab ? "

" Here it is/' Plummer answered, u and I've
already set a man to get hold of the cabman. You'd
better note the number — 92,873."

Hewitt duly noted the number, and advised me
to do the same, in case I should chance to meet the
cab during the afternoon ; and as we neared our
destination Plummer gave us the rest of the case in
outline.

" In the office," he said, " I found them in a great
state. A copy of the code, or cypher, in which con-
fidential orders and other messages are sent to the
fleet all over the world, and in which reports and
messages are sent back, had disappeared during the
morning. It was in charge of a Mr. Robert Telfer,
a clerk of responsibility and undoubted integrity.
He kept it in a small iron safe, which is let into the

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 217

wall of his private room. It was safe when he
arrived in the morning, and he immediately used it
in order to code a telegram, and locked it in the safe
again at 10.20. Two hours later, at 12.20, he went
to the safe for it again, in order to de-code a
message just received, and it was gone I And the
lock of the safe is one that would take hours to pick,
I should judge. There isn't a shade of a clue, so far
as I can see, except this circumstance of Mayes
being seen leaving by Corder — just between Telfer's
two visits to the safe, you perceive. And of course
there may be nothing in that, except for the
character of the man. And that's all there is to go
on, as far as I can see. I needn't tell you how
important the thing is at a time like this, and how
much would be paid for that secret code by a
certain foreign Government. We have made hurried
arrangements to have certain places watched, and
as soon as I have taken you to the office I must rush
off and make a few more arrangements still. But
here we are."

Mr. Robert Telfer's room was at the side of a long
and gloomy corridor on the upper floor, and the
door was distinguished merely by a number and the
word "Private" painted thereon. We found Mr.
Telfer sitting alone, and plainly in a state of great
nervous tension* He was a man of forty or there-

218 THE RED TRIANGLE

about, thin, alert, and using a single eye-glass.
Plummer introduced us by name, and rapidly
explained our business.

u I told you the name of the party I am after, Mr.
Telf er," Plummer said, u and I went straight to Mr.
Martin Hewitt, as being most likely to have infor-
mation of him. Mr. Hewitt, whose name you know
already, of course, is kind enough, seeing we're in a
bad pinch, and pushed for time, to come in and
give us all the help he can. Both he and his friend,
Mr. Brett, know a good deal of the doings of the
person we're after, and their assistance is likely to be
of the very greatest value. Do you mind giving
Mr. Hewitt any information he may ask ? I must
rush over to the Yard to put some other inquiries
on foot, and to set an observation or two, but I'll
be back presently."

u Certainly," Mr. Telfer answered, " I'm only too
anxious to give any information whatever — so long
as it is nothing departmentally forbidden — which will
help to put this horrible matter right Please ask
me anything, and be patient if my answers are not
very clear. I have been much overworked lately,
as you may imagine, and have had very little sleep ;
and now this terrible misfortune has upset me com-
pletely; for, of course, I am held responsible for
that copy of the code, and if it isn't recovered, and

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 219

quickly , I am ruined — to say nothing, of course, ot
the far more serious consequences in other direc-
tions."

"That is the safe in which it was kept, I pre-
sume ? " Hewitt said, indicating a small one let into
the wall. " May I examine it ? "

u Certainly." Mr. Telf er turned and produced the
keys from his pocket. " The code was here, lying
on this shelf when I needed it this morning at ten.
I took it out, used it, returned it to the same place
exactly, and locked the safe door. Then I took the
draft of the telegram, together with the copy in
cypher, into the Controller's room, gave it into safe
hands, and returned here."

Hewitt narrowly examined the lock of the safe
with his pocket lens. " There are no signs of the
lock having been picked/' he said, "even if that
were possible. As a matter of fact, this is a lock
that would take half a day to pick, even with a heavy
bag of tools. No, I don't think that was the way of
it You have no doubt about locking the safe door
at 10.20, I suppose, before you went to the Con-
troller's room ? "

"No possible doubt whatever. You see, I left the
whole bunch of keys hanging in the lock while I
coded the telegram. It was a short one, and was
soon done. Then I returned the code to its place,

220 THE RED TRIANGLE

locked the safe, and then used another key on the
bunch to lock a drawer in this desk. I had no
occasion to go to the safe again till about 12.20,
when the Controller's secretary came here with a
telegram to be de-coded. The safe was still locked
then, but when it was opened the code was gone."

u You had had no occasion to go to the safe in
the meantime ?"

u None at all. I locked it at 10.20, and I unlocked
it two hours later, and that was all."

u You were not in the room the whole of the time,
of course ? "

" Oh, no. I have told you that at 10.20 I went to
the Controller's room, and after that I went out two
or three times on one occasion or another. But
each time I locked the door of the room."

u Oh, you did ? That is important. And you
took all your keys with you, I presume ? "

" Y«, all. The keys on the bunch I took in my
pocket, of course, and the room door key I also
took. There are one or two rather important papers
on my desk, you see, and anybody from the corridor
might come in if the door were left unlocked."

" The lock of the door would be a good deal easier
to pick than that of the safe," Hewitt observed, after
examining it. " But that would be of no great use
with the safe locked. Shortly, then, the facts are

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 121

these. You locked the code safely away at 10.20,
you left the room two or three times, but each time
the door, as well as the safe, was locked, and the
keys in your pocket ; and then, at 12.20, or two
hours exactly after the code had been put safely
away, you opened the safe again in presence of the
Com roller's secretary, and the code had vanished.
That is the whole matter in brief, 1 take it ? "

" Precisely." Mr. Telfer was pallid and bewildered.
"It seems a total impossibility," he said ; "a total,
absolute, physical impossibility ; but there it is."

u But as no such thing as a physical impossibility
ever happens," Hewitt replied calmly, "we must
look further. Now, are there any other ways into
this room than by that door into the corridor ? I
see another door here. What is that ?"

u That door has been locked for ages. The room
on the other side is one like this, with a door in the
corridor ; it is used chiefly to store old documents
of no great importance, and I believe that whole
stacks of them, in bundles, are piled against the
other side of that same door. We will send fur th<
key and see, if you like."

The key was sent for, and the door from the
corridor opened. As Telfer had led us to expect
the place was full of old papers in bundles and
parcels, thick with ancient dust, and these thing*

222 THE RED TRIANGLE

were piled high against the door next his room, and
plainly had not been disturbed for months, or even
years.

u There remains the skylight/' said Hewitt, " for
I perceive, Mr. Telfer, that your room is lighted from
above, and has no window ; while the grate is a
register. There seems to be no opening in that sky-
light but the revolving ventilator. Am I right ? "

" Quite so. There is no getting in by the skylight
without breaking it, and, as you see, it has not been
broken. Certainly there are men on the roof re-
pairing the leads, but it is plain enough that nobody
has come that way. The thing is wholly inexplic-
able."

"At present, yes," Hewitt said, musingly. He
stood for a few moments in deep thought.

" Plummer is longer away than I expected," he
said presently. " By the way, what was the external
appearance of the missing code ? "

" It was nothing but a sort of thin manuscript
book, made of a few sheets of foolscap size, sewn
in a cover of thickish grey paper. I left it in the
safe doubled lengthwise, and tied with tape in the
middle."

44 Its loss is a very serious thing, of course ? "

" Oh, terribly, terribly serious, Mr. Hewitt," Telfer
replied, despairingly. 4i I am responsible, and it will

THE ADMIRALTY CODE

put an end to my career, of course. But the con-
sequences to the country are more important, and
they may be disastrous— enormously so. A great
sum would be paid for that code on the Continent,
I need hardly say."

* But now that you know it it taken, surely the
code can be changed ? "

" It's not so easy as it seems, Mr. Hewitt," Telfer
answered, shaking his head. " It means time, and I
needn't tell you that with affairs in their present
state we can't afford one moment of time. Some
expedients are being attempted, of course, but you
will understand that any new code would have to
be arranged with scattered items of the fleet in all
parts of the world, and that probably with the pre-
sent code in the hands of the enemy. Moreover,
all our messages already sent will be accessible with
very little trouble, and they contain all our
strategical coaling and storing dispositions for a
great war, Mr. Hewitt ; and they can't, they can't be
altered at a moment's notice ! Oh, it is terrible 1 . . .
But here is Inspector Plummer. No news, I sup-
pose, Mr. Plummer ? "

" Well, no," Plummer answered deliberately. " I
can't say I've any news for you, Mr. Telfer, just yet
But I want to talk about a few things to Mr.
Hewitt. Hadn't we better go and see if your

224 THE RED TRIANGLE

telegram is answered, Mr. Hewitt ? Unless you've
heard/'

"No, I haven't," Hewitt replied. "We'll go on
at once. Good-day for the present, Mr. Telfer. I
hope to bring good news when next I see you."

" I hope so, too, Mr. Hewitt, most fervently,"
Telfer answered ; and his looks confirmed his
words.

We walked in silence through the corridor, down
the stairs, and out by the gates into the street. Then
Plummer turned on his heel and faced Hewitt.

"That man's a wrong 'un," he said, abruptly,
jerking his thumb in the direction of the office we
had just left. " I'll tell you about it in the cab."

As soon as our cab was started on its way back
to Hewitt's office Plummer explained himself.

" He's been watched," he said, " has Mr. Telfer,
when he didn't know it ; and he'll be watched again
for the rest of to-day, as I've arranged. Whafs
more, he won't be allowed to leave the office this
evening till I have seen him again, or sent a message.
No need to frighten him too soon — it mightn't suit
us. But he's in it, alone or in company 1 "

" How do you know ?"

" I'll tell you. It seems the lead roofs are being
repaired at the Admiralty, and the plumbers are
walking about where they like. Now I needn't tell

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 225

you I've had a man or two fishing about among the
doorkeepers and so on at the Admiralty, and one of
them found a plumber he knew slightly, working
on the roof. That plumber happens to be no fool —
a bit smarter than the detective-constable, it seems
to me, in fact. Anyhow, he seems to have got more
out of my man than my man got out of him ; and
soon after I reached the Yard he turned up, asking
to see me. He said he'd heard that a valuable paper
was missing (he did't know what) from the room
with the skylight in the top floor, where the gentle-
man with the single eye-glass was, and where the
safe was let in the wall ; and he wanted to know
what would be the reward for anybody giving
information about it Of course I couldn't make
any promise, and I gave him to understand that he
would have to leave the amount of the reward to
the authorities, if his information was worth any-
thing ; also, that we were getting to work fast, and
that if he wished to be first to give information he'd
better be quick about it ; but I promised to make a
special report of his name and what he had to say
if it were useful. And it will be, or I'm vastly mis-
taken ! For just you see here. Our friend, Mr.
Telfer, says he put that code safely away at 10.20 in
the safe, and that he never went to the sate <tg-in
till 12.20, when the Controller's secretary was with

f

226 THE RED TRIANGLE

him; never went to it for anything whatever,
observe. Well, the plumber happened to be near
the skylight at half-past eleven, and he is prepared
to swear that he saw Mr. Telfer — ' the gent with the
eye-glass,' as he calls him — go to the safe, unlock it,
take out a grey paper, folded lengthwise, with red
tape round it, re-lock the safe, and carry that paper
out into the corridor I The plumber was kneeling
by a brazier, it seems, which was close by the sky-
light, and he is so certain of the time because he
was regulating his watch by Westminster Hall clock,
and compared it when the half-hour struck, which
was just while Telfer was absent in the corridor with
the paper. He was only gone a second or two, and
you will remember that Corder saw Mayes leaving
the premises within two minutes of that time 1 "

"Yes!"

" Well, Telfer was back in a second or two, with-
out the paper, and went on with his affairs as before.
That's pretty striking, eh ? "

'* Yes," Hewitt answered thoughtfully, " it is."

" It was a sort of shot in the dark on the part of
the plumber, for he knew nothing else — nothing
about Telfer legitimately having the keys of the safe,
nor any of the particulars we have been told. He
merely knew that a paper was missing, and having
seen a paper taken out of the safe he got it into his

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 227

head that he had possibly witnessed the theft ; and
he kept his knowledge to himself till he could see
somebody in authority. Mighty keen, too, about a
reward I"

" And now you are having Telfer supervised ? "
"I am. Not that we're likely to get the code
from him ; that's passed out, sure enough, in
Mayes's hands — or else his pockets,"

To this confident expression of opinion Hewitt
offered no reply, and presently we alighted at his
office, eager to learn if Peytral had given the
information Hewitt so much desired. Sure enough
a telegram was there, and it ran thus :

" On the night you know of, Mayes went first to
37 Raven Street, Blackfriars, then to 8 Norbury
Row, Barbican. Message follows."

44 Now we're at work," Hewitt said, briskly, u and
for a while we part. I shall make a few changes
of dress, and go to take a look at 37 Raven Street,
Blackfriars. Will you two go on to Norbury Row ?
You'll have to be careful, Plummer, and not show
yourself. That is where Brett will be useful, since
he isn't known ; if anybody is to be seen let it be
him. I shall be very careful myself — though I shall
have some little disguise ; and I fancy I shall not
be so likely to be seen as you."

228 THE RED TRIANGLE

44 What are we to do ? " I asked.

u Well, of course, if you see Mayes in the open,
grab him instantly. I needn't tell Plummer that.
I think Plummer would naturally seize him on the
spot, rush him off to the nearest station and go
back with enough men to clear out No. 8 Nor-
bury Row. If you don't see him you'll keep an
observation, according to Plummer's discretion.
But, unless some exceptional chance occurs, I
hope you won't go rushing in till we communicate
with each other — we must work together, and I
may have news. My instinct seems to tell me that
yours is the right end of the stick, at Barbican.
But we must neglect nothing, and that is why I
want you to hold on there while I make the
necessary examination at the other end. Do you
know this Norbury Row, Plummer ? "

" I think I know every street and alley in the
City," Plummer answered. " There is a very good
publican at the corner of Norbury Row, who's been
useful to the police a score of times. He keeps his
eyes open, and I shall be surprised if he can't give
us some information about No. 8, anyhow. Moon's
his name, and the house is 'The Compasses.' I
shall go there first. And if you've any message to
send, send it through him. I'll tell him."

On the stairs Plummer and I encountered another

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 229

of his assistants. * I've got the cab, sir," he reported.
44 Waiting outside now. Took up a fare in White-
hall, opposite the Admiralty, and drove him to
Charterhouse Street ; got down just by the Meat
Market. That's all the man seems to know."

Plummer questioned the cabman, and found that
as a matter of fact that was all he did know. So,
telling him to wait to take us our little journey, we
returned and reported his information to Hewitt.

44 Just as I expected," he said, quietly. " Re
stopped the cab a bit short of his destination, of
course, — just as you will, no doubt. There's not a
great deal in the evidence, but it confirms my idea."

CHAPTER XVII.

THE CASE OF THE ADMIRALTY CODE (CONTINUED)

We followed Mayes's example by stopping the cab
in Charterhouse Street, and walking the short
remaining distance to Barbican. Norbury Row
was an obscure street behind it, at the corner of
which stood "The Compasses," the public-house
which Plummer had mentioned. We did not ven-
ture to show ourselves in Norbury Row, but
hastened into the nearest door of u The Compasses/'
which chanced to be that of the private bar.

A stout, red-faced, slow-moving man with one
eye and a black patch, stood behind the bar.
Plummer lifted his finger and pointed quickly toward
the bar-parlour ; and at the signal the one-eyed man
turned with great deliberation and pulled a catch
which released the door of that apartment, close at
our elbows. We stepped quickly within, and pre-
sently the one-eyed man came rolling in by the
other door.

u Well, good art'noon, Mr. Plummer, sir," he said,

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 231

with a long intonation and a wheeze. " Good art'-
noon, sir. You've bin a stranger lately."

u Good afternoon, Mr. Moon," Plummer answered,
briskly. "We've come for a little information, my
friend and I, which I'm sure you'll give us if you
can.

"All the years I've been knowed to the police,"

answered Mr. Moon, slower and wheezier as he

went on, "I've alius give 'em all the information

I could, an' thaf s a fact. Ain't it, Mr. Plummer ? "

" Yes, of course, and we don't forget it. What we

want now "

" Alius tell 'em what — ever I knows," rumbled Mr.
Moon, turning to me, " alius ; an' glad to do it, too.
'Cause why ? Ain't they the police ? Very well
then, I tells 'em. Alius tells 'em 1 "

Plummer waited patiently while Mr. Moon stared
solemnly at me after this speech. Then, when the
patch slowly turned in my direction and the eye in
his, he resumed, " We want to know if you know
anything about No. 8 Norbury Row ? "

"Number eight," Mr. Moon mused, gazing
abstractedly out of the window ; " num — ber eight.
Ground-floor, Stevens, packing-case maker; first-
floor, Hurt, agent in fancy-goods ; second-floor,
dunno. Name o' Richardson, bookbinder, on the
door, but thaf s bin there five or six year now,

232 THE RED TRIANGLE

and it ain't the same tenant. Richardson's dead,
an' this one don't bind no books as I can see. I
don't even remember seein' him very often. Tallish,
darkish sort o' gent he is, and don't seem to have
many visitors. Well, then there's the top-floor — but
I s'pose it's the same tenant. Richardson used to
have it for his workshop. That's all."

" Have you got a window we can watch it from ? "

Mr. Moon turned ponderously round and without
a word led the way to the first floor, puffing enor-
mously on the stairs.

44 You can see it from the club-room," he said at
length, 4i but this 'ere little place is better."

He pushed open a door, and we entered a small
sitting-room. u Thaf s the place," he said, pointing.
"There's a new packing-case a-standing outside
now."

Norbury Row presented an appearance common
enough in parts of the city a little way removed from
the centre. A street of houses that once had
sheltered well-to-do residents had gradually sunk in
the world to the condition of tenement-houses, and
now was on the upward grade again, being let in
floors to the smaller sort of manufacturers, and to such
agents and small commercial men as required cheap
offices. No. 8 was much like the rest. A packing-case
maker had the ground-floor, as Moon had said, and a

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 233

token of his trade, in the shape of a new packing-case,
stood on the pavement. The rest of the building
showed nothing distinctive.

"There y'are, gents," said Mr. Moon, "if you
want to watch, you're welcome, bein' the p'lice,
which I alius does my best for, alius. But you'll
have to excuse me now, 'cos o' the bar."

Mr. Moon stumped off downstairs, leaving Plummer
and myself watching at the window.

" Your friend the publican seems very proud of
helping the police,* I remarked.

Plummer laughed. "Yes," he said, "or at any
rate, he is anxious we shan't forget it You see, if s
in some way a matter of mutual accommodation.
We make things as easy as possible for him on
licensing days, and as he has a pretty extensive
acquaintance among the sort of people we often want
to get hold of, he has been able to show his gratitude
very handsomely once or twice."

The house on which our eyes were fixed was a little
too far up the street for us to see perfectly through
the window of the second-floor, though we could
see enough to indicate that it was furnished as an
office. We agreed that the unknown second-floor
tenant was more likely to be our customer, or con-
nected with him, than either of the others. Still, we
much desired a nearer view, and presently, since the

234 THE RED TRIANGLE

coast seemed clear, Plummer anounced his intention
of taking one.

He left me at the post of observation, and pre-
sently I saw him lounging along on the other side
of the way, keeping close to the houses, so as to
escape observation from the upper windows. He
took a good look at the names on the door-post of
No. 8, and presently stepped within.

I waited five or six minutes, and then saw him
returning as he had come.

H It's the top floors we want," he said, when he
rejoined me in Mr. Moon's sitting-room. "The
packing-case maker is genuine enough, and very
busy. So is the fancy-goods agent I went in,
seeing the door wide open, and found the agent, a
little, shop-walkery sort of chap, hard at work with
his clerk among piles of cardboard boxes. I wouldn't
go further, in case I were spotted. Do you think
you'd be cool enough to do it without arousing sus-
picion ? Mayes doesn't know you, you see. What
do you think ? We don't want to precipitate matters
till we hear from Hewitt, but on the other hand I
don't want to sit still as long as anything can be
ascertained. You might ask a question about book-
binding."

44 Of course," I said. * If you will let me I'll go at
once — glad of the chance to get a peep. I'll bespeak

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 235

a quotation for binding and lettering a thousand
octavos in paste grain, on behalf of some convenient
firm of publishers. That would be technical enough,
I think?"

I took my hat and walked out as Plummer had
done, though, of course, I approached the door of
No. 8 with less caution. The packing-case maker's
men were hammering away merrily, and as I mounted
the stairs I saw the little fancy-goods agent among
his cardboard boxes, just as Plummer had said. The
upper part of the house was a silent contrast to the
busy lower floors, and as I arrived at the next land-
ing I was surprised to see the door ajar.

I pushed boldly in, and found myself alone in a
good-sized room plainly fitted as an office. There
were two windows looking on the street, and one at
the back, more than half concealed behind a ground
glass partition or screen. I stepped acrcss and
looked out of this window. It looked on a narrow
space, or well, of plain brick wall, containing nothing
but a ladder, standing in one corner. And the only
other window giving on this narrow square space
was in the opposite wall, but much lower, on the
ground level.

I saw these things in a single glance, and then I
turned — to find myself face to face with a tallish,
thin, active man, with a pale, shaven, ascetic face,

236 THE RED TRIANGLE

dark hair, and astonishingly quick glittering black
eyes. He stood just within the office door, to which
he must have come without a sound, looking at me
with a mechanical smile of inquiry, while his eyes
searched me with a portentous keenness.

lt Oh," I said, with the best assumption of careless-
ness I could command, u I was looking for you, Mr.
Richardson. Do you care to give a quotation for
binding at per thousand crown octavo volumes in
paste grain, plain, with lettering on back ? "

" No," answered the man with the eyes, " I don't ;
I'm afraid my carelessness has led you into a mis-
take. I am not Richardson the bookbinder. He
was my predecessor in this office, and I have neg-
lected to paint out his name on the doorpost."

I hastened to apologise. H I am sorry to have in-
truded," I said. " I found the door ajar and so came
in. You see the publishing season is beginning, and
our regular binders are full of work, so that we have
to look elsewhere. Good-day 1 "

u Good-day," the keen man responded, turning to
allow me to pass through the door. " I'm sorry I
cannot be of service to you — on this occasion."

From first to last his eyes had never ceased to
search me, and now as I descended the stairs I
could feel that they were fixed on me still.

I took a turn about the houses, in order not to be

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 237

observed going direct to "The Compasses/' and
entered that house by way of the private bar, as
before*

"That is Mayes, and no other," said Plummer,
when I had made my report and described the man
with the eyes. " I've seen him twice, once with his
beard and once without. The question now is,
whether we hadn't best sail in straight away and
collar him. But there's the window at the back, and
a ladder, I think you said. Can he reach it ?"

44 1 think he might — easily."

"And perhaps there's the roof, since he's got the
top floor too. Not good enough without some men
to surround the house. We must go gingerly over
this. One thing to find out is, what is the building
behind ? Ah, how I wish Mr. Hewitt were here
now ! If we don't hear from him soon we must
send a message. But we mustn't lose sight of No. 8
for a moment"

There was a thump at the sitting-room door, and
Mr. Moon came puffing in and shouldered himself
confidentially against Plummer. " Bloke down-
stairs wants to see you," he said, in a hoarse grunt
that was meant for a low whisper. 44 Twigged you
outside, I think, an' says he's got somethink partickler
to tell yer. I believe 'e's a 4 nark ' ; I see him with
one o' youi chaps the othet day."

138 THE RED TRIANGLE

* I'll go," Plummer said to me hurriedly, " Plainly
somebody's spotted me in the street, and I may as
well hear him."

I knew very well, of course, what Moon meant by
a 'nark.' A 'nark' is an informer, a spy among
criminals who sells the police whatever information
he can scrape up. Could it be possible that this man
had anything to tell about Mayes ? It was scarcely
likely, and I made up my mind that Plummer was
merely being detained by some tale of a petty local
crime.

But in a few minutes he returned with news of
import. "This fellow is most valuable," he said.
"He knows a lot about Mayes, whom, of course, he
calls by another name ; but the identity's certain.
He saw me looking in at No. 8, he says, and guessed
I must be after him. He seems to have wondered
at Mayes's mysterious movements for a long time,
and so kept his eye on him and made inquiries. It
seems that Mayes sometimes uses a back way, through
the window you saw on the opposite side of the
little area, by way of that ladder you mentioned. If s
quite plain this fellow knows something, from the
particulars about that ladder. He wants half a
sovereign to show me the way through a stable
passage behind and point out where our man can
be trapped to a certainty. IfU be a cheap ten

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 239

shillingsworth, and we mustn't waste time. II
Hewitt comes, tell him not to move till I come
back or send a message, which I can easily do
by this chap I'm going with. And be sure to keep
your eye on the front door of No. 8 while I'm gone."

The thing had begun to grow exciting, and the
fascination of the pursuit took full possession of my
imagination. I saw Plummer pass across the end
of the street in company with a shuffling, out-at-
elbows-looking man with dirty brown whiskers, and
I set myself to watch the door of the staircase by
the packing-case maker's with redoubled attention,
hoping fervently that Mayes might emerge, and so
give me the opportunity of capping the extraordinary
series of occurrences connected with the Red Triangle
by myself seizing and handing him over to the
police.

So I waited and watched for something near
another quarter of an hour. Then there came
another thump at the door, and once more I beheld
Mr. Moon.

" Man askin' for you in the bar, sir," he said.

" Asking for me?" I asked, a little astonished.
* By name ? "

u Mr. Brett, 'e said, sir. He's the same chap, you
know. He's got a message from Inspector Plum-
mer, 'e says."

140 THE RED TRIANGLE

"May he come up here?* I asked, mindful of
maintaining my watch.

m Certainly, sir, if you like. Ill bring him."

Presently the shuffling man with the dirty whiskers
presented himself. He was a shifty, villainous-look-
ing fellow of middle height, looking a " nark " all
over. He pulled off his cap and delivered his
message in a rum-scented whisper. u Inspector
Plummer says the front way don't matter now," he
said. u 'E can cop 'im fair the other way if you'll
go round to him at once. If Mr. Martin Hewitt's
here 'e'd rather 'ave 'im, but on'y one's to come
now."

Naturally, I thought, Plummer would prefer
Hewitt ; but in this case I should for once be ahead
of my friend, and have the pleasure of relating the
circumstances of the capture to him, instead of
listening, as usual, to his own quiet explanations of
the manner in which the case had been brought to
a successful issue. So I took my hat and went.

u Best let me go in front," whispered the u nark."
"You bein' a toff might be noticed." It was a
reasonable precaution, and I followed him ac-
cordingly.

We went a little way down Barbican, and pre-
sently, taking a very narrow turning, plunged into a
cluster of alleys, through which, however, I could

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 241

plainly perceive that our way lay in the direction of
the back of the house in Norbury Row. At length
my guide stopped at what seemed a stable yard,
pushed open a wicket gate, and went in, keeping the
gate open for me to follow.

It was, indeed, a stable yard, littered with much
straw, which the " nark " carefully picked to walk on
as noiselessly as possible, motioning me to do the
same. It was a small enough yard, and dark, and
when my guide very carefully opened the door of a
stable I saw that that was darker still.

He pushed the door wide so as to let a little light
fall on another door which I now perceived in the
brick wall which formed the side of the stable.
After listening intently for a moment at this door,
the guide stepped back and favoured me with another
puff of rum and a whisper. u There's no light in
that there passage," he said, "an' we'd better not
strike one. I'll catch hold of your hand."

He pulled the stable door to, and took me by the
hand. I heard the inner door open quietly, and we
stepped cautiously forward. We had gone some five
or six yards in the darkness when I felt something
cold touch the wrist of the hand by which I was
being led. There was a loud click, my hand was
dropped, and I felt my wrist held fast, while I could
hear my late guide shuffling away in the darkness.

%

a4a THE RED TRIANGLE

I could not guess whether to cry out or remain
quiet. I called after the man in a loud whisper,
but got no answer. I used my other hand to feel
at my right wrist, and found that it was clipped in
one of a pair of handcuffs, the other being locked in
a staple in the wall. I tugged my hardest to
loosen this staple, but it held firm. The thing had
been so sudden and stealthy that I scarce had
time to realise that I was in serious danger, and
that, doubtless, Pluramer had preceded me, when a
light appeared at an angle ahead. It turned the
corner, and I perceived, coming toward me, carry-
ing a lamp, the pale man of the eyes, whom I had
encountered not an hour before — in a word, Mayes.

His eyes searched me still, but he approached
me with a curiously polite smile.

"No, Mr. Brett," he said, "my name is not
Richardson, and I am not a bookbinder. Not that
I am particular about such a thing as a name, for
you have heard of me under more than one
already, and you are quite at liberty to call me
Richardson if you like. I am sorry to have to talk
to you in this uncomfortable place, but the circum-
stances are exceptional. But, at least, I should give
you a chair."

He stepped back a little way and pressed a bell-
button. Presently the fellow who had decoyed me

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 243

there appeared, and Mayes ordered h*m to bring me
a chair at once, which he did, with stolid obedience.
I sat in it, so that my wrist rested at somewhere
near the level of my shoulder.

" Mr. Brett," Mayes pursued, when his man was
gone, " I am not so implacable a person as you
perhaps believe me ; in fact, I can assure you that
my disposition is most friendly."

" Then unfasten this handcuff," I said.

" I am sorry that that is a little precaution I find
it necessary to take till we understand each other
better. I am glad to see you, Mr. Brett, though I am
sure you will not think me rude if I say that I should
have preferred Mr. Martin Hewitt in your place. But
perhaps his turn will come later. I have a proposition
to make, Mr. Brett. I should like you to join me."

"To join you?"

u Exactly." He nodded pleasantly. * You needn't
shrink ; I shan't ask you to do anything vulgar, or
even anything that, with your present prejudices, you
might consider actively criminal. You can help me,
you see, in your own profession as a journalist ; and
in other ways. And my enterprise is greater than
you may imagine. Join me, and you shall be a great
man in an entirely new sphere. A small matter of
initiation is necessary, and that is all. You have only
to consent to that"

244 THE RED TRIANGLE

I said nothing.

" Ypu seem reluctant Well, perhaps it is natural,
in your present ignorance. This is no vulgar
criminal organisation that I have, understand. I
have taken certain measures to provide myself with
the necessary tools in the shape of money, and so
forth, but my aims are larger than you suspect —
perhaps larger than you can understand. And I
work with a means more wonderful than you have
experience of. For instance, here is to-day's work.
You know about the lost Naval Code, of course — it
is what you came about. That document is now
lying in the desk you stood by in the room where we
spoke of paste grain book covers and the like. It
was there then at your elbow. It will be sold for
many thousands of pounds by to-morrow, and all the
puny watchings and dodgings that have been devised
cannot prevent it The money will go to aid me
in the attainment of the power of which you may
have a part, if you wish. The means of attaining
this I scruple no more about than you did to-day
about the story of the bookbindings." He bowed
with a slight smile and went on.

* Come now, Mr. Brett, put aside your bourgeois
prejudices and join me. Your friend Plummer is
coming gladly, I feel sure, and he will be useful, too.
And from what I have seen from Mr. Martin Hewitt,

THE ADMIRALTY CODE a4j

I have no doubt I can make it right with him. If
I can't it will be very bad for him, I can assure
you ; you have heard and seen something of my
powers, and I need say no more. But Hewitt is a
man of sense, and will come in, of course, and you
had better come with your friends. I want one or
two superior men. Mason — you know about Jacob
Mason, of course — Mason was a fool, and he was
lost — inevitably. The others" — he made a gesture
of contempt — " they are mere vulgar tools. They
will have their rewards if they are faithful, of
course ; if not — well, you remember Denson in the
Samuel diamond business? He was not faithful,
and there was an end of him. I may tell you that
Denson was made an example, for one was needed.
I assigned him a certain operation, and, having
brought it to success, he endeavoured to embezzle
—did embezzle — the proceeds. He was made a con-
spicuous example, in a most conspicuous public
place, to impress the others. They didn't know him,
but they knew well enough what the Red Triangle
meant ! Ah, my excellent recruit — for so I count
you already — there is more in that little sign than
you can imagine 1 It is more than a sign — it is an
implement of very potent power ; and you shall
learn its whole secret in that little form of initiation
I spoke of. See now, a present example. Telfer,

246 THE RED TRIANGLE

the Admiralty clerk, gave up that document at my
mere spoken word. He will deny it to his dying
day, and he will be ruined for the act ; but he gave
me the paper himself, at my mere order. If he
were one of my own — if he had passed through the
initiation I offer you, I would have protected him ;
as it is, he must take his punishment, and though
it is only I who will benefit, he will still deny the
fact ! Ha ! Mr. Brett, do you begin to perceive that
I do not boast when I tell of powers beyond your
understanding ? "

Truly I was amazed, though I could not half
understand. The circumstances of the loss of the
Admiralty code had been so inexplicable, and now
these incredible suggestions of the prime actor in the
matter were more mysterious still.

u Ha 1 you are amazed," he went on, " but if you
will come further into my counsels I will amaze
you more. What are you now ? A drudge of a
journalist, and if ever you make a thousand a year to
feed yourself with you will be lucky. Come to me
and you shall be a man of power. There is a
place beyond the sea where I may be king, and you
a viceroy. Don't think I am raving ! It is true
enough that I am an enthusiast, but I have power,
power to do anything I please, I tell you ! What
are the greatest powers among men on this earth t

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 247

Some will say the pen, or the sword, or love, or what
not. Men of the world . will say, money and lies ;
and they will be very nearly right. Money and lies
will move continents, but I have one greater
power still — the very apex of the triangle ! That
power I revealed to Jacob Mason. He thought
to betray it, and it killed him. That power I will
reveal to you, if you will accept the alternative I
offer."

"The alternative?"

u Yes, the alternative, for an alternative it is, of
course. If you will go through the form of initia-
tion, I shall keep you here a little till I can trust you
— which will be very soon. But if not — well, Mr.
Brett, I wish to be as friendly as you please, but
having been at the trouble of catching you, and
having got you here safely, you who know so much
now, you who could be so dangerous if you ever
got away — eh ? Well, you know my methods, and
you have seen them exemplified, and you will
understand."

There was no anger in his voice as he uttered this
threat, nor even, I thought, in his eyes. But what
there was was worse.

"But I'm sure you will not make things un-
pleasant," he concluded. " You will go through the
little form I have arranged, if only for curiosity.

248 THE RED TRIANGLE

Just think over it for a moment, while 1 go to close
my little office."

He took the lamp and turned away, but as he
reached the angle of the passage, there came a sound
that checked his steps. I could hear a noise of feet
and hurried voices, and then suddenly arose a shout
in a voice which seemed to be Plummets. u Here V
it cried. " Help I This way, Hewitt 1 Brett ! "

I shouted back at the top of my voice, wondering
where Plummer was, and what it might all mean.
And with that Mayes turned, and I saw that he was
about to make for the door I had entered by. I
resolved he should not pass me if I could prevent
it, and I sprang up and seized my chair in my left
hand, shouting aloud for help as I did so.

Mayes came with a bound, and flung his lighted
lamp full at my head. It struck the chair and
smashed to a thousand pieces, and in that instant of
time Mayes was on me. Plainly he had no weapon,
or he would have used it ; but I was at disadvantage
enough, with my right wrist chained to the wall. I
clung with all my might, and endeavoured to swing
my enemy round against the wall in order that I
might clasp my hands about him, and I shouted my
loudest as I did it. But the chair and the broken
glass hampered me, and Mayes was desperate. The
agony in my right wrist was unbeuiable, and just

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 249

as I was conscious of a rush of approaching feet
a heavy blow took me full in the face, and I felt
Mayes rush over me while I fell and hung from

the wrist.

I had a stunned sense of lights and voices
and general contusion, and then I remembered
nothing.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE CASE OF THE ADMIRALTY CODE (CONTINUED)

I Came to myself on the floor of a lighted room,
with Hewitt's face over mine. My wrist seemed
broken, though it was free, there was oil and blood
on my clothes, and in my left hand I still gripped a
piece of Mayes's coat.

" Stop him 1 " I cried. " He's gone by the stable !
Have they got him ? "

"No good, Brett," Hewitt answered soberly.
"You did your best, but he's gone, and Peytral
after him ! "

"Peytral?"

"Yes. He brought his own message to town.
But see if you can stand up."

I was well enough able to do that, and, indeed, I
had only fainted from the pain of the strain on my
wrist. Several policemen were in the room, beside
Hewitt and Plummer. Mayes's stronghold was in
the hands of his enemies.

Then 1 suddenly remembered.

" The Admiralty code I " I cried, « It was in the
office desk. Have you got it ? "

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 251

"No," Hewitt answered. "Come, Plummer, up
the ladder 1 "

Little time was lost in forcing Mayes's desk, and
there the document was found, grey cover, red tape
and all intact. The police were left to make a
vigorous search for any possible copy, and the
original was handed to Plummer, as chief repre-
sentative of the law present. He had been trapped
precisely as I had been, except that he had been led
further, and shut in a cellar as well as fastened by
the wrist. Mayes, it seemed, had wasted very little
time in attempting to pervert him, and I have no
doubt that, whatever fate might have been reserved
for me, Plummer would never have left the place
alive had it not been for the timely irruption of
Hewitt, with Peytral and the police.

In half an hour Peytral returned. He had dashed
out in chase of the fugitive, but failed even to see
him — lost him wholly in the courts, in fact. For
some little while he persevered, but found it useless.

The dirty-whiskered man made no attempt to
escape, though there was talk of another man having
got away in the confusion by way of the stable roof.
The police were left in charge of the place, and we
deferred a complete exploration till the next day.

Hewitt's tale was simple enough. He had endued
himself in somewhat seedy clothes, and had visited

251 THE RED TRIANGLE

37 Raven Street, Blackfriars, which he found to be
merely a tenement house. It took some time to
make inquiries there, with the necessary caution,
because of the number of lodgers ; and then the in-
quiries led to nothing. It was an experience common
enough in his practice, but none the less an annoy-
ing delay, and when he returned to his office he
found Mr. Peytral already awaiting him. Peytral
described his following of Mayes at much greater
length and detail than before, and he and Hewitt
had come on to Norbury Row at once and asked
news of Mr. Moon.

Mr. Moon's description of the successive disap-
pearances of Plummer and myself, and of our con-
tinued absence, so aroused Hewitt's suspicions that
he instantly procured help from the nearest station,
and approached the door of Mayes's office. A knock
being unanswered, the door was instantly broken in.
The room was found to be unoccupied, but the
ladder was still standing at the open window, by
which Mayes had descended to the back premises.
Down this ladder Hewitt went, with the police after
him. The rest I had seen myself.

u But what," I said, u what is this mystery T Why
did Telfer give up the code, and what is the power
that Mayes talks of t*

" It is a power," replied Hewitt, "that I have

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 253

suspected for some time, and now I am quite sure
of it. A secret, dangerous and terrible power which
I have encountered before, though never before
have I known its possibilities carried so far. It is
hypnotism 1 "

u Hypnotism !" I exclaimed. "But can a person
be hypnotised against his will ?"

44 In a sense, in most cases, he cannot. That is
the explanation of Mayes's proposals to you to go
through a 'form of initiation/ If you had con-
sented, the 'form' would have been a process of
hypnotism. Once or twice repeated, and you would
have been wholly under his control, so that if he
willed it and forbade you, you could tell nothing of
what he wished kept secret, and you would have
committed any crime he might suggest. Consider
poor Jacob Mason I Remember how he struggled
to tell what he knew, oppressed by the horror of it,
and how it all ended ! And remember Henning the
clerk, Mayes's tool in that case of bond robbery I
What has happened to him ? He committed suicide,
as you know, immediately after Mayes had left htm
at the barn. Brett, this power of hypnotism, a
power for healing in the hands of a good man,
may become a terrible power for evil in the hands
of a villain I "

44 But Telfer, to-day ? He seems to have known

254 THE RED TRIANGLE

nothing of Mayes, and he was not one of his regular
creatures — Mayes himself told me so."

" About that I don't know. But I expect we shall
find that he has been willingly hypnotised at some
time or another, perhaps more than once, by this
same scoundrel Mayes. Possibly in one of Mayes's
appearances in respectable society, at an evening
party, or the like. In a case of that sort the hypno-
tist may impress a certain formula — a word, a name,
or a number — on the subject's mind, by the repeti-
tion of which, at any future time, that same subject
may be instantly hypnotised. So that, once having
become hypnotised, on any innocent occasion, the
subject is in the power of the hypnotist, more or
less, ever after. The hypnotist says : ' When I
repeat such and such a sentence or number to you
in future, you will be hypnotised/ and hypnotised
the subject duly is, instantly. Supposing such a case
in this matter of Mr. Telfer, it would only be neces-
sary for Mayes to meet him in the corridor, repeat
his formula and command the victim to bring out
the paper he specified. This done he could
similarly order him to forget the whole transaction,
and this the victim would do, infallibly."

It is only necessary to say here, parenthetically,
that later inquiry proved the truth of Hewitt's sup-
position. Twice or three times Mr. Telfer had been

THE ADMIRALTY CODE 255

hypnotised in a friend's chambers, by a plausible
tall man whose acquaintance his host had made at
some public scientific gathering. And in the end it
became possible to identify this man with Mayes.

Mr. Moon, of u The Compasses," was of great com-
fort to me that evening. My cuts and bruises were
washed in his house, and my inner man revived
with his food and drink.

" Alius glad to oblige the p'lice," said Mr. Moon ;
* alius. 'Cos why ? Aiii't they the p'lice ? Very
well then I"

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL
MARSH

CHAPTER XIX.

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL MARSH

Mayes's stronghold was taken, but Mayes had
escaped us once again ; the cage was in our hands,
but the bird had flown.

Martin Hewitt, however, had his plans, as he was
soon to show. The recovery of the Admiralty code
was a good stroke, and was a satisfactory ending to
an important case ; but that, and even the capture
of the curious premises behind the Barbican, made
but a halting-place in his pursuit of Mayes, and as
soon as I was in some degree recovered from my
struggle, and the captured place had been hastily
searched, the chase was resumed without a moment's
delay ; and that adventure was entered upon which
saw the end of the Red Triangle and its unholy
doings — which came terribly near to seeing the end
of Hewitt himself, in fact

I have not described the den near the Barbican
with any great particularity, but I have said that the
office, accessible from the open street, was only
connected with the hidden premises behind —

a6o THE RED TRIANGLE

premises, as was afterwards discovered, held under
a separate tenancy — by an easily-shifted ladder. It
was in these hidden premises, approached by the
maze of courts and the stable-yard, that the main
evidences of Mayes's way of life were observable.
The passage where my wrist had been locked to the
wall, and the room or cellai in which Plummer
had been confined, were the only parts of the
lower premises fitted for the detention of pri-
soners, with the exception of one very low and
wholly unlighted cellar, entered by a trap-door
and a very steep flight of brick steps. This
place smelt horribly faint and stagnant ; but it
produced on my mind, both then and when I
examined it later, an effect of horror and repul-
sion more than could be accounted for by the
smell alone. Of its history nothing was dis-
covered, and perhaps the feeling (though others
experienced it as well as myself) was the effect of
mere fancy ; but 1 have never got rid of a conviction
that that black cellar, or rather pit — for it was very
narrow — had been the instrument of crimes never
to be told.

There were one or two rooms sparely furnished —
one as a bedroom, a larger room, with a long table,
a sofa, and several chairs ; and in one of the smaller
rooms was found a stove, ladles and crucibles for

CHANNEL MARSH 261

the melting down of metals — gold or silver. It was
in this same room also that the table stood, in the
drawers of which were found papers, letters and
formulas— things giving more than a hint of the use
to which Mayes had put his friendship with Mr.
Jacob Mason, for of every possible manner and
detail in which science — more particularly the
science of chemistry — could aid in the commis-
sion of crime, there were notes in these same
drawers.

But most of these things were observed in detail
later. The thing that set us once more on the
trail of Mayes, that very night and that very
hour, was found in the isolated office facing the
street It was a cheque-book, quite full of unused
cheques.

"This cheque-book,* said Hewitt to Inspector
Plummer and myself, "was in the drawer below
that in which we discovered the Admiralty code.
The Eastern Consolidated is the bank, as you see —
Upper Holloway branch. Now we must follow this
at once, before waiting to search any further. There
may be something more important as a clue, or there
may not, but at any rate, while we are looking for
it we are losing time. This may bring us to him at

once."

You mean that he may have some address in

262 THE RED TRIANGLE

Holloway," suggested Plummer, "and we may get
it from the bank?"

44 There's that possibility, and another," Hewitt
answered. "He has had to bolt without warning or
preparation, with nothing but the clothes he ran in
— probably very little money. Money he will want
at once, and he would rather not wait till the
morning to get it ; if he can get it at once it will
mean thirteen or fourteen hours' start at least.
More, he will know very well that this place will
be searched, that this cheque-book will be discovered
soon enough, and that consequently the bank will
be watched. This is what he will do — what he is
doing now, very likely. He will knock up the
resident manager of that bank and try to get a
cheque cashed to-night I don't think that can be
done ; in which case he will probably try to make
some arrangement to have money sent him. Either
way, we must be at the Upper Hollo way branch of
the Eastern Consolidated Bank as soon as a hansom
can get us there."

Thus it was settled, and Hewitt and Plummer
went off at once, leaving Plummer's men, with the
City police, in charge of the raided premises ; leaving
some of them also to make inquiries in the neigh-
bourhood. Mr. Victor Peytral had shown himself
anxious to accompany Hewitt and Plummer, but

CHANNEL MARSH 263

had been dissuaded by Hewitt. I guessed that
Hewitt feared that some hasty indiscretion on the
part of this terribly wronged man might endanger
his plans. Peytral, however, seemed tractable
enough, and left immediately after them ; he had
business, he said, which he expected would occupy
him for a day or two, and when it was completed
he would see us again.

As for myself I only remained long enough to
ascertain that the police could find no trace of the
direction of Mayes's flight in the immediate neigh-
bourhood. They had little to aid them. He had
gone without a hat, and his dress was in some degree
disordered by his struggle with me ; but the latter
defect he might easily have remedied in the courts
as he ran, and they could gather no tidings of a
hatless man. So I took my way to my office, my
wrist growing stiffer and more painful as I went, so
that I was not sorry to arrange for another member
of the staff to take my duty for the night, and to get
to bed a few hours earlier than usual, after the day's
fatigue and excitement

CHAPTER XX.

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL MARSH (CONTINUED)

Going to bed uncommonly soon I woke corre-
spondingly early in the morning ; but I was no
earlier than Hewitt, who was at my door, in fact, ere
my breakfast was well begun.

" Well," I asked eagerly, almost before my friend
had entered, " have you got him at last ? "

"Not yet," Hewitt answered. "But he did
exactly as I had expected. Plummer and I knocked
up the bank manager, who lives over the premises at
the Upper Holloway branch. He was a very decent
fellow — rather young for the post — but he was
naturally a bit surprised, possibly irritated, at being
bothered by one and another after office hours. I
showed him the cheque-book, and asked him if it
belonged to any customer of his.

tt i why, yes/ he said, examining the numbers, 4 1
remember this because it is the first of a new series,
and we issued it the day before yesterday to a new
customer. Where did you get it 1 '

CHANNEL MARSH 165

"'We are very anxious to see that customer/ I
said. ' Has he been here this evening ? '

"The manager seemed a trifle surprised, but
answered readily enough. ' Yes/ he said, ' he was
here not an hour ago.'

"'Wanting to draw money?' I asked. But that
the manager wouldn't tell me, of course. So that it
was necessary for Plummer to step in and reveal the
facts that this was a police matter, and that he was
a detective-inspector. That made some difference.
The manager told us that our man had opened an
account at the bank only two days before ; and I'd
like you to guess what name he had opened it
under."

" Not Myatt ? ■ I said. « After the chase m

"No, notMyatt."

"Catherton Hunt 1"

44 No, nor Catherton Hunt. He had opened it in
the name of Mayes I "

44 What I his actual name tm

44 His actual original name, according to Peytral.
The account was transferred, it would seem, from
another bank ; and I have an idea we may And that
he has been shifting his money about from one bank
to another as safety suggested, using his real name
with it You remember we could find no trace
of a banking account when the police raided and

a66 THE RED TRIANGLE

ransacked Calton Lodge after Mason was killed f
Quite probably he has had small current accounts in
other names at various times to aid in his schemes, but
his main account has always stood in his real name ;
and by that, you see, we get some confirmation of
Peytrars story. Well, as I say, the account was
opened in the name of Mayes, and the cheque-book
was issued which we discovered last night. The
Upper Hollo way branch saw no more of its cus-
tomer till yesterday evening, long after hours, when
he drove up in a hansom."

u Oh," I said, " in a hansom, was it ? The men
left behind could get no news of him."

"Yes, we ascertained that last night; we called
back, of course, the last thing. I expect he got the
first cab visible and drove off to a hatter's a fair
distance away, and then on to the bank. At any
rate, he knocked up the manager and told him that
he had a sudden need for money that very night ;
could he have some ?

u The manager told him it would be impossible.
Even if he had been willing to do it, against all
regulations, it would still be impossible. For the
strong-room and every cash receptacle in it was
locked with two separate locks with different keys,
and though he had one of these keys himself, it was
useless without *he other, which was in the posses-

CHANNEL MARSH 267

sion of his second in command, who lived some
distance out of London. This course is the usual
precaution adopted in branch banks of this sort ;
opening and closing, morning and evening, have to
be done by chief and assistant together. And I tell
you, Brett, I believe that it was only the being
informed of this fact that prevented Mayes from
trying some of his hypnotic tricks on the bank
manager ; in which case there would have been a
big bank robbery — perhaps something worse in
addition."

"Murder?"

u Murder with a tourniquet, perhaps — perhaps
with some other weapon ; but, at any rate, probably
with the Red Triangle. You know, of course —
indeed I told you, 1 think — that in most cases — not
all — it is necessary to get the subject's consent to
the first exercise of hypnotism on him. I told you
also it is possible for the practised hypnotist, while
the subject is under the influence of the first experi-
ment, to suggest to him a certain word or formula,
or even a silent sign, which shall bring him under
the influence at any other time, whenever the
hypnotist chooses to repeat it — just as must have
been done with Mr. Telfer, in the case of the Admi-
ralty code. The first suggestion would not be the
difficult thing it might seem — it would only require

268 THE RED TRIANGLE

a little time and persuasion. Nothing would be said
about hypnotism, of course ; perhaps something
about a little physical experiment, or the like, and
then in a moment or two the subject would be in
this creature's power for ever. Remember the little
' ceremony of initiation ' that the scoundrel attempted
to persuade you to submit to 1 That meant hypnotism
— perhaps death.

" But this is mere speculation. Mayes found that
the keys on the premises were not enough to release
his money, even if the strict rules of the bank had
permitted the cashing of a cheque out of hours.
But the manager suggested that perhaps some neigh-
bouring tradesman would exchange cash for a
cheque, and, with the view of obliging the new
customer, went with him as far as the shop of
Mr. Isaac Trenaman, a grocer and cheesemonger
with a rather large shop at the corner of the road.
Mr. Trenaman, introduced and assured by the
manager, was willing to give as much cash as he
could tind in the till against Mr. Mayes's chequef
and did so to the extent of twenty-seven pounds, a
cheque for which sum was duly drawn on one of the
tradesman's own cheque forms, and left with him.
This done, the bank's new customer took himself
off, with thanks and apologies ; carrying with him,
however, two blank cheque forms from Mr. Trena-

CHANNEL MARSH 169

man's book, the pennies for which he functiliously
paid over the counter. Having no cheque forms
with him, he explained, he might find them useful
if he could come across some friend who could pro-
vide the cash he wished to use that night And
having completed this business so far, this charming
new customer of the bank made off into the night."
" And is that all you know 01 Ins movements '( "
"Yes, as yet. He seems to have made no very
definite excuse to the manager for wanting the
money in such a hurry — just said something had
occurred which made cash necessary, and was very
polite and apologetic, generally. The manager
formed a notion that it must be for some gambling
purpose — he fancied that Mayes said something
distantly alluding to that; but wasn't sure."

"Did you ask about the address given to the bank ?"
" Of course ; but there we gained nothing. The
manager couldn't remember it exactly, and the books,
of course, were locked up. But we know it already
— for what the manager could remember was that
it was an office address, and somewhere near Bar-
bican 1 So that we are back at the Barbican den
again, where I am going now, with Plummer, to give
a day to a minute investigation of the whole place.
Meanwhile a watch is being set at the bank in
Holloway."

»7o THE RED TRIANGLE

44 Do you expect him back there, then f *

44 Hardly. You see he knows that by this time we
must have found his cheque-book, and will be on
the watch. But there is just a chance — a very re-
mote one — that he may send a message ; perhaps
send somebody to cash a cheque. Though I don't
expect it, for he is no fool — he is, indeed, a sort of
genius — and that would be a mistake, I think. Still,
he is bold, and that is where his money is, and he
may make a dash at it. So a couple of Plummer's
men are to be waiting there, this morning, in the
manager's office, and if anybody comes from Mayes
he will be detained. Perhaps you would like to be
with them ? You can't be of much use with me,
and the job will be dull. But there you may have a
chance of excitement, and you will be useful to
come and report if anything does happen. Why,
you may even bag Mayes himself ! "

"Of course — I'll go anywhere you please. They
told you last night, I supp)se, that Peytral had
business, and had gone off ? "

"Yes, and I'm not sorry. He is too dangerous a
man to have about us, with his hot blood and the
terrible injuries he keeps in memory. As likely as
not, if we get Mayes, we should next have to collar
Peytral for shooting him, or something. So I'm not
sorry he is out of it for a bit. But can you start

CHANNEL MARSH 271

now ? Plummer is in my office and the two men
are in a cab outside. The bank opens at nine, and
that is in Upper Hollo way."

I seized my hat and made ready.

u You should keep your eyes open," Hewitt hinted,
44 before you get to the bank and when you leave,
as well as while you're there. Do you remember
how poor Mason was watched ? Well, there is
probably some watching going on now. Last night,
on our way to the bank and back, I believe Plummer
and I were watched pretty closely/

CHAPTER XXL

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL MARSH (CONTINUED)

Plummer's two plain-clothes men and I reached
the neighbourhood of the bank with a quarter of an
hour to spare, or rather more. We dismissed the
cab at some little distance from the spot, and ap-
proached singly, so that it was not difficult for us
to slip in separately among the dozen or fifteen
clerks as they arrived. We passed directly into the
manager's room, the door of which opened into the
space left for the public before the counter. From
this room the whole of the outer office was visible
through the glass of the partition. The manager,
Mr. Blockley, a quick, intelligent man of thirty-six
or so, gave us chairs and pointed out how best we
could watch the counter without ourselves being
observed.

" If a letter is sent," he said, "it will be bi ought
here to me, of course, and I will bring the mes-
senger in. If a cheque is presented from Mayes,
I have told the cashier to slide that big ledger off
hi* desk accidentally with his elbow. That will

CHANNEL MARSH 273

be your signal, and then you can do whatever you
think proper. I don't think I can do any more
than that."

We took our positions and waited. I felt pretty
sure that if Mayes sent at all it would be early, for
obvious reasons. And I was right, for the very first
customer was our man.

He stepped in briskly scarcely a minute after
the manager had ceased speaking, and I remem-
bered having seen him waiting at the street
corner as I came along. He was a well-dressed,
smart enough looking man, in frock coat and
tall hat. He took a letter-case from his pocket,
picked out a cheque from the rest of the papers
in it, and passed it under the wire grille of the
counter.

The cashier took it, turned it over, and shifted
me< banically to post the amount in the book on his
desk. As he did so his elbow touched the heavy
ledger which the manager had pointed out to
us, and it fell with a crash. The cashier calmly
put his pen behind his ear, and stooped to
pick up the book, but even as he did it the two
Scotland Yard men were out before the counter,
and had sidled up to the stranger, one on each
side.

14 May we see that cheque, if you please ? " asked

s

274 THE RED TRIANGLE

one, and the cashier turned its face toward him,
u Ah, just so ; a hundred pounds — Mayes. We must
just trouble you to come with us, if you please.
There is some explanation wanted about that
cheque."

I had followed the two men from the manager's
room, and now I saw that while one had laid his
hand on the stranger's shoulder the other had
taken him by the opposite arm. "Why," said
the former, looking into his face, "it's Broady
Sims ! "

" All right," the man growled resignedly. u It's a
cop. I'll go quiet."

But as he spoke I saw the free hand steal out behind
him and pitch away a crumpled fragment of paper.
One of the policemen saw it too, followed it with
his eyes, and saw me snatch it up.

" That's right, sir," he said, " take care of that ;
and we'll have a cab, in case anything else drops
accidentally. It's just a turning over, Broady, that's
what it is."

I spread out the piece of paper, and was
astonished to find inscribed on it just such another
series of figures, in groups of eight, as was found
in the cypher message in the Case of the Lever
Key.

Here was a great find — a secret message as clear

CHANNEL MARSH

*75

to me as to Mayes himself, and as likely as not the
scrap of paper that would hang him ! I took one of
the plain-clothes men aside while the other kept his
hold of Broady Sims.

" This is very important," I said. u It is a cypher
message which Mr. Hewitt can read — or I, myself, in
fact, with a little time. Must you take it with you ?
If so, I'll make a copy now."

" Well, sir, we're responsible, you see," the man
said, " so I think we must take it ; so perhaps you'd
better make a copy, as you suggest."

44 Very well," I said, u that is done in a few seconds.
You can take your man off, and I will go direct to
Mr. Hewitt and Inspector Plummer with the copy."
And with that I made the copy, which read
thus : —

23

1 x9,

15,

h 9f J4> 9; 2

; 20, 8, 1,

20

, 14;

14,

20, 8; 14, 5,

12, 4, % 7>

5,

H;

3,8,

18, 23, 0, 14, 1, 8 ; 22,

9,

6, 1,

18,

3; 5, 1 ; 19,

M, 15, 21,

9;

0, 20

,12

; 18, 12, 21, i

t 6, 23, 20,

12

; 9,

18,

<5, 5, 18, 13,

12, 20.

It struck me to ask the manager if the cheque
just presented were one of those procured from

276 THE RED TRIANGLE

Mr. Trenaman the night before, and I found that it
was. Then I left the policemen with their prisoner
and made for the nearest cab-rank. This cypher
message, no doubt conveying Mayes's instructions
to the man just captured, was probably of the utmost
importance, and Hewitt must see it at once ; and as
the cab ambled along towards Barbican I busied
myself in deciphering the figures according to the
plan of the knight's move in chess, as Hewitt had
explained to me. I could only see two noughts
among the numbers, so plainly it was a longer
message than the one then deciphered — one of
sixty-two letters, in fact. I turned the figures into
the letters corresponding in the alphabet, a for i,
b for 2, and so on, as Hewitt had done, and I
arranged these letters in the squares of a roughly
drawn chessboard, so that they stood thus : —

CHANNEL MARSH

277

w

s

0

a

i

n

i

b

t

h

a

t

n

n

t

h

n

e

I

d

i

g

e

n

c

h

r

w

o

n

a

h

V

i

f

a

t

c

e

a

s

n

0

u

i

o

t

I

r

I

u

a

f

w

t

I

i

r

0

e

r

m

I

i

The letters thus set out, to read off the message
was a simple task enough, in view of the key Hewitt
had given me. I began, as in the case of the Lever
Key message, at the right-hand top corner, and
taking the knight's move from b to e in the last
square but one of the third line, thence to a at the
end of the fifth line, and so to t in the seventh
line, and from that to r (fifth square in bottom line),
u in seventh line and so on, in the order shown by
the Lever Key message, a copy of which I kept as a
curiosity in my pocket-book. So I read the message
through, and I set it down thus : —

Be at ruin Channel Marsh to-night twelve / wait in
hall for instruc* Word final.

278 THE RED TRIANGLE

The general meaning of this seemed clear enough.
The man whom the policeman had recognised as
Broady Sims was to be at some spot — a ruined
building, it would seem — in a place called Channel
Marsh, at midnight, there to wait in the hall for
instructions ; no doubt for instructions where to
take the hundred pounds he was to have got from
the bank. " Word final " was not so clear, though I
judged — and I think rightly — that it meant that the
word "final" was to be used as a pass-word by
which the two messengers should know each
other.

I was almost at my destination, and was cogitating
the message and its meaning, when the cab checked
at some traffic in Barbican, just by the "Compasses"
public-house, and Mr. Victor Peytral hailed me and
climbed on the step of the cab.

" I was just going to see if Mr. Hewitt was at the
place," he said, u and if so to ask him for news. But
I am rather in a hurry, and perhaps you can tell
me?"

" We are on the track, I think," I answered, * and
1 have just come across this, which I am taking to
Hewitt," and with that I showed him my translation
of the cypher, and gave him its history in half a
dozen sentences.

44 Thafs good," Peytral answered. u I don't know

CHANNEL MARSH 279

Channel Marsh, do you ? But probably Mr. Hewitt
does. I won't keep you any longer — I see you're
hurrying. But I hope to see you again before
long."

He dropped off the step and disappeared, and
the cab went on round the corner by the " Com-
passes."

I found Hewitt and Plummer in the office where,
on pretence of bookbindery, I had first seen Mayes
face to face the day before. They were near the
completion of their examination of this office and
all its contents, and soon would begin as systemati-
cally on the premises behind. I gave Hewitt my
copy of the cypher message, and my translation, with
an exact account of how it had come into my
possession.

Martin Hewitt studied the message for a minute
or two, and then relapsed into grave thought. So
he sat for some little time, while Plummer left the
room by the window and descended the ladder to
speak with his men on guard below.

Presently Hewitt looked up and said : u Brett, this
message is most important — probably as important
as you suppose it to be. But at the same time I
believe you have made a great mistake about it."

" But I haven't misread it, have I ? Is there any
other way "

28o THE RED TRIANGLE

44 No, you haven't misread it ; you've read every
word as it was intended to be read. But it is a
very different thing from what you suppose it to be."

"What is it, then?"

Martin Hewitt put the paper on the table and
looked keenly in my face. " It is a trap," he said.
''It is a trap to catch me — unless I flatter myself
unduly."

I could not understand, u A trap ? " I repeated.
"But how?"

44 Why should Mayes need to send his confederate
instructions by written note ? We know the nature
of his hold over his subordinates, and we know that
it means personal communication. Also, the cheque
was in Mayes's own hands last night. More, Mayes
knows very well that I have read that cypher — has
known it for some time ; otherwise how could we
have discovered the bonds in the case of the Lever
Key ? Also, Mayes knows that we have his cheque-
book and know his bank. Didn't I assure you we
were watched last night ? I believe he knows all we
have done. In such circumstances he might risk his
jackal's liberty by sending him on the desperate
chance of cashing a cheque, but, knowing the risk,
he would never have let him come with information
on him. And least of all would he have let him
come carrying a vital secret written in that very

CHANNEL MARSH 281

cypher which he knows I read many weeks ago.
And then see how that message, instead of being
concealed, was positively brought to your notice !
That man Broady Sims is a cunning rascal, and the
police know him of old as a skilful swindler and
bill-forger. A man like that doesn't get rid of a
compromising scrap of paper by trundling it out
under your nose just at the moment he is arrested,
when the attention of everybody is directed to him ;
no, he would wait his opportunity, and then he
would probably slip it into his mouth and swallow
it. As it is, he would seem to have succeeded in
dropping this paper full in your sight, with an
elaborate pretence of secrecy. Now this is what
has been done, Brett. That man has been sent
to cash a cheque, with very little hope of suc-
cess, or none, because the first move that Mayes
would anticipate on our part would be the watching
for him and his cheques at the bank in Upper
Holloway. If by any chance the cheques had been
cashed, well and good, no harm would have been
done, and then Mayes could have gone on to arrange
for drawing the rest of his balance— could probably
have quite safely come himself to draw it. But if
on the other hand, as he fully anticipated, Sims was
arrested, what then ? Nothing was lost but a penny

cheque-form, and even Sims — though Mayes would

I

28i THE RED TRIANGLE

care nothing about that — could only be searched
ind then released, for the cheque was perfectly
genuine, and there was no charge against him. But
nnce he would certainly be searched, that cypher
note was given him, with instructions to make a
conspicuous show of attempting to get rid of it.
Now that note was written in a cypher which Mayes
knew was as plain as print — to whom ? To me. I
am on his trail, and this note is deliberately flung in
my way, open as the day, but with every appearance
of secrecy. I am his dangerous enemy, and he
knows it — as he told you, in fact, yesterday. If he
can clear me away, he can take breath and make
himself safe. The purpose of this note is to induce
me to go, alone, to this place on Channel Marsh
to-night at twelve, in the hope of learning where to
find Mayes. There I am to be got rid of — murdered
in some way, for which preparation will be made.
Mayes judges my character pretty well. He knows
that, in such circumstances as he represents, Sims
being kept away from his appointment, I should
certainly go and take his place, and use his pass-
word, to learn what I could. And, Brett, that is
precisely what I shall dot"

"What ? You will go?" I exclaimed. "But you
mustn't— the danger! We'd better both go to-
gether."

CHANNEL MARSH 183

Hewitt smiled. "Why not forty of us ?" he said.
"No. Here is a chance of bagging our man, for,
however I am to be arranged for — whether by shot,
steel, or the tourniquet, I make no doubt it is Mayes
himself who is to do it. You shall come, however,
you and Plummer at least. But we will not go in a
bunch — you shall follow me and watch, ready to
help when needful. This Channel Marsh is an
empty, dark space between two channels of the Lea.
It is among the Hackney Marshes, lying between
Stratford and Homerton, and I fancy there is a
deserted house there, though I can't remember ever
having seen it. Do you know it ? "

" No ; not in the least"

44 Well, I must reconnoitre to-day, and that with a
lot of care. I think I told you I was convinced of
being watched, and that is a thing you can't prevent
in a place like London, if it is skilfully done. Now,
Brett, you have done very well this morning. If you
want to be on the scene of action to-night at twelve,
you must get leave from your editor, mustn't you ?
How's your wrist ? "

It was still extremely stiff, and I told Hewitt that
I doubted my ability to hold a pen for two or
three days.

" Very well, then ; get off and convey your
excuses as soon as you please. I shall have a

284 THE RED TRIANGLE

talk with Plummer, and then I shall take a few
hours to myself, by myself, in somebody else's
clothes. Be in your rooms all the evening, for
you may expect a message,"

CHAPTER XXII.

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL MARSH (CONTINUED)

It was at a little past nine in the evening that I
next saw Hewitt. He came into my rooms in an
incongruous get-up. He wore corduroy trousers; a
very dirty striped jersey, a particularly greasy old
jacket, and a twisted neckcloth ; but over all was
an excellent overcoat, and on his head a tall hat of
high polish.

" Brought to me by Kerrett," he said, in explana-
tion of the hat and overcoat. u He's been waiting
with them for a long time in a court by Milford
Lane. A good hat and overcoat will cover any-
thing, and I preferred to enter this building in my
own character. I've been wearing that this after-
noon," and he pulled out of his pocket an old peaked
cap with ear-pieces tied over the top.

"You mustn't bring your best clothes," he went
on, " or you'll spoil them scrambling about boats and
groping in ditches. I have done my ditch -groping
tor the day, and I'm going to change. You had

186 THE RED TRIANGLE

best be putting on older things while I get into
newer."

" What sort of place is this Channel Marsh ? * I
asked.

"Well, I should think there must be a great
many better places to spend a night in. It must
be the dreariest, wettest flat within many miles of
London, and I should like to see the portrait ol
the man who had the idea of building a house
there. For a house there is, or rather the ruins of it
—deserted for years, and half carried away by rats
and people who wanted slates and firewood and
water pipes."

u Is that the place where you intend waiting
to-night?"

"It is. I haven't examined it nearly so closely
as I should like, for fear of raising a scare. Chan-
nel Marsh is almost an island, with a narrow neck
of an entrance at each end. A foot-track runs the
whole length, and a person in the ruined house can
easily see anybody entering the Marsh from either
end. For that reason I reconnoitred from a boat
— the boat you will go in to-night. I think it is
the very dirtiest old tub I ever saw, so that it suited
my rig out. I discovered it at a wharf some little
way down the river, and I paid a shilling for the
hire of it. Channel Marsh is banked a bit on one

CHANNEL MARSH 287

side, and I crept up under cover of the bank. I
learned very little, beyond the general lie of the
land, because I was so mighty cautious. I judged it
better to be content with half an examination, rather
than drive away the game. And even as it is I've
an idea I have been seen. I lay up among some
reeds till dark, but after that I am sure there was
somebody on the Marsh — and skulking, too, like me.
So after waiting and scouting for a little 1 gave it up
and paddled quietly back."

" But look here, Hewitt/' I said, " this seems a bit
mad. Why go and risk yourself as you talk of doing ?
You believe Mayes will be there, at the ruin, or will
come there at twelve. Very well, then, why can't the
police send enough men to surround the place and
capture him for certain ? "

Hewitt smiled and shook his head. "My dear
Brett," he said, "you haven't seen the place, and I
have. It will be hard enough job for you and
Plummer to get near the spot unobserved, guided by
a man who knows every inch. A trampling crowd
of policemen would have as much chance as a herd
of elephants, and on such light nights as we are
having now they would be seen a mile off. And who
knows what scouts he may have out ? No, as I say,
it will be a great piece of luck if you get through
unobserved as it is, and even now I'm not perfectly

288 THE RED TRIANGLE

certain that I couldn't do best alone. However,
arrangements are made now, and you are coming,
three of you."

u Then what are the arrangements ?M asked.

44 Just these. You are to leave here first. Make
the best of your way to Mile End Gate, where an
old inn stands in the middle of the road. Go to
the corner of the turning opposite this, at the south
side of the road. At eleven o'clock a four-wheeler
will drive up, with Plummer and one of his men in
it. The man is one who knows all the geography
of Channel Marsh, and he also knows exactly where
to find the boat I used to-day. You will drive to
a little way beyond Bow Bridge, and then Plummer's
man will lead you to the boat. You had better scull
and leave the others to look out. They will know
what to do. You will pull along to a place where
you can watch till you see me coming on to the
Marsh by the path. As soon as you see me you
will slip quietly along to a place the policeman will
show you, close to the ruin, and watch again. That's
all. I don't know whether or not you think it worth
while to take a pistol. I certainly shall ; but then
I'm most likely to want it. Plummer will have
one."

I thought it well worth while, and I took my
regulation u Webley " — a relic of my old Volunteer

CHANNEL MARSH 289

captaincy. Then, by way of the underground rail-
way, I gained the neighbourhood of Mile End, and
interested myself about its back streets till the time
approached to look for Plummets cab.

Plummer was more than punctual — indeed, he was
two or three minutes before his time. The cab
drew near the kerb and scarcely stopped, so quickly
did I scramble in.

" Good," said Plummer ; " we're well ahead of time.
Mr. Hewitt quite right?"

"Yes," I said. u I left him so an hour and a half
ago at his office." And we sat silent while the cab
rattled and rumbled over the stony road to Bow
Bridge, and the shopkeepers on the way put up
their shutters and extinguished their lights.

Bow Bridge was reached and passed, and presently
we stopped the cab and alighted. Here Styles,
Plummer's man, took the lead, and a little way
farther along the road we turned into a dark and
muddy lane on the left. We floundered through
this for some hundred and fifty yards or so, and
then suddenly drew in at an opening on the right.
Here we stood for a few moments while our guide
groped his way down toward the muddy water we
could smell, rather than see, a little way before us.

There were a few broken steps and a broad black
thing which was the boat. We got into it as

f

a9o THE RED TRIANGLE

iilently as we could manage, and cast off. It was
a clumsy, broad-beamed, leaky old conveyance, and
that it was as dirty as Hewitt had described it I
could feel as I groped for the sculls and got them
out. The night was light and dark by turns —
changing with the clouds. We shipped the rudder,
and Styles steered, or I should probably have run
ashore more than once, for the banks were not
always distinct, and the channel was narrow and
dark. We passed the black forms of several
factories with tall chimneys, and then drew out
among the Marshes, flat and grey, with wisps of
mist lying here and there. So we went in silence
for a while, till at last we drew in against the bank
on the left and laid hold by a post at a landing-
place.

* This is the Channel Marsh," whispered Styles, as
we climbed cautiously ashore. "We can't see the
house very well from here, but there's where
Mr. Hewitt will come through."

Looking over the top of the low bank, we could
discern a path which traversed the length of the
marsh, entering it by a broken gate at a neck of
land which we must have passed on our way. Here
we crouched and waited. We had heard the half-
hour struck on some distant clock soon after enter-
ing the boat, and now we waited anxiously for the

CHANNEL MARSH aoi

three-quarters. So long did the time seem to my
excited perceptions that I had quite decided that the
clock must have stopped, or, at any rate, did not
chime quarters, when at last the strokes came, distant
and plaintive, over the misty flats.

"A quarter of an hour," Plummer remarked. "He
won't be a minute late, nor a minute too early, from
what I know of him. How long will it take him
from that gate to the ruin t*

44 Eight or nine minutes, good," Styles answered.

44 Then we shall see him in seven minutes or six
minutes, as the case may be," Plummer rejoined in
the same low tones.

Slowly the minutes dragged, with not a sound
about us save the sucking and lapping of the muddy
river and the occasional flop of a water-rat. The
dark clouds were now fewer, and the moon was high
and only partially obscured by the thinner clouds
that traversed its face. More than once I fancied a
sound from the direction of the ruin, and then I
doubted my fancy ; when at last there was a sound
indeed, but from the opposite direction, and in a
moment we saw Hewitt, muffled close about the
neck, walking briskly up the path.

We regained the boat with all possible speed and
silence, and I pulled my best, regardless of my stiff
wrist. During our watch I had had time to perceive

29* THE RED TRIANGLE

the wisdom of the arrangements which had been
made. We had been watching from a place fairly
out of sight from the ruin, yet sufficiently near it to
be able to reach its neighbourhood before Hewitt ;
and certainly it was better to approach the actual
spot at the same time as Hewitt himself, for then, if
he were being watched for, the attention of the
watcher would be diverted from us.

Presently we reached the reed-bed that Hewitt had
spoken of, and I could see a sort of little creek or
inlet. Here I ceased to pull, and Styles cautiously
punted us into the creek with one of the sculls.
The boat grounded noiselessly in the mud, and we
crept ashore one at a time through mud and
sedge.

The creek was edged with a bank of rough, broken
ground, grown with coarse grass and bramble, and
as we peeped over this bank the ruined house stood
before us — so near as to startle me by its proximity.
It must have been a large house originally — if, indeed,
it was ever completed. Now it stood roofless, dis-
mantled, and windowless, and in many places whole
rods of brickwork had fallen and now littered the
ground about. The black gap of the front door
stood plain to see, with a short flight of broken steps
before it, and by the side of these a thick timber
shore supported the front wall. It struck me then

CHANNEL MARSH 293

that the ruin was perhaps largely due to a failure of
the marshy foundation.

The place seemed silent and empty. Hewitt's
footsteps were now plain to hear, and presently he
appeared, walking briskly as before. He could not
see us, and did not look for us, but made directly for
the broken steps. He mounted these, paused on the
topmost, and struck a match. It seemed a rather
large hall, and I caught a momentary glimpse of bare
rafters and plasterless wall. Then the match went
out and Hewitt stepped within.

Almost on the instant there came a loud jar, and
a noise of falling bricks ; and then, in the same
instant of time I heard a terrific crash, and saw
Hewitt leap out at the front door — leap out, as it
seemed, from a cloud of dust and splinters.

I sprang to my feet, but Plummer pulled me down
again. "Steady!" he said, "lie low! He isn't hurt.
Wait and see before we show ourselves."

It seemed that the floor above had fallen on the
spot where Hewitt had been standing. He had
alighted from his leap on hands and knees, but now
stood facing the house, revolver in hand, watching.

There was a moment's pause, a sound of move-
ment from the upper part of the ruin, another quiet
moment, and then a bang and a flash from high on
the waH to the right Hewitt sprang to shelter behind

294 THE RED TRIANGLE

the heavy shore, and another shot followed him,
scoring a white line across the thick timber.

Plummer was up, and Styles and I were after him.

* There he is I " cried Plummer, u up on the
coping ! " I pulled out my own pistol.

"Don't shoot!" cried Hewitt. "We'll take him
alive!"

Far to the right, on the topmost coping of the
front wall, I could see a crouching figure. I saw it
rise to its knees, and once more raise an arm to take
aim at Hewitt ; and then, with a sudden cry, another
human figure appeared from behind the coping and
sprang upon the first. There was a moment of
struggle, and then the rotten coping crumbled, and
down, down, came bricks and men together.

I sickened. I can only explain my feeling by
saying that never before had I seen anything that
seemed so long in falling as those two men. And
then with a horrid crash they struck the broken
ground, and the pistol fired again with the shock.

We reached them in a dozen strides, and turned
them over, limp, oozing, and lifeless. And then we
saw that one was Mayes, and the other — Victor
Peytral !

We kept no silence now, but Plummer blew his
whistle loud and long, and I fired my revolver into
the air, chamber after chamber. Styles started off at

CHANNEL MARSH 295

a run along the path towards the town lights, to
fetch what aid he might.

But even then we had doubt if any aid would
avail Mayes. He was the under man in the fall, and
he had dropped across a little heap of bricks. He
now lay unconscious, breathing heavily, with a
terrible wound at the back of the head, and Hewitt
foretold — and rightly — that when the doctor did
come he would find a broken spine. Peytral, on
the other hand, though unconscious, showed no
sign of injury, and just before the doctor came
sighed heavily and turned on his side.

First there came policemen, and then in a little
time a hastily dressed surgeon, and after him an
ambulance. Mayes was carried off to hospital, but
with a good deal of rubbing and a little brandy,
Peytral came round well enough to be helped over
the Marshes to a cab.

The trap which had been laid for Hewitt was
simple, but terribly effective. The floor above the
hall — loose and broken everywhere — was supported
on rafters, and the rafters were crossed underneath
and supported at the centre by a stout beam. The
rafters had been sawn through at both ends, and the
rotten floor had been piled high with broken brick
and stone to a weight of a ton or more. The end of
a loose beam had been wedged obliquely under the

296 THE RED TRIANGLE

end of the one timber now supporting the whole
weight, so that a pull on the opposite end of this long
lever would force away the bricks on which the beam
rested and let the whole weight fall. It was the jar
of the beam and the fall of the first few loose bricks
that had so far warned Hewitt as to enable him to
leap from under the floor almost as it fell.

Peytral's sudden appearance, when we had time
to reflect on it, gave us a suspicion as to some at
least of the espionage to which Hewitt had been
subjected — a suspicion confirmed, later, by Peytral
himself after his recovery from the shock of the fall.
For fresh news of his enemy had re-awakened all
his passion, and since he alone could not find him,
he was willing enough to let Hewitt do the tracking
down, if only he himself might clutch Mayes's throat
in the end. This explained the "business" that
had called him away after the Barbican stronghold
had been captured ; finding both Hewitt and
Plummer somewhat uncommunicative, and himself
somewhat " out of it," he had drawn off, and had
followed Hewitt's every movement, confident that
he would be led to his old enemy at last. What I
had told him of the cypher message had led him to
hunt out Channel Marsh in the afternoon, and to
return at midnight. He, of course, regarded the
message, as I did myself at the time, as a perfectly

CHANNEL MARSH 297

genuine instruction from Mayes to Sims, and he
came to the rendezvous wholly in ignorance as to
what Hewitt was doing, and with no better hope
than that he might hear something that would lead
him in the direction of Mayes. He had entered the
marsh after dark from the upper end, and had lain
concealed by the other channel till near midnight ;
then he had crept to the rear of the ruin and climbed
to where an opening seemed to offer a good chance
of hearing what might pass in the hall. He had
heard Hewitt approach from the front, and the crash
that followed. The rest we had seen.

CHAPTER XXIII.

THE ADVENTURE OF CHANNEL MARSH (CONTINUED)

Mayes never recovered consciousness, and was dead
when we visited the hospital the day after ; both
skull and spine were badly fractured. And the very
last we saw of the Red Triangle was the implement
with which it had been impressed, which was found
in his pocket.

It was a small triangular prism of what I believe
is called soapstone. It was perhaps four inches
long, and the face at the end corresponded with the
mark that Hewitt had seen on the forehead of Mr.
Jacob Mason. It fitted closely in a leather case, in
the end of which was a small, square metal box full
of the red, greasy pigment with which the mark had
been impressed.

It was from Broady Sims that we learnt the exact
use and meaning of this implement : though he
would not say a word till he had seen with his own
eyes Mayes lying dead in the mortuary. Then he
gasped his relief and said, u That's the end of some-

CHANNEL MARSH 299

thing worse than slavery for me 1 I'll turn straight
After this."

Sims's story was long, and it went over ground
that concerns none of Hewitt's adventures. But
what we learned from it was briefly this. It had been
Mayes's way to meet clever criminals as they left
gaol after a term of imprisonment. In this manner
he had met Sims. He had made great promises,
had spoken of great ideas which they could put
into execution together, had lent him money, and
then at last had " initiated " him, as he called it.
He had put him to lie back in a chair and had
directed his gaze on the Red Triangle held in the
air before him : and then the Triangle had descended
gently, and he felt sleepy, till at the cold touch of
the thing on his forehead his senses had gone.
This was done more than once, and in the end the
vifjtim found that Mayes had only to raise the
Triangle before him to send him to sleep instantly.
Then he found that he must do certain things, whether
he wanted or not. And it ended in complete sub-
servience ; so that Mayes could set him to perpetrate
a robbery and then appropriate the proceeds for
himself, for by post-hypnotic suggestion he could
force him to bring and hand over every penny. More,
the poor wretch was held in constant terror, for he
knew that his very life depended on the lift of his

3oo THE RED TRIANGLE

master's hand. He could be sent into lethargy by
a gesture and killed in that state. That very
thing was done, in fact, as we have seen, in two
cases.

Sims was but one of a gang of such criminals,
brought to heel and made victims. Their minds and
souls, such as they were, had passed into the mis-
creant's keeping, and terror reinforced the power of
hypnotism. They committed crimes, and when they
failed they took the punishment; when they suc-
ceeded Mayes took the gains, or at any rate the
greater part of them. He went, also, among people
who were not yet criminals, and by degrees made
them so, to his own profit. The case of Henning,
the correspondence clerk, was one that had come
under Hewitt* s eyes. He used his faculty also with
great cunning in other ways — as we had seen in the
matter of the Admiralty code. And it was even said
among the gang that a man he had once hypnotised
he could force by suggestion to commit suicide when
he became useless or inconvenient.

Sims and the ragged fellow who had decoyed me
into Mayes's den were the only members of the
gang whom we could identify after his death, but
many others must have shared their relief ; and I
sincerely hope — though I hardly expect — that they
all availed themselves of their liberty to abandon

CHANNEL MARSH 301

their evil courses. As in fact the two I speak of
did, and took to honest work.

All that had remained mysterious in the earlier
cases now became clear. In the first, the case of
Samuel's diamonds, Denson had been put into the
office where Samuel had found him, by Mayes, with
the express design of effecting a diamond robbery.
The robbery was effected, and the unhappy Denson
formed a plan of making a bolt of it himself with
the diamonds. He was, perhaps, what is called a
difficult subject in hypnotism — amenable enough to
direct influence, but not sufficiently retentive of
post-hypnotic suggestion. He hid the jewels and
adopted a disguise, but Mayes was watching
him better than he supposed. The diamonds were
lost, but Denson was found and done to death —
probably not in that retreat near Barbican, but at
night in some empty street. The diamonds were
not found on him, and the body, with the mark of
the Triangle still on it, was taken by night to a
central spot in London and there left. Mayes pro-
bably thought that a notable example like this, so
boldly displayed and so conspicuously reported in
the Press, would impress his auxiliaries throughout
London with the terror that was one of his weapons;
for they would well understand the meaning of the
Red Triangle, and they would receive a striking

3o2 THE RED TRIANGLE

.ilustration of the consequences of rebellion or bad
faith. The money and the watch were left in the
pockets because they were trifles after the loss of
fifteen thousand pounds' worth of diamonds, and
their presence in the pockets made the murder the
less easy to understand — which was a point gained.
And as to the keys — Mayes knew nothing of where
the diamonds were hidden, and so had no use for
them. For where could he use them ? Denson
had left his lodgings, and as to the office, that, he
would guess, would be in the hands of the police,
on Samuel's complaint. The immediate result of
this affair on the only honest member of Mayes's
circle I have told in the case of Mr. Jacob Mason.
He was not yet thoroughly in Mayes's hands, but he
had "dabbled," as he remorsefully confessed, and
Mayes had already found him useful. He was
dangerous, and his end came quickly. Another
victim who had probably begun innocently enough
was Henning, the clerk to Kingsley, Bell and
Dalton, and his death in the Penn's Meadow barn
leaves a mystery that never can be positively
cleared up. Was it murder or was it suicide by
posthypnotic suggestion ? It will be remembered
thai the fire burst out in the barn after Mayes had
left it.

Th«? case of Mr. Telfer was explained clearly

CHANNEL MARSH 303

enough by Hewitt at the time ; but it is an example
of the snares that lie open for the most innocent
person who allows himself to be made the subject
of hypnotic experiments at the hands of persons
with whom, and with whose objects, he is not
thoroughly acquainted. And it must be remembered
that at this time there are persons advertising to
teach the practice of hypnotism to anybody who will
pay ; to anybody who may use the terrible power as
he pleases. More, the danger is so great that it has
led two eminent men of science to issue a public
protest and warning, with an urgent plea that the
practice of hypnotism be restricted by law at least
as closely as that of vivisection.

As to what would have happened if Plummer and
I had yielded to Mayes's threats so far as to undergo
the " initiation " he proposed, at the time we were
helpless in his hands — of that I have little doubt.
I cannot suppose that he would have wasted much
time over me, once I had fallen lethargic. When
Hewitt burst in he would have found me lying dead,
with the Red Triangle on my forehead. It would
have saved Mayes a lot of noise and struggle, at
least.

But I often wonder whether or not there was any-
thing in his reference to the place beyond the sea,
where he would make me a great man if 1 did as he

3o4 THE RED TRIANGLE

wished. Was it his design, having accumulated
sufficient wealth, to return and take his natural
place among the enlightened rulers of Hayti ? He
would not have been so much worse than some of
the others.

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Stand Pat

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With six drawings by Henry Roth $1.50

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4 L. C. PAGE AND COMPANY'S LIST OF NEW FICTION

The Count at Harvard

Being an Account of the Adventures of a Young
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Rupert Sargent Holland.

With a characteristic cover design $1.50

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Selections from

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The Bright Face of Danger

Being an account of some adventures of Henri de Launay, son of

the Sieur de la Tournoire. Illustrated by H. C. Edwards.

" Mr. Stephens has fairly outdone himself. We thank him

heartily. The story is nothing if not spirited and entertaining,

rational and convincing." — Boston Transcript.

The Mystery of Murray Davenport

(40th thousand.)

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Those familiar with his other novels can best judge the measure of
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Captain Ravenshaw

Or, The Maid of Cheapside. (52d thousand.) A romance
of Elizabethan London. Illustrations by Howard Pyle and other
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Not since the absorbing adventures of D'Artagnan have we had
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The Continental Dragoon

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I

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WORKS OF

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Red Fox

The Story of His Adventurous Career in the Ringwaak
Wilds, and of His Final Triumph over the Enemies of
His Kind. With fifty illustrations, including frontispiece in
color and cover design by Charles Livingston Bull.

Square quarto, cloth decorative $ 2.00

" Infinitely more wholesome reading than the average tale of

sport, since it gives a glimpse of the hunt from the point of view of

the hunted." — Boston Transcript.

'* True in substance but fascinating as fiction. It will interest

old and young, city-bound and free-footed, those who know animals

and those who do not." — Chicago Record-Herald.

"A brilliant chapter in natural history." — Philadelphia North

American.

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The Kindred of the Wild

A Book of Animal Life. With fifty-one full-page plates and
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The Watchers of the Trails

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by Charles Livingston Bull.

Square quarto, decorative cover #2.00

" Mr. Roberts has written a most interesting series of tales free
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writers, accurate in their facts and admirably and dramatically told."
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" These stories are exquisite in their refinement, and yet robust
in their appreciation of some of the rougher phases of woodcraft.
Among the many writers about animals, Mr. Roberts occupies an
enviable place." — The Outlook.

" This is a book full of delight. An additional charm lies in Mr.
Bull's faithful and graphic illustrations, which in fashion all their
own tell the story of the wild life, illuminating and supplementing
the pen pictures of the author." — Literary Digest.

Earth's Enigmas

A new edition of Mr. Roberts's first volume of fiction, published
in 1892, and out of print for several years, with the addition of
three new stories, and ten illustrations by Charles Livingston
Bull.

Library 1 2mo, cloth, decorative cover . . . . #1.50

"It will rank high among collections of short stories. In

'Earth's Enigmas ' is a wider range of subject than in the * Kindred

of the Wild.' " — Review from advance sheets of the illustrated edition

by Tiffany Blake in the Chicago Evening Post.

Barbara Ladd

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Library i2mo, gilt top $i-5°

* From the opening chapter to the final page Mr. Roberts lures
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Cameron of Lochiel

Translated from the French of Philippe Aubert de Gaspe, with

frontispiece in color by H. C. Edwards.

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The Prisoner of Mademoiselle

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A tale of Acadia, — a land which is the author's heart's delight,
— of a valiant young lieutenant and a winsome maiden, who first
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The Heart of the Ancient Wood

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The Forge in the Forest

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A story of pure love and heroic adventure.

By the Marshes of Minas

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workmanship.

LIST OF FICTION

A Sister to Evangeline

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WORKS OF

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Hope Loring

Illustrated by Frank T. Merrill.

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and beautiful as a woman, free and independent, yet not bold —
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American.

Abroad with the Jimmies

With a portrait, in duogravure, of the author.

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" Full of ozone, of snap, of ginger, of swing and momentum." —
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"... Is one of her best and cleverest novels . . . filled to the
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earlier books." — N. Y. Press.

At Home with the Jardines

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philosophic."— Chicago Record-Herald.

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The Interference of Patricia

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A Book of Girls

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Return

A Story of the Sea Islands in 1739. With six illustrations

by C. D. Williams.

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"^he Grapple

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