Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 223, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 September 1911 — Page 3

Records of DANEVITCH DANEVITCH

True Tales gs Russian Secret Service Etited ly GEORGB I*. PARDY "

THE PEARL OF B THE > “There is a big contract before you,” said the chief of police, “and the work will take you far away from Russia. I would have selected you for the task, myself, but even k I had been in- , dined to assign some one else to the matter, I could not have done so.” “Why not?” queried Michael Dane vitch. , s “Because,” replied the chief, “his majesty was pleased to order that to you alone should be allotted the solving of the problem. Now listen, and I will tell you all I know about the wprld famous gem called the ‘pearl of the gods.’ Two years have passed since an Indian diver brought it up from the 'depths of the sea. When it was detached from its shell, experts pronounced it to be one of the most perfect pearls that had ever conw to light, and the value put upon it was tremendous. ft became the property of Gammage & Lallal, the well-known dealers in precious stones, whose headquarters are in Bombay. Its iridescence and beauty were so great that the fame of the marvelous gem spread al through India, and it was .named ‘the pearl of the gods.’ It was natural that-the dealers should seek to dispose of it in royal circles, for the gem was indeed fiCto rank among the proudest possessions of any monarch. As you know, our little father is extremely proud of his collection of precious stones and gems, and when the news of this particular find reached him he gave orders to have it purchased for the imperial household. This was done, in so far "as the terms of the purchase being agreed on; and the money, an immense sum, was paid over to Messrs. Gammage & Lallal by his majesty’s agent. But it was agreed, that for "safety’s sake the pearl had better remain In the dealers' strong room until the steamer, On which the czar’s messenger intended to sail with the gem in his charge, was ready to Igave-port. But this arrangement was unexpectedly upset by the disappearance of the gem from the strong room. At-the close of business one evening, Gammage & Lallal testified that the rearl was in their posOn tfie following morning it was gone, .and nothing else In the strong room had been touched, although there were many thousands of rubles’ worth of other jewels there. To add to the mystery the room had seemingly not been tampered with. The door was intact, and the complicated locks were all perfect. It was next to impossible that anyone could have gained entrance by means of false keys. The room was about fourteen feet square, solidly concreted, and with walls glghteen inches thick. In the center of one of the walls was a massive iron door of enormous strength. This door fitted into an iron frame imbedded in concrete, and into this frame the tremendous bolts were shot. There were 42 bolts, and they were all shot at one time by means of a lever in the center of the door. Set into the door was a register dial, which showed that the door was propprly locked, and this dial would have indicated any attempt to tamper with the locks. Although one action of a lever locked the door, the mechanism was so ingenious jhat do less than eight keys were required to unlock it. Nor was this all. By a peculiar arrangement the locks could be readjusted every day, so that a fresh set of keys was required each morning to open the safe, and no one hut the two members of the firm knew which set was te be used.. a"Yet, despite all these safeguards, the pearl had disappeared, and that, too, after the money for its purchase had been received from the czar's agent Messrs. Gammage A Lallal at once refunded the purchase money, and Offered an apology to his majesty for having unwittingly disappointed him; and investigations were at once commenced with a view to solving the pussle. Both of the members of the firm were positive In declaring that they both saw the gem deposited in the strong room, and both saw the door locked immediately afterward. The pearl had been placed in a small box on a bed of cotton-wool, and the box was covered with a glass lid. Next morning the pearl was gone, but the box, glass lid and cotton wool were intact. It almost seemed as If the thing had been spirited Away by supernatural agency. "Our Tittle father was not satisfied with the return of the purchase money. He had set his heart on adding that gem to his collection, and notified the Indian firm that in case the pearl came to light fie was anxious to secure it Also I was instructed to send one of our mon to India to fielp in the hunt for the thief or thieves. You were engaged on the case of the stolen treaty at the time, and I could not send you. Peter Obolsvok went to India on my orders. He was not any more successful, however, than the

(Copyright by W. G. Ch*pm*a)

have a complete report of Obolsvok’s work out there, but it does not go far toward reaching the core of the mystery, it seems that Messrs. Gammage A Lallal inclined to the belief that some of their employes were concerned in the robbery. But these employes all told only numbered six, five of them being natives, the sixth being a Frenchman named Eugene Valjean, who was noted as an expert diamond cutter and finisher. He had been with the firm ten years* and bore a very high character. Against him nor the native workmen could a shadow of suspicion be justified, and Obolsvok was compelled to admit himself beaten. “Now, two years after the robbery, there appears to be some chance of finding the missing pearl, perhaps bringing to justice the thief who was. responsible for its disappearance in Irdia. Strange to say, the due comes from the British metropolis, London. About a month ago the Duchess de Flouret, a prominent ber of London society, lost or was robbed of a magnificent diamond-set pearl, while on her way home from the opera. The duchess was formerly a Miss Malpas, the daughter of a wealthy London merchant, who was wooed .and won by a French duke of high family, but very poor in this world’s goods. He was said to have squandered a large fortune, and led'a dissipated Hfe. Six months after the marriage the fashionable world of London heard that the beautiful duchess and her noble hupband had separated.* 1$ was generally Admitted that the fault all lay on the man’s side. When the pearl disappeared no pains were spared by the duchess to have it traced, and as she possessed a photograph of the gem in its unset condition copies of it were taken' to Scotland Yard in the hope that they might prove of assistance to the men wora-

ing on the case. So far, however, their efforts have been unsuccessful. But one curloqs thing came to light in connectioiT with the missing gem. The Scotland Yard people, knowing its great value, supposed it likely that the pearl would be well known to experts and gem dealers, and took immediate steps to bring the loss under the notice of the traded The photograph was reprod _ced and sent out broadcast to the principal dealers throughout Europe. In the course of a few days the famous Berlin dealers, Herren Wildstrubel A Goldstein, notified Scotland Yard that they had every reason to believe that the missing gem was the one that had originally belonged to Gammage A Lallal of Bombayand which had so mysteriously disappeared from the latter’s strongroom. “Our London ambassador, Count Kleinmichel, is acquainted with the Duchess de Flouret, and became aware of the identity of her stolen gem with ‘the pearl of the gods,’ which he knew to have been originally destined for the household of his imperial master. Also he knew that nothing would .please the czar better than to finally secure the gem which had escaped him two years before. So Kleinmichel at once sent a messenger to bu Petersburg with a full account of the circumstances attending the loss of the pearl, with the result that our royal master ordered me to send you to London to assist in the hunt for it It is a task of no. small difficulty, but should you prove successful it will be a great feather in your cap. Sootland Yard has tailed, up to the present” “All the more credit for me if I manage to beat the Yard men on their own ground,” rejoined Danevitch tranquilly. “I suppose you wish me to start immediately?** '-'V'-. w*’

“As soon as possible,” returned the chiM, and the detective retired to make preparations for his Journey. ;..A|ter *B uneventful trip Danevitch reached the British capital and, having been furnished with an Introduction to the Duchess de Flouret by Count Kleinmichcl. sought an interview with the lady in question. This was graciously granted and in the course of an hour's conversation Danevitch found himself possessed of all the details of the case. "I am convinced," said the duchess, "that the pearl was taken from )lne Just as I was leaving the theetlMr. There was an awful crush down the stairs and a youngjdark complexloned, foreign-looking man kept so close to me all the time, and Jostled me so rudely that I was nearly speaking to my friends about It In the entrance hall the crush was terrific and to my surprise I noticed that the dark man was still at my elbow. 1 glanced angrily at him, and, with a bow, he said: 'Duchess, the circumstances of the hour have thrown us together, and your beauty has drawn me like a magnet' "This Impertinence made me still more angry, and I was going to bring his conduct under the notice of my friends, but at that moment a lady fainted, which,added greatly to the confusion, and, taking advantage <ff this, the fellow slipped away. “Had you ever seen ‘ the man before, duchess?” asked Danevitch. "Never to my knowledge. He was foreign In appearance and spoke .with a foreign accent He was sllsht of

plexlon, bushy, dark eyebrows, a small, dark mustache, and very dark hair, closely cropped In the French style. On the upper part of his left cheekhe had a small, livid sear. It looked like a sword or dagger cut.” “You draw a very good description of the man,” remarked the detective. “Will you kindly describe the lost article r* ; /. r, fg “it is a pearl set round with diamonds, which In themselves are valuable, but they are paltry compared with the pearl, which is said to be one of the finest in the world. It was given tonne by my husband before we were married. It is such a costly rem that I have seldom worn it, except on such occasions, as the night when it was stolen.’’ Danevitch reflected a moment. It did not suit his policy to Inform the duchess of his true vocation as an agent of the czar of all the Russlas. kleinmichel had simply introduced him as an expert investigator who might prove of service in finding ths gem. Finally he asked: “Can you tell me anything of the past history of the pearl, duchess? Such a valuable gem ought u> have a story connected with It’* “No; my husband never told meanything about it. He asked me to wear ft as little as possible, as attempts might be made to steal it on account of its value. Subsequently, when differences arose between us, he wished to take the pearl away from me, but I would not let him have it” - “One more question, duchess. Do you know where your husband IsF* ‘T have not the remotest idea. I heard that he expressed an Intention of going to America, but whether ■'he has gone or not J really could not -say.” '• Danevitch took his departure with a growing convicton that the robbery of the gem was the result of a deep-laid

conspiracy. A mere common pickpocket would assuredly have known that there would be great difficulty- in getting rid of such a valuable brooch, and that any attempt to steal it in the usual way would surely lead to his detection and arrest. The thief, in all probability, was one of a gang of criminals who flew at high game. It had been shown conclusively that the gem was the identical one which had been stolen from the Bombay dealers two years before. In whose possession was it during the ly certain that It hi id not been traded in the usual way, otherwise it could have been traced. Danevltch felt that It devolved upon him to learn the story of the pearl from the time it disappeared so strangely from the Bombay strong room. If he could only clear up that mystery it might be possible to trace ths career of the peart until he should be In a position to restore it to Its legitimate owners, the Indian firm of dealers. Yet, in a sense, the Duchess de Flouret migh t be said to have a legitimate claim on the gem. She, at least, had not acquired it dishonestly. It was given her by her affianced husband, but supposing him to have obtained it honestly, how did the person from whom he procured it gain possession? This line of reasoning led the detective to look up the duchess once more, with a view toward finding out something about the career of her husband. It was a delicate subject to approach, but Danevltch by degrees drew forth the lady's confidence, and the revelations she made did not prejudice him tn the duke’s favor. On his marriage that gentleman was heavily In debt, and her father paid his debts, with the result that he contracted fresh ones, and the indignant merchant refused to let him have any more money. He then began to sell his wife's jewels, and tried to get the peart, which, however, she refused to part with. Beyond the time when de Flouret took himself off for good, the diMhess could sive no further inform*.

tibn regarding her husband, as all communication between her femfly and his had ceased. • Danevitch then proceeded to the London agent of Gammage A Lallal, a German gentleman named Spiegelmann, whose place was in Piccadilly. The detective’s object in visiting him was to obtain, if possible, further particulars of the disappearance of the gem from the strong room in Bombay. Mr. Spiegelmann not only confirmed an Danevitch had already heard, but gave him some additional details. It appeared that he had been In Bombay shortly after the robbery took place, and had an opportunity of examining' the strong room for himself. Upon Danevitch asking if he could furnish him with a rough sketch of the mechanism of the door, Spiegelmann replied that he could give him an almost accurate drawing of it; for, being a draftsman and of a mechanical ■turn of mind, hes had become greatly Interested in the mechanism, and had made some notes of it at the time, as he wanted to test for himself if it were possible to unlock the door, after it was once .locked, with any other than the proper keys. But though he studied the subject carefully, he came to the conclusion that It could not be done, and so the mystery remained a mystery, as far as he was concerned. The old gentleman was true to his word, and in due time Danevitch received the drawing of the plans and pored over them far into the night. He was seeking for what he believed to be the key to the problem of the vanishing of the gem In the first place—a means whereby the door could have been opened without the knowledge of the owners of the treasure chamber, and the fastenings left apparently intact At last he uttered a sigh of relief. He imagined that he had found the expected weak sP9t ‘in the complicated mechanism. The designer, in his opinion, had been a trifle too ingenious. In other words, Danevitch perceived that un-

due reliance had been placed on the Indicator to give ‘ warning when the bolts were shot. He fancied that he had detected a way whereby the indicator could be so tampered with that It would falsely declare that the door was properly closed. To test his theory further he had a working wooden model of the plan of the strong room door made by a clever mechanic, and the result was exactly what he had expected ft would be. The Inventor of Messrs. Gammage and Lallal's complicated treasure chamber had overlooked one important fact, which was that by disconnecting certain levers, the txflts would cease to act, although "the Indicator would work. Evidently somebody had two years before discovered this simple hitch, and utilised his knowledge to the extent of carrying off the pearl. It has already been stated that at the time of the robbery the Indian firm had only one European in their employ—a Frenchman named Eugene Valjean. By a natural, process of deduction Danevltch fixed on this Individual as the thief, notwithstanding that he had been in the employ of the firm for many years and bore a high character. Being In the trade and having an intimate knowledge of the markets, such a man might see his way clear to disposing of the pearl, whereas the'natives would have been at a loss what to do with the gem after they had got It Then, again, Valjean was a country man of Duke de Flouret, and there was a possibility of some connection existing between the two. At any rate Danevltch was so strongly obsessed by this theory that he went to Paris to make some inquiries regarding Flouret That gentleman’s career he found to have been every bit as black as he had suspected A rake of the first water, living largo ly on the strength of his title, the only family asset left him, he had been flnanciallv embarrassed at the time ho met and wooed successfully the daughter of the London merchant *%ho became his wife. Where then.

did this broken down roue of the boulevards obtain the valuable gem which fie presented to his fiancee? But though Danevitch had no trouble in tracing Flouret’s career, he could not get on the track of the man himself; nor could he obtain a clue to the whereabouts of the fellow so ably described by the duchess as the one she suspected of having stolen the pearl during the crush at the opera. Baffled for the time being -in his search for Flouret, Danevitch turned his attention to hunting for Eugene Valjean; -The latter was renowned in the trade for his skill as a diamond cutter and finisher, and if he was still living would probably be employed by one of the big firms dealing in genu. In this instance fortune favored the detective to the extent of his being able to locate Valjean in the employ of a<-celebrated Dutch firm, Loopuyt. A Co. of Amsterdam. Thereafter Danevitch kept a close watch on Valjean, and one night when the Frenchman was playing chess in a case that he frequented a good deal, the detective sprung a surprise on his man. A small crowd wastgathered around the table where the chess players were seated, and Danevitch, edging up close behind Valjean, hissed suddenly in his ear: “Do you know where Flouret isT’ These words produced an electrical effect upon the Frenchman; he started To his feet, upsetting the chessboard, and gasped convulsively: “What —no—l—who is Flouret?” Danevitch made no answer, and disappeared before Valjean had recovered his self-possession. His practised eye had read the signs of guilt in the suspect’s face. Valjean knew the man Flouret, that much was certain, and had crooked dealings with him, else the mention of the duke’s name would not have dlscompAMd him so gravely. Danevltch’s was that Valjean had found it harder to dispose of the stolen gem than he had expected. Therefore, he had sought the aid of Flouret, with whom he had become acquainted, probably figuring that the nobleman might be able to assist him in finding a market for it Flouret had taken the pearl In order to present It to Miss Malpas, his fiancee. It was an indirect way of selling the gem, for he probably considered-that once married, he would be able to extort large sums of money from her in which Valjean would share. Flouret, however, found himself doomed to disappointment in this direction, but by the aid of a third person had managed to steal back the gem from his wife.. -

Danevltch now resolved to shadow Valjean closer than ever, in the hope that he would eventually lead him to Flouret It was reasonable to suppose that Valjean would not easily’ abandon his hold on his confederate If the duke was still in possession of the gem. Carefully disguised the detective watched every move made by his quarry. Valjean suddenly left Amsterdam tor Brussels, and the detective followed him on the same train. On the night of their arrival in Brussels Valjean betook himself to a case where he was joined by an old man wearing blue spectacles. The pair conversed together in low tones, while Danevltch sat at a table close by. A careful study of the stranger’s peculiarities convinced the osar's agent that Valjean’s friend, while aping the part of an old man, was in reality a young one. The stranger’s hands, round, full, and firm of outline, betrayed him to the man who had made a life-long study of the art of making up. They were not the hands ot withered old age. ? It was nearly midnight when the pair parted, and Danevltch followed the new actor in the drama to where he lived. This was a rooming house in the Rue Royal. On the following morning Valjean took a train back to Amsterdam, but Danevltch remained .behind to watch the stranger’s movedetective discovered that Valjean’s acquaintance went under the name of M. Paul Roget, and had occupied rooms in the house for some weeks. His apartments were situated in a largo stone building, with balconies before all the windows in the front part of the house. In the flat above him Danevltch was enabled to rent two rooms, the detective's front room being directly over Roget’s room and balcony. Danevltch saw that he could easily reach the under balcony with the assistance of a small rope ladder, and deemed it possible that this means of spying on his unconscious neighbor might prove useful. One afternoon, sitting at his chamber window, the watcher saw a flacre drive up to the door and a tody and gentleman alight. On the baggage pile on the roof ot the vehicle Danevltch noticed several labels reading: “London, Charing Cross, to Brussels.** The gentleman was red-haired, and the lady evidently young, to judge by her brisk movements, but Danevltch did not succeed In seeing hdr face. An hour later, much to his surprise, he perceived the newly arrived guests leaving the house in company with none other than Paul Roget, and this time he was lucky enough to be able to get a good look at the lady. An exclamation of blank astonishment fell from his Ups when he recognised in her fair features those of Miss Fenton, a cousin of the Duchess Flouret. whom he had seen during one of his visits to the latter’s residence. Here was truly evidence of some kind of a conspiracy. What connection could there be between the wily Valjean, his friend Roget, and Jhe cousin of the lady from whom the “pearl of the gods’’ had been stolen? Danevltch made up his mind how to act in an instant. The pew arrivals had a quantity of baggage tn the house, therefore there was no fear at their failing to raturn. That night

- Danevitch watched until a light shone from the window below, proclaiming the fact that M. Roget was at Then he -donned a pair of rubber shoes, got out the rope ladder he had provided for the occasion, and quietly made his way down to the balcony below. Peering into the rooijp he saw four persons.. They were Roget, the red-haired man, Miss Fenton, and a dark man whom he had not seen before. The latter’s hair was jet black, and on the upper part of his left cheek a small livid scar stood forth in bold relief. He waa tha man described so vividly by the duchess, whom she suspected as the actual thief of the pearl. But this was not all. The lost pearl also stood revealed to the detective’s eager gaze.- A little empty box and some cotton wool lay on the table, but the gem with the eventful history was lying in the outstretched hand of the swarthy man, who was critically examining it Danevitch swarmed up his rope with the agility of a monkey, gained his own room, and then hurried off to the adjacent gendarmerie. He returned with several officers to Roget’s apartment, and the entire party was placed under arrest. Approaching M. Roget, the czar’s Itgent seized him by the hair and pulled off an exceedingly well made gray wig, and the missing husband of Duchess Flouret stood revealed in his own proper person. Danevitch had seen several photographs of Flouret, and the latter made no attempt to deny his identity. In the person of the swarthy man the police recognized a notorious Spanish crook named Vojas, who had graduated from the ranks of the pickpocket brigade to the position of leader of a famous gang of continental swindlers. Danevitch wired at once to Amsterdam requesting that Valjean be arrested, and on receiving a telegram stating that this was done, left for London to interview the duchess, the famous pearl having been seized by the Brussels authorities. The duchess was much shocked to hear of her cousin’s treachery, and supplied the missing links to the story of the plot The red-haired man' turned out to be a fellow named Henri Breton, who was distantly related to Flouret. Miss Fenton had fallen in love with Breton, and easily fell a victim to his inducements, he being in league with Flouret to deprive the duchess of the pearl, in the hope that they could raise some money on it Through Miss Fenton her lover was apprised that the duchess was going to the gem at the opera, and the aid of Vojas was enlisted to abstract it dujing the crush on the stair. Further investigation made it clear that Valjean had originally stolen the pearl from the strong room of the In- * dian dealers exactly as Danevitch had surmised from a study of the modeL Unable to dispose of it fear of detection he had taken Flouret into his confidence. By giving the pearl to his wife’ the latter had hoped to get large sums of money from her, which he had promised to divide with his confederate. Failing in this scheme, he had called Breton and Vojas to his aid to regain possession of the treasure, and the plot was worked out successfully in the manner described/ The case, as might be supposed, gave rise to curious legal complications. In the end Gammage A Lallal established their claim to the “pearl of the gods.” AH of the accused persons were tried, convicted and sentenced to long terms of imprisonment. Danevitch, triumphant in a case where the best talent of Scotland Yard had failed, returned to St Pe-' tersburg, where he received the personal thanks of his royal employer for the wonderful success he had achieved. For the second time the czar of all the Russians paid Gammage A Lallal a munificent price for the marvelous gem; and the “pearl of the gods” finally came into the possession of the Imperial household.

Ice Cheap in Persia.

The fact that ice is plentiful and cheap makes living in Persia more pleasant than it would otherwise be, and the fact that ft can be Obtained at all is indicative of the ingenuity of the people of the country. The ground is so porous that water percolates through quickly. There are therefore few rivers or lakes from which ice can be obtained, and ft is seldom so cold tn any part of Persia that Ice of a thickness suitable for packing would fonp under the direct rays of the sun. The Persian obtains his ice by making a shallow pool and building a high wall which win protect it from the sun. A thin layer of ice win form; this he floods at night with water, and so he goes on adding inch to inch until he can cut a block of considerable thickness. * '

Gold In Ocean Water.

Apart from the treasures which find their way to the bottom of the sea. and occasionally come to llaht 1 again, there 1s more gold in the seo| than has ever been coined into Such, at all events, la the oplnlon of Professor Wilde of Brussels slty. AH sea water contains a certain amount of gold, in the about one grain to each ton of Reckoning the total weight of all the oceans at the very moderate figure of one billion tons, Profesor Wilde estimates that they would yield gold to nearly a hundred thousand time* as much as “. . . Why, bless you, you can bathe in Gold.” - London Chronlcle ‘ :

The Kinder Guide.

"Yes, I have Just done Europe." . . = “Can you give me a list dt hotels to go tor ‘■No; the best I can do is to gite you a list of hotel* tq keep away from.” |