Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 February 1920 — Diamond Cut Diamond [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Diamond Cut Diamond

By JANE BUNKER

OMVTUAt by ths Bobbs-MerrtH Comoaav CHAPTER XV. An Important Ownership. When I left her house this was my situation with Mrs. Delario — she’d given birth to the incorrigible belief that a million dollars’ worth of diamonds had been presented to her by an unknown lama in Tibet; sent her through the air; glued into the toe of her slipper, and this in answer to prayer. And I had to reckon with it as a sact —a fact that yelled me off the straightforward course Pd been about to pursue and bulliedme into taking devious ways.

“No!’’ I replied to myself ten dozen times. “The Kmperor William didn’t consult me about what he should do with his old diamonds; why should he expect help from me now? He’s got bls own machinery to work with —let him get his diamonds back himself. Tm no detective—Tm not his tool.” Billy was an hour late in reaching the house and I interrupted his petulant explanation as to why he wasn’t two hours late, or three, to communicate rapidly—knowing that monsieur would be there In a minute—my decision that M rs. Del a rio was to keep the diamonds and the Emperor William might twiddle his thumbs and whistle. “You took ’em back to her?” “Yes, and she’s to keep them.” “But—what did she say—” The elevator was rumbling, and I knew who was coming. “But what are you going to tell monsieur ?” The bell rang—l hadn’t decided what I was going to tell monsieur. I opened the door. Standing behind Claire, his glance to me under his obsequiously lifted hat and across her head, monsieur rapidly prowled my face for the sniff of a hint that I had

everything arranged and my diplomacy had been successful. Which hint Pm positive he didn’t get. Claire gave a little cry on seeing me, flung herself into my arms and hid her blushes on my shoulder. I ducked my face to hers and bade my visitors enter. I carried Claire forward, leaving monsieur to dispose of his Jiat and coat in the 'hall. I presented Billy to Claire, and she shot him dead with one glance and brought him back to life with the next. ( At the sound of her lovely voice uttering a thrilly “How do you do?” Billy didn’t know his own name—the , only name he could at the moment have articulated was Claire de Ravenol.

Claire forgot him as soon as he stammered out his “awfully glad to meet you,” and dropped her little hand. I was the magnet of those lovely eyes I Being middle-aged and proper does sometimes have its compensations! I motioned us to chairs. What was Ito tell monsieur! Claire gave me a moment’s respite by hurriedly beginning, “Papa says to tell you everything I know —” Rhe glanced at him and he nodded. “Yes — everything —from so beginning.” “You remember Vevey r I nodded and said “Yes.” “Well, papa came to see me there — while I was at school, you know—and he brought me a little box to keep for him —so big.” “What was in that Utile box?” I questioned. Claire’s eyes mutely appealed to her father. Monsieur bad evidently been waltIng for this questionand hastily interposed. “She does not know—it was ay wish she should know nossing of as contents —to sis day she does not kpow—" aad bls whole face Oiled

wnn appeal to out, ana ma \I granted the appeal with a Jerk of my head that I hoped told him, “All right—l’ll keep your secret from her,” and he replied to this with, “Tres bien,” and a relieved look. But that didn’t mean I was through with my questions to Claire. “What did you think was in the box?’ I went on. “Papers—very valuable papers." “Valuable in what way? Title deeds to property, for instance? Or a will? Anything of that kind?” I wanted to know what sort of a yarn he’d told her. “Oh, no—much more valuable than that I A cipher on tissue paper. Papa said his life depended on It —and the life of the emperor of Russia,” she hastily added; and blushed and cast down her eyes. “Ze emperor of Germany,” corrected monsieur quietly. “Yes—l forgot—l thought it the emperor of Russia.” “It Is Of no consequence—continue, my child, wis ze narrative.” She seemed a little off the track and I helped her on with another question: “What were ydu to do with those papers?” "I was to help papa get them to America —so they wouldn’t be found. So I hid the papers while I “was at school —I wore them in a little bag around my neck that papa bought for me, and it was all arranged with madame that she was to bring me to Paris when papa telegraphed And she couldn’t, you know, so you brought me.”

“So that was why you were so afraid of being searchecT at the customs house on the frontier?” “Yes. Papa told me they might—and if they found the papers he would be handed over to the government. But they didn’t find them!” She smiled in childish delight. “I got them to Paris with you all right, and then I ran on ahead and told papa and said how kind you’d been, and I said you were just going to America, and he said the governess he’d engaged had been taken sick and couldn’t go to America, but the Russian spies were after him and he was afraid he’d be killed, and perhaps you would take me with you.” Billy glared at monsieur. Monsieur answered him with a shrug as much as to say, “Well, what would you?” Claire went on, “And then, papa asked you to let me go with you, and you—you —couldn’t.” She was too exquisitely polite to remind me of that stern, uncompromising refusal. “Well, papa found Mrs. Delario, and it was all right” *‘And now, Claire, what was precisely the plan about that little box? What were you to do with it?” She blushed and grew so embarrassed she could hardly go on, but her father helped her by telling her, .“Conceal nosslng, my child —you have done only what your fazer have commanded you to.” Thus encouraged, she confessed, “I was to put it In your slipper—if you had one you weren’t wearing, because you know you told papa that your baggage wasn’t examined—your cousin was an inspector, or something like that And If I couldn’t get it into your baggage I must put it In one of Mrs Delario’s slippers—” “I remember now!” I suddenly exclaimed. “That time I caught you in my cabin —at my suitcase —you were trying to do it then?” Tears came to her eyes. - “Yes," she almost whispered. “I was going to put it in one of your slippers—l found you had a pair just like Mrs. Delario’s.” “Oh!” I said. And at this, monsieur interposed, “It was my plan—ze slipper—if one could be found not worn on ze steamer.” Billy charged monsieur’s confession to a private account that was growing large. Personally I felt I liked the man the better for it—l read it as the effort to shield the girl and minimize her part in the affair. And in that I was right; Billy looked at it differently. “Conceited cuss!” he later confided. “Wanted to take the whole credit to himself.” “Oui, madame,” monsieur went on, and all the while I felt him searching' my face for a sign of what I had accomplished with Mrs. Delarlo. “Nosslng can be safer —I ar£ue —zan a fancy slipper. It IS not worn on ze steamer in ze fold of winter, and madame have so assure me zat her baggage, because of her so good cousin, is pass wisout difficulty. And who would accuse madame of”—he gave me a knowing look and finished ambig-

uously—“of to smuggle zoze valuable papers zat do not concern her? Ah, no—it would be incredible wisout to see zem—and we have take care zat zey are not seen I And to accomplish sis we have put zem where zey are almost but not quite seen. I have explain all zis to Claire and she have understand part a i tement. Out.” The smugness with which he delivered .himself of this was really amusing, and I couldn’t help a smile, which encouraged him to add—at the same time looking piercingly at me—with a deprecating shrug: “And just at ze moment of beautiful completion ma da me carries off one of sons slippers —we know not which*” All of us laughed and the tension that had been quite plainly felt in our little company broke. Claire went on to tell us bow, in Antwerp, she had occupied a room communicating with Mrs. Delario’s the day before they sailed, and how papa had taken Mrs. Delarlo out to see the great Rubens in the cathedral and she—Claire—pleading a headache, had remained behind and had gone through Mrs. Delario’s things so she could tall her fatter what these -as Jhev ennM

use; mu aiscoverea tne suppers ano had taken them to her room and shown them to her father thatvnlght and he said they “would do admirably," and she had got them back while Mrs. Delario was ariean (TO BE CONTINUED)

Monsieur Rapidly Prowled My Face.