Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 19, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 July 1908 — The KING of DIAMONDS. [ARTICLE]

The KING of DIAMONDS.

By Louis Tracy.

Author of “Wings of the Morning.** "Th* Pillar of Light.** Etc.

COPYRICHT. l»0«. By EDWARD J. CLODS.

SYNOPSIS TO PREVIOUS CHAPTERS.] Chapter I—At Johnson'* Mews, a slum In London, Philip Anson, a well reared boy ct about fifteen, loses his mother, the only i« la live, so far us he knows, that he has In the world. He finds a package of letters, many of them from a Sir Philip Morland, refusing aid to Mrs. Anson. Mrs. Anson was a Miss Morland and was thought by he** relatives to have married beneath iter station. ll—During a great storm Philip eaves a little girl, addressed as E3f, from being erushed by a carriage. In his squalid apartment* Philip, sick of the outlook and discouraged, is about to hang himself when a huge meteor falls in the courtyard. Philip, sympathetic and imaginative, regards it as a message from hi* mother in heaven. HI —With some fragments of the meteor Philip goes to a jeweler. He is told that they are diamonds and is referred to Isaacstein & Co., London's largest dealers in diamonds. IV—lsaacstein is astounded by the gems Philip shows him and ha* the boy arrested. V—lsaacstein explains tn court that the gems are doubtless of recent meteoric origin. Vl—The wife of Sir Philip Morland reads in the papers about Philip and hi* marvelous diamonds and •ends to Johnson's Mews to inquire about him. She learns nothing. Philip is dismissed from custody. Vll—Philip agrees to supply Isaacstein with a quarter of a million pounds sterling worth of diamonds each year for many years. VIII and IX —At Johnson’s Mews, while Philip is preparing to remove the rest of his diamonds, he detects an intruder, who, with the assistance of a policeman, is captured. He is a noted criminal named Jocky Mason. Philip removes his diamonds forever from Jonnson’s Mews. X, XI and Xll—lsaacstein sells thirty of Philip's diamonds for £52,000. XIII— Ten years later, when Jocky Mason gets out of prison, he sees the Mary Anson Home For Destitute Boys, which was founded by Philip. XlV—Philip rescues a girl from insult at th* hands of two men, one of whom is Victor Orenier, an ex-fellow convict of Jocky Mason. XV and XVI —The girl rescued by Philip is a Miss Atherley, an opera singer, who proves to be the Elf of Philip's adventure of many years before. Grenier's companion was a nephew of Grenier. His name is Langdon. XVII—-Philip receives a letter telling him that Sir Philip Morland is dying and begging him to come. A man calling himself **Dr. Williams'' meets Philip at the depot and escorts him to the house. XVlll—Philip finds too late that he has fallen into a trap set by Grenier, Jocky Mason and Langdon. Philip is struck violently on the head bv Mason and is supposed to ba dead. His body is stripped naked and thrown from a cliff into the sea. Grenier, who resembles Philip, is to take his place in the world and get hold of his money for the gang. XIX and XX—Mason meets his sons, who he is informed by them, have been nicely brought up in the Mary Anscn home and owe everything to Philip Anson. Mason is filled with remorse. XXI— When Philip was thrown into the sea from the cliff he was not killed and was rescued by some fishermen. XXII —The last.

This amazing stipulation, backed up by a fearless threat, be it noticed, drew an Indignant protest from Mr, Abingdon. Philip said nothing. “Oh, very well!” growled Mason. “There is another way.” His right hand dived Into a pocket, and Dr. Scarth again fingered bls revolver. But Philip cried imperiously: “Sit still, Mason. I have heard all that you have to say. Be quiet, I tell you. Wait until I refuse your request.” “My dear boy,” interrupted Mr. Abingdon, who knew Philip’s generous Impulses, “you will never think of condoning”—

“Forgive me! Let me carry matters a stage further. Now you, Grenier. What have you to say?” “Very little!" was the cool response. “My excellent friend has made a clean breast of everything. You didn’t die and so spoiled the finest coup that ever man dreamed of. I had no difficulty In concocting the requisite epistles from Sir Philip and Lady Morland. Your London bank accepted my signature with touching confidence. I have opened two accounts tn your name, one In York and one in Leeds, £5,000 each. This morning I heard from London that £150,000 of your consols had been realized and placed to your current account. Just to be feeling the pulse of the local money market 1 drew out £2,000 today. It is there In notes on the table. You will also find the check books and pass books in perfect order. Oh, by the way, I told your man Green to open your safe and send me your mysterious portmanteau. It Is in my bedroom. That is all, 1 think. I am sorry if I worried the young lady"— “You unutterable scamp!” cried Philip. “Well, I had to keep her quiet, you know. As it was; she suspected me. I suppose my messages hadn’t the proper ring in them. And-wbat the deuce is a blue atom?” Dr. Scarth was even more interested than ever, if possible. “Blue Atom! Blue Atom is a nobler specimen of a dog than yourself. He Is a prize toy Pomeranian. You are a mongrel.” M Grenier for an instant grew confused again. He sighed deeply. “A dog!” be murmured. “A blue Pomeranian! Who wojild have guessed itr Philip turned to Mason. “If I leave you here alone with this man, Grenier, will you keep him out of mischief?” Jocky gave his associate a glance which caused that worthy to sit down suddenly. “And yourself? Promise that you will remain as you are until I return?” . “I promise.” Anson led his friends from the room. He thanked the manager for the assistance be had given and told him the affair might be arranged without police interference. Long and earnestly did be confer with Mr. Abingdon. It was a serious thing to let these men off scot free. Grenier's case was Worse in a sense

There were three banks involved, nnd forgery to a bank is a crime not to be forgiven. There was a dubious way out. Philip might accept responsibility for Grenier’s transactions. If the London bank accepted Grenier’s signature for surely the local Institutions would accept bis for Grenier’s. Mr. Abingdon was wrotb at the bare suggestion. “You will be forging your own name," he protested vehemently. •‘Very well, then. He shall write checks payable to self or order, indorse them, and 1 will pay them Into my account.” “I dare not approve of any such procedure.” ‘So Philip, though sorely tried, again labored bls arguments that the trial of Grenier would be a cause celebre In which his, Anson’S, name would be unpleasantly prominent. EVelyn would be drawn into it and Abingdon himself. There would be columns of sensation in the newspapers. Moreover it was quite certain that Jocky Mason would commit suicide unless they captured him by a subter fuge, and then the whole story would leak out. it ended by Philip gaining the day, for at the bottom of his heart Abing don was touched by Mason’s story, thoroughpaced ruffian as be was. They re-entered No. 41. The pair were sitting as they were left. Grenier was not even smoking. The affair of the Blue Atom bad deeply wounded his vanity. Philip walked straight to Mason and took him by the shoulder. “Now, listen to me,” he said. ”1 gave you one crack on the head, and you have given me one. Shalt we say that accounts are squared?” "Do you mean IL sir?” __ "Yes, absolutely.” “Then all I can say is this, sir: Dur Ing the rest of my life I’ll make good use of the chance you have given me. God bless you for the boys’ sake more than my own.” “And you,” went on Philip, turning to the disconsolate Grenier, “will you leave England and make a fresb start In a new land? You are young enough and clever enough tn some respects to earn an honest-llving.” “I will. sir. I swear it.” The utter collapse of his castle tn Spain had sobered him. The gates of Portland were yawning open for him, and the goodness of the man he had wronged had closed them in his face. Never again would he see their grim front if be could help it He readily gave every assistance in the brief investigation that followed. Mr. Abingdon looked on askance as he wrote checks for 13,000 and £5,000 on the York and Leeds banks respectively. but even Philip himself gave an astonished laugh when he saw his own Signature written with quiet certainty and accuracy. “Oh, that’s nothing!” cried Grenier in momentary elation. “I took in Mr. Abingdon and sent a complete letter to the London bank.” “You did not take me in,” growled Abingdon. “You made one fatal mistake.” “And what was that, sir?” “You alluded to the annual report of the ‘home.’ Every one connected with that establishment, from the founder down to the latest office boy, invariably calls it the ‘Mary Anson home.’ Mr. Anson would never write of it in other terms.”

Grenier was again abashed. “Have you any money in your pocket?" said Philip when the forger had accounted for every farthing. For one appreciable Instant Grenier hesitated. Then be flushed. He had resisted temptation. “Yes,” he said; “plenty. Langdem supplied me with funds.” “How mu<*h?” “Two hundred and fifty pounds. I have over seventy left.” “I will arrange matters with him. Come to my West End office next Monday, and you will be given sufficient to keep you from poverty and crime until you find your feet in Canada. Remember, you sail on Wednesday.” “No fear of any failure on my part, sir. I can hardly credit my good—or, what I want to say is,, I can never thank you sufficiently.” “Pay Mason’s fare to London. Better stay with him. His sons may have a good influence on you too.” Mason rose heavily. “I’ll find him a job, sir. He can pack your bag.” The words recalled to Philip the knowledge of his incongruous attire. Soon he wore his own clothes. He refused to allow Grenier to divest himself of the garments he wore, bnt he was glad to see his old watch again. Dr. Scarth bade them farewell and returned to Scarsdale by the last train. Philip and Abingdon arrived In London at 2:15 a. m. On the platform, accompanied by her mother, was Evelyn. She wept all the way to Mount street, where Philip would be accommodated for the night. She cried again when she gaw his poor woimded head, but she laughed through her tears when she ran off to fetch a very small and very sleepy dog, with long blue hair falling In shaggy masses over his eyes

and curling wonderfully over his tiny body. Mr. James Crichton Langdon waa imperatively summoned to -London and given such a lecture by Mr. Abingdon that be so far abandoned the error of bis ways as to strive to forget that such a jierson as Evelyn Atherley existed. The ex-magistrate had seen him in Devonshire ami was so skeptical of bls statements concerning the whereabouts of Kir Philip and I-ady Morland that he traveled direct to York via Gloucester and Birmingham to clear up with Philip in person a mystery rendered more dense by the curious letter and telegram he received in London. One day in August the Sea Malden dropped anchor off the Yorkshire coast not far from the gaunt cliff on which stood Grange House. Dr. Hearth entertained Mr. and Mrs. Anson in his house for the night, and some of the men were allowed ashore. They came back full of a story they had beard how the skipper had met with a mishap on the big point to s’utb'ard, was rescued by three fishermen and bad bought for each man the freehold of the house in which he lived, besides presenting them Jointly with a tine smack. “He’s a rare good sort, there’s no doubt about that.” said the chief narrator, ‘‘an’ of course ’e can afford to do that sort o’ thing, bein’ the King o’ Diamonds.” ’ "He’s more than the King of Diamonds: he’s the King of Trumps,” observed a gigantic, broken nosed stoker who listened to the yarn, not .being one of the shore going men. •‘You’ve known him this long time, haven't you. Mason?” said the first speaker. “Yes; ever since he was a bit of a boy. Ten years it must be. But we lost sight of each other—until 1 met him the other day. Then he gave me a job—for the sake of old tlmea.” THE END. My crown and bridge work is the only method in dental science that is permanent and which perfectly equalizes the strain of mastication. It is the only possible method which permits the fullest enjoyment while eating, because the functions of the whole mouth can be exercised. This would be impossible in the old-fashioned plate. These teeth look like your own teeth, feel like your own teeth, and to all Intents and purposes are your own teeth, and with moderate care will last a lifetime. Only gold and porcelain are used in their construction, but, nothwithstanding, the cost is comparatively low. Examinations and estimates free. J. W. HORTON, Dentist. Office first door north of the Makeever hotel.