ban rn
Tortoise
3B,
y
Old Frick was patrolling to and tro
at the gate when I returned.
“Nobody has got over the fence to-
day,” said IL
“No,” he answered thoughtfully; “that
has been my belief the whole time. I
fear that we must have thieves in the
house—but here comes Sigrid!”
He was quite right, for there was the
dear girl walking at a rapid pace toward
the gate.
A warm blush overspread her face
when she saw me, but it disappeared
quickly, and I noticed she looked very
pale and fatigued.
We opened the gate for her, and I
gave a sign to Frick that I wished first
to speak with her.
I went up to her, took her hand, and
whispered some words which had noth-
ing to do with the theft. Then, as we
came nearer her uncle, I remarked aloud
and as carelessly as possible:
“Your uncle cannot find the black tor-
toise; he thinks he must have mislaid
it in some place or another.”
I said this purposely to arouse her at-
tention, in case the diamond really had
been mislaid. I was afraid that if I
mentioned at once that it might have
been stolen, she would have become too
excited to think quietly over the matter.
“But, dear me, isn’t it in the cup-
board? I myself saw you put it in its
place before we followed Mr. Jurgens
through the garden.”
I could not help noticing that Sigrid
spoke in a very absent-minded manner;
she looked fagged out, like a person
who had gone through some physical
or mental exertion.
We told her not to mention anything
for the present to the servants about
the disappearance of the diamond, and
then she left us and went into the
house. [It struck me as remarkable that
the affair should interest her so little.
The next thing I did was to telephone
to the police station, and order two of
my men to come out immediately to
Villa Ballarat. I then asked old Frick
to take a walk with me in the garden
until they arrived; in this way we could
see that nobody went in or out of the
house without our knowledge.
“Where is Mr. Howell?” T asked. I
suddenly began to wonder why I had
not seen or heard anything of this gen-
tleman.
“Oh, he went by rail to Osterdalen
this afternoon. He was invited by a
man called Varingson, I think, who
owns large forests up there. They are
going to shoot capercailzie; it is only
four days, I think he said, before close
time begins.” :
“What time in the afternoon did he
“He had sent his Tuggage down to the
station before mid-day; but the train
was not going before six or seven. We
can hear from Iverson when he left.
Besides, you know, everybody goes and
comes as they like in this house.”
Iverson was Frick’s trusted man; he
was formerly a sergeant in the army, an
unusually trustworthy and clever fellow,
Whom Frick had taken igto his service
at my recofamendation. He was genet-
ally known as the gardenet, but he took
his turn as gatekeeper, and with the
coachman he kept the yard in order;
was joiner, smith, and many other
things,” and received from old Frick a
very liberal salary.
« Both he and the coachman were un-
married; they lived in quite a small
lodge near the gate, but had their meals
up at the house. .
In the meantime my.two<men arrived
at the gate, and I gave them my instruc-
gions,” One of them was to: keep watch
outside the villa and arrange that he
should be relieved, so that the house
and garden should not be unwatched. Ii
the diamond was still within the iron
railings, the thief would at once try to
get it out of the house.
& The other constable got orders to in-
struct pawnbrokers and all others to
whom the diamond might be offered
that, should this occur, they must inform
the police without loss of time, and
that the person bringing it must be fol-
lowed and watched. ;
At supper 1 received a long detailed
account from old Frick and Sigrid of
all that occurred in the house that day.
“Their statement as to time, etc, cor-
soborated exactly. Sigrid had, however,
_a pad headache, and looked very poorly.
“Bath Frick and I advised her to go to
bed, which she did soon after.
Then 1 had a confererice with Iverson.
“THe coachman was away for the day.
Lastly, 1 hadia talk with the house-
maid and cook. Sigrid’s maid, Evelina,
had been away that afternoon to visit
“her mother. She had, however, been
at Villa ‘Ballarat about six o'clock, but
had” gotie Gut” dgain immediately, and
had not yet returned. i
What results or conjectures I arrived
‘at after all these investigations 1 shall
fater on return ‘to; for the present, I
can only add they were not very satisfy-
ing; I began to be afraid th his affaig
would cause ore tro worry
— som . Rg
| than any other business of the kind had
| hitherto done.
Before I parted from old Frick I got
| him to write an official notification of the
| robbery to the police; without this I
could not take up the case in earnest.
CHAPTER V.
AT THE POLICE STATION.
THE next morning at eleven o’clock 1
stood in the police superintendent's
office ; he had told me to be there at that
hour.
I had, for some weeks, figured as
chief of the detective department, dur-
ing my superior’s holiday. The latter
was applying for a position in another
department, and I had had the chief
superintendent’s assurance that I would
be appointed in his place. “I have al-
ready spoken to the Minister of the In-
terior about it, and you can consider the
matter as good as settled,” were the
some days before, had concluded a con-
isfaction. It was soon after I had been
fortunate enough in clearing up the cele-
brated Bjornernd case, and in getting
the murderer arrested.
My chief had always been very friend-
ly to me, and treated me, especially of
as far as his old-fashioned, dignified
and solemn manners would allow of it.
He shook me by the hand as soon as
I came in, and said:
“Good morning, take a seat.” He
beckoned to a constable standing stiffly
in one corner, who then pushed a large
armchair toward me. “You can go into
the anteroom for the present,
with Mr. Monk.
“You are a lucky fellow, Monk, to
have got another interesting affair in
hand. I mean the diamond robbery at
old Frick’s, in Drammen Road. If I
know you rightly, you have: already
made up your mind about the case. From
what I have heard you are a friend of
the family. Indeed, if I am not very
much mistaken, it is not only the dia-
mond which attracts you to the house.”
1 must confess I was much surprised
that my chief should know a secret
which I, like all other people in love,
believed to be well guarded.
Naturally, I did not enter upon that
part of the story, neither did my su-
perior seem to expect it; but T began,
as shortly and briefly as possible, to
explain to him a little about the state of
affairs in the house, and among the oc-
cupants.
I afterward gave him an account of
the previous day's events.
~ “As you may know, sir, there was a
guest at the house yesterday to dinner.
It was old Jurgens, the lawyer ; you know
him, his collection and his mania for
collecting! I have heard that his rela-
tions are trying to prove that he is in-
capable of looking after his own affairs.
He is getting imbecile from old age, and
is squandering his large fortune by
buying up all the world’s curios.
“But he is still sharp enough not to
let any one pawn off any trash upon
him; but if there is an object of real
value, one way or another, then he will
pay the largest sums without blinking.
“He dined with old Frick. He came, of
course, only to see his collection, and he
nearly worried the life out of Frick with
his importunate requests to be allowed
to buy this and that.
The party at dinner consisted of Jur-
gens, Frick, Miss Frick, and Mr. Howell.
Young Frick had gone away two days
before. There were in the house, be-
sides, the cook, the housemaid, and the
gardener. The coachman was on a visit
to his family at Moss. I have already
telephoned to the police there and ascer-
tained that he reached there in the morn-
ing and left by the evening train at eight
o'clock, .
-“ “Miss Frick’s maid, Evelina, was also
away during the afternoon; she had got
permission to go ‘home to her mother,
who was ill.
“After dinner they all went into the
museum, as the people of the house. call
the building which I told you about
some time ago—the ome which Mr.
Frick, upon my advice, had erected out
in the garden between the main building
and thé Dtamnien Road,
_“When they have guests at Villa Bal-
coffee in the museum, especially when
the guests wish to see the curiosities.
“Jurgens, the lawyer, had then for the
twentieth time asked to see the black
tortoise, and was persistently pressing
Frick to sell it to him.
“‘T will pay £500 cash for it!” shout-
ed the old man.
“In the first place it is worth four
times as much, my dear Jurgens,’ old
Frick had replied, ‘and besides, I
wouldn't sell it at any price.
“Jurgens ‘then had to relinquish all
hopes of obtaining the diamond; but he
continued asking to be allowed to buy
some of the other curiosities. He was
especially struck with a little elephant
carved in ivory with a clock in its fore-
head. The clock-works lie in the ani-
mal’s body, and the trunk acts as the
pendulum. The swinging backward and
forward of the trunk has a most comical
effect.
“He had no better success with the
elephant than he had had with the tor-
toise; and it was rather a relief to the
family when the tiresome old man was
taken away by his servant. You know
he has some difficulty in walking, and
has to be carried about in a wheeled
chair, pushed by his servant.
“Frick said good-by to Mr. Jurgens,
and was just going to lock the cases,
after having put everything in its place,
when a cry was heard outside.
“The clumsy servant, who had appar-
ently been drinking, had nearly upset
‘the old man onto one of the flower beds.
“All rushed out from the museum into
the garden.
“After having got Mr. Jurgens »ight-
ed again, and safely outside the gate,
they all went into the house. Thus it
came about that old Frick forgot to loek
| and the door to the museum.
ve + Sr ca
words with which my superior officer, |
versation which had given me great sat- |
late, almost as a comrade; that is to say,
Struk-
stad; I have something to talk over ,
larat, it is often the custom to serve the :
both the cupboard with the iron shutters :
“Tt was then exactly five o’clock in
" the afternoon.
“Qld Frick went up to his room and
took his: after-dinner nap. Miss Sigrid
went out for a walk; she had been
suffering from headache the whole day.
“At six o'clock they met again; she
had been back a quarter of an hour, and
awaited her uncle with afternoon tea
in the sitting-room.
“The two sat together till seven
o'clock, drank tea, and went through
Sigrid’s household accounts.
“At seven the young girl went again
for a little walk, as her headache was
no better.
“When Frick had seen her to the
gate, he suddenly remembered that the
door of the museum was not locked,
and then he made the discovery that the
diamond was gone.
“The gate-keeper, Iverson, had spent
| the time between five; and half-past
seven in the little lodge; he had been
| busy with some carpentering, and stood
at the windows, which looked out on
the gate and the road.
“I asked him if any one had passed
in or out during that time. The key
to the gate hung in the room where he
was working, and he had himself let
every one in and out.
“Yes, first there was Miss Sigrid, who
went out at five and came home in about
half an hour or three quarters.
' “About six Evelina came home, but
went out again at about half-past six.
“About seven o’clock Mr. Howell went
out; he had a gun and game-bag, and
took a four-wheeler which was passing
at the time.
“Soon after, Miss Sigrid again went
out, accompanied to the door by Mr.
rick.
“The cook and the housemaid had
been in the kitchen or their bedroom the
whole time.”
“I must say yours is a model of a
preliminary, report, Mr. Monk; you
seem to have got it all by heart, and
not even to have made any notes.”
“I believe I have a special talent in
* that respect, sir. I only get confused
if I take down anything except what is
absolutely necessary. I can see it much
clearer when I've got it in my head.”
“Yes, oh yes, each one has his own
method! It is at any rate a very use-
ful talent for a detective. But tell me
one thing; how can you be so sure that
the different times you mention are cor-
rect? It is not always that the people
in a house are so exact in regard to
time.”
“As it happens, my statements have
been confirmed on. that point. Old
Frick has a remarkably good pocket
chronometer, and he takes a pride in
always keeping it correct to the minute.
“Just before Jurgens left, a remark
was made how correctly the little’ watch
in the elephant’s head kept time. It
stands on a shelf just over the cup-
board where the diamond had its place.
Although it had not been regulated for a
~~
i
long while, it showed the right time to ,
a minute; which was verified by com-
paring it with the chronometer.
“And thus we have a safe starting-
point; the time was five minutes past
five.
“Then Mr. Frick takes his afternoon
tea precisely at six each day. The ser-
vants have got into the habit of being -
most exact in that respect, as the old
man is very particular.
“Finally, Iverson looked at the clock
when Mr. Howell left, to see if he would
be in time for the ‘rain. Mr. Howell
had made the remark as he was pass-
ing out that the time was ten minutes
to seven, which agreed exactly with
Iverson’s watch.
“As you see, the different times which
I have mentioned cannot be far wrong—
not more than a minute or two.”
i “Yes, I see that. I suppose your
inquiries at the pawnbrokers’ and jew-
ellers’ have been so far without result?”
“Yes; up till now they have led to no
result, and I think they never will.”
The superintendent nodded. Neither
" of us said as much, but we were both
agreed that the thief who could steal
an article like the tortoise, which would
be so difficult to dispose of, whilst he
had plenty of other salable articles to
select from, must have had his special
reasons, and would not have rushed to
his own destruction by trying to dis-
pose of the stolen jewel to a pawn-
broker.
“Of course I know,” said the stipet-
intendent, cheerily, “that you haven't
by a long way finished with your inves-
tigations. But it would really be inter-
esting to make a few guesses as to who
i could have taken the diamond. Who
_ can have taken it, do you think?”
I saw that my august superior wanted
to discuss the case; and I could mot re-
fuse, although I had no mind for it at
this stage of the inquiry.
| “As. far as 1 can see,” 1 answered,
' ¢there are only five persons who could
have taken the diamond: the gardener,
Iverson, Mr. Howell, the maid, Evelina,
the cook, or the housemaid. All these
people had the entry to the garden be-
tween five and half-past seven, and also
into the museum.”
“You forget two people, Mr. Monk.”
I stared at him.
“You forget ofd Frick and Miss
Frick.”
The superintendent smiled, and I tried
also, but it was a sorry attempt, and a
most unpleasant feeling crept over me.
The superintendent evidently took no-
tice of this.
“Yes, 1 speak, of course, from quite
a «theoretical standpoint. It is part of
a policeman’s A B C that he must sus-
pect every one as long as the guilty party
is not discovered.”
“Not every ome, sir!” I felt I spoke
with an earnestness which was not in
harmony with the situation, or with the
genial tone of my superior; but I could
not get rid of the unpleasant feeling
which: the mentioning of Sigrid’s name
had caused me.
“Perhaps you are right, Mr. Monk;
in any case, this will not prove the op-
posite. But tell me, what is really your
opinion of Mr. Howell®
{ It was obvious that the superintendent
em 1H Aaa £81 ARR eA Le
—— ——————— cA SS —————n —— 4
wanted to get away as quickly as pos-
sible from the subject which I had been
foolish enough to discuss in rather a
disagreeable manner, and I felt not a
little ashamed of my want of tact.
“It is only right, sir, that you should
direct my attention to him. From five
o’clock till ten minutes to seven he had
the opportunity of taking possession of
the diamond and getting away. with it
from the house. There would be no
risk for him to enter the museum; if
any of the servants had seen him do
it, it would have attracted no attention;
he is just like a member of the Frick
family.
“That is one side of the case; the
a gentleman, that he is tied by the bond
that he need not steal either diamonds
or anything else.”
“Are you sure of this?”
“Yes; I go by what he and old Frick
have said; besides, at half-past nine this
morning I called on Wendel, the banker.
spected firm to Mr. Howell, and I asked
Howell's account stood.
four hundred pounds standing to his
account. It was the remainder of a sum
cash and deposited with the banker;
besides which, instructions had been re-
ceived from Messrs. Hambeo & Son, the
London bankers, to open an account for
Mr. Howell to the amount of two thou-
sand pounds.”
“Well, I should be glad if I had such
an account at the bank! It does not
seem probable that the Englishman
should have taken the diamond. By the
bye, Mr. Monk, I must not detain you
any longer; go on with the matter as
you yourself think best; you have, of
course, not had much time for inquiries,
and I ought, perhaps, not to have been
so inquisitive at such an early stage of
the investigations; but you must rather
look upon our conversation as a kind of
refreshment, which 1 take between the
dustbins and the demonstration in the
theatre, Well, good luck to you, and let
me hear from you as soon as you have
anything of interest to report.”
i The superintendent shook me by the
and.
“Strukstad, let the manager of the
theatre come in,” he said resignedly, as
1 went out at the back door.
Later in the day a letter was handed
me from the superintendent, marked
“Private,” which read as follows:
Dear Mr. Monk,—I have not been
able to dismiss old Frick’s diamond from
my mind. Couldn't it have been lost
in quite an ordinary way; fallen on the
floor, put on a wrong shelf, or in some
such way got astray? :
One might also imagine that some one
for fun has hidden it, to play old Frick
a. trick,
I confess it is not likely, but it is still
more unlikely that any one should have
stolen it—the most unsalable article of
i all the valuables which you say lay in
that cupboard.
I ask you to take this into considera-
tion, and apply the greatest caution in
your investigations.
The disappearance of the diamond will
soon be the general talk of the town.
It is of the greatest importance that
the police should not make fools of
themselves. That is to say, they must
not let themselves be deceived by peo-
ple’s extraordinary stupidity.
1 know your good sense, and in all
probability these lines are superfluous.
3 Yours, etc.
| ~~ (To be Continued.)
|
|
|
|
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