CHAPTER VII.
LAWYER JURGENS, !
My decision was taken. I would pay
a visit to the lawyer without loss of
time. The difficulty lay in getting the
old man to speak out the truth, if he
really was in possession of. the black
tortoise.
I dared not use strong means; it was
a weakly old man I had to do with, but
to get the better of him was not so
easy. He was possessed of not a little
cunning, and his firmness, when it was '
a question of preserving any of his
treasures, was quite incredible; of this
I was already aware.
Mr. Jurgens knew me well. I had
had to do with him twice before on
official business, when some one had
tried to rob him. Besides, we had met
each other several times at Frick’s, and
finally, I had now and then gone, like
so many other interested people in the
town, to see if he had any remarkable
increase in his fine colléction.
Of course you know the Jurgens col-
lection in the national museum? It has
a whole department to itself. Some
time before his death he presented all
of it to the public.
While I called at my lodgings to
change clothes, I laid my plan of cam-
paign.
It was neither particularly subtle nor !
cunningly conceived—only a common !
trick, as you will see; but, as you will
also see, it was good enough for the
occasion.
1 rang at Mr. Jurgens's house in |
Munkedam Road. He lived on the first
floor. . '
At the back lay a kitchen and ser-
vants’ room, where his cook and house-
keeper lived; on the other side of the !
hall was a room which belonged to the |
servant-man. Jurgens himself lived in
a room looking out on the street, and
the remaining three rooms, which like- !
¢ street, gave him
le space for his collection of anti-
quities and other curiosities.
By my advice, he had taken a lot of
precautions to protect himself against
thieves. There were strong doors pro-
vide® with patent locks, iron bars before |
the windows, and some fire-proof iron
safes as a place of deposit for the most
costly articles.
The man-servant opened the door to
me.
man-servant was, as I have already men-
, tioned, because his feet were almost .
Jame. He could just manage to get
along from one room to another, with
obliged to be wheeled in a chair. Other-
wise the lawyer was a man of small pre-
tensions, and notwithstanding his large
fortune, was very etonomical.
to say, in everything possible, except
what concerned his collection. In this
respect he was, as already mentioned,
irresponsibly extravagant.
The old lawyer got up with difficulty
from his armchair and tottered toward
me.
He shook me by the hand, fumbling a
long gold chain, which he wore round
his neck, with the other hand, and him-
self began the conversation,
His voice was a little shaky, and he
seemed to be uneasy when he saw me;
but it was difficult to say if these symp-
toms were a natural consequence of the
man’s age, or if he really had some-
thing to hide, and felt uneasy at my
appearance.
“Well, really, Mr. Monk,” he said, “it
is a long time since I had the honor of
seeing you at my house. May I perhaps
have the pleasure of showing you some
rare curiosities which I have lately ac-
quired? You have generally so little
time that I believe you have really never
seen my collection properly.”
These words proved to me that if the
old man had the diamond in his pos-
session, he had it in a safe hiding place,
and of these there were plenty. The
old furniture was full of the most ex-
traordinary corners, secret places, draw-
ers, and such like.
“Many thanks, Mr. Jurgens,” I an-
swered promptly, “but this time I am
here on official business, and have still
less time than usual”
“What a pity,” grumbled the old fel-
low, letting himself fall back into his
chair, and taking a pinch of snuff with
his shaky hands. “Any snuff? No,
young fellows nowadays don’t take
snuff; but take a seat, Mr. Monk, take
a seat!”
“Thanks!” I brought a chair for-
ward in front of the old man and leaned
toward him. “The fact is, that an au-
dacious robbery has been committed; an
unusually costly article has been stolen,
and the superintendent has sent me to
inquire about it.”
“You don’t suppose I buy stolen
goods, sir?”
The lawyer's eyes blinked, and his
hands and shrivelled fingers moved up
and down the watch chain.
: “No, ot course noc; bur you Know
that it has happened once or twice be-
fore, that stolen goods have been of-
| fered to you for sale, and that you have
been of inestimable value to us in giv-
ing the thief’s description; therefore—"
“No, this time I cannot help you; no,
not at all!” :
oa you haven't yet heard what it
is.
“No—but—but—I have not bought
anything for a long time; nothing of
i consequence, or anything that could be :
of interest to you.”
“That is tiresome—most tiresome!
Our last hope is gone; if only the brace-
| let is not sent abroad!
be very difficult to get.”
“Bracelet, you say; was it a bracelet,
! you said?”
“Yes, it was a bracelet, an uncom-
| monly costly bracelet, set with precious
stones, which disappeared from Adelina
Patti’s dressing-room in the theatre
yesterday. You know she is appearing
here for a few days. She had had it
given her by the Emperor of Brazil.”
“Indeed! what a pity! But as I said,
no one has tried to sell anything of the
kind to me lately.”
There was no doubt that the old fel-
It would then
hold of the bell rope and ordered his
man-servant to bring in wine and cigars.
“Take a glass of wine with me, sir;
both old and young need a good glass
of wine, and you'll not get better than
this: I brought it myself from Oporto in
’ ”
We each drank a glass, and I must
admit that the wine was good.
The lawyer had hastily left the sub-
ject of the stolen gem, and had begun
upon several interesting reminiscences
from the year 1820 or so.
But it was not my plan to let him
have his own way; I had opened my
trenches, and I wished to advance to the
attack.
robberies of curiosities and costly jewels,
which have taken place in the town of
late.
cause the police.”
The reason why the lawyer had a |
That is
“I can understand,” said the lawyer,
unwilling again to approach the same
, theme; and he filled the glasses again
with a shaking hand.
“Yes,” I continued, “every one who
possesses such things should be just as
careful as old Frick of Drammen Road.”
On hearing old Frick’s name, the old
fellow almost jumped out of his chair,
but I continued mercilessly.
“This last robbery at old Frick’s is a
laughable affair.” I then burst into long
and hearty laughter, which evidently
affected Jurgens’s nerves in the most
unpleasant manner.
“Havent you heard about it? Well,
as you know, old Frick possesses a
whole lot of curiosities and many of
them are of gold, silver, and precious
stones, and all are very valuable. Peo-
ple are always coming there, some as
guests of the house, and some to visit
his collection. Old Frick got tired of
always having to watch them so care-
fully, and so he had imitations made of
all his most valuable objects, —gilt-brass'
mounts instead of gold, and glass in-
stead of precious stones. This is, how-
ever, a great secret, so much so, that
even his best friends think they are the
real things they see, while these are
lying securely in the cellar of the bank.”
“Eh, what do you say?” The old fel-
low ‘stretched out his neck like a wvul-
ture. ’
“Yes, indeed—but listen; a few days
ago the most costly of all his curiosities
disappeared; I fancy it was a black dia-
mond in gold setting. It was called the
‘black tortoise.” We expect the thief
has gone abroad with his treasure. Hal
r ; ha! just sixpenny worth of brass, and
much difficulty; but in the street he was
half a crown’s worth of cut glass!”
I again burst into a peal of hearty
laughter. The old man sank back, but
tried to raise himself, gasping for breath.
I thought he was going to have a fit,
and in a minute I got his necktie un-
done, and rang for the servant.
We soon brought him round again;
he was a tough old bit of humanity, that
I must admit.
. I knew now what I wanted to know;
the lawyer had the diamond in one of
his hiding places. The difficulty was to
get him to give it up without being
obliged to resort to unpleasant means.
tack, and without suggesting anything as
to what the cause might be.
The servant followed me into the hall
to open the door for me.
tily, “Do you know who I am?”
“Yes, sir, you are Inspector Monk,”
answered the man in surprise, and some-
what tardily.
“All right, let me then remain here
in the hall, but open the door and then
shut it, so that your master can hear it
and think I am gone.”
doubtfully at me.
“Quick! What I do, I do in the name
of the law, but I have no time for fur-
ther explanations. Now then!”
He did as I told him and went in
again to his master.
Everything happened as I had fore-
seen. The servant came out soon after-
ward, sent away by his master, and dis-
appeared at a sign from me into his own
room.
I took off my shoes and opened the
door stealthily to the lawyer's room. As
I had expected, he had gone into one
of the other rooms, where he kept his
collection.
Without making any noise I followed
him.
In the innermost room the old man
stood before the open door of one of his
iron safes. His shaky hands were busy
trying to adjust a pair of spectacles with
round glasses to his nose.
I took my time, until he had taken
out from a secret drawer an object
which he held close up to his eyes. The
next minute my hand lay on his shoul-
der, and immediately after the black tor-
toise was safe in mv nocketd
low felt very much relieved. He took '
“It is a nuisance,” said I, “all these
No one knows what bother they °
For this reason I took leave, as soon ,
as I saw he had got over his little at- |
Having reached the hall, I asked has-
The man hesitated a little and looked
I led #e old fellow carefully across
the room to a chair. He had never ut-
tered a word.
He remained seated, gasping for
breath with half-shut eyes, and his with-
ered hands dancing up and down in his
lap.
I made him drink a glass of wine, and
after a little while he found his speech
! again.
“What right have you to sneak in
upon me and take my property? The
diamond is mine—I have honestly
bought it—” and he stretched out his
hands, as if to get it back.
“The diamond is stolen property,” I
said, “and will be delivered by me into
the hands of the authorities. I am sorry
I have been obliged to play a trick upon
you to get it from you; but I under-
stood at once that you wouldn't give it
up of your own free will.”
“T have bought it and paid for it, and
it is not stolen property; your con-
duct will cost you dear, Mr. Monk.”
“No more talk about that, if you
please, Mr. Jurgens,” I said firmly.
“From whom did you buy the dia-
mond?”
“I bought the diamond from Miss
Frick, and she got it from her uncle.”
The old man could not say another
word, for my hands were round his
throat. Only for a moment, however.
I remembered myself, and let go my
hold, but remained standing in front of
him quivering with rage.
“What is it you dare say about the
young lady, about Sigrid, about my—I
mean about Mr. Frick’s niece? Mr.
Frick himself has given information of
the robbery, and now you say that Miss
Frick has sold the diamond to you;
that is the same as saying that she has
stolen it. You can thank your stars
that you are an old man, otherwise—"
The old man stretched out his hand,
as if to ring; but no bell was near. His
eyes wandered wildly.
Then it stood clearly before me that
I had nearly frightened the life out of
him, and I at once became calmer.
“Be sensible, sir, and take the matter
quietly. It was imprudent of you to buy
the diamond, but we all know, of course, :
that you did it in good faith. But it will
be necessary that you give a truthful ac-
count of how you got it, and from whom.
1f not, it may become a disagreeable
business for you. That you can well
understand.” :
“I only understand that I have bought
the diamond from a young lady and
given five thousand kroners for it. She’
did not ask for more,” said the old man,
trembling, while his eyes began to look
brighter. “When you say it was not
Miss Frick; perhaps, after all, it was not
she; but then it must have been the
other young girl in the house. I believe
they call her Evelina. Yes, it was she,
if you absolutely must know it.”
“Well, that is far more probable, sir,”
I said encouragingly, for I felt a little
ashamed of my violent conduct to the
old man, “and you must excuse me if I
was a little rough with you.”
I rang myself for the servant, and -
with him as a witness, I gave the lawyer
a receipt for the tortoise, which I took
with me, and left. -—ie
x = * *
The superintendent was not a little
surprised when I put the diamond be-
fore him on the table; and when I had
given my report, he congratulated me at |
the result, and complimented me on the
manner in which I had conducted the
affair.
1 found it unnecessary to mention Jus
gens’s wretched attempt to prove that
it was Miss Frick who had sold him the
diamond:
The superintendent did not lay much
stress on the part Jurgens had played in
the matter.
“The man must soon be pronounced
incapable of managing his own affairs,
and be placed under proper control. He
will, of course, be declared irresponsible
by the court, if the public prosecutor
should proceed against him.”
In this I fully concurred. Then I
gave the superintendent a detailed ac- |
count of my visit to Mrs. Reierson,
and of how the actor’s name was men-
tioned, and of my hurried meeting with
the latter.
“Do I understand you aright,” said
the superintendent, “that you have a
suspicion that the pretty maid and the
fascinating actor are intimate?”
“Yes, I have.”
“And you go still farther; in this,
you seek the reason why the unhappy
girl has committed the robbery, isn’t
that so?”
“Yes, indeed, I cannot deny that
something of the sort was in my mind;
only it seemed strange to me that a girl
_ like Evelina, who not only has the best
of characters from Miss Frick, as a
. good and honest girl, but who, after
all I have been able to ascertain, also
possesses a certain amount of character :
and love of truth, can have fallen in love
with such a man, or given herself into
his power!”
“Why, my dear Monk!” broke in the
superintendent, with a smile, which
could have made those who did not
know him take him for a heartless cynic,
“do you, after so many years in the po-
lice service, still nourish illusions with
. regard to the fair sex?”
: “I have, of course, in my day seen a
~ good deal of—" .
“Yes, you have seen a good deal;
Juan is also the greatest liar, and that
a man with a smooth face, who can
flatter and deceive, has greater power
over the fair sex than any honest man
whatsoever. Isn’t that so?”
I was accustomed to my superior’s
humorous exaggerations, and could not
deny that my experience as a detective
in the police force to a considerable de-
gree went in the same direction.
“Well,” continued the superintendent,
“when you have been in the police force
for a generation, you will certainly not
have much respect for women’s ideals.
But let us return to this affair about
the diamond. You shall at once have a
{ the young girl as soon as possible. The
which shows you that the greatest Don |
warrant, and then you had better arrest i
sooner Its gone tne great€l tne prospeee
of getting back the money which she got
from the lawyer.”
“Pardon me, sir,” I answered, “Eve-
fina is most probably at this moment at
Mr. Frick’s house, and will remain there
over night. It would be very unpleas-
ant for the Fricks if the arrest took
place in the house. Have you any ob-
jection to my waiting until to-morrow?
Then she will probably visit her mother,
and we can avail ourselves of the oppor-
tunity and make a domiciliary visit. at
the same time. If Mrs. Reierson is an
accomplice, we might succeéd in taking
her by surprise, and in getting her to
give up the money. I have an idea that
it will be easier to take her than the
daughter by surprise.”
“But are you not afraid that one of
them can make use of the time to get
the money out of the way, if it has not
already been taken to some place or
other?” :
“On the contrary, I believe it will be
of advantage to leave them in peace to-
night. I shall have them watched by
some of my best men meanwhile.”
“And the actor?”
“He is already in good hands. De-
tective Kolstad has orders to follow him
like ‘a shadow, and arrest him if he
should attempt to leave the town.”
“Well, that will do! Do as you thiuk
right, Monk. I begin to think you are
the better detective of us two. If you
should meet old Frick to-night, give him
my compliments, and tell him I shall
keep his diamond until the case has been
settled in court; but in the meantime it
will be in good hands.”
It was not with a light heart, how-
ever, that I walked along the Drammen
Road, after having given the constable
the necessary orders. I knew that the
news I had to bring would greatly dis-
tress both old Frick and Sigrid.
After having proceeded some distance,
it struck me that after all I had nothing
to do at Villa Ballarat that night. It
ought not to be known in the house
‘that the diamond had been found—not
so long as Evelina was there. Old Frick
and Sigrid would naturally ask me if I
had any news, and. I should be obliged
to tell a lie and keep back from them
what had happened.
Although I was very anxious to see
Sigrid, yet I was sensible enough to
turn back, and, after having had some
supper at a café, I went home to my
lodgings.
1 telephoned to the police office, and
asked if there was any news from the
constables who had to watch the three
persons before mentioned.
No, there was no news. Evelina was
quite safe inside Villa Ballarat, and the
house was being watched.
1 lighted a cigar, and gave myself up
to thinking over the day’s events. I
had been successful in everything, and
yet I felt far from satisfied ; it must have
been due to a certain feeling of pity for
poor Evelina, and the concern it would
occasion her master and mistress. Or—?
1f you believe in presentiment, or that
great misfortunes—without our being
able to divine the cause—throw their
shadows before, you will have to at-
: spas it to such a cause. But enough,
—1 felt unwell and depressed, and when
I had lain down it was a long time be-
fore I went to sleep.
CHAPTER VIIL
THE ARREST.
“THE actor has vanished, sir!”
These were the words with which 1
was awakened at seven o'clock next
morning.
| Before the bed stood my trusty com=
stable, Kolstad, with a face considerably
longer than usual.
| “What do you say? Have you let him
slip through your fingers? That was
1
“Yes; but who could possibly imagine
that—"
“All right, go into the next room a
bit and get yourself a cup of coffee; I
shall make haste and get dressed,” and
then we can talk it over.”
It was not long before I had finished
dressing and was ready to continue the
discussion.
My landlady had in the meanwhile
tried to serve the worthy officer with a
good breakfast, but disappointment had
evidently taken away his appetite; it
was impossible to get him to continue
| his meal after my appearance.
“It is just as well that I give my re-
port at once, sir, and tell you how
shamefully I have been made a fool of.
Yes; that such a pomatummed lady-
| killer should befool me—I who have
been in the service of the police these
twenty-seven years!”
“Don’t trouble yourself about that,
Kolstad,” I said reassuringly, for the
man was so excited that he apparently
had some difficulty in explaining him-
self; “we shall soon get hold of him if
we want him. I am sure it is not your
| fault that he has disappeared temporar-
ily ; have another cup of coffee, and let
| us hear about it.”
“No, thanks, no more coffee; but here
| is the report, sir. You remember that
it was yesterday, at dinner time, that I
got orders to watch the actor and arrest
him if he should try and leave the town?
Well, it was not difficult to keep my eye
on him for the first few hours, for he
was sitting in a room on the first floor
of the Tivoli Restaurant, together with
eightor ten other actors and actresses.
They had the best dinner one could get
and drank so much champagne that it
was simply disgusting to see all the
empty bottles being taken out—I know
the head waiter there, you see, and went
and spoke to him while the carousing
was going on. Frederiksen paid for it
all”
“You are sure it was he who paid?”
“Yes, that I am; the head waiter
showed me the bill: it was 142 kroners.
by that I knew, sir, that you, as usual,
| were on the right track. If only I had
not been so stupid, well—you must ex-
cuse be, sir, if I am a little excited—it
is the first time it has ever happened to
me ‘that—but—"
“Now, now, let us come to the point,
my good Kolstad,” I answered, with as-
sumed severity, as the best means of
“bringing him to.”
it helped, for he pulled himself to-
gether, and from then on he did not at-
tempt to diverge from the dry style of
an ordinary report.
“Well, sir, I telephoned to the station
for assistance, and got one of our new
men. We took it in turn to keep watch
while the actors were eating and drink-
ing. After dinner they had coffee and
all kinds of liquors, and went on like
that until six o'clock in the evening.
Then Frederiksen went home to No. 44
Russelok Street, and there he remained
till nine o'clock. He must have slept
during that time, for he looked quite
sober when he came out again, and he
had been not a little muddled when he
got home after the carousal at the Tiv-
oli. He had a large hand-bag in his
hand, but no other luggage. He wore
the same clothes he had had on in the
afternoon.”
“Was the hand-bag new?”
“Yes, it was brand new; and now you
shall hear how sly the fellow was.
“He went up to the cab-stand at the
corner of Drammen Road, and there he
took a carriage. I and the young offi-
cer took another carriage and drove
after him. Whether he knew that any
one was following him or not, I can’t
say. We were obliged to keep a little
behind, so that he should not be sus-
picious.
“He drove to the Victoria Hotel, and
there we saw him go in at the door,
and the carriage drive away empty. Soon
after 1 went in and asked the porter
what was the name of the gentleman
who had just entered the hotel, and
what room he had obtained. The por-
ter, who was a new man and not one of
my acquaintances, answered that the ser-
vant was just then upstairs with the
visitor's book, but that the new arrival
had taken room No. 47. He had not
said anything about how long he intend-
ed to remain, or anything of signifi-
cance.
“Now, for the time being, I felt en-
tirely sure of my bird. After telling
him who I was, I got the porter to
promise to telephone to me if the strang-
er should be getting ready to leave; then
I set my young officer to watch outside,
and went home to take a nap.
“Jt was just about half-past ten when
the porter rang up and said that the gen-
tleman in No. 47 had just ordered.a car-
riage, as he was going by the midnight
train to Sweden. As you know, sir, the
train goes eleven five, so I had only just |
time to dress and go to the station; but
1 was, of course, sure that the young
officer would follow the actor so that
we could arrest him together.
the station seven minutes before eleven;
but there was no sign of the actor or
the officer.
“A minute before the train started, I
went for the last time through all the
carriages and had a railway official with
me.
In the first class there sat only one per-
sonage. It was Mr. D , the am-
bassador from Paris, said the official. I
went in and looked at him—yes, quite
right, it was he.”
“Do you know the ambassador, then?”
“Yes, of course, I know him by
sight; it is he who is so like Peer Gynt i
on the stage,—not, perhaps, in the be-
binning of the piece, but in the third
and fourth acts.”
I couldn’t help laughing. “There, you
see, Kolstad! it’s not an easy thing to
have to do with an actor. It was just
by playing his old role of Peer Gynt in
the fourth act that the actor made a fool
of you!”
“Yes, of course it was; but who the |
devil could imagine—"
“No, you are right there; but how |
was it that your assistznt didn’t follow
him from the hotel?”
“Well, it happencc lke this.
carriage from the stand. He went up
to the servant and asked who was go- !
ing away. It was Mr. D. , the ama
bassador, he answered, and when the
constable saw a fine old gentleman with
grey whiskers step into the carriage he
suspected nothing, but continued to keep *
his watch outside, as before.”
“That is all right, so far; but I can’t
understand that the man’s hand-bag did
not betray him. Both- you and your as-
sistant knew it well. Besides, it seems
to me that the porter must have been
astonished to see a young,smooth-shav-
en man come into the hotel, and-then
leave it as a ‘fine oid gentleman,” as you
say, ‘with grey whiskers.””
“Yes; but I have not yet told you all,
sir. You shall hear how clever the ras-
cal was. Inside the large hand-bag
which he carried, he had another suit,
a false beard, and all his apparatus, be-
sides a smaller travelling bag to carry
in the hand.
that he transformed himself into an am-
bassador; the hood was well pulled
down, as it rained a little. The hotel |
porter had, therefore, only seen him as
the elderly gentleman the whole time;
and we, who only saw him step out of
the carriage with his back toward us,
several hundreds of yards off,could have | but T don’t wish my punishment to be
| lessened.
no idea that he had thus changed his
appearance. It did not enter into our
minds to ask the porter about the ap-
pearance of the man whom we had fol-
lowed the whole time.”
“But the large hang-bag?”
“Well, he let that remain in the car-
riage, and gave the coachman orders to
take it back to his lodgings early to-
day. I got hold of the driver at last,
and heard how all had happened. He
himself thought it was a little strange
that the man should disguise himself
during the drive; but as far as I could
understand, he was a little tipsy on this
occasion, and as he got two kroners as a
tip he presumed it was no business of
his. Now you know all, sir, and can see
how cleverly I was taken in by that
vagabond of an actor; only—"
1 did not let him dilate further upon
this subject, but sent him away. I had
heard enough.
It will also be sufficient for this nae
rative, if I explain that the actor, om
the same day, after telegraphic instruee
tions from us, was arrested at Gothene
burg, where he arrived next morning,
and that he, when arrested, was only in?
possession of a very small sum of
money. He was taken back to Chris-
tiania, and it was soon ascertained that
he had been or was engaged to Evelina.
Also, that the day before his journey he
had been very flush with his money; but
it was impossible to prove any complic=
ity in the theft, and he was set free in a
few days, with the warning not to leave
town, as he would have to appear as
witness at the trial of Evelina Reiersom.
* * *
In the meantime I must return to my
account of what happened later on that
day, which began with the melancholy
apparition of the disappointed constable
beside my bed.
As I have already stated, it was my
intention to have Evelina arrested that
day. There was no longer anything to
wait for after the actor had disappeared;
and when I, in addition, received infor-
mation from one of my men that she
had left Villa Ballarat to visit her
| mother, I decided to avail myself of the
before mentioned, I
the atrest taking
opportunity. As
wished to prevent
place at old Frick’s.
I have no liking for this sort of work,
but this time I decided to take it in hand
myself, for several reasons.
It appeared to me, beyond all doubt,
that Evelina’s motive for the robbery
must be sought for in her relations to
the actor. - In any case, I felt she de-
served some pity, and I wished there=
fore to make the arrest myself in order
that it might be effected as gently and
considerately as possible.
It occured to me to be quite likely that
the mother might be an accomplice, or
in any case be cognizant of the crime
and the place where Jurgens’s money
was to be found. To get hold of this
was now my chief aim, and I hoped to
take the woman by surprise and get her
to reveal it.
I got to
There was not a sign of the actor! i
3] The |
constable saw a servant beckoning for a
It was not later than nine o'clock im
the morning when 1 drove to Russelok
Street with a policeman in plain clothes.
We told the driver to wait outside the
gate; the constable remained behind in
the:yard, and I went up alone.
I stopped outside Mrs. Reierson’s door
and listened. TI heard voices within, but
very indistinctly. As I opened the door,
I saw the first room was empty; then I
heard the voices still more plainly in
the inner room, although the door was
shut.
“You should have done as your moth=
er told you, you unlucky child; then we
should have been able to take things as
easy as any one—but—"
It was Mrs. Reierson’s shrill angry
voice. It was interrupted by a sound of
suppressed sobbing, and then by a youth-
ful voice rendered hoarse by passion and
sorrow. 1 stepped nearer to the door
and listened, although the task before
me was most repulsive to my feelings.
“Don’t talk to me any more, mother!
you know that what you wanted me to
do I could never have done, never in
this world! and what I already have
done cannot now be undone—I have
nothing more to do now but to put an
end to myseli—if only I had the
strength to—"
Here the unhappy girl's words were
interrupted by loud sobbing, and some
angry exclamations from her mother.
Soon after the door was opened, and
the ugly old woman appeared in the
doorway, while her daughter could be
seen lying across the bed with her head
buried in the pillows.
1 have seldom felt so uncomfortable.
The mother's shrill imprecations
against the police in general, and me in
particular, passed me by unheeded. I
only saw the young girl's deadly pale
tace, as she lifted it to me, and the hope-
less expression of her eyes.
She was gifted, however, with a
strength of mind which few persons pos-
sess. She got up hurriedly, stroked
back her hair from her face, and was
the first to speak.
Her voice was low, but wonderfully
calm; every drop of blood seemed to
have fled from her lips.
“You have come to arrest me, Mr.
Monk, because I have stolen Mr. Frick’s
| diamond. Well, I have been expecting
it both yesterday and to-day. Yester-
day I should probably have denied it,
but to-day I don’t. I have stolen the
diamond—Ilet me be taken to prison and
be sentenced as soon as possible, only
let it be done quickly.”
Her mother had become purple in the
face on hearing what her daughter said,
and tried several times to interrupt her;
but tuere was a dignity in her daugh-
ter’s words and bearing which stayed
her.
“Don’t lose courage, Evelina,” I said,
It i (Sh : | and I hope my voice was sympathetic.
was in the carriage | «There are probably extenuating cir-
cumstances which may make your guilt
less than it seems. If you are only
frank, and confess all, your punishment:
will be less,—perhaps even—"
The young girl interrupted me.
Thank you very much for your kind-
ness, Mr. Monk. You are a good man;
I have told you I have stolen
the diamond. More than that I shall
not’say, even if you put me on the rack.”
“For God’s sake don't talk like that,
Evelina.”
Her mother could now control herself
no longer, and began :—
“What are you saying, Evelina, you
stupid fool! Just fancy!—That one
should hear one’s own flesh and blood
tell lies about herseli and get herself
convicted! You can see very well, sir,
that she is out of her senses, and doesn’t
Know what she is saying.”
“You had better look after yourself,
' Mrs. Reierson, and help us to get a full
confession and the money back. The
diamond has been sold for five thousand
kroners, and perhaps you have got the
money yourself.”
1 shan’t weary you by recalling the
scene which followed; suffice it to say
that the mother raged like a fury, and
| denied knowing anything whatever
\ about the diamond or the money. The
{ young girl did ‘not utter a single word
(To be Continued.)