The Datchet Diamonds

nsiderable time to come. The die had fallen; the game was lost--Eries had dropped more than one. Not only had he lost all he had to lose, he was a defaulter. It was out of his

arewell, to go straight from Brighton to Southampton, and thence, by the Americ

him. He turned to the money article. Eries had closed a point lower even than he had supposed. It did not matter. A point lower, more or less, would make no difference to him--the diff

DUCHESS OF DAT

AORDINAR

ncement a

have made my own--robbing pure and simple. It's more

n, it appeared, an amazing robbery had taken place--amazing, first, because of the almost incredible value of what had been stolen; and, second, because of the daring

or--the honoured guest of the Sovereign. As a fitting mark of the occasion, and in order to appear before Her Majesty in the splendours which so well became her, the Duche

to the paper, was at least ￡250,000--a quarter of a million of money! This was the net value--indeed, it seemed that one might almost say it was the

ew a long bre

am not at all sure that I should not have liked to have had a fing

The visit passed off with due éclat. It was as Her Grace was returning tha

n with her. The betting is that they never lost sight of those diamonds from first to las

ccasions--was sufficiently plain. The duchess had travelled in a reserved saloon carriage by the five minutes past four train from Windsor to Paddington. She had been accompanied by two serv

own hand, locked the box, and retained the key in her own possession. Eversleigh carried the box from the duchess's apa

x on the front seat of the carriage, the duke and duchess, sitting side by side, having it in full view as the brougham passed through the London streets. The diamonds, when not in actual use, were always kept, for safe custody, at Bartlett's Bank. The confidential agent of the bank was awaiting thei

rved. When the box was opened, it was empty! There was nothing of any sort

point Mr. Paxton put th

f I were appointed to ferret out the mystery, I fancy that I should begin by wanting to know a few things about her Grace the Duchess. I wonder what happened to that despatch-box

ues which the police were supposed to be following up, but all that they amounted to was this: that the duchess asserted that she had placed th

seat, thrust his hands into

h a little over. What prospect is there in front of me--don't I know that there is none? Existence in a country which I have not the faintest desire to go to; a life which I hate; a continual struggling and striving for the barest daily bread, with, in all human probability, failure,

oving much too slowly; had it flown on the wings of the wind it could scarcely have kept pace with the whirlwind in his brain. Risi

hich, if not actually obsolete, at any rate nowadays is rarely seen. An oblong sheet of plate-glass was let into the partition on eith

n one seat, and peered through the glass into the adjoining compartment. So far as he was able to see, from the post of vantage which he occupied, it was vacant. He swung the glass round on its piv

ght his eyes on a level with the sheet of glass, than he dropped

ore! It would hardly do to be caug

h is supposed to be the peculiar perquisite of royalty--a memory for faces. If, for any cause, a face had once been brought to his notice

ed if I am careful; and if I am caught I

did so audible words al

ggar who was last night

Miss Strong had so annoyed him. Mr. Paxton, peering warily through the further end of the glass, treated Mr.

s were moving. Unfortunately, from Mr. Paxton's point of view, it was not easy to see who was his associate; whoever it was sat just in front of him, and therefore out of M

n its pivot it didn't make any sound. I wonder, if I were to open this

. Paxton knelt on the cushions and he opened the frame, as he had said, just half an inch, and he put his ear as close to the opening as he conveniently could, without running the risk of being seen, and he listened. At

es, and this, secure in their privacy, they did, the result being that Mr. Paxton could hear just as

e he heard was

robably also did the person who was actually addressed; but

resolution to take advantage of your opportunities, an

one indeed. The speaker spoke not only with a strong nasal twang, but also, occasionally, with an odd idiom.

sistance of

gain; in it more than

, it is on himself that a man must rely. What a friend pr

be much of a friend to another, if, first

not relish the other's reasoning. Presently the same voic

always have said that there was no one in the profession who can come near you. In your line of business, or out of it, how m

iqued, the other's words s

ng! The bigger the thing you have to do the mo

ere simple when you read it in t

she was going to take them with her to Windsor, I saw how I

o--

ow it--the trai

alking about? What did they mean by touching for a quarter of a million, and the reference to Windsor? The name which Mr. Lawrence had just mentioned, Eversleigh--where, quite recently,

uchess of Datchet's diamonds. It was as he thought; his memory had not played him false

ssly on to his knees. He stared

drawing clear of the station, the voices continued silent--probably before exchanging further confidences they were desirous of being certain that their privacy wou

American wa

s His Grace's confid

Eversleigh by proxy, and I foun

were--what

t he had a pair of spectacles which the duke had given hi

t much to f

wrong. It's perhaps just as well for you

? However, what was the use which yo

ine had a detective camera. Those spectacles were kept in something very gorgeous in cases. My friend snapped that spectacle case with hi

certainly wasn't up to the kind of job he had in hand--not when he was properly handled. He has been heard to say that he would sooner lose an arm than those precious spectacles--because the duke gave them to him, you know. Perhaps he would; anyhow, he lost something worth a trifle more than his arm. When he felt himself touched on the shoulder, and saw what looked like that almighty goggle-box in the stranger's hand, he got all of a flurry, jabbed his fist into the inside pocket of his coat, and to enable him to do so popped the despatch-box down on the seat

merican's vo

riend, was its beauty. And indeed, after all, simplicity