Ranson's Folly (Fiscle Part 3) by Richard Harding Davis (dar e dil novel online reading TXT) 📕

Him Bound And Gagged And Thrown Into A Sedan Chair. The Watch Would

Not Interfere,  The Passers-By Would Take To Their Heels,  My Hired

Bullies And Ruffians Would Convey Him To Some Lonely Spot Where We

Would Guard Him Until Morning. Nothing Would Come Of It,  Except Added

Reputation To Myself As A Gentleman Of Adventurous Spirit,  And

Possibly An Essay In The 'Tatler' With Stars For Names,  Entitled,  Let

Us Say,  'The Budget And The Baronet.'"

"But To What End,  Sir?" Inquired The Youngest Of The Members. "And

Why Sir Andrew,  Of All Persons--Why Should You Select Him For This

Adventure?"

The Gentleman With The Black Pearl Shrugged His Shoulders.

"It Would Prevent Him Speaking In The House To-Night. The Navy

Increase Bill," He Added,  Gloomily. "It Is A Government Measure,  And

Sir Andrew Speaks For It. And So Great Is His Influence And So Large

His Following That If He Does"--The Gentleman Laughed Ruefully--"If

He Does,  It Will Go Through. Now,  Had I The Spirit Of Our Ancestors,"

He Exclaimed,  "I Would Bring Chloroform From The Nearest Chemist's

And Drug Him In That Chair. I Would Tumble His Unconscious Form Into

A Hansom-Cab,  And Hold Him Prisoner Until Daylight. If I Did,  I Would

Save The British Taxpayer The Cost Of Five More Battleships,  Many

Millions Of Pounds."

The Gentleman Again Turned,  And Surveyed The Baronet With Freshened

Interest. The Honorary Member Of The Grill,  Whose Accent Already Had

Betrayed Him As An American,  Laughed Softly.

"To Look At Him Now," He Said,  "One Would Not Guess He Was Deeply

Concerned With The Affairs Of State."

The Others Nodded Silently.

"He Has Not Lifted His Eyes From That Book Since We First Entered,"

Added The Youngest Member. "He Surely Cannot Mean To Speak To-Night."

"Oh,  Yes,  He Will Speak," Muttered The One With The Black Pearl,

Moodily. "During These Last Hours Of The Session The House Sits Late,

But When The Navy Bill Comes Up On Its Third Reading He Will Be In

His Place--And He Will Pass It."

The Fourth Member,  A Stout And Florid Gentleman Of A Somewhat

Sporting Appearance,  In A Short Smoking-Jacket And Black Tie,  Sighed

Enviously.

"Fancy One Of Us Being As Cool As That,  If He Knew He Had To Stand Up

Within An Hour And Rattle Off A Speech In Parliament. I'd Be In A

Devil Of A Funk Myself. And Yet He Is As Keen Over That Book He's

Reading As Though He Had Nothing Before Him Until Bedtime."

"Yes,  See How Eager He Is," Whispered The Youngest Member. "He Does

Not Lift His Eyes Even Now When He Cuts The Pages. It Is Probably An

Admiralty Report,  Or Some Other Weighty Work Of Statistics Which

Bears Upon His Speech."

The Gentleman With The Black Pearl Laughed Morosely.

"The Weighty Work In Which The Eminent Statesman Is So Deeply

Engrossed," He Said,  "Is Called 'The Great Rand Robbery.' It Is A

Detective Novel For Sale At All Bookstalls."

The American Raised His Eyebrows In Disbelief.

"'The Great Rand Robbery'?" He Repeated,  Incredulously. "What An Odd

Taste!"

"It Is Not A Taste,  It Is His Vice," Returned The Gentleman With The

Pearl Stud. "It Is His One Dissipation. He Is Noted For It. You,  As A

Stranger,  Could Hardly Be Expected To Know Of This Idiosyncrasy. Mr.

Gladstone Sought Relaxation In The Greek Poets,  Sir Andrew Finds His

In Gaboriau. Since I Have Been A Member Of Parliament,  I Have Never

Seen Him In The Library Without A Shilling Shocker In His Hands. He

Brings Them Even Into The Sacred Precincts Of The House,  And From The

Government Benches Reads Them Concealed Inside His Hat. Once Started

On A Tale Of Murder,  Robbery,  And Sudden Death,  Nothing Can Tear Him

From It,  Not Even The Call Of The Division-Bell,  Nor Of Hunger,  Nor

The Prayers Of The Party Whip. He Gave Up His Country House Because

When He Journeyed To It In The Train He Would Become So Absorbed In

His Detective-Stories That He Was Invariably Carried Past His

Station." The Member Of Parliament Twisted His Pearl Stud Nervously,

And Bit At The Edge Of His Mustache. "If It Only Were The First Pages

Of 'The Rand Robbery' That He Were Reading," He Murmured Bitterly,

"Instead Of The Last! With Such Another Book As That,  I Swear I Could

Hold Him Here Until Morning. There Would Be No Need Of Chloroform To

Keep Him From The House."

The Eyes Of All Were Fastened Upon Sir Andrew,  And Each Saw,  With

Fascination,  That,  With His Forefinger,  He Was Now Separating The

Last Two Pages Of The Book. The Member Of Parliament Struck The

Table,  Softly,  With His Open Palm.

"I Would Give A Hundred Pounds," He Whispered,  "If I Could Place In

His Hands At This Moment A New Story Of Sherlock Holmes--A Thousand

Pounds," He Added,  Wildly--"Five Thousand Pounds!"

The American Observed The Speaker Sharply,  As Though The Words Bore

To Him Some Special Application,  And Then,  At An Idea Which

Apparently Had But Just Come To Him,  Smiled,  In Great Embarrassment.

Sir Andrew Ceased Reading,  But,  As Though Still Under The Influence

Of The Book,  Sat Looking,  Blankly,  Into The Open Fire. For A Brief

Space,  No One Moved Until The Baronet Withdrew His Eyes And,  With A

Sudden Start Of Recollection,  Felt,  Anxiously,  For His Watch. He

Scanned Its Face Eagerly,  And Scrambled To His Feet.

The Voice Of The American Instantly Broke The Silence In A High,

Nervous Accent.

"And Yet Sherlock Holmes Himself," He Cried,  "Could Not Decipher The

Mystery Which To-Night Baffles The Police Of London."

At These Unexpected Words,  Which Carried In Them Something Of The

Tone Of A Challenge,  The Gentlemen About The Table Started As

Suddenly As Though The American Had Fired A Pistol In The Air,  And

Sir Andrew Halted,  Abruptly,  And Stood Observing Him With Grave

Surprise.

The Gentleman With The Black Pearl Was The First To Recover.

"Yes,  Yes," He Said,  Eagerly,  Throwing Himself Across The Table. "A

Mystery That Baffles The Police Of London. I Have Heard Nothing Of

It. Tell Us At Once,  Pray Do--Tell Us At Once."

The American Flushed Uncomfortably,  And Picked,  Uneasily,  At The

Table-Cloth.

"No One But The Police Has Heard Of It," He Murmured,  "And They Only

Through Me. It Is A Remarkable Crime,  To Which,  Unfortunately,  I Am

The Only Person Who Can Bear Witness. Because I Am The Only Witness,

I Am,  In Spite Of My Immunity As A Diplomat,  Detained In London By

The Authorities Of Scotland Yard. My Name," He Said,  Inclining His

Head,  Politely,  "Is Sears,  Lieutenant Ripley Sears,  Of The United

States Navy,  At Present Naval Attache To The Court Of Russia. Had I

Not Been Detained To-Day By The Police,  I Would Have Started This

Morning For Petersburg."

The Gentleman With The Black Pearl Interrupted With So Pronounced An

Exclamation Of Excitement And Delight That The American Stammered And

Ceased Speaking.

"Do You Hear,  Sir Andrew?" Cried The Member Of Parliament,

Jubilantly. "An American Diplomat Halted By Our Police Because He Is

The Only Witness Of A Most Remarkable Crime--The Most Remarkable

Crime,  I Believe You Said,  Sir," He Added,  Bending Eagerly Toward The

Naval Officer,  "Which Has Occurred In London In Many Years."

The American Moved His Head In Assent,  And Glanced At The Two Other

Members. They Were Looking,  Doubtfully,  At Him,  And The Face Of Each

Showed That He Was Greatly Perplexed.

Sir Andrew Advanced To Within The Light Of The Candles And Drew A

Chair Toward Him.

"The Crime Must Be Exceptional,  Indeed," He Said,  "To Justify The

Police In Interfering With A Representative Of A Friendly Power. If I

Were Not Forced To Leave At Once,  I Should Take The Liberty Of Asking

You To Tell Us The Details."

The Gentleman With The Pearl Pushed The Chair Toward Sir Andrew,  And

Motioned Him To Be Seated.

"You Cannot Leave Us Now," He Exclaimed. "Mr. Sears Is Just About To

Tell Us Of This Remarkable Crime."

He Nodded,  Vigorously,  At The Naval Officer And The American,  After

First Glancing,  Doubtfully,  Toward The Servants At The Far End Of The

Room,  And Leaned Forward Across The Table. The Others Drew Their

Chairs Nearer And Bent Toward Him. The Baronet Glanced,  Irresolutely,

At His Watch,  And,  With An Exclamation Of Annoyance,  Snapped Down The

Lid. "They Can Wait," He Muttered. He Seated Himself Quickly,  And

Nodded At Lieutenant Sears.

"If You Will Be So Kind As To Begin,  Sir," He Said,  Impatiently.

"Of Course," Said The American,  "You Understand That I Understand

That I Am Speaking To Gentlemen. The Confidences Of This Club Are

Inviolate. Until The Police Give The Facts To The Public Press,  I

Must Consider You My Confederates. You Have Heard Nothing,  You Know

No One Connected With This Mystery. Even I Must Remain Anonymous."

The Gentlemen Seated Around Him Nodded Gravely.

"Of Course," The Baronet Assented,  With Eagerness,  "Of Course."

"We Will Refer To It," Said The Gentleman With The Black Pearl,  "As

'The Story Of The Naval Attache.'"

"I Arrived In London Two Days Ago," Said The American,  "And I Engaged

A Room At The Bath Hotel. I Know Very Few People In London,  And Even

The Members Of Our Embassy Were Strangers To Me. But In Hong Kong I

Had Become Great Pals With An Officer In Your Navy,  Who Has Since

Retired,  And Who Is Now Living In A Small House In Rutland Gardens,

Opposite The Knightsbridge Barracks. I Telegraphed Him That I Was In

London,  And Yesterday Morning I Received A Most Hearty Invitation To

Dine With Him The Same Evening At His House. He Is A Bachelor,  So We

Dined Alone And