THE STOLEN PLATE.
It was eleven o’clock when Nick Carter arrived with Chick and Patsy at
the Waldmere residence that morning. The butler admitted them, while
Lord Waldmere and his wife came hurrying through the broad, handsomely
furnished hall to meet them.
“Come into the library,” said Lord Waldmere, after their greeting. “By
Jove, I’m deucedly glad you could come so quickly. I’m in a terrible
state. I’m the victim of a beastly job, as you American detectives call
them. ’Pon my word, Carter, I don’t know whether I’m afoot or horseback.
I’m infernally upset, don’t you know----”
“Won’t it be well, then, Waldmere, to let your wife tell me what has
occurred?” Nick suggested, interrupting. “I infer that it is something
of a criminal nature, or you would not require my services.”
“That hits the bally nail on the nob,” groaned the Englishman. “I have
been jolly well robbed, Mr. Carter, jolly well robbed and----”
“Sit down, Archie, dear, and let me state the case,” Mrs. Waldmere
interrupted, after all had entered the finely furnished library. “I can
inform Mr. Carter much more briefly than you, and he evidently feels
that time may be valuable.”
Lord Waldmere always yielded to his wife, at which none wondered, for
her beauty and charm were quite irresistible.
“Archie has, as you already know, decided to remain permanently in
America, or at least until a reconciliation has been effected with his
family, of which there appears to be no prospect as long as his father,
the Earl of Eggleston, lives.”
“Yes, I know about that,” Nick bowed.
“Archie not only has been successful in his mining ventures,” Mrs.
Waldmere continued, “but he also inherited from his mother, who was the
earl’s second wife, nearly all of her extensive estate.
“It comprised the London residence of her father, also the old manor
house and estate in Dorsetshire, with all that they contained. This
included a fine library, numerous costly paintings, portraits, and other
furnishings, and also a large quantity of valuable silver and gold
plate, which has been a heritage of the Waldmeres for two centuries. It
is of the massive and beautifully engraved kind that we do not see in
these days, and it is valued at something like a hundred thousand
dollars.”
“That’s the blooming truth, Mr. Carter,” nodded Waldmere. “I would jolly
well rather have given a leg, old top, than have lost it.”
“Lost it!” echoed Nick. “Do you mean that you have been robbed of the
plate?”
“Yes, bah Jove, that’s just what I mean. The bally stuff, you see,
was----”
“One moment, Archie,” Mrs. Waldmere interposed. “Let’s state the facts
briefly.”
“Yes, do so,” put in Nick attentively.
“After having bought this beautiful residence, which still is only
partly furnished,” she continued; “Archie decided to ship over here most
of his English furnishings, including the library, the paintings and
portraits, a quantity of costly rugs, tapestries, and draperies, and
also all of the gold and silver plate.”
“Ah, I see!” Nick nodded. “The plate has been stolen during
transportation.”
“Exactly.”
“Tell me what you know about it.”
“That can be briefly told. Archie wrote to his London agent, Mr. Cherry,
a thoroughly reliable man, giving him all of the necessary directions.
Mr. Cherry had the goods packed for shipment. They filled twenty large
cases. These were marked and numbered to correspond with an inventory
mailed to Archie, stating what each case contained.”
“The inventory was duly received?” Nick questioned.
“Yes, it came nearly two weeks ago.”
“Continue.”
“The goods were shipped on the liner _Flodora_, which should have
arrived in New York five days ago. As you may have read in the
newspapers, however, she had a break in some part of her engine and was
compelled to put into Boston, where her cargo was discharged and shipped
to New York by rail. We were notified by New York agents on the day of
her arrival, informing us how our shipment would be forwarded.”
“I follow you,” said Nick.
“To guard against any mishap, Mr. Carter, we then sent our chauffeur to
Boston to engage a special car for our goods and to see that all of the
twenty cases were put into it.”
“What is his name?”
“Frank Gilbert. I have known him for years. He is strictly honest and
capable. He remained in Boston and saw the twenty cases put into the
freight car. He also saw that it was properly closed and sealed. The car
was sent on an hour later, for the train was being made up at the time,
and it arrived here and was sidetracked in the railway yard early this
morning. We were notified by telephone and told that we could take away
the goods.”
“What more, Mrs. Waldmere?” Nick inquired.
“Following our instructions, Gilbert already had made arrangements with
Macklin & Dale, the express company, to bring the cases to this house,”
she continued. “We telephoned to them at once, and were told that they
would have a van at the car at ten o’clock. We sent Gilbert there at
half past nine with the bill of lading, which the freight agent requires
from strangers before he will deliver the goods. Gilbert arrived at the
car at precisely ten o’clock. No dray was there.”
“The truckman was late?”
“Something more than that. He was sent, as agreed, but was stopped on
his way by a policeman, who claimed to identify him as a crook wanted by
the authorities, and who detained him half an hour to question him.”
“H’m, I see,” Nick nodded. “Something more, indeed, Mrs. Waldmere.”
“In the meantime, Mr. Carter, another wagon, bearing the firm name of
the express company, went to the railway yard. Two men were in charge of
it. They presented a forged bill of lading, stating that they had been
sent to take away three of the cases, the numbers of which were
specified, as soon as possible. One of the yard hands was sent to the
car with them, and the cases were delivered to them about twenty minutes
before Gilbert arrived. They were the three cases, Mr. Carter, that
contained the valuable Waldmere plate.”
“Yes, by Jove, and the bally rascals got away with them,” cried
Waldmere, in tones of bitter dismay. “I’ve been jolly well robbed, Mr.
Carter, jolly well robbed of----”
“One moment, Waldmere,” said Nick, checking him with a gesture. “Your
wife has made this crime perfectly clear to me. Just how it was
accomplished is not quite as plain. We must look into it. I infer, Mrs.
Waldmere, there is nothing more of importance that you can add.”
“No, nothing, Mr. Carter,” she replied. “That’s the whole story.”
“That, on the contrary, is only the beginning of the story,” corrected
Nick. “Much must be done and with some risk, I anticipate, before the
whole story is told. What, besides sending for me, have you done about
the robbery?”
“Nothing,” said Mrs. Waldmere. “Gilbert informed us of it by telephone.
We directed him to have the car reclosed and locked pending an
investigation, and I then advised Archie to telephone to you and place
the case in your hands. He did so immediately.”
Nick looked at his watch. It was nearly twelve o’clock. Two hours had
passed since the crime was committed. It was obvious to him, of course,
that the crooks had made a big haul and got safely away with their
plunder.
Nick glanced expressively at Patsy Garvan after a moment, and the latter
rightly read the look in his chief’s eyes. He arose almost immediately
and sauntered into the adjoining hall, closing the library door when he
passed out of the room. He knew that Nick wanted to be sure that the
following conversation was not heard by any of the servants.
“Before beginning an investigation, Mr. Waldmere, I wish to caution you
and your wife to say nothing about any views I may express, neither to
your friends nor in the hearing of your servants,” said Nick, addressing
both quite impressively. “Though you did not observe, I directed one of
my assistants to close the door and wait for me in the hall. That will
insure us against an eavesdropper.”
“But, hang it, my dear Carter, I’m deucedly well sure that all of my
servants are trustworthy,” Waldmere quickly asserted. “’Pon my word,
sir----”
“The word of one of them, or possibly more, may not be near as good as
you think,” Nick interrupted. “Permit me to be the judge, please, and do
what I have directed.”
“Certainly, Mr. Carter,” put in Mrs. Waldmere. “You may depend upon it.”
“It must be obvious to you, of course, that this theft was very
carefully planned and quickly committed, with definite information of
your designs and what was to be stolen. Otherwise, it could not possibly
have been accomplished in the way it was done.”
“Surely not, Nick,” Chick nodded. “That’s dead open and shut.”
“To whom have you confided your intentions, Waldmere, outside of this
house?” Nick inquired.
“Only to my London agent and the expressman I employed. But the latter
cannot have known what the three cases contained.”
“You have confided in none of your friends, or acquaintances?”
“No, not one.”
“But you have discussed the matter here at times with your wife?”
“Yes, certainly.”
“Your London agent is reliable, you say?”
“Absolutely,” Waldmere declared. “There is no question about it.”
“Obviously, then, the information obtained by the crooks must have been
imparted by some one who overheard you discussing your designs, and who
has been constantly informed of your intentions and what was being done.
Naturally, of course, suspicion points to one of your servants.”
“But----”
“Don’t let’s argue the point,” Nick again interrupted. “Let me have my
way, Waldmere, that we may get after the crooks as quickly as possible.”
“Very well. It’s up to you.”
“Now, to proceed, how many servants do you employ?”
“Six,” said Mrs. Waldmere. “Picard, our French chef. A woman in the
kitchen, named Maggie Coyle.”
“Young, or well along in years?”
“About fifty.”
“Not likely, then, to be in such a job,” said Nick. “Besides, her
position in the house, as well as that of the chef, would have made it
difficult for them to have learned all of the necessary details. They
are out of it.”
“We employ a butler, John Patterson,” continued Mrs. Waldmere. “Also my
maid, Della Martin, and a maid for general work, named Minerva Grand.
All came well recommended. I have known our chauffeur, Frank Gilbert,
for years, as I have said.”
“They comprise your list of servants?”
“Yes.”
“Has Gilbert returned from the railway yard?”
“He has and is waiting in the basement. He met the truckman sent by
Macklin & Dale, and we directed him to bring him here, also, thinking
you might wish to question both.”
“I will do so,” said Nick. “Have the truckman sent up here. I want both
of you to wait in another room while I am talking with him, also with
Gilbert, whom I will send for a little later. Do not ask my reasons, but
kindly comply.”
Waldmere looked a bit surprised, but he made no objection. He arose at
once and left the room with his wife.
“Well, what do you make of it?” Chick inquired, while they waited for
the truckman. “It looks to me like a bit of remarkably clever work.”
Nick nodded and added:
“With inside help.”
“You feel sure of that?”
“Reasonably sure,” said Nick. “The circumstances point to absolutely
definite information on the part of the crooks, much more so than if
there had been only three cases shipped and all three stolen.”
“That’s true,” Chick allowed.
“They must have known the numbers of the three cases containing the gold
plate. They must have known that the location of those three particular
cases in the freight car was such that they could quickly remove them,
or they could not have figured so fine as to time. They got away with
them, mind you, only twenty minutes before Gilbert arrived in the yard.”
“That’s right, too, by Jove.”
“Furthermore--but here comes our man,” Nick broke off abruptly. “We will
size it up later.”
The truckman had entered while the detective was speaking.