"Mr. Mitchel," began Mr. Barnes, after exchanging greetings, "I have
called to see you upon a subject which I am sure will enlist your
keenest interest, for several reasons. It relates to a magnificent
jewel; it concerns your intimate friends; and it is a problem requiring
the most analytical qualities of the mind in its solution."
"Ah, then you have solved it?" asked Mr. Mitchel.
"I think so. You shall judge. I have to-day been called in to
investigate one of the most singular cases that has fallen in my way. It
is one in which the usual detective methods would be utterly valueless.
The facts were presented to me, and the solution of the mystery could
only be reached by analytical deductions."
"That is to say, by using your brains?"
"Precisely. Now, as you have admitted that you consider yourself more
expert in this direction than the ordinary detective, I wish to place
you for once in the position of a detective, and then see you prove your
ability."
"Early this morning I was summoned, by a messenger, to go aboard of the
steam yacht _Idler_ which lay at anchor in the lower bay."
"Why, the _Idler_ belongs to my friend, Mortimer Gray!" exclaimed Mr.
Mitchel.
"Yes," replied Mr. Barnes; "I told you that your friends are interested.
I went immediately with the man who had come to my office, and in due
season I was aboard of the yacht. Mr. Gray received me very politely,
and took me to his private room adjoining the cabin. Here he explained
to me that he had been off on a cruise for a few weeks, and was
approaching the harbor last night, when, in accordance with his plans, a
sumptuous dinner was served, as a sort of farewell feast, the party
expecting to separate to-day."
"What guests were on the yacht?"
"I will tell you everything in order, as the facts were presented to me.
Mr. Gray enumerated the party as follows: besides himself and his wife,
there were his wife's sister, Mrs. Eugene Cortlandt, and her husband, a
Wall Street broker; also, Mr. Arthur Livingstone and his sister, and a
Mr. Dennett Moore, a young man supposed to be devoting himself to Miss
Livingstone."
"That makes seven persons, three of whom are women. I ought to say, Mr.
Barnes, that, though Mr. Gray is a club friend, I am not personally
acquainted with his wife, nor with the others. So I have no advantage
over you."
"I will come at once to the curious incident which made my presence
desirable. According to Mr. Gray's story, the dinner had proceeded as
far as the roast, when suddenly there was a slight shock as the yacht
touched a bar, and at the same time the lamps spluttered and then went
out, leaving the room totally dark. A second later the vessel righted
herself and sped on, so that, before any panic ensued, it was evident to
all that the danger had passed. The gentlemen begged the ladies to
resume their seats, and remain quiet till the lamps were lighted; this,
however, the attendants were unable to do, and they were ordered to
bring fresh lamps. Thus there was almost total darkness for several
minutes."
"During which, I presume, the person who planned the affair readily
consummated his design?"
"So you think that the whole series of events was prearranged? Be that
as it may, something did happen in that dark room. The women had started
from their seats when the yacht touched, and when they groped their way
back in the darkness some of them found the wrong places, as was seen
when the fresh lamps were brought. This was considered a good joke, and
there was some laughter, which was suddenly checked by an exclamation
from Mr. Gray, who quickly asked his wife, 'Where is your opal?'"
"Her opal?" asked Mr. Mitchel, in tones which showed that his greatest
interest was now aroused. "Do you mean, Mr. Barnes, that she was wearing
the Aztec Opal?"
"Oh, you know the gem?"
"I know nearly all gems of great value; but what of this one?"
"Mrs. Gray and her sister, Mrs. Cortlandt, had both donned _decollete_
costumes for this occasion, and Mrs. Gray had worn this opal as a
pendant to a thin gold chain which hung around her neck. At Mr. Gray's
question, all looked towards his wife, and it was noted that the clasp
was open, and the opal missing. Of course it was supposed that it had
merely fallen to the floor, and a search was immediately instituted. But
the opal could not be found."
"That is certainly a very significant fact," said Mr. Mitchel. "But was
the search thorough?"
"I should say extremely thorough, when we consider it was not conducted
by a detective, who is supposed to be an expert in such matters. Mr.
Gray described to me what was done, and he seems to have taken every
precaution. He sent the attendants out of the _salon_, and he and his
guests systematically examined every part of the room."
"Except the place where the opal really was concealed, you mean."
"With that exception, of course, since they did not find the jewel. Not
satisfied with this search by lamplight, Mr. Gray locked the _salon_, so
that no one could enter it during the night, and another investigation
was made in the morning."
"The pockets of the seven persons present were not examined, I presume?"
"No. I asked Mr. Gray why this had been omitted, and he said it was an
indignity which he could not possibly show to a guest. As you have
asked this question, Mr. Mitchel, it is only fair for me to tell you
that when I spoke to Mr. Gray on the subject he seemed very much
confused. Nevertheless, however unwilling he may have been to search
those of his guests who are innocent, he emphatically told me that if I
had reasonable proof that any one present had purloined the opal, he
wished that individual to be treated as any other thief, without regard
to sex or social position."
"One can scarcely blame him, because that opal is worth a fabulous sum.
I have myself offered Gray twenty thousand dollars for it, which was
refused. This opal is one of the eyes of an Aztec idol, and if the other
could be found, the two would be as interesting as any jewels in the
world."
"That is the story which I was asked to unravel," continued Mr. Barnes,
"and I must now relate to you what steps I have taken towards that end.
It appears that, because of the loss of the jewel, no person has left
the yacht, although no restraint was placed upon anyone by Mr. Gray. All
knew, however, that he had sent for a detective, and it was natural that
no one should offer to go until formally dismissed by the host. My plan,
then, was to have a private interview with each of the seven persons who
had been present at the dinner."
"Then you exempted the attendants from your suspicions?"
"I did. There was but one way by which one of the servants could have
stolen the opal, and this was prevented by Mr. Gray. It was possible
that the opal had fallen on the floor, and, though not found at night, a
servant might have discovered and have appropriated it on the following
morning, had he been able to enter the _salon_. But Mr. Gray had locked
the doors. No servant, however bold, would have been able to take the
opal from the lady's neck."
"I think your reasoning is good, and we will confine ourselves to the
original seven."
"After my interview with Mr. Gray, I asked to have Mrs. Gray sent in to
me. She came in, and at once I noted that she placed herself on the
defensive. Women frequently adopt that manner with a detective. Her
story was very brief. The main point was that she was aware of the theft
before the lamps were relighted. In fact, she felt some one's arms steal
around her neck, and knew when the opal was taken. I asked why she had
made no outcry, and whether she suspected any special person. To these
questions she replied that she supposed it was merely a joke perpetrated
in the darkness, and therefore had made no resistance. She would not
name anyone as suspected by her, but she was willing to tell me that the
arms were bare, as she detected when they touched her neck. I must say
here, that although Miss Livingstone's dress was not cut low in the
neck, it was, practically, sleeveless; and Mrs. Cortlandt's dress had no
sleeves at all. One other significant statement made by this lady was
that her husband had mentioned to her your offer of twenty thousand
dollars for the opal, and had urged her to permit him to sell it, but
she had refused."
"So it was madame who would not sell? The plot thickens."
"You will observe, of course, the point about the naked arms of the
thief. I therefore sent for Mrs. Cortlandt next. She had a curious story
to tell. Unlike her sister, she was quite willing to express her
suspicions. Indeed, she plainly intimated that she supposed that Mr.
Gray himself had taken the jewel. I will endeavor to repeat her words.
"'Mr. Barnes,' said she, 'the affair is very simple. Gray is a miserable
old skinflint. A Mr. Mitchel, a crank who collects gems, offered to buy
that opal, and he has been bothering my sister for it ever since. When
the lamps went out, he took the opportunity to steal it. I do not think
this--I know it. How? Well, on account of the confusion and darkness, I
sat in my sister's seat when I returned to the table; this explains his
mistake. He put his arms around my neck, and deliberately felt for the
opal. I did not understand his purpose at the time, but now it is very
evident.'
"'Yes, madame,' said I, 'but how do you know it was Mr. Gray?'
"'Why, I grabbed his hand, and before he could pull it away I felt the
large cameo ring on his little finger. Oh, there is no doubt whatever.'
"I asked her whether Mr. Gray had his sleeves rolled up, and, though she
could not understand the purport of the question, she said 'No.' Next I
had Miss Livingstone come in. She is a slight, tremulous young lady,
who cries at the slightest provocation. During the interview, brief as
it was, it was only by the greatest diplomacy that I avoided a scene of
hysterics. She tried very hard to convince me that she knew absolutely
nothing. She had not left her seat during the disturbance; of that she
was sure. So how could she know anything about it? I asked her to name
the one who she thought might have taken the opal, and at this her
agitation reached such a climax that I was obliged to let her go."
"You gained very little from her, I should say."
"In a case of this kind, Mr. Mitchel, where the criminal is surely one
of a very few persons, we cannot fail to gain something from each
person's story. A significant feature here was that though Miss
Livingstone assures us that she did not leave her seat, she was sitting
in a different place when the lamps were lighted again."
"That might mean anything or nothing."
"Exactly. But we are not deducing values yet. Mr. Dennett Moore came to
me next, and he is a straightforward, honest man if I ever saw one. He
declared that the whole affair was a great mystery to him, and that,
while ordinarily he would not care anything about it, he could not but
be somewhat interested, because he thought that one of the ladies, he
would not say which one, suspected him. Mr. Livingstone also impressed
me favorably, in spite of the fact that he did not remove his cigarette
from his mouth throughout the whole of my interview with him. He
declined to name the person suspected by him, though he admitted that he
could do so. He made this significant remark:
"'You are a detective of experience, Mr. Barnes, and ought to be able to
decide which man amongst us could place his arms around Mrs. Gray's neck
without causing her to cry out. But if your imagination fails you,
suppose you inquire into the financial standing of all of us, and see
which one would be most likely to profit by thieving? Ask Mr.
Cortlandt.'"
"Evidently Mr. Livingstone knows more than he tells."
"Yet he told enough for one to guess his suspicions, and to understand
the delicacy which prompted him to say no more. He, however, gave me a
good point upon which to question Mr. Cortlandt. When I asked that
gentleman if any of the men happened to be in pecuniary difficulties, he
became grave at once. I will give you his answer.
"'Mr. Livingstone and Mr. Moore are both exceedingly wealthy men, and I
am a millionaire, in very satisfactory business circumstances at
present. But I am very sorry to say that though our host, Mr. Gray, is
also a distinctly rich man, he has met with some reverses recently, and
I can conceive that ready money would be useful to him. But for all
that, it is preposterous to believe what your question evidently
indicates. None of the persons in this party is a thief, and least of
all could we suspect Mr. Gray. I am sure that if he wished his wife's
opal, she would give it to him cheerfully. No, Mr. Barnes, the opal is
in some crack or crevice which we have overlooked. It is lost, not
stolen.'
"That ended the interview with the several persons present, but I made
one or two other inquiries, from which I elicited at least two
significant facts. First, it was Mr. Gray himself who had indicated the
course by which the yacht was steered last night, and which ran her over
a sand-bar. Second, some one had nearly emptied the oil from the lamps,
so that they would have burned out in a short time, even though the
yacht had not touched."
"These, then, are your facts. And from these you have solved the
problem. Well, Mr. Barnes, who stole the opal?"
"Mr. Mitchel, I have told you all I know, but I wish you to work out a
solution before I reveal my own opinion."
"I have already done so, Mr. Barnes. Here; I will write my suspicion on
a bit of paper. So. Now tell me yours, and you shall know mine
afterwards."
"Why, to my mind it is very simple. Mr. Gray, failing to obtain the opal
from his wife by fair means, resorted to a trick. He removed the oil
from the lamps, and charted out a course for his yacht which would take
her over a sand-bar, and when the opportune moment came he stole the
jewel. His actions since then have been merely to cover his crime by
shrouding the affair with mystery. By insisting upon a thorough search,
and even sending for a detective, he makes it impossible for those who
were present to accuse him hereafter. Undoubtedly Mr. Cortlandt's
opinion will be the one generally adopted. Now what do you think?"
"I think I will go with you at once, and board the yacht _Idler_."
"But you have not told me whom you suspect," said Mr. Barnes, somewhat
irritated.
"Oh, that is immaterial," said Mr. Mitchel, calmly preparing for the
street. "I do not suspect Mr. Gray, so if you are correct you will have
shown better ability than I. Come, let us hurry."
On their way to the dock from which they were to take the little steam
launch which was waiting to carry the detective back to the yacht, Mr.
Barnes asked Mr. Mitchel the following question:
"Mr. Mitchel," said he, "you will note that Mrs. Cortlandt alluded to
you as a 'crank who collects gems.' I must admit that I have myself
harbored a great curiosity as to your reasons for purchasing jewels
which are valued beyond a mere conservative commercial price. Would you
mind explaining why you began your collection?"
"I seldom explain my motives to others, especially when they relate to
my more important pursuits in life. But in view of all that has passed
between us, I think your curiosity justifiable, and I will gratify it.
To begin with, I am a very wealthy man. I inherited great riches, and I
have made a fortune myself. Have you any conception of the difficulties
which harass a man of means?"
"Perhaps not in minute detail, though I can guess that the lot of the
rich is not as free from care as the pauper thinks it is."
"The point is this: the difficulty with a poor man is to get rich, while
with the rich man the greatest trouble is to prevent the increase of his
wealth. Some men, of course, make no effort in that direction, and those
men are a menace to society. My own idea of the proper use of a fortune
is to manage it for the benefit of others, as well as one's self, and
especially to prevent its increase."
"And is it so difficult to do this? Cannot money be spent without
limit?"
"Yes; but unlimited evil follows such a course. This is sufficient to
indicate to you that I am ever in search of a legitimate means of
spending my income, provided that I may do good thereby. If I can do
this, and at the same time afford myself pleasure, I claim that I am
making the best use of my money. Now, I happen to be so constituted that
the most interesting studies to me are social problems, and of these I
am most entertained with the causes and environments of crime. Such a
problem as the one you have brought to me to-day is of immense
attractiveness to me, because the environment is one which is commonly
supposed to preclude rather than to invite crime. Yet we have seen that
despite the wealth of all concerned, some one has stooped to the
commonest of crimes,--theft."
"But what has this to do with your collection of jewels?"
"Everything. Jewels--especially those of great magnitude--seem to be a
special cause of crime. A hundred-carat diamond will tempt a man to
theft as surely as the false beacon on a rocky shore entices the mariner
to wreck and ruin. All the great jewels of the world have murder and
other crimes woven in their histories. My attention was first called to
this by accidentally hearing a plot at a ball to rob the lady of the
house of a large ruby which she wore on her breast. I went to her, and
told her enough to persuade her to sell the stone to me. I fastened it
into my scarf, where the plotters might see it if they remained at the
ball. By my act I prevented a crime that night."
"Then am I to understand that you buy jewels with that end in view?"
"After that night I conceived this idea. If all the great jewels in the
world could be collected together, and put in a place of safety,
hundreds of crimes would be prevented, even before they had been
conceived. Moreover, the search for, and acquirement of, these jewels
would necessarily afford me abundant opportunity for studying the crimes
which are perpetrated in order to gain possession of them. Thus you
understand more thoroughly why I am anxious to pursue this problem of
the Aztec Opal."
Several hours later Mr. Mitchel and Mr. Barnes were sitting at a quiet
table in the corner of the dining-room at Mr. Mitchel's club. On board
the yacht Mr. Mitchel had acted rather mysteriously. He had been
closeted a while with Mr. Gray, after which he had had an interview with
two or three of the others. Then, when Mr. Barnes had begun to feel
neglected, and tired of waiting alone on the deck, Mr. Mitchel had come
towards him, arm in arm with Mr. Gray, and the latter had said:
"I am very much obliged to you, Mr. Barnes, for your services in this
affair, and I trust the enclosed check will remunerate you for your
trouble."
Mr. Barnes, not quite comprehending it all, had attempted to protest,
but Mr. Mitchel had taken him by the arm, and hurried him off. In the
cab which bore them to the club the detective asked for an explanation,
but Mr. Mitchel only replied:
"I am too hungry to talk now. We will have dinner first."
The dinner was over at last, and nuts and coffee were before them, when
Mr. Mitchel took a small parcel from his pocket, and handed it to Mr.
Barnes, saying:
"It is a beauty, is it not?"
Mr. Barnes removed the tissue paper, and a large opal fell on the
table-cloth, where it sparkled with a thousand colors under the electric
lamps.
"Do you mean that this is----" cried the detective.
"The Aztec Opal, and the finest harlequin I ever saw," interrupted Mr.
Mitchel. "But you wish to know how it came into my possession?
Principally so that it may join the collection and cease to be a
temptation in this world of wickedness."
"Then Mr. Gray did not steal it?" asked Mr. Barnes, with a touch of
chagrin in his voice.
"No, Mr. Barnes. Mr. Gray did not steal it. But you are not to consider
yourself very much at fault. Mr. Gray tried to steal it, only he failed.
That was not your fault, of course. You read his actions aright, but you
did not give enough weight to the stories of the others."
"What important point did I omit from my calculations?"
"I might mention the bare arms which Mrs. Gray said she felt around her
neck. It was evidently Mr. Gray who looked for the opal on the neck of
his sister-in-law, but as he did not bare his arms before approaching
her, he would not have done so later."
"Do you mean that Miss Livingstone was the thief?"
"No. Being hysterical, Miss Livingstone changed her seat without
realizing it, but that does not make her a thief. Her excitement when
with you was due to her suspicions, which, by the way, were correct. But
let us return for a moment to the bare arms. That was the clue from
which I worked. It was evident to me that the thief was a man, and it
was equally plain that, in the hurry of the few moments of darkness, no
man would have rolled up his sleeves, risking the return of the
attendants with lamps, and the consequent discovery of himself in such a
singular disarrangement of costume."
"How do you account for the bare arms?"
"The lady did not tell the truth, that is all. The arms which encircled
her neck were not bare. Neither were they unknown to her. She told you
that lie to shield the thief. She also told you that her husband wished
to sell the Aztec Opal to me, but that she had refused. Thus she deftly
led you to suspect him. Now, if she wished to shield the thief, yet was
willing to accuse her husband, it followed that the husband was not the
thief."
"Very well reasoned, Mr. Mitchel. I see now where you are tending, but I
shall not get ahead of your story."
"So much I had deduced before we went on board the yacht. When I found
myself alone with Gray I candidly told him of your suspicions, and your
reasons for harboring them. He was very much disturbed, and pleadingly
asked me what I thought. As frankly, I told him that I believed that he
had tried to take the opal from his wife,--we can scarcely call it
stealing since the law does not,--but that I believed he had failed. He
then confessed; admitted emptying the lamps, though he denied running
the boat on the sand-bar. But he assured me that he had not reached his
wife's chair when the lamps were brought in. He was, therefore, much
astonished at missing the gem. I promised him to find the jewel upon
condition that he would sell it to me. To this he most willingly
acceded."
"But how could you be sure that you would recover the opal?"
"Partly by my knowledge of human nature, and partly because of my
inherent faith in my own abilities. I sent for Mrs. Gray, and noted her
attitude of defense, which, however, only satisfied me the more that I
was right in my suspicions. I began by asking her if she knew the origin
of the superstition that an opal brings bad luck to its owner. She did
not, of course, comprehend my tactics, but she added that she 'had heard
the stupid superstition, but took no interest in such nonsense.' I then
gravely explained to her that the opal is the engagement stone of the
Orient. The lover gives it to his sweetheart, and the belief is, that
should she deceive him even in the most trifling manner, the opal will
lose its brilliancy and become cloudy. I then suddenly asked her if she
had ever noted a change in her opal. 'What do you mean to insinuate?'
she cried out angrily. 'I mean,' said I, sternly, 'that if any opal has
ever changed color in accordance with the superstition, this one should
have done so. I mean that though your husband greatly needs the money
which I have offered him, you have refused to allow him to sell it, and
yet you permitted another to take it from you last night. By this act
you might have seriously injured if not ruined Mr. Gray. Why have you
done it?'"
"How did she receive it?" asked Mr. Barnes, admiring the ingenuity of
Mr. Mitchel.
"She began to sob, and between her tears she admitted that the opal had
been taken by the man whom I suspected, but she earnestly declared that
she had harbored no idea of injuring her husband. Indeed, she was so
agitated in speaking upon this point, that I believe that Gray never
thoroughly explained to her why he wished to sell the gem. She urged me
to recover the opal if possible, and purchase it, so that her husband
might be relieved from his pecuniary embarrassment. I then sent for the
thief, Mrs. Gray having told me his name; but would you not like to hear
how I had picked him out before he went aboard? I still have that bit of
paper upon which I wrote his name, in confirmation of what I say."
"Of course I know that you mean Mr. Livingstone, but I would like to
hear your reasons for suspecting him."
"From your account Miss Livingstone suspected some one, and this caused
her to be so agitated that she was unaware of the fact that she had
changed her seat. Women are shrewd in these affairs, and I was confident
that the girl had good reasons for her conduct. It was evident that the
person in her mind was either her brother or her sweetheart. I decided
between these two men from your account of your interviews with them.
Moore impressed you as being honest, and he told you that one of the
ladies suspected him. In this he was mistaken, but his speaking to you
of it was not the act of a thief. Mr. Livingstone, on the other hand,
tried to throw suspicion upon Mr. Gray."
"Of course that was sound reasoning after you had concluded that Mrs.
Gray was lying. Now tell me how you recovered the jewel."
"That was easier than I expected. When I got him alone, I simply told
Mr. Livingstone what I knew, and asked him to hand me the opal. With a
perfectly imperturbable manner, understanding that I promised secrecy,
he quietly took it from his pocket and gave it to me, saying:
"Women are very poor conspirators. They are too weak."
"What story did you tell Mr. Gray?"
"Oh, he would not be likely to inquire too closely into what I should
tell him. My check was what he most cared for. I told him nothing
definitely, but I hinted that his wife had secreted the gem during the
darkness, that he might not ask her for it again; and that she had
intended to find it again at a future time, just as he had meant to pawn
it and then pretend to recover it from the thief by offering a reward."
"One more question. Why did Mr. Livingstone steal it?"
"Ah; the truth about that is another mystery worth probing, and one
which I shall make it my business to unravel. I will venture a prophecy.
Mr. Livingstone did not steal it at all. Mrs. Gray simply handed it to
him in the darkness. There must have been some powerful motive to lead
her to such an act; something which she was weighing, and decided
impulsively. This brings me to a second point. Livingstone used the word
conspirators; that is a clue. You will recall that I told you that this
gem is one of a pair of opals, and that with the other, the two would
be as interesting as any jewels in the world. If anyone ever owns both
it shall be your humble servant, Leroy Mitchel, Jewel Collector."