CHAPTER III.

Te Aroha News, Volume I, Issue 34, 26 January 1884, Page 4

CHAPTER 111.

Mr AspmvALL,tho head of the legal firm of which Conway Searle had recently been admitted a member, lost no time in redeeming his promise to Helena that every effort should be raado to unravel the mystery that surrounded the young man's extraordinary disappearance. Finding no trace of him at his rooms, the lawyer betook himself to the office of Christopher Stone, an old lawyer, and chief of the detective department, and inquiries were quickly in progress to trace every stage of Convoy Searle's movements on the eventful day. The zeal of the searchers was stimulated by the offer of a reward of 810,000 for the discovery of the missing man . The tempting prize drew many recruits in the service, but old Christopher Stone placed his greatest faith in Chester Harris, a young and enthusiastic officer whose zeal lie knew to be whetted by the hope of winning not only the money prize, but u ith it the hand of Mary Converse, whose winsome face and cheerful smile had gained from old Christopher Stone a fatherly interest in the hopes of the young lovers. Meanwhile still another aspirant for the large reward offered put in his claims at Christopher Stone's office. A big, buvly fellow, with a rough shock of unkempt sandy hair, and a florid face, and uncouth, clo\vni«h manners, came in unceremoniously placard in hand, and advanced upon the startled old lawyer. "Look-n-here, now: is this 'ere honour bright and up to its word ? If o feller brings yer jest the truth about the chap, living or dead, is he to have this money?" "Certainly," responded Christopher, briskly. "Have you brought news of him ?"' •' Xot as I knows of. But lam going to do it, you yee T was a thinking it over, and I'm powerfully inclined to try it. Could you show n fciler the man.-? piotur' to help him along V' ' Christopher Stone eyed him w itli a grand smile. " Oh, you are setting out to earn the reward offered. 1 take it you are not exactly a professional detective. An amateur, tempted by the generous sum of money to be gained. Humph ! Well, nothing venture, nothing have. I don't know that your eiiorts would hurt anything. Only you understand, you receive nothing whatever in case of failure, which is rather a poor inducement." His sarcastic tones in nowise affected the visitor. The latter lifted one red freckled hand, and drew it slowly to and fro .across his chin, while lie returned : " I calkerlated on that. 1 reckon I'm good for earning my keep, tumble me down where you've a" mind to. I've a knack at turnii.g my hand at most anything that comes, and I'll pay my way as I go, somehow." There -w as a frank honesty about the man that pleased Christopher Stone. Besides he "\\a< a curious observer of character always, and here Mas evidently an original specimen. "Sit-down, my fiiend,'' said he, with a sudden cordiality of manner that would have a-itoni-hed tho-c only acquainted with his ordinary brusque ways ''Sit down! and toll me how you came to think of undertakinir this thing, for it is rather a bold thing ""to plan, it secm> to me, and hardly in your line. You haven't told me your name yet.'' " Josiah (ireen, at your service. Si Green mostly at hum. But that's neither here nor there,"' returned hi.-. \ bitor, scraping off his coarac stiaw hat, and thereby tumbling a yellow silk handkerchief upon the floor, which he picked up promptly, however, and mopped across his .^tcamy forehead befoio he took the offeied chair. " I saw the thing in the paper, and what struck me powerfully was that there ere reward was jest the pile o' money I've been hankering after for six months back." "It would buy, I suppose, what some folks would consider quite a little farm," said Chri-topher, meditatively. " I reckon it might, but that's nothing to me, sir. It ain't a farm I want— there's time enough for me to earn that in the plain way. It's just that sum in yellow gold that looks so powerful tempting, and it ain't on my own account nuther." " Oh, certainly, I understand ; there's a buxom la-s in the question. Of course xthere is— there always is. Men will always befools, the most of them,' ' quoth Christopher, angrily. " I don't know nothing about that. But you ain't so sharp as I kinder expected on ye. It's no farm nor no woman that tempts Si Green about these times. But I'll tell ye plain. 1 hain't no hand to hide things as has a right to see daylight. I've got a little brother— such a purty gentleman-like little chap ye never see. And he nor I hain't father nor mother, nor sister, only our two selves, and he's only fourteen now, and feeble like and puny ; but he's got a great hankering after a painter's trade— that 'ere painting, you know, as gives the rich folks portraits and pictures to hang in their grand rooms. And a feller as come round our way, to paint the woods and fields there, says the lad has a right to his hankering, and has got the genius for it. And this painter's made a lot of my little Frank, and took to him wonderfully. And he's going off next fall to where they make the big ones of that 'ere trade, over the ocean, you know. And he's offered for jest that 'ere sum to take the boy with him, and keep him, and make of him what he longs to be And my little lad is wild for it. And I'm wild to give him his way." The man paused, and drew the great red hand across his light blue eyes. But there was a genuine goodness, a tender emotion, upon the homely face that lent it a beauty of its own. " And that is why you start on this wildgoose chase, eh ?" said Christopher, growing gruff, as was his wont when in any way softened at heart. "You're the biggest fool of all. Say, you make the lad into a great painter, and a rich man even, you'll be putting him further off from yourself, don't you see that? You're fond of him now, and he's fond of you. " "The mother that bore him couldn't ha' loved him truer, sir, I don't believe. Why, an* hain't I been mother and father both for the poor sickly chap? And he's got a loving heart for me. I ain't ashamed to say I've set and blubbered many a time when he was sick and wouldn't go to sleep no other way than in my lap, with his two arms tight round my neck. Yes, sir, I love Frank better'n all the rest of the world, and he sets a heap by me, too. I know he does." >

" Do you moan to go with him over tho sea?" The broad, clownish faco was turned avat quickly, that tho stranger might not sco tho quiver that ran across it at tho question. It mas a moment or two ere the answor came, low and husky. " Thero haint no kind o' chance o' that, T couldn't earn much over there, for I ain't like Frank — his mothor vas a real lady in eddication, and mine was of my sort, such as you can see, and I'm too thickheaded to ever learn foreign lingo. No, I've got to wait, the best I can, till he comes home again. But I reckon I can bear it when I know it to be the making of him. You don't think I hain't man enough foy that, I hope." "And supposing ho comes back ashamed to own you, man? You see that he will grow into a very different life. There's been baser ingratitude than that— plenty of it in the world. '' One long, deep quiver shook the brawny breast, but the rough head went up proudly. " I ain't a-going to think any such thing of the boy. But if I did, if I knowed it would be so, I should send him just the same, if I could get the money. I told you I loved him as his mother would, and it ain't a mother's way to be looking after m hat cjmes back in pay, is it ?" "I'll give you all the minutes of the case that the others have," said Christopher Stone, abruptly. " But I want to know what makes you think you can do such work ?" " Waal, 1 " answered Si Green, giving hi? burly frame such a shake as a Mevvfoundland dog does w hen coming from the water, as though in that way relieving himself of the unwonted emotion. '-The store -was broken into in our village, and Squire Bemis had out some of your fellows here, but, la sakes ! -what they did didn't amount to a row o' pins, and it was made a great mystery. But I knowed a little, by accident like, and 1 took a notion to follow it up. I've got one good quality for this business, you'll allow, sir, I reckon, an' that isl stick. I hain't ilopped first this v>ay and then that, but I allers did hold on to anything I took up. But I'll tell you the whofe story about my follering 'em up one dark night, arter I got a pretty big bruise, too, and tracking the band to tho cave, and bringing every mother'? son of 'em to justice. The squire give me what I thought was a mighty big sum of money, but it haint' a circumstance here, I'll allow. Well, it is that 'ere as set me to thinking what I might do for Frank the minute 1 clapped my eyes on this 'ere paper.'" He told the rest of tho story in the same simple rough way, butChiistopher hoard it patiently and -with deepened 1 expect. When he saw Chester Harris, the next day, he shipped him on the shoulder, saying, warmly : . " Look out for your laurel?, Harris. You have a lival in the Held. There's* another detective hoiking up the case.'' "Ah, but 1 don't believo helms quite so powerful an interest in his sucee^. 1 don't think he will uoik quite so zealously,"' replied the young man, smiling. Old Christopher shook his queer old head and tho sharp, ferret eyes twinkled '•I don t know about that, sirrah, I don't know about that. I said rival, and that means a foeman worthy of yourstefl."