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The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar - Maurice Leblanc · Mystery & Suspense Library

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Chapter one, the arrest of our Seene Lupin. It was
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: a strange ending to a voyage that had commenced in
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: a most auspicious manner. The transatlantic steamship La Provence was
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: a swift and comfortable vessel under the command of a
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: most affable man. The passengers constituted a select and delightful society.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: The charm of new acquaintances and improvised amusements served to
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: make the time pass agreeably. We enjoyed the pleasant sensation
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: of being separated from the world, living as it were,
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: upon an unknown island, and consequently obliged to be sociable
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: with each other. Have you ever stopped to consider how
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: much originality and spontaneity emanate from these various individuals, who,
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: on the preceding evening did not even know each other,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: and who are now, for several days, condemned to lead
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: a life of extreme intimacy, jointly defying the anger of
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: the ocean, the terrible onslaught of the waves, the violence
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: of the tempest, and the agonizing monotony of the calm
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: and sleepy water. Such a life becomes a sort of
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: tragic existence, with its storms and its grandeurs, its monotony
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: and its diversity. And that is why perhaps we embark
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: upon that short voyage with mingled feelings of pleasure and fear.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: But during the past few years a new sensation had
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: been added to the life of the transatlantic traveler. The
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: little floating island is now attached to the world from
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: which it was once quite free. A bond united them
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: even in the very heart of the watery wastes of
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: the Atlantic. That bond is the wireless telegraph, by means
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: of which we receive news in the most mysterious manner.
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: We know full well that the message is not transported
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: by the medium of a hollow wire. No, the mystery
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: is even more inexplicable, more romantic, and we must have
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: recourse to the wings of the air in order to
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: explain this new miracle. During the first day of the voyage,
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: we felt that we were being followed, escorted, preceded even
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: by that distant voice, which, from time to time whispered
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: to one of us a few words from the receding world.
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: Two friends spoke to me, ten twenty others sent gay
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: or some words of parting to other passengers. On the
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: second day, at a distance of five hundred miles from
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: the French coast, in the midst of a violent storm,
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: we received the following message by means of the wireless telegraph.
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: Arsaint Lupin is on your vessel, first cabin, blonde hair
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: wound right forearm, traveling alone under name of R. At
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: that moment, a terrible flash of lightning rent the stormy skies.
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: The electric waves were interrupted. The remainder of the despatch
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: never reached us. Of the name under which Ar Saint
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: Lupin was concealing himself. We knew only the initial. If
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: the news had been of some other character, I have
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: no doubt that the secret would have been carefully guarded
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: by the telegraphic operator as well as by the officers
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: of the vessel. But it was one of those events
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: calculated to escape from the most rigorous discretion. The same day,
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: no one knew how the incident became a matter of
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: current gossip, and every passenger was aware that the famous
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: Arsaint Lupin was hiding in our midst. Ar Saint Lupain
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: our midst, the irresponsible burglar whose exploits had been narrated
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: in all the newspapers during the past few months. The
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: mysterious individual with whom Ganimau, our shrewdest detective had been
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: engaged in an implacable conflict amidst interesting and picturesque surroundings.
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: Arsene Dupin, the eccentric gentleman who operates only in the
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: chateaus and salons, and who one night entered the residence
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: of Baron Shawmann, but emerged empty handed, leaving, however, his
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: card on which he had scribbled these words Arsin Dupin, gentleman, burglar,
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: will return when the furniture is genuine. Arsine Dupin, the
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: man of a thousand disguises, in turn a chauffeur, detective, bookmaker,
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: Russian physician, Spanish bull fighter, commercial traveler, robust youth or
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: decrepit old man. Then consider this startling situation. Af Saint
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: Lupin was wandering about within the limited bounds of a
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: transatlantic steamer, in that very small corner of the world,
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: in that dining saloon, in that smoking room, in that
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: music room. Arsen Dupin was perhaps this gentleman, or that
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: one my neighbor at the table, the sharer of my stateroom.
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: And this condition of affairs will last for five days,
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: exclaimed Miss Nellie Underdown next morning. It is unbearable. I
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: hope he will be arrested. Then, addressing me, she added,
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: and you, Monsieur dean Risie, you are on intimate terms
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: for the captain. Surely you know something. I should have
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: been delighted had I possessed any information that would interest
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: Miss Nellie. She was one of those magnificent creatures who
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: inevitably attract attention in every assembly. Wealth and beauty form
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: in a resistible combination, and Nellie possessed both. Educated in
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: Paris under the care of her French mother, she was
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: now going to visit her father, the millionaire under Down
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: of Chicago. She was accompanied by one of her friends,
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: Lady Gerland. At first I had decided to open a
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: flirtation with her, but in the rapidly growing intimacy of
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: the voyage, I was soon impressed by her charming manner,
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: and my feelings became too deep and reverential for a
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: mere flirtation. Moreover, she accepted my attentions with a certain
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: degree of favor. She condescended to laugh at my witticisms
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: and display an interest in my stories. Yet I felt
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: that I had a rival in the person of a
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: young man with quiet and refined tastes, and it struck
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: me at times that she preferred his taciturn humor to
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: my Parisian frivolity. He formed one in the circle of
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: admirers that surrounded Miss Nellie. At the time she addressed
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: to me the foregoing question, we were all comfortably seated
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: in our deck chairs. The storm of the preceding evening
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: had cleared the sky. The weather was now delightful. I
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: have no definite knowledge, Mademoiselle, I replied, But can not
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: we ourselves investigate the mystery quite as well as the
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: detective Ganimard, that personal enemy of Ar Sainte lupin. Oh Oh,
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: You are progressing very fast, monsieur, not at all, mademoiselle.
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: In the first place, let me ask, do you find
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: the problem a complicated one? Very complicated? Have you forgotten
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: the key we hold for the solution to the problem?
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: What key? In the first place? Luberon calls himself monsieur R.
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: Rather vague information, she replied. Secondly, he is traveling alone.
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: Does that help you, she asked? Thirdly, he is blonde? Well, well,
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: we have only to peruse the passenger list and proceed
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: by process of elimination. I had that list in my pocket.
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: I took it out and glanced through it. Then I remarked,
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: I find that there are only thirteen men on the
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: passenger list whose names begin with the letter are only
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: thirteen yes in the first cabin, And of those thirteen,
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: I find that nine of them are accompanied by women, children,
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: or servants. That leaves only four who are traveling alone. First,
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: the Marquis de Ravidun, secretary to the American ambassador, interrupted
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: miss Nellie. I know him, Major Rawson, I continued, Here
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: is my uncle, someone said, Monsieur Rivolta. Here, exclaimed an
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: Italian whose face was concealed beneath the heavy black beard.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: Miss Nellie burst into laughter and exclaimed that gentleman can
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: scarcely be called a blond. Very well, then, I said,
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: we are forced to the conclusion that the guilty party
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: is the last one on the list. What is his name,
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: Monsieur Rosein? Does any one know him? No one answered,
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: but miss Nellie turned to the taciturn young man whose
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: attentions to her had annoyed me, and said, well, Monsieur Rosein,
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: why do you not answer? All eyes were now turned
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: upon him. He was a blonde. I must confess that
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: I myself felt a shock of surprise, and the profound
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: silence that followed her question indicated that the others present
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: also viewed the situation with a feeling of sudden alarm. However,
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: the idea was an absurd one, because the gentleman in
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: question presented an air of the most perfect innocence. Why
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: do I not answer, he said, because considering my name,
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: my position as a solitary traveler, and the color of
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: my hair, I have already reached the same conclusion and
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: now think that I should be arrested. He presented a
• 7:49
  Speaker 1: strange appearance as he uttered those words. His thin lips
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: were drawn closer than usual, and his face was ghastly pale,
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: while his eyes were streaked with blood. Of course, he
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: was joking, yet his appearance and attitude impressed us strangely.
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: But have you not the wound, said miss Nellie naively.
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: That is true, he replied, I lacked the wound. Then
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: he pulled up his sleeve, removing his cuff, and showed
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: us his arm. But that action did not deceive me.
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: He had shown us as left arm, and I was
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: on the point of calling his attention to the fact.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: When another incident diverted our attention. Lady Gerland, miss Nellie's friend,
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: came running towards in a state of great excitement, exclaiming,
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: my jewels, my pearls, some one has stolen them all. No,
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: they were not all gone, as we soon found out,
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: the thief had taken only part of them, A very
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: curious thing. Of the diamond sunbursts, jeweled pendants, bracelets and necklaces.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: The thief had taken not the largest, but the finest
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: and most valuable stones. The mountings were lying upon the table.
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: I saw them there, despoiled of their jewels, like flowers
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: from which the beautiful colored petals had been ruthlessly plucked.
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: And this theft must have been committed at the time
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: Lady Gerland was taking her tea in broad daylight in
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: a stateroom opening on a much quented corridor. Moreover, the
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: thief had been obliged to force open the door of
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: the stateroom, search for the jewel case, which was hidden
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: at the bottom of a hat box, open it, select
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: his booty, and remove it from the mountings. Of course,
• 9:11
  Speaker 1: all the passengers instantly reached the same conclusion. It was
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: the work of Arsene Lupin. That day, at the dinner table,
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: the seats to the right and left of Rosin remained vacant,
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: and during the evening it was rumored that the captain
• 9:24
  Speaker 1: had placed him under arrest, which information produced a feeling
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: of safety and relief. We breathed once more. That evening
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: we resumed our games and dances. Miss Nellie especially displayed
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: a spirit of thoughtless gaiety, which convinced me that if
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: Roseinn's attentions had been agreeable to her in the beginning,
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: she had already forgotten them. Her charm and good humor
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: completed my conquest. At midnight, under a bright moon, I
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: declared my devotion with an ardor that did not seem
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: to displease her. But next day, to our general amazement,
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: Rosine was at liberty. We learned that the evidence against
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: him was not sufficient. He had produced documents that were
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: per perfectly regular. Was showed that he was the son
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: of a wealthy merchant of Bordeaux. Besides, his arms did
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: not bear the slightest trace of a wound. Documents certificates
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: of birth exclaimed the enemies of Rosin. Of course, Arsaine
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: Lupin will furnish you as many as you desire. And
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: as to the wound, he never had it or he
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: has removed it. Then it was proven that at the
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: time of the Theftrosin was promenading on the deck, to
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: which fact his enemies replied that a man like gar
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: Saint Lupin could commit a crime without being actually present.
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: And then, apart from all other circumstances, there remained one
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: point which even the most skeptical could not answer. Who
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: except Rosin, was traveling alone. Was a blonde and bore
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: a name beginning with R. To whom did the telegram
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: point if it were not Rosin? And when Rosin, a
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: few minutes before breakfast came boldly toward our group, Miss
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: Nellie and Lady Garland arose and walked away. An hour later,
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: a manuscript circular was passed from hand to hand amongst
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: the sailors, the stewards, and the passengers of all classes.
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: It announced that Monsieur Louis Rossin offered a reward of
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: ten thousand francs for the discovery of Arsene Dupin or
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: other person in possession of the Solen Jewels, and if
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: no one assists me, I will unmask the scoundrel, myself,
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: declared Rossin Rosin against Arsen Dupin, or rather, according to
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: current opinion, Arsene Dupin himself against Arsene Lupin. The contest
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: promised to be interesting. Nothing developed. During the next two days.
• 11:26
  Speaker 1: We saw Rosin wondering about day and night, searching, questioning, investigating.
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: The captain also displayed commendable activity. He caused the vessel
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: to be searched from Sterne to Sterne, ransacked every stateroom
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: under the plausible theory that the jewels might be concealed
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: anywhere except in the thief's own room. I suppose they
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: will find out something soon, remarked Miss Nellie to me.
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: He may be a wizard, but he cannot make diamonds
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: and pearls become invisible. Certainly not, I replied, but he
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: should examine the lining of our hats and vests and
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: everything we carry with us. Then, exhibiting my Kodak a
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: nine x twelve with which I had been photographing her
• 12:01
  Speaker 1: in various poses, I added, in an apparatus no larger
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: than that a person could hide all of Lady Gerland's jewels.
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: He could pretend to take pictures and no one would
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: suspect the game. But I have heard it said that
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: every thief leaves some clue behind him. That may be
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: generally true, I replied, but there is one exception, Arsene Lupin.
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: Why because he concentrates his thoughts not only on the theft,
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: but on all the circumstances connected with it that could
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: serve a seclue to his identity. A few days ago
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: you were more confident, yes, But since I have seen
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: him at work, and what do you think about it now?
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: She asked, Well, in my opinion, we are wasting our time.
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: And as a matter of fact, the investigation had produced
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: no result. But in the meantime the captain's watch had
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: been stolen. He was furious. He quickened his efforts and
• 12:50
  Speaker 1: watched Rosine more closely than before. But on the following
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: day the watch was found in the second officer's collar box.
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: This incident caused considerable astonishment and displayed the humorous side
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: of Arsene Lupin Burglar. Though he was but dilettante as well.
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: He combined business with pleasure. He reminded us of the
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: author who almost died in a fit of laughter provoked
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: by his own play. Certainly, he was an artist in
• 13:12
  Speaker 1: his particular line of work. And whenever I saw Rosin
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: gloomy and reserved, and thought of the double role that
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: he was playing, I accorded him a certain measure of admiration.
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: On the following evening, the officer on deck duty heard
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: groans emanating from the darkest corner of the ship. He
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: approached and found a man lying there, his head enveloped
• 13:31
  Speaker 1: in a thick gray scarf, and his hands tied together
• 13:33
  Speaker 1: with a heavy cord.
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: It was Rosin.
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: He had been assorted, thrown down and robbed. A card
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: pinned to his coat bore these words, Arsene Lupin, accept
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: with pleasure the ten thousand francs offered by Monsieur Rossin.
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: As a matter of fact, the stolen pocket book contained
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: twenty thousand francs. Of course, some accused the unfortunate man
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: of having simulated this attack on himself, But apart from
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: the fact that he could not have bound himself in
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: that manner, it was a stablished that the writing on
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: the card was entirely different from that of Rosin, but
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: on the contrary, resembled the handwriting of Arsaine Dupin. As
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: it was reproduced in an old newspaper found on board.
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: Thus it appeared that Rosin was not Arsaene Lupin, but
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: was Rosin, the son of a Bordeaux merchant. And the
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: presence of Arsaine Lupin was once more affirmed, And that
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: in a most alarming manner, such was the state of
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: terror amongst the passengers, that none would remain alone in
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: a stateroom or wonder singly and unfrequented parts of the vessel.
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: We clung together as a matter of safety, and yet
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: the most intimate acquaintances were estranged by a mutual feeling
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: of distrust. Ar Saint Lupin was now anybody and everybody.
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: Our excited imaginations attributed to him miraculous and unlimited power.
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: We supposed him capable of assuming the most unexpected disguises,
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: of being, by turns, the highly respectable Major Rawson, or
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: the noble Marquis de Raverdain, or even for we no
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: longer stopped with the accusing letter of R, or even
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: such or such a person well known to all of us,
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: and having wife, children and servants. The first wireless dispatches
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: from America brought no news. At least, the captain did
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: not communicate any to us. The silence was not reassuring.
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: Our last day on the steamer seemed interminable. We lived
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: in constant fear of some disaster. This time it would
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: not be a simple theft or a comparatively harmless assault.
• 15:22
  Speaker 1: It would be a crime, a murder. No one imagined
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: that Artain Lupin would confine himself to those two trifling offenses.
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: Absolute master of the ship, the authorities powerless, He could
• 15:33
  Speaker 1: do whatever he pleased. Our property and lives were at
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: his mercy. Yet those were delightful hours for me, since
• 15:40
  Speaker 1: they secured to me the confidence of miss Nellie. Deeply
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: moved by those startling events, and being of a highly
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: nervous nature, she spontaneously sought at my side a protection
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: and security that I was pleased to give her. Inwardly,
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: I blessed Arsen Lupin, had he not been the means
• 15:55
  Speaker 1: of bringing me and miss Nellie closer to each other.
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: Thanks to him, I could now indulged in delicious dreams
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: of love and happiness, dreams that I felt were not
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: unwelcome to miss Nellie. Her smiling eyes authorized me to
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: make them. The softness of her voice bade me hope
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: as we approached the American show. The active search for
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: the thief was apparently abandoned, and we were anxiously awaiting
• 16:17
  Speaker 1: the supreme moment in which the mysterious enigma would be explained.
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: Who was Arf Saint Lupin? Under what name? Under what
• 16:25
  Speaker 1: disguise was the famous av Saint Lupin concealing himself? And
• 16:29
  Speaker 1: at last that supreme moment arrived. If I live one
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: hundred years, I shall not forget the slightest details of it.
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: How pale you are, miss Nellie, I said to my companion,
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: as she leaned upon my arm, almost fainting. And you,
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: she replied, Ah, you are so changed. Just think this
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: is a most exciting moment, and I am delighted to
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: spend it with you. Miss Nellie, I hope that your
• 16:52
  Speaker 1: memory will sometimes revert. But she was not listening. She
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: was nervous and excited. The gangway was placed in position,
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: but before we could year use it, the uniformed customs
• 17:01
  Speaker 1: officers came on board. Miss Nellie murmured, I shouldn't be
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: surprised to hear that Arsene Dupanin escaped from the vessel
• 17:07
  Speaker 1: during the voyage. Perhaps he preferred death to dishonor and
• 17:11
  Speaker 1: plunged into the Atlantic rather than be arrested. Oh, do
• 17:14
  Speaker 1: not laugh, she said. Suddenly I started, and in answer
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: to her question, I said, do you see that little
• 17:20
  Speaker 1: old man standing at the bottom of the gangway with
• 17:23
  Speaker 1: an umbrella and an olive green coat. It is Ganimin Ganimar, Yes,
• 17:29
  Speaker 1: the celebrated detective who has sworn to capture Ar Saint Lubin.
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: Ah.
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: I can understand now why we did not receive any
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: news from this side of the Atlantic. Ganimer was here,
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: and he always keeps his business secret. Then you think
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: he will arrest Kxen Dubin, who can tell the unexpected
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: always happens when Ar Send Dupin is concerned in the affair. Oh,
• 17:50
  Speaker 1: she exclaimed, with that morbid curiosity peculiar to women. I
• 17:54
  Speaker 1: should like to see him arrested. You will have to
• 17:57
  Speaker 1: be patient, no doubt. Ar Sain Dupin has already seen
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: his enemy and will not be in a hurry to
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: leave the steamer. The passengers were now leaving the steamer.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: Leaning on his umbrella with an air of careless indifference,
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: Ganimar appeared to be paying no attention to the crowd
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: that was hurrying down the Gangway, The Marquis de a Redin,
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: Major Rawson, the Italian Revolter, and many others had already
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: left the vessel before Rosin appeared. Poor Rosin, perhaps it
• 18:24
  Speaker 1: is he after all, said miss Nellie to me, What
• 18:27
  Speaker 1: do you think? I think it would be very interesting
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: to have Ganimar and Rossin in the same picture. You
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: take the camera. I am loaded down. I gave her
• 18:35
  Speaker 1: the camera, but too late for her to use it.
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: Rosein was already passing the detective. An American officer standing
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: behind Ganimar leaned forward and whispered in his ear. The
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: French detective shrugged his shoulders, and Rosein passed on. Then,
• 18:50
  Speaker 1: my god, who was Arsen Lupin? Yes, said miss Nellie aloud,
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: Who can it be? Not more than twenty people now
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: remained on board. She screwedies them one by one, fearful
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: that Arsene Lupin was not amongst them. We cannot wait
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: much longer, I said to her. She started toward the gangway.
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: I followed, but we have not taken ten steps when
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: ganimars barred our passage. Well what is it, I exclaimed
• 19:16
  Speaker 1: one moment, monsieur, what's your hurry? I am escorting mademoiselle.
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: One moment, he repeated in a tone of authority. Then,
• 19:23
  Speaker 1: gazing into my eyes, he said, av Saint Lupin, is
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: it not? I laughed and replied no, simply Bernard Dan Dresis.
• 19:32
  Speaker 1: Bernard Dandresi died in Macedonia three years ago. If Bernardandresil
• 19:37
  Speaker 1: were dead, I should not be here. But you are mistaken.
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: Here are my papers. They are his, and I can
• 19:42
  Speaker 1: tell you exactly how they came into your possession. You
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: are a fool, I exclaimed, Ar Saint Lupin sailed under
• 19:48
  Speaker 1: the name of r Yes, another of your tricks, a
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: false scent that deceived them at Avres. You play a
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: good game, my boy, but this time luck is against you.
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: I hesitated a moment. Then he hit me a sharp
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: blow on the right arm, which caused me to utter
• 20:03
  Speaker 1: a cry of pain. He had struck the wound yet unhealed,
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: referred to in the telegram. I was obliged to surrender.
• 20:10
  Speaker 1: There was no alternative. I turned to Miss Nellie, who
• 20:13
  Speaker 1: had heard everything. Our eyes met. Then she glanced at
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: the kodak I had placed in her hands and made
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: a gesture that conveyed to me the impression that she
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: understood everything. Yes, there between the narrow folds of black leather,
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: in the hollow center of the small object that I
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: had taken the precaution to place in her hands before
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: Ganimer arrested me. It was there I had deposited Rosanne's
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: twenty thousand francs and Lady Gerland's pearls and diamonds. Oh,
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: I pledge my oath that at that solemn moment, when
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: I was in the grasp of Ganimarer and his two assistants,
• 20:44
  Speaker 1: I was perfectly indifferent to everything, to my arrest, the
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: hostility of the people, everything except this one question. What
• 20:51
  Speaker 1: will miss Nellie do with the things I had confided
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: to her? In the absence of that material and conclusive proof,
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: I had nothing to fear. But would miss Nellie decide
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: to furnish that proof? Would she betray me? Would she
• 21:04
  Speaker 1: act the part of an enemy who cannot forgive, or
• 21:07
  Speaker 1: that of a woman whose scorn is softened by feelings
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: of indulgence and involuntary sympathy. She passed in front of me.
• 21:14
  Speaker 1: I said nothing, but bowed very low, mingled with the
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: other passengers. She advanced to the gangway with my Kodak
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: in her hand. It occurred to me that she would
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: not dare to expose me publicly, but she might do
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: so when she reached a more private place. However, when
• 21:27
  Speaker 1: she had passed only a few feet down the gangway,
• 21:30
  Speaker 1: with a movement of simulated awkwardness, she let the camera
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: fall into the water between the vessel and the pier.
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: Then she walked down the gangway and was quickly lost
• 21:38
  Speaker 1: to sight in the crowd. She had passed out of
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: my life forever. For a moment I stood motionless. Then,
• 21:44
  Speaker 1: to Ganimar's great astonishment, I muttered, what a pity that
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: I am.
• 21:48
  Speaker 2: Not an honest man.
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: Such was the story of his arrest, as narrated to
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: me by ar Sin Lupain himself. The various incidents which
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: I shall record in writing at a later day, have
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: established between us, so and ties. Shall I say of friendship? Yes,
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: I ventured to believe that Artaine Lupin honors me with
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: his friendship, and that it is through friendship that he
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: occasionally calls on me and brings into the silence of
• 22:12
  Speaker 1: my library his youthful exuberance of spirits, the contagion of
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: his enthusiasm, and the mirth of a man for whom
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: destiny has naught but favors and smiles his portrait. How
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: can I describe him? I have seen him twenty times.
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: In each time he was a different person. Even he
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: himself said to me on one occasion, I no longer
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: know who I am. I cannot recognize myself in the mirror. Certainly,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: he was a great actor and possessed a marvelous faculty
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: for disguising himself. Without the slightest effort, he could adopt
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: the voice, gestures, and mannerisms of another person. Why, said
• 22:45
  Speaker 1: he Why should I retain a definite form and feature?
• 22:48
  Speaker 1: Why not avoid the danger of a personality that is
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: ever the same? My actions will serve to identify me,
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: then he added, with a touch of pride, So much
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: the better. If no one can ever say, with that
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: salute certainty there is Arsen Lupin. The essential point is
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: that the public may be able to refer to my
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: work and say, without fear of mistake. Arsene Lupin did that.
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: End of chapter.
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: One, Chapter two, Arsaint Lupin in prison. There is no
• 23:18
  Speaker 2: tourist worthy of the name who does not know the
• 23:21
  Speaker 2: banks of the Seine and has not noticed in passing.
• 23:25
  Speaker 2: The little feudal castle of the Malaquis, built upon a
• 23:29
  Speaker 2: rock in the center of the river. An arched bridge
• 23:33
  Speaker 2: connects it with a shore. All around it. The calm
• 23:37
  Speaker 2: waters of the great river play peacefully amongst the reeds,
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: and the wag tails flutter over the moist crests of
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: the stones. The history of the Malachi Castle is stormy,
• 23:49
  Speaker 2: like its name, harsh like its outlines. It has passed
• 23:54
  Speaker 2: through a long series of combats, sieges, assaults, rapines, and massacres.
• 24:01
  Speaker 2: A recital of the crimes that have been committed there
• 24:04
  Speaker 2: would cause the stoutest heart to tremble. There are many
• 24:08
  Speaker 2: mysterious legends connected with the castle and their tellers, of
• 24:12
  Speaker 2: a famous subterranean tunnel that formerly led into the abbey
• 24:17
  Speaker 2: of Jumieges and to the manor of Agnes Sarel, mistress
• 24:21
  Speaker 2: of Charles the Seventh, in that ancient habitation of heroes
• 24:26
  Speaker 2: and brigands. The Baron Nathan Cahorn now lived, or Baron Satan,
• 24:32
  Speaker 2: as he was formerly called, on the Bourse, where he
• 24:35
  Speaker 2: had acquired a fortune with incredible rapidity. The lords of
• 24:40
  Speaker 2: Malachis absolutely ruined, had been obliged to sell the ancient
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: castle at a great sacrifice. It contained an admirable collection
• 24:50
  Speaker 2: of furniture, pictures, wood carvings, and fiance. The baron lived
• 24:56
  Speaker 2: there alone, attended by three old servants. No one ever
• 25:00
  Speaker 2: enters the place. No one had ever beheld the three
• 25:04
  Speaker 2: rubens that he possessed, his tu wattau, his Jean goujon pulpit,
• 25:10
  Speaker 2: and the many other treasures that he had acquired by
• 25:13
  Speaker 2: a vast expenditure of money at public sales. Baron Satan
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: lived in constant fear, not for himself, but for the
• 25:21
  Speaker 2: treasures that he had accumulated with such an earnest devotion
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: and with so much perspicacity that the shrewdest merchant could
• 25:29
  Speaker 2: not say that the baron had ever erred in his
• 25:31
  Speaker 2: taste or judgment. He loved them, his bibulou. He loved
• 25:37
  Speaker 2: them intensely, like a miser, jealously, like a lover. Every day,
• 25:42
  Speaker 2: at sunset, the iron gates at either end of the
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: bridge and at the entrance to the Court of Honor
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: are closed and barred. At the least touch on these gates,
• 25:53
  Speaker 2: electric bells will ring throughout the castle. One Thursday in September,
• 25:58
  Speaker 2: a letter carrier prison vsented himself at the gate at
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: the head of the bridge, and as usual, it was
• 26:05
  Speaker 2: the baron himself who partially opened the heavy portal. He
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: scrutinized the man as minutely as if he were a stranger,
• 26:13
  Speaker 2: although the honest face and twinkling eyes of the postman
• 26:16
  Speaker 2: had been familiar to the baron for many years. The
• 26:20
  Speaker 2: man laughed as he said, it is only I, Monsieur
• 26:23
  Speaker 2: le Baron. It is not another man wearing my cap
• 26:26
  Speaker 2: and blouse. One can never tell, muttered the baron. The
• 26:33
  Speaker 2: man handed him a number of newspapers, and then said,
• 26:37
  Speaker 2: and now, Monsieur le Baron, here is something new, something new, Yes,
• 26:43
  Speaker 2: a letter, a registered letter. Living as a recluse without
• 26:50
  Speaker 2: friends or business relations, the baron never received any letters,
• 26:54
  Speaker 2: and the one now presented to him immediately aroused with
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: him a feeling of suspicion and dis trust. It was
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: like an evil omen Who was this mysterious correspondent that
• 27:07
  Speaker 2: dared to disturb the tranquility of his retreat. You must
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: sign for it, Monsieur le Baron. He signed. Then he
• 27:16
  Speaker 2: took the letter, waited until the postman had disappeared beyond
• 27:20
  Speaker 2: the bend. In the road, and after walking nervously to
• 27:23
  Speaker 2: and fro for a few minutes, he leaned against the
• 27:26
  Speaker 2: parapet of the bridge and opened the envelope. It contained
• 27:30
  Speaker 2: a sheet of paper bearing this heading prison de la
• 27:35
  Speaker 2: senti Paris. He looked at the signature Arsen Lupin, then
• 27:43
  Speaker 2: he read Monsieur le Baron. There is in the gallery
• 27:48
  Speaker 2: of your castle a picture of Filippe de Champaigne, of
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: exquisite finish, which pleases me beyond measure. Your rubens are
• 27:58
  Speaker 2: also to my taste, as well as your smallest wattau.
• 28:02
  Speaker 2: In the salon to the right, I have noticed the
• 28:05
  Speaker 2: Luitre's cadence table, the tapestries of Beauvis, the Empire Geridon
• 28:10
  Speaker 2: signed Jacob, and the Renaissance chest. In the salon to
• 28:15
  Speaker 2: the left, all the cabinet full of jewels and miniatures.
• 28:20
  Speaker 2: For the present I will content myself with those articles
• 28:24
  Speaker 2: that can be conveniently removed. I will therefore ask you
• 28:28
  Speaker 2: to pack them carefully and ship them to me. Charge
• 28:31
  Speaker 2: is prepaid to the station at Batignol within eight days,
• 28:37
  Speaker 2: otherwise I shall be obliged to remove them myself. During
• 28:41
  Speaker 2: the night of twenty seventh of September. But under those
• 28:45
  Speaker 2: circumstances I shall not content myself with the articles above mentioned.
• 28:51
  Speaker 2: Accept my apologies for any inconvenience I may cause you,
• 28:54
  Speaker 2: and believe me to be your humble servant. Arsene Lupin.
• 29:00
  Speaker 3: P. S.
• 29:01
  Speaker 2: Please do not send the largest wattau Although he paid
• 29:04
  Speaker 2: thirty thousand francs for it, it is only a copy,
• 29:08
  Speaker 2: the original, having been burned under the directoire by Barras
• 29:13
  Speaker 2: during a night of debauchery. Consult the memoirs of Garrat.
• 29:18
  Speaker 2: I do not care for the Louis kurs chatelain, as
• 29:21
  Speaker 2: I doubt its authenticity. That letter completely upset the Baron.
• 29:28
  Speaker 2: Had it borne any other signature, he would have been
• 29:31
  Speaker 2: greatly alarmed. But signed by Arsene Lupin. As an habitual
• 29:37
  Speaker 2: reader of the newspapers, he was versed with the history
• 29:41
  Speaker 2: of recent crimes, and was therefore well acquainted with the
• 29:44
  Speaker 2: exploits of the mysterious burglar. Of course, he knew that
• 29:48
  Speaker 2: Lupin had been arrested in America by his enemy Jeannie
• 29:51
  Speaker 2: March and was at present incarcerated in the prison de
• 29:54
  Speaker 2: la Santi. But he knew also that any miracle might
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: be expected from Arsines Lupin. Moreover, that exact knowledge of
• 30:03
  Speaker 2: the castle, the location of the pictures and furniture, gave
• 30:07
  Speaker 2: the affair an alarming aspect. How could he have acquired
• 30:10
  Speaker 2: that information concerning things that no one had ever seen?
• 30:16
  Speaker 2: The baron raised his eyes and contemplated the stern outlines
• 30:19
  Speaker 2: of the castle, its steep, rocky pedestal, the depths of
• 30:23
  Speaker 2: the surrounding water, and shrugged his shoulders. Certainly, there was
• 30:28
  Speaker 2: no danger. No one in the world could force an
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: entrance to the sanctuary that contained his priceless treasures, no one, perhaps,
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: but Arsaint Lupein. For him, gates, walls and drawbridges did
• 30:42
  Speaker 2: not exist. What use were the most formidable obstacles or
• 30:46
  Speaker 2: the most careful precautions. If ar Saint Lupin had decided
• 30:50
  Speaker 2: to effect an entrance that evening he wrote to the
• 30:55
  Speaker 2: procureur of the Republique at Roin. He enclosed the threatening
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: letter and solicited aid and protection. The reply came at
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: once to the effect that Arsin Lupin was in custody
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: in the prison de las Somti and the close surveillance,
• 31:12
  Speaker 2: with no opportunity to write such a letter, which was
• 31:15
  Speaker 2: no doubt the work of some impostor, But as an
• 31:18
  Speaker 2: act of precaution, the procureur had submitted the letter to
• 31:22
  Speaker 2: an expert in handwriting, who declared that, in spite of
• 31:25
  Speaker 2: certain resemblances, the writing was not that of the prisoner.
• 31:30
  Speaker 2: But the words, in spite of certain resemblances, caught the
• 31:34
  Speaker 2: attention of the baron. In them, he read the possibility
• 31:38
  Speaker 2: of a doubt, which appeared to him quite sufficient to
• 31:41
  Speaker 2: warrant the intervention of the law. His fears increased. He
• 31:46
  Speaker 2: read Lupin's letter over and over again. I shall be
• 31:51
  Speaker 2: obliged to remove them myself. And then there was the
• 31:55
  Speaker 2: fixed date, the night of twenty seventh of September, to
• 32:01
  Speaker 2: confide in his servants. Was a proceeding repugnant to his nature.
• 32:06
  Speaker 2: But now, for the first time in many years, he
• 32:09
  Speaker 2: experienced the necessity of seeking counsel with some one. Abandoned
• 32:14
  Speaker 2: by the legal official of his own district, and feeling
• 32:18
  Speaker 2: unable to defend himself with his own resources, he was
• 32:22
  Speaker 2: on the point of going to Paris to engage the
• 32:24
  Speaker 2: services of a detective. Two days passed. On the third day,
• 32:30
  Speaker 2: he was filled with hope and joy as he read
• 32:32
  Speaker 2: the following item in the reveis de courdebeck, a newspaper
• 32:37
  Speaker 2: published in a neighboring town. We have the pleasure of
• 32:41
  Speaker 2: entertaining in our city at our present time the veteran
• 32:45
  Speaker 2: detective Monsieur Gannimar, who acquired a world wide reputation by
• 32:51
  Speaker 2: his clever capture of Arsaine Lupin. He has come here
• 32:55
  Speaker 2: for rest and recreation, and being an enthusiastic fisherman, he
• 33:00
  Speaker 2: threatens to capture all the fish in our river. Ganimar, ah,
• 33:06
  Speaker 2: here is the assistance desired by Baron Cahorn, who could
• 33:10
  Speaker 2: baffle the schemes of Arsain Lupin better than Ganimar. The
• 33:14
  Speaker 2: patient and astute detective. He was the man for the
• 33:19
  Speaker 2: place the baron did not hesitate. The town of Cordebec
• 33:24
  Speaker 2: was only six kilometers from the castle, a short distance
• 33:28
  Speaker 2: to a man whose step was accelerated by the hope
• 33:31
  Speaker 2: of safety. After several fruitless attempts to ascertain the detective's address,
• 33:40
  Speaker 2: the baron visited the office of the Devas, situated on
• 33:43
  Speaker 2: the quay. There he found the writer of the article, who,
• 33:47
  Speaker 2: approaching the window, exclaimed, Ganimar, why you are sure to
• 33:51
  Speaker 2: see him somewhere on the quay with his fishing pole.
• 33:54
  Speaker 2: I met him there and chanced to read his name
• 33:57
  Speaker 2: engraved on his rod. Ah, there he is now under
• 34:00
  Speaker 2: the trees, that little man, wearing a straw hat. Exactly,
• 34:07
  Speaker 2: he is a gruff fellow with little to say. Five
• 34:11
  Speaker 2: minutes later, the baron approached the celebrated Gannimar, introduced himself
• 34:17
  Speaker 2: and sought to commence the conversation, but that was a failure.
• 34:21
  Speaker 2: Then he broached the real object of his interview and
• 34:24
  Speaker 2: briefly stated his case. The other listened motionless, with his
• 34:30
  Speaker 2: attention riveted on his fishing rod. When the baron had
• 34:33
  Speaker 2: finished his story, the fisherman turned with an air of
• 34:37
  Speaker 2: profound pity and said, Monsieur, it is not customary for
• 34:43
  Speaker 2: thieves to warn people they are about to rob. Arsene
• 34:46
  Speaker 2: Lupin especially would not commit such a folly. But Monsieur,
• 34:52
  Speaker 2: if I had the least doubt believe me, the pleasure
• 34:56
  Speaker 2: of again capturing ar Saint Lupin would place me at
• 34:59
  Speaker 2: your dispose. But unfortunately, that young man is already under
• 35:03
  Speaker 2: lock and key. He may have escaped no one ever
• 35:09
  Speaker 2: escaped from the Sante, but he he no more than
• 35:15
  Speaker 2: any other. Yet, well, if he escapes, so much the
• 35:20
  Speaker 2: better I will catch him again. Meanwhile, you go home
• 35:25
  Speaker 2: and sleep soundly. That will do for the present. You
• 35:30
  Speaker 2: frighten the fish. The conversation was ended. The baron returned
• 35:36
  Speaker 2: to the castle, reassured to some extent by Gannimo's indifference.
• 35:41
  Speaker 2: He examined the bolts, watched the servants, and during the
• 35:45
  Speaker 2: next forty eight hours he became almost persuaded that his
• 35:49
  Speaker 2: fears were groundless. Certainly, as Gunnimar had said, thieves do
• 35:55
  Speaker 2: not warn people they are about to rob. The fateful
• 36:00
  Speaker 2: was close at hand. It was now the twenty sixth
• 36:03
  Speaker 2: of December, and nothing had happened. But at three o'clock
• 36:07
  Speaker 2: the bell rang. A boy brought this telegram, no goods
• 36:14
  Speaker 2: at Battinyol's station. Prepare everything for to morrow night, Arsen.
• 36:22
  Speaker 2: This telegram threw the baron into such a state of
• 36:25
  Speaker 2: excitement that he even considered the advisability of yielding to
• 36:29
  Speaker 2: Lupin's demands. However, he hastened to Kodbeck. Gannimar was fishing
• 36:36
  Speaker 2: at the same place, seated on a campstool. Without a word,
• 36:41
  Speaker 2: he handed him the telegram. Well what of it, said
• 36:45
  Speaker 2: the detective, What of it? But it is to morrow?
• 36:50
  Speaker 2: What is to morrow? The robbery? The pillage of my collections?
• 36:59
  Speaker 2: Ganimar laid down his fishing rod, turned to the baron
• 37:03
  Speaker 2: and exclaimed, in a tone of impatience, Ah, do you
• 37:08
  Speaker 2: think I am going to bother myself about such a
• 37:11
  Speaker 2: silly story as that? How much do you ask to
• 37:16
  Speaker 2: pause to morrow night at the castle? Not a sous?
• 37:20
  Speaker 2: Now leave me alone. Name your own price. I am
• 37:25
  Speaker 2: rich and can pay it. This offer disconcerted Gannimar, who
• 37:31
  Speaker 2: replied calmly, I am here on a vacation. I have
• 37:36
  Speaker 2: no right to undertake such work. No one will know.
• 37:42
  Speaker 2: I promise to keep its secret. Oh nothing will happen.
• 37:48
  Speaker 2: Come three thousand francs. Will that be enough? The detective,
• 37:54
  Speaker 2: after a moment's reflection, said, very well, But I must
• 37:59
  Speaker 2: warn you that you are throwing your money out of
• 38:02
  Speaker 2: the window. I do not care in that case. But
• 38:07
  Speaker 2: after all, what do we know about this devil Lupin?
• 38:11
  Speaker 2: He may have quite a numerous band of robbers with him.
• 38:15
  Speaker 2: Are you sure of your servants? My faith? Better not
• 38:20
  Speaker 2: count on them. I will telegraph for two of my
• 38:24
  Speaker 2: men to help me, and now go. It is better
• 38:28
  Speaker 2: for us not to be seen together to morrow evening.
• 38:32
  Speaker 2: About nine o'clock the following day, the date fixed by
• 38:38
  Speaker 2: our Saint Lupin, Baron Cahorn, arranged all his panopley of war,
• 38:43
  Speaker 2: furbished his weapons, and like a sentinel, paced to and
• 38:47
  Speaker 2: fro in front of the castle. He saw nothing, heard nothing.
• 38:51
  Speaker 2: At half past eight o'clock in the evening, he dismissed
• 38:54
  Speaker 2: his servants. They occupied rooms in a wing of the building,
• 38:59
  Speaker 2: in a retired spot, well removed from the main portion
• 39:02
  Speaker 2: of the castle. Shortly thereafter, the baron heard the sound
• 39:07
  Speaker 2: of approaching footsteps. It was Gannimar and his two assistants,
• 39:12
  Speaker 2: great powerful fellows with immense hands and necks like bulls.
• 39:18
  Speaker 2: After asking a few questions relating to the location of
• 39:21
  Speaker 2: the various entrances and rooms, Ganimar carefully closed and barricaded
• 39:27
  Speaker 2: all the doors and windows through which one could gain
• 39:30
  Speaker 2: access to the threatened rooms. He inspected the walls, raised
• 39:34
  Speaker 2: the tapestries, and finally installed his assistance in the central gallery,
• 39:40
  Speaker 2: which was located between the two salons. No nonsense, we
• 39:46
  Speaker 2: are not here to sleep. At the slightest sound, open
• 39:49
  Speaker 2: the windows of the court and call me. Pay attention
• 39:53
  Speaker 2: also to the water side ten meters of perpendicular rock
• 39:58
  Speaker 2: is no obstacle to those devils. Ganimar locked his assistance
• 40:03
  Speaker 2: in the gallery, carried away the keys, and said to
• 40:07
  Speaker 2: the Baron, and now to our post. He had chosen
• 40:12
  Speaker 2: for himself a small room located in the thick outer
• 40:15
  Speaker 2: wall between the two principal doors, and which in former
• 40:19
  Speaker 2: years had been the watchman's quarters. A peep hole opened
• 40:24
  Speaker 2: upon the bridge, another on the court. In one corner
• 40:29
  Speaker 2: there was an opening to a tunnel. I believe you
• 40:33
  Speaker 2: told me, Monsieur le Baron, that this tunnel is the
• 40:37
  Speaker 2: only subterranean entrance to the castle, and that it has
• 40:40
  Speaker 2: been closed up for time immemorial. Yes, then, unless there
• 40:46
  Speaker 2: is some other entrance, known only to our Saint Lupin,
• 40:51
  Speaker 2: we are quite safe. He placed three chairs together, stretched
• 40:56
  Speaker 2: himself upon them, lighted his pipe and side. Really, Monsieur
• 41:01
  Speaker 2: le Baron, I feel ashamed to accept your money for
• 41:04
  Speaker 2: such a sinecure as this. I will tell the story
• 41:09
  Speaker 2: to my friend Lupen. He will enjoy it immensely. The
• 41:13
  Speaker 2: Baron did not laugh. He was anxiously listening, but heard
• 41:17
  Speaker 2: nothing save the beating of his own heart. From time
• 41:21
  Speaker 2: to time he leaned over the tunnel and cast a
• 41:24
  Speaker 2: fearful eye into its depths. He heard the clock strike
• 41:29
  Speaker 2: eleven twelve one. Suddenly he seized Gannimar's arm. The latter
• 41:36
  Speaker 2: leaped up, awakened from his sleep. Do you hear asked
• 41:41
  Speaker 2: the baron in a whisper. Yes, what is it? I
• 41:48
  Speaker 2: was snoring? I suppose no, no, listen ah, yes, it
• 41:55
  Speaker 2: is the horn of an automobile. Well, well, it is
• 42:01
  Speaker 2: very improbable that Lupenn would use an automobile like a
• 42:05
  Speaker 2: battering ram to demolish your castle. Come, Monsieur le Baron,
• 42:10
  Speaker 2: returned to your post. I am going to sleep. Good night.
• 42:17
  Speaker 2: That was the only alarm. Gannimar resumed his interrupted slumbers,
• 42:23
  Speaker 2: and the Baron heard nothing except the regular snoring of
• 42:26
  Speaker 2: his companion. At break of day they left the room.
• 42:31
  Speaker 2: The castle was enveloped in a profound calm. It was
• 42:35
  Speaker 2: a peaceful dawn on the bosom of a tranquil river.
• 42:39
  Speaker 2: They mounted the stairs, cahorn radiant with joy, Gannimar calm
• 42:45
  Speaker 2: as usual. They heard no sound, They saw nothing to
• 42:49
  Speaker 2: arouse suspicion. What did I tell you, Monsieur le Baron?
• 42:54
  Speaker 2: Really I should not have accepted your offer. I am ashamed,
• 42:59
  Speaker 2: he unlocked the and entered the gallery upon two chairs
• 43:04
  Speaker 2: with dripping heads and pendent arms. The detective's two assistants
• 43:09
  Speaker 2: were asleep. Don ne'er de non dr chier, exclaimed Gannimar.
• 43:15
  Speaker 2: At the same time, the baron cried out the pictures,
• 43:22
  Speaker 2: the credence. He stammered, choked with arms outstretched toward the
• 43:28
  Speaker 2: empty places, toward the denuded walls, where naught remained but
• 43:33
  Speaker 2: the useless nails and cords. The wattau disappeared, the rubens
• 43:39
  Speaker 2: carried away, the tapestries taken down, the cabinets despoiled of
• 43:44
  Speaker 2: their jewels, and my Louisay's Gondelabra and the region chandelier,
• 43:51
  Speaker 2: and my twelfth century Virgin. He ran from one spot
• 43:56
  Speaker 2: to another in wildest despair. He recalled the pertin his
• 44:00
  Speaker 2: price of each article, added up the figures, counted his losses,
• 44:05
  Speaker 2: pell mell in confused words and unfinished phrases. He stamped
• 44:10
  Speaker 2: with rage, he groaned with grief. He acted like a
• 44:14
  Speaker 2: ruined man whose only hope is suicide. If anything could
• 44:20
  Speaker 2: have consoled him, it would have been the stupefaction displayed
• 44:24
  Speaker 2: by Gannimar, the famous detective did not move. He appeared
• 44:29
  Speaker 2: to be petrified. He examined the room in a listless manner.
• 44:34
  Speaker 2: The windows closed, the locks on the doors intact. Not
• 44:41
  Speaker 2: a break in the ceiling, not a hole in the floor.
• 44:45
  Speaker 2: Everything was in perfect order. The theft had been carried
• 44:49
  Speaker 2: out mesodically, according to a logical and inexorable plan. Arsen Lupin,
• 44:56
  Speaker 2: Arsene Lupin. He muttered. Suddenly, as if moved by anger.
• 45:02
  Speaker 2: He rushed upon his two assistants and shook them violently.
• 45:07
  Speaker 2: They did not awaken the devil, he cried, Can it
• 45:12
  Speaker 2: be possible? He leaned over them, and in turn examined
• 45:17
  Speaker 2: them closely. They were asleep, but their response was unnatural.
• 45:22
  Speaker 2: They have been drugged, he said to the baron, by
• 45:27
  Speaker 2: whom by him, of course, or his men, under his discretion.
• 45:33
  Speaker 2: That work bears his stamp. In that case, I am lost.
• 45:38
  Speaker 2: Nothing can be done. Nothing, assented Gannimar. It is dreadful,
• 45:46
  Speaker 2: It is monstrous. Lodge a complaint. What good will that do? Oh?
• 45:54
  Speaker 2: It is well to try it. The law has some resources.
• 45:59
  Speaker 2: The law, Bah, it is useless. You represent the law,
• 46:05
  Speaker 2: and at this moment, when you should be looking for
• 46:08
  Speaker 2: a clue and trying to discover something. You do not
• 46:12
  Speaker 2: even stir discover something with ar Saint Lupin. Why, my
• 46:18
  Speaker 2: dear Monsieur Arsaint Lupin never leaves any clue behind him.
• 46:22
  Speaker 2: He leaves nothing to chance. Sometimes I think he puts
• 46:26
  Speaker 2: himself in my way and simply allowed me to arrest
• 46:30
  Speaker 2: him in America. Then I must renounce my pictures. He
• 46:36
  Speaker 2: has taken the gems of my collection. I would give
• 46:40
  Speaker 2: a fortune to recover them. If there is no other way,
• 46:45
  Speaker 2: let him name his own price. Gonnemar regarded the baron attentively,
• 46:51
  Speaker 2: as he said, now that is sensible. Will you stick
• 46:55
  Speaker 2: to it? Yes? Yes, But why an idea that I have?
• 47:03
  Speaker 4: What is it?
• 47:05
  Speaker 2: We will discuss it later if the official examination does
• 47:09
  Speaker 2: not succeed. But not one word about me, if you wish,
• 47:14
  Speaker 2: my assistant, he added, between his teeth, it is true,
• 47:19
  Speaker 2: I have nothing to boast of in this affair. The
• 47:23
  Speaker 2: assistants were gradually regaining consciousness with the bewildered air of
• 47:27
  Speaker 2: people who come out of an hypnotic sleep. They opened
• 47:31
  Speaker 2: their eyes and looked about them in astonishment. Gannimar questioned them.
• 47:37
  Speaker 2: They remembered nothing, But you must have seen some one. No,
• 47:44
  Speaker 2: can't you remember? No, No, did you drink anything? They
• 47:51
  Speaker 2: considered a moment, and then one of them replied, yes,
• 47:56
  Speaker 2: I drank a little water out of that carafe. Yes,
• 48:02
  Speaker 2: so did I declared the other Gannimar, smelled and tasted it.
• 48:08
  Speaker 2: It had no particular taste and no odor. Come, he said,
• 48:14
  Speaker 2: we are wasting our time here. One can't decide in
• 48:18
  Speaker 2: ar Saint Lupin problem in five minutes, But Morbleau, I
• 48:23
  Speaker 2: swear I will catch him again. The same day, a
• 48:28
  Speaker 2: charge of burglary was duly performed by Baron Cahorn against
• 48:32
  Speaker 2: Arsaint Lupin, a prisoner in the prison de la Senti.
• 48:39
  Speaker 2: The baron afterwards regretted making the charge against Lepin when
• 48:43
  Speaker 2: he saw his castle delivered over to the gendarmes, the procureur,
• 48:49
  Speaker 2: the Juge d'nstrision, the newspaper reporters and photographers, and a
• 48:54
  Speaker 2: throng of idle curiosity seekers. The affair soon became a
• 48:59
  Speaker 2: topic of gen discussion, and the name of Arsen Lupin
• 49:03
  Speaker 2: excited the public imagination to such an extent that the
• 49:07
  Speaker 2: newspapers filled their columns with the most fantastic stories of
• 49:11
  Speaker 2: his exploits, which found ready credence amongst their readers. But
• 49:16
  Speaker 2: the letter of Arsen Lupin that was published in the
• 49:19
  Speaker 2: Eccau de France, no one ever knew how the newspaper
• 49:23
  Speaker 2: obtained it. That letter, in which Baron Cahorn was impudently
• 49:28
  Speaker 2: warned of the coming theft, caused considerable excitement. The most
• 49:33
  Speaker 2: fabulous theories were advanced. Some recalled the existence of the
• 49:37
  Speaker 2: famous subterranean tunnels, and that was the line of research
• 49:41
  Speaker 2: pursued by the officers of the law, who searched the
• 49:45
  Speaker 2: house from top to bottom. Questioned every stone, studied the
• 49:48
  Speaker 2: wainscoting and the chimneys, the window frames and the girders
• 49:52
  Speaker 2: in the ceilings. By the light of tortures, they examined
• 49:56
  Speaker 2: the immense cellars where the lords of mula Quis who
• 50:00
  Speaker 2: wanted to store their munitions and provisions. They sounded the
• 50:05
  Speaker 2: rocky foundation to its very center, but it was all
• 50:09
  Speaker 2: in vain. They discovered no trace of a subterranean tunnel.
• 50:14
  Speaker 2: No secret passage existed. But the eager public declared that
• 50:20
  Speaker 2: the picture and furniture could not vanish like so many ghosts.
• 50:24
  Speaker 2: They are substantial material things and require doors and windows
• 50:29
  Speaker 2: for their exits. And their entrances, and so do the
• 50:33
  Speaker 2: people that remove them. Who were those people? How did
• 50:37
  Speaker 2: they gain access to the castle and how did they
• 50:41
  Speaker 2: leave it? The police officers of Rouen, convinced of their
• 50:45
  Speaker 2: own impotence, solicited the assistance of the Parisian detective force.
• 50:51
  Speaker 2: Monsieur de Dui, chief of the Suete, sent the best
• 50:54
  Speaker 2: sleuths of the Iron Brigade. He himself spent forty eight
• 50:59
  Speaker 2: hours at the castle, but met with no success. Then
• 51:03
  Speaker 2: he sent for Ganimar, whose past services have proved so
• 51:07
  Speaker 2: useful when all else failed. Gannimar listened in silence to
• 51:13
  Speaker 2: the instructions of his superior, Then, shaking his head, he said,
• 51:18
  Speaker 2: in my opinion, it is useless to ransack the castle.
• 51:22
  Speaker 2: The solution of the problem lies elsewhere where. Then with
• 51:29
  Speaker 2: our Saint Lupein, with our Saint Lupin, to support that theory,
• 51:35
  Speaker 2: we must admit his intervention. I do admit it. In fact,
• 51:40
  Speaker 2: I consider it quite certain, Come, Gannimar, that is absurd.
• 51:46
  Speaker 2: Arsen Lupur is in prison. I grant you that our
• 51:51
  Speaker 2: Saint Lupin is in prison closely guarded. But he must
• 51:55
  Speaker 2: have fetters on his feet, manacles on his wrists, and
• 51:59
  Speaker 2: gag in his mouth before I change my opinion? Why
• 52:05
  Speaker 2: so obstinate Ganimar? Because ar sur Lupe is the only
• 52:11
  Speaker 2: man in France of sufficient caliber to invent and carry
• 52:16
  Speaker 2: out a scheme of that magnitude. Mere words, Ganimar, but
• 52:22
  Speaker 2: true ones, Look what are they doing searching for subterranean passages, stones,
• 52:31
  Speaker 2: swinging on pivots and other nonsense of that kind. But
• 52:36
  Speaker 2: Lupin doesn't employ such old fashioned methods. He is a
• 52:40
  Speaker 2: modern cracksman, right up to date. And how would you proceed?
• 52:48
  Speaker 2: I should ask your permission to spend an hour with
• 52:51
  Speaker 2: him in his cell. Yes, during the return trip from America,
• 52:59
  Speaker 2: we became very friendly, and I venture to say that
• 53:03
  Speaker 2: if he can give me any information without compromising himself,
• 53:07
  Speaker 2: he will not hesitate to save me from incurrying useless trouble.
• 53:13
  Speaker 2: It was shortly afternoon when Ganimar entered the cell of Arsin. Lupin,
• 53:19
  Speaker 2: the latter, who was lying on his bed, raised his
• 53:22
  Speaker 2: head and uttered a cry of apparent joy. Ah, this
• 53:27
  Speaker 2: is a real surprise, my dear Ganimar. Here Ganimar himself,
• 53:36
  Speaker 2: in my chosen retreat. I have felt a desire for
• 53:39
  Speaker 2: many things, but my fondest wish was to receive you here.
• 53:45
  Speaker 2: Very kind of you, I am sure not at all.
• 53:51
  Speaker 2: You know I hold you in the highest regard. I
• 53:55
  Speaker 2: am proud of it. I have always said gannimar as
• 53:59
  Speaker 2: I best detective. He is almost you see how candid
• 54:04
  Speaker 2: I am. He is almost as clever as Shallock Holmes.
• 54:09
  Speaker 2: But I am sorry that I cannot offer you anything
• 54:12
  Speaker 2: better than this hard stool and no refreshments, not even
• 54:17
  Speaker 2: a glass of beer. Of course, you will excuse me,
• 54:21
  Speaker 2: as I am here only temporarily. Gannimu smiled and accepted
• 54:26
  Speaker 2: the prophet seat. Then the prisoner continued, mon dieu, how
• 54:32
  Speaker 2: pleased I am to see the face of an honest man.
• 54:35
  Speaker 2: I am so tired of those devils of spies who
• 54:39
  Speaker 2: come here ten times a day to ransack my pockets
• 54:42
  Speaker 2: at my cell to satisfy themselves that I am not
• 54:46
  Speaker 2: preparing to escape. The government is very solicitous on my account.
• 54:52
  Speaker 2: It is quite right. Why so I should be quite
• 54:57
  Speaker 2: contented if they would allow me to to live in
• 55:00
  Speaker 2: my own quiet way on other people's money. Quite so,
• 55:08
  Speaker 2: that would be so simple. But here I am joking,
• 55:13
  Speaker 2: and you are no doubt in a hurry. So let
• 55:16
  Speaker 2: us come to business. Ganimar, to what do I owe
• 55:20
  Speaker 2: the honor of this visit? The Cahorn affair, declared Ganimar, frankly, Ah,
• 55:30
  Speaker 2: wait one moment, you see, I have had so many affairs. First,
• 55:35
  Speaker 2: let me fix in my mind the circumstances of this
• 55:38
  Speaker 2: particular case.
• 55:40
  Speaker 4: Ah.
• 55:41
  Speaker 2: Yes, now I have it, the Cahorn affair. Malachy Castle,
• 55:46
  Speaker 2: send a firier to Reubens o'watau and a few trifling articles. Trifling,
• 55:57
  Speaker 2: Oh ma FOI all that is of slight importance, But
• 56:01
  Speaker 2: it de vices to know that the affair interests you.
• 56:05
  Speaker 2: How can I serve you, Ganimar? Must I explain to
• 56:09
  Speaker 2: you what steps the authorities have taken in the matter?
• 56:13
  Speaker 2: Not at all. I have read the newspapers, and I
• 56:16
  Speaker 2: will frankly state that you have made very little progress.
• 56:21
  Speaker 2: And that is the reason I have come to see you.
• 56:25
  Speaker 2: I am entirely at your service. In the first place,
• 56:31
  Speaker 2: the Cahorn affair was managed by you from aid to Z.
• 56:37
  Speaker 2: The letter of warning, the telegram all mine. I ought
• 56:42
  Speaker 2: to have the receipts somewhere. Arsen opened the drawer of
• 56:47
  Speaker 2: a small table of plain white wood, which, with the
• 56:50
  Speaker 2: bed and stool, constituted all the furniture in his cell
• 56:55
  Speaker 2: and took therefrom two scraps of paper, which he handed
• 56:59
  Speaker 2: to Ganimar. A ah, exclaimed the detective in surprise. I
• 57:08
  Speaker 2: thought you were closely guarded and searched, and I find
• 57:11
  Speaker 2: that you read the newspapers and collect postal receipts.
• 57:16
  Speaker 1: Bah.
• 57:17
  Speaker 2: These people are so stupid. They opened the lining of
• 57:21
  Speaker 2: my vest, they examined the soles of my shoes, they
• 57:24
  Speaker 2: sangned the walls of my cell. But they never imagined
• 57:27
  Speaker 2: that ar Saint Lupin would be foolish enough to choose
• 57:30
  Speaker 2: such a simple hiding place. Gannimau laughed as he said,
• 57:36
  Speaker 2: what a droll fellow you are. Really you bewilder me.
• 57:41
  Speaker 2: But come now tell me about the Cahorn affair. Oh, oh,
• 57:45
  Speaker 2: not quite so fast. You would rob me of all
• 57:48
  Speaker 2: my secrets, expose all my little tricks. That is a
• 57:52
  Speaker 2: very serious matter. Was I wrong to count on your complaisance? No, Gannimar,
• 58:00
  Speaker 2: And since you insist, Arsaint Lupin paced his cell two
• 58:04
  Speaker 2: or three times, then, stopping before Gannimar, he asked, what
• 58:10
  Speaker 2: do you think of my letter to the baron? I
• 58:14
  Speaker 2: think you were amusing yourself by playing to the gallery,
• 58:19
  Speaker 2: ah playing to the gallery, come Ganimar, I thought you
• 58:24
  Speaker 2: knew me better? Do I arsaint lupin ever waste my
• 58:28
  Speaker 2: time on such puerilities? Would I have written that letter?
• 58:33
  Speaker 2: If I could have robbed the baron without writing to him?
• 58:37
  Speaker 2: I want you to understand that the letter was indispensable.
• 58:41
  Speaker 2: It was the motor that set the whole machine in motion. Now,
• 58:44
  Speaker 2: let us discuss together a scheme for the robbery of
• 58:47
  Speaker 2: the Malachuis castle. Are you willing yes? Proceed well? Let
• 58:55
  Speaker 2: us suppose a castle carefully closed and barricaded, like that
• 59:00
  Speaker 2: of the Baron Cahorn. Am I to abandon my scheme
• 59:04
  Speaker 2: and renounce the treasures that I covet upon the pretext
• 59:08
  Speaker 2: that the castle which holds them is inaccessible? Evidently not?
• 59:15
  Speaker 2: Should I make an assault upon the castle at the
• 59:17
  Speaker 2: head of a band of adventurers, as they did in
• 59:20
  Speaker 2: ancient times. That would be foolish. Can I gain admittance
• 59:27
  Speaker 2: by stealth or cunning? Impossible? Then there is only one
• 59:33
  Speaker 2: way open to me. I must have the owner of
• 59:36
  Speaker 2: the castle invite me to it. That is surely an
• 59:41
  Speaker 2: original method, and how easy letters. Suppose that one day
• 59:47
  Speaker 2: the owner receives a letter warning him that a notorious
• 59:51
  Speaker 2: burglar known as Arsen Lupin is plotting to rob him.
• 59:56
  Speaker 2: What will he do? Send a letter to the procureur,
• 1:00:02
  Speaker 2: who will laugh at him, because the said Arsene Lupin
• 1:00:07
  Speaker 2: is actually in prison. Then, in his anxiety and fear,
• 1:00:12
  Speaker 2: the simple man will ask the assistance of the first comer.
• 1:00:16
  Speaker 2: Will he not very likely? And if he happens to
• 1:00:20
  Speaker 2: read in a country newspaper that a celebrated detective is
• 1:00:25
  Speaker 2: spending his vacation in a neighboring town, he will seek
• 1:00:30
  Speaker 2: that detective, of course. But on the other hand, let
• 1:00:35
  Speaker 2: us presume that, having foreseen the state of affairs, that
• 1:00:40
  Speaker 2: said Arsen Lupin has requested one of his friends to
• 1:00:44
  Speaker 2: visit Gordebec, make the acquaintance of the editor of the Revet,
• 1:00:49
  Speaker 2: a newspaper to which the Baron is a subscriber, and
• 1:00:53
  Speaker 2: let said editor understand that such person is the celebrated detective.
• 1:00:59
  Speaker 2: Then will happen? The editor will announce in the Revay
• 1:01:04
  Speaker 2: the presence in good Beck of said detective exactly, and
• 1:01:09
  Speaker 2: one of two things will happen. Either the fish I
• 1:01:13
  Speaker 2: mean cahorn will not bite and nothing will happen, or
• 1:01:18
  Speaker 2: what is more, likely he will run and greedily swallow
• 1:01:21
  Speaker 2: the bait. Thus behold my Baron Cahorn, imploring the assistance
• 1:01:26
  Speaker 2: of one of my friends against me. Original Indeed, of course,
• 1:01:32
  Speaker 2: this pseudor detective at first refuses to give any assistance.
• 1:01:37
  Speaker 2: On top of that comes the telegram from Arsine le Pin.
• 1:01:42
  Speaker 2: The frightened baron rushes once more to my friend and
• 1:01:45
  Speaker 2: offers him a definite sum of money for his services.
• 1:01:49
  Speaker 2: My friend accepts and summons two members of our band, who,
• 1:01:53
  Speaker 2: during the night, whilst Cahorn is under the watchful eye
• 1:01:57
  Speaker 2: of his protector, removes certain eyes articles by way of
• 1:02:01
  Speaker 2: the window and lowers them with ropes into a nice
• 1:02:05
  Speaker 2: little launch charted for the occasion. Simple, isn't it? Marvelous? Marvelous,
• 1:02:13
  Speaker 2: exclaimed Ganimar. The boldness of the scheme and the ingenuity
• 1:02:18
  Speaker 2: of all its details are beyond criticism. But who is
• 1:02:22
  Speaker 2: the detective whose name and fame served as a magnet
• 1:02:26
  Speaker 2: to attract the baron and draw him into your net.
• 1:02:30
  Speaker 2: There is only one name could do it, only one,
• 1:02:35
  Speaker 2: and that is are Sen Lupin's personal enemy, the most
• 1:02:41
  Speaker 2: illustrious Ganimar. Ah, he yourself, Ganimar, And really it is
• 1:02:50
  Speaker 2: very funny. If you go there and the baron decides
• 1:02:53
  Speaker 2: to talk, you will find that it will be your
• 1:02:56
  Speaker 2: duty to arrest yourself, just as you arrested me in
• 1:02:59
  Speaker 2: a America. Ah, the revenge is really amusing. I cause
• 1:03:05
  Speaker 2: Ganimar to arrest Ganimar. Arsen Lupin laughed heartily. The detective
• 1:03:12
  Speaker 2: greatly vexed bit his lips to him. The joke was
• 1:03:16
  Speaker 2: quite devoid of humor. The arrival of a prison guard
• 1:03:20
  Speaker 2: gave Ganimar an opportunity to recover himself. The man brought
• 1:03:25
  Speaker 2: Arsen Lupin's luncheon, furnished by a neighboring restaurant. After depositing
• 1:03:31
  Speaker 2: the tray upon the table, the guard retired. Lupin broke
• 1:03:36
  Speaker 2: his bread at a few morsels and continued, But rest easy,
• 1:03:42
  Speaker 2: my dear Ganimar, you will not go to Malachis. I
• 1:03:47
  Speaker 2: can tell you something that will astonish you. The Cahorn
• 1:03:51
  Speaker 2: affair is on the point of being settled. Excuse me,
• 1:03:55
  Speaker 2: I have just seen the chief of the surte What
• 1:04:00
  Speaker 2: of that does monsieur do do we know my business
• 1:04:04
  Speaker 2: better than I do myself. You will learn that, Ganimar.
• 1:04:08
  Speaker 2: Excuse me that the pseudo Ganimar still remains on very
• 1:04:13
  Speaker 2: good terms with the Baron. The latter has authorized him
• 1:04:17
  Speaker 2: to negotiate a very delicate transaction with me, and at
• 1:04:22
  Speaker 2: the present moment, in consideration of a certain sum, it
• 1:04:26
  Speaker 2: is probable that the Baron has recovered possession of his
• 1:04:29
  Speaker 2: pictures and other treasures, and on their return he will
• 1:04:34
  Speaker 2: withdraw his complaint. Thus there is no longer any theft,
• 1:04:38
  Speaker 2: and the law must abandon the case. Ganimar regarded the
• 1:04:43
  Speaker 2: prisoner with a bewildered air. And how do you know
• 1:04:48
  Speaker 2: all that I have just received the telegram? I was
• 1:04:52
  Speaker 2: expecting you have just received a telegram this very moment,
• 1:05:00
  Speaker 2: dear friend. Out of politeness, I did not wish to
• 1:05:03
  Speaker 2: read it in your presence. But if you will permit me,
• 1:05:07
  Speaker 2: you are jo king dupart, My dear friend. If you
• 1:05:11
  Speaker 2: will be so kind as to break that egg, you
• 1:05:13
  Speaker 2: will learn for yourself that I am not joking Mechanically,
• 1:05:17
  Speaker 2: Gannimar obeyed and cracked the egg shell with the blade
• 1:05:21
  Speaker 2: of a knife. He uttered a cry of surprise. The
• 1:05:26
  Speaker 2: shell contained nothing but a small piece of blue paper.
• 1:05:30
  Speaker 2: At the request of Arsene, he unfolded it. It was
• 1:05:33
  Speaker 2: a telegram, or rather a portion of a telegram from
• 1:05:37
  Speaker 2: which the post marks had been removed. It read as follows,
• 1:05:42
  Speaker 2: contract closed, hundred thousand balls delivered all well, one hundred
• 1:05:49
  Speaker 2: thousand balls, said Gannimar, Yes, one hundred thousand francs very little,
• 1:05:56
  Speaker 2: But then you know these are hard times and I
• 1:06:00
  Speaker 2: have some heavy builds to meet. If you only knew
• 1:06:04
  Speaker 2: my budget living in the city comes very high, Gannimar arose.
• 1:06:11
  Speaker 2: His ill humor had disappeared. He reflected for a moment,
• 1:06:15
  Speaker 2: glancing over the whole affair in an effort to discover
• 1:06:19
  Speaker 2: a weak point. Then, in a tone and manner that
• 1:06:22
  Speaker 2: betrayed his admiration of the prisoner, he said, fortunately, we
• 1:06:27
  Speaker 2: do not have a dozen such as you to deal with.
• 1:06:30
  Speaker 2: If we did, we would have to close up shop.
• 1:06:34
  Speaker 2: Arsin Lupa resumed the modest air as he replied, Bah,
• 1:06:39
  Speaker 2: a person must have some diversion to occupy his leisure hours,
• 1:06:43
  Speaker 2: especially when he is in prison. What exclaimed Gannimar, your trial,
• 1:06:49
  Speaker 2: your defense, the examination, isn't that sufficient to occupy your mind? No,
• 1:06:57
  Speaker 2: because I have decided not to be present at my trial.
• 1:07:01
  Speaker 2: Oh oh, Arsene Lupin repeated positively, I shall not be
• 1:07:07
  Speaker 2: present at my trial. Really, ah, my dear monsieur, do
• 1:07:13
  Speaker 2: you suppose I am going to rot upon the wet
• 1:07:15
  Speaker 2: straw you insult me? Ar Saint Lupin remains in prison
• 1:07:21
  Speaker 2: just as long as it pleases him at not one
• 1:07:24
  Speaker 2: minute more. Perhaps it would have been more prudent if
• 1:07:28
  Speaker 2: you had avoided getting there, said the detective ironically. Ah,
• 1:07:33
  Speaker 2: Monsieur jests, Monsieur must remember that you had the honor
• 1:07:37
  Speaker 2: to effect my arrest. Know, then, my worthy friend, that
• 1:07:42
  Speaker 2: no one, not even you, could have placed a hand
• 1:07:45
  Speaker 2: upon me, if a much more important event had not
• 1:07:48
  Speaker 2: occupied my attention at that critical moment. You astonish me.
• 1:07:54
  Speaker 2: A woman was looking at me Ganimard, and I loved her.
• 1:08:00
  Speaker 2: Do you fully understand what that means to be under
• 1:08:03
  Speaker 2: the eyes of a woman that one loves. I cared
• 1:08:07
  Speaker 2: for nothing in the world but that, and that is
• 1:08:11
  Speaker 2: why I am here. Permit me to say, you have
• 1:08:14
  Speaker 2: been here a long time in the first place I
• 1:08:19
  Speaker 2: wished to forget. Do not laugh. It was a delightful
• 1:08:23
  Speaker 2: adventure and it is still a tender memory. Besides, I
• 1:08:27
  Speaker 2: have been suffering from neurasthenia. Life is so feverish these
• 1:08:32
  Speaker 2: days that it is necessary to take the rest cure
• 1:08:36
  Speaker 2: occasionally and I find this spot a sovereign remedy for
• 1:08:40
  Speaker 2: my tired nerves. Ah, Saint Lupin, you are not a
• 1:08:45
  Speaker 2: bad fellow after all, thank you, said Lupa Gandimar. This
• 1:08:50
  Speaker 2: is Friday. On Wednesday next at four o'clock in the afternoon,
• 1:08:54
  Speaker 2: I will smoke my cigar at your house in the
• 1:08:58
  Speaker 2: rue pergulaise Ar, Saint Lupin, I will expect you. They
• 1:09:04
  Speaker 2: shook hands like two friends who valued each other at
• 1:09:07
  Speaker 2: their true worth. Then the detective stepped to the door. Gannimar,
• 1:09:14
  Speaker 2: What is it? Asked Gannimar, as he turned back. You
• 1:09:19
  Speaker 2: have forgotten your watch? My watch? Yes, sits strayed into
• 1:09:24
  Speaker 2: my pocket. He returned the watch, excusing himself, pardon me
• 1:09:30
  Speaker 2: a bad habit because they have taken mine is not
• 1:09:34
  Speaker 2: reason why I should take yours. Besides, I have a
• 1:09:37
  Speaker 2: chronometer here that satisfies me very well. He took from
• 1:09:43
  Speaker 2: the drawer a large gold watch and heavy chain. From
• 1:09:48
  Speaker 2: Whose pocket did that come? Asked Gannimar. Arsaint Lupin gave
• 1:09:53
  Speaker 2: a hasty glance at the initials engraved on the watch
• 1:09:57
  Speaker 2: j B. Who the devil can that be? Ah? Yes,
• 1:10:00
  Speaker 2: I remember jou Bouvyier the judge who conducted my examination
• 1:10:05
  Speaker 2: a charming fellow.
• 1:10:09
  Speaker 5: End of chapter two, Chapter three, The Escape of Arsene Lupin.
• 1:10:17
  Speaker 5: Arsen Lupin had just finished his repast and taken from
• 1:10:21
  Speaker 5: his pocket an excellent cigar with a gold band, which
• 1:10:24
  Speaker 5: he was examining with unusual care. When the door of
• 1:10:27
  Speaker 5: his cell was opened. He had barely time to throw
• 1:10:30
  Speaker 5: the cigar into the drawer and move away from the table.
• 1:10:33
  Speaker 5: The guard entered. It was the hour for exercise. I
• 1:10:38
  Speaker 5: was waiting for you, my dear boy, exclaimed Lupin, in
• 1:10:41
  Speaker 5: his accustomed good humor. They went out together. As soon
• 1:10:45
  Speaker 5: as they had disappeared. At a turn in the corridor,
• 1:10:47
  Speaker 5: two men entered the cell and commenced a minute examination
• 1:10:51
  Speaker 5: of it. One was Inspector d'isi, the other was Inspector Folenfa.
• 1:10:57
  Speaker 5: They wished to verify their suspicion that Arsi then Lupin,
• 1:11:00
  Speaker 5: was in communication with his accomplices outside of the prison.
• 1:11:04
  Speaker 5: On the preceding evening, the Grand Journal had published these
• 1:11:08
  Speaker 5: lines addressed to its court reporter, Monsieur in a recent article.
• 1:11:13
  Speaker 5: You referred it to me in most unjustifiable terms. Some
• 1:11:18
  Speaker 5: days before the opening of my trial, I will call
• 1:11:22
  Speaker 5: you to account, Arsene Lupin. The handwriting was certainly that
• 1:11:27
  Speaker 5: of Arsin Lupin. Consequently, he sent letters and no doubt
• 1:11:32
  Speaker 5: received letters. It was certain that he was preparing for
• 1:11:36
  Speaker 5: that escape thus arrogantly announced by him the situation had
• 1:11:41
  Speaker 5: become intolerable. Acting in conjunction with the examining judge, the
• 1:11:45
  Speaker 5: chief of the Sieurrete, Monsieur Dudui, had visited the prison
• 1:11:49
  Speaker 5: and instructed the jailer in regard to the precautions necessary
• 1:11:52
  Speaker 5: to insure Lupin's safety. At the same time, he sent
• 1:11:56
  Speaker 5: the two men to examine the prisoner's cell. They raised
• 1:12:00
  Speaker 5: every stone, ransacked the bed, did everything customary in such
• 1:12:05
  Speaker 5: a case. But they discovered nothing and were about to
• 1:12:08
  Speaker 5: abandon their investigation when the guard entered hastily and said
• 1:12:12
  Speaker 5: the drawer. Look in the table drawer. When I entered
• 1:12:16
  Speaker 5: just now he was closing it. They opened the drawer
• 1:12:20
  Speaker 5: and dearsy exclaimed, Ah, you have him this time, Follenfin
• 1:12:25
  Speaker 5: stopped him. Wait a moment. The chief will want to
• 1:12:29
  Speaker 5: make an inventory. This is a very choice, cigirl leave
• 1:12:34
  Speaker 5: it there and notify the chief. Two minutes later, Monsieur
• 1:12:38
  Speaker 5: Duduy examined the contents of the drawer. First he discovered
• 1:12:42
  Speaker 5: a bundle of newspaper clippings taken from the Argus de
• 1:12:45
  Speaker 5: la Presse. Then a tobacco box of pipes and paper
• 1:12:49
  Speaker 5: called Onion Peel, and two books. He read the titles
• 1:12:54
  Speaker 5: of the books. One was an English edition of Carlyle's
• 1:12:57
  Speaker 5: hero Worship. The other was a charming elzevir in modern binding,
• 1:13:02
  Speaker 5: the Manual of Epictetus, a German translation published at Leyden
• 1:13:06
  Speaker 5: in sixteen thirty four. On examining the books, he found
• 1:13:10
  Speaker 5: that all the pages were underlined and annotated. Were they
• 1:13:14
  Speaker 5: prepared as a code for correspondence or did they simply
• 1:13:17
  Speaker 5: express the studious character of the reader. Then he examined
• 1:13:21
  Speaker 5: the tobacco box and the pipe. Finally, he took up
• 1:13:24
  Speaker 5: the famous cigar with its gold band figtre. He exclaimed,
• 1:13:29
  Speaker 5: our friend smokes a good cigar. It's a Henry Clay.
• 1:13:34
  Speaker 5: With the mechanical action of an habitual smoker. He placed
• 1:13:37
  Speaker 5: the cigar close to his ear and squeezed it to
• 1:13:40
  Speaker 5: make it crack. Immediately, he uttered a cry of surprise.
• 1:13:43
  Speaker 5: The cigar had yielded under the pressure of his fingers.
• 1:13:47
  Speaker 5: He examined it more closely, and quickly discovered something white
• 1:13:50
  Speaker 5: between the leaves of tobacco. Delicately, with the aid of
• 1:13:54
  Speaker 5: a pin, he withdrew a roll of very thin paper,
• 1:13:58
  Speaker 5: scarcely larger than a toothpick. It was a letter. He
• 1:14:01
  Speaker 5: unrolled it and found these words written in a feminine handwriting.
• 1:14:05
  Speaker 5: The basket has taken the place of the others. Eight
• 1:14:09
  Speaker 5: out of ten are ready on pressing the outer foot.
• 1:14:12
  Speaker 5: The plate goes downward from twelve to sixteen every day,
• 1:14:16
  Speaker 5: h P will wait. But where reply at once? Rest easy?
• 1:14:22
  Speaker 5: Your friend is watching over you. Monsieur de Duy reflected
• 1:14:26
  Speaker 5: a moment, then said, it is quite clear the basket
• 1:14:30
  Speaker 5: the eight compartments from twelve to sixteen means from twelve
• 1:14:34
  Speaker 5: to four o'clock. But this h P that will wait,
• 1:14:40
  Speaker 5: h P must mean automobile. H P horse power is
• 1:14:44
  Speaker 5: the way they indicate the strength of the motor. At
• 1:14:46
  Speaker 5: twenty four h P is an automobile of twenty four
• 1:14:49
  Speaker 5: horse power. Then he rose and asked, had the prisoner
• 1:14:53
  Speaker 5: finished his breakfast? Yes, And as he has not yet
• 1:14:57
  Speaker 5: read the message, which is proved by the cande the cigar,
• 1:15:01
  Speaker 5: it is probable that he had just received it. How
• 1:15:06
  Speaker 5: in his food concealed in his bread or in a poseto,
• 1:15:10
  Speaker 5: perhaps impossible. His food was allowed to be brought in
• 1:15:15
  Speaker 5: simply to trap him, but we have never found anything
• 1:15:17
  Speaker 5: in it. We will look for Lupund's reply this evening.
• 1:15:22
  Speaker 5: Detain him outside for a few minutes. I shall take
• 1:15:25
  Speaker 5: this to the examining judge, and if he agrees with me,
• 1:15:29
  Speaker 5: we will have the letter photographed at once, and in
• 1:15:32
  Speaker 5: an hour you can replace the letter in the drawer
• 1:15:35
  Speaker 5: in a cigar similar to this. The prisoner must have
• 1:15:38
  Speaker 5: no cause for suspicion. It was not without a certain
• 1:15:42
  Speaker 5: curiosity that Monsieur de Deuy returned to the prison in
• 1:15:46
  Speaker 5: the evening, accompanied by Inspector Dearzy. Three empty plates were
• 1:15:50
  Speaker 5: sitting on the stove in the corner. He has eaten, yes,
• 1:15:54
  Speaker 5: replied the guard. Dearsy, Please cut that macaroni into very
• 1:15:59
  Speaker 5: small pieces and open that bread roll. Nothing, no, Chief,
• 1:16:06
  Speaker 5: Monsieur du Duy examined the plates, the fork, the spoon,
• 1:16:09
  Speaker 5: and the knife, an ordinary knife with a rounded blade.
• 1:16:13
  Speaker 5: He turned the handle to the left, then to the right.
• 1:16:15
  Speaker 5: It yielded and unscrewed. The knife was hollow and served
• 1:16:19
  Speaker 5: as a hiding place for a sheet of paper.
• 1:16:22
  Speaker 4: Tah.
• 1:16:22
  Speaker 5: He said, that is not very clever for a man
• 1:16:25
  Speaker 5: like our san, But we mustn't lose any time. You, Dearzi,
• 1:16:28
  Speaker 5: go and search the restaurant. Then he read the note,
• 1:16:32
  Speaker 5: I trust to you h P will follow at a
• 1:16:34
  Speaker 5: distance every day. I will go ahead au revoir, dear friend.
• 1:16:40
  Speaker 5: At last, cried Monsieur de Douy, rubbing his hands gleefully.
• 1:16:44
  Speaker 5: I think we have the affair in our own hands.
• 1:16:47
  Speaker 5: A little strategy on our part, and the escape will
• 1:16:50
  Speaker 5: be a success in so far as the arrest of
• 1:16:53
  Speaker 5: his confederates are concerned. But if I say, and Lupin
• 1:16:57
  Speaker 5: slips through your fingers, suggested the guard, we will have
• 1:17:01
  Speaker 5: a sufficient number of men to prevent that. If, however,
• 1:17:04
  Speaker 5: he displays too much cleverness, ma fois so much still
• 1:17:08
  Speaker 5: worse for him as to his band of robbers. Since
• 1:17:12
  Speaker 5: the chief refuses to speak, the others must. And as
• 1:17:18
  Speaker 5: a matter of fact, Arsain Lupin had very little to say.
• 1:17:22
  Speaker 5: For several months, Monsieur Jules Bouvier, the examining judge, had
• 1:17:27
  Speaker 5: exerted himself in vain. The investigation had been reduced to
• 1:17:31
  Speaker 5: a few uninteresting arguments between the judge and the advocate
• 1:17:34
  Speaker 5: Maitre d'arval, one of the leaders of the bar. From
• 1:17:38
  Speaker 5: time to time, through courtesy Arsain Lupin would speak. One
• 1:17:41
  Speaker 5: day he said, yes, monsieur le judge, I quite agree
• 1:17:45
  Speaker 5: with you. The robbery of the credit leone, the theft
• 1:17:49
  Speaker 5: in the Rue de Babylonne, the issue of the counterfeit
• 1:17:52
  Speaker 5: bank notes, the burglaries at the various chateau Armesnil, Courgrey Ambe, Blevard,
• 1:17:59
  Speaker 5: grouseyeu malachis all my work, monsieur, I did it all? Then?
• 1:18:04
  Speaker 5: Will you explain to me? It is useless. I confess
• 1:18:09
  Speaker 5: everything in a lump, everything and even ten times more
• 1:18:12
  Speaker 5: that you know nothing about. Wearied by his fruitless task,
• 1:18:17
  Speaker 5: the judge had suspended his examinations, but he resumed them
• 1:18:20
  Speaker 5: after the two intercepted messages were brought to his attention
• 1:18:24
  Speaker 5: and regularly at midday, Arsain Lupin was taken from the
• 1:18:28
  Speaker 5: prison to the depot in the prison van with a
• 1:18:30
  Speaker 5: certain number of other prisoners. They returned about three or
• 1:18:34
  Speaker 5: four o'clock, now one afternoon. This return trip was made
• 1:18:39
  Speaker 5: under unusual conditions, the other prisoners not having been examined,
• 1:18:44
  Speaker 5: it was decided to take back Arsain Lupin first. Thus
• 1:18:48
  Speaker 5: he found himself alone in the vehicle. These prison vans,
• 1:18:53
  Speaker 5: vulgarly called panier ar salad or salad baskets, are divided
• 1:18:58
  Speaker 5: lengthwise by a central corridor from which open ten compartments,
• 1:19:02
  Speaker 5: five on either side. Each compartment is so arranged that
• 1:19:06
  Speaker 5: the occupant must assume and retain a sitting posture, and
• 1:19:10
  Speaker 5: consequently the five prisoners are seated one upon the other,
• 1:19:14
  Speaker 5: and yet separated one from the other by partitions. A
• 1:19:18
  Speaker 5: municipal guard, standing at one end, watches over the corridor.
• 1:19:22
  Speaker 5: Arsen was placed in the third cell on the right,
• 1:19:25
  Speaker 5: and the heavy vehicle started. He carefully calculated when they
• 1:19:29
  Speaker 5: left the caidor lodge, and when they passed the Palais
• 1:19:32
  Speaker 5: de Justice. Then, about the center of the bridge, Saint Michel,
• 1:19:37
  Speaker 5: with his outer foot, that is to say, his right foot,
• 1:19:40
  Speaker 5: he pressed upon the metal plate that closed his cell. Immediately,
• 1:19:44
  Speaker 5: something clicked and the metal plate moved. He was able
• 1:19:47
  Speaker 5: to ascertain that he was located between the two wheels.
• 1:19:51
  Speaker 5: He waited, keeping a sharp lookout. The vehicle was proceeding
• 1:19:54
  Speaker 5: slowly along the boulevard. Saint Michel. At the corner of
• 1:19:57
  Speaker 5: Saint Germains, it stopped. Truck horse had fallen, the traffic
• 1:20:02
  Speaker 5: having been interrupted. A cast throng of fiacres and omnibuses
• 1:20:06
  Speaker 5: had gathered there. Arsain Lupin looked out. Another prison van
• 1:20:10
  Speaker 5: had stopped close to the one he occupied. He moved
• 1:20:14
  Speaker 5: the plate still farther, put his foot on one of
• 1:20:16
  Speaker 5: the spokes of the wheel, and leapt to the ground.
• 1:20:19
  Speaker 5: A coachman saw him, roared with laughter, then tried to
• 1:20:22
  Speaker 5: raise an outcry, but his voice was lost in the
• 1:20:24
  Speaker 5: noise of the traffic that had commenced to move again. Moreover,
• 1:20:28
  Speaker 5: Arsin Lupin was already far away. He had run for
• 1:20:33
  Speaker 5: a few steps, but once upon the sidewalk, he turned
• 1:20:36
  Speaker 5: and looked around. He seemed to sense the wind, like
• 1:20:40
  Speaker 5: a person who is uncertain which direction to take. Then,
• 1:20:43
  Speaker 5: having decided, he put his hands in his pockets, and
• 1:20:47
  Speaker 5: with the careless air of an idle strawler, he proceeded
• 1:20:51
  Speaker 5: up the boulevard. It was a warm, bright autumn day,
• 1:20:55
  Speaker 5: and the cafes were full. He took a seat on
• 1:20:58
  Speaker 5: the terrace of one of them. He ordered a box
• 1:21:01
  Speaker 5: and a package of cigarettes. He emptied his glass, slowly
• 1:21:05
  Speaker 5: smoked one cigarette and lighted a second. Then he asked
• 1:21:08
  Speaker 5: the waiter to send the proprietor to him. When the
• 1:21:11
  Speaker 5: proprietor came, Arsin spoke to him in a voice loud
• 1:21:14
  Speaker 5: enough to be heard by everyone. I regret to say, monsieur,
• 1:21:18
  Speaker 5: I have forgotten my pocket book. Perhaps on the strength
• 1:21:22
  Speaker 5: of my name, you will be pleased to give me
• 1:21:23
  Speaker 5: credit for a few days. I am Arsene Lupin. The
• 1:21:29
  Speaker 5: proprietor looked at him, thinking he was joking, but Arsin repeated, Lupin,
• 1:21:34
  Speaker 5: prisoner at the sand, but now a fugitive. I venture
• 1:21:39
  Speaker 5: to assume that the name inspires you with perfect confidence
• 1:21:42
  Speaker 5: in me. And he walked away amidst shouts of laughter,
• 1:21:46
  Speaker 5: whilst the proprietor stood amazed. Lupin strolled along the Rue
• 1:21:51
  Speaker 5: Soufflot and turned into the Rue Saint Jacques. He pursued
• 1:21:55
  Speaker 5: his way, slowly, smoking his cigarettes and looking into the
• 1:21:59
  Speaker 5: shop window at the Boulevard de port Royal. He took
• 1:22:03
  Speaker 5: his bearings, discovered where he was, and then walked in
• 1:22:07
  Speaker 5: the direction of the Rue de la Sante. The high
• 1:22:10
  Speaker 5: forbidding walls of the prison were now before him. He
• 1:22:13
  Speaker 5: pulled his hat forward to shape his face. Then, approaching
• 1:22:17
  Speaker 5: the sentinel, he asked, is this the prison de la Sante? Yes?
• 1:22:22
  Speaker 5: I wished to regain my cell. The van left me
• 1:22:25
  Speaker 5: on the way and I would not abuse. Now, young man,
• 1:22:28
  Speaker 5: move along, quick growled the sentinel. Pardon on me, but
• 1:22:33
  Speaker 5: I must pass through that gate. And if you prevent
• 1:22:36
  Speaker 5: Arsin Lupin from entering the prison, it will cost you.
• 1:22:39
  Speaker 5: Dear my friend, Arseen Lupin, What are you talking about?
• 1:22:44
  Speaker 5: I am sorry, I haven't a card with me, said Arsin,
• 1:22:48
  Speaker 5: fumbling in his pockets. The sentinel eyed him from head
• 1:22:51
  Speaker 5: to foot in astonishment. Then, without a word, he rang
• 1:22:54
  Speaker 5: a bell. The iron gate was partly opened, and Arcein
• 1:22:58
  Speaker 5: stepped inside. Almost immediately he encountered the keeper of the prison,
• 1:23:03
  Speaker 5: gesticulating and feigning a violent anger. Arceend smiled and said, come, monsieur,
• 1:23:09
  Speaker 5: don't play that game with me. What they take the
• 1:23:13
  Speaker 5: precaution to carry me alone in the van? Prepare a
• 1:23:16
  Speaker 5: nice little obstruction, and imagine I am going to take
• 1:23:19
  Speaker 5: to my heels and rejoin my friends. Well, and what
• 1:23:23
  Speaker 5: about the twenty agents of the sieurte who accompanied us
• 1:23:26
  Speaker 5: on foot in fiaecre and on bicycles. No, the arrangements
• 1:23:31
  Speaker 5: did not please me. I should not have got away alive.
• 1:23:34
  Speaker 5: Tell me, monsieur, did they count on that? He shrugged
• 1:23:37
  Speaker 5: his shoulders and added, I beg of you, monsieur, not
• 1:23:41
  Speaker 5: to worry about me when I wish to escape. I
• 1:23:44
  Speaker 5: shall not require any assistance. On the second day thereafter,
• 1:23:51
  Speaker 5: the Ecu de France, which had apparently become the official
• 1:23:54
  Speaker 5: reporter of the exploits of Arsa and Lupin it was
• 1:23:57
  Speaker 5: said that he was one of its principal shareholders, published
• 1:24:01
  Speaker 5: a most complete account of this attempted escape, the exact
• 1:24:05
  Speaker 5: wording of the messages exchanged between the prisoner and his
• 1:24:08
  Speaker 5: mysterious friend, the means by which correspondence was constructed, the
• 1:24:12
  Speaker 5: complicity of the police, the promenade on the Boulevard Saint Michel,
• 1:24:17
  Speaker 5: the incident at the Cafe Soufflou. Everything was disclosed. It
• 1:24:21
  Speaker 5: was known that the search of the restaurant and its
• 1:24:24
  Speaker 5: waiters by Inspector di'ersi had been fruitless, and the public
• 1:24:28
  Speaker 5: also learned an extraordinary thing which demonstrated the infinite variety
• 1:24:32
  Speaker 5: of resources that Lupin possessed. The prison van in which
• 1:24:37
  Speaker 5: he was being carried, was prepared for the occasion and
• 1:24:40
  Speaker 5: substituted by his accomplices for one of the six vans
• 1:24:44
  Speaker 5: which did service at the prison. The next escape of
• 1:24:47
  Speaker 5: Arsain Lupin was not doubted by anyone. He announced it
• 1:24:51
  Speaker 5: himself in categorical terms in a reply to Monsieur Bouvier
• 1:24:55
  Speaker 5: on the day following his attempted escape, the judge, having
• 1:24:58
  Speaker 5: made a jest about the U affair, Arsin was annoyed
• 1:25:02
  Speaker 5: and firmly eyeing the judge, he said emphatically, listen to me, Monsieur,
• 1:25:06
  Speaker 5: I give you my word of honor that this attempted
• 1:25:09
  Speaker 5: flight was simply preliminary to my general plan of escape.
• 1:25:14
  Speaker 5: I do not understand, said the judge. It is not
• 1:25:18
  Speaker 5: necessary that you should understand. And when the judge, in
• 1:25:22
  Speaker 5: the course of that examination, which was reported at length
• 1:25:25
  Speaker 5: in the columns of the Echo de France, when the
• 1:25:28
  Speaker 5: judge sought to resume his investigation, Arsain Lupin exclaimed, with
• 1:25:32
  Speaker 5: an assumed air of lassitude. Mon dieu, mon dieu, what's
• 1:25:37
  Speaker 5: the use all these questions are of no importance? What
• 1:25:43
  Speaker 5: no importance? Cried the judge. No, because I shall not
• 1:25:47
  Speaker 5: be present at the trial. You will not be present. No,
• 1:25:52
  Speaker 5: I have fully decided on that, and nothing will change
• 1:25:56
  Speaker 5: my mind. Such assurance, combined with the inexplicable indiscretions that
• 1:26:02
  Speaker 5: Arsain committed every day, served to annoy and mystify the
• 1:26:06
  Speaker 5: officers of the law. There were secrets known only to
• 1:26:09
  Speaker 5: Arsin Lupin, secrets that he alone could divulge. But for
• 1:26:14
  Speaker 5: what purpose did he reveal them? And how Arsin Lupin
• 1:26:19
  Speaker 5: was changed to another cell? The judge closed his preliminary investigations.
• 1:26:24
  Speaker 5: No further proceedings were taken in his case for a
• 1:26:27
  Speaker 5: period of two months, during which time Arsin was seen
• 1:26:31
  Speaker 5: almost constantly lying on his bed with his face turned
• 1:26:34
  Speaker 5: toward the wall. The changing of his cell seemed to
• 1:26:38
  Speaker 5: discourage him. He refused to see his advocate. He exchanged
• 1:26:43
  Speaker 5: only a few necessary words with his keepers. During the
• 1:26:47
  Speaker 5: fortnight preceding his trial, he resumed his vigorous life. He
• 1:26:51
  Speaker 5: complained of want of air. Consequently, early every morning he
• 1:26:55
  Speaker 5: was allowed to exercise in the courtyard guarded by two men.
• 1:27:00
  Speaker 5: Public curiosity had not dined out every day, it was
• 1:27:04
  Speaker 5: expected to be regaled with news of his escape. And
• 1:27:08
  Speaker 5: it is true he had gained a considerable amount of
• 1:27:11
  Speaker 5: sympathy by reason of his verve, his gaiety, his diversity,
• 1:27:15
  Speaker 5: his inventive genius, and the mystery of his life. Arsennes
• 1:27:20
  Speaker 5: Lupinin must escape. It was his inevitable fate. The public
• 1:27:26
  Speaker 5: expected it and was surprised that the event had been
• 1:27:29
  Speaker 5: delayed so long. Every morning the Prefect of police asked
• 1:27:34
  Speaker 5: his secretary, well, has he escaped yet, no, monsieur le
• 1:27:38
  Speaker 5: Prefect tomorrow probably. And on the day before the trial,
• 1:27:44
  Speaker 5: a gentleman called at the office of the Grand Journals
• 1:27:47
  Speaker 5: asked to see the court reporter, threw his card in
• 1:27:50
  Speaker 5: the reporter's face and walked rapidly away. These words were
• 1:27:54
  Speaker 5: written on the card, Arsene Lupin always keeps his promises.
• 1:28:02
  Speaker 5: It was under these conditions that the trial commenced. An
• 1:28:05
  Speaker 5: enormous crowd gathered at the court. Everybody wished to see
• 1:28:09
  Speaker 5: the famous Arsain Lupin. They had a gleeful anticipation that
• 1:28:13
  Speaker 5: the prisoner would play some audacious pranks upon the judge.
• 1:28:17
  Speaker 5: Advocates and magistrates, reporters and men of the world. Actresses
• 1:28:21
  Speaker 5: and society women were crowded together on the benches provided
• 1:28:25
  Speaker 5: for the public. It was a dark, somber day with
• 1:28:29
  Speaker 5: a steady downpour of rain. Only a dim light pervaded
• 1:28:33
  Speaker 5: the court room, and the spectators caught a very indistinct
• 1:28:37
  Speaker 5: view of the prisoner when the guards brought him in.
• 1:28:40
  Speaker 5: But his heavy shambling walk, the manner in which he
• 1:28:43
  Speaker 5: dropped into his seat, and his passive, stupid appearance were
• 1:28:46
  Speaker 5: not at all prepossessing. Several times his advocate, one of
• 1:28:51
  Speaker 5: Monsieur Danval's assistants, spoke to him, but he simply shook
• 1:28:54
  Speaker 5: his head and said nothing. The clerk read the indictment.
• 1:28:58
  Speaker 5: Then the judge spoke, prisoner at the bar, stand up
• 1:29:03
  Speaker 5: your name, age and occupation. Not receiving any reply, the
• 1:29:07
  Speaker 5: judge repeated your name. I ask you your name. A thick,
• 1:29:12
  Speaker 5: slow voice muttered bou drou desir. A murmur of surprise
• 1:29:18
  Speaker 5: pervaded the court room, but the judge proceeded, bo drou
• 1:29:22
  Speaker 5: dezir ah a new alias. Well, as you have already
• 1:29:27
  Speaker 5: assumed a dozen different names, and this one is no
• 1:29:31
  Speaker 5: doubt as imaginary as the others. We will adhere to
• 1:29:34
  Speaker 5: the name of Arsain Lupin, by which you are more
• 1:29:38
  Speaker 5: generally known. The judge referred to his notes and continued
• 1:29:43
  Speaker 5: for Despite the most diligent search, your past history remains unknown.
• 1:29:49
  Speaker 5: Your case is unique in the annals of crime. We
• 1:29:52
  Speaker 5: know not whom you are, whence you came, your birth
• 1:29:55
  Speaker 5: and breeding all is a mystery to us. Three years
• 1:29:59
  Speaker 5: ago you appeared in our midst as Arsene Lupin, presenting
• 1:30:03
  Speaker 5: to us a strange combination of intelligence and perversion, immorality
• 1:30:08
  Speaker 5: and generosity. Our knowledge of your life prior to that
• 1:30:11
  Speaker 5: date is vague and problematical. It may be that the
• 1:30:15
  Speaker 5: man called Rosta, who eight years ago worked with Dixon
• 1:30:19
  Speaker 5: depressed a digitatour was none other than Arsen Lupin. It
• 1:30:25
  Speaker 5: is probable that the Russian student who six years ago
• 1:30:28
  Speaker 5: attended the laboratory of doctor Altier at the Saint Louis Hospital,
• 1:30:33
  Speaker 5: and who often astonished the doctor by his ingenuity of
• 1:30:36
  Speaker 5: his hypotheses on the subject of bacteriology and the boldness
• 1:30:40
  Speaker 5: of his experiments in diseases of the skin, was none
• 1:30:43
  Speaker 5: other than Arsen Lupin. It is probable also that Arsen
• 1:30:49
  Speaker 5: Lupin was the professor who introduced the Japanese art of
• 1:30:53
  Speaker 5: jiu jitsu to the Parisian public. We have some reason
• 1:30:57
  Speaker 5: to believe that Arsen Lupin was the bicyclelist who won
• 1:31:01
  Speaker 5: the Grand Prix de lex Position, received his ten thousand francs,
• 1:31:05
  Speaker 5: and was never heard of again. Arsin Lupin may have
• 1:31:10
  Speaker 5: been also the person who saved so many lives through
• 1:31:14
  Speaker 5: the little dormer window at the charity bazaar and at
• 1:31:17
  Speaker 5: the same time picked their pockets. The judge paused for
• 1:31:21
  Speaker 5: a moment, then continued, such is that epoch which seems
• 1:31:25
  Speaker 5: to have been utilized by you in a thorough preparation
• 1:31:28
  Speaker 5: for the warfare you have since waged against society, a
• 1:31:32
  Speaker 5: methodical apprenticeship in which you developed your strength, energy and
• 1:31:36
  Speaker 5: skill to the highest point possible. Do you acknowledge the
• 1:31:39
  Speaker 5: accuracy of these facts? During this discourse, the prisoner had
• 1:31:43
  Speaker 5: stood balancing himself first on one foot, then on the other,
• 1:31:48
  Speaker 5: with shoulders stooped and arms inert. Under the strongest light,
• 1:31:53
  Speaker 5: one could observe his extreme thinness, his hollow cheeks, his
• 1:31:57
  Speaker 5: projecting cheek bones, his earthen color face dotted with small
• 1:32:01
  Speaker 5: red spots, and framed in a rough, straggling beard. Prison
• 1:32:06
  Speaker 5: life had caused him to age and wither. He had
• 1:32:09
  Speaker 5: lost the youthful face and elegant figure we had seen
• 1:32:12
  Speaker 5: portrayed so often in the newspapers. It appeared as if
• 1:32:16
  Speaker 5: he had not heard the question propounded by the judge.
• 1:32:19
  Speaker 5: Twice it was repeated to him. Then he raised his
• 1:32:22
  Speaker 5: eyes seemed to reflect. Then, making a desperate effort, he murmured,
• 1:32:27
  Speaker 5: Boudroux desire. The judge smiled as he said, I do
• 1:32:32
  Speaker 5: not understand the theory of your defense, Arsin Lupin. If
• 1:32:36
  Speaker 5: you are seeking to avoid responsibility for your crimes on
• 1:32:38
  Speaker 5: the ground of imbecility, such a line of defense is
• 1:32:41
  Speaker 5: open to you. But I shall proceed with the trial
• 1:32:45
  Speaker 5: and pay no heed to your vagaries. He then narrated
• 1:32:50
  Speaker 5: at length the various thefts, swindles, and forgeries charged against Lupin.
• 1:32:55
  Speaker 5: Sometimes he questioned the prisoner, but the latter simply grunted
• 1:32:58
  Speaker 5: or remained silent. The examination of witnesses commenced. Some of
• 1:33:03
  Speaker 5: the evidence given was immaterial, other portions of it seemed
• 1:33:06
  Speaker 5: more important. But through all of it there ran a
• 1:33:09
  Speaker 5: vein of contradictions and inconsistencies. A wearisome obscurity enveloped the
• 1:33:15
  Speaker 5: proceedings until Detective Ganimar was called as a witness. Then
• 1:33:20
  Speaker 5: interest was revived. From the beginning, the actions of the
• 1:33:24
  Speaker 5: veteran detective appeared strange and unaccountable. He was nervous and
• 1:33:28
  Speaker 5: ill at ease. Several times he looked at the prisoner
• 1:33:31
  Speaker 5: with obvious doubt and anxiety. Then, with his hands resting
• 1:33:35
  Speaker 5: on the rail in front of him, he recounted the
• 1:33:37
  Speaker 5: events in which he had participated, including his pursuit of
• 1:33:40
  Speaker 5: the prisoner across Europe and his arrival in America. He
• 1:33:44
  Speaker 5: was listened to with greater vidity, as his capture of
• 1:33:47
  Speaker 5: Arsen Lupin was well known to every one through the
• 1:33:49
  Speaker 5: medium of the press. Toward the close of his testimony,
• 1:33:53
  Speaker 5: after referring to his conversations with Arsene Lupin, he stopped twice,
• 1:33:58
  Speaker 5: embarrassed and undecided. It was apparent that he was possessed
• 1:34:02
  Speaker 5: of some thought which he feared to utter. The judge
• 1:34:04
  Speaker 5: said to him sympathetically, if you are ill, you may
• 1:34:08
  Speaker 5: retire for the present. No. No, But he stopped, looked
• 1:34:13
  Speaker 5: sharply at the prisoner, and said, I ask permission to
• 1:34:17
  Speaker 5: scrutinize the prisoner at closer range. There is some mystery
• 1:34:22
  Speaker 5: about him that I must solve. He approached the accused
• 1:34:25
  Speaker 5: man examined him attentively for several minutes, then returned to
• 1:34:30
  Speaker 5: the witness stand, and, in an almost solemn voice, he said,
• 1:34:34
  Speaker 5: I declare on the oath that the prisoner now before
• 1:34:39
  Speaker 5: me is not Ar Sain Lupin. A profound silence followed
• 1:34:45
  Speaker 5: the statement. The judge, nonplussed for a moment, exclaimed, Ah,
• 1:34:50
  Speaker 5: what do you mean that is absurd? The detective continued,
• 1:34:54
  Speaker 5: At first sight, there is a certain resemblance, but if
• 1:34:58
  Speaker 5: you carefully consider the nose, the mouth, the hair, the
• 1:35:02
  Speaker 5: color of skin, you will see that it is not
• 1:35:05
  Speaker 5: Ar sain Lupin. And the eyes. Did he ever have
• 1:35:08
  Speaker 5: those alcoholic eyes?
• 1:35:11
  Speaker 4: Come?
• 1:35:11
  Speaker 5: Come, witness, What do you mean? Do you pretend to
• 1:35:14
  Speaker 5: say that we are trying the wrong man? In my opinion, yes,
• 1:35:19
  Speaker 5: Arsain Lupin has in some manner contrived to put this
• 1:35:24
  Speaker 5: poor devil in his place, unless this man is a
• 1:35:26
  Speaker 5: willing accomplice. This dramatic denouement caused much laughter and excitement
• 1:35:32
  Speaker 5: amongst the spectators. The judge adjourned the trial and sent
• 1:35:36
  Speaker 5: for Monsieur Bouvier, the jailer and guards employed in the prison.
• 1:35:40
  Speaker 5: When the trial was resumed, Monsieur Bouvier and the jailer
• 1:35:43
  Speaker 5: examined the accused and declared that there was only a
• 1:35:47
  Speaker 5: very slight resemblance between the prisoner and our Sain Lupin. Well,
• 1:35:50
  Speaker 5: then exclaimed the judge, who is this man? Where does
• 1:35:54
  Speaker 5: he come from? What is he in prison?
• 1:35:57
  Speaker 3: For?
• 1:35:58
  Speaker 5: Two of the prison guards were called, and both of
• 1:36:00
  Speaker 5: them declared that the prisoner was Ar Saint Lupin. The
• 1:36:04
  Speaker 5: judge breathed once more, but one of the guards then said, yes, yes,
• 1:36:09
  Speaker 5: I think it is he. What cried the judge impatiently,
• 1:36:13
  Speaker 5: You think it is he? What do you mean by that?
• 1:36:18
  Speaker 6: Well?
• 1:36:18
  Speaker 5: I saw very little of the prisoner. He was placed
• 1:36:21
  Speaker 5: in my charge in the evening, and for two months
• 1:36:24
  Speaker 5: he seldom stirred, but laid on his bed with his
• 1:36:27
  Speaker 5: face to the wall.
• 1:36:28
  Speaker 4: What about the.
• 1:36:29
  Speaker 5: Time prior to those two months? Before that he occupied
• 1:36:33
  Speaker 5: a cell in another part of the prison. He was
• 1:36:35
  Speaker 5: not in cell twenty four. Here, the head jailer interrupted
• 1:36:39
  Speaker 5: and said, we changed him to another cell after his
• 1:36:42
  Speaker 5: attempt to escape. But you, monsieur, you have seen him
• 1:36:46
  Speaker 5: during those two months. I had no occasion to see him.
• 1:36:50
  Speaker 5: He was always quiet and orderly, And this prisoner is
• 1:36:54
  Speaker 5: not Ar Sain Lupin. No, then, who is he demanded
• 1:36:59
  Speaker 5: the judge. I do not know. Then, we have before
• 1:37:03
  Speaker 5: us a man who was substituted for ar Sain Lupin
• 1:37:07
  Speaker 5: two months ago.
• 1:37:08
  Speaker 3: How do you.
• 1:37:08
  Speaker 5: Explain that I cannot? In absolute despair, the judge turned
• 1:37:14
  Speaker 5: to the accused and addressed him in a conciliatory tone. Prisoner,
• 1:37:19
  Speaker 5: can you tell me how and since when you became
• 1:37:23
  Speaker 5: an inmate of the prison de la Santes. The engaging
• 1:37:28
  Speaker 5: manner of the judge was calculated to disarm the mistrust
• 1:37:32
  Speaker 5: and awaken the understanding of the accused man. He tried
• 1:37:35
  Speaker 5: to reply. Finally, under clever and gentle questioning, he succeeded
• 1:37:41
  Speaker 5: in framing a few phrases from which the following story
• 1:37:44
  Speaker 5: was gleaned. Two months ago, he had been taken to
• 1:37:47
  Speaker 5: the depot, examined, and released. As he was leaving the
• 1:37:50
  Speaker 5: building a free man, he was seized by two guards
• 1:37:53
  Speaker 5: and placed in the prison van. Since then he had
• 1:37:57
  Speaker 5: occupied cell twenty four. He was contented plenty to eat,
• 1:38:01
  Speaker 5: and he slept well, so he did not complain all
• 1:38:05
  Speaker 5: that seemed probable, and amidst the mirth and excitement of
• 1:38:09
  Speaker 5: the spectators, the judge adjourned the trial until the story
• 1:38:13
  Speaker 5: could be investigated and verified. The following facts were at
• 1:38:18
  Speaker 5: once established by an examination of the prison records. Eight
• 1:38:22
  Speaker 5: weeks before, a man named Boudru Desire had slept at
• 1:38:27
  Speaker 5: the depot. He was released the next day and left
• 1:38:31
  Speaker 5: the depot at two o'clock in the afternoon. On the
• 1:38:34
  Speaker 5: same day, at two o'clock, having been examined for the
• 1:38:38
  Speaker 5: last time, Arsain Lupin left the depot in a prison van.
• 1:38:43
  Speaker 5: Had the guards made a mistake? Had they been deceived
• 1:38:46
  Speaker 5: by the resemblance and carelessly substituted this man for their prisoner?
• 1:38:51
  Speaker 5: Another question suggested itself. Had the substitution been arranged in advance.
• 1:38:57
  Speaker 5: In that event, Bodru must have been an accomplish and
• 1:39:00
  Speaker 5: must have coursed his own arrest for the express purpose
• 1:39:03
  Speaker 5: of taking Lupin's place. But then, by what miracle had
• 1:39:07
  Speaker 5: such a plan, based on a series of improbable chances
• 1:39:11
  Speaker 5: been carried to success. Baud Rue Desire was turned over
• 1:39:15
  Speaker 5: to the Anthropological Service. They had never seen anything like him, However,
• 1:39:21
  Speaker 5: they easily traced his past history. He was known at Courbeuvois,
• 1:39:25
  Speaker 5: at Asnier, and at Le Valois. He lived on alms
• 1:39:30
  Speaker 5: and slept in one of those ragpicker's huts near the
• 1:39:32
  Speaker 5: Barrier de Ternes. He had disappeared from there a year ago.
• 1:39:37
  Speaker 5: Had he been enticed away by Arsin Lupin, there was
• 1:39:40
  Speaker 5: no evidence to that effect, and even if that was so,
• 1:39:43
  Speaker 5: it did not explain the flight of the prisoner. That
• 1:39:47
  Speaker 5: still remained a mystery. Amongst twenty theories which sought to
• 1:39:51
  Speaker 5: explain it, not one was satisfactory. Of the escape itself.
• 1:39:55
  Speaker 5: There was, no doubt an escape that was incomprehensible, since
• 1:40:01
  Speaker 5: in which the public as well as the officers of
• 1:40:02
  Speaker 5: the law could detect, a carefully prepared plan, a combination
• 1:40:06
  Speaker 5: of circumstances marvelously dovetailed, whereof the denouement fully justified the
• 1:40:11
  Speaker 5: confident prediction of Arsain Lupin I shall not be present
• 1:40:15
  Speaker 5: at my trial. After a month of patient investigation, the
• 1:40:20
  Speaker 5: problem remained unsolved. The poor devil of a Bodreux could
• 1:40:25
  Speaker 5: not be kept in prison indefinitely, and to place him
• 1:40:28
  Speaker 5: on trial would be ridiculous. There was no charge against him. Consequently,
• 1:40:33
  Speaker 5: he was released, but the chief of the Sieurte resolved
• 1:40:36
  Speaker 5: to keep him under surveillance. This idea originated with Ganimar.
• 1:40:41
  Speaker 5: From his point of view, there was neither complicity nor chance.
• 1:40:45
  Speaker 5: Boudru was an instrument upon which Arsain Lupin had played
• 1:40:49
  Speaker 5: with his extraordinary skill. Bodru, when set at liberty, would
• 1:40:54
  Speaker 5: lead them to Arsaenn Lupin, or at least to some
• 1:40:57
  Speaker 5: of his accomplices. The two inspectors followed, Pain and Dierzy
• 1:41:01
  Speaker 5: were assigned to assist Gannimar. One foggy morning in January,
• 1:41:06
  Speaker 5: the prison gates opened and Boodou Desir stepped forth a
• 1:41:09
  Speaker 5: free man. At first, he appeared to be quite embarrassed
• 1:41:14
  Speaker 5: and walked like a person who has no precise idea
• 1:41:16
  Speaker 5: whither he is going. He followed the Rue de la
• 1:41:19
  Speaker 5: Sante and the Rue Saint Jacques. He stopped in front
• 1:41:23
  Speaker 5: of an old clothes shop, removed his jacket and his vest,
• 1:41:27
  Speaker 5: sold his vest on which he realized a few sous.
• 1:41:30
  Speaker 5: Then replacing his jacket, he proceeded on his way. He
• 1:41:34
  Speaker 5: crossed the Seine at the Chateauas an omnibus passed him,
• 1:41:38
  Speaker 5: he wished to enter it, but there was no place.
• 1:41:41
  Speaker 5: The controller advised him to secure a number, so he
• 1:41:45
  Speaker 5: entered the waiting room. Gannimar called to his two assistants,
• 1:41:49
  Speaker 5: and without removing his eyes from the waiting room, he
• 1:41:51
  Speaker 5: said to them, stop a carriage, no two, That will
• 1:41:55
  Speaker 5: be better. I will go with one of you and
• 1:41:57
  Speaker 5: we will follow him. The men obeyed, yet Baudreux did
• 1:42:01
  Speaker 5: not appear. Ganimar entered the waiting room. It was empty.
• 1:42:05
  Speaker 5: Idiot that I am, he muttered, I forgot there was
• 1:42:08
  Speaker 5: another exit. There was an interior corridor extending from the
• 1:42:11
  Speaker 5: waiting room to the Rue Saint Martin. Ganimar rushed through
• 1:42:15
  Speaker 5: it and arrived just in time to observe Boudreux upon
• 1:42:18
  Speaker 5: the top of the Batignal Jadin de platte Omnibus as
• 1:42:21
  Speaker 5: it was turning the corner of the Rue de Rivolis.
• 1:42:24
  Speaker 5: He ran and caught the Omnibus, but he had lost
• 1:42:27
  Speaker 5: his two assistants. He must continue the pursuit alone. In
• 1:42:30
  Speaker 5: his anger, he was inclined to seize the man by
• 1:42:32
  Speaker 5: the collar without ceremony. Was it not with premeditation and
• 1:42:36
  Speaker 5: by means of an ingenious ruse, that his pretended imbecile
• 1:42:39
  Speaker 5: had separated him from his assistance. He looked at Bodroux.
• 1:42:43
  Speaker 5: The latter was asleep on the bench, his head rolling
• 1:42:46
  Speaker 5: from side to side, his mouth half opened and an
• 1:42:50
  Speaker 5: incredible expression of stupidity on his blotched face. No such
• 1:42:54
  Speaker 5: an adversary was incapable of deceiving Old ganimar It was
• 1:42:58
  Speaker 5: a stroke of luck, nothing more. At the Gallery Lafayette,
• 1:43:03
  Speaker 5: the man leaped from the omnibus and took the Lambouette tramway,
• 1:43:07
  Speaker 5: following the Boulevard OUs Man and the Avenue Victor Lugu.
• 1:43:12
  Speaker 5: Boudru alighted at Lamouette station, and with anauchanp air, strolled
• 1:43:17
  Speaker 5: into the Buis de Boulogne. He wandered through one path
• 1:43:21
  Speaker 5: after another, and sometimes retraced his steps. What was his seeking?
• 1:43:26
  Speaker 5: Had he any definite object? At the end of an hour,
• 1:43:30
  Speaker 5: he appeared to be faint from fatigue, and noticing a bench,
• 1:43:33
  Speaker 5: he sat down. The spot, not far from Eautey, on
• 1:43:37
  Speaker 5: the edge of a pond hidden amongst the trees, was
• 1:43:40
  Speaker 5: absolutely deserted. After the lapse of another half hour, Ganimard
• 1:43:45
  Speaker 5: became impatient and resolved to speak to the man. He
• 1:43:49
  Speaker 5: approached and took a seat beside. Boudreu lighted a cigarette,
• 1:43:53
  Speaker 5: traced some figures in the sand with the end of
• 1:43:55
  Speaker 5: his cane, and said it's a pleasant day, no response,
• 1:43:59
  Speaker 5: But suddenly the man burst into laughter, a happy, mirthful laugh,
• 1:44:04
  Speaker 5: spontaneous and irresistible. Ganimar felt his hair stand on end
• 1:44:09
  Speaker 5: in horror and surprise. It was that laugh, that infernal
• 1:44:13
  Speaker 5: laugh he knew so well. With a sudden movement, he
• 1:44:16
  Speaker 5: seized the man by the collar and looked at him
• 1:44:18
  Speaker 5: with a keen, penetrating gaze, and found that he no
• 1:44:22
  Speaker 5: longer saw the man Bodrou. To be sure, he saw Bodru,
• 1:44:26
  Speaker 5: but at the same time he saw the other, the
• 1:44:28
  Speaker 5: real man, Lupin. He discovered the intense life in the eyes,
• 1:44:33
  Speaker 5: he filled up the shrunken features. He perceived the real
• 1:44:36
  Speaker 5: flesh beneath the flabby skin, the real mouth through the
• 1:44:39
  Speaker 5: grimaces that he formed it. Those were the eyes and
• 1:44:43
  Speaker 5: mouth of the other, And especially his keen, alert, mocking expression,
• 1:44:48
  Speaker 5: so clear and youthful, ah Sen Lupin, Arsen Lupin. He stammered. Then,
• 1:44:55
  Speaker 5: in a sudden fit of rage, he seized Lupin by
• 1:44:58
  Speaker 5: the throat and tried to hold him down. In spite
• 1:45:01
  Speaker 5: of his fifty years, he still possessed unusual strength, whilst
• 1:45:04
  Speaker 5: his adversary was apparently in a weak condition. But the
• 1:45:07
  Speaker 5: struggle was a brief one. Arsin Lupin made only a
• 1:45:11
  Speaker 5: slight movement, and as suddenly as he had made the attack,
• 1:45:15
  Speaker 5: Ganimar released his hold. His right arm fell inert useless.
• 1:45:21
  Speaker 5: If you had taken lessons in jiu jitsu at the
• 1:45:24
  Speaker 5: Kai des Orfevre said, Lupa, you would know that that
• 1:45:29
  Speaker 5: blow is called udishigi in Japanese. A second more and
• 1:45:34
  Speaker 5: I would have broken your arm, and that would have
• 1:45:36
  Speaker 5: been just what you deserve. I am surprised that you,
• 1:45:41
  Speaker 5: an old friend whom I respect and before whom I
• 1:45:44
  Speaker 5: voluntarily exposed my incognito, should abuse my confidence in that
• 1:45:49
  Speaker 5: violent manner. It is unworthy.
• 1:45:52
  Speaker 2: Ah, what's the matter?
• 1:45:54
  Speaker 5: Ganimar did not reply that escape for which he deemed
• 1:45:58
  Speaker 5: himself responsible. Was it not he Ganimar, who, by his
• 1:46:03
  Speaker 5: sensational evidence, had led the court into serious error? That
• 1:46:07
  Speaker 5: escape appeared to him like a dark cloud on his
• 1:46:10
  Speaker 5: professional career. A tear rolled down his cheek to his
• 1:46:14
  Speaker 5: gray mustache. Oh, mon dieu, Ganimar, don't take it to heart.
• 1:46:20
  Speaker 5: If you had not spoken, I would have arranged for
• 1:46:23
  Speaker 5: some one else to do it. I couldn't allow poor
• 1:46:26
  Speaker 5: bod de rue Desir to be convicted. The murmured Ganimar.
• 1:46:32
  Speaker 5: It was you that was there, and now you are here.
• 1:46:36
  Speaker 5: It is I always, I only I. Can it be possible? Oh,
• 1:46:43
  Speaker 5: it is not the work of a sorcerer. Simply, as
• 1:46:46
  Speaker 5: the judge remarked at the trial, the apprenticeship of a
• 1:46:50
  Speaker 5: dozen years that equipts a man to cope successfully with
• 1:46:54
  Speaker 5: all the obstacles in life. But your face, your eyes.
• 1:46:59
  Speaker 5: You can understand that if I worked eighteen months with
• 1:47:02
  Speaker 5: doctor Altier at the Saint Louis hospital, it was not
• 1:47:06
  Speaker 5: out of love for the work. I considered that he
• 1:47:09
  Speaker 5: who would one day had the honor of calling himself
• 1:47:12
  Speaker 5: Arsen Lupin ought to be exempt from the ordinary laws
• 1:47:16
  Speaker 5: governing appearance and identity. Appearance that can be modified at will.
• 1:47:22
  Speaker 5: For instance, a hypodermic injection of paraffine will puff up
• 1:47:26
  Speaker 5: the skin at the desired spot. Pyrogalic acid will change
• 1:47:29
  Speaker 5: your skin to that of an Indian. The juice of
• 1:47:32
  Speaker 5: the greater Celandine will adorn you with the most beautiful
• 1:47:35
  Speaker 5: eruptions and tumors. Another chemical affects the growth of your
• 1:47:39
  Speaker 5: beard and hair. Another changes the tone of your voice.
• 1:47:43
  Speaker 5: Add to that, two months of dieting in cell twenty four.
• 1:47:47
  Speaker 5: Exercise is repeated a thousand times to enable me to
• 1:47:51
  Speaker 5: hold my features in a certain grimace, to carry my
• 1:47:54
  Speaker 5: head at a certain inclination, and adapt my back and
• 1:47:57
  Speaker 5: shoulders to a stooping posture. Then five drops of atropine
• 1:48:01
  Speaker 5: in the eyes to make them haggard and wild, and
• 1:48:04
  Speaker 5: the trick is done. I do not understand how you
• 1:48:07
  Speaker 5: deceived the guards. The change was progressive. The evolution was
• 1:48:12
  Speaker 5: so gradual that they failed to notice it. But Boudreux,
• 1:48:16
  Speaker 5: desir Bodreux exists. He is a poor, harmless fellow whom
• 1:48:22
  Speaker 5: I met last year, and really he bears a certain
• 1:48:25
  Speaker 5: resemblance to me. Considering my arrest as a possible event,
• 1:48:29
  Speaker 5: I took charge of Boudreux and studied the points wherein
• 1:48:33
  Speaker 5: we differed in appearance, with a view to correct them
• 1:48:35
  Speaker 5: in my own person. My friends caused him to remain
• 1:48:39
  Speaker 5: at the depot over night and to leave there next
• 1:48:42
  Speaker 5: day about the same hour as I did, a coincidence
• 1:48:46
  Speaker 5: easily arranged. Of course, it was necessary to have a
• 1:48:49
  Speaker 5: record of his detention at the depot in order to
• 1:48:52
  Speaker 5: establish the fact that such a person was a reality.
• 1:48:55
  Speaker 5: Otherwise the police would have sought elsewhere to find out
• 1:48:58
  Speaker 5: my identity. But in offering to them this excellent boatou,
• 1:49:04
  Speaker 5: it was inevitable, you understand, inevitable that they would seize
• 1:49:07
  Speaker 5: upon him. And despite the insurmountable difficulties of a substitution,
• 1:49:12
  Speaker 5: they would prefer to believe in a substitution. Then confess
• 1:49:16
  Speaker 5: their ignorance. Yes, yes, of course, said Gannimar, and then
• 1:49:23
  Speaker 5: exclaimed Arsen Lupin, I held in my hands a trump card,
• 1:49:27
  Speaker 5: an anxious public watching and waiting for my escape. And
• 1:49:32
  Speaker 5: that is the fatal error into which you fell, you
• 1:49:35
  Speaker 5: and the others in the course of that fascinating game
• 1:49:39
  Speaker 5: pending between me and the officers of the law, wherein
• 1:49:42
  Speaker 5: the stake was my liberty. And you supposed that I
• 1:49:47
  Speaker 5: was playing to the gallery, that I was intoxicated with
• 1:49:50
  Speaker 5: my success. I ar send Lupin guilty of such weakness.
• 1:49:56
  Speaker 5: Oh no, and no longer ago than the ka or
• 1:50:00
  Speaker 5: affair you said. When Arsain Lupin cries from the housetops
• 1:50:04
  Speaker 5: that he will escape, he has some object in view.
• 1:50:09
  Speaker 5: But si pristi, you must understand that in order to escape,
• 1:50:13
  Speaker 5: I must create in advance a public belief in that escape,
• 1:50:18
  Speaker 5: a belief amounting to an article of faith, an absolute conviction,
• 1:50:22
  Speaker 5: a reality as glittering as the sun. And I did
• 1:50:26
  Speaker 5: create that belief that ar sain Lupin would escape, that
• 1:50:30
  Speaker 5: Arsen Lupin would not be present at his trial. And
• 1:50:34
  Speaker 5: when you gave your evidence and said that man is
• 1:50:37
  Speaker 5: not Arsen Lupin, everybody was prepared to believe you. Had
• 1:50:43
  Speaker 5: one person doubted it, had any one uttered this simple restriction,
• 1:50:48
  Speaker 5: suppose it is Arsen Lupin. From that moment, I was lost.
• 1:50:53
  Speaker 5: If any one had scrutinized my face, not imbued with
• 1:50:56
  Speaker 5: the idea that I was not Arsen Lupin, as you
• 1:51:00
  Speaker 5: and the others did at my trial, but with the
• 1:51:03
  Speaker 5: idea that I might be Ar sain Lupin, then despite
• 1:51:07
  Speaker 5: all my precautions, I should have been recognized. But I
• 1:51:11
  Speaker 5: had no fear. Logically, psychologically, no one could entertain the
• 1:51:16
  Speaker 5: idea that I was Ar sain Lupin. He grasped Ganimar's hand. Come, Ganimar,
• 1:51:23
  Speaker 5: confess that on the Wednesday, after our conversation in the
• 1:51:27
  Speaker 5: prison de la Sante, you expected me at your house
• 1:51:31
  Speaker 5: at four o'clock, exactly as I said I would go,
• 1:51:36
  Speaker 5: and your prison Van said Ganimar, evading the question a bluff.
• 1:51:41
  Speaker 5: Some of my friends secured that old unused van and
• 1:51:44
  Speaker 5: wished to make the attempt, but I considered it impractical
• 1:51:48
  Speaker 5: without the concurrence of a number of unusual circumstances. However,
• 1:51:53
  Speaker 5: I found it useful to carry out that attempted escape
• 1:51:56
  Speaker 5: and give it to the widest publicity. And audaciously planned escape,
• 1:52:00
  Speaker 5: though not completed, gave to the succeeding one the character
• 1:52:04
  Speaker 5: of reality simply by anticipation, so that the cigar hollowed
• 1:52:11
  Speaker 5: by myself, as well as the knife and the letters
• 1:52:15
  Speaker 5: written by me and the mysterious correspondent did not exist.
• 1:52:20
  Speaker 5: Ganimar reflected a moment, then said, when the Anthropological Service
• 1:52:26
  Speaker 5: had Bodrou's case under consideration, why did they not perceive
• 1:52:30
  Speaker 5: that his measurements coincided with those of Ar Saint Lupin.
• 1:52:34
  Speaker 5: My measurements are not in existence. Indeed, at least they
• 1:52:40
  Speaker 5: are false. I have given considerable attention to that question.
• 1:52:43
  Speaker 5: In the first place, the Bertion system records the visible
• 1:52:47
  Speaker 5: marks of identification, and you have seen that they are
• 1:52:50
  Speaker 5: not infallible. And after that, the measurements of the head,
• 1:52:54
  Speaker 5: the fingers, the ears, et cetera of course, such measurements
• 1:52:58
  Speaker 5: are more or less infallible. Absolutely no, but it costs
• 1:53:04
  Speaker 5: money to get around them. Before we left America, one
• 1:53:08
  Speaker 5: of the employees of the service there accepted so much
• 1:53:12
  Speaker 5: money to insert false figures in my measurements. Consequently, Baudreou's
• 1:53:17
  Speaker 5: measurements should not agree with those of Arsain Lupin. After
• 1:53:22
  Speaker 5: a short silence, Ganimar asked, what are you going to
• 1:53:26
  Speaker 5: do now now, replied Lupa, I am going to take
• 1:53:31
  Speaker 5: a rest, enjoy the best of food and drink, and
• 1:53:34
  Speaker 5: gradually recover my former healthy condition. It is all very
• 1:53:39
  Speaker 5: well to become Boudru or some other person on occasion,
• 1:53:42
  Speaker 5: and to change your personality as you do your shirt,
• 1:53:45
  Speaker 5: but you soon grow weary of the change. I feel
• 1:53:49
  Speaker 5: exactly as I imagine the man who lost his shadow
• 1:53:52
  Speaker 5: must have felt, and I shall be glad to be
• 1:53:54
  Speaker 5: Arsain Lupin once more. He walked to and fro for
• 1:53:58
  Speaker 5: a few minutes, then stopping in front of Ganimar, he said,
• 1:54:02
  Speaker 5: you have nothing more to say? I suppose yes, I
• 1:54:06
  Speaker 5: should like to know if you intend to reveal the
• 1:54:09
  Speaker 5: true state of facts connected with your escape the mistake
• 1:54:13
  Speaker 5: that I made. Oh, no one will ever know that
• 1:54:16
  Speaker 5: it was Arsain Lupin who was discharged. It is to
• 1:54:19
  Speaker 5: my own interest to surround myself with mystery, and therefore
• 1:54:24
  Speaker 5: I shall permit my escape to retain its almost miraculous character.
• 1:54:29
  Speaker 5: So have no fear on that score, my dear friend.
• 1:54:32
  Speaker 5: I shall say nothing, and now good bye. I am
• 1:54:36
  Speaker 5: going out to dinner this evening and have only sufficient
• 1:54:40
  Speaker 5: time to dress. I thought you wanted a rest. Ah,
• 1:54:44
  Speaker 5: there are duties to society that one cannot avoid. To
• 1:54:48
  Speaker 5: morrow I shall rest. Where do you dine to night
• 1:54:52
  Speaker 5: with the British Ambassador. End of the Escape of Arsines.
• 1:55:01
  Speaker 2: Chapter four, The Mysterious Traveler. The evening before, I had
• 1:55:08
  Speaker 2: sent my automobile to Rouen by the Highway. I was
• 1:55:12
  Speaker 2: to travel to Roon by rail, on my way to
• 1:55:15
  Speaker 2: visit some friends that live on the banks of the
• 1:55:18
  Speaker 2: Seinne at Paris. A few minutes before the train started,
• 1:55:23
  Speaker 2: seven gentlemen entered my compartment. Five of them were smoking.
• 1:55:28
  Speaker 2: No matter that the journey was a short one, the
• 1:55:31
  Speaker 2: thought of traveling with such a company was not agreeable
• 1:55:34
  Speaker 2: to me, especially as the car was built on the
• 1:55:37
  Speaker 2: old model without a corridor. I picked up my overcoat,
• 1:55:42
  Speaker 2: my newspapers and my timetable and sought refuge in a
• 1:55:46
  Speaker 2: neighboring compartment. It was occupied by a lady, who, at
• 1:55:50
  Speaker 2: sight of me, made a gesture of annoyance that did
• 1:55:53
  Speaker 2: not escape my notice, and she leaned towards a gentleman
• 1:55:57
  Speaker 2: who was standing on the step, and was no doubt
• 1:56:00
  Speaker 2: her husband. The gentleman scrutinized me closely, and apparently my
• 1:56:05
  Speaker 2: appearance did not displease him, for he smiled as he
• 1:56:09
  Speaker 2: spoke to his wife, with the air of one who
• 1:56:11
  Speaker 2: reassures a frightened child. She smiled also, and gave me
• 1:56:16
  Speaker 2: a friendly glance, as if she now understood that I
• 1:56:19
  Speaker 2: was one of those gallant men with whom a woman
• 1:56:22
  Speaker 2: can remain shut up for two hours in a little
• 1:56:25
  Speaker 2: box six feet square and have nothing to fear. Her
• 1:56:29
  Speaker 2: husband said to her, I have an important appointment, my dear,
• 1:56:34
  Speaker 2: and cannot wait any longer. Adieu. He kissed her affectionately
• 1:56:38
  Speaker 2: and went away. His wife threw him a few kisses
• 1:56:42
  Speaker 2: and waved her handkerchief. The whistle sounded and the train
• 1:56:46
  Speaker 2: started at that precise moment, and despite the protests of
• 1:56:51
  Speaker 2: the guards, the door was opened, and a man rushed
• 1:56:54
  Speaker 2: into our compartment. My companion, who was standing and arranged
• 1:57:00
  Speaker 2: her luggage, uttered a cry of terror and fell upon
• 1:57:03
  Speaker 2: the seat. I am not a coward, far from it,
• 1:57:08
  Speaker 2: but I confessed that such intrusions at the last minute
• 1:57:11
  Speaker 2: are always disconcerting. They have a suspicious, unnatural aspect. However,
• 1:57:18
  Speaker 2: the appearance of the new arrival greatly modified the unfavorable
• 1:57:22
  Speaker 2: impression produced by his precipitate action. He was correctly and
• 1:57:27
  Speaker 2: elegantly dressed, or a tasteful cravat, correct gloves, and his
• 1:57:31
  Speaker 2: face was refined and intelligent. But where the devil had
• 1:57:36
  Speaker 2: I seen that face before? Because beyond all possible doubt,
• 1:57:42
  Speaker 2: I had seen it, and yet the memory of it
• 1:57:46
  Speaker 2: was so vague and indistinct that I felt it would
• 1:57:49
  Speaker 2: be useless to try to recall it at that time. Then,
• 1:57:53
  Speaker 2: directing my attention to the lady, I was amazed at
• 1:57:56
  Speaker 2: the pallor and anxiety I saw on her face. She
• 1:58:00
  Speaker 2: was looking at her neighbor, they occupied seats on the
• 1:58:03
  Speaker 2: same side of the compartment, with an expression of intense alarm,
• 1:58:08
  Speaker 2: and I perceived that one of her trembling hands was
• 1:58:11
  Speaker 2: slowly gliding toward a little traveling bag that was lying
• 1:58:15
  Speaker 2: on the seat about twenty inches from her. She finished
• 1:58:19
  Speaker 2: by seizing it and nervously drawing it to her. Our
• 1:58:23
  Speaker 2: eyes met, and I read in hers so much anxiety
• 1:58:27
  Speaker 2: and fear that I could not refrain from speaking to her.
• 1:58:31
  Speaker 2: Are you ill, madame? Shall I open the window? Her
• 1:58:36
  Speaker 2: only reply was a gesture indicating that she was afraid
• 1:58:39
  Speaker 2: of our companion. I smiled as her husband had done,
• 1:58:43
  Speaker 2: shrugged my shoulders, and explained to her in pantomime that
• 1:58:47
  Speaker 2: she had nothing to fear that I was there, and besides,
• 1:58:50
  Speaker 2: the gentleman appeared to be a very harmless individual at
• 1:58:54
  Speaker 2: that moment. He turned towards us, scrutinized both of us
• 1:58:58
  Speaker 2: from head to foot, then settled down in his corner
• 1:59:02
  Speaker 2: and paid us no more attention. After a short silence,
• 1:59:06
  Speaker 2: the lady, as if she had mustered all her energy
• 1:59:09
  Speaker 2: to perform a desperate act, said to me, in an
• 1:59:12
  Speaker 2: almost inaudible voice, do you know who is on our train?
• 1:59:18
  Speaker 4: Who? He?
• 1:59:21
  Speaker 3: He?
• 1:59:21
  Speaker 2: I assure you, who is he? Arsen Lupin. She had
• 1:59:28
  Speaker 2: not taken her eyes off our companion, and it was
• 1:59:31
  Speaker 2: to him, rather than to me, that she uttered the
• 1:59:34
  Speaker 2: syllables of that disquieting name. He drew his hat over
• 1:59:38
  Speaker 2: his face. Was that to conceal his agitation or simply
• 1:59:43
  Speaker 2: to arrange himself for sleep, then I said to her.
• 1:59:48
  Speaker 2: Yesterday through contumacy, Arsain Lupin was sentenced to twenty years
• 1:59:53
  Speaker 2: imprisonment at hard Labor. Therefore, it is improbable that he
• 1:59:57
  Speaker 2: would be so imprudent to day to show himself in public. Moreover,
• 2:00:03
  Speaker 2: the newspapers have announced his appearance in Turkey since his
• 2:00:07
  Speaker 2: escape from the santerier. But he is on this train
• 2:00:10
  Speaker 2: at the present moment, the lady proclaimed, with the obvious
• 2:00:14
  Speaker 2: intention of being heard by our companion. My husband is
• 2:00:18
  Speaker 2: one of the directors of the penitentiary service, and it
• 2:00:22
  Speaker 2: was the station master himself who told us that a
• 2:00:25
  Speaker 2: search was being made for Ar Saint Lupin. They may
• 2:00:28
  Speaker 2: have been mistaken. No, he was seen in the waiting room.
• 2:00:33
  Speaker 2: He bought a first class ticket for Rouen. He has disappeared.
• 2:00:38
  Speaker 2: The guard at the waiting room door did not see
• 2:00:40
  Speaker 2: him pass, and it is supposed that he had got
• 2:00:43
  Speaker 2: into the express that leaves ten minutes after us. In
• 2:00:47
  Speaker 2: that case they will be sure to catch him, unless
• 2:00:51
  Speaker 2: at the last moment he leaped from the train to
• 2:00:53
  Speaker 2: come here into our train, which is quite probable, which
• 2:00:57
  Speaker 2: is almost certain, so he will be arrested just the
• 2:01:02
  Speaker 2: same for the employees and the guards would no doubt
• 2:01:05
  Speaker 2: observe his passage from one train to the other, and
• 2:01:08
  Speaker 2: when we arrive at won they will arrest him there
• 2:01:12
  Speaker 2: him never he will find some means of escape. In
• 2:01:17
  Speaker 2: that case, I wish him a bon voyage. But in
• 2:01:21
  Speaker 2: the meantime, think what he may do. What I don't know,
• 2:01:25
  Speaker 2: he may do anything. She was greatly agitated, and truly
• 2:01:31
  Speaker 2: the situation justified to some extent her nervous excitement. I
• 2:01:36
  Speaker 2: was impelled to say to her, of course, there are
• 2:01:40
  Speaker 2: many strange coincidences, but you need have no fear admitting
• 2:01:45
  Speaker 2: that Arceine Lupin is on this train. He will not
• 2:01:48
  Speaker 2: commit any indiscretion. He will be only too happy to
• 2:01:51
  Speaker 2: escape the peril that already threatens him. My words did
• 2:01:55
  Speaker 2: not reassure her, but she remained silent for a time.
• 2:02:00
  Speaker 2: I unfolded my newspapers and read reports of Arsene Lupin's trial,
• 2:02:05
  Speaker 2: but as they contained nothing that was new to me,
• 2:02:08
  Speaker 2: I was not greatly interested. Moreover, I was tired and sleepy.
• 2:02:13
  Speaker 2: I felt my eyelids close and my head drop but monsieur,
• 2:02:18
  Speaker 2: you are not going to sleep. She seized my newspaper
• 2:02:22
  Speaker 2: and looked at me with indignation. Certainly not, I said,
• 2:02:28
  Speaker 2: that would be very imprudent. Of course I assented. I
• 2:02:34
  Speaker 2: struggled to keep awake. I looked through the window at
• 2:02:38
  Speaker 2: the landscape and the fleeting clouds. But in a short
• 2:02:41
  Speaker 2: time all that became confused and indistinct. The image of
• 2:02:45
  Speaker 2: the nervous lady and the drowsy gentleman were effaced from
• 2:02:49
  Speaker 2: my memory, and I was buried in the soothing depths
• 2:02:53
  Speaker 2: of a profound sleep. The tranquility of my response was
• 2:02:57
  Speaker 2: soon disturbed by disquieting dreams, wherein a creature that had
• 2:03:02
  Speaker 2: played the part and bore the name of Arsaint Lupin
• 2:03:06
  Speaker 2: held an important place. He appeared to me with his
• 2:03:09
  Speaker 2: back laden with articles of value. He leapt over walls
• 2:03:14
  Speaker 2: and plundered castles. But the outlines of that creature, who
• 2:03:19
  Speaker 2: was no longer our Saint Lupin, assumed a more definite form.
• 2:03:23
  Speaker 2: He came toward me, growing larger and larger, leapt into
• 2:03:28
  Speaker 2: the compartment with incredible agility, and landed squarely on my
• 2:03:32
  Speaker 2: chest with a cry of frightened pain. I awoke the man,
• 2:03:37
  Speaker 2: the traveler, our companion, with his knee on my breast,
• 2:03:41
  Speaker 2: held me by the throat. My sight was very indistinct,
• 2:03:45
  Speaker 2: for my eyes were suffused with blood. I could see
• 2:03:48
  Speaker 2: the lady in a corner of the compartment, convulsed with fright.
• 2:03:53
  Speaker 2: I tried even not to resist. Besides, I did not
• 2:03:56
  Speaker 2: have the strength. My temples throbbed. I was must strangled.
• 2:04:01
  Speaker 2: One minute more and I would have breathed my last.
• 2:04:05
  Speaker 2: The man must have realized it, for he relaxed his grip,
• 2:04:08
  Speaker 2: but did not remove his hand. Then he took a
• 2:04:11
  Speaker 2: cord in which he had prepared a slipknot, and tied
• 2:04:15
  Speaker 2: my wrists together. In an instant, I was bound, gagged
• 2:04:19
  Speaker 2: and helpless. Certainly, he accomplished the trick with an ease
• 2:04:23
  Speaker 2: and skill that revealed the hand of a master. He was,
• 2:04:27
  Speaker 2: no doubt a professional sief. Not a word, not a
• 2:04:30
  Speaker 2: nervous movement, only coolness and audacity. And I was there
• 2:04:35
  Speaker 2: lying on the bench, bound like a mummy. I arsene lupin.
• 2:04:41
  Speaker 2: It was anything but a laughing matter. And yet, despite
• 2:04:44
  Speaker 2: the gravity of the situation, I keenly appreciated the humor
• 2:04:48
  Speaker 2: and irony that It involved arsend a pas seized and
• 2:04:52
  Speaker 2: bound like a novice, robbed as if I were an
• 2:04:55
  Speaker 2: unsophisticated rustic. For you must understand the scound had deprived
• 2:05:01
  Speaker 2: me of my purse and wallet. Arsene lupin a victim,
• 2:05:05
  Speaker 2: duped vanquished. What an adventure. The lady did not move,
• 2:05:12
  Speaker 2: He did not even notice her. He contented himself with
• 2:05:15
  Speaker 2: picking up her traveling bag that had fallen to the floor,
• 2:05:19
  Speaker 2: and taking from it the jewels, purse, and gold and
• 2:05:22
  Speaker 2: silver trinkets that contained. The lady opened her eyes, trembled
• 2:05:27
  Speaker 2: with fear, drew the rings from her fingers and handed
• 2:05:30
  Speaker 2: them to the man, as if she wished to spare
• 2:05:32
  Speaker 2: him unnecessary trouble. He took the rings and looked at her.
• 2:05:36
  Speaker 2: She swooned, Then, quite unruffled, he resumed his seat, lighted
• 2:05:42
  Speaker 2: a cigarette, and proceeded to examine the treasure that he
• 2:05:46
  Speaker 2: had acquired. The examination appeared to give him perfect satisfaction.
• 2:05:52
  Speaker 2: But I was not so well satisfied. I do not
• 2:05:55
  Speaker 2: speak of the twelve thousand francs of which I had
• 2:05:58
  Speaker 2: been unduly deprived. That was only a temporary loss, because
• 2:06:02
  Speaker 2: I was certain that I would recover possession of that
• 2:06:05
  Speaker 2: money after a very brief delay, together with the important
• 2:06:09
  Speaker 2: papers contained in my wallet, plans, specifications, addresses, lists of correspondence,
• 2:06:16
  Speaker 2: and compromising letters. But for the moment, a more immediate
• 2:06:20
  Speaker 2: and more serious question troubled me. How would this affair end?
• 2:06:25
  Speaker 2: What would be the outcome of this adventure? As you
• 2:06:28
  Speaker 2: can imagine, the disturbance created by my passage through the
• 2:06:32
  Speaker 2: Saint Lazarre station had not escaped my notice. Going to
• 2:06:36
  Speaker 2: visit friends who knew me under the name of Guillaum Berlard,
• 2:06:40
  Speaker 2: and amongst whom my resemblance to Arsainte Lupin was a
• 2:06:43
  Speaker 2: subject of many innocent jests. I could not assume a
• 2:06:47
  Speaker 2: disguise at my presence had been remarked so beyond question.
• 2:06:52
  Speaker 2: The Commissary of Police Atroin, notified by telegraph and assisted
• 2:06:57
  Speaker 2: by numerous agents, would be awaiting the train, would question
• 2:07:01
  Speaker 2: all suspicious passengers and proceed to search the cars. Of course,
• 2:07:06
  Speaker 2: I had foreseen all that, but it had not disturbed me,
• 2:07:10
  Speaker 2: as I was certain that the police of War would
• 2:07:12
  Speaker 2: not be any shrewder than the police of Paris, and
• 2:07:16
  Speaker 2: that I could escape recognition. Would it not be sufficient
• 2:07:20
  Speaker 2: for me to carelessly display my card as deputy, thanks
• 2:07:24
  Speaker 2: to which I had inspired complete confidence in the gate
• 2:07:27
  Speaker 2: keeper at Saint Lazare. But the situation was greatly changed.
• 2:07:32
  Speaker 2: I was no longer free. It was impossible to attempt
• 2:07:35
  Speaker 2: one of my usual tricks. In one of the compartments.
• 2:07:38
  Speaker 2: The Commissary of Police would find Monsieur Saint du Pins
• 2:07:43
  Speaker 2: bound hand and foot, as docile as a lamb, packed up,
• 2:07:47
  Speaker 2: already to be dumped into a prison van. He would
• 2:07:50
  Speaker 2: have simply to accept delivery of the parcel, the same
• 2:07:53
  Speaker 2: as if it were so much merchandise or a basket
• 2:07:56
  Speaker 2: of fruit of vegetables. Yet to avoid that shame for denouement,
• 2:08:01
  Speaker 2: what could I do? Bound and gagged as I was,
• 2:08:05
  Speaker 2: and the train was rushing on towards Roent, the next
• 2:08:08
  Speaker 2: and only station, another problem was presented in which I
• 2:08:13
  Speaker 2: was less interested, but the solution of which aroused my
• 2:08:16
  Speaker 2: professional curiosity. What were the intentions of my rascally companion.
• 2:08:22
  Speaker 2: Of course, if I had been alone, he could, on
• 2:08:25
  Speaker 2: our arrival at Roent, leave the car slowly and fearlessly.
• 2:08:30
  Speaker 2: But the lady, as soon as the door of the
• 2:08:32
  Speaker 2: compartment should be opened, the lady, now so quiet and humble,
• 2:08:37
  Speaker 2: would scream and call for help. That was the dilemma
• 2:08:40
  Speaker 2: that perplexed me. Why had he not reduced her to
• 2:08:44
  Speaker 2: a helpless condition similar to mine? That would have given
• 2:08:47
  Speaker 2: him ample time to disappear before his double crime was discovered.
• 2:08:53
  Speaker 2: He was still smoking, with his eyes fixed upon the
• 2:08:56
  Speaker 2: window that was now being streaked with drops of rain.
• 2:09:00
  Speaker 2: Once he turned picked up my time table and consulted it,
• 2:09:05
  Speaker 2: the lady had to feign a continued lack of consciousness
• 2:09:09
  Speaker 2: in order to deceive the enemy, but fits of coughing
• 2:09:12
  Speaker 2: provoked by the smoke exposed her true condition. As to me,
• 2:09:17
  Speaker 2: I was very uncomfortable and very tired, and I meditated.
• 2:09:21
  Speaker 2: I plotted. The train was rushing on, joyously, intoxicated with
• 2:09:27
  Speaker 2: its own speed, sent it ene. At that moment, the
• 2:09:31
  Speaker 2: man arose and took two steps towards us, which caused
• 2:09:35
  Speaker 2: the lady to utter a cry of alarm and fall
• 2:09:37
  Speaker 2: into a genuine swoon. What was the man about to do?
• 2:09:42
  Speaker 2: He lowered the window on our side. A heavy rain
• 2:09:45
  Speaker 2: was now falling, and by a gesture, the man expressed
• 2:09:49
  Speaker 2: his annoyance at his not having an umbrella or an overcoat.
• 2:09:53
  Speaker 2: He glanced at the rack. The lady's umbrella was there.
• 2:09:56
  Speaker 2: He took it. He also took my overcoat put it on.
• 2:10:01
  Speaker 2: We were now crossing the Seine. He turned up the
• 2:10:04
  Speaker 2: bottoms of his trousers, then leaned over and raised the
• 2:10:08
  Speaker 2: exterior latch of the door. Was he going to throw
• 2:10:11
  Speaker 2: himself upon the track at that speed? It would have
• 2:10:14
  Speaker 2: been instant death. We now entered a tunnel. The man
• 2:10:19
  Speaker 2: opened the door half way and stood on the upper step.
• 2:10:23
  Speaker 2: What folly. The darkness, the smoke, the noise all gave
• 2:10:28
  Speaker 2: a fantastic appearance to his actions. But suddenly the train
• 2:10:33
  Speaker 2: diminished its speed. A moment later it increased its speed,
• 2:10:37
  Speaker 2: then slowed up again. Probably some repairs were being made
• 2:10:41
  Speaker 2: in that part of the tunnel, which obliged the trains
• 2:10:44
  Speaker 2: to diminish their speed, and the man was aware of
• 2:10:47
  Speaker 2: the fact. He immediately stepped down to the lower step,
• 2:10:51
  Speaker 2: closed the door behind him, and leapt to the ground.
• 2:10:54
  Speaker 2: He was gone. The lady immediately recovered her wits, and
• 2:10:59
  Speaker 2: her first act was to lament the loss of her jewels.
• 2:11:02
  Speaker 2: I gave her an imploring look. She understood and quickly
• 2:11:05
  Speaker 2: removed the gag that stifled me. She wished to untie
• 2:11:09
  Speaker 2: the cords that bound me but I prevented her. No, no,
• 2:11:13
  Speaker 2: the police must see everything exactly as it stands. I
• 2:11:16
  Speaker 2: want them to see what the rascal did to us.
• 2:11:19
  Speaker 2: Suppose I pulled the alarm bell too late. He should
• 2:11:23
  Speaker 2: have done that when he made the attack on me,
• 2:11:26
  Speaker 2: But he would have killed me, Ah, monsieur, didn't I
• 2:11:30
  Speaker 2: tell you that he was on this train. I recognized
• 2:11:33
  Speaker 2: him from his portrait, and now he has gone off
• 2:11:36
  Speaker 2: with my jewels. Don't worry, the police will catch him.
• 2:11:40
  Speaker 2: Catch off Saint Lupin. Never, That depends on you, madame. Listen,
• 2:11:46
  Speaker 2: when we arrived at wont be at the door and call,
• 2:11:50
  Speaker 2: make a noise. The police and the railway employees will come.
• 2:11:55
  Speaker 2: Tell what you have seen, the assault made on me
• 2:11:58
  Speaker 2: and the flight of ar Saint Lupin. Give a description
• 2:12:00
  Speaker 2: of him. Soft hat, umbrella yours, gray overcoat yours? Said?
• 2:12:06
  Speaker 1: She?
• 2:12:08
  Speaker 2: What mine? Not at all?
• 2:12:10
  Speaker 1: It was his.
• 2:12:11
  Speaker 2: I didn't have any. It seems to me that he
• 2:12:14
  Speaker 2: didn't have one when he came in. Yes, yes, unless
• 2:12:18
  Speaker 2: the coat was wondered, some one had forgotten and left
• 2:12:21
  Speaker 2: on the rack. At all events, he had it when
• 2:12:24
  Speaker 2: he went away, and that is the essential point. A
• 2:12:28
  Speaker 2: gray overcoat, remember, Ah, I forgot. You must tell your
• 2:12:33
  Speaker 2: name first thing, ye do. Your husband's official position will
• 2:12:37
  Speaker 2: stimulate the zeal of the police. We arrived at the station,
• 2:12:41
  Speaker 2: I gave her some further instructions in a rather imperious tone.
• 2:12:45
  Speaker 2: Tell them my name, Guillaum Berlard. If necessary, say that
• 2:12:50
  Speaker 2: ye know me. That will save time. We must expedite
• 2:12:54
  Speaker 2: the preliminary investigation. The important thing is the pursuit of
• 2:12:58
  Speaker 2: Arsene Lupins. You jewels, remember, Let there be no mistake.
• 2:13:03
  Speaker 2: Guillium Berlar, a friend of your husband. I understand, Guilloumberlard.
• 2:13:10
  Speaker 2: She was already calling and gesticulating. As soon as the
• 2:13:13
  Speaker 2: train stopped, several men entered the compartment. The critical moment
• 2:13:18
  Speaker 2: had come. Panting for breath, the lady exclaimed, Ar Saint
• 2:13:23
  Speaker 2: lu Pas, he attacked us, he stole my jewels. I
• 2:13:26
  Speaker 2: am Madame Renaud. My husband is a director of the
• 2:13:28
  Speaker 2: penitentiary service.
• 2:13:30
  Speaker 1: Ah.
• 2:13:31
  Speaker 2: Here is my brother, Jeorgeardell, director of the grid Roune.
• 2:13:35
  Speaker 1: You must know.
• 2:13:37
  Speaker 2: She embraced a young man who had just joined us,
• 2:13:40
  Speaker 2: and whom the commissary saluted. Then she continued weeping, yes,
• 2:13:45
  Speaker 2: Ar Saint Lupin. While Monsieur was sleeping. He seized him
• 2:13:48
  Speaker 2: by the throat. Monsieur Berls a friend of my husband.
• 2:13:53
  Speaker 2: The commissary asked, but where is ar Saint Lupin He
• 2:13:57
  Speaker 2: leapt from the train when passing through the tonne. Are
• 2:14:00
  Speaker 2: you sure that was he?
• 2:14:03
  Speaker 6: Am?
• 2:14:03
  Speaker 2: I sure? I recognized him perfectly. Besides, he was seen
• 2:14:08
  Speaker 2: at the Saint Lazar station. He wore a soft hat, No,
• 2:14:13
  Speaker 2: a hard felt like that, said the commissary, pointing to
• 2:14:17
  Speaker 2: my hat. He had a soft hat, I am sure,
• 2:14:21
  Speaker 2: repeated Madame Renaud. And a gray overcoat. Yes, that is right,
• 2:14:28
  Speaker 2: replied the commissary. The telegram says he wore a gray
• 2:14:32
  Speaker 2: overcoat with a black velvet collar. Exactly a black velvet collar,
• 2:14:38
  Speaker 2: examined Madame Renaud, triumphantly. I breathed freely. Ah, the excellent
• 2:14:45
  Speaker 2: friend I had in that little woman. The police agents
• 2:14:48
  Speaker 2: now released me. I bit my lips until they ran blood,
• 2:14:52
  Speaker 2: stooping over with my handkerchief over my mouth, an attitude
• 2:14:56
  Speaker 2: quite natural in a person who has remained for a
• 2:14:59
  Speaker 2: long time in an uncomfortable position, and whose mouth shows
• 2:15:03
  Speaker 2: the bloody marks of the gag. I addressed the commissary
• 2:15:06
  Speaker 2: in a weak voice. Monsieur it was ar Saint du Pains.
• 2:15:11
  Speaker 2: There is no doubt about that if we make haste,
• 2:15:15
  Speaker 2: he can be caught. Yet I think I may be
• 2:15:18
  Speaker 2: of some service to you. The railway car in which
• 2:15:22
  Speaker 2: the crime occurred was detached from the train to serve
• 2:15:25
  Speaker 2: as a mute witness at the official investigation. The train
• 2:15:30
  Speaker 2: continued on its way to Avres. We were then conducted
• 2:15:34
  Speaker 2: to the station master's office through a crowd of curious spectators.
• 2:15:39
  Speaker 2: Then I had a sudden access of doubt and discretion.
• 2:15:43
  Speaker 2: Under some pretext or other, I must gain my automobile
• 2:15:47
  Speaker 2: and escape. To remain there was dangerous. Something might happen,
• 2:15:52
  Speaker 2: for instance, a telegram from Paris, and I would be lost. Yes,
• 2:15:57
  Speaker 2: but what about my thief. Abandoned to my own resources
• 2:16:01
  Speaker 2: in an unfamiliar country, I could not hope to catch him. Bah,
• 2:16:06
  Speaker 2: I must make the attempt, I said to myself. It
• 2:16:09
  Speaker 2: may be a difficult game, but an amusing one, and
• 2:16:13
  Speaker 2: the stake is well worth the trouble. And when the
• 2:16:15
  Speaker 2: commissary asked us to repeat the story of the robbery,
• 2:16:19
  Speaker 2: I exclaimed, monsieur, really are Saint Lupa is getting the
• 2:16:24
  Speaker 2: start of us. My automobile is waiting in the courtyard.
• 2:16:28
  Speaker 2: If you will be so kind as to use it,
• 2:16:30
  Speaker 2: we can try. The commissary smiled and replied, the idea
• 2:16:35
  Speaker 2: is a good one, so good indeed, that it is
• 2:16:37
  Speaker 2: already being carried out. Two of my men have set
• 2:16:40
  Speaker 2: out on bicycles. They have been gone for some time.
• 2:16:44
  Speaker 2: Where did they go? To the entrance of the tunnel.
• 2:16:49
  Speaker 2: There they will gather evidence, secure witnesses, and follow on
• 2:16:52
  Speaker 2: the track of Arsine Lupins. I could not refrain from
• 2:16:56
  Speaker 2: shrugging my shoulders as I replied, few men will not
• 2:16:59
  Speaker 2: secure you are any evidence or any witnesses freely. Arsaint
• 2:17:05
  Speaker 2: Lupas will not allow any one to see him emerge
• 2:17:07
  Speaker 2: from the tunnel. He will take the first road to Rouin,
• 2:17:11
  Speaker 2: where we will arrest him. He will not go to Rouin.
• 2:17:15
  Speaker 2: Then he will remain in the vicinity, where his capture
• 2:17:18
  Speaker 2: will be even more certain. He will not remain in
• 2:17:22
  Speaker 2: the vicinity Oho, and where will he hide? I looked
• 2:17:26
  Speaker 2: at my watch and said, at the present moment, Arsen
• 2:17:30
  Speaker 2: du Pas is prowling around the station at d'aris tale
• 2:17:34
  Speaker 2: at ten fifty, that is, in twenty two minutes from now,
• 2:17:38
  Speaker 2: he will take the train that goes from Ruin to Amiers.
• 2:17:42
  Speaker 2: Do you think so?
• 2:17:44
  Speaker 4: How do you know it?
• 2:17:46
  Speaker 2: Oh, it is quite simple. While we were in the
• 2:17:48
  Speaker 2: car arsaintlu Pas consulted my railway guide. Why did he
• 2:17:53
  Speaker 2: do it? Was there, not far from the spot where
• 2:17:56
  Speaker 2: he disappeared, another line of railway, a station upon that line,
• 2:18:00
  Speaker 2: and a train stopping at that station. On consulting my
• 2:18:04
  Speaker 2: railway guide, he found such to be the case. Really, monsieur,
• 2:18:10
  Speaker 2: said the commissary, that is a marvelous deduction. I congratulate
• 2:18:14
  Speaker 2: you on your skill. I was now convinced that I
• 2:18:17
  Speaker 2: had made a mistake in displaying so much cleverness. The
• 2:18:21
  Speaker 2: Commissary regarded me with astonishment, and I thought a slight
• 2:18:25
  Speaker 2: suspicion entered his official mind, oh scarcely that for the
• 2:18:30
  Speaker 2: photographs distributed broadcast by the police department were too imperfect.
• 2:18:36
  Speaker 2: They presented a nar Saint Lupasse so different from the
• 2:18:39
  Speaker 2: one he had before him that he could not possibly
• 2:18:41
  Speaker 2: recognize me by it. But all the same, he was troubled, confused,
• 2:18:47
  Speaker 2: and ill at ease. Mon dieu. Nothing stimulates the comprehensions
• 2:18:53
  Speaker 2: so much as the loss of a pocket book and
• 2:18:56
  Speaker 2: the desire to recover it, and it seems to me
• 2:18:59
  Speaker 2: that if you will give me two of your men,
• 2:19:01
  Speaker 2: we may be able. Oh I beg of you, Monsieur
• 2:19:05
  Speaker 2: le commissaire, cried Madame Renaud. Listen to Monsieur Barlar. The
• 2:19:11
  Speaker 2: intervention of my excellent friend was decisive. Pronounced by her,
• 2:19:15
  Speaker 2: the wife of an influential official, The name of Berlar
• 2:19:19
  Speaker 2: became really my own and gave me an identity that
• 2:19:23
  Speaker 2: no mere suspicion could effect. The commissary arose and said,
• 2:19:28
  Speaker 2: believe me, Monsieur Berlin, I should be delighted to see
• 2:19:31
  Speaker 2: you succeed. I am as much interested as you are
• 2:19:34
  Speaker 2: in the arrest of Arsaine Dupin. He accompanied me to
• 2:19:38
  Speaker 2: the automobile and introduced two of his men, Honoremassoure and
• 2:19:42
  Speaker 2: Gaston de l v, who were assigned to assist me.
• 2:19:46
  Speaker 2: My chauffeur cranked up the car and I took my
• 2:19:49
  Speaker 2: place at the wheel. A few seconds later we left
• 2:19:53
  Speaker 2: the station. I was saved. Oh, I must confess that
• 2:19:58
  Speaker 2: in rolling over the boulevard ards that surrounded the old
• 2:20:01
  Speaker 2: Norman city in my swift certify of horse power morroul le'ptin,
• 2:20:07
  Speaker 2: I experienced a deep feeling of pride and the motor
• 2:20:10
  Speaker 2: responded sympathetically to my desires at right and left. The
• 2:20:15
  Speaker 2: trees flew past us with startling rapidity, and I, free
• 2:20:20
  Speaker 2: of danger, had simply to arrange my little personal affairs
• 2:20:24
  Speaker 2: with the two honest representatives of the Rum police, who
• 2:20:27
  Speaker 2: were now sitting behind me. Arsaint Lupin was going in
• 2:20:32
  Speaker 2: search of Arsene Lupins, modest guardians of social order, Gaston
• 2:20:37
  Speaker 2: de le Villes and Honorema Soil. How valuable was your assistance?
• 2:20:42
  Speaker 2: What would I have done without you? Without you many
• 2:20:45
  Speaker 2: times at the cross roads, I might have taken the
• 2:20:48
  Speaker 2: wrong route. Without you, Arsaint Lupins would have made a mistake,
• 2:20:53
  Speaker 2: and the other would have escaped. But the end was
• 2:20:56
  Speaker 2: not yet far from it. I had yet to capture
• 2:21:00
  Speaker 2: the thief and recover the stolen papers. Under no circumstances
• 2:21:05
  Speaker 2: must my two acolytes be permitted to see those papers,
• 2:21:08
  Speaker 2: much less to seize them. That was a point that
• 2:21:12
  Speaker 2: might give me some difficulty. We arrived at d'arnittal three
• 2:21:17
  Speaker 2: minutes after the departure of the train. True, I had
• 2:21:20
  Speaker 2: the consolation of learning that a man wearing a gray
• 2:21:23
  Speaker 2: overcoat with a black velvet collar had taken the train
• 2:21:27
  Speaker 2: at the station he had bought a second class ticket
• 2:21:31
  Speaker 2: for Amier. Certainly my debut as a detective was a
• 2:21:35
  Speaker 2: promising one. De l Vill said to me, the train
• 2:21:39
  Speaker 2: is express and the next stop is Monte Roulier Bouchet
• 2:21:43
  Speaker 2: in nineteen minutes. If we do not reach there before
• 2:21:47
  Speaker 2: our Saint Lupin, he can proceed to Amier, or change
• 2:21:51
  Speaker 2: for the train going to Claire, and from that point
• 2:21:54
  Speaker 2: reached Yeppe or Paris. How far to Monte Rolier twenty
• 2:21:59
  Speaker 2: three cilometers? Twenty three kilometers in nineteen minutes, we will
• 2:22:04
  Speaker 2: be there ahead of him. We were off again. Never
• 2:22:08
  Speaker 2: had my faithful Morue Repton responded to my impatience with
• 2:22:13
  Speaker 2: such ardor and regularity. It participated in my anxiety. It
• 2:22:18
  Speaker 2: endorsed my determination. It comprehended my animosity against that rascally
• 2:22:24
  Speaker 2: Arsain Dupins the nave the traitor. Turn to the right,
• 2:22:29
  Speaker 2: cried dilivy. Then to the left. We fairly flew, scarcely
• 2:22:34
  Speaker 2: touching the ground. The milestones looked like little timid beasts
• 2:22:39
  Speaker 2: that vanished at our approach. Suddenly, at a turn of
• 2:22:43
  Speaker 2: the road we saw a vortex of smoke. It was
• 2:22:47
  Speaker 2: the Northern Express for a kilometer. It was a struggle
• 2:22:51
  Speaker 2: side by side, but an unequal struggle in which the
• 2:22:55
  Speaker 2: issue was certain. We won the race by twenty lengths.
• 2:23:00
  Speaker 2: In three seconds. We were on the platform, standing before
• 2:23:03
  Speaker 2: the second class carriages. The doors were opened and some
• 2:23:07
  Speaker 2: passengers alighted, but not my thief. We made a setch
• 2:23:11
  Speaker 2: through the compartments. No sign of Arsaine dupins Sapristie. I cried.
• 2:23:19
  Speaker 2: He must have recognized me in the automobile as we
• 2:23:21
  Speaker 2: were racing side by side, and he leapt from the train. Ah,
• 2:23:26
  Speaker 2: there he is now crossing the track. I started in
• 2:23:30
  Speaker 2: pursuit of the man, followed by my two acolytes, or
• 2:23:33
  Speaker 2: rather followed by one of them for the other. Masuil
• 2:23:36
  Speaker 2: proved himself to be a runner of exceptional speed and endurance.
• 2:23:40
  Speaker 2: In a few moments he had made an appreciable gain
• 2:23:43
  Speaker 2: on the fugitive. The man noticed it, leaped over a hedge,
• 2:23:48
  Speaker 2: scampered across a meadow, and entered a thick grove. When
• 2:23:52
  Speaker 2: we reached this grove, Masoil was waiting for us. He
• 2:23:56
  Speaker 2: went no farther for fear of losing us. Quite right,
• 2:23:59
  Speaker 2: my dear friend, I said, after such a run, our
• 2:24:03
  Speaker 2: victim must be out of wind. We will catch him. Now.
• 2:24:07
  Speaker 2: I examined the surroundings with the idea of proceeding alone
• 2:24:10
  Speaker 2: in the arrest of the fugitive in order to recover
• 2:24:13
  Speaker 2: my papers, concerning which the authorities would doubtless ask many
• 2:24:17
  Speaker 2: disagreeable questions. Then I returned to my companions and said,
• 2:24:23
  Speaker 2: it is all quite easy. You Massol. Take the place
• 2:24:26
  Speaker 2: that you left you Delivy at the right. From there
• 2:24:30
  Speaker 2: you can observe the entire posterior line of the bush,
• 2:24:33
  Speaker 2: and he cannot escape without you seeing him, except by
• 2:24:37
  Speaker 2: that ravine, and I shall watch it. If he does
• 2:24:40
  Speaker 2: not come out voluntarily, I will enter and drive him
• 2:24:44
  Speaker 2: out toward one or the other of you. You have
• 2:24:47
  Speaker 2: simply to wait. Ah, I forgot in case I need
• 2:24:51
  Speaker 2: you a pistol shot. Masol and Dilivy walked away to
• 2:24:55
  Speaker 2: their respective posts. As soon as they had disappeared, I
• 2:25:00
  Speaker 2: entered the grove with the greatest precaution, so as to
• 2:25:03
  Speaker 2: be neither seen nor heard. I encountered dense thickets through
• 2:25:08
  Speaker 2: which narrow paths have been cut, but the overhanging boughs
• 2:25:12
  Speaker 2: compelled me to adopt a stooping posture. One of these
• 2:25:16
  Speaker 2: paths led to a clearing in which I found footsteps
• 2:25:19
  Speaker 2: upon the wet grass. I followed them. They led me
• 2:25:23
  Speaker 2: to the foot of a mound which was surmounted by
• 2:25:26
  Speaker 2: a deserted, dilapidated hovel. He must be there, I said
• 2:25:31
  Speaker 2: to myself. It is a well chosen retreat. I crept
• 2:25:35
  Speaker 2: cautiously to the side of the building. A slight noise
• 2:25:39
  Speaker 2: informed me that he was there, and then through an
• 2:25:42
  Speaker 2: opening I saw him. His back was turned towards me.
• 2:25:47
  Speaker 2: In two bounds, I was upon him. He tried to
• 2:25:50
  Speaker 2: fire a revolver that he held in his hand, but
• 2:25:53
  Speaker 2: he had no time. I threw him to the ground
• 2:25:56
  Speaker 2: in such a manner that his arms were beneath him,
• 2:25:59
  Speaker 2: twisted and helped whilst I held him down with my
• 2:26:02
  Speaker 2: knee on his breast. Listen, my boy, I whispered in
• 2:26:07
  Speaker 2: his ear. I am aar Saint Dupins. You are to
• 2:26:10
  Speaker 2: deliver over to me immediately and gracefully my pocket book
• 2:26:15
  Speaker 2: and the lady's jewels, and in return, therefore I will
• 2:26:19
  Speaker 2: save you from the police and enroll you amongst my friends.
• 2:26:23
  Speaker 2: One word yes or no? Yes, he murmured, very good,
• 2:26:31
  Speaker 2: your escape this morning was well planned. I congratulate you,
• 2:26:36
  Speaker 2: I arose. He fumbled in his pocket, drew out a
• 2:26:40
  Speaker 2: large knife, and tried to strike me with it and
• 2:26:44
  Speaker 2: be sealed, I exclaimed. With one hand, I parried the attack.
• 2:26:49
  Speaker 2: With the other, I gave him a sharp blow on
• 2:26:51
  Speaker 2: the carotid artery. He fell stunned in my pocket book.
• 2:26:57
  Speaker 2: I recovered my papers and bank notes. Out of curiosity,
• 2:27:01
  Speaker 2: I took his upon an envelope addressed to him. I
• 2:27:05
  Speaker 2: read his name, Pierre en Frey. It startled me. Pierre Renfrey,
• 2:27:12
  Speaker 2: the assassin of the ru La Fontaine at Auteux. Pierre
• 2:27:17
  Speaker 2: a Frey, he who had cut the throats of Madame
• 2:27:21
  Speaker 2: de Bois and her two daughters. I leaned over him. Yes,
• 2:27:27
  Speaker 2: those were the features which in the compartment had evoked
• 2:27:30
  Speaker 2: in me the memory of a face I could not
• 2:27:32
  Speaker 2: then recall. But time was passing. I placed in an
• 2:27:38
  Speaker 2: envelope two bank notes of one hundred francs, each with
• 2:27:42
  Speaker 2: a card bearing these words arsaen du pin to his
• 2:27:46
  Speaker 2: worthy colleagues Honoree Masule and Gaston de le VIIs, as
• 2:27:51
  Speaker 2: a slight token of his gratitude. I placed it in
• 2:27:55
  Speaker 2: a prominent spot in the room, where they would be
• 2:27:58
  Speaker 2: sure to find it. Beside it I placed Madame Renaul's handbag.
• 2:28:03
  Speaker 2: Why could I not return it to the lady who
• 2:28:06
  Speaker 2: had befriended me. I must confess I had taken from
• 2:28:10
  Speaker 2: it everything that possessed any interest or value, leaving there
• 2:28:13
  Speaker 2: only a shell combe, a stick of rouge d'urras for
• 2:28:16
  Speaker 2: the lips, and an empty purse. But you know, business
• 2:28:21
  Speaker 2: is business, And then really her husband is engaged in
• 2:28:25
  Speaker 2: such a dishonorable vacation. The man was becoming conscious.
• 2:28:31
  Speaker 3: What was I to do?
• 2:28:32
  Speaker 2: I was unable to save him or condemn him, so
• 2:28:36
  Speaker 2: I took his revolver and fired a shot in the air.
• 2:28:40
  Speaker 2: My two acolytes will come and attend to this case,
• 2:28:44
  Speaker 2: I said to myself, as I hastened away by the
• 2:28:47
  Speaker 2: road through the ravine. Twenty minutes later, I was seated
• 2:28:52
  Speaker 2: in my automobile. At four o'clock I telegraphed to my
• 2:28:56
  Speaker 2: friends at Rouen that an unexpected event would prevent me
• 2:28:59
  Speaker 2: from making my promised visit between ourselves. Considering what my
• 2:29:05
  Speaker 2: friends must now know, my visit is postponed indefinitely, a
• 2:29:09
  Speaker 2: cruel disillusion for them. At six o'clock I was in Paris.
• 2:29:15
  Speaker 2: The evening newspapers informed me that Pierre au Free had
• 2:29:18
  Speaker 2: been captured at last. Next day. Let us not despise
• 2:29:24
  Speaker 2: the advantages of judicious advertising. The Eccau de France published
• 2:29:29
  Speaker 2: this sensational item yesterday near Beauchy. After numerous exciting incidents,
• 2:29:37
  Speaker 2: Arsain du Pas effected the arrest of Pierre an Free.
• 2:29:41
  Speaker 2: The assassin of the Rue la Fontaine, had robbed Madame Renaud,
• 2:29:45
  Speaker 2: wife of the director in the penitentiary service, in a
• 2:29:49
  Speaker 2: railway carriage on the Paris Avre Line. Arsain du Pains
• 2:29:54
  Speaker 2: restored to Madame Renaud the hand bag that contained her jewels,
• 2:29:58
  Speaker 2: and gave a generous record pence to the two detectives
• 2:30:02
  Speaker 2: who had assisted him in making that dramatic arrest.
• 2:30:06
  Speaker 6: End of Chapter four, Chapter five. The Queen's necklace. Two
• 2:30:15
  Speaker 6: or three times each year, when occasions of unusual importance,
• 2:30:19
  Speaker 6: such as the balls at the Austrian Embassy or the
• 2:30:22
  Speaker 6: soirees of Lady Billingstone, the Countess de dro Subies wore
• 2:30:28
  Speaker 6: upon her white shoulders the Queen's necklace. It was indeed
• 2:30:34
  Speaker 6: the famous necklace, the legendary necklace that Bohmer and Bessinge
• 2:30:39
  Speaker 6: Court jewelers had made for Madame du Barris, the veritable
• 2:30:44
  Speaker 6: necklace that the Cardinal do Roanne Soubies intended to give
• 2:30:48
  Speaker 6: to Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, and the same that
• 2:30:52
  Speaker 6: the adventuress Jean de Valois, Countess de Ramote, had pulled
• 2:30:57
  Speaker 6: to pieces one evening in February seventeen eighty five, with
• 2:31:02
  Speaker 6: the aid of her husband and their accomplice Reteau de Villette.
• 2:31:07
  Speaker 6: To tell the truth, the mounting alone was genuine. Reteau
• 2:31:11
  Speaker 6: de Villet had kept it whilst the Count de la
• 2:31:14
  Speaker 6: Motte and his wife scattered to the four winds of
• 2:31:17
  Speaker 6: heaven the beautiful stones so carefully chosen by Boehmer. Later
• 2:31:22
  Speaker 6: he sold the mounting to Gaston de tru Subise, nephew
• 2:31:26
  Speaker 6: and heir of the Cardinal, who repurchased the few diamonds
• 2:31:30
  Speaker 6: that remained in the possession of the English jeweler Geoffreys,
• 2:31:34
  Speaker 6: supplemented them with other stones of the same size but
• 2:31:38
  Speaker 6: of much inferior quality, and thus restored the marvelous necklace
• 2:31:42
  Speaker 6: to the form in which it had come from the
• 2:31:44
  Speaker 6: hands of Boehmer and BassaNge. For nearly a century, the
• 2:31:49
  Speaker 6: House of Drusubills had prided itself upon the possession of
• 2:31:53
  Speaker 6: this historic jewel. Although adverse circumstances had greatly reduced their fortune,
• 2:31:59
  Speaker 6: they prefer to curtail their household expenses rather than part
• 2:32:03
  Speaker 6: with this relic of royalty. More particularly, the present count
• 2:32:08
  Speaker 6: clung to it as a man clings to the home
• 2:32:10
  Speaker 6: of his ancestors. As a matter of prudence, he had
• 2:32:14
  Speaker 6: rented a safety deposit box at the Crediglione in which
• 2:32:18
  Speaker 6: to keep it. He went for it himself on the
• 2:32:21
  Speaker 6: afternoon of the day in which his wife wished to
• 2:32:23
  Speaker 6: wear it, and he himself carried it back next morning.
• 2:32:29
  Speaker 6: On this particular evening, at the reception given at the
• 2:32:32
  Speaker 6: Palais de Castille, the countess achieved a remarkable success, and
• 2:32:37
  Speaker 6: King Christian, in whose honor the fete was given, commented
• 2:32:41
  Speaker 6: on her grace and beauty. The thousand facets of the
• 2:32:44
  Speaker 6: diamond sparkled and shone like flames of fire about her
• 2:32:48
  Speaker 6: shapely neck and shoulders, and it is safe to say
• 2:32:51
  Speaker 6: that none but she could have borne the weight of
• 2:32:53
  Speaker 6: such an ornament with so much ease and grace. This
• 2:32:58
  Speaker 6: was a double triumph, and the Count de Dreux was
• 2:33:01
  Speaker 6: highly elated. When they returned to their chamber in the
• 2:33:04
  Speaker 6: old house of the Faubourg Saint Germain. He was proud
• 2:33:08
  Speaker 6: of his wife, and quite as proud, perhaps, of the
• 2:33:11
  Speaker 6: necklace that had conferred added luster to his noble house
• 2:33:15
  Speaker 6: for generations. His wife also regarded the necklace with an
• 2:33:19
  Speaker 6: almost childish vanity, and it was not without regret that
• 2:33:23
  Speaker 6: she removed it from her shoulders and handed it to
• 2:33:26
  Speaker 6: her husband, who admired it as passionately as if he
• 2:33:29
  Speaker 6: had never seen it before. Then, having placed it in
• 2:33:32
  Speaker 6: its case of red leather stamped with the cardinal's arms,
• 2:33:36
  Speaker 6: he passed into an adjoining room, which was simply an
• 2:33:39
  Speaker 6: alcove or cabinet that had been cut off from their chamber,
• 2:33:43
  Speaker 6: and which could be entered only by means of a
• 2:33:45
  Speaker 6: door at the foot of their bed. As he had
• 2:33:48
  Speaker 6: done on previous occasions, he hid it on a high
• 2:33:50
  Speaker 6: shelf amongst hat boxes and piles of linen. He closed
• 2:33:55
  Speaker 6: the door and retired. Next morning, he arose about nine o'clock,
• 2:34:00
  Speaker 6: intending to go to the cred Delionee. Before breakfast, he dressed,
• 2:34:05
  Speaker 6: drank a cup of coffee, and went to the stables
• 2:34:07
  Speaker 6: to give his orders. The condition of one of the
• 2:34:10
  Speaker 6: horses worried him. He caused it to be exercised in
• 2:34:13
  Speaker 6: his presence. Then he returned to his wife, who had
• 2:34:16
  Speaker 6: not yet left the chamber. Her maid was dressing her
• 2:34:19
  Speaker 6: hair when her husband entered. She asked, are you going out? Yes,
• 2:34:24
  Speaker 6: as far as the bank, of course, that is wise.
• 2:34:28
  Speaker 6: He entered the cabinet, but after a few seconds, and
• 2:34:31
  Speaker 6: without any sign of astonishment, he asked, did you take it,
• 2:34:35
  Speaker 6: my dear?
• 2:34:36
  Speaker 1: What?
• 2:34:37
  Speaker 6: No, I have not taken anything. You must have moved it.
• 2:34:40
  Speaker 6: Not at all, I have not even opened that door.
• 2:34:44
  Speaker 6: He appeared at the door, disconcerted and stammered, in a
• 2:34:47
  Speaker 6: scarcely intelligible voice. You haven't it wasn't you. Then she
• 2:34:52
  Speaker 6: hastened to his assistance, and together they made a thorough search,
• 2:34:56
  Speaker 6: throwing the boxes to the floor and overturning the piles
• 2:34:59
  Speaker 6: of linen. Then the count said, quite discouraged, it is
• 2:35:03
  Speaker 6: useless to look any more. I put it here on
• 2:35:06
  Speaker 6: this shelf. You must be mistaken. No, no, it was
• 2:35:10
  Speaker 6: on this shelf, nowhere else. They lighted a candle, as
• 2:35:14
  Speaker 6: the room was quite dark, and then carried out all
• 2:35:17
  Speaker 6: the linen and other articles that the room contained, And
• 2:35:20
  Speaker 6: when the room was emptied, they confessed in despair that
• 2:35:24
  Speaker 6: the famous necklace had disappeared, without losing time in vain lamentations.
• 2:35:29
  Speaker 6: The Countess notified the Commissary of Police, Monsieur Valorb, who
• 2:35:33
  Speaker 6: came at once, and, after hearing their story, inquired of
• 2:35:36
  Speaker 6: the count are you sure that no one passed through
• 2:35:40
  Speaker 6: your chamber during the night? Absolutely sure, as I am
• 2:35:43
  Speaker 6: a very light sleeper. Besides, the chamber door was bolted,
• 2:35:47
  Speaker 6: and I remember unbolting it this morning when my wife
• 2:35:49
  Speaker 6: rang for her maid. And there is no other entrance
• 2:35:52
  Speaker 6: to the cabinet none, no windows, yes, but it is
• 2:35:58
  Speaker 6: closed up. I look at it. Candles were lighted, and
• 2:36:03
  Speaker 6: Monsieur Valorp observed at once that the lower half of
• 2:36:05
  Speaker 6: the window was covered by a large press, which was, however,
• 2:36:09
  Speaker 6: so narrow that it did not touch the casement on
• 2:36:12
  Speaker 6: either side. On what does this window open? A small
• 2:36:16
  Speaker 6: inner court and you have a floor above this two
• 2:36:20
  Speaker 6: but on a level with the servant's floor. There is
• 2:36:22
  Speaker 6: a close grating over the court. That is why this
• 2:36:25
  Speaker 6: room is so dark. When the press was moved, they
• 2:36:29
  Speaker 6: found that the window was fastened, which would not have
• 2:36:31
  Speaker 6: been the case if any one had entered that way.
• 2:36:34
  Speaker 6: Unless said the count they went out through our chamber.
• 2:36:38
  Speaker 6: In that case you would have found the door unbolted.
• 2:36:41
  Speaker 6: The commissary considered the situation for a moment, then asked
• 2:36:45
  Speaker 6: the Countess, did any of your servants know that you
• 2:36:48
  Speaker 6: wore the necklace last evening? Certainly I didn't conceal the fact,
• 2:36:52
  Speaker 6: but nobody knew that it was hidden in that cabinet.
• 2:36:55
  Speaker 6: No one, No one, unless be quite sure or madam,
• 2:37:00
  Speaker 6: as it is a very important point. She turned to
• 2:37:04
  Speaker 6: her husband and said, I was thinking of Henriette. Henriette,
• 2:37:09
  Speaker 6: she didn't know where we kept it. Are you sure?
• 2:37:13
  Speaker 6: Who is this woman? Henriette asked Monsieur Valorb, a schoolmate
• 2:37:18
  Speaker 6: who was disowned by her family for marrying beneath her
• 2:37:21
  Speaker 6: after her husband's death. I furnished an apartment in this
• 2:37:24
  Speaker 6: house for her and her son. She is clever with
• 2:37:26
  Speaker 6: her needle and has done some work for me. What
• 2:37:29
  Speaker 6: floor is she on? Same as ours, at the end
• 2:37:32
  Speaker 6: of the corridor. And I think the window of her
• 2:37:35
  Speaker 6: kitchen opens on this little court, does it not, yes,
• 2:37:40
  Speaker 6: just opposite ours. Monsieur Valorb then asked to see Henriette.
• 2:37:46
  Speaker 6: They went to her apartment. She was sewing, whilst her son, Raoul,
• 2:37:50
  Speaker 6: about six years old, was sitting beside her reading. The
• 2:37:54
  Speaker 6: commissary was surprised to see the wretched apartment that had
• 2:37:57
  Speaker 6: been provided for the woman. It consisted of one room
• 2:38:00
  Speaker 6: without a fireplace, and a very small room that served
• 2:38:03
  Speaker 6: as a kitchen. The commissary proceeded to question her. She
• 2:38:07
  Speaker 6: appeared to be overwhelmed on learning of the theft. Last
• 2:38:10
  Speaker 6: evening she had herself dressed the countess and placed the
• 2:38:13
  Speaker 6: necklace upon her shoulders. Good god, she exclaimed, It can't
• 2:38:17
  Speaker 6: be possible, and you have no idea, not the least suspicion.
• 2:38:22
  Speaker 6: Is it possible that the thief may have passed through
• 2:38:24
  Speaker 6: your room? She laughed heartily, never supposing that she could
• 2:38:29
  Speaker 6: be an object of suspicion. But I have not left
• 2:38:32
  Speaker 6: my room. I never go out, and perhaps you have
• 2:38:35
  Speaker 6: not seen. She opened the kitchen window and said, see
• 2:38:39
  Speaker 6: it is at least three meters to the ledge of
• 2:38:41
  Speaker 6: the opposite window. Who told you that we suppose the
• 2:38:45
  Speaker 6: theft might have been committed in that way? But the
• 2:38:48
  Speaker 6: necklace was in the cabinet, wasn't it. How do you
• 2:38:51
  Speaker 6: know that?
• 2:38:52
  Speaker 4: Why?
• 2:38:52
  Speaker 6: I have always known that it was kept there at night,
• 2:38:55
  Speaker 6: it had been mentioned in my presence. Her face, though
• 2:38:58
  Speaker 6: still young, wore unmistakable traces of sorrow and resignation, and
• 2:39:03
  Speaker 6: it now assumed an expression of anxiety, as if some
• 2:39:06
  Speaker 6: danger threatened her. She drew her son toward her. The
• 2:39:10
  Speaker 6: child took her hand and kissed it affectionately. When they
• 2:39:14
  Speaker 6: were alone again, the count said to the Commissary, I
• 2:39:17
  Speaker 6: do not suppose you suspect Henriette. I can answer for her.
• 2:39:21
  Speaker 6: She is honesty itself. I quite agree with you, replied
• 2:39:24
  Speaker 6: Monsieur Valorb. At most I thought there might have been
• 2:39:27
  Speaker 6: an unconscious complicity, but I confess that even that theory
• 2:39:31
  Speaker 6: must be abandoned, as it does not help solve the
• 2:39:34
  Speaker 6: problem now before us. The Commissary of Police abandoned the investigation,
• 2:39:39
  Speaker 6: which was now taken up and completed by the examining judge.
• 2:39:43
  Speaker 6: He questioned the servants, examined the condition of the bolt,
• 2:39:47
  Speaker 6: experimented with the opening and closing of the cabinet window,
• 2:39:50
  Speaker 6: and explored the little court from top to bottom. All
• 2:39:53
  Speaker 6: was in vain. The bolt was intact, the window could
• 2:39:57
  Speaker 6: not be opened or closed from the outside. The inquiries
• 2:40:01
  Speaker 6: especially concerned Henriette, for in spite of everything, they always
• 2:40:05
  Speaker 6: turned in her direction. They made a thorough investigation of
• 2:40:09
  Speaker 6: her past life and ascertained that during the last three
• 2:40:12
  Speaker 6: years she had left the house only four times, and
• 2:40:15
  Speaker 6: her business on those occasions was satisfactorily explained. As a
• 2:40:20
  Speaker 6: matter of fact, she acted as chambermaid and seamstress to
• 2:40:23
  Speaker 6: the Countess, who treated her with great strictness and even severity.
• 2:40:28
  Speaker 6: At the end of a week, the examining judge had
• 2:40:30
  Speaker 6: secured no more definite information than the Commissary of police.
• 2:40:35
  Speaker 6: The judge said, admitting that we know the guilty party,
• 2:40:39
  Speaker 6: which we do not, we are confronted by the fact
• 2:40:42
  Speaker 6: that we do not know how the theft was committed.
• 2:40:44
  Speaker 6: We are brought face to face with two obstacles, a
• 2:40:47
  Speaker 6: door and a window, both closed and fastened. It is
• 2:40:52
  Speaker 6: thus a double mystery. How could anyone enter? And moreover,
• 2:40:56
  Speaker 6: how could anyone escape, leaving behind him a bolted door
• 2:40:59
  Speaker 6: and a fastened window. At the end of four months,
• 2:41:03
  Speaker 6: the secret opinion of the judge was that the count
• 2:41:06
  Speaker 6: and Countess, being hard pressed for money which was their
• 2:41:09
  Speaker 6: normal condition, had sold the Queen's necklace. He closed the investigation.
• 2:41:15
  Speaker 6: The loss of the famous jewel was a severe blow
• 2:41:19
  Speaker 6: to the Drusubilles. Their credit being no longer propped up
• 2:41:22
  Speaker 6: by the reserve fund that such a treasure constituted, they
• 2:41:26
  Speaker 6: found themselves confronted by more exacting creditors than money lenders.
• 2:41:30
  Speaker 6: They were obliged to cut down to the quick, to
• 2:41:33
  Speaker 6: sell or mortgage every article that possessed any commercial value.
• 2:41:37
  Speaker 6: In brief, it would have been their ruin if two
• 2:41:39
  Speaker 6: large legacies from some distant relatives had not saved them.
• 2:41:44
  Speaker 6: Their pride also suffered a downfall, as if they had
• 2:41:47
  Speaker 6: lost a quartering from their escutcheon, and strange to relate.
• 2:41:51
  Speaker 6: It was upon her former schoolmate Henriette that the Countess
• 2:41:55
  Speaker 6: vented her spleen toward her. The Countess displayed the most
• 2:41:59
  Speaker 6: spiteful feelings and even openly accused her First Henriette was
• 2:42:03
  Speaker 6: relegated to the servants quarters and next day discharged. For
• 2:42:09
  Speaker 6: some time, the count and Countess passed an uneventful life.
• 2:42:13
  Speaker 6: They traveled a great deal. Only one incident of record
• 2:42:17
  Speaker 6: occurred during that period. Some months after the departure of Henriette,
• 2:42:21
  Speaker 6: the Countess was surprised when she received and read the
• 2:42:23
  Speaker 6: following letter signed by Henriette Madame, I do not know
• 2:42:29
  Speaker 6: how to thank you for it was you? Was it
• 2:42:31
  Speaker 6: not who sent me that? It could not have been
• 2:42:34
  Speaker 6: any one else. No one but you knows where I live.
• 2:42:37
  Speaker 6: If I am wrong, excuse me and accept my sincere
• 2:42:40
  Speaker 6: thanks for your past favors. What did the letter mean?
• 2:42:45
  Speaker 6: The present or past favors of the Countess consisted principally
• 2:42:48
  Speaker 6: of injustice and neglect, Why then this letter of thanks?
• 2:42:53
  Speaker 6: When asked for an explanation, Henriette replied that she had
• 2:42:56
  Speaker 6: received a letter through the mails, enclosing two banks notes
• 2:43:00
  Speaker 6: of one thousand francs each. The envelope which she enclosed
• 2:43:04
  Speaker 6: with her reply, bore the Paris postmark and was addressed
• 2:43:08
  Speaker 6: in a handwriting that was obviously disguised. Now, whence came
• 2:43:12
  Speaker 6: those two thousand francs? Who had sent them? And why
• 2:43:15
  Speaker 6: had they sent them? Henriette received a similar letter and
• 2:43:19
  Speaker 6: a like sum of money twelve months later, and a
• 2:43:22
  Speaker 6: third time, and a fourth and each year for a
• 2:43:25
  Speaker 6: period of six years, with this difference that in the
• 2:43:28
  Speaker 6: fifth and sixth years the sum was doubled. There was
• 2:43:31
  Speaker 6: another difference, the post office authorities, having seized one of
• 2:43:34
  Speaker 6: the letters under the pretext that it was not registered.
• 2:43:38
  Speaker 6: The last two letters were duly sent according to the
• 2:43:40
  Speaker 6: postal regulations. The first dated from Saint Germain, the other
• 2:43:45
  Speaker 6: from Surin. The writer signed the first one Anquitte and
• 2:43:50
  Speaker 6: the other Peschards. The addresses that he gave were false.
• 2:43:55
  Speaker 6: At the end of six years, Henriette died and the
• 2:43:58
  Speaker 6: mystery remained unsolved. All these events are known to the public.
• 2:44:05
  Speaker 6: The case was one of those which excite public interest,
• 2:44:07
  Speaker 6: and it was a strange coincidence that this necklace, which
• 2:44:10
  Speaker 6: had caused such a great commotion in France at the
• 2:44:13
  Speaker 6: close of the eighteenth century, should create a similar commotion
• 2:44:16
  Speaker 6: a century later. But what I am about to relate
• 2:44:20
  Speaker 6: is known only to the parties directly interested, and a
• 2:44:23
  Speaker 6: few others from whom the Count exacted a promise of secrecy.
• 2:44:27
  Speaker 6: As it is probable that some day or other that
• 2:44:29
  Speaker 6: promise will be broken, I have no hesitation in rending
• 2:44:33
  Speaker 6: the veil and thus disclosing the key to the mystery.
• 2:44:36
  Speaker 6: The explanation of the letter published in the morning papers
• 2:44:38
  Speaker 6: two days ago an extraordinary letter which increased, if possible,
• 2:44:43
  Speaker 6: the mists and shadows that envelope this inscrutable drama. Five
• 2:44:49
  Speaker 6: days ago a number of guests were dining with the
• 2:44:52
  Speaker 6: Count de Drusubiz. There were several ladies present, including his
• 2:44:57
  Speaker 6: two nieces and his cousin, and the following d gentlemen,
• 2:45:01
  Speaker 6: the President of Savillu, the Deputy Beauchas, the Chevalier Floriani,
• 2:45:07
  Speaker 6: whom the Count had known in Sicily, and General Marquis
• 2:45:10
  Speaker 6: de Rousier, an old club friend. After the repast, coffee
• 2:45:15
  Speaker 6: was served by the ladies, who gave the gentlemen permission
• 2:45:18
  Speaker 6: to smoke their cigarettes, provided they would not desert the salon.
• 2:45:22
  Speaker 6: The conversation was general, and finally one of the guests
• 2:45:25
  Speaker 6: chanced to speak of celebrated crimes, and that gave the
• 2:45:29
  Speaker 6: Marquis de Rousier, who delighted to tease the Count, an
• 2:45:32
  Speaker 6: opportunity to mention the affair of the Queen's necklace, a
• 2:45:35
  Speaker 6: subject that the Count detested. Each one expressed his own
• 2:45:39
  Speaker 6: opinion of the affair, and of course their various theories
• 2:45:42
  Speaker 6: were not only contradictory, but impossible. And you, monsieur, said
• 2:45:47
  Speaker 6: the Countess to the Chevalier FLORIANI, what is your opinion?
• 2:45:51
  Speaker 6: Oh ay, I have no opinion, madame. All the guests
• 2:45:56
  Speaker 6: protested for the Chevalier had just related in an entertaining manner,
• 2:46:00
  Speaker 6: various adventures in which he had participated with his father,
• 2:46:03
  Speaker 6: a magistrate at Palermo, and which established his judgment and
• 2:46:07
  Speaker 6: taste in such manners, I confess, said he. I have
• 2:46:11
  Speaker 6: sometimes succeeded in unraveling mysteries that the cleverest detectives have renounced.
• 2:46:16
  Speaker 6: Yet I do not claim to be Sherlock Holmes. Moreover,
• 2:46:20
  Speaker 6: I know very little about the affair of the Queen's necklace.
• 2:46:23
  Speaker 6: Everybody now turned to the Count, who was thus obliged
• 2:46:27
  Speaker 6: quite unwillingly, to narrate all the circumstances connected with the theft.
• 2:46:32
  Speaker 6: The Chevalier listened, reflected, asked a few questions, and said,
• 2:46:37
  Speaker 6: it is very strange. At first sight, the problem appears
• 2:46:41
  Speaker 6: to be a very simple one. The Count shrugged his shoulders.
• 2:46:45
  Speaker 6: The others drew closer to the Chevalier, who continued in
• 2:46:48
  Speaker 6: a dogmatic tone. As a general rule, in order to
• 2:46:52
  Speaker 6: find the author of a crime or a theft, it
• 2:46:55
  Speaker 6: is necessary to determine how that crime or theft was committed,
• 2:46:59
  Speaker 6: or at least how it could have been committed. In
• 2:47:02
  Speaker 6: the present case, nothing is more simple, because we are
• 2:47:06
  Speaker 6: face to face, not with several theories, but with one
• 2:47:09
  Speaker 6: positive fact. That is to say, the thief could only
• 2:47:13
  Speaker 6: enter by the chamber door or the window of the cabinet.
• 2:47:16
  Speaker 6: Now a person cannot open a bolted door from the outside.
• 2:47:19
  Speaker 6: Therefore he must have entered through the window. But it
• 2:47:23
  Speaker 6: was closed and fastened, and we found it fastened afterward,
• 2:47:26
  Speaker 6: declared the Count. In order to do that, continued FLORIANI,
• 2:47:31
  Speaker 6: without heeding the interruption, he had simply to construct a bridge,
• 2:47:35
  Speaker 6: a plank or a ladder between the balcony of the
• 2:47:38
  Speaker 6: kitchen and the ledge of the window, and as the
• 2:47:40
  Speaker 6: jewel case. But I repeat that the window was fastened,
• 2:47:44
  Speaker 6: exclaimed the Count impatiently. This time FLORIANI was obliged to reply.
• 2:47:50
  Speaker 6: He did so with the greatest tranquility, as if the
• 2:47:52
  Speaker 6: objection was the most insignificant affair in the world. I
• 2:47:56
  Speaker 6: will admit that it was. But is there not a
• 2:47:59
  Speaker 6: transom in the upper part of the window? How do
• 2:48:02
  Speaker 6: you know that in the first place that was customary
• 2:48:05
  Speaker 6: in houses of that date, And in the second place,
• 2:48:09
  Speaker 6: without such a transom, the theft cannot be explained. Yes,
• 2:48:13
  Speaker 6: there is one, but it was closed the same as
• 2:48:15
  Speaker 6: the window Consequently, we did not pay attention to it.
• 2:48:19
  Speaker 6: That was a mistake, for if you had examined it,
• 2:48:22
  Speaker 6: you would have found that it had been opened. But
• 2:48:25
  Speaker 6: how I presume that, like all others, it opens by
• 2:48:28
  Speaker 6: means of a wire with a ring on the lower end. Yes,
• 2:48:32
  Speaker 6: but I do not see now through a hole in
• 2:48:35
  Speaker 6: the window. A person could, by the aid of some instrument,
• 2:48:38
  Speaker 6: let us say, a poker with a hook on the end,
• 2:48:41
  Speaker 6: grip the ring, pull down and open the transom. The
• 2:48:45
  Speaker 6: Count laughed and said, excellent, excellent. Your scheme is very
• 2:48:49
  Speaker 6: cleverly constructed. But you overlook one thing, monsieur, there is
• 2:48:53
  Speaker 6: no hole in the window. There was a hole, nonsense,
• 2:48:57
  Speaker 6: we would have seen it. In order to see it,
• 2:49:00
  Speaker 6: you must look for it, and no one has looked
• 2:49:02
  Speaker 6: the whole is there. It must be there at the
• 2:49:05
  Speaker 6: side of the window, in the putty in a vertical direction.
• 2:49:08
  Speaker 6: Of course, the Count arose. He was greatly excited. He
• 2:49:13
  Speaker 6: paced up and down the room two or three times
• 2:49:15
  Speaker 6: in a nervous manner. Then, approaching FLORIANI said, nobody has
• 2:49:19
  Speaker 6: been in that room since nothing has been changed. Very well, monsieur,
• 2:49:24
  Speaker 6: you can easily satisfy yourself that my explanation is correct.
• 2:49:28
  Speaker 6: It does not agree with the facts established by the
• 2:49:30
  Speaker 6: examining judge. You have seen nothing, and yet you contradict
• 2:49:33
  Speaker 6: all that we have seen and all that we know.
• 2:49:36
  Speaker 6: FLORIANI paid no attention to the Count's petulance. He simply
• 2:49:40
  Speaker 6: smiled and said, mon dieu, monsieur, I submit my theory.
• 2:49:44
  Speaker 4: That is all.
• 2:49:45
  Speaker 6: If I am mistaken, you can easily prove it. I
• 2:49:49
  Speaker 6: will do so at once. I confess that your assurance.
• 2:49:52
  Speaker 6: The Count muttered a few more words, then suddenly rushed
• 2:49:55
  Speaker 6: to the door and passed out. Not a word was
• 2:49:58
  Speaker 6: uttered in his absence, and this profect count silence gave
• 2:50:01
  Speaker 6: the situation an air of almost tragic importance. Finally the
• 2:50:05
  Speaker 6: Count returned. He was pale and nervous. He said to
• 2:50:09
  Speaker 6: his friends in a trembling voice. I beg your pardon.
• 2:50:13
  Speaker 6: The revelations of the Chevalier were so unexpected. I should
• 2:50:17
  Speaker 6: never have thought. His wife questioned him eagerly, speak, what
• 2:50:21
  Speaker 6: is it? He stammered, The whole is there at the
• 2:50:25
  Speaker 6: very spot at the side of the window. He seized
• 2:50:28
  Speaker 6: the Chevalier's arm and said to him in an imperious tone, Now,
• 2:50:33
  Speaker 6: Monsieur proceed. I admit that you are right so far.
• 2:50:36
  Speaker 6: But now that is not all. Go on, tell us
• 2:50:39
  Speaker 6: the rest of it. FLORIANI disengaged his arm gently, and
• 2:50:44
  Speaker 6: after a moment continued, Well, in my opinion, this is
• 2:50:49
  Speaker 6: what happened. The thief, knowing that the Countess was going
• 2:50:52
  Speaker 6: to wear the necklace that evening, had prepared his gangway
• 2:50:55
  Speaker 6: or bridge during your absence. He watched you through the
• 2:50:58
  Speaker 6: window and saw you hide the necklace. Afterward he cut
• 2:51:02
  Speaker 6: the glass and pulled the ring. Ah, But the distance
• 2:51:06
  Speaker 6: was so great that it would be impossible for him
• 2:51:08
  Speaker 6: to reach the window fastening through the transom. Well, then
• 2:51:11
  Speaker 6: if he could not open the window by reaching through
• 2:51:14
  Speaker 6: the transom, he must have crawled through the transom. Impossible,
• 2:51:18
  Speaker 6: it is too small, No man could crawl through it.
• 2:51:21
  Speaker 6: Then it was not a man, declared FLORIANI. What if
• 2:51:25
  Speaker 6: the transom is too small to admit a man, it
• 2:51:28
  Speaker 6: must have been a child, a child. Did you not
• 2:51:32
  Speaker 6: say that your friend Henriette had a son, Yes, a
• 2:51:36
  Speaker 6: son named Raoul. Then in all probability it was Raoul
• 2:51:40
  Speaker 6: who committed the theft. What proof of you of that?
• 2:51:44
  Speaker 6: What proof plenty of it? For instance, he stopped and
• 2:51:48
  Speaker 6: reflected for a moment, then continued. For instance, that gangway
• 2:51:52
  Speaker 6: or bridge, it is improbable that the child could have
• 2:51:55
  Speaker 6: brought it in from outside the house and carried it
• 2:51:58
  Speaker 6: away again without being observed. He must have used something
• 2:52:01
  Speaker 6: close at hand. In the little room used by Henriette
• 2:52:04
  Speaker 6: as a kitchen, were there not some shelves against the
• 2:52:07
  Speaker 6: wall on which she placed her pans and dishes? Two shelves,
• 2:52:11
  Speaker 6: to the best of my memory. Are you sure that
• 2:52:13
  Speaker 6: those shelves are really fastened to the wooden brackets that
• 2:52:17
  Speaker 6: support them, For if they are not, we could be
• 2:52:19
  Speaker 6: justified in presuming that the child removed them, fastened them together,
• 2:52:24
  Speaker 6: and thus formed his bridge. Perhaps also, since there was
• 2:52:27
  Speaker 6: a stove, we might find the bent poker that he
• 2:52:30
  Speaker 6: used to open the transom. Without saying a word, the
• 2:52:34
  Speaker 6: Count left the room, and this time those present did
• 2:52:38
  Speaker 6: not feel the nervous anxiety that they had experienced the
• 2:52:41
  Speaker 6: first time. They were confident that Floriani was right, and
• 2:52:44
  Speaker 6: no one was surprised when the Count returned and declared
• 2:52:48
  Speaker 6: it was the child. Everything proves it. You have seen
• 2:52:51
  Speaker 6: the shelves and the poker. Yes, the shelves have been unnailed,
• 2:52:56
  Speaker 6: and the poker is there yet, But the Countess exclaimed,
• 2:53:00
  Speaker 6: you had better say it was his mother. Henriette is
• 2:53:02
  Speaker 6: the guilty party. She must have compelled her son. No,
• 2:53:06
  Speaker 6: declared the Chevalier. The mother had nothing to do with it. Nonsense.
• 2:53:11
  Speaker 6: They occupied the same room. The child could not have
• 2:53:13
  Speaker 6: done it without the mother's knowledge. True, they lived in
• 2:53:16
  Speaker 6: the same room. But all this happened in the adjoining
• 2:53:19
  Speaker 6: room during the night while the mother was asleep. And
• 2:53:23
  Speaker 6: the necklace, said the count it would have been found
• 2:53:26
  Speaker 6: amongst the child's things. Pardon me, he had been out
• 2:53:31
  Speaker 6: that morning on which you found him reading, He had
• 2:53:33
  Speaker 6: just come from school, and perhaps the Commissary of police,
• 2:53:37
  Speaker 6: instead of wasting his time on the innocent mother, would
• 2:53:40
  Speaker 6: have been better employed in searching the child's desk amongst
• 2:53:43
  Speaker 6: his school books. But how do you explain those two
• 2:53:47
  Speaker 6: thousand francs that Henriette received each year? Are they not
• 2:53:50
  Speaker 6: evidence of her complicity? If she had been an accomplice,
• 2:53:54
  Speaker 6: would she have thanked you for that money? And then
• 2:53:57
  Speaker 6: was she not closely watched? But the child, being free,
• 2:54:01
  Speaker 6: could easily go to a neighboring city, negotiate with some
• 2:54:04
  Speaker 6: dealer and sell him one diamond or two diamonds as
• 2:54:07
  Speaker 6: he might wish, upon condition that the money should be
• 2:54:10
  Speaker 6: sent from Paris, and that proceeding could be repeated from
• 2:54:13
  Speaker 6: year to year. An indescribable anxiety oppressed the dru Subilles
• 2:54:18
  Speaker 6: and their guests. There was something in the tone and
• 2:54:21
  Speaker 6: attitude of Floriani, something more than the chevalier's assurance, which
• 2:54:26
  Speaker 6: from the beginning had so annoyed the Count. There was
• 2:54:29
  Speaker 6: a touch of irony that seemed rather hostile than sympathetic.
• 2:54:34
  Speaker 6: But the Count affected to laugh as he said, all
• 2:54:37
  Speaker 6: that is very ingenious and interesting, and I congratulate you
• 2:54:40
  Speaker 6: upon your vivid imagination. No, not at all, replied Floriani,
• 2:54:45
  Speaker 6: with the utmost gravity. I imagine nothing. I simply describe
• 2:54:49
  Speaker 6: the events as they must have occurred. But what do
• 2:54:52
  Speaker 6: you know about them? What you yourself have told me?
• 2:54:55
  Speaker 6: I pictured to myself the life of the mother and
• 2:54:58
  Speaker 6: child down there in the country, the illness of the mother,
• 2:55:02
  Speaker 6: the schemes of and inventions of the child to sell
• 2:55:05
  Speaker 6: the precious stones in order to save his mother's life
• 2:55:09
  Speaker 6: or at least soothe her dying moments. Her illness overcomes her,
• 2:55:14
  Speaker 6: she dies. Years roll on, the child becomes a man,
• 2:55:18
  Speaker 6: and then and now I will give my imagination a
• 2:55:21
  Speaker 6: free reign. Let us suppose that the man feels a
• 2:55:24
  Speaker 6: desire to return to the home of his childhood, that
• 2:55:27
  Speaker 6: he does so, and that he meets there certain people
• 2:55:30
  Speaker 6: who suspect and accuse his mother. Do you realize the
• 2:55:34
  Speaker 6: sorrow and anguish of such an interview? In the very
• 2:55:37
  Speaker 6: house wherein the original drama was played. His words seemed
• 2:55:42
  Speaker 6: to echo for a few seconds in the ensuing silence,
• 2:55:46
  Speaker 6: and one could read upon the faces of the Count
• 2:55:48
  Speaker 6: and Countess stood through a bewildered effort to comprehend his meaning,
• 2:55:52
  Speaker 6: and at the same time the fear and anguish of
• 2:55:56
  Speaker 6: such a comprehension. The Count spoke at last and said,
• 2:56:00
  Speaker 6: who are you, monsieur I, the chevalier FLORIANI, whom you
• 2:56:06
  Speaker 6: met at Palermo, and whom you have been gracious enough
• 2:56:09
  Speaker 6: to invite to your house on several occasions. Then what
• 2:56:12
  Speaker 6: does this story mean? Oh? Nothing at all. It is
• 2:56:16
  Speaker 6: simply a pastime. So far as I am concerned. I
• 2:56:19
  Speaker 6: endeavored to depict the pleasure that Henriette's son, if he
• 2:56:22
  Speaker 6: still lives, would have in telling you that he was
• 2:56:26
  Speaker 6: the guilty party, and that he did it because his
• 2:56:28
  Speaker 6: mother was unhappy, as she was on the point of
• 2:56:31
  Speaker 6: losing the place of a servant by which she lived,
• 2:56:35
  Speaker 6: and because the child suffered at sight of his mother's sorrow.
• 2:56:40
  Speaker 6: He spoke with suppressed emotion, rose partially, and inclined toward
• 2:56:45
  Speaker 6: the Countess. There could be no doubt that the Chevalier
• 2:56:48
  Speaker 6: Floriani was Henriette's son. His attitude and words proclaimed it. Besides,
• 2:56:54
  Speaker 6: was it not his obvious intention and desire to be
• 2:56:57
  Speaker 6: recognized as such? The count count hesitated, what action would
• 2:57:02
  Speaker 6: he take against the audacious guest ring, provoke a scandal,
• 2:57:07
  Speaker 6: unmask the man who had once robbed him? But that
• 2:57:10
  Speaker 6: was a long time ago, and who would believe that
• 2:57:12
  Speaker 6: absurd story about the guilty child. No better far to
• 2:57:17
  Speaker 6: accept the situation and pretend not to comprehend the true
• 2:57:21
  Speaker 6: meaning of it. So the Count, turning to Floriani, exclaimed,
• 2:57:26
  Speaker 6: your story is very curious, very entertaining. I enjoyed it much.
• 2:57:31
  Speaker 6: But what do you think has become of this young man,
• 2:57:34
  Speaker 6: this model son. I hope he has not abandoned the
• 2:57:37
  Speaker 6: career in which he made such a brilliant debut. Oh,
• 2:57:41
  Speaker 6: certainly not after such a debut to steal the Queen's
• 2:57:45
  Speaker 6: necklace at six years of age, the celebrated necklace that
• 2:57:49
  Speaker 6: was coveted by Marie Antoinette, and to steal it, remarked Floriani,
• 2:57:54
  Speaker 6: falling in with the Count's mood, without costing him the
• 2:57:58
  Speaker 6: slightest trouble, without but anyone thinking to examine the condition
• 2:58:02
  Speaker 6: of the window, or to observe that the window sill
• 2:58:05
  Speaker 6: was too clean, that window sill which he had wiped
• 2:58:08
  Speaker 6: in order to effaced the marks he had made in
• 2:58:10
  Speaker 6: the thick dust. We must admit that it was sufficient
• 2:58:14
  Speaker 6: to turn the head of a boy at that age.
• 2:58:16
  Speaker 6: It was all so easy. He had simply to desire
• 2:58:19
  Speaker 6: the thing and reach out his hand to get it.
• 2:58:24
  Speaker 6: And he reached out his hand, both hands, replied the Chevalier, laughing.
• 2:58:29
  Speaker 6: His companions received a shock. What mystery surrounded the life
• 2:58:33
  Speaker 6: of the so called Floriani. How wonderful must have been
• 2:58:36
  Speaker 6: the life of that adventurer, a thief at six years
• 2:58:39
  Speaker 6: of age, and who, to day, in search of excitement,
• 2:58:43
  Speaker 6: or at most to gratify a feeling of resentment, had
• 2:58:47
  Speaker 6: come to brave his victim in her own house, audaciously, foolishly,
• 2:58:52
  Speaker 6: and yet with all the grace and delicacy of a
• 2:58:54
  Speaker 6: courteous guest. He arose and approached the Countess to bid
• 2:58:59
  Speaker 6: her a dear She recoiled unconsciously. He smiled, oh, madame,
• 2:59:06
  Speaker 6: you are afraid of me. Did I pursue my roll
• 2:59:09
  Speaker 6: of parlor magician a step too far? She controlled herself
• 2:59:13
  Speaker 6: and replied with her accustomed ease, not at all, monsieur.
• 2:59:18
  Speaker 6: The legend of that dutiful son interested me very much,
• 2:59:22
  Speaker 6: and I am pleased to know that the necklace had
• 2:59:24
  Speaker 6: such a brilliant destiny. But do you not think that
• 2:59:27
  Speaker 6: the son of that woman, that Henriette, was the victim
• 2:59:30
  Speaker 6: of hereditary influence in the choice of his vocation? He shuddered,
• 2:59:35
  Speaker 6: feeling the point, and replied, I am sure of it.
• 2:59:40
  Speaker 6: And moreover, his natural tendency to crime must have been
• 2:59:43
  Speaker 6: very strong, or he would have been discouraged. Why so, because,
• 2:59:48
  Speaker 6: as you must know, the majority of the diamonds were false.
• 2:59:53
  Speaker 6: The only genuine stones were a few purchased from the
• 2:59:56
  Speaker 6: English jeweler, the others having been sold one by one
• 3:00:00
  Speaker 6: one to meet the cruel necessities of life. It was
• 3:00:04
  Speaker 6: still the Queen's necklace, Monsieur replied. The Countess haughtily, and
• 3:00:09
  Speaker 6: that is something that he, Henriette's son, could not appreciate.
• 3:00:14
  Speaker 6: He was able to appreciate, Madame, that whether true or false,
• 3:00:19
  Speaker 6: the necklace was nothing more than an object of parade,
• 3:00:23
  Speaker 6: an emblem of senseless pride. The count made a threatening gesture,
• 3:00:28
  Speaker 6: but his wife stopped him. Monsieur, She said, if the
• 3:00:33
  Speaker 6: man to whom you allude has the slightest sense of honor,
• 3:00:36
  Speaker 6: she stopped, intimidated by Floriani's cool manner. If that man
• 3:00:42
  Speaker 6: has the slightest sense of honor, he repeated. She felt
• 3:00:47
  Speaker 6: that she would not gain anything by speaking to him
• 3:00:49
  Speaker 6: in that manner, and in spite of her anger and indignation,
• 3:00:53
  Speaker 6: trembling as she was from humiliated pride, she said to him,
• 3:00:58
  Speaker 6: almost politely, monsieur. The legend says that Reteau de Villette,
• 3:01:03
  Speaker 6: when in possession of the Queen's necklace, did not disfigure
• 3:01:07
  Speaker 6: the mounting. He understood that the diamonds were simply the
• 3:01:10
  Speaker 6: ornament the accessory, and that the mounting was the essential
• 3:01:14
  Speaker 6: work the creation of the artist, and he respected it accordingly.
• 3:01:19
  Speaker 6: Do you think that this man had the same feeling.
• 3:01:23
  Speaker 6: I have no doubt that the mounting still exists. The
• 3:01:26
  Speaker 6: child respected it well, monsieur, if you should happen to
• 3:01:31
  Speaker 6: meet him, will you tell him that he unjustly keeps
• 3:01:34
  Speaker 6: possession of a relic that is the property and pride
• 3:01:38
  Speaker 6: of a certain family, And that although the stones have
• 3:01:41
  Speaker 6: been removed, the Queen's necklace still belongs to the house
• 3:01:45
  Speaker 6: of Drusubilles. It belongs to us as much as our
• 3:01:49
  Speaker 6: name or our honor. The chevalier replied, simply, I shall
• 3:01:55
  Speaker 6: tell him, Madame. He bowed to her, saluted the count
• 3:02:00
  Speaker 6: and the other guests, and departed. Four days later, the
• 3:02:05
  Speaker 6: Countess stood through found upon the table in her chamber
• 3:02:09
  Speaker 6: a red leather case bearing the cardinal's arms. She opened
• 3:02:13
  Speaker 6: it and found the Queen's necklace. But as all things
• 3:02:17
  Speaker 6: must in the life of a man who strives for
• 3:02:20
  Speaker 6: unity and logic, converge toward the same goal, and as
• 3:02:25
  Speaker 6: a little advertising never does any harm. On the following day,
• 3:02:29
  Speaker 6: the Ecco de France published these sensational lines. The Queen's Necklace,
• 3:02:36
  Speaker 6: the famous historical jewelry stolen from the family of Drusubilles,
• 3:02:41
  Speaker 6: has been recovered by Arsene Lupin, who hastened to restore
• 3:02:45
  Speaker 6: it to its rightful owner. We cannot too highly commend
• 3:02:50
  Speaker 6: such a delicate and chivalrous act.
• 3:02:57
  Speaker 5: End of Chapter five, Chapter six, The Seven of Hearts.
• 3:03:04
  Speaker 4: I'm frequently asked this question, how did you make the
• 3:03:07
  Speaker 4: acquaintance of ur Sine Luperer? My connection with us in
• 3:03:11
  Speaker 4: Lupe is well known. The details that I gather concerning
• 3:03:14
  Speaker 4: that mysterious man, the irrefutable facts that I present, the
• 3:03:17
  Speaker 4: new evidence that I produce, the interpretation that I place
• 3:03:20
  Speaker 4: on certain acts of which the public has seen only
• 3:03:23
  Speaker 4: the exterior manifestations without being able to discover the secret
• 3:03:27
  Speaker 4: reasons or the invisible mechanism. All establish, if not an intimacy,
• 3:03:33
  Speaker 4: at least amicable relations and regular confidences. But how did
• 3:03:38
  Speaker 4: I make his acquaintance? Why was I selected to be
• 3:03:41
  Speaker 4: his historiographer? Why I and not some one else? The
• 3:03:47
  Speaker 4: answer is simple. Chance alone presided over my choice. My
• 3:03:51
  Speaker 4: Merit was not considered. It was chance that put me
• 3:03:54
  Speaker 4: in his way. It was chance that I was a
• 3:03:57
  Speaker 4: participant in one of his strangest and most mysterious adventures.
• 3:04:01
  Speaker 4: And by chance I was an actor in a drama
• 3:04:04
  Speaker 4: that he was the marvelous stage director, an obscure and
• 3:04:08
  Speaker 4: intricate drama bristling with such thrilling events that I feel
• 3:04:12
  Speaker 4: a certain embarrassment in undertaking to describe it. The first
• 3:04:16
  Speaker 4: act takes place during that memorable night of twenty second June,
• 3:04:21
  Speaker 4: of which so much has already been said, And for
• 3:04:24
  Speaker 4: my part, I attribute the anomalous conduct of which I
• 3:04:27
  Speaker 4: was guilty on that occasion to the unusual form of
• 3:04:31
  Speaker 4: mind in which I found myself on my return home.
• 3:04:34
  Speaker 4: I had dined with some friends at the Cascade Restaurant,
• 3:04:37
  Speaker 4: and the entire evening, whilst we smoked and the orchestra
• 3:04:40
  Speaker 4: played melancholy waltzes, we talked only of crimes and thefts,
• 3:04:44
  Speaker 4: and dark and frightful intrigues. That is always a poor
• 3:04:49
  Speaker 4: overture to a night's sleep. The Saint Martin went away
• 3:04:53
  Speaker 4: in an automobile Jean Daspri, that delightful, heedless Daspris, who
• 3:04:58
  Speaker 4: six months later was killed in such tragic manner on
• 3:05:01
  Speaker 4: the frontier of Morocco. Gendespris and I returned on foot
• 3:05:05
  Speaker 4: through the dark, warm night. When we arrived in front
• 3:05:09
  Speaker 4: of the little house in which I had lived for
• 3:05:11
  Speaker 4: a year at Ny on the Bulevarmayo, he said to me,
• 3:05:16
  Speaker 4: you afraid. What an idea. But this house is too isolated,
• 3:05:20
  Speaker 4: no neighbors, vacant lots. Really, I'm not a coward and
• 3:05:24
  Speaker 4: gets well, you are very cheering. I must say, oh ah,
• 3:05:29
  Speaker 4: I say that as I would say anything else. The
• 3:05:31
  Speaker 4: Saint Martin have impressed me with their stories of brigands
• 3:05:34
  Speaker 4: and thieves. We shook hands and said good night. I
• 3:05:38
  Speaker 4: took out my key and opened the door. Well, that's good,
• 3:05:42
  Speaker 4: I mournmwood. Antoine has forgotten to light a candle. Then
• 3:05:46
  Speaker 4: I recalled the fact that Antoine was away. I'd given
• 3:05:50
  Speaker 4: him a short leave of absence. Forthwith, I was disagreeably
• 3:05:54
  Speaker 4: oppressed by the darkness and silence of the night. I
• 3:05:57
  Speaker 4: ascended the stairs on tiptoe and reached my room as
• 3:06:01
  Speaker 4: quickly as possible. Then, contrary to my usual habit, I
• 3:06:05
  Speaker 4: turned the key and pushed the bolt.
• 3:06:08
  Speaker 5: The light of my.
• 3:06:09
  Speaker 4: Candle restored my courage. Yet I was careful to take
• 3:06:13
  Speaker 4: my revolver from its case, a large powerful weapon, and
• 3:06:16
  Speaker 4: place it beside the bed. That precaution completed my reassurance.
• 3:06:23
  Speaker 4: I laid down and, as usual, took a book from
• 3:06:25
  Speaker 4: my night table to read myself to sleep. Then I
• 3:06:28
  Speaker 4: received a great surprise. Instead of the paper knife with
• 3:06:33
  Speaker 4: which I had marked my place upon the preceding, I
• 3:06:36
  Speaker 4: found the envelope closed with five seals of red wax.
• 3:06:41
  Speaker 4: I seized it eagerly. It was addressed to me and
• 3:06:44
  Speaker 4: marked urgent. A letter, A letter addressed to me? Who
• 3:06:48
  Speaker 4: could have put it in that place? Nervously I tore
• 3:06:52
  Speaker 4: open the envelope and read from the moment you opened
• 3:06:56
  Speaker 4: this letter. Whatever happens, whatever you may hear, do not move,
• 3:07:01
  Speaker 4: do not utter, utter one cry, otherwise you are doomed.
• 3:07:06
  Speaker 4: I am not a coward, and quite as well as
• 3:07:09
  Speaker 4: any other I can face real danger or smile at
• 3:07:12
  Speaker 4: the visionary perils of imagination. But let me repeat, I
• 3:07:17
  Speaker 4: was in an anomalous condition of mind, with my nerves
• 3:07:20
  Speaker 4: set on edge by the events of the evening. Besides,
• 3:07:24
  Speaker 4: was it not in my present situation something startling and mysterious,
• 3:07:28
  Speaker 4: calculated to disturb the most courageous spirit. My feverish fingers
• 3:07:33
  Speaker 4: clutched the sheet of paper. I read and re read
• 3:07:37
  Speaker 4: those threatening words. Do not move, do not utter one cry,
• 3:07:45
  Speaker 4: otherwise you are doomed. Nonsense. I thought it's a joke,
• 3:07:51
  Speaker 4: the work of some cheerful idiot. I was about to laugh,
• 3:07:55
  Speaker 4: a good loud laugh. Who prevented me? What haunting fear
• 3:08:00
  Speaker 4: compressed my throat? Least I would blow out the candle. No,
• 3:08:05
  Speaker 4: I could not do it. Do not move, or you
• 3:08:07
  Speaker 4: are doomed were the words he had written. These auto
• 3:08:12
  Speaker 4: suggestions are frequently more imperious than the most positive realities.
• 3:08:17
  Speaker 4: But why should I struggle against them? I had simply
• 3:08:20
  Speaker 4: to close my eyes. I did so. At that moment,
• 3:08:26
  Speaker 4: I heard a slight noise, followed by crackling sounds, proceeding
• 3:08:31
  Speaker 4: from a large room used by me as a library.
• 3:08:34
  Speaker 4: A small room or antechamber was situated between the library
• 3:08:37
  Speaker 4: and my bedchamber. The approach of an actual danger greatly
• 3:08:42
  Speaker 4: excited me. I felt a desire to get up, seize
• 3:08:44
  Speaker 4: my revolver, and rush into the library. I did not rise.
• 3:08:48
  Speaker 4: I saw one of the curtains of the left window move.
• 3:08:52
  Speaker 4: There was no doubt about it. The curtain had moved,
• 3:08:55
  Speaker 4: it was still moving, and I saw, oh, I saw
• 3:08:58
  Speaker 4: quite distinctly in the narrow space between the curtains and
• 3:09:02
  Speaker 4: the window, a human form, a bulky mass that prevented
• 3:09:06
  Speaker 4: the curtains from hanging straight. It was equally certain that
• 3:09:10
  Speaker 4: the man saw me through the large meshes of the curtain.
• 3:09:15
  Speaker 4: Then I understood the situation. His mission was to guard
• 3:09:18
  Speaker 4: me while the others carried away their booty. Should I
• 3:09:21
  Speaker 4: rise and seize my revolver? Impossible? He was there at
• 3:09:26
  Speaker 4: the least movement, at the least cry. I was doomed.
• 3:09:31
  Speaker 4: Then came a terrific noise that shook the house. This
• 3:09:33
  Speaker 4: was followed by lighter sounds, two or three together, like
• 3:09:37
  Speaker 4: those of a hammer that rebounded. At least that was
• 3:09:39
  Speaker 4: the impression formed in my confused brain. These were mingled
• 3:09:43
  Speaker 4: with other sounds, thus creating a veritable uproar, which proved
• 3:09:48
  Speaker 4: that the intruders were not only bold, but felt themselves
• 3:09:52
  Speaker 4: secure from interruption. They were right. I did not move.
• 3:09:57
  Speaker 4: Was it cowardice?
• 3:09:58
  Speaker 3: No?
• 3:10:00
  Speaker 4: The weakness, a total inability to move any portion of
• 3:10:03
  Speaker 4: my body, combined with discretion. For why should I struggle
• 3:10:08
  Speaker 4: behind that man? There were ten others who had come
• 3:10:11
  Speaker 4: to his assistance. Should I risk my life to save
• 3:10:14
  Speaker 4: a few tapestries and be below throughout the night? My
• 3:10:19
  Speaker 4: torture endured, insufferable torture, terrible anguish. The noises had stopped,
• 3:10:28
  Speaker 4: but I was in constant fear of their renewal, and
• 3:10:31
  Speaker 4: the man the manner was guiding me weapon in hand.
• 3:10:35
  Speaker 4: My fearful eyes remained cast in his direction, and my
• 3:10:38
  Speaker 4: heart beat and a profuse perspiration oozed from every pore
• 3:10:43
  Speaker 4: of my body. Suddenly I experienced an immense relief. A
• 3:10:50
  Speaker 4: milk wagon, whose sound was familiar to me, passed along
• 3:10:53
  Speaker 4: the boulevard, and at the same time I had an
• 3:10:55
  Speaker 4: impression of the light of a new day, trying to
• 3:10:58
  Speaker 4: steal through the closed window blo at last daylight penetrated
• 3:11:03
  Speaker 4: the room. Other vehicles passed along the boulevard, and all
• 3:11:08
  Speaker 4: the phantoms of the night vanished. Then I put one
• 3:11:12
  Speaker 4: arm out of the bed, slowly and cautiously. My eyes
• 3:11:15
  Speaker 4: were fixed upon the curtain, locating the exact spot of
• 3:11:19
  Speaker 4: which I must fire. I made an exact calculation of
• 3:11:23
  Speaker 4: the movements I must make. Then quickly I seized my
• 3:11:28
  Speaker 4: revolver and fired. I leaped from my bed with a
• 3:11:30
  Speaker 4: cry of deliverance, and rushed to the window. The bullet
• 3:11:34
  Speaker 4: had passed through the curtain and the window glass, but
• 3:11:38
  Speaker 4: it had not touch the man, for the very good
• 3:11:41
  Speaker 4: reason that there was no one there. Nobody. Thus, during
• 3:11:46
  Speaker 4: the entire night. I had been hypnotized by a fold
• 3:11:49
  Speaker 4: of the curtain, and during that time the malefactors.
• 3:11:53
  Speaker 5: Furiously.
• 3:11:54
  Speaker 4: With an enthusiasm that nothing could have stopped, I turned
• 3:11:56
  Speaker 4: the key, opened the door, crossed the ante chamber, opened
• 3:11:59
  Speaker 4: another door, and rushed into the library. But amazement stopped
• 3:12:03
  Speaker 4: me of my threshold, panting, astounded, more astonished than I
• 3:12:07
  Speaker 4: had been by the absence of the man. All the
• 3:12:09
  Speaker 4: things that I had supposed had been stolen, furniture, books, pictures,
• 3:12:13
  Speaker 4: old tapestries, everything was in its proper place. It was incredible.
• 3:12:18
  Speaker 4: I could not believe my eyes. Notwithstanding that uproar, those
• 3:12:22
  Speaker 4: noises of removal, I made it to her. I inspected
• 3:12:25
  Speaker 4: the walls, I made a mental inventory of all the
• 3:12:27
  Speaker 4: familiar objects. Nothing was missing, And what was more disconcerting,
• 3:12:34
  Speaker 4: there was no clue to the intruders, not a sign,
• 3:12:37
  Speaker 4: not a chair disturbed, not the trace of a footstep. Well, well,
• 3:12:43
  Speaker 4: I said to myself, pressing my hands on my bewildered head.
• 3:12:46
  Speaker 4: Surely I am not crazy. I hear something inch by inch.
• 3:12:52
  Speaker 4: I made a careful examination of the room. It was
• 3:12:55
  Speaker 4: in vain and as I could consider this a discovery,
• 3:12:58
  Speaker 4: under a small perch rug I found a card, an
• 3:13:01
  Speaker 4: ordinary playing card. It was the seven of Hearts. It
• 3:13:09
  Speaker 4: was like any other seven of hearts in French playing cards,
• 3:13:12
  Speaker 4: with this slight but curious exception. The extreme point of
• 3:13:16
  Speaker 4: each of the seven red spots or hearts was pierced
• 3:13:20
  Speaker 4: by a hole, round and regular, as if made with
• 3:13:23
  Speaker 4: the point of an all. Nothing more a card and
• 3:13:28
  Speaker 4: a letter found in a book. But was that not
• 3:13:32
  Speaker 4: sufficients to affirm that I had not been the plaything
• 3:13:37
  Speaker 4: of a dream. Throughout the day I continued my searches
• 3:13:42
  Speaker 4: in the library. It was a large room, much too
• 3:13:44
  Speaker 4: large for the requirements of such a house, and the
• 3:13:46
  Speaker 4: decoration of which attested the bizarre taste of its founder.
• 3:13:52
  Speaker 4: The floor was a mosaic of multi colored stones formed
• 3:13:55
  Speaker 4: into large symmetrical designs. The walls were covered with a
• 3:13:59
  Speaker 4: similar mosaic, arranged in panels Pompeian allegories, Byzantine compositions, frescoes
• 3:14:06
  Speaker 4: of the Middle Ages. A Bacchus bestriding a casque An emperor,
• 3:14:10
  Speaker 4: wearing a gold crown, a flowing beard, and holding a
• 3:14:13
  Speaker 4: sword in his right hand, quite high after the style
• 3:14:17
  Speaker 4: of an artist's studio. There was a large window, the
• 3:14:20
  Speaker 4: only one in the room. That window being always open
• 3:14:25
  Speaker 4: at night, it was probable that the men had entered
• 3:14:27
  Speaker 4: through it by the aid of a ladder, but again
• 3:14:31
  Speaker 4: there was no evidence. The bottom of the ladder would
• 3:14:35
  Speaker 4: have left some marks in the soft earth beneath the window,
• 3:14:38
  Speaker 4: but there were none, nor were there any traces of
• 3:14:41
  Speaker 4: footsteps in any part of the yard. I had no
• 3:14:45
  Speaker 4: idea of informing the police, because the facts I had
• 3:14:48
  Speaker 4: before me were so absurd and inconsistent. They would laugh
• 3:14:53
  Speaker 4: at me. However, as I was then a reporter on
• 3:14:58
  Speaker 4: the staff of the Guilblains, I wrote a lengthy account
• 3:15:01
  Speaker 4: of my adventure, and it was published in the paper
• 3:15:04
  Speaker 4: on the second day hereafter. The article attracted some attention,
• 3:15:08
  Speaker 4: but no one took it seriously. They regarded it as
• 3:15:11
  Speaker 4: a work of fiction rather than a story of real life.
• 3:15:16
  Speaker 4: The Saint Martin railed me, but Daspris, who took an
• 3:15:19
  Speaker 4: interest in such matters, came to see me, made a
• 3:15:22
  Speaker 4: study of the affair, but reached no conclusion. A few
• 3:15:26
  Speaker 4: mornings later, the door bell rang and Antoine came to
• 3:15:29
  Speaker 4: inform me that a gentleman desired to see me. He
• 3:15:32
  Speaker 4: would not give his name, I directed Antoine to show
• 3:15:35
  Speaker 4: him up. He was a man of about forty years
• 3:15:37
  Speaker 4: of age, with a very dark complexion, lively features, and
• 3:15:41
  Speaker 4: whose correct dress slightly frayed, proclaimed a taste that contrasted
• 3:15:45
  Speaker 4: strangely with his rather vulgar manners. Without any preamble, he
• 3:15:50
  Speaker 4: said to me in a rough voice that confirmed my
• 3:15:53
  Speaker 4: suspicion as to his social position. Monsieur, Whilst in a
• 3:15:57
  Speaker 4: Cafeire picked up a copy of the Guilblais and read
• 3:16:00
  Speaker 4: your article. It interested me very much, Thank you, and
• 3:16:04
  Speaker 4: here I am ah yes to talk to you. Are
• 3:16:09
  Speaker 4: all the facts related by you quite correct? Absolutely so.
• 3:16:15
  Speaker 3: Well?
• 3:16:15
  Speaker 4: In that case, I can perhaps give you some information
• 3:16:19
  Speaker 4: very well? Proceed No, not yet. First I must be
• 3:16:25
  Speaker 4: sure that the facts are exactly as you have related them.
• 3:16:28
  Speaker 4: I have given you my word. What further proof do
• 3:16:30
  Speaker 4: you want? I must remain alone in this room. I
• 3:16:34
  Speaker 4: do not understand, I said, with surprise. It is an
• 3:16:38
  Speaker 4: idea that occurred to me when reading your article. Certain
• 3:16:41
  Speaker 4: details established an extraordinary coincidence with another case that came
• 3:16:46
  Speaker 4: under my notice. If I am mistaken, then I shall
• 3:16:48
  Speaker 4: say nothing more, and the only means of ascertaining the
• 3:16:52
  Speaker 4: truth is by my remaining in the room alone. What
• 3:16:56
  Speaker 4: was the bottom of this proposition? Later I recall that
• 3:17:00
  Speaker 4: the man was exceedingly nervous, But at the same time,
• 3:17:04
  Speaker 4: though somewhat astonished, I found nothing particularly abnormal about the
• 3:17:07
  Speaker 4: man or the request he had made. However, my curiosity
• 3:17:11
  Speaker 4: was aroused, so I replied, very well, how much time
• 3:17:15
  Speaker 4: do you require?
• 3:17:17
  Speaker 1: No?
• 3:17:17
  Speaker 4: Three minutes? No longer three minutes from now. I will
• 3:17:21
  Speaker 4: rejoin you. I left the room and went downstairs. I
• 3:17:25
  Speaker 4: took out my watch. One minute passed, two minutes. Why
• 3:17:31
  Speaker 4: did I feel so depressed? Why did those moments seem
• 3:17:35
  Speaker 4: so solemn and weird? Two minutes and a half, two
• 3:17:39
  Speaker 4: minutes and three quarters. Then I heard a pistol shot.
• 3:17:43
  Speaker 4: I bounded up the stairs and entered the room. A
• 3:17:45
  Speaker 4: cry of horror escaped me. In the middle of the room,
• 3:17:49
  Speaker 4: the man was lying on his left side, motionless. Blood
• 3:17:53
  Speaker 4: was flowing from a wound in his forehead. Near his
• 3:17:56
  Speaker 4: hand was a revolver, still smoking. But in addition to
• 3:18:00
  Speaker 4: this frightful spectacle, my attention was attracted by another object.
• 3:18:05
  Speaker 4: At two feet from the body, upon the floor, I
• 3:18:08
  Speaker 4: saw a playing card. It was the Seven of Hearts.
• 3:18:12
  Speaker 4: I picked it up. The lower extremity of each of
• 3:18:15
  Speaker 4: the seven spots was pierced by a small round hole.
• 3:18:23
  Speaker 4: A half hour later, the Commissary of Police arrived, then
• 3:18:27
  Speaker 4: the coroner and the chief of the surte Monsieur du
• 3:18:31
  Speaker 4: dux I had been careful not to touch the corpse.
• 3:18:36
  Speaker 4: The preliminary inquiry was very brief and disclosed nothing. There
• 3:18:41
  Speaker 4: were no papers in the pockets of the deceased, no
• 3:18:43
  Speaker 4: name upon his clothes, no initial upon his linen, nothing
• 3:18:46
  Speaker 4: to give any clue to his identity. The room was
• 3:18:51
  Speaker 4: in the same perfect order as before. The furniture had
• 3:18:54
  Speaker 4: not been disturbed. Yet this man had not come to
• 3:18:56
  Speaker 4: my house solely for the purpose of killing himself, or
• 3:19:00
  Speaker 4: because he considered my place the most convenient one for
• 3:19:03
  Speaker 4: his suicide. There must have been a motive for his
• 3:19:06
  Speaker 4: act of despair, and that motive was, no doubt the
• 3:19:10
  Speaker 4: result of some new fact ascertained by him during the
• 3:19:14
  Speaker 4: three minutes he was alone.
• 3:19:16
  Speaker 2: What was that fact?
• 3:19:18
  Speaker 4: What had he seen? What frightful secret had been revealed
• 3:19:23
  Speaker 4: to him? There was no answer to these questions. But
• 3:19:28
  Speaker 4: at the last moment an incident occurred that appeared to
• 3:19:30
  Speaker 4: us of considerable importance, as two policemen were raising the
• 3:19:35
  Speaker 4: body to place it on a stretcher. The left hand
• 3:19:37
  Speaker 4: thus being disturbed, A crumpled card fell from it. The
• 3:19:41
  Speaker 4: card bore these words, jeorg and a Matte thirty seven
• 3:19:47
  Speaker 4: rue de berrie. What did that mean? Jeorg ander Maatt
• 3:19:52
  Speaker 4: was a rich banker in Paris, the founder and president
• 3:19:55
  Speaker 4: of the Metal Exchange, which had given such an impulse
• 3:19:58
  Speaker 4: to the metallic industries and France. He lived in princely style,
• 3:20:03
  Speaker 4: was the possessor of numerous automobiles, coaches and an expensive
• 3:20:07
  Speaker 4: racing stable. His social affairs were very select, and Madame
• 3:20:11
  Speaker 4: ander Matte was noted for her grace and beauty. Can
• 3:20:17
  Speaker 4: that be the man's name? I asked the chief of
• 3:20:20
  Speaker 4: the Sieurte leaned over him. Tis not he? Monsieur ander
• 3:20:25
  Speaker 4: Matt is a thin man and slightly gray? But why
• 3:20:28
  Speaker 4: this card? Have you a telephone? Monsieur, here's in the vestibule?
• 3:20:33
  Speaker 4: Come with me? He looked in the directory and then
• 3:20:36
  Speaker 4: died for number four one five two one. Is Monsieur
• 3:20:42
  Speaker 4: and deer Matt at home? Please tell him that Monsieur
• 3:20:45
  Speaker 4: Dudu wishes him to come at once to one hundred
• 3:20:49
  Speaker 4: and two bel amayo very important. Twenty minutes later, Monsieur
• 3:20:54
  Speaker 4: Ander Matt arrived in his automobile. After the circumstances have
• 3:20:59
  Speaker 4: been explained to him, he was taken in to see
• 3:21:01
  Speaker 4: the corpse. He dispayed considerable emotion and spoke in a
• 3:21:05
  Speaker 4: low tone, apparently unwillingly. Etien varens, he said, you know
• 3:21:12
  Speaker 4: him no, or at least ye, yes, by sight? Only
• 3:21:17
  Speaker 4: his brother? Ah, he has a brother, yes, Alfred Varain.
• 3:21:22
  Speaker 4: He came to see me once on some matter of business.
• 3:21:25
  Speaker 3: I forget what it was.
• 3:21:27
  Speaker 4: Where does he live? The two brothers lived together Rue
• 3:21:30
  Speaker 4: de Provence. I think, do you know any reason why
• 3:21:34
  Speaker 4: he should commit suicide? None? He held a card in
• 3:21:38
  Speaker 4: his hand. It was your card with your address. I
• 3:21:41
  Speaker 4: do not understand that it must have been there by
• 3:21:44
  Speaker 4: some chance that would be disclosed by the investigation. Great
• 3:21:48
  Speaker 4: strange chance, I thought, and I felt that the others
• 3:21:52
  Speaker 4: entertained the same impression. I discovered the same impression in
• 3:21:56
  Speaker 4: the papers next day, and amongst all my friends with
• 3:21:59
  Speaker 4: whom I discussed the affair amid the mysteries that enveloped it.
• 3:22:04
  Speaker 4: After a double discovery of the seven of Hearts, pierced
• 3:22:07
  Speaker 4: with seven holes after two inscrutable events that had happened
• 3:22:11
  Speaker 4: in my house, and that visiting card promised to throw
• 3:22:15
  Speaker 4: some light on the affair. Through it, the truth may
• 3:22:19
  Speaker 4: be revealed. But contrary to our expectations, Monsieur Andermatz furnished
• 3:22:25
  Speaker 4: no explanation. He said, I have told you all I know,
• 3:22:29
  Speaker 4: what more can I do. I am greatly surprised that
• 3:22:32
  Speaker 4: my card should be found in such a place, and
• 3:22:35
  Speaker 4: I sincerely hope the point will be cleared up.
• 3:22:39
  Speaker 3: It was not.
• 3:22:41
  Speaker 4: The official investigation established that the Varam brothers were of
• 3:22:44
  Speaker 4: Swiss origin, had led a shifting life under various names,
• 3:22:48
  Speaker 4: frequenting gambling resorts, associating with a band of foreigners who
• 3:22:53
  Speaker 4: had been dispersed by the police after a series of
• 3:22:56
  Speaker 4: robberies in which the participation was established only by their
• 3:22:59
  Speaker 4: flight at number twenty four Rue de Provence, where the
• 3:23:02
  Speaker 4: Varin brothers had lived six years before, no one knew
• 3:23:06
  Speaker 4: what had become of them. I confess that for my part,
• 3:23:10
  Speaker 4: the case seemed to me so complicated and so mysterious
• 3:23:14
  Speaker 4: that I did not think the problem would ever be solved.
• 3:23:18
  Speaker 4: So I concluded to waste no more time upon it.
• 3:23:21
  Speaker 4: But Jia d'aspri, whom I frequently met at that period,
• 3:23:25
  Speaker 4: became more and more interested in it each day. It
• 3:23:28
  Speaker 4: was he who pointed to me the item from a
• 3:23:31
  Speaker 4: foreign newspaper, which was reproduced and commented upon by the
• 3:23:34
  Speaker 4: entire press. It was as follows, the first trial of
• 3:23:39
  Speaker 4: a new model submarine boat, which is expected to revolutionize
• 3:23:42
  Speaker 4: naval warfare, will be given in the presence of the
• 3:23:45
  Speaker 4: former Emperor, at a place that would be kept secret
• 3:23:48
  Speaker 4: until the last minute. An indiscretion has revealed its name.
• 3:23:52
  Speaker 4: It is called the Seven of Hearts. The Seven of
• 3:23:56
  Speaker 4: Hearts that presented a new problem. Could a connection be
• 3:24:00
  Speaker 4: established between the name of the submarine and the incidents
• 3:24:04
  Speaker 4: which we have related? But a connection of what nature?
• 3:24:08
  Speaker 4: What had happened here could have no possible relation with
• 3:24:12
  Speaker 4: a submarine. What do you know about it? Despri said
• 3:24:17
  Speaker 4: to me. The most diverse effects often proceed from the
• 3:24:21
  Speaker 4: same cause. Two days later, the following foreign news item
• 3:24:26
  Speaker 4: was received and published. It is said that the plans
• 3:24:29
  Speaker 4: for the new submarine Seven of Hearts were prepared by
• 3:24:32
  Speaker 4: French engineers, who, having sought in vain the support of
• 3:24:35
  Speaker 4: their compatriots, subsequently entered in negotiations with the British Admiralty
• 3:24:40
  Speaker 4: without success. I do not wish to give undue publicity
• 3:24:45
  Speaker 4: to certain delicate matters which once provoked considerable excitement. Yet,
• 3:24:50
  Speaker 4: since all danger of injury therefrom has now come to
• 3:24:52
  Speaker 4: an end, I must speak of the article that appeared
• 3:24:56
  Speaker 4: in the Echo de France, which aroused so much comment
• 3:24:59
  Speaker 4: at that time, in which through considerable light upon the
• 3:25:03
  Speaker 4: mystery of the Seven of Hearts. This is the article
• 3:25:07
  Speaker 4: as it was published over the signature of Salvador, the
• 3:25:13
  Speaker 4: Affair of the Seven of Hearts, A corner of the
• 3:25:15
  Speaker 4: veil raised, we will be brief. Ten years ago, a
• 3:25:20
  Speaker 4: young mining engineer, Louis la Combe, wishing to devote his
• 3:25:24
  Speaker 4: time and fortune to certain studies, resigned his position that
• 3:25:27
  Speaker 4: he then held and rented number one O two Boulevar Mayo,
• 3:25:32
  Speaker 4: a small house which had been recently built and decorated
• 3:25:35
  Speaker 4: from an Italian count. Through the agency of the Varin
• 3:25:38
  Speaker 4: brothers of Lausanne, one of whom assisted in the preliminary
• 3:25:43
  Speaker 4: experiments and the other acted as financial agent, the young
• 3:25:47
  Speaker 4: engineer was introduced to Georges Andermattz, the founder of the
• 3:25:51
  Speaker 4: Metal Exchange. After several interviews, he succeeded in interesting the
• 3:25:56
  Speaker 4: banker in a submarine boat on which he was working,
• 3:26:00
  Speaker 4: and it was agreed that as soon as the invention
• 3:26:02
  Speaker 4: was perfected, Monsieur Andermatt was used influence with the Minister
• 3:26:06
  Speaker 4: of Marine to obtain a series of trials under the
• 3:26:09
  Speaker 4: direction of the government. For two years, Loui la Combe
• 3:26:13
  Speaker 4: was a frequent visitor at Andermatt's house, and he submitted
• 3:26:16
  Speaker 4: to the banker the various improvements he made upon his
• 3:26:19
  Speaker 4: original plans, until one day, being satisfied with the perfection
• 3:26:23
  Speaker 4: of his work, he asked Monsie Andermatt to communicate with
• 3:26:26
  Speaker 4: the Minister of Marine. That day, Loui la Combe dined
• 3:26:30
  Speaker 4: at Mont Monsieur Andermatt's house. He left there about half
• 3:26:34
  Speaker 4: past eleven at night. He has not been seen since.
• 3:26:39
  Speaker 4: A perusal of the newspapers of that date will show
• 3:26:41
  Speaker 4: that the young man's family caused every possible inquiry to
• 3:26:44
  Speaker 4: be made, but without success, and it was the general
• 3:26:48
  Speaker 4: opinion that Loui la Combe, who was known as an
• 3:26:51
  Speaker 4: original and visionary youth, had quietly left for parts unknown.
• 3:26:56
  Speaker 4: Let us accept that theory improbable that it may be,
• 3:26:59
  Speaker 4: and let us consider another question, which is a most
• 3:27:02
  Speaker 4: important one for our country. What has become of the
• 3:27:05
  Speaker 4: plans of the submarine? Did Loui la Combe carry them away?
• 3:27:09
  Speaker 4: Are they destroyed? After making a thorough investigation, we are
• 3:27:12
  Speaker 4: able to assert positively that the plans are in existence
• 3:27:16
  Speaker 4: and are now in the possession of the two brothers Variness.
• 3:27:19
  Speaker 4: How did they acquire such a possession, That is a
• 3:27:22
  Speaker 4: question not yet determined, Nor do we know why they
• 3:27:26
  Speaker 4: have not tried to sell them at an earlier date.
• 3:27:29
  Speaker 4: Did they fear that their title to them would be
• 3:27:31
  Speaker 4: called in question? If so, they have lost that fear.
• 3:27:35
  Speaker 4: And we can announce definitely that the plans of Loui
• 3:27:38
  Speaker 4: la Combe are now the property of a foreign power,
• 3:27:41
  Speaker 4: and we are in a position to publish the correspondence
• 3:27:44
  Speaker 4: that pass between the Varin brothers and the representative of
• 3:27:47
  Speaker 4: that power. The Seven of Hearts invented by Louis la
• 3:27:50
  Speaker 4: Combe has actually been constructed by our neighbor. Will the
• 3:27:54
  Speaker 4: invention fulfill the optimistic expectations of those who were concerned
• 3:27:58
  Speaker 4: in that treacherous act? And a PostScript adds later our
• 3:28:03
  Speaker 4: special correspondent informs us that the preliminary trial of the
• 3:28:06
  Speaker 4: Seven of Hearts has not been satisfactory. It is quite
• 3:28:09
  Speaker 4: likely that the plans sold and delivered by the Varin
• 3:28:11
  Speaker 4: brothers did not include the final document carried by Louis
• 3:28:14
  Speaker 4: la Combe to Monsieur Andermatt on the day of his disappearance,
• 3:28:19
  Speaker 4: a document that is indispensable to a thorough understanding of
• 3:28:22
  Speaker 4: the invention. It contained the summary of the final conclusions
• 3:28:26
  Speaker 4: of the inventor and estimates and figures not contained in
• 3:28:29
  Speaker 4: the other papers. Without this document, the plans are incomplete.
• 3:28:33
  Speaker 4: On the other hand, without the plans, the document is worthless.
• 3:28:36
  Speaker 4: Now is the time to act and recover what belongs
• 3:28:39
  Speaker 4: to us. It may be a difficult matter, but we
• 3:28:41
  Speaker 4: rely upon the assistance of Monsieur andermat. It will be
• 3:28:45
  Speaker 4: to his interest to explain his conduct, which has hitherto
• 3:28:48
  Speaker 4: been so strange and inscrutable. He will explain not only
• 3:28:52
  Speaker 4: why he concealed these facts the time of the suicide
• 3:28:54
  Speaker 4: of Etien Varens, but also why he has never revealed
• 3:28:58
  Speaker 4: the disappearance of the paper, a fact well known to him.
• 3:29:02
  Speaker 4: He will tell why during the last six years he
• 3:29:05
  Speaker 4: paid spies to watch the movements of the Varin brothers.
• 3:29:08
  Speaker 4: We expect from him not any words, but acts and
• 3:29:11
  Speaker 4: at once. Otherwise the threat was plainly expressed, But of
• 3:29:16
  Speaker 4: what did it consist? What whip was Sulvatore, the anonymous
• 3:29:21
  Speaker 4: writer of the article, holding over the head of Monsieur Andermatt's.
• 3:29:25
  Speaker 4: An army of reporters attacked the banker, and ten interviewers
• 3:29:29
  Speaker 4: announced the scornful manner in which they had been treated.
• 3:29:33
  Speaker 4: Whereupon the Ecu de France announced its position in these words,
• 3:29:38
  Speaker 4: whether Monsieur Andermat is willing or not, he will be
• 3:29:42
  Speaker 4: henceforth our collaborator in the work we have undertaken. Dasbi
• 3:29:48
  Speaker 4: and I were dining together on the day on which
• 3:29:51
  Speaker 4: that announcement appeared. That evening, with the newspaper spread over
• 3:29:55
  Speaker 4: my table, we discussed the affair and examined it from
• 3:29:58
  Speaker 4: every point of view, with that ext aspiration that a
• 3:30:01
  Speaker 4: person feels when walking in the dark and finding himself
• 3:30:04
  Speaker 4: constantly falling over the same obstacles. Suddenly, without me warning whatsoever,
• 3:30:09
  Speaker 4: the door opened and a lady entered. Her face was
• 3:30:12
  Speaker 4: hidden behind a thick veil. I rose at once and
• 3:30:15
  Speaker 4: approached her. Is it you, monsieur who lives here? She asked, yes, Madame,
• 3:30:21
  Speaker 4: but I do not understand the gate was not locked,
• 3:30:24
  Speaker 4: she explained, but the vestibule door. She did not reply,
• 3:30:28
  Speaker 4: and it occurred to me that she had used the
• 3:30:30
  Speaker 4: servant's entrance. How did she know the way? Then there
• 3:30:34
  Speaker 4: was a silence that was quite embarrassing. She looked at Daspriy,
• 3:30:38
  Speaker 4: and I was obliged to introduce him. I asked her
• 3:30:42
  Speaker 4: to be seated and explain the object of her visit.
• 3:30:45
  Speaker 4: She raised her veil, and I saw that she was
• 3:30:47
  Speaker 4: a brunette with regular features, and although not handsome, she
• 3:30:51
  Speaker 4: was attractive, principally on account of her sad, dark eyes.
• 3:30:57
  Speaker 4: I am Madame Andermatte, she said, Madame ander matt I
• 3:31:01
  Speaker 4: repeated with astonishment. After a brief pause, she continued with
• 3:31:05
  Speaker 4: a voice and manner that were quite easy and natural.
• 3:31:10
  Speaker 4: I've come to see you about that affair. You know,
• 3:31:13
  Speaker 4: I thought I might be able to obtain some information,
• 3:31:16
  Speaker 4: mon dieu, madame. I know nothing but what has already
• 3:31:20
  Speaker 4: appeared in the papers. But if you will point out
• 3:31:23
  Speaker 4: in what way I can help you, I do not know.
• 3:31:26
  Speaker 4: I do not know. Not until then did I suspect
• 3:31:30
  Speaker 4: that our calm demeanor was assumed and that some poignant
• 3:31:34
  Speaker 4: grief was concealed. Beneath that air of tranquility. For a
• 3:31:38
  Speaker 4: moment we were silent and embarrassed. Then Dasbery stepped forward
• 3:31:41
  Speaker 4: and said, will you permit me to ask you a
• 3:31:45
  Speaker 4: few questions? Yes, yes, she cried, I will answer. You
• 3:31:50
  Speaker 4: will answer whatever those questions may be. Yes, did you
• 3:31:55
  Speaker 4: know Louis la Combe? He asked, yes, through my husband.
• 3:32:00
  Speaker 4: When did you see him for the last time? The
• 3:32:04
  Speaker 4: evening he dined with us at that time? Was there
• 3:32:07
  Speaker 4: anything to lead you to believe that you would never
• 3:32:10
  Speaker 4: see him again?
• 3:32:11
  Speaker 3: No?
• 3:32:12
  Speaker 4: He had spoken of a trip to Russia in a
• 3:32:13
  Speaker 4: vague way, and then you expected to see him again. Yes,
• 3:32:17
  Speaker 4: he was to dine with us two days later. How
• 3:32:21
  Speaker 4: do you explain his disappearance? I cannot explain it, and
• 3:32:25
  Speaker 4: Monsieur Andermatz, I do not know yet. The article published
• 3:32:29
  Speaker 4: in the Echo de France indicates, yes, that was the
• 3:32:32
  Speaker 4: Varin brothers had something to do with his disappearance. Is
• 3:32:35
  Speaker 4: that your opinion?
• 3:32:37
  Speaker 3: Yes?
• 3:32:38
  Speaker 4: On what do you base your opinion? When he left
• 3:32:40
  Speaker 4: our house, Leila comp carried a satchel containing all the
• 3:32:43
  Speaker 4: papers relating to his invention. Two days later, my husband,
• 3:32:47
  Speaker 4: in a conversation with one of the Varin brothers learned
• 3:32:50
  Speaker 4: that the papers were in their possession, and he did
• 3:32:53
  Speaker 4: not denounce them. No, why not?
• 3:32:57
  Speaker 5: Because there was.
• 3:32:58
  Speaker 4: Something else in the satchel, something besides the papers of
• 3:33:01
  Speaker 4: Loui la Combe.
• 3:33:03
  Speaker 3: What was it?
• 3:33:05
  Speaker 4: She hesitated, was on the point of speaking, but finally
• 3:33:08
  Speaker 4: remained silent. Daspery continued, I presume that is why your
• 3:33:13
  Speaker 4: husband has kept a close watch over their movements. Instead
• 3:33:16
  Speaker 4: of informing the police, he hoped to recover the papers,
• 3:33:19
  Speaker 4: and at the same time that compromising article which has
• 3:33:23
  Speaker 4: enabled the two brothers to hold over him, threats of
• 3:33:26
  Speaker 4: exposure and blackmail over him and over me. Ah, over you,
• 3:33:32
  Speaker 4: also over me in particular. She uttered the last word
• 3:33:36
  Speaker 4: in a hollow voice. Daspery observed it, and he paced
• 3:33:39
  Speaker 4: to and fro for a moment, then, turning to her, asked,
• 3:33:45
  Speaker 4: had you written to Louis la Combe?
• 3:33:48
  Speaker 1: Oh?
• 3:33:48
  Speaker 4: Of course, my husband had business with him. Apart from
• 3:33:51
  Speaker 4: those business letters. Had you written to Louis la Combe
• 3:33:55
  Speaker 4: other letters? Excuse my insistence, but it is absolutely necessary
• 3:33:59
  Speaker 4: I should know the truth. Did you write other letters? Yes,
• 3:34:05
  Speaker 4: she replied, blushing, and those letters came into the possession
• 3:34:09
  Speaker 4: of the Varin brothers. Yes, does monsieur Ander Matt know it.
• 3:34:15
  Speaker 4: He has not seen them, but Alfred Varain told him
• 3:34:18
  Speaker 4: of their existence and threatened to publish them if my
• 3:34:21
  Speaker 4: husband should take steps against him. My husband was afraid
• 3:34:25
  Speaker 4: of a scandal, but he has tried to recover the letters.
• 3:34:30
  Speaker 4: I think so, but I do not know. You see,
• 3:34:32
  Speaker 4: after the last interview with Alfred Varain, after some harsh
• 3:34:35
  Speaker 4: words between me and my husband in which he called
• 3:34:38
  Speaker 4: me to account, we live as strangers. In that case,
• 3:34:45
  Speaker 4: you have nothing to lose. What do you fear? I
• 3:34:48
  Speaker 4: may be indifferent to him now, but I am the
• 3:34:51
  Speaker 4: woman that he has loved, the one he would still love. Oh,
• 3:34:54
  Speaker 4: I am quite sure of that, She murmured in a
• 3:34:57
  Speaker 4: fervent voice. He would still love me if he had
• 3:35:01
  Speaker 4: not got hold of those cursed letters. What did he succeed?
• 3:35:05
  Speaker 4: But the two brothers still defied him. Yes, and they
• 3:35:08
  Speaker 4: boasted of having a secure hiding place. Well, I believe
• 3:35:13
  Speaker 4: my husband discovered that hiding place. Well, I believe that
• 3:35:17
  Speaker 4: my husband has discovered that hiding place. Ah, where is
• 3:35:20
  Speaker 4: it here? Here? I cried an alarm. Yes, I always
• 3:35:27
  Speaker 4: had that suspicion. Lui la Combe was very ingenious and
• 3:35:30
  Speaker 4: amused himself in his leisure hours by making safes and locks.
• 3:35:34
  Speaker 4: No doubt the Varin brothers were aware of that fact,
• 3:35:37
  Speaker 4: and utilized one of la Combe's safes in which to
• 3:35:39
  Speaker 4: conceal the letters and other things. Perhaps, but they did
• 3:35:45
  Speaker 4: not live here, I said, before you came four months ago.
• 3:35:50
  Speaker 4: The house had been vacant for some time, and they
• 3:35:53
  Speaker 4: may have thought that your presence here would not interfere
• 3:35:55
  Speaker 4: with them when they wanted to get the papers. But
• 3:35:58
  Speaker 4: they did not count on my husband, who came here
• 3:36:00
  Speaker 4: on the night of the twenty second June, forced the safe,
• 3:36:04
  Speaker 4: took what he was seeking, and left his card to
• 3:36:06
  Speaker 4: inform the two brothers that he feared them no more
• 3:36:09
  Speaker 4: and that their positions were now reversed. Two days later,
• 3:36:14
  Speaker 4: after reading the article in the juelblars Itier, Varin came here,
• 3:36:18
  Speaker 4: remained alone in this room, and found the safe empty,
• 3:36:22
  Speaker 4: and killed himself. After a moment. Daspri said, a very
• 3:36:29
  Speaker 4: simple theory. Has Monsieur Ander madd spoken to you since then?
• 3:36:33
  Speaker 3: No?
• 3:36:35
  Speaker 4: Has his attitude towards you changed in any way? Does
• 3:36:38
  Speaker 4: he appear more gloomy, more anxious?
• 3:36:41
  Speaker 3: No?
• 3:36:41
  Speaker 4: I haven't noticed any change. And yet you think he
• 3:36:44
  Speaker 4: has secured the letters. Now, in my opinion, he has
• 3:36:47
  Speaker 4: not got those letters. And it was not he who
• 3:36:50
  Speaker 4: came here on the night of the twenty second June.
• 3:36:53
  Speaker 4: Who was it, then, the mysterious individual who is managing
• 3:36:57
  Speaker 4: this affair, who holds all the threads in his hands,
• 3:36:59
  Speaker 4: and whose invisible but far reaching powers we have felt
• 3:37:03
  Speaker 4: from the beginning. It was here and his friends who
• 3:37:05
  Speaker 4: entered this house on the twenty second June. It was
• 3:37:07
  Speaker 4: he who discovered the hiding place of the papers. It
• 3:37:10
  Speaker 4: was he who left Monsieur ander Matt's card. It is
• 3:37:13
  Speaker 4: he who now holds the correspondence and the evidence of
• 3:37:16
  Speaker 4: treachery of the ma Varin brothers. Who is he, i
• 3:37:20
  Speaker 4: asked impatiently, the man who writes letters to the Ecu
• 3:37:24
  Speaker 4: de France salvatore? Have we not convincing evidence of that fact?
• 3:37:29
  Speaker 4: Does he not mention in his letters certain details that
• 3:37:31
  Speaker 4: no one could know except the man who had thus
• 3:37:34
  Speaker 4: discovered the secrets of the two brothers, Then stammered Madame
• 3:37:37
  Speaker 4: mander Mats in great alarm. He has my letters also,
• 3:37:41
  Speaker 4: and it is he who now threatens my husband. Mon dieu,
• 3:37:44
  Speaker 4: what am I to do? Write to him? Declared desprit
• 3:37:49
  Speaker 4: confide in him without reserve. Tell him all you know
• 3:37:52
  Speaker 4: and all you may hereafter learn. Your interests and his
• 3:37:55
  Speaker 4: interest are the same. He is not working against Monsieur Andermatz,
• 3:37:59
  Speaker 4: but against Alfred Varin. Help him. How has your husband
• 3:38:04
  Speaker 4: the document that completes the plans of Louis la corbe?
• 3:38:07
  Speaker 3: Yes?
• 3:38:08
  Speaker 4: Tell that to Salvator, and if possible, procure the document
• 3:38:11
  Speaker 4: for him. Write to him at once. You risk nothing.
• 3:38:15
  Speaker 4: The advice was bold, dangerous even at first sight, but
• 3:38:18
  Speaker 4: Madame m de Matte had no choice. Besides, as Dasper
• 3:38:23
  Speaker 4: had said, she ran no risk. If the unknown writer
• 3:38:26
  Speaker 4: were an enemy, that step would not aggravate the situation.
• 3:38:30
  Speaker 4: If he were a stranger seeking to accomplish a particular purpose,
• 3:38:34
  Speaker 4: he would attach to those letters only a secondary importance,
• 3:38:38
  Speaker 4: whatever might happen. It was the only solution offered to her,
• 3:38:41
  Speaker 4: and she, in her anxiety, was only too glad to
• 3:38:45
  Speaker 4: act upon it. She thanked us effusively and promised to
• 3:38:49
  Speaker 4: keep us informed. In fact, two days later she sent
• 3:38:53
  Speaker 4: us the following letter that she had received from Salvator.
• 3:38:58
  Speaker 4: I have not found the letter, but I will get them.
• 3:39:01
  Speaker 4: Rest easy. I am watching everything s I looked at
• 3:39:06
  Speaker 4: the letter. It was in the same handwriting as the
• 3:39:09
  Speaker 4: note I found in my book on that night of
• 3:39:12
  Speaker 4: twenty second June. Dasbury was right. Salvator was indeed the
• 3:39:19
  Speaker 4: originator of that affair. We were beginning to see a
• 3:39:25
  Speaker 4: little light coming out of the darkness surrounded us, and
• 3:39:28
  Speaker 4: an unexpected light was thrown on certain points. But other
• 3:39:32
  Speaker 4: points yet remained obscure for interstance the finding of the
• 3:39:38
  Speaker 4: two Seven of Hearts. Perhaps I was unnecessarily concerned about
• 3:39:43
  Speaker 4: those two cards, whose seven punctured spots had appeared to
• 3:39:46
  Speaker 4: me under such startling circumstances. Yet I could not refrain
• 3:39:50
  Speaker 4: from asking myself, what role will they play in the drama?
• 3:39:54
  Speaker 4: What importance do they bear? What conclusion must be drawn
• 3:39:58
  Speaker 4: from the fact that the submarine constructed from the plans
• 3:40:01
  Speaker 4: of Louis la Combe bore the name Seven of Hearts.
• 3:40:06
  Speaker 4: Dasbury gave little thought to the two cards. He devoted
• 3:40:10
  Speaker 4: all his attention to another problem, which he considered more urgent.
• 3:40:14
  Speaker 4: He was seeking the famous hiding place, and who know,
• 3:40:20
  Speaker 4: said he, I may find the letters that Salvator did
• 3:40:22
  Speaker 4: not find, And by inadvertence, perhaps it is improbable that
• 3:40:28
  Speaker 4: the Varin brothers would have removed from a spot which
• 3:40:32
  Speaker 4: they deemed inaccessible a weapon which was so valuable to them,
• 3:40:37
  Speaker 4: And he continued to search. In a short time, the
• 3:40:40
  Speaker 4: large room held no more secrets for him, so he
• 3:40:43
  Speaker 4: extended his investigations to the other rooms. He examined the
• 3:40:46
  Speaker 4: interior and the exterior, the stones of the foundation, the
• 3:40:49
  Speaker 4: bricks in the walls. He raised the states of the roof.
• 3:40:53
  Speaker 4: One day he came with a pickaxe and spade, gave
• 3:40:56
  Speaker 4: me a spade, kept the pickaxe, pointed to the adjacent
• 3:41:01
  Speaker 4: vacant lots and said come. I followed him, but I
• 3:41:04
  Speaker 4: lacked his enthusiasm. He divided the vacant land into into
• 3:41:08
  Speaker 4: several sections, which he examined in turn. At last, in
• 3:41:12
  Speaker 4: a corner at the angle formed by the walls of
• 3:41:15
  Speaker 4: the two neighboring proprietors, a small pile of earth and
• 3:41:18
  Speaker 4: gravel covered with briars and grass attracted his attention. He
• 3:41:23
  Speaker 4: attacked it. I was obliged to help him. For an hour,
• 3:41:27
  Speaker 4: under a hot sun, we labored without success. I was discouraged,
• 3:41:31
  Speaker 4: but Daspbriy urged me on his ardor was strong as ever.
• 3:41:34
  Speaker 4: At last, Daspery's pickaxe unearthed some bones, the remains of
• 3:41:38
  Speaker 4: a skeleton, to which some scraps of clothing still hung.
• 3:41:43
  Speaker 4: Suddenly I turned pale. I had discovered, sticking in the
• 3:41:47
  Speaker 4: earth a small piece of iron cut in the form
• 3:41:50
  Speaker 4: of a rectangle, on which I thought I could see
• 3:41:53
  Speaker 4: red spots. I stooped and picked it up. That little
• 3:41:57
  Speaker 4: iron plate was the exact side eyes of a playing card,
• 3:42:02
  Speaker 4: and the red spots, made with red lead, were arranged
• 3:42:05
  Speaker 4: upon it in the manner similar to the seven of hearts,
• 3:42:08
  Speaker 4: and each spot was pierced with a round hole similar
• 3:42:11
  Speaker 4: to the perforations in the two playing cards. Listen, Dasbriy,
• 3:42:15
  Speaker 4: I've had enough of this. You can stay if it
• 3:42:17
  Speaker 4: interest you, but I am going. Was that simply the
• 3:42:22
  Speaker 4: expression of my excited nerves? Or was it the result
• 3:42:25
  Speaker 4: of a laborious task executed under the burning sun? I
• 3:42:28
  Speaker 4: know that I trembled as I walked away, and that
• 3:42:31
  Speaker 4: I went to bed, where I remained forty eight hours,
• 3:42:34
  Speaker 4: restless and feverish, haunted by skeletons that danced around me
• 3:42:38
  Speaker 4: and threw their beating hearts at my head. Dasbury was
• 3:42:42
  Speaker 4: faithful to me. He came to my house every day
• 3:42:44
  Speaker 4: and remained three or four hours, which he spent in
• 3:42:47
  Speaker 4: the large room, ferreting, thumping, and tapping. The letters are
• 3:42:52
  Speaker 4: here in this room, he said. From time to time
• 3:42:54
  Speaker 4: they are here. I will stake my life on it.
• 3:42:57
  Speaker 4: On the morning of the third day, I wrote, feeble yet,
• 3:43:01
  Speaker 4: but cured a substantial breakfast cheered me up. But a
• 3:43:05
  Speaker 4: letter that I received that afternoon contributed more than anything
• 3:43:10
  Speaker 4: else to my complete recovery and aroused in me a
• 3:43:14
  Speaker 4: lively curiosity. This was the letter monsieur. The drama, the
• 3:43:21
  Speaker 4: first act of which transpired on the night of twenty
• 3:43:23
  Speaker 4: second June, is now drawing to a close. Force of
• 3:43:26
  Speaker 4: circumstances compel me to bring the two principal actors in
• 3:43:30
  Speaker 4: that drama face to face, and I wish that meeting
• 3:43:32
  Speaker 4: to take place in your house. If you will be
• 3:43:35
  Speaker 4: so kind as to give me the use of it
• 3:43:37
  Speaker 4: for this evening from nine o'clock to eleven. It will
• 3:43:40
  Speaker 4: be advisable to give your servant leave of absence for
• 3:43:42
  Speaker 4: the evening, and perhaps you will be so kind as
• 3:43:45
  Speaker 4: to leave the field open to the two adversaries. You
• 3:43:48
  Speaker 4: will remember that when I visited your house on the
• 3:43:51
  Speaker 4: night of twenty second June. I took excellent care of
• 3:43:54
  Speaker 4: your property. I feel that I would do you an
• 3:43:58
  Speaker 4: injustice if I should doubt for one moment your absolute
• 3:44:00
  Speaker 4: discretion in this affair, Your devoted salvator. I was amused
• 3:44:07
  Speaker 4: at the facetious tone of his letter, and also at
• 3:44:09
  Speaker 4: the whimsical nature of his request. There was a charming
• 3:44:13
  Speaker 4: despay of confidence and candor in his language, and nothing
• 3:44:16
  Speaker 4: in the world would have induced me to deceive him
• 3:44:18
  Speaker 4: or repay his confidence with ingratitude. I gave my servant
• 3:44:23
  Speaker 4: a theater ticket, and he left the house at eight o'clock.
• 3:44:27
  Speaker 4: A few minutes later, Dasby arrived. I showed him the letter,
• 3:44:30
  Speaker 4: well said he. Well, I've left the garden gate unlocked
• 3:44:34
  Speaker 4: so any one can enter. And you are you going away?
• 3:44:39
  Speaker 4: Not at all? I intend to stay, he write here.
• 3:44:42
  Speaker 4: But he asks you to go, But I am not going.
• 3:44:45
  Speaker 4: I will be discreet, but I am resolved to see
• 3:44:48
  Speaker 4: what takes place. Ma FOI exclaimed Dastby, laughing, you are right,
• 3:44:54
  Speaker 4: and I shall stay with you. I shouldn't like to
• 3:44:56
  Speaker 4: miss it. We were interrupted by the door bell. Here
• 3:45:01
  Speaker 4: all ready said Desbery, twenty minutes ahead of time. Incredible.
• 3:45:05
  Speaker 4: I went to the door and ushered in the visitor.
• 3:45:07
  Speaker 4: It was Madame Andermatt's. She was faint and nervous, and
• 3:45:11
  Speaker 4: in a stammering voice, she ejaculated, maum, My, my husband
• 3:45:15
  Speaker 4: is coming. He has an appointment. They intend to give
• 3:45:18
  Speaker 4: him the letters. How do you know, I asked? By
• 3:45:22
  Speaker 4: chance a message came for my husband while we were
• 3:45:25
  Speaker 4: at dinner. A servant gave it to me by mistake.
• 3:45:27
  Speaker 4: My husband grabbed it quickly, but he was too late.
• 3:45:29
  Speaker 4: I had read it. You read it? Yes, it was
• 3:45:32
  Speaker 4: something like this at nine o'clock this evening, be at
• 3:45:35
  Speaker 4: Boulevard my yo with the papers connected with the affair
• 3:45:38
  Speaker 4: in exchange the letters. So after dinner I hastened here,
• 3:45:43
  Speaker 4: unknown to your husband. Yes, what do you think about it,
• 3:45:47
  Speaker 4: asked Dasbury, turning to me. But I think as you
• 3:45:50
  Speaker 4: do that Monsieur ander Mattz is one of the invited guests. Yes,
• 3:45:56
  Speaker 4: but for what purpose? That's all we're going to find out.
• 3:45:59
  Speaker 4: I led them to a large room. The three of
• 3:46:04
  Speaker 4: us could hide comfortably behind the velvet chimney mantle and
• 3:46:08
  Speaker 4: observe all that should happen in the room. We seated
• 3:46:12
  Speaker 4: ourselves there, with Madame ander Matt in the center, the
• 3:46:16
  Speaker 4: clock struck nine. A few minutes later the garden gate
• 3:46:20
  Speaker 4: creaked on its hinges. I confess that I was greatly agitated.
• 3:46:25
  Speaker 4: I was about to learn the key to the mystery.
• 3:46:28
  Speaker 4: The startling events of the last few weeks were about
• 3:46:30
  Speaker 4: to be explained, and under my eyes, the last battle
• 3:46:33
  Speaker 4: was going to be fought. Dasperly seized the hand of
• 3:46:37
  Speaker 4: Madame ander Matt's and said to her, not a word,
• 3:46:40
  Speaker 4: not a movement, whatever you may see or hear, be quiet.
• 3:46:45
  Speaker 4: Someone entered. It was Alfred Varain. I recognized him at once,
• 3:46:50
  Speaker 4: owing to the close resemblance he brought both to his
• 3:46:52
  Speaker 4: brother Etienne. There was the same slouching gait, the same
• 3:46:59
  Speaker 4: cadaverous face covered with a black beard. He entered with
• 3:47:03
  Speaker 4: the nervous air of a man who is accustomed to
• 3:47:05
  Speaker 4: fear in the presence of traps and ambushes, who sends
• 3:47:08
  Speaker 4: and avoids them. He glanced around the room, and I
• 3:47:12
  Speaker 4: had the impression that the chimney masked by a velvet
• 3:47:16
  Speaker 4: portier did not please him. He took three steps in
• 3:47:19
  Speaker 4: our direction. Then something caused him to turn and walk
• 3:47:22
  Speaker 4: towards the old mosaic king with the flowing beard and
• 3:47:25
  Speaker 4: flamboyant sword, which he examined minutely, mounting on a chair
• 3:47:30
  Speaker 4: and following with his fingers the outlines of the shoulders
• 3:47:32
  Speaker 4: and head, and feeling certain parts of the face. Suddenly
• 3:47:37
  Speaker 4: he leaped from the chair and walked away from it.
• 3:47:40
  Speaker 4: He had heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Monsieur Endermatt
• 3:47:43
  Speaker 4: appeared at the door. You, you, exclaimed the banker. Was
• 3:47:48
  Speaker 4: it you who brought me here? I by no means,
• 3:47:53
  Speaker 4: protested Varin, in a rough, jerky voice that reminded me
• 3:47:56
  Speaker 4: of his brother. On the contrary, it was your letter
• 3:47:58
  Speaker 4: that brought me here. My letter, a letter signed by you,
• 3:48:03
  Speaker 4: which you offered. I never wrote to you, declared Monsieur
• 3:48:08
  Speaker 4: ander Matt. You did not write to me. Instinctively, Varin
• 3:48:13
  Speaker 4: was put on his guard, not against the banker, but
• 3:48:15
  Speaker 4: against the unknown enemy who had drawn him into this trap.
• 3:48:19
  Speaker 4: A second time, he looked in our direction, then walked
• 3:48:22
  Speaker 4: towards the door, but Monsieur ander Matt barred his passage. Well,
• 3:48:27
  Speaker 4: where are you going, Varin? There is something about this
• 3:48:31
  Speaker 4: affair I don't like. I am going home good evening.
• 3:48:34
  Speaker 4: One moment. No need of that, Monsieur ander matt I
• 3:48:38
  Speaker 4: have nothing to say to you, but I have something
• 3:48:40
  Speaker 4: to say to you, and this is a good time
• 3:48:42
  Speaker 4: to say it. Let me pass. No, I will not
• 3:48:46
  Speaker 4: let you pass. Varin recoiled before the resolute attitude of
• 3:48:49
  Speaker 4: the banker as he muttered, well, then be quick about it.
• 3:48:54
  Speaker 4: One thing astonished me. I have no doubt my two
• 3:48:57
  Speaker 4: companions experienced a similar feeling. Why was salvertorre not here?
• 3:49:04
  Speaker 4: Was he not a necessary party at this conference? Or
• 3:49:08
  Speaker 4: was he satisfied to let these two adversaries fight it
• 3:49:10
  Speaker 4: out between themselves at all events? His absence was a
• 3:49:14
  Speaker 4: great disappointment, although it did not detract from the dramatic
• 3:49:17
  Speaker 4: strength of the situation. After a moment, Monsieur Andermatz approached
• 3:49:22
  Speaker 4: Varin face to face and said, now, after all these years,
• 3:49:27
  Speaker 4: and you have nothing more to fear, can you answer
• 3:49:31
  Speaker 4: me candidly? What have you done with Louis la Combe?
• 3:49:35
  Speaker 4: What a question, as if I knew anything about him?
• 3:49:41
  Speaker 4: You do know, you and your brother were his constant companions,
• 3:49:45
  Speaker 4: almost lived with him at this very house. You knew
• 3:49:47
  Speaker 4: all about his cans and his work. And the last
• 3:49:50
  Speaker 4: night I ever saw Louis la Combe when I parted
• 3:49:52
  Speaker 4: from him. At my door, I saw two men slinking
• 3:49:55
  Speaker 4: away in the shadows of the trees that I am
• 3:49:57
  Speaker 4: ready to swear to. Well, what has that to do
• 3:50:01
  Speaker 4: with me? The two men were you and your brother?
• 3:50:04
  Speaker 4: Prove it. The best proof is that two days later
• 3:50:08
  Speaker 4: you yourself showed me the papers and the plans that
• 3:50:10
  Speaker 4: belonged to la Combe, and you offered to sell them.
• 3:50:12
  Speaker 4: How did these papers come into your possession? I have
• 3:50:15
  Speaker 4: already told you, Monsieur Andermatt, that we found them on
• 3:50:19
  Speaker 4: Louis la Combe's table the morning after his disappearance. That
• 3:50:23
  Speaker 4: is a lie.
• 3:50:24
  Speaker 5: Prove it, The law will prove it.
• 3:50:27
  Speaker 4: Why did you not appeal to the law? Why? Ah,
• 3:50:31
  Speaker 4: why stammered the banker with a slight despay of emotion.
• 3:50:37
  Speaker 4: You know very well, Monsieur Andermatt, that if you had
• 3:50:39
  Speaker 4: the least certainty of our guilt, our little threat would
• 3:50:43
  Speaker 4: not have stopped you. What threat those letters? Do you
• 3:50:47
  Speaker 4: suppose I ever gave those letters a moment's thought? If
• 3:50:52
  Speaker 4: you did not care for the letters, why did you
• 3:50:55
  Speaker 4: offer me a thousand francs for their return? And why
• 3:50:57
  Speaker 4: did you have my brother and me track like wild
• 3:51:00
  Speaker 4: beasts to recover the plans. Nonsense. You wanted the letters.
• 3:51:07
  Speaker 4: You knew that as soon as you had the letters
• 3:51:09
  Speaker 4: in your possession you could denounce us. Oh no, I
• 3:51:13
  Speaker 4: couldn't part with them. He laughed heartily, but stopped suddenly
• 3:51:17
  Speaker 4: and said, but enough of this. We are merely going
• 3:51:21
  Speaker 4: over old ground. We make no headway. We had better
• 3:51:25
  Speaker 4: let things stand as they are. We will not let
• 3:51:28
  Speaker 4: them stand as they are, said the banker. And since
• 3:51:30
  Speaker 4: you have referred to the letters, let me tell you
• 3:51:32
  Speaker 4: that you will not leave this house until you deliver
• 3:51:34
  Speaker 4: up those letters. I shall go when I please. You
• 3:51:38
  Speaker 4: will not be careful, mister ander Matt. I warn you,
• 3:51:41
  Speaker 4: I say you shall not go. We will see about that,
• 3:51:45
  Speaker 4: cried Varin, in such a rage that Madame and Matt
• 3:51:47
  Speaker 4: could not suppress a cry of fear. Vara must have
• 3:51:50
  Speaker 4: heard it, for now he tried to force his way out.
• 3:51:53
  Speaker 4: Missy under Matt pushed him back. Then I saw him
• 3:51:56
  Speaker 4: put his hand into his coat pocket for the last time.
• 3:51:59
  Speaker 4: Let me pass, he cried the letters. First. Varin drew
• 3:52:03
  Speaker 4: a revolver, and, pointing at to Monsieur Ander Matt said
• 3:52:05
  Speaker 4: yes or no. The banker stooped quickly there was a
• 3:52:09
  Speaker 4: sound of a pistol shot. The weapon fell from Varin's hand.
• 3:52:12
  Speaker 4: I was amazed the shop was fired close to me.
• 3:52:15
  Speaker 4: It was Dasprey who had fired it at Varin, causing
• 3:52:18
  Speaker 4: him to drop the revolver. In a moment, Dasbury was
• 3:52:21
  Speaker 4: standing between the two men, facing Varin. He said to
• 3:52:24
  Speaker 4: him with a sneer, you were very lucky, my friend,
• 3:52:27
  Speaker 4: very lucky. I fired at your hand and only struck
• 3:52:30
  Speaker 4: the revolver. Both of them looked at him surprised. Then
• 3:52:34
  Speaker 4: he turned to the banker and said, I beg your pardon, monsieur,
• 3:52:37
  Speaker 4: for meddling in your business, but really you play a
• 3:52:40
  Speaker 4: very poor game. Let me hold the cards. Turning again
• 3:52:44
  Speaker 4: to Varin, Dasbery said, it's between us two, comrade, play
• 3:52:48
  Speaker 4: fair if you please. Hearts are trumps and I play
• 3:52:52
  Speaker 4: for seven. Then Dasbery held up before Varon's bewildered eyes,
• 3:52:57
  Speaker 4: the little iron plate marked with the seven red spots.
• 3:53:02
  Speaker 4: It was a terrible shock to Vara. With livid features,
• 3:53:05
  Speaker 4: staring eyes, and an air of intense agony, the man
• 3:53:09
  Speaker 4: seemed to be hypnotized by the sight of it. Who
• 3:53:12
  Speaker 4: are you, he gasped, one who meddles in other people's business,
• 3:53:19
  Speaker 4: down to the very bottom. What do you want? What
• 3:53:24
  Speaker 4: you brought here to night? I brought nothing. Yes, you did,
• 3:53:28
  Speaker 4: or you wouldn't have come this morning. You received an
• 3:53:30
  Speaker 4: invitation to come here at nine o'clock and bring with
• 3:53:32
  Speaker 4: you all the papers held by you. You are here.
• 3:53:36
  Speaker 4: Where are the papers? There was in Dasbury's voice and
• 3:53:39
  Speaker 4: manner a tone of authority that I did not understand.
• 3:53:43
  Speaker 4: His manner was usually quite mild and conciliatory. Absolutely conquered.
• 3:53:48
  Speaker 4: Vain placed his hand on one of his pockets and said,
• 3:53:52
  Speaker 4: the papers are here, all of them, Yes, all that
• 3:53:57
  Speaker 4: you took from Loui la Combe and afterwards sold to
• 3:53:59
  Speaker 4: meyerovonn Lieben. Yes, are these the copies or the originals?
• 3:54:07
  Speaker 4: I have the originals? How much do you want for them?
• 3:54:11
  Speaker 4: One hundred thousand francs? You are crazy, said Dasbury. Why
• 3:54:16
  Speaker 4: the major gave you only twenty thousand? And that was
• 3:54:18
  Speaker 4: like money thrown to the sea. As the boat was
• 3:54:20
  Speaker 4: a failure at the preliminary trials. They didn't understand the plans.
• 3:54:25
  Speaker 4: The plans are not complete. Then why do you ask
• 3:54:28
  Speaker 4: me for them? Because I want them? I offer you
• 3:54:31
  Speaker 4: five thousand francs. Not a sou more ten thousand, not
• 3:54:35
  Speaker 4: a sou less, agreed, said Dasbury, who now turned to
• 3:54:39
  Speaker 4: mister Andermattz and said, monsieur will kindly sign a check
• 3:54:43
  Speaker 4: for the amount. But but I hapn't got your check
• 3:54:46
  Speaker 4: book here. It is astounded. Mister ander matt examined the
• 3:54:49
  Speaker 4: check book that Daspriy handed to him. It is mine,
• 3:54:53
  Speaker 4: he gasped, How did that happen? No idle words, monsieur,
• 3:54:57
  Speaker 4: if you please, you have merely to sign. The banker
• 3:55:00
  Speaker 4: took his fountain pen, filled out the chair and signed it.
• 3:55:04
  Speaker 4: Varin held out his hand for it. Put down your hand,
• 3:55:07
  Speaker 4: said Dasby. There is something more then the banker, he said,
• 3:55:11
  Speaker 4: you asked for some letters, did you not? Yes, a
• 3:55:14
  Speaker 4: package of letters? Where are they? Varin? I haven't got them?
• 3:55:20
  Speaker 4: Where are they? Varin? I don't know. My brother had
• 3:55:22
  Speaker 4: charge of them. They are hidden in this room. In
• 3:55:26
  Speaker 4: that case, you know where they are? How should I know?
• 3:55:30
  Speaker 4: Was it not you who found the hiding place? You
• 3:55:33
  Speaker 4: appear to be well informed, as Salvat tore, the letters
• 3:55:37
  Speaker 4: are not in the hiding place, they are open it.
• 3:55:41
  Speaker 4: Varin looked at him defiantly. Were not Dasbery and Salvat
• 3:55:44
  Speaker 4: are the same person. Everything pointed to that conclusion. If
• 3:55:47
  Speaker 4: so Vannin risked nothing in disclosing the hiding place already
• 3:55:51
  Speaker 4: known open, it repeated Dasbery, I have not got the
• 3:55:56
  Speaker 4: seven of Hearts. Yes, here it is, said Dasprey, handing
• 3:56:02
  Speaker 4: him the iron plate. Varin recoiled in terror and cried no, no,
• 3:56:06
  Speaker 4: I will not never mind, replied Daspy, as he walked
• 3:56:10
  Speaker 4: towards the bearded king, climbed on the chair and applied
• 3:56:13
  Speaker 4: the Seven of Hearts to the lower part of the sword,
• 3:56:16
  Speaker 4: in such a manner that the edges of the iron
• 3:56:17
  Speaker 4: plate coincided exactly with the two edges of the sword. Then,
• 3:56:22
  Speaker 4: with the assistance of an awl, which he introduced alternately
• 3:56:26
  Speaker 4: into each of the seven holes, he pressed upon seven
• 3:56:29
  Speaker 4: of the little mosaic stones. As he pressed upon the
• 3:56:32
  Speaker 4: seventh one, a clicking sound was heard, and the entire
• 3:56:35
  Speaker 4: bust of the king turned upon a pivot, disclosing a
• 3:56:39
  Speaker 4: large opening lined with steel. It was really a fire
• 3:56:44
  Speaker 4: proof safe. As you can see, Varin, the safe is empty.
• 3:56:49
  Speaker 4: So I see though my brother has taken out the letters.
• 3:56:53
  Speaker 4: Dasbrey stepped down from the chair, approached Varin and said,
• 3:56:56
  Speaker 4: now no more nonsense with me. There is another hiding place.
• 3:57:00
  Speaker 4: Where is it? There is none? Is it money you want?
• 3:57:03
  Speaker 4: How much? Ten thousand, Monsieur Andermatt. Are those letters worth
• 3:57:08
  Speaker 4: ten thousand francs to you? Yes, said the banker firmly.
• 3:57:13
  Speaker 4: Varin closed the safe, took the seven of hearts and
• 3:57:16
  Speaker 4: placed it again on the sword. At the same spot,
• 3:57:19
  Speaker 4: he thrust the awl into each of the seven holes.
• 3:57:22
  Speaker 4: There was the same clicking sound, but this time strange
• 3:57:26
  Speaker 4: to relate. It was only a portion of the safe
• 3:57:29
  Speaker 4: that revolved on the pivot, disclosing quite a small safe
• 3:57:33
  Speaker 4: that was built within the door of the larger one.
• 3:57:36
  Speaker 4: The packet of letters was there, tied with a tape
• 3:57:38
  Speaker 4: and sealed. Varin handed the packet to Daspriy. The latter
• 3:57:43
  Speaker 4: turned to the banker and asked, is the check ready,
• 3:57:46
  Speaker 4: Monsieur Andermatt. Yes, and you have also the last document
• 3:57:51
  Speaker 4: that you received from Louis la Corbe, the one that
• 3:57:53
  Speaker 4: completes the plans of the submarine. Yes, the exchange was made.
• 3:57:58
  Speaker 4: Daspry pocketed the document and the checks, and offered the
• 3:58:01
  Speaker 4: packet of letters to Monsieur ander Matt, this is what
• 3:58:04
  Speaker 4: you wanted, monsieur. The banker hesitated a moment, and then,
• 3:58:08
  Speaker 4: as if he were afraid to touch those cursed letters
• 3:58:11
  Speaker 4: that he had sought so eagerly. Then, with a nervous movement,
• 3:58:14
  Speaker 4: he took them close to me. I heard a moan.
• 3:58:17
  Speaker 4: I grasped Madame ander Matt's hand. It was cold, I believe,
• 3:58:22
  Speaker 4: Monsieur said despery to the banker, that our business is ended.
• 3:58:25
  Speaker 4: Oh no, thanks, it was only a mere chance that
• 3:58:29
  Speaker 4: I have been able to do you a good turn.
• 3:58:32
  Speaker 4: Good night, Monsieur ander Matt retired. He carried with him
• 3:58:37
  Speaker 4: the letters written by his wife to Louis la Combe. Marvelous,
• 3:58:42
  Speaker 4: exclaimed Dasby, delighted. Everything is coming our way. Now we
• 3:58:46
  Speaker 4: have only to close our little affair. Comrade, you have
• 3:58:48
  Speaker 4: the papers here. They are all of them. Dasby examined
• 3:58:53
  Speaker 4: them carefully. Then he placed them in his pocket. Quite right,
• 3:58:57
  Speaker 4: you've kept your word, he said, But but what the
• 3:59:01
  Speaker 4: two checks the money, said Varin eagerly. Well, you have
• 3:59:04
  Speaker 4: a great deal of assurance, my man. How dare you
• 3:59:06
  Speaker 4: ask such a thing? I ask only what is due
• 3:59:09
  Speaker 4: to me? Can you ask pay for returning papers that
• 3:59:14
  Speaker 4: you stole. Well, I think not. Varain was beside himself.
• 3:59:18
  Speaker 4: He trembled with rage. His eyes were bloodshot. Dumb money
• 3:59:22
  Speaker 4: d twenty thousand, he stammered, impossible, I needed myself, dumb money.
• 3:59:28
  Speaker 4: Come on, be reasonable, don't get excited. I won't do
• 3:59:30
  Speaker 4: you any good. Dasby seized his arm so forcibly that
• 3:59:33
  Speaker 4: Vain uttered a cry of pain. Desbery continued, Now you
• 3:59:36
  Speaker 4: can go the air will do you good. Perhaps you
• 3:59:39
  Speaker 4: want me to show you the way. Ah, yes, we
• 3:59:41
  Speaker 4: will go together to the vacant lot. Me here and
• 3:59:43
  Speaker 4: I will show you a little mound of earth and
• 3:59:45
  Speaker 4: stones and under it. That is false, That is false.
• 3:59:49
  Speaker 4: Oh no, it's true. That little lion plate for the
• 3:59:52
  Speaker 4: seven spots on it came from there. Louis la Combe
• 3:59:54
  Speaker 4: always carried it, and you buried it with the body
• 3:59:59
  Speaker 4: and with some other things. That will prove very interesting
• 4:00:02
  Speaker 4: to a judge and jury. Varian covered his face with
• 4:00:05
  Speaker 4: his hands and muttered, all right, I am beaten. I
• 4:00:09
  Speaker 4: say no more, but I want you to ask you
• 4:00:13
  Speaker 4: one question. I should like to know what is it?
• 4:00:17
  Speaker 4: Was there a little casket in the large safe? Yes?
• 4:00:22
  Speaker 4: Was it there on the night of twenty second June. Yes,
• 4:00:25
  Speaker 4: what did it contain? Everything? The Varin brothers had put
• 4:00:29
  Speaker 4: in it? A very pretty collection of diamonds and pearls,
• 4:00:33
  Speaker 4: picked up here and there by, the said brothers. And
• 4:00:35
  Speaker 4: did you take it? Of course I did? Do you
• 4:00:39
  Speaker 4: blame me? I understand it was the disappearance of that
• 4:00:43
  Speaker 4: casket that caused my brother to kill himself. Probably the
• 4:00:47
  Speaker 4: disappearance of your correspondence was not a sufficient motive. But
• 4:00:50
  Speaker 4: the disappearance of the casket, is it all you wish
• 4:00:53
  Speaker 4: to ask me? One thing more? Your name? You asked that,
• 4:00:58
  Speaker 4: But the idea of seeking revenge barable. The tables may
• 4:01:02
  Speaker 4: be turned to day you are on top. To morrow
• 4:01:05
  Speaker 4: it will be you. I hope. So your name I
• 4:01:09
  Speaker 4: sen Lupin, I sain Lupin. The man staggered, as though
• 4:01:14
  Speaker 4: stunned by a heavy blow. Those two words had deprived
• 4:01:18
  Speaker 4: him of all hope. Dasbury laughed and said, ah, you
• 4:01:22
  Speaker 4: did not imagine that a Monsieur Durrant DuPont could manage
• 4:01:26
  Speaker 4: an affair like this. No, it required the skill and
• 4:01:28
  Speaker 4: cunning of ar Saint Lupin. And now you have my name,
• 4:01:32
  Speaker 4: go and prepare your revenge. I Saint Lupin will wait
• 4:01:35
  Speaker 4: for you. Then he pushed the bewildered Varins through the door. Dasprey, daspriy,
• 4:01:42
  Speaker 4: I cried, pushing aside the curtain. He ran to me,
• 4:01:45
  Speaker 4: what what's the matter? Madame? And de matis ill. He
• 4:01:50
  Speaker 4: hastened to her, coursed her to inhale some salts, and,
• 4:01:53
  Speaker 4: while caring for her, questioned me, well, what did it
• 4:01:58
  Speaker 4: the letters of Louisa that you gave her husband? Did
• 4:02:02
  Speaker 4: she think I could do such a thing? But of
• 4:02:04
  Speaker 4: course she would imbecile that I am Madamander Matt was
• 4:02:08
  Speaker 4: now revived. Dasby took from his pocket a small package
• 4:02:11
  Speaker 4: exactly similar to the one that Monsieur ander Matt had
• 4:02:13
  Speaker 4: carried away. Here are your letters, madame. They are the
• 4:02:17
  Speaker 4: genuine letters, but the others, the others are the same,
• 4:02:23
  Speaker 4: written by me and carefully worded. Your husband will not
• 4:02:28
  Speaker 4: find anything objectionable in them, and will never suspect the substitutions,
• 4:02:32
  Speaker 4: since they were taken from a safe in his presence.
• 4:02:36
  Speaker 4: But that the handwriting, there is no handwriting that cannot
• 4:02:40
  Speaker 4: be imitated. She thanked him in the same words she
• 4:02:43
  Speaker 4: might have used to a man of her own social circle.
• 4:02:46
  Speaker 4: So I concluded that she had not witnessed the final
• 4:02:48
  Speaker 4: scene between Varin and Arsine Lupin. But the surprising revelation
• 4:02:53
  Speaker 4: caused me considerable embarrassment. Lupin, my club companion, was none
• 4:02:58
  Speaker 4: other than us In Loupin. I could not realize it,
• 4:03:03
  Speaker 4: he said, Quite at ease, you can say farewell to Gendesprie.
• 4:03:09
  Speaker 2: Ah.
• 4:03:10
  Speaker 4: Yes, Jendesprit is going on a long journey. I shall
• 4:03:13
  Speaker 4: send him to Morocco. There he may find a death
• 4:03:16
  Speaker 4: worth worthy of him. I may say that is his expectation,
• 4:03:24
  Speaker 4: but Ar Saint Lupin will remain, oh decidedly. Ar Saint
• 4:03:28
  Speaker 4: Lupin is simply at the threshold of his career, he expects.
• 4:03:32
  Speaker 4: I was impelled by curiosity to interrupt him, and leading
• 4:03:35
  Speaker 4: him away from the hearing of Madame ander Matt, I asked,
• 4:03:38
  Speaker 4: did you discover the smaller safe yourself, the one that
• 4:03:41
  Speaker 4: held the letters? Yes, after a great deal of trouble,
• 4:03:43
  Speaker 4: I found it yesterday afternoon, while you were asleep. And
• 4:03:46
  Speaker 4: yet God knows it simple enough. But the simplest things
• 4:03:49
  Speaker 4: are the ones that usually escape our notice. Then, showing
• 4:03:53
  Speaker 4: me the seven of hearts, he added, of course I
• 4:03:55
  Speaker 4: had guessed that in order to open the larger safe,
• 4:03:58
  Speaker 4: this card must be placed on the order the Mosaic King.
• 4:04:01
  Speaker 4: How did you guess that quite easily through private information?
• 4:04:06
  Speaker 4: I knew that fact when I came here on the
• 4:04:08
  Speaker 4: evening of the twenty second June, after you left me. Yes,
• 4:04:13
  Speaker 4: after turning the subject of our conversation to stories of
• 4:04:15
  Speaker 4: crime and robbery, which were sure to reduce you to
• 4:04:19
  Speaker 4: such a nervous condition that you would not leave your bed,
• 4:04:23
  Speaker 4: but would allow me to complete my search uninterrupted. The
• 4:04:26
  Speaker 4: scheme worked perfectly well. I knew that when I came
• 4:04:30
  Speaker 4: here there was a casket concealed in the safe with
• 4:04:33
  Speaker 4: a secret lock, and that the Seven of Hearts was
• 4:04:35
  Speaker 4: the key to that lock. I had merely to place
• 4:04:38
  Speaker 4: the card upon the spot that was so obviously intended
• 4:04:42
  Speaker 4: for it, and hour's examination showed me where the spot was.
• 4:04:45
  Speaker 4: One hour observe the fellow in the Mosaic the Old Emperor.
• 4:04:51
  Speaker 4: The Old Emperor is an exact representation of the King
• 4:04:54
  Speaker 4: of Hearts and all playing cards. That's right. But how
• 4:04:58
  Speaker 4: does the Seven of Hearts open the larger safe at
• 4:05:01
  Speaker 4: one time and the smaller safe another time? And why
• 4:05:04
  Speaker 4: did you open only the larger safe in the first instance,
• 4:05:07
  Speaker 4: I mean on the night of twenty second June. Why,
• 4:05:11
  Speaker 4: because I always placed the seven of hearts the same way,
• 4:05:14
  Speaker 4: I never changed the position. But yesterday I observed that
• 4:05:18
  Speaker 4: by reversing the card, by turning it upside down, the
• 4:05:21
  Speaker 4: arrangement of the seven spots on the mosaic was changed. Pableu,
• 4:05:26
  Speaker 4: of course, pableu. But a person has to think of
• 4:05:29
  Speaker 4: those things. There is something else. You did not know
• 4:05:33
  Speaker 4: the history of those letters until Madame ander Matt's spoke
• 4:05:36
  Speaker 4: of them to before me. No, because I found in
• 4:05:40
  Speaker 4: the safe beside the casket nothing but the correspondence of
• 4:05:43
  Speaker 4: the two brothers, which disclosed their treachery in regard to
• 4:05:46
  Speaker 4: the plans. But then it was by chance that you
• 4:05:50
  Speaker 4: were led first to investigate the history of the two
• 4:05:52
  Speaker 4: brothers and then to search for the plans and documents
• 4:05:55
  Speaker 4: relating to the submarine, simply by chance. For what did
• 4:06:00
  Speaker 4: you make the search, mon dieu, exclaimed Dasbury, laughing, how
• 4:06:04
  Speaker 4: deeply interested you are for the subject fascinates me very well. Presently,
• 4:06:09
  Speaker 4: after I've escorted Madame and deer Matt to a carriage
• 4:06:12
  Speaker 4: and dispatched a short story to the Ecco de France.
• 4:06:15
  Speaker 4: I will return and tell you about it. He sat
• 4:06:18
  Speaker 4: down and wrote one of those short, clear cut articles
• 4:06:21
  Speaker 4: which serve to amuse and mystify the public. Who does
• 4:06:25
  Speaker 4: not recall the sensation that followed that article produced throughout
• 4:06:29
  Speaker 4: the entire world. A Saint Lupin has solved the problem
• 4:06:34
  Speaker 4: recently submitted by Salvator. Having a quiet possession of all
• 4:06:37
  Speaker 4: the documents and original plans of the engineer Louis la Combe,
• 4:06:40
  Speaker 4: he has placed them in the hands of the Minister
• 4:06:43
  Speaker 4: of Marine, and he has headed a subscription list for
• 4:06:46
  Speaker 4: the purpose of presenting to the nation the first submarine
• 4:06:48
  Speaker 4: constructed from those plans. His subscription is twenty thousand francs.
• 4:06:55
  Speaker 4: Twenty thousand francs the checks of Michander Maats, I exclaimed
• 4:07:00
  Speaker 4: when he had given me the paper to read exactly,
• 4:07:03
  Speaker 4: it was quite right that Valain should redeem his treachery.
• 4:07:07
  Speaker 4: And that is how I made the acquaintance of Ar
• 4:07:10
  Speaker 4: Saint Lupin. That is how I learned that Geen desprit,
• 4:07:15
  Speaker 4: a member of my club, was none other than Ar
• 4:07:18
  Speaker 4: Saint Lupin, gentleman thief. And that is how I formed
• 4:07:23
  Speaker 4: a very agreeable ties of friendship with that famous man,
• 4:07:27
  Speaker 4: and thanks to the confidence with which he honored me,
• 4:07:30
  Speaker 4: how I became. He is very humble and faithful historiographer.
• 4:07:35
  Speaker 3: End of chapter six, Chapter seven, Madame in theer's safe
• 4:07:42
  Speaker 3: at three o'clock in the morning, there were still half
• 4:07:44
  Speaker 3: a dozen carriages in front of one of those small
• 4:07:47
  Speaker 3: houses which form only the side of the Boulevard Berthier.
• 4:07:51
  Speaker 3: The door of that house opened and a number of guests,
• 4:07:54
  Speaker 3: male and female, emerged. The majority of them entered their
• 4:07:57
  Speaker 3: carriages and were quickly driven away, leaving behind only two men,
• 4:08:01
  Speaker 3: who walked down Corsiers where they parted, as one of
• 4:08:05
  Speaker 3: them lived in that street. The other decided to return
• 4:08:08
  Speaker 3: on foot as far as the Porte Maios, And was
• 4:08:11
  Speaker 3: a beautiful winter's night, clear and cold, a night on
• 4:08:14
  Speaker 3: which a brisk walk is agreeable and refreshing. But at
• 4:08:17
  Speaker 3: the end of a few minutes he had the disagreeable
• 4:08:20
  Speaker 3: impression that he was being followed. Turning around, he saw
• 4:08:24
  Speaker 3: a man sulking amongst the trees. He was not a coward,
• 4:08:27
  Speaker 3: yet he felt it advisable to increase his speed. Then
• 4:08:30
  Speaker 3: his pursuer commenced to run, and he deemed it prudent
• 4:08:33
  Speaker 3: to draw his revolver and face him, but he had
• 4:08:36
  Speaker 3: no time. The man rushed at him and attacked him violently.
• 4:08:39
  Speaker 3: Immediately they were engaged in a desperate struggle, wherein he
• 4:08:43
  Speaker 3: felt that his unknown assailant had the advantage. He called
• 4:08:46
  Speaker 3: for help, struggled, and was thrown down on a pile
• 4:08:49
  Speaker 3: of gravel, seized by the throat, and gagged with a handkerchief,
• 4:08:53
  Speaker 3: but his assailant forced into his mouth. His eyes closed,
• 4:08:56
  Speaker 3: and the man who was smothering him with his weight,
• 4:08:58
  Speaker 3: arose to defend himself against an unexpected attack. A blow
• 4:09:02
  Speaker 3: from a cane and a kick from a boot. The
• 4:09:05
  Speaker 3: man uttered two cries of pain and fled, limping and cursing,
• 4:09:09
  Speaker 3: without deigning to pursue the fugitive. The new arrival stooped
• 4:09:12
  Speaker 3: over the prostrate man and inquired, are you hurt, monsieur.
• 4:09:16
  Speaker 3: He was not injured, but he was dazed and unable
• 4:09:18
  Speaker 3: to stand. His rescuer procured a carriage, placed him in it,
• 4:09:22
  Speaker 3: and accompanied him to his house on the Avenue de
• 4:09:24
  Speaker 3: la Grande Armee. On his arrival there, quite recovered, he
• 4:09:29
  Speaker 3: overwhelmed his savior with thanks. I owe you my life, monsieur,
• 4:09:32
  Speaker 3: and I shall not forget it. I do not wish
• 4:09:34
  Speaker 3: to alarm my wife at this time of night, but
• 4:09:37
  Speaker 3: to morrow she will be pleased to thank you personally.
• 4:09:40
  Speaker 3: Come and breakfast with us. My name is ludeniq Imbarret
• 4:09:43
  Speaker 3: Nay ask yours certainly, monsieur, And he handed Monsieur Imbrey
• 4:09:47
  Speaker 3: a card bearing the name Arsagnes Lupin. At that time,
• 4:09:52
  Speaker 3: arsainn Moupin did not enjoy the celebrity which the Cahorn Affair,
• 4:09:56
  Speaker 3: his escape from the prison de la Sante and other
• 4:09:59
  Speaker 3: brilliant exports Floyd afterwards gained for him. He had not
• 4:10:02
  Speaker 3: even used the name of arsainn Lupine. The name was
• 4:10:06
  Speaker 3: specially invented to designate the rescuer of Monsieur Inbret. That
• 4:10:10
  Speaker 3: is to say, it was in that affair that Arsaint
• 4:10:13
  Speaker 3: Lupine was baptized, fully armed and ready for the fray,
• 4:10:17
  Speaker 3: it is true, But lacking the resources and authority which
• 4:10:20
  Speaker 3: commands success, Arsain Luquin was then merely an apprentice in
• 4:10:24
  Speaker 3: a profession, wherein he soon became a master. With what
• 4:10:28
  Speaker 3: a thrill of joy he recalled the invitation he received
• 4:10:31
  Speaker 3: that night. At last he had reached his goal. At last,
• 4:10:34
  Speaker 3: he had undertaken a task worth of his strength and skill,
• 4:10:37
  Speaker 3: the imbaret in millions. What a magnificent feast for an
• 4:10:40
  Speaker 3: appetite like his. He prepared a special toilette for the occasion,
• 4:10:45
  Speaker 3: a shabby frock coat, baggy trousers, a frayed silk hat,
• 4:10:49
  Speaker 3: well worn collar and cuffs, all quite correct in form,
• 4:10:52
  Speaker 3: but bearing the unmistakable stamp of poverty. His cravat was
• 4:10:56
  Speaker 3: a black ribbon pinned with a false diamond, thus a qutrie.
• 4:11:00
  Speaker 3: He descended the stairs of the house in which he
• 4:11:02
  Speaker 3: lived at Montmontrey, at the third floor. Without stopping. He
• 4:11:07
  Speaker 3: rapped upon a closed door with the head of his cane.
• 4:11:09
  Speaker 3: He walked to the exterior boulevards. A tram car was passing.
• 4:11:13
  Speaker 3: He boarded it, and someone who had been following him
• 4:11:15
  Speaker 3: took a seat beside him. It was a lodger who
• 4:11:18
  Speaker 3: occupied the room on the third floor. A moment later,
• 4:11:21
  Speaker 3: this man said to Lupine, well, Guvnor, Well, it is
• 4:11:24
  Speaker 3: all fixed, how I am going there to breakfast? You
• 4:11:28
  Speaker 3: breakfast there? Certainly? Why not? I rescued Monsieur Lui vill
• 4:11:33
  Speaker 3: Imberet from certain death. That your hands. Monsieur Imberet is
• 4:11:37
  Speaker 3: not devoid of gratitude. He invited me to breakfast. There
• 4:11:40
  Speaker 3: was a silence. Then the other said, but you are
• 4:11:43
  Speaker 3: not going to throw up the skime, my dear boy,
• 4:11:46
  Speaker 3: said Lupine, when I arranged that little case of the
• 4:11:48
  Speaker 3: salt at battery, when I took the trouble at three
• 4:11:51
  Speaker 3: o'clock in the morning to wrap you with my cane
• 4:11:53
  Speaker 3: and tap you with my boot at the risk of
• 4:11:55
  Speaker 3: injuring my only friend. It was not my intention to
• 4:11:58
  Speaker 3: forego the advantages to be gained from a rescue so
• 4:12:02
  Speaker 3: well arranged and executed. Oh no, not at all. But
• 4:12:06
  Speaker 3: the strange rumors we hear about their fortune, Never mind
• 4:12:09
  Speaker 3: about that. For six months I have worked on this affair,
• 4:12:12
  Speaker 3: investigated it, studied it, questioned the servants, the money lenders,
• 4:12:17
  Speaker 3: and men of straw For six months I have shadowed
• 4:12:19
  Speaker 3: the husband and wife. Consequently, I know what I am
• 4:12:22
  Speaker 3: talking about. Whether the fortune came to them from old Brawford,
• 4:12:26
  Speaker 3: as they pretend, or from some other source, I do
• 4:12:29
  Speaker 3: not care. I know that it is a reality, that
• 4:12:32
  Speaker 3: it exists, and some day it will be mine. Bigray
• 4:12:36
  Speaker 3: one hundred millions, let us say ten or even five.
• 4:12:40
  Speaker 3: That is enough. They have it safe, full of bonds,
• 4:12:42
  Speaker 3: and there will be the devil to pay if I
• 4:12:44
  Speaker 3: can't get my hands on them. The tram car stopped
• 4:12:47
  Speaker 3: at the Palace de l e Tolier. The man whispered
• 4:12:50
  Speaker 3: to leupin. What am I to do now? Nothing at present,
• 4:12:54
  Speaker 3: you will hear from me, there is no hurry. Five
• 4:12:57
  Speaker 3: minutes later I have seen Lupine with ascending the magnificent
• 4:13:00
  Speaker 3: flight of stairs in the Mberet mansion, and Monsieur Imberet
• 4:13:04
  Speaker 3: introduced him to his wife, Madame Giervasse. Imbere was a short,
• 4:13:08
  Speaker 3: plump woman and very talkative. She gave Loupine a cordial welcome.
• 4:13:12
  Speaker 3: I desired that we should be alone to entertain our savior,
• 4:13:15
  Speaker 3: she said. From the outset, they treated our Savior as
• 4:13:19
  Speaker 3: an old and valued friend. By the time dessert was served,
• 4:13:22
  Speaker 3: their friendship was well cemented and private confidences were being exchanged.
• 4:13:26
  Speaker 3: Arcine related the story of his life, the life of
• 4:13:29
  Speaker 3: his father as a magistrate, the sorrows of his childhood,
• 4:13:33
  Speaker 3: and his present difficulties. Gervasier, in turn, spoke of her youth,
• 4:13:37
  Speaker 3: her marriage, the kindness of the aged Brawford, the hundred
• 4:13:41
  Speaker 3: millions that she had inherited, the obstacles that prevented her
• 4:13:44
  Speaker 3: from obtaining the enjoyment of her inheritance, the moneys she
• 4:13:47
  Speaker 3: had been obliged to borrow at an exorbit rate of interest.
• 4:13:51
  Speaker 3: Here endless contentions with Brawford's nephews, and the litigation, the injunctions,
• 4:13:55
  Speaker 3: in fact, everything. Just think of it, Monsieur Leupine. The
• 4:13:59
  Speaker 3: banes are there in my husband's office, and if we
• 4:14:02
  Speaker 3: detach a single coupon, we lose everything. They are there
• 4:14:06
  Speaker 3: in our safe and we dare not touch them. Monsieur
• 4:14:09
  Speaker 3: Lupine shivered at the bare idea of his proximity to
• 4:14:12
  Speaker 3: so much wealth. Yet he felt quite certain that Monsieur
• 4:14:16
  Speaker 3: Leupine would never suffer from the same difficulty as his
• 4:14:19
  Speaker 3: fair hostess, who declared she dare not touch the money. Ah,
• 4:14:23
  Speaker 3: they are there, he repeated to himself. They are there.
• 4:14:27
  Speaker 3: A friendship formed under such circumstances soon led to closer relations.
• 4:14:32
  Speaker 3: When discreetly questioned Arcine, Lupine confessed his poverty and distress. Immediately,
• 4:14:37
  Speaker 3: the unfortunate young man was appointed private secretary to the
• 4:14:40
  Speaker 3: Emberets husband and wife at a salary of one hundred
• 4:14:43
  Speaker 3: francs a month. He was to come to the house
• 4:14:46
  Speaker 3: every day and receive orders for his work, and a
• 4:14:48
  Speaker 3: room on the second floor was set apart as his office.
• 4:14:52
  Speaker 3: This room was directly over Monsieur Imberet's office. Arcene soon
• 4:14:56
  Speaker 3: realized that his position as secretary was essentially a sinecure.
• 4:15:00
  Speaker 3: During the first two months, he had only four important
• 4:15:03
  Speaker 3: letters to recopy and was called only once to Monsieur
• 4:15:06
  Speaker 3: Imberret's office. Consequently, he had only one opportunity to contemplate
• 4:15:11
  Speaker 3: officially the Imberet safe. Moreover, he noticed that the secretary
• 4:15:16
  Speaker 3: was not invited to the social functions of the employer,
• 4:15:19
  Speaker 3: but he did not complain, as he preferred to remain
• 4:15:22
  Speaker 3: modestly in the shade and maintain his peace and freedom. However,
• 4:15:26
  Speaker 3: he was not wasting any time. From the beginning, he
• 4:15:29
  Speaker 3: made clandestine visits to Monsieur Imberret's office and paid his
• 4:15:33
  Speaker 3: respects to the safe, which was hermetically closed. It was
• 4:15:37
  Speaker 3: an immense block of iron and steel, cold and stern
• 4:15:39
  Speaker 3: in appearance, which could not be forced open by the
• 4:15:42
  Speaker 3: ordinary tools of the burglar's trade. But Arcine Lupin was
• 4:15:46
  Speaker 3: not discouraged. Where force fails, cunning prevails, He said to himself.
• 4:15:50
  Speaker 3: The essential thing is to be on the spot when
• 4:15:52
  Speaker 3: the opportunity occurs. In the meantime, I must watch and wait.
• 4:15:56
  Speaker 3: He made immediately some preliminary preparations your careful soundings made
• 4:16:01
  Speaker 3: upon the floor of his room. He introduced a lead
• 4:16:03
  Speaker 3: pipe which penetrated the ceiling of Monsieur Inbree's office at
• 4:16:07
  Speaker 3: a point between the two secrets of the cornice. By
• 4:16:10
  Speaker 3: means of this pipe, he hoped to see and hear
• 4:16:12
  Speaker 3: what transpired in the room below. Henceforth he passed his
• 4:16:16
  Speaker 3: days stretched at full length upon the floor. He frequently
• 4:16:19
  Speaker 3: saw the mberets holding a consultation in front of the safe,
• 4:16:22
  Speaker 3: investigating books and papers. When they turned the combination lock,
• 4:16:26
  Speaker 3: he tried to learn the figures and the number of
• 4:16:28
  Speaker 3: turns they made to the right and left. He watched
• 4:16:31
  Speaker 3: their movements. He sought to catch their words. There was
• 4:16:34
  Speaker 3: also a key necessary to complete the opening of the safe.
• 4:16:37
  Speaker 3: What did they do with it? Did they hide it?
• 4:16:40
  Speaker 3: One day he saw them leave the room without locking
• 4:16:42
  Speaker 3: the safe. He descended the stairs quickly and boldly entered
• 4:16:45
  Speaker 3: the room, but they had returned. Oh, excuse me, said,
• 4:16:49
  Speaker 3: I made a mistake. In the door. Come in, Monsieur Lupin,
• 4:16:52
  Speaker 3: Come in, cried Madame Mimberet. Are you not at home here?
• 4:16:55
  Speaker 3: We want your advice which bonds should be sell the
• 4:16:58
  Speaker 3: foreign securities or the government annubities. But the injunction, said Lupin,
• 4:17:02
  Speaker 3: with surprise, Oh, it doesn't cover all the bonds. She
• 4:17:06
  Speaker 3: opened the door of the safe and withdrew a package
• 4:17:08
  Speaker 3: of bonds. But her husband protested, no, no, daralasee, it
• 4:17:12
  Speaker 3: would be foolish to sell the foreign bonds. They are
• 4:17:14
  Speaker 3: going up, whilst the annuities are as high as they
• 4:17:17
  Speaker 3: ever will be. What do you think, my dear friend.
• 4:17:20
  Speaker 3: The dear friend had no opinion, yet he advised the
• 4:17:22
  Speaker 3: sacrifice of the annuities. Then she withdrew another package, and
• 4:17:26
  Speaker 3: from it she took a paper at random. It proved
• 4:17:29
  Speaker 3: to be a three percent annuity worth two thousand francs.
• 4:17:32
  Speaker 3: Luovique placed the package of bonds in his pocket. That afternoon,
• 4:17:36
  Speaker 3: accompanied by his secretary, he sold the annuities to a
• 4:17:39
  Speaker 3: stockbroker and realized forty six thousand francs. Whatever Madame Mimbaret
• 4:17:44
  Speaker 3: might have said about it, Arsim Loupin did not feel
• 4:17:47
  Speaker 3: at home in the Inbaret house. On the contrary his position,
• 4:17:51
  Speaker 3: there was a peculiar one. He learned that the servants
• 4:17:54
  Speaker 3: did not even know his name. They called him Monsieur.
• 4:17:57
  Speaker 3: Ludovic always spoke of him in the same way, Will
• 4:17:59
  Speaker 3: you tell me Monsieur as Monsieur arrived? Why that mysterious appellation. Moreover,
• 4:18:05
  Speaker 3: after their first outburst of enthusiasm, the Imberets seldom spoke
• 4:18:08
  Speaker 3: to him, and although treating him with the consideration due
• 4:18:12
  Speaker 3: to a benefactor, they gave him little or no attention.
• 4:18:15
  Speaker 3: They appeared to regard him as an eccentric character who
• 4:18:18
  Speaker 3: did not like to be disturbed, and there respected his
• 4:18:21
  Speaker 3: isolation as if it were a stringent rule on his part.
• 4:18:24
  Speaker 3: On one occasion, while passing through the vestibule, he heard
• 4:18:27
  Speaker 3: Madame Mberet say to the two gentlemen, he is such
• 4:18:30
  Speaker 3: a barbarian. Very well, he said to himself, I am
• 4:18:33
  Speaker 3: a barbarian, And without seeking to solve the question of
• 4:18:37
  Speaker 3: their strange conduct, he proceeded with the execution of his
• 4:18:40
  Speaker 3: own plans. He had decided that he could not depend
• 4:18:43
  Speaker 3: on chance nor on the negligence of Madame Mberet, who
• 4:18:46
  Speaker 3: carried the key of the safe, and who unlocking the
• 4:18:49
  Speaker 3: safe invariably scattered the letters forming the combination of the locke. Consequently,
• 4:18:54
  Speaker 3: he must act for himself. Finally, an incident precipitated matters.
• 4:18:58
  Speaker 3: It was the vehement campaign instituted against the Imberees by
• 4:19:02
  Speaker 3: certain newspapers that accused the Imberets of a swindling. Our
• 4:19:06
  Speaker 3: steming being was present at certain family conferences when this
• 4:19:09
  Speaker 3: new vicissitude was discussed, he decided that if he waited
• 4:19:13
  Speaker 3: much longer, he would lose everything. During the next five days,
• 4:19:17
  Speaker 3: instead of leaving the house about six o'clock according to
• 4:19:20
  Speaker 3: his usual habit, he locked himself in the room. It
• 4:19:23
  Speaker 3: was supposed that he had gone out, but he was
• 4:19:25
  Speaker 3: lying on the floor surveying the office of Monsieur Mbret.
• 4:19:29
  Speaker 3: During those five evenings. The favorable opportunity that he awaited
• 4:19:32
  Speaker 3: did not take place. He left the house about midnight
• 4:19:35
  Speaker 3: by a side door to which he held the key.
• 4:19:38
  Speaker 3: But on the sixth day he learned that the Imbarets,
• 4:19:40
  Speaker 3: actuated by the benevolent insinuations of their enemies, proposed to
• 4:19:44
  Speaker 3: make an inventory of the contents of the safe. They
• 4:19:47
  Speaker 3: will do it tonight, thought Lupine, and truly. After dinner
• 4:19:51
  Speaker 3: Ymbret and his wife retired to the office and commenced
• 4:19:54
  Speaker 3: to examine the books of account and the securities contained
• 4:19:56
  Speaker 3: in the safe. Thus, one hour after another pat he
• 4:20:00
  Speaker 3: heard the servants go upstairs to their rooms. No one
• 4:20:03
  Speaker 3: now remained on the first floor. Midnight, the mbirets were
• 4:20:06
  Speaker 3: still at work. I must get to work, murmured Dupin.
• 4:20:09
  Speaker 3: He opened his window. It opened on a court. Outside,
• 4:20:13
  Speaker 3: everything was dark and quiet. He took from his desk
• 4:20:15
  Speaker 3: knotted rope, fastened it to the balcony in front of
• 4:20:18
  Speaker 3: his window, and quietly descended as far as the window below,
• 4:20:22
  Speaker 3: which was that of the imbiret's office. He stood upon
• 4:20:25
  Speaker 3: the balcony for a moment, motionless, with attentive ear and
• 4:20:28
  Speaker 3: watchful eye, But the heavy curtains effectually concealed the interior
• 4:20:32
  Speaker 3: of the room. He cautiously pushed on the double window.
• 4:20:35
  Speaker 3: If no one had examined it, it ought to yield
• 4:20:37
  Speaker 3: the slightest pressure, for during the afternoon he had so
• 4:20:41
  Speaker 3: fixed the bolt that it would not enter the staple.
• 4:20:44
  Speaker 3: The window yielded to his touch. Then, with infinite care,
• 4:20:48
  Speaker 3: he pushed it open sufficiently to admit his head. He
• 4:20:51
  Speaker 3: parted the curtains a few inches looking in, and saw
• 4:20:53
  Speaker 3: Monsieur Mbiret and his wife sitting in front of the safe,
• 4:20:57
  Speaker 3: deeply absorbed in their work and speaking softly to ithich
• 4:21:00
  Speaker 3: other at rare intervals. He calculated the distance between him
• 4:21:03
  Speaker 3: and them, considered the exact movements he would require to
• 4:21:06
  Speaker 3: make in order to overcome them one after the other
• 4:21:09
  Speaker 3: before they could call for help, and he was about
• 4:21:12
  Speaker 3: to rush upon them when Madame Imberet said, Ah, the
• 4:21:15
  Speaker 3: room is getting quite cold. I'm going to bed, and you,
• 4:21:18
  Speaker 3: my dear, I shall stay and finish. Finish. Why that
• 4:21:22
  Speaker 3: will take you all night, not at all an hour
• 4:21:25
  Speaker 3: at the most. She retired twenty minutes. Thirty minutes past.
• 4:21:29
  Speaker 3: Arcene pushed the window a little further open. The curtain shook.
• 4:21:33
  Speaker 3: He pushed once more. Monsieur Imberret turned, and, seeing the
• 4:21:37
  Speaker 3: curtains blown by the wind, he rose to close the window.
• 4:21:40
  Speaker 3: There was not a cry, not the trace of struggle.
• 4:21:42
  Speaker 3: With a few precise movements, and without causing him the
• 4:21:45
  Speaker 3: least injury, our scenes stunned him, wrapped the curtain about
• 4:21:48
  Speaker 3: his head, bound him hand and foot, and did it
• 4:21:51
  Speaker 3: all in such a manner that Monsieur Imbreret had no
• 4:21:53
  Speaker 3: opportunity to recognize his assailant. Quickly he approached the safe,
• 4:21:58
  Speaker 3: seized two packages that he placed under his arm, left
• 4:22:01
  Speaker 3: the office and opened the servant's gate. A carriage was
• 4:22:03
  Speaker 3: stationed in the street. Take that first and follow me,
• 4:22:07
  Speaker 3: he said to the coachman. He returned to the office,
• 4:22:10
  Speaker 3: and in two trips they emptied the safe. Then Arcine
• 4:22:13
  Speaker 3: went to his own room removed the robe and all
• 4:22:16
  Speaker 3: other traces of his clandestine work. A few hours later, Arcine, Lupin,
• 4:22:21
  Speaker 3: and his assistant examined the stolen goods. Lupine was not disappointed,
• 4:22:25
  Speaker 3: as he had foreseen that the wealth of the Mberees
• 4:22:28
  Speaker 3: had been greatly exaggerated. It did not consist of hundreds
• 4:22:31
  Speaker 3: of millions, nor even tens of millions. Yet it amounted
• 4:22:34
  Speaker 3: to a very respectable sum, and Lupine expressed his satisfaction.
• 4:22:38
  Speaker 3: Of course, he said, there will be a considerable loss
• 4:22:41
  Speaker 3: when we come to sellabands, as we will have to
• 4:22:43
  Speaker 3: dispose of them surreptitiously at reduced prices. In the meantime,
• 4:22:48
  Speaker 3: they will rest quietly in my desk awaiting a propitious moment.
• 4:22:52
  Speaker 3: Arthin saw no reason why he should not go to
• 4:22:55
  Speaker 3: the Imberet House the next day, but a pursual of
• 4:22:58
  Speaker 3: the morning papers revealed this star fact. Ludovict andingerabasse Inbaret
• 4:23:03
  Speaker 3: had disappeared. When the officers of the law seized the
• 4:23:06
  Speaker 3: safe and opened it, they found there was what Arciine
• 4:23:08
  Speaker 3: Lupin had left. Nothing. Such are the facts, and I
• 4:23:13
  Speaker 3: learned the sequel to them. One day, when Arcidine Lupin
• 4:23:16
  Speaker 3: was in a confidential mood. He was pacing to and
• 4:23:18
  Speaker 3: fro in my room with a nervous step and a
• 4:23:20
  Speaker 3: feverish eye that were unusual to him. After all, I
• 4:23:24
  Speaker 3: said to him, it was your most successful venture. Without
• 4:23:27
  Speaker 3: making a direct reply, he said, there are some impenetrable
• 4:23:30
  Speaker 3: secrets connected with that affair, some obscure points that escape
• 4:23:34
  Speaker 3: my comprehension. For instance, what caused their flight? Why did
• 4:23:37
  Speaker 3: they not take advantage of the help I unconsciously gave them?
• 4:23:41
  Speaker 3: It would have been so simple to say the hundred
• 4:23:43
  Speaker 3: millions were in the safe. They are no longer there
• 4:23:45
  Speaker 3: because they have been stolen. They lost their nerve, Yes,
• 4:23:49
  Speaker 3: that is it, they lost their nerve. On the other hand,
• 4:23:52
  Speaker 3: it is true, what is true? Oh? Nothing? What was
• 4:23:57
  Speaker 3: the meaning of Lupin's reticence. It was quite obvious that
• 4:24:00
  Speaker 3: he had not told me everything. There was something he
• 4:24:03
  Speaker 3: was loath to tell. His conduct puzzled me. It must
• 4:24:06
  Speaker 3: indeed be a very serious matter to cause such a
• 4:24:09
  Speaker 3: man as Arsine lupin even a momentary hesitation. I threw
• 4:24:13
  Speaker 3: out a few questions at random. Have you seen them since? No?
• 4:24:17
  Speaker 3: Have you never experienced the slightest degree of pity for
• 4:24:19
  Speaker 3: those unfortunate people?
• 4:24:21
  Speaker 1: Ay?
• 4:24:21
  Speaker 3: He exclaimed with a start. His sudden excitement astonished me.
• 4:24:26
  Speaker 3: Had I touched him on a sore spot? I continued?
• 4:24:28
  Speaker 3: Of course, if you had not left them alone, they
• 4:24:31
  Speaker 3: might have been able to face the danger, or at
• 4:24:34
  Speaker 3: least made their escape with full pockets. What do you mean,
• 4:24:37
  Speaker 3: he said indignantly. I suppose you have an idea that
• 4:24:40
  Speaker 3: my soul should be filled with remorse. Call it remorse
• 4:24:44
  Speaker 3: or regrets anything you like. They are not worth it.
• 4:24:47
  Speaker 3: Have you no regrets or remorse for having stolen their fortune?
• 4:24:50
  Speaker 3: What fortune? The package of bonds you took from their safe? Oh?
• 4:24:54
  Speaker 3: I stole their bonds? Did I? I deprived them of
• 4:24:57
  Speaker 3: a portion of their wealth? Is that my crime? Ah?
• 4:25:00
  Speaker 3: My dear boy, you do not know the truth. You
• 4:25:03
  Speaker 3: never imagined that those bonds were not worth the paper
• 4:25:05
  Speaker 3: they were written on. Those bonds were false. They were counterfeit,
• 4:25:09
  Speaker 3: every one of them. Do you understand they were counterfeit?
• 4:25:12
  Speaker 3: I looked at him, astounded. Counterfeit, the four or five millions, Yes, counterfeit,
• 4:25:18
  Speaker 3: he exclaimed, in a fit of rage, Only so many
• 4:25:21
  Speaker 3: scraps of paper. I couldn't raise a sou on the
• 4:25:23
  Speaker 3: whole of them. And you ask me if I have
• 4:25:26
  Speaker 3: any remorse. They are the ones who should have remorse
• 4:25:29
  Speaker 3: and pity. They played me for a simpleton, and I
• 4:25:31
  Speaker 3: fell into their trap. How was their latest victim, their
• 4:25:34
  Speaker 3: most stupid gull? He was affected by genuine anger, the
• 4:25:38
  Speaker 3: result of malice and wounded pride. He continued, from start
• 4:25:42
  Speaker 3: to finish. I got the worst of it. Do you
• 4:25:45
  Speaker 3: know the part I played in that affair, or rather
• 4:25:47
  Speaker 3: the part they made me play, that of Andre Braford? Yes,
• 4:25:51
  Speaker 3: my boy, that is the truth, and I never suspected it.
• 4:25:54
  Speaker 3: It was not until afterwards, on reading the newspapers, that
• 4:25:57
  Speaker 3: the light finally dawned in my stupid brain. Whilst I
• 4:26:00
  Speaker 3: was posing as his savior, as the gentleman who had
• 4:26:03
  Speaker 3: risked his life to rescue monsieur imbaret from the clutches
• 4:26:06
  Speaker 3: of an assassin. They were passing me off as Braford.
• 4:26:09
  Speaker 3: Wasn't that splendid the eccentric individual who had a room
• 4:26:13
  Speaker 3: on the second floor, That barbarian that was exhibited only
• 4:26:16
  Speaker 3: at a distance was Brawford, and Brafford was I. Thanks
• 4:26:20
  Speaker 3: to me and to the confidence that I inspired under
• 4:26:23
  Speaker 3: the name of Braford, they were enabled to borrow money
• 4:26:26
  Speaker 3: from the bankers and other money lenders. A what an
• 4:26:29
  Speaker 3: experience for a novice. And I swear to you that
• 4:26:32
  Speaker 3: I shall profit by the lesson. He stopped, seized my
• 4:26:35
  Speaker 3: arm and said to me, in a tone of exasperation,
• 4:26:37
  Speaker 3: my dear fellow, at this very moment, Eurvasier Inmberet owes
• 4:26:41
  Speaker 3: me fifteen hundred francs. I could not refrain from laughter.
• 4:26:44
  Speaker 3: His rage was so grotesque he was making a mountain
• 4:26:47
  Speaker 3: out of a mole hill. In a moment, he lapped
• 4:26:50
  Speaker 3: himself and said, yes, my boy, fifteen hundred francs. You
• 4:26:54
  Speaker 3: must know that I had not received one sou of
• 4:26:56
  Speaker 3: my promised salary, and more than that she had borrowed
• 4:27:00
  Speaker 3: from me the sum of fifteen hundred francs, all my
• 4:27:03
  Speaker 3: youthful savings, and you know why to devote the money
• 4:27:07
  Speaker 3: to charity. I am giving you a straight story. She
• 4:27:10
  Speaker 3: wanted it for some poor people she was assisting, unknown
• 4:27:12
  Speaker 3: to her husband. And my heart earned money was wormed
• 4:27:16
  Speaker 3: out of me by that silly pretense, isn't it amusing?
• 4:27:19
  Speaker 3: Heen arcint lupin done out of fifteen hundred francs by
• 4:27:23
  Speaker 3: the fair lady from whom he stole four millions in
• 4:27:26
  Speaker 3: counterfeit bonds. And what a vast amount of time and
• 4:27:29
  Speaker 3: patience and cunning I expended to achieve that result. It
• 4:27:32
  Speaker 3: was the first time in my life that I was
• 4:27:34
  Speaker 3: played her a fool, and I frankly confess that I
• 4:27:37
  Speaker 3: was full that time to the Queen's taste.
• 4:27:41
  Speaker 2: End of chapter seven, Chapter eight, The Black Pearl. The
• 4:27:47
  Speaker 2: violent ringing of the bell awakened the concierge of number
• 4:27:51
  Speaker 2: nine of a new osh. She pulled the doorstring, grumbling,
• 4:27:55
  Speaker 2: I thought everybody was in. It must be three o'clock.
• 4:28:00
  Speaker 2: Perhaps it is someone for the doctor, muttered her husband.
• 4:28:03
  Speaker 2: Third floor left. But the doctor won't go out at night.
• 4:28:08
  Speaker 2: He must go out to night. The visitor entered the vestibule,
• 4:28:13
  Speaker 2: ascended to the first floor. The second the third and
• 4:28:17
  Speaker 2: without stopping at the doctor's door, he continued to the
• 4:28:20
  Speaker 2: fifth floor. There he tried two keys, one of them
• 4:28:25
  Speaker 2: fitted the lock ah a good He murmured, that simplifies
• 4:28:30
  Speaker 2: the business wonderfully. But before a commences work, I had
• 4:28:34
  Speaker 2: better arrange for my retreat. Let me see. Have I
• 4:28:38
  Speaker 2: had sufficient time to rouse the doctor and be dismissed
• 4:28:40
  Speaker 2: by him? Not yet? A few minutes more, At the
• 4:28:45
  Speaker 2: end of ten minutes, he descended the stairs, grumbling noisily
• 4:28:48
  Speaker 2: about the doctor. The concierge opened the door for him
• 4:28:52
  Speaker 2: and heard it click behind him, But the door did
• 4:28:55
  Speaker 2: not lock, as the man had quickly inserted a piece
• 4:28:58
  Speaker 2: of iron in the lock in sight such manner that
• 4:29:00
  Speaker 2: the bolt could not enter. Then quietly he entered the
• 4:29:05
  Speaker 2: house again, unknown to the concierge. In case of alarm,
• 4:29:10
  Speaker 2: his retreat was assured noiselessly. He ascended to the fifth
• 4:29:15
  Speaker 2: floor once more in the ante chamber by the light
• 4:29:18
  Speaker 2: of his electric lantern. He placed his hat and overcoat
• 4:29:22
  Speaker 2: on one of the chairs, took a seat on another,
• 4:29:25
  Speaker 2: and covered his heavy shoes with felt slippers. Hoof, here
• 4:29:29
  Speaker 2: I am, and how simple it was. I wonder why
• 4:29:33
  Speaker 2: more people do not adopt the profitable and pleasant occupation
• 4:29:36
  Speaker 2: of burglar. With a little care and reflection, it becomes
• 4:29:40
  Speaker 2: a most delightful profession. Not too quiet and monotonous, of course,
• 4:29:45
  Speaker 2: as it would then become wearisome. He unfolded a detailed
• 4:29:49
  Speaker 2: plan of the apartment. Let me commence by locating myself. Here.
• 4:29:54
  Speaker 2: I see the vestibule in which I am sitting on
• 4:29:57
  Speaker 2: the street front, the drawing room, the boodooro, and the
• 4:30:00
  Speaker 2: dining room. Useless to waste any time there, as it
• 4:30:04
  Speaker 2: appears that the Countess has deplorable taste, not to be
• 4:30:08
  Speaker 2: below of any value. Now let's get down to business. Ah,
• 4:30:12
  Speaker 2: here is a corridor. It must lead to the bed chambers.
• 4:30:16
  Speaker 2: At a distance of three meters, I should come to
• 4:30:19
  Speaker 2: the door of the wardrobe closet, which connects with the
• 4:30:22
  Speaker 2: chamber of a countess. He folded his plan, extinguished his lantern,
• 4:30:26
  Speaker 2: and proceeded down the corridor, counting his distance thus one
• 4:30:31
  Speaker 2: meter two meters three meters. Here is the door, mon dieu,
• 4:30:36
  Speaker 2: How easy it is? Only a small simple bolt now
• 4:30:40
  Speaker 2: separates me from the chamber. And I know that the
• 4:30:43
  Speaker 2: bolt is located exactly one meter forty three centimeters from
• 4:30:47
  Speaker 2: the floor, so that, thanks to a small incision I
• 4:30:50
  Speaker 2: am about to make, I can soon get rid of
• 4:30:52
  Speaker 2: the bolt. He drew from his pocket the necessary instruments.
• 4:30:57
  Speaker 2: Then the following idea occurred to him. I suppose, by
• 4:31:00
  Speaker 2: chance the door is not bolted, I will try it first.
• 4:31:05
  Speaker 2: He turned the knob, and the door opened. My brave Lupin,
• 4:31:09
  Speaker 2: surely fortune favors you. What's to be done? Now you
• 4:31:13
  Speaker 2: know the situation of the rooms, You know the place
• 4:31:16
  Speaker 2: in which the Countess hides the black pearl. Therefore, in
• 4:31:20
  Speaker 2: order to secure the black pearl, you have simply to
• 4:31:22
  Speaker 2: be more silent than silence, more invisible than darkness itself.
• 4:31:28
  Speaker 2: Arsene Lupin was employed fully a half hour in opening
• 4:31:31
  Speaker 2: the second door, a glass door that led to the
• 4:31:34
  Speaker 2: countess's bed chamber. But he accomplished it with so much
• 4:31:38
  Speaker 2: skill and precaution that even had the Countess been awake,
• 4:31:41
  Speaker 2: she would not have heard the slightest sound. According to
• 4:31:45
  Speaker 2: the plan of the rooms that he holds, he has
• 4:31:48
  Speaker 2: merely to pass around a reclining chair, and beyond that
• 4:31:52
  Speaker 2: a small table close to the bed. On the table
• 4:31:55
  Speaker 2: there was a box of letter paper, and the black
• 4:31:58
  Speaker 2: pearl was concealed in that box. He stooped and crept
• 4:32:02
  Speaker 2: cautiously over the carpet, following the outlines of the reclining chair.
• 4:32:08
  Speaker 2: When he reached the extremity of it, he stopped in
• 4:32:10
  Speaker 2: order to repress the throbbing of his heart. Although he
• 4:32:14
  Speaker 2: was not moved by any sense of fear, he found
• 4:32:16
  Speaker 2: it impossible to overcome the nervous anxiety that one usually
• 4:32:20
  Speaker 2: feels in the midst of profound silence. That circumstance astonished him,
• 4:32:25
  Speaker 2: because he had passed through many more solemn moments without
• 4:32:29
  Speaker 2: the slightest trace of emotion. No danger threatened him. Then
• 4:32:34
  Speaker 2: why did his heart throb like an alarm bell? Was
• 4:32:37
  Speaker 2: it that sleeping woman who affected him? Was it the
• 4:32:41
  Speaker 2: proximity of another pulsating heart? He listened and thought he
• 4:32:46
  Speaker 2: could discern the rhythmical breathing of a person asleep. It
• 4:32:50
  Speaker 2: gave him confidence, like the presence of a friend. He
• 4:32:54
  Speaker 2: sought and found the arm chair. Then, by slow, cautious movements,
• 4:32:58
  Speaker 2: advanced towards the table, feeling ahead of him with outstretched arm,
• 4:33:04
  Speaker 2: his right had touched one of the feet of the table.
• 4:33:07
  Speaker 1: Ah.
• 4:33:08
  Speaker 2: Now he had simply to rise, take the pearl and escape.
• 4:33:12
  Speaker 2: That was fortunate, as his heart was leaping in his
• 4:33:15
  Speaker 2: breast like a wild beast, and made so much noise
• 4:33:18
  Speaker 2: that he feared it would waken the Countess. By a
• 4:33:22
  Speaker 2: powerful effort of the will, he subdued the wild throbbing
• 4:33:25
  Speaker 2: of his heart and was about to rise from the
• 4:33:27
  Speaker 2: floor when his left hand encountered lying on the floor
• 4:33:31
  Speaker 2: an object which he recognized as a candlestick, an overturned candlestick.
• 4:33:36
  Speaker 2: A moment later, his hand encountered another object, a clock,
• 4:33:41
  Speaker 2: one of those small traveling clocks covered with leather. Well,
• 4:33:46
  Speaker 2: what had happened? He could not understand that candlestick, that clock.
• 4:33:52
  Speaker 2: Why were those articles not in their accustomed places? Ah,
• 4:33:56
  Speaker 2: what had happened in the dread silence of the night.
• 4:34:00
  Speaker 2: Suddenly a cry escaped him. He had touched, Oh, some strange,
• 4:34:05
  Speaker 2: unutterable thing. No, no, he thought, it cannot be. It
• 4:34:09
  Speaker 2: is some fantasy of my excited brain. For some twenty
• 4:34:13
  Speaker 2: seconds thirty seconds, he remained motionless, terrified, his forehead bathed
• 4:34:20
  Speaker 2: with perspiration, and his fingers still retained the sensation of
• 4:34:23
  Speaker 2: that dreadful contact. Making a desperate effort, he ventured to
• 4:34:28
  Speaker 2: extend his arm again once more, his hand encountered that strange,
• 4:34:33
  Speaker 2: unutterable thing. He felt it. He must feel it and
• 4:34:38
  Speaker 2: find out what it is. He found that it was hair,
• 4:34:42
  Speaker 2: human hair, and a human face, and that face was cold,
• 4:34:48
  Speaker 2: almost icy. However frightful the circumstances may be. A man
• 4:34:53
  Speaker 2: like Arsene Lupin controlled himself and commands the situation as
• 4:34:57
  Speaker 2: soon as he learns what it is. Ar Saint Lupin
• 4:35:01
  Speaker 2: quickly brought his lantern into use. A woman was lying
• 4:35:05
  Speaker 2: before him, covered with blood. Her neck and shoulders were
• 4:35:09
  Speaker 2: covered with gaping wounds. He leaned over her and made
• 4:35:13
  Speaker 2: a closer examination. She was dead, dead, dead, he repeated,
• 4:35:20
  Speaker 2: with a bewildered air. He stared at those fixed eyes,
• 4:35:25
  Speaker 2: that grim mouth, that livid flesh, and that blood, or
• 4:35:29
  Speaker 2: that blood which had flowed over the carpet and congealed
• 4:35:33
  Speaker 2: there in thick black spots. He arose and turned on
• 4:35:37
  Speaker 2: the electric lights. Then he beheld all the marks of
• 4:35:41
  Speaker 2: a desperate struggle. The bed was in a state of
• 4:35:44
  Speaker 2: great disorder. On the floor, the candlestick and the clock
• 4:35:48
  Speaker 2: with the hands pointing to twenty minutes after eleven, then
• 4:35:52
  Speaker 2: further away an overturned chair, and everywhere there was blood,
• 4:35:56
  Speaker 2: spots of blood and pools of blood, and the black pearl,
• 4:36:01
  Speaker 2: he murmured. The box of letter paper was in its place.
• 4:36:06
  Speaker 2: He opened it eagerly. The jewel case was there, but
• 4:36:10
  Speaker 2: it was empty. Fist, he muttered, You boasted of your
• 4:36:16
  Speaker 2: good fortune much too soon, My friend lupin with the
• 4:36:20
  Speaker 2: countess lying cold and dead, and the black pearl vanished.
• 4:36:23
  Speaker 2: The situation is anything but pleasant. Get out of here
• 4:36:27
  Speaker 2: as soon as you can, or you may get into
• 4:36:29
  Speaker 2: serious trouble. Yet he did not move. Get out of here. Yes,
• 4:36:35
  Speaker 2: of course any person would, except of Saint Dupin. He
• 4:36:39
  Speaker 2: has something better to do now, to proceed in an
• 4:36:42
  Speaker 2: orderly way. At all events, you have a clear conscience.
• 4:36:46
  Speaker 2: Let us suppose that you are the Commissary of Police,
• 4:36:49
  Speaker 2: and that you are proceeding to make an inquiry concerning
• 4:36:52
  Speaker 2: this affair. Yes, but in order to do that I
• 4:36:55
  Speaker 2: require a clearer brain. Mine is muddled like a ragout.
• 4:37:00
  Speaker 2: He tumbled into an arm chair, with his clenched hands
• 4:37:03
  Speaker 2: pressed against his burning forehead. The murder of the Avegnuosche
• 4:37:09
  Speaker 2: is one of those which have recently surprised and puzzled
• 4:37:12
  Speaker 2: the Parisian public, And certainly I should never have mentioned
• 4:37:16
  Speaker 2: the affair. If the veil of mystery had not been
• 4:37:18
  Speaker 2: removed by Arsene Lupin himself, no one knew the exact
• 4:37:22
  Speaker 2: truth of the case. Who did not know from having
• 4:37:26
  Speaker 2: met her in the Bois the fair Liotinezalti, the once
• 4:37:29
  Speaker 2: famous contatrice, wife and widow of the Count Don Dilleux Thesalti,
• 4:37:35
  Speaker 2: whose luxury dazzled all Paris some twenty years ago, who
• 4:37:39
  Speaker 2: acquired a European reputation for the magnificence of her diamonds
• 4:37:43
  Speaker 2: and pearls. It was said that she wore upon her
• 4:37:47
  Speaker 2: shoulders the capital of several banking houses and the gold
• 4:37:51
  Speaker 2: mines of numerous Australian companies. Skillful jewelers worked for Zalti,
• 4:37:57
  Speaker 2: as they had formerly wrought for kings and queens. And
• 4:38:00
  Speaker 2: who does not remember the catastrophe in which all that
• 4:38:03
  Speaker 2: wealth was swallowed up. Of all that marvelous collection, nothing
• 4:38:08
  Speaker 2: remained except the famous black pearl. The black pearl, that
• 4:38:13
  Speaker 2: is to say, a fortune if she had wished to
• 4:38:16
  Speaker 2: part with it, but she preferred to keep it to
• 4:38:19
  Speaker 2: live in a commonplace apartment with her companion, her cook
• 4:38:22
  Speaker 2: and a man servant, rather than sell that inestimable jewel.
• 4:38:28
  Speaker 2: There was a reason for it, a reason she was
• 4:38:30
  Speaker 2: not afraid to disclose. The black pearl was the gift
• 4:38:35
  Speaker 2: of an emperor. Almost ruined and reduced to the most
• 4:38:39
  Speaker 2: mediocre existence, she remained faithful to the companion of her
• 4:38:42
  Speaker 2: happy and brilliant youth. The black pearl never left her possession.
• 4:38:48
  Speaker 2: She worried during the day, and at night concealed it
• 4:38:52
  Speaker 2: in a place known to her alone. All these facts,
• 4:38:56
  Speaker 2: being republished in the columns of the public press, served
• 4:39:00
  Speaker 2: to stimulate curiosity and strange to say, but quite obvious
• 4:39:05
  Speaker 2: to those who have the key to the mystery. The
• 4:39:07
  Speaker 2: arrest of the presumed assassin only complicated the question and
• 4:39:11
  Speaker 2: prolonged the excitement. Two days later, the newspapers published the
• 4:39:16
  Speaker 2: following item. Information has reached us of the arrest of
• 4:39:21
  Speaker 2: Victor Danegre, the servant of the Countess don Dieux. The
• 4:39:27
  Speaker 2: evidence against him is clear and convincing. On the silken
• 4:39:31
  Speaker 2: sleeve of his liveried waistcoat, which Chief Detective dou Deui
• 4:39:35
  Speaker 2: found in his garret between the mattresses of his bed,
• 4:39:39
  Speaker 2: several spots of blood were discovered. In addition, a cloth
• 4:39:43
  Speaker 2: covered button was missing. From that garment, and this button
• 4:39:47
  Speaker 2: was found beneath the bed of the victim. It is
• 4:39:51
  Speaker 2: supposed that after dinner, in place of going to his
• 4:39:54
  Speaker 2: own room, Danegre slipped into the wardrobe closet and through
• 4:39:59
  Speaker 2: the glass door had seen the Countess hide the precious
• 4:40:02
  Speaker 2: black pearl. This is simply a theory, as yet unverified
• 4:40:07
  Speaker 2: by any evidence. There is also another obscure point. At
• 4:40:12
  Speaker 2: seven o'clock in the morning, Danegro went to the tobacco
• 4:40:15
  Speaker 2: shop on the Boulevard de Coursel. The concierge and the
• 4:40:19
  Speaker 2: shopkeeper both affirm this fact. On the other hand, the
• 4:40:23
  Speaker 2: countess companion and cook, whose sleep at the end of
• 4:40:27
  Speaker 2: the hall, both declare that when they arose at eight o'clock,
• 4:40:31
  Speaker 2: the door of the ante chamber and the door of
• 4:40:33
  Speaker 2: the kitchen were locked. These two persons have been in
• 4:40:36
  Speaker 2: the service of the Countess for twenty years and are
• 4:40:40
  Speaker 2: above suspicion. The question is how did Danegre leave the apartment.
• 4:40:46
  Speaker 2: Did he have another key? These are matters that the
• 4:40:49
  Speaker 2: police would investigate. As a matter of fact, the police
• 4:40:53
  Speaker 2: investigation threw no light on the mystery. It was learned
• 4:40:57
  Speaker 2: that Victor de Negre was a day interious criminal, a
• 4:41:01
  Speaker 2: drunkard and the debauchy. But as they proceeded with the investigation,
• 4:41:06
  Speaker 2: the mystery deepened and new complications arose. In the first place,
• 4:41:11
  Speaker 2: a young woman, Mademoiselle de Saint Clave, the cousin and
• 4:41:15
  Speaker 2: sole heiress of the Countess, declared that the Countess, a
• 4:41:19
  Speaker 2: month before her death, had written a letter to her,
• 4:41:22
  Speaker 2: and in it described the manner in which the black
• 4:41:25
  Speaker 2: pearl was concealed. The letter disappeared the day after she
• 4:41:28
  Speaker 2: received it. Who had stolen it? Again, The concierge related
• 4:41:34
  Speaker 2: how she had opened the door for a person who
• 4:41:36
  Speaker 2: had inquired for doctor Hare. On being questioned, the doctor
• 4:41:40
  Speaker 2: testified that no one had rung his bell. Then who
• 4:41:44
  Speaker 2: was that person? The theory of an accomplice was thereupon
• 4:41:48
  Speaker 2: adopted by the press and public, and also by Gannimar.
• 4:41:52
  Speaker 2: The famous detective. Lupin is at the bottom of this affair.
• 4:41:56
  Speaker 2: He said to the judge. Brah exclaimed the judge, you
• 4:42:01
  Speaker 2: have lupound a brain. You see him everywhere. I see
• 4:42:05
  Speaker 2: him everywhere, because he is everywhere. Say rather that you
• 4:42:10
  Speaker 2: see him every time you encounter something you cannot explain. Besides,
• 4:42:14
  Speaker 2: you overlook the fact that the crime was committed at
• 4:42:17
  Speaker 2: twenty minutes past eleven in the evening, as is shown
• 4:42:21
  Speaker 2: by the clock, while the nocturnal visit mentioned by the
• 4:42:24
  Speaker 2: concierge occurred at three o'clock in the morning. Officers of
• 4:42:29
  Speaker 2: the law frequently form a hasty conviction as to the
• 4:42:33
  Speaker 2: guilt of a suspected person and then distort all subsequent
• 4:42:36
  Speaker 2: discoveries to conform to their established theory. The deplorable antecedents
• 4:42:43
  Speaker 2: of Victor da negre, habitual criminal, drunkard, and rake influenced
• 4:42:48
  Speaker 2: the judge, and despite the fact that nothing new was
• 4:42:52
  Speaker 2: discovered in corroboration of the early clues, his official opinion
• 4:42:56
  Speaker 2: remained firm and unshaken. He closed his investigation and a
• 4:43:01
  Speaker 2: few weeks later the trial commenced. It proved to be
• 4:43:05
  Speaker 2: slow and tedious. The judge was listless, and the public
• 4:43:09
  Speaker 2: prosecutor presented the case in a careless manner. Under those circumstances,
• 4:43:14
  Speaker 2: Danegal's council had an easy task. He pointed out the
• 4:43:19
  Speaker 2: defects and inconsistencies of the case for the prosecution and
• 4:43:24
  Speaker 2: argued that the evidence was quite insufficient to convict the
• 4:43:27
  Speaker 2: accused who had made the key. The indispensable key, without
• 4:43:32
  Speaker 2: which Danegre, on leaving the apartment, could not have locked
• 4:43:36
  Speaker 2: the door behind him. Who had ever seen such a key,
• 4:43:40
  Speaker 2: and what had become of it? Who had seen the
• 4:43:42
  Speaker 2: assassin's knife? And where is it now? In any event,
• 4:43:47
  Speaker 2: argued the prisoner's council, the prosecution must prove beyond any
• 4:43:52
  Speaker 2: reasonable doubt that the prisoner committed the murder. The prosecution
• 4:43:56
  Speaker 2: must show that the mysterious individual who entered the hanse
• 4:44:00
  Speaker 2: Us at three o'clock in the morning is not the
• 4:44:02
  Speaker 2: guilty party. To be sure, the clock indicated eleven o'clock,
• 4:44:07
  Speaker 2: But what of that? I contend that proves nothing. The
• 4:44:12
  Speaker 2: assassin could turn the hands of the clock to any
• 4:44:15
  Speaker 2: hour he pleased, and thus deceiver us in regard to
• 4:44:19
  Speaker 2: the exact hour of the crime. Victor dan Negre was acquitted.
• 4:44:25
  Speaker 2: He left the prison on Friday about dusk in the evening,
• 4:44:29
  Speaker 2: weak and depressed by his six months imprisonment. The inquisition,
• 4:44:34
  Speaker 2: the solitude, the trial, the deliberations of the jury combined
• 4:44:39
  Speaker 2: to fill him with a nervous fear. That night, he
• 4:44:42
  Speaker 2: had been afflicted with terrible nightmares and haunted by weird
• 4:44:46
  Speaker 2: visions of the scaffold. He was a mental and physical wreck.
• 4:44:52
  Speaker 2: Under the assumed name of Anatole de fourt, he rented
• 4:44:55
  Speaker 2: a small room on the heights of Montmartre and lived
• 4:44:59
  Speaker 2: by doing odd jobs wherever he could find them. He
• 4:45:02
  Speaker 2: led a pitiful existence. Three times he obtained regular employment,
• 4:45:08
  Speaker 2: only to be recognized and then discharged. Sometimes he had
• 4:45:12
  Speaker 2: an idea that men were following him, detectives, no doubt,
• 4:45:16
  Speaker 2: who was seeking to trap and denounce him. He could
• 4:45:20
  Speaker 2: almost feel the strong hand of the law clutching him
• 4:45:23
  Speaker 2: by the collar. One evening, as he was eating his
• 4:45:26
  Speaker 2: dinner at a neighboring restaurant, a man entered and took
• 4:45:30
  Speaker 2: a seat at the same table. He was a person
• 4:45:33
  Speaker 2: about forty years of age and wore a frock coat
• 4:45:36
  Speaker 2: of doubtful cleanliness. He ordered soup, vegetables, and a bottle
• 4:45:41
  Speaker 2: of wine. After he had finished his soup, he turned
• 4:45:45
  Speaker 2: his eyes on danegre and gazed at him intently. Danegro
• 4:45:49
  Speaker 2: winced he was certain that this was one of the
• 4:45:53
  Speaker 2: men who had been following him for several weeks. What
• 4:45:57
  Speaker 2: did he want? Danegro tried to rise, but failed. His
• 4:46:02
  Speaker 2: limbs refused to support him. The man poured himself a
• 4:46:06
  Speaker 2: glass of wine and then filled the negro's glass. The
• 4:46:10
  Speaker 2: man raised his glass and said, to your health, Victor
• 4:46:14
  Speaker 2: the Negre. Victor started in alarm and stammered, I I no, no,
• 4:46:20
  Speaker 2: I swear to you. You will swear what that you are?
• 4:46:24
  Speaker 2: Not yourself the servant of the countess. What servant my
• 4:46:29
  Speaker 2: name is? Dufour, asked the proprietor. Yes, anatole dufour to
• 4:46:35
  Speaker 2: the proprietor of his restaurant. But Victor the Negre, to
• 4:46:39
  Speaker 2: the offices of the law, that is not true. Some
• 4:46:43
  Speaker 2: one has lied to you. The newcomer took a card
• 4:46:46
  Speaker 2: from his pocket and handed it to Victor, who read
• 4:46:49
  Speaker 2: on it. Grimaudan ex inspector of the Detective Force. Private
• 4:46:55
  Speaker 2: business transacted. Victor shuddered as he said, you are can
• 4:47:00
  Speaker 2: with the police. No, not now. But I have a
• 4:47:04
  Speaker 2: liking for the business, and I continue to work at
• 4:47:07
  Speaker 2: it in a manner more profitable. From time to time
• 4:47:11
  Speaker 2: I strike upon a golden opportunity such as your case presents.
• 4:47:16
  Speaker 2: My case, yes, yours, I assure you it is a
• 4:47:21
  Speaker 2: most promising affair, provided you are inclined to be reasonable.
• 4:47:26
  Speaker 2: But if I am not reasonable, oh, my good fellow.
• 4:47:30
  Speaker 2: You are not in a position to refuse me anything.
• 4:47:32
  Speaker 2: I may ask, what is it you want? Stammered Victor fearfully. Well,
• 4:47:39
  Speaker 2: I will inform you in a few words. I am
• 4:47:42
  Speaker 2: sent by Mademoiselle de sincleve the errors of the Countess
• 4:47:46
  Speaker 2: don Dillo what for to recover the black pearl? Black
• 4:47:51
  Speaker 2: pearl that you stole? But I haven't got it.
• 4:47:57
  Speaker 1: You have it.
• 4:47:58
  Speaker 2: If I had, then I would be the assassin. You
• 4:48:01
  Speaker 2: are the assassin, dar Negro showed a forced smile. Fortunately
• 4:48:07
  Speaker 2: for me, Monsieur, the assize court was not of your opinion.
• 4:48:12
  Speaker 2: The jury returned a unanimous verdict of acquittal. And when
• 4:48:16
  Speaker 2: a man has a clear conscience and twelve good men
• 4:48:19
  Speaker 2: in his favor, the ex inspector seized him by the
• 4:48:23
  Speaker 2: arm and said, no fine phrases, my boy. Now listen
• 4:48:27
  Speaker 2: to me and weigh my words carefully. You will find
• 4:48:30
  Speaker 2: they are worthy of your consideration. Now, the Negro, three
• 4:48:35
  Speaker 2: weeks before the murder, you abstracted the cook's key to
• 4:48:39
  Speaker 2: the servant's door, and had a duplicate key made by
• 4:48:43
  Speaker 2: a locksmith named Utar two hundred and forty four. Rue Oberkampff,
• 4:48:48
  Speaker 2: it's a lie. It's a lie, growled Victor. No person
• 4:48:53
  Speaker 2: has seen that key. There is no such key here
• 4:48:57
  Speaker 2: it is. After a silence, Grimaudin continued, you killed the
• 4:49:03
  Speaker 2: countess with a knife purchased by you at the Bazaarre
• 4:49:06
  Speaker 2: de la Republique on the same day as you ordered
• 4:49:09
  Speaker 2: the duplicate key. It has a triangular blade with a
• 4:49:13
  Speaker 2: groove running from end to end. That is all nonsense.
• 4:49:17
  Speaker 2: You are simply guessing at something you don't know. No
• 4:49:20
  Speaker 2: one ever saw the knife here it is, Victor. Danegre recoiled.
• 4:49:26
  Speaker 2: The ex inspector continued, there are some spots of rust
• 4:49:30
  Speaker 2: upon it. Shall I tell you how they came there? Well,
• 4:49:35
  Speaker 2: you have a key and a knife. Who can prove
• 4:49:38
  Speaker 2: that they belong to me? The locksmith and the clerk
• 4:49:42
  Speaker 2: from whom you bought the knife. I have already refreshed
• 4:49:45
  Speaker 2: their memories, and when you confront them, they cannot fail
• 4:49:48
  Speaker 2: to recognize you. His speech was dry and hard, with
• 4:49:54
  Speaker 2: a tone of firmness and precision. Daranegre was trembling with fear,
• 4:49:59
  Speaker 2: and yet hetruggled desperately to maintain an air of indifference.
• 4:50:04
  Speaker 2: Is that all the evidence you have?
• 4:50:07
  Speaker 4: Oh?
• 4:50:07
  Speaker 2: No, not at all. I have plenty more. For instance,
• 4:50:11
  Speaker 2: after the crime, you went out the same way you
• 4:50:13
  Speaker 2: had entered, but in the center of the wardrobe room.
• 4:50:16
  Speaker 2: Being seized by some sudden fear, he leaned against the
• 4:50:20
  Speaker 2: wall for support. How do you know that no one
• 4:50:25
  Speaker 2: could know such a thing, argued the desperate man. The
• 4:50:29
  Speaker 2: police know nothing about it. Of course, they never think
• 4:50:32
  Speaker 2: of lighting a candle and examining the walls. But if
• 4:50:35
  Speaker 2: they had done so, they would have found on the
• 4:50:38
  Speaker 2: white plaster a faint red spot, quite distinct, however, to
• 4:50:44
  Speaker 2: trace in it the imprint of your sum, which he
• 4:50:46
  Speaker 2: had pressed against the wall while it was wet with blood. Now,
• 4:50:51
  Speaker 2: as you are well aware, under the Bertian system, some
• 4:50:54
  Speaker 2: marks are one of the principal means of identification. Victor
• 4:50:59
  Speaker 2: da Negrow livid. Great drops of perspiration rolled down his
• 4:51:04
  Speaker 2: face and fell upon the table. He gazed with a
• 4:51:07
  Speaker 2: wild look at the strange man, who had narrated the
• 4:51:11
  Speaker 2: story of his crime as faithfully as if he had
• 4:51:14
  Speaker 2: been an invisible witness to it. Overcome and powerless, Victor
• 4:51:19
  Speaker 2: bowed his head. He felt that it was useless to
• 4:51:23
  Speaker 2: struggle against this marvelous man, So he said, how much
• 4:51:27
  Speaker 2: will he give me if I give you the pearl nothing. Oh,
• 4:51:32
  Speaker 2: you are joking. What do you mean that I should
• 4:51:34
  Speaker 2: give you an article worth thousands and hundreds of thousands
• 4:51:38
  Speaker 2: and get nothing in return? You will get your life?
• 4:51:42
  Speaker 2: Is that nothing? The unfortunate man shuddered. Then Grimaudin added,
• 4:51:49
  Speaker 2: in a milder tone, come the negre. The pearl has
• 4:51:53
  Speaker 2: no value in your hands. It is quite impossible for
• 4:51:56
  Speaker 2: you to sell it. So what is the use of
• 4:51:58
  Speaker 2: your keeping it? There are pawnbrokers, and some day I
• 4:52:02
  Speaker 2: will be able to get something for it. But that
• 4:52:06
  Speaker 2: day may be too late. Why because by that time
• 4:52:11
  Speaker 2: you may be in the hands of the police, and
• 4:52:14
  Speaker 2: with the evidence that I can furnish the knife, the key,
• 4:52:18
  Speaker 2: the thumb mark, what will become of you? Victor rested
• 4:52:23
  Speaker 2: his head on his hands and reflected. He felt that
• 4:52:26
  Speaker 2: he was lost, irremediably lost, and at the same time
• 4:52:31
  Speaker 2: a sense of weariness and depression overcame him. He murmured faintly,
• 4:52:37
  Speaker 2: when must I give it to you to night within
• 4:52:41
  Speaker 2: an hour if I refuse. If you refuse, I shall
• 4:52:46
  Speaker 2: post this letter to the Procureur of the Republic, in
• 4:52:51
  Speaker 2: which letter Mademoiselle de Saint Cleve denounces you as the assassin.
• 4:52:56
  Speaker 2: The negro poured out two glasses of wine, which he
• 4:53:00
  Speaker 2: drank in rapid succession. Then, rising, said pay the bill
• 4:53:05
  Speaker 2: and let us go. I have had enough of the
• 4:53:07
  Speaker 2: cursed affair. Night had fallen. The two men walked down
• 4:53:12
  Speaker 2: the ruely Pique and followed the exterior boulevards in the
• 4:53:17
  Speaker 2: direction of the Place de Litoises. They pursued their way
• 4:53:20
  Speaker 2: in silence. Victor had a stooping carriage and a dejected face.
• 4:53:25
  Speaker 2: When they reached the Park Monceaux, he said, we are
• 4:53:29
  Speaker 2: near the house Parbleu. He only left the house once
• 4:53:33
  Speaker 2: before your arrest, and that was to go to the
• 4:53:36
  Speaker 2: tobacco shop. Here it is, said Dangre in a dull voice.
• 4:53:42
  Speaker 2: They passed along the garden wall of the Countess's house
• 4:53:45
  Speaker 2: and crossed a street on a corner of which stood
• 4:53:48
  Speaker 2: the tobacco shop. A few steps further on, Danegre stopped.
• 4:53:53
  Speaker 2: His limbs shook beneath him, and he sank to a bench. Well,
• 4:53:57
  Speaker 2: what now, demanded his companion, It is there where come now?
• 4:54:04
  Speaker 2: No nonsense? There in front of us, where between two
• 4:54:10
  Speaker 2: paving stones, which look for it? Which stones? Victor made
• 4:54:18
  Speaker 2: no reply, Ah, I see, exclaimed Grimaudint. You want me
• 4:54:23
  Speaker 2: to pay for the information? No, but I am afraid
• 4:54:28
  Speaker 2: I will starve to death, so that is why you hesitate. Well,
• 4:54:33
  Speaker 2: I'll not be hard on you. How much do you want?
• 4:54:36
  Speaker 2: Enough to buy a steer it pass to America, all right?
• 4:54:41
  Speaker 2: And a hundred francs to keep me until I get
• 4:54:43
  Speaker 2: work there. You shall have two hundred. Now speak. Count
• 4:54:49
  Speaker 2: the paving stones to the right from the sowerhole. The
• 4:54:52
  Speaker 2: peril is between the twelfth and the thirteenth in the gutter, Yes,
• 4:54:56
  Speaker 2: close to the sidewalk. Grimaudin glanced around and to see
• 4:55:00
  Speaker 2: if any one were looking. Some tram cars and pedestrians
• 4:55:04
  Speaker 2: were passing. But bah, they will not suspect anything. He
• 4:55:08
  Speaker 2: opened his pocket knife and thrust it between the twelfth
• 4:55:11
  Speaker 2: and thirteenth stones. And if it is not there, he
• 4:55:16
  Speaker 2: said to Victor, it must be there unless someone saw
• 4:55:20
  Speaker 2: me stoop down and hide it. Could it be possible
• 4:55:23
  Speaker 2: that the black pearl had been cast into the mud
• 4:55:25
  Speaker 2: and filth of the gutter to be picked up by
• 4:55:28
  Speaker 2: the first comer the black pearl of fortune? How far down?
• 4:55:33
  Speaker 2: He asked? About ten centimeters? He dug up the wet
• 4:55:38
  Speaker 2: earth the point of his knife struck something. He enlarged
• 4:55:43
  Speaker 2: the hole with his finger. Then he abstracted the black
• 4:55:46
  Speaker 2: pearl from its filthy hiding place. Good, here are you
• 4:55:51
  Speaker 2: two hundred francs. I will send you the ticket for
• 4:55:54
  Speaker 2: America on the following day. This article was published in
• 4:55:58
  Speaker 2: the Ecu de France and was copied by the leading
• 4:56:02
  Speaker 2: newspapers throughout the world. Yesterday, the famous black Pearl came
• 4:56:07
  Speaker 2: into the possession of Arsaint Lupin, who recovered it from
• 4:56:11
  Speaker 2: the murderer of the Countess Don Dillo. In a short time,
• 4:56:15
  Speaker 2: facsimiles of that precious jewel will be exhibited in London,
• 4:56:19
  Speaker 2: Saint Petersburg, Calcutta, Buenos Aires and New York. Arsaint Lupin
• 4:56:25
  Speaker 2: will be pleased to consider all propositions submitted to him
• 4:56:28
  Speaker 2: through his agents. And that is how crime is always
• 4:56:32
  Speaker 2: punished and virtue rewarded, said Arsaint Lupin, after he had
• 4:56:36
  Speaker 2: told me of the foregoing history of the Black Pearl.
• 4:56:40
  Speaker 2: And that is how you, under the assumed name of
• 4:56:42
  Speaker 2: grimaudan ex inspector of detectives, were chosen by fate to
• 4:56:47
  Speaker 2: deprive the criminal of the benefit of his crime exactly.
• 4:56:52
  Speaker 2: And I confess that the affair gives me infinite satisfaction
• 4:56:56
  Speaker 2: and pride. The forty minutes that I passed in the
• 4:56:59
  Speaker 2: apartment of the Countess don Dillou after learning of her
• 4:57:02
  Speaker 2: death were the most thrilling and absorbing moments of my life.
• 4:57:07
  Speaker 2: In those forty minutes, involved as I was in a
• 4:57:10
  Speaker 2: most dangerous plight, I calmly studied the scene of the
• 4:57:14
  Speaker 2: murder and reached the conclusion that the crime must have
• 4:57:17
  Speaker 2: been committed by one of the house servants. I also
• 4:57:21
  Speaker 2: decided that in order to get the pearl, that servant
• 4:57:24
  Speaker 2: must be arrested, and so I left the wainskirt button.
• 4:57:28
  Speaker 2: It was necessary also for me to hold some convincing
• 4:57:31
  Speaker 2: evidence of his guilt, So I carried away the knife
• 4:57:35
  Speaker 2: which I found upon the floor, and the key which
• 4:57:37
  Speaker 2: I found in the lock. I closed and locked the door,
• 4:57:41
  Speaker 2: and erased the finger marks from the plaster of the
• 4:57:44
  Speaker 2: wardrobe closet. In my opinion, that was one of those
• 4:57:48
  Speaker 2: flushes of genius, I said, interrupting of genius if you wish,
• 4:57:54
  Speaker 2: but I flatter myself. It would not have occurred to
• 4:57:57
  Speaker 2: the average mortal to frame instantly the two elements of
• 4:58:02
  Speaker 2: the problem, an arrest and an acquittal to make use
• 4:58:06
  Speaker 2: of the formidable machinery of the law to crush and
• 4:58:09
  Speaker 2: humble my victim, and reduce him to a condition in which,
• 4:58:13
  Speaker 2: when free, he would be certain to fall into the
• 4:58:15
  Speaker 2: trap I was laying for him. Poor devil, poor devil.
• 4:58:20
  Speaker 2: Do you say, Victor de Negra, the assassin, He might
• 4:58:24
  Speaker 2: have descended to the lowest depths of vice and crime
• 4:58:28
  Speaker 2: if he had retained the black pearl. Now he lives.
• 4:58:33
  Speaker 2: Think of that, Victor de Negre is alive, and you
• 4:58:37
  Speaker 2: have the black pearl. He took it out of one
• 4:58:40
  Speaker 2: of the secret pockets of his wallet, examined it, gazed
• 4:58:44
  Speaker 2: at it tenderly, and caressed it with loving fingers, and
• 4:58:49
  Speaker 2: sighed as he said, what cold Russian prince, What vain
• 4:58:53
  Speaker 2: and foolish Rajah? May some day possess this priceless treasure,
• 4:58:57
  Speaker 2: Or perhaps some American millionaire is destined to become the
• 4:59:01
  Speaker 2: owner of this morsel of exquisite beauty that once adorned
• 4:59:05
  Speaker 2: the fair bosom of Leontinez Auti the Countess don Dillole,
• 4:59:11
  Speaker 2: end of chapter.
• 4:59:12
  Speaker 4: Eight, Chapter nine. Sherlock Holmes arrives too late. It is
• 4:59:22
  Speaker 4: really remarkable, Villemont, What a close resemblance you bear to
• 4:59:24
  Speaker 4: us in Lupin. How do you know, oh, like everyone else,
• 4:59:29
  Speaker 4: from photographs, no two of which are alike, but each
• 4:59:32
  Speaker 4: of them leaves the impression of a face something like yours.
• 4:59:38
  Speaker 4: Horace Velmont displayed some vexation. Quite so, my dear Divan,
• 4:59:43
  Speaker 4: and believe me, you are not the first one who
• 4:59:45
  Speaker 4: has noticed it. It's so striking, persisted Divan, that if
• 4:59:51
  Speaker 4: you had not been recommended to me by my cousin d'estevan,
• 4:59:54
  Speaker 4: and if you were not the celebrated artist whose beautiful
• 4:59:56
  Speaker 4: marine views I so admire, I have no doubts I
• 5:00:01
  Speaker 4: should have warned the police of your presence. Indieppe this Sally,
• 5:00:05
  Speaker 4: who was greeted with an outburst of laughter. The large
• 5:00:08
  Speaker 4: dining hall of the Chateau de Thibermesnil contained on this occasion,
• 5:00:15
  Speaker 4: besides Villemont, the following guests, Father Gillis, the parish priest,
• 5:00:22
  Speaker 4: and a dozen officers whose regiments were quartered in the vicinity,
• 5:00:25
  Speaker 4: and who had accepted the invitation of the banker George
• 5:00:28
  Speaker 4: d'avan and his mother. One of the officers then remarked,
• 5:00:33
  Speaker 4: I understand that an exact description of our Saint Lupin
• 5:00:36
  Speaker 4: has been furnished to all the police along this coast
• 5:00:39
  Speaker 4: since his daring exploit on the Paris Arvre Express. I suppose,
• 5:00:45
  Speaker 4: so said d Van, that was three months ago, and
• 5:00:48
  Speaker 4: a week later I made the acquaintance of our friend
• 5:00:51
  Speaker 4: Velmont at the casino, and since then he has honored
• 5:00:55
  Speaker 4: me with several visits and an agreeable prehamble to a
• 5:00:59
  Speaker 4: more serious visit, that he will pay one of these days,
• 5:01:02
  Speaker 4: or rather one of these nights. This speech evoked another
• 5:01:05
  Speaker 4: round of laughter, and the guests then passed into the
• 5:01:09
  Speaker 4: ancient Hall of the Guards, a vast room with a
• 5:01:12
  Speaker 4: high ceiling which occupied the entire lower part of the
• 5:01:15
  Speaker 4: Tourguillum Williamstower, wherein George d Van collected the incomparable treasures
• 5:01:20
  Speaker 4: which the lords of Tibermesni had accumulated through many centuries.
• 5:01:26
  Speaker 4: It contained ancient chests, credences andryans and chandeliers. The stone
• 5:01:32
  Speaker 4: walls were overhung with magnificent tapestries. The deep embrasures of
• 5:01:36
  Speaker 4: the four windows were furnished with benches, and the Gothic
• 5:01:39
  Speaker 4: windows were composed of small panes of colored glass set
• 5:01:43
  Speaker 4: in a leaden frame between the door and the window
• 5:01:47
  Speaker 4: to the left stood an immense bookcase of Renaissance style,
• 5:01:51
  Speaker 4: on the pediment of which, in letters of gold was
• 5:01:54
  Speaker 4: the word Thibermesni, and below it the proud family device
• 5:02:02
  Speaker 4: fais a Couville. Do what thou wishest. When the guests
• 5:02:07
  Speaker 4: had lighted their cigars, Divan resumed the conversation. And remember, Velmont,
• 5:02:14
  Speaker 4: you have no time to lose. In fact, to night
• 5:02:16
  Speaker 4: is the last chance you will have. How so asked
• 5:02:22
  Speaker 4: the painter, who appeared to regard the affair as a joke.
• 5:02:25
  Speaker 4: Divan was about to reply when his mother motioned to
• 5:02:28
  Speaker 4: him to keep silent, but the excitement of the occasion
• 5:02:32
  Speaker 4: and the desire to interest his guests urged him to speak. Bah,
• 5:02:37
  Speaker 4: He murmured, I can tell it now, won't do any harm.
• 5:02:41
  Speaker 4: The guests drew closer, and he commenced to speak with
• 5:02:45
  Speaker 4: the satisfied air of a man who has an important
• 5:02:47
  Speaker 4: announcement to make Tomorrow afternoon at four o'clock. Shellock Holmes,
• 5:02:53
  Speaker 4: the famous English detective for whom such a thing as
• 5:02:56
  Speaker 4: mystery does not exist. Shelock Holmes, the most remarkable solver
• 5:03:00
  Speaker 4: of the enigmas in the world has ever known. That
• 5:03:03
  Speaker 4: marvelous man who would seem to be the creation of
• 5:03:07
  Speaker 4: a romantic novelist. Sherlock Holmes will be my guest Immediately,
• 5:03:12
  Speaker 4: Divan was the target of numerous eager questions. Is Shelock
• 5:03:16
  Speaker 4: Holmes's really coming? Is it so serious as that? Is
• 5:03:20
  Speaker 4: Usain Lupin really in this neighborhood? Us In Lupin and
• 5:03:29
  Speaker 4: his band are not far away. Besides the robbery of
• 5:03:32
  Speaker 4: Baron Cahorn, he is credited with the thefts of Montigni,
• 5:03:36
  Speaker 4: Gruchet and Crassville. Has he sent you a warning as
• 5:03:41
  Speaker 4: he did to Baron Cahorn, No, replied Divan. He can't
• 5:03:46
  Speaker 4: work the same trick twice. What then, I will show you.
• 5:03:52
  Speaker 4: He rose, and, pointing to a small empty space between
• 5:03:55
  Speaker 4: the two enormous folios on one of the shelves of
• 5:03:58
  Speaker 4: the bookcase, he said they used to be a book
• 5:04:00
  Speaker 4: there a book of the sixteenth century entitled Chronique the Tibermesni,
• 5:04:08
  Speaker 4: which contained the history of the castle since its construction
• 5:04:11
  Speaker 4: by Duke Rollo on the site of a former feudal fortress.
• 5:04:16
  Speaker 4: There were three engraved plates in the book, one of
• 5:04:19
  Speaker 4: which was a general view of the whole estate, another
• 5:04:21
  Speaker 4: a plan of the buildings, and the third I call
• 5:04:25
  Speaker 4: your attention to it particularly. The third was a sketch
• 5:04:29
  Speaker 4: of a subterranean passage, one entrance to which is outside
• 5:04:33
  Speaker 4: the first line of ramparts, while the other end of
• 5:04:36
  Speaker 4: the passage is here in this very room. Well, that
• 5:04:40
  Speaker 4: book disappeared a month ago. The deuce said Villemont. That
• 5:04:45
  Speaker 4: looks bad, but it doesn't seem to be sufficient reason
• 5:04:48
  Speaker 4: for sending for Shelock Holmes. Certainly that was not sufficient
• 5:04:53
  Speaker 4: in itself, But another incident happened that gives the disappearance
• 5:04:57
  Speaker 4: of the book a special signific There was another copy
• 5:05:02
  Speaker 4: of this book in the National Library at Paris, and
• 5:05:05
  Speaker 4: the two books differed in certain details relating to the
• 5:05:09
  Speaker 4: subterranean passage. For instance, each of them contained drawings and
• 5:05:14
  Speaker 4: annotations not printed, but written in ink and more or
• 5:05:19
  Speaker 4: less effaced. I knew those facts, and I knew that
• 5:05:23
  Speaker 4: the exact location of the passage could be determined only
• 5:05:26
  Speaker 4: by a comparison of the two books. Now that after
• 5:05:30
  Speaker 4: my book disappeared, a book was called for in the
• 5:05:33
  Speaker 4: National Library by a reader who carried it away, and
• 5:05:37
  Speaker 4: no one knows how the theft was effected. The guests
• 5:05:40
  Speaker 4: uttered many exclamations of surprise, certainly the feluk serious, said one. Well,
• 5:05:47
  Speaker 4: the police investigated the matter and as usual discovered no clue. Whatever,
• 5:05:52
  Speaker 4: they never do when our send Lupin is concerned with it. Exactly,
• 5:05:57
  Speaker 4: so I decided to ask assistance of Shelocot, who replied
• 5:06:01
  Speaker 4: that he was ready and anxious to enter the lists
• 5:06:04
  Speaker 4: with Ar Saint Lupin. What glory for Ar Saint Lupin,
• 5:06:08
  Speaker 4: said Valmont. If our national thief, as they call him,
• 5:06:12
  Speaker 4: has no evil designs on your castle, Sherlock Holmes will
• 5:06:15
  Speaker 4: have his trip in vain. There are other things that
• 5:06:19
  Speaker 4: will interest him, such as the discovery of the subterranean passage.
• 5:06:25
  Speaker 4: But you told us that one end of the passage
• 5:06:26
  Speaker 4: was outside the ramparts, and the other was in this
• 5:06:28
  Speaker 4: very room. Yes, but in what part of the room.
• 5:06:33
  Speaker 4: A lime which represents the passage on the charts ends
• 5:06:36
  Speaker 4: here with a small circle marked with the letters t G,
• 5:06:41
  Speaker 4: which no doubts stand for Tour Guillaumes. But the tower
• 5:06:44
  Speaker 4: is round, and who can tell the exact spot of
• 5:06:47
  Speaker 4: which the passage touches the tower. Divan lighted a second
• 5:06:50
  Speaker 4: cigar and poured himself a glass of benedictine. His guests
• 5:06:54
  Speaker 4: pressed him with questions, and he was pleased to observe
• 5:06:57
  Speaker 4: the interest that his remarks had created. He continued, the
• 5:07:02
  Speaker 4: secret is lost. No one knows it. The legend is
• 5:07:07
  Speaker 4: to the effect that the former lords of the castle
• 5:07:10
  Speaker 4: transmitted the secret from father to son on their death beds,
• 5:07:13
  Speaker 4: until Geoffrey, the last of the race, was beheaded during
• 5:07:16
  Speaker 4: the revolution in his nineteenth year. That's over a century ago.
• 5:07:21
  Speaker 4: Surely some one has looked for it since that time, yes,
• 5:07:25
  Speaker 4: but they failed to find it. After I purchased the castle,
• 5:07:28
  Speaker 4: I made a diligent search for it, but without success.
• 5:07:32
  Speaker 4: You must remember that this tower is surrounded by water
• 5:07:35
  Speaker 4: and connected with the castle only by a bridge. Consequently,
• 5:07:39
  Speaker 4: the passage must be underneath the old moat. The planet
• 5:07:44
  Speaker 4: was in the book in the National Library showed a
• 5:07:45
  Speaker 4: series of stairs with a total of forty eight steps,
• 5:07:50
  Speaker 4: which indicates a depth of more than ten meters. You see,
• 5:07:55
  Speaker 4: the mystery lies within the walls of this room, and
• 5:07:59
  Speaker 4: yet I dislike to tear them down. Is there nothing
• 5:08:03
  Speaker 4: to show where it is nothing? Monsieur de Van, We
• 5:08:08
  Speaker 4: should turn our attention to the two quotationans suggested Father
• 5:08:11
  Speaker 4: ghilli Oh, exclaimed Monsieur Devan laughing. Our worthy father is
• 5:08:17
  Speaker 4: fond of reading memoirs and delving into the dusty archives
• 5:08:20
  Speaker 4: of the castle. Everything relating to Tibermesnie interests him greatly,
• 5:08:25
  Speaker 4: but the quotations that he mentions only serve to complicate
• 5:08:28
  Speaker 4: the mystery. He has read somewhere that two kings of
• 5:08:33
  Speaker 4: France have known the key to the puzzle. Two kings
• 5:08:36
  Speaker 4: of France. Who were they, Henry the fourth and Louis
• 5:08:40
  Speaker 4: the sixteenth, And the legend runs like this, On the
• 5:08:44
  Speaker 4: eve of the Battle of Arc, Henry the fourth spent
• 5:08:46
  Speaker 4: the night in this castle. At eleven o'clock in the evening,
• 5:08:50
  Speaker 4: Louise de tanc Avill, the prettiest woman in Normandy, was
• 5:08:53
  Speaker 4: brought into the castle through the subterranean passage by Jute Edgar,
• 5:08:59
  Speaker 4: who at the same time informed the king of the
• 5:09:01
  Speaker 4: secret passage. Afterwards, the king confided the secrets to his
• 5:09:05
  Speaker 4: minister Suli, who in his turn relates the story in
• 5:09:09
  Speaker 4: his book Royal Leconnemideta, without making any comment upon it,
• 5:09:15
  Speaker 4: but linking with it this incomprehensible sentence. Turn one eye
• 5:09:21
  Speaker 4: on the bee that shakes, the other eye will lead
• 5:09:25
  Speaker 4: to God. After a brief silence, Velmont laughed and said, certainly,
• 5:09:31
  Speaker 4: it doesn't throw a dazzling light on the subject. No,
• 5:09:35
  Speaker 4: but father Gilli claims that Sulli concealed the key to
• 5:09:39
  Speaker 4: the mystery in this strange sentence in order to keep
• 5:09:42
  Speaker 4: the secret from the secretaries to whom he dictated his memoirs.
• 5:09:48
  Speaker 4: That's an ingenious theory, said Valmont. Yes, and it may
• 5:09:51
  Speaker 4: be nothing more. I cannot see that it throws any
• 5:09:54
  Speaker 4: light on the mysterious riddle. And it was also to
• 5:09:59
  Speaker 4: receive the visit of a lady that Louis the sixteenth
• 5:10:03
  Speaker 4: caused the passage to be opened. I don't know, said
• 5:10:07
  Speaker 4: Monsieur Van. All I can say is that the king
• 5:10:09
  Speaker 4: stopped here one night in seventeen eighty four, and that
• 5:10:13
  Speaker 4: the famous iron casket found in the louver contained a
• 5:10:17
  Speaker 4: paper bearing these words in the king's own writing, Tibermesni
• 5:10:23
  Speaker 4: three four eleven Horace. Velmar laughed heartily and exclaimed, at last,
• 5:10:32
  Speaker 4: now that we have the magic key, where is the
• 5:10:33
  Speaker 4: man who can fit it in the invisible lock? Laugh
• 5:10:37
  Speaker 4: as much as you please, Monsieur, said father Gilly. But
• 5:10:41
  Speaker 4: I am confident the solution is contained in those two sentences,
• 5:10:45
  Speaker 4: and some day we will find a man able to
• 5:10:48
  Speaker 4: interpret them. Sherlock Holmes is the man, said Monsieur Van,
• 5:10:55
  Speaker 4: unless our Saint Lupin gets ahead of him. What's your opinion,
• 5:10:59
  Speaker 4: Velmont villemont Arose placed his hand on Divan's shoulder and declared,
• 5:11:06
  Speaker 4: I think that the information furnished by your book and
• 5:11:09
  Speaker 4: the book of the National Library, was deficient in a
• 5:11:12
  Speaker 4: very important detail, which you have now supplied. Thank you
• 5:11:16
  Speaker 4: for it. What is it the missing key? Now that
• 5:11:21
  Speaker 4: I have it, I can go to work at once,
• 5:11:22
  Speaker 4: said Velmont. Of course without losing a minute, said did Van,
• 5:11:27
  Speaker 4: smiling not even a second, replied Velmont. To night before
• 5:11:32
  Speaker 4: the arrival of Sherlock Holmes, I must plunder your castle.
• 5:11:36
  Speaker 4: You have no time to lose. Oh, by the way,
• 5:11:39
  Speaker 4: I can drive you over this evening to the EBB. Yes,
• 5:11:43
  Speaker 4: I am going to meet Monsieur and Madame Dandole and
• 5:11:47
  Speaker 4: a young lady of their acquaintance, who are to arrive
• 5:11:50
  Speaker 4: by the midnight train. Then, addressing the officers, d Van added, gentlemen,
• 5:11:57
  Speaker 4: I su expect to see all of you at breakfast
• 5:11:58
  Speaker 4: to morrow. The invitation was accepted, the company dispersed, and
• 5:12:02
  Speaker 4: a few moments later Devan and Velmore were speeding towards
• 5:12:05
  Speaker 4: Dieppe in an automobile. Devan dropped the artist in front
• 5:12:09
  Speaker 4: of the casino and proceeded to the railway station. At
• 5:12:13
  Speaker 4: twelve o'clock. His friends alighted from the train. Half an
• 5:12:16
  Speaker 4: hour later. The automobile was at the entrance to the
• 5:12:18
  Speaker 4: castle at one o'clock. After a light supper, they retired.
• 5:12:22
  Speaker 4: The lights were extinguished, and the castle was enveloped in
• 5:12:25
  Speaker 4: the darkness and silence of the night. The moon appeared
• 5:12:30
  Speaker 4: through a rift in the clouds and filled the drawing
• 5:12:32
  Speaker 4: room with its bright white light, but only for a moment.
• 5:12:37
  Speaker 4: Then the moon again retired behind its etherial draperies, and
• 5:12:42
  Speaker 4: darkness and silence reigned supreme. No sound could be heard
• 5:12:46
  Speaker 4: save the monotonous sticking of the clock. It struck two
• 5:12:50
  Speaker 4: and then continued its endless repetitions of the seconds, then
• 5:12:54
  Speaker 4: three o'clock. Suddenly something clicked, like the opening and closing
• 5:13:02
  Speaker 4: of a signal disc that warns the passing train. A
• 5:13:07
  Speaker 4: thin stream of light flashed into every corner of the room,
• 5:13:10
  Speaker 4: like an arrow that leaved behind it a trail of light.
• 5:13:13
  Speaker 4: It shot forth from the central fluting of a column
• 5:13:16
  Speaker 4: that supported the pediment of the bookcase. It rested for
• 5:13:18
  Speaker 4: a moment on the panel opposite like a glistening circle
• 5:13:21
  Speaker 4: of burnished silver, then flashed in all directions, like a
• 5:13:25
  Speaker 4: guilty eye that scrutinizes every shadow. It disappeared for a
• 5:13:29
  Speaker 4: short time, but burst forth again as a whole section
• 5:13:33
  Speaker 4: of the bookcase revolved on a pivot and disclosed a
• 5:13:36
  Speaker 4: large opening like a vault. A man entered carrying an
• 5:13:39
  Speaker 4: electric lantern. He was followed by a second man who
• 5:13:42
  Speaker 4: carried a coil of rope and various tools. The leader
• 5:13:45
  Speaker 4: inspected the room, listened a moment, and said, call the others.
• 5:13:51
  Speaker 4: Then eight men, stout fellows with resolute faces entered the
• 5:13:54
  Speaker 4: room and immediately commenced to remove the furnishings. Asi Lupin
• 5:13:59
  Speaker 4: passed quickly from one piece of furniture to another, examined
• 5:14:02
  Speaker 4: each and according to its size or artistic value. He
• 5:14:05
  Speaker 4: directed his men to take it or leave it. If
• 5:14:09
  Speaker 4: order to be taken, it was carried to the gaping
• 5:14:11
  Speaker 4: mouth of a tunnel and ruthlessly thrust into the bowels
• 5:14:14
  Speaker 4: of the earth. Such was the fate of six arm chairs,
• 5:14:17
  Speaker 4: six small Louis. The fifteenth chairs, A quantity of Obusson,
• 5:14:21
  Speaker 4: Tapara tapestries, some candelabra paintings by Fragonard and Natchi, a
• 5:14:27
  Speaker 4: bast by Houdon, and some statues. Sometimes Lupin would linger
• 5:14:33
  Speaker 4: before a beautiful chest or a superb picture, and sigh,
• 5:14:39
  Speaker 4: that is too heavy, too large, what a pity. In
• 5:14:44
  Speaker 4: forty minutes the room was dismantled, and it had been
• 5:14:48
  Speaker 4: accomplished in such an orderly manner, and with as little
• 5:14:51
  Speaker 4: noise as if the various articles had been packed and
• 5:14:54
  Speaker 4: wadded for the occasion. Houpin said to the last man
• 5:14:58
  Speaker 4: who departed by way of the tunnel, you need not
• 5:15:03
  Speaker 4: come back. You understand that as soon as the auto
• 5:15:06
  Speaker 4: van is loaded, you are to proceed to the garage
• 5:15:08
  Speaker 4: at Rockfort. But you patent leave me the motorcycle. When
• 5:15:14
  Speaker 4: the man had disappeared, I seen Lupin pushed the section
• 5:15:18
  Speaker 4: of bookcase back into its place, and carefully effaced the
• 5:15:21
  Speaker 4: traces of the men's footsteps, raised a portier and entered
• 5:15:25
  Speaker 4: a gallery which was the only means of communication between
• 5:15:31
  Speaker 4: the tower and the castle. In the center of this
• 5:15:34
  Speaker 4: gallery there was a glass cabinet which had attracted Lupin's attentions.
• 5:15:38
  Speaker 4: It contained a valuable collection of watches, snuff boxes, rings, chatelaine,
• 5:15:43
  Speaker 4: and miniatures of rare and beautiful workmanship. He forced the
• 5:15:47
  Speaker 4: lock with a small jimmy and experienced a great pleasure
• 5:15:50
  Speaker 4: in handling those gold and silver ornaments, those exquisite and
• 5:15:54
  Speaker 4: delicate works of art. He carried a large linen bag,
• 5:15:58
  Speaker 4: specially prepared for the removal of such knick knacks. He
• 5:16:01
  Speaker 4: filled it. Then he filled the pockets of his coat, waistcoat,
• 5:16:05
  Speaker 4: and trousers. He was just placing over his left arm
• 5:16:08
  Speaker 4: a number of pearl reticules when he heard a slight sound.
• 5:16:13
  Speaker 4: He listened, No, he was not deceived. The noise continued.
• 5:16:19
  Speaker 4: Then he remembered that at one end of the gallery
• 5:16:23
  Speaker 4: there was a stairway leading to an unoccupied apartment, which
• 5:16:27
  Speaker 4: was probably occupied that night by the young lady whom
• 5:16:30
  Speaker 4: Monsieur de Van had brought from the appe with his
• 5:16:32
  Speaker 4: other visitors. Immediately, he distinguished his lantern and had scarcely
• 5:16:37
  Speaker 4: gained the friendly shelter of a window embrazier. When the
• 5:16:41
  Speaker 4: door at the top of the stairway was opened and
• 5:16:43
  Speaker 4: a feeble light illuminated the gallery, he could feel for
• 5:16:48
  Speaker 4: concealed by a curtain, he could not see that a
• 5:16:51
  Speaker 4: woman was cautiously descending the upper steps of the stairs.
• 5:16:55
  Speaker 4: He hoped she would come no closer. Yet she continued
• 5:16:59
  Speaker 4: to descend, and even advanced some distance into the room.
• 5:17:03
  Speaker 4: Then she uttered a faint cry, no doubt she had
• 5:17:06
  Speaker 4: discovered all the broken and dismantled cabinets. She advanced again.
• 5:17:11
  Speaker 4: Now he could smell the perfume and hear the throbbing
• 5:17:13
  Speaker 4: of her heart as she drew closer to the window
• 5:17:15
  Speaker 4: where he was concealed. She passed so close that her
• 5:17:18
  Speaker 4: skirt brushed against the window curtain, and Loupere felt that
• 5:17:22
  Speaker 4: she suspected the presence of another behind her in the shadow,
• 5:17:27
  Speaker 4: within reach of her hand. He thought, she is afraid,
• 5:17:32
  Speaker 4: she will go away, But she did not go. The
• 5:17:36
  Speaker 4: candle that she carried and her trembling hand grew brighter.
• 5:17:39
  Speaker 4: She turned hesitated a moment, appeared to listen, then suddenly
• 5:17:45
  Speaker 4: drew aside the curtain. They stood face to face. Arsain
• 5:17:50
  Speaker 4: was astounded. He murmured, involuntarily, you you, mademoiselle. It was
• 5:17:57
  Speaker 4: miss Nellie. Miss Nellie, his fellow passenger on the transatlantic steamer,
• 5:18:02
  Speaker 4: who had been the subject of his dreams on that
• 5:18:05
  Speaker 4: memorable voyage, who had been a witness to his arrest,
• 5:18:09
  Speaker 4: and who, rather than betray him, had dropped into the
• 5:18:12
  Speaker 4: water the kodak in which he had concealed the bank
• 5:18:15
  Speaker 4: notes and diamonds. Miss Nellie, that charming creature, memory of
• 5:18:21
  Speaker 4: whose face has sometimes cheered, sometimes saddened the long hours
• 5:18:25
  Speaker 4: of imprisonment. It was such an unexpected encounter that brought
• 5:18:30
  Speaker 4: them face to face in that castle at that hour
• 5:18:32
  Speaker 4: of the night, that they could not move nor utter
• 5:18:35
  Speaker 4: a word. They were amazed, hypnotized, each at the sudden
• 5:18:39
  Speaker 4: apparition of the other. Trembling with emotion, miss Nellie staggered
• 5:18:43
  Speaker 4: to a seat, he remained standing in front of her.
• 5:18:49
  Speaker 4: Gradually he realized the situation and conceived the impression he
• 5:18:53
  Speaker 4: must have produced at that moment. With his arms laden
• 5:18:55
  Speaker 4: with knick knacks, and his pockets and a linen sack
• 5:18:59
  Speaker 4: overflowing with plunder, he was overcome with confusion, and he
• 5:19:03
  Speaker 4: actually blushed to find himself in the position of a thief,
• 5:19:06
  Speaker 4: caught in the act. To her, henceforth, he was a thief,
• 5:19:11
  Speaker 4: a man who put his hand in another's pocket, who
• 5:19:13
  Speaker 4: steals into houses and robs people, while they sleep, a
• 5:19:18
  Speaker 4: watch fell upon the floor, then another. These were followed
• 5:19:23
  Speaker 4: by other articles, which slipped from his grasp one by one. Then,
• 5:19:28
  Speaker 4: actuated by a sudden decision, he dropped the other articles
• 5:19:31
  Speaker 4: into an armchair, emptied his pockets, and unpacked his sack.
• 5:19:34
  Speaker 4: He felt very uncomfortable in Nelly's presence and stepped towards
• 5:19:38
  Speaker 4: her with the intention of speaking to her. But she shuddered,
• 5:19:41
  Speaker 4: rose quickly, and fled toward the salon. The portiere closed
• 5:19:45
  Speaker 4: behind her. He followed her. She was standing, trembling and
• 5:19:49
  Speaker 4: amazed at the sight of the devastated room. He said
• 5:19:53
  Speaker 4: to her, at once, tomorrow, at three o'clock, everything will
• 5:19:57
  Speaker 4: be returned. The furniture will be brought back. She made
• 5:20:01
  Speaker 4: no reply, so he repeated, I promise it to morrow
• 5:20:05
  Speaker 4: at three o'clock. Nothing in the world could induce me
• 5:20:08
  Speaker 4: to break that promise to morrow at three o'clock. Then
• 5:20:12
  Speaker 4: followed a long silence that he dared not break, whilst
• 5:20:17
  Speaker 4: the agitation of the young girl caused him a feeling
• 5:20:20
  Speaker 4: of genuine regret. Quietly, without a word, he turned away, thinking,
• 5:20:26
  Speaker 4: I hope she will go away. I can't endure her presence.
• 5:20:30
  Speaker 4: But the young girl suddenly spoke and stammered, listen, footsteps
• 5:20:36
  Speaker 4: year someone. He looked at her with astonishment. She seemed
• 5:20:42
  Speaker 4: to be overwhelmed by the thought of approaching peril. I
• 5:20:45
  Speaker 4: don't hear anything, he said, But you must go, you
• 5:20:48
  Speaker 4: must escape. Why should I go because you must?
• 5:20:53
  Speaker 1: Oh?
• 5:20:53
  Speaker 4: Do not remain here another moment.
• 5:20:55
  Speaker 1: Go.
• 5:20:56
  Speaker 4: She ran quickly to the door leading the gallery and listened. No,
• 5:21:02
  Speaker 4: there was no one there. Perhaps the noise was outside.
• 5:21:05
  Speaker 4: She waited a moment and then returned, reassured, But Ar
• 5:21:08
  Speaker 4: Saint Lupin had disappeared. As soon as Monsieur de Van
• 5:21:15
  Speaker 4: was informed of the pillage of his castle, he said
• 5:21:18
  Speaker 4: to himself, it was Velmont who did it, and Velmont
• 5:21:22
  Speaker 4: is Ar Saint Lupin. That theory explained everything, and there
• 5:21:27
  Speaker 4: was no other plausible explanation. And yet the idea seemed preposterous.
• 5:21:32
  Speaker 4: It was ridiculous to suppose that Velmont was any one
• 5:21:34
  Speaker 4: else than Velmont, the famous artist and club fellow of
• 5:21:38
  Speaker 4: his cousin De'stevan. So when the captain of the Gendarmes
• 5:21:42
  Speaker 4: arrived to investigate the affair, de Van did not even
• 5:21:45
  Speaker 4: think of mentioning his absurd theory. Throughout the forenoon there
• 5:21:50
  Speaker 4: was a lively commotion at the castle. The gendarmes, the
• 5:21:53
  Speaker 4: local police, the chief of Police from Dieppe, the villagers
• 5:21:56
  Speaker 4: all circulated to and fro in the halls, examining every
• 5:21:59
  Speaker 4: nook and corner that was opened to their inspection. The
• 5:22:03
  Speaker 4: approach of the maneuvering troops the rattling fire of the
• 5:22:06
  Speaker 4: musketry added to the picturesque character of the scene. The
• 5:22:10
  Speaker 4: preliminary search furnished no clue. Neither the doors nor the
• 5:22:14
  Speaker 4: windows should any sign of having been disturbed. Consequently, the
• 5:22:18
  Speaker 4: removal of the goods must have been effected by means
• 5:22:21
  Speaker 4: of the secret passage. Yet there were no indications of
• 5:22:24
  Speaker 4: footsteps on the floor, nor any unusual marks on the walls.
• 5:22:30
  Speaker 4: Their investigations revealed, however, one curious fact that denoted the
• 5:22:34
  Speaker 4: whimsical character of Ar Saint Luper. The famous chronique of
• 5:22:39
  Speaker 4: the sixteenth century had been restored to its accustomed place
• 5:22:42
  Speaker 4: in the library, and beside it there was a similar book,
• 5:22:46
  Speaker 4: which was none other than the volume stolen from the
• 5:22:48
  Speaker 4: National Library. At eleven o'clock the military officers arrived. D
• 5:22:54
  Speaker 4: Van welcomed them with his usual gravity, for no matter
• 5:22:57
  Speaker 4: how much chagrin he might be suffering from the loss
• 5:23:00
  Speaker 4: of his artistic treasures, his great wealth enabled him to
• 5:23:03
  Speaker 4: bear his lost philosophically. His guests Monsieur and Madame Dandrol
• 5:23:08
  Speaker 4: and miss Nellie were introduced, and it was then noticed
• 5:23:13
  Speaker 4: that one of the unexpected guests had not arrived. It
• 5:23:16
  Speaker 4: was Horace Velmont. His absence had awakened the suspicions of
• 5:23:22
  Speaker 4: Monsieur de Van that.
• 5:23:23
  Speaker 5: At twelve o'clock he arrived.
• 5:23:25
  Speaker 4: De Van exclaimed, Ah, there you are. Why am I
• 5:23:30
  Speaker 4: not punctual? Asked Belmont. Yes, and I'm surprised that you
• 5:23:34
  Speaker 4: are after such a busy night. I suppose you know
• 5:23:36
  Speaker 4: the news. What news? You have robbed the castle? Nonsense,
• 5:23:42
  Speaker 4: exclaimed Velmont, smiling, exactly as I predicted. But first escort
• 5:23:49
  Speaker 4: miss Under down to the dining room. Mademoiselle, allow me.
• 5:23:56
  Speaker 4: He stopped as he remarked the extreme agitation of the younger. Then,
• 5:24:01
  Speaker 4: recalling the incident, he said, Ah, of course you met
• 5:24:05
  Speaker 4: Arsen Lupin on the steamer before his arrest, and you
• 5:24:08
  Speaker 4: are astonished at the resemblance.
• 5:24:09
  Speaker 3: Is that it?
• 5:24:10
  Speaker 4: She did not reply. Velmot stood before her, smiling he bowed.
• 5:24:16
  Speaker 4: She took his proffered arm, and he escorted her to
• 5:24:18
  Speaker 4: her place, and took his seat opposite her. During the breakfast,
• 5:24:23
  Speaker 4: the conversation related exclusively to Usin Lupin, the stolen goods,
• 5:24:28
  Speaker 4: the secret passage, and Shoke Holmes. It was only at
• 5:24:31
  Speaker 4: the close of the repast, when the conversation had drifted
• 5:24:34
  Speaker 4: to other topics, that Velmot took any part of it.
• 5:24:39
  Speaker 4: Then he was by turns amusing and grave, talkative and pensive,
• 5:24:43
  Speaker 4: and all his remarks seemed to be directed to the
• 5:24:45
  Speaker 4: young girl, but she, quite absorbed, did not appear to
• 5:24:50
  Speaker 4: hear them. Coffee was served on the terrace, overlooking the
• 5:24:54
  Speaker 4: Court of Honor and the flower garden in front of
• 5:24:58
  Speaker 4: the principal facade. The regimental band played on the lawn,
• 5:25:02
  Speaker 4: and scores of soldiers and peasants wandered through the park.
• 5:25:05
  Speaker 4: Miss Nellie had not forgotten for one moment Lupin's solemn
• 5:25:09
  Speaker 4: promise to morrow at three o'clock everything will be returned
• 5:25:15
  Speaker 4: at three o'clock, and the hands of the great clock
• 5:25:18
  Speaker 4: in the right wing of the castle now marked twenty
• 5:25:21
  Speaker 4: minutes two three. In spite of herself, her eyes wandered
• 5:25:25
  Speaker 4: to the clock every minute. She was also watching Valmont,
• 5:25:29
  Speaker 4: who was calmly swinging to and fro in a comfortable
• 5:25:33
  Speaker 4: rocking chair. Ten minutes to three, five minutes to three.
• 5:25:38
  Speaker 4: Nellie was impatient and anxious. Was it possible that as
• 5:25:42
  Speaker 4: Saint Lupin would carry out his promise at the appointed hour,
• 5:25:45
  Speaker 4: when the castle courtyard and the park were filled with people,
• 5:25:49
  Speaker 4: and at the very moment when the officers of the
• 5:25:51
  Speaker 4: law were pursuing their investigations, and yet Arsen Lupin had
• 5:25:55
  Speaker 4: given her his solemn promise, It will be exactly as
• 5:25:59
  Speaker 4: he said, thought she so deeply was she impressed with
• 5:26:03
  Speaker 4: the authority, energy, and assurance of that remarkable man. To her,
• 5:26:08
  Speaker 4: it no longer assumed the form of a miracle, but,
• 5:26:11
  Speaker 4: on the contrary, a natural incident that must occur in
• 5:26:14
  Speaker 4: the ordinary course of events. She blushed and turned her head.
• 5:26:19
  Speaker 5: Three o'clock.
• 5:26:20
  Speaker 4: The great clock struck slowly, one, two, three. Horace Velmore
• 5:26:29
  Speaker 4: took out his watch, glanced at the clock, then returned
• 5:26:33
  Speaker 4: the watch to his pocket. A few seconds passed in silence,
• 5:26:37
  Speaker 4: and then the crowd in the courtyard parted to give
• 5:26:39
  Speaker 4: passage to two wagons that had just entered the park gate.
• 5:26:43
  Speaker 4: Each drawn by two horses. There were army wagons such
• 5:26:47
  Speaker 4: as I used for the transportation of provisions, tents and
• 5:26:50
  Speaker 4: of unnecessary military stores. They stopped in front of the
• 5:26:54
  Speaker 4: main entrance, and a commissary sergeant lipped from one of
• 5:26:57
  Speaker 4: the wagons and inquired for Monsieur Devanne. A moment later
• 5:27:01
  Speaker 4: that gentleman emerged from the house, descended the steps, and
• 5:27:04
  Speaker 4: under the canvas cover of the wagons beheld his furniture,
• 5:27:08
  Speaker 4: pictures and ornaments, carefully packaged and arranged. When questioned, the
• 5:27:15
  Speaker 4: sergeant produced an order that he had received from the
• 5:27:17
  Speaker 4: Officer of the day. By that order, the second company
• 5:27:20
  Speaker 4: of the fourth Battalion were commanded to proceed to the
• 5:27:23
  Speaker 4: cross roads of Alleux in the forest of Arc, gather
• 5:27:27
  Speaker 4: up the furnitures and other articles deposited there, and deliver
• 5:27:30
  Speaker 4: same to Monsieur George d Vain, owner of the Tibemesni Castle,
• 5:27:36
  Speaker 4: at three o'clock, signed Colonel Beauvel. At the cross roads,
• 5:27:41
  Speaker 4: explained the sergeant. We found everything ready lying on the grass,
• 5:27:45
  Speaker 4: guided by some passers by. It seemed very strange, but
• 5:27:48
  Speaker 4: the order was imperative. One of the officers examined the signature.
• 5:27:53
  Speaker 4: He declared a forgery, but a clever imitation. The wagons
• 5:27:56
  Speaker 4: were unloaded and the goods restored to their proper place
• 5:27:59
  Speaker 4: in the castle. During this commotion, Nellie had remained alone
• 5:28:03
  Speaker 4: at the extreme end of the terrace, absorbed by confused
• 5:28:07
  Speaker 4: and distracted thoughts. Suddenly she observed Velmont approaching her. She
• 5:28:12
  Speaker 4: would have avoided him, but the balustrade that surrounded the
• 5:28:15
  Speaker 4: terrace cut off her retreat. She was cornered. She could
• 5:28:18
  Speaker 4: not move. A gleam of sunshine, passing through the scant
• 5:28:21
  Speaker 4: foliage of the bamboo, lighted up her beautiful golden hair.
• 5:28:27
  Speaker 4: Someone spoke to her in a low voice, Have I
• 5:28:32
  Speaker 4: not kept my promise? Ar Saint Lupin stood close to her.
• 5:28:37
  Speaker 4: No one else was near, he repeated, in a calm,
• 5:28:40
  Speaker 4: soft voice, have I not kept my promise? He expected
• 5:28:44
  Speaker 4: a word of thanks, or at least some slight movement
• 5:28:47
  Speaker 4: that would betray her interest in the fulfillment of his promise,
• 5:28:51
  Speaker 4: but she remained silent. Her scornful attitude annoyed Ar Saint Lupin,
• 5:28:56
  Speaker 4: and he realized the vast distance that separated him from
• 5:28:59
  Speaker 4: Miss Nellie. Now that she had learned the truth, he
• 5:29:03
  Speaker 4: would gladly have justified himself in her eyes, or at
• 5:29:06
  Speaker 4: least pleaded but extenuating circumstances. But he perceived the absurdity
• 5:29:11
  Speaker 4: and futility of such an attempt. Finally, dominated by a
• 5:29:15
  Speaker 4: surging flood of memories, he murmured, Ah, how long ago
• 5:29:21
  Speaker 4: that was? You Remember the long hours on the deck
• 5:29:24
  Speaker 4: of the Provence when you carried a rose in your hand,
• 5:29:28
  Speaker 4: a white rose like the one you carry to day.
• 5:29:31
  Speaker 4: I asked you for it. You pretended you did not
• 5:29:34
  Speaker 4: hear me. After you'd gone away, I found the rose, forgotten,
• 5:29:38
  Speaker 4: no doubt, and I kept it. She made no reply.
• 5:29:43
  Speaker 4: She seemed to be far away, he continued, in memory
• 5:29:48
  Speaker 4: of those happy hours, Forget what you have learned since,
• 5:29:52
  Speaker 4: separate the past from the present. Do not regard me
• 5:29:55
  Speaker 4: as the man you saw last night. But look at me,
• 5:29:57
  Speaker 4: if only for a moment, as you did in those
• 5:29:59
  Speaker 4: far off days when I was Bernard d'andreisi, for a
• 5:30:05
  Speaker 4: short time, will you please? She raised her eyes and
• 5:30:09
  Speaker 4: looked at him, as he had requested. Then, without saying
• 5:30:12
  Speaker 4: a word, she pointed to a ring that he was
• 5:30:15
  Speaker 4: wearing on his forefinger. Only the ring was visible, but
• 5:30:19
  Speaker 4: the setting, which was turned towards The palm of his
• 5:30:21
  Speaker 4: hand consisted of a magnificent ruby. As Saint Lupin blushed,
• 5:30:28
  Speaker 4: the ring belonged to George de Vain. He smiled bitterly
• 5:30:31
  Speaker 4: and said, you are right. Nothing can be changed, as
• 5:30:36
  Speaker 4: Sin Lupin is now and always will be. Ar Saint
• 5:30:38
  Speaker 4: Lupin to you, he cannot be even so much as
• 5:30:44
  Speaker 4: a memory. Pardon me. I should have known that any
• 5:30:48
  Speaker 4: attention I may now offer you is simply an insult.
• 5:30:51
  Speaker 4: Forgive me. He stepped aside at in hand. Nellie passed
• 5:30:57
  Speaker 4: before him. He was inclined to detain her and beseech
• 5:31:00
  Speaker 4: her forgiveness, but his courage failed, and he contented himself
• 5:31:04
  Speaker 4: by following her with his eyes, as he had done
• 5:31:07
  Speaker 4: when she descended the gangway to the pier at New York.
• 5:31:11
  Speaker 4: She mounted the steps leading to the door and disappeared
• 5:31:14
  Speaker 4: within the house. He saw her no more. A cloud
• 5:31:19
  Speaker 4: obscured the sun. Asi Lupin stood watching the imprints of
• 5:31:23
  Speaker 4: her tiny feet in the sand. Suddenly he gave a
• 5:31:29
  Speaker 4: start upon the box which had contained the bamboo beside
• 5:31:33
  Speaker 4: which Nellie had been standing. He saw the rose, the
• 5:31:37
  Speaker 4: white rose he had desired, but dared not ask for forgotten.
• 5:31:41
  Speaker 4: No doubt it also, but how designedly or through distraction.
• 5:31:47
  Speaker 4: He seized it eagerly, and some of its petals fell
• 5:31:50
  Speaker 4: to the ground. He picked them up one by one.
• 5:31:54
  Speaker 5: Precious relics.
• 5:31:58
  Speaker 4: Come. He said to himself, I have nothing more to
• 5:32:01
  Speaker 4: do here. I must think of my safety. Before Shelock
• 5:32:04
  Speaker 4: Holmes arrives. The park was deserted, but some gendarmes was
• 5:32:09
  Speaker 4: stationed at the park gate. He entered a grove of
• 5:32:12
  Speaker 4: pine trees and leaped over the wall, and, as a
• 5:32:15
  Speaker 4: short cut to the railroad station, followed a path across
• 5:32:18
  Speaker 4: the fields. After walking about ten minutes, he arrived at
• 5:32:21
  Speaker 4: the spot where the road grew narrower and ran between
• 5:32:24
  Speaker 4: two steep banks. In this ravine, he met a man
• 5:32:27
  Speaker 4: traveling in the opposite direction. It was a man of
• 5:32:30
  Speaker 4: about fifty years of age, tall, smooth shaven, and wearing
• 5:32:34
  Speaker 4: clothes of a foreign cut. He carried a heavy cane
• 5:32:37
  Speaker 4: and a small satchel was trapped across his shoulder. When
• 5:32:40
  Speaker 4: they met, the stranger spoke with a slightinglish accent. Excuse me, monsieur,
• 5:32:45
  Speaker 4: is this the way to the castle? Yes, monsieur. Straight ahead,
• 5:32:49
  Speaker 4: turned to the left. When you come to the wall,
• 5:32:51
  Speaker 4: they are expecting you. Ah. Yes, my friend de Van
• 5:32:56
  Speaker 4: told us last night that you were coming, and I
• 5:32:58
  Speaker 4: am delighted to be the first to welcome you. Shellock
• 5:33:02
  Speaker 4: Holmes has no more ardent admirer than myself. There was
• 5:33:07
  Speaker 4: a touch of iron in his voice that he quickly regretted,
• 5:33:10
  Speaker 4: for Shellock Holms scrutinized him from head to foot with
• 5:33:13
  Speaker 4: such a penetrating, keen eye that us in Lupin experienced
• 5:33:17
  Speaker 4: a sensation of being seized, imprisoned, and registered by that look,
• 5:33:21
  Speaker 4: more thoroughly and precisely than he had ever been by
• 5:33:23
  Speaker 4: a camera. My negative is taken now, he thought, and
• 5:33:27
  Speaker 4: it would be useless to use the disguise with that man,
• 5:33:30
  Speaker 4: he would look right through it. But I wonder has
• 5:33:33
  Speaker 4: he recognized me. They bowed to each other as if
• 5:33:37
  Speaker 4: about to part, but at that moment they heard a
• 5:33:39
  Speaker 4: sound of horses feet accompanied by a clinking of steel.
• 5:33:43
  Speaker 4: It was the gendarmes. The two men were a bride
• 5:33:46
  Speaker 4: to draw back against the embankment amongst the bushes to
• 5:33:50
  Speaker 4: avoid the horses. The gendarme passed by, but as they
• 5:33:54
  Speaker 4: followed each other at a considerable distance. They were several
• 5:33:57
  Speaker 4: minutes in doing so, and Lupin was thinking. It all
• 5:34:01
  Speaker 4: depends on that question. Has he recognized me? If so,
• 5:34:09
  Speaker 4: he will probably take advantage of the opportunity. It is
• 5:34:12
  Speaker 4: a trying situation. When the last horseman had passed, sholoc
• 5:34:16
  Speaker 4: Hombe stepped forth and brushed the dust from his clothes.
• 5:34:20
  Speaker 4: Then for a moment he and us In Lupin gazed
• 5:34:22
  Speaker 4: at each other, and if a person could have seen
• 5:34:25
  Speaker 4: them at that moment, it put upon an interesting sight
• 5:34:28
  Speaker 4: and memorable as the first meeting of two remarkable men,
• 5:34:33
  Speaker 4: so strange, so powerfully equipped, both of superior quality, and
• 5:34:38
  Speaker 4: destined by fate through their peculiar attributes, to hurl themselves
• 5:34:43
  Speaker 4: at one and the other, like two equal forces that
• 5:34:46
  Speaker 4: nature opposes one against the other in the realms of space.
• 5:34:51
  Speaker 4: Then the Englishman said, thank you, monsieur.
• 5:34:55
  Speaker 5: They parted.
• 5:34:57
  Speaker 4: Lupin went towards the railway station, and shall Holmes continued
• 5:35:01
  Speaker 4: on his way to the castle. The local officers had
• 5:35:05
  Speaker 4: given up the investigation after several hours of fruitless efforts,
• 5:35:08
  Speaker 4: and the people at the castle were awaiting the arrival
• 5:35:11
  Speaker 4: of the English detective with lively curiosity. At first sight
• 5:35:14
  Speaker 4: They were a little disappointed on account of his commonplace appearance,
• 5:35:18
  Speaker 4: which differed so greatly from the pictures they had formed
• 5:35:20
  Speaker 4: of him in their own minds. He did not in
• 5:35:23
  Speaker 4: any way resemble the romantic hero, the mysterious and diabolical
• 5:35:27
  Speaker 4: personage that the name Sherlock Holmes had evoked in their imaginations. However,
• 5:35:34
  Speaker 4: Monsieur de Vanne exclaimed with much gusto, Ah, Monsieur, you
• 5:35:38
  Speaker 4: are here. I am delighted to see you. It is
• 5:35:41
  Speaker 4: a long deferred pleasure. Really, I scarcely regret that what
• 5:35:46
  Speaker 4: has happened, since it affords me the opportunity to meet you.
• 5:35:49
  Speaker 4: But how did you come by the train? But I
• 5:35:53
  Speaker 4: sent my automobile to meet you at the station. That
• 5:35:57
  Speaker 4: official reception, eh, with music and fireworks. Oh no, not
• 5:36:00
  Speaker 4: for me. That's not the way I do business, grumbled
• 5:36:03
  Speaker 4: the Englishman. This speech disconcerted Divan, who replied with a
• 5:36:07
  Speaker 4: forced smile. Fortunately, the business has been greatly simplified since
• 5:36:12
  Speaker 4: I wrote to you. In what way the robbery took
• 5:36:15
  Speaker 4: place last night? Die? If you'd not announce my intended visits,
• 5:36:19
  Speaker 4: it is probable the robbery would not have been committed
• 5:36:23
  Speaker 4: last night. And then when to morrow or some other day.
• 5:36:29
  Speaker 4: And in that case Lupin would have been trapped, said
• 5:36:32
  Speaker 4: the detective, and my furniture would not have been carried away. Ah,
• 5:36:39
  Speaker 4: but my goods are here. They were brought back at
• 5:36:42
  Speaker 4: three o'clock by Lupin by two army wagons. Slock Holmes
• 5:36:47
  Speaker 4: put on his cap and adjusted his satchel. Divan exclaimed anxiously,
• 5:36:52
  Speaker 4: But monsieur, what are you going to do? I am
• 5:36:55
  Speaker 4: going home. Why your goods have been returned? I Saint
• 5:37:00
  Speaker 4: Lupin is far away, and there is nothing for me
• 5:37:02
  Speaker 4: to do. Yes, there is. I need your assistance. What
• 5:37:06
  Speaker 4: happened yesterday may happen again to morrow, as we do
• 5:37:09
  Speaker 4: not know how he entered, or how he escaped, or
• 5:37:11
  Speaker 4: why a few hours later he returned the goods. Ah,
• 5:37:15
  Speaker 4: you don't know. The idea of a problem to be
• 5:37:19
  Speaker 4: solved quickened the interest of Sherlock Holmes. Very well, then
• 5:37:23
  Speaker 4: let's make a search at once, and alone, if possible.
• 5:37:26
  Speaker 4: Divan understood and conducted the Englishman of the salon in
• 5:37:30
  Speaker 4: a crisp, dry voice, in sentences that seemed to have
• 5:37:32
  Speaker 4: been prepared in advance. Holmes asked a number of questions
• 5:37:36
  Speaker 4: about the events of the preceding evening, and inquired also
• 5:37:39
  Speaker 4: concerning the guests and the members of the household. Then
• 5:37:42
  Speaker 4: he examined the two volumes of the chronic compared the
• 5:37:45
  Speaker 4: plans of the subterranean passage, requested a repetition of the
• 5:37:49
  Speaker 4: sentences discovered by Father Gilly, and then asked, it was
• 5:37:53
  Speaker 4: yesterday the first time you have spoken those two sentences
• 5:37:58
  Speaker 4: to any one. Yes, you have never communicated them with
• 5:38:03
  Speaker 4: Horace Velmont. No, well, order the automobile. I must leave
• 5:38:08
  Speaker 4: in an hour. In an hour, yes, within that time,
• 5:38:13
  Speaker 4: Ar Saint Lupin solved the problem that you placed before him.
• 5:38:17
  Speaker 4: I placed before him. Yes, Ar Saint Lupin or Horace
• 5:38:21
  Speaker 4: Velmont the same thing. Ah, I thought so, ah, the scoundrel.
• 5:38:26
  Speaker 4: Now let's see, said Holmes. Last night at ten o'clock
• 5:38:29
  Speaker 4: you furnished Lupin with the information that he lacked and
• 5:38:33
  Speaker 4: that he had been seeking for many weeks. During the
• 5:38:36
  Speaker 4: night he found the time to solve the problem, collect
• 5:38:39
  Speaker 4: his men and rob the castle. I shall be quite expeditious.
• 5:38:42
  Speaker 4: He walked from the end of the room, deep in thought,
• 5:38:46
  Speaker 4: then sat down, crossed his long legs and closed his eyes.
• 5:38:51
  Speaker 4: Divan waited quite embarrassed, thought he is the man asleep?
• 5:38:56
  Speaker 4: Or is he only meditating? However, he left the room
• 5:39:00
  Speaker 4: to give some orders, and when he returned he found
• 5:39:03
  Speaker 4: the detective on his knees scrutinizing the carpet at the
• 5:39:06
  Speaker 4: foot of the stairs in the gallery. What is it,
• 5:39:09
  Speaker 4: he inquired, Look there spots from a candle. You're right
• 5:39:14
  Speaker 4: and quite fresh. You will also find him at the
• 5:39:17
  Speaker 4: top of the stairs, and around the cabinet that usin
• 5:39:19
  Speaker 4: Lupamp broke into, and from which he took the bibelow
• 5:39:22
  Speaker 4: that he afterwards placed in his arm chair. Why do
• 5:39:26
  Speaker 4: you conclude from that nothing? These facts would doubtless explain
• 5:39:31
  Speaker 4: the cause for the restitution, But that is a side
• 5:39:35
  Speaker 4: issue that I cannot wait to investigate. The main question
• 5:39:38
  Speaker 4: is a secret passage. First tell me is there a
• 5:39:40
  Speaker 4: chapel some two or three hundred meters from the castle, Yes,
• 5:39:44
  Speaker 4: a ruined chapel containing the tomb of Gigrolo. Tell your
• 5:39:48
  Speaker 4: chauffeur to wait for us near that chapel. My chauffeur
• 5:39:52
  Speaker 4: hasn't returned. If he had, they would have informed me.
• 5:39:56
  Speaker 4: Do you think the secret passage runs to the chapel?
• 5:39:58
  Speaker 4: What reason have I would ask you, monsieur, interrupted the detective,
• 5:40:02
  Speaker 4: to furnish me with a ladder and a lantern. What
• 5:40:06
  Speaker 4: do you require? A ladder and a lantern? Certainly, or
• 5:40:10
  Speaker 4: I wouldn't have asked for them. Divan, somewhat disconcerted by
• 5:40:14
  Speaker 4: this crude logic, rang the bell. The two articles were
• 5:40:20
  Speaker 4: given with the sternness and precision of military commands. Place
• 5:40:25
  Speaker 4: the ladder against the bookcase to the left of the
• 5:40:27
  Speaker 4: word Thibermesni. Dvan placed the ladder as directed, and the
• 5:40:31
  Speaker 4: Englishman continued on to the left to the right. There now,
• 5:40:36
  Speaker 4: climb up. All the letters are in relief, aren't they. Yes?
• 5:40:42
  Speaker 4: First turn the letter I one way or the other?
• 5:40:47
  Speaker 4: Which one? There are two of them, the first one.
• 5:40:50
  Speaker 4: Dvan took hold of the letter and exclaimed, ah, yes,
• 5:40:53
  Speaker 4: it turns towards the right. Who told you that? Cholcrims
• 5:40:56
  Speaker 4: did not reply to the question, but continued his directions,
• 5:41:00
  Speaker 4: Nattec the letter be move it back and forth as
• 5:41:03
  Speaker 4: you would, bolt Davan did so. To his great surprise,
• 5:41:06
  Speaker 4: it produced a clicking sound. Quite right, said Holmes. Now
• 5:41:11
  Speaker 4: we will go to the other end of the word Tibermesnie.
• 5:41:14
  Speaker 4: Try the letter aye and see if it will open
• 5:41:16
  Speaker 4: like a wicket with a certain degree of solemnity. Divan
• 5:41:20
  Speaker 4: seized the letter. It opened, but Divan fell from the
• 5:41:24
  Speaker 4: ladder for the entire section of bookcase lying between the
• 5:41:27
  Speaker 4: first and last letters of the words, turned on a
• 5:41:30
  Speaker 4: pivot and disclosed the subterranean passage. Shock Holms said coolly,
• 5:41:36
  Speaker 4: you are not hurt. And no, no, said Divan, as
• 5:41:40
  Speaker 4: he rose to his feet, not hurt, only bewildered. I
• 5:41:44
  Speaker 4: can understand now those let us turn. The secret passage
• 5:41:47
  Speaker 4: opens suddenly? Doesn't that agree exactly with the formula given
• 5:41:52
  Speaker 4: by Suis? Turn one eye on the bee that shakes,
• 5:41:56
  Speaker 4: the other eye will lead to God. But but but,
• 5:42:01
  Speaker 4: Louis the sixteenth asked a van Louis the sixteenth was
• 5:42:05
  Speaker 4: a clever locksmith. I have read in a book he
• 5:42:09
  Speaker 4: wrote about combination locks. It was a good idea on
• 5:42:13
  Speaker 4: the part of the owner of Tibermesni to show his
• 5:42:16
  Speaker 4: majesty a clever bit of mechanism. As an aid to
• 5:42:20
  Speaker 4: his memory, the king wrote three four eleventh, that is
• 5:42:24
  Speaker 4: to say, the third, fourth, and eleventh letters of the
• 5:42:28
  Speaker 4: word exactly. I understand that it explains how Lupin got
• 5:42:33
  Speaker 4: out of the room. But it does not explain how
• 5:42:36
  Speaker 4: he entered, and it is certain he came from the outside.
• 5:42:40
  Speaker 4: Shlocombe's lighted his lantern, stepped into the passage. Look all
• 5:42:47
  Speaker 4: the mechanism is exposed here like the works of a clock,
• 5:42:50
  Speaker 4: and the reverse side of the letters can be reached.
• 5:42:53
  Speaker 4: Loupin worked the combination from this side. That's all. What
• 5:42:57
  Speaker 4: proof is there of that proof? Why look at the
• 5:43:00
  Speaker 4: puddle of oil. Lupa foresaw that the wheels would require oiling.
• 5:43:07
  Speaker 4: Did he know about the other entrance as well as
• 5:43:10
  Speaker 4: I know it? Said Holmes. Follow me into that dark passage.
• 5:43:15
  Speaker 4: Are you afraid?
• 5:43:17
  Speaker 3: No?
• 5:43:17
  Speaker 4: But are you sure you can find the way out?
• 5:43:19
  Speaker 4: With my eyes closed? At first they descended twelve steps,
• 5:43:25
  Speaker 4: then twelve more, and then further on to other flights
• 5:43:28
  Speaker 4: of twelve steps each. Then they walked through a long passage,
• 5:43:33
  Speaker 4: the brick walls of which showed the marks of successive restorations,
• 5:43:37
  Speaker 4: and in spots were dripping with water. The earth also
• 5:43:41
  Speaker 4: was very damp. We're passing under the pond, said the
• 5:43:44
  Speaker 4: van somewhat nervously. At last they came to a stairway
• 5:43:48
  Speaker 4: of twelve steps, followed by three others of twelve steps. Each,
• 5:43:52
  Speaker 4: which they mounted with difficulty, and then found themselves in
• 5:43:55
  Speaker 4: a small cavity cut in the rock. They could go
• 5:43:58
  Speaker 4: no further, the deuce muttered, Holmes, nothing but bare walls.
• 5:44:04
  Speaker 4: This is provoking. Let's go back, said Divan. I've seen
• 5:44:09
  Speaker 4: enough to satisfy me. But the Englishman raised his eye
• 5:44:12
  Speaker 4: and uttered a sigh of relief. There he saw the
• 5:44:15
  Speaker 4: same mechanism and the same words as before. He had
• 5:44:20
  Speaker 4: merely to work the three letters. He did so, and
• 5:44:23
  Speaker 4: a block of granite swung out of place on the
• 5:44:26
  Speaker 4: other side. This granite block formed the tombstone of Duke Rollo,
• 5:44:31
  Speaker 4: and the word Tibermesni was engraved on it in relief.
• 5:44:37
  Speaker 4: Now in the little ruined chapel, the detective said, the
• 5:44:48
  Speaker 4: other eye leads to God. That means to the chapel.
• 5:44:52
  Speaker 4: It is marvelous, exclaimed Divan, amazed at the clairvoyance and
• 5:44:56
  Speaker 4: vivacity of the Englishman. Can it be possible that those
• 5:45:00
  Speaker 4: few words were sufficient for you, bah, exclaimed Holmes. They
• 5:45:04
  Speaker 4: weren't even necessary. In the chart in the book of
• 5:45:07
  Speaker 4: the National Library, the drawing terminates at the left, as
• 5:45:11
  Speaker 4: you know, in a circle, and at the right, as
• 5:45:13
  Speaker 4: you do not know. In a cross. Now that cross
• 5:45:16
  Speaker 4: must must refer to the chapel in which we now stand.
• 5:45:20
  Speaker 4: Poor Ivan could not believe his ears. It was all
• 5:45:22
  Speaker 4: so new, so novel to him, he exclaimed, It is incredible, miraculous,
• 5:45:29
  Speaker 4: and yet of a childish simplicity. How is it that
• 5:45:32
  Speaker 4: no one has ever solved the mystery? Because no one
• 5:45:36
  Speaker 4: has ever united the essential elements, that is to say,
• 5:45:39
  Speaker 4: the two books and the two sentences. No one but
• 5:45:41
  Speaker 4: as in Lupin and myself, but father, Jilly and I
• 5:45:47
  Speaker 4: knew all about those things. And likewise Holmes smiled and said,
• 5:45:51
  Speaker 4: Monsieur de Van, everybody cannot solve riddles. I have been
• 5:45:57
  Speaker 4: trying for ten years to accomplish what you did in
• 5:45:59
  Speaker 4: ten minutes. Bah, I'm used to it. They emerged from
• 5:46:02
  Speaker 4: the chapel and found an automobile. Ah, there's an auto
• 5:46:08
  Speaker 4: waiting for us. Yes, it's mine, said di Van, yours.
• 5:46:12
  Speaker 4: You said your chauffeur hadn't returned. They approached the machine,
• 5:46:16
  Speaker 4: and Monsieur Van questioned the chauffeur Edoir, who gave you
• 5:46:20
  Speaker 4: orders to come here? Why it was Monsieur Belboon, Monsieur Villemont.
• 5:46:27
  Speaker 4: Did you meet him near the railway station. He told
• 5:46:30
  Speaker 4: me to come to the chapel. To come to the chapel,
• 5:46:33
  Speaker 4: what for to wait for you, Monsieur and your friend.
• 5:46:38
  Speaker 4: Van and Holmes exchanged looks, and Monsieur de Van said
• 5:46:42
  Speaker 4: he knew the mystery would be a simple one for you.
• 5:46:44
  Speaker 4: It's a delicate compliment. A smile of satisfaction lighted up
• 5:46:49
  Speaker 4: the detective's serious features. For a moment, the compliment pleased him.
• 5:46:54
  Speaker 4: He shook his head as he said, Ah, a clever man.
• 5:46:58
  Speaker 4: I knew that when I saw him. Have you seen him? Yeah?
• 5:47:01
  Speaker 4: I met him a short time ago on my way
• 5:47:04
  Speaker 4: from the station, and you knew it was Horace Velmont.
• 5:47:07
  Speaker 4: I mean Arsen Lupin, That is right. I wonder how
• 5:47:13
  Speaker 4: it came no, but I suppose it was from a
• 5:47:18
  Speaker 4: certain ironical speech that he made. And you allowed him
• 5:47:21
  Speaker 4: to escape. Course, I did, and yet I had everything
• 5:47:26
  Speaker 4: on my side, such as five gendarmes who passed us. Sacrebleu,
• 5:47:35
  Speaker 4: cried de Van, you should have taken advantage of the opportunity. Really, Monsieur,
• 5:47:40
  Speaker 4: said the Englishman haughtily. When I encounter an adversary like
• 5:47:43
  Speaker 4: Arsaint Lupin, I do not take advantage of chance, opportunities
• 5:47:47
  Speaker 4: I create them. But time pressed, and since Lupin had
• 5:47:52
  Speaker 4: been so kind as to send the automobile, they resolved
• 5:47:55
  Speaker 4: to profit by it. They seated themselves in the comfortable limousine,
• 5:47:59
  Speaker 4: Edoard took his place at the wheel, and away they
• 5:48:02
  Speaker 4: went towards the railway station. Suddenly Divan's eyes fell upon
• 5:48:07
  Speaker 4: a small package in one of the pockets of the carriage. Ah,
• 5:48:11
  Speaker 4: what's that? A package? Whose is it?
• 5:48:13
  Speaker 1: Why?
• 5:48:13
  Speaker 4: It's for you?
• 5:48:14
  Speaker 3: For me?
• 5:48:15
  Speaker 4: Yes, it's addressed Shellock Holmes from Arsaint Lupin. The Englishman
• 5:48:19
  Speaker 4: took the package, opened it and found that it contended
• 5:48:22
  Speaker 4: a watch. Ah, he exclaimed, with an angry gesture. A watch,
• 5:48:27
  Speaker 4: said Divan, How did it come there? The detective did
• 5:48:31
  Speaker 4: not reply, Oh, it's your watch. Arsay, Lupin returns your watch.
• 5:48:37
  Speaker 4: But in order to return it, he must have taken it. Ah,
• 5:48:40
  Speaker 4: I see he took your watch. That is a good one,
• 5:48:44
  Speaker 4: Shallock Holmes's watch stolen by Arsaint Lupin. Mon dieu. That
• 5:48:48
  Speaker 4: is funny. Really, you must excuse me. I can't help it,
• 5:48:51
  Speaker 4: he roared with laughter, unable to control himself, after which
• 5:48:54
  Speaker 4: he said, in a tone of earnest conviction a clever man. Indeed,
• 5:48:58
  Speaker 4: the Englishman never moved up muscle on the way to
• 5:49:01
  Speaker 4: the ebb. He never spoke a word, but fixed his
• 5:49:04
  Speaker 4: gaze on the flying landscape. His silence was terrible, unfathomable,
• 5:49:09
  Speaker 4: more violent than the wildest rage at the railway station.
• 5:49:12
  Speaker 4: He spoke calmly, but in a voice that impressed one
• 5:49:17
  Speaker 4: with the vast energy and power of that famous man.
• 5:49:22
  Speaker 4: He said, yes, he's a clever man. But some day
• 5:49:26
  Speaker 4: I shall have the pleasure of placing on his shoulder
• 5:49:28
  Speaker 4: the hand that I now offer you, Monsieur Darvan. And
• 5:49:31
  Speaker 4: I believe that a Saint Lupin and Shock Combs will
• 5:49:33
  Speaker 4: meet again some day. Yes, the world is too small.
• 5:49:37
  Speaker 4: We will meet. We must meet. And then end of
• 5:49:44
  Speaker 4: chapter nine, end of the Extraordinary Adventures of a Saint
• 5:49:49
  Speaker 4: Lupin by Maurice le Blanc.