s and sapphires of great value have been placed upon the
market within the last two months."

"Uncut rubies and sapphires are being continually placed upon the
market," he observed, leaning back in his chair and rattling his keys.

"But not such stones as those I am looking for," I said, and furnished
him with the rough weights that had been supplied to me.

"This is interesting--decidedly interesting," he remarked. "Especially
since it serves to offer an explanation on a certain matter in which we
have been interested for some little time past. On the sixteenth of last
month, a gentleman called upon us here, who stated that he had lately
returned from the Far East. He had had, so he declared, the good fortune
to discover a valuable mine, the locality of which he was most careful
not to disclose. He thereupon showed my partner and myself ten stones,
consisting of five rubies and five sapphires, each of which weighed
between fifty-five and sixty carats."

"And you purchased them?"

"We did, and for a very heavy sum. I can assure you the vendor was very
well aware of their value, as we soon discovered, and he was also a good
hand at a bargain. Would you care to see the stones? I shall be pleased
to show them to you if you would."

"I should like to see them immensely." I replied.

Thereupon he crossed the room to a safe in the corner, and, when he had
unlocked it, took from it a wash-leather bag. Presently ten superb gems
were lying before me on the table.

"There they are," he said, waving his hands towards them, "and as you
can see for yourself, they are worthy of being set in the crown of an
emperor. It is not often that we are enthusiastic in such matters, but
in this case we have very good reason to be. When they are properly cut,
they will be well nigh priceless."

"Do you happen to know whether he sold any more of a similar kind in
London?" I asked, as he returned them to their place in the safe.

"I know that he sold fifteen smaller ones to Henderson and Soil, and
three almost as large as those I have just shown you to a firm in
Amsterdam."

"If he is the man I want to get hold of, that accounts for
twenty-eight," I said, making a note of the fact as I spoke. "Originally
he had ninety-three in his possession."

"Ninety-three?" the merchant replied, as if he could scarcely believe
his ears. "Why, his mine must be a source of unlimited wealth. I wish I
had known this before."

"So do I," I said. "And