“Money did it, I suppose,” Patsy shrewdly suggested.

“Yes.  Jones wrote a lot of checks.  Colby got a couple of hundred for a retaining fee and gleefully informed us it was more money than he had ever owned at one time in all his previous career.  I think he will earn it, however.”

“Where is he now?” asked Uncle John.

“Visiting all the newspaper offices, to ‘buy white space,’ as he put it.  In other words, Colby will bribe the press to silence, at least until the case develops.”

“I’m glad of that,” exclaimed Beth.  “What do you think of this queer business, Arthur?”

“Why, I’ve no doubt of the boy’s innocence, if that is what you mean.  I’ve watched him closely and am positive he is no more Jack Andrews than I am.  But I fear he will have a hard task to satisfy the judge that he is falsely accused.  It would be an admission of error, you see, and so the judge will prefer to find him guilty.  It is this same judge—­Wilton, I think his name is—­who will conduct the formal examination, and to-day he openly sneered at the mention of Sangoa.  On the other hand, he evidently believed every statement made by Le Drieux about the identity of the pearls found in Jones’ possession.  Le Drieux has a printed list of the Ahmberg pearls, and was able to check the Jones’ pearls off this list with a fair degree of accuracy.  It astonished even me, and I could see that Jones was equally amazed.”

“Wouldn’t it be queer if they convicted him!” exclaimed Beth.

“It would be dreadful, since he is innocent,” said Patsy.

“There is no need to worry about that just at present,” Arthur assured them.  “I am placing a great deal of confidence in the ability of Lawyer Colby.”

CHAPTER XVIII

DOUBTS AND DIFFICULTIES

The Stanton girls and Mrs. Montrose came in early that afternoon.  They had heard rumors of the arrest of Jones and were eager to learn what had occurred.  Patsy and Beth followed them to their rooms to give them every known detail and canvass the situation in all its phases.

“Goldstein has been an angel all afternoon,” said Flo.  “He grinned and capered about like a schoolboy and some of us guessed he’d been left a fortune.”

“He ought to be ashamed of himself.”  Patsy indignantly asserted.  “The man admitted to Uncle John that Ajo is the biggest stockholder in the Continental, the president, to boot; yet Goldstein wouldn’t lift a finger to help him and positively refused to obey his request to go to him after he was arrested.”

“I know about that,” said Aunt Jane, quietly.  “Goldstein talked to me about the affair this afternoon and declared his conviction that young Jones is really a pearl thief.  He has taken a violent dislike to the boy and is delighted to think his stock will be taken away from him.”

Maud had silently listened to this dialogue as she dressed for dinner.  But now she impetuously broke into the conversation, saying: