“‘What is it you propose?’ she said feebly.

“‘Why this,’ I said, ’you hand me over all those diamonds, and your defects will—­as far as I am concerned—­always remain a secret.  Refuse, and Miss Roberts and Mr. Delmas shall know all there is to be known at once.’

“For some minutes she sat with her face buried in her hands—­shivering.  Then she looked up at me—­and Jerusalem! it was like looking at an old woman.  ‘Take them,’ she said, ’take them!  I shall never wear them again, anyhow.  Take them—­and leave me.’

“Well, you fellows, I steeled my heart, and slipped every Jack one that was on her into my pocket.

“‘You won’t tell them,’ she whispered, catching hold of me by the arm, ‘you swear you won’t.’  I won’t try and remember exactly what I answered—­but outside the door of the box Delmas joined me.  He had been concealed within and had heard everything that passed.

“‘I can’t say how grateful I am to you,’ he said.  ’It’s a bit low down, perhaps, but, then, we were dealing with a low-down person.  You thoroughly deserve those diamonds—­will you accept an offer for them from me?  I should like to buy them for Miss Roberts and present them to her on our reconciliation.’  We came to terms then and there, and he ’phoned through to me an hour ago to say that he had made it up with Miss Roberts, that she was delighted with the diamonds, and that they are going to be married next month.”

“So out of evil good comes,” Hamar said, “the maxim for us, remember, is—­out of evil evil alone must come.  What are you going to do to-day, you two?”

“Rest!” said Kelson, “I’m tired.”

“Eat!” said Curtis, “I’m hungry!”

“Now look here, this won’t do,” Hamar remarked, “you’ve earned your rest, Matt, but you haven’t, Ed. You can’t go on eating eternally.”

“Can’t I?” Curtis snapped, “I’m not so sure of that, I’ve years to make up for.”

“Then do the thing in moderation, for goodness sake!” Hamar expostulated, “and recollect we must, at all costs, act together.  We have now twelve thousand dollars between us in the bank—­that is to say, the capital of the Firm of Hamar, Curtis and Kelson represents that amount.  It is our ambition to increase that amount—­and to go on increasing it till we can fairly claim to be the richest Firm in the world.  Now to do that we must work, and work hard, if we are to live at the pace Ed is setting us—­but there is no reason why we should remain here, and I propose that we move elsewhere.  I’ve got a scheme in my head, rather a colossal one I admit, but not altogether impossible.”

“What is it?” Kelson asked.

“Yes, out with it,” Curtis grunted.

“It is this,” Hamar said, “I suggest that we go to London—­London in England—­I guess it’s the richest town in the world—­and there set up as sorcerers—­The Sorcery Company Ltd.  We should begin with divination and juggling, and go on, according to the seven stages.  We should of course sell our cures and spells, and there is not the slightest doubt but that we should make an enormous pile, with which we would gradually buy up, not merely London, but the whole of England.”