the money? And, after all, Hagar knew no details likely to confirm the tale. On consideration she dismissed Nat and Yu-ying and the jade Kwan-tai from her thoughts, and considered that she had purchased a new experience at the cost of thirty shillings.
In the meantime, Nat was seated in the taproom of the Nelson, down the docks way, with a pipe in his mouth and a tankard of beer before him. For several days he had sat thus alone waiting--as would appear from his expectant attitude--for some visitor. Four days after the loss of the idol, he was no longer by himself, for in a chair near him sat a dried-up, alert man clothed in black, with bright eyes and a keen expression. This individual was a gentleman--a doctor--and the visitor expected by Nat Prime.
"If y'd on'y come a week ago, I'd not have pawned the idol," said Nat, in a gloomy tone, "an' the blamed thing wouldn't have been lost."
"Yes, yes; I see, I see. But why did you pawn it?" asked the doctor, fretfully.
"Why," said Prime, drily, "'cause I didn't want my throat cut by Yu-ying; as long as I carried that idol on me, my life wasn't worth a red cent!"
"How did Yu-ying learn the value of the idol?"
"He was a priest in the war-god's temple, I reckon. I've seed him do joss-pigeon a dozen times; and when he kim on board the Havelock as stewart I guessed as he wos arter the idol. But I slept with one eye open," added Nat, triumphantly, "an' I guess he didn't best me till I put Kwan-tai into that blamed pop-shop!"
"But I don't see how he gained a knowledge of the iron box in London," persisted the doctor, irritably, "or learnt about Poa's treasure."
Prime drank some beer, and leant forward to speak, emphasizing his remarks by means of his pipe stem. "Now, look'ee here, Dr. Dick," said he, slowly, "what wos it y' told me a year ago, afore I went this trip to Chiner?"
"Why," said Dr. Dick, thoughtfully, "I told you that my uncle had been at the sack of the Summer Palace in Pekin. Chinese helped to loot the place as well as the French and English. Among these a priest called Poa collected a number of small gold images of Kwan-tai to the value of fifty thousand pounds, and fled with them to England. He placed these in an iron box, and left it with a countryman of his own in London. After selling a few of the images he returned to China, and to his service as a priest in the Temple of Kwan-tai in Canton. He intended to send for the iron box, and restore the images of the god to his temple; but, struck down by sickness, he was unable to carry out his intention. Fearful of being tortured for sacrilege if he told the truth, Poa wrote in Chinese characters a description of the whereabouts of the treasure in London, and placed the paper in the interior of a small jade idol, with diamond eyes, which stood in the Kwan-tai Temple in the Street of the Water Dragon. My uncle did some service for Poa, who, out of gratitude, told him the secret. Shortly afterwards he died, and my uncle, unable to gain access to the temple and steal the idol, was forced to return to England. He took up his residence at Christchurch, Hants, and died there, leaving a paper telling the story of Poa's treasure. I found the paper two years ago, and knowing you were trading to Canton, I came up to see you."
"Yes," said Prime, taking up the thread of the story, "and you asked me to get the jade idol out of that there temple. Well, I stole it, and I believe that pig of a Yu-ying saw me stealing. Any rate, he turned up aboard of the Havelock, and somehow--I can't guess in what way--he learnt the whole yarn, and tried to git back the idol. I bested him on the voyage; and when I kim ashore I expected to find you and get the iron box right away. I---"
"I was ill," interrupted Dick, impatiently. "I couldn't come up. You might have got the treasure yourself and then shared it with me."
"Now, that's blamed silly, doctor! I couldn't read the Chinese writing which I found inside the idol; and as you're a Chinese scholard--taught by your uncle, y' said--I waited fur you to kim up and read it. Fur safety, I put the idol in the pop-shop, and Yu-ying--cuss him--followed me and stole it. So I guess by this time he's got the whole lot of the golden gods."
"Probably; but how did he learn that they were in existence, and that the production of the jade idol was necessary to obtain the treasure of Poa?"
"Can't say, sir, onless that Poa told some of his brother priests."
"Poa died fifteen years ago," replied Dick, sharply; "if he had told them on his death-bed, they would not have waited all this time to get the treasure."
"Well, I calc'late as they've annexed the same this trip," said Nat, coolly.
While thus conversing, the landlord of the Nelson entered the tap-room, and informed Prime that a lady wished to see him. Rather surprised--for he had few female friends--Nat instructed that the visitor should be admitted. In a moment or so she appeared on the threshold, and, to his still greater surprise, Nat beheld Hagar.
"'Tis the pop-shop gal!" he said, rising. "And what might you want, miss?"
"To restore to you the jade idol," replied Hagar, taking the god Kwan-tai out of her pocket.
"Glory alleluia!" shouted Nat, snatching it from her grasp. "How the creation did you git it?"
"When I opened the shop door this morning, it was hanging to the knob by a string."
"Yu-ying couldn't make anything out of it, I guess. Here, doctor, see if the paper's inside."
Dick, in a state of considerable excitement, having been previously instructed by his uncle's paper how to discover the secret, unscrewed the head of the idol. When removed, a cavity was revealed; inside the cavity a strip of rice paper, scrawled with Chinese characters in vermilion.
While he was deciphering these, Nat turned to Hagar.
"Thankee, miss," he said, graciously. "If we git the money, I'll give 'ee a pound or so."
"I don't want it," replied Hagar, abruptly. "Give me the pawn-ticket and thirty-one shillings--that is, what I gave you, and the percentage. Then I'll go."
Nat produced money and ticket from his pocket, and gave them into her hand. "But I'd like to do summat fur you gitting that idol back," said he, wistfully.
"Well, Mr. Prime," said Hagar, pausing at the door, with a smile, "when you get the fifty thousand pounds you talk about, reward me by coming to the shop, and telling me the story. I should like to know why Yu-ying stole the god; also why he restored it."
"I'll tell 'ee, never fear, miss; and a rum yarn it is. Y' won't take a drain, miss? No? Well, good day! good day, and thankee."
When Hagar retired Nat came back to the table, and found that Dr. Dick had ascertained the meaning of the Chinese characters. They gave the address of one Yeh, who kept an opium shop--or rather den--in Vesey Street, Whitechapel.
"We must go there," said Dick, rising, "and interview this Yeh. I dare say he has the iron box in charge."
"I guess some Chinky of sorts has the box," assented Nat, "but 'twon't be Yeh. If Poa lef' the box along o' him, I surmise he's dead and buried by this time. Even Chinamen ain't immortal."
"Yeh or another--what does it matter, Prime? All we have to do is to show Kwan-tai's jade image to the custodian of the box, and it will be handed over to us."
"That's so," replied Nat, glancing at his watch. "Seems as we've got the whole arternoon to engineer the job. Let's grub a bit, and start right away for Whitechapel."
While at the meal, Prime seemed thoughtful, and did not respond very enthusiastically
