CHAPTER II
TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE
A little while later, when Mr. Latham started out to luncheon, hethrust the white glazed box into an inside pocket. It had occurredto him that Schultze--Gustave Schultze, the greatest importer ofprecious stones in America--was usually at the club where he hadluncheon, and--
He found Mr. Schultze, a huge blond German, sitting at a table in analcove, alone, gazing out upon Fifth Avenue in deep abstraction, withperplexed wrinkles about his blue eyes. The German glanced around atLatham quickly as he proceeded to draw out a chair on the oppositeside of the table.
"Sid down, Laadham, sid down," he invited explosively. "I haf yustsend der vaiter to der delephone to ask--"
There was a restrained note of excitement in the German's voice, butat the moment it was utterly lost upon Mr. Latham.
"Schultze, you've probably imported more diamonds in the last tenyears than any other half-dozen men in the United States," heinterrupted. "I have something here I want you to see. Perhaps,at some time, it may have passed through your hands."
He placed the glazed box on the table. For an instant the Germanstared at it with amazed eyes, then one fat hand darted toward it,and he spilled the diamond out on the napkin in his plate. Then hesat gazing as if fascinated by the lambent, darting flashes deep fromthe blue-white heart.
"_Mein Gott_, Laadham!" he exclaimed, and with fingers which shook alittle he lifted the stone and squinted through it toward the light,with critical eyes. Mr. Latham was leaning forward on the table,waiting, watching, listening.
"Well?" he queried impatiently, at last.
"Laadham, id is der miracle!" Mr. Schultze explained solemnly, withhis characteristic, whimsical philosophy. "I haf der dupligade ofid, Laadham--der dwin, der liddle brudder. Zee here!"
From an inner pocket he produced a glazed white box, identical withthat which Mr. Latham had just set down, then carefully laid thecover aside.
"Look, Laadham, look!"
Mr. Latham looked--and gasped! Here was the counterpart of themysterious diamond which still lay in Mr. Schultze's outstretchedpalm.
"Dey are dwins, Laadham," remarked the German quaintly, finally."Id came by der mail in dis morning--yust like das, wrapped inpaper, but mit no marks, no name, no noddings. Id yust came!"
With his right hand Mr. Latham lifted the duplicate diamond fromits cotton bed, and with his left took the other from the German'shand. Then, side by side, he examined them; color, cutting, diameter,depth, all seemed to be the same.
"Dwins, I dell you," repeated Mr. Schultze stolidly. "Dweedledumund Dweedledee, born of der same mudder und fadder. Laadham, idiss der miracle! Dey are der most beaudiful der world in--yust derpair of dem."
"Have you made," Mr. Latham began, and there was an odd, uncertainnote in his voice--"Have you made an expert examination?"
"I haf. I measure him, der deepness, der cudding, der facets, undid iss perfect. Und I take my own judgment of a diamond, Laadham,before any man der vorld in but Czenki."
"And the weight?"
"Prezizely six und d'ree-sixdeendh carads. Dere iss nod more as adifference of a d'irty-second bedween dem."
Mr. Latham regarded the importer steadily, the while he fought backan absurd, nervous thrill in his voice.
"There isn't that much, Schultze. Their weight is exactly the same."
For a long time the two men sat staring at each other unseeingly.Finally the German, with a prodigious Teutonic sigh, replaced thediamond from Mr. Latham's right hand in one of the glazed boxes andcarefully stowed it away in a cavernous pocket; Mr. Lathammechanically disposed of the other in the same manner.
"Whose are they?" he demanded at length. "Why are they sent to uslike this, with no name, no letter of explanation? Until I saw thestone you have I believed this other had been sent to me by somecareless fool for setting, perhaps, and that a letter would followit. I merely brought it here on the chance that it was one of yourimportations and that you could identify it. But since you havereceived one under circumstances which seem to be identical, now--"He paused helplessly. "What does it mean?"
Mr. Schultze shrugged his huge shoulders and thoughtfully flickedthe ashes from his cigar into the consomme.
"You know, Laadham," he said slowly, "dey don't pick up diamondslike dose on der streed gorners. I didn't believe dere vas a stoneof so bigness in der Unided States whose owner I didn't know id vas.Dose dat are here I haf bring in myself, mostly--dose I did not I hafkept drack of. I don'd know, Laadham, I don'd know. Der longer Ilif der more I don'd know."
The two men completed a scant luncheon in silence.
"Obviously," remarked Mr. Latham as he laid his napkin aside, "thediamonds were sent to us by the same person; obviously they were sentto us with a purpose; obviously we will, in time, hear from theperson who sent them; obviously they were intended to be perfectlymatched; so let's see if they are. Come to my office and let Czenkiexamine the one you have." He hesitated an instant. "Suppose youlet me take it. We'll try a little experiment."
He carefully placed the jewel which the German handed to him, in anoutside pocket, and together they went to his office. Mr. Czenkiappeared, in answer to a summons, and Mr. Latham gave him theGerman's box.
"That's the diamond you examined for me this morning, isn't it?" heinquired.
Mr. Czenki turned it out into his hand and scrutinized itperfunctorily.
"Yes," he replied after a moment.
"Are you quite certain?" Mr. Latham insisted.
Something in the tone caused Mr. Czenki to raise his beady blackeyes questioningly for an instant, after which he walked over to awindow and adjusted his magnifying glass again. For a moment or morehe stood there, then:
"It's the same stone," he announced positively.
"Id _iss_ der miracle, Laadham, when Czenki make der mistake!" theGerman exploded suddenly. "Show him der odder von."
Mr. Czenki glanced from one to the other with quick, inquisitiveglance; then, without a word, Mr. Latham produced the second box andopened it. The expert stared incredulously at the two perfect stonesand finally, placing them side by side on a sheet of paper, returnedto the window and sat down. Mr. Latham and Mr. Schultze stood besidehim, looking on curiously as he turned and twisted the jewels underhis powerful glass.
"As a matter of fact," asked Mr. Latham pointedly at last, "you wouldnot venture to say which of those stones it was you examined thismorning, would you?"
"No," replied Mr. Czenki curtly, "not without weighing them."
"And if the weight is identical?"
"No," said Mr. Czenki again. "If the weight is the same there is notthe minutest fraction of a difference between them."
The Diamond Master Page 2