Aunt Jane's Nieces Out West
The boy's arrest had startled her
because it was so unexpected, and her first impulse was to doubt his
innocence. Later, however, she had thoroughly reviewed the notes she had
made and decided he was innocent.
In the quiet of her own room, when she was supposed to be asleep, Maud
got out her notebook and read therein again the review of all she had
learned concerning A. Jones of Sangoa.
"For a boy, he has a good knowledge of business; for a foreigner, he has
an excellent conception of modern American methods," she murmured
thoughtfully. "He is simple in little things; shrewd, if not wise, in
important matters. He proved this by purchasing the control of the
Continental, for its shares pay enormous dividends.
"Had he stolen those pearls, I am sure he would have been too shrewd to
have given a portion of them to us, knowing we would display them openly
and so attract attention to them. A thief so ingenious as Andrews, for
instance, would never have done so foolish a thing as that, I am
positive. Therefore, Jones is not Andrews.
"Now, to account for the likeness between Andrews, an American
adventurer, and Jones, reared and educated in the mysterious island of
Sangoa. Ajo's father must have left some near relatives in this country
when he became a recluse in his far-away island. Why did he become a
recluse? That's a subject I must consider carefully, for he was a man of
money, a man of science, a man of affairs. Jones has told us he has no
relatives here. He may have spoken honestly, if his father kept him in
ignorance of the family history. I'm not going to jump at the conclusion
that the man who calls himself Jack Andrews is a near relative of our
Ajo--a cousin, perhaps--but I'll not forget that that might explain the
likeness between them.
"Ajo's father must have amassed a great fortune, during many years, from
his pearl fisheries. That would explain why the boy has so much money at
his disposal. He didn't get it from the sale of stolen pearls, that is
certain. In addition to the money he invested in the Continental, he has
enough in reserve to expend another million or so in Patsy Doyle's motion
picture scheme, and he says he can spare it easily and have plenty left!
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There was once an honest journeyman tailor, by name Labakan, who learned his trade with an excellent master in Alexandria. It could not be said that Labakan was unhandy with the needle; on the contrary, he could make excellent work: moreover, one would have done him injustice to have called him lazy. Nevertheless, his companions knew not what to make of him, for he would often sew for hours together so rapidly that the needle would glow in his hand, and the thread smoke, and that none could equal him.
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