“‘I have only one thing,’ he said, ‘which weighs upon my mind at this supreme moment. It is my treatment of poor Morstan’s orphan. The cursed greed which has been my besetting sin through life has withheld from her the treasure, half at least of which should have been hers. And yet I have made no use of it myself, so blind and foolish a thing is avarice. The mere feeling of possession has been so dear to me that I could not bear to share it with another. See that chaplet tipped with pearls beside the quinine-bottle. Even that I could not bear to part with, although I had got it out with the design of sending it to her. You, my sons, will give her a fair share of the Agra treasure. But send her nothing — not even the chaplet — until I am gone. After all, men have been as bad as this and have recovered.

“‘I will tell you how Morstan died,’ he continued. ‘He had suffered for years from a weak heart, but he concealed it from every one. I alone knew it. When in India, he and I, through a remarkable chain of circumstances, came into possession of a considerable treasure. I brought it over to England, and on the night of Morstan’s arrival he came straight over here to claim his share. He walked over from the station and was admitted by my faithful old Lal Chowdar, who is now dead. Morstan and I had a difference of opinion as to the division of the treasure, and we came to heated words. Morstan had sprung out of his chair in a paroxysm of anger, when he suddenly pressed his hand to his side, his face turned a dusky hue, and he fell backward, cutting his head against the corner of the treasure-chest. When I stooped over him I found, to my horror, that he was dead.

“‘For a long time I sat half distracted, wondering what I should do. My first impulse was, of course, to call for assistance; but I could not but recognize that there was every chance that I would be accused of his murder. His death at the moment of a quarrel, and the gash in his head, would be black against me. Again, an official inquiry could not be made without bringing out some facts about the treasure, which I was particularly anxious to keep secret. He had told me that no soul upon earth knew where he had gone. There seemed to be no necessity why any soul ever should know.

“‘I was still pondering over the matter, when, looking up, I saw my servant, Lal Chowdar, in the doorway. He stole in and bolted the door behind him. “Do not fear, sahib,” he said; “no one need know that you have killed him. Let us hide him away, and who is the wiser?” “I did not kill him,” said I. Lal Chowdar shook his head and smiled. “I heard it all, sahib,” said he; “I heard you quarrel, and I heard the blow. But my lips are sealed. All are asleep in the house. Let us put him away together.” That was enough to decide me. If my own servant could not believe my innocence, how could I hope to make it good before twelve foolish tradesmen in a jury-box? Lal Chowdar and I disposed of the body that night, and within a few days the London papers were full of the mysterious disappearance of Captain Morstan. You will see from what I say that I can hardly be blamed in the matter. My fault lies in the fact that we concealed not only the body but also the treasure and that I have clung to Morstan’s share as well as to my own. I wish you, therefore, to make restitution. Put your ears down to my mouth. The treasure is hidden in —’

Main IndexPage 000000
Page 000001
Page 000002
Page 000003
Page 000004
Page 000005
Page 000006
Page 000007
Page 000008
Page 000009
Page 000010
Page 000011
Page 000012
Page 000013
Page 000014
Page 000015
Page 000016
Page 000017
Page 000018
Page 000019
Page 000020
Page 000021
Page 000022
Page 000023
Page 000024
Page 000025
Page 000026
Page 000027
Page 000028
Page 000029
Page 000030
Page 000031
Page 000032
Page 000033
Page 000034
Page 000035
Page 000036
Page 000037
Page 000038
Page 000039
Page 000040
Page 000041
Page 000042
Page 000043
Page 000044
Page 000045
Page 000046
Page 000047
Page 000048
Page 000049
Page 000050
Page 000051
Page 000052
Page 000053
Page 000054
Page 000055
Page 000056
Page 000057
Page 000058
Page 000059
Page 000060
Page 000061
Page 000062
Page 000063
Page 000064
Page 000065
Page 000066
Page 000067
Page 000068
Page 000069
Page 000070
Page 000071
Page 000072
Page 000073

List of other EBooks available for download

The Crystal Stopper
Aaron's Rod
Lady Chatterley's Lover
Woman In Love
Frankenstein
Dracula
Lair Of The White Worm
Pride And Prejudice
Rob Roy
Mrs Dalloway
Kidnapped
The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde
Treasure Island
Around The World In 80 Days
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea
The Invisible Man
The Island Of Doctor Moreau
The Time Machine
The War Of The Worlds
Animal Farm
Robinson Crusoe
A Tale Of Two Cities
Great Expectations
Oliver Twist
A Study In Scarlet
His Last Bow
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
The Case Book Of Sherlock Holmes
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
The Memoirs Of Sherlock Holmes
The Return Of Sherlock Holmes
The Sign Of Four
The Valley Of Fear
The Black Tulip
The Count Of Monte Cristo
The Three Musketeers