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THE EXTRAORDINARY ADVENTURES
ARSÈNE LUPIN
GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
BY
MAURICE LEBLANC
Translated from the French
By GEORGE MOREHEAD
M. A. DONOHUE & CO.
CHICAGO


7
36
;
HARVARD
COLLEGE
LIRRARY
Copyright, 1910,
By M. A. DONOHUE & Co.
Made in U. S. A.
1.9


CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I THE ARREST OF ARSÈNE LUPIN.........
5
II
ARSÈNE LUPIN IN PRISON.............
III
THE ESCAPE OF ARSÈNE LUPIN........
IV
THE MYST CRIOUS TRAVSLLER... ........ 103
V THE QUEEN'S NECKLACE.............
VI THE SEVEN OF HEARTS................ 161
VII MADAME IMBERT'S SAFE...............
VIII THE BLACK PEARL...................
IX
SHERLOCK HOLMES ARRIVES TOO LATE .. 265


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ARSÈNE LUPIN
Gentleman - Burglar
CHAPTER I
THE ARREST OF ARSÈNE LUPIN
it was a strange ending to a voyage
that had commenced in a most aus-
picious manner. The transatlantic
steamship La Provence was a swift and com-
fortable vessel, under the command of a most
affable man. The passengers constituted a
select and delightful society. The charm of
new acquaintances and improvised amuse-
ments served to make the time pass agree-
ably. We enjoyed the pleasant sensation of
being separated from the world, living, as it
were, upon an unknown island, and conse-
quently obliged to be sociable with each other.
Have you ever stopped to consider how
much originality and spontaneity emanate
from these various individuals who, on the


ARSÈNE LUPIN
preceding evening, did not even know each
other, and who are now, for several days, con-
demned to lead a life of extreme intimacy,
jointly defying the anger of the ocean, the ter-
rible onslaught of the waves, the violence of
the tempest and the agonizing monotony of
the calm and sleepy water? Such a life be-
comes a sort of tragic existence, with its
storms and its grandeurs, its monotony and
its diversity; and that is why, perhaps, we
embark upon that short voyage with mingled
feelings of pleasure and fear.
But, during the past few years, a new sen-
sation 'as been added to the life of the trans-
atlantic traveler. The little floating island
is now attached to the world from which it
was once quite free. A bond unites them, even
in the very heart of the watery wastes of the
Atlantic. That bond is the wireless telegraph,
by means of which we receive news in the
most mysterious manner. We know full well
that the message is not transported by the
medium of a hollow wire. No, the mystery
is even more inexplicable, more romantic,
and we must have recourse to the wings of
the air in order to explain this new miracle.
During the first day of the voyage, we felt
that we were followed, escorted, preceded


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
even, by that distant voice, which, from time
to time, whispered to one of us a few words
from the receding world. Two friends spoke
to me. Ten, twenty others sent gay or sombre
words of parting to other passengers.
On the second day, at a distance of five
hundred miles from the French coast, in the
midst of a violent storm, we received the fol-
lowing message by means of the wireless
telegraph:
“Arsène Lupin is on your vessel, first
cabin, blonde hair, wound right fore-arm,
travelling alone under name of R........"
At that moment, a terrible flash of light-
ning rent the stormy skies. The electric
waves were interrupted. The remainder of
the despatch never reached us. Of the name
under which Arsène Lupin was concealing
himself, we knew only the initial.
If the news had been of some other charac-
ter, I have no doubt that the secret would
have been carefully guarded by the tele-
graphic operator as well as by the officers of
the vessel. But it was one of those events
calculated to escape from the most rigorous
discretion. The same day, no one knew how,
the incident became a matter of current gos-
sip and every passenger was aware that the


ARSÈNE LUPIN
famous Arsène Lupin was hiding in our
midst.
Arsène Lupin in our midst the irrepres-
sible burglar whose exploits had been nar-
rated in all the newspapers during the past
few months! the mysterious individual with
whom Ganimard, our shrewdest detective,
had been engaged in an implacable conflict
amidst interesting and picturesque surround-
ings. Arsène Lupin, the eccentric gentleman
who operates only in the châteaux and salons,
and who, one night, entered the residence of
Baron Schormann, but emerged empty-
handed, leaving, however, his card on which
he had scribbled these words: “Arsène
Lupin, gentleman-burglar, will return when
the furniture is genuine." Arsène Lupin,
the man of a thousand disguises: in turn a
chauffeur, detective, bookmaker, Russian
physician, Spanish bull-fighter, commercial
traveler, robust youth, or decrepit old man.
Then consider this startling situation: Ar-
sène Lupin was wandering about within the
limited bounds of a transatlantic steamer; in
that very small corner of the world, in that
dining saloon, in that smoking room, in that
music room! Arsène Lupin was, perhaps,
this gentleman....or that one....my neigh-


10
ARSÈNE LUPIN
with a certain degree of favor. She con-
descended to laugh at my witticisms and
display an interest in my stories. Yet I felt
chat I had a rival in the person of a young
man with quiet and refined tastes; and it
struck me, at times, that she preferred his
taciturn humor to my Parisian frivolity. He
formed one in the circle of admirers that sur-
rounded Miss Nelly at the time she addressed
to me the foregoing question. We were all
comfortably seated in our deck-chairs. The
storm of the preceding evening had cleared
the sky. The weather was now delightful.
“I have no definite knowledge, mademoi-
selle," I replied, “but can not we, ourselves,
investigate the mystery quite as well as the
detective Ganimard, the personal enemy of
Arsène Lupin ?”
“Oh! oh! you are progressing very fast,
monsieur.”
“Not at all, mademoiselle. In the first
place, let me ask, do you find the problem a
complicated one?"
“Very complicated.”
“Have you forgotten the key ve hold for
the solution of the problem?"
6.What key?!


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“In the first place, Lupin calls himself
Monsieur R- '
“Rather vague information,” she replied.
“Secondly, he is traveling alone."
“Does that help you?” she asked.
“Thirdly, he is blonde.”
“Well ?"
"Then we have only to peruse the pas-
senger-list, and proceed by the process of
elimination.”
I had that list in my pocket. I took it out
and glanced through it. Then I remarked:
“I find that there are only thirteen men
on the passenger-list whose names begin with
the letter R.”
"Only thirteen?”
“Yes, in the first cabin. And of those thir-
teen, I find that nine of them are accom-
panied by women, children or servants. That
leaves only four who are travelling alone.
First, the Marquis de Raverdan- ”.
“Secretary to the American Ambassador,"
interrupted Miss Nelly. “I know him.”
“Major Rawson,” I continued.
“He is my uncle," some one said.
“Mon. Rivolta."
“Here!” exclaimed an Italian, whose face
was concealed beneath a heavy black beard.


12
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Miss Nelly burst into laughter, and ex-
claimed: “That gentleman can scarcely be
called a blonde.”
“Very well, then,” I said, "we are forced
to the conclusion that the guilty party is the
last one on the list.”
“What is his name?”
“Mon. Rozaine. Does anyone know him?"
No one answered. But Miss Nelly turned
to the taciturn young man, whose attentions
to her had annoyed me, and said:
“Well, Monsieur Rozaine, why do you not
answer?”
All eyes were now turned upon him. He
was a blonde. I must confess that I myself
felt a shock of surprise, and the profound
silence that followed her question indicated
that the others present also viewed the situa-
tion with a feeling of sudden alarm. How-
ever, the idea was an absurd one, because the
gentleman in question presented an air of
the most perfect innocence.
“Why do I not answer ?” he said. “Be-
cause, considering my name, my position as
a solitary traveler and the color of my hair,
I have already reached the same conclusion,
and now think that I should be arrested.”
He presented a strange appearance as he


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
13
uttered these words. His thin lips were
drawn closer than usual and his face was
ghastly pale, whilst his eyes were streaked
with blood. Of course, he was joking, yet
his appearance and attitude impressed us
strangely.
“But you have not the wound?” said Miss
Nelly, naïvely.
“That is true,” he replied, “I lack the
wound.”
Then he pulled up his sleeve, removing his
cuff, and showed us his arm. But that action
did not deceive me. He had shown us his left
arm, and I was on the point of calling his at-
tention to the fact, when another incident di-
verted our attention. Lady Jerland, Miss
Nelly's friend, came running towards us in a
state of great excitement, exclaiming:
“My jewels, my pearls! Some one has
stolen them all!”
No, they were not all gone, as we soon
found out. The thief had taken only part of
them; a very curious thing. Of the diamond
sunbursts, jewelled pendants, bracelets and
necklaces, the thief had taken, not the largest
but the finest and most valuable stones. The
mountings were lying upon the table. I saw
them there, despoiled of their jewels, like


14
ARSÈNE LUPIN
flowers from which the beautiful colored
petals had been ruthlessly plucked. And this
theft must have been committed at the time
Lady Jerland was taking her tea; in broad
daylight, in a stateroom opening on a much
frequented corridor; moreover, the thief had
been obliged to force open the door of the
stateroom, search for the jewel-case, which
was hidden at the bottom of a hat-box, open
it, select his booty and remove it from the
mountings.
Of course, all the passengers instantly
reached the same conclusion; it was the work
of Arsène Lupin.
That day, at the dinner table, the seats to
the right and left of Rozaine remained va-
cant; and, during the evening, it was ru-
mored that the captain liad placed him under
arrest, which information produced a feeling
of safety and relief. We breathed once more.
That evening, we resumed our games and
dances. Miss Nelly, especially, displayed a
spirit of thoughtless gayety which convinced
me that if Rozaine's attentions had been
agreeable to her in the beginning, she had
already forgotten them. Her charm and
good-humor completed my conquest. At mid-
night, under a bright moon, I declared my


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
devotion with an ardor that did not seem to
displease her.
But, next day, to our general amazement,
Rozaine was at liberty. We learned that the
evidence against him was not sufficient. He
had produced documents that were perfectly
regular, which showed that he was the son
of a wealthy merchant of Bordeaux. Besides,
his arms did not bear the slightest trace of
a wound.
“Documents! Certificates of birth !” ex-
claimed the enemies of Rozaine, “of course,
Arsène Lupin will furnish you as many as
you desire. And as to the wound, he never
had it, or he has removed it."
Then it was proven that, at the time of the
theft, Rozaine was promenading on the deck.
To which fact, his enemies replied that a man
like Arsène Lupin could commit a crime with-
out being actually present. And then, apart
from all other circumstances, there remained
one point which even the most skeptical could
not answer: Who except Rozaine, was trav-
elling alone, was a blonde, and bore a name
beginning with R? To whom did the tele-
gram point, if it were not Rozaine?
And when Rozaine, a few minutes before
breakfast, came boldly toward our group,


ARSÈNE LUPIN
had produced no result. But, in the mean-
time, the captain's watch had been stolen.
He was furious. He quickened his efforts
and watched Rozaine more closely than be-
fore. But, on the following day, the watch
was found in the second officer's collar-box.
This incident caused considerable astonish-
.ment, and displayed the humorous side of
Arsène Lupin, burglar though he was, but
dilettante as well. He combined business
with pleasure. He reminded us of the author
who almost died in a fit of laughter provoked
by his own play. Certainly, he was an artist
in his peculiar line of work, and whenever
I saw Rozaine, gloomy and reserved, and
thought of the double rôle that he was play-
ing, I accorded him a certain measure of ad-
miration.
On the following evening, the officer on
deck duty heard groans emanating from the
darkest corner of the ship. He approached
and found a man lying there, his head envel-
oped in a thick gray scarf and his hands tied
together with a heavy cord. It was Rozaine.
He had been assaulted, thrown down and
robbed. A card, pinned to his coat, bore
these words: “Arsène Lupin accepts with
pleasure the ten thousand francs offered by


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
u
.
Mon. Rozaine." As a matter of fact, the
stolen pocket-book contained twenty thou-
sand francs.
Of course, some accused the unfortunate
man of having simulated this attack on him-
self. But, apart from the fact that he could
not have bound himself in that manner, it
was established that the writing on the card
was entirely different from that of Rozaine,
but, on the contrary, resembled the handwrit-
ing of Arsène Lupin as it was reproduced in
an old newspaper found on board.
Thus it appeared that Rozaine was not Ar-
sène Lupin; but was Rozaine, the son of a
Bordeaux merchant. And the presence of
Arsène Lupin was once more affirmed, and
that in a most alarming manner.
Such was the state of terror amongst the
passengers that none would remain alone in
a stateroom or wander singly in unfre-
quented parts of the vessel. We clung to-
gether as a matter of safety. And yet the
most intimate acquaintances were estranged
by a mutual feeling of distrust. Arsène Lupin
was, now, anybody and everybody. Our ex-
cited imaginations attributed to him miracu-
lous and unlimited power. We supposed him
capable of assuming the most unexpected dis-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
and Miss Nelly closer to each other? Thanks
to him, I could now indulge in delicious
dreams of love and happiness-dreams that,
I felt, were not unwelcome to Miss Nelly. Her
smiling eyes authorized me to make them;
the softness of her voice bade me hope.
As we approached the American shore, the
active search for the thief was apparently
abandoned, and we were anxiously awaiting
the supreme moment in which the mysterious
enigma would be explained. Who was Ar-
sène Lupin? Under what name, under what
disguise was the famous Arsène Lupin con-
cealing himself? And, at last, that supreme
moment arrived. If I live one hundred years,
I shall not forget the slightest detail of it.
“How pale you are, Miss Nelly," I said to
my companion, as she leaned upon my arm,
almost fainting.
“And you!” she replied, “ah! you are so
changed."
“Just think! this is a most exciting mo-
ment, and I am delighted to spend it with
you, Miss Nelly. I hope that your memory
will sometimes revert--"
But she was not listening. She was ner-
vous and excited. The gangway was placed
in position, but, before we could use it, the


ARSÈNE LUPIN
uniformed customs officers came on board.
Miss Nelly murmured:
“I shouldn't be surprised to hear that Ar-
sène Lupin escaped from the vessel during
the voyage.”
“Perhaps he preferred death to dishonor,
and plunged into the Atlantic rather than be
arrested.”
“Oh, do not laugh,” she said.
Suddenly I started, and, in answer to her
question, I said:
“Do you see that little old man standing at
the bottom of the gangway?”
“With an umbrella and an olive-green
coat?"
“It is Ganimard.”
“Ganimard ?”
“Yes, the celebrated detective who has
sworn to capture Arsène Lupin. Ah! I can
understand now why we did not receive any
news from this side of the Atlantic. Gani-
mard was here! and he always keeps his busi-
ness secret."
"Then you think he will arrest Arsène
Lupin?"
“Who can tell? The unexpected always
happens when Arsène Lupin is concerned in
the affair."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, with that morbid
curiosity peculiar to women, “I should like
to see him arrested.”
“You will have to be patient. No doubt,
Arsène Lupin has already seen his enemy and
will not be in a hurry to leave the steamer.”
The passengers were now leaving the
steamer. Leaning on his umbrella, with an
air of careless indifference, Ganimard ap-
peared to be paying no attention to the crowd
that was hurrying down the gangway. The
Marquis de Raverdan, Major Rawson, the
Italian Rivolta, and many others had already
left the vessel when Rozaine appeared. Poor
Rozaine!
"Perhaps it is he, after all,” said Miss
Nelly to me. “What do you think?”
“I think it would be very interesting to
have Ganimard and Rozaine in the same pic-
ture. You take the camera. I am loaded
down.”
I gave her the camera, but too late for her
to use it. Rozaine was already passing the
detective. An American officer, standing be-
hind Ganimard, leaned forward and whis-
pered in his ear. The French detective
shrugged his shoulders and Rozaine passed
on. Then, my God, who was Arsène Lupin?


24
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Yes," said Miss Nelly, aloud, "who can
it be?"
Not more than twenty people now re-
mained on board. She scrutinized them one
by one, fearful that Arsène Lupin was not
amongst them.
“We cannot wait much longer," I said to
her.
She started toward the gangway. I fol-
lowed. But we had not taken ten steps when
Ganimard barred our passage.
“Well, what is it?" I exclaimed.
“One moment, monsieur. What's your
hurry?”
“I am escorting mademoiselle.”
“One moment,'' he repeated, in a tone of
authority. Then, gazing into my eyes, he
said:
“Arsène Lupin, is it not?"
I laughed, and replied: “No, simply Ber-
nard d'Andrezy."
“Bernard d'Andrezy died in Macedonia
three years ago."
“If Bernard d’Andrezy were dead, I
should not be here. But you are mistaken.
Here are my papers.”
"They are his; and I can tell you exactly
how they came into your possession."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“You are a fool!” I exclaimed. “Arsène
Lupin sailed under the name of R- "
“Yes, another of your tricks; a false scent
that deceived them at Havre. You play a
good game, my boy, but this time luck is
against you."
I hesitated a moment. Then he hit me a
sharp blow on the right arm, which caused
me to utter a cry of pain. He had struck the
wound, yet unhealed, referred to in the tele-
gram.
I was obliged to surrender. There was no
alternative. I turned to Miss Nelly, who had
heard everything. Our eyes met; then she
glanced at the kodak I had placed in her
hands, and made a gesture that conveyed to
me the impression that she understood every-
thing. Yes, there, between the narrow folds
of black leather, in the hollow centre of the
small object that I had taken the precaution
to place in her hands before Ganimard ar-
rested me, it was there I had deposited Ro-
zaine's twenty thousand francs and Lady
Jerland's pearls and diamonds.
Oh! I pledge my oath that, at that solemn
moment, when I was in the grasp of Gani-
mard and his two assistants, I was perfectly
indifferent to everything, to my arrest, the


26
ARSÈNE LUPIN
hostility of the people, everything except this
one question: what will Miss Nelly do with
the things I had confided to her?
In the absence of that material and conclu-
sive proof, I had nothing to fear; but would
Miss Nelly decide to furnish that proof?
Would she betray me? Would she act the
part of an enemy who cannot forgive, or that
of a woman whose scorn is softened by feel-
ings of indulgence and involuntary sym-
pathy?
She passed in front of me. I said nothing,
but bowed very low. Mingled with the other
passengers, she advanced to the gangway
with my kodak in her hand. It occurred to
me that she would not dare to expose me pub-
licly, but she might do so when she reached a
more private place. However, when she had
passed only a few feet down the gangway,
with a movement of simulated awkwardness,
she let the camera fall into the water between
the vessel and the pier. Then she walked
down the gangway, and was quickly lost to
sight in the crowd. She had passed out of
my life forever.
For a moment, I stood motionless. Then,
to Ganimard's great astonishment, I mut-
tered:


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“What a pity that I am not an honest
man!”
Such was the story of his arrest as nar-
rated to me by Arsène Lupin himself. The
various incidents, which I shall record in
writing at a later day, have established be-
tween us certain ties.... shall I say of friend-
ship? Yes, I venture to believe that Arsène
Lupin honors me with his friendship, and
that it is through friendship that he occasion-
ally calls on me, and brings, into the silence
of my library, his youthful exuberance of
spirits, the contagion of his enthusiasm, and
the mirth of a man for whom destiny has
naught but favors and smiles.
His portrait? How can I describe him?
I have seen him twenty times and each time
he was a different person; even he himself
said to me on one occasion: “I no longer
know who I am. I cannot recognize myself in
the mirror.” Certainly, he was a great actor,
and possessed a marvelous faculty for dis-
guising himself. Without the slightest effort,
he could adopt the voice, gestures and man-
nerisms of another person.
“Why,” said he, "why should I retain a
definite form and feature? Why not avoid
the danger of a personality that is ever the


28
ARSÈNE LUPIN
same? My actions will serve to identify me.”
Then he added, with a touch of pride:
“So much the better if no one can ever say
with absolute certainty: There is Arsène
Lupin! The essential point is that the public
may be able to refer to my work and say,
without fear of mistake: Arsène Lupin did
that!


CHAPTER II
ARSÈNE LUPIN IN PRISON
HERE is no tourist worthy of the
The name who does not know the banks of
LGS the Seine, and has not noticed, in
passing, the little feudal castle of the Mala-
quis, built upon a rock in the centre of the
river. An arched bridge connects it with the
shore. All around it, the calm waters of the
great river play peacefully amongst the
reeds, and the wagtails flutter over the moist
crests of the stones.
The history of the Malaquis castle is
stormy like its name, harsh like its outlines.
It has passed through a long series of com-
bats, sieges, assaults, rapines and massacres.
A recital of the crimes that have been com-
mitted there would cause the stoutest heart
to tremble. There are many mysterious leg-
ends connected with the castle, and they tell
us of a famous subterranean tunnel that for-
merly led to the abbey of Jumieges and to
the manor of Agnes Sorel, mistress of
Charles VII.


30
E LUPIN
In that ancient habitation of heroes and
brigands, the Baron Nathan Cahorn now
lived; or Baron Satan as he was formerly
called on the Bourse, where he had acquired
a fortune with incredible rapidity. The lords
of Malaquis, absolutely ruined, had been
obliged to sell the ancient castle at a great
sacrifice. It contained an admirable collec-
tion of furniture, pictures, wood carvings
and faience. The Baron lived there alone,
attended by three old servants. No one ever
enters the place. No one had ever beheld the
three Rubens that he possessed, his two Wat-
teau, his Jean Goujon pulpit, and the many
other treasures that he had acquired by a
vast expenditure of money at public sales.
Baron Satan lived in constant fear, not for
himself, but for the treasures that he had ac-
cumulated with such an earnest devotion and
with so much perspicacity that the shrewdest
merchant could not say that the Baron had
ever erred in his taste or judgment. He loved
them-his bibelots. He loved them intensely,
like a miser; jealously, like a lover. Every
day, at sunset, the iron gates at either end of
the bridge and at the entrance to the court of
honor are closed and barred. At the least


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
_
_
touch on these gates, electric bells will ring
throughout the castle.
One Thursday in September, a letter-car-
rier presented himself at the gate at the head
of the bridge, and, as usual, it was the Baron
himself who partially opened the heavy
portal. He scrutinized the man as minutely
as if he were a stranger, although the honest
face and twinkling eyes of the postman had
been familiar to the Baron for many years.
The man laughed, as he said:
“It is only I, Monsieur le Baron. It is not
another man wearing my cap and blouse.”
“One can never tell," muttered the Baron.
The man handed him a number of news-
papers, and then said:
“And now, Monsieur le Baron, here is
something new."
“Something new?"
“Yes, a letter. A registered letter."
Living as a recluse, without friends or
business relations, the baron never received
any letters, and the one now presented to him
immediately aroused within him a feeling of
suspicion and distrust. It was like an evil
omen. Who was this mysterious correspond-
ent that dared to disturb the tranquillity of
his retreat?


22
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“You must sign for it, Monsieur le Baron."
He signed; then took the letter, waited
until the postman had disappeared beyond
the bend in the road, and, after walking ner-
vously to and fro for a few minutes, he
leaned against the parapet of the bridge and
opened the envelope. It contained a sheet of
paper, bearing this heading: Prison de la
Santé, Paris. He looked at the signature:
Arsène Lupin. Then he read:
"Monsieur le Baron:
“There is, in the gallery in your castle, a
picture of Philippe de Champaigne, of ex-
quisite finish, which pleases me beyond
measure. Your Rubens are also to my taste,
as well as your smallest Watteau. In the
salon to the right, I have noticed the Louis
XIII cadence-table, the tapestries of Beau-
vais, the Empire gueridon signed ‘Jacob,'
and the Renaissance chest. In the salon to
the left, all the cabinet full of jewels and
miniatures.
“For the present, I will content myself
with those articles that can be conveniently
removed. I will therefore ask you to pack
them carefully and ship them to me, charges
prepaid, to the station at Batignolles, within
eight days, otherwise I shall be obliged to


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
remove them myself during the night of 27
September; but, under those circumstances,
I shall not content myself with the articles
above mentioned.
“Accept my apologies for any inconve-
nience I may cause you, and believe me to be
your humble servant,
“Arsène Lupin.”
“P. S.- Please do not send the largest
Watteau. Although you paid thirty thou-
sand francs for it, it is only a copy, the orig-
inal having been burned, under the Directoire
by Barras, during a night of debauchery.
Consult the memoirs of Garat.
"I do not care for the Louis XV châtelaine,
as I doubt its authenticity.”
That letter completely upset the baron.
Had it borne any other signature, he would
have been greatly alarmed—but signed by
Arsène Lupin!
• As an habitual reader of the newspapers,
he was versed in the history of recent crimes,
and was therefore well acquainted with the
exploits of the mysterious burglar. Of course,
he knew that Lupin had been arrested in
America by his enemy Ganimard and was at
present incarcerated in the Prison de la
Santé. But he knew also that any miracle


ARSÈNE LUPIN
might be expected from Arsène Lupin. More-
over, that exact knowledge of the castle, the
location of the pictures and furniture, gave
the affair an alarming aspect. How could he
have acquired that information concerning
things that no one had ever seen?
The baron raised his eyes and contem-
plated the stern outlines of the castle, its
steep rocky pedestal, the depth of the sur-
rounding water, and shrugged his shoulders.
Certainly, there was no danger. No one in
the world could force an entrance to the sana
tuary that contained his priceless treasures.
No one, perhaps, but Arsène Lupin! For
him, gates, walls and drawbridges did not
exist. What use were the most formidable
obstacles or the most careful precautions, if
Arsène Lupin had decided to effect an en-
trance?
That evening, he wrote to the Procurer of
the Republique at Rouen. He enclosed the
threatening letter and solicited aia and pro-
tection.
The reply came at once to the effect that
Arsène Lupin was in custody in the Prison
de la Santé, under close surveillance, with no
opportunity to write such a letter, which was,
no doubt, the work of some impostor. But,


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
35
as an act of precaution, the Procurer had
submitted the letter to an expert in handwrit-
ing, who declared that, in spite of certain re-
semblances, the writing was not that of the
prisoner.
But the words “in spite of certain re-
semblances” caught the attention of the
baron; in them, he read the possibility of a
doubt which appeared to him quite sufficient
to warrant the intervention of the law. His
fears increased. He read Lupin's letter over
and over again. “I shall be obliged to re-
move them myself.” And then there was the
fixed date: the night of 27 September.
To confide in his servants was a proceed-
ing repugnant to his nature; but now, for the
first time in many years, he experienced the
necessity of seeking counsel with some one.
Abandoned by the legal official of his own dis-
trict, and feeling unable to defend himself
with his own resources, he was on the point
of going to Paris to engage the services of a
detective.
Two days passed; on the third day, he was
filled with hope and joy as he read the follow-
ing item in the Réveil de Caudebec, a news-
paper published in a neighboring town:
“We have the pleasure of entertaining in


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“Exactly. He is a gruff fellow, with little
to say."
Five minutes later, the baron approached
the celebrated Ganimard, introduced himself,
and sought to commence a conversation, but
that was a failure. Then he broached the
real object of his interview, and briefly stated
his case. The other listened, motionless, with
his attention riveted on his fishing-rod. When
the baron had finished his story, the fisher-
man turned, with an air of profound pity,
and said:
“Monsieur, it is not customary for thieves
to warn people they are about to rob. Arsène
Lupin, especially, would not commit such a
folly.”
"But- "
“Monsieur, if I had the least doubt, be-
lieve me, the pleasure of again capturing Ar-
sène Lupin would place me at your disposal.
But, unfortunately, that young man is al-
ready under lock and key."
“He may have escaped.”
“No one ever escaped from the Santé.”
“But, he- "
“He, no more than any other."
“Yet- "
"Well, if he escapes, so much the better.


38
ARSÈNE LUPIN
I will catch him again. Meanwhile, you go
home and sleep soundly. That will do for
the present. You frighten the fish.”
The conversation was ended. The baron
returned to the castle, reassured to some ex-
tent by Ganimard's indifference. He exam-
ined the bolts, watched the servants, and,
during the next forty-eight hours, he became
almost persuaded that his fears were ground-
less. Certainly, as Ganimard had said,
thieves do not warn people they are about to
rob.
The fateful day was close at hand. It was
now the twenty-sixth of September and noth-
ing had happened. But at three o'clock the
bell rang. A boy brought this telegram:
“No goods at Batignolles station. Prepare
everything for to-morrow night. Arsène.”
This telegram threw the baron into such a
state of excitement that he even considered
the advisability of yielding to Lupin's de-
mands.
However, he hastened to Caudebec. Gani-
mard was fishing at the same place, seated
on a campstool. Without a word, he handed
him the telegram.
“Well, what of it?” said the detective.
“What of it? But it is to-morrow."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“What is to-morrow?”
“The robbery! The pillage of my collec-
tions!”
Ganimard laid down his fishing-rod, turned
to the baron, and exclaimed, in a tone of im-
patience:
“Ah! Do you think I am going to bother
myself about such a silly story as that!”
“How much do you ask to pass to-morrow
night in the castle?”
“Not a sou. Now, leave me alone."
“Name your own price. I am rich and can
pay it."
This offer disconcerted Ganimard, who re-
plied, calmly:
“I am here on a vacation. I have no right
to undertake such work."
“No one will know. I promise to keep it
secret.”
“Oh! nothing will happen."
“Come! three thousand francs. Will that
be enough?”
The detective, after a moment's reflection,
said:
“Very well. But I must warn you that you
are throwing your money out of the win-
dow.”
“I do not care."


40
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“In that case....but, after all, what do we
know about this devil Lupin! He may have
quite a numerous band of robbers with him.
Are you sure of your servants?”.
“My faith- "
“Better not count on them. I will tele-
graph for two of my men to help me. And
now, go! It is better for us not to be seen
together. To-morrow evening about nine
o'clock.”
The following day—the date fixed by Ar-
sène Lupin-Baron Cahorn arranged all his
panoply of war, furbished his weapons, and,
like a sentinel, paced to and fro in front of the
castle. He saw nothing, heard nothing. At
half-past eight o'clock in the evening, he dis-
missed his servants. They occupied rooms in
a wing of the building, in a retired spot, well
removed from the main portion of the castle.
Shortly thereafter, the baron heard the sound
of approaching footsteps. It was Ganimard
and his two assistants-great, powerful fel-
lows with immense hands, and necks like
bulls. After asking a few questions relating
to the location of the various entrances and
rooms, Ganimard carefully closed and barri-
caded all the doors and windows through


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
which one could gain access to the threatened
rooms. He inspected the walls, raised the
tapestries, and finally installed his assistants
in the central gallery which was located be-
tween the two salons.
“No nonsense! We are not here to sleep.
At the slightest sound, open the windows of
the court and call me. Pay attention also to
the water-side. Ten metres of perpendicular
rock is no obstacle to those devils."
Ganimard locked his assistants in the gal-
lery, carried away the keys, and said to the
baron:
“And now, to our post.”
He had chosen for himself a small room
located in the thick outer wall, between the
two principal doors, and which, in former
years, had been the watchman's quarters. A
peep-hole opened upon the bridge; another
on the court. In one corner, there was an
opening to a tunnel.
“I believe you told me, Monsieur le Baron,
that this tunnel is the only subterranean en-
trance to the castle and that it has been
closed up from time immemorial?”
“Yes."
“Then, unless there is some other en.


ARSÈNE LUPIN
trance, known only to Arsène Lupin, we are
quite safe.”
He placed three chairs together, stretched
himself upon them, lighted his pipe and
sighed:
“Really, Monsieur le Baron, I feel
ashamed to accept your money for such a
sinecure as this. I will tell the story to my
friend Lupin. He will enjoy it immensely."
The baron did not laugh. He was anxiously
listening, but heard nothing save the beating
of his own heart. From time to time, he
leaned over the tunnel and cast a fearful eye
into its depths. He heard the clock strike
eleven, twelve, one.
Suddenly, he seized Ganimard's arm. The
latter leaped up, awakened from his sleep.
"Do you hear?” asked the baron, in a whis-
per.
66Yes."
“What is it?''
“I was snoring, I suppose.”
"No, no, listen."
“Ah! yes, it is the horn of an automobile."
"Well?"
"Well! it is very improbable that Lupin
would use an automobile like a battering-ram
to demolish your castle. Come, Monsieur le


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
Baron, return to your post. I am going to
sleep. Good-night."
That was the only alarm. Ganimard re-
sumed his interrupted slumbers, and the
baron heard nothing except the regular snor-
ing of his companion. At break of day, they
left the room. The castle was enveloped in a
profound calm; it was a peaceful dawn on
the bosom of a tranquil river. They mounted
the stairs, Cahorn radiant with joy, Gani-
mard calm as usual. They heard no sound;
they saw nothing to arouse suspicion.
“What did I tell you, Monsieur le Baron?
Really, I should not have accepted your offer.
I am ashamed."
He unlocked the door and entered the gal-
lery. Upon two chairs, with drooping heads
and pendent arms, the detective's two assist-
ants were asleep.
"Tonnerre de nom d'un chien!” exclaimed
Ganimard. At the same moment, the baron
cried out:
“The pictures! The credence!"
He stammered, choked, with arms out-
stretched toward the empty places, toward
the denuded walls where naught remained
but the useless nails and cords. The Wat-
teau, disappeared! The Rubens, carried


44
ARSÈNE LUPIN
away! The tapestries taken down! The
cabinets, despoiled of their jewels!
“And my Louis XVI candelabra! And the
Regent chandelier!. ... And my twelfth-cen-
tury Virgin!”
He ran from one spot to another in wildest
despair. He recalled the purchase price of
each article, added up the figures, counted
his losses, pell-mell, in confused words and
unfinished phrases. He stamped with rage;
he groaned with grief. He acted like a ruined
man whose only hope is suicide.
If anything could have consoled him, it
would have been the stupefaction displayed
by Ganimard. The famous detective did not
move. He appeared to be petrified; he exam-
ined the room in a listless manner. The win-
dows?....closed. The locks on the doors ?
... intact. Not a break in the ceiling; not a
hole in the floor. Everything was in per-
fect order. The theft had been carried out
methodically, according to a logical and in-
exorable plan.
“Arsène Lupin.... Arsène Lupin," he
muttered.
Suddenly, as if moved by anger, he rushed
upon his two assistants and shook them vio-
lently. They did not awaken.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
“The devil!” he cried. “Can it be pos-
sible?”
He leaned over them and, in turn, exam-
ined them closely. They were asleep; but
their repose was unnatural.
“They have been drugged,” he said to the
baron.
“By whom?"
“By him, of course, or his men under his
direction. The work bears his stamp."
“In that case, I am lost—nothing can be
done."
“Nothing," assented Ganimard.
“It is dreadful; it is monstrous."
“Lodge a complaint."
“What good will that do?”
“Oh; it is well to try it. The law has some
resources.”
“The law! Bah! it is useless. You repre-
sent the law, and, at this moment, when you
should be looking for a clue and trying to
discover something, you do not even stir.”
“Discover something with Arsène Lupin!
Why, my dear monsieur, Arsène Lupin never
leaves any clue behind him. He leaves noth-
ing to chance. Sometimes I think he put him-
self in my way and simply allowed me to
arrest him in America."


46
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Then, I must renounce my pictures! He
has taken the gems of my collection. I would
give a fortune to recover them. If there is
no other way, let him name his own price."
Ganimard regarded the baron attentively,
as he said:
“Now, that is sensible. Will you stick to
it?"
“Yes, yes. But why?"
“An idea that I have.”
“What is it?'.
“We will discuss it later—if the official ex-
amination does not succeed. But, not one
word about me, if you wish my assistance."
He added, between his teeth:
“It is true I have nothing to boast of in
this affair."
The two assistants were gradually regain-
ing consciousness with the bewildered air of
people who come out of an hypnotic sleep.
They opened their eyes and looked about
them in astonishment. Ganimard questioned
them; they remembered nothing.
“But you must have seen some one?"
"No."
"Can't you remember?”
“No, no.”
"Did you drink anything?"


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
They considered a moment, and then one
of them replied:
“Yes, I drank a little water."
“Out of that carafe?”
"Yes."
“So did I,” declared the other.
Ganimard smelled and tasted it. It had no
particular taste and no odor.
“Come,” he said, "we are wasting time
here. One can't decide an Arsène Lupin
problem in five minutes. But, morbleu! I
swear I will catch him again.”
The same day, a charge of burglary was
duly preferred by Baron Cahorn against Ar-
sène Lupin, a prisoner in the Prison de la
Santé.
*
*
*
The baron afterwards regretted making
the charge against Lupin when he saw his
castle delivered over to the gendarmes, the
procureur, the judge d'instruction, the news-
paper reporters and photographers, and a
throng of idle curiosity-seekers.
The affair soon became a topic of general
discussion, and the name of Arsène Lupin
excited the public imagination to such an ex-
tent that the newspapers filled their columns
with the most fantastic stories of his exploits


ARSÈNE LUPIN
which found ready credence amongst their
readers.
But the letter of Arsène Lupin that was
published in the Echo de France (no one ever
knew how the newspaper obtained it), that
letter in which Baron Cahorn was impudently
warned of the coming theft, caused consider-
able excitement. The most fabulous theories
were advanced. Some recalled the existence
of the famous subterranean tunnels, and that
was the line of research pursued by the offi-
cers of the law, who searched the house from
top to bottom, questioned every stone, stud-
ied the wainscoting and the chimneys, the
window-frames and the girders in the ceil-
ings. By the light of torches, they examined
the immense cellars where the lords of
Malaquis were wont to store their munitions
and provisions. They sounded the rocky
foundation to its very centre. But it was all
in vain. They discovered no trace of a sub-
terranean tunnel. No secret passage existed.
But the eager public declared that the pic-
tures and furniture could not vanish like so
many ghosts. They are substantial, material
things and require doors and windows for
their exits and their entrances, and so do the
people that remove them. Who were those


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
people? How did they gain access to the cas-
tle? And how did they leave it?
The police officers of Rouen, convinced of
their own impotence, solicited the assistance
of the Parisian detective force. Mon. Dudouis,
chief of the Sûreté, sent the best sleuths of
the iron brigade. He himself spent forty-
eight hours at the castle, but met with no suc-
cess. Then he sent for Ganimard, whose past
services had proved so useful when all else
failed.
Ganimard listened, in silence, to the in-
structions of his superior; then, shaking his
head, he said:
"In my opinion, it is useless to ransack the
castle. The solution of the problem lies else-
where."
“Where, then?”
“With Arsène Lupin.”
“With Arsène Lupin! To support that
theory, we must admit his intervention."
“I do admit it. In fact, I consider it quite
certain."
“Come, Ganimard, that is absurd. Arsène
Lupin is in prison.”
"I grant you that Arsène Lupin is in
prison, closely guarded; but he must have
fetters on his feet, manacles on his wrists,


ARSÈNE LUPIN
and a gag in his mouth before I change my
opinion."
“Why so obstinate, Ganimard ?”
“Because Arsène Lupin is the only man ir
France of sufficient calibre to invent and
carry out a scheme of that magnitude."
"Mere words, Ganimard."
“But true ones. Look! What are they
doing? Searching for subterranean passages,
stones swinging on pivots, and other non-
sense of that kind. But Lupin doesn't em-
ploy such old-fashioned methods. He is a
modern cracksman, right up to date.”
"And how would you proceed ?"
“I should ask your permission to spend
an hour with him."
"In his cell?”
“Yes. During the return trip from Amer-
ica we became very friendly, and I venture
to say that if he can give me any information
without compromising himself he will not
hesitate to save me from incurring useless
trouble."
It was shortly after noon when Ganimard
entered the cell of Arsène Lupin. The latter,
who was lying on his bed, raised his head and
uttered a cry of apparent joy.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
5
“Ah! This is a real surprise. My dear
Ganimard, here!”
“Ganimard himself.”
“In my chosen retreat, I have felt a desire
for many things, but my fondest wish was to
receive you here."
“Very kind of you, I am sure.”
“Not at all. You know I hold you in the
highest regard.”
“I am proud of it."
“I have always said: Ganimard is our best
detective. He is almost,—you see how can-
did I am!—he is almost as clever as Sherlock
Holmes. But I am sorry that I cannot offer
you anything better than this hard stool.
And no refreshments! Not even a glass of
beer! Of course, you will excuse me, as I
am here only temporarily."
Ganimard smiled, and accepted the prof-
fered seat. Then the prisoner continued :
"Mon Dieu, how pleased I am to see the
face of an honest man. I am so tired of those
devils of spies who come here ten times a day
to ransack my pockets and my cell to satisfy
themselves that I am not preparing to es-
cape. The government is very solicitous on
my account.”
“It is quite right."


52
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Why so? I should be quite contented if
they would allow me to live in my own quiet
way."
“On other people's money.”
“Quite so. That would be so simple. But
here, I am joking, and you are, no doubt, in
a hurry. So let us come to business, Gani-
mard. To what do I owe the honor of this
visit?”
“The Cahorn affair,” declared Ganimard,
frankly.
“Ah! Wait, one moment. You see I have
had so many affairs! First, let me fix in my
mind the circumstances of this particular
case. ... Ah! yes, now I have it. The Cahorn
affair, Malaquis castle, Seine-Inférieure....
Two Rubens, a Watteau, and a few trifling
articles.”
“Trifling !"
“Oh! ma foi, all that is of slight impori-
ance. But it suffices to know that the affair
interests you. How can I serve you, Gani-
mard?”
“Must I explain to you what steps the au-
thorities have taken in the matter?”
“Not at all. I have read the newspapers
and I will frankly state that you have made
very little progress.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
_
“And that is the reason I have come to see
you."
“I am entirely at your service.”
“In the first place, the Cahorn affair was
managed by you?”
“From A to Z.”
“The letter of warning? the telegram?”
"All mine. I ought to have the receipts
somewhere.”
Arsène opened the drawer of a small table
of plain white wood which, with the bed and
stool, constituted all the furniture in his cell,
and took therefrom two scraps of paper
which he handed to Ganimard.
“Ah!” exclaimed the detective, in sur-
prise, “I thought you were closely guarded
and searched, and I find that you read the
newspapers and collect postal receipts."
“Bah! these people are so stupid! They
open the lining of my vest, they examine the
soles of my shoes, they sound the walls of
my cell, but they never imagine that Arsène
Lupin would be foolish enough to choose such
a simple hiding-place.”
Ganimard laughed, as he said:
“What a droll fellow you are! Really,
you bewilder me. But, come now, tell me
about the Cahorn affair."


54
ARSÈNE LUPIN
"Oh! oh! not quite so fast! You would
rob me of all my secrets; expose all my little
tricks. That is a very serious matter."
“Was I wrong to count on your com-
plaisance?”
"No, Ganimard, and since you insist- "
Arsène Lupin paced his cell two or three
times, then, stopping before Ganimard, he
asked:
“What do you think of my letter to the
baron?"
“I think you were amusing yourself by
playing to the gallery.".
“Ah! playing to the gallery! Come, Gani-
mard, I thought you knew me better. Do I,
Arsène Lupin, ever waste my time on such
puerilities? Would I have written that let-
ter if I could have robbed the baron without
writing to him? I want you to understand
that that letter was indispensable; it was the
motor that set the whole machine in motion.
Now, let us discuss together a scheme for the
robbery of the Malaquis castle. Are you will-
ing?"
“Yes, proceed."
“Well, let us suppose a castle carefully
closed and barricaded like that of the Baron
Cahorn. Am I to abandon my scheme and


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
renounce the treasures that I covet, upon the
pretext that the castle which holds them is
inaccessible?”
“Evidently not."
“Should I make an assault upon the cas-
tle at the head of a band of adventurers as
they did in ancient times?”.
“That would be foolish.”
“Can I gain admittance by stealth or cun-
ning?”
“Impossible.”
“Then there is only one way open to me.
I must have the owner of the castle invite
me to it.”
“That is surely an original method.”
“And how easy! Let us suppose that one
day the owner receives a letter warning him
that a notorious burglar known as Arsène
Lupin is plotting to rob him. What will he
do?"
“Send a letter to the Procureur."
“Who will laugh at him, because the said
'Arsène Lupin is actually in prison. Then, in
his anxiety and fear, the simple man will
ask the assistance of the first-comer, will he
not?”
“Very likely."
"And if he happens to read in a country


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
money for his services. My friend accepts,
summons two members of our band, who,
during the night, whilst Cahorn is under the
watchful eye of his protector, removes cer-
tain articles by way of the window and lowers
them with ropes into a nice little launch char-
tered for the occasion. Simple, isn't it?”
“Marvelous! Marvelous !” exclaimed
Ganimard. “The boldness of the scheme and
the ingenuity of all its details are beyond
criticism. But who is the detective whose
name and fame served as a magnet to attract
the baron and draw him into your net?”.
“There is only one name could do it-only
one.'
“And that is?”
“Arsène Lupin's personal enemy—the
most illustrious Ganimard.”
"17"
“Yourself, Ganimard. And, really, it is
very funny. If you go there, and the baron
decides to talk, you will find that it will be
your duty to arrest yourself, just as you ar-
rested me in America. Hein! the revenge is
really amusing: I cause Ganimard to arrest
Ganimard."
Arsène Lupin laughed heartily. The de-
tective, greatly vexed, bit his lips; to him


58
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the joke was quite devoid of humor. The
arrival of a prison-guard gave Ganimard an
opportunity to recover himself. The man
brought Arsène Lupin's luncheon, furnished
by a neighboring restaurant. After deposit-
ing the tray upon the table, the guard re-
tired. Lupin broke his bread, ate a few
morsels, and continued:
“But, rest easy, my dear Ganimard, you
will not go to Malaquis. I can tell you some-
thing that will astonish you: the Cahorn af-
fair is on the point of being settled.”
“Excuse me; I have just seen the Chief of
the Sureté."
“What of that? Does Mon. Dudouis know
my business better than I do myself? You
will learn that Ganimard-excuse me—that
the pseudo-Ganimard still remains on very
good terms with the baron. The latter has
authorized him to negotiate a very delicate
transaction with me, and, at the present mo-
ment, in consideration of a certain sum, it is
probable that the baron has recovered pos-
session of his pictures and other treasures.
And on their return, he will withdraw his
complaint. Thus, there is no longer any
theft, and the law must abandon the case.”


ARSÈNE LUPIN
meet. If you only knew my budget.... living
in the city comes very high.”
Ganimard arose. His ill humor had disap.
peared. He reflected for a moment, glancing
over the whole affair in an effort to discover
a weak point; then, in a tone and manner
that betrayed his admiration of the prisoner,
he said:
“Fortunately, we do not have a dozen such
as you to deal with; if we did, we would bave
to close up shop.”
Arsène Lupin assumed a modest air, as
he replied:
“Bah! a person must have some diversion
to occupy his leisure hours, especially when
he is in prison.”.
“What!” exclaimed Ganimard, "your
trial, your defense, the examination-isn't
that sufficient to occupy your mind ?”
“No, because I have decided not to be pres-
ent at my trial.”
“Oh! oh!”
Arsène Lupin repeated, positively:
“I shall not be present at my trial.”
“Really!”
“Ah! my dear monsieur, do you suppose
I am going to rot upon the wet straw? You
insult me. Arsène Lupin remains in prison


ARSÈNE LUPIN
this spot a sovereign remedy for my tired
nerves."
“Arsène Lupin, you are not a bad fellow,
after all.”
“Thank you,' said Lupin. “Ganimard,
this is Friday. On Wednesday next, at four
o'clock in the afternoon, I will smoke my
cigar at your house in the rue Pergolese.”
“Arsène Lupin, I will expect you."
They shook hands like two old friends who
valued each other at their true worth; then
the detective stepped to the door.
“Ganimard!”
“What is it?" asked Ganimard, as he
turned back.
“You have forgotten your watch."
“My watch?”
“Yes, it strayed into my pocket."
He returned the watch, excusing himself:
“Pardon me....a bad habit. Because they
have taken mine is no reason why I should
take yours. Besides, I have a chronometer
here that satisfies me fairly well.”
He took from the drawer a large gold
watch and heavy chain.
“From whose pocket did that come?”
asked Ganimard.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
Arsène Lupin gave a hasty glance at the
initials engraved on the watch.
“J. B..... Who the devil can that be?....
Ah! yes, I remember. Jules Bouvier, the
judge who conducted my examination. A
charming fellow.....





CHAPTER III
THE ESCAPE OF ARSÈNE LUPIN
RSENE LUPIN had just finished his
repast and taken from his pocket an
excellent cigar, with a gold band,
which he was examining with unusual care,
when the door of his cell was opened. He
had barely time to throw the cigar into the
drawer and move away from the table. The
guard entered. It was the hour fer exercise.
"I was waiting for you, my dear boy,”
exclaimed Lupin, in his accustomed good
humor.
They went out together. As soon as they
had disappeared at a turn in the corridor,
two men entered the cell and commenced a
minute examination of it. One was Inspector
Dieuzy; the other was Inspector Folenfant.
They wished to verify their suspicion that
Arsène Lupin was in communication with his
accomplices outside of the prison. On the
preceding evening, the Grand Journal had
published these lines addressed to its court
reporter:


66
ARSÈNE LUPIN
"Monsieur:
“In a recent article you referred to me in
most unjustifiable terms. Some days before
the opening of my trial I will call you to ac-
count.
ARSÈNE LUPIN."
The handwriting was certainly that of Ar-
sène Lupin. Consequently, he sent letters;
and, no doubt, received letters. It was cer-
tain that he was preparing for that escape
thus arrogantly announced by him.
The situation had become intolerable. Act-
ing in conjunction with the examining judge,
the chief of the Sûreté, Mon. Dudouis, had
visited the prison and instructed the gaoler
in regard to the precautions necessary to in-
sure Lupin's safety. At the same time, he
sent the two men to examine the prisoner's
cell. They raised every stone, ransacked the
bed, did everything customary in such a case,
but they discovered nothing, and were about
to abandon their investigation when the
guard entered hastily and said:
"The drawer....look in the table-drawer.
When I entered just now he was closing it."
They opened the drawer, and Dieuzy ex-
claimed:
“Ah! we have him this time."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
67
Folenfant stopped him.
“Wait a moment. The chief will want to
make an inventory."
“This is a very choice cigar."
“Leave it there, and notify the chief."
Two minutes later Mon. Dudouis examined
the contents of the drawer. First he discov-
ered a bundle of newspaper clippings relat-
ing to Arsène Lupin taken from the Argus de
la Presse, then a tobacco-box, a pipe, some
paper called "onion-peel,” and two books.
He read the titles of the books. One was an
English edition of Carlyle's “Hero-wor-
ship”; the other was a charming elzevir, in
modern binding, the “Manual of Epictetus,"
a German translation published at Leyden in
1634. On examining the books, he found that
all the pages were underlined and annotated.
Were they prepared as a code for correspond-
ence, or did they simply express the studious
character of the reader? Then he examined
the tobacco-box and the pipe. Finally, he
took up the famous cigar with its gold band.
“Fichtre!” he exclaimed. “Our friend
smokes a good cigar. It's a Henry Clay."
With the mechanical action of an habitual
smoker, he placed the cigar close to his ear
and squeezed it to make it crack. Immedi-


ARSÈNE LUPIN
ately he uttered a cry of surprise. The cigar
had yielded under the pressure of his fingers.
He examined it more closely, and quickly de-
tected something white between the leaves of
tobacco. Delicately, with the aid of a pin, he
withdrew a roll of very thin paper, scarcely
larger than a toothpick. It was a letter. He
unrolled it, and found these words, written in
a feminine handwriting:
“The basket has taken the place of the
others. Eight out of ten are ready. On
pressing the outer foot the plate goes down-
ward. From twelve to sixteen every day,
H-P will wait. But where? Reply at once.
Rest easy; your friend is watching over you.”
Mon. Dudouis reflected a moment, then
said:
“It is quite clear .... the basket .... the
eight compartments. ... From twelve to six-
teen means from twelve to four o'clock.”
“But this H-P, that will wait?"
“H-P must mean automobile. H-P, horse-
power, is the way they indicate the strength
of the motor. A twenty-four H-P is an auto-
mobile of twenty-four horsepower."
Then he rose, and asked:
“Had the prisoner finished his breakfast?"
"Yes."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
69
___
“And as he has not yet read the message,
which is proved by the condition of the cigar,
it is probable that he has just received it."
“How?"
“In his food. Concealed in his bread or
in a potato, perhaps.”
“Impossible. His food was allowed to be
brought in simply to trap him, but we have
never found anything in it.”
“We will look for Lupin's reply this even-
ing. Detain him outside for a few minutes.
I shall take this to the examining judge, and,
if he agrees with me, we will have the letter
photographed at once, and in an hour you
can replace the letter in the drawer in a cigar
similar to this. The prisoner must have no
cause for suspicion.”
It was not without a certain curiosity that
Mon. Dudouis returned to the prison in the
evening, accompanied by Inspector Dieuzy.
Three empty plates were sitting on the stove
in the corner.
“He has eaten?”
“Yes,” replied the guard.
"Dieuzy, please cut that macaroni into
very small pieces, and open that bread-roll
... Nothing?"
“No, chief.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
-
And, as a matter of fact, Arsène Lupin had
very little to say. For several months, Mon.
Jules Bouvier, the examining judge, had ex-
erted himself in vain. The investigation had
been reduced to a few uninteresting argu-
ments between the judge and the advocate,
Maître Danval, one of the leaders of the bar.
From time to time, through courtesy, Arsène
Lupin would speak. One day he said:
“Yes, monsieur, le judge, I quite agree with
you: the robbery of the Crédit Lyonnais, the
theft in the rue de Babylone, the issue of the
counterfeit bank-notes, the burglaries at the
various châteaux, Armesnil, Gouret, Imble-
vain, Groseillers, Malaquis, all my work, mon-
sieur, I did it all.”
“Then will you explain to me- "
“It is useless. I confess everything in a
lump, everything and even ten times more
that you know nothing about."
Wearied by his fruitless task, the judge
had suspended his examinations, but he re-
sumed them after the two intercepted mes-
sages were brought to his attention; and
regularly, at mid-day, Arsène Lupin was
taken from the prison to the Dépôt in the
prison-van with a certain number of other


-
-
72
ARSÈNE LUPIN
prisoners. They returned about three or
four o'clock.
Now, one afternoon, this return trip was
made under unusual conditions. The other
prisoners not having been examined, it was
decided to take back Arsène Lupin first, and
thus he found himself alone in the vehicle.
These prison-vans, vulgarly called "pa-
niers à salade”—or salad-baskets-are di-
vided lengthwise by a central corridor from
which open ten compartments, five on either
side. Each compartment is so arranged that
the occupant must assume and retain a sit-
ting posture, and, consequently, the five pris-
oners are seated one upon the other, and yet
separated one from the other by partitions.
A municipal guard, standing at one end,
watches over the corridor.
Arsène was placed in the third cell on the
right, and the heavy vehicle started. He care-
fully calculated when they left the quai de
l'Horloge, and when they passed the Palais
de Justice. Then, about the centre of the
bridge Saint Michel, with his outer foot, that
is to say, his right foot, he pressed upon the
metal plate that closed his cell. Immediately
something clicked, and the metal plate moved.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
He was able to ascertain that he was located
between the two wheels.
He waited, keeping a sharp look-out. The
vehicle was proceeding slowly along the
boulevard Saint Michel. At the corner of
Saint Germain it stopped. A truck horse had
fallen. The traffic having been interrupted, a
vast throng of fiacres and omnibuses had
gathered there. Arsène Lupin looked out.
Another prison-van had stopped close to the
one he occupied. He moved the plate still
farther, put his foot on one of the spokes of
the wheel and leaped to the ground. A coach-
man saw him, roared with laughter, then
tried to raise an outcry, but his voice was lost
in the noise of the traffic that had commenced
to move again. Moreover, Arsène Lupin was
already far away.
He had run for a few steps; but, once upon
the sidewalk, he turned and looked around;
he seemed to scent the wind like a person
who is uncertain which direction to take.
Then, having decided, he put his hands in his
pockets, and, with the careless air of an idle
stroller, he proceeded up the boulevard. It
was a warm, bright autumn day, and the
cafés were full. He took a seat on the ter-
race of one of them. He ordered a bock and


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
75
"Is this the prison de la Santé?”'
“Yes."
“I wish to regain my cell. The van left
me on the way, and I would not abuse "
“Now, young man, move along-quick!”
growled the sentinel.
"Pardon me, but I must pass through that
gate. And if you prevent Arsène Lupin from
entering the prison it will cost you dear, my
friend.”
“Arsène Lupin! What are you talking
about!”
“I am sorry I haven't a card with me,”
said Arsène, fumbling in his pockets.
The sentinel eyed him from head to foot, in
astonishment. Then, without a word, he rang
a bell. The iron gate was partly opened, and
Arsène stepped inside. Almost immediately
he encountered the keeper of the prison,
gesticulating and feigning a violent anger.
Arsène smiled and said: .
“Come, monsieur, don't play that game
with me. What! they take the precaution to
carry me alone in the van, prepare a nice
little obstruction, and imagine I am going to
take to my heels to rejoin my friends. Well,
and what about the twenty agents of the
Sûreté who accompanied us on foot, in fiacres


ARSÈNE LUPIN
and on bicycles? No, the arrangement did
not please me. I should not have got away
alive. Tell me, monsieur, did they count on
that?”
He shrugged his shoulders, and added :
“I beg of you, monsieur, not to worry
about me. When I wish to escape I shall not
require any assistance.”
On the second day thereafter, the Echo de
France, which had apparently become the of-
ficial reporter of the exploits of Arsène Lu-
pin, it was said that he was one of its princi-
pal shareholders—published a most complete
account of this attempted escape. The exact
wording of the messages exchanged between
the prisoner and his mysterious friend, the
means by which that correspondence was
conducted, the complicity of the police, the
promenade on the Boulevard Saint Michel,
the incident at the café Soufflot, everything
was disclosed. It was known that the search
of the restaurant and its waiters by Inspector
Dieuzy had been fruitless. And the public
also learned an extraordinary thing which
demonstrated the infinite variety of resources
that Lupin possessed: the prison-van, in
which he was being carried, was prepared for
the occasion and substituted by his accom-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
plices for one of the six vans which did serv.
ice at the prison.
The next escape of Arsène Lupin was not
doubted by anyone. He announced it him-
self, in categorical terms, in a reply to Mon.
Bouvier on the day following his attempted
escape. The judge having made a jest about
the affair, Arsène was annoyed, and, firmly
eyeing the judge, he said, emphatically:
“Listen to me, monsieur! I give you my
word of honor that this attempted fight was
simply preliminary to my general plan of es-
cape.”
“I do not understand,” said the judge.
“It is not necessary that you should under-
stand.”
And when the judge, in the course of that
examination which was reported at length in
the columns of the Echo de France, when the
judge sought to resume his investigation, Ar-
sène Lupin exclaimed, with an assumed air
of lassitude:
"Mon Dieu, Mon Dieu, what's the use! All
these questions are of no importance!!!
“What! No importance?” cried the judge.
“No; because I shall not be present at the
trial.”
“'You will not be present?”


ARSÈNE LUPIN
“No; I have fully decided on that, and
nothing will change my mind."
Such assurance combined with the inexpli-
cable indiscretions that Arsène committed
every day served to annoy and mystify the
officers of the law. There were secrets known
only to Arsène Lupin; secrets that he alone
could divulge. But for what purpose did he
reveal them? And how?
Arsène Lupin was changed to another cell.
The judge closed his preliminary investiga-
tion. No further proceedings were taken in
his case for a period of two months, during
which time Arsène was seen almost constantly
lying on his bed with his face turned toward
the wall. The changing of his cell seemed to
discourage him. He refused to see his advo-
cate. He exchanged only a few necessary
words with his keepers.
During the fortnight preceding his trial,
he resumed his vigorous life. He complained
of want of air. Consequently, early every
morning he was allowed to exercise in the
courtyard, guarded by two men.
Public curiosity had not died out; every
day it expected to be regaled with news of
his escape; and, it is true, he had gained a
considerable amount of public sympathy by.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
reason of his verve, his gayety, his diversity,
his inventive genius and the mystery of his
life. Arsène Lupin must escape. It was his
inevitable fate. The public expected it, and
was surprised that the event had been de-
layed so long. Every morning the Préfet of
Police asked his secretary:
“Well, has he escaped yet?”
“No, Monsieur le Préfet.”.
“To-morrow, probably."
And, on the day before the trial, a gentle-
man called at the office of the Grand Journal,
asked to see the court reporter, threw his
card in the reporter's face, and walked rap-
idly away. These words were written on the
card: “Arsène Lupin always keeps his prom-
ises."
It was under these conditions that the trial
commenced. An enormous crowd gathered at
the court. Everybody wished to see the fa-
mous Arsène Lupin. They had a gleeful an-
ticipation that the prisoner would play some
audacious pranks upon the judge. Advocates
and magistrates, reporters and men of the
world, actresses and society women were
crowded together on the benches provided
for the public.


80
ARSÈNE LUPIN
It was a dark, sombre day, with a steady
downpour of rain. Only a dim light per-
vaded the. courtroom, and the spectators
caught a very indistinct view of the prisoner
when the guards brought him in. But his
heavy, shambling walk, the manner in which
he dropped into his seat, and his passive,
stupid appearance were not at all prepossess-
ing. Several times his advocate-one of
Mon. Danval's assistants—spoke to him, but
he simply shook his head and said nothing.
The clerk read the indictment, then the
judge spoke:
“Prisoner at the bar, stand up. Your
name, age, and occupation?”
Not receiving any reply, the judge re-
peated:
“Your name? I ask you your name?”
A thick, slow voice muttered:
“Baudru, Désiré.”
A murmur of surprise pervaded the court-
room. But the judge proceeded:
“Baudru, Désiré? Ah! a new alias! Well,
as you have already assumed a dozen differ-
ent names and this one is, no doubt, as imag-
inary as the others, we will adhere to the
name of Arsène Lupin, by which you are more
generally known.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
The judge referred to his notes, and con-
tinued:
“For, despite the most diligent search,
your past history remains unknown. Your
case is unique in the annals of crime. We
know not whom you are, whence you came,
your birth and breeding—all is a mystery to
us. Three years ago you appeared in our
midst as Arsène Lupin, presenting to us a
strange combination of intelligence and per-
version, immorality and generosity. Our
knowledge of your life prior to that date is
vague and problematical. It may be that the
man called Rostat who, eight years ago,
worked with Dickson, the prestidigitator, was
none other than Arsène Lupin. It is prob-
able that the Russian student who, six years
ago, attended the laboratory of Doctor Altier
at the Saint Louis Hospital, and who often
astonished the doctor by the ingenuity of his
hypotheses on subjects of bacteriology and
the boldness of his experiments in diseases of
the skin, was none other than Arsène Lupin.
It is probable, also, that Arsène Lupin was
the professor who introduced the Japanese
art of jiu-jitsu to the Parisian public. We
have some reason to believe that Arsène
Lupin was the bicyclist who won the Grand


82
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Prix de l'Exposition, received his ten thou-
sand francs, and was never heard of again.
Arsène Lupin may have been, also, the per-
son who saved so many lives through the lit-
tle dormer-window at the Charity Bazaar;
and, at the same time, picked their pockets."
The judge paused for a moment, then con-
tinued:
“Such is that epoch which seems to have
been utilized by you in a thorough prepara-
tion for the warfare you have since waged
against society; a methodical apprenticeship
in which you developed your strength, energy
and skill to the highest point possible. Do
you acknowledge the accuracy of these
facts?”
During this discourse the prisoner had
stood balancing himself, first on one foot,
then on the other, with shoulders stooped and
arms inert. Under the strongest light one
could observe his extreme thinness, his hol-
low cheeks, his projecting cheek-bones, his
earthen-colored face dotted with small red
spots and framed in a rough, straggling
beard. Prison life had caused him to age
and wither. He had lost the youthful face
and elegant figure that we had seen portrayed
so often in the newspapers.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
83
It appeared as if he had not heard the
question propounded by the judge. Twice it
was repeated to him. Then he raised his
eyes, seemed to reflect, then, making a des-
perate effort, he murmured:
“Baudru, Désiré.”
The judge smiled, as he said:
“I do not understand the theory of your
defense, Arsène Lupin. If you are seeking
to avoid responsibility for your crimes on
the ground of imbecility, such a line of de-
fense is open to you. But I shall proceed with
the trial and pay no heed to your vagaries.”
He then narrated at length the various
thefts, swindles and forgeries charged
against Lupin. Sometimes he questioned the
prisoner, but the latter simply grunted or re-
mained silent. The examination of wit-
nesses commenced. Some of the evidence
given was immaterial; other portions of it
seemed more important, but through all of it
there ran a vein of contradictions and incon-
sistencies. A wearisome obscurity enveloped
the proceedings, until Detective Ganimard
was called as a witness; then interest was re-
vived.
From the beginning the actions of the vet-
eran detective appeared strange and unac-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
turned to the witness-stand, and, in an al-
most solemn voice, he said:
“I declare, on oath, that the prisoner now
before me is not Arsène Lupin.”
A profound silence followed that statement.
The judge, nonplused for a moment, ex-
claimed:
“Ah! What do you mean? That is ab-
surd!”
The detective continued :
“At first sight there is a certain resem-
blance, but if you carefully consider the nose,
the mouth, the hair, the color of the skin, you
will see that it is not Arsène Lupin. And the
eyes! Did he ever have those alcoholic eyes!”
“Come, come, witness! What do you
mean? Do you pretend to say that we are
trying the wrong man?”
“In my opinion, yes. Arsène Lupin has,
in some manner, contrived to put this poor
devil in his place, unless this man is a will-
ing accomplice.”
This dramatic dénouement caused much
laughter and excitement amongst the spec-
tators. The judge adjourned the trial, and
sent for Mon. Bouvier, the gaoler, and
guards employed in the prison.
When the trial was resumed, Mon. Bouvier


86
ARSÈNE LUPIN
and the gaoler examined the accused and de-
clared that there was only a very slight re-
semblance between the prisoner and Arsène
Lupin.
“Well, then!” exclaimed the judge, “who
is this man? Where does he come from?
What is he in prison for?”
Two of the prison-guards were called and
both of them declared that the prisoner was
Arsène Lupin. The judge breathed once
more.
But one of the guards then said:
“Yes, yes, I think it is he.”
“What!” cried the judge, impatiently,
"you think it is he! What do you mean by
that?"
“Well, I saw very little of the prisoner.
He was placed in my charge in the evening
and, for two months, he seldom stirred, but
laid on his bed with his face to the wall."
“What about the time prior to those two
months?”
“Before that he occupied a cell in another
part of the prison. He was not in cell 24."
Here the head gaoler interrupted, and said:
“We changed him to another cell after his
attempted escape."


88
ARSÈNE LUPIN
.
the prison-van. Since then he had occupied
cell 24. He was contented there, plenty to
eat, and he slept well-So he did not com-
plain.
All that seemed probable; and, amidst the
mirth and excitement of the spectators, the
judge adjourned the trial until the story
could be investigated and verified.
The following facts were at once estab-
lished by an examination of the prison-
records: Eight weeks before a man named
Baudru Désiré had slept at the Dépôt. He
was released next day, and left the Dépôt at
two o'clock in the afternoon. On the same
day at two o'clock, having been examined for
the last time, Arsène Lupin left the Dépôt in
a prison-van.
Had the guards made a mistake? Had they
been deceived by the resemblance and care-
lessly substituted this man for their pris-
oner?
Another question suggested itself: Had the
substitution been arranged in advance? In
that event Baudru must have been an accom-
plice and must have caused his own arrest
for the express purpose of taking Lupin's
place. But then, by what miracle had such a


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
89
plan, based on a series of improbable chances,
been carried to success?
Baudru Désiré was turned over to the an-
thropological service; they had never seen
anything like him. However, they easily
traced his past history. He was known at
Courbevois, at Asnières and at Levallois. He
lived on alms and slept in one of those rag-
picker's huts near the barrier des Ternes.
He had disappeared from there a year ago.
Had he been enticed away by Arsène
Lupin? There was no evidence to that effect.
And even if that was so, it did not explain
the flight of the prisoner. That still remained
a mystery. Amongst twenty theories which
sought to explain it, not one was satisfactory.
Of the escape itself, there was no doubt; an
escape that was incomprehensible, sensa-
tional, in which the public, as well as the of-
ficers of the law, could detect a carefully-
prepared plan, a combination of circum-
stances marvelously dove-tailed, whereof the
dénouement fully justified the confident pre-
diction of Arsène Lupin:“I shall not be pres-
ent at my trial.”
After a month of patient investigation, the
problem remained unsolved. The poor devil
of a Baudru could not be kept in prison in-


90
ARSÈNE LUPIN
definitely, and to place him on trial would
be ridiculous. There was no charge against
him. Consequently, he was released; but the
chief of the Sûrété resolved to keep him under
surveillance. This idea originated with
Ganimard. From his point of view there was
neither complicity nor chance. Boudru was
an instrument upon which Arsène Lupin had
played with his extraordinary skill. Baudru,
when set at liberty, would lead them to Ar-
sène Lupin or, at least, to some of his accom-
plices. The two inspectors, Folenfant and
Dieuzy, were assigned to assist Ganimard.
One foggy morning in January the prison
gates opened and Baudru Désiré stepped
forth—a free man. At first he appeared to
be quite embarrassed, and walked like a per-
son who has no precise idea whither he is go-
ing. He followed the rue de la Santé and the
rue Saint Jacques. He stopped in front of an
old-clothes shop, removed his jacket and his
vest, sold his vest on which he realized a few
sous; then, replacing his jacket, he proceeded
on his way. He crossed the Seine. At the
Châtelet an omnibus passed him. He wished
to enter it, but there was no place. The con-
troller advised him to secure a number, so he
entered the waiting-room.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
Ganimard called his two assistants, and,
without removing his eyes from the waiting-
room, he said to them:
“Stop a carriage....no, two. That will
be better. I will go with one of you, and we
will follow him.”
The men obeyed. Yet Baudru did not ap-
pear. Ganimard entered the waiting-room.
It was empty.
“Idiot that I am!” he muttered, “I forgot
there was another exit."
There was an interior corridor extending
from the waiting-room to the rue Saint Mar-
tin. Ganimard rushed through it and ar-
rived just in time to observe Baudru upon
the top of the Batignolles-Jardin des Plantes
omnibus as it was turning the corner of the
rue de Rivoli. He ran and caught the omni-
bus. But he had lost his two assistants. He
must continue the pursuit alone. In his
anger he was inclined to seize his man by the
collar without ceremony. Was it not with
premeditation and by means of an ingenious
ruse that his pretended imbecile had sepa-
rated him from his assistants?
He looked at Baudru. The latter was
asleep on the bench, his head rolling from
side to side, his mouth half-opened, and an


ARSÈNE LUPIN
“If you had taken lessons in jiu-jitsu at
the quai des Orfèvres,” said Lupin, “you
would know that that blow is called udi-shi-
ghi in Japanese. A second more, and I would
have broken your arm and thạt would have
been just what you deserve. I am surprised
that you, an old friend whom I respect and
before whom I voluntarily expose my incog-
nito, should abuse my confidence in that vio-
lent manner. It is unworthy-Ah! What's
the matter?"
Ganimard did not reply. That escape for
which he deemed himself responsible-was it
not he, Ganimard, who, by his sensational evi-
dence, had led the court into a serious error?
That escape appeared to him like a dark
cloud on his professional career. A tear
rolled down his cheek to his gray moustache.
“Oh! mon Dieu, Ganimard, don't take it
to heart. If you had not spoken, I would
have arranged for some one else to do it.
I couldn't allow poor Baudru Désiré to be
convicted.”
“Then,” murmured Ganimard, “it was
you that was there? And now you are here?”
“It is I, always I, only I."
“Can it be possible?!
"Oh, it is not the work of a sorcerer. Sim


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
95
ply, as the judge remarked at the trial, the
apprenticeship of a dozen years that equips
a man to cope successfully with all the ob-
stacles in life.”
“But your face? Your eyes?”
“You can understand that if I worked
eighteen months with Doctor Altier at the
Saint-Louis hospital, it was not out of love
for the work. I considered that he, who
would one day have the honor of calling him-
self Arsène Lupin, ought to be exempt from
the ordinary laws governing appearance and
identity. Appearance? That can be modified
at will. For instance, a hypodermic injection
of paraffine will puff up the skin at the de-
sired spot. Pyrogallic acid will change your
skin to that of an Indian. The juice of the
greater celandine will adorn you with the
most beautiful eruptions and tumors. An-
other chemical affects the growth of your
beard and hair; another changes the tone of
your voice. Add to that two months of diet-
ing in cell 24; exercises repeated a thousand
times to enable me to hold my features in a
certain grimace, to carry my head at a cer-
tain inclination, and adapt my back and
shoulders to a stooping posture. Then five


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
a substitution rather than confess their ig-
norance.”
“Yes, yes, of course," said Ganimard.
“And then,” exclaimed Arsène Lupin, “I
held in my hands à trump-card: an anxious
public watching and waiting for my escape.
And that is the fatal error into which you
fell, you and the others, in the course of that
fascinating game pending between me and
the officers of the law wherein the stake was
my liberty. And you supposed that I was
playing to the gallery; that I was intoxicated
with my success. I, Arsène Lupin, guilty of
such weakness! Oh, no! And, no longer ago
than the Cahorn affair, you said: When Ar-
sène Lupin cries from the housetops that he
will escape, he has some object in view."
But, sapristi, you must understand that in
order to escape I must create, in advance, a
public belief in that escape, a belief amount-
ing to an article of faith, an absolute con-
viction, a reality as glittering as the sun.
And I did create that belief that Arsène Lu-
pin would escape, that Arsène Lupin would
not be present at his trial. And when you
gave your evidence and said: “That man is
not Arsène Lupin,” everybody was prepared
to believe you. Had one person doubted it,


98
ARSÈNE LUPIN
had any one uttered this simple restriction:
Suppose it is Arsène Lupin?-from that mo-
ment, I was lost. If anyone had scrutinized
my face, not imbued with the idea that I was
not Arsène Lupin, as you and the others did
at my trial, but with the idea that I might
be Arsène Lupin; then, despite all my pre-
cautions, I should have been recognized. But
I had no fear. Logically, psychologically, no
one could entertain the idea that I was Ar-
sène Lupin."
He grasped Ganimard's hand.
“Come, Ganimard, confess that on the
Wednesday after our conversation in the
prison de la Santé, you expected me at your
house at four o'clock, exactly as I said I
would go."
“And your prison-van?" said Ganimard,
evading the question.
"A bluff! Some of my friends secured that
old unused van and wished to make the at-
tempt. But I considered it impracticable
without the concurrence of a number of un-
usual circumstances. However, I found it
useful to carry out that attempted escape and
give it the widest publicity. An audaciously
planned escape, though not completed, gave


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
99
to the succeeding one the character of reality
simply by anticipation.”
“So that the cigar...."
“Hollowed by myself, as well as the knife."
“And the letters?”
“Written by me."
“And the mysterious correspondent?”
“Did not exist."
Ganimard reflected a moment, then said:
“When the anthropological service had
Baudru's case under consideration, why did
they not perceive that his measurements coin-
cided with those of Arsène Lupin?"
“My measurements are not in existence."
"Indeed!”
“At least, they are false. I have given
considerable attention to that question. In
the first place, the Bertillon system records
the visible marks of identification and you
have seen that they are not infallible—and,
after that, the measurements of the head, the
fingers, the ears, etc. Of course, such meas-
urements are more or less infallible.”
“Absolutely."
“No; but it costs money to get around
them. Before we left America, one of the
employees of the service there accepted so
much money to insert false figures in my


100
ARSÈNE LUPIN
measurements. Consequently,Baudru's meas-
urements should not agree with those of Ar-
sène Lupin.”
After a short silence, Ganimard asked:
“What are you going to do now?”.
“Now," replied Lupin, “I am going to
take a rest, enjoy the best of food and drink
and gradually recover my former healthy
condition. It is all very well to become Bau-
dru or some other person, on occasion, and
to change your personality as you do your
shirt, but you soon grow weary of the
change. I feel exactly as I imagine the man
who lost his shadow must have felt, and I
shall be glad to be Arsène Lupin once more."
He walked to and fro for a few minutes,
then, stopping in front of Ganimard, he said:
"You have nothing more to say, I sup-
pose?”
“Yes. I should like to know if you intend
to reveal the true state of facts connected
with your escape. The mistake that I
made- "
“Oh! no one will ever know that it was
Arsène Lupin who was discharged. It is to
my own interest to surround myself with
mystery, and therefore I shall permit my
escape to retain its almost miraculous char.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
101
acter. So, have no fear on that score, my
dear friend. I shall say nothing. And now,
good-bye. I am going out to dinner this even-
ing, and have only sufficient time to dress.”
“I thought you wanted a rest.”
“Ah! there are duties to society that one
cannot avoid. To-morrow, I shall rest."
“Where do you dine to-night?”
6With the British Ambassador!”





104
ARSÈNE LUPIN
na C
smiled as he spoke to his wife with the air
of one who reassures a frightened child. She
smiled also, and gave me a friendly glance as
if she now understood that I was one of
those gallant men with whom a woman can
remain shut up for two hours in a little box,
six feet square, and have nothing to fear.
Her husband said to her:
“I have an important appointment, my
dear, and cannot wait any longer. Adieu.”
He kissed her affectionately and went
away. His wife threw him a few kisses and
waved her handkerchief. The whistle sound-
ed, and the train started.
At that precise moment, and despite the
protests of the guards, the door was opened,
and a man rushed into our compartment. My
companion, who was standing and arranging
her luggage, uttered a cry of terror and fell
upon the seat. I am not a coward—far from
it-but I confess that such intrusions at the
last minute are always disconcerting. They
have a suspicious, unnatural aspect.
However, the appearance of the new ar-
rival greatly modified the unfavorable im-
pression produced by his precipitant action.
He was correctly and elegantly dressed, wore
a tasteful cravat, correct gloves, and his face


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
105
was refined and intelligent. But, where the
devil had I seen that face before? Because,
beyond all possible doubt, I had seen it. And
yet the memory of it was so vague and indis-
tinct that I felt it would be useless to try to
recall it at that time.
Then, directing my attention to the lady,
I was amazed at the pallor and anxiety I saw
in her face. She was looking at her neighbor
—they occupied seats on the same side of the
compartment—with an expression of intense
alarm, and I perceived that one of her trem-
bling hands was slowly gliding toward a little
traveling bag that was lying on the seat about
twenty inches from her. She finished by seiz-
ing it and nervously drawing it to her. Our
eyes met, and I read in hers so much anxiety
and fear that I could not refrain from speak-
ing to her:
“Are you ill, madame? Shall I open the
window?”
Her only reply was a gesture indicating
that she was afraid of our companion. I
smiled, as her husband had done, shrugged
my shoulders, and explained to her, in panto-
mime, that she had nothing to fear, that I
was there, and, besides, the gentleman ap-
peared to be a very harmless individual. At


106
ARSÈNE LUPIN
that moment, he turned toward us, scruti-
nized both of us from head to foot, then set-
tled down in his corner and paid us no more
attention.
After a short silence, the lady, as if she
had mustered all her energy to perform a
desperate act, said to me, in an almost in-
audible voice:
“Do you know who is on our train?”
"Who?"
“He....he....I assure you...."
“Who is he?”
“Arsène Lupin!”
She had not taken her eyes off our com-
panion, and it was to him rather than to me
that she uttered the syllables of that dis-
quieting name. He drew his hat over his
face. Was that to conceal his agitation or,
simply, to arrange himself for sleep? Then I
said to her:
“Yesterday, through contumacy, Arsène
Lupin was sentenced to twenty years' im-
prisonment at hard labor. Therefore it is
improbable that he would be so imprudent,
to-day, as to show himself in public. More-
over, the newspapers have announced his ap-
pearance in Turkey since his escape from
the Santé."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
107
“But he is on this train at the present mo-
ment,” the lady proclaimed, with the obvious
intention of being heard by our companion;
"my husband is one of the directors in the
penitentiary service, and it was the station-
master himself who told us that a search was
being made for Arsène Lupin.”
“They may have been mistaken- "
“No; he was seen in the waiting-room. He
bought a first-class ticket for Rouen."
“Surely, it would be an easy matter to
find him on the train.”
“He has disappeared. The guard at the
waiting-room door did not see him pass, and
it is supposed that he had got into the express
that leaves ten minutes after us.”
“In that case, they will be sure to catch
him."
“Unless, at the last moment, he leaped
from that train to come here, into our train
....which is quite probable....which is al-
most certain.”
"If so, he will be arrested just the same;
for the employees and guards would no doubt
observe his passage from one train to the
other, and, when we arrive at Rouen, they
will arrest him there.”


108
LE LUPIN
“Him-never! He will find some means
of escape.”
“In that case, I wish him bon voyage.”
"But, in the meantime, think what he may
do!"
"What?"
“I don't know. He may do anything."
She was greatly agitated, and, truly, the
situation justified, to some extent, her nerv-
ous excitement. I was impelled to say to her:
“Of course, there are many strange coinci-
dences, but you need have no fear. Admitting
that Arsène Lupin is on this train, he will
not commit any indiscretion; he will be only
too happy to escape the peril that already
threatens him.”
My words did not reassure her, but she re-
mained silent for a time. I unfolded my
newspapers and read the reports of Arsène
Lupin's trial, but, as they contained nothing
that was new to me, I was not greatly inter-
ested. Moreover, I was tired and sleepy. I
felt my eyelids close and my head drop.
“But, monsieur, you are not going to
sleep!”
She seized my newspaper, and looked at
me with indignation.
“Certainly not,” I said.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
109
“That would be very imprudent."
“Of course," I assented.
I struggled to keep awake. I looked
through the window at the landscape and
the fleeting clouds, but in a short time all
that became confused and indistinct; the
image of the nervous lady and the drowsy
gentleman were effaced from my memory,
and I was buried in the soothing depths of
a profound sleep. The tranquillity of my
repose was soon disturbed by disquieting
dreams, wherein a creature that had played
the part and bore the name of Arsène Lupin
heid an important place. He appeared to me
with his back laden with articles of value;
he leaped over walls, and plundered castles.
But the outlines of that creature, who was no
longer Arsène Lupin, assumed a more definite
form. He came toward me, growing larger
and larger, leaped into the compartment with
incredible agility, and landed squarely on
my chest. With a cry of fright and pain, I
awoke. The man, the traveller, our compan-
ion, with his knee on my breast, held me by
the throat.
My sight was very indistinct, for my eyes
were suffused with blood. I could see the
lady, in a corner of the compartment, con-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
111
ing up her traveling-bag that had fallen to
the floor and taking from it the jewels, purse,
and gold and silver trinkets that it contained.
The lady opened her eyes, trembled with fear,
drew the rings from her fingers and handed
them to the man as if she wished to spare
him unnecessary trouble. He took the rings
and looked at her. She swooned.
Then, quite unruffled, he resumed his seat,
lighted a cigarette, and proceeded to examine
the treasure that he had acquired. The exam-
ination appeared to give him perfect satis..
faction.
But I was not so well satisfied. I do not
speak of the twelve thousand francs of which
I had been unduly deprived: that was only
a temporary loss, because I was certain that
I would recover possession of that money
after a very brief delay, together with the
important papers contained in my wallet:
plans, specifications, addresses, lists of cor-
respondents, and compromising letters. But,
for the moment, a more immediate and more
serious question troubled me: How would
this affair end? What would be the outcome
of this adventure?
As you can imagine, the disturbance cre-
ated by my passage through the Saint-Lazare


112
ARSÈNE LUPIN
station had not escaped my notice. Going to
visit friends who knew me under the name of
Guillaume Berlat, and amongst whom my re-
semblance to Arsène Lupin was a subject of
many innocent jests, I could not assume a
disguise, and my presence had been re-
marked. So, beyond question, the commis-
sary of police at Rouen, notified by telegraph,
and assisted by numerous agents, would be
awaiting the train, would question all suspi-
cious passengers, and proceed to search the
cars.
Of course, I had foreseen all that, but it
had not disturbed me, as I was certain that
the police of Rouen would not be any
shrewder than the police of Paris and that I
could escape recognition; would it not be
sufficient for me to carelessly display my
card as “député," thanks to which I had in-
spired complete confidence in the gate-keeper
at Saint-Lazare? — But the situation was
greatly changed. I was no longer free. It
was impossible to attempt one of my usual
tricks. In one of the compartments, the com-
missary of police would find Mon. Arsène
Lupin, bound hand and foot, as docile as a
lamb, packed up, all ready to be dumped into
a prison-van. He would have simply to ac-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
113
cept delivery of the parcel, the same as if it
were so much merchandise or a basket of
fruit and vegetables. Yet, to avoid that
shameful dénouement, what could I do-
bound and gagged, as I was? And the train
was rushing on toward Rouen, the next and
only station.
Another problem was presented, in which I
was less interested, but the solution of which
aroused my professional curiosity. What
were the intentions of my rascally com-
panion? Of course, if I had been alone, he
could, on our arrival at Rouen, leave the car
slowly and fearlessly. But the lady? As
soon as the door of the compartment should
be opened, the lady, now so quiet and humble,
would scream and call for help. That was
the dilemma that perplexed me! Why had
he not reduced her to a helpless condition
similar to mine? That would have given him
ample time to disappear before his double
crime was discovered.
He was still smoking, with his eyes fixed
upon the window that was now being streaked
with drops of rain. Once he turned, picked
up my time-table, and consulted it.
The lady had to feign a continued lack of
consciousness in order to deceive the enemy,


114
ARSÈNE LUPIN
But fits of coughing, provoked by the smoke,
exposed her true condition. As to me, I was
very uncomfortable, and very tired. And I
meditated; I plotted.
The train was rushing on, joyously, intoxi-
cated with its own speed.
Saint Etienne!....At that moment, the
man arose and took two steps toward us,
which caused the lady to utter a cry of alarm
and fall into a genuine swoon. What was the
man about to do? He lowered the window on
our side. A heavy rain was now falling, and,
by a gesture, the man expressed his annoy-
ance at his not having an umbrella or an over-
coat. He glanced at the rack. The lady's
umbrella was there. He took it. He also
took my overcoat and put it on.
We were now crossing the Seine. He
turned up the bottoms of his trousers, then
leaned over and raised the exterior latch of
the door. Was he going to throw himself
upon the track? At that speed, it would have
been instant death. We now entered a tun-
nel. The man opened the door half-way and
stood on the upper step. What folly! The
darkness, the smoke, the noise, all gave a fan-
tastic appearance to his actions. But sud:
denly, the train diminished its speed. A ms.


116
ARSÈNE LUPIN
call. Make a noise. The police and the rail-
way employees will come. Tell what you have
seen: the assault made on me and the flight
of Arsène Lupin. Give a description of him
-soft hat, umbrella — yours — gray over-
coat...."
“Yours," said she.
“What! mine? Not at all. It was his. I
didn't have any."
“It seems to me he didn't have one when
he came in.”
“Yes, yes.... unless the coat was one that
some one had forgotten and left in the rack.
At all events, he had it when he went away,
and that is the essential point. A gray over-
coat-remember!.... Ah! I forgot. You must
tell your name, first thing you do. Your hus-
band's official position will stimulate the zeal
of the police."
We arrived at the station. I gave her some
further instructions in a rather imperious
tone:
“Tell them my name-Guillaume Berlat.
If necessary, say that you know me. That
will save time. We must expedite the prelim-
inary investigation. The important thing is
the pursuit of Arsène Lupin. Your jewels,


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
117
remember! Let there be no mistake. Guil.
laume Berlat, a friend of your husband."
“I understand. ...Guillaume Berlat.”
She was already calling and gesticulating.
As soon as the train stopped, several men en-
tered the compartment. The critical moment
had come.
Panting for breath, the lady exclaimed:
“Arsène Lupin....he attacked us.... he
stole my jewels....I am Madame Renaud
....my husband is a director in the peniten-
tiary service. ... Ah! here is my brother,
Georges Ardelle, director of the Crédit Rou-
ennais....you must know....
She embraced a young man who had just
joined us, and whom the commissary saluted.
Then she continued, weeping:
“Yes, Arsène Lupin....while monsieur
was sleeping, he seized him by the throat....
Mon. Berlat, a friend of my husband.”
The commissary asked:
“But where is Arsène Lupin?"
“He leaped from the train, when passing
through the tunnel.”
“Are you sure that it was he?”
“Am I sure! I recognized him perfectly.
Besides, he was seen at the Saint-Lazare sta.
tion. He wore a soft hat, "


118
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“No, a hard felt, like that,” said the com-
missary, pointing to my hat.
“He had a soft hat, I am sure," repeated
Madame Renaud, “and a gray overcoat.”
“Yes, that is right,” replied the commis-
sary, “the telegram says he wore a gray
overcoat with a black velvet collar.”
“Exactly, a black velvet collar,” exclaimed
Madame Renaud, triumphantly.
I breathed freely. Ah! the excellent friend
I had in that little woman.
The police agents had now released me. I
bit my lips until they ran blood. Stooping
over, with my handkerchief over my mouth,
an attitude quite natural in a person who has
remained for a long time in an uncomfortable
position, and whose mouth shows the bloody
marks of the gag, I addressed the commis-
sary, in a weak voice:
"Monsieur, it was Arsène Lupin. There is
no doubt about that. If we make haste, he
can be caught yet. I think I may be of some
service to you.”
The railway car, in which the crime oc-
curred, was detached from the train to serve
as a mute witness at the official investigation.
The train continued on its way to Havre.
We were then conducted to the station-mas-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
119
ter's office through a crowd of curious spec-
tators.
Then, I had a sudden access of doubt and
discretion. Under some pretext or other, I
must gain my automobile, and escape. To
remain there was dangerous. Something
might happen; for instance, a telegram from
Paris, and I would be lost.
Yes, but what about my thief? Abandoned
to my own resources, in an unfamiliar coun-
try, I could not hope to catch him.
“Bah! I must make the attempt," I said
to myself. “It may be a difficult game, but
an amusing one, and the stake is well worth
the trouble.”
And when the commissary asked us to re-
peat the story of the robbery, I exclaimed:
“Monsieur, really, Arsène Lupin is getting
the start of us. My automobile is waiting in
the courtyard. If you will be so kind as to
use it, we can try....
The commissary smiled, and replied:
“The idea is a good one; so good, indeed,
that it is already being carried out. Two of
my men have set out on bicycles. They have
been gone for some time.”
“Where did they go ?”
"To the entrance of the tunnel. There,


120
ARSÈNE LUPIN
they will gather evidence, secure witnesses,
and follow on the track of Arsène Lupin.”
I could not refrain from shrugging my
shoulders, as I replied:
“Your men will not secure any evidence or
any witnesses.”
“Really!”
“Arsène Lupin will not allow anyone to
see him emerge from the tunnel. He will
take the first road-
“To Rouen, where we will arrest him.”
“He will not go to Rouen."
“Then he will remain in the vicinity, where
his capture will be even more certain."
“He will not remain in the vicinity.”
“Oh! oh! And where will he hide?"
I looked at my watch, and said:
“At the present moment, Arsène Lupin is
prowling around the station at Darnétal. At
ten fifty, that is, in twenty-two minutes from
now, he will take the train which goes from
Rouen to Amiens."
“Do you think so? How do you know it?"
“Oh! it is quite simple. While we were in
the car, Arsène Lupin consulted my railway
guide. Why did he do it? Was there, not
far from the spot where he disappeared, an-
other line of railway, a station upon that


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
121
line, and a train stopping at that station? On
consulting my railway guide, I found such
to be the case."
“Really, monsieur," said the commissary,
“that is a marvelous deduction. I congratu-
late you on your skill.”
I was now convinced that I had made a
mistake in displaying so much cleverness.
The commissary regarded me with astonish-
ment, and I thought a slight suspicion entered
his official mind. ...Oh! scarcely that, for the
photographs distributed broadcast by the po-
lice department were too imperfect; they pre-
sented an Arsène Lupin so different from
the one he had before him, that he could not
possibly recognize me by it. But, all the
same, he was troubled, confused and ill-at-
ease.
There was a momentary silence. Some
doubt and uncertainty caused it. As for my-
self, I felt extremely uncomfortable. Was
fortune going to turn against me? Control-
ling myself, I laughed and said:
"Mon Dieu! nothing stimulates the com-
prehension so much as the loss of a pocket-
book and the desire to recover it. And it
seems to me that if you will give me two
of your men, we may be able...."


122
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Oh! I beg of you, monsieur le commis-
saire,” cried Madame Renaud, "listen to
Mon. Berlat.”
The intervention of my excellent friend
was decisive. Pronounced by her, the wife of
an influential official, the name of Berlat be-
came really my own, and gave me an identity
that no mere suspicion could affect. The
commissary arose, and said:
“Believe me, Monsieur Berlat, I shall be
delighted to see you succeed. I am as much
interested as you are in the arrest of Arsène
Lupin.”
He accompanied me to the automobile, and
introduced two of his men, Honoré Massol
and Gaston Delivet, who were assigned to
assist me. My chauffeur cranked up the car
and I took my place at the wheel. A few sec-
onds later, we left the station. I was saved.
Ah! I must confess that in rolling over the
boulevards that surround the old Norman
city, in my swift thirty-five horse-power Mo-
reau-Lepton, I experienced a deep feeling of
pride, and the motor responded, sympathet-
ically, to my desires. At right and left, the
trees flew past us with startling rapidity, and
I, free, out of danger, had simply to arrange
my little personal affairs with the two honest


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
123
representatives of the Rouen police who were
sitting behind me. Arsène Lupin was going
in search of Arsène Lupin!
Modest guardians of social order-Gaston
Delivet and Honoré Massol — how valuable
was your assistance! What would I have
done without you? Without you, many times,
at the cross-roads, I might have taken the
wrong route! Without you, Arsène Lupin
would have made a mistake, and the other
would have escaped!
But the end was not yet. Far from it. I
had yet to capture the thief and recover the
stolen papers. Under no circumstances must
my two acolytes be permitted to see those
papers, much less to seize them. That was a
point that might give me some difficulty.
We arrived at Darnétal three minutes after
the departure of the train. True, I had the
consolation of learning that a man wearing
a gray overcoat with a black velvet collar had
taken the train at that station. He had
bought a second-class ticket for Amiens. Cer-
tainly, my début as a detective was a prom-
ising one.
Delivet said to me:
“The train is express, and the next stop is
Montérolier-Buchy in nineteen minutes. If


124
ARSÈNE LUPIN
we do not reach there before Arsène Lupin,
he can proceed to Amiens, or change for the
train going to Clères, and, from that point,
reach Dieppe or Paris.”
“How far to Montérolier?”.
“Twenty-three kilometres."
“Twenty-three kilometres in nineteen min-
utes.... We will be there ahead of him.”
We were off again! Never had my faith-
ful Moreau-Repton responded to my impa-
tience with such ardor and, regularity. It
participated in my anxiety. It indorsed my
determination. It comprehended my animos-
ity against that rascally Arsène Lupin. The
knave! The traitor!
“Turn to the right,” cried Delivet, “then
to the left."
We fairly flew, scarcely touching the
ground. The mile-stones looked like little
timid beasts that vanished at our approach.
Suddenly, at a turn of the road, we saw a
vortex of smoke. It was the Northern Ex-
press. For a kilometre, it was a struggle,
side by side, but an unequal struggle in which
the issue was certain. We won the race by
twenty lengths.
In three seconds we were on the platform
standing before the second-class carriages.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
125
The doors were opened, and some passengers
alighted, but not my thief. We made a
search through the compartments. No sign
of Arsène Lupin.
“Sapristi!” I cried, “he must have recog-
nized me in the automobile as we were racing,
side by side, and he leaped from the train.”
The head-guard of the train confirmed my
theory. He had seen a man tumbling down
the embankment about two hundred metres
from the station."
“Ah! there he is now! crossing the track.”
I started in pursuit of the man, followed
by my two acolytes, or rather followed by one
of them, for the other, Massol, proved him-
self to be a runner of exceptional speed and
endurance. In a few moments, he had made
an appreciable gain upon the fugitive. The
man noticed it, leaped over a hedge, scam-
pered across a meadow, and entered a thick
grove. When we reached this grove, Massol
was waiting for us. He went no farther, for
fear of losing us.
“Quite right, my dear friend," I said.
“After such a run, our victim must be out
of wind. We will catch him now.".
I examined the surroundings with the idea


126
ARSÈNE LUPIN
of proceeding alone in the arrest of the fugi-
tive, in order to recover my papers, concern-
ing which the authorities would doubtless ask
many disagreeable questions. Then I re-
turned to my companions, and said:
“It is all quite easy. You, Massol, take
your place at the left; you, Delivet, at the
right. From there, you can observe the en-
tire posterior line of the bush, and he cannot
escape without you seeing him, except by that
ravine, and I shall watch it. If he does not
come out voluntarily, I will enter and drive
him out toward one or the other of you. You
have simply to wait. Ah! I forgot: in case I
need you, a pistol shot.”
Massot and Delivet walked away to their
respective posts. As soon as they had disap-
peared, I entered the grove with the greatest
precaution so as to be neither seen nor heard.
I encountered dense thickets, through which
narrow paths had been cut, but the overhang-
ing boughs compelled me to adopt a stooping
posture. One of these paths led to a clearing
in which I found traces of footsteps upon the
wet grass. I followed them; they led me to
the foot of a mound which was surmounted
by a deserted, dilapidated hovel.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
127
“He must be there," I said to myself. “It
is a well-chosen retreat."
I crept cautiously to the side of the build-
ing. A slight noise informed me that he was
there; and, then, through an opening, I saw
him. His back was turned toward me. In
two bounds, I was upon him. He tried to fire
a revolver that he held in his hand. But he
had no time. I threw him to the ground, in
such a manner that his arms were beneath
him, twisted and helpless, whilst I held him
down with my knee on his breast.
“Listen, my boy," I whispered in his ear.
“I am Arsène Lupin. You are to deliver over
to me, immediately and gracefully, my pocket-
book and the lady's jewels, and, in return
therefor, I will save you from the police and
enroll you amongst my friends. One word:
yes or no?"
“Yes,” he murmured.
“Very good. Your escape, this morning,
was well planned. I congratulate you."
I arose. He fumbled in his pocket, drew
out a large knife and tried to strike me
with it.
“Imbecile!" I exclaimed.
With one hand, I parried the attack; with


128
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the other, I gave him a sharp blow on the
carotid artery. He fell-stunned!
In my pocketbook, I recovered my papers
and bank-notes. Out of curiosity, I took his.
Upon an envelope, addressed to him, I read
his name: Pierre Onfrey. It startled me.
Pierre Onfrey, the assassin of the rue Lafon-
taine at Auteuil! Pierre Onfrey, he who had
cut the throats of Madame Delbois and her
two daughters. I leaned over him. Yes,
those were the features which, in the com-
partment, had evoked in me the memory of
a face I could not then recall.
But time was passing. I placed in an en-
velope two bank-notes of one hundred francs
each, with a card bearing these words: “Ar-
sène Lupin to his worthy colleagues Honoré
Massol and Gaston Delivet, as a slight token
of his gratitude." I placed it in a prominent
spot in the room, where they would be sure
to find it. Beside it, I placed Madame Ren-
aud's hand-bag. Why could I not return it
to the lady who had befriended me? I must
confess that I had taken from it everything
that possessed any interest or value, leaving
there only a shell comb, a stick of rouge Dorin
for the lips, and an empty purse. But, you


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
129
__
_
know, business is business. And then, really,
her husband is engaged in such a dishonor-
able vocation!
The man was becoming conscious. What
was I to do? I was unable to save him or
condemn him. So I took his revolver and
fired a shot in the air.
“My two acolytes will come and attend to
his case,” I said to myself, as I hastened
away by the road through the ravine. Twenty
minutes later, I was seated in my automobile.
At four o'clock, I telegraphed to my friends
at Rouen that an unexpected event would
prevent me from making my promised visit.
Between ourselves, considering what my
friends must now know, my visit is postponed
indefinitely. A cruel disillusion for them!
At six o'clock I was in Paris. The evening
newspapers informed me that Pierre Onfrey
had been captured at last.
Next day, let us not despise the advan-
tages of judicious advertising,—the Echo de
France published this sensational item:
“Yesterday, near Buchy, after numerous
exciting incidents, Arsène Lupin effected the
arrest of Pierre Onfrey. The assassin of
the rue Lafontaine had robbed Madame Ren-
aud, wife of the director in the penitentiary,


130
ARSÈNE LUPIN
service, in a railway carriage on the Paris-
Havre line. Arsène Lupin restored to Ma-
dame Renaud the hand-bag that contained
her jewels, and gave a generous recompense
to the two detectives who had assisted him
in making that dramatic arrest."


CHAPTER V
THE QUEEN'S NECKLACE
T
W O or three times each year, on occa-
sions of unusual importance, such as
Les the balls at the Austrian Embassy or
the soirées of Lady Billingstone, the Countess
de Dreux-Soubise wore upon her white shoul-
ders “The Queen's Necklace.”
It was, indeed, the famous necklace, the
legendary necklace that Bohmer and Bas-
senge, court jewelers, had made for Madame
Du Barry; the veritable necklace that the
Cardinal de Rohan-Soubise intended to give
to Marie-Antoinette, Queen of France; and
the same that the adventuress Jeanne de Va-
lois, Countess de la Motte, had pulled to
pieces one evening in February, 1785, with
the aid of her husband and their accomplice,
Rétaux de Villette.
To tell the truth, the mounting alone was
genuine. Rétaux de Villette had kept it,
whilst the Count de la Motte and his wife
scattered to the four winds of heaven the
beautiful stones so carefully chosen by


132
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Bohmer. Later, he sold the mounting to
Gaston de Dreux-Soubise, nephew and heir of
the Cardinal, who re-purchased the few dia-
monds that remained in the possession of the
English jeweler, Jefferys; supplemented them
with other stones of the same size but of
much inferior quality, and thus restored the
marvelous necklace to the form in which it
had come from the hands of Bohmer and
Bassenge.
For nearly a century, the house of Dreux-
Soubise had prided itself upon the possession
of this historic jewel. Although adverse cir-
cumstances had greatly reduced their for- .
tune, they preferred to curtail their house-
hold expenses rather than part with this relic
of royalty. More particularly, the present
coint clung to it as a man clings to the home
of his ancestors. As a matter of prudence,
he had rented a safety-deposit box at the
Crédit Lyonnais in which to keep it. He went
for it himself on the afternoon of the day on
which his wife wished to wear it, and he,
himself, carried it back next morning.
On this particular evening, at the reception
given at the Palais de Castille, the Countess
achieved a remarkable success; and King
Christian, in whose honor the fête was given,


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
133
.
commented on her grace and beauty. The
thousand facets of the diamond sparkled and
shone like flames of fire about her shapely
neck and shoulders, and it is safe to say that
none but she could have borne the weight of
such an ornament with so much ease and
grace.
This was a double triumph, and the Count
de Dreux was highly elated when they re-
turned to their chamber in the old house of
the faubourg Saint-Germain. He was proud
of his wife, and quite as proud, perhaps, of
the necklace that had conferred added lustre
to his noble house for four generations. His
wife, also, regarded the necklace with an al-
most childish vanity, and it was not without
regret that she removed it from her shoul-
ders and handed it to her husband who ad-
mired it as passionately as if he had never
seen it before. Then, having placed it in its
case of red leather, stamped with the Car-
dinal's arms, he passed into an adjoining
room which was simply an alcove or cabinet
that had been cut off from their chamber, and
which could be entered only by means of a
door at the foot of their bed. As he had done
on previous occasions, he hid it on a high


134
ARSÈNE LUPIN
shelf amongst hat-boxes and piles of linen.
He closed the door, and retired.
Next morning, he arose about nine o'clock,
intending to go to the Crédit Lyonnais before
breakfast. He dressed, drank a cup of coffee,
and went to the stables to give his orders.
The condition of one of the horses worried
him. He caused it to be exercised in his pres-
ence. Then he returned to his wife, who had
not yet left the chamber. Her maid was
dressing her hair. When her husband en-
tered, she asked:
“Are you going out?"
“Yes, as far as the bank.”
“Of course. That is wise."
He entered the cabinet; but, after a few
seconds, and without any sign of astonish-
ment, he asked:
“Did you take it, my dear?”
"What?....No, I have not taken any.
thing."
“You must have moved it.”.
“Not at all. I have not even opened that
door."
He appeared at the door, disconcerted, and
stammered, in a scarcely intelligible voice:
“You haven't .... It wasn't you? ....
Then...."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
135
She hastened to his assistance, and, to-
gether, they made a thorough search, throw-
ing the boxes to the floor and overturning
the piles of linen. Then the count said, quite
discouraged:
"It is useless to look any more. I put it
here, on this shelf.”
“You must be mistaken."
“No, no, it was on this shelf — nowhere
else.”
They lighted a candle, as the room was
quite dark, and then carried out all the linen
and other articles that the room contained.
And, when the room was emptied, they con-
fessed, in despair, that the famous necklace
had disappeared. Without losing time in
vain lamentations, the countess notified the
commissary of police, Mon. Valorbe, who
came at once, and, after hearing their story,
inquired of the count:
“Are you sure that no one passed through
your chamber during the night?”
“Absolutely sure, as I am a very light
sleeper. Besides, the chamber door was
bolted, and I remember unbolting it this
morning when my wife rang for her maid.”
“And there is no other entrance to the
cabinet?"


-
136
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“None."
"No window?”
“Yes, but it is closed up."
“I will look at it.”
Candles were lighted, and Mon. Valorbe ob-
served at once that the lower half of the win-
dow was covered by a large press which was,
however, so narrow that it did not touch the
casement on either side.
“On what does this window open?”
“A small inner court.”
“And you have a floor above this?"
“Two; but, on a level with the servant's
floor, there is a close grating over the court.
That is why this room is so dark.”
When the press was moved, they found that
the window was fastened, which would not
have been the case if anyone had entered that
way.
“Unless,” said the count, “they went out
through our chamber."
“In that case, you would have found the
door unbolted.”
The commissary considered the situation
for a moment, then asked the countess :
“Did any of your servants know that you
wore the necklace last evening?”
“Certainly; I didn't conceal the fact. But


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
137
erar
nobody knew that it was hidden in that cab-
inet.”
“No one?”
“No one. ...unless....
“Be quite sure, madam, as it is a very im-
portant point."
She turned to her husband, and said:
“I was thinking of Henriette."
“Henriette? She didn't know where we
kept it."
“Are you sure?”
“Who is this woman Henriette?” asked
Mon. Valorbe.
"A school-mate, who was disowned by her
family for marrying beneath her. After her
husband's death, I furnished an apartment in
this house for her and her son. She is clever
with her needle and has done some work
for me."
“What floor is she on?”
“Same as ours....at the end of the cordi-
dor....and I think.... the window of her
kitchen....
“Opens on this little court, does it not?”
“Yes, just opposite ours.”
Mon. Valorbe then asked to see Henriette.
They went to her apartment; she was sewing,
whilst her son Raoul, about six years old, was


-
138
ARSÈNE LUPIN
sitting beside her, reading. The commissary
was surprised to see the wretched apartment
that had been provided for the woman. It
consisted of one room without a fireplace, and
a very small room that served as a kitchen.
The commissary proceeded to question her.
She appeared to be overwhelmed on learning
of the theft. Last evening she had herself
dressed the countess and placed the necklace
upon her shoulders.
“Good God!” she exclaimed, “it can't be
possible!”
“And you have no idea? Not the least sus-
picion? Is it possible that the thief may have
passed through your room?”
She laughed heartily, never supposing that
she could be an object of suspicion.
“But I have not left my room. I never go
out. And, perhaps, you have not seen?”
She opened the kitchen window, and said:
“See, it is at least three metres to the ledge
of the opposite window.”
GWlio told you that we supposed the theft
might have been committed in that way?”
"But....the necklace was in the cabinet,
wasn't it?”
“How do you know that?''
“Why, I have always known that it was
as.


140
ARSÈNE LUPIN
The inquiries especially concerned Hen-
riette, for, in spite of everything, they al-
ways turned in her direction. They made a
thorough investigation of her past life, and
ascertained that, during the last three years,
she had left the house only four times, and
her business, on those occasions, was satis-
factorily explained. As a matter of fact, she
acted as chambermaid and seamstress to the
countess, who treated her with great strict-
ness and even severity.
At the end of a week, the examining judge
had secured no more definite information
than the commissary of police. The judge
said:
“Admitting that we know the guilty party,
which we do not, we are confronted by the
fact that we do not know how the theft was
committed. We are brought face to face with
two obstacles: a door and a window-both
closed and fastened. It is thus a double mys-
tery. How could anyone enter, and, more-
over, how could anyone escape, leaving behind
him a bolted door and a fastened window?"
At the end of four months, the secret opin-
ion of the judge was that the count and
countess, being hard pressed for money,
which was their normal condition, had sold


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
141
the Queen's Necklace. He closed the inves-
tigation.
The loss of the famous jewel was a severe
blow to the Dreux-Soubise. Their credit
being no longer propped up by the reserve
fund that such a treasure constituted, they
found themselves confronted by more exact-
ing creditors and money-lenders. They were
obliged to cut down to the quick, to sell or
mortgage every article that possessed any
commercial value. In brief, it would have
been their ruin, if two large legacies from
some distant relatives had not saved them.
Their pride also suffered a downfall, as if
they had lost a quartering from their es-
cutcheon. And, strange to relate, it was upon
her former schoolmate, Henriette, that the
countess vented her spleen. Toward her, the
countess displayed the most spiteful feelings,
and even openly accused her. First, Hen-
riette was relegated to the servants' quarters,
and, next day, discharged.
For some time, the count and countess
passed an uneventful life. They traveled a
great deal. Only one incident worthy of rec-
ord occurred during that period. Some
months after the departure of Henriette, the
countess was surprised when she received
ing that of Henritereived


142
ARSÈNE LUPIN
and read the following letter, signed by Hen-
riette:
“Madame,
"I do not know how to thank you; for it
was you, was it not, who sent me that? It
could not be anyone else. No one but you
knows where I live. If I am wrong, excuse
me, and accept my sincere thanks for your
past favors...."
What did the letter mean? The present or
past favors of the countess consisted prin-
cipally of injustice and neglect. Why, then,
this letter of thanks?
When asked for an explanation, Henriette
replied that she had received a letter, through
the mails, enclosing two bank-notes of one
thousand francs each. The envelope, which
she enclosed with her reply, bore the Paris
post-mark, and was addressed in a handwrit-
ing that was obviously disguised. Now,
whence came those two thousand francs ?
Who had sent them? And why had they
sent them?
Henriette received a similar letter and a
like sum of money twelve months later. And
a third time; and a fourth; and each year
for a period of six years, with this differ-
ence, that in the fifth and sixth years the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
143
sum was doubled. There was another dif-
ference: the post-office authorities having
seized one of the letters under the pretext
that it was not registered, the last two let-
ters were duly sent according to the postal
regulations, the first dated from Saint-Ger-
main, the other from Suresnes. The writer
signed the first one, “Anquety”; the other,
“Péchard." The addresses that he gave
were false.
At the end of six years, Henriette died,
and the mystery remained unsolved.
All these events are known to the public.
The case was one of those which excite public
interest, and it was a strange coincidence
that this necklace, which had caused such a
great commotion in France at the close of
the eighteenth century, should create a simi-
lar commotion a century later. But what
I am about to relate is known only to the
parties directly interested and a few others
from whom the count exacted a promise of
secrecy. As it is probable that some day
or other that promise will be broken, I have
no hesitation in rending the veil and thus
disclosing the key to the mystery, the expla-
nation of the letter published in the morning


144
ARSÈNE LUPIN
papers two days ago; an extraordinary let-
ter which increased, if possible, the mists
and shadows that envelope this inscrutable
drama.
Five days ago, a number of guests were
dining with the Count de Dreux-Soubise.
There were several ladies present, including
his two nieces and his cousin, and the fol-
lowing gentlemen: the president of Essa-
ville, the deputy Bochas, the chevalier Flo-
riani, whom the count had known in Sicily,
and General Marquis de Rouzières, an old
club friend.
After the repast, coffee was served by the
ladies, who gave the gentlemen permission
to smoke their cigarettes, provided they
would not desert the salon. The conversa-
tion was general, and finally one of the
guests chanced to speak of celebrated crimes.
And that gave the Marquis de Rouzières,
who delighted to tease the count, an oppor-
tunity to mention the affair of the Queen's
Necklace, a subject that the count detested.
Each one expressed his own opinion of
the affair; and, of course, their various theo-
ries were not only contradictory but impos-
sible.
“And you, monsieur,” said the countess


146
ARSÈNE LUPIN
committed, or, at least, how it could have
been committed. In the present case, nothing
is more simple, because we are face to face,
not with several theories, but with one posi-
tive fact, that is to say: the thief could enter
only by the chamber door or the window of
the cabinet. Now, a person cannot open a
bolted door from the outside. Therefore, he
must have entered through the window."
“But it was closed and fastened, and we
found it fastened afterward," declared the
count.
"In order to do that," continued Floriani,
without heeding the interruption, “he had
simply to construct a bridge, a plank or a
ladder, between the balcony of the kitchen
and the ledge of the window, and as the
jewel-case ".
"But I repeat that the window was fast-
ened,” exclaimed the count, impatiently.
This time, Floriani was obliged to reply.
He did so with the greatest tranquility, as
if the objection was the most insignificant
affair in the world.
"I will admit that it was; but is there not
a transom in the upper part of the window?”
“How do you know that?”
"In the first place, that was customary in


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
147
houses of that date; and, in the second place,
without such a transom, the theft cannot be
explained.”
“Yes, there is one, but it was closed, the
same as the window. Consequently, we did
not pay any attention to it.”
"That was a mistake; for, if you had
examined it, you would have found that it
had been opened.”.
“But how?"
“I presume that, like all others, it opens
by means of a wire with a ring at the lower
end."
“Yes."
“And that ring was hanging between the
window and the press.”
“Yes, but I do not see".
“Now, through a hole in the window, a
person could, by the aid of some instrument,
let us say a poker with a hook at the end,
grip the ring, pull down, and open the tran-
som."
The count laughed, and said:
“Excellent! excellent! Your scheme is
very cleverly constructed, but you overlook
one thing, monsieur, there is no hole in the
window."
“There was a hole."


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
149
then suddenly rushed to the door and passed
out. Not a word was uttered in his absence;
and this profound silence gave the situation
an air of almost tragic importance. Finally,
the count returned. He was pale and nerv-
ous. He said to his friends, in a trembling
voice:
“I beg your pardon....the revelations of
the chevalier were so unexpected....I should
never have thought...."
His wife questioned him, eagerly:
“Speak....what is it?"
He stammered: “The hole is there, at
the very spot, at the side of the window "
He seized the chevalier's arm, and said to
him in am imperious tone:
“Now, monsieur, proceed. I admit that
you are right so far, but now....that is not
all....go on.... tell us the rest of it.”
Floriani disengaged his arm gently, and,
after a moment, continued:
“Well, in my opinion, this is what hap-
pened. The thief, knowing that the countess
was going to wear the necklace that evening,
had prepared his gangway or bridge during
your absence. He watched you through the
window and saw you hide the necklace.


150
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Afterward, he cut the glass and pulled the
ring."
"Ah! but the distance was so great that
it would be impossible for him to reach the
window-fastening through the transom."
“Well, then, if he could not open the win-
dow by reaching through the transom, he
must have crawled through the transom.”
“Impossible; it is too small. No man
could crawl through it.”
“Then it was not a man,” declared
Floriani.
“What!”
“If the transom is too small to admit a
man, it must have been a child.”
“A child!”
:'Did you not say that your friend Hen-
riette had a son?”
“Yes; a son named Raoul.”
"Then, in all probability, it was Raoul
who committed the theft."
“What proof have you of that?''
“What proof! Plenty of it.... For
instance "
He stopped, and reflected for a moment,
then continued:
“For instance, that gangway or bridge.
It is improbable that the child could have


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
151
brought it from outside the house and car-
ried it away again without being observed.
He must have used something close at hand.
In the little room used by Henriette as a
kitchen, were there not some shelves against
the wall on which she placed her pans and
dishes ?"
"Two shelves, to the best of my memory."
“Are you sure that those shelves are
really fastened to the wooden brackets that
support them? For, if they are not, we
would be justified in presuming that the
child removed them, fastened them together,
and thus formed his bridge. Perhaps, also,
since there was a stove, we might find the
bent poker that he used to open the tran-
som."
Without saying a word, the count left the
room; and, this time, those present did not
feel the nervous anxiety they had experi-
enced the first time. They were confident
that Floriani was right, and no one was sur-
prised when the count returned and declared:
“It was the child. Everything proves it."
“You have seen the shelves and the
poker?"
“Yes. The shelves have been unnailed,
and the poker is there yet."


152
ARSÈNE LUPIN
But the countess exclaimed:
“You had better say it was his mother.
Henriette is the guilty party. She must have
compelled her son—":
“No,” declared the chevalier, “the mother
had nothing to do with it.”
“Nonsense! they occupied the same room.
The child could not have done it without the
mother's knowledge."
“True, they lived in the same room, but
all this happened in the adjoining room,
during the night, while the mother was
asleep."
“And the necklace ?” said the count. “It
would have been found amongst the child's
things.”
"Pardon me! He had been out. That
morning, on which you found him reading,
he had just come from school, and perhaps
the commissary of police, instead of wasting
his time on the innocent mother, would have
been better employed in searching the child's
desk amongst his school-books.”
“But how do you explain those two thou-
sand francs that Henriette received each
year? Are they not evidence of her com-
plicity?"
“If she had been an accomplice, would


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
153
she have thanked you for that money? And
then, was she not closely watched? But the
child, being free, could easily go to a neigh-
boring city, negotiate with some dealer and
sell him one diamond or two diamonds, as
he might wish, upon condition that the
money should be sent from Paris, and that
proceeding could be repeated from year to
year.”
An indescribable anxiety oppressed the
Dreux-Soubise and their guests. There was
something in the tone and attitude of Flo-
riani-something more that the chevalier's
assurance which, from the beginning, had so
annoyed the count. There was a touch of
irony, that seemed rather hostile than sym-
pathetic. But the count affected to laugh,
as he said:
“All that is very ingenious and interest-
ing, and I congratulate you upon your vivid
imagination.”
“No, not at all,'' replied Floriani, with
the utmost gravity, “I imagine nothing. I
simply describe the events as they must
have occurred.”
“But what do you know about them?”.
“What you yourself have told me. I pic-
ture to myself the life of the mother and


154
ARSÈNE LUPIN
child down there in the country; the illness
of the mother, the schemes and inventions of
the child to sell the precious stones in order
to save his mother's life, or, at least, soothe
her dying moments. Her illness overcomes
her. She dies. Years roll on. The child be-
comes a man; and then-and now I will give
my imagination a free rein—let us suppose
that the man feels a desire to return to the
home of his childhood, that he does so, and
that he meets there certain people who sus-
pect and accuse his mother....do you realize
the sorrow and anguish of such an interview
in the very house wherein the original drama
was played ?”
His words seemed to echo for a few seconds
in the ensuing silence, and one could read
upon the faces of the Count and Countess de
Dreux a bewildered effort to comprehend his
meaning and, at the same time, the fear and
anguish of such a comprehension. The count
spoke at last, and said:
“Who are you, monsieur?”
“I? The chevalier Floriani, whom you met
at Palermo, and whom you have been gra-
cious enough to invite to your house on sev.
eral occasions."
“Then what does this story mean?"


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
155
“Oh! nothing at all! It is simply a pas-
time, so far as I am concerned. I endeavor
to depict the pleasure that Henriette's son, if
he still lives, would have in telling you that
he was the guilty party, and that he did it
because his mother was unhappy, as she was
on the point of losing the place of a....
servant, by which she lived, and because the
child suffered at sight of his mother's sor-
row.”
He spoke with suppressed emotion, rose
partially and inclined toward the countess.
There could be no doubt that the chevalier
Floriani was Henriette's son. His attitude
and words proclaimed it. Besides, was it
not his obvious intention and desire to be
recognized as such?
The count hesitated. What action would
he take against the audacious guest ? Ring ?
Provoke a scandal? Unmask the man who
had once robbed him? But that was a long
time ago! And who would believe that ab-
surd story about the guilty child? No; bet-
ter far to accept the situation, and pretend
not to comprehend the true meaning of it.
So the count, turning to Floriani, exclaimed:
“Your story is very curious, very enter-
taining; I enjoyed it very much. But what


156
ARSÈNE LUPIN
do you think has become of this young man,
this model son? I hope he has not abandoned
the career in which he made such a brilliant
début."
“Oh! certainly not."
“After such a début! To steal the Queen's
Necklace at six years of age; the celebrated
necklace that was coveted by Marie-Antoi-
nette!”
“And to steal it,” remarked Floriani, fall-
ing in with the count's mood, “without cost-
ing him the slightest trouble, without anyone
thinking to examine the condition of the win-
dow, or to observe that the window-sill was
too clean— that window-sill which he had
wiped in order to efface the marks he had
made in the thick dust. We must admit that
it was sufficient to turn the head of a boy of
that age. It was all so easy. He had simply
to desire the thing, and reach out his hand
to get it.”
“And he reached out his hand.”
“Both hands," replied the chevalier,
laughing.
His companions received a shock. What
mystery surrounded the life of the so-called
Floriani? How wonderful must have been
the life of that adventurer, a thief at six


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
157
years of age, and who, to-day, in search of
excitement or, at most, to gratify a feeling
of resentment, had come to brave his victim
in her own house, audaciously, foolishly, and
yet with all the grace and delicacy of a cour-
teous guest!
He arose and approached the countess to
bid her adieu. She recoiled, unconsciously.
He smiled.
“Oh! Madame, you are afraid of me! Did
I pursue my rôle of parlor-magician a step
too far?”
She controlled herself, and replied, with
her accustomed ease:
“Not at all, monsieur. The legend of that
dutiful son interested me very much, and I
am pleased to know that my necklace had
such a brilliant destiny. But do you not
think that the son of that woman, that Hen-
riette, was the victim of hereditary influence
in the choice of his vocation?”
He shuddered, feeling the point, and re-
plied:
“I am sure of it; and, moreover, his nat-
ural tendency to crime must have been very
strong or he would have been discouraged."
“Why so?”
“Because, as you must know, the majority


158
ARSÈNE LUPIN
of the diamonds were false. The only genu-
ine stones were the few purchased from the
English jeweler, the others having been sold,
one by one, to meet the cruel necessities of
life.”
“It was still the Queen's Necklace, mon-
sieur,” replied the countess, haughtily, "and
that is something that he, Henriette's son,
could not appreciate.”
“He was able to appreciate, madame, that,
whether true or false, the necklace was noth-
ing more than an object of parade, an emblem
of senseless pride."
The count made a threatening gesture, but
his wife stopped him.
"Monsieur,” she said, “if the man to
whom you allude has the slightest sense of
honor—".
She stopped, intimidated by Floriani's cool
manner.
“If that man has the slightest sense of
honor," he repeated.
She felt that she would not gain anything
by speaking to him in that manner, and in
spite of herself and in spite of her anger and
indignation, trembling as she was from
humiliated pride, she said to him, almost
politely:


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
159
“Monsieur, the legend says that Rétaux de
Villette, when in possession of the Queen's
Necklace, did not disfigure the mounting. He
understood that the diamonds were simply
the ornament, the accessory, and that the
mounting was the essential work, the crea-
tion of the artist, and he respected it accord-
ingly. Do you think that this man had the
same feeling?”
“I have no doubt that the mounting still
exists. The child respected it.”
“Well, monsieur, if you should happen to
meet him, will you tell him that he unjustly
keeps possession of a relic that is the prop-
erty and pride of a certain family, and that,
although the stones have been removed, the
Queen's necklace still belongs to the house of
Dreux-Soubise. It belongs to us as much as
our name or our honor."
The chevalier replied, simply:
“I shall tell him, madame.”
He bowed to her, saluted the count and the
other guests, and departed.
Four days later, the countess de Dreux
found upon the table in her chamber a red
leather case bearing the cardinal's arms. She
opened it, and found the Queen's Necklace.


160
ARSÈNE LUPIN
But as all things must, in the life of a man
who strives for unity and logic, converge
toward the same goal—and as a little adver-
tising never does any harm-on the following
day, the Echo de France published these sen-
sational lines:
“The Queen's Necklace, the famous his-
torical jewelry stolen from the family of
Dreux-Soubise, has been recovered by Arsène
Lupin, who hastened to restore it to its right-
ful owner. We cannot too highly commend
such a delicate and chivalrous act."


CHAPTER VI
THE SEVEN OF HEARTS
AM frequently asked this question:
“How did you make the acquaintance
CD of Arsène Lupin?"
My connection with Arsène Lupin was well
known. The details that I gather concerning
that mysterious man, the irrefutable facts
that I present, the new evidence that I pro-
duce, the interpretation that I place on cer-
tain acts of which the public has seen only
the exterior manifestations without being
able to discover the secret reasons or the in-
visible mechanism, all establish, if not an in-
timacy, at least amical relations and regular
confidences.
But how did I make his acquaintance? Why
was I selected to be his historiographer?
Why I, and not some one else?
The answer is simple: chance alone pre-
sided over my choice; my merit was not con-
sidered. It was chance that put me in his
way. It was by chance that I was participant
in one of his strangest and most mysterious


162
ARSÈNE LUPIN
adventures; and by chance that I was an
actor in a drama of which he was the mar-
velous stage director; an obscure and intri-
cate drama, bristling with such thrilling
events that I feel a certain embarrassment in
undertaking to describe it.
The first act takes place during that
memorable night of 22 June, of which so
much has already been said. And, for my
part, I attribute the anomalous conduct of
which I was guilty on that occasion to the un-
usual frame of mind in which I found myself
on my return home. I had dined with some
friends at the Cascade restaurant, and, the
entire evening, whilst we smoked and the or-
chestra played melancholy waltzes, we talked
only of crimes and thefts, and dark and
frightful intrigues. That is always a poor
overture to a night's sleep.
The Saint-Martins went away in an auto-
mobile. Jean Daspry—that delightful, heed-
less Daspry who, six months later, was killed
in such a tragic manner on the frontier of
Morocco_Jean Daspry and I returned on
foot through the dark, warm night. When
we arrived in front of the little house in
which I had lived for a year at Neuilly, on the
boulevard Maillot, he said to me:


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
163
was
“Are you never afraid?''
“What an idea!”.
“But this house is so isolated ... no
neighbors .... vacant lots ....Really, I
am not a coward, and yet— "
“Well, you are very cheering, I must say."
“Oh! I say that as I would say anything
else. The Saint-Martins have impressed me
with their stories of brigands and thieves.”
We shook hands and said good-night. I
took out my key and opened the door.
“Well, that is good," I murmured, “An-
toine has forgotten to light a candle.” .
Then I recalled the fact that Antoine was
away; I had given him a short leave of ab-
sence. Forthwith, I was disagreeably op-
pressed by the darkness and silence of the
night. I ascended the stairs on tiptoe, and
reached my room as quickly as possible; then,
contrary to my usual habit, I turned the key
and pushed the bolt.
The light of my candle restored my cour-
age. Yet I was careful to take my revolver
from its case-a large, powerful weapon-
and place it beside my bed. That precaution
completed my reassurance. I laid down and,
as usual, took a book from my night-table to
read myself to sleep. Then I received a great
11.


164
ARSÈNE LUPIN
surprise. Instead of the paper-knife with
which I had marked my place on the preced-
ing evening, I found an envelope, closed with
five seals of red wax. I seized it eagerly. It
was addressed to me, and marked: “Ur-
gent."
A letter! A letter addressed to me! Who
could have put it in that place? Nervously,
I tore open the envelope, and read:
"From the moment you open this letter,
whatever happens, whatever you may hear,
do not move, do not utter one cry. Otherwise
you are doomed.”
I am not a coward, and, quite as well as an-
other, I can face real danger, or smile at the
visionary perils of the imagination. But, let
me repeat, I was in an anomalous condition
of mind, with my nerves set on edge by the
events of the evening. Besides, was there
not, in my present situation, something
startlirg and mysterious, calculated to dis-
turb the most courageous spirit?
My feverish fingers clutched the sheet of
paper, and I read and re-read those threaten-
ing words: "Do not move, do not utter one
cry. Otherwise, you are doomed.”
"Nonsense!” I thought. “It is a joke; the
work of some cheerful idiot.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
165
I was about to laugh—a good loud laugh.
Who prevented me? What haunting fear
compressed my throat?
At least, I would blow out the candle. No,
I could not do it. “Do not move, or you are
doomed,” were the words he had written.
These auto-suggestions are frequently
more imperious than the most positive reali-
ties; but why should I struggle against them?
I had simply to close my eyes. I did so.
At that moment, I heard a slight noise, fol-
lowed by crackling sounds, proceeding from
a large room used by me as a library. A
small room or antechamber was situated be-
tween the library and my bedchamber.
The approach of an actual danger greatly
excited me, and I felt a desire to get up, seize
my revolver, and rush into the library. I did
not rise; I saw one of the curtains of the left
window move. There was no doubt about it:
the curtain had moved. It was still moving.
And I saw-oh! I saw quite distinctly-in the
narrow space between the curtains and the
window, a human form; a bulky mass that
prevented the curtains from hanging
straight. And it is equally certain that the
man saw me through the large meshes of the
curtain. Then, I understood the situation.


166
ARSÈNE LUPIN
His mission was to guard me while the others
carried away their booty. Should I rise and
seize my revolver? Impossible! He was
there! At the least movement, at the least
cry, I was doomed.
Then came a terrific noise that shook the
house; this was followed by lighter sounds,
two or three together, like those of a hammer
that rebounded. At least, that was the im-
pression formed in my confused brain. These
were mingled with other sounds, thus creat-
ing a veritable uproar which proved that the
intruders were not only bold, but felt them-
selves secure from interruption.
They were right. I did not move. Was it
cowardice? No, rather weakness, a total in-
ability to move any portion of my body, com-
bined with discretion; for why should I strug-
gle? Behind that man, there were ten others
who would come to his assistance. Should
I risk my life to save a few tapestries and
bibelots?
Throughout the night, my torture endured.
Insufferable torture, terrible anguish! The
noises had stopped, but I was in constant
fear of their renewal. And the man! The
man who was guarding me, weapon in hand.
My fearful eyes remained cast in his direc-


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
167
tion. And my heart beat! And a profuse
perspiration oozed from every pore of my
body!
Suddenly, I experienced an immense re-
lief; a milk-wagon, whose sound was familiar
to me, passed along the boulevard; and, at
the same time, I had an impression that the
light of a new day was trying to steal through
the closed window-blinds.
At last, daylight penetrated the room;
wther vehicles passed along the boulevard;
and all the phantoms of the night vanished.
Then I put one arm out of the bed, slowly
and cautiously. My eyes were fixed upon the
curtain, locating the exact spot at which I
must fire; I made an exact calculation of the
movements I must make; then, quickly, I
seized my revolver and fired.
I leaped from my bed with a cry of deliver-
ance, and rushed to the window. The bullet
had passed through the curtain and the win-
dow-glass, but it had not touched the man-
for the very good reason that there was none
there. Nobody! Thus, during the entire
night, I had been hypnotized by a fold of the
curtain. And, during that time, the malefac-
tors. . . . Furiously, with an enthusiasm that
nothing could have stopped, I turned the key,


168
ARSÈNE LUPIN
opened the door, crossed the antechamber,
opened another door, and rushed into the li-
brary. But amazement stopped me on the
threshold, panting, astounded, more aston-
ished than I had been by the absence of the
man. All the things that I supposed had been
stolen, furniture, books, pictures, old tapes-
tries, everything was in its proper place.
It was incredible. I could not believe my
eyes. Notwithstanding that uproar, those
noises of removal .... I made a tour, I in-
spected the walls, I made a mental inventory
of all the familiar objects. Nothing was
missing. And, what was more disconcerting,
there was no clue to the intruders, not a sign,
not a chair disturbed, not the trace of a foot-
step.
“Well! Well!” I said to myself, pressing
my hands on my bewildered head, “surely I
am not crazy! I heard something!”
Inch by inch, I made a careful examination
of the room. It was in vain. Unless I could
consider this as a discovery: Under a small
Persian rug, I found a card-an ordinary
playing-card. It was the seven of hearts; it
was like any other seven of hearts in French
playing-cards, with this slight but curious
exception: The extreme point of each of the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
169
seven red spots or hearts was pierced by a
hole, round and regular as if made with the
point of an awl.
Nothing more. A card and a letter found
in a book. But was not that sufficient to af-
firm that I had not been the plaything of a
dream?
Throughout the day, I continued my
searches in the library. It was a large room,
much too large for the requirements of such
a house, and the decoration of which attested
the bizarre taste of its founder. The floor
was a mosaic of multicolored stones, formed
into large symmetrical designs. The walls
were covered with a similar mosaic, arranged
in panels, Pompeiian allegories, Byzantine
compositions, frescoes of the Middle Ages.
A Bacchus bestriding a cask. An emperor
wearing a gold crown, a flowing beard, and
holding a sword in his right hand.
Quite high, after the style of an artist's
studio, there was a large window—the only
one in the room. That window being always
open at night, it was probable that the men
had entered through it, by the aid of a ladder.
But, again, there was no evidence. The bot-
tom of the ladder would have left some marks


170
ARSÈNE LUPIN
in the soft earth beneath the window; but
there were none. Nor were there any traces
of footsteps in any part of the yard.
I had no idea of informing the police, be-
cause the facts that I had before me were so
absurd and inconsistent. They would laugh
at me. However, as I was then a reporter on
the staff of the Gil Blas, I wrote a lengthy ac-
count of my adventure and it was published
in that paper on the second day thereafter.
The article attracted some attention, but no
one took it seriously. They regarded it as a
work of fiction rather than a story of real
life. The Saint-Martins rallied me. But Das-
pry, who took an interest in such matters,
came to see me, made a study of the affair,
but reached no conclusion.
A few mornings later, the door-bell rang,
and Antoine came to inform me that a gentle-
man desired to see me. He would not give
his name. I directed Antoine to show him
up. He was a man about forty years of age
with a very dark complexion, lively features,
and whose correct dress, slightly frayed, pro-
claimed a taste that contrasted strangely with
his rather vulgar manners. Without any pre-
amble, he said to me—in a rough voice that


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
171
confirmed my suspicion as to his social posi-
tion:
“Monsieur, whilst in a café, I picked up a
copy of the Gil Blas, and read your article.
It interested me very much.
"Thank you."
“And here I am."
66 Ah!"
“Yes, to talk to you. Are all the facts re-
lated by you quite correct?”
“Absolutely so."
"Well, in that case, I can, perhaps, give
you some information.”
“Very well; proceed.”.
“No, not yet. First, I must be sure that
the facts are exactly as you have related
them."
“I have given you my word. What further
proof do you want?”
“I must remain alone in this room."
"I do not understand," I said, with sur-
prise.
“It's an idea that occurred to me when
reading your article. Certain details estab-
lish an extraordinary coincidence with an-
other case that came under my notice. If I
am mistaken, I shall say nothing more. And


172
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the only means of ascertaining the truth is
by my remaining in the room alone."
What was at the bottom of this proposi-
tion? Later, I recalled that the man was ex-
ceedingly nervous; but, at the time, although
somewhat astonished, I found nothing par-
ticularly abnormal about the man or the re-
quest he had made. Moreover, my curiosity
was aroused; so I replied:
“Very well. How much time do you re-
quire?"
“Oh! three minutes-not longer. Three
minutes, from now, I will rejoin you."
I left the room, and went downstairs. I
took out my watch. One minute passed. Two
minutes. Why did I feel so depressed? Why
did those moments appear so solemn and
weird? Two minutes and a half. ... Two
minutes and three quarters. Then I heard a
pistol shot.
I bounded up the stairs and entered the
room. A cry of horror escaped me. In the
middle of the room, the man was lying on his
left side, motionless. Blood was flowing from
a wound in his forehead. Near his hand was
a revolver, still smoking.
But, in addition to this frightful spectacle,
my attention was attracted by another object.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
173
At two feet from the body, upon the floor, I
saw a playing-card. It was the seven of
hearts. I picked it up. The lower extremity
of each of the seven spots was pierced with
a small round hole.
A half-hour later, the commissary of po-
lice arrived, then the coroner and the chief
of the Sûreté, Mon. Dudouis. I had been
careful not to touch the corpse. The prelim-
inary inquiry was very brief, and disclosed
nothing. There were no papers in the pock-
ets of the deceased; no name upon his clothes;
no initial upon his linen; nothing to give any
clue to his identity. The room was in the
same perfect order as before. The furniture
had not been disturbed. Yet this man had
not come to my house solely for the purpose
of killing himself, or because he considered
my place the most convenient one for his sui-
cide! There must have been a motive for his
act of despair, and that motive was, no doubt,
the result of some new fact ascertained by
him during the three minutes that he was
alone.
What was that fact? What had he seen?
What frightful secret had been revealed to
him? There was no answer to these questions.


174
ARSÈNE LUPIN
But, at the last moment, an incident oc-
curred that appeared to us of considerable
importance. As two policemen were raising
the body to place it on a stretcher, the left
hand being thus disturbed, a crumpled card
fell from it. The card bore these words:
“Georges Andermatt, 37 Rue de Berry.”
What did that mean? Georges Andermatt
was a rich banker in Paris, the founder and
president of the Metal Exchange which had
given such an impulse to the metallic indus-
tries in France. He lived in princely style;
was the possessor of numerous automobiles,
coaches, and an expensive racing-stable. His
social affairs were very select, and Madame
Andermatt was noted for her grace and
beauty.
“Can that be the man's name?” I asked.
The chief of the Sûreté leaned over him.
"It is not he. Mon. Andermatt is a thin
man, and slightly grey."
“But why this card?”.
"Have you a telephone, monsieur?”.
“Yes, in the vestibule. Come with me.”
He looked in the directory, and then asked
for number 415.21.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
175
“Is Mon. Andermatt at home? ....
Please tell him that Mon. Dudouis wishes him
to come at once to 102 Boulevard Maillot.
Very important.”
Twenty minutes later, Mon. Andermatt ar-
rived in his automobile. After the circum-
stances had been explained to him, he was
taken in to see the corpse. He displayed con-
siderable emotion, and spoke, in a low tone,
and apparently unwillingly:
“Etienne Varin,” he said.
“You know him?"
“No .... or, at least, yes .... by
sight only. His brother. ...
“Ah! he has a brother?”.
“Yes, Alfred Varin. He came to see me
once on some matter of business. ... I
forget what it was.”
"Where does he live?"
"The two brothers live together—rue de
Provence, I think.”
“Do you know any reason why he should
commit suicide?”
“None."
“He held a card in his hand. It was your
card with your address.”
“I do not understand that. It must have


_
___
_
_
176
ARSÈNE LUPIN
been there by some chance that will be dis-
closed by the investigation.”
A very strange chance, I thought; and I
felt that the others entertained the same im-
pression.
I discovered the same impression in the
papers next day, and amongst all my friends
with whom I discussed the affair. Amid the
mysteries that enveloped it, after the double
discovery of the seven of hearts pierced with
seven holes, after the two inscrutable events
that had happened in my house, that visiting
card promised to throw some light on the af-
fair. Through it, the truth may be revealed.
But, contrary to our expectations, Mon. An-
dermatt furnished no explanation. He said:
“I have told you all I know. What more
can I do? I am greatly surprised that my
card should be found in such a place, and I
sincerely hope the point will be cleared up."
It was not. The official investigation estab-
lished that the Varin brothers were of Swiss
origin, had led a shifting life under various
names, frequenting gambling resorts, associ-
ating with a band of foreigners who had been
dispersed by the police after a series of rob-
beries in which their participation was estab-
lished only by their flight. At number 24 rue


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
177
de Provence, where the Varin brothers had
lived six years before, no one knew what had
become of them.
I confess that, for my part, the case seemed
to me so complicated and so mysterious that
I did not think the problem would ever be
solved, so I concluded to waste no more time
upon it. But Jean Daspry, whom I fre-
quently met at that period, became more and
more interested in it each day. It was he
who pointed out to me that item from a for-
eign newspaper which was reproduced and
commented upon by the entire press. It was
as follows:
“The first trial of a new model of sub-
marine boat, which is expected to revolution-
ize naval warfare, will be given in presence
of the Emperor at a place that will be kept
secret until the last minute. An indiscretion
has revealed its name; it is called The Seven-
of-Hearts."
The Seven-of-Hearts! That presented a
new problem. Could a connection be estab-
lished between the name of the sub-marine
and the incidents which we have related ?
But a connection of what nature? What had
happened here could have no possible relation
with the sub-marine.


178
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“What do you know about it?” said
Daspry to me. "The most diverse effects
often proceed from the same cause.”
Two days later, the following foreign news
item was received and published:
"It is said that the plans of the new sub-
marine Seven-of-Hearts were prepared by
French engineers, who, having sought, in
vain, the support of their compatriots, sub-
sequently entered into negotiations with the
British Admiralty, without success."
I do not wish to give undue publicity to
certain delicate matters which once provoked
considerable excitement. Yet, since all dan-
ger of injury therefrom has now come to an
end, I must speak of the article that appeared
in the Echo de France, which aroused so
much comment at that time, and which threw
considerable light upon the mystery of the
Seven-of-Hearts. This is the article as it was
published over the signature of Salvator:
“THE AFFAIR OF THE SEVEN-OF-HEARTS.
“A CORNER OF THE VEIL RAISED.
“We will be brief. Ten years ago, a young
mining engineer, Louis Lacombe, wishing to
devote his time and fortune to certain studies,
resigned his position he then held, and rented


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
179
number 102 boulevard Maillot, a small house
that had been recently built and decorated
for an Italian count. Through the agency of
the Varin brothers of Lausanne, one of whom
assisted in the preliminary experiments and
the other acted as financial agent, the young
engineer was introduced to Georges Ander-
matt, the founder of the Metal Exchange.
“After several interviews, he succeeded in
interesting the banker in a sub-marine boat
on which he was working, and it was agreed
that as soon as the invention was perfected,
Mon. Andermatt would use his influence with
the Minister of Marine to obtain a series of
trials under the direction of the government.
For two years, Louis Lacombe was a fre-
quent visitor at Andermatt’s house, and he
submitted to the banker the various improve-
ments he made upon his original plans, until
one day, being satisfied with the perfection
of his work, he asked Mon. Andermatt to com-
municate with the Minister of Marine. That
day, Louis Lacombe dined at Mon. Ander-
matt’s house. He left there about half-past
eleven at night. He has not been seen since.
“A perusal of the newspapers of that date
will show that the young man's family caused
every possible inquiry to be made, but with-


180
ARSÈNE LUPIN
out success; and it was the general opinion
that Louis Lacombe—who was known as an
original and visionary youth-had quietly
left for parts unknown.
“Let us accept that theory—improbable,
though it be,--and let us consider another
question, which is a most important one for
our country: What has become of the plans
of the sub-marine? Did Louis Lacombe carry
they away? Are they destroyed?
“After making a thorough investigation,
we are able to assert, positively, that the
plans are in existence, and are now in the
possession of the two brothers Varin. How
did they acquire such possession? That is
a question not yet determined; nor do we
know why they have not tried to sell them at
an earlier date. Did they fear that their title
to them would be called in question? If so,
they have lost that fear, and we can announce
definitely, that the plans of Louis Lacombe
are now the property of a foreign power,
and we are in a position to publish the corre-
spondence that passed between the Varin
brothers and the representative of that
power. The Seven-of-Hearts invented by
Louis Lacombe has been actually constructed
by our neighbor.


_
_
_
____
GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
181
“Will the invention fulfil the optimistic
expectations of those who were concerned in
that treacherous act?”
And a post-script adds:
“Later.-Our special correspondent in-
forms us that the preliminary trial of the
Seven-of-Hearts has not been satisfactory.
It is quite likely that the plans sold and de-
livered by the Varin brothers did not include
the final document carried by Louis Lacombe
to Mon. Andermatt on the day of his disap-
pearance, a document that was indispensable
to a thorough understanding of the invention.
It contained a summary of the final conclu-
sions of the inventor, and estimates and fig-
ures not contained in the other papers. With-
out this document, the plans are incomplete;
on the other hand, without the plans, the
document is worthless.
“Now is the time to act and recover what
belongs to us. It may be a difficult matter,
but we rely upon the assistance of Mon.
Andermatt. It will be to his interest to ex-
plain his conduct which has hitherto been so
strange and inscrutable. He will explain not
only why he concealed these facts at the time
of the suicide of Etienne Varin, but also why
he has never revealed the disappearance of


182
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the paper-a fact well known to him. He
will tell why, during the last six years, he
paid spies to watch the movements of the
Varin brothers. We expect from him, not
only words, but acts. And at once. Other-
wise "
The threat was plainly expressed. But of
what did it consist? What whip was Sal-
vator, the anonymous writer of the article,
holding over the head of Mon. Andermatt?
An army of reporters attacked the banker,
and ten interviewers announced the scornful
manner in which they were treated. There-
upon, the Echo de France announced its
position in these words:
“Whether Mon. Andermatt is willing or
not, he will be, henceforth, our collaborator
in the work we have undertaken.”
*
*
*
*
*
Daspry and I were dining together on the
day on which that announcement appeared.
That evening, with the newspapers spread
over my table, we discussed the affair and
examined it from every point of view with
that exasperation that a person feels when
walking in the dark and finding himself con-
stantly falling over the same obstacles. Sud-
denly, without any warning whatever, the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
183
CE
door opened and a lady entered. Her face
was hidden behind a thick veil. I rose at
once and approached her.
“Is it you, monsieur, who lives here?" she
asked.
“Yes, madame, but I do not understand"
“The gate was not locked," she explained.
“But the vestibule door?"
She did not reply, and it occurred to me
that she had used the servants' entrance.
How did she know the way? Then there was
a silence that was quite embarrassing. She
looked at Daspry, and I was obliged to intro-
duce him. I asked her to be seated and ex-
plain the object of her visit. She raised her
veil, and I saw that she was a brunette with
regular features and, though not handsome,
she was attractive-principally, on account
of her sad, dark eyes.
“I am Madame Andermatt,” she said.
“Madame Andermatt!" I repeated, with
astonishment.
After a brief pause, she continued with a
voice and manner that were quite easy and
natural:
"I have come to see you about that affair
ow. I thought I might be able to
obtain some information "


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
195
:
“Yes. He was to dine with us, two days
later."
“How do you explain his disappearance?”
“I cannot explain it.”
“And Mon. Andermatt?''
“I do not know."
“Yet the article published in the Echo de
France indicates-
“Yes, that the Varin brothers had some-
thing to do with his disappearance.”
“Is that your opinion?"
“Yes."
“On what do you base your opinion?”
“When he left our house, Louis Lacombe
carried a satchel containing all the papers
relating to his invention. Two days later,
my husband, in a conversation with one of
the Varin brothers, learned that the papers
were in their possession."
“And he did not denounce them?”
“No."
“Why not?"
“Because there was something else in the
satchel-something besides the papers of
Louis Lacombe.”
“What was it?"
She hesitated; was on the point of speak-


186
ARSÈNE LUPIN
ing, but, finally, remained silent. Daspry
continued:
“I presume that is why your husband has
kept a close watch over their movements in-
stead of informing the police. He hoped to
recover the papers and, at the same time,
that compromising article which has enabled
the two brothers to hold over him threats of
exposure and blackmail.”
“Over him, and over me."
“Ah! over you, also ?”
“Over me, in particular."
She uttered the last words in a hollow
voice. Daspry observed it; he paced to and
fro for a moment, then, turning to her, asked:
“Had you written to Louis Lacombe?”
“Of course. My husband had business
with him "
“Apart from those business letters, had
you written to Louis Lacombe .... other
letters? Excuse my insistence, but it is abso-
lutely necessary that I should know the truth.
Did you write other letters?'.
“Yes,” she replied, blushing.
“And those letters came into the posses-
sion of the Varin brothers ?”
“Yes."
“Does Mon. Andermatt know it?"


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
187
“He has not seen them, but Alfred Varin
has told him of their existence and threat-
ened to publish them if my husband should
take any steps against him. My husband was
afraid .... of a scandal.”
“But he has tried to recover the letters?"
“I think so; but I do not know. You see,
after that last interview with Alfred Varin,
and after some harsh words between me and
my husband in which he called me to ac-
count-we live as strangers.”
“In that case, as you have nothing to lose,
what do you fear?”
“I may be indifferent to him now, but I
am the woman that he has loved, the one he
would still love-oh! I am quite sure of
that,” she murmured, in a fervent voice, “he
would still love me if he had not got hold
of those cursed letters "
"What! Did he succeed? .... But the
two brothers still defied him?”.
“Yes, and they boasted of having a secure
hiding-place."
6.Well?"
“I believe my husband has discovered that
hiding-place."
“Ah! where was it?"
"Here.”
"


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
189
any way? Does he appear more gloomy,
more anxious?”
“No, I haven't noticed any change."
“And yet you think he has secured the let-
ters. Now, in my opinion, he has not got
those letters, and it was not he who came here
on the night of 22 June.”
“Who was it, then?”
“The mysterious individual who is manag-
ing this affair, who holds all the threads in
his hands, and whose invisible, but far-reach-
ing power we have felt from the beginning.
It was he and his friends who entered this
house on 22 June; it was he who discovered
the hiding-place of the papers; it was he who
left Mon. Andermatt's card; it is he who
now holds the correspondence and the evi-
dence of the treachery of the Varin
brothers.”
“Who is he?" I asked, impatiently.
“The man who writes letters to the Echo
de France .... Salvator! Have we not
convincing evidence of that fact? Does he
not mention in his letters certain details that
no one could know, except the man who had
thus discovered the secrets of the two
brothers?”
"Well, then,” stammered Madame Ander-


190
ARSÈNE LUPIN
matt, in great alarm,“he has my letters also,
and it is he who now threatens my husband.
Mon Dieu! What am I to do?”.
“Write to him,” declared Daspry. “Con-
fide in him without reserve. Tell him all you
know and all you may hereafter learn. Your
interest and his are the same. He is not
working against Mon. Andermatt, but against
Alfred Varin. Help him.”
“How?”
“Has your husband the document that
completes the plans of Louis Lacombe?”
“Yes."
"Tell that to Salvator, and, if possible,
procure the document for him. Write to him
at once. You risk nothing."
The advice was bold, dangerous even at
first sight, but Madame Andermatt had no
choice. Besides, as Daspry had said, she ran
no risk. If the unknown writer were an
enemy, that step would not aggravate the sit-
uation. If he were a stranger seeking to
accomplish a particular purpose, he would
attach to those letters only a secondary im-
portance. Whatever might happen, it was
the only solution offered to her, and she, in
her anxiety, was only too glad to act on it.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
191
She thanked us effusively, and promised to
keep us informed.
In fact, two days later, she sent us the
following letter that she had received from
Salvator:
“Have not found the letters, but I will get
them. Rest easy. I am watching every-
thing. S.”
I looked at the letter. It was in the same
handwriting as the note I found in my book
on the night of 22 June.
Daspry was right. Salvator was, indeed,
the originator of that affair.
We were beginning to see a little light
coming out of the darkness that surrounded
us, and an unexpected light was thrown on
certain points; but other points yet remained
obscure—for instance, the finding of the two
seven-of-hearts. Perhaps I was unnecessa-
rily concerned about those two cards whose
seven punctured spots had appeared to me
under such startling circumstances! Yet I
could not refrain from asking myself: What
rôle will they play in the drama? What im-
portance do they bear? What conclusion
must be drawn from the fact that the sub-
marine constructed from the plans of Louis


192
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Lacombe bore the name of Seven-of-Hearts?
Daspry gave little thought to the two
cards; he devoted all his attention to another
problem which he considered more urgent;
he was seeking the famous hiding-place.
“And who knows,” said he, “I may find
the letters that Salvator did not find—by in-
advertence, perhaps. It is improbable that
the Varin brothers would have removed from
a spot, which they deemed inacessible, the
weapon which was so valuable to them.”
And he continued to search. In a short
time, the large room held no more secrets
for him, so he extended his investigations to
the other rooms. He examined the interior
and the exterior, the stones of the foundation,
the bricks in the walls; he raised the slates
of the roof.
One day, he came with a pickaxe and a
spade, gave me the spade, kept the pickaxe,
pointed to the adjacent vacant lots, and said:
"Come.”
I followed him, but I lacked his enthusiasm.
He divided the vacant land into several sec-
tions which he examined in turn. At last,
in a corner, at the angle formed by the walls
of two neighboring proprietors, a small pile
of earth and gravel, covered with briers and


194
ARSÈNE LUPIN
haunted by skeletons that danced around me
and threw their bleeding hearts at my head.
Daspry was faithful to me. He came to
my house every day, and remained three or
four hours, which he spent in the large room,
ferreting, thumping, tapping.
“The letters are here, in this room,” he
said, from time to time, “they are here. I
will stake my life on it.”
On the morning of the third day I arose
feeble yet, but cured. A substantial break-
fast cheered me up. But a letter that I re-
ceived that afternoon contributed, more than
anything else, to my complete recovery, and
aroused in me a lively curiosity. This was
the letter:
“Monsieur,
“The drama, the first act of which trans-
pired on the night of 22 June, is now draw-
ing to a close. Force of circumstances com-
pel me to bring the two principal actors in
that drama face to face, and I wish that meet-
ing to take place in your house, if you will
be so kind as to give me the use of it for this
evening from nine o'clock to eleven. It will
be advisable to give your servant leave of
absence for the evening, and, perhaps, you


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
195
will be so kind as to leave the field open to
the two adversaries. You will remember that
when I visited your house on the night of 22
June, I took excellent care of your property.
I feel that I would do you an injustice if I
should doubt, for one moment, your absolute
discretion in this affair. Your devoted,
“SALVATOR.”
I was amused at the facetious tone of his
letter and also at the whimsical nature of his
request. There was a charming display of
confidence and candor in his language, and
nothing in the world could have induced me to
deceive him or repay his confidence with
ingratitude.
I gave my servant a theatre ticket, and he
left the house at eight o'clock. A few min-
utes later, Daspry arrived. I showed him
the letter.
"Well?'' said he.
"Well, I have left the garden gate un-
locked, so anyone can enter.''
“And you-are you going away?"
“Not at all. I intend to stay right here."
“But he asks you to go "
“But I am not going. I will be discreet,
but I am resolved to see what takes place."


196
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Ma foi!” exclaimed Daspry, laughing,
"you are right, and I shall stay with you.
I shouldn't like to miss it."
We were interrupted by the sound of the
door-bell.
“Here already?” said Daspry, "twenty
minutes ahead of time! Incredible!”.
I went to the door and ushered in the vis-
itor. It was Madame Andermatt. She was
faint and nervous, and in a stammering voice,
she ejaculated:
“My husband .... is coming .... he
has an appointment .... they intend to give
him the letters. ..."
“How do you know?” I asked.
“By chance. A message came for my hus-
band while we were at dinner. The servant
gave it to me by mistake. My husband
grabbed it quickly, but he was too late. I
had read it."
“You read it?"
“Yes. It was something like this: 'At
nine o'clock this evening, be at Boulevard
Maillot with the papers connected with the
affair. In exchange, the letters.' So, after
dinner, I hastened here."
“Unknown to your husband?”
“Yes.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
197
NE
“What do you think about it?" asked
Daspry, turning to me.
“I think as you do, that Mon. Andermatt
is one of the invited guests."
“Yes, but for what purpose ?”
"That is what we are going to find out.”
I led them to the large room. The three
of us could hide comfortably behind the vel-
vet chimney-mantle, and observe all that
should happen in the room. We seated our-
selves there, with Madame Andermatt in the
centre.
The clock struck nine. A few minutes
later, the garden gate creaked upon its hinges.
I confess I was greatly agitated. I was about
to learn the key to the mystery. The start-
ling events of the last few weeks were about
to be explained, and, under my eyes, the last
battle was going to be fought. Daspry seized
the hand of Madame Andermatt, and said to
her:
“Not a word, not a movement! Whatever
you may see or hear, keep quiet!”.
Some one entered. It was Alfred Varin.
I recognized him at once, owing to the close
resemblance he bore to his brother Etienne.
There was the same slouching gait; the same
cadaverous face covered with a black beard.


198
ARSÈNE LUPIN
He entered with the nervous air of a man
who is accustomed to fear the presence of
traps and ambushes; who scents and avoids
them. He glanced about the room, and I had
the impression that the chimney, masked with
a velvet portière, did not please him. He
took three steps in our direction, when some-
thing caused him to turn and walk toward
the old mosaic king, with the flowing beard
and flamboyant sword, which he examined
minutely, mounting on a chair and following
with his finger the outlines of the shoulders
and head and feeling certain parts of the face.
Suddenly, he leaped from the chair and
walked away from it. He had heard the
sound of approaching footsteps. Mon.
Andermatt appeared at the door.
“You! You!” exclaimed the banker.
"Was it you who brought me here?”
“I? By no means," protested Varin, in
a rough, jerky voice that reminded me of his
brother, “on the contrary, it was your letter
that brought me here."
“My letter?"
“A letter signed by you, in which you
offered— "
“I never wrote to you,” declared Mon.
Andermatt.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
199
“You did not write to me!”
Instinctively, Varin was put on his guard,
not against the banker, but against the un-
known enemy who had drawn him into this
trap. A second time, he looked in our direc-
tion, then walked toward the door. But Mon.
Andermatt barred his passage.
“Well, where are you going, Varin?”
“There is something about this affair I
don't like. I am going home. Good even-
ing."
“One moment!”
“No need of that, Mon. Andermatt. I have
nothing to say to you."
“But I have something to say to you, and
this is a good time to say it."
“Let me pass.”
"No, you will not pass."
Varin recoiled before the resolute attitude
of the banker, as he muttered:
“Well, then, be quick about it.”
One thing astonished me; and I have no
doubt my two companions experienced a simi-
·lar feeling. Why was Salvator not there?
Was he not a necessary party at this confer-
ence? Or was he satisfied to let these two
adversaries fight it out between themselves?
At all events, his absence was a great disap-


200
ARSÈNE LUPIN
pointment, although it did not detract from
the dramatic strength of the situation.
After a moment, Mon. Andermatt ap-
proached Varin and, face to face, eye to eye,
said:
“Now, after all these years and when you
have nothing more to fear, you can answer
me candidly: What have you done with Louis
Lacombe?”
“What a question! As if I knew anything
about him!”
“You do know! You and your brother
were his constant companions, almost lived
with him in this very house. You knew all
about his plans and his work. And the last
night I ever saw Louis Lacombe, when I
parted with him at my door, I saw two men
slinking away in the shadows of the trees.
That, I am ready to swear to.".
"Well, what has that to do with me?".
“The two men were you and your
brother."
"Prove it."
“The best proof is that, two days later, you
yourself showed me the papers and the plans
that belonged to Lacombe and offered to sell
them. How did those papers come into your
possession?”
“I have already told you, Mon. Andermatt,


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
201
that we found them on Louis Lacombe's ta-
ble, the morning after his disappearance."
“That is a lie !!!
“Prove it.”
“The law will prove it."
“Why did you not appeal to the law?”
“Why? Ah! Why—," stammered the
banker, with a slight display of emotion.
“You know very well, Mon. Andermatt, if
you had had the least certainty of our guilt,
our little threat would not have stopped
you."
“What threat? Those letters? Do you
suppose I ever gave those letters a moment's
thought?”
“If you did not care for the letters, why
did you offer me thousands of francs for
their return? And why did you have my
brother and me tracked like wild beasts?”
“To recover the plans.”
“Nonsense! You wanted the letters. You
knew that as soon as you had the letters in
your possession, you could denounce us. Oh!
no, I couldn't part with them!”
He laughed heartily, but stopped suddenly,
and said:
“But, enough of this! We are merely go-
ing over the old ground. We make no head-


202
ARSÈNE LUPIN
way. We had better let things stand as they
are.”
“We will not let them stand as they are,”
said the banker, “and since you have referred
to the letters, let me tell you that you will not
leave this house until you deliver up those
letters.”
“I shall go when I please.”
“You will not."
“Be careful, Mon. Andermatt. I warn
you-
"
“I say, you shall not go.?!
“We will see about that,” cried Varin, in
such a rage that Madame Andermatt could
not suppress a cry of fear. Varin must have
heard it, for he now tried to force his way
out. Mon. Andermatt pushed him back. Then
I saw him put his hand into his coat pocket.
“For the last time, let me pass,” he cried.
“The letters, first!”.
Varin drew a revolver and, pointing it at
Mon. Andermatt, said:
“Yes or no?"
The banker stooped quickly. There was
the sound of a pistol-shot. The weapon fell
from Varin's hand. I was amazed. The shot
was fired close to me. It was Daspry who
had fired it at Varin, causing him to drop the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
205
thousand francs-not a sou more.”
“Ten thousand. Not a sou less."
“Agreed,” said Daspry, who now turned
to Mon. Andermatt, and said:
“Monsieur will kindly sign a check for the
amount.”
“But .... I haven't got ".
“Your check-book? Here it is.”
Astounded, Mon. Andermatt examined the
check-book that Daspry had handed to him.
“It is mine," he gasped. “How does that
happen?"
“No idle words, monsieur, if you please.
You have merely to sign.”
The banker took out his fountain pen, filled
out the check and signed it. Varin held out
his hand for it.
“Put down your hand,” said Daspry,
"there is something more.” Then, to the
banker, he said: “You asked for some let-
ters, did you not?”
“Yes, a package of letters."
“Where are they, Varin?”
“I haven't got them.”
.66Where are they, Varin?"
"I don't know. My brother had charge of
them."


206
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“They are hidden in this room.”
“In that case, you know where they are.”
“How should I know?".
"Was it not you who found the hiding-
place? You appear to be as well informed
....as Salvator.”
“The letters are not in the hiding-place.”
"They are."
“Open it."
Varin looked at him, defiantly. Were not
Daspry and Salvator the same person?
Everything pointed to that conclusion. If
so, Varin risked nothing in disclosing a hid-
ing-place already known.
“Open it,” repeated Daspry.
“I have not got the seven of hearts."
“Yes, here it is,” said Daspry, handing
him the iron plate. Varin recoiled in terror,
and cried:
"No, no, I will not."
“Never mind,” replied Daspry, as he
walked toward the bearded king, climbed on
a chair and applied the seven of hearts to
the lower part of the sword in such a manner
that the edges of the iron plate coincided
exactly with the two edges of the sword.
Then, with the assistance of an awl which
he introduced alternately into each of the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
207
_
seven holes, he pressed upon seven of the lit-
tle mosaic stones. As he pressed upon the
seventh one, a clicking sound was heard, and
the entire bust of the King turned upon a
pivot, disclosing a large opening lined with
steel. It was really a fire-proof safe.
“You can see, Varin, the safe is empty.”
“So I see. Then, my brother has taken
out the letters."
Daspry stepped down from the chair, ap-
proached Varin, and said:
“Now, no more nonsense with me. There
is another hiding-place. Where is it?"
“There is none."
“Is it money you want? How much?
“Ten thousand.”
“Monsieur Andermatt, are those letters
worth ten thousand francs to you?”
“Yes," said the banker, firmly.
Varin closed the safe, took the seven of
hearts and placed it again on the sword at
the same spot. He thrust the awl into each
of the seven holes. There was the same click-
ing sound, but this time, strange to relate, it
was only a portion of the safe that revolved
on the pivot, disclosing quite a small safe
that was built within the door of the larger
one. The packet of letters was there, tied


208
ARSÈNE LUPIN
with a tape, and sealed. Varin handed the
packet to Daspry. The latter turned to the
banker, and asked:
“Is the check ready, Monsieur Ander-
matt?"
“Yes."
“And you have also the last document that
you received from Louis Lacombe-the one
that completes the plans of the sub-marine?"
“Yes."
The exchange was made. Daspry pocketed
the document and the checks, and offered the
packet of letters to Mon. Andermatt.
“This is what you wanted, Monsieur."
The banker hesitated a moment, as if he
were afraid to touch those cursed letters that
he had sought so eagerly. Then, with a
nervous movement, he took them. Close to
me, I heard a moan. I grasped Madame
Andermatt's hand. It was cold.
“I believe, monsieur,” said Daspry to the
banker, “that our business is ended. Oh!
no thanks. It was only by a mere chance that
I have been able to do you a good turn. Good-
night."
Mon. Andermatt retired. He carried with
him the letters written by his wife to Louis
Lacombe.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
209
“Marvelous !” exclaimed Daspry, de-
lighted. “Everything is coming our way.
Now, we have only to close our little affair,
comrade. You have the papers?”
“Here they are all of them.”
Daspry examined them carefully, and then
placed them in his pocket.
“Quite right. You have kept your word,”
he said.
“But- "
“But what?”
"The two checks? The money?" said
Varin, eagerly.
“Well, you have a great deal of assurance,
my man. How dare you ask such a thing?"
“I ask only what is due me.”
“Can you ask pay for returning papers
that you stole? Well, I think not!”
Varin was beside himself. He trembled
with rage; his eyes were bloodshot.
"The money .... the twenty thousand
.." he stammered.
“Impossible! I need it myself.”
“The money!”
“Come, be reasonable, and don't get ex-
cited. It won't do you any good.”.
Daspry seized his arm so forcibly, that


210
ARSÈNE LUPIN
Varin uttered a cry of pain. Daspry contin-
ued:
“Now, you can go. The air will do you
good. Perhaps you want me to show you the
way. Ah! yes, we will go together to the va-
cant lot near here, and I will show you a lit-
tle mound of earth and stones and under
it- "
“That is false! That is false!"
“Oh! no, it is true. That little iron plate
with the seven spots on it came from there.
Louis Lacombe always carried it, and you
buried it with the body-and with some other
things that will prove very interesting to a
judge and jury."
Varin covered his face with his hands, and
muttered:
"All right, I am beaten. Say no more. But
I want to ask you one question. I should like
to know---"
“What is it?"
“Was there a little casket in the large
safe?"
“Yes."
“Was it there on the night of 22 June?"
“Yes.”
"What did it contain?"
“Everything that the Varin brothers had


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
211
put in it-a very pretty collection of dia-
monds and pearls picked up here and there
by the said brothers.”
“And did you take it?”
“Of course I did. Do you blame me?”
“I understand. ... it was the disappear-
ance of that casket that caused my brother to
kill himself.”
“Probably. The disappearance of your
correspondence was not a sufficient motive.
But the disappearance of the casket. . . . Is
that all you wish to ask me?”.
“One thing more: your name?”
“You ask that with an idea of seeking re-
venge."
“Parbleu! The tables may be turned. To-
day, you are on top. To-morrow "
“It will be you."
“I hope so. Your name?"
“Arsène Lupin.”
"Arsène Lupin!”
The man staggered, as though stunned by
a heavy blow. Those two words had deprived
him of all hope.
Daspry laughed, and said:
“Ah! did you imagine that a Monsieur
Durand or Dupont could manage an affair
like this? No, it required the skill and cun-


212
ARSÈNE LUPIN
now
ning of Arsène Lupin. And now that you
have my name, go and prepare your revenge.
Arsène Lupin will wait for you."
Then he pushed the bewildered Varin
through the door.
“Daspry! Daspry!" I cried, pushing aside
the curtain. He ran to me.
“What? What's the matter?"
“Madame Andermatt is ill."
He hastened to her, caused her to inhale
some salts, and, while caring for her, ques-
tioned me:
“Well, what did it?"
“The letters of Louis Lacombe that you
gave to her husband.”
He struck his forehead and said:
“Did she think that I could do such a
thing!... But, of course she would. Imbe-
cile that I am!”
Madame Andermatt was now revived. Das-
pry took from his pocket a small package ex-
actly similar to the one that Mon. Andermatt
had carried away.
“Here are your letters, Madame. These
are the genuine letters.”
“But .... the others?”
“The others are the same, rewritten by me
and carefully worded. Your husband will


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
213
not find anything objectionable in them, and
will never suspect the substitution since they
were taken from the safe in his presence.”
“But the handwriting- "
“There is no handwriting that cannot be
imitated.”
She thanked him in the same words she
might have used to a man in her own social
circle, so I concluded she had not witnessed
the final scene between Varin and Arsène
Lupin. But the surprising revelation caused
me considerable embarrassment. Lupin! My
club companion was none other than Arsène
Lupin. I could not realize it. But he said,
quite at his ease:
“You can say farewell to Jean Daspry.”
"Ah!”
“Yes, Jean Daspry is going on a long jour-
ney. I shall send him to Morocco. There, he
may find a death worthy of him. I may say
that that is his expectation.”
“But Arsène Lupin will remain?''
“Oh! Decidedly. Arsène Lupin is simply
at the threshold of his career, and he ex-
pects- "
I was impelled by curiosity to interrupt
him, and, leading him away from the hearing
of Madame Andermatt, I asked:
ney
find a
respecta


214
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“Did you discover the smaller safe your-
self—the one that held the letters?”
“Yes, after a great deal of trouble. I
found it yesterday afternoon while you were
asleep. And yet, God knows it was simple
enough! But the simplest things are the ones
that usually escape our notice." Then, show-
ing me the seven-of-hearts, he added: “Of
course I had guessed that, in order to open
the larger safe, this card must be placed on
the sword of the mosaic king.
“How did you guess that?”
“Quite easily. Through private informa-
tion, I knew that fact when I came here on
the evening of 22 June
“After you left me "
“Yes, after turning the subject of our con-
versation to stories of crime and robbery
which were sure to reduce you to such a
nervous condition that you would not leave
your bed, but would allow me to complete my
search uninterrupted.”
“The scheme worked perfectly."
"Well, I knew when I came here that there
was a casket concealed in a safe with a secret
lock, and that the seven of hearts was the key
to that lock. I had merely to place the card
upon the spot that was obviously intended


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
217
scription list for the purpose of presenting
to the nation the first submarine constructed
from those plans. His subscription is twenty
thousand francs.”
“Twenty thousand francs! The checks of
Mon. Andermatt?" I exclaimed, when he had
given me the paper to read.
"Exactly. It was quite right that Varin
should redeem his treachery.”
And that is how I made the acquaintance
of Arsène Lupin. That is how I learned that
Jean Daspry, a member of my club, was none
other than Arsène Lupin, gentleman-thief.
That is how I formed very agreeable ties of
friendship with that famous man, and, thanks
to the confidence with which he honored me,
how I became his very humble and faithful
historiographer.


o_
tea m


CHAPTER VII
MADAME IMBERT'S SAFE
P
T three o'clock in the morning, there
were still half-a-dozen carriages in
front of one of those small houses
which form the only side of the boulevard
Berthier. The door of that house opened,
and a number of guests, male and female,
emerged. The majority of them entered their
carriages and were quickly driven away, leav-
ing behind only two men who walked down
the boulevard together as far as the rue de
Courcelles, where they parted, as one of them
lived in that street. The other decided to
return on foot as far as the Porte-Maillot.
It was a beautiful winter's night, clear and
cold; a night on which a brisk walk is agree-
able and refreshing.
But, at the end of a few minutes, he had
the disagreeable impression that he was being
followed. Turning around, he saw a man
skulking amongst the trees. He was not a
coward; yet he felt it advisable to increase
his speed. Then his pursuer commenced to


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
not forget it. I do not wish to alarm my
wife at this time of night, but, to-morrow,
she will be pleased to thank you personally.
Come and breakfast with us. My name is
Ludovic Imbert. May I ask yours?”
“Certainly, monsieur.”
And he handed Mon. Imbert a card bearing
the name: “Arsène Lupin.”
At that time, Arsène Lupin did not enjoy
the celebrity which the Cahorn affair, his
escape from the Prison de la Santé, and other
brilliant exploits, afterwards gained for him.
He had not even used the name of Arsène
Lupin. The name was specially invented to
designate the rescuer of Mon. Imbert; that
is to say, it was in that affair that Arsène
Lupin was baptized. Fully armed and ready
for the fray, it is true, but lacking the re-
sources and authority which command suc-
cess, Arsène Lupin was then merely an ap-
prentice in a profession wherein he soon be-
came a master.
With what a thrill of joy he recalled the
invitation he had received that night! At
last, he had reached his goal! At last, he had
undertaken a task worthy of his strength and


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
223
There was a brief silence. Then the other
said:
“But you are not going to throw up the
scheme?"
“My dear boy,” said Lupin, “when I ar-
ranged that little case of assault and battery,
when I took the trouble at three o'clock in
the morning, to rap you with my cane and tap
you with my boot at the risk of injuring my
only friend, it was not my intention to forego
the advantages to be gained from a rescue
so well arranged and executed. Oh! no, not
at all."
"But the strange rumors we hear about
their fortune?”
“Never mind about that. For six months,
I have worked on this affair, investigated it,
studied it, questioned the servants, the
money-lenders and men of straw; for six
months, I have shadowed the husband and
wife. Consequently, I know what I am talk-
ing about. Whether the fortune came to them
from old Brawford, as they pretend, or from
some other source, I do not care. I know
that it is a reality; that it exists. And some
day it will be mine." ;
“Bigre! one hundred millions!”
“Let us say ten, or even five—that is


224
ARSÈNE LUPIN
enough! They have a safe full of bonds, and
there will be the devil to pay if I can't get
my hands on them.”
The tram-car stopped at the Place de
l'Etoile. The man whispered to Lupin:
“What am I to do now?"
“Nothing, at present. You will hear from
me. There is no hurry."
Five minutes later, Arsène Lupin was
ascending the magnificent flight of stairs in
the Imbert mansion, and Mon. Imbert intro-
duced him to his wife. Madame Gervaise
Imbert was a short plump woman, and very
talkative. She gave Lupin a cordial welcome.
“I desired that we should be alone to en-
tertain our saviour,” she said.
From the outset, they treated “our sav-
iour" as an old and valued friend. By the
time dessert was served, their friendship was
well cemented, and private confidences were
being exchanged. Arsène related the story
of his life, the life of his father as a magis-
trate, the sorrows of his childhood, and his
present difficulties. Gervaise, in turn, spoke
of her youth, her marriage, the kindness of
the aged Brawford, the hundred millions that
she had inherited, the obstacles that pre-
vented her from obtaining the enjoyment of


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
225
_
_
her inheritance, the moneys she had been
obliged to borrow at an exorbitant rate of in-
terest, her endless contentions with Braw-
ford's nephews, and the litigation! the in-
junctions! in fact, everything!
“Just think of it, Monsieur Lupin, the
bonds are there, in my husband's office, and
if we detach a single coupon, we lose every-
thing! They are there, in our safe, and we
dare not touch them.”
Monsieur Lupin shivered at the bare idea
of his proximity to so much wealth. Yet he
felt quite certain that Monsieur Lupin would
never suffer from the same difficulty as his
fair hostess who declared she dare not touch
the money.
“Ah! they are there!” he repeated, to
himself;“they are there!”
A friendship formed under such circum-
stances soon led to closer relations. When
discreetly questioned, Arsène Lupin con-
fessed his poverty and distress. Immediate-
ly, the unfortunate young man was appointed
private secretary to the Imberts, husband and
wife, at a salary of one hundred francs a
month. He was to come to the house every
day and receive orders for his work, and a
room on the second floor was set apart as his


226
ARSÈNE LUPIN
office. This room was directly over Mon.
Imbert's office.
Arsène soon realized that his position as
secretary was essentially a sinecure. During
the first two months, he had only four impor-
tant letters to recopy, and was called only
once to Mon. Imbert's office; consequently,
he had only one opportunity to contemplate,
officially, the Imbert safe. Moreover, he no-
ticed that the secretary was not invited to
the social functions of his employer. But he
did not complain, as he preferred to remain,
modestly, in the shade and maintain his peace
and freedom. However, he was not wasting
any time. From the beginning, he made
clandestine visits to Mon. Imbert's office, and
paid his respects to the safe, which was her-
metically closed. It was an immense block
of iron and steel, cold and stern in appear-
ance, which could not be forced open by the
ordinary tools of the burglar's trade. But
Arsène Lupin was not discouraged.
“Where force fails, cunning prevails,” he
said to himself. “The essential thing is to be
on the spot when the opportunity occurs. In
the meantime, I must watch and wait.”.
He made immediately some preliminary
preparations. After careful soundings made


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
227
upon the floor of his room, he introduced a
lead pipe which penetrated to the ceiling of
Mon. Imbert's office at a point between two
screeds of the cornice. By means of this
pipe, he hoped to see and hear what trans-
pired in the room below.
Henceforth, he passed his days stretched
at full length upon the floor. He frequently
saw the Imberts holding a consultation in
front of the safe, investigating books and
papers. When they turned the combination
lock, he tried to learn the figures and the
number of turns they made to right and left.
He watched their movements; he sought to
catch their words. There was also a key
necessary to complete the opening of the safe.
What did they do with it? Did they hide it?
One day, he saw them leave the room with-
out locking the safe. He descended the stairs
quickly, and boldly entered the room. But
they had returned.
“Oh! excuse me,” he said, “I made a mis-
take in the door."
“Come in, Monsieur Lupin, come in,” cried
Madame Imbert, "are you not at home here?
We want your advice. What bonds should
we sell? The foreign securities or the gov-
ernment annuities?”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
229
will tell monsieur. Has monsieur arrived ?”
Why that mysterious appellation ?
Moreover, after their first outburst of en-
thusiasm, the Imberts seldom spoke to him,
and, although treating him with the consid-
eration due to a benefactor, they gave him
little or no attention. They appeared to re-
gard him as an eccentric character who did
not like to be disturbed, and they respected
his isolation as if it were a stringent rule on
his part. On one occasion, while passing
through the vestibule, he heard Madame
Imbert say to two gentlemen:
"He is such a barbarian!"
“Very well,” he said to himself, “I am a
barbarian.”
And, without seeking to solve the question
of their strange conduct, he proceeded with
the execution of his own plans. He had de-
cided that he could not depend on chance, nor
on the negligence of Madame Imbert, who
carried the key of the safe, and who, on lock-
ing the safe, invariably scattered the letters
forming the combination of the lock. Conse-
quently, he must act for himself.
Finally, an incident precipitated matters;
it was the vehement campaign instituted
against the Imberts by certain newspapers


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
231
“I must get to work,” murmured Lupin.
He opened his window. It opened on a
court. Outside, everything was dark and
quiet. He took from his desk a knotted rope,
fastened it to the balcony in front of his win-
dow, and quietly descended as far as the
window below, which was that of Imbert's
office. He stood upon the balcony for a mo-
ment, motionless, with attentive ear and
watchful eye, but the heavy curtains effec-
tually concealed the interior of the room. He
cautiously pushed on the double window. If
no one had examined it, it ought to yield to
the slightest pressure, for, during the after-
noon, he had so fixed the bolt that it would
not enter the staple.
The window yielded to his touch. Then,
with infinite care, he pushed it open sufficient-
ly to admit his head. He parted the curtains
a few inches, looked in, and saw Mon. Imbert
and his wife sitting in front of the safe,
deeply absorbed in their work and speaking
softly to each other at rare intervals.
He calculated the distance between him and
them, considered the exact movements he
would require to make in order to overcome
them, one after the other, before they could


232
ARSÈNE LUPIN
call for help, and he was about to rush upon
them, when Madame Imbert said:
“Ah! the room is getting quite cold. I am
going to bed. And you, my dear?”
“I shall stay and finish.”
“Finish! Why, that will take you all
night."
“Not at all. An hour, at the most."
She retired. Twenty minutes, thirty min-
utes passed. Arsène pushed the window a
little farther open. The curtains shook. He
pushed once more. Mon. Imbert turned, and,
seeing the curtains blown by the wind, he
rose to close the window.
There was not a cry, not the trace of a
struggle. With a few precise movements,
and without causing him the least injury,
Arsène stunned him, wrapped the curtain
about his head, bound him hand and foot, and
did it all in such a manner that Mon. Imbert
had no opportunity to recognize his assailant.
Quickly, he approached the safe,' seized
two packages that he placed under his arm,
left the office, descended the stairs, crossed
the yard, and opened the servants' gate. A
carriage was stationed in the street.
"Take that, first-and follow me,” he said
to the coachman. He returned to the office,


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
233
and, in two trips, they emptied the safe. Then
Arsène went to his own room, removed the
rope, and all other traces of his clandestine
work.
A few hours later, Arsène Lupin and his
assistant examined the stolen goods. Lupin
was not disappointed, as he had foreseen that
the wealth of the Imberts had been greatly
exaggerated. It did not consist of hundreds
of millions, nor even tens of millions. Yet it
amounted to a very respectable sum, and
Lupin expressed his satisfaction.
“Of course," he said, “there will be a con-
siderable loss when we come to sell the bonds,
as we will have to dispose of them surrepti-
tiously at reduced prices. In the meantime,
they will rest quietly in my desk awaiting a
propitious moment."
Arsène saw no reason why he should not
go to the Imbert house next day. But a peru-
sal of the morning papers revealed this start-
ling fact: Ludovic and Gervaise Imbert had
disappeared.
When the officers of the law seized the safe
and opened it, they found there what Arsène
Lupin had left-nothing.
.
*
Such are the facts; and I learned the sequel


234
ARSÈNE LUPIN
to them, one day, when Arsène Lupin was in
a confidential mood. He was pacing to and
fro in my room, with a nervous step and a
feverish eye that were unusual to him.
“After all,” I said to him, “it was your
most successful venture.”
Without making a direct reply, he said:
“There are some impenetrable secrets con-
nected with that affair; some obscure points
that escape my comprehension. For instance:
What caused their flight? Why did they not
take advantage of the help I unconsciously
gave them? It would have been so simple to
say: 'The hundred millions were in the safe.
They are no longer there, because they have
been stolen.'"
“They lost their nerve."
“Yes, that is it—they lost their nerve. ..
On the other hand, it is true "
“What is true?”
“Oh! nothing."
What was the meaning of Lupin's reti-
cence? It was quite obvious that he had not
told me everything; there was something he
was loath to tell. His conduct puzzled me. It
must indeed be a very serious matter to cause
such a man as Arsène Lupin even a momen-


236
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the truth. You never imagined that those
bonds were not worth the paper they were
written on. Those bonds were false—they
were counterfeit-every one of them—do you
understand? THEY WERE COUNTERFEIT!
I looked at him, astounded.
"Counterfeit! The four or five millions?”
“Yes, counterfeit!” he exclaimed, in a fit
of rage. “Only so many scraps of paper! I
couldn't raise a sou on the whole of them!
And you ask me if I have any remorse. They
are the ones who should have remorse and
pity. They played me for a simpleton; and
I fell into their trap. I was their latest vic-
tim, their most stupid gull!”
He was affected by genuine anger—the re-
sult of malice and wounded pride. He con-
tinued:
“From start to finish, I got the worst of it.
Do you know the part I played in that affair,
or rather the part they made me play? That
of André Brawford! Yes, my boy, that is the
truth, and I never suspected it. It was not
until afterwards, on reading the newspapers,
that the light dawned in my stupid brain.
Whilst I was posing as his “saviour,” as the
gentleman who had risked his life to rescue
Mon. Imbert from the clutches of an assassin,


CHAPTER VIII
UHAPTER
THE BLACK PEARL
SEN
her husba voice
foorº
BA VIOLENT ringing of the bell awak-
ened the concierge of number nine,
avenue Hoche. She pulled the door-
string, grumbling:
"I thought everybody was in. It must be
three o'clock!"
“Perhaps it is some one for the doctor,”
muttered her husband.
At that moment, a voice inquired:
“Doctor Harel .... what floor?”
“Third floor, left. But the doctor won't go
out at night.”
“He must go to-night."
The visitor entered the vestibule, ascended
to the first floor, the second, the third, and,
without stopping at the doctor's door, he con-
tinued to the fifth floor. There, he tried two
keys. One of them fitted the lock.
"Ah! good!” he murmured, “that simpli-
fies the business wonderfully. But before I
commence work I had better arrange for my,
retreat. Let me see .... have I had sufifi-


240
ARSÈNE LUPIN
cient time to rouse the doctor and be dis-
missed by him? Not yet .... a few min-
utes more.”
At the end of ten minutes, he descended the
stairs, grumbling noisily about the doctor.
The concierge opened the door for him and
heard it click behind him. But the door did
not lock, as the man had quickly inserted a
piece of iron in the lock in such a manner that
the bolt could not enter. Then, quietly, he
entered the house again, unknown to the con-
cierge. In case of alarm, his retreat was as-
sured. Noiselessly, he ascended to the fifth
floor once more. In the antechamber, by the
light of his electric lantern, he placed his hat
and overcoat on one of the chairs, took a seat
on another, and covered his heavy shoes with
felt slippers.
“Ouf! here I am and how simple it was!
I wonder why more people do not adopt the
profitable and pleasant occupation of bur-
glar. With a little care and reflection, it be-
comes a most delightful profession. Not too
quiet and monotonous, of course, as it would
then become wearisome."
He unfolded a detailed plan of the apart-
ment.
“Let me commence by locating royself.


244
ARSÈNE LUPIN
one of those small travelling clocks, covered
with leather.
Well! What had happened? He could not
understand. That candlestick, that clock;
why were those articles not in their accus-
tomed places? Ah! what had happened in
the dread silence of the night?
Suddenly a cry escaped him. He had
touched-oh! some strange, unutterable
thing! “No! no!” he thought, “it cannot
be. It is some fantasy of my excited brain.”
For twenty seconds, thirty seconds, he re-
mained motionless, terrified, his forehead
bathed with perspiration, and his fingers still
retained the sensation of that dreadful
contact.
Making a desperate effort, he ventured to
extend his arm again. Once more, his hand
encountered that strange, unutterable thing.
He felt it. He must feel it and find out what
it is. He found that it was hair, human hair,
and a human face; and that face was cold,
almost icy.
However frightful the circumstances may
be, a man like Arsène Lupin controls himself
and commands the situation as soon as he


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
245
learns what it is. So, Arsène Lupin quickly
brought his lantern into use. A woman was
lying before him, covered with blood. Her
neck and shoulders were covered with gaping
wounds. He leaned over her and made a
closer examination. She was dead.
“Dead! Dead!” he repeated, with a be-
wildered air.
He stared at those fixed eyes, that grim
mouth, that livid flesh, and that blood—all
that blood which had flowed over the carpet
and congealed there in thick, black spots. He
arose and turned on the electric lights. Then
he beheld all the marks of a desperate strug-
gle. The bed was in a state of great disorder.
On the floor, the candlestick, and the clock
with the hands pointing to twenty minutes
after eleven; then, further away, an over-
turned chair; and, everywhere, there was
blood, spots of blood and pools of blood.
“And the black pearl ?” he murmured.
The box of letter-paper was in its place.
He opened it, eagerly. The jewel-case was
there, but it was empty.
"Fichtre!” he muttered. “You boasted of
your good fortune much too soon, my friend
Lupin. With the countess lying cold and
dead, and the black pearl vanished, the sit-


246
ARSÈNE LUPIN
uation is anything but pleasant. Get out of
here as soon as you can, or you may get into
serious trouble.”
Yet, he did not move.
“Get out of here? Yes, of course. Any
person would, except Arsène Lupin. He has
something better to do. Now, to proceed in
an orderly way. At all events, you have a
clear conscience. Let us suppose that you
are the commissary of police and that you are
proceeding to make an inquiry concerning
this affair— Yes, but in order to do that,
I require a clearer brain. Mine is muddled
like a ragout."
· He tumbled into an armchair, with his
clenched hands pressed against his burning
forehead.
lorenead.
The murder of the avenue Hoche is one of
those which have recently surprised and puz-
zled the Parisian public, and, certainly, I
should never have mentioned the affair if the
veil of mystery had not been removed by
Arsène Lupin himself. No one else knew the
exact truth of the case.
Who did not know-from having met her
in the Bois—the fair Léontine Zalti, the once-
famous cantatrice, wife and widow of the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
247
Count d'Andillot; the Zalti, whose luxury
dazzled all Paris some twenty years ago; the
Zalti who acquired an European reputation
for the magnificence of her diamonds and
pearls? It was said that she wore upon her
shoulders the capital of several banking-
houses and the gold mines of numerous Aus-
tralian companies. Skilful jewellers worked
for Zelti as they had formerly wrought for
kings and queens.
And who does not remember the catas-
trophe in which all that wealth was swallowed
up? Of all that marvellous collection, noth-
ing remained except the famous black pearl.
The black pearl! That is to say a fortune, if
she had wished to part with it.
But she preferred to keep it, to live in a
commonplace apartment with her companion,
her cook, and a man-servant, rather than sell
that inestimable jewel. There was a reason
for it; a reason she was not afraid to dis-
close: the black pearl was the gift of an em.
peror! Almost ruined, and reduced to the
most mediocre existence, she remained faith-
ful to the companion of her happy and bril-
liant youth. The black pearl never left her
possession. She wore it during the day, and,


248
ARSÈNE LUPIN
at night, concealed it in a place known to her
alone.
All these facts, being republished in the
columns of the public press, served to stimu-
late curiosity; and, strange to say, but quite
obvious to those who have the key to the
mystery, the arrest of the presumed assassin
only complicated the question and prolonged
the excitement. Two days later, the news-
papers published the following item:
“Information has reached us of the arrest
of Victor Danègre, the servant of the Count-
ess d’Andillot. The evidence against him is
clear and convincing. On the silken sleeve of
his liveried waistcoat, which chief detective
Dudouis found in his garret between the mat-
tresses of his bed, several spots of blood were
discovered. In addition, a cloth-covered but-
ton was missing from that garment, and this
button was found beneath the bed of the
victim.
"It is supposed that, after dinner, in place
of going to his own room, Danègre slipped
into the wardrobe-closet, and, through the
glass door, had seen the countess hide the
precious black pearl. This is simply a the-
ory, as yet unverified by any evidence. There
is, also, another obscure point. At seven


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
249
o'clock in the morning, Danègre went to the
tobacco-shop on the Boulevard de Courcelles;
the concierge and the shop-keeper both affirm
this fact. On the other hand, the countess'
companion and cook, who sleep at the end of
the hall, both declare that, when they arose
at eight o'clock, the door of the antechamber
and the door of the kitchen were locked.
These two persons have been in the service of
the countess for twenty years, and are above
suspicion. The question is: How did
Danègre leave the apartment? Did he have
another key? These are matters that the
police will investigate."
As a matter of fact, the police investiga-
tion threw no light on the mystery. It was
learned that Victor Danègre was a dangerous
criminal, a drunkard and a debauchee. But,
as they proceeded with the investigation, the
mystery deepened and new complications
arose. In the first place, a young woman,
Mlle. de Sinclèves, the cousin and sole heiress
of the countess, declared that the countess, a
month before her death, had written a letter
to her and in it described the manner in which
the black pearl was concealed. The letter
disappeared on the day after she received it.
Who had stolen it?


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
251
The deplorable antecedents of Victor Danè-
gre, habitual criminal, drunkard and rake, in-
fluenced the judge, and despite the fact that
nothing new was discovered in corroboration
of the early clues, his official opinion re-
mained firm and unshaken. He closed his
investigation, and, a few weeks later, the trial
commenced. It proved to be slow and tedious.
The judge was listless, and the public prose-
cutor presented the case in a careless man-
ner. Under those circumstances, Danègre's
counsel had an easy task. He pointed out the
defects and inconsistencies of the case for the
prosecution, and argued that the evidence was
quite insufficient to convict the accused. Who
had made the key, the indispensable key with-
out which Danègre, on leaving the apartment,
could not have locked the door behind him?
Who had ever seen such a key, and what had
become of it? Who had seen the assassin's
knife, and where is it now?
"In any event,” argued the prisoner's
counsel, “the prosecution must prove, beyond
any reasonable doubt, that the prisoner com-
mitted the murder. The prosecution must
show that the mysterious individual who en-
tered the house at three o'clock in the morn-
ing is not the guilty party. To be sure, the


252
ARSÈNI LUPIN
clock indicated eleven o'clock. But what of
that? I contend, that proves nothing. The
assassin could turn the hands of the clock
to any hour he pleased, and thus deceive us
in regard to the exact hour of the crime.”
Victor Danègre was acquitted.
He left the prison on Friday about dusk in
the evening, weak and depressed by his six
months' imprisonment. The inquisition, the
solitude, the trial, the deliberations of the
jury, combined to fill him with a nervous fear.
At night, he had been afflicted with terrible
nightmares and haunted by weird visions of
the scaffold. He was a mental and physical
wreck.
Under the assumed name of Anatole Du-
four, he rented a small room on the heights of
Montmartre, and lived by doing odd jobs
wherever he could find them. He led a pitiful
existence. Three times, he obtained regular
employment, only to be recognized and then
discharged. Sometimes, he had an idea that
men were following him-detectives, no
doubt, who were seeking to trap and denounce
him. He could almost feel the strong hand
of the law clutching him by the collar.
One evening, as he was eating his dinner
at a neighboring restaurant, a man entered


254
ARSÈNE LUPIN
and handed it to Victor, who read on it:
“Grimaudan, ex-inspector of the detective
force. Private business transacted.” Victor
shuddered as he said:
“You are connected with the police?".
“No, not now, but I have a liking for the
business and I continue to work at it in a
manner more profitable. From time to
time I strike upon a golden opportunity-
such as your case presents.”
“My case?”
“Yes, yours. I assure you it is a most
promising affair, provided you are inclined to
be reasonable.”
“But if I am not reasonable?”
“Oh! my good fellow, you are not in a
position to refuse me anything I may ask.”
“What is it.... you want?" stammered
Victor, fearfully.
“Well, I will inform you in a few words.
I am sent by Mademoiselle de Sinclèves, the
heiress of the Countess d’Andillot."
“What for?”
"To recover the black pearl.”
“Black pearl?"
sThat you stole.”
“But I haven't got it.”
“You have it."


256
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“That is all nonsense. You are simply
guessing at something you don't know. No
one ever saw the knife.”
“Here it is."
Victor Danègre recoiled. The ex-inspector
continued:
“There are some spots of rust upon it.
Shall I tell you how they came there?”
"Well! .... you have a key and a knife.
Who can prove that they belong to me?".
“The locksmith, and the clerk from whom
you bought the knife. I have already re-
freshed their memories, and, when you con-
front them, they cannot fail to recognize
you."
His speech was dry and hard, with a tone
of firmness and precision. Danègre was
trembling with fear, and yet he struggled
desperately to maintain an air of indiffer-
ence.
“Is that all the evidence you have?”
“Oh! no, not at all. I have plenty more.
For instance, after the crime, you went out
the same way as you had entered. But, in
the centre of the wardrobe-room, being
seized by some sudden fear, you leaned
against the wall for support.”
“How do you know that? No one could


258
ARSÈNE LUPIN
and hundreds of thousands and get nothing in
return?”
“You will get your life. Is that nothing?"
The unfortunate man shuddered. Then
Grimaudan added, in a milder tone:
“Come, Danègre, that pearl has no value in
your hands. It is quite impossible for you to
sell it; so what is the use of your keeping it?”
“There are pawnbrokers . . . . and, some
day, I will be able to get something for it.”
“But that day may be too late.”
“Why?”
“Because by that time you may be in the
hands of the police, and, with the evidence
that I can furnish—the knife, the key, the
thumb-mark—what will become of you?”
Victor rested his head on his hands and re-
flected. He felt that he was lost, irremedia-
bly lost, and, at the same time, a sense of
weariness and depression overcame him. He
murmured, faintly:
“When must I give it to you?”
“To-night-within an hour."
“If I refuse?”
“If you refuse, I shall post this letter to
the Procureur of the Republic; in which let.
ter Mademoiselle de Sinclèves denounces you
as the assassin.”


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
259
en
Danègre poured out two glasses of wine
which he drank in rapid succession, then, ris-
ing, said:
“Pay the bill, and let us go. I have had
enough of the cursed affair.”
Night had fallen. The two men walked
down the rue Lepic and followed the exterior
boulevards in the direction of the Place de
l'Etoile. They pursued their way in silence;
Victor had a stooping carriage and a dejected
face. When they reached the Parc Monceau,
he said:
“We are near the house."
“Parbleu! You only left the house once,
before your arrest, and that was to go to the
tobacco-shop.”
“Here it is,” said Danègre, in a dull voice.
They passed along the garden wall of the
countess' house, and crossed a street on a
corner of which stood the tobacco-shop. A few
steps farther on, Danègre stopped; his limbs
shook beneath him, and he sank to a bench.
“Well! what now?” demanded his com-
panion.
“It is there."
“Where? Come, now, no nonsense!”
"There in front of us."
"Where?"


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
261
knife and thrust it between the twelfth and
thirteenth stones.
“And if it is not there?” he said to Victor.
“It must be there, unless someone saw me
stoop down and hide it."
Could it be possible that the black pearl
had been cast into the mud and filth of the
gutter to be picked up by the first comer?
The black pearl-a fortune!
“How far is it down?” he asked.
“About ten centimetres."
He dug up the wet earth. The point of his
knife struck something. He enlarged the hole
with his finger. Then he abstracted the black
pearl from its filthy hiding-place.
“Good! Here are your two hundred francs.
I will send you the ticket for America."
On the following day, this article was pub-
lished in the Echo de France, and was copied
by the leading papers throughout the world:
“Yesterday, the famous black pearl came
into the possession of Arsène Lupin, who re-
covered it from the murderer of the Countess
d'Andillot. In a short time, fac-similes of
that precious jewel will be exhibited in Lon-
don, St. Petersburg, Calcutta, Buenos Ayres
and New York.
d! Hem uthy hidinoustracted the
enos
es


266
ARSÈNE LUPIN
occasion, besides Velmont, the following
guests: Father Gélis, the parish priest, and
a dozen officers whose regiments were quar-
tered in the vicinity and who had accepted
the invitation of the banker Georges Devanne
and his mother. One of the officers then re-
marked:
“I understand that an exact description
of Arsène Lupin has been furnished to all
the police along this coast since his daring
exploit on the Paris-Havre express.”
“I suppose so," said Devanne. "That was
three months ago; and a week later, I made
the acquaintance of our friend Velmont at
the casino, and, since then, he has honored
me with several visits—an agreeable pream-
ble to a more serious visit that he will pay
me one of these days-or, rather, one of these
nights."
This speech evoked another round of laugh-
ter, and the guests then passed into the an-
cient“Hall of the Guards,” a vast room with
a high ceiling, which occupied the entire
lower part of the Tour Guillaume-William's
Tower—and wherein Georges Devanne had
collected the incomparable treasures which
the lords of Thibermesnil had accumulated
through many centuries. It contained an


272
ARSÈNE LUPIN
a bridge; consequently, the passage must be
underneath the old moat. The plan that was
in the book in the National Library showed
a series of stairs with a total of forty-eight
steps, which indicates a depth of more than
ten meters. And the scale annexed to the
other plan gives the distance as two hundred
meters. You see, the mystery lies within the
walls of this room, and yet I dislike to tear
them down."
“Is there nothing to show where it is?"
“Nothing."
“Mon. Devanne, we should turn our atten-
tion to the two quotations," suggested Father
Gélis.
“Oh!” exclaimed Mon. Devanne, laughing,
“our worthy father is fond of reading
memoirs and delving into the musty archives
of the castle. Everything relating to Thiber-
mesnil interests him greatly. But the quo-
tations that he mentions only serve to com-
plicate the mystery. He has read somewhere
that two kings of France have known the key
to the puzzle."
“Two kings of France! Who were they?"
“Henry the Fourth and Louis the Six-
teenth. And the legend runs like this: On
the eve of the battle of Arques, Henry the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
_
_
Fourth spent the night in this castle. At
eleven o'clock in the evening, Louise de Tan-
carville, the prettiest woman in Normandy,
was brought into the castle through the sub-
terranean passage by Duke Edgard, who, at
the same time, informed the king of the secret
passage. Afterward, the king confided the
secret to his minister Sully, who, in turn, re-
lates the story in his book, “Royales Econo-
mies d'Etat," without making any comment
upon it, but linking with it this incompre-
hensible sentence: Turn one eye on the bee
that shakes, the other eye will lead to God!'
After a brief silence, Velmont laughed and
said:
“Certainly, it doesn't throw a dazzling
light upon the subject.”
"No; but Father Gélis claims that Sully
concealed the key to the mystery in this
strange sentence in order to keep the secret
from the secretaries to whom he dictated his
memoirs."
“That is an ingenious theory,” said Vel-
mont.
“Yes, and it may be nothing more; I can-
not see that it throws any light on the mys-
terious riddle.”
“And was it also to receive the visit of a.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
275
“What is it?"
"The missing key. Now that I have it, I
can go to work at once,” said Velmont.
“Of course; without losing a minute,” said
Devanne, smiling.
“Not even a second !" replied Velmont.
"To-night, before the arrival of Sherlock
Holmes, I must plunder your castle.”
“You have no time to lose. Oh! by the
way, I can drive you over this evening."
“To Dieppe?”
“Yes. I am going to meet Monsieur and
Madame d'Androl and a young lady of their
acquaintance who are to arrive by the mid-
night train."
Then addressing the officers, Devanne
added :
“Gentlemen, I shall expect to see all of
you at breakfast to-morrow.”.
The invitation was accepted. The company
dispersed, and a few moments later Devanne
and Velmont were speeding toward Dieppe in
an automobile. Devanne dropped the artist
in front of the Casino, and proceeded to the
railway station. At twelve o'clock his friends
alighted from the train. A half hour later
the automobile was at the entrance to the
castle. At one o'clock, after a light supper,


278
ARSÈNE LUPIN
C
and it had been accomplished in such an or-
derly manner and with as little noise as if the
various articles had been packed and wadded
for the occasion.
Lupin said to the last man who departed
by way of the tunnel:
“You need not come back. You under-
stand, that as soon as the auto-van is loaded,
you are to proceed to the grange at Roque-
fort."
“But you, patron?".
“Leave me the motor-cycle."
When the man had disappeared, Arsène
Lupin pushed the section of the bookcase
back into its place, carefully effaced the
traces of the men's footsteps, raised a por-
tière, and entered a gallery, which was the
only means of communication between the
tower and the castle. In the center of this
gallery there was a glass cabinet which had
attracted Lupin's attention. It contained a
valuable collection of watches, snuff-boxes,
rings, chatelaines and miniatures of rare and
beautiful workmanship. He forced the lock
with a small jimmy, and experienced a great
pleasure in handling those gold and silver
ornaments, those exquisite and delicate works
of art.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
279
He carried a large linen bag, specially pre-
pared for the removal of such knick-knacks.
He filled it. Then he filled the pockets of his
coat, waistcoat and trousers. And he was
just placing over his left arm a number of
pearl reticules when he heard a slight sound.
He listened. No, he was not deceived. The
noise continued. Then he remembered that,
at one end of the gallery, there was a stair-
way leading to an unoccupied apartment, but
which was probably occupied that night by
the young lady whom Mon. Devanne had
brought from Dieppe with his other visitors.
Immediately he extinguished his lantern,
and had scarcely gained the friendly shelter
of a window-embrasure, when the door at the
top of the stairway was opened and a feeble
light illumined the gallery. He could feel-
for, concealed by a curtain, he could not see-
that a woman was cautiously descending the
upper steps of the stairs. He hoped she
would come no closer. Yet, she continued to
descend, and even advanced some distance
into the room. Then she uttered a faint cry.
No doubt she had discovered the broken and
dismantled cabinet.
She advanced again. Now he could smell
the perfume, and hear the throbbing of her


282
ARSÈNE LUPIN
sight of the devastated room. He said to her,
at once :
"To-morrow, at three o'clock, everything
will be returned. The furniture will be
brought back.”
She made no reply, so he repeated:
“I promise it. To-morrow, at three o'clock.
Nothing in the world could induce me to
break that promise.... To-morrow, at three
o'clock.”
Then followed a long silence that he dared
not break, whilst the agitation of the young
girl caused him a feeling of genuine regret.
Quietly, without a word, he turned away,
thinking: “I hope she will go away. I can't
endure her presence." But the young girl
suddenly spoke, and stammered:
“Listen .... footsteps .... I hear some-
one...."
He looked at her with astonishment. She
seemed to be overwhelmed by the thought
of approaching peril.
“I don't hear anything," he said.
“But you must go—you must escape!”
“Why should I go?”
“Because—you must. Oh! do not remain
here another minute. Go!”
She ran, quickly, to the door leading to the


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
283
gallery and listened. No, there was no one
there. Perhaps the noise was outside. She
waited a moment, then returned reassured.
But Arsène Lupin had disappeared.
*
As soon as Mon. Devanne was informed of
the pillage of his castle, he said to himself:
It was Velmont who did it, and Velmont is
Arsène Lupin. That theory explained every-
thing, and there was no other plausible ex-
planation. And yet the idea seemed prepos-
terous. It was ridiculous to suppose that
Velmont was anyone else than Velmont, the
famous artist, and club-fellow of his cousin
d'Estevan. So, when the captain of the gen-
darmes arrived to investigate the affair, De-
vanne did not even think of mentioning his
absurd theory.
Throughout the forenoon there was a lively
commotion at the castle. The gendarmes, the
local police, the chief of police from Dieppe,
the villagers, all circulated to and fro in the
halls, in the park, or about the walls of the
castle, examining every nook and corner that
was open to their inspection. The approach
of the manoeuvring troops, the rattling fire
of the musketry, added to the picturesque
character of the scene.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
287
park were filled with people, and at the very
moment when the officers of the law were
pursuing their investigations? And yet....
Arsène Lupin had given her his solemn
promise. “It will be exactly as he said,”
thought she, so deeply was she impressed
with the authority, energy and assurance of
that remarkable man. To her, it no longer
assumed the form of a miracle, but, on the
contrary, a natural incident that must occur
in the ordinary course of events. Once, their
eyes met. She blushed, and turned her head.
Three o'clock! The great clock struck
slowly: one....two....three!.... Horace
Velmont took out his watch, glanced at the
clock, then returned the watch to his pocket.
A few seconds passed in silence; and then
the crowd in the courtyard parted to give
passage to two wagons, that had just entered
the park-gate, each drawn by two horses.
They were army-wagons, such as are used
for the transportation of provisions, tents,
and other necessary military stores. They
stopped in front of the main entrance, and a
commissary-sergeant leaped from one of the
wagons and enquired for Mon. Devanne. A
moment later, that gentleman emerged from
the house, descended the steps, and, under the


292
ARSÈNE LUPIN
_
_
darmes were stationed at the park-gate. He
entered a grove of pine trees, leaped over
the wall, and, as a short cut to the railroad
station, followed a path across the fields.
After walking about ten minutes, he arrived
at a spot where the road grew narrower and
ran between two steep banks. In this ravine,
he met a man travelling in the opposite direc-
tion. It was a man about fifty years of age,
tall, smooth-shaven, and wearing clothes of
a foreign cut. · He carried a heavy cane, and
a small satchel was strapped across his
shoulder. When they met, the stranger
spoke, with a slight English accent:
"Excuse me, monsieur, is this the way to
the castle?”
“Yes, monsieur, straight ahead, and turn
to the left when you come to the wall. They
are expecting you."
“Ah!”
“Yes, my friend Devanne told us last night
that you were coming, and I am delighted to
be the first to welcome you. Sherlock Holmes
has no more ardent admirer than....my-
self."
There was a touch of irony in his voice
that he quickly regretted, for Sherlock
Holmes scrutinized him from head to foot


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
207
TETE
---
-
-
voice, in sentences that seemed to have been
prepared in advance, Holmes asked a number
of questions about the events of the pre-
ceding evening, and enquired also concerning
the guests and the members of the household.
Then he examined the two volumes of the
“Chronique," compared the plans of the sub-
terranean passage, requested a repetition of
the sentences discovered by Father Gélis, and
then asked:
“Was yesterday the first time you have
spoken of those two sentences to any one?"
“Yes."
“You had never communicated then to
Horace Velmont?”.
"No."
“Well, order the automobile. I must leave
in an hour."
“In an hour?"
“Yes; within that time, Arsène Lupin
solved the problem that you placed before
him."
“I....I placed before him,"
“Yes, Arsène Lupin or Horace Velmont-
same thing.”
“I thought so. Ah! the scoundrel!"
"Now, let us see,” said Holmes, “last
night at ten o'clock, you furnished Lupin
- me
ter


300
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“More to the left....to the right....
There!.... Now, climb up.... All the
letters are in relief, aren't they?".
“Yes.”
"First, turn the letter I one way or the
other.”
“Which one? There are two of them."
“The first one."
Devanne took hold of the letter, and
exclaimed:
"Ah! yes, it turns toward the right. Who
told you that?”
Sherlock Holmes did not reply to the ques-
tion, but continued his directions:
“Now, take the letter B. Move it back
and forth as you would a bolt.”
Devanne did so, and, to his great surprise,
it produced a clicking sound.
“Quite right,” said Holmes. “Now, we
will go to the other end of the word Thiber-
mesnil, try the letter I, and see if it will open
like a wicket.”
With a certain degree of solemnity,
Devanne seized the letter. It opened, but
Devanne fell from the ladder, for the entire
section of the bookcase, lying between the
first and last letters of the words, turned on


302
ARSÈNE LUPIN
here, like the works of a clock, and the reverse
side of the letters can be reached. Lupin
worked the combination from this side—that
is all."
6.What proof is there of that?"
"Proof? Why, look at that puddle of oil.
Lupin foresaw even that the wheels would
require oiling.”
“Did he know about the other entrance?”
“As well as I know it,” said Holmes.
"Follow me.”
“Into that dark passage?”
“Are you afraid?".
“No, but are you sure you can find the
way out?”
"With my eyes closed.”
At first, they descended twelve steps, then
twelve more, and, farther on, two other flights
of twelve steps each. Then they walked
through a long passageway, the brick walls
of which showed the marks of successive res-
torations, and, in spots, were dripping with
water. The earth, also, was very damp.
“We are passing under the pond," said
Devanne, somewhat nervously.
At last, they came to a stairway of twelve
steps, followed by three others of twelve


304
ARSÈNE LUPIN
the National Library, the drawing terminates
at the left, as you know, in a circle, and at
the right, as you do not know, in a cross.
Now, that cross must refer to the chapel in
which we now stand.”
Poor Devanne could not believe his ears.
It was all so new, so novel to him. He
exclaimed:
“It is incredible, miraculous, and yet of a
childish simplicity! How is it that no one
has ever solved the mystery?"
“Because no one has ever united the essen-
tial elements, that is to say, the two books
and the two sentences. No one, but Arsène
Lupin and myself.”
“But, Father Gélis and I knew all about
those things, and, likewise".
Holmes smiled, and said:
“Monsieur Devanne, everybody cannot
solve riddles.”
“I have been trying for ten years to accom-
plish what you did in ten minutes."
“Bah! I am used to it."
They emerged from the chapel, and found
an automobile.
“Ah! there's an auto waiting for us."
“Yes, it is mine," said Devanne.


GENTLEMAN-BURGLAR
305
“Yours? You said your chauffeur hadn't
returned.”
They approached the machine, and Mon.
Devanne questioned the chauffeur:
“Edouard, who gave you orders to come
here?"
“Why, it was Monsieur Velmont."
“Mon. Velmont? Did you meet him?"
“Near the railway station, and he told me
to come to the chapel.”
"To come to the chapel! What for?”
“To wait for you, monsieur, and your
friend."
Devanne and Holmes exchanged looks, and
Mon. Devanne said:
“He knew the mystery would be a simple
one for you. It is a delicate compliment.”.
A smile of satisfaction lighted up the de-
tective's serious features for a moment. The
compliment pleased him. He shook his head,
as he said:
"A clever man! I knew that when I saw
him."
“Have you seen him?”
“I met him a short time ago—on my way
from the station."
“And you knew it was Horace Velmont--
I mean, Arsène Lupin?”


_
306
ARSÈNE LUPIN
“That is right. I wonder how it came”
"No, but I supposed it was—from a certain
ironical speech he made."
“And you allowed him to escape ?”'
“Of course I did. And yet I had every-
thing on my side, such as five gendarmes
who passed us.”
“Sacrableu!” cried Devanne. “You should
have taken advantage of the opportunity.”
“Really, monsieur," said the Englishman,
haughtily, “when I encounter an adversary
like Arsène Lupin, I do not take advantage
of chance opportunities, I create them."
But time pressed, and since Lupin had been
so kind as to send the automobile, they re-
solved to profit by it. They seated themselves
in the comfortable limousine; Edouard took
his place at the wheel, and away they
went toward the railway station. Suddenly,
Devanne's eyes fell upon a small package in
one of the pockets of the carriage.
“Ah! what is that? A package! Whose
is it? Why, it is for you."
“For me?”
“Yes, it is addressed: Sherlock Holmes,
from Arsène Lupin."
The Englishman took the package, opened
it, and found that it contained a watch.


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6. Chums of the Camp Fire ............... Lawrence J. Leslie
7. Cruise of the Houseboat................ Lawrence J. Leslie
8. Little by Little..............................Oliver Optic
9. Lost in the Great Dismal Swamp........ Lawrence J. Leslie
10. Missing Tin Box..................... Arthur M. Winfield
11. Motor Clubs Cruise Down the Mississippi.... Louis Arundel
12. Poor and Proud....... .................Oliver Optic
13. Rivals of the Trail... .......... Lawrence J. Leslie
14. Rival Cyclists......... ...........Ralph Bonehill
15. School Days of Fred Harvey; or, Rivals
for All Honors..... .......... Arthur M. Winfield
16. Strange Cabin on Catamount Island. .. .. Lawrence J. Leslie
17. Trip Around the World in a Flying Machine .... Jules Verne
18. Try Again...
.......... Oliver Optic
For sale by all Booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt of 50c.
M. A. DONOHUE & COMPANY
711 S. Dearborn Street
CHICAGO


The American Boy's
Sports Series
BY MARK OVERTON
12 Mo Cloth.
Illustrated.
Price 60c Each.
HESE stories touch upon nearly every
sport in which the active boy is interested.
Baseball, rowing, football, hockey, skat-
ing, ice-boating, sailing, camping and fishing all
serve to lend interest to an unusual series of
books. There are the following four titles:
1. Jack Winters' Baseball Team; or, The
Mystery of the Diamond.
2. Jack Winters' Campmates; or, Vacation
Days in the Woods.
3. Jack Winters' Gridiron Chums; or, When
the Half-back Saved the Day.
4. Jack Winters' Iceboat Wonder; or, Lead-
ing the Hockey Team to Victory.
M. A. DONOHUE & COMPANY
CHICAGO