Under the Chinese Dragon Part 10

'Perhaps,' agreed Mr. Jones, drawling the word in a manner decidedly professional. 'If you are well enough. If not--well, no matter for the moment. But you are strong enough to sign your name; listen to what I read, and sign if you agree. Of course, I am not going to bother you with a number of details. You can rely upon me implicitly; I will manage things for you.'

He rapidly intimated certain matters to David in connection with the letter he had had from his father, and the will which Mr. Ebenezer Clayhill was so anxious to have settled. Then he obtained our hero's signature.

'The next thing you will hear about the matter will be from the papers,'

said Mr. Jones, as he bade farewell. 'I hope we shall be successful.'

Imagine the interest of the public when it leaked out that the hero of the burglary near Bond Street was also the claimant through his solicitor to have the execution of a certain will delayed. The papers rapidly obtained the whole story; for Mr. Jones, though accustomed, as a rule, to professional taciturnness and silence, now opened his lips with a will, and told the whole story as he knew it.

'Not that the tale will affect the judgment of this matter,' he told his friends. 'British justice is too evenly balanced for such a thing; but it will gain more friends for the boy. It will put his case as it is, not as others might garble it, and will obtain the sympathy of all.'

And sympathy it did gain for our hero. Not only that; for information having been received he would be out of hospital very shortly, the case was put back for trial on a later date, no special reason being given.

'Unless, of course, the Judge and jury are anxious to see you,' laughed Mr. Jones, coming to see David again, and quizzing as was his wont. 'But I'm glad to hear you are doing so well. In a week you come home.'

'Home,' said David. 'Yes, to Constable Hemming's. He's been here to arrange.'

'Home with me,' interrupted Mr. Jones, placidly. 'You must understand that you are an invalid as yet. You require care and comfortable surroundings. Not that I a.s.sert that Constable Hemming would deny you those; but you will obtain them to greater degree where I live, in the country, outside London. Hemming knows of the suggestion and approves.

By the way, he's Sergeant Hemming now--promoted for his share in the work of capturing those men. Now I'll see the House Surgeon and get his report.'

'Oh, David?' said the latter, cheerily, when accosted by the solicitor.

'Davie is going strong; we've had him examined under the Roentgen Rays.

The bullet struck the fourth rib on the left side, and ought to have killed him outright. But he has luck; he was born to be lucky it seems.

The bullet turned along the rib, left it half way back, and emerged. The trouble with him is that the rib was fractured, and one of the broken ends pierced the lung. Hence bleeding from the mouth and other nasty and troublesome symptoms; but he'll do now if he takes it easy for another month. When can he go out, Mr. Jones? Let us say in a week's time.'

Accordingly David was driven away from the hospital at the termination of that period, deeply grateful for all the care and kindness shown him, and leaving many a friend behind. A motor car conveyed him to Mr. Jones'

house, and thereafter he came under the care of that gentleman's wife.

Three weeks later he attended the inquest on Henricksen, and there for the first time gave a description of how he had seen the burglars come into the store, and of how he had been forced to hide himself. Then followed the trial of the Admiral and of Spolikoff and Ovanovitch, the latter two having by then recovered from their wounds. Needless to say both Judge and jury highly commended the behaviour of our hero.

'Of course, we don't expect that you will care to come back to us,' said the manager of the store, when the trial was finished, 'though if you wish to come, we shall be glad to have you. But you are so well off now that you can look for something better. To begin with, our directors have handed me a cheque for one hundred pounds, to be paid at once to you.'

David coughed at the intimation. It made him breathe so deeply that his already healed wound pained him. 'One hundred pounds,' he gasped.

'That's enough to take me to China.'

'Hardly, I think; but there is some more. Spolikoff and Ovanovitch were much wanted by the police for extradition to their own country. They are a dangerous cla.s.s of criminal who have infested this country of late. In Russia they were Anarchists, and are known to have held up and robbed a train. Russia became too hot for them, and so they came to these hospitable sh.o.r.es to continue robbing. There was a reward offered for their apprehension. You, of course, obtain that. The sum is three hundred pounds.'

Little wonder that David gasped again. When he agreed to remain on watch at the store he was almost penniless. True, he had a few pounds by him, as well as a bicycle, while there was always the small allowance which was due to him; but the prospect of earning much was by no means brilliant. And here were four hundred pounds--four hundred shining sovereigns, to do with as he liked, to pay his pa.s.sage to China if he wished it.

'Then off I go to China!' he cried, when he had recovered from his astonishment at such good fortune. 'I'll sail on the first opportunity.'

'Which means that you will go when I, as your appointed guardian, allow you to do so,' exclaimed Mr. Jones, severely, endeavouring to hide a smile; for David's eagerness and enthusiasm delighted this gentleman.

Mr. Jones was the sort of man whom a stranger would imagine never even smiled, much less laughed outright. David had himself always considered him somewhat of a wet blanket; but he did not know him so well then. As a matter of fact the solicitor was the prince of good fellows, and kind-hearted to a degree. And it was true that he had const.i.tuted himself David's guardian.

'Till the court has put me in that position officially,' he said, 'and, of course, till you are fit again; for then I am well aware that you will kick over the traces, and put up with no interference. Now, David, hand over that money to me. I'll give you a formal receipt for it, and when you need money you can have it, and without a question. For the moment I'll take care of it. Golden sovereigns have a way of burning holes in the pockets of young people.'

When at length the case in which our hero was so interested came before the courts, he was perfectly restored to health; and his straightforward evidence, the narrative of how he had set out from home to make his own way in the world, and his adventures _en route_ won for him the good-will of hosts of people. The whole case read like a romance, and proved wonderfully attractive, while Mr. Ebenezer, who was compelled to give evidence, as was also his wife, provided the villains to this all-absorbing drama. Then came the intimation that David had decided to go to China, there to make inquiries and search for his father's will.

'As a sensible man I suppose I ought to throw cold water on that scheme,' declared the judge, 'but, honestly, it has my sympathy. I like the pluck of the claimant.'

It appeared that others did also. For while Mr. and Mrs. Ebenezer Clayhill were thoroughly exposed, and held up to public execration, David became more of a hero, and the following day received a most important letter.

'DEAR SIR'--it ran--'Having read the facts of your appeal to the courts, and being, moreover, an old friend of your father's, I have the pleasure to offer you a post on the staff I am collecting to take to China. We go to investigate old Mongolian Cities, the ruins of which have been long since located. I understand that your father was also interested in this work. We sail in rather less than a month, and should you accept this proposal, your pa.s.sage will be paid, as also the return, while the question of salary can be arranged in the immediate future. Kindly write by return.'

David telegraphed. 'Coming. Delighted,' he sent, laconically, though he was not given as a rule to such abruptness, while the following morning found him at the address which headed the letter he had received. A short, stout, clean-shaven man rose from a seat as he was announced and advanced towards him with outstretched hand.

'David Harbor?' he asked, with a welcoming smile.

'Yes, sir. Come on the receipt of a letter from Professor Padmore.

Is--er--are you--?'

The little gentleman laughed outright now, beaming on our hero, while his fleshy chin shook visibly. 'Am I the Professor?' he shouted, putting a hand on David's shoulder. 'You don't think I look like one, now do you? Admit to that. As a Professor I should be as bald as a coot, wear enormous goggles, stutter a trifle, and be somewhat deaf. Eh! isn't that it?'

David couldn't help laughing; the little man's good temper was strangely infectious. Nor did he attempt to deny what had been said; it was true enough. Professors were often enough the cla.s.s of individual painted by this gentleman. 'You're so different, sir,' he blurted out. 'You're----'

'I'm Professor Padmore, a terrible person, I do a.s.sure you,' chuckled the little man, 'and I happen also to have been a friend of your father's. A fine man, David, a gallant fellow, but rash, a trifle rash.

Trusted the Chinese too far. That was the cause of the whole trouble.

Well now, sit down. Smoke?'

He held out a cigarette case, but David shook his head.

'Never mind then,' smiled the Professor. 'No harm if you don't. You may later on. You're plenty young enough yet--too young, in fact. Boys who smoke are fools, fools, sir, with a capital F to it. But I wrote you, yes, I saw the name in the paper, and was attracted by the case. It was so unusual, the majority of such disputes are so commonplace. All are sordid; this one had peculiar features. It so happened, too, that I was wanting a young fellow, a gentleman, you understand, to come out to China with me. Well then, there you were, openly stating your desire to go to China. You were just the man for my situation, while I was just the opportunity you were looking for. Good; I wrote. You are coming; there'll be danger and hardships innumerable.'

He had lit a cigarette by now, and turned on the hearth rug at his final words to stare hard at David. He found the latter laughing.

'Eh? What?' he asked pleasantly.

'Nothing, sir,' declared David, 'only everything is so jolly and so pleasant I was just thinking then that you were just the reverse of the usual Professor. You ought to be very severe and unbending to young fellows.'

'Whereas I am not. Exactly so; to tell the truth I feel young myself, as young as you do, and try hard to forget that the years are going along, and that I am getting stouter as they go. But I can be severe. David, there will be many dangers to be faced, and many hardships. I want you to know that I want you to be fully prepared. And though I am pleasant enough as a general rule, there is one thing to learn--without discipline, without one recognised leader, and one only, no expedition can be a success. This expedition must succeed. I have led several others, but this is more important than all. Absolute obedience to my orders must be the rule, and you must be prepared to give it.'

For a few brief seconds the character of the little man seemed to have entirely changed, while certainly his facial appearance had done so. For of a sudden he became stern. Lines wove themselves across his forehead, while the half-closed eyes regarded David in a manner which impressed him. He realised then, if he had not done so before, that Professor Padmore could be a very different gentleman to the jolly individual who had welcomed him a few minutes earlier, could be stern and dictatorial, and could lead men whenever needed, and however pressing the danger.

'I am prepared to give the same obedience I should give in the army,'

said David, soberly. 'As for the dangers and hardships, they come in in the day's work. I do not look for ease and enjoyment out in China. My business is serious. I shall not succeed with it until I have travelled far and had many an adventure.'

'Then you will do for me. Sit down there; now for your salary.'

It took but a few moments to decide that item, and then the Professor proceeded to outline his project.

'There are these Mongolian cities,' he said. 'Well, I have already done some excavating, and have brought some rare objects home with me; but there are thousands still lying buried for every one we have unearthed.

We go to find them. Our ship carries us to Hong-Kong. There we disembark and remain for a while till we have obtained the necessary servants, some of whom I have employed before. Then we take steamer for Shanghai, and finally travel to Pekin. When we leave the city for the north, our real work will begin. You still wish to come? You are not frightened?'

David laughed again. He could not help himself; for the Professor was once more the jovial, pleasant comrade, treating the young fellow as if he himself were one also. 'I will come, and only too happy to be one of the party, sir,' he said. 'How many do you take?'

'We shall be four sailing from England. When we march from Pekin there should be twenty of us all told. Labourers for the task of digging can be obtained at the various spots we visit. Now for an outfit I shall purchase that for you; I have a list by which I always go. Long experience has taught me what is wanted.'

It was no use for David to exclaim at such generosity, and to mention the fact that he had plenty of money. The Professor silenced him at once.

'Put it away, sir,' he said. 'Put it into a safe investment. Don't worry about it till you come home. By then it will have grown wonderfully. But come along now; we'll drive to the house which always provides my equipment.'