CHAPTER TEN
MELKY INTERVENES
Zillah had listened to Lauriston's answers to Mr. Parminter's searchingquestions with an anxiety which was obvious to those who sat near her.The signs of that anxiety were redoubled as she walked slowly to thebox, and the glance she threw at the Coroner was almost appealing. Butthe Coroner was looking at his notes, and Zillah was obliged to turn toMr. Parminter, whose accents became more mellifluous than ever as headdressed her; Mr. Parminter, indeed, confronting Zillah might havebeen taken for a kindly benevolent gentleman whose sole object was toadminister condolence and comfort. Few people in court, however, failedto see the meaning of the questions which he began to put in thesuavest and softest of tones.
"I believe you assisted your late grandfather in his business?"suggested Mr. Parminter.
"Just so! Now, how long had you assisted him in that way?"
"Ever since I left school--three years ago," replied Zillah.
"Three years--to be sure! And I believe you had resided with him forsome years before that?"
"Ever since I was a little girl," admitted Zillah.
"In fact, the late Mr. Multenius brought you up? Just so!--therefore,of course, you would have some acquaintance with his business beforeyou left school?"
"Yes--he taught me a good deal about it."
"You were always about the place, of course--yes? And I may take itthat you gradually got a good deal of knowledge about the articles withwhich your grandfather had to deal? To be sure--thank you. In fact, youare entitled to regard yourself as something of an expert in preciousstones and metals?"
"I know a good deal about them," replied Zillah.
"You could tell the value of a thing as accurately as your grandfather?"
"Ordinary things--yes."
"And you were very well acquainted with your grandfather's stock?"
"Yes."
Mr. Parminter motioned the official who had charge of it to place thetray of rings on the ledge of the witness-box.
"Oblige me by looking at that tray and the contents," he said. "Yourecognize it, of course? Just so. Now, do you know where that tray waswhen you went out, leaving your grandfather alone, yesterday afternoon?"
"Yes," replied Zillah, unhesitatingly. "On the table in theback-parlour--where I saw it when I came in. My grandfather had takenit out of the front window, so that he could polish the rings."
"Do you know how many rings it contained?"
"No. Perhaps twenty-five or thirty."
"They are, I see, laid loosely in the tray, which is velvet-lined. Theywere always left like that? Just so. And you don't know how many therewere--nor how many there should be there, now? As a matter of fact,there are twenty-seven rings there--you can't say that is the rightnumber?"
"No," answered Zillah, "and my grandfather couldn't have said, either.A ring might be dropped into that tray--or a ring taken out. They areall old rings."
"But--valuable?" suggested Mr. Parminter.
"Some--yes. Others are not very valuable."
"Now what do you mean by that word valuable? What, for instance, is thevalue of the least valuable ring there, and what is that of the mostvaluable?"
Zillah glanced almost indifferently at the tray before her.
"Some of these rings are worth no more than five pounds," she replied."Some--a few--are worth twenty to thirty pounds; one or two are worthmore."
"And--they are all old?"
"They are all of old-fashioned workmanship," said Zillah. "Made a goodmany years ago, all of them. The diamonds, or pearls, are all right, ofcourse."
Mr. Parminter handed over the half-sheet of paper on which Lauriston'srings had been exhibited to the Coroner and the jurymen.
"Look at those rings, if you please," he said quietly. "Are they of thesame sort, the same class, of rings as those in the tray?"
"Yes," admitted Zillah. "Something the same."
"What is the value of those rings--separately?" enquired Mr. Parminter."Please give us your professional opinion."
Zillah bent over the two rings for a while, turning them about.
"This is worth about thirty, and that about fifty pounds," she repliedat last.
"In other words, these two rings are similar in style and value to thebest rings in that tray?"
"Yes."
"Do you recognize those two rings?"
"No--not at all."
Mr. Parminter paused a moment, and caught the jury's attention with asharp glance of his eye before he turned again to the witness.
"Could you have recognized any of the rings in that tray?" he asked.
"No!" said Zillah. "I could not."
"Then you could not possibly say--one way or another, if those ringswere taken out of that tray?"
"No!"
"The fact is that all those rings--the two on the half-sheet ofnotepaper, and twenty-seven on the tray--are all of the same class asregards age and style--all very much of a muchness?"
"Yes," admitted Zillah.
"And you can't--you are on your oath remember!--you can't definitelysay that those two rings were not picked up from that tray, amongst theothers?"
"No," replied Zillah. "But I can't say that they were! And--I don'tbelieve they were. I don't believe they were our rings!"
Mr. Parminter smiled quietly and again swept the interested jurymenwith his quick glance.
Then he turned to Zillah with another set of questions.
"How long have you known the last witness--Andrew Lauriston?" heenquired.
"Since one day last week," replied Zillah.
She had flushed at the mention of Lauriston's name, and Mr. Parminterwas quick to see it.
"How did you get to know him?" he continued.
"By his coming to the shop--on business."
"To pawn his watch, I believe?"
"Yes."
"You attended to him?"
"Yes."
"You had never seen him before?"
"No."
"Ever seen him since?"
Zillah hesitated for a moment.
"I saw him--accidentally--in Kensington Gardens, on Sunday," sheanswered at last.
"Have any conversation with him?"
"Yes," admitted Zillah.
"About--pawnbroking?"
"No!" retorted Zillah. "About his work--writing."
"Did he tell you he was very hard up?"
"I knew that!" said Zillah. "Hadn't he pawned his watch?"
"Perhaps--you seem to be a very good business woman--perhaps you gavehim some advice?"
"Yes, I did! I advised him, as long as he'd anything on which he couldraise money, not to let himself go without money in his pocket."
"Excellent advice!" said Mr. Parminter, with a smile.
He leaned forward, looking at his witness more earnestly. "Now, didLauriston, on Sunday, or when you saw him before, ever mention to youthat he possessed two rings of some value?"
"No," replied Zillah.
Mr. Parminter paused, hesitated, suddenly bowed to the Coroner, anddropping back into his seat, pulled out his snuff-box. And the Coroner,motioning Zillah to leave the witness-box, interrupted Mr. Parminter inthe midst of a pinch of snuff.
"I think it will be best to adjourn at this stage," he said. "It isobvious that we can't finish this today." He turned to the jurymen. "Ipropose to adjourn this enquiry for a week, gentlemen," he went on. "Inthe meantime--"
His attention was suddenly arrested by Melky Rubinstein, who, aftermuch uneasiness and fidgeting, rose from his seat and made his way tothe foot of the table, manifestly desiring to speak.
"What is it?" asked the Coroner. "Who are you? Oh!--the witness whoidentified the body. Yes?"
"Mr. Coroner!" said Melky, in his most solemn tones. "This here inquestain't being conducted right, sir! I don't mean by you--but these heregentlemen, the police, and Mr. Parminter there, is going off on a wrongscent. I know what they're after, and they're wrong! They'resuppressing evidence, Mr. Coroner." Melky turne
d on Ayscough. "Whatabout the clue o' this here old book?" he demanded. "Why ain't youbringing that forward? I'm the late Daniel Multenius's nearest malerelative, and I say that clue's a deal more important nor what we'vebeen hearing all the morning. What about that book, now, Mr. Ayscough?Come on!--what about it!--and its owner?"
"What is this?" demanded the Coroner. "If there is anything--"
"Anything, sir!" exclaimed Melky. "There's just this--between the timethat my cousin there, Miss Zillah Wildrose left the old man alive, andthe time when Mr. Lauriston found him dead, somebody came into the shopas left a valuable book behind him on the parlour table, which book,according to all the advertisements in the morning papers, is theproperty of Mr. Spencer Levendale, the Member of Parliament, as livesin Sussex Square. Why ain't that matter brought up? Why ain't Mr.Levendale brought here? I ask you, Mr. Coroner, to have it seen into!There's more behind it--"
The Coroner held up a hand and beckoned the police inspector and Mr.Parminter to approach his desk; a moment later, Ayscough was summoned.And Lauriston, watching the result of this conference, was quicklyaware that the Coroner was not particularly pleased; he suddenly turnedon the inspector with a question which was heard by every one in court.
"Why was not the matter of the book put before the Court at first?" hedemanded. "It seems to me that there may be a most important clue init. The fact of the book's having been found should most certainly havebeen mentioned, at once. I shall adjourn for a week, from today, andyou will produce the book and bring Mr. Spencer Levendale here as awitness. This day week, gentlemen!"
Melky Rubinstein turned, whispered a hurried word to Zillah and Mrs.Goldmark, and then, seizing Lauriston by the elbow, drew him quicklyaway from the court.