It
was upon the occasion of a ball to be given in honor of Freeman's
twenty-first birthday that the question of what jewels his mother
should wear came up, and the strong-box in which they were kept was
opened. Only the settings remained.
"When the clamor quieted and sane questions began to be asked,
suspicion fastened upon Richard Hynds. His affairs were chaotic, his
needs imperative and desperate. He had been heard to ask his mother
if she intended wearing what he called 'the Hynds fortune' at
Freeman's ball. He knew, of course, where they were kept--in the
anteroom of his mother's apartment. It was not only possible but
easy for him to gain access to them.
"Let us consider the case without prejudice: Here is a young man--a
gambler, a wastrel--with pressing debts, and clamoring creditors
threatening what might be considered dishonor. Within reach of this
young man's hand are certain very valuable properties which he might
even consider his own, since they would in time descend to him. His
mother's resources are exhausted, his father's heart steeled against
further advancements. Cause and effect, you see--debts: missing
jewels.
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