I left the place the
jailer had gone out to buy Jones a stock of books to while away his
leisure hours--which are bound to be numerous. I'd no idea a prisoner
could live in such luxury."

"Money did it, I suppose," Patsy shrewdly suggested.

"Yes. Jones wrote a lot of checks. Colby got a couple of hundred for a
retaining fee and gleefully informed us it was more money than he had
ever owned at one time in all his previous career. I think he will earn
it, however."

"Where is he now?" asked Uncle John.

"Visiting all the newspaper offices, to 'buy white space,' as he put it.
In other words, Colby will bribe the press to silence, at least until
the case develops."

"I'm glad of that," exclaimed Beth. "What do you think of this queer
business, Arthur?"

"Why, I've no doubt of the boy's innocence, if that is what you mean.
I've watched him closely and am positive he is no more Jack Andrews than
I am. But I fear he will have a hard task to satisfy the judge that he is
falsely accused. It would be an admission of error, you see, and so the
judge will prefer to find him guilty. It is this same judge--Wilton, I
think his name is--who will conduct the formal examination, and to-day he
openly sneered at the mention of Sangoa. On the other hand, he evidently
believed every statement made by Le Drieux about the identity of the
pearls found in Jones' possession. Le Drieux has a printed list of the
Ahmberg pearls, and was able to check the Jones' pearls off this list
with a fair degree of accuracy. It astonished even me, and I could see
that Jones was equally amazed."

"Wouldn't it be queer if they convicted him!" exclaimed Beth.

"It would be dreadful, since he is innocent," said Patsy.

"There is no need to worry about that just at present," Arthur assured
them. "I am placing a great deal of confidence in the ability of
Lawyer Colby."

CHAPTER XVIII

DOUBTS AND DIFFICULTIES

The Stanton girls and Mrs. Montrose came in early that afternoon. They
had heard rumors of the arrest of Jones and were eager to learn what had
occurred. Patsy and Beth followed them to their rooms to give them every
known detail and canvass the situation in all its phases.

"Goldstein has been an angel all afternoon," said Flo. "He grinned
and capered about like a schoolboy and some of us guessed he'd been
left a fortune."

"He ought to be ashamed of himself." Patsy indignantly asserted. "The man
admitted to Uncle John that Ajo is th