trange coincidence!" said Goodenough. "It'll need a better
argument than that to save Scharnhoff's neck."

"Pardon me, sir. No coincidence at all. Remember, Scharnhoff
has lived in Jerusalem for fifteen years. He seems to have
satisfied himself that the Tomb of the Kings is directly under
the Dome of the Rock. How is he to get to it? The Dome of the
Rock stands in the middle of that great courtyard, with the
buildings of the Haram-es-Sheriff surrounding it on every
side, and hardly a stone in the foundations weighing less than
ten tons.

"He reasons it out that there must be a tunnel somewhere, leading
to the tomb, if it really is under the Dome of the Rock. I have
found out that he went to work, while the Turks were still here,
to find the mouth of the tunnel. Remember, he's an archaeologist.
There's very little he doesn't know about Jerusalem. He knows
who the owner is of every bit of property surrounding the
Haram-es-Sheriff; he's made it his business to find out. So
when he finally decided that this little stone house stands over
the mouth of the tunnel, all that remained to do was to get
access to it. He couldn't do that himself, because of the
regulations. He had to approach the Arab owner secretly and
indirectly. That's where Suliman's mother came in handy.

"She contrived the introduction to Noureddin Ali. Innocent old
Scharnhoff, who is an honest thief--he wouldn't steal money--
sacrilege is Scharnhoff's passion--was an easy mark for Noureddin
Ali. Noureddin Ali is a red-minded devil, so smart at seeing
possibilities that he is blind to probabilities. He is paid by
the French to make trouble, and he's the world's long-distance
double-crosser. I don't believe the French have any hand in this
job. Scharnhoff needed explosives. Noureddin Ali saw at once
that if that tunnel can be found and opened up there could be
an atrocity perpetrated that would produce anarchy all through
the East."

"As bad as all that?" asked Mrs. Davey.

"That's no exaggeration," Goodenough answered. "I've lived
twenty-five years in India, commanding Sikh and Moslem troops.
The Sikhs are not interested in the Moslem religion in any way,
but they'd make common cause with Moslems if that place were
blown up and the blame could be attached to Jews. It's the
second most sacred place in Asia. Even the Hindus would be
stirred to their depths by it; they'd feel that their own sacred
places were insecure, and that