fingers were clenched. Cleggett set down his lantern beside it and
turned it over with his foot.

The dead fingers clutched a scrap of something yellow. On one of them
was a large and peculiar ring.

"My God!" murmured Lady Agatha, grasping Cleggett convulsively by the
shoulder, "that is the Earl of Claiborne's signet ring!"

But Cleggett scarcely realized what she had said, until she repeated
her words. Fighting down his repugnance, he took from the lifeless and
stubborn fingers the yellow scrap of paper.

It was a torn and crumpled twenty-dollar bill.

CHAPTER IX

MYSTERIES MULTIPLY

Directing Kuroki to remove the ring and bring it along, Cleggett gave
his arm to Lady Agatha and led the way back to the Jasper B. Neither
said anything to the point until, seated in the cabin, with the
twenty-dollar bill and the ring before them, Cleggett picked up the
latter and remarked:

"You are certain of the identity of this ring?"

"Certain," she said. "I could not mistake it. There is no other like
it, anywhere."

It was a very heavy gold band, set with a large piece of dark green
jade which was deeply graven on its surface with the Claiborne crest.

"Was it," asked Cleggett, "in the possession of Reginald Maltravers?"

"It might have been, readily enough," she said, "although I had not
known that it was. Still, that does not explain...." She shrugged her
shoulders.

"There are a number of things unexplained," answered Cleggett, "and the
presence of this ring, and the manner in which it has come into our
possession, are not the most mysterious of them. The explosion itself
appears to me, just now, at least, hard to account for."

"The manner in which people get into and out of the hold of your vessel
is also obscure," said Lady Agatha.

"Nor is the motive of their hostility clear," said Cleggett.

He picked up the piece of paper money. Something about the feel of it
aroused his suspicions. He called Elmer, and when that exponent of
reform entered the cabin, asked him bluntly:

"Did you ever have anything to do with bad money?"

Elmer intimated that he might know it if he saw it.

"Then look at that, please."

Elmer took the torn bill, produced a penknife, slit the yellow paper,
and cut out of it one of the small hair-like fibers with which the
texture of such notes is sprinkled. After wetting this fiber and
mangling it with his penknife he gave his judgment briefly.

"Queer," he said.

"B