The Mystery of the Lost Bullion: A Scandinavian Mystery Classic Short Story

By Frank Heller

How can a case containing £100,000 in gold bullion, sealed with the seal of the Bank of England and shipped in the custody of a trustworthy captain, disappear from on board a sailing ship? In this classic Golden Age mystery short story, one or more of the passengers knows the answer...

Frank Heller was the pseudonym of Gunnar S

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kabaty Press
• Release date: Jun 22, 2022
• ISBN: 9788396426048

Frank Heller

Frank Heller was the first internationally famous Swedish crime writer. The son of a clergyman, to avoid arrest after a financial fraud he left Sweden for the continent. In desperate straits after losing the swindled money in a casino in Monte Carlo, he tried his hand at writing novels with immediate success, and produced forty-three novels, short stories and travelogues before his death in 1947.

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Frank Heller

The Mystery of the Lost Bullion

A Scandinavian Mystery Classic Short Story

This edition published by Kabaty Press 2022

Copyright © 1924 by Frank Heller

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Contents

The Mystery of the Lost Bullion

A Note from the Publisher

Beware of Railway-Journeys

The Mystery of the Lost Bullion

But are you quite sure of your facts, Lavertisse?

As sure as I am looking at you, Professor.

And are you certain that you heard correctly?

Absolutely certain.

That the consignment will go on the 20th?

Yes.

Bound for Alexandria?

Bound for Alexandria.

And that you made no mistake about the identity of the people you overheard?

"I am just as sure about them as they were that I did not understand a single word of what they were saying. I had three French newspapers in my hand. They asked me whether they might shut the window, and I pretended not to understand. Then they began talking about different matters—and within a few minutes I was able to recognize one of them from a photograph in the Daily Mirror. What a boon the illustrated papers are!"

One of them—which one?

"Mr. Hoxton. His photograph appeared in the Mirror at the last Lord Mayor’s election. It has probably figured there before—a man in his position, Professor! But it was on the latter occasion that it impressed itself on my mind. It was his friend who set the ball rolling. Funnily enough, they had not been talking long before I recognized him, too."

Sir Arthur Wade?

"Sir Arthur Wade, Professor. I am dead certain—Wade of the Foreign Office. It was he who began. He glanced at my Matin, and on the front page there was an article on the political murders in the Colonies, India and Egypt—you know—and this probably reminded him of the other affair. I had hardly taken any notice of what they were talking about, when I suddenly heard one of them say: ‘And you are not afraid that one of those damned Nationalists will get scent of this business? It would be a nice little windfall for their funds.’

As soon as I heard the word ‘funds’ I at once pricked up my ears. The other, Mr. Hoxton, shook his head and said: ‘No, no, Sir Arthur, nobody, except myself and the chief director, knows anything about it. We have kept the Nationalists in mind all the time. I can tell you, Sir Arthur—perhaps you know it yourself—it was by a mere fluke that their coup against the last P. & O. didn’t come off. Yes, you know it? Fortunately the captain was careful enough to wire for a military escort; otherwise—’ Sir Arthur interrupted him and looked at me: ‘Damn it, Hoxton, don’t you think that this person can understand what you are saying?’ I was sitting at the other end of the compartment, Professor! Mr. Hoxton replied laughingly: ‘I don’t think so, unless he is able to read my lips.’

They did not know what a sharp hearing you have got, Lavertisse.

No, they did not, Professor. Sir Arthur then said: ‘Do you know, Hoxton, that he might almost be an Egyptian?’

Ha! Lavertisse, do you consider this flattering?

To be quite honest, Professor, I can’t say I do. The only Egyptians I have seen are those in the British Museum—I’ll be jiggered if they are handsome!

The mummies? Well, there are Egyptians of more recent date. But never mind, proceed! What did Mr. Hoxton say then?

He laughed at Sir Arthur and replied: ‘Egyptian—no fear! A little French windbag, if I am not strongly mistaken. Perhaps a music-hall artist, as he can afford to travel first class.’

And you bore that patiently, Lavertisse?

I would bear anything for the sake of business, Professor. It does not do to be sensitive when one can hear as well as I do; consequently one has to swallow quite a number of home truths.

You are a great philosopher in your way, Lavertisse. Well?

"Then Sir Arthur continued: ‘You are right, Hoxton; I suppose he is some little French whipper-snapper. So you do not want a military escort for that boat?’ ‘No,’ Mr. Hoxton replied, ‘one might as well shout the whole affair from the house-tops. We count the money, seal it and place it in lots of £1000 in the boxes of the Bank, then we stow them in an ordinary packing-case labelled ‘samples.’ The captain of the boat has been known to us these thirty years—a sly old dog, he will see to the rest. I am as sure of him as I am of myself.’ ‘But might it not be too big a temptation even for him, Hoxton? One hundred thousand—’ ‘No, Sir Arthur, his honesty would be proof against far greater sums. Don’t you remember that it was he who brought the Cullinan diamond all the way from South Africa? No one had an inkling of how it got here and needless to say every crook in the world was hot after it. Captain Selby tricked the whole lot!’

"Captain Selby, I reflected. Why can’t they mention the name of the boat? But they did not, and they summed up: ‘Let us hope that the banks of Alexandria will be satisfied with the amount and not ask for