Neither Lucy nor Archie Hope had ever seen the mummy, but they knew
the appearance which it would present, as Professor Braddock, with the
enthusiasm of an archaeologist, had often described the same to them. It
appeared, according to Braddock, that on purchasing the precious corpse
in Malta, his dead assistant had written home a full description of
the treasure trove. Consequently, being advised beforehand, Hope had no
difficulty in recognizing the oddly shaped case, which was made somewhat
in the Egyptian form. On the impulse of the moment he had proclaimed
this to be the long-lost mummy, and when a closer examination by the
light of a lucifer match revealed the green hue of the coffin wood, he
knew that he was right.
But what was the mummy in its ancient case doing in Mrs. Jasher's arbor?
That was the mute question which the two young people asked themselves
and each other, as they stood in the chilly moonlight, staring at the
grotesque thing. The mummy had disappeared from the Sailor's Rest at
Pierside some weeks ago, and now unexpectedly appeared in a lonely
garden, surrounded by marshes. How it had been brought there, or why
it should have been brought there, or who had brought it to such an
unlikely place, were questions hard to answer. However, the most obvious
thing to do was to question Mrs. Jasher, since the uncanny object was
lying within a stone-throw of her home. Lucy, after a rapid word or two,
went to ring the bell, and summon the lady, while Archie stood by the
arbor, wondering how the mummy came to be there. In the same way George
III had wondered how the apples got into the dumplings.
Far and wide spread the marshes, flatly towards the shore of the river
on one side, but on the other sloping up to Gartley village, which
twinkled with many lights on the rising ground. Some distance away the
Fort rose black and menacing in the moonlight, and the mighty stream of
the Thames glittered like polished steel as it flowed seaward. As there
were only a few leafless trees dotted about the marshy ground, and as
that same ground, lightly sprinkled with powdery snow, revealed every
moving object for quite a mile or so, Hope could not conceive how the
mummy case, which seemed heavy, could have been brought into the silent
garden without its bearers being seen. It was not late, and soldiers
were still returning through Gartley to the Fort. Then, again, some
noise must have been caused by so bulky an object being thrust through
the narrow wicket, and Mrs. Jasher, inhabiting a wooden house, which was
a very sea-shell for sound, might have heard footsteps and voices. If
those who had brought the mummy here--and there was more than one from
the size of the case--could be discovered, then the mystery of Sidney
Bolton's death would be solved very speedily. It was at this moment of
his reflections that Lucy returned to the arbor, leading Mrs. Jasher,
who was attired in a tea-gown and who looked bewildered.