But, more than its money value, it has represented for centuries the honor of the ruling family of Surakarta. It is a sort of palladium, the possession of which is the superstitious hold over the sultan's people. A pretender, possessing it, could soon overturn the Soesoehoenan and put himself on the throne. The sending of this stone to Miss Regan, therefore, is the most absolute pledge of his sincerity possible. In giving it to her he puts himself absolutely into her hands. If—as may be her plan—she keeps it in her possession at some bank or other safe place to which she may have access, at the first suspicion of disloyalty to her she need only give it to the sultan's cousin to seat him in the sultan's place, or turn it over to the Dutch for them to take from him his power; or she could ruin him in a dozen other ways.
