"Not all, but they seemed angry over something. The man with the blue ring on his finger asked the other man whether Murdock had been heard from."
"Who is Murdock?"
"I don't know, unless he is another member of the gang or unless that is an assumed name."
"It may be that. What else did you hear?"
"The man we know as Morse replied that he hadn't heard from him, but that he suspected Murdock was playing a double game. Then the tramp—Happy Harry—asked this question: 'Have you any clew to the sparkler?' And Morse answered: 'No, but I think Murdock has hid it somewhere and is trying to get away with it without giving us our share.' Then the two men walked away, and I came back to the hotel," finished Mr. Swift.
"Sparkler," murmured Tom. "I wonder what that can be?"
"That's a slang word for diamonds," suggested Ned.
"So it is. In that case, dad, I think we have nothing to worry about. Those fellows must be going to commit a diamond robbery or perhaps it has already taken place."
The inventor seemed relieved at this theory of his son. His face brightened and he said:
