One was to remain in the basement, and get to the sailor after he had been dumped down the shaft. Wounded and in fear of death, the man would be likely to tell all he knew about the diamond robbery. The other was to force his way out of the basement and take the sailor with Patsy into custody. This man probably knew as much of the affair as the other. After studying the matter over, Nick decided to remain and assist the sailor out of the den he was in. The other man might prove sullen and refuse to talk after being placed under arrest. Besides, humanity prompted the detective to help the wounded sailor. Only that such a course would have placed Hartley on his guard and defeated all his plans, Nick would have beaten down the door and rushed to the rescue of the sailor then and there. In fact, this was his first idea, but he quickly saw that to do so would be to imperil the success of the case. But it was not entirely in the hope of recovering the diamonds that the detective decided to remain where he was. There might be peril in remaining, but there were things to be cleared up of more importance than the recovery of the diamonds. The sailor might be able to throw some light on the strange murder of Alvin Maynard. At least he would be able to tell how the diamonds had been secured, and to explain the situation in the house at the time of his visit. He was positive that the robbers had not passed beyond Anton’s room, and he wanted an account of what had taken place there. There were many things to be explained, and the sailors were the only ones who would be apt to tell the truth. Presently a noise like that made by dragging a heavy body over the floor came from the private room just over Nick’s head. The paid assassin of the diamond merchant was about to complete his task. Just at this moment the workmen employed at the front of the basement extinguished their light and went away. Their departure gave Nick an opportunity to work out a plan which had been forming in his brain. The sailor was undoubtedly badly wounded now, and would, of course, be still further hurt by a long drop into the sub-basement. Nick wanted to get at the man while he was in good shape—while he could talk of the events of the previous night. A long board lay on one of the packing boxes, and the detective took this and carried it to the shaft. “I’ll switch the victim off their trunk line to death or insanity,” thought Nick, “if my usual luck will hold for a few minutes.” The board was wide as well as long, and perfectly smooth on one side. Bracing one end against the wall of the shaft opposite the door, the detective placed the other against a heavy box, which he dragged up to the dark doorway.