THE SIGN OF THE SEVEN SINS THE SIGN OF THE SEVEN SINS BY WILLIAM LE QUEUX _AUTHOR OF “THE EYE OF ISTAR,” “THE TEMPTRESS,” “ZORAIDA,” ETC._ [Illustration] PHILADELPHIA J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY 1901 COPYRIGHT, 1900 BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY ELECTROTYPED AND PRINTED BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY, PHILADELPHIA, U. S. A. CONTENTS [Illustration] CHAPTER PAGE I. IS PURELY PERSONAL 7 II. TELLS SOMETHING ABOUT LOVE 14 III. IS A MYSTERY 24 IV. RELATES SOME ASTOUNDING FACTS 43 V. DEALS WITH A MILLIONAIRE 56 VI. PLACES ME IN A PREDICAMENT 69 VII. MAINLY CONCERNS THE OWL 79 VIII. NARRATES A MYSTERIOUS INCIDENT 93 IX. SHOWS THE BIRD’S TALONS 111 X. MAKES ONE POINT PLAIN 124 XI. DESCRIBES A MEETING AND ITS SEQUEL 137 XII. CARRIES ME ON BOARD THE VISPERA 148 XIII. DISCLOSES A MILLIONAIRE’S SECRET 165 XIV. IN WHICH I MAKE A RESOLVE 177 XV. IS ASTONISHING 189 XVI. IS MORE ASTONISHING 204 XVII. CONFIDES THE STORY OF A TABLE 215 XVIII. GIVES THE KEY OF THE CIPHER 229 XIX. PIECES TOGETHER THE PUZZLE 245 XX. REVEALS THE TRUTH 273 XXI. CONTAINS THE CONCLUSION 279 THE SIGN OF THE SEVEN SINS [Illustration] CHAPTER I IS PURELY PERSONAL No; I dare not reveal everything here, lest I may be misjudged. The narrative is, to say the least, a strange one; so amazing, indeed, that had I not been one of the actual persons concerned therein I would never have believed that such things could be. Yet these chapters of an eventful personal history, remarkable though they may appear, are nevertheless the truth, a combination of unusual circumstances which will be found startling and curious, idyllic and tragic. Reader, I would confess all if I dared, but each of us have skeletons in our cupboards, both you and I--for, alas! I am no exception to the general rule among women. If compelled by natural instinct to suppress one single fact, I may also add that it has little or nothing to do with the circumstances herein related. It only concerns myself, and no woman cares to afford food for gossips at her own expense. Briefly, it is my intention to narrate plainly and straightforwardly all that occurred, in the hope that those who read may approach it with a perfectly open mind and afterwards adjudge me fairly, impartially, and without the prejudice attaching to one whose shortcomings are many, and whose actions have perhaps not always been tempered by wisdom.