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mine." The man
seemed determined to preserve a businesslike fa cade
and I sensed that he regretted his foray into family history. "If
your visit here was arranged to remove you from
London, what do you deduce might be happening there?"
    Holmes took his time in answering,
probably debating as to how much he wished to reveal to our
unusual client at
this time. "I have good reason to assume that two
prominent collectors are after the Bird and one has secured
possession of it. Therefore, the next move will be
an attempt to recover the object."
    D'Anglas gave another display of
native shrewdness. "Your
words indicate that one of the collectors had pos session
and then lost it to the other."
    "I suspect that is the
situation," replied Holmes. "Whatever
countermove has been planned, I imagine it is now a fait
accompli. Therefore,
rather than rush back to London to tilt at unknown windmills, I
propose to continue
our journeys."
    "Constantinople," said
D'Anglas, nodding.
    "Possibly, the art dealer,
Aben Hassim, can provide some
additional information," said Holmes.
    "He is honorable and enjoys a
fine reputation." D'An glas
rose from his chair and moved slowly to a desk in the corner of the
room. "Let me pen a brief note to him requesting
that he be of assistance to you."
    As his quill pen slowly scratched
on parchment pa per,
Holmes posed a query. "Actually, Mr. D'Anglas, you
are not a collector in the true sense?"
    The oversized head shook
negatively. "Nor in any sense.
The Bird is my sole passion."
    "Since it has produced such
interest from other sources,
I'm puzzled that you were able to secure it."
    D'Anglas looked up from his
writing. "When Hassim placed
the Bird on the market, he sent a notice to col lectors
who would be interested in such an object. He included me in the list
since I had approached him, pre viously
relative to the object. In addition, Hassim knows me
personally. Possibly, my competition delayed in re sponding.
Rest assured I made a bid immediately and Hassim
accepted it. The agreed sum was received by him
and the bill of sale mailed to me. I will show it to you,
if you wish."
    My friend waved this aside as
unnecessary and D'Anglas
folded the note he had written and sealed it with
wax, using a signet ring on his right hand for iden tification.
    Holmes and I had risen and as
D'Anglas crossed to hand
the missive to Holmes, the detective looked at him with
those piercing, all-observing eyes of his.
    "One of the collectors so
enthusiastically pursuing the Bird
is an Oriental. Does this surprise you?"
    Possibly, it did. Or, possibly, it
was some other emo tion
that made the massive man sway for a moment. Instinctively,
I started forward to lend him support but halted as I realized it was
but a momentary reaction.
    "Chinese, no doubt?"
inquired our client. He continued almost before Holmes nodded.
"A rare puzzle, for you
are speaking of a man with one of the largest pri vate
collections of art in the world. Why would the Golden
Bird mean so much to him?"
    "A thought that puzzles me as
well," said Holmes.
    There seemed little else to say
and our client showed no desire to continue our conversation so
Holmes and I departed
from the strange house in the suburban West End
of Berlin and its even stranger owner with whom fate
had placed us in contact.

7
    The
Hatchet Men
    63
    We had little trouble hailing a
carriage and I was sur prised
when Holmes did not direct the vehicle to our hotel
but rather to the Alexanderplatz.
    "We are under surveillance,
my dear Watson," said Holmes,
by way of explanation. "Our movements should
not be so obvious that the two Chinese gentle men
become bored. Therefore, some official assistance will
prove advantageous."
    In previous cases, I had been made
conscious of the efficient
workings of the machinelike Berlin police de partment
with its brain core of the Meldwesen located in
Alexanderplatz. Holmes maintained a friendly asso ciation
with Wolfgang Von Shalloway, the chief of the German
police,