The drawer stuck, and it was some seconds before I could get it open,
and when I turned round again, to my great dismay, Shin Shira had almost
disappeared.

The little yellow shoes were still there and part of a stocking, but
even as I watched them they too disappeared, the long pointed toes of
the shoes waggling a kind of farewell--or so I thought--and my strange
little visitor had vanished.




MYSTERY NO. II

SHIN SHIRA AND THE DRAGON


It was during my holidays in Cornwall that I next met Shin Shira.

I had ridden by motor-car from Helston to the Lizard, and after
scrambling over rugged cliffs for some time, following the white stones
put by the coastguards to mark the way, I found myself at last at the
most beautiful little bay imaginable, called Kynance Cove.

The tide was low, and from the glittering white sands, tall jagged rocks
rose up, covered with coloured seaweed; which, together with the deep
blue and green of the sky and sea, made a perfect feast of colour for
the eyes.

On the shore I met an amiable young guide, who, for sixpence, undertook