“Yes,” agreed Agnes. “We never could get anything from Hop Wong by ourselves, and Guardy didn’t seem much more successful.”
They made a good run to Millville and drove up to the boarding house where Charlie Sing was spending the long college vacation, his home being in far-off China.
“Hello, Charlie! Got a job for you!” called Luke in greeting, as he saw the Celestial walking in the garden of the boarding house.
“That’s good!” replied Charlie, with a cheerful grin. “It is fine to see you again, Luke,” he went on. “It’s been pretty lonesome with all the boys scattered.”
“I imagine so. Well, we’ll all soon be back at college again. It won’t be long now. Charlie, you can talk this man’s language, can’t you?” and he indicated Hop Wong.
“Oh, yes, after a fashion, I suppose,” replied Charlie, who spoke a very good English the girls noticed. He was introduced to them and at once proved himself a gentleman as well as a scholar. “Of course,” he said, “he talks a dialect rather than the pure Chinese language,” and he made this statement after a brief conversation with Hop Wong. “But I think he can make himself understood to me, and I’ll tell you what he says to the best of my ability.”
“All right, let go!” said Neale, with cheerful carelessness. “Maybe we’ll find out something now.”
Then began a rapid exchange of strange-sounding syllables and intonations between Hop Wong and Charlie Sing. There was little use for the others to listen, for they could not, of course, understand a word that was said on either side. But there was a strange fascination in hearing the age-old language.
Luke had briefly told his college friend what it was they desired to find out—about the mystery of the cellar—and finally, after a somewhat lengthy conversation, Charlie Sing held up a hand to signify that Hop Wong should stop talking, for he was flowing on, as Agnes said, “like the brook—forever.”
“This is his story,” said Charlie Sing, “making some allowances for words that he uses for which, in the proper language, there is no equivalent. Some time ago, before he was in the laundry business in your town, Hop Wong worked as a servant in a house where there were two men. One was a gardener and the other did odd jobs about the place. Handy man, I believe they call such a worker.”