aberge Egg is Missing

aron Von Lodge was the head of a small country known as Lilliland near Switzerland. The time was the early 1900s.

Professor Hamblin, the Baron’s chief advisor, arranged to have a priceless Faberge egg to be displayed, on loan from Carl Faberge of Russia. The jeweled golden egg would be on display at Lilliland Castle for only ten days. All the citizens in Lilliland were able to view the Faberge Egg every morning from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. The admission was free. Tight security was arranged and everyone would be searched when he or she arrived and again when he or she left. There were to be four guards watching the egg at all times. Yet, despite the security, the fabulous golden Faberge Egg disappeared.

Baron Von Lodge immediately asked Professor Hamblin to investigate. No one entering or leaving had the egg and how it was removed was a mystery.

The afternoon following the disappearance of the egg something unusual happened. One of the swans of Castle Lake got its head and neck entangled in a cord while looking for fish in the lake. At one end of the cord was a small deflated gas-filled balloon, dark gray in color, and at the other end of the cord was a small watertight container that held the missing Faberge Egg.

The Professor deduced that the people who tried to steal the egg had a very detailed plan. They must have sneaked the balloon and container in through a balcony window. Then after the display hours were over one of the castle cleanup crew took the egg and placed it into the container and set the balloon free to float over the lake. The other thieves were in a small boat sent to look for the balloon as it drifted over the lake. They evidently had determined the wind direction and the way a balloon would travel at that time of day. Unfortunately, it suddenly rained the night the balloon was launched and an unpredicted gust of wind forced the balloon in another direction. A swan was searching for fish and got tangled in the cord when it landed on the lake. The swan swam to the resting area near Lilliland Castle where the swan was found with the egg still in the container.

Professor Hamblin then tried to find out who the guilty people were. Unfortunately, three members of the castle work crew were reported missing and were never seen again. It was presumed that they were the criminals but it was never proven. The Faberge Egg completed its tour and was safely returned to the Faberge Family in Russia. All was well again in Lilliland.