The Quest of the Sacred Jewel

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• 1914
• 0 hr 40 mins
• Drama

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David Harding visits in his wanderings an old friend in the city of Barrnipore. He hears of a religious festival to be held in the Temple that night and of a wonderful diamond of incalculable value which is set in the forehead of the stone god of the Temple. He determines to risk a visit to the Temple and, disguising himself as a native, mingles among the worshipers undetected. His cupidity is aroused by the gem and in the night, when the throng has left the Temple, he pries out the jewel and attempts to escape with it. A Hindoo fakir nearby gives the alarm and Harding breaks away from the quick-gathering crowd with difficulty. He barely has time to reach his rooms, remove his disguise and leave the house before the angry natives are at the door. Sobered by his peril he at once leaves for America, ignorant of the fact that he is followed by the Hindoo priest and his assistants. In New York on a railroad train the natives manage to reach him as he lies in his berth and kill him. One of them falls from the train while they are doing this and plunges to his death below. The survivors fail to find the jewel. When Harding's will is read it is found that he has left all his property, including the jewel, to his niece, May Rowland. Among the first to congratulate the girl is Joe Marsden, her fiancé. May gives a party to celebrate the announcement of her engagement. While the party is happily occupied in the music room it is announced that Hindoo jugglers are outside. Joe goes outside and at once the priest, who is disguised as a juggler, exerts his powers of hypnotism over him. The rest of the party come to the door just in time to break the charm. That night the Hindoos come near the house and again the priest calls his powers into play. Joe feels the mysterious influence, rises in his slumbers and directed by the Hindoo's will, enters May's dressing room and takes the jewel from the drawer where it is hidden. As he comes from her room he is watched by a young man, who is a fellow guest, and who is badly in need of money. The jewel falls from Joe's grasp and is seized and hidden by the other man. In the meantime May has heard Joe's entrance into her room and has seen him take the jewel. Because of his supposed theft, May breaks her engagement with him. A celebrated detective is called in upon the case and with the assistance of his office boy, succeeds in unraveling the mystery, but not before a number of exciting events have occurred. The Hindoo priest succeeds in getting possession of the jewel and taking it back to his native land. The girl and her lover are reunited, and the jewel and the curse of its ownership forgotten.