I am still not entirely comfortable with reported speech in
English. Consider, for example, the following fragment from
a later Conan novel:

Conan to Publio:
I want to know if a Zingaran named Beloso, or he might call
himself anything, is in this city. He's tall and lean and dark
like all his race, and it's likely he'll seek to sell a very rare
jewel.

Publio to spies (later):
Send your men into the markets and wharfside dives and learn if
one Beloso, a Zingaran, is in Messantia. Conan said he had a gem,
which he will probably seek to dispose of.

Publio back-shifted `have' into `had', but kept the present tense of
`will'*. Why? If Conan's information about Beloso's posession of the
gem deserves a degree of remotentess exressed by the past tense,
why not give like treatment to his words about the intent of Beloso
to sell it, i.e.:

Conan said he had a gem, which he would probably seek to dispse
of.

* I here treat `will' as a verb in the present tense,
and `would' as its past form. Your terminology may vary.

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* Origin: nntp://news.fidonet.fi (2:221/6.0)

I wrote:

Conan to Publio:
I want to know if a Zingaran named Beloso, or he might call
himself anything, is in this city. He's tall and lean and dark
like all his race, and it's likely he'll seek to sell a very
rare jewel.

Publio to spies (later):
Send your men into the markets and wharfside dives and learn if
one Beloso, a Zingaran, is in Messantia. Conan said he had a
gem, which he will probably seek to dispose of.

I have come up with the following interpretation:

1. Conan said he had a gem (reported speech).
2. [If Conan's words be true] he will probably seek to dispose of
it. (direct speech)

That is -- the conclusion is Publio's own, although it repeats
Conan's.

P.S.: I am writing from the e-mail client on my Raspberry Pi, and
cannot format my messages according to FidoNet standards. Let
me know you would rather that I had better (if I may utter
such a monstrosity) wait till I can post in the traditional
style.

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* Origin: nntp://news.fidonet.fi (2:221/6.0)

Hi, Anton Shepelev! -> All
I read your message from 05.08.2021 13:45

-----Beginning of the citation-----
Publio to spies (later):
Send your men into the markets and wharfside dives and learn if
one Beloso, a Zingaran, is in Messantia. Conan said he had a gem,
which he will probably seek to dispose of.
----- The end of the citation -----

Publio back-shifted `have' into `had', but kept the present tense
of `will'*. Why? If Conan's information about Beloso's posession of
the gem deserves a degree of remotentess exressed by the past
tense, why not give like treatment to his words about the intent of
Beloso to sell it, i.e.:

Conan said he had a gem, which he would probably seek to dispse of.

IMHO, "which he will probably seek to dispose of" doesn't belong to
Conan, and, therefore, there is no need for the time switch.

Bye, Anton!
Alexander Koryagin
english_tutor 2021

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* Origin: nntp://news.fidonet.fi (2:221/6.0)