here's been no end of a row at the _Rocket_, which you may like to hear
about, especially as two of the chief persons concerned were your friend
Durfy and your affectionate brother.

"Granville, the sub-editor, came into the office where Booms and
Waterford and I were working on Friday morning, and said, in his usual
mild way,--

"`I should like to know who generally clears the post-box in the
morning?'

"`I do,' said Booms. You know the way he groans when he speaks.

"`The reason I want to know is, because I have an idea one or two
letters lately have either been looked at or tampered with before the
editor or I see them.'

"`I suppose I'm to be given in charge?' said Booms. `I didn't do it;
but when once a man's suspected, what's the use of saying anything?'

"Even Granville couldn't help grinning at this.

"`Nonsense, Booms. I'm glad to say I know you three fellows well enough
by this time to feel sure it wasn't one of you. I shouldn't have spoken
to you about it if I had.'

"Booms seemed quite disappointed he wasn't to be made a martyr of after
all.

"`You think I know all about it?' he said.

"`No, I don't; and if you'll just listen without running away with
ridiculous notions, Booms,' said Granville, warming up a bit, `I'll
explain myself. Two letters during the last fortnight have been
undoubtedly opened before I saw them. They both arrived between eight
o'clock in the evening and nine next morning, and they both came from
sporting correspondents of ours in the country, and contained
information of a private nature intended for our paper the next day. In
one case it was about a horse race, and in the other about an important
football match. The letters were not tampered with for the purpose of
giving information to any other papers, because we were still the only
paper who gave the news, so the probability is some one who wanted to
bet on the event has tried to get hold of the news beforehand.'

"`I never made a bet in my life,' said Booms.

"We couldn't help laughing at this, for the stories he tells us of his
terrific sporting exploits when he goes out of an evening in his high
collar would make you think he was the loudest betting man in London.

"Granville laughed too.

"`Better not begin,' he said, and then blushed very red, as it occurred
to him he had made an unintentional pun. But we looked quite grave, and
did not give any sign of having seen it, and that put him on his feet
ag