ver's Hotel and Mr John Smith,
and had mentioned the number of orders that had arrived, and the account
of money that had accompanied them, and had even confided the amount of
his own salary, Mr Sniff had closed one of his mental eyes and said to
himself, "Yes; we know all about that."

But when it turned out that, so far from such statements being
fabrications to delude him, they were simply true--when the letter
Reginald had written to Mr Medlock that very evening lay in his hands
and corroborated all he had said--when he himself followed the poor
fellow an hour or two later on his errand of mercy, and stood beside him
as he spent that precious sixpence over _Robinson Crusoe_ and the
_Pilgrim's Progress_, Mr Sniff did feel for a moment disconcerted.

But, unusual as it was, he made the bold venture of jumping to the
conviction of Reginald's innocence; and that theory once started,
everything went beautifully.

On the evening following Mrs Cruden's sudden illness, Mr Durfy
strolled down in rather a disconsolate frame of mind towards the Shades.

Since his expulsion from the _Rocket_ office things had not been going
pleasantly with him. For a day or two he had deemed it expedient to
keep in retirement, and when at last he did venture forth, in the vague
hope of picking up some employment worthy of his talents, he took care
to keep clear of the haunts of his former confederates, whom, after his
last failure, he rather dreaded meeting.

It had been during this period that he had made the acquaintance of
Shuckleford, and the prospect of revenge which that intimacy opened to
him was a welcome diversion to the monotony of his existence.

But prospects of revenge do not fill empty stomachs, and Durfy at the
end of a week began to discover that there might be an end even to the
private resources of the late overseer of an evening newspaper and the
part proprietor of an Agency Corporation. He was, in fact, getting hard
up, and therefore, putting his pride in his empty pocket, he strolled
down moodily to the Shades, determined at any rate to have a supper at
somebody else's expense.

He had not reckoned without his host, for after about half an hour's
impatient kicking of his heels outside, Mr Medlock and Mr Shanklin
appeared on the scene, arm in arm.

They appeared by no means elated at seeing him, but that mattered very
little to the hungry Durfy, who followed them into the supper-room and
took his seat at the table