hree
minims," he answered, and turning, found that Barbara had stolen from
the room.

CHAPTER IV. BARBARA ENGAGES COUNSEL

Bidding a hasty good morning to the elevator girl, Harry Kent, suit-case
in hand, entered the cage and was carried up to the fourth floor of the
Wilkins Building. Several business acquaintances stopped to chat with
him as he walked down the corridor to his office, and it was fully
fifteen minutes before he turned the knob of the door bearing the firm
name--ROCHESTER AND KENT, ATTORNEYS--on its glass panel. As he
stepped inside the anteroom which separated the two offices occupied
respectively by him and his senior partner, Philip Rochester, a stranger
rose from the clerk's desk.

"Yes, sir?" he asked interrogatively.

Kent eyed him in surprise. "Mr. Rochester here?" he inquired.

"No, sir. It am in charge of the office."

"You are!" Kent's surprise increased. "I happen to be Mr. Kent, junior
partner in this firm."

"I beg your pardon, sir." The dapper clerk bowed and hurrying to his
desk took up a letter. "Mr. Rochester left this for you, Mr. Kent,
before his departure last night."

"His departure!" Kent deposited his suit-case on one of the chairs
and tore open the envelope. The note was a scrawl, which he had some
difficulty in deciphering.

"Dear Kent," it ran. "Am called out of town; will be back Saturday.
Saunders gave me some of his cheek this afternoon, so I fired him. I
engaged John Sylvester to fill his place, who comes highly recommended.
He will report for work to-morrow. Ta-ta--PHIL."

Kent thrust the note into his pocket and picked up his suit-case.

"Mr. Rochester states that he has engaged you," he said. "Your
references--?"

"Here, sir." The clerk handed him a folded paper, and Kent ran his
eyes down the sheet from the sentence: "To whom it may concern" to the
signature, Clark Hildebrand. The statement spoke in high terms of John
Sylvester, confidential clerk.

"I can refer you to my other employers, Mr. Kent," Sylvester volunteered
as the young lawyer stood regarding the paper. "If you, desire further
information there is Mr. Clymer and--"

"No, Judge Hildebrand's recommendation is sufficient." And at Kent's
smile the clerk's anxious expression vanished. "Did Mr. Rochester give
you any outline of the work?"

"Yes, sir; he told me to file the papers in the Hitchcock case, and
attend to the morning correspondence."

"Very good. Has any one called this morni