been any one of the well-to-do business men one sees daily on the
downtown streets. His hair was gray with a touch of white at the
temples, his complexion ruddy. On the little finger of his plump, soft
hand he wore a diamond ring in which the gem was the size of a pea. It
was obvious that his suit was the work of a high-priced tailor. He had
frank blue eyes that had a guileless expression and there were no
criminal characteristics in the shape of his head, the position of his
ears and the contour of his lips.

"I suppose you'll want me to go back with you," Hatch said to Gibson
after Benton had made his final flashlight picture of them.

"As soon as the search is completed," assented the commissioner. "Tell
me, Hatch, what about this New York job?"

"Big Jim" drew a cigar from his vest pocket, clipped off the end of it
with a snap of his teeth and lighted it with a match. He puffed at the
cigar, looked at it critically and smiled before he answered.

"You can speak about that to my lawyer," he said.

In pairs the deputies and detectives returned from their search of the
house empty-handed.

"Nothing worth taking," they reported.

They prepared to leave, Hatch donned a suit coat and put on his hat. As
they started toward the door John was in the rear. He was about to step
over the threshold to join the others outside when a hand touched his
arm. He turned and faced a girl, a very pretty girl, he thought, with
large blue eyes, golden hair and petite figure.

"Are you a reporter?" the girl asked.

"Yes," he replied, mystified.

"Then please come back here, tonight, I have something to tell you."

The door closed and he was outside again.

* * * * *

It was not until after Hatch had been lodged in the county jail to await
the arrival of officers from New York and Brennan had written the story
of Gibson's arrest of the swindler that John revealed that the girl,
whom he presumed was Mrs. Hatch, had asked him to return to the house
that night. The arrest of "Big Jim" was the outstanding local news story
of the day. Gibson issued another statement in which he emphasized that
Hatch was one of "Gink" Cummings' men, who completely escaped the notice
of Chief Sweeney's "inefficient" detectives.

When Brennan had handed to P. Q. the last sheet of his story of Hatch's
arrest John told him how the girl had stopped him at the door and asked
him to return.

"Great!" exclaimed Brennan. "