ce of her pocket-book and the hundred and twenty
thousand francs. There was no name whatever on the card.

"Well," said Muller, to the red-headed lad, "where do you come from?"

"I'm the new man on the second floor," the fellow answered. "The hall
porter sent me up to find out what was the matter."

"Matter!" said Muller. "Somebody has robbed the Princess. Here, send
someone for the police at once."

"I'll run, sir," and as the lift, instead of being sent down, had
carelessly been sent up to the top floor, the young fellow ran down the
staircase at full speed.

Through the telephone, Muller was just ordering the hall porter to send
for the police, when the second-floor servant rushed up and caught him
by the arm, dragging him away from the instrument.

"Open the door for the Lord's sake! I'm off to the police station," and
the hall porter made haste to facilitate his departure.

* * * * *

On the top floor cries of astonishment re-echoed. The servants had been
alarmed by the uproar and, surprised to see the lift stop and nobody get
out of it, they opened the door and found a heap of clothing, a false
beard, and a wig. Two housemaids and a valet gazed in amazement at these
extraordinary properties, and never thought of informing the manager, M.
Louis. Meantime, however, that gentleman had hurried through the mazes
of the hotel, and had just reached the third floor when he was stopped
by the Baronne Van den Rosen, one of the hotel's oldest patronesses.

"M. Louis!" she exclaimed, bursting into sobs. "I have just been robbed
of my diamond necklace. I left it in a jewel-case on my table before
going down to dinner. When I heard the noise just now, I got up and
looked through my jewel-case, and the necklace is not there."

M. Louis was too dazed to reply. Muller ran up to him.

"Princess Sonia Danidoff's pocket-book has been stolen," he announced;
"but I have had the hotel doors shut and we shall be sure to catch the
thief."

The Princess came near to explain matters, but at that moment the
servants came down from upstairs, bringing with them the make-up
articles which they had found in the lift. They laid these on the
ground without a word and M. Louis was staring at them when Muller had a
sudden inspiration.

"M. Louis, what is the new man on the second floor like?"

Just at that instant a servant appeared at the end of the corridor, a
middle-aged man with white whiskers and a