least clue to his whereabouts. I wonder
what he means? Is that his writing?"

"I can't be mistaken in that," Grace replied. "It is just the same
as the other letter was."

"Let me see," and the young reporter examined the envelope. It was
similar to that containing the first note which had come from Mr.
Potter, save there was no blot on it and the stamp showed no excess
of mucilage.

"I'll take this to the sub-station," Larry went on. "It was probably
mailed in the same place as was the other. I'll see if the carrier
had any such experience as he did with the former note."

"I think it would be a good plan," Grace answered. "Oh, this is
beginning to wear on my nerves! As for mother, she is almost ill
over it. Her physician says if father is not found soon he cannot
say what will happen to mother."

"Still she must know your father is safe."

"That is the worst of it. She will not believe these notes are from
him, or, rather, she believes he is held captive somewhere and is
forced to write them. Nothing I can say will make her think
differently. She is wearing herself to a shadow over it."

"We must do something!" exclaimed Larry.

"Yes; but what?" asked the girl. "You are working hard and I am
doing all I can, but our efforts seem to amount to nothing. What
more can we do?"

"I'm trying to think of a plan," Larry responded. "The search of the
steamship piers gave us no clue; the police here have not been able
to find a trace. We can try one thing more."

"What is that?"

"You can hire private detectives. Sometimes, in cases of this kind,
they are better than the police, as they assign one man, who devotes
all his attention to the search, while the police, as a rule, don't
bother much to find missing persons."

"Then I'll hire the best private detectives to be had!" exclaimed
Grace. "Where ought I to go?"

Larry named an agency, that he had heard was first-class, and
offered to take Grace to the office. The reporter knew one of the
men on the staff, as he had once written a story in which he
figured, and the officer had been grateful for the mention of his
name. Detectives, even private ones, are prone to vanity in this
respect, as a rule.

"I don't like to take up so much of your time," objected the girl,
as Larry prepared to go with her to the detective agency.

"My time is yours in this case. I have nothing to do for the
_Leader_ but to find your father. This is part of the work."

"I wouldn't t