a girl in a strange country, where she has
no friends.' That was all I got, but I noticed that she spoke with a
decidedly foreign accent, French or Spanish, I should say.

"Around a bend in the path I hid behind a clump of bushes and waited
until they had passed, then tailed them again. I saw him produce the
locket and chain at last, and offer them to her. She protested and
took a lot of persuading; but he prevailed upon her and she let him
clasp it about her neck and kiss her. After that--Good Lord! They
spooned for about two hours and never even noticed the snow which had
begun to fall, while I shivered along behind. About half-past ten they
made a break-away and he left her at the park gates and went on down
to his rooms. I put up for the night at the Hotel Gaythorne, just
across the way, and kept a look-out, but there were no further
developments until early this morning. At a little after seven he left
his apartment house and started up State Street as if he meant
business. Of course I was after him on the jump.

"He evidently didn't think he was watched, for he never looked around
once, but made straight for a little shop near the corner of Tarleton
Place. It was a stationery and tobacco store, and I was right at his
heels when he entered. He leaned over the counter, and asked in a low,
meaning tone for a box of Cairo cigarettes. The man gave him a long,
searching glance, then turned, and reaching back of a pile of boxes on
the first shelf, drew out a flat one--the size which holds twenty
cigarettes. He passed it quickly over to Paddington, but not before I
observed that it had been opened and rather clumsily resealed.

"Paddington handed over a quarter and left the shop without another
word. He went directly to a cheap restaurant across the street, and,
ordering a cup of coffee, he tore open the cigarette box. It contained
only a sheet of paper, folded twice. I was at the next table, too far
away to read what was written upon it, but whatever it was, it seemed
to give him immense satisfaction. He finished his coffee, returned to
his rooms, changed his clothes, and went directly to the office of
Snedecker, the man whose divorce case he is trying to trump up.
Evidently he's good for a day's work on that, so I thought I could
safely leave him at it, and report to you."

"Humph! I'd like to have a glimpse of that communication in the
cigarette box, but it isn't of sufficient importance, on the face of
it, to show