e else for the failure--but I'll see that he doesn't succeed.
I'll see, anyway, that Simmonds gets a square deal--he's an old
friend of mine, you know."

"Yes," I said, "I know; but we're all up a tree, aren't we?"

"For the present," laughed Godfrey, "we do occupy that undignified
position. But you don't expect to stay there forever, do you,
Lester?"

"Since my theory about the Boule cabinet exploded," I said, "I have
given up hope. By the way, I'm going to turn the cabinet over to its
owner to-morrow."

"To its owner?" he repeated, his eyes narrowing. "Yes, I thought
he'd be around for it, though I hardly thought he'd come so soon. Who
does it happen to be, Lester?"

"Why," I said, a little impatiently, "you know as well as I do that
it belongs to Armand & Son."

"You've seen their representative, then?" he queried, a little flush
of excitement which I could not understand spreading over his face.

"He came to see me yesterday. I'd like you to meet him, Godfrey. He
is Felix Armand, the 'son' of the firm, and one of the most finished
gentlemen I ever met."

"I'd like to meet him," said Godfrey, smiling queerly. "Perhaps I
shall, some day; I hope so, anyway. But how did he explain the
blunder, Lester?"

"In some way, they shipped the wrong cabinet to Vantine. The right
one will get here on _La Provence_ to-morrow," and I told him in
detail the story which Felix Armand had told me. "He was quite upset
over it," I added, "His apologies were almost abject."

Godfrey listened intently to all this, and he nodded with
satisfaction when I had finished.

"It is all most interesting," he commented.

"Did M. Armand happen to mention where he is staying?"

"No, but he won't be hard to find, if you want to see him. He's at
one of the big hotels, of course--probably the Plaza or the St.
Regis. He's too great a swell for any minor hostelry."

"What time do you expect him to-morrow?"

"Sometime in the afternoon. He's to call for me as soon as he gets
Vantine's cabinet off the boat. Godfrey," I added, "I felt yesterday
when I was talking with him that perhaps he knew more about this
affair than he would admit. I could see that he guessed in an instant
who the owner of the letters was, and what they contained. Do you
think I ought to hold on to the cabinet a while longer? I could
invent some pretext for delay, easily enough."

"Why, no; let him have his cabinet," said Godfrey, with an alacrity
that surprised me. "I