n."

"These men, then," muttered the Sepoy to himself, "are the subordinates
of the detective within."

At that moment the moon slipped out from behind a mask of cloud and
silhouetted the three.

By its light the prisoner examined the grim countenances before him.
"Surely," he decided, "there is nothing in these features to indicate a
strenuous moral objection to the bribery of the contents of my
traveling-case," and at the thought of the absurd discrepancy between
his present predicament and the cynical altitudes of a short time since,
and as he considered the humiliation awaiting him when he was compelled
once more to face the detective, he decided to venture on another
attempt to purchase his freedom.

With this thought he was about to place the case he carried on the
ground, when one of the men, remarking his movement and mistaking its
purpose, cried: "Here; none of that!"

"But," expostulated the Sepoy, "you do not----"

"Shut up!" replied the fellow coarsely. "Come inside and show us where
you have left the chief. You here, the boss in there--something's
wrong."

With a muttered curse, and urged by no ceremonious hands, the Sepoy
reascended the steps.

Having in his haste to escape neglected to latch the doors, the raging
Sepoy had no difficulty in conducting his captors along the hallway to
his room.

In a few moments this strangely assorted trio reached the apartment in
which the Sepoy had but a short time before disported himself, so to
speak, with such waspish reprisal, and delivered such a farrago of
ridicule and cynicism upon the defenseless head of the silent figure
bound to the chair.

At sight of this extraordinary spectacle the two understrappers came to
a standstill and looked upon the Sepoy with a species of respect.

Never before had they beheld their chief in such a predicament; the
means of its accomplishment must have been amazingly clever, and the
agent himself somewhat of a marvel.

However, while one of the men stood guard over the Sepoy, with a renewal
of his watchfulness awakened by what he saw, the other proceeded to
unfasten the gag and remove the strips which bound the unfortunate
Gratz.

After a pause of inscrutable regard of the Sepoy, who, despite the
embarrassing denouement, managed to maintain a fair degree of composure,
Gratz, addressing the man who had released him, said:

"You will find the key of these handcuffs on the table yonder."

Obedient to the direction