caught an ironical undertone in his father's voice.

"I don't understand," he said.

"I am a trifle deaf myself, but still he wakened me.--It's strange that
you should be the only one in the house who could sleep through it."

"Sleep through what? I don't know what you're talking about."

I cut in hastily and explained our adventure with Mose's ha'nt.

Radnor listened with troubled eyes but made no comment at the end. His
father was watching him keenly, and I don't know whether it was
intuition or some knowledge of the truth that made him suddenly put the
question:

"You were of course in the house all night?"

"No," Radnor returned, "I was not. I didn't get in till early this
morning and I suppose the excitement occurred during my absence."

"I suppose I may not be permitted to inquire where you spent the
night--that too is a private matter?"

"Yes," said Radnor, easily, "that too is a private matter."

"And would throw no light on the robbery?"

"None whatever."

Solomon brought in the breakfast and we three sat down, but not to a
very cheerful meal. The Colonel wore an angry frown and Rad an air of
anxious perplexity. Neither of them indulged in any unnecessary
conversation. I knew that the Colonel was more upset by his son's
reticence than by the robbery of the bonds, and that it was my presence
alone which restrained him from giving vent to his anger. As we rose
from the table he said stiffly:

"Well, Rad, have you any suggestion as to how we shall set to work to
track down the thief?"

Radnor slowly shook his head.

"I shall have to talk with Mose first and find out what he really saw."

"Mose!" The Colonel laughed shortly. "He's like all the rest of the
niggers. He doesn't know what he saw--No sir! I've had enough of this
ha'nt business; it's one thing when he spirits chickens from the oven,
it's another when he takes to spiriting securities from the safe. I
shall telegraph to Washington for a first class detective."

"If you take my advice," said Rad, "you'll not do that. A detective's
not much good outside the covers of a book. He'll stir up a lot of
notoriety and present a bill; and you'll be no wiser than you were
before."

"Whoever stole those bonds will be marketing them within a few days; the
interest falls due the first of May. I am not so rich that I can let
five thousand dollars go without a move to get it back. I shall
telegraph today for a detective."

"Just as you please," sai