, the detective? Well, my
name is Miss Petunia Scroggs, and I want to talk to you about
detecting something for me."

"I'm pleased to," said Mr. Gubb, placing a chair for the lady.
"Anything in the deteckative line which I can do for you will be so
done gladly and in good shape. At the present moment of time, I'm
engaged upon a job of kitchen paper for Mrs. Horton up on Eleventh
Street, but the same will not occupy long, as she wants it hung over
what is already on the wall, to minimize the cost of the expense."

"Different people, different ways," said Miss Scroggs, smiling
sweetly. "Scrape it off and be clean, is my idea."

"Yes, ma'am," said Philo Gubb.

"Well, I didn't come here to talk about Mrs. Horton's notion of how a
kitchen ought to be papered," said Miss Scroggs. "How do you detect,
by the day or by the job?"

"My terms in such matters is various and sundry, to suit the taste,"
said Mr. Gubb.

"Then I'll hire you by the job," said Miss Scroggs, "if your rates
ain't too high. Now, first off, I ain't ever been married; I'm a
maiden lady."

"Yes, ma'am," said Philo Gubb, jotting this down on a sheet of paper.

"Not but what I could have been a wedded wife many's the time," said
Miss Scroggs hastily, "but I says to myself, 'Peace of mind, Petunia,
peace of mind!'"

"Yes'm," said Philo Gubb. "I'm a unmarried bachelor man myself."

"Well, I'm surprised to hear you say it in a boasting tone," said Miss
Petunia gently. "You ought to be ashamed of it."

"Yes, ma'am," said Philo Gubb, "but you was conversationally speaking
of some deteckative work--"

"And I'm leading right up to it all the time," said Miss Scroggs.
"Peace of mind is why I have remained single up to now, and peace of
mind I have had, but I won't have it much longer if this Anonymous
Wiggle keeps on writing me letters."

"Somebody named with that cognomen is writing letters to you like a
Black Hand would?" asked Mr. Gubb eagerly.

"Cognomen or not," said Miss Scroggs, "that's what I call him or her
or whoever it is. Snake would be a better name," she added, "but I
must say the thing looks more like a fish-worm. Now, here," she said,
opening her black hand-bag, "is letter Number One. Read it."

Mr. Gubb took the envelope and looked at the address. It was written
in a hand evidently disguised by slanting the letters backward, and
had been mailed at the Riverbank post-office.

"Hum!" said Mr. Gubb. "Lesson Nine of the Rising Sun Deteck