went on.

"We will be delighted," said Gaultier, taking the proffered case. "The
fact is, I only heard of your presence in Paris by accident, and I
mentioned the fact to my friend here, who has interested himself in the
Armenian cause in London. He at once expressed a keen desire to make
your acquaintance, so I ventured to bring him here and introduce him to
you. This is Mr. Reginald Brett, an English barrister, and one who
keenly sympathizes with the reform movement in Turkey."

"I am delighted to know you, Mr. Brett," said the suave Oriental. "It is
naturally a great pleasure to me to make the acquaintance of any
influential Englishman who has given sufficient thought to Eastern
affairs to understand the way in which my country suffers under a
barbarous and unenlightened rule."

He spoke with the glibness of a born agitator, yet all the while he was
inwardly wondering what could be the true motive of the visit paid him
by this distinguished-looking stranger, and Brett was silently resolving
to startle Hussein-ul-Mulk out of his complacency at the earliest
possible moment.

"It is an even greater pleasure to me," he said, "to find myself talking
to a reformer so distinguished as you. Your name is well known in
England. Indeed, in some quarters, it has come to be feared, which in
this world is one of the signs of success."

Hussein-ul-Mulk was puzzled, but he remained outwardly unperturbed.

"I was not aware," he purred, "that my poor services to my country were
so appreciated by my English friends."

"Ah," said Brett, with a smile that conveyed much, "a man like you
cannot long remain hidden. I have good reason to know that at the
present moment your achievements are earnestly attracting the attention
of the Foreign Office."

Hussein-ul-Mulk became even more puzzled. Indeed, he exhibited some
slight tokens of alarm lest Brett's vehement admiration should reach the
ears of others in the adjoining room.

"Really," he said, "you flatter me. Will you not try these cigarettes?
They are the best; they are made from tobacco grown especially for the
Sultan's household, and it is death to export them. I understand that
the cigarette habit has grown very much of recent years in England?"

"Yes," said Brett, "it certainly has developed with amazing rapidity. In
trade, as in politics, this is an astounding age."

Gaultier knew that there was more behind the apparent exchange of
compliments than appeared on the surface