fety vault company haven't complained?" persisted Kennedy,
determined to get something out of the agent.

"No indeed," he returned confidently. "I guess they've got troubles of
their own--real ones."

"How's that?" asked Craig, falling in with the man's evident desire to
change the subject.

"Why, I believe their alarm system's out of order," he replied. "Some of
the fine wires in it burnt out, I think. Defective wiring, I guess. Oh,
they've had it patched up, changed about a little,--it's all right now,
they say. But they've had a deuce of a time with the alarm ringing at
all sorts of hours, and not a trace of trouble."

I looked quickly at Craig. Though the superintendent thought he had been
very clever in changing the topic of conversation, he had unwittingly
furnished us with another clew. I could not ask Craig before him and I
forgot to do so later, but, to me at least, it seemed as if this might
be due to induction from the stray currents.

"No one here seems to have suspected the Creighton motor, anyhow,"
commented Craig to me, as we thanked the superintendent and walked
across to the elevators.

We rode up to Tresham's office, which was on the third floor, on the
side of the building toward Creighton's laboratory. In fact one of the
windows opened almost on the roof of the brick building next door.

We found Tresham in his office and he received us affably, I thought.
"Miss Laidlaw told me she was going to consult you," he remarked as we
introduced ourselves. "I'm glad she did so."

Tresham was a large, well-built fellow, apparently athletically
inclined, clean shaven with dark hair that was getting very thin. He
seemed quite at ease as he talked with us, yet I could tell that he was
weighing us all the time, as lawyers will do.

"What do you think of Creighton's motor?" opened Kennedy. "You've seen
it, I suppose?"

"Oh, yes," he replied quickly and jerkily. "Since Miss Laidlaw became
interested he's been in here to have me look over his application for a
patent. You know, I used to be a patent lawyer for a number of years
until I decided to branch out into general practice. Legally Creighton
seems to be sound enough. Of course, you know, the patent office won't
grant a patent on a machine such as he claims without a rigid
demonstration. He needs money, he says, for that. If his idea is sound,
I don't see any reason why he shouldn't get a basic patent."

Tresham paused. I was conscious that he was f