his
priceless treasures.

No one, perhaps, but Arsene Lupin! For him, gates, walls and drawbridges
did not exist. What use were the most formidable obstacles or the most
careful precautions, if Arsene Lupin had decided to effect an entrance?

That evening, he wrote to the Procurer of the Republique at Rouen. He
enclosed the threatening letter and solicited aid and protection.

The reply came at once to the effect that Arsene Lupin was in custody in
the Prison de la Sante, under close surveillance, with no opportunity
to write such a letter, which was, no doubt, the work of some imposter.
But, as an act of precaution, the Procurer had submitted the letter
to an expert in handwriting, who declared that, in spite of certain
resemblances, the writing was not that of the prisoner.

But the words "in spite of certain resemblances" caught the attention of
the baron; in them, he read the possibility of a doubt which appeared to
him quite sufficient to warrant the intervention of the law. His fears
increased. He read Lupin's letter over and over again. "I shall be
obliged to remove them myself." And then there was the fixed date: the
night of 27 September.

To confide in his servants was a proceeding repugnant to his nature; but
now, for the first time in many years, he experienced the necessity of
seeking counsel with some one. Abandoned by the legal official of
his own district, and feeling unable to defend himself with his own
resources, he was on the point of going to Paris to engage the services
of a detective.

Two days passed; on the third day, he was filled with hope and joy as
he read the following item in the `Reveil de Caudebec', a newspaper
published in a neighboring town:

"We have the pleasure of entertaining in our city, at the present time,
the veteran detective Mon. Ganimard who acquired a world-wide reputation
by his clever capture of Arsene Lupin. He has come here for rest and
recreation, and, being an enthusiastic fisherman, he threatens to
capture all the fish in our river."

Ganimard! Ah, here is the assistance desired by Baron Cahorn! Who could
baffle the schemes of Arsene Lupin better than Ganimard, the patient and
astute detective? He was the man for the place.

The baron did not hesitate. The town of Caudebec was only six kilometers
from the castle, a short distance to a man whose step was accelerated by
the hope of safety.

After several fruitless attempts to ascertain the detective's addr