endeavours in your service,

We remain, Yours faithfully,
_per pro_ The Cosmopolitan Bkg. Corpn.

C.O. SHINE.

So far so good. The Bank's manner left nothing to be desired, and its
replies were certainly to the point. I began to think of Mr. C.O. Shine as
my personal friend and speculated as to whether his first name were Claude
or Clarence.

During the following week, whenever I became curious on any subject, I made
notes of fresh queries to propound. After accumulating a sufficient number
I again wrote to the Bank. I forget the exact points upon which I required
information; one of them, I fancy, was the conjectured geologic age of the
Reichardtite strata. Anyhow I got no answer to any of them.

Instead, three days later, I received the following letter:--

SIR,--We regret to announce that, owing to a clerical error in this office,
your account was last month wrongly credited with a cheque for L13,097 5s.
10d. which was made payable to another client of the same name.

Adjustments have now been made which reveal a balance on your account of
L110 11s. 3d. _in our favour_. We trust that you will find it convenient to
cover this overdraft at an early date.

With reference to your letter of the 19th inst. containing assorted
inquiries, we beg to intimate that we can in no circumstances undertake to
advise clients on general matters which lie outside the scope of our
interests.

Yours faithfully,
_per pro_ The Cosmopolitan Bkg. Corpn.

CHARLES O. SHINE.

And this time C.O.S. did not even "remain" in the plural.

I at once showed Butterington this offensive communication.

"Well," said he, "of course they won't answer communications unless you
have a balance."

That is the way rich men talk.

"I am never without one," I replied with dignity, "on one side or the
other."

"There you differ from your namesake, whose balance is clearly always on
the right side. Hence that first kindly letter, addressed to you in error."

* * * * *

THE ROMANCE OF ADVERTISEMENT.

The following items, culled from recent issues of _The Daily Lure_, show
where you should go to find really interesting, stimulating and flat-
catching notices:--

Partner, with not less than five thousand pounds, wanted for a wild-duck
farm in the island of Mull. Must be a man of iron constitution; Gaelic
speaker and teetotaler preferred.

* * *

Wanted, a cheap Desert Island, with a good water-supply and hom