d
that his guess was right, for a single flash of his lamp showed a flight
of stairs.

His stockinged feet making no sound, he crept up the stairs. At the top
of the flight was another door, and opening this a bit at a time, he
entered the room. All was darkness and silence.

He swept his flashlamp around the room, and made a discovery that
promised the means of hearing what was going on in the room the plotters
were in.

In most small towns, and especially in farm houses, a furnace is an
unknown quantity. So to provide heat for the upper rooms without going
to the expense of getting extra stoves, holes about a foot in diameter
are cut through the ceiling, and an iron grating called a "register" is
installed. This allows the heat to mount to the upper rooms.

Garry mentally estimated the location of the room he was in, and decided
that it was over the kitchen. Hence the next room on that floor must be
the one over that in which the conference of the smugglers was taking
place.

Walking as though the floor were covered with eggs, he proceeded to the
other door of the room, and pursuing the same tactics of taking several
moments, cautiously opened the door. He found that he was in a bedroom.

He stood stock still, and listened.

The room was unoccupied, for there was no sound of breathing coming from
the direction of the bed. Deciding to get his bearings before going
further, he looked about. By this time his eyes had become accustomed to
the dark, and he did not make use of his lamp. A faint bit of light
proved to be coming through the window. Creeping across the floor, he
examined. It was open, for the night was warm.

Outside the window was a great maple tree. One branch was almost on a
level with the sill and not more than two feet distant.

This done, he searched for the light that would disclose the location of
the register, and his heart fell when he found nothing. It seemed as if
his carefully planned move had fallen like a house of cards.

Since there was evidently no register in the room, it seemed safe to
flash his lamp.

It must be explained that Garry's examination of the room occupied only
a matter of seconds.

Just as he was about to press the button of the flashlight, he heard the
purring voice of LeBlanc, muffled and indistinct.

With a thrill of excitement, he knew that there was a register in the
room after all. Getting down on his hands and knees, he felt about the
floor. Only the bare