her. He drew Larrey out
by affecting amazed incredulity.

Larrey explained: "She's an old friend of ours. We got the word from
the British to pick the lady up when she first landed in this country.
She was too slick for us, I guess, because we never got the goods on
her. We gave her up after a couple of weeks. Then her trail crossed
Nicky Easton's once more."

"And who is Nicky Easton?"

"He's a German agent she knew in London--great friend of her adopted
father's. The British nabbed him once, but he split on the gang, and
they let him off. Whilst I was trailin' him I ran into a feller named
Nuddle--he come up to see Easton. I followed him here, and lo and
behold! Miss Webling turns up, too! And passin' herself off for
Nuddle's sister-in-law! Nuddle's a bad actor, but she's worse. And she
pretends to be a poor workin'-girl. Cheese! You should have seen her
in New York all dolled up!"

Davidge ignored the opportunity to say that he had had the privilege
of seeing Miss Webling all dolled up. He knew why Mamise was living as
she did. It was a combination of lark and crusade. He nursed Larrey's
story along, and asked with patient amusement:

"What's your theory as to her reason for playing such a game?"

He smiled as he said this, but sobered abruptly when Larrey
explained:

"You lost a ship not long ago, didn't you? You got other ships on the
ways, ain't you? Well, I don't need to tell you it's good business for
the Huns to slow up or blow up all the ships they can. Every boat they
stop cuts down the supplies of the Allies just so much. This Miss
Webling's adopted father was in on the sinking of the _Lusitania_, and
this girl was, too, probably. She carried messages between old Webling
and Easton, and walked right into a little trap the British laid for
her. She put up a strong fight, and, being an American, was let go.
But her record got to this country before she did. You ask me what
she's up to. Well, what should she be up to but the Kaiser's work?
She's no stenographer, and she wouldn't be here playin' tunes on a
typewriter unless she had some good business reason. Well, her
business is--she's a ship-wrecker."

The charge was ridiculous, yet there were confirmations or seeming
confirmations of it. The mere name of Nicky Easton was a thorn in
Davidge's soul. He remembered Easton in London at Mamise's elbow, and
in Washington pursuing her car and calling her "Mees Vapelink."

Davidge promised Larrey that he