he village residence, bright only in library
or living room--with, maybe, a timid taper in the hall--set his nerves
on edge. He would have none of it. And Moses, with considerable wonder
at, to his mind, the waste of gas, and much grumbling to himself and
Josephine, obeyed.

They had finished dinner and were smoking their cigars in the library,
when Croyden, suddenly bethinking himself of a matter which he had
forgotten, arose and pulled the bell.

"Survent, seh!" said old Mose a moment later from the doorway.

"Moses, who is the best carpenter in town?" Croyden asked.

"Mistah Snyder, seh--he wuz heah dis arfternoon, yo knows, seh!"

"I didn't know it," said Croyden.

"Why yo sont 'im, seh."

"_I_ sent him! I don't know the man."

"Dat's mons'us 'culiar, seh--he said yo sont 'im. He com'd 'torrectly
arfter yo lef! Him an' a'nudder man, seh--I didn't know the nudder man,
hows'ever."

"What did they want?" Croyden asked.

"Dey sed yo warn dem to look over all de place, seh, an' see what
repairs wuz necessary, and fix dem. Dey wuz heah a'most two hours, I
s'pose."

"This is most extraordinary!" Croyden exclaimed. "Do you mean they were
in this house for two hours?"

"Yass, seh."

"What were they doing?"

"'Zaminin the furniture everywhere. I didn't stays wid em, seh--I knows
Mistah Snyder well; he's bin heah off'n to wuk befo' yo cum, seh. But I
seed dem gwine th'oo de drawers, an' poundin on the floohs, seh. Dey
went down to de cellar, too, seh, an wuz dyar quite a while."

"Are you sure it was Snyder?" Croyden asked.

"Sut'n'y! seh, don't you t'inks I knows 'im? I knows 'im from de time
he wuz so high."

Croyden nodded. "Go down and tell Snyder I want to see him, either
to-night or in the morning."

The negro bowed, and departed.

Croyden got up and went to the escritoire: the drawers were in
confusion. He glanced at the book-cases: the books were disarranged. He
turned and looked, questioningly, at Macloud--and a smile slowly
overspread his face.

"Well, the tall gentleman has visited us!" he said.

"I wondered how long you would be coming to it!" Macloud remarked.
"It's the old ruse, in a slightly modified form. Instead of a
telephone or gas inspector, it was a workman whom the servant knew; a
little more trouble in disguising himself, but vastly more satisfactory
in results."

"They are clever rogues," said Croyden--"and the disguise must have
been pretty accurate to deceive Moses."