ls--gold or silver. It was in this same room also
that the table stood, in the drawers of which were found papers, letters
and formulae--things giving more than a hint of the use to which Mayes
had put his friendship with Mr. Jacob Mason, for of every possible
manner and detail in which science--more particularly the science of
chemistry--could aid in the commission of crime, there were notes in
these same drawers.

But most of these things were observed in detail later. The thing that
set us once more on the trail of Mayes, that very night and that very
hour, was found in the isolated office facing the street. It was a
cheque-book, quite full of unused cheques.

"This cheque-book," said Hewitt to Inspector Plummer and myself, "was in
the drawer below that in which we discovered the Admiralty code. The
Eastern Consolidated is the bank, as you see--Upper Holloway branch. Now
we must follow this at once, before waiting to search any further. There
may be something more important as a clue, or there may not, but at any
rate, while we are looking for it we are losing time. This may bring us
to him at once."

"You mean that he may have some address in Holloway," suggested
Plummer, "and we may get it from the bank?"

"There's that possibility, and another," Hewitt answered. "He has had to
bolt without warning or preparation, with nothing but the clothes he ran
in--probably very little money. Money he will want at once, and he would
rather not wait till the morning to get it; if he can get it at once it
will mean thirteen or fourteen hours' start at least. More, he will know
very well that this place will be searched, that this cheque-book will
be discovered soon enough, and that consequently the bank will be
watched. This is what he will do--what he is doing now, very likely. He
will knock up the resident manager of that bank and try to get a cheque
cashed to-night. I don't think that can be done; in which case he will
probably try to make some arrangement to have money sent him. Either
way, we must be at the Upper Holloway branch of the Eastern Consolidated
Bank as soon as a hansom can get us there."

Thus it was settled, and Hewitt and Plummer went off at once, leaving
Plummer's men, with the City police, in charge of the raided premises;
leaving some of them also to make inquiries in the neighbourhood. Mr.
Victor Peytral had shown himself anxious to accompany Hewitt and
Plummer, but had been dissuaded by Hewitt. I gue