the door into the richly carpeted hallway.

It was with a distinct sense of relief that he felt his heavy boots
sink noiselessly into the deep ply of a precious Daghestan rug. One of
Phelan's boots had a bad creak in it, and he knew that the master
crook who would attempt such a robbery as this would have an acute
sense of hearing.

It was dark as a pocket down the stretch of the heavily curtained
foyer, save for a meagre shaft of light that came through a slightly
parted pair of portieres to the left and not a dozen feet from where
he stood. He strained his ear toward this shaft of light until there
came an unmistakable swish of sound, whereupon he moved forward in
short, gliding steps.

When he reached the break in the portieres and looked in he was
astonished to see a short little man with shiny black hair deftly
removing the linen covers from chairs and tables and statuary. The
little man had his back to Phelan as the policeman stepped inside, but
he turned in a flash and confronted the intruder with the peculiar
glazed grimness of the Japanese.

"Well, what matter?" ripped out the little Jap, without moving a
muscle.

"That's what I come to find out," retorted Phelan, with accusing
severity of tone.

"How you get in here?" retorted the Jap in the same sharp, emotionless
tones.

"I saw ye snakin' in an' ye didn't latch the door after yez," blurted
Phelan, taking a step nearer the Jap and still watching him with
profound suspicion.

"What you want?" asked the Jap with a slight tremor of apprehension.

"Information!" cried Phelan. "What are yez doin' in here?" Phelan's
eye swept the room for some evidence of an attempt to despoil. Though
he saw none he did not relinquish his attitude of suspicion. The Jap
seemed about to speak and then stopped. As Phelan continued to glower
at him, he snapped out:

"I no can tell."

Triumph blazed in Phelan's eyes. Now he was sure he had a thief and he
determined to handle the situation with all the majesty of his
official person.

"So yez can't tell what yez're doin' in this house," he said with fine
sarcasm.

The Jap shook his head emphatically and returned a positive, "No
tell!"

Phelan balanced his club for a moment and strode toward the Jap.

"Yez better come with me," he said through compressed lips.

The Jap started back with a frightened exclamation.

"You no take me to jail?" he uttered, while his yellow features
twitched with fear.

"In a minute,"