ink what he
likes."

"Of course. But he must first gain his cause at the Elysee."

"There can't be any difficulty, can there?"

"No. You saw that he gave way at once."

Prasville continued his examination with the aid of a magnifying-glass
and compared the sheet with the scrap of torn paper. Next, he took from
the cash-box some other sheets of letter-paper and examined one of these
by holding it up to the light:

"That's done," he said. "My mind is made up. Forgive me, dear friend: it
was a very difficult piece of work.... I passed through various stages.
When all is said, I had my suspicions... and not without cause..."

"What do you mean?" asked Clarisse.

"One second.... I must give an order first."

He called his secretary:

"Please telephone at once to the Elysee, make my apologies and say
that I shall not require the audience, for reasons which I will explain
later."

He closed the door and returned to his desk. Clarisse and Lupin stood
choking, looking at him in stupefaction, failing to understand this
sudden change. Was he mad? Was it a trick on his part? A breach of
faith? And was he refusing to keep his promise, now that he possessed
the list?

He held it out to Clarisse:

"You can have it back."

"Have it back?"

"And return it to Daubrecq."

"To Daubrecq?"

"Unless you prefer to burn it."

"What do you say?"

"I say that, if I were in your place, I would burn it."

"Why do you say that? It's ridiculous!"

"On the contrary, it is very sensible."

"But why? Why?"

"Why? I will tell you. The list of the Twenty-seven, as we know for
absolutely certain, was written on a sheet of letter-paper belonging to
the chairman of the Canal Company, of which there are a few samples in
this cash-box. Now all these samples have as a water-mark a little cross
of Lorraine which is almost invisible, but which can just be seen in the
thickness of the paper when you hold it up to the light. The sheet which
you have brought me does not contain that little cross of Lorraine." [*]

* The Cross of Lorraine is a cross with two horizontal lines
or bars across the upper half of the perpendicular beam.
--Translator's Note.

Lupin felt a nervous trembling shake him from head to foot and he dared
not turn his eyes on Clarisse, realizing what a terrible blow this was
to her. He heard her stammer:

"Then are we to suppose... that Daubrecq was taken in?"

"Not a bit of it!" exclaimed Prasvill