be asked to do my letters," he
added. "Now, don't you wait," he said to Dorothy, seeing she was
embarrassed at his remark; "nine o'clock to-morrow morning."

"I think it will be necessary to take up references," began Sir Lyster
as John Dene closed the door on Dorothy.

John Dene span round on his heel. "I run my business on Canadian
lines, not on British," he cried. "If you're always going to be around
telling me what to do, then I'll see this country to hell before they
get my _Destroyer_. The man who deals with John Dene does so on his
terms," and with that he left the room, closing the door with a bang
behind him.

For a moment he stood gazing down at Mr. Blair. "Can you tell me," he
asked slowly, "why the British Empire has not gone to blazes long ago?"

Mr. Blair gazed at him, mild surprise in his prominent eyes.

"I am afraid I don't--I cannot----" he began.

"Neither can I," said John Dene. "You're all just about as cute as
dead weasels."

John Dene walked along the corridor and down the staircase in high
dudgeon.

"Ha! Mr. Dene, what's happened?" enquired Sir Bridgman, who was
mounting the stairs as John Dene descended.

"I've been wondering how it is the British Empire has hung together as
long as it has," was the response.

"What have we been doing now?" enquired Sir Bridgman.

"It's my belief," remarked John Dene, "that in this country you
wouldn't engage a janitor without his great-grandmother's
birth-certificate."

"I'm afraid we are rather a prejudiced nation," said Sir Bridgman
genially.

"I don't care a cousin Mary what you are," responded John Dene, "so
long as you don't come up against me. I'm out to win this war; it
doesn't matter to me a red cent who's got the most grandmothers, and
the sooner you tell the First Lord and that prize seal of his, the
better we shall get on;" and John Dene abruptly continued on his way.

Sir Bridgman smiled as he slowly ascended the stairs.

"I suppose," he murmured, "we are in the process of being gingered-up."

The rest of the day John Dene devoted to sight-seeing and wandering
about the streets, keenly interested in and critical of all he saw.

The next morning he was at the Admiralty a few minutes to nine, and was
conducted by an attendant to the room that had been assigned to him.
He gave a swift glance round and, apparently satisfied that it would
suit his purpose, seated himself at the large pedestal table and took
out his watch.