the room. In his absence Mr. Vanderkiste shook his head at the
detective.

"A very, very queer case, officer!" he remarked.

"An extraordinary case, sir," agreed Starmidge. "Before we get to the
end of it there'll be some strange revelations, Mr. Vanderkiste."

"So I should imagine--so I should imagine!" assented the old gentleman.
"Very remarkable proceedings altogether! We shall be deeply interested
in hearing how matters progress. Of course, this affair of the ten
thousand pounds is very curious. We----"

Mr. Mullineau came back--with a slip of paper, which he handed to the
detective.

"That gives you the information you want," he said.

Starmidge read aloud what the manager had written down on his
principal's instructions.

"Drawer--Helen Lester," he read. "Bank--London & Universal: Pall Mall
Branch." He looked up at the two partners. "I suppose you gentlemen
don't know who this Mrs. or Miss Helen Lester is?" he inquired.

"No--not at all," answered Mr. Mullineau. "Nor does Linthwaite. I
thought Mr. Hollis might have told him something about that special
purpose. But--he told him nothing."

"You'll have to go to the London & Universal people," observed Mr.
Vanderkiste. "They, of course, will know all about this customer."

Mullineau looked inquiringly at his partner.

"Don't you think that--as there are almost certain to be some
complications about this matter--Linthwaite had better go with Detective
Starmidge?" he suggested. "The situation, as regards the ten thousand
pounds, is a somewhat curious one. This Miss or Mrs. Lester will want to
recover it. Now, according to what Mr. Starmidge tells us, no body, so
far as he's aware, is in possession of any facts, papers, letters,
anything, relating to it. I think there should be some consultation
between ourselves and this other bank which is concerned."

"Excellent suggestion!" agreed Mr. Vanderkiste. "Let him go--by all
means."

Half an hour later, Starmidge found himself closeted with another lot of
bankers. But these were younger men, who were quicker to grasp
situations and comprehend points, and they quickly understood what the
detective was after: moreover, they were already well posted up in those
details of the Scarnham mystery which had already appeared in the
newspapers.

"What you want," said one of them, a young and energetic man, addressing
Starmidge at the end of their preliminary conversation, "is to find out
for what purpose Mrs. Leste