win Markham is! Do you remember?--Mrs. Lester said her son had
only seen him once. Well, once is enough!--he'd remember him. We must go
to Maychester right away and see this young Lester, and get him to
describe the man he saw."

"Good notion, of course," assented Easleby. "Where is Maychester, now?"

"Essex," replied Starmidge.

"That would certainly be a solver," said Easleby. "But there's something
else we could do, following up your special line of thought. Now, honour
bright, which of these men do you take Godwin Markham to be?"

"Gabriel Chestermarke!" answered Starmidge promptly. "It's established
that he's constantly in London--as much in London as in Scarnham.
Gabriel Chestermarke certainly--with, no doubt, Joseph in collusion. The
probability is that they run that money-lending office in Conduit Street
under the name of Godwin Markham. They're within the law."

"What about the Moneylenders' Act?" asked Easleby. "Compulsory
registration, you know."

"It's this way," explained Starmidge. "The object of that Act was to
enable a borrower to know for certain who it was that was lending him
the money he borrowed. So registration was made compulsory. But, as in
the case of many another Act of Parliament, Easleby, evasion is not only
possible, but easy. A money-lender can register in a name which isn't
his own if it's one which he generally uses in his business. So--there
you are! I've seen that name Godwin Markham advertised ever since I was
a youngster--it's an old established business, well known. There's
nothing to prevent Abraham Moses from styling himself Fitzwilliam
Simpkins, if he's always done business as Fitzwilliam Simpkins--see?
And--it's highly probable that, as he's so much in town, Gabriel
Chestermarke lives in town under the name of Godwin Markham--double-life
business, as you suggest. But you were going to suggest something else.
What?"

"This," said Easleby. "You know that Gabriel Chestermarke went to
the stage-door of the Adalbert Theatre the other night. Go
there--officially--and find out if he called there as Gabriel
Chestermarke. That'll solve a lot."

"We'll both go!" assented Starmidge. "It's a good notion--I hadn't
thought of it. Whom shall we try to see?"

"Top man of all," counselled Easleby. "Lessee, manager, whatever he is.
Our cards'll manage it."

"I'm obliged to you, old man!" exclaimed Starmidge. "It's a bright idea!
Of course, somebody there'll know who the man was that ca