d play the part to the hilt.

"Where to, guv'nor?" he asked innocently.

"Buckingham Palace," said Houston. "I've got a poker appointment with
Prince Charles."

"Blimey, guv'nor," said Arthmore. "You _are_ movin' in 'igh circles!
'Ow's 'Er Majesty these days?"

The turboelectric motor hummed, and the cab shot off into traffic.
"According to the report I get on the blinkin' wireless," he continued,
"a chap named MacGruder claims that the eminent Sir Lewis 'Untley is
'eaded for Number 37 Upper Berkeley Mews."

"One of these days," said Houston, "all those _H_'s you drop is going to
bounce back and hit you in the face."

"Beg pardon, Mr. Yewston?" Arthmore asked blankly.

Houston grinned. "Nothing, cabbie; it's just that you remind me of a
cultured, intelligent fellow named Jack Arthmore. The only difference is
that Jack speaks the Queen's English."

"Crikey!" said Arthmore. "Wot a coincidence!" He paused, then: "The
Queen's English, you say? She _'as_ to be, don't she?"

"Shut up," said Houston conversationally. "And give me a cigarette," he
added.

"There's a package of Players in my shirt pocket," Arthmore said,
keeping his hands on the wheel.

* * * * *

Houston fished out a cigarette, lit it, and returned the pack.

Apropos of nothing, Arthmore said: "Reminds me of the time I was workin'
for a printer, see? We 'ad to print up a bunch of 'andbills advertisin'
a church charity bazaar. Down at the bottom was supposed to be printed
'Under the auspices of St. Bede's-on-Thames.' So I--"

He went on with a long, rambling tale about making a mistake in printing
the handbill. Houston paid little attention. He smoked in silence,
keeping his eyes on the red glow of the taillight ahead of them.

Neither man mentioned the approaching climax of the chase. Even hardened
veterans of the Psychodeviant Police don't look forward to the
possibility of having their minds taken over, controlled by some outside
force.

It had never happened to Houston, but he knew that Arthmore had been
through the experience once. It evidently wasn't pleasant.

"--and the boss was 'oppin' mad," Arthmore was saying, "but, crikey, 'ow
was I to know that _auspice_ was spelled A-U-S-P-I-C-E?"

Houston grinned. "Yeah, sure. How're we doing with Sir Lewis?"

"Seems to be headed in the right direction," Arthmore said, suddenly
dropping the Cockney accent. "This is the route I'd take if I were
headed for Upper