ed
he. "Well, if this is all you can offer, I'll try the boy. Your name,
sonny."

"Christopher Burton."

"Christopher Mark Antony Burton, fourth," interrupted his father in an
aggrieved tone.

"Does all that belong to you?" asked the inspector, his eyes fixed on
the lad's face with hawk-like scrutiny.

"I'm afraid it does."

"Afraid, Christopher!" Mr. Burton ejaculated. "Afraid! Why, it is a
fine, honorable name. Your grandfather and your great-grandfather--"

"Suppose we omit his grandfathers for the present," said the inspector,
unceremoniously putting an end to Mr. Burton's dissertation. "So that's
your name, is it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Why didn't you give the whole of it at the beginning?"

"Oh, because there are such yards of it."

The inspector grinned.

"Now be good enough to tell us _your_ version of this affair. Relate
exactly what you saw, heard, and did."

"I'm afraid I didn't do much," protested Christopher sheepishly.

"You might have done more and I won't deny I wish to goodness you had.
However, you acted with considerable sense. You might have done
worse--much worse."

"I'm glad if you think so," the boy asserted modestly. "It seemed to me
afterward that I had been very stupid. It all was so quick! Almost like
sleight-of-hand."

"You were up against experts, sonny," Mr. Inspector remarked more
gently than he had yet spoken. "You did well to detect them at all. Now
fire ahead with your yarn."

In simple, straightforward fashion Christopher told his story and it was
evident several parts afforded his critical listener satisfaction, for
twice he muttered beneath his breath:

"Very good! _Very_ good!"

The tale finished, Christopher paused, breathless.

"Could you give me any description of these fellows?" his cross
questioner inquired.

"The big chap--the one who tried on the rings--was tall, heavy, had
light hair and a bald spot on the top of his head. I looked right down
on it."

"Excellent!"

"His eyes I could not see. His face was smooth-shaven, and on his right
cheek, going from his ear almost to the corner of his mouth, was a
white, queer sort of scar that--"

The inspector started from his seat, then sank back again.

"Ah!" was all he said. "And the other fellow?"

"Small, dark, black-haired, with a coat much too big for him. His nose
was sharp, and he kept looking over his shoulder."

"Anything else?"

"I'm afraid that's all, except that his hands were dirty as if t