without
attracting special attention, but as I was on the floor below the
suspects, I had an excellent opportunity to keep an eye on all who
passed up and down the stairs. Another fortunate circumstance was
the fact that the apartment over me was unoccupied. There could be
no question as to where people passing up and down the stairs were
going."

"Government men, as you know, Morgan, usually work with the utmost
secrecy. Our own local men were not even supposed to know I was here
unless the time came when I should need help. It was not logical,
therefore, for me to disclose my identity or give any hint of it to
the real estate firm that rented me the apartment. That was why I
posed as a ranch owner from Mexico, here in Chicago for the purpose
of interesting certain financial interests in my property. That left
out the entangling subject of references. Naturally, I did not want
to waste money on the complete furnishing of an apartment which
might be vacated at any moment, so I simply furnished up that part
of it which might come under the eye of a stranger. And certainly
these two rooms afforded me all the comfort that I required."

"But Marsh," interrupted Morgan. "Why did you make those breaks
about your wife, and knowing Ames upstairs?"

"A man in your line of work, Morgan, ought to understand the wife
idea, now that you know some of the facts. A supposedly married man
passes quite unnoticed, but just give the ladies a hint that a
bachelor is in the house and immediately everyone focuses attention
upon him. He is a poor, lonesome man, to be pitied, and every woman
in the house would have lain awake nights figuring how she could
introduce me to a marriageable young woman. So I invented Mrs. Marsh
as a protection."

"I'll admit that my claim of friendship with Ames didn't work out
well in this instance. However, it was an idea conceived in a hurry,
and in the ordinary course of events would have really attracted
little, if any, attention. You realize that I was in this house to
watch certain people without disclosing my identity in any way. I
knew positively that the flat over me was closed and empty. Then I
was awakened suddenly in the night by a most suspicious disturbance.
Naturally, I connected it immediately with the people I was
watching. If I took an active interest in this trouble it might
force my hand, because a moment's consideration will show you that
the connection was only a guess on my part, and M