d Locke, slowly, "and if Zita finds the record of her birth
I believe we shall solve the mystery."

Worn out with the terrors through which she had passed, Eva bade Locke
an affectionate good-night and went to her room, while he went to the
laboratory and tried again to find an antidote for the Madagascar
madness, a work that kept him up late and to which he returned again
early the following morning.

It was on that following day, in the River Road apartment of De Luxe
Dora, that Paul and she were having a demi-monde lovers' quarrel. Paul
was intoxicated, and Dora may have been angry about that. Or it may have
been that she was jealous of some other woman. However, they were
quarreling fiercely when there came a knock at the door.

"You open it," flashed Dora to Paul.

He demurred a moment, then, changing his mind, consented and crossed to
the door, while Dora ran to her own room and hid.

Paul was very much surprised to find that the visitor was Zita, much
excited.

"I want you to help me on something of great importance," she exclaimed,
almost before she had entered.

"Why, certainly! Anything you desire!" hiccoughed Paul. "Come on in."

Zita entered the apartment and they crossed over to the chaise-longue,
where Zita made her direct plea.

"Help me find the record of my birth," she begged.

Paul pulled his wandering wits together and thought a moment; then a
particularly crafty look came into his eyes as he detached a key from
his key-ring.

"Here, take this," he directed. "It's the key to my father's apartment.
The records you want are there. He and I have quarreled and you can go
as far as you like."

Zita took the key eagerly, thanked Paul profusely, and started for the
door.

She had barely passed the threshold before Dora, who had heard all, was
at the telephone in her own room and was angrily calling up Balcom at
his apartment.

Balcom, assisted by his Madagascan servant, was at the moment packing a
trunk, perhaps preparatory to a hasty flight, should that become
necessary. The moment the telephone rang he picked up the receiver and
nearly choked with anger as he heard Dora's whispered voice over the
wire.

"Paul has given Zita the key to your apartment," Dora hastened, "and she
is coming over to steal the record of her birth."

"She is--eh? Well, I'll take care of that," growled Balcom, as he rang
off.

Balcom went to a drawer in the table and from it took a large book.
Rapidly he turn