The lineman glanced around the room. His eyes widened. He whistled with
naive admiration. "Hello," he said softly. "Yes ... Gramercy Hill 9763.
That's right. O.K. Tell Franklin Official--tell Tupper that I took
forty minutes on the job. Forty minutes at time and a half. Don't
forget that. Yes ... bridle--everything, all right, Saidee. See you
later."

The trouble-hunter reached for his satchel. He hitched it over his
shoulder.

"Hold on!" said Drew. "What _was_ the trouble? Why couldn't we get
Central?"

"You can search me--sir. It wasn't in this room, mister. That's a
Western-Union cinch!"

"Where was it?"

"I don't know."

"How about the junction-box in the alley? Could it have been there?"

"Well it could--come to think of it. I scraped an' cleaned th'
connections to make sure. They're all right now."

"Did you see anybody about?"

The lineman hitched up the satchel and scratched his ear. "Seems to me,
I did. A fellow climbed over the fence from the back yard of this house
just as I swings in from the side street. It was snowin' a bit an' I
couldn't see very well."

"What kind of looking fellow?" snapped Drew with awakened interest.
"German?"

"You took th' very words right out of my mouth," said the
trouble-hunter. "He looked like a German."

"Describe him! Tall, fat or small?"

"I wasn't near enough to notice for sure. Tall, I think. He went out
the alley and turned toward Fifth Avenue."

"Could he have called us up from that junction-box?"

"Sure--if he had a set of testers like this." The lineman tapped his
shirt with his left hand. "He could have talked with you, but he
couldn't ring your bell without a magneto or an alternating current of
some kind."

"Could he have cut the wires and connected them again without Central
noticing anything out of the ordinary?"

"He might. But who would do that, sir?"

"That's all!" said Drew in dismissal. "Here's a dollar. Keep still
about your visit here. We may want you later."

"Want you later," repeated the magpie.

Drew turned toward Stockbridge as the lineman shuffled through the
portieres. "Queer," he said. "Tall fellow, eh! That's the man who cut
in and threatened you. We'll get him! I'll go out and see if Delaney
has arrived. Two hours of the twelve have passed. Ten more should see
you safely out of it."

CHAPTER THREE

"THE MAN IN OLIVE-DRAB"

Triggy Drew stood on the marble steps of the Stockbridge mansion. The
butler had just