med. They reached their
boarding house in safety, however, and Mrs. Thayer at once retired to
her room.

A large crowd of visitors had already assembled in Madam Lucille's
reception room, so that there seemed to be a fair prospect that all the
expenses of the affair would be paid out of the fortune-teller's
receipts. Indeed, from the very first, Mrs. Warne had a great many more
callers than she could attend to; but, by granting each one a short
interview on the first day, long enough to learn what information they
desired, it was an easy matter to satisfy them all to an exceptional
extent. I put two good detectives at work to find out everything
possible about the parties making the inquiries, and Lucille was thus
able to astonish them with the accuracy of her knowledge as to the past.
Of course, she was at liberty to exercise her own judgment as to her
predictions for the future, since no one could tell whether they would
prove true or not.

When every one had gone, Mrs. Warne changed her dress and returned to my
office, where we had a hearty laugh over the superstitious folly of the
many ladies who had consulted her. She told me many amusing secrets,
which her fair visitors had confided to her, and I learned that some of
the most fashionable people in the city had invoked her aid. She was
rather fatigued by her labors, however, as the weather was warm, and the
atmosphere of her room, at times, became almost suffocating. She said
that she had made an engagement to admit Mrs. Thayer the first one, the
next morning.

"Very well," said I, "you have succeeded in startling her very much
indeed, and to-morrow you will be able to do much more. Be careful,
however, to warn her against informing any one else of what you have
told her, until her whole future is determined. It will not do to have
her alarm Pattmore."

"I will caution her particularly on that point," replied Mrs. Warne; "I
think I understand pretty well about how far I can go without terrifying
her too much. I will send for Miss Seaton, and learn how Mrs. Thayer has
acted since visiting me."

In the afternoon, Captain Sumner came in and asked what steps I had
taken in his case. I told him that I could not tell him what I had done,
nor what I was doing; but he could rest assured that the best talent I
had was employed in his behalf; if everything worked as I hoped, I
should accomplish the object which he sought, inside of a month.

"Well," he replied, "I sh