stock of each carriage as it passed. The train seemed to be quite
empty; there were no passengers, so the officials, the conductors,
informed me when I talked to them, sad and unhappy at the certain loss
of tips. Only one of them had any luck, Jules l'Echelle, of the
Lucerne sleeping-car, who had one or two people on board.

I questioned him not very hopefully, but was agreeably surprised when
he told me that his clients consisted of two ladies with a child, and
one gentleman. English? Yes, all English. The lady, quite a lady, a
_grande dame belle personne_, tall, fine figure, well dressed; her
companion no doubt her servant; the child, well, an ordinary child, an
infant in arms. What would you?

I had them, I felt sure. There could be no mistaking this description.
I held them in the hollow of my hand. Here they were in this car, and
it would be all my own fault if they escaped me. It would be necessary
only to verify my conclusions, to identify the lady according to the
description and photograph given me. For the rest I knew what to do.

But now a quite unexpected difficulty turned up.

As I have said, there was one other passenger, a gentleman, in the
car, and I felt it would be prudent to make his acquaintance. No doubt
I could tell at the first glance whether or not he was an ordinary
traveller, or whether he was a friend and accomplice of the lady under
observation.

I regret to say that he met me in a very hostile spirit. I was at
great pains to be affable, to treat him with all the courtly
consideration I have at command, and I flatter myself that in the