Walker put out his hands in a puzzled gesture.

"There it was again, the description of Mulehaus! And it puzzled
me. Every motion of this hobo's mind in every direction about
this affair was perfectly clear to me. I saw his intention in
every turn of it and just where he got the material for the
details of his story. But this absolutely distinguishing
description of Mulehaus was beyond me. Everybody, of course,
knew that we were looking for the lost plates, for there was the
reward offered by the Treasury; but no human soul outside of the
trusted agents of the department knew that we were looking for
Mulehaus."

Walker did not move, but he stopped in his recital for a moment.

"The tramp shuffled up a step closer to the bench where I sat.
The anxiety in his big slack face was sincere beyond question.

"`I can't find the banker man, Governor; he's skipped the coop.
But I believe I can find what he's hid.'

"`Well,' I said, `go and find it.'

"The hobo jerked out his limp hands in a sort of hopeless
gesture.

"`Now, Governor,' he whimpered, `what good would it do me to find
them plates?'