figure they engaged it.

"When will you come?" asked Mrs. McCarty.

"Right off," said Mike.

"I'll need a little time to put it in order."

"Me and my partner will be at our business till six o'clock," returned
Mike.

"You can send in your trunks during the day if you like."

"My trunk is at the Windsor Hotel," said Mike. "I've lent it to a friend
for a few days."

Mrs. McCarty looked at Mike with a puzzled expression. She was one of
those women who are slow to comprehend a joke, and she could not quite
make it seem natural that her new lodger, who was in rather neglige
costume, should be a guest at a fashionable hotel.

"I will leave my valise," said Rodney, "and will send for my trunk. It
is in the country."

Mike looked at him, not feeling quite certain whether he was in earnest,
but Rodney was perfectly serious.

"You're better off than me," said Mike, when they reached the street.
"If I had a trunk I wouldn't have anything to put into it."