"Where did he go to?"

"I don't know."

"Do you know what became of the other two men?"

"I do not. But what's up? Is there anything wrong?" questioned the hotel
proprietor, with a look of concern on his face.

"I am afraid there is," answered Joe, and told his tale from beginning
to end.

"That's an odd sort of a yarn, Joe. It's queer you didn't recognize the
men before.

"It is queer, sir, but I can't help that. It flashed over me just as I
looked into the window of the old lodge."

"You haven't made any mistake?"

"No, sir."

"Humph!" Andrew Mallison mused for a moment. "I don't really see what I
can do in the matter. We can't prove that those men are wrongdoers, can
we?"

"Not unless they tried some game on this Mr. Maurice Vane."

"They may have sold him some worthless mining shares. That sort of a
trick is rather old."