The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-02-18
TO-DAY INSTALMENT. crnff cnnfinuad his SfnrU.

fingered, Pycroft agrees not to
 write.
 TO-DAY NSTALMENT
 Pycroft continued his story:
 That's just about all that passed between us. as near as can remem- E beF. You can imagine, pr. Watson, If how pleased I was at such an extra ordinary bit of good fortune.@ l sat up half the night hugging myself over it, and next day was off to 13irming- ham in a train that would take me l in plenty time for my appointment. { took my things to a hotel in New Street, and then I made my way to the address which had been given me. ; It was a quarter of an hour before ! my time, but I thought that would { make no difference. 126b was passage between two large shops, which led to a winding stone stair, from which there were many flats, let as offices to companies or professional
 men. The names of the occupants E were painted at the bottom on the wall, but there was no such. name as N the Franco-Midland Hardware Com
 pany, Ltd. stood for a few minutes N with my heart in my boots, wonder ing whether the whole thing was an E elaborate hoax or not, when up came ,s man and addressed me. He was |t very like the chap I had seen the
 night before, the same figure and IA voice but he was clean-shaven and
 '.Are you MT Hall Pycroft ?" he r asked.
 | "Yes," said I.
 "Ohi I was expecting you. but ! you are a tri1e before your time. ] had a note from my brother this morning in which he sang yoaF praises very loudly
 ssI was just looking for the offices | when you came. < srwe have not got our name up yet, i premises last week. Come up with { me, and we viii talk the matter E over.''
 < lofty stair, and there. right under the
 states, were a couple of empty, dusty
 little rooms, uncarpeted and uncur- [ tained, into which he led me. I had sF thought Of a great office with shining ]: tables and rows of clerks, such as I 7 was used to. and dare say I stared ; rather straight at the two deal chairs and one little table, which, with , ledger and waste-paper basket, < made up the whole furniture.
 < Don't be disheartened, MT. Py- E croft" said my new acquainrtance, IS seeing the length of my face. Rome Tf was not built in a day, and we have E lots of money at our backs, though we Is don't cut much dash yet in offices. [ Pray sit down, and let me have your t letter.S
 I gave it to him, and he read it t over very carefully.
 s "You seem to have made a vast i'm |t pression upon my brother Arthur" |} said he; "and I know that he is a. i pretty shrewd judge. He Swears by Is London, you know; and by Birm- E ingham; but this time I shall follow t his advice. Pray consider yourself |t definitely engaged
 |t What are my duties?" l asked X "You will eventually manage the
 great depot in Paris, which will pour !! al flood of English crockery into the fl shops of a hundred and thirty-four x be completed in a week, and mean while you will remain in Birming- li ham and make yourself useful'' S For answer, he took a big red book K out of a. drawer
 K s"This is a directory of Paris,'' he |i said. with the trades after the names Is of the people. l want you to take 1t |i home with you, and to mark off all If the hardware-seIiers, with their ad- N dresses. It would be of the greatest VI use to me to have them"
 Surely there are classified lists?" 'Not reliable ones. Their system is ii different from ours. Stick at it, and It let me have the lists by Monday, at V twelve. Good-day, MT. Pycroft. If you Hf continue to show zeal and. intelligence l! you will find the company a good |f master I went back to the hotel with the |s big book under my arm, and with I very conflicting feelings in my breast. II On the one Jhand, was definitely en- |t gagged and had a hunderd pounds in Emy pocket: on the other, the look of 1.-the offices, the absence of name on tXhc wall, and other of the points (which would strike g. bus1aess man Nhad left a bad impression as to the eposition of my employers However, come what might, had my money,
 so I settled down to my task. All
 Sunday I was kept hard at work, and yet by Monday I had only got as far as
 H. I went round to my employer, Mound him in the same dismantled slxind of room, and was told to keep at it until Wednesday, and then come again. On Wednesday it was still un-
 finished, so I hammered away until
 F1iday-that is, yesterday. Then
 Drought it round 'to MT. Harry Pin
 ner.
 ssThank you very much" said he; fsI fear that I under-rated the diff @flcuty of the task. This list will be
 of very maerial assistance to me-
 ssIt took some time," said I. make a list of the furniture shops, for |kfhey all sell crockery.'
 'Very good"
 "And you can come up tomorrow Eevening, at seven. and let me know
 how you are getting on- Don't over fDay's Music Hall in the evening
 would do you no harm after your la 5bors" He laughed as he spoke, and
 d saw with a thrill that his second lfootf upon the Ieft-hand side had been very badly stuffed with gold.
 Sherlock Holmes rubbed his hands k5vith delight, and I stared with as- I5tonishment at our client M Pycroft went You may well Rf7ook surprised, Dr. Watson; but it is Ithis way: When I was speaking to 1.-the other chap in London, at the time |tf1at he laughed at my not going to |4Mawsou's I happened to notice that