“Not so fast, Randolph,” begged the lawyer.  “A little more moderation.  You have made some sort of miscalculation I fear.”

With these words he stamped his foot.  Recognizing the signal, Jack stepped blithely into the sitting-room, followed by Tom and Beverly.  His appearance almost caused Carringford to “have a fit,” as Jack afterwards described the effect of his coming on the scene.

“What does this mystery mean?” he managed to gasp.

“Only that I took a notion to come home and claim that legacy left by our eccentric Uncle Joshua,” Jack told him, with a shrug of his shoulders, as though miracles were an every-day occurrence with him.

“But I certainly saw you again and again, and heard you talk at the same time just before I left for Havre to sail!” cried Randolph, nevertheless convinced that at least this was the real flesh-and-blood Jack Parmly standing before him.

“Oh! did you?” remarked Jack, mockingly.  “Perhaps it was a dream.  Perhaps I had an understudy over there.  Perhaps a whole lot of things.  But the one positive fact about which there isn’t any doubt is that I’m here ahead of you, and you’ve lost out in your game, that’s all.”

“But—­it’s impossible, incredible!” continued the other, hardly able yet to believe his own eyes.

“Still, you must admit that I’m Jack Parmly, and quite in the flesh, which after all is enough to settle the matter,” he was calmly told.  “My family here have received me as their own; and Mr. Smedley had no trouble in recognizing me.  So perhaps you’d better be packing your grip again, Cousin Randolph, and returning to your secret Government duties over in France!”

“But—­how could you have reached here so far ahead of me?” gritted the disgusted Randolph weakly.

“Please don’t forget that I’m an aviator, and we fliers are able to put over all sorts of stunts these days,” laughed Jack; though his manner implied that he might be joking when saying this.  At any rate, it could not enter the mind of any one to believe such a thing as flying across the Atlantic within the bounds of reason.

Carringford of course saw that his room was more desired than his company.  Besides, he had not heart or desire to linger any longer, since he had received such a staggering blow.

Accordingly he took his departure, and acted quite like a “bear with a sore head,” as Jack described his ugly way of slamming the door and hurrying out to the station hack that had been all this while waiting for him at the gate.

Now that the one great object which Jack had in view was accomplished, he and the other two began to consider the best way in which they could return to France without attracting too much attention.

“I have a scheme that may work admirably,” said Beverly.  “And it happens that the boat my good old friend is master of is due to sail from New York the day after to-morrow.  We’ll go on that as stowaways.”