though the total sum obtained by the forgers was nearly four hundred pounds; but the most interesting point was that the cheque-forms had been manufactured by photographic process, and the water-mark skilfully, though not quite perfectly, imitated.  Evidently the swindlers were clever and careful men, and willing to take a good deal of trouble for the sake of security, and the result of their precautions was that the police could make no guess as to their identity.

“The very next day, happening to walk over to Port Marston, I came upon the Otter lying moored alongside the quay in the harbour.  As soon as I recognized the yacht, I turned quickly and walked away, but a minute later I ran into Leach and Jezzard, who were returning to their craft.  Jezzard greeted me with an air of surprise.  ’What!  Still hanging about here, Ted?’ he exclaimed.  ’That is not discreet of you, dear boy.  I should earnestly advise you to clear out.’

“‘What do you mean?’ I asked.

“‘Tut, tut!’ said he.  ’We read the papers like other people, and we know now what business took you to Eastwich.  But it’s foolish of you to hang about the neighbourhood where you might be spotted at any moment.’

“The implied accusation took me aback so completely that I stood staring at him in speechless astonishment, and at that unlucky moment a tradesman, from whom I had ordered some house-linen, passed along the quay.  Seeing me, he stopped and touched his hat.

“‘Beg pardon, Mr. Draper,’ said he, ’but I shall be sending my cart up to Sundersley to-morrow morning if that will do for you.’

“I said that it would, and as the man turned away, Jezzard’s face broke out into a cunning smile.

“So you are Mr. Draper, of Sundersley, now, are you?’ said he.  ’Well, I hope you won’t be too proud to come and look in on your old friends.  We shall be staying here for some time.’

“That same night Hearn made his appearance at my house.  He had come as an emissary from the gang, to ask me to do some work for them—­to execute some forgeries, in fact.  Of course I refused, and pretty bluntly, too, whereupon Hearn began to throw out vague hints as to what might happen if I made enemies of the gang, and to utter veiled, but quite intelligible, threats.  You will say that I was an idiot not to send him packing, and threaten to hand over the whole gang to the police; but I was never a man of strong nerve, and I don’t mind admitting that I was mortally afraid of that cunning devil, Jezzard.

“The next thing that happened was that Hearn came and took lodgings in Sundersley, and, in spite of my efforts to avoid him, he haunted me continually.  The yacht, too, had evidently settled down for some time at a berth in the harbour, for I heard that a local smack-boy had been engaged as a deck-hand; and I frequently encountered Jezzard and the other members of the gang, who all professed to believe that I had committed the Eastwich forgeries.  One day I was