I do not know what it is that she has stolen

Mycroft cast his eyes upwards and considered. "Corinthia Grayling?" he mused, then after a moment, "Yes! As it happens I do."

"What do you know of her?" demanded Holmes.

"Pretty young thing," said Mycroft. "Formidably intelli­gent. I had occasion to interview her a couple of years ago, when she was with Arthur Cullington's family. You will recall, of course, that there was that unpleasant affair of the draft treaty that vanished from Cullington's study and I spoke to her then. Nothing came of it. We never traced the thief and poor Cullington was finished. I suppose it was after her time with the Cullington twins that she went on to Royston's little girl. Struck me as a very able young woman, I must say."

"Oh, she is," said Holmes. "She is. Tell me, Mycroft, was she ever under suspicion in the Cullington affair?"

"Poor Arthur's entire household was under suspicion. There was no doubt that the document had vanished from his safe. Of course we had to consider the governess, but we could find noth ing against her. The whole trouble was that we found nothing against anyone, but somebody in that house must have known something about it."

"Then having got away with it on that occasion, she has done it again," declared Holmes.

Mycroft looked at him with an expression of puzzlement.

"Are you implying that Corinthia Grayling was the thief in the Cullington affair?"

"It seems extremely likely" said Holmes. "And she has now repeated the trick. She has robbed Fortescue Royston of what is, no doubt, some equally important document."

Mycroft's look of puzzlement slowly changed to one of hor­ror. "Great Heavens!" he exclaimed. "You don't mean that she has the telegram?"

"I do not know what it is that she has stolen," said my friend, "but I am certain that it will be of importance. What is the telegram that you mentioned?"

The elder Holmes seemed to be embarrassed by his emo­tional outburst. He drew a snuffbox from his coat pocket and took a large pinch, flourishing a bright silk handkerchief as he did so. When he had done he put handkerchief and snuffbox back in his pocket and slumped into an armchair, his face a grim mask. If it was possible he seemed to have gone even paler.