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LONDON'S PERIL

By the same Author.

A Romance of the Near Future.

MR. BOYTON.

3s. 6d.

' It is extraordinarily interesting." WORLD.

' Carries the reader breathlessly through marvels of the most
thrilling description." LIVERPOOL POST.

'You will read it with avidity." PUBLIC OPINION.

' Entirely original .... a very powerful satire." QUEEN.

'A spirited romance, and full of imaginative adventure."
PALL MALL GAZETTE.

'The story in its humour and satire is one of ihe best that I
have yet read of these extravaganzas." TRUTH.

DOWNEY & CO. LTD., LONDON.

f

LONDON'S PERIL

BY

F. M. ALLEN

LONDON

DOWNKV V CO. LIMITED
YORK STUKKT, COVKNT CAUUKX

LONDON'S PERIL

i.

THE Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was
in a particularly bland humour. Politically and
personally he was for the moment at peace with
all mankind.

He was seated in the library at his country
house, a sheet of the Times perched awkwardly
across his knees. It was about eleven o'clock
in the forenoon. He had paid a visit to his
favourite greenhouse, and was gratified to find
that his pet plants looked, if possible, more
flourishing than usual. His letter-bag had been
a lean one, and his principal correspondence had
already been dictated to his secretary.

The library was a pleasant room, the sun was
bright, and a gentle breeze mingled itself with
the rays which danced in through the open
window.

A knock disturbed the reverie of his lordship,
and possibly ruffled the serenity of his temper.

LONDON'S PERIL

The butler who entered saw the cloud on his
master's brow, and his hard, expressionless face
looked harder and more expressionless than
ever as he crossed the room with feet that made
no sound upon the floor.

The Secretary of State lazily took a visiting
card off the salver and scrutinized it through
his glasses.

"Oh, really, Jenkyns," said he petulantly,
" this is too bad. You know I am not at home
to anyone, and least of all to a lunatic. You
had special warning about this very man."

"Yes, my lord," said the butler. "Special
instructions was given about him, but he
managed to get into the grounds somehow,
and none of us liked to make a scene in the
hall."

" But, surely," said his lordship, " he might
have been got rid of without a scene. My
orders might really, they might be carried
out, under my own roof, at any rate."

" I interviewed the gent myself, my lord,"
said the butler, " and he persuaded me that
your lordship would be highly pleased when he
had a few moments with you."

"Well, upon my soul," said his lordship,
relapsing into good humour, " this is vastly
amusing. Very well, Jenkyns. As I do not

LONDON'S PERIL 7

like to disappoint an old and valued servant,
I will fall in with your views and see this "
he gazed at the visiting card again " Mon-
sieur Camille Dupont. But first send Mr.
Treherne to me. I will ring when I am at
Monsieur Dupont's disposal."

" I hope, my lord, you will not consider I
took any liberties."

"I can hardly go so far as that," answered
his lordship. " However, I will overlook your
action this morning, but a repetition of similar
conduct may be fraught with unpleasant con-
sequences."

The butler bowed with special humility as he
retreated. He was about the only man in the
whole universe from whom the Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs would tolerate a
liberty. The sad-featured Jenkyns was well
aware of this, and though he privately gloried
in his unique privilege, he rarely exercised it.

" This mad Frenchman is in the house, and
I have consented to give him a few minutes,"
said his lordship, as Mr. Treherne, his lordship's
private secretary, entered the library.

" Monsieur Dupont ! " exclaimed Mr. Tre-
herne, drawing his bro\vs together.

" Yes. No doubt you are surprised. So am
I. But perhaps our interview may chase the

8

LONDON'S PERIL

bee out of his bonnet. How did his letters
strike you, Mr. Treherne ? "

" They were certainly the letters of a gentle-
man," said the secretary. " But even gentlemen
sometimes are crazed."

" I am aware that lunacy is not a special
privilege of the lower orders," said his lordship.
Mr. Treherne's cocksure manner sometimes
irritated his chief. " You offered to see him,
did you not ? "

"Yes, sir. And he very politely declined the
honour. He informed me that the communi-
cation he wished to make was for your lord-
ship's ear only."

" He gave no clue to the nature of his dis-
closure ? "

" No, sir. All he stated was that he had a
secret which he considered to be the most
important piece of information ever disclosed
to a British Minister."

" I suppose he is a monomaniac, but at any
rate he possesses the virtue if it is a virtue of
perseverance. And his having got to the blind
side of Jenkyns proves him to be a person of
rare persuasiveness. Have you instituted in-
quiries about him ? "

" Yes, sir. He arrived in London about six
months ago, from France, and he has rented a

LONDON'S PERIL g

furnished house at Hampstcad a house at the
north side of the Heath, with considerable
grounds rather an old-fashioned, out-of-the-
way place. He keeps a small establishment,
exclusively male. He is a bachelor. He lives
very quietly. He does not entertain, and he
pays his way regularly."

"There is some comfort in that. You are
sure he has no connection with any of those
cheap magazines or newspapers ? You know
how I abominate anything in the shape of an
interviewer, or quasi-interviewer."

" He has no connection, so far as I have
been able to ascertain, with any journal. No
letters leave his house, and nothing, save
circulars, arrive there."

" That will do, Mr. Trcherne. Many thanks.
Will you kindly be in the next room within
easy reach of me. I will ring my gong if I
require you."

When Mr. Treherne had retired, the Secretary
of State for Foreign Affairs threw himself back
in his chair and smiled. " I think it is the first
time I have done a thing of this kind," he
reflected. " I wonder if I am wise? . . . Bother
that stupid Jenkyns ! " he added half aloud, as
he sat upright and stretched out his hand
towards the button of the electric bell.

II.

THE man with the grey close-cropped beard
and the dark moustache bowed as he entered
the library, and advancing towards his lordship,
he said, in an easy manner : " I have the honour,
then, of addressing the Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs ? I need hardly ask the ques-
tion. Your features, if I may say so without
offence, my lord, are familiar to everyone who
sees the illustrated papers."

" I suppose so," said his lordship, dryly.
"Pray be seated, Monsieur. My time, I need
hardly say, is valuable, and I can spare little of
it. You have, I understand, some communica-
tion to make. Will you kindly be as brief as
possible."

"As brief as your lordship may think fit,"
said M. Dupont. " I may say at once that my
present disclosure can only touch the surface of
the affair."

" Oh, dear me ! " said his lordship, wearily.

LONDON'S PERIL n

" I am afraid, Monsieur, you will have to be
satisfied with this interview."

"That shall be as your lordship pleases,"
said M. Dupont.

The Secretary of State had now scanned his
visitor carefully. Dupont was a tall man, but
a slight stoop took something from his height,
lie had a pair of keen dark eyes, his hair was
grizzled and scant, his unshorn face colourless
where the skin was visible, his black moustache
stood out a little agressively, his brow was
furrowed as if some great and long-standing
trouble had oppressed him. His lordship was a
keen judge of a man's age, but he could hot
satisfy himself as to the age of M. Camille
Dupont. He might be forty, he might be
sixty. Not a fool, certainly. A well-bred man,
an educated man he spoke English easily and
correctly a well-dressed man. Possibly a man
of strong will, but not a dangerous or a cunning
man, if expression counted for anything.

"And your business, Monsieur?" said his
lordship, after a very brief pause.

"It is understood that we are speaking in
absolute confidence ? "

" If you wish it so."

"Then it is understood. The secret which
I possess, and which I desire to sell," said

12 LONDON'S PERIL

M. Dupont, " is known to very few, and to no-
body else, in all human probability, who could
or would impart it to your Government. If we
come to terms, my life will not, it is possible,
be a very valuable asset. Yet, I persuade
myself that my countrymen will hereafter see
that I acted in their interests. I am ready to
disclose my secret to your lordship, and the
price I shall ask will at least convince you that
I consider my information to be, as I have
already described it in my letters, the most
important ever offered to the English Govern-
ment."

" I am afraid," observed his lordship, " that
you are somewhat slow in coming to the point.
With what, or whom, is your secret concerned ? "

" The seizure of London by France/' said
M. Dupont.

His lordship could not help laughing.

"I am afraid, Monsieur," said he, "that I
cannot spare you any time to discuss a subject
of this kind. The invasion of this country by
the French is, humanly speaking, impossible ;
and even if it were possible, this country is per-
fectly capable of looking after itself."

" Will you excuse me for saying that such
statements, my lord, are mere platitudes. One
might expect to read such things in the news-

LONDON'S PERIL 13

papers, but not to hear them from the lips of
your lordship."

11 Oh, come, Monsieur," said his lordship
angrily, " I can hardly tolerate this kind of
thing. I am afraid we have made two mistakes
this morning: one, yours, in forcing yourself upon
me ; the other mine, in consenting to see you."

" Pray do not be so hasty with me, my lord,"
said M. Dupont, with an apologetic appeal of
hands and eyes ; " and do not dismiss me just
yet. No doubt you consider it absurd to discuss
such a subject with a stranger, especially one
who has no credentials to produce."

" I am afraid so," said his lordship, making a
motion to rise from his chair.

" Just a moment ! " said M. Dupont. " It
may clear the air if I say at once that the price
of my secret is three millions of English
sovereigns, and you will consider the price
cheap when you know what I have to disclose."
His lordship's fingers were approaching the
small gong on the table. His visitor observed
this, and again smilingly begged his lordship
not to terminate the interview, but to hear him
for a few minutes further. The Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs consented, with a
deprecatory movement of his hands and a care-
less nod of acquiescence.

14 LONDON'S PERIL

<f An invasion of the country by the French
nation has always seemed to be something of
what you call a bogey. Your fleet is capable,
unless it is drawn away or destroyed, of repel-
ling any attempt to land foreign troops upon
your shores. The great Napoleon saw this.
Every great French leader has been aware of
this fact. Do not think, my lord, that I am
wandering from the main point. I know well
the difficulty of the task I have in hand when I
attempt to explain myself without giving my
secret away. I will only say that though I once
was the hottest enthusiast upon the point, I
have, since my residence in this country, grown
cold and changed my mind ; and my only
desire now is to end the mischief, and to re-
imburse my colleagues for their enormous out-
lay. This I state in order to explain my
cupidity to your lordship."

"This is rather tiresome, Monsieur," inter-
rupted the Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs, taking but his watch.

" Unfortunately, I have to admit that it seems
a waste of your lordship's time, but I assure
you impressively, it is not so. Does your lord-
ship remember the trial of Captain Dreyfus ? "

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
nodded impatiently.

LONDON'S PERIL 15

" You may then call to mind that there was
at the time, in certain circles, a tremendous fuss
lest some great secret should escape."

" There were so many secrets that one might
be excused for being a little bewildered by
them," said his lordship, a slight smile wrinkling
his face.

" But you may remember that there was in
certain quarters an inexplicable fear lest one
secret, which would involve France with a
foreign power, might, as you would say,
crop up."

" I think I remember something of the kind
something about Germany. It seemed to me
to be rather of the mountain-in-labour order.
But, dear me, what has this got to do with the
subject in hand ? Shall we begin to discuss the
Great Revolution, the Norman Conquest, or the
Fall of Man ? "

" None of the three. I will go back to the
trial of Captain Dreyfus. The secret I hold
was the secret which it was feared might leak
out. It has not leaked out. It has nothing to
do with any Continental power. It is the secret
I am willing to sell your Government for three
million pounds."

" On the part of my country, Monsieur, I
must flatly decline to entertain your modest offer."

16 LONDON'S PERIL

"A moment more, pray/' said M. Dupont,
eagerly. " If I could prove to you that suddenly

without one word of warning But no ! " he

added quickly, " were I to finish my sentence I
might give you a clue. Not, indeed, that any
mere clue would be of much avail : nothing but
exact information would be of any real value to
you. Yet, I fear, I cannot speak further with-
out encouragement/'

" I beg of you not to entrust your secrets to
me. I am not covetous of probing them/' said
his lordship. " I have no intention of using or
following up any of your present communica-
tions. If I have been guilty of uttering
platitudes, Monsieur, you may fairly be charged
with indulging yourself with visions of things
more suitable for the nursery than for the
Cabinet."

" I do not indulge myself with any visions,"
said M. Dupont, "though I am of late oppressed
by visions more terrible than those of De Quin-
cey. I have spoken to you not of these, but of
matters of vital and terrible moment matters
fraught with horrors for your country, and
perhaps for mine." lie rose as he spoke and
placed the palm of his left hand upon his breast.
" When you have made up your mind, my
lord and if you are wise you will make it up

LONDON'S PERIL 17

quickly that my secret is worth knowing and
that my terms are reasonable, you can com-
municate with me. My address is in the corner
of my card. Many thanks, my lord, for your
condescension in receiving me, and for your
patience with me. Bon jour !"

III.

THE Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was
an omnivorous newspaper reader. When he
had sufficient leisure he consumed even the
Police Court reports, arid endeavoured to
interest himself in such correspondence as the
silly season brings forth.

Three days after the visit from the Frenchman
he found himself deep in the following para-
graph :

"Curious Police Raid. A police raid of a
character somewhat unusual was made yester-
day upon ' The Birches,' a lonely residence
situated between Blackheath and Eltham. It
has been stated that the visit was made in con-
sequence of some reports of ' The Birches ' being
a gambling resort; but this is hardly a satis-
factory explanation, as, so far as we can learn,
no visitors have ever been seen at ' The Birches.'
The house a picturesque old Georgian man-
sion is occupied by a Mr. Thompson, who
purchased the property some six months ago.

LONDON'S PERIL 19

There is a rumour that some important docu-
ments concerning a proposed invasion of this
country have been seized at ' The Birches.' "

His lordship touched the gong which stood
on the small table at his elbow. In a few
moments Mr. Treherne answered the summons.

" Have you seen this, or do you know any-
thing about it ? " asked his lordship, handing
the newspaper to his private secretary and
indicating the paragraph.

Mr. Treherne was a young man of the pushful
and inquisitive kind. He had scented something
peculiar in M. Camille Dupont, but he had
failed to pump any information concerning the
object of the visit out of his chief. His lordship
had dismissed the matter by saying, " That
French gentleman who has just taken his
departure is, I am afraid, a very damp squib.
Still, you might keep your eye upon him,
Mr. Treherne. I hardly think he is mischievous,
but one never knows."

The private secretary had kept his eye upon
M. Dupont with a vengeance. He had ascer-
tained that the Frenchman was the. occasional
occupier of " The Birches," and that he appeared
at his Blackheath residence as plain Mr. Thomp-
son. Mr. Treherne shrewdly concluded that
the address given on M. Dtipont's visiting card

20 LONDON'S PERIL

was not likely to be the place where valuable
secret documents would be kept. Then a
resistance might possibly be made at " Heath-
view," as there were some men servants in that
residence, whereas " The Birches " had only an
elderly housekeeper, a Frenchwoman, and a
young lady, supposed to be Mr. Thompson's
niece.

Mr. Treherne considered the raid (instigated
by him) had been splendidly successful. He
well knew the horror his chief possessed of
getting mixed up in a petty affair, but this was
an affair of magnitude. Therefore when he was
asked about the newspaper paragraph he replied
with a touch of the pride which apes humility :

"I think I may say I had some hand in this
matter, sir."

"Then I wish to goodness you would not
display so much zeal, sir," said his lordship
angrily. " It is a very good quality in its
place, but you know how I detest this kind of
peeping-Tom business."

"There arc, perhaps, occasions, sir " began
Mr. Treherne.

" No, sir," interrupted his lordship with rising
temper ; '* there are no occasions when my
private secretary should in any way be mixed
up with a police raid. I fear, Mr, Treherne,

LONDON'S PERIL 21

your sojourn in Paris has infected you with
Gallic views of diplomatic life. I hate all forms
of espionage. Once a matter of the kind falls
into the hands of detectives it is hopelessly
vulgarized."

" Documents of considerable importance have
been seized at ' The Birches/ " said Mr. Tre-
hernc, meekly. " I was about to lay some of
them, or the gist of some of them, before your
lordship to-day. They arc a bit confusing, but
1 have been doing my best to put them into
shape."

'' What are they concerned with, these pre-
cious documents ? " said his lordship, absent-
mindedly.

" With a projected invasion of these islands,
sir."

" Of course, I had forgotten. But surely,
Mr. Trehernc, you do not expect me to inves-
tigate all sorts and conditions of foolishness.
Suppose, in order to hasten the hours of a dull
afternoon, we consider China from a geological
or aesthetical point of view or the social con-
dition of the Isle of Man, or some other sen-
sible and informing subject. Really, I am tired
of this French invasion business; the only man
who might have accomplished the deed was
Buonapartg."

22 LONDON'S PERIL

" What Buonaparte might have done, another
Frenchman may do," observed Mr. Treherne.

" Oh, dear no ! " said his lordship. " They
don't breed Corsican Ogres every day. I have
been re-reading . Doctor Barry O'Meara's
' Napoleon in Exile.' The book is on the table
there. I was refreshing myself with the Ogre's
views on China. He was a remarkably shrewd
man, with all his faults. He declares that if he
were an Englishman he would esteem the man
who advised a war with China to be the greatest
enemy England possessed. We should be
beaten in the end, in his opinion, and perhaps
risk a revolution in India. It is also curious to
note that he thought Russia would one day
attack India from the Caspian Sea. Times are
changed since he spoke, but much of his views
on far Cathay and on our nearer neighbour,
Russia, hold good to-day. However, this is
wandering from our theme. Just see what he
says about his scheme for the invasion of
England. Probably you have, like myself,
forgotten. Never be afraid to admit forgetful-
ness or ignorance, Mr. Treherne, but endeavour
not to be either forgetful or ignorant. You
might read it aloud to me my eyes are weak
this morning. Page 349 of the first volume, I
think."

LONDON'S PERIL 23

The Private Secretary took up the volume,
while his chief settled himself more comfortably
in his chair. He found page 349 quickly.

"'I then asked Napoleon' (he read) 'if he
had really intended to invade England, and if
so, what were his plans. He replied, " I would
have headed it myself." ' "

" I presume he meant the expedition by ' it.'
Very loose writing. Go on, Mr. Treherne."

" ' I had given orders for two fleets to proceed
to the West Indies; instead of remaining there,
they were merely to show themselves amongst
the islands' "

"Mere pantomime tricks," growled his lordship.

" ' and return directly to Europe, raise the
blockade of Ferrol, take the ships out, proceed to
Brest, where there were about forty sail of the line,
unite and sail to the Channel, where they could
not have met with anything strong enough to
engage them, and clear it of all English men-
of-war.' "

"Just as he had forgotten that it snowed in
Russia," said his lordship, " he evidently forgot
that wind and weather would not necessarily
favour him in these wild-cat schemes. Indeed,
with the example behind him of the Armada,
and of the French fleet on the west coast of
Ireland a century ago, he might almost have

24 LONDON'S PERIL

counted upon Providence supplying England
with the necessary adverse gales."

" ' By false intelligence/ ' continued the
private secretary, " ' adroitly managed, I cal-
culated you would have sent squadrons to the
East and West Indies and the Mediterranean
in search of my fleets.' "

" I can hardly believe he was in earnest when
he said this," interrupted his lordship. " False
intelligence employed in big schemes is the
worst because it is the most stupid kind of
labour in vain. Well, Mr. Treherne ? "

" ' Before they could return, I would have had
the command of the Channel for two months,
as I should have had about seventy sail of the
line, besides frigates. I would have hastened
over my flotilla with two hundred thousand
men, landed as near Chatham as possible, and
proceeded direct to London, where I calcu-
lated to arrive on four days from the time of my
landing.'"

" He had no South Coast Railways to deal
with, recollect," said his lordship grimly.

" ' I would have proclaimed a Republic (I
was First Consul then), the abolition of the
nobility and House of Peers

" It makes a poor peer tremble in his shoes,"
grunted his lordship.

LONDON'S PERIL 25

"' the distribution of such of the latter as
opposed me amongst my partisans liberty,
equality, and the sovereignty of the people.' "

" A sovereignty the people don't care a
tupenny damn about, to use a naughty word
accredited to the Iron Duke/' said his lordship.

" ' I would have allowed the House of
Commons to remain, but would have introduced
a great reform.' "

" I wish the latter part of the programme
could be carried out to-day," murmured his
lordship.

" ' I would have published a proclamation
declaring that we came as friends of the
English ' "

" ' Timeo Danaos} " said his lordship.

" ' and to free the nation from a corrupt and
flagitious aristocracy ' "

" Mercy upon us ! "

'" and restore a popular form of government,
a democracy ; all of which would have been
confirmed by the conduct of my army, as I
would not have allowed the slightest outrage to
be committed by my troops. Marauding or
ill-treating the inhabitants, or the most trifling
infringement of my orders, I would have
punished with instant death. I think that with
my promises, together with what I would

26 LONDON'S PERIL

actually have effected, I should have had the
support of a great many. In a large city like
London, where there are so many canaille and
so many disaffected, I should have been joined
by a formidable body.' "

" There is something in that," said his lord-
ship, " but not so much as Napoleon seemed to
think. In fact, I doubt if he thought it. He
ignores the fact that there has always been a
strong patriotic spirit, active or dormant, in the
vast majority of Englishmen, rich and poor,
and I would be inclined to pity the canaille vt\\o
flocked to his standard, or the standard to which
they flocked. Well, Mr. Treherne ? "

" ' I would at the same time have excited an
insurrection in Ireland.' "

" Not a difficult task, I should be inclined to
think," said his lordship ; "but he had got to get
to Ireland first, and twin-screws and turbines
were not in play in the early days of the nine-
teenth century."

" ' I observed (Dr. O'Meara continues) that his
army would have been destroyed piecemeal,
that he would have had a million men in arms
against him in a short time, and moreover
that the English would have burnt London
rather than have suffered it to fall into his
hands. ' No, no ! ' said Napoleon, ' I do not

LONDON'S PERIL 27

believe it. You are too rich and too fond of
money. A nation will not so readily burn its
capital.' "

" A wonder the words didn't burn his
tongue ! " observed his lordship. " Had he
forgotten Moscow ? "

" ' How often have the Parisians sworn to
bury themselves in the ruins of their capital
(continues Napoleon) rather than suffer it to
fall into the hands of the enemies of France,
and yet twice it has been taken. There is no
knowing what would have happened, Mr.
Doctor. Neither Pitt nor you nor I could have
foretold what would have been the result.' "

" I expect, after all/' said his lordship,
"his scheme of invasion was merely a bogey.
The idea of a man of Buonaparte's character
saying, ' There is no knowing what would
have happened ! ' It shows he hadn't fixed
his intellect on that plan of invasion. It
was merely one of his dreams, like that of
his menacing Europe with a horde of Asiatics,
or of his making an amalgam of Rome and
Paris ; he says somewhere that he had an idea
of making the Pope his almoner, and Paris the
capital of the Christian world. I expect he said
these things with his tongue in his cheek, lint
pray continue ! "

28 LONDON'S PERIL

" ' The hope of a change for the better, and of
a division of property, would have operated
wonderfully amongst the canaille, especially
that of London. The canaille ' "

" Oh, bother his canaille ! One would think it
was a report of the Dreyfus trial."

" ' The canaille of all rich nations is alike. I
would have made such promises as would have
had a great effect. What resistance could an
undisciplined army make in a country like
England, abounding in plains ? ' '

"There are some hills on the way from
Chatham, and ' there are milestones on the
Dover Road.' He should have lived to have
read some account of the war in South Africa,"
said his lordship. " That will do for the
present, Mr. Treherne."

" I observe, sir," said the Private Secretary,
turning over a page, " that Napoleon had not
forgotten Moscow, and also that he goes so far
as to admit that there is a stronger national
spirit in England than in France. His sole idea
apparently was that if he had possession of
London the whole country would be in the
hollow of his hand."

<( A very stupid idea, in my opinion," said
his lordship, " though I freely admit I should
not care to see 200,000 French troops inside

LONDON'S PERIL 29

the four mile radius. I am now convinced that
the hero of Austerlitz never seriously meant to
wear the laurels of Chatham or Dover on his
brow."

" It is odd," said Mr. Treherne in a bolder
tone than he had previously assumed, " that the
recent plans for the invasion of this country I
mean those discovered at Blackheath are very
much on a line, taking the march of events into
account, with Napoleon's plans."

" That is not surprising," said his lordship,
languidly. " Indeed, it is like somebody's cocoa
grateful, comforting."

" It might interest your lordship to know
that the occupier of 'The Birches' at Black-
heath is one and the same person as the
occupier of 'Heathview' on Hampstead
Heath."

" Monsieur Camille Dupont? "

" Yes, sir under the name, of course, of
Thompson."

" You say you have been scrutinizing those
plans ? "

" Yes, sir."

" Let me see what they look like."

" Certainly, sir," said Mr. Treherne, rising, a
quiet gleam of triumph in his eyes.

IV.

" I DO not think the plans of our friend, Mr.
Dupont, are so very formidable/' said the
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs about an
hour later. " I have looked through all your
notes, Mr. Treherne, and I confess I see nothing
very new in the scheme, and nothing very
alarming. I should be inclined to think that
the plans are mainly extracts from some
bellicose French journal, or that they are, if
there is any scheme in the air, deliberately
intended to deceive us."

" I can hardly think they were intended to
fall into our hands, sir. Much pains were taken
to conceal the text the cipher is a very difficult
one."

"Yet you mastered it. No, Mr. Treherne.
Bear in mind Buonaparte's words about false
intelligence adroitly managed."

"You must recollect, sir, that Monsieur Du-
pont took a good deal of trouble to conceal his
identity with that of Mr. Thompson."

LONDON'S PERIL 31

" His adroitness, possibly that is if, I repeat,
there is any scheme at all on foot. The whole
thing savours of melodrama. I would not have
allowed myself to have a spark of interest in the
matter only for the visit of Monsieur Dupont.
He gave me the impression of being a serious
and an anxious person, but he may only be, in
spite of his countenance, a very cunning lunatic,
or a plausible swindler."

" He has some information to sell, I pre-
sume," ventured Mr. Treherne.

" Yes. That is so."

" And may I ask, sir, if his information,
assuming it to be true, was worth acquiring ?"

" It was too vague, and I did not care to
burden myself with un secret de Polichinelle, or
a new ' Arabian Nights ' tale."

" Might I ask your lordship if Monsieur
Dupont's information has any direct bearing
upon the plans seized by the police, or any
connection with them ? "

" I am afraid," answered his lordship with a
smile, " you ask me too much. I gave my word
to our French friend that I would consider his
communication as for my ears alone, if I was
not prepared to deal with him on the purchase
system. Let us look into those plans once
more, or rather into your notes of them."

32 LONDON'S PERIL

" In the first place, we have elaborate and
correct charts of the coasts of Great Britain and
Ireland," said Mr. Treherne, consulting the
bundle of memoranda he had placed on the
table a short time previously, " with full and
accurate details of the strength and nature of
our defences, and of everything concerning the
navigation of various important harbours.
Some of this information could not have been
procured from any source open to the general
public, and it is very disconcerting to find that
strangers are in possession of details which we
considered strictly private, and at any rate
impossible to be grouped together."

" The French have a knack for doing this
kind of thing. Possibly you will find that
much of this information possessed by our
friend Monsieur Dupont is ' false intelligence,
adroitly managed.' I like the phrase," said his
lordship, parenthetically.

" Very little of it, so far as I can judge, sir. I
have gone through much of it with Admiralty
experts, not one of whom could find a flaw in
such portions as he was acquainted with, and
none of whom could of himself have pieced the
Frenchman's information together."

" You have been busy, then, Mr. Treherne."

" I have been anxious, sir."

LONDON'S PERIL 33

" I warned you about the pitfalls which zeal
may lead to. But what more ? "

" Then, sir, you see we have in these plans
certain statements as to French long-range guns
of which we knew nothing previously."

"They may exist only in Monsieur Dupont's
lively imagination."

" No doubt, sir, but his information has a
plausible air about it. The whole plan indeed
has. There is the combined attack on Leith,
on Hull, on some part of the south or south-
east coast which I cannot decipher it is not
Dover, nor Folkestone, nor the Thames, nor
Portsmouth and upon the south-west coast of
Ireland. Either Queenstown or Bantry Bay
is indicated, but it is not definitely stated where
the contemplated Irish landing is to be made."

"You take it very seriously, Mr. Treherne."

" I am sorry, sir, that you do not think I am
justified in doing so. Then there is, as I read
the cipher, one curious sentence : ' Thus, while
the limbs are being attacked, and while the enemy
is engaged in repelling these attacks, the great
" coup " can be dealt : it will paralyze the heart.' "

" Very French, I must say ! Why a con-
spirator writing in cipher should indulge him-
self with cheap rhetoric is one of the things that
puzzles me ! "

c

34 LONDON'S PERIL

"What occurs to me, your lordship, is that
this man has been entrusted with the adminis-
tering of the coup which is to paralyze the heart
of England, and I take it that this means some
sudden and unexpected dash upon London."

"You cannot pitch a man across the Channel
as you pitch a shell. I do not believe that you
could induce any considerable portion of the
French army to entrust themselves to one of
those cisterns which an ingenious novelist
suggests the inhabitants of Mars are fashioning
for the purpose of making a raid upon this
planet. From the nearest point on the French
coast to London there exists, say, eighty to
ninety miles of sea and land. This has to be
traversed. Granting, for the sake of argument,
that our fleet was not available, or even that it
was destroyed, that Dover and Folkestone had
been reduced to ashes by the French, and that
the sea journey was accomplished without
serious damage to the Gallic stomach, do you
really consider it within the limits of possibility
to plant, say (again, for the sake of argument),
half a million French soldiers in the heart of
London before we could draw a sword or fire a
gun ? Recollect, the great Napoleon allowed
himself four days to get 200,000 men from
Chatham. There was then (in his mind) no

LONDON'S PERIL 35

gigantic obstacle to locomotion, such as, for
example, the South Coast Railways. Do you
think any South Coast line would convey half a
million passengers to London in a week?"

" You will have your joke, sir, but I should
very much like to know what Monsieur Dupont
has in store for us, or even what he thinks he
has in store for us."

" Your curiosity may be satisfied within the
next hour."

" How, sir ? if I may presume to ask the
question."

" Largely owing to your zeal, Mr. Treherne.
I had early this morning a note, delivered here
by a messenger, from our French conspirator,
in which he accuses me of breach of faith with
him. He believed I had instigated the raid
upon him at Blackheath. In fact he makes me
think of myself in the light of a possible Dick
Turpin, or whatever famous highwayman used
to make a happy hunting ground of Black-
heath. His upbraiding of me is, I must admit,
couched in polite language. I felt nettled that
he should think I had broken my implied word
of honour ; and I consented to see him again
to-day letters are dangerous things; I could
not trust any sort of explanation to paper."
The Private Secretary was considerably

36 LONDON'S PERIL

agitated by his lordship's words. He felt that
even in a matter of comparatively so small a
kind he was no match (as he sometimes fondly
hoped he was) in diplomacy for his chief. His
lordship, from under the shadow of his rugged
brows, gazed for a moment at the abashed
secretary. Then lifting his head and consult-
ing his watch, he said :

" Monsieur Dupont's hour has arrived. I am
certain he will be punctual. If you will kindly
be at hand, I will summon you should I require
you. You might restore ' Napoleon in Exile '
to its place in that shelf yonder, and you had
better take your papers and all vestiges of them
with you. I think I have digested them."

V.

WHEN M. Dupont had taken a seat in the
library, his host at once opened the ball.

"You are mistaken, Monsieur," said he, "in
your assumption that I had any act or part in
the raid upon your house. What passed between
you and me at our previous interview has not in
any way been disclosed to anyone. I have,
however, just ascertained that the raid was
instigated by a servant of mine, who is also,
please to remember, a servant of the State. He
acted upon his own initiative. Had he con-
sulted me, you would have been untouched. I
hope this perfectly frank statement is satis-
factory ? "

" Absolutely, my lord," said M. Dupont. " It
is very generous of you to treat me so fairly,
and I will be equally frank with you. I had a
very poor opinion of the acuteness of your police,
and I considered the precautions I had taken to
conceal my identity at the house at Blackheath
were sufficient. I am chagrined to know that I

38 LONDON'S PERIL

have been over-matched. I at once admit your
right to make a search it is part of the game
I have played my cards badly. That is all."

" I am glad the air has been cleared so
quickly," said his lordship.

" Certain of our papers are in your possession,
I presume ?"

"They are in the possession of my secretary.
I do not lay any claim to them. In fact, in
visiting me and in offering to sell me some
secret you are acting wholly in error as to the
manner in which such negotiations should be
conducted."

" I am ignoring such a trifle as etiquette, my
lord. It does not agitate me. The matter in
hand is too big for such concernings. I ad-
dressed myself to you, knowing you to be the
minister who is chiefly in touch with the
subject, and believing you to be an honourable
gentleman. Has your lordship since considered
my proposal ? "

' Candidly, until I received your note this
morning I had not given a thought to it."

"And since then ? "

" I have been posted up in the plans of the
scheme, and I have been studying the obiter
dicta of a distinguished countryman of yours
Buonaparte. I am glad to say I cannot come to

LONDON'S PERIL 39

any conclusion except the one that any infor-
mation you might be willing to sell to the
State would be of no value to the State."

" No doubt, my lord, you consider your coast
safe because your fleet is invincible ; but please
to remember I did not propose to disclose any
secrets as to naval movements. I am not con-
cerned with them. What I am concerned with
is much more deadly and much more certain."

" This paralyzing of the heart of England
the blow at London," said his lordship, smiling.

" Precisely. I have told you, my lord, that I
was at one time an enthusiast about the scheme,
but that I had changed my mind. I consider
the interests of France can be better served than
by carrying out a project for the paralyzing of
England. I am willing to be a seeming traitor
now. If I disclose my secret, France as well as
England will be saved from much that is evil.
.My colleagues will lose nothing but the over-
throw of a great plan. They will be chagrined,
furious but what of that ? I have my views
concerning other and better projects for France
if I survive. You will find my price cheap. . . .
Do I utterly fail to convince you that I am in
deadly earnest ? "

" My dear Monsieur Dupont, no revelation
dealing with the movements of a rival State or

40 LONDON'S PERIL

of a disaffected colony was ever worth more to
us than a small secret service pension or a
burdensome title. Even these things I cannot
offer you."

"You would jest with me, my lord."

" Not offensively, I hope, Monsieur."

"You think, no doubt, I am some fanatic.
Yet I tell you that my secret which you cannot
discover except from my lips is worth many
war-ships."

" I have not sought your confidence, Monsieur.
And when a man declines absolutely to buy an
article, the seller should be reasonable enough
not to press his wares further."

" But your lordship does not realize, it is
plain, the value of the article I have for dis-
posal. And its value, alas ! can be appreciated
only by yourself. If I speak, the accuracy of my
words can be easily tested. Shall I put my
cards upon the table and take your lordship
upon honour that if my information is worth
my price, you will pay that price ? "

" Certainly not, my dear sir. I could not
make you any such promise even if I desired to
do so. The nation's funds are not at the dis-
posal of any individual."

" There is a Secret Service Fund you alluded
to it."

LONDON'S PERIL 41

" I could not answer for it. And your price
is pray do not be offended absolutely pre-
posterous."

" Will you be the judge of that ? "

" I could not be. I might, as a private indi-
vidual, be prepared to pay a small sum for your
information it could only be a small sum
through sheer personal curiosity."

" No use, my lord ! With my information in
your possession you would be compelled to
reveal my secret you would find its value and
importance to your State overwhelming."

" My dear sir, are we not frittering away much
time ? I have given you my opinion as to the
value of revelations."

" But if I could demonstrate to you, as I can,"
cried M. Dupont, with a gurgling sound in his
throat, " that without one word of warning,
or the possibility of oneblow being struck back,
half a million of picked French troops could
appear in London, would you not consider that
my price was small if I enabled you at one
move to destroy the project?" He leaned
forward as he spoke, his eyes seeming to stand
out from their sockets.

" Why waste words in a discussion of the
impossible ?"

"I do not propose any discussion, my lord. . . .

42 LONDON'S PERIL

Bui: I see my words do not carry themselves
with sufficient force. 1 am weary of this."

The bump of curiosity was not largely de-
veloped with the Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs. He experienced a sense almost of sur-
prise that he should find himself, as he did,
anxious to know what the Frenchman had to
reveal. But he cculd not even pretend to make
terms with his visitor. Each man saw that
further parley was useless, and for some minutes
both were silent. The silence was broken by
his lordship.

" It is my luncheon hour, Monsieur," he said.
" I am lunching almost alone to-day no one
but my private secretary. You have come a
long way. Will you join us at luncheon ? I do
not heed the risk of being accused of entertain-
ing conspirators against the State/' he said with
a smile, as he rose from his seat. "Perhaps I
might compromise you ! " he added suddenly, a
humorous twinkle in his eyes. " We are, I
assure you, discreet people here. The most
persevering of newspaper men has never yet
succeeded in bearding me at the luncheon table."

The situation appealed to the humour of his
lordship, but M. Dupont politely declined the
hospitality offered. His face wore an expression
of acute disappointment almost of anguish
as he left the room.

VI.

AFTER leaving his lordship's residence, M.
Dupont set out by a circuitous route for
Blackheath. It was about five o'clock in the
afternoon when he reached "The Birches."
He was very weary in mind and body.

The young lady of the house (who, as the
newspapers surmised, was his niece), after
welcoming her uncle, showed plainly that she
was suffering much anxiety on his account.
M. Dupont quickly noticed her anxious air,
and endeavoured to reassure her.

Marguerite Dupont had of late cause to be
much distressed about her uncle. She had
known him intimately from infancy, and until
recently she had no memory of him save as a
sprightly, dashing man of the world, full of
gaiety and good nature. About two months
after their arrival at " The Birches" Marguerite
had in the beginning been informed that for
certain political reasons it was advisable for her

44 LONDON'S PERIL

uncle to live for a time in England under an
assumed name he had left Blackheath for the
Continent in perfect health and in high spirits.
A few weeks later he returned, the wreck of
his former self aged beyond belief, broken in
health, bankrupt in spirits. That some great
grief or disaster had overwhelmed him was
obvious. He offered no explanation to his
niece, and she asked for none. In everything,
except in his love for Marguerite, M. Dupont
was a wholly changed man. He who had been
the brightest and gayest of mortals, and who had
feared no man, moved furtively about, seeming
to avoid the gaze of everybody. He had by
slow degrees shaken off some of the traces of
terror which had metamorphosed him, but
Marguerite was convinced that her uncle's
health and courage had left him never to
return.

Dinner passed over in silence, and after the
meal M. Dupont accompanied his niece to the
drawing-room. She played and sang softly for
him, but he seemed to have lost his old interest
in her music. After they had been about an
hour in the drawing-room, M. Dupont beckoned
Marguerite, and she promptly flew to him, and
throwing herself on a stool near him, leant her
young head against her knees.

LONDON'S PERIL 45

" My dear," he said, stroking her hair, " I am
about to confide in you to ask your advice on
a momentous point. Pray do not be startled ! "

The young girl trembled with anxiety and
fear. This mood of her uncle's was new to her.
He had never before spoken of his affairs. She
knew he was an engineer, and understood he
was highly esteemed in his profession, but she
had rarely met any of his professional friends,
and knew nothing concerning any of his various
undertakings.

" You may remember I left here about four
months ago for France. I was then engaged
in a work I am still connected with it which
involved, among other things, much under-
ground labour mining, to be precise. In
addition to being the chief engineer engaged in
carrying out the work, I had the charge laid
upon me of seeing that all our operations were
conducted in absolute secrecy. One day I
was examining the what shall I call it to make
it intelligible to you a shaft, or rather a cutting
branching from it, when a terrible disaster
occurred. ... It horrifies me still when I
think of it," he continued, with a shiver. . . .
" There was a large body of workmen close to
me. I had been informed that our great enemy
water was percolating through the roof, and

46 LONDON'S PERIL

I was engaged in making an examination of the
place when, with no warning save a quick and
sickening tremor, the floor seemed to rise to
the roof. I remember well the swift vibration,
and then the thunderous roar like the sound of
the sea bursting through a cave : then my
consciousness went. I awoke in darkness, such
darkness ! " he moaned, " and for a long time
I lay without attempting to move. My head
burned and throbbed .... I will not inflict
upon you, my dearest child, an account of my
feelings and sensations. No words of mine
could describe them.

" After a time I do not know how long I
tried to move. I was stiff all over, but I could
not find any broken bones or any wounds of
consequence. Then I suddenly bethought me
of my companions. I groped about in the
awful darkness, and soon my hand touched the
body of a man. He was cold dead. I groped
and burrowed amongst the debris by which I
was surrounded, and found many more of my
companions all dead. So far as I could judge
I was the only survivor.

" I had no means of ascertaining the extent
of the disaster. The passage-way in which I
lay extended in each direction for many miles.
It was quite possible that weeks, months, nay,

LONDON'S PERIL 47

years might elapse before the disaster could be
repaired. I suffered agonies from thirst, and
yet the sound of a drop of water falling from
the roof would have driven me mad with added
terror. I do not realize yet how I lived and
struggled through the first few hours, but the
sense of life was strong in me. I even found
myself wondering how it was that I was not
oppressed by want of air. I knew there was no
time to be lost if I was to attempt to save
myself. I soon discovered that in one direction
the tunnel in which I was buried alive was
blocked in the opposite direction there was
nothing but loose debris to bar my path.

" I set out fortunately there was no diffi-
culty in standing upright. Occasionally I
encountered more debris, further evidence of
a disaster to the structure I now know that
the cause was a slight shock of earthquake
and I had to tear great stones away with might
and main. In many places my head struck the
roof. Often I found the way so broken and
heaped up that I had to crawl, like the abhorred
serpent, through hideous gaps and holes. My
clothes were torn into shreds : my flesh lacerated
and gory. Sometimes I was stunned : some-
times I rushed blindly on, heedless of my
battered head. Now and then I stumbled over

48 LONDON'S PERIL

bodies men all cold some horribly mangled.
And after passing my hand over their bodies, I
would rush along again shouting and screaming
deliriously. And the darkness was over every-
thing, and the sense of suffocation and the
burning thirst. ... I frighten you, my child.
Oh, what a memory !

" At last I will not harrow you further, my
dear I came to a shaft, or rather a great hole
in the earth, and standing at the bottom and
looking upwards I saw one star in the sky. Oh,
blessed star ! " exclaimed M. Dupont, casting
his eyes upwards. " I was free ! I had escaped
from the charnel-house the pit the horror
unspeakable !

" Then, when I cooled a little, I marvelled.
I knew every inch of the tunnel in which I
had travelled. The shaft at the bottom of
which I stood was no part of my work. . . . But
this is by the way. I will tell you later what
this strange shaft was : the story of it is very
curious. It is sufficient to say now that I
escaped.

" It was many days before I returned home.
When I saw you again, Marguerite, I feared,
my child, that I was for ever a broken man. I
tried to hide my terrors from you. I
endeavoured to hug myself with the hope that

LONDON'S PERIL 49

in a short time I should be quite well again. I
wrote to my friends in France and told them so.
Some saw me some who knew me well and
they believed I should be restored to health
again. Meanwhile that awful passage has never
been out of my mind. It haunts me by day
and night. I have begun to regard my work
as a hellish work. I feel I shall grow young
again if it is a large 'if only I can blot it
from my memory.

" Marguerite ! " he added almost fiercely, after
a brief pause, " you have known your uncle ever
since you were a little child, when I took you
from your dying mother's arms. Have you ever
heard one word of mine, or witnessed one act,
that would cause you to think I could be a traitor
to France ? . . . My country my beloved ! "

With a quick sob his head fell back in his
chair, and Marguerite, wildly alarmed, started
to her feet, to find that her uncle was staring at
the ceiling with wild, unmeaning eyes, and that
his features were distorted by some hideous
convulsion.

VII.

THE doctor summoned by M. Dupont's
elderly housekeeper to " The Birches " gave
no hope. He pronounced the case to be
one of acute paralysis. He asked if Mr.
Thompson had received any great and sudden
shock. Marguerite, who spoke English fairly
well, answered the doctor wildly. The tale
which her uncle had told her, and the sudden-
ness of the seizure following his recital, had
given her a violent shock. The doctor pitied
the young girl, and did not torment her with
fruitless inquiries. He appealed to the house-
keeper, but here a difficulty of language arose.
The old woman could not speak English, and
the doctor was by no means a proficient in the
French tongue. However, he succeeded in con-
veying to the old woman that the young girl
was for the moment more in need of care than
the master of the house that much would have

LONDON'S PERIL 51

to be done in order to pull Marguerite round an
ugly corner, and that little or nothing could be
done for Mr. Thompson. In all human pro-
bability he would die during the night without
regaining consciousness. Were there any rela-
tions or friends to be communicated with ?
The old woman knew of none. There might
be some distant relatives in France and many
friends, but she had no addresses. There were
in England neither relatives nor friends of Mr.
Thompson.

The housekeeper at " The Birches " was a
person of some discretion. She had been in
M. Dupont's service for many years, and was
well aware that her dying master's name was
not Thompson, but she saw no reason for
imparting this fact to the doctor.

Who was to look after the stricken man ?
The housekeeper at once declared the duty to
be hers, and the doctor agreed to this, with the
understanding that the lady of the house should
not be forgotten. "She can hardly be left to
herself in this lonely house," he explained to
the old woman, "and in this out-of-the-way
place I presume it will not be an easy matter to
get additional help quickly." The physician
was convinced that Mr. Thompson's hours were
numbered, that it was impossible he should

52 LONDON'S PERIL

rally. Probably he might have another seizure,
and then there would be the end. The only
plan that suggested itself to him was that he
should procure a nurse as quickly as possible
and send her on to " The Birches," and that in
the meantime the two women should watch the
patient in turns. He saw at a glance that the
housekeeper was a person of considerable
shrewdness.

On leaving the house about half-past eight
o'clock, he was relieved to find that Made-
moiselle had rallied, but he feared she might
collapse utterly if any new strain was put upon
her. He informed the young girl that he would
return before ten o'clock, and that if a nurse
could be procured by him she would probably
arrive at " The Birches " before he returned.
He knew, he said, a good nurse in the neigh-
bourhood who was, he believed, disengaged.
Marguerite thanked him, and assured him that
she felt she would be able to bear up with
courage.

About a quarter of an hour after the doctor's
departure, the hall-door bell was rung. On
answering the ring, the houskeeper, leaving her
young mistress in charge of the patient, found
at the door a tall, soldierly-looking man. The
old woman fancied she recognized the stranger,

LONDON'S PERIL 53

but she could not recall his name. He ad-
dressed her in French, and declared he had
business of most pressing moment with Mr.
Thompson. It was explained to him that Mr.
Thompson was dangerously ill that he had
had sudden paralytic seizure, and he was not
expected to live through the night.

" Is this true ? " demanded the stranger
sternly.

" Perfectly true, sir," the old woman replied.

The stranger heaved a deep sigh. " I must
see Miss Marguerite, then," he said. " Say
Major Xavier requests an audience of her."

The housekeeper could see no reason for
refusing to convey the message to her young
mistress. She invited the stranger to enter, and
ushered him into the library. The announce-
ment to Marguerite of the stranger's arrival
aroused the young girl. She started on hearing
the name, and clapping her hands, said :

" My uncle's best friend ! I will see him by
all means."

Major Xavier shook hands silently with
Marguerite. " Is this bad news I hear
true?" he asked. "Is your uncle mortally
ill ? "

" I fear so," said the young girl. " The
doctor will be here again in about an hour."

54 LONDON'S PERIL

" I shall wait until he arrives," said Major
Xavier, "if I may."

Marguerite had entered the library with a
sense of relief at knowing that one of her
uncle's most intimate friends was at hand, but
the expression on Major Xavier's face boded,
she quickly saw, no good : evil tidings was
written there plainly.

" This seizure is not many hours old, I under-
stand," said the Major after a short, awkward
pause.

" It occurred about hali-past seven o'clock/'

" He had shown no signs previously of
pardon me for saying it, Mademoiselle any-
thing being wrong here ? " touching his
forehead.

" Oh, no sign whatever ! He has been ill
perhaps you know it for months."

" Alas ! only too well do I know it ; yet, dolt
that I am, I was the one who decided that his
reason, his intellect, was intact."

" And so it was."

" It cannot have been, Mademoiselle."

" Who should know better than I, Monsieur
le Major ? " said Marguerite with some asperity.

" His own recent action has proved the fact
beyond yea or nay."

" Nevertheless, he was perfectly sound of

LONDON'S PERIL 55

mind until the sudden seizure this evening,"
persisted Marguerite. " He was then telling me
something and he spoke most lucidly of his
recent terrible accident."

'' Pray, Mademoiselle, what do you know of
his plans ? of the work upon which he is
engaged ? "

" Nothing, Monsieur."

" You say this upon your honour ? "

" A woman is always on her honour."

" Not at all, Mademoiselle. You are too
young. It seems unmanly to contradict you,
or to cross-examine you; yet I have no choice.
Pray forgive me for speaking with harshness
to you at such a time, but I am terribly wrought
upon, my child. You have no knowledge of
the task your uncle has been occupied upon
for years ? Be frank with me ! "

" No knowledge, Major ; beyond the belief
arrived at I know not how that the work was
one of great magnitude ; and as my uncle is an
engineer, I concluded he was engaged upon
some great engineering project. He spoke to
me only this evening of some mining operations.
That is all I know."

" He has seen no strange visitors English, I
mean here recently ? "

" None, Monsieur. Though I should mention

56 LONDON'S PERIL

that some police agents visited the house in his
absence yesterday."

"Well?" said the Major, eagerly. "I had
not heard of this before."

" They forced their way into this room.
They begged me not to be uneasy. They said
they had only come in search of some papers.
I was too terrified to interfere."

" Peste ! Well, Mademoiselle ? When did
your uncle know of this ? "

"The same night. He came here in fairly
good spirits. I was at first afraid to tell him
for fear of upsetting him. When I did tell him
he was much disturbed. He remained in this
room a long time, and about eleven o'clock he
said good-night to me, and told me not to be
distressed. He had a letter in his hand then,
and as I went to my room he left the house. I
did not see him again until about five o'clock
this afternoon, when he returned home, looking
very wearied and anxious. That is all I can
tell you." It was only by a violent effort that
the young girl could prevent herself from
breaking down.

"You have known your uncle a long time,
Mademoiselle. Pardon me for asking you one
question. Have you ever heard him recently
say anything, or has he given you any impres-

LONDON'S PERIL 57

sion by his acts, that would cause you to think
he was contemplating some horrible deed an
act of traitordom ? "

A flush of anger mantled Marguerite's cheeks.
" No. No. Emphatically, no ! " she said.
" Strangely enough, he asked me a similar
question himself this evening. And the last
words he uttered, the last words he may ever
utter, were, ' My country ! My beloved ! ' '

" I am greatly puzzled," murmured Major
Xavier in an undertone. " And yet, Made-
moiselle Dupont, your uncle was a traitor, and
my mission here to-night was to summon him
to his country to answer that terrible charge."

" That he was a traitor is impossible," said
Marguerite stoutly.

" He confesses it," said Major Xavier curtly.

" I cannot believe it."

" There is his letter, said the Major, taking
an envelope from his pocket. Withdrawing
the letter from its cover, he handed it to Mar-
guerite. " Read it for yourself! " he said.

The young girl took the note with trembling
fingers and read :

"MY DEAR X, For some time ever since
that terrible accident I have considered our
great scheme to be one which, however suc-
cessful in the beginning, will ultimately bring

5S LONDON'S PERIL

terrible disaster and misery perhaps ruin itself
upon our beloved France. Knowing that I
cannot convert you or any of our colleagues to
this view, I decided to act upon the impulses
which have for some time been endeavouring
to guide me, and I have offered to give the
English Government such information as I
possess. This will, without bloodshed, or with-
out involving France, put an end to everything.
You may no doubt you will denounce me as
a traitor, but the Most High knows I am
actuated by a desire to serve my country,
according to my lights. By-and-bye you will
see this,, and admit that I have acted rightly.
I have asked the English Government a great
sum for the secret, yet a sum far below its value
to them. My large fortune has, as you know,
been spent upon our project. The price of my
present ' treachery ' will go to reimburse my
colleagues for the money they have spent upon
the undertaking."

Marguerite handed the letter back to Major
Xavier, offering no word of comment. The
contents conveyed little meaning to her her
mind seemed to grow confused.

" That is the letter of a traitor," said the
Major, holding the note in his hand, " or the
writer is a man bereft of reason. But I am

LONDON'S PERIL 59

perplexed to hear of this raid of the English
police. It may be that there is a game of cross
purposes. It may be that your uncle never
wrote this extraordinary epistle. Let me
examine it again ! "

VIII.

IT was now near ten o'clock, and the doctor and
the nurse were expected every moment.

Marguerite left the library in order to see how
her uncle was progressing her hopes of his
recovery were very faint, though she had not
been informed by the doctor of the uselessness
oT hope. As the door was closed after her by
Major Xavier, a knock and ring sounded from
the hall, and Marguerite flew to the door.

Upon opening it she was startled to find
not the doctor, nor a nurse, but a stranger a
young man. He apologized for the lateness of
his call, and said he had a few words to say to
Mr. Thompson.

" He will not know me," said the young man,
hurriedly, " but he will probably recognize my
name, as I have had some correspondence with
him. My name is Treherne."

Marguerite had no idea who or what the man
might be. She told him in a few words that
her uncle was dangerously ill. Mr. Treherne

LONDON'S PERIL 61

seemed to suffer an acute pang of disappoint-
ment.

" Might I ask/' he inquired, "if the doctor is
with him ? I should feel so much obliged if I
could have a word with the doctor, if I cannot
speak to Mr. Thompson. It is really a matter
of vital importance to your uncle I think I
may venture to assume that you are his niece,"
he added, " that he should hear what I have to
say at the earliest possible moment. I assure
you, Mademoiselle/' he went on, addressing her
now in French, " that I shall not agitate your
uncle in any way, if he should, as I trust he will,
recover sufficiently to favour me with a few
words. He will, I have no doubt, be pleased to
see me."

Marguerite hardly knew what to say or to do.
She reflected that with her uncle's friend, Major
Xavier, in the house, there could be no harm in
permitting the stranger to wait until the doctor
returned. She then informed Mr. Treherne that
a friend of her uncle had just arrived, and that
he was welcome to remain until the doctor
could decide if there was any hope of his seeing
the sick man or of leaving a message for him.

Mr. Treherne expressed his gratitude in
becoming terms, and Marguerite ushered him
into the library.

62 LONDON'S PERIL

As Mr. Treherne stood in the doorway, the
young girl glanced uneasily at Major Xavier,
who had raised his eyes from the letter he had
been examining as the door opened.

" Let me introduce you, sir," she said, turn-
ing to Mr. Treherne, " to my uncle's friend

She faltered as she said this, remembering
that the Major might not wish to be introduced
to a stranger.

" The introduction, Mademoiselle, is un-
necessary," said Mr. Treherne. "Major Xavier
and I have met before."

" Peste ! " exclaimed the Frenchman, rising to
his feet. " What brings Monsieur Treherne
here ? "

Marguerite saw there was an awkwardness
which might possibly be surmounted if she left
her visitors to themselves, so she quietly closed
the door upon herself and mounted the stairs to
her uncle's bedroom.

The two men stood gazing at each other for a
few moments, and then the Major resumed his
seat, a sinister look upon his stern face.

" Perhaps it is an opportune meeting even if
it is one not coveted by either of us," said Mr.
Treherne, taking a chair.

" Your business here is with our stricken friend,
I presume ? " said the Major.

LONDON'S PERIL 63

" And yours ? " asked Mr. Treherne.

" Be careful, sir ! " said the Major. " We have
crossed swords before. We may have to do so
again."

" With willingness if necessary," said Mr.
Treherne. " But we must not start a new
quarrel under the roof of a sick man."

" Your friend ? " said the Major, half in
inquiry, half sarcastically.

" Scarcely," said Mr. Treherne, laconically.

Each man was filled with curiosity to know
what brought the other to " The Birches." The
Major concealed his curiosity badly. Mr.
Treherne concealed it admirably. For some
moments there was silence in the room. The
Major still held in his hand the letter
which had stigmatized M. Camille Dupont a
traitor.

" Monsieur Dupont is dangerously ill, I am
told," said Mr. Treherne, breaking the silence.
" Do you know if his illness is likely to prove
fatal ? "

" I am so informed. Will it upset your plans
if he should die to-night ? "

" Scarcely," said Treherne.

" Shall we continue to fence, or shall we speak
what is in our minds ? "

" As you please."

64 LONDON'S PERIL

"Can we trust each other?" said the Major,
with a short, hard laugh.

" Scarcely," answered Treherne, " but our
suspicion one of the other should not be a bar to
the exercise of that pleasant art conversation."

" I am not a diplomatist I do not traffic in
words," said the Major. " My actions usually
speak with sufficient force. Come ! how much
do you know ? "

" That is a tall question."

"How much?"

" All that is worth knowing."

" Oh, what a foul crime ! " exclaimed the
Major, rising to his feet and pacing the room.

" Most foul, said Mr. Treherne, in a low
voice, well under control.

" You should beware of angering me with
mocking words, Monsieur. When you were an
attacJie at Paris, I must remind you that I held
your life in my hands ; and pray do not think
now that you are protected in this house because
you happen to be the Foreign Secretary's
minion."

" I am able to take care of myself. But I
would warn you, Major, that I have, like your-
self, a temper, and that it may not be wise to
insult me even in my own country," he added
sarcastically .

LONDON'S PERIL 65

" What do you know ? -give me a clue ! "

" Why should I oblige you ? "

" Because it may suit you that is the only
reason. If you knew all, you would not come
here to treat with Dupont. You would have
placed him under arrest."

"We manage these things differently in
England. It is a habit of ours to smile at
conspiracies, and to scoff at conspirators."

" Sir ! But I will not accept a quarrel at your
hands now. What do you know ? Give me
your clue ! "

The doctor and the nurse had arrived shortly
after Mr. Treherne. Their presence in the
house was not known to the two men in the
library. Each had been too much concerned
with his own affairs to overhear footsteps on the
stairs.

" Reverse the position, Major, and just think
how you would answer me if I propounded to
you a similar question in Paris."

" I ask, not to know what information you
may possess, but to ascertain if my friend is still
a man of honour if some huge trick has not
been played or if he is demented. That he
has acted the part of a traitor should be
impossible. I am aware you have stolen plans
from this house ; but do you seriously think we

D

66 LONDON'S PERIL

should have allowed our real plans to be subject
to the possibility of your discovering them ?
Your presence here to-night in the house of my
friend is, I will admit, a cause of great trouble
and grief and suspicion to me not on account
of what you may know, but on account of his
honour. Come, Monsieur Treherne, tell me
what you know. Tell me the worst ! "

The Major sat down and wiped his damp
forehead.

Mr. Treherne did not know with certainty
what the great secret was. He suspected the
nature of it, and could, if it was necessary, give
a very plausible account of the project; but
without possessing the actual information which
he had come to buy at any reasonable cost, he
was aware that he possessed nothing of any
great value. His surmise might be wrong.
Even if it was right he could not give satisfactory
proof, unless by some happy chance, or at a
vast expenditure of time, money, and ingenuity.
Therefore he was still obliged to fence with
Major Xavier, who was, as he shrewdly sus-
pected, a prime mover in the plans which would,
according to M. Camille Dupont, paralyze
England.

" Your game is up, Major," he said. " It was
a great scheme bold, ingenious, wonderful.

LONDON'S PERIL 67

But it required too much : it demanded such
secrecy as cannot be obtained nowadays in
civilized countries."

" What do you know ? " reiterated the Major.
He was beginning to suspect that Treherne was
only playing a game of bluff, and he was angry
with himself for having too readily assumed
that the wily private secretary held the trump
cards. "Nothing, or you would show your
hand at once. Bah ! " he exclaimed, " you are
a worse diplomatist than myself and that is
saying a great deal/'

" Shall I read a sentence for you a sentence
which I can explain just to convince you of
your error ? " said Treherne, quietly.

" As you please, sir," replied the Major.
" Something, no doubt, extracted from our
bogus plans. What is it ? "

" This ! " said Treherne, taking a slip of paper
from his pocket. Then he read aloud :

" Thus, while the litnbs are being attacked, and
ichile tJie enemy is engaged in repelling these
attacks, the great ' coup ' can be dealt : it will
paralyze the heart."

" Mere words," exclaimed the Major, with an
upward wave of his hand. " Possibly a sentence
copied from some feuilleton"

"The great coup*' said Treherne, leaning

68 LONDON'S PERIL

forward and gazing into the eyes of his com-
panion, " can be dealt by means of G. H. ! "

Major Xavier sprang to his feet at Treherne's
words. At the same moment the door of the
library was opened, and the doctor entered.

" Gentlemen," said he, " I understand that
one of you is a dear friend of the master of the
house ? "

" Yes, yes ! " said the Major. " I am one of
his most intimate friends, sir. You are, I take
it, his physician ? "

The doctor nodded.

" What is the news of him ? "
' " He is dead."

"Great God!" exclaimed Major Xavier,
throwing up his hands and sinking back into
his chair.

" I am sorry to hear the bad news, doctor,"
said Mr. Treherne, nervously. " The sudden-
ness of it makes one shudder. Of what did he
die, pray ? "

" Paralysis of the heart," replied the doctor.

IX.

BEFORE leaving " The Birches " Treherne satis-
fied himself that M. Dupont was really dead.
Then he slipped quietly away, leaving Made-
moiselle Dupont, Major Xavier, and the doctor
in the library.

When he got into the roadway it was so dark
that for some moments he could scarcely see his
way. The doctor's brougham stood at the gate-
way, the coachman fast asleep on his box.
After walking a few yards away from the gate he
stood still. Noiselessly two men emerged from
the hedge which bordered the roadway, and,
approaching Trehene, one of them turned the
eye of a dark lantern full upon the private
secretary, and then shut off the light.

Treherne addressed the men by name, and
instructed them to remain outside " The Birches "
and keep watch upon the movements of the
household. They were especially to have a
close eye upon a tall military Frenchman.
When he left the house one of the detectives

70 LONDON'S PERIL

was to shadow him, while the other remained
to keep guard over " The Birches/'

" The French officer," he said, " is about five
feet ten, slender, lithe and muscular. His
moustache and imperial are turning grey. He
has a scar on his left cheek ; his eyes are steely
grey, and his hair is cropped close. There are
only two men in the house the doctor and the
Frenchman. You cannot confound the foreigner
with the doctor. The latter is a stout, under-
sized man. If the French gentleman should
happen to leave London you must follow him,
and if he is about to embark for the Continent
you must arrest him. I will have a warrant for
you to-morrow. I fancy he will not leave
England immediately ; he will probably pay a
visit to Hampstead. Report your movements
to me privately and promptly."

The two detectives touched their hats as Mr.
Treherne quietly said good-night. They peered
at him through the darkness as he strode down
the silent road.

" Rum job ! " said one of the detectives to
his comrade. " Mr. T. will be getting him-
self into hot water one of these fine days. I
heard one superintendent say that there would
be the deuce to pay if Mr. T.'s chief got wind of
his little games,"

LONDON'S PERIL 71

" What's up here ? " asked the other.

"Some French Invasion lay. They think the
old chap who owns the place has invented some
sort of flying machine. Those young men at
the Foreign Office would believe any blooming
yarn."

Treherne walked rapidly on. The road to
" The Birches " was a by-road, and it was about
a quarter of a mile from M. Dupont's house to
the main road.

As he got half-way down the dark road
he heard the sound of wheels, and, looking
behind him, he saw the light of a vehicle coming
along at a good pace. He halted as the car-
riage passed him, and recognized the doctor's
brougham. He had an impulse to challenge it
and have a talk with the doctor, but he felt he
had matter in hand of a character which would
not brook delay.

It was about half-past eleven when he broke
in upon the main road. Here there was a
hansom standing. As the young man ap-
proached it, the driver, who had been looking
after his horse, mounted to his perch silently,
and nodded as he got his brief instructions
"Whitehall."

Treherne was a young man who lacked
neither courage nor determination, but as he

72 LONDON'S PERIL

sat in the smooth-rolling hansom he was unable
to make up his mind what his next step should
be. When he had set out for " The Birches " he
did not attempt to hide from himself that it was
possible he might fall into some trap, but he felt
that the risk was worth incurring. If he could
come away with the key to M. Dupont's secret,
he would have obtained something almost price-
less. The meeting with Major Xavier had a
disquieting effect upon him. The Major and he
had a lively dread of each other, though in each
case the dread took a different form. Apart
from their original quarrel the cause of which
was a private matter Treherne when in Paris
knew that the Major was one of the most rabid
Anglophobes in France. He was an open
enemy, and therefore Treherne had regarded
him merely as a vapourer, but his recent dis-
covery of the Major's connection with Dupont
was most disconcerting. The sudden death, too,
of Dupont had strangely unnerved the young
man, and after he had visited the bedroom and
gazed upon the dead body he felt he would be
utterly unable to tackle Major Xavier again.
In fact, his only desire was to get instantly out
of the ghastly house.

Treherne's intention as he seated himself in
the hansom was to drive to Whitehall, to obtain

LONDON'S PERIL 73

in that neighbourhood whatever help he might
deem necessary, and to pursue his way to M.
Dupont's house on Hampstead Heath, but as
the cab rattled swiftly along his energy and his
courage seemed to ooze out. He endeavoured
to pull himself together. No account of M.
Dupont's death could reach Hampstead that
night ; his visit there would be quite unexpected ;
it was possible he might swiftly discover some
evidence that would confirm his suspicions.
Next day might be too late. Major Xavier
would probably visit the Hampstead house, and
valuable clues would be lost. But all his self-
prickings could not rouse Treherne. It soon
became a struggle to keep awake. Physically
and mentally he was tired out.

When he reached Westminster Bridge he in-
structed the cabby to continue the journey to his
rooms in Victoria Street. He decided that he
had better have something to eat and drink-
before proceeding further north, or before
making any arrangements for a raid (if such
should prove necessary) on " Heathview."

When he got to his rooms he found a telegram
on his table. It was from his chief, summoning
him to his lordship's country seat. Treherne
sank into an easy-chair, endeavouring to decide
what was best to be done

74 LONDON'S PERIL

When he awoke it was eight o'clock in the
morning. He started up as he gazed at his
watch, and cursed his ill-luck. He had barely
an hour to freshen himself up and catch a train
which would bring him in good time to his
chief's country seat. As he stood up and drew
up the blind of the window, his servant knocked
at the door and informed him that a man had
been waiting some time to see him.

The visitor proved to be one of the men
he had left in charge of " The Birches/'

" Sorry to say we've made a bit of a mess of
it, sir," said the detective, sheepishly.

" How ? " thundered Treherne.

" The Frenchman has given us the slip."

"Explain yourself."

' Well, sir, shortly after you left us on the
roadway the doctor's brougham drove off. Of
course we saw there was only one man in it."

" Of course," interrupted Treherne, angrily.
''And naturally it was the wrong man. Well
continue your precious narrative."

" It was natural enough, sir/' said the de.
tective, " to suppose it was the doctor who was
in his carriage, so we let it go. About ten
minutes afterwards a short, stout gent came out
to the gate and looked around him, surprised
like. I went across to him and asked him if he

LONDON'S PERIL 75

was looking for anything. He said his carriage
should be at the door. Then I saw that I had
been sold."

" You idiot ! " fumed Treherne. " Of course
the French officer was the one who drove off
first. Couldn't you have examined the brougham
as it drove off? It would surely be an ordinary
precaution to have taken."

" We never suspected that it was anyone but
the doctor. It was so precious dark we couldn't
see, and we didn't like to flash a light on the
doctor. The carriage with the Frenchman in it
must have passed you on the by-road, sir."

" Yes. Curse it ! " said Treherne. " But I
didn't know I was leaving two boobies at ' The
Birches.' I suppose you tried to clear up the
matter did you ? "

"Yes, sir," replied the crestfallen detective.
" In about a quarter of an hour the brougham
came back. The coachman explained that he
had driven off at once at the pull of the check-
string, and that when he got home he found the
brougham was empty. He seemed fearfully
cut up, and the doctor slanged him to no end."

" I suppose your superior intelligence prompted
you to make sure that it was the Frenchman who
had left the house ? "

" Oh, certainly, sir," said the detective,

76 LONDON'S PERIL

brightening up. " We inquired there and found
he had left just after yourself.'

" You're a precious pair of mugs," said
Treherne. " When did you arrive here ? "

" About an hour ago. sir, but your man
wouldn't disturb you. I would have come
earlier, but I was searching the neighbourhood
of Blackheath during the night and in the small
hours, but no trace could I find anywhere of the
French gent."

" You will probably discover him at an
address which I will now give you. And if you
do find him and let him give you the slip again,
I hope you will come to me for a reference
whenever you are seeking for admission into
a Home for Imbeciles."

X.

WHEN Treherne reached the country seat of
his chief, he found the noble lord in no genial
mood. Something had gone wrong at Berlin ;
there was a stupid blunder about an appoint-
ment with the Russian Ambassador ; an im-
portant despatch to Constantinople had been
lost or stolen.

" I am not a fault-finder, Mr. Treherne/' said
his lordship, " nor do I mean to suggest that
any one man can be responsible for accidents
occurring in different parts of the globe, but I
really think I may fairly blame you for some of
the trouble. At any rate, the mess about the
Russian Ambassador is of your making."

Mr. Treherne was not prepared to offer any
brilliant excuses, and his evident confusion
irritated his chief even more than the blunders
themselves.

" I know that I am myself to blame for much
of your recent distractedness," he said, " for I
suppose I did encourage you in someway about

78 LONDON'S PERIL

this ridiculous French invasion business, which I
am convinced is filling up all the loose corners
of your brain."

" I fear we shall find it is not ridiculous," said
Mr. Treherne.

" Perhaps," said his lordship, with a grim
smile, " the conspirators have won you over to
their side."

" May I trouble your lordship with a few
words about the Dupont matter ? " pleaded Mr.
Treherne.

" Certainly not ! " said his lordship. " You
will kindly devote all your intellect and
energies at present to an endeavour to put
straight the matters I have just mentioned to
you. I expect you will find the task will
require your undivided attention. I have
scribbled some memoranda there ; you will do
your best to get these into shape before dinner,
if you please. It is lucky that the house is
empty. To-morrow we shall be tumbling over
each other's heels, I suppose."

About five o'clock Treherne was prepared to
give a fairly good account of his day's work.
Several telegrams had arrived during the day,
but nothing concerning " Heathview." The
Private Secretary was grateful for the respite,
especially as he was extremely anxious to

LONDON'S PERIL 79

avoid anything which would take his attention
from the work he had in hand for his chief.
He had rung for a cup of tea, and with the tea
came a message that a gentleman wished to see
him. He looked at the card and saw that the
name scrawled in pencil upon it was that of the
detective he had despatched to Hampstead in
the morning. The man was shown to Mr.
Treherne's room. He apologized for daring to
disturb him at his lordship's residence, but he
thought he had better chance the visit.

Treherne cut him short, and asked if he had
picked up the French officer.

" No, sir," said the detective ; " but just listen
to me. Let me give you my report in my own
way."

" Be it so. Well ? "

" I got to ' Heathview ' about ten o'clock.
I struck a wrong part of Hampstead first, and
was put out a bit. The house, as you know,
sir, was quite out of the ordinary track."

" Was. Is, I suppose."

" No, sir. When I arrived there I found only
a smoking ruin."

" Go on," said Treherne, huskily.

" About four thirty in the morning the place
was seen to be in flames. It burned like a
match, they say. When the Fire Brigade got

8o LONDON'S PERIL

there it was near five o'clock, and the house
was then only a ruin, nothing left but some of
the outer walls. The worst of it is," continued
the detective, " that whatever people were in the
house must have been burned in their beds, for
no one was seen to escape out of it, and no
trace of any inmate has been discovered. I
hung round there until about one o'clock, trying
to hear some tidings of some of the unfortunate
people, but nothing has been discovered.
Then, after having a bit to eat, I went to your
rooms. Not finding you there, and being un-
able to get any information from your man, I
went on to the Foreign Office, and hung about
there for a bit. Then I guessed you were
likely to be with his lordship, so I thought it
better to come down here and tell you, rather
than to wire on chance."

Treherne did not heed the latter portion of
the detective's report. He was wondering what
it all meant. Major Xavier must have gone to
" Heathvie.w," and having destroyed all clues
that existed there as to the great secret, he had,
either accidentally or deliberately, set fire to the
house.

" You have done your best. I suppose," he
said, addressing the detective. " You must
now devote all your time to discovering the

LONDON'S PERIL 81

French officer who was at ' The Birches ' last
night. I will write some particulars about him,
and give you some information which will, I
fancy, put you on his track that is if he is alive
and hasn't left the country. . . . If he has
slipped away," he added to himself, "there is no
time to be lost. I must induce his lordship to
give me his ear after dinner."

XI.

His lordship was in a complaisant mood after
dinner, and readily assented to give his private
secretary a hearing. It amused him to observe
how seriously Treherne regarded the crazy
Frenchman's mysterious mission. He listened
patiently to a brief preamble about the possi-
bilities of a French landing, but he was unable
to take any deep interest in the statements of
his private secretary until Treherne came to an
account of his visit to " The Birches." From
this point out his lordship plainly showed that
he was interested. When Mr. Treherne paused,
as he told of the burning of " Heathview," his
lordship said :

" Well, what do you make of it all ? I feel
I am growing too old for unravelling plots or
puzzles."

" I think I have got at the root of the
mystery," said Treherne. " Amongst the
variety of papers which were taken away from

LONDON'S PERIL 83

' The Birches ' was a sheet of blotting-paper
upon which, amongst other things, was the
impress of a letter or card. It is (as all the
documents concerning Dupont's scheme are)
in a peculiar cipher, but it will suffice to say
that it reads, "G. H. |f|." The date in ordinary
characters is added. It is the day before Dupont's
first visit here. It struck me that as this was
in the cipher, it bore upon the matter ; and then
it seemed odd that a Frenchman should use an
English form of expressing his fraction, and
also that a mathematician should put down a
fraction which was further reducible. I came
to the conclusion that the 156 was for some
reason irreducible, and that the whole figure
denoted some exact place. I need not tell
your lordship that my conclusions were not
formed all at one time, or that I arrived at them
as easily as I am now trying to explain. G. H.
was, I decided, a line ; the length of it was a
hundred and fifty-six the reckoning being
doubtless in metres or multiples of metres. The
122 denoted a point in the line. It might be that
Monsieur Dupont was making a report to his
colleagues, or that he had been making some cal-
culations and had put down the result possibly
it was the secret he offered to sell your lordship."
" I am afraid his price for the two letters and

84 LONDON'S PERIL

the fraction would be considered by the nation
a trifle dear," said his lordship. " What did you
say they were ? "

CL U 122"
U - **' TT6'

" So far they convey nothing to me."

" Of course not. Your lordship has not
followed the matter up as I have. In one of
Dupont's secret memoranda there was a
reference to a paper read before the Academy
of Science in Paris in 1882. I obtained the
volume to which Dupont's note pointed, and I
will read a short extract from it : 'During 1875
and 1876 a geological study was made both
on the English and French sides, comprising
an exact contour of the bed of the Straits, and
borings on land to find out the nature, thickness,
inclination, and bearings of the strata, from
which an approximate idea was formed as to
whether they were impervious or not to water.
Since 1879 experiments have been made on
galleries of small sections, and on the tools
likely to be called into requisition on a work of
such exceptional importance/ "

" Stop a moment ! " said his lorship. " Are
you suggesting that Dupont's secret concerned
a tunnel under the English Channel ? "

" That is my suggestion, my lord. Not only
a tunnel under the Channel, but a tunnel from

LONDON'S PERIL 85

G. to H. from Griz-nez or its neighbourhood
to Hampstead ! "

11 This is preposterous ! " said his lordship.
" It would be a breach of all international law.
Why, the French nation would scout such a
scheme."

" Doubtless, sir. But it is a secret hidden
from the French people and from the French
Government it is a private undertaking.
When the tunnel is completed, then will the
Government become aware of it, and armed
with such a tremendous weapon France might
eagerly provoke a war with us and use the
secret machine the gods had given them."

" It is absolutely impossible," persisted his
lordship. " No civilized State would tolerate
such an act of trespass."

"All is fair in love and war, my loid," said
Treherne. " I doubt if any French Government
could resist such an overwhelming temptation.
Would you mind looking at this map ? A
straight line from Hampstead to Griz-nez would
be approximately 140 kilometres. Allowing
for approaches at the French side, and for
deviation on the line which might have been
found necessary, we might fairly take it that
the whole line would run to the 156 kilo-
metres, and that of this 122 have been made,

86 LONDON'S PERIL

taking the tunnel somewhere about Farningham.
Of course I cannot tell where the deviations in
the line occur whether they are in the sub-
marine portion or in Kentish soil/'

" Are you really serious, Mr. Treherne ? "
asked his lordship.

"Perfectly, sir. That is the conclusion I
have come to. Blackheath is meant to answer
for one emerging place, and Hampstead Heath
for the other. Granted a long night, and
absence of all suspicion, what would there be
then to prevent half a million French troops
being flung, from north and south, upon
London without one word of warning ? "

His lordship recalled the words of Monsieur
Dupont and did not offer to speak for some
moments. He was, perhaps, more horrified at
the idea of such a monstrous breach of inter-
national faith than at the idea of accomplish-
ment of the design which Treherne suggested.

" I cannot believe it," he said, " but I am
willing to admit that it is a matter which wants
clearing up. How do you propose to go about
this ? To discover that it was a huge mare's
nest would cover us with ridicule."

" No one on this side of the Channel but
myself to the best of my belief can know
or suspect anything. Dupont is dead. Major

LONDON'S PERIL 87

Xavier has, no doubt, left the country, panic-
stricken that is if, in setting fire (as I presume
he did) to ' Heathview,' he was not hoist with
his own petard."

" But what do you propose ? What examina-
tion can be made here ? "

"None, I am afraid, sir. It would be im-
possible to decide where one might probe for
the tunnel. In my opinion the work begins
somewhere between Calais and Boulogne.
M. Dupont's ' G.' points at Griz-nez. It is
quite certain that the work has been carried on
in the strictest secrecy. Possibly, in order to
allay suspicion, a shaft has been sunk for a
coal mine. Ordinary mining operations may
be carried on. If Xavier is alive, no doubt the
conspirators will have full warning. It will be
no easy task that I have set myself, yet I
believe I shall accomplish it. I know a good
deal of the country which lies between Calais
and Boulogne, and I think I could discover a
suspicious spot without creating suspicion
against myself."

" But recent events will certainly have aroused
fear as well as suspicion across the Channel-
that is, assuming that you have really discovered
the secret of a very grave plot. Either you will
learn nothing, or you will discover the great

88 LONDON'S PERIL

secret what is at the other side of the Styx.
Take care you are not entering upon too
dangerous an investigation."

" I am prepared to make the experiment,"
said Treherne with a smile. " If I fail, we shall
have lost no'thing, and we can then see what
may be done at this side of the Channel."

" One thing is quite certain, and that is at the
present stage no one else can be taken into
confidence," said his lordship after a pause.
" I cannot bring myself to believe that you are
not the victim of some hoax; but if your
surmise is right, the sooner the suspicion is
converted into a certainty the better. . . .
Though I hardly like to contemplate the com-
plications which will ensue if you have discovered
the secret which that unhappy Frenchman
offered to disclose.

XII.

A FEW days passed before Treherne could get
away from his official work. Meantime it was
reported to him that M. Dupont had been
buried, that his niece had left England for
Paris, accompanied by the housekeeper, and
that " The Birches" was deserted.

No tidings of Major Xavier had reached him.
There had been an inquest held on some
human remains discovered at " Heathview," and
Treherne was inclined to believe that Xavier
had perished in the ruins. Probably the Major
thought the game was up, and had sought a
melodramatic form of self-destruction.

On the morning of the fourth day after he
had obtained his chief's consent to investigate
V affaire Dupont, Treherne found himself in a
train bound for Folkestone. He had decided to
cross over to Boulogne, and to pursue his in-
vestigations with Boulogne as a base. He had
disguised himself simply but effectively. I Ic had
shaved off his heavy moustache, he wore a pair

go LONDON'S PERIL

of blue spectacles, and he had attired himself in
a loud check suit, well padded. The slim
Private Secretary was hardly distinguishable,
except to a very keen eye, in the plethoric
tourist. His intention was to look every inch the
ideal Cockney tripper. He was travelling partly
with the object of doing a walking tour through
northern France, and partly with the hope of
re-establishing his sight. He travelled third
class. It was the first time he had adopted a
disguise, and the first time he had ridden in a
third-class carriage, and he did not easily
accustom himself to the innovations. However,
no one in the compartment in which he
travelled to Folkestone paid any attention to
him, and when he got on board the packet he
was already feeling distinctly more at ease than
he had felt on the platform at Charing Cross.

The packet was fairly crowded. It was a
clear day, but the wind was strong and the sea
rough. Treherne was a good sailor : he en-
joyed the motion of the ship, and could even
feel a distinct pleasure in observing how un-
comfortable some of his fellow-passengers
looked. He walked the deck until the boat
was well away from Folkestone, using his sea
legs admirably. But as the packet plunged her
way across the Straits, her passage grew quickly

LONDON'S PERIL 91

too rough for deck-walking, and Treherne
found himself compelled to seek such protection
as the bulwark afforded. He found that the
most sheltered spot was one astern of the
paddle-box ; and here he leaned, alternately
watching the foam from the paddles and the
passengers who remained upon deck.

He was convinced he had discovered the
secret which Dupont had offered to reveal, and
it caused him a considerable sense of elation to
think that he was the only Englishman, save
one, who had possession of a clue to the most
tremendous plot ever made for the destruction
of England. Visions of rewards, of honours, of
high place, danced through his brain, and a
sense of thankfulness, too, possessed him that it
should be allotted to him to save his country
from a peril of such magnitude.

As the French coast began to loom, he leant
upon the rail, gazing towards Griz-nez. He
knew this part of the French coast well, and he
was soon interested in picking out the bays and
headlands and the villages which fringed the
coast line. Suddenly he was aroused from his
reverie by a deep voice :

"I pride myself, Monsieur, on being able to
penetrate disguises. Yours is a very thin one."

Treherne had turned round swiftly and drawn

9 2 LONDON'S PERIL

himself up to his full height, while he steadied
himself by grasping the rail behind him.

" Your disguise is a good one, Major," said
he. " I confess I should not have recognized
you if you had not spoken though, perhaps,"
he added, after a momentary pause, " I should
not have forgotten that spot upon your cheek
which marks where the point of my rapier once
scraped an acquaintance with you."

Treherne was horribly disconcerted. Xavier
had eluded him, and had now turned the tables
upon him. The Major stood at his side, hold-
ing the rail with his left hand. There was an
.ugly steely glitter in his eyes. Both men were
oscillating with the roll of the ship, and each was
apparently anxious not to touch the other as
the motion of the packet swayed them to and
fro.

" You do well to remind me of the scar," said
the Major. " I have not forgotten the origin of
it, Monsieur. But what of it ! " he continued,
with a toss of his head. " You have been
dogging me in your own country. Do you
think you shall escape a similar handling in my
country ? "

" I am not interested in the matter," said
Treherne.

"Are you not ? " said the Major. " We shall

LONDON'S PERIL 93

see. I know now how much you know. Your
knowledge will avail you nothing. When I
met you last you had me at a disadvantage.
My friend Dupont's trouble had so upset me
that I was no match for you. Now I am your
match, and more."

Trcherne found it difficult to recover his
equanimity. He hardly knew what course he
should adopt. He saw that it would be im-
possible to pursue his investigations in France
with Xavier on his track. The memory of his
chiefs warning came full upon him, and he
cursed himself for not having adopted some
better precautions to avoid recognition. The
sense of personal danger troubled him only
slightly.

The Major was a born conspirator, a reckless,
daring man, in whom the sense of personal fear
had no place. He enjoyed his triumph over
the Private Secretary. He was aware that Tre-
herne's knowledge could upset his darling
scheme; but even if Treherne was out of the
way, others who had doubtless possessed a clue
to the secret could destroy the project. The
mere knowledge of its existence was in itself
destruction. Six months more, and all would
have been accomplished. Now all was lost.

Then a brilliant thought struck the Major.

94 LONDON'S PERIL

"You have outwitted us, Mr. Private Secre-
tary," said he ; " and yet your knowledge has
come too late, unless I take a leaf out of my
dead friend's book and turn traitor too. Peste !
Why should I not ? One traitor makes many.
What will you give me to know what / can
tell?"

" Nothing," said Treherne. " I know all that
I require to know/'

" Why then this visit to France, and this dis-
disguise ? " asked the Major.

"That is my affair, sir. But it is sufficient to
say that it has nothing to do with plots or
schemes of yours."

"Then," said the Major, "I will return to
England by the next steamer, and offer my
knowledge to your Government."

" That would not avail you much," said Tre-
herne. " They would treat you as they treated
Monsieur Dupont. And probably they would
handle you a little more roughly than Monsieur
Dupont was handled."

Treherne now saw that he was about to lose
his great opportunity. If the villainous French-
man sold the pass it would leave the Private
Secretary out in the cold. Why should he not
endeavour to treat with this conspirator, and
bluff him?

LONDON'S PERIL 95

" I am not uneasy about the handling I shall
receive," said Xavier. " I am too old a soldier
for that. But I can spoil your chances, Mr.
Private Secretary."

" There you are again mistaken," said Tre-
herne, with an air of boastfulness.

A sudden and violent lurch of the steamer
here threw the two men into each other's arms.
Treherne quickly and apprehensively dis-
engaged himself, and he made up his mind that
he would put a quick end to the tete-a-tete.

" How?" asked Xavier, steadying himself and
endeavouring to accommodate his legs to the
motion of the boat.

" Because," said Treherne, " no one but my-
self would understand you, or listen to you for
a moment. I am the only one who knows any-
thing of your tunnel, or who will know anything
until it suits me to speak and act."

" That is what / wanted to know ! " said Major
Xavier, a savage gleam of triumph in his eyes.
" And your solitary knowledge shall go with
you to the bottom of the sea."

Then, with scarce a movement that was
visible, he plunged a dagger into Treherne's
breast, and seizing him by the hips, he forced
him over the rail. Treherne was utterly un-
prepared for the attack, and though the blow

96 LONDON'S PERIL

stunned him, he clung to the Frenchman.
Xavier had now lost control of himself, and
using all his strength, and forgetful of his own
peril, he succeeded in forcing Treherne clear of
the ship's side. In doing so he overbalanced
himself. The wounded man still clung to him
desperately, and dragged Xavier with him into
the tumbling sea.

The attack and its consequences had occupied
such a short space of time that no one had been
able to prevent the catastrophe. A sailor had
rushed across the deck as the two men went
over the side, but he succeeded only in clutch-
ing vainly for a moment the coat of the Major.

The packet was stopped as rapidly as possible,
and in a few minutes a boat was lowered ; but
no trace of Treherne or Xavier was visible on
the angry face of the waters.

THE END.

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