CHAPTER VII.
LEFT ON GUARD Stafford was back at Scarhaven before breakfast time next morning, bringing with him a roll of copies of the _Norcaster Daily Chronicle_, one of which he immediately displayed to Copplestone and Mrs.Wooler, who met him at the inn door.

He pointed with great pride to certain staring headlines.
"I engineered that!" he exclaimed.

"Went round to the newspaper office last night and put them up to everything.

Nothing like publicity in these cases.

There you are! MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE OF FAMOUS ACTOR! BASSETT OLIVER MISSING! INTERVIEW WITH MAN WHO SAW HIM LAST! That's the style, Copplestone!--every human being along this coast'll be reading that by now!" "So there was no news of him last night ?" asked Copplestone.
"Neither last night nor this morning, my boy," replied Stafford.