Freddie Ulstervelt suddenly announced his determination to remain at the Tirol for a week or two longer.

That very day he had been introduced to a Mademoiselle Le Brun, a fascinating young Parisian, stopping at the Tirol with her mother.
All might have ended well had it not been for the unfortunate circumstance of Odell-Carney's making a purchase of the London _Standard_ instead of the _Times_, as was his custom.

His lamentations over this piece of stupidity were cut short by the discovery of an astonishing article upon the editorial page of the paper--an article which created within him a sense of grave perplexity.

He read the headlines thrice and glanced through the text twice, neither time with any very definite idea of what he was reading.

His fingers shook as he held the sheet nearer the window for a final effort to untangle the incredible thing that lay before him in simple, unimpeachable black and white.
"'Pon me word," he kept repeating to himself feebly.