‘Hard lines being done out of our evening,’ said Lefarge, when they had left the great man’s room. ‘I was going to propose the Folies Bergères. It’s not too late yet, though. What do you say?’
‘I’m on,’ answered Burnley, ‘but I don’t want to stay more than an hour or so. I can always work better on plenty of sleep.’
‘Right,’ returned Lefarge, and, calling a taxi, the two friends were driven to the famous music-hall.
Lefarge called for Burnley the next morning at the latter’s hotel, and they made their way to the superintendent’s office at the Gare St. Lazare.
‘Well, gentlemen,’ said their friend of the previous afternoon, motioning them to be seated, ‘I think I’ve got the information you want.’ He took up some papers. ‘I have here the receipt of the Southampton boat people for what we may call number one cask, which was handed them on the arrival of the 7.47 from this station on the night of the 30th ult. Here,’ he took up a similar paper, ‘I have the receipt of the I. and C. Steam Navigation Co. at Rouen for cask number two, which left here by goods train on the 1st inst., and was got on board on the 3rd. Finally, our agent at the Goods Station at the rue Cardinet informs me he has found the porters who assisted to unload this number two cask when it arrived. You can see them by going down there now.’
‘I can hardly find words to thank you, sir,’ said Lefarge, ‘your help has been of the utmost value.’
‘Delighted, I am sure.’
They parted with mutual compliments, and the detectives took a Ceinture train to Batignoles, and walked down the rue Cardinet to the vast goods station.
They introduced themselves to the agent, who was expecting them, and brought them through long passages and across wide yards alive with traffic to a dock in the side of one of the huge goods sheds for outward bound traffic. Calling up two blue-bloused porters and instructing them to answer the detectives’ questions, he excused himself and took his leave.
‘Now, men,’ said Lefarge, ‘we’ll be much obliged for some information and there’ll be a few francs going if you can give it.’