"What is it, sir?"
"I think Prince Duncan knows more about how those bonds were spirited away than is suspected."
Luke was greatly surprised.
"You don't think he took them himself, do you?" he asked.
"That remains to be seen. It is a curious affair altogether. I may have occasion to speak of it another time. Are you a good writer?"
"Fair, I believe, sir."
"I have recently come into possession of a business in a city in Ohio, which I carry on through a paid agent. Among other things, I have bought out the old accounts. I shall need to have a large number of bills made out, covering a series of years, which I shall then put into the hands of a collector and realize so far as I can. This work, with a little instruction, I think you can do."
"I shall be very glad to do it, sir."
"You will be paid fairly for the labor."
"I don't need any pay, Mr. Reed. You have already paid me handsomely."