"Mr. Alvarez, I am very poor; I cannot offer you a large reward, but I have saved a few hundred dollars, and those I will give you if you are successful in finding my lost child."
Jack Alvarez, the detective, was seated in his office when a veiled woman entered and addressed him in the language with which we open our narrative.
The detective was a kind-hearted man, well-to-do financially, and as it occurred not immediately engaged on any special job. He looked the visitor over a moment and then said:
"Madam, before I can entertain your proposition at all, I must see your face."
"Is that necessary, sir?"
"It is."
"I am sorry."
"Why?"
"Simply because I fear that you will be so shocked you will not aid me."
"Why will I be shocked, madam? Are you a criminal?"