"I ain't seen nobody. Shall I look under the seat?"
To his dismay, she nodded her head violently. He rolled his eyes in wonderment, but returned to the stateroom, made a pretense of examination, and came back with a face full of reassurance. "No'm, they's nobody there. Take a mighty small-size burglar to squeeje unda that baid—er—berth. No'm, nobody there."
"Oh!"
The gasp was so equivocal that he made bold to ask:
"Is you pleased or disappointed?"
The mysterious young woman was too much agitated to rebuke the impudence. She merely sighed: "Oh, porter, I'm so anxious."
"I'm not—now," he muttered, for she handed him a coin.
"Porter, have you seen anybody on board that looks suspicious?"
"Evvabody looks suspicious to me, Missy. But what was you expecting—especial?"
"Oh, porter, have you seen anybody that looks like a detective in disguise?"