As he spun round, which, evidently being the result of practice, he did very cleverly, he wrinkled his face up in a way that with him indicated pleasure, the whole performance giving him the aspect of some gigantic grotesque Japanese top. Then he would stop short, puff at the great cigar, and stare with his prominent lobster eyes at the slip of paper, examining the date and turning it over and over. "Old cat!" he ejaculated; and the slip of paper was laid aside, and a heavy paperweight banged down upon it. There were half a dozen of these heavy paperweights, and every now and then one was lifted and a fresh slip of paper placed beneath it. "Old cat!" he exclaimed again. Then there was another chuckle. "Let's have another dive in the lucky bag!" he exclaimed, and a fresh slip was brought out. He did not laugh now, but glowered at the paper savagely. "Only wait; I'll make him curl his black moustache to a pretty tune this time! He'll have to sell out, and what will he do then? I wonder what a Major's commission will fetch. Oh, hang it! they don't sell 'em now. What the deuce do they do? I don't care; I'll ruin the beast, and then he may go to Clo to comfort him." He did not spin round this time as he did when he came upon slips of paper bearing the signature of Lady Littletown, and of which he now had a tiny heap, but sat glancing at the bold, striking autograph evidently written with a soft quill pen, and resembling a pair of thin Siamese twins with their heads together, and the word "Malpas" after them, the said twins evidently doing duty for the letter A. "Curse him! I'll ruin him, and then she'll cut him like a shot. Doosid glad I got the jewels! Bet sixpence he made sure of them, and now he's got her without a fifty pound in her pocket." Elbraham sat glaring at the bill, the big signature seeming to fascinate him, and for the moment it was so suggestive of the swarthy Major that unconsciously he took up an ivory-handled penknife, and, holding it dagger fashion, began to stab the paper through and through. The holes reminded him that the slip of paper was valuable, so he threw the penknife aside with an oath, smoothed the bill, and, laying it by itself, he thumped a heavy paperweight upon it, and seemed in his act as if he meant to crush Major Malpas as flat. Several more acceptances followed, all representing heavy sums of money; but they had no special interest for the financier, who went steadily on till, in succession, he found half a dozen accepted by one John Huish, and over these he frowned and snarled. "Repudiated 'em all," he said--"swore he never accepted one; and his lawyer set me at defiance. But I'll keep 'em. He'll buy 'em some day to keep the affair quiet. Rum start that! I could not have told t'other from which, if it hadn't been for the voice." He replaced these in his pocket-book, and at last came upon five accepted by Arthur Litton, the effect being to make Elbraham roar with laughter.