“Quite. But mightn’t the operator have been ignorant or misled as to the values?” “Of course he might, and no doubt was. But even allowing for that, he’s had a rum notion of stock exchange business. Then these small items are unusual. What does ‘balances’ mean? And why are ‘telegrams’ shown as a sale and not a purchase? I don’t mind admitting, French, that the thing beats me. It’s the sort of business you’d expect to be done on the stock exchange in Bedlam, if there is one.” “I tried to get at the operator through the secretaries of some of those companies, but that was no good.” “Which ones?” “_The Daily Looking Glass_, James Barker, and the Picardie Hotel.” “And they couldn’t help you?” “They said no transactions of those exact figures had been carried out. The nearest were within a few pounds of what I wanted. I wondered would the amounts include brokers’ fees or stamp duty or taxes of any kind which would account for the difference?” “I don’t think so.” Hewett pored in silence over the paper for some seconds, then he turned and faced his visitor. “Look here,” he went on deliberately, “do you want to know what I think?” “That’s what I came for,” French reminded him. “Very well, I’ll tell you. I think the whole thing is just a blooming fraud. And do you know what makes me sure of it?” French shook his head. “Well, it’s a thing you might have found out for yourself. It doesn’t add. Those figures at the bottom are not the sum of the lines. The thing’s just a blooming fraud.” French cursed himself for his oversight, then suddenly a startling idea flashed into his mind. Suppose this list of sales and purchases had nothing whatever to do with finance. Suppose it conveyed a hidden message by means of some secret code or cipher. Was that a possibility? His voice trembled slightly, as with a haste verging on something very different from his usual Soapy Joe politeness he took his leave. He hurried back to the Yard, eagerly anxious to get to work on his new inspiration, and reaching his office he spread the list on his desk and sat down to study it. It read: Stock and Share List