Mr. Stafford King made no reply. He knew, very well he knew, the stories which had been told about the Boundary Gang. He knew a little and guessed a lot about its extraordinary ramifications. He was well aware, at any rate, that it was rich, and that this slow-speaking man could command millions. But he was far from desiring to endorse the colonel's inferred claim as to the purity of his business methods. He leant a little forward. "I am sure you didn't send for me to tell me all about your hard lot, colonel," he said, a little ironically. The colonel shook his head. "I wanted to get to know you," he said with fine frankness. "I've heard a lot about you, Mr. King. I am told you do nothing but specialise on the Boundary enterprises, and I tell you, sir, that you can't know too much about me, nor can I know too much about you." He paused. "But you're quite right when you say that I didn't ask you to come here--and a great honour it is for a big police chief to spare time to see me--to discuss the past. It is the present I want to talk to you about." Stafford King nodded. "I'm a law-abiding citizen," said the colonel unctuously, "and anything I can do to assist the law, why, I'm going to do it. I wrote you on this matter about a fortnight ago." He opened a drawer and took out a large envelope embossed with a monogram of the Spillsbury Syndicate. This he opened and extracted a plain playing-card. It was a white-backed card of superfine texture, gilt-edged, and bore a familiar figure. "The Knave of Clubs," said Stafford King lifting his eyes. "The Jack of Clubs," said the colonel gravely; "that is its name I understand, for I am not a gambling man." He did not bat a lid nor did Stafford King smile. "I remember," said the detective chief, "you received one before. You wrote to my department about it." The colonel nodded. "Read what's written underneath." King lifted the card nearer to his eyes. The writing was almost microscopic and read: "Save crime, save worry, save all unpleasantness. Give back the property you stole from Spillsbury." It was signed "Jack o' Judgment." King put the card down and looked across at the colonel. "What happened after the last card came?" he asked, "there was a burglary or something, wasn't there?"