“There’s Laura,” Gordon announced when they were nearly down. “Guess she must have been expecting us,” Rogers chuckled. “And there’s the rest of the family,” Gordon said as he saw a man and a woman emerging from the rear of the house. They were greeted most heartily by the entire family and made to feel at home at once. In spite of their evident great wealth and high position the boys knew that they were just plain people, the kind they liked. Two men, who evidently worked about the place, rolled the plane into the commodious garage a hundred feet back of the house, and Rogers and the boys followed their hosts into the house. The house was most luxuriously furnished but with such excellent taste that there was no hint of ostentation. A hot bath was most grateful to all three, and a little later they sat down to a meal which, as Gordon afterward declared, was in entire keeping with the house. “Those biscuits were pretty nearly up to your standard, Bill,” he whispered as they left the dining-room an hour later. “All they needed was a square tail to go with them,” Bill whispered back. Seated on the broad porch Rogers asked Mr. Mann if he knew of their Jap friend and was told that he knew of him although he had never met him. Then Rogers told him the story of their meeting. “Suppose we have the car around and run over and call on him. I know they usually keep open until nine o’clock or later.” “Just what we’d like, eh boys?” Rogers replied. “You bet,” Gordon told him. They found their friend in and delighted to see them again and were happy to learn that things had come out splendidly. “I bought my partner out two days ago and he left for the States yesterday,” the Jap told them. Sunday morning they went to Church with the family in spite of their insistence that they had no decent clothes to wear. “Doesn’t make a mite of difference,” Mr. Mann assured them. “We’re rather a free and easy lot here and your clothes will attract no attention.” After dinner the car was brought around and they enjoyed a long drive about the city and outlying country. “It’s most as good as Maine,” Gordon whispered to Bill as they returned to the house. “But not quite?” Bill smiled. “No place can be quite as good as home,” Gordon told him. “And square tails,” Bill chuckled. “You’re getting your figures of speech mixed,” Gordon told him. “Thought you’d appreciate it,” Bill smiled. It was sometime in the night that Bill’s sleep was broken by a violent jab in the side. “What the dickens?” he grunted. “Listen.” “Where’s the fire?” “There isn’t any fire, but I’m a chuckle headed idiot,” Gordon told him. “That’s no news, but why wake me up to tell me about it? Afraid you’ll recover before morning?” “Listen, Bill. I woke up a few minutes ago and was thinking and it came to me all of a sudden.” “What came and why?” “Why how we made a mistake about that platinum.” “You mean you think it’s there?” Bill was wide awake now and sitting up in bed.