"'No, sir, but you wouldn't find anything of Mr. Felix's in it. It was one of his orders that whatever was in the waste-paper basket should be burnt here in his own fireplace. I used to sweep this room in the morning when he was in bed, and he always said I did my work so quietly that he was never disturbed by any noise.' "'Look round the room, Mrs. Middlemore, and see if you miss anything. You would be pretty well acquainted with everything in it. What is the meaning of that gasp? You _do_ miss something?' "'There was another desk, sir, and I don't see it.' "'What kind of desk?' "'A small one, sir, that used to smell quite nice.' "'Ah, made of cedar wood, no doubt. Did M. Felix keep his papers in this desk?' "'Some of his papers, sir.' "'How do you know that?' "'I've come into the room when he's rung for me, and saw the desk open.' "'Ocular proof, Mrs. Middlemore.' "'What sort's that, sir?' "'Visible to the eye--_your_ eye, my dear madam.' "'Yes, sir,' said Mrs. Middlemore, dubiously. "'Now, Mrs. Middlemore, can you inform me whether those papers you saw in the missing desk were private papers?' "'It ain't possible for me to say, sir.' "'Neither can you say, I suppose, whether M. Felix set any particular store upon them?' "'Well, sir, now you bring me to it, things come to my mind.' "'Exactly.' "'Whenever I come into the room,' said Mrs. Middlemore, 'and the desk was open, Mr. Felix used to shut it up quick.' "'Lest you should see them too closely?' "'I'm sure I shouldn't 'ave made no use of 'em; least of all, bad use.' "'That is not the point. He closed the desk quickly when another person was by, with an evident wish to keep all possible knowledge of them to himself.' "'It looks like that. You _do_ push a thing close.' "Our reporter accepted this as a compliment, and continued: "'That appears to establish the fact that this desk--which probably was brought from India, Mrs. Middlemore--contained M. Felix's private papers?' "'It do, sir,' said Mrs. Middlemore, admiringly. "'And, therefore, papers of importance. The desk was inlaid with silver, Mrs. Middlemore.' "'Lor', sir!' exclaimed Mrs. Middlemore, doubtless regarding our reporter as a man who dealt in enchantments. 'How did you find out that?' "'It was, was it not?' "'Yes, sir, it was.' "'When M. Felix had visitors, was this desk ever allowed to lie carelessly about?' "'No, sir. At them times he used to keep it in 'is bedroom, on a little table by the side of 'is bed.' "'Let us look through the bedroom, and see if it is there.' "They searched the bedroom thoroughly, without finding it. "'It is undoubtedly gone,' said our reporter. "'It do look like it, sir.' "'Mrs. Middlemore, when M. Felix was found dead in his chair, was this desk in either of the rooms?' "'I didn't see it, sir.' "'You could not swear it was not here?' "'I shouldn't like to, sir.' "'The probability, however, is that it had gone when the door was forced open?' "'Yes, sir.'