"If so the plunder ought to be divided," cut in the other gilded youth. "We all helped to pull him through, you know." "All right, so it shall," said Raynier, "when it comes. As to which doesn't it occur to you fellows that `some big Rajah' is hardly likely to be found frisking around in the thick of an especially tough London crowd all by his little alones? But if he'd find me out only to return my stick it would be a `mark of gratitude' quite sufficient for present purposes." "Why don't you buy another exactly like it, old chap?" said Grice, who knew enough about his friend to guess at the real reason of the latter's solicitude on account of the lost article. "Nobody would know the difference." Here was something of an idea, thought Raynier. But then the mounting and the engraving--that would take time, even if he could get it done exactly like the other, which he doubted. It was not alone on the score of an unpleasant moment with the donor that his mind misgave him. She would be excusably hurt, he reflected, remembering that the thing must have been somewhat costly, and under the circumstances represented a certain amount of self-denial. Decidedly he was in a quandary. "Well, ta-ta, old chap," said Grice, as the two got up to go. "We'll try and find out something about the Rajah--in fact it's our interest to do so, having an eye to those lakhs of rupees." "Yes--and let me know when you've made an end of Barker, here, as you're bound to do if he fires off that `Mafeking' outrage much more." "Raynier's jealous," said that wag. "I say, don't go firing it off as your own down in the country, Raynier." "No show for me, because about one hundred thousand people scattered over the British Isles have awoke this morning to invent the same insanity."