Three days later Ludwig Schoeffer was in possession of the hitherto vacant rooms immediately over the Brocklington Ironworks Company's offices, but not as Ludwig Schoeffer. A card affixed to the door announced to anyone who had occasion to visit the upstairs offices that Mr. Josiah Sherringham, London agent for Messrs. Hoogenveen, bulb growers, of Haarlem, would be in attendance daily from ten to four. Since Messrs Hoogenveen, had no material existence, it was extremely unlikely that clients would call upon Mr. Josiah Sherringham. Nor did the tenant of the first floor want any. Usually the door was locked, generally from the outside, and inside whenever the directors of the Brocklington Ironworks Company held converse in the room below. Amongst Mr. Josiah Sherringham's office furniture was a dictaphone, the mouthpiece of which was extended by means of a length of india-rubber tube and rested above a hole in the ceiling of the room below. Some years previously the premises had been renovated and electric light installed in place of gas, but the huge ornamental rose from which a chandelier once depended formed a convenient camouflage for the eavesdropper's operations. Whenever the directors of Brocklington Ironworks Company held a board meeting, Ludwig Schoeffer was an unseen listener. Being rather particular about his appearance the spy invariably donned a suit of workmen's overalls, lest his clothes should show signs of having come in contact with the dusty floor. Fortnightly, transcribed records of the British firm's progress were transmitted to the Platz Alice at Chemnitz. At length came the momentous meeting at which Captain Mostyn was to announce the result of the Kilba Protectorate Government's inspector's preliminary tests of the steelwork; and also the arrangements made for the shipment of the material to its destination. The dictaphone was purring softly. Ludwig, on his hands and knees, had prized up some floor-boards and was listening to the report. In his eagerness he could not wait for the wax cylinders to tell him what was transpiring. At a critical moment the dictaphone ceased functioning. The eavesdropper half rose to attend to the instrument. His knees slipped on the narrow joists, and the next instant, amidst a rending of laths and plaster, he landed on his back upon the table around which were seated the directors of the Brocklington Ironworks Company. CHAPTER III Reporting for Duty "Now, Pater, tell me how you got on in town," prompted Peter. "Famously! The inspector's report laid special emphasis upon the excellence of the castings, and I've no doubt that the final tests will be equally successful. We also secured very reasonable freightage. The _West Barbican_ is not a fast vessel--fifteen knots is, I believe, her limit--but she will be able to deliver the goods well in advance of the time specified. It is certainly remarkable, Peter, that you should have been appointed to that same craft."