Page:Alice Stuyvesant - The Vanity Box.djvu/231

 place knew anything about the fellow, except that he was a stranger; and Michel's suspicions amounted almost to certainty now. A warrant was out for Ian Barr's arrest, in England, therefore Michel could get an order for the man's extradition by the French police; but the thing was, to prove identity, and the detective knew that he would be laughed at, rather than pitied, if he were unlucky enough to make a mistake.

Having discovered that the driver was a stranger, Michel went immediately to the local police, with a letter from high authorities in Paris. He stated his suspicions concerning the dark young man who spoke Italian, and gave his theory regarding the adoption of that language. It would be difficult for a foreigner to pose as a Frenchman in France, whereas a doubtful accent in another tongue might not be criticized; and a lucky knowledge of Italian, shared by two ladies, had given their conductor a great advantage in carrying out a disguise.

Michel's new colleagues, deeply interested, agreed with him in thinking that, if there were delay in confirming his suspicions, the man could easily be trapped without awaiting further developments. He could be asked to show his driving licence, and if—as it seemed probable he had hired the carriage and horses from some person not above accepting a bribe, he would be caught. If he had borrowed his licence, it would tell