Page:Paine--J Archibauld McKaney collector of whiskers.djvu/142

  sent out in the afternoon and that it was impossible to tell which of the four had been returned by me. Here was the very deuce to pay. I insisted upon having the four addresses of the consignees. They were scattered from Skowhegan, Maine, to Richmond, Virginia. The publisher tried to console me over the 'phone by adding:

"Your friend, Mr. Pillsover, called this afternoon and tried to catch the books you speak of. He seemed quite excited when I explained the circumstances of their reshipment. He made me give him the addresses of the four consignees, so we took it for granted that he was acting in your behalf."

In my mind's eye I could see Pillsover starting hot-footed to run down the four sets of books one by one, even waiting for their arrival at the homes of their purchasers. It was a desperate gamble, with odds of three to one against him, but the stake was worth it. There was nothing for me to do but to pursue the same tactics, to chase the wandering book-cases over the face of the earth until I had 124]