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 which our Aircraft Factory have considered long ago.'

Lionel shook his head in reply.

'No. There must be some other mode than that—if we could only discover it. That poor women and children are being blown to pieces while in their beds is too terrible to contemplate,' he declared. 'To-day Great Britain seems inadequately defended. But somebody will, of course, devise something. We can't remain defenceless much longer. Whenever an arm of war has been invented, ever since the dark ages, somebody has always invented something to combat it. It will be so in the case of the Zeppelin—never fear,' he added confidently.

'Let's hope so,' I replied, yet, truth to tell, it seemed to me very much as though he were trying to pump me regarding the secrets of that brown deal box which was reposing in a locked cupboard in the adjoining room. Perhaps, of course, mine was an entirely ungrounded suspicion. But there it was. I hesitated—and wondered.

At that moment Theed—who acted as my mechanic, valet, and man-of-all work—rapped at the door and, entering, announced:

'Miss Lethmere, sir.'

Next instant Roseye, merry and radiant in a new fur motor-coat and close-fitting black hat, burst into the room.

She drew back on seeing Lionel, and then, recovering herself in an instant, exclaimed:

'Oh, Claude, I—thought you were alone! How are you to-day? I've brought you some flowers.'