Page:The mislaid uncle (IA mislaiduncle00raym).pdf/112

 her a smile intended to be sweet, yet that succeeded in being merely patronizing.

"Good morning, sissy. Didn't know you had any grandchildren, Mr. Smith," he remarked.

"Haven't. Of course," was the retort.

"Beg pardon. I'd forgotten, for the moment, that you were a bachelor. I got your telephone message," said the clerk.

"Naturally."

"Thought I'd best see you personally before conducting the inquiries," went on the young man.

"Unnecessary. Repeat the message you received."

Mr. Wakeman fidgetted. He realized that he had been over-zealous, but proved his reliability by saying: "'Find out if there's another Joseph Smith in town whose residence number resembles mine.'"

"Hmm. Exactly. Have you done so?" demanded the employer.

"Not yet. As I was explaining"—

"Explanations are rarely useful. Implicit