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Page 61
"Never!" replied Eldrick.
"No forgery of your name or anything?" suggested the caller.
"No," said Eldrick. "There's been nothing of that sort."
"I can soon ascertain if these bank-notes have reached the Bank of
England," said Byner. "That's a simple matter. Now suppose they
haven't!"
"Well?" asked Eldrick.
"You know, of course," continued Byner, "that it doesn't take long for a
Bank of England note, once issued, to get back to the Bank? You know,
too, that it's never issued again. Now if those notes haven't been
presented at the Bank--where are they? And if no use has been made of
your stolen cheques--where are they?"
"Good!" agreed Eldrick. "I see that you ought to do well in your special
line of business. Now--are you going to pursue inquiries for Parrawhite
here in Barford, after what I've told you?"
"Certainly!" said Byner. "I came down prepared to stop awhile. It's
highly important that this man should be found--highly important," he
added smiling, "to other people than Parrawhite himself."
"In what way?" asked Eldrick.
"Why," replied Byner, "if he's dead--as he may be--this money goes to
somebody else--a relative. The relative would be very glad to hear he is
dead! But--definite news will be welcome, in any case. Oh, yes, now that
I've got down here, I shall do my best to trace him. You have the
address of the woman he lodged with, you say. I shall go there first, of
course. Then I must try to find out what he did with himself in his
spare time. But, from all you tell me, it's my impression he's
dead--unless, as you say, he's got into prison again--possibly under
another name. It seems impossible that he should not have seen our
advertisements."
"You never advertised in any Yorkshire newspapers?" asked Eldrick.
"No," said Byner. "Because we'd no knowledge of his having come so far
North. We advertised in the Midland papers. But then, all the London
papers, daily and weekly, that we used come down to Yorkshire."
"Parrawhite," said Eldrick reflectively, "was a big newspaper reader. He
used to go to the Free Library reading-room a great deal. I begin to
think he must certainly be dead--or locked up. However, in supplement of
your endeavours, I did a little work of my own last night. There you
are!" he went on, picking up the local papers and handing them over. "I
put that in--we'll see if any response comes. But now a word, Mr. Byner,
since you've come to me. You have heard me mention my late
clerk--Pratt?"
"Yes," answered Byner.
"Pratt has left us, and is in business as a sort of estate agent in the
next street," continued Eldrick. "Now I have particular reasons--most
particular reasons!--why Pratt should remain in absolute ignorance of
your presence in the town. If you should happen to come across him--as
you may, for though there are a quarter of a million of us here, it's a
small place, compared with London--don't let him know your business."
"I'm not very likely to do that, Mr. Eldrick," remarked Byner quietly.
"Aye, but you don't take my meaning," said Eldrick eagerly. "I mean
this--it's just possible that Pratt may see that advertisement of yours,
and that he may write to your firm. In that case, as he's here, and
you're here, your partner would send his letter to you. Don't deal with
it--here. Don't--if you should come across Pratt, even let him know your
name!"
"When I've a job of this sort," replied Byner, "I don't let anybody know
my name--except people like you. When I register at one of your hotels
presently, I shall be Mr. Black of London. But--if this Pratt wanted to
give any information about Parrawhite, he'd give it to you, surely, now
that you've advertised."
"No, he wouldn't!" asserted Eldrick. "Why? Because he's told me all he
knows--or says he knows--already!"
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