"Put me on my guard!" said Mr. Smellie. "What do you mean? Really, I began to think that you two boys are completely mad."

"We're not," said Larry sulkily. "But we happen to

kaow something about you, Mr. Smellie. We know that you were in Mr. Hick's house on the evening of the fire."

The effect of these words was most astonishing. Mr. Smellie dropped his pen on the floor and sprang to his feet His glasses fell off His nose, and His beard shook and quivered. Miss Miggle looked immensely surprised.

"You "mere there, weren't you?" said Larry. "Somebody saw you. They told us."

"Who told you?" spluttered Mr. Smellie.

"Horace Peeks saw you.," said Larry. "He was in the house himself that evening., getting some of His things before Mr. Hick came back - and he saw you. How will you explain that to the police ? "

"Oh, Mr. Smellie, sir., what were you doing down there that evening?" cried poor Miss Miggle, at once thinking that her employer might possibly have fired the cottage.

Mr. Smellie sat down and put His glasses on his nose again. "Miggle," he said, "I see that you suspect me of firing Mr. Hick's workroom. How you can think such a thing after serving me all these years, and knowing that I cannot even kill a fly, I don't know!"

"Well, why did you go there, then?" asked Miss Miggle. "You'd better tell me, sir. I'll look after you, whatever you've done!"

"I don't need any looking after," said Mr. Smellie, with some sharpness. "All I went down to Mr. Hick's for was to get the papers I had forgotten to bring away with me after my quarrel with the fellow that morning. I certainly went into His house - but I did not go near the workroom. I got my papers - and here they are on the table. I showed them to this boy and His sister this very morning!"

All three stared at Mr. Smellie, who was quite clearly speaking the truth.

"Golly!" said Larry. "So that's why you went there. Didn't you hide in the ditch, then?"

"No, of course not," said Mr. Smellie, "I walked down the drive quite openly, found the garden door open and went in and collected my papers. Then I walked out. I bid nowhere - unless you think that standing by the gate for a little while, to make sure no one was about, was hiding."

"Oh," said Larry. This was terribly puzzling. If what Mr. SmeUie said was true, then there were no Suspects left at all. But Somebody must have done the deed!

"And now will you kindly tell me what you took my shoe for?" asked Mr. Smellie.

Larry told him, and then Fatty told him who had now got the shoe. Mr. Smellie was annoyed.

"That interfering policeman!" he said. "He has been up and down past my house goodness knows how many times today. I suppose he has been suspecting me too. Now he's got my shoe. I do think you boys deserve a good whipping."

"Well, sir, we are only trying to find out who started the fire," said Fatty. He told Mr. Smellie all they had done so far. Miss Miggle listened in admiration and amazement. She was divided between indignation that the boys should have suspected Mr. Smellie so strongly, and astonishment that they should have found so many clues and suspects.

"Well," said Mr. Smellie at last. "I think it's about time you went home, you two. I can assure you that I had nothing whatever to do with the fire, and have no idea who had. I shouldn't think it would be Horace Peeks. More likely the old tramp. Anyway, my advice to you is to leave it to the police. You children will never find out things like that."

The boys stood up. "Sorry about your shoe, sir," said Fatty.

"So am I," said Mr. Smellie dryly. "It's got my name inside. So I've no doubt Mr. Goon will be along here in the morning. Good night. And try not to suspect me of any more fires, thefts, killings, or anything of that sort, will

you? I am really only a harmless elderly fellow interested in nothing but my old papers!"

The boys left, distinctly subdued. They couldn't help thinking that Mr. Smellie hadn't had anything to do with the firing of the cottage. But, then, who had?

"I'm tired," said Lany. "Meet tomorrow at Pip's place. Your bruises came in useful. Fatty. Without them I don't believe we'd have got free!"

"They looked fine, didn't they?" said Fatty cheerfully. "Well, good night. We've had an adventurous evening, haven't we?"

The other three were amazed and admiring when they heard all that had happened to Lany and Fatty. But they were even more puzzled than amazed.

"It's a most extraordinary thing," said Pip thoughtfully. "We keep finding that all kinds of people were hiding in the garden that night - and all of them were there for some definite reason. Even the tramp - he was after eggs. And yet we can't put our fingers on the real wrongdoer. Could the tramp have done it? Could Horace have set fire to the cottage, although he was only gone three minutes? Could Mr. Smellie have done it? Horace says he saw him in the house, getting his papers - but it's possible he might have fired the cottage after that."

"Yes. But somehow I feel certain he didn't now," said Larry. "Let's go down to Hiccup's garden and have a Big Think. We may have missed something."

They all went down. They saw Lily hanging out the clothes, and whistled to her. With a quick look round to see that Mrs. Minns was not about, she ran to them.

"Lily! Where exactly did you and Horace hide in the bushes?" asked Larry. "Were you in the ditch by the workroom?"

"Oh no," said Lily, and she pointed to some bushes by the drive. "We were there. We never went near the ditch."

"And old Smellie says he only hid for a moment by the gate. But someone hid in the ditch!" said Fatty thoughtfully. "Let's go there, every one."

They went to the ditch. The nettles were rising up again

by this tame, but it was still easy to see where they had been flattened by some one. The children squeezed through the gap and went to look at the footprint on the space where the turf had been taken away. It was still there, but fainter now.

"You know," said Daisy suddenly, "You know, these footprints - the one here and the ones round about the stile - all point one way. They are coming towards the house, but not going away. Whoever hid in the ditch came across the fields to the house - but there are no footprints at all to show that he went back that way."

"He might have gone out of the front gate, silly," said Fatty. "Well, I must say I feel defeated today. Our clues don't tell us anything now - and all our Suspects seem to be innocent. I feel a bit tired of finding out things that lead us nowhere. Let's do something else today. Let's go for an all-day picnic."

"Oooh yes" said every one. "We'll go back for our bikes. We'll go to Buraham Beeches and have a lovely time."

Bets's mother would not allow her to go, because it was too far for an eight-year-old to ride. The little girl was very disappointed.

"I'd rather Bets didn't go for a picnic today anyway," said her mother. "She looks a bit pale. Leave Buster behind and let her go for a walk with him. She'll like that."

Bets did love taking Buster for walks, tat it hardly made up for missing a picnic. Fatty was very sorry for her when she stood at the gate waving to them as they went off on their bikes.

"I'll bring you back heaps of primroses!" he called. "Look after Buster, won't you?"

Buster wagged his tail. He meant to look after Bets, not have Bets look after himl He too felt sad when he saw the children going off without him. But he knew that he could never run fast enough to keep up with bicycles.

It had been raining in the night and everywhere was muddy. Bets thought she had better put on her rubber boots. She went to get them. Buster pattered after her on muddy paws.