Her slipper-toe joggled his stick unexpectedly, and he flailed wildly to keep from falling. “Do come off your perch, Mr. Queen. . . . There! That’s settled. Shall we go in, Mr. Queen? Such a nice name.”

“But—”

“Icky has arranged things, bless him.” “I refuse abso—”

“The Bursar has been paid his filthy lucre. I have my B.A., and I’m just dawdling about here working for my Master’s. I’m really very intelligent. Oh, come on—don’t be so professorish. You’re much too nice a young man, and your devastating silv’ry eyes—”

“Oh, very well,” said Ellery, suddenly pleased with himself. “Come along.”

It was a small seminar room, containing a long table flanked with chairs. Two young men rose, rather respectfully, Ellery thought. They seemed surprised but not too depressed at the vision of Miss Ickthorpe, who was evidently a notorious character. One of them bounded forward and pumped Ellery’s hand.

“Mr. Queen! I’m Burrows, John Burrows. Decent of you to pick me and Crane out of that terrific bunch of would-be manhunters.” He was a nice young fellow, Ellery decided, with bright eyes and a thin intelligent, face.

“Decent of your instructors and record, Burrows, I’d say. . . . And you’re Walter Crane, of course?”

The second young man shook Ellery’s hand decorously, as if it were a rite; he was tall, broad, and studious-looking in a pleasant way. “I am, sir. Degree in chemistry. I’m really interested in what you and the Professor are attempting to do.”

“Splendid. Miss Ickthorpe—rather unexpectedly—is to be the fourth member of our little group,” said Ellery. “Rather unexpectedly! Well, let’s sit down and talk this over.”

Crane and Burrows flung themselves into chairs, and the young woman seated herself demurely, Ellery threw hat and stick into a corner, clasped his hands on the bare table, and looked at the white ceiling. One must begin. . . . “This is all rather nonsensical, you know, and yet there’s something solid in it. Professor Ickthorpe came to me some time ago with an idea. He had heard of my modest achievements in solving crimes by pure analysis, and he thought it might be interesting to develop the faculty of detection by deduction in young university students. I wasn’t so sure, having been a university student myself.”

“We’re rather on the brainy side these days,” said Miss Ickthorpe.

“Hmm. That remains to be seen,” said Ellery dryly. “I suppose it’s against the rules, but I can’t think without tobacco. You may smoke, gentlemen. A cigarette, Miss Ickthorpe?”

She accepted one absently, furnished her own match, and kept looking at Ellery’s eyes. “Field work, of course?” asked Crane, the chemist.