Hamilton talking
about making money by work, but of all the money I have ever touched,
that which I have made honestly from the _News Letter_ has been the
sweetest. The work has been a delight to me, even aside from the fact
that it gives me an opportunity to abuse the king. Lilly tells me that
the king asked him to consult the stars concerning my threats against the
royal life. The result was favorable to me."

"It is strange that the king should be duped by a palpable humbug," I
remarked, supposing that George would agree with me. But, no! He turned
on me almost fiercely:--

"Lilly is not a humbug! Of course he humbugs the king, but everybody
does. I have known him to do some wonderful things by the help of his
astrological figures, conjunctions, constellations, and calculations."

"Nonsense! All humbug, I tell you!" I asserted, somewhat disgusted.

"No, it is not all nonsense," he insisted. "A poor woman lost a sum of
money ten days ago. Lilly set a figure and told her where to find it."

"And of course she found it?" I inquired incredulously.

"Yes, she found it," returned George. "And Lilly would not accept a
farthing for his service. Two months ago a child was stolen from its home
in Devonshire, and the parents came all the way to London to consult
Lilly."

"And of course they found the child?" I asked.

"They did. It was with a band of gypsies who made their headquarters at a
place called Gypsy Hill, Lambeth," returned Hamilton, provoked by my
scepticism. "He learns some very curious truths from the stars."

"The stars!" I exclaimed contemptuously. "He is a shrewd observer of men
and of things about him, and when he guesses right, I venture to say he
finds his inspiration much lower than the stars."

"Perhaps he does," returned Hamilton. "Of that I cannot say. But this I
know. He can put two and two together and make a larger sum total than I
have ever seen come from any other man's calculations. He is learned in
every branch of knowledge, and I respect his wonderful conclusions,
asking no questions about his methods."

"Very well, I'll not dispute with you if you admit that he receives even
a part of his knowledge from substellar sources. But while we are alone I
want to ask you, and I want you to tell me the truth: has Frances been
here to-day?"

"No! Tell me, for God's sake, tell me quickly! Why do you ask?" he
exclaimed, turning to me in alarm. "Of late I have been haunted with the
fear that sh