rtinent."

"So Badger seemed to think."

"Yes, by Jove," chuckled Summers. "Badger didn't like him a bit; and I
suspect the worthy inspector was sailing pretty close to the wind in
his answers."

"You think he really has some private information?"

"Depends upon what you mean by 'information.' The police are not a
speculative body. They wouldn't be taking all this trouble unless they
had a pretty straight tip from somebody. How are Mr. and Miss
Bellingham? I used to know them when they lived here."

I was considering a discreet answer to this question when we swept into
the station yard. At the same moment the train drew up at the
platform, and, with a hurried hand-shake and hastily spoken thanks, I
sprang from the dog-cart and darted into the station.

During the rather slow journey homeward I read over my notes and
endeavored to extract from the facts they set forth some significance
other than that which lay on the surface, but without much success.
Then I fell to speculating on what Thorndyke would think of the
evidence at the inquest and whether he would be satisfied with the
information that I had collected. These speculations lasted me, with
occasional digressions, until I arrived at the Temple and ran up the
stairs rather eagerly to my friends' chambers.

But here a disappointment awaited me. The nest was empty with the
exception of Polton, who appeared at the laboratory door in his white
apron, with a pair of flat-nosed pliers in his hands.

"The Doctor had to go down to Bristol to consult over an urgent case,"
he explained, "and Doctor Jervis has gone with him. They'll be away a
day or two, I expect, but the Doctor left this note for you."

He took a letter from the shelf, where it had been stood conspicuously
on edge, and handed it to me. It was a short note from Thorndyke
apologizing for his sudden departure and asking me to give Polton my
notes with any comments that I had to make.

"You will be interested to learn," he added, "that the application will
be heard in the Probate Court the day after to-morrow. I shall not be
present, of course, nor will Jervis, so I should like you to attend and
keep your eyes open for anything that may happen during the hearing and
that may not appear in the notes that Marchmont's clerk will be
instructed to take. I have retained Dr. Payne to stand by and help you
with the practise, so that you can attend the Court with a clear
conscience."

This was