he very portrait which
had so dumfoundered himself the previous night, he was ready to choke
with stifled mirth. The long and unctuous rigmarole wherein the other
set forth the painful--the extremely painful--discovery he had so
unexpectedly made, was all thrown away. Lambert was struggling hard to
preserve his gravity and keep up the assumed mystification; and it was a
struggle.

"By Jove!" he cried, "I never was more astounded in my life. Why, you
might knock me down with a feather. But, hang it, the thing can't be
genuine. It's only an extraordinary coincidence--a likeness. A
devilish good one, but still a mere likeness."

"It's more than that, unless the name is a coincidence too. Look at the
name!"

"By Jove!" cried Lambert again, staring with admirably feigned amazement
at the paper handed to him.

"When people are so very reserved about themselves it usually means that
their past has not been a creditable one--ahem!" ejaculated Old Buzfuz,
piously shaking his head. "But this is awful--awful. A murderer, too.
A murderer!"

"But, what's to be done? We'd better destroy the papers and keep it to
ourselves--eh?" said Lambert. "You see, the thing ends in an acquittal
of a sort. How about actions for libel? I don't want to risk anything
of that kind."

This was putting matters uncomfortably. "Old Buzfuz" cleared his
throat.

"There is no question of anything of that kind," he said. "You see, Dr
Lambert, you offered to present these files of papers to the Doppersdorp
public library. Now, besides looking through them myself, it will be my
duty to submit them to Mr Shaston, who, as chairman of the institution,
has a considerable voice in admitting or excluding its contents."

"Eh, what?" cried Lambert, in pretended alarm. "Why, it may get
Musgrave into trouble. He might get the sack."

"Any action which Mr Shaston may take rests with himself, not with us.
Meanwhile, my duty is plain, and I propose to discharge it
unswervingly."

And "Old Buzfuz" pulled a very long face, heaved a very deep sigh, and
looked the other straight in the eyes. These two humbugs thoroughly
understood each other now.

A couple of mornings later, Roden Musgrave, emerging from his quarters,
was surprised to behold two or three groups scattered on the footway and
on the other side of the road, intently but furtively watching his
house. He noticed, too, that those composing them turned away as he
came forth, as thoug