rty, he quietly intimated
to the acting manager that he had determined to sever his connection
with the bank.

"The best of recommendations was, of course, placed at his disposal, and
it was finally understood that, as soon as his father was completely
restored to health and would no longer require his presence in London,
he would try to obtain employment somewhere abroad. He spoke of the new
volunteer corps organized for the military policing of the new colonies,
and, truth to tell, no one could blame him that he should wish to leave
far behind him all London banking connections. The son's attitude
certainly did not tend to ameliorate the father's position. It was
pretty evident that his own family had ceased to hope in the poor
manager's innocence.

"And yet he was absolutely innocent. You must remember how that fact was
clearly demonstrated as soon as the poor man was able to say a word for
himself. And he said it to some purpose, too.

"Mr. Ireland was, and is, very fond of music. On the evening in
question, while sitting in his club, he saw in one of the daily papers
the announcement of a peculiarly attractive programme at the Queen's
Hall concert. He was not dressed, but nevertheless felt an irresistible
desire to hear one or two of these attractive musical items, and he
strolled down to the Hall. Now, this sort of alibi is usually very
difficult to prove, but Dame Fortune, oddly enough, favoured Mr. Ireland
on this occasion, probably to compensate him for the hard knocks she had
been dealing him pretty freely of late.

"It appears that there was some difficulty about his seat, which was
sold to him at the box office, and which he, nevertheless, found
wrongfully occupied by a determined lady, who refused to move. The
management had to be appealed to; the attendants also remembered not
only the incident, but also the face and appearance of the gentleman who
was the innocent cause of the altercation.

"As soon as Mr. Ireland could speak for himself he mentioned the
incident and the persons who had been witness to it. He was identified
by them, to the amazement, it must be confessed, of police and public
alike, who had comfortably decided that no one _could_ be guilty save
the manager of the Provident Bank himself. Moreover, Mr. Ireland was a
fairly wealthy man, with a good balance at the Union Bank, and plenty of
private means, the result of years of provident living.

"He had but to prove that if he really h