PTER XXII

SPECULATION--AND CERTAINTY

Starmidge ate and drank in silence for awhile, evidently pondering his
companion's question.

"Yes," he said at last, "there's all that in it. It may be any one of
the three. You never know! Yet, according to all I've been told,
Horbury's a thoroughly straight man of business."

"According to all I've been told," remarked Easleby, "and all I've been
told about anything has been told by yourself, the two Chestermarkes
have the reputation of being thoroughly straight men of
business--outwardly. But one thing is certain, my lad, after what we've
just learned--Hollis went down to Scarnham to offer that cheque to one
of these three men. And whichever it was, that man's Godwin Markham!
It's a double-life business, Jack--the man's Godwin Markham here in
London, and he's somebody else in--somewhere else. Dead certainty, my
lad!"

"It's not Horbury," said Starmidge, after some reflection. "I'll stake
my reputation, such as it is, on that!"

"You don't know," replied Easleby. "Remember, Mrs. Lester said this son
of hers always did business with a manager. That's a usual thing with
these big money-lending offices--the real man doesn't show. For aught
you know, Horbury may have been running a money-lender's office in town,
unknown to anybody, under the name of Godwin Markham. And--he may have
wanted new funds for it, and he may have collared those securities which
the Chestermarkes say are missing, and he may have appropriated Lord
Ellersdeane's jewels--d'ye see? You never can tell--in any of these
cases. You see, my lad, you've been going, all along, on the basis, the
supposition, that Horbury's an innocent man, and the victim of foul
play. But--he may be a guilty man! Lord bless you!--I don't attach any
importance to reputation and character, not I! It isn't ten years since
Jim Chambers and myself had a case in point--a bank manager who was
churchwarden, Sunday-School teacher, this, that, and t'other in the way
of piety and respectability--all a cloak to cover as clever a bit of
thievery and fraud as ever I heard of!--he got ten years, that chap, and
he ought to have been hanged. As I say, you never can make certain.
Hollis may have found out that Godwin Markham of Conduit Street was in
reality John Horbury of Scarnham, and then----"

"I'll tell you what!" interrupted Starmidge, who had been thinking as
well as listening. "There's a very sure and certain way of finding out
who God