nt on the Master, beaming
at them all with a sinister benignity, "has been found to originate in
the obsessions of a few pathological types, who are now all fortunately
in our care. There is, for instance, a person here of the name of
Gordon, formerly the keeper of a curiosity shop. He is a victim of the
disease called Vinculomania--the impression that one has been bound or
tied up. We have also a case of Fugacity (Mr. Whimpey), who imagines
that he was chased by two men."

The indignant faces of the Jew shopkeeper and the Magdalen Don started
out of the crowd in their indignation, but the speaker continued:

"One poor woman we have with us," he said, in a compassionate voice,
"believes she was in a motor-car with two such men; this is the
well-known illusion of speed on which I need not dwell. Another wretched
woman has the simple egotistic mania that she has caused the duel.
Madeleine Durand actually professes to have been the subject of the
fight between MacIan and his enemy, a fight which, if it occurred at
all, certainly began long before. But it never occurred at all. We have
taken in hand every person who professed to have seen such a thing, and
proved them all to be unbalanced. That is why they are here."

The Master looked round the room, just showing his perfect teeth with
the perfection of artistic cruelty, exalted for a moment in the enormous
simplicity of his success, and then walked across the hall and vanished
through an inner door. His two lieutenants, Quayle and Hutton, were left
standing at the head of the great army of servants and keepers.

"I hope we shall have no more trouble," said Dr. Quayle pleasantly
enough, and addressing Turnbull, who was leaning heavily upon the back
of a chair.

Still looking down, Turnbull lifted the chair an inch or two from the
ground. Then he suddenly swung it above his head and sent it at the
inquiring doctor with an awful crash which sent one of its wooden legs
loose along the floor and crammed the doctor gasping into a corner.
MacIan gave a great shout, snatched up the loose chair-leg, and, rushing
on the other doctor, felled him with a blow. Twenty attendants rushed
to capture the rebels; MacIan flung back three of them and Turnbull
went over on top of one, when from behind them all came a shriek as of
something quite fresh and frightful.

Two of the three passages leading out of the hall were choked with blue
smoke. Another instant and the hall was full of th