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"No, thank you," said Thorndyke, in a tone so decided that the inspector looked round at hilass which he was about to raise to his lips became suddenly arrested and was slowly returned to the table untasted

"I don't want to hurry you, Mr Jellicoe," said the inspector, "but it's rather late, and I should like to get this business settled What is it that you wish to do?"

"I desire," replied Mr Jellicoe, "to make a detailed statement of the events that have happened, and I wish to hear from Doctor Thorndyke precisely how he arrived at his very remarkable conclusion When this has been done I shall be entirely at your service; and I suggest that it would be ive us his statement before I furnish you with the actual facts"

"I am entirely of your opinion," said Thorndyke

"Then in that case," said Mr Jellicoe, "I suggest that you disregard me, and address your remarks to your friends as if I were not present"

Thorndyke acquiesced with a bow, and Mr Jellicoe, having seated himself in his elbow-chair behind the table, poured hiarette frohted it deliberately, and leaned back to listen at his ease

"My first acquaintance with this case," Thorndyke began without preah the o; and I h I had no interest in it beyond the purely academic interest of a specialist in a case that lies in his particular specialty, I considered it with deep attention The newspaper reports contained no particulars of the relations of the parties that could furnish any hints as to motives on the part of any of them, but merely a bare statee, inasmuch as it left one to consider the facts of the case without regard to motive--to balance the prima facie probabilities with an open mind And it may surprise you to learn that those prima facie probabilities pointed from the very first to that solution which has been put to the test of experiiving the conclusions that I reached by reasoning from the facts set forth in the newspapers before any of the further facts cae

"From the facts as stated in the newspaper reports it is obvious that there were four possible explanations of the disappearance

"1 The hly improbable, for the reasons that were stated by Mr Lora of the application, and for a further reason that I shall mention presently