to consider this phenomenon, for the
latter, when he had shaken my hand, proceeded at once to explain the
object of their visit.

"We have come to ask a favor, Berkeley," he said; "to ask you to do us
a very great service in the interests of your friends the Bellinghams."

"You know I shall be delighted," I said warmly. "What is it?"

"I will explain. You know--or perhaps you don't--that the police have
collected all the bones that have been discovered and deposited them in
the mortuary at Woodford, where they are to be viewed by the coroner's
jury. Now, it has become imperative that I should have more definite
and reliable information than I can get from the newspapers. The
natural thing for me would be to go down and examine them myself, but
there are circumstances that make it very desirable that my connection
with the case should not leak out. Consequently, I can't go myself,
and, for the same reason, I can't send Jervis. On the other hand, as
it is now stated pretty openly that the police consider the bones to be
almost certainly those of John Bellingham, it would seem perfectly
natural that you, as Godfrey Bellingham's doctor, should go down to
view them on his behalf."

"I should like to," I said. "I would give anything to go; but how is
it to be managed? It would mean a whole day off and leaving the
practise to look after itself."

"I think it could be managed," said Thorndyke; "and the matter is
really important for two reasons. One is that the inquest opens
to-morrow, and some one certainly ought to be there to watch the
proceedings on Godfrey's behalf; and the other is that our client has
received notice from Hurst's solicitors that the application will be
heard in the Probate Court in a few days."

"Isn't that rather sudden?" I asked.

"It certainly suggests that there has been a good deal more activity
than we were given to understand. But you see the importance of the
affair. The inquest will be a sort of dress rehearsal for the Probate
Court, and it is quite essential that we should have a chance of
estimating the management."

"Yes, I see that. But how are we to manage about the practise?"

"We shall find you a substitute."

"Through a medical agent?"

"Yes," said Jervis, "Turcival will find us a man; in fact, he has done
it. I saw him this morning; he has a man who is waiting up in town to
negotiate for the purchase of a practise and who would do the job for a
couple of guine