ative proofs as I possess. The subject became
hateful to me--I would not speak of it. When men like yourself, who
represent the foolish curiosity of the public, came to disturb my
privacy I was unable to meet them with dignified reserve. By nature I
am, I admit, somewhat fiery, and under provocation I am inclined to be
violent. I fear you may have remarked it."

I nursed my eye and was silent.

"My wife has frequently remonstrated with me upon the subject, and yet
I fancy that any man of honor would feel the same. To-night, however,
I propose to give an extreme example of the control of the will over
the emotions. I invite you to be present at the exhibition." He
handed me a card from his desk. "You will perceive that Mr. Percival
Waldron, a naturalist of some popular repute, is announced to lecture
at eight-thirty at the Zoological Institute's Hall upon 'The Record of
the Ages.' I have been specially invited to be present upon the
platform, and to move a vote of thanks to the lecturer. While doing
so, I shall make it my business, with infinite tact and delicacy, to
throw out a few remarks which may arouse the interest of the audience
and cause some of them to desire to go more deeply into the matter.
Nothing contentious, you understand, but only an indication that there
are greater deeps beyond. I shall hold myself strongly in leash, and
see whether by this self-restraint I attain a more favorable result."

"And I may come?" I asked eagerly.

"Why, surely," he answered, cordially. He had an enormously massive
genial manner, which was almost as overpowering as his violence. His
smile of benevolence was a wonderful thing, when his cheeks would
suddenly bunch into two red apples, between his half-closed eyes and
his great black beard. "By all means, come. It will be a comfort to
me to know that I have one ally in the hall, however inefficient and
ignorant of the subject he may be. I fancy there will be a large
audience, for Waldron, though an absolute charlatan, has a considerable
popular following. Now, Mr. Malone, I have given you rather more of my
time than I had intended. The individual must not monopolize what is
meant for the world. I shall be pleased to see you at the lecture
to-night. In the meantime, you will understand that no public use is
to be made of any of the material that I have given you."

"But Mr. McArdle--my news editor, you know--will want to know what I
have done."

"Tell h