what of the brother and
sister turned out of the old home? The good, simple-minded man had
sense enough to see that here, if he wished to speak up for Luke, he
was on the wrong track.

"What questions," he said abruptly, "does Luke not answer
satisfactorily?"

"How he spent certain hours of yesterday evening."

"He was dancing attendance on Louisa and me."

"Oh, was he? Well that's satisfactory enough. At what time did you
part from him?"

"Well! he escorted us to the Danish Legation where we were dining."

"At what time was that?"

"Eight o'clock dinner."

"But he was not dining at the Danish Legation?"

"No. He came and fetched us again soon after eleven."

"That's right, but between whiles?"

"Between whiles?"

"Yes. Between eight and soon after eleven?"

"Well--I suppose--I don't know--yes, of course, I do! What a stupid
ass I am. Luke told me himself that he was going to see his uncle at
the Something Club in Shaftesbury Avenue."

"The Veterans'?"

"Yes, that's it--the Veterans'. Luke wanted to persuade old Radclyffe
to go abroad for the benefit of his health--Algeciras--that was it."

"Quite so," rejoined Sir Thomas dryly, "and Luke de Mountford went to
the Veterans' Club in Shaftesbury Avenue, and he asked to see Lord
Radclyffe, who was a more or less regular habitue at that hour. On
being told that Lord Radclyffe was not there that evening, but that
Mr. de Mountford was in the smoking room, Luke elected to go in and
presumably to have a talk with his cousin."

"I didn't know that," said Colonel Harris.

"No, but we did. Let me tell you what followed. The hall porter of the
club showed Luke into the smoking room, and less than five minutes
later he heard loud and angry words proceeding from that room. That a
quarrel was going on between the two cousins was of course obvious.
One or two members of the club remarked on the noise, and one
gentleman actually opened the smoking room door to see what was going
on. He seems to have heard the words 'blackguard' and 'beggar'
pleasingly intermingled and flying from one young man to the other.
This witness knew Philip de Mountford very well by sight, but he had
never seen Luke. But remember that Luke denies neither the interview
nor the quarrel. The former lasted close on an hour, and Lord
Radclyffe's journey to Algeciras was the original topic of discussion.
At about nine o'clock Luke emerged from the smoking room. The hall
porter saw him. He was