sented himself by Christmas time, they all began to
believe that the threat had in truth meant nothing,--that it had been
part of the ravings of a madman.

But the threat had meant something. Early on one morning in January
Mr. Outhouse was told that a person in the hall wanted to see him,
and Mrs. Trevelyan, who was sitting at breakfast, the child being at
the moment up-stairs, started from her seat. The maid described the
man as being "All as one as a gentleman," though she would not go so
far as to say that he was a gentleman in fact. Mr. Outhouse slowly
rose from his breakfast, went out to the man in the passage, and bade
him follow into the little closet that was now used as a study. It is
needless perhaps to say that the man was Bozzle.

"I dare say, Mr. Houthouse, you don't know me," said Bozzle. Mr.
Outhouse, disdaining all complimentary language, said that he
certainly did not. "My name, Mr. Houthouse, is Samuel Bozzle, and I
live at No. 55, Stony Walk, Union Street, Borough. I was in the Force
once, but I work on my own 'ook now."

"What do you want with me, Mr. Bozzle?"

"It isn't so much with you, sir, as it is with a lady as is under
your protection; and it isn't so much with the lady as it is with her
infant."

"Then you may go away, Mr. Bozzle," said Mr. Outhouse, impatiently.
"You may as well go away at once."

"Will you please read them few lines, sir," said Mr. Bozzle. "They
is in Mr. Trewilyan's handwriting, which will no doubt be familiar
characters,--leastways to Mrs. T., if you don't know the gent's
fist." Mr. Outhouse, after looking at the paper for a minute, and
considering deeply what in this emergency he had better do, did take
the paper and read it. The words ran as follows: "I hereby give full
authority to Mr. Samuel Bozzle, of 55, Stony Walk, Union Street,
Borough, to claim and to enforce possession of the body of my child,
Louis Trevelyan; and I require that any person whatsoever who may
now have the custody of the said child, whether it be my wife or any
of her friends, shall at once deliver him up to Mr. Bozzle, on the
production of this authority.--LOUIS TREVELYAN." It may be explained
that before this document had been written there had been much
correspondence on the subject between Bozzle and his employer. To
give the ex-policeman his due, he had not at first wished to meddle
in the matter of the child. He had a wife at home who expressed an
opinion with much vigour that the b