“Gordon had reddish hair.”

“You had better see Kimberly,” said the solicitor, ringing a bell.  “He is our managing clerk, and knows everything.”

A grey-haired, silent-looking man came in with stooping shoulders.  Mr. Kedge, without any circumlocution, asked whether he remembered any clerk of the name of Gordon having been in the house.  Mr. Kimberly responded by saying that they never had one in the house of the name.

“Well, I thought not,” observed the principal.  “There was one had in for a short time, you know, while Hopkins was ill.  I forget his name.”

“His name was Druitt, sir.  We employed a man of the name of Gorton to do some outdoor business for us at times,” continued the managing clerk, turning his eyes on the barrister; “but not lately.”

“What sort of business?”

“Serving writs.”

“Gorton is not Gordon,” remarked Mr. Kedge, with legal acumen.  “By the way, Kimberly, I have heard nothing of Gorton lately.  What has become of him?”

“I have not the least idea, sir.  We parted in a huff, so he wouldn’t perhaps be likely to come in my way again.  Some business that he mismanaged, if you remember, sir, down at Calne.”

“When he arrested one man for another,” laughed the lawyer, “and got entangled in a coroner’s inquest, and I don’t know what all.”

Mr. Carr had pricked up his ears, scarcely daring to breathe.  But his manner was careless to a degree.

“The man he arrested being Lord Hartledon; the man he ought to have arrested being the Honourable Percival Elster,” he interposed, laughing.

“What! do you know about it?” cried the lawyer.

“I remember hearing of it; I was intimate with Mr. Elster at the time.”

“He has since become Lord Hartledon.”

“Yes.  But about this Gorton!  I should not be in the least surprised if he is the man I am inquiring for.  Can you describe him to me, Mr. Kimberly?”

“He is a short, slight man, under thirty, with red hair and whiskers.”

Mr. Carr nodded.

“Light hair with a reddish tinge it has been described to me.  Do you happen to be at all acquainted with his antecedents?”

“Not I; I know nothing about, the man,” said Mr. Kedge.  “Kimberly does, perhaps.”

“No, sir,” dissented Kimberly.  “He had been to Australia, I believe; and that’s all I know about him.”

“It is the same man,” said Mr. Carr, quietly.  “And if you can tell me anything about him,” he continued, turning to the older man, “I shall be exceedingly obliged to you.  To begin with—­when did you first know him?”

But at this juncture an interruption occurred.  Hopkins the discourteous came in with a card, which he presented to his principal.  The gentleman was waiting to see Mr. Kedge.  Two more clients were also waiting, he added, Thomas Carr rose, and the end of it was that he went with Mr. Kimberly to his own room.