Book II, Part II - Passing Through Tangiers, France and London: Chapter 55 Summary

John Banks, a decadent English chap from Birmingham is the latest person to arrive on the scene. Referring to himself as an English gangster, Banks claims to have been a pirate who smuggled contraband into Tangiers. Hubbard has latched onto Banks, with the Englishman being one in a long list of raconteurs in Hubbard's address book.

Duluoz remembers how Irwin describes Hubbard as Sherlock Holmes' older brother, an elegant man who resides in London's SoHo, always ready to help the young detective solve difficult cases.

Hubbard begins to pine for Irwin, who is on the way to Tangiers from New York. Duluoz knows that Hubbard has been madly in love with Irwin for many years, although the author doesn't fully understand...