One day in late September I received the following letter from my lawyer: - "My Dear Bell, - "I shall esteem it a favour if you can make it convenient to call upon me at ten o'clock to-morrow morning on a matter of extreme privacy." At the appointed hour I was shown into Mr. Edgcombe's private room. I had known him for years-we were, in fact, old friends-and I was startled now by the look of worry, not to say anxiety, on his usually serene features.