The famous detective bowed. "I have come," said he, "upon a summons received by me in Utica not six hours ago. It was sent by a subordinate of mine interested in the trial now going on before the court. Horace Byrd is his name. I hope he is well liked here and has your confidence." "Mr. Byrd is well enough liked," rejoined Mr. Ferris, "but I gave him no orders to send for you. At what hour was the telegram dated?" "At half-past eleven; immediately after the accident to Mr. Orcutt." "I see." "He probably felt himself inadequate to meet this new emergency. He is a young man, and the affair is certainly a complicated one." The District Attorney, who had been studying the countenance of the able detective before him, bowed courteously. "I am not displeased to see you," said he. "If you have been in the room above----" The other gravely bowed. "You know probably of the outrageous accusation which has just been made against our best lawyer and most-esteemed citizen. It is but one of many which this same woman has made; and while it is to be regarded as the ravings of lunacy, still your character and ability may weigh much in lifting the opprobrium which any such accusation, however unfounded, is calculated to throw around the memory of my dying friend." "Sir," returned Mr. Gryce, shifting his gaze uneasily from one small object to another in that dismal room, till all and every article it contained seemed to partake of his mysterious confidence, "this is a world of disappointment and deceit. Intellects we admired, hearts in which we trusted, turn out frequently to be the abodes of falsehood and violence. It is dreadful, but it is true." Mr. Ferris, struck aghast, looked at the detective with severe disapprobation. "Is it possible," he asked, "that you have allowed yourself to give any credence to the delirious utterances of a man suffering from a wound on the head, or to the frantic words of a woman who has already abused the ears of the court by a deliberate perjury?" While Dr. Tredwell, equally indignant and even more impatient, rapped with his knuckles on the table by which he stood, and cried: "Pooh, pooh, the man cannot be such a fool!" A solemn smile crossed the features of the detective. "Many persons have listened to the aspersion you denounce. Active measures will be needed to prevent its going farther." "I have commanded silence," said Dr. Tredwell. "Respect for Mr. Orcutt will cause my wishes to be obeyed." "Does Mr. Orcutt enjoy the universal respect of the town?" "He does," was the stern reply. "It behooves us, then," said Mr. Gryce, "to clear his memory from every doubt by a strict inquiry into his relations with the murdered woman." "They are known," returned Mr. Ferris, with grim reserve. "They were such as any man might hold with the woman at whose house he finds it convenient to take his daily dinner. She was to him the provider of a good meal." Mr. Gryce's eye travelled slowly toward Mr. Ferris' shirt stud.