Karl turned and looked at him. The man’s jaw fell and he stepped back a pace. Away out in mid-stream of the Mersey I saw the Cunarder stop; a tug in attendance reversed engines and dropped astern. There was no need to tell me that Karl was not mistaken. Constantine’s soul was even then passing, somewhere out there amidst the swirling waters. Within twenty minutes, at the utmost, the tragedy would be reported ashore, and there was no knowing what this suspicious policeman might say, if, as I suspected, he were able to piece together Karl’s disjointed sentences. The situation demanded coolness--it was no time for vain regrets. I advised Grier to take Karl to our hotel without an instant’s delay, and there await my arrival. “Make him talk to you,” I insisted. “Keep him occupied incessantly until I join you.” The older man was dazed, frightened a little, I think, by the glimpse he had caught of a strange light in Karl’s eyes, but still incredulous, as we mortals are apt to be when faced with truth. Indeed we only yield prompt and unquestioning belief to glib imposture, and the more outrageous it is the more perfervid dupes do we become. “For Karl’s sake and your own, Grier,” I whispered, emphatically, “do not hesitate. You can trust me. I will bring all news. Constantine is surely dead, but, if we are wrong and he still lives, I will bring him to you.” My earnestness had its effect. Grier hurried his son away from the landing-stage. Then I tackled the policeman. “You saw that my young friend had a sudden and severe attack of neurosthenia?” I said. The bewilderment left the man’s face. “Is that it, sir?” he said. “By gum! it must be an awful thing. He fairly scared me.” “He scares every one connected with him. It is not really serious, but it is induced by excitement, and he often receives strangely accurate impressions of events that are taking place at a distance. Just now he imagined that a friend of his had fallen overboard from the liner.” “So I heard him say, sir, and, s’elp me, if somethink hasn’t gone wrong!” Nothing could be clearer now. The huge vessel was motionless, her rails were black with passengers gazing aft, and the tug had lowered a boat. “Well,” I said, “whatever it is there is little to be gained by adding to the publicity of it, and you know what fiends these newspaper men are when they get hold of a sensational paragraph.” My hand went to my pocket, a fine instance of hypnotic suggestion. “I never did see anythink like his eyes, sir,” said the man, dubiously. I produced a sovereign. “Poor fellow!” I murmured in commiseration. “He is a great trial to us. We really should not have brought him here. But you can quite see that we do not want any comment on his--er--peculiar--” “Oh, of course, sir. We chaps often have to keep eyes and ears open and mouths shut, sir.”