“And that’s very painful to any good official. I sympathize with you. Lomas sympathizes with you more, don’t you, Lomas, old thing? And I’m not sure that you can do any good.” Mr. Fortune relapsed into cigar smoke and meditation. “You’re very helpful,” said Eddis. “The fact is, all the evidence against the man has gone phut,” said Lomas. “It’s deuced awkward, but we have to face it. Better let him out, Eddis.” Eddis gasped. “My dear Lomas! I really can’t follow you. The only evidence which is proved false is the tobacco, which wasn’t crucial. The rest is open to suspicion, but we can’t say it’s false, and it satisfied the judge and jury. It’s unprecedented to reduce the sentence to nothing in such a case.” “I’m not thinking of your troubles,” said Lomas. “I want to know what Mr. Witt has up his sleeve.” Reggie came out of his smoke. “Let Wilton out--have him watched--and see what Witt and Co. get up to. Well, that’s one way. But it’s a gamble.” “It’s also out of the question,” Eddis announced. Reggie turned on him. “What exactly are you for, Eddis?” he said. “What is the object of your blessed existence?” Eddis remarked coldly that it was not necessary to lose one’s temper. “No. No, I’m not cross with you, but you puzzle my simple mind. I thought your job was to see justice done. Well, get on with it.” “If you’ll be so very good as to say what you suggest,” said Eddis, flushing. “You’ll say it’s unprecedented. Well, well. This is my little notion. Tell the defence about the tobacco and say that that offers a ground for carrying the case to the Court of Appeal. Then let it get into the papers that there’s a doubt about the conviction, probability of the Wilton case being tried again, and so on. Something rather pompous and mysterious to set the papers going strong about Wilton.” He smiled at Lomas. “I think we could wangle that?” “I have known it done,” said Lomas. “Good heavens, I couldn’t have any dealings with the press,” Eddis cried. “Bless your sweet innocence. We’ll manage it. It don’t matter what the papers say so long as they say a lot. That’ll wake up Witt and Co., and we’ll see what happens.” Eddis looked horrified and bewildered. “I think it is clear the defence should be advised of the flaw discovered in the evidence in order that the conviction may be reviewed by the Court of Appeal,” he said solemnly. “But of course I--I couldn’t sanction anything more.” “That’s all right, my dear fellow,” Lomas smiled “Nobody sanctions these things. Nobody does them. They only happen.” And Eddis was got rid of. “My country, oh my country!” Reggie groaned. “That’s the kind of man that governs England.” A day or two later saw Mr. Fortune shivering on an April morning outside Princetown prison. He announced to the governor that he wanted to get to know Dr. Wilton.