"Glad to see you, Mr. Hale. Take a chair." The visitor bowed gravely and sat down. "You've come to see me about--?" "Your subscription to the East End Church Club Fund." "I am heartily in sympathy with the splendid work your church is doing in the--er--less salubrious parts of our city," said Dr. Surtaine. "Doubtless," returned the young clergyman dryly. "Seems to be saving his wind," thought Dr. Surtaine, a little uneasily. "I suppose it's a question," he continued, aloud, "of the disposition of the sum--" "No: it is not." If this bald statement required elucidation or expansion, its proponent didn't seem to realize the fact. He contemplated with minute scrutiny a fly which at that moment was alighting (in about the proportion of the great American eagle) upon the pained countenance of Old Lame-Boy. "Well?" queried the other, adding to himself, "What the devil ails the man!" The scrutinized fly rose, after the manner of its kind, and (now reduced to normal scale) touched lightly in its exploratory tour upon Dr. Surtaine's domed forehead. Following it thus far, the visitor's gaze rested. Dr. Surtaine brushed off the insect. He could not brush off the regard. Under it and his caller's continued silence he grew fidgety. "While I'm very glad," he suggested, "to give you what time you need--" "I've come here because I wanted to have this thing out with you face to face." "Well, have it out," returned the other, smiling but wary. The young clergyman drew from his pocket a folded newspaper page to which was pinned an oblong of paper. This he detached and extended to the other. "What's that?" asked the doctor, making no motion to receive it, for he instantly recognized it. "Your check." "You're returning it?" "Without thanks." "You mean to turn down two thousand dollars!" demanded the other in slow incredulity. "Exactly." "Why?" "Is that question asked in good faith?" "It is." "Then you haven't seen the letter written by the superintendent of our Sunday School to the Certina Company." "What kind of a letter?" "A testimonial letter--for which your two thousand dollars is payment, I suppose." "Two thousand for a church testimonial!" Dr. Surtaine chuckled at his caller's innocence. "Why, I wouldn't pay that for a United States Senator. Besides," he added virtuously, "Certina doesn't buy its testimonials." "Then it's an unfortunate coincidence that your check should have come right on top of Mr. Smithson's very ill-advised letter." By a regular follow-up mechanism devised by himself, every donation by Dr. Surtaine was made the basis of a shrewd attempt to extract from the beneficiary an indorsement of Certina's virtues, or, if not that, of the personal character and professional probity of its proprietor. This is what had happened in the instance of the check to Mr. Hale's church, Smithson being the medium through whom the attempt was made.