Giovanna had preserved it, had, in fact, brought it with her this morning. She now produced it, a creased and faded-looking document, from the satchel suspended from her waist-belt, opened it and handed it to Sir Gilbert; who, having adjusted his _pince-nez_ and drawn his chair up to the centre table, smoothed out the certificate upon it and proceeded to read it slowly and carefully from beginning to end, his lips shaping each word silently as he spoke it to himself. It purported to be, and was a duly certified copy of the entry in the register of the Protestant church at Valetta of the marriage solemnised on the date specified between John Alexander Clare and Giovanna Rispani. It would have been idle to dispute its genuineness, even had there been any inclination, which was far from being the case, on Sir Gilbert’s part to do so. “Madam, the document seems to me in every respect satisfactory,” he said gravely as he refolded it and handed it back to Giovanna with a bow. In return she put into his hands a framed photograph of herself and her husband, taken within a few days of their marriage. “Possibly, Sir Gilbert, this may not be without some interest for you,” she said in her quiet, measured tones. The old man took the photograph and carried it to the window. Scarcely was his back turned before the Captain flashed a look at Vanna which said, “Everything, so far, going on first-rate.” One, two, three minutes were ticked off by the clock on the chimney-piece before Sir Gilbert came back to his chair. His hand trembled a little as he returned the photograph to Giovanna. “Yes, that is Alec to the life,” he said. “Poor boy! poor boy!” A deep sigh broke from him as he resumed his seat. For a little space no one spoke. It was Sir Gilbert who broke the silence. “Unless I am misinformed, madam, you and your husband found your way to the United States no long time after your marriage?” “We did, Sir Gilbert. And here a little point occurs to me about which it may be as well to enlighten you. Up to the morning of our marriage I had never known my husband by any other name than John Alexander. The only explanation proffered by him after the ceremony was over was, that he had deemed it best, for certain private reasons, to temporarily drop his surname. As to the nature of his reasons, he never enlightened me, and, indeed, so little curious was I to learn them that, as far as I now remember, the subject was never again broached between us, and after our arrival in America we were known simply as Mr. and Mrs. Alexander.” “Quite right, quite right,” said Sir Gilbert. “My son, for family reasons, chose, right up to the time of his death, to keep his surname in abeyance. Well, and what happened after your arrival in the States?”