But panic seized the fellow. He uttered a wild shriek and fled for his life into the passage. I could hardly help laughing, but I saw a chance in the contretemps to end my immediate difficulty--so I went straight to the desk, and fortunately found it open. In Hubbard's pigeon-hole was the key I wanted. I took it out, caught up a _Times_ and hurried up the stairs. In another moment I was safe in Hubbard's room with the door locked against intrusion. My first care was to set the asbestos ablaze and warm myself. Then I opened the paper and found at once the news I sought under great cross headlines in the main sheet. Miss Ottley's house had been completely gutted by fire. Some of the walls still stood, but with the exception of a few pictures, the whole of the valuable art furniture and the late Sir Robert Ottley's splendid collection of Egyptian coins, manuscripts and curios had been destroyed. It was supposed that Dr. Belleville had perished in the flames, but no sign of his remains had been discovered. The fire, as far as it was possible to ascertain, had arisen from an accident due to the unsuccessful conduct of a chemical experiment. It was well known in scientific circles, said the journal, that the Doctor had been engaged in a series of experiments, the object of which had been kept a close secret, but a city firm of manufacturing chemists had recently supplied him with large quantities of a certain highly inflammable liquid compound possessing radio activities which had been prepared at enormous cost, under his directions. The manager of the firm, on being interviewed, stated that in his opinion, this compound was principally responsible for the tragic disaster. There was always a danger in handling it of spontaneous combustion, it appeared, and if it once took fire, by no means could it be extinguished except by the shutting off of all supplies of oxygen. Failing this, it would burn to the last with the most explosive energy. According to Miss Ottley's statement, when first interrogated by an officer from Scotland Yard, she had been in the laboratory with Dr. Belleville at the time of the catastrophe. She had lately been very ill and it seems she had fainted. It was extremely probable that the Doctor, in his anxiety to revive her, had neglected his usual caution and had done some careless thing which had led to his destruction. Probably he had been killed outright by the first explosion. It was, however, a matter of general relief that Miss Ottley had managed to escape, and that there had been no further sacrifice of life. Everyone would sympathise with the unfortunate young lady in her sad position. Only a few weeks ago the gallant young officer to whom she had been engaged to be married, had come to an untimely end in a railway accident on the very eve of his wedding day. Then, a little later, the dark angel had deprived her of a loving and beloved father, the great millionaire archæologist, whose recent operations on 'Change