"I believe he had a confederate," Gilbert went on, as he saw Lord Prestonkirk did not altogether follow him. "Let me explain a little more fully. The accountant who went over his books and papers found that large transactions had taken place between Silwood and a certain James Russell. Inquiries were made about this Russell, and it turned out he was quite a poor man, or, at all events, a man living in a very poor way in Stepney--not in the least the sort of man to engage in large financial operations. I fancy he was a man of straw over whom, perhaps, Silwood may have had some hold, and that Silwood made use of him when a man of straw was needed. We found that this man had recently left Stepney, and I have employed a private detective to hunt him down." "What did you say his name was?" "James Russell." "Ah!" exclaimed Lord Prestonkirk. "Is it possible your Excellency knows anything of him?" "Perhaps. Do you happen to know what he was like in appearance?" "We could get no accurate description of the man. His neighbours said he was seldom at home; they thought he was a workman." "Well, it may only be a case of coincidence," said the Ambassador; "but the man's connection with Silwood suggests it may be something more than a coincidence. It happened one day last month, August, that there was a person giving the name of James Russell, and described as a workman, a British subject, stabbed in the streets of Genoa. He was wounded in the side, but not severely. Though he refused to prosecute the person who knifed him, and the thing was hushed up, the affair was reported to me, as it might have led to trouble. There was no prosecution, however, and I took very little interest in it, but the man's name comes back to me." "It is more than a trifle curious," said Gilbert, musingly, "and I shall not forget what you have told me." This he said aloud, but inwardly he was asking himself if it might not be that, after all, Silwood had communicated to James Russell the method of opening the secret chamber. If that were the case, then the proof on which they built the idea of Silwood's being alive was not so convincing as they had thought. He kept this, however, to himself. "I should say it was the same man," remarked the Ambassador. "As I tell you, I attached no importance to the matter at the time, since it led to no trouble. Now, it seems very odd that this workman, James Russell, did not try to get compensation for his injury--that looks strange in an ordinary workman. Then there is the fact that Silwood was in the same neighbourhood." Lord Prestonkirk gazed at Gilbert. "Your story grows upon me, Mr. Eversleigh," continued the Ambassador. "I am immensely interested, and I'll see what I can do. But once more I must tell you that it is a case for the police."