Three or four days after the pageant, I was surprised to receive a visitor in the shape of a serious-looking gray old man whom I did not remember ever having seen before. In his hand he bore a little blue-sealed parchment scroll, on which my name had been inscribed in the native language; and by his grave manner, and particularly by the significant way in which he held the document, I feared that his mission might prove of ominous importance. My first impression was that I had unwittingly violated some local law, and was being summoned to court to answer for the crime. But this fear was swiftly dissipated. “I congratulate you, young man,” said my visitor, having determined that I was the person he sought. “This is an occasion such as comes but once in a lifetime.” And with a sedate and deferential air, and apparently not surmising that the nature of his mission was still a mystery to me, he passed the little document to me; following which he congratulated me again, and solemnly bowed his way out of the room. I now suspected that I was either the recipient of some high honor or the appointee to some responsible office. It is no wonder, accordingly, that my fingers trembled when I ripped open the blue seal, and that in my eagerness I almost tore the parchment as well. But again my expectations were to prove ill-founded. The message turned out to be very brief; and, far from providing cause either for exultation or dismay, it served merely to puzzle me. “To the respected Anson Harkness,” ran the words, which were handsomely formed in the native script, “the Committee on Selective Assignments wishes to announce that it is ready for the hearings and examinations in his case. If he will therefore be so kind as to present himself at the Committee offices any noon during the next ten days, he may be assured that the investigations will be carried out with a minimum of delay and a decision promptly rendered.” And that was all, except for the signature of the Head of the Committee! Not a word as to what the Selective Assignments might be! Not a word as to the nature of the “hearings and examinations!” Time after time I re-read this queer message, scrutinizing it until I had memorized it in its entirety; but the more I read the more perplexed I became, and I could almost believe myself the target of some practical joker. Just what was to be investigated? And what decision was to be reached? Was it that my conduct was thought improper and was to be reviewed? That I was considered too scornful of local customs, or too friendly to Aelios? Or--judging from the congratulatory manner of the gray-haired one--was I somehow deemed worthy of reward, possibly through the connivance of Aelios? Or was I to be examined as prize scholars are sometimes examined before being granted a scholarship?