"That's all nonsense," I cried, with more force than politeness. "I find myself here, in this room, wounded and weak through loss of blood, after having been half murdered, and then you have the cool impudence to deny all knowledge of how I came here. You're a liar--that's plain." I had grown angry at this lame attempt of his to feign ignorance. "You are extremely complimentary," he answered, colouring slightly. "Well, perhaps you won't mind telling me the time. I find that that cunning scoundrel Hickman, not content with trying to poison me with a prepared cigar and striking me on the head in that cowardly way, has also robbed me of my watch and chain." He glanced at his watch. "It's half-past two," he answered abruptly. "Half-past two! Then it happened more than twelve hours ago," I observed. "I wish Britten would hurry," the young man remarked. "I don't like the look of that wound. It's such a very nasty place." "Only a scalp-wound," I said lightly. "Properly bandaged, it will be all right in a few days. There's fortunately no fracture." "Well, you're in a pretty mess, at any rate." "And so would you be," I said, "if you had been entrapped as I've been." His face seemed bloodless, as though the discovery of my presence there had caused him the utmost alarm. He fidgeted and glanced eagerly now and then towards the door. At last I distinguished advancing footsteps, and there entered an elderly, dapper, white-bearded little man, whose general demeanour and buttoned frock-coat gave him the air of the medical practitioner. He held his silk hat in his hand, and as he placed it down I noticed that his stethoscope reposed cross-wise in the lining. "My dear sir! My dear sir! What's this?" he began fussily. "Come, sit down;" and he drew me towards a chair, and seated himself upon the edge of another close to me. "My head has been injured. Examine for yourself." "Ah!" he exclaimed, first regarding me fixedly, and then rising and examining my head. "A nasty scalp-wound, I see." He felt it carefully with his fingers, causing me a sharp twinge of pain. "No fracture, no fracture. That's fortunate--very fortunate. It's not serious at all, I'm glad to tell you--nothing serious. How did it occur?" "I was struck, that's all I remember," I answered, turning to him and looking into his face. "With something sharp-pointed, evidently;" and he looked extremely puzzled. "I don't know what it was." "From what I can feel, I think you must have had a previous blow upon the same spot at some time or another. Do you remember it?" "Not at all," I answered. "I once received a blow on the head by the kick of a horse, but it was at the side." "Ah, perhaps this was a blow in infancy, and you don't recollect it." Then, as he exchanged a strange look with the young man who stood eager and anxious at his side, his quick eyes suddenly fell upon the broken arm of the statue.