"I believe you are right, Sir Louis; let us look for a secret drawer. If there is one I shall find it; I have been at this sort of work before; and I have an idea how to go about it." Fanks made no vain boast, for after a hard search of an hour or more; after sounding with the knuckles and measuring with a tape, they stumbled across a hiding-place, contrived in the thickness of the wood at the back of the desk. Herein was a paper yellow with age, which Fanks drew slowly out; for it was so fragile with time that he thought it would crumble in his hand; carrying this to the strong light of the window he read carefully, while Sir Louis waited for a revelation of its contents. The face of the detective paled when he read it; and he glanced pityingly at the baronet, when he finished his perusal. "It is the paper I hoped to find," he said, slowly, "and it clears up the most important point of the case. But I told you, Mr. Fellenger, that the contents would give you pain. Read them for yourself." "Why do you call me Mr. Fellenger?" asked Louis, quietly. "You will find the answer to that question in this paper," replied Fanks, and passed it to the baronet. After a pause, and a sharp glance at the detective, Fellenger took the thin yellow sheet, and read it slowly. This was what he read, in the faded handwriting of Sir Francis: "I have deceived Madaline Garry; I am the father of the child born to her about the same time that my heir, Gregory, was born. Madaline wished me to marry her; but, for reasons which I need not explain here, I was unable to do so. She married Luke Fielding, and he is supposed to be the father of her child. This is not so; the boy is mine. When my wife died, Madaline insisted on coming to the Hall and nursing Gregory. For obvious reasons I could not refuse her; she would have revealed the truth, and have disgraced me and her family, had I not yielded to her wish. She came to the Hall with her own child and nursed that of my late wife. But I was afraid that she would change the children so that her son should enjoy what rightfully belonged to his half-brother. I was twice nearly sending her away on account of this fear; but she threatened to disgrace me by revealing the truth; so I let her stay. But, to avert the danger, I one night tattooed on the left arm of my son, Gregory, the cross of St. Catherine, which I had already tattooed on the arm of Madaline and of Nancy Prisom. Should the children be changed, and I die, the truth can be ascertained by the tattooed cross. The child marked with the cross is my son and heir, Gregory Fellenger; the other is his brother, Edward, the son of myself and Madaline Garry. I hope, in this way, that I shall prevent Madaline from revenging herself on me, as I feel sure she intends to do. (Signed), Francis Luddham Fellenger."