"How long had your master been in town before the murder?" he asked. "About a month, sir. Before that we were at Mere Hall in----" "I know where it is," said Garth, impatiently. "But about that letter which came by the five o'clock post on the day of the crime. Did you see it?" "I saw the envelope when I brought it in, sir." "Was the handwriting a man's or a woman's?" "It was in female handwriting I am certain, sir." "Your master was agitated when he opened it?" "Very agitated, sir. He had an attack like that of the previous week when he was reading the paper." "The letter was from a woman?" "I supposed it was, sir, judging from the handwriting." "Had Sir Gregory anything to do at that time with any particular woman?" Robert grew even paler than usual, and placed his hand on his throat with a nervous gesture. He replied, with difficulty, his eyes on the ground. "Not that I know of, sir," he said hoarsely. Fanks was satisfied that the servant was lying, but he made no attempt to intervene. On the contrary, he signed to Garth to conclude his examination and to let the man go. This the lawyer did forthwith. "That is all, Robert; you can go. I shall remain here with Mr. Rixton for a few minutes longer." When the servant had taken his departure, Garth turned eagerly to his friend. "Well, Fanks, and what do you think of all this?" "I think that there is a woman at the bottom of it as usual." "Mrs. Boazoph?" "No, a younger and a prettier woman than Mrs. Boazoph. We will talk of that later. In the meantime I wish to see that letter and the advertisement." "What advertisement?" "The one in the 'Morning Post' which upset your cousin on the fourteenth; in which drawer does he stow his letters?" Garth went to the desk. He tried the middle drawer, but it was locked; as were the other drawers. "He used to place his papers in the middle drawer," said Garth, "but you see that it is closed." "I thought it might be," said Fanks, producing a bunch of keys, "so I brought these with me." "No good. No skeleton keys will open these locks. They are of special construction, and Gregory was very proud of them." "These are the keys of the desk, Garth. They were found in the dead man's pockets; and I brought them with me, in case the drawers should be locked. I was right, it seems. And now let us make our search." He opened the middle drawer and revealed a mass of letters all in the envelopes in which they had come. The two men went carefully through the pile; and in ten minutes they were rewarded by finding the object of the search. The envelope, the address of which, as had been stated by Robert, was in female handwriting, contained three documents. Two printed slips cut from a newspaper; a piece of cardboard in the shape of a five-rayed star, painted red, and inscribed with some writing. Slips and star read as follows: The first printed slip, dated 14th June: