"I wonder," Lord Hayle said, at length, "if Sir Anthony will have any news?"
"I am sure I hope so," the bishop answered. "I saw him this morning in Whitehall, and he told me that everything that could possibly be done was being done. The whole of Scotland Yard, in fact, is bending its attention to the discovery of the whereabouts of your friend."
"I wish," Lord Hayle returned grimly, "I wish we could have a Johnnie like Sherlock Holmes on John"s trek. There don"t seem to be any of that sort of people outside the magazines."
At that moment the door of the library opened, and the butler came in.
He carried a pile of evening papers upon a tray.
"These are the latest editions, my lord," he said, bringing them up to the bishop.
The father and son took the papers and opened them hurriedly.
Huge head-lines greeted their eyes. "Where is the duke?" "Has the duke disappeared with intention?" "Last news of the missing duke." "Rumours that the Duke of Paddington has taken a berth on the _Lucania_ under the name of John Smith." "If the duke does not return, what will this mean to the ground-rents of London?" and so forth, and so forth, and so forth.
The bishop put down the papers with a weary sigh.
"The same thing," he said, "my dear Gerald, the same sort of thing."
Lord Hayle looked up at his father.
"Yes," he answered, "what fools these journalists are!"
"No, my dear boy, they are not fools. When they have anything to write about, they write about it rather well. When they haven"t, of course they must manufacture."
"A confounded swindle, I call it!" said Lord Hayle.
The bishop did not answer. He remembered how much he owed to the press of London and the provinces for his advancement in the Church.
"Well," Lord Hayle said, "I shall go up-stairs, father, to my own room and have a tub and a pipe, and think the whole thing over. I suppose we may hear something from Sir Anthony at dinner to-night."
"My dear boy," the bishop replied, "I"m sure I hope so."
Lord Hayle had already risen from his seat, and was walking towards the door of the library when the butler entered once more. He bore a silver salver, upon which was a card, and went straight up to Lord Camborne.
"My lord," he said, "there is a gentleman waiting in the morning-room.
He desires to see you upon a most important matter. I told the gentleman that your lordship was probably engaged, but he would not be denied."
"I cannot see anybody," the bishop replied, rather irritably. "Take the card to the chaplain."
"I beg your lordship"s pardon," said the butler, "but I think this is a gentleman whom your lordship would wish to see."
The bishop pulled out his single eye-gla.s.s--he was the only prelate upon the bench who wore one--and looked at the card upon the tray.
"Good gracious!" he said, with a sudden sharpness in his voice. "This fellow! How dare----"
"Who has come to see you?" Lord Hayle asked.
The bishop"s face was flushed. There was indignation in his voice, contempt in his eyes, and angry irritation in his pose.
"Look here, Gerald!" he said, taking the card and holding it out to his son in answer. "Who do you suppose has come to see me? Look!"
Lord Hayle took up the card.
"By Jove!" he said. "James Fabian Rose! Why, that"s the great Socialist Johnny, isn"t it, father? The man who writes plays and lectures, and is on the County Council and all that. I think we had him down at Oxford once, and I am not sure that we did not drive him out of the town."
"That is the man," the bishop answered; "one of the most brilliant intellects and unscrupulous characters in London to-day. It is not too much to say, Gerald, that this man is a perfect danger and menace to society, and to our--our order."
"Then what has he come to see you for, father?"
"Goodness only knows!" said the bishop. "I certainly shall not see him."
The butler was an old and privileged family servant. He had said nothing while this dialogue was in progress. Now he turned to his master.
"If you will allow me to say so, my lord," he said, "I think the gentleman should be seen. I don"t think that it is an ordinary visit at all. It bears no indication of being an ordinary visit at all."
The bishop snapped his fingers once or twice.
"Oh, well, Parker," he said, "show him in, show him in; but explain that I have only three minutes, and that I am very busy. Gerald, you might as well wait. It might be interesting for you to see this creature."
In half a minute the butler opened the door and showed in the man with the face as white as linen, the mustard-coloured beard and moustache, and the keen lamp-like eyes.
Rose was dressed in his usual lounge suit, cut with about as much regard to convention as a ham sandwich. His tall figure bent forwards in eagerness, and he was certainly a disreputable note in this stronghold of aristocracy. Yet, nevertheless, his personality blazed out in the room as if some one had lit a Roman candle in the library.
The bishop rose, stately, portly, splendid.
"Mr. Rose," he said, "to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit? I am rather pressed for time."
"Something very important, indeed, my lord," the Socialist answered, in quick, incisive accents. "I should not have intruded upon you unless I had something most special to say."
"I understand that, Mr. Rose," the bishop replied, though the courteous smile with which he said it robbed his remark of something of its sting.
"You and I, Mr. Rose, represent two quite different points of view, do we not?"
"I suppose we do," said the great Socialist, with a sudden vigour and amus.e.m.e.nt in his eyes; "but that is not what I have come here for to-night. May I ask, my lord," he said, looking towards Lord Camborne"s son, "may I ask if this is Lord Hayle?"
"That is my name, Mr. Rose," the young man replied, rather startled at the sudden question.
"Oh, thank you," Rose said. "I have come here specially to see you to-night."
There was a moment"s pause.
"Your business, Mr. Rose?" said the bishop once more.
"Is this," Rose rejoined. "The Duke of Paddington has sent me with a very special message to his friend, Lord Hayle. If Lord Hayle was not in London, his grace asked me to see Lord Camborne."
The bishop started violently. "My dear Mr. Rose," he said, in a deep voice, "what is all this? What is all this? The Duke of Paddington! Do you mean to say----"
"The Duke of Paddington, my lord," Rose answered, a subtle mockery becoming somewhat apparent in his voice, "the Duke of Paddington has been discovered!"