I listened in silence. What could one reply to such a strange way of putting a case? Mr. Ravenor’s manner forbade any doubt as to his seriousness and I could only respect his wishes.
“As you won’t let me thank you, sir, I think I’d better go,” I said bluntly. “I’m sure to forget if I stay here much longer.”
“A good discipline for you to stay, then,” he answered.
Again the tinkle of the telephone bell rang out from the corner and interrupted his speech. Mr. Ravenor motioned me towards it.
“Go and hear what it is and repeat it to me,” he said.
I put my ear to the tube and repeated the words as they came:
“A man desires to see you, sir, but refuses to give his name. I have told him that it is quite useless my communicating with you without it; but he is persistent and refuses to go away. He is respectably dressed, but rather rough-looking.”
Mr. Ravenor shrugged his shoulders and took up his pen, as though about to resume his writing.
“Tell him to go to the deuce!” he said briefly.
I repeated the message faithfully, but its recipient was evidently not satisfied. In less than a minute the bell sounded again.