An Elephant 'bus stopped at the corner of New Bridge Street to pick up a passenger, and then struggled on again towards Blackfriars Bridge.
"By the way, Cattermole," said a man in a top hat to his friend in a bowler, "what was the result of that little skirmish in the country you told me about some time ago?"
The Walworth chemist laughed and buttoned up his coat.
"That all ended in smoke," he said. "I got a wire telling me not to bother about going down again, as my friend had given them the slip and got away."
"But they got some money out of him, I suppose? It was a money job, wasn't it?"
"Yes, but they didn't get any money, as it happened. It turned out that my friend's wife wasn't the heiress to the property; it really belonged to her cousin."
"He had to hand it over, then?"
"Yes, the wife's cousin took the property, and I'm told she has enough business ability to run three firms as big as that."
"Hard luck for your friend!"