The scientist took the pencil from his mouth, and thrust his hands into his pockets, gazing upon me through the large round lenses of his spectacles. He glanced towards the door before he spoke.
"Well, what have you heard?" he asked.
"Only that she was Paul Patoff's mother," I answered.
"Nothing else?"
"Nothing."
"And how did you come by the information, if you please?" he inquired.
"Very simply. Paul Patoff volunteered to tell me that you had been his mother's physician for some time. I remembered that you warned me not to speak of the Weissenstein affair to our friend Carvel; that was natural enough, since the lady was his sister-in-law. She did not look at all like Paul, it is true, but you are not in the habit of playing physician, and it is a thousand to one that you have attended no one else in the last year who is in any way connected with John Carvel."
The learned doctor smiled.
"You have made a very good guess, Mr. Griggs," he said. "Paul Patoff is a silly fellow enough, or he would not have spoken so plainly. Why do you tell me that you have found me out?"
"Because I imagine that you are still interested in the lady, and that you had better be informed of everything connected with the case."