"Whitney, Whitney," Mr. Donald muttered to himself. "I seemed to know the name, though I cannot recall where.
"Ah!" he said suddenly, "of course I remember now, for I was in the court when—" and he stopped.
"When I was tried," Reuben put in quietly. "Yes, that was me. I was acquitted, as you know, principally from the way in which Mr. Ellison stood up for me. Thank God that he never, for an instant, believed that I was guilty."
"And to think it should be you!" Mr. Donald said. "How strange things turn out! I remember I could not make up my mind about it. It seemed so strange, either way."
"We had better not talk about it now," Reuben said quietly. "I said then, and I say now, that I knew the people who did it and, strange as the circumstances have already been, you may think them stranger still, some day, if I bring one of them before you, alive or dead."
At this moment there was a knock at the door, and Mrs. Donald came in and said that one of the constabulary wished to speak to Reuben.
"Then I will say goodnight. I hope I shall find you getting on nicely, in the morning, Mr. Donald.
"Will you say goodnight to Miss Ellison and Mrs. Barker for me, Mrs. Donald? And tell Mr. Barker that I shall be ready, in five minutes, to smoke that pipe we talked about with him, outside."
[Chapter 16]: Jim's Report.
"Jones, what is it?"