Alas! Peter Johannes had forgotten to remove his mask on leaving the house!

Whoever thinks a perfect work to see,

Thinks what ne’er was, nor is, nor e’er shall be.

Pope.

[70. The Professor Sees Through It]

When Hawkins said, ‘it’s twenty minutes after six’ and ‘it’s a quarter to eleven,’ Fordney knew he was not a railroad man.

No railroad worker ever speaks of the time in any other manner than, ‘it’s six-twenty’ and ‘it’s ten-forty-five.’

Ask the next conductor!

There is nothing more nearly permanent in human life than a well-established custom. Joseph Anderson.

[71. The Kidnapers’ Cleverness]