Joseph Wilmot stopped suddenly upon the other side of the table, near which Mr. Dunbar sat, and, laying his hand upon it, said quietly—
"You asked me just now who I was, Mr. Dunbar."
The banker looked up at him with haughty indifference.
"Did I? Oh, yea, I remember; and you told me you came from the office. That is quite enough."
"Pardon me, Mr. Dunbar, it is not quite enough. You are mistaken: I did not say I came from the office in St. Gundolph Lane. I told you, on the contrary, that I came here as a substitute for another person, who was ordered to meet you."
"Indeed! That is pretty much the same thing. You seem a very agreeable fellow, and will, no doubt, be quite as useful as the original person could have been. It was very civil of Mr. Balderby to send some one to meet me—very civil indeed."
The Anglo-Indian's head sank back upon the morocco cushion of the easy-chair, and he looked languidly at his companion, with half-closed eyes.
Joseph Wilmot removed his hat.
"I don't think you've looked at me very closely, have you, Mr. Dunbar?" he said.
"Have I looked at you closely!" exclaimed the banker. "My good fellow, what do you mean?"