“And the truth, you say?”

“Else it would not sting.”

And Sir Perseus picked up the topmost printed sheet and unfolded it; Mr. Wedderburn fixed upon him his brilliant eyes.

Sir Perseus glanced at the clock, then commenced reading in his pleasant, even voice:

Of all these men who make the laws,

That they may easy break the laws,

I know no knaves I could compare

With the brood begot by the Viscount Stair.

“A bold beginning,” remarked Mr. Wedderburn.

Sir Perseus continued: