“On time, I see,� said the lawyer, by way of greeting. “Here are the papers. Look them over and tell me what you think of them.�
“What are they?� the detective asked, taking them in his hand, but holding them so, unopened for the moment.
“The marriage certificate of his father and mother; photographs of his parents in which you can plainly see the Lynne physiognomy; his own birth certificate; photographs of himself taken from time to time from his childhood to the last one, which he says was made only a few months ago—the resemblance is borne out in all of them; newspaper clippings covering a number of years, referring to incidents in his career, and to the career of his father, who was also called Carleton Lynne—and so forth. Look at them for yourself.â€�
“What sort of a story does the man tell about himself?� asked the detective.
“A straight one. It seems to bear out everything that he claims. I don’t think there is any doubt about his claim, Carter.�
“How does he impress you personally?�
“Very favorably.�
“Was that your first impression of him?�
“Yes. I think so.�
“Don’t you know whether it was favorable or not?�