What was that?"
"A letter to say that the men whom he had wronged had been set
free."
"Or had escaped. That is much more likely, for he would have
known what their term of imprisonment was. It would not have
been a surprise to him. What does he do then? He guards himself
against a wooden-legged man,--a white man, mark you, for he
mistakes a white tradesman for him, and actually fires a pistol
at him. Now, only one white man's name is on the chart. The
others are Hindoos or Mohammedans. There is no other white man.
Therefore we may say with confidence that the wooden-legged man
is identical with Jonathan Small. Does the reasoning strike you
as being faulty?"
"No: it is clear and concise."
"Well, now, let us put ourselves in the place of Jonathan Small.
Let us look at it from his point of view. He comes to England
with the double idea of regaining what he would consider to be
his rights and of having his revenge upon the man who had wronged
him. He found out where Sholto lived, and very possibly he
established communications with some one inside the house. There
is this butler, Lal Rao, whom we have not seen. Mrs. Bernstone
gives him far from a good character.
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