steady him.

"But I don't want to talk about that," he said, calmly; "I only
want to know what the Master of this asylum really means."

Dr. Hutton's smile broke into a laugh which, short as it was, had
the suspicion of a shake in it. "I suppose you think that quite a
simple question," he said.

"I think it a plain question," said Turnbull, "and one that
deserves a plain answer. Why did the Master lock us up in a
couple of cupboards like jars of pickles for a mortal month, and
why does he now let us walk free in the garden again?"

"I understand," said Hutton, with arched eyebrows, "that your
complaint is that you are now free to walk in the garden."

"My complaint is," said Turnbull, stubbornly, "that if I am fit
to walk freely now, I have been as fit for the last month. No one
has examined me, no one has come near me. Your chief says that I
am only free because he has made other arrangements. What are
those arrangements?"

The young man with the round face looked down for a little while
and smoked reflectively. The other and elder doctor had gone
pacing nervously by himself upon the lawn. At length the round
face was lifted again, and showed two round blue eyes with a
certain frankness in them.

"Well, I don't see that it can do any harm to tell you know," he