And so we come to the beginning of what we'll call the present crisis.

That beginning came with the man who turned up in Berwick this spring." "You mean Gilverthwaite ?" asked Mr.Lindsey.
"Aye--but I didn't know him by that name!" assented Mr.Elphinstone, with a sly smile.

"I didn't know him by any name.

What I know is this.

It must have been about a week--certainly not more--before Gilverthwaite's death that he--I'm sure of his identity, because of his description--called on me at my house, and with a good deal of hinting and such-like told me that he was a private inquiry agent, and could I tell him something about the late Michael Carstairs ?--and that, it turned out, was: Did I know if Michael was married before he left England, and if so, where, and to whom?
Of course, I knew nothing about it, and as the man wouldn't give me the least information I packed him off pretty sharply.