Let it go at that." There was a knock at the door.

Sir Edward's secretary ushered in a tall, plainly dressed gentleman, who had the slightly aggrieved air of a man who has been kept out of his bed beyond the usual time.
"My dear Bransome," he said, shaking hands, "isn't this a little unreasonable of you?
Business at this hour of the night! I was in the midst of a most amusing conversation with a delightful acquaintance of your wife's, a young lady who turned up her nose at Hegel and had developed a philosophy of her own.

I was just beginning to grasp its first principles.

Nothing else, I am quite sure, would have kept me awake." Sir Edward leaned across the table towards Mr.Coulson.

Mr.Coulson had risen to his feet.
"This gentleman," he said, "is Mr.Smith." The newcomer opened his lips to protest, but Sir Edward held out his hand.
"One moment," he begged.