“I may as well confess to that knowledge, since neither of them have made any secret of the fact,” replied Mr. Ludgrove.

“Old Ben was a bit of a character in his way,” continued Mr. Copperdock. “He used to drop in sometimes at the Cambridge Arms, and I got to know him quite well, in an offhand sort of way. He had the idea that he was the only man in London who could bake bread, and he often used to tell me that he spent all day and half the night in the bakehouse. He said it was the finest one of its size anywhere, and he used to take me round and look at it sometimes. I couldn’t see anything wonderful about it, but that don’t matter. Ever been there yourself?”

“Never into the bakehouse. I have been into the shop at least twice a week for the last four years,” replied Mr. Ludgrove.