“Gentlemen, you have heard presented to you this afternoon results that I venture to suggest are of the very first importance. Today’s meeting may well become a landmark in the history of astronomy. It is not my wish to take up any more of your time as I expect you will have much to say. In particular I expect our theoreticians will have much to say. I should like to begin the discussion by asking Professor Kingsley whether he has any comment he would like to make.”

“Not while the law of slander is still operative,” whispered one professional to another.

“Mr Chairman,” began Kingsley, “while the two previous speakers were addressing us I had ample opportunity to perform a fairly lengthy calculation.”

The two professionals grinned at each other, the Astronomer Royal grinned to himself.

“The conclusion I have arrived at may be of interest to the meeting. I find that if the results that have been presented to us this afternoon are correct, I say if they are correct, then a hitherto unknown body must exist in the vicinity of the solar system. And the mass of this unknown body must be comparable with or even greater than the mass of Jupiter itself. While it must be granted implausible to suppose that the results given to us arise from mere observational errors, I say mere observational errors, it may also be thought implausible that a body of such large mass existing within the solar system, or on the periphery of the solar system, could so far have remained undetected.”

Kingsley sat down. The professionals who understood the general trend of his argument, and what lay under it, felt that he had made his point.

Kingsley glowered at the railwayman who asked to see his ticket as he boarded the 8.56 p.m. train from Liverpool Street to Cambridge. The man fell back a pace or two, as well he might, for Kingsley’s rage had not been assuaged by the meal he had just eaten, a meal consisting of poor food badly cooked, condescendingly served in pretentious but slovenly conditions.