The first was a cable from Japan that Dr Takaito would be flying to England the following day and would be spending a week or two in London during which time he planned to observe the mental development of Mr Soames at first hand. He hoped that Dr Breuer would be able to provide adequate facilities and arrange accommodation at the Institute for a period, if necessary. The second event, far more ominous to Breuer’s way of thinking, was a telephone call from the editor of the National Daily Courier, a certain Mr Geoffrey Finch. ‘Am I speaking to the doctor in charge of the Osborne Psychoneural Institute?’ Mr Finch asked. ‘You are,’ Breuer assured him, giving his name. ‘You will be delighted to learn,’ Mr Finch announced, ‘that we have succeeded in tracing certain relatives of Mr Soames.’ ‘Oh,’ Breuer remarked non-committally. ‘We knew, of course, that his mother had gone to Canada and had married again, though we couldn’t be absolutely certain if she was still alive.
