In his college days, Holmes spends a month with his only friend, Victor Trevor, at the Trevor estate in Norfolk. While there, Holmes amazes his host, Victor's father, who had been a Justice of the Peace and a landowner besides. He had made his fortune in the goldfields in Australia. Among Holmes's deductions, the young detective discovers that the elder Trevor had once been connected to someone with the initials J. A. whom he now wishes to forget. At this point, Trevor passes out on the table. It seems that Holmes has broached upon a touchy subject. When the older man comes to, he relates how J. A. had been an old lover. Holmes views the elder Trevor's explanation with skepticism.
