exactly what we know him to have done. He disposes of his possibly inquisitive family, on different pretexts. You said, I think, that the secretary, Torrance, happened to be in Manchester last Thursday. I shouldnât wonder if it turned out that he went there at Saxonbyâs suggestion.
âYou also said that Saxonby had a visitor, who gave the name of Yates, and was a stranger to the staff. Was he the man who brought X? In any case, we will suppose that Saxonby obtained this mysterious object in the course of the day, and put it in wallet number one. When the time came to go home, his chief concern was lest his pocket should be picked. So he takes all precautions. Instead of walking to Cannon Street, he sends for a taxi, a thing, apparently, which he has never been known to do before. Arrived at the station, he secures, at considerable expense, a carriage to himself, and sees that the door is locked. He fancies then that he is secure. He canât be expected to divine the deep-laid schemes of the old man with the short grey beard.â
âUpon my word, Merrion, your imagination gets more vivid every day!â Arnold exclaimed. âDonât let any doubting attitude on my part cramp your style. Canât you deduce the identity of the murderer in the same brilliant fashion?â
âDo you know, Iâm almost tempted to make a guess? You donât happen to have that automatic in your pocket by any chance, do you?â
âNo, I left it at the Yard for the experts to report upon.â
âYou said it had initials engraved upon it. Can you describe them?â
âYes, W.S., in rather ornate letters in the form of a mono-
gram.â
âA monogram! Then how do you know that the initials are W.S. and not S.W.?â
âFor the simple and fairly obvious reason that Sir Wilfredâs initials were W.S.â
Merrion smiled. âSaxonbyâs daughter married a Major Wardour. Have you ever inquired what his Christian name is? What would you say if it turned out to be Samuel?â
âDash it all, thatâs going too far!â Arnold exclaimed. âI can swallow a good deal, but not that. There isnât the slightest reason to suspect Major Wardour. Besides, heâs in the South of France, or was when Sir Wilfred was killed.â
âSo we are told. And, since at present there isnât the slightest reason to suspect anybody in particular, we may as well begin with Wardour. Letâs see how he fits in. Iâve shown you how the murderer must have been somebody with an intimate knowledge of Saxonby. Wardour, as his son-in-law, may be supposed to have that knowledge. There seems to be some sort of trouble brewing between Wardour and his wife, in which, apparently, Saxonby took his daughterâs side. The two men may have been on bad terms in consequence. If I were you, Iâd try to find out rather more about Wardour than you know at present.â
Arnold grunted. âIâve got to find out a lot more about several people, it seems to me,â he replied. âYour suggestions are stimulating, my friend, but for the present I find them a bit bewildering. Iâd rather stick to plain facts. As I see it, this is pretty much what happened.
âA certain individual was already seated in the train at the time when Sir Wilfred secured his solitary compartment. This individual appeared to be elderly, bearded, and somewhat decrepit. Until the train started, he kept a careful watch upon the platform. To explain this, he deliberately gave Mrs. Clutsam and her daughter the impression that he was expecting somebody to join him. Just before the train entered the tunnel, he left the compartment.
âI think we may assume that he was elaborately disguised. The next question is, what became of him? He did not enter any of the compartments occupied by the surviving first-class passengers. He may have entered Sir Wilfredâs compartment, but he was not
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