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10 - Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers · Unnatural Death

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Speaker 1: Chapter ten of Unnatural Death by Dorothy's eyers. This LibriVox
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Speaker 1: recording is in the public domain. Part two, The Legal Problem,
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Speaker 1: The gladsome Light of Jurisprudence, Sir Edward Coke. Chapter ten.
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Speaker 1: The Will again, the Will, the Will, We will hear
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Speaker 1: Caesar's will, Julius Caesar. Oh miss Evelyn, my dear, oh
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Speaker 1: poor dear. The tall girl in black started and looked round. Why,
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Speaker 1: Miss Gulliver, how very very kind of you to come
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Speaker 1: and meet me, And glad I am to have the chance,
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Speaker 1: my dear all owing to these kind gentlemen, cried the landlady,
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Speaker 1: flinging her arms round the girl and clinging to her,
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Speaker 1: to the great annoyance of the other passengers pouring off
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Speaker 1: the gangway. The elder of the two gentlemen referred to
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Speaker 1: gently put his hand on her arm and drew them
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Speaker 1: out of the stream of traffic. Poor Lamb mourned missus Gulliver,
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Speaker 1: coming all this way by your lonesome and poor dear
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Speaker 1: Miss Bertha in her grave, and such terrible things said,
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Speaker 1: had her such a good girl always? It's poor mother
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Speaker 1: I'm thinking about, said the girl. I couldn't rest, I
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Speaker 1: said to my husband I must go, I said, And
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Speaker 1: he said, my honey, if I could come with you,
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Speaker 1: I would, But I can't leave the farm. But if
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Speaker 1: you feel you ought to go, you shall, he said.
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Speaker 1: Dear mister Cropper, he was always that good and kind,
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Speaker 1: said Missus Gulliver. But here I am forgetten all about
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Speaker 1: the good gentleman as brought me all this way to
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Speaker 1: see you. This is Lord Peter Whimsey, and this is
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Speaker 1: mister Marble's as put in the unfortunate advertisement, as I
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Speaker 1: truly believed was the beginning of it all. Now I
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Speaker 1: wish I'd never showed it to your poor sister. Not
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Speaker 1: but what I believe the gentlemen acted with the best intentions.
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Speaker 1: Haven't now seen him, which at first I thought he
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Speaker 1: was a wrong un pleased to meet you, said Missus Crupper,
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Speaker 1: turning with the ready address derived from service in a
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Speaker 1: big restaurant. Just before I sailed, I got a letter
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Speaker 1: from poor Bertha and closing your ad. I couldn't make
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Speaker 1: anything of it, but I'd be glad to know anything
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Speaker 1: which can clear up this shocking business. What have they said?
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Speaker 1: They said, it's murder. There there was a verdict of
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Speaker 1: natural death at the inquiry, said mister Marbles. But we
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Speaker 1: feel that the case presents some inconsistencies, and shall be
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Speaker 1: exceedingly grateful for your co operation in looking into the matter,
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Speaker 1: and also in connection with another matter which may or
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Speaker 1: may not have some bearing upon it. Right, oh, said
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Speaker 1: Missus Cropper. I'm sure your proper gentleman if Missus Gulliver
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Speaker 1: answers for you, for I've never known her mistaken in
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Speaker 1: a person yet, have I, Missus g I'll tell you
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Speaker 1: anything I know, which isn't much, for it's all a
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Speaker 1: horrible mystery to me. Only I don't want you to
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Speaker 1: delay me, for I've got to go straight on down
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Speaker 1: to mother. She'll be in a dreadful way, so fond
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Speaker 1: as she was of Bertha, and she's all alone except
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Speaker 1: for the young girl that looks after her, and that's
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Speaker 1: not much comfort when you've lost your daughter so sudden.
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Speaker 1: We shall not detain you a moment, Missus Cropper, said
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Speaker 1: mister Myrbles. We propose if you will allow us to
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Speaker 1: accompany you to London and to ask you a few
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Speaker 1: questions on the way, and then again, with your permission,
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Speaker 1: we should like to see you safely home to Missus
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Speaker 1: Gotobed's house wherever that might be, christ Church near Bournemouth,
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Speaker 1: said Lord Peter. I'll run you down straight away if
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Speaker 1: you like, twill save time. I say, you know all
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Speaker 1: about it, don't you, exclaimed Missus Cropper with some admiration.
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Speaker 1: Well hadn't We better get a move on or we'll
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Speaker 1: miss the train, quite right, said mister Marbles. Allow me
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Speaker 1: to offer you my arm, Missus Cropper. Approving of this arrangement,
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Speaker 1: the party made its way to the station after the
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Speaker 1: usual disembarkation formalities. As they passed the barrier on to
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Speaker 1: the platform, Missus Cropper gave a little exclamation and leaned
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Speaker 1: forward as though something had caught her eye. What is it,
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Speaker 1: missus Cropper, said Lord Peter's voice in her ear. Did
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Speaker 1: you think you recognized somebody? You're a noticing one, aren't you,
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Speaker 1: said Missus Cropper, make a good waiter. You would not
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Speaker 1: meaning any offense, sir. That's a real compliment from one
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Speaker 1: who knows. Yes, I did think I saw some one,
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Speaker 1: but it couldn't be, because the minute she caught my
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Speaker 1: eye she went away. Who did you think it was? Why?
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Speaker 1: I thought it looked like miss Whittaker as Bertha and
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Speaker 1: me used to work for. Where was she? Just down
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Speaker 1: by that pillar? There a tall, dark lady in crimson
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Speaker 1: hat and gray fur. But she's gone now excuse me.
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Speaker 1: Lord Peter unhitched Missus Gulliver from his arm, hitched her
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Speaker 1: smartly on to the unoccupied arm of mister Marbles, and
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Speaker 1: plunged into the crowd. Mister Marbles, quite unperturbed by this
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Speaker 1: eccentric behavior, shepherded the two women into an empty first
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Speaker 1: class carriage, which Missus Cropper noted bore a large label
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Speaker 1: reserved for Lord Peter Whimsey and party. Missus Cropper made
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Speaker 1: some protesting observation about her ticket, but mister Marbles merely
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Speaker 1: replied that everything was provided for and that privacy could
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Speaker 1: be more conveniently secured in this way. Your friend's going
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Speaker 1: to be left behind, said Missus Cropper as the train
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Speaker 1: moved out. That would be very unlike him, replied mister Marbles, calmly,
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Speaker 1: unfolding a couple of rugs and exchanging his old fashioned
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Speaker 1: top hat for a curious kind of traveling cap with
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Speaker 1: flaps to it. Missus Cropper, in the midst of her anxiety,
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Speaker 1: could not help wondering where in the world he had
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Speaker 1: contrived to purchase this Victorian relic. As a matter of fact,
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Speaker 1: mister Myrbles's caps were specially made to his own design
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Speaker 1: by an exceedingly expensive West End hatter who held mister
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Speaker 1: Marbles in deep respect as a real gentleman of the
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Speaker 1: old school. Nothing, however, was seen of Lord Peter for
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Speaker 1: something like a quarter of an hour, when he suddenly
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Speaker 1: put his head in with an amiable smile and said,
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Speaker 1: one red haired woman in a crimson hat, Three dark
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Speaker 1: women in black hats, several nondescript women in those pull
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Speaker 1: on sort of dust colored hats, old women with gray hair,
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Speaker 1: various sixteen flappers without hats, hats on rack I mean,
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Speaker 1: but none of em crimson. Two obvious brides in blue hats,
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Speaker 1: Innumerable fair women in hats of all colors, one ash
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Speaker 1: blonde dressed as a nurse, none of em, our friend,
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Speaker 1: as are as I know, thought i'd best just toddle
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Speaker 1: along the train to make sure there's just one dark
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Speaker 1: sort of female whose hat I can't see because it's
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Speaker 1: tucked down beside her. Wonder if missus Cropper would mind
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Speaker 1: doing a little stagger down the corridor to take a
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Speaker 1: squint at her. Missus Cropper, with some surprise, consented to
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Speaker 1: do so. Right, you are explain later about four carriages long.
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Speaker 1: Now look here, Missus Cropper. If it should be anybody,
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Speaker 1: you know, I'd rather on the whole. She didn't spot
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Speaker 1: you watching her. I want you to walk along behind me,
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Speaker 1: just glancing into the compartments, but keep in your collar
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Speaker 1: turned up. When we come to the party, I have
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Speaker 1: in mind I'll make a screen for you. What these
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Speaker 1: maneuvers were successfully accomplished, Lord Peter lighting a cigarette opposite
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Speaker 1: the suspected compartment, while Missus Cropper viewed the hatless lady
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Speaker 1: under the cover of his raised elbows. But the result
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Speaker 1: was disappointing. Missus Cropper had never seen the lady before,
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Speaker 1: and a further promenade from end to end of the
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Speaker 1: train produced no better results. We must leave it to Bunter, then,
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Speaker 1: said his lordship cheerfully, as they returned to their seats.
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Speaker 1: I put him on the trail as soon as you
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Speaker 1: gave me the good word. Now, Missus Cropper, we really
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Speaker 1: get down to business. First of all, we should be
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Speaker 1: glad of any suggestions you may have to make about
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Speaker 1: your sister's death. We don't want to distress you, but
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Speaker 1: we have got an idea that there might just possibly
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Speaker 1: be something behind it. There's just one thing, Sir, your lordship,
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Speaker 1: I suppose I should say Bertha was a real good girl.
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Speaker 1: I can answer for that absolutely. There wouldn't have been
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Speaker 1: any carryings on with her young man, nothing of that.
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Speaker 1: I know people have been saying all sorts of things,
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Speaker 1: and perhaps with lots of girls as they are, it
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Speaker 1: isn't to be wondered at. But believe me, Bertha wouldn't
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Speaker 1: go for to do anything that wasn't right. Perhaps you'd
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Speaker 1: like to see this last letter she wrote me. I'm
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Speaker 1: sure nothing could be nicer and properer from a girl
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Speaker 1: just looking forward to a happy marriage. Now, a girl
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Speaker 1: as wrote like that wouldn't be going about larking, sir,
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Speaker 1: would she? I couldn't rest thinking they was saying that
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Speaker 1: about her. Lord Peter took the letter, glanced through it,
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Speaker 1: and handed it reverently to mister Marbles. We are not
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Speaker 1: thinking that at all, missus Cropper, though of course we
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Speaker 1: are very glad to have your point of view. Don't
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Speaker 1: you see? Now? Do you think it possible your sister
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Speaker 1: might have been what shall I say? Got hold of
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Speaker 1: by some woman with a plausible story and all that,
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Speaker 1: and well pushed into some position which shocked her very much?
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Speaker 1: Was she and up to the tricks of London people
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Speaker 1: and all that? And he outlined Barker's theory of the
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Speaker 1: engaging missus Forrest and the supposed dinner in the flat. Well,
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Speaker 1: my lord, I wouldn't say. Bertha was a very quick girl,
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Speaker 1: not as quick as me. You know. She'd always be
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Speaker 1: ready to believe what she was told and give people
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Speaker 1: credit for the best. Took more after her father, like
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Speaker 1: I'm mother's girl, they always said. And I don't trust
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Speaker 1: anybody further than I can see them. But I'd warned
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Speaker 1: her very careful against taking up with women, as talks
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Speaker 1: to a girl in the street, and she did ought
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Speaker 1: to have been on her guard, of course, said Peter.
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Speaker 1: It may have been somebody she'd got to know quite well,
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Speaker 1: say at the restaurant, and she thought she was a
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Speaker 1: nice lady, and there be no harm in going to
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Speaker 1: see her. Or the lady might have suggested taking her
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Speaker 1: into good service. One never knows. I think she'd have
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Speaker 1: mentioned it in her letters if she'd talked to the
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Speaker 1: lady much, my lord. It's wonderful. What a lot of
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Speaker 1: things she'd find to tell me about, and I don't
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Speaker 1: think she'd be for going into service again. We really
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Speaker 1: got fed up with service down in Leehampton. Ah. Yes,
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Speaker 1: now that brings us to quite a different point. The
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Speaker 1: thing we wanted to ask you or your sister about
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Speaker 1: before this sad accident took place. You were in service
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Speaker 1: with Miss Whittaker, whom you mentioned just now. I wonder
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Speaker 1: if you'd mind telling us just exactly why you left.
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Speaker 1: It was a good place, I suppose, yes, my lord,
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Speaker 1: quite a good place as places go. Though of course
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Speaker 1: a girl doesn't get her freedom the way she does
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Speaker 1: in a restaurant, And naturally there was a good deal
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Speaker 1: of waiting on the old lady, not as we minded that,
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Speaker 1: for she was a very kind, good lady, and generous too,
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Speaker 1: But when she became so ill, I suppose miss Whittaker
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Speaker 1: managed everything. What yes, my lord, But it wasn't a
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Speaker 1: hard place. Lots of the girls envied us, only Miss
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Speaker 1: Whittaker was very particular, especially about the china. What ah,
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Speaker 1: they told you about that? Then? I told em, Dearie
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Speaker 1: put in missus Gulliver. I told em all about how
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Speaker 1: you came to leave your place and go to London.
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Speaker 1: And it struck us, put in mister Merbles, that it was,
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Speaker 1: shall we say, somewhat rash of miss Whittaker to dismiss
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Speaker 1: so competent and, if I may put it, so so
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Speaker 1: well spoken and personable a pair of maids on so
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Speaker 1: trivial a pretext. You're right there, sir, Bertha. I told
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Speaker 1: you she was the trusting one. She was quite ready
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Speaker 1: to believe as she'd done wrong, and thought how good
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Speaker 1: it was of miss Whittaker to forgive her breaking the
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Speaker 1: china and take so much interest in sending us to London.
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Speaker 1: But I always thought there was something more than met
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Speaker 1: the eye, didn't I, missus Gulliver, that you did dear
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Speaker 1: something more than meets the eye. That's what you says
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Speaker 1: to me, and what I agrees with. And did you,
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Speaker 1: in your own mind, pursued mister Marbles, connect this sudden
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Speaker 1: dismissal with anything which had taken place? Well? I did, then,
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Speaker 1: replied Missus Cropper. With some spirit, I said to Bertha.
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Speaker 1: But she wouldn't hear nothing of it, taking after her father,
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Speaker 1: as I tell you, I said, mark my words, I said,
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Speaker 1: Miss Whittaker, don't care to have us in the house
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Speaker 1: after the row she had with the old lady. And
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Speaker 1: what row was that, inquired mister Marbles. Well, I don't know,
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Speaker 1: as I ought rightly to tell you about it, seeing
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Speaker 1: it's all over now, and we promised to say nothing
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Speaker 1: about it. That, of course, said mister Marbles, checking Lord Peter,
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Speaker 1: who was about to burst in, impetuously depends upon your
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Speaker 1: own conscience. But if it will be of any help
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Speaker 1: to you in making up your mind, I think I
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Speaker 1: may say in the strictest confidence that this information may
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Speaker 1: be of the utmost importance to us in a roundabout way,
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Speaker 1: which I won't trouble you with in investigating a very
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Speaker 1: singular set of circumstances which have been brought to our notice.
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Speaker 1: And it is just barely possible, again, in a very
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Speaker 1: roundabout way, that it may assist us in throwing sun
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Speaker 1: light on the melancholy tragedy of your sister's decease. Further
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Speaker 1: than that, I cannot at the moment go well now,
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Speaker 1: said missus Cropper. If that's so, though, mind you, I
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Speaker 1: don't see what connection there could be. But if you
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Speaker 1: think that's so, I reckon I'd better come across with it,
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Speaker 1: as my husband would say. After all, I only promised
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Speaker 1: I wouldn't mention about it to the people in Leehampton,
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Speaker 1: as might have made mischief out of it, and a
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Speaker 1: gossipy lot they is. And no mistake, We've nothing to
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Speaker 1: do with the Leehampton crowd, said his lordship, And it
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Speaker 1: won't be passed along unless it turns out to be necessary. Right,
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Speaker 1: Oh well, i'll tell you. One morning, early September, Miss
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Speaker 1: Whittaker comes along to Bertha and I and says, I
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Speaker 1: want you girls to be just handy on the landing
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Speaker 1: outside Miss Dawson's bedroom. She says, because I may want
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Speaker 1: you to come in and witness her signature to a document.
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Speaker 1: We shall want two witnesses, she says, and you'll have
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Speaker 1: to see her sign but I don't want to flurry
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Speaker 1: her with a lot of people in the room. So
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Speaker 1: when I give you the tip, I want you to
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Speaker 1: come just inside the door without making a noise, so
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Speaker 1: that you can see her write her name, and then
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Speaker 1: I'll bring it straight across to you and you can
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Speaker 1: write your names where I show you. It's quite easy,
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Speaker 1: she says, nothing to do but just put your names
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Speaker 1: opposite where you see the word witnesses. Bertha was always
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Speaker 1: a bit the timid sort, afraid of documents and that
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Speaker 1: sort of thing, and she tried to get out of it.
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Speaker 1: Couldn't nurse sign instead of me? She says. That was
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Speaker 1: Nurse Phileiter, you know, the red haired one, as was
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Speaker 1: the doctor's fiance. She was a very nice woman and
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Speaker 1: we liked her quite a lot. Nurse has gone out
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Speaker 1: for her walk, says Miss Whittaker rather sharp. I want
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Speaker 1: you and Evelyn to do it, meaning me, of course.
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Speaker 1: Well we said we didn't mind, and Miss Whittaker goes
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Speaker 1: upstairs to Miss Dawson with a whole heap of papers,
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Speaker 1: and Bertha and I followed and waited on the landing,
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Speaker 1: like she said. One moment, said mister Marbles, did Miss
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Speaker 1: Dawson often have documents to sign, Yes, sir, I believe so,
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Speaker 1: quite frequently, but they was usually witnessed by Miss Whittaker
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Speaker 1: or the nurse. There was some leases and things of
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Speaker 1: that sort, or so I heard. Miss Dawson had a
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Speaker 1: little house property, and then there'd be the checks for
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Speaker 1: the housekeeping, and some papers as used to come from
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Speaker 1: the bank and be put away in the safe share
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Speaker 1: coupons and so on, I suppose, said mister Marbles. Very likely, sir.
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Speaker 1: I don't know much about those business matters. I did
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Speaker 1: have to witness a signature once, I remember a long
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Speaker 1: time back, but that was different. The paper was brought
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Speaker 1: down to me with the signature ready wrote. There wasn't
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Speaker 1: any of this to do about it. The old lady
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Speaker 1: was capable of dealing with her own affairs. I understand
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Speaker 1: up till then afterwards, as I understood, she made it
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Speaker 1: all over to Miss Whittaker. That was just before she
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Speaker 1: got feeble like and was kept under drugs. Miss Whittaker
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Speaker 1: signed the checks. Then the power of attorney, said mister
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Speaker 1: Marbles with a nod. Well, now did you sign this
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Speaker 1: mysterious paper? No, sir, I'll tell you how it was.
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Speaker 1: When me and Bertha had been waiting a little time,
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Speaker 1: Miss Whittaker comes to the door and makes us a
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Speaker 1: sign to come in quiet, So we come. Sand stands
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Speaker 1: just inside the door. There was a screen by the
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Speaker 1: head of the bed, so we couldn't see Miss Dawson
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Speaker 1: no she us, but we could see her reflection quite
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Speaker 1: well in a big looking glass she had on the
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Speaker 1: left side of her bed. Mister Merbles exchanged a significant
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Speaker 1: glance with Lord Peter. Now be sure you tell us
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Speaker 1: every detail, said, Whimsy, no matter how small and silly
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Speaker 1: it may sound. I believe this is going to be
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Speaker 1: very exciting. Yes, my lord, Well, there wasn't much else
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Speaker 1: except that just inside the door on the left hand side,
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Speaker 1: as you went in, there was a little table where
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Speaker 1: nurse mostly used to set down trays and things that
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Speaker 1: had to go down, and it was cleared, and a
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Speaker 1: piece of blotting paper on it, and an inkstand and
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Speaker 1: pen all ready for us to sign with. Could miss
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Speaker 1: Dawson see that, asked mister Marbles, No, sir, because of
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Speaker 1: the screen, but it was inside the room. Yes, sir,
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Speaker 1: we want to be quite clear about this. Do you
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Speaker 1: think you could draw, quite roughly a little plan of
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Speaker 1: the room showing where the bed was and the screen
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Speaker 1: and the mirror and so on. I'm not much of
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Speaker 1: a hand at drawing, said missus Cropper dubiously, but I'll try.
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Speaker 1: Mister Marbles produced a notebook and fountain pen, and after
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Speaker 1: a few false starts, a good rough sketch was produced.
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Speaker 1: Thank you, that is very clear. Indeed, you notice, Lord Peter,
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Speaker 1: the careful arrangements to have the document signed in presence
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Speaker 1: of the witnesses and witnessed by them, in the presence
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Speaker 1: of Miss Dawson and of each other. I needn't tell
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Speaker 1: you for what kind of document that arrangement is indispensable.
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Speaker 1: Was that it, sir? We couldn't understand why it was
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Speaker 1: all arranged like that. It might have happened, explained mister Marbles,
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Speaker 1: that in case of some dispute about this document, you
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Speaker 1: and your sister would have had to come into court
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Speaker 1: and give evidence about it. And if so, you would
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Speaker 1: have been asked whether you actually saw Miss Dawson write
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Speaker 1: her signature, and whether you and your sister and Miss
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Speaker 1: Dawson were all in the same room together when you
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Speaker 1: signed your names as witnesses. And if that had happened,
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Speaker 1: you could have said yes, couldn't you, and sworn to it. Oh? Yes? Then,
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Speaker 1: Yet actually Miss Dawson would have known nothing about your
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Speaker 1: being there, No, sir, that was it, you see, I
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Speaker 1: see now, sir, But at the time Bertha and me
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Speaker 1: couldn't make nothing of it. But the document you say
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Speaker 1: was never signed, No, sir, at any rate, we never
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Speaker 1: witnessed anything. We saw Miss Dawson write her name at
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Speaker 1: least I suppose it was her name to one or
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Speaker 1: two papers. And then Miss Whittaker puts another lot in
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Speaker 1: front of her and says, here's another little lot, Auntie,
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Speaker 1: some more of those income tax forms. So the old
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Speaker 1: lady says, what are they exactly, dear, let me see.
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Speaker 1: So Miss Whittaker says, oh, only the usual rule things.
26:01
Speaker 1: Then Miss Dawson says, dear dear, what a lot of them.
26:06
Speaker 1: How complicated they do make these things, to be sure,
26:10
Speaker 1: And we could see that Miss Whittaker was giving her
26:14
Speaker 1: several papers, all laid on top of one another, with
26:18
Speaker 1: just the places for the signatures left showing. So Miss
26:24
Speaker 1: Dawson signs the top one and then lifts up the
26:28
Speaker 1: paper and looks underneath at the next one, and Miss
26:32
Speaker 1: Whittaker says, they're all the same as if she was
26:36
Speaker 1: in a hurry to get them signed and done with.
26:40
Speaker 1: But Miss Dawson takes them out of her hand and
26:43
Speaker 1: starts looking through them, and suddenly she lets out a
26:47
Speaker 1: screech and says, I won't have it. I won't have it.
26:52
Speaker 1: I'm not dying yet. How dare you? You wicked girl?
26:58
Speaker 1: Can't you wait till I'm dead. You want to frighten
27:02
Speaker 1: me into my grave before my time? Haven't you got
27:06
Speaker 1: everything you want? And Miss Whittaker says, hush, aunty, you
27:11
Speaker 1: won't let me explain. Then the old lady says, no,
27:15
Speaker 1: I won't. I don't want to hear anything about it.
27:19
Speaker 1: I hate the thought of it. I won't talk about it.
27:23
Speaker 1: You leave me be. I can't get better if you
27:26
Speaker 1: keep frightening me so and then she begins to take
27:31
Speaker 1: and carry on dreadful, and Miss Whittaker comes over to us,
27:35
Speaker 1: looking awful white and says, run along, girls. She says,
27:40
Speaker 1: my aunt's taken ill and can't attend to business. I'll
27:44
Speaker 1: call you if I want you, she says. And I said,
27:47
Speaker 1: can we help her? Miss? And she says, no, it's
27:51
Speaker 1: quite all right, it's just the pain. Come on again.
27:55
Speaker 1: I'll give her her injection and then she'll be all right.
28:00
Speaker 1: And she pushes us out of the room and shuts
28:02
Speaker 1: the door. And we heard the poor old lady crying
28:06
Speaker 1: fit to break anybody's heart. So we went downstairs and
28:11
Speaker 1: met nurse just coming in, and we told her Miss
28:14
Speaker 1: Dawson was took worse again, and she runs up quick
28:18
Speaker 1: without taking her things off, so we was in the
28:21
Speaker 1: kitchen just saying it seemed rather funny, like when Miss
28:26
Speaker 1: Whittaker comes down again and says, it's all right now
28:30
Speaker 1: and Auntie's sleeping quite peaceful. Only we'll have to put
28:35
Speaker 1: off business till another day. And she says, better not
28:39
Speaker 1: say anything about this to anybody, because when the pain
28:43
Speaker 1: comes on, aunt gets frightened and talks a bit wild.
28:48
Speaker 1: She don't mean what she says, but if people was
28:51
Speaker 1: to hear about it, they might think it odd. So
28:55
Speaker 1: I up and says Miss Whittaker, I says me and
28:59
Speaker 1: bur and was never ones to talk rather stiff. I
29:03
Speaker 1: said it because I don't hold by gossip, and never did.
29:08
Speaker 1: And Miss Whittaker says that's quite all right and goes away.
29:14
Speaker 1: And the next day she gives us an afternoon off
29:18
Speaker 1: and a present ten shillings each. It was because it
29:22
Speaker 1: was her aunt's birthday and the old lady wanted us
29:25
Speaker 1: to have a little treat in her honor. A very
29:29
Speaker 1: clear account, indeed, missus Cropper, and I only wish all
29:33
Speaker 1: witnesses were as sensible and observant as you are. There's
29:39
Speaker 1: just one thing, did you, by any chance get a
29:43
Speaker 1: sight of this paper that upset Miss Dawson so much, No, sir,
29:49
Speaker 1: only from a distance, that is, and in the looking glass.
29:54
Speaker 1: But I think it was quite short, just a few
29:57
Speaker 1: lines of typewriting, I see. Was there a typewriter in
30:03
Speaker 1: the house by the way, Oh, yes, sir. Miss Whittaker
30:07
Speaker 1: used one quite often for business letters and so on.
30:11
Speaker 1: It used to stand in the sitting room quite so.
30:15
Speaker 1: By the way, do you remember Miss Dawson's solicitor calling
30:20
Speaker 1: shortly after this? No, sir, it was only a little
30:25
Speaker 1: time later. Bertha broke the teapot and we left. Miss
30:29
Speaker 1: Whittaker gave her her month's warning, but I said no,
30:33
Speaker 1: if she could come down on a girl like that
30:36
Speaker 1: for a little thing, and her such a good worker,
30:39
Speaker 1: Bertha should go at once and me with her. Miss
30:44
Speaker 1: Whittaker said, just as you like. She said she never
30:49
Speaker 1: was one to stand any back. Jet So we went
30:52
Speaker 1: that afternoon. But afterwards I think she was sorry and
30:57
Speaker 1: came over to see us at christ Church and suggested,
31:01
Speaker 1: why shouldn't we try for a better job in London.
31:05
Speaker 1: Bertha was a bit afraid to go so far, taking
31:09
Speaker 1: after father, as I mentioned, But mother, as was always
31:13
Speaker 1: the ambitious one. She says, if the lady's kind enough
31:17
Speaker 1: to give you a good start, why not go. There's
31:21
Speaker 1: more chances for a girl in town. And I said
31:25
Speaker 1: to Bertha private like afterwards, I says, depend upon it.
31:31
Speaker 1: Miss Whittaker wants to see the back of us. She's
31:34
Speaker 1: afraid we'll get talking about the things Miss Dawson said
31:38
Speaker 1: that morning. But I says, if she's willing to pay
31:42
Speaker 1: us to go, why not go. I says, a girl's
31:46
Speaker 1: got to look out for herself these days. And if
31:50
Speaker 1: we go off to London, she'll give us a better
31:52
Speaker 1: character than what she would if we stayed. And anyway,
31:57
Speaker 1: I said, if we don't like it, we can always
32:00
Speaker 1: come home again. So the long and short was we
32:04
Speaker 1: came to town, and after a bit we got good
32:08
Speaker 1: jobs with lions, what with the good character Miss Whittaker
32:12
Speaker 1: gave us. And I met my husband there, and Bertha
32:16
Speaker 1: met her Jim. So we never regretted having taken the chance,
32:21
Speaker 1: not till this dreadful thing happened to Bertha. The passionate
32:29
Speaker 1: interest with which her hearers had received this recital must
32:33
Speaker 1: have gratified missus Cropper's sense of the dramatic mister Marbles
32:39
Speaker 1: was very slowly rotating his hands over one another, with
32:43
Speaker 1: a dry rustling sound, like an old snake gliding through
32:48
Speaker 1: the long grass in search of prey. A little scene
32:53
Speaker 1: after your own heart, Marbles, said Lord Peter, with a
32:57
Speaker 1: glint under his dropped eyelids. He turned again to missus Cropper.
33:03
Speaker 1: This is the first time you've told this story. Yes,
33:07
Speaker 1: and I wouldn't have said anything if it hadn't been
33:12
Speaker 1: I know now. If you'll take my advice, Missus Cropper,
33:17
Speaker 1: you won't tell it again. Stories like that have a
33:21
Speaker 1: nasty way of being dangerous. Will you consider it an
33:26
Speaker 1: impertinence if I ask you what your plans are for
33:29
Speaker 1: the next week or two. I'm going to see mother
33:34
Speaker 1: and get her to come back to Canada with me.
33:38
Speaker 1: I wanted her to come when I got married, but
33:40
Speaker 1: she didn't like going so far away from Bertha. She
33:45
Speaker 1: was always Mother's favorite, taking so much after father. You see,
33:50
Speaker 1: Mother and me was always too much alike to get on.
33:53
Speaker 1: But now she's got nobody else and it isn't right
33:57
Speaker 1: for her to be all alone, so I think she'll
33:59
Speaker 1: come with me. It's a long journey for an ailing
34:03
Speaker 1: old woman, but I reckon. Blood's thicker than water. My
34:08
Speaker 1: husband said, bring her back first class, my girl, and
34:11
Speaker 1: I'll find the money. He's a good sort, is my husband.
34:17
Speaker 1: You couldn't do better, said Whimsy. And if you'll allow me,
34:22
Speaker 1: I'll send a friend to look after you both on
34:26
Speaker 1: the train journey and see you safe on to the boat,
34:30
Speaker 1: and don't stop long in England. Excuse me button in
34:35
Speaker 1: on your affairs like this, But honestly, I think you'd
34:40
Speaker 1: be safer elsewhere. You don't think that, Bertha, her eyes
34:47
Speaker 1: widened with alarm. I don't like quite to say what
34:52
Speaker 1: I think because I don't know. But I'll see you
34:57
Speaker 1: and your mother are safe whatever happens. And Bertha, can
35:02
Speaker 1: I do anything about that? Well, you'll have to come
35:07
Speaker 1: and see my friends at Scotland Yard, I think, and
35:11
Speaker 1: tell them what you've told me. They'll be interested and
35:16
Speaker 1: will something be done about it? I'm sure if we
35:20
Speaker 1: can prove there's been any foul play, the police won't
35:24
Speaker 1: rest till it's been tracked down to the right person.
35:27
Speaker 1: But the difficulty is, you see, to prove that the
35:31
Speaker 1: death wasn't natural. I observe in to day's paper, said
35:38
Speaker 1: mister Marbles that the local superintendent is now satisfied that
35:44
Speaker 1: miss gotobed, came down alone for a quiet picnic and
35:49
Speaker 1: died of a heart attack. That man would say anything,
35:54
Speaker 1: said whimsy. We know from the post mortem that she
35:58
Speaker 1: had recently had a heavy meal. Forgive these distress and details,
36:03
Speaker 1: missus Cropper. So why the picnic? I suppose they had
36:09
Speaker 1: the sandwiches and the beer bottle in mind, said mister
36:13
Speaker 1: Marbles mildly. I see, I suppose she went down to
36:19
Speaker 1: Epping alone with a bottle of bass and took out
36:23
Speaker 1: the cork with her fingers. Ever tried doing it, Myrbles, No, Well,
36:29
Speaker 1: when they find the corkscrew, I'll believe she went there alone.
36:34
Speaker 1: In the meantime, I hope the papers will publish a
36:37
Speaker 1: few more theories like that. Nothing like inspiring criminals with confidence, Marbles.
36:44
Speaker 1: It goes to their heads, you know. End of Chapter ten.