LITERATURE.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 1069, 30 November 1877, Page 3

LITERATURE.

A QUEER CLUE. CHAPTER I. As an ex-detective, I am often asked to relate my adventures, and at one time I was ready enough to do so ; but I soon found that my tales were looked upon as dull prosy tilings, and not at all like what detectives ought to have to say for themselves Everybody seemed to think that detectives ought to find things out by a sort of magical divination; but 1 was reckoned a pretty good one, and I have known some of the celebrities ; and the only way any of us ever found anything out was by inquiring of everybody who waslikely to know a little, keeping our eyes on any probable party, holding our tongues, and putting all the scraps together. Now and then we are befriended by a lucky chance; and when this happens, we get a hundred times more praise than when we puzzle out the darkest and toughest case The last affair I was ever engaged in was of this kind. I was first concerned in it two years before I left the police, after, by-the-bye, I had quite given up the detective branch ; and I resumed it three years afterwards, that is three years after I had left the police ; and this is how it occurred I must first sajI', 1 ', however, that I don’t at all regard this as one of the dull prosy cases I referred to ; in fact, it was the most exciting business I was ever engaged in. I had left the detective work, as I said, and indeed had left London, for when I grew a little tired of the business, I was recommended to the authorities at Combe&tead, a thriving market towm in one of the home counties; and 1 had a very comfortable situation there, having little to do, very good pay, and being head of the police. Of course there is a great deal of diffcreuoe between life in the country and life iu town, and from a policeman’s view it perhaps ap pears greater than it does to anybody else ; and whereas I had often wondered how any body could be detected in London, I was equally surprised to think how anybody could hope to escape in the country ; for, excepting when strangers came down on some carefully planned burglary, wo could nearly always toll where to look for our men if anything went wrong ; in short. I knew everybody. As a matter of course, everybody knew me.

There was a middle-aged party lived in a row of houses in Orchard street which ran parallel with our High street - a Miss Parkway, who was reputed to be pretty well oil’, although not extremely rich, and reputed also to be rather i ceentric.' She lived by herself, in the sense of having none her relatives with her; but theVe were other

persons, although not many, in the large home where she lodged. 1 had my attention Irawn to her by seeing her walking relea'edly in company with a young man of oo very good character, who was fully twenty years her junior ; and at last I heard she was going to bn married to him. All lie town professed to bo surprised and shocked at this, but 1 wasn’t. Whether detectives get hard of heart in such things or not I can’t say, but nothing in the way of a woman of five-aud-forty marrying a nian of rive and-twonty would ever surprise me; nor should 1 be surprised at the man marrying the woman if she had money, as in this case. After all, although I have said John Lythcrly that was his name—was of no very good character, yet there was nothing serious against him. Ho was a good tempered, good-looking, easy sort of fellow, with a lot of cleverness about him too, that always shewed itself when it wasn’t wanted; and never shewed itself when it migi>t be of service. He row called himself a photographer ; but he had been a solicitor’s cle>k, an actor, a traveller for a wine merchant, a barman, and had once, before his mother died, been bought out of rhe f.ancers However, it was now pretty well known that John was going to marry Miss Parkway, and half the young chaps in Combestead ridiculed and envied him by turns. Matters progressed so far that it was known the lady had given orders to Bunnyman and Company, our chief bankers, to call in a thousand pounds of her money which was out on mortgage; audit was said she intended to buy one of the houses in the High street and tit it up as a photographer’s. It was also reported that old Mr Bunnymau said : ‘ I hope. Miss Parkway, that whatever you do with your money, you will do nothing that you have not weJl considered.’ And it was also said that Miss Parkway replied : ‘lf I wanted to be preached to, Mr Bunuyman, I should go to your brother the Ranter —perhaps because Mr Bunnyman had a brother who nreached, though he wasn’t a Ranter at all. However, as these two were by themselves, I don’t see how any one could have known what passed and these confidential conversations in books and histories are certainly things I don’t believe in

It was known for certain, however, that she had not only given notice, but had actually withdrawn the money ; and among other things it was said that she had admitted to her landlady Mrs Ambliss, that the match with Lytherly would break off all intimacy with her friends. She only had one relative who came to see her, and that was a gentleman living some forty miles away, but he had not been to Comestead lately. Whether he was offended or not, neither the ladylady nor lodger could say; but the latter feared he was, as she had written and told him exactly how affairs stood and what steps she had taken, but had received no reply to her letter. Lytherly seemed, very naturally, to be brightening up, and took our jocular congratulations—for I had my say as well as the others—in a good tempered although rather a conceited style. One annoyance he felt, which was, that everybody to whom he owed money—which was every one who would trust him—was anxious to be the first paid ; and thinking that a little gentle pressure might help them, two or three of the tradesmen took out county court summonses against him ; and this, as he said, was very hard on him and very selfish. However, there seemed a little chance that they would defeat themselves, for, harassed and worried by these doings, he was forced to ask Miss Parkway for an advance of money, being the first time he had ever done so. He had received money from her ; but sin had always offered it, and pressed it upon him when he made a show, if he was not actually in earnest, of wishing to refuse it. Whether she was in a bad temper at the time, or whether she was hurt at his making such a request, Lytherly couid not say, but she refused to make the advance, and they parted worse friends than they had been for some time.

All this the young fellow let out at the Bell on the (Saturday, as the refusal happened on the Friday, A great part of it in my hearing, for I generally took my pipe and glass at the Bell, and I saw that he was well on for tipsy. He had indeed been drinking there some hours, and would perhaps have stopped longer, but that the landlord persuaded him to go home. He was hardly able to walk, and as I did not wish him to get into any trouble, which might mean also trouble to me, I followed him to the door, determined I would see him to his lodgings if necessary; but just then his landlady’s son happened to come by. The poor chap, as I well remember, had been to the dentist’s to have a tooth drawn ; but his face "was so swollen that Mr Clawes would not attempt to draw it till daylight, and the poor fellow was half distracted with pain. He offered to sec Lyrherly home; and as he lived in the same house and slept in the same room, of course he was the fittest party to do so; and so off they went together, and in due course of time I went home too.

Next day was Sunday, and a quiet day enough it always was in < ombestead. Younger men might have thought it dull, but it suited me. I had Jived fifty years in London, and did not object to the steadygoing ways of the little town ; in fact I took to going to church, and all sorts of things. Well, the day passed by without anything particular; and I was really thinking of going to bed, although it was only half-past nine, for I felt sleepy and tired, when I heard somebody run hurriedly up our front garden, and then followed a very loud double knock at the door. I lived, 1 should mention, at a nice house in Church street, which was a turning that led from the High street into Orchard street, where, as 1 have said, Miss Bark way lived, 1 was just about to drink a glass of eggshot. which is a thing 1 am very partial to when 1 have a cold, and this was winter time ; but I put the tumbler down to listen, for when such a hurried step and kimck came, it was nearly always for me ; and sure enough, in another half-minute the door was opened, and I heard a voice ask if the superintendent was in ; then without any tapping or waiting, my door was thrown open, and I saw a young woman, whom I knew as servant to Mrs Ambliss. The moment I saw her, 1 knew something serious was the matter; long experience enabled me to decide when anything really serious was coming.

* Now, Jaue,’ I said, * what is it ? ’ £ Oh, Mr Eobinson ! ’ she exclaimed (I forget whether I have mentioned before that my name is Robinson, but such is the fact), ‘come round at once to missus’s, for we by.vc ound poor Miss Parkway stone-dead and murdered in her room,’ {To he Continued.)