THE FERROL MYSTERY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19209, 24 December 1925, Page 18

THE FERROL MYSTERY.

BY C. GUISE MITTOED. *• . * t •

CHAPTER XXX.—(Continued.)

There fell a silence between the two men. Each of them was deep in his own thoughts. " You are satisfied that nothing more can be done at present?" Merton West asked ■ presently. , «< Absolutely certain. The net has been drawn very tight, and there is no possible escape. Ah, thank goodness! We shall not have to wait much longer now." Like a distant speck upon the road, a motor car could be seen approaching them, leaving a cloud of dust behind it as it sped on its/ way. The two men watched it through the window, and not a word passed between then till it slowed down and turned into the yard of the inn. "He has come all right, Mr. iym said, with a sigh of relief. " I was afraid something might have kept him. They resumed their seats, from which they had risen to watch the approaching car" and they waited patiently till a knock sounded upon the door. " Come in," Mr. West called out. The door opened, and Mr. Jervoise —of Messrs. Simpson Jervoise, and SimpSO jj.—entered the room. It would have been impossible to imagine any men presenting an appearance more incongruous with his surroundings than did the dapper little/ London solicitor. In one hand, he carried his tall silk hat and silver-mounted umbrella. In the other fiand he held a small bag, with his initials very plainly narked upon the leather. He wore a handsome pearl pin in his tie, and the eul of his frock coat and trousers were beyond criticism. _ His patent leather shoes would not have justified the sum he paid for them had they trod uuon the gritty roads of the moors. He advanced toward them with short, quick steps, and laid his things upon the table. . . " I hope I have not kept you waiting, gentlemen," he said with a bow, and glancing at the watch he took from his waistcoat pocket. " I had some difficulty in getting a car /and, unfortunately, we had a bad puncture on our way here." Mr. Pym drew a chair forward, and the three men seated themselves round the table. It was Merton West who next spoke, and he lit a cigarette before he did so. "Considering the long journey you have taken, and the cross-country travelling that is necessary to reach this place, I think vou have done remarkably well," he said. "Will you be returning to .London to-night?" " Yes. I wish I could have been spared this trip, but I understand you both consider it desirable for me to be present under the .circumstances. I must be back at my office to-morrow morning." " I assure you we were most relucant to trouble you," Merton West said, "but it is necessary that we should all meet without further delay to discuss this matter, and it is- impossible for our friend here to absent himself, even for a day, just now. Otherwise, this interview could have taken place equally well in London." Mr. Jervoise passed his hand slowly across his forehead. i" It is a very difficult, and a most unpleasant case to be mixed up in, he said, " and I much dislike my firm being associated with it, but I do not see how this could have been avoided." " It could not have been avoided."

" I suppose .not. Well, let us get to business at once. I have provided for every possible contingency." "When do yoii intend to start the proceedings ? " " Next Wednesday."

" Do you wish me to be present on that occasion." "We consider that will not only be desirable, but necessary." Mr. Jervoise made a note in his diary to that effect, and then returned the little book to his pocket. " Now," he said, " let me hear all you have got to tell/me. As you know, I am only conversant with the broader aspect of the case. lam here in order that you may enlighten me upon the details, and you must not mind if I ask you plenty of questions." f ' It was Mr. Pym who now took up the thread of conversation. " And I am here, sir, not only to give you all the information I have, but also to answer any questions you wish to ask ine." * He took a long thick envelope from his pocket as he spoke and extracted the contents, which he spread out carefully in ?ront of him. Then he looked up at the w ; '.ned little London solicitor with a very roiessional expression upon his face, .'erton West crossed his arms upon his broad chest and stared in silence out of the window.

" I have here a written statement, most minutely prepared by me," Mr. Pym said. " It is not only compiled from the daily notes I have made since I have been acting in this case, but it also contains all the reliable information I have been able to obtain from outside sources as to the particulars of the two crimes in which we are interested. I have tested the accuracy of this information, and I have every reason to . believe it is absolutely correct. Mr. Merton West has been of the greatest assistance to me in the matter and the irrefutable deductions and conclusions arrived at would hardly have been possible without his knowledge and help." Mr Jervoise nodded gravely, but he did not speak. , " I shall read this document to you, sir, and I will then give it into your charge. There is only one other copy, which I am keeping. I may add that all the particulars given here are in the possession of Scotland Yard, and are also known to the authorities of the county police." " There is just one question I should like to ask you, before you begin to read." Mr. Jervoise said. "It is this. Is there any special reason why you have decided upon next Wednesday for taking action ?"

" I think you will find that question answered in the affirmative, when you have heard the statement I am going to 6ubmit- to you, sir." It was not till twilight had fallen that evening that a 'car was seen speeding away across the moor. It was bearing Mr. Jervoise back to London upon the first stage of his return journey. The thin drawn face of the old man looked haggard and ghastly under the brim of his black silk hat. Half an hour later another car drew up in the yard of the Inn. Merton West was waiting upon the doorstep, and he turned to Mr. Pym as,the driver got down from his seat to open the door. " Then we all meet here again next Tuesday evening." he said, as he held out his hand. " I shall be glad when this job is over." "Yes," Mr. Pym replied. "We all meet here again on Tuesday night." CHAPTER XXXI. It • was Wednesday morning—the day of Cl'fford Wilson's wedding—and there was an unwonted stir of excitement in the village of East C'rossland. More than usual interest was taken in the event, not because marriages were uncommon incidents in the local life, but because—apart from the popularity of the bride and bridegroom—the lad had been forced into a position of public notoriety. Had not his father been murdered only a few months ago, and had he not been acting as secretary to the wealthy brother of Mark I'errol, who had also died liv the hand of an unknown assassin ? Added to these iacts, it bad become common knowledge : t^ie >' oun g man had unexpectedly in.hrrited a fortune, the magnitude of which jas estimated at far more than the real • T ] le JV too, the pretty bride had vpciiLJJ • ® nc^s among the better-class ' S tl! 11 district, and her father ans ,.„ ju weU-lconwn and respected , the' • a,Kl - tradesm «n in lhe touuhiue. w. r JW«y- occurred, there -was |jL. »t»y hearts that day, as

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warm as that which shone down from the 1 clear spring sky. Few knew, or could ; even guess, that there was a dark cloud above the near horizon. Cliff had spent the night previous to his marriage at the Sandrock Hotel, where he had entertained some of his most intimate friends to dinner. Whether th.is enjoyable function was Intended to be a sorrowful farewell to his bachelor days, or a happy send-off to his married life, depended upon the personal views taken by his guests. These friends were mostly his former colleagues, among whom he had worked at the local Co-operative Stores, and a few men who had known him from his childhood. There was Mr. Purvis, his old schoolmaster, and Mr. Reynolds, the doctor's elderly assistant, —whose invitation iriav have been included in the list as a matter of precaution against future dietary results. There was the clerk at the local bank, who was the only one present wearing the orthodox evening clothes. There was Father 0 Hara, the Roman Catholic priest, who was always a welcome guest upon such festive occasions as this one, for he could sing a good song in a way that set all the glasses tinkling when it came to the chorus, and he made a point of making an early departure so as to give the young people more freedom than was possible in his presence. Ihe dinner was a great success, and it was well past midnight when the last song and cheers echoed down the High Street in the clear starlit night. The ceremony was due to take place punctual]v at two o'clock in the afternoon, and, as it was the early closing day of the week, every unreserved seat in the church was occupied at least half an houi befoit that time. A small crowd, chiefly composed of women and girls, had collected along the path leading from the lychgate to the church door, and the yaid ot the Sandrock Hotel was well filled with dog-carts and other country conveyances whose male occupants had migrated to the bar and the private saloon. Mr. "inter was very busy, and he had engaged two extra men to help him. There were still some ten minutes to wait before the church clock struck the hour, and Mr. Purvis, the schoolmaster who was none the worse for his dissipation of the previous night— was playing most martial music upon the organ. The invited guests were rapidly filling the seats reserved for them —the ladies glancing at each other with nods and smiles of recognition—the gentlemen looking somewhat bored and red of face, and wondering if the ceremony would be over in time for a hurried return visit to the Sandrock Hotel before closing timo at half past two. There was a flutter of excitement as the bridegroom came through the vestry door, and took his seat in a vacant place of the front pew. He was followed closely by his " best man" (the young clerk from the Bank). This important persou kept so near to the bridegroom, that it looked as though he anticipated the possibility of some mistake being made, and that he might be married by mistake. He was by far the more nervous of the two lads. Cliff looked happy and self-possessed, and acknowledged many of the smiling greetings directed toward him as he sat down. The sound of a motor car, slowing down outside the gate, caused everybody to turn their heads, and look round expectantly. Was this the bride arriving? Necks were strained between the necks of other people and an audible sigh of disappointment passed down the church, as the figure of a man was seen walking slowly up the aisle. He was unknown to the majoritv of those who watched him, but from the lips of a few, came the whispered words " That is Mr. John Ferrol, the rich squire of Meadowhaugh." Then came the unpleasant additional information — which was sadly out of place upon so festive an occasion,—" He is brother to Mark Ferrol, who was murdered here last year." Cliff rose from his seat, to make way for his employer, who sank into the place beside him. He seemed quite oblivious to the interest which his- appearance had caused. The next person to arrive was Mrs. Tracey, resplendent in a new pluracoloured dress and lilac ribbons in her bonnet. There was a seat reserved for her, as she was a very important guest, being aunt of the bride and housekeeper up at the Hall. Mrs. Winter squeezed herself modestly in at the back (with some misgivings as 'to the number of drinks her husband would consume, during this period of enforced inactivity). She . secured an excellent position for seeing the bride's arrival, and was soon whispering among those of her friends who sat nearest to her. Then the white-robed figure of the priest stepped forward into the chancel followed by four little choir boys, and four men who were leading favourites at the local concerts, and they all had veryred faces and very well-greased hair. This was the signal for the general activity, and the only person who had a brief temporary rest was Mr. Purvis at the organ. Once more there came the sound of a motor-car drawing up slowly at the gate and a murmur of hushed voices from the crowd outside. The bride had arrived.

(To be continued daily.)