A Cabinet Secret : Chapter 6

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Chapter six of A Cabinet Secret by Guy Boothbye. This
LibriVox recording is in the public domain reading by Maperrard,
Chapter six. The catalog of woes which it has been
my ill fortune to be compelled to chronicle, is indeed

(00:21):
a long one. But of all the items I have
set down, none had had such a terrible effect upon
the public mind as the assassination of the Prime Minister.
Expressions of genuine sorrow poured forth from every side and party.
Feeling for the time being at least was forgotten. Even

(00:42):
the most antagonistic of the continental journals, though perhaps rejoicing
in their hearts at Great Britain's misfortune, admitted that she
was passing through a time of severe trial. And while
they prophesied our ultimate downfall, showed very plainly their admiration

(01:03):
for our fortitude. Indeed, the self control of the nation
at this particular period was a little short of marvelous.
The war was draining her of her best blood. Those
at the helm of the ship of state were being
one by one mysteriously done away with. She had been

(01:24):
the victim of a vast scheme of false intelligence. Her
great arsenal had been blown up, and the supply of
munitions of war thereby seriously imperiled. At the most critical juncture,
a large proportion of her army were prisoners in the
enemy's hands, and three other portions were locked up in

(01:46):
beleaguered towns. Yet with it all she continued the struggle
with as much determination as she had first entered upon it.
The bull dog tenacityerated all classes. It was shared by
the peer, the country squire, the small farmer, the tradesmen,

(02:07):
and the artisan. It was voiced by the Prime Minister,
and echoed by the costermonger. Whatever it might cost, England
was resolved to win in the end. That end, however,
was still far off, and much blood would have to
be spilt and a large amount of money spent before

(02:28):
we should be able to cull ourselves the victors. Meanwhile,
troops were still pouring out of England, and more were
hastening to her assistance from Australia and Canada. Even in
these loyal portions of the Empire, however, strenuous efforts were

(02:49):
being made by some mysterious power upon which it was
impossible to lay hands, to undermine their affection for the
mother country. Its reasonable pamphlets were distributed broadcast. An infernal
machine was discovered on board a troop ship on the
point of sailing from a Queensland port. Another was discovered

(03:12):
on board a transport in Sydney Harbor, while a third vessel,
owing to the wilful carelessness of the captain, who was
afterwards arraigned on a charge of high treason but was
acquitted for want of sufficient evidence, was put ashore with
all her troops on board, on the coast of South Australia.

(03:34):
It was in Canada, however, that the trouble was worst.
Its proximity to the United States favored the Venian propaganda,
and despite the loyalty of the French Canadians of which
no one felt a doubt, an attempt was made to
induce them to swerve in their allegiance to the Empire.

(03:56):
Such was the state of affairs when Lord Lipford's successor
took up the reigns of office. It must not be
thought that because they achieved no result, the police were
lax in their attempts to discover the perpetrator or perpetrators
of that cruel crime. To employ again that well worn phrase,

(04:18):
not a stone was left unturned to arrive at an
understanding of the manner in which the deed was done.
One thing was quite certain. It had been carefully planned.
But then so had the disappearance of Waller and the
Colonial Secretary. The destruction of Woolwich Arsenal was a work

(04:38):
of devilish ingenuity, while the blowing up of the transport
Sultan of Sa'dan at Madeira was arranged to a nicety.
In the case of the Prime Minister, the servants and
members of his household were interrogated, but were all dismissed
from the case as being beyond suspicion. They unitedly declared that,

(05:03):
to the best of their belief, no stranger had entered
the house up to the time of their going to bed,
nor had any suspicious person been seen in its vicinity
during the day. Moreover, the police on duty in the
square had been instructed to keep a watchful eye upon
the house, and they were able to affirm that they

(05:24):
had seen no one loitering near the Prime Minister's residence
from the earliest hours of morning until the time that
the news of the tragedy was made known. Yet the
fact remained that some one had entered the house and
had been able to make his way unobserved, to the
library where the crime was committed, and afterwards to get

(05:47):
out again undiscovered. Needless to say, a large reward was
offered by the authorities for any information which would lead
to a conviction, but though a multitude of communications were
received in answer to it, from all sorts and conditions
of people, not one was of any value. On the

(06:08):
Friday following the assassination of the Prime Minister, and the
day before the funeral, according to custom, I took a
constitutional in the park before going down to my office.
As a matter of fact, I was somewhat earlier than usual,
and for that reason, with the exception of a few
riders in the row and customary bicycle contingent, the park

(06:31):
was comparatively empty. I entered by the Grovner gate, walked
as far as the barracks, and then retraced my steps
towards Piccadilly, passing along the north bank of the Serpentine.
I had several difficult problems to work out that day,
and one of them was occupying my mind as I
walked beside the lake. Suddenly a voice I recognized fell

(06:55):
upon my ear, and I looked up to find seated
a few paces disay from me, no less a person
than the Countess de Vanezza. She was engaged in an
earnest conversation with a dark, foreign looking individual, an Italian.
Without the shadow of a doubt, the Countess did not
see me at first, but as soon as she did,

(07:17):
she said something hurriedly to the man beside her, and
came forward to greet me. You are out early, Sir George,
she began. The park is delightful at this time of
the day, is it not delightful? Indeed, I replied, I
did not expect, however, to have the pleasure of meeting
you in it. I walk here almost every morning, she answered.

(07:42):
And then after we had uttered a few commonplaces, she continued,
and now, while I think of it, let me apologize
to you for my rudeness in having omitted to thank
you again for the great service you rendered us on
the occasion of the burglary at Wiltship House. Had not
been for your prompt action, we should have been more

(08:04):
seriously robbed. While it is quite possible that something worse
might have happened, you say that you might have been
more seriously robbed. I returned, Am I to understand then
that the man was found in the house. After all,
he was not found in the house, she replied, but

(08:29):
we half discovered by what means he effected his escape
from it. While Conrad and the police were looking for
him downstairs, he was hidden in a dressing room adjoining
that which used to be my father's apartment, at the
back of the house. When they ascended the stairs, he
opened the window and lowered himself down to a roof below.

(08:52):
Then he must have made his way through the mews
at the back and reached safety again. In of this,
a small silver ornament, one of the few missing things,
was found next day in the guttering of the roof.
If this were so, then the detective statement to the
effect that the man who had entered the house was

(09:14):
none other than young Rifenbird was altogether beyond the mark,
and would only serve to show the folly of judging
by purely circumstantial evidence. In that case, Poura's suspect of
having admitted him to the house, I inquired, for this
was a point of considerable importance. An under footman, she replied,

(09:35):
who has since been discharged his behavior struck conrade as
being rather suspicious at the time, but it was not
until other things were found to be missing that we
derived a real knowledge of his character. I am rejoiced
to know that the mystery has been solved, I said,
but pray forgive me. Countess, see, I have driven your

(09:58):
friend away. She gave a start before she replied. He
is not my friend, she answered, somewhat hurriedly, merely a
begging compatriot. The poor fellow is a teacher of music
who puts forward his art as a claim upon my bounty.
He is anxious to return to Italy, but cannot do

(10:19):
so for want of means. Now, there was one point
about this speech that I did not understand. As I
had approached the seat, I distinctly heard the foreigner say,
authoritatively in Italian, it is the order of the council
and must be obeyed. Of course, the words might have

(10:39):
meant anything, but the town was certainly one of authority.
It struck me as being peculiar that an impoverished music
master soliciting the Countess's assistance should address her in such
a tone. Why I should have bothered myself with the
fellow's affairs? I cannot say. The impulse, however, was irresistible

(11:02):
to be stranded in a strange country's hard fate. I said,
since I am also a devote of his beautiful art,
will you not permit me to assist you in your
work of benevolence? If you will furnish me with the
man's name and address, I will see that he has
helped to attain his object. As I said this, I
could not help thinking that I detected a frightened look

(11:26):
in her face. Oh no, you must not do that,
she said hurriedly. He is a very proud man and
would only accept help from me because I am a
compatriot and happen to know something of his family. I
feel sure that he would be extremely angry with me
if he knew that I had said anything to you

(11:47):
upon the subject. I am sorry that you will not
let me assist him, I said. I have no desire, however,
to hurt his feelings. Forget that I said anything of it. Ah,
now I have offended you, she continued, with a look
of pain upon her face. Forgive me, I am very thoughtless.

(12:10):
Had we been speaking my own Italian, it would have
been different. Your English is so hard, so unsympathetic. Her
voice was so full of entreaty, her whole demeanor so
expressive of sorrow, that I almost repented me of the
trick I had endeavored to play upon her. What did

(12:33):
it matter to me whether the man were an old
friend or only the stranger she had represented him to be.
I accordingly begged her to say no more upon the subject,
assuring her that I was not in the least hurt
at her declining my offer. This seemed to soothe her,
and presently, when we had walked some little distance beside

(12:54):
the water, her cheerfulness returned. She had been amusing herself
of late, so she informed me by working out a
sketch for the dinner party to which she had invited me.
It was to be an unique affair of its kind.
All that remains to be settled is when shall it be?

(13:16):
She asked? How would Thursday next suit you? Impossible? I
am afraid, I answered, I have promised to go to
Aldershot on Wednesday to be present next day at an
inspection of the men who are to sail on Saturday
for the South. Then would the Wednesday following suit you? Admirably?

(13:39):
I replied, it would be more convenient for a variety
of reasons. Then it is settled that we are to
nying together on Wednesday week at eight o'clock. You will
not forget. Is it likely that I should be guilty
of such rudeness? I asked, and then added, with what
was for me unusual gallantry. I shall count the days

(14:03):
that must elapse before the time can arrive. I am
hopeful of being able to get the Duke of Rotherhithe
to meet you, she said, Do you know that he
is in England? I was not aware of it, I answered,
but I am very glad to hear it. Nevertheless, I
did not say that one of my reasons for being

(14:25):
glad was that I hoped to be able to obtain
from him some particulars concerning my fair friend. I remembered
the statement she had made during our journey from Paris
together to the effect that she and her father had
been yachting with Rotherhithe in the Mediterranean. If they were
on such intimate terms, it was more than likely that

(14:47):
my old friend would know more about her than any
one else in our world of fashion would be likely
to do. When we reached Hyde Park corner, we paused
for a few moments. I do not think she could
ever have looked more beautiful than she did then, certainly
never more dangerous. I wonder if after we part we

(15:10):
shall ever meet again, she said, with what was almost
a touch of sadness in her voice. Are you then
thinking of leaving England soon? I asked, in some surprise,
for until that moment she had not spoken of terminating
her visit. I do not think we shall remain very

(15:33):
much longer, she replied, I have duties abroad that are
called for my attention. I hope when you go that
you will be able to say you have enjoyed your
stay with us, I said, I should have, she replied,
had it not been for this dreadful war. But as
things are, how could one enjoy oneself? Had I known

(15:57):
then all that I now know, I should have realized
the double meaning contained in her remark, but more of
that anon. At last we bade each other good bye
and separated, she crossing the park in the direction of
Wilchier House, while I passed out and made my way
over Constitution Hill towards Pall Mall. On the Wednesday following

(16:20):
the event I have just described, I accompanied the Commander
in Chief and several other members of the government to
Aldershot to inspect the large body of troops than about
to leave for the front. We were to be the
guests of Lord Beckingdale during the time we were there,
in order to return to London on the Thursday evening

(16:42):
after the inspection, we accordingly left Waterloo together proceeded by
train to Farnborough and then drove to Lord Beckingdale's residence
by coach. It was a glorious afternoon and the change
from London to the country was delightful. I commented upon this,
whereupon Beckingdale, who was one of my oldest friends, began

(17:05):
to rally me on my preference for the metropolis. I
thought you would get over it in time, he said,
with one of his hearty laughs. Why don't you marry
George and settle down in the country. You would make
an ideal squire. I should be bored to death and
a week, I replied, Besides, who is there that would

(17:26):
take pity on me? I am not so young as
I was, and I am afraid that I have had
my liberty too long to make a good husband. As
I said this, the image of the Countess rose before
my mind's eye, though why it should have done so
at this particular moment is more than I can say.

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Though I admired her intensely, my admiration went no further.
She was a delightful hostess and an exceedingly clever woman.
But I should no more have thought of making her
Lady Manderville than I should have tried to jump from
the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament into the river.

(18:07):
At that moment, we were descending a steep hill through
a closely wooded plantation. We were half way down when
I happened to catch sight of a man standing among
the trees, some fifty yards or so from the road.
Strange to say. He was watching us through a pair
of field glasses, and was evidently much interested in our movements,

(18:29):
though it looked as if he himself had no desire
to attract attention. Then he disappeared among the brushwood, and
for the time being I thought no more about him.
On reaching the park, we were most cordially received by
Lady Beckondell, and partook of afternoon tea with her in
the hall, which is one of the most charming features

(18:51):
of that beautiful house. A stroll round the grounds and
a visit to the stud farm. Afterwards, whiled away the
time until the dressing gong sounded. Then we returned to
the house and made our way to our various rooms.
Before commencing to dress, I went to the windows and
looked out The gardens on that particular side of the

(19:14):
house slope upwards until they reached the small paddock which
separates them from the woods behind. Now I have a
fairly sharp eye and a faculty of noticing, which sometimes
stands me in good stead. On this particular occasion, I
was watching the evening light upon the trees in the
plantation opposite, when suddenly I saw a brace of pheasants

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fly quickly out, followed by a half dozen more. They
had evidently been disturbed by some human being. Just give
me my glasses for a moment. To Williams, I said,
and in a trice he had handed me the pair
I had brought down for the inspection next day. Seating
myself in the window, I brought them to bear upon

(19:58):
the spot where the birds had flown out. For a
moment I could see nothing. Then I thought I could
detect what looked like a gray trouser leg peeping out
beneath the branches of a fir. I called Williams to
my side and handed him the glasses, directing him where
to look. What do you make of it, I asked,

(20:19):
It looks as if there's somebody hiding there, Sir. He answered, yes, sir,
I'm sure of it, he added, a few moments later,
if you will look now, you will be able to
see him creeping away. I took the glasses again and
once more turned them upon the spot. What he had
said was quite correct. The figure of a man dressed

(20:42):
in a gray suit could just be distinguished, disappearing into
the deeper part of the wood. It immediately occurred to
me that the man I had seen that afternoon when
we were on our way to the park had also
been dressed in gray. Could the speedy individual who had
watched us then, and if so, what were his reasons

(21:05):
for behaving in this mysterious fashion. I did not like
the idea of it, remembering as I did the dangerous
condition of the times and the manner in which so
many of my friends had been attacked. Keep what you
have seen to yourself, Williams, I said, I will speak
to Lord Beckingdale myself about it when I go downstairs.

(21:27):
If the man is a poacher or has any dishonest
reason for being there, he will know what to do
in the matter. Williams promised to obey my instructions, and
when I had dressed, I made my way downstairs to
find our host and the Commander in Chief, standing before
the fireplace, in which a cheerful fire was burning. By

(21:51):
the way Beckondale, I said, when I had answered the
remark one of them made to me as I descended
the stairs, Who is the man in your plantation with
a gray suit and field glasses? Man with gray suit
and field glasses? He repeated, with a look of surprise
on his face. I have many friends who are the

(22:13):
happy possessors of both articles. But what makes you ask
me such a question at the present moment? For a
good and sufficient reason, I replied, and went on to
tell him of the two occasions that afternoon upon which
I had seen the person in question. What is singular thing?
He said, when I had finished, I wonder who the

(22:36):
fellow is and what his idea can be in watching
the house. As you are aware, the place is being
patrolled by police to night, and I think I had
better inform them of the circumstance. After the terrible events
of the last few weeks. It does not do to
run any risks. Can you describe the man? I furnished

(22:59):
him with as accurate a description of the fellow as
it was possible to give. Whereupon he departed in search
of the officer in command of the police. When he returned,
we joined the ladies in the drawing room, and then
went in to dinner. It was not until the ladies
had withdrawn and cigarettes were lighted that the subject of

(23:21):
the gray man was introduced. The small piece of paper
was handed to our host by the butler. He glanced
at it and then looked across the table to where
I sat. Here is the police report, he said. It
informs me that they have scoured all the plantations round
the estate, with the assistance of the keepers, but have

(23:42):
not been successful in discovering the man. You saw no
doubt he was some prying celebrity hunter who has taken
himself off to Aldershot, probably where he will have no
opportunity of seeing you tomorrow. This brought a round questions
from the others, who, with the exception of the Commander

(24:04):
in chief, had not heard of the incident. When each
man had settled the question to his own satisfaction, the
subject was dropped, and we rose from the table to
return to the drawing room. Here we indulged in music
and conversation until half past ten o'clock, smoked in the
billiard room for another hour, and at half past eleven

(24:26):
bade each other good night in the gallery that ran
round the hall, and retired to our respective rooms. By
this time the character of the night had changed. A
boisterous wind had risen, and heavy rain was driven tempestuously
against the window panes. It certainly did not look very

(24:47):
promising for the inspection On the morrow. I inquired from
Williams whether anything further had been heard concerning the men
we had both seen in the plantation opposite the house.
Not the Dame know of, sir, he replied, I did
not hear it mentioned. But there's one thing that's been
on my mind ever since you spoke to me about

(25:07):
it to night, and I must own that it puzzles me.
I don't say it's right, of course, at the same
time I've got a feeling that I'm not so very
far wrong. What is it? I inquired with interest for
Williams is estate and circumspect individual, and is not in
the habit of committing himself to a rash statement. It

(25:31):
is just this, sir, when you sent me down to
the Commander in Chief's residence with that note, this morning,
there was a man walking on the opposite side of
the street who, to the best of my belief, was
dressed just as this man was, that is to say,
in a gray suit and a soft black hat. There's

(25:52):
nothing very remarkable in that, I answered, a little disappointed.
You would probably find a dozen men dressed in the
a similar fashion and a short walk through the west End.
I beg your pardon, sir, but I thought the coincidence
worth mentioning. Williams replied in rather a crossfallen way. Then

(26:13):
he bade me good night, and I retired to rest
that night. I slept like a top and did not
wake until Williams entered my room next morning. He informed
me that the rain had passed off, that it was
a fine day, and then busied himself with preparations for
my toilet. These were barely accomplished, and I was in

(26:35):
the act of commencing to shave when the handle of
my door turned and Beckingdale, almost beside himself with excitement,
entered the room. Great Heavens, Manderville. He cried in a
voice which, had I not seen him, I should scarcely
have recognized as his. A most awful thing has happened.

(26:55):
The Commander and Chief is missing. Miss I echoed, as
if I scarcely understood the meaning of the word. What
do you mean? I mean that his valet came to
my man Walters about half an hour ago and told
him that he had knocked repeatedly on the door of

(27:15):
his master's bedroom and could get no reply. My man
came to me with the story, and when I had
tried the door myself with the same result, I gave
orders that I should be broken in. You may imagine
our feelings when we discovered the room to be empty.
The bed had been slept in, it is true, but

(27:36):
there was not a dress of the man we wanted.
What was more, the windows were shut. The police are
now searching in all directions. What on earth shall we do?
The inspection is at eleven o'clock, and it is most
unlikely that we shall have the good fortune to find

(27:56):
him before then. Terrible as the situation was, I could
not help recalling the fact that I had taken part
in just such another interview on the morning of Waller's disappearance,
when the Commander in Chief had asked my advice as
to what should be done to find the missing man
before that identical hour, Help me if you possibly can,

(28:21):
cried Beckingdal, who like myself, was quite overwhelmed by the
magnitude of the misfortune. Though I know I am not
to blame, I cannot help reproaching myself for having permitted
this to happen in my house. How can it have
been managed? And who can have done it? I shook

(28:41):
my head. The same mysterious power that is responsible for
Waller's disappearance and for the Prime Minister's death, I said,
But who is there amongst us who can say what
that power is? Good? Heavens, I cried. As the consequences
arose before me, The Commander in Chief gone, I can

(29:03):
scarcely credit it. Surely some one must have hurt something.
What room is beneath his bedroom the dining room, unfortunately,
Beckingdale replied, And as ill luck would have it, the
room adjoining it on the right is empty, while minister
occupies that on the left. The latter says he had

(29:26):
nothing suspicious, but that's easily accounted for by reason of
his deafness and the storm we had. But what on
earth can have become of him? I would give anything
to have him before me. Now, how cheerful he was
last night, and how sanguine as to the ultimate end
of the war. This will prove another bit of blow

(29:48):
to the nation, and it has had enough already, I replied,
we had better telegraphed to the War Office and Scotland
Yard at once. I have already done that, he said,
I have also sent a special messenger to the commanding
officer down here, informing him of the occurrence and asking

(30:12):
him to send out troops to scour the country in
the hope of discovering some trace of the missing man.
I do not see what else we can do at
the present. Then a pot struck me. What about the
gray man whom Williams declared he had seen on the
previous morning near the Commander in Chief's residence, whom I

(30:32):
had seen watching us through veale glasses on our way
to Beckingdale Park, and whom Williams and I had both
seen in plantation opposite the house when I went up
to dress for dinner, I recalled the fact of his
presence to Beckingdale. I have not forgotten him, he said directly.

(30:52):
I heard that they could not get into his room.
A suspicion of what might be in store for us
flashed through my mind, and I said to myself, if
anything has happened to him, I shall say that mander
Belle's gray Man is mixed up in the business. As
soon as the worst was apparent, I spoke to the
police upon the subject, and they have once more made

(31:16):
an effort to find him or to hear of him,
without success. The gray Man is as mysteriously missing as
the Commander in Chief himself, and as to the part
he played in the other's disappearance, it seems to me
that we are likely to remain as ignorant as we

(31:36):
are of everything else. Now dress as quickly as you can.
There's a good fellow, and come down to my study.
We must hold a council together and see what's to
be done. I did as he desired, and when I
was ready, I made my way to his study. When
I reached it, I found Backingdale and the one other

(31:59):
guest awaiting my coming. The terrible effect that had been
produced by the news of the morning was to be
seen on their faces. For upwards of an hour we
discussed the question in all its bearings, but eager as
we were to do all that lay in our power
to render assistance to the missing man, we were obliged

(32:20):
to confess that we were unable to do anything. By
this time, wires were pouring in from all parts, and
it is quite certain that the powers of the little
village telegraph office had never been so severely taxed before.
At ten o'clock it was decided by unanimous consent that

(32:42):
the inspection should be abandoned in the absence of the
Commander in Chief, and accordingly, at half past ten we
returned to town. It is needless for me to say
that it was a miserable journey. Our spirits were as
low as it was possible for all the spirits of
dead human beings to be. On reaching Waterloo, we drove

(33:04):
direct to the Foreign Office, where a cabinet council had
been hastily called together. When it was over, I drove home.
The streets echoed to the cries of the newsboys. Disappearance
of the Commander in chief disappearance of the Commander in
chie Eve. That evening, a new sensation was added to

(33:27):
the already long list, when it was known that the
notorious anarchist Luigi Ferrera had managed to escape from prison
some days before and was supposed to have crossed the
Channel and to be in England. Had I only known
then that he was the man I had seen talking
so excitedly to the Countess in the park a few

(33:50):
mornings before, and that at that very moment he was
occupying a room at Wiltshire House as a supposed invalid,
how speedily might retribution have descended upon him? Unfortunately, however,
I did not know. End of Chapter six