June 9, 2025 • 20 mins
Imagine pulling over 26 miles outside Bordeaux and having your life transform forever. This is exactly what happens to Seymour Merriman. His ordinary halt spirals him into a whirlwind of mystery, illicit smuggling, chilling murder, and unexpected romance. With the clock ticking, two amateur sleuths scramble to solve the baffling enigma of alternating number plates and the dangerous dealings of the pit prop syndicate. If they fail, the notorious Inspector Willis from Scotland Yard will take over. Dive into this riveting narrative and see where the journey takes you.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Part two, Chapter twelve of the Pitt prop Syndicate by
Freeman wills Croft's This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Part two The Professionals, Chapter twelve Murder. Almost exactly fifteen
hours before Merriman's call at Scotland Yard to Wit, about
(00:23):
eight o'clock on the previous evening, Inspector Willis of the
Criminal Investigation Department was smoking in the sitting room of
his tiny house in Brixton. George Willis was a tall,
somewhat burly man of five and forty, with heavy, clean shaven,
expressionless features which would have made his face almost stupid
had it not been redeemed by a pair of the
(00:45):
keenest of blue eyes. He was what is commonly known
as a safe man, not exactly brilliant, but plodding and
tenacious to an extraordinary degree. His forte was slight clues,
and he possessed that infinite capacity for taking pains, which
made his following up of them approximate to genius. In short,
(01:06):
though a trifle slow, he was already looked on as
one of the most efficient and reliable inspectors of the yard.
He had had a heavy day, and it was with
a sigh of relief that he picked up the evening
paper and stretched himself luxuriously in his easy chair. But
he was not destined to enjoy a long rest. Hardly
had he settled himself to his satisfaction when the telephone
(01:27):
bell rang, he was wanted back at the yard. Immediately,
he swore under his breath, Then, calling the news to
his wife, he slipped on his waterproof and left the house.
The long spell of fine weather had at last broken,
and the evening was unpleasant, indeed unusually inclement from mid September.
All the day the wind had been gusty and boisterous,
(01:48):
and now a fine drizzle of rain had set in,
which was driven in sheets against the grimy buildings, and
whirled in eddies round the street corners. Willis walked quickly
along the shining pavements, and in a few minutes reached
his destination. His chief was waiting for him. Ah, Willis,
the great Man, greeted him. I'm glad you weren't out.
(02:09):
A case has been reported which I want you to
take over. A suspected murder man found dead in a
taxi at King's Cross. Yes, Sir Willis answered, unemotionally. Any
details forward, none except that the man is dead and
that they're holding the taxi at the station. I have
asked doctor Whrton to come round, and you had both
(02:29):
better get over there as quickly as possible. Yes, Sir
Willis replied again, and quickly left the room. His preparations
were simple. He had only to arrange for a couple
of plainclothes men and a photographer with a flashlight apparatus
to accompany him, and to bring from his room a
hand bag containing his note book and a few other
necessary articles. He met the police doctor in the corridor,
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and the others being already in waiting. The five men
immediately left the great building and took a car to
the station. It's the case, inspector, do you know, doctor
Horton inquired, as they slipped deftly through the traffic. The
chief said, suspected murder man found dead in a taxi
at King's Cross. He had no details. How is it done?
(03:14):
Don't know, Sir Chief didn't say. After a few brief
observations on the inclemency of the weather, conversation waned between
the two men, and they followed the example of their
companions and sat watching with the depressed air, the rain
swept streets, and the hurrying foot passengers on the wet pavements.
All five were annoyed at being called out, as all
were tired and had been looking forward to an evening
(03:36):
of relaxation at their homes. They made a quick run,
reaching the station in a very few minutes. There a
constable identified the inspector. They've taken the taxi round to
the carrier's yard at the west end of the station. Sir,
he said to Willis, if you'll follow me, I'll show
you the way. The officer led them to an enclosed
(03:56):
and partially roofed area at the back of the parcel's office,
where the vans from the shops unloaded their traffic. In
a corner under the roof and surrounded by a little
knot of men, stood a taxi cab. As Willis and
his companions approached, a sergeant of police separated himself from
the others and came forward. We have touched nothing, sir,
he announced, When we found the man was dead. We
(04:17):
didn't even move the body. Willis nodded, quite right, sergeant,
it's murder. I suppose looks like it, Sir the man
was shot shot. Anything known of the murderer, not much,
I'm afraid, sir. He got clear away and Tottenham Court
Road as far as I can understand it. But you'll
hear what the driver has to say again. The inspector
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nodded as he stepped up to the vehicle. Here's doctor Newman,
the sergeant continued, indicating an exceedingly dapper and well groomed
little man with Medico written all over him. He was
the nearest medical man we could get. Willis turned courteously
to the other. An unpleasant evening to be called out, doctor,
He remarked, The man's dead, I understand. Was he dead
(05:00):
when you arrived? Yes, but only a very little time.
The body was quite warm and the cause of death.
Seeing that I could do nothing, I did not move
the body until you Scotland Yard gentlemen had seen it.
And therefore I cannot say professionally, but there is a
small hole in the side of the coat over the heart.
The doctor spoke, with a slightly consequential air. A bullet wound.
(05:24):
A bullet wound, unquestionably, Inspector Willis picked up an acetylene
bicycle lamp which one of the men had procured and
directed its beam into the cab. The corpse lay in
the back corner seat on the driver's side, the head
lolling back sideways against the cushions and crushing into a
shapeless mass the gray Homburg hat. The mouth and eyes
(05:44):
were open, and the features twisted, as if from sudden pain.
The face was long and oval, the hair and eyes dark,
and there was a tiny black mustache with waxed ends.
A khaki colored waterproof open in front revealed a gray
tweed suit across the waistcoat of which shone a gold
watch chain. Tan shoes covered the feet. On the left
(06:04):
side of the body, just over the heart was a
little round hole in the waterproof coat. Willis stopped and
smelled the cloth, no blackening and no smell of burned powder.
He thought he must have been shot from outside of
the cab, but he found it hard to understand how
such a shock could have been fired from the populous
streets of London. The hole also seemed too far round
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toward the back of the body to suggest that the
bullet had come in through the open window. The point
was puzzling, but Willis pulled himself up sharply, with the
reminder that he must not begin theorizing until he had
learned all of the facts. Having gazed at the gruesome
sight until he had impressed its every detail on his memory,
he turned to his assistant. Goat ahead with your flashlight, Kirby,
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he ordered, take views from all the angles you can.
The constable will give you a hand meantime, Sergeant, give
me an idea of the case. What does the driver
say he's here, sir? The officer returned, pointing to a small,
slight individual in a leather coat and cap, with a sallow,
frightened face and pathetic dog like eyes, which fixed themselves
questioningly on Willis's face. As the sergeant led their owner forward.
(07:11):
You might tell me what you know, driver, The man
shifted nervously from one foot to the other. It was
this way, sir, he began. He spoke earnestly, and to Willis,
who was accustomed to sizing up rapidly those with whom
he dealt, he seemed a sincere and honest ma'am. I
was driving down Piccadilly from Hyde Park Corner, looking out
for a fair, and when I gets just by the
(07:32):
end of Bond Street, two men, hails me. One was
this here man, what's dead? The other there was a big,
tall gent. I pulls into the curb and they gets in,
and the tall gent says, King's Cross. I starts off
by Piccadilly Circus in Shaftesbury Avenue. But when I gets
into Tottenham Court Road, about the corner of Great Russell Street,
one of them says, through the tube, let me down
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here at the corner of Great Russell Street. He says,
I pulls over to the curb, and the tall gent
he gets out and stands on the curb and speaks
in to the other one. Then I shall follow by
the three o'clock tomorrow, he says. And he shuts the
door and gives me a bob and says, that's for yourself,
he says, And my friend will square up at the station.
He says, I come on here, and when this here
(08:13):
man opens the door, he indicated the porter standing by,
why the man's dead. And that's all I knows about it.
The statement was made directly and convincingly, and Willis frowned
as he thought that such apparently simple cases proved frequently
to be the most baffling. In the end, in his slow,
careful way, He went over in his mind what he
had heard, and then began to try for further details.
(08:37):
At what time did you pick up the men, he inquired?
About half past seven? We're maybe twenty to eight. Did
you see where they were coming from? No, sir, they
were standing on the curb, and the tall one he
holds up his hand for me to pull over. Would
you know the tall man again? The driver shook his head.
I don't know as I should, sir. You see, it
(08:57):
was raining, and he had his collar up round his
neck and his hat pulled down over his eyes so
as I couldn't see his face. Describe him as best
you can. He was a tall man, longer than what
you are, and broad too, a big man, I should
call him. How was he dressed? He had a waterproof
khaki color about the color of your own, with the
collar up round his neck his hat. His hat was
(09:19):
a soft felt dark either brown or green, I couldn't
rightly say, with the brim turned down in front and
his face man alive. You must have seen his face
when he gave you the shilling. The driver stared helplessly.
Then he answered, I couldn't be sure about his face,
not with the way he had his collar up and
his hat pulled down. It was raining and blowin something cruel.
(09:42):
The other man reply. When the tall one spoke into
the cab. Didn't hear no reply at all, sir. Inspector
Willis thought for a moment, and then started on another track.
Did you hear a shot, he asked sharply. I heard it, sir,
right enough. But I didn't think it was a shot
at the time, and I didn't think it was in
my cab. It was just when we were passing the
(10:02):
Apollo Theater and there was a big block of cars
setting people down, and I thought it was a burst tire.
There's somebody's tire gone to glory, I says to myself.
But I give it no more thought, for it takes
you to be awake to drive up Shaftesbury Avenue when
the theaters are starting. You said you didn't think the
shot was in your cab. What do you think now?
It was the only sound like a shot, sir, And
(10:24):
if the man has been shot, it would have been
then Willis nodded shortly. There was something puzzling here. If
the shot had been fired by the other occupant of
the cab, as the man's evidence seemed to indicate, there
would certainly have been powder blackening on the coat. If not,
and the bullet had entered from without, the other passenger
would surely have stopped the car and called a policeman. Presently,
(10:47):
he saw that some corroborative evidence might exist. If the
bullet came from without, the left hand window must have
been down, as there was no hole in the glass.
In this case, the wind, which was blowing from the
northwest would unfallibly have driven in the rain, and drops
would still show on the cushions. He must look for
them without delay. He paused to ask the driver one
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more question, whether he could identify the voice which told
him through the speaking tube to stop with that of
the man who had given him the shilling. The man,
answering affirmatively. Willis turned to one of the plainclothes men.
You have heard this driver's statement, Jones, He said, you
might get away at once and see the men who
were on point duty, both at the corner of Great
Russell Street where the tall man got out, and in
(11:31):
Piccadilly were both got in. Try the hotels thereabouts, the
Albemarrow and any others you can think of. If you
can get any information, follow it up and keep me
advised at the yard of your movements. The man hurried away,
and Willis moved over once more to the taxi. The
assistant had by this time finished his flashlight photographs, and
the inspector, picking up the bicycle lamp, looked again into
(11:54):
the interior. A moment's examination showed him there were no
rain drops on the cushions, but his search nevertheless was
not unproductive. Looking more carefully this time than previously, he
noticed on the floor of the cab a dark object,
almost hidden beneath the seat. He drew it out. It
was a piece of thick black cloth about a yard square.
(12:16):
Considerably mystified, he held it up by two corners, and
then his puzzle became solved. In the cloth were two
small holes, and round one of them, the fabric was
charred and bore the characteristic smell of burnt powder. It
was clear what had been done with the object, doubtless
of hiding the flash as well as of muffling the report.
The murderer had covered his weapon with a double thickness
(12:38):
of heavy cloth. No doubt it had admirably achieved its purpose,
and Willets seized it eagerly in the hopes that it
might furnish him with a clue as to its owner.
He folded it and set it aside for further examination,
turning back to the body. Under his direction, it was
lifted out, placed on an ambulance stretcher provided by the
railway men, and taken to a disu's office close by. There,
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the clothes were removed, and while the doctors busied themselves
with the remains, Willis went through the pockets and arranged
their contents on one of the desks. The clothes themselves
revealed but little information. The waterproof and shoes, it is true,
bore the maker's labels, but both these articles were the
ready made products of large firms, and inquiry at their
premises would be unlikely to lead to any result. None
(13:25):
of the garments bore any name or identifiable mark. Willis
then occupied himself with the contents of the pockets. Besides
the gold watch and chain, bunch of keys, knife, cigarette case,
loose coins, and other small objects which a man such
as the deceased might reasonably be expected to carry, there
were two to which the inspector turned with some hope
of help. The first was a folded sheet of paper
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which proved to be a receded hotel bill. It showed
that a mister Cockburn and another had stayed in the
Peverel Hotel in Russell Square during the previous four days.
When Willis saw it, he gave a grunt of satisfaction.
It would doubtless offer a ready means to learn the
identity of the deceased, as well, possibly as of the
other in whom Willis was already even more interested. Moreover,
(14:12):
so good a clue must be worked without delay. He
called over the second plainclothesman. Take this bill to the
Peverrel Matthews, he ordered, find out if the dead man
is this Coburn, and if possible, get the track of
his companion. If I don't get anything better here, I
shall follow you round, but keep the yard devised of
your movements. In any case, Before the man left, Willis
(14:33):
examined the second object. It was a pocket book, but
it proved rather disappointing. It contained two five pound Bank
of England notes, nine one pound and three ten shilling
treasury notes, the return half of a third class railway
ticket from Hull to King's Cross, a Great Northern cloak
room ticket, a few visiting cards inscribed mister Francis Coburn,
(14:53):
and lastly the photograph by Kramer of Regent suite of
a pretty girl of about twenty. Willis mentally noted the
three possible clues. These articles seemed to suggest inquiries in Hull,
the discovery of the girl through Messrs Kramer, and third
and most important, luggage or a parcel in some great
Northern cloak room, which on recovery might afford him help.
(15:17):
The presence of the money also seemed important, as this
showed that the motive for the murder had not been robbery.
Having made a parcel of the clothes for transport to
the yard, reduced to writing the statements of the driver
and of the porter who had made the discovery, and
arranged with the doctors as to the disposal of the body.
Willis closed and locked the taxi and sent it in
(15:37):
charge of a constable to Scotland Yard. Then, with the
cloak room ticket, he went round to see if he
could find the office which had issued it. The rooms
were all shut tight for the night, but an official
from the station Master's office went round with him and
after a brief search, they found the article for which
the ticket was a voucher. It was a small suit case, locked,
and Willis brought it away with him, intending to open
(15:59):
it at his leisure. His work at the station being
by this time complete, he returned to the yard carrying
the suit case. There, though it was growing late, he
forced the lock and sat down to examine the contents,
but from them he received no help. The bag contained
just the articles which a man in middle class circumstances
would naturally carry on a week or fortnight's trip, a
(16:20):
suit of clothes, clean linen, toilet appliances and such like.
Nowhere could Willis find anything of interest. Telephone messages, meanwhile,
had come in from the two plain clothes men. Jones
reported that he had interviewed all the constables who had
been on point duty at the places in question, but
without result, nor could any of the staffs of the
neighboring hotels or restaurants assist him. The call from Peverrell
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conveyed slightly more information. The Managerress so Matthew said, had
been most courteous and had sent for several members of
her staff in the hope that some of them might
be able to answer his questions, but the sum total
of the knowledge he gained was not great. In the
first it was evident that the deceased was mister Colburn himself.
It appeared that he was accompanied by a Miss Coburn,
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whom the Managerress believed to be his daughter. He had
been heard addressing her as Madeline. The two had arrived
in time for dinner five days previously, Redger String f
Coburn and Miss Coburn, and had left about eleven on
the morning of the murder. On each of the four
days of their stay, they had been out a good deal,
but they had left and returned at different hours, and
(17:27):
therefore appeared not to have spent their time together. They seemed, however,
on very affectionate terms. No address had been left to
which letters might be forwarded, and it was not known
where the two visitors had intended to go when they left.
Neither the Managerress nor any of the staff had seen
any one resembling the tall Man. Inspector Willis was considerably
(17:47):
disappointed by the news. He had hoped that mister Coburn's
fellow guest would have been the murderer, and that he
would have left some trace from which his identity could
have been ascertained. However, the daughter's information would no doubt
to be valuable, and his next care must be to
find her and learn her story. She might, of course
save him the trouble by herself coming forward. She would
(18:07):
be almost certain to see an account of the murder
in the papers, and even if not, her father's disappearance
would inevitably lead her to communicate with the police. But
Willis could not depend on this. She might, for example,
have left the previous day on a voyage, and a
considerable time might elapse before she learned of the tragedy. No,
he would have to trace her as if she herself
(18:27):
were the assassin. He looked at his watch and was
surprised to learn that it was after one o'clock. Nothing
more could be done that night, and with a sigh
of relief, he turned his step homewards. Next morning, he
was back at the yard by eight o'clock. His first
care was to re examine the taxi by daylight for
some mark or article left by its recent occupants. He
was extraordinarily thorough and painstaking, scrutinizing every inch of the
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floor and cushions, and trying the door handles and window
straps for finger marks, but without success. He went over
once again the clothes the dead man was wayring, as
well as those in the suit case, took prints from
the dead man's fingers, and began to get things in
order for the inquest. Next, he saw doctor Wharton and
learned that mister Coburn had been killed by a bullet
from an exceedingly small automatic pistol, one evidently selected to
(19:14):
make the minimum of noise and flash, and from which
a long carry was not required. When the details were complete,
he thought it would not be too early to call
it the peverrel and begin the search for miss Coburn.
He therefore sent for a taxi, and a few minutes
later was seated in the office of the man address.
She repeated what Matthews had already told him, and he
personally interviewed the various servants with whom the Coburns had
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come in contact. He also searched the rooms they had occupied,
examined with a mirror the blotting paper on a table
at which the young lady had been seen to write,
and interrogated an elderly lady visitor with whom she had
made an acquaintance, but he learned nothing. The girl had
vanished completely, and he could see no way in which
he might be able to trace her. He sat down
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in the lounge and gave himself up to thought, and
then suddenly an idea flashed into his mind. He started
sat for a moment rigid, and then gave a little gasp. Lord,
he muttered, but I'm a blamed idiot. How in hades
did I miss that? He sprang to his feet and
hurried out of the lounge. End of Chapter twelve.
Part two, Chapter twelve of the Pitt prop Syndicate by
Freeman wills Croft's This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Part two The Professionals, Chapter twelve Murder. Almost exactly fifteen
hours before Merriman's call at Scotland Yard to Wit, about
(00:23):
eight o'clock on the previous evening, Inspector Willis of the
Criminal Investigation Department was smoking in the sitting room of
his tiny house in Brixton. George Willis was a tall,
somewhat burly man of five and forty, with heavy, clean shaven,
expressionless features which would have made his face almost stupid
had it not been redeemed by a pair of the
(00:45):
keenest of blue eyes. He was what is commonly known
as a safe man, not exactly brilliant, but plodding and
tenacious to an extraordinary degree. His forte was slight clues,
and he possessed that infinite capacity for taking pains, which
made his following up of them approximate to genius. In short,
(01:06):
though a trifle slow, he was already looked on as
one of the most efficient and reliable inspectors of the yard.
He had had a heavy day, and it was with
a sigh of relief that he picked up the evening
paper and stretched himself luxuriously in his easy chair. But
he was not destined to enjoy a long rest. Hardly
had he settled himself to his satisfaction when the telephone
(01:27):
bell rang, he was wanted back at the yard. Immediately,
he swore under his breath, Then, calling the news to
his wife, he slipped on his waterproof and left the house.
The long spell of fine weather had at last broken,
and the evening was unpleasant, indeed unusually inclement from mid September.
All the day the wind had been gusty and boisterous,
(01:48):
and now a fine drizzle of rain had set in,
which was driven in sheets against the grimy buildings, and
whirled in eddies round the street corners. Willis walked quickly
along the shining pavements, and in a few minutes reached
his destination. His chief was waiting for him. Ah, Willis,
the great Man, greeted him. I'm glad you weren't out.
(02:09):
A case has been reported which I want you to
take over. A suspected murder man found dead in a
taxi at King's Cross. Yes, Sir Willis answered, unemotionally. Any
details forward, none except that the man is dead and
that they're holding the taxi at the station. I have
asked doctor Whrton to come round, and you had both
(02:29):
better get over there as quickly as possible. Yes, Sir
Willis replied again, and quickly left the room. His preparations
were simple. He had only to arrange for a couple
of plainclothes men and a photographer with a flashlight apparatus
to accompany him, and to bring from his room a
hand bag containing his note book and a few other
necessary articles. He met the police doctor in the corridor,
(02:53):
and the others being already in waiting. The five men
immediately left the great building and took a car to
the station. It's the case, inspector, do you know, doctor
Horton inquired, as they slipped deftly through the traffic. The
chief said, suspected murder man found dead in a taxi
at King's Cross. He had no details. How is it done?
(03:14):
Don't know, Sir Chief didn't say. After a few brief
observations on the inclemency of the weather, conversation waned between
the two men, and they followed the example of their
companions and sat watching with the depressed air, the rain
swept streets, and the hurrying foot passengers on the wet pavements.
All five were annoyed at being called out, as all
were tired and had been looking forward to an evening
(03:36):
of relaxation at their homes. They made a quick run,
reaching the station in a very few minutes. There a
constable identified the inspector. They've taken the taxi round to
the carrier's yard at the west end of the station. Sir,
he said to Willis, if you'll follow me, I'll show
you the way. The officer led them to an enclosed
(03:56):
and partially roofed area at the back of the parcel's office,
where the vans from the shops unloaded their traffic. In
a corner under the roof and surrounded by a little
knot of men, stood a taxi cab. As Willis and
his companions approached, a sergeant of police separated himself from
the others and came forward. We have touched nothing, sir,
he announced, When we found the man was dead. We
(04:17):
didn't even move the body. Willis nodded, quite right, sergeant,
it's murder. I suppose looks like it, Sir the man
was shot shot. Anything known of the murderer, not much,
I'm afraid, sir. He got clear away and Tottenham Court
Road as far as I can understand it. But you'll
hear what the driver has to say again. The inspector
(04:39):
nodded as he stepped up to the vehicle. Here's doctor Newman,
the sergeant continued, indicating an exceedingly dapper and well groomed
little man with Medico written all over him. He was
the nearest medical man we could get. Willis turned courteously
to the other. An unpleasant evening to be called out, doctor,
He remarked, The man's dead, I understand. Was he dead
(05:00):
when you arrived? Yes, but only a very little time.
The body was quite warm and the cause of death.
Seeing that I could do nothing, I did not move
the body until you Scotland Yard gentlemen had seen it.
And therefore I cannot say professionally, but there is a
small hole in the side of the coat over the heart.
The doctor spoke, with a slightly consequential air. A bullet wound.
(05:24):
A bullet wound, unquestionably, Inspector Willis picked up an acetylene
bicycle lamp which one of the men had procured and
directed its beam into the cab. The corpse lay in
the back corner seat on the driver's side, the head
lolling back sideways against the cushions and crushing into a
shapeless mass the gray Homburg hat. The mouth and eyes
(05:44):
were open, and the features twisted, as if from sudden pain.
The face was long and oval, the hair and eyes dark,
and there was a tiny black mustache with waxed ends.
A khaki colored waterproof open in front revealed a gray
tweed suit across the waistcoat of which shone a gold
watch chain. Tan shoes covered the feet. On the left
(06:04):
side of the body, just over the heart was a
little round hole in the waterproof coat. Willis stopped and
smelled the cloth, no blackening and no smell of burned powder.
He thought he must have been shot from outside of
the cab, but he found it hard to understand how
such a shock could have been fired from the populous
streets of London. The hole also seemed too far round
(06:26):
toward the back of the body to suggest that the
bullet had come in through the open window. The point
was puzzling, but Willis pulled himself up sharply, with the
reminder that he must not begin theorizing until he had
learned all of the facts. Having gazed at the gruesome
sight until he had impressed its every detail on his memory,
he turned to his assistant. Goat ahead with your flashlight, Kirby,
(06:46):
he ordered, take views from all the angles you can.
The constable will give you a hand meantime, Sergeant, give
me an idea of the case. What does the driver
say he's here, sir? The officer returned, pointing to a small,
slight individual in a leather coat and cap, with a sallow,
frightened face and pathetic dog like eyes, which fixed themselves
questioningly on Willis's face. As the sergeant led their owner forward.
(07:11):
You might tell me what you know, driver, The man
shifted nervously from one foot to the other. It was
this way, sir, he began. He spoke earnestly, and to Willis,
who was accustomed to sizing up rapidly those with whom
he dealt, he seemed a sincere and honest ma'am. I
was driving down Piccadilly from Hyde Park Corner, looking out
for a fair, and when I gets just by the
(07:32):
end of Bond Street, two men, hails me. One was
this here man, what's dead? The other there was a big,
tall gent. I pulls into the curb and they gets in,
and the tall gent says, King's Cross. I starts off
by Piccadilly Circus in Shaftesbury Avenue. But when I gets
into Tottenham Court Road, about the corner of Great Russell Street,
one of them says, through the tube, let me down
(07:53):
here at the corner of Great Russell Street. He says,
I pulls over to the curb, and the tall gent
he gets out and stands on the curb and speaks
in to the other one. Then I shall follow by
the three o'clock tomorrow, he says. And he shuts the
door and gives me a bob and says, that's for yourself,
he says, And my friend will square up at the station.
He says, I come on here, and when this here
(08:13):
man opens the door, he indicated the porter standing by,
why the man's dead. And that's all I knows about it.
The statement was made directly and convincingly, and Willis frowned
as he thought that such apparently simple cases proved frequently
to be the most baffling. In the end, in his slow,
careful way, He went over in his mind what he
had heard, and then began to try for further details.
(08:37):
At what time did you pick up the men, he inquired?
About half past seven? We're maybe twenty to eight. Did
you see where they were coming from? No, sir, they
were standing on the curb, and the tall one he
holds up his hand for me to pull over. Would
you know the tall man again? The driver shook his head.
I don't know as I should, sir. You see, it
(08:57):
was raining, and he had his collar up round his
neck and his hat pulled down over his eyes so
as I couldn't see his face. Describe him as best
you can. He was a tall man, longer than what
you are, and broad too, a big man, I should
call him. How was he dressed? He had a waterproof
khaki color about the color of your own, with the
collar up round his neck his hat. His hat was
(09:19):
a soft felt dark either brown or green, I couldn't
rightly say, with the brim turned down in front and
his face man alive. You must have seen his face
when he gave you the shilling. The driver stared helplessly.
Then he answered, I couldn't be sure about his face,
not with the way he had his collar up and
his hat pulled down. It was raining and blowin something cruel.
(09:42):
The other man reply. When the tall one spoke into
the cab. Didn't hear no reply at all, sir. Inspector
Willis thought for a moment, and then started on another track.
Did you hear a shot, he asked sharply. I heard it, sir,
right enough. But I didn't think it was a shot
at the time, and I didn't think it was in
my cab. It was just when we were passing the
(10:02):
Apollo Theater and there was a big block of cars
setting people down, and I thought it was a burst tire.
There's somebody's tire gone to glory, I says to myself.
But I give it no more thought, for it takes
you to be awake to drive up Shaftesbury Avenue when
the theaters are starting. You said you didn't think the
shot was in your cab. What do you think now?
It was the only sound like a shot, sir, And
(10:24):
if the man has been shot, it would have been
then Willis nodded shortly. There was something puzzling here. If
the shot had been fired by the other occupant of
the cab, as the man's evidence seemed to indicate, there
would certainly have been powder blackening on the coat. If not,
and the bullet had entered from without, the other passenger
would surely have stopped the car and called a policeman. Presently,
(10:47):
he saw that some corroborative evidence might exist. If the
bullet came from without, the left hand window must have
been down, as there was no hole in the glass.
In this case, the wind, which was blowing from the
northwest would unfallibly have driven in the rain, and drops
would still show on the cushions. He must look for
them without delay. He paused to ask the driver one
(11:09):
more question, whether he could identify the voice which told
him through the speaking tube to stop with that of
the man who had given him the shilling. The man,
answering affirmatively. Willis turned to one of the plainclothes men.
You have heard this driver's statement, Jones, He said, you
might get away at once and see the men who
were on point duty, both at the corner of Great
Russell Street where the tall man got out, and in
(11:31):
Piccadilly were both got in. Try the hotels thereabouts, the
Albemarrow and any others you can think of. If you
can get any information, follow it up and keep me
advised at the yard of your movements. The man hurried away,
and Willis moved over once more to the taxi. The
assistant had by this time finished his flashlight photographs, and
the inspector, picking up the bicycle lamp, looked again into
(11:54):
the interior. A moment's examination showed him there were no
rain drops on the cushions, but his search nevertheless was
not unproductive. Looking more carefully this time than previously, he
noticed on the floor of the cab a dark object,
almost hidden beneath the seat. He drew it out. It
was a piece of thick black cloth about a yard square.
(12:16):
Considerably mystified, he held it up by two corners, and
then his puzzle became solved. In the cloth were two
small holes, and round one of them, the fabric was
charred and bore the characteristic smell of burnt powder. It
was clear what had been done with the object, doubtless
of hiding the flash as well as of muffling the report.
The murderer had covered his weapon with a double thickness
(12:38):
of heavy cloth. No doubt it had admirably achieved its purpose,
and Willets seized it eagerly in the hopes that it
might furnish him with a clue as to its owner.
He folded it and set it aside for further examination,
turning back to the body. Under his direction, it was
lifted out, placed on an ambulance stretcher provided by the
railway men, and taken to a disu's office close by. There,
(13:03):
the clothes were removed, and while the doctors busied themselves
with the remains, Willis went through the pockets and arranged
their contents on one of the desks. The clothes themselves
revealed but little information. The waterproof and shoes, it is true,
bore the maker's labels, but both these articles were the
ready made products of large firms, and inquiry at their
premises would be unlikely to lead to any result. None
(13:25):
of the garments bore any name or identifiable mark. Willis
then occupied himself with the contents of the pockets. Besides
the gold watch and chain, bunch of keys, knife, cigarette case,
loose coins, and other small objects which a man such
as the deceased might reasonably be expected to carry, there
were two to which the inspector turned with some hope
of help. The first was a folded sheet of paper
(13:48):
which proved to be a receded hotel bill. It showed
that a mister Cockburn and another had stayed in the
Peverel Hotel in Russell Square during the previous four days.
When Willis saw it, he gave a grunt of satisfaction.
It would doubtless offer a ready means to learn the
identity of the deceased, as well, possibly as of the
other in whom Willis was already even more interested. Moreover,
(14:12):
so good a clue must be worked without delay. He
called over the second plainclothesman. Take this bill to the
Peverrel Matthews, he ordered, find out if the dead man
is this Coburn, and if possible, get the track of
his companion. If I don't get anything better here, I
shall follow you round, but keep the yard devised of
your movements. In any case, Before the man left, Willis
(14:33):
examined the second object. It was a pocket book, but
it proved rather disappointing. It contained two five pound Bank
of England notes, nine one pound and three ten shilling
treasury notes, the return half of a third class railway
ticket from Hull to King's Cross, a Great Northern cloak
room ticket, a few visiting cards inscribed mister Francis Coburn,
(14:53):
and lastly the photograph by Kramer of Regent suite of
a pretty girl of about twenty. Willis mentally noted the
three possible clues. These articles seemed to suggest inquiries in Hull,
the discovery of the girl through Messrs Kramer, and third
and most important, luggage or a parcel in some great
Northern cloak room, which on recovery might afford him help.
(15:17):
The presence of the money also seemed important, as this
showed that the motive for the murder had not been robbery.
Having made a parcel of the clothes for transport to
the yard, reduced to writing the statements of the driver
and of the porter who had made the discovery, and
arranged with the doctors as to the disposal of the body.
Willis closed and locked the taxi and sent it in
(15:37):
charge of a constable to Scotland Yard. Then, with the
cloak room ticket, he went round to see if he
could find the office which had issued it. The rooms
were all shut tight for the night, but an official
from the station Master's office went round with him and
after a brief search, they found the article for which
the ticket was a voucher. It was a small suit case, locked,
and Willis brought it away with him, intending to open
(15:59):
it at his leisure. His work at the station being
by this time complete, he returned to the yard carrying
the suit case. There, though it was growing late, he
forced the lock and sat down to examine the contents,
but from them he received no help. The bag contained
just the articles which a man in middle class circumstances
would naturally carry on a week or fortnight's trip, a
(16:20):
suit of clothes, clean linen, toilet appliances and such like.
Nowhere could Willis find anything of interest. Telephone messages, meanwhile,
had come in from the two plain clothes men. Jones
reported that he had interviewed all the constables who had
been on point duty at the places in question, but
without result, nor could any of the staffs of the
neighboring hotels or restaurants assist him. The call from Peverrell
(16:44):
conveyed slightly more information. The Managerress so Matthew said, had
been most courteous and had sent for several members of
her staff in the hope that some of them might
be able to answer his questions, but the sum total
of the knowledge he gained was not great. In the
first it was evident that the deceased was mister Colburn himself.
It appeared that he was accompanied by a Miss Coburn,
(17:06):
whom the Managerress believed to be his daughter. He had
been heard addressing her as Madeline. The two had arrived
in time for dinner five days previously, Redger String f
Coburn and Miss Coburn, and had left about eleven on
the morning of the murder. On each of the four
days of their stay, they had been out a good deal,
but they had left and returned at different hours, and
(17:27):
therefore appeared not to have spent their time together. They seemed, however,
on very affectionate terms. No address had been left to
which letters might be forwarded, and it was not known
where the two visitors had intended to go when they left.
Neither the Managerress nor any of the staff had seen
any one resembling the tall Man. Inspector Willis was considerably
(17:47):
disappointed by the news. He had hoped that mister Coburn's
fellow guest would have been the murderer, and that he
would have left some trace from which his identity could
have been ascertained. However, the daughter's information would no doubt
to be valuable, and his next care must be to
find her and learn her story. She might, of course
save him the trouble by herself coming forward. She would
(18:07):
be almost certain to see an account of the murder
in the papers, and even if not, her father's disappearance
would inevitably lead her to communicate with the police. But
Willis could not depend on this. She might, for example,
have left the previous day on a voyage, and a
considerable time might elapse before she learned of the tragedy. No,
he would have to trace her as if she herself
(18:27):
were the assassin. He looked at his watch and was
surprised to learn that it was after one o'clock. Nothing
more could be done that night, and with a sigh
of relief, he turned his step homewards. Next morning, he
was back at the yard by eight o'clock. His first
care was to re examine the taxi by daylight for
some mark or article left by its recent occupants. He
was extraordinarily thorough and painstaking, scrutinizing every inch of the
(18:51):
floor and cushions, and trying the door handles and window
straps for finger marks, but without success. He went over
once again the clothes the dead man was wayring, as
well as those in the suit case, took prints from
the dead man's fingers, and began to get things in
order for the inquest. Next, he saw doctor Wharton and
learned that mister Coburn had been killed by a bullet
from an exceedingly small automatic pistol, one evidently selected to
(19:14):
make the minimum of noise and flash, and from which
a long carry was not required. When the details were complete,
he thought it would not be too early to call
it the peverrel and begin the search for miss Coburn.
He therefore sent for a taxi, and a few minutes
later was seated in the office of the man address.
She repeated what Matthews had already told him, and he
personally interviewed the various servants with whom the Coburns had
(19:36):
come in contact. He also searched the rooms they had occupied,
examined with a mirror the blotting paper on a table
at which the young lady had been seen to write,
and interrogated an elderly lady visitor with whom she had
made an acquaintance, but he learned nothing. The girl had
vanished completely, and he could see no way in which
he might be able to trace her. He sat down
(19:57):
in the lounge and gave himself up to thought, and
then suddenly an idea flashed into his mind. He started
sat for a moment rigid, and then gave a little gasp. Lord,
he muttered, but I'm a blamed idiot. How in hades
did I miss that? He sprang to his feet and
hurried out of the lounge. End of Chapter twelve.
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