Ravensdene Court

far East on a magic carpet, to be set down in the twinkling of an eye on some Oriental threshold, we

ead, and a pigtail dependent from behind it-I was not sufficiently acquainted with Chinese costumes to gather any idea of his rank or position from these things-for aught I knew to the contrar

et us put you to any trouble. If we ma

, waving us politely in

gentleman to stand in his door and did not invite them into his hou

I said. "Thank you-we'll come

answered. "He is

oom which looked out on a trim garden at the rear of the house. Still smiling and bland he invited us to be seated

Chinese man servant?" sh

I mu

ng, half-amused glance,

ke-Easterns?"

n Northumberland they don't-shall we sa

she retorted, looking round

cabinets; the curtains were of fabric that could only have come out of some Eastern bazaar; there was a faint, curious scent of sandal-wood and of dried rose-leaves. And on the mantelpiec

Dr. Lorrimore said he had been in India for some years, did

en. "Now, if only it looked out on palm-trees, and-

cal English garden on which, at present, about a ton of rain is

d I suppose, if it does, that we can get some sort of a conve

ntry practitioner, I think, is more dependent on a b

its ivy-covered wall. He ran hastily up the path to the house-within a

he exclaimed, shaking hands with us warmly. "I see that neit

'd no idea it was yours, Dr. Lorrimore. And do tell me!-the C

it of grey tweed, in which, I thought, he looked rather younger and less impressive than in black. But he was certainly no ordinary man, and as he stood there smi

eneral factotum-there's nothing that he can't or won't do, from making the most perfect curries-I must have Mr. Raven to try them against the achievements of his man!-to taking care about the halfpennies, when he

from India, I s

e'd been with me for some time before I left. So

ere?" asked Miss Raven. "In such

-in short, he's Chinese. He has his own notions of happiness. At present he's supremely happy in getting you some tea-you mightn't think i

hat; rather, it was eminently Victorian, an affair of heavy furniture, steel engravings, and an array, on the sideboard, of what, I suppose, was ol

ith visitors to afternoon tea. Observe how Wing immediately falls in with English taste and custom! Without a word from me, out comes the silver tea-pot, the best china, the finest linen

your house, Dr. Lorrimore," said Miss Raven. "Bu

servant, penetrative. I have often wondered if this man of mine

n solving the present mystery," said I.

thrown from the other angle-from Devonport. From all that I heard and gathered, it's very evident that what is really wanted is a strict ex

afternoon-of the information given by James Be

eman I saw at Ravensdene Court who had some fancy about th

ve some meaning: they were, he believed, made with design-with some purpose. He thought that by photographing them, and then

more. "Well-what

aid Miss Raven. "Mr. Cazale

fect it before he speaks. Oh, well!" he added, almost indifferently, "I've known a good many murder mysteries in my time-out in India-and I always found that the really good way of getting at the bottom

ould be-wha

were the antecedents of

had a past?" sug

problems of the present have their origin and solution in the past. Find out what and where th

and I took our leave. Lorrimore informed us that Mr. Raven had asked him to

I live like an anchorite in this place. A little-a very little practice-the folk ar

," observed Miss Raven. "Please tell

ghing nod to which he responded with a deep bow-we left them with that curious picture in our minds: Lorri

has a plenitude of brain-power in it. What amazes me is that a clever chap like Master Wing should

omantic, and picturesque, and that sort of thing, to find a real live Chinaman in an Engl

said I. "Therefore he'll be indifferent to cr

bly good ale. Wing was just coming out of the house as I entered it. He was as neat, as bland, and as smiling as when I saw him before; he was still in his blue jacket, his little cap. But he was now armed with a very large umbrella, and on one

rved as he attended to my modest wants. "Yet it's not often

ikes me he must know as much of this country as he knows of his own, for he speaks our tongue like a nat

ubt he's had abundant opportunities of picking up the language. Still-it's

ilor men, mostly. But," he added, with a meaning look, "of all the lot, that poor cha

I. "I don't think anybody knows what t

inquiry-and the thing slips past. Of course, the man was a stranger. Nobody cares; that's about it. My notion is that the police don't care the v

ood deal in this parlou

set there, in from the village at the back of the cliffs-they could talk of naught else, starting first this and that theory. It'

opinion?" I inquired.

general opinion," he answered. "There's a

what?"

hat comes nearer being what you might call general than any of the others. There's a part

med. "Whatever make

y Quick's-they fitted his boots. The other was very light-delicate, you might call 'em-made, without doubt, by some light-footed person. Well, some

morning on which I had found Quick l

reflectively, "those

his, Mr. Middlebrook. But they haven't washed out the fact that a man's life was let out there! And wheth

. "There's a goodly percentage of

on that the murderer may be walking about this quarter, free, unsuspected. Why, I may ha' served

olice ought to do-or oug

e two men. Come! two brothers murdered on the same night-hundreds of miles apart! That's no common crime, Mr Middlebrook. Who were these two men-Noah and Salter Quick? What was their past history

le. Who, after all, were Noah and Salter Quick-what was their life-story. I was wondering how that could be brought to light,

and I'll acquaint you with a matter. This very morning, as I was taking my bit of a dip, m

ng of great value

that in it which, in my opinion, might be some sort