Ravensdene Court

am sure that Mr. Raven's announcement that there was a real live one close at hand immediately excited much curiosity. Miss Raven, in the adjoining room, the

le, rotund, rather merry-faced man who looked more like a prosperous cheesemonger or successful draper than an emissary of justice: he was just the sort of person you would naturally expect to see w

th you and Mr. Middlebrook. This is Mr. Scarterfield-from the police at Devonport. Mr. Scarterfield has been in charge of

I think, were impatient to hear what Mr. Scarterfield had to tell. But the detective was evidently one of those men who readily adapt themselves to whatever company they are thrown into, and he betrayed no ea

one to the other, "which of thes

f eyes in my direction gave him the in

"And who met him, the previous day, on the cliffs h

ct," said I.

ter Quick affair," he remarked. "It has, of course, a bearing on the Noah Qu

ffairs one really-eh

ject as that of the man who murdered Salter. The two murderers are, without doubt, mem

ow? And I think he saw in what direction our thoughts were turning, for he presently leane

ews about Salter Quick came through, it seemed to me that the first thing to do was to find out a very pertinent thing-who were the brothers Quick? What were their antecedents? What was in their past, the immediate or distant past, likely to lead up to these crimes? A pretty stiff proposition, as you may readily guess! For, you must remember, each was a man of mystery. No one in our quarter knew anything more of Noah Quick than that h

zalette, who from the first had been listening with

that portraits of both were printed alongside. Nobody came forward, recognizing them. And there has been a powerful, a most powerful, inducement

. Cazalette. "

come into the light, for there's money awaiting them. That's well known-I had it noised abroad in the papers, and let it be freely talked of in town.

ey?" I asked.

rs. There I got more information. When Noah Quick first went to Devonport he deposited a considerable sum of money with one of the leading banks at Plymouth, and at the time of his death he had several thousand pounds lying there to his credit: his bankers also had charge of valuable securities of his. On Salter Quick's coming to the Admiral Parker, Noah introduced him to this bank: Salter deposited there a sum of about two thousand pounds, and of that he had only withdrawn about a hundred. So he, too, at the time of his death, had a large balance; also, he left with the bankers, for safe keeping, some valuable scrip and securities, chiefly of Indian railways. Altogether, those banker

to Rotherhithe-making inqu

ust have been taken there as children and born elsewhere-they weren't born in Rotherhithe parish. Nor could I come across anybody at all who knew anything of them in seaf

as you previously suggest

d been in some queer places, I turned my attention to Lloyds. Now, connected with Lloyds, are various publications having to do with shipping matters-the 'Weekly Shipping Index,' the 'Confidential Index,' for instance; moreover, with time and pat

his breast-pocket a small bundle of papers, which he laid before him on the table. I suppose we all gazed at them as

After that she was never heard of again, and according to the information available at Lloyds she probably went down in a typhoon in the Yellow Sea and was totally lost, with all hands on board. No great matter, perhaps!-from all that I could gather she was nothing but a tramp steamer that did, so to speak, odd jobs anywhere between India and China; she had gone to Hong-Kong

and which confined his papers, and selectin

the Elizabeth Robinson, was

ield. "Never heard of again-after being spoken i

on her-and were living five ye

from Hong-Kong. She was, I have already told you, a low-down tramp steamer, evidently picking up a precarious living between one far Eastern port and another-a small vessel. Her list includes a master, or captain, and a crew of eighteen-I needn't trouble you with their names, except in two instances, which I'

" I exclaimed

with a knowing look, "and that he was very anxious to get some news of William Netherfield, deck-hand, of Blyth, Northumberland-t

zalette. "Um!-Blyth lies so

tramp steamer in the Yellow Sea in company, more or less intimate, with a sailor-man from Blyth, in Northumberland, whose name is Netherfield: in March, 1912, he is on the sea-coast near Alnmouth, asking anxiously if anybody knows of a ch

these questions, and pres

riking you with some significance," I sai

ago a certain Chinaman, calling himself Chuh Fen, dropped in at Lloyds and was very anxious to know if the steamer Elizabeth Robinson, which sailed from Hong-Kong for Chemulpo in October, 1907, ever arrived at its destination? He was given the same information that was afforded me, and on getting it went away, silent. Now then-was this man, this Ch

ddenly broken by Dr. Lorrimore, w

-something may have taken place of which we have no knowledge. But one fact comes out clearly-whether the Elizabeth Robinson ever reached any port or not, it's very evident-nay, cer

on that, until Scarte

en Chuh Fen called there! But-that's thr

nce at Dr. Lorrimore. He nodded-he knew what we

Wing, a very clever man. He has been with me for some years-I broug

ective had turned a suddenl

" he asked. "I-I don't thi

ghbour," said Mr. Rave

denly come into Scarterfield's min

and of superior brains. He might be of use to you in tracing this Chuh Fen, if Chuh Fen is in England. When Wing and I were in London-we were there for some time after I returned from India, previous to my coming down here-Wing paid a good many visits to his fellow Chinamen in the East End,

the detective, with some eagerness. "I know a bit about

turned to

that I want him, here, he'd be with me at once. And he may be able to suggest something-I know that befo

'll run over to your place in ten minutes; and while we are discussin

nd means of finding out more about the antecedents of the Quicks. Half an hour passed in this-fruitlessly; then the door