“I am trustee under a will by which Mr. Rewse would have benefited considerably had he lived but a month or two longer. That circumstance indeed lies rather near the root of the matter. The thing stood thus. Under the will I speak of--that of young Rewse’s uncle, a very old friend of mine in his lifetime--the money lay in trust till the young fellow should attain twenty-five years of age. His younger sister, Miss Mary Rewse, was also benefited, but to a much smaller extent. She was to come into her property also on attaining the age of twenty-five, or on her marriage, whichever event happened first. It was further provided that in case either of these young people died before coming into the inheritance, his or her share should go to the survivor. I want you particularly to remember this. You will observe that now, in consequence of young Algernon Rewse’s death, barely two months before his twenty-fifth birthday, the whole of the very large property--all personalty, and free from any tie or restriction--which would otherwise have been his, will, in the regular course, pass, on her twenty-fifth birthday, _or on her marriage,_ to Miss Mary Rewse, whose own legacy was comparatively trifling. You will understand the importance of this when I tell you that the man whom I suspect of causing Algernon Rewse’s death, and who has been his companion on his otherwise lonely holiday, is engaged to be married to Miss Rewse.” Mr. Bowyer paused at this, but Hewitt only raised his eyebrows and nodded. “I have never particularly liked the man,” Mr. Bowyer went on. “He never seemed to have much to say for himself. I like a man who holds up his head and opens his mouth. I don’t believe in the sort of modesty that he showed so much of--it isn’t genuine. A man can’t afford to be genuinely meek and retiring who has his way to make in the world--and he was clever enough to know _that.”_ “He is poor, then?” Hewitt asked. “Oh yes, poor enough. His name, by the bye, is Main--Stanley Main--and he is a medical man. He hasn’t been practising, except as assistant, since he became qualified, the reason being, I understand, that he couldn’t afford to buy a good practice. He is the person who will profit by young Rewse’s death--or at any rate who intended to; but we will see about that. As for Mary, poor girl, she wouldn’t have lost her brother for fifty fortunes.” “As to the circumstances of the death, now?”