Clergy -- England -- Fiction; Detective and mystery stories
The reason of this last query was that Bishop Pendle had accounts in two
different banks. One in Beorminster, as became the bishop of the See,
the other in London, in accordance with the dignity of a spiritual lord
of Parliament. A further search showed Mr Cargrim that the Beorminster
cheque-book had been left behind.
'Hum!' said the chaplain again, 'that man must have gone back to London.
Dr Pendle is going to meet him there and draw money from his Town bank
to pay what he demands. I'll have a look at the butts of that
cheque-book when it comes back; the amount of the cheque may prove much.
I may even find out the name of this stranger.'
But all this, as Cargrim very well knew, was pure theory. The bishop
might have taken his cheque-book to London for other reasons than paying
blackmail to the stranger, for it was not even certain that there was
any such extortion in the question. Dr Pendle was worried, it was true,
and after the departure of his strange visitor he had been taken ill,
but these facts proved nothing; and after twisting and turning them in
every way, and connecting and disconnecting them with the absence of the
London cheque-book, Mr Cargrim was forced to acknowledge that he was
beaten for the time being. Then he fancied he might extract some
information from Gabriel relative to his father's departure for London,
for Mr Cargrim was too astute to believe in the 'consulting a
specialist' excuse. Still, this might serve as a peg whereon to hang his
inquiries and develop further information, so the chaplain, after
meditating over his five-o'clock cup of tea, took his way to the
Eastgate, in order to put Gabriel unawares into the witness-box. Yet,
for all these doings and suspicions Cargrim had no very good reason,
save his own desire to get Dr Pendle under his thumb. He was groping in
the dark, he had not a shred of evidence to suppose that the uneasiness
of the bishop was connected with anything criminal; nevertheless, the
chaplain put himself so far out of his usual habits as to venture into
the unsavoury neighbourhood wherein stood The Derby Winner. Truly this
man's cobweb spinning was of a very dangerous character when he took so
much trouble to weave the web.
As in Excelsior, the shades of night were falling fast, when Cargrim
found himself at the door of the curate's lodging. Here he met with a
check, for Gabriel's landlady informed him that Mr Pendle was not at
home, and she did not know where he was or when he would be back.
Cargrim made the sweetest excuses for troubling the good lady, left a
message that he would call again, and returned along Monk Street on his
way back to the palace through the new town. By going in this direction
he passed The Derby Winner--not without intention--for it was this young
man's belief that Gabriel might be haunting the public-house to see Mrs
Mosk or--as was more probable to the malignant chaplain--her handsome
daughter.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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