The Middle of ThingsFletcher, J. S. (Joseph Smith)
General
The Middle of Things
Fletcher, J. S. (Joseph Smith)
Detective and mystery stories
The greengrocer pointed to a shelf in a corner above the bundle
of sacking.
"There!" he answered. "I wanted some small boxes to take down to Covent
Garden, and in turning some of these over I came across a little parcel,
wrapped in paper--slipped under a box that was turned top downwards on
the shelf, you understand? So of course I opened it, and there was the
watch and chain and ring."
"Just folded in the papers that you handed to the police?"
suggested Viner.
"Well, there was more paper about 'em than what I gave to Inspector
Drillford," said the greengrocer. "A well-wrapped-up bit of parcel it
was--there's the rest of the paper there, where I threw it down."
He pointed to some loose sheets of paper which lay on the sacking, and
Viner went forward, picked them up, looked quickly at them, and put them
in his pocket.
"I suppose you never heard anybody about, that night?" he asked turning
to the greengrocer.
"Not I!" the man replied. "I sleep too sound to hear aught of that sort.
There's nothing in here that's of any value. No--a dozen folk could come
into this yard at night and we shouldn't hear 'em--we sleep at the front
of the house."
Viner slipped some silver into the greengrocer's hand and led Felpham
away. And when they reached a quieter part of the district, he pulled out
the papers which he had picked out of the corner in the shed and held
them in front of his companion's eyes.
"We did some good in coming up here, after all, Felpham!" he said, with
a grim smile. "It wasn't a mere desire to satisfy idle curiosity that
made me come. I thought I might, by sheer good luck, hit on something, or
some idea that would help. Now then, look at these things. That's a piece
of newspaper from out of a copy of the _Melbourne Argus_ of September 6th
last. Likely thing for Langton Hyde to be carrying in his pocket, eh?"
"Good heavens, that's certainly important!" exclaimed Felpham.
"And so is this, and perhaps much more so," said Viner, making a second
exhibit. "That's a sheet of brown wrapping-paper with the name and
address of a famous firm of wholesale druggists and chemical
manufacturers on one side--printed. It's another likely thing for Hyde to
possess, and to carry about, isn't it?"
"And the same bitter, penetrating smell about it!" said Felpham.
"Hyde, of course, if Drillford is correct, had all this paper in his
pocket when he went into that shed," said Viner. "But I have a different
idea, and a different theory. Here," he went on, folding his discoveries
together neatly, "you take charge of these--and take care of them. They
may be of more importance than we think."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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