Transcriber's Notes: 1. Page scan source: Google Books https://books.google.com/books?id=vjuWVeJ8s_4C (the University of Wisconsin--Madison) THE PURPLE FERN THE PURPLE FERN BY FERGUS HUME _Author of "The Mystery of a Hansom Cab," "The Yellow Holly," "The Silent House in Pimlico," &c., &c_. LONDON EVERETT & CO. 42 ESSEX STREET, STRAND, W.C. 1907 CONTENTS CHAPTER I. THE MAN IN GREY II. AN ADVENTURE III. TWINS IV. A MYSTERY V. THE VICAR VI. A DISCOVERY VII. DR. JERCE EXPLAINS VIII. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IX. THE INQUEST X. A CHANCE WHISPER XI. THE DOG XII. BUSINESS AFFAIRS XIII. THE NEW EPOCH XIV. PRUDENCE XV. THE VICAR'S TROUBLES XVI. A STRANGE COMMUNICATION XVII. THE RECALL OF DR. JERCE XVIII. THE UNEXPECTED HAPPENS XIX. ZARA, THE BUTTERFLY XX. PROOF POSITIVE XXI. ACKWORTH'S NEWS XXII. THE ANONYMOUS LETTER XXIII. AN IMPORTANT DISCOVERY XXIV. FERDINAND BAIRD AT BAY XXVI. NEMESIS THE PURPLE FERN CHAPTER I THE MAN IN GREY THE train to Crumel was late. Due at four o'clock, it failed to reach its destination, until ten minutes past the hour. This was not the fault of the branch-line authorities. The London express had been behind time at Werry Junction, whereby the local had been forced to wait. The delay mattered little to the majority of the passengers, as time in the wilds of Essex is of less value than a similar commodity in the metropolis. But Dr. Jerce, being a famous urban physician, felt annoyed, as he had come down hurriedly, in this unpleasant weather, to see a patient, and wished to be back in Harley Street by nine o'clock. Also Dr. Jerce was Napoleonic in his love for precision, and the failure of the Company to obey the time-table irritated his usually bland temper. Jerce was not unlike the great Corsican in looks,--that is, he was short and stout, calm in his manner and impenetrable in expression. His clean-shaven face, classical in outline, save that the jaw was of the bull-dog order, did not betray his present feelings of exasperation at the pin-prick of delay. When the belated local finally steamed leisurely into the terminus, he buttoned his sable-lined coat, adjusted his shining silk hat, and dusted unnecessarily his smart patent leather boots, so unsuitable to the season. Finally, with the same imperturbable air, he collected the Christmas magazines he had been reading on the way down, and stepped on to the thronged platform. A man in a grey coat, grey gloves, grey trousers, and a grey Homburg hat, leaped from the adjoining carriage, and followed closely at the heels of the popular physician. Jerce did not turn his head, as no sixth sense told him that he was being watched.