THE 
 
 Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 By Guy Boothby, 
 
 Author of "Dr. Nikola," "A Millionaire's Love Story, 
 " The Curse of the Snake," etc., etc., etc. 
 
 London 
 F. V. White & Co., Ltd. 
 
 1 902
 
 Stack Annex 
 
 Stack 
 
 Contents 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER 1 1 
 
 CHAPTER II 25 
 
 CHAPTER III 49 
 
 CHAPTER IV 72 
 
 CHAPTER V 96 
 
 CHAPTER VI 119 
 
 CHAPTER VII 145 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 168 
 
 CHAPTER IX 188 
 
 CHAPTER X 214 
 
 CHAPTER XI 236 
 
 CHAPTER XII 259 
 
 CHAPTER XIII , 282
 
 Annex 
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 ONE had only to look at William Stan- 
 derton in order to realise that he was, 
 what is usually termed, a success in 
 life. His whole appearance gave one this 
 impression ; the bold unflinching eyes, the 
 square, resolute chin, the well-moulded lips, 
 and the lofty forehead, showed a deter- 
 mination and ability to succeed that was 
 beyond the ordinary. 
 
 The son of a hardworking country 
 doctor, it had fallen to his lot to 
 
 B
 
 2 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 emigrate to Australia at the early age of 
 sixteen. He had not a friend in that 
 vast, but sparsely - populated, land, and 
 was without influence of any sort to help 
 him forward. When, therefore, in fifty 
 years' time, he found himself worth up- 
 wards of half-a-million pounds sterling, he 
 was able to tell himself that he owed his 
 good fortune not only to his own industry, 
 but also to his shrewd business capabilities. 
 It is true that he had had the advantage of 
 reaching the Colonies when they were in 
 their infancy, but even with this fact 
 taken into consideration, his was certainly 
 a great performance. He had invested his 
 money prudently, and the rich Stations, and 
 the streets of House Property, were the 
 result. 
 
 Above all things, William Standerton was 
 a kindly-natured man. Success had not 
 spoilt him in this respect. No genuine 
 case of necessity ever appealed to him
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 3 
 
 in vain. He gave liberally, but discrimi- 
 natingly, and in so doing never advertised 
 himself. 
 
 Strange to say, he was nearly thirty years 
 of age before he even contemplated ma- 
 trimony. The reason for this must be 
 ascribed to the fact that his life had been 
 essentially an active one, and up to that 
 time he had not been brought very much 
 into contact with the opposite sex. When, 
 however, he fell in love with pretty Jane 
 McCalmont then employed as a governess 
 on a neighbouring Property he did so with 
 an enthusiasm that amply made up for lost 
 time. 
 
 She married him, and presented him 
 with two children a boy and a girl. Within 
 three months of the latter's arrival into the 
 world, the mother laid down her gentle life, 
 leaving her husband a well nigh broken- 
 hearted man. After her death the years 
 passed slowly by with almost monotonous
 
 4 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 sameness. The boy James, and the girl 
 Alice, in due course commenced their edu- 
 cation, and in so doing left their childhood 
 behind them. Their devotion to their father 
 was only equalled by his love for them. He 
 could scarcely bear them out of his sight, 
 and entered into all their sports, their joys 
 and troubles, as if he himself were a child 
 once more. 
 
 It was not, however, until James was a 
 tall, handsome young fellow of four-and- 
 twenty, and Alice a winsome maid of 
 twenty, that he arrived at the conclusion 
 that his affairs no longer needed his personal 
 supervision, and that he was at liberty to 
 return to the Mother Country, and settle 
 down in it, should he feel disposed to 
 do so. 
 
 " It's all very well for you young 
 folk to talk of my leaving Australia," 
 he said, addressing his son and daugh- 
 ter; "but I shall be like a fish out of
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 5 
 
 water in the Old Country. You forget 
 that I have not seen her for half-a- 
 century." 
 
 " All the more reason that you should lose 
 no time in returning, father," observed Miss 
 Alice, to whom a visit to England had been 
 the one ambition of her life. " You shall 
 take us about and show us everything ; the 
 little village in which you were born, the 
 river in which you used to fish, and the 
 wood in which the keeper so nearly caught 
 you with the rabbit in your pocket. Then 
 you shall buy an old-fashioned country 
 house and we'll settle down. It will be 
 lovely ! " 
 
 Her father pinched her shapely little ear, 
 and then looked away across the garden to 
 where a railed enclosure was to be seen, on 
 the crest of a slight eminence. He remem- 
 bered that the woman lying there had more 
 than once expressed a hope that, in the days 
 then to come, they would be able to return
 
 6 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 to their native country together, and take 
 their children with them. 
 
 " Well, well, my dear," he said, glancing 
 down at the daughter who so much re- 
 sembled her mother, "you shall have it 
 your own way. We will go Home as 
 soon as possible, and do just as you 
 propose. I think we may be able to 
 afford a house in the country, and 
 perhaps, that is if you are a very dutiful 
 daughter, another in London. It is just 
 possible that there may be one or two 
 people living who may remember William 
 Standerton, and, for that reason, be kind to 
 his son and daughter. But I fear it will be 
 rather a wrench for me to leave these places 
 that I have built up with my own hands, 
 and to which I have devoted such a large 
 portion of my life. However, one can be 
 in harness too long, and when once Australia 
 is left behind me, I have no doubt I shall 
 enjoy my holiday as much as any one else."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 7 
 
 In this manner the matter was settled. 
 Competent and trustworthy managers were 
 engaged, and the valuable properties, which 
 had contributed so large a share to William 
 Standerton's wealth, were handed over to 
 their charge. 
 
 On the night before they were to leave 
 Mudrapilla, their favourite and largest sta- 
 tion, situated on the Darling Eiver, in New 
 South Wales, James Standerton, called Jim 
 by his family and a multifarious collection 
 of friends, was slowly making his way along 
 the left bank of the Eiver. He had ridden 
 out to say goodbye to the manager of the 
 Out Station, and as his horse picked his 
 way along the bank, he was thinking of 
 England, and of what his life was to be 
 there. Suddenly he became aware of a 
 man seated beneath a giant gum tree near 
 the water's edge. From the fact that the 
 individual in question had kindled a fire and 
 was boiling his billy, he felt justified in
 
 8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 assuming that he was preparing his camp 
 for the night. He accordingly rode up and 
 accosted him. The man was a Foot 
 Traveller, or Swagman, and presented a 
 somewhat singular appearance. Though he 
 was seated, Jim could see that he was 
 tall, though sparsely built. His age must 
 have been about sixty years ; his hair was 
 streaked with grey, as also was his beard. 
 Taken altogether his countenance was of the 
 description usually described as " hatchet- 
 faced." He was dressed after the swagman 
 fashion, certainly no better, and perhaps 
 a little worse. Yet with it all he had 
 the appearance of having once been in 
 better circumstances. He looked up as Jim 
 approached, and nodded a "good evening." 
 The latter returned the salutation in his 
 customary pleasant fashion. 
 
 " How much further is it to the Head 
 Station ?" the man on the ground then 
 enquired.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 9 
 
 "Between four and five miles," Jim 
 replied. " Are you making your way 
 there?" 
 
 " That's my idea," the stranger answered. 
 " I hear the owner is leaving for England, 
 and I am desirous of having a few words 
 with him before he goes." 
 
 " You know him then ? " 
 
 " I've known him over thirty years," re- 
 turned the other. " But he has gone up in 
 the world while, as you will gather, I have 
 done the opposite. Standerton was always 
 one of Life's lucky ones ; I am one of Her 
 failures. Anything he puts his hand to pros- 
 pers ; while I, let it be ever so promising, 
 have only to touch a bit of business, and it 
 goes to pieces like a house of cards." 
 
 The stranger paused and took stock of 
 the young man seated upon the horse. 
 
 " Now I come to think of it," he continued, 
 after having regarded Jim intently for some 
 seconds, " you're not unlike Standerton
 
 io The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 yourself. You've got the same eyes and 
 chin, and the same cut of mouth." 
 
 " It's very probable, for I am his son," 
 Jim replied. " What is it you want with 
 my father?" 
 
 " That's best known to myself," the 
 stranger returned, with a surliness in his 
 tone that he had not exhibited before. 
 " When you get home, just tell your 
 governor that Richard Murbridge is on his 
 way up the river to call upon him, and 
 that he will try to put in an appearance at 
 the Station early to-morrow morning. I 
 don't fancy he'll be best pleased to see me, 
 but I must have an interview with him 
 before he leaves Australia, if I have to 
 follow him round the country to get it." 
 
 " You had better be careful how you talk 
 to my father," said Jim. " If you are as 
 well acquainted with him as you pretend to 
 be, you should know that he is not the sort 
 of man to be trifled with."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery n 
 
 "I know him as well as you do," the 
 other answered, lifting his billy from the 
 fire as he spoke. " William Standerton and 
 I knew each other long before you were 
 born. If it's only the distance you say to 
 the Head Station, you can tell him I'll be 
 there by breakfast time. I'm a bit foot- 
 sore, it is true, but I can do the journey 
 in an hour and a-half. On what day does 
 the coach pass, going South ? " 
 
 " To-morrow morning," Jim replied. 
 " Do you want to catch it ? " 
 
 " It's very probable I shall," said 
 Murbridge. " Though I wasn't born in 
 this cursed country, I'm Australian enough 
 never to foot it when I can ride. Good 
 Heavens ! had any one told me, twenty-five 
 years ago, that I should eventually become 
 a Darling Whaler, I'd have knocked, what 
 I should have thought then to be the lie, 
 down their throats. But what I am you can 
 see. Fate again, I suppose ? However, I
 
 12 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 was always of a hopeful disposition, even 
 when my affairs appeared to be at their 
 worst, so I'll pin my faith on to-morrow. 
 Must you be going ? Well, in that case, 
 I'll wish you good-night ! Don't forget my 
 message to your father." 
 
 Jim bade him good-night, and then 
 continued his ride home. As he went he 
 pondered upon his curious interview with 
 the stranger he had just left, and while so 
 doing, wondered as to his reasons for 
 desiring to see his father. 
 
 " The fellow was associated with him in 
 business at some time or another, I sup- 
 pose ? " he said to himself, " and, having 
 failed, is now on his beam ends and wants 
 assistance. Poor old Governor, there are 
 times when he is called upon to pay pretty 
 dearly for his success in life." 
 
 James Standerton was proud of his father, 
 as he had good reason to be. He respected 
 him above all living men, and woe betide
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 13 
 
 the individual who might have anything to 
 say against the sire in the son's hearing. 
 
 At last he reached the Home Paddock 
 and cantered up the slope towards the 
 cluster of houses, that resembled a small 
 village, and surrendered his horse to a black 
 boy in the stable yard. With a varied 
 collection of dogs at his heels he made his 
 way up the garden path, beneath the 
 trellised vines to the house, in the broad 
 verandah of which he could see his sister 
 and father seated at tea. 
 
 " Well, my lad," said Standerton senior, 
 when Jim joined them, " I suppose you've 
 seen Riddington, and have bade him good- 
 bye. It's my opinion he will miss you as 
 much as any one in the neighbourhood. You 
 two have always been such friends." 
 
 " That's just what Riddington said," James 
 replied. " He wishes he were coming with 
 us. Poor chap, he doesn't seem to think 
 he'll ever see England again."
 
 14 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Alice looked up from the cup of tea she 
 was pouring out for her brother. 
 
 " I fancy there is more in poor Mr. Bid- 
 dington's case than meets the eye," she said 
 sympathetically. " Nobody knows quite why 
 he left England. He is always very reticent 
 upon that point. I cannot help thinking, 
 however, that there was a lady in the case." 
 
 " There always is," answered her brother. 
 " There's a woman in every mystery, and 
 when you've found her it's a mystery no 
 longer. By the way, father, as I was 
 coming home, I came across a fellow camped 
 up the river. He asked me what the 
 distance was to here, and said he was on his 
 way to see you. He will be here the first 
 thing to-morrow morning." 
 
 " He wants work, I suppose ? " 
 
 " No, I shouldn't say that he did," James 
 replied. " He said that he wanted to see 
 you on important private business." 
 
 " Indeed ? I wonder who it can be ? A
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 15 
 
 swagman who has important private business 
 with me is a rara avis. He didn't happen to 
 tell you his name, I suppose?" 
 
 " Yes, he did," Jim answered, placing 
 his cup on the floor as he spoke. " His name 
 is Richard Murbridge, or something like it." 
 
 The effect upon the elder man was 
 electrical. 
 
 " Richard Murbridge ? " he cried. 
 " Camped on the river and coming here ? " 
 
 His son and daughter watched him with the 
 greatest astonishment depicted upon their 
 faces. It was not often that their father gave 
 way to so much emotion. At last with an 
 effort he recovered himself, and, remarking 
 that Murbridge was a man with whom he had 
 had business in bygone days, and that he had 
 not seen him for many years, went into the 
 house. 
 
 " I wonder who this Murbridge can 
 be ? " said James to his sister, when they 
 were alone together. " I didn't like the
 
 1 6 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 look of him, and if I were the Governor, I 
 should send him about his business as 
 quickly as possible." 
 
 When he had thus expressed himself, Jim 
 left his sister and went off to enjoy that 
 luxury so dear to the heart of a bushman 
 after his day's work, a swim in the river. 
 He was some time over it, and when he 
 emerged, he was informed that his presence 
 was required at the Store. Thither he 
 repaired to arbitrate in the quarrel of two 
 Boundary Riders. In consequence, more 
 than an hour elapsed before he returned to 
 the house. His sister greeted him at the 
 gate with a frightened look upon her 
 face. 
 
 " Have you seen father ? " she enquired. 
 
 " No," he answered. " Isn't he in the 
 house ? " 
 
 " He went down the track just after you 
 left, riding old Peter, and as he passed the 
 gate he called to me not to keep dinner for
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 17 
 
 him, as he did not know how long it might 
 be before he would be back. Jim, I believe 
 he is gone to see that man you told him of, 
 and the thought frightens me." 
 
 " You needn't be alarmed," her brother 
 answered. " Father is quite able to take 
 care of himself." 
 
 But though he spoke with so much 
 assurance, in his own mind he was not 
 satisfied. He remembered that it had been 
 his impression that the swagman bore his 
 father a grudge, and the thought made him 
 uneasy. 
 
 " Look here, Alice," he said, after he had 
 considered the matter for some time, " I've 
 a good mind to go back along the track, 
 and to bring the Governor home with me. 
 What do you think ? " 
 
 " It would relieve me of a good deal of 
 anxiety if you would," the girl replied. " I 
 don't like the thought of his going off like 
 this." 
 
 c
 
 1 8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Jim accordingly went to the end of the 
 verandah, and called to the stables for a 
 horse. As soon as the animal was forth- 
 coming he mounted it, and set off in the 
 direction his father had taken. It was now 
 quite dark, but so well did he know it, that 
 he could have found his way along the track 
 blindfolded, if necessary. Ik ran parallel 
 with the river, the high trees on the banks of 
 which could be seen, standing out like a 
 black line against the starlit sky. He let 
 himself out of the Home Paddock, passed 
 the Woolshed, and eventually found himself 
 approaching the spot where Murbridge had 
 made his camp. Then the twinkle of the fire 
 came into view, and a few seconds later he 
 was able to distinguish his father standing 
 beside his grey horse, talking to a man who 
 was lying upon the ground near the fire. Not 
 wishing to play the part of an eavesdropper, 
 he was careful to remain out of earshot. It 
 was only when he saw the man rise, heard
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 19 
 
 him utter a threat, and then approach his 
 father, that he rode up. Neither of the 
 men became aware of his approach until he 
 was close upon them, and then both turned 
 in surprise. 
 
 " James, what is the meaning of this ? " 
 his father cried. " What are you doing 
 here, my lad ? " 
 
 For a moment the other scarcely knew 
 what reply to make. At last he said : 
 
 " I came to assure myself of your safety, 
 father. Alice told me you had gone out, 
 and I guessed your errand." 
 
 " A very dutiful son," sneered Murbridge. 
 " You are to be congratulated upon him, 
 William." 
 
 James stared at the individual before him 
 with astonishment. What right had such a 
 man to address his father by his Christian 
 name ? 
 
 " Be careful," said Standerton, speaking 
 to the man before him. "You know what I
 
 2O The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 said to you just now, and you are also aware 
 that I never break my word. Fail to keep 
 your part of the contract, and I shall no 
 longer keep mine." 
 
 " You know that you have your heel upon 
 my neck," the other retorted ; " and also that 
 I cannot help myself. But I pray that the 
 time may come when I shall be able to be even 
 with you. To think that I am tramping this 
 infernal country, like a dead beat Sundowner, 
 without a cent in my pocket, while you 
 are enjoying all the luxuries and happiness 
 that life and wealth can give. It's enough 
 to make a man turn Anarchist right 
 off." 
 
 " That will do," said William Standerton 
 quietly. " Remember that to-morrow morn- 
 ing you will go back to the place whence 
 you came ; also bear in mind the fact 
 that if you endeavour to molest me, or to 
 communicate with me, or with any member 
 of my family, I will carry out the threat I
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 21 
 
 uttered just now. That is all I have to say 
 to you." 
 
 Then Standerton mounted to his horse, 
 and turning to his son, said : 
 
 " Let us return home, James. It is 
 getting late, and your sister will be un- 
 easy." 
 
 Without another word to the man beside 
 the fire, they rode off, leaving him looking 
 after them with an expression of deadly 
 hatred upon his face. For some distance 
 the two men rode in silence. Jim could 
 see that his father was much agitated, 
 and for that reason he forbore to put any 
 question to him concerning the individual 
 they had just left. Indeed it was not until 
 they had passed the Woolshed once more, 
 and had half completed their return journey 
 that the elder man spoke. 
 
 " How much of my conversation with 
 that man did you overhear ? " 
 
 "Nothing but what I heard when Mur-
 
 22 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 bridge rose to his feet," James replied. " I 
 should not have come near you had I not 
 heard his threat and seen him approach you. 
 Who is the man, father ? " 
 
 "His name is Murbridge," said Stan- 
 derton, with what was plainly an effort. 
 " He is a person with whom I was on 
 friendly terms many years ago, but he has 
 now got into disgrace, and, I fear, has sank 
 very low indeed. I do not think he will 
 trouble us any more, however, so we will 
 not refer to him again." 
 
 All that evening William Standerton was 
 visibly depressed. He excused himself from 
 playing his usual game of cribbage with his 
 daughter, on the plea that he had a head- 
 ache. Next morning, however, he was 
 quite himself. He went out to his last 
 day's work in the bush as cheerfully 
 as ever he had done. But had any one 
 followed him, he, or she, would have dis- 
 covered that the first thing he did was to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 23 
 
 ride to the spot where Richard Murbridge 
 had slept on the previous night. The camp 
 was deserted, and only a thin column of 
 smoke, rising from the embers of the fire, 
 remained to show that the place had been 
 lately occupied. 
 
 " He has gone, then," said Standerton to 
 himself. " Thank goodness ! But I know 
 him too well to be able to assure myself 
 that I have seen the last of him. Next 
 week, however, we shall put the High Seas 
 between us, and then, please God, I shall 
 see no more of him for the remainder of my 
 existence." 
 
 At that moment the man of whom he was 
 speaking, was tramping along the dusty 
 track with a tempest of rage in his 
 heart. 
 
 " He may travel wherever he pleases," he 
 was muttering to himself, " but he won't get 
 away from me. He may go to the end of 
 the world, and I'll follow him and be at his
 
 24 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 elbow, just to remind him who I am, and of 
 the claims I have upon him. Yes, William 
 Standerton, you may make up your mind 
 upon one point, and that is the fact that 
 I'll be even with you yet ! "
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 CHILDERBRIDGE MANOR is certainly one of 
 the finest mansions in the County of 
 Midlandshire. It stands in a finely -timbered 
 park of about two hundred acres, which 
 rises behind the house to a considerable 
 elevation. The building itself dates back 
 to the reign of Good Queen Bess, and is 
 declared by competent authorities to be an 
 excellent example of the architecture of that 
 period. It is large, and presents a most 
 imposing appearance as one approaches it 
 by the carriage drive. The interior is 
 picturesque in the extreme ; the hall is 
 large and square, panelled with oak, and 
 having a massive staircase of the same
 
 26 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 wood leading from it to a music gallery 
 above. There are other staircases in 
 various parts of the building, curious cork- 
 screw affairs, in ascending which one is in 
 continual danger of knocking one's head 
 against the ceiling and corners. There 
 are long, and somewhat dark corridors, down 
 which it would be almost possible to drive 
 the proverbial coach and four, whilst there 
 are also numerous secret passages, and 
 a private chapel, with stained glass windows 
 connected with the house by means of a short 
 tunnel. That such a mansion should be pro- 
 vided with a family ghost, goes without say- 
 ing. Indeed Childerbridge Manor is reputed 
 to possess a small army of them. Elderly 
 gentlemen who carry their heads under their 
 arms ; beautiful women who glide down the 
 corridors, weeping as they go ; and last but 
 not least, a deformity, invariably dressed in 
 black, who is much given to sitting on the 
 foot rails of beds, and pointing, with the
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 27 
 
 first finger of his right hand, to the ceiling 
 above. So well authenticated are the 
 legends of these apparitions, that it would 
 be almost an impossibility to induce any 
 man, woman, or child, from the village, to 
 enter the gates of Childerbridge Manor after 
 dusk. Servants who arrived were told the 
 stories afloat concerning their new abode ; 
 and the sound of the wind sighing round the 
 house on a gusty night immediately set 
 their imaginations to work, with the result 
 of their giving notice of their intention to 
 leave on the following morning. " They 
 had seen the White Lady," they declared, 
 had heard her pitiful death cry, and vowed 
 that nothing could induce them to remain in 
 such a house twenty-four hours longer. In 
 fact, " As haunted as the Manor House " 
 had become a popular expression in the 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 When the Standerton's reached England, 
 they set to work to discover for themselves
 
 2 8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 a home. They explored the country from 
 east to west, and from north to south, 
 but without success. Eventually Childer- 
 bridge Manor was offered them by an 
 Agent in London, and, after they had 
 spent a considerable 'portion of their 
 time poring over photographs of the 
 house and grounds, they arrived at the 
 conclusion that they had discovered a 
 place likely to suit them. On a lovely day 
 in early summer they travelled down from 
 London to inspect it, and were far from 
 being disappointed in what they saw. 
 
 When they entered the gates the park lay 
 before them, bathed in sunlight, the rooks 
 cawed lazily in the trees, while the deer re- 
 garded them, from their couches in the 
 bracken, with mild, contemplative eyes. After 
 the scorched up plains of Australia, the 
 picture was an exceedingly attractive one. 
 The house itself, they could see, would require 
 a considerable outlay in repairs, but when
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 29 
 
 that work was accomplished, it would be as 
 perfect a residence as any that could be 
 found. The stables were large enough to 
 hold half a hundred horses, but for many 
 years had been tenanted only by rats. The 
 same might be said of the buildings of the 
 Home Farm ! 
 
 " However, taking one thing with 
 another," said Mr. Standerton, after he had 
 inspected everything, and arrived at a proper 
 understanding of the possibilities of the 
 place, " I think it will suit us. The Society 
 of the neighbourhood, they tell me, is good, 
 while the hunting is undeniable. It is with- 
 in easy reach of London, and all matters 
 taken into consideration, I don't think we 
 shall better it." 
 
 In this manner it was settled. A contract 
 for repairs and decorations was placed in the 
 hands of a well-known Metropolitan firm, a 
 vast amount was spent in furnishing, and in 
 due course Childerbridge Manor House was
 
 30 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 once more occupied. The County imme- 
 diately came to call, invitations rained in, and 
 having been duly inspected and not found 
 wanting, the newcomers were voted a 
 decided acquisition to the neighbourhood. 
 William Standerton's wealth soon became 
 proverbial, and mothers, with marriageable 
 sons and daughters, vied with each other in 
 their attentions. James Standerton, as I have 
 already said, was a presentable young man. 
 His height was something over six feet, his 
 shoulders were broad and muscular, as 
 became a man who had lived his life 
 doing hard work in the open air, his 
 eyes were grey like his father's, and there 
 was the same moulding of the mouth and 
 chin. In fact, he was an individual 
 with whom, one felt at first glance, it 
 would be better to be on good terms than 
 bad. 
 
 One evening a month or so after their 
 arrival at the Manor House, Jim was driving
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 31 
 
 home from the railway station. He had 
 been spending the day in London buying 
 polo ponies, and was anxious to get home 
 as quickly as possible. His horse was a 
 magnificent animal, and spun the high dog- 
 cart along the road at a rattling pace. 
 When he was scarcely more than half a 
 mile from the lodge gates of his own home, 
 he became aware of a lady walking along 
 the footpath in front of him. She was 
 accompanied by a mastiff puppy, who 
 gambolled awkwardly beside her. As the 
 dogcart approached them the puppy dashed 
 out into the road, directly in front of the fast- 
 trotting horse. As may be imagined the 
 result was inevitable. The dog was knocked 
 down, and it was only by a miracle that 
 the horse did not go down also. The girl 
 uttered a little scream, then the groom 
 jumped from his seat and ran to the 
 frightened animal's head. Jim also des- 
 cended to ascertain the extent of in-
 
 32 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 juries the horse and dog had sustained. 
 Fortunately the former was unhurt ; not 
 so the author of the mischief, however. 
 He had been kicked on the head, and 
 one of his forepaws was crushed and 
 bleeding. 
 
 " I cannot tell you how sorry 1 am," 
 said Jim, apologetically to the young 
 lady, when he had carried her pet to the 
 footpath. " I am afraid I was very 
 careless." 
 
 " You must not say that," she answered. 
 " It was not your fault at all. If my silly 
 dog had not run into the road it would 
 not have happened. Do you think his leg is 
 broken ? " 
 
 Jim knelt on the edge of the path 
 beside the dog and carefully examined his 
 injuries. His bush life had given him a 
 considerable insight into the science of 
 surgery, and it stood him in good stead now. 
 
 " No," he said, when his examination was
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 33 
 
 at an end, " his leg is not broken, though 
 I'm afraid it is rather badly injured." 
 
 In spite of the young lady's protests, he 
 took his handkerchief from his pocket and 
 bound up the injured limb. The next thing 
 to be decided was how to get the animal 
 home. It could not walk, and it was mani- 
 festly impossible that the young lady should 
 carry him. 
 
 " Won't you let me put him in the 
 cart and drive you both home ? " Jim 
 asked. " I should be glad to do so, if I 
 may." 
 
 As he said this he looked more closely at 
 the girl before him, and realised that she 
 was decidedly pretty. 
 
 " I am afraid there is nothing else to be 
 done," she said, and then, as if she feared 
 this might be considered an ungracious 
 speech, she added: "But I fear I am 
 putting you to a great deal of trouble, Mr. 
 Standerton."
 
 34 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Jim looked at her in some surprise. 
 
 " You know my name, then ? " he 
 said. 
 
 " As you see," she answered, with a smile 
 at his astonishment. " I called upon your 
 sister yesterday. My name is Decie, and I 
 live at the Dower House, with my guardian, 
 Mr. Abraham Bursfield." 
 
 " In that case, as we are neighbours," said 
 Jim, " and I must claim a neighbour's 
 privilege in helping you. Allow me put the 
 dog in the cart." 
 
 So saying he picked the animal up and 
 carried it tenderly to the dogcart, under the 
 seat of which he placed it. He then 
 assisted Miss Decie to her seat and took his 
 place beside her. When the groom had 
 seated himself at the back, they set off in 
 the direction of the Dower House, a curious 
 rambling building, situated in a remote 
 corner of Childerbridge Park. As they 
 drove along they discussed the neighbour-
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 35 
 
 hood, the prospects of the shooting, and 
 Jim learned, among other things, that Miss 
 Decie was fond of riding, but that old Mr. 
 Bursfield would not allow her a horse, that 
 she preferred a country life to that of town, 
 and incidentally that she had been eight 
 years under her guardian's care. Almost 
 before they knew where they were they had 
 reached the cross roads that skirted the 
 edge of the Park, and were approaching the 
 Dower House. Tt was a curious old build- 
 ing, older perhaps than the Manor House, 
 to which it had once belonged. In front it 
 had a quaint description of courtyard, sur- 
 rounded by high walls covered with ivy. A 
 flagged path led from the gates, which, Jim 
 discovered later, had not been opened for 
 many years, to the front door, on either 
 side of which was a roughly trimmed 
 lawn. Pulling up at the gates, the young 
 man descended, and helped Miss Decie to 
 alight. 
 
 D2
 
 36 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " You must allow me to carry your dog 
 into the house for you," he said, as he lifted 
 the poor beast from the cart. 
 
 A postern door admitted them to the court- 
 yard and they made their way, side by side, 
 along the nagged path to the house. When 
 they had rung the bell the door was opened to 
 them by an ancient man-servant, whose age 
 could scarcely have been less than four- 
 score. He looked from his mistress to the 
 young man, as if he were unable to com- 
 prehend the situation. 
 
 " Isaac," said Miss Decie, " Tory has met 
 with an accident, and Mr. Standerton has 
 very kindly brought him home for me." 
 Then to Jim she added : " Please come 
 in, Mr. Standerton, and let me relieve you 
 of your burden." 
 
 But Jim would not hear of it. Ac- 
 companied by Miss Decie he carried the 
 animal to the loose box in the deserted 
 stables at the back of the house, where
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 37 
 
 he had his quarters. This task accom- 
 plished, they returned to the house once 
 more. 
 
 " I believe you have not yet met my guar- 
 dian, Mr. Bursfield," said Miss Decie, as they 
 passed along the oak- panelled hall. Then, 
 as if to excuse the fact that the other had 
 not paid the usual neighbourly call, she 
 added : " He is a very old man, you know, 
 and seldom leaves the house." 
 
 As she said this, she paused before a door, 
 the handle of which she turned. The room 
 in which Jim found himself a moment later 
 was a fine one. The walls, like the rest of 
 the house, were panelled, but owing to the 
 number of books the room contained, very 
 little of the oak was visible. There were 
 books on the shelves, books on the tables, 
 and books on the floor. In the centre of 
 the room stood a large writing-table, at 
 which an old man was seated. He was a 
 strange -looking individual ; his face was
 
 38 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 lined with innumerable wrinkles, his hair 
 was snow-white and descended to his shoul- 
 ders. He wore a rusty velvet coat and a 
 skull cap of the same material. 
 
 He looked up as the pair entered, and his 
 glance rested on Jim with some surprise. 
 
 " Grandfather," said Miss Decie, for, as 
 Jim afterwards discovered, she invariably 
 addressed the venerable gentleman by this 
 title, though she was in no way related to 
 him, " pray let me introduce you to Mr. 
 Standerton, who has most kindly brought 
 poor Tory home for me." 
 
 The old man extended a shrivelled 
 hand. 
 
 "I am happy to make your acquaintance, 
 Mr. Standerton," he said, " and I am grateful 
 to you for the service you have rendered Miss 
 Decie. I must apologise for not having paid 
 you and your father the customary visit of 
 courtesy, but, as you have perhaps heard, 
 I am a recluse, and seldom venture from
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 39 
 
 the house. I trust you like Childer- 
 bridge ? " 
 
 " We are delighted with it," Jim re- 
 plied. " It is a very beautiful and interest- 
 ing old house. Unfortunately, however, we 
 have been able to gather very little of its 
 history. I have heard it said that you know 
 more about it than any one in the neigh- 
 bourhood." 
 
 " I do indeed," Mr. Bursfield replied. " No 
 one knows it better than I do. Until a 
 hundred years ago it was the home of my 
 own family. My father sold it, reserving 
 only the Dower House for his own use. 
 Since then the estate has fallen upon evil 
 times." 
 
 He paused for a moment and sat looking 
 into the fireplace, as if he had forgotten his 
 visitor's presence. Then he added as to 
 himself : 
 
 " No one who has taken the place has 
 prospered. There is a curse upon it." 

 
 4O The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " I sincerely hope not," Jim answered. 
 " It would be a bad look out for us if that 
 were so." 
 
 " I beg your pardon," the old man re- 
 turned, almost hastily. "For the moment I 
 was not thinking of what I was saying. I 
 did not mean of course that the curse would 
 affect your family. There is no sort of reason 
 why it should. But the series of coinci- 
 dences, if by such a term we may designate 
 them, have certainly been remarkable. Sir 
 Giles Shepfield purchased it from my father, 
 and was thrown from his horse, and killed 
 at his own front door. His son Peter was 
 found dead in his bed, some say murdered, 
 others that he was frightened to death by 
 something, or someone, he had seen ; while 
 his second son, William, was shot in a duel 
 in Paris, the day after the news reached him 
 that he had come into the property. The 
 Shepfields being only too anxious to dispose 
 of it, it was sold to the newly- made Lord
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 41 
 
 Childerbridge, who was eager to acquire it 
 possibly on account of the name. He 
 remained two years there, but at the end of 
 that period he also had had enough of the 
 place, and left it quite suddenly, vowing that 
 he would never enter its doors again. After 
 that it was occupied off and on by a variety 
 of tenants, but for the last five years it has 
 been unoccupied. I hear that your father 
 has worked wonders with it, and that he has 
 almost turned it into a new place." 
 
 " He has had the work done very care- 
 fully," Jim replied. " It is very difficult 
 to repair an old mansion like Childerbridge 
 without making such repairs too apparent." 
 
 " I quite agree with you,'' said the old 
 man drily. " Your modern architect is no 
 respecter of anything antiquated as a rule." 
 
 " And now I must bid you good-evening," 
 said James. " My father and sister will be 
 wondering what has become of me." 
 
 He shook hands with Mr. Bursfield,
 
 42 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 who begged him to excuse him for not 
 accompanying him to the door, and then 
 followed Miss Decie from the room. They 
 bade each other adieu at the gate. 
 
 " I hope your dog will soon be him- 
 self again," said Jim, in the hope of being 
 able to prolong the interview, if only for a 
 few moments. " If you would like me to 
 have him for a few days I would do what I 
 could for him, and I would see that he is 
 properly looked after." 
 
 " I could not think of giving you so 
 much trouble," she returned. " I think 
 he will be all right here. I feel certain 
 I shall be able to do all that is necessary. 
 Will you give my kind regards to your 
 sister. I should like to tell you that I 
 admire her very much, Mr. Standerton." 
 
 " It is very good of you to say so," he 
 replied. Then clutching at the hope thus 
 presented to him, he added, " I trust you 
 and she will be great friends."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 43 
 
 " I hope so," said Miss Decie, and there- 
 upon bade him good-night. 
 
 As he went out to his cart he felt con- 
 vinced in his own mind that he had just 
 parted from the most charming girl he had 
 ever met in his life. He reflected upon the 
 matter as he completed the short distance 
 that separated him from his home, and when 
 he joined his sister in the drawing-room 
 later, he questioned her concerning her new 
 acquaintance. 
 
 " She must lead a very lonely life," said 
 Jim. " I was introduced to the old gentle- 
 man she calls grandfather, and if his society 
 is all she has to depend upon, then I do not 
 envy her her lot." 
 
 His sister had a suspicion of what was in 
 his mind though she did not say so. Like 
 her brother she had taken a great liking to 
 the girl, and there was every probability, as 
 time went on, of their becoming firm 
 friends.
 
 44 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " It may interest you to hear that she is 
 coming to tea with me on Thursday," said 
 Alice. 
 
 Jim was interested, and to prove it regis- 
 tered a mental vow that he would make a 
 point of being at home that day. As a 
 matter of fact he was, and was even more 
 impressed than before. 
 
 From that day Miss Decie spent a large 
 proportion of her time at the Manor House. 
 In less than a month she had become Alice's 
 own particular friend, and Jim felt that the 
 whole current of his life had been changed 
 What Mr. Bursfield thought of the turn affairs 
 had taken can be seen now, but at the time his 
 views were only a matter of conjecture. That 
 Jim and Miss Decie had managed to fall in 
 love with each other was quite certain, and 
 that William Standerton approved of his 
 son's choice was another point that admitted 
 of no doubt. Helen Decie with her pretty 
 face, and charming manners, was a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 45 
 
 general favourite. At that stage their 
 wooing was a matter-of-fact one in the 
 extreme. Jim had no rival, and at 
 the outset no difficulties worth dignifying 
 with the name. He was permitted unlimited 
 opportunities of seeing the object of his 
 affections and, when the time was ripe, and 
 he informed her of the state of his feelings 
 towards herself, she gave him her hand, and 
 promised, without any hysterical fuss, to be 
 his wife, with the full intention of doing her 
 utmost to make him happy. 
 
 " But, Jim," she said, " before you do 
 anything else, you must see Mr. Bursfield and 
 obtain his consent. He is my guardian, you 
 know, and has been so good to me that I can 
 do nothing without his approval." 
 
 " I will see him to-morrow morning," Jim 
 replied, " and I fancy I can tell you what 
 his answer will be. How could it be other- 
 wise when he knows that your happiness is 
 at stake ? "
 
 46 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " I hope it will be as you say," she 
 answered, but not with her usual cheerful- 
 ness. " Somehow or another grandfather 
 always looks at things in a different light to 
 other people." 
 
 " You may be sure I will do my best to 
 get him to look at it as we want him to," 
 her lover returned. " I will bring every 
 argument I can think of to bear upon 
 him." 
 
 Needless to say, Mr. Standerton, when he 
 heard the news, was delighted, while Alice 
 professed herself overjoyed at the thought 
 of having Helen for her sister. In Jim's 
 mind, however, there was the remembrance 
 of Abraham Bursfield, and of the interview 
 that had to be got through with that gentle- 
 man. 
 
 " It's no use beating about the bush or 
 delaying matters," he said to himself. " I'll 
 walk back with Helen and get it over to- 
 night instead of to-morrow morning,"
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 47 
 
 He informed his sweetheart of his inten- 
 tion. She signified her approval, and to- 
 gether they strolled across the Park towards 
 the little gate that opened into the grounds 
 of the Dower House. It was a lovely even- 
 ing, and, as you may suppose, they were 
 as happy a young couple as could have been 
 found in the length and breadth of England. 
 Their engagement had scarcely commenced, 
 yet Jim was already full of plans for the 
 future. 
 
 " I shall take you from that dreary old 
 house," he said, nodding his head in the 
 direction of the building they were ap- 
 proaching, " and we will find a place 
 somewhere in the neighbourhood. How you 
 have managed to exist here for eight years I 
 cannot imagine." 
 
 "It has been dull certainly," she an- 
 swered, " but I have the house and my 
 grandfather to look after, so that my time is 
 fairly well taken up."
 
 48 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 "You must have felt that you were 
 buried alive," he answered. " In the future, 
 however, we'll change all that. You shall 
 go where, and do, just as you please." 
 
 She shook her head. 
 
 " To make you happy," she said, will be 
 " enough for me."
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 ON reaching the house, Jim bade the butler 
 inform his master that Mr. Standerton 
 would like to see him. Isaac looked at 
 him as if he were desirous of making sure 
 of his business before he admitted him, 
 then he hobbled off in the direction of 
 his master's study, to presently return with 
 the message that Mr. Bursfield would see 
 Mr. Standerton if he would be pleased 
 to step that way. Jim thereupon fol- 
 lowed the old man into the room in which 
 he had first made Abraham Bursfield's ac- 
 quaintance some four months before. As on 
 that memorable occasion, he found that 
 gentleman seated at his desk, looking very 
 
 E
 
 50 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 much as if he had not moved from it in all 
 that time. 
 
 " I wish you good evening, Mr. Stander- 
 ton," he said, motioning his visitor to a 
 chair. " To what may I attribute the 
 honour of this visit ? " 
 
 " I have come to you on a most important 
 errand," Jim replied. " Its purport may 
 surprise you. but I hope it will not disap- 
 point you." 
 
 " May I ask that you will be good enough 
 to tell me what that errand is," said the old 
 gentleman drily. " I shall then be better 
 able to give you my opinion." 
 
 " To sum it up in a few words," Jim 
 answered, " I have this afternoon asked 
 Miss Decie to become my wife, and she has 
 promised to do so. I am here to ask your 
 approval." 
 
 Bursfield was silent for a few moments. 
 Then he looked sharply up at the young 
 man.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 51 
 
 "You are of course aware that Miss 
 Decie is only my adopted grand-daughter, 
 and that she has not the least shadow 
 of a claim, either upon me, or upon 
 such remnants of property as I may pos- 
 sess." 
 
 " I am quite aware of it," Jim replied. 
 " Miss Decie has told me of her position, 
 and of your goodness to her." 
 
 " The latter of which she is endeavouring 
 to repay by leaving me to spend the rest of 
 my miserable existence alone. A pretty 
 picture of gratitude, is it not ? But it is 
 the world all over ! " 
 
 "I am sure she will always entertain a 
 feeling of profound gratitude towards you," 
 protested Jim. " She invariably speaks of 
 you with the greatest affection." 
 
 " I am indeed indebted to her for her con- 
 sideration," retorted the other with a sneer. 
 " Unfortunately, shall I say, for you, I prefer 
 something more than words. No, Mr. 
 
 E 2
 
 52 The Child erbridge Mystery 
 
 Standerton, I cannot give my consent to 
 your engagement." 
 
 Jim could only stare in complete astonish- 
 ment. He had never expected this. 
 
 " You do not mean that you are going 
 to forbid it ? " he ejaculated when he had 
 recovered somewhat from his surprise. 
 
 " I am reluctantly compelled to admit 
 that that is my intention. Believe me, I 
 have the best of reasons for acting thus. 
 Possibly my decision may cause you pain. 
 It is irrevocable, however. At my death 
 Helen will be able to do as she pleases, 
 but until that event takes place, she must 
 remain with me." 
 
 He took up his pen as if to continue his 
 writing, and so end the interview. 
 
 " But, Mr. Bursfield, this is an unheard-of 
 determination," cried the young man. 
 
 "That may be," was the reply. "I believe 
 I have the reputation for being somewhat 
 singular. My so-called grand- daughter is a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 53 
 
 good girl, and if I know anything of her 
 character, she will do as I wish in this 
 matter." 
 
 Jim rose to his feet and crossed to the 
 door as if to leave. When he reached it, 
 however, he turned and faced Mr. Burs- 
 field. 
 
 " You are quite sure that nothing I can 
 say or do will induce you to alter your 
 decision ? " he enquired. 
 " Quite," the other replied. 
 " Then allow me to give you fair warning 
 that I intend to marry Miss Decie," retorted 
 Jim, who by this time had quite lost his 
 temper. 
 
 " You are at liberty to do so when I am 
 dead," Mr. Bursfield replied, and then con- 
 tinued his writing as if nothing out of the 
 common had occurred. 
 
 Without another word Jim left the room. 
 He had arranged that he should meet Helen 
 in the garden afterwards. It was with
 
 54 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 a woe-begone face, however, that he 
 greeted her. 
 
 " While he lives he absolutely refuses to 
 sanction our engagement," he began. " For 
 some reason of his own he declines to con- 
 sider the matter for a moment. He says 
 that at his death you are at liberty to do as 
 you please, but until that event occurs, you 
 are to remain with him. I consider it an 
 act of the greatest selfishness." 
 
 Helen heaved a heavy sigh. 
 
 " I was afraid he would not look upon it 
 as favourably as we hoped," she said. " I 
 will see what I can do with him, however. 
 I know him so well, and sometimes I can 
 coax him to do things he would not dream 
 of doing for any one else." 
 
 " Try, darling, then," said Jim, " and let 
 us trust you will be successful." 
 
 They bade each other good-night, and then 
 James set off on his walk across the Park. 
 Dusk was falling by this time, and the land-
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 55 
 
 scape looked very beautiful in the evening 
 light. As he strode along he thought of his 
 position and of the injustice of Bursfield's 
 decision. Then he fell to picturing what his 
 future life would be like when the old man 
 should have relented and Helen was his wife. 
 He was still indulging in this day-dream 
 when he noticed a shabbily-dressed man 
 standing on the path a short distance ahead 
 of him. Somehow the figure seemed familiar 
 to him, and when he drew nearer he could not 
 suppress an exclamation of astonishment. 
 The individual was none other than the 
 man he had seen lying beside the camp fire 
 on the banks of the Darling River, and who, 
 on a certain memorable evening, had caused 
 his father so much emotion, Richard Mur- 
 bridge. Whatever Jim's feelings might have 
 been, Murbridge was at least equal to the 
 occasion. 
 
 " Good evening, Mr. Standerton," he 
 began, lifting his hat politely as he spoke.
 
 56 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " You are doubtless surprised to see me in 
 England." 
 
 " I am more than surprised," James replied, 
 " and I am equally astonished at finding you 
 on my father's premises after what he said 
 to you in Australia. If you will be guided 
 by me you will make yourself scarce with- 
 out loss of time." 
 
 " You think so, do you ? Then let me 
 tell you that you have no notion of the 
 situation, or of the character of Richard 
 Murbridge. Far from making myself 
 scarce, I am now on my way to see your 
 father. I fear, however, he will not kill 
 the fatted calf in my honour ; but even 
 that omission will not deter me. Tenacity 
 of purpose has always been one of my chief 
 characteristics." 
 
 " If you attempt to see him you will dis- 
 cover that my father has also some force of 
 character," the other replied. "What is more, 
 I refuse to allow you to do so. I am not
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 57 
 going to permit him to be worried by you 
 
 again. 
 
 " My young friend, you little know with 
 whom you are dealing," Murbridge retorted. 
 " I have travelled from the other side of the 
 world to see your father, and if you think 
 you can prevent me you are much mistaken. 
 What is more, let me inform you that you 
 would be doing him a very poor service by 
 attempting to keep us apart. There is an 
 excellent little inn in the village, whose land- 
 lord and I are already upon the best of terms. 
 The Squire, William Standerton, late of 
 Australia, but now of Childerbridge, is an 
 important personage in the neighbour- 
 hood. Everything that is known about 
 him is to his credit. It would be a pity 
 if " 
 
 " You scoundrel ! " said Jim, approaching 
 a step nearer the other, his fists clenched, as 
 if ready for action, " If you dare to insinuate 
 that you know anything to my father's
 
 58 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 discredit, I'll thrash you to within an inch 
 of your life." 
 
 Then a fit of indescribable fear swept over 
 him as he remembered the night in Australia, 
 when his father had shown so much agita- 
 tion on learning that the man was on his way 
 to the station to see him. What could be the 
 secret between them ? But no ! He knew 
 his father too well to believe that the man 
 before him could cast even the smallest slur 
 upon his character. William Standerton's 
 name was a synonym for sterling integrity 
 throughout the Island Continent. It was, 
 therefore, impossible that Murbridge could 
 have any hold upon him. 
 
 " You had better leave the place at once 
 by the way you came into it," Jim continued, 
 " and take very good care that we don't see 
 any more of you." 
 
 " You crow very loud, my young bantam," 
 returned Murbridge, "but that does not alter 
 rny decision. Now let me tell you this. If
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 59 
 
 you knew everything, you would just go 
 down on your bended knees and pray to me 
 to forgive you for your impudence. As I 
 said a moment ago, it's not the least use your 
 attempting to stop me from seeing your 
 father, for see him I will, if I have to sit at 
 his gate for a year and wait for him to come 
 out." 
 
 " Then you'd better go and begin your 
 watch at once, for you shall not see him at 
 the house," retorted Jim. 
 
 " We'll see about that," said Murbridge, 
 and then turned on his heel, and set off in 
 the direction of the Park gates. James 
 waited until he had seen him disappear, 
 then he in his turn resumed his walk. He 
 had to make up his mind before he reached 
 the house as to whether he would tell his 
 father of the discovery he had made or not. 
 On mature consideration he came to the 
 conclusion that it would be better for him 
 to do so.
 
 60 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 For this reason, when he reached the 
 house he enquired for his father, and was 
 informed that he had gone to his room 
 to dress for dinner. He accordingly fol- 
 lowed him thither, to discover him, brush 
 in hand, at work upon his silver-grey hair. 
 That night, for some reason, the simple 
 appointments of that simple room struck 
 Jim in a new and almost pathetic light. 
 Each article was, like its owner, strong, 
 simple and good. 
 
 " Well, my lad, what is it ? " asked Stan- 
 derton. " I hope your interview with Mr. 
 Bursfield was satisfactory ? " 
 
 " Far from it," Jim replied lugubriously ; 
 and then, to postpone the fatal moment, 
 he proceeded to describe to his father the 
 interview he had had with the old gentle- 
 man. 
 
 "Never mind, my boy, don't be down- 
 hearted about it," said Standerton, when 
 he had heard his son out. " To-morrow
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 61 
 
 I'll make it my business to go and see 
 Mr. Bursfield. It will be strange if I can't 
 talk him into a different way of thinking 
 before I've done with him. But I can see 
 from your face that there is something else 
 you've got to tell me. What is it ? " 
 
 Jim paused before he replied. He knew 
 how upset his father would be at the news 
 he had to impart. 
 
 " Father," he said, " I'm afraid I've got 
 some bad news for you. I've been trying 
 to make up my mind whether I should tell 
 you or not." 
 
 " Tell me, James," answered the other. 
 " I'll be bound it's not so very bad after 
 all. You've probably been brooding over 
 it, and have magnified its importance." 
 
 " I sincerely hope I have. I am afraid 
 not, however. Do you remember the man 
 we saw at Mudrapilla in the Five Mile 
 Paddock, the night before we left ? His 
 name was Murbridge."
 
 62 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 The shock to William Standerton was 
 every bit as severe as James had feared it 
 would be. 
 
 " What of him ? " he cried. " You don't 
 mean to say that he is in England ? " 
 
 " I am sorry to say that he is," 
 Jim returned. " I found him in the 
 Park this evening on his way up to the 
 house." 
 
 The elder man turned and walked to the 
 fireplace, where he stood looking into it in 
 silence. Then he faced his son once more. 
 
 " What did he say to you ? " he enquired 
 at last, his voice shaking with the anxiety he 
 could not control or hide. 
 
 " He said that he wanted to see you, and 
 that he would do so if he had to wait at the 
 gates for a year." 
 
 " And he will," said Standerton bitterly ; 
 "that man will hunt me to my grave. I 
 have been cursed with him for thirty years, 
 and do what I will I cannot throw him off."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 63 
 
 James approached his father, and placed 
 his hand upon his shoulder. 
 
 " Father," he began, " why won't you let 
 me share your trouble with you ? Surely 
 we should be able to find some way of 
 ridding ourselves of this man ? " 
 
 % 
 
 " No, there is no way," said Standerton. 
 " He has got a hold upon me that nothing 
 will ever shake off." 
 
 " I will not believe, father, that he knows 
 anything to your discredit," cried Jim pas- 
 sionately. 
 
 " And you are right, my lad," his father 
 replied. " He knows nothing to my dis- 
 credit. I hope no one else does ; but but 
 there do not ask any more. Some day I 
 will tell you the whole miserable story. 
 But not now. You must not ask me. 
 Believe me, dear lad, when I say that it 
 would be better not." 
 
 " Then what will you do ? " 
 
 " See him, and buy him off once more, I
 
 64 The Childerbridgc Mystery 
 
 suppose. Then I shall have peace for a 
 few months. Do you know where he is 
 staying ? " 
 
 "At the 'George and Dragon,'" Jim re- 
 plied. 
 
 " Then I must send a note down to him 
 and ask him to come up here," said Stan- 
 derton. " Now go and dress. Don't trouble 
 yourself about him." 
 
 All things considered, the dinner that 
 night could not be described as a success. 
 William Standerton was more silent than 
 usual, and his son almost equalled him. 
 Alice tried hard to cheer them both, but 
 finding her efforts unsuccessful, she also 
 lapsed into silence. A diversion, however, 
 was caused before the meal was at an 
 end. The butler had scarcely completed 
 the circuit of the table with the port, 
 before a piercing scream ran through the 
 building, followed by another, and yet 
 another.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 65 
 
 " Good heavens ! What's that ? " cried 
 Standerton, as he sprang to his feet, and 
 hurried to the door, to be followed by his 
 son and daughter. 
 
 " It came from upstairs, sir," said the 
 butler, and immediately hurried up the broad 
 oak staircase two steps at a time. His state- 
 ment proved to be correct, for, on reaching 
 the gallery that runs round the hall, he 
 found a maid-servant lying on the floor in a 
 dead faint. Jim followed close behind him, 
 and between them they picked the girl up, 
 and carried her down to the hall, where she 
 was laid upon a settee. The housekeeper 
 was summoned, and the usual restoratives 
 applied, but it was some time before her 
 senses returned to her. When she was able 
 to speak, she looked wildly about her, and 
 asked if " it was gone?" When later she was 
 able to tell her story more coherently, it was 
 as follows. 
 
 In the fulfilment of her usual duties 
 
 F
 
 66 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 she had gone along the gallery to tidy 
 Miss Standerton's bedroom. She had just 
 finished her work, and was closing the 
 door, when she saw, standing before her, 
 not more than half-a-dozen paces distant, the 
 little hump-backed ghost, of which she had 
 so often heard mention made in the Servants' 
 Hall. It looked at her, pointed its finger at 
 her, and a second later vanished. " She 
 knew now," she declared, " that it was all 
 over with her, and that she was going to die. 
 Nothing could save her." Having given 
 utterance to this alarming prophecy, she 
 indulged in a second fit of hysterics, on 
 recovering from which she was removed by 
 the butler and housekeeper to the latter's 
 sitting-room, vowing as she went that she 
 could not sleep in the house, and that she 
 would never know happiness again. Having 
 seen her depart, the others returned to the 
 dining-room, and had just taken their places 
 at the table once more, when there was a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 67 
 
 ring at the front door bell, and in due course 
 the butler entered with the information that 
 a person " of the name of Murbridge " had 
 called and would be glad to see Mr. Stander- 
 ton. James sprang to his feet. 
 
 " I told him he was not to come near 
 the place," he said. " Let me go and see 
 him, father." 
 
 " No, no, iny boy," said Standerton. " I 
 wrote to him before dinner, as I told you I 
 should, telling him to come up to-night. 
 Where is he, Wilkins ? " 
 
 " In the library, sir," the butler replied. 
 
 " Very well. I will see him there." 
 
 He accordingly left the room. 
 
 A quarter of an hour later James and 
 Alice heard Murbridge's voice in the hall. 
 
 " You dare to turn me out of your 
 house ? " he was saying, as if in a n't of 
 uncontrollable rage. " You forbid me to 
 speak to your son and daughter, do you ? " 
 
 " Once and for all, I do," came Stander-
 
 68 The Childerbiidge Mystery 
 
 ton's calm voice in reply. " Now leave the 
 house, and never let me see your face again. 
 Wilkins, open the door, and take care that this 
 man is never again admitted to my house." 
 Murbridge must have gone down the 
 steps, where, as Wilkins asserted later on, 
 he stood shaking his fist at Mr. Standerton. 
 
 " Curse you, I'll make you pay for this," 
 he cried. " You think yourself all-powerful 
 because of your wealth, but whatever it costs 
 me, I'll make you smart for the manner in 
 which you've treated me to-night." 
 
 Then the door was closed abruptly, and no 
 more was seen of him. 
 
 William Standerton's usually rubicund 
 face was very pale when he joined his son 
 and daughter later. It was plain that the 
 interview he had had with Murbridge had 
 upset him more than he cared to admit. 
 Alice did her best to console him, and 
 endeavoured to make him forget it, but her 
 efforts were a failure.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 69 
 
 " Poor old dad," she said, when she bade 
 him good-night. " It hurts me to see you 
 so troubled." 
 
 " You must not think about it then," was 
 the answer. "I shall be myself again in 
 the morning. Good-night, my girl, and 
 may God bless you." 
 
 " God bless you, father," the girl replied 
 earnestly. 
 
 "I do wish you'd let me help you," said 
 Jim, when he and his father were alone 
 together. " Why did you not let me inter- 
 view that man ? " 
 
 " It would have done no good," Stander- 
 ton replied. " The fellow was desperate, 
 and he even went so far as to threaten me. 
 Thereupon I lost my temper and ordered 
 him out of the house. I fear we shall have 
 more trouble with him yet." 
 
 " Is it quite impossible for you to tell me 
 the reason of it all ? " James asked, after a 
 moment's hesitation.
 
 70 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Well, I have been thinking it over," said 
 his father, "and I have come to the con- 
 clusion that perhaps it would be better, much 
 as it will pain you, to let you know the 
 truth. But not to-night, dear lad. Let it 
 stand over, and I will tell you everything 
 to-morrow. Now good-night." 
 
 They shook hands according to custom, 
 and then departed to their respective 
 rooms. 
 
 Next morning James was about early. 
 He visited the Stables and the Home Farm, 
 looked in at the kennels, and was back again 
 at the home some three-quarters of an hour 
 before breakfast. As he crossed the hall to 
 ascend the stairs, in order to go to his own 
 room, he met Wilkins coming down, his face 
 white as death. 
 
 " My God, sir," he said hoarsely, " for 
 mercy's sake come upstairs to your father's 
 room." 
 
 " What is the matter with him ? " cried
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 71 
 
 James, realising from the butler's manner 
 that something terrible had happened. 
 
 But Wilkins did not answer. He only led 
 the way upstairs. Together they proceeded 
 along the corridor and entered the Squire's 
 bedroom. There they saw a sight that 
 James will never forget as long as he lives. 
 His father lay stretched out upon the bed, 
 dead. His eyes were open, and stared 
 horribly at the ceiling, while his hands were 
 clenched, and on either side of his throat 
 were discoloured patches. 
 
 These told their own tale. 
 
 William Standerton had been strangled.
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 IT would be almost impossible to describe in 
 fitting words the effect produced upon 
 James Standerton, by the terrible discovery 
 he had made. 
 
 " What does it mean, Wilkins ? " he 
 asked in a voice surcharged with horror. 
 " For God's sake, tell me what it 
 means ? " 
 
 "I don't know myself, sir," the man 
 replied. " It's too terrible for all words. 
 Who can have done it ? " 
 
 Throwing himself on his knees beside his 
 father's body, James took one of the cold 
 hands in his. 
 
 " Father ! father ! " he cried, in an ecstasy
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 73 
 
 of grief, and then broke down altogether. 
 When calmness returned to him, he rose to 
 his feet, clasped the hands of the dead man 
 upon the breast, and tenderly closed the 
 staring eyes. 
 
 " Send for Dr. Brenderton," he said, turn- 
 ing to Wilkins, " and let the messenger call 
 at the police-station on the way and ask the 
 officer in charge to come here without a 
 moment's delay." 
 
 The man left him to carry out the order, 
 and James silently withdrew from the room 
 to perform what he knew would be the 
 saddest task of his life. As he descended 
 the stairs he could hear his sister singing in 
 the breakfast-room below. 
 
 " You are very late," she said, as he 
 entered the room. " And father too. I 
 shall have to give him a talking-to when he 
 does come down." 
 
 Then she must have realised that some- 
 thing was amiss, for she put down the letter
 
 74 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 which she had been reading, and took a step 
 towards him. Has anything happened, 
 Jim ? " she enquired, " your face is as white 
 as death." Then Jim told her everything. 
 The shock to her was even more terrible 
 than it had been to her brother, but she did 
 her best to bear up bravely. 
 
 The doctor and the police officer arrived 
 almost simultaneously. Both were visibly 
 upset at the intelligence they had re- 
 ceived. Short though William Standerton's 
 residence in the neighbourhood had been, it 
 had, nevertheless, been long enough for 
 them to arrive at a proper appreciation of 
 his worth. He had been a good supporter 
 of all the Local Institutions, a liberal land- 
 lord, and had won for himself the reputation 
 of being an honest and just man. 
 
 " I sympathise with you more deeply than 
 I can say," said the doctor, when he joined 
 Jim in the library after he had made his 
 examination. " If there is anything more I
 
 The Childcrbridge Mystery 75 
 
 can do to help you, I hope you will command 
 me." 
 
 " Thank you," said Jim simply, " there is 
 not anything however you can do. Stay ! 
 There is one question you can answer. I 
 want you to tell me how long you think my 
 father has been dead ? " 
 
 " Several hours," replied the medical man. 
 " I should say at least six." 
 
 " Is there any sort of doubt in your mind 
 as to the cause of his death ? " 
 
 " None whatever," the other replied. 
 " All outward appearances point to the fact 
 that death is due to strangulation." 
 
 At that moment the police officer entered 
 the room. 
 
 " I have taken the liberty, Mr. Stander- 
 ton," he said, " of locking the door of the 
 room and retaining the key in my posses- 
 sion. It will be necessary for me to report 
 the matter to the Authorities at once, in 
 order that an Inquest may be held. Before
 
 76 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 I do so, however, may I put one or two 
 questions to you ? " 
 
 " As many as you like," Jim replied. " I 
 am, of course, more than anxious that the 
 mystery surrounding my father's death shall 
 be cleared up at once, and the murderer 
 brought to Justice." 
 
 "In the first place," said the officer, "I see 
 that the window of the bedroom is securely 
 fastened on the inside, so that the assassin, 
 whoever he was, could not have made his 
 entrance by this means. Do you know 
 whether your father was in the habit of 
 locking his door at night ?" 
 
 " I am sure he was not. A man 
 who has led the sort of life he has done 
 for fifty years does not lock his bedroom 
 door on retiring to rest." 
 
 " In that case the murderer must have 
 obtained access to the room through the 
 house, and I must make it my business to 
 ascertain whether any of the windows o
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 77 
 
 doors were open this morning. One more 
 question, Mr. Standerton, and I have 
 finished for the present. Have you any 
 reason to suppose that your father had an 
 enemy ? " 
 
 Jim remembered the suspicion that had 
 been in his mind ever since he had made the 
 ghastly discovery that morning. 
 
 " I have," he answered. " There was a 
 man in Australia who hated my father with 
 an undying hatred." 
 
 " Forgive my saying so, but a man in 
 Australia could scarcely have committed 
 murder in England last night." 
 
 " But the man is not in Australia now. 
 He was here yesterday evening, and he and 
 my father had a quarrel. The man was 
 ordered out of the house, and went away 
 declaring that, whatever it might cost, he 
 would be revenged." 
 
 " In that case it looks as if the mystery 
 were explained. I must make it my business
 
 7 8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 to discover the whereabouts of the man 
 you mention." 
 
 " He was staying at the ' George and Dra- 
 gon ' yesterday," said Jim. " By this time, 
 however, he has probably left the neigh- 
 bourhood. It should not be difficult to 
 trace him, however ; and if you consider a 
 reward necessary, in order to bring about his 
 apprehension more quickly, offer it, and I 
 will pay it only too gladly. I shall know 
 no peace until this dastardly crime has been 
 avenged." 
 
 " I can quite understand that," the doctor 
 remarked. " You will have the sympathy 
 of the whole County." 
 
 " And now," said the police officer, " I must 
 be going. I shall take a man with me and 
 call at the ' George and Dragon.' The name 
 of the person you mentioned to me is " 
 
 " Richard Murbridge, " said Jim, and 
 thereupon furnished the officer with a de- 
 scription of the man in question.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 79 
 
 " You will, of course, be able to identify 
 him ? " 
 
 " I should know him again if I did not 
 see him for twenty years," Jim answered. 
 " Wilkins, the butler, will also be glad to 
 give you evidence as to his coming here last 
 night." 
 
 " Thank you," the officer replied. " I will let 
 you know as soon as I have any thing to report." 
 
 The doctor and the police agent there- 
 upon bade him good-day and took their 
 departure, and Jim went in search of his 
 grief -stricken sister. The terrible news had 
 by this time permeated the whole household, 
 and had caused the greatest consternation. 
 
 "I knew what it would be last night," said 
 the cook. " Though Mr. Wilkins laughed 
 at me, I felt certain that Mary Sampson did 
 not see the Black Dwarf for nothing. Why, 
 it's well known by everybody that whenever 
 that horrible little man is seen in the house 
 death follows within twenty-four hours."
 
 8o The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 The frightened maids to whom she spoke 
 shuddered at her words. 
 
 " What's more," the cook continued, 
 " they may talk about murderers as they 
 please, but they forget that this is not the 
 first time a man has been found strangled 
 in this house. There is more in it than 
 meets the eye, as the saying goes." 
 
 " Lor, Mrs. Ryan, you don't mean to say 
 that you think it was the ghost that killed 
 the poor master ? " asked one of the maids, 
 her eyes dilating with horror. 
 
 " I don't say as how it was, and I don't say 
 as how it wasn't," that lady replied somewhat 
 ambiguously, and then she added oracularly : 
 " Time will show." 
 
 In the meantime Jim had written a short 
 note to his sweetheart, telling her of the 
 crime, and imploring her to come to his 
 sister at once. A servant was despatched 
 with it, and half-an-hour later Helen herself 
 appeared in answer.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 81 
 
 " Your poor father. I cannot believe it ! 
 It is too terrible," slie said to her lover, 
 when he greeted her in the drawing-room. 
 Oh ! Jim, my poor boy, how you must 
 feel it. And Alice, too pray let me go 
 to her at once." 
 
 Jim conducted her to his sister's room, 
 and then left the two women together, re- 
 turning himself to the dead man's study on 
 the floor below. There he sat himself down 
 to wait, with what patience he could com- 
 mand, for news from the police station. In 
 something less than an hour it came in the 
 shape of a note from the inspector, to the 
 effect that Murbridge had not returned to the 
 " George and Dragon " until a late hour on 
 the previous night, and that he had departed 
 for London by the train leaving Childer- 
 bridge Junction shortly before five o'clock 
 that morning. " However," said the writer, in 
 conclusion, "I have wired to the Authorities 
 in London, furnishing them with an exact 
 
 G
 
 82 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 description of him, and I have no doubt that 
 before very long his arrest will be effected." 
 With this assurance Jim was perforce 
 compelled to be content. Later came the 
 intimation from the Coroner to the effect 
 that the Inquest would be held at the 
 George and Dragon Inn on the following 
 morning. 
 
 Shortly after twelve o'clock Wilkins 
 entered the study with the information 
 that a person of " the name of Robins' 
 desired to see his master on an important 
 matter, if he would permit him an inter- 
 view. 
 
 " Show him in," said Jim, forming as 
 he did so a shrewd guess as to the man's 
 business. 
 
 A few moments later a small, sombrely- 
 dressed individual, resembling a Dissenting 
 minister more than any one else, made his 
 appearance in the room. 
 
 " Mr, Standerton, I believe," he began,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 83 
 
 speaking in a low, deep voice, that had 
 almost a solemn ring about it. 
 
 " That is my name," the other replied. 
 " What can I do for you ?" 
 
 " I am a Scotland Yard detective," 
 the stranger replied, " and I have been 
 sent down to take charge of the case. I 
 must apologise for intruding upon you at 
 such a time, but if the murderer is to be 
 brought to justice, no time must be lost. 
 I want you to tell me, if you will, all 
 you can about the crime, keeping nothing 
 
 back, however trivial you may consider 
 
 j_ " 
 it. 
 
 James thereupon proceeded to once more 
 narrate what he knew regarding the murder. 
 He discovered that the detective had already 
 been informed as to the ominous sus- 
 picion that had attached itself to Mur- 
 bridge. 
 
 " The first point to be settled," he said, 
 when James had finished, " is the way in
 
 84 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 which the man got into the house. You 
 have not cross- questioned the domestics 
 upon the subject, I suppose ?" 
 
 James shook his head. 
 
 " I have been too much upset to think of 
 such a thing," he answered. " But if you 
 deem such a proceeding necessary, you are, 
 of course, quite at liberty to do so. Take 
 what steps you think best ; all I ask of 
 you is to find my father's murderer." 
 
 " I presume you heard nothing suspicious 
 during the night ? " 
 
 " Nothing at all. But it is scarcely likely 
 that I should do so, as my room is in 
 another part of the house." 
 
 " Who is responsible for the locking up 
 at night ?" 
 
 " The butler, Wilkins." 
 
 " Has he been with you any length of 
 time ?" 
 
 41 We ourselves have only been a few 
 months in England," Jim replied, " but since
 
 The Childcrbridge Mystery 85 
 
 he has been in our service we have found 
 him a most careful and trustworthy man. 
 There cannot be any shadow of suspicion 
 against him." 
 
 " Very likely not," the detective an- 
 swered. " But in my profession we often 
 tind criminals in the most unlikely quartan. 
 Mind you, sir. I don't say that he had 
 anything to do with the crime itself*. It 
 is not outside the bounds of possibility, 
 however, that his honesty may have beat 
 tampered with, even to the extent of losing 
 a window uutkstened. or a door unlocked. 
 However, I have no doubt I shall soon 
 learn all there is to be known about Mr. 
 \Yilkins." 
 
 When he had asked one or two other 
 important questMBSbe withdrew 
 
 the servants. From the account J 
 
 I of the examination later, it would 
 not appear to have been a very i
 
 86 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Wilkins asserted most positively that 
 he had made every door and window 
 in the house secure before retiring to rest. 
 He was as certain as a man could be that no 
 lock, bolt, or bar had been moved from 
 its place during the night, and the house- 
 keeper corroborated his assertions. The 
 detective's face wore a puzzled expression. 
 
 " I've been round every flower-bed outside 
 the windows," he said to the police inspector, 
 " and not a trace of a footprint can I find. 
 And yet we know that Murbridge was away 
 from the inn at a late hour, and there's 
 evidence enough upstairs to show that 
 somebody made his way into Mr. Stan- 
 derton's room between midnight and day- 
 break. Later I'll go down to the village 
 and make a few enquiries there. It's just 
 possible somebody may have met the man 
 upon the road." 
 
 He was as good as his word, and when he 
 returned to the Manor House at a late hour
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 87 
 
 he knew as much about Richard Murbridge' s 
 movements on the preceding evening as did 
 any man in the neighbourhood. 
 
 Jim dined alone that night, though it 
 would be almost a sarcasm to dignify his 
 meal with such a name. He had spent the 
 afternoon going through his father's papers, 
 in the hope of being able to discover some 
 clue that might ultimately enable him to solve 
 the mystery concerning Murbridge. He was 
 entirely unsuccessful, however. Among all 
 the papers with which the drawers were 
 tilled, there was not one scrap of writing that 
 could in anyway enlighten him. They were 
 the plain records of a successful business 
 man's career, and, so far as Murbridge was 
 concerned, quite devoid of interest. I do 
 not think James Standerton ever knew how 
 much he loved his father until he went 
 through that drawer. The neat little 
 packets, so carefully tied up and labelled, 
 spoke to him eloquently of the dead man,
 
 88 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 and, as he replaced them where he had found 
 them, a wave of intense longing to be 
 revenged on his father's cowardly assassin 
 swept over him. He was in the act of closing 
 the drawer, when there came a tap at the 
 door, and Wilkins entered to inform him 
 that the detective had returned and was at 
 his service, should he desire to see him. 
 
 " Show him in, Wilkins," said James, 
 locking the drawer of the table, and placing 
 the key in his pocket as he spoke. 
 
 The butler disappeared, to return a few 
 moments later accompanied by the individual 
 in question. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Robins," said Jim, when they 
 were alone together, " what have you dis- 
 covered ? " 
 
 " Nothing of very much importance, sir, I 
 am afraid," the other replied. " I have 
 found out that Murbridge left the park by 
 the main gates almost on the stroke of 
 half -past eight last night. I have also
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 89 
 
 discovered that he was again seen within 
 a few minutes of eleven o'clock, standing 
 near the small stile at the further end 
 of the park/' 
 
 "I know the place," Jim replied. "Go 
 on ! What was he doing there ! " 
 
 "Well, sir," continued the detective, 
 " that's more than I can tell you. But if he 
 were there at such an hour, you may be sure 
 it was not with any good intention. I have 
 made enquiries from the keepers, and they 
 have informed me that it is quite possible to 
 reach the house by the path that leads from 
 the stile without being observed." 
 
 " It winds through the plantation," said 
 Jim, " and it is very seldom used. Lying 
 outside the village as it does, it is a very 
 roundabout way of reaching the house. 
 What have they to say about him at the 
 inn ? " 
 
 " Not very much, sir. But what little 
 they do say is important. The landlord
 
 90 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 informs me that immediately after his 
 arrival in the village he began to ask 
 questions concerning the Squire. There is 
 no doubt that your father was his enemy, 
 and also that Murbridge cherished a bitter 
 grudge against him. He did not tell the 
 landlord who he was, or what his reasons 
 were for being in the neighbourhood. 
 It is certain, however, that had your 
 father not been living here he would not 
 have come near the place. On receipt of 
 Mr. Standerton's letter, he set off for the 
 house, and did not return to the inn until a 
 late hour. In point of fact, it was between 
 twelve and one o'clock when he did come in. 
 The landlord is unable to give the exact 
 time, for the reason that he was too sleepy 
 to take much notice of it. He does 
 remember, however, that Murbridge was in 
 a very bad temper, and that he was excited 
 about something. He called for some 
 brandy, and moreover stated that his holiday
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 91 
 
 was at an end, and that he was leaving for 
 London by the early train next morning. 
 This he did. That is as far as the land- 
 lord's tale goes. It seems to me that, unless 
 we can prove something more definite against 
 him than the evidence we have been able 
 to obtain up to the present moment, it will 
 be difficult to bring the crime home to him." 
 
 " But we must prove more," cried Jim, 
 with considerable vehemence. "I am as 
 certain in my own mind as I can be of any- 
 thing that he was the man who killed my 
 father, and if it costs me all I am worth 
 in the world, and if I am compelled to 
 spend the rest of my life in doing it, I'll 
 bring the crime home to him somehow or 
 another. It is impossible that he should be 
 allowed to take that good, honest life, and 
 get off scot free." 
 
 "I can quite understand your feelings, 
 sir, " said the detective, " and you may 
 rest assured that, so far as we are concerned,
 
 92 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 no stone shall be left unturned to bring the 
 guilty man to justice. Of course it is full 
 early to speak like this, but if you will review 
 the case in your own mind, you will see that, 
 up to the present, there is really nothing tan- 
 gible against the man. We know that he 
 hated your father, and that he stated his in- 
 tention of doing him a mischief, and also 
 that on the night he uttered this threat the 
 murder was committed. From this it would 
 appear that he is responsible for it. But 
 how are we to prove that he got into the 
 house ? No one saw him, and there are no 
 suspicious footprints on the flower-beds out- 
 side. At the same time we know that he 
 did not return to the inn until a late hour, 
 and that, when he did, he was in an excited 
 state. Yet why should he not have gone for 
 a walk, and might not his excitement be 
 attributed to resentment of the treatment he 
 received at your father's hands ? I am very 
 much afraid it would be difficult to induce a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 93 
 
 Jury to convict on evidence such as we are, 
 so far, able to bring against him. However, 
 we shall hear what the Coroner has to say 
 to-morrow. In the meantime, if you do not 
 require my presence longer, I will return to 
 the inn. It will be necessary for me to be 
 early astir to-morrow." 
 
 James bade him good-night, and when he 
 had departed, went upstairs to his sister's 
 room. He found her more composed than 
 she had been when he had last seen her, and 
 able to talk of the dead man without break- 
 ing down as she had hitherto done. He 
 informed her of the detective's visit, and of 
 the information he had received from him. 
 It was nearly midnight when he left her. 
 The lamp in the hall was still burning, and he 
 descended the great staircase with the inten- 
 tion of telling Wilkins that he could lock up 
 the house and retire to rest. To his aston- 
 ishment, when he reached the hall, he beheld 
 the butler standing near the dining-room
 
 94 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 door, his face as white as the paper upon 
 which I am now writing. 
 
 " What on earth is the matter, man ? " 
 asked James, who, for the moment, was 
 compelled to entertain the notion that the 
 other had been drinking. 
 
 " I've seen it, sir," said Wilkins in a 
 voice that his master scarcely recognised. 
 " I'd never believe it could be true, but now 
 I've witnessed it with my own eyes." 
 
 " Witnessed what ? " James enquired. 
 
 " The ghost, sir," Wilkins replied ; " the 
 ghost of the Little Black Dwarf." 
 
 Jim was in no humour for such talk then, 
 and I very much regret to say he lost his 
 temper. 
 
 " Nonsense," he answered. " You must 
 have imagined that you saw it." 
 
 " No, sir, I will take my Bible Oath that I 
 did not. I saw it as plain as I see you now. 
 I'd been in to lock up the dining-room, and 
 was standing just where I am now, never
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 95 
 
 thinking of such a thing, when I happened 
 to look up in the gallery, and there, sir, as 
 sure as I'm alive, was the ghost, leaning on 
 the rail, and looking down at me. His eyes 
 were glaring like red-hot coals. Then he 
 pointed upwards and disappeared. I will 
 never laugh at another person again, when 
 they say that they have seen him. May 
 God defend us from further trouble ! "
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 THE inquest on the body of William Stander- 
 ton was held next morning at the George and 
 Dragon Inn in the village, and was attended 
 by more than half the Neighbourhood. The 
 affair had naturally caused an immense 
 sensation in all ranks of Society, and, as the 
 Coroner observed in his opening remarks, 
 universal sympathy was felt for the bereaved 
 family. Wilkins, who had not altogether 
 recovered from the fright he had received 
 on the night before, was the first witness. 
 He stated that he had been the first to 
 discover the murder, and then informed the 
 coroner of the steps he had immediately 
 taken. Questioned as to the visit paid to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 97 
 
 the Squire by Murbridge, he said that the 
 latter was in a great rage when turned away 
 from the house, and on being asked to do 
 so, repeated the words he had made use 
 of. In conclusion, he said that he was quite 
 certain that no door or window in the house 
 had been left unfastened on the night in 
 question, and that he was equally certain 
 that none were found either open, or show- 
 ing signs of having been tampered with in 
 the morning. Jim followed next, and cor- 
 roborated what the butler had said. A 
 sensation was caused when he informed the 
 Coroner that Murbridge had threatened his 
 father in his hearing in Australia. He de- 
 scribed his meeting with the man in the park 
 before dinner, and added that he had for- 
 bidden him to approach the house. Ex- 
 amined by the Coroner, he was unable to 
 say anything concerning the nature of the 
 quarrel between the two men. The doctor 
 was next called, and gave evidence as to 
 
 H
 
 98 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 being summoned to the Manor House. He 
 described the body, and gave it as his opinion 
 that death was due to strangulation. Then 
 followed the police officer. The landlord 
 was the next witness, and he gave evidence 
 to the effect that the man Murbridge had 
 stayed at the inn, had been absent on the 
 evening in question from eight o'clock until 
 half-past twelve, and that he had departed 
 for London by the first train on the follow- 
 ing morning. The driver of the mail-cart, 
 who had seen him standing beside the stile, 
 was next called. He was quite sure that 
 he had made no mistake as to the man's 
 identity, for the reason that he had had a 
 
 / i 
 
 conversation with him at the George and 
 Dragon Inn earlier in the evening. This 
 completing the evidence, the jury, without 
 leaving the room, brought in a verdict of 
 " Wilful murder against some person or 
 persons unknown," and for the time being 
 the case was at an end.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 99 
 
 " You must not be disappointed, my dear 
 sir," said Robins, afterwards ; " it is all you 
 can possibly expect. The jury could do no 
 more on such evidence. But we've got our 
 warrant for the arrest of Murbridge, and, as 
 soon as we are able to lay our hands upon 
 him, we may be able to advance another and 
 more important step. I am going up to 
 London this afternoon, and I give you my 
 assurance I shall not waste a moment in 
 getting upon his track." 
 
 " And you will let me know how you 
 succeed ? " 
 
 " I will be sure to do so," Robins replied. 
 
 " In the meantime, there can be no harm 
 in my putting an advertisement in the papers, 
 offering a reward of five hundred pounds to 
 anyone who will give such information as 
 may lead to the discovery of the murderer." 
 
 " It is a large sum to offer, sir, and will 
 be sure to bring you a lot of useless corre- 
 spondence. Still, it may be of some use, and 
 
 H 2
 
 ioo The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 I would suggest that you send it to the daily 
 papers without delay." 
 
 " It shall be done at once." 
 
 Jim thereupon bade the detective good- 
 bye, and returned to the house to inform his 
 sister of what had taken place at the inquest. 
 She quite agreed with him on the matter of 
 the reward, and an advertisement was ac- 
 cordingly despatched to the London news- 
 papers, together with a cheque to cover the 
 cost of the insertions. 
 
 Next day the mortal remains of William 
 Standerton were conveyed to their last 
 resting-place in the graveyard of the little 
 village church. After the funeral Jim 
 drove back to the Manor House, accom- 
 panied by his father's solicitor, who had 
 travelled down from London for the cere- 
 mony. He was already aware that, by his 
 father's death, he had become a rich man, 
 but he had no idea how wealthy he would 
 really be, until the will was read to him.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 101 
 
 When this had been done he was informed 
 that he was worth upwards of half-a-million 
 sterling. He shook his head sadly : 
 
 " I'd give it all up willingly, every penny 
 of it," he answered, "to have my father 
 alive. Even now I can scarcely believe 
 that I shall never see him again. It seems 
 an extraordinary thing to me that the police 
 have, so far, not been able to obtain any clue 
 as to the whereabouts of Murbridge. Look 
 at this heap of letters," he continued, point- 
 ing to a pile of correspondence lying upon 
 the writing table, " each one hails from 
 somebody who has either seen Murbridge 
 or professes to know where he is to be found. 
 One knows just such a man working in a 
 baker's shop in Shoreditch ; another has 
 lately returned with him on board a liner 
 from America, and on receipt of the reward 
 will give me his present address ; a third 
 says that he is a waiter in a popular res- 
 taurant in Oxford Street ; a fourth avers
 
 102 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 that he is hiding near the Docks, and in- 
 tends leaving England this week. So the 
 tale goes on, and will increase, I suppose, 
 every day." 
 
 " The effect of offering so large a reward," 
 replied the lawyer. " My only hope is that 
 it will not have the effect of driving him out 
 of England. In which case the difficulty of 
 laying hands upon him will be more than 
 doubled." 
 
 " He need not think that flight will save 
 him," Jim replied. " Let him go where he 
 pleases, I will run him to earth." 
 
 Helen had spent the day at the Manor 
 House, trying to comfort Alice in her dis- 
 tress. At nine o'clock she decided to return 
 to her own home, and Jim determined to 
 accompany her. They accordingly set off 
 together. So occupied were they by their 
 own thoughts, that for some time neither ot
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 103 
 
 them spoke. Jim was the first to break the 
 silence. 
 
 " Helen," he said, " I cannot thank you 
 sufficiently for your goodness to Alice 
 during this awful time. But for you I 
 do not know how she would have come 
 through it." 
 
 " Poor girl," Helen answered, " my heart 
 aches for her." 
 
 " She was so fond of our father," James 
 answered. 
 
 " Not more than you were, dear," Helen 
 replied ; " but you have borne your trouble 
 so bravely never once thinking of your- 
 self." 
 
 The night was dark, and there was no one 
 about, so why should he not have slipped his 
 arm round her waist. 
 
 " Helen," he said, " the time has come for 
 me to ask what our future is to be. Will 
 you wait for Mr. Bursfield's death before 
 vou become my wife, or will you court his
 
 IO4 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 displeasure and trust yourself to me ? 
 " I would trust myself to you at any 
 time," she answered. " But do you not see 
 ,how I am situated ? I owe everything to 
 my Guardian. But for his care of me in 
 all probability I should now be a governess, 
 a music-mistress, or something of that sort. 
 He has fed me, clothed me, and loved me, 
 after his own fashion, for a number of 
 years. Would it not, therefore, seem like 
 an act of the basest ingratitude to leave him 
 desolate, merely to promote my own happi- 
 
 ?5 
 . 
 
 "And does my happiness count for 
 nothing ? " Jim returned. " But let us talk 
 the matter over dispassionately, and see 
 what can be done. Don't think me heartless, 
 Helen, when I sa}^ that you must realise 
 that Mr. Bursfield is a very old man. It is 
 just possible, therefore, that the event we 
 referred to a few moments ago may take 
 place in the near future. Now, owing to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 105 
 
 my father's death, I ought not to be married 
 for some time to come. I propose, there- 
 fore, that we wait until, say, the end of six 
 months, and then make another appeal to 
 your guardian ? It is just possible he may 
 be more inclined to listen to reason then. 
 What do you say ? " 
 
 " I will do whatever you wish," she an- 
 swered simply. " I fear, however, that, 
 while Mr. Bursfield lives, he will take no 
 other view of the case." 
 
 " We must hope that he will," Jim re- 
 plied. " In the meantime, as long as I know 
 that you are true to me, and love me as I 
 love you, I shall be quite happy." 
 
 " You do believe that I love you, don't 
 you, Jim ? " she asked, looking up at her 
 lover in the starlight. 
 
 " Of course I do," he answered. " God 
 knows what a lucky man I deem myself 
 for having been permitted to win your 
 love. I am supremely thankful for one
 
 io6 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 thing, and that is, the fact that my father 
 learnt to know and love you before his 
 death." 
 
 " As I had learnt to love him," she 
 replied. "But there, who could help doing 
 so?" 
 
 " One man at least," Jim replied. " Un- 
 happily, we have the worst of reasons for 
 knowing that there was one person in the 
 world who bore him a mortal hatred." 
 
 " Have you heard anything yet from the 
 police regarding Murbridge ? " 
 
 " Not a word," Jim answered. " They have 
 given me their most positive assurance that 
 they are leaving no stone unturned to h'nd the 
 man, but, so far, they appear to have been 
 entirely unsuccessful. If they do not soon 
 run him down I shall take up the case my- 
 self, and see what I can do with it. And 
 now here we are at the gate. You do not 
 know how hard it is for me to let you go, 
 even for so short a time. With the closing
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 107 
 
 of that door the light seems to go out 
 of my life." 
 
 " I hope and pray that you will always be 
 able to say that," she answered solemnly. 
 
 Then they bade each other good-night, 
 and she disappeared into the house, leaving 
 Jim free to resume his walk. He had not 
 gone many steps, however, before he heard 
 his name called, and, turning round, beheld 
 no less a person than Mr. Burstield hurrying 
 after him. He waited for the old gentle- 
 man to come up. It was the first time that 
 Jim had known him to venture beyond the 
 limits of his own grounds. The circum- 
 stance was as puzzling as it was unusual. 
 
 " Will you permit me a short conversa- 
 tion with you, Mr. Standerton ? " Mr. Burs- 
 tield began. " I recognised your voice as 
 you bade Miss Decie good-bye, and hurried 
 after you in the hope of being able to see 
 you." 
 
 For a moment Jim hoped that Mr.
 
 io8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Bursfield had come after him in order to 
 make amends, and to withdraw his decision 
 regarding his marriage with Helen. This 
 hope, however, was soon extinguished. 
 
 " Mr. Standerton," the old gentleman 
 continued, "you may remember what I 
 told you a few evenings since concerning 
 the proposal you did me the honour of 
 making on behalf of my ward, Miss 
 Decie?" 
 
 " I remember it perfectly," Jim replied ; 
 " it is scarcely likely that I should forget." 
 
 " Since then I have given the matter 
 careful consideration, and I may say that I 
 have found no reason for deviating from 
 my previous decision." 
 
 "I am sorry indeed to hear that. The 
 more so as your ward and myself are quite 
 convinced that our affections are such as 
 will not change or grow weaker with time. 
 Indeed, Mr. Bursfield, I have had another 
 idea in my mind which I fancied might
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 109 
 
 possibly commend itself to you, and induce 
 you to reconsider your decision. You have 
 already told me that Miss Decie's presence 
 is necessary to your happiness. As a proof 
 of what a good girl she is I might inform 
 you that, only a few moments since, she 
 told me that she could not consent to leave 
 you, for the reason that she felt that she 
 owed all she possessed to you." 
 
 "I am glad that Helen has at least a spark 
 of gratitude," the other answered with a 
 sneer. " It is a fact that she does owe every- 
 thing to me. And now for this idea of yours." 
 
 " What I was going to propose is," said 
 Jim, " that in six months' time, or so, you 
 should permit me to marry your ward, and 
 from that day forward should take up your 
 residence with us." 
 
 The old man looked at him in astonish- 
 ment. Then he burst into a torrent of 
 speech. 
 
 " Such a thing is not to be thought of,"
 
 no The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 he cried. " I could not consider it for a 
 moment ; it would be little short of madness. 
 I am a recluse. I care less than nothing 
 for society. My books are my only com- 
 panions ; I want, and will have, no others. 
 Besides, 1 could not live in that house of 
 yours, were you to offer me all the gold in 
 the world." 
 
 Here he grasped Jim's arm so tightly 
 that the young man almost winced. 
 
 " I have, of course, heard of your father's 
 death," he continued. "It is said that he was 
 murdered. But, surely, knowing what you 
 do, you are not going to be foolish enough 
 to believe that ? " 
 
 " And why not ? " Jim enquired in great 
 surprise. " I can do nothing else, for every 
 circumstance of the case points to murder. 
 Good heavens ! Mr. Bursfield, if my father 
 were not murdered, how did he meet his 
 death ? " 
 
 The other was silent for a moment before
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery in 
 
 he replied. Then he drew a step nearer, 
 and, looking up at Jim, asked in a low 
 voice : 
 
 " Have you forgotten what I said to you 
 concerning the mystery of the house ? Did 
 I not tell you that one of the former owners 
 was found dead in bed, having met his fate 
 in identically the same manner as your 
 father did ? Does not this appear significant 
 to you ? If not, your understanding must 
 indeed be dull." 
 
 The new explanation of the mystery was 
 so extraordinary, that Jim did not know 
 what to say or think about it. That his 
 father's death had resulted from any super- 
 natural agency had never crossed his mind. 
 
 " I fear I am not inclined to agree with 
 you, Mr. Bursfield," he said somewhat coldly. 
 "Even if one went so far as to believe in 
 such things, the evidence given by the 
 doctor at the inquest would be sufficient to 
 refute the idea."
 
 ii2 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " In that case let us drop the subject,' 
 Bursfield answered. " My only desire was 
 to warn you. It is rumoured in the village 
 that on the night of vour father's death one 
 
 O */ 
 
 of your domestics was confronted by the 
 spectre known as the Black Dwarf, and 
 fainted in consequence. My old man-servant 
 also told me this morning that your butler 
 had seen it on another occasion. I believe 
 the late Lord Childerbridge also saw it, and 
 in consequence determined to be rid of the 
 place at any cost. No one has been able to 
 live there, and I ask you to be warned in 
 time, Mr. Standerton. For my own part, as 
 I have said before, though it is the home of 
 my ancestors, I would not pass a night at 
 Childerbridge for the wealth of all the 
 Indies." 
 
 " In that case you must be more easily 
 frightened than I am," said Jim. " On the 
 two occasions you mention, the only evi- 
 dence we have to rely upon is the word
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 113 
 
 of a hysterical maid- servant, and the assur- 
 ance of a butler, who, for all we know to 
 the contrary, may have treated himself more 
 liberally than usual, on that particular 
 evening, to my father's port." 
 
 " Scoff as you will," Bursfield returned, 
 " but so far as you are concerned I have 
 done my duty. I have given you your 
 warning, and if you do not care to profit by 
 it, that has nothing to do with me. And 
 now to return to the matter upon which I 
 hastened after you this evening. I refer to 
 your proposed marriage with my ward." 
 
 Jim said nothing, but waited for Mr. 
 Bursfield to continue. He had a vague feel- 
 ing that what he was about to hear would 
 mean unhappiness for himself. 
 
 " I informed you the other day," the 
 latter continued, " that it was impossible 
 for me to sanction your proposal. I regret 
 that I am still compelled to adhere to this 
 decision. In point of fact, I feel that it is 
 
 I
 
 H4 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 necessary for me to go even further, and to 
 say that I must for the future ask you to 
 refrain from addressing yourself to Miss 
 Decie at all." 
 
 " Do you mean that you refuse me per- 
 mission to see her or to speak with her ? " 
 Jim asked in amazement. 
 
 " If, by seeing her, you mean holding 
 personal intercourse with her, I must confess 
 that you have judged the situation correctly. 
 I am desirous of preventing Miss Decie 
 from falling into the error of believing that 
 she will ever be your wife." 
 
 " But, my dear sir, this is an unheard-of 
 proceeding. Why should you object to me 
 in this way ? You know nothing against 
 me, and you are aware that I love your 
 ward. You admitted, on the last occasion 
 that I discussed the matter with you, that 
 Miss Decie might expect little or nothing 
 from you at your death. Why, therefore, 
 in the name of Commonsense, are you so
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 115 
 
 anxious to prevent her marrying the man 
 she loves, and who is in a position to give 
 her all the comfort and happiness wealth 
 and love can bestow ? " 
 
 " You have heard mv decision," the other 
 
 */ * 
 
 replied quietly. " I repeat that on no con- 
 sideration will I consent to a marriage 
 between my ward and yourself. And, as I 
 said just now, I will go even further, and 
 forbid you most positively for the future 
 either to see or to communicate with her." 
 
 " And you will not give me your reasons 
 for taking this extraordinary step ? " 
 
 " I will not. That is all I have to say to 
 you, and I have the honour to wish you a 
 good evening." 
 
 " But I have not finished yet," said Jim, 
 whose anger by this time had got the better 
 him. " Once and for all, let me tell you this, 
 Mr. Bursfield : I have already informed you 
 that I am determined, at any cost, to make 
 Miss Decie my wife. I might add now, that
 
 n6 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 your tyrannical behaviour will only make 
 me the more anxious to do so. If the young 
 lady deems it incumbent upon her to await 
 your consent before marrying me, I will 
 listen to her and not force the matter ; but 
 give her up I certainly will not so long as I 
 live." 
 
 " Beware, sir, I warn you, beware ! " the 
 other almost shrieked. 
 
 " If that is all you have to say to me 
 I will bid you good evening." 
 
 But Bursfield did not answer ; he merely 
 turned on his heel and strode back in the 
 direction of the Dower House. Jim stood 
 for a moment looking after his retreating 
 figure, and when he could no longer distin- 
 guish it, turned and made his way home- 
 wards. 
 
 On reaching the Manor House he informed 
 his sister of what had taken place between 
 himself and Helen's guardian. 
 
 " He must be mad to treat you so," said
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 117 
 
 Alice, when her brother had finished. " He 
 knows that Helen loves you, and surely he 
 cannot be so selfish as to prefer his own 
 comfort to her happiness." 
 
 " I am afraid that is exactly what he 
 does do," said Jim. " However, I suppose 
 I must make allowances. Old age is apt 
 to be selfish. Besides, we have to re- 
 member, as Helen says, that she owes much 
 to him. No ! we will do as we proposed, 
 and wait six months, and see what happens 
 then ! " 
 
 But though he spoke so calmly he was by 
 no means at ease in his own mind. He 
 was made much happier, however, by a note 
 which was brought to him as he was in the 
 act of retiring to rest. 
 
 It was in Helen's handwriting, and he tore 
 it open eagerly. 
 
 " My own dear love," it ran, " Mr. Burs- 
 field has just informed me of what took 
 place between you this evening. It is need-
 
 1 1 8 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 less for me to say how sorry I am that such 
 a thing should have occurred. I cannot 
 understand his behaviour in this matter. 
 That something more than any thought of 
 his own personal comfort makes him with- 
 hold his consent, I feel certain. Whatever 
 happens, however, you know that I will be 
 true to you ; and if I cannot be your wife, 
 I will be wife to no other man. 
 
 " Your loving Helen."
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 WHILE the letter from Helen cheered 
 James Standerton wonderfully, it did not 
 in any way help him out of his difficulty 
 with Mr. Bursfield. The latter had most 
 decisively stated his intention not to give 
 his consent to the marriage of his adopted 
 granddaughter with the young Squire of 
 Childerbridge. What his reasons were for 
 taking such a step, neither Jim nor Helen 
 could form any idea. It was a match that 
 most guardians would have been only too 
 thankful to have brought about. In spite 
 of Helen's statements, he could only, after 
 mature consideration, assign it to the old 
 man's natural selfishness, and, however
 
 I2O The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 bitterly he might resent his treatment, in 
 his own heart he knew there was nothing 
 for it but to wait with such patience as he 
 could command for a change in the other's 
 feelings towards himself. He had the satis- 
 faction of knowing, however, that Helen 
 loved him, and that she would be true to 
 him, happen what might. He was not a 
 more than usually romantic young man, 
 but I happen to know that he carried that 
 letter about with him constantly, while he 
 had read it so often that he must have 
 assuredly known its contents by heart. All 
 things considered, it is wonderful what 
 comfort it is possible for a love - sick 
 young man to derive from a few common- 
 place words written upon a sheet of note- 
 paper. 
 
 After the momentous interview with Mr. 
 Bursfield, the days went by with their usual 
 sameness at Childerbridge. No news arrived 
 from the detective, Robins. Apparently it
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 121 
 
 was quite impossible for him to discover the 
 smallest clue as to Mill-bridge's where- 
 abouts. To all intents and purposes he 
 had disappeared as completely as if he had 
 been caught up into the skies. The reward, 
 beyond bringing a vast amount of trouble 
 and disappointment to Jim, had not 
 proved of the least use to any one con- 
 cerned. 
 
 Numerous half-witted folk, as is usual 
 in such cases, had come forward and given 
 themselves up, declaring that they had 
 committed the murder, but the worthless- 
 ness of their stories was at once proved in 
 every case. One man, it was discovered, 
 had been on the high seas another had 
 never been near Childerbridge in his life ; 
 while a third, and this was a still more 
 remarkable case, was found to have been 
 an inmate of one of Her Majesty's convict 
 establishments at the time the murder was 
 committed.
 
 122 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Never mind," said Jim to himself ; " he 
 must be captured sooner or later. If the 
 police authorities cannot catch him, I'll take 
 up the case myself, and run him to ground, 
 wherever he may be." 
 
 As he said this he looked up at the 
 portrait of his father, which hung upon the 
 wall of his study. 
 
 " Come what may, father," he con- 
 tinued, " if there is any justice in the 
 world, your cruel murder shall be 
 avenged." 
 
 Another month went by, and still the 
 same want of success attended the search 
 for Mur bridge. 
 
 " Alice, I can stand it no longer," said 
 Jim to his sister one evening, after he had 
 read a communication from Robins. " I 
 can gather from the tone of this letter 
 that they are losing heart. I ought to 
 have taken up the case myself at the com- 
 mencement, and not have wasted all this
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 123 
 
 precious time. The man may now be back 
 in Australia, South America, or anywhere 
 else." 
 
 Alice crossed the room and placed her 
 hand on his shoulder. 
 
 "Dear old Jim," she said, "I am sure you 
 know how I loved our father." 
 
 "Of course I do," said Jim, looking up at 
 her. "No one knows better. But I can see 
 there is something you want to say to me. 
 What is it ? " 
 
 " Don't be angry with me, Jim," she 
 replied, seating herself on the arm of 
 his chair " but deeply as that man has 
 wronged us, I cannot help thinking 
 that we should not always be praying 
 for vengeance against him, as we are 
 doing. Do you think it is what our 
 father, with his noble nature, would have 
 wished ? " 
 
 Jim was silent for a moment. The desire 
 for vengeance by this time had taken such a
 
 124 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 hold upon him, and had become such an 
 integral part of his constitution, that he 
 was staggered beyond measure by her 
 words. 
 
 " Surely you don't mean to say, Alice," 
 he stammered, "that you are willing to 
 forgive the man who so cruelly killed our 
 father?" 
 
 "I shall try to forgive him," the girl 
 replied. " I say again, that I am sure it is 
 what our father would have wished us 
 to do." 
 
 " I am no such saint," Jim returned an- 
 grily. " I wish to see that man brought to 
 justice, and, what's more, if no one else 
 will, I mean to bring him. He took that 
 noble life, and he must pay the penalty of 
 his crime. An eye for an eye, and a tooth 
 for a tooth, was the old law. Why should 
 we change it ? " 
 
 Alice rose and crossed the room to her 
 own chair with a little sigh. She knew her
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 125 
 
 brother well enough to be sure that, having 
 once made up his mind, he would carry out 
 his determination. 
 
 On the morning following this conversa- 
 tion, Jim was standing after breakfast at the 
 window of his sister's boudoir, looking out 
 upon the lawn, across which the leaves were 
 being driven by the autumn wind. His 
 brow was puckered with thought. As a 
 matter of fact, he was wondering at the 
 moment how he should commence his search 
 for Murbridge. London was such a great 
 city, and for an amateur to attempt to find 
 a man in it, who desired to remain hidden, 
 was very much like setting himself the task 
 of hunting for a needle in a bundle of hay. 
 He neither knew where or how to begin. 
 While he was turning the question over in 
 his mind, his quick eye detected the solitary 
 figure of a man walking across the park in 
 the direction of the house. He watched it 
 pass the clump of rhododendrons, and then
 
 126 The Childerbndge Mystery 
 
 lost it again in the dip beyond the lake. 
 Presently it reappeared, and within a few 
 moments it was within easy distance of the 
 house. At first Jim had watched the figure 
 with but small interest ; later, however, his 
 sister noticed that he gradually became 
 excited. When the stranger had passed 
 the corner of the house he turned excitedly 
 to his sister. 
 
 " Good gracious, Alice ! " he cried, " it 
 surely cannot be." 
 
 " What cannot be ? " asked Alice, leav- 
 ing her chair, and approaching the win- 
 dow. 
 
 " That man coming up the drive," Jim 
 replied. " It doesn't seem possible that it 
 can be he, yet I've often boasted that I 
 should know his figure anywhere. If it 
 were not the most improbable thing in the 
 world, I should be prepared to swear that 
 it's Terence O'Riley." 
 
 ** But, my dear Jin], what could Terence
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 127 
 
 be doing here, so many thousand miles from 
 our old home ? " 
 
 But Jim did not wait to answer the ques- 
 tion. Almost before Alice had finished 
 speaking he had reached the front door, 
 had opened it, and was wildly shaking 
 hands with a tall, spare man, with a 
 humorous, yet hatchet - shaped face, so 
 sunburnt as to be almost the colour ot 
 mahogany. 
 
 The newcomer, Terence O'Riley, was a 
 character in his way. He boasted that he 
 knew nothing of father or mother, or rela- 
 tions of any sort or kind. He had received 
 his Hibernian patronymic from his first 
 friend, a wild Irishman on the diggings 
 where he was born. He had entered Wil- 
 liam Standerton's service at the age of 
 twelve, as horse-boy, and for upwards of 
 thirty years had remained his faithful hench- 
 man. In every respect he was a typical 
 Bushman. He could track like a blackfellow,
 
 128 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 ride any horse that was ever foaled, find his 
 way in the thickest country with unerring 
 skill, was a first-class rifle shot, an un- 
 equalled judge of cattle, a trifle pugnacious 
 at certain seasons, but, and this seems an 
 anomaly, at other times he possessed a heart 
 as tender as a little child. When William 
 Standerton and his family had left Aus- 
 tralia, his grief had been sincere. For 
 weeks he had been inconsolable, and it 
 meant a sure thrashing for any man who 
 dared to mention James' name in his 
 hearing. 
 
 "What on earth does this mean, Ter- 
 ence ? " asked Jim, who could scarcely 
 believe that it was their old servant who 
 stood before him. 
 
 "It means a good many things, Master 
 Jim," said Terence, with the drawl in his 
 voice peculiar to Australian Bushmen. "It's 
 a longish yarn, but, my word, I am just 
 glad to see you again, and, bless me, there's
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 129 
 
 Miss Alice too, looking as pretty as a grass 
 parrot on a gum log." 
 
 With a smile of happiness on her face, 
 that had certainly not been there since her 
 father's death, Alice came forward and gave 
 Terence her hand. He took it in his great 
 palm, and I think, but am not quite sure, 
 that there were tears in his eyes. 
 
 " Come in at once," said Jim. " You 
 must tell us your tale from beginning to 
 end. Even now I can scarcely realise that 
 it is you. Every moment I expect to see 
 you vanish into mid-air. If I had been 
 asked where you were at this moment, I 
 should have said ' out in one of the back 
 paddocks, say the Bald Mountain, riding 
 along the fence on old Smoker, with Dingo 
 trotting at his heels.' ' 
 
 " No, sir," Terence answered, looking 
 round the great hall as he spoke, " I sold 
 Smoker at Bourke before I came away, and 
 one of the overseers has Dingo, poor old 
 
 K
 
 130 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 dog. The fact of the matter was, sir, after 
 you left I got a bit lonesome, and the old 
 place didn't seem like the same. I had put 
 by a matter of between four and five hundred 
 pounds, and, thinks I to myself, there's the 
 Old Country, that they say is so beautiful, 
 and to think that I've never set eyes on it. 
 Why shouldn't I make the trip, and just drop 
 in and see the Boss, and Master Jim, and 
 Miss Alice in their new home. Who knows 
 but that they might want a colt broken for 
 them. As soon as I made up my mind, I 
 packed my bag and set off for Melbourne, 
 took a passage on board a ship that was 
 sailing next day, and here I am, sir. I 
 hope your father is well, sir ? " 
 
 There was an awkward pause, during 
 which Alice left the room. 
 
 "Is it possible you haven't heard, 
 Terence ? " Jim enquired, in a hushed 
 voice. 
 
 "I've not heard anything, sir," Terence
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 131 
 
 answered. " I was six weeks on the water, 
 you see. I do hope, sir, there is nothing 
 wrong." 
 
 Jim thereupon told Terence the whole 
 story of his father's death. When he had 
 finished the Bushman's consternation may 
 be better imagined than described. For 
 some moments it deprived him of speech. 
 He could only stare at Jim in horrified 
 amazement. 
 
 " Tell me, sir, that they've got the man 
 who did it," he said at last, bringing his 
 hand down with a bang on the table beside 
 which he was seated. " Tell me that 
 they're going to hang the blackguard who 
 killed the kindest master in all the world, 
 or I'll say that there's not a trooper in 
 England that's fit to call himself a police- 
 man." 
 
 The poor fellow was genuinely affected. 
 
 " They haven't caught him yet, Terence," 
 said Jim. " The police have been searching 
 
 K2
 
 132 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 for him everywhere for weeks past, but 
 without success." 
 
 " But they must find him, run him down, 
 and hang him, just as we used to string up 
 the cowardly dingoes out back when they 
 worried the sheep. If I have to track 
 him like a Nyall blackfellow, I'll find 
 him." 
 
 " Terence, I believe you've come at the 
 right time," said Jim, holding out his hand. 
 " Seeing the way the police Authorities are 
 managing affairs, I've decided to take up the 
 case myself. You were a faithful servant to 
 my father, and you've known me all my life. 
 You've got a head on your shoulders do 
 you remember who it was that found 
 out who stole those sheep from Coobalah 
 Out Station ? Come with me, old friend, 
 and we'll run the villain down to- 
 gether. / would not wish for a better 
 companion." 
 
 " I'm thankful now that I came, sir,"
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 133 
 
 Terence replied. " You mark my words, 
 we'll find him, wherever he's stowed himself 
 away." 
 
 From that day Terence was made a mem- 
 ber of the Childerbridge household. In due 
 course, accompanied by Jim, he inspected 
 the stables and was more than a little im- 
 pressed by the luxury with which the 
 animals were surrounded. 
 
 " Very pretty," he muttered to himself, 
 " and turned out like racehorses ; all the 
 same, I wouldn't like to ride 'em after cattle 
 in the .Ranges on a dark night." 
 
 The sedate head coachman could not 
 understand the situation. He was puzzled 
 as to what manner of man this might be, 
 who, though so poorly dressed, while treat- 
 ing his master with the utmost respect, 
 conversed with him on terms of perfect 
 equality. His amazement, however, was 
 turned into admiration later in the day 
 when Mr. O'Riley favoured him with an
 
 134 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 exposition of the gentle art of horsebreak- 
 ing. 
 
 " He's a bit too free and easy in his 
 manners towards the governor for my likin'," 
 he informed the head gardener afterwards, 
 "but there's no denyin' the fact that he's 
 amazin' clever with a youngster. They do 
 say as 'ow he did all Mr. Standerton's 
 horse-breaking in foreign parts." 
 
 It soon became apparent that Terence was 
 destined to become one of the most popular 
 personages at Childerbridge. His quaint 
 mannerisms, extraordinary yarns, and readi- 
 ness to take any sort of work, however hard, 
 upon his shoulders, won for him a cordial 
 welcome from the inhabitants of the Manor 
 House. As for Jim and Alice, for some 
 reason best known to themselves they 
 derived a comfort from his presence that at 
 any other time they would scarcely have 
 believed possible. 
 
 On the day following Terence's arrival
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 135 
 
 James stood on the steps at the front door, 
 watching him school a young horse in the 
 park. The high-spirited animal was inclined 
 to be troublesome, but with infinite tact and 
 patience Terence was gradually asserting his 
 supremacy. Little by little, as he watched 
 him, Jim's thoughts drifted away from 
 Childerbridge, and another scene, equally 
 familiar, rose before his eyes. He saw a 
 long creeper-covered house, standing on the 
 banks of a mighty river. A man was seated 
 in the verandah, and that man was his 
 father. Talking to him from the garden 
 path was another no less a person than 
 Terence. Then he himself emerged from 
 the house and stood by his father's side a 
 little boy of ten, dressed in brown holland, 
 and wearing a broad-brimmed straw hat 
 upon his head. Upon his coming his father 
 rose, and, taking him by the hand, led him 
 down to the stock-yard, accompanied by 
 Terence. In the yard stood the prettiest
 
 136 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 pony that mortal boy had ever set eyes 
 on. 
 
 " There, my boy," said his father, " that 
 is my birthday present to you. Terence 
 has broken him." 
 
 And now here was this self- same Terence 
 in England, of all places in the world, 
 making his hunters for him, while the father, 
 who all his life had proved so generous 
 to him, was lying in his grave, cruelly 
 murdered. At that moment Alice came up 
 behind him. 
 
 "What are you thinking of, Jim?" she 
 enquired. 
 
 " I was thinking of Mudrapilla and the 
 old days," he answered. " Seeing Terence 
 out there on that horse brought it back to 
 me so vividly that for a moment I had quite 
 forgotten that I was in England. Do you 
 know, Alice, that sometimes a wild longing 
 to be back there takes possession of me. 
 If only Helen were my wife, I'm not quite
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 137 
 
 certain that I should not want to take you 
 both back if only for a trip. It seems to 
 me that I would give anything to feel the 
 hot sun upon my shoulders once again, to 
 smell the smoke of a camp fire, to see the 
 dust rise from the stock-yards, and to scent 
 the perfume of the orange blossoms as we 
 sit together in the verandah in the evening. 
 Alice, that is the life of a man ; this 
 luxurious idleness makes me feel effeminate. 
 But there, what am I talking about ? I've 
 got my duty to do in England before we 
 go back to Mudrapilla." 
 
 At that moment Terence rode up, very 
 satisfied with himself and with the animal 
 upon whose back he was seated. He had 
 scarcely departed in the direction of the 
 stable before Jim descried a carriage en- 
 tering the park. It proved to be a fly from 
 the station, and in it Robins, the detective, 
 was seated. 
 
 " Good afternoon, sir," he said, as he
 
 138 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 alighted ; " in response to your letter, I have 
 come down to see you personally." 
 
 " I am very glad you have done so," 
 Jim replied, "for I have been most 
 anxious to see you. Let us go into 
 the house." 
 
 He thereupon led the way to his study, 
 where he invited the detective to be 
 seated. 
 
 " I hope you have some good news for 
 me," Jim remarked, as he closed the door. 
 " Have you made any discovery concerning 
 Murbridge ?" 
 
 The detective shook his head. 
 
 " I am sorry to say," he answered, " that 
 our efforts have been entirely unsuccessful. 
 We traced the man from Paddington to a 
 small eating-house in the vicinity of the 
 station, but after that we lost him altogether. 
 We have kept a careful watch on the out- 
 going ships, tried the hotels, lodging-houses, 
 Salvation Army Shelters and such places,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 139 
 
 and have sent a description of him to every 
 police station in the country, but so far 
 without an atom of success. Once, when 
 the body of a man was found in the river 
 at Greenwich, I thought we had discovered 
 him. The description given of the dead 
 man tallied exactly with that of Mur bridge. 
 I was disappointed, however, for he turned 
 out to be a chemist's assistant, who had 
 been missing from Putney for upwards of 
 a fortnight. Then a man gave himself up 
 to the police at Bristol, but he was found 
 to be a mad solicitor's clerk from Exeter. 
 This is one of the deepest cases I have 
 ever been concerned in, Mr. Standerton, and 
 though I am not the sort of man who gives 
 up very quickly, I am bound to confess 
 that, up to the present, I have been beaten, 
 and beaten badly." 
 
 " You are not going to abandon the case, 
 I hope ? " Jim asked anxiously. " Because 
 you have been unsuccessful so far, you are
 
 140 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 surely not going to give it up alto- 
 gether ? " 
 
 " The law never abandons a case," the 
 other observed sententiously. " Of course 
 it's quite within the bounds of possibility 
 that we may hit upon some clue that will 
 ultimately lead to Murbridge's arrest ; it is 
 possible that he may give himself up in 
 course of time ; at the present, however, I 
 must admit that both circumstances appear 
 remarkably remote." 
 
 " Well," returned Jim, " I can assure you 
 that, whatever else happens, / am not going 
 to give up. If the authorities are going to 
 do so, I shall take it up myself and see what 
 I can do." 
 
 There was a suspicion of a smile upon the 
 detective's face as he listened. Was it 
 possible that an amateur could really believe 
 himself to be capable of succeeding where 
 the astute professionals of Scotland Yard 
 had failed ?
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 141 
 
 " I am afraid you will only be giving 
 yourself needless trouble," he said. 
 
 " I should not consider it trouble to try 
 and discover my father's murderer," Jim 
 returned hotly. " Even if I am not more 
 successful than the police have been, I shall 
 have the satisfaction of knowing that I 
 have done my best. May I trouble you for 
 the name of the eating-house to which 
 Murbridge proceeded on leaving Padding- 
 ton ? " 
 
 Taking a piece of paper from the writing- 
 table, Robins wrote the name and address of 
 the eating-house upon it, and handed it to 
 Jim. The latter placed it carefully in 
 his pocket - book, and felt that he must 
 make the house in question his starting 
 point. 
 
 When the detective took his departure 
 half an hour later, Jim gave instructions 
 that Terence should be sent to him. 
 
 u Terence," he began, when the other
 
 142 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 stood before him, " I am going up to 
 London to-morrow morning to commence 
 my search for Murbridge. I shall want you 
 to accompany me." 
 
 " Very good, sir," Terence replied, " I've 
 been hoping for this, and it'll go hard now 
 if we can't track him somehow. But you 
 must bear in mind, sir, that I've never been 
 in London. If it was in the Bush, now, I 
 won't say but what I should not be able to 
 find him, but I don't know much about these 
 big cities, so to speak. It will be like 
 looking for a track of one particular sheep 
 in a stock-yard after a mob of wild cattle 
 have been turned into it." 
 
 Jim smiled. He saw that Terence had 
 not the vaguest notion of what London was 
 like. 
 
 That evening he informed Alice of the 
 decision he had come to. She had been 
 expecting it for some days past, and was 
 not at all surprised by it. She only asked
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 143 
 
 that he would permit her to accompany 
 him. 
 
 " I could not remain here," she said, " and 
 I'll promise that I'll not be in your way. It 
 will be so desolate in this house without you, 
 especially as Mr. Bursfield will not allow 
 Helen to visit us, and I have no other 
 companion." 
 
 " By all means come with me," said Jim, 
 " I shall choose a quiet hotel in the West 
 End, and you must amuse yourself as best 
 you can while I am absent." 
 
 Later in the evening he wrote a note 
 to his sweetheart informing her of his de- 
 cision, and promising to let her know, 
 day by day, what success attended his 
 efforts. 
 
 Next morning they left Childerbridge 
 Station at eleven o'clock for London. As 
 the train steamed out of the village past 
 the little churchyard, Jim looked down 
 upon his father's grave, which he could
 
 144 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 just see on the eastern side of the 
 church. 
 
 "Dear father," he muttered to himself, 
 "HI have to devote the rest of my life in 
 bringing your murderer to justice, I'll do it."
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 IT was considerably past midday by the 
 time Jim and his sister, accompanied by 
 Terence, reached London. On arriving at 
 Paddington, they engaged a cab and drove 
 to the hotel they had selected, a private 
 establishment leading out of Piccadilly. 
 Terence's amazement at the size of London 
 was curious to witness. Hitherto he had 
 regarded Melbourne as stupendous, now it 
 struck him that that town was a mere 
 village compared with this giant Metropolis. 
 When he noted the constant stream of traffic, 
 the crowds that thronged the pavements, 
 and the interminable streets, his heart 
 misgave him concerning tne enterprise 
 
 L
 
 146 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 upon which he had so confidently em- 
 barked. 
 
 " Bless my soul, how many people can 
 there be in London ? " he asked, as they 
 drove up to the hotel. 
 
 " Something over five millions," Jim 
 replied. " It's a fair-sized township." 
 
 " And we are going to look for one man," 
 continued the other. " I guess it would be 
 easier to find a scrubber in the mallee than 
 to get on the track of a man who is hiding 
 himself here." 
 
 " Nevertheless we've got to find him some- 
 how," said Jim. " That's the end of the 
 matter." 
 
 After lunch he sent word to Terence that 
 he wished him to accompany him on his 
 first excursion. Up to that time he had 
 formed no definite plan of action, but it was 
 borne in upon him that he could do nothing 
 at all until he had visited the eating-house 
 to which Murbridge had been traced after
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 147 
 
 his arrival at Paddington Station. They 
 accordingly made their way to the house in 
 question. It proved to be an uninviting 
 place, with a sawdust-covered floor, and half- 
 a-dozen small tables arranged along one side. 
 On the other was a counter upon which 
 were displayed a variety of covered dishes 
 and huge tea cups. At the moment of Jim's 
 entering the proprietor was giving his atten- 
 tion to a steaming pan of frying onions. 
 
 " What can I do for you, sir ? " he asked, 
 as he removed the frying-pan from the gas 
 and came forward. 
 
 " I want five minutes' conversation with 
 you in private, if you will give it to me," 
 Jim replied, and then in a lower voice he 
 added : " I stand in need of some informa- 
 tion which I have been told you are in a 
 position to supply. I need not say that I 
 shall be quite willing to recompense you 
 for any loss of time or trouble you may be 
 put to." 
 
 L2
 
 148 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " In that case I shall be very happy to 
 oblige you, sir," the man replied civilly 
 enough. " That is to say, if it is in my 
 power to do so. Will you be good enough 
 to step this way ? " 
 
 Pulling down his shirt- sleeves, which until 
 that moment had been rolled up, and slip* 
 ping on a greasy coat, he led the way from 
 the shop to a tiny apartment leading out of 
 it. It was very dirty and redolent of onions 
 and bad tobacco. Its furniture was scanty, 
 and comprised a table, covered with 
 American cloth, a cupboard, and two wooden 
 chairs, upon one of which James was 
 invited to seat himself. Terence, who had 
 followed them, took the other, while he 
 surveyed its owner with evident disfavour. 
 
 " And now, sir," said that individual, " I 
 should be glad if you can tell me what I can 
 do for you. If it's about the Board School 
 election, well, I'll tell you at once, straight 
 out, as man to man, that I ain't a-goin' to vote
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 149 
 
 for either party. There was a young 
 wagabond that I engaged the other day. 
 He had had a Board School edecation, and it 
 had taught him enough to be able to hum- 
 bug me with his takings. Thirteen and 
 elevenpence- 'alf penny was what he stole 
 from me. And as I said to the missus only 
 last night, ' No more Board School lads for 
 me ! ' But there, sir, p'raps you ain't a-got 
 nothing to do with them ? " 
 
 " I certainly have not," James replied. 
 " I am here on quite a different matter. Of 
 course you remember the police visiting you 
 a short time since, with regard to a man who 
 was suspected of being the murderer of 
 Mr. Standerton, at Childerbridge, in Mid- 
 landshire ? " 
 
 " Remember it ? " the man replied, " I 
 should think I did. And haven't I got good 
 cause to remember it ? I was nigh being 
 worritted to death by 'em. First it was one, 
 and then it was another, hanging about here
 
 150 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 and asking questions. Had I seen the man ? 
 Did I know where he had gone ? What was 
 he like ? Till with one thing and another I 
 was most driven off my head. I won't say 
 as how a detective oughtn't to ask questions, 
 because we all know it's his duty, but when 
 it comes to interferin' with a man's private 
 business and drivin' his customers away from 
 the shop for I won't make no secrets with 
 you that there is folks as eats at my table as 
 is not in love with 'tecs well, then I say, 
 if it comes to that, it's about time a man put 
 his foot down." 
 
 " My case is somewhat different," said 
 James. " In the first place, I am not a 
 detective, but the son of the gentleman who 
 was murdered." 
 
 " Good gracious me ! you don't say so," 
 said the man, regarding him with astonish- 
 ment and also with evident appreciation. 
 " Now that makes all the difference. It's 
 only fit and proper that a young gentleman
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 151 
 
 should want to find out the man who, so to 
 speak, had given him such a knock-down 
 blow. Ask me what questions you like, sir, 
 and I'll do my best to answer 'em.'* 
 
 " Well, first and foremost," said Jim, " I 
 want to know how you became aware that 
 the man in question hailed from Childer- 
 bridge ? He wouldn't have been likely to 
 say so." 
 
 " No, you're right there," the man replied. 
 " He didn't say so, but I knew it, because 
 after he had had his meal, my girl was 
 giving him 'is change, I saw there was a 
 Childerbridge label on the small bag he 
 carried in his hand. I put it to you, sir, if 
 he hadn't been there, would that label have 
 been on the bag ? " 
 
 " Of course it would not. And he answered 
 to the description given you ? " 
 
 "To a T, sir. Same sort of face, same 
 sort of dress, snarly manner of speaking, 
 spotted bird's-eye necktie and all."
 
 152 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " It must have been the man. And now 
 another question. You informed the police, 
 did you not, that you had no knowledge as 
 to where he went after he left your 
 shop ? " 
 
 The man fidgetted uneasily in his chair 
 for a moment, and drummed with his fingers 
 upon the cover of the table. It was evident 
 that he was keeping something back, and 
 was trying to make up his mind as to 
 whether he should divulge his information 
 or not. 
 
 Here James played a good game, and 
 with a knowledge of human character few 
 people would have supposed him to possess, 
 took from his pocket a sovereign, which he 
 laid on the table before the other. 
 
 " There," he said, " is a sovereign. I can 
 see that you are keeping something back 
 from me. Now, that money is yours 
 whether you tell me or not. If it is likely 
 to affect your happiness don't let me know,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 153 
 
 but if you can, I shall be glad if you will 
 tell me all you know." 
 
 " Spoken like a gentleman, sir," the other 
 replied, " and I don't mind if I do tell you, 
 though it may get me into trouble with 
 some of my customers if you give me away. 
 You see, sir, round about here in this neigh- 
 bourhood, a man has to be careful of what 
 he says and does. Suppose it was to come 
 to the ears of some people that it was me 
 as gave the information that got the bloke 
 arrested, well then, they'd be sure to say to 
 'emselves, ' he's standin' in with the perlice, 
 and we don't go near his shop again.' Do 
 you take my meaning, sir ? " 
 
 " I quite understand," James replied. " I 
 appreciate your difficulty, but you may be 
 quite sure that I will not mention your name 
 in connection with any information you may 
 give me." 
 
 " Spoken and acted like a gentleman again, 
 sir," said the shopman. "Now I'll tell you
 
 154 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 what I know. I didn't tell the ' tecs,' becos 
 they didn't treat me any too well. But this is 
 what I do know, sir. As he went out of the 
 door he asked my little boy, Tommy, wot 
 was playing on the pavement, how far it 
 was to Great Medium Street ? The boy 
 gave him the direction, and then he went 
 off." 
 
 " Great Medium Street ? " said James, 
 and made a note of the name in his pocket- 
 book. " And how far may that be from 
 here ? " 
 
 " Not more than ten minutes' walk," the 
 other replied. " Go along this street, then 
 take the third turning to your left and the 
 first on the right. You can't make no mistake 
 about it." 
 
 " And what kind of a street is it ? " Jim 
 enquired. " I mean, what sort of character 
 does it bear ? " 
 
 " Well, sir, that's more than I can tell 
 you," said the other. " For all I know to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 155 
 
 the contrary, it's a fairish sort of street, not 
 so fust-class as some others I could name, 
 but there's a few decent people living 
 in it." 
 
 " And do you happen to have anything 
 else to tell me about him ? " 
 
 " That's all I know, sir," said the other. 
 " I haven't set eyes on him from that 
 blessed moment until this, and I don't know 
 as I want to." 
 
 " I am very much obliged to you," said 
 Jim, rising and putting his pocket-book 
 away. " You have given me great assist- 
 ance." 
 
 " I'm sure you're very welcome, sir," 
 replied the man. " I am always ready to do 
 anything I can for a gentleman. It's the 
 Board School folk that " 
 
 Before the man could finish his sentence, 
 Jim was in the shop once more, and was 
 making his way towards the door, closely 
 followed by Terence.
 
 156 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Now the first question to be decided," 
 he said, when they were in the street, " is 
 what is best for us to do ? If I go to Great 
 Medium Street, it is more than likely that 
 Murbridge will see me and make off again ; 
 while, if I wait to communicate with Robins, 
 I may lose him altogether." 
 
 Eventually it was decided that he should 
 not act on his own initiative, but should 
 communicate with Detective Robins, and 
 let him make enquiries in the neighbourhood 
 in question. A note was accordingly des- 
 patched to the authorities at Scotland Yard. 
 In it James informed them that it had come 
 to his knowledge that the man Murbridge 
 was supposed to be residing in Great 
 Medium Street, though in what house could 
 not be stated. Later in the day Robins 
 himself put in an appearance at the 
 hotel. 
 
 " You received my letter ? " James asked 
 when they were alone together.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 157 
 
 " I did, sir," the man answered, " and 
 acted upon it at once." 
 
 " And with what result ? " 
 
 " Only to discover that our man has 
 slipped through our fingers once more," said 
 the detective. " He left Great Medium 
 Street two days ago. Up to that time he 
 had lodged at number eighteen. The land- 
 lady informs me that she knows nothing as to 
 his present whereabouts. He passed under 
 the name of Melbrook, and was supposed by 
 the other lodgers to be an American." 
 
 " You are quite certain that it is our 
 man ? " 
 
 " There can be no doubt about it. He 
 went to the house on the day that the 
 murder was discovered. Now the next 
 thing to find out is where he now is. 
 From what his landlady told me, I 
 should not think he was in the pos- 
 session of much money. As a matter 
 of fact, she suspected that he had been
 
 158 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 pawning his clothes, for the reason that his 
 bag, which was comparatively heavy when 
 he arrived, seemed to be almost empty when 
 he left. To-morrow morning I shall make 
 enquiries at the various pawnbrokers in the 
 neighbourhood, and it is just possible we 
 may get some further information from 
 them." 
 
 Promising to communicate with Jim 
 immediately he had anything of importance 
 to impart, Robins took his departure, and 
 Jim went in search of Alice to tell her the 
 news. Next day w^ord was brought to him 
 to the effect that Murbridge had pawned 
 several articles, but in no case were the 
 proprietors able to furnish any information 
 concerning his present whereabouts. Feeling 
 that it was just possible, as in the case of 
 the eating-house keeper near Paddington 
 Station, that the detectives had not been 
 able to acquire all the knowledge that was 
 going, Jim, accompanied by the faithful
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 159 
 
 Terence, set off in the afternoon for 
 number eighteen, Great Medium Street. 
 It proved to be a lodging-house of the 
 common type. 
 
 In response to their ring the door was 
 opened by the landlady, a voluble person of 
 Irish descent. She looked her visitors up 
 and down before admitting them, and having 
 done so, enquired if they stood in need of 
 apartments. 
 
 "I regret to say that we do not," said Jim 
 blandly. " My friend and I have come to 
 put a few questions to you concerning " 
 
 " Not poor Mr. Melbrook, I hope," she 
 answered. " Is all London gone mad ? 
 'Twas but yesterday afternoon, just when I 
 was settin' down to my bit o' tea that a 
 gentleman comes to make enquiries about 
 Mr. Melbrook. I told 'im he'd left the 
 house, but that would not do. He wanted 
 to know where he had gone, and when and 
 why he had left, just for all the world as if
 
 160 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 he was his long-lost brother. Then this 
 morning another comes. Wanted to know 
 if I knew where Mr. Melbrook pawned his 
 clothes ? Did he appear to be in any 
 trouble ? Now here you are with your 
 questions. D'ye think I've got nothing 
 better to do than to be trapesing round 
 talkin' about what don't concern me ? 
 What's the world coming to, I should like 
 to know ? " 
 
 "But, my good woman, I am most anxious 
 to find Mr. Melbrook," said Jim, " and if 
 you can put me into the possession of any 
 information that will help me to do so, I 
 shall be very pleasedto reward you for your 
 trouble." 
 
 " But I've got nothing to tell you," she re- 
 plied, " more's the pity of it, since you speak 
 so fair. From the time that Mr. Melbrook 
 left my house until this very moment I've 
 heard nothing of him. He may have gone 
 back to America if he was an American as
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 161 
 
 they say but there, he may be anywhere. 
 He was one of them sort of men that says 
 nothing about his business ; be just kept 
 himself to himself with his paper, and took 
 his drop of gin and water at night the same 
 as you and me might do. If I was to die 
 next minute, that's all I can tell you about 
 him." 
 
 Seeing that it was useless to question her 
 further, Jim pressed some coins into the 
 woman's willing hand, and bade her good- 
 day. Then, more dispirited by his failure 
 than he would admit, he drove back to his 
 hotel. Alice met him in the hall with a 
 telegram. 
 
 " This has just come for you," she said. 
 " I was about to open it." 
 
 Taking it from her, he tore open the enve- 
 lope, and withdrew the message. It was 
 from Robins, and ran as follows : 
 
 " Think am on right track will report as 
 soon as return."
 
 1 62 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 It had been despatched from Waterloo 
 Station. 
 
 " Why did he not say where he was 
 going ? " said Jim testily, " instead of keep- 
 ing me in suspense." 
 
 " Because he does not like to commit 
 himself before he has more to report, I 
 suppose," said Alice. " Do not worry your- 
 self about it, dear. You will hear every- 
 thing in good time." 
 
 A long letter from Helen which arrived 
 that evening helped to console Jim, while the 
 writing of an answer to her enabled him to 
 while away another half-hour. But it must 
 be confessed that that evening Jim was far 
 from being himself. He felt that he would 
 have given anything to have accompanied 
 the detective in his search. He went to bed 
 at an early hour, to dream that he was chas- 
 ing Murbridge round the world, and do what 
 he wxmld he could not come up with him. 
 Next day there was no news, and it was not
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 163 
 
 until the middle of the day following that 
 he heard anything. Then another telegram 
 arrived, stating that the detective would call 
 at the hotel between eight and nine o'clock 
 that evening. He did so, and the first 
 glimpse of his face told Jim that his errand 
 had as usual been fruitless. 
 
 " I can see," he said, " that you have 
 not met with any success. " Is that not 
 so?" 
 
 " I'm. sorry, sir," the man answered. " In- 
 formation was brought me the day before 
 yesterday that a man answering in every 
 way the description of the person we wanted 
 had pawned a small portmanteau at a shop 
 in the Mile End Road, and on making 
 enquiries there, I heard that he had come to 
 lodge at a house in one of the streets in the 
 vicinity. Accompanied by one of my mates, 
 I went to the house in question, only to dis- 
 cover that we were too late again, and that 
 the man had left for Southampton that 
 
 M 2
 
 164 The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 morning, intending to catch the outgoing 
 boat for South Africa. Procuring a cab, I 
 set off for Waterloo, and on my arrival 
 there sent that telegram to you, sir, and 
 then went down to Southampton by the 
 next train. Unfortunately the two hours' 
 delay had given him his chance, for when 
 I reached Southampton it was only to find 
 that the vessel had sailed half-an-hour 
 before. I went at once to the Agent's office, 
 where I discovered that a man whose ap- 
 pearance tallied exactly with the description 
 given had booked a steerage passage at the 
 last moment, and had sailed aboard her. 
 But if he's got out of England safely, we'll 
 catch him at Madeira. The police there 
 will arrest him, and hold him for us until 
 we can get him handed over. He does not 
 know that I am upon his track, and for that 
 reason he'll be sure to think he's got safely 
 away." 
 
 " We must hope to catch him at Madeira
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 165 
 
 then. The vessel does not touch at any 
 port between, I suppose ?" 
 
 Robins shook his head. 
 
 " No, Madeira is the first port of call. 
 And now, sir, I'll bid you good-night, if you 
 don't mind. I've had a long day of it, and 
 I'm tired. To-morrow morning I've got to 
 be abroad early on another little case which 
 is causing me a considerable amount of 
 anxiety." 
 
 Jim bade him good-night and then went 
 in search of his sister, only to find that she 
 had a bad headache, and had gone to bed. 
 After the excitement of the day bed was 
 out of the question, so donning a hat 
 and coat he left the hotel for a stroll. 
 He walked quietly along Piccadilly, 
 smoking his cigar, and thinking of the 
 girl who had promised to be his wife, 
 and who, at the moment, was probably 
 thinking of him in the quiet little Midland- 
 shire village. How delightful life would be
 
 1 66 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 when she would be his wife. He tried to 
 picture himself in the capacity of Helen's 
 husband. From Helen his thoughts turned 
 to Murbridge, and he tried to imagine the 
 guilty wretch, flying across the seas, flatter- 
 ing himself continually that he had escaped 
 the punishment he so richly deserved, 
 finding more security in every mile of water 
 the vessel left behind her, little dreaming 
 that justice was aware of his flight, and 
 that Nemesis was waiting for him so short a 
 time ahead. 
 
 Beaching Piccadilly Circus, he walked on 
 until he arrived at Leicester Square. As 
 the sky had become overcast, and a thin 
 drizzle was beginning to fall, he called a 
 hansom, and bade the driver take him back 
 to his hotel. The horse started off, and 
 they were soon proceeding at a fast pace in 
 the direction of Piccadilly. Just as they 
 reached the Criterion Theatre, a man 
 stepped from the pavement, and began to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 167 
 
 cross the road. Had not the cabman sharply 
 pulled his horse to one side, nothing could 
 have saved him from being knocked down. 
 So near a thing was it that Jim sprang to 
 his feet, and threw open the apron, feeling 
 sure that the man was down. But near 
 though it was, the pedestrian had escaped, 
 and, turning round, was shaking his fist in 
 a paroxysm of rage at the cabman. At that 
 moment he saw Jim, and stood for a second 
 or two as if turned to stone ; then, gathering 
 his faculties together, he ducked between two 
 cabs and disappeared. 
 
 That man was Richard Murbrldge!
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 BEFORE Jim could recover from his aston- 
 ishment at seeing the man whom he had 
 been led to believe was upon the high seas, 
 standing before him, the cabman had 
 whipped up his horse once more, and was 
 half across the Circus. Springing to his 
 feet, he pushed up the shutter, and bade 
 the driver pull up as quickly as pos- 
 sible. Then, jumping from the cab, he 
 gave the man the first coin he took from 
 his pocket. 
 
 " Did you see which way that fellow 
 went we so nearly knocked down ? " he cried. 
 
 " Went away towards Regent Street, I 
 believe," answered the cabman. " He had
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 169 
 
 a narrow shave and it isn't his fault he isn't 
 in hospital now." 
 
 Jim waited to hear no more, but made his 
 way back to the policeman he had noticed 
 standing beside the fountain in the centre of 
 the Circus. 
 
 " Did you see that man who was so nearly 
 knocked down by a cab a few minutes ago?" 
 he enquired, scarcely able to speak for 
 excitement. 
 
 " I did," the officer answered laconically. 
 " What about him ? " 
 
 " Only that you must endeavour to find 
 him, and arrest him at once," said Jim. 
 " There is not a moment to be lost. He 
 may have got away by this time." 
 
 " And he's precious lucky if he has," said 
 the policeman. " Never saw a closer thing 
 in my life." 
 
 " But don't you hear me ? You must find 
 him at once. Every second we waste is 
 giving him the chance of getting aw r ay."
 
 170 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Come, come, there's no such hurry : 
 what's he done that you should be so anxious 
 to get hold of him ? " 
 
 By this time Jim was nearly beside himself 
 with rage at the other's stupidity. 
 
 " That man was the Childerbridge mur- 
 derer," he replied. " I am as certain of it as 
 I am that I see you standing before me now." 
 
 " Come, come, Sir, that's all very well you 
 know," said the policeman, with what was 
 plainly a kindly intent, " but you go along 
 home and get to bed quietly ; you'll be 
 better in the morning and will have forgotten 
 all about this 'ere murderer." 
 
 After which, without another word, he 
 walked away. 
 
 " Well, of all the insane idiots in the 
 world," muttered Jim, "that fellow should 
 come first. But I am not going to be 
 baulked ; I'll search for Murbridge myself." 
 
 He thereupon set off along Regent Street, 
 but before he had gone half the length of the
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 171 
 
 street the folly of such a proceeding became 
 apparent to him. He knew that Murbridge 
 had seen him, and, for this reason, would 
 most likely betake himself to the quiet of 
 the back streets. To attempt to find him, 
 therefore, under cover of darkness, and at 
 such an hour, would be well-nigh an impos- 
 sibility. Then another idea occurred to him. 
 Hailing a cab, he set off for Scotland Yard. 
 On arrival there, he handed in his card, and 
 in due course was received most courteously 
 by the chief officer on duty. He explained 
 his errand, and in doing so showed the mis- 
 take under which Detective-sergeant Robins 
 had been and was still labouring. 
 
 " He shall be communicated with at once," 
 said the official. " I suppose you are quite 
 certain of the identity of the man you saw 
 in Piccadilly Circus, Mr. Standerton ? " 
 
 "As certain as I am of anything," Jim 
 replied. " I should recognise him anywhere. 
 I was permitted a full view of his face, and
 
 172 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 I am quite sure that I am not making a 
 mistake. If only the cabman had pulled up 
 a few moments earlier, I might have been 
 able to have stopped him." 
 
 " In that case, you should be able to give 
 us some details of his present personal ap- 
 pearance, which would afford us considerable 
 assistance in our search for him." 
 
 " He was wearing a black felt hat, and a 
 brown overcoat, the collar of which was 
 turned up." 
 
 The officer made a note of these particu- 
 lars, and promised that the information 
 should be dispersed in all directions without 
 loss of time. Then, feeling that nothing 
 more could be done Jim bade him good- 
 night, and drove back to his hotel. In 
 spite of the work he had done that day he 
 was not destined to obtain a wink of sleep 
 all night, but tumbled and tossed in his bed, 
 brooding continually over the chance he had 
 missed of securing his father's murderer. If
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 173 
 
 only he had alighted when the cabman first 
 stopped, he might have been able to have 
 secured Murbridge. Now his capture 
 seemed as remote as ever ; further, indeed, 
 than if he had been, as Robins supposed, on 
 board the vessel bound for South Africa. 
 
 Jim had just finished his breakfast next 
 morning when Robins called to see him. 
 
 " This is a nice sort of surprise you have 
 given us, sir," said the detective, when he had 
 made a few commonplace remarks, "I mean 
 your seeing Murbridge last night ; I don't 
 know what to think of it. It seems to me 
 to be more of a mystery than ever now." 
 
 " The only thing you can think of it is 
 that Murbridge is in London, and not on board 
 the mail boat as you supposed," Jim replied. 
 " You must have got upon a wrong track 
 again. I suppose there is no further news of 
 him this morning ? " 
 
 " There w r as none when I left the Yard," 
 the other replied. u At present we are over-
 
 174 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 hauling all the doss-houses and shelters, and 
 it is possible we may make a discovery 
 before long. When you think of the 
 description we have of him a man 
 wearing a brown coat and a felt hat it is 
 not very much to go upon. There must 
 be hundreds of men dressed like that in 
 London. If only we had a photograph of 
 him it would make the labour a good deal 
 easier." 
 
 This set Jim thinking. In the lumber- 
 room at Childerbridge there was, as he 
 remembered, a number of cases containing 
 books, photograph albums, etc., which his 
 father had brought with him from Australia, 
 but which had never been unpacked. 
 He recalled the fact that his father had told 
 him that he had been on intimate terms with 
 Murbridge many years before. Was it not 
 possible, therefore, that among his collections 
 there might be some portrait of that indivi- 
 dual .He felt inclined to run down and turn
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 175 
 
 the boxes over. What was more, if he did so, 
 he might chance to obtain an interview with 
 Helen. He explained his hopes with regard 
 to the photograph to the detective, who 
 instantly agreed that it might be worth his 
 while to make the search. 
 
 " In that case I will go down by the 
 eleven o'clock train, and if I discover any- 
 thing, I will wire you and post the photo- 
 graph on to you by the evening mail. 
 
 " It is unnecessary for me to assure you 
 it would be an inestimable help to us in 
 our search," the other answered ; " we 
 should have something more definite to go 
 upon then." 
 
 True to this arrangement, therefore Jim, 
 Alice, and Terence returned to Childerbridge 
 by the morning train. A carriage met them 
 at the station, and in it they drove through 
 the village. As they were drawing near the 
 park gates, an exclamation from Alice 
 roused Jim from the reverie into which he
 
 176 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 had fallen, and caused him to glance up 
 the lane that led from the main road. To his 
 unspeakable joy, he discovered that Helen 
 was coming towards them. In a moment the 
 carriage was stopped, and Jim alighted and 
 hastened to meet her. 
 
 " My darling," he cried, " I never counted 
 upon having the happiness of seeing you so 
 soon. This is most fortunate." 
 
 "But what brings you back to-day > Jim ?" 
 Helen replied. " From your letter I gathered 
 that I should not see you for at least a week. 
 There is nothing wrong, I hope ? " 
 
 She scanned his face with anxious eyes, 
 and as she did so it occured to Jim that she 
 herself was looking far from well. 
 
 " Nothing is the matter," he answered. 
 " We have merely come down to try and 
 find some photographs that would help us in 
 our search. But, Helen, you are not looking 
 at all well. Your face frightens me." 
 
 " I am alright," was the reply. " I have
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 177 
 
 been a little worried lately about my grand- 
 father, and that probably accounts for my 
 appearance, but we will not talk of that now. 
 I must say ' How do you do ' to Alice." 
 
 She accordingly approached the carriage, 
 and held out her hand to her friend. They 
 conversed together for a few moments, and 
 then Alice proposed that Helen should 
 return with them to the Hall, but this 
 being, for more reasons than one, im- 
 possible, it was arranged that Jim should 
 see her home across the park, a suggestion 
 which, you may be sure, he was not slow 
 to take advantage of. They accordingly 
 watched the carriage pass through the lodge 
 gates, and then themselves set out for the 
 Dower House. As they walked Jim told 
 his sweetheart of the ill success that had 
 attended his mission to London. 
 
 " But, Helen," he said at last, as they ap- 
 proached the house, " you have not told me 
 what it is that is worrying you about your 
 
 N
 
 178 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 grandfather. I hope he has not been making 
 you unhappy ? " 
 
 She hung her head but did not answer. 
 
 " Ah, I can see that he has," he exclaimed, 
 " and I suppose it was something to do with 
 me. I wonder whether I should be right if 
 I hazarded a guess that Mr. Bursfield had 
 been trying again to force you into giving 
 me up ? Is that the case, Helen ? " 
 
 " I am afraid in a measure it is," she re- 
 plied, but with some diffidence. " You may 
 be quite sure, however, that whatever he 
 may do it will not influence me. You 
 know how truly I love vou ?" 
 
 J mt 
 
 " Yes, I know that," he answered, " and I 
 am quite content to trust you. I know that 
 nothing Mr. Bursfield can say will induce 
 you to do as he proposes." 
 
 " Remember that always," she said. 
 " But, oh, Jim, I wish he were not so 
 determined in his opposition to our mar- 
 riage. Sometimes I feel that I am acting
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 179 
 
 not only like a traitor to him, but to you as 
 well." ' 
 
 " That you could never be," Jim returned. 
 " However, keep up a good heart, dear, and 
 you may be sure all will come right in the 
 end. In the future we shall look back upon 
 these little troubles, and wonder why we 
 so worried about them." 
 
 A few minutes later they reached the 
 gates leading into the grounds of the Dower 
 House. Here Jim bade his sweetheart 
 good-bye, and, having arranged another 
 meeting for the morrow, set off on his walk 
 to his own home. Immediately upon his 
 arrival there, he made his way, accom- 
 panied by Alice, to the lumber-room on 
 the top story of the house, in which 
 the boxes he had come down to over-haul 
 had been placed. How well he could recall 
 the day in Australia on which his father 
 had packed them. Little had he imagined 
 then that those boxes would next be opened 
 
 N2
 
 i8o The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 in order to discover a portrait of the same 
 kind father's murderer. When the first box 
 had been overhauled it was found to contain 
 unimportant papers connected with the dead 
 man's various properties in Australia. In the 
 second was a miscellaneous collection ; which 
 consisted of a variety of account books, with 
 specimens of ore, wool, and other products 
 of the Island Continent. It was not until 
 they had opened the third box that they 
 began to think they were on the right track. 
 In this were a few engravings, perhaps half- 
 a-dozen sketch books, filled with pen-and- 
 ink drawings by Jim's mother, upwards of 
 a hundred novels between thirty and forty 
 years old, and at the bottom a large album 
 filled with photographs, each of which 
 looked out upon a forgetful world from a 
 floral setting. Jim took it to a window, 
 where he sat down on a box to examine it. 
 To my thinking there is nothing more 
 pathetic than an old album. What memories
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 181 
 
 it recalls of long-forgotten friends ; as one 
 looks upon the faded pictures, how clearly 
 old scenes rise before one. 
 
 On the first page was a photograph of 
 William Standerton himself, taken when he 
 was a young man. His coat was of a strange 
 cut, his trousers were of the peg-top descrip- 
 tion, while a magnificent pair of "Dundreary" 
 whiskers decorated his manly face. With a 
 sigh Jim turned the page, to discover a por- 
 trait of his mother, which had been taken on 
 her wedding day. Then followed a long 
 succession of relatives and personal friends, 
 each clad in the same fashion, and nearly all 
 taken in the same constrained attitude. But 
 examine each picture as he would, no repre- 
 sentation of the man he wanted could he 
 discover. 
 
 " Well, I'm afraid that's all," said Jim to 
 Alice, as he replaced the album in his box. " I 
 am disappointed, though I cannot say that I 
 hoped to be very successful. I shall have to
 
 1 82 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 write to Robins and tell him that I have 
 found nothing." 
 
 Having relocked the boxes, they de- 
 scended to the hall once more. It was 
 growing dark, and the dressing bell for 
 dinner had already sounded. They accord- 
 ingly separated, and went to their respective 
 rooms. If the truth must be confessed, Jim 
 was more disappointed by the failure of his 
 search than he cared to admit. 
 
 " It would have been of inestimable 
 value," he said to himself, " to have a 
 portrait of Murbridge just now." 
 
 He had tied one end of his tie and was in 
 the act of performing the same operation with 
 the other, when he stopped and stared at the 
 wall before him with half -closed eyes. 
 
 " By Jove ! " he said, " I believe I've hit it. 
 I think I know where there is a portrait of him." 
 
 He recalled a scene that had taken place 
 at Mudrapilla one winter's evening, many 
 years before, when Alice and he were chil-
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 183 
 
 dren. The lamp had been lighted, and to 
 amuse them before they went to bed, their 
 father had promised a prize to whichever one 
 of the pair should recognise and describe by 
 name the greater number of the portraits in the 
 very album he had been looking through 
 that afternoon. Jim remembered how on 
 that occasion he had chanced upon a certain 
 carte de visite, showing a tall young man 
 leaning, hat in hand, against a marble pillar. 
 
 " Who is this, father ? " He had enquired 
 for he was not able to recognise the indi- 
 vidual portrayed in the picture. 
 
 " Do not ask me," returned his father in a 
 tone that the children never forgot, so stern 
 and harsh was it. Then, drawing the 
 portrait from the page, he placed it in the 
 pocket at the end of the book. After that 
 the game had recommenced, but was played 
 with less vigour than before. 
 
 " I wonder if it could have been the same 
 man ? " said Jim. " I cannot remember
 
 184 The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 father ever having expressed such a dislike 
 for any one else save Murbridge. After 
 dinner I'll go up and endeavour to find it. 
 It was there for many years, for I can 
 recall how I used to creep into the drawing- 
 room and peep at it on the sly, wondering 
 what sort of villainy he had committed that 
 was sufficient to prevent his name being 
 mentioned to us. Poor father, it is certain 
 that he was not deceived in him after all." 
 
 Throughout dinner that evening his mind 
 dwelt on the remembrance of that scene at 
 Mudrapilla, and as soon as they rose from 
 the table he begged Alice to excuse him, 
 and went upstairs candle in hand, to recom- 
 mence his search. He left his sister in the 
 drawing-room, and the household were at 
 supper in the servants' hall, so that, so far 
 as the disposition of the house went, he had 
 all the upper floors to himself. Entering 
 the lumber-room, he knelt down and un- 
 locked the box which contained the album.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 185 
 
 To take the book from the box, and to turn 
 to the pocket in question was the work of a 
 moment. It had been placed there for the 
 purpose of holding loose photographs, and 
 it extended the whole width of the cover. 
 With a half fear that it might not be 
 contained therein, Jim thrust his hand into 
 the receptacle. He was not to be dis- 
 appointed this time, however, for a card 
 was certainly there, and he withdrew it and 
 held it up to the light with a feeling of 
 triumph. Yes, it was the picture he remem- 
 bered, and, better still, it was the portrait 
 of Richard Murbridge. Though it had been 
 taken when the latter was a young man, Jim 
 recognised his enemy at once. There was 
 the same crafty look in his eyes, the same 
 carping expression about the mouth. The 
 man who had been so nearly knocked down 
 by the cab on the previous evening was the 
 same person who, in the picture, posed 
 himself so gracefully beside the marble pillar-
 
 1 86 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " This must go to Robins to-night," said 
 Jim, to himself. " copies of it can then be 
 distributed broadcast. It will be strange 
 after that if we do not manage to lay hands 
 upon him.'' 
 
 So saying, he replaced the album in the 
 box, locked the latter, and then placed the 
 photograph in his pocket, and prepared to 
 return to Alice once more. As he de- 
 scended the stairs, he extinguished the candle, 
 for the hanging lamp in the hall below 
 gave sufficient light for him to see his way 
 He was only a few steps from the bottom 
 when a curious noise, which seemed to come 
 from the gallery above, attracted his atten- 
 tion. It resembled the creaking of a rusty 
 hinge, more than anything else. He had just 
 time to wonder what had occasioned it, when, 
 to his amazement, he became aware of a little 
 black figure passing swiftly along the corridor 
 in the direction of the further wing. A 
 moment later it had vanished, and he was
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 187 
 
 left to place such construction as he pleased 
 upon what he had seen. For a space, during 
 which a man might have counted twenty, 
 he stood as if rooted to the spot, scarcely 
 able to believe the evidence of his senses. 
 
 " Good heavens ! The Black Dwarf," he 
 muttered to himself. " I must find out 
 what it means." 
 
 Then he set off in pursuit.
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 HASTENING round the gallery of the hall, 
 Jim endeavoured to discover some traces of 
 the mysterious visitor, spectre or human, 
 whom he had seen. The corridor, however, 
 leading to the oldest and western portion of 
 the house, was quite empty. Like the re- 
 mainder of the building, it was panelled with 
 dark oak, some portion of it being curiously, 
 though richly carved. He searched it up 
 and down, stopping every now and then to 
 listen, but save for the wind sighing round 
 the house, and an occasional burst ot 
 laughter ascending from the servants' hall, 
 he could hear nothing. At the end of the 
 long corridor a flight of stone steps led to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 189 
 
 the domestic offices below. These he de- 
 scended, and having reached the servants' 
 hall, called Wilkins, the butler, to him. 
 When the latter emerged, Jim led him a 
 short distance down the passage before he 
 spoke. 
 
 " Wilkins, " he said, " do you remember 
 the night when you thought you saw the 
 Black Dwarf on the landing ?" 
 
 " I shall never forget it, sir," the other 
 replied. "I can never go along that cor- 
 ridor now without a shudder. What about 
 
 , 1 
 
 it, sir f 
 
 " Only that I have just seen the figure 
 myself," James replied. " I had been up 
 to the lumber-room, and was descending the 
 stairs when it passed along the further 
 side of the gallery, in the direction of the 
 west corridor. Now, Wilkins, I have come 
 down to find out whether you would be 
 afraid to come upstairs with me in order 
 that we may discover whether we can
 
 190 The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 come to any understanding of the mys- 
 tery ? " 
 
 "Yes, sir, of course I will come with 
 you," said Wilkins. " At the same time I 
 am not going to say that I am not a bit 
 frightened, for it would not be the truth. 
 However, sir, I am not going to let you go 
 alone." 
 
 " Come along then," said Jim, " and bring 
 a light of some kind with you." 
 
 Wilkins procured a candle, and then they 
 ascended to the floor above. As thev reached 
 
 > 
 
 the corridor Jim turned and caught a 
 glimpse of his companion's face. It looked 
 very white and frightened in the dim 
 light. 
 
 " Cheer up, my man," said he ; "if it's a 
 ghost it won't hurt you, and if it's a human 
 being you and I should be more than a match 
 for him. " 
 
 As he said this he opened the door of the 
 first room on the corridor. It was empty,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 191 
 
 and quite devoid of either the natural or 
 the supernatural. 
 
 " Nothing here," said Jim as they 
 passed out into the passage, and into the 
 next room. This was used as a sewing- 
 room for the female servants, and was fur- 
 nished with a long table and half-a-dozen 
 chairs. They explored it thoroughly, and 
 having done so, voted it above suspicion. 
 The next room was a bedroom, and had 
 only been once used since the Standertons 
 had come into possession of the house. 
 The walls were panelled, and there was a 
 curious recess on the side opposite the door. 
 Jim overhauled each panel, and carefully 
 examined the recess, but without dis- 
 covering anything suspicious. Thus they 
 proceeded from room to room searching 
 every nook and crannv, and endeavouring 
 
 */ *; * O 
 
 in every possible way to account for 
 the creaking noise which had first at- 
 tracted Jim's attention. The carving of
 
 1 92 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 the corridor itself was carefully examined, 
 every panel of the wainscoting was tested, 
 until at last, having reached the gallery of 
 the hall, they were compelled to own them- 
 selves beaten. The fact that they had not 
 been able to discover anything only added to 
 Wilkins' belief in the supernatural agency 
 of the Dwarf. Jim, however, had the 
 recollection of that creaking hinge, be- 
 fore mentioned, continually before him. 
 There might be ghostly bodies he argued, 
 but he had never heard of ghostly 
 hinges. 
 
 " Well, it doesn't appear as if we are 
 destined to capture him to-night, " said 
 Jim, when they had finished their labours. 
 " Now one word of advice ; just keep 
 the fact of his appearance to yourself, 
 Wilkins. If the maid-servants come to 
 hear of it we shall have no end of 
 trouble." 
 
 Wilkins promised that he would say
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 193 
 
 nothing about the occurrence, and then 
 returned to the Servants' Hall, leaving 
 Jim standing on the gallery ruminating 
 on the behaviour of the figure he had 
 seen. 
 
 " One thing is quite certain, and that is 
 the fact that he disappeared in the corri- 
 dor," he said to himself reflectingly. " Now 
 I wonder where he came from ? " 
 
 The only room on that side of the gallery 
 then in use was Alice's bedroom, and to this 
 Jim forthwith made his way. It was a 
 
 / 
 
 strange scene that met his eyes when he 
 opened the door. As he had good reason to 
 know, Alice was always a most methodical 
 and neat young lady ; now everything was 
 in confusion. The drawers of the dressing- 
 table stood open and their contents were 
 strewed upon the table and the floor. The 
 writing-table in the further corner of the 
 room was in much the same condition, while 
 the wardrobe doors were open, and the 
 
 o
 
 194 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 dresses, which usually hung upon the pegs, 
 were piled in a heap upon the floor. 
 
 " Good gracious! what on earth does this 
 mean ? " said Jiin to himself as he gazed 
 upon the scene of confusion. " Has Alice 
 gone mad, or has the Black Dwarf been 
 trying to see how untidy he can make the 
 place ? She must not see the room in this 
 condition, or it may frighten her." 
 
 Thereupon he placed the candle upon the 
 table and did his best to restore something 
 like order. This task accomplished, he 
 went downstairs to the drawing-room, where 
 he found his sister seated beside the fire 
 reading. 
 
 " You have been a long time upstairs," 
 she remarked. " What have you been 
 doing ? " 
 
 For a moment Jim had forgotten the im- 
 portant discovery he had made. In reply he 
 withdrew the photograph from his pocket 
 and handed it to her. She took it with what
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 195 
 
 was almost a shudder. Somewhat to Jim's 
 surprise, she returned it without commenting 
 upon it. He replaced it in his pocket, also 
 without a word, and then stood before the 
 fire, wondering how he should tell her of 
 what he had seen. He knew it would cause 
 her some uneasiness, but at the same time 
 he felt that he ought to place her upon 
 her guard. 
 
 " Alice," he said at last, " do you make a 
 point of locking your bedroom door at 
 night ? " 
 
 " Lock my bedroom door at night?" she 
 repeated. " No ! Why should I ? " 
 
 " I can't exactly say why you should," he 
 answered, " but I want vou to do so for the 
 
 * */ 
 
 future. This is a big, lonely house, and we 
 have to remember that you and I are the 
 only people on this side. I wish my room 
 were nearer yours, but as it is not, I think it 
 would be safer if you were to do as I 
 suggest."
 
 196 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " But what makes you say this to-night ?" 
 she asked. " What is it, or who is it, you 
 suspect ? " 
 
 " I suspect nobody," he replied. " You 
 must not think that. But there are such 
 people as burglars, and it would only be an 
 ordinary act of common sense to make 
 yourself safe, while you are permitted the 
 opportunity. Ever since that terrible night 
 I have been nervous about you, and for 
 that reason I have decided upon something, 
 which at first YOU may think strange." 
 
 / O 
 
 " What is it ? " she enquired. 
 
 " For the future," he answered, " I intend 
 that Terence shall sleep in the room next 
 to vours. Then, if anv one makes trouble, 
 
 *j i */ ' 
 
 and help were needed, we should have a sure 
 allv at our beck and call." 
 
 / 
 
 "But I hope no one will ever attempt to 
 make trouble, as vou describe it," she 
 
 j / / 
 
 replied, looking at him with startled eyes 
 as she spoke.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 197 
 
 " I also sincerely hope not," he continued. 
 " Now I am going to see Terence about the 
 matter." 
 
 He thereupon left her, and went to 
 his study and rang the bell. On the 
 butler making his appearance he instructed 
 him to bring O'Riley at once. A few 
 minutes later Terence put in appearance. 
 
 " You had better remain also, Wilkins," 
 said Jim. " Just close the door behind 
 you, in case any one should chance to 
 overhear us. Now, Terence, I have some- 
 thing to say to you. Doubtless, since 
 you have been in the neighbourhood, 
 you have heard certain stories connected 
 with this house. I suppose you have been 
 told that it has the reputation of being 
 haunted." 
 
 "Lor' bless you, sir," Terence replied, "I've 
 heard all sorts of yarns about it. There's 
 folk down in the Township yonder, as would 
 no more think of coming up here after
 
 198 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 dark than they would of lying down in 
 front of the train and having their heads cut 
 off." 
 
 " You're not a believer in ghosts, I sup- 
 
 ?j 
 4 
 
 " Not as I knows on," said Terence can- 
 didly. " Though I don't mind sayin' as how 
 there are things as have never heen explained 
 to my satisfaction. 'Twas said, as you may 
 remember, sir, as how there was a ghost of 
 an old man to be seen, some nights in the 
 year, waiting to get over at the Thirty-Mile 
 Crossing up the river. Then there was the 
 ghost outside Sydney, that used to get on 
 the fence beside the road, and ask everybody 
 who would listen to him to have him pro- 
 perly buried." 
 
 James knew that the man before him was 
 as brave as a lion. He was the possessor 
 of nerves of iron, and did not know the 
 meaning of the word fear. 
 
 " Well," he went, on after a moment's
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 199 
 
 pause, " the long and the short of the mat- 
 ter is, Terence, some little time ago a maid- 
 servant saw what she thought to be the 
 ghost of the Little Black Dwarf up in the 
 gallery outside. Wilkins here was the next 
 to see it. I thought at the time he must 
 have been mistaken, but this evening I know 
 that he was not, for I have seen it my- 
 self." 
 
 " You don't mean that, sir ? " said Terence, 
 while Wilkins plainly showed the triumph 
 he felt. " And what may he have been like, 
 
 rj 55 
 
 sir : 
 
 " I had no time to see that," Jim an- 
 swered. " He disappeared into the western 
 corridor almost as soon as I caught sight of 
 him. At the same time I heard the sound 
 of a creaking hinge. What would you think 
 of that ? " 
 
 " I should say that it was no ghost, sir," 
 said Terence. " I've been told that this old 
 house is full of secret passages, and, if you
 
 2oo The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 ask me, I should say it was somebody play- 
 ing a game with you." 
 
 Wilkins stared disdainfully at him. He 
 was quite convinced in his own mind of the 
 ghostly nature of the mysterious visitor. 
 
 " I am inclined to agree with you, 
 Terence," Jim replied. " The more so as, 
 since I parted with you, Wilkins, I have 
 made a curious discovery, At what time 
 was Miss Alice's room made tidy ? " 
 
 " While you were at dinner, sir, according 
 to custom," replied the butler. " I saw the 
 maid coming out just as I left the dining- 
 room, and she would not be likely to leave 
 
 " To leave it in an untidy state ? " Jim 
 put in. 
 
 " Of course she would not, sir," the other 
 replied. " She would hear of it from the 
 housekeeper if she did. No, she's a nice, 
 steady girl, sir, and I'm told she does her 
 work to the best of her abilitv."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 201 
 
 " Well, it seems curious that when I en- 
 tered the room after you had left me, I 
 found it in a state of the wildest confusion. 
 The contents of the drawers of the dressing- 
 table were lying scattered upon the floor, as 
 were the dresses in the wardrobe. Now I 
 feel quite certain in my own mind that it 
 was from Miss Alice's bedroom that the 
 figure I saw emerged. I am equally sure 
 of one thing, and that is that it is no ghost 
 at least," and he added this with a smile, 
 " no respectable ghost, of course, would 
 dream of playing such tricks with a lady's 
 wearing apparel." 
 
 " Then, sir, whom do you suspect ? " 
 Wilkins enquired. " I can assure you that 
 none of the staff would dare to take such 
 a liberty." 
 
 " I am quite sure of that," Jim replied. 
 " Yet the fact remains that somebody must 
 be, and is, responsible for it. Now what I 
 intend to do is to lay myself out to capture
 
 202 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 that somebody, and to make an example of 
 him when I have got him. For that reason, 
 Terence, I am going to ask you to sleep in 
 the house, in the room next to that occupied 
 by Miss Alice. It will go hard, then, if 
 between us we cannot lay our hands upon 
 the gentleman, whoever he may be, who is 
 playing these tricks upon us." 
 
 Terence willingly agreed to the proposal, 
 and that night occupied the room in question. 
 His watchfulness availed him nothing, how- 
 ever, for no further sign of the Black Dwarf. 
 Next morning Robins received the photo- 
 graph of Murbridge, and from that moment 
 Jim awaited tidings from him in a fever of 
 expectation. Day after day, however, went 
 by, and still no good news came to reward 
 his patience. The only consolation he de- 
 rived was from sundry mysterious inter- 
 views which he had with Helen in a wooded 
 corner of the park. With the cunning of 
 lovers they had arranged a plan of meeting,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 203 
 
 and those little tete-a-tetes were to Jim as 
 the breath of life. No sooner was one at 
 an end than he hungered for the next. But 
 he was destined ere long to receive a fright, 
 such as he had never received in his life 
 before. Winter was fast approaching, 
 and the afternoons drew in quickly. 
 When he reached the rendezvous on this 
 occasion it was nearly five o'clock, and 
 almost dark. Helen had arrived there 
 before him, and he discovered her pacing 
 up and down the little glade, in what was 
 plainly an agitated frame of mind. 
 
 " Oh, I am so thankful that you have 
 come, Jim dear," she said, as she came 
 forward to greet him. " I have been coun- 
 ting the minutes until I should see you." 
 
 " Why, what on earth is the matter ? " 
 he asked, placing his arm round her waist 
 and drawing her to him. " You are excited 
 about something. Tell me, dear, what it is." 
 
 " Something so dreadful that it has upset
 
 204 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 me terribly," she answered. " I scarcely 
 know how to tell you." 
 
 He led her towards a fallen tree upon 
 which they had often seated themselves on 
 previous occasions. 
 
 "Now let me know everything," he said. 
 
 She looked about over her shoulder in a 
 frightened way. Then she began almost in 
 a whisper : 
 
 " Jim, what I have to say to you concerns 
 my grandfather. I am very much alarmed 
 about him." 
 
 " I hope he has not been making himself 
 disagreeable to you again on my account," 
 Jim replied. Then he continued angrily : 
 " If so, I think I shall have to call upon 
 him." 
 
 " Hush, hush," she said, " do not speak 
 so loud, you do not know who may be 
 listening." 
 
 " I will be all discretion, dear, now go on ! " 
 
 " Well, this afternoon I was playing the
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 205 
 
 piano in the drawing-room when a message 
 was brought to me by Isaac to the effect that 
 my grandfather desired to see me in his study 
 at once. I went to him there, to find him 
 seated at his desk as usual, at work upon 
 his book, the ' History of the County,' you 
 know. He signed to me to be seated by 
 the fire, and when I had done so resumed 
 his writing, not putting down his pen until 
 I had been some minutes in the room. Then 
 he looked at me with a very thoughtful 
 face, in which I imagined I could detect an 
 expression that I had never seen there 
 before. Taken altogether, his manner fright- 
 ened me. It was so strange, and so utterly 
 unlike himself, that I did not know what 
 to think. Then he took off his spectacles, 
 and laid them on the desk before him, re- 
 marking as he did so, ' I am given to 
 understand that you are still in correspon- 
 dence with Mr. Standerton, Miss ? ' Then, 
 before I could answer him, he continued
 
 206 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 'and I hear that you have secret meet- 
 ings with him in the park. Is this so ? ' I 
 admitted that it was, and went on to say 
 that as we were betrothed I could see no 
 harm in it." 
 
 " And what did he say to that ? " 
 " He rose from his chair and paced the 
 room for a few minutes without speaking. 
 Then he reseated himself. As he did so 
 he said, ' You are not engaged, and you 
 know it as well as I do. Never let me 
 hear you say such a thing again.' After 
 that he began to pace the room once 
 more, and finally hurled at me such 
 a torrent of abuse that I was almost 
 stupefied by it. He accused me of the most 
 outrageous things, until I could bear it 
 no longer, and rose to leave him. By 
 this time, as you may suppose, I had come 
 to the conclusion that the life of retirement 
 he had lived for so long had turned his 
 brain. No man could have said the things
 
 The Childerb ridge Mystery 207 
 
 he did without his mind being a little 
 affected." 
 
 " My darling, this is more serious than 
 you suppose," said Jim anxiously. 
 
 " But you have not heard the worst yet. 
 It appears that before I had entered the 
 room he had drawn up a document which 
 he now desired me to sign. It was to the 
 effect that I would bind myself never to 
 speak to you or see you again, and contained 
 my promise that I would abandon all 
 thought of ever becoming your wife. ' Sign 
 that,' he said, or the consequences will be 
 more terrible than you suppose. I am an 
 old man, but remember even old men can 
 be dangerous at times.' With that he 
 handed me a pen, but I refused to take it." 
 
 "And then? 1 
 
 " I cannot tell you how he looked at me 
 as I said it. I could never have believed 
 that his face could have undergone such a 
 change. But I still refused to sign the
 
 208 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 document, and at last he discovered that it 
 was impossible to force me to do so. ' Very 
 well,' he said, ' since you refuse, the con- 
 sequences of your action be upon your own 
 head.' With that, opening the door, he bade 
 me leave him. You can imagine for yourself 
 how thankful I was to do so." 
 
 " And then you came on here," said Jim. 
 " You were most imprudent, dear, ^fie may 
 try to revenge himself upon you when you 
 return to the house." 
 
 "I don't think he will hurt mi-," she 
 
 " " 
 
 replied. " I am only afraid for ^t5u." 
 
 " There is no need for fear on my 
 account," Jim answered, with a short laugh. 
 " I do not think it is possible for the poor 
 old gentleman to do me any harm. But the 
 idea that you are shut up in the house with 
 a madman, for a madman he must surely be, 
 frightens me beyond all measure. You must 
 see for yourself that you have no longer 
 anv reason to remain with him. He has
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 209 
 
 threatened you, and that will be sufficient 
 excuse for you to leave him." 
 
 " No, no," she answered, shaking her head. 
 11 If he is losing his reason, he should not be 
 blamed, and it is all the more necessary for 
 his comfort that I shall remain with him. 
 I feel sure I shall be quite safe. He is 
 angry with me at present, but he will calm 
 down. It is above all necessary, however, 
 that you should not come near him. It will 
 only irritate him and make him more excited 
 than before. Think how good he has been 
 to me, dear, for the past eight years, and 
 try not to be angry with him." 
 
 " But I am not anrv with him," said Jim. 
 
 O */ ' 
 
 " I am onlv trying to be just. One thins; is 
 
 V J ~ J O 
 
 quite certain, I shall know no peace as long 
 as you are in that house with him." 
 
 " Will it satisfy you if I give you my 
 promise that, should he become very bad, I 
 will at once send for you ? " 
 
 " If you persist on going back there, I 
 
 p
 
 2io The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 suppose I must be content with that pro- 
 mise," Jim replied, but with no good grace. 
 "And now you had better be running in. 
 If he finds that you are out, he might sup- 
 pose that you are with me, and have another 
 paroxysm of rage. In that case there is no 
 knowing what might happen.'' 
 
 Helen accordingly bade him good-bye and 
 left him, returning by the path to the 
 Dower House. Jim watched her until she 
 had disappeared and then turned home- 
 ward with a heavy heart. He felt that 
 he had already enough anxiety upon his 
 shoulders without this additional burden 
 He had never trusted Mr. Bursfield, but 
 he was at a loss to understand his present 
 malignity, unless it were to be accounted 
 for by the fact that his brain had given 
 way. 
 
 When he reached his home he let himself 
 in by a side door, and made his way to the 
 drawing-room, where he found Alice.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 211 
 
 " How late you are," she said. " The gong 
 sounded some time ago. You will scarcely 
 have time to dress." 
 
 Then dinner must wait,'' replied Jim. 
 " Alice, I have bad news for you." 
 
 "Why, what is the matter now?" she 
 asked. 
 
 Jim thereupon proceeded to furnish her 
 with an abstract of his interview with 
 Helen. She heard him without a word, but 
 it was to be easily seen how distressed she 
 was for her friend. 
 
 " My dear Jim," she remarked when he 
 had finished, " this is indeed serious. What 
 do you propose doing ? " 
 
 " I scarcely know," Jim answered. " The 
 case is an extremely delicate one. The 
 old man has taken a decided dislike to 
 me, and if I interfere between Helen and 
 himself it will have the effect of adding 
 to his wrath and do more harm than good. 
 And yet I cannot allow her to remain
 
 212 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 there, and perhaps run a daily risk of her 
 life." 
 
 u What does she think about it herself ? " 
 
 " She has an absurd notion that her 
 duty lies in standing by Bursfield in his 
 trouble. That, of course, is all very well in 
 its way, but no one could possibly expect her 
 to turn herself into a keeper for a madman." 
 
 Alice, seeing the tired look on his face, 
 crossed the room and placed her arm round 
 his neck. 
 
 " Dear old Jim," she said, " you must not 
 worry yourself too much about it. All 
 will come right in the end. Helen is a 
 girl of very marked character, and it is 
 quite probable that, under her influence, Mr. 
 Bursfield's condition may improve. Were I 
 in your place, I should trust matters to her 
 for a little while. You know that she loves 
 you, and you may be quite sure that she 
 will keep her promise, and let you know 
 directly anything is very wrong. But there !
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 213 
 
 what am I thinking about ? I should haye 
 told you when you first came in that there 
 is a telegram waiting for you. Here it is." 
 
 As she spoke she took an envelope from 
 the mantelpiece, and handed it to him. 
 
 " I wonder who it is from ?" he remarked 
 as he tore it open. 
 
 Having withdrawn the contents, he read 
 as follows : 
 
 " Standerton, Childerbridge. 
 
 " Murbridge found. Come at once. 
 
 " 13, Upper Bellington Street. ROBINS."
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 " MURBRIDGE found," said Jim to himself as 
 he stood holding the telegram in his hand. 
 " At last, thank goodness, at last ! " 
 
 Alice, however, said nothing. She had 
 more of her dead father's forgiving spirit in 
 her, and she was aware that he would have 
 been the last to have desired vengeance on 
 his assailant. 
 
 " What do you mean to do ? " she asked. 
 
 "Catch the 8.40 train up to Town," 
 said Jim, " and see Murbridge as soon 
 as possible. The telegram says ' Come 
 at once.' That is sufficient evidence that 
 there is no time to be lost. Perhaps he 
 has been wounded in a desperate struggle
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 215 
 
 with the police. In fact, there are a 
 thousand possibilities." 
 
 He gave the necessary instructions for 
 dinner to be hurried forward, his bag to be 
 packed, and the carriage to be ready im- 
 mediately afterwards to take him to the 
 station. 
 
 " You will not mind being left alone for 
 one evening, will you, Alice ? " he said to 
 his sister, half apologetically. " Terence 
 will be in the house and will keep a careful 
 eye upon you. If you think you will be 
 lonely I will take you up to Town with me, 
 drop you at the hotel, and then I will go 
 on to Upper Bellington Street." 
 
 Alice, however, would not hear of this 
 arrangement. She declared that she would 
 be quite content to remain where she was. 
 
 " Besides," she said, " if any news were 
 to come from Helen, I should be here to 
 receive it. It would not be wise for both 
 of us to be away at this juncture."
 
 216 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Jim thereupon went out and sent word 
 to Terence to come to him in his study. 
 
 " I am called up to Town to-night, 
 Terence," he said, "and I am going to 
 leave Miss Alice in your charge. I know 
 she could not be in a better." 
 
 " You may be very sure of that, sir," 
 Terence replied ; " I wouldn't stand by and 
 see anything happen to Miss Alice, and I 
 think she knows it." 
 
 " I am sure she does," Jim returned, and 
 then went on to explain the reason for the 
 journey he was about to undertake. 
 
 An hour and a-hal later he was seated 
 in a railway carriage and being whirled 
 along towards London at something like 
 fifty miles an hour. If ever a young man in 
 this world was furnished with material for 
 thought, James Standerton that evening was 
 that one. There was his errand to London 
 in the first place to be considered, the 
 singular behaviour of the Black Dwarf a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 217 
 
 few nights before for another, and the 
 declaration that Helen had made to him 
 that afternoon for a third. In the light of 
 this last catastrophe the finding of the man 
 whom he felt sure was his father's mur- 
 derer sank into comparative insignifi- 
 cance. 
 
 What if the madman should wreak his 
 vengeance upon her ? What if in a sudden 
 fit of fury he should drive her from his 
 house ? If the latter were to come to pass, 
 however, he felt certain that the place she 
 would fly to would be the Manor House, and 
 in that case Alice would take her in and 
 Terence would see that she was safe from 
 the old man's fury. 
 
 It was nearly eleven o'clock when he 
 reached Paddington. Hailing a cab, he bade 
 the man drive him first to his hotel, 
 where he engaged his usual room. When 
 he had consulted a directory, he made his 
 way into the street again. His cabman,
 
 218 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 whom he had told to wait, professed to be 
 familiar with Upper Bellington Street, but 
 later confessed his entire ignorance of its 
 locality. Jim set him right, and then, 
 taking his place in the cab, bade him drive 
 him thither with all speed. Once more they 
 set off, down Piccadilly, through Leicester 
 Square, and so by way of Long Acre into 
 Holborn. Then the route became some- 
 what more complicated. Through street 
 after street they passed until Jim lost all 
 idea of the direction in which they were 
 proceeding. Some of the streets were 
 broad and stately, others squalid and de- 
 jected, some wood paved, others cobble- 
 stones, in which the rain that had fallen an 
 hour previous stood in filthy puddles. 
 
 How long they were driving, Jim had no 
 sort of idea, nor could he have told you in 
 what portion of the town he was then in. 
 At last however they entered a street 
 which appeared to have no ending. It was
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 219 
 
 illumined by flaring lamps from coster 
 barrows, drawn up beside the pavement, 
 while the night was made hideous by the 
 raucous cries of the vendors of winkles 
 baked potatoes and roasted chestnuts. 
 
 " This is Upper Bellington Street, sir," 
 said the cabman, through the shutter. " At 
 what number shall I pull up ? " 
 
 " Thirteen," Jim replied ; " but you will 
 never be able to find it in this crowd. Put 
 me down anywhere here, and I'll look for 
 it myself." 
 
 The cabman did as he was directed, and 
 presently Jim found himself making his way 
 along the greasy pavement which eren at 
 that late hour was crowded with pedestrians 
 in search of the number in question. It was 
 as miserable an evening as ever he could 
 remember. A thin drizzle was falling ; the 
 sights and sounds around him were sordid 
 and depressing in the extreme ; while the 
 very errand that had brought him to that
 
 22O The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 neighbourhood was of a kind calculated to 
 lower the spirits of the average man to 
 below the mental zero. 
 
 After an examination of the numbers of 
 the various houses and shops in the vicinity, 
 he came to the conclusion that Thirteen 
 must be situated at the further end of the 
 street. This proved to be the case. When 
 he reached it, he knocked upon the grimy 
 door, which was immediately opened to him 
 by a police officer. 
 
 " What is your name ? " asked that 
 official. 
 
 " James Standerton," Jim replied. " I 
 received a telegram from Detective - ser- 
 geant Robins this evening asking me to 
 come up." 
 
 " That's all right, sir," the man answered. 
 " Come in ; we have been expecting you this 
 hour or more." 
 
 " But how is it your prisoner is here, and 
 not at the police station ? "
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 221 
 
 " I doubt if he'll ever trouble any 
 police station again," returned the officer. 
 " He's just about done for. In fact, I 
 shouldn't be surprised if he wasn't dead by 
 now." 
 
 " What is the matter with him ? " 
 
 " Pneumonia, sir, the doctor says. He 
 says he can't last out the night." 
 
 At that moment Robins himself appeared 
 at the head of the dirty stairs that descended 
 to the hall, and invited him to ascend. Jim 
 accordingly did so. 
 
 " Good evening, Mr. JStanderton," he said, 
 " I regret having to inform you that we 
 have caught our bird too late. We dis- 
 covered him at midday, and he was then at 
 the point of death. He was too ill to be 
 moved, and as he had no one to look after 
 him, we got a doctor and a nurse in at once. 
 But I fear it is a hopeless case." 
 
 " Will it be possible for me to see him, do 
 you think ? "
 
 222 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Oh yes, sir ; he's been calling for you 
 ever since we found him, so I took the 
 liberty of telegraphing to you to come up." 
 
 " I am glad you did," said Jim. " There 
 are some questions I must put to him." 
 
 " In that case, please step this way, sir, 
 and I'll speak to the doctor. You shall not 
 be kept waiting any longer than I can help." 
 
 He led Jim along the landing, then opened 
 a door and disappeared into a room at the 
 further end. While he was absent Jim 
 looked about him and took stock of his 
 position. The small gas-jet that lit up the well 
 of the staircase, served to show the dirty walls 
 in all their dreariness. The sound of voices 
 reached him from above and below, while 
 the cries of the hawkers in the street came 
 faintly in and added to the general squalor. 
 Then as he stood there he recalled that first 
 meeting with Murbridge beside the Darling 
 River. In his mind's eye he saw the evening 
 sun illumining the gums on the opposite
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 223 
 
 bank, the soft breeze ruffling the surface of 
 the river, an old pelican fishing for his even- 
 ing meal in the back-water, and lastly, 
 Richard Murbridge stretched out beside his 
 newly-lighted fire. This would be their 
 third meeting ; and in what a place, and 
 under what terribly changed circumstances ! 
 He was indulging in this reyerie when the 
 door opened once more, and a small, grey- 
 haired man emerged. 
 
 " Good evening, my dear sir," he said, " I 
 understand that you're Mr. Standerton, the 
 son of the man the poor wretch inside is 
 suspected of having murdered. However, 
 they have captured him too late." 
 
 " You mean, I suppose, that he will not 
 live ? " said Jim, interrogatively. 
 
 " If he sees the light of morning I shall be 
 very much surprised," said the doctor; 
 " in point of fact he is sinking fast. You 
 wish to see him, do you not ? " 
 
 " I do," said Jim. " There is some
 
 224 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 mystery connected with him that I am very 
 desirous of clearing up." 
 
 " I see," said the medico, " and in that 
 case I presume that you would wish to see 
 him alone ? " 
 
 " If you can permit it," Jim replied. 
 
 " I think it might be managed," answered 
 the other. " But if you will stay here for a 
 moment I will let you know." 
 
 He returned to the room, and when he 
 stood before Jim once more, invited him to 
 follow him. He did so, to find himself in a 
 small apartment, some ten feet long by eight 
 feet wide. It was uncarpeted, and its 
 furniture consisted of a broken chair, a box 
 on which stood an enamelled basin, and a 
 bed which was covered with frowsy blankets. 
 On this bed lay a man whom, in spite the 
 change that had come over him, Jim recog- 
 nised at once as being Richard Mur bridge. 
 A nurse was standing beside him, and Robins 
 was at the foot of the bed.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 225 
 
 " Do not make the interview any longer 
 than you can help," whispered the doctor, 
 and then beckoned to the detective and the 
 nurse to leave the room with him. They did 
 so, and the door closed behind them. Then 
 Jim went forward and seated himself upon 
 the chair by the bedside of the dying man. 
 The latter looked up at him with a scowl. 
 
 " So they sent for you after all ? " he said 
 in a voice that was little above a whisper. 
 " They even took that trouble ? " 
 
 " I received the message just before dinner, 
 and came away immediately afterwards." 
 
 " Left your luxurious mansion to visit 
 Upper Bellington Street ? How self- 
 denying of you ! Good Lord, to think 
 that it should be my luck to die in such a 
 hole as this ! I suppose you know that I 
 am dying ? " 
 
 " I have been informed that your recovery 
 is unlikely," Jim replied. " That fact made 
 me doubly anxious to speak to you." 
 
 Q
 
 226 The Childrebridge Mystery- 
 There was a little pause, during which 
 Murbridge watched him intently. 
 
 " You mean about the murder, I suppose ?" 
 he whispered. 
 
 " Yes ! " Jim answered. " God forgive 
 me for feeling revengeful at such a moment, 
 but you took from me and my sister the 
 kindest and best father that man ever had." 
 " You still think that it was I who com- 
 mitted the murder, then ? " 
 
 " I am certain of it," Jim answered. " You 
 were at the house that night ; you cherished 
 a deadly hatred against my father ; you 
 vowed that you would be even with him, 
 happen what might, and you ran away 
 from Childerbridge immediately afterwards. 
 Surely those facts are black enough to 
 convict any man ? " 
 
 " They would have gone some way with 
 a Jury, I have no doubt," the other replied. 
 " But, as a matter of fact, I did not 
 commit the murder. Bitterly as I hated
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 227 
 
 your father, I am not responsible for his 
 death." 
 
 Jim looked at him incredulously. 
 
 " Ah, I can see you do not believe me. 
 Now, listen, James Standerton, and pay 
 attention to what I say, for I shan't be able 
 to say it again. I've been a pretty tough 
 sort of customer all my life. There have 
 not been many villainies I haven't com- 
 mitted, and still fewer that I wouldn't have 
 committed if they tended to my advantage. 
 The record I shall carry aloft with me will 
 not bear much looking into. But on the 
 word of a dying man, may" (here he swore 
 an awful oath which I feel would be better 
 not set down) " if I am not absolutely 
 guiltless of your father's death. Will you 
 believe me now ? " 
 
 But still Jim looked incredulous. 
 
 " Ah, I can see that you still doubt me. 
 How can I convince you ? Think for a 
 moment, what have I to gain or lose by 
 
 Q2
 
 228 The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 saying such a thing ? I shall be gone hence 
 in a few hours, perhaps minutes. Even if I 
 were the murderer, the police could not take 
 me now. With old Bony behind me I can 
 laugh at them and at you." 
 
 " But why did you run away if you were 
 innocent ? " 
 
 " Because I saw what a hole I had got 
 myself into. You remember that I went up 
 to the house and had an interview with 
 your father ? He turned me out, and in the 
 hearing of yourself and the servant I 
 vowed to be even with him. That vow I 
 certainly should have kept, had not some- 
 body else that night stepped in and took the 
 case out of my hands. When I left the house, 
 I went for a long walk. I knew my own 
 temper, and also that I dared not trust my- 
 self with human beings just then. Good 
 heavens, man ! You don't know how 
 desperate I was. I had followed your father 
 to England, and the voyage had taken nearly
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 229 
 
 all my money. What little was left I spent 
 in liquor, and then went down to Childer- 
 bridge to screw more from your father. He 
 refused point blank to help me except on 
 certain conditions, which I would not 
 comply with. Knowing his stubbornness 
 of old, I cleared out of Childerbridge by 
 the first train, vowing that I would be even 
 with him by some means. Then in an 
 evening paper I saw that he had been 
 murdered. In a flash I realised my position, 
 and saw that if I was not very careful I 
 should find myself in Queer Street. Then 
 came your reward, and from that moment 
 I hid myself like a 'possum in a gum log. 
 I didn't care very much about my miserable 
 neck, but but well, you see, strange though 
 it may seem, I was a gentleman once." 
 
 Jim did not know what to say. If this 
 man's tale were true, and it bore the im- 
 pression of truth, then they had been on a 
 false scent from the first.
 
 230 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " I wonder what your mother would have 
 said had she been alive to see it all," said 
 Murbridge, after a pause. " Good Lord, to 
 think that Jane Standerton's brother should 
 end his days in a hole like this." 
 
 " What ? " cried Jim, scarcely believing 
 that he had heard aright. " Whose brother 
 did you say ?" 
 
 " Why, your own mother's to be sure," 
 returned Murbridge. " Do you mean to say 
 that your father never told you after all ?" 
 
 "Can such a thing be possible?" Jim 
 continued, in an awed voice. 
 
 " Yes ; I am Jane Standerton's brother 
 sure enough. If you look in that old bag 
 under the bed, you will find evidence enough 
 to convince you of that fact. My real name 
 is Richard McCalmont, though you wouldn't 
 think it to look at me, would you ? That 
 was how I got my hold upon your father, 
 don't you see ? I was convicted of forgery 
 at the age of twenty-one " (the man spoke
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 231 
 
 as if he were proud of it) " and did my 
 three years. For a while after that I went 
 straight, but at twenty-six there was another 
 little mistake, with the details of which I 
 will not trouble you, but which was suffi- 
 cient, nevertheless, to again cause me to 
 spend some years in durance vile. At the 
 age of thirty-two they tried to convict me 
 of an Insurance Fraud, combined with a 
 suspicion of murder. They would have 
 done so but for certain technicalities that 
 were brought forward by my Counsel, who, 
 by the way, was employed by your father. 
 You see I am perfectly candid with you." 
 
 "And you are my mother's brother?" 
 said Jim slowly, as if he were still trying to 
 believe it. 
 
 " And your father's brother-in-law, too. 
 And your uncle. Don't forget that, James," 
 said the other. " Lord ! How your father 
 hated me ! On certain occasions I made it 
 my custom to call upon him in a friendly
 
 232 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 way. At the end of my last term of 
 exile, I found that my sister was dead, 
 and that you and Alice were growing up. 
 It was my desire to play the part of 
 the kindly uncle. But your father made 
 himself objectionable, and vowed that if 
 ever I dared to betray my relationship to 
 you he would cut off supplies. As there 
 was never a time in my life in which I did 
 not stand in need of money, I was perforce 
 compelled to deprive you of a life's history 
 that would certainly have proved interesting, 
 if not instructive, to you. However, I now 
 have the satisfaction of knowing that I shall 
 not die without having accomplished that 
 task." 
 
 Here he was interrupted by a violent fit 
 of coughing, which left him speechless for 
 upwards of a minute. As for Jim, he was 
 thinking of the mental agony his father 
 must have suffered, year after year, with 
 this despicable creature, the brother of the
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 233 
 
 woman he loved so fondly, continually 
 holding this threat over his children's 
 heads. 
 
 " God help you for a miserable man," he 
 muttered at last. " Why didn't my poor 
 father tell me this before ? He might have 
 known that this would not have made the 
 least difference." 
 
 " He was too proud," replied the other, 
 when he recovered his speech. " Well, it 
 doesn't matter much now, and in a little 
 while it will matter still less. The police 
 and I have been on the most friendly terms 
 all our lives, and it gives one a homely sort 
 of feeling to know that even my last 
 moments ^vill be watched over by their 
 tender care." 
 
 He tried to laugh at his own hideous joke, 
 but the attempt was a failure. 
 
 " For my mother's sake, is there anything 
 I can do for you ? " Jim enquired, drawing a 
 little closer to the bed.
 
 234 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 The other only shook his head. The effort 
 he had made to talk had proved too much 
 for him, and had materially hastened the 
 end. 
 
 Seeing that his condition was growing 
 desperate, Jim rose and went in search of 
 the doctor. He found him in an apartment 
 close at hand. 
 
 " I believe he is sinking fast," said Jim. 
 " I think you had better go to him." 
 
 The doctor accordingly returned to the 
 sick-room, leaving Jim alone with Robins. 
 
 "Well, sir," asked the latter, "did he 
 confess ? " 
 
 " We have been deceived," said Jim. 
 " The man is as innocent of the crime as 
 I am. I am convinced of that ! " 
 
 " God bless my soul, you don't mean to 
 say so," said the astonished detective, and 
 asked the same questions Jim had put to 
 the dying man. Jim answered them as the 
 other had done.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 235 
 
 " Well, this is the most extraordinary case 
 I have ever had to do with," said Robins. 
 " If Murb ridge had wanted to place a halter 
 round his neck he could not have gone to 
 work in a better fashion. If he is not the 
 man, then where are we to look for the 
 real murderer ? " 
 
 " Goodness only knows," replied Jim. 
 " The case is now shrouded in even greater 
 mystery than before." 
 
 Half an hour went by, then an hour, and 
 still they waited. At two o'clock the doctor 
 rejoined them. 
 
 " It is all over," he said solemnly. " He 
 is dead/'
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 BETWEEN the time of Murbridge's funeral 
 and his own arrival at Childerbridge, Jim had 
 plenty of leisure to consider his position, 
 and to make up his mind as to how much 
 he should let Alice know of the other's 
 story. 
 
 After mature consideration, he decided 
 that he had better tell her everything. 
 Yet it had been such a painful shock to 
 himself that he could well understand how 
 it would affect her. 
 
 It was mid - morning when he ar- 
 rived at Childerbridge, and Alice had 
 walked down to the gates to meet him. 
 He alighted from the carriage on seeing
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 237 
 
 her, and they strolled across the park 
 together. 
 
 " I have been so anxious to hear 
 from you," she said, linking her arm 
 through her brother's. " What have you 
 to tell me ? Did you find that wretched 
 man ? " 
 
 " Yes, I found him," he answered, " and 
 he was dying." 
 
 She paused for a moment before she put 
 the next question. 
 
 " And did he confess ? " 
 
 " No," said Jim. " I firmly believe I 
 wronged him in suspecting him of of what 
 happened. But I made another discovery, 
 and one, I fear, that will cause you some 
 astonishment and not a little pain. I learnt 
 from him that his name was not Murbridge, 
 but McCalmont." 
 
 " McCalmont ? " she echoed, as if she did 
 not understand. " But that was our mother's 
 maiden name."
 
 238 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 "Exactly," said Jim, "and he was her 
 brother ! " 
 
 Alice looked at him in horrified sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " Oh, Jim," she answered, " surely such 
 a thing cannot be possible ? " 
 
 " I am afraid it is only too true," Jim 
 replied. " His story was most circumstan- 
 tial. He was our mother's youngest brother, 
 and was, I am very much afraid, a disgrace 
 to the family." 
 
 " But if he had been our mother's brother, 
 why did he entertain such a deadly hatred 
 for our father ? " she asked. 
 
 " For the simple reason that father had 
 been successful, while he had been the re- 
 verse." Jim replied. " I rather fancy the 
 poor old governor had helped him out of 
 one or two of his worst scrapes, and such 
 being the perverse nature of mankind, he 
 hated him for the very benefits he had 
 received from him."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 239 
 
 They walked some distance in silence. 
 
 " Poor, wretched man," said Alice at last. 
 " Oh, Jim, you don't know how thankful I 
 am that he was not the author of that 
 terrible crime. And now, before we say 
 anything further, there's one thing I must 
 talk to you about." 
 
 " What is that ? " he enquired. 
 
 " It is about Helen," she answered. 
 " I met her in the village this morning. 
 I don't want to frighten you, but she 
 is looking very ill. She seems to have 
 come to look years older within the last 
 few days. There is a frightened expres- 
 sion on her face that haunts me even 
 now." 
 
 Jim was troubled. This was bad news 
 indeed. 
 
 "Did she give you any reason for it ?" 
 he enquired. 
 
 " She tried to account for it by saying 
 that her grandfather had not been at all
 
 240 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 well lately, and that she had had rather a 
 trying time with him." 
 
 "Alice," said Jim, after the short pause 
 that ensued, " I have come to the con- 
 clusion that old Bursfield is insane. 
 Helen did not tell you, I suppose, that 
 he uttered all sorts of threats against 
 me the other day. For some reason or 
 another he has taken an intense dislike 
 to me." 
 
 " She said nothing about it," Alice 
 answered. " I am sorry for her. What 
 is best to be done, do vou think ?" 
 
 / / 
 
 " It is difficult to say." Jim answered. 
 " One thing is quite certain. She cannot 
 go on living with him if he is to continue 
 in this strain. Under such circumstances 
 there is a limit even to a woman's fidelity. 
 I must endeavour to see her as soon as 
 possible." 
 
 " Would it do for me to go and see her, 
 do you think ? " asked Alice. " I should
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 241 
 
 then be able to tell you something definite 
 about Mr. Bursfield's condition." 
 
 Jim shook his head. 
 
 " No," he said, " such a thing would not 
 be wise. I must think the matter over and 
 see what is best to be done." 
 
 By the time he reached the house he had 
 arrived at a conclusion. 
 
 " Do you remember, Alice," he said, " that 
 clever young doctor that we met at the 
 Caltrops on the evening that we dined with 
 them, soon after our arrival in England ? 
 His name was Weston. Mrs. Caltrop de- 
 clared that, before many years were past, he 
 would be a recognised authority on mental 
 diseases." 
 
 " I remember him quite well," Alice an- 
 swered. " He took me in to dinner, and was 
 so interested in Australia. He had a 
 brother in Sydney, I think. What about 
 him." 
 
 " Well, I have made up my mind to tele- 
 
 R
 
 242 The Childerbridge Mystery- 
 graph to Mrs. Caltrop for his address, and 
 having got it, to wire and ask him to come 
 down and see Mr. Bursfield. He would be 
 able to tell me then whether or not it is safe 
 for Helen to go on living with him. If he 
 says not, then she must leave him at 
 once." 
 
 " I should think it would be a very good 
 plan, provided always that you can get Mr. 
 Bursfield to see him. You will find that the 
 difficulty." 
 
 " Not at all," Jim answered. " I have a 
 scheme that I think will answer. At any 
 rate we will try it." 
 
 A telegram was accordingly despatched 
 to Mrs. Caltrop, asking her to forward the 
 address of the doctor in question. This 
 done, Jim sent for Terence. 
 
 " Well, Terence," he said, when the latter 
 made his appearance, "any sign of the Black 
 Dwarf during my absence ? " 
 
 " Never a one, sir," Terence replied. " I
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 243 
 
 kept my eyes and ears open all night, and 
 waited about after dark, but there's not been 
 so much as a mouse stirring." 
 
 " I am glad to hear it," Jim remarked, and 
 then gave Terence a brief description of his 
 visit to London, and of what he had dis- 
 covered there. 
 
 " Then if it wasn't he as did it," said 
 Terence, " who could it have been ? " 
 
 Before he answered, Jim looked at the 
 door, as if to make sure that it was closed. 
 
 " Terence," he said, " I am gradually 
 coming to the conclusion that the Black 
 Dwarf, whoever he may be, was responsible 
 for it." 
 
 "I've thought of that myself, sir," Terence 
 replied. 
 
 " In the first place, he was seen by 
 one of the maid-servants in the gallery 
 on the night that my father was mur- 
 dered." 
 
 " Don't they say, sir, as how another 
 
 R 2
 
 244 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 gentleman was murdered in the same way in 
 this house ? " 
 
 " I believe there is some legend to that 
 effect," said Jim, " but how true it is, I 
 cannot say. I don't think, however, we need 
 take that circumstance into consideration." 
 
 " Then what are we to do, sir ?" 
 
 " Watch and wait until we catch him," 
 Jim replied. " When we've done that we 
 shall be satisfied whether he is flesh or blood 
 or not, and if he is, by what right he dares 
 to enter my house." 
 
 There was a lengthy pause, then with a 
 diffidence that was somewhat unusual with 
 him, Terence said : 
 
 " You'll excuse me, sir, I hope, for saying 
 such a thing, but between you and me, sir, I 
 cannot help thinking that we was happier at 
 Mudrapilla." 
 
 Jim heaved a heavy sigh. A longing to 
 be back in the old home, and to be engaged 
 in the pursuits he had been brought up to
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 245 
 
 from a boy, had been with him a great deal 
 of late. 
 
 "Yes," he said. " I think we were happier 
 at Gundawurra. I must go back there soon, 
 Terence, if only for a whiff of Bush air. 
 I am very much afraid that playing the 
 
 fine gentleman in England does not suit 
 
 ii 
 
 me. 
 
 When the other had left the room, Jim 
 lay back in his chair and fell into a reverie. 
 He closed his eyes, and was transported back 
 to the old home where he had been born, 
 and where he had spent his happiest days. 
 How sweet it would be to settle down there 
 some day, with Helen as his wife. He tried 
 hard to realise the day's work upon the run ; 
 the home-coming at night, to find Helen at 
 the gate waiting for him ; the evenings 
 spent in the cool verandah, with the moon 
 rising above the river timber. Then he 
 came back to the very real anxieties of 
 the present. An hour later a message
 
 246 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 came from Mrs. Caltrop. It was as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 " Doctor Weston, Harley Street." 
 Whereupon he took another telegraph 
 form and wired to the doctor to the effect 
 that he would be grateful if he could make 
 it convenient to travel down to Childer- 
 bridge that afternoon. In order that the 
 latter might understand from whom the 
 message emanated, he added the words, 
 " Met you at dinner at Mrs. Caltrop's." 
 Luncheon was scarcely finished before a 
 message arrived from the doctor saying 
 that he would endeavour to be at Childer- 
 bridge at four o'clock. Accordingly at half- 
 past three Jim drove to the railway station 
 to await his coming. Punctual to the mo- 
 ment the train steamed into the station, and 
 he looked about among the passengers for 
 the man he wanted. 
 
 Presently he descried him coming along 
 the platform a tall, good-looking man,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 247 
 
 resembling a soldier more than a Harley 
 Street physician. 
 
 " Mr. Standerton, I believe," he said as he 
 approached Jim. 
 
 " And you are Doctor Weston, of course," 
 the latter answered with a smile. 
 
 " Now," said the doctor, " I will com- 
 mence, Mr. Standerton, by saying that 
 it is absolutely necessary that I should 
 catch the six o'clock train back to Lon- 
 don." 
 
 " I will arrange that you do so," Jim re- 
 plied, and then the doctor surrendered his 
 ticket and they strolled out of the station. 
 " Now, perhaps, I had better tell you my 
 reasons for asking you to come down to- 
 day. Shall we walk a little way along the 
 road. I have no desire to be overheard. 
 I will now make you acquainted with the 
 facts of the case, in order that you may 
 go direct to the house of the gentleman I 
 want you to see."
 
 248 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 "He is not a member of your own family, 
 then ? " the doctor enquired. 
 
 " No, he is no sort of relation. In fact, I 
 had not seen him until a few months ago." 
 
 They paused beside a gate and faced each 
 other. 
 
 " I gather that it is rather an unusual 
 case ? " the doctor remarked. 
 
 " A very unusual one," Jim replied. " The 
 matter stands in this way. I am engaged to 
 a young lady who is the adopted grand- 
 daughter of the gentleman in question." 
 
 The doctor nodded, but said nothing. He 
 listened attentively, while Jim told his tale, 
 explained his fears for Helen's safety, and 
 described the threats the old gentleman had 
 made use of concerning himself. 
 
 When he had finished Dr. Weston drew 
 some lines on the ground with the point of 
 his umbrella, as if he were working out a 
 difficult calculation. 
 
 " This is certainly a singular case, Mr.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 249 
 
 Standerton," he said at last. " You are no 
 connected with this gentleman in any way, 
 and he, not approving of your marriage 
 with his granddaughter, has forbidden you 
 his house. The young lady's only reason 
 for believing him to be a little weak in his 
 intellect is his treatment of you. I really 
 do not know whether, under the circum- 
 stances, I should be justified in seeing him." 
 
 Jim's heart sank. He had not looked at 
 the matter from this point of view. Observ- 
 ing his disappointment, the doctor smiled. 
 
 " Nevertheless," he continued, " I will see 
 him, provided you will give me your pro- 
 mise that my report shall be considered a 
 purely confidential one." 
 
 " Am I to understand that I am not to 
 acquaint Miss Decie or my sister with your 
 decision ? " 
 
 " Of course, I will allow you to tell them, 
 and equally, of course, provided it goes no 
 further."
 
 250 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " In that case I will give you my promise 
 most willingly," said Jim. 
 
 " And now the question comes as to how 
 I can obtain my interview with him." 
 
 " I have thought out a plan that should 
 enable you to do that," Jim replied. " I 
 happen to know that for a long time past he 
 has been engaged in writing a history of 
 the neighbourhood, and my house in par- 
 ticular, which at one time was the property 
 of his family." 
 
 ; ' Quite so ; and the ruins a mile or two 
 back, what are they called ? " 
 
 " Clevedon Castle," Jim answered. " I 
 believe it was destroyed by Cromwell." 
 
 " That should answer my purpose. And 
 now with your permission I will drive to his 
 house not in your carriage, but in a cab. 
 I shall see you afterwards, I presume ? " 
 
 " I will wait for you here, or at my 
 own house, whichever you please," said 
 Jim.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 251 
 
 " Your house, I think, would be better," 
 the doctor answered. " I will drive there 
 
 directly I leave Mr. . By-the-way, you 
 
 have not told me his name or given me 
 his address." 
 
 Jim furnished him with both, and 
 then the doctor hailed a fly and drove 
 away. 
 
 It was nearly half-past five before Jim 
 was informed by Wilkins that Dr. Weston 
 had called, and that he had been shown to 
 the study. 
 
 He immediately proceeded thither, to find 
 the doctor sitting before the fire. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Standerton," he began, " I 
 have seen Mr. Bursfield, and have had rather 
 a curious interview with him." 
 
 " And what decision have you come 
 to ?" 
 
 " Well, I think your supposition is correct. 
 Not to be technical, I might say that he is 
 not really responsible for his actions. While
 
 252 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 we discussed archaeology, and the history of 
 the neighbourhood, he was rational enough, 
 but when I chanced to touch upon this 
 house, and your connection with it, his 
 whole demeanour changed. If I were in 
 your place I should avoid him as much as 
 possible, for there can be no doubt that he 
 would do you a mischief if he could. 
 As for Miss Decie, I would not advise 
 you to persuade her to leave him, at 
 least not at present. It would in all pro- 
 bability immediately produce unfavourable 
 results, and in so doing might snap the frail 
 link that still connects him with Sanity. 
 The influence she exerts over him, where 
 you are not concerned, is undoubtedly a 
 beneficial one." 
 
 " Am I to consider that she is safe with 
 him ? " 
 
 " I should say so," the doctor replied. 
 " Of course, if he has many more of these 
 paroxysms of rage it might be necessary
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 253 
 
 for her to leave him. But she must be the 
 best judge of that. Doubtless you can 
 arrange that with her. And now I must be 
 getting back to the railway station ; if I 
 wish to catch my train I have not much 
 time to lose." 
 
 " I am exceedingly obliged to you, Doctor 
 Weston," said Jim gratefully. " I cannot 
 say that you have made my mind easier, but 
 you have at least let me know exactly how 
 matters stand with Mr. Bursfield." 
 
 " I am glad to have been of service," said 
 the doctor. 
 
 James handed him an envelope containing 
 his fee, and escorted him to the door. When 
 he had seen him depart he returned to the 
 drawing-room and communicated his intelli- 
 gence to his sister. 
 
 " Poor Helen," said Alice, " it is no 
 wonder that she looks anxious. What 
 will you do now, Jim ? " 
 
 " I must take the night to think the
 
 254 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 matter over," he answered. u Since the 
 old man is undoubtedly mad, and not only 
 mad, but dangerously so, I cannot bear to 
 contemplate her remaining with him, and 
 yet I have no desire to hasten the crisis." 
 
 All the evening Jim brooded over the 
 matter, imagining all sorts of dangers for 
 the woman he loved. At last the time came 
 for them to retire to rest. He was in the 
 act of lighting Alice's candle in the hall, 
 when the sound of steps on the gravel path 
 outside attracted his attention. 
 
 " Good gracious ! " cried Jim, " who on 
 earth can it be at this time of the night ? " 
 
 So saying, he hastened to the door. The 
 lights from the hall shone on the steps, and 
 showed him Helen Decie, standing, bare- 
 headed, before him. For a moment the 
 shock at seeing her there at such an hour, 
 and in such a plight, deprived him of 
 speech. Alice was the first to break the 
 silence.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 255 
 
 " Helen, my dear girl," she cried, " what 
 does this mean ? " 
 
 Then Helen stepped into the hall, 
 and James closed the door behind her. 
 He had scarcely done so, before she 
 gave a little cry and fell to the floor 
 in a dead faint. Picking her up, Jim 
 carried her to the big settee in the 
 centre. 
 
 " My poor girl," he cried, " what has 
 he done to you ? " Then, turning to 
 Alice, he added, " What can have hap- 
 pened ? " 
 
 She did not answer him, but sped upstairs 
 to her bedroom, to presently return with a 
 bottle of smelling salts. Under their 
 restorative influence, consciousness very 
 soon returned, and Helen looked about her 
 in a dazed fashion, as if she could not realise 
 where she was. 
 
 " Do you feel well enough to tell what has 
 taken place, dear ? " Jim asked, when she had
 
 256 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 so far recovered as to be able to sit up. 
 " What has brought you here bareheaded at 
 this time of night ? " 
 
 " My grandfather has turned me out of 
 his house," she answered falteringly. 
 
 " Turned you out of the house ? " repeated 
 both Jim and Alice together. Then Alice 
 added : " Surely not ? He ought to be 
 turned out himself." 
 
 " You must not be angry with him," said 
 Helen. " I really don't think he knows 
 what he is doing." 
 
 " But this is an unheard-of thing," Jim 
 said angrily. " He must have taken leave 
 of his senses." 
 
 " He accused me of being in league with 
 you to poison him, and bade me come to an 
 instant decision as to whether I would give 
 you up or leave the house." 
 
 " And my noble girl refused to give me 
 up ? " said James, kissing her hand. 
 
 " HeJen acted nobly," said Alice. " Never
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 257 
 
 mind, dear, you know where your real 
 friends are, don't you ? " 
 
 " But whatever shall I do ? " the girl put 
 in. " He bade me leave the house and never 
 come back again." 
 
 " We will arrange all that to-morrow," 
 Jim replied. " For to-night, Alice will take 
 care of you. Do not worry, dear heart, all 
 will come right in the end." 
 
 Then he proceeded to inform her of Dr. 
 Weston's visit that afternoon, and of the 
 report that gentleman had given of the old 
 gentleman's mental condition. 
 
 " I cannot tell why," she said, " but I had 
 some sort of suspicion that he came for that 
 purpose. Poor grandfather, how sad it is to 
 think of his being like this. Since he does 
 not know what he is doing, we should not 
 be angry with him for acting as he did." 
 
 At this juncture Alice departed to make 
 arrangements for her friend's comfort for 
 the night. 
 
 8
 
 258 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " Oh, Jim dear, what do you think will 
 become of me ? " Helen asked. " Think for 
 me, for I cannot think for myself." 
 
 " I think I can hazard a very good guess 
 what your fate will be," said Jim. " To- 
 morrow morning I shall go up to London to 
 obtain a special license, and the day after 
 vou shall become mv wife."
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 UNEXPECTED as the events of the evening 
 had been, Jim Standerton, as he stood in his 
 bedroom before retiring to rest, could not 
 declare thai; he altogether regretted the turn 
 they had taken. On the morrow he would go 
 to London, and afterwards, armed with the 
 Law's authority, he would make Helen Decie 
 his wife without delay. From that moment 
 Mr. Bursfield might do his worst. Before 
 retiring to his room he had visited Terence, 
 and had received from him a positive assu- 
 rance that so far all was right for the night. 
 Knowing that he might trust the latter 
 implicitly, he had given him an account of 
 what had happened that evening. 
 
 s 2
 
 260 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " The sooner, sir, they put that old man 
 under lock and key the better it will be 
 for everybody," said Terence. " Let him 
 just come playing his little game round 
 here, and he'll have me on his track like a 
 Nyall blackfellow." 
 
 Half-an-hour later, Jim was in bed and 
 asleep, dreaming that he was back in the 
 Bush once more, and that he and Terence 
 were chasing wild horses through a mountain 
 range, and that, on the foremost horse, Helen 
 was seated, clinging to his mane, as if for 
 dear life. He was galloping after her as 
 fast as his horse could carry him, when 
 suddenly a hand clutched him by the throat, 
 and tried to lift him out of the saddle. 
 
 At that moment, however, he woke to find 
 that this was no dream, but the most horrible 
 reality he had ever known in his life. Bony 
 fingers were clutching tightly at his windpipe, 
 rendering it impossible for him to breathe. 
 He endeavoured to rise and to seize his
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 261 
 
 assailant, whoever he might be, and throw 
 him off. But his efforts were unavailing. 
 Still those talon-like fingers retained their 
 hold ; try as he would he could not weaken 
 their terrible grip. Little by little he felt 
 himself sinking. The room was in such 
 total darkness that it was impossible to 
 discover whom his antagonist might be. 
 In the last extremity of his agony he 
 rolled from the bed and lay helpless 
 upon the floor, entangled in the clothes. 
 With the fall, his assailant lost his grip of 
 his throat. Then something must have 
 startled him, for a moment later the door 
 opened, and he was gone. Disengaging 
 himself as quickly as possible from the 
 bed-clothes, Jim staggered to his feet, half 
 stunned by the fall and the terrific conflict 
 in which he had so lately been engaged. As 
 soon as he recovered he lit a candle, hastened 
 to the door, opened it and passed out into the 
 gallery. No one was to be seen there, but he
 
 262 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 had not gone many paces before he heard the 
 same clicking noise that had arrested his 
 attention on the first occasion of his seeing the 
 Black Dwarf. Making his way round the 
 gallery, he reached the room occupied by 
 Terence. The door stood ajar, and from the 
 noises that proceeded from within, he gathered 
 that his trusty servant was not only in bed, 
 but fast asleep. He crossed and shook him 
 by the shoulders. 
 
 " Get up, Terence," he whispered softly. 
 " Get up at once." 
 
 "What's the matter?" asked the half- 
 awakened man. " Why, it's you, sir. Is 
 there anything wrong ? " 
 
 " I should rather think so," Jim replied. 
 " Look at my throat and see if you can 
 detect any marks upon it." 
 
 The other held up the candle as he was 
 directed. On either side of his throat were 
 a number of bruises and scratches, and 
 some of the latter were bleeding profusely.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 263 
 
 " My gracious, sir ! " said Terence ; " it 
 looks as if somebody had been trying to 
 strangle you." 
 
 " You've hit it exactly," Jim replied. 
 " Good heavens ! Terence, I've been nearly 
 murdered. You've no idea what a fight 
 of it I've had in the dark. The man, who- 
 ever he was, finding that he couldn't finish 
 me, bolted, and has gone down some secret 
 passage in the gallery. Terence, we must 
 catch him somehow." 
 
 Terence sprang out of bed, and while he 
 was dressing, Jim hastened back to his room 
 and also donned some clothes. This done, he 
 returned to Terence's bedroom, to discover 
 that worthy in the act of lacing his boots. 
 
 " It's a funny business this, sir ! " Terence 
 remarked. " I wish I had been behind that 
 gentleman when he was trying to settle you. 
 I'd have given him one for his precious nob, 
 ghost or no ghost." 
 
 " I expect you would. Now be as quick
 
 264 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 as you can, for there is not a moment to lose 
 if we want to catch him." 
 
 Terence immediately announced himself 
 as ready $ and then, taking their candles, they 
 set off round the gallery towards the 
 corridor where Jim felt sure his myste- 
 rious assailant had disappeared. Inspection 
 showed them that the door of the stairs at 
 the further end, leading down to the 
 domestic offices, was securely fastened on 
 the other side. Having made sure of this, 
 they tried, as on a previous occasion, the 
 various rooms along the corridor, searching 
 each one most carefully. But no success 
 attended their efforts. 
 
 " It is quite certain that he is not in any 
 of these rooms," said Jim. " Now what we 
 have to do is to discover the entrance to 
 that secret passage. I shall not rest content 
 until we have found that." 
 
 They accordingly returned to the corridor, 
 where they set to work once more to over-
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 265 
 
 haul the wainscotting. Beginning at one 
 end, they worked to the other ; their efforts, 
 however, met with no more success than 
 they had done in the searching of the 
 rooms. Every panel of the wainscotting 
 seemed as hollow as its fellow each pro- 
 jection as firmly secured. 
 
 " And yet I am as certain that it is 
 somewhere about here that he disap- 
 peared," said Jim. 
 
 At the entrance to the corridor from the 
 gallery were two square pillars elaborately 
 carved with fruit. Jim had explored his 
 side, having pressed and pulled every pear 
 and apple, with the usual result. Suddenly 
 Terence touched him on the arm. 
 
 " Look here, sir," he whispered, " what's 
 this ? It seems to me that this grape is not 
 very firm." 
 
 Jim turned to him and knelt down beside 
 the bunch of fruit indicated. It certainly did 
 seem as if the lowest grape of the bunch
 
 266 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 were loose. It shook under his finger, and 
 yet showed no sign of coming off. 
 
 " I believe we've got it at last," he said, 
 pressing upon the grape, as he spoke, with all 
 his strength. Yet it did not move. He en- 
 deavoured to push it in the direction of the 
 gallery, but still it remained immovable. 
 He tried forcing it from him towards the 
 corridor, when to his amazement it left its 
 place and moved half an inch or so away. 
 As it did so there was a heavy creaking 
 noise, and a portion of the panelling of the 
 corridor, some three feet in width and six 
 feet high, swung inwards, disclosing a black 
 cavity, which might either have been a well 
 or a staircase. Both men drew back in 
 astonishment, half expecting that Jim's 
 assailant, if he were concealed within, would 
 dash out upon them. 
 
 " We've found the place at last," said 
 Jim. " Now, if I'm not mistaken, we shall 
 be able to solve the mystery of the famous
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 267 
 
 Childerbridge ghosts. Hold your candle 
 aloft, Terence, so that we can see what we 
 are doing, and we'll descend and discover 
 where it leads to." 
 
 u Let me go first, sir," Terence returned. 
 " After the fight you had upstairs, you may 
 not be up to the mark, and I'm dying to 
 have a turn with him, if he's as big as a 
 church." 
 
 But Jim would not hear of this, and bade 
 the other follow him. Holding their lights 
 aloft, they descended the narrow stone steps. 
 They were longer than they expected to 
 find them, and when they reached the bottom 
 Jim knew that they must be some distance 
 beneath the level of the foundations of the 
 house. They were then standing in a passage, 
 some four feet wide by seven in height. The 
 walls and ceiling were of brick, the floor 
 composed of huge blocks of stone. Every- 
 thing reeked with damp while the air was as 
 close and musty as a vault. Being resolved
 
 268 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 to leave no part of it unexplored, Jini pushed 
 on closely followed by Terence. For econ- 
 omy's sake they blew out one of the candles, 
 not knowing how far they might have to 
 travel, or what might happen to them by the 
 way. They had not been more than three 
 minutes in the passage before Jim stopped, 
 and turning to his companion, held up his 
 hand. 
 
 "What's up?" he asked. 
 
 A sound as of heavy blows upon stone 
 reached them from above. 
 
 " I can tell you what it is, sir," said 
 Terence, after a moment's reflection. " It's 
 the horses, and it means that we're under 
 the stables." 
 
 " In that case it must run the entire width 
 of the house and burrow under the court- 
 yard. It means also that the direction is 
 due east. This is growing interesting. Come 
 along." 
 
 After this discovery they pushed on with
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 269 
 
 increased speed, but the passage showed no 
 signs of coming to an end. The air was 
 close, but now and again draughts poured in 
 upon them to prove that though they could 
 not see them, there must be vent holes some- 
 where. 
 
 " I wouldn't have believed such a place 
 could have existed," said Jim. " It seems 
 as if we have come miles. By Jove, what's 
 that?" 
 
 As he spoke the light of his candle shone 
 upon a dark mass huddled upon the floor. 
 A second later it became apparent that it 
 was the figure of a man. 
 
 " Take care, sir," said Terence, as Jim 
 hastened towards the prostrate form, " it 
 may be the man we want, and he's as like as 
 not shamming." 
 
 " We'll soon find that out," answered 
 Jim, and knelt down beside the prostrate 
 figure. 
 
 While Terence held the candle, Jim rolled
 
 270 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 the figure over until they were able to see 
 the face. Then he uttered a cry of horror. 
 The man lying before them was none other 
 than Abraham Bursfield! 
 
 " Good heavens, this is too terrible," 
 said Jim, after the long pause which 
 followed, during which he had assured 
 himself that he had made no mistake as to 
 the other's identity. "Is he dead, do you 
 think, Terence ? " 
 
 " Quite dead, sir," Terence replied, after 
 he too had knelt down and examined him. 
 " If he's the man who tried to kill you, he'll 
 never do any more mischief to anybody 
 again." 
 
 But Jim did not answer. A sickening 
 feeling of giddiness was taking possession 
 of him. If it were Abraham Bursfield who 
 had done his best to murder him that night, 
 it was only logical to conclude that he was 
 also the man who had murdered his father. 
 Doctor Weston had declared him to be a
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 271 
 
 madman that afternoon. Now he had 
 certainly proved himself to be one of the 
 most dangerous type. If that were the case 
 what a narrow escape Helen had had. 
 
 " What's to be done, Terence ? what's 
 to be done ?" Jim asked almost piteously. 
 " We could not have made a more terrible 
 discovery. 
 
 " There'll have to be an Inquest, sir," said 
 Terence. 
 
 "When it will be found that he entered 
 my house and endeavoured to murder me. 
 Then it will be remembered how my 
 father died. Two and two will be put 
 together, and the terrible truth will come 
 out. That would break Miss Decie's heart." 
 
 " Good heavens ! sir, I see what you 
 mean," said Terence. " I never thought of 
 that." 
 
 "He was mad, Terence, hopelessly mad, 
 and therefore not responsible for his actions. 
 Poor Miss Decie ! "
 
 272 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 "Aye, poor young lady. If she was so 
 fond of the old gentleman, it would break 
 her heart to know what he has been trying 
 to do." 
 
 " She must never know," said Jim, who 
 by this time had made up his mind. " I can 
 trust you, Terence." 
 
 "To the death, sir, and I think you know 
 it. I've served you, sir, and I served your 
 father before you, and I don't think you 
 ever found me wanting. Tell me what you 
 think of doing." 
 
 " We must get him back to his own house, if 
 possible," said Jim, "and let him be found 
 dead there. No one but our two selves will 
 know the truth, and if we keep silence, no 
 one need ever know that we found him here. 
 I cannot let Miss Decie be made more 
 unhappy than she is." 
 
 "I don't know but that you are right, 
 sir," Terence answered. "But how are we 
 going to get him to the Dower House ? "
 
 The Child erbridge Mystery 273 
 
 "We must go along the passage and see 
 where it leads to. If I am not mistaken it 
 will take us there. This place must have 
 been made years ago, when the two properties 
 were one. We will leave the body here, and, 
 if I am right in my conjecture, we can come 
 back for it." 
 
 They accordingly allowed the remains of 
 Mr. Bursfield to lie where they had found 
 them, and proceeded on their tour of explora- 
 tion. As it transpired, they had still a con- 
 siderable distance to go before they reached 
 the end of the tunnel. At last, however, 
 they found themselves at the foot of a 
 flight of stone steps, similar to those by 
 which they had descended at the Manor 
 House. 
 
 " Tread very quietly," Jim whispered to his 
 companion. " We must on no account rouse 
 the servants." 
 
 They noiselessly ascended the stairs until 
 
 T
 
 274 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 they found themselves at the top, and 
 confronted by a door. 
 
 " I'll get you to stay here, Terence," Jim 
 whispered, " while I open this door and see 
 where we are." 
 
 He soon discovered what appeared to be 
 a spring in the middle of the door, and when 
 he had pressed it, had the satisfaction of 
 seeing the door swing inwards. Shading the 
 candle with his hand, Jim stepped into the 
 room he found before him. His surprise at 
 finding himself in Mr. Bursfield's study, 
 the same room in which he had his last 
 unpleasant interview with the old gentleman, 
 can be better imagined than described. 
 The secret door, he observed, formed 
 part of the panelling on one side of the fire- 
 place, a fragment of carving in the setting 
 of the chimney-piece being the means of 
 opening it. The old man's papers and books 
 were littered about the table just as he had 
 left them ; a grandfather clock ticked solemnly
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 275 
 
 in the further right-hand corner, while a 
 little mouse watched Jim from beneath 
 the sofa, as if it ^vere endeavouring to ascer- 
 tain his errand there at such an hour. 
 
 Having made sure of his whereabouts, 
 Jim returned to the passage, closing the 
 door carefully behind him. 
 
 "We must lose no time," he whispered 
 to Terence; "it is already a quarter to 
 three. Heaven grant that Isaac, his man- 
 servant, does not take it into his head to 
 look in upon his master during the night. 
 He would then find him absent, and that 
 would make it rather difficult to explain the 
 fact of his being found dead in his chair in 
 the morning." 
 
 By this time their first candle had expired, 
 and it became necessary to light that 
 Terence was carrying. 
 
 " If we are not very careful we shall be 
 compelled to make our way back in the 
 dark, after we have carried him up here," 
 
 T 2
 
 2j6 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 said Jim. " This candle will scarcely see 
 us through." 
 
 " Never mind that, sir, so long as we can 
 get him in here safely," said Terence. " I 
 have got a box of matches in my pocket, 
 and we can fumble our way back somehow." 
 
 They accordingly set off, and in due 
 course reached the place where they had 
 left the old man's body. 
 
 " How are we to carry him ? " asked 
 Jim. 
 
 " Oh, you leave that to me, sir. I can 
 manage it," answered Terence. " If you'll 
 go ahead with the light, I'll follow 
 you." 
 
 So saying, he picked up the frail body, 
 as if its weight were a matter of no concern 
 to him, and they set off on their return 
 journey to the Dower House. If the dis- 
 tance had appeared a long one before, it was 
 doubly so now. At last, however, they 
 reached the steps, climbed them, and a few
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 277 
 
 moments later were standing in the dead 
 man's study once more. In spite of his 
 assertions to the contrary, it was plain that 
 his exertions had taxed Terence's strength 
 to its utmost. Between them they placed 
 the body in the chair before the table. 
 
 This done, they left the room as quietly 
 as they had entered it, and made their way 
 down the steps once more. Jim's prophecy 
 that the return journey would have to be 
 made in darkness was fulfilled, for they had 
 scarcely reached the place where they had 
 discovered the body ere the candle fluttered 
 out and they found themselves in inky dark- 
 ness. 
 
 Terence struck a match, but its feeble 
 flicker was of little or no use to them. 
 Fumbling their way along by the wall they 
 continued to progress, until a muttered ex- 
 clamation from Terence, who was leading, 
 proclaimed the fact that they had reached 
 the steps at the further end.
 
 278 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 "Bad cess to 'em," said he, "I've 
 barked my shins so that I shall have good 
 cause to remember them to my dying 
 day." 
 
 He thereupon lit another match, and by 
 means of this modest illumination they 
 climbed to the door in the corridor 
 above. 
 
 " Heaven be thanked ! we're safe home 
 once more," said Jim, as they stepped into 
 the passage. " I trust I may never expe- 
 rience another night like this." 
 
 Whispering to Terence to follow him 
 quietly, he led the way round the gallery 
 and downstairs to the dining-room, where 
 he unlocked the Tantalus and poured out 
 a glass of spirits for Terence and another 
 for himself. Both stood in need of some 
 sort of stimulant after all they had been 
 through. 
 
 " Not a word must be breathed to any 
 living being of this, Terence," he said, as he
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 279 
 
 put his glass down. " Remember, I trust 
 my secret to you implicitly." 
 
 " I give you my word, sir, that nobody shall 
 ever hear it from me," answered Terence, 
 and then the two men solemnly shook 
 hands. 
 
 " Now, before we go to bed, I'll get you 
 to come to my room and have a look at 
 my throat," said Jim ; " it's uncommonly 
 sore." 
 
 This proved to be the case. And small 
 wonder was it, for the finger marks were 
 fast turning to bruises, while the scratches 
 showed up as fiery-red as ever. Jim 
 shuddered again and again as he recalled 
 that awful struggle and compared his escape 
 with his father's cruel fate. 
 
 "Another moment and in all probability 
 he would have done for me too," he said to 
 himself, and then added somewhat inconse- 
 quently, " Poor Helen ! " 
 
 When his wounds had been dressed, he
 
 28o The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 despatched Terence to bed ; for his own 
 part, however, he knew that sleep was im- 
 possible. In fact, he did not attempt to seek 
 it, but seating himself in a comfortable chair, 
 proceeded to read, with what attention he 
 could bestow upon the operation, until 
 daylight. 
 
 When the sun rose he dressed himself and 
 went out, wearing a scarf instead of a collar, 
 in order that the wounds he had received 
 might not be apparent to the world. The 
 memory of that hateful passage under the 
 park haunted him like an evil dream. He 
 determined to have it closed at once for 
 good and all. While he remained the 
 owner of Childerbridge no one should 
 ever set foot in it again. He was still 
 wondering how he could best carry out 
 the work without exciting suspicion or 
 comment, when he observed an old man 
 crossing the park towards him. As he 
 drew nearer, Jim became aware that it was
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 2 8 1 
 
 old Isaac, Mr. Bursfield's man-servant and 
 general factotum. It was also to be seen 
 that he was in a very agitated state. 
 
 " God have mercy upon us, sir ! " he said, 
 as he came up to Jim ; " I've had such 
 a fright. Is Miss Helen with you ? " 
 
 " She is," Jim replied, and then endea- 
 vouring to speak unconcernedly, he 
 added " Has Mr. Bursfield sent you to 
 find her ? " 
 
 " The poor gentleman will never send me 
 on another errand," Isaac replied solemnly ; 
 " he has been sent for himself. He is 
 dead ! "
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 " WHAT'S that you say ? " cried Jim, trying 
 to appear as if he were scarcely able to 
 believe that he heard aright. "Do you 
 mean to tell me that Mr. Bursfield is 
 dead ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," said the old man ; " when I 
 went into his study this morning to open 
 the shutters, I found him seated at his table 
 in the arm-chair stone dead. I ran up at 
 once to Miss Helen's room to tell her, 
 only to find that her bed had not been 
 slept in. Me and my wife searched the 
 house for her, but she is not to be found 
 anywhere. Oh, sir, what does it all 
 mean?"
 
 The Childerbrklge Mystery 283 
 
 " It means that Miss Decie came to my 
 house last night at about eleven o'clock. 
 Mr. Bursfield's condition was such that 
 she was afraid to remain in the house 
 with him any longer. You must have 
 noticed that he has been very strange of 
 late ? " 
 
 " The poor old gentleman has been ailing 
 for some days past," Isaac replied. " He 
 always was quick tempered, but for the last 
 month or so he doesn't seem to have been 
 able to control himself. Perhaps it isn't 
 right for a servant to say it, sir, but there 
 'ave been times lately when I 'ave been 
 afraid that his reason 'ave been a-failing 
 him. There was a time when he couldn't 
 make enough of Miss Helen, but lately he's 
 been scarce able to speak civil to her. It's 
 a sad thing, sir, a very sad thing, espe- 
 cially for a servant that's worked for 
 him true and faithful for nigh upon forty 
 years."
 
 284 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 " His fit of rage last night must have 
 hastened the end," said Jim. " The news 
 you bring will affect Miss Decie very 
 painfully. You had better go back and 
 send at once for the doctor; I will return 
 to the Manor House and tell Miss Decie." 
 
 "I humbly thank you for your kindness, 
 sir," the man replied. " I will do what you 
 say, and perhaps you will be kind enough 
 to come over later." 
 
 When he had extracted the other's promise 
 he hobbled off, and Jim returned to his own 
 house. He found Helen and Alice in the 
 hall, standing before the great fireplace in 
 earnest conversation. He bade them as 
 cheery a good morning as was possible 
 under the circumstances, and when he had 
 done so his sister enquired why his throat 
 was wrapped up so closely. 
 
 " It's a trifle sore this morning," Jim 
 replied, with some truth. " That's all. It 
 will be all right very soon."
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 285 
 
 He then suggested that they should go 
 in to breakfast. He had determined to 
 break the news of Mr. Bursfield's death to 
 Helen after the meal. This he did with great 
 gentleness. The shock, however, was a 
 severe one, nevertheless, but she did her 
 best to meet it bravely. 
 
 " Poor old grandfather," she said 
 after a while, " I always feared that his 
 death would come like this. Oh how 
 sorry I am that he should have died 
 believing that I had ceased to love him." 
 
 " He could not have done that," Jim 
 replied. " In his inmost heart he must have 
 known that your affection was one that 
 could never change." 
 
 She shook her head, however. 
 
 "Will you take me to him?" she en- 
 quired, and Jim, feeling that it would not 
 be wise not to do so, consented to go with 
 her to the Dower House. Side by side they 
 crossed the park by the path they had come
 
 286 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 to know so well, entered the house by the little 
 postern door, and were met in the hall by the 
 village doctor whom Isaac had summoned. 
 
 " My dear Miss Decie," he said as they 
 shook hands, " will you accept my heartfelt 
 sympathy for you in your trouble. I fear 
 it must have been a terrible shock." 
 
 " It has affected me more than I can say," 
 she answered. "I had no idea, though I was 
 aware that his heart was in a very weak 
 state, that the end was so near." 
 
 " One thing I can tell you if it will make 
 you any happier," said the doctor, " and 
 that is, that I am certain his end was a 
 peaceful and painless one." 
 
 Thanking the doctor for his sympathy, 
 Helen left the room and went upstairs to the 
 dead man's bedroom. Jim and the doctor 
 went into the study. 
 
 "I suppose it will be necessary to hold 
 an Inquest," said Jim, when they were alone 
 together.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 287 
 
 " I am very much afraid so," the doctor 
 replied. " But it will be quite a formal 
 affair. There are two circumstances, how- 
 ever, Mr. Standerton, about the affair, that 
 I must confess puzzle me more than a 
 little." 
 
 Jim felt himself turning cold. Had he 
 left anything undone, or had he made any 
 mistake ? 
 
 " What are those two circumstances ? " he 
 enquired. 
 
 " Well, in the first place," said the doctor, 
 " the old gentleman seldom went outside the 
 house, not once a month at most, and only 
 then on fine days. Yesterday, his man- 
 servant tells me, he did not stir beyond 
 the study door. Isaac is certain that he 
 was wearing his carpet slippers at dinner 
 time, and also when he looked in upon him 
 before retiring, yet when he was found this 
 morning he was wearing boots." 
 
 " That is most curious, certainlv," said 
 
 / / 7
 
 288 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 Jim, " but I must confess I fail to see any- 
 thing remarkable in it." 
 
 " Not perhaps in the fact of his wearing 
 the boots," said the medical gentleman, "but 
 there is another point which, taken in con- 
 junction with it, makes one pause to think. 
 On the first finger of the right hand I found 
 that the nail had been recently broken, and 
 in a painful fashion. What is more, the 
 second and third fingers had smears of blood 
 upon them. Now with the exception of the 
 nail to which I have alluded and which did 
 not bleed, he had not a trace of a wound 
 on either finger. That I am quite certain 
 of, for I searched diligently. Moreover, 
 there is not a trace of blood upon the table 
 at which he was seated. And there is one 
 thing stranger still." 
 
 " What is that ? " 
 
 " As vou are aware, it commenced to rain 
 
 \j * 
 
 at a late hour last night. Unfortunately I 
 know it, for the reason that I was com-
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 289 
 
 pelled to be out in it. The roads were 
 plastered with mud. Now though Mr. 
 Bursfield, for some reason of his own, 
 had put on his boots, he could not have 
 ventured outside, for there is not a speck 
 of mud upon them. In that case, why the 
 boots, and where did the blood come 
 from?" 
 
 " You are perfectly sure that he died of 
 heart disease ? " 
 
 " As sure as I can be of anything," said 
 the doctor. "Nevertheless, it's altogether 
 a mysterious affair." 
 
 This also proved to be the opinion of the 
 Coroner's Jury, and as there was no one 
 forthcoming to clear it up, a mystery it was 
 likely to remain for all time. Had the Coroner 
 and his Jury, however, known the history of 
 the bruises under the thick bandage which the 
 young Squire of Childerbridge wore round his 
 throat, they would have been enlightened. 
 
 As nobody was able to account for any- 
 
 u
 
 290 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 thing save the doctor, however, a verdict of 
 " Death from Natural Causes " was returned, 
 and three days later, Abraham Bursfield was 
 laid to rest with his forefathers in the little 
 churchyard, scarcely fifty paces away from the 
 grave of the man who had fallen by his hands. 
 " Jim," said Alice on the evening of the 
 funeral, when they had brought Helen back 
 to the Manor House, "I have a proposal 
 to make to you. I am going to suggest 
 that I should take Helen away for a few 
 weeks to the seaside. The anxieties and 
 sorrow of the past two months have been 
 too much for her. 1 can see that she stands 
 in need of a thorough change. If you have 
 no objection to raise, I thought we could start 
 to-morrow morning. We shall be away a 
 month, and by that time she should be quite 
 restored to health." 
 
 " And pray what am I going to do with 
 myself while you are away ? " he asked. 
 " I gather you mean when you say that you
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 291 
 
 are both going away that I am not to ac- 
 company you ?" 
 
 " No ; all things considered, I think it 
 would be better not," said Alice. "But if 
 you are very good you shall come down to 
 us for two or three days during the month. 
 Then if Helen agrees, and I have no doubt 
 you will be able to induce her to do 
 so, you could obtain a Special License, and 
 be quietly married at the end of that time." 
 
 Jim, who regarded it quite possible that 
 the marriage might be postponed for some 
 time, clutched eagerly at the straw of hope 
 held out to him, and willingly agreed to her 
 suggestion. 
 
 "And now one other matter, Alice," he 
 said. "I, on my side, have a proposal 
 to make. Whether you will prove as com- 
 plaisant as I have done is another matter." 
 
 " What is your proposal ? " 
 
 " It can be resolved into one word," he 
 answered, " That word is Mudrapilla."
 
 292 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 He heard her catch her breath, and then 
 she looked pleadingly at him. 
 
 " Jim," she whispered, " Oh Jim, dear, 
 you don't mean it, do you ? " 
 
 " If you and Helen will accompany me, I 
 do," he answered. " Terence I am quite sure 
 will not object. Will you agree, my sister ? " 
 
 The answer she vouchsafed might have 
 meant anything or nothing. It was : 
 
 " Only to think of seeing dear old Mudra- 
 pilla again ! " 
 
 So it was settled. Helen and Alice de- 
 parted next day to a tiny seaside place in 
 Devonshire, where Jim was under orders 
 to join them for three days at the week end 
 once during their stay. As soon as they 
 were gone, he in his turn set off for London. 
 His first act on reaching the City, and when 
 he had deposited his bag at the hotel, was 
 to drive to the office of the Estate Agent 
 with whom his father had negotiated the 
 purchase of Childerbridge. That portly,
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 293 
 
 suave gentleman received him with the 
 respect due to a man worth half a million 
 of money, and the owner of such a palatial 
 mansion and estate. 
 
 " But, my dear sir," he began, when he 
 had heard what James had to say, "you 
 surely don't mean to say that you are 
 desirous of selling Childerbridge. You 
 have only been there a few months." 
 
 " I am most anxious to be rid of the 
 place as soon as possible," Jim replied. 
 " As you may suppose it has the most 
 painful recollections for me. Besides I am 
 thinking of returning to Australia almost 
 immediately, and scarcely know when I shall 
 visit England again." 
 
 " In that case I must do the best I can 
 for you," said the other. " At the same 
 time I feel that I should warn you that the 
 Estate Market is not in a very flourishing 
 condition at present, and that a large 
 number of properties that have been
 
 294 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 placed upon the market have not sold 
 nearly as well as they should have done." 
 
 " I must take my chance of not getting 
 its value," said Jim. " Find me a pur- 
 chaser and I don't think he will be able to 
 complain that I have not met him fairly." 
 
 The agent promised to do his best, and 
 for the next fortnight Jim amused himself 
 in a lazy fashion travelling about England, 
 purchasing a variety of stock for his 
 Australian stations, and longing for the time 
 to come when he should be at liberty to 
 present himself in Devonshire. At last, 
 however, the day arrived. It was morning 
 when he left London, it was evening when 
 he reached his destination. It was winter 
 when he left Waterloo, dull, dismal and foggy; 
 when he reached Devonshire it was, in his 
 eyes at least, perpetual summer. Both 
 Helen and Alice were at the railway station 
 to greet him, and immediately he saw them 
 he realised the fact that a change for the
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 295 
 
 better had taken place in his sweetheart. . 
 The old colour had come back to her 
 cheeks, the old sparkle was in her eyes. 
 She greeted him very lovingly, but if 
 possible a little shyly. There were such 
 lots of news to hear, and still more to be 
 told, that it seemed as if they would never 
 have done talking. 
 
 The village had proved itself a delightful 
 little place. It was far from the track ot 
 the tripper, and had not then been spoilt 
 by the wealthy tourist. High cliffs hemmed 
 it in on either side, and the sea broke upon 
 the beach of shingles. They returned to 
 their lodgings for tea, a charming thatched 
 cottage, within a stone's throw of the 
 primitive little jetty, beside which the fisher 
 boats were moored. Afterwards the lovers 
 went for a walk upon the cliffs. 
 
 " Helen, my darling," said Jim, " I can 
 scarcely realise that it is only a fortnight 
 since I saw you. It seems as if years had
 
 296 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 passed. You can have no idea how happy 
 it makes me to see you looking like your 
 own dear self once more." 
 
 " I could not help being well here," she 
 answered. " Besides, Alice has been so 
 good and kind to me. I should be un- 
 grateful indeed were I to show no im- 
 provement." 
 
 But Jim had not brought his sweetheart 
 out on the cliff to discuss his sister's good 
 qualities. 
 
 " Helen," he said at last, " is it possible for 
 you to be my wife in a fortnight's time ?" 
 
 He took her little hand in his and looked 
 into her eyes. The veriest tyro might have 
 seen that the young man was terribly in 
 earnest. 
 
 " It might be possible," she said softly, 
 but without looking at him. " Are you 
 quite sure you do wish it ?" 
 
 " If you talk like that I shall go back to 
 London to-night," he answered. " You know
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 297 
 
 very well that to make you my wife has 
 been my ambition ever since I first saw you." 
 
 And then he went on to tell her of his 
 dreams, winding up with this question " I 
 wonder whether you will like Australia ? " 
 
 " I shall like any place where you may 
 be," she replied. 
 
 Could any young woman say more to her 
 lover than that ? At any rate Jim appeared 
 to be satisfied. 
 
 On the Monday following he returned to 
 London to learn from the agent that a 
 probable, though unexpected, purchaser had 
 been found for Childerbridge. He proved 
 to be a wealthy American, who was not only 
 prepared to take over the estate at a valua- 
 tion, but also to purchase the furniture and 
 effects as they stood. 
 
 On the day following the receipt of 
 this news, Jim travelled down with the 
 would-be buyer, conducted him over the 
 property, and was in a position to assure
 
 298 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 himself, when the other had departed, 
 that Childerbridge would be very soon off 
 his hands. To the agent's horror the matter 
 was conducted on both sides with unusual 
 promptness, and in consequence, when, a 
 fortnight later, Jim stepped into the Devon- 
 shire train with a special marriage license in 
 his pocket, the sale was as good as effected. 
 
 The wedding was solemnised next day in 
 the quaint little village church, and excited 
 no comment from the humble fisher folk. 
 The only persons present were the bride and 
 bridegroom, Alice, and the family lawyer, 
 who had travelled down from London 
 expressly to give the bride away. Then, no 
 impediment being offered, James Standerton, 
 bachelor, took to himself for wife Helen 
 Decie, spinster. The worthy old gentleman 
 pocketed his fee with a smiling face, con- 
 gratulated both parties, and then hurried off 
 to another parish to bury a fisherman who had 
 been drowned in the bay a few days before.
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 299 
 
 An hour later Jim and Helen started for 
 Exeter, en route for Scotland, while Alice 
 accompanied the lawyer, whose wife's guest 
 she was to be, to London, to wait there until 
 her brother and sister-in-law should return 
 from the north. 
 
 Four years have elapsed since that terrible 
 night when Abraham Bursfield was found 
 dead in the secret passage leading from 
 Childerbridge Manor House to the Dower 
 House in the corner of the Park. Those 
 four years have certainly worked wondroua 
 changes in at least four lives. One short 
 sketch must serve to illustrate this fact, and 
 to bring my story to a conclusion. The 
 scene is no longer laid in England but on a 
 rough Bush track on a very hot Australian 
 afternoon. A tall good-looking- man is 
 jogging contentedly along, apparently oblivi- 
 ous to all that goes on around him. It is
 
 300 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 easily seen that he and his horse are on the 
 very best terms with each other. He passes 
 the Pelican Lake, descends into the hollow 
 of what was perhaps a continuation of the 
 same lake, and on gaining the summit of the 
 next rise finds himself looking upon what, 
 at first glance, would appear to be a small 
 village. This village is the station of 
 Mudrapilla, and the giant gums which can 
 just be discerned some five miles or so to 
 the right, indicate the spot where on a 
 certain eventful evening, James Standerton 
 first came face to face with Richard 
 Murbridge. This same James Standerton, 
 for it is he w r ho is the rider of the horse, 
 increases his pace as soon as the station 
 itself comes into view. He passes the men's 
 quarters, the store, the blacksmith's shop, 
 and finally approaches a long and extremely 
 comfortable looking one-storied residence, 
 whose broad verandahs are confronted by 
 orange groves on the one side, and the brave
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 301 
 
 old river on the other. As he rides up one 
 of the overseers emerges from the barracks, 
 and hastens forward to greet his employer, 
 and to take his horse from him. That over- 
 seer is no less a person than our old 
 friend, Terence O'Riley, looking just the 
 same as ever. Jim gives him a few direc- 
 tions concerning the sheep in the Mountain 
 Paddock, which he has visited that after- 
 noon, and then dismounts and strolls on 
 through the gates, and up the garden path 
 towards the house. In the broad verandah 
 a lady is seated in a long comfortable chair, 
 and playing beside her on the floor is a 
 chubby urchin upwards of two years of age. 
 Helen, for as may be supposed, it is none 
 other than she, rises on hearing her 
 husband's step on the path, and catching up 
 the infant brings him forward to greet his 
 father with a kiss. 
 
 " I didn't expect you for half-an-hour at 
 east, dear," she says, when she in her turn
 
 302 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 has kissed him. " The boy and I have been 
 patiently awaiting your arrival. Did you 
 meet the mail ? " 
 
 " I did," he answered, " and I opened 
 the bag upon the road. There are 
 two letters for you, one I see is from 
 Alice." 
 
 " And you ? " she asks, as she takes the 
 letters from him. 
 
 " Well, I had one of some importance," 
 he replied. " It is from Fairlight my 
 old solicitor in England, you remember 
 him and what do you think he tells 
 me?" 
 
 Helen, very naturally, could not guess. 
 
 " Well, he says that Childerbridge Manor 
 was burnt down by fire three months ago 
 and totally destroyed. The American, the 
 owner, is going to rebuild it at once on a 
 scale of unparalleled magnificence." 
 
 There was a pause for a few moments, 
 then Helen said :
 
 The Childerbridge Mystery 303 
 
 " What do you think about it, Jim ? " 
 
 " All things considered I am not sorry," 
 he answered. " Yet, perhaps, I should not 
 say that, for it brought me the greatest 
 blessing a man can have." 
 
 " And that blessing ? ' ' she asked inno- 
 cently. 
 
 " Is a good wife," he answered, stooping 
 to kiss her. After which he disappeared 
 into the house. 
 
 " And pray what does Alice say ? " he 
 asked, when he returned a few minutes 
 later. 
 
 " She gives us such good news," Helen 
 replied. " She and Jack will spend Christ- 
 mas with us. She declares she is the 
 happiest woman in the world. Jack is a 
 paragon." 
 
 In case the reader should fail to under- 
 stand who Jack is, I might remark that he 
 is no less a person than Jack Riddington, 
 the overseer, mentioned at the commence-
 
 304 The Childerbridge Mystery 
 
 ment of my story, and who was supposed to 
 be Jim's best friend. Alice, after they were 
 engaged, admitted that she had always 
 entertained a liking for him, while it was 
 well known that he had always been head 
 over ears in love with her. During Jim's 
 absence in England he had come into a large 
 sum of money, had purchased a station one 
 hundred and fifty miles south of Gunda- 
 wurra, had married Alice within six months 
 of her return, and was now living a life of 
 undoubted felicity. 
 
 " They may be happy," said Helen, " but 
 they can never be as happy as we are. That 
 is quite certain, husband mine." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 WERTHEUIEK, LEA & Co., Printers, 46 & 47, London Wall, and 
 Clifton House, Worship Street, E.C.
 
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