twenty-four hours of the old miser's death it had already transpired
that he had indeed left a considerable fortune, which included one or
two substantial life insurances, and that the provisions of his will
were very much as Philip Ashley and his friends had surmised. After
sundry legacies to various charitable institutions concerned with the
care of children, Thornton Ashley had left the residue of his
personalty to whichever of his sons was first married within a year
from the time of the testator's death, the other son receiving an
annuity of three hundred pounds. This clearly was aimed at Philip,
as poor misshapen Charles had always been thought to be out of the
running. Moreover, a further clause in the will directed that in the
event of both the testator's sons being still unmarried within that
given time, then the whole of the residue was to go to Charles, with
an annuity of one hundred pounds to Philip and a sum of ten thousand
pounds for the endowment of an orphan asylum at the discretion of the
Charity Organisation Society.
"There were a few conjectures as to whether Charles Ashley, who, by
his brother's impending marriage, would be left with a paltry three
hundred pounds a year, would contest his father's will on the grounds
of _non compos mentis_, but, as you know, it is always very difficult
in this country to upset a will, and the provisions of this
particular one were so entirely in accord with the wishes expressed
by the deceased on every possible occasion, that the plea that he was
of unsound mind when he made it would never have been upheld, quite
apart from the fact that Mr. Oldwall, who drew up the will and signed
it as one of the witnesses, would have repudiated any suggestion that
his client was anything but absolutely sane at the time.
"Everything then appeared quite smooth and above board when suddenly,
like a bolt from the blue, came the demand from the Insurance Company
in which the late Mr. Thornton Ashley had a life policy for forty
thousand pounds for a _post-mortem_ examination, the company not
being satisfied that the deceased had died a natural death.
Naturally, Dr. Percy Jutt, who had signed the death certificate, was
furious, but he was overruled by the demands of the Insurance
Company, backed by no less a person than Charles Ashley. Indeed, it
soon transpired that it was in consequence of certain statements made
by Mr. Triscott, a local solicitor, on behalf of Charles Ashley to
the general manager of the company, that the latter took action in
the matter.
"Philip Ashley, through his solicitor, Mr. Oldwall, and backed by Dr.
Jutt, might perhaps have opposed the proceedings, but quite apart
from the fact that opposition from that quarter would have been
impolitic, it probably also would have been unsuccessful. Anyway,
the sensation-mongers had quite a titbit to offer to the public that
afternoon; the evening papers came out before midday with flaring
headlines: 'The mystery miser of Maida Vale.' Also, 'Sensational
developments,' and 'Sinister Rumours.'
"By four o'clock in the afternoon some of the papers had it that a
_post-mortem_ examination of the body of the late Mr. Thornton Ashley
had been conducted by Dr. Dawson, the divisional surgeon, and that it
had revealed the fact that the old miser had not died a natural
death, traces of violence having been discovered on the body. It was
understood that the police were already in possession of certain
facts and that the coroner of the district would hold an inquest on
Thursday, the thirtieth, the very day on which the funeral was to
have taken place."
§3
"Now I have attended many an inquest in my day," the Old Man in the
Corner continued after a brief pause, during which his claw-like
fingers worked away with feverish energy at his bit of string, "but
seldom have I been present at a more interesting one. There were so
many surprises, such an unexpected turn of events, that one was kept
on tenterhooks the whole time as to what would happen next.
"Even to those who were in the know, the witnesses in themselves were
a surprise. Of course, every one knew Mr. Oldwall, the solicitor and
life-long friend of old Thornton Ashley, and the divisional surgeon,
whose evidence would be interesting; then there was poor Charles
Ashley and his handsome brother, Philip, now the owner of a
magnificent fortune, whose romantic history had more than once been
paragraphed in the Press. But what in the world had Mr. Triscott, a
local lawyer whom nobody knew, and Mrs. Trapp, a slatternly old
'char,' to do with the case? And there was also Dr. Percy Jutt, who
had not come out of the case with flying professional colours, and
who must have cursed the day when he undertook the position of _locum
tenens_ for Dr. Fanshawe-Bigg.
"The proceedings began with the sensational evidence of Dr. Dawson,
the divisional surgeon, who had conducted the _post-mortem_. He
stated that the deceased had been in an advanced state of uræmia, but
this had not actually been the cause of death. Death was due to
heart failure, caused by fright and shock, following on violent
aggression and an attempt at strangulation. There were marks round
the throat, and evidences of a severe blow having been dealt on the
face and cranium causing concussion. In the patient's weak state of
health, shock and fright had affected the heart's action with fatal
results.
"All the while that the divisional surgeon gave evidence, going into
technical details which the layman could not understand, Dr. Percy
Jutt had obvious difficulty to control himself. He had a fidgety,
nervous way with him and was constantly biting his nails. When he,
in his turn, entered the witness-box, he was as white as a sheet and
tried to hide his nervousness behind a dictatorial, blustering
manner. In answer to the coroner, he explained that he had been
acting as _locum tenens_ for Dr. Fanshawe-Bigg, who was away on his
holiday. He had visited the deceased once or twice during the past
fortnight, and had last seen him on the Thursday preceding his death.
Dr. Fanshawe-Bigg had left him a few notes on the case.
"'I found,' he went on to explain, 'the deceased in an advanced stage
of uræmia, and there was very little that I could do, more especially
as I was made to understand that my visits were not particularly
wanted. On the Thursday, deceased was in a very drowsy state, this
being one of the best-known symptoms of the disease, and I didn't
think that he could live much longer. I told Mr. Charles Ashley so;
at the same time, I did not think that the end would come quite so
soon. However, I was not particularly surprised when on the Monday
morning I received a visit from Mr. Charles Ashley who told me that
his father was dead. I found him very difficult to understand,' Dr.
Jutt continued, in reply to a question from the coroner, 'emotion
had, I thought, addled his speech a little. He may have tried to
tell me something in connection with his father's death, but I was so
rushed with work that morning, and, as I say, I was fully prepared
for the event, that all I could do was to promise to come round some
time during the day, and, in the meanwhile, in order to facilitate
arrangements for the funeral, I gave the necessary certificate. I
was entirely within my rights,' he concluded, with somewhat
aggressive emphasis, 'and, as far as I can recollect, Mr. Charles
Ashley said nothing that in any way led me to think that there was
anything wrong.'
"Mr. Oldwall, the solicitor, was the next witness called, and his
testimony was unimportant to the main issue. He had drafted the late
Mr. Thornton Ashley's will in 1919, and had last seen him alive
before starting on a short holiday some time in June. Deceased had
just heard then of his son's engagement and witness thought him
looking wonderfully better and brighter than he had been for a long
time.
"'Mr. Ashley,' the coroner asked, 'didn't say anything to you then
about any alteration to his will?'
"'Most emphatically, no!' the witness replied.
"'Or at any time?'
"'At no time,' Mr. Oldwall asserted.
"These questions put by the coroner in quick succession had,
figuratively speaking, made every one sit up. Up to now the general
public had not been greatly interested, one had made up one's mind
that the old miser had kept certain sums of money, after the fashion
of his kind, underneath his mattress; that some evil-doer had got
wind of this and entered the flat when no one was about, giving poor
Thornton Ashley a fright that had cost him his life.
"But with this reference to some possible alteration in the will the
case at once appeared more interesting. Suddenly one felt on the
alert, excitement was in the air, and when the next witness, a
middle-aged, dapper little man, wearing spectacles, a grey suit and
white spats, stood up to answer questions put to him by the coroner,
a suppressed gasp of anticipatory delight went round the circle of
spectators.
"The witness gave his name as James Triscott, solicitor, of Warwick
Avenue. He said that he had known the deceased slightly, having seen
him on business in connection with the lease of 73, Malvine Mansions,
the landlord being a client of his. On the previous Friday, that is,
the twenty-fourth, witness received a note written in a crabbed hand
and signed, 'A. Thornton Ashley,' asking him to call at Malvine
Mansions any time during the day. This Mr. Triscott did that same
afternoon. The door was opened by Mr. Charles Ashley whom he had
also met once or twice before, who showed him into the room where the
deceased lay in bed, obviously very ill, but perfectly conscious and
reasonable.
"'After some preliminary talk,' the witness went on, 'the deceased
explained to me that he was troubled in his mind about a will which
he had made some four years previously, and which had struck him of
late as being both harsh and unjust. He desired to make a new will,
revoking the previous one. I naturally told him that I was entirely
at his service, and he then dictated his wishes to me. I made notes
and promised to have the will ready for his signature by Monday. The
thought of this delay annoyed him considerably, and he pressed me
hard to have everything ready for him by the next day.
Unfortunately, I couldn't do that. I was obliged to go off into the
country that evening on business for another client, and couldn't
possibly be back before midday Saturday, when my clerk and typist
would both be gone. All I could do was to promise faithfully to call
again on Monday at eleven o'clock with the will quite ready for
signature. I said I would bring my clerk with me, who could then
sign as a witness.
"'I quite saw the urgency of the business,' Mr. Triscott went on in
his brisk, rather consequential way, 'as the poor old gentleman
certainly looked very ill. Before I left he asked me to let him at
least have a copy of my notes before I went away this evening. This
I was able to promise him. I got my clerk to copy the notes and to
take them round to the flat later on in the day.'
"I can assure you," the Old Man in the Corner said, "that while that
dapper little man was talking, you might have heard the proverbial
pin drop amongst the public. You see, this was the first that any
one had ever heard of any alteration in old Ashley's will, and Mr.
Triscott's evidence opened up a vista of exciting situations that was
positively dazzling. When he ceased speaking, you might almost have
heard the sensation-mongers licking their chops like a lot of cats
after a first bite at a succulent meal; glances were exchanged, but
not a word spoken, and presently a sigh of eagerness went round when
the coroner put the question which every one had been anticipating:
"'Have you got the notes, Mr. Triscott, which you took from the late
Mr. Thornton Ashley's dictation?'
"At which suggestion Mr. Oldwall jumped up, objecting that such
evidence was inadmissible. There was some legal argument between him
and the coroner, during which Mr. Triscott, still standing in the
witness-box, beamed at his colleague and at the public generally
through his spectacles. In the end the jury decided the point by
insisting on having the notes read out to them.
"Briefly, by the provisions of the new will, which was destined never
to be signed, the miser left his entire fortune, with the exception
of the same trifling legacies and of an annuity of a thousand pounds
a year to Philip, to his son Charles absolutely, in grateful
recognition for years of unflagging devotion to an eccentric and
crabbed invalid. Mr. Triscott explained that on the Monday morning
he had the document quite ready by eleven o'clock, and that he walked
round with it to Malvine Mansions, accompanied by his clerk. Great
was his distress when he was met at the door by Charles Ashley, who
told him that old Mr. Thornton Ashley was dead.
"That was the substance of Mr. Triscott's evidence, and I can assure
you that even I was surprised at the turn which events had taken.
You know what the sensation-mongers are; within an hour of the
completion of Mr. Triscott's evidence, it was all over London that
Mr. Philip Ashley had murdered his father in order to prevent his
signing a will that would deprive him--Philip--of a fortune. That is
the way of the world," the funny creature added with a cynical smile.
"Philip's popularity went down like a sail when the wind suddenly
drops, and in a moment public sympathy was all on the side of
Charles, who had been done out of a fortune by a grasping and
unscrupulous brother.
"But there was more to come.
"The next witness called was Mrs. Triscott, the wife of the dapper
little solicitor, and her presence here in connection with the death
of old Thornton Ashley seemed as surprising at first as that of her
husband had been. She looked a hard, rather common, but capable
woman, and after she had replied to the coroner's preliminary
questions, she plunged into her story in a quiet, self-assured
manner. She began by explaining that she was a trained nurse, but
had given up her profession since her marriage. Now and again,
however, either in an emergency or to oblige a friend, she had taken
care of a patient.
"'On Friday evening last,' she continued, 'Mr. Triscott, who was just
going off into the country on business, said to me that he had a
client in the neighbourhood who was very ill, and about whom, for
certain reasons, he felt rather anxious. He went on to say that he
was chiefly sorry for the son, a delicate man, who was sadly
deformed. Would I, like a good Samaritan, go and look after the sick
man during the weekend? It seems that the doctor had ordered
absolute rest, and Mr. Triscott feared that there might be some
trouble with another son because, as a matter of fact, the old man
had decided to alter his will.
"'I knew nothing about Mr. Thornton Ashley's family affairs,' the
witness said, in reply to a question put to her by the coroner, and
calmly ignoring the sensation which her statement was causing,
'beyond what I have just told you that Mr. Triscott said to me, but I
agreed to go to Malvine Mansions and see if I could be of any use. I
arrived at the flat on Friday evening and saw at once what the
invalid was suffering from. I had nursed cases of uræmia before, and
I could see that the poor old man had not many more days to live.
Still I did not think that the end was imminent. Mr. Charles Ashley,
who had welcomed me most effusively, looked to need careful nursing
almost as much as his father did. He told me that he had not slept
for three nights, so I just packed him off to bed and spent the night
in an armchair in the patient's room.
"'The next morning Mr. Philip Ashley arrived and I was told of the
arrangement whereby Mr. Charles got a week-end holiday once a
fortnight. I welcomed the idea for his sake, and as he seemed very
anxious about his father, and remembering what my husband had told
me, I promised that I would stay on in the flat until his return on
the Monday. Thus only was I able to persuade him to go off on his
much-needed holiday. Directly he had gone, however, I thought it my
duty to explain to Mr. Philip Ashley that really his father was very
ill. He was only conscious intermittently and that in such cases the
only thing that could be done was to keep the patient absolutely
quiet. It was the only way, I added, to prolong life and to ensure a
painless and peaceful death.
"'Mr. Philip Ashley,' the witness continued, 'appeared more annoyed
than distressed, when I told him this, and asked me by whose
authority I was here, keeping him out of his father's room, and so
on. He also asked me several peremptory questions as to who had
visited his father lately, and when I told him that I was the wife of
a well-known solicitor in the neighbourhood, he looked for a moment
as if he would give way to a violent fit of rage. However, I suppose
he thought better of it, and presently I took him into the patient's
room, who was asleep just then, begging him on no account to disturb
the sufferer.
"'After he had seen his father, Mr. Ashley appeared more ready to
admit that I was acting for the best. However, he asked me--rather
rudely, I thought, considering that the patient was nothing to me and
I was not getting paid for my services--how long I proposed staying
in the flat. I told him that I would wait here until his brother's
return, which I was afraid would not be before ten o'clock on Monday
morning. Whereupon he picked up his hat, gave me a curt good-day,
and walked out of the flat.
"'To my astonishment,' the witness now said amidst literally
breathless silence on the part of the spectators, 'it had only just
gone eight on the Monday morning, when Mr. Philip Ashley turned up
once more. I must say that I was rather pleased to see him. I was
expecting Mr. Triscott home and had a lot to do in my own house. The
patient, who had rallied wonderfully the last two days, had just gone
off into a comfortable sleep, and as I knew that Mr. Charles would be
back soon, I felt quite justified in going off duty and leaving Mr.
Philip in charge, with strict injunctions that he was on no account
to disturb the patient. If he woke, he might be given a little
barley-water first and then some beef-tea, all of which I had
prepared and put ready. My intention was directly I got home to
telephone to Dr. Jutt and ask him to look in at Malvine Mansions some
time during the morning. Unfortunately, when I got home I had such a
lot to do, that, frankly, I forgot to telephone to the doctor, and
before the morning was over Mr. Triscott had come home with the news
that old Mr. Thornton Ashley was dead.'
"This," the Old Man in the Corner continued, "was the gist of Mrs.
Triscott's evidence at that memorable inquest. Of course, there were
some dramatic incidents during the course of her examination; glances
exchanged between Philip Ashley and Mr. Oldwall, and between him and
the dapper little Mr. Triscott. The latter, I must tell you, still
beamed on everybody; he looked inordinately proud of his capable,
business-like wife, and very pleased with the prominence which he had
attained through this mysterious and intricate case.
§4
"The luncheon interval gave us all a respite from the tension that
had kept our nerves strung up all morning. I don't think that Philip
Ashley, for one, ate much lunch that day. I noticed, by the way,
that he and Mr. Oldwall went off together, whilst Mr. and Mrs.
Triscott took kindly charge of poor Charles. I caught sight of the
three of them subsequently in a blameless teashop. Charles was
indeed a pathetic picture to look upon; he looked the sort of man who
lives on his nerves, with no flesh on his poor, misshapen bones, and
a hungry, craving expression in his eyes, as in those of an under-fed
dog.
"We had his evidence directly after luncheon. But, as a matter of
fact, he had not much to say. He had last seen his father alive on
the Saturday morning when he went off on his fortnightly week-end
holiday. He had bicycled to Dorking and spent his time there at the
Running Footman, as he had often done before. He was well known in
the place. On Monday morning he made an early start and got to
Malvine Mansions soon after ten and let himself into the flat with
his latch-key. He expected to find his brother or Mrs. Triscott
there, but there was no one. He then went into his father's room,
and at first thought that the old man was only asleep. The blinds
were down and the room very dark. He drew up the blind and went back
to his father's bedside. Then only did he realise that the old man
was dead. Though he was very ignorant in such matters, he thought
that there was something strange about the dead man, and he tried to
explain this to Dr. Jutt. But the latter seemed too busy to attend
to him, so when Mr. Triscott came to call later on, he told him of
this strange feeling that troubled him. Mr. Triscott then thought
that as Dr. Jutt seemed so indifferent about the matter, it might be
best to see the police.
"'But this,' Charles Ashley explained, 'I refused to do, and then Mr.
Triscott asked me if I knew whether my dear father had any life
insurances, and if so, in what company. I was able to satisfy him on
that point, as I had heard him speak with Mr. Oldwall about a life
policy he had in the Empire of India Life Insurance Company. Mr.
Triscott then told me to leave the matter to him, which I was only
too glad to do.'
"Witness was asked if he knew anything of his father's intentions
with regard to altering his will, and to this he gave an emphatic
'No!' He explained that he had taken a note from his father to Mr.
Triscott on the Friday and that he had seen Mr. Triscott when the
latter called at the flat that afternoon, but when the coroner asked
him whether he knew what passed between his father and the lawyer on
that occasion, he again gave an emphatic 'No!'
"He had accepted gratefully Mr. Triscott's suggestion that Mrs.
Triscott should come over for the weekend to take charge of the
invalid; but he declared that this arrangement was in no way a
reflection upon his brother. On the whole, then, Charles Ashley made
a favourable impression upon the public and jury for his clear and
straightforward evidence. The only time when he hesitated--and did
so very obviously--was when the coroner asked him whether he knew of
any recent disagreement between his father and his brother Philip, a
disagreement which might have led to Mr. Thornton Ashley's decision
to alter his will. Charles Ashley did hesitate at this point, and,
though he was hard-pressed by the coroner, he only gave ambiguous
replies, and when he had completed his evidence, he left one under
the impression that he might have said something if he would, and
that but for his many afflictions the coroner would probably have
pressed him much harder.
"This impression was confirmed by the evidence of the next witness, a
Mrs. Trapp, who had been the daily 'char' at Malvine Mansions. She
began by explaining to the coroner that she had done the work at the
flat for the past two years. At first she used to come every morning
for a couple of hours with the exception of Sundays, but for the last
two months or so she came on the Sundays, but stayed away on the
Mondays; on Wednesdays she stayed the whole day, until about six, as
Mr. Charles always did a lot of shopping those afternoons.
"Asked whether she remembered what happened at the flat on the
Wednesday preceding Mr. Thornton Ashley's death, she said that she
did remember quite well Mr. Philip Ashley called; he did do that
sometimes on a Wednesday, when his brother was out. He stayed about
an hour and, in Mrs. Trapp's picturesque language, he and his father
'carried on awful!'
"'I couldn't 'ear what they said,' Mrs. Trapp explained, with eager
volubility, 'but I could 'ear the ole gentleman screaming. I 'ad
'eard 'im storm like that at Mr. Philip once before--about a month
ago. But Lor' bless you, Mr. Philip 'e didn't seem to care, and on
Wednesday, when I let 'im out of the flat 'e just looked quite
cheerful like. But the ole gentleman 'e was angry. I 'ad to give
'im a nip o' brandy, 'e was sort o' shaken after Mr. Philip went.'