Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1922-04-09
The Secret of the FlameCo Dress-By William LeQueuz

him a perfectly fictitious story of how
the police were on the track Of two
men who were well known in Lon
don. and who were known to have
arrived in York by car at midday fol-
lowing the night of the crime. The
man in the garage of the hotel where
they stopped saw, to his surprise, a
lady's evening cloak in the car, but
there was no lady. The man who
drove was young, and the passenger
was a short, stout man of fifty-five
or so, who wore monocle. The lat
ter called next day upon a lady living
in York, and then they left, the chauf-
feur telling the people at the garage
that they were going on to Carlisle.
This story. of course, appeared next
day in dozens of newspapers all over
the Kingdom. 1t effectively disguised
the lines upon which we were work
ing and at the same time put the real
culprit off the scent.
1t was, however. matter of bitter
disappointment to us all that Mrs.
Charlesworth could not identify the
girl who had worn the missing emer-
aid. The story Of the young married
woman. Perry, seemed to be a thin
and unreliable one.
Days went on. The inquest was re-
sumed. but no further evidence was
offered by the county constabulary,
and. the affair being a mystery, the
jury returned the only verdict it could
that Of willful murder against some
person or persons unknown.
All that remained to mark the poor
girls life was that fresh-made little
mound in the graveyard of the old
Norman church. so typical of a remote
and peaceful English village.
Who was she? What had she been?
Nobody knew, and, apparently, no.
body cared.
Weeks passed. I made many in
quiries in London and elsewhere con-
corning Edward Baynes and his wife,
Of whom every one spoke in the high
est terms. The only fact that was
shadowy was the mans career before
he rented Ravenscroft Hall. But
many men who make money pur-
posely conceal the fact that they have
been in trade when they rent a coun-
try place and try to wriggle into
county society, that silly ring of too
frequently hard-up nobodies, who are
dull, effete lot at heart, but who
put on airs and graces only equaled
by those of the wife of the village
parson.
Try how I would. could not dis
miss that very direct statement of the
young woman Perry. She identified
the victim most positively. She had
seen her in company with a young
man in breeches. but the man she
could not describe in detail. He was
a guest at Ravenscroft Hall. that was
all she knew.
MY inclination was to call upon the
AA woman's late employer. the local
doctor. but upon reflection hesitated.
Personally. I never trust any one who
is interested in the third party's
payments The doctor was the medi-
cal man at Ravenscroft, and had been
so to the various tenants for twenty
years. He and his wife were asked
to dinner and bridge on occasions.
and to all the garden parties and such
functions which person of Mr..
Baynes' means would, of course, give.
thought it all over, and came to
tho conclusion that the doctor could
never, in justice to his patient. allow
anything to leak from his lips. True,
he had told his wife of certain things
of "carryings-on at the hall-and
the parlormaid had overheard the con-
versation across the table. This was
not news to Mrs. Perry, for. on again
questioning her about a week later.
L discovered that a niece of hers had
been employed as kitchenmaid at the
hall. This girl had told her OF the
mad and merry parties that were con-
stantly given.
did your niece tell you whether
there was dancing?" I asked the
young woman.
"Oh. yes sir! At the house parties
they dance every night"
1t suddenly struck me that If this
were so the unknown girl might have
danced at Ravenscroft and then
started out in a car toward London
and that she had not come from Lon
don. as Hayes had suggested.
1 suppose 1t was fully two months
after the discovery of the crime, the
whole problem having been relegated
to the limbo Of dead and dried events
that stood in the Bath Club and was
introduced by a certain Capt Henley
a cosmopolitan, like myself. to Mr..
Edward Baynes. an Introduction
which, needless to say, I had engi-
neered.
He had read my books. he said. and
added:
my wife will be SO interested to
hear that I've met you She always
reads your books
II shall be delighted to meet her
personally ono day." 1 said, not with
out a purpose.
My remark acted just as intended
that it should act. for 1 received and
accepted an invitation to lunch at
Curzon street on the following Thurs.
day.
said nothing of all this to Hayes
preferred to keep my own counsel
Tho police had been compelled to
abandon the supposed clue of the two
motorists who had arrived at York
At the same time I had contriyed to
start another newspaper theory which
I hoped would reassure the assassin
namely. that the murderer was known
a dangerous homicidal maniac who
had escaped from a private asylum
and who had been recaptured and
after examination returned to his
place of retreat. The public. reading
this. could not blame the police for
leck of either intelligence or dill
gence.
called upon Hayes the day after
had made the appointment with
Edward Baynes and without telling
him Of my intention asked whether
he had discovered anything further.