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Page 39
Chadlands saw a small, fair man with scanty hair, a clean-shaven
face, a rather feminine cast of features, a broad forehead,
slate-grey eyes, and a narrow, lipless mouth which revealed very
fine white teeth when he spoke. It was a colorless face and
challenged no attention; but it was a face that served as an
excellent canvas, and few professional actors had ever surpassed
Peter in the art of making up their features.
Similarly he could disguise his voice, the natural tones of which
were low, monotonous, and of no arrestive quality. Mr. Hardcastle
surprised Sir Walter by his commonplace appearance and seeming
youth, for he looked ten years younger than the forty he had lived.
A being so undistinguished rather disappointed his elder, for the
master of Chadlands had imagined that any man of such wide
celebrity must offer superficial marks of greatness.
But here was one so insignificant and so undersized that it seemed
impossible to imagine him a famous Englishman. His very voice, in
its level, matter-of-fact tones, added to the suggestion of
mediocrity.
Sir Walter found, however, that the detective did not undervalue
himself. He was not arrogant, but revealed decision and immense
will power. From the first he imposed his personality, and made
people forget the accidents of his physical constitution. He
said very little during breakfast, but listened with attention to
the conversation.
He observed that Henry Lennox spoke seldom, but studied him
unobtrusively, as a man concerning whom he specially desired to
know more. Hardcastle proved himself well educated; indeed,
his reading, studiously pursued, and his intellectual attainments,
developed by hard work and ambition, far exceeded those of any
present.
The clergyman returned to his own ground, and expressed his former
opinions, to which Hardcastle listened without a shadow of the
secret surprise they awoke in him.
"The Witchcraft Act assumes that there can be no possible
communication between living men and spirits," he said in answer
to an assertion; whereon Septimus May instantly took up the
challenge.
"A fatuous, archaic assumption, and long since destroyed by actual,
human experience," he replied. "It is time such blasphemous folly
should be banished from the Statute Book. I say 'blasphemous'
because such an Act takes no cognizance of the Word of God.
Outworn Acts of Parliament are responsible for a great deal of
needless misery in this world, and it is high time these ordinances
of another generation were sent to the dust heap."
"In that last opinion I heartily agree with you," declared the
detective.
Henry ventured a quotation. He was much interested to learn
whether Hardcastle had any views on the ghost theory.
"Goethe says that matter cannot exist without spirit, or spirit
without matter. Would you sub-scribe to that, Mr. Hardcastle?"
"Partially. Matter can exist without spirit, which you may prove
by getting under an avalanche; but I do most emphatically agree
that spirit cannot exist without matter. 'Divorced from matter,
where is life?' asks Tyndall, and nobody can answer him."
"You misunderstand Goethe," declared Mr. May. "In metaphysics--"
"I have no use for metaphysics. Believe me, the solemn humbug of
metaphysics doesn't take in a policeman for a moment. Juggling
with words never advanced the world's welfare or helped the cause
of truth. What, for any practical purpose, does it matter how
subjectively true a statement may be if it is objectively false?
Life is just as real as I am myself--no more and no less--and
all the metaphysical jargon in the world won't prevent my shins
from bleeding wet, red blood when I bark them against a stone."
"You don't believe in the supernatural then?" asked Mr. May.
"Most emphatically not."
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