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Page 42
"Nothing. The room remains as it has been for many years."
"Kindly describe exactly where Captain May was found. Perhaps Mr.
Lennox will imitate his posture, if he remembers it?"
"Remember it! I shall never forget it," said Henry. "I first saw
him from below. He was looking out of the open window and kneeling
here on this seat."
"Let us open the window then."
The situation and attitude of the dead on discovery were imitated,
and Hardcastle examined the spot. Then he himself occupied the
position and looked out.
"I will ask for a ladder presently, and examine the face of the
wall. Ivy, I see. Ivy has told me some very interesting secrets
before to-day, Sir Walter."
"I dare say it has."
"If you will remind me at luncheon, I can tell you a truly amazing
story about ivy--a story of life and death. A man could easily
go and come by this window."
"Not easily I think," said Henry. "It is rather more than
thirty-five feet to the ground."
"How do you know that?"
"The police, who made the original inquiry and were stopped, as you
will remember, from Scotland Yard, measured it the second morning
afterwards--on Monday."
"But they did not examine the face of the wall?"
"I think not. They dropped a measure from the window."
The other pursued his examination of the room. "Old furniture,"
he said; "very old evidently."
"It was collected in Spain by my grandfather many years ago."
"Valuable, no doubt?"
"I understand so."
"Wonderful carving. And this door?"
"It is not a door, but a cupboard in the solid wall."
Sir Walter opened the receptacle as he spoke. The cupboard--some
six and a half feet high--was empty. At the back of it appeared
a row of pegs for clothes.
"I can finish with the room for the present at any rate, in an hour,
gentlemen," said Hardcastle. "I'll spend the time here till
luncheon. Had your son-in-law any interest in old furniture, Sir
Walter?"
"None whatever to my knowledge. He was interested, poor fellow,
not in the contents, but in the evil reputation of the room. Its
bad name dated back far beyond the occupation of my family.
Captain May laughed at my mistrust, and, as you know, he came here,
contrary to my express wishes, in order that he might chaff me next
morning over my superstition. He wanted 'to clear its character,'
as he said."
Hardcastle was turning over the stack of old oil-paintings in
tarnished frames.
"Family portraits?"
"Yes."
"You mistrusted the room yourself, Sir Walter?"
"After Nurse Forrester's death I did. Not before. But while
attaching no importance myself to the tradition, I respected it."
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