II
Here is the case of the bond robbery as it had been presented to MartinHewitt that morning, while I was at St. Augustine's Hospital, and as Ilearned it from him later. I had been a little puzzled to hear Hewittsay that the case had seemed so desperately hopeless that he advised thecalling in of the police, because my experience had rather been that itwas Hewitt who was commonly called in--often too late--when the policewere beaten, and I had never before heard of a case in which this orderof things was reversed. It turned out, however, as will be seen, that inthe state of the matter as it first presented itself the only measuresthat seemed possible were such as it was in the power of the policealone to adopt.
Messrs. Kingsley, Bell, and Dalton were an old-established firm ofbrokers whose operations were not enormous nor much in the eye of thepublic, but who carried on a steady and reputable business in a set ofoffices high up in a great building in Broad Street--a building solarge that the notice "Offices to let" was a permanent fixture in thefront porch. The firm's clients were chiefly steady-going investors ofthe old-fashioned sort, who wished to avoid all speculative fireworks,and to deal through a firm whose habits were conformable to their own.The last Kingsley had left the firm and soon afterward died, some fewyears back, and now the head of the firm was Mr. Robert Stanstead Bell,a gentleman of some sixty years of age. There were a couple of sleepingpartners--relations--but the one other active partner was Mr. ClarenceDalton, a young man but recently advanced to partnership, and, it wassaid, likely to become Mr. Bell's son-in-law whenever the oldgentleman's daughter Lilian should be married.
The steady, even round of business to which Kingsley, Bell, and Dalton,and their clerks were accustomed was suddenly interrupted by anappalling loss. It was discovered that bonds were missing from the safe,bonds to the amount of some L25,000; and whence, how, or when they weretaken was an utter mystery. It was this loss which had occasioned theurgent message to Hewitt.
When Hewitt reached the spot he was shown at once into an inner office,where Mr. Bell sat waiting. The old gentleman was in a sad state ofagitation, and it was with some difficulty that Hewitt got from him areasonably connected account of the trouble.
"The loss comes at such a time, Mr. Hewitt," the senior partnerexplained, "that I don't know but it may ruin us utterly, unless myclients' property can be recovered. We have had to pay out heavy sums oflate to the representatives of dead or retiring partners, and othercircumstances combine with these to make the matter in this way evenmore terribly serious than the very large amount of the loss would seemto suggest. So I beg you will do what you can."
"That of course," responded Hewitt. "But please tell me, as clearly asyou can, the precise circumstances of the case. Where were the bondstaken from?"
"This safe," Mr. Bell answered, turning toward a very large and heavyone, which might almost have been called a small strong room. "They werekept, together with others, in this box, one of several, as you see. Thebox was fastened, like the rest, with a Tripp's patent lever padlock,the only key of which I kept, together with the key of the safe."
The box indicated was one of ordinary thin sheet iron, japannedblack--something like what is called a deed box.
"The padlock has been broken open, I see," Hewitt observed.
"Yes, but I did that myself this morning. It had been blocked up in someway, so that the key wouldn't turn--doubtless in order to cause delaywhen next the box should come to be opened. As it was I might havedesisted and put off opening it till later, but I had a reason forwishing to refer at once to a list which was in the box, and so Idecided to break the padlock. It was more difficult than one mightexpect, with such a small padlock."
"And then you discovered your loss?"
"Then I discovered the loss, Mr. Hewitt, though it was a mere chanceeven then. For see! All the bonds have not been taken, and those leftare placed on the top, while the space below is filled with dummies. Ihardly know why I turned them over--for the list was at the top--but Idid, and then----" Mr. Bell finished with a despairing gesture.
"And this was some time this morning?"
"At about half-past eleven."
"And when did you last open the box before that?"
"Ten days ago at least, I should think--and even then the bonds may havebeen gone, for I only opened it to refer to the same list, and Iexamined nothing else."
"You say that some bonds are left and others are gone. I presume thosetaken are such as would be easy to negotiate, and those left are such aswould be difficult. Is that the fact?"
"Precisely."
"Then the thief evidently knows the ropes, and altogether the matterwould seem awkward. For anything short of ten days, you see, and quitepossibly for even a longer time than that, these bonds have been in theundisturbed possession of some person who could easily dispose of them,and would certainly do so without a moment's delay."
Mr. Bell nodded sadly. "Quite true," he said.
"But now tell me a little more. You say you yourself keep the only keyof the padlock, as well as the key of the safe. So that you open thesafe every morning yourself and close it at night?"
"Just so."
"And do you never entrust the keys to anybody else?"
"The key of the safe is on a separate bunch from the key of the box.This second bunch, with the key of the box, is _always_ in my pocket,and not a soul else ever touches it. The other bunch, with the outerkey of the safe, I sometimes hand to my partner, or to the head clerk,Mr. Foster, if something is wanted from the safe when I am busy. Though,as a rule, the safe door is open so long as I am about the place.Nothing but the books can be taken out without the use of other keys forthe drawers and boxes, which I keep on the private bunch."
"And would it be possible for anybody--anybody at all, mind--to get atthat private bunch of keys in such a way, for instance, as to be able totake a wax impression of the key of that bond-box?"
"No, certainly not," Mr. Bell answered with decision. "Certainly not. Atany rate, not in this office," he added.
"Ah, not in this office. Anywhere else?"
"No, nor anywhere else, I should think," the other replied, though thistime a little more thoughtfully. "There's only my own family at home andthe servants and----"
"Anybody who has access to this room of the office?" Hewitt askedkeenly.
Mr. Bell seemed a little startled.
"Why, no," he said, "nobody at home comes to the office--not even avisitor, except, of course, my junior partner, who visits the roompretty frequently."
"Very well. You don't remember ever mislaying the keys temporarily, Isuppose, either here or at home?"
"No-o," Mr. Bell replied slowly. "I can't say that I do rememberanything of the sort. No--and I believe I should be sure to remember ifI had."
"Ah! And when you realised your loss what did you do? Told your partnerfirst, I suppose?"
"No--he doesn't know of the discovery. He went out just before I madeit, and I don't expect him in again to-day." But as Mr. Bell spoke theregrew plain in his face the pallor of a new fear.
Martin Hewitt observed it, but kept his thoughts to himself. "Well," hesaid, "you didn't tell your partner. Nor the police?"
"No, Mr. Hewitt. You see, of course, the first thing the police attemptis to catch and punish the thief, and they make the recovery of theproperty a subsidiary object. But for me, Mr. Hewitt, the recovery ofthe property, as I have explained, is the one great consideration.Punish the thief by all means, but first save me from ruin, Mr. Hewitt!That is why I sent for you; for that, and because I thought it might beadvisable to keep the matter quiet, till you had taken some steps."
"There is something in that consideration, certainly. So you have toldnobody of the loss, except me?"
"Nobody but Foster, my head clerk--an old and faithful servant. It washe, in fact, who suggested sending for you. As he put it very forcibly,you can act for _me_ and my interests, while the police act forthemselves, and--very properly, of course, as police--in the interest ofthe co
mmunity."
"Very well. I see you have several clerks in the outer office. Do theyever come into this room?"
"Never, unless they are sent for."
"If you and your partner were out, and one of the clerks came in_without_ being sent for, the rest would know it, of course?"
"Certainly."
"I observe three private rooms opening out of this. What are they?"
"This is a sort of extra inner room where I have private interviews withclients--I was in there with a client for half an hour this morningbefore I discovered the loss. The next is a mere little box of a roomwhere the correspondence clerk sits and works. The other is a largerplace--it is shared between my partner, Mr. Clarence Dalton, and thehead clerk, Mr. Foster."
"Now let me have your broken padlock--and the key. I see you have forcedup the front plate with a screw-driver. I will borrow thatscrew-driver, if you please, and force it off completely."
Hewitt's client produced a screw-driver from a drawer, and in a very fewmoments the interior of the little padlock lay uncovered. Hewittexamined the lock attentively for some few minutes, trying the keyseveral times against the levers. Then he stood up and said--
"Mr. Bell, you have made a mistake. This is not your lock at all!"
"Not my lock!" exclaimed the broker. "What do you mean? I tell you it isthe lock of that box, and I broke it open myself!"
"Yes," answered Hewitt calmly, "it was on that box, and you broke itopen yourself; but all the same it is not your lock. Let me explain.These are very good little padlocks, with an excellent lever action,'dogged against detent,' as the technical phrase goes; so that only thekey properly made for each lock will open it. They are so good, indeed,as locks, that it would be a waste of time to try picking them, when,because of their small size, it is so very easy to break them apart,just as you have done yourself, and just as I could probably have donein half the time, having had rather more experience. Now that is whathas been done with _your_ lock by the person who has your bonds. But ofcourse a broken lock has one disadvantage as compared with a skilfullypicked lock--it shows at the first glance what has happened. In thiscase, Mr. Bell, _your_ lock has been broken and taken away, and thethief, having first provided himself with another padlock of preciselythe same make and size, has substituted _that_, locked it with itsproper key and so left it!"
"What! Then that was why----"
"That, of course, was why you supposed it to be out of order when youattempted to open it with _your_ key. As a matter of fact, it is evennow in perfectly good order, except for the damage we have jointlycommitted with the screw-driver. And now, observe! That lock was shut byanother key; if the man that did that is as sharp as I suppose he is, hewill have got rid of that key at once. But perhaps he hasn't; and ifnot, then the man who has that key is the thief. At any rate, the key isthe clue we must hunt for. Let us have your clerks in one by one, andlook at their keys. Some are out at lunch by this time, probably?"
"No--I said they might be wanted, so kept them. I thought you mightprefer to see them before they went out."
"Very well thought of, but perhaps scarcely judicious, on the whole.Because if there _is_ a guilty person among them it may give him ahint; and the odds are rather against its being very useful, consideringthe possibility--even probability--that the bonds and the collateralevidence left here days ago. But we'll look at their keys, by all means,and then they may go to lunch as soon as you please. Let me do thetalking, or perhaps you'll start a scare. Send for the nearest clerksfirst, then the others. As each comes in, mention his name, so that Ican hear it. Say, 'Oh, Mr. Brown'--or Jones, or what not--'have you somekeys about you?' Don't mention my name, and I will do the rest. Push tothe door of the safe, and lock this drawer in the table."
Mr. Bell did as Hewitt directed, and then called the head clerk, Mr.Foster, from his room, with the prescribed inquiry about keys.
"Yes, Mr. Foster," Hewitt added pleasantly, "I'm not sure that the lockis quite in order, but I promised to open it for Mr. Bell, so we'lltry."
Mr. Foster, a slim, active old gentleman, grown grey in the firm'sservice, pulled a bunch of keys from his pocket, and Hewitt scrutinisedeach narrowly. "No," he said, "I'm afraid none of these will do. Stay,"he added suddenly, and turning his back, carried the bunch to thewindow. "No," he concluded, as he came back to the table and tried oneof the keys fruitlessly. "No, I'm afraid none of those will do. Thankyou, Mr. Foster. You don't happen to have any more, do you?"
No, Mr. Foster hadn't any more, and he retired to his room. Then Mr.Bell called the correspondence clerk, Mr. Henning. Mr. Henning was amuch younger man than the head clerk--twenty-six or so--pale andblue-eyed, with weak whiskers and a straggling moustache. His keys werejust as readily produced as Mr. Foster's, but again Hewitt's examinationwas unsuccessful. The only other key he had belonged to the typewriter,and _that_ did not fit.
Then came Mr. Potter, the book-keeper, round, and tubby, and puffy, andhis keys went under inspection in the same way, taking a little longerthis time, with two separate dashes to the light of the window. Thenthere was Mr. Robson, young and spruce, Mr. Clancy, older and less tidy,and four or five more. All the keys were examined, all with the samelack of success, and all the clerks were sent away to take their turnsat lunch.
"No," Hewitt reported, as soon as he and Mr. Bell were alone again, "itwas certainly none of those keys. Though indeed, my little attempt wasdesperate at best. A man would be a fool to keep _that_ key longer thanhe needed it, and especially to string it with his others. Still, ofcourse, it is by just such blunders as that that nine criminals out often are discovered. And now let me take a good look at that box and itscontents."
He lifted the box from the safe to the table, and narrowly scrutinisedits exterior, especially about the hasp, where the padlock had been."Either the thief was an experienced hand," he said, "or he took somesteady practice with a few such padlocks as this before setting to work.There are no signs of banging about or slipping of tools anywhere."
"But, of course, banging or anything violent would have been noticed ina place like this," Mr. Bell remarked.
"In office hours, yes," responded Hewitt. "But we mustn't forget thatoffice hours are only seven or eight out of the twenty-four."
"But you don't suspect burglary, do you?"
"I'm afraid, as yet, I've precious little ground for suspecting anythingdefinite," Hewitt answered; "but we must keep awake to everypossibility. Now let us see the dummies." He turned them over, andloosened them wherever they were tied. "Yes," he remarked, "quite neatlydone. Filled in with ordinary blank foolscap, such as, no doubt, youhave in your office--but, then, it is in every other office, too; everystationer has it by the ream. No marks anywhere--no old newspapers,nothing that could give the shadow of a clue." He dropped the last ofthe papers, and turned to his client. "Mr. Bell," he said, "this thinghas been thought out to the last inch. There is something like genius inthis robbery--if genius is the capacity for taking pains. My advice toyou is to call in the Scotland Yard people at once."
"Do you mean you can do nothing?" asked Mr. Bell despairingly. "Don'ttell me that, Mr. Hewitt!"
"No, I don't mean that," Hewitt answered. "I mean that until I have hadtime to think the thing over very thoroughly I can't tell what I can orought to do. Meantime, I think the police should know; not because Ithink they can see farther into the thing than I can--for, indeed, Idon't think they can; but simply because the thief is getting a longerstart every moment, and the police are armed with powers that are not atmy disposal. They can get search warrants, stop people at ports andrailway stations, arrest suspects--do a score of things that will benecessary. Send to Scotland Yard and get Detective Inspector Plummer, ifhe's available--he's as good a man as they have. Tell him that you'veengaged me, or, better still, write a note to the Scotland Yardauthorities, and let me have it, to send or not as I think best, after Ihave turned the thing over in my mind. I shall take one good look roundthis office, and then run back to my rooms for
an hour or two's hardconsideration of whatever I may see. One or two small things I _have_seen already--though I'd rather not mention them till I've made up mymind how they bear. Matters seem likely to have gone so far that perhapsthe regular police course of catching the thief first will be the bestplan, if it can be done. Meantime, it will be my business to keep my eyefirst on the recovery of the bonds. But I think we must have the police,Mr. Bell. Now, I'll take my general look round."