The Old Man in the Corner

her (of the London Mail) to cut up rough ab

of manlike ill-temper which, after all said and done,

kie-that is Mr. Richard Frobisher-at two o'clock sharp outside the Palace Theatre, because

Strand, inside an A.B.C. shop, sipping cold coffee opposit

f for a matter of that? The man in the corner had begun to talk of that mysterious death

rly, for she was looking forwa

no remark all the time that the young girl was munching her scone and butter. She was just busy thinking h

me a description of the man who sat next to you just n

at man had certainly sat at the next table to hers, when she first sat down to her coffee and scone: he had finished his luncheon-what

old man, but shrugged her shoulders, and

man in the corner, seemingly not the least disconcerted by the yo

don't see that my description of one of the customer

in search of the inevitable piece of string. When he had found this necessary "adjunct to t

should give an accurate description of a man who sat nex

that he was of

nine, or ten?" he

or two?" rejoined Polly cross

t?" he inqu

ir nor dark

is nose like? Wil

His nose was fairly

g peculiarity-he was neither short nor tall-his nose was n

d; "he was just o

a number of other men who were 'neither tall nor sh

certainly not striking enough

l personage with the clear Saxon features, the fine blue eyes, the noble brow and classic face, but the ordinary person-the person who represents ninety out of every hundred of his own kind-the average Englishman, say, of the middle classes, who is neither very tall nor

ne doubles; worse still, to swear his life away, if he happened to be implicated in

derstand how one of the greatest scoundrels unhung is still at large

ce the benefit of my own views upon the matter. You see, though I admire the brute for

End' is often deserted, and the good old Metropolitan Railway carriages cannot at any time be said to be overcrowded. Anyway,

behind for him, and opening the door of one of the first-class compartments, he noticed a lady sitting in the further corner, w

you for, lad

uched her arm lightly and looked into her face. In his own poetic language, he was 'struck all of a 'eap.' In the

summoned a couple of porters, and sent one of them off to the

inspector and two police constables, accompanied by a detective in plain clothes and a medical officer, appeared upon the scene, and stood

icide on the Underground Railway,' had already an account of the extraordinary event. The medical officer

y distorted her features. She was very elegantly dressed, and the more frivolous papers were able to gi

satchel, which the police opened, with a view to the possible identification of the deceased, but which was found to contain only a li

lady's person, nor in the appearance of the railway carriage, was there the slightest sign of struggle or even of resistance. Only the look in the poor woman's eyes spoke of sudden terror, of the ra

of course, not a soul had been able to identify her, or to throw

or mislaid a relative or a friend. At about 8.30 p.m. a young man, very well dressed, drove up to the station in a hansom, and sent

opy of the St. James's Gazette, which contained the fatal news. He said very little to the su

per. The description of the deceased lady, though vague, had terribly alarmed him. He had jumped into

the grief of the young man was truly pitiable. In the woman lying there

nly endeavoured to add another knot on the scrappy bit of string with which he was continually playing, "and I fear that the whole story s

ition to make any coherent statement. It was at the coroner's inquest on the following day that certain facts came to light, which for the time b

e stood before the coroner and tried to throw what light he could upon the mystery. He was well dressed, as he had been the day befo

to enjoy the best of health till lately, when she had had a slight attack of influenza, in which Dr. Arthur Jones had attended her. The doctor was present at this moment, and wo

the point he wanted, namely, Mrs. Hazeldene's mental condition lately. Mr. Hazeldene seemed loath to talk

eem quite herself. She used to be very gay and bright, and lately I often saw her in the evening

nsisted, and suggest

ble-she certainly had seemed listless and troubled lately-but only at times-and yesterday morning, when I went to business, she appeared quite herself again, and I

e intended to go when she got

own to Bond Street to do her shopping. Then, again, she sometimes goes to a shop in St. Paul

ourself had noticed? Did there exist any financial difficulty which might have preyed upon Mrs. Hazeldene's mind; was there any friend-to whose intercourse with Mrs. Hazeldene-you-er-at any time took exception? In fact,' added the coroner, as if

here present to be labouring under some terrible moral doubt. He looked very pale and

f any sort. My wife had an independent fortu

t any time objected to

d to,' stammered the unfortunate young

here plainly realized that Mr. Hazeldene was telling a lie. It was pretty plain to the meanest intelligence that the unfortunate lady had not fallen into a state of morbi

her in a last very slight illness, and who had seen her in a professional capacity fairly recently, declared most emphatically that Mrs. Hazeldene suffered from no organic complaint which could possibly have been the cause of sudden death. Moreover, he had assisted Mr. Andrew Thornton, the district

Jones, that the deceased died

pinion,' repli

nd in her satchel co

ed some at one t

lady caused her own death b

how the drug was administered we cannot say. By injection of some sort, certainly.

s case almost immediately; say within a couple of minutes, or perhaps three. It was quite possible that the body would no

conducted the postmortem. Mrs. Hazeldene had died suddenly from an injection of prussic acid, administered no one knew how or when. She had been travelling in a first-class railway carriage in a busy time of

t that moment, I am wrong; there were three persons, who fully understood at once the gravi

mself. "I guessed then and there in a moment where the police were going wrong, and where they would go on going wrong until the mys

-the other two were, firstly, the detective who had originally examined the railway carria

, and this was done through the humble channel of Emma Funnel, Mrs. Hazeldene's maid, who, as far a

rful. She went out at about half-past three, and told me she was going to Spence's, in St. Paul's Churchyard, to try on

the coroner casually.

t to explain. Mr. Errington w

ved in a flat in the Albert Mansions. He very oft

Mrs. Hazeldene had been to the theatre several times with Mr. Errington,

oroner was evidently absolutely satisfied with himself at the marvellous way in which, after a quarter of

ve a great deal of time at his command. He himself did not particularly care about Mr.

the coroner once more. 'What does he d

business o

his occupa

has ample private means. But he ha

t is

eriments, and is, I believe, as an amate