splintered from the outside to give the appearance of
forcing."
Pollock examined the latch of the window closely, uttering
an ejaculation to himself as he did so.
"You are right, sir," he said with respect in his voice.
"Who'd have thought of that now!"
27
Agatha Christie
"Someone who wishes to throw dust in our eyes--and
hasn't succeeded."
Sergeant Pollock was grateful for the "our." In such
small ways did Inspector Narracott endear himself to his
subordinates.
"Then it wasn't burglary. You mean, sir, it was an
inside job."
Inspector Narracott nodded. "Yes," he said. "The only
curious thing is, though, that I think the murderer did
actually enter by the window. As you and Graves reported,
and as I can still see for myself, there are damp
patches still visible where the snow melted and was trodden
in by the murderer's boots. These damp patches are
only in this room. Constable Graves was quite positive
that there was nothing of the kind in the hall when he
and Dr. Warren passed through it. In this room he noticed
them immediately. In that case it seems clear that
the murderer was admitted by Captain Trevelyan through
the window. Therefore it must have been someone whom
Captain Trevelyan knew. You are a local man, Sergeant,
can you tell the if Captain Trevelyan was a man who
made enemies easily?"
"No, sir, I should say he hadn't an enemy in the world.
A bit keen on money, and a bit of a martinet--wouldn't
stand for any slackness or incivility--but bless my soul
he was respected for that."
"No enemies," said Narracott thoughtfully.
"Not here, that is."
"Very true--we don't know that enemies he may have
made during his naval career. It's my experience, Sergeant,
that a nan who makes enemies in one place will
z8
Murder at Hazelmoor
make them in another, but I agree that we can't put that
possibility entirely aside. We come logically now to the
next motive--the most common motive for every
crime--gain. Captain Trevelyan was, I understand, a
rich man?"
"Very warm indeed by all accounts. But close. Not an
easy man to touch for a subscription.'
"Ah!" said Narracott thoughtfully.
"Pity it snowed as it did," said the Sergeant. "But for
that we'd have had his footprints as something to go on."
"There was no one else in the house?" asked the Inspector.
"No. For the last five years Captain Trevelyan has only
had one servant--retired naval chap. Up at Sittaford
House a woman came in daily, but this chap, Evans,
cooked and looked after his master. About a month ago
he got married--much to the Captain's annoyance. I
believe that's one of the reasons he let Sittaford House
to this South African lady. He wouldn't have any woman
living in the house. Evans lives just round the corner here
in Fore Street with his wife, and comes in daily to do
for his master. I've got him here now for you to see. His
statement is that he left here at half past two yesterday
afternoon, the Captain having no further need for him.'
"Yes, I shall want to see him. He may be able to tell
us something--useful."
Sergeant Pollock looked at his superior officer curiously.
There was something so odd about his tone.
"You think--" he began.
"I think," said Inspector Narracott deliberately, "that
there's a lot more in this case than meets the eye."
9
Agatha Christie
"In what way, sir?"
But the Inspector refused to be drawn.
"You say this man, Evans, is here now?"
"He's waiting in the dining-room."
"Good, I'll see him straight away. What sort of a fellow
is he?"
Sergeant Pollock was better at reporting facts than at
descriptive accuracy.
"He's a retired naval chap. Ugly customer in a scrap, I should say."
"Does he drink?"
"Never been the worse for it that I know of."
"What about this wife of his? Not a fancy of the Cap-rain's
or anything of that sort?"
"Oh! no, sir, nothing of that kind about Captain Trevelyan.
He wasn't that kind at all. He was known as a
woman hater, if anything."
"And Evans was supposed to be devoted to his master?''
"That's the general idea, sir, and I think it would be
known if he wasn't. Exhampton's a small place."
Inspector Narracott nodded.
"Well," he said, "there's nothing more to be seen here.
I'll interview Evans and I'll take a look at the rest of the
house and after that we will go over to the Three Crowns
and see this Major Burnaby. That remark of his about
the time was curious. Twenty-five minutes past five, eh?
He must know something he hasn't told, or why should
he suggest the time of the crime so accurately."
The two men moved toward the door.
"It's a rum business," said Sergeant Pollock, his eye
3°
Murder at Hazelmoor
wandering to the littered floor. "All this burglary fake!"
"It's not that that strikes me as odd," said Narracott,
"under the eiremnstanees it was probably the natural
thing to do. No--what strikes me as odd is the window."
"The window, sir?"
"Yes. Why should the murderer go to the window?
Assuming it was someone Trevelyan knew and admitted
without question, why not go to the front door? To get
round to this window from the road on a night like last
night would have been a difficult and unpleasant pro-ceeding
with the snow lying as thick as it does. Yet, there
must have been seine reason."
"Perhaps," suggested Pollock, "the man didn't want
to be seen turning into the house from the road."
"There wouldn't be many people about yesterday af-ternoon
to see him. Nobody who could help it was out
of doors. No--there's some other reason. Well, perhaps
it will come to light in due course."
31
5. Evans
-r H E ¥ found Evans waiting in the dining-room. He
rose respectfully on their entrance.
He was a short thick-set man. He had very long arms
and a habit of standing with his hands half clenched. He
was clean shaven with small, rather piglike eyes, yet he
had a look of cheerfulness and efficiency that redeemed
his bulldog appearance.
Inspector Narracott mentally tabulated his irpressions.
"Intelligent. Shrewd and practical. Looks rattled."
Then he spoke:
"You're Evans, eh?"
"Yes, sir."
"Christian names?"
"Robert Henry."
"Ah! Now what do you know about this business?"
"Not a thing, sir. It's fair knocked me over. To think
of the Capting being done in!"
"When did you last see your master?"
"Two o'clock I should say it was, sir. I cleared away
the lunch things an
d laid the table here as you see for
supper. The Capting, he told me as I needn't come back."
"What do you usually do?"
"As a general rule, I come back about seven for a
couple of hours. Not always--sometimes the Capting
would say as I needn't."
32
Murder at Hazelmoor
"Then you weren't surprised when he told you that
yesterday you wouldn't be wanted again?"
"No, sir. I didn't come back the evening before
either--on account of the weather. Very considerate
gentleman, the Capting was, as long as you didn't try to
shirk things. I knew him and his ways pretty well."
"What exactly did he say?"
"Well, he looked out of the window and he says, 'Not
a hope of Burnaby today.' 'Shouldn't wonder,' he says,
'if Sittaford isn't cut off altogether. Don't remember such
a winter since I was a boy.' That was his friend Major
Burnaby over to Sittaford that he was referring to. Always
comes on a Friday, he does, he and the Capting play
chess and do acrostics. And on Tuesdays the Capting
would go to Major Burnaby's. Very regular in his habits
was the Capting. Then he said to me: 'You can go now,
Evans, and you needn't come till tomorrow morning.'"
"Apart from his reference to Major Burnaby, he didn't
speak of expecting anyone that afternoon?"
"No, sir, not a word."
"There was nothing unusual or different in any way in
"
his manner.
"No, sir, not that I could see."
"Ah! Now I understand, Evans, that you have lately
got married."
"Yes, sir. Mrs. Belling's daughter at the Three Crowns.
Matter of two months ago, sir."
"And Captain Trevelyan was not overpleased about
it."
A very faint grin appeared for a moment on Evans'
face.
33
Agatha Christie
"Cut up rough about it, he did, the Captingo My Rebecca
is a fine girl, sir, and a very good cook. And I
hoped we might have been able to do for the Capting
together, but he--he wouldn't hear of it. Said he wouldn't
have women servants about his house. In fact, sir, things
were rather at a deadlock when this South African lady
came along and wanted to take Sittaford House for the
winter. The Capting he rented this place, I came in to
do for him every day, and I don't mind telling you, sir,
that I had been hoping that by the end of the winter the
Capting would have come round to the idea; and that
me and Rebecca would go back to Sittaford with him.
Why, he would never even know she was in the house.
She would keep to the kitchen, and she would manage
so that he would never meet her on the stairs."
"Have you any idea what lay behind Captain Trevelyan's
dislike of women?"
"Nothing to it, sir. Just an 'abit, sir, that's all. I have
seen many a gentleman like it before. If you ask me, it's
nothing more or less than shyness. Some young lady or
other gives them a snub when they are young--and they
gets the 'abit."
"Captain Trevelyan was not married?"
"No, indeed, sir."
"What relations had he? Do you know?"
"I believe he had a sister living at Exeter, sir, and I
think I have heard him mention a nephev or nephews."
"None of them ever came to see him?"
"No, sir. I think he quarreled with his sister at Exeter." "Do you know her name?"
34
Murder at Hazelmoor
"Gardner, I think, sir, but I wouldn't be sure." "You don't know her address?"
"I'm 'afraid I don't, sir."
"Well, doubtless we shall come across that in looking
through Captain Trevelyan's papers. Now, Evans, what
were you yourself doing from four o'clock onwards yesterday afternoon?"
"I was at home, sir."
Where s home?"
"Just round the corner, sir, 85 Fore Street."
"You didn't go out at all?"
"Not likely, sir. Why, the snow was coming down a
Fair treat."
"Yes, yes. Is there anyone who can support your statement?"
"Beg pardon, sir."
"Is there anyone who knows that you were at home
during that time?"
"My wife, sir."
"She and you were alone in the house?"
"Yes, sir."
"Well, well, I have no doubt that's all right. That will
be all for the present, Evans."
The ex-sailor hesitated. He shifted from one foot to
the other.
"Anything I can do here, sir--in the way of tidying
up?"
"No--the whole place is to be left exactly as it is for
the present."
"I see."
CHR
Agatha Christie
"You had better wait, though, until I have had a look
round," said Narracott, "in case there might be any question
I want to ask you."
"Very good, sir."
Inspector Narracott transferred his gaze from Evans
to the room.
The interview had taken place in the dining-room. On
the table an evening meal was set out. A cold tongue,
pickles, a Stilton cheese and biscuits, and on a gas ring
by the fire a saucepan containing soup. On the sideboard
was a tantalus, a soda water siphon, and two bottles of
beer. There was also an immense array of silver cups
and with them--a rather incongruous item, three very
new looking novels.
Inspector Narracott examined one or two of the cups
and read the inscriptions on them.
"Bit a sportsman, Captain Trevelyan," he observed.
"Yes, indeed, sir," said Evans. "Been an athlete all
his life, he had."
Inspector Narracott read the titles of the novels.
"Love Turns the Key," "The Merry Men of Lincoln,"
"Love's Prisoner."
"H'm," he remarked. "The Captain's taste in literature
seems somewhat incongruous."
"Oh! that, sir." Evans laughed. "That's not for reading,
sir. That's the prizes he won in these Railway Pictures
Names Competitions. Ten solutions the Capting sent in
under different names, including mine, because he said
85 Fore Street was a likely address to give a prize to!
The commoner your name and address the more likely
you were to get a prize in the Capting's opinion. And
36
Murder at Hazelmoor
sure enough a prize I got--but not the 2, pounds oo, only three
new novels--and the kind of novels, in my opinion, that
no one would ever pay money for in a shop."
Narracott smiled, then again mentioning that Evans
was to wait, he proceeded on his tour of inspection.
There was a large kind of cupboard in one corner of the
room. It was almost a small room in itself. Here, packed
in unceremoniously, were two pairs of skis, a pair of sculls
mounted, ten or twelve hippopotamus tusks, rods and
lines and various fishing tackle including a book of flies,
a bag of golf clubs, a tennis racket, an elephant's foot
stuffed and mounted and a tiger skin. It was clear that,
&n
bsp; when Captain Trevelyan had let Sittaford House fur-nished,
he had removed his most precious possessions,
distrustful of female influence.
"Funny idea--to bring all this with him," said the
Inspector. "The house was only let for a few months,
wasn't it?"
"That's right, sir."
"Surely these things could have been locked up at
Sittaford House?"
For the second time in the course of the interview,
Evans grinned.
"That would have been much the easiest way of doing
it," he agreed. "Not that there are many cupboards at
Sittaford House. The architect and the Capting planned
it together, and it takes a female to understand the value
of cupboard room. Still, as you say, sir, that would have
been the common-sense thing to do. Carting them down
here was a job--I should say it was a job! But there, the
Capting couldn't bear the idea of anyone messing around
37
Agatha Christie
with his things. And lock things up as you will, he says,
a woman will always find a way of getting in. It's curiosity,
he says. Better not lock them up at all if you don't want
her to handle them, he says. But best of all, take them
along, and then you're sure to be on the safe side. So
take 'em along we did, and as I say, it was a job, and
came expensive too. But there, those things of the Cap-ting's
was like his children."
Evans paused out of breath.
Inspector Narracott nodded thoughtfully. There was
another point on which he wanted information, and it
Christie,Agatha - Murder At Hazelmore.doc Page 4
