by Kerry Tombs
‘Perhaps we could talk outside, away from these people?’ suggested Ravenscroft.
The two men moved away from the hall and walked out across the lawn.
‘When I came to see you in your office the other day, Reverend, I happened to look out of the window, and I saw a widow dressed in black walking across the churchyard. I wondered whether you would be able to assist me in discovering the identity of such a lady,’ began Ravenscroft.
‘We have a number of ladies who visit the churchyard from time to time. They are often in mourning. It is usually the men who die before their wives.’
‘I understand that. This lady would perhaps be aged around forty or so, although I must admit that I have never seen her face. She must be quite active, as I have seen her walking on the hills near St Ann’s. I would suppose that her husband had been taken from her within the last year or so, for her to be still in mourning. She may well have been visiting one of the graves in the churchyard when I saw her.’ Ravenscroft realised that his line of encouraging questioning with the clergyman might yet bear fruit.
‘I see,’ replied Touchmore, deep in thought. ‘Within the last year or so, I can think of perhaps five or six occasions when we have buried a husband, and the wife has been left to grieve. I would have to consult my records of course, to provide you with their names. Although most widows might tend to wear their widow’s weeds for a few months or so, it is not uncommon for them to remain in black for a number of years.’
‘And that would make our search even more difficult,’ sighed Ravenscroft.
‘Have you also considered the possibility, Inspector, that such a lady might be grieving for the loss of a child, rather than for a husband, or indeed for both of them? Unfortunately, quite a number of our children still die as the result of a fever.’
‘You have not been aware of one particular person who has visited the graveyard a number of times in recent weeks?’
‘No, I must say that I have not been aware of such an instance. As I say, I will consult with my records and let you know of any particular instances that might be of help.’
‘Thank you, Reverend, I would appreciate that.’
‘This lady to whom you refer, has she anything to do with Pitzer’s murder?’
‘I think not.’
‘Then may I ask, Inspector — why are you so interested in her?’
‘Let us say, that it is a policeman’s curiosity. Thank you Reverend, you have been most helpful.’
Ravenscroft began to walk away, but then turned around once more.
‘Oh, Reverend — one more question. Were Mr Sommersby and Mr Pitzer involved in any other activities together, other than the fact that they, like you, were trustees of the almshouses in Colwall?’
‘They were both members of the town council. That is all, I believe.’
‘Thank you again for your assistance. I would be obliged if you could contact me, if you recall any further information.’
‘Of course, Inspector. I wish you a good day.’
Ravenscroft walked back to the entrance to the Assembly Rooms where he found Crabb studying his pocketbook.
‘Ah, there you are, sir. I think I have most of the names down. Most people were forthcoming; one or two were more reserved. There were certainly a lot of them. I should think that nearly the whole town must have turned out today.’
‘There is nothing like the prospect of an inquest that suggests murder to bring out the crowds, Crabb. Keep all your names. We may have need of them later.’
‘Do you think our murderer may have been amongst them?’
‘That is a distinct possibility. Murderers often have a great curiosity to revisit the scenes of their crimes. On the other hand, the killer may well have wanted to keep well away from the inquest, for fear of giving himself away in some incriminating way.’
‘Like Armitage, sir.’
‘Like Armitage. Talking of Armitage, it might be to our advantage to return to the almshouses and make a close search of his cottage. We might just find something there that links him to the killings. Let’s see if we can acquire a cab to take us there.’
‘Can I make a suggestion, sir? If we walk through the gardens here and walk out through the other side, a ten-minute stroll will take us to Great Malvern Station. We could then take the train to Colwall. The almshouses are quite near the station at the other end. There may be a train due soon, sir, in which case our journey may prove of a quicker duration.’
‘That seems a good idea to me Crabb. After sitting in that stuffy court room for the last hour or so, and listening to all that evidence, I could do with stretching my legs and clearing my mind. A walk would be most acceptable.’
Ten minutes later found the two men standing on the platform of Great Malvern station. They did not have long to wait for the next train, which took them onwards, past the common at Malvern Wells, before plunging into darkness as it entered the tunnel that ran beneath the hill.
‘It must have been quite a feat of engineering to have tunnelled through all this rock,’ remarked Ravenscroft.
‘Only done about thirty years ago, sir, I believe,’ informed Crabb.
‘Rather them than me.’
‘After Colwall, sir, the train goes on to Ledbury and then to Hereford.’
The train exited the tunnel and began to slow down as it approached the small country station of Colwall. Crabb and Ravenscroft alighted from the train and made their way out through the gate and along the path until they reached the almshouses. Here they found the two old men still sitting in the same place, and smoking the same pipes, as they had done when the two detectives had seen them on their first visit.
‘Good day to you gentlemen again,’ said Crabb.
‘What’s that he says?’ asked the one of his companion.
‘Says weather don’t look too good.’
‘Oh, that’s alright then. As long as he don’t be lookin’ for makin’ gammets of us.’
‘Has Mr Armitage returned?’ asked Ravenscroft.
‘Nowt seen Armitage,’ replied the elder of the two.
‘We’ll just have a look in his cottage,’ shouted Crabb.
‘’Tis no need to shout,’ sniffed the old man, shrugging his shoulders and resuming his smoke.
Ravenscroft made his way down the path towards Armitage’s cottage. ‘The door appears to be unlocked,’ he remarked entering the tiny building. ‘Just two rooms, by the look of it, simply furnished. You take the bedroom Crabb, while I have a look through these papers on the table.’
The two men set to their work.
‘Only old letters, one or two bills, some notes he has been making from this book of philosophical thoughts, nothing incriminating here,’ said Ravenscroft.
‘There’s nothing in the bedroom, sir, just a bed and a few old clothes. It’s all a bit spartan if you ask me. There’s still bread and cheese on the side here, as though he intended coming back, sir.’
‘What’s this old photograph on the wall? Very similar to the one we saw at Miss Armitage’s in Ledbury, almost the same family group I would say, probably the father, mother, and the two children. It was obviously taken some years ago, in better times. Well, Crabb, I can’t see anything here that might suggest that young Armitage killed either Pitzer or Sommersby. We will just have to ask the men to keep a look out for him. We best make our way back to Malvern. What’s this on the chair?’
‘Looks like a pile of old newspapers, sir,’ suggested Crabb.
‘They appear to be back copies of the Malvern News. You take that half, Crabb, and I’ll take these.’
‘What am I looking for, sir?’
‘Look at each page and see if Armitage has marked any articles, adverts, anything in fact,’ said Ravenscroft placing the newspapers on the table.
Crabb looked puzzled but complied with Ravenscroft’s request.
The two men worked in silence, turning the browning sheets of the old newspapers one at a time, running their fingers do
wn the columns of newsprint, examining the advertisements, until suddenly Ravenscroft let out a cry, ‘See here, Crabb! Armitage has drawn a line all the way round this article!’
‘What does it say, sir?’
‘“A new company has been formed to raise issue of shares for the construction of the proposed Tewkesbury to Leominster Railway,”’ said Ravenscroft, beginning to read the sheet.
‘What was there to interest Armitage in a new railway company?’ asked Crabb. ‘He surely is not wealthy enough to afford the purchase of any shares.’
‘This is most interesting, Crabb. It says here that the proposed line will commence at Tewksbury, run through Upton, then through Colwall and on through various villages until it arrives at Leominster. Ah, here we have it — “the building of the line will necessitate the removal of several buildings which may lie in its intended route, particularly at Colwall where the proposed line would cross the existing Malvern to Hereford line.” Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Crabb?’
‘If the line was built, the almshouses might well have to be demolished to make way for it.’
‘Exactly, Crabb, this is why Armitage has marked this article. As the warden of the almshouses he had a decided interest in opposing such a scheme. If the almshouses were knocked down, the old people would be turned out and he would in all probability lose his position as warden. We need to find out more about this new railway company. I wonder if we can discover who is the agent for the new company? Ah — here we are — “should any members of the public be interested in purchasing shares in the new Tewkesbury to Leominster Railway, they can view the prospectus at the Malvern Library and Reading Rooms. The issue will continue until either all the shares of the new company are fully subscribed or by the twenty-third of April, 1887.”’
‘That must be in about a fortnight, sir,’ said Crabb. ‘What is the date of the paper?’
‘Published about five weeks ago,’ replied Ravenscroft.
‘Perhaps Armitage knew who the proposed shareholders were?’
‘Let us return to Malvern and see what else we can discover about the company and its shareholders,’ said Ravenscroft. ‘Somehow, Armitage took an interest in this newspaper item.’
The two men closed the cottage door behind them and walked towards the two old men. Ravenscroft reached into his pocket and took out a silver coin, which he placed on the old wooden table in front of them. ‘Should Mr Armitage return, send urgent word to Malvern Police Station,’ he said.
One of the old men picked up the coin and tested it with his teeth. ‘A nimble ninepence is better than a sleepy shillin’, sir,’ said his companion with a broad grin.
‘I can hear a train approaching, sir. If we are quick enough, we can catch it back to Malvern,’ said Crabb.
‘Lead on Crabb, and I will follow.’
* * *
Upon their return to Great Malvern station, Ravenscroft and Crabb hired a cab from outside the building, which took them upwards, back towards the town. Alighting at the top of Church Street they walked across to the Library and Reading Rooms, only to find the doors locked.
‘Looks as though we are too late, sir? Closed up for the day,’ said Crabb.
‘I suppose it is rather late,’ said Ravenscroft consulting his pocket watch. ‘I think that is all we can do for today. Go home, Crabb; your lovely wife will be pleased to see you, no doubt. I must return to the Tudor and make my excuses for not undertaking my treatment this afternoon. Meet me outside the Reading Rooms tomorrow morning at nine, and we will see what we can discover.’
The two men parted company and Ravenscroft made his way back to the Tudor, where he was confronted by an anxious Stebbins.
‘There you are, sir. I’ve been lookin’ all over for you, on account of yer treatment, sir.’
‘Detained on important police business, Stebbins,’ said Ravenscroft sweeping past the youth and seeking the sanctuary of his room. Here, he lay on the bed going over the events of the day in his mind.
After a few minutes he walked over to the window and gazed out at the view that had now become familiar to him. If only he could solve this case, he could make some excuse to terminate his treatment at the Tudor and leave the town. There would still be a possible second week of his leave to take in the pleasures of Brighton. His eyes wandered over to his left where he could see a part of the churchyard. The light was beginning to fade, but there was no mistaking the lone figure kneeling by one of the graves. Quickly gathering up his coat, he closed his bedroom door behind him and set off at a brisk pace. If luck was with him, this time, he might surely be able to confront the mysterious woman who had so occupied his thoughts.
Exiting the Tudor, he made his way down the steep road, and then down the steps that led into the churchyard — only to find it empty. He looked around frantically. Where had the woman in black gone to? He had not passed her on his progress into the grounds, so she could not have left the churchyard that way. He ran down the path leading out of the grounds into the main street of the town and peered anxiously down the road, but in vain. He ran back to the church and made his way into the building to see if she had entered it to worship, but although he searched everywhere, he found no one.
Wearily he made his way back outside. Yet again his quarry had eluded him. It seemed that destiny would always prevent him from meeting the veiled lady. He turned to make his way back to the Tudor, but then remembered that he had seen the figure kneeling by one of the graves. If only he could recall which one? There were so many stones, a number of which were quite recent. It would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. But then he remembered. The figure had been kneeling by a grave and had appeared to have placed a basket of some kind on the seat situated near the wall. Of course, she had been placing flowers on one of the graves!
He walked up the path towards the bench and stopped at one of the stones. This must have been the grave, he told himself, for there were some fresh flowers placed before the headstone. Ravenscroft moved the vase of flowers to one side and began to read the inscription on the stone:
Sacred to the memory of
Anthony Stewart Kelly (1840-1886)
and
Mark Richard Kelly (1885-1887)
Always Remembered.
Ravenscroft had found the husband and child of the veiled woman in black!
CHAPTER FIVE
‘Good morning, gentlemen. It is a pleasure to see you again.’
It was the following morning and Crabb and Ravenscroft had entered the Malvern Library and Reading Rooms, in their quest to discover more about the railway company and its shareholders.
‘Your usual coffee and papers, sir, or is there something more pressing that I can help you with, Inspector?’ asked the attendant.
‘How did you know that I was a police inspector?’ asked Ravenscroft.
‘I attended the inquest yesterday.’
‘And you, sir, are?’ asked Crabb
‘Ronald Clifford, manager and owner of the Malvern Library and Reading Rooms,’ smiled the attendant.
‘Mr Clifford, we have come to make enquiries of you regarding the proposed Tewkesbury to Leominster Railway. I understand you are the local agent for the company?’ asked Ravenscroft.
‘That is so.’
‘You appear to be a man of many parts.’
‘One has to diversify in such a small town as this, Inspector.’
‘Quite. What information do you have, regarding the railway company?’
‘If you would care to follow me this way, sir,’ said Clifford leading the way into a back room, which appeared to serve as his office. He walked over to a large cabinet and opening the top drawer removed a map which he unfolded on the table.
‘This chart, gentlemen, shows the proposed route of the railway. As you can see the line begins here at Tewkesbury, cuts across here to Upton, then on to Colwall before travelling on to Leominster,’ said Clifford tracing the route with one of his fingers.
‘Are t
here not plenty of railway routes already in this area?’ interjected Ravenscroft.
‘Indeed so, but if one wants to travel from Malvern to Leominster at present, one is either faced by a long journey overland through Bromyard or be compelled to travel down to Hereford, where one has to change trains in order to reach one’s destination. Once this line has been constructed, the traveller would be able to travel from Malvern to Colwall and on to Leominster in a single journey. Travellers from the east would likewise find it much easier to travel from Tewkesbury straight through to Leominster. Upon arrival at that town passengers would either be able to connect with the main line to Shrewsbury and the north or travel down to south Wales. Either way, the proposed line will save the traveller a great deal in time and expense.’
‘You are a good salesman, Mr Clifford.’
Clifford smiled. ‘I sense however, Inspector, that you are not interested in purchasing shares?’
‘I could not afford them, sir. A policeman’s salary is not a great one. Do you have a more detailed plan showing how the route will affect the village of Colwall?’ asked Ravenscroft.
Clifford crossed over to the cabinet, looked through his collection of maps until he eventually found the one for which he was looking.
‘Here we are, gentlemen. This shows the alterations that will have to be made to Colwall station so that it can accommodate the new line. As you can see, several of the existing buildings in the village will have to be removed.’
‘Including Old Lechmere’s Almshouses?’ enquired Ravenscroft.
‘Yes, I’m afraid so. There are always some casualties if progress is to be maintained.’
‘I doubt that the inmates would see it that way,’ said Crabb.
‘What would happen to the old people?’ asked Ravenscroft.
‘That would be a matter for the trustees of the almshouses and the directors of the new company to decide,’ said Clifford.
‘The original charter setting up the establishment of the almshouses might prevent such a demolition,’ suggested Ravenscroft.
‘I would think not.’