CONTENTS. "" ONE OF TWO. CHAPTER I. WHAT WAS FOUND AT ACACIA VILLA, KENSAL-GREEN. On Friday, the 3rd day of October, in the year 1829, being a few days after Michaelmas Day, which in that year fell on a Tuesday, an old man, a tall boy, and three women, took the trouble to walk all the way from Kensal-Green-a pretty village not far from London, and not then disfigured by that huge stonemasons' yard, the Cemetery-and to present themselves at the door of the police-office in Marylebone, or, as they called it, "Marrybone Lane." Having been allowed to enter, and having wondered at the place, which was quite new, as well as the New Police-who had only been put on duty four or five days previously—the spokeswoman of the party endeavoured to tell her tale; when Mr Inspector-who, in his new blue coat and pewter buttons, looked very like an officer of his Majesty's land forces-interrupted her, and pointing to the male person, begged him to say what was wanted. Whereon Mr Jasper Snape, tailor and pigeon-fancier, began. This was his narrative : For several days the neighbourhood of Kensal-Green-that is to say, Jasper Snape himself and his neighbours-had been troubled and exercised by the fact that a certain widow, Mrs Martin, or, as she was usually called, "Madame," had not been visible to mortal eye. She was Snape's neighbour, and lived in a little house, standing alone in its own garden. She used to admire his, Jasper Snape's, pigeons. He bred pigeons, besides earning his living by tailoring. He had been to her house lately-that is to say, to-day, Friday-with these good people; he had knocked several times: there was no answer. A Both windows and doors were shut the windows by shutters, which were, of course, fastened on the inside. Had knocked at all the shutters. The tall boy had peeped through the keyhole, and even offered to climb up on the roof, and to get down the chimney. It was a low house, not low in a bad meaning, on the contrary, very genteel; but of one story, so it would have been easy to have carried out the tall boy's proposal; but he, Jasper Snape, had told them that it was "agen the law," and they had come up all that way for a search warrant. 'Perhaps," said the Inspector, "the woman's gone out on a 66 visit." Mr Jasper Snape here smoothed his hair, and pulled at his waistcoat, as if he were about to take a new thread off his neck, and thread his needle again. He recommenced :- You should understand him, Snape, no; decidedly, no! He knew the value of law, and did not want to trouble it. Madame —that is, the widow-had been seen to go in, but not to come out. She had been seen, that is to say, on Michaelmas Day. Her rent was paid: she was a particular person in paying rent. She and Snape inhabited houses belonging to the same landlord; in fact, he paid her rent two or three days before it was due. She then shut her door-after being last seen on Tuesday evening, at about six-and said she should go to bed. He had heard her close her shutters. The woman had seen those shutters closed; the tall boy could corroborate all that had been said. The Inspector rubbed his chin, flicked his pen, and looked at the charge sheet. "Why did you come up here? Was there not the proper head-constable up at that place?" "It was not very far," said Snape; "and the new ActBobby Peel's New Police Act-had commenced. The Charleys, very useful men in their time, had gone out, and we wanted new brooms." Snape-who, being a tailor and keeping pigeons, must needs be a politician and an admirer of Major Cartwright-intimated that, upon the whole, he approved of the Act. "There was," he said, "a blessed deal too much of Tom and Jerry larking with the old Charleys. An old friend of his, a Charley, had been put into the canal close by, box-i.e., watchbox-and all; and as near as could be drownded-dead!” "You won't have no more of them larks now," said the Inspector, sternly, to Snape. He was angry that the majesty of the law should be so dealt with; and he was puzzled what to do with the case which Snape and Company had brought him. Presently, while the tall boy was vainly looking through the rails of the Inspector's desk, a gentlemanly man, about thirty, came in, and passed through to the court. The Inspector, struck with a sudden thought, jumped off his stool and followed him. "Mr Boom sits to-day, sir," he said. 66 Umph!" said Mr George Horton, stipendiary magistrate. "I know that, Stevenson; but I want to refer to some cases. Anything new-it all works smoothly?" "Ye-es," said the Inspector; "very smoothly, sir. But here's a curious case I want to know about, sir." And he followed the magistrate into the private room, and read over Mr Jasper Snape's communication. After a while, the young magistrate said that he would not only grant the warrant, but go with Stevenson, if he could put another inspector on duty. Yes, he would go with the Inspector and a plain-clothesman-whom, indeed, we should now call a detective-and see about the matter. "Something strikes me that it is a serious matter, Steven son." "Yes, sir," said that officer, sharply enough. When the chance of a 66 "" case turned up, most "officers " were on the alert, for the honour of the new corps was dear to them. "Here are these people, sir. What am I to do with them?" "How many?" asked the magistrate. Stevenson went to the door and counted. "One, two, three-five, sir," he said. "Get a cab to the door for you and me, and a hackney coach for the witnesses and the plain-clothesman." "Yes, sir." And away the Inspector creaked. |