Chapter 5 Chapter Four

1 St. Mary Mead had the most exciting morning it had been in a long time. Miss Wetherby, a long-nosed, spiky spinster, was the first to spread the intoxicating news.She knocked on the door of her neighbor and friend, Hartnell. "Excuse me for being so early, my dear. But I suppose you haven't heard the news yet." "What news?" asked Miss Hartnell hastily.She has a deep voice, and although the poor are reluctant to accept her help, she enjoys visiting the poor. "A body was found in Colonel Bantry's library—the body of a woman—" "Colonel Bantry's library?"

"Yes. Terrible." "Poor his wife." Miss Hartnell did her best to conceal her very hot pleasure. "Yeah. I guess she doesn't know anything." Miss Hartnell began to criticize: "She cares too much about her garden and not enough about her husband. You have to watch out for a man—anytime—anytime." Miss Hartnell was ruthless. Repeat relentlessly. "Yes, yes. It's a terrible thing." "Don't know what Miss Jane Marple would say. Do you think she'd know something? She's sensitive about things like that." "Jane, Miss Marple has been to Gossington."

"What? This morning?" "Early. Before breakfast." "But, really! I think! Oh, I mean, it's going too far. We all know Jane Eyre snooping--but I say she's doing it inappropriately this time!" "But it was Bantry My wife told her to go." "Mrs Bantry sent her?" "Muswell came to pick him up in the car." "My God! It's so bizarre..." They were silent for a minute or two, trying to digest the news. "Whose body is that?" asked Miss Hartnell. "You know that horrible woman with Basil Blake?"

"That horrible woman who dyed her hair blond?" Miss Hartnell was a little behind the trend.She hasn't progressed from the hydrogen peroxide bleach to a pale blond yet. "The woman lying in the garden with almost nothing on?" "Yes, dear. This time she was lying—on the hearth rug—strangled!" "What do you mean—in Gossington?" Miss Wetherby nodded significantly. "Then—and Colonel Bantry—" Miss Wetherby nodded again. "My God!" There was a pause as the two women savored yet another scandal in the countryside. "What a wicked woman:" said the outraged Miss Hartnell in a voice like a trumpet.

"Too much indulgence, I'm afraid!" "And Colonel Bantry—such a cultivated and quiet man—" Miss Weatherby said cheerily: "Usually people who talk less are bad. Miss Jane Marple always said that." 2 Mrs Price Ridley was one of the last to hear the news. She is a wealthy, domineering widow who lives in a large house next door to the vicar.Her source of news is her little maid Clara. "A woman, Clara? Found dead on Colonel Bantry's fireside rug?" "Yes, ma'am. And they said she was naked!" "That's enough, Clara. No need to go into details."

"Yes, ma'am. They say they thought it was Mr. Black's young lady at first--the one he spent the weekend with at Mr. Booker's new house. Now they say it's another young lady. The fishmonger's boy said how he Can't believe that someone like Colonel Bantry passing around the donation tray on Sunday would be like this—" "There is much evil in this world, Clara," said Mrs. Price Ridley. "This is a warning to you." "Yes, ma'am. My mother never lets me stay in the house as long as there are men in it." "That's all right, Clara," said Mrs. Price Ridley.

3 Mrs. Price Ridley's house was a stone's throw from the vicarage. Mrs. Price Ridley was lucky to find him in the parsonage's study. The pastor was a gentle middle-aged man who was always the last to hear anything. "It's a dreadful thing," said Mrs. Price Ridley, a little out of breath from having come so quickly. "I feel obliged to hear your opinion, your opinion on the matter, my dear parson." Mr. Clement looked a little taken aback."What happened?" he asked. "What happened?" Mrs. Price Ridley repeated the question dramatically. "The biggest scandal!

Nobody knew what was going on.A dissolute woman, naked, strangled to death on Colonel Bantry's hearth rug. " The priest opened his eyes wide.He said, "You—are you all right?" "It's no wonder you don't believe it 2 I didn't believe it at first either. That man is so hypocritical! All these years!" "Please tell me what's going on with all this." Mrs. Price Ridley immediately began a detailed account.When she had finished, Mr. Clement said softly: "But there's nothing to prove that Colonel Bantry was involved, is there?" "Oh, dear clergyman, you are so extraordinary! But I have something to tell you. Last Thursday--or was it last Thursday? It doesn't matter--I took the reduced day train to London. Bantry The colonel and I were in the same compartment.

I think he looked distracted, buried himself behind the Times all the way, as if he didn't want to talk. " The chaplain nodded with complete understanding and some sympathy. "I said goodbye to him at Paddington Station. He offered to call a taxi for me, but I had to take a bus to Oxford Street - so he got into one and I distinctly heard him say to the driver Go—where do you think?" Mr. Clement looked inquiringly. "Somewhere in St. John's Wood!" Mrs. Price Ridley stopped triumphantly. The priest was still uninspired. "I think that proves everything," said Mrs. Price Ridley.

4 In Gossington Mrs Bantry and Miss Marple were sitting in the drawing-room. "You know," said Mrs. Bantry, "I'm glad they took the body away. It's not nice to have a dead body in the house." Miss Marple nodded. "I know, honey. I know how you feel." "You don't know," said Mrs. Bantry, "unless you've been through it yourself. I know it's happened to your neighbor before, but that's a different thing, and I just hope," she went on, "that Arthur Wouldn't hate that library. We used to sit there a lot. What are you going to do, Jane?"

At this moment Miss Marple looked at her watch and was about to get up. "If I can't do anything more for you, I think it's time for me to go home." "Don't go yet," said Mrs. Bantry. "Although the fingerprint specialists and photographers and most of the police are gone, I have a feeling there's still going to be something going on. You don't want to miss something." The phone rang, she went to answer it, and came back with a happy face. "I said something was going to happen. It's Colonel Melchett. He's coming over with the poor girl's cousin." "Don't know what you're here for," said Miss Marple. "Oh, I suppose to see where it happened." "I think it's more than that," said Miss Marple. "What do you mean, Jane?" "Well, I think—maybe—he wants to take her to see Colonel Bantry." Mrs. Bantry said hastily: "See if she can recognize him? I guess—oh, yes, I guess they must suspect Arthur." "I'm afraid so." "It's as if Arthur had something to do with it:" Miss Marple said nothing.Mrs. Bantry turned on her angrily. "Don't give me an example of old General Henderson--or some nasty old guy with a mistress. Arthur's not that kind of guy." "No, no, of course not." "He's really not that kind of guy. He's just—sometimes—a little silly around pretty girls who come to play tennis. Kind of—very stupid, patriarchal. No malice. Why doesn't he What?" said Mrs. Bantry at last inexplicably. "After all, I have the garden." Miss Marple smiled. "Dolly, don't you worry," she said. "I don't want to worry, but I'm kind of worried. Arthur was a little anxious too. It upset him. There were policemen all around. He's gone to the farm. Seeing pigs or something when he's upset always helps him Calm down. Look, here they come." The police chief's car was parked outside. Colonel Melchett and a beautifully dressed lady entered. "Mrs Bantry, this is Miss Turner, er - the victim's cousin." "Hello," said Mrs. Bantry, holding out her hand. "All this must make you very sad." Josephine Turner puts it bluntly: "Oh yes. None of this seems real, like a nightmare." Mrs. Bantry introduced Miss Marple. Melchett asked casually, "Is your good man there?" "He has something to go to the farm, and he will be back in a while." "Oh—" Melchett didn't seem to know what to do. Mrs. Bantry said to Josie, "Would you like to see what happened—where it happened? Or don't you?" After a moment Josephine said, "I think I'd like to see it." Mrs. Bantry led her into the library, followed by Miss Marple and Melchett. "There she is," said Mrs. Bantry, pointing theatrically with one hand, "on the fireside rug." "Oh!" Josie shuddered.Looking puzzled, she frowned and said, "I don't understand! I don't understand!" "Of course we don't understand," said Mrs. Bantry. Josie said slowly, "This isn't the kind of place—" She was only halfway through. Miss Marple nodded slightly in agreement with what she had left to say. "That's what," she whispered, "makes this very interesting." "Go ahead, Miss Marple," said Colonel Melchett cheerfully, "any explanation?" "Oh, yes, I have an explanation," said Miss Marple, "a very good explanation. Of course it's just my own idea. Tommy Bond," she went on, "and Martin Ma'am, our new governess. A frog jumped out as she was winding the clock." Josephine.Turner looked bewildered.When they were all out of the room she asked Mrs. Bantry in a low voice, "Is the old lady out of her mind?" "There's nothing wrong with it," said Mrs. Bantry angrily. Josie said, "I'm sorry. I thought she said she was a frog or something." Colonel Bantry entered by the side door.Melchett called out to him and watched Josephine Turner as he introduced him to her.But there was no expression of acquaintance or interest on her face.Melchett breathed a sigh of relief.Damn Slack and his insinuations: In response to Mrs. Bantry's question, Josie retold the story of Ruby Keith's disappearance from beginning to end. "It's worrying you to death, my dear," said Mrs. Bantry. "I'm more angry than worried," Josie said. "Look, I didn't know what happened to her then." "Still," said Miss Marple, "you called the police. Wasn't it—forgive me for saying this—quick?" Josie said hastily, "Oh, I didn't call the police. Mr. Jefferson did." Mrs Bantry said: "Jefferson?" "Yes, he's disabled!" "It's not Conway Jefferson, is it? I know him very well, he's an old family friend. Arthur, listen to Conway Jefferson. What a coincidence that he was the one who reported the incident to the police!" Josephine Turner said, "Mr. Jefferson was here last summer, too." "Really! We don't know a thing. I haven't seen him for a long time." she asked Josie. "How is he now?" Josie thought about it. "I think he's nice, really -- very nice. I mean he's always happy -- there's always a joke to tell." "Is his family with him?" "You mean Mr. Gaskell, Mrs. Jefferson Jr., and Peter? Oh, yes." Josephine, Turner's frank and charming exterior hides something.When it came to the Jeffersons, there was something unnatural in his voice. Mrs. Bantry said: "They're both very well. I mean the little ones." Josie said very hesitantly, "Oh, yes—yes, they are. I—we—yes, they are. Exactly." 5 Mrs. Bantry looked out the window at the departing Chief Constable's car and said: "What did she mean by that? 'They are, yes.' Jane, don't you think there's something..." Miss Marple Immediately say, "Oh, I do feel it. It's unmistakable: When Jefferson's family is mentioned, her attitude changes immediately. She seems to have been very natural until then." "Jane, what do you think is going on here?" "Honey, you know them. As you said, I just think there's something about the family that's worrying this young woman. Also, did you notice that when you asked her if she was worried about the missing girl, she Said she was angry! And she looked angry--really angry! You see, that amuses me. I have a feeling--maybe wrongly--that her main reaction to this girl's death is anger. I I'm sure she doesn't care about the girl. She's not sad at all. But I can say with absolute certainty that she gets angry at the thought of the Ruby Keith girl. The interesting question is—why?" "We'll find out," said Mrs. Bantry. "We'll go and stay at the Majesty at Daismouth—Jane, and you too. I need to relax after all this. A few days at the Majesty." — This is what we need. You also have to meet Conway Jefferson.He's a nice -- a very nice guy.This is one of the saddest stories you can imagine.He once had a pair of children who were very fond of him.Although both are married, they still spend a lot of time at their parents' home.His wife is also the sweetest woman and he is very loyal to her.One year when they were flying home from France, something happened.The pilot, Mrs. Jefferson, Rosamund, Frank were all killed.Conway's legs were so badly injured they had to be amputated.But he's been amazing all the time - his guts, his spirit!He had been a very active man, and now he was a helpless cripple, but he never complained.His daughter-in-law lived with him--she was a widow when she married Frank Jefferson, and she was accompanied by a son from the first marriage, Peter Carmody.The two of them lived with Conway.Rosamund's husband, Mark Gaskell, was there most of the time. This is a most terrible tragedy—" "Now," said Miss Marple. "Another tragedy—" Mrs. Bantry said: "Oh, yes—yes—but it has nothing to do with the Mr. Jeffersons." "Is that so?" said Miss Marple. "Mr. Jefferson reported the case to the police." "It was he who made the report. . . Well, Jane, that's very strange . . . "