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nydus/The Documents in the CasePublic

A man’s apparently accidental death soon arouses suspicions.

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rather less accuracy. From the fact, however, that the shin of beef delivered that morning was afterwards discovered still wrapped in its original paper, it appears quite certain that Harrison was rendered incapable of seeing to any household affairs before the evening. From my knowledge of my father, I should be prepared to swear that he would certainly never have left meat in this condition overnight. He would have put it on to boil for stock, or, at the very least, would have transferred it to a plate⁠—particularly in the case of shin of beef, which, being glutinous, has a habit of sticking to the wrapping-paper. When I stayed at The Shack with my father, he was accustomed to have his evening meal about seven o’clock. After this, he would wash the crockery and tidy the place up, and put on any stock that might be required for the next day. He would then sit and read for an hour or two, retiring to bed about ten, possibly taking a cup of cocoa or some patent food before retiring. It thus seems likely that the poison was taken between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 8 p.m. , and most probably at or about 7 p.m. Question : What evidence have we that Lathom actually went to London by the 7:55 at all? Could he have returned to The Shack surreptitiously during the interval? By hiring a motor-bicycle or car, he might easily have made his way back from Bovey Tracey or (if this might appear too obvious) from Brimley Halt, Heathfield, Teigngrace of Newton Abbot. He could then have lurked about in the neighbourhood of The Shack till he saw Harrison go out, and taken the opportunity to add the poison to the dish or stockpot. Note : To inquire as to Lathom’s movements in town. If anybody met him there on Thursday morning, this hypothesis falls to the ground. If not, to find out

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