k was broken.
There was extremely little bleeding from the wound; he was perfectly
motionless; I could detect no sign of breathing; and I felt no doubt
that he was dead.

"It was an exceedingly regrettable affair, and it placed me, as I
perceived at once, in an extremely awkward position. My first impulse
was to send the caretaker for a doctor and a policeman; but a moment's
reflection convinced me that there were serious objections to this
course.

"There was nothing to show that I had not, myself, knocked him down
with the case-opener. Of course, there was nothing to show that I had;
but we were alone in the house with the exception of the caretaker, who
was down in the basement out of earshot.

"There would be an inquest. At the inquest inquiries would be made as
to the will which was known to exist. But as soon as the will was
produced, Hurst would become suspicious. He would probably make a
statement to the coroner and I should be charged with the murder. Or,
even if I were not charged, Hurst would suspect me and would probably
repudiate the assignment; and, under the circumstances, it would be
practically impossible for me to enforce it. He would refuse to pay
and I could not take my claim into Court.

"I sat down on the stairs just above poor John's body and considered
the matter in detail. At the worst, I stood a fair chance of hanging;
at the best, I stood to lose close upon fifty thousand pounds. These
were not pleasant alternatives.

"Supposing, on the other hand, I concealed the body and gave out that
John had gone to Paris. There was, of course, the risk of discovery,
in which case I should certainly be convicted of the murder. But if no
discovery occurred, I was not only safe from suspicion, but I secured
the fifty thousand pounds. In either case there was considerable risk,
but in one there was the certainty of loss, whereas in the other there
was a material advantage to justify the risk. The question was whether
it would be possible to conceal the body. If it were, then the
contingent profit was worth the slight additional risk. But a human
body is a very difficult thing to dispose of, especially by a person of
so little scientific culture as myself.

"It is curious that I considered this question for a quite considerable
time before the obvious solution presented itself. I turned over at
least a dozen methods of disposing of the body, and rejected them all
as impracticable. Then