Sir Horace dismissed him for the night before
he could get such an opportunity. Then he went to Fanning's flat and
told Birchill that Sir Horace had returned. Birchill was in favour of
postponing the burglary, but Hill, who had possession of the letters,
and did not know when he would get an opportunity to put them back,
urged Birchill to carry out the burglary. He assured Birchill that Sir
Horace was a very sound sleeper and that there would be no risk. In
order to arouse Birchill's cupidity and to protect himself from the
suspicions of Sir Horace regarding the letters, he told Birchill that he
had seen a large sum of money in his possession when he returned, and
that this money would probably be hidden in the secret drawer of the
desk, until Sir Horace had an opportunity of banking it. He told
Birchill to break open the desk, and explained to him how to find the
spring of the secret drawer."

"What a damned cunning scoundrel he is," exclaimed Rolfe, in unwilling
admiration of the completeness of Hill's scheme. "Don't you think, Mr.
Crewe, that, after all, he may be the actual murderer--that he told you a
lot of lies just as he did to us? Holymead in his address to the jury
made out a pretty strong case against him."

"No one knows better than Holymead that Hill did not commit the
murder," said Crewe. "Hill is an incorrigible liar, but he has no nerve
for murder."

"Did he put the letters back?" asked Rolfe. "He told me that Mrs.
Holymead stole them the day after the murder was discovered. But he is
such a liar--"

"I believe he spoke the truth in that case," said Crewe. "He told me he
put the letters back in the secret drawer the night after the murder,
when he went to Riversbrook to report himself to Chippenfield. He put
them back because he was afraid that if the police found them in his
possession, they would think he had a hand in the murder. His idea was to
remove them from the secret drawer after the excitement about the murder
died down, and then blackmail Mrs. Holymead, but she acted with a skill
and decision that robbed him of his chance to blackmail her."

"How did you get hold of the cunning scoundrel?" asked Rolfe. "I've had
his wife's shop watched day and night, as I've said. I made sure he would
try to communicate with her sooner or later, but he didn't."

"It was Joe who found him," said Crewe. "I knew you were watching Mrs.
Hill's shop, so it was superfluous for me to set anybody to watch it.
Be