The Old Man in the Corner

  CHAPTER XXI

  THE DUBLIN MYSTERY

  "I always thought that the history of that forged will was about asinteresting as any I had read," said the man in the corner that day. Hehad been silent for some time, and was meditatively sorting and lookingthrough a packet of small photographs in his pocket-book. Polly guessedthat some of these would presently be placed before her forinspection--and she had not long to wait.

  "That is old Brooks," he said, pointing to one of the photographs,"Millionaire Brooks, as he was called, and these are his two sons,Percival and Murray. It was a curious case, wasn't it? Personally Idon't wonder that the police were completely at sea. If a member of thathighly estimable force happened to be as clever as the clever author ofthat forged will, we should have very few undetected crimes in thiscountry."

  "That is why I always try to persuade you to give our poor ignorantpolice the benefit of your great insight and wisdom," said Polly, witha smile.

  "I know," he said blandly, "you have been most kind in that way, but Iam only an amateur. Crime interests me only when it resembles a clevergame of chess, with many intricate moves which all tend to one solution,the checkmating of the antagonist--the detective force of the country.Now, confess that, in the Dublin mystery, the clever police there wereabsolutely checkmated."

  "Absolutely."

  "Just as the public was. There were actually two crimes committed in onecity which have completely baffled detection: the murder of PatrickWethered the lawyer, and the forged will of Millionaire Brooks. Thereare not many millionaires in Ireland; no wonder old Brooks was anotability in his way, since his business--bacon curing, I believe itis--is said to be worth over L2,000,000 of solid money.

  "His younger son Murray was a refined, highly educated man, and was,moreover, the apple of his father's eye, as he was the spoilt darling ofDublin society; good-looking, a splendid dancer, and a perfect rider, hewas the acknowledged 'catch' of the matrimonial market of Ireland, andmany a very aristocratic house was opened hospitably to the favouriteson of the millionaire.

  "Of course, Percival Brooks, the eldest son, would inherit the bulk ofthe old man's property and also probably the larger share in thebusiness; he, too, was good-looking, more so than his brother; he, too,rode, danced, and talked well, but it was many years ago that mammaswith marriageable daughters had given up all hopes of Percival Brooks asa probable son-in-law. That young man's infatuation for MaisieFortescue, a lady of undoubted charm but very doubtful antecedents, whohad astonished the London and Dublin music-halls with her extravagantdances, was too well known and too old-established to encourage anyhopes in other quarters.

  "Whether Percival Brooks would ever marry Maisie Fortescue was thoughtto be very doubtful. Old Brooks had the full disposal of all his wealth,and it would have fared ill with Percival if he introduced anundesirable wife into the magnificent Fitzwilliam Place establishment.

  "That is how matters stood," continued the man in the corner, "whenDublin society one morning learnt, with deep regret and dismay, that oldBrooks had died very suddenly at his residence after only a few hours'illness. At first it was generally understood that he had had anapoplectic stroke; anyway, he had been at business hale and hearty asever the day before his death, which occurred late on the evening ofFebruary 1st.

  "It was the morning papers of February 2nd which told the sad news totheir readers, and it was those selfsame papers which on that eventfulmorning contained another even more startling piece of news, that provedthe prelude to a series of sensations such as tranquil, placid Dublinhad not experienced for many years. This was, that on that veryafternoon which saw the death of Dublin's greatest millionaire, Mr.Patrick Wethered, his solicitor, was murdered in Phoenix Park at fiveo'clock in the afternoon while actually walking to his own house fromhis visit to his client in Fitzwilliam Place.

  "Patrick Wethered was as well known as the proverbial town pump; hismysterious and tragic death filled all Dublin with dismay. The lawyer,who was a man sixty years of age, had been struck on the back of thehead by a heavy stick, garrotted, and subsequently robbed, for neithermoney, watch, or pocket-book were found upon his person, whilst thepolice soon gathered from Patrick Wethered's household that he had lefthome at two o'clock that afternoon, carrying both watch and pocket-book,and undoubtedly money as well.

  "An inquest was held, and a verdict of wilful murder was found againstsome person or persons unknown.

  "But Dublin had not exhausted its stock of sensations yet. MillionaireBrooks had been buried with due pomp and magnificence, and his will hadbeen proved (his business and personalty being estimated at L2,500,000)by Percival Gordon Brooks, his eldest son and sole executor. The youngerson, Murray, who had devoted the best years of his life to being afriend and companion to his father, while Percival ran afterballet-dancers and music-hall stars--Murray, who had avowedly been theapple of his father's eye in consequence--was left with a miserlypittance of L300 a year, and no share whatever in the gigantic businessof Brooks & Sons, bacon curers, of Dublin.

  "Something had evidently happened within the precincts of the Brooks'town mansion, which the public and Dublin society tried in vain tofathom. Elderly mammas and blushing _debutantes_ were already thinkingof the best means whereby next season they might more easily show thecold shoulder to young Murray Brooks, who had so suddenly become ahopeless 'detrimental' in the marriage market, when all these sensationsterminated in one gigantic, overwhelming bit of scandal, which for thenext three months furnished food for gossip in every drawing-room inDublin.

  "Mr. Murray Brooks, namely, had entered a claim for probate of a will,made by his father in 1891, declaring that the later will made the veryday of his father's death and proved by his brother as sole executor,was null and void, that will being a forgery."