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"Thirty years is a long time, sir," observed Stoner politely. "Aye, but I remember it quite well," said Mr. Pursey, with a confident nod. "I know it was thirty years ago, 'cause it was the Wilchester Assizes at which the Mallows & Chidforth case was tried. Yes thirty years. Eighteen hundred and eighty-one was the year. Mallows & Chidforth aye!" "Famous case that, sir?" asked Stoner.

There were the initials M. & C. There was a date if it was a date 81. What in Kitely's memorandum the initials S. B. might mean, it was useless to guess at. His memorandum, indeed, was as cryptic as an Egyptian hieroglyph. But Stoner's memorandum was fuller, more explicit. The M. & C. of the Kitely entry had been expanded to Mallows and Chidforth.

It appeared from the evidence adduced that for some time previous to 1881 there had been in existence in Wilchester a building society, the members of which were chiefly of the small tradesman and better-class working-man order. Its chief officials for a year or two had been John Mallows and Mark Chidforth, who were respectively treasurer and secretary.

That five hundred is yours aye, as dead certain as that my nose is mine! It's it's what they call inductive reasoning. The initials M. and C. Mallows and Chidforth Mallalieu and Cotherstone the two thousand pounds the fact that Kitely was at Wilchester Assizes in 1881 that he became Cotherstone's tenant thirty years after oh, I see it all, and so will a judge and jury!

"There were!" affirmed Mr. Pursey. "Yes oh, yes! Aye I've often wondered what became of 'em Mallows and Chidforth, I mean. For from the time they got out of prison they've never been heard of in our parts. Not a word! they disappeared completely. Some say, of course, that they had that money safely planted, and went to it. I don't know. But off they went." "Pooh!" said Myler. "That's an easy one.

The entry "fraud" and the other entries "Wilchester Assizes" and the supplementary words, clearly implied that two men named Mallows and Chidforth were prosecuted at Wilchester Assizes in the year 1881 for fraud, that a sum of £2,000 was involved, which was never recovered, that Mallows and Chidforth, whoever they were, were convicted and were sentenced to two years' imprisonment.

It was literally in a breathless silence that the old man told the story of the crime of thirty years ago; it was a wonderfully dramatic moment when he declared that in spite of the long time that had elapsed he recognized the Mallalieu and Cotherstone of Highmarket as the Mallows and Chidforth whom he had known at Wilchester. Even then Mallalieu had not flinched.

The old detective, accidentally settling down at Highmarket, had recognized Mallalieu and Cotherstone, the prosperous tradesmen of that little, out-of-the-way town, as the Mallows and Chidforth whom he had seen in the dock at Wilchester, and he had revealed his knowledge to one or the other or both. That was certain. But there were many things that were far from certain.

And now the problem narrowed to one most serious and crucial point were the Mallows and Chidforth of these references the Mallalieu and Cotherstone of Highmarket. Speculating on this possibility, Brereton after his solitary dinner went into Bent's smoking-room, and throwing himself into a chair before the fire, lighted his pipe and proceeded to think things out.

Each, as a young man, was attached to religious organizations Mallows was a sidesman at one of the churches, Chidforth was a Sunday-school teacher at one of the chapels. Both had been fully and firmly trusted, and it appeared from the evidence that they had had what practically amounted to unsupervised control of the building society's funds.