But the question of the match box may repay a little investigation.
I want you to tell me precisely what happened in the woods before you went into the cave.
In the first place, how many older people were there in the party?"
"Mr. and Mrs. Mathers, a lady who was visiting them and Colonel Gaylord."
"There were two servants, I understand, besides this Mose, to help about the lunch.
What did they do?"
"Well, I don't know exactly.
I wasn't paying much attention.
I believe they carried things over from the hotel, collected wood for the fire, and then went to a farm house for water."
"But Mrs. Mathers, it seems, attended to lighting the fire?"
"Yes, she and the Colonel made the fire and started the coffee."
"Ah!" said Terry with a note of satisfaction in his voice. "The matter begins to clear.
Was Colonel Gaylord in the habit of smoking?"
"He smoked one cigar after every meal."
"Never any more than that?"
"No, the doctor had limited him.
The Colonel grumbled about it regularly, and always smoked the biggest blackest cigar he could find."
"And where did he get his matches?"
"Solomon passed the brass match box from the dining-room mantelpiece just as he passed it to us to-night."
"Colonel Gaylord was not in the habit of carrying matches in his pockets then?"
"No, I think not."
"We may safely assume," said Terry, "that in this matter of making the fire, if the two were working together, the Colonel was on his knees arranging the sticks while Mrs. Mathers was standing by, giving directions.
That, I believe, is the usual division of labor.
Well, then, they get to the point of needing a light.
The Colonel feels through his pockets, finds that he hasn't a match and—what happens?"
"What did happen," I broke in, "was that Mrs. Mathers turned to a group of us who were standing talking at one side, and asked if any of us had a match, and Rad handed her his box.
That is the last anyone remembers about it."
"Exactly!" said Terry. "And I think I can tell you the rest.
You can see for yourself what took place.
Mrs. Mathers went back to the spot where they were building the fire, and the Colonel took the match box from her.
No man is ever going to stand by and watch a woman strike a match—he can do it so much better himself.
At this point, Mrs. Mathers—by her own testimony—was called away, and she doesn't remember anything further about the box.
She thinks that she returned it.
Why?
For no reason on earth except that she usually returns things.
As a matter of fact, however, she didn't do it this time.
She was called away and the Colonel was left to light the fire alone.
He recognized the box as his son's and he dropped it into his pocket.
At another time perhaps he would have walked over and handed it back; but not then.
The two were not speaking to each other.
Later, at the time of the struggle in the cave, the box fell from the old man's pocket, and formed a most damaging piece of circumstantial evidence against his son.
"On the whole," Terry finished, "I do not think we shall have a very difficult time in clearing Radnor.
I had arrived at my own conclusions concerning him from reading the papers; what extra data I needed, I managed to glean from Solomon's lies.
And as for you," he added, gazing across at me with an imperturbable grin, "I think you were wise in deciding to be a corporation lawyer."
CHAPTER XVIII TERRY ARRIVES AT A CONCLUSION
"And now," said Terry, lighting a fresh cigar, and after a few preliminary puffs, settling down to work again, "we will consider the case of Cat-Eye Mose—a beautiful name, by the way, and apparently a beautiful character.
It won't be my fault if we don't make a beautiful story out of him.
You, yourself, I believe, hold the opinion that he committed the murder?"
"I am sure of it," I cried.
"In that case," laughed Terry, "I should be inclined to think him innocent."