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His household used to consist of an elderly housekeeper, Mrs. Marker, and of a maid, Susan Tarlton.

These have both been with him since his arrival, and they seem to be women of excellent character.

The Professor is writing a learned book, and he found it necessary about a year ago to engage a secretary.

The first two that he tried were not successes; but the third, Mr. Willoughby Smith, a very young man straight from the University, seems to have been just what his employer wanted.

His work consisted in writing all the morning to the Professor's dictation, and he usually spent the evening in hunting up references and passages which bore upon the next day's work.

This Willoughby Smith has nothing against him either as a boy at Uppingham or as a young man at Cambridge.

I have seen his testimonials, and from the first he was a decent, quiet, hardworking fellow, with no weak spot in him at all.

And yet this is the lad who has met his death this morning in the Professor's study under circumstances which can point only to murder."

The wind howled and screamed at the windows. Holmes and I drew closer to the fire while the young inspector slowly and point by point developed his singular narrative.

"If you were to search all England," said he, "I don't suppose you could find a household more self-contained or free from outside influences.

Whole weeks would pass and not one of them go past the garden gate.

The Professor was buried in his work and existed for nothing else.

Young Smith knew nobody in the neighbourhood, and lived very much as his employer did.

The two women had nothing to take them from the house.

Mortimer the gardener, who wheels the bath-chair, is an Army pensioner - an old Crimean man of excellent character.

He does not live in the house, but in a three-roomed cottage at the other end of the garden.

Those are the only people that you would find within the grounds of Yoxley Old Place.

At the same time, the gate of the garden is a hundred yards from the main London to Chatham road.

It opens with a latch, and there is nothing to prevent anyone from walking in.

"Now I will give you the evidence of Susan Tarlton, who is the only person who can say anything positive about the matter.

It was in the forenoon, between eleven and twelve.

She was engaged at the moment in hanging some curtains in the upstairs front bedroom.

Professor Coram was still in bed, for when the weather is bad he seldom rises before midday.

The housekeeper was busied with some work in the back of the house.

Willoughby Smith had been in his bedroom, which he uses as a sitting-room; but the maid heard him at that moment pass along the passage and descend to the study immediately below her.

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