"'He don't seem to have hit him though. The poor bloke was strangled, no doubt.'
"'And tried to shoot at his assailant, obviously,' asserted the young barrister with authority.
"'If he succeeded in hitting the brute, there might be a chance of tracing the way he went.'
"'But not in the fog.'
"Soon, however, the appearance of the inspector, detective, and medical officer, who had quickly been informed of the tragedy, put an end to further discussion.
"The bell at No. 30 was rung, and the servants—all four of them women—were asked to look at the body.
"Amidst tears of horror and screams of fright, they all recognized in the murdered man their master, Mr. Aaron Cohen. He was therefore conveyed to his own room pending the coroner's inquest.
"The police had a pretty difficult task, you will admit; there were so very few indications to go by, and at first literally no clue.
"The inquest revealed practically nothing. Very little was known in the neighbourhood about Mr. Aaron Cohen and his affairs. His female servants did not even know the name or whereabouts of the various clubs he frequented.
"He had an office in Throgmorton Street and went to business every day. He dined at home, and sometimes had friends to dinner. When he was alone he invariably went to the club, where he stayed until the small hours of the morning.