“I don’t know,” Bertha Cool said. “I’d never thought of it.”
“They have a nifty little club,” Sergeant Sellers said. “It’s a co-operative affair. They jointly own an automobile and hire a chauffeur. He drives around, picks them up in the morning according to a regular routine, takes them out and spots them, and calls for them at a fixed hour at night. They ride out to the chauffeur’s house. His wife has a nice hot dinner axed for them. They eat and chat, and then the chauffeur drives them home one at a time.”
“Well,” Bertha said, thinking it over, “I can understand that. If I’d stopped to think, I’d have known there must have been something like that; that it was handled somewhat along those lines. He can’t drive a car, and he can’t very well take streetcars to and from his place of business. Hiring a private car and chauffeur and a housekeeper would be pretty much of an impossibility. Who keeps his house anyway?”
“The chauffeur’s wife. She goes around to the houses in rotation and cleans ’em up once a week. The rest of the time the chaps get along by themselves. And you’d be surprised at how much they’re able to do regardless of being blind.”
“Who’s the chauffeur?” Bertha asked.
“Man by the name of Thinwell, John A. Thinwell. He and his wife have pretty good references; seem to be pretty well thought of. Tells a straightforward story.”
“What is it?”
“These chaps don’t work Sundays. On Sundays, they all get together around three o’clock at Thinwell’s house, listen to music on the radio, sit and talk, and get acquainted. Thinwell serves ’em a dinner around seven and then takes ’em home.
“Sunday about noon, Thinwell got a telephone call from Kosling. He seemed rather excited or disturbed and was talking rapidly. He said he wasn’t going to be home all day, couldn’t attend their little club meeting, and that Thinwell was not to call for him.
“Thinwell had to go right by the house anyway to pick up another one of the members, so he stopped in. That was about ten to three. The place was deserted all right, and Kosling had left the door propped open a few inches so his tame bat could get in and out.”