“He was a tidy man, I see?”
“Very, sir. Always had everything ship-shape. He never could bear to have things lying about. Sometimes he used to anger me because he'd wash up his tea-things when I wanted to talk to him. Of course, if it had been you, I expect he'd wait till you'd gone. It wouldn't have been polite to wash up with a stranger there.”
“You're helping me a great deal, constable,” said Sir Clinton encouragingly. “Now, another thing. I suppose he must have saved some money. He seems to have lived very simply—no expenses to speak of?”
“That's right, sir. He put all he could spare into the savings-bank at the post office. All he kept in the house was what he needed to buy things in the village.”
“So I expected. You see how well you've pictured him, constable. Now where did he keep his money—his loose cash?”
“In that drawer in the dresser,” the constable said, pointing to one of the larger drawers which had a lock on it. “He carried the key about with him.”
“See if you can get the key, inspector, please. You'll find it in his pocket, I expect.”
Armadale produced the key almost at once, and Sir Clinton opened the drawer. As he did so, the constable uttered a cry of astonishment. Wendover, leaning forward, saw that the drawer held more than a little money—some silver articles were in it as well.
Sir Clinton warned them back with a gesture.
“Don't touch. We may have to look for fingerprints here. These things seem to have a crest on them,” he continued, after scrutinising them.