Other possibles are: Miss Hailsham, Miss Deepcar, and Silverdale himself.
Written after the Whalley murder.
So Flamborough has let Whalley slip through our fingers!
My impression is that Whalley was murdered elsewhere and taken out in a car to be dumped into the ditch where he was found. The man behind all this is clever, and wouldn't go in for an open-road murder in which he might be interrupted by a motorist coming round the corner.
The tourniquet was obviously intended to mislead us, or it would never have been left beside the body. The Heatherfield tourniquet was a makeshift thing which indicated no one in particular; this new one, with its pressure-tubing and banjo-string, seems constructed specially as evidence. The tubing suggests the Croft-Thornton chemical work; the banjo-string points to Silverdale, since I learned from Ringwood that Silverdale was a banjo-player. Both these points would be familiar to Markfield.
The laboratory coat was apparently left on its peg every night after work was done. It was therefore accessible to anyone in the Croft-Thornton, after Silverdale had gone for the day. Markfield could have procured it, if necessary, and returned it when his work with it was over. If the Whalley murder was committed in some secluded spot—say inside a house—the murderer would hardly have left a clue, like this button and shred of cloth, in his victim's hand, since he would have plenty of time to search the body at leisure. As things are, it looks like a manufactured clue, especially since the shred of cloth is so characteristic.
Silverdale again has no alibi; but neither has Markfield, since his housekeeper was away nursing a relative. We shall need to wait for further evidence.
Written after the raid on Avice Deepcar's house.
Flamborough has arrested Silverdale. Perhaps it's a sound move, though not from his point of view. I hope it will bring things to a crisis, and that we may be able to fish something out of the disturbed waters.
One point is already established: Silverdale had nothing to do with this raid on Miss Deepcar's house.