"Sir Henry went on nodding at us and drumming the palm of his
hand on the edge of the table.

"`This thing happens all the time,' he said, `all about, where
professional criminals are at work. It accounts for a lot of
mysteries that the police cannot make head or tail of, like this
one, for example. Without our knowledge of this sinister custom,
one could not begin or end with an affair like this.

"`But it's simple when one has the cue - it's immensely simple.
We know exactly what happened and the sort of crooks that were
about the business. The barefoot prints show the Continental
group. That's the trick of Southern Europe to go in barefoot
behind a man to kill him.'

"Sir Henry jarred the whole table with his big hand. The surface
of the table was covered with powdered chalk that the baronet had
dusted over it in the hope of developing criminal finger prints.
Now under the drumming of his palm the particles of white dust
whirled like microscopic elfin dancers.

"`The thing's clear as daylight,' he went on: `One of the
professional group brought the accomplice down here to divide the
booty. He broke the door in. They sat down here at this table
with the lighted candle as you see it. And while the stuff was
being sorted out, another of the band slipped in behind the man
and killed him.

"`They started to carry the body out. Millson chanced by. They
got in a funk and rushed the thing. Of course they had a motor