"Money!" said Miss Penkridge. "Money!"

The old solicitor went away, promising to get to work on the lines
suggested by Miss Penkridge, and next day he telephoned to Viner asking
him to go down to his offices in Bedford Row. Viner hurried off, and on
arriving found Mr. Pawle with a cablegram before him.

"I sent a pretty long message to Melbourne, to Ashton's old bankers, as
soon as I left you yesterday," he said. "I gave them the news of his
murder, and asked for certain information. Here's their answer. I rang
you up as soon as I got it."

Viner read the cablegram carefully:

Deeply regret news. Ashton well known here thirty years dealer in real
estate. Respected, wealthy. Quiet man, bachelor. Have made inquiries in
quarters likely to know. Cannot trace anything about friend named
Wickham. Ashton was away from Melbourne, up country, four years, some
years ago. May have known Wickham then. Ashton left here end July, by
_Maraquibo_, for London. Was accompanied by two friends Fosdick and
Stephens. Please inform if can do more.

"What do you think of that?" asked Mr. Pawle. "Not much in it, is there?"

"There's the mention of two men who might know something of Ashton's
habits," said Viner. "If Fosdick and Stephens are still in England and
were Ashton's friends, one would naturally conclude that he'd seen them
sometimes. Yet we haven't heard of their ever going to his house."

"We can be quite certain that they never did--from what the two ladies