Bruce Alexander - An Experiment in Treason

Both men rose at Sir John’s entrance.

“Thank-you for coming,” said the man behind the desk. “I hope I may be of greater help to you today than I was the other night.”

“I hope so, too. Lord Hillsborough. But am I mistaken, or do I sense another here in this room?”

“You amaze me, Sir John. Indeed you do sense another present. He is Sir Thomas Dexter.”

“Ah, the solicitor general. He must be here to ensure that you are not too helpful.”

The two men laughed politely and in chorus at that; Sir John bowed in their general direction.

“It is a pleasure to meet you at last, ” said he who had been identified as Sir Thomas. “You were much discussed when I read law.”

“That could not have been so very long ago, judging from the sound of your voice. May I ask, sir, what is your age?”

“I have attained twenty-five years, sir.”

“Only that? Why sir, you seem a fair infant prodigy of the law. I believe I knew your father whilst I was in the Navy. He is Lord of the Admiralty, is he not?”

“Just so.”

“Remember me to him, if you please.” Then, after I had positioned him carefully so that the chair provided was directly beneath his backside, he took a seat. The other two returned to their chairs, and I, having nowhere else to go, took a post behind Sir John.

At a nod from the solicitor general. Lord Hillsborough cleared his throat and began: “As you may have gleaned from my welcoming remark. Sir John, I am prepared to be more cooperative than I was at our last meeting.”

“That, at least, is a start.”

“I must confess that on that occasion I was not altogether forthcoming.”

“You knew, in other words, what the burglars were after?”

“Well …yes.”

“Because you had already found that it was missing?”

“That’s right.”

“Was it something of value to you? Of course it was. But was it of value to the burglars? Monetary value? Not money, evidently, nor something that could have been sold immediately? “

“No, no, no,” said Lord Hillsborough, “not money, nor something that could be easily sold. I believe I can make things considerably easier for you if I tell you that what was stolen could only have value to a very few men here in London. I would hazard that the burglars were, so to speak, hired to accomplish the theft.”

“And who do you suppose would have ordered this done?”

Before Lord Hillsborough could respond. Sir Thomas cleared his throat sharply that he might catch the attention of the nobleman.

Once he had it, he rose from his chair and stepped across the short space which separated them, raised his hand to shield his hps, and whispered in his ear.

“That I cannot answer at th’u time,” said Hillsborough, emphasizing the temporary nature of the stricture which had been placed upon him.

“But at another time soon?” queried Sir John.

“Perhaps.”

“You seem determined to make this more difficult than it need be, my Lord. Why not now?”

“Because, sir,” said the young solicitor general, “to answer that question we need the permission of one who is not at this moment readily available to us.”

Oddly, Sir Thomas Dexter had not left Hillsborough’s side. He stood by his chair so that he might be more immediately available to give advice.

“I appreciate your frankness, if not your lack of response,” said the magistrate. “But perhaps now, since you’ve made clear to me your limitations, we can move through this a bit more quickly.”

“I hope so,” said Sir Thomas.

“Lord Hillsborough, you’ve made it rather clear what the stolen object was not, so perhaps nowyou can tell me what it was.”

“It was a packet of letters.”

“Indeed? Then I must repeat one of the questions I put to you the other night, and that is, to wit, whether these letters are of a private and personal nature, the sort that might be used to embarrass you?”

“No,” said Hillsborough, dismissing the notion out of hand, “nothing of that kind — certainly not.”

“Were you then the sender or recipient of these letters?”

“Neither.”

Sir John seemed truly puzzled. “These letters must then have come into your possession in your capacity as secretary of state for the American colonies. Is that true?”

Lord Hillsborough was plainly annoyed at the question. He turned to Sir Thomas for advice — and received it. The two men huddled behind their upraised hands, buzzing away in whispers, first one and then the other. At last, fully informed, he turned back to Sir John.

“I must decline to answer that question direct,” said he. “I can only say to you. Sir John Fielding, that His Majesty’s government attaches great importance to the letters and to their recovery and wishes them returned to me at once. That, I believe, is all I care to say at this meeting.”

“Well,” said Sir John, rising from his chair, “since I was brought here specifically to hear what you had to say, and now you propose to stop talking, there is no point in remaining. I must say, though, that in spite of what I was led to expect from you by the Lord Chief Justice, I have gotten very little more from you than I did at my first visit here. Now I know what I did not know before, that I am to look for a packet of letters. How nice.” Then, after no more than a pause for breath, he turned round in my general direction and said, “Come along, Jeremy, let’s away from here.”

I managed to push the chair aside and offered him my elbow. He felt the nudge I gave him and fastened onto me. But as we proceeded to the door, of a sudden he stopped, turned back to the two men, and spoke up once again.

“I shall put another question to you. Lord Hillsborough. You needn’t answer it, for I believe I know the answer already. The question is this: Were you authorized to serve as custodian for these letters? Are there not rules against taking such important documents into your residence and keeping them there?”

“I … Well … I …”

“Just as I thought.” And so did we set out again upon our path to the study door. It opened magically before us, and I knew then that the butler had heard all, as butlers will. Yes, there he was, bowing solemnly before us, closing the door behind us, then reappearing just ahead to lead the way. Not only had he sharp ears, he was also fleet of foot for one of advanced years.

‘Twas at the door which led to Craig’s Court that the butler paused and spoke out in a low, confidential tone.

“Sir John,” said he, “there was a detail to the burglary which I failed to pass on to you. I don’t know why I neglected to do so. Perhaps I was so upset that I — “

“Quite understandable,” said Sir John, interrupting. “Events such as these have a way of disturbing one’s equihbrium, so to speak, so that matters go forgotten and important details are overlooked. I’ve experienced it myself.”

“Well, I’m not at all sure that this would be what one would call an important detail, but I could not help but note that the locks to this front door had been secured open with a stout strip of cotton. I discovered it thus unlocked.”

“Hmmm, I know not if that be an important detail, but it certainly is an interesting one. And I thank you for passing it on to me, Mr…. Mr….”

“Carruthers.”

“Yes, I thank you, sir.”

So saying. Sir John bobbed his head in a proper little bow, which Carruthers returned as he threw open the front door and bade us good day.

I knew not the worth of that bit of information passed on to us by the butler, but it was plain that Sir John valued it highly. He bounced along beside me like a schoolboy off to holidays. I wondered at this and put the question to him. He responded with little more than a laugh at first.