Murder on Monday (1952) - full transcript

Subtitles by Nostromo

Janet

Janet

Oh David,David

Janet

What? What on earth is the
matter? What's happened?

Oh,David,it's terrible
it's all like going mad

What is Janet? Aren't you well?

For heaven's sake,please,what is it?

What happened to you?

Where have you been?



Where I've been? In the office of course,
where do you think I've been

But last night and all of today

But Janet,darling

I never saw you like this before

If you didn't feel well why
didn't you ring me at the bank

You only had to phone and
I'd come straight home

I've been in torment all
day and all last night

I thought I was going mad

All last night?

What do you mean all last night?

And you didn't come home

Janet,dear

Look,look at the clock up there,
it's just gone seven

I'm always home at seven every evening



There is nothing for you
to be anxious about

Just been an ordinary day,dear,
just like any other Monday

Today is Tuesday

Monday,darling

It's Tuesday,David

You are tired,you've got confused

And do you know which
day of the week it is?

Yesterday was Sunday,don't you remember?

We worked in the garden,you
pulled the rose tree,I cut the lawn

Ah

I'm just going to make
you a nice cup of tea

Do you know? You probably had an afternoon
nap and dreamt that I didn't come home

Well,I did

Everything is all right

David

Just a moment

Evening paper you brought in

Look,Tuesday

Well,that's extraordinary

And let's look
at this morning's paper

This morning's paper isn't here

because I took it with me to the office,
now you know I always take it with me,Janet

You didn't take the morning paper
because you weren't here to take it

Tuesday,the 27th,you see?

We've always understood
one and another,David

And if you suddenly felt you wanted to
go off and be on your own for a while

Well,it's perfectly all right and
I should have understood

but why couldn't you telephone and
tell me when coming home

No,something,I don't understand
happened,Janet

You,you must give me time to think

because I'm sure that some quite simple
explanation and it will come in a minute

Anyone at the bank can tell
you I've been there all day

You've not been at the bank all day

I rang the manager

I was getting supper ready at seven
o'clock last night like I always do

When you didn't come in I thought
you missed the train at Cannon Street

or the train was late for some reason

But when 8 o'clock came
and I was terribly worried

because you always telephone
if you are going to be late

I thought you had an accident

By nine o'clock I was so dreadfully
anxious so I rang up the police

You rang up the police?

What did you expect me to do

did you expect me to lock up the house
and go to bed as if nothing had happened

Then the Sgt.on duty said he'd

Enquire at the hospitals and
see if anyone been brought in

I sat up here all night
waiting and listening

And then when the bank
was open I rang the manager

He said you hadn't come in this morning

but you had left last night
as usual at 5 o'clock

Tell me you left at 6,David,
you said you always leave at 6

That's right,Janet,so I do at 6

That's why I asked him again

because it surprised me but he
repeated it that you always leave at 5

He must have made a mistake
or you misunderstood him

He always leaves at 5,speaking
of himself when he said that

About 12 he rang up again
and said you still hadn't come in

Since then I've just been sitting here for
hours and hours and thought I was going mad

Then you walk in,David, as if nothing
had happened and say that I dreamt it all

All I can tell you,unless I've
taken leave of my senses

I've been at the bank all day and done
the usual work I always do on Monday

Look at my clothes

Do I look as if I was wandering
about all Monday night?

Where could I've washed and shaved eh?

After all do I look any different

from what I look every evening
when I come in from the office?

Coming up the road just now

Thinking on the ordinary every day
things I think about on my way home then

Tulips to put in around
the house next Sunday

the accounts of the social club to get
ready for the general meeting next month

Our evening at the pictures on Wednesday

You know you are angry

when I say you must have had a nap
and dreamt it,and what else can I think?

These papers I don't understand

But there must be some explanation,
some quite simple explanation

Hello

Oh,yes,Mr Cooper

Yes,he's just come in

No,he's quite all right

I don't know is

I'll tell him

He says you've not been at the bank all day

He'd like to speak to you

Hello,good evening,Mr Cooper,Sir

Yes,I'm quite all right

I don't know

I'm afraid there isn't
anything I can tell you now

I'll be at the bank early at a quarter to 9

And I come and see you in your office

Yes,yes

Good night,Sir

Look

There's Dr Sparling
calling on the Preston's

I noticed he wasn't on
the train this morning

I wonder if anything is wrong

My husband is upstairs lying down,doctor

-I'll take you up to him
-Thank you

You definitely think he is ill?

I don't know,I do not know any
more than I told you on the phone

He came home looking
quite well and cheerful

He was perfectly all right
until I showed him the newspaper

Then he refused to believe it

Then the bank manager rang up

He believed it then

What else could he do?

Yes but he couldn't hoped
to walk in like that

and make you believe that nothing had
happened unless he also believed it

I know,he such an honest man,doctor

I don't think he'd ever
told a lie in his life

I think he was absolutely genuine
when he seemed surprised

Yet

I had a feeling he was concealing something

-Oh
-Well,a small thing

But

He said he left his office
last night at 6 o'clock

That he always leaves at 6 but

The bank manager on the phone said
he leaves at 5 regularly every night

That hardly explains
in any way the 24 hours

Did you ask him about it?

Yes,he said it was a mistake

-He was so certain I must believe him
-Of course

You don't know us very well,doctor

But I think you ought to know
we are absolutely happy together

I'm sure of that

That's what made it hard

But I did try to make him realize

that I'd understand perfectly

if he just wanted to go off and
be on his own for a while

What did he say to that?

He swore that there was nothing,
there was absolutely nothing

-Then I think you should accept that
-Yes,I do

Because I am certain he always
has told me the truth

all the years we've been together

Well,if you'll tell him I'm here

-David?
-Hmm

Dr Sparling is here

Oh

Good evening

Good evening,doctor

It's quite some time since we last
met,you remember,the social club dance

Yes,at Christmas

Quite a good crowd that evening

That's keep you pretty busy being
treasurer of a big club like that

Oh,it does,it takes a
good deal of time I enjoy it

How many members have you got?

Over 300 this year

-Oh,it's a big thing
-Yes

It is,I hoped to start it 10 years
ago with the gang was 15 members

Gone ahead fast the past few years

Well,you're looking very well

I feel well,perfectly well

My wife told you on the phone what happened

Yes,she told me everything you told her

It was so queer,doctor

Like a night mare

Yes

Now look,I don't want you to
take this in the wrong way

But

You do realize that anything you say
to me is in strictest confidence

And if there's anything you
don't want Mrs Preston to know

Oh,I can assure you
definitely of that,doctor

I can tell you no more than I told my
wife,I told her everything I know

From the moment I left
home yesterday morning

until the moment I arrived
back here this evening

I was absolutely convinced that I
spent an ordinary day at the bank

There's only one of the thing
that could have happened

You must have had a lapse of memory
that apparently lasted a full 24 hours

A lapse of memory?

Where could I've been for 24 hours?

That's what we got to try to find out

You've been quite well recently

I mean no headaches or unaccountable
restlessness or sleeplessness

No I don't think so

Nothing seriously worrying you?

Nothing to account for all this

Was there anything unusual in
your journey to London yesterday?

No

Arrived at the station a few
minutes before the train came in

met Major Watson on the platform,
the President of our social club

We travelled up together
talked of club affairs

new tennis courts we are laying
down at the general meeting next month

remember it all perfectly

Nothing happened at the bank

because the manager rang up
and told my wife I've been there all day

And you

And you left the bank at

-Your usual time
-Yes

Yes

You did say anything I told
you would be in confidence

Absolutely I give you my word on that

Well,there is one little thing

There's a harmless trivial little thing

that couldn't possibly have
anything to do with all this

But

You

You understand my wife and
I are perfectly happy together

Yes,of course

Anyone has little things
they like and dislike

My wife doesn't like alcoholic drinks

She's not intolerance,she's not
a temperance fanatic or anything like that

But I respect her wishes and that and
I don't have them in the house anyway

I drink very little but like
a good many other men

I enjoy a glass of sherry in the evening
when I finish my day's works

So do I,why not?

There's been a habit of mine for some while

to call in a little place

and have a glass of sherry on my
way to the station every evening

It was just after the war,we're short of
staff I was working every evening until 7

At 6 o'clock I go out have my drink
and then go back and finish my work

A little pub in a side street near the
bank kept by a brother and two sisters

Very nice people

Joe's is about forty I suppose
Ellen about the same age

The younger sister she is much
the younger under 30 I imagine

Yes,I know what you are thinking,doctor

Oh,not at all,why should I?

She's perfectly harmless
she's full of fun and I like her

But we sit there passing the
time of the day having a joke or so

while I was drinking my sherry

Well,when this late work finished

I was free to leave the
bank at the usual hour at 5

I was rather disappointed to think
this pleasant half hour had to end

It didn't open until 6 of course I could
scarcely hang about for an hour waiting

So you went around to the side door

I used to do that at a place in
Winchester during the war

They live over the premises

It was rather foolishly of me not
to tell my wife but you see I

I just let her think I still
worked at the bank until 6

Then walked straight to
the station for my train home

Well,I don't think there's
anything very terrible in that

I imagine a lot of other
city men do the same

But why didn't you tell your wife?

Why I didn't tell her

I think it was mainly I
didn't want her to to feel

she was depriving me of anything
I could easily have at home

She would have insisted
having the sherry in

I didn't want it in I like it having it
where I do at that time of the evening

-Naturally
-If I was to suddenly tell her

now that I've been doing this

she might think it was somehow
connected with what's happened

I'm sure it isn't

You went there as usual last night?

Oh,yes arrived just after 5
left in good time to catch my train

Nothing unusual happened

Nothing,had my sherry we all went into
the salon bar and played a game of dart

I remember 6 o'clock striking
from St Paul as I said good night

Well,it all boils down to
the next hour because

Normally you'd been at home at 7

Can you remember how you were
feeling on the walk to the station

Were there any incidents on the way?

Really happy and contended as I always
do walking to the station after my sherry

You didn't have more than usual to
drink that evening by any chance?

I'm certain of that two is the
limit they never press me

I'm very much a creature of habit,doctor

you know,one cup of tea for breakfast

and exactly one half cup
more things like that

And you arrived at Cannon
street in good time for your train

Yes

Yes

This one curious little thing

I can't even remember it

if I wasn't searching around for
something out of the ordinary

I do remember a curious feeling

as I walked on to the station
and looked up at the big clock

Can't really describe it a sort of

vague and uncertain kind of feeling

I was staring very hard at the clock

So hard I can see it now quite distinctive

Big white face the black hands
pointing to quarter past six

I remember

Dazed,uncertain feeling
when I went for my train

I had to think before I could
recollect the number of the platform

Do you remember the journey home?

Not absolutely

I was wondering if you were finished

Oh yes,yes,come in Mrs Preston,do

I'm not disturbing you?

No,no,no at all

Come in Janet

Well,I can promise you
one thing,Mrs Preston

Your husband's quite well in himself

A case of lost memory
is disturbing,naturally,but

There's no need to be alarmed

What were you doing
during the war,Mr Preston?

I was at the bank as usual I
was an air raid warden down here

Oh,well,you went through some bad bombings

Oh yes we were right in
Flybomb Alley here,you know

Can you remember any

specially bad experience?

Well,there was that one
at Aintshire Road,David

Oh yes, had a close (?)
squeak that night

A fly bomb came down in a piece
of wasteland behind the houses

I was more than hundred yards off
the time so the blast was pretty bad

I wasn't hit by anything but I
was deaf in this ear for some days

Did you have medical attention?

No,I don't think it's necessary I felt all
right but the deafness that soon wore off

You know,a shock of that kind
can play funny tricks sometimes

Oh,thank you

We've had a lot of it since the war

Yes

If only I could remember when it happened

And what I was dong all those hours

We accounted for the whole of yesterday

until Mr Preston arrived at Cannon
Street Station on his way home

Do you mean that he lost his
memory at Cannon Street last night

and stayed then until this evening?

It is possible

But wouldn't the station master
or somebody have done something?

You've no dim recollection
of anything like that?

None whatever

I think that's possibly what happened

Your memory began to
go wrong at Cannon Street

You just wandered aimlessly away

Yes,and where to? For all those
hours,the whole night?

Well,that's something we
don't know at present

In the morning after
a good night's sleep,you may

remember some little things
that'll piece the rest together

The main thing is you're home

Fit and well and no harm done

Naturally you feel disturbed and worried

I'll send you around something to
settle you down when you go to bed

Oh,I never take things like that

Oh,it'll be quite harmless,
just if you can't sleep

And I look in at about 10 in the morning

But I leave for the bank before eight

I'd promised that manager
I'd be there early

I wouldn't go to the bank
tomorrow morning ,if I were you

Have a quiet day

And don't worry

You know,doctor

There's one thing that's bothering
me a bit about the bank,doctor

You know

it's practically certain I shall be manager
of the Eastbourne branch next year

It's a good branch and a good appointment

but it may affect things very much
if the director hear about this,you know

They are queer people,those directors

Supposing I said there
was some misunderstanding

If I said I spent the night with
friends and my wife forgot

Or I forgot to tell her

Oh,that's entirely up to you

My only concern if I'm
asked for a certificate

Oh,you won't be,I'll ring the
manager in the morning and explain

-I'm sure you'll support me in that,Janet?
-I'll do whatever you think right,David

I can't tell you how grateful I
am for the way you helped me

You know

a lot of doctors that'll talk to lot of
big words and frighten me out of my life

No need of that,I'm sure

-Still,if you'd like to see a specialist
-Good heavens,no

Hello,Preston,I'm just
coming over to see you

Oh,good evening,you know Major Watson,
doctor,the President of our social club

-How are you?
-Not too bad

I met you at our Christmas dance,didn't I?

Yes,that's right I came as a guest

-Have you recruited him as a member?
-No,not yet but I think he'd ought to be

Fine,you put him up,Preston,I'll second him
it's the best club for miles around

bridge,billiard, everything,
including a monthly Brains Trust

We've just been running a sweepstake on the
Cambridgeshire,we've collected over 500 £

That's quite a lot of money,
well,good bye,Mr Preston

Good bye,good bye doctor

-Nice chap?
-Yes,quite a good fellow

I was thinking only the other day we
ought to rope in up a few doctors

We've got a couple of chemists
but doctors give a club more class

What's he here for? Aren't you well?

Oh,nothing much just a

Just a touch of tummy trouble that's all

I wondered why you weren't
on the train this morning

You've been home all day?

No,as a matter of fact,I'd
spend the night with friends

Something I had for supper
disagreed with me

I decided to spend the night with them

I've only just got home

You say you spent the night with friends?

Yes

You mean you slept the night with them?

Well,I've just told you

Some old friends on
the other side of London

I go there now and then

I came to see you about
that sweepstake money

You went to the club last night
and took it away,didn't you?

Robinson,the club steward said you
were there in the office to 10 o'clock

You must be pretty late for
that dinner of those friends of yours

on the other side of London if you
didn't leave the club until after 10

You?

You did go the club and
take that money,didn't you?

I told you I spent the night with friends

Do you mean to tell me
you didn't go to the club at all?

No

Good Lord

What did the club steward tell you?

Whatever he told me was a lie.The fellow
is a dirty rotten low-down thief

What did he tell you?

He came round to my house last night

to bring me the keys because
he was going away on holidays

He told me he put out all his lights

but just as he was leaving
he saw a light in the office

He went in to put that out

He found you there at the safe

He saw that sweepstakes money
all those bundles of notes on a chair

He said that you told him

you weren't altogether too happy about
leaving all that money in that small safe

But then you were going to take care of
it until you paid out the prizes

Do you mean to tell me that that's a lie?

I've told you I wasn't there

The dirty rotten thief had it all so
smooth. Have you ever doubted him?

He told me you acted oddly

lost your temper and told him to go
out and mind his own business

Well,you never liked that
fellow I never liked him either

You see what he did?

He wanted to make me wonder about you

where the money had gone and
give him more time to get away

And the scoundrel had a clear day start

Are you certain the money is gone?

Certain? Of course I'm certain,515£
of club money,members money

And the draw tomorrow night

We'd better get the police on that at once

Where is your phone?

Major Watson,don't do anything tonight

Don't do anything tonight,what do you mean?

There may be some mistake,
some misunderstanding

-What kind of mistake the money is gone
-It may not have been stolen

Well,it beats me,you never
liked the fellow,you never trusted him

And now he's under doubt(?)
you're only trying to cover him up

I'm tired tonight,Major,I've had a bad day

-I'm not well
-Well?

Do you think I'm well after all this?

What are we going to tell the
subcommittee tomorrow night?

Will you wait until the morning,
Major? Let's decide then

And give him another
clear night to get away?

It's very serious to accuse a
man until we are certain

I'm the club treasurer I feel
myself responsible

I don't understand you

I thought you were a businessman

-I'll ring you first thing in the morning
-I'll probably ring you before you ring me

It's terrible,David,isn't it?

And how did you know?

Why? Mrs Thompson just
called in,she told me

But how did she know?

I think it's all over the town

What's all over the town?

Didn't Major Watson come to tell you?

Do you mean to say he hadn't heard?

They found Robinson,the club
steward this evening

In that little wood by
the pond on the common

He's been murdered

Murdered?

Hello? Is that the police station?

This is Major Watson,
president of the Social Club

I wish to report a robbery of 515 £

What do you say?

Robinson? Murdered?

Right,take him away

Up,away

Drive away,driver

How much have you roped off?

About twenty square yards,Sir

I don't suppose they find much tonight

We might as well have a look round

I suppose these are the
old dugouts something

Yes,Sir

Tell the photographer I want those
plates first thing in the morning,will you?

Yes,Sir

They had a good look around,Sir
but they've found nothing yet

The ground's covered with leaves

However,we'd better leave
this to the morning

Oh,tell the river police to
drag the pond,will you?

Right,Sir

And see that you have plenty of men on duty

Otherwise you may have the whole
neighbourhood swarming in

Good night,Sir

Hart Road,please,Jim

-Good morning,Mrs Preston?
-Yes,that's right

I'm Inspector Hemingway.I rung up just
now and had a word with your husband

-Yes,that's right,will you come in
-Thanks

Thank you

He's in here

Good morning,Mr Preston

I'm Inspector Hemingway I
spoke to you on the phone just now

Yes,that's right

-Will you,will you sit down?
-Thank you

Lovely show of those Japanese
chrysanthemum you've got out there

Yes,my wife goes in for those

How do you get get such fine colours?

Manage to get a little good
manure from the riding school

Not much of the good old
stable stuff about these days

No I'm afraid not

You know down my road the milkman
still calls with the horse and cart

All of people with gardens waits with a
pair of shovels hoping for a bit of luck

That's one way

The trouble is the horses are
so regular in their habits

the same man gets it every morning

It's a bit of shock for you
this Robinson business

Yes

You're the treasurer over
at the club aren't you?

-Yes,that's right
-I suppose you knew him pretty well

Well,only as club steward,
he'll bring me the books

I check them over and put
the money in the bank

Were they always in order? No trouble?

None,whatever

He wasn't a good book keeper

there were small mistakes in
additions but nothing deliberate

Did he do everything in the club?

There's a woman does the cooking

and a little fellow that worked in
the kitchen at weekends

But he was at the hospital during the week,
Robinson was practically on his own

-What's the name of the cook?
-Mrs Bridget

And the other chap?

I can't remember

Well,I suppose I can contact
him at the hospital

Oh,yes,of course

Major Watson told me a rather queer story

-I think he saw you last night
-Yes,he came in

From his account,this fellow Robinson
had some idea of involving you,Mr Preston

Yes,Major Watson told me

Major Watson says

that you spent that night with
friends on the other side of London

It's only a matter of routine

but if you just give me the name
and the address of the people

you stayed with that night,
I can clear that up right away

I spent the night with
an old friend of mine

His name is Wainwright

Wainwright,will you give
me his address please

17 Manor Road Wembley

Well,I won't keep you now,Mr Preston

You'll be needed at the inquest

Because the story which Robinson told
Major Watson will come in as evidence

But we'll let you know in good time

It's a rather bad luck on your club

Were you insured against
this kind of robbery?

No,they weren't insured money

Oh,let's hope we get it back for you

I suppose you couldn't

Spare a few of those chrysanthemums?

Yes,of course

My wife loves a bit of colour around the
flat,we haven't got a garden,worse luck

I'll ask my wife to cut you some

You will? Oh,thanks very much

Well, I'll drop by my own and pick
them up on my way home,if I may

Around about 5 o'clock

-I'll see that they are ready for you
-Fine

We'll keep you informed,good bye Mr Preston

Good bye

What did he say?

I'll tell you in a minute

Who are you ringing up?

Janet,I can't talk if you're here

The inspector asked for some chrysanthemums

Could you go out and
pick them for him,please?

-Then everything is all right
-Yes,yes,it is

Hello,hello

Is that Wembley 7294?

Yes,I want to speak to Mr Wainwright,please

What?

When did he go away?

Last Saturday?

But

I must get in touch with
him,it's very urgent

Yeah

Sure,you know what hotel he's staying at?

I see

I see

No,no message

Thank you

Did he say what colour he likes?

-Colours? What colour?
-You said the inspector

wanted some chrysanthemums

It doesn't matter now

But David,only a moment ago you told me

Just a few of each

That'll be all right

Wherever are you going? The
doctor will be here in an hour

No,I'll just go round to the surgery

I think a little walk would do me good

Oh,Mr Preston,come in,come in

How are you this morning?

All right

I was just coming round to see you

You know what's happened?

No,what?

It's in your paper there

Oh,you mean that murder on Monday

Your club steward,it's
quite close to where I live

Well

Have you been able to
piece things together at all?

No

No small thought on
memory that might help us

No,there's nothing

Supposing we try running through
things again,quietly and slowly

-And see whether..
-Oh,why don't you say

What's in your mind and done with it

I know exactly what you are thinking

Every imaginatively person
who suffers a lapse of memory

Tries to fill in the gaps with
all kind of things

If you hadn't read about this affair

you'd found something else,
a burglary or something

And let your mind play on that,
you wouldn't be human if you didn't

But it's absurd to connect this matter
of the club steward with yourself

Why is it absurd?

When there's a person
who suffers a lost memory

still retains his own character,Mr Preston

If a criminal lunatic lost his memory

he'll probably continue
behave like a criminal lunatic

But a normal honest man will continue
to behave normally and honestly

Supposing a normal honest man

Hated somebody,wouldn't he go on
hating that person subconsciously

after his memory had gone?

But you didn't hate this man Robinson

I did hate him

But why?

How can I explain?

From the very moment he came up
to the club committee I disliked him

I opposed his appointment because of that

He surely found out that I opposed him

What made you do that?

How could I tell

I never had bad feelings of any
man in my life except for him

I just disliked his type,
his big fat body,pale flabby face

Most of all I disliked his eyes

The way he looked at me

I don't suppose I had any good grounds
for opposing his appointment

But

Did he prove himself to be the wrong man?

He did his work well enough

The more I saw him the more I loathed him

I used to look forward to going
to the club after he came

It was spoilt for me

He had his eyes on me every
time he came into the room

I thought something evil
and horrible about him

I knew he'd glory in hurting
me if he could and was waiting for a chance

Gradually I

I got the feelings somehow he

He was fated to ruin and destroy me

You see,that's why I told you
to stay at home today and rest

Imaginations can play cruel tricks

And you thought I'm suddenly
imaging all this,do you?

For months now I wake up in the nights

fuming of what he'd done to
destroy my pleasure in the club

Wondering what I could do to get rid of him

But you got to be sensible

You never in your wildest moments
thought of murdering him?

Naturally I didn't

Well,then you're not very likely
to murder him on Monday night

Do you know what happened on Monday night?

A few hours before he died,he told
Major Watson he saw me in the club

Taking the sweepstakes money

But you can prove that
you didn't do that either

How can I?

By common sense and reason

If a man was desperately in need of money

then it's possible

he might be drawn subconsciously to a
place where money could be found

That is possible

Yes,if he definitely had theft in mind
before his lapse of memory

If you are going to tell me

you've been calmly planning robbery
and murder for the past few weeks

then,I don't believe you and I never shall

And what's more I can't help you because
you're making no attempt to help yourself

When you left me last night I thought I'd
wake up this morning with everything clear

When I heard about this murder

I didn't dare sleep

All night long I never lost the
sound of the rain trickling outside

the trains and the traffic in the distance

It began to come

In little bits at first
as you said it would

Queer little disconnected things

The chestnut tree,some thin
strips of metal tinkling like bells

A man's feet rustling in dry leaves

One half of my brain fought against
it the other side went probing on

Suddenly

I remembered

I was on a common

I saw every detail,the moon was shining

The wind was rattling

those little strips of metal men hang
around their allotments to scare the birds

I saw the pond where the children
paddled and sailed their boats

a long line of chestnut trees with
the dry leaves coming down

The two old dugouts under the mount

I was walking along the
(?) path beside the pond

In a desperate kind of fear

This man Robinson was
following me in the dark

Creeping along like a fat grey slug

I went between the trees,down
the steps of one of the dugouts

There was a pile of sandbags in one corner

and some squares of
that tarred roofing stuff

I laid the money under the square
and I covered it over with sand

All around I could hear him out
there roaming about in the dead leaves

I came up the steps

And looked out

I could just see him going into the wood

And I followed him

When did you first know he'd been murdered?

Last night when somebody called on my wife

Did this person tell your
wife how it was committed?

Didn't ask

How did it happen when
it came back last night?

I followed him into the wood

I tore my mind away
from it,it was too horrible

You see perfect autosuggestion

Now doesn't that make you see reason?

You dreamt what you were told by your wife

Oh,I wish I could believe you

You added to that dream what Major
Watson told you about the money

and you woke up when your information
about the details came to an end

What makes you so certain I dreamt it?

Because it's the sort of dream a man
would have after your experience

You told me my memory might
come back you can't be so certain

I can only weigh the two things together
and go for the one that's more probable

When anyone would ask me point blank

if I remember anything of those last hours

would anyone in authority
would to ask me on oath

would it be honest to still
say that I remember nothing?

In your place I certainly would

If you were sure then it might
be different but you are not

I give myself the benefit of a doubt
the Law does that in any case

Whether,it's honest I don't know,but
that's what I'll do if I were questioned

I have been questioned

-When?
-Just now

Inspector came round to my house

wanted to know where I was on Monday night

But you didn't tell him all this?

No,I didn't

Did you mention this loss of memory?

No,I didn't do that,you see

I told Major Watson I spent
that night with friends

He told the police

they wanted to know the name
and address the people I stayed with

I couldn't very well go back
on what I told the Major

I'm afraid I wasn't very honest,it happened
so quickly,I hadn't time to think

What did you say?

I told him I spent Monday night in
Wembley with a man named Wainwright

He's my best and oldest friend and would
do anything for me as I would for him

I knew if I rang him up and told him

that I'd told the police I
spent the night with him

he'll say that I did without question

Did he agree to that?

The caretaker answered the telephone

Wainwright went on a motoring
tour on Saturday morning

He spent the weekend in the Lake District

He's somewhere in Scotland now

I might have known something
like that would happen

I'm afraid it's rather serious

I'm sorry to drag you
into a thing like this,doctor

You're a busy man you got a
lot of people you ought to see

What do you think I ought to do,if I go
to the inspector,what am I to tell him?

I wouldn't tell him anything if I were you

Until I've had proper advice

In what way?

Well,I know the first thing I'd do myself
would be to get a good solicitor

I haven't got a solicitor,
do you know of one?

I'm going to take you round to mine

Mr Petherbridge

It's a thousand pities that you felt
it necessary to mislead the police

with an untrue statement,Mr Preston

I was just going to explain

Do you realize that you ask this
friend of yours to commit perjury?

Are you for me or against
me in this,Mr Petherbridge?

I'm afraid Mr Preston is giving
the police a tremendous advantage

in making a false statement of his
whereabouts on Monday night

I think there are something
else in Mr Preston's mind

I told you that he had
some impressions last night

and personally I think it was a dream

-You mean concerning this money?
-Yes

Well,surely it's easy enough
to find out about that

Simply by going to the dugout and
seeing whether the money is there

I think it would be most unwise,
the police would have men on duty

We should be inviting suspicion

Yes,but it would settle Mr Preston's mind

That's not the important issue

A dream which turns out to be imaginary
is not proof of a man's innocence

Material witness and definite proofs
are the factors that really count

Excuse me

You won't find the money there,you know

We are not looking for it here,Sir

It's the man we are after,
he was in that office on Monday night

Anyone who takes the money doesn't
matter from the way you're going on

Do you realize there's a draw tomorrow
night and the race three days later?

It won't effect the race,will it,Sir?

I mean they'll still have that

If we don't get that money back,
heaven knows what's going to happen

Ah,inspector there you are

Any news of that money?

No.I'm afraid not yet,Major

-Where are..
-Inspector

There's

There's something rather
funny I want to show you

Do you,do you see?

This safe wasn't opened with a key at all

It was broken open

Yes,I see it was

Do you know,last night I could
have sworn that Robinson did this

Did Robinson had a key to the safe?

No,but Preston did

What are you trying to say,Major?

Excuse me

You see

Major Watson speaking

Who? Oh Yes

-Wembley Police Station for you,Inspector
-Thank you

Inspector Hemingway here

Yes,that's right

Yes?

Oh,I see

All right,thank you

I am going to see Mr Preston now

What about?

Only some flowers he
promised to let me have

Is there any personal property
that you can't account for?

Any small things that you had with
you before you lost your memory

you're missing now?

Yes,his gloves and the handkerchief

I'm not certain about the handkerchief

You see he always carries two

One folded in his breast pocket and
the other one tucked in his sleeve

Well,the one in the pocket was there,
I'm not certain I had the other

I think that I did

Can you describe the gloves?

Brown leather almost new

-Had the handkerchief your name on it?
-My initials

D H P

He may have left them in the train

Yes,we must hope that he did

Well,Mr Preston,I suggest that we
communicate with the police at once

and tell them that you wish to
correct your previous statement

You will then recount to them
every detail that actually happened

But nothing at all about what you may
have recollected or imagined since

What will they do then?

I don't know

depends on the extent on which
they accept your husband's statement

that he did actually lose his memory

But he did,we know that

We have to prove it,Mrs Preston

We must engage the best
possible counsel to defend you

What will that cost?

In a difficult case like this you
will need an outstanding man

If a person is suspected of stealing

can show himself to be in good
circumstances,he's no urgent need of money

Then his position in the eyes
of the jury is far stronger

But I still can't see what you mean

I mean that an important counsel
commands a larger fee than a lesser man

If you can show yourself in
a position to meet that fee

then automatically

you show the jury,you're unlikely
to have stolen out of urgent need

But what would that cost?

Well,I should say that 500 guineas
would provide for everything

I'm sorry to disturb you again,
Mrs Preston,is your husband in?

-Oh,yes,he's in here
-Thank you

Good morning,Inspector

Good morning,Mr Petherbridge

Mr Preston has asked me to act for him

Well,Mr Preston,I expect
you know why I called again

Yes

Our Wembley station called
at Mr Wainwright's house

Yes,I know

Mr Wainwright went
on his holiday on Saturday

Yes

Well,if you knew that Mr
Wainwright had gone away

I'm wondering why you told
me you stayed with him

I didn't know

You mean you didn't know when
you told me this morning?

That is correct

-If you excuse me Inspector I think
-It's quite all right,Mr Petherbridge

Well,Mr Preston,I wonder if you don't mind
just walking around to the station with me

You know it's only our routine to take
down a statement from everybody anyway

concerning an affair of this kind

It's just a formality

I've taken a statement from
Major Watson this morning

and will be taking a quite a few more

I'll do anything you need

It won't take long

-Shall I be coming back?
-Yes,of course

Will it be all right if I come too?

You wish to make a statement,Mrs Preston?

No,no but I think my husband would like
me to be there,wouldn't you dear,I mean?

I'd like to wait for you

I think I'd stay here,Janet

There's no need

I imaging you were wearing what
you might call a city suit on Monday?

Yes

Would you mind if we
take that along with us?

And the shoes you were wearing?
Just another bit of routine they make us do

-If you need them
-I'll fetch them

I'll come along up and help pack them

I think I'll go up too

No

Mr Petherbridge

If I tell you something will you promise
not to say a word about it to my husband?

Certainly

I think it'll help you to
understand,you see

For a long time now he's been
terribly need of money

It's not his fault,it was his father

It all began years ago

his father travelled round
collecting money for his firm

And then one day

Well,he couldn't pay,I think it was betting

But David undertook to pay back
every penny his father had taken

He borrowed some from friends

and the rest he got from a moneylender

Gradually he paid back all his friends

but the moneylender kept
adding expenses and things

and until now it's nearly double
what it was to begin with

He wrote a horrible letter saying

unless all the money was paid
back he'll tell David's bank

Well,now

I have a little money of my own,an annuity

I wanted to sell it there and
then but David was furious

I think it was the first
real quarrel we ever had

He said nothing would
make him use my money

I see

If the police happen to ask for
any statement,Mrs Preston

I think you'd be well advised to
say nothing whatever about this

Oh,yes,but you do see that we must pay
counsel's fee without David knowing

He could never hope to pay them himself

He'd be rather not be defended at all
if he knew it came from my money

Yes I quite see that,
you'll be sure personally

I shall take no advantage of
your difficulties,Mrs Preston

Thank you

Nice piece of material isn't it?

-Yes
-Pre war,isn't it?

Yes

You haven't cleaned the suit since Monday?

No

Oh,and now the shoes you were wearing

Oh

Stepped into some mud,didn't you?

Mud?

I don't remember

It's all right,thank you,Mr Preston

I'd never believe that David
did this terrible thing

But they haven't said so,it's
possible they never will

But they think it

If not,why did the inspector want
to take away his clothes

They only do that to criminals

It's horrible

Something they always have to do

Oh,we are going along now

You've no objections to me being with
my client when he makes his statement?

No,none at all,we prefer you do

Well,we won't be long,Mrs Preston

-Take this in to Sgt. Evans will you?
-Very good,Sir

This way please,Mr Preston

Sit down,please,Mr Petherbridge

This is only an informal talk I
don't intend to make me notes

Now then,Mr Preston

The caretaker of Mr Wainwright's
house told our people

that somebody rang up for Mr Wainwright
at about half past 9 this morning

-Was it you?
-Yes

I intended to ask Mr Wainwright

That's quite all right

Only it occurred to me that you might have
given me that information by mistake

That you might have stayed with
Mr Wainwright some other time

and got it mixed up with a visit you paid
to another friend on Monday night

Well,when I saw you this morning

I explained that I only wanted the
information to rule out the story

which Robinson told Major Watson

Now I'm not asking for a minute by minute
account of everything you did that night

But as a man can't very often do
that when he's suddenly asked

For instance Monday afternoon I
went for a walk in the park

Stopped and watch the football match

I couldn't tell anybody what time I stopped
or how long I watched the football

You see what I mean I
just want a rough idea

I can't tell you anything about
my movements on Monday night

or anything about Tuesday until I retuned
home in the evening because

I had a lapse of memory

I see

Hello,doctor,what are you doing here?

I'm waiting to see the inspector

Oh,I want to see him too

The inspector got the club books

and there's a meeting of
the subcommittee tonight

Heaven knows what's going to happen

Poor old Preston,I'd never have believed it

But then you know,when you
see that pictures in the paper

It always is that sort of fellow,isn't it?

Well,have you any little,shall
we say,gleams of memory?

Only little memories that
couldn't belong to other time

No,I have tried to think,there's nothing

Well,did you have everything
with you when you got back?

Nothing missing?

Well,anything found,anything say like
a bus ticket or anything like that,anything

That might show where
you went or what you did

Been through all my pockets with the hope
of finding something,there was nothing

Now,about this safe,Mr Preston

Do you happen to know how
many keys there are to it?

Oh,yes,they are three,Major
Watson has one,I have one

there's one at the bank down here

I imagine you keep yours in a safe place

Keep it with my other keys,this

My office key,keys to the house,
this is the key for the safe

Oh,that's all right

Robinson the steward didn't have one then?

No,no need for him to go to the
safe,he had a till all of his own

You got a key to the club itself I suppose

Yes,with the others

Here

Do you sometimes go around there after
the steward has closed up for the night?

Occasionally I have a small office there,
sometimes I walk round after supper

And you have no recollection at all
of having been there on Monday night?

None whatever

Do you re...

Do you think they'll swallow
his loss of memory idea?

Why not? It's true

But could a fellow do all that sort
of things with his memory gone?

Oh,it's possible but I don't believe he did

What do they they call
it insane or something?

You're an old friend of his,Watson?

Well,I've known him for 10 years or more
I roped him in when I first started my club

And naturally you want to
do all you can to help him

Well,I don't want to make things
worse for him any more than you do

but I'm president of that club
and I must get that money back

Now,tell me another thing

Supposing they let him off

supposing they say that he is innocent,
would he be allowed to keep the money?

Why are you so convinced he took the money?

Well, it's bound to come out,
so you may as well know it

Preston was hard up,he borrowed money
all around the club,I lent him 50 £ myself

But he paid you back

Oh yes in time

But I never known a man get cleared
out of debt once he started borrowing

Now another thing

He hated that club steward

He was always bringing up petty complaints
about him trying to get him the sack

Now I can tell you another thing too

That safe was not opened
by a key: it was broken open

Well,if Preston had a key why do that?

Don't need a Sherlock Holmes
to answer that one

He broke it open because he
had a key and Robinson hadn't

And furthermore he knew that Robinson
was starting for holidays that night

See?

I don't see anything

except a lot of chance things
that might happen to anyone

But you didn't see his face when I told him
that Robinson had been around to see me

He looked awful

Then he tried that story about
spending the night with friends

on the other side of London

Now look, a man with a
blank space in his memory

can say anything on the spur of the moment

When I told him I was going to
the police about the robbery

he practically went down on his
bended knees and begged me not to

Would a fellow do that if
he didn't know something?

If Preston was at the safe
and Robinson caught him there

why let Robinson come round and
tell you abut it before doing anything?

Because he didn't know that
Robinson was coming round to see me

I could tell that when
I told him that myself

I thought he was going to faint

Now put yourself in his place
remember and see what you would do

You plan a robbery and try
to plant it on to somebody else

Then a man,that you planned to plant it on

Catches you red-handed

You tell him some story about better
keep the money yourself

And he goes off but you don't
know whether you convinced him

Then suddenly you remember

that you've broken open the safe yourself
and ought to make it look as if he did it

All right so far?

-Oh yes, perfectly
-OK

Remain of the jam(?)

Now you know he's got to
get home and get his bag

and then catch the train to London

You know where he lives,you know
the path he's got to take across the common

How was the murder done?

Knocked on the head from behind

Battered in

Yes,it does look bad for Preston

But then if you try a lot
of chance things together

and throw a bit of imagination it
might look as just as bad even worse

-For others
-Oh yes

-Even for you
-For me?

That's rich

Why not?

Supposing you wanted money

You knew where it was
just as well as Preston did

On what proof you've got

that Robinson ever came round to your house
that night at all,was there a witness?

My wife was there

In the room?

No,she was in bed but she heard the bell

That's easy,I mean you could have gone
out and rang the bell yourself if necessary

You see

we've only got your word

that Robinson came round that
night and accused Mr Preston

Suppose you broke open the
safe because you have a key

At first perhaps you mean it to
appear as an outside burglary

But Robinson captures you red handed

All right so far?

Far from it,I was at the
pictures on Monday night

I only got back just before Robinson called

But can you prove it?
Did you go with anyone?

No,my wife doesn't like the
pictures I always go by myself

You see,no proof you were at the pictures

no proof Robinson called

You killed Robinson to keep him quiet

then you think of Preston

you know it's common knowledge
in the club that he disliked Robinson

you knew he borrowed money,good

You go round to Preston's
house to see how things are

And by the grace of the devil

You discovered this lapse of memory

that's makes even Preston doubts himself

it's wonderful,you're clear

leave Preston alone and his own
imagination will do the rest

You got quite a imagination yourself

But you make one big mistake

In your overanxiety to set the
blame squarely on Preston

You talked against him so much

that you make the police suspicious

They enquire into your movements

and find you can't prove a
thing about that night

I tell you I was at the pictures

When you tell the police
that old yarn they'll laugh

I mean everybody trying to prove a false
alibi says they were at the pictures

There was one the other day

They are hanging him on Friday

Oh

Of course I know perfectly well you
had not anything to do with it

I'm only trying to tell
you how easy it would be

for an innocent person to bring
suspicion on himself

simply by trying to incriminate another one

I never said I wanted to

I know,I know I was just
speaking generally that's all

Hello old chap,if there is anything
I can do for you,just let me know

Thanks

Would you come in now please,Sir

No,not you,Major Watson,Dr Sparling

Would you mind waiting a few minutes

I understand you want to
see the clubs books

Come here,this room

I understand that Mrs Preston
called you in last night to see her husband

Yes,about half past seven
just after he got home

Now,this lost memory business,
can you tell me anything about it

What makes it happen?

Well,in most cases it is
usually do to a mental strain

I mean,if a man suppresses
it and keeps it to himself

it keeps building up and until the strain
is too great for the brain to bear

And then the mind shuts
off and stops working

or rather like a generating station
when the load gets too heavy

In a case like this have you
anyway of telling if it's genuine?

Oh,you can if you see the patient
when he's actually suffering from amnesia

But if you don't see it until it's over
then you only got his words for it

You got your own instinct and judgement

I talked with Preston for a
quite a while last night

And again this morning

And I'm certain that everything
he told me was the truth

Did he tell you that he spent that
night with a friend in Wembley?

When a man tells you a
barefaced story like that

It makes you wonder about the
rest of what he says,doesn't it?

Now you say he saw you again this morning

Yes,he came out to my surgery

And on account of something he told you
then you advised him to see a solicitor?

Well,it was because of
this untrue statement

I thought he should see a solicitor

Was that all he told you?

It's all right ,doctor,I
understand your position

If you think that he made any kind of
confession,I can tell you at once,he didn't

Did you know he was
badly pressed for money?

Yes,I've been told so by a friend of his

And he had a violent
dislike for this murdered man?

Now,if he's as straight
forward as you think he is

Why should he sit there desperately
trying to conceal something from me?

Look,your business is
mainly with criminals,inspector

If you are dealing with an honest man

Depends what you call honest

Well,we got quite a lot
of fellows like Preston

Decent,respectable people who live quietly,
dig the garden,go for a walk on a Sunday

Perfectly good straight chaps

Except for the one little thing
that brings them round here

Doesn't make sense does it?

Tea's ready dear

-Good
-I thought you'd like some toast

Yes,that's fine

I

I've been sorting out a
few things this afternoon,Janet

Only the gas bill,the laundry and the
small account for Rogers for the tulips

I've written cheques for those

Certainly won't be necessary,David

Yes I know but I always done
these little things myself

I wouldn't like you to be troubled
or confused,if you were alone

I'm sure there's no need,dear

If they were going to do anything

they'd done it already,when they
had you at the police station

The inspector was so
nice when he rang me up

Yes,he's a nice man

I'm lucky

He said to see you rested when
you got home and not to worry

Wouldn't have been as cruel as to say
a thing like that if he meant anything

Yes,he let me go home all right but he

He put a policeman to watch the house

You imagine things,David,there's often
a policeman out there by the High Street

There's being one there all day
standing under the lamp post

You're just tormenting yourself,dear

You know

If you were alone,Janet,I wouldn't
like you to live by yourself

I was thinking,perhaps your sister would
care to come or whether you go to her

You see,your sister would have her
pension and you'll have your annuity

-You're listening,Janet?
-Yes

It wouldn't be much but two women
can always manage together

You might even start up a
kindergarten school again

like you had with her in the old days

Would you? Would you do that Janet?

I'll do whatever you say,
dear,until you came back

I had a talk this morning with the
solicitor about that moneylender

you know,there's nothing whatever
for you to worry about

He'd have no power to make any claim on you

In fact,I don't think he can
claim anything anyway

I paid him a lot more than he lent me

And Mr Petherbridge says the
solicitor's letter will settle it

Now,I'm telling you this because if
he should write,don't answer it

Give the letter straight to Mr Petherbridge

Above all

Don't dream of doing anything silly

Like trying to raise money on that
annuity and sending it to him

-Now you promise me that?
-Yes

I'd written to the bank

I want you to post that

If they take me away

I'll explain everything

and I'm sure they'll do something for you
after all the time I've been with them

You mustn't talk like
this,dear,I can't bear it

Yes,but I couldn't bear it

if I had to go away without thinking with
arranged everything possible between us

it's so simple sitting here by ourselves

Afterwards

Don't think they let us be alone together

But

Even if they did take you away
they couldn't treat you like a criminal

Doctor Sparling said they
couldn't possibly do that

It wouldn't be human

to blame you for something that happened
when you weren't yourself

Oh,we got to face these things,dear

even if they believe when I say
that I wasn't myself that night

They wouldn't let me go,they couldn't

There are place for people who do things
when they are not themselves and then

We are not certain they'll
believe I lost my memory at all

Then,it's true,David

It is true,isn't it?

Oh I swear that,Janet

Those things you thought you
remembered you mustn't tell them that

Well,if they ask me in the
court,I'm afraid I'll have to

But Mr Petherbridge said no

He said not to in my statement
to police,that's all

but you see these people
that cross examine

they'll tearing things out of you,
they'll go on till they do

I couldn't bear that,Janet

At least I can keep myself self-respect

and if I can do that

I don't mind what happens as long as
you promise to carry on and be happy

How could I be happy?

By believing in me,dear

By trusting me when I tell you
I didn't do this deliberately

It means so much to me if you do that

Now

You start up that little school again

it'll give you an interest
and help you along

In any case you always have your annuity,
one can never take that away from you

Never have to be dependent on anybody

Well,I still think it never happened David,
it's your imagination all the time

I took a lot of trouble with this toast

You always knew the way to make toast

You haven't slept at all

Even rested properly since you came home

Go up and lie down and
try to get some sleep

Yes

I think that's a good idea

At seven we'll have supper and
then,why not go to the pictures

It's our night,isn't it?

By so it is,it's Wednesday,I've forgotten

They didn't say you had to stay in

We'll say good evening to
that policeman on the corner

You see,he'll say good evening
back and not take a bit of notice

And you wonder why you've been so silly

Oh I can't think why you are so good to me

It's you who is always good to me

You will go and try and rest,won't you?

Yes

Don't you worry

I

I would like you

Just to have a look at this account book

Make sure you understand
everything and let me know

if there's anything you don't,
now it's quite simple that

What we receive here and the payments there

Now there's not much now

But there will be nearly 100 £
when my salary comes in next week

And now you don't owe anything

Nothing

We'll save up and go
abroad again next summer

Yes,we'll do that

Draw the curtains and have a good sleep

There's one or two things
to tidy up,then I will

I'll come up and call you
when supper is ready

Then the pictures

That'll be fine

Oh,good evening

-Does Mr Preston live here?
-Yes

-Are you Mrs Preston?
-Yes

Could I speak to Mr Preston,please?

He's resting and I can't disturb him now

But it's about this trouble,this murder

Then you'd better come in

You see,I'm really quite
an old friend of Mr Preston

And I thought I might be able help him

What? I think I know most
of my husband's friends

Well I expect you do,I don't
suppose Dave ever told you about me

Dave?

Well,Mr Preston

He always let me call him Dave

But I'm sorry

Is he in trouble about this murder?

I mean really in trouble?

Because if he is I want to
help him and I think I can

Then you'd better sit down

-You live in a nice house
-Yes

You,you haven't told me your name?

It's Miss Dobson,Peggy Dobson

I work with my brother
and sister at the Feathers

River Lane,just off Queen
Victoria Street in the City,you know?

-The Feathers?
-It's a public house

Our own place

What is you want to say?

Well,I came down as
soon as I could get away

I only heard about this
trouble at lunchtime

My husband's name hasn't been in the
papers,how did you know he was in trouble?

Well,a young man who lunches at
our place comes from down here

and he told us how they had Mr
Preston round at the police station

Of course he read about
this murder in the papers

but even if they had mentioned him,we
might never had known it was our Mr Preston

Your Mr Preston?

I know it's funny

we've known him all these years,and
we never knew where he came from

We only realized when this young man said

You know that fellow Preston
who comes every evening

they are after him for that Bromley murder

And then I saw I got to come at once

I thought things must be bad

Yes,they are bad

But why did you come,what's it's about?

Well,everything

Last Monday night

You see,Mr Preston been coming to
our place always since the war

He just drops in when he's on his way home

Look

If you think there's anything in this,
you're wrong because there isn't

I'm not the sort that goes out with other
people's husbands and I never did

I didn't suggest it,Miss Dobson

No,but you're looking,anyone can see that

It's no use my talking to you,
if you aren't going to listen

why don't you call him
down and let me tell him

No,my husband is very tired,
he's trying to rest

now if you have anything to
say,you can tell me

The Feathers is respectable

You can ask anybody

All he ever had was a sherry
or a sandwich maybe

So nice,we sit down chatting
in our private room

Your private room?

Because he came before we open,that's why

Or sometimes we go into the
salon bar have a game of dart

But he always left on the stroke
of 6 to catch the train at Cannon Street

You say he's done this for a long time

Oh,every evening regular

Getting on for five years now

Well,we thought he looked specially
tired on Monday night

So I gave him a Bovril
sandwich with the sherry

Then we went into the
salon bar for a game of darts

We were laughing and joking

And then the strangest thing happened

There is a little truck that brings
our sandwiches from a place in Hornsea

But it was just starting off
and he had a terrific backfire

Like a gun going off,we all
jumped because it startled us

Mr Preston did too

He turned his head quickly

And when he turned it back,
he looked different

What do you mean he looked different?

He looked round as if he
didn't know where he was

and dropped the dart he had in his hand

And he said

Everyone down to the dugout

What dugout?

I don't know,we never had a dugout,
we always used the cellar in the war

That he made us see what had happened

We knew he'd been an air raid warden

And he suddenly thought
the war was still on

Of course we talked to him
and told him it was all right

But he

He just kind of mumbled
and kept shaking his head

You see didn't know what to do

Why didn't you telephone and tell me?

Then how could we? We didn't
know where he lived

And there are crowds of
Preston in the telephone book

Then opening time came

Of course we couldn't have him
sitting in the bar looking like that

So my brother Joe took him up to
the spare bed room and made him lie down

Hoping he get all right

Actually he dozed off,but it wasn't an
ordinary sleep because we couldn't wake him

When the bar closed at 10,we
all went up all three of us

and sat about there talking
on what we ought to do

But you could have sent for a doctor

Oh,we did think of that

We even thought sending for the police

He didn't have anything to help us

No identity card or letters or anything

But he was sleeping so peacefully,
we thought we'd better leave him

And see how he felt when he woke up

No,thank you

Well,Joe and I looked at
him twice during the night

Still sound asleep

But he woke quite easily when
I took his cup of tea in the morning

Still very odd,though

He still didn't know where he lived
or the place where he worked

He didn't seem to care or want to
think when we asked him

He washed,shaved himself
quite naturally with Joe's razor

But his mind was still all
mixed up with the war

He kept on saying,it was a quiet
day with no alarms and then he say

Listen,there's one coming

Take cover

He was thinking of the
fly bombs all the time

We gave him some breakfast and
made him stay quietly in his room

But Joe said

if he wasn't better by the afternoon he had
to take him round to the police station

You knew that his bank was quite
close why didn't you tell them?

We didn't know,of course we knew he
worked in a bank,but we didn't know where

He didn't discuss those things,
it wasn't our affair

The doctor said it might
be something like this

What did he do the whole day?

He just sat about up there in that bedroom

Soon after five Joe said
the only thing to do

was to take him round to the police
station and tell them what happened

That was really the oddest part of all

We went into the salon bar,
we all had a sherry

And then he began to change

He looked

Puzzled and restless

And then he sort of
raised himself up and said

Well

Aren't we going to
finish our game of darts?

Come on

What are we waiting for

Of course we quite didn't
know what to do at first

But Joe thought it was better not to say
anything in case it upset him again

You know it was kind of uncanny

Then a new round,you know trying
to make jokes and ordinary conversation

Bang

Time to go

-Hello,nice speaking
-Hello

Well,of course we hated the idea
of him going off like that alone

But,honestly,he looked
so ordinary and natural

when he took his hat
and umbrella off the peg

we almost thought we were the funny ones

Hello,Dave

Why did you come here?

Oh,I heard you were in trouble,Dave

I

I should have told you,Janet

Never mind about that,dear,listen to
what Miss Dobson has to say

Then I thought that I'd better
find out where you lived

and come down to try to help you

How could you help me?

Miss Dobson says you spent the
whole of Monday night in her care(?)

You stayed the whole
night at the Feathers,Dave

When I tell them that,they can't
go after you any more

You know I left your house at 6
o'clock as St Paul was striking 6

Yes,but you didn't,I mean not
on the same day as you came in

You didn't come out until
this murder was all over

I came into your house just after 5

it was exactly 5 by the office clock,
when I left the bank

And I left your house as the clock
was striking,the police know that

The police never came near our
place,how can they know?

Because I told them everything that
happened just as I remembered

Janet I came round to tell you something

Upstairs in the bedroom I suddenly
remembered quite clearly

the people in the compartment
that the train left Cannon street

it was an old man with red
flower in his buttonhole

And two girls,two girls reading books

Look,David,it doesn't matter
what you say or think

directly I've been to the police
station,your troubles are over

Do the police know that you come here?

Not yet,they jolly soon will

You know what will
happen if you went to them

how serious it would be,you're not a
child,Peggy,you realize the consequences?

Look,Dave,you don't
understand what's happened to you

and you're not trying to understand

I am trying to understand,Peggy

I'm trying to understand why these
terrible things should happen to me

What can make me think I could save myself

by dragging in my best
friend get him to stand by me

swearing I was in his house that night

The police would have found him
out and he'd been arrested

that's what would happen to
you if you went with this tale

they'd call it perjury,
you could go to jail for it

now I want you to go home Peggy,
you're dealing in dangerous things

more dangerous than you realize,
now you promise me that'll you go home

Peggy,you must go at once

Take her out that way,
she can use the side door

this man is from the police

if he says anything to you,you say
anything but you know nothing about this

You understand

Oh,stay here

Good evening,Mrs Preston,
is your husband home?

Oh,yes,yes he's upstairs but first I want
you to hear what this young lady has to say

Well,I expect you're Miss Dobson

I heard you'd come down

I've been having a talk with your brother
and sister at Feathers this afternoon

Yes,you had,have you?

Well,Mrs Preston,I'm sure
it must be a relief to you

You know we never real thought
your husband was involved

We had to check up on
these things,of course

Inspector,I want you to make you understand

Ever since that terrible news last night

My husband thought himself
to be a criminal lunatic

Waiting to be taken away and
locked up for the rest of his life

Can't you realize what's
that's done to him?

Yes I can,Mrs Preston,I only wish
it could have been avoided

He's always lived so quietly

Only wanted to do his work

And enjoy his evenings and
be happy with his friends

A thing like this would have driven him mad

He wouldn't even listen to
what Miss Dobson had to say

You got to go up and convince him

It was I came to do,Mrs Preston

As far as your husband's concerns
there's no more to worry about

It's perfectly all right

Oh,so it's perfectly all right is it?

You think you can walk in here
smiling and everything is all right

Anybody would think you'd talking
about a lost dog that's come home

Don't you realize you made him ill?

When you knew he hadn't done it

why couldn't you phone up
from the Feathers and tell him so?

No, not you

You come sailing in your own
good time and let him wait

let him suffer,whatever his feelings matter

All you fellows are good for

is hanging around our place at night

waiting to see for if anyone has a
glass of beer five past 10

I'll go now,Mrs Preston,you
don't want me about

-I do hope he'll be all right,good night
-Good night,thank you

Thank you

Do you want me for anything else?

No,there's nothing,thank you

You know where to find me,if you do

It's Peggy Dobson,the Feathers,River Lane

I'm sorry,inspector,but it
was nice of her to come

Now

He's in his bedroom

There

Oh,I

I'm just coming down

Well,just came up to tell you there's
no more for you to worry about

It's perfectly true

Now

You won't need this thing

Come and sit down

And I'll tell you all about it

Well,to begin with,Mr Preston

We've got the man who did it

As a matter of fact it was you,
who put us on the right track

When you told me about the little chap who
worked in the hospital in the evenings

and the club kitchen weekends

But the thing that had been puzzling us

was the co-incidence of someone
trying to plant a robbery on a man

the very night is missing from home

You know it looks to me as if Robinson,
the club steward and this little chap

had planned to get that money

Maybe Monday night,maybe
the next,I don't know

But when they hear the club
treasury is missing,it's a gift

They break open the safe,share the money

Robinson goes around to Major Watson,
tries to plant the thing on you

After that,it's the old story
of thieves falling out

Anyway,Robinson got a knock over the
head,the other chap took the lot

Isn't it splendid,Mrs Preston,we've got all
the money back bar two pounds ten

That's fine,Major

Of course,I always said your
husband was innocent

But if I were he,I'd
prosecute that inspector

Tell him to be at the club tomorrow evening

It's the draw

-Good night,Mrs Preston
-Good night

Well,I'm afraid it caused you awful
lot of trouble and anxiety,Mr Preston

But

The sort of thing that might
happen to anybody

Oh,and

Here's a pair of gloves and a handkerchief

which you left in a spare
room at the Feathers

I believe your solicitor was
a bit worried about this

Well,I say good night now,Mr Preston

Good night

Inspector

Your flowers

Thank you very much,Mrs Preston

My wife will be delighted

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