Chapter III.—The Master Minds“This is Stratford St. Mary we are just coming to,” remarked Superintendent Russell to the two Inspectors from the Yard, “and to the ordinary person it might seem quite impossible that so beautiful a village could be associated with a dreadful crime.”
“That's so,” nodded Inspector Carter thoughtfully, “but it has often been noted that, in proportion to the number of its inhabitants, the countryside is undoubtedly more criminally inclined than any cities or big towns. We might imagine wickedness and vice would flourish best among the crowded slums, but very lonely places often produce the worst cases of homicide.”
“Exactly,” commented Stone, his eyes twinkling, “and if we only knew it, many a rosy-cheeked farmer round here hides a dead body in his haystack, an
