Came down here yesterday afternoon
with a friend. Seemed, from what I could hear, to want to give him
something to eat out of that room. I put him down as dotty, but my!
you should have heard him when he found out that the stuff had been
lifted!"
"Was he disappointed?" Burton asked.
Words seemed to fail the plasterer. He nodded his head a great many
times and spat upon the floor.
"That may be the word I was looking for," he admitted. "Can't say as I
should have thought of it myself. Anyway, the bloke never stopped for
close on five minutes, and old Joe--him on the ladder there--he came all
the way down and listened with his mouth open, and he don't want no
laming neither when there's things to be said. Kind of auctioneer they
said he was. Comes easy to that sort, I suppose."
"Did he--did Mr. Waddington obtain any clue as to the whereabouts of
the missing property?" Burton asked, with some eagerness.
"Not as I knows on," the plasterer replied, picking up his brush, "and
as to the missing property, there was nowt but a few mouldy rugs and a
flower-pot in the room. Some folks does seem able to work themselves up
into a fuss about nothing, and no mistake! Good morning, guvnor! Drop
in again some time when you're passing.
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