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One

I

Mrs Bantry was drea Her sweet peas had just taken a First at the flower show The vicar, dressed in cassock and surplice, was giving out the prizes in church His andered past, dressed in a bathing suit, but as is the blessed habit of dreams this fact did not arouse the disapproval of the parish in the way it would assuredly have done in real life…

Mrs Bantry was enjoying her drea drea tea Somewhere in her inner consciousness was an awareness of the usual early- noises of the household The rattle of the curtain rings on the stairs as the housemaid drew them, the noises of the second housee outside In the distance the heavy noise of the front-door bolt being drawn back

Another day was beginning In the meantime she must extract as much pleasure as possible from the flower show—for already its drea apparent…

Below her was the noise of the big wooden shutters in the drawing roo opened She heard it, yet did not hear it For quite half an hour longer the usual household noises would go on, discreet, subdued, not disturbing because they were so familiar They would cul the passage, the rustle of a print dress, the subdued chink of tea things as the tray was deposited on the table outside, then the soft knock and the entry of Mary to draw the curtains

In her sleep Mrs Bantry frowned Soh to the dreae, footsteps that were too hurried and too soon Her ears listened unconsciously for the chink of china, but there was no chink of china

The knock came at the door Automatically from the depths of her dreams Mrs Bantry said: “Come in” The door opened—now there would be the chink of curtain rings as the curtains were drawn back

But there was no chink of curtain rings Out of the diht Mary’s voice came—breathless, hysterical: “Oh, ma’am, oh, ma’am, there’s a body in the library”

And then with a hysterical burst of sobs she rushed out of the rooain

II

Mrs Bantry sat up in bed

Either her dream had taken a very odd turn or else—or else Mary had really rushed into the room and had said (incredible! fantastic!) that there was a body in the library

“Impossible,” said Mrs Bantry to herself “I ”

But even as she said it, she felt , that Mary, her superior self-controlled Mary, had actually uttered those fantastic words

Mrs Bantry reflected a al elbow to her sleeping spouse

“Arthur, Arthur, wake up”

Colonel Bantry grunted, muttered, and rolled over on his side

“Wake up, Arthur Did you hear what she said?”

“Very likely,” said Colonel Bantry indistinctly “I quite agree with you, Dolly,” and proain

Mrs Bantry shook him

“You’ve got to listen Mary came in and said that there was a body in the library”

“Eh, what?”

“A body in the library”

“Who said so?”

“Mary”

Colonel Bantry collected his scattered faculties and proceeded to deal with the situation He said:

“Nonsense, old girl; you’ve been drea”

“No, I haven’t I thought so, too, at first But I haven’t She really came in and said so”

“Mary came in and said there was a body in the library?”

“Yes”

“But there couldn’t be,” said Colonel Bantry

“No, no, I suppose not,” said Mrs Bantry doubtfully

Rallying, she went on:

“But then why did Mary say there was?”

“She can’t have”

“She did”

“You ined it”

“I didn’t iine it”

Colonel Bantry was by now thoroughly awake and prepared to deal with the situation on its merits He said kindly:

“You’ve been drea, Dolly, that’s what it is It’s that detective story you were reading—The Clue of the Broken Match You know—Lord Edgbaston finds a beautiful blonde dead on the library hearthrug Bodies are always being found in libraries in books I’ve never known a case in real life”

“Perhaps you will now,” said Mrs Bantry “Anyway, Arthur, you’ve got to get up and see”

“But really, Dolly, it must have been a dream Dreams often do seem wonderfully vivid when you first wake up You feel quite sure they’re true”

“I was having quite a different sort of drea dress—so like that”

With a sudden burst of energy Mrs Bantry juht of a fine autumn day flooded the room

“I did not dreao downstairs and see about it”

“You want o downstairs and ask if there’s a body in the library? I shall

look a damned fool”

“You needn’t ask anything,” said Mrs Bantry “If there is a body—and of course it’s just possible that Mary’s gone s that aren’t there—well, soh You won’t have to say a word”

Gruown and left the rooe and down the staircase At the foot of it was a little knot of huddled servants; so The butler stepped forward impressively

“I’ should be done until you ca up the police, sir?”

“Ring ’em up about what?”

The butler cast a reproachful glance over his shoulder at the tall young wo hysterically on the cook’s shoulder

“I understood, sir, that Mary had already informed you She said she had done so”

Mary gasped out:

“I was so upset I don’t knohat I said It all caave way andit like that—oh, oh, oh!”

She subsided again on to Mrs Eccles, who said: “There, there, my dear,” with some relish

“Mary is naturally soruesome discovery,” explained the butler “She went into the library as usual, to draw the curtains, and—almost stumbled over the body”

“Do you mean to tell me,” demanded Colonel Bantry, “that there’s a dead body in my library—my library?”

The butler coughed

“Perhaps, sir, you would like to see for yourself”

III

“Hallo, ’allo, ’allo Police station here Yes, who’s speaking?”

Police-Constable Palk was buttoning up his tunic with one hand while the other held the receiver

“Yes, yes, Gossington Hall Yes? Oh, good htthe generous patron of the police sports and the principal istrate of the district

“Yes, sir? What can I do for you?—I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t quite catch—a body, did you say?—yes?—yes, if you please, sir—that’s right, sir—young woman not known to you, you say?—quite, sir Yes, you can leave it all to me”

Police-Constable Palk replaced the receiver, uttered a longdrahistle and proceeded to dial his superior officer’s number

Mrs Palk looked in fro bacon