“That’s so.  Theoretically he is an officer of the Court, and his services are supposed to be at the call of any man who is in want of him and can afford to pay for them.  Of course, a leading barrister, such as Holymead, often declines a brief because he has so much to do, but he is not supposed to decline it for personal reasons.”

“His heart will not be in the case,” said Rolfe philosophically.

“On the contrary, I think it will,” said Crewe.  “My own opinion is that, if necessary, he will exert his powers to the utmost in order to get Birchill off, and that he will succeed.”

“Not he,” said Rolfe confidently.  “Our case is too strong.”

“You’ve got a lot of circumstantial evidence, but a clever lawyer will pull it to pieces.  Circumstantial evidence has hung many a man, and it will hang many more.  But a jury will hesitate to convict on circumstantial evidence when it can be shown that the conduct of the prisoner is at variance with what the conduct of a guilty man would be.  I don’t bet, but I’ll wager you a box of cigars to nothing that Holymead gets Birchill off.”

“It’s a one-sided wager, but I’ll take the cigars because I could do with a box of these,” said Rolfe.  “You might as well give them to me now, Mr. Crewe.”

“No, no,” said Crewe with a smile.  “Put a couple in your pocket now, because you won’t win the box.”

“Of course, I understand, Mr. Crewe, why you say Birchill is the wrong man.  You feel a bit sore because we have beaten you.  I would feel sore myself in your place, and I don’t deny that we got information that put us on Birchill’s track, and therefore it was easier for us to solve the mystery than it was for you.”

“I’m not a bit sore,” said Crewe.  “I can take a beating, especially when the men who beat me are good sportsmen.”  He bowed towards Rolfe, and that officer blushed as he recalled how Inspector Chippenfield and he had agreed to withhold information from Crewe and try to put him on a false scent.

“I wish you’d tell me what you consider the weak points of our case against Birchill,” asked Rolfe.

“Your case is based on Hill’s confession, and that to my mind is false in many details,” said Crewe.  “Take, for instance, his account of how he came into contact with Birchill again.  This girl Fanning, after a quarrel with Sir Horace, came over to Riversbrook with a message for Hill which was virtually a threat.  Now does that seem probable?  The girl who had been in the habit of visiting Sir Horace goes over to see Hill.  No woman in the circumstances would do anything of the sort.  She had too good an opinion of herself to take a message to a servant at a house from which she had been expelled by the owner, who had been keeping her.  How would she have felt if she had run into Sir Horace?  It is true that Sir Horace left for Scotland the day before, but it is improbable that the girl who had quarrelled with Sir Horace a fortnight before knew the exact date on which he intended to leave.  And how did Hill behave when he got the message?  According to his story, he consented to go and see Birchill under threat of exposure, and he consented to become an accomplice in the burglary for the same reason.  Sir Horace knew all about Hill’s past, so why should he fear a threat of exposure?”