“So with his underclothes.  It was hardly necessary to warn him that his pants might show above the edge of his socks; as an artist he had already decided upon Robertian pants.  I bought them, and other things, in London for him.  Even if I had not cut out all trace of the maker’s name, he would instinctively have done it.  As an Australian and an artist, he could not have an East London address on his underclothes.  Yes, we were doing the thing thoroughly, both of us; he as an artist, I as a—­well, you may say murderer, if you like.  I shall not mind now.

“Our plans were settled.  I went to London on the Monday and wrote him a letter from Robert. (The artistic touch again.) I also bought a revolver.  On the Tuesday morning he announced the arrival of Robert at the breakfast-table.  Robert was now alive —­we had six witnesses to prove it; six witnesses who knew that he was coming that afternoon.  Our private plan was that Robert should present himself at three o’clock, in readiness for the return of the golfing-party shortly afterwards.  The maid would go to look for Mark, and having failed to find him, come back to the office to find me entertaining Robert in Mark’s absence.  I would explain that Mark must have gone out somewhere, and would myself introduce the wastrel brother to the tea-table.  Mark’s absence would not excite any comment, for it would be generally felt—­indeed Robert would suggest it—­that he had been afraid of meeting his brother.  Then Robert would make himself amusingly offensive to the guests, particularly, of course, Miss Norris, until he thought that the joke had gone far enough.

“That was our private plan.  Perhaps I should say that it was Mark’s private plan.  My own was different.

“The announcement at breakfast went well.  After the golfing-party had gone off, we had the morning in which to complete our arrangements.  What I was chiefly concerned about was to establish as completely as possible the identity of Robert.  For this reason I suggested to Mark that, when dressed, he should go out by the secret passage to the bowling-green, and come back by the drive, taking care to enter into conversation with the lodge-keeper.  In this way I would have two more witnesses of Robert’s arrival—­first the lodge-keeper, and secondly one of the gardeners whom I would have working on the front lawn.  Mark, of course, was willing enough.  He could practise his Australian accent on the lodge-keeper.  It was really amusing to see how readily he fell into every suggestion which I made.  Never was a killing more carefully planned by its victim.

“He changed into Robert’s clothes in the office bedroom.  This was the safest way—­for both of us.  When he was ready, he called me in, and I inspected him.  It was extraordinary how well he looked the part.  I suppose that the signs of his dissipation had already marked themselves on, his face, but had been concealed hitherto by his moustache and beard; for now that he was clean-shaven they lay open to the world from which we had so carefully hidden them, and he was indeed the wastrel which he was pretending to be.