The Case of Janissary | Page 4

of. Let us find out who is trying to interfere with your horse. Do you
mind letting me into the secrets of the stable commissions?"
"Oh no. We're talking in confidence, of course. I've backed the colt
pretty heavily all round, but not too much anywhere. There's a good

slice with Barker -- you know Barker, of course; Mullins has a
thousand down for him, and that was at five to one, before Herald went
amiss. Then there's Ford and Lascelles -- both good men, and Naylor --
he's the smallest man of them all, and there's only a hundred or two
with him, though he's been laying the horse pretty freely everywhere, at
least until Herald went wrong. And there's Pedder. But there must have
been a deal of money laid to outside backers, and there's no telling who
may contemplate a ramp."
"Just so. Now as to your nephew. What of your suspicions in that
direction?"
"Perhaps I'm a little hasty as to that," Mr. Telfer answered, a little
ashamed of what he had previously said. "But I'm worried and
mystified, as you see, and hardly know what to think. My nephew
Richard is a little erratic, and he has a foolish habit of betting more than
he can afford. He and I quarrelled some time back, while he was
staying here, because I had an idea that he had been talking too freely
outside. He had, in fact; and I regarded it as a breach of confidence. So
there was a quarrel and he went away."
"Very well. I wonder if I can get a bed at the 'Crown' at Redbury: I'm
afraid it'll be crowded, but I'll try."
"But why trouble? Why not stay with me, and be near the stables?"
"Because then I should be of no more use to you than one of your lads.
People who come out here every morning are probably staying at
Redbury, and I must go there after them."

III.
THE "Crown" at Redbury was full in anticipation of the races, but
Dorrington managed to get a room ordinarily occupied by one of the
landlord's family, who undertook to sleep at a friend's for a night or two.
This settled, he strolled into the yard, and soon fell into animated talk
with the hostler on the subject of the forthcoming races. All the town

was backing Janissary for the Stakes, the hostler said, and he advised
Dorrington to do the same.
During this conversation two men stopped in the street, just outside the
yard gate, talking. One was a big, heavy, vulgar-looking fellow in a
box-cloth coat, and with a shaven face and hoarse voice; the other was
a slighter, slimmer, younger and more gentlemanlike man, though there
was a certain patchy colour about his face that seemed to hint of
anything but teetotalism.
"There," said the hostler, indicating the younger of these two men,
"that's young Mr. Telfer, him as whose uncle's owner o' Janissary. He's
a young plunger, he is, and he's on Janissary too. He give me the tip,
straight, this mornin'. 'You put your little bit on my uncle's colt,' he said.
'It's all right. I ain't such pals with the old man as I was, but I've got the
tip that his money's down on it. So don't neglect your opportunities,
Thomas,' he says; and I haven't. He's stoppin' in our house, is young Mr.
Richard."
"And who is that he is talking to? A bookmaker?"
"Yes, sir, that's Naylor -- Bob Naylor. He's got Mr. Richard's bets.
P'raps he's puttin' on a bit more now."
The men at the gate separated, and the bookmaker walked off down the
street in the fast gathering dusk. Richard Telfer, however, entered the
house, and Dorrington followed him. Telfer mounted the stairs and
went into his room. Dorrington lingered a moment on the stairs and
then went and knocked at Telfer's door.
"Hullo!" cried Telfer, coming to the door and peering out into the
gloomy corridor.
"I beg pardon," Dorrington replied courteously. "I thought this was
Naylor's room."
"No -- it's No. 23, by the end. But I believe he's just gone down the
street."

Dorrington expressed his thanks and went to his own room. He took
one or two small instruments from his bag and hurried stealthily to the
door of No. 23.
All was quiet, and the door opened at once to Dorrington's picklock, for
there was nothing but the common tumbler rim-lock to secure it.
Dorrington, being altogether an unscrupulous scoundrel, would have
thought nothing of entering a man's room thus for purposes of mere
robbery. Much less scruple had he in doing so in the present
circumstances. He lit the candle in a little pocket lantern, and, having
secured the door, looked quickly about the