"The Coroner, who I suppose naturally wished to spare Mrs. Crofton's
feelings, told the jury that it was plain that Colonel Crofton was a very
bad-tempered man. But the people with whom I was staying, and who drove
me over to look at the God-forsaken old house where the Croftons lived,
said that local feeling was very much against her. It was thought that
she really caused him to take his life by her neglect and unkindness."
"What a terrible idea!"
"I fear it's true. And now comes the question--ought I to tell his sister
this? Some of the gossip I heard was very unpleasant."
"Do you mean that there was another man?"
"Other men--rather than another man. She was always going up to London to
enjoy herself with the various men friends she had made during the War,
and the only guests they ever entertained were young men who were more or
less in love with her."
Janet smiled a little wryly. "There's safety in numbers, and after all
she's extraordinarily attractive to men."
"Yes," said Miss Pendarth, "there _is_ safety in numbers, and it's said
that Colonel Crofton was almost insanely jealous. They seem to have led a
miserable existence, constantly quarrelling about money, too, and often
changing their servants.
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