Edgar_Wallace_-_The_Ringer.PDF

EDGAR WALLACE

THE RINGER

HODDER AND STOUGHTON

HODDER 462

First published July 1925

49th Edition 1952

Second Impression 1961

Third Impression 1965

DEDICATION

TO SIR GERALD DU MAURIER

My dear Gerald,

This book is “The Gaunt Stranger”

practically in the form that you and I shaped

it for the stage. Herein you will find all the

improvements you suggested for “The

Ringer” – which means that this is a better

story than “The Gaunt Stranger”.

Yours,

E DGAR W ALLACE .

CHAPTER 1

The Assistant Commissioner of Police pressed a bell on his table, and, to the

messenger who entered the room a few seconds after:

“Ask Inspector Wembury if he will be good enough to see me,” he said.

The Commissioner put away into a folder the document he had been reading.

Alan Wembury’s record both as a police officer and as a soldier was

magnificent. He had won a commission in the war, risen to the rank of Major

and had earned the Distinguished Service Order for his fine work in the field.

And now a new distinction had come to him.

The door opened and a man strode in. He was above the average height. The

Commissioner looked up and saw a pair of good-humoured grey eyes looking

down at him from a lean, tanned face.

“Good morning, Wembury.”

“Good morning, sir.”

Alan Wembury was on the sunny side of thirty, an athlete, a cricketer, a man

who belonged to the out-of-doors. He had the easy poise and the refinement of

speech which comes from long association with gentlemen.

“I have asked you to come and see me because I have some good news for

you,” said the Commissioner.

He had a real affection for this straight-backed subordinate of his. In all his

years of police service he had never felt quite as confident of any man as he had

of this soldierly detective.

“All news is good news to me, sir,” laughed Alan.

He was standing stiffly to attention now and the Commissioner motioned him

to a chair.

“You are promoted divisional inspector and you take over ‘R’ Division as

from Monday week,” said the chief, and in spite of his self-control, Alan was

taken aback.

A divisional inspectorship was one of the prizes of the C.I.D. Inevitably it

must lead in a man of his years to a central inspectorship; eventually inclusion

in the Big Four, and one knows not what beyond that.

“This is very surprising, sir,” he said at last. “I am terribly grateful. I think

there must be a lot of men entitled to this step before me–”

Colonel Walford shook his head.

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