The Singing Butler

The Singing Butler
"You knew the dead girl well?"asked Crome. "Well，she's worked here longer than I have.I only came this March.Shewas here last year.She was rather quiet，if you know that I mean.She wasn'tone to joke or laugh a lot.I don't mean that she was exactly quiet-she'dplenty of fun in her and all that-but she didn't-well，she was quiet and shewasn't quiet，if you know what I mean." I will say for Inspector Crome that he was exceedingly patient.As awitness the buxom Miss Higley was persistently maddening.Every statement shemade was repeated and qualified half a dozen times.The net result was meagrein the extreme.
The Singing Butler
She had not been on terms of intimacy with the dead girl.ElizabethBarnard，it could be guessed，had considered herself a cut above MissHigley.She had been friendly in working hours，but the girls had not seenmuch of her out of them.Elizabeth Barnard had had a "friend"who worked atthe estate agents near the station.Court＆Brunskill.No，he wasn't Mr Courtnor Mr Brunskill.He was a clerk there.She didn't know his name.But she knewhim by sight well.Good-looking-oh，very good-looking，and always so nicelydressed.Clearly，there was a tinge of jealousy in Miss Higley's heart.The Singing Butler