CHAPTER 4 Mrs. Rscher
We were received at Andover by Inspector¹ Glen, a tall, fair-haired mwith a pleasant smile.
For the sake of conciseness² I think I had better give a brief r6sum6the bare facts of the case.
The crime was discovered by Police Constable³ Dover at I A. M. '
the morning of the 22nd. When on his round he tried the door of tshop and found it unfastened. He entered and at first thought the plawas empty. Directing his torch over the counter, however, he causight of the huddled-up body of the old woman. When the police sgeon arrived on the spot it was elicited⁴ that the woman had been strudown by a heavy blow on the back of the head, probably while she nreaching down a packet of cigarettes from the shelf behind the countDeath must have occurred about nine to seven hours previously⁵.
"But we' ve been able to get it down a bit nearer than that, " eplained the inspector. "We' ve found a man who went in and bougsome tobacco at 5: 30. And a second man went in and found the shempty, as he thought, at five minutes past six. That puts the time atbtween 5: 30 and 6: 05. So far I haven⁶' t been able to find any one wisaw this man Ascher in the neighbourhood, but, of course, it' s earlyyet. He was in the Three Crowns at nine o' clock pretty far gonedrink. When we get hold of him he' ll be detained on suspicion. ""Not a very desirable character, inspector?" asked Poirot.
"Unpleasant bit of goods. "
"He didn' t live with his wife?"
"No, they separated some years ago. Ascher' s a German. He waswaiter at one time, but he took to drink and gradually becameunenployable.
His wife went into service for a bit. Her last place was ascook-housekeeper to an old lady, Miss Rose. She allowed her husbandso much out of her wages to keep himself, but he was always gettingdrunk and coming round and making scenes at the places where shewas employed. That' s why she took the post with Miss Rose at TheGrange. It' s three miles out of Andover, dead in the country. Hecouldn' t get at her there so well. When Miss Rose died, she left Mrs.

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