The Gold Bag

The Gold Bag by Carolyn Wells (1906)

The Gold Bag opens with young detective Herbert Burroughs reflecting on his admiration for the brilliant, deductive Fleming Stone, whose observational feats he cannot match. After witnessing one of Stone's dazzling shoe-based deductions at a hotel bootblack stand, Burroughs is summoned to investigate the murder of Joseph Crawford, a wealthy financier found shot dead in his home office in West Sedgwick. At the Crawford estate, Burroughs meets Coroner Monroe and local detective Parmalee, who hints that suspicion already centers on Florence Lloyd, Crawford's niece and presumed heiress. In Crawford's office, Burroughs examines the body, finds a woman's gold-mesh bag on the desk, two yellow rose petals on the floor, and a trolley transfer slip outside on the lawn. He also secures a late-edition newspaper. At the inquest, testimony reveals Crawford had argued with Florence at dinner over her engagement to his secretary, Gregory Hall, whom he considered a fortune-hunter; he threatened to disinherit her. The butler Lambert and valet Louis describe the household's movements, but Louis behaves suspiciously. Florence denies owning the gold bag and denies returning to the office that night, though she falters under questioning about the rose petals, since Hall had sent her yellow roses that evening. Hall himself refuses to disclose his whereabouts that night, having left for New York earlier. The jury returns an open verdict of "person or persons unknown," but suspicion lingers over both Florence and Hall. Afterward, Burroughs discovers Crawford's will is missing, meaning that without it Philip Crawford (Joseph's brother) would inherit instead of Florence. Burroughs traces the yellow roses to a florist, learning a dozen were sent but only eleven are accounted for. He also finds a calling card for "Mrs. Egerton Purvis" hidden in the gold bag and a photograph of an unknown woman among Crawford's papers, and wires headquarters to investigate her identity. Pressing the valet Louis and maid Elsa, Burroughs learns Louis did pass by the office that night and, under further questioning, inadvertently reveals that he saw Florence there with her uncle. Confronted, Florence admits she did visit her uncle's office that night, that they quarreled bitterly over Hall and the threatened new will, and that she lied out of fear of suspicion—but insists she left him alive. She also implies uncertainty about whether Hall could be involved, deepening Burroughs's suspicion of collusion between the two lovers. Burroughs, now aware he has fallen in love with Florence, resolves to prove her innocence while continuing to distrust Hall's evasiveness and mercenary nature.

By Carolyn Wells · First published 1906 · Genre: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Crime · 21 chapters · 93,169 words

First lines

Though a young detective, I am not entirely an inexperienced one, and / I have several fairly successful investigations to my credit on the / records of the Central Office.

The Chief said to me one day: "Burroughs, if there's a mystery to be / unravelled; I'd rather put it in your hands than to trust it to any / other man on the force.

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The Gold Bag is listed on Textopian as a novel by Carolyn Wells, dated 1906 CE.

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mystery · detective · crime · suspense · thriller · investigation · plot twist · clue · intrigue · secrets · whodunit · fiction

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More by Carolyn Wells