The Case of the Constant Suicides

PERSONS THIS MYSTERY IS ABOUT -Alan Campbell,a serious young man of about thirty-five, with a sense of humor stemming from his Scotch ancestry and just the necessary amount of good looks; is not such a bookish young man (and certainly not so stuffy) that he fails to notice the strictly feminine charms ofKathryn Campbell,who has a hard time keeping a determined look of severity on her face (because she wants to be taken seriously in "scholarly" matters). She is brown-haired, about twenty-seven and very attractive, and she teaches at the Harpenden College for Women.Dr. Colin Campbell,an amiable, hearty man in his late sixties, lives in the old family castle in Scotland. He is very short in stature but has broad, burly shoulders and a ferocious grin which makes him seem both powerful and friendly.Miss Elspat Campbell,a middle-sized, angular woman with sharp, restless black eyes. At the well-preserved age of seventy, she is the autocrat of the family. Her Scotch brogue is terrific, her voice penetrating, and her passion for respectability verges on the morbid.Charles E. Swan,a tallish, leathery-faced young man in his late thirties, works on a newspaper in Canada. He has a mop of wiry mahogany-colored hair, a low, smiling voice and Scotch forebears - of which he is extremely proud. He is covering a special assignment in Scotland.Alec Forbes,a man of some education but with no wisdom at all about money. He is lean and dark-faced and is inclined to be moody, to drink too much and to collect enemies. He is an inventor of sorts and a famous cyclist.Gideon Fell,though a distinguished scholar, has a bandit mustache that goes well with the salty gusto of his talk and manner. A ponderous man, he seems to fill any room he enters. When he sits down it is like a man-o'-war easing into dock.Alistair Duncan,tall, stoop-shouldered and somewhat nearsighted, has a large Adam's apple and grizzled hair around a pale bald spot. He has a dry voice, a bleak smile, and a fair law practice in Scotland.Walter Chapman,the sort of young man who grows a beard at twenty-one and spends the rest of his life living up to it, is fresh-faced, fashionably dressed, and suave of tongue. He is a well-chosen representative of the Hercules Insurance Company.THINGS THIS MYSTERY IS ABOUT -Four insurance policies...A leather and metal dog carrier...Some very old scotch whisky...A missing diary...A quantity of dry ice...The license plate MGM 1911A dressing-gown cord...A disjointed fishing rod...