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Nidoking posted:Here's what I make of that letter - a few parts are still unclear, but I made sense of most of it. As for the unclear words — It's the 'bear[s]' slamming the stock, and 'publicity' that is loathed. The '___ing out'[?] at the end is pretty. It doesn't match the earlier 'going' but also the writing at that point appears to be more agitated. Could also be 'giving'. Thoughts on the case: If a body can go out a porthole, a body can go in one too. Possibly someone was able to climb down into the room from the side or above. Reggie seems like the type who could kill, and anyone with a financial interest in Rocksavage's company would certainly have reason to want Blane out of the picture. If the claim in the letter has any truth, he could be part of the 'rough crowd'.
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Sep 28, 2015 16:39
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Ghosts Love Wubs posted:Also there is a certain ambiguity in Lady Welter's description of the Bishop seeing Blane, saying "There's Blane" when the two of them arrive without specifically pointing out which was which. It's definitely hanging over the game, but there was absolutely no need for him to indicate which is which. The other person was merely a secretary. It'd more remarkable if he had specifically pointed out Blane.
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Sep 28, 2015 22:08
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That's as interesting to read as a document of historical fashion as it is a statement of evidence. Back to the room layout : Stodart's cabin is clearly not laid out according to the plan shown, since it shows the bed to the left of a door. Maybe it's just a minor detail in the construction (clearly the same set was used for Blane's room, just dressed differently), or it's actually indicating that his room communicated with Blane's drawing room. But you'd think that would have been mentioned. We also know it's not a flipped negative because of the stickers on the luggage. Those may also be clues ... I can make out Italia, Cunard, New York, Savoy Hotel, and Marseille.
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Sep 29, 2015 18:42
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SelenicMartian posted:
Stodart sounds less like a secretary and more like [a] batman! e: Willing to bet that the false teeth fit in with dental record identification of the body -- which suggests Blane actually killed Stodart. I'd also think Blane's plan could be just as simple as faking his death and starting over somewhere else just to avoid lawsuits & bankruptcy. He doesn't necessarily profit, he just avoids a scandal. Kangra fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Oct 1, 2015 |
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Oct 1, 2015 21:17
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I get a vague feeling that Slick might have been brought in to vouch for 'Blane' or Stodart in some way. That's the sort of thing I'd actually expect him to be there for, but that's tough to square with what Jocelyn said. It's just a bit convoluted, but could have happened (Slick hired on to work his way into Jocelyn's good faith). It's still unclear whether what Rocksavage said about Hayashi has to do with his correspondence with Blane in New York. Either Hayashi was bluffing or wanted to make a separate deal with Blane's company to avoid having to deal with them jointly. Or there's something more he had to offer, or Rocksavage is lying.
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Oct 3, 2015 21:22
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I bet the ship's carpenter would make a better detective than this guy. Blane's letter to The Bishop really seems to be key. It implies that he had some sort of plan that may have involved faking his death/identity swapping, but that also doesn't rule out the possibility of someone bumping him off first. What if in fact Blane & Stodart switched places just because Blane fully expected there to be an attempt on his life? Then Welter/Jocelyn may have killed Stodart who was posing as Blane. Blane lives to see another day with no one the wiser. That still leaves his company in the toilet, but maybe he had a deal with Hayashi. Thinking about this again, even if Blane fakes his death and shows up alive later, it still tanks his stock. So either Blane really hoped for some deal with Rocksavage, but kept Stodart as insurance, or he had some other way to profit off his faked death.
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Oct 4, 2015 00:40
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This section only makes K. 'Croc' Kettering and his partner 'Tubbs' Neame look only more incompetent. He has no real suspects and is just pressuring people to see if they'll crack.
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Oct 4, 2015 21:15
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Disregarding motive for a moment, there's a pretty strong case that the man now posing as Stodart is the man who was previously known as Blane. The original Stodart is either dead or disappeared. Going with that assumption, what does that make our timetable? Blane-as-Stodart was in the lounge the entire time. His only access to the room was prior to his coming up, and at the moment when it was searched. Per Rocksavage: quote:He took down some of the prices in his note book, tore the leaf out and, as he had not finished his drink, asked the lounge steward to take the list down to Blane's cabin. quote:On arriving there I found Stodart standing in the drawing room looking very pale and shaken. He said to me, "Mr. Rocksavage, I'm afraid I've got bad news for you." Then he handed me this note. quote:After I had read that letter I've just given you, Stodart handed me a slip of paper which, he said, the cabin steward had found found on Blane's table. I saw at once that it was the page that Stodart had torn out of his pocket book after he had taken down the quotations of the closing prices on the New York stock market from the notice board in the lounge and which he had sent down to Blane earlier on. Per Ringbottom (the steward): quote:... I just unlocked the door with my master key and went straight into the room. quote:We went down to the late lamented's cabin together and had a quick look around. He wasn't in the suite and the drawing room window was open. Mr. Stodart told me that he was afraid the poor gentleman had chucked himself overboard, then I spotted a bit of paper on the writing table and gave it to Mr. Stodart saying, "What's this here?" So all the evidence from Blane's room passes through Stodart's hands. The only thing that required someone to be in the room at all during the period is taking care of the note slipped under the door (assuming that happened). But there is a good chance that the note slipped under the door is not the same one given to Rocksavage.
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Oct 6, 2015 21:31
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Blanedart entered the room with Ringbottom, and given Ringbottom's statement he noticed the window being open before the note. Blanedart could have put the note on the table. I didn't mean to suggest that the Cane had taken down the Surrey-paper note (which was probably 'torn open' in the sense that it was unfolded*), and his statement at the very least suggests that the paper he took down was from the notebook. The point I'm thinking of is that the 'Game is up' part could have been on an entirely different note, since the one in evidence came from Stodart, not Ringbottom. Wild speculation is that the note taken down was instructions for Stodart in the room (going with the theory that Stodart is still alive, and merely jumped out the window to be picked up by prearranged rescue boat). We don't have any proof that whoever was in the room, if anyone was in the room, actually wrote any of the notes in evidence. If we can somehow account for the note slipped under the door, the room could have been empty. But it might not have been if it's a case of faked death. e: Thought of something that goes to motive: if Blane had outed Slick before, he may well have expected Posodini had been brought there to kill him. My favored theory on motive is that he did want to make a deal, but faking his death was a backup plan when he realized they may have meant to do him in. Could even have been hatched in New York, once he realized who was on the ship. *Selenic Martian, can you confirm that the fold marks on this note are as published, and not some artifact of the book packaging? Also, is there any way to see what's at the back of that paper? Kangra fucked around with this message at 22:26 on Oct 6, 2015 |
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Oct 6, 2015 22:22
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I noticed Hayashi's statement about coming 'overland from Panama'. It's so ludicrous and yet passes without comment so I just chalked it down to Wheatley being bad at geography. That said, I doubt he thought that the route from Panama to Miami passes through New York. One of the important facts of the case that needs to be explained is the drag marks on the carpet. They were either produced by someone moving a body, or faked to indicate same. That would seem to rule out the case of suicide (or would require a suicide faked to look like murder, unlikely given everything else in the case). If a straight-up murder, the question becomes why they weren't covered up when the rest of the room seems mostly in order. Possibly due to some time constraint, or possibly they're indelible. If faked, the question is then why would they be faked. Anyone wondering if the couch might be/have been hiding a body?
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Oct 7, 2015 16:30
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Just thought of a new theory (partly inspired by Stoic Zola's): What if Hayashi is part of the conspiracy to kill Stodart and replace him with Blane? The timeline could then be: New York: Hayashi actually sails from SF to New York via Panama (which makes more sense anyway) and physically meets with Blane in New York, plotting the whole thing. Hayashi then arranges to arrive and board the ship first, to avoid arousing suspicion. Off Miami, ~7 p.m.: Stodart & Blane arrive on the ship and enter their cabins. Blane kills Stodart and replaces him, then heads up to the lounge. Before doing so, he passes Blane's key and a sealed envelope addressed 'Nicholas Stodart URGENT' to Hayashi. [Possibly Hayashi is present for the murder, or visits Blane's room to get the key.] 7:40 p.m. The stock note is sent down to the room. 7:50 p.m., Hayashi asks for writing paper. In the few moments Ringbottom is away, he goes into Blane's cabin, drops the envelope for Stodart, picks up the stock note and puts it on the table. Not enough time to commit murder, but enough to do these few things. Obviously, the problem we keep going around on is why would Hayashi take part in this? The book itself (or at least Kettering) has suggested Hayashi profits if Blane is out of the way, which as mentioned doesn't make a whole lot of sense unless you take Rocksavage at his word that he would make a deal with Hayashi despite being in a stronger position with a monopoly.
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Oct 7, 2015 17:58
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Stoca Zola posted:It still doesn't make sense as to why Blane would collaborate with Hayashi to definitively tank his company and let Rocksavage get rich. It benefits neither of them. If Kettering says it does, it probably isn't true. Kettering sucks! Looking back, it's actually Rocksavage who says it would benefit Hayashi because Rocksavage is willing to cut a deal with Hayashi. (Again, this probably does not make much sense financially, but it's what was said). e: Blane possibly had no other choice. So we don't actually know when the letter that Hayashi received in New York was sent, do we? Hayashi mentioned he'd been in correspondence for 'some time' with both of them. Unless he's lying about his travel, it had been at least two weeks, since he says he was traveling from San Francisco after Rocksavage's telegram. But it'd probably be rather tough to make the voyage by sea to Panama and then back 'overland' in two weeks anyway, so it seems like either a mistake or a lie. The note in Blane's room could be a forgery, although Hayashi says he did indeed write a postcard.
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Oct 7, 2015 19:04
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Yeah, I'd bring in Stodart for sure. Either way he's involved in this. But I do think there is something awfully suspicious about Hayashi, especially since he managed to distract the one person who was watching Blane's door for a few minutes. (As for Hayashi's motive, it may merely be enough that he could believe he'd benefit from Blane being out of the way, but even on that point it's not entirely certain.)
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Oct 8, 2015 15:32
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Turns out one of my many guesses as to motive was sort of right! At some point Blane did think he could still make a deal with Rocksavage. I thought someone did mention the handwriting early on in the thread, but maybe not those details Schwab mentioned. Thanks for showing this off. It was a lot of fun and neat to see the effort put into this back then. A game that's similar in style to this that I loved as a kid was Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective. It's lacking in things like human hair and photo hunts but more interactive with the case details -- players decide which clues to read, and are scored based on how well and quickly they can solve the crime. I've thought about doing an LP of it before and might get on that now.
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Oct 8, 2015 18:39
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