Murder in the Maze · Chapter
VII: The Pot of Curare explained
Wendover and Dr.
What happens
Wendover and Dr. Ardsley visit Whistlefield to secure a pot of curare for Sir Clinton. They encounter Arthur Hawkhurst's hostility and Sylvia's distress over the murders. Sir Clinton arrives, negotiates with Ernest Shandon (now an executor of Roger's will) to borrow the pot, and examines the darts from the Maze. Arthur reveals his expertise with airguns, and the chapter ends with Sir Clinton taking the curare pot.
Themes in this chapter
Murder and Mystery
The chapter deepens the mystery surrounding the murders, focusing on the curare pot and the darts as potential weapons.
Deception and Appearance
Arthur's hostility and suspicious behavior contrast with his later cooperation, hinting at hidden motives.
The Nature of Evidence
The pot of curare and the darts are examined as physical evidence, highlighting the importance of forensic details.
Characters to notice
- Wendover
Accompanies Ardsley to Whistlefield; secures the pot of curare and shows it to Sir Clinton.
- Dr. Ardsley
Toxicologist who identifies the pot of curare; cold and uncommunicative with Wendover.
- Arthur Hawkhurst
Hostile to Wendover and Ardsley; expert with airguns; examines the darts and admits to owning many airguns.
- Sylvia Hawkhurst
Shocked by the murders; cooperates with Wendover and leads them to the museum; expresses her unease.
- Ernest Shandon
Newly appointed executor of Roger's will; reluctantly agrees to lend the curare pot to Sir Clinton.
- Sir Clinton Driffield
Chief Constable; arrives at Whistlefield to take the curare pot; examines the darts and questions Arthur about airguns.
Key passages
“I want to take away this article here—but only for a day or two, probably. You'll get it back again in due course. It's only a loan, you understand.”
Sir Clinton asks Ernest to lend him the pot of curare temporarily, promising its return.
Sir Clinton's request to secure the poison as evidence.
“They seem to be just ordinary-pattern airgun darts. They'd fit any of the guns we have. But someone seems to have been monkeying with them—boring holes in them and filling them up with some dirt or other.”
Arthur examines the darts and notes they have been tampered with, with holes drilled and filled with a substance.
Arthur's observation reveals the darts have been modified, possibly to hold poison.
“I was terribly shocked when I got back here and heard what had happened. I'm not going to pretend I was very fond of either of them—they always seemed to me different from the rest of us, somehow—but I liked them in a way; and it was horrible to come back and find that while I'd been enjoying myself in the afternoon, they'd been … murdered.”
Sylvia confides in Wendover that she is deeply shaken by the murders, despite not being close to her uncles.
Sylvia's emotional response to the violent deaths in her family.