# XXXVI: The End explained — The Old Man in the Corner

> Chapter companion for The Old Man in the Corner by Baroness Orczy.

## What happens

Polly Burton experiences a sudden epiphany, realizing that the murderer in the Fenchurch Street case is the Old Man in the Corner himself, based on the distinctive knots in the string used to secure the window. She confronts him, but he silently departs, never to be seen again. The chapter concludes with Polly marrying Mr. Richard Frobisher.

## Themes in this chapter

### The Power of Observation

Polly's sudden recollection of the knotted string demonstrates the power of careful observation and memory in solving mysteries.

### Appearance vs. Reality

The seemingly harmless old man in the corner is revealed to be the murderer, contrasting his frail appearance with his criminal reality.

## Character check-ins

### Polly Burton

Has a sudden flash of insight connecting the Old Man's string-tying habit to the murder scene.

### The Old Man in the Corner

Revealed as the likely murderer; leaves silently after being confronted.

### Richard Frobisher

Marries Polly Burton at the end of the chapter.

## Key lines

> Then suddenly—apropos of nothing, Polly remembered —the whole thing stood before her, short and clear like a vivid flash of lightning:— Mrs. Owen lying dead in the snow beside her open window; one of them with a broken sash-line, tied up most scientifically with a piece of string.

Polly suddenly recalls the murder scene of Mrs. Owen, noting the window was secured with a knotted string.

_This is the key moment of revelation linking the Old Man to the crime._

> “If I were you,” she said, without daring to look into that corner where he sat, “I would break myself of the habit of perpetually making knots in a piece of string.”

Polly indirectly accuses the Old Man by suggesting he stop tying knots.

_Her confrontation is subtle but clear, leading to his silent departure._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_old_man_in_the_corner_se/chapters/xxxvi-the-end
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_old_man_in_the_corner_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_old_man_in_the_corner_se/chapters