“The school had received a letter from a Mr. Kenneth Buttenshaw, a Northern industrialist who has established a successful cloth making business in Darlington. The factory owner had desires for his only son, Simon Buttenshaw, to receive a gentleman’s education, so was keen to pay for him to attend Harrow before taking on a substantive role within the family business. In support of his son’s admission, Buttenshaw indicated that he was not only willing to pay the regular termly fees required for a pupil from outside the Harrow area, but would also be prepared to grant the school a bursary of some two-thousand pounds a year for the time the boy remained in education.
“I should make it clear, Mr. Holmes, that the Reverend Butler is a reforming headmaster, who has been open with the school governing board in indicating that greater efforts should be made to attract more fee-paying pupils. He liked the tone of Buttenshaw’s letter, felt that the opportunity should not be overlooked, and instructed me to travel up to County Durham to meet the family and discuss the arrangements for admitting the new pupil after the Easter term. In short, I made the journey to the Buttenshaw’s substantial home on the outskirts of Darlington in the early part of April last year and dealt with all of the paperwork necessary to receive the boy. Simon was enrolled within the school some weeks later and has, since that time, proved to be an exemplary pupil. He is thirteen years of age and has a keen grasp of science, a flair for mathematics, and a clear passion for classical literature.”
Holmes interjected. “And yet, I fear that your concern or conundrum has little to do with the boy or his admission to the school?”
“No, indeed – that much has been straightforward. But perhaps I should say more about my experience in meeting the Buttenshaw family. The father is a short greying man of some girth, with a direct and witty line of banter. I would say that he is around sixty-five years of age and is a widower – his much younger wife having died some years ago from English cholera. He appears to have no pretensions, is open and honest in admitting that he has come from humble stock, but is equally forthright in wanting to ensure that his two children benefit from all of the wealth and opportunities his business has created. Alongside Simon, he has a daughter, Sophia, who is now twenty-two. She dotes on her father and brother and, as well as appearing to run their house, takes a very active role in the administration of the business.”
Holmes cut in again, “The young lady that you have become so attached to, I take it?”
I felt my face redden. “There is no denying it. I am completely smitten with Miss Buttenshaw. From the moment I met her that day, I have entertained only one notion, that we might at some point announce our engagement and marry. That hope may now have been extinguished.”
The detective glanced at me quizzically. “Mr. Hughes, I have no wish to be dismissive, but as yet, have heard nothing to suggest that there is any mystery or intrigue within this affair. However, I would be grateful if you could outline the sequence of events that have led to Miss Buttenshaw announcing recently that she no longer wishes you to court her.”
I was a little perturbed at his brusque manner, but realised that I had, to that point, made my narration sound like a traditional and gushing tale of unrequited love. “I apologise, Mr. Holmes. You can be forgiven for believing that ours was a short-lived romance which Sophia has now brought to a point of some conclusion. But the matter is not as simple as that, and I believe strongly that there are other forces at work here, the nature of which I have not yet determined. I am not prepared to give up on Sophia, and would willingly pay you a king’s ransom to know why she has recently broken off all communications with me.”
“If I am to be of any assistance in this matter, I must have further details,” exclaimed Holmes, the veins on the side of his head seeming suddenly very pronounced. “Perhaps you could tell me more about that first encounter and the way that the courtship developed?”
“I am not sure what to tell you and what to leave out,” I replied, eager to assist. “When I arrived at the house, I was shown into the drawing room by one of the household staff and introduced to young Simon. He is a likeable lad, quiet and well-mannered, who told me that he relished the prospect of attending Harrow, but admitted that he would miss his family. As a former boarder myself, I told him that was to be expected, but should not put him off in any way.
“Kenneth Buttenshaw then joined us and took me off to his spacious study overlooking the expansive grounds of the property, beyond which I could see the roofline and chimneys of his factory. For some time he talked about the nature of his business. He had started his small weaving enterprise twenty years earlier, but had really seen it flourish as a result of his expansion into the production of Coburg Cloth, which he explained was piece-dyed twill dress fabric. The key to his success appears to have been the employment of a young chemist, by the name of Callum Ford, who has pioneered a new process for dyeing the factory’s cloth since joining the business some five years ago. They are now selling their cloth in all parts of the
