A small rural community suspects — but does not substantiate — the murder of Farmer Marshall whose wife maintains a sullen silence after his disappearance. On a neighboring farm, Philipson, a dour and nervous war casualty, cannot remember the period in which the crime occurred; Yorke, his partner, helps to establish his guilt; while the local Vicar intercedes to bring the real criminal to book. Pleasantly punctilious. [Kirkus]