runs after him and is in time to see Elsie throw a paperweight at her husband in self-defence. He falls to the ground and Elsie begs Harold to leave them before he gets himself into trouble. Half an hour later, Mrs Rice joins Harold and tells him that Philip is dead, killed by the blow. Harold is aghast, worried if the foreign police will believe the story both he and Elsie have to tell and that their "relationship" is innocent. The evidence points to manslaughter at best and murder at worst. Mrs Rice suddenly has an idea and wonders if the hotel management and the police are open to bribery. Harold agrees to give it a try and wires for money but, apart from that, and unable to speak the local language, he leaves Mrs Rice to carry out the negotiations. All seems to go well and the next day Harold sees Mrs Rice speaking with a police officer and she tells him that the death has been declared as being from natural causes and that they are all in the clear. That is until the two Polish women approach Mrs Rice and speak to her. She translates for Harold and tells him that they know what really happened (their room being next to Elsie's) and that they are blackmailing the English people. Harold is walking by the lake when he encounters Poirot. Desperate, he confesses what has happened. Poirot sees an immediate link between the two Polish women and the Stymphalean Birds. Poirot promises to help and the next day he tells Harold that he has been successful and that the blackmailers have been dealt with. He found out by telegram that they were wanted by the police and that they have been arrested. Harold is relieved but suddenly spots the two Polish women and wonders what is going on. Poirot tells him that, although not particularly attractive, they are of good family and background. The true culprits are Mrs Rice and her daughter. "Philip Clayton" has never existed and the man Harold saw "killed" was Mrs Rice in disguise. No foreign police are open to bribery in the way that Harold was told. He provided all the money and was innocent of what Mrs Rice "negotiated" as he did not speak the language. Harold resolves to learn every European language from now onwards. The Cretan Bull Poirot is