In the early morning of London, the sky had not fully cleared, and the fog from the night had yet to disperse among the streets and alleys north of the Thames River. The garden's various horticultural flowers, grass leaves, and window glass were cloaked in a thin layer of dew.
The door of No. 15 Lancaster Gate was routinely opened promptly at 6:30 in the morning. As part of his early morning exercise, Arthur did not call for a carriage.
Perhaps because of his habit formed during his early years patrolling the streets with Scotland Yard, he preferred to walk through this gradually awakening city in the morning, both to stretch his muscles and to organize his thoughts during this short journey. Morning walks through London were more invigorating than any medicine.
He descended the steps in front of his house and walked along Bayswater Road north of Hyde Park, passing through shadows cast by trees and stone walls yet to be dispelled by sunlight.
