A Basketful of Sea Trout
This play namely “A Basketful of Sea Trout” is about the mysterious murder of a young lady named Nellie Salter. The death of Nellie Salter was shrouded in mystery. There was no clear evidence as to who was involved in the murder. Mrs Lomond’s son, Nellie’s lover, was arrested for questioning but was later acquitted after the court found him not guilty. Mrs Lomond was also suspected, but she escaped with a perfect alibi. She testified in court that she had been on the beach from dawn to dusk on the day of the murder and had no knowledge of Nellie’s movements. The farmer at the Dykes Farm was the last person to see Nellie Salter alive on that day. The farmer had only seen her walk on the road up to a hundred yards from the farm. The road split at that point, with one path following the side of the lack and the other ascending the hill, but no one knew which path Nellie had taken. Her body was discovered 200 yards from the intersection of the two roads. Mrs Lomond arrived at the judges’ lodge in the dead of night with a basket full of seatrout as a gift for the favour she thought the judge had shown Hector in the form of an acquittal.
During her conversation with the judge and Brodie, she provided a detailed description of Nellie’s movements prior to her murder, which was unexpected given that she had denied having any knowledge of Nellie’s movements on the day of her murder in court. She revealed details about Nellie’s movements that no one else knew about. Nellie is getting ready to meet an airman; she is dressing for the occasion, going up on the hillside, applying paint and powder, and looking around on the hills; and for the first time, the lake can be heard. She accurately described even the smallest movements of Nellie. She could also recall what Nellie had said. The judge and his guest, Brodie, were astounded and perplexed as to how she knew all of this. As a result, they concluded that she had followed Nellie Salter and then murdered her.
Mrs Lomond had been on pins and needles about her son. Despite being acquitted for not being found guilty, she feared that her son would be arrested because the murder was shrouded in mystery. Mrs Lomond went to the judges’ Lodge in the middle of the night to confess her crime in order to keep her son from being arrested again. She pretended to have come to thank the judge for sparing her son’s life. She had brought a basket of seatrout as a token of her appreciation. However, the weather was too nice to catch fish, and she claimed to have caught them herself. It was later determined that the lady died before the end of the afternoon.
According to the police, Mrs Lomond committed suicide the day before Colonel met the judge and Brodie at the lodge during the night. She also left a confession note for the cops. But, just minutes before Colonel’s arrival in the lodge with the news of her suicide, she had a lengthy conversation with the judge and Brodie.
Colonel has had a truly amazing and fascinating experience. Mrs Lomond murdered Nellie Salter, and their son Hector, Nellie’s lover, was suspected of being the murderer and was thus detained, but he was soon acquitted after the court found him not guilty. Mrs Lomond told them she knew nothing about Nellie’s movements on the day of her mother’s death, but she told the judge a different story when she visited his solitary Lodge at night. The lady had been asked to stay in the adjacent room, but after a brief search, she was discovered missing from the room. The colonel was perplexed by the entire story. He was hesitant to believe the story because, according to Inspector Souter, Mrs Lomond’s body was discovered on the beach. Strangely, when he was leaving the lodge, the basket full of seatrout was still there under the arch near the door. As a result, it once again created a difficult to unravel mystery. Was the seatrout in the basket real or fake? Had Mrs Lomond or the ghost been seen by the judge and Brodie? Had they had the entire episode in their dreams or senses?
Thus, the basketful of seatrout is crucial in both creating and solving the mystery. However, it is also possible to conclude that Mrs Lomond, as a mother, was deeply concerned about the safety and happiness of her son Hector Lomond. She had murdered Nellie Salter in order to save her son from the latter’s deception. She had killed Nellie and then committed suicide. Mrs Lomond’s painful story, however, had followed her even after her death. During the night, the judge was visited by her perturbed and anxious ghost. She appeared before the judge to confess to him that she had murdered Nellie. During her conversation with the judge and Brodie, she made very clear statements that assisted them in deducing and concluding unequivocally that she was after Nellie and murdered her in cold blood. She only did it to save her own son and other gullible boys from Nelly Salter’s butcherous traps. Most importantly, Mrs Lomond had come to ensure that her son’s case would not be reopened by the judge. She was concerned that her son would be arrested and punished again because he was a suspect. However, the judge assured her that her son’s case would not be reopened once it was completed.