Foreword
by Captain Arthur Hastings, O.B.E.
In this
narrative1 of mine I have departed from my usual practice of relating only those incidentsand scenes at which I myself was present. Certain chapters, therefore, are written in the thirdperson.
I wish to assure my readers that I can
vouch2 for the occurrences related in these chapters. If Ihave taken a certain
poetic3 licence in describing the thoughts and feelings of various persons, it isbecause I believe I have set them down with a reasonable amount of accuracy. I may add that theyhave been “vetted” by my friend Hercule Poirot himself.
In conclusion, I will say that if I have described at too great length some of the secondarypersonal relationships which arose as a consequence of this strange series of crimes, it is becausethe human and personal elements can never be ignored. Hercule Poirot once taught me in a verydramatic manner that romance can be a
by-product4 of crime.
As to the solving of the A.B.C. mystery, I can only say that in my opinion Poirot showed realgenius in the way he tackled a problem
entirely5 unlike any which had
previously6 come his way.