# Bert Stoner — The Borough Treasurer character guide

> Bert Stoner in The Borough Treasurer by J. S. Fletcher.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Stoner, young Stoner, Herbert Stoner

**First appearance:** 0000-i-blackmail

## Snapshot

A young man whose polite questions to an old stranger about a thirty-year-old fraud case send the novel's suspicions racing backward through time.

## Who they are

Stoner sits drinking whisky in company when old Mr. Pursey mentions he once knew the murdered Kitely, and Stoner's excitement is barely contained as he draws out the tale of Mallows and Chidforth, two trusted young workmen who embezzled two thousand pounds and vanished after prison. His mind leaps instantly to a half-sheet of foolscap, and he gulps his drink to steady himself. His eager listening is the hinge that links the present murder to a buried crime.

## Relationships

### [Mr. Mallalieu](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/mr_mallalieu)

_rivalry_

Bert Stoner and Mr. Mallalieu have a high number of interactions, likely as antagonists or competitors in a conflict.

### [Lettie Cotherstone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/lettie_cotherstone)

_romantic_

Bert Stoner and Lettie Cotherstone interact frequently, indicating a romantic or courtship relationship.

### [David Myler](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/david_myler)

_friendship_

Bert Stoner and David Myler have a solid number of interactions, suggesting a friendship or alliance.

### [Mr. Mallalieu](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/mr_mallalieu)

_rivalry_

Bert Stoner and Mr. Mallalieu have a high number of interactions, likely as antagonists or competitors in a conflict.

### [Mr. Mallalieu](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/mr_mallalieu)

_rivalry_

Bert Stoner and Mr. Mallalieu have a high number of interactions, likely as antagonists or competitors in a conflict.

### [David Myler](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/david_myler)

_friendship_

Bert Stoner and David Myler have a solid number of interactions, suggesting a friendship or alliance.

### [Lettie Cotherstone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/lettie_cotherstone)

_romantic_

Bert Stoner and Lettie Cotherstone interact frequently, indicating a romantic or courtship relationship.

### [David Myler](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/david_myler)

_friendship_

Bert Stoner and David Myler have a solid number of interactions, suggesting a friendship or alliance.

### [Lettie Cotherstone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/lettie_cotherstone)

_romantic_

Bert Stoner and Lettie Cotherstone interact frequently, indicating a romantic or courtship relationship.

## In the story

### [I: Blackmail](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/i-blackmail)

A clerk who announces Kitely's arrival and leads him to the private office.

### [II: Crime—and Success](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/ii-crime-and-success)

Clerk who interrupts Cotherstone's brooding with letters and contracts to sign.

### [XIII: The Anonymous Letter](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xiii-the-anonymous-letter)

Mallalieu & Cotherstone's clerk, one of the first to see the reward bill.

### [XIV: The Sheet of Figures](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xiv-the-sheet-of-figures)

Stoner steals and analyzes Cotherstone's sheet of figures, suspects a connection to Kitely's murder, and decides to pursue the reward.

### [XV: One Thing Leads to Another](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xv-one-thing-leads-to-another)

Visits Myler in Darlington, learns about the Mallows & Chidforth case from Mr. Pursey, deduces the connection to Mallalieu and Cotherstone, and later meets Mallalieu on the moors.

### [XVI: The Lonely Moor](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xvi-the-lonely-moor)

Decides to blackmail Mallalieu instead of claiming the reward; confronts Mallalieu on the moor and is struck down.

### [XVII: The Medical Opinion](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xvii-the-medical-opinion)

The deceased; his body is examined, revealing a fatal blow to the temple; his pocketbook contains a cryptic note linking him to the Kitely case.

### [The Scrap Book](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xviii-the-scrap-book)

His pocketbook contained a précis of the fraud case; Brereton believes he was murdered for the same secret.

### [The Interrupted Flight](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/chapters/xxi-the-interrupted-flight)

Referenced as the victim who fell into Hobwick Quarry; Mallalieu reflects on the event and the missing stick.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters/bert_stoner
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_borough_treasurer_se/characters