# M. Lefarge — The Cask character guide

> M. Lefarge in The Cask by Freeman Wills Crofts.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Lefarge

**First appearance:** 0000-part-i-london

## Snapshot

A French detective who does the legwork — questioning porters, chasing dressmakers, and pressing the Chief on theories the others have not yet considered.

## Who they are

Lefarge is the steady, methodical half of the investigative pair, the one who remembers that the cask's weight was extraordinary and that the carter's description might be worth fifty francs. He is not afraid to challenge the Chief's narrowing focus, suggesting that someone entirely outside the Felix-Boirac triangle may be responsible. His patient reconstruction of the cask's movements gives the middle chapters their spine.

## Relationships

### [M. Boirac](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/m_boirac)

_professional_

M. Boirac and M. Lefarge are business associates or colleagues, with Lefarge possibly involved in Boirac's schemes.

### [Inspector Burnley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/inspector_burnley)

_professional_

Inspector Burnley questions M. Lefarge as a witness and potential accomplice in the murder investigation.

### [Mr. Felix](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/mr_felix)

_rivalry_

M. Lefarge and Mr. Felix are adversaries, with Lefarge suspected of conspiring against Felix.

### [Mr. Felix](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/mr_felix)

_rivalry_

M. Lefarge and Mr. Felix are adversaries, with Lefarge suspected of conspiring against Felix.

### [M. Boirac](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/m_boirac)

_professional_

M. Boirac and M. Lefarge are business associates or colleagues, with Lefarge possibly involved in Boirac's schemes.

### [Inspector Burnley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/inspector_burnley)

_professional_

Inspector Burnley questions M. Lefarge as a witness and potential accomplice in the murder investigation.

### [Inspector Burnley](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/inspector_burnley)

_professional_

Inspector Burnley questions M. Lefarge as a witness and potential accomplice in the murder investigation.

### [M. Boirac](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/m_boirac)

_professional_

M. Boirac and M. Lefarge are business associates or colleagues, with Lefarge possibly involved in Boirac's schemes.

### [Mr. Felix](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/mr_felix)

_rivalry_

M. Lefarge and Mr. Felix are adversaries, with Lefarge suspected of conspiring against Felix.

## In the story

### [IX: M. le Chef de la Sûreté](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/ix-m-le-chef-de-la-s-ret)

French detective who previously worked with Burnley on the Marcelle murder case; assigned to collaborate on the current investigation.

### [X: Who Wrote the Letter?](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/x-who-wrote-the-letter)

Leads the interrogation of Le Gautier and Dumarchez, and reports to Chauvet.

### [XI: Mm. Dupierre Et Cie](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xi-mm-dupierre-et-cie)

Arranges for the cask to be transported, provides background on Dupierre et Cie.

### [At the Gare St. Lazare](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xii-at-the-gare-st-lazare)

French detective assisting Burnley; conducts interviews and examines the cask at the yard.

### [XIII: The Owner of the Dress](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xiii-the-owner-of-the-dress)

French detective working with Burnley, suggests advertising for the carter.

### [XV: The House in the Avenue de l'Alma](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xv-the-house-in-the-avenue-de-l-alma)

Leads the investigation at the Boirac residence, questions François, and searches the house for evidence.

### [Inspector Burnley Up Against It](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xvi-inspector-burnley-up-against-it)

French detective working with Burnley; absent during Burnley's lunch but later reports at the Sûreté meeting.

### [A Council of War](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xvii-a-council-of-war)

Contributes the theory that the body was placed in the cask in London, and suggests that Felix may have written the Le Gautier letter.

### [XVIII: Lefarge Hunts Alone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xviii-lefarge-hunts-alone)

Leads the investigation alone, verifying Boirac's alibi and tracing Felix's movements.

### [XIX: The Testing of an Alibi](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xix-the-testing-of-an-alibi)

Conducts the investigation into Boirac's alibi, traveling to Charenton and Brussels.

### [Disappointment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xxv-disappointment)

The predecessor detective whose investigation La Touche is checking; his findings are consistently confirmed.

### [A Clue at Last](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/chapters/xxvi-a-clue-at-last)

Referenced as having previously searched for the typewriter used for the Le Gautier letter.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters/m_lefarge
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cask_se/characters