# Mr. Ela — The Secret House character guide

> Mr. Ela in The Secret House by Edgar Wallace.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Ela, inspector Ela, the sarcastic Mr. Ela

**First appearance:** 0000-i

## Snapshot

A sarcastic police inspector with a fluent tongue and a loaded pistol, Ela storms the Secret House's power station when the case turns lethal.

## Who they are

Ela works the case beside T. B. Smith, trading dry asides in a fog-choked London while bodies and false leads pile up. His defining moment comes at the power house, where he bullies a terrified Italian foreman into throwing the danger switch, stopping the dynamo with murder in his eyes and his hand shaking afterward. That blend of ruthlessness and nerve makes him the story's muscle—the man who acts when T. B. merely theorizes.

## Relationships

### [T. B. Smith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/characters/t_b_smith)

_professional_

Mr. Ela is a subordinate or informant working with T. B. Smith in his investigation.

### [T. B. Smith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/characters/t_b_smith)

_professional_

Mr. Ela is a subordinate or informant working with T. B. Smith in his investigation.

### [T. B. Smith](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/characters/t_b_smith)

_professional_

Mr. Ela is a subordinate or informant working with T. B. Smith in his investigation.

## In the story

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/iii)

Reports on a dock robbery and later helps T. B. investigate the burglary.

### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xii)

Accompanies Smith on the raid, observes the sentry and the electric curtain, and waits in the hall.

### [XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xv)

Assists T. B. Smith at Moor Cottage, suggests re-examining the locket inscription, and helps search for Lady Constance.

### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xvii)

Meets T. B. at the Fritz Hotel for luncheon and discusses the case, expressing haziness about the solution.

### [XVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xviii)

Arrives with Scotland Yard men; coordinates the police operation around the Secret House.

### [The Last Hand](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xx)

Races to rescue T. B. with Lady Constance; discovers the underground tunnel and lift.

### [XXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/chapters/xxi)

Leads the raid, stops the dynamo, and shoots Farrington dead.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/characters/mr_ela
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_secret_house_se/characters