We probed the cushions with long needles.
Then we removed the tops of the tables.
Why so? I asked.
Sometimes the top of a table is removed and a person may cut away the inside of a leg to hide something in the leg.
Then the top is replaced.
Bedposts are used in the same manner.
You did not take apart all the chairs, did you? Asked I .
Certainly not, replied the Captain.
Instead we examined the rungs of every chair with a powerful magnifying glass.
If any of them had been recently disturbed, we would have noticed.