In Chapter 7, Syme is relieved that his position as an undercover policeman is still secure, following the revelation of Gogol’s spying activities. However, he is also aware that if Gogol’s betrayal of the organization was discovered, that certainly means it is only a matter of time before his own deception will be revealed as well. This sentiment is expressed using a metaphor that details Syme’s precarious position and safety within the Supreme Anarchist Council:
Syme sat long after the rest had gone, revolving his strange position. He had escaped a thunderbolt, but he was still under a cloud. At last he rose and made his way out of the hotel into Leicester Square. The bright, cold day had grown increasingly colder, and when he came out into the street he was surprised by a few flakes of snow.
The image of a dark, heavy rain cloud looming ominously overhead is an apt metaphor for Syme’s predicament. The metaphor of the cloud is aided by the “bright, cold day” that grows even colder, manifesting in snowfall. Chesterton’s use of nature to reflect and augment the emotions of his characters is built into the fabric of the novel, as he frequently refers to the sky and river and other forms of nature to subliminally hint at their feelings.
The detectives enter a mysterious dreamlike heavenly realm near the end of the novel, where their codenames take on a new metaphorical significance, casting them each as representatives of the first six days of creation:
Gogol, or Tuesday, had his simplicity well symbolized by a dress designed upon the division of the waters, a dress that separated upon his forehead and fell to his feet, grey and silver, like a sheet of rain. The professor, whose day was that on which the birds and fishes—the ruder forms of life—were created, had a dress of dim purple, over which sprawled goggle-eyed fishes and outrageous tropical birds, the union in him of unfathomable fancy and of doubt. Dr. Bull, the last day of Creation, wore a coat covered with heraldic animals in red and gold, and on his crest a man rampant. He lay back in his chair with a broad smile, the picture of an optimist in his element.
As each detective is dressed in otherworldly raiment that symbolizes the different stages of God’s creation of the universe, it becomes clear that their individual journeys of discovery represent humanity’s collective search for meaning. Meanwhile, just as the detectives regain their faith by taking on these roles through their metaphorical clothing, Sunday himself comes to represent the seventh day (the day of rest), taking on the position of a creator or messiah-like figure. With this moment, Chesterton makes explicit his religious allegory regarding the struggle between chaos and order.
