Chief Inspector Drongway and the Case of the Disappearing Bails

I came across the following photograph, stapled to a receipt for spoon rests, as I tried to make sense of the Professor's treasury of learned papers and other tea chests. The Professor considered the photograph with some interest before beginning to explain. 

“Ah, the Case of the Disappearing Bails. A cause célèbre of the 1960s. At critical moments during significant matches, the bails would suddenly and inexplicably vanish. People were up in arms and stiff letters were written to the MCC, various members of the House of Lords and other incorrigibles. Eventually, Chief Inspector Drongway was called in to investigate.”

The Professor stared absent-mindedly out of the window at a passing milkman before continuing:

“Everybody had the greatest faith in Drongway of the Yard, so called because he owned a small yard behind a pub where he kept his valuable collection of Edwardian unicycles. However, no arrests were ever made. The belief expressed by journalists and other wastrels was that the bails were made of ice and simply melted away.

But there were dark forces at work and it was clear to me that the estimable Drongway knew the truth and was prevented from revealing it by his so-called superiors. Years later I came across Drongway shortly before he retired to the South Sandwich Islands. He was skulking near a hot-dog stand at some county game or other and revealed the truth behind the scandal to me.

I'm afraid I can't quite recall what he said. I was distracted by adding too much mustard to my sausage-based snack and enraged by a truly terrible piece of fielding at deep square leg. If memory serves, it was something to do with cheese, ball bearings and a senior man of the cloth.”