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+Project Gutenberg's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle

+

+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with

+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or

+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included

+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net

+

+

+Title: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

+

+Author: Arthur Conan Doyle

+

+Posting Date: April 18, 2011 [EBook #1661]

+First Posted: November 29, 2002

+

+Language: English

+

+

+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES ***

+

+

+

+

+Produced by an anonymous Project Gutenberg volunteer and Jose Menendez

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

+

+by

+

+SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

+

+

+

+   I. A Scandal in Bohemia

+  II. The Red-headed League

+ III. A Case of Identity

+  IV. The Boscombe Valley Mystery

+   V. The Five Orange Pips

+  VI. The Man with the Twisted Lip

+ VII. The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

+VIII. The Adventure of the Speckled Band

+  IX. The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb

+   X. The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor

+  XI. The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet

+ XII. The Adventure of the Copper Beeches

+

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE I. A SCANDAL IN BOHEMIA

+

+I.

+

+To Sherlock Holmes she is always THE woman. I have seldom heard

+him mention her under any other name. In his eyes she eclipses

+and predominates the whole of her sex. It was not that he felt

+any emotion akin to love for Irene Adler. All emotions, and that

+one particularly, were abhorrent to his cold, precise but

+admirably balanced mind. He was, I take it, the most perfect

+reasoning and observing machine that the world has seen, but as a

+lover he would have placed himself in a false position. He never

+spoke of the softer passions, save with a gibe and a sneer. They

+were admirable things for the observer--excellent for drawing the

+veil from men's motives and actions. But for the trained reasoner

+to admit such intrusions into his own delicate and finely

+adjusted temperament was to introduce a distracting factor which

+might throw a doubt upon all his mental results. Grit in a

+sensitive instrument, or a crack in one of his own high-power

+lenses, would not be more disturbing than a strong emotion in a

+nature such as his. And yet there was but one woman to him, and

+that woman was the late Irene Adler, of dubious and questionable

+memory.

+

+I had seen little of Holmes lately. My marriage had drifted us

+away from each other. My own complete happiness, and the

+home-centred interests which rise up around the man who first

+finds himself master of his own establishment, were sufficient to

+absorb all my attention, while Holmes, who loathed every form of

+society with his whole Bohemian soul, remained in our lodgings in

+Baker Street, buried among his old books, and alternating from

+week to week between cocaine and ambition, the drowsiness of the

+drug, and the fierce energy of his own keen nature. He was still,

+as ever, deeply attracted by the study of crime, and occupied his

+immense faculties and extraordinary powers of observation in

+following out those clues, and clearing up those mysteries which

+had been abandoned as hopeless by the official police. From time

+to time I heard some vague account of his doings: of his summons

+to Odessa in the case of the Trepoff murder, of his clearing up

+of the singular tragedy of the Atkinson brothers at Trincomalee,

+and finally of the mission which he had accomplished so

+delicately and successfully for the reigning family of Holland.

+Beyond these signs of his activity, however, which I merely

+shared with all the readers of the daily press, I knew little of

+my former friend and companion.

+

+One night--it was on the twentieth of March, 1888--I was

+returning from a journey to a patient (for I had now returned to

+civil practice), when my way led me through Baker Street. As I

+passed the well-remembered door, which must always be associated

+in my mind with my wooing, and with the dark incidents of the

+Study in Scarlet, I was seized with a keen desire to see Holmes

+again, and to know how he was employing his extraordinary powers.

+His rooms were brilliantly lit, and, even as I looked up, I saw

+his tall, spare figure pass twice in a dark silhouette against

+the blind. He was pacing the room swiftly, eagerly, with his head

+sunk upon his chest and his hands clasped behind him. To me, who

+knew his every mood and habit, his attitude and manner told their

+own story. He was at work again. He had risen out of his

+drug-created dreams and was hot upon the scent of some new

+problem. I rang the bell and was shown up to the chamber which

+had formerly been in part my own.

+

+His manner was not effusive. It seldom was; but he was glad, I

+think, to see me. With hardly a word spoken, but with a kindly

+eye, he waved me to an armchair, threw across his case of cigars,

+and indicated a spirit case and a gasogene in the corner. Then he

+stood before the fire and looked me over in his singular

+introspective fashion.

+

+"Wedlock suits you," he remarked. "I think, Watson, that you have

+put on seven and a half pounds since I saw you."

+

+"Seven!" I answered.

+

+"Indeed, I should have thought a little more. Just a trifle more,

+I fancy, Watson. And in practice again, I observe. You did not

+tell me that you intended to go into harness."

+

+"Then, how do you know?"

+

+"I see it, I deduce it. How do I know that you have been getting

+yourself very wet lately, and that you have a most clumsy and

+careless servant girl?"

+

+"My dear Holmes," said I, "this is too much. You would certainly

+have been burned, had you lived a few centuries ago. It is true

+that I had a country walk on Thursday and came home in a dreadful

+mess, but as I have changed my clothes I can't imagine how you

+deduce it. As to Mary Jane, she is incorrigible, and my wife has

+given her notice, but there, again, I fail to see how you work it

+out."

+

+He chuckled to himself and rubbed his long, nervous hands

+together.

+

+"It is simplicity itself," said he; "my eyes tell me that on the

+inside of your left shoe, just where the firelight strikes it,

+the leather is scored by six almost parallel cuts. Obviously they

+have been caused by someone who has very carelessly scraped round

+the edges of the sole in order to remove crusted mud from it.

+Hence, you see, my double deduction that you had been out in vile

+weather, and that you had a particularly malignant boot-slitting

+specimen of the London slavey. As to your practice, if a

+gentleman walks into my rooms smelling of iodoform, with a black

+mark of nitrate of silver upon his right forefinger, and a bulge

+on the right side of his top-hat to show where he has secreted

+his stethoscope, I must be dull, indeed, if I do not pronounce

+him to be an active member of the medical profession."

+

+I could not help laughing at the ease with which he explained his

+process of deduction. "When I hear you give your reasons," I

+remarked, "the thing always appears to me to be so ridiculously

+simple that I could easily do it myself, though at each

+successive instance of your reasoning I am baffled until you

+explain your process. And yet I believe that my eyes are as good

+as yours."

+

+"Quite so," he answered, lighting a cigarette, and throwing

+himself down into an armchair. "You see, but you do not observe.

+The distinction is clear. For example, you have frequently seen

+the steps which lead up from the hall to this room."

+

+"Frequently."

+

+"How often?"

+

+"Well, some hundreds of times."

+

+"Then how many are there?"

+

+"How many? I don't know."

+

+"Quite so! You have not observed. And yet you have seen. That is

+just my point. Now, I know that there are seventeen steps,

+because I have both seen and observed. By-the-way, since you are

+interested in these little problems, and since you are good

+enough to chronicle one or two of my trifling experiences, you

+may be interested in this." He threw over a sheet of thick,

+pink-tinted note-paper which had been lying open upon the table.

+"It came by the last post," said he. "Read it aloud."

+

+The note was undated, and without either signature or address.

+

+"There will call upon you to-night, at a quarter to eight

+o'clock," it said, "a gentleman who desires to consult you upon a

+matter of the very deepest moment. Your recent services to one of

+the royal houses of Europe have shown that you are one who may

+safely be trusted with matters which are of an importance which

+can hardly be exaggerated. This account of you we have from all

+quarters received. Be in your chamber then at that hour, and do

+not take it amiss if your visitor wear a mask."

+

+"This is indeed a mystery," I remarked. "What do you imagine that

+it means?"

+

+"I have no data yet. It is a capital mistake to theorize before

+one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit

+theories, instead of theories to suit facts. But the note itself.

+What do you deduce from it?"

+

+I carefully examined the writing, and the paper upon which it was

+written.

+

+"The man who wrote it was presumably well to do," I remarked,

+endeavouring to imitate my companion's processes. "Such paper

+could not be bought under half a crown a packet. It is peculiarly

+strong and stiff."

+

+"Peculiar--that is the very word," said Holmes. "It is not an

+English paper at all. Hold it up to the light."

+

+I did so, and saw a large "E" with a small "g," a "P," and a

+large "G" with a small "t" woven into the texture of the paper.

+

+"What do you make of that?" asked Holmes.

+

+"The name of the maker, no doubt; or his monogram, rather."

+

+"Not at all. The 'G' with the small 't' stands for

+'Gesellschaft,' which is the German for 'Company.' It is a

+customary contraction like our 'Co.' 'P,' of course, stands for

+'Papier.' Now for the 'Eg.' Let us glance at our Continental

+Gazetteer." He took down a heavy brown volume from his shelves.

+"Eglow, Eglonitz--here we are, Egria. It is in a German-speaking

+country--in Bohemia, not far from Carlsbad. 'Remarkable as being

+the scene of the death of Wallenstein, and for its numerous

+glass-factories and paper-mills.' Ha, ha, my boy, what do you

+make of that?" His eyes sparkled, and he sent up a great blue

+triumphant cloud from his cigarette.

+

+"The paper was made in Bohemia," I said.

+

+"Precisely. And the man who wrote the note is a German. Do you

+note the peculiar construction of the sentence--'This account of

+you we have from all quarters received.' A Frenchman or Russian

+could not have written that. It is the German who is so

+uncourteous to his verbs. It only remains, therefore, to discover

+what is wanted by this German who writes upon Bohemian paper and

+prefers wearing a mask to showing his face. And here he comes, if

+I am not mistaken, to resolve all our doubts."

+

+As he spoke there was the sharp sound of horses' hoofs and

+grating wheels against the curb, followed by a sharp pull at the

+bell. Holmes whistled.

+

+"A pair, by the sound," said he. "Yes," he continued, glancing

+out of the window. "A nice little brougham and a pair of

+beauties. A hundred and fifty guineas apiece. There's money in

+this case, Watson, if there is nothing else."

+

+"I think that I had better go, Holmes."

+

+"Not a bit, Doctor. Stay where you are. I am lost without my

+Boswell. And this promises to be interesting. It would be a pity

+to miss it."

+

+"But your client--"

+

+"Never mind him. I may want your help, and so may he. Here he

+comes. Sit down in that armchair, Doctor, and give us your best

+attention."

+

+A slow and heavy step, which had been heard upon the stairs and

+in the passage, paused immediately outside the door. Then there

+was a loud and authoritative tap.

+

+"Come in!" said Holmes.

+

+A man entered who could hardly have been less than six feet six

+inches in height, with the chest and limbs of a Hercules. His

+dress was rich with a richness which would, in England, be looked

+upon as akin to bad taste. Heavy bands of astrakhan were slashed

+across the sleeves and fronts of his double-breasted coat, while

+the deep blue cloak which was thrown over his shoulders was lined

+with flame-coloured silk and secured at the neck with a brooch

+which consisted of a single flaming beryl. Boots which extended

+halfway up his calves, and which were trimmed at the tops with

+rich brown fur, completed the impression of barbaric opulence

+which was suggested by his whole appearance. He carried a

+broad-brimmed hat in his hand, while he wore across the upper

+part of his face, extending down past the cheekbones, a black

+vizard mask, which he had apparently adjusted that very moment,

+for his hand was still raised to it as he entered. From the lower

+part of the face he appeared to be a man of strong character,

+with a thick, hanging lip, and a long, straight chin suggestive

+of resolution pushed to the length of obstinacy.

+

+"You had my note?" he asked with a deep harsh voice and a

+strongly marked German accent. "I told you that I would call." He

+looked from one to the other of us, as if uncertain which to

+address.

+

+"Pray take a seat," said Holmes. "This is my friend and

+colleague, Dr. Watson, who is occasionally good enough to help me

+in my cases. Whom have I the honour to address?"

+

+"You may address me as the Count Von Kramm, a Bohemian nobleman.

+I understand that this gentleman, your friend, is a man of honour

+and discretion, whom I may trust with a matter of the most

+extreme importance. If not, I should much prefer to communicate

+with you alone."

+

+I rose to go, but Holmes caught me by the wrist and pushed me

+back into my chair. "It is both, or none," said he. "You may say

+before this gentleman anything which you may say to me."

+

+The Count shrugged his broad shoulders. "Then I must begin," said

+he, "by binding you both to absolute secrecy for two years; at

+the end of that time the matter will be of no importance. At

+present it is not too much to say that it is of such weight it

+may have an influence upon European history."

+

+"I promise," said Holmes.

+

+"And I."

+

+"You will excuse this mask," continued our strange visitor. "The

+august person who employs me wishes his agent to be unknown to

+you, and I may confess at once that the title by which I have

+just called myself is not exactly my own."

+

+"I was aware of it," said Holmes dryly.

+

+"The circumstances are of great delicacy, and every precaution

+has to be taken to quench what might grow to be an immense

+scandal and seriously compromise one of the reigning families of

+Europe. To speak plainly, the matter implicates the great House

+of Ormstein, hereditary kings of Bohemia."

+

+"I was also aware of that," murmured Holmes, settling himself

+down in his armchair and closing his eyes.

+

+Our visitor glanced with some apparent surprise at the languid,

+lounging figure of the man who had been no doubt depicted to him

+as the most incisive reasoner and most energetic agent in Europe.

+Holmes slowly reopened his eyes and looked impatiently at his

+gigantic client.

+

+"If your Majesty would condescend to state your case," he

+remarked, "I should be better able to advise you."

+

+The man sprang from his chair and paced up and down the room in

+uncontrollable agitation. Then, with a gesture of desperation, he

+tore the mask from his face and hurled it upon the ground. "You

+are right," he cried; "I am the King. Why should I attempt to

+conceal it?"

+

+"Why, indeed?" murmured Holmes. "Your Majesty had not spoken

+before I was aware that I was addressing Wilhelm Gottsreich

+Sigismond von Ormstein, Grand Duke of Cassel-Felstein, and

+hereditary King of Bohemia."

+

+"But you can understand," said our strange visitor, sitting down

+once more and passing his hand over his high white forehead, "you

+can understand that I am not accustomed to doing such business in

+my own person. Yet the matter was so delicate that I could not

+confide it to an agent without putting myself in his power. I

+have come incognito from Prague for the purpose of consulting

+you."

+

+"Then, pray consult," said Holmes, shutting his eyes once more.

+

+"The facts are briefly these: Some five years ago, during a

+lengthy visit to Warsaw, I made the acquaintance of the well-known

+adventuress, Irene Adler. The name is no doubt familiar to you."

+

+"Kindly look her up in my index, Doctor," murmured Holmes without

+opening his eyes. For many years he had adopted a system of

+docketing all paragraphs concerning men and things, so that it

+was difficult to name a subject or a person on which he could not

+at once furnish information. In this case I found her biography

+sandwiched in between that of a Hebrew rabbi and that of a

+staff-commander who had written a monograph upon the deep-sea

+fishes.

+

+"Let me see!" said Holmes. "Hum! Born in New Jersey in the year

+1858. Contralto--hum! La Scala, hum! Prima donna Imperial Opera

+of Warsaw--yes! Retired from operatic stage--ha! Living in

+London--quite so! Your Majesty, as I understand, became entangled

+with this young person, wrote her some compromising letters, and

+is now desirous of getting those letters back."

+

+"Precisely so. But how--"

+

+"Was there a secret marriage?"

+

+"None."

+

+"No legal papers or certificates?"

+

+"None."

+

+"Then I fail to follow your Majesty. If this young person should

+produce her letters for blackmailing or other purposes, how is

+she to prove their authenticity?"

+

+"There is the writing."

+

+"Pooh, pooh! Forgery."

+

+"My private note-paper."

+

+"Stolen."

+

+"My own seal."

+

+"Imitated."

+

+"My photograph."

+

+"Bought."

+

+"We were both in the photograph."

+

+"Oh, dear! That is very bad! Your Majesty has indeed committed an

+indiscretion."

+

+"I was mad--insane."

+

+"You have compromised yourself seriously."

+

+"I was only Crown Prince then. I was young. I am but thirty now."

+

+"It must be recovered."

+

+"We have tried and failed."

+

+"Your Majesty must pay. It must be bought."

+

+"She will not sell."

+

+"Stolen, then."

+

+"Five attempts have been made. Twice burglars in my pay ransacked

+her house. Once we diverted her luggage when she travelled. Twice

+she has been waylaid. There has been no result."

+

+"No sign of it?"

+

+"Absolutely none."

+

+Holmes laughed. "It is quite a pretty little problem," said he.

+

+"But a very serious one to me," returned the King reproachfully.

+

+"Very, indeed. And what does she propose to do with the

+photograph?"

+

+"To ruin me."

+

+"But how?"

+

+"I am about to be married."

+

+"So I have heard."

+

+"To Clotilde Lothman von Saxe-Meningen, second daughter of the

+King of Scandinavia. You may know the strict principles of her

+family. She is herself the very soul of delicacy. A shadow of a

+doubt as to my conduct would bring the matter to an end."

+

+"And Irene Adler?"

+

+"Threatens to send them the photograph. And she will do it. I

+know that she will do it. You do not know her, but she has a soul

+of steel. She has the face of the most beautiful of women, and

+the mind of the most resolute of men. Rather than I should marry

+another woman, there are no lengths to which she would not

+go--none."

+

+"You are sure that she has not sent it yet?"

+

+"I am sure."

+

+"And why?"

+

+"Because she has said that she would send it on the day when the

+betrothal was publicly proclaimed. That will be next Monday."

+

+"Oh, then we have three days yet," said Holmes with a yawn. "That

+is very fortunate, as I have one or two matters of importance to

+look into just at present. Your Majesty will, of course, stay in

+London for the present?"

+

+"Certainly. You will find me at the Langham under the name of the

+Count Von Kramm."

+

+"Then I shall drop you a line to let you know how we progress."

+

+"Pray do so. I shall be all anxiety."

+

+"Then, as to money?"

+

+"You have carte blanche."

+

+"Absolutely?"

+

+"I tell you that I would give one of the provinces of my kingdom

+to have that photograph."

+

+"And for present expenses?"

+

+The King took a heavy chamois leather bag from under his cloak

+and laid it on the table.

+

+"There are three hundred pounds in gold and seven hundred in

+notes," he said.

+

+Holmes scribbled a receipt upon a sheet of his note-book and

+handed it to him.

+

+"And Mademoiselle's address?" he asked.

+

+"Is Briony Lodge, Serpentine Avenue, St. John's Wood."

+

+Holmes took a note of it. "One other question," said he. "Was the

+photograph a cabinet?"

+

+"It was."

+

+"Then, good-night, your Majesty, and I trust that we shall soon

+have some good news for you. And good-night, Watson," he added,

+as the wheels of the royal brougham rolled down the street. "If

+you will be good enough to call to-morrow afternoon at three

+o'clock I should like to chat this little matter over with you."

+

+

+II.

+

+At three o'clock precisely I was at Baker Street, but Holmes had

+not yet returned. The landlady informed me that he had left the

+house shortly after eight o'clock in the morning. I sat down

+beside the fire, however, with the intention of awaiting him,

+however long he might be. I was already deeply interested in his

+inquiry, for, though it was surrounded by none of the grim and

+strange features which were associated with the two crimes which

+I have already recorded, still, the nature of the case and the

+exalted station of his client gave it a character of its own.

+Indeed, apart from the nature of the investigation which my

+friend had on hand, there was something in his masterly grasp of

+a situation, and his keen, incisive reasoning, which made it a

+pleasure to me to study his system of work, and to follow the

+quick, subtle methods by which he disentangled the most

+inextricable mysteries. So accustomed was I to his invariable

+success that the very possibility of his failing had ceased to

+enter into my head.

+

+It was close upon four before the door opened, and a

+drunken-looking groom, ill-kempt and side-whiskered, with an

+inflamed face and disreputable clothes, walked into the room.

+Accustomed as I was to my friend's amazing powers in the use of

+disguises, I had to look three times before I was certain that it

+was indeed he. With a nod he vanished into the bedroom, whence he

+emerged in five minutes tweed-suited and respectable, as of old.

+Putting his hands into his pockets, he stretched out his legs in

+front of the fire and laughed heartily for some minutes.

+

+"Well, really!" he cried, and then he choked and laughed again

+until he was obliged to lie back, limp and helpless, in the

+chair.

+

+"What is it?"

+

+"It's quite too funny. I am sure you could never guess how I

+employed my morning, or what I ended by doing."

+

+"I can't imagine. I suppose that you have been watching the

+habits, and perhaps the house, of Miss Irene Adler."

+

+"Quite so; but the sequel was rather unusual. I will tell you,

+however. I left the house a little after eight o'clock this

+morning in the character of a groom out of work. There is a

+wonderful sympathy and freemasonry among horsey men. Be one of

+them, and you will know all that there is to know. I soon found

+Briony Lodge. It is a bijou villa, with a garden at the back, but

+built out in front right up to the road, two stories. Chubb lock

+to the door. Large sitting-room on the right side, well

+furnished, with long windows almost to the floor, and those

+preposterous English window fasteners which a child could open.

+Behind there was nothing remarkable, save that the passage window

+could be reached from the top of the coach-house. I walked round

+it and examined it closely from every point of view, but without

+noting anything else of interest.

+

+"I then lounged down the street and found, as I expected, that

+there was a mews in a lane which runs down by one wall of the

+garden. I lent the ostlers a hand in rubbing down their horses,

+and received in exchange twopence, a glass of half and half, two

+fills of shag tobacco, and as much information as I could desire

+about Miss Adler, to say nothing of half a dozen other people in

+the neighbourhood in whom I was not in the least interested, but

+whose biographies I was compelled to listen to."

+

+"And what of Irene Adler?" I asked.

+

+"Oh, she has turned all the men's heads down in that part. She is

+the daintiest thing under a bonnet on this planet. So say the

+Serpentine-mews, to a man. She lives quietly, sings at concerts,

+drives out at five every day, and returns at seven sharp for

+dinner. Seldom goes out at other times, except when she sings.

+Has only one male visitor, but a good deal of him. He is dark,

+handsome, and dashing, never calls less than once a day, and

+often twice. He is a Mr. Godfrey Norton, of the Inner Temple. See

+the advantages of a cabman as a confidant. They had driven him

+home a dozen times from Serpentine-mews, and knew all about him.

+When I had listened to all they had to tell, I began to walk up

+and down near Briony Lodge once more, and to think over my plan

+of campaign.

+

+"This Godfrey Norton was evidently an important factor in the

+matter. He was a lawyer. That sounded ominous. What was the

+relation between them, and what the object of his repeated

+visits? Was she his client, his friend, or his mistress? If the

+former, she had probably transferred the photograph to his

+keeping. If the latter, it was less likely. On the issue of this

+question depended whether I should continue my work at Briony

+Lodge, or turn my attention to the gentleman's chambers in the

+Temple. It was a delicate point, and it widened the field of my

+inquiry. I fear that I bore you with these details, but I have to

+let you see my little difficulties, if you are to understand the

+situation."

+

+"I am following you closely," I answered.

+

+"I was still balancing the matter in my mind when a hansom cab

+drove up to Briony Lodge, and a gentleman sprang out. He was a

+remarkably handsome man, dark, aquiline, and moustached--evidently

+the man of whom I had heard. He appeared to be in a

+great hurry, shouted to the cabman to wait, and brushed past the

+maid who opened the door with the air of a man who was thoroughly

+at home.

+

+"He was in the house about half an hour, and I could catch

+glimpses of him in the windows of the sitting-room, pacing up and

+down, talking excitedly, and waving his arms. Of her I could see

+nothing. Presently he emerged, looking even more flurried than

+before. As he stepped up to the cab, he pulled a gold watch from

+his pocket and looked at it earnestly, 'Drive like the devil,' he

+shouted, 'first to Gross & Hankey's in Regent Street, and then to

+the Church of St. Monica in the Edgeware Road. Half a guinea if

+you do it in twenty minutes!'

+

+"Away they went, and I was just wondering whether I should not do

+well to follow them when up the lane came a neat little landau,

+the coachman with his coat only half-buttoned, and his tie under

+his ear, while all the tags of his harness were sticking out of

+the buckles. It hadn't pulled up before she shot out of the hall

+door and into it. I only caught a glimpse of her at the moment,

+but she was a lovely woman, with a face that a man might die for.

+

+"'The Church of St. Monica, John,' she cried, 'and half a

+sovereign if you reach it in twenty minutes.'

+

+"This was quite too good to lose, Watson. I was just balancing

+whether I should run for it, or whether I should perch behind her

+landau when a cab came through the street. The driver looked

+twice at such a shabby fare, but I jumped in before he could

+object. 'The Church of St. Monica,' said I, 'and half a sovereign

+if you reach it in twenty minutes.' It was twenty-five minutes to

+twelve, and of course it was clear enough what was in the wind.

+

+"My cabby drove fast. I don't think I ever drove faster, but the

+others were there before us. The cab and the landau with their

+steaming horses were in front of the door when I arrived. I paid

+the man and hurried into the church. There was not a soul there

+save the two whom I had followed and a surpliced clergyman, who

+seemed to be expostulating with them. They were all three

+standing in a knot in front of the altar. I lounged up the side

+aisle like any other idler who has dropped into a church.

+Suddenly, to my surprise, the three at the altar faced round to

+me, and Godfrey Norton came running as hard as he could towards

+me.

+

+"'Thank God,' he cried. 'You'll do. Come! Come!'

+

+"'What then?' I asked.

+

+"'Come, man, come, only three minutes, or it won't be legal.'

+

+"I was half-dragged up to the altar, and before I knew where I was

+I found myself mumbling responses which were whispered in my ear,

+and vouching for things of which I knew nothing, and generally

+assisting in the secure tying up of Irene Adler, spinster, to

+Godfrey Norton, bachelor. It was all done in an instant, and

+there was the gentleman thanking me on the one side and the lady

+on the other, while the clergyman beamed on me in front. It was

+the most preposterous position in which I ever found myself in my

+life, and it was the thought of it that started me laughing just

+now. It seems that there had been some informality about their

+license, that the clergyman absolutely refused to marry them

+without a witness of some sort, and that my lucky appearance

+saved the bridegroom from having to sally out into the streets in

+search of a best man. The bride gave me a sovereign, and I mean

+to wear it on my watch-chain in memory of the occasion."

+

+"This is a very unexpected turn of affairs," said I; "and what

+then?"

+

+"Well, I found my plans very seriously menaced. It looked as if

+the pair might take an immediate departure, and so necessitate

+very prompt and energetic measures on my part. At the church

+door, however, they separated, he driving back to the Temple, and

+she to her own house. 'I shall drive out in the park at five as

+usual,' she said as she left him. I heard no more. They drove

+away in different directions, and I went off to make my own

+arrangements."

+

+"Which are?"

+

+"Some cold beef and a glass of beer," he answered, ringing the

+bell. "I have been too busy to think of food, and I am likely to

+be busier still this evening. By the way, Doctor, I shall want

+your co-operation."

+

+"I shall be delighted."

+

+"You don't mind breaking the law?"

+

+"Not in the least."

+

+"Nor running a chance of arrest?"

+

+"Not in a good cause."

+

+"Oh, the cause is excellent!"

+

+"Then I am your man."

+

+"I was sure that I might rely on you."

+

+"But what is it you wish?"

+

+"When Mrs. Turner has brought in the tray I will make it clear to

+you. Now," he said as he turned hungrily on the simple fare that

+our landlady had provided, "I must discuss it while I eat, for I

+have not much time. It is nearly five now. In two hours we must

+be on the scene of action. Miss Irene, or Madame, rather, returns

+from her drive at seven. We must be at Briony Lodge to meet her."

+

+"And what then?"

+

+"You must leave that to me. I have already arranged what is to

+occur. There is only one point on which I must insist. You must

+not interfere, come what may. You understand?"

+

+"I am to be neutral?"

+

+"To do nothing whatever. There will probably be some small

+unpleasantness. Do not join in it. It will end in my being

+conveyed into the house. Four or five minutes afterwards the

+sitting-room window will open. You are to station yourself close

+to that open window."

+

+"Yes."

+

+"You are to watch me, for I will be visible to you."

+

+"Yes."

+

+"And when I raise my hand--so--you will throw into the room what

+I give you to throw, and will, at the same time, raise the cry of

+fire. You quite follow me?"

+

+"Entirely."

+

+"It is nothing very formidable," he said, taking a long cigar-shaped

+roll from his pocket. "It is an ordinary plumber's smoke-rocket,

+fitted with a cap at either end to make it self-lighting.

+Your task is confined to that. When you raise your cry of fire,

+it will be taken up by quite a number of people. You may then

+walk to the end of the street, and I will rejoin you in ten

+minutes. I hope that I have made myself clear?"

+

+"I am to remain neutral, to get near the window, to watch you,

+and at the signal to throw in this object, then to raise the cry

+of fire, and to wait you at the corner of the street."

+

+"Precisely."

+

+"Then you may entirely rely on me."

+

+"That is excellent. I think, perhaps, it is almost time that I

+prepare for the new role I have to play."

+

+He disappeared into his bedroom and returned in a few minutes in

+the character of an amiable and simple-minded Nonconformist

+clergyman. His broad black hat, his baggy trousers, his white

+tie, his sympathetic smile, and general look of peering and

+benevolent curiosity were such as Mr. John Hare alone could have

+equalled. It was not merely that Holmes changed his costume. His

+expression, his manner, his very soul seemed to vary with every

+fresh part that he assumed. The stage lost a fine actor, even as

+science lost an acute reasoner, when he became a specialist in

+crime.

+

+It was a quarter past six when we left Baker Street, and it still

+wanted ten minutes to the hour when we found ourselves in

+Serpentine Avenue. It was already dusk, and the lamps were just

+being lighted as we paced up and down in front of Briony Lodge,

+waiting for the coming of its occupant. The house was just such

+as I had pictured it from Sherlock Holmes' succinct description,

+but the locality appeared to be less private than I expected. On

+the contrary, for a small street in a quiet neighbourhood, it was

+remarkably animated. There was a group of shabbily dressed men

+smoking and laughing in a corner, a scissors-grinder with his

+wheel, two guardsmen who were flirting with a nurse-girl, and

+several well-dressed young men who were lounging up and down with

+cigars in their mouths.

+

+"You see," remarked Holmes, as we paced to and fro in front of

+the house, "this marriage rather simplifies matters. The

+photograph becomes a double-edged weapon now. The chances are

+that she would be as averse to its being seen by Mr. Godfrey

+Norton, as our client is to its coming to the eyes of his

+princess. Now the question is, Where are we to find the

+photograph?"

+

+"Where, indeed?"

+

+"It is most unlikely that she carries it about with her. It is

+cabinet size. Too large for easy concealment about a woman's

+dress. She knows that the King is capable of having her waylaid

+and searched. Two attempts of the sort have already been made. We

+may take it, then, that she does not carry it about with her."

+

+"Where, then?"

+

+"Her banker or her lawyer. There is that double possibility. But

+I am inclined to think neither. Women are naturally secretive,

+and they like to do their own secreting. Why should she hand it

+over to anyone else? She could trust her own guardianship, but

+she could not tell what indirect or political influence might be

+brought to bear upon a business man. Besides, remember that she

+had resolved to use it within a few days. It must be where she

+can lay her hands upon it. It must be in her own house."

+

+"But it has twice been burgled."

+

+"Pshaw! They did not know how to look."

+

+"But how will you look?"

+

+"I will not look."

+

+"What then?"

+

+"I will get her to show me."

+

+"But she will refuse."

+

+"She will not be able to. But I hear the rumble of wheels. It is

+her carriage. Now carry out my orders to the letter."

+

+As he spoke the gleam of the side-lights of a carriage came round

+the curve of the avenue. It was a smart little landau which

+rattled up to the door of Briony Lodge. As it pulled up, one of

+the loafing men at the corner dashed forward to open the door in

+the hope of earning a copper, but was elbowed away by another

+loafer, who had rushed up with the same intention. A fierce

+quarrel broke out, which was increased by the two guardsmen, who

+took sides with one of the loungers, and by the scissors-grinder,

+who was equally hot upon the other side. A blow was struck, and

+in an instant the lady, who had stepped from her carriage, was

+the centre of a little knot of flushed and struggling men, who

+struck savagely at each other with their fists and sticks. Holmes

+dashed into the crowd to protect the lady; but just as he reached

+her he gave a cry and dropped to the ground, with the blood

+running freely down his face. At his fall the guardsmen took to

+their heels in one direction and the loungers in the other, while

+a number of better-dressed people, who had watched the scuffle

+without taking part in it, crowded in to help the lady and to

+attend to the injured man. Irene Adler, as I will still call her,

+had hurried up the steps; but she stood at the top with her

+superb figure outlined against the lights of the hall, looking

+back into the street.

+

+"Is the poor gentleman much hurt?" she asked.

+

+"He is dead," cried several voices.

+

+"No, no, there's life in him!" shouted another. "But he'll be

+gone before you can get him to hospital."

+

+"He's a brave fellow," said a woman. "They would have had the

+lady's purse and watch if it hadn't been for him. They were a

+gang, and a rough one, too. Ah, he's breathing now."

+

+"He can't lie in the street. May we bring him in, marm?"

+

+"Surely. Bring him into the sitting-room. There is a comfortable

+sofa. This way, please!"

+

+Slowly and solemnly he was borne into Briony Lodge and laid out

+in the principal room, while I still observed the proceedings

+from my post by the window. The lamps had been lit, but the

+blinds had not been drawn, so that I could see Holmes as he lay

+upon the couch. I do not know whether he was seized with

+compunction at that moment for the part he was playing, but I

+know that I never felt more heartily ashamed of myself in my life

+than when I saw the beautiful creature against whom I was

+conspiring, or the grace and kindliness with which she waited

+upon the injured man. And yet it would be the blackest treachery

+to Holmes to draw back now from the part which he had intrusted

+to me. I hardened my heart, and took the smoke-rocket from under

+my ulster. After all, I thought, we are not injuring her. We are

+but preventing her from injuring another.

+

+Holmes had sat up upon the couch, and I saw him motion like a man

+who is in need of air. A maid rushed across and threw open the

+window. At the same instant I saw him raise his hand and at the

+signal I tossed my rocket into the room with a cry of "Fire!" The

+word was no sooner out of my mouth than the whole crowd of

+spectators, well dressed and ill--gentlemen, ostlers, and

+servant-maids--joined in a general shriek of "Fire!" Thick clouds

+of smoke curled through the room and out at the open window. I

+caught a glimpse of rushing figures, and a moment later the voice

+of Holmes from within assuring them that it was a false alarm.

+Slipping through the shouting crowd I made my way to the corner

+of the street, and in ten minutes was rejoiced to find my

+friend's arm in mine, and to get away from the scene of uproar.

+He walked swiftly and in silence for some few minutes until we

+had turned down one of the quiet streets which lead towards the

+Edgeware Road.

+

+"You did it very nicely, Doctor," he remarked. "Nothing could

+have been better. It is all right."

+

+"You have the photograph?"

+

+"I know where it is."

+

+"And how did you find out?"

+

+"She showed me, as I told you she would."

+

+"I am still in the dark."

+

+"I do not wish to make a mystery," said he, laughing. "The matter

+was perfectly simple. You, of course, saw that everyone in the

+street was an accomplice. They were all engaged for the evening."

+

+"I guessed as much."

+

+"Then, when the row broke out, I had a little moist red paint in

+the palm of my hand. I rushed forward, fell down, clapped my hand

+to my face, and became a piteous spectacle. It is an old trick."

+

+"That also I could fathom."

+

+"Then they carried me in. She was bound to have me in. What else

+could she do? And into her sitting-room, which was the very room

+which I suspected. It lay between that and her bedroom, and I was

+determined to see which. They laid me on a couch, I motioned for

+air, they were compelled to open the window, and you had your

+chance."

+

+"How did that help you?"

+

+"It was all-important. When a woman thinks that her house is on

+fire, her instinct is at once to rush to the thing which she

+values most. It is a perfectly overpowering impulse, and I have

+more than once taken advantage of it. In the case of the

+Darlington substitution scandal it was of use to me, and also in

+the Arnsworth Castle business. A married woman grabs at her baby;

+an unmarried one reaches for her jewel-box. Now it was clear to

+me that our lady of to-day had nothing in the house more precious

+to her than what we are in quest of. She would rush to secure it.

+The alarm of fire was admirably done. The smoke and shouting were

+enough to shake nerves of steel. She responded beautifully. The

+photograph is in a recess behind a sliding panel just above the

+right bell-pull. She was there in an instant, and I caught a

+glimpse of it as she half-drew it out. When I cried out that it

+was a false alarm, she replaced it, glanced at the rocket, rushed

+from the room, and I have not seen her since. I rose, and, making

+my excuses, escaped from the house. I hesitated whether to

+attempt to secure the photograph at once; but the coachman had

+come in, and as he was watching me narrowly it seemed safer to

+wait. A little over-precipitance may ruin all."

+

+"And now?" I asked.

+

+"Our quest is practically finished. I shall call with the King

+to-morrow, and with you, if you care to come with us. We will be

+shown into the sitting-room to wait for the lady, but it is

+probable that when she comes she may find neither us nor the

+photograph. It might be a satisfaction to his Majesty to regain

+it with his own hands."

+

+"And when will you call?"

+

+"At eight in the morning. She will not be up, so that we shall

+have a clear field. Besides, we must be prompt, for this marriage

+may mean a complete change in her life and habits. I must wire to

+the King without delay."

+

+We had reached Baker Street and had stopped at the door. He was

+searching his pockets for the key when someone passing said:

+

+"Good-night, Mister Sherlock Holmes."

+

+There were several people on the pavement at the time, but the

+greeting appeared to come from a slim youth in an ulster who had

+hurried by.

+

+"I've heard that voice before," said Holmes, staring down the

+dimly lit street. "Now, I wonder who the deuce that could have

+been."

+

+

+III.

+

+I slept at Baker Street that night, and we were engaged upon our

+toast and coffee in the morning when the King of Bohemia rushed

+into the room.

+

+"You have really got it!" he cried, grasping Sherlock Holmes by

+either shoulder and looking eagerly into his face.

+

+"Not yet."

+

+"But you have hopes?"

+

+"I have hopes."

+

+"Then, come. I am all impatience to be gone."

+

+"We must have a cab."

+

+"No, my brougham is waiting."

+

+"Then that will simplify matters." We descended and started off

+once more for Briony Lodge.

+

+"Irene Adler is married," remarked Holmes.

+

+"Married! When?"

+

+"Yesterday."

+

+"But to whom?"

+

+"To an English lawyer named Norton."

+

+"But she could not love him."

+

+"I am in hopes that she does."

+

+"And why in hopes?"

+

+"Because it would spare your Majesty all fear of future

+annoyance. If the lady loves her husband, she does not love your

+Majesty. If she does not love your Majesty, there is no reason

+why she should interfere with your Majesty's plan."

+

+"It is true. And yet--Well! I wish she had been of my own

+station! What a queen she would have made!" He relapsed into a

+moody silence, which was not broken until we drew up in

+Serpentine Avenue.

+

+The door of Briony Lodge was open, and an elderly woman stood

+upon the steps. She watched us with a sardonic eye as we stepped

+from the brougham.

+

+"Mr. Sherlock Holmes, I believe?" said she.

+

+"I am Mr. Holmes," answered my companion, looking at her with a

+questioning and rather startled gaze.

+

+"Indeed! My mistress told me that you were likely to call. She

+left this morning with her husband by the 5:15 train from Charing

+Cross for the Continent."

+

+"What!" Sherlock Holmes staggered back, white with chagrin and

+surprise. "Do you mean that she has left England?"

+

+"Never to return."

+

+"And the papers?" asked the King hoarsely. "All is lost."

+

+"We shall see." He pushed past the servant and rushed into the

+drawing-room, followed by the King and myself. The furniture was

+scattered about in every direction, with dismantled shelves and

+open drawers, as if the lady had hurriedly ransacked them before

+her flight. Holmes rushed at the bell-pull, tore back a small

+sliding shutter, and, plunging in his hand, pulled out a

+photograph and a letter. The photograph was of Irene Adler

+herself in evening dress, the letter was superscribed to

+"Sherlock Holmes, Esq. To be left till called for." My friend

+tore it open and we all three read it together. It was dated at

+midnight of the preceding night and ran in this way:

+

+"MY DEAR MR. SHERLOCK HOLMES,--You really did it very well. You

+took me in completely. Until after the alarm of fire, I had not a

+suspicion. But then, when I found how I had betrayed myself, I

+began to think. I had been warned against you months ago. I had

+been told that if the King employed an agent it would certainly

+be you. And your address had been given me. Yet, with all this,

+you made me reveal what you wanted to know. Even after I became

+suspicious, I found it hard to think evil of such a dear, kind

+old clergyman. But, you know, I have been trained as an actress

+myself. Male costume is nothing new to me. I often take advantage

+of the freedom which it gives. I sent John, the coachman, to

+watch you, ran up stairs, got into my walking-clothes, as I call

+them, and came down just as you departed.

+

+"Well, I followed you to your door, and so made sure that I was

+really an object of interest to the celebrated Mr. Sherlock

+Holmes. Then I, rather imprudently, wished you good-night, and

+started for the Temple to see my husband.

+

+"We both thought the best resource was flight, when pursued by

+so formidable an antagonist; so you will find the nest empty when

+you call to-morrow. As to the photograph, your client may rest in

+peace. I love and am loved by a better man than he. The King may

+do what he will without hindrance from one whom he has cruelly

+wronged. I keep it only to safeguard myself, and to preserve a

+weapon which will always secure me from any steps which he might

+take in the future. I leave a photograph which he might care to

+possess; and I remain, dear Mr. Sherlock Holmes,

+

+                                      "Very truly yours,

+                                   "IRENE NORTON, née ADLER."

+

+"What a woman--oh, what a woman!" cried the King of Bohemia, when

+we had all three read this epistle. "Did I not tell you how quick

+and resolute she was? Would she not have made an admirable queen?

+Is it not a pity that she was not on my level?"

+

+"From what I have seen of the lady she seems indeed to be on a

+very different level to your Majesty," said Holmes coldly. "I am

+sorry that I have not been able to bring your Majesty's business

+to a more successful conclusion."

+

+"On the contrary, my dear sir," cried the King; "nothing could be

+more successful. I know that her word is inviolate. The

+photograph is now as safe as if it were in the fire."

+

+"I am glad to hear your Majesty say so."

+

+"I am immensely indebted to you. Pray tell me in what way I can

+reward you. This ring--" He slipped an emerald snake ring from

+his finger and held it out upon the palm of his hand.

+

+"Your Majesty has something which I should value even more

+highly," said Holmes.

+

+"You have but to name it."

+

+"This photograph!"

+

+The King stared at him in amazement.

+

+"Irene's photograph!" he cried. "Certainly, if you wish it."

+

+"I thank your Majesty. Then there is no more to be done in the

+matter. I have the honour to wish you a very good-morning." He

+bowed, and, turning away without observing the hand which the

+King had stretched out to him, he set off in my company for his

+chambers.

+

+And that was how a great scandal threatened to affect the kingdom

+of Bohemia, and how the best plans of Mr. Sherlock Holmes were

+beaten by a woman's wit. He used to make merry over the

+cleverness of women, but I have not heard him do it of late. And

+when he speaks of Irene Adler, or when he refers to her

+photograph, it is always under the honourable title of the woman.

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE II. THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE

+

+I had called upon my friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, one day in the

+autumn of last year and found him in deep conversation with a

+very stout, florid-faced, elderly gentleman with fiery red hair.

+With an apology for my intrusion, I was about to withdraw when

+Holmes pulled me abruptly into the room and closed the door

+behind me.

+

+"You could not possibly have come at a better time, my dear

+Watson," he said cordially.

+

+"I was afraid that you were engaged."

+

+"So I am. Very much so."

+

+"Then I can wait in the next room."

+

+"Not at all. This gentleman, Mr. Wilson, has been my partner and

+helper in many of my most successful cases, and I have no

+doubt that he will be of the utmost use to me in yours also."

+

+The stout gentleman half rose from his chair and gave a bob of

+greeting, with a quick little questioning glance from his small

+fat-encircled eyes.

+

+"Try the settee," said Holmes, relapsing into his armchair and

+putting his fingertips together, as was his custom when in

+judicial moods. "I know, my dear Watson, that you share my love

+of all that is bizarre and outside the conventions and humdrum

+routine of everyday life. You have shown your relish for it by

+the enthusiasm which has prompted you to chronicle, and, if you

+will excuse my saying so, somewhat to embellish so many of my own

+little adventures."

+

+"Your cases have indeed been of the greatest interest to me," I

+observed.

+

+"You will remember that I remarked the other day, just before we

+went into the very simple problem presented by Miss Mary

+Sutherland, that for strange effects and extraordinary

+combinations we must go to life itself, which is always far more

+daring than any effort of the imagination."

+

+"A proposition which I took the liberty of doubting."

+

+"You did, Doctor, but none the less you must come round to my

+view, for otherwise I shall keep on piling fact upon fact on you

+until your reason breaks down under them and acknowledges me to

+be right. Now, Mr. Jabez Wilson here has been good enough to call

+upon me this morning, and to begin a narrative which promises to

+be one of the most singular which I have listened to for some

+time. You have heard me remark that the strangest and most unique

+things are very often connected not with the larger but with the

+smaller crimes, and occasionally, indeed, where there is room for

+doubt whether any positive crime has been committed. As far as I

+have heard it is impossible for me to say whether the present

+case is an instance of crime or not, but the course of events is

+certainly among the most singular that I have ever listened to.

+Perhaps, Mr. Wilson, you would have the great kindness to

+recommence your narrative. I ask you not merely because my friend

+Dr. Watson has not heard the opening part but also because the

+peculiar nature of the story makes me anxious to have every

+possible detail from your lips. As a rule, when I have heard some

+slight indication of the course of events, I am able to guide

+myself by the thousands of other similar cases which occur to my

+memory. In the present instance I am forced to admit that the

+facts are, to the best of my belief, unique."

+

+The portly client puffed out his chest with an appearance of some

+little pride and pulled a dirty and wrinkled newspaper from the

+inside pocket of his greatcoat. As he glanced down the

+advertisement column, with his head thrust forward and the paper

+flattened out upon his knee, I took a good look at the man and

+endeavoured, after the fashion of my companion, to read the

+indications which might be presented by his dress or appearance.

+

+I did not gain very much, however, by my inspection. Our visitor

+bore every mark of being an average commonplace British

+tradesman, obese, pompous, and slow. He wore rather baggy grey

+shepherd's check trousers, a not over-clean black frock-coat,

+unbuttoned in the front, and a drab waistcoat with a heavy brassy

+Albert chain, and a square pierced bit of metal dangling down as

+an ornament. A frayed top-hat and a faded brown overcoat with a

+wrinkled velvet collar lay upon a chair beside him. Altogether,

+look as I would, there was nothing remarkable about the man save

+his blazing red head, and the expression of extreme chagrin and

+discontent upon his features.

+

+Sherlock Holmes' quick eye took in my occupation, and he shook

+his head with a smile as he noticed my questioning glances.

+"Beyond the obvious facts that he has at some time done manual

+labour, that he takes snuff, that he is a Freemason, that he has

+been in China, and that he has done a considerable amount of

+writing lately, I can deduce nothing else."

+

+Mr. Jabez Wilson started up in his chair, with his forefinger

+upon the paper, but his eyes upon my companion.

+

+"How, in the name of good-fortune, did you know all that, Mr.

+Holmes?" he asked. "How did you know, for example, that I did

+manual labour. It's as true as gospel, for I began as a ship's

+carpenter."

+

+"Your hands, my dear sir. Your right hand is quite a size larger

+than your left. You have worked with it, and the muscles are more

+developed."

+

+"Well, the snuff, then, and the Freemasonry?"

+

+"I won't insult your intelligence by telling you how I read that,

+especially as, rather against the strict rules of your order, you

+use an arc-and-compass breastpin."

+

+"Ah, of course, I forgot that. But the writing?"

+

+"What else can be indicated by that right cuff so very shiny for

+five inches, and the left one with the smooth patch near the

+elbow where you rest it upon the desk?"

+

+"Well, but China?"

+

+"The fish that you have tattooed immediately above your right

+wrist could only have been done in China. I have made a small

+study of tattoo marks and have even contributed to the literature

+of the subject. That trick of staining the fishes' scales of a

+delicate pink is quite peculiar to China. When, in addition, I

+see a Chinese coin hanging from your watch-chain, the matter

+becomes even more simple."

+

+Mr. Jabez Wilson laughed heavily. "Well, I never!" said he. "I

+thought at first that you had done something clever, but I see

+that there was nothing in it, after all."

+

+"I begin to think, Watson," said Holmes, "that I make a mistake

+in explaining. 'Omne ignotum pro magnifico,' you know, and my

+poor little reputation, such as it is, will suffer shipwreck if I

+am so candid. Can you not find the advertisement, Mr. Wilson?"

+

+"Yes, I have got it now," he answered with his thick red finger

+planted halfway down the column. "Here it is. This is what began

+it all. You just read it for yourself, sir."

+

+I took the paper from him and read as follows:

+

+"TO THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE: On account of the bequest of the late

+Ezekiah Hopkins, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, U. S. A., there is now

+another vacancy open which entitles a member of the League to a

+salary of 4 pounds a week for purely nominal services. All

+red-headed men who are sound in body and mind and above the age

+of twenty-one years, are eligible. Apply in person on Monday, at

+eleven o'clock, to Duncan Ross, at the offices of the League, 7

+Pope's Court, Fleet Street."

+

+"What on earth does this mean?" I ejaculated after I had twice

+read over the extraordinary announcement.

+

+Holmes chuckled and wriggled in his chair, as was his habit when

+in high spirits. "It is a little off the beaten track, isn't it?"

+said he. "And now, Mr. Wilson, off you go at scratch and tell us

+all about yourself, your household, and the effect which this

+advertisement had upon your fortunes. You will first make a note,

+Doctor, of the paper and the date."

+

+"It is The Morning Chronicle of April 27, 1890. Just two months

+ago."

+

+"Very good. Now, Mr. Wilson?"

+

+"Well, it is just as I have been telling you, Mr. Sherlock

+Holmes," said Jabez Wilson, mopping his forehead; "I have a small

+pawnbroker's business at Coburg Square, near the City. It's not a

+very large affair, and of late years it has not done more than

+just give me a living. I used to be able to keep two assistants,

+but now I only keep one; and I would have a job to pay him but

+that he is willing to come for half wages so as to learn the

+business."

+

+"What is the name of this obliging youth?" asked Sherlock Holmes.

+

+"His name is Vincent Spaulding, and he's not such a youth,

+either. It's hard to say his age. I should not wish a smarter

+assistant, Mr. Holmes; and I know very well that he could better

+himself and earn twice what I am able to give him. But, after

+all, if he is satisfied, why should I put ideas in his head?"

+

+"Why, indeed? You seem most fortunate in having an employé who

+comes under the full market price. It is not a common experience

+among employers in this age. I don't know that your assistant is

+not as remarkable as your advertisement."

+

+"Oh, he has his faults, too," said Mr. Wilson. "Never was such a

+fellow for photography. Snapping away with a camera when he ought

+to be improving his mind, and then diving down into the cellar

+like a rabbit into its hole to develop his pictures. That is his

+main fault, but on the whole he's a good worker. There's no vice

+in him."

+

+"He is still with you, I presume?"

+

+"Yes, sir. He and a girl of fourteen, who does a bit of simple

+cooking and keeps the place clean--that's all I have in the

+house, for I am a widower and never had any family. We live very

+quietly, sir, the three of us; and we keep a roof over our heads

+and pay our debts, if we do nothing more.

+

+"The first thing that put us out was that advertisement.

+Spaulding, he came down into the office just this day eight

+weeks, with this very paper in his hand, and he says:

+

+"'I wish to the Lord, Mr. Wilson, that I was a red-headed man.'

+

+"'Why that?' I asks.

+

+"'Why,' says he, 'here's another vacancy on the League of the

+Red-headed Men. It's worth quite a little fortune to any man who

+gets it, and I understand that there are more vacancies than

+there are men, so that the trustees are at their wits' end what

+to do with the money. If my hair would only change colour, here's

+a nice little crib all ready for me to step into.'

+

+"'Why, what is it, then?' I asked. You see, Mr. Holmes, I am a

+very stay-at-home man, and as my business came to me instead of

+my having to go to it, I was often weeks on end without putting

+my foot over the door-mat. In that way I didn't know much of what

+was going on outside, and I was always glad of a bit of news.

+

+"'Have you never heard of the League of the Red-headed Men?' he

+asked with his eyes open.

+

+"'Never.'

+

+"'Why, I wonder at that, for you are eligible yourself for one

+of the vacancies.'

+

+"'And what are they worth?' I asked.

+

+"'Oh, merely a couple of hundred a year, but the work is slight,

+and it need not interfere very much with one's other

+occupations.'

+

+"Well, you can easily think that that made me prick up my ears,

+for the business has not been over-good for some years, and an

+extra couple of hundred would have been very handy.

+

+"'Tell me all about it,' said I.

+

+"'Well,' said he, showing me the advertisement, 'you can see for

+yourself that the League has a vacancy, and there is the address

+where you should apply for particulars. As far as I can make out,

+the League was founded by an American millionaire, Ezekiah

+Hopkins, who was very peculiar in his ways. He was himself

+red-headed, and he had a great sympathy for all red-headed men;

+so when he died it was found that he had left his enormous

+fortune in the hands of trustees, with instructions to apply the

+interest to the providing of easy berths to men whose hair is of

+that colour. From all I hear it is splendid pay and very little to

+do.'

+

+"'But,' said I, 'there would be millions of red-headed men who

+would apply.'

+

+"'Not so many as you might think,' he answered. 'You see it is

+really confined to Londoners, and to grown men. This American had

+started from London when he was young, and he wanted to do the

+old town a good turn. Then, again, I have heard it is no use your

+applying if your hair is light red, or dark red, or anything but

+real bright, blazing, fiery red. Now, if you cared to apply, Mr.

+Wilson, you would just walk in; but perhaps it would hardly be

+worth your while to put yourself out of the way for the sake of a

+few hundred pounds.'

+

+"Now, it is a fact, gentlemen, as you may see for yourselves,

+that my hair is of a very full and rich tint, so that it seemed

+to me that if there was to be any competition in the matter I

+stood as good a chance as any man that I had ever met. Vincent

+Spaulding seemed to know so much about it that I thought he might

+prove useful, so I just ordered him to put up the shutters for

+the day and to come right away with me. He was very willing to

+have a holiday, so we shut the business up and started off for

+the address that was given us in the advertisement.

+

+"I never hope to see such a sight as that again, Mr. Holmes. From

+north, south, east, and west every man who had a shade of red in

+his hair had tramped into the city to answer the advertisement.

+Fleet Street was choked with red-headed folk, and Pope's Court

+looked like a coster's orange barrow. I should not have thought

+there were so many in the whole country as were brought together

+by that single advertisement. Every shade of colour they

+were--straw, lemon, orange, brick, Irish-setter, liver, clay;

+but, as Spaulding said, there were not many who had the real

+vivid flame-coloured tint. When I saw how many were waiting, I

+would have given it up in despair; but Spaulding would not hear

+of it. How he did it I could not imagine, but he pushed and

+pulled and butted until he got me through the crowd, and right up

+to the steps which led to the office. There was a double stream

+upon the stair, some going up in hope, and some coming back

+dejected; but we wedged in as well as we could and soon found

+ourselves in the office."

+

+"Your experience has been a most entertaining one," remarked

+Holmes as his client paused and refreshed his memory with a huge

+pinch of snuff. "Pray continue your very interesting statement."

+

+"There was nothing in the office but a couple of wooden chairs

+and a deal table, behind which sat a small man with a head that

+was even redder than mine. He said a few words to each candidate

+as he came up, and then he always managed to find some fault in

+them which would disqualify them. Getting a vacancy did not seem

+to be such a very easy matter, after all. However, when our turn

+came the little man was much more favourable to me than to any of

+the others, and he closed the door as we entered, so that he

+might have a private word with us.

+

+"'This is Mr. Jabez Wilson,' said my assistant, 'and he is

+willing to fill a vacancy in the League.'

+

+"'And he is admirably suited for it,' the other answered. 'He has

+every requirement. I cannot recall when I have seen anything so

+fine.' He took a step backward, cocked his head on one side, and

+gazed at my hair until I felt quite bashful. Then suddenly he

+plunged forward, wrung my hand, and congratulated me warmly on my

+success.

+

+"'It would be injustice to hesitate,' said he. 'You will,

+however, I am sure, excuse me for taking an obvious precaution.'

+With that he seized my hair in both his hands, and tugged until I

+yelled with the pain. 'There is water in your eyes,' said he as

+he released me. 'I perceive that all is as it should be. But we

+have to be careful, for we have twice been deceived by wigs and

+once by paint. I could tell you tales of cobbler's wax which

+would disgust you with human nature.' He stepped over to the

+window and shouted through it at the top of his voice that the

+vacancy was filled. A groan of disappointment came up from below,

+and the folk all trooped away in different directions until there

+was not a red-head to be seen except my own and that of the

+manager.

+

+"'My name,' said he, 'is Mr. Duncan Ross, and I am myself one of

+the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. Are

+you a married man, Mr. Wilson? Have you a family?'

+

+"I answered that I had not.

+

+"His face fell immediately.

+

+"'Dear me!' he said gravely, 'that is very serious indeed! I am

+sorry to hear you say that. The fund was, of course, for the

+propagation and spread of the red-heads as well as for their

+maintenance. It is exceedingly unfortunate that you should be a

+bachelor.'

+

+"My face lengthened at this, Mr. Holmes, for I thought that I was

+not to have the vacancy after all; but after thinking it over for

+a few minutes he said that it would be all right.

+

+"'In the case of another,' said he, 'the objection might be

+fatal, but we must stretch a point in favour of a man with such a

+head of hair as yours. When shall you be able to enter upon your

+new duties?'

+

+"'Well, it is a little awkward, for I have a business already,'

+said I.

+

+"'Oh, never mind about that, Mr. Wilson!' said Vincent Spaulding.

+'I should be able to look after that for you.'

+

+"'What would be the hours?' I asked.

+

+"'Ten to two.'

+

+"Now a pawnbroker's business is mostly done of an evening, Mr.

+Holmes, especially Thursday and Friday evening, which is just

+before pay-day; so it would suit me very well to earn a little in

+the mornings. Besides, I knew that my assistant was a good man,

+and that he would see to anything that turned up.

+

+"'That would suit me very well,' said I. 'And the pay?'

+

+"'Is 4 pounds a week.'

+

+"'And the work?'

+

+"'Is purely nominal.'

+

+"'What do you call purely nominal?'

+

+"'Well, you have to be in the office, or at least in the

+building, the whole time. If you leave, you forfeit your whole

+position forever. The will is very clear upon that point. You

+don't comply with the conditions if you budge from the office

+during that time.'

+

+"'It's only four hours a day, and I should not think of leaving,'

+said I.

+

+"'No excuse will avail,' said Mr. Duncan Ross; 'neither sickness

+nor business nor anything else. There you must stay, or you lose

+your billet.'

+

+"'And the work?'

+

+"'Is to copy out the "Encyclopaedia Britannica." There is the first

+volume of it in that press. You must find your own ink, pens, and

+blotting-paper, but we provide this table and chair. Will you be

+ready to-morrow?'

+

+"'Certainly,' I answered.

+

+"'Then, good-bye, Mr. Jabez Wilson, and let me congratulate you

+once more on the important position which you have been fortunate

+enough to gain.' He bowed me out of the room and I went home with

+my assistant, hardly knowing what to say or do, I was so pleased

+at my own good fortune.

+

+"Well, I thought over the matter all day, and by evening I was in

+low spirits again; for I had quite persuaded myself that the

+whole affair must be some great hoax or fraud, though what its

+object might be I could not imagine. It seemed altogether past

+belief that anyone could make such a will, or that they would pay

+such a sum for doing anything so simple as copying out the

+'Encyclopaedia Britannica.' Vincent Spaulding did what he could to

+cheer me up, but by bedtime I had reasoned myself out of the

+whole thing. However, in the morning I determined to have a look

+at it anyhow, so I bought a penny bottle of ink, and with a

+quill-pen, and seven sheets of foolscap paper, I started off for

+Pope's Court.

+

+"Well, to my surprise and delight, everything was as right as

+possible. The table was set out ready for me, and Mr. Duncan Ross

+was there to see that I got fairly to work. He started me off

+upon the letter A, and then he left me; but he would drop in from

+time to time to see that all was right with me. At two o'clock he

+bade me good-day, complimented me upon the amount that I had

+written, and locked the door of the office after me.

+

+"This went on day after day, Mr. Holmes, and on Saturday the

+manager came in and planked down four golden sovereigns for my

+week's work. It was the same next week, and the same the week

+after. Every morning I was there at ten, and every afternoon I

+left at two. By degrees Mr. Duncan Ross took to coming in only

+once of a morning, and then, after a time, he did not come in at

+all. Still, of course, I never dared to leave the room for an

+instant, for I was not sure when he might come, and the billet

+was such a good one, and suited me so well, that I would not risk

+the loss of it.

+

+"Eight weeks passed away like this, and I had written about

+Abbots and Archery and Armour and Architecture and Attica, and

+hoped with diligence that I might get on to the B's before very

+long. It cost me something in foolscap, and I had pretty nearly

+filled a shelf with my writings. And then suddenly the whole

+business came to an end."

+

+"To an end?"

+

+"Yes, sir. And no later than this morning. I went to my work as

+usual at ten o'clock, but the door was shut and locked, with a

+little square of cardboard hammered on to the middle of the

+panel with a tack. Here it is, and you can read for yourself."

+

+He held up a piece of white cardboard about the size of a sheet

+of note-paper. It read in this fashion:

+

+                  THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE

+

+                           IS

+

+                        DISSOLVED.

+

+                     October 9, 1890.

+

+Sherlock Holmes and I surveyed this curt announcement and the

+rueful face behind it, until the comical side of the affair so

+completely overtopped every other consideration that we both

+burst out into a roar of laughter.

+

+"I cannot see that there is anything very funny," cried our

+client, flushing up to the roots of his flaming head. "If you can

+do nothing better than laugh at me, I can go elsewhere."

+

+"No, no," cried Holmes, shoving him back into the chair from

+which he had half risen. "I really wouldn't miss your case for

+the world. It is most refreshingly unusual. But there is, if you

+will excuse my saying so, something just a little funny about it.

+Pray what steps did you take when you found the card upon the

+door?"

+

+"I was staggered, sir. I did not know what to do. Then I called

+at the offices round, but none of them seemed to know anything

+about it. Finally, I went to the landlord, who is an accountant

+living on the ground-floor, and I asked him if he could tell me

+what had become of the Red-headed League. He said that he had

+never heard of any such body. Then I asked him who Mr. Duncan

+Ross was. He answered that the name was new to him.

+

+"'Well,' said I, 'the gentleman at No. 4.'

+

+"'What, the red-headed man?'

+

+"'Yes.'

+

+"'Oh,' said he, 'his name was William Morris. He was a solicitor

+and was using my room as a temporary convenience until his new

+premises were ready. He moved out yesterday.'

+

+"'Where could I find him?'

+

+"'Oh, at his new offices. He did tell me the address. Yes, 17

+King Edward Street, near St. Paul's.'

+

+"I started off, Mr. Holmes, but when I got to that address it was

+a manufactory of artificial knee-caps, and no one in it had ever

+heard of either Mr. William Morris or Mr. Duncan Ross."

+

+"And what did you do then?" asked Holmes.

+

+"I went home to Saxe-Coburg Square, and I took the advice of my

+assistant. But he could not help me in any way. He could only say

+that if I waited I should hear by post. But that was not quite

+good enough, Mr. Holmes. I did not wish to lose such a place

+without a struggle, so, as I had heard that you were good enough

+to give advice to poor folk who were in need of it, I came right

+away to you."

+

+"And you did very wisely," said Holmes. "Your case is an

+exceedingly remarkable one, and I shall be happy to look into it.

+From what you have told me I think that it is possible that

+graver issues hang from it than might at first sight appear."

+

+"Grave enough!" said Mr. Jabez Wilson. "Why, I have lost four

+pound a week."

+

+"As far as you are personally concerned," remarked Holmes, "I do

+not see that you have any grievance against this extraordinary

+league. On the contrary, you are, as I understand, richer by some

+30 pounds, to say nothing of the minute knowledge which you have

+gained on every subject which comes under the letter A. You have

+lost nothing by them."

+

+"No, sir. But I want to find out about them, and who they are,

+and what their object was in playing this prank--if it was a

+prank--upon me. It was a pretty expensive joke for them, for it

+cost them two and thirty pounds."

+

+"We shall endeavour to clear up these points for you. And, first,

+one or two questions, Mr. Wilson. This assistant of yours who

+first called your attention to the advertisement--how long had he

+been with you?"

+

+"About a month then."

+

+"How did he come?"

+

+"In answer to an advertisement."

+

+"Was he the only applicant?"

+

+"No, I had a dozen."

+

+"Why did you pick him?"

+

+"Because he was handy and would come cheap."

+

+"At half-wages, in fact."

+

+"Yes."

+

+"What is he like, this Vincent Spaulding?"

+

+"Small, stout-built, very quick in his ways, no hair on his face,

+though he's not short of thirty. Has a white splash of acid upon

+his forehead."

+

+Holmes sat up in his chair in considerable excitement. "I thought

+as much," said he. "Have you ever observed that his ears are

+pierced for earrings?"

+

+"Yes, sir. He told me that a gipsy had done it for him when he

+was a lad."

+

+"Hum!" said Holmes, sinking back in deep thought. "He is still

+with you?"

+

+"Oh, yes, sir; I have only just left him."

+

+"And has your business been attended to in your absence?"

+

+"Nothing to complain of, sir. There's never very much to do of a

+morning."

+

+"That will do, Mr. Wilson. I shall be happy to give you an

+opinion upon the subject in the course of a day or two. To-day is

+Saturday, and I hope that by Monday we may come to a conclusion."

+

+"Well, Watson," said Holmes when our visitor had left us, "what

+do you make of it all?"

+

+"I make nothing of it," I answered frankly. "It is a most

+mysterious business."

+

+"As a rule," said Holmes, "the more bizarre a thing is the less

+mysterious it proves to be. It is your commonplace, featureless

+crimes which are really puzzling, just as a commonplace face is

+the most difficult to identify. But I must be prompt over this

+matter."

+

+"What are you going to do, then?" I asked.

+

+"To smoke," he answered. "It is quite a three pipe problem, and I

+beg that you won't speak to me for fifty minutes." He curled

+himself up in his chair, with his thin knees drawn up to his

+hawk-like nose, and there he sat with his eyes closed and his

+black clay pipe thrusting out like the bill of some strange bird.

+I had come to the conclusion that he had dropped asleep, and

+indeed was nodding myself, when he suddenly sprang out of his

+chair with the gesture of a man who has made up his mind and put

+his pipe down upon the mantelpiece.

+

+"Sarasate plays at the St. James's Hall this afternoon," he

+remarked. "What do you think, Watson? Could your patients spare

+you for a few hours?"

+

+"I have nothing to do to-day. My practice is never very

+absorbing."

+

+"Then put on your hat and come. I am going through the City

+first, and we can have some lunch on the way. I observe that

+there is a good deal of German music on the programme, which is

+rather more to my taste than Italian or French. It is

+introspective, and I want to introspect. Come along!"

+

+We travelled by the Underground as far as Aldersgate; and a short

+walk took us to Saxe-Coburg Square, the scene of the singular

+story which we had listened to in the morning. It was a poky,

+little, shabby-genteel place, where four lines of dingy

+two-storied brick houses looked out into a small railed-in

+enclosure, where a lawn of weedy grass and a few clumps of faded

+laurel-bushes made a hard fight against a smoke-laden and

+uncongenial atmosphere. Three gilt balls and a brown board with

+"JABEZ WILSON" in white letters, upon a corner house, announced

+the place where our red-headed client carried on his business.

+Sherlock Holmes stopped in front of it with his head on one side

+and looked it all over, with his eyes shining brightly between

+puckered lids. Then he walked slowly up the street, and then down

+again to the corner, still looking keenly at the houses. Finally

+he returned to the pawnbroker's, and, having thumped vigorously

+upon the pavement with his stick two or three times, he went up

+to the door and knocked. It was instantly opened by a

+bright-looking, clean-shaven young fellow, who asked him to step

+in.

+

+"Thank you," said Holmes, "I only wished to ask you how you would

+go from here to the Strand."

+

+"Third right, fourth left," answered the assistant promptly,

+closing the door.

+

+"Smart fellow, that," observed Holmes as we walked away. "He is,

+in my judgment, the fourth smartest man in London, and for daring

+I am not sure that he has not a claim to be third. I have known

+something of him before."

+

+"Evidently," said I, "Mr. Wilson's assistant counts for a good

+deal in this mystery of the Red-headed League. I am sure that you

+inquired your way merely in order that you might see him."

+

+"Not him."

+

+"What then?"

+

+"The knees of his trousers."

+

+"And what did you see?"

+

+"What I expected to see."

+

+"Why did you beat the pavement?"

+

+"My dear doctor, this is a time for observation, not for talk. We

+are spies in an enemy's country. We know something of Saxe-Coburg

+Square. Let us now explore the parts which lie behind it."

+

+The road in which we found ourselves as we turned round the

+corner from the retired Saxe-Coburg Square presented as great a

+contrast to it as the front of a picture does to the back. It was

+one of the main arteries which conveyed the traffic of the City

+to the north and west. The roadway was blocked with the immense

+stream of commerce flowing in a double tide inward and outward,

+while the footpaths were black with the hurrying swarm of

+pedestrians. It was difficult to realise as we looked at the line

+of fine shops and stately business premises that they really

+abutted on the other side upon the faded and stagnant square

+which we had just quitted.

+

+"Let me see," said Holmes, standing at the corner and glancing

+along the line, "I should like just to remember the order of the

+houses here. It is a hobby of mine to have an exact knowledge of

+London. There is Mortimer's, the tobacconist, the little

+newspaper shop, the Coburg branch of the City and Suburban Bank,

+the Vegetarian Restaurant, and McFarlane's carriage-building

+depot. That carries us right on to the other block. And now,

+Doctor, we've done our work, so it's time we had some play. A

+sandwich and a cup of coffee, and then off to violin-land, where

+all is sweetness and delicacy and harmony, and there are no

+red-headed clients to vex us with their conundrums."

+

+My friend was an enthusiastic musician, being himself not only a

+very capable performer but a composer of no ordinary merit. All

+the afternoon he sat in the stalls wrapped in the most perfect

+happiness, gently waving his long, thin fingers in time to the

+music, while his gently smiling face and his languid, dreamy eyes

+were as unlike those of Holmes the sleuth-hound, Holmes the

+relentless, keen-witted, ready-handed criminal agent, as it was

+possible to conceive. In his singular character the dual nature

+alternately asserted itself, and his extreme exactness and

+astuteness represented, as I have often thought, the reaction

+against the poetic and contemplative mood which occasionally

+predominated in him. The swing of his nature took him from

+extreme languor to devouring energy; and, as I knew well, he was

+never so truly formidable as when, for days on end, he had been

+lounging in his armchair amid his improvisations and his

+black-letter editions. Then it was that the lust of the chase

+would suddenly come upon him, and that his brilliant reasoning

+power would rise to the level of intuition, until those who were

+unacquainted with his methods would look askance at him as on a

+man whose knowledge was not that of other mortals. When I saw him

+that afternoon so enwrapped in the music at St. James's Hall I

+felt that an evil time might be coming upon those whom he had set

+himself to hunt down.

+

+"You want to go home, no doubt, Doctor," he remarked as we

+emerged.

+

+"Yes, it would be as well."

+

+"And I have some business to do which will take some hours. This

+business at Coburg Square is serious."

+

+"Why serious?"

+

+"A considerable crime is in contemplation. I have every reason to

+believe that we shall be in time to stop it. But to-day being

+Saturday rather complicates matters. I shall want your help

+to-night."

+

+"At what time?"

+

+"Ten will be early enough."

+

+"I shall be at Baker Street at ten."

+

+"Very well. And, I say, Doctor, there may be some little danger,

+so kindly put your army revolver in your pocket." He waved his

+hand, turned on his heel, and disappeared in an instant among the

+crowd.

+

+I trust that I am not more dense than my neighbours, but I was

+always oppressed with a sense of my own stupidity in my dealings

+with Sherlock Holmes. Here I had heard what he had heard, I had

+seen what he had seen, and yet from his words it was evident that

+he saw clearly not only what had happened but what was about to

+happen, while to me the whole business was still confused and

+grotesque. As I drove home to my house in Kensington I thought

+over it all, from the extraordinary story of the red-headed

+copier of the "Encyclopaedia" down to the visit to Saxe-Coburg

+Square, and the ominous words with which he had parted from me.

+What was this nocturnal expedition, and why should I go armed?

+Where were we going, and what were we to do? I had the hint from

+Holmes that this smooth-faced pawnbroker's assistant was a

+formidable man--a man who might play a deep game. I tried to

+puzzle it out, but gave it up in despair and set the matter aside

+until night should bring an explanation.

+

+It was a quarter-past nine when I started from home and made my

+way across the Park, and so through Oxford Street to Baker

+Street. Two hansoms were standing at the door, and as I entered

+the passage I heard the sound of voices from above. On entering

+his room I found Holmes in animated conversation with two men,

+one of whom I recognised as Peter Jones, the official police

+agent, while the other was a long, thin, sad-faced man, with a

+very shiny hat and oppressively respectable frock-coat.

+

+"Ha! Our party is complete," said Holmes, buttoning up his

+pea-jacket and taking his heavy hunting crop from the rack.

+"Watson, I think you know Mr. Jones, of Scotland Yard? Let me

+introduce you to Mr. Merryweather, who is to be our companion in

+to-night's adventure."

+

+"We're hunting in couples again, Doctor, you see," said Jones in

+his consequential way. "Our friend here is a wonderful man for

+starting a chase. All he wants is an old dog to help him to do

+the running down."

+

+"I hope a wild goose may not prove to be the end of our chase,"

+observed Mr. Merryweather gloomily.

+

+"You may place considerable confidence in Mr. Holmes, sir," said

+the police agent loftily. "He has his own little methods, which

+are, if he won't mind my saying so, just a little too theoretical

+and fantastic, but he has the makings of a detective in him. It

+is not too much to say that once or twice, as in that business of

+the Sholto murder and the Agra treasure, he has been more nearly

+correct than the official force."

+

+"Oh, if you say so, Mr. Jones, it is all right," said the

+stranger with deference. "Still, I confess that I miss my rubber.

+It is the first Saturday night for seven-and-twenty years that I

+have not had my rubber."

+

+"I think you will find," said Sherlock Holmes, "that you will

+play for a higher stake to-night than you have ever done yet, and

+that the play will be more exciting. For you, Mr. Merryweather,

+the stake will be some 30,000 pounds; and for you, Jones, it will

+be the man upon whom you wish to lay your hands."

+

+"John Clay, the murderer, thief, smasher, and forger. He's a

+young man, Mr. Merryweather, but he is at the head of his

+profession, and I would rather have my bracelets on him than on

+any criminal in London. He's a remarkable man, is young John

+Clay. His grandfather was a royal duke, and he himself has been

+to Eton and Oxford. His brain is as cunning as his fingers, and

+though we meet signs of him at every turn, we never know where to

+find the man himself. He'll crack a crib in Scotland one week,

+and be raising money to build an orphanage in Cornwall the next.

+I've been on his track for years and have never set eyes on him

+yet."

+

+"I hope that I may have the pleasure of introducing you to-night.

+I've had one or two little turns also with Mr. John Clay, and I

+agree with you that he is at the head of his profession. It is

+past ten, however, and quite time that we started. If you two

+will take the first hansom, Watson and I will follow in the

+second."

+

+Sherlock Holmes was not very communicative during the long drive

+and lay back in the cab humming the tunes which he had heard in

+the afternoon. We rattled through an endless labyrinth of gas-lit

+streets until we emerged into Farrington Street.

+

+"We are close there now," my friend remarked. "This fellow

+Merryweather is a bank director, and personally interested in the

+matter. I thought it as well to have Jones with us also. He is

+not a bad fellow, though an absolute imbecile in his profession.

+He has one positive virtue. He is as brave as a bulldog and as

+tenacious as a lobster if he gets his claws upon anyone. Here we

+are, and they are waiting for us."

+

+We had reached the same crowded thoroughfare in which we had

+found ourselves in the morning. Our cabs were dismissed, and,

+following the guidance of Mr. Merryweather, we passed down a

+narrow passage and through a side door, which he opened for us.

+Within there was a small corridor, which ended in a very massive

+iron gate. This also was opened, and led down a flight of winding

+stone steps, which terminated at another formidable gate. Mr.

+Merryweather stopped to light a lantern, and then conducted us

+down a dark, earth-smelling passage, and so, after opening a

+third door, into a huge vault or cellar, which was piled all

+round with crates and massive boxes.

+

+"You are not very vulnerable from above," Holmes remarked as he

+held up the lantern and gazed about him.

+

+"Nor from below," said Mr. Merryweather, striking his stick upon

+the flags which lined the floor. "Why, dear me, it sounds quite

+hollow!" he remarked, looking up in surprise.

+

+"I must really ask you to be a little more quiet!" said Holmes

+severely. "You have already imperilled the whole success of our

+expedition. Might I beg that you would have the goodness to sit

+down upon one of those boxes, and not to interfere?"

+

+The solemn Mr. Merryweather perched himself upon a crate, with a

+very injured expression upon his face, while Holmes fell upon his

+knees upon the floor and, with the lantern and a magnifying lens,

+began to examine minutely the cracks between the stones. A few

+seconds sufficed to satisfy him, for he sprang to his feet again

+and put his glass in his pocket.

+

+"We have at least an hour before us," he remarked, "for they can

+hardly take any steps until the good pawnbroker is safely in bed.

+Then they will not lose a minute, for the sooner they do their

+work the longer time they will have for their escape. We are at

+present, Doctor--as no doubt you have divined--in the cellar of

+the City branch of one of the principal London banks. Mr.

+Merryweather is the chairman of directors, and he will explain to

+you that there are reasons why the more daring criminals of

+London should take a considerable interest in this cellar at

+present."

+

+"It is our French gold," whispered the director. "We have had

+several warnings that an attempt might be made upon it."

+

+"Your French gold?"

+

+"Yes. We had occasion some months ago to strengthen our resources

+and borrowed for that purpose 30,000 napoleons from the Bank of

+France. It has become known that we have never had occasion to

+unpack the money, and that it is still lying in our cellar. The

+crate upon which I sit contains 2,000 napoleons packed between

+layers of lead foil. Our reserve of bullion is much larger at

+present than is usually kept in a single branch office, and the

+directors have had misgivings upon the subject."

+

+"Which were very well justified," observed Holmes. "And now it is

+time that we arranged our little plans. I expect that within an

+hour matters will come to a head. In the meantime Mr.

+Merryweather, we must put the screen over that dark lantern."

+

+"And sit in the dark?"

+

+"I am afraid so. I had brought a pack of cards in my pocket, and

+I thought that, as we were a partie carrée, you might have your

+rubber after all. But I see that the enemy's preparations have

+gone so far that we cannot risk the presence of a light. And,

+first of all, we must choose our positions. These are daring men,

+and though we shall take them at a disadvantage, they may do us

+some harm unless we are careful. I shall stand behind this crate,

+and do you conceal yourselves behind those. Then, when I flash a

+light upon them, close in swiftly. If they fire, Watson, have no

+compunction about shooting them down."

+

+I placed my revolver, cocked, upon the top of the wooden case

+behind which I crouched. Holmes shot the slide across the front

+of his lantern and left us in pitch darkness--such an absolute

+darkness as I have never before experienced. The smell of hot

+metal remained to assure us that the light was still there, ready

+to flash out at a moment's notice. To me, with my nerves worked

+up to a pitch of expectancy, there was something depressing and

+subduing in the sudden gloom, and in the cold dank air of the

+vault.

+

+"They have but one retreat," whispered Holmes. "That is back

+through the house into Saxe-Coburg Square. I hope that you have

+done what I asked you, Jones?"

+

+"I have an inspector and two officers waiting at the front door."

+

+"Then we have stopped all the holes. And now we must be silent

+and wait."

+

+What a time it seemed! From comparing notes afterwards it was but

+an hour and a quarter, yet it appeared to me that the night must

+have almost gone and the dawn be breaking above us. My limbs

+were weary and stiff, for I feared to change my position; yet my

+nerves were worked up to the highest pitch of tension, and my

+hearing was so acute that I could not only hear the gentle

+breathing of my companions, but I could distinguish the deeper,

+heavier in-breath of the bulky Jones from the thin, sighing note

+of the bank director. From my position I could look over the case

+in the direction of the floor. Suddenly my eyes caught the glint

+of a light.

+

+At first it was but a lurid spark upon the stone pavement. Then

+it lengthened out until it became a yellow line, and then,

+without any warning or sound, a gash seemed to open and a hand

+appeared, a white, almost womanly hand, which felt about in the

+centre of the little area of light. For a minute or more the

+hand, with its writhing fingers, protruded out of the floor. Then

+it was withdrawn as suddenly as it appeared, and all was dark

+again save the single lurid spark which marked a chink between

+the stones.

+

+Its disappearance, however, was but momentary. With a rending,

+tearing sound, one of the broad, white stones turned over upon

+its side and left a square, gaping hole, through which streamed

+the light of a lantern. Over the edge there peeped a clean-cut,

+boyish face, which looked keenly about it, and then, with a hand

+on either side of the aperture, drew itself shoulder-high and

+waist-high, until one knee rested upon the edge. In another

+instant he stood at the side of the hole and was hauling after

+him a companion, lithe and small like himself, with a pale face

+and a shock of very red hair.

+

+"It's all clear," he whispered. "Have you the chisel and the

+bags? Great Scott! Jump, Archie, jump, and I'll swing for it!"

+

+Sherlock Holmes had sprung out and seized the intruder by the

+collar. The other dived down the hole, and I heard the sound of

+rending cloth as Jones clutched at his skirts. The light flashed

+upon the barrel of a revolver, but Holmes' hunting crop came

+down on the man's wrist, and the pistol clinked upon the stone

+floor.

+

+"It's no use, John Clay," said Holmes blandly. "You have no

+chance at all."

+

+"So I see," the other answered with the utmost coolness. "I fancy

+that my pal is all right, though I see you have got his

+coat-tails."

+

+"There are three men waiting for him at the door," said Holmes.

+

+"Oh, indeed! You seem to have done the thing very completely. I

+must compliment you."

+

+"And I you," Holmes answered. "Your red-headed idea was very new

+and effective."

+

+"You'll see your pal again presently," said Jones. "He's quicker

+at climbing down holes than I am. Just hold out while I fix the

+derbies."

+

+"I beg that you will not touch me with your filthy hands,"

+remarked our prisoner as the handcuffs clattered upon his wrists.

+"You may not be aware that I have royal blood in my veins. Have

+the goodness, also, when you address me always to say 'sir' and

+'please.'"

+

+"All right," said Jones with a stare and a snigger. "Well, would

+you please, sir, march upstairs, where we can get a cab to carry

+your Highness to the police-station?"

+

+"That is better," said John Clay serenely. He made a sweeping bow

+to the three of us and walked quietly off in the custody of the

+detective.

+

+"Really, Mr. Holmes," said Mr. Merryweather as we followed them

+from the cellar, "I do not know how the bank can thank you or

+repay you. There is no doubt that you have detected and defeated

+in the most complete manner one of the most determined attempts

+at bank robbery that have ever come within my experience."

+

+"I have had one or two little scores of my own to settle with Mr.

+John Clay," said Holmes. "I have been at some small expense over

+this matter, which I shall expect the bank to refund, but beyond

+that I am amply repaid by having had an experience which is in

+many ways unique, and by hearing the very remarkable narrative of

+the Red-headed League."

+

+

+"You see, Watson," he explained in the early hours of the morning

+as we sat over a glass of whisky and soda in Baker Street, "it

+was perfectly obvious from the first that the only possible

+object of this rather fantastic business of the advertisement of

+the League, and the copying of the 'Encyclopaedia,' must be to get

+this not over-bright pawnbroker out of the way for a number of

+hours every day. It was a curious way of managing it, but,

+really, it would be difficult to suggest a better. The method was

+no doubt suggested to Clay's ingenious mind by the colour of his

+accomplice's hair. The 4 pounds a week was a lure which must draw

+him, and what was it to them, who were playing for thousands?

+They put in the advertisement, one rogue has the temporary

+office, the other rogue incites the man to apply for it, and

+together they manage to secure his absence every morning in the

+week. From the time that I heard of the assistant having come for

+half wages, it was obvious to me that he had some strong motive

+for securing the situation."

+

+"But how could you guess what the motive was?"

+

+"Had there been women in the house, I should have suspected a

+mere vulgar intrigue. That, however, was out of the question. The

+man's business was a small one, and there was nothing in his

+house which could account for such elaborate preparations, and

+such an expenditure as they were at. It must, then, be something

+out of the house. What could it be? I thought of the assistant's

+fondness for photography, and his trick of vanishing into the

+cellar. The cellar! There was the end of this tangled clue. Then

+I made inquiries as to this mysterious assistant and found that I

+had to deal with one of the coolest and most daring criminals in

+London. He was doing something in the cellar--something which

+took many hours a day for months on end. What could it be, once

+more? I could think of nothing save that he was running a tunnel

+to some other building.

+

+"So far I had got when we went to visit the scene of action. I

+surprised you by beating upon the pavement with my stick. I was

+ascertaining whether the cellar stretched out in front or behind.

+It was not in front. Then I rang the bell, and, as I hoped, the

+assistant answered it. We have had some skirmishes, but we had

+never set eyes upon each other before. I hardly looked at his

+face. His knees were what I wished to see. You must yourself have

+remarked how worn, wrinkled, and stained they were. They spoke of

+those hours of burrowing. The only remaining point was what they

+were burrowing for. I walked round the corner, saw the City and

+Suburban Bank abutted on our friend's premises, and felt that I

+had solved my problem. When you drove home after the concert I

+called upon Scotland Yard and upon the chairman of the bank

+directors, with the result that you have seen."

+

+"And how could you tell that they would make their attempt

+to-night?" I asked.

+

+"Well, when they closed their League offices that was a sign that

+they cared no longer about Mr. Jabez Wilson's presence--in other

+words, that they had completed their tunnel. But it was essential

+that they should use it soon, as it might be discovered, or the

+bullion might be removed. Saturday would suit them better than

+any other day, as it would give them two days for their escape.

+For all these reasons I expected them to come to-night."

+

+"You reasoned it out beautifully," I exclaimed in unfeigned

+admiration. "It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings

+true."

+

+"It saved me from ennui," he answered, yawning. "Alas! I already

+feel it closing in upon me. My life is spent in one long effort

+to escape from the commonplaces of existence. These little

+problems help me to do so."

+

+"And you are a benefactor of the race," said I.

+

+He shrugged his shoulders. "Well, perhaps, after all, it is of

+some little use," he remarked. "'L'homme c'est rien--l'oeuvre

+c'est tout,' as Gustave Flaubert wrote to George Sand."

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE III. A CASE OF IDENTITY

+

+"My dear fellow," said Sherlock Holmes as we sat on either side

+of the fire in his lodgings at Baker Street, "life is infinitely

+stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent. We

+would not dare to conceive the things which are really mere

+commonplaces of existence. If we could fly out of that window

+hand in hand, hover over this great city, gently remove the

+roofs, and peep in at the queer things which are going on, the

+strange coincidences, the plannings, the cross-purposes, the

+wonderful chains of events, working through generations, and

+leading to the most outré results, it would make all fiction with

+its conventionalities and foreseen conclusions most stale and

+unprofitable."

+

+"And yet I am not convinced of it," I answered. "The cases which

+come to light in the papers are, as a rule, bald enough, and

+vulgar enough. We have in our police reports realism pushed to

+its extreme limits, and yet the result is, it must be confessed,

+neither fascinating nor artistic."

+

+"A certain selection and discretion must be used in producing a

+realistic effect," remarked Holmes. "This is wanting in the

+police report, where more stress is laid, perhaps, upon the

+platitudes of the magistrate than upon the details, which to an

+observer contain the vital essence of the whole matter. Depend

+upon it, there is nothing so unnatural as the commonplace."

+

+I smiled and shook my head. "I can quite understand your thinking

+so," I said. "Of course, in your position of unofficial adviser

+and helper to everybody who is absolutely puzzled, throughout

+three continents, you are brought in contact with all that is

+strange and bizarre. But here"--I picked up the morning paper

+from the ground--"let us put it to a practical test. Here is the

+first heading upon which I come. 'A husband's cruelty to his

+wife.' There is half a column of print, but I know without

+reading it that it is all perfectly familiar to me. There is, of

+course, the other woman, the drink, the push, the blow, the

+bruise, the sympathetic sister or landlady. The crudest of

+writers could invent nothing more crude."

+

+"Indeed, your example is an unfortunate one for your argument,"

+said Holmes, taking the paper and glancing his eye down it. "This

+is the Dundas separation case, and, as it happens, I was engaged

+in clearing up some small points in connection with it. The

+husband was a teetotaler, there was no other woman, and the

+conduct complained of was that he had drifted into the habit of

+winding up every meal by taking out his false teeth and hurling

+them at his wife, which, you will allow, is not an action likely

+to occur to the imagination of the average story-teller. Take a

+pinch of snuff, Doctor, and acknowledge that I have scored over

+you in your example."

+

+He held out his snuffbox of old gold, with a great amethyst in

+the centre of the lid. Its splendour was in such contrast to his

+homely ways and simple life that I could not help commenting upon

+it.

+

+"Ah," said he, "I forgot that I had not seen you for some weeks.

+It is a little souvenir from the King of Bohemia in return for my

+assistance in the case of the Irene Adler papers."

+

+"And the ring?" I asked, glancing at a remarkable brilliant which

+sparkled upon his finger.

+

+"It was from the reigning family of Holland, though the matter in

+which I served them was of such delicacy that I cannot confide it

+even to you, who have been good enough to chronicle one or two of

+my little problems."

+

+"And have you any on hand just now?" I asked with interest.

+

+"Some ten or twelve, but none which present any feature of

+interest. They are important, you understand, without being

+interesting. Indeed, I have found that it is usually in

+unimportant matters that there is a field for the observation,

+and for the quick analysis of cause and effect which gives the

+charm to an investigation. The larger crimes are apt to be the

+simpler, for the bigger the crime the more obvious, as a rule, is

+the motive. In these cases, save for one rather intricate matter

+which has been referred to me from Marseilles, there is nothing

+which presents any features of interest. It is possible, however,

+that I may have something better before very many minutes are

+over, for this is one of my clients, or I am much mistaken."

+

+He had risen from his chair and was standing between the parted

+blinds gazing down into the dull neutral-tinted London street.

+Looking over his shoulder, I saw that on the pavement opposite

+there stood a large woman with a heavy fur boa round her neck,

+and a large curling red feather in a broad-brimmed hat which was

+tilted in a coquettish Duchess of Devonshire fashion over her

+ear. From under this great panoply she peeped up in a nervous,

+hesitating fashion at our windows, while her body oscillated

+backward and forward, and her fingers fidgeted with her glove

+buttons. Suddenly, with a plunge, as of the swimmer who leaves

+the bank, she hurried across the road, and we heard the sharp

+clang of the bell.

+

+"I have seen those symptoms before," said Holmes, throwing his

+cigarette into the fire. "Oscillation upon the pavement always

+means an affaire de coeur. She would like advice, but is not sure

+that the matter is not too delicate for communication. And yet

+even here we may discriminate. When a woman has been seriously

+wronged by a man she no longer oscillates, and the usual symptom

+is a broken bell wire. Here we may take it that there is a love

+matter, but that the maiden is not so much angry as perplexed, or

+grieved. But here she comes in person to resolve our doubts."

+

+As he spoke there was a tap at the door, and the boy in buttons

+entered to announce Miss Mary Sutherland, while the lady herself

+loomed behind his small black figure like a full-sailed

+merchant-man behind a tiny pilot boat. Sherlock Holmes welcomed

+her with the easy courtesy for which he was remarkable, and,

+having closed the door and bowed her into an armchair, he looked

+her over in the minute and yet abstracted fashion which was

+peculiar to him.

+

+"Do you not find," he said, "that with your short sight it is a

+little trying to do so much typewriting?"

+

+"I did at first," she answered, "but now I know where the letters

+are without looking." Then, suddenly realising the full purport

+of his words, she gave a violent start and looked up, with fear

+and astonishment upon her broad, good-humoured face. "You've

+heard about me, Mr. Holmes," she cried, "else how could you know

+all that?"

+

+"Never mind," said Holmes, laughing; "it is my business to know

+things. Perhaps I have trained myself to see what others

+overlook. If not, why should you come to consult me?"

+

+"I came to you, sir, because I heard of you from Mrs. Etherege,

+whose husband you found so easy when the police and everyone had

+given him up for dead. Oh, Mr. Holmes, I wish you would do as

+much for me. I'm not rich, but still I have a hundred a year in

+my own right, besides the little that I make by the machine, and

+I would give it all to know what has become of Mr. Hosmer Angel."

+

+"Why did you come away to consult me in such a hurry?" asked

+Sherlock Holmes, with his finger-tips together and his eyes to

+the ceiling.

+

+Again a startled look came over the somewhat vacuous face of Miss

+Mary Sutherland. "Yes, I did bang out of the house," she said,

+"for it made me angry to see the easy way in which Mr.

+Windibank--that is, my father--took it all. He would not go to

+the police, and he would not go to you, and so at last, as he

+would do nothing and kept on saying that there was no harm done,

+it made me mad, and I just on with my things and came right away

+to you."

+

+"Your father," said Holmes, "your stepfather, surely, since the

+name is different."

+

+"Yes, my stepfather. I call him father, though it sounds funny,

+too, for he is only five years and two months older than myself."

+

+"And your mother is alive?"

+

+"Oh, yes, mother is alive and well. I wasn't best pleased, Mr.

+Holmes, when she married again so soon after father's death, and

+a man who was nearly fifteen years younger than herself. Father

+was a plumber in the Tottenham Court Road, and he left a tidy

+business behind him, which mother carried on with Mr. Hardy, the

+foreman; but when Mr. Windibank came he made her sell the

+business, for he was very superior, being a traveller in wines.

+They got 4700 pounds for the goodwill and interest, which wasn't

+near as much as father could have got if he had been alive."

+

+I had expected to see Sherlock Holmes impatient under this

+rambling and inconsequential narrative, but, on the contrary, he

+had listened with the greatest concentration of attention.

+

+"Your own little income," he asked, "does it come out of the

+business?"

+

+"Oh, no, sir. It is quite separate and was left me by my uncle

+Ned in Auckland. It is in New Zealand stock, paying 4 1/2 per

+cent. Two thousand five hundred pounds was the amount, but I can

+only touch the interest."

+

+"You interest me extremely," said Holmes. "And since you draw so

+large a sum as a hundred a year, with what you earn into the

+bargain, you no doubt travel a little and indulge yourself in

+every way. I believe that a single lady can get on very nicely

+upon an income of about 60 pounds."

+

+"I could do with much less than that, Mr. Holmes, but you

+understand that as long as I live at home I don't wish to be a

+burden to them, and so they have the use of the money just while

+I am staying with them. Of course, that is only just for the

+time. Mr. Windibank draws my interest every quarter and pays it

+over to mother, and I find that I can do pretty well with what I

+earn at typewriting. It brings me twopence a sheet, and I can

+often do from fifteen to twenty sheets in a day."

+

+"You have made your position very clear to me," said Holmes.

+"This is my friend, Dr. Watson, before whom you can speak as

+freely as before myself. Kindly tell us now all about your

+connection with Mr. Hosmer Angel."

+

+A flush stole over Miss Sutherland's face, and she picked

+nervously at the fringe of her jacket. "I met him first at the

+gasfitters' ball," she said. "They used to send father tickets

+when he was alive, and then afterwards they remembered us, and

+sent them to mother. Mr. Windibank did not wish us to go. He

+never did wish us to go anywhere. He would get quite mad if I

+wanted so much as to join a Sunday-school treat. But this time I

+was set on going, and I would go; for what right had he to

+prevent? He said the folk were not fit for us to know, when all

+father's friends were to be there. And he said that I had nothing

+fit to wear, when I had my purple plush that I had never so much

+as taken out of the drawer. At last, when nothing else would do,

+he went off to France upon the business of the firm, but we went,

+mother and I, with Mr. Hardy, who used to be our foreman, and it

+was there I met Mr. Hosmer Angel."

+

+"I suppose," said Holmes, "that when Mr. Windibank came back from

+France he was very annoyed at your having gone to the ball."

+

+"Oh, well, he was very good about it. He laughed, I remember, and

+shrugged his shoulders, and said there was no use denying

+anything to a woman, for she would have her way."

+

+"I see. Then at the gasfitters' ball you met, as I understand, a

+gentleman called Mr. Hosmer Angel."

+

+"Yes, sir. I met him that night, and he called next day to ask if

+we had got home all safe, and after that we met him--that is to

+say, Mr. Holmes, I met him twice for walks, but after that father

+came back again, and Mr. Hosmer Angel could not come to the house

+any more."

+

+"No?"

+

+"Well, you know father didn't like anything of the sort. He

+wouldn't have any visitors if he could help it, and he used to

+say that a woman should be happy in her own family circle. But

+then, as I used to say to mother, a woman wants her own circle to

+begin with, and I had not got mine yet."

+

+"But how about Mr. Hosmer Angel? Did he make no attempt to see

+you?"

+

+"Well, father was going off to France again in a week, and Hosmer

+wrote and said that it would be safer and better not to see each

+other until he had gone. We could write in the meantime, and he

+used to write every day. I took the letters in in the morning, so

+there was no need for father to know."

+

+"Were you engaged to the gentleman at this time?"

+

+"Oh, yes, Mr. Holmes. We were engaged after the first walk that

+we took. Hosmer--Mr. Angel--was a cashier in an office in

+Leadenhall Street--and--"

+

+"What office?"

+

+"That's the worst of it, Mr. Holmes, I don't know."

+

+"Where did he live, then?"

+

+"He slept on the premises."

+

+"And you don't know his address?"

+

+"No--except that it was Leadenhall Street."

+

+"Where did you address your letters, then?"

+

+"To the Leadenhall Street Post Office, to be left till called

+for. He said that if they were sent to the office he would be

+chaffed by all the other clerks about having letters from a lady,

+so I offered to typewrite them, like he did his, but he wouldn't

+have that, for he said that when I wrote them they seemed to come

+from me, but when they were typewritten he always felt that the

+machine had come between us. That will just show you how fond he

+was of me, Mr. Holmes, and the little things that he would think

+of."

+

+"It was most suggestive," said Holmes. "It has long been an axiom

+of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.

+Can you remember any other little things about Mr. Hosmer Angel?"

+

+"He was a very shy man, Mr. Holmes. He would rather walk with me

+in the evening than in the daylight, for he said that he hated to

+be conspicuous. Very retiring and gentlemanly he was. Even his

+voice was gentle. He'd had the quinsy and swollen glands when he

+was young, he told me, and it had left him with a weak throat,

+and a hesitating, whispering fashion of speech. He was always

+well dressed, very neat and plain, but his eyes were weak, just

+as mine are, and he wore tinted glasses against the glare."

+

+"Well, and what happened when Mr. Windibank, your stepfather,

+returned to France?"

+

+"Mr. Hosmer Angel came to the house again and proposed that we

+should marry before father came back. He was in dreadful earnest

+and made me swear, with my hands on the Testament, that whatever

+happened I would always be true to him. Mother said he was quite

+right to make me swear, and that it was a sign of his passion.

+Mother was all in his favour from the first and was even fonder

+of him than I was. Then, when they talked of marrying within the

+week, I began to ask about father; but they both said never to

+mind about father, but just to tell him afterwards, and mother

+said she would make it all right with him. I didn't quite like

+that, Mr. Holmes. It seemed funny that I should ask his leave, as

+he was only a few years older than me; but I didn't want to do

+anything on the sly, so I wrote to father at Bordeaux, where the

+company has its French offices, but the letter came back to me on

+the very morning of the wedding."

+

+"It missed him, then?"

+

+"Yes, sir; for he had started to England just before it arrived."

+

+"Ha! that was unfortunate. Your wedding was arranged, then, for

+the Friday. Was it to be in church?"

+

+"Yes, sir, but very quietly. It was to be at St. Saviour's, near

+King's Cross, and we were to have breakfast afterwards at the St.

+Pancras Hotel. Hosmer came for us in a hansom, but as there were

+two of us he put us both into it and stepped himself into a

+four-wheeler, which happened to be the only other cab in the

+street. We got to the church first, and when the four-wheeler

+drove up we waited for him to step out, but he never did, and

+when the cabman got down from the box and looked there was no one

+there! The cabman said that he could not imagine what had become

+of him, for he had seen him get in with his own eyes. That was

+last Friday, Mr. Holmes, and I have never seen or heard anything

+since then to throw any light upon what became of him."

+

+"It seems to me that you have been very shamefully treated," said

+Holmes.

+

+"Oh, no, sir! He was too good and kind to leave me so. Why, all

+the morning he was saying to me that, whatever happened, I was to

+be true; and that even if something quite unforeseen occurred to

+separate us, I was always to remember that I was pledged to him,

+and that he would claim his pledge sooner or later. It seemed

+strange talk for a wedding-morning, but what has happened since

+gives a meaning to it."

+

+"Most certainly it does. Your own opinion is, then, that some

+unforeseen catastrophe has occurred to him?"

+

+"Yes, sir. I believe that he foresaw some danger, or else he

+would not have talked so. And then I think that what he foresaw

+happened."

+

+"But you have no notion as to what it could have been?"

+

+"None."

+

+"One more question. How did your mother take the matter?"

+

+"She was angry, and said that I was never to speak of the matter

+again."

+

+"And your father? Did you tell him?"

+

+"Yes; and he seemed to think, with me, that something had

+happened, and that I should hear of Hosmer again. As he said,

+what interest could anyone have in bringing me to the doors of

+the church, and then leaving me? Now, if he had borrowed my

+money, or if he had married me and got my money settled on him,

+there might be some reason, but Hosmer was very independent about

+money and never would look at a shilling of mine. And yet, what

+could have happened? And why could he not write? Oh, it drives me

+half-mad to think of it, and I can't sleep a wink at night." She

+pulled a little handkerchief out of her muff and began to sob

+heavily into it.

+

+"I shall glance into the case for you," said Holmes, rising, "and

+I have no doubt that we shall reach some definite result. Let the

+weight of the matter rest upon me now, and do not let your mind

+dwell upon it further. Above all, try to let Mr. Hosmer Angel

+vanish from your memory, as he has done from your life."

+

+"Then you don't think I'll see him again?"

+

+"I fear not."

+

+"Then what has happened to him?"

+

+"You will leave that question in my hands. I should like an

+accurate description of him and any letters of his which you can

+spare."

+

+"I advertised for him in last Saturday's Chronicle," said she.

+"Here is the slip and here are four letters from him."

+

+"Thank you. And your address?"

+

+"No. 31 Lyon Place, Camberwell."

+

+"Mr. Angel's address you never had, I understand. Where is your

+father's place of business?"

+

+"He travels for Westhouse & Marbank, the great claret importers

+of Fenchurch Street."

+

+"Thank you. You have made your statement very clearly. You will

+leave the papers here, and remember the advice which I have given

+you. Let the whole incident be a sealed book, and do not allow it

+to affect your life."

+

+"You are very kind, Mr. Holmes, but I cannot do that. I shall be

+true to Hosmer. He shall find me ready when he comes back."

+

+For all the preposterous hat and the vacuous face, there was

+something noble in the simple faith of our visitor which

+compelled our respect. She laid her little bundle of papers upon

+the table and went her way, with a promise to come again whenever

+she might be summoned.

+

+Sherlock Holmes sat silent for a few minutes with his fingertips

+still pressed together, his legs stretched out in front of him,

+and his gaze directed upward to the ceiling. Then he took down

+from the rack the old and oily clay pipe, which was to him as a

+counsellor, and, having lit it, he leaned back in his chair, with

+the thick blue cloud-wreaths spinning up from him, and a look of

+infinite languor in his face.

+

+"Quite an interesting study, that maiden," he observed. "I found

+her more interesting than her little problem, which, by the way,

+is rather a trite one. You will find parallel cases, if you

+consult my index, in Andover in '77, and there was something of

+the sort at The Hague last year. Old as is the idea, however,

+there were one or two details which were new to me. But the

+maiden herself was most instructive."

+

+"You appeared to read a good deal upon her which was quite

+invisible to me," I remarked.

+

+"Not invisible but unnoticed, Watson. You did not know where to

+look, and so you missed all that was important. I can never bring

+you to realise the importance of sleeves, the suggestiveness of

+thumb-nails, or the great issues that may hang from a boot-lace.

+Now, what did you gather from that woman's appearance? Describe

+it."

+

+"Well, she had a slate-coloured, broad-brimmed straw hat, with a

+feather of a brickish red. Her jacket was black, with black beads

+sewn upon it, and a fringe of little black jet ornaments. Her

+dress was brown, rather darker than coffee colour, with a little

+purple plush at the neck and sleeves. Her gloves were greyish and

+were worn through at the right forefinger. Her boots I didn't

+observe. She had small round, hanging gold earrings, and a

+general air of being fairly well-to-do in a vulgar, comfortable,

+easy-going way."

+

+Sherlock Holmes clapped his hands softly together and chuckled.

+

+"'Pon my word, Watson, you are coming along wonderfully. You have

+really done very well indeed. It is true that you have missed

+everything of importance, but you have hit upon the method, and

+you have a quick eye for colour. Never trust to general

+impressions, my boy, but concentrate yourself upon details. My

+first glance is always at a woman's sleeve. In a man it is

+perhaps better first to take the knee of the trouser. As you

+observe, this woman had plush upon her sleeves, which is a most

+useful material for showing traces. The double line a little

+above the wrist, where the typewritist presses against the table,

+was beautifully defined. The sewing-machine, of the hand type,

+leaves a similar mark, but only on the left arm, and on the side

+of it farthest from the thumb, instead of being right across the

+broadest part, as this was. I then glanced at her face, and,

+observing the dint of a pince-nez at either side of her nose, I

+ventured a remark upon short sight and typewriting, which seemed

+to surprise her."

+

+"It surprised me."

+

+"But, surely, it was obvious. I was then much surprised and

+interested on glancing down to observe that, though the boots

+which she was wearing were not unlike each other, they were

+really odd ones; the one having a slightly decorated toe-cap, and

+the other a plain one. One was buttoned only in the two lower

+buttons out of five, and the other at the first, third, and

+fifth. Now, when you see that a young lady, otherwise neatly

+dressed, has come away from home with odd boots, half-buttoned,

+it is no great deduction to say that she came away in a hurry."

+

+"And what else?" I asked, keenly interested, as I always was, by

+my friend's incisive reasoning.

+

+"I noted, in passing, that she had written a note before leaving

+home but after being fully dressed. You observed that her right

+glove was torn at the forefinger, but you did not apparently see

+that both glove and finger were stained with violet ink. She had

+written in a hurry and dipped her pen too deep. It must have been

+this morning, or the mark would not remain clear upon the finger.

+All this is amusing, though rather elementary, but I must go back

+to business, Watson. Would you mind reading me the advertised

+description of Mr. Hosmer Angel?"

+

+I held the little printed slip to the light.

+

+"Missing," it said, "on the morning of the fourteenth, a gentleman

+named Hosmer Angel. About five ft. seven in. in height;

+strongly built, sallow complexion, black hair, a little bald in

+the centre, bushy, black side-whiskers and moustache; tinted

+glasses, slight infirmity of speech. Was dressed, when last seen,

+in black frock-coat faced with silk, black waistcoat, gold Albert

+chain, and grey Harris tweed trousers, with brown gaiters over

+elastic-sided boots. Known to have been employed in an office in

+Leadenhall Street. Anybody bringing--"

+

+"That will do," said Holmes. "As to the letters," he continued,

+glancing over them, "they are very commonplace. Absolutely no

+clue in them to Mr. Angel, save that he quotes Balzac once. There

+is one remarkable point, however, which will no doubt strike

+you."

+

+"They are typewritten," I remarked.

+

+"Not only that, but the signature is typewritten. Look at the

+neat little 'Hosmer Angel' at the bottom. There is a date, you

+see, but no superscription except Leadenhall Street, which is

+rather vague. The point about the signature is very suggestive--in

+fact, we may call it conclusive."

+

+"Of what?"

+

+"My dear fellow, is it possible you do not see how strongly it

+bears upon the case?"

+

+"I cannot say that I do unless it were that he wished to be able

+to deny his signature if an action for breach of promise were

+instituted."

+

+"No, that was not the point. However, I shall write two letters,

+which should settle the matter. One is to a firm in the City, the

+other is to the young lady's stepfather, Mr. Windibank, asking

+him whether he could meet us here at six o'clock tomorrow

+evening. It is just as well that we should do business with the

+male relatives. And now, Doctor, we can do nothing until the

+answers to those letters come, so we may put our little problem

+upon the shelf for the interim."

+

+I had had so many reasons to believe in my friend's subtle powers

+of reasoning and extraordinary energy in action that I felt that

+he must have some solid grounds for the assured and easy

+demeanour with which he treated the singular mystery which he had

+been called upon to fathom. Once only had I known him to fail, in

+the case of the King of Bohemia and of the Irene Adler

+photograph; but when I looked back to the weird business of the

+Sign of Four, and the extraordinary circumstances connected with

+the Study in Scarlet, I felt that it would be a strange tangle

+indeed which he could not unravel.

+

+I left him then, still puffing at his black clay pipe, with the

+conviction that when I came again on the next evening I would

+find that he held in his hands all the clues which would lead up

+to the identity of the disappearing bridegroom of Miss Mary

+Sutherland.

+

+A professional case of great gravity was engaging my own

+attention at the time, and the whole of next day I was busy at

+the bedside of the sufferer. It was not until close upon six

+o'clock that I found myself free and was able to spring into a

+hansom and drive to Baker Street, half afraid that I might be too

+late to assist at the dénouement of the little mystery. I found

+Sherlock Holmes alone, however, half asleep, with his long, thin

+form curled up in the recesses of his armchair. A formidable

+array of bottles and test-tubes, with the pungent cleanly smell

+of hydrochloric acid, told me that he had spent his day in the

+chemical work which was so dear to him.

+

+"Well, have you solved it?" I asked as I entered.

+

+"Yes. It was the bisulphate of baryta."

+

+"No, no, the mystery!" I cried.

+

+"Oh, that! I thought of the salt that I have been working upon.

+There was never any mystery in the matter, though, as I said

+yesterday, some of the details are of interest. The only drawback

+is that there is no law, I fear, that can touch the scoundrel."

+

+"Who was he, then, and what was his object in deserting Miss

+Sutherland?"

+

+The question was hardly out of my mouth, and Holmes had not yet

+opened his lips to reply, when we heard a heavy footfall in the

+passage and a tap at the door.

+

+"This is the girl's stepfather, Mr. James Windibank," said

+Holmes. "He has written to me to say that he would be here at

+six. Come in!"

+

+The man who entered was a sturdy, middle-sized fellow, some

+thirty years of age, clean-shaven, and sallow-skinned, with a

+bland, insinuating manner, and a pair of wonderfully sharp and

+penetrating grey eyes. He shot a questioning glance at each of

+us, placed his shiny top-hat upon the sideboard, and with a

+slight bow sidled down into the nearest chair.

+

+"Good-evening, Mr. James Windibank," said Holmes. "I think that

+this typewritten letter is from you, in which you made an

+appointment with me for six o'clock?"

+

+"Yes, sir. I am afraid that I am a little late, but I am not

+quite my own master, you know. I am sorry that Miss Sutherland

+has troubled you about this little matter, for I think it is far

+better not to wash linen of the sort in public. It was quite

+against my wishes that she came, but she is a very excitable,

+impulsive girl, as you may have noticed, and she is not easily

+controlled when she has made up her mind on a point. Of course, I

+did not mind you so much, as you are not connected with the

+official police, but it is not pleasant to have a family

+misfortune like this noised abroad. Besides, it is a useless

+expense, for how could you possibly find this Hosmer Angel?"

+

+"On the contrary," said Holmes quietly; "I have every reason to

+believe that I will succeed in discovering Mr. Hosmer Angel."

+

+Mr. Windibank gave a violent start and dropped his gloves. "I am

+delighted to hear it," he said.

+

+"It is a curious thing," remarked Holmes, "that a typewriter has

+really quite as much individuality as a man's handwriting. Unless

+they are quite new, no two of them write exactly alike. Some

+letters get more worn than others, and some wear only on one

+side. Now, you remark in this note of yours, Mr. Windibank, that

+in every case there is some little slurring over of the 'e,' and

+a slight defect in the tail of the 'r.' There are fourteen other

+characteristics, but those are the more obvious."

+

+"We do all our correspondence with this machine at the office,

+and no doubt it is a little worn," our visitor answered, glancing

+keenly at Holmes with his bright little eyes.

+

+"And now I will show you what is really a very interesting study,

+Mr. Windibank," Holmes continued. "I think of writing another

+little monograph some of these days on the typewriter and its

+relation to crime. It is a subject to which I have devoted some

+little attention. I have here four letters which purport to come

+from the missing man. They are all typewritten. In each case, not

+only are the 'e's' slurred and the 'r's' tailless, but you will

+observe, if you care to use my magnifying lens, that the fourteen

+other characteristics to which I have alluded are there as well."

+

+Mr. Windibank sprang out of his chair and picked up his hat. "I

+cannot waste time over this sort of fantastic talk, Mr. Holmes,"

+he said. "If you can catch the man, catch him, and let me know

+when you have done it."

+

+"Certainly," said Holmes, stepping over and turning the key in

+the door. "I let you know, then, that I have caught him!"

+

+"What! where?" shouted Mr. Windibank, turning white to his lips

+and glancing about him like a rat in a trap.

+

+"Oh, it won't do--really it won't," said Holmes suavely. "There

+is no possible getting out of it, Mr. Windibank. It is quite too

+transparent, and it was a very bad compliment when you said that

+it was impossible for me to solve so simple a question. That's

+right! Sit down and let us talk it over."

+

+Our visitor collapsed into a chair, with a ghastly face and a

+glitter of moisture on his brow. "It--it's not actionable," he

+stammered.

+

+"I am very much afraid that it is not. But between ourselves,

+Windibank, it was as cruel and selfish and heartless a trick in a

+petty way as ever came before me. Now, let me just run over the

+course of events, and you will contradict me if I go wrong."

+

+The man sat huddled up in his chair, with his head sunk upon his

+breast, like one who is utterly crushed. Holmes stuck his feet up

+on the corner of the mantelpiece and, leaning back with his hands

+in his pockets, began talking, rather to himself, as it seemed,

+than to us.

+

+"The man married a woman very much older than himself for her

+money," said he, "and he enjoyed the use of the money of the

+daughter as long as she lived with them. It was a considerable

+sum, for people in their position, and the loss of it would have

+made a serious difference. It was worth an effort to preserve it.

+The daughter was of a good, amiable disposition, but affectionate

+and warm-hearted in her ways, so that it was evident that with

+her fair personal advantages, and her little income, she would

+not be allowed to remain single long. Now her marriage would

+mean, of course, the loss of a hundred a year, so what does her

+stepfather do to prevent it? He takes the obvious course of

+keeping her at home and forbidding her to seek the company of

+people of her own age. But soon he found that that would not

+answer forever. She became restive, insisted upon her rights, and

+finally announced her positive intention of going to a certain

+ball. What does her clever stepfather do then? He conceives an

+idea more creditable to his head than to his heart. With the

+connivance and assistance of his wife he disguised himself,

+covered those keen eyes with tinted glasses, masked the face with

+a moustache and a pair of bushy whiskers, sunk that clear voice

+into an insinuating whisper, and doubly secure on account of the

+girl's short sight, he appears as Mr. Hosmer Angel, and keeps off

+other lovers by making love himself."

+

+"It was only a joke at first," groaned our visitor. "We never

+thought that she would have been so carried away."

+

+"Very likely not. However that may be, the young lady was very

+decidedly carried away, and, having quite made up her mind that

+her stepfather was in France, the suspicion of treachery never

+for an instant entered her mind. She was flattered by the

+gentleman's attentions, and the effect was increased by the

+loudly expressed admiration of her mother. Then Mr. Angel began

+to call, for it was obvious that the matter should be pushed as

+far as it would go if a real effect were to be produced. There

+were meetings, and an engagement, which would finally secure the

+girl's affections from turning towards anyone else. But the

+deception could not be kept up forever. These pretended journeys

+to France were rather cumbrous. The thing to do was clearly to

+bring the business to an end in such a dramatic manner that it

+would leave a permanent impression upon the young lady's mind and

+prevent her from looking upon any other suitor for some time to

+come. Hence those vows of fidelity exacted upon a Testament, and

+hence also the allusions to a possibility of something happening

+on the very morning of the wedding. James Windibank wished Miss

+Sutherland to be so bound to Hosmer Angel, and so uncertain as to

+his fate, that for ten years to come, at any rate, she would not

+listen to another man. As far as the church door he brought her,

+and then, as he could go no farther, he conveniently vanished

+away by the old trick of stepping in at one door of a

+four-wheeler and out at the other. I think that was the chain of

+events, Mr. Windibank!"

+

+Our visitor had recovered something of his assurance while Holmes

+had been talking, and he rose from his chair now with a cold

+sneer upon his pale face.

+

+"It may be so, or it may not, Mr. Holmes," said he, "but if you

+are so very sharp you ought to be sharp enough to know that it is

+you who are breaking the law now, and not me. I have done nothing

+actionable from the first, but as long as you keep that door

+locked you lay yourself open to an action for assault and illegal

+constraint."

+

+"The law cannot, as you say, touch you," said Holmes, unlocking

+and throwing open the door, "yet there never was a man who

+deserved punishment more. If the young lady has a brother or a

+friend, he ought to lay a whip across your shoulders. By Jove!"

+he continued, flushing up at the sight of the bitter sneer upon

+the man's face, "it is not part of my duties to my client, but

+here's a hunting crop handy, and I think I shall just treat

+myself to--" He took two swift steps to the whip, but before he

+could grasp it there was a wild clatter of steps upon the stairs,

+the heavy hall door banged, and from the window we could see Mr.

+James Windibank running at the top of his speed down the road.

+

+"There's a cold-blooded scoundrel!" said Holmes, laughing, as he

+threw himself down into his chair once more. "That fellow will

+rise from crime to crime until he does something very bad, and

+ends on a gallows. The case has, in some respects, been not

+entirely devoid of interest."

+

+"I cannot now entirely see all the steps of your reasoning," I

+remarked.

+

+"Well, of course it was obvious from the first that this Mr.

+Hosmer Angel must have some strong object for his curious

+conduct, and it was equally clear that the only man who really

+profited by the incident, as far as we could see, was the

+stepfather. Then the fact that the two men were never together,

+but that the one always appeared when the other was away, was

+suggestive. So were the tinted spectacles and the curious voice,

+which both hinted at a disguise, as did the bushy whiskers. My

+suspicions were all confirmed by his peculiar action in

+typewriting his signature, which, of course, inferred that his

+handwriting was so familiar to her that she would recognise even

+the smallest sample of it. You see all these isolated facts,

+together with many minor ones, all pointed in the same

+direction."

+

+"And how did you verify them?"

+

+"Having once spotted my man, it was easy to get corroboration. I

+knew the firm for which this man worked. Having taken the printed

+description. I eliminated everything from it which could be the

+result of a disguise--the whiskers, the glasses, the voice, and I

+sent it to the firm, with a request that they would inform me

+whether it answered to the description of any of their

+travellers. I had already noticed the peculiarities of the

+typewriter, and I wrote to the man himself at his business

+address asking him if he would come here. As I expected, his

+reply was typewritten and revealed the same trivial but

+characteristic defects. The same post brought me a letter from

+Westhouse & Marbank, of Fenchurch Street, to say that the

+description tallied in every respect with that of their employé,

+James Windibank. Voilà tout!"

+

+"And Miss Sutherland?"

+

+"If I tell her she will not believe me. You may remember the old

+Persian saying, 'There is danger for him who taketh the tiger

+cub, and danger also for whoso snatches a delusion from a woman.'

+There is as much sense in Hafiz as in Horace, and as much

+knowledge of the world."

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE IV. THE BOSCOMBE VALLEY MYSTERY

+

+We were seated at breakfast one morning, my wife and I, when the

+maid brought in a telegram. It was from Sherlock Holmes and ran

+in this way:

+

+"Have you a couple of days to spare? Have just been wired for from

+the west of England in connection with Boscombe Valley tragedy.

+Shall be glad if you will come with me. Air and scenery perfect.

+Leave Paddington by the 11:15."

+

+"What do you say, dear?" said my wife, looking across at me.

+"Will you go?"

+

+"I really don't know what to say. I have a fairly long list at

+present."

+

+"Oh, Anstruther would do your work for you. You have been looking

+a little pale lately. I think that the change would do you good,

+and you are always so interested in Mr. Sherlock Holmes' cases."

+

+"I should be ungrateful if I were not, seeing what I gained

+through one of them," I answered. "But if I am to go, I must pack

+at once, for I have only half an hour."

+

+My experience of camp life in Afghanistan had at least had the

+effect of making me a prompt and ready traveller. My wants were

+few and simple, so that in less than the time stated I was in a

+cab with my valise, rattling away to Paddington Station. Sherlock

+Holmes was pacing up and down the platform, his tall, gaunt

+figure made even gaunter and taller by his long grey

+travelling-cloak and close-fitting cloth cap.

+

+"It is really very good of you to come, Watson," said he. "It

+makes a considerable difference to me, having someone with me on

+whom I can thoroughly rely. Local aid is always either worthless

+or else biassed. If you will keep the two corner seats I shall

+get the tickets."

+

+We had the carriage to ourselves save for an immense litter of

+papers which Holmes had brought with him. Among these he rummaged

+and read, with intervals of note-taking and of meditation, until

+we were past Reading. Then he suddenly rolled them all into a

+gigantic ball and tossed them up onto the rack.

+

+"Have you heard anything of the case?" he asked.

+

+"Not a word. I have not seen a paper for some days."

+

+"The London press has not had very full accounts. I have just

+been looking through all the recent papers in order to master the

+particulars. It seems, from what I gather, to be one of those

+simple cases which are so extremely difficult."

+

+"That sounds a little paradoxical."

+

+"But it is profoundly true. Singularity is almost invariably a

+clue. The more featureless and commonplace a crime is, the more

+difficult it is to bring it home. In this case, however, they

+have established a very serious case against the son of the

+murdered man."

+

+"It is a murder, then?"

+

+"Well, it is conjectured to be so. I shall take nothing for

+granted until I have the opportunity of looking personally into

+it. I will explain the state of things to you, as far as I have

+been able to understand it, in a very few words.

+

+"Boscombe Valley is a country district not very far from Ross, in

+Herefordshire. The largest landed proprietor in that part is a

+Mr. John Turner, who made his money in Australia and returned

+some years ago to the old country. One of the farms which he

+held, that of Hatherley, was let to Mr. Charles McCarthy, who was

+also an ex-Australian. The men had known each other in the

+colonies, so that it was not unnatural that when they came to

+settle down they should do so as near each other as possible.

+Turner was apparently the richer man, so McCarthy became his

+tenant but still remained, it seems, upon terms of perfect

+equality, as they were frequently together. McCarthy had one son,

+a lad of eighteen, and Turner had an only daughter of the same

+age, but neither of them had wives living. They appear to have

+avoided the society of the neighbouring English families and to

+have led retired lives, though both the McCarthys were fond of

+sport and were frequently seen at the race-meetings of the

+neighbourhood. McCarthy kept two servants--a man and a girl.

+Turner had a considerable household, some half-dozen at the

+least. That is as much as I have been able to gather about the

+families. Now for the facts.

+

+"On June 3rd, that is, on Monday last, McCarthy left his house at

+Hatherley about three in the afternoon and walked down to the

+Boscombe Pool, which is a small lake formed by the spreading out

+of the stream which runs down the Boscombe Valley. He had been

+out with his serving-man in the morning at Ross, and he had told

+the man that he must hurry, as he had an appointment of

+importance to keep at three. From that appointment he never came

+back alive.

+

+"From Hatherley Farm-house to the Boscombe Pool is a quarter of a

+mile, and two people saw him as he passed over this ground. One

+was an old woman, whose name is not mentioned, and the other was

+William Crowder, a game-keeper in the employ of Mr. Turner. Both

+these witnesses depose that Mr. McCarthy was walking alone. The

+game-keeper adds that within a few minutes of his seeing Mr.

+McCarthy pass he had seen his son, Mr. James McCarthy, going the

+same way with a gun under his arm. To the best of his belief, the

+father was actually in sight at the time, and the son was

+following him. He thought no more of the matter until he heard in

+the evening of the tragedy that had occurred.

+

+"The two McCarthys were seen after the time when William Crowder,

+the game-keeper, lost sight of them. The Boscombe Pool is thickly

+wooded round, with just a fringe of grass and of reeds round the

+edge. A girl of fourteen, Patience Moran, who is the daughter of

+the lodge-keeper of the Boscombe Valley estate, was in one of the

+woods picking flowers. She states that while she was there she

+saw, at the border of the wood and close by the lake, Mr.

+McCarthy and his son, and that they appeared to be having a

+violent quarrel. She heard Mr. McCarthy the elder using very

+strong language to his son, and she saw the latter raise up his

+hand as if to strike his father. She was so frightened by their

+violence that she ran away and told her mother when she reached

+home that she had left the two McCarthys quarrelling near

+Boscombe Pool, and that she was afraid that they were going to

+fight. She had hardly said the words when young Mr. McCarthy came

+running up to the lodge to say that he had found his father dead

+in the wood, and to ask for the help of the lodge-keeper. He was

+much excited, without either his gun or his hat, and his right

+hand and sleeve were observed to be stained with fresh blood. On

+following him they found the dead body stretched out upon the

+grass beside the pool. The head had been beaten in by repeated

+blows of some heavy and blunt weapon. The injuries were such as

+might very well have been inflicted by the butt-end of his son's

+gun, which was found lying on the grass within a few paces of the

+body. Under these circumstances the young man was instantly

+arrested, and a verdict of 'wilful murder' having been returned

+at the inquest on Tuesday, he was on Wednesday brought before the

+magistrates at Ross, who have referred the case to the next

+Assizes. Those are the main facts of the case as they came out

+before the coroner and the police-court."

+

+"I could hardly imagine a more damning case," I remarked. "If

+ever circumstantial evidence pointed to a criminal it does so

+here."

+

+"Circumstantial evidence is a very tricky thing," answered Holmes

+thoughtfully. "It may seem to point very straight to one thing,

+but if you shift your own point of view a little, you may find it

+pointing in an equally uncompromising manner to something

+entirely different. It must be confessed, however, that the case

+looks exceedingly grave against the young man, and it is very

+possible that he is indeed the culprit. There are several people

+in the neighbourhood, however, and among them Miss Turner, the

+daughter of the neighbouring landowner, who believe in his

+innocence, and who have retained Lestrade, whom you may recollect

+in connection with the Study in Scarlet, to work out the case in

+his interest. Lestrade, being rather puzzled, has referred the

+case to me, and hence it is that two middle-aged gentlemen are

+flying westward at fifty miles an hour instead of quietly

+digesting their breakfasts at home."

+

+"I am afraid," said I, "that the facts are so obvious that you

+will find little credit to be gained out of this case."

+

+"There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact," he

+answered, laughing. "Besides, we may chance to hit upon some

+other obvious facts which may have been by no means obvious to

+Mr. Lestrade. You know me too well to think that I am boasting

+when I say that I shall either confirm or destroy his theory by

+means which he is quite incapable of employing, or even of

+understanding. To take the first example to hand, I very clearly

+perceive that in your bedroom the window is upon the right-hand

+side, and yet I question whether Mr. Lestrade would have noted

+even so self-evident a thing as that."

+

+"How on earth--"

+

+"My dear fellow, I know you well. I know the military neatness

+which characterises you. You shave every morning, and in this

+season you shave by the sunlight; but since your shaving is less

+and less complete as we get farther back on the left side, until

+it becomes positively slovenly as we get round the angle of the

+jaw, it is surely very clear that that side is less illuminated

+than the other. I could not imagine a man of your habits looking

+at himself in an equal light and being satisfied with such a

+result. I only quote this as a trivial example of observation and

+inference. Therein lies my métier, and it is just possible that

+it may be of some service in the investigation which lies before

+us. There are one or two minor points which were brought out in

+the inquest, and which are worth considering."

+

+"What are they?"

+

+"It appears that his arrest did not take place at once, but after

+the return to Hatherley Farm. On the inspector of constabulary

+informing him that he was a prisoner, he remarked that he was not

+surprised to hear it, and that it was no more than his deserts.

+This observation of his had the natural effect of removing any

+traces of doubt which might have remained in the minds of the

+coroner's jury."

+

+"It was a confession," I ejaculated.

+

+"No, for it was followed by a protestation of innocence."

+

+"Coming on the top of such a damning series of events, it was at

+least a most suspicious remark."

+

+"On the contrary," said Holmes, "it is the brightest rift which I

+can at present see in the clouds. However innocent he might be,

+he could not be such an absolute imbecile as not to see that the

+circumstances were very black against him. Had he appeared

+surprised at his own arrest, or feigned indignation at it, I

+should have looked upon it as highly suspicious, because such

+surprise or anger would not be natural under the circumstances,

+and yet might appear to be the best policy to a scheming man. His

+frank acceptance of the situation marks him as either an innocent

+man, or else as a man of considerable self-restraint and

+firmness. As to his remark about his deserts, it was also not

+unnatural if you consider that he stood beside the dead body of

+his father, and that there is no doubt that he had that very day

+so far forgotten his filial duty as to bandy words with him, and

+even, according to the little girl whose evidence is so

+important, to raise his hand as if to strike him. The

+self-reproach and contrition which are displayed in his remark

+appear to me to be the signs of a healthy mind rather than of a

+guilty one."

+

+I shook my head. "Many men have been hanged on far slighter

+evidence," I remarked.

+

+"So they have. And many men have been wrongfully hanged."

+

+"What is the young man's own account of the matter?"

+

+"It is, I am afraid, not very encouraging to his supporters,

+though there are one or two points in it which are suggestive.

+You will find it here, and may read it for yourself."

+

+He picked out from his bundle a copy of the local Herefordshire

+paper, and having turned down the sheet he pointed out the

+paragraph in which the unfortunate young man had given his own

+statement of what had occurred. I settled myself down in the

+corner of the carriage and read it very carefully. It ran in this

+way:

+

+"Mr. James McCarthy, the only son of the deceased, was then called

+and gave evidence as follows: 'I had been away from home for

+three days at Bristol, and had only just returned upon the

+morning of last Monday, the 3rd. My father was absent from home at

+the time of my arrival, and I was informed by the maid that he

+had driven over to Ross with John Cobb, the groom. Shortly after

+my return I heard the wheels of his trap in the yard, and,

+looking out of my window, I saw him get out and walk rapidly out

+of the yard, though I was not aware in which direction he was

+going. I then took my gun and strolled out in the direction of

+the Boscombe Pool, with the intention of visiting the rabbit

+warren which is upon the other side. On my way I saw William

+Crowder, the game-keeper, as he had stated in his evidence; but

+he is mistaken in thinking that I was following my father. I had

+no idea that he was in front of me. When about a hundred yards

+from the pool I heard a cry of "Cooee!" which was a usual signal

+between my father and myself. I then hurried forward, and found

+him standing by the pool. He appeared to be much surprised at

+seeing me and asked me rather roughly what I was doing there. A

+conversation ensued which led to high words and almost to blows,

+for my father was a man of a very violent temper. Seeing that his

+passion was becoming ungovernable, I left him and returned

+towards Hatherley Farm. I had not gone more than 150 yards,

+however, when I heard a hideous outcry behind me, which caused me

+to run back again. I found my father expiring upon the ground,

+with his head terribly injured. I dropped my gun and held him in

+my arms, but he almost instantly expired. I knelt beside him for

+some minutes, and then made my way to Mr. Turner's lodge-keeper,

+his house being the nearest, to ask for assistance. I saw no one

+near my father when I returned, and I have no idea how he came by

+his injuries. He was not a popular man, being somewhat cold and

+forbidding in his manners, but he had, as far as I know, no

+active enemies. I know nothing further of the matter.'

+

+"The Coroner: Did your father make any statement to you before

+he died?

+

+"Witness: He mumbled a few words, but I could only catch some

+allusion to a rat.

+

+"The Coroner: What did you understand by that?

+

+"Witness: It conveyed no meaning to me. I thought that he was

+delirious.

+

+"The Coroner: What was the point upon which you and your father

+had this final quarrel?

+

+"Witness: I should prefer not to answer.

+

+"The Coroner: I am afraid that I must press it.

+

+"Witness: It is really impossible for me to tell you. I can

+assure you that it has nothing to do with the sad tragedy which

+followed.

+

+"The Coroner: That is for the court to decide. I need not point

+out to you that your refusal to answer will prejudice your case

+considerably in any future proceedings which may arise.

+

+"Witness: I must still refuse.

+

+"The Coroner: I understand that the cry of 'Cooee' was a common

+signal between you and your father?

+

+"Witness: It was.

+

+"The Coroner: How was it, then, that he uttered it before he saw

+you, and before he even knew that you had returned from Bristol?

+

+"Witness (with considerable confusion): I do not know.

+

+"A Juryman: Did you see nothing which aroused your suspicions

+when you returned on hearing the cry and found your father

+fatally injured?

+

+"Witness: Nothing definite.

+

+"The Coroner: What do you mean?

+

+"Witness: I was so disturbed and excited as I rushed out into

+the open, that I could think of nothing except of my father. Yet

+I have a vague impression that as I ran forward something lay

+upon the ground to the left of me. It seemed to me to be

+something grey in colour, a coat of some sort, or a plaid perhaps.

+When I rose from my father I looked round for it, but it was

+gone.

+

+"'Do you mean that it disappeared before you went for help?'

+

+"'Yes, it was gone.'

+

+"'You cannot say what it was?'

+

+"'No, I had a feeling something was there.'

+

+"'How far from the body?'

+

+"'A dozen yards or so.'

+

+"'And how far from the edge of the wood?'

+

+"'About the same.'

+

+"'Then if it was removed it was while you were within a dozen

+yards of it?'

+

+"'Yes, but with my back towards it.'

+

+"This concluded the examination of the witness."

+

+"I see," said I as I glanced down the column, "that the coroner

+in his concluding remarks was rather severe upon young McCarthy.

+He calls attention, and with reason, to the discrepancy about his

+father having signalled to him before seeing him, also to his

+refusal to give details of his conversation with his father, and

+his singular account of his father's dying words. They are all,

+as he remarks, very much against the son."

+

+Holmes laughed softly to himself and stretched himself out upon

+the cushioned seat. "Both you and the coroner have been at some

+pains," said he, "to single out the very strongest points in the

+young man's favour. Don't you see that you alternately give him

+credit for having too much imagination and too little? Too

+little, if he could not invent a cause of quarrel which would

+give him the sympathy of the jury; too much, if he evolved from

+his own inner consciousness anything so outré as a dying

+reference to a rat, and the incident of the vanishing cloth. No,

+sir, I shall approach this case from the point of view that what

+this young man says is true, and we shall see whither that

+hypothesis will lead us. And now here is my pocket Petrarch, and

+not another word shall I say of this case until we are on the

+scene of action. We lunch at Swindon, and I see that we shall be

+there in twenty minutes."

+

+It was nearly four o'clock when we at last, after passing through

+the beautiful Stroud Valley, and over the broad gleaming Severn,

+found ourselves at the pretty little country-town of Ross. A

+lean, ferret-like man, furtive and sly-looking, was waiting for

+us upon the platform. In spite of the light brown dustcoat and

+leather-leggings which he wore in deference to his rustic

+surroundings, I had no difficulty in recognising Lestrade, of

+Scotland Yard. With him we drove to the Hereford Arms where a

+room had already been engaged for us.

+

+"I have ordered a carriage," said Lestrade as we sat over a cup

+of tea. "I knew your energetic nature, and that you would not be

+happy until you had been on the scene of the crime."

+

+"It was very nice and complimentary of you," Holmes answered. "It

+is entirely a question of barometric pressure."

+

+Lestrade looked startled. "I do not quite follow," he said.

+

+"How is the glass? Twenty-nine, I see. No wind, and not a cloud

+in the sky. I have a caseful of cigarettes here which need

+smoking, and the sofa is very much superior to the usual country

+hotel abomination. I do not think that it is probable that I

+shall use the carriage to-night."

+

+Lestrade laughed indulgently. "You have, no doubt, already formed

+your conclusions from the newspapers," he said. "The case is as

+plain as a pikestaff, and the more one goes into it the plainer

+it becomes. Still, of course, one can't refuse a lady, and such a

+very positive one, too. She has heard of you, and would have your

+opinion, though I repeatedly told her that there was nothing

+which you could do which I had not already done. Why, bless my

+soul! here is her carriage at the door."

+

+He had hardly spoken before there rushed into the room one of the

+most lovely young women that I have ever seen in my life. Her

+violet eyes shining, her lips parted, a pink flush upon her

+cheeks, all thought of her natural reserve lost in her

+overpowering excitement and concern.

+

+"Oh, Mr. Sherlock Holmes!" she cried, glancing from one to the

+other of us, and finally, with a woman's quick intuition,

+fastening upon my companion, "I am so glad that you have come. I

+have driven down to tell you so. I know that James didn't do it.

+I know it, and I want you to start upon your work knowing it,

+too. Never let yourself doubt upon that point. We have known each

+other since we were little children, and I know his faults as no

+one else does; but he is too tender-hearted to hurt a fly. Such a

+charge is absurd to anyone who really knows him."

+

+"I hope we may clear him, Miss Turner," said Sherlock Holmes.

+"You may rely upon my doing all that I can."

+

+"But you have read the evidence. You have formed some conclusion?

+Do you not see some loophole, some flaw? Do you not yourself

+think that he is innocent?"

+

+"I think that it is very probable."

+

+"There, now!" she cried, throwing back her head and looking

+defiantly at Lestrade. "You hear! He gives me hopes."

+

+Lestrade shrugged his shoulders. "I am afraid that my colleague

+has been a little quick in forming his conclusions," he said.

+

+"But he is right. Oh! I know that he is right. James never did

+it. And about his quarrel with his father, I am sure that the

+reason why he would not speak about it to the coroner was because

+I was concerned in it."

+

+"In what way?" asked Holmes.

+

+"It is no time for me to hide anything. James and his father had

+many disagreements about me. Mr. McCarthy was very anxious that

+there should be a marriage between us. James and I have always

+loved each other as brother and sister; but of course he is young

+and has seen very little of life yet, and--and--well, he

+naturally did not wish to do anything like that yet. So there

+were quarrels, and this, I am sure, was one of them."

+

+"And your father?" asked Holmes. "Was he in favour of such a

+union?"

+

+"No, he was averse to it also. No one but Mr. McCarthy was in

+favour of it." A quick blush passed over her fresh young face as

+Holmes shot one of his keen, questioning glances at her.

+

+"Thank you for this information," said he. "May I see your father

+if I call to-morrow?"

+

+"I am afraid the doctor won't allow it."

+

+"The doctor?"

+

+"Yes, have you not heard? Poor father has never been strong for

+years back, but this has broken him down completely. He has taken

+to his bed, and Dr. Willows says that he is a wreck and that his

+nervous system is shattered. Mr. McCarthy was the only man alive

+who had known dad in the old days in Victoria."

+

+"Ha! In Victoria! That is important."

+

+"Yes, at the mines."

+

+"Quite so; at the gold-mines, where, as I understand, Mr. Turner

+made his money."

+

+"Yes, certainly."

+

+"Thank you, Miss Turner. You have been of material assistance to

+me."

+

+"You will tell me if you have any news to-morrow. No doubt you

+will go to the prison to see James. Oh, if you do, Mr. Holmes, do

+tell him that I know him to be innocent."

+

+"I will, Miss Turner."

+

+"I must go home now, for dad is very ill, and he misses me so if

+I leave him. Good-bye, and God help you in your undertaking." She

+hurried from the room as impulsively as she had entered, and we

+heard the wheels of her carriage rattle off down the street.

+

+"I am ashamed of you, Holmes," said Lestrade with dignity after a

+few minutes' silence. "Why should you raise up hopes which you

+are bound to disappoint? I am not over-tender of heart, but I

+call it cruel."

+

+"I think that I see my way to clearing James McCarthy," said

+Holmes. "Have you an order to see him in prison?"

+

+"Yes, but only for you and me."

+

+"Then I shall reconsider my resolution about going out. We have

+still time to take a train to Hereford and see him to-night?"

+

+"Ample."

+

+"Then let us do so. Watson, I fear that you will find it very

+slow, but I shall only be away a couple of hours."

+

+I walked down to the station with them, and then wandered through

+the streets of the little town, finally returning to the hotel,

+where I lay upon the sofa and tried to interest myself in a

+yellow-backed novel. The puny plot of the story was so thin,

+however, when compared to the deep mystery through which we were

+groping, and I found my attention wander so continually from the

+action to the fact, that I at last flung it across the room and

+gave myself up entirely to a consideration of the events of the

+day. Supposing that this unhappy young man's story were

+absolutely true, then what hellish thing, what absolutely

+unforeseen and extraordinary calamity could have occurred between

+the time when he parted from his father, and the moment when,

+drawn back by his screams, he rushed into the glade? It was

+something terrible and deadly. What could it be? Might not the

+nature of the injuries reveal something to my medical instincts?

+I rang the bell and called for the weekly county paper, which

+contained a verbatim account of the inquest. In the surgeon's

+deposition it was stated that the posterior third of the left

+parietal bone and the left half of the occipital bone had been

+shattered by a heavy blow from a blunt weapon. I marked the spot

+upon my own head. Clearly such a blow must have been struck from

+behind. That was to some extent in favour of the accused, as when

+seen quarrelling he was face to face with his father. Still, it

+did not go for very much, for the older man might have turned his

+back before the blow fell. Still, it might be worth while to call

+Holmes' attention to it. Then there was the peculiar dying

+reference to a rat. What could that mean? It could not be

+delirium. A man dying from a sudden blow does not commonly become

+delirious. No, it was more likely to be an attempt to explain how

+he met his fate. But what could it indicate? I cudgelled my

+brains to find some possible explanation. And then the incident

+of the grey cloth seen by young McCarthy. If that were true the

+murderer must have dropped some part of his dress, presumably his

+overcoat, in his flight, and must have had the hardihood to

+return and to carry it away at the instant when the son was

+kneeling with his back turned not a dozen paces off. What a

+tissue of mysteries and improbabilities the whole thing was! I

+did not wonder at Lestrade's opinion, and yet I had so much faith

+in Sherlock Holmes' insight that I could not lose hope as long

+as every fresh fact seemed to strengthen his conviction of young

+McCarthy's innocence.

+

+It was late before Sherlock Holmes returned. He came back alone,

+for Lestrade was staying in lodgings in the town.

+

+"The glass still keeps very high," he remarked as he sat down.

+"It is of importance that it should not rain before we are able

+to go over the ground. On the other hand, a man should be at his

+very best and keenest for such nice work as that, and I did not

+wish to do it when fagged by a long journey. I have seen young

+McCarthy."

+

+"And what did you learn from him?"

+

+"Nothing."

+

+"Could he throw no light?"

+

+"None at all. I was inclined to think at one time that he knew

+who had done it and was screening him or her, but I am convinced

+now that he is as puzzled as everyone else. He is not a very

+quick-witted youth, though comely to look at and, I should think,

+sound at heart."

+

+"I cannot admire his taste," I remarked, "if it is indeed a fact

+that he was averse to a marriage with so charming a young lady as

+this Miss Turner."

+

+"Ah, thereby hangs a rather painful tale. This fellow is madly,

+insanely, in love with her, but some two years ago, when he was

+only a lad, and before he really knew her, for she had been away

+five years at a boarding-school, what does the idiot do but get

+into the clutches of a barmaid in Bristol and marry her at a

+registry office? No one knows a word of the matter, but you can

+imagine how maddening it must be to him to be upbraided for not

+doing what he would give his very eyes to do, but what he knows

+to be absolutely impossible. It was sheer frenzy of this sort

+which made him throw his hands up into the air when his father,

+at their last interview, was goading him on to propose to Miss

+Turner. On the other hand, he had no means of supporting himself,

+and his father, who was by all accounts a very hard man, would

+have thrown him over utterly had he known the truth. It was with

+his barmaid wife that he had spent the last three days in

+Bristol, and his father did not know where he was. Mark that

+point. It is of importance. Good has come out of evil, however,

+for the barmaid, finding from the papers that he is in serious

+trouble and likely to be hanged, has thrown him over utterly and

+has written to him to say that she has a husband already in the

+Bermuda Dockyard, so that there is really no tie between them. I

+think that that bit of news has consoled young McCarthy for all

+that he has suffered."

+

+"But if he is innocent, who has done it?"

+

+"Ah! who? I would call your attention very particularly to two

+points. One is that the murdered man had an appointment with

+someone at the pool, and that the someone could not have been his

+son, for his son was away, and he did not know when he would

+return. The second is that the murdered man was heard to cry

+'Cooee!' before he knew that his son had returned. Those are the

+crucial points upon which the case depends. And now let us talk

+about George Meredith, if you please, and we shall leave all

+minor matters until to-morrow."

+

+There was no rain, as Holmes had foretold, and the morning broke

+bright and cloudless. At nine o'clock Lestrade called for us with

+the carriage, and we set off for Hatherley Farm and the Boscombe

+Pool.

+

+"There is serious news this morning," Lestrade observed. "It is

+said that Mr. Turner, of the Hall, is so ill that his life is

+despaired of."

+

+"An elderly man, I presume?" said Holmes.

+

+"About sixty; but his constitution has been shattered by his life

+abroad, and he has been in failing health for some time. This

+business has had a very bad effect upon him. He was an old friend

+of McCarthy's, and, I may add, a great benefactor to him, for I

+have learned that he gave him Hatherley Farm rent free."

+

+"Indeed! That is interesting," said Holmes.

+

+"Oh, yes! In a hundred other ways he has helped him. Everybody

+about here speaks of his kindness to him."

+

+"Really! Does it not strike you as a little singular that this

+McCarthy, who appears to have had little of his own, and to have

+been under such obligations to Turner, should still talk of

+marrying his son to Turner's daughter, who is, presumably,

+heiress to the estate, and that in such a very cocksure manner,

+as if it were merely a case of a proposal and all else would

+follow? It is the more strange, since we know that Turner himself

+was averse to the idea. The daughter told us as much. Do you not

+deduce something from that?"

+

+"We have got to the deductions and the inferences," said

+Lestrade, winking at me. "I find it hard enough to tackle facts,

+Holmes, without flying away after theories and fancies."

+

+"You are right," said Holmes demurely; "you do find it very hard

+to tackle the facts."

+

+"Anyhow, I have grasped one fact which you seem to find it

+difficult to get hold of," replied Lestrade with some warmth.

+

+"And that is--"

+

+"That McCarthy senior met his death from McCarthy junior and that

+all theories to the contrary are the merest moonshine."

+

+"Well, moonshine is a brighter thing than fog," said Holmes,

+laughing. "But I am very much mistaken if this is not Hatherley

+Farm upon the left."

+

+"Yes, that is it." It was a widespread, comfortable-looking

+building, two-storied, slate-roofed, with great yellow blotches

+of lichen upon the grey walls. The drawn blinds and the smokeless

+chimneys, however, gave it a stricken look, as though the weight

+of this horror still lay heavy upon it. We called at the door,

+when the maid, at Holmes' request, showed us the boots which her

+master wore at the time of his death, and also a pair of the

+son's, though not the pair which he had then had. Having measured

+these very carefully from seven or eight different points, Holmes

+desired to be led to the court-yard, from which we all followed

+the winding track which led to Boscombe Pool.

+

+Sherlock Holmes was transformed when he was hot upon such a scent

+as this. Men who had only known the quiet thinker and logician of

+Baker Street would have failed to recognise him. His face flushed

+and darkened. His brows were drawn into two hard black lines,

+while his eyes shone out from beneath them with a steely glitter.

+His face was bent downward, his shoulders bowed, his lips

+compressed, and the veins stood out like whipcord in his long,

+sinewy neck. His nostrils seemed to dilate with a purely animal

+lust for the chase, and his mind was so absolutely concentrated

+upon the matter before him that a question or remark fell

+unheeded upon his ears, or, at the most, only provoked a quick,

+impatient snarl in reply. Swiftly and silently he made his way

+along the track which ran through the meadows, and so by way of

+the woods to the Boscombe Pool. It was damp, marshy ground, as is

+all that district, and there were marks of many feet, both upon

+the path and amid the short grass which bounded it on either

+side. Sometimes Holmes would hurry on, sometimes stop dead, and

+once he made quite a little detour into the meadow. Lestrade and

+I walked behind him, the detective indifferent and contemptuous,

+while I watched my friend with the interest which sprang from the

+conviction that every one of his actions was directed towards a

+definite end.

+

+The Boscombe Pool, which is a little reed-girt sheet of water

+some fifty yards across, is situated at the boundary between the

+Hatherley Farm and the private park of the wealthy Mr. Turner.

+Above the woods which lined it upon the farther side we could see

+the red, jutting pinnacles which marked the site of the rich

+landowner's dwelling. On the Hatherley side of the pool the woods

+grew very thick, and there was a narrow belt of sodden grass

+twenty paces across between the edge of the trees and the reeds

+which lined the lake. Lestrade showed us the exact spot at which

+the body had been found, and, indeed, so moist was the ground,

+that I could plainly see the traces which had been left by the

+fall of the stricken man. To Holmes, as I could see by his eager

+face and peering eyes, very many other things were to be read

+upon the trampled grass. He ran round, like a dog who is picking

+up a scent, and then turned upon my companion.

+

+"What did you go into the pool for?" he asked.

+

+"I fished about with a rake. I thought there might be some weapon

+or other trace. But how on earth--"

+

+"Oh, tut, tut! I have no time! That left foot of yours with its

+inward twist is all over the place. A mole could trace it, and

+there it vanishes among the reeds. Oh, how simple it would all

+have been had I been here before they came like a herd of buffalo

+and wallowed all over it. Here is where the party with the

+lodge-keeper came, and they have covered all tracks for six or

+eight feet round the body. But here are three separate tracks of

+the same feet." He drew out a lens and lay down upon his

+waterproof to have a better view, talking all the time rather to

+himself than to us. "These are young McCarthy's feet. Twice he

+was walking, and once he ran swiftly, so that the soles are

+deeply marked and the heels hardly visible. That bears out his

+story. He ran when he saw his father on the ground. Then here are

+the father's feet as he paced up and down. What is this, then? It

+is the butt-end of the gun as the son stood listening. And this?

+Ha, ha! What have we here? Tiptoes! tiptoes! Square, too, quite

+unusual boots! They come, they go, they come again--of course

+that was for the cloak. Now where did they come from?" He ran up

+and down, sometimes losing, sometimes finding the track until we

+were well within the edge of the wood and under the shadow of a

+great beech, the largest tree in the neighbourhood. Holmes traced

+his way to the farther side of this and lay down once more upon

+his face with a little cry of satisfaction. For a long time he

+remained there, turning over the leaves and dried sticks,

+gathering up what seemed to me to be dust into an envelope and

+examining with his lens not only the ground but even the bark of

+the tree as far as he could reach. A jagged stone was lying among

+the moss, and this also he carefully examined and retained. Then

+he followed a pathway through the wood until he came to the

+highroad, where all traces were lost.

+

+"It has been a case of considerable interest," he remarked,

+returning to his natural manner. "I fancy that this grey house on

+the right must be the lodge. I think that I will go in and have a

+word with Moran, and perhaps write a little note. Having done

+that, we may drive back to our luncheon. You may walk to the cab,

+and I shall be with you presently."

+

+It was about ten minutes before we regained our cab and drove

+back into Ross, Holmes still carrying with him the stone which he

+had picked up in the wood.

+

+"This may interest you, Lestrade," he remarked, holding it out.

+"The murder was done with it."

+

+"I see no marks."

+

+"There are none."

+

+"How do you know, then?"

+

+"The grass was growing under it. It had only lain there a few

+days. There was no sign of a place whence it had been taken. It

+corresponds with the injuries. There is no sign of any other

+weapon."

+

+"And the murderer?"

+

+"Is a tall man, left-handed, limps with the right leg, wears

+thick-soled shooting-boots and a grey cloak, smokes Indian

+cigars, uses a cigar-holder, and carries a blunt pen-knife in his

+pocket. There are several other indications, but these may be

+enough to aid us in our search."

+

+Lestrade laughed. "I am afraid that I am still a sceptic," he

+said. "Theories are all very well, but we have to deal with a

+hard-headed British jury."

+

+"Nous verrons," answered Holmes calmly. "You work your own

+method, and I shall work mine. I shall be busy this afternoon,

+and shall probably return to London by the evening train."

+

+"And leave your case unfinished?"

+

+"No, finished."

+

+"But the mystery?"

+

+"It is solved."

+

+"Who was the criminal, then?"

+

+"The gentleman I describe."

+

+"But who is he?"

+

+"Surely it would not be difficult to find out. This is not such a

+populous neighbourhood."

+

+Lestrade shrugged his shoulders. "I am a practical man," he said,

+"and I really cannot undertake to go about the country looking

+for a left-handed gentleman with a game leg. I should become the

+laughing-stock of Scotland Yard."

+

+"All right," said Holmes quietly. "I have given you the chance.

+Here are your lodgings. Good-bye. I shall drop you a line before

+I leave."

+

+Having left Lestrade at his rooms, we drove to our hotel, where

+we found lunch upon the table. Holmes was silent and buried in

+thought with a pained expression upon his face, as one who finds

+himself in a perplexing position.

+

+"Look here, Watson," he said when the cloth was cleared "just sit

+down in this chair and let me preach to you for a little. I don't

+know quite what to do, and I should value your advice. Light a

+cigar and let me expound."

+

+ "Pray do so."

+

+"Well, now, in considering this case there are two points about

+young McCarthy's narrative which struck us both instantly,

+although they impressed me in his favour and you against him. One

+was the fact that his father should, according to his account,

+cry 'Cooee!' before seeing him. The other was his singular dying

+reference to a rat. He mumbled several words, you understand, but

+that was all that caught the son's ear. Now from this double

+point our research must commence, and we will begin it by

+presuming that what the lad says is absolutely true."

+

+"What of this 'Cooee!' then?"

+

+"Well, obviously it could not have been meant for the son. The

+son, as far as he knew, was in Bristol. It was mere chance that

+he was within earshot. The 'Cooee!' was meant to attract the

+attention of whoever it was that he had the appointment with. But

+'Cooee' is a distinctly Australian cry, and one which is used

+between Australians. There is a strong presumption that the

+person whom McCarthy expected to meet him at Boscombe Pool was

+someone who had been in Australia."

+

+"What of the rat, then?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes took a folded paper from his pocket and flattened

+it out on the table. "This is a map of the Colony of Victoria,"

+he said. "I wired to Bristol for it last night." He put his hand

+over part of the map. "What do you read?"

+

+"ARAT," I read.

+

+"And now?" He raised his hand.

+

+"BALLARAT."

+

+"Quite so. That was the word the man uttered, and of which his

+son only caught the last two syllables. He was trying to utter

+the name of his murderer. So and so, of Ballarat."

+

+"It is wonderful!" I exclaimed.

+

+"It is obvious. And now, you see, I had narrowed the field down

+considerably. The possession of a grey garment was a third point

+which, granting the son's statement to be correct, was a

+certainty. We have come now out of mere vagueness to the definite

+conception of an Australian from Ballarat with a grey cloak."

+

+"Certainly."

+

+"And one who was at home in the district, for the pool can only

+be approached by the farm or by the estate, where strangers could

+hardly wander."

+

+"Quite so."

+

+"Then comes our expedition of to-day. By an examination of the

+ground I gained the trifling details which I gave to that

+imbecile Lestrade, as to the personality of the criminal."

+

+"But how did you gain them?"

+

+"You know my method. It is founded upon the observation of

+trifles."

+

+"His height I know that you might roughly judge from the length

+of his stride. His boots, too, might be told from their traces."

+

+"Yes, they were peculiar boots."

+

+"But his lameness?"

+

+"The impression of his right foot was always less distinct than

+his left. He put less weight upon it. Why? Because he limped--he

+was lame."

+

+"But his left-handedness."

+

+"You were yourself struck by the nature of the injury as recorded

+by the surgeon at the inquest. The blow was struck from

+immediately behind, and yet was upon the left side. Now, how can

+that be unless it were by a left-handed man? He had stood behind

+that tree during the interview between the father and son. He had

+even smoked there. I found the ash of a cigar, which my special

+knowledge of tobacco ashes enables me to pronounce as an Indian

+cigar. I have, as you know, devoted some attention to this, and

+written a little monograph on the ashes of 140 different

+varieties of pipe, cigar, and cigarette tobacco. Having found the

+ash, I then looked round and discovered the stump among the moss

+where he had tossed it. It was an Indian cigar, of the variety

+which are rolled in Rotterdam."

+

+"And the cigar-holder?"

+

+"I could see that the end had not been in his mouth. Therefore he

+used a holder. The tip had been cut off, not bitten off, but the

+cut was not a clean one, so I deduced a blunt pen-knife."

+

+"Holmes," I said, "you have drawn a net round this man from which

+he cannot escape, and you have saved an innocent human life as

+truly as if you had cut the cord which was hanging him. I see the

+direction in which all this points. The culprit is--"

+

+"Mr. John Turner," cried the hotel waiter, opening the door of

+our sitting-room, and ushering in a visitor.

+

+The man who entered was a strange and impressive figure. His

+slow, limping step and bowed shoulders gave the appearance of

+decrepitude, and yet his hard, deep-lined, craggy features, and

+his enormous limbs showed that he was possessed of unusual

+strength of body and of character. His tangled beard, grizzled

+hair, and outstanding, drooping eyebrows combined to give an air

+of dignity and power to his appearance, but his face was of an

+ashen white, while his lips and the corners of his nostrils were

+tinged with a shade of blue. It was clear to me at a glance that

+he was in the grip of some deadly and chronic disease.

+

+"Pray sit down on the sofa," said Holmes gently. "You had my

+note?"

+

+"Yes, the lodge-keeper brought it up. You said that you wished to

+see me here to avoid scandal."

+

+"I thought people would talk if I went to the Hall."

+

+"And why did you wish to see me?" He looked across at my

+companion with despair in his weary eyes, as though his question

+was already answered.

+

+"Yes," said Holmes, answering the look rather than the words. "It

+is so. I know all about McCarthy."

+

+The old man sank his face in his hands. "God help me!" he cried.

+"But I would not have let the young man come to harm. I give you

+my word that I would have spoken out if it went against him at

+the Assizes."

+

+"I am glad to hear you say so," said Holmes gravely.

+

+"I would have spoken now had it not been for my dear girl. It

+would break her heart--it will break her heart when she hears

+that I am arrested."

+

+"It may not come to that," said Holmes.

+

+"What?"

+

+"I am no official agent. I understand that it was your daughter

+who required my presence here, and I am acting in her interests.

+Young McCarthy must be got off, however."

+

+"I am a dying man," said old Turner. "I have had diabetes for

+years. My doctor says it is a question whether I shall live a

+month. Yet I would rather die under my own roof than in a gaol."

+

+Holmes rose and sat down at the table with his pen in his hand

+and a bundle of paper before him. "Just tell us the truth," he

+said. "I shall jot down the facts. You will sign it, and Watson

+here can witness it. Then I could produce your confession at the

+last extremity to save young McCarthy. I promise you that I shall

+not use it unless it is absolutely needed."

+

+"It's as well," said the old man; "it's a question whether I

+shall live to the Assizes, so it matters little to me, but I

+should wish to spare Alice the shock. And now I will make the

+thing clear to you; it has been a long time in the acting, but

+will not take me long to tell.

+

+"You didn't know this dead man, McCarthy. He was a devil

+incarnate. I tell you that. God keep you out of the clutches of

+such a man as he. His grip has been upon me these twenty years,

+and he has blasted my life. I'll tell you first how I came to be

+in his power.

+

+"It was in the early '60's at the diggings. I was a young chap

+then, hot-blooded and reckless, ready to turn my hand at

+anything; I got among bad companions, took to drink, had no luck

+with my claim, took to the bush, and in a word became what you

+would call over here a highway robber. There were six of us, and

+we had a wild, free life of it, sticking up a station from time

+to time, or stopping the wagons on the road to the diggings.

+Black Jack of Ballarat was the name I went under, and our party

+is still remembered in the colony as the Ballarat Gang.

+

+"One day a gold convoy came down from Ballarat to Melbourne, and

+we lay in wait for it and attacked it. There were six troopers

+and six of us, so it was a close thing, but we emptied four of

+their saddles at the first volley. Three of our boys were killed,

+however, before we got the swag. I put my pistol to the head of

+the wagon-driver, who was this very man McCarthy. I wish to the

+Lord that I had shot him then, but I spared him, though I saw his

+wicked little eyes fixed on my face, as though to remember every

+feature. We got away with the gold, became wealthy men, and made

+our way over to England without being suspected. There I parted

+from my old pals and determined to settle down to a quiet and

+respectable life. I bought this estate, which chanced to be in

+the market, and I set myself to do a little good with my money,

+to make up for the way in which I had earned it. I married, too,

+and though my wife died young she left me my dear little Alice.

+Even when she was just a baby her wee hand seemed to lead me down

+the right path as nothing else had ever done. In a word, I turned

+over a new leaf and did my best to make up for the past. All was

+going well when McCarthy laid his grip upon me.

+

+"I had gone up to town about an investment, and I met him in

+Regent Street with hardly a coat to his back or a boot to his

+foot.

+

+"'Here we are, Jack,' says he, touching me on the arm; 'we'll be

+as good as a family to you. There's two of us, me and my son, and

+you can have the keeping of us. If you don't--it's a fine,

+law-abiding country is England, and there's always a policeman

+within hail.'

+

+"Well, down they came to the west country, there was no shaking

+them off, and there they have lived rent free on my best land

+ever since. There was no rest for me, no peace, no forgetfulness;

+turn where I would, there was his cunning, grinning face at my

+elbow. It grew worse as Alice grew up, for he soon saw I was more

+afraid of her knowing my past than of the police. Whatever he

+wanted he must have, and whatever it was I gave him without

+question, land, money, houses, until at last he asked a thing

+which I could not give. He asked for Alice.

+

+"His son, you see, had grown up, and so had my girl, and as I was

+known to be in weak health, it seemed a fine stroke to him that

+his lad should step into the whole property. But there I was

+firm. I would not have his cursed stock mixed with mine; not that

+I had any dislike to the lad, but his blood was in him, and that

+was enough. I stood firm. McCarthy threatened. I braved him to do

+his worst. We were to meet at the pool midway between our houses

+to talk it over.

+

+"When I went down there I found him talking with his son, so I

+smoked a cigar and waited behind a tree until he should be alone.

+But as I listened to his talk all that was black and bitter in

+me seemed to come uppermost. He was urging his son to marry my

+daughter with as little regard for what she might think as if she

+were a slut from off the streets. It drove me mad to think that I

+and all that I held most dear should be in the power of such a

+man as this. Could I not snap the bond? I was already a dying and

+a desperate man. Though clear of mind and fairly strong of limb,

+I knew that my own fate was sealed. But my memory and my girl!

+Both could be saved if I could but silence that foul tongue. I

+did it, Mr. Holmes. I would do it again. Deeply as I have sinned,

+I have led a life of martyrdom to atone for it. But that my girl

+should be entangled in the same meshes which held me was more

+than I could suffer. I struck him down with no more compunction

+than if he had been some foul and venomous beast. His cry brought

+back his son; but I had gained the cover of the wood, though I

+was forced to go back to fetch the cloak which I had dropped in

+my flight. That is the true story, gentlemen, of all that

+occurred."

+

+"Well, it is not for me to judge you," said Holmes as the old man

+signed the statement which had been drawn out. "I pray that we

+may never be exposed to such a temptation."

+

+"I pray not, sir. And what do you intend to do?"

+

+"In view of your health, nothing. You are yourself aware that you

+will soon have to answer for your deed at a higher court than the

+Assizes. I will keep your confession, and if McCarthy is

+condemned I shall be forced to use it. If not, it shall never be

+seen by mortal eye; and your secret, whether you be alive or

+dead, shall be safe with us."

+

+"Farewell, then," said the old man solemnly. "Your own deathbeds,

+when they come, will be the easier for the thought of the peace

+which you have given to mine." Tottering and shaking in all his

+giant frame, he stumbled slowly from the room.

+

+"God help us!" said Holmes after a long silence. "Why does fate

+play such tricks with poor, helpless worms? I never hear of such

+a case as this that I do not think of Baxter's words, and say,

+'There, but for the grace of God, goes Sherlock Holmes.'"

+

+James McCarthy was acquitted at the Assizes on the strength of a

+number of objections which had been drawn out by Holmes and

+submitted to the defending counsel. Old Turner lived for seven

+months after our interview, but he is now dead; and there is

+every prospect that the son and daughter may come to live happily

+together in ignorance of the black cloud which rests upon their

+past.

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE V. THE FIVE ORANGE PIPS

+

+When I glance over my notes and records of the Sherlock Holmes

+cases between the years '82 and '90, I am faced by so many which

+present strange and interesting features that it is no easy

+matter to know which to choose and which to leave. Some, however,

+have already gained publicity through the papers, and others have

+not offered a field for those peculiar qualities which my friend

+possessed in so high a degree, and which it is the object of

+these papers to illustrate. Some, too, have baffled his

+analytical skill, and would be, as narratives, beginnings without

+an ending, while others have been but partially cleared up, and

+have their explanations founded rather upon conjecture and

+surmise than on that absolute logical proof which was so dear to

+him. There is, however, one of these last which was so remarkable

+in its details and so startling in its results that I am tempted

+to give some account of it in spite of the fact that there are

+points in connection with it which never have been, and probably

+never will be, entirely cleared up.

+

+The year '87 furnished us with a long series of cases of greater

+or less interest, of which I retain the records. Among my

+headings under this one twelve months I find an account of the

+adventure of the Paradol Chamber, of the Amateur Mendicant

+Society, who held a luxurious club in the lower vault of a

+furniture warehouse, of the facts connected with the loss of the

+British barque "Sophy Anderson", of the singular adventures of the

+Grice Patersons in the island of Uffa, and finally of the

+Camberwell poisoning case. In the latter, as may be remembered,

+Sherlock Holmes was able, by winding up the dead man's watch, to

+prove that it had been wound up two hours before, and that

+therefore the deceased had gone to bed within that time--a

+deduction which was of the greatest importance in clearing up the

+case. All these I may sketch out at some future date, but none of

+them present such singular features as the strange train of

+circumstances which I have now taken up my pen to describe.

+

+It was in the latter days of September, and the equinoctial gales

+had set in with exceptional violence. All day the wind had

+screamed and the rain had beaten against the windows, so that

+even here in the heart of great, hand-made London we were forced

+to raise our minds for the instant from the routine of life and

+to recognise the presence of those great elemental forces which

+shriek at mankind through the bars of his civilisation, like

+untamed beasts in a cage. As evening drew in, the storm grew

+higher and louder, and the wind cried and sobbed like a child in

+the chimney. Sherlock Holmes sat moodily at one side of the

+fireplace cross-indexing his records of crime, while I at the

+other was deep in one of Clark Russell's fine sea-stories until

+the howl of the gale from without seemed to blend with the text,

+and the splash of the rain to lengthen out into the long swash of

+the sea waves. My wife was on a visit to her mother's, and for a

+few days I was a dweller once more in my old quarters at Baker

+Street.

+

+"Why," said I, glancing up at my companion, "that was surely the

+bell. Who could come to-night? Some friend of yours, perhaps?"

+

+"Except yourself I have none," he answered. "I do not encourage

+visitors."

+

+"A client, then?"

+

+"If so, it is a serious case. Nothing less would bring a man out

+on such a day and at such an hour. But I take it that it is more

+likely to be some crony of the landlady's."

+

+Sherlock Holmes was wrong in his conjecture, however, for there

+came a step in the passage and a tapping at the door. He

+stretched out his long arm to turn the lamp away from himself and

+towards the vacant chair upon which a newcomer must sit.

+

+"Come in!" said he.

+

+The man who entered was young, some two-and-twenty at the

+outside, well-groomed and trimly clad, with something of

+refinement and delicacy in his bearing. The streaming umbrella

+which he held in his hand, and his long shining waterproof told

+of the fierce weather through which he had come. He looked about

+him anxiously in the glare of the lamp, and I could see that his

+face was pale and his eyes heavy, like those of a man who is

+weighed down with some great anxiety.

+

+"I owe you an apology," he said, raising his golden pince-nez to

+his eyes. "I trust that I am not intruding. I fear that I have

+brought some traces of the storm and rain into your snug

+chamber."

+

+"Give me your coat and umbrella," said Holmes. "They may rest

+here on the hook and will be dry presently. You have come up from

+the south-west, I see."

+

+"Yes, from Horsham."

+

+"That clay and chalk mixture which I see upon your toe caps is

+quite distinctive."

+

+"I have come for advice."

+

+"That is easily got."

+

+"And help."

+

+"That is not always so easy."

+

+"I have heard of you, Mr. Holmes. I heard from Major Prendergast

+how you saved him in the Tankerville Club scandal."

+

+"Ah, of course. He was wrongfully accused of cheating at cards."

+

+"He said that you could solve anything."

+

+"He said too much."

+

+"That you are never beaten."

+

+"I have been beaten four times--three times by men, and once by a

+woman."

+

+"But what is that compared with the number of your successes?"

+

+"It is true that I have been generally successful."

+

+"Then you may be so with me."

+

+"I beg that you will draw your chair up to the fire and favour me

+with some details as to your case."

+

+"It is no ordinary one."

+

+"None of those which come to me are. I am the last court of

+appeal."

+

+"And yet I question, sir, whether, in all your experience, you

+have ever listened to a more mysterious and inexplicable chain of

+events than those which have happened in my own family."

+

+"You fill me with interest," said Holmes. "Pray give us the

+essential facts from the commencement, and I can afterwards

+question you as to those details which seem to me to be most

+important."

+

+The young man pulled his chair up and pushed his wet feet out

+towards the blaze.

+

+"My name," said he, "is John Openshaw, but my own affairs have,

+as far as I can understand, little to do with this awful

+business. It is a hereditary matter; so in order to give you an

+idea of the facts, I must go back to the commencement of the

+affair.

+

+"You must know that my grandfather had two sons--my uncle Elias

+and my father Joseph. My father had a small factory at Coventry,

+which he enlarged at the time of the invention of bicycling. He

+was a patentee of the Openshaw unbreakable tire, and his business

+met with such success that he was able to sell it and to retire

+upon a handsome competence.

+

+"My uncle Elias emigrated to America when he was a young man and

+became a planter in Florida, where he was reported to have done

+very well. At the time of the war he fought in Jackson's army,

+and afterwards under Hood, where he rose to be a colonel. When

+Lee laid down his arms my uncle returned to his plantation, where

+he remained for three or four years. About 1869 or 1870 he came

+back to Europe and took a small estate in Sussex, near Horsham.

+He had made a very considerable fortune in the States, and his

+reason for leaving them was his aversion to the negroes, and his

+dislike of the Republican policy in extending the franchise to

+them. He was a singular man, fierce and quick-tempered, very

+foul-mouthed when he was angry, and of a most retiring

+disposition. During all the years that he lived at Horsham, I

+doubt if ever he set foot in the town. He had a garden and two or

+three fields round his house, and there he would take his

+exercise, though very often for weeks on end he would never leave

+his room. He drank a great deal of brandy and smoked very

+heavily, but he would see no society and did not want any

+friends, not even his own brother.

+

+"He didn't mind me; in fact, he took a fancy to me, for at the

+time when he saw me first I was a youngster of twelve or so. This

+would be in the year 1878, after he had been eight or nine years

+in England. He begged my father to let me live with him and he

+was very kind to me in his way. When he was sober he used to be

+fond of playing backgammon and draughts with me, and he would

+make me his representative both with the servants and with the

+tradespeople, so that by the time that I was sixteen I was quite

+master of the house. I kept all the keys and could go where I

+liked and do what I liked, so long as I did not disturb him in

+his privacy. There was one singular exception, however, for he

+had a single room, a lumber-room up among the attics, which was

+invariably locked, and which he would never permit either me or

+anyone else to enter. With a boy's curiosity I have peeped

+through the keyhole, but I was never able to see more than such a

+collection of old trunks and bundles as would be expected in such

+a room.

+

+"One day--it was in March, 1883--a letter with a foreign stamp

+lay upon the table in front of the colonel's plate. It was not a

+common thing for him to receive letters, for his bills were all

+paid in ready money, and he had no friends of any sort. 'From

+India!' said he as he took it up, 'Pondicherry postmark! What can

+this be?' Opening it hurriedly, out there jumped five little

+dried orange pips, which pattered down upon his plate. I began to

+laugh at this, but the laugh was struck from my lips at the sight

+of his face. His lip had fallen, his eyes were protruding, his

+skin the colour of putty, and he glared at the envelope which he

+still held in his trembling hand, 'K. K. K.!' he shrieked, and

+then, 'My God, my God, my sins have overtaken me!'

+

+"'What is it, uncle?' I cried.

+

+"'Death,' said he, and rising from the table he retired to his

+room, leaving me palpitating with horror. I took up the envelope

+and saw scrawled in red ink upon the inner flap, just above the

+gum, the letter K three times repeated. There was nothing else

+save the five dried pips. What could be the reason of his

+overpowering terror? I left the breakfast-table, and as I

+ascended the stair I met him coming down with an old rusty key,

+which must have belonged to the attic, in one hand, and a small

+brass box, like a cashbox, in the other.

+

+"'They may do what they like, but I'll checkmate them still,'

+said he with an oath. 'Tell Mary that I shall want a fire in my

+room to-day, and send down to Fordham, the Horsham lawyer.'

+

+"I did as he ordered, and when the lawyer arrived I was asked to

+step up to the room. The fire was burning brightly, and in the

+grate there was a mass of black, fluffy ashes, as of burned

+paper, while the brass box stood open and empty beside it. As I

+glanced at the box I noticed, with a start, that upon the lid was

+printed the treble K which I had read in the morning upon the

+envelope.

+

+"'I wish you, John,' said my uncle, 'to witness my will. I leave

+my estate, with all its advantages and all its disadvantages, to

+my brother, your father, whence it will, no doubt, descend to

+you. If you can enjoy it in peace, well and good! If you find you

+cannot, take my advice, my boy, and leave it to your deadliest

+enemy. I am sorry to give you such a two-edged thing, but I can't

+say what turn things are going to take. Kindly sign the paper

+where Mr. Fordham shows you.'

+

+"I signed the paper as directed, and the lawyer took it away with

+him. The singular incident made, as you may think, the deepest

+impression upon me, and I pondered over it and turned it every

+way in my mind without being able to make anything of it. Yet I

+could not shake off the vague feeling of dread which it left

+behind, though the sensation grew less keen as the weeks passed

+and nothing happened to disturb the usual routine of our lives. I

+could see a change in my uncle, however. He drank more than ever,

+and he was less inclined for any sort of society. Most of his

+time he would spend in his room, with the door locked upon the

+inside, but sometimes he would emerge in a sort of drunken frenzy

+and would burst out of the house and tear about the garden with a

+revolver in his hand, screaming out that he was afraid of no man,

+and that he was not to be cooped up, like a sheep in a pen, by

+man or devil. When these hot fits were over, however, he would

+rush tumultuously in at the door and lock and bar it behind him,

+like a man who can brazen it out no longer against the terror

+which lies at the roots of his soul. At such times I have seen

+his face, even on a cold day, glisten with moisture, as though it

+were new raised from a basin.

+

+"Well, to come to an end of the matter, Mr. Holmes, and not to

+abuse your patience, there came a night when he made one of those

+drunken sallies from which he never came back. We found him, when

+we went to search for him, face downward in a little

+green-scummed pool, which lay at the foot of the garden. There

+was no sign of any violence, and the water was but two feet deep,

+so that the jury, having regard to his known eccentricity,

+brought in a verdict of 'suicide.' But I, who knew how he winced

+from the very thought of death, had much ado to persuade myself

+that he had gone out of his way to meet it. The matter passed,

+however, and my father entered into possession of the estate, and

+of some 14,000 pounds, which lay to his credit at the bank."

+

+"One moment," Holmes interposed, "your statement is, I foresee,

+one of the most remarkable to which I have ever listened. Let me

+have the date of the reception by your uncle of the letter, and

+the date of his supposed suicide."

+

+"The letter arrived on March 10, 1883. His death was seven weeks

+later, upon the night of May 2nd."

+

+"Thank you. Pray proceed."

+

+"When my father took over the Horsham property, he, at my

+request, made a careful examination of the attic, which had been

+always locked up. We found the brass box there, although its

+contents had been destroyed. On the inside of the cover was a

+paper label, with the initials of K. K. K. repeated upon it, and

+'Letters, memoranda, receipts, and a register' written beneath.

+These, we presume, indicated the nature of the papers which had

+been destroyed by Colonel Openshaw. For the rest, there was

+nothing of much importance in the attic save a great many

+scattered papers and note-books bearing upon my uncle's life in

+America. Some of them were of the war time and showed that he had

+done his duty well and had borne the repute of a brave soldier.

+Others were of a date during the reconstruction of the Southern

+states, and were mostly concerned with politics, for he had

+evidently taken a strong part in opposing the carpet-bag

+politicians who had been sent down from the North.

+

+"Well, it was the beginning of '84 when my father came to live at

+Horsham, and all went as well as possible with us until the

+January of '85. On the fourth day after the new year I heard my

+father give a sharp cry of surprise as we sat together at the

+breakfast-table. There he was, sitting with a newly opened

+envelope in one hand and five dried orange pips in the

+outstretched palm of the other one. He had always laughed at what

+he called my cock-and-bull story about the colonel, but he looked

+very scared and puzzled now that the same thing had come upon

+himself.

+

+"'Why, what on earth does this mean, John?' he stammered.

+

+"My heart had turned to lead. 'It is K. K. K.,' said I.

+

+"He looked inside the envelope. 'So it is,' he cried. 'Here are

+the very letters. But what is this written above them?'

+

+"'Put the papers on the sundial,' I read, peeping over his

+shoulder.

+

+"'What papers? What sundial?' he asked.

+

+"'The sundial in the garden. There is no other,' said I; 'but the

+papers must be those that are destroyed.'

+

+"'Pooh!' said he, gripping hard at his courage. 'We are in a

+civilised land here, and we can't have tomfoolery of this kind.

+Where does the thing come from?'

+

+"'From Dundee,' I answered, glancing at the postmark.

+

+"'Some preposterous practical joke,' said he. 'What have I to do

+with sundials and papers? I shall take no notice of such

+nonsense.'

+

+"'I should certainly speak to the police,' I said.

+

+"'And be laughed at for my pains. Nothing of the sort.'

+

+"'Then let me do so?'

+

+"'No, I forbid you. I won't have a fuss made about such

+nonsense.'

+

+"It was in vain to argue with him, for he was a very obstinate

+man. I went about, however, with a heart which was full of

+forebodings.

+

+"On the third day after the coming of the letter my father went

+from home to visit an old friend of his, Major Freebody, who is

+in command of one of the forts upon Portsdown Hill. I was glad

+that he should go, for it seemed to me that he was farther from

+danger when he was away from home. In that, however, I was in

+error. Upon the second day of his absence I received a telegram

+from the major, imploring me to come at once. My father had

+fallen over one of the deep chalk-pits which abound in the

+neighbourhood, and was lying senseless, with a shattered skull. I

+hurried to him, but he passed away without having ever recovered

+his consciousness. He had, as it appears, been returning from

+Fareham in the twilight, and as the country was unknown to him,

+and the chalk-pit unfenced, the jury had no hesitation in

+bringing in a verdict of 'death from accidental causes.'

+Carefully as I examined every fact connected with his death, I

+was unable to find anything which could suggest the idea of

+murder. There were no signs of violence, no footmarks, no

+robbery, no record of strangers having been seen upon the roads.

+And yet I need not tell you that my mind was far from at ease,

+and that I was well-nigh certain that some foul plot had been

+woven round him.

+

+"In this sinister way I came into my inheritance. You will ask me

+why I did not dispose of it? I answer, because I was well

+convinced that our troubles were in some way dependent upon an

+incident in my uncle's life, and that the danger would be as

+pressing in one house as in another.

+

+"It was in January, '85, that my poor father met his end, and two

+years and eight months have elapsed since then. During that time

+I have lived happily at Horsham, and I had begun to hope that

+this curse had passed away from the family, and that it had ended

+with the last generation. I had begun to take comfort too soon,

+however; yesterday morning the blow fell in the very shape in

+which it had come upon my father."

+

+The young man took from his waistcoat a crumpled envelope, and

+turning to the table he shook out upon it five little dried

+orange pips.

+

+"This is the envelope," he continued. "The postmark is

+London--eastern division. Within are the very words which were

+upon my father's last message: 'K. K. K.'; and then 'Put the

+papers on the sundial.'"

+

+"What have you done?" asked Holmes.

+

+"Nothing."

+

+"Nothing?"

+

+"To tell the truth"--he sank his face into his thin, white

+hands--"I have felt helpless. I have felt like one of those poor

+rabbits when the snake is writhing towards it. I seem to be in

+the grasp of some resistless, inexorable evil, which no foresight

+and no precautions can guard against."

+

+"Tut! tut!" cried Sherlock Holmes. "You must act, man, or you are

+lost. Nothing but energy can save you. This is no time for

+despair."

+

+"I have seen the police."

+

+"Ah!"

+

+"But they listened to my story with a smile. I am convinced that

+the inspector has formed the opinion that the letters are all

+practical jokes, and that the deaths of my relations were really

+accidents, as the jury stated, and were not to be connected with

+the warnings."

+

+Holmes shook his clenched hands in the air. "Incredible

+imbecility!" he cried.

+

+"They have, however, allowed me a policeman, who may remain in

+the house with me."

+

+"Has he come with you to-night?"

+

+"No. His orders were to stay in the house."

+

+Again Holmes raved in the air.

+

+"Why did you come to me," he cried, "and, above all, why did you

+not come at once?"

+

+"I did not know. It was only to-day that I spoke to Major

+Prendergast about my troubles and was advised by him to come to

+you."

+

+"It is really two days since you had the letter. We should have

+acted before this. You have no further evidence, I suppose, than

+that which you have placed before us--no suggestive detail which

+might help us?"

+

+"There is one thing," said John Openshaw. He rummaged in his coat

+pocket, and, drawing out a piece of discoloured, blue-tinted

+paper, he laid it out upon the table. "I have some remembrance,"

+said he, "that on the day when my uncle burned the papers I

+observed that the small, unburned margins which lay amid the

+ashes were of this particular colour. I found this single sheet

+upon the floor of his room, and I am inclined to think that it

+may be one of the papers which has, perhaps, fluttered out from

+among the others, and in that way has escaped destruction. Beyond

+the mention of pips, I do not see that it helps us much. I think

+myself that it is a page from some private diary. The writing is

+undoubtedly my uncle's."

+

+Holmes moved the lamp, and we both bent over the sheet of paper,

+which showed by its ragged edge that it had indeed been torn from

+a book. It was headed, "March, 1869," and beneath were the

+following enigmatical notices:

+

+"4th. Hudson came. Same old platform.

+

+"7th. Set the pips on McCauley, Paramore, and

+      John Swain, of St. Augustine.

+

+"9th. McCauley cleared.

+

+"10th. John Swain cleared.

+

+"12th. Visited Paramore. All well."

+

+"Thank you!" said Holmes, folding up the paper and returning it

+to our visitor. "And now you must on no account lose another

+instant. We cannot spare time even to discuss what you have told

+me. You must get home instantly and act."

+

+"What shall I do?"

+

+"There is but one thing to do. It must be done at once. You must

+put this piece of paper which you have shown us into the brass

+box which you have described. You must also put in a note to say

+that all the other papers were burned by your uncle, and that

+this is the only one which remains. You must assert that in such

+words as will carry conviction with them. Having done this, you

+must at once put the box out upon the sundial, as directed. Do

+you understand?"

+

+"Entirely."

+

+"Do not think of revenge, or anything of the sort, at present. I

+think that we may gain that by means of the law; but we have our

+web to weave, while theirs is already woven. The first

+consideration is to remove the pressing danger which threatens

+you. The second is to clear up the mystery and to punish the

+guilty parties."

+

+"I thank you," said the young man, rising and pulling on his

+overcoat. "You have given me fresh life and hope. I shall

+certainly do as you advise."

+

+"Do not lose an instant. And, above all, take care of yourself in

+the meanwhile, for I do not think that there can be a doubt that

+you are threatened by a very real and imminent danger. How do you

+go back?"

+

+"By train from Waterloo."

+

+"It is not yet nine. The streets will be crowded, so I trust that

+you may be in safety. And yet you cannot guard yourself too

+closely."

+

+"I am armed."

+

+"That is well. To-morrow I shall set to work upon your case."

+

+"I shall see you at Horsham, then?"

+

+"No, your secret lies in London. It is there that I shall seek

+it."

+

+"Then I shall call upon you in a day, or in two days, with news

+as to the box and the papers. I shall take your advice in every

+particular." He shook hands with us and took his leave. Outside

+the wind still screamed and the rain splashed and pattered

+against the windows. This strange, wild story seemed to have come

+to us from amid the mad elements--blown in upon us like a sheet

+of sea-weed in a gale--and now to have been reabsorbed by them

+once more.

+

+Sherlock Holmes sat for some time in silence, with his head sunk

+forward and his eyes bent upon the red glow of the fire. Then he

+lit his pipe, and leaning back in his chair he watched the blue

+smoke-rings as they chased each other up to the ceiling.

+

+"I think, Watson," he remarked at last, "that of all our cases we

+have had none more fantastic than this."

+

+"Save, perhaps, the Sign of Four."

+

+"Well, yes. Save, perhaps, that. And yet this John Openshaw seems

+to me to be walking amid even greater perils than did the

+Sholtos."

+

+"But have you," I asked, "formed any definite conception as to

+what these perils are?"

+

+"There can be no question as to their nature," he answered.

+

+"Then what are they? Who is this K. K. K., and why does he pursue

+this unhappy family?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes closed his eyes and placed his elbows upon the

+arms of his chair, with his finger-tips together. "The ideal

+reasoner," he remarked, "would, when he had once been shown a

+single fact in all its bearings, deduce from it not only all the

+chain of events which led up to it but also all the results which

+would follow from it. As Cuvier could correctly describe a whole

+animal by the contemplation of a single bone, so the observer who

+has thoroughly understood one link in a series of incidents

+should be able to accurately state all the other ones, both

+before and after. We have not yet grasped the results which the

+reason alone can attain to. Problems may be solved in the study

+which have baffled all those who have sought a solution by the

+aid of their senses. To carry the art, however, to its highest

+pitch, it is necessary that the reasoner should be able to

+utilise all the facts which have come to his knowledge; and this

+in itself implies, as you will readily see, a possession of all

+knowledge, which, even in these days of free education and

+encyclopaedias, is a somewhat rare accomplishment. It is not so

+impossible, however, that a man should possess all knowledge

+which is likely to be useful to him in his work, and this I have

+endeavoured in my case to do. If I remember rightly, you on one

+occasion, in the early days of our friendship, defined my limits

+in a very precise fashion."

+

+"Yes," I answered, laughing. "It was a singular document.

+Philosophy, astronomy, and politics were marked at zero, I

+remember. Botany variable, geology profound as regards the

+mud-stains from any region within fifty miles of town, chemistry

+eccentric, anatomy unsystematic, sensational literature and crime

+records unique, violin-player, boxer, swordsman, lawyer, and

+self-poisoner by cocaine and tobacco. Those, I think, were the

+main points of my analysis."

+

+Holmes grinned at the last item. "Well," he said, "I say now, as

+I said then, that a man should keep his little brain-attic

+stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use, and the

+rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he

+can get it if he wants it. Now, for such a case as the one which

+has been submitted to us to-night, we need certainly to muster

+all our resources. Kindly hand me down the letter K of the

+'American Encyclopaedia' which stands upon the shelf beside you.

+Thank you. Now let us consider the situation and see what may be

+deduced from it. In the first place, we may start with a strong

+presumption that Colonel Openshaw had some very strong reason for

+leaving America. Men at his time of life do not change all their

+habits and exchange willingly the charming climate of Florida for

+the lonely life of an English provincial town. His extreme love

+of solitude in England suggests the idea that he was in fear of

+someone or something, so we may assume as a working hypothesis

+that it was fear of someone or something which drove him from

+America. As to what it was he feared, we can only deduce that by

+considering the formidable letters which were received by himself

+and his successors. Did you remark the postmarks of those

+letters?"

+

+"The first was from Pondicherry, the second from Dundee, and the

+third from London."

+

+"From East London. What do you deduce from that?"

+

+"They are all seaports. That the writer was on board of a ship."

+

+"Excellent. We have already a clue. There can be no doubt that

+the probability--the strong probability--is that the writer was

+on board of a ship. And now let us consider another point. In the

+case of Pondicherry, seven weeks elapsed between the threat and

+its fulfilment, in Dundee it was only some three or four days.

+Does that suggest anything?"

+

+"A greater distance to travel."

+

+"But the letter had also a greater distance to come."

+

+"Then I do not see the point."

+

+"There is at least a presumption that the vessel in which the man

+or men are is a sailing-ship. It looks as if they always send

+their singular warning or token before them when starting upon

+their mission. You see how quickly the deed followed the sign

+when it came from Dundee. If they had come from Pondicherry in a

+steamer they would have arrived almost as soon as their letter.

+But, as a matter of fact, seven weeks elapsed. I think that those

+seven weeks represented the difference between the mail-boat which

+brought the letter and the sailing vessel which brought the

+writer."

+

+"It is possible."

+

+"More than that. It is probable. And now you see the deadly

+urgency of this new case, and why I urged young Openshaw to

+caution. The blow has always fallen at the end of the time which

+it would take the senders to travel the distance. But this one

+comes from London, and therefore we cannot count upon delay."

+

+"Good God!" I cried. "What can it mean, this relentless

+persecution?"

+

+"The papers which Openshaw carried are obviously of vital

+importance to the person or persons in the sailing-ship. I think

+that it is quite clear that there must be more than one of them.

+A single man could not have carried out two deaths in such a way

+as to deceive a coroner's jury. There must have been several in

+it, and they must have been men of resource and determination.

+Their papers they mean to have, be the holder of them who it may.

+In this way you see K. K. K. ceases to be the initials of an

+individual and becomes the badge of a society."

+

+"But of what society?"

+

+"Have you never--" said Sherlock Holmes, bending forward and

+sinking his voice--"have you never heard of the Ku Klux Klan?"

+

+"I never have."

+

+Holmes turned over the leaves of the book upon his knee. "Here it

+is," said he presently:

+

+"'Ku Klux Klan. A name derived from the fanciful resemblance to

+the sound produced by cocking a rifle. This terrible secret

+society was formed by some ex-Confederate soldiers in the

+Southern states after the Civil War, and it rapidly formed local

+branches in different parts of the country, notably in Tennessee,

+Louisiana, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Its power was

+used for political purposes, principally for the terrorising of

+the negro voters and the murdering and driving from the country

+of those who were opposed to its views. Its outrages were usually

+preceded by a warning sent to the marked man in some fantastic

+but generally recognised shape--a sprig of oak-leaves in some

+parts, melon seeds or orange pips in others. On receiving this

+the victim might either openly abjure his former ways, or might

+fly from the country. If he braved the matter out, death would

+unfailingly come upon him, and usually in some strange and

+unforeseen manner. So perfect was the organisation of the

+society, and so systematic its methods, that there is hardly a

+case upon record where any man succeeded in braving it with

+impunity, or in which any of its outrages were traced home to the

+perpetrators. For some years the organisation flourished in spite

+of the efforts of the United States government and of the better

+classes of the community in the South. Eventually, in the year

+1869, the movement rather suddenly collapsed, although there have

+been sporadic outbreaks of the same sort since that date.'

+

+"You will observe," said Holmes, laying down the volume, "that

+the sudden breaking up of the society was coincident with the

+disappearance of Openshaw from America with their papers. It may

+well have been cause and effect. It is no wonder that he and his

+family have some of the more implacable spirits upon their track.

+You can understand that this register and diary may implicate

+some of the first men in the South, and that there may be many

+who will not sleep easy at night until it is recovered."

+

+"Then the page we have seen--"

+

+"Is such as we might expect. It ran, if I remember right, 'sent

+the pips to A, B, and C'--that is, sent the society's warning to

+them. Then there are successive entries that A and B cleared, or

+left the country, and finally that C was visited, with, I fear, a

+sinister result for C. Well, I think, Doctor, that we may let

+some light into this dark place, and I believe that the only

+chance young Openshaw has in the meantime is to do what I have

+told him. There is nothing more to be said or to be done

+to-night, so hand me over my violin and let us try to forget for

+half an hour the miserable weather and the still more miserable

+ways of our fellow-men."

+

+

+It had cleared in the morning, and the sun was shining with a

+subdued brightness through the dim veil which hangs over the

+great city. Sherlock Holmes was already at breakfast when I came

+down.

+

+"You will excuse me for not waiting for you," said he; "I have, I

+foresee, a very busy day before me in looking into this case of

+young Openshaw's."

+

+"What steps will you take?" I asked.

+

+"It will very much depend upon the results of my first inquiries.

+I may have to go down to Horsham, after all."

+

+"You will not go there first?"

+

+"No, I shall commence with the City. Just ring the bell and the

+maid will bring up your coffee."

+

+As I waited, I lifted the unopened newspaper from the table and

+glanced my eye over it. It rested upon a heading which sent a

+chill to my heart.

+

+"Holmes," I cried, "you are too late."

+

+"Ah!" said he, laying down his cup, "I feared as much. How was it

+done?" He spoke calmly, but I could see that he was deeply moved.

+

+"My eye caught the name of Openshaw, and the heading 'Tragedy

+Near Waterloo Bridge.' Here is the account:

+

+"Between nine and ten last night Police-Constable Cook, of the H

+Division, on duty near Waterloo Bridge, heard a cry for help and

+a splash in the water. The night, however, was extremely dark and

+stormy, so that, in spite of the help of several passers-by, it

+was quite impossible to effect a rescue. The alarm, however, was

+given, and, by the aid of the water-police, the body was

+eventually recovered. It proved to be that of a young gentleman

+whose name, as it appears from an envelope which was found in his

+pocket, was John Openshaw, and whose residence is near Horsham.

+It is conjectured that he may have been hurrying down to catch

+the last train from Waterloo Station, and that in his haste and

+the extreme darkness he missed his path and walked over the edge

+of one of the small landing-places for river steamboats. The body

+exhibited no traces of violence, and there can be no doubt that

+the deceased had been the victim of an unfortunate accident,

+which should have the effect of calling the attention of the

+authorities to the condition of the riverside landing-stages."

+

+We sat in silence for some minutes, Holmes more depressed and

+shaken than I had ever seen him.

+

+"That hurts my pride, Watson," he said at last. "It is a petty

+feeling, no doubt, but it hurts my pride. It becomes a personal

+matter with me now, and, if God sends me health, I shall set my

+hand upon this gang. That he should come to me for help, and that

+I should send him away to his death--!" He sprang from his chair

+and paced about the room in uncontrollable agitation, with a

+flush upon his sallow cheeks and a nervous clasping and

+unclasping of his long thin hands.

+

+"They must be cunning devils," he exclaimed at last. "How could

+they have decoyed him down there? The Embankment is not on the

+direct line to the station. The bridge, no doubt, was too

+crowded, even on such a night, for their purpose. Well, Watson,

+we shall see who will win in the long run. I am going out now!"

+

+"To the police?"

+

+"No; I shall be my own police. When I have spun the web they may

+take the flies, but not before."

+

+All day I was engaged in my professional work, and it was late in

+the evening before I returned to Baker Street. Sherlock Holmes

+had not come back yet. It was nearly ten o'clock before he

+entered, looking pale and worn. He walked up to the sideboard,

+and tearing a piece from the loaf he devoured it voraciously,

+washing it down with a long draught of water.

+

+"You are hungry," I remarked.

+

+"Starving. It had escaped my memory. I have had nothing since

+breakfast."

+

+"Nothing?"

+

+"Not a bite. I had no time to think of it."

+

+"And how have you succeeded?"

+

+"Well."

+

+"You have a clue?"

+

+"I have them in the hollow of my hand. Young Openshaw shall not

+long remain unavenged. Why, Watson, let us put their own devilish

+trade-mark upon them. It is well thought of!"

+

+"What do you mean?"

+

+He took an orange from the cupboard, and tearing it to pieces he

+squeezed out the pips upon the table. Of these he took five and

+thrust them into an envelope. On the inside of the flap he wrote

+"S. H. for J. O." Then he sealed it and addressed it to "Captain

+James Calhoun, Barque 'Lone Star,' Savannah, Georgia."

+

+"That will await him when he enters port," said he, chuckling.

+"It may give him a sleepless night. He will find it as sure a

+precursor of his fate as Openshaw did before him."

+

+"And who is this Captain Calhoun?"

+

+"The leader of the gang. I shall have the others, but he first."

+

+"How did you trace it, then?"

+

+He took a large sheet of paper from his pocket, all covered with

+dates and names.

+

+"I have spent the whole day," said he, "over Lloyd's registers

+and files of the old papers, following the future career of every

+vessel which touched at Pondicherry in January and February in

+'83. There were thirty-six ships of fair tonnage which were

+reported there during those months. Of these, one, the 'Lone Star,'

+instantly attracted my attention, since, although it was reported

+as having cleared from London, the name is that which is given to

+one of the states of the Union."

+

+"Texas, I think."

+

+"I was not and am not sure which; but I knew that the ship must

+have an American origin."

+

+"What then?"

+

+"I searched the Dundee records, and when I found that the barque

+'Lone Star' was there in January, '85, my suspicion became a

+certainty. I then inquired as to the vessels which lay at present

+in the port of London."

+

+"Yes?"

+

+"The 'Lone Star' had arrived here last week. I went down to the

+Albert Dock and found that she had been taken down the river by

+the early tide this morning, homeward bound to Savannah. I wired

+to Gravesend and learned that she had passed some time ago, and

+as the wind is easterly I have no doubt that she is now past the

+Goodwins and not very far from the Isle of Wight."

+

+"What will you do, then?"

+

+"Oh, I have my hand upon him. He and the two mates, are as I

+learn, the only native-born Americans in the ship. The others are

+Finns and Germans. I know, also, that they were all three away

+from the ship last night. I had it from the stevedore who has

+been loading their cargo. By the time that their sailing-ship

+reaches Savannah the mail-boat will have carried this letter, and

+the cable will have informed the police of Savannah that these

+three gentlemen are badly wanted here upon a charge of murder."

+

+There is ever a flaw, however, in the best laid of human plans,

+and the murderers of John Openshaw were never to receive the

+orange pips which would show them that another, as cunning and as

+resolute as themselves, was upon their track. Very long and very

+severe were the equinoctial gales that year. We waited long for

+news of the "Lone Star" of Savannah, but none ever reached us. We

+did at last hear that somewhere far out in the Atlantic a

+shattered stern-post of a boat was seen swinging in the trough

+of a wave, with the letters "L. S." carved upon it, and that is

+all which we shall ever know of the fate of the "Lone Star."

+

+

+

+ADVENTURE VI. THE MAN WITH THE TWISTED LIP

+

+Isa Whitney, brother of the late Elias Whitney, D.D., Principal

+of the Theological College of St. George's, was much addicted to

+opium. The habit grew upon him, as I understand, from some

+foolish freak when he was at college; for having read De

+Quincey's description of his dreams and sensations, he had

+drenched his tobacco with laudanum in an attempt to produce the

+same effects. He found, as so many more have done, that the

+practice is easier to attain than to get rid of, and for many

+years he continued to be a slave to the drug, an object of

+mingled horror and pity to his friends and relatives. I can see

+him now, with yellow, pasty face, drooping lids, and pin-point

+pupils, all huddled in a chair, the wreck and ruin of a noble

+man.

+

+One night--it was in June, '89--there came a ring to my bell,

+about the hour when a man gives his first yawn and glances at the

+clock. I sat up in my chair, and my wife laid her needle-work

+down in her lap and made a little face of disappointment.

+

+"A patient!" said she. "You'll have to go out."

+

+I groaned, for I was newly come back from a weary day.

+

+We heard the door open, a few hurried words, and then quick steps

+upon the linoleum. Our own door flew open, and a lady, clad in

+some dark-coloured stuff, with a black veil, entered the room.

+

+"You will excuse my calling so late," she began, and then,

+suddenly losing her self-control, she ran forward, threw her arms

+about my wife's neck, and sobbed upon her shoulder. "Oh, I'm in

+such trouble!" she cried; "I do so want a little help."

+

+"Why," said my wife, pulling up her veil, "it is Kate Whitney.

+How you startled me, Kate! I had not an idea who you were when

+you came in."

+

+"I didn't know what to do, so I came straight to you." That was

+always the way. Folk who were in grief came to my wife like birds

+to a light-house.

+

+"It was very sweet of you to come. Now, you must have some wine

+and water, and sit here comfortably and tell us all about it. Or

+should you rather that I sent James off to bed?"

+

+"Oh, no, no! I want the doctor's advice and help, too. It's about

+Isa. He has not been home for two days. I am so frightened about

+him!"

+

+It was not the first time that she had spoken to us of her

+husband's trouble, to me as a doctor, to my wife as an old friend

+and school companion. We soothed and comforted her by such words

+as we could find. Did she know where her husband was? Was it

+possible that we could bring him back to her?

+

+It seems that it was. She had the surest information that of late

+he had, when the fit was on him, made use of an opium den in the

+farthest east of the City. Hitherto his orgies had always been

+confined to one day, and he had come back, twitching and

+shattered, in the evening. But now the spell had been upon him

+eight-and-forty hours, and he lay there, doubtless among the

+dregs of the docks, breathing in the poison or sleeping off the

+effects. There he was to be found, she was sure of it, at the Bar

+of Gold, in Upper Swandam Lane. But what was she to do? How could

+she, a young and timid woman, make her way into such a place and

+pluck her husband out from among the ruffians who surrounded him?

+

+There was the case, and of course there was but one way out of

+it. Might I not escort her to this place? And then, as a second

+thought, why should she come at all? I was Isa Whitney's medical

+adviser, and as such I had influence over him. I could manage it

+better if I were alone. I promised her on my word that I would

+send him home in a cab within two hours if he were indeed at the

+address which she had given me. And so in ten minutes I had left

+my armchair and cheery sitting-room behind me, and was speeding

+eastward in a hansom on a strange errand, as it seemed to me at

+the time, though the future only could show how strange it was to

+be.

+

+But there was no great difficulty in the first stage of my

+adventure. Upper Swandam Lane is a vile alley lurking behind the

+high wharves which line the north side of the river to the east

+of London Bridge. Between a slop-shop and a gin-shop, approached

+by a steep flight of steps leading down to a black gap like the

+mouth of a cave, I found the den of which I was in search.

+Ordering my cab to wait, I passed down the steps, worn hollow in

+the centre by the ceaseless tread of drunken feet; and by the

+light of a flickering oil-lamp above the door I found the latch

+and made my way into a long, low room, thick and heavy with the

+brown opium smoke, and terraced with wooden berths, like the

+forecastle of an emigrant ship.

+

+Through the gloom one could dimly catch a glimpse of bodies lying

+in strange fantastic poses, bowed shoulders, bent knees, heads

+thrown back, and chins pointing upward, with here and there a

+dark, lack-lustre eye turned upon the newcomer. Out of the black

+shadows there glimmered little red circles of light, now bright,

+now faint, as the burning poison waxed or waned in the bowls of

+the metal pipes. The most lay silent, but some muttered to

+themselves, and others talked together in a strange, low,

+monotonous voice, their conversation coming in gushes, and then

+suddenly tailing off into silence, each mumbling out his own

+thoughts and paying little heed to the words of his neighbour. At

+the farther end was a small brazier of burning charcoal, beside

+which on a three-legged wooden stool there sat a tall, thin old

+man, with his jaw resting upon his two fists, and his elbows upon

+his knees, staring into the fire.

+

+As I entered, a sallow Malay attendant had hurried up with a pipe

+for me and a supply of the drug, beckoning me to an empty berth.

+

+"Thank you. I have not come to stay," said I. "There is a friend

+of mine here, Mr. Isa Whitney, and I wish to speak with him."

+

+There was a movement and an exclamation from my right, and

+peering through the gloom, I saw Whitney, pale, haggard, and

+unkempt, staring out at me.

+

+"My God! It's Watson," said he. He was in a pitiable state of

+reaction, with every nerve in a twitter. "I say, Watson, what

+o'clock is it?"

+

+"Nearly eleven."

+

+"Of what day?"

+

+"Of Friday, June 19th."

+

+"Good heavens! I thought it was Wednesday. It is Wednesday. What

+d'you want to frighten a chap for?" He sank his face onto his

+arms and began to sob in a high treble key.

+

+"I tell you that it is Friday, man. Your wife has been waiting

+this two days for you. You should be ashamed of yourself!"

+

+"So I am. But you've got mixed, Watson, for I have only been here

+a few hours, three pipes, four pipes--I forget how many. But I'll

+go home with you. I wouldn't frighten Kate--poor little Kate.

+Give me your hand! Have you a cab?"

+

+"Yes, I have one waiting."

+

+"Then I shall go in it. But I must owe something. Find what I

+owe, Watson. I am all off colour. I can do nothing for myself."

+

+I walked down the narrow passage between the double row of

+sleepers, holding my breath to keep out the vile, stupefying

+fumes of the drug, and looking about for the manager. As I passed

+the tall man who sat by the brazier I felt a sudden pluck at my

+skirt, and a low voice whispered, "Walk past me, and then look

+back at me." The words fell quite distinctly upon my ear. I

+glanced down. They could only have come from the old man at my

+side, and yet he sat now as absorbed as ever, very thin, very

+wrinkled, bent with age, an opium pipe dangling down from between

+his knees, as though it had dropped in sheer lassitude from his

+fingers. I took two steps forward and looked back. It took all my

+self-control to prevent me from breaking out into a cry of

+astonishment. He had turned his back so that none could see him

+but I. His form had filled out, his wrinkles were gone, the dull

+eyes had regained their fire, and there, sitting by the fire and

+grinning at my surprise, was none other than Sherlock Holmes. He

+made a slight motion to me to approach him, and instantly, as he

+turned his face half round to the company once more, subsided

+into a doddering, loose-lipped senility.

+

+"Holmes!" I whispered, "what on earth are you doing in this den?"

+

+"As low as you can," he answered; "I have excellent ears. If you

+would have the great kindness to get rid of that sottish friend

+of yours I should be exceedingly glad to have a little talk with

+you."

+

+"I have a cab outside."

+

+"Then pray send him home in it. You may safely trust him, for he

+appears to be too limp to get into any mischief. I should

+recommend you also to send a note by the cabman to your wife to

+say that you have thrown in your lot with me. If you will wait

+outside, I shall be with you in five minutes."

+

+It was difficult to refuse any of Sherlock Holmes' requests, for

+they were always so exceedingly definite, and put forward with

+such a quiet air of mastery. I felt, however, that when Whitney

+was once confined in the cab my mission was practically

+accomplished; and for the rest, I could not wish anything better

+than to be associated with my friend in one of those singular

+adventures which were the normal condition of his existence. In a

+few minutes I had written my note, paid Whitney's bill, led him

+out to the cab, and seen him driven through the darkness. In a

+very short time a decrepit figure had emerged from the opium den,

+and I was walking down the street with Sherlock Holmes. For two

+streets he shuffled along with a bent back and an uncertain foot.

+Then, glancing quickly round, he straightened himself out and

+burst into a hearty fit of laughter.

+

+"I suppose, Watson," said he, "that you imagine that I have added

+opium-smoking to cocaine injections, and all the other little

+weaknesses on which you have favoured me with your medical

+views."

+

+"I was certainly surprised to find you there."

+

+"But not more so than I to find you."

+

+"I came to find a friend."

+

+"And I to find an enemy."

+

+"An enemy?"

+

+"Yes; one of my natural enemies, or, shall I say, my natural

+prey. Briefly, Watson, I am in the midst of a very remarkable

+inquiry, and I have hoped to find a clue in the incoherent

+ramblings of these sots, as I have done before now. Had I been

+recognised in that den my life would not have been worth an

+hour's purchase; for I have used it before now for my own

+purposes, and the rascally Lascar who runs it has sworn to have

+vengeance upon me. There is a trap-door at the back of that

+building, near the corner of Paul's Wharf, which could tell some

+strange tales of what has passed through it upon the moonless

+nights."

+

+"What! You do not mean bodies?"

+

+"Ay, bodies, Watson. We should be rich men if we had 1000 pounds

+for every poor devil who has been done to death in that den. It

+is the vilest murder-trap on the whole riverside, and I fear that

+Neville St. Clair has entered it never to leave it more. But our

+trap should be here." He put his two forefingers between his

+teeth and whistled shrilly--a signal which was answered by a

+similar whistle from the distance, followed shortly by the rattle

+of wheels and the clink of horses' hoofs.

+

+"Now, Watson," said Holmes, as a tall dog-cart dashed up through

+the gloom, throwing out two golden tunnels of yellow light from

+its side lanterns. "You'll come with me, won't you?"

+

+"If I can be of use."

+

+"Oh, a trusty comrade is always of use; and a chronicler still

+more so. My room at The Cedars is a double-bedded one."

+

+"The Cedars?"

+

+"Yes; that is Mr. St. Clair's house. I am staying there while I

+conduct the inquiry."

+

+"Where is it, then?"

+

+"Near Lee, in Kent. We have a seven-mile drive before us."

+

+"But I am all in the dark."

+

+"Of course you are. You'll know all about it presently. Jump up

+here. All right, John; we shall not need you. Here's half a

+crown. Look out for me to-morrow, about eleven. Give her her

+head. So long, then!"

+

+He flicked the horse with his whip, and we dashed away through

+the endless succession of sombre and deserted streets, which

+widened gradually, until we were flying across a broad

+balustraded bridge, with the murky river flowing sluggishly

+beneath us. Beyond lay another dull wilderness of bricks and

+mortar, its silence broken only by the heavy, regular footfall of

+the policeman, or the songs and shouts of some belated party of

+revellers. A dull wrack was drifting slowly across the sky, and a

+star or two twinkled dimly here and there through the rifts of

+the clouds. Holmes drove in silence, with his head sunk upon his

+breast, and the air of a man who is lost in thought, while I sat

+beside him, curious to learn what this new quest might be which

+seemed to tax his powers so sorely, and yet afraid to break in

+upon the current of his thoughts. We had driven several miles,

+and were beginning to get to the fringe of the belt of suburban

+villas, when he shook himself, shrugged his shoulders, and lit up

+his pipe with the air of a man who has satisfied himself that he

+is acting for the best.

+

+"You have a grand gift of silence, Watson," said he. "It makes

+you quite invaluable as a companion. 'Pon my word, it is a great

+thing for me to have someone to talk to, for my own thoughts are

+not over-pleasant. I was wondering what I should say to this dear

+little woman to-night when she meets me at the door."

+

+"You forget that I know nothing about it."

+

+"I shall just have time to tell you the facts of the case before

+we get to Lee. It seems absurdly simple, and yet, somehow I can

+get nothing to go upon. There's plenty of thread, no doubt, but I

+can't get the end of it into my hand. Now, I'll state the case

+clearly and concisely to you, Watson, and maybe you can see a

+spark where all is dark to me."

+

+"Proceed, then."

+

+"Some years ago--to be definite, in May, 1884--there came to Lee

+a gentleman, Neville St. Clair by name, who appeared to have

+plenty of money. He took a large villa, laid out the grounds very

+nicely, and lived generally in good style. By degrees he made

+friends in the neighbourhood, and in 1887 he married the daughter

+of a local brewer, by whom he now has two children. He had no

+occupation, but was interested in several companies and went into

+town as a rule in the morning, returning by the 5:14 from Cannon

+Street every night. Mr. St. Clair is now thirty-seven years of

+age, is a man of temperate habits, a good husband, a very

+affectionate father, and a man who is popular with all who know

+him. I may add that his whole debts at the present moment, as far

+as we have been able to ascertain, amount to 88 pounds 10s., while

+he has 220 pounds standing to his credit in the Capital and

+Counties Bank. There is no reason, therefore, to think that money

+troubles have been weighing upon his mind.

+

+"Last Monday Mr. Neville St. Clair went into town rather earlier

+than usual, remarking before he started that he had two important

+commissions to perform, and that he would bring his little boy

+home a box of bricks. Now, by the merest chance, his wife

+received a telegram upon this same Monday, very shortly after his

+departure, to the effect that a small parcel of considerable

+value which she had been expecting was waiting for her at the

+offices of the Aberdeen Shipping Company. Now, if you are well up

+in your London, you will know that the office of the company is

+in Fresno Street, which branches out of Upper Swandam Lane, where

+you found me to-night. Mrs. St. Clair had her lunch, started for

+the City, did some shopping, proceeded to the company's office,

+got her packet, and found herself at exactly 4:35 walking through

+Swandam Lane on her way back to the station. Have you followed me

+so far?"

+

+"It is very clear."

+

+"If you remember, Monday was an exceedingly hot day, and Mrs. St.

+Clair walked slowly, glancing about in the hope of seeing a cab,

+as she did not like the neighbourhood in which she found herself.

+While she was walking in this way down Swandam Lane, she suddenly

+heard an ejaculation or cry, and was struck cold to see her

+husband looking down at her and, as it seemed to her, beckoning

+to her from a second-floor window. The window was open, and she

+distinctly saw his face, which she describes as being terribly

+agitated. He waved his hands frantically to her, and then

+vanished from the window so suddenly that it seemed to her that

+he had been plucked back by some irresistible force from behind.

+One singular point which struck her quick feminine eye was that

+although he wore some dark coat, such as he had started to town

+in, he had on neither collar nor necktie.

+

+"Convinced that something was amiss with him, she rushed down the

+steps--for the house was none other than the opium den in which

+you found me to-night--and running through the front room she

+attempted to ascend the stairs which led to the first floor. At

+the foot of the stairs, however, she met this Lascar scoundrel of

+whom I have spoken, who thrust her back and, aided by a Dane, who

+acts as assistant there, pushed her out into the street. Filled

+with the most maddening doubts and fears, she rushed down the

+lane and, by rare good-fortune, met in Fresno Street a number of

+constables with an inspector, all on their way to their beat. The

+inspector and two men accompanied her back, and in spite of the

+continued resistance of the proprietor, they made their way to

+the room in which Mr. St. Clair had last been seen. There was no

+sign of him there. In fact, in the whole of that floor there was

+no one to be found save a crippled wretch of hideous aspect, who,

+it seems, made his home there. Both he and the Lascar stoutly

+swore that no one else had been in the front room during the

+afternoon. So determined was their denial that the inspector was

+staggered, and had almost come to believe that Mrs. St. Clair had

+been deluded when, with a cry, she sprang at a small deal box

+which lay upon the table and tore the lid from it. Out there fell

+a cascade of children's bricks. It was the toy which he had

+promised to bring home.

+

+"This discovery, and the evident confusion which the cripple

+showed, made the inspector realise that the matter was serious.

+The rooms were carefully examined, and results all pointed to an

+abominable crime. The front room was plainly furnished as a

+sitting-room and led into a small bedroom, which looked out upon

+the back of one of the wharves. Between the wharf and the bedroom

+window is a narrow strip, which is dry at low tide but is covered

+at high tide with at least four and a half feet of water. The

+bedroom window was a broad one and opened from below. On

+examination traces of blood were to be seen upon the windowsill,

+and several scattered drops were visible upon the wooden floor of

+the bedroom. Thrust away behind a curtain in the front room were

+all the clothes of Mr. Neville St. Clair, with the exception of

+his coat. His boots, his socks, his hat, and his watch--all were

+there. There were no signs of violence upon any of these

+garments, and there were no other traces of Mr. Neville St.

+Clair. Out of the window he must apparently have gone for no

+other exit could be discovered, and the ominous bloodstains upon

+the sill gave little promise that he could save himself by

+swimming, for the tide was at its very highest at the moment of

+the tragedy.

+

+"And now as to the villains who seemed to be immediately

+implicated in the matter. The Lascar was known to be a man of the

+vilest antecedents, but as, by Mrs. St. Clair's story, he was

+known to have been at the foot of the stair within a very few

+seconds of her husband's appearance at the window, he could

+hardly have been more than an accessory to the crime. His defence

+was one of absolute ignorance, and he protested that he had no

+knowledge as to the doings of Hugh Boone, his lodger, and that he

+could not account in any way for the presence of the missing

+gentleman's clothes.

+

+"So much for the Lascar manager. Now for the sinister cripple who

+lives upon the second floor of the opium den, and who was

+certainly the last human being whose eyes rested upon Neville St.

+Clair. His name is Hugh Boone, and his hideous face is one which

+is familiar to every man who goes much to the City. He is a

+professional beggar, though in order to avoid the police

+regulations he pretends to a small trade in wax vestas. Some

+little distance down Threadneedle Street, upon the left-hand

+side, there is, as you may have remarked, a small angle in the

+wall. Here it is that this creature takes his daily seat,

+cross-legged with his tiny stock of matches on his lap, and as he

+is a piteous spectacle a small rain of charity descends into the

+greasy leather cap which lies upon the pavement beside him. I

+have watched the fellow more than once before ever I thought of

+making his professional acquaintance, and I have been surprised

+at the harvest which he has reaped in a short time. His

+appearance, you see, is so remarkable that no one can pass him

+without observing him. A shock of orange hair, a pale face

+disfigured by a horrible scar, which, by its contraction, has

+turned up the outer edge of his upper lip, a bulldog chin, and a

+pair of very penetrating dark eyes, which present a singular

+contrast to the colour of his hair, all mark him out from amid

+the common crowd of mendicants and so, too, does his wit, for he

+is ever ready with a reply to any piece of chaff which may be

+thrown at him by the passers-by. This is the man whom we now

+learn to have been the lodger at the opium den, and to have been

+the last man to see the gentleman of whom we are in quest."

+

+"But a cripple!" said I. "What could he have done single-handed

+against a man in the prime of life?"

+

+"He is a cripple in the sense that he walks with a limp; but in

+other respects he appears to be a powerful and well-nurtured man.

+Surely your medical experience would tell you, Watson, that

+weakness in one limb is often compensated for by exceptional

+strength in the others."

+

+"Pray continue your narrative."

+

+"Mrs. St. Clair had fainted at the sight of the blood upon the

+window, and she was escorted home in a cab by the police, as her

+presence could be of no help to them in their investigations.

+Inspector Barton, who had charge of the case, made a very careful

+examination of the premises, but without finding anything which

+threw any light upon the matter. One mistake had been made in not

+arresting Boone instantly, as he was allowed some few minutes

+during which he might have communicated with his friend the

+Lascar, but this fault was soon remedied, and he was seized and

+searched, without anything being found which could incriminate

+him. There were, it is true, some blood-stains upon his right

+shirt-sleeve, but he pointed to his ring-finger, which had been

+cut near the nail, and explained that the bleeding came from

+there, adding that he had been to the window not long before, and

+that the stains which had been observed there came doubtless from

+the same source. He denied strenuously having ever seen Mr.

+Neville St. Clair and swore that the presence of the clothes in

+his room was as much a mystery to him as to the police. As to

+Mrs. St. Clair's assertion that she had actually seen her husband

+at the window, he declared that she must have been either mad or

+dreaming. He was removed, loudly protesting, to the

+police-station, while the inspector remained upon the premises in

+the hope that the ebbing tide might afford some fresh clue.

+

+"And it did, though they hardly found upon the mud-bank what they

+had feared to find. It was Neville St. Clair's coat, and not

+Neville St. Clair, which lay uncovered as the tide receded. And

+what do you think they found in the pockets?"

+

+"I cannot imagine."

+

+"No, I don't think you would guess. Every pocket stuffed with

+pennies and half-pennies--421 pennies and 270 half-pennies. It

+was no wonder that it had not been swept away by the tide. But a

+human body is a different matter. There is a fierce eddy between

+the wharf and the house. It seemed likely enough that the

+weighted coat had remained when the stripped body had been sucked

+away into the river."

+

+"But I understand that all the other clothes were found in the

+room. Would the body be dressed in a coat alone?"

+

+"No, sir, but the facts might be met speciously enough. Suppose

+that this man Boone had thrust Neville St. Clair through the

+window, there is no human eye which could have seen the deed.

+What would he do then? It would of course instantly strike him

+that he must get rid of the tell-tale garments. He would seize

+the coat, then, and be in the act of throwing it out, when it

+would occur to him that it would swim and not sink. He has little

+time, for he has heard the scuffle downstairs when the wife tried

+to force her way up, and perhaps he has already heard from his

+Lascar confederate that the police are hurrying up the street.

+There is not an instant to be lost. He rushes to some secret

+hoard, where he has accumulated the fruits of his beggary, and he

+stuffs all the coins upon which he can lay his hands into the

+pockets to make sure of the coat's sinking. He throws it out, and

+would have done the same with the other garments had not he heard

+the rush of steps below, and only just had time to close the

+window when the police appeared."

+

+"It certainly sounds feasible."

+

+"Well, we will take it as a working hypothesis for want of a

+better. Boone, as I have told you, was arrested and taken to the

+station, but it could not be shown that there had ever before

+been anything against him. He had for years been known as a

+professional beggar, but his life appeared to have been a very

+quiet and innocent one. There the matter stands at present, and

+the questions which have to be solved--what Neville St. Clair was

+doing in the opium den, what happened to him when there, where is

+he now, and what Hugh Boone had to do with his disappearance--are

+all as far from a solution as ever. I confess that I cannot

+recall any case within my experience which looked at the first

+glance so simple and yet which presented such difficulties."

+

+While Sherlock Holmes had been detailing this singular series of

+events, we had been whirling through the outskirts of the great

+town until the last straggling houses had been left behind, and

+we rattled along with a country hedge upon either side of us.

+Just as he finished, however, we drove through two scattered

+villages, where a few lights still glimmered in the windows.

+

+"We are on the outskirts of Lee," said my companion. "We have

+touched on three English counties in our short drive, starting in

+Middlesex, passing over an angle of Surrey, and ending in Kent.

+See that light among the trees? That is The Cedars, and beside

+that lamp sits a woman whose anxious ears have already, I have

+little doubt, caught the clink of our horse's feet."

+

+"But why are you not conducting the case from Baker Street?" I

+asked.

+

+"Because there are many inquiries which must be made out here.

+Mrs. St. Clair has most kindly put two rooms at my disposal, and

+you may rest assured that she will have nothing but a welcome for

+my friend and colleague. I hate to meet her, Watson, when I have

+no news of her husband. Here we are. Whoa, there, whoa!"

+

+We had pulled up in front of a large villa which stood within its

+own grounds. A stable-boy had run out to the horse's head, and

+springing down, I followed Holmes up the small, winding

+gravel-drive which led to the house. As we approached, the door

+flew open, and a little blonde woman stood in the opening, clad

+in some sort of light mousseline de soie, with a touch of fluffy

+pink chiffon at her neck and wrists. She stood with her figure

+outlined against the flood of light, one hand upon the door, one

+half-raised in her eagerness, her body slightly bent, her head

+and face protruded, with eager eyes and parted lips, a standing

+question.

+

+"Well?" she cried, "well?" And then, seeing that there were two

+of us, she gave a cry of hope which sank into a groan as she saw

+that my companion shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.

+

+"No good news?"

+

+"None."

+

+"No bad?"

+

+"No."

+

+"Thank God for that. But come in. You must be weary, for you have

+had a long day."

+

+"This is my friend, Dr. Watson. He has been of most vital use to

+me in several of my cases, and a lucky chance has made it

+possible for me to bring him out and associate him with this

+investigation."

+

+"I am delighted to see you," said she, pressing my hand warmly.

+"You will, I am sure, forgive anything that may be wanting in our

+arrangements, when you consider the blow which has come so

+suddenly upon us."

+

+"My dear madam," said I, "I am an old campaigner, and if I were

+not I can very well see that no apology is needed. If I can be of

+any assistance, either to you or to my friend here, I shall be

+indeed happy."

+

+"Now, Mr. Sherlock Holmes," said the lady as we entered a

+well-lit dining-room, upon the table of which a cold supper had

+been laid out, "I should very much like to ask you one or two

+plain questions, to which I beg that you will give a plain

+answer."

+

+"Certainly, madam."

+

+"Do not trouble about my feelings. I am not hysterical, nor given

+to fainting. I simply wish to hear your real, real opinion."

+

+"Upon what point?"

+

+"In your heart of hearts, do you think that Neville is alive?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes seemed to be embarrassed by the question.

+"Frankly, now!" she repeated, standing upon the rug and looking

+keenly down at him as he leaned back in a basket-chair.

+

+"Frankly, then, madam, I do not."

+

+"You think that he is dead?"

+

+"I do."

+

+"Murdered?"

+

+"I don't say that. Perhaps."

+

+"And on what day did he meet his death?"

+

+"On Monday."

+

+"Then perhaps, Mr. Holmes, you will be good enough to explain how

+it is that I have received a letter from him to-day."

+

+Sherlock Holmes sprang out of his chair as if he had been

+galvanised.

+

+"What!" he roared.

+

+"Yes, to-day." She stood smiling, holding up a little slip of

+paper in the air.

+

+"May I see it?"

+

+"Certainly."

+

+He snatched it from her in his eagerness, and smoothing it out

+upon the table he drew over the lamp and examined it intently. I

+had left my chair and was gazing at it over his shoulder. The

+envelope was a very coarse one and was stamped with the Gravesend

+postmark and with the date of that very day, or rather of the day

+before, for it was considerably after midnight.

+

+"Coarse writing," murmured Holmes. "Surely this is not your

+husband's writing, madam."

+

+"No, but the enclosure is."

+

+"I perceive also that whoever addressed the envelope had to go

+and inquire as to the address."

+

+"How can you tell that?"

+

+"The name, you see, is in perfectly black ink, which has dried

+itself. The rest is of the greyish colour, which shows that

+blotting-paper has been used. If it had been written straight

+off, and then blotted, none would be of a deep black shade. This

+man has written the name, and there has then been a pause before

+he wrote the address, which can only mean that he was not

+familiar with it. It is, of course, a trifle, but there is

+nothing so important as trifles. Let us now see the letter. Ha!

+there has been an enclosure here!"

+

+"Yes, there was a ring. His signet-ring."

+

+"And you are sure that this is your husband's hand?"

+

+"One of his hands."

+

+"One?"

+

+"His hand when he wrote hurriedly. It is very unlike his usual

+writing, and yet I know it well."

+

+"'Dearest do not be frightened. All will come well. There is a

+huge error which it may take some little time to rectify.

+Wait in patience.--NEVILLE.' Written in pencil upon the fly-leaf

+of a book, octavo size, no water-mark. Hum! Posted to-day in

+Gravesend by a man with a dirty thumb. Ha! And the flap has been

+gummed, if I am not very much in error, by a person who had been

+chewing tobacco. And you have no doubt that it is your husband's

+hand, madam?"

+

+"None. Neville wrote those words."

+

+"And they were posted to-day at Gravesend. Well, Mrs. St. Clair,

+the clouds lighten, though I should not venture to say that the

+danger is over."

+

+"But he must be alive, Mr. Holmes."

+

+"Unless this is a clever forgery to put us on the wrong scent.

+The ring, after all, proves nothing. It may have been taken from

+him."

+

+"No, no; it is, it is his very own writing!"

+

+"Very well. It may, however, have been written on Monday and only

+posted to-day."

+

+"That is possible."

+

+"If so, much may have happened between."

+

+"Oh, you must not discourage me, Mr. Holmes. I know that all is

+well with him. There is so keen a sympathy between us that I

+should know if evil came upon him. On the very day that I saw him

+last he cut himself in the bedroom, and yet I in the dining-room

+rushed upstairs instantly with the utmost certainty that

+something had happened. Do you think that I would respond to such

+a trifle and yet be ignorant of his death?"

+

+"I have seen too much not to know that the impression of a woman

+may be more valuable than the conclusion of an analytical

+reasoner. And in this letter you certainly have a very strong

+piece of evidence to corroborate your view. But if your husband

+is alive and able to write letters, why should he remain away

+from you?"

+

+"I cannot imagine. It is unthinkable."

+

+"And on Monday he made no remarks before leaving you?"

+

+"No."

+

+"And you were surprised to see him in Swandam Lane?"

+

+"Very much so."

+

+"Was the window open?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Then he might have called to you?"

+

+"He might."

+

+"He only, as I understand, gave an inarticulate cry?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"A call for help, you thought?"

+

+"Yes. He waved his hands."

+

+"But it might have been a cry of surprise. Astonishment at the

+unexpected sight of you might cause him to throw up his hands?"

+

+"It is possible."

+

+"And you thought he was pulled back?"

+

+"He disappeared so suddenly."

+

+"He might have leaped back. You did not see anyone else in the

+room?"

+

+"No, but this horrible man confessed to having been there, and

+the Lascar was at the foot of the stairs."

+

+"Quite so. Your husband, as far as you could see, had his

+ordinary clothes on?"

+

+"But without his collar or tie. I distinctly saw his bare

+throat."

+

+"Had he ever spoken of Swandam Lane?"

+

+"Never."

+

+"Had he ever showed any signs of having taken opium?"

+

+"Never."

+

+"Thank you, Mrs. St. Clair. Those are the principal points about

+which I wished to be absolutely clear. We shall now have a little

+supper and then retire, for we may have a very busy day

+to-morrow."

+

+A large and comfortable double-bedded room had been placed at our

+disposal, and I was quickly between the sheets, for I was weary

+after my night of adventure. Sherlock Holmes was a man, however,

+who, when he had an unsolved problem upon his mind, would go for

+days, and even for a week, without rest, turning it over,

+rearranging his facts, looking at it from every point of view

+until he had either fathomed it or convinced himself that his

+data were insufficient. It was soon evident to me that he was now

+preparing for an all-night sitting. He took off his coat and

+waistcoat, put on a large blue dressing-gown, and then wandered

+about the room collecting pillows from his bed and cushions from

+the sofa and armchairs. With these he constructed a sort of

+Eastern divan, upon which he perched himself cross-legged, with

+an ounce of shag tobacco and a box of matches laid out in front

+of him. In the dim light of the lamp I saw him sitting there, an

+old briar pipe between his lips, his eyes fixed vacantly upon the

+corner of the ceiling, the blue smoke curling up from him,

+silent, motionless, with the light shining upon his strong-set

+aquiline features. So he sat as I dropped off to sleep, and so he

+sat when a sudden ejaculation caused me to wake up, and I found

+the summer sun shining into the apartment. The pipe was still

+between his lips, the smoke still curled upward, and the room was

+full of a dense tobacco haze, but nothing remained of the heap of

+shag which I had seen upon the previous night.

+

+"Awake, Watson?" he asked.

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Game for a morning drive?"

+

+"Certainly."

+

+"Then dress. No one is stirring yet, but I know where the

+stable-boy sleeps, and we shall soon have the trap out." He

+chuckled to himself as he spoke, his eyes twinkled, and he seemed

+a different man to the sombre thinker of the previous night.

+

+As I dressed I glanced at my watch. It was no wonder that no one

+was stirring. It was twenty-five minutes past four. I had hardly

+finished when Holmes returned with the news that the boy was

+putting in the horse.

+

+"I want to test a little theory of mine," said he, pulling on his

+boots. "I think, Watson, that you are now standing in the

+presence of one of the most absolute fools in Europe. I deserve

+to be kicked from here to Charing Cross. But I think I have the

+key of the affair now."

+

+"And where is it?" I asked, smiling.

+

+"In the bathroom," he answered. "Oh, yes, I am not joking," he

+continued, seeing my look of incredulity. "I have just been

+there, and I have taken it out, and I have got it in this

+Gladstone bag. Come on, my boy, and we shall see whether it will

+not fit the lock."

+

+We made our way downstairs as quietly as possible, and out into

+the bright morning sunshine. In the road stood our horse and

+trap, with the half-clad stable-boy waiting at the head. We both

+sprang in, and away we dashed down the London Road. A few country

+carts were stirring, bearing in vegetables to the metropolis, but

+the lines of villas on either side were as silent and lifeless as

+some city in a dream.

+

+"It has been in some points a singular case," said Holmes,

+flicking the horse on into a gallop. "I confess that I have been

+as blind as a mole, but it is better to learn wisdom late than

+never to learn it at all."

+

+In town the earliest risers were just beginning to look sleepily

+from their windows as we drove through the streets of the Surrey

+side. Passing down the Waterloo Bridge Road we crossed over the

+river, and dashing up Wellington Street wheeled sharply to the

+right and found ourselves in Bow Street. Sherlock Holmes was well

+known to the force, and the two constables at the door saluted

+him. One of them held the horse's head while the other led us in.

+

+"Who is on duty?" asked Holmes.

+

+"Inspector Bradstreet, sir."

+

+"Ah, Bradstreet, how are you?" A tall, stout official had come

+down the stone-flagged passage, in a peaked cap and frogged

+jacket. "I wish to have a quiet word with you, Bradstreet."

+"Certainly, Mr. Holmes. Step into my room here." It was a small,

+office-like room, with a huge ledger upon the table, and a

+telephone projecting from the wall. The inspector sat down at his

+desk.

+

+"What can I do for you, Mr. Holmes?"

+

+"I called about that beggarman, Boone--the one who was charged

+with being concerned in the disappearance of Mr. Neville St.

+Clair, of Lee."

+

+"Yes. He was brought up and remanded for further inquiries."

+

+"So I heard. You have him here?"

+

+"In the cells."

+

+"Is he quiet?"

+

+"Oh, he gives no trouble. But he is a dirty scoundrel."

+

+"Dirty?"

+

+"Yes, it is all we can do to make him wash his hands, and his

+face is as black as a tinker's. Well, when once his case has been

+settled, he will have a regular prison bath; and I think, if you

+saw him, you would agree with me that he needed it."

+

+"I should like to see him very much."

+

+"Would you? That is easily done. Come this way. You can leave

+your bag."

+

+"No, I think that I'll take it."

+

+"Very good. Come this way, if you please." He led us down a

+passage, opened a barred door, passed down a winding stair, and

+brought us to a whitewashed corridor with a line of doors on each

+side.

+

+"The third on the right is his," said the inspector. "Here it

+is!" He quietly shot back a panel in the upper part of the door

+and glanced through.

+

+"He is asleep," said he. "You can see him very well."

+

+We both put our eyes to the grating. The prisoner lay with his

+face towards us, in a very deep sleep, breathing slowly and

+heavily. He was a middle-sized man, coarsely clad as became his

+calling, with a coloured shirt protruding through the rent in his

+tattered coat. He was, as the inspector had said, extremely

+dirty, but the grime which covered his face could not conceal its

+repulsive ugliness. A broad wheal from an old scar ran right

+across it from eye to chin, and by its contraction had turned up

+one side of the upper lip, so that three teeth were exposed in a

+perpetual snarl. A shock of very bright red hair grew low over

+his eyes and forehead.

+

+"He's a beauty, isn't he?" said the inspector.

+

+"He certainly needs a wash," remarked Holmes. "I had an idea that

+he might, and I took the liberty of bringing the tools with me."

+He opened the Gladstone bag as he spoke, and took out, to my

+astonishment, a very large bath-sponge.

+

+"He! he! You are a funny one," chuckled the inspector.

+

+"Now, if you will have the great goodness to open that door very

+quietly, we will soon make him cut a much more respectable

+figure."

+

+"Well, I don't know why not," said the inspector. "He doesn't

+look a credit to the Bow Street cells, does he?" He slipped his

+key into the lock, and we all very quietly entered the cell. The

+sleeper half turned, and then settled down once more into a deep

+slumber. Holmes stooped to the water-jug, moistened his sponge,

+and then rubbed it twice vigorously across and down the

+prisoner's face.

+

+"Let me introduce you," he shouted, "to Mr. Neville St. Clair, of

+Lee, in the county of Kent."

+

+Never in my life have I seen such a sight. The man's face peeled

+off under the sponge like the bark from a tree. Gone was the

+coarse brown tint! Gone, too, was the horrid scar which had

+seamed it across, and the twisted lip which had given the

+repulsive sneer to the face! A twitch brought away the tangled

+red hair, and there, sitting up in his bed, was a pale,

+sad-faced, refined-looking man, black-haired and smooth-skinned,

+rubbing his eyes and staring about him with sleepy bewilderment.

+Then suddenly realising the exposure, he broke into a scream and

+threw himself down with his face to the pillow.

+

+"Great heavens!" cried the inspector, "it is, indeed, the missing

+man. I know him from the photograph."

+

+The prisoner turned with the reckless air of a man who abandons

+himself to his destiny. "Be it so," said he. "And pray what am I

+charged with?"

+

+"With making away with Mr. Neville St.-- Oh, come, you can't be

+charged with that unless they make a case of attempted suicide of

+it," said the inspector with a grin. "Well, I have been

+twenty-seven years in the force, but this really takes the cake."

+

+"If I am Mr. Neville St. Clair, then it is obvious that no crime

+has been committed, and that, therefore, I am illegally

+detained."

+

+"No crime, but a very great error has been committed," said

+Holmes. "You would have done better to have trusted your wife."

+

+"It was not the wife; it was the children," groaned the prisoner.

+"God help me, I would not have them ashamed of their father. My

+God! What an exposure! What can I do?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes sat down beside him on the couch and patted him

+kindly on the shoulder.

+

+"If you leave it to a court of law to clear the matter up," said

+he, "of course you can hardly avoid publicity. On the other hand,

+if you convince the police authorities that there is no possible

+case against you, I do not know that there is any reason that the

+details should find their way into the papers. Inspector

+Bradstreet would, I am sure, make notes upon anything which you

+might tell us and submit it to the proper authorities. The case

+would then never go into court at all."

+

+"God bless you!" cried the prisoner passionately. "I would have

+endured imprisonment, ay, even execution, rather than have left

+my miserable secret as a family blot to my children.

+

+"You are the first who have ever heard my story. My father was a

+schoolmaster in Chesterfield, where I received an excellent

+education. I travelled in my youth, took to the stage, and

+finally became a reporter on an evening paper in London. One day

+my editor wished to have a series of articles upon begging in the

+metropolis, and I volunteered to supply them. There was the point

+from which all my adventures started. It was only by trying

+begging as an amateur that I could get the facts upon which to

+base my articles. When an actor I had, of course, learned all the

+secrets of making up, and had been famous in the green-room for

+my skill. I took advantage now of my attainments. I painted my

+face, and to make myself as pitiable as possible I made a good

+scar and fixed one side of my lip in a twist by the aid of a

+small slip of flesh-coloured plaster. Then with a red head of

+hair, and an appropriate dress, I took my station in the business

+part of the city, ostensibly as a match-seller but really as a

+beggar. For seven hours I plied my trade, and when I returned

+home in the evening I found to my surprise that I had received no

+less than 26s. 4d.

+

+"I wrote my articles and thought little more of the matter until,

+some time later, I backed a bill for a friend and had a writ

+served upon me for 25 pounds. I was at my wit's end where to get

+the money, but a sudden idea came to me. I begged a fortnight's

+grace from the creditor, asked for a holiday from my employers,

+and spent the time in begging in the City under my disguise. In

+ten days I had the money and had paid the debt.

+

+"Well, you can imagine how hard it was to settle down to arduous

+work at 2 pounds a week when I knew that I could earn as much in

+a day by smearing my face with a little paint, laying my cap on

+the ground, and sitting still. It was a long fight between my

+pride and the money, but the dollars won at last, and I threw up

+reporting and sat day after day in the corner which I had first

+chosen, inspiring pity by my ghastly face and filling my pockets

+with coppers. Only one man knew my secret. He was the keeper of a

+low den in which I used to lodge in Swandam Lane, where I could

+every morning emerge as a squalid beggar and in the evenings

+transform myself into a well-dressed man about town. This fellow,

+a Lascar, was well paid by me for his rooms, so that I knew that

+my secret was safe in his possession.

+

+"Well, very soon I found that I was saving considerable sums of

+money. I do not mean that any beggar in the streets of London

+could earn 700 pounds a year--which is less than my average

+takings--but I had exceptional advantages in my power of making

+up, and also in a facility of repartee, which improved by

+practice and made me quite a recognised character in the City.

+All day a stream of pennies, varied by silver, poured in upon me,

+and it was a very bad day in which I failed to take 2 pounds.

+

+"As I grew richer I grew more ambitious, took a house in the

+country, and eventually married, without anyone having a

+suspicion as to my real occupation. My dear wife knew that I had

+business in the City. She little knew what.

+

+"Last Monday I had finished for the day and was dressing in my

+room above the opium den when I looked out of my window and saw,

+to my horror and astonishment, that my wife was standing in the

+street, with her eyes fixed full upon me. I gave a cry of

+surprise, threw up my arms to cover my face, and, rushing to my

+confidant, the Lascar, entreated him to prevent anyone from

+coming up to me. I heard her voice downstairs, but I knew that

+she could not ascend. Swiftly I threw off my clothes, pulled on

+those of a beggar, and put on my pigments and wig. Even a wife's

+eyes could not pierce so complete a disguise. But then it

+occurred to me that there might be a search in the room, and that

+the clothes might betray me. I threw open the window, reopening

+by my violence a small cut which I had inflicted upon myself in

+the bedroom that morning. Then I seized my coat, which was

+weighted by the coppers which I had just transferred to it from

+the leather bag in which I carried my takings. I hurled it out of

+the window, and it disappeared into the Thames. The other clothes

+would have followed, but at that moment there was a rush of

+constables up the stair, and a few minutes after I found, rather,

+I confess, to my relief, that instead of being identified as Mr.

+Neville St. Clair, I was arrested as his murderer.

+

+"I do not know that there is anything else for me to explain. I

+was determined to preserve my disguise as long as possible, and

+hence my preference for a dirty face. Knowing that my wife would

+be terribly anxious, I slipped off my ring and confided it to the

+Lascar at a moment when no constable was watching me, together

+with a hurried scrawl, telling her that she had no cause to

+fear."

+

+"That note only reached her yesterday," said Holmes.

+

+"Good God! What a week she must have spent!"

+

+"The police have watched this Lascar," said Inspector Bradstreet,

+"and I can quite understand that he might find it difficult to

+post a letter unobserved. Probably he handed it to some sailor

+customer of his, who forgot all about it for some days."

+

+"That was it," said Holmes, nodding approvingly; "I have no doubt

+of it. But have you never been prosecuted for begging?"

+

+"Many times; but what was a fine to me?"

+

+"It must stop here, however," said Bradstreet. "If the police are

+to hush this thing up, there must be no more of Hugh Boone."

+

+"I have sworn it by the most solemn oaths which a man can take."

+

+"In that case I think that it is probable that no further steps

+may be taken. But if you are found again, then all must come out.

+I am sure, Mr. Holmes, that we are very much indebted to you for

+having cleared the matter up. I wish I knew how you reach your

+results."

+

+"I reached this one," said my friend, "by sitting upon five

+pillows and consuming an ounce of shag. I think, Watson, that if

+we drive to Baker Street we shall just be in time for breakfast."

+

+

+

+VII. THE ADVENTURE OF THE BLUE CARBUNCLE

+

+I had called upon my friend Sherlock Holmes upon the second

+morning after Christmas, with the intention of wishing him the

+compliments of the season. He was lounging upon the sofa in a

+purple dressing-gown, a pipe-rack within his reach upon the

+right, and a pile of crumpled morning papers, evidently newly

+studied, near at hand. Beside the couch was a wooden chair, and

+on the angle of the back hung a very seedy and disreputable

+hard-felt hat, much the worse for wear, and cracked in several

+places. A lens and a forceps lying upon the seat of the chair

+suggested that the hat had been suspended in this manner for the

+purpose of examination.

+

+"You are engaged," said I; "perhaps I interrupt you."

+

+"Not at all. I am glad to have a friend with whom I can discuss

+my results. The matter is a perfectly trivial one"--he jerked his

+thumb in the direction of the old hat--"but there are points in

+connection with it which are not entirely devoid of interest and

+even of instruction."

+

+I seated myself in his armchair and warmed my hands before his

+crackling fire, for a sharp frost had set in, and the windows

+were thick with the ice crystals. "I suppose," I remarked, "that,

+homely as it looks, this thing has some deadly story linked on to

+it--that it is the clue which will guide you in the solution of

+some mystery and the punishment of some crime."

+

+"No, no. No crime," said Sherlock Holmes, laughing. "Only one of

+those whimsical little incidents which will happen when you have

+four million human beings all jostling each other within the

+space of a few square miles. Amid the action and reaction of so

+dense a swarm of humanity, every possible combination of events

+may be expected to take place, and many a little problem will be

+presented which may be striking and bizarre without being

+criminal. We have already had experience of such."

+

+"So much so," I remarked, "that of the last six cases which I

+have added to my notes, three have been entirely free of any

+legal crime."

+

+"Precisely. You allude to my attempt to recover the Irene Adler

+papers, to the singular case of Miss Mary Sutherland, and to the

+adventure of the man with the twisted lip. Well, I have no doubt

+that this small matter will fall into the same innocent category.

+You know Peterson, the commissionaire?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"It is to him that this trophy belongs."

+

+"It is his hat."

+

+"No, no, he found it. Its owner is unknown. I beg that you will

+look upon it not as a battered billycock but as an intellectual

+problem. And, first, as to how it came here. It arrived upon

+Christmas morning, in company with a good fat goose, which is, I

+have no doubt, roasting at this moment in front of Peterson's

+fire. The facts are these: about four o'clock on Christmas

+morning, Peterson, who, as you know, is a very honest fellow, was

+returning from some small jollification and was making his way

+homeward down Tottenham Court Road. In front of him he saw, in

+the gaslight, a tallish man, walking with a slight stagger, and

+carrying a white goose slung over his shoulder. As he reached the

+corner of Goodge Street, a row broke out between this stranger

+and a little knot of roughs. One of the latter knocked off the

+man's hat, on which he raised his stick to defend himself and,

+swinging it over his head, smashed the shop window behind him.

+Peterson had rushed forward to protect the stranger from his

+assailants; but the man, shocked at having broken the window, and

+seeing an official-looking person in uniform rushing towards him,

+dropped his goose, took to his heels, and vanished amid the

+labyrinth of small streets which lie at the back of Tottenham

+Court Road. The roughs had also fled at the appearance of

+Peterson, so that he was left in possession of the field of

+battle, and also of the spoils of victory in the shape of this

+battered hat and a most unimpeachable Christmas goose."

+

+"Which surely he restored to their owner?"

+

+"My dear fellow, there lies the problem. It is true that 'For

+Mrs. Henry Baker' was printed upon a small card which was tied to

+the bird's left leg, and it is also true that the initials 'H.

+B.' are legible upon the lining of this hat, but as there are

+some thousands of Bakers, and some hundreds of Henry Bakers in

+this city of ours, it is not easy to restore lost property to any

+one of them."

+

+"What, then, did Peterson do?"

+

+"He brought round both hat and goose to me on Christmas morning,

+knowing that even the smallest problems are of interest to me.

+The goose we retained until this morning, when there were signs

+that, in spite of the slight frost, it would be well that it

+should be eaten without unnecessary delay. Its finder has carried

+it off, therefore, to fulfil the ultimate destiny of a goose,

+while I continue to retain the hat of the unknown gentleman who

+lost his Christmas dinner."

+

+"Did he not advertise?"

+

+"No."

+

+"Then, what clue could you have as to his identity?"

+

+"Only as much as we can deduce."

+

+"From his hat?"

+

+"Precisely."

+

+"But you are joking. What can you gather from this old battered

+felt?"

+

+"Here is my lens. You know my methods. What can you gather

+yourself as to the individuality of the man who has worn this

+article?"

+

+I took the tattered object in my hands and turned it over rather

+ruefully. It was a very ordinary black hat of the usual round

+shape, hard and much the worse for wear. The lining had been of

+red silk, but was a good deal discoloured. There was no maker's

+name; but, as Holmes had remarked, the initials "H. B." were

+scrawled upon one side. It was pierced in the brim for a

+hat-securer, but the elastic was missing. For the rest, it was

+cracked, exceedingly dusty, and spotted in several places,

+although there seemed to have been some attempt to hide the

+discoloured patches by smearing them with ink.

+

+"I can see nothing," said I, handing it back to my friend.

+

+"On the contrary, Watson, you can see everything. You fail,

+however, to reason from what you see. You are too timid in

+drawing your inferences."

+

+"Then, pray tell me what it is that you can infer from this hat?"

+

+He picked it up and gazed at it in the peculiar introspective

+fashion which was characteristic of him. "It is perhaps less

+suggestive than it might have been," he remarked, "and yet there

+are a few inferences which are very distinct, and a few others

+which represent at least a strong balance of probability. That

+the man was highly intellectual is of course obvious upon the

+face of it, and also that he was fairly well-to-do within the

+last three years, although he has now fallen upon evil days. He

+had foresight, but has less now than formerly, pointing to a

+moral retrogression, which, when taken with the decline of his

+fortunes, seems to indicate some evil influence, probably drink,

+at work upon him. This may account also for the obvious fact that

+his wife has ceased to love him."

+

+"My dear Holmes!"

+

+"He has, however, retained some degree of self-respect," he

+continued, disregarding my remonstrance. "He is a man who leads a

+sedentary life, goes out little, is out of training entirely, is

+middle-aged, has grizzled hair which he has had cut within the

+last few days, and which he anoints with lime-cream. These are

+the more patent facts which are to be deduced from his hat. Also,

+by the way, that it is extremely improbable that he has gas laid

+on in his house."

+

+"You are certainly joking, Holmes."

+

+"Not in the least. Is it possible that even now, when I give you

+these results, you are unable to see how they are attained?"

+

+"I have no doubt that I am very stupid, but I must confess that I

+am unable to follow you. For example, how did you deduce that

+this man was intellectual?"

+

+For answer Holmes clapped the hat upon his head. It came right

+over the forehead and settled upon the bridge of his nose. "It is

+a question of cubic capacity," said he; "a man with so large a

+brain must have something in it."

+

+"The decline of his fortunes, then?"

+

+"This hat is three years old. These flat brims curled at the edge

+came in then. It is a hat of the very best quality. Look at the

+band of ribbed silk and the excellent lining. If this man could

+afford to buy so expensive a hat three years ago, and has had no

+hat since, then he has assuredly gone down in the world."

+

+"Well, that is clear enough, certainly. But how about the

+foresight and the moral retrogression?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes laughed. "Here is the foresight," said he putting

+his finger upon the little disc and loop of the hat-securer.

+"They are never sold upon hats. If this man ordered one, it is a

+sign of a certain amount of foresight, since he went out of his

+way to take this precaution against the wind. But since we see

+that he has broken the elastic and has not troubled to replace

+it, it is obvious that he has less foresight now than formerly,

+which is a distinct proof of a weakening nature. On the other

+hand, he has endeavoured to conceal some of these stains upon the

+felt by daubing them with ink, which is a sign that he has not

+entirely lost his self-respect."

+

+"Your reasoning is certainly plausible."

+

+"The further points, that he is middle-aged, that his hair is

+grizzled, that it has been recently cut, and that he uses

+lime-cream, are all to be gathered from a close examination of the

+lower part of the lining. The lens discloses a large number of

+hair-ends, clean cut by the scissors of the barber. They all

+appear to be adhesive, and there is a distinct odour of

+lime-cream. This dust, you will observe, is not the gritty, grey

+dust of the street but the fluffy brown dust of the house,

+showing that it has been hung up indoors most of the time, while

+the marks of moisture upon the inside are proof positive that the

+wearer perspired very freely, and could therefore, hardly be in

+the best of training."

+

+"But his wife--you said that she had ceased to love him."

+

+"This hat has not been brushed for weeks. When I see you, my dear

+Watson, with a week's accumulation of dust upon your hat, and

+when your wife allows you to go out in such a state, I shall fear

+that you also have been unfortunate enough to lose your wife's

+affection."

+

+"But he might be a bachelor."

+

+"Nay, he was bringing home the goose as a peace-offering to his

+wife. Remember the card upon the bird's leg."

+

+"You have an answer to everything. But how on earth do you deduce

+that the gas is not laid on in his house?"

+

+"One tallow stain, or even two, might come by chance; but when I

+see no less than five, I think that there can be little doubt

+that the individual must be brought into frequent contact with

+burning tallow--walks upstairs at night probably with his hat in

+one hand and a guttering candle in the other. Anyhow, he never

+got tallow-stains from a gas-jet. Are you satisfied?"

+

+"Well, it is very ingenious," said I, laughing; "but since, as

+you said just now, there has been no crime committed, and no harm

+done save the loss of a goose, all this seems to be rather a

+waste of energy."

+

+Sherlock Holmes had opened his mouth to reply, when the door flew

+open, and Peterson, the commissionaire, rushed into the apartment

+with flushed cheeks and the face of a man who is dazed with

+astonishment.

+

+"The goose, Mr. Holmes! The goose, sir!" he gasped.

+

+"Eh? What of it, then? Has it returned to life and flapped off

+through the kitchen window?" Holmes twisted himself round upon

+the sofa to get a fairer view of the man's excited face.

+

+"See here, sir! See what my wife found in its crop!" He held out

+his hand and displayed upon the centre of the palm a brilliantly

+scintillating blue stone, rather smaller than a bean in size, but

+of such purity and radiance that it twinkled like an electric

+point in the dark hollow of his hand.

+

+Sherlock Holmes sat up with a whistle. "By Jove, Peterson!" said

+he, "this is treasure trove indeed. I suppose you know what you

+have got?"

+

+"A diamond, sir? A precious stone. It cuts into glass as though

+it were putty."

+

+"It's more than a precious stone. It is the precious stone."

+

+"Not the Countess of Morcar's blue carbuncle!" I ejaculated.

+

+"Precisely so. I ought to know its size and shape, seeing that I

+have read the advertisement about it in The Times every day

+lately. It is absolutely unique, and its value can only be

+conjectured, but the reward offered of 1000 pounds is certainly

+not within a twentieth part of the market price."

+

+"A thousand pounds! Great Lord of mercy!" The commissionaire

+plumped down into a chair and stared from one to the other of us.

+

+"That is the reward, and I have reason to know that there are

+sentimental considerations in the background which would induce

+the Countess to part with half her fortune if she could but

+recover the gem."

+

+"It was lost, if I remember aright, at the Hotel Cosmopolitan," I

+remarked.

+

+"Precisely so, on December 22nd, just five days ago. John Horner,

+a plumber, was accused of having abstracted it from the lady's

+jewel-case. The evidence against him was so strong that the case

+has been referred to the Assizes. I have some account of the

+matter here, I believe." He rummaged amid his newspapers,

+glancing over the dates, until at last he smoothed one out,

+doubled it over, and read the following paragraph:

+

+"Hotel Cosmopolitan Jewel Robbery. John Horner, 26, plumber, was

+brought up upon the charge of having upon the 22nd inst.,

+abstracted from the jewel-case of the Countess of Morcar the

+valuable gem known as the blue carbuncle. James Ryder,

+upper-attendant at the hotel, gave his evidence to the effect

+that he had shown Horner up to the dressing-room of the Countess

+of Morcar upon the day of the robbery in order that he might

+solder the second bar of the grate, which was loose. He had

+remained with Horner some little time, but had finally been

+called away. On returning, he found that Horner had disappeared,

+that the bureau had been forced open, and that the small morocco

+casket in which, as it afterwards transpired, the Countess was

+accustomed to keep her jewel, was lying empty upon the

+dressing-table. Ryder instantly gave the alarm, and Horner was

+arrested the same evening; but the stone could not be found

+either upon his person or in his rooms. Catherine Cusack, maid to

+the Countess, deposed to having heard Ryder's cry of dismay on

+discovering the robbery, and to having rushed into the room,

+where she found matters as described by the last witness.

+Inspector Bradstreet, B division, gave evidence as to the arrest

+of Horner, who struggled frantically, and protested his innocence

+in the strongest terms. Evidence of a previous conviction for

+robbery having been given against the prisoner, the magistrate

+refused to deal summarily with the offence, but referred it to

+the Assizes. Horner, who had shown signs of intense emotion

+during the proceedings, fainted away at the conclusion and was

+carried out of court."

+

+"Hum! So much for the police-court," said Holmes thoughtfully,

+tossing aside the paper. "The question for us now to solve is the

+sequence of events leading from a rifled jewel-case at one end to

+the crop of a goose in Tottenham Court Road at the other. You

+see, Watson, our little deductions have suddenly assumed a much

+more important and less innocent aspect. Here is the stone; the

+stone came from the goose, and the goose came from Mr. Henry

+Baker, the gentleman with the bad hat and all the other

+characteristics with which I have bored you. So now we must set

+ourselves very seriously to finding this gentleman and

+ascertaining what part he has played in this little mystery. To

+do this, we must try the simplest means first, and these lie

+undoubtedly in an advertisement in all the evening papers. If

+this fail, I shall have recourse to other methods."

+

+"What will you say?"

+

+"Give me a pencil and that slip of paper. Now, then: 'Found at

+the corner of Goodge Street, a goose and a black felt hat. Mr.

+Henry Baker can have the same by applying at 6:30 this evening at

+221B, Baker Street.' That is clear and concise."

+

+"Very. But will he see it?"

+

+"Well, he is sure to keep an eye on the papers, since, to a poor

+man, the loss was a heavy one. He was clearly so scared by his

+mischance in breaking the window and by the approach of Peterson

+that he thought of nothing but flight, but since then he must

+have bitterly regretted the impulse which caused him to drop his

+bird. Then, again, the introduction of his name will cause him to

+see it, for everyone who knows him will direct his attention to

+it. Here you are, Peterson, run down to the advertising agency

+and have this put in the evening papers."

+

+"In which, sir?"

+

+"Oh, in the Globe, Star, Pall Mall, St. James's, Evening News,

+Standard, Echo, and any others that occur to you."

+

+"Very well, sir. And this stone?"

+

+"Ah, yes, I shall keep the stone. Thank you. And, I say,

+Peterson, just buy a goose on your way back and leave it here

+with me, for we must have one to give to this gentleman in place

+of the one which your family is now devouring."

+

+When the commissionaire had gone, Holmes took up the stone and

+held it against the light. "It's a bonny thing," said he. "Just

+see how it glints and sparkles. Of course it is a nucleus and

+focus of crime. Every good stone is. They are the devil's pet

+baits. In the larger and older jewels every facet may stand for a

+bloody deed. This stone is not yet twenty years old. It was found

+in the banks of the Amoy River in southern China and is remarkable

+in having every characteristic of the carbuncle, save that it is

+blue in shade instead of ruby red. In spite of its youth, it has

+already a sinister history. There have been two murders, a

+vitriol-throwing, a suicide, and several robberies brought about

+for the sake of this forty-grain weight of crystallised charcoal.

+Who would think that so pretty a toy would be a purveyor to the

+gallows and the prison? I'll lock it up in my strong box now and

+drop a line to the Countess to say that we have it."

+

+"Do you think that this man Horner is innocent?"

+

+"I cannot tell."

+

+"Well, then, do you imagine that this other one, Henry Baker, had

+anything to do with the matter?"

+

+"It is, I think, much more likely that Henry Baker is an

+absolutely innocent man, who had no idea that the bird which he

+was carrying was of considerably more value than if it were made

+of solid gold. That, however, I shall determine by a very simple

+test if we have an answer to our advertisement."

+

+"And you can do nothing until then?"

+

+"Nothing."

+

+"In that case I shall continue my professional round. But I shall

+come back in the evening at the hour you have mentioned, for I

+should like to see the solution of so tangled a business."

+

+"Very glad to see you. I dine at seven. There is a woodcock, I

+believe. By the way, in view of recent occurrences, perhaps I

+ought to ask Mrs. Hudson to examine its crop."

+

+I had been delayed at a case, and it was a little after half-past

+six when I found myself in Baker Street once more. As I

+approached the house I saw a tall man in a Scotch bonnet with a

+coat which was buttoned up to his chin waiting outside in the

+bright semicircle which was thrown from the fanlight. Just as I

+arrived the door was opened, and we were shown up together to

+Holmes' room.

+

+"Mr. Henry Baker, I believe," said he, rising from his armchair

+and greeting his visitor with the easy air of geniality which he

+could so readily assume. "Pray take this chair by the fire, Mr.

+Baker. It is a cold night, and I observe that your circulation is

+more adapted for summer than for winter. Ah, Watson, you have

+just come at the right time. Is that your hat, Mr. Baker?"

+

+"Yes, sir, that is undoubtedly my hat."

+

+He was a large man with rounded shoulders, a massive head, and a

+broad, intelligent face, sloping down to a pointed beard of

+grizzled brown. A touch of red in nose and cheeks, with a slight

+tremor of his extended hand, recalled Holmes' surmise as to his

+habits. His rusty black frock-coat was buttoned right up in

+front, with the collar turned up, and his lank wrists protruded

+from his sleeves without a sign of cuff or shirt. He spoke in a

+slow staccato fashion, choosing his words with care, and gave the

+impression generally of a man of learning and letters who had had

+ill-usage at the hands of fortune.

+

+"We have retained these things for some days," said Holmes,

+"because we expected to see an advertisement from you giving your

+address. I am at a loss to know now why you did not advertise."

+

+Our visitor gave a rather shamefaced laugh. "Shillings have not

+been so plentiful with me as they once were," he remarked. "I had

+no doubt that the gang of roughs who assaulted me had carried off

+both my hat and the bird. I did not care to spend more money in a

+hopeless attempt at recovering them."

+

+"Very naturally. By the way, about the bird, we were compelled to

+eat it."

+

+"To eat it!" Our visitor half rose from his chair in his

+excitement.

+

+"Yes, it would have been of no use to anyone had we not done so.

+But I presume that this other goose upon the sideboard, which is

+about the same weight and perfectly fresh, will answer your

+purpose equally well?"

+

+"Oh, certainly, certainly," answered Mr. Baker with a sigh of

+relief.

+

+"Of course, we still have the feathers, legs, crop, and so on of

+your own bird, so if you wish--"

+

+The man burst into a hearty laugh. "They might be useful to me as

+relics of my adventure," said he, "but beyond that I can hardly

+see what use the disjecta membra of my late acquaintance are

+going to be to me. No, sir, I think that, with your permission, I

+will confine my attentions to the excellent bird which I perceive

+upon the sideboard."

+

+Sherlock Holmes glanced sharply across at me with a slight shrug

+of his shoulders.

+

+"There is your hat, then, and there your bird," said he. "By the

+way, would it bore you to tell me where you got the other one

+from? I am somewhat of a fowl fancier, and I have seldom seen a

+better grown goose."

+

+"Certainly, sir," said Baker, who had risen and tucked his newly

+gained property under his arm. "There are a few of us who

+frequent the Alpha Inn, near the Museum--we are to be found in

+the Museum itself during the day, you understand. This year our

+good host, Windigate by name, instituted a goose club, by which,

+on consideration of some few pence every week, we were each to

+receive a bird at Christmas. My pence were duly paid, and the

+rest is familiar to you. I am much indebted to you, sir, for a

+Scotch bonnet is fitted neither to my years nor my gravity." With

+a comical pomposity of manner he bowed solemnly to both of us and

+strode off upon his way.

+

+"So much for Mr. Henry Baker," said Holmes when he had closed the

+door behind him. "It is quite certain that he knows nothing

+whatever about the matter. Are you hungry, Watson?"

+

+"Not particularly."

+

+"Then I suggest that we turn our dinner into a supper and follow

+up this clue while it is still hot."

+

+"By all means."

+

+It was a bitter night, so we drew on our ulsters and wrapped

+cravats about our throats. Outside, the stars were shining coldly

+in a cloudless sky, and the breath of the passers-by blew out

+into smoke like so many pistol shots. Our footfalls rang out

+crisply and loudly as we swung through the doctors' quarter,

+Wimpole Street, Harley Street, and so through Wigmore Street into

+Oxford Street. In a quarter of an hour we were in Bloomsbury at

+the Alpha Inn, which is a small public-house at the corner of one

+of the streets which runs down into Holborn. Holmes pushed open

+the door of the private bar and ordered two glasses of beer from

+the ruddy-faced, white-aproned landlord.

+

+"Your beer should be excellent if it is as good as your geese,"

+said he.

+

+"My geese!" The man seemed surprised.

+

+"Yes. I was speaking only half an hour ago to Mr. Henry Baker,

+who was a member of your goose club."

+

+"Ah! yes, I see. But you see, sir, them's not our geese."

+

+"Indeed! Whose, then?"

+

+"Well, I got the two dozen from a salesman in Covent Garden."

+

+"Indeed? I know some of them. Which was it?"

+

+"Breckinridge is his name."

+

+"Ah! I don't know him. Well, here's your good health landlord,

+and prosperity to your house. Good-night."

+

+"Now for Mr. Breckinridge," he continued, buttoning up his coat

+as we came out into the frosty air. "Remember, Watson that though

+we have so homely a thing as a goose at one end of this chain, we

+have at the other a man who will certainly get seven years' penal

+servitude unless we can establish his innocence. It is possible

+that our inquiry may but confirm his guilt; but, in any case, we

+have a line of investigation which has been missed by the police,

+and which a singular chance has placed in our hands. Let us

+follow it out to the bitter end. Faces to the south, then, and

+quick march!"

+

+We passed across Holborn, down Endell Street, and so through a

+zigzag of slums to Covent Garden Market. One of the largest

+stalls bore the name of Breckinridge upon it, and the proprietor

+a horsey-looking man, with a sharp face and trim side-whiskers was

+helping a boy to put up the shutters.

+

+"Good-evening. It's a cold night," said Holmes.

+

+The salesman nodded and shot a questioning glance at my

+companion.

+

+"Sold out of geese, I see," continued Holmes, pointing at the

+bare slabs of marble.

+

+"Let you have five hundred to-morrow morning."

+

+"That's no good."

+

+"Well, there are some on the stall with the gas-flare."

+

+"Ah, but I was recommended to you."

+

+"Who by?"

+

+"The landlord of the Alpha."

+

+"Oh, yes; I sent him a couple of dozen."

+

+"Fine birds they were, too. Now where did you get them from?"

+

+To my surprise the question provoked a burst of anger from the

+salesman.

+

+"Now, then, mister," said he, with his head cocked and his arms

+akimbo, "what are you driving at? Let's have it straight, now."

+

+"It is straight enough. I should like to know who sold you the

+geese which you supplied to the Alpha."

+

+"Well then, I shan't tell you. So now!"

+

+"Oh, it is a matter of no importance; but I don't know why you

+should be so warm over such a trifle."

+

+"Warm! You'd be as warm, maybe, if you were as pestered as I am.

+When I pay good money for a good article there should be an end

+of the business; but it's 'Where are the geese?' and 'Who did you

+sell the geese to?' and 'What will you take for the geese?' One

+would think they were the only geese in the world, to hear the

+fuss that is made over them."

+

+"Well, I have no connection with any other people who have been

+making inquiries," said Holmes carelessly. "If you won't tell us

+the bet is off, that is all. But I'm always ready to back my

+opinion on a matter of fowls, and I have a fiver on it that the

+bird I ate is country bred."

+

+"Well, then, you've lost your fiver, for it's town bred," snapped

+the salesman.

+

+"It's nothing of the kind."

+

+"I say it is."

+

+"I don't believe it."

+

+"D'you think you know more about fowls than I, who have handled

+them ever since I was a nipper? I tell you, all those birds that

+went to the Alpha were town bred."

+

+"You'll never persuade me to believe that."

+

+"Will you bet, then?"

+

+"It's merely taking your money, for I know that I am right. But

+I'll have a sovereign on with you, just to teach you not to be

+obstinate."

+

+The salesman chuckled grimly. "Bring me the books, Bill," said

+he.

+

+The small boy brought round a small thin volume and a great

+greasy-backed one, laying them out together beneath the hanging

+lamp.

+

+"Now then, Mr. Cocksure," said the salesman, "I thought that I

+was out of geese, but before I finish you'll find that there is

+still one left in my shop. You see this little book?"

+

+"Well?"

+

+"That's the list of the folk from whom I buy. D'you see? Well,

+then, here on this page are the country folk, and the numbers

+after their names are where their accounts are in the big ledger.

+Now, then! You see this other page in red ink? Well, that is a

+list of my town suppliers. Now, look at that third name. Just

+read it out to me."

+

+"Mrs. Oakshott, 117, Brixton Road--249," read Holmes.

+

+"Quite so. Now turn that up in the ledger."

+

+Holmes turned to the page indicated. "Here you are, 'Mrs.

+Oakshott, 117, Brixton Road, egg and poultry supplier.'"

+

+"Now, then, what's the last entry?"

+

+"'December 22nd. Twenty-four geese at 7s. 6d.'"

+

+"Quite so. There you are. And underneath?"

+

+"'Sold to Mr. Windigate of the Alpha, at 12s.'"

+

+"What have you to say now?"

+

+Sherlock Holmes looked deeply chagrined. He drew a sovereign from

+his pocket and threw it down upon the slab, turning away with the

+air of a man whose disgust is too deep for words. A few yards off

+he stopped under a lamp-post and laughed in the hearty, noiseless

+fashion which was peculiar to him.

+

+"When you see a man with whiskers of that cut and the 'Pink 'un'

+protruding out of his pocket, you can always draw him by a bet,"

+said he. "I daresay that if I had put 100 pounds down in front of

+him, that man would not have given me such complete information

+as was drawn from him by the idea that he was doing me on a

+wager. Well, Watson, we are, I fancy, nearing the end of our

+quest, and the only point which remains to be determined is

+whether we should go on to this Mrs. Oakshott to-night, or

+whether we should reserve it for to-morrow. It is clear from what

+that surly fellow said that there are others besides ourselves

+who are anxious about the matter, and I should--"

+

+His remarks were suddenly cut short by a loud hubbub which broke

+out from the stall which we had just left. Turning round we saw a

+little rat-faced fellow standing in the centre of the circle of

+yellow light which was thrown by the swinging lamp, while

+Breckinridge, the salesman, framed in the door of his stall, was

+shaking his fists fiercely at the cringing figure.

+

+"I've had enough of you and your geese," he shouted. "I wish you

+were all at the devil together. If you come pestering me any more

+with your silly talk I'll set the dog at you. You bring Mrs.

+Oakshott here and I'll answer her, but what have you to do with

+it? Did I buy the geese off you?"

+

+"No; but one of them was mine all the same," whined the little

+man.

+

+"Well, then, ask Mrs. Oakshott for it."

+

+"She told me to ask you."

+

+"Well, you can ask the King of Proosia, for all I care. I've had

+enough of it. Get out of this!" He rushed fiercely forward, and

+the inquirer flitted away into the darkness.

+

+"Ha! this may save us a visit to Brixton Road," whispered Holmes.

+"Come with me, and we will see what is to be made of this

+fellow." Striding through the scattered knots of people who

+lounged round the flaring stalls, my companion speedily overtook

+the little man and touched him upon the shoulder. He sprang

+round, and I could see in the gas-light that every vestige of

+colour had been driven from his face.

+

+"Who are you, then? What do you want?" he asked in a quavering

+voice.

+

+"You will excuse me," said Holmes blandly, "but I could not help

+overhearing the questions which you put to the salesman just now.

+I think that I could be of assistance to you."

+

+"You? Who are you? How could you know anything of the matter?"

+

+"My name is Sherlock Holmes. It is my business to know what other

+people don't know."

+

+"But you can know nothing of this?"

+

+"Excuse me, I know everything of it. You are endeavouring to

+trace some geese which were sold by Mrs. Oakshott, of Brixton

+Road, to a salesman named Breckinridge, by him in turn to Mr.

+Windigate, of the Alpha, and by him to his club, of which Mr.

+Henry Baker is a member."

+

+"Oh, sir, you are the very man whom I have longed to meet," cried

+the little fellow with outstretched hands and quivering fingers.

+"I can hardly explain to you how interested I am in this matter."

+

+Sherlock Holmes hailed a four-wheeler which was passing. "In that

+case we had better discuss it in a cosy room rather than in this

+wind-swept market-place," said he. "But pray tell me, before we

+go farther, who it is that I have the pleasure of assisting."

+

+The man hesitated for an instant. "My name is John Robinson," he

+answered with a sidelong glance.

+

+"No, no; the real name," said Holmes sweetly. "It is always

+awkward doing business with an alias."

+

+A flush sprang to the white cheeks of the stranger. "Well then,"

+said he, "my real name is James Ryder."

+

+"Precisely so. Head attendant at the Hotel Cosmopolitan. Pray

+step into the cab, and I shall soon be able to tell you

+everything which you would wish to know."

+

+The little man stood glancing from one to the other of us with

+half-frightened, half-hopeful eyes, as one who is not sure

+whether he is on the verge of a windfall or of a catastrophe.

+Then he stepped into the cab, and in half an hour we were back in

+the sitting-room at Baker Street. Nothing had been said during

+our drive, but the high, thin breathing of our new companion, and

+the claspings and unclaspings of his hands, spoke of the nervous

+tension within him.

+

+"Here we are!" said Holmes cheerily as we filed into the room.

+"The fire looks very seasonable in this weather. You look cold,

+Mr. Ryder. Pray take the basket-chair. I will just put on my

+slippers before we settle this little matter of yours. Now, then!

+You want to know what became of those geese?"

+

+"Yes, sir."

+

+"Or rather, I fancy, of that goose. It was one bird, I imagine in

+which you were interested--white, with a black bar across the

+tail."

+

+Ryder quivered with emotion. "Oh, sir," he cried, "can you tell

+me where it went to?"

+

+"It came here."

+

+"Here?"

+

+"Yes, and a most remarkable bird it proved. I don't wonder that

+you should take an interest in it. It laid an egg after it was

+dead--the bonniest, brightest little blue egg that ever was seen.

+I have it here in my museum."

+

+Our visitor staggered to his feet and clutched the mantelpiece

+with his right hand. Holmes unlocked his strong-box and held up

+the blue carbuncle, which shone out like a star, with a cold,

+brilliant, many-pointed radiance. Ryder stood glaring with a

+drawn face, uncertain whether to claim or to disown it.

+

+"The game's up, Ryder," said Holmes quietly. "Hold up, man, or

+you'll be into the fire! Give him an arm back into his chair,

+Watson. He's not got blood enough to go in for felony with

+impunity. Give him a dash of brandy. So! Now he looks a little

+more human. What a shrimp it is, to be sure!"

+

+For a moment he had staggered and nearly fallen, but the brandy

+brought a tinge of colour into his cheeks, and he sat staring

+with frightened eyes at his accuser.

+

+"I have almost every link in my hands, and all the proofs which I

+could possibly need, so there is little which you need tell me.

+Still, that little may as well be cleared up to make the case

+complete. You had heard, Ryder, of this blue stone of the

+Countess of Morcar's?"

+

+"It was Catherine Cusack who told me of it," said he in a

+crackling voice.

+

+"I see--her ladyship's waiting-maid. Well, the temptation of

+sudden wealth so easily acquired was too much for you, as it has

+been for better men before you; but you were not very scrupulous

+in the means you used. It seems to me, Ryder, that there is the

+making of a very pretty villain in you. You knew that this man

+Horner, the plumber, had been concerned in some such matter

+before, and that suspicion would rest the more readily upon him.

+What did you do, then? You made some small job in my lady's

+room--you and your confederate Cusack--and you managed that he

+should be the man sent for. Then, when he had left, you rifled

+the jewel-case, raised the alarm, and had this unfortunate man

+arrested. You then--"

+

+Ryder threw himself down suddenly upon the rug and clutched at my

+companion's knees. "For God's sake, have mercy!" he shrieked.

+"Think of my father! Of my mother! It would break their hearts. I

+never went wrong before! I never will again. I swear it. I'll

+swear it on a Bible. Oh, don't bring it into court! For Christ's

+sake, don't!"

+

+"Get back into your chair!" said Holmes sternly. "It is very well

+to cringe and crawl now, but you thought little enough of this

+poor Horner in the dock for a crime of which he knew nothing."

+

+"I will fly, Mr. Holmes. I will leave the country, sir. Then the

+charge against him will break down."

+

+"Hum! We will talk about that. And now let us hear a true account

+of the next act. How came the stone into the goose, and how came

+the goose into the open market? Tell us the truth, for there lies

+your only hope of safety."

+

+Ryder passed his tongue over his parched lips. "I will tell you

+it just as it happened, sir," said he. "When Horner had been

+arrested, it seemed to me that it would be best for me to get

+away with the stone at once, for I did not know at what moment

+the police might not take it into their heads to search me and my

+room. There was no place about the hotel where it would be safe.

+I went out, as if on some commission, and I made for my sister's

+house. She had married a man named Oakshott, and lived in Brixton

+Road, where she fattened fowls for the market. All the way there

+every man I met seemed to me to be a policeman or a detective;

+and, for all that it was a cold night, the sweat was pouring down

+my face before I came to the Brixton Road. My sister asked me

+what was the matter, and why I was so pale; but I told her that I

+had been upset by the jewel robbery at the hotel. Then I went

+into the back yard and smoked a pipe and wondered what it would

+be best to do.

+

+"I had a friend once called Maudsley, who went to the bad, and

+has just been serving his time in Pentonville. One day he had met

+me, and fell into talk about the ways of thieves, and how they

+could get rid of what they stole. I knew that he would be true to

+me, for I knew one or two things about him; so I made up my mind

+to go right on to Kilburn, where he lived, and take him into my

+confidence. He would show me how to turn the stone into money.

+But how to get to him in safety? I thought of the agonies I had

+gone through in coming from the hotel. I might at any moment be

+seized and searched, and there would be the stone in my waistcoat

+pocket. I was leaning against the wall at the time and looking at

+the geese which were waddling about round my feet, and suddenly

+an idea came into my head which showed me how I could beat the

+best detective that ever lived.

+

+"My sister had told me some weeks before that I might have the

+pick of her geese for a Christmas present, and I knew that she

+was always as good as her word. I would take my goose now, and in

+it I would carry my stone to Kilburn. There was a little shed in

+the yard, and behind this I drove one of the birds--a fine big

+one, white, with a barred tail. I caught it, and prying its bill

+open, I thrust the stone down its throat as far as my finger

+could reach. The bird gave a gulp, and I felt the stone pass

+along its gullet and down into its crop. But the creature flapped

+and struggled, and out came my sister to know what was the

+matter. As I turned to speak to her the brute broke loose and

+fluttered off among the others.

+

+"'Whatever were you doing with that bird, Jem?' says she.

+

+"'Well,' said I, 'you said you'd give me one for Christmas, and I

+was feeling which was the fattest.'

+

+"'Oh,' says she, 'we've set yours aside for you--Jem's bird, we

+call it. It's the big white one over yonder. There's twenty-six

+of them, which makes one for you, and one for us, and two dozen

+for the market.'

+

+"'Thank you, Maggie,' says I; 'but if it is all the same to you,

+I'd rather have that one I was handling just now.'

+

+"'The other is a good three pound heavier,' said she, 'and we

+fattened it expressly for you.'

+

+"'Never mind. I'll have the other, and I'll take it now,' said I.

+

+"'Oh, just as you like,' said she, a little huffed. 'Which is it

+you want, then?'

+

+"'That white one with the barred tail, right in the middle of the

+flock.'

+

+"'Oh, very well. Kill it and take it with you.'

+

+"Well, I did what she said, Mr. Holmes, and I carried the bird

+all the way to Kilburn. I told my pal what I had done, for he was

+a man that it was easy to tell a thing like that to. He laughed

+until he choked, and we got a knife and opened the goose. My

+heart turned to water, for there was no sign of the stone, and I

+knew that some terrible mistake had occurred. I left the bird,

+rushed back to my sister's, and hurried into the back yard. There

+was not a bird to be seen there.

+

+"'Where are they all, Maggie?' I cried.

+

+"'Gone to the dealer's, Jem.'

+

+"'Which dealer's?'

+

+"'Breckinridge, of Covent Garden.'

+

+"'But was there another with a barred tail?' I asked, 'the same

+as the one I chose?'

+

+"'Yes, Jem; there were two barred-tailed ones, and I could never

+tell them apart.'

+

+"Well, then, of course I saw it all, and I ran off as hard as my

+feet would carry me to this man Breckinridge; but he had sold the

+lot at once, and not one word would he tell me as to where they

+had gone. You heard him yourselves to-night. Well, he has always

+answered me like that. My sister thinks that I am going mad.

+Sometimes I think that I am myself. And now--and now I am myself

+a branded thief, without ever having touched the wealth for which

+I sold my character. God help me! God help me!" He burst into

+convulsive sobbing, with his face buried in his hands.

+

+There was a long silence, broken only by his heavy breathing and

+by the measured tapping of Sherlock Holmes' finger-tips upon the

+edge of the table. Then my friend rose and threw open the door.

+

+"Get out!" said he.

+

+"What, sir! Oh, Heaven bless you!"

+

+"No more words. Get out!"

+

+And no more words were needed. There was a rush, a clatter upon

+the stairs, the bang of a door, and the crisp rattle of running

+footfalls from the street.

+

+"After all, Watson," said Holmes, reaching up his hand for his

+clay pipe, "I am not retained by the police to supply their

+deficiencies. If Horner were in danger it would be another thing;

+but this fellow will not appear against him, and the case must

+collapse. I suppose that I am commuting a felony, but it is just

+possible that I am saving a soul. This fellow will not go wrong

+again; he is too terribly frightened. Send him to gaol now, and

+you make him a gaol-bird for life. Besides, it is the season of

+forgiveness. Chance has put in our way a most singular and

+whimsical problem, and its solution is its own reward. If you

+will have the goodness to touch the bell, Doctor, we will begin

+another investigation, in which, also a bird will be the chief

+feature."

+

+

+

+VIII. THE ADVENTURE OF THE SPECKLED BAND

+

+On glancing over my notes of the seventy odd cases in which I

+have during the last eight years studied the methods of my friend

+Sherlock Holmes, I find many tragic, some comic, a large number

+merely strange, but none commonplace; for, working as he did

+rather for the love of his art than for the acquirement of

+wealth, he refused to associate himself with any investigation

+which did not tend towards the unusual, and even the fantastic.

+Of all these varied cases, however, I cannot recall any which

+presented more singular features than that which was associated

+with the well-known Surrey family of the Roylotts of Stoke Moran.

+The events in question occurred in the early days of my

+association with Holmes, when we were sharing rooms as bachelors

+in Baker Street. It is possible that I might have placed them

+upon record before, but a promise of secrecy was made at the

+time, from which I have only been freed during the last month by

+the untimely death of the lady to whom the pledge was given. It

+is perhaps as well that the facts should now come to light, for I

+have reasons to know that there are widespread rumours as to the

+death of Dr. Grimesby Roylott which tend to make the matter even

+more terrible than the truth.

+

+It was early in April in the year '83 that I woke one morning to

+find Sherlock Holmes standing, fully dressed, by the side of my

+bed. He was a late riser, as a rule, and as the clock on the

+mantelpiece showed me that it was only a quarter-past seven, I

+blinked up at him in some surprise, and perhaps just a little

+resentment, for I was myself regular in my habits.

+

+"Very sorry to knock you up, Watson," said he, "but it's the

+common lot this morning. Mrs. Hudson has been knocked up, she

+retorted upon me, and I on you."

+

+"What is it, then--a fire?"

+

+"No; a client. It seems that a young lady has arrived in a

+considerable state of excitement, who insists upon seeing me. She

+is waiting now in the sitting-room. Now, when young ladies wander

+about the metropolis at this hour of the morning, and knock

+sleepy people up out of their beds, I presume that it is

+something very pressing which they have to communicate. Should it

+prove to be an interesting case, you would, I am sure, wish to

+follow it from the outset. I thought, at any rate, that I should

+call you and give you the chance."

+

+"My dear fellow, I would not miss it for anything."

+

+I had no keener pleasure than in following Holmes in his

+professional investigations, and in admiring the rapid

+deductions, as swift as intuitions, and yet always founded on a

+logical basis with which he unravelled the problems which were

+submitted to him. I rapidly threw on my clothes and was ready in

+a few minutes to accompany my friend down to the sitting-room. A

+lady dressed in black and heavily veiled, who had been sitting in

+the window, rose as we entered.

+

+"Good-morning, madam," said Holmes cheerily. "My name is Sherlock

+Holmes. This is my intimate friend and associate, Dr. Watson,

+before whom you can speak as freely as before myself. Ha! I am

+glad to see that Mrs. Hudson has had the good sense to light the

+fire. Pray draw up to it, and I shall order you a cup of hot

+coffee, for I observe that you are shivering."

+

+"It is not cold which makes me shiver," said the woman in a low

+voice, changing her seat as requested.

+

+"What, then?"

+

+"It is fear, Mr. Holmes. It is terror." She raised her veil as

+she spoke, and we could see that she was indeed in a pitiable

+state of agitation, her face all drawn and grey, with restless

+frightened eyes, like those of some hunted animal. Her features

+and figure were those of a woman of thirty, but her hair was shot

+with premature grey, and her expression was weary and haggard.

+Sherlock Holmes ran her over with one of his quick,

+all-comprehensive glances.

+

+"You must not fear," said he soothingly, bending forward and

+patting her forearm. "We shall soon set matters right, I have no

+doubt. You have come in by train this morning, I see."

+

+"You know me, then?"

+

+"No, but I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm

+of your left glove. You must have started early, and yet you had

+a good drive in a dog-cart, along heavy roads, before you reached

+the station."

+

+The lady gave a violent start and stared in bewilderment at my

+companion.

+

+"There is no mystery, my dear madam," said he, smiling. "The left

+arm of your jacket is spattered with mud in no less than seven

+places. The marks are perfectly fresh. There is no vehicle save a

+dog-cart which throws up mud in that way, and then only when you

+sit on the left-hand side of the driver."

+

+"Whatever your reasons may be, you are perfectly correct," said

+she. "I started from home before six, reached Leatherhead at

+twenty past, and came in by the first train to Waterloo. Sir, I

+can stand this strain no longer; I shall go mad if it continues.

+I have no one to turn to--none, save only one, who cares for me,

+and he, poor fellow, can be of little aid. I have heard of you,

+Mr. Holmes; I have heard of you from Mrs. Farintosh, whom you

+helped in the hour of her sore need. It was from her that I had

+your address. Oh, sir, do you not think that you could help me,

+too, and at least throw a little light through the dense darkness

+which surrounds me? At present it is out of my power to reward

+you for your services, but in a month or six weeks I shall be

+married, with the control of my own income, and then at least you

+shall not find me ungrateful."

+

+Holmes turned to his desk and, unlocking it, drew out a small

+case-book, which he consulted.

+

+"Farintosh," said he. "Ah yes, I recall the case; it was

+concerned with an opal tiara. I think it was before your time,

+Watson. I can only say, madam, that I shall be happy to devote

+the same care to your case as I did to that of your friend. As to

+reward, my profession is its own reward; but you are at liberty

+to defray whatever expenses I may be put to, at the time which

+suits you best. And now I beg that you will lay before us

+everything that may help us in forming an opinion upon the

+matter."

+

+"Alas!" replied our visitor, "the very horror of my situation

+lies in the fact that my fears are so vague, and my suspicions

+depend so entirely upon small points, which might seem trivial to

+another, that even he to whom of all others I have a right to

+look for help and advice looks upon all that I tell him about it

+as the fancies of a nervous woman. He does not say so, but I can

+read it from his soothing answers and averted eyes. But I have

+heard, Mr. Holmes, that you can see deeply into the manifold

+wickedness of the human heart. You may advise me how to walk amid

+the dangers which encompass me."

+

+"I am all attention, madam."

+

+"My name is Helen Stoner, and I am living with my stepfather, who

+is the last survivor of one of the oldest Saxon families in

+England, the Roylotts of Stoke Moran, on the western border of

+Surrey."

+

+Holmes nodded his head. "The name is familiar to me," said he.

+

+"The family was at one time among the richest in England, and the

+estates extended over the borders into Berkshire in the north,

+and Hampshire in the west. In the last century, however, four

+successive heirs were of a dissolute and wasteful disposition,

+and the family ruin was eventually completed by a gambler in the

+days of the Regency. Nothing was left save a few acres of ground,

+and the two-hundred-year-old house, which is itself crushed under

+a heavy mortgage. The last squire dragged out his existence

+there, living the horrible life of an aristocratic pauper; but

+his only son, my stepfather, seeing that he must adapt himself to

+the new conditions, obtained an advance from a relative, which

+enabled him to take a medical degree and went out to Calcutta,

+where, by his professional skill and his force of character, he

+established a large practice. In a fit of anger, however, caused

+by some robberies which had been perpetrated in the house, he

+beat his native butler to death and narrowly escaped a capital

+sentence. As it was, he suffered a long term of imprisonment and

+afterwards returned to England a morose and disappointed man.

+

+"When Dr. Roylott was in India he married my mother, Mrs. Stoner,

+the young widow of Major-General Stoner, of the Bengal Artillery.

+My sister Julia and I were twins, and we were only two years old

+at the time of my mother's re-marriage. She had a considerable

+sum of money--not less than 1000 pounds a year--and this she

+bequeathed to Dr. Roylott entirely while we resided with him,

+with a provision that a certain annual sum should be allowed to

+each of us in the event of our marriage. Shortly after our return

+to England my mother died--she was killed eight years ago in a

+railway accident near Crewe. Dr. Roylott then abandoned his

+attempts to establish himself in practice in London and took us

+to live with him in the old ancestral house at Stoke Moran. The

+money which my mother had left was enough for all our wants, and

+there seemed to be no obstacle to our happiness.

+

+"But a terrible change came over our stepfather about this time.

+Instead of making friends and exchanging visits with our

+neighbours, who had at first been overjoyed to see a Roylott of

+Stoke Moran back in the old family seat, he shut himself up in

+his house and seldom came out save to indulge in ferocious

+quarrels with whoever might cross his path. Violence of temper

+approaching to mania has been hereditary in the men of the

+family, and in my stepfather's case it had, I believe, been

+intensified by his long residence in the tropics. A series of

+disgraceful brawls took place, two of which ended in the

+police-court, until at last he became the terror of the village,

+and the folks would fly at his approach, for he is a man of

+immense strength, and absolutely uncontrollable in his anger.

+

+"Last week he hurled the local blacksmith over a parapet into a

+stream, and it was only by paying over all the money which I

+could gather together that I was able to avert another public

+exposure. He had no friends at all save the wandering gipsies,

+and he would give these vagabonds leave to encamp upon the few

+acres of bramble-covered land which represent the family estate,

+and would accept in return the hospitality of their tents,

+wandering away with them sometimes for weeks on end. He has a

+passion also for Indian animals, which are sent over to him by a

+correspondent, and he has at this moment a cheetah and a baboon,

+which wander freely over his grounds and are feared by the

+villagers almost as much as their master.

+

+"You can imagine from what I say that my poor sister Julia and I

+had no great pleasure in our lives. No servant would stay with

+us, and for a long time we did all the work of the house. She was

+but thirty at the time of her death, and yet her hair had already

+begun to whiten, even as mine has."

+

+"Your sister is dead, then?"

+

+"She died just two years ago, and it is of her death that I wish

+to speak to you. You can understand that, living the life which I

+have described, we were little likely to see anyone of our own

+age and position. We had, however, an aunt, my mother's maiden

+sister, Miss Honoria Westphail, who lives near Harrow, and we

+were occasionally allowed to pay short visits at this lady's

+house. Julia went there at Christmas two years ago, and met there

+a half-pay major of marines, to whom she became engaged. My

+stepfather learned of the engagement when my sister returned and

+offered no objection to the marriage; but within a fortnight of

+the day which had been fixed for the wedding, the terrible event

+occurred which has deprived me of my only companion."

+

+Sherlock Holmes had been leaning back in his chair with his eyes

+closed and his head sunk in a cushion, but he half opened his

+lids now and glanced across at his visitor.

+

+"Pray be precise as to details," said he.

+

+"It is easy for me to be so, for every event of that dreadful

+time is seared into my memory. The manor-house is, as I have

+already said, very old, and only one wing is now inhabited. The

+bedrooms in this wing are on the ground floor, the sitting-rooms

+being in the central block of the buildings. Of these bedrooms

+the first is Dr. Roylott's, the second my sister's, and the third

+my own. There is no communication between them, but they all open

+out into the same corridor. Do I make myself plain?"

+

+"Perfectly so."

+

+"The windows of the three rooms open out upon the lawn. That

+fatal night Dr. Roylott had gone to his room early, though we

+knew that he had not retired to rest, for my sister was troubled

+by the smell of the strong Indian cigars which it was his custom

+to smoke. She left her room, therefore, and came into mine, where

+she sat for some time, chatting about her approaching wedding. At

+eleven o'clock she rose to leave me, but she paused at the door

+and looked back.

+

+"'Tell me, Helen,' said she, 'have you ever heard anyone whistle

+in the dead of the night?'

+

+"'Never,' said I.

+

+"'I suppose that you could not possibly whistle, yourself, in

+your sleep?'

+

+"'Certainly not. But why?'

+

+"'Because during the last few nights I have always, about three

+in the morning, heard a low, clear whistle. I am a light sleeper,

+and it has awakened me. I cannot tell where it came from--perhaps

+from the next room, perhaps from the lawn. I thought that I would

+just ask you whether you had heard it.'

+

+"'No, I have not. It must be those wretched gipsies in the

+plantation.'

+

+"'Very likely. And yet if it were on the lawn, I wonder that you

+did not hear it also.'

+

+"'Ah, but I sleep more heavily than you.'

+

+"'Well, it is of no great consequence, at any rate.' She smiled

+back at me, closed my door, and a few moments later I heard her

+key turn in the lock."

+

+"Indeed," said Holmes. "Was it your custom always to lock

+yourselves in at night?"

+

+"Always."

+

+"And why?"

+

+"I think that I mentioned to you that the doctor kept a cheetah

+and a baboon. We had no feeling of security unless our doors were

+locked."

+

+"Quite so. Pray proceed with your statement."

+

+"I could not sleep that night. A vague feeling of impending

+misfortune impressed me. My sister and I, you will recollect,

+were twins, and you know how subtle are the links which bind two

+souls which are so closely allied. It was a wild night. The wind

+was howling outside, and the rain was beating and splashing

+against the windows. Suddenly, amid all the hubbub of the gale,

+there burst forth the wild scream of a terrified woman. I knew

+that it was my sister's voice. I sprang from my bed, wrapped a

+shawl round me, and rushed into the corridor. As I opened my door

+I seemed to hear a low whistle, such as my sister described, and

+a few moments later a clanging sound, as if a mass of metal had

+fallen. As I ran down the passage, my sister's door was unlocked,

+and revolved slowly upon its hinges. I stared at it

+horror-stricken, not knowing what was about to issue from it. By

+the light of the corridor-lamp I saw my sister appear at the

+opening, her face blanched with terror, her hands groping for

+help, her whole figure swaying to and fro like that of a

+drunkard. I ran to her and threw my arms round her, but at that

+moment her knees seemed to give way and she fell to the ground.

+She writhed as one who is in terrible pain, and her limbs were

+dreadfully convulsed. At first I thought that she had not

+recognised me, but as I bent over her she suddenly shrieked out

+in a voice which I shall never forget, 'Oh, my God! Helen! It was

+the band! The speckled band!' There was something else which she

+would fain have said, and she stabbed with her finger into the

+air in the direction of the doctor's room, but a fresh convulsion

+seized her and choked her words. I rushed out, calling loudly for

+my stepfather, and I met him hastening from his room in his

+dressing-gown. When he reached my sister's side she was

+unconscious, and though he poured brandy down her throat and sent

+for medical aid from the village, all efforts were in vain, for

+she slowly sank and died without having recovered her

+consciousness. Such was the dreadful end of my beloved sister."

+

+"One moment," said Holmes, "are you sure about this whistle and

+metallic sound? Could you swear to it?"

+

+"That was what the county coroner asked me at the inquiry. It is

+my strong impression that I heard it, and yet, among the crash of

+the gale and the creaking of an old house, I may possibly have

+been deceived."

+

+"Was your sister dressed?"

+

+"No, she was in her night-dress. In her right hand was found the

+charred stump of a match, and in her left a match-box."

+

+"Showing that she had struck a light and looked about her when

+the alarm took place. That is important. And what conclusions did

+the coroner come to?"

+

+"He investigated the case with great care, for Dr. Roylott's

+conduct had long been notorious in the county, but he was unable

+to find any satisfactory cause of death. My evidence showed that

+the door had been fastened upon the inner side, and the windows

+were blocked by old-fashioned shutters with broad iron bars,

+which were secured every night. The walls were carefully sounded,

+and were shown to be quite solid all round, and the flooring was

+also thoroughly examined, with the same result. The chimney is

+wide, but is barred up by four large staples. It is certain,

+therefore, that my sister was quite alone when she met her end.

+Besides, there were no marks of any violence upon her."

+

+"How about poison?"

+

+"The doctors examined her for it, but without success."

+

+"What do you think that this unfortunate lady died of, then?"

+

+"It is my belief that she died of pure fear and nervous shock,

+though what it was that frightened her I cannot imagine."

+

+"Were there gipsies in the plantation at the time?"

+

+"Yes, there are nearly always some there."

+

+"Ah, and what did you gather from this allusion to a band--a

+speckled band?"

+

+"Sometimes I have thought that it was merely the wild talk of

+delirium, sometimes that it may have referred to some band of

+people, perhaps to these very gipsies in the plantation. I do not

+know whether the spotted handkerchiefs which so many of them wear

+over their heads might have suggested the strange adjective which

+she used."

+

+Holmes shook his head like a man who is far from being satisfied.

+

+"These are very deep waters," said he; "pray go on with your

+narrative."

+

+"Two years have passed since then, and my life has been until

+lately lonelier than ever. A month ago, however, a dear friend,

+whom I have known for many years, has done me the honour to ask

+my hand in marriage. His name is Armitage--Percy Armitage--the

+second son of Mr. Armitage, of Crane Water, near Reading. My

+stepfather has offered no opposition to the match, and we are to

+be married in the course of the spring. Two days ago some repairs

+were started in the west wing of the building, and my bedroom

+wall has been pierced, so that I have had to move into the

+chamber in which my sister died, and to sleep in the very bed in

+which she slept. Imagine, then, my thrill of terror when last

+night, as I lay awake, thinking over her terrible fate, I

+suddenly heard in the silence of the night the low whistle which

+had been the herald of her own death. I sprang up and lit the

+lamp, but nothing was to be seen in the room. I was too shaken to

+go to bed again, however, so I dressed, and as soon as it was

+daylight I slipped down, got a dog-cart at the Crown Inn, which

+is opposite, and drove to Leatherhead, from whence I have come on

+this morning with the one object of seeing you and asking your

+advice."

+

+"You have done wisely," said my friend. "But have you told me

+all?"

+

+"Yes, all."

+

+"Miss Roylott, you have not. You are screening your stepfather."

+

+"Why, what do you mean?"

+

+For answer Holmes pushed back the frill of black lace which

+fringed the hand that lay upon our visitor's knee. Five little

+livid spots, the marks of four fingers and a thumb, were printed

+upon the white wrist.

+

+"You have been cruelly used," said Holmes.

+

+The lady coloured deeply and covered over her injured wrist. "He

+is a hard man," she said, "and perhaps he hardly knows his own

+strength."

+

+There was a long silence, during which Holmes leaned his chin

+upon his hands and stared into the crackling fire.

+

+"This is a very deep business," he said at last. "There are a

+thousand details which I should desire to know before I decide

+upon our course of action. Yet we have not a moment to lose. If

+we were to come to Stoke Moran to-day, would it be possible for

+us to see over these rooms without the knowledge of your

+stepfather?"

+

+"As it happens, he spoke of coming into town to-day upon some

+most important business. It is probable that he will be away all

+day, and that there would be nothing to disturb you. We have a

+housekeeper now, but she is old and foolish, and I could easily

+get her out of the way."

+

+"Excellent. You are not averse to this trip, Watson?"

+

+"By no means."

+

+"Then we shall both come. What are you going to do yourself?"

+

+"I have one or two things which I would wish to do now that I am

+in town. But I shall return by the twelve o'clock train, so as to

+be there in time for your coming."

+

+"And you may expect us early in the afternoon. I have myself some

+small business matters to attend to. Will you not wait and

+breakfast?"

+

+"No, I must go. My heart is lightened already since I have

+confided my trouble to you. I shall look forward to seeing you

+again this afternoon." She dropped her thick black veil over her

+face and glided from the room.

+

+"And what do you think of it all, Watson?" asked Sherlock Holmes,

+leaning back in his chair.

+

+"It seems to me to be a most dark and sinister business."

+

+"Dark enough and sinister enough."

+

+"Yet if the lady is correct in saying that the flooring and walls

+are sound, and that the door, window, and chimney are impassable,

+then her sister must have been undoubtedly alone when she met her

+mysterious end."

+

+"What becomes, then, of these nocturnal whistles, and what of the

+very peculiar words of the dying woman?"

+

+"I cannot think."

+

+"When you combine the ideas of whistles at night, the presence of

+a band of gipsies who are on intimate terms with this old doctor,

+the fact that we have every reason to believe that the doctor has

+an interest in preventing his stepdaughter's marriage, the dying

+allusion to a band, and, finally, the fact that Miss Helen Stoner

+heard a metallic clang, which might have been caused by one of

+those metal bars that secured the shutters falling back into its

+place, I think that there is good ground to think that the

+mystery may be cleared along those lines."

+

+"But what, then, did the gipsies do?"

+

+"I cannot imagine."

+

+"I see many objections to any such theory."

+

+"And so do I. It is precisely for that reason that we are going

+to Stoke Moran this day. I want to see whether the objections are

+fatal, or if they may be explained away. But what in the name of

+the devil!"

+

+The ejaculation had been drawn from my companion by the fact that

+our door had been suddenly dashed open, and that a huge man had

+framed himself in the aperture. His costume was a peculiar

+mixture of the professional and of the agricultural, having a

+black top-hat, a long frock-coat, and a pair of high gaiters,

+with a hunting-crop swinging in his hand. So tall was he that his

+hat actually brushed the cross bar of the doorway, and his

+breadth seemed to span it across from side to side. A large face,

+seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow with the sun, and

+marked with every evil passion, was turned from one to the other

+of us, while his deep-set, bile-shot eyes, and his high, thin,

+fleshless nose, gave him somewhat the resemblance to a fierce old

+bird of prey.

+

+"Which of you is Holmes?" asked this apparition.

+

+"My name, sir; but you have the advantage of me," said my

+companion quietly.

+

+"I am Dr. Grimesby Roylott, of Stoke Moran."

+

+"Indeed, Doctor," said Holmes blandly. "Pray take a seat."

+

+"I will do nothing of the kind. My stepdaughter has been here. I

+have traced her. What has she been saying to you?"

+

+"It is a little cold for the time of the year," said Holmes.

+

+"What has she been saying to you?" screamed the old man

+furiously.

+

+"But I have heard that the crocuses promise well," continued my

+companion imperturbably.

+

+"Ha! You put me off, do you?" said our new visitor, taking a step

+forward and shaking his hunting-crop. "I know you, you scoundrel!

+I have heard of you before. You are Holmes, the meddler."

+

+My friend smiled.

+

+"Holmes, the busybody!"

+

+His smile broadened.

+

+"Holmes, the Scotland Yard Jack-in-office!"

+

+Holmes chuckled heartily. "Your conversation is most

+entertaining," said he. "When you go out close the door, for

+there is a decided draught."

+

+"I will go when I have said my say. Don't you dare to meddle with

+my affairs. I know that Miss Stoner has been here. I traced her!

+I am a dangerous man to fall foul of! See here." He stepped

+swiftly forward, seized the poker, and bent it into a curve with

+his huge brown hands.

+

+"See that you keep yourself out of my grip," he snarled, and

+hurling the twisted poker into the fireplace he strode out of the

+room.

+

+"He seems a very amiable person," said Holmes, laughing. "I am

+not quite so bulky, but if he had remained I might have shown him

+that my grip was not much more feeble than his own." As he spoke

+he picked up the steel poker and, with a sudden effort,

+straightened it out again.

+

+"Fancy his having the insolence to confound me with the official

+detective force! This incident gives zest to our investigation,

+however, and I only trust that our little friend will not suffer

+from her imprudence in allowing this brute to trace her. And now,

+Watson, we shall order breakfast, and afterwards I shall walk

+down to Doctors' Commons, where I hope to get some data which may

+help us in this matter."

+

+

+It was nearly one o'clock when Sherlock Holmes returned from his

+excursion. He held in his hand a sheet of blue paper, scrawled

+over with notes and figures.

+

+"I have seen the will of the deceased wife," said he. "To

+determine its exact meaning I have been obliged to work out the

+present prices of the investments with which it is concerned. The

+total income, which at the time of the wife's death was little

+short of 1100 pounds, is now, through the fall in agricultural

+prices, not more than 750 pounds. Each daughter can claim an

+income of 250 pounds, in case of marriage. It is evident,

+therefore, that if both girls had married, this beauty would have

+had a mere pittance, while even one of them would cripple him to

+a very serious extent. My morning's work has not been wasted,

+since it has proved that he has the very strongest motives for

+standing in the way of anything of the sort. And now, Watson,

+this is too serious for dawdling, especially as the old man is

+aware that we are interesting ourselves in his affairs; so if you

+are ready, we shall call a cab and drive to Waterloo. I should be

+very much obliged if you would slip your revolver into your

+pocket. An Eley's No. 2 is an excellent argument with gentlemen

+who can twist steel pokers into knots. That and a tooth-brush

+are, I think, all that we need."

+

+At Waterloo we were fortunate in catching a train for

+Leatherhead, where we hired a trap at the station inn and drove

+for four or five miles through the lovely Surrey lanes. It was a

+perfect day, with a bright sun and a few fleecy clouds in the

+heavens. The trees and wayside hedges were just throwing out

+their first green shoots, and the air was full of the pleasant

+smell of the moist earth. To me at least there was a strange

+contrast between the sweet promise of the spring and this

+sinister quest upon which we were engaged. My companion sat in

+the front of the trap, his arms folded, his hat pulled down over

+his eyes, and his chin sunk upon his breast, buried in the

+deepest thought. Suddenly, however, he started, tapped me on the

+shoulder, and pointed over the meadows.

+

+"Look there!" said he.

+

+A heavily timbered park stretched up in a gentle slope,

+thickening into a grove at the highest point. From amid the

+branches there jutted out the grey gables and high roof-tree of a

+very old mansion.

+

+"Stoke Moran?" said he.

+

+"Yes, sir, that be the house of Dr. Grimesby Roylott," remarked

+the driver.

+

+"There is some building going on there," said Holmes; "that is

+where we are going."

+

+"There's the village," said the driver, pointing to a cluster of

+roofs some distance to the left; "but if you want to get to the

+house, you'll find it shorter to get over this stile, and so by

+the foot-path over the fields. There it is, where the lady is

+walking."

+

+"And the lady, I fancy, is Miss Stoner," observed Holmes, shading

+his eyes. "Yes, I think we had better do as you suggest."

+

+We got off, paid our fare, and the trap rattled back on its way

+to Leatherhead.

+

+"I thought it as well," said Holmes as we climbed the stile,

+"that this fellow should think we had come here as architects, or

+on some definite business. It may stop his gossip.

+Good-afternoon, Miss Stoner. You see that we have been as good as

+our word."

+

+Our client of the morning had hurried forward to meet us with a

+face which spoke her joy. "I have been waiting so eagerly for

+you," she cried, shaking hands with us warmly. "All has turned

+out splendidly. Dr. Roylott has gone to town, and it is unlikely

+that he will be back before evening."

+

+"We have had the pleasure of making the doctor's acquaintance,"

+said Holmes, and in a few words he sketched out what had

+occurred. Miss Stoner turned white to the lips as she listened.

+

+"Good heavens!" she cried, "he has followed me, then."

+

+"So it appears."

+

+"He is so cunning that I never know when I am safe from him. What

+will he say when he returns?"

+

+"He must guard himself, for he may find that there is someone

+more cunning than himself upon his track. You must lock yourself

+up from him to-night. If he is violent, we shall take you away to

+your aunt's at Harrow. Now, we must make the best use of our

+time, so kindly take us at once to the rooms which we are to

+examine."

+

+The building was of grey, lichen-blotched stone, with a high

+central portion and two curving wings, like the claws of a crab,

+thrown out on each side. In one of these wings the windows were

+broken and blocked with wooden boards, while the roof was partly

+caved in, a picture of ruin. The central portion was in little

+better repair, but the right-hand block was comparatively modern,

+and the blinds in the windows, with the blue smoke curling up

+from the chimneys, showed that this was where the family resided.

+Some scaffolding had been erected against the end wall, and the

+stone-work had been broken into, but there were no signs of any

+workmen at the moment of our visit. Holmes walked slowly up and

+down the ill-trimmed lawn and examined with deep attention the

+outsides of the windows.

+

+"This, I take it, belongs to the room in which you used to sleep,

+the centre one to your sister's, and the one next to the main

+building to Dr. Roylott's chamber?"

+

+"Exactly so. But I am now sleeping in the middle one."

+

+"Pending the alterations, as I understand. By the way, there does

+not seem to be any very pressing need for repairs at that end

+wall."

+

+"There were none. I believe that it was an excuse to move me from

+my room."

+

+"Ah! that is suggestive. Now, on the other side of this narrow

+wing runs the corridor from which these three rooms open. There

+are windows in it, of course?"

+

+"Yes, but very small ones. Too narrow for anyone to pass

+through."

+

+"As you both locked your doors at night, your rooms were

+unapproachable from that side. Now, would you have the kindness

+to go into your room and bar your shutters?"

+

+Miss Stoner did so, and Holmes, after a careful examination

+through the open window, endeavoured in every way to force the

+shutter open, but without success. There was no slit through

+which a knife could be passed to raise the bar. Then with his

+lens he tested the hinges, but they were of solid iron, built

+firmly into the massive masonry. "Hum!" said he, scratching his

+chin in some perplexity, "my theory certainly presents some

+difficulties. No one could pass these shutters if they were

+bolted. Well, we shall see if the inside throws any light upon

+the matter."

+

+A small side door led into the whitewashed corridor from which

+the three bedrooms opened. Holmes refused to examine the third

+chamber, so we passed at once to the second, that in which Miss

+Stoner was now sleeping, and in which her sister had met with her

+fate. It was a homely little room, with a low ceiling and a

+gaping fireplace, after the fashion of old country-houses. A

+brown chest of drawers stood in one corner, a narrow

+white-counterpaned bed in another, and a dressing-table on the

+left-hand side of the window. These articles, with two small

+wicker-work chairs, made up all the furniture in the room save

+for a square of Wilton carpet in the centre. The boards round and

+the panelling of the walls were of brown, worm-eaten oak, so old

+and discoloured that it may have dated from the original building

+of the house. Holmes drew one of the chairs into a corner and sat

+silent, while his eyes travelled round and round and up and down,

+taking in every detail of the apartment.

+

+"Where does that bell communicate with?" he asked at last

+pointing to a thick bell-rope which hung down beside the bed, the

+tassel actually lying upon the pillow.

+

+"It goes to the housekeeper's room."

+

+"It looks newer than the other things?"

+

+"Yes, it was only put there a couple of years ago."

+

+"Your sister asked for it, I suppose?"

+

+"No, I never heard of her using it. We used always to get what we

+wanted for ourselves."

+

+"Indeed, it seemed unnecessary to put so nice a bell-pull there.

+You will excuse me for a few minutes while I satisfy myself as to

+this floor." He threw himself down upon his face with his lens in

+his hand and crawled swiftly backward and forward, examining

+minutely the cracks between the boards. Then he did the same with

+the wood-work with which the chamber was panelled. Finally he

+walked over to the bed and spent some time in staring at it and

+in running his eye up and down the wall. Finally he took the

+bell-rope in his hand and gave it a brisk tug.

+

+"Why, it's a dummy," said he.

+

+"Won't it ring?"

+

+"No, it is not even attached to a wire. This is very interesting.

+You can see now that it is fastened to a hook just above where

+the little opening for the ventilator is."

+

+"How very absurd! I never noticed that before."

+

+"Very strange!" muttered Holmes, pulling at the rope. "There are

+one or two very singular points about this room. For example,

+what a fool a builder must be to open a ventilator into another

+room, when, with the same trouble, he might have communicated

+with the outside air!"

+

+"That is also quite modern," said the lady.

+

+"Done about the same time as the bell-rope?" remarked Holmes.

+

+"Yes, there were several little changes carried out about that

+time."

+

+"They seem to have been of a most interesting character--dummy

+bell-ropes, and ventilators which do not ventilate. With your

+permission, Miss Stoner, we shall now carry our researches into

+the inner apartment."

+

+Dr. Grimesby Roylott's chamber was larger than that of his

+step-daughter, but was as plainly furnished. A camp-bed, a small

+wooden shelf full of books, mostly of a technical character, an

+armchair beside the bed, a plain wooden chair against the wall, a

+round table, and a large iron safe were the principal things

+which met the eye. Holmes walked slowly round and examined each

+and all of them with the keenest interest.

+

+"What's in here?" he asked, tapping the safe.

+

+"My stepfather's business papers."

+

+"Oh! you have seen inside, then?"

+

+"Only once, some years ago. I remember that it was full of

+papers."

+

+"There isn't a cat in it, for example?"

+

+"No. What a strange idea!"

+

+"Well, look at this!" He took up a small saucer of milk which

+stood on the top of it.

+

+"No; we don't keep a cat. But there is a cheetah and a baboon."

+

+"Ah, yes, of course! Well, a cheetah is just a big cat, and yet a

+saucer of milk does not go very far in satisfying its wants, I

+daresay. There is one point which I should wish to determine." He

+squatted down in front of the wooden chair and examined the seat

+of it with the greatest attention.

+

+"Thank you. That is quite settled," said he, rising and putting

+his lens in his pocket. "Hullo! Here is something interesting!"

+

+The object which had caught his eye was a small dog lash hung on

+one corner of the bed. The lash, however, was curled upon itself

+and tied so as to make a loop of whipcord.

+

+"What do you make of that, Watson?"

+

+"It's a common enough lash. But I don't know why it should be

+tied."

+

+"That is not quite so common, is it? Ah, me! it's a wicked world,

+and when a clever man turns his brains to crime it is the worst

+of all. I think that I have seen enough now, Miss Stoner, and

+with your permission we shall walk out upon the lawn."

+

+I had never seen my friend's face so grim or his brow so dark as

+it was when we turned from the scene of this investigation. We

+had walked several times up and down the lawn, neither Miss

+Stoner nor myself liking to break in upon his thoughts before he

+roused himself from his reverie.

+

+"It is very essential, Miss Stoner," said he, "that you should

+absolutely follow my advice in every respect."

+

+"I shall most certainly do so."

+

+"The matter is too serious for any hesitation. Your life may

+depend upon your compliance."

+

+"I assure you that I am in your hands."

+

+"In the first place, both my friend and I must spend the night in

+your room."

+

+Both Miss Stoner and I gazed at him in astonishment.

+

+"Yes, it must be so. Let me explain. I believe that that is the

+village inn over there?"

+

+"Yes, that is the Crown."

+

+"Very good. Your windows would be visible from there?"

+

+"Certainly."

+

+"You must confine yourself to your room, on pretence of a

+headache, when your stepfather comes back. Then when you hear him

+retire for the night, you must open the shutters of your window,

+undo the hasp, put your lamp there as a signal to us, and then

+withdraw quietly with everything which you are likely to want

+into the room which you used to occupy. I have no doubt that, in

+spite of the repairs, you could manage there for one night."

+

+"Oh, yes, easily."

+

+"The rest you will leave in our hands."

+

+"But what will you do?"

+

+"We shall spend the night in your room, and we shall investigate

+the cause of this noise which has disturbed you."

+

+"I believe, Mr. Holmes, that you have already made up your mind,"

+said Miss Stoner, laying her hand upon my companion's sleeve.

+

+"Perhaps I have."

+

+"Then, for pity's sake, tell me what was the cause of my sister's

+death."

+

+"I should prefer to have clearer proofs before I speak."

+

+"You can at least tell me whether my own thought is correct, and

+if she died from some sudden fright."

+

+"No, I do not think so. I think that there was probably some more

+tangible cause. And now, Miss Stoner, we must leave you for if

+Dr. Roylott returned and saw us our journey would be in vain.

+Good-bye, and be brave, for if you will do what I have told you,

+you may rest assured that we shall soon drive away the dangers

+that threaten you."

+

+Sherlock Holmes and I had no difficulty in engaging a bedroom and

+sitting-room at the Crown Inn. They were on the upper floor, and

+from our window we could command a view of the avenue gate, and

+of the inhabited wing of Stoke Moran Manor House. At dusk we saw

+Dr. Grimesby Roylott drive past, his huge form looming up beside

+the little figure of the lad who drove him. The boy had some

+slight difficulty in undoing the heavy iron gates, and we heard

+the hoarse roar of the doctor's voice and saw the fury with which

+he shook his clinched fists at him. The trap drove on, and a few

+minutes later we saw a sudden light spring up among the trees as

+the lamp was lit in one of the sitting-rooms.

+

+"Do you know, Watson," said Holmes as we sat together in the

+gathering darkness, "I have really some scruples as to taking you

+to-night. There is a distinct element of danger."

+

+"Can I be of assistance?"

+

+"Your presence might be invaluable."

+

+"Then I shall certainly come."

+

+"It is very kind of you."

+

+"You speak of danger. You have evidently seen more in these rooms

+than was visible to me."

+

+"No, but I fancy that I may have deduced a little more. I imagine

+that you saw all that I did."

+

+"I saw nothing remarkable save the bell-rope, and what purpose

+that could answer I confess is more than I can imagine."

+

+"You saw the ventilator, too?"

+

+"Yes, but I do not think that it is such a very unusual thing to

+have a small opening between two rooms. It was so small that a

+rat could hardly pass through."

+

+"I knew that we should find a ventilator before ever we came to

+Stoke Moran."

+

+"My dear Holmes!"

+

+"Oh, yes, I did. You remember in her statement she said that her

+sister could smell Dr. Roylott's cigar. Now, of course that

+suggested at once that there must be a communication between the

+two rooms. It could only be a small one, or it would have been

+remarked upon at the coroner's inquiry. I deduced a ventilator."

+

+"But what harm can there be in that?"

+

+"Well, there is at least a curious coincidence of dates. A

+ventilator is made, a cord is hung, and a lady who sleeps in the

+bed dies. Does not that strike you?"

+

+"I cannot as yet see any connection."

+

+"Did you observe anything very peculiar about that bed?"

+

+"No."

+

+"It was clamped to the floor. Did you ever see a bed fastened

+like that before?"

+

+"I cannot say that I have."

+

+"The lady could not move her bed. It must always be in the same

+relative position to the ventilator and to the rope--or so we may

+call it, since it was clearly never meant for a bell-pull."

+

+"Holmes," I cried, "I seem to see dimly what you are hinting at.

+We are only just in time to prevent some subtle and horrible

+crime."

+

+"Subtle enough and horrible enough. When a doctor does go wrong

+he is the first of criminals. He has nerve and he has knowledge.

+Palmer and Pritchard were among the heads of their profession.

+This man strikes even deeper, but I think, Watson, that we shall

+be able to strike deeper still. But we shall have horrors enough

+before the night is over; for goodness' sake let us have a quiet

+pipe and turn our minds for a few hours to something more

+cheerful."

+

+

+About nine o'clock the light among the trees was extinguished,

+and all was dark in the direction of the Manor House. Two hours

+passed slowly away, and then, suddenly, just at the stroke of

+eleven, a single bright light shone out right in front of us.

+

+"That is our signal," said Holmes, springing to his feet; "it

+comes from the middle window."

+

+As we passed out he exchanged a few words with the landlord,

+explaining that we were going on a late visit to an acquaintance,

+and that it was possible that we might spend the night there. A

+moment later we were out on the dark road, a chill wind blowing

+in our faces, and one yellow light twinkling in front of us

+through the gloom to guide us on our sombre errand.

+

+There was little difficulty in entering the grounds, for

+unrepaired breaches gaped in the old park wall. Making our way

+among the trees, we reached the lawn, crossed it, and were about

+to enter through the window when out from a clump of laurel

+bushes there darted what seemed to be a hideous and distorted

+child, who threw itself upon the grass with writhing limbs and

+then ran swiftly across the lawn into the darkness.

+

+"My God!" I whispered; "did you see it?"

+

+Holmes was for the moment as startled as I. His hand closed like

+a vice upon my wrist in his agitation. Then he broke into a low

+laugh and put his lips to my ear.

+

+"It is a nice household," he murmured. "That is the baboon."

+

+I had forgotten the strange pets which the doctor affected. There

+was a cheetah, too; perhaps we might find it upon our shoulders

+at any moment. I confess that I felt easier in my mind when,

+after following Holmes' example and slipping off my shoes, I

+found myself inside the bedroom. My companion noiselessly closed

+the shutters, moved the lamp onto the table, and cast his eyes

+round the room. All was as we had seen it in the daytime. Then

+creeping up to me and making a trumpet of his hand, he whispered

+into my ear again so gently that it was all that I could do to

+distinguish the words:

+

+"The least sound would be fatal to our plans."

+

+I nodded to show that I had heard.

+

+"We must sit without light. He would see it through the

+ventilator."

+

+I nodded again.

+

+"Do not go asleep; your very life may depend upon it. Have your

+pistol ready in case we should need it. I will sit on the side of

+the bed, and you in that chair."

+

+I took out my revolver and laid it on the corner of the table.

+

+Holmes had brought up a long thin cane, and this he placed upon

+the bed beside him. By it he laid the box of matches and the

+stump of a candle. Then he turned down the lamp, and we were left

+in darkness.

+

+How shall I ever forget that dreadful vigil? I could not hear a

+sound, not even the drawing of a breath, and yet I knew that my

+companion sat open-eyed, within a few feet of me, in the same

+state of nervous tension in which I was myself. The shutters cut

+off the least ray of light, and we waited in absolute darkness.

+

+From outside came the occasional cry of a night-bird, and once at

+our very window a long drawn catlike whine, which told us that

+the cheetah was indeed at liberty. Far away we could hear the

+deep tones of the parish clock, which boomed out every quarter of

+an hour. How long they seemed, those quarters! Twelve struck, and

+one and two and three, and still we sat waiting silently for

+whatever might befall.

+

+Suddenly there was the momentary gleam of a light up in the

+direction of the ventilator, which vanished immediately, but was

+succeeded by a strong smell of burning oil and heated metal.

+Someone in the next room had lit a dark-lantern. I heard a gentle

+sound of movement, and then all was silent once more, though the

+smell grew stronger. For half an hour I sat with straining ears.

+Then suddenly another sound became audible--a very gentle,

+soothing sound, like that of a small jet of steam escaping

+continually from a kettle. The instant that we heard it, Holmes

+sprang from the bed, struck a match, and lashed furiously with

+his cane at the bell-pull.

+

+"You see it, Watson?" he yelled. "You see it?"

+

+But I saw nothing. At the moment when Holmes struck the light I

+heard a low, clear whistle, but the sudden glare flashing into my

+weary eyes made it impossible for me to tell what it was at which

+my friend lashed so savagely. I could, however, see that his face

+was deadly pale and filled with horror and loathing. He had

+ceased to strike and was gazing up at the ventilator when

+suddenly there broke from the silence of the night the most

+horrible cry to which I have ever listened. It swelled up louder

+and louder, a hoarse yell of pain and fear and anger all mingled

+in the one dreadful shriek. They say that away down in the

+village, and even in the distant parsonage, that cry raised the

+sleepers from their beds. It struck cold to our hearts, and I

+stood gazing at Holmes, and he at me, until the last echoes of it

+had died away into the silence from which it rose.

+

+"What can it mean?" I gasped.

+

+"It means that it is all over," Holmes answered. "And perhaps,

+after all, it is for the best. Take your pistol, and we will

+enter Dr. Roylott's room."

+

+With a grave face he lit the lamp and led the way down the

+corridor. Twice he struck at the chamber door without any reply

+from within. Then he turned the handle and entered, I at his

+heels, with the cocked pistol in my hand.

+

+It was a singular sight which met our eyes. On the table stood a

+dark-lantern with the shutter half open, throwing a brilliant

+beam of light upon the iron safe, the door of which was ajar.

+Beside this table, on the wooden chair, sat Dr. Grimesby Roylott

+clad in a long grey dressing-gown, his bare ankles protruding

+beneath, and his feet thrust into red heelless Turkish slippers.

+Across his lap lay the short stock with the long lash which we

+had noticed during the day. His chin was cocked upward and his

+eyes were fixed in a dreadful, rigid stare at the corner of the

+ceiling. Round his brow he had a peculiar yellow band, with

+brownish speckles, which seemed to be bound tightly round his

+head. As we entered he made neither sound nor motion.

+

+"The band! the speckled band!" whispered Holmes.

+

+I took a step forward. In an instant his strange headgear began

+to move, and there reared itself from among his hair the squat

+diamond-shaped head and puffed neck of a loathsome serpent.

+

+"It is a swamp adder!" cried Holmes; "the deadliest snake in

+India. He has died within ten seconds of being bitten. Violence

+does, in truth, recoil upon the violent, and the schemer falls

+into the pit which he digs for another. Let us thrust this

+creature back into its den, and we can then remove Miss Stoner to

+some place of shelter and let the county police know what has

+happened."

+

+As he spoke he drew the dog-whip swiftly from the dead man's lap,

+and throwing the noose round the reptile's neck he drew it from

+its horrid perch and, carrying it at arm's length, threw it into

+the iron safe, which he closed upon it.

+

+Such are the true facts of the death of Dr. Grimesby Roylott, of

+Stoke Moran. It is not necessary that I should prolong a

+narrative which has already run to too great a length by telling

+how we broke the sad news to the terrified girl, how we conveyed

+her by the morning train to the care of her good aunt at Harrow,

+of how the slow process of official inquiry came to the

+conclusion that the doctor met his fate while indiscreetly

+playing with a dangerous pet. The little which I had yet to learn

+of the case was told me by Sherlock Holmes as we travelled back

+next day.

+

+"I had," said he, "come to an entirely erroneous conclusion which

+shows, my dear Watson, how dangerous it always is to reason from

+insufficient data. The presence of the gipsies, and the use of

+the word 'band,' which was used by the poor girl, no doubt, to

+explain the appearance which she had caught a hurried glimpse of

+by the light of her match, were sufficient to put me upon an

+entirely wrong scent. I can only claim the merit that I instantly

+reconsidered my position when, however, it became clear to me

+that whatever danger threatened an occupant of the room could not

+come either from the window or the door. My attention was

+speedily drawn, as I have already remarked to you, to this

+ventilator, and to the bell-rope which hung down to the bed. The

+discovery that this was a dummy, and that the bed was clamped to

+the floor, instantly gave rise to the suspicion that the rope was

+there as a bridge for something passing through the hole and

+coming to the bed. The idea of a snake instantly occurred to me,

+and when I coupled it with my knowledge that the doctor was

+furnished with a supply of creatures from India, I felt that I

+was probably on the right track. The idea of using a form of

+poison which could not possibly be discovered by any chemical

+test was just such a one as would occur to a clever and ruthless

+man who had had an Eastern training. The rapidity with which such

+a poison would take effect would also, from his point of view, be

+an advantage. It would be a sharp-eyed coroner, indeed, who could

+distinguish the two little dark punctures which would show where

+the poison fangs had done their work. Then I thought of the

+whistle. Of course he must recall the snake before the morning

+light revealed it to the victim. He had trained it, probably by

+the use of the milk which we saw, to return to him when summoned.

+He would put it through this ventilator at the hour that he

+thought best, with the certainty that it would crawl down the

+rope and land on the bed. It might or might not bite the

+occupant, perhaps she might escape every night for a week, but

+sooner or later she must fall a victim.

+

+"I had come to these conclusions before ever I had entered his

+room. An inspection of his chair showed me that he had been in

+the habit of standing on it, which of course would be necessary

+in order that he should reach the ventilator. The sight of the

+safe, the saucer of milk, and the loop of whipcord were enough to

+finally dispel any doubts which may have remained. The metallic

+clang heard by Miss Stoner was obviously caused by her stepfather

+hastily closing the door of his safe upon its terrible occupant.

+Having once made up my mind, you know the steps which I took in

+order to put the matter to the proof. I heard the creature hiss

+as I have no doubt that you did also, and I instantly lit the

+light and attacked it."

+

+"With the result of driving it through the ventilator."

+

+"And also with the result of causing it to turn upon its master

+at the other side. Some of the blows of my cane came home and

+roused its snakish temper, so that it flew upon the first person

+it saw. In this way I am no doubt indirectly responsible for Dr.

+Grimesby Roylott's death, and I cannot say that it is likely to

+weigh very heavily upon my conscience."

+

+

+

+IX. THE ADVENTURE OF THE ENGINEER'S THUMB

+

+Of all the problems which have been submitted to my friend, Mr.

+Sherlock Holmes, for solution during the years of our intimacy,

+there were only two which I was the means of introducing to his

+notice--that of Mr. Hatherley's thumb, and that of Colonel

+Warburton's madness. Of these the latter may have afforded a

+finer field for an acute and original observer, but the other was

+so strange in its inception and so dramatic in its details that

+it may be the more worthy of being placed upon record, even if it

+gave my friend fewer openings for those deductive methods of

+reasoning by which he achieved such remarkable results. The story

+has, I believe, been told more than once in the newspapers, but,

+like all such narratives, its effect is much less striking when

+set forth en bloc in a single half-column of print than when the

+facts slowly evolve before your own eyes, and the mystery clears

+gradually away as each new discovery furnishes a step which leads

+on to the complete truth. At the time the circumstances made a

+deep impression upon me, and the lapse of two years has hardly

+served to weaken the effect.

+

+It was in the summer of '89, not long after my marriage, that the

+events occurred which I am now about to summarise. I had returned

+to civil practice and had finally abandoned Holmes in his Baker

+Street rooms, although I continually visited him and occasionally

+even persuaded him to forgo his Bohemian habits so far as to come

+and visit us. My practice had steadily increased, and as I

+happened to live at no very great distance from Paddington

+Station, I got a few patients from among the officials. One of

+these, whom I had cured of a painful and lingering disease, was

+never weary of advertising my virtues and of endeavouring to send

+me on every sufferer over whom he might have any influence.

+

+One morning, at a little before seven o'clock, I was awakened by

+the maid tapping at the door to announce that two men had come

+from Paddington and were waiting in the consulting-room. I

+dressed hurriedly, for I knew by experience that railway cases

+were seldom trivial, and hastened downstairs. As I descended, my

+old ally, the guard, came out of the room and closed the door

+tightly behind him.

+

+"I've got him here," he whispered, jerking his thumb over his

+shoulder; "he's all right."

+

+"What is it, then?" I asked, for his manner suggested that it was

+some strange creature which he had caged up in my room.

+

+"It's a new patient," he whispered. "I thought I'd bring him

+round myself; then he couldn't slip away. There he is, all safe

+and sound. I must go now, Doctor; I have my dooties, just the

+same as you." And off he went, this trusty tout, without even

+giving me time to thank him.

+

+I entered my consulting-room and found a gentleman seated by the

+table. He was quietly dressed in a suit of heather tweed with a

+soft cloth cap which he had laid down upon my books. Round one of

+his hands he had a handkerchief wrapped, which was mottled all

+over with bloodstains. He was young, not more than

+five-and-twenty, I should say, with a strong, masculine face; but

+he was exceedingly pale and gave me the impression of a man who

+was suffering from some strong agitation, which it took all his

+strength of mind to control.

+

+"I am sorry to knock you up so early, Doctor," said he, "but I

+have had a very serious accident during the night. I came in by

+train this morning, and on inquiring at Paddington as to where I

+might find a doctor, a worthy fellow very kindly escorted me

+here. I gave the maid a card, but I see that she has left it upon

+the side-table."

+

+I took it up and glanced at it. "Mr. Victor Hatherley, hydraulic

+engineer, 16A, Victoria Street (3rd floor)." That was the name,

+style, and abode of my morning visitor. "I regret that I have

+kept you waiting," said I, sitting down in my library-chair. "You

+are fresh from a night journey, I understand, which is in itself

+a monotonous occupation."

+

+"Oh, my night could not be called monotonous," said he, and

+laughed. He laughed very heartily, with a high, ringing note,

+leaning back in his chair and shaking his sides. All my medical

+instincts rose up against that laugh.

+

+"Stop it!" I cried; "pull yourself together!" and I poured out

+some water from a caraffe.

+

+It was useless, however. He was off in one of those hysterical

+outbursts which come upon a strong nature when some great crisis

+is over and gone. Presently he came to himself once more, very

+weary and pale-looking.

+

+"I have been making a fool of myself," he gasped.

+

+"Not at all. Drink this." I dashed some brandy into the water,

+and the colour began to come back to his bloodless cheeks.

+

+"That's better!" said he. "And now, Doctor, perhaps you would

+kindly attend to my thumb, or rather to the place where my thumb

+used to be."

+

+He unwound the handkerchief and held out his hand. It gave even

+my hardened nerves a shudder to look at it. There were four

+protruding fingers and a horrid red, spongy surface where the

+thumb should have been. It had been hacked or torn right out from

+the roots.

+

+"Good heavens!" I cried, "this is a terrible injury. It must have

+bled considerably."

+

+"Yes, it did. I fainted when it was done, and I think that I must

+have been senseless for a long time. When I came to I found that

+it was still bleeding, so I tied one end of my handkerchief very

+tightly round the wrist and braced it up with a twig."

+

+"Excellent! You should have been a surgeon."

+

+"It is a question of hydraulics, you see, and came within my own

+province."

+

+"This has been done," said I, examining the wound, "by a very

+heavy and sharp instrument."

+

+"A thing like a cleaver," said he.

+

+"An accident, I presume?"

+

+"By no means."

+

+"What! a murderous attack?"

+

+"Very murderous indeed."

+

+"You horrify me."

+

+I sponged the wound, cleaned it, dressed it, and finally covered

+it over with cotton wadding and carbolised bandages. He lay back

+without wincing, though he bit his lip from time to time.

+

+"How is that?" I asked when I had finished.

+

+"Capital! Between your brandy and your bandage, I feel a new man.

+I was very weak, but I have had a good deal to go through."

+

+"Perhaps you had better not speak of the matter. It is evidently

+trying to your nerves."

+

+"Oh, no, not now. I shall have to tell my tale to the police;

+but, between ourselves, if it were not for the convincing

+evidence of this wound of mine, I should be surprised if they

+believed my statement, for it is a very extraordinary one, and I

+have not much in the way of proof with which to back it up; and,

+even if they believe me, the clues which I can give them are so

+vague that it is a question whether justice will be done."

+

+"Ha!" cried I, "if it is anything in the nature of a problem

+which you desire to see solved, I should strongly recommend you

+to come to my friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, before you go to the

+official police."

+

+"Oh, I have heard of that fellow," answered my visitor, "and I

+should be very glad if he would take the matter up, though of

+course I must use the official police as well. Would you give me

+an introduction to him?"

+

+"I'll do better. I'll take you round to him myself."

+

+"I should be immensely obliged to you."

+

+"We'll call a cab and go together. We shall just be in time to

+have a little breakfast with him. Do you feel equal to it?"

+

+"Yes; I shall not feel easy until I have told my story."

+

+"Then my servant will call a cab, and I shall be with you in an

+instant." I rushed upstairs, explained the matter shortly to my

+wife, and in five minutes was inside a hansom, driving with my

+new acquaintance to Baker Street.

+

+Sherlock Holmes was, as I expected, lounging about his

+sitting-room in his dressing-gown, reading the agony column of The

+Times and smoking his before-breakfast pipe, which was composed

+of all the plugs and dottles left from his smokes of the day

+before, all carefully dried and collected on the corner of the

+mantelpiece. He received us in his quietly genial fashion,

+ordered fresh rashers and eggs, and joined us in a hearty meal.

+When it was concluded he settled our new acquaintance upon the

+sofa, placed a pillow beneath his head, and laid a glass of

+brandy and water within his reach.

+

+"It is easy to see that your experience has been no common one,

+Mr. Hatherley," said he. "Pray, lie down there and make yourself

+absolutely at home. Tell us what you can, but stop when you are

+tired and keep up your strength with a little stimulant."

+

+"Thank you," said my patient, "but I have felt another man since

+the doctor bandaged me, and I think that your breakfast has

+completed the cure. I shall take up as little of your valuable

+time as possible, so I shall start at once upon my peculiar

+experiences."

+

+Holmes sat in his big armchair with the weary, heavy-lidded

+expression which veiled his keen and eager nature, while I sat

+opposite to him, and we listened in silence to the strange story

+which our visitor detailed to us.

+

+"You must know," said he, "that I am an orphan and a bachelor,

+residing alone in lodgings in London. By profession I am a

+hydraulic engineer, and I have had considerable experience of my

+work during the seven years that I was apprenticed to Venner &

+Matheson, the well-known firm, of Greenwich. Two years ago,

+having served my time, and having also come into a fair sum of

+money through my poor father's death, I determined to start in

+business for myself and took professional chambers in Victoria

+Street.

+

+"I suppose that everyone finds his first independent start in

+business a dreary experience. To me it has been exceptionally so.

+During two years I have had three consultations and one small

+job, and that is absolutely all that my profession has brought

+me. My gross takings amount to 27 pounds 10s. Every day, from

+nine in the morning until four in the afternoon, I waited in my

+little den, until at last my heart began to sink, and I came to

+believe that I should never have any practice at all.

+

+"Yesterday, however, just as I was thinking of leaving the

+office, my clerk entered to say there was a gentleman waiting who

+wished to see me upon business. He brought up a card, too, with

+the name of 'Colonel Lysander Stark' engraved upon it. Close at

+his heels came the colonel himself, a man rather over the middle

+size, but of an exceeding thinness. I do not think that I have

+ever seen so thin a man. His whole face sharpened away into nose

+and chin, and the skin of his cheeks was drawn quite tense over

+his outstanding bones. Yet this emaciation seemed to be his

+natural habit, and due to no disease, for his eye was bright, his

+step brisk, and his bearing assured. He was plainly but neatly

+dressed, and his age, I should judge, would be nearer forty than

+thirty.

+

+"'Mr. Hatherley?' said he, with something of a German accent.

+'You have been recommended to me, Mr. Hatherley, as being a man

+who is not only proficient in his profession but is also discreet

+and capable of preserving a secret.'

+

+"I bowed, feeling as flattered as any young man would at such an

+address. 'May I ask who it was who gave me so good a character?'

+

+"'Well, perhaps it is better that I should not tell you that just

+at this moment. I have it from the same source that you are both

+an orphan and a bachelor and are residing alone in London.'

+

+"'That is quite correct,' I answered; 'but you will excuse me if

+I say that I cannot see how all this bears upon my professional

+qualifications. I understand that it was on a professional matter

+that you wished to speak to me?'

+

+"'Undoubtedly so. But you will find that all I say is really to

+the point. I have a professional commission for you, but absolute

+secrecy is quite essential--absolute secrecy, you understand, and

+of course we may expect that more from a man who is alone than

+from one who lives in the bosom of his family.'

+

+"'If I promise to keep a secret,' said I, 'you may absolutely

+depend upon my doing so.'

+

+"He looked very hard at me as I spoke, and it seemed to me that I

+had never seen so suspicious and questioning an eye.

+

+"'Do you promise, then?' said he at last.

+

+"'Yes, I promise.'

+

+"'Absolute and complete silence before, during, and after? No

+reference to the matter at all, either in word or writing?'

+

+"'I have already given you my word.'

+

+"'Very good.' He suddenly sprang up, and darting like lightning

+across the room he flung open the door. The passage outside was

+empty.

+

+"'That's all right,' said he, coming back. 'I know that clerks are

+sometimes curious as to their master's affairs. Now we can talk

+in safety.' He drew up his chair very close to mine and began to

+stare at me again with the same questioning and thoughtful look.

+

+"A feeling of repulsion, and of something akin to fear had begun

+to rise within me at the strange antics of this fleshless man.

+Even my dread of losing a client could not restrain me from

+showing my impatience.

+

+"'I beg that you will state your business, sir,' said I; 'my time

+is of value.' Heaven forgive me for that last sentence, but the

+words came to my lips.

+

+"'How would fifty guineas for a night's work suit you?' he asked.

+

+"'Most admirably.'

+

+"'I say a night's work, but an hour's would be nearer the mark. I

+simply want your opinion about a hydraulic stamping machine which

+has got out of gear. If you show us what is wrong we shall soon

+set it right ourselves. What do you think of such a commission as

+that?'

+

+"'The work appears to be light and the pay munificent.'

+

+"'Precisely so. We shall want you to come to-night by the last

+train.'

+

+"'Where to?'

+

+"'To Eyford, in Berkshire. It is a little place near the borders

+of Oxfordshire, and within seven miles of Reading. There is a

+train from Paddington which would bring you there at about

+11:15.'

+

+"'Very good.'

+

+"'I shall come down in a carriage to meet you.'

+

+"'There is a drive, then?'

+

+"'Yes, our little place is quite out in the country. It is a good

+seven miles from Eyford Station.'

+

+"'Then we can hardly get there before midnight. I suppose there

+would be no chance of a train back. I should be compelled to stop

+the night.'

+

+"'Yes, we could easily give you a shake-down.'

+

+"'That is very awkward. Could I not come at some more convenient

+hour?'

+

+"'We have judged it best that you should come late. It is to

+recompense you for any inconvenience that we are paying to you, a

+young and unknown man, a fee which would buy an opinion from the

+very heads of your profession. Still, of course, if you would

+like to draw out of the business, there is plenty of time to do

+so.'

+

+"I thought of the fifty guineas, and of how very useful they

+would be to me. 'Not at all,' said I, 'I shall be very happy to

+accommodate myself to your wishes. I should like, however, to

+understand a little more clearly what it is that you wish me to

+do.'

+

+"'Quite so. It is very natural that the pledge of secrecy which

+we have exacted from you should have aroused your curiosity. I

+have no wish to commit you to anything without your having it all

+laid before you. I suppose that we are absolutely safe from

+eavesdroppers?'

+

+"'Entirely.'

+

+"'Then the matter stands thus. You are probably aware that

+fuller's-earth is a valuable product, and that it is only found

+in one or two places in England?'

+

+"'I have heard so.'

+

+"'Some little time ago I bought a small place--a very small

+place--within ten miles of Reading. I was fortunate enough to

+discover that there was a deposit of fuller's-earth in one of my

+fields. On examining it, however, I found that this deposit was a

+comparatively small one, and that it formed a link between two

+very much larger ones upon the right and left--both of them,

+however, in the grounds of my neighbours. These good people were

+absolutely ignorant that their land contained that which was

+quite as valuable as a gold-mine. Naturally, it was to my

+interest to buy their land before they discovered its true value,

+but unfortunately I had no capital by which I could do this. I

+took a few of my friends into the secret, however, and they

+suggested that we should quietly and secretly work our own little

+deposit and that in this way we should earn the money which would

+enable us to buy the neighbouring fields. This we have now been

+doing for some time, and in order to help us in our operations we

+erected a hydraulic press. This press, as I have already

+explained, has got out of order, and we wish your advice upon the

+subject. We guard our secret very jealously, however, and if it

+once became known that we had hydraulic engineers coming to our

+little house, it would soon rouse inquiry, and then, if the facts

+came out, it would be good-bye to any chance of getting these

+fields and carrying out our plans. That is why I have made you

+promise me that you will not tell a human being that you are

+going to Eyford to-night. I hope that I make it all plain?'

+

+"'I quite follow you,' said I. 'The only point which I could not

+quite understand was what use you could make of a hydraulic press

+in excavating fuller's-earth, which, as I understand, is dug out

+like gravel from a pit.'

+

+"'Ah!' said he carelessly, 'we have our own process. We compress

+the earth into bricks, so as to remove them without revealing

+what they are. But that is a mere detail. I have taken you fully

+into my confidence now, Mr. Hatherley, and I have shown you how I

+trust you.' He rose as he spoke. 'I shall expect you, then, at

+Eyford at 11:15.'

+

+"'I shall certainly be there.'

+

+"'And not a word to a soul.' He looked at me with a last long,

+questioning gaze, and then, pressing my hand in a cold, dank

+grasp, he hurried from the room.

+

+"Well, when I came to think it all over in cool blood I was very

+much astonished, as you may both think, at this sudden commission

+which had been intrusted to me. On the one hand, of course, I was

+glad, for the fee was at least tenfold what I should have asked

+had I set a price upon my own services, and it was possible that

+this order might lead to other ones. On the other hand, the face

+and manner of my patron had made an unpleasant impression upon

+me, and I could not think that his explanation of the

+fuller's-earth was sufficient to explain the necessity for my

+coming at midnight, and his extreme anxiety lest I should tell

+anyone of my errand. However, I threw all fears to the winds, ate

+a hearty supper, drove to Paddington, and started off, having

+obeyed to the letter the injunction as to holding my tongue.

+

+"At Reading I had to change not only my carriage but my station.

+However, I was in time for the last train to Eyford, and I

+reached the little dim-lit station after eleven o'clock. I was the

+only passenger who got out there, and there was no one upon the

+platform save a single sleepy porter with a lantern. As I passed

+out through the wicket gate, however, I found my acquaintance of

+the morning waiting in the shadow upon the other side. Without a

+word he grasped my arm and hurried me into a carriage, the door

+of which was standing open. He drew up the windows on either

+side, tapped on the wood-work, and away we went as fast as the

+horse could go."

+

+"One horse?" interjected Holmes.

+

+"Yes, only one."

+

+"Did you observe the colour?"

+

+"Yes, I saw it by the side-lights when I was stepping into the

+carriage. It was a chestnut."

+

+"Tired-looking or fresh?"

+

+"Oh, fresh and glossy."

+

+"Thank you. I am sorry to have interrupted you. Pray continue

+your most interesting statement."

+

+"Away we went then, and we drove for at least an hour. Colonel

+Lysander Stark had said that it was only seven miles, but I

+should think, from the rate that we seemed to go, and from the

+time that we took, that it must have been nearer twelve. He sat

+at my side in silence all the time, and I was aware, more than

+once when I glanced in his direction, that he was looking at me

+with great intensity. The country roads seem to be not very good

+in that part of the world, for we lurched and jolted terribly. I

+tried to look out of the windows to see something of where we

+were, but they were made of frosted glass, and I could make out

+nothing save the occasional bright blur of a passing light. Now

+and then I hazarded some remark to break the monotony of the

+journey, but the colonel answered only in monosyllables, and the

+conversation soon flagged. At last, however, the bumping of the

+road was exchanged for the crisp smoothness of a gravel-drive,

+and the carriage came to a stand. Colonel Lysander Stark sprang

+out, and, as I followed after him, pulled me swiftly into a porch

+which gaped in front of us. We stepped, as it were, right out of

+the carriage and into the hall, so that I failed to catch the

+most fleeting glance of the front of the house. The instant that

+I had crossed the threshold the door slammed heavily behind us,

+and I heard faintly the rattle of the wheels as the carriage

+drove away.

+

+"It was pitch dark inside the house, and the colonel fumbled

+about looking for matches and muttering under his breath.

+Suddenly a door opened at the other end of the passage, and a

+long, golden bar of light shot out in our direction. It grew

+broader, and a woman appeared with a lamp in her hand, which she

+held above her head, pushing her face forward and peering at us.

+I could see that she was pretty, and from the gloss with which

+the light shone upon her dark dress I knew that it was a rich

+material. She spoke a few words in a foreign tongue in a tone as

+though asking a question, and when my companion answered in a

+gruff monosyllable she gave such a start that the lamp nearly

+fell from her hand. Colonel Stark went up to her, whispered

+something in her ear, and then, pushing her back into the room

+from whence she had come, he walked towards me again with the

+lamp in his hand.

+

+"'Perhaps you will have the kindness to wait in this room for a

+few minutes,' said he, throwing open another door. It was a

+quiet, little, plainly furnished room, with a round table in the

+centre, on which several German books were scattered. Colonel

+Stark laid down the lamp on the top of a harmonium beside the

+door. 'I shall not keep you waiting an instant,' said he, and

+vanished into the darkness.

+

+"I glanced at the books upon the table, and in spite of my

+ignorance of German I could see that two of them were treatises

+on science, the others being volumes of poetry. Then I walked

+across to the window, hoping that I might catch some glimpse of

+the country-side, but an oak shutter, heavily barred, was folded

+across it. It was a wonderfully silent house. There was an old

+clock ticking loudly somewhere in the passage, but otherwise

+everything was deadly still. A vague feeling of uneasiness began

+to steal over me. Who were these German people, and what were

+they doing living in this strange, out-of-the-way place? And

+where was the place? I was ten miles or so from Eyford, that was

+all I knew, but whether north, south, east, or west I had no

+idea. For that matter, Reading, and possibly other large towns,

+were within that radius, so the place might not be so secluded,

+after all. Yet it was quite certain, from the absolute stillness,

+that we were in the country. I paced up and down the room,

+humming a tune under my breath to keep up my spirits and feeling

+that I was thoroughly earning my fifty-guinea fee.

+

+"Suddenly, without any preliminary sound in the midst of the

+utter stillness, the door of my room swung slowly open. The woman

+was standing in the aperture, the darkness of the hall behind

+her, the yellow light from my lamp beating upon her eager and

+beautiful face. I could see at a glance that she was sick with

+fear, and the sight sent a chill to my own heart. She held up one

+shaking finger to warn me to be silent, and she shot a few

+whispered words of broken English at me, her eyes glancing back,

+like those of a frightened horse, into the gloom behind her.

+

+"'I would go,' said she, trying hard, as it seemed to me, to

+speak calmly; 'I would go. I should not stay here. There is no

+good for you to do.'

+

+"'But, madam,' said I, 'I have not yet done what I came for. I

+cannot possibly leave until I have seen the machine.'

+

+"'It is not worth your while to wait,' she went on. 'You can pass

+through the door; no one hinders.' And then, seeing that I smiled

+and shook my head, she suddenly threw aside her constraint and

+made a step forward, with her hands wrung together. 'For the love

+of Heaven!' she whispered, 'get away from here before it is too

+late!'

+

+"But I am somewhat headstrong by nature, and the more ready to

+engage in an affair when there is some obstacle in the way. I

+thought of my fifty-guinea fee, of my wearisome journey, and of

+the unpleasant night which seemed to be before me. Was it all to

+go for nothing? Why should I slink away without having carried

+out my commission, and without the payment which was my due? This

+woman might, for all I knew, be a monomaniac. With a stout

+bearing, therefore, though her manner had shaken me more than I

+cared to confess, I still shook my head and declared my intention

+of remaining where I was. She was about to renew her entreaties

+when a door slammed overhead, and the sound of several footsteps

+was heard upon the stairs. She listened for an instant, threw up

+her hands with a despairing gesture, and vanished as suddenly and

+as noiselessly as she had come.

+

+"The newcomers were Colonel Lysander Stark and a short thick man

+with a chinchilla beard growing out of the creases of his double

+chin, who was introduced to me as Mr. Ferguson.

+

+"'This is my secretary and manager,' said the colonel. 'By the

+way, I was under the impression that I left this door shut just

+now. I fear that you have felt the draught.'

+

+"'On the contrary,' said I, 'I opened the door myself because I

+felt the room to be a little close.'

+

+"He shot one of his suspicious looks at me. 'Perhaps we had

+better proceed to business, then,' said he. 'Mr. Ferguson and I

+will take you up to see the machine.'

+

+"'I had better put my hat on, I suppose.'

+

+"'Oh, no, it is in the house.'

+

+"'What, you dig fuller's-earth in the house?'

+

+"'No, no. This is only where we compress it. But never mind that.

+All we wish you to do is to examine the machine and to let us

+know what is wrong with it.'

+

+"We went upstairs together, the colonel first with the lamp, the

+fat manager and I behind him. It was a labyrinth of an old house,

+with corridors, passages, narrow winding staircases, and little

+low doors, the thresholds of which were hollowed out by the

+generations who had crossed them. There were no carpets and no

+signs of any furniture above the ground floor, while the plaster

+was peeling off the walls, and the damp was breaking through in

+green, unhealthy blotches. I tried to put on as unconcerned an

+air as possible, but I had not forgotten the warnings of the

+lady, even though I disregarded them, and I kept a keen eye upon

+my two companions. Ferguson appeared to be a morose and silent

+man, but I could see from the little that he said that he was at

+least a fellow-countryman.

+

+"Colonel Lysander Stark stopped at last before a low door, which

+he unlocked. Within was a small, square room, in which the three

+of us could hardly get at one time. Ferguson remained outside,

+and the colonel ushered me in.

+

+"'We are now,' said he, 'actually within the hydraulic press, and

+it would be a particularly unpleasant thing for us if anyone were

+to turn it on. The ceiling of this small chamber is really the

+end of the descending piston, and it comes down with the force of

+many tons upon this metal floor. There are small lateral columns

+of water outside which receive the force, and which transmit and

+multiply it in the manner which is familiar to you. The machine

+goes readily enough, but there is some stiffness in the working

+of it, and it has lost a little of its force. Perhaps you will

+have the goodness to look it over and to show us how we can set

+it right.'

+

+"I took the lamp from him, and I examined the machine very

+thoroughly. It was indeed a gigantic one, and capable of

+exercising enormous pressure. When I passed outside, however, and

+pressed down the levers which controlled it, I knew at once by

+the whishing sound that there was a slight leakage, which allowed

+a regurgitation of water through one of the side cylinders. An

+examination showed that one of the india-rubber bands which was

+round the head of a driving-rod had shrunk so as not quite to

+fill the socket along which it worked. This was clearly the cause

+of the loss of power, and I pointed it out to my companions, who

+followed my remarks very carefully and asked several practical

+questions as to how they should proceed to set it right. When I

+had made it clear to them, I returned to the main chamber of the

+machine and took a good look at it to satisfy my own curiosity.

+It was obvious at a glance that the story of the fuller's-earth

+was the merest fabrication, for it would be absurd to suppose

+that so powerful an engine could be designed for so inadequate a

+purpose. The walls were of wood, but the floor consisted of a

+large iron trough, and when I came to examine it I could see a

+crust of metallic deposit all over it. I had stooped and was

+scraping at this to see exactly what it was when I heard a

+muttered exclamation in German and saw the cadaverous face of the

+colonel looking down at me.

+

+"'What are you doing there?' he asked.

+

+"I felt angry at having been tricked by so elaborate a story as

+that which he had told me. 'I was admiring your fuller's-earth,'

+said I; 'I think that I should be better able to advise you as to

+your machine if I knew what the exact purpose was for which it

+was used.'

+

+"The instant that I uttered the words I regretted the rashness of

+my speech. His face set hard, and a baleful light sprang up in

+his grey eyes.

+

+"'Very well,' said he, 'you shall know all about the machine.' He

+took a step backward, slammed the little door, and turned the key

+in the lock. I rushed towards it and pulled at the handle, but it

+was quite secure, and did not give in the least to my kicks and

+shoves. 'Hullo!' I yelled. 'Hullo! Colonel! Let me out!'

+

+"And then suddenly in the silence I heard a sound which sent my

+heart into my mouth. It was the clank of the levers and the swish

+of the leaking cylinder. He had set the engine at work. The lamp

+still stood upon the floor where I had placed it when examining

+the trough. By its light I saw that the black ceiling was coming

+down upon me, slowly, jerkily, but, as none knew better than

+myself, with a force which must within a minute grind me to a

+shapeless pulp. I threw myself, screaming, against the door, and

+dragged with my nails at the lock. I implored the colonel to let

+me out, but the remorseless clanking of the levers drowned my

+cries. The ceiling was only a foot or two above my head, and with

+my hand upraised I could feel its hard, rough surface. Then it

+flashed through my mind that the pain of my death would depend

+very much upon the position in which I met it. If I lay on my

+face the weight would come upon my spine, and I shuddered to

+think of that dreadful snap. Easier the other way, perhaps; and

+yet, had I the nerve to lie and look up at that deadly black

+shadow wavering down upon me? Already I was unable to stand

+erect, when my eye caught something which brought a gush of hope

+back to my heart.

+

+"I have said that though the floor and ceiling were of iron, the

+walls were of wood. As I gave a last hurried glance around, I saw

+a thin line of yellow light between two of the boards, which

+broadened and broadened as a small panel was pushed backward. For

+an instant I could hardly believe that here was indeed a door

+which led away from death. The next instant I threw myself

+through, and lay half-fainting upon the other side. The panel had

+closed again behind me, but the crash of the lamp, and a few

+moments afterwards the clang of the two slabs of metal, told me

+how narrow had been my escape.

+

+"I was recalled to myself by a frantic plucking at my wrist, and

+I found myself lying upon the stone floor of a narrow corridor,

+while a woman bent over me and tugged at me with her left hand,

+while she held a candle in her right. It was the same good friend

+whose warning I had so foolishly rejected.

+

+"'Come! come!' she cried breathlessly. 'They will be here in a

+moment. They will see that you are not there. Oh, do not waste

+the so-precious time, but come!'

+

+"This time, at least, I did not scorn her advice. I staggered to

+my feet and ran with her along the corridor and down a winding

+stair. The latter led to another broad passage, and just as we

+reached it we heard the sound of running feet and the shouting of

+two voices, one answering the other from the floor on which  we

+were and from the one beneath. My guide stopped and looked about

+her like one  who is at her wit's end. Then she threw open a door

+which led into a bedroom, through the window of which the moon

+was shining brightly.

+

+"'It is your only chance,' said she. 'It is high, but it may be

+that you can jump it.'

+

+"As she spoke a light sprang into view at the further end of the

+passage, and I saw the lean figure of Colonel Lysander Stark

+rushing forward with a lantern in one hand and a weapon like a

+butcher's cleaver in the other. I rushed across the bedroom,

+flung open the window, and looked out. How quiet and sweet and

+wholesome the garden looked in the moonlight, and it could not be

+more than thirty feet down. I clambered out upon the sill, but I

+hesitated to jump until I should have heard what passed between

+my saviour and the ruffian who pursued me. If she were ill-used,

+then at any risks I was determined to go back to her assistance.

+The thought had hardly flashed through my mind before he was at

+the door, pushing his way past her; but she threw her arms round

+him and tried to hold him back.

+

+"'Fritz! Fritz!' she cried in English, 'remember your promise

+after the last time. You said it should not be again. He will be

+silent! Oh, he will be silent!'

+

+"'You are mad, Elise!' he shouted, struggling to break away from

+her. 'You will be the ruin of us. He has seen too much. Let me

+pass, I say!' He dashed her to one side, and, rushing to the

+window, cut at me with his heavy weapon. I had let myself go, and

+was hanging by the hands to the sill, when his blow fell. I was

+conscious of a dull pain, my grip loosened, and I fell into the

+garden below.

+

+"I was shaken but not hurt by the fall; so I picked myself up and

+rushed off among the bushes as hard as I could run, for I

+understood that I was far from being out of danger yet. Suddenly,

+however, as I ran, a deadly dizziness and sickness came over me.

+I glanced down at my hand, which was throbbing painfully, and

+then, for the first time, saw that my thumb had been cut off and

+that the blood was pouring from my wound. I endeavoured to tie my

+handkerchief round it, but there came a sudden buzzing in my

+ears, and next moment I fell in a dead faint among the

+rose-bushes.

+

+"How long I remained unconscious I cannot tell. It must have been

+a very long time, for the moon had sunk, and a bright morning was

+breaking when I came to myself. My clothes were all sodden with

+dew, and my coat-sleeve was drenched with blood from my wounded

+thumb. The smarting of it recalled in an instant all the

+particulars of my night's adventure, and I sprang to my feet with

+the feeling that I might hardly yet be safe from my pursuers. But

+to my astonishment, when I came to look round me, neither house

+nor garden were to be seen. I had been lying in an angle of the

+hedge close by the highroad, and just a little lower down was a

+long building, which proved, upon my approaching it, to be the

+very station at which I had arrived upon the previous night. Were

+it not for the ugly wound upon my hand, all that had passed

+during those dreadful hours might have been an evil dream.

+

+"Half dazed, I went into the station and asked about the morning

+train. There would be one to Reading in less than an hour. The

+same porter was on duty, I found, as had been there when I

+arrived. I inquired of him whether he had ever heard of Colonel

+Lysander Stark. The name was strange to him. Had he observed a

+carriage the night before waiting for me? No, he had not. Was

+there a police-station anywhere near? There was one about three

+miles off.

+

+"It was too far for me to go, weak and ill as I was. I determined

+to wait until I got back to town before telling my story to the

+police. It was a little past six when I arrived, so I went first

+to have my wound dressed, and then the doctor was kind enough to

+bring me along here. I put the case into your hands and shall do

+exactly what you advise."

+

+We both sat in silence for some little time after listening to

+this extraordinary narrative. Then Sherlock Holmes pulled down

+from the shelf one of the ponderous commonplace books in which he

+placed his cuttings.

+

+"Here is an advertisement which will interest you," said he. "It

+appeared in all the papers about a year ago. Listen to this:

+'Lost, on the 9th inst., Mr. Jeremiah Hayling, aged

+twenty-six, a hydraulic engineer. Left his lodgings at ten

+o'clock at night, and has not been heard of since. Was

+dressed in,' etc., etc. Ha! That represents the last time that

+the colonel needed to have his machine overhauled, I fancy."

+

+"Good heavens!" cried my patient. "Then that explains what the

+girl said."

+

+"Undoubtedly. It is quite clear that the colonel was a cool and

+desperate man, who was absolutely determined that nothing should

+stand in the way of his little game, like those out-and-out

+pirates who will leave no survivor from a captured ship. Well,

+every moment now is precious, so if you feel equal to it we shall

+go down to Scotland Yard at once as a preliminary to starting for

+Eyford."

+

+Some three hours or so afterwards we were all in the train

+together, bound from Reading to the little Berkshire village.

+There were Sherlock Holmes, the hydraulic engineer, Inspector

+Bradstreet, of Scotland Yard, a plain-clothes man, and myself.

+Bradstreet had spread an ordnance map of the county out upon the

+seat and was busy with his compasses drawing a circle with Eyford

+for its centre.

+

+"There you are," said he. "That circle is drawn at a radius of

+ten miles from the village. The place we want must be somewhere

+near that line. You said ten miles, I think, sir."

+

+"It was an hour's good drive."

+

+"And you think that they brought you back all that way when you

+were unconscious?"

+

+"They must have done so. I have a confused memory, too, of having

+been lifted and conveyed somewhere."

+

+"What I cannot understand," said I, "is why they should have

+spared you when they found you lying fainting in the garden.

+Perhaps the villain was softened by the woman's entreaties."

+

+"I hardly think that likely. I never saw a more inexorable face

+in my life."

+

+"Oh, we shall soon clear up all that," said Bradstreet. "Well, I

+have drawn my circle, and I only wish I knew at what point upon

+it the folk that we are in search of are to be found."

+

+"I think I could lay my finger on it," said Holmes quietly.

+

+"Really, now!" cried the inspector, "you have formed your

+opinion! Come, now, we shall see who agrees with you. I say it is

+south, for the country is more deserted there."

+

+"And I say east," said my patient.

+

+"I am for west," remarked the plain-clothes man. "There are

+several quiet little villages up there."

+

+"And I am for north," said I, "because there are no hills there,

+and our friend says that he did not notice the carriage go up

+any."

+

+"Come," cried the inspector, laughing; "it's a very pretty

+diversity of opinion. We have boxed the compass among us. Who do

+you give your casting vote to?"

+

+"You are all wrong."

+

+"But we can't all be."

+

+"Oh, yes, you can. This is my point." He placed his finger in the

+centre of the circle. "This is where we shall find them."

+

+"But the twelve-mile drive?" gasped Hatherley.

+

+"Six out and six back. Nothing simpler. You say yourself that the

+horse was fresh and glossy when you got in. How could it be that

+if it had gone twelve miles over heavy roads?"

+

+"Indeed, it is a likely ruse enough," observed Bradstreet

+thoughtfully. "Of course there can be no doubt as to the nature

+of this gang."

+

+"None at all," said Holmes. "They are coiners on a large scale,

+and have used the machine to form the amalgam which has taken the

+place of silver."

+

+"We have known for some time that a clever gang was at work,"

+said the inspector. "They have been turning out half-crowns by

+the thousand. We even traced them as far as Reading, but could

+get no farther, for they had covered their traces in a way that

+showed that they were very old hands. But now, thanks to this

+lucky chance, I think that we have got them right enough."

+

+But the inspector was mistaken, for those criminals were not

+destined to fall into the hands of justice. As we rolled into

+Eyford Station we saw a gigantic column of smoke which streamed

+up from behind a small clump of trees in the neighbourhood and

+hung like an immense ostrich feather over the landscape.

+

+"A house on fire?" asked Bradstreet as the train steamed off

+again on its way.

+

+"Yes, sir!" said the station-master.

+

+"When did it break out?"

+

+"I hear that it was during the night, sir, but it has got worse,

+and the whole place is in a blaze."

+

+"Whose house is it?"

+

+"Dr. Becher's."

+

+"Tell me," broke in the engineer, "is Dr. Becher a German, very

+thin, with a long, sharp nose?"

+

+The station-master laughed heartily. "No, sir, Dr. Becher is an

+Englishman, and there isn't a man in the parish who has a

+better-lined waistcoat. But he has a gentleman staying with him,

+a patient, as I understand, who is a foreigner, and he looks as

+if a little good Berkshire beef would do him no harm."

+

+The station-master had not finished his speech before we were all

+hastening in the direction of the fire. The road topped a low

+hill, and there was a great widespread whitewashed building in

+front of us, spouting fire at every chink and window, while in

+the garden in front three fire-engines were vainly striving to

+keep the flames under.

+

+"That's it!" cried Hatherley, in intense excitement. "There is

+the gravel-drive, and there are the rose-bushes where I lay. That

+second window is the one that I jumped from."

+

+"Well, at least," said Holmes, "you have had your revenge upon

+them. There can be no question that it was your oil-lamp which,

+when it was crushed in the press, set fire to the wooden walls,

+though no doubt they were too excited in the chase after you to

+observe it at the time. Now keep your eyes open in this crowd for

+your friends of last night, though I very much fear that they are

+a good hundred miles off by now."

+

+And Holmes' fears came to be realised, for from that day to this

+no word has ever been heard either of the beautiful woman, the

+sinister German, or the morose Englishman. Early that morning a

+peasant had met a cart containing several people and some very

+bulky boxes driving rapidly in the direction of Reading, but

+there all traces of the fugitives disappeared, and even Holmes'

+ingenuity failed ever to discover the least clue as to their

+whereabouts.

+

+The firemen had been much perturbed at the strange arrangements

+which they had found within, and still more so by discovering a

+newly severed human thumb upon a window-sill of the second floor.

+About sunset, however, their efforts were at last successful, and

+they subdued the flames, but not before the roof had fallen in,

+and the whole place been reduced to such absolute ruin that, save

+some twisted cylinders and iron piping, not a trace remained of

+the machinery which had cost our unfortunate acquaintance so

+dearly. Large masses of nickel and of tin were discovered stored

+in an out-house, but no coins were to be found, which may have

+explained the presence of those bulky boxes which have been

+already referred to.

+

+How our hydraulic engineer had been conveyed from the garden to

+the spot where he recovered his senses might have remained

+forever a mystery were it not for the soft mould, which told us a

+very plain tale. He had evidently been carried down by two

+persons, one of whom had remarkably small feet and the other

+unusually large ones. On the whole, it was most probable that the

+silent Englishman, being less bold or less murderous than his

+companion, had assisted the woman to bear the unconscious man out

+of the way of danger.

+

+"Well," said our engineer ruefully as we took our seats to return

+once more to London, "it has been a pretty business for me! I

+have lost my thumb and I have lost a fifty-guinea fee, and what

+have I gained?"

+

+"Experience," said Holmes, laughing. "Indirectly it may be of

+value, you know; you have only to put it into words to gain the

+reputation of being excellent company for the remainder of your

+existence."

+

+

+

+X. THE ADVENTURE OF THE NOBLE BACHELOR

+

+The Lord St. Simon marriage, and its curious termination, have

+long ceased to be a subject of interest in those exalted circles

+in which the unfortunate bridegroom moves. Fresh scandals have

+eclipsed it, and their more piquant details have drawn the

+gossips away from this four-year-old drama. As I have reason to

+believe, however, that the full facts have never been revealed to

+the general public, and as my friend Sherlock Holmes had a

+considerable share in clearing the matter up, I feel that no

+memoir of him would be complete without some little sketch of

+this remarkable episode.

+

+It was a few weeks before my own marriage, during the days when I

+was still sharing rooms with Holmes in Baker Street, that he came

+home from an afternoon stroll to find a letter on the table

+waiting for him. I had remained indoors all day, for the weather

+had taken a sudden turn to rain, with high autumnal winds, and

+the Jezail bullet which I had brought back in one of my limbs as

+a relic of my Afghan campaign throbbed with dull persistence.

+With my body in one easy-chair and my legs upon another, I had

+surrounded myself with a cloud of newspapers until at last,

+saturated with the news of the day, I tossed them all aside and

+lay listless, watching the huge crest and monogram upon the

+envelope upon the table and wondering lazily who my friend's

+noble correspondent could be.

+

+"Here is a very fashionable epistle," I remarked as he entered.

+"Your morning letters, if I remember right, were from a

+fish-monger and a tide-waiter."

+

+"Yes, my correspondence has certainly the charm of variety," he

+answered, smiling, "and the humbler are usually the more

+interesting. This looks like one of those unwelcome social

+summonses which call upon a man either to be bored or to lie."

+

+He broke the seal and glanced over the contents.

+

+"Oh, come, it may prove to be something of interest, after all."

+

+"Not social, then?"

+

+"No, distinctly professional."

+

+"And from a noble client?"

+

+"One of the highest in England."

+

+"My dear fellow, I congratulate you."

+

+"I assure you, Watson, without affectation, that the status of my

+client is a matter of less moment to me than the interest of his

+case. It is just possible, however, that that also may not be

+wanting in this new investigation. You have been reading the

+papers diligently of late, have you not?"

+

+"It looks like it," said I ruefully, pointing to a huge bundle in

+the corner. "I have had nothing else to do."

+

+"It is fortunate, for you will perhaps be able to post me up. I

+read nothing except the criminal news and the agony column. The

+latter is always instructive. But if you have followed recent

+events so closely you must have read about Lord St. Simon and his

+wedding?"

+

+"Oh, yes, with the deepest interest."

+

+"That is well. The letter which I hold in my hand is from Lord

+St. Simon. I will read it to you, and in return you must turn

+over these papers and let me have whatever bears upon the matter.

+This is what he says:

+

+"'MY DEAR MR. SHERLOCK HOLMES:--Lord Backwater tells me that I

+may place implicit reliance upon your judgment and discretion. I

+have determined, therefore, to call upon you and to consult you

+in reference to the very painful event which has occurred in

+connection with my wedding. Mr. Lestrade, of Scotland Yard, is

+acting already in the matter, but he assures me that he sees no

+objection to your co-operation, and that he even thinks that

+it might be of some assistance. I will call at four o'clock in

+the afternoon, and, should you have any other engagement at that

+time, I hope that you will postpone it, as this matter is of

+paramount importance. Yours faithfully, ST. SIMON.'

+

+"It is dated from Grosvenor Mansions, written with a quill pen,

+and the noble lord has had the misfortune to get a smear of ink

+upon the outer side of his right little finger," remarked Holmes

+as he folded up the epistle.

+

+"He says four o'clock. It is three now. He will be here in an

+hour."

+

+"Then I have just time, with your assistance, to get clear upon

+the subject. Turn over those papers and arrange the extracts in

+their order of time, while I take a glance as to who our client

+is." He picked a red-covered volume from a line of books of

+reference beside the mantelpiece. "Here he is," said he, sitting

+down and flattening it out upon his knee. "'Lord Robert Walsingham

+de Vere St. Simon, second son of the Duke of Balmoral.' Hum! 'Arms:

+Azure, three caltrops in chief over a fess sable. Born in 1846.'

+He's forty-one years of age, which is mature for marriage. Was

+Under-Secretary for the colonies in a late administration. The

+Duke, his father, was at one time Secretary for Foreign Affairs.

+They inherit Plantagenet blood by direct descent, and Tudor on

+the distaff side. Ha! Well, there is nothing very instructive in

+all this. I think that I must turn to you Watson, for something

+more solid."

+

+"I have very little difficulty in finding what I want," said I,

+"for the facts are quite recent, and the matter struck me as

+remarkable. I feared to refer them to you, however, as I knew

+that you had an inquiry on hand and that you disliked the

+intrusion of other matters."

+

+"Oh, you mean the little problem of the Grosvenor Square

+furniture van. That is quite cleared up now--though, indeed, it

+was obvious from the first. Pray give me the results of your

+newspaper selections."

+

+"Here is the first notice which I can find. It is in the personal

+column of the Morning Post, and dates, as you see, some weeks

+back: 'A marriage has been arranged,' it says, 'and will, if

+rumour is correct, very shortly take place, between Lord Robert

+St. Simon, second son of the Duke of Balmoral, and Miss Hatty

+Doran, the only daughter of Aloysius Doran. Esq., of San

+Francisco, Cal., U.S.A.' That is all."

+

+"Terse and to the point," remarked Holmes, stretching his long,

+thin legs towards the fire.

+

+"There was a paragraph amplifying this in one of the society

+papers of the same week. Ah, here it is: 'There will soon be a

+call for protection in the marriage market, for the present

+free-trade principle appears to tell heavily against our home

+product. One by one the management of the noble houses of Great

+Britain is passing into the hands of our fair cousins from across

+the Atlantic. An important addition has been made during the last

+week to the list of the prizes which have been borne away by

+these charming invaders. Lord St. Simon, who has shown himself

+for over twenty years proof against the little god's arrows, has

+now definitely announced his approaching marriage with Miss Hatty

+Doran, the fascinating daughter of a California millionaire. Miss

+Doran, whose graceful figure and striking face attracted much

+attention at the Westbury House festivities, is an only child,

+and it is currently reported that her dowry will run to

+considerably over the six figures, with expectancies for the

+future. As it is an open secret that the Duke of Balmoral has

+been compelled to sell his pictures within the last few years,

+and as Lord St. Simon has no property of his own save the small

+estate of Birchmoor, it is obvious that the Californian heiress

+is not the only gainer by an alliance which will enable her to

+make the easy and common transition from a Republican lady to a

+British peeress.'"

+

+"Anything else?" asked Holmes, yawning.

+

+"Oh, yes; plenty. Then there is another note in the Morning Post

+to say that the marriage would be an absolutely quiet one, that it

+would be at St. George's, Hanover Square, that only half a dozen

+intimate friends would be invited, and that the party would

+return to the furnished house at Lancaster Gate which has been

+taken by Mr. Aloysius Doran. Two days later--that is, on

+Wednesday last--there is a curt announcement that the wedding had

+taken place, and that the honeymoon would be passed at Lord

+Backwater's place, near Petersfield. Those are all the notices

+which appeared before the disappearance of the bride."

+

+"Before the what?" asked Holmes with a start.

+

+"The vanishing of the lady."

+

+"When did she vanish, then?"

+

+"At the wedding breakfast."

+

+"Indeed. This is more interesting than it promised to be; quite

+dramatic, in fact."

+

+"Yes; it struck me as being a little out of the common."

+

+"They often vanish before the ceremony, and occasionally during

+the honeymoon; but I cannot call to mind anything quite so prompt

+as this. Pray let me have the details."

+

+"I warn you that they are very incomplete."

+

+"Perhaps we may make them less so."

+

+"Such as they are, they are set forth in a single article of a

+morning paper of yesterday, which I will read to you. It is

+headed, 'Singular Occurrence at a Fashionable Wedding':

+

+"'The family of Lord Robert St. Simon has been thrown into the

+greatest consternation by the strange and painful episodes which

+have taken place in connection with his wedding. The ceremony, as

+shortly announced in the papers of yesterday, occurred on the

+previous morning; but it is only now that it has been possible to

+confirm the strange rumours which have been so persistently

+floating about. In spite of the attempts of the friends to hush

+the matter up, so much public attention has now been drawn to it

+that no good purpose can be served by affecting to disregard what

+is a common subject for conversation.

+

+"'The ceremony, which was performed at St. George's, Hanover

+Square, was a very quiet one, no one being present save the

+father of the bride, Mr. Aloysius Doran, the Duchess of Balmoral,

+Lord Backwater, Lord Eustace and Lady Clara St. Simon (the

+younger brother and sister of the bridegroom), and Lady Alicia

+Whittington. The whole party proceeded afterwards to the house of

+Mr. Aloysius Doran, at Lancaster Gate, where breakfast had been

+prepared. It appears that some little trouble was caused by a

+woman, whose name has not been ascertained, who endeavoured to

+force her way into the house after the bridal party, alleging

+that she had some claim upon Lord St. Simon. It was only after a

+painful and prolonged scene that she was ejected by the butler

+and the footman. The bride, who had fortunately entered the house

+before this unpleasant interruption, had sat down to breakfast

+with the rest, when she complained of a sudden indisposition and

+retired to her room. Her prolonged absence having caused some

+comment, her father followed her, but learned from her maid that

+she had only come up to her chamber for an instant, caught up an

+ulster and bonnet, and hurried down to the passage. One of the

+footmen declared that he had seen a lady leave the house thus

+apparelled, but had refused to credit that it was his mistress,

+believing her to be with the company. On ascertaining that his

+daughter had disappeared, Mr. Aloysius Doran, in conjunction with

+the bridegroom, instantly put themselves in communication with

+the police, and very energetic inquiries are being made, which

+will probably result in a speedy clearing up of this very

+singular business. Up to a late hour last night, however, nothing

+had transpired as to the whereabouts of the missing lady. There

+are rumours of foul play in the matter, and it is said that the

+police have caused the arrest of the woman who had caused the

+original disturbance, in the belief that, from jealousy or some

+other motive, she may have been concerned in the strange

+disappearance of the bride.'"

+

+"And is that all?"

+

+"Only one little item in another of the morning papers, but it is

+a suggestive one."

+

+"And it is--"

+

+"That Miss Flora Millar, the lady who had caused the disturbance,

+has actually been arrested. It appears that she was formerly a

+danseuse at the Allegro, and that she has known the bridegroom

+for some years. There are no further particulars, and the whole

+case is in your hands now--so far as it has been set forth in the

+public press."

+

+"And an exceedingly interesting case it appears to be. I would

+not have missed it for worlds. But there is a ring at the bell,

+Watson, and as the clock makes it a few minutes after four, I

+have no doubt that this will prove to be our noble client. Do not

+dream of going, Watson, for I very much prefer having a witness,

+if only as a check to my own memory."

+

+"Lord Robert St. Simon," announced our page-boy, throwing open

+the door. A gentleman entered, with a pleasant, cultured face,

+high-nosed and pale, with something perhaps of petulance about

+the mouth, and with the steady, well-opened eye of a man whose

+pleasant lot it had ever been to command and to be obeyed. His

+manner was brisk, and yet his general appearance gave an undue

+impression of age, for he had a slight forward stoop and a little

+bend of the knees as he walked. His hair, too, as he swept off

+his very curly-brimmed hat, was grizzled round the edges and thin

+upon the top. As to his dress, it was careful to the verge of

+foppishness, with high collar, black frock-coat, white waistcoat,

+yellow gloves, patent-leather shoes, and light-coloured gaiters.

+He advanced slowly into the room, turning his head from left to

+right, and swinging in his right hand the cord which held his

+golden eyeglasses.

+

+"Good-day, Lord St. Simon," said Holmes, rising and bowing. "Pray

+take the basket-chair. This is my friend and colleague, Dr.

+Watson. Draw up a little to the fire, and we will talk this

+matter over."

+

+"A most painful matter to me, as you can most readily imagine,

+Mr. Holmes. I have been cut to the quick. I understand that you

+have already managed several delicate cases of this sort, sir,

+though I presume that they were hardly from the same class of

+society."

+

+"No, I am descending."

+

+"I beg pardon."

+

+"My last client of the sort was a king."

+

+"Oh, really! I had no idea. And which king?"

+

+"The King of Scandinavia."

+

+"What! Had he lost his wife?"

+

+"You can understand," said Holmes suavely, "that I extend to the

+affairs of my other clients the same secrecy which I promise to

+you in yours."

+

+"Of course! Very right! very right! I'm sure I beg pardon. As to

+my own case, I am ready to give you any information which may

+assist you in forming an opinion."

+

+"Thank you. I have already learned all that is in the public

+prints, nothing more. I presume that I may take it as correct--this

+article, for example, as to the disappearance of the bride."

+

+Lord St. Simon glanced over it. "Yes, it is correct, as far as it

+goes."

+

+"But it needs a great deal of supplementing before anyone could

+offer an opinion. I think that I may arrive at my facts most

+directly by questioning you."

+

+"Pray do so."

+

+"When did you first meet Miss Hatty Doran?"

+

+"In San Francisco, a year ago."

+

+"You were travelling in the States?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Did you become engaged then?"

+

+"No."

+

+"But you were on a friendly footing?"

+

+"I was amused by her society, and she could see that I was

+amused."

+

+"Her father is very rich?"

+

+"He is said to be the richest man on the Pacific slope."

+

+"And how did he make his money?"

+

+"In mining. He had nothing a few years ago. Then he struck gold,

+invested it, and came up by leaps and bounds."

+

+"Now, what is your own impression as to the young lady's--your

+wife's character?"

+

+The nobleman swung his glasses a little faster and stared down

+into the fire. "You see, Mr. Holmes," said he, "my wife was

+twenty before her father became a rich man. During that time she

+ran free in a mining camp and wandered through woods or

+mountains, so that her education has come from Nature rather than

+from the schoolmaster. She is what we call in England a tomboy,

+with a strong nature, wild and free, unfettered by any sort of

+traditions. She is impetuous--volcanic, I was about to say. She

+is swift in making up her mind and fearless in carrying out her

+resolutions. On the other hand, I would not have given her the

+name which I have the honour to bear"--he gave a little stately

+cough--"had not I thought her to be at bottom a noble woman. I

+believe that she is capable of heroic self-sacrifice and that

+anything dishonourable would be repugnant to her."

+

+"Have you her photograph?"

+

+"I brought this with me." He opened a locket and showed us the

+full face of a very lovely woman. It was not a photograph but an

+ivory miniature, and the artist had brought out the full effect

+of the lustrous black hair, the large dark eyes, and the

+exquisite mouth. Holmes gazed long and earnestly at it. Then he

+closed the locket and handed it back to Lord St. Simon.

+

+"The young lady came to London, then, and you renewed your

+acquaintance?"

+

+"Yes, her father brought her over for this last London season. I

+met her several times, became engaged to her, and have now

+married her."

+

+"She brought, I understand, a considerable dowry?"

+

+"A fair dowry. Not more than is usual in my family."

+

+"And this, of course, remains to you, since the marriage is a

+fait accompli?"

+

+"I really have made no inquiries on the subject."

+

+"Very naturally not. Did you see Miss Doran on the day before the

+wedding?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Was she in good spirits?"

+

+"Never better. She kept talking of what we should do in our

+future lives."

+

+"Indeed! That is very interesting. And on the morning of the

+wedding?"

+

+"She was as bright as possible--at least until after the

+ceremony."

+

+"And did you observe any change in her then?"

+

+"Well, to tell the truth, I saw then the first signs that I had

+ever seen that her temper was just a little sharp. The incident

+however, was too trivial to relate and can have no possible

+bearing upon the case."

+

+"Pray let us have it, for all that."

+

+"Oh, it is childish. She dropped her bouquet as we went towards

+the vestry. She was passing the front pew at the time, and it

+fell over into the pew. There was a moment's delay, but the

+gentleman in the pew handed it up to her again, and it did not

+appear to be the worse for the fall. Yet when I spoke to her of

+the matter, she answered me abruptly; and in the carriage, on our

+way home, she seemed absurdly agitated over this trifling cause."

+

+"Indeed! You say that there was a gentleman in the pew. Some of

+the general public were present, then?"

+

+"Oh, yes. It is impossible to exclude them when the church is

+open."

+

+"This gentleman was not one of your wife's friends?"

+

+"No, no; I call him a gentleman by courtesy, but he was quite a

+common-looking person. I hardly noticed his appearance. But

+really I think that we are wandering rather far from the point."

+

+"Lady St. Simon, then, returned from the wedding in a less

+cheerful frame of mind than she had gone to it. What did she do

+on re-entering her father's house?"

+

+"I saw her in conversation with her maid."

+

+"And who is her maid?"

+

+"Alice is her name. She is an American and came from California

+with her."

+

+"A confidential servant?"

+

+"A little too much so. It seemed to me that her mistress allowed

+her to take great liberties. Still, of course, in America they

+look upon these things in a different way."

+

+"How long did she speak to this Alice?"

+

+"Oh, a few minutes. I had something else to think of."

+

+"You did not overhear what they said?"

+

+"Lady St. Simon said something about 'jumping a claim.' She was

+accustomed to use slang of the kind. I have no idea what she

+meant."

+

+"American slang is very expressive sometimes. And what did your

+wife do when she finished speaking to her maid?"

+

+"She walked into the breakfast-room."

+

+"On your arm?"

+

+"No, alone. She was very independent in little matters like that.

+Then, after we had sat down for ten minutes or so, she rose

+hurriedly, muttered some words of apology, and left the room. She

+never came back."

+

+"But this maid, Alice, as I understand, deposes that she went to

+her room, covered her bride's dress with a long ulster, put on a

+bonnet, and went out."

+

+"Quite so. And she was afterwards seen walking into Hyde Park in

+company with Flora Millar, a woman who is now in custody, and who

+had already made a disturbance at Mr. Doran's house that

+morning."

+

+"Ah, yes. I should like a few particulars as to this young lady,

+and your relations to her."

+

+Lord St. Simon shrugged his shoulders and raised his eyebrows.

+"We have been on a friendly footing for some years--I may say on

+a very friendly footing. She used to be at the Allegro. I have

+not treated her ungenerously, and she had no just cause of

+complaint against me, but you know what women are, Mr. Holmes.

+Flora was a dear little thing, but exceedingly hot-headed and

+devotedly attached to me. She wrote me dreadful letters when she

+heard that I was about to be married, and, to tell the truth, the

+reason why I had the marriage celebrated so quietly was that I

+feared lest there might be a scandal in the church. She came to

+Mr. Doran's door just after we returned, and she endeavoured to

+push her way in, uttering very abusive expressions towards my

+wife, and even threatening her, but I had foreseen the

+possibility of something of the sort, and I had two police

+fellows there in private clothes, who soon pushed her out again.

+She was quiet when she saw that there was no good in making a

+row."

+

+"Did your wife hear all this?"

+

+"No, thank goodness, she did not."

+

+"And she was seen walking with this very woman afterwards?"

+

+"Yes. That is what Mr. Lestrade, of Scotland Yard, looks upon as

+so serious. It is thought that Flora decoyed my wife out and laid

+some terrible trap for her."

+

+"Well, it is a possible supposition."

+

+"You think so, too?"

+

+"I did not say a probable one. But you do not yourself look upon

+this as likely?"

+

+"I do not think Flora would hurt a fly."

+

+"Still, jealousy is a strange transformer of characters. Pray

+what is your own theory as to what took place?"

+

+"Well, really, I came to seek a theory, not to propound one. I

+have given you all the facts. Since you ask me, however, I may

+say that it has occurred to me as possible that the excitement of

+this affair, the consciousness that she had made so immense a

+social stride, had the effect of causing some little nervous

+disturbance in my wife."

+

+"In short, that she had become suddenly deranged?"

+

+"Well, really, when I consider that she has turned her back--I

+will not say upon me, but upon so much that many have aspired to

+without success--I can hardly explain it in any other fashion."

+

+"Well, certainly that is also a conceivable hypothesis," said

+Holmes, smiling. "And now, Lord St. Simon, I think that I have

+nearly all my data. May I ask whether you were seated at the

+breakfast-table so that you could see out of the window?"

+

+"We could see the other side of the road and the Park."

+

+"Quite so. Then I do not think that I need to detain you longer.

+I shall communicate with you."

+

+"Should you be fortunate enough to solve this problem," said our

+client, rising.

+

+"I have solved it."

+

+"Eh? What was that?"

+

+"I say that I have solved it."

+

+"Where, then, is my wife?"

+

+"That is a detail which I shall speedily supply."

+

+Lord St. Simon shook his head. "I am afraid that it will take

+wiser heads than yours or mine," he remarked, and bowing in a

+stately, old-fashioned manner he departed.

+

+"It is very good of Lord St. Simon to honour my head by putting

+it on a level with his own," said Sherlock Holmes, laughing. "I

+think that I shall have a whisky and soda and a cigar after all

+this cross-questioning. I had formed my conclusions as to the

+case before our client came into the room."

+

+"My dear Holmes!"

+

+"I have notes of several similar cases, though none, as I

+remarked before, which were quite as prompt. My whole examination

+served to turn my conjecture into a certainty. Circumstantial

+evidence is occasionally very convincing, as when you find a

+trout in the milk, to quote Thoreau's example."

+

+"But I have heard all that you have heard."

+

+"Without, however, the knowledge of pre-existing cases which

+serves me so well. There was a parallel instance in Aberdeen some

+years back, and something on very much the same lines at Munich

+the year after the Franco-Prussian War. It is one of these

+cases--but, hullo, here is Lestrade! Good-afternoon, Lestrade!

+You will find an extra tumbler upon the sideboard, and there are

+cigars in the box."

+

+The official detective was attired in a pea-jacket and cravat,

+which gave him a decidedly nautical appearance, and he carried a

+black canvas bag in his hand. With a short greeting he seated

+himself and lit the cigar which had been offered to him.

+

+"What's up, then?" asked Holmes with a twinkle in his eye. "You

+look dissatisfied."

+

+"And I feel dissatisfied. It is this infernal St. Simon marriage

+case. I can make neither head nor tail of the business."

+

+"Really! You surprise me."

+

+"Who ever heard of such a mixed affair? Every clue seems to slip

+through my fingers. I have been at work upon it all day."

+

+"And very wet it seems to have made you," said Holmes laying his

+hand upon the arm of the pea-jacket.

+

+"Yes, I have been dragging the Serpentine."

+

+"In heaven's name, what for?"

+

+"In search of the body of Lady St. Simon."

+

+Sherlock Holmes leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily.

+

+"Have you dragged the basin of Trafalgar Square fountain?" he

+asked.

+

+"Why? What do you mean?"

+

+"Because you have just as good a chance of finding this lady in

+the one as in the other."

+

+Lestrade shot an angry glance at my companion. "I suppose you

+know all about it," he snarled.

+

+"Well, I have only just heard the facts, but my mind is made up."

+

+"Oh, indeed! Then you think that the Serpentine plays no part in

+the matter?"

+

+"I think it very unlikely."

+

+"Then perhaps you will kindly explain how it is that we found

+this in it?" He opened his bag as he spoke, and tumbled onto the

+floor a wedding-dress of watered silk, a pair of white satin

+shoes and a bride's wreath and veil, all discoloured and soaked

+in water. "There," said he, putting a new wedding-ring upon the

+top of the pile. "There is a little nut for you to crack, Master

+Holmes."

+

+"Oh, indeed!" said my friend, blowing blue rings into the air.

+"You dragged them from the Serpentine?"

+

+"No. They were found floating near the margin by a park-keeper.

+They have been identified as her clothes, and it seemed to me

+that if the clothes were there the body would not be far off."

+

+"By the same brilliant reasoning, every man's body is to be found

+in the neighbourhood of his wardrobe. And pray what did you hope

+to arrive at through this?"

+

+"At some evidence implicating Flora Millar in the disappearance."

+

+"I am afraid that you will find it difficult."

+

+"Are you, indeed, now?" cried Lestrade with some bitterness. "I

+am afraid, Holmes, that you are not very practical with your

+deductions and your inferences. You have made two blunders in as

+many minutes. This dress does implicate Miss Flora Millar."

+

+"And how?"

+

+"In the dress is a pocket. In the pocket is a card-case. In the

+card-case is a note. And here is the very note." He slapped it

+down upon the table in front of him. "Listen to this: 'You will

+see me when all is ready. Come at once. F.H.M.' Now my theory all

+along has been that Lady St. Simon was decoyed away by Flora

+Millar, and that she, with confederates, no doubt, was

+responsible for her disappearance. Here, signed with her

+initials, is the very note which was no doubt quietly slipped

+into her hand at the door and which lured her within their

+reach."

+

+"Very good, Lestrade," said Holmes, laughing. "You really are

+very fine indeed. Let me see it." He took up the paper in a

+listless way, but his attention instantly became riveted, and he

+gave a little cry of satisfaction. "This is indeed important,"

+said he.

+

+"Ha! you find it so?"

+

+"Extremely so. I congratulate you warmly."

+

+Lestrade rose in his triumph and bent his head to look. "Why," he

+shrieked, "you're looking at the wrong side!"

+

+"On the contrary, this is the right side."

+

+"The right side? You're mad! Here is the note written in pencil

+over here."

+

+"And over here is what appears to be the fragment of a hotel

+bill, which interests me deeply."

+

+"There's nothing in it. I looked at it before," said Lestrade.

+"'Oct. 4th, rooms 8s., breakfast 2s. 6d., cocktail 1s., lunch 2s.

+6d., glass sherry, 8d.' I see nothing in that."

+

+"Very likely not. It is most important, all the same. As to the

+note, it is important also, or at least the initials are, so I

+congratulate you again."

+

+"I've wasted time enough," said Lestrade, rising. "I believe in

+hard work and not in sitting by the fire spinning fine theories.

+Good-day, Mr. Holmes, and we shall see which gets to the bottom

+of the matter first." He gathered up the garments, thrust them

+into the bag, and made for the door.

+

+"Just one hint to you, Lestrade," drawled Holmes before his rival

+vanished; "I will tell you the true solution of the matter. Lady

+St. Simon is a myth. There is not, and there never has been, any

+such person."

+

+Lestrade looked sadly at my companion. Then he turned to me,

+tapped his forehead three times, shook his head solemnly, and

+hurried away.

+

+He had hardly shut the door behind him when Holmes rose to put on

+his overcoat. "There is something in what the fellow says about

+outdoor work," he remarked, "so I think, Watson, that I must

+leave you to your papers for a little."

+

+It was after five o'clock when Sherlock Holmes left me, but I had

+no time to be lonely, for within an hour there arrived a

+confectioner's man with a very large flat box. This he unpacked

+with the help of a youth whom he had brought with him, and

+presently, to my very great astonishment, a quite epicurean

+little cold supper began to be laid out upon our humble

+lodging-house mahogany. There were a couple of brace of cold

+woodcock, a pheasant, a pâté de foie gras pie with a group of

+ancient and cobwebby bottles. Having laid out all these luxuries,

+my two visitors vanished away, like the genii of the Arabian

+Nights, with no explanation save that the things had been paid

+for and were ordered to this address.

+

+Just before nine o'clock Sherlock Holmes stepped briskly into the

+room. His features were gravely set, but there was a light in his

+eye which made me think that he had not been disappointed in his

+conclusions.

+

+"They have laid the supper, then," he said, rubbing his hands.

+

+"You seem to expect company. They have laid for five."

+

+"Yes, I fancy we may have some company dropping in," said he. "I

+am surprised that Lord St. Simon has not already arrived. Ha! I

+fancy that I hear his step now upon the stairs."

+

+It was indeed our visitor of the afternoon who came bustling in,

+dangling his glasses more vigorously than ever, and with a very

+perturbed expression upon his aristocratic features.

+

+"My messenger reached you, then?" asked Holmes.

+

+"Yes, and I confess that the contents startled me beyond measure.

+Have you good authority for what you say?"

+

+"The best possible."

+

+Lord St. Simon sank into a chair and passed his hand over his

+forehead.

+

+"What will the Duke say," he murmured, "when he hears that one of

+the family has been subjected to such humiliation?"

+

+"It is the purest accident. I cannot allow that there is any

+humiliation."

+

+"Ah, you look on these things from another standpoint."

+

+"I fail to see that anyone is to blame. I can hardly see how the

+lady could have acted otherwise, though her abrupt method of

+doing it was undoubtedly to be regretted. Having no mother, she

+had no one to advise her at such a crisis."

+

+"It was a slight, sir, a public slight," said Lord St. Simon,

+tapping his fingers upon the table.

+

+"You must make allowance for this poor girl, placed in so

+unprecedented a position."

+

+"I will make no allowance. I am very angry indeed, and I have

+been shamefully used."

+

+"I think that I heard a ring," said Holmes. "Yes, there are steps

+on the landing. If I cannot persuade you to take a lenient view

+of the matter, Lord St. Simon, I have brought an advocate here

+who may be more successful." He opened the door and ushered in a

+lady and gentleman. "Lord St. Simon," said he "allow me to

+introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Francis Hay Moulton. The lady, I

+think, you have already met."

+

+At the sight of these newcomers our client had sprung from his

+seat and stood very erect, with his eyes cast down and his hand

+thrust into the breast of his frock-coat, a picture of offended

+dignity. The lady had taken a quick step forward and had held out

+her hand to him, but he still refused to raise his eyes. It was

+as well for his resolution, perhaps, for her pleading face was

+one which it was hard to resist.

+

+"You're angry, Robert," said she. "Well, I guess you have every

+cause to be."

+

+"Pray make no apology to me," said Lord St. Simon bitterly.

+

+"Oh, yes, I know that I have treated you real bad and that I

+should have spoken to you before I went; but I was kind of

+rattled, and from the time when I saw Frank here again I just

+didn't know what I was doing or saying. I only wonder I didn't

+fall down and do a faint right there before the altar."

+

+"Perhaps, Mrs. Moulton, you would like my friend and me to leave

+the room while you explain this matter?"

+

+"If I may give an opinion," remarked the strange gentleman,

+"we've had just a little too much secrecy over this business

+already. For my part, I should like all Europe and America to

+hear the rights of it." He was a small, wiry, sunburnt man,

+clean-shaven, with a sharp face and alert manner.

+

+"Then I'll tell our story right away," said the lady. "Frank here

+and I met in '84, in McQuire's camp, near the Rockies, where pa

+was working a claim. We were engaged to each other, Frank and I;

+but then one day father struck a rich pocket and made a pile,

+while poor Frank here had a claim that petered out and came to

+nothing. The richer pa grew the poorer was Frank; so at last pa

+wouldn't hear of our engagement lasting any longer, and he took

+me away to 'Frisco. Frank wouldn't throw up his hand, though; so

+he followed me there, and he saw me without pa knowing anything

+about it. It would only have made him mad to know, so we just

+fixed it all up for ourselves. Frank said that he would go and

+make his pile, too, and never come back to claim me until he had

+as much as pa. So then I promised to wait for him to the end of

+time and pledged myself not to marry anyone else while he lived.

+'Why shouldn't we be married right away, then,' said he, 'and

+then I will feel sure of you; and I won't claim to be your

+husband until I come back?' Well, we talked it over, and he had

+fixed it all up so nicely, with a clergyman all ready in waiting,

+that we just did it right there; and then Frank went off to seek

+his fortune, and I went back to pa.

+

+"The next I heard of Frank was that he was in Montana, and then

+he went prospecting in Arizona, and then I heard of him from New

+Mexico. After that came a long newspaper story about how a

+miners' camp had been attacked by Apache Indians, and there was

+my Frank's name among the killed. I fainted dead away, and I was

+very sick for months after. Pa thought I had a decline and took

+me to half the doctors in 'Frisco. Not a word of news came for a

+year and more, so that I never doubted that Frank was really

+dead. Then Lord St. Simon came to 'Frisco, and we came to London,

+and a marriage was arranged, and pa was very pleased, but I felt

+all the time that no man on this earth would ever take the place

+in my heart that had been given to my poor Frank.

+

+"Still, if I had married Lord St. Simon, of course I'd have done

+my duty by him. We can't command our love, but we can our

+actions. I went to the altar with him with the intention to make

+him just as good a wife as it was in me to be. But you may

+imagine what I felt when, just as I came to the altar rails, I

+glanced back and saw Frank standing and looking at me out of the

+first pew. I thought it was his ghost at first; but when I looked

+again there he was still, with a kind of question in his eyes, as

+if to ask me whether I were glad or sorry to see him. I wonder I

+didn't drop. I know that everything was turning round, and the

+words of the clergyman were just like the buzz of a bee in my

+ear. I didn't know what to do. Should I stop the service and make

+a scene in the church? I glanced at him again, and he seemed to

+know what I was thinking, for he raised his finger to his lips to

+tell me to be still. Then I saw him scribble on a piece of paper,

+and I knew that he was writing me a note. As I passed his pew on

+the way out I dropped my bouquet over to him, and he slipped the

+note into my hand when he returned me the flowers. It was only a

+line asking me to join him when he made the sign to me to do so.

+Of course I never doubted for a moment that my first duty was now

+to him, and I determined to do just whatever he might direct.

+

+"When I got back I told my maid, who had known him in California,

+and had always been his friend. I ordered her to say nothing, but

+to get a few things packed and my ulster ready. I know I ought to

+have spoken to Lord St. Simon, but it was dreadful hard before

+his mother and all those great people. I just made up my mind to

+run away and explain afterwards. I hadn't been at the table ten

+minutes before I saw Frank out of the window at the other side of

+the road. He beckoned to me and then began walking into the Park.

+I slipped out, put on my things, and followed him. Some woman

+came talking something or other about Lord St. Simon to

+me--seemed to me from the little I heard as if he had a little

+secret of his own before marriage also--but I managed to get away

+from her and soon overtook Frank. We got into a cab together, and

+away we drove to some lodgings he had taken in Gordon Square, and

+that was my true wedding after all those years of waiting. Frank

+had been a prisoner among the Apaches, had escaped, came on to

+'Frisco, found that I had given him up for dead and had gone to

+England, followed me there, and had come upon me at last on the

+very morning of my second wedding."

+

+"I saw it in a paper," explained the American. "It gave the name

+and the church but not where the lady lived."

+

+"Then we had a talk as to what we should do, and Frank was all

+for openness, but I was so ashamed of it all that I felt as if I

+should like to vanish away and never see any of them again--just

+sending a line to pa, perhaps, to show him that I was alive. It

+was awful to me to think of all those lords and ladies sitting

+round that breakfast-table and waiting for me to come back. So

+Frank took my wedding-clothes and things and made a bundle of

+them, so that I should not be traced, and dropped them away

+somewhere where no one could find them. It is likely that we

+should have gone on to Paris to-morrow, only that this good

+gentleman, Mr. Holmes, came round to us this evening, though how

+he found us is more than I can think, and he showed us very

+clearly and kindly that I was wrong and that Frank was right, and

+that we should be putting ourselves in the wrong if we were so

+secret. Then he offered to give us a chance of talking to Lord

+St. Simon alone, and so we came right away round to his rooms at

+once. Now, Robert, you have heard it all, and I am very sorry if

+I have given you pain, and I hope that you do not think very

+meanly of me."

+

+Lord St. Simon had by no means relaxed his rigid attitude, but

+had listened with a frowning brow and a compressed lip to this

+long narrative.

+

+"Excuse me," he said, "but it is not my custom to discuss my most

+intimate personal affairs in this public manner."

+

+"Then you won't forgive me? You won't shake hands before I go?"

+

+"Oh, certainly, if it would give you any pleasure." He put out

+his hand and coldly grasped that which she extended to him.

+

+"I had hoped," suggested Holmes, "that you would have joined us

+in a friendly supper."

+

+"I think that there you ask a little too much," responded his

+Lordship. "I may be forced to acquiesce in these recent

+developments, but I can hardly be expected to make merry over

+them. I think that with your permission I will now wish you all a

+very good-night." He included us all in a sweeping bow and

+stalked out of the room.

+

+"Then I trust that you at least will honour me with your

+company," said Sherlock Holmes. "It is always a joy to meet an

+American, Mr. Moulton, for I am one of those who believe that the

+folly of a monarch and the blundering of a minister in far-gone

+years will not prevent our children from being some day citizens

+of the same world-wide country under a flag which shall be a

+quartering of the Union Jack with the Stars and Stripes."

+

+"The case has been an interesting one," remarked Holmes when our

+visitors had left us, "because it serves to show very clearly how

+simple the explanation may be of an affair which at first sight

+seems to be almost inexplicable. Nothing could be more natural

+than the sequence of events as narrated by this lady, and nothing

+stranger than the result when viewed, for instance, by Mr.

+Lestrade of Scotland Yard."

+

+"You were not yourself at fault at all, then?"

+

+"From the first, two facts were very obvious to me, the one that

+the lady had been quite willing to undergo the wedding ceremony,

+the other that she had repented of it within a few minutes of

+returning home. Obviously something had occurred during the

+morning, then, to cause her to change her mind. What could that

+something be? She could not have spoken to anyone when she was

+out, for she had been in the company of the bridegroom. Had she

+seen someone, then? If she had, it must be someone from America

+because she had spent so short a time in this country that she

+could hardly have allowed anyone to acquire so deep an influence

+over her that the mere sight of him would induce her to change

+her plans so completely. You see we have already arrived, by a

+process of exclusion, at the idea that she might have seen an

+American. Then who could this American be, and why should he

+possess so much influence over her? It might be a lover; it might

+be a husband. Her young womanhood had, I knew, been spent in

+rough scenes and under strange conditions. So far I had got

+before I ever heard Lord St. Simon's narrative. When he told us

+of a man in a pew, of the change in the bride's manner, of so

+transparent a device for obtaining a note as the dropping of a

+bouquet, of her resort to her confidential maid, and of her very

+significant allusion to claim-jumping--which in miners' parlance

+means taking possession of that which another person has a prior

+claim to--the whole situation became absolutely clear. She had

+gone off with a man, and the man was either a lover or was a

+previous husband--the chances being in favour of the latter."

+

+"And how in the world did you find them?"

+

+"It might have been difficult, but friend Lestrade held

+information in his hands the value of which he did not himself

+know. The initials were, of course, of the highest importance,

+but more valuable still was it to know that within a week he had

+settled his bill at one of the most select London hotels."

+

+"How did you deduce the select?"

+

+"By the select prices. Eight shillings for a bed and eightpence

+for a glass of sherry pointed to one of the most expensive

+hotels. There are not many in London which charge at that rate.

+In the second one which I visited in Northumberland Avenue, I

+learned by an inspection of the book that Francis H. Moulton, an

+American gentleman, had left only the day before, and on looking

+over the entries against him, I came upon the very items which I

+had seen in the duplicate bill. His letters were to be forwarded

+to 226 Gordon Square; so thither I travelled, and being fortunate

+enough to find the loving couple at home, I ventured to give them

+some paternal advice and to point out to them that it would be

+better in every way that they should make their position a little

+clearer both to the general public and to Lord St. Simon in

+particular. I invited them to meet him here, and, as you see, I

+made him keep the appointment."

+

+"But with no very good result," I remarked. "His conduct was

+certainly not very gracious."

+

+"Ah, Watson," said Holmes, smiling, "perhaps you would not be

+very gracious either, if, after all the trouble of wooing and

+wedding, you found yourself deprived in an instant of wife and of

+fortune. I think that we may judge Lord St. Simon very mercifully

+and thank our stars that we are never likely to find ourselves in

+the same position. Draw your chair up and hand me my violin, for

+the only problem we have still to solve is how to while away

+these bleak autumnal evenings."

+

+

+

+XI. THE ADVENTURE OF THE BERYL CORONET

+

+"Holmes," said I as I stood one morning in our bow-window looking

+down the street, "here is a madman coming along. It seems rather

+sad that his relatives should allow him to come out alone."

+

+My friend rose lazily from his armchair and stood with his hands

+in the pockets of his dressing-gown, looking over my shoulder. It

+was a bright, crisp February morning, and the snow of the day

+before still lay deep upon the ground, shimmering brightly in the

+wintry sun. Down the centre of Baker Street it had been ploughed

+into a brown crumbly band by the traffic, but at either side and

+on the heaped-up edges of the foot-paths it still lay as white as

+when it fell. The grey pavement had been cleaned and scraped, but

+was still dangerously slippery, so that there were fewer

+passengers than usual. Indeed, from the direction of the

+Metropolitan Station no one was coming save the single gentleman

+whose eccentric conduct had drawn my attention.

+

+He was a man of about fifty, tall, portly, and imposing, with a

+massive, strongly marked face and a commanding figure. He was

+dressed in a sombre yet rich style, in black frock-coat, shining

+hat, neat brown gaiters, and well-cut pearl-grey trousers. Yet

+his actions were in absurd contrast to the dignity of his dress

+and features, for he was running hard, with occasional little

+springs, such as a weary man gives who is little accustomed to

+set any tax upon his legs. As he ran he jerked his hands up and

+down, waggled his head, and writhed his face into the most

+extraordinary contortions.

+

+"What on earth can be the matter with him?" I asked. "He is

+looking up at the numbers of the houses."

+

+"I believe that he is coming here," said Holmes, rubbing his

+hands.

+

+"Here?"

+

+"Yes; I rather think he is coming to consult me professionally. I

+think that I recognise the symptoms. Ha! did I not tell you?" As

+he spoke, the man, puffing and blowing, rushed at our door and

+pulled at our bell until the whole house resounded with the

+clanging.

+

+A few moments later he was in our room, still puffing, still

+gesticulating, but with so fixed a look of grief and despair in

+his eyes that our smiles were turned in an instant to horror and

+pity. For a while he could not get his words out, but swayed his

+body and plucked at his hair like one who has been driven to the

+extreme limits of his reason. Then, suddenly springing to his

+feet, he beat his head against the wall with such force that we

+both rushed upon him and tore him away to the centre of the room.

+Sherlock Holmes pushed him down into the easy-chair and, sitting

+beside him, patted his hand and chatted with him in the easy,

+soothing tones which he knew so well how to employ.

+

+"You have come to me to tell your story, have you not?" said he.

+"You are fatigued with your haste. Pray wait until you have

+recovered yourself, and then I shall be most happy to look into

+any little problem which you may submit to me."

+

+The man sat for a minute or more with a heaving chest, fighting

+against his emotion. Then he passed his handkerchief over his

+brow, set his lips tight, and turned his face towards us.

+

+"No doubt you think me mad?" said he.

+

+"I see that you have had some great trouble," responded Holmes.

+

+"God knows I have!--a trouble which is enough to unseat my

+reason, so sudden and so terrible is it. Public disgrace I might

+have faced, although I am a man whose character has never yet

+borne a stain. Private affliction also is the lot of every man;

+but the two coming together, and in so frightful a form, have

+been enough to shake my very soul. Besides, it is not I alone.

+The very noblest in the land may suffer unless some way be found

+out of this horrible affair."

+

+"Pray compose yourself, sir," said Holmes, "and let me have a

+clear account of who you are and what it is that has befallen

+you."

+

+"My name," answered our visitor, "is probably familiar to your

+ears. I am Alexander Holder, of the banking firm of Holder &

+Stevenson, of Threadneedle Street."

+

+The name was indeed well known to us as belonging to the senior

+partner in the second largest private banking concern in the City

+of London. What could have happened, then, to bring one of the

+foremost citizens of London to this most pitiable pass? We

+waited, all curiosity, until with another effort he braced

+himself to tell his story.

+

+"I feel that time is of value," said he; "that is why I hastened

+here when the police inspector suggested that I should secure

+your co-operation. I came to Baker Street by the Underground and

+hurried from there on foot, for the cabs go slowly through this

+snow. That is why I was so out of breath, for I am a man who

+takes very little exercise. I feel better now, and I will put the

+facts before you as shortly and yet as clearly as I can.

+

+"It is, of course, well known to you that in a successful banking

+business as much depends upon our being able to find remunerative

+investments for our funds as upon our increasing our connection

+and the number of our depositors. One of our most lucrative means

+of laying out money is in the shape of loans, where the security

+is unimpeachable. We have done a good deal in this direction

+during the last few years, and there are many noble families to

+whom we have advanced large sums upon the security of their

+pictures, libraries, or plate.

+

+"Yesterday morning I was seated in my office at the bank when a

+card was brought in to me by one of the clerks. I started when I

+saw the name, for it was that of none other than--well, perhaps

+even to you I had better say no more than that it was a name

+which is a household word all over the earth--one of the highest,

+noblest, most exalted names in England. I was overwhelmed by the

+honour and attempted, when he entered, to say so, but he plunged

+at once into business with the air of a man who wishes to hurry

+quickly through a disagreeable task.

+

+"'Mr. Holder,' said he, 'I have been informed that you are in the

+habit of advancing money.'

+

+"'The firm does so when the security is good.' I answered.

+

+"'It is absolutely essential to me,' said he, 'that I should have

+50,000 pounds at once. I could, of course, borrow so trifling a

+sum ten times over from my friends, but I much prefer to make it

+a matter of business and to carry out that business myself. In my

+position you can readily understand that it is unwise to place

+one's self under obligations.'

+

+"'For how long, may I ask, do you want this sum?' I asked.

+

+"'Next Monday I have a large sum due to me, and I shall then most

+certainly repay what you advance, with whatever interest you

+think it right to charge. But it is very essential to me that the

+money should be paid at once.'

+

+"'I should be happy to advance it without further parley from my

+own private purse,' said I, 'were it not that the strain would be

+rather more than it could bear. If, on the other hand, I am to do

+it in the name of the firm, then in justice to my partner I must

+insist that, even in your case, every businesslike precaution

+should be taken.'

+

+"'I should much prefer to have it so,' said he, raising up a

+square, black morocco case which he had laid beside his chair.

+'You have doubtless heard of the Beryl Coronet?'

+

+"'One of the most precious public possessions of the empire,'

+said I.

+

+"'Precisely.' He opened the case, and there, imbedded in soft,

+flesh-coloured velvet, lay the magnificent piece of jewellery

+which he had named. 'There are thirty-nine enormous beryls,' said

+he, 'and the price of the gold chasing is incalculable. The

+lowest estimate would put the worth of the coronet at double the

+sum which I have asked. I am prepared to leave it with you as my

+security.'

+

+"I took the precious case into my hands and looked in some

+perplexity from it to my illustrious client.

+

+"'You doubt its value?' he asked.

+

+"'Not at all. I only doubt--'

+

+"'The propriety of my leaving it. You may set your mind at rest

+about that. I should not dream of doing so were it not absolutely

+certain that I should be able in four days to reclaim it. It is a

+pure matter of form. Is the security sufficient?'

+

+"'Ample.'

+

+"'You understand, Mr. Holder, that I am giving you a strong proof

+of the confidence which I have in you, founded upon all that I

+have heard of you. I rely upon you not only to be discreet and to

+refrain from all gossip upon the matter but, above all, to

+preserve this coronet with every possible precaution because I

+need not say that a great public scandal would be caused if any

+harm were to befall it. Any injury to it would be almost as

+serious as its complete loss, for there are no beryls in the

+world to match these, and it would be impossible to replace them.

+I leave it with you, however, with every confidence, and I shall

+call for it in person on Monday morning.'

+

+"Seeing that my client was anxious to leave, I said no more but,

+calling for my cashier, I ordered him to pay over fifty 1000

+pound notes. When I was alone once more, however, with the

+precious case lying upon the table in front of me, I could not

+but think with some misgivings of the immense responsibility

+which it entailed upon me. There could be no doubt that, as it

+was a national possession, a horrible scandal would ensue if any

+misfortune should occur to it. I already regretted having ever

+consented to take charge of it. However, it was too late to alter

+the matter now, so I locked it up in my private safe and turned

+once more to my work.

+

+"When evening came I felt that it would be an imprudence to leave

+so precious a thing in the office behind me. Bankers' safes had

+been forced before now, and why should not mine be? If so, how

+terrible would be the position in which I should find myself! I

+determined, therefore, that for the next few days I would always

+carry the case backward and forward with me, so that it might

+never be really out of my reach. With this intention, I called a

+cab and drove out to my house at Streatham, carrying the jewel

+with me. I did not breathe freely until I had taken it upstairs

+and locked it in the bureau of my dressing-room.

+

+"And now a word as to my household, Mr. Holmes, for I wish you to

+thoroughly understand the situation. My groom and my page sleep

+out of the house, and may be set aside altogether. I have three

+maid-servants who have been with me a number of years and whose

+absolute reliability is quite above suspicion. Another, Lucy

+Parr, the second waiting-maid, has only been in my service a few

+months. She came with an excellent character, however, and has

+always given me satisfaction. She is a very pretty girl and has

+attracted admirers who have occasionally hung about the place.

+That is the only drawback which we have found to her, but we

+believe her to be a thoroughly good girl in every way.

+

+"So much for the servants. My family itself is so small that it

+will not take me long to describe it. I am a widower and have an

+only son, Arthur. He has been a disappointment to me, Mr.

+Holmes--a grievous disappointment. I have no doubt that I am

+myself to blame. People tell me that I have spoiled him. Very

+likely I have. When my dear wife died I felt that he was all I

+had to love. I could not bear to see the smile fade even for a

+moment from his face. I have never denied him a wish. Perhaps it

+would have been better for both of us had I been sterner, but I

+meant it for the best.

+

+"It was naturally my intention that he should succeed me in my

+business, but he was not of a business turn. He was wild,

+wayward, and, to speak the truth, I could not trust him in the

+handling of large sums of money. When he was young he became a

+member of an aristocratic club, and there, having charming

+manners, he was soon the intimate of a number of men with long

+purses and expensive habits. He learned to play heavily at cards

+and to squander money on the turf, until he had again and again

+to come to me and implore me to give him an advance upon his

+allowance, that he might settle his debts of honour. He tried

+more than once to break away from the dangerous company which he

+was keeping, but each time the influence of his friend, Sir

+George Burnwell, was enough to draw him back again.

+

+"And, indeed, I could not wonder that such a man as Sir George

+Burnwell should gain an influence over him, for he has frequently

+brought him to my house, and I have found myself that I could

+hardly resist the fascination of his manner. He is older than

+Arthur, a man of the world to his finger-tips, one who had been

+everywhere, seen everything, a brilliant talker, and a man of

+great personal beauty. Yet when I think of him in cold blood, far

+away from the glamour of his presence, I am convinced from his

+cynical speech and the look which I have caught in his eyes that

+he is one who should be deeply distrusted. So I think, and so,

+too, thinks my little Mary, who has a woman's quick insight into

+character.

+

+"And now there is only she to be described. She is my niece; but

+when my brother died five years ago and left her alone in the

+world I adopted her, and have looked upon her ever since as my

+daughter. She is a sunbeam in my house--sweet, loving, beautiful,

+a wonderful manager and housekeeper, yet as tender and quiet and

+gentle as a woman could be. She is my right hand. I do not know

+what I could do without her. In only one matter has she ever gone

+against my wishes. Twice my boy has asked her to marry him, for

+he loves her devotedly, but each time she has refused him. I

+think that if anyone could have drawn him into the right path it

+would have been she, and that his marriage might have changed his

+whole life; but now, alas! it is too late--forever too late!

+

+"Now, Mr. Holmes, you know the people who live under my roof, and

+I shall continue with my miserable story.

+

+"When we were taking coffee in the drawing-room that night after

+dinner, I told Arthur and Mary my experience, and of the precious

+treasure which we had under our roof, suppressing only the name

+of my client. Lucy Parr, who had brought in the coffee, had, I am

+sure, left the room; but I cannot swear that the door was closed.

+Mary and Arthur were much interested and wished to see the famous

+coronet, but I thought it better not to disturb it.

+

+"'Where have you put it?' asked Arthur.

+

+"'In my own bureau.'

+

+"'Well, I hope to goodness the house won't be burgled during the

+night.' said he.

+

+"'It is locked up,' I answered.

+

+"'Oh, any old key will fit that bureau. When I was a youngster I

+have opened it myself with the key of the box-room cupboard.'

+

+"He often had a wild way of talking, so that I thought little of

+what he said. He followed me to my room, however, that night with

+a very grave face.

+

+"'Look here, dad,' said he with his eyes cast down, 'can you let

+me have 200 pounds?'

+

+"'No, I cannot!' I answered sharply. 'I have been far too

+generous with you in money matters.'

+

+"'You have been very kind,' said he, 'but I must have this money,

+or else I can never show my face inside the club again.'

+

+"'And a very good thing, too!' I cried.

+

+"'Yes, but you would not have me leave it a dishonoured man,'

+said he. 'I could not bear the disgrace. I must raise the money

+in some way, and if you will not let me have it, then I must try

+other means.'

+

+"I was very angry, for this was the third demand during the

+month. 'You shall not have a farthing from me,' I cried, on which

+he bowed and left the room without another word.

+

+"When he was gone I unlocked my bureau, made sure that my

+treasure was safe, and locked it again. Then I started to go

+round the house to see that all was secure--a duty which I

+usually leave to Mary but which I thought it well to perform

+myself that night. As I came down the stairs I saw Mary herself

+at the side window of the hall, which she closed and fastened as

+I approached.

+

+"'Tell me, dad,' said she, looking, I thought, a little

+disturbed, 'did you give Lucy, the maid, leave to go out

+to-night?'

+

+"'Certainly not.'

+

+"'She came in just now by the back door. I have no doubt that she

+has only been to the side gate to see someone, but I think that

+it is hardly safe and should be stopped.'

+

+"'You must speak to her in the morning, or I will if you prefer

+it. Are you sure that everything is fastened?'

+

+"'Quite sure, dad.'

+

+"'Then, good-night.' I kissed her and went up to my bedroom

+again, where I was soon asleep.

+

+"I am endeavouring to tell you everything, Mr. Holmes, which may

+have any bearing upon the case, but I beg that you will question

+me upon any point which I do not make clear."

+

+"On the contrary, your statement is singularly lucid."

+

+"I come to a part of my story now in which I should wish to be

+particularly so. I am not a very heavy sleeper, and the anxiety

+in my mind tended, no doubt, to make me even less so than usual.

+About two in the morning, then, I was awakened by some sound in

+the house. It had ceased ere I was wide awake, but it had left an

+impression behind it as though a window had gently closed

+somewhere. I lay listening with all my ears. Suddenly, to my

+horror, there was a distinct sound of footsteps moving softly in

+the next room. I slipped out of bed, all palpitating with fear,

+and peeped round the corner of my dressing-room door.

+

+"'Arthur!' I screamed, 'you villain! you thief! How dare you

+touch that coronet?'

+

+"The gas was half up, as I had left it, and my unhappy boy,

+dressed only in his shirt and trousers, was standing beside the

+light, holding the coronet in his hands. He appeared to be

+wrenching at it, or bending it with all his strength. At my cry

+he dropped it from his grasp and turned as pale as death. I

+snatched it up and examined it. One of the gold corners, with

+three of the beryls in it, was missing.

+

+"'You blackguard!' I shouted, beside myself with rage. 'You have

+destroyed it! You have dishonoured me forever! Where are the

+jewels which you have stolen?'

+

+"'Stolen!' he cried.

+

+"'Yes, thief!' I roared, shaking him by the shoulder.

+

+"'There are none missing. There cannot be any missing,' said he.

+

+"'There are three missing. And you know where they are. Must I

+call you a liar as well as a thief? Did I not see you trying to

+tear off another piece?'

+

+"'You have called me names enough,' said he, 'I will not stand it

+any longer. I shall not say another word about this business,

+since you have chosen to insult me. I will leave your house in

+the morning and make my own way in the world.'

+

+"'You shall leave it in the hands of the police!' I cried

+half-mad with grief and rage. 'I shall have this matter probed to

+the bottom.'

+

+"'You shall learn nothing from me,' said he with a passion such

+as I should not have thought was in his nature. 'If you choose to

+call the police, let the police find what they can.'

+

+"By this time the whole house was astir, for I had raised my

+voice in my anger. Mary was the first to rush into my room, and,

+at the sight of the coronet and of Arthur's face, she read the

+whole story and, with a scream, fell down senseless on the

+ground. I sent the house-maid for the police and put the

+investigation into their hands at once. When the inspector and a

+constable entered the house, Arthur, who had stood sullenly with

+his arms folded, asked me whether it was my intention to charge

+him with theft. I answered that it had ceased to be a private

+matter, but had become a public one, since the ruined coronet was

+national property. I was determined that the law should have its

+way in everything.

+

+"'At least,' said he, 'you will not have me arrested at once. It

+would be to your advantage as well as mine if I might leave the

+house for five minutes.'

+

+"'That you may get away, or perhaps that you may conceal what you

+have stolen,' said I. And then, realising the dreadful position

+in which I was placed, I implored him to remember that not only

+my honour but that of one who was far greater than I was at

+stake; and that he threatened to raise a scandal which would

+convulse the nation. He might avert it all if he would but tell

+me what he had done with the three missing stones.

+

+"'You may as well face the matter,' said I; 'you have been caught

+in the act, and no confession could make your guilt more heinous.

+If you but make such reparation as is in your power, by telling

+us where the beryls are, all shall be forgiven and forgotten.'

+

+"'Keep your forgiveness for those who ask for it,' he answered,

+turning away from me with a sneer. I saw that he was too hardened

+for any words of mine to influence him. There was but one way for

+it. I called in the inspector and gave him into custody. A search

+was made at once not only of his person but of his room and of

+every portion of the house where he could possibly have concealed

+the gems; but no trace of them could be found, nor would the

+wretched boy open his mouth for all our persuasions and our

+threats. This morning he was removed to a cell, and I, after

+going through all the police formalities, have hurried round to

+you to implore you to use your skill in unravelling the matter.

+The police have openly confessed that they can at present make

+nothing of it. You may go to any expense which you think

+necessary. I have already offered a reward of 1000 pounds. My

+God, what shall I do! I have lost my honour, my gems, and my son

+in one night. Oh, what shall I do!"

+

+He put a hand on either side of his head and rocked himself to

+and fro, droning to himself like a child whose grief has got

+beyond words.

+

+Sherlock Holmes sat silent for some few minutes, with his brows

+knitted and his eyes fixed upon the fire.

+

+"Do you receive much company?" he asked.

+

+"None save my partner with his family and an occasional friend of

+Arthur's. Sir George Burnwell has been several times lately. No

+one else, I think."

+

+"Do you go out much in society?"

+

+"Arthur does. Mary and I stay at home. We neither of us care for

+it."

+

+"That is unusual in a young girl."

+

+"She is of a quiet nature. Besides, she is not so very young. She

+is four-and-twenty."

+

+"This matter, from what you say, seems to have been a shock to

+her also."

+

+"Terrible! She is even more affected than I."

+

+"You have neither of you any doubt as to your son's guilt?"

+

+"How can we have when I saw him with my own eyes with the coronet

+in his hands."

+

+"I hardly consider that a conclusive proof. Was the remainder of

+the coronet at all injured?"

+

+"Yes, it was twisted."

+

+"Do you not think, then, that he might have been trying to

+straighten it?"

+

+"God bless you! You are doing what you can for him and for me.

+But it is too heavy a task. What was he doing there at all? If

+his purpose were innocent, why did he not say so?"

+

+"Precisely. And if it were guilty, why did he not invent a lie?

+His silence appears to me to cut both ways. There are several

+singular points about the case. What did the police think of the

+noise which awoke you from your sleep?"

+

+"They considered that it might be caused by Arthur's closing his

+bedroom door."

+

+"A likely story! As if a man bent on felony would slam his door

+so as to wake a household. What did they say, then, of the

+disappearance of these gems?"

+

+"They are still sounding the planking and probing the furniture

+in the hope of finding them."

+

+"Have they thought of looking outside the house?"

+

+"Yes, they have shown extraordinary energy. The whole garden has

+already been minutely examined."

+

+"Now, my dear sir," said Holmes, "is it not obvious to you now

+that this matter really strikes very much deeper than either you

+or the police were at first inclined to think? It appeared to you

+to be a simple case; to me it seems exceedingly complex. Consider

+what is involved by your theory. You suppose that your son came

+down from his bed, went, at great risk, to your dressing-room,

+opened your bureau, took out your coronet, broke off by main

+force a small portion of it, went off to some other place,

+concealed three gems out of the thirty-nine, with such skill that

+nobody can find them, and then returned with the other thirty-six

+into the room in which he exposed himself to the greatest danger

+of being discovered. I ask you now, is such a theory tenable?"

+

+"But what other is there?" cried the banker with a gesture of

+despair. "If his motives were innocent, why does he not explain

+them?"

+

+"It is our task to find that out," replied Holmes; "so now, if

+you please, Mr. Holder, we will set off for Streatham together,

+and devote an hour to glancing a little more closely into

+details."

+

+My friend insisted upon my accompanying them in their expedition,

+which I was eager enough to do, for my curiosity and sympathy

+were deeply stirred by the story to which we had listened. I

+confess that the guilt of the banker's son appeared to me to be

+as obvious as it did to his unhappy father, but still I had such

+faith in Holmes' judgment that I felt that there must be some

+grounds for hope as long as he was dissatisfied with the accepted

+explanation. He hardly spoke a word the whole way out to the

+southern suburb, but sat with his chin upon his breast and his

+hat drawn over his eyes, sunk in the deepest thought. Our client

+appeared to have taken fresh heart at the little glimpse of hope

+which had been presented to him, and he even broke into a

+desultory chat with me over his business affairs. A short railway

+journey and a shorter walk brought us to Fairbank, the modest

+residence of the great financier.

+

+Fairbank was a good-sized square house of white stone, standing

+back a little from the road. A double carriage-sweep, with a

+snow-clad lawn, stretched down in front to two large iron gates

+which closed the entrance. On the right side was a small wooden

+thicket, which led into a narrow path between two neat hedges

+stretching from the road to the kitchen door, and forming the

+tradesmen's entrance. On the left ran a lane which led to the

+stables, and was not itself within the grounds at all, being a

+public, though little used, thoroughfare. Holmes left us standing

+at the door and walked slowly all round the house, across the

+front, down the tradesmen's path, and so round by the garden

+behind into the stable lane. So long was he that Mr. Holder and I

+went into the dining-room and waited by the fire until he should

+return. We were sitting there in silence when the door opened and

+a young lady came in. She was rather above the middle height,

+slim, with dark hair and eyes, which seemed the darker against

+the absolute pallor of her skin. I do not think that I have ever

+seen such deadly paleness in a woman's face. Her lips, too, were

+bloodless, but her eyes were flushed with crying. As she swept

+silently into the room she impressed me with a greater sense of

+grief than the banker had done in the morning, and it was the

+more striking in her as she was evidently a woman of strong

+character, with immense capacity for self-restraint. Disregarding

+my presence, she went straight to her uncle and passed her hand

+over his head with a sweet womanly caress.

+

+"You have given orders that Arthur should be liberated, have you

+not, dad?" she asked.

+

+"No, no, my girl, the matter must be probed to the bottom."

+

+"But I am so sure that he is innocent. You know what woman's

+instincts are. I know that he has done no harm and that you will

+be sorry for having acted so harshly."

+

+"Why is he silent, then, if he is innocent?"

+

+"Who knows? Perhaps because he was so angry that you should

+suspect him."

+

+"How could I help suspecting him, when I actually saw him with

+the coronet in his hand?"

+

+"Oh, but he had only picked it up to look at it. Oh, do, do take

+my word for it that he is innocent. Let the matter drop and say

+no more. It is so dreadful to think of our dear Arthur in

+prison!"

+

+"I shall never let it drop until the gems are found--never, Mary!

+Your affection for Arthur blinds you as to the awful consequences

+to me. Far from hushing the thing up, I have brought a gentleman

+down from London to inquire more deeply into it."

+

+"This gentleman?" she asked, facing round to me.

+

+"No, his friend. He wished us to leave him alone. He is round in

+the stable lane now."

+

+"The stable lane?" She raised her dark eyebrows. "What can he

+hope to find there? Ah! this, I suppose, is he. I trust, sir,

+that you will succeed in proving, what I feel sure is the truth,

+that my cousin Arthur is innocent of this crime."

+

+"I fully share your opinion, and I trust, with you, that we may

+prove it," returned Holmes, going back to the mat to knock the

+snow from his shoes. "I believe I have the honour of addressing

+Miss Mary Holder. Might I ask you a question or two?"

+

+"Pray do, sir, if it may help to clear this horrible affair up."

+

+"You heard nothing yourself last night?"

+

+"Nothing, until my uncle here began to speak loudly. I heard

+that, and I came down."

+

+"You shut up the windows and doors the night before. Did you

+fasten all the windows?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Were they all fastened this morning?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"You have a maid who has a sweetheart? I think that you remarked

+to your uncle last night that she had been out to see him?"

+

+"Yes, and she was the girl who waited in the drawing-room, and

+who may have heard uncle's remarks about the coronet."

+

+"I see. You infer that she may have gone out to tell her

+sweetheart, and that the two may have planned the robbery."

+

+"But what is the good of all these vague theories," cried the

+banker impatiently, "when I have told you that I saw Arthur with

+the coronet in his hands?"

+

+"Wait a little, Mr. Holder. We must come back to that. About this

+girl, Miss Holder. You saw her return by the kitchen door, I

+presume?"

+

+"Yes; when I went to see if the door was fastened for the night I

+met her slipping in. I saw the man, too, in the gloom."

+

+"Do you know him?"

+

+"Oh, yes! he is the green-grocer who brings our vegetables round.

+His name is Francis Prosper."

+

+"He stood," said Holmes, "to the left of the door--that is to

+say, farther up the path than is necessary to reach the door?"

+

+"Yes, he did."

+

+"And he is a man with a wooden leg?"

+

+Something like fear sprang up in the young lady's expressive

+black eyes. "Why, you are like a magician," said she. "How do you

+know that?" She smiled, but there was no answering smile in

+Holmes' thin, eager face.

+

+"I should be very glad now to go upstairs," said he. "I shall

+probably wish to go over the outside of the house again. Perhaps

+I had better take a look at the lower windows before I go up."

+

+He walked swiftly round from one to the other, pausing only at

+the large one which looked from the hall onto the stable lane.

+This he opened and made a very careful examination of the sill

+with his powerful magnifying lens. "Now we shall go upstairs,"

+said he at last.

+

+The banker's dressing-room was a plainly furnished little

+chamber, with a grey carpet, a large bureau, and a long mirror.

+Holmes went to the bureau first and looked hard at the lock.

+

+"Which key was used to open it?" he asked.

+

+"That which my son himself indicated--that of the cupboard of the

+lumber-room."

+

+"Have you it here?"

+

+"That is it on the dressing-table."

+

+Sherlock Holmes took it up and opened the bureau.

+

+"It is a noiseless lock," said he. "It is no wonder that it did

+not wake you. This case, I presume, contains the coronet. We must

+have a look at it." He opened the case, and taking out the diadem

+he laid it upon the table. It was a magnificent specimen of the

+jeweller's art, and the thirty-six stones were the finest that I

+have ever seen. At one side of the coronet was a cracked edge,

+where a corner holding three gems had been torn away.

+

+"Now, Mr. Holder," said Holmes, "here is the corner which

+corresponds to that which has been so unfortunately lost. Might I

+beg that you will break it off."

+

+The banker recoiled in horror. "I should not dream of trying,"

+said he.

+

+"Then I will." Holmes suddenly bent his strength upon it, but

+without result. "I feel it give a little," said he; "but, though

+I am exceptionally strong in the fingers, it would take me all my

+time to break it. An ordinary man could not do it. Now, what do

+you think would happen if I did break it, Mr. Holder? There would

+be a noise like a pistol shot. Do you tell me that all this

+happened within a few yards of your bed and that you heard

+nothing of it?"

+

+"I do not know what to think. It is all dark to me."

+

+"But perhaps it may grow lighter as we go. What do you think,

+Miss Holder?"

+

+"I confess that I still share my uncle's perplexity."

+

+"Your son had no shoes or slippers on when you saw him?"

+

+"He had nothing on save only his trousers and shirt."

+

+"Thank you. We have certainly been favoured with extraordinary

+luck during this inquiry, and it will be entirely our own fault

+if we do not succeed in clearing the matter up. With your

+permission, Mr. Holder, I shall now continue my investigations

+outside."

+

+He went alone, at his own request, for he explained that any

+unnecessary footmarks might make his task more difficult. For an

+hour or more he was at work, returning at last with his feet

+heavy with snow and his features as inscrutable as ever.

+

+"I think that I have seen now all that there is to see, Mr.

+Holder," said he; "I can serve you best by returning to my

+rooms."

+

+"But the gems, Mr. Holmes. Where are they?"

+

+"I cannot tell."

+

+The banker wrung his hands. "I shall never see them again!" he

+cried. "And my son? You give me hopes?"

+

+"My opinion is in no way altered."

+

+"Then, for God's sake, what was this dark business which was

+acted in my house last night?"

+

+"If you can call upon me at my Baker Street rooms to-morrow

+morning between nine and ten I shall be happy to do what I can to

+make it clearer. I understand that you give me carte blanche to

+act for you, provided only that I get back the gems, and that you

+place no limit on the sum I may draw."

+

+"I would give my fortune to have them back."

+

+"Very good. I shall look into the matter between this and then.

+Good-bye; it is just possible that I may have to come over here

+again before evening."

+

+It was obvious to me that my companion's mind was now made up

+about the case, although what his conclusions were was more than

+I could even dimly imagine. Several times during our homeward

+journey I endeavoured to sound him upon the point, but he always

+glided away to some other topic, until at last I gave it over in

+despair. It was not yet three when we found ourselves in our

+rooms once more. He hurried to his chamber and was down again in

+a few minutes dressed as a common loafer. With his collar turned

+up, his shiny, seedy coat, his red cravat, and his worn boots, he

+was a perfect sample of the class.

+

+"I think that this should do," said he, glancing into the glass

+above the fireplace. "I only wish that you could come with me,

+Watson, but I fear that it won't do. I may be on the trail in

+this matter, or I may be following a will-o'-the-wisp, but I

+shall soon know which it is. I hope that I may be back in a few

+hours." He cut a slice of beef from the joint upon the sideboard,

+sandwiched it between two rounds of bread, and thrusting this

+rude meal into his pocket he started off upon his expedition.

+

+I had just finished my tea when he returned, evidently in

+excellent spirits, swinging an old elastic-sided boot in his

+hand. He chucked it down into a corner and helped himself to a

+cup of tea.

+

+"I only looked in as I passed," said he. "I am going right on."

+

+"Where to?"

+

+"Oh, to the other side of the West End. It may be some time

+before I get back. Don't wait up for me in case I should be

+late."

+

+"How are you getting on?"

+

+"Oh, so so. Nothing to complain of. I have been out to Streatham

+since I saw you last, but I did not call at the house. It is a

+very sweet little problem, and I would not have missed it for a

+good deal. However, I must not sit gossiping here, but must get

+these disreputable clothes off and return to my highly

+respectable self."

+

+I could see by his manner that he had stronger reasons for

+satisfaction than his words alone would imply. His eyes twinkled,

+and there was even a touch of colour upon his sallow cheeks. He

+hastened upstairs, and a few minutes later I heard the slam of

+the hall door, which told me that he was off once more upon his

+congenial hunt.

+

+I waited until midnight, but there was no sign of his return, so

+I retired to my room. It was no uncommon thing for him to be away

+for days and nights on end when he was hot upon a scent, so that

+his lateness caused me no surprise. I do not know at what hour he

+came in, but when I came down to breakfast in the morning there

+he was with a cup of coffee in one hand and the paper in the

+other, as fresh and trim as possible.

+

+"You will excuse my beginning without you, Watson," said he, "but

+you remember that our client has rather an early appointment this

+morning."

+

+"Why, it is after nine now," I answered. "I should not be

+surprised if that were he. I thought I heard a ring."

+

+It was, indeed, our friend the financier. I was shocked by the

+change which had come over him, for his face which was naturally

+of a broad and massive mould, was now pinched and fallen in,

+while his hair seemed to me at least a shade whiter. He entered

+with a weariness and lethargy which was even more painful than

+his violence of the morning before, and he dropped heavily into

+the armchair which I pushed forward for him.

+

+"I do not know what I have done to be so severely tried," said

+he. "Only two days ago I was a happy and prosperous man, without

+a care in the world. Now I am left to a lonely and dishonoured

+age. One sorrow comes close upon the heels of another. My niece,

+Mary, has deserted me."

+

+"Deserted you?"

+

+"Yes. Her bed this morning had not been slept in, her room was

+empty, and a note for me lay upon the hall table. I had said to

+her last night, in sorrow and not in anger, that if she had

+married my boy all might have been well with him. Perhaps it was

+thoughtless of me to say so. It is to that remark that she refers

+in this note:

+

+"'MY DEAREST UNCLE:--I feel that I have brought trouble upon you,

+and that if I had acted differently this terrible misfortune

+might never have occurred. I cannot, with this thought in my

+mind, ever again be happy under your roof, and I feel that I must

+leave you forever. Do not worry about my future, for that is

+provided for; and, above all, do not search for me, for it will

+be fruitless labour and an ill-service to me. In life or in

+death, I am ever your loving,--MARY.'

+

+"What could she mean by that note, Mr. Holmes? Do you think it

+points to suicide?"

+

+"No, no, nothing of the kind. It is perhaps the best possible

+solution. I trust, Mr. Holder, that you are nearing the end of

+your troubles."

+

+"Ha! You say so! You have heard something, Mr. Holmes; you have

+learned something! Where are the gems?"

+

+"You would not think 1000 pounds apiece an excessive sum for

+them?"

+

+"I would pay ten."

+

+"That would be unnecessary. Three thousand will cover the matter.

+And there is a little reward, I fancy. Have you your check-book?

+Here is a pen. Better make it out for 4000 pounds."

+

+With a dazed face the banker made out the required check. Holmes

+walked over to his desk, took out a little triangular piece of

+gold with three gems in it, and threw it down upon the table.

+

+With a shriek of joy our client clutched it up.

+

+"You have it!" he gasped. "I am saved! I am saved!"

+

+The reaction of joy was as passionate as his grief had been, and

+he hugged his recovered gems to his bosom.

+

+"There is one other thing you owe, Mr. Holder," said Sherlock

+Holmes rather sternly.

+

+"Owe!" He caught up a pen. "Name the sum, and I will pay it."

+

+"No, the debt is not to me. You owe a very humble apology to that

+noble lad, your son, who has carried himself in this matter as I

+should be proud to see my own son do, should I ever chance to

+have one."

+

+"Then it was not Arthur who took them?"

+

+"I told you yesterday, and I repeat to-day, that it was not."

+

+"You are sure of it! Then let us hurry to him at once to let him

+know that the truth is known."

+

+"He knows it already. When I had cleared it all up I had an

+interview with him, and finding that he would not tell me the

+story, I told it to him, on which he had to confess that I was

+right and to add the very few details which were not yet quite

+clear to me. Your news of this morning, however, may open his

+lips."

+

+"For heaven's sake, tell me, then, what is this extraordinary

+mystery!"

+

+"I will do so, and I will show you the steps by which I reached

+it. And let me say to you, first, that which it is hardest for me

+to say and for you to hear: there has been an understanding

+between Sir George Burnwell and your niece Mary. They have now

+fled together."

+

+"My Mary? Impossible!"

+

+"It is unfortunately more than possible; it is certain. Neither

+you nor your son knew the true character of this man when you

+admitted him into your family circle. He is one of the most

+dangerous men in England--a ruined gambler, an absolutely

+desperate villain, a man without heart or conscience. Your niece

+knew nothing of such men. When he breathed his vows to her, as he

+had done to a hundred before her, she flattered herself that she

+alone had touched his heart. The devil knows best what he said,

+but at least she became his tool and was in the habit of seeing

+him nearly every evening."

+

+"I cannot, and I will not, believe it!" cried the banker with an

+ashen face.

+

+"I will tell you, then, what occurred in your house last night.

+Your niece, when you had, as she thought, gone to your room,

+slipped down and talked to her lover through the window which

+leads into the stable lane. His footmarks had pressed right

+through the snow, so long had he stood there. She told him of the

+coronet. His wicked lust for gold kindled at the news, and he

+bent her to his will. I have no doubt that she loved you, but

+there are women in whom the love of a lover extinguishes all

+other loves, and I think that she must have been one. She had

+hardly listened to his instructions when she saw you coming

+downstairs, on which she closed the window rapidly and told you

+about one of the servants' escapade with her wooden-legged lover,

+which was all perfectly true.

+

+"Your boy, Arthur, went to bed after his interview with you but

+he slept badly on account of his uneasiness about his club debts.

+In the middle of the night he heard a soft tread pass his door,

+so he rose and, looking out, was surprised to see his cousin

+walking very stealthily along the passage until she disappeared

+into your dressing-room. Petrified with astonishment, the lad

+slipped on some clothes and waited there in the dark to see what

+would come of this strange affair. Presently she emerged from the

+room again, and in the light of the passage-lamp your son saw

+that she carried the precious coronet in her hands. She passed

+down the stairs, and he, thrilling with horror, ran along and

+slipped behind the curtain near your door, whence he could see

+what passed in the hall beneath. He saw her stealthily open the

+window, hand out the coronet to someone in the gloom, and then

+closing it once more hurry back to her room, passing quite close

+to where he stood hid behind the curtain.

+

+"As long as she was on the scene he could not take any action

+without a horrible exposure of the woman whom he loved. But the

+instant that she was gone he realised how crushing a misfortune

+this would be for you, and how all-important it was to set it

+right. He rushed down, just as he was, in his bare feet, opened

+the window, sprang out into the snow, and ran down the lane,

+where he could see a dark figure in the moonlight. Sir George

+Burnwell tried to get away, but Arthur caught him, and there was

+a struggle between them, your lad tugging at one side of the

+coronet, and his opponent at the other. In the scuffle, your son

+struck Sir George and cut him over the eye. Then something

+suddenly snapped, and your son, finding that he had the coronet

+in his hands, rushed back, closed the window, ascended to your

+room, and had just observed that the coronet had been twisted in

+the struggle and was endeavouring to straighten it when you

+appeared upon the scene."

+

+"Is it possible?" gasped the banker.

+

+"You then roused his anger by calling him names at a moment when

+he felt that he had deserved your warmest thanks. He could not

+explain the true state of affairs without betraying one who

+certainly deserved little enough consideration at his hands. He

+took the more chivalrous view, however, and preserved her

+secret."

+

+"And that was why she shrieked and fainted when she saw the

+coronet," cried Mr. Holder. "Oh, my God! what a blind fool I have

+been! And his asking to be allowed to go out for five minutes!

+The dear fellow wanted to see if the missing piece were at the

+scene of the struggle. How cruelly I have misjudged him!"

+

+"When I arrived at the house," continued Holmes, "I at once went

+very carefully round it to observe if there were any traces in

+the snow which might help me. I knew that none had fallen since

+the evening before, and also that there had been a strong frost

+to preserve impressions. I passed along the tradesmen's path, but

+found it all trampled down and indistinguishable. Just beyond it,

+however, at the far side of the kitchen door, a woman had stood

+and talked with a man, whose round impressions on one side showed

+that he had a wooden leg. I could even tell that they had been

+disturbed, for the woman had run back swiftly to the door, as was

+shown by the deep toe and light heel marks, while Wooden-leg had

+waited a little, and then had gone away. I thought at the time

+that this might be the maid and her sweetheart, of whom you had

+already spoken to me, and inquiry showed it was so. I passed

+round the garden without seeing anything more than random tracks,

+which I took to be the police; but when I got into the stable

+lane a very long and complex story was written in the snow in

+front of me.

+

+"There was a double line of tracks of a booted man, and a second

+double line which I saw with delight belonged to a man with naked

+feet. I was at once convinced from what you had told me that the

+latter was your son. The first had walked both ways, but the

+other had run swiftly, and as his tread was marked in places over

+the depression of the boot, it was obvious that he had passed

+after the other. I followed them up and found they led to the

+hall window, where Boots had worn all the snow away while

+waiting. Then I walked to the other end, which was a hundred

+yards or more down the lane. I saw where Boots had faced round,

+where the snow was cut up as though there had been a struggle,

+and, finally, where a few drops of blood had fallen, to show me

+that I was not mistaken. Boots had then run down the lane, and

+another little smudge of blood showed that it was he who had been

+hurt. When he came to the highroad at the other end, I found that

+the pavement had been cleared, so there was an end to that clue.

+

+"On entering the house, however, I examined, as you remember, the

+sill and framework of the hall window with my lens, and I could

+at once see that someone had passed out. I could distinguish the

+outline of an instep where the wet foot had been placed in coming

+in. I was then beginning to be able to form an opinion as to what

+had occurred. A man had waited outside the window; someone had

+brought the gems; the deed had been overseen by your son; he had

+pursued the thief; had struggled with him; they had each tugged

+at the coronet, their united strength causing injuries which

+neither alone could have effected. He had returned with the

+prize, but had left a fragment in the grasp of his opponent. So

+far I was clear. The question now was, who was the man and who

+was it brought him the coronet?

+

+"It is an old maxim of mine that when you have excluded the

+impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the

+truth. Now, I knew that it was not you who had brought it down,

+so there only remained your niece and the maids. But if it were

+the maids, why should your son allow himself to be accused in

+their place? There could be no possible reason. As he loved his

+cousin, however, there was an excellent explanation why he should

+retain her secret--the more so as the secret was a disgraceful

+one. When I remembered that you had seen her at that window, and

+how she had fainted on seeing the coronet again, my conjecture

+became a certainty.

+

+"And who could it be who was her confederate? A lover evidently,

+for who else could outweigh the love and gratitude which she must

+feel to you? I knew that you went out little, and that your

+circle of friends was a very limited one. But among them was Sir

+George Burnwell. I had heard of him before as being a man of evil

+reputation among women. It must have been he who wore those boots

+and retained the missing gems. Even though he knew that Arthur

+had discovered him, he might still flatter himself that he was

+safe, for the lad could not say a word without compromising his

+own family.

+

+"Well, your own good sense will suggest what measures I took

+next. I went in the shape of a loafer to Sir George's house,

+managed to pick up an acquaintance with his valet, learned that

+his master had cut his head the night before, and, finally, at

+the expense of six shillings, made all sure by buying a pair of

+his cast-off shoes. With these I journeyed down to Streatham and

+saw that they exactly fitted the tracks."

+

+"I saw an ill-dressed vagabond in the lane yesterday evening,"

+said Mr. Holder.

+

+"Precisely. It was I. I found that I had my man, so I came home

+and changed my clothes. It was a delicate part which I had to

+play then, for I saw that a prosecution must be avoided to avert

+scandal, and I knew that so astute a villain would see that our

+hands were tied in the matter. I went and saw him. At first, of

+course, he denied everything. But when I gave him every

+particular that had occurred, he tried to bluster and took down a

+life-preserver from the wall. I knew my man, however, and I

+clapped a pistol to his head before he could strike. Then he

+became a little more reasonable. I told him that we would give

+him a price for the stones he held--1000 pounds apiece. That

+brought out the first signs of grief that he had shown. 'Why,

+dash it all!' said he, 'I've let them go at six hundred for the

+three!' I soon managed to get the address of the receiver who had

+them, on promising him that there would be no prosecution. Off I

+set to him, and after much chaffering I got our stones at 1000

+pounds apiece. Then I looked in upon your son, told him that all

+was right, and eventually got to my bed about two o'clock, after

+what I may call a really hard day's work."

+

+"A day which has saved England from a great public scandal," said

+the banker, rising. "Sir, I cannot find words to thank you, but

+you shall not find me ungrateful for what you have done. Your

+skill has indeed exceeded all that I have heard of it. And now I

+must fly to my dear boy to apologise to him for the wrong which I

+have done him. As to what you tell me of poor Mary, it goes to my

+very heart. Not even your skill can inform me where she is now."

+

+"I think that we may safely say," returned Holmes, "that she is

+wherever Sir George Burnwell is. It is equally certain, too, that

+whatever her sins are, they will soon receive a more than

+sufficient punishment."

+

+

+

+XII. THE ADVENTURE OF THE COPPER BEECHES

+

+"To the man who loves art for its own sake," remarked Sherlock

+Holmes, tossing aside the advertisement sheet of the Daily

+Telegraph, "it is frequently in its least important and lowliest

+manifestations that the keenest pleasure is to be derived. It is

+pleasant to me to observe, Watson, that you have so far grasped

+this truth that in these little records of our cases which you

+have been good enough to draw up, and, I am bound to say,

+occasionally to embellish, you have given prominence not so much

+to the many causes célèbres and sensational trials in which I

+have figured but rather to those incidents which may have been

+trivial in themselves, but which have given room for those

+faculties of deduction and of logical synthesis which I have made

+my special province."

+

+"And yet," said I, smiling, "I cannot quite hold myself absolved

+from the charge of sensationalism which has been urged against my

+records."

+

+"You have erred, perhaps," he observed, taking up a glowing

+cinder with the tongs and lighting with it the long cherry-wood

+pipe which was wont to replace his clay when he was in a

+disputatious rather than a meditative mood--"you have erred

+perhaps in attempting to put colour and life into each of your

+statements instead of confining yourself to the task of placing

+upon record that severe reasoning from cause to effect which is

+really the only notable feature about the thing."

+

+"It seems to me that I have done you full justice in the matter,"

+I remarked with some coldness, for I was repelled by the egotism

+which I had more than once observed to be a strong factor in my

+friend's singular character.

+

+"No, it is not selfishness or conceit," said he, answering, as

+was his wont, my thoughts rather than my words. "If I claim full

+justice for my art, it is because it is an impersonal thing--a

+thing beyond myself. Crime is common. Logic is rare. Therefore it

+is upon the logic rather than upon the crime that you should

+dwell. You have degraded what should have been a course of

+lectures into a series of tales."

+

+It was a cold morning of the early spring, and we sat after

+breakfast on either side of a cheery fire in the old room at

+Baker Street. A thick fog rolled down between the lines of

+dun-coloured houses, and the opposing windows loomed like dark,

+shapeless blurs through the heavy yellow wreaths. Our gas was lit

+and shone on the white cloth and glimmer of china and metal, for

+the table had not been cleared yet. Sherlock Holmes had been

+silent all the morning, dipping continuously into the

+advertisement columns of a succession of papers until at last,

+having apparently given up his search, he had emerged in no very

+sweet temper to lecture me upon my literary shortcomings.

+

+"At the same time," he remarked after a pause, during which he

+had sat puffing at his long pipe and gazing down into the fire,

+"you can hardly be open to a charge of sensationalism, for out of

+these cases which you have been so kind as to interest yourself

+in, a fair proportion do not treat of crime, in its legal sense,

+at all. The small matter in which I endeavoured to help the King

+of Bohemia, the singular experience of Miss Mary Sutherland, the

+problem connected with the man with the twisted lip, and the

+incident of the noble bachelor, were all matters which are

+outside the pale of the law. But in avoiding the sensational, I

+fear that you may have bordered on the trivial."

+

+"The end may have been so," I answered, "but the methods I hold

+to have been novel and of interest."

+

+"Pshaw, my dear fellow, what do the public, the great unobservant

+public, who could hardly tell a weaver by his tooth or a

+compositor by his left thumb, care about the finer shades of

+analysis and deduction! But, indeed, if you are trivial, I cannot

+blame you, for the days of the great cases are past. Man, or at

+least criminal man, has lost all enterprise and originality. As

+to my own little practice, it seems to be degenerating into an

+agency for recovering lost lead pencils and giving advice to

+young ladies from boarding-schools. I think that I have touched

+bottom at last, however. This note I had this morning marks my

+zero-point, I fancy. Read it!" He tossed a crumpled letter across

+to me.

+

+It was dated from Montague Place upon the preceding evening, and

+ran thus:

+

+"DEAR MR. HOLMES:--I am very anxious to consult you as to whether

+I should or should not accept a situation which has been offered

+to me as governess. I shall call at half-past ten to-morrow if I

+do not inconvenience you. Yours faithfully,

+                                               "VIOLET HUNTER."

+

+"Do you know the young lady?" I asked.

+

+"Not I."

+

+"It is half-past ten now."

+

+"Yes, and I have no doubt that is her ring."

+

+"It may turn out to be of more interest than you think. You

+remember that the affair of the blue carbuncle, which appeared to

+be a mere whim at first, developed into a serious investigation.

+It may be so in this case, also."

+

+"Well, let us hope so. But our doubts will very soon be solved,

+for here, unless I am much mistaken, is the person in question."

+

+As he spoke the door opened and a young lady entered the room.

+She was plainly but neatly dressed, with a bright, quick face,

+freckled like a plover's egg, and with the brisk manner of a

+woman who has had her own way to make in the world.

+

+"You will excuse my troubling you, I am sure," said she, as my

+companion rose to greet her, "but I have had a very strange

+experience, and as I have no parents or relations of any sort

+from whom I could ask advice, I thought that perhaps you would be

+kind enough to tell me what I should do."

+

+"Pray take a seat, Miss Hunter. I shall be happy to do anything

+that I can to serve you."

+

+I could see that Holmes was favourably impressed by the manner

+and speech of his new client. He looked her over in his searching

+fashion, and then composed himself, with his lids drooping and

+his finger-tips together, to listen to her story.

+

+"I have been a governess for five years," said she, "in the

+family of Colonel Spence Munro, but two months ago the colonel

+received an appointment at Halifax, in Nova Scotia, and took his

+children over to America with him, so that I found myself without

+a situation. I advertised, and I answered advertisements, but

+without success. At last the little money which I had saved began

+to run short, and I was at my wit's end as to what I should do.

+

+"There is a well-known agency for governesses in the West End

+called Westaway's, and there I used to call about once a week in

+order to see whether anything had turned up which might suit me.

+Westaway was the name of the founder of the business, but it is

+really managed by Miss Stoper. She sits in her own little office,

+and the ladies who are seeking employment wait in an anteroom,

+and are then shown in one by one, when she consults her ledgers

+and sees whether she has anything which would suit them.

+

+"Well, when I called last week I was shown into the little office

+as usual, but I found that Miss Stoper was not alone. A

+prodigiously stout man with a very smiling face and a great heavy

+chin which rolled down in fold upon fold over his throat sat at

+her elbow with a pair of glasses on his nose, looking very

+earnestly at the ladies who entered. As I came in he gave quite a

+jump in his chair and turned quickly to Miss Stoper.

+

+"'That will do,' said he; 'I could not ask for anything better.

+Capital! capital!' He seemed quite enthusiastic and rubbed his

+hands together in the most genial fashion. He was such a

+comfortable-looking man that it was quite a pleasure to look at

+him.

+

+"'You are looking for a situation, miss?' he asked.

+

+"'Yes, sir.'

+

+"'As governess?'

+

+"'Yes, sir.'

+

+"'And what salary do you ask?'

+

+"'I had 4 pounds a month in my last place with Colonel Spence

+Munro.'

+

+"'Oh, tut, tut! sweating--rank sweating!' he cried, throwing his

+fat hands out into the air like a man who is in a boiling

+passion. 'How could anyone offer so pitiful a sum to a lady with

+such attractions and accomplishments?'

+

+"'My accomplishments, sir, may be less than you imagine,' said I.

+'A little French, a little German, music, and drawing--'

+

+"'Tut, tut!' he cried. 'This is all quite beside the question.

+The point is, have you or have you not the bearing and deportment

+of a lady? There it is in a nutshell. If you have not, you are

+not fitted for the rearing of a child who may some day play a

+considerable part in the history of the country. But if you have

+why, then, how could any gentleman ask you to condescend to

+accept anything under the three figures? Your salary with me,

+madam, would commence at 100 pounds a year.'

+

+"You may imagine, Mr. Holmes, that to me, destitute as I was,

+such an offer seemed almost too good to be true. The gentleman,

+however, seeing perhaps the look of incredulity upon my face,

+opened a pocket-book and took out a note.

+

+"'It is also my custom,' said he, smiling in the most pleasant

+fashion until his eyes were just two little shining slits amid

+the white creases of his face, 'to advance to my young ladies

+half their salary beforehand, so that they may meet any little

+expenses of their journey and their wardrobe.'

+

+"It seemed to me that I had never met so fascinating and so

+thoughtful a man. As I was already in debt to my tradesmen, the

+advance was a great convenience, and yet there was something

+unnatural about the whole transaction which made me wish to know

+a little more before I quite committed myself.

+

+"'May I ask where you live, sir?' said I.

+

+"'Hampshire. Charming rural place. The Copper Beeches, five miles

+on the far side of Winchester. It is the most lovely country, my

+dear young lady, and the dearest old country-house.'

+

+"'And my duties, sir? I should be glad to know what they would

+be.'

+

+"'One child--one dear little romper just six years old. Oh, if

+you could see him killing cockroaches with a slipper! Smack!

+smack! smack! Three gone before you could wink!' He leaned back

+in his chair and laughed his eyes into his head again.

+

+"I was a little startled at the nature of the child's amusement,

+but the father's laughter made me think that perhaps he was

+joking.

+

+"'My sole duties, then,' I asked, 'are to take charge of a single

+child?'

+

+"'No, no, not the sole, not the sole, my dear young lady,' he

+cried. 'Your duty would be, as I am sure your good sense would

+suggest, to obey any little commands my wife might give, provided

+always that they were such commands as a lady might with

+propriety obey. You see no difficulty, heh?'

+

+"'I should be happy to make myself useful.'

+

+"'Quite so. In dress now, for example. We are faddy people, you

+know--faddy but kind-hearted. If you were asked to wear any dress

+which we might give you, you would not object to our little whim.

+Heh?'

+

+"'No,' said I, considerably astonished at his words.

+

+"'Or to sit here, or sit there, that would not be offensive to

+you?'

+

+"'Oh, no.'

+

+"'Or to cut your hair quite short before you come to us?'

+

+"I could hardly believe my ears. As you may observe, Mr. Holmes,

+my hair is somewhat luxuriant, and of a rather peculiar tint of

+chestnut. It has been considered artistic. I could not dream of

+sacrificing it in this offhand fashion.

+

+"'I am afraid that that is quite impossible,' said I. He had been

+watching me eagerly out of his small eyes, and I could see a

+shadow pass over his face as I spoke.

+

+"'I am afraid that it is quite essential,' said he. 'It is a

+little fancy of my wife's, and ladies' fancies, you know, madam,

+ladies' fancies must be consulted. And so you won't cut your

+hair?'

+

+"'No, sir, I really could not,' I answered firmly.

+

+"'Ah, very well; then that quite settles the matter. It is a

+pity, because in other respects you would really have done very

+nicely. In that case, Miss Stoper, I had best inspect a few more

+of your young ladies.'

+

+"The manageress had sat all this while busy with her papers

+without a word to either of us, but she glanced at me now with so

+much annoyance upon her face that I could not help suspecting

+that she had lost a handsome commission through my refusal.

+

+"'Do you desire your name to be kept upon the books?' she asked.

+

+"'If you please, Miss Stoper.'

+

+"'Well, really, it seems rather useless, since you refuse the

+most excellent offers in this fashion,' said she sharply. 'You

+can hardly expect us to exert ourselves to find another such

+opening for you. Good-day to you, Miss Hunter.' She struck a gong

+upon the table, and I was shown out by the page.

+

+"Well, Mr. Holmes, when I got back to my lodgings and found

+little enough in the cupboard, and two or three bills upon the

+table, I began to ask myself whether I had not done a very

+foolish thing. After all, if these people had strange fads and

+expected obedience on the most extraordinary matters, they were

+at least ready to pay for their eccentricity. Very few

+governesses in England are getting 100 pounds a year. Besides,

+what use was my hair to me? Many people are improved by wearing

+it short and perhaps I should be among the number. Next day I was

+inclined to think that I had made a mistake, and by the day after

+I was sure of it. I had almost overcome my pride so far as to go

+back to the agency and inquire whether the place was still open

+when I received this letter from the gentleman himself. I have it

+here and I will read it to you:

+

+                       "'The Copper Beeches, near Winchester.

+"'DEAR MISS HUNTER:--Miss Stoper has very kindly given me your

+address, and I write from here to ask you whether you have

+reconsidered your decision. My wife is very anxious that you

+should come, for she has been much attracted by my description of

+you. We are willing to give 30 pounds a quarter, or 120 pounds a

+year, so as to recompense you for any little inconvenience which

+our fads may cause you. They are not very exacting, after all. My

+wife is fond of a particular shade of electric blue and would

+like you to wear such a dress indoors in the morning. You need

+not, however, go to the expense of purchasing one, as we have one

+belonging to my dear daughter Alice (now in Philadelphia), which

+would, I should think, fit you very well. Then, as to sitting

+here or there, or amusing yourself in any manner indicated, that

+need cause you no inconvenience. As regards your hair, it is no

+doubt a pity, especially as I could not help remarking its beauty

+during our short interview, but I am afraid that I must remain

+firm upon this point, and I only hope that the increased salary

+may recompense you for the loss. Your duties, as far as the child

+is concerned, are very light. Now do try to come, and I shall

+meet you with the dog-cart at Winchester. Let me know your train.

+Yours faithfully, JEPHRO RUCASTLE.'

+

+"That is the letter which I have just received, Mr. Holmes, and

+my mind is made up that I will accept it. I thought, however,

+that before taking the final step I should like to submit the

+whole matter to your consideration."

+

+"Well, Miss Hunter, if your mind is made up, that settles the

+question," said Holmes, smiling.

+

+"But you would not advise me to refuse?"

+

+"I confess that it is not the situation which I should like to

+see a sister of mine apply for."

+

+"What is the meaning of it all, Mr. Holmes?"

+

+"Ah, I have no data. I cannot tell. Perhaps you have yourself

+formed some opinion?"

+

+"Well, there seems to me to be only one possible solution. Mr.

+Rucastle seemed to be a very kind, good-natured man. Is it not

+possible that his wife is a lunatic, that he desires to keep the

+matter quiet for fear she should be taken to an asylum, and that

+he humours her fancies in every way in order to prevent an

+outbreak?"

+

+"That is a possible solution--in fact, as matters stand, it is

+the most probable one. But in any case it does not seem to be a

+nice household for a young lady."

+

+"But the money, Mr. Holmes, the money!"

+

+"Well, yes, of course the pay is good--too good. That is what

+makes me uneasy. Why should they give you 120 pounds a year, when

+they could have their pick for 40 pounds? There must be some

+strong reason behind."

+

+"I thought that if I told you the circumstances you would

+understand afterwards if I wanted your help. I should feel so

+much stronger if I felt that you were at the back of me."

+

+"Oh, you may carry that feeling away with you. I assure you that

+your little problem promises to be the most interesting which has

+come my way for some months. There is something distinctly novel

+about some of the features. If you should find yourself in doubt

+or in danger--"

+

+"Danger! What danger do you foresee?"

+

+Holmes shook his head gravely. "It would cease to be a danger if

+we could define it," said he. "But at any time, day or night, a

+telegram would bring me down to your help."

+

+"That is enough." She rose briskly from her chair with the

+anxiety all swept from her face. "I shall go down to Hampshire

+quite easy in my mind now. I shall write to Mr. Rucastle at once,

+sacrifice my poor hair to-night, and start for Winchester

+to-morrow." With a few grateful words to Holmes she bade us both

+good-night and bustled off upon her way.

+

+"At least," said I as we heard her quick, firm steps descending

+the stairs, "she seems to be a young lady who is very well able

+to take care of herself."

+

+"And she would need to be," said Holmes gravely. "I am much

+mistaken if we do not hear from her before many days are past."

+

+It was not very long before my friend's prediction was fulfilled.

+A fortnight went by, during which I frequently found my thoughts

+turning in her direction and wondering what strange side-alley of

+human experience this lonely woman had strayed into. The unusual

+salary, the curious conditions, the light duties, all pointed to

+something abnormal, though whether a fad or a plot, or whether

+the man were a philanthropist or a villain, it was quite beyond

+my powers to determine. As to Holmes, I observed that he sat

+frequently for half an hour on end, with knitted brows and an

+abstracted air, but he swept the matter away with a wave of his

+hand when I mentioned it. "Data! data! data!" he cried

+impatiently. "I can't make bricks without clay." And yet he would

+always wind up by muttering that no sister of his should ever

+have accepted such a situation.

+

+The telegram which we eventually received came late one night

+just as I was thinking of turning in and Holmes was settling down

+to one of those all-night chemical researches which he frequently

+indulged in, when I would leave him stooping over a retort and a

+test-tube at night and find him in the same position when I came

+down to breakfast in the morning. He opened the yellow envelope,

+and then, glancing at the message, threw it across to me.

+

+"Just look up the trains in Bradshaw," said he, and turned back

+to his chemical studies.

+

+The summons was a brief and urgent one.

+

+"Please be at the Black Swan Hotel at Winchester at midday

+to-morrow," it said. "Do come! I am at my wit's end.  HUNTER."

+

+"Will you come with me?" asked Holmes, glancing up.

+

+"I should wish to."

+

+"Just look it up, then."

+

+"There is a train at half-past nine," said I, glancing over my

+Bradshaw. "It is due at Winchester at 11:30."

+

+"That will do very nicely. Then perhaps I had better postpone my

+analysis of the acetones, as we may need to be at our best in the

+morning."

+

+By eleven o'clock the next day we were well upon our way to the

+old English capital. Holmes had been buried in the morning papers

+all the way down, but after we had passed the Hampshire border he

+threw them down and began to admire the scenery. It was an ideal

+spring day, a light blue sky, flecked with little fleecy white

+clouds drifting across from west to east. The sun was shining

+very brightly, and yet there was an exhilarating nip in the air,

+which set an edge to a man's energy. All over the countryside,

+away to the rolling hills around Aldershot, the little red and

+grey roofs of the farm-steadings peeped out from amid the light

+green of the new foliage.

+

+"Are they not fresh and beautiful?" I cried with all the

+enthusiasm of a man fresh from the fogs of Baker Street.

+

+But Holmes shook his head gravely.

+

+"Do you know, Watson," said he, "that it is one of the curses of

+a mind with a turn like mine that I must look at everything with

+reference to my own special subject. You look at these scattered

+houses, and you are impressed by their beauty. I look at them,

+and the only thought which comes to me is a feeling of their

+isolation and of the impunity with which crime may be committed

+there."

+

+"Good heavens!" I cried. "Who would associate crime with these

+dear old homesteads?"

+

+"They always fill me with a certain horror. It is my belief,

+Watson, founded upon my experience, that the lowest and vilest

+alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of sin

+than does the smiling and beautiful countryside."

+

+"You horrify me!"

+

+"But the reason is very obvious. The pressure of public opinion

+can do in the town what the law cannot accomplish. There is no

+lane so vile that the scream of a tortured child, or the thud of

+a drunkard's blow, does not beget sympathy and indignation among

+the neighbours, and then the whole machinery of justice is ever

+so close that a word of complaint can set it going, and there is

+but a step between the crime and the dock. But look at these

+lonely houses, each in its own fields, filled for the most part

+with poor ignorant folk who know little of the law. Think of the

+deeds of hellish cruelty, the hidden wickedness which may go on,

+year in, year out, in such places, and none the wiser. Had this

+lady who appeals to us for help gone to live in Winchester, I

+should never have had a fear for her. It is the five miles of

+country which makes the danger. Still, it is clear that she is

+not personally threatened."

+

+"No. If she can come to Winchester to meet us she can get away."

+

+"Quite so. She has her freedom."

+

+"What CAN be the matter, then? Can you suggest no explanation?"

+

+"I have devised seven separate explanations, each of which would

+cover the facts as far as we know them. But which of these is

+correct can only be determined by the fresh information which we

+shall no doubt find waiting for us. Well, there is the tower of

+the cathedral, and we shall soon learn all that Miss Hunter has

+to tell."

+

+The Black Swan is an inn of repute in the High Street, at no

+distance from the station, and there we found the young lady

+waiting for us. She had engaged a sitting-room, and our lunch

+awaited us upon the table.

+

+"I am so delighted that you have come," she said earnestly. "It

+is so very kind of you both; but indeed I do not know what I

+should do. Your advice will be altogether invaluable to me."

+

+"Pray tell us what has happened to you."

+

+"I will do so, and I must be quick, for I have promised Mr.

+Rucastle to be back before three. I got his leave to come into

+town this morning, though he little knew for what purpose."

+

+"Let us have everything in its due order." Holmes thrust his long

+thin legs out towards the fire and composed himself to listen.

+

+"In the first place, I may say that I have met, on the whole,

+with no actual ill-treatment from Mr. and Mrs. Rucastle. It is

+only fair to them to say that. But I cannot understand them, and

+I am not easy in my mind about them."

+

+"What can you not understand?"

+

+"Their reasons for their conduct. But you shall have it all just

+as it occurred. When I came down, Mr. Rucastle met me here and

+drove me in his dog-cart to the Copper Beeches. It is, as he

+said, beautifully situated, but it is not beautiful in itself,

+for it is a large square block of a house, whitewashed, but all

+stained and streaked with damp and bad weather. There are grounds

+round it, woods on three sides, and on the fourth a field which

+slopes down to the Southampton highroad, which curves past about

+a hundred yards from the front door. This ground in front belongs

+to the house, but the woods all round are part of Lord

+Southerton's preserves. A clump of copper beeches immediately in

+front of the hall door has given its name to the place.

+

+"I was driven over by my employer, who was as amiable as ever,

+and was introduced by him that evening to his wife and the child.

+There was no truth, Mr. Holmes, in the conjecture which seemed to

+us to be probable in your rooms at Baker Street. Mrs. Rucastle is

+not mad. I found her to be a silent, pale-faced woman, much

+younger than her husband, not more than thirty, I should think,

+while he can hardly be less than forty-five. From their

+conversation I have gathered that they have been married about

+seven years, that he was a widower, and that his only child by

+the first wife was the daughter who has gone to Philadelphia. Mr.

+Rucastle told me in private that the reason why she had left them

+was that she had an unreasoning aversion to her stepmother. As

+the daughter could not have been less than twenty, I can quite

+imagine that her position must have been uncomfortable with her

+father's young wife.

+

+"Mrs. Rucastle seemed to me to be colourless in mind as well as

+in feature. She impressed me neither favourably nor the reverse.

+She was a nonentity. It was easy to see that she was passionately

+devoted both to her husband and to her little son. Her light grey

+eyes wandered continually from one to the other, noting every

+little want and forestalling it if possible. He was kind to her

+also in his bluff, boisterous fashion, and on the whole they

+seemed to be a happy couple. And yet she had some secret sorrow,

+this woman. She would often be lost in deep thought, with the

+saddest look upon her face. More than once I have surprised her

+in tears. I have thought sometimes that it was the disposition of

+her child which weighed upon her mind, for I have never met so

+utterly spoiled and so ill-natured a little creature. He is small

+for his age, with a head which is quite disproportionately large.

+His whole life appears to be spent in an alternation between

+savage fits of passion and gloomy intervals of sulking. Giving

+pain to any creature weaker than himself seems to be his one idea

+of amusement, and he shows quite remarkable talent in planning

+the capture of mice, little birds, and insects. But I would

+rather not talk about the creature, Mr. Holmes, and, indeed, he

+has little to do with my story."

+

+"I am glad of all details," remarked my friend, "whether they

+seem to you to be relevant or not."

+

+"I shall try not to miss anything of importance. The one

+unpleasant thing about the house, which struck me at once, was

+the appearance and conduct of the servants. There are only two, a

+man and his wife. Toller, for that is his name, is a rough,

+uncouth man, with grizzled hair and whiskers, and a perpetual

+smell of drink. Twice since I have been with them he has been

+quite drunk, and yet Mr. Rucastle seemed to take no notice of it.

+His wife is a very tall and strong woman with a sour face, as

+silent as Mrs. Rucastle and much less amiable. They are a most

+unpleasant couple, but fortunately I spend most of my time in the

+nursery and my own room, which are next to each other in one

+corner of the building.

+

+"For two days after my arrival at the Copper Beeches my life was

+very quiet; on the third, Mrs. Rucastle came down just after

+breakfast and whispered something to her husband.

+

+"'Oh, yes,' said he, turning to me, 'we are very much obliged to

+you, Miss Hunter, for falling in with our whims so far as to cut

+your hair. I assure you that it has not detracted in the tiniest

+iota from your appearance. We shall now see how the electric-blue

+dress will become you. You will find it laid out upon the bed in

+your room, and if you would be so good as to put it on we should

+both be extremely obliged.'

+

+"The dress which I found waiting for me was of a peculiar shade

+of blue. It was of excellent material, a sort of beige, but it

+bore unmistakable signs of having been worn before. It could not

+have been a better fit if I had been measured for it. Both Mr.

+and Mrs. Rucastle expressed a delight at the look of it, which

+seemed quite exaggerated in its vehemence. They were waiting for

+me in the drawing-room, which is a very large room, stretching

+along the entire front of the house, with three long windows

+reaching down to the floor. A chair had been placed close to the

+central window, with its back turned towards it. In this I was

+asked to sit, and then Mr. Rucastle, walking up and down on the

+other side of the room, began to tell me a series of the funniest

+stories that I have ever listened to. You cannot imagine how

+comical he was, and I laughed until I was quite weary. Mrs.

+Rucastle, however, who has evidently no sense of humour, never so

+much as smiled, but sat with her hands in her lap, and a sad,

+anxious look upon her face. After an hour or so, Mr. Rucastle

+suddenly remarked that it was time to commence the duties of the

+day, and that I might change my dress and go to little Edward in

+the nursery.

+

+"Two days later this same performance was gone through under

+exactly similar circumstances. Again I changed my dress, again I

+sat in the window, and again I laughed very heartily at the funny

+stories of which my employer had an immense répertoire, and which

+he told inimitably. Then he handed me a yellow-backed novel, and

+moving my chair a little sideways, that my own shadow might not

+fall upon the page, he begged me to read aloud to him. I read for

+about ten minutes, beginning in the heart of a chapter, and then

+suddenly, in the middle of a sentence, he ordered me to cease and

+to change my dress.

+

+"You can easily imagine, Mr. Holmes, how curious I became as to

+what the meaning of this extraordinary performance could possibly

+be. They were always very careful, I observed, to turn my face

+away from the window, so that I became consumed with the desire

+to see what was going on behind my back. At first it seemed to be

+impossible, but I soon devised a means. My hand-mirror had been

+broken, so a happy thought seized me, and I concealed a piece of

+the glass in my handkerchief. On the next occasion, in the midst

+of my laughter, I put my handkerchief up to my eyes, and was able

+with a little management to see all that there was behind me. I

+confess that I was disappointed. There was nothing. At least that

+was my first impression. At the second glance, however, I

+perceived that there was a man standing in the Southampton Road,

+a small bearded man in a grey suit, who seemed to be looking in

+my direction. The road is an important highway, and there are

+usually people there. This man, however, was leaning against the

+railings which bordered our field and was looking earnestly up. I

+lowered my handkerchief and glanced at Mrs. Rucastle to find her

+eyes fixed upon me with a most searching gaze. She said nothing,

+but I am convinced that she had divined that I had a mirror in my

+hand and had seen what was behind me. She rose at once.

+

+"'Jephro,' said she, 'there is an impertinent fellow upon the

+road there who stares up at Miss Hunter.'

+

+"'No friend of yours, Miss Hunter?' he asked.

+

+"'No, I know no one in these parts.'

+

+"'Dear me! How very impertinent! Kindly turn round and motion to

+him to go away.'

+

+"'Surely it would be better to take no notice.'

+

+"'No, no, we should have him loitering here always. Kindly turn

+round and wave him away like that.'

+

+"I did as I was told, and at the same instant Mrs. Rucastle drew

+down the blind. That was a week ago, and from that time I have

+not sat again in the window, nor have I worn the blue dress, nor

+seen the man in the road."

+

+"Pray continue," said Holmes. "Your narrative promises to be a

+most interesting one."

+

+"You will find it rather disconnected, I fear, and there may

+prove to be little relation between the different incidents of

+which I speak. On the very first day that I was at the Copper

+Beeches, Mr. Rucastle took me to a small outhouse which stands

+near the kitchen door. As we approached it I heard the sharp

+rattling of a chain, and the sound as of a large animal moving

+about.

+

+"'Look in here!' said Mr. Rucastle, showing me a slit between two

+planks. 'Is he not a beauty?'

+

+"I looked through and was conscious of two glowing eyes, and of a

+vague figure huddled up in the darkness.

+

+"'Don't be frightened,' said my employer, laughing at the start

+which I had given. 'It's only Carlo, my mastiff. I call him mine,

+but really old Toller, my groom, is the only man who can do

+anything with him. We feed him once a day, and not too much then,

+so that he is always as keen as mustard. Toller lets him loose

+every night, and God help the trespasser whom he lays his fangs

+upon. For goodness' sake don't you ever on any pretext set your

+foot over the threshold at night, for it's as much as your life

+is worth.'

+

+"The warning was no idle one, for two nights later I happened to

+look out of my bedroom window about two o'clock in the morning.

+It was a beautiful moonlight night, and the lawn in front of the

+house was silvered over and almost as bright as day. I was

+standing, rapt in the peaceful beauty of the scene, when I was

+aware that something was moving under the shadow of the copper

+beeches. As it emerged into the moonshine I saw what it was. It

+was a giant dog, as large as a calf, tawny tinted, with hanging

+jowl, black muzzle, and huge projecting bones. It walked slowly

+across the lawn and vanished into the shadow upon the other side.

+That dreadful sentinel sent a chill to my heart which I do not

+think that any burglar could have done.

+

+"And now I have a very strange experience to tell you. I had, as

+you know, cut off my hair in London, and I had placed it in a

+great coil at the bottom of my trunk. One evening, after the

+child was in bed, I began to amuse myself by examining the

+furniture of my room and by rearranging my own little things.

+There was an old chest of drawers in the room, the two upper ones

+empty and open, the lower one locked. I had filled the first two

+with my linen, and as I had still much to pack away I was

+naturally annoyed at not having the use of the third drawer. It

+struck me that it might have been fastened by a mere oversight,

+so I took out my bunch of keys and tried to open it. The very

+first key fitted to perfection, and I drew the drawer open. There

+was only one thing in it, but I am sure that you would never

+guess what it was. It was my coil of hair.

+

+"I took it up and examined it. It was of the same peculiar tint,

+and the same thickness. But then the impossibility of the thing

+obtruded itself upon me. How could my hair have been locked in

+the drawer? With trembling hands I undid my trunk, turned out the

+contents, and drew from the bottom my own hair. I laid the two

+tresses together, and I assure you that they were identical. Was

+it not extraordinary? Puzzle as I would, I could make nothing at

+all of what it meant. I returned the strange hair to the drawer,

+and I said nothing of the matter to the Rucastles as I felt that

+I had put myself in the wrong by opening a drawer which they had

+locked.

+

+"I am naturally observant, as you may have remarked, Mr. Holmes,

+and I soon had a pretty good plan of the whole house in my head.

+There was one wing, however, which appeared not to be inhabited

+at all. A door which faced that which led into the quarters of

+the Tollers opened into this suite, but it was invariably locked.

+One day, however, as I ascended the stair, I met Mr. Rucastle

+coming out through this door, his keys in his hand, and a look on

+his face which made him a very different person to the round,

+jovial man to whom I was accustomed. His cheeks were red, his

+brow was all crinkled with anger, and the veins stood out at his

+temples with passion. He locked the door and hurried past me

+without a word or a look.

+

+"This aroused my curiosity, so when I went out for a walk in the

+grounds with my charge, I strolled round to the side from which I

+could see the windows of this part of the house. There were four

+of them in a row, three of which were simply dirty, while the

+fourth was shuttered up. They were evidently all deserted. As I

+strolled up and down, glancing at them occasionally, Mr. Rucastle

+came out to me, looking as merry and jovial as ever.

+

+"'Ah!' said he, 'you must not think me rude if I passed you

+without a word, my dear young lady. I was preoccupied with

+business matters.'

+

+"I assured him that I was not offended. 'By the way,' said I,

+'you seem to have quite a suite of spare rooms up there, and one

+of them has the shutters up.'

+

+"He looked surprised and, as it seemed to me, a little startled

+at my remark.

+

+"'Photography is one of my hobbies,' said he. 'I have made my

+dark room up there. But, dear me! what an observant young lady we

+have come upon. Who would have believed it? Who would have ever

+believed it?' He spoke in a jesting tone, but there was no jest

+in his eyes as he looked at me. I read suspicion there and

+annoyance, but no jest.

+

+"Well, Mr. Holmes, from the moment that I understood that there

+was something about that suite of rooms which I was not to know,

+I was all on fire to go over them. It was not mere curiosity,

+though I have my share of that. It was more a feeling of duty--a

+feeling that some good might come from my penetrating to this

+place. They talk of woman's instinct; perhaps it was woman's

+instinct which gave me that feeling. At any rate, it was there,

+and I was keenly on the lookout for any chance to pass the

+forbidden door.

+

+"It was only yesterday that the chance came. I may tell you that,

+besides Mr. Rucastle, both Toller and his wife find something to

+do in these deserted rooms, and I once saw him carrying a large

+black linen bag with him through the door. Recently he has been

+drinking hard, and yesterday evening he was very drunk; and when

+I came upstairs there was the key in the door. I have no doubt at

+all that he had left it there. Mr. and Mrs. Rucastle were both

+downstairs, and the child was with them, so that I had an

+admirable opportunity. I turned the key gently in the lock,

+opened the door, and slipped through.

+

+"There was a little passage in front of me, unpapered and

+uncarpeted, which turned at a right angle at the farther end.

+Round this corner were three doors in a line, the first and third

+of which were open. They each led into an empty room, dusty and

+cheerless, with two windows in the one and one in the other, so

+thick with dirt that the evening light glimmered dimly through

+them. The centre door was closed, and across the outside of it

+had been fastened one of the broad bars of an iron bed, padlocked

+at one end to a ring in the wall, and fastened at the other with

+stout cord. The door itself was locked as well, and the key was

+not there. This barricaded door corresponded clearly with the

+shuttered window outside, and yet I could see by the glimmer from

+beneath it that the room was not in darkness. Evidently there was

+a skylight which let in light from above. As I stood in the

+passage gazing at the sinister door and wondering what secret it

+might veil, I suddenly heard the sound of steps within the room

+and saw a shadow pass backward and forward against the little

+slit of dim light which shone out from under the door. A mad,

+unreasoning terror rose up in me at the sight, Mr. Holmes. My

+overstrung nerves failed me suddenly, and I turned and ran--ran

+as though some dreadful hand were behind me clutching at the

+skirt of my dress. I rushed down the passage, through the door,

+and straight into the arms of Mr. Rucastle, who was waiting

+outside.

+

+"'So,' said he, smiling, 'it was you, then. I thought that it

+must be when I saw the door open.'

+

+"'Oh, I am so frightened!' I panted.

+

+"'My dear young lady! my dear young lady!'--you cannot think how

+caressing and soothing his manner was--'and what has frightened

+you, my dear young lady?'

+

+"But his voice was just a little too coaxing. He overdid it. I

+was keenly on my guard against him.

+

+"'I was foolish enough to go into the empty wing,' I answered.

+'But it is so lonely and eerie in this dim light that I was

+frightened and ran out again. Oh, it is so dreadfully still in

+there!'

+

+"'Only that?' said he, looking at me keenly.

+

+"'Why, what did you think?' I asked.

+

+"'Why do you think that I lock this door?'

+

+"'I am sure that I do not know.'

+

+"'It is to keep people out who have no business there. Do you

+see?' He was still smiling in the most amiable manner.

+

+"'I am sure if I had known--'

+

+"'Well, then, you know now. And if you ever put your foot over

+that threshold again'--here in an instant the smile hardened into

+a grin of rage, and he glared down at me with the face of a

+demon--'I'll throw you to the mastiff.'

+

+"I was so terrified that I do not know what I did. I suppose that

+I must have rushed past him into my room. I remember nothing

+until I found myself lying on my bed trembling all over. Then I

+thought of you, Mr. Holmes. I could not live there longer without

+some advice. I was frightened of the house, of the man, of the

+woman, of the servants, even of the child. They were all horrible

+to me. If I could only bring you down all would be well. Of

+course I might have fled from the house, but my curiosity was

+almost as strong as my fears. My mind was soon made up. I would

+send you a wire. I put on my hat and cloak, went down to the

+office, which is about half a mile from the house, and then

+returned, feeling very much easier. A horrible doubt came into my

+mind as I approached the door lest the dog might be loose, but I

+remembered that Toller had drunk himself into a state of

+insensibility that evening, and I knew that he was the only one

+in the household who had any influence with the savage creature,

+or who would venture to set him free. I slipped in in safety and

+lay awake half the night in my joy at the thought of seeing you.

+I had no difficulty in getting leave to come into Winchester this

+morning, but I must be back before three o'clock, for Mr. and

+Mrs. Rucastle are going on a visit, and will be away all the

+evening, so that I must look after the child. Now I have told you

+all my adventures, Mr. Holmes, and I should be very glad if you

+could tell me what it all means, and, above all, what I should

+do."

+

+Holmes and I had listened spellbound to this extraordinary story.

+My friend rose now and paced up and down the room, his hands in

+his pockets, and an expression of the most profound gravity upon

+his face.

+

+"Is Toller still drunk?" he asked.

+

+"Yes. I heard his wife tell Mrs. Rucastle that she could do

+nothing with him."

+

+"That is well. And the Rucastles go out to-night?"

+

+"Yes."

+

+"Is there a cellar with a good strong lock?"

+

+"Yes, the wine-cellar."

+

+"You seem to me to have acted all through this matter like a very

+brave and sensible girl, Miss Hunter. Do you think that you could

+perform one more feat? I should not ask it of you if I did not

+think you a quite exceptional woman."

+

+"I will try. What is it?"

+

+"We shall be at the Copper Beeches by seven o'clock, my friend

+and I. The Rucastles will be gone by that time, and Toller will,

+we hope, be incapable. There only remains Mrs. Toller, who might

+give the alarm. If you could send her into the cellar on some

+errand, and then turn the key upon her, you would facilitate

+matters immensely."

+

+"I will do it."

+

+"Excellent! We shall then look thoroughly into the affair. Of

+course there is only one feasible explanation. You have been

+brought there to personate someone, and the real person is

+imprisoned in this chamber. That is obvious. As to who this

+prisoner is, I have no doubt that it is the daughter, Miss Alice

+Rucastle, if I remember right, who was said to have gone to

+America. You were chosen, doubtless, as resembling her in height,

+figure, and the colour of your hair. Hers had been cut off, very

+possibly in some illness through which she has passed, and so, of

+course, yours had to be sacrificed also. By a curious chance you

+came upon her tresses. The man in the road was undoubtedly some

+friend of hers--possibly her fiancé--and no doubt, as you wore

+the girl's dress and were so like her, he was convinced from your

+laughter, whenever he saw you, and afterwards from your gesture,

+that Miss Rucastle was perfectly happy, and that she no longer

+desired his attentions. The dog is let loose at night to prevent

+him from endeavouring to communicate with her. So much is fairly

+clear. The most serious point in the case is the disposition of

+the child."

+

+"What on earth has that to do with it?" I ejaculated.

+

+"My dear Watson, you as a medical man are continually gaining

+light as to the tendencies of a child by the study of the

+parents. Don't you see that the converse is equally valid. I have

+frequently gained my first real insight into the character of

+parents by studying their children. This child's disposition is

+abnormally cruel, merely for cruelty's sake, and whether he

+derives this from his smiling father, as I should suspect, or

+from his mother, it bodes evil for the poor girl who is in their

+power."

+

+"I am sure that you are right, Mr. Holmes," cried our client. "A

+thousand things come back to me which make me certain that you

+have hit it. Oh, let us lose not an instant in bringing help to

+this poor creature."

+

+"We must be circumspect, for we are dealing with a very cunning

+man. We can do nothing until seven o'clock. At that hour we shall

+be with you, and it will not be long before we solve the

+mystery."

+

+We were as good as our word, for it was just seven when we

+reached the Copper Beeches, having put up our trap at a wayside

+public-house. The group of trees, with their dark leaves shining

+like burnished metal in the light of the setting sun, were

+sufficient to mark the house even had Miss Hunter not been

+standing smiling on the door-step.

+

+"Have you managed it?" asked Holmes.

+

+A loud thudding noise came from somewhere downstairs. "That is

+Mrs. Toller in the cellar," said she. "Her husband lies snoring

+on the kitchen rug. Here are his keys, which are the duplicates

+of Mr. Rucastle's."

+

+"You have done well indeed!" cried Holmes with enthusiasm. "Now

+lead the way, and we shall soon see the end of this black

+business."

+

+We passed up the stair, unlocked the door, followed on down a

+passage, and found ourselves in front of the barricade which Miss

+Hunter had described. Holmes cut the cord and removed the

+transverse bar. Then he tried the various keys in the lock, but

+without success. No sound came from within, and at the silence

+Holmes' face clouded over.

+

+"I trust that we are not too late," said he. "I think, Miss

+Hunter, that we had better go in without you. Now, Watson, put

+your shoulder to it, and we shall see whether we cannot make our

+way in."

+

+It was an old rickety door and gave at once before our united

+strength. Together we rushed into the room. It was empty. There

+was no furniture save a little pallet bed, a small table, and a

+basketful of linen. The skylight above was open, and the prisoner

+gone.

+

+"There has been some villainy here," said Holmes; "this beauty

+has guessed Miss Hunter's intentions and has carried his victim

+off."

+

+"But how?"

+

+"Through the skylight. We shall soon see how he managed it." He

+swung himself up onto the roof. "Ah, yes," he cried, "here's the

+end of a long light ladder against the eaves. That is how he did

+it."

+

+"But it is impossible," said Miss Hunter; "the ladder was not

+there when the Rucastles went away."

+

+"He has come back and done it. I tell you that he is a clever and

+dangerous man. I should not be very much surprised if this were

+he whose step I hear now upon the stair. I think, Watson, that it

+would be as well for you to have your pistol ready."

+

+The words were hardly out of his mouth before a man appeared at

+the door of the room, a very fat and burly man, with a heavy

+stick in his hand. Miss Hunter screamed and shrunk against the

+wall at the sight of him, but Sherlock Holmes sprang forward and

+confronted him.

+

+"You villain!" said he, "where's your daughter?"

+

+The fat man cast his eyes round, and then up at the open

+skylight.

+

+"It is for me to ask you that," he shrieked, "you thieves! Spies

+and thieves! I have caught you, have I? You are in my power. I'll

+serve you!" He turned and clattered down the stairs as hard as he

+could go.

+

+"He's gone for the dog!" cried Miss Hunter.

+

+"I have my revolver," said I.

+

+"Better close the front door," cried Holmes, and we all rushed

+down the stairs together. We had hardly reached the hall when we

+heard the baying of a hound, and then a scream of agony, with a

+horrible worrying sound which it was dreadful to listen to. An

+elderly man with a red face and shaking limbs came staggering out

+at a side door.

+

+"My God!" he cried. "Someone has loosed the dog. It's not been

+fed for two days. Quick, quick, or it'll be too late!"

+

+Holmes and I rushed out and round the angle of the house, with

+Toller hurrying behind us. There was the huge famished brute, its

+black muzzle buried in Rucastle's throat, while he writhed and

+screamed upon the ground. Running up, I blew its brains out, and

+it fell over with its keen white teeth still meeting in the great

+creases of his neck. With much labour we separated them and

+carried him, living but horribly mangled, into the house. We laid

+him upon the drawing-room sofa, and having dispatched the sobered

+Toller to bear the news to his wife, I did what I could to

+relieve his pain. We were all assembled round him when the door

+opened, and a tall, gaunt woman entered the room.

+

+"Mrs. Toller!" cried Miss Hunter.

+

+"Yes, miss. Mr. Rucastle let me out when he came back before he

+went up to you. Ah, miss, it is a pity you didn't let me know

+what you were planning, for I would have told you that your pains

+were wasted."

+

+"Ha!" said Holmes, looking keenly at her. "It is clear that Mrs.

+Toller knows more about this matter than anyone else."

+

+"Yes, sir, I do, and I am ready enough to tell what I know."

+

+"Then, pray, sit down, and let us hear it for there are several

+points on which I must confess that I am still in the dark."

+

+"I will soon make it clear to you," said she; "and I'd have done

+so before now if I could ha' got out from the cellar. If there's

+police-court business over this, you'll remember that I was the

+one that stood your friend, and that I was Miss Alice's friend

+too.

+

+"She was never happy at home, Miss Alice wasn't, from the time

+that her father married again. She was slighted like and had no

+say in anything, but it never really became bad for her until

+after she met Mr. Fowler at a friend's house. As well as I could

+learn, Miss Alice had rights of her own by will, but she was so

+quiet and patient, she was, that she never said a word about them

+but just left everything in Mr. Rucastle's hands. He knew he was

+safe with her; but when there was a chance of a husband coming

+forward, who would ask for all that the law would give him, then

+her father thought it time to put a stop on it. He wanted her to

+sign a paper, so that whether she married or not, he could use

+her money. When she wouldn't do it, he kept on worrying her until

+she got brain-fever, and for six weeks was at death's door. Then

+she got better at last, all worn to a shadow, and with her

+beautiful hair cut off; but that didn't make no change in her

+young man, and he stuck to her as true as man could be."

+

+"Ah," said Holmes, "I think that what you have been good enough

+to tell us makes the matter fairly clear, and that I can deduce

+all that remains. Mr. Rucastle then, I presume, took to this

+system of imprisonment?"

+

+"Yes, sir."

+

+"And brought Miss Hunter down from London in order to get rid of

+the disagreeable persistence of Mr. Fowler."

+

+"That was it, sir."

+

+"But Mr. Fowler being a persevering man, as a good seaman should

+be, blockaded the house, and having met you succeeded by certain

+arguments, metallic or otherwise, in convincing you that your

+interests were the same as his."

+

+"Mr. Fowler was a very kind-spoken, free-handed gentleman," said

+Mrs. Toller serenely.

+

+"And in this way he managed that your good man should have no

+want of drink, and that a ladder should be ready at the moment

+when your master had gone out."

+

+"You have it, sir, just as it happened."

+

+"I am sure we owe you an apology, Mrs. Toller," said Holmes, "for

+you have certainly cleared up everything which puzzled us. And

+here comes the country surgeon and Mrs. Rucastle, so I think,

+Watson, that we had best escort Miss Hunter back to Winchester,

+as it seems to me that our locus standi now is rather a

+questionable one."

+

+And thus was solved the mystery of the sinister house with the

+copper beeches in front of the door. Mr. Rucastle survived, but

+was always a broken man, kept alive solely through the care of

+his devoted wife. They still live with their old servants, who

+probably know so much of Rucastle's past life that he finds it

+difficult to part from them. Mr. Fowler and Miss Rucastle were

+married, by special license, in Southampton the day after their

+flight, and he is now the holder of a government appointment in

+the island of Mauritius. As to Miss Violet Hunter, my friend

+Holmes, rather to my disappointment, manifested no further

+interest in her when once she had ceased to be the centre of one

+of his problems, and she is now the head of a private school at

+Walsall, where I believe that she has met with considerable success.

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+

+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by 

+Arthur Conan Doyle

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