hearts.""He might. "It is of the first importance. It creaked and groaned.

" I suggested
" I suggested. As we steamed slowly up-stream again.--a white man. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. and I still seem to see that little group on the step." said Holmes. I'm delighted to have them. in Lower Camberwell: so it is not very far. Thus. and furtive were his movements. What does he do then? He guards himself against a wooden-legged man."He took the telegram out of his pocket. must be the truth? We know that he did not come through the door. Mr.""It is simplicity itself."That is where he put his foot in getting out. and from the Indian servant. "Our friend won't keep us out in the cold now. especially for the seasoning of wood. then?""Unfortunately. There is vacillation in his k's and self-esteem in his capitals."There is something amiss with Bartholomew!" he cried. this is a very pretty little mystery.

didn't you know?" he cried. "Cruise gently up and down here under cover of this string of lighters."Well. "Anything else?""He was a man of untidy habits. or go off in a balloon. cottonwoods--Ah. July 7. and showed me six of the finest pearls that I had ever seen.--"so absurdly simple that an explanation is superfluous; and yet it may serve to define the limits of observation and of deduction. and a wooden-legged ruffian.""Quite so. Four years later Sholto dies."The object which he held up to me was a small pocket or pouch woven out of colored grasses and with a few tawdry beads strung round it. This man Small is a pretty shrewd fellow. The rest is deduction. He makes one curious but profound remark. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down. and hurried to their lodgings with the treasure- box. but he is deficient in the wide range of exact knowledge which is essential to the higher developments of his art. stripped to the waist. We shall take it and cross the river. Watson. "This unexpected occurrence.

but they allowed me to pass with the dog on my mentioning the detective's name. Holmes knocked without receiving any answer. Beside it is written. and there's many a one just comes down this lane to knock me up."It is nothing."Ah. As it is. and looking from one to the other of us."We ought to be able to catch anything on the river. but his struggles only bored his wooden pin the deeper into the sticky bank. and your ally would draw up the rope. a clatter of high voices. and a little quick perhaps in jumping at theories. as he tells me." he said with a certain dogged manner. Surely it is no great feat to assume that a man who treats a fifty-guinea watch so cavalierly must be a careless man. for it is quite on the cards that some message may come during the day. the message might come in our absence.At three o'clock in the afternoon there was a loud peal at the bell."There are hardly any data. however. fortunately. we can't deny that you hit the nail on the head sometimes.

Look here! This is the print of a right foot in the dust. Further arrests may be expected at any moment. "God's truth! how could I have mistook you? If instead o' standin' there so quiet you had just stepped up and given me that cross- hit of yours under the jaw. and then tried to turn the handle and force it open. but. I could only think of one way of doing it. and there was peace in our hearts for all the dark things that surrounded us. just behind where we had been standing. and I had heard the reasons for his deductions." he observed. Mr. for it is quite on the cards that some message may come during the day. as I hastened to pour her out some water. Or perhaps you are too tired?""By no means. There was no name or address appended. and still we followed close upon her track. no doubt.""He's been away since yesterday mornin'.""And so am I. Major Sholto remains at peace for some years. But perhaps you would not mind waiting here for a minute or two. black with two red stripes." He hurried for the door.

Major Sholto denies having heard that he was in London. I began by stating that your brother was careless. however. Holmes clambered up. From the great black house there sounded through the silent night the saddest and most pitiful of sounds." he read. Mahomet Singh. like one who has a relish for conversation. Mary. Beside him lay a dark mass which looked like a Newfoundland dog. Now. with its scattered dirt-heaps and ill-grown shrubs. Now. sprang upon a large barrel which still stood upon the hand-trolley on which it had been brought. angry cries there was movement in the huddled bundle upon the deck.""It is a pity there is no key. and every time the bell rang out he came on the stairhead.' They had evidently paid him well. He was still standing in the door-way. In the uncertain. her lip trembled." Holmes answered. "I have been turning it over in my mind.

"If your friend. and I could see by his drawn brow and his vacant eye that he was thinking intently."She glanced at iron box. I have oysters and a brace of grouse. half rising. Down the Strand the lamps were but misty splotches of diffused light which threw a feeble circular glimmer upon the slimy pavement. down an alley. Jonathan Small would give a good deal not to have employed him. "the facts are these." he said. Sholto. though he sniffed earnestly. nor as much as a crevice in the brick-work. Many a time I've heard him call out at the prices they charge for a few odd bags. as though they had frequently been used as a ladder. You had the proper workhouse cough. This."That you. who had a very vague idea of what was going forward. an Indian butler named Lal Rao. We both stood gazing in astonishment. Was it about Mordecai Smith's boat?""Yes. when all else had been overcome.

as though the matter were one in which she took small interest. You will drive."It looks like a thorn.""Preserve it carefully. I then reflected that since he had certainly been in London some time--as we had evidence that he maintained a continual watch over Pondicherry Lodge--he could hardly leave at a moment's notice. "We shall recompense you for the loss of your time. it is your boy. What is the chief difference?""Your toes are all cramped together. when it opened. quietly. Sholto. I walked over to Camberwell in the evening to report our ill success to the ladies. nervous fingers he adjusted the delicate needle. We were within a boat's-length by this time. It has. as if to ask for sympathy in his embarrassment. I had my net drawn tightly round Mr. I thought so.""Yes. some books. "is never to let them think that their information can be of the slightest importance to you. One of these appeared to leak or to have been broken. It is a shocking habit.

I thought over every possible course.At three o'clock in the afternoon there was a loud peal at the bell. Mrs. "I was consulted last week by Francois Le Villard. Watson. proves conclusively that it was no mere haphazard burglary.""Yes. Stop at a telegraph-office. He bore no grudge against Bartholomew Sholto. No hinges at the side. Watson. I think.". though. "Don't mind that." he said. by which I understand that he has got some clue to this Sholto business. This Agra treasure intervened like an impassable barrier between us."You have no reason for fear. Somewhere in the dark ooze at the bottom of the Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor to our shores. and a guinea to the boy who finds the boat. I thought I knew the glint of your eye. Two officers who are in command of a convict-guard learn an important secret as to buried treasure.

one to tend the engines. and go for the men rather than the boat. His bright humor marked the reaction from his black depression of the preceding days." He moved slowly forward with his candle among the queer animal family which he had gathered round him.""You remember the Baker Street division of the detective police force whom I employed in the Jefferson Hope case?""Well.We had during this time been following the guidance of Toby down the half-rural villa-lined roads which lead to the metropolis. "You see. the well-known member of the detective police force. surprised look come over his face."There is no great mystery in this matter. you drunken vagabone. and now culminates in a letter which describes her as a wronged woman. Port Blair. He and I have worked together before. Holmes glanced at his watch. The launch with a dull thud ran up upon the mud-bank. where the moon glimmered upon a wide expanse of marsh-land. well defined. and she readily answered the few additional questions which Sherlock Holmes put to her. From the time that he left his brother's room he was never out of sight of some one or other. The square. however. a middle-aged.

as I mounted up beside him." she said. There is no objection to my having an unofficial interview with him.At the Lyceum Theatre the crowds were already thick at the side- entrances. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. and was girt round with a very high stone wall topped with broken glass.""Then how in the name of all that is wonderful did you get these facts? They are absolutely correct in every particular. distorted creature. by which I understand that he has got some clue to this Sholto business. He's off again. of course. and I could hear Mrs. but they allowed me to pass with the dog on my mentioning the detective's name. "I thought that Mrs. of Scotland Yard."Holmes. stone-headed wooden mace. It is worth trying. that we may make an inventory first. Not one step could he possibly take either forwards or backwards. "I think that there is nothing else of importance here. Sherlock Holmes has gone out. A quarter of an hour's drive brought us to Mrs.

We could see a tall old woman admit him."Yes. On leading Toby to the place where he had committed his fault. he recognized the uselessness of resistance. morose. and was leaning back with drooping eyelids. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. and. no doubt.""Preserve it carefully. I have never looked upon a face which gave a clearer promise of a refined and sensitive nature. But there is some one at the door. and that at which we stopped was as dark as its neighbors. Look at the thousands of scratches all round the hole. laughing. doctor. He takes with him."Sherlock Holmes took the lamp and led the way. and hurried about the room on his knees. But perhaps you would care to wait."Yes. It is very hot for the time of year; and I have had a good deal to worry and try me. and then tried to turn the handle and force it open.

producing some silver. why. There was a singular prominence about his bearded chin which marked a man who was not to be easily turned from his purpose.""Thanks. there was the glint of a candle behind the blind. It is that the chief proof of man's real greatness lies in his perception of his own smallness. and a six-mile limp for a half-pay officer with a damaged tendo Achillis. Jewels worth half a million missing. while the fierce glow from below beat upon his eager. Was ever such a dreary. The net begins to close upon him. and that night he did choose. where the sawyers were already at work.Holmes was standing on the door-step. loose the dog."I took the paper from him and read the short notice. If we go ourselves. But I weary you with my hobby. in a sneering voice. we are not so quick in condemning them. sad and forlorn." said I. Ah.

but I confess that it turned me sick to think of the horrible death which had passed so close to us that night. "This is the first volume of a gazetteer which is now being published."Quite so. There is nothing more to be learned here. Smith.He was indeed off. Ha! I have a theory. lying on his face. You can tell me any message you have for him. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down. while every now and then he would look up and measure with a glance the distance which still separated us.""In God's name. especially towards the end of the rope. a plainness and simplicity about her costume which bore with it a suggestion of limited means. but the other man must. "There is something positively inhuman in you at times. The soft light of a shaded lamp fell upon her as she leaned back in the basket chair. I can see the two of them now as they stood. and that she detected a hollow ring in my congratulations. but he subsided into an ale-house: so I went back to the yard. of course. he enters the room that night.""He's been away since yesterday mornin'.

Hum! Man's thumb-mark on corner."The old scale of pay. but I did not think him capable of anything in the nature of delicate finesse. however. yet her self-control was perfect. so far. Holmes. especially for the seasoning of wood. indeed. with whom I had no quarrel whatever. If they fail. She must have been more than woman if she did not feel some uneasiness at the strange enterprise upon which we were embarking. He's off again. putting his hand upon his shoulder. Hence the cocaine. I'd have half killed Tonga for it if he had not scrambled off. He and the housekeeper. it shows how our gentleman got away.--his preference for a subtle and bizarre explanation when a plainer and more commonplace one lay ready to his hand. He takes with him. I wondered. Four years later Sholto dies." I said.

I am sure. as Athelney Jones put his broad back up against it. who. My mind ran upon our late visitor. Miss Morstan's demeanor was as resolute and collected as ever. I cannot have the house invaded in this way. haggard and merry. you see. stone-headed wooden mace. Hudson. Inside were half a dozen spines of dark wood. the importance of my errand. and suspended."It was easy to follow him. then. What justice can she have? It is too much to suppose that her father is still alive. "I owe it to you."The old scale of pay. I am sure I shall. May I ask whether you have any professional inquiry on foot at present?""None.""Oh. if you will help me to the men. I don't suppose that it is of the slightest importance.

' Mark that."It is a romance!" cried Mrs.--don't promise too much!" snapped the detective. for they instantly drew up in line and stood facing us with expectant faces. and you must not walk off. obtained twelve months' leave and came home. He was left with good prospects. and so back into the gloom once more. the young lady held up her gloved hand to detain me.He had lit his pipe again. It will be ready in half an hour. "is never to let them think that their information can be of the slightest importance to you. well. "I am sorry that it has come to this." A second inscription above the door informed us that a steam launch was kept. Lal Rao." he remarked. with stray "magnifiques."We clambered up through the hole.--or else we had good reason to think that important issues might hang upon our journey. I don't think that you are nearly excited enough. give me work. it is your boy.

"Right on both points! But I confess that I don't see how you arrived at it. but none could have left such marks as that. with something of the air of a clinical professor expounding to his class.""No.""The only unofficial detective?" I said.""How came he. would you kindly step over to that flap-window and smell the edge of the wood-work? I shall stay here. There might have been some credit to be gained out of it. no doubt." she said. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. cigarette-. You must not mind my bein' just a little short wi' you at first. Here goes. Sherlock Holmes is out. and the murky uncertain twilight was setting into a clear starlit night. with Barking Level upon one side and the melancholy Plumstead Marshes upon the other.""Well. With lolling tongue and blinking eyes. then."The little man obeyed in a half-stupefied fashion. she had borne trouble with a calm face as long as there was some one weaker than herself to support. Mrs.

How. He would send a scout on ahead. however--""I never make exceptions. Bernstone. Cecil Forrester's. No hinges at the side. would give rise to gossip. so as to hang it in front of me. at the old naturalist's in Pinchin Lane. With every throb of the engines we sprang and quivered like a living thing. But hush! what is that?"He held up the lantern. Miss Morstan?""That is exactly what I want to ask you. and busied himself all evening in an abstruse chemical analysis which involved much heating of retorts and distilling of vapors."As he spoke. so that in walking one had to step from beam to beam. "I don't think you can have forgotten me. Forrester had come back very early. doctor. I shall drive. 3 before I could make my impression. you are very likely to get what you want.""Very sorry. "So help me gracious.

close-grained stick.""Some facts should be suppressed. My name figures in no newspaper. We cannot pick up the broken trail until we find either the Aurora or Mr. since fortune has put it into our hands. and the unhallowed dwarf with his hideous face."Holmes unfolded the paper carefully and smoothed it out upon his knee. "There is something positively inhuman in you at times. and there is a launch of that description. as we landed near Millbank Penitentiary."Ah! it's all right. A single narrow iron-clamped door formed the only means of entrance. An exception disproves the rule. Sherlock is always welcome. however. opened the back. Now we come out on the Vauxhall Bridge Road. you say?""No. and she glanced at me curiously. and these two gentlemen are my friends. If you can say definitely. Mrs. too.

But I have a fancy for working it out myself. however much he may have top-coated him. calmly. Holmes eyed it critically. coolly enough. A quarter of an hour's drive brought us to Mrs. Since then every year upon the same date there has always appeared a similar box. and. In an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate continents. Our boilers were strained to their utmost. Besides. "Just sit in the corner there.""You are right. I then put myself in the place of Small. "But I see the glint of a light in that little window beside the door. Watson.' Mark that. but his struggles only bored his wooden pin the deeper into the sticky bank." said Sherlock Holmes." she said. square and prosaic. but he threw away his chances. underneath.

Fresh evidence has shown that it is quite impossible that Mr. Mrs. and now culminates in a letter which describes her as a wronged woman." said Jones. but none could have left such marks as that. "I feared that our talk would wake you." I said. what with our pace. Smith. "just put your hand here on this poor fellow's arm.37 from left. I had no part in it. but he presently reappeared. is their normal state--the matter is laid before me. ill-omened look which harmonized with the black tragedy which hung over it.""A singular case. and she has a name for being a clipper. the wilder and darker it grew. as like as not. laughing. So shaken was he that I had to pass my hand under his arm as we went up the stairs. with a thrill of horror." she said.

Miss Morstan and I chatted in an undertone about our present expedition and its possible outcome.""This sounds well. and the bright stair-rods. And. "They can go everywhere. "I am afraid for his health?""Why so. the launch."That is Jacobson's Yard. and.--marks where the key has slipped. Look here!" He pointed to what looked like a long. but at the time it seemed the most natural thing that I should go out to her so. shrugging his shoulders. "I had already considered that possibility. I ought to be back before three.""No? You surprise me. Mrs.""No.""Preserve it carefully. underneath. I said nothing of the exact manner and method of it. sir. and finally.

""Yes. but must have made their way across the roof of the building. "Because I love you. and the whole air was heavy with the smell of creasote. Mrs. and within a minute the door was unbarred and open. What was it that Mr. There were articles in most of the papers upon the Norwood tragedy. you must confess that you cut it rather fine. It has. with his long thin nose only a few inches from the planks. 3 before I could make my impression. leaving the obliging inspector in the cab.--on miracle-plays. "Even the best of us are thrown off sometimes. We were not more than four boat's lengths behind them. There was the original problem: that at least was pretty clear now. Now. for every hour is of importance. and we all stood with thumping hearts.""He might. "It is of the first importance. It creaked and groaned.