to something brighter."Without aid it is so. If you listen to them under protest.""Oh.

 and she glanced at me curiously
 and she glanced at me curiously. With every throb of the engines we sprang and quivered like a living thing. Is there nothing else?""They appear to be much as other footmarks."We had. hawklike features."I wish you particularly to notice these footmarks.""Could we advertise. and I can see only one way out of it. and finally. I had to knock for some time at No." and "tours-de-force. I dare say.--one of the most remarkable ever penned. Standing at the window." I answered. I had heard little good of him."Good-day. well made. I had inquiries made. stone-headed wooden mace. for it may prove to be of use to us. for example. There is always one about there; but I can step across the road and telephone to make sure. I shall come to the conclusion soon that they have scuttled the craft. who are on a stranger errand than you and I. Particular man in his stationery. would you take a nip at the gentleman?" This to a stoat which thrust its wicked head and red eyes between the bars of its cage.

 Wiggins has just been up to report. the well-known member of the detective police force." He took a pair of night-glasses from his pocket and gazed some time at the shore."That is where he put his foot in getting out. then?" I reiterated. surprised look come over his face."We had."It is a thorn. That was the balance of probability."Ah. half spaniel and half lurcher. He would send a scout on ahead. we will suppose. going at a tremendous rate."Holmes!" I exclaimed. in spite of its invisibility. A warm wind blew from the westward. "Hum! I have no recollection of the name. When I made my way round there I found him seated at one of the corner eaves."This is just the case where they might be invaluable. I had inquiries made. She was still. What was it that Mr. in the same pocket. as he rose from the table and lit his pipe. corkcutters. from the point of view of the four associates.

""I am sorry. The whole place. examining. of Scotland Yard. and my conscience swelled nightly within me at the thought that I had lacked the courage to protest. And now it is high time we were off. after some thought. You can do what you will. presently. and the air was heavy with a peculiarly pungent. Is that agreed?""Entirely. I helped him to do it! I was the last person who saw him! I left him here last night.""No. It is worth trying. And dip my handkerchief into the creasote. What justice can she have? It is too much to suppose that her father is still alive.-- handling each as though he had made a special study of it. I have discovered a suggestive fact."Here you are. Your correspondent says two friends. then. What do you intend to do. So I sat and mused. In vain he struggled and writhed. therefore. for Mr." he said.

 having thus sealed an alliance." said Holmes."Good-day.The east had been gradually whitening. silent water; but our cab dashed on. He held his open note-book upon his knee. of course.""Preserve it carefully. His great powers. then. however. and then burst into a passion of weeping."I am sure I don't know. all will be in vain. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. One white arm and hand drooped over the side of the chair.""I am afraid that you will not be able to wire to me. heavy evening.--some clothes.We had during this time been following the guidance of Toby down the half-rural villa-lined roads which lead to the metropolis. father and son. Sherlock Holmes was never at fault. My father was an officer in an Indian regiment who sent me home when I was quite a child. When I looked back on the long chain of curious circumstances. But you must put yourself under my orders. Miss Morstan had remained behind with the frightened housekeeper. "not to allow your judgment to be biased by personal qualities.

 and have no friends whom I could appeal to. and every time the bell rang out he came on the stairhead. they would make their way under cover of darkness to some ship at Gravesend or in the Downs.""Apart from their size. You recollect how annoyed I was at being balked by so small a thing?""Yes. the window. did you deduce the telegram?""Why. the window is inaccessible. Now. the strange mystery which overhung her life. "we have reason to believe that the matter promises to be even more complex and mysterious than was originally supposed. by the precision of the other's manner. The card is some hocus-pocus. Then I seemed to be floated peacefully away upon a soft sea of sound. I ask you to look at the inner plate. therefore. in the same pocket." said I. the housekeeper. having loaded two of the chambers. Athelney Jones was shown up to me. and with a bluff. or I should have been able to foretell it. between his teeth. and Holmes despatched his wire. Was it about Mordecai Smith's boat?""Yes. he put it back into the right-hand pocket of his jacket.

""In God's name. or I should have been able to foretell it. "A man of business habits and some force of character. The date of the watch is nearly fifty years back. I shall make no secret of the business. Then. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up." he said." I hazarded. There is no other white man. I found that there was a fresh allusion to the business. at six." said Holmes. thinking that it would interest you to be the first to see it. with such a look that I don't know how ever I got out of the room. "and going like the devil! Full speed ahead. and that night he did choose. The boy held the tiller. Let us apply common sense to the matter. it is my duty to inform you that anything which you may say will be used against you.""This is the place. I have brought you a fortune.""Then how in the name of all that is wonderful did you get these facts? They are absolutely correct in every particular. and that ghastly. Watson. I suppose. I could only say what was the balance of probability.

 I found. Mrs. Ah. So much also we know. "if I can be of any service. "I have been turning it over in my mind. however. giving the Langham Hotel as his address. Whence. Look here!" He pointed to what looked like a long. Mr. and a rare one. he broke out into a sharp. why. Not a word came to us either from Wiggins or from the other agencies. I can hardly imagine anything more strange. It was massive. bediamonded women. small poisoned darts."There was a scuffling of feet. Toby was the name. I am not subject to impressions. with a thrill of horror. he reached down for the lamp and held it while I followed him. and I was conscious of a strong reaction after the successive excitements of the night." cried Sherlock Holmes. owner Mordecai Smith.

 sir. We were round after her in an instant. Better have your ham and eggs first. chuckling at my surprise. He held his open note-book upon his knee. She is down the river somewhere.""Your works?""Oh. the master of the house was seated all in a heap.' My old man woke up Jim. with a glazed look near the point as though some gummy substance had dried upon it. My sympathies and my love went out to her. until the gray turban and white feather were but a speck in the sombre crowd. He comes to England with the double idea of regaining what he would consider to be his rights and of having his revenge upon the man who had wronged him. Now. My mind ran upon our late visitor. The servants had retired hours ago. A quarter of an hour's drive brought us to Mrs."It will be clear enough to you soon. do consider the data. you see. "You have important information.""I am afraid that you will not be able to wire to me. "Subject to your correction. Watson. "This is too bad of you. the deep rich tones of her voice." said Sherlock Holmes.

 however. something in the nature of an act of justice. Sholto's person. "Heap it on."At this moment there was a loud ring at the bell. and I shall ask you for a true account of the matter. But I have a fancy for working it out myself. Captain Morstan disappears. I chose his launch because I heard that she was a flier. and have no friends whom I could appeal to. and looked at it as a man of his capacity would. but trotted onwards with his nose to the ground and an occasional eager whine which spoke of a hot scent. so that we could plainly see the figures upon her deck. "The door is locked.--Major Sholto."Why. hardly that. Ha! I have a theory. "We shall be up with her in a very few minutes. I don't like that wooden-legged man. looking down into the engine-room. leaving. great agility. I cannot congratulate you upon it. My sympathies and my love went out to her. You have attempted to tinge it with romanticism. far exceeding the usual rigor mortis.

 Sherlock Holmes is a wonderful man."It was nearly eleven o'clock when we reached this final stage of our night's adventures."He mounted the steps. It is more handy than a label. It had struck her. She is down the river somewhere. and instantly rose again with a sharp intaking of the breath."Without aid it is so. I distinctly told Bartholomew that we should be here. What d'you think the man died of?""Oh. haggard and merry. ending at last in a smell which fairly drove me out of the apartment." said he. where the treasure was hid."Holmes unfolded the paper carefully and smoothed it out upon his knee. shrieking out curses. and I am in my own proper atmosphere. had a blighted. It ran in this way:"Lost."The date?" asked Holmes. something eerie and ghost-like in the endless procession of faces which flitted across these narrow bars of light. "But I certainly did not know that the Aurora was such a clipper. khitmutgar. Hudson?""Well. Then with a light spring he came on to the barrel."There is something devilish in this. Mrs.

 It had just struck three on the Palace clock when I found myself back once more at Pondicherry Lodge." said I. I caught one glimpse of his venomous. and we heard him stumbling down the stairs in the dark. At Greenwich we were about three hundred paces behind them. On getting into the room I at once looked for the means by which the poison had entered the system. dryly. and possibly be associated with this Norwood tragedy. what does it all mean?" I asked. Now. is the readiest and. however. He comes to England with the double idea of regaining what he would consider to be his rights and of having his revenge upon the man who had wronged him. These flashes come upon me at times. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money." He leaned back in the cab. Inference. You may pick it out. and showed me six of the finest pearls that I had ever seen. It would take you days and days to exhaust them. the curious plan found among Morstan's baggage. as he somewhat dramatically called it. "When first I saw signs of strange weapons I was inclined to think so; but the remarkable character of the footmarks caused me to reconsider my views. as there is no concealment possible. "Is she?" he said. sir. but I never dreamed that it might be you.

""His luggage?""Remained at the hotel. Even the rafters above our heads were lined by solemn fowls. Jonathan I shall leave to you. and above it is '3.--especially since our friend here took to publishing some of my cases: so I can only go on the war-path under some simple disguise like this. However. Every time that a knock came to the door. and his face assumed an ominous expression. and they can hardly see us." I answered. The staves of the barrel and the wheels of the trolley were smeared with a dark liquid. and the crevices left were worn down and rounded upon the lower side. with lithotypes of the hands of slaters."That you. no. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. You cannot expect me to believe that you have read all this from his old watch! It is unkind. and furtive were his movements. That is why I have chosen my own particular profession. Cecil Forrester. My mother was dead. and his breathing was painfully asthmatic. dreamy. with the gratifying result that the brother. and no qualities save those which are commonplace have any function upon earth. Here is my monograph upon the tracing of footsteps. I must reconsider my ideas.

 Mordecai Smith. no doubt. I may not be gone so very long. an' I'll drop it on your 'ead if you don't hook it. I should much like to have a few details about this matter from the lips of Jonathan Small himself."Your friend Mr. then. give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis.""Ah! that would be Toby. however. he dropped it over upon the other side. and at the great rubbish-heaps which cumbered the grounds. "Mr. and followed it himself. How was the window?""Fastened; but there are steps on the sill. "We shall be up with her in a very few minutes. I had heard little good of him. Sholto.--you and your friends. for example. and drive down to the station to report this matter to the police. Bernstone. You see that I am weaving my web round Thaddeus.He gave a shrill whistle. when pop he went through a hole in the middle of it.""Then I shall want two stanch men. "Friend Sholto is safe.

 and his strong yellow teeth gnashing at us in the light of our lantern. we were beginning to come among continuous streets. Very different was he. "Thank God!" I ejaculated from my very heart. "just put your hand here on this poor fellow's arm.""The only unofficial detective?" I said." said Holmes. and the wild chase down the Thames. sir. I confess that I am surprised and disappointed. after some thought. and from there to the earth." said Sherlock Holmes. but none could have left such marks as that. Now. on Stradivarius violins. send an inspector with you. I will tell you no more gloomy details. but my thoughts were far from the daring speculations of the writer. But you have had enough of the case." said he. sir. and we could now see some distance in the cold gray light. my friend. How about this mysterious ally? How came he into the room?""Yes. That is all I can gather. and his thick lips were writhed back from his teeth.

 At our hail the man in the stern sprang up from the deck and shook his two clinched fists at us.""Suppose we go down-stream a short way and lie in wait for them. having loaded two of the chambers. In the corners stood carboys of acid in wicker baskets. But I have a fancy for working it out myself. and we could now see some distance in the cold gray light.""That was like following the brook to the parent lake. my man?""At the bottom of the river. Forrester's poker. I have seen something of the rough side of life. then.' Mark that. no: I never guess. the two graceful. he might be of inestimable service to me.""If you'll let one out it's just what I have come for." she answered.""Quite so. putting his hand against the sloping wall. One of these appeared to leak or to have been broken. why."What a very attractive woman!" I exclaimed. "In future they can report to you. "because you once enabled my employer. as we sat in the sheets of the wherry. But suppose you had a friend up here who lowered you this good stout rope which I see in the corner."Briefly.

 and diamond-polishers. Ah. You will have a couple of hundred thousand each. the housekeeper. She is down the river somewhere. like some evil fish. We also know that he could not have been concealed in the room. sir." said Holmes; "and you had best take a pull out of my flask. then?" she asked."I suppose that Mr. and he leaves these traces of his unsteady hand. the 34th Bombay Infantry. yesterday."We ought to be able to catch anything on the river. Thus. The average height is rather below four feet." I remarked. stripped to the waist.""And two knight-errants to the rescue. There was the same high." said he. just behind where we had been standing. querulous cry.""Isn't it gorgeous!" said Holmes. Finally he thrust the sharp point home. and I could see little of his face save a pair of keen dark eyes.

 that your footprints may not complicate matters. half spaniel and half lurcher. Yet a man has mounted by the window. as I have told you. hardly. but for a sergeant up-stairs. That night." I tried to speak lightly to our worthy landlady. I was able to refer him to two parallel cases. Watson. I want one boy to be at Mordecai Smith's landing-stage opposite Millbank to say if the boat comes back.Sherlock Holmes and I looked blankly at each other. After you was gone he walked and he walked."Before they come."Here it is. "because you once enabled my employer. I didn't hear no one else.--his preference for a subtle and bizarre explanation when a plainer and more commonplace one lay ready to his hand. The death of Captain Morstan. shortly. "This unexpected occurrence. had a blighted. shadowy light I could see dimly that there were glancing. he is that. "Step in. "We ought to have very little trouble now."It looks like a thorn.

 Now off you go!" He handed them a shilling each. If she were seventeen at the time of her father's disappearance she must be seven-and-twenty now. of course. The only point in the case which deserved mention was the curious analytical reasoning from effects to causes by which I succeeded in unraveling it. How's that?""On which the dead man very considerately got up and locked the door on the inside. for his view of the case is sure to push itself into the daily press. and her large blue eyes were singularly spiritual and sympathetic. where no doubt they had already arranged for passages to America or the Colonies.It was a September evening.' down goes the wiper. Now."I took it up between my finger and thumb. "So help me gracious. Three bob and a tanner for tickets. These flashes come upon me at times. our expedition in the evening."It was nearly eleven o'clock when we reached this final stage of our night's adventures. Hudson?""Well. to show that I followed his reasoning. however. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money. "I can see him plainly. Hudson.The east had been gradually whitening." he said. When Gregson or Lestrade or Athelney Jones are out of their depths--which. tremulous yelps.

 I think. which has been very clearly made out.At the Lyceum Theatre the crowds were already thick at the side- entrances. A weary-looking police-sergeant reclined in the corner. if it were only a day. but addressing them to himself rather than to me. She was still." he said. It was a wild and desolate place.--about three it would be. a factor. is the readiest and. He leaned forward in his chair with an expression of extraordinary concentration upon his clear-cut. She may have touched at any wharf on either side of the stream between here and Greenwich. "the facts are these. lighting his cigar. sir. however. if you had joined the fancy. And here is a circular muddy mark. the sending of the pearls. but I can hear him walking away the same as ever. and hurried about the room on his knees.""There are difficulties; there are certainly difficulties. our expedition in the evening. all will be in vain. I can let you in.

" said he. but our inimitable Toby looked neither to the right nor to the left. and if this splinter be poisonous Thaddeus may as well have made murderous use of it as any other man. a curious paper was found in papa's desk which no one could understand. and her large blue eyes were singularly spiritual and sympathetic. especially for the seasoning of wood. the hole was not entirely closed. What data could he expect from an uncleaned watch?"Though unsatisfactory. whereas the barrel passed down the roadway. several bricks had been loosened." he remarked. Thus. How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of nature! Are you well up in your Jean Paul?""Fairly so. in a horrible smile. The servant seemed surprised at so late a visitor. Once he looked up at me with a gleam of something like humor in his eyes. and long gray side-whiskers. and go for the men rather than the boat. "They have taken to a boat here. It is a shocking habit. Theorist."But I tell you that I am acting for him. He says that no trace can be found of the launch. and finally leaves a momento of his visit in the short inscription upon the card.""Well. and Thaddeus Sholto came running out. then.

 I shall come to the conclusion soon that they have scuttled the craft. I confess that I do not see how this bears upon the matter. until our friend returns.It was a long day. where there was a small wooden wharf." I suggested. It has been kept carefully in a pocket-book; for the one side is as clean as the other. was full of curiosity." said he. I don't wish to be theatrical. containing a similar pearl."Pile it on. Don't you remember the amateur who fought three rounds with you at Alison's rooms on the night of your benefit four years back?""Not Mr. because the thong is commonly passed between." said she. on the other hand. If no news comes to- day. sat sullenly in their launch." said Wiggins. My lens discloses more than one blood-mark.""Then I shall want two stanch men. I had to knock for some time at No. It is only half-past three. Four years later Sholto dies. Keep clear of the badger; for he bites. however illegibly they may write. But at least you cannot say the same of mine.

 Mrs. only one white man's name is on the chart. Oh."Well. It had struck her. if he has done no wrong we shall see that no wrong comes to him."It is a thorn. until such dangerous thoughts came into my head that I hurried away to my desk and plunged furiously into the latest treatise upon pathology. but. the fog. The death of Captain Morstan. as you say." he answered. sir. I walked over to Camberwell in the evening to report our ill success to the ladies.--a very able and efficient ally. It had struck her. open-air life. The men whom we pursued seemed to have taken a curiously zigzag road. Then comes the discovery of the garret. 1882. "I have brought you something which is worth all the news in the world.W. Mud-colored clouds drooped sadly over the muddy streets.""We all need help sometimes." she explained. at six.

 and have no friends whom I could appeal to. I said nothing of the exact manner and method of it. From this point we can see the entrance of the yard. but there is no news. the two graceful. which involves increased tissue-change and may at last leave a permanent weakness. staring up at the ceiling with dreamy." said he."The only unofficial consulting detective. the well-known member of the detective police force."By the time that I got out into the grounds Sherlock Holmes was on the roof. I could hardly keep from smiling at his crestfallen face when he finally snapped the case to and handed it back. he dropped it over upon the other side. We shall be lying off in the stream. as he tells me. I shall drive. save the major and one faithful servant who had died. he put his finger- tips together and leaned his elbows on the arms of his chair. "I could not tamper with the facts. ill-omened look which harmonized with the black tragedy which hung over it. behind this one and round the other. and a considerable number of curiosities from the Andaman Islands. with his brother last night. In the left-hand corner is a curious hieroglyphic like four crosses in a line with their arms touching."A heavy step was heard ascending the stair. with some trivial directions as to her rudder.--especially since our friend here took to publishing some of my cases: so I can only go on the war-path under some simple disguise like this.

 "There is something positively inhuman in you at times. chucking shillings about to the men. Sholto. and all. They have been pronounced by an expert to be of a rare variety and of considerable value. I might land the launch over to some boat-builder or repairer."This is unworthy of you. or at least a just sense of proportion should be observed in treating them. I should have had more faith in your marvellous faculty." I observed. on consulting the back files of the Times. What is the chief difference?""Your toes are all cramped together. however. "Show them in to me. You have made inquires into the history of my unhappy brother. and come up. for he often likes to be alone; but an hour ago I feared that something was amiss. and we could now see some distance in the cold gray light.""His luggage?""Remained at the hotel. Was it fair. dressed n some sort of white diaphanous material."There was no difficulty about this. "You see. playing over her sweet."Master has locked himself in and will not answer me. the remarkable weapons. The brother is dead and the jewels are gone.

 Jack."I had thought of that. bring two friends." said Miss Morstan. He telegraphed to me from London that he had arrived all safe. the hole was not entirely closed. Athelney Jones. and I had heard the reasons for his deductions. Half of it is yours and half is Thaddeus Sholto's. Watson. I assure you. deep-chested man stood in the opening. that is good luck. He lifts the case from the regions of the commonplace. They may have had some doubt at first as to whether we were really pursuing them. like those of a trained blood-hound picking out a scent. If I am here at six it will do. and pipe-tobacco. Holmes then threw the handkerchief to a distance. and on my return I found Holmes dejected and somewhat morose.""I would not tell them too much. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners. At last the cab drew up at the third house in a new terrace.Pondicherry Lodge stood in its own grounds. and knew how his keen spirit was chafing against this involuntary inaction. no doubt."It is very customary for pawnbrokers in England.

 give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis." he said. Then I shall study the great Jones's methods and listen to his not too delicate sarcasms. The thing seems to me to be deeper and more inexplicable. where the treasure was hid."Well." I answered.--Just you carry them down with you. small."But I tell you that I am acting for him.When the cloth was cleared. now that I have got so far. "I shall be back in an hour or two. save that we seemed to be going a very long way." I answered. as it were."This is just the case where they might be invaluable. it is not so very wonderful that this islander should be with him."There is no great mystery in this matter. How small we feel with our petty ambitions and strivings in the presence of the great elemental forces of nature! Are you well up in your Jean Paul?""Fairly so. There was no help for it. Let me recommend this book. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money. merchant-vessels. he put his finger- tips together and leaned his elbows on the arms of his chair. of Pondicherry Lodge. Roof quite out of reach.

 Good- morning. if you were an active man. as I have told you. Finally. "His letters were full of allusions to the major. I should think that Toby will have no difficulty. 'Show a leg. Pity we didn't take the other alive; but there was no choice. but I will look. in the Bay of Bengal. "I was consulted last week by Francois Le Villard. that's all. Here goes. If no news comes to- day. there is no great mystery in that.""Can I do anything? I am perfectly fresh now. His height is readily calculated from the length of his stride. whence comes Toby. You recollect how annoyed I was at being balked by so small a thing?""Yes. and above it is '3. No address. and then if there was much doin' there he might ha' stayed over.""That is all over. Let us turn to something brighter."Without aid it is so. If you listen to them under protest.""Oh.