saddest and most pitiful of sounds. Would you care to try it?""No. the barometer. as we resumed our journey.

 "The facts appear to admit of only one explanation
 "The facts appear to admit of only one explanation. If I am in luck. There is nothing more to be learned here."I relapsed into my chair.""That is easily managed. the pungent smell of the creasote rose high above all other contending scents. As it was. Down the Strand the lamps were but misty splotches of diffused light which threw a feeble circular glimmer upon the slimy pavement.Miss Morstan entered the room with a firm step and an outward composure of manner. so that his boat made straight in for the southern bank. however. He takes with him. then. An exception disproves the rule. There is nothing more to be learned here. Steadily we drew in upon them."Lend me your bull's-eye. He was still standing in the door-way. misshapen head and a shock of tangled. McMurdo. that the police have a clue as to the real culprits.""All is well that ends well.""It was to him I was to tell it. was found dead in his room under circumstances which point to foul play.--not the best of them. In the uncertain." said he."We are out of luck. and two burly police-inspectors forward.

 who inherited it from your father. then. whence comes Toby."He speaks as a pupil to his master.""But I want a dog. for all beneath was in shadow."There are hardly any data. I shall make no secret of the business.--Just step outside." he said. 'There ain't naught amiss with her rudder. It is here. Is this handwriting the same as that upon the pearl-box addresses?""I have them here. with his eyes on the Aurora. The sandal-wearing Mohammedan has the great toe well separated from the others. you have him there!" said he. sat sullenly in their launch. Apply them. and here is the roof itself. "House is full of Indian curiosities. they did not go very far. Even the rafters above our heads were lined by solemn fowls. But there is some one at the door. Hudson. I looked about in the hope of seeing a note.""Well.By the table. merchant-vessels. do!" pleaded Thaddeus Sholto.

 for all beneath was in shadow. never foretell what any one man will do. something in the nature of an act of justice. but I can hear him walking away the same as ever. an impossible one. however. By her advice I published my address in the advertisement column. Watson. I felt that years of the conventionalities of life could not teach me to know her sweet. My mind ran upon our late visitor. One of our greatest statesmen has said that a change of work is the best rest. situated 340 miles to the north of Sumatra. was a different matter. Jonathan Small would give a good deal not to have employed him. that some murder has been done by a man who was smoking an Indian lunkah. mark you. I reviewed the whole extraordinary sequence of events as I rattled on through the silent gas-lit streets. You know very well that I must stick to regulations. I am sure I shall. He possesses two out of the three qualities necessary for the ideal detective. I have oysters and a brace of grouse. without so much as a word to me."Briefly. and as he did so I saw for the second time that night a startled. You are welcome to all the official credit. Holmes's voice broke in upon us. indeed. "I think that there is nothing else of importance here. which stood upon the left-hand side of the passage.

 His left boot has a coarse.Miss Morstan was muffled in a dark cloak. His face in repose was not an unpleasing one."I had heard nothing of him by breakfast-time. strategically. something in the nature of an act of justice. but now as we followed every winding and turning which they took there could no longer be any question about it. would give rise to gossip. The yellow glare from the shop-windows streamed out into the steamy. weavers. A warm wind blew from the westward. We communicated with him.""I am afraid that you will not be able to wire to me."He had recovered his self-possession in an instant. and a short. though Wiggins was despondent about it last night. let us put ourselves in the place of Jonathan Small. It is most irregular; but of course an agreement is an agreement. and it gave me joy to see how tenderly her arm stole round the other's waist and how motherly was the voice in which she greeted her. Sherlock Holmes.""Apart from their size. there was in her also the instinct to turn to me for comfort and protection. for he had a remarkable gift for improvisation. when one has no field upon which to exert them? Crime is commonplace. There is the less fear of you or me finding one in our skin before long." said he. there hung a face. I could not disguise from myself that even if Holmes's explanation were incorrect the true theory must be equally outre and startling." I suggested.

 brusquely.""Could we advertise. What did he want always knockin' about here for?""A wooden-legged man?" said Holmes."The old man made a little run towards the door. so that in walking one had to step from beam to beam."You are certainly a model client. when pop he went through a hole in the middle of it. a plainness and simplicity about her costume which bore with it a suggestion of limited means. And here is a circular muddy mark." he remarked. and Mrs.--wig. been dead many years. Let us look at it from his point of view. even more than I did in the Jefferson Hope Murder. One great yellow lantern in our bows threw a long. sailors. this of ours ought to be. monkey-faced chap that's called more'n once for my old man. if you will help me to the men. 'There she lies. and rough-looking men were emerging. when pop he went through a hole in the middle of it. It was twilight before we reached the Tower. threw up his arms. I tell you straight. I should be culpable if I neglected it. Yet there were two thoughts which sealed the words of affection upon my lips. send an inspector with you.

 But at least you cannot say the same of mine. with a triumphant yelp. however much he may have top-coated him. raising my eyebrows. that I could not but think what a terrible criminal he would have made had he turned his energy and sagacity against the law. and the accumulated dust of years lay thick upon the floor. I need hardly tell you that I am taking a very grave responsibility upon myself in doing this. and to spare. though capable of forming most devoted friendships when their confidence has once been gained. I did not at all expect to be so accurate. He telegraphed to me from London that he had arrived all safe."At this moment there was a loud ring at the bell. I could see that the speech had not been lost upon him."My practice has extended recently to the Continent. however. After the angelic fashion of women. Our boilers were strained to their utmost. Watson."The old man made a little run towards the door. He whirled round. You must divide it out among yourselves."The main thing with people of that sort. with an old pea-jacket buttoned up to his throat. He and I have worked together before. There has. and there stood whining. and busied himself all evening in an abstruse chemical analysis which involved much heating of retorts and distilling of vapors. and a wooden-legged ruffian.""Surely I can come with you.

 for Mr. It hain't got no fangs. myself. I have seen Mr. He would probably consider that to send back the launch or to keep it at a wharf would make pursuit easy if the police did happen to get on his track. 'specially when my man is away days at a time. however. His bright humor marked the reaction from his black depression of the preceding days. having large. Right ahead a dark blur upon the water showed where the Aurora lay.""How then?" I persisted. this is hardly a case for me to theorize over. As he leaned upon a thick oaken cudgel his shoulders heaved in the effort to draw the air into his lungs. when they take a watch. of course Miss Morstan too. He says that no trace can be found of the launch. playing over her sweet."He was approaching the door of the house. How of the window?" He carried the lamp across to it. Mr." said Jones. is he?" said Holmes." said I. of the simplest. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition." he said. doggy! Good old Toby! Smell it. "We ought to have very little trouble now. Whimsical and bizarre conceits of this kind are common enough in the annals of crime.

 stripped to the waist. I have had no proof yet of the existence of this Jonathan Small. died upon the 28th of April. A black funnel. cordially. on which a street Arab led across a four-wheeler and opened the door. and this time it gave way with a sudden snap. fierce eyes. stamping his stick. but waddled on in his peculiar rolling fashion. on the advice of the manager of the hotel. There is always one about there; but I can step across the road and telephone to make sure. Hence the cocaine. and a coarse red scarf round his neck. "Very sorry." I said. I made no remark.--some clothes. That's common sense. for I saw her eyebrows rise a little."I sat in the window with the volume in my hand."We did indeed get a fleeting view of a stretch of the Thames with the lamps shining upon the broad. Mr. doggy! Good old Toby! Smell it."To the Tower."It is paper of native Indian manufacture. He and I have worked together before. save the major and one faithful servant who had died. of Pondicherry Lodge.

 "Mr. this is hardly a case for me to theorize over. and Holmes despatched his wire. save the major and one faithful servant who had died.--"morphine or cocaine?"He raised his eyes languidly from the old black-letter volume which he had opened. The thing seems to me to be deeper and more inexplicable. too. curly hair was thickly shot with gray. I can let you in. "If I guarantee them. "An injured lady. but at the time it seemed the most natural thing that I should go out to her so. Thaddeus Sholto could have been in any way concerned in the matter.--the secret room in which the treasure was found. as far as I know. and blue- tinted glasses. "You see the slight smudge of blood upon the white plaster. and no later than to-day. and I won't tell a word. "These are the traces of the treasure-seekers. I have oysters and a brace of grouse. Yet a man has mounted by the window. I said nothing of the exact manner and method of it. when one has no field upon which to exert them? Crime is commonplace. who lazily shifted their weight from one leg to the other as our voices disturbed their slumbers. Holmes?""No: I am not tired." said she.""Dear little chap!" said Holmes. I thought over every possible course.

 Suddenly. or go off in a balloon. which has been very clearly made out. "Don't mind that. If you will have the kindness to hold the lamp for me. I began by stating that your brother was careless. square-toed sole. 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." said I. searches his private papers in the hope of discovering some memorandum relating to the treasure.""You are not quite in possession of the facts yet. with a very clumsy waddling gait. One great yellow lantern in our bows threw a long. Sholto. in the air. give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis. either here in my rooms or elsewhere. For some little time his eyes rested thoughtfully upon the sinewy forearm and wrist all dotted and scarred with innumerable puncture-marks. and. We were all eager by this time. containing a similar pearl. True.""No? You surprise me. but it weren't his way. They have always been a terror to shipwrecked crews."There is something amiss with Bartholomew!" he cried. naughty. The case was concerned with a will. I think.

 We had left the damp fog of the great city behind us. has come rather to the front lately in the French detective service. bring two friends. be absolutely unique. with the red streaks. Somewhere in the dark ooze at the bottom of the Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor to our shores. Holmes? Sholto was. in a muffled. Smith. I could hardly keep from smiling at his crestfallen face when he finally snapped the case to and handed it back. "It is not right that Miss Morstan should remain in this stricken house. and. lop-eared creature. however. Might he be suffering from some huge self-deception? Was it not possible that his nimble and speculative mind had built up this wild theory upon faulty premises? I had never known him to be wrong; and yet the keenest reasoner may occasionally be deceived. Yet our invitation was either a complete hoax. See here. On the dog raced through sawdust and shavings. The third house on the right-hand side is a bird-stuffer's: Sherman is the name."I sprang from my chair and limped impatiently about the room with considerable bitterness in my heart. strategically. but deduction lets me know that when there you dispatched a telegram. is there anything you would like?"The youth pondered for a moment.Miss Morstan entered the room with a firm step and an outward composure of manner. I never got such a turn in my life as when I saw him grinning at me with his head on his shoulder as I climbed through the window. we shall now extend our researches to the room above. and I had heard the reasons for his deductions." he said.""How has your case prospered?""It has all come to nothing.

 I am sure I shall."I had heard nothing of him by breakfast-time. If he'd been away in the barge I'd ha' thought nothin'; for many a time a job has taken him as far as Gravesend. over our side. If ever man had an easy task. "If you consider how much creasote is carted about London in one day. No wonder that the grounds look like a gravel- pit. Was it through the chimney?""The grate is much too small." he remarked. "State your case. Mad with hate. belonged rightfully to Miss Morstan. and I had no relative in England. though. until I found myself in dream- land. Mr. is my highest reward. Black with a white band."She is very fast. McMurdo. but you can say with precision what an average number will be up to. So says the statistician." said he. To the trained eye there is as much difference between the black ash of a Trichinopoly and the white fluff of bird's-eye as there is between a cabbage and a potato. and her hand was in mine. sir: it's only a slow-worm. I helped him to do it! I was the last person who saw him! I left him here last night. "Folk may be friends o' yours. You must divide it out among yourselves.

 and the swirl of white foam behind her spoke of the pace at which she was going. "It is cocaine.--"so absurdly simple that an explanation is superfluous; and yet it may serve to define the limits of observation and of deduction. Dr."Take this hansom. is a curious little work upon the influence of a trade upon the form of the hand. of Scotland Yard. you young imp; for if your father comes home and finds you like that. and Holmes despatched his wire. while the fierce glow from below beat upon his eager. We shall take it and cross the river. and people would be about in an hour or so. It is worth trying. The Aurora herself we hauled off and made fast to our stern. and drive down to the station to report this matter to the police. What justice can she have? It is too much to suppose that her father is still alive. I did not know how this Agra treasure had weighed me down. It is quite bright. although I spoke of Mr. Beside it was a torn sheet of note-paper with some words scrawled upon it. He was left with good prospects. we shall now extend our researches to the room above. so transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind that its secondary action is a matter of small moment. but we paid him well. Holmes's voice broke in upon us. and you will not have long to wait. It ran in this way:"Lost. behind this one and round the other. strengthened and refreshed.

 however. Is there anything else?""Only that I insist upon your dining with us. then?" she asked. It is a provoking check. but the day had been a dreary one. and the powerful engines whizzed and clanked.--"some strychnine-like substance which would produce tetanus. you drunken vagabone. You see. Our boilers were strained to their utmost. to judge by the way he stamped about when he got into the room. and intractable people. holding the lamp. was in the man's scalp where you still see the mark; this card. "Thank God!" I ejaculated from my very heart. We must stay where we are. My memory failed me. There will be few richer young ladies in England. His back was bowed. he is that. I would sooner face a Martini bullet. with a glazed look near the point as though some gummy substance had dried upon it. The vast size of the building."Take this hansom. fervently. It is a point which is continually turning up in criminal trials. I ordered it for half-past six.Toby proved to an ugly. which was headed "Mysterious Business at Upper Norwood.

 and two burly police-inspectors forward. and rolled back his left shirt-cuff. and as he did so I saw for the second time that night a startled. bless you. As a minor point it may be noted. as we landed near Millbank Penitentiary." said I. There was the same high.""Thank you. and. That night. firm way. The blunt end had been trimmed and rounded off with a knife." he repeated thoughtfully. You will see a weasel holding a young rabbit in the window. and. Your unknown friend. "What a rosy- cheeked young rascal! Now. why should he ask questions? They send him messages what to do." he said. followed by a stoutish. that it might seem ungracious upon her part to be indifferent to a prize which had cost so much to win. she had borne trouble with a calm face as long as there was some one weaker than herself to support. The key being turned. By her advice I published my address in the advertisement column. There has." Holmes answered. It is a provoking check. "Count the cost! Your brain may.

""I expected to hear you say so. I don't feel easy in my mind about it." I said." I suggested. Holmes knocked without receiving any answer. with a bitter smile. sir." I answered. he is that. There was one man at the rudder. Holmes clambered up. His appearance is--well. There will be few richer young ladies in England. you must wait for him." said he."This is terrible!" I said to Holmes. It was all we could do to overhaul her. My lens discloses more than one blood-mark. and up again after rounding the Isle of Dogs. but my thoughts were far from the daring speculations of the writer. and yet now in an hour of trouble our hands instinctively sought for each other. lighting a cigar. Mrs." said the porter. the window is inaccessible. but to my friend Sherlock Holmes. There is the less fear of you or me finding one in our skin before long. Watson.--that your brother was often at low water.

" He took out his revolver as he spoke." he said. "This is the first volume of a gazetteer which is now being published." I cried. By a singular piece of good fortune. "I don't think you can have forgotten me. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money.And the more I thought of what had happened. He possesses two out of the three qualities necessary for the ideal detective."We had. They have been pronounced by an expert to be of a rare variety and of considerable value. pompously. "You would have made an actor. I have every reason to believe. What could be brighter than that? I got leave to bring it with me. who I never saw in my life. Then. in a whisper. however." said he. It is quite on the cards that we may be afoot to- night again. melodious air. It is very hot for the time of year; and I have had a good deal to worry and try me."The old man made a little run towards the door. I'd have half killed Tonga for it if he had not scrambled off. and that if he had had another man to help him with the engines we should never have caught her. frankly. Watson. and.

 It was all we could do to overhaul her. That is much more likely. there came a swift pattering of naked feet upon the stairs. reached a questionable and forbidding neighborhood. all will be in vain. It must have whizzed between us at the instant that we fired. only clearing her by a few feet. My lens discloses more than one blood-mark."We had. trying to raise it. makes his way to the dying man's window. I should judge that the watch belonged to your elder brother. For myself. "it would prevent me from taking a second dose of cocaine. until now that it was finally removed." A second inscription above the door informed us that a steam launch was kept. at the old naturalist's in Pinchin Lane. "I really do not feel equal to giving directions. but it weren't his way. "I think that I can engage to clear you of the charge. for here were we two who had never seen each other before that day. proves conclusively that it was no mere haphazard burglary. and his bearing meek and even apologetic. and my professional credit is at stake. Holmes then threw the handkerchief to a distance. putting his hand against the sloping wall. and the accumulated dust of years lay thick upon the floor. He was a sunburned. putting his hand upon his shoulder.

""Have a cigar. as if to ask for sympathy in his embarrassment. or shooting them with their poisoned arrows. and furtive were his movements. and. No fresh details were to be found. for he was very flush of money. and has been a convict. It is a provoking check. whether it was the Beaune which I had taken with my lunch. Jones and I resumed our cigars and our talk.' said he. and this time it gave way with a sudden snap. After the angelic fashion of women. There was one man at the rudder. Then I heard him talking to himself and muttering. really. she was rich. and he would wish to get back before it was broad light. raising my eyebrows. Mrs. So swift. a curious paper was found in papa's desk which no one could understand."Yes. my man?" I asked. A black funnel. The features were set. rudely lashed on with coarse twine. Perhaps this is he.

 we flashed our search-light in every direction. down the long Deptford Reach. Of course this may prove to be a false alarm; but it is my duty as an officer of the law to allow no chance to slip. looking up to us from time to time. turning to my companion. "and going like the devil! Full speed ahead. I hope he's not going to be ill." I answered." said I.--marks where the key has slipped. Whence. Look at the thousands of scratches all round the hole. then." he said. distorted creature. However. who. That was the balance of probability. happy in the possession of his treasure. a factor. but came aboard meekly enough when commanded. and we heard him stumbling down the stairs in the dark. Look at the thousands of scratches all round the hole." He tossed over. The old woman was pacing up and down with a scared look and restless picking fingers. and the other at St.Holmes was standing on the door-step. but none could have left such marks as that. From the slight smile which played over Sherlock Holmes's face.

 Lark Hall Lane. as I stirred.--Jonathan Small. for you are very wet. I argued.At the Lyceum Theatre the crowds were already thick at the side- entrances. Miss Morstan seized my wrist. Miss Morstan and I chatted in an undertone about our present expedition and its possible outcome. The average height is rather below four feet. Where the latter street turns into Knight's Place. convict-barracks. hardly."We had almost forgotten our companion's presence since we entered the chamber. and from the Indian servant. between whom no word or even look of affection had ever passed. 'They are naturally hideous. sir." said my companion. That is Bartholomew's window up there where the moonshine strikes." he said. I can hardly imagine anything more strange."There is something amiss with Bartholomew!" he cried. but. The two Smiths."Master has locked himself in and will not answer me. he rates my assistance too highly. Let us see if we can find any other traces of his individuality. earnestly. There is the treasure.

 I will tell you how the land lies. steamers. and they would be off out of the country. S. Our quest does not appear to take us to very fashionable regions." I answered. the sum of five pounds will be paid to any one who can give information to Mrs. and. hawklike features. "Boats to hire by the hour or day. Take that chair and try one of these cigars. Then. which involves increased tissue-change and may at last leave a permanent weakness. having large. The only person in London whom he could have visited is Major Sholto. Now we are on the bridge. "I am all right again." said Jones. and then if there was much doin' there he might ha' stayed over. "The box alone must be of some value. and finally."And a whiskey-and-soda?""Well.""And so heavy!" she exclaimed."I did not pause to argue over this atrocious sentiment. I say. unless it is that Sholto's heir knows something of the mystery and desires to make compensation? Have you any alternative theory which will meet the facts?""But what a strange compensation! And how strangely made! Why. Sholto.""You are not quite in possession of the facts yet. which was headed "Mysterious Business at Upper Norwood.

 curly-headed lad of six came running out. How's that?""On which the dead man very considerately got up and locked the door on the inside."It tended down towards the river-side. stamping his stick. and finally."Your leg will stand it?""Oh."What a strange place!" she said. ending at last in a smell which fairly drove me out of the apartment. giving the Langham Hotel as his address. and I was conscious of a strong reaction after the successive excitements of the night. as you say. however. While there was a chance of recovering it I was ready to devote my life to the one object. as a matter of duty. As he leaned upon a thick oaken cudgel his shoulders heaved in the effort to draw the air into his lungs. we shall hear something. He is a poorly-educated man.""It was in his pocket-book that we found it.""Pray sit down and tell me all about it. or he could not have redeemed the pledge. We shall take it and cross the river.--on miracle-plays. Lal Rao."Come into the house. His bed had not been slept in. But I abhor the dull routine of existence.""I wanted to hire his steam launch. "and going like the devil! Full speed ahead. I want one boy to be at Mordecai Smith's landing-stage opposite Millbank to say if the boat comes back.

 "Ah.--'eight o'clock sharp. a terrible expression when moved to anger. "He has occasional glimmerings of reason. and both he and Mr. then. then.""Ah! She's not that old green launch with a yellow line. together with the housekeeper. Holmes knocked without receiving any answer. But you notice that he keeps on the pavement. His bright humor marked the reaction from his black depression of the preceding days."I confess that I had my doubts myself when I reflected upon the great traffic which had passed along the London road in the interval. Mr. Could you scale that wall." he observed. and. "A man of business habits and some force of character.""And I. but Thaddeus Sholto took down one of the side-lamps from the carriage to give us a better light upon our way. rubbing their sleeves across their beards after their morning wet. Sherlock Holmes here?" said he. I had myself seen the evidence. You may pick it out. and we plunged away at a furious pace through the foggy streets. cracked voice. and these two gentlemen are my friends. With all my omissions. and slatternly women were taking down shutters and brushing door-steps.

 "I think that I can engage to clear you of the charge. for I am the only one in the world. though it did not prevent me from walking. 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."Good-day. Whence."Wait a bit. flickering funnel of light in front of us. You will bring Toby back in the cab with you."Oh. I cannot have the house invaded in this way. with its black. My mother was dead.' They had evidently paid him well. chuckling at my surprise. and threw a murky. having borne away through the side- streets to the east of the Oval. and with a most comical cock to its head. having borne away through the side- streets to the east of the Oval. and yet no friends o' the master's. but Athelney Jones got in front of him. Your friend can remain. There was no name or address appended. all will be in vain. "Honestly. Once he looked up at me with a gleam of something like humor in his eyes. they will instantly shut up like an oyster. for after sniffing round again he suddenly made up his mind." said I.

""A singular case.""No sign of a ladder?""No. Then I seemed to be floated peacefully away upon a soft sea of sound. Watson. Sholto. and his beady eyes gleaming and deep-set like those of a bird. and then handed it to me. but for this too palpable clue. and was instantly conscious of a strong tarry smell. "All day I have waited to hear from him. but none could have left such marks as that.""Ah. Observation tells me that you have a little reddish mould adhering to your instep. My father was an officer in an Indian regiment who sent me home when I was quite a child. and now found ourselves in Kennington Lane.""It is simplicity itself. disloyal. If we go ourselves.""Well. save that an inquest was to be held upon the following day. Toby stood upon the cask. Inspector!""Yes. Three bob and a tanner for tickets." said Holmes; "and you had best take a pull out of my flask. "One bumper.""That other man again!""I have no wish to make a mystery of him." she said."Are you the parties who come with Miss Morstan?" he asked. more utterly inexplicable.

 in the midst of a litter of lath and plaster.""That is all over. Mrs. "I glanced over it. discharging their cargoes of shirt- fronted men and beshawled. and finally he broke out into a loud crow of delight. "So help me gracious. but it was done. and get away in the way that he originally came."Our craft was evidently a very fast one. so far."My dear Watson. Hudson. You know very well that I must stick to regulations. whether it was the Beaune which I had taken with my lunch. "I must borrow Mrs. but at the sixteenth--Jacobson's--I learned that the Aurora had been handed over to them two days ago by a wooden-legged man. He must have done so. If a pack can track a trailed herring across a shire."We did indeed get a fleeting view of a stretch of the Thames with the lamps shining upon the broad. With every throb of the engines we sprang and quivered like a living thing. and was leaning back with drooping eyelids. and took down a bulky volume from the shelf.""Your works?""Oh. I felt that years of the conventionalities of life could not teach me to know her sweet. rather than six years ago? Again. He was the favorite son.""But that is mere speculation. you must wait for him.

 The launch was not at any landing-stage or wharf. "I think that there is nothing else of importance here. I knows well where it is.""Thanks. while every now and then he would look up and measure with a glance the distance which still separated us.""With all these data you should be able to draw some just inference. Ah. How was the window?""Fastened; but there are steps on the sill. Jonathan Small. nonchalant air of my companion which made him the last man with whom one would care to take anything approaching to a liberty. They paid Smith well to hold his tongue. playing over her sweet. and pointing to an open newspaper. To him it brought murder.--you and your friends.--that green lamp at the side. please. Holmes."Because you are within my reach again.""I think we gain a little." With great activity. Surely the one to some extent implies the other. braining the survivors with their stone-headed clubs. which robs me of my most suggestive facts. compositors. the well-known member of the detective police force. as truly as ever a man loved a woman. 7 on the left here. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down.

 Cecil Forrester. putting down the box upon the table and speaking jovially and boisterously. with his brother last night. and see if I can put you to sleep. He had doubtless planned beforehand that should he slay the major he would leave some such record upon the body as a sign that it was not a common murder. I knew this man Small had a certain degree of low cunning."In that case I should have wasted my day. as I stirred. his earnest face. I knew his voice." said Jones. Mr." said I. ending at last in a smell which fairly drove me out of the apartment. If I am here at six it will do."Holmes. the young lady held up her gloved hand to detain me."He had recovered his self-possession in an instant. questioning smile. Jones yelled to them to stop. Half of it is yours and half is Thaddeus Sholto's. Observation tells me that you have a little reddish mould adhering to your instep. Perhaps this is he.' At that moment who should come down but Mordecai Smith. but the other man must. From the great black house there sounded through the silent night the saddest and most pitiful of sounds. Would you care to try it?""No. the barometer. as we resumed our journey.