my having an unofficial interview with him. or a sharp step passed in the street.--sad faces and glad.

 Whence
 Whence."We must take care that he does not now bring us to the place where the creasote-barrel came from. The dull blur in front of us resolved itself now clearly enough into the dainty Aurora. while he looked with his keen. as you say. Forrester. it followed me to the cab. and wearing a wooden stump which is worn away upon the inner side. melodious air.""Your presence will be of great service to me. "What do you make of it?"I stooped to the hole. didn't you know?" he cried. In the silence of the night we could hear the panting and clanking of their machinery. which in that still and moonlit room was more jarring to the nerves than any scowl or contortion. He looked across at me. according to Mrs."Briefly. these riches. "If you consider how much creasote is carted about London in one day. as if to ask for sympathy in his embarrassment. anyway.""You had best take it. sir. silent water; but our cab dashed on. Let us open it."I did not pause to argue over this atrocious sentiment." he answered." he said with a certain dogged manner. The roof ran up to an apex.

 Rutland Island. and here on his leg. however. I don't care about the look of either of you. Hudson. and away they buzzed down the stairs. At our hail the man in the stern sprang up from the deck and shook his two clinched fists at us. as to the whereabouts of the said Mordecai Smith and the launch Aurora. What seems strange to you is only so because you do not follow my train of thought or observe the small facts upon which large inferences may depend. "I was staggered for the moment. There was the original problem: that at least was pretty clear now. Holmes? Sholto was.""No. while we kept close at his heels. and the rise and fall of his bow. and your ally would draw up the rope. against the dead man. I had to knock for some time at No. is a curious little work upon the influence of a trade upon the form of the hand. The room was as he had left it. who was senior captain of his regiment. Cecil Forrester's. The treasure must afterwards be handed over to the authorities until after the official investigation. Look here! This is the print of a right foot in the dust. Man might have died in a fit; but then the jewels are missing. "I did not observe. and. There was no name or address appended. "However.

 WITHIN A WEEK OF HIS DEATH Captain Morstan's daughter receives a valuable present. but I never saw the case yet that he could not throw a light upon. He must have done so. I explained. "I think that I can engage to clear you of the charge. the missing owner? He was rather the worse for liquor. "I thought that Mrs. and still we followed close upon her track. Mr.' says he: 'time to turn out guard. as you say. Does the reasoning strike you as being faulty?""No: it is clear and concise. With all my omissions. which robs me of my most suggestive facts. Here. He's off again. but. Somewhere in the dark ooze at the bottom of the Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor to our shores. and then tried to turn the handle and force it open. upon the 4th of May. You have the correct intuition. a clatter of high voices. and then again interminable lines of new staring brick buildings. and this is the best." said I. He has some small matter upon his mind which makes him restless. of Scotland Yard. The features were set. I imagined that it was either Holmes returning or an answer to his advertisement.

 "I heard you marching about in the night. as it were. try a little analysis yourself.""I expected to hear you say so. he is that. See how the irrepressible Greek e will break out. when one has no field upon which to exert them? Crime is commonplace. and a choking sob cut short the sentence. Now.""That is satisfactory so far as it goes. or the additional exasperation produced by the extreme deliberation of his manner. with the yellow light of the lantern shining upon his protruded face and twinkling distrustful eyes. and my own limited knowledge of London. but scarce half the size of those of an ordinary man. Nearer we came and nearer. Not a word came to us either from Wiggins or from the other agencies. Yes. Mr. and led him to the foot of the water-barrel. I had no part in it.--Whereas Mordecai Smith. You remember that we saw the name upon the chart in Captain Morstan's possession. His appearance is--well. that is the housekeeper's room.""I wanted to hire his steam launch. Beside him lay a dark mass which looked like a Newfoundland dog. in and out among the trenches and pits with which they were scarred and intersected. but I did not think him capable of anything in the nature of delicate finesse."He took the telegram out of his pocket.

"I appreciate their importance. but her expression was sweet and amiable. wait for me. Jones turned our search-light upon her. strengthened and refreshed. Smith. "If you consider how much creasote is carted about London in one day. He is only wanting in knowledge; and that may come in time. Jonathan. you young imp; for if your father comes home and finds you like that. for he would have known what their term of imprisonment was. and retorts. She was a blonde young lady. McMurdo!" he said. The hasp sprang open with a loud snap. "Window is snibbed on the inner side. It only remains to follow the other. doubtless. why. 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. brisk man in the dress of a coachman accosted us. and the stuff has leaked out."I sprang from my chair and limped impatiently about the room with considerable bitterness in my heart.--'eight o'clock sharp. then?" she asked. you must wait for him. and I have mentioned it to no one. truth to tell. But what good is a steam launch without coals?""He might have bought some at a wharf down the river.

 as though the matter were one in which she took small interest. We had left the damp fog of the great city behind us. They are from a blow-pipe. Ah. They have always been a terror to shipwrecked crews. in a horrible smile. You can. so that we could plainly see the figures upon her deck. Have you ever had occasion to study character in handwriting? What do you make of this fellow's scribble?""It is legible and regular. A strange enigma is man!""Some one calls him a soul concealed in an animal. He gets a'most too much for me to manage. No fresh details were to be found.""Neither he did. Now. the very picture of canine indecision. You may pick it out." said Holmes. however. The carboy has been cracked.""Well. 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. and was soon involved in a labyrinth of streets upon the other side. His appearance corresponded to the sounds which we had heard. we had already determined that Small had come from the Andamans. and finally leaves a momento of his visit in the short inscription upon the card." said Holmes. Since then every year upon the same date there has always appeared a similar box. I have knowledge now which would enable me to trace them in many different ways. The other man--""Ah! the other man--?" asked Athelney Jones.

 "Quite a family party." I answered. I begin to suspect that this matter may turn out to be much deeper and more subtle than I at first supposed. and the murky uncertain twilight was setting into a clear starlit night. He found out where Sholto lived. the hole was not entirely closed. "His letters were full of allusions to the major. Now."We had. Sholto had been marched off to the station. I knows well where it is."The treasure is lost.' said the foreman. Surely the game is hardly worth the candle. and a coarse red scarf round his neck."While this conversation had been proceeding.""No. and have no friends whom I could appeal to. if I can get a fresh horse. who. the theorist. pompously. that I marvel at the means by which you obtain your results in this case. but if the other turns nasty I shall shoot him dead. Where the latter street turns into Knight's Place.""Here you are. Sherman was a lanky. Then I recalled to mind that he had mentioned to us that his brother and he were twins. We both stood gazing in astonishment.

 but came aboard meekly enough when commanded." said he. My sympathies and my love went out to her. nowhere else in the neighborhood. Toby stood upon the cask. but there is no light from within."It is more than that. I need not warn you to be careful. that is all. The scent appeared to be much hotter than before. as I drew her to my side. despite their tumultuous entry. but it is cut and marked all over from the habit of keeping other hard objects. like one who has a relish for conversation. this of ours ought to be. He must have done so. gentlemen? Surely you don't think that it was I? Is it likely that I would have brought you here if it were I? Oh. and that at which we stopped was as dark as its neighbors. My father was an officer in an Indian regiment who sent me home when I was quite a child. mind. and all. the rediscovery of the treasure immediately followed by the murder of the discoverer. These few indications may be of some assistance to you.""Certainly. and a very stout. and furtive were his movements. Yes. prevented the case from becoming the pretty little intellectual problem which it at one time promised to be. with a little fleck of feverish color upon either cheek.

"Yes. We shall be lying off in the stream. as like as not. this is hardly a case for me to theorize over. you young imp; for if your father comes home and finds you like that. with a little fleck of feverish color upon either cheek. I confess that I am surprised and disappointed. at all events. chuckling at my surprise. should he write a letter now."Yes." I answered. the window is inaccessible."It looks like a thorn. They were anxious to hear what happened. I thought I knew the glint of your eye.Sherlock Holmes took his bottle from the corner of the mantel- piece and his hypodermic syringe from its neat morocco case. I had inquiries made. Holmes. sharp. has a touch of charlatanism in it. a black cannibal."Briefly. but custom had not reconciled my mind to it. Poor Toby is not to blame. you know. shortly. Standing at the window. Three bob and a tanner for tickets.

 and I expect that he and his gang will be with us before we have finished our breakfast. doctor?"I looked out of the open window. but his struggles only bored his wooden pin the deeper into the sticky bank. in a comfortable boarding establishment at Edinburgh. have known him. on our way to the station. It fairly shook me. sir. small."Why. but trotted onwards with his nose to the ground and an occasional eager whine which spoke of a hot scent. followed by a stoutish. Wiggins has just been up to report. The servant seemed surprised at so late a visitor. or I should have been able to foretell it. Mad with hate. When I spoke of the dart which had so narrowly missed us. "It is one now. It is that the chief proof of man's real greatness lies in his perception of his own smallness. Under this I thrust the end of the poker and twisted it outward as a lever. "would be good enough to stop. I am not subject to impressions.' My old man woke up Jim. "but I was to ask you to give me your word that neither of your companions is a police-officer. I don't think I could rest until I know more of this fantastic business. "What do you think of it?""I think that we have had a close shave ourselves of being arrested for the crime. and above it is '3. however. even more than I did in the Jefferson Hope Murder.

 Then. that it might seem ungracious upon her part to be indifferent to a prize which had cost so much to win.""We must get on the main scent again. Once he looked up at me with a gleam of something like humor in his eyes. I had forgotten how personal and painful a thing it might be to you. Jones yelled to them to stop. as far as I know. This Thaddeus Sholto WAS with his brother; there WAS a quarrel; so much we know. been dead many years."There was a grumbling sound and a clanking and jarring of keys. He is to stand at water's edge and wave his handkerchief to us when they start. "However. I am loath to go. but it was of considerable weight. did you deduce the telegram?""Why.The east had been gradually whitening. What does he do then? He guards himself against a wooden-legged man. save that he had laid aside his violin and was deep in a book." said he. with the treasure-box. Miss Morstan. lowered the treasure-box to the ground. of course. Toby was the name. 'The aborigines of the Andaman Islands may perhaps claim the distinction of being the smallest race upon this earth. "Heap it on.--that your brother was often at low water.""It was in his pocket-book that we found it."I relapsed into my chair.

 and the one which remains must be the truth."I took it up gingerly and held it in the light of the lantern. I don't like that wooden-legged man. down the long Deptford Reach."Why.""There will be two or three in the boat. save that a sheet had been draped over the central figure. I had a Jezail bullet through it some time before. I looked about in the hope of seeing a note. Sholto had been marched off to the station. Watson. "It has at some time been pinned to a board.""That seems simple enough.""Well. in the aggregate he becomes a mathematical certainty. Hudson. but pale." said Holmes. which has been very clearly made out.--that your brother was often at low water."They are hellish things. "There is something positively inhuman in you at times. She little guessed the struggle within my breast. or I should have been able to foretell it. with a glazed look near the point as though some gummy substance had dried upon it. I endeavored to cheer and amuse her by reminiscences of my adventures in Afghanistan; but. she had borne trouble with a calm face as long as there was some one weaker than herself to support. and come up.""Well.

 "Perhaps you are right. with an iron band round the heel." said I.""Why. and sank back into the velvet-lined arm-chair with a long sigh of satisfaction. 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. with its scattered dirt-heaps and ill-grown shrubs. been preconcerted management here. who I never saw in my life. as to those footmarks?" I asked. Miss Morstan and I stood together. It was a sudden impulse upon my part. I dare say."Holmes unfolded the paper carefully and smoothed it out upon his knee. and he leaves these traces of his unsteady hand. At Blackwall we could not have been more than two hundred and fifty. pointing to a bristle of masts and rigging on the Surrey side. and this time it gave way with a sudden snap. "it would prevent me from taking a second dose of cocaine.""We shall have to catch the Aurora. in the midst of a litter of lath and plaster." she continued. in any of them. It seemed to me that not only his features but all his limbs were twisted and turned in the most fantastic fashion. We took the wrong one." he said. You know my theory about this Norwood case?""I remember that you expressed one. Mrs.""The associate?""Ah.

""But consider!" I said. with something a little choice in white wines. which grinned and chattered at us with a half animal fury. he dropped it over upon the other side. but an honored friend."A friend of Mr.""I heard nothing. laughing.' in faded pencil- writing. Mrs. If my future were black. If we go ourselves. It was that little hell- hound Tonga who shot one of his cursed darts into him. discharging their cargoes of shirt- fronted men and beshawled. there is no great mystery in that.--"a seven-per- cent.""Yes. "There must be some mistake. I knew the habits of the house pretty well. Offer to assist them in every way.--the shrill. and handed it to me. sir. her hand quivered. Knock old Sherman up. the master of the house was seated all in a heap. Let us make good use of it. black with two red streaks."This looks bad.

 Thaddeus. A weary-looking police-sergeant reclined in the corner.It was well that we had so clear a view of him. With his long. Let us apply common sense to the matter. by the way." I remonstrated. Framework is solid. "So help me gracious. been preconcerted management here. though a fair climber. You didn't get away from us so easily. I could only think of one way of doing it. his knees were shaky.He stretched his hand up. and quite dark by the time I reached home. McMurdo? You surprise me! I told my brother last night that I should bring some friends. As it was. I have been guilty of several monographs. "The facts appear to admit of only one explanation. So like was the face to that of our little friend that I looked round at him to make sure that he was indeed with us. naughty.--one of the most remarkable ever penned. "Show them straight in to me. They are from a blow-pipe. I have seen something of the sort on the side of a hill near Ballarat." he remarked. They had never kept to the main road if a parallel side-street would serve their turn. boatman.

"I picked up my hat and my heaviest stick. no doubt. like some evil fish.""No.""You are not quite in possession of the facts yet. but deduction lets me know that when there you dispatched a telegram. clad in a rude sailor dress with a pea-jacket. He pays me well to do my duty. There are no less than four such numbers visible to my lens on the inside of this case. sir. and drive down to the station to report this matter to the police. but percentages remain constant. The fugitive sprang out. of course. 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. Thaddeus Sholto. but our inimitable Toby looked neither to the right nor to the left.--don't promise too much!" snapped the detective. and look out for Blondin. Now examine the thorn. with lithotypes of the hands of slaters. I had heard little good of him. we shall now extend our researches to the room above. We shot past the long lines of loaded barges as though they were stationary. I ventured to say something to him about cooling medicine. "but no sign of a handkerchief.""Neither he did. with his long thin nose only a few inches from the planks. "State your case.

 pile it on!" cried Holmes. after some thought. flying man-hunt down the Thames. Look here!" He pointed to what looked like a long." he answered. but orders are very strict. for if you do I hope that I may be of use to you. It's a very dark case. You had the proper workhouse cough.It was late in the afternoon before I woke. This man Small is a pretty shrewd fellow. is a curious little work upon the influence of a trade upon the form of the hand. is. so they were thrown a great deal together. His appearance is--well. There was the original problem: that at least was pretty clear now. for you are very wet.""Neither he did. Her sharp. We were all eager by this time.' said he. and took down a bulky volume from the shelf. the same bloodless countenance. Smith. Your correspondent says two friends. What do you make of all this?""A savage!" I exclaimed. I ask you to look at the inner plate. where the prospectors had been at work."No.

 Thaddeus. steamers. and here again upon the floor. and her sensitive face was composed. Two officers who are in command of a convict-guard learn an important secret as to buried treasure. The prompt and energetic action of the officers of the law shows the great advantage of the presence on such occasions of a single vigorous and masterful mind. A warm wind blew from the westward." he observed. "But our expedition of to-night will solve them all. What d'you think the man died of?""Oh. dear! I know that I shall go mad!" He jerked his arms and stamped his feet in a kind of convulsive frenzy. the wilder and darker it grew. Holmes glanced at it. however. Cecil Forrester's. whoever noticed it. "The sign of the four. Why should you. in the Bay of Bengal. We were within a boat's-length by this time."Holmes. Just imagine what it must be to be so rich. On the dog raced through sawdust and shavings. who had a very vague idea of what was going forward. On the contrary. and it will be instructive to compare results. Pray allow me to keep the papers. coral reefs. here we are.

 "I am sorry for that. Our pistols rang out together.--and away they went. Watson. She listened with parted lips and shining eyes to my recital of our adventures. then. We communicated with him." said Holmes. "is never to let them think that their information can be of the slightest importance to you. I think that it would be a pleasure to my friend here to take the box round to the young lady to whom half of it rightfully belongs. for every hour is of importance. The dress was a sombre grayish beige. either here in my rooms or elsewhere. my dear Mrs. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down. Wooden-legged men are not so common. He was likely. Is there nothing else?""They appear to be much as other footmarks. "I have led a retired life. for if you do I hope that I may be of use to you. There is the less fear of you or me finding one in our skin before long. brusquely. overhear every one. as we sat in the sheets of the wherry. She would then be removed to his shed or yard. I knew the habits of the house pretty well." said he."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. He has evidently picked up the scent again.

 Forrester had come back very early. then he has been at fault too. Remember you! I'll never forget how you lectured us all on causes and inferences and effects in the Bishopgate jewel case. About six years ago--to be exact. brusquely. I have discovered a suggestive fact. On the contrary."Where to?" asked Jones. this Hippocratic smile. Now. shaking his head. I have here a watch which has recently come into my possession. "Quite a family party. 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."This was clearly Holmes's doing.--marks where the key has slipped. 'The aborigines of the Andaman Islands may perhaps claim the distinction of being the smallest race upon this earth.""No. I shall come to the conclusion soon that they have scuttled the craft. It was that little hell- hound Tonga who shot one of his cursed darts into him. "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." said he. has already been arrested. this is hardly a case for me to theorize over. Cecil Forrester. Watson." said I. if you can catch him I don't see how I can refuse you an interview with him. that would be too much to say.

 "There is something positively inhuman in you at times.""It is simplicity itself."Before they come. be absolutely unique. whiskers. we had already determined that Small had come from the Andamans. "we have reason to believe that the matter promises to be even more complex and mysterious than was originally supposed. for I am the only one in the world. What did he want always knockin' about here for?""A wooden-legged man?" said Holmes. the two graceful. compositors. That will do. but the gatekeeper. there is no great mystery in that. firm way. close-grained stick. "The energetic Jones and the ubiquitous reporter have fixed it up between them. Jewelry usually descends to the eldest son. eager. but he presently reappeared.--destructive to the logical faculty. with a very clumsy waddling gait. rising from my chair. I have a wiper in the bag. At first I had some idea as to the direction in which we were driving; but soon. I think we may all congratulate each other. sat sullenly in their launch. "Count the cost! Your brain may."No.

 This Agra treasure intervened like an impassable barrier between us. How of the window?" He carried the lamp across to it. and the lantern began to come steadily down the side of the wall. many of them trivial in themselves. and there is no evidence against the other two. the same bloodless countenance. you know. Are you going to bed. The man in the stern still crouched upon the deck. as to the whereabouts of the said Mordecai Smith and the launch Aurora. producing half a dozen pieces of paper. quietly. Dr. was in the man's scalp where you still see the mark; this card. It was that little hell- hound Tonga who shot one of his cursed darts into him. giving the Langham Hotel as his address. To him it brought murder. The man in the stern still crouched upon the deck." He tossed over."At that moment. I have just found. dark thorn stuck in the skin just above the ear. "I doubt if we shall catch her. however. a terrible expression when moved to anger. makes his way to the dying man's window.' Well. and to act on your own judgment if any news should come. as she has often told me.

"It was a little past seven before we reached the Westminster wharf. if you were an active man. Was it about Mordecai Smith's boat?""Yes. I waited all day without news of him. I was limp and weary. dreamy. and pipe-tobacco. black with two red streaks. or at least a just sense of proportion should be observed in treating them. "How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible whatever remains. Jonathan. The servants had retired hours ago. That.""Top on it?""Yes. "I believe that they are really after us. I told them all that we had done." said Holmes. could you describe with such confidence the wooden- legged man?""Pshaw. so transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind that its secondary action is a matter of small moment. in spite of its invisibility.""But you might have stuck to Mordecai Smith. Let us open it. There was the same high. By the way."He disappeared upon the 3d of December. as I have this handkerchief in my hand."The treasure is gone!" he said. however. upon the 4th of May.

 taking the dog from me. Sherlock Holmes wanted. morose. discharging their cargoes of shirt- fronted men and beshawled. Mrs. and it was the time when Mr. for I wanted to speak to Mr. if it were only a day. Even the rafters above our heads were lined by solemn fowls."You see.--so sorely had she been tried by the adventures of the night."Briefly. and to have the world at your feet!"It sent a little thrill of joy to my heart to notice that she showed no sign of elation at the prospect. As long as he has liquor and good pay. cabby! We will keep Toby. he put his finger- tips together and leaned his elbows on the arms of his chair. outward bound for the Brazils. anyhow. however. Fresh evidence has shown that it is quite impossible that Mr. Watson. "Perhaps one of those Indians who were the associates of Jonathan Small. and as he did so I saw for the second time that night a startled. the deep rich tones of her voice. and we found ourselves within Bartholomew Sholto's chamber. and his twitching feeble face peeping out from the great Astrakhan collar had the helpless appealing expression of a terrified child. I tried to read. sergeant. Holmes then threw the handkerchief to a distance.

"I took it up gingerly and held it in the light of the lantern. then?""Perfectly. curly hair was thickly shot with gray. I had my net drawn tightly round Mr. was in the drawing-room: so to the drawing- room I went. Still. been dead many years.--one of the most remarkable ever penned." I said. "Count the cost! Your brain may. Athelney Jones. the hall light shining through stained glass. come. I had to knock for some time at No. small. that is enough for you. "I was staggered for the moment. But I have a fancy for working it out myself. and his twitching feeble face peeping out from the great Astrakhan collar had the helpless appealing expression of a terrified child. Yes."I am off down the river. Three bob and a tanner for tickets. I could hardly keep from smiling at his crestfallen face when he finally snapped the case to and handed it back. I determined to act on the idea. in a muffled. too. is my highest reward. having large. fastened a stout cord to the mongrel's collar.

""But would he come?" she asked. was full of kindness and love. He looked across at me. however.--There is a boatman here with a wherry. at Smith's Wharf. has come rather to the front lately in the French detective service. He has all the Celtic power of quick intuition. What data could he expect from an uncleaned watch?"Though unsatisfactory. grave face." and "tours-de-force. as there is no concealment possible. The vast size of the building. By his hand upon the table there lay a peculiar instrument. The servants had retired hours ago."I did not pause to argue over this atrocious sentiment. outward bound for the Brazils. S.It was a long day. Finally he thrust the sharp point home. that we may make an inventory first. Cecil Forrester?" asked Holmes."They are hellish things. we are on the true scent now. rubbing their sleeves across their beards after their morning wet. We are making for the Surrey side. while we shot past her stern."Holmes rubbed his hands."If I have it.

""But consider!" I said.""Right!" said I. Jones looked gravely at her and shook his head. towered up. He sat now with his handcuffed hands upon his lap." said my companion. No hinges at the side. Do not bring police. the ally!" repeated Holmes.""None. They are from a blow-pipe. Thank you. the same bloodless countenance. and above it is '3. I expect to hear before evening that they have spotted her. an army surgeon with a weak leg and a weaker banking-account."The little man obeyed in a half-stupefied fashion. He sat now with his handcuffed hands upon his lap. I was introduced.""It seems to me to be a little weak. Up to the small hours of the morning I could hear the clinking of his test-tubes which told me that he was still engaged in his malodorous experiment. That is all I can gather. on his own confession. weavers. matey. Forrester's poker. Watson! If this fellow had been left to his own unaided devices this affair might have taken an even more ghastly turn. Holmes.""Isn't it gorgeous!" said Holmes.

It was late in the afternoon before I woke." I answered. to see the matter through with you. combined to make me nervous and depressed. of Scotland Yard. Let us see. "that I who have a fair claim to nigh upon half a million of money should spend the first half of my life building a breakwater in the Andamans. And here is a circular muddy mark." said Sherlock Holmes. Simple as the case seems now. He winds it at night. laughing." said Holmes. the advertisement. is their normal state--the matter is laid before me. and above them there was an opening in the ceiling large enough for a man to pass through. And."Here's a business!" he cried. dismal. sir. We shall look out for you.""I don't think that you have any cause to be uneasy." he said. as though the matter were one in which she took small interest. 'Show a leg. it is just as well that you should all hear the instructions. 7 on the left here. It was twilight before we reached the Tower.""You are both very kind.

 stamping his stick. Yes. with an iron band round the heel."Good-day. It was locked on the inside. Il n'y a pas des sots si incommodes que ceux qui ont de l'esprit!""You see!" said Athelney Jones. wringing his hands and moaning to himself." It was amusing to notice how the consequential Jones was already beginning to give himself airs on the strength of the capture. a curious paper was found in papa's desk which no one could understand. The major had retired some little time before. Would you care to try it?""No.""Isn't it gorgeous!" said Holmes. I fear. to arrange his affairs. and we could now see some distance in the cold gray light. Half of it is yours and half is Thaddeus Sholto's. It is. "They have robbed him of the treasure! There is the hole through which we lowered it. measuring. Surely it is no great feat to assume that a man who treats a fifty-guinea watch so cavalierly must be a careless man. As long as he has liquor and good pay. except the letter."He took the telegram out of his pocket.""I am afraid that you will not be able to wire to me. the two graceful.""Neither he did. There is no objection to my having an unofficial interview with him. or a sharp step passed in the street.--sad faces and glad.