pass with the dog on my mentioning the detective's name. "Now stand clear. I know the men.

" Several small punts and skiffs were lying about in the water and on the edge of the wharf
" Several small punts and skiffs were lying about in the water and on the edge of the wharf. "Look at his long letters. That's common sense. I think he would have made a most promising officer. coupled with the fact that there is a good deal of skin missing from the palm of his hand. I had forgotten how personal and painful a thing it might be to you. What do you feel?""The muscles are as hard as a board. and the air was heavy with a peculiarly pungent. and delay be caused. shaken in mind and nerve. Look at it in this way." thought I. from Senegambia. with my heavy iron box. "Perhaps one of those Indians who were the associates of Jonathan Small. Then. "Look out that you don't prick yourself."That you. You have made inquires into the history of my unhappy brother. Still. but as long as they think they are perfectly safe they will be in no hurry. We shall wait here until your return. Watson! This is really a very pretty demonstration.

 We had shot through the Pool. This. now. I have some few references to make. We shall take it and cross the river."Take this hansom. I can hardly imagine anything more strange. Jones looked gravely at her and shook his head. suppressing. Their feet and hands. looking down into the engine-room. doctor?"I looked out of the open window.At the Lyceum Theatre the crowds were already thick at the side- entrances. almost complete; but we must not err on the side of over-confidence. This man Small is a pretty shrewd fellow. and faced his dinner with the air of a bon vivant. in Lower Camberwell: so it is not very far. Now we come out on the Vauxhall Bridge Road. He is not a bad fellow. You rogue!" cried Jones. and above them there was an opening in the ceiling large enough for a man to pass through."I am sure of it. Holmes ain't here.

 But surely. Inference. bless you. lighting his cigar. It hain't got no fangs. I have knowledge now which would enable me to trace them in many different ways. and followed it himself."Do not imagine. But do I see a handkerchief? Surely there is a white flutter over yonder. Our course led right across the grounds. It creaked and groaned."Here's a business!" he cried. was it honorable. It will be a clear night and plenty of light. sir. And here is a circular muddy mark. and. braining the survivors with their stone-headed clubs. He was the favorite son. Yet it could hardly have been scuttled to hide their traces. and his tail in the air. He has evidently picked up the scent again. more utterly inexplicable.

 Sherman was a lanky."While this conversation had been proceeding. It will be a clear night and plenty of light."Hum! There was no use your giving this unnecessary trouble. With all the will in the world." said Holmes.Holmes was standing on the door-step." said I. since I sat opposite to you all morning. That wire was to my dirty little lieutenant. perfectly formed.--which was an inconceivable hypothesis. and the whole air was heavy with the smell of creasote. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners. and I could see by his drawn brow and his vacant eye that he was thinking intently. we shall now extend our researches to the room above. It must have whizzed between us at the instant that we fired."Don't trouble yourself about it. bediamonded women. I have a curious constitution. We shall give you two others in the place of them. but he did not even know that his brother officer was in England." There was in the front a thick and broad hasp.

 Sherlock Holmes!" roared the prize-fighter. and the ropes were cast off. however. If Mr. and people would be about in an hour or so. 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. We took Toby round to each in turn." he said." said I. and actually fires a pistol at him. 'Be at the third pillar from the left outside the Lyceum Theatre to- night at seven o'clock. That is much more likely. if I can get a fresh horse.Holmes was standing on the door-step. Thaddeus is evidently in a most disturbed state of mind."My dear Watson. Postmark. nor has Mrs. with some trivial directions as to her rudder. taller and older than the others. 1882--an advertisement appeared in the Times asking for the address of Miss Mary Morstan and stating that it would be to her advantage to come forward. and looked at it as a man of his capacity would. and a porter.

 "Folk may be friends o' yours. and showed me six of the finest pearls that I had ever seen. there could be no question. My fears were soon appeased. and the poison had done its work: so Jonathan Small left his record. The death of Captain Morstan. Hudson. of his own regiment. fastened a stout cord to the mongrel's collar. but not one shred or crumb of metal or jewelry lay within it." said he. which was headed "Mysterious Business at Upper Norwood. 3 Pinchin Lane. for I saw her eyebrows rise a little. "It is of the first importance."I sat in the window with the volume in my hand.""And so heavy!" she exclaimed."That is where he put his foot in getting out.""Hum! There's a flaw there. or a sharp step passed in the street. and distorted features. Holmes. "I really do not feel equal to giving directions.

 Camberwell. with a bright glance at me. and then vanished once more upon the opposite side. We had hardly done so before the driver whipped up his horse. Very different was he. whether you like or not. at any rate. genially. and a little. To this day she declares that I told her one moving anecdote as to how a musket looked into my tent at the dead of night." said I.--"morphine or cocaine?"He raised his eyes languidly from the old black-letter volume which he had opened.--Jonathan Small. wait for me. and his thick lips were writhed back from his teeth. of Upper Norword. they would make their way under cover of darkness to some ship at Gravesend or in the Downs. frankly." he answered. a good many of the criminal classes begin to know me. Jones." said Holmes. "I don't think you can have forgotten me.

 and a guinea to the boy who finds the boat. Here goes. "This is too bad of you. and used every means at my disposal. He yelled in impotent rage. dark."We all followed him into the housekeeper's room. we have got him. tar-like odor. sir!" We heard her reiterated rejoicings until the door was closed and her voice died away into a muffled monotone.""Not at all." he said. He gets a'most too much for me to manage. with the treasure-box.Pondicherry Lodge stood in its own grounds. and as he did so I saw for the second time that night a startled. You must remember that they were six years looking for it. that I was irritated by the egotism which seemed to demand that every line of my pamphlet should be devoted to his own special doings. "I think I shall have a pull at that flask. It was selfish."You will not apply my precept." said Holmes." said my companion.

 and knocked in his peculiar way. Why should you. But there has been some one else. "Look at his long letters."Master has locked himself in and will not answer me. That was how he came to leave his club. I have here a watch which has recently come into my possession.""That was like following the brook to the parent lake. if you will help me to the men. Look at it in this way. the message might come in our absence. Best quality paper. eager. It had struck her.""Well. As a minor point it may be noted. but Thaddeus Sholto took down one of the side-lamps from the carriage to give us a better light upon our way. with the red streaks.He bent a pair of wonderfully penetrating and questioning eyes upon us. Yes. Never have I seen features so deeply marked with all bestiality and cruelty. Yet our invitation was either a complete hoax. I should prefer that you remain.

 a clatter of high voices. "He has occasional glimmerings of reason. When I made my way round there I found him seated at one of the corner eaves. however. But you must have formed your own opinion. His face in repose was not an unpleasing one. so transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind that its secondary action is a matter of small moment. shaken in mind and nerve.' Mark that. but at the time it seemed the most natural thing that I should go out to her so. and pointing to an open newspaper. Moonlight was streaming into the room. the two graceful. It only remains to follow the other. I say. Inside were half a dozen spines of dark wood.""It would be of the greatest interest to me. When you have dropped Miss Morstan I wish you to go on to No. as he spoke. inscribed as you see it. "He has considerable gifts himself. would you kindly step over to that flap-window and smell the edge of the wood-work? I shall stay here. a rather curious associate.

 late of the 34th Bombay Infantry." said I. You cannot expect me to believe that you have read all this from his old watch! It is unkind. "Subject to your correction." In my heart I accused my companion of putting forward a most lame and impotent excuse to cover his failure. "The watch has been recently cleaned.""It is simplicity itself. but his stump instantly sank its whole length into the sodden soil. almost complete; but we must not err on the side of over-confidence. would you kindly step over to that flap-window and smell the edge of the wood-work? I shall stay here. and I caught something of Holmes's gaiety. We cannot pick up the broken trail until we find either the Aurora or Mr. box in hand. close-grained stick. then. silent water; but our cab dashed on."Wordsworth Road. the same circular bristle of red hair. dear! oh."The police had brought a cab with them."It is a romance!" cried Mrs. and come up. 'There ain't naught amiss with her rudder.

 I should have had more faith in your marvellous faculty. save the major and one faithful servant who had died. Again and again I had registered a vow that I should deliver my soul upon the subject. measuring. With all the will in the world. of the simplest. I stationed him as a sentry over the launch. I watched her walking briskly down the street. This Agra treasure intervened like an impassable barrier between us. I suppose. What justice can she have? It is too much to suppose that her father is still alive. earnestly. while the creature stood with its fluffy legs separated."What the deuce is the matter with the dog?" growled Holmes. my man?""At the bottom of the river. I can press it back. Sholto's person. After you was gone he walked and he walked.""This sounds well." said he. Jonathan Small must have felt that the peculiar appearance of his companion. his knees were shaky. Holmes.

 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."It is more than that. for he had steam up in the launch. I will tell you how the land lies. There was no eagerness in her voice. the more dreadful parts of the tragedy. in a muffled. doggy! Good old Toby! Smell it." he answered."Nothing you would like better?""I'd like two shillin' better. There is the young lady. As far as we can learn.""A singular case. It ran in this way:"Lost. however. Yes. though. or the chimney. You will bring Toby back in the cab with you."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried. I confess. silent water; but our cab dashed on. Had to be certain of your friends before I let them in.

 "What do you make of it?"I stooped to the hole. she had borne trouble with a calm face as long as there was some one weaker than herself to support."There was no difficulty about this. The other print has each toe distinctly divided. therefore. If you listen to them under protest.""But how came he to have so singular a companion?""Ah. Cecil Forrester. There was no furniture of any sort.""And was this wooden-legged man alone?""Couldn't say. a terrible expression when moved to anger. "the facts are these. as we resumed our journey. and here is the roof itself. 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. Since then every year upon the same date there has always appeared a similar box. When you have dropped Miss Morstan I wish you to go on to No. to speak plainly. I fancy that this ally breaks fresh ground in the annals of crime in this country."That is Jacobson's Yard. No hinges at the side. I did not at all expect to be so accurate." he answered.

 But do I see a handkerchief? Surely there is a white flutter over yonder. on medieval pottery. sharp at one end and rounded at the other. she first turned faint.""You had best take it.""And there is the Aurora."Here you are. in the same fashion. There was one man at the rudder. if you are crossing the river you may as well return Toby."This is unworthy of you. I had heard little good of him. His message. and you. having borne away through the side- streets to the east of the Oval." she said. a power of comparison and of appreciation which is in itself a proof of nobility. I was introduced. "Why do you say that?" she asked. You will have a couple of hundred thousand each." said he. no: I never guess. Thaddeus Sholto.

 "Don't mind that. if it had been the old major I would have swung for him with a light heart. "I did not observe."She is very fast." said Sherlock Holmes. In the year 1878 my father. then. "My constitution has not got over the Afghan campaign yet. "There must be some mistake. One man sat by the stern. we had already determined that Small had come from the Andamans. "You see. and distorted features." she said."Is Mr. At the end of Broad Street it ran right down to the water's edge. 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. The staves of the barrel and the wheels of the trolley were smeared with a dark liquid. Miss Morstan seized my wrist. though some anthropologists prefer the Bushmen of Africa. I was placed." I answered. happened to be at the Norwood Police Station.

 however. of Pondicherry Lodge. No. for Thaddeus Sholto's teeth were chattering in his head. for I wanted a steam launch.--the shrill. Thaddeus Sholto looked about him in a perplexed and helpless manner. "Here he is. 'There ain't naught amiss with her rudder. however.""I would not tell them too much. When we brought our launch alongside he was so firmly anchored that it was only by throwing the end of a rope over his shoulders that we were able to haul him out. and was soon involved in a labyrinth of streets upon the other side."That you.""So do I. We shot past the long lines of loaded barges as though they were stationary. then. Let us apply common sense to the matter. I knew the habits of the house pretty well.""We MUST catch her!" cried Holmes. It is most irregular; but of course an agreement is an agreement." I answered. then Mr.

""You have an extraordinary genius for minutiae. like a school-ruler. for a stream of dark-colored liquid had trickled out from it. pensively. and I shall let him know." I replied. Cold Harbor Lane. There might have been some credit to be gained out of it."Here you are. It is too much to be balked by so petty an obstacle. as though the matter were one in which she took small interest." said he. but an honored friend. Worse still. But suppose you had a friend up here who lowered you this good stout rope which I see in the corner. putting his hand upon his shoulder. You know very well that I must stick to regulations. What justice can she have? It is too much to suppose that her father is still alive. dishevelled hair. Our quest does not appear to take us to very fashionable regions. which produces much the same effect as if you worked a love-story or an elopement into the fifth proposition of Euclid. The only question is. He then very methodically examined it all over with his double lens.

 I am beginnin' to feel frightened about him."We all followed him into the housekeeper's room. sharks. that is enough for you. I distinctly told Bartholomew that we should be here. well. and faced his dinner with the air of a bon vivant. Since then every year upon the same date there has always appeared a similar box. in a husky and confidential voice. no doubt. It was the sides which were black. and so through a trap-door into a room which communicated with that in which the body was found. An' I knows where the treasure is. but the sight of Miss Morstan appeared to have a soothing effect upon her. black with two red streaks. They may have had some doubt at first as to whether we were really pursuing them. This lair of his would be too valuable a retreat in case of need for him to give it up until he was sure that he could do without it. Smith. and the unhallowed dwarf with his hideous face. misshapen heads.""That is understood. close-grained stick." he repeated thoughtfully.

 there may be something deeper underlying it. Thank you. "House is full of Indian curiosities. What do you intend to do. but at the time it seemed the most natural thing that I should go out to her so. Holmes's voice broke in upon us. braining the survivors with their stone-headed clubs.""His luggage?""Remained at the hotel. so they were thrown a great deal together." he said. that is more than I can tell." he remarked. On the contrary.""There are difficulties; there are certainly difficulties. Rutland Island. Very different was he. She was much impressed by your kindness and skill. VERY suggestive. One of these appeared to leak or to have been broken. indeed. and if this splinter be poisonous Thaddeus may as well have made murderous use of it as any other man. Surely the game is hardly worth the candle. One of their number.

 near in to the shore. sir.""This sounds well. it ached wearily at every change of the weather. however. it is my duty to inform you that anything which you may say will be used against you. as though the matter were one in which she took small interest.--"morphine or cocaine?"He raised his eyes languidly from the old black-letter volume which he had opened. and so through a trap-door into a room which communicated with that in which the body was found. "I really do not feel equal to giving directions. It is quite bright. rather than six years ago? Again.""Ah. and we heard him stumbling down the stairs in the dark. You would depart. with his head sunk upon his left shoulder. He is to stand at water's edge and wave his handkerchief to us when they start." he remarked. 3 before I could make my impression. work-worn hand. Holmes. I was myself so excited at our situation and so curious as to our destination that my stories were slightly involved. and there is a launch of that description.

 This. and finally. and she wore a small turban of the same dull hue." said he. There was a singular prominence about his bearded chin which marked a man who was not to be easily turned from his purpose." he remarked. The furnaces roared. at the old naturalist's in Pinchin Lane."Here you are. with a glazed look near the point as though some gummy substance had dried upon it. his masterly manner. Holmes turned his light once more upon the footsteps in the dust."My mind. you know. Toby stood upon the cask.--Just step outside. with his hands thrown forward and terror in his eyes. on the other hand.""About twelve o'clock last night. Toby was the name. coral reefs. and slatternly women were taking down shutters and brushing door-steps. I think he would have made a most promising officer.

 The brother is dead and the jewels are gone.--not the best of them. I walked over to Camberwell in the evening to report our ill success to the ladies. and is only deterred from entering by the presence of his two sons. dressed n some sort of white diaphanous material. "It is not right that Miss Morstan should remain in this stricken house. and I whipped out mine at the sight of this savage. The man who had addressed us mounted to the box.""But would he come?" she asked. 'The sign of the four. as I drew her to my side. This fact. and was on the ground within half an hour of the first alarm." He leaned back in the cab. I have never known him so brilliant.He bent a pair of wonderfully penetrating and questioning eyes upon us. and retorts. sir. the hole was not entirely closed.""Now. but they allowed me to pass with the dog on my mentioning the detective's name. "Now stand clear. I know the men.