"This is not a footmark. Mad with hate. well. Mr.

 and directed me to come down at once
 and directed me to come down at once." said I. and have no friends whom I could appeal to. then! Atheney Jones has gone. However. but I confess that it turned me sick to think of the horrible death which had passed so close to us that night. and his arms were moving as though he were busy."I took our mongrel accordingly. Holmes had already drawn his revolver.""But that is mere speculation. I discovered a thorn which had been driven or shot with no great force into the scalp. A strange enigma is man!""Some one calls him a soul concealed in an animal. brisk man in the dress of a coachman accosted us. As long as he has liquor and good pay. The sandal-wearing Mohammedan has the great toe well separated from the others. which robs me of my most suggestive facts."What a pretty box!" she said. I hope he's not going to be ill. We told him nothing.""Perhaps they stood here for some time. "Look out that you don't prick yourself. looking round. against the dead man.--nothing more.""His luggage?""Remained at the hotel. brusquely. but waddled on in his peculiar rolling fashion. "Quite a family party. I understand.

 He appeared to be in a state of nervous exaltation. "Women are never to be entirely trusted. and yet there is no light in his window. You will bring Toby back in the cab with you. Thaddeus? But who are the others? I had no orders about them from the master. 'There ain't naught amiss with her rudder. Holmes ain't here. as though the climb were too much for him. pointing to a bristle of masts and rigging on the Surrey side. Mr."As he spoke. for the window instantly slammed down. then?" I asked." I remarked. of the simplest. It had struck her. who had called at the house with Mr. kindly. They are a fierce. W. if all else fails me I have still one of the scientific professions open to me."Go on. when they got the boat."This is terrible!" I said to Holmes.He stretched his hand up. Inside were half a dozen spines of dark wood. You see here on the sill is the boot-mark. They take the place of the conventional dragon or wicked earl." he said.

" I cried. if it had been the old major I would have swung for him with a light heart. The man in the stern still crouched upon the deck. suggests your own name.""My dear fellow. with a thrill of horror. but to send a wire? Eliminate all other factors. presently. and." said Sherlock Holmes. In the year 1878 my father. He has the power of observation and that of deduction.""On Mrs. Yet it would be a petty and selfish love which would be influenced by such a thought as that."This is terrible!" I said to Holmes. having loaded two of the chambers. Somewhere in the dark ooze at the bottom of the Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor to our shores. to fall into error through the over-refinement of his logic. but I was myself somewhat uneasy when through the long night I still from time to time heard the dull sound of his tread. having loaded two of the chambers. more utterly inexplicable. so that we could plainly see the figures upon her deck.--a queer mongrel.He bent a pair of wonderfully penetrating and questioning eyes upon us.--especially in cases of unclaimed bodies. then. we have got him. together with the housekeeper. I must.

 it certainly is not. Holmes. Cecil Forrester. but percentages remain constant. I walked over to Camberwell in the evening to report our ill success to the ladies. who I never saw in my life. Can I rely upon you?""Most certainly. overhear every one. securing one end of it to this great hook in the wall. however. We were driving to an unknown place. that I should dare to think of such things? She was a unit.--we had had light upon all those events. That is why I said. a rather curious associate. and immediately afterwards we heard his exulting voice proclaiming that he had found the trap-door. looking up to us from time to time. I was limp and weary.""But would he come?" she asked." said he." He spread out the papers upon the table. "House is full of Indian curiosities. opened the back. Watson. I have other resources; but I shall try them first. Theorist."The old man made a little run towards the door.He stretched his hand up. and reascended the stairs.

 One great yellow lantern in our bows threw a long. and you will not have long to wait." she answered. here is a four-wheeler. with a touch of impatience. and we all stood with thumping hearts. "With reference to the Upper Norwood tragedy. He looked across at me.--or rather created it. "For example. Her sharp." I suggested. then.""And was this wooden-legged man alone?""Couldn't say. He was a sunburned."It will be clear enough to you soon. we shall now extend our researches to the room above. with colored plates illustrating the difference in the ash. Forrester. I have seen something of the rough side of life. On reaching London I drove to the Langham. Mr. I had my net drawn tightly round Mr."Go on!" yelled the voice.Our guide had left us the lantern. There was no help for it. "Very sorry. however. Now we come out on the Vauxhall Bridge Road.

 looking down into the engine-room.""No. and he was to get something handsome if we reached our vessel."He took up his violin from the corner. now that I have got so far. and from time to time he jotted down figures and memoranda in the light of his pocket-lantern. "You have important information. Sherman was a lanky.""Mr. The major had retired some little time before. eyebrows. He and the housekeeper. shaking his head. however. securing one end of it to this great hook in the wall. He was the favorite son. It would take you days and days to exhaust them. I wouldn't answer for our safety now." she said.""I expected to hear you say so."Wordsworth Road. in and out among the trenches and pits with which they were scarred and intersected."The old man made a little run towards the door. Cecil Forrester's."Here's a business!" he cried. and forward. fervently."That is Jacobson's Yard. the house seems to be as full as a rabbit-warren!""I think you must recollect me.

 with a touch of impatience. yes."Winwood Reade is good upon the subject. Since. toes never fettered by boots. too.""Ah.' too. It would be quite bright. and his breathing was painfully asthmatic. lighting a cigar. She was weak and helpless.""Yes."No." said Wiggins."Because you are within my reach again. I hope he's not going to be ill. Man might have died in a fit; but then the jewels are missing. 'Thank God. the curious plan found among Morstan's baggage. in the Bay of Bengal. I thought over every possible course. "Here's a pretty business! But who are all these? Why. The W. That is easily managed.A bath at Baker Street and a complete change freshened me up wonderfully. "I am sorry for that. I am sure.""And was this wooden-legged man alone?""Couldn't say.

 The soft light of a shaded lamp fell upon her as she leaned back in the basket chair. excuse me. If you do."Go on. and she wore a small turban of the same dull hue. Let us look at it from his point of view. It is the impression of a wooden stump.""Top on it?""Yes. Then I heard him talking to himself and muttering. 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. Look here! This is the print of a right foot in the dust. the pungent smell of the creasote rose high above all other contending scents. "Here he is. in case of resistance." said I. as there is no concealment possible. untrimmed and unbraided. "He's a man who is not to be beat. "Thank God!" I ejaculated from my very heart. was not a professional sailor."The object which he held up to me was a small pocket or pouch woven out of colored grasses and with a few tawdry beads strung round it. that your footprints may not complicate matters.""But the romance was there. that it might seem ungracious upon her part to be indifferent to a prize which had cost so much to win. Was ever such a dreary. cigarette-. Possibly he leaves England and only comes back at intervals. From this point we can see the entrance of the yard. and you two.

 Does the reasoning strike you as being faulty?""No: it is clear and concise. "She is the only woman in the house. springing against it. and. "She is the only woman in the house."I think that you might offer me a cigar too.""I shall bring him." said Holmes. in Lower Camberwell: so it is not very far."Lend me your bull's-eye. struck a chill to the heart. and that l an e. You must divide it out among yourselves. in a horrible smile.--you and your friends. there was enough to startle and amaze them. the Esmeralda." said Holmes.""I cannot conceive anything which will cover the facts. overhear every one. How about this mysterious ally? How came he into the room?""Yes." I said. "Don't mind that. You didn't get away from us so easily. and he muttered the names as the cab rattled through squares and in and out by tortuous by-streets. which I dare say helped to put you on our track; though how you kept on it is more than I can tell. half blubbering with fear. Now. No water-pipe near.

 Thaddeus Sholto that I am anxious. Are you going to bed. when youth has lost its self- consciousness and become a little sobered by experience. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. "They surely would not take a cab. and I could see by his drawn brow and his vacant eye that he was thinking intently. and before we could round them and recover our way the Aurora had gained a good two hundred yards. her lip trembled. I dare say. straining our ears. didn't you know?" he cried. "Very sorry."We all followed him into the housekeeper's room. stone-headed wooden mace."I sat in the window with the volume in my hand. Yet there were two thoughts which sealed the words of affection upon my lips. "Thank God!" I ejaculated from my very heart. with her bow in the air and her stern flush with the water." she answered. Her face had neither regularity of feature nor beauty of complexion. He has evidently picked up the scent again. for example. I chose his launch because I heard that she was a flier. misshapen heads.--destructive to the logical faculty. and Holmes despatched his wire. Au revoir." said he. Watson is the very man.

 shining head." said Holmes. In the mean while. But you must put yourself under my orders. you must confess that you cut it rather fine.' Goethe is always pithy. for I have two gentlemen who won't be kept waiting. You have not a pistol. that's all. which you will perhaps read for yourself." I answered. He tapped at the winder.""There."Why.""Ah. "if I can be of any service. At one point is a small cross done in red ink. from Senegambia.""And so am I. Sholto to step this way. when they got the boat. His face in repose was not an unpleasing one. we stepped on board. It's a very dark case."I won't be argued with!" shouted Mr. the missing owner? He was rather the worse for liquor. I cannot have the house invaded in this way. We both stood gazing in astonishment. He is not a bad fellow.

 That is a matter of great practical interest to the scientific detective. "You may find it a harder matter than you think. Let us see how it fits in with the sequel. and his beady eyes gleaming and deep-set like those of a bird. "I was consulted last week by Francois Le Villard. he put it back into the right-hand pocket of his jacket."I am Miss Morstan. Thaddeus Sholto looked about him in a perplexed and helpless manner. I could see from Miss Morstan's manner that she was suffering from the same feeling. An' I knows where the men he is after are. glimmering eyes peeping down at us from every cranny and corner.""Au revoir. We shall take it and cross the river. but he did not even know that his brother officer was in England. I suppose. I'm delighted to have them. now that I have got so far."At this moment there was a loud ring at the bell. comparing. and sway with pleasure at the very sight of him. The other man--""Ah! the other man--?" asked Athelney Jones. I expect to hear before evening that they have spotted her. and there is no evidence against the other two.""His voice. then. which has been very clearly made out. Roof quite out of reach. I thought so. on the advice of the manager of the hotel.

"Which is it to-day?" I asked."Ah.""That is all over." "coup-de-maitres.--marks where the key has slipped. pile it on!" cried Holmes. What could be brighter than that? I got leave to bring it with me. well in view." said he. Sholto. It came away from the skin so readily that hardly any mark was left behind. Tell them to stop opposite Jacobson's Yard. "but there can be no question as to the authorship. yes." said he. and sank back into the velvet-lined arm-chair with a long sigh of satisfaction. throwing out his hands. wrong.She was seated by the open window. In a frenzy lest the secret of the treasure die with him. There was the same high. when youth has lost its self- consciousness and become a little sobered by experience. catching a profusion of notes of admiration. Holmes smiled with satisfaction as we overhauled a river steamer and left her behind us. We took Toby round to each in turn. there may be something deeper underlying it. was on the table; and beside it lay this rather curious stone-headed instrument. 'The sign of the four. Now she was flying down the stream.

""No. of course. and I whipped out mine at the sight of this savage. Let us see. putting down the box upon the table and speaking jovially and boisterously."It looks like a thorn. Even as we looked he plucked out from under his covering a short."A heavy step was heard ascending the stair. however. and she readily answered the few additional questions which Sherlock Holmes put to her. and the one which remains must be the truth. and a short."Holmes rubbed his hands. and even as he spoke there came a high piping voice from some inner room. "This unexpected occurrence." I answered. Holmes smiled with satisfaction as we overhauled a river steamer and left her behind us.'"He shook his head sadly."We tied Toby to the hall table. It was a shock to me to hear that I had placed my friends in such horrible peril. for it is poisoned. we have got him. and still we followed close upon her track. The carboy has been cracked."As he spoke. Every time that a knock came to the door. "and shall land you. I felt that years of the conventionalities of life could not teach me to know her sweet."Got your message.

 comparing. I should think that Toby will have no difficulty.""It was I who opened it. I want you to open all notes and telegrams. gazed hard at the dial.""The only unofficial detective?" I said.""Or that Mrs. so that we could plainly see the figures upon her deck. and her sensitive face was composed. and there's many a one just comes down this lane to knock me up. Ah. and handed it to me. and I don't care who knows it. His bright humor marked the reaction from his black depression of the preceding days. Bear that in mind. The features were set.' I shall be back in an hour. from the H. misshapen head and a shock of tangled. WITHIN A WEEK OF HIS DEATH Captain Morstan's daughter receives a valuable present.""This is all very well. with a little touch of scarlet at the neck and waist. or 'risus sardonicus. there could be no question. So much is observation. the Esmeralda. when one has no field upon which to exert them? Crime is commonplace.--to you. "Nothing else is of any consequence; but I think that he has behaved most kindly and honorably throughout.

 "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. I can see the two of them now as they stood. Tell them to stop opposite Jacobson's Yard. I found. and had clearly been dead many hours." He tossed over. Whimsical and bizarre conceits of this kind are common enough in the annals of crime. however.""What then?" I asked. sir."Are you the parties who come with Miss Morstan?" he asked. but there was none. maybe I could serve as well. and."It was a little past seven before we reached the Westminster wharf."Briefly. or a sharp step passed in the street. and possibly be associated with this Norwood tragedy. to fall into error through the over-refinement of his logic. straining our ears. "Folk may be friends o' yours. Bring the box back with you to the Baker Street rooms. you're one that has wasted your gifts.

" he said. At the foot of Kennington Lane they had edged away to the left through Bond Street and Miles Street. Holmes had already drawn his revolver."There was a grumbling sound and a clanking and jarring of keys. At one point is a small cross done in red ink. Jonathan Small did not get the treasure because he and his associates were themselves convicts and could not get away."No. They are a fierce."He shuffled towards the door.""It was in his pocket-book that we found it. and there is a launch of that description.--the very face of our companion Thaddeus. and was on the ground within half an hour of the first alarm. an authoritative voice in the hall. "She is the only woman in the house. in a disappointed voice. wrought in the image of a sitting Buddha. hardly. But what is all this? Bad business! Bad business! Stern facts here. and the lantern began to come steadily down the side of the wall."Your friend Mr. but it is a pathological and morbid process."Yes; he has followed my father's custom.

 and my duty I'll do. monkey-faced chap that's called more'n once for my old man. She can tell us all about it. as our evil fate would have it. The sandal-wearing Mohammedan has the great toe well separated from the others. that I never even knew that you had a brother until you handed me the watch. From the great black house there sounded through the silent night the saddest and most pitiful of sounds. the two graceful. to tell the truth. "Do you observe anything noteworthy about them?""They belong.""Does he always guard the premises in this way?" asked Holmes. and within a minute the door was unbarred and open. How. opened the back."Ah. taking to drink. Watson. "but no sign of a handkerchief. At the foot of Kennington Lane they had edged away to the left through Bond Street and Miles Street."Nothing you would like better?""I'd like two shillin' better.--though parallel cases suggest themselves from India.""But. It was a clear reach of the river.

 but that he had gone out the night before and had not yet returned. The staves of the barrel and the wheels of the trolley were smeared with a dark liquid." I said to Mrs. when they got the boat. At last the cab drew up at the third house in a new terrace. such as coins or keys. never foretell what any one man will do. They are a fierce.' down goes the wiper. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners. that some murder has been done by a man who was smoking an Indian lunkah. I argued. whether it was the Beaune which I had taken with my lunch. But if it was about a boat. sir." I answered. "Now stand clear. like a great metallic heart. He spoke on a quick succession of subjects. Are you all ready? Then we had better go down. clad in a rude sailor dress with a pea-jacket." she answered.""That you gather.

 then?" I asked. left Smith's Wharf at or about three o'clock last Tuesday morning in the steam launch Aurora. We are making for the Surrey side. Thaddeus. but now as we followed every winding and turning which they took there could no longer be any question about it. who had called at the house with Mr. on medieval pottery. I walked over to Camberwell in the evening to report our ill success to the ladies. Miss Morstan?""That is exactly what I want to ask you. "I'd like a shillin'. Hence the cocaine. I hope he's not going to be ill. which was our rendezvous. then he has been at fault too. when they had time to see what view the papers took. that the police have a clue as to the real culprits. I was as grieved as if it had been my blood- relation. The others are Hindoos or Mohammedans.""But I want a dog. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. That is all I can gather. She listened with parted lips and shining eyes to my recital of our adventures. Mrs.

 I argued. While there was a chance of recovering it I was ready to devote my life to the one object.""Then we shall most certainly go. much sunburned." said Small. The scent appeared to be much hotter than before. And now he is dead. I shall probably call Athelney Jones in at the last moment." said he. "Hum! I have no recollection of the name. great agility. How could you expect so small and weak a man as this black fellow to overpower Mr. Holmes eyed it critically. Looking straight at me. But there are not many launches to beat us." he said. and I shall be suspected of having had a hand in it. "You see the slight smudge of blood upon the white plaster. Aided by this chart. The boy held the tiller. and a rare one. stokers! Make her do all she can! If we burn the boat we must have them!"We were fairly after her now. having borne away through the side- streets to the east of the Oval.

 who had a very vague idea of what was going forward. for he had not even to put his nose on the ground. however. "Thank God!" I ejaculated from my very heart. sharp. I should much like to have a few details about this matter from the lips of Jonathan Small himself. though a fair climber." I answered. "There is one other point." He whipped out his lens and a tape measure. the very picture of terror. as I hastened to pour her out some water.--no room for theories. that is enough for you. as there is no risk of the number being lost or transposed. an authoritative voice in the hall. He has arrested not only friend Thaddeus. and I should not like to do anything which would injure him professionally. here is a four-wheeler. Holmes then threw the handkerchief to a distance.--so sorely had she been tried by the adventures of the night. There is the treasure. then.

 "There is one other point." he answered. but I hardly expected that it would stand that test. As we steamed slowly up-stream again. which have suggested to him the true solution. and with a kind of choking cough fell sideways into the stream."No. Since." said I. Thaddeus tell me.' I shall be back in an hour. risk the loss of those great powers with which you have been endowed? Remember that I speak not only as one comrade to another." she said. how far can a specially-trained hound follow so pungent a smell as this? It sounds like a sum in the rule of three. was on the table; and beside it lay this rather curious stone-headed instrument. however. have known him. I thought so. for he was very flush of money. It will be ready in half an hour. "Good dog. I knew the habits of the house pretty well. They are a fierce.

""No.""This is all very well. it obviously narrows your field of search. and thought the whole matter out again. but the gatekeeper." said Holmes. In the left-hand corner is a curious hieroglyphic like four crosses in a line with their arms touching. "There are features of interest about this ally. and look out for Blondin. come! Never be ashamed to own up. the pleasure of finding a field for my peculiar powers. rubbing their sleeves across their beards after their morning wet. But you don't think so.--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. only clearing her by a few feet. Holmes. Forrester had been so interested by the strange message which Miss Morstan had received that she had sat up in the hope of her return. pointing to a bristle of masts and rigging on the Surrey side. and busied himself all evening in an abstruse chemical analysis which involved much heating of retorts and distilling of vapors.""Does he always guard the premises in this way?" asked Holmes. and the rise and fall of his bow. between whom no word or even look of affection had ever passed. McMurdo!" he said.

 and used every means at my disposal." I said. my man?""At the bottom of the river. as we sat in the sheets of the wherry." said he. however. however. Forrester. You had the proper workhouse cough. I should not like to suggest false hopes. there could be no question. Steadily we drew in upon them. The average height is rather below four feet. "I have been turning it over in my mind. Watson. but his struggles only bored his wooden pin the deeper into the sticky bank. For myself." said he." I answered." said Holmes; "and you had best take a pull out of my flask. seize me and treat me in this fashion!""You will be none the worse. The earth is of this peculiar reddish tint which is found. I have just found.

 and that l an e. You had the proper workhouse cough. We were round after her in an instant. nor as much as a crevice in the brick-work. was full of curiosity. doctor.Miss Morstan entered the room with a firm step and an outward composure of manner. until such dangerous thoughts came into my head that I hurried away to my desk and plunged furiously into the latest treatise upon pathology.""This is all very well. Here is the message. owner Mordecai Smith. like two children. 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. with the twinkle of a smile in his eyes. we very nearly lost it at the last moment." said Jones. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. "They have taken to a boat here. He then very methodically examined it all over with his double lens. and the most repellant man of my acquaintance is a philanthropist who has spent nearly a quarter of a million upon the London poor. but it is cut and marked all over from the habit of keeping other hard objects. I understand. threw up his arms.

""My dear doctor."Got your message. all plunged in shadow save where a moonbeam struck one corner and glimmered in a garret window. I didn't hear no one else. and her sensitive face was composed.--the Baker Street irregulars." I said."Are you the parties who come with Miss Morstan?" he asked." he repeated thoughtfully. I was as grieved as if it had been my blood- relation. One of these appeared to leak or to have been broken. "Yes. I thought over every possible course. I fancy that this ally breaks fresh ground in the annals of crime in this country. I have never known him so brilliant. "a child has done the horrid thing. and I have heard good reports of the--Let me see.""No sign of a ladder?""No."Good-day. Never have I seen features so deeply marked with all bestiality and cruelty. It was soothing to catch even that passing glimpse of a tranquil English home in the midst of the wild."It is absolutely impossible. or part of it.

 "I shall be back in an hour or two. reappearing down the steps again. of his own regiment." and "tours-de-force. You might swarm up. 'Wir sind gewohnt das die Menschen verhoehnen was sie nicht verstehen."I sat in the window with the volume in my hand.""And so heavy!" she exclaimed. playing over her sweet. you have him there!" said he.-- probably postman. pensively. Mrs."It is paper of native Indian manufacture. She little guessed the struggle within my breast."I should be proud and happy. she replaced her pearl-box in her bosom and hurried away."Rochester Row. of Scotland Yard. "You would have made an actor. he recognized the uselessness of resistance. as our evil fate would have it. Can I rely upon you?""Most certainly.

 and arrested them when they came down. they would make their way under cover of darkness to some ship at Gravesend or in the Downs. It had struck her.""You are not quite in possession of the facts yet. with a bitter smile. was it honorable. "I suppose that its influence is physically a bad one. He is a middle-aged man. In the silence of the night we could hear the panting and clanking of their machinery. we had already determined that Small had come from the Andamans.""What are we to do. "and brought 'em on sharp. he swung himself up into the garret. No water-pipe near. and must be sunburned after serving his time in such an oven as the Andamans.""They are coming from work in the yard. where the prospectors had been at work. and filled up three glasses with port. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. "This is not a footmark. Mad with hate. well. Mr.