WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.040 --> 00:00:03.680 Chapter fifteen of The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir 2 00:00:03.799 --> 00:00:07.240 Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. 3 00:00:09.039 --> 00:00:15.240 Chapter fifteen, A retrospection. It was the end of November, 4 00:00:15.439 --> 00:00:18.239 and Holmes and I sat upon a roar and foggy night, 5 00:00:18.519 --> 00:00:21.239 on either side of a blazing fire in our sitting 6 00:00:21.320 --> 00:00:25.000 room in Baker Street. Since the tragic upshot of our 7 00:00:25.079 --> 00:00:28.160 visit to Devonshire, he had been engaged in two affairs 8 00:00:28.160 --> 00:00:31.239 of the utmost importance, in the first of which he 9 00:00:31.280 --> 00:00:34.920 had exposed the atrocious conduct of Colonel Upward in connection 10 00:00:35.079 --> 00:00:39.280 with the famous card scandal of the Nonpareis Club, while 11 00:00:39.320 --> 00:00:42.840 in the second he had defended the unfortunate Madame Montpensier 12 00:00:43.399 --> 00:00:45.960 from the charge of murder which hung over her in 13 00:00:46.000 --> 00:00:49.520 connection with the death of her step daughter, Mademoiselle Carrier, 14 00:00:50.600 --> 00:00:53.320 the young lady, who, as it will be remembered, was 15 00:00:53.399 --> 00:00:56.880 found six months later alive and married in New York. 16 00:00:57.880 --> 00:01:00.560 My friend was in excellent spirits over the success which 17 00:01:00.560 --> 00:01:04.760 had attended a succession of difficult and important cases, so 18 00:01:04.799 --> 00:01:07.040 that I was able to induce him to discuss the 19 00:01:07.079 --> 00:01:11.319 details of the Baskerville mystery. I had waited patiently for 20 00:01:11.359 --> 00:01:13.959 the opportunity, for I was aware that he would never 21 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:17.719 permit cases to overlap, and that his clear and logical 22 00:01:17.760 --> 00:01:20.640 mind would not be drawn from its present work to 23 00:01:20.719 --> 00:01:24.400 dwell upon memories of the past. Sir Henry and doctor 24 00:01:24.400 --> 00:01:27.439 Mortimer were, however, in London on their way to the 25 00:01:27.519 --> 00:01:30.719 long voyage which had been recommended for the restoration of 26 00:01:30.760 --> 00:01:34.599 his shattered nerves. They had called upon us that very afternoon, 27 00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:37.480 so that it was natural that the subject should come 28 00:01:37.560 --> 00:01:42.599 up for discussion. The whole course of events, said Holmes, 29 00:01:43.120 --> 00:01:44.959 from the point of view of the man who called 30 00:01:45.000 --> 00:01:50.599 himself Stapleton, was simple and direct, although to us, who 31 00:01:50.680 --> 00:01:53.200 had no means in the beginning of knowing the motives 32 00:01:53.280 --> 00:01:56.640 of his actions and could only learn part of the facts, 33 00:01:56.959 --> 00:02:01.000 it all appeared exceedingly complex. I have had the advantage 34 00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:04.519 of two conversations with missus Stapleton, and the case has 35 00:02:04.560 --> 00:02:07.480 now been so entirely cleared up that I am not 36 00:02:07.560 --> 00:02:10.159 aware that there is anything which has remained a secret 37 00:02:10.199 --> 00:02:12.840 to us. You will find a few notes upon the 38 00:02:12.879 --> 00:02:16.800 matter under the heading B in my indexed list of cases. 39 00:02:17.919 --> 00:02:19.919 Perhaps you'd kindly give me a sketch of the course 40 00:02:19.919 --> 00:02:24.879 of events from memory. Certainly, though I cannot guarantee that 41 00:02:24.960 --> 00:02:28.800 I carry all the facts in my mind. Intense mental 42 00:02:28.800 --> 00:02:33.080 concentration has a curious way of blotting out what has passed. 43 00:02:33.879 --> 00:02:36.439 The barrister, who has his case at his fingers ends 44 00:02:36.719 --> 00:02:38.960 and is able to argue with an expert upon his 45 00:02:39.000 --> 00:02:41.599 own subject, finds that a week or two of the 46 00:02:41.680 --> 00:02:45.439 courts will drive it all out of his head. Once more, so, 47 00:02:45.599 --> 00:02:49.800 each of my cases displaces the last, and Mademoiselle Carrere 48 00:02:49.960 --> 00:02:54.159 has blurred my recollection of Baskerville Hall. To morrow, some 49 00:02:54.319 --> 00:02:57.520 other little problem may be submitted to my notice, which 50 00:02:57.560 --> 00:03:00.599 will in turn dispossess the fair French life and the 51 00:03:00.680 --> 00:03:05.120 infamous upward. So far as the case of the Hound goes, however, 52 00:03:05.879 --> 00:03:08.159 I'll give you the course of events as nearly as 53 00:03:08.199 --> 00:03:11.240 I can, and you will suggest anything which I may 54 00:03:11.280 --> 00:03:16.280 have forgotten. My inquiries show beyond all question that the 55 00:03:16.280 --> 00:03:19.680 family portrait did not lie, and that this fellow was 56 00:03:19.759 --> 00:03:24.240 indeed a Baskerville. He was a son of that Roger Baskerville, 57 00:03:24.599 --> 00:03:27.719 the younger brother of Charles, who fled with a sinister 58 00:03:27.840 --> 00:03:31.280 reputation to South America, where he was said to have 59 00:03:31.400 --> 00:03:35.840 died unmarried. He did, as a matter of fact, marry 60 00:03:36.439 --> 00:03:39.639 and had one child. This fellow, whose real name isn't 61 00:03:39.639 --> 00:03:43.800 the same as his father's, he married Beryl Garcia, one 62 00:03:43.840 --> 00:03:47.199 of the beauties of Costa Rica, and having purloined a 63 00:03:47.240 --> 00:03:50.719 considerable sum of public money, he changed his name to 64 00:03:50.800 --> 00:03:54.159 Van de Leur and fled to England, where he established 65 00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:57.719 a school in the east of Yorkshire. His reason for 66 00:03:57.800 --> 00:04:00.879 attempting this special line of business was that he had 67 00:04:00.919 --> 00:04:04.719 struck up an acquaintance with a consumptive tutor upon the 68 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:08.280 voyage home, and that he had used this man's ability 69 00:04:08.319 --> 00:04:14.120 to make the undertaking a success. Fraser the tutor died, however, 70 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:18.079 and the school, which had begun well sank from disrepute 71 00:04:18.120 --> 00:04:22.160 into infamy. The Van de Leurs found it convenient to 72 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:25.800 change their name to Stapleton, and he brought the remains 73 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:29.759 of his fortune, his schemes for the future, and his 74 00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:33.959 taste for entomology to the south of England. I learned 75 00:04:33.959 --> 00:04:36.560 at the British Museum that he was a recognized authority 76 00:04:36.639 --> 00:04:39.600 upon the subject, and that the name of Van Delere 77 00:04:39.680 --> 00:04:42.879 has been permanently attached to a certain moth which he 78 00:04:42.959 --> 00:04:47.560 had in his Yorkshire days, been the first to describe. 79 00:04:47.600 --> 00:04:49.720 We now come to that portion of his life which 80 00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:52.879 has proved to be of such intense interest to us. 81 00:04:53.800 --> 00:04:57.519 The fellow had evidently made inquiry and found that only 82 00:04:57.560 --> 00:05:02.920 two lives intervened between him and a valuable estate. When 83 00:05:02.920 --> 00:05:07.839 he went to Devonshire. His plans were I believe exceedingly hazy, 84 00:05:08.040 --> 00:05:11.079 but that he meant mischief from the first is evident 85 00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:13.279 from the way in which he took his wife with him. 86 00:05:13.319 --> 00:05:16.879 In the character of his sister, the idea of using 87 00:05:16.920 --> 00:05:20.399 her as a decoy was clearly already in his mind, 88 00:05:21.000 --> 00:05:23.560 though he may not have been certain how the details 89 00:05:23.600 --> 00:05:27.120 of his plot were to be arranged. He meant in 90 00:05:27.160 --> 00:05:29.680 the end to have the estate, and he was ready 91 00:05:29.720 --> 00:05:32.959 to use any tool or run any risk for that end. 92 00:05:33.920 --> 00:05:36.519 His first act was to establish himself as near to 93 00:05:36.560 --> 00:05:40.199 his ancestral home as he could, and his second was 94 00:05:40.240 --> 00:05:43.800 to cultivate a friendship with Sir Charles Baskerville and with 95 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:49.360 the neighbors. The baronet himself told him about the family hound, 96 00:05:49.839 --> 00:05:53.720 and so prepared the way for his own death. Stapleton, 97 00:05:53.800 --> 00:05:56.319 as I will continue to call him, knew that the 98 00:05:56.399 --> 00:05:59.040 old man's heart was weak, and that a shock would 99 00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:02.879 kill him. So much he had learned from Doctor Mortimer. 100 00:06:03.839 --> 00:06:07.720 He had heard also that Sir Charles was superstitious, and 101 00:06:07.800 --> 00:06:12.959 had taken this grim legend very seriously. His ingenious mind 102 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.319 instantly suggested a way by which the baronet could be 103 00:06:16.439 --> 00:06:19.839 done to death, and yet it would be hardly possible 104 00:06:19.920 --> 00:06:24.319 to bring home the guilt to the real murderer. Having 105 00:06:24.399 --> 00:06:27.040 conceived the idea, he proceeded to carry it out with 106 00:06:27.160 --> 00:06:32.600 considerable finesse. An ordinary schemer would have been content to 107 00:06:32.720 --> 00:06:36.879 work with the savage hound. The use of artificial means 108 00:06:36.920 --> 00:06:40.560 to make the creature diabolical was a flash of genius 109 00:06:40.639 --> 00:06:44.360 upon his part. The dog he brought in London from 110 00:06:44.480 --> 00:06:48.319 Ross and mangles the dealers in Fulham Road. It was 111 00:06:48.360 --> 00:06:52.240 the strongest and most savage in their possession. He brought 112 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:54.360 it down by the North Devon line and walked a 113 00:06:54.360 --> 00:06:56.800 great distance over the moor, so as to get it 114 00:06:56.879 --> 00:07:01.560 home without exciting any remarks. Already on his insect hunts 115 00:07:01.720 --> 00:07:05.199 learned to penetrate the grimpen mire, and so had found 116 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:08.959 a safe hiding place for the creature. Here he kenneled 117 00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:13.399 it and waited his chance. But it was some time coming, 118 00:07:14.240 --> 00:07:16.800 the old gentleman could not be decoyed outside of his 119 00:07:16.879 --> 00:07:21.560 grounds at night. Several times Stapleton lurked about with his hound, 120 00:07:22.160 --> 00:07:27.199 but without avail. It was during these fruitless quests that he, 121 00:07:28.000 --> 00:07:31.279 or rather his ally, was seen by peasants, and that 122 00:07:31.319 --> 00:07:34.360 the legend of the demon dog received a new confirmation. 123 00:07:35.759 --> 00:07:38.120 He had hoped that his wife might lure Sir Charles 124 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:43.120 to his ruin, but here she proved unexpectedly independent. She 125 00:07:43.160 --> 00:07:46.000 would not endeavor to entangle the old gentleman in a 126 00:07:46.040 --> 00:07:50.920 sentimental attachment which might deliver him over to his enemy threats, 127 00:07:51.439 --> 00:07:54.519 and even I am sorry to say blows refused to 128 00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:57.160 move her. She would have nothing to do with it, 129 00:07:57.639 --> 00:08:01.759 and for a time Stapleton was at a deadlock. He 130 00:08:01.839 --> 00:08:04.480 found a way out of his difficulties through the chance 131 00:08:04.560 --> 00:08:07.639 that Sir Charles, who had conceived a friendship for him, 132 00:08:08.240 --> 00:08:10.839 made him the minister of his charity in the case 133 00:08:10.879 --> 00:08:16.399 of this unfortunate woman, Missus Laura Lyons. By representing himself 134 00:08:16.439 --> 00:08:20.160 as a single man, he acquired complete influence over her, 135 00:08:20.759 --> 00:08:23.439 and he gave her to understand that in the event 136 00:08:23.480 --> 00:08:26.519 of her obtaining a divorce from her husband, he would 137 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:30.240 marry her. His plans were suddenly brought to a head 138 00:08:30.680 --> 00:08:33.159 by his knowledge that Sir Charles was about to leave 139 00:08:33.200 --> 00:08:37.000 the hall on the advice of Doctor Mortimer, with whose 140 00:08:37.000 --> 00:08:43.039 opinion he himself pretended to coincide. He must act at once, 141 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:47.559 or his victim might get beyond his power. He therefore 142 00:08:47.600 --> 00:08:51.519 put pressure upon Missus Lyons to write this letter imploring 143 00:08:51.519 --> 00:08:53.720 the old man to give her an interview on the 144 00:08:53.799 --> 00:08:58.120 evening before his departure for London. He then, by a 145 00:08:58.200 --> 00:09:02.399 specious argument, proved vented her from going, and so had 146 00:09:02.440 --> 00:09:06.320 the chance for which he had waited. Driving back in 147 00:09:06.360 --> 00:09:08.759 the evening from Coombe Tracy, he was in time to 148 00:09:08.799 --> 00:09:13.039 get his hound, to treat it with his infernal paint, 149 00:09:13.519 --> 00:09:15.799 and to bring the beast round to the gate at 150 00:09:15.840 --> 00:09:18.120 which he had reason to expect that he would find 151 00:09:18.120 --> 00:09:22.919 the old gentleman waiting. The dog, incited by his master, 152 00:09:23.600 --> 00:09:27.279 sprang over the wicket gate and pursued the unfortunate baronet, 153 00:09:27.720 --> 00:09:32.639 who fled screaming down the yew alley. In that gloomy tunnel, 154 00:09:32.799 --> 00:09:35.559 it must indeed have been a dreadful sight to see 155 00:09:35.559 --> 00:09:39.879 that huge black creature with its flaming jaws and blazing eyes, 156 00:09:40.360 --> 00:09:43.960 bounding after its victim. He fell dead at the end 157 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:47.720 of the alley from heart disease and terror. The hound 158 00:09:47.759 --> 00:09:50.399 had kept upon the grassy border while the baronet had 159 00:09:50.480 --> 00:09:53.200 run down the path, so that no track but the 160 00:09:53.240 --> 00:09:57.759 man's was visible. On seeing him lying still, the creature 161 00:09:57.799 --> 00:10:01.279 had probably approached to sniff at him, but finding him dead, 162 00:10:01.440 --> 00:10:04.960 had turned away again. It was then that it left 163 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:08.759 the print, which was actually observed by doctor Mortimer. The 164 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:11.360 hound was called off and hurried away to its lair 165 00:10:11.399 --> 00:10:14.200 in the grimp and mire, and a mystery was left 166 00:10:14.279 --> 00:10:18.919 which puzzled the authorities, alarmed the countryside, and finally brought 167 00:10:18.919 --> 00:10:23.200 the case within the scope of our observation. So much 168 00:10:23.240 --> 00:10:26.600 for the death of Sir Charles Baskerville. You perceive the 169 00:10:26.639 --> 00:10:29.559 devilish cunning of it, For really it would be almost 170 00:10:29.600 --> 00:10:33.360 impossible to make a case against the real murderer. His 171 00:10:33.480 --> 00:10:36.480 only accomplice was one who could never give him away, 172 00:10:37.159 --> 00:10:41.399 and the grotesque, inconceivable nature of the device only served 173 00:10:41.440 --> 00:10:45.240 to make it more effective. Both of the women concerned 174 00:10:45.240 --> 00:10:50.000 in the case, Missus Stapleton and Missus Laura Lyons, were 175 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:54.759 left with a strong suspicion against Stapleton. Missus Stapleton knew 176 00:10:54.840 --> 00:10:57.919 that he had designs upon the old Man, and also 177 00:10:58.000 --> 00:11:01.960 of the existence of the hound. Missus Lyons knew neither 178 00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:04.919 of these things, but had been impressed by the death 179 00:11:04.960 --> 00:11:08.240 occurring at the time of an uncancelled appointment, which was 180 00:11:08.320 --> 00:11:12.879 only known to him. However, both of them were under 181 00:11:12.919 --> 00:11:15.240 his influence, and he had nothing to fear from them. 182 00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:19.639 The first half of his task was successfully accomplished, but 183 00:11:19.679 --> 00:11:24.600 the more difficult still remained. It is possible that Stapleton 184 00:11:24.639 --> 00:11:27.320 did not know of the existence of an heir in Canada. 185 00:11:28.159 --> 00:11:30.200 In any case, he would very soon learn it from 186 00:11:30.240 --> 00:11:33.120 his friend doctor Mortimer, and he was told by the 187 00:11:33.200 --> 00:11:38.000 latter all details about the arrival of Henry Baskerville. Stapleton's 188 00:11:38.000 --> 00:11:41.919 first idea was that this young stranger from Canada might 189 00:11:42.000 --> 00:11:44.960 possibly be done to death in London without coming down 190 00:11:45.000 --> 00:11:49.120 to Devonshire at all. He distrusted his wife ever since 191 00:11:49.120 --> 00:11:51.519 she had refused to help him in laying a trap 192 00:11:51.559 --> 00:11:54.120 for the old Man, and he dared not leave her 193 00:11:54.120 --> 00:11:56.679 long out of his sight for fear he should lose 194 00:11:56.720 --> 00:12:00.519 his influence over her. It was for this reason that 195 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:03.720 he took her to London with him. They lodged I 196 00:12:03.879 --> 00:12:08.720 find at the Mexborough Private Hotel in Craven Street, which 197 00:12:08.840 --> 00:12:11.559 was actually one of those called upon by my agent 198 00:12:11.799 --> 00:12:16.519 in search of evidence. Here he kept his wife imprisoned 199 00:12:16.559 --> 00:12:19.879 in her room, while he, disguised in a beard, followed 200 00:12:19.879 --> 00:12:23.279 Doctor Mortimer at a Baker Street, and afterwards to the 201 00:12:23.360 --> 00:12:28.080 station and to the Northumberland Hotel. His wife had some 202 00:12:28.200 --> 00:12:31.240 inkling of his plans, but she had such a fear 203 00:12:31.240 --> 00:12:35.039 of her husband, a fear founded upon brutal ill treatment, 204 00:12:35.639 --> 00:12:37.799 that she dared not write to warn the man whom 205 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:41.039 she knew to be in danger. If the letter should 206 00:12:41.039 --> 00:12:47.240 fall into Stapleton's hands, her own life would not be safe. Eventually, 207 00:12:47.600 --> 00:12:51.159 as we know, she adopted the expedient of cutting out 208 00:12:51.159 --> 00:12:54.039 the words which would form the message, and addressing the 209 00:12:54.120 --> 00:12:58.000 letter in a disguised hand. It reached the Baronet and 210 00:12:58.080 --> 00:13:01.799 gave him the first warning of his danger. It was 211 00:13:01.919 --> 00:13:04.559 very essential for Stapleton to get some article of Sir 212 00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:07.799 Henry's attire, so that in case he was driven to 213 00:13:07.919 --> 00:13:10.919 use the dog, he might always have the means of 214 00:13:10.960 --> 00:13:16.840 setting him upon his track. With characteristic promptness and audacity, 215 00:13:17.440 --> 00:13:20.600 he set about this at once and we cannot doubt 216 00:13:20.639 --> 00:13:23.320 that the boots or chamber maid of the hotel was 217 00:13:23.360 --> 00:13:28.279 well bribed to help him in his design. By chance, however, 218 00:13:28.360 --> 00:13:31.120 the first boot which was procured for him was a 219 00:13:31.159 --> 00:13:35.240 new one, and therefore useless for his purpose. He then 220 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:39.399 had it returned and obtained another. A most instructive incident, 221 00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:42.639 since it proved conclusively to my mind that we were 222 00:13:42.679 --> 00:13:46.320 dealing with a real hound, as no other supposition could 223 00:13:46.320 --> 00:13:50.279 explain this anxiety to obtain an old boot, and this 224 00:13:50.440 --> 00:13:55.159 indifference to a new one. The more utre and grotesque 225 00:13:55.200 --> 00:13:59.159 an incident is, the more carefully it deserves to be examined, 226 00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:02.679 And the very point which appears to complicate a case 227 00:14:03.159 --> 00:14:07.320 is when duly considered and scientifically handled, the one which 228 00:14:07.399 --> 00:14:11.279 is most likely to elucidate it. Then we had the 229 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:15.159 visit from our friends next morning, shadowed always by Stapleton 230 00:14:15.200 --> 00:14:18.159 in the cab. From his knowledge of our rooms and 231 00:14:18.240 --> 00:14:21.320 of my appearance, as well as from his general conduct, 232 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.679 I am inclined to think that Stapleton's career of crime 233 00:14:24.720 --> 00:14:27.960 has been, by no means limited to this single Baskerville affair. 234 00:14:28.960 --> 00:14:32.399 It is suggestive that during the last three years there 235 00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:35.759 have been four considerable burglaries in the West Country, for 236 00:14:35.879 --> 00:14:39.919 none of which was any criminal ever arrested. The last 237 00:14:39.919 --> 00:14:44.039 of these, at Folkeston Court in May, was remarkable for 238 00:14:44.080 --> 00:14:47.639 the cold blooded pistoling of the page who surprised the 239 00:14:47.720 --> 00:14:52.320 masked and solitary burglar. I cannot doubt that Stapleton recruited 240 00:14:52.360 --> 00:14:55.679 his waning resources in this fashion, and that for years 241 00:14:55.720 --> 00:14:59.440 he had been a desperate and dangerous man. We had 242 00:14:59.480 --> 00:15:02.200 an example of his readiness of resource that morning when 243 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:05.559 he got away from us so successfully, and also of 244 00:15:05.559 --> 00:15:08.200 his audacity in sending back my own name to me 245 00:15:08.320 --> 00:15:12.120 through the cabman. From that moment he understood that I 246 00:15:12.159 --> 00:15:15.159 had taken over the case in London, and that therefore 247 00:15:15.200 --> 00:15:18.240 there was no chance for him there. He returned to 248 00:15:18.320 --> 00:15:23.240 Dartmoor and awaited the arrival of the Baronet. One moment, 249 00:15:23.519 --> 00:15:26.720 said I, you have no doubt described the sequence of 250 00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:30.799 events correctly, But as one point which you have left unexplained, 251 00:15:31.559 --> 00:15:35.440 what became of the hound when its master was in London. 252 00:15:35.759 --> 00:15:38.519 I have given some attention to this matter, and it 253 00:15:38.600 --> 00:15:43.320 is undoubtedly of importance. There can be no question that 254 00:15:43.399 --> 00:15:46.799 Stapleton had a confidant, though it is unlikely that he 255 00:15:46.840 --> 00:15:50.440 ever placed himself in his power by sharing all his 256 00:15:50.519 --> 00:15:53.879 plans with him. There was an old man servant at 257 00:15:53.919 --> 00:15:57.879 Merripit House whose name was Antony. His connection with the 258 00:15:57.879 --> 00:16:01.320 Stapletons can be traced for several years, is as far 259 00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:04.480 back as the schoolmastering days, so that he must have 260 00:16:04.559 --> 00:16:07.759 been aware that his master and mistress were really husband 261 00:16:07.759 --> 00:16:12.320 and wife. This man has disappeared and has escaped from 262 00:16:12.360 --> 00:16:16.039 the country. It is suggestive that Antony is not a 263 00:16:16.120 --> 00:16:20.240 common name in England, while Antonio is so in all 264 00:16:20.320 --> 00:16:25.759 Spanish or Spanish American countries. The man, like Missus Stapleton herself, 265 00:16:25.840 --> 00:16:30.840 spoke good English, but with a curious lisping accent. I 266 00:16:30.919 --> 00:16:33.840 have myself seen this old man cross the grimpen Maire 267 00:16:33.919 --> 00:16:37.480 by the path which Stapleton had marked out. It is 268 00:16:37.639 --> 00:16:41.200 very probable, therefore, that, in the absence of his master, 269 00:16:41.759 --> 00:16:44.720 it was he who cared for the hound, though he 270 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:47.360 may never have known the purpose for which the beast 271 00:16:47.480 --> 00:16:52.840 was used. The Stapletons then went down to Devonshire, whither 272 00:16:52.879 --> 00:16:56.120 they were soon followed by Sir Henry and Hugh. One 273 00:16:56.159 --> 00:16:58.879 word now, as to how I stood myself at that time, 274 00:17:00.240 --> 00:17:03.000 it may possibly recur to your memory that when I 275 00:17:03.039 --> 00:17:06.240 examined the paper upon which the printed words were fastened, 276 00:17:06.599 --> 00:17:10.359 I made a close inspection for the water mark. In 277 00:17:10.440 --> 00:17:12.680 doing so, I held it within a few inches of 278 00:17:12.680 --> 00:17:16.400 my eyes, and was conscious of a faint smell of 279 00:17:16.440 --> 00:17:21.079 the scent known as white jessamine. There are seventy five perfumes, 280 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:24.200 which is very necessary that a criminal expert should be 281 00:17:24.200 --> 00:17:27.720 able to distinguish from each other, and cases have more 282 00:17:27.759 --> 00:17:32.200 than once within my own experience, depended upon their prompt recognition. 283 00:17:33.400 --> 00:17:37.160 The scent suggested the presence of a lady, and already 284 00:17:37.200 --> 00:17:41.400 my thoughts began to turn towards the Stapletons. Thus I 285 00:17:41.440 --> 00:17:44.240 had made certain of the hound and had guessed at 286 00:17:44.240 --> 00:17:46.759 the criminal before ever we went to the West Country. 287 00:17:48.039 --> 00:17:51.799 It was my game to watch Stapleton. It was evident, however, 288 00:17:52.240 --> 00:17:54.400 that I could not do this if I were with you, 289 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:59.240 since he would be keenly on his guard. I deceived everybody, 290 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:03.599 therefore yourself included, and I came down secretly when I 291 00:18:03.640 --> 00:18:07.079 was supposed to be in London. My hardships were not 292 00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:11.240 so great as you imagined. Though such trifling details must 293 00:18:11.319 --> 00:18:15.200 never interfere with the investigation of a case. I stayed 294 00:18:15.200 --> 00:18:18.240 for the most part at Coombe Tracy, and only used 295 00:18:18.240 --> 00:18:20.559 the hut upon the moor when it was necessary to 296 00:18:20.599 --> 00:18:24.160 be near the scene of action. Cartwright had come down 297 00:18:24.200 --> 00:18:26.960 with me, and in his disguise as a country boy, 298 00:18:27.039 --> 00:18:30.480 he was of great assistance to me. I was dependent 299 00:18:30.559 --> 00:18:33.519 upon him for food and clean linen when I was 300 00:18:33.559 --> 00:18:38.160 watching Stapleton. Cartwright was frequently watching you, so that I 301 00:18:38.279 --> 00:18:41.960 was able to keep my hand upon all the strings. 302 00:18:42.720 --> 00:18:45.440 I have already told you that your reports reached me rapidly, 303 00:18:45.799 --> 00:18:49.799 being forward instantly from Baker Street to Coombe Tracy. They 304 00:18:49.799 --> 00:18:52.960 were of great service to me, and especially that one 305 00:18:53.039 --> 00:18:57.640 incidentally truthful piece of biography of Stapleton's. I was able 306 00:18:57.680 --> 00:18:59.960 to establish the identity of the man and the wall, 307 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:04.519 and knew at last exactly how I stood. The case 308 00:19:04.640 --> 00:19:08.759 had been considerably complicated through the incident of the escaped 309 00:19:08.799 --> 00:19:13.880 convict and the relations between him and the Barrymoors. This 310 00:19:14.319 --> 00:19:18.000 also you cleared up in a very effective way, though 311 00:19:18.039 --> 00:19:20.519 I had already come to the same conclusions from my 312 00:19:20.599 --> 00:19:24.799 own observations. By the time that you discovered me upon 313 00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:28.039 the moor, I had a complete knowledge of the whole business. 314 00:19:28.519 --> 00:19:30.519 But I had not a case which could go to 315 00:19:30.559 --> 00:19:34.920 a jury. Even Stapleton's attempt upon Sir Henry that night, 316 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:38.319 which ended in the death of the unfortunate convict, did 317 00:19:38.319 --> 00:19:42.480 not help us much improving murder against our man. There 318 00:19:42.519 --> 00:19:45.640 seemed to be no alternative but to catch him red handed, 319 00:19:46.359 --> 00:19:48.519 and to do so we had to use Sir Henry 320 00:19:49.079 --> 00:19:54.960 alone and apparently unprotected, as a bait. We did so, 321 00:19:55.880 --> 00:19:58.599 and at the cost of a severe shock to our client, 322 00:19:59.119 --> 00:20:03.119 we succeeded in completing our case and driving Stapleton to 323 00:20:03.160 --> 00:20:07.200 his destruction. That Sir Henry should have been exposed to. 324 00:20:07.240 --> 00:20:11.039 This is I must confess a approach to my management 325 00:20:11.079 --> 00:20:14.240 of the case. But we had no means of foreseeing 326 00:20:14.440 --> 00:20:19.119 the terrible and paralyzing spectacle which the beast presented, nor 327 00:20:19.160 --> 00:20:21.839 could we predict the fog which enabled him to burst 328 00:20:21.880 --> 00:20:26.079 upon us at such short notice. We succeeded in our object, 329 00:20:26.079 --> 00:20:29.519 at a cost which both the specialist and Doctor Mortimer 330 00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:33.319 assure me will be a temporary one. A long journey 331 00:20:33.359 --> 00:20:35.680 may enable our friend to recover not only from his 332 00:20:35.759 --> 00:20:40.799 shattered nerves, but also from his wounded feelings. His love 333 00:20:40.839 --> 00:20:44.480 for the lady was deep and sincere, and to him. 334 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:48.000 The saddest part of all this black business was that 335 00:20:48.079 --> 00:20:52.119 he should have been deceived by her. It only remains 336 00:20:52.160 --> 00:20:55.839 to indicate the part which she had played throughout. There 337 00:20:55.839 --> 00:20:59.640 can be no doubt that Stapleton exercised an influence over her, 338 00:21:00.079 --> 00:21:02.759 which may have been love, or may have been fear, 339 00:21:03.319 --> 00:21:06.599 or very possibly both, since they are by no means 340 00:21:06.680 --> 00:21:14.680 incompatible emotions. It was at least absolutely effective at his command. 341 00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:18.440 She consented to pass as his sister, though he found 342 00:21:18.440 --> 00:21:21.279 the limits of his power over her when he endeavored 343 00:21:21.319 --> 00:21:24.920 to make her the direct accessory to murder. She was 344 00:21:24.960 --> 00:21:27.160 ready to warn Sir Henry so far as she could 345 00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:31.039 without implicating her husband, and again and again she tried 346 00:21:31.079 --> 00:21:35.400 to do so. Stapleton himself seems to have been capable 347 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:39.119 of jealousy, and when he saw the baronet paying court 348 00:21:39.240 --> 00:21:41.759 to the lady, even though it was part of his 349 00:21:41.839 --> 00:21:45.559 own plan, still he could not help interrupting with a 350 00:21:45.640 --> 00:21:49.720 passionate outburst, which revealed the fiery soul which his self 351 00:21:49.759 --> 00:21:55.119 contained manner so cleverly concealed. By encouraging the intimacy, he 352 00:21:55.200 --> 00:21:58.319 made it certain that Sir Henry would frequently come to 353 00:21:58.400 --> 00:22:01.519 Merripit House and that he would sooner or later get 354 00:22:01.559 --> 00:22:06.200 the opportunity which he desired. On the day of the crisis, however, 355 00:22:06.920 --> 00:22:11.079 his wife turned suddenly against him. She had learned something 356 00:22:11.119 --> 00:22:13.599 of the death of the convict, and she knew that 357 00:22:13.680 --> 00:22:15.880 the hound was being kept in the outhouse. On the 358 00:22:15.920 --> 00:22:19.680 evening that Sir Henry was coming to dinner, she taxed 359 00:22:19.680 --> 00:22:23.880 her husband with his intended crime, and a furious scene followed, 360 00:22:24.359 --> 00:22:26.599 in which he showed her for the first time that 361 00:22:26.720 --> 00:22:30.440 she had a rival in his love. Her fidelity turned 362 00:22:30.440 --> 00:22:33.839 in an instant to bitter hatred, and he saw that 363 00:22:33.880 --> 00:22:38.400 she would betray him. He tied her up therefore, that 364 00:22:38.519 --> 00:22:41.799 she might have no chance of warning Sir Henry, and 365 00:22:41.920 --> 00:22:45.279 he hoped no doubt that when the whole countryside put 366 00:22:45.319 --> 00:22:48.000 down the baronet's death to the curse of his family, 367 00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:51.480 as they certainly would do, he could win his wife 368 00:22:51.559 --> 00:22:55.279 back to accept an accomplished fact, and to keep silent 369 00:22:55.359 --> 00:22:59.240 upon what she knew. In this I fancy that in 370 00:22:59.279 --> 00:23:02.960 any case he made a miscalculation, and that if we 371 00:23:03.000 --> 00:23:05.759 had not been there, his doom would none the less 372 00:23:05.799 --> 00:23:09.319 have been sealed. A woman of Spanish blood does not 373 00:23:09.400 --> 00:23:13.480 condone such an injury, so lightly. And now, my dear Watson, 374 00:23:14.039 --> 00:23:16.680 without referring to my notes, I cannot give you a 375 00:23:16.720 --> 00:23:20.240 more detailed account of this curious case. I do not 376 00:23:20.400 --> 00:23:25.200 know that anything essential has been left unexplained. He could 377 00:23:25.200 --> 00:23:27.119 not hope to frighten Sir Henry to death as he 378 00:23:27.119 --> 00:23:30.599 had done the old uncle with his bogie hound. The 379 00:23:30.640 --> 00:23:34.359 beast was savage and half starved. If its appearance did 380 00:23:34.359 --> 00:23:37.119 not frighten its victim to death, at least it would 381 00:23:37.200 --> 00:23:42.240 paralyze the resistance which might be offered. No doubt, there 382 00:23:42.240 --> 00:23:46.319 only remains one difficulty. If Stapleton came into the succession, 383 00:23:46.920 --> 00:23:49.279 how could he explain the fact that he the heir, 384 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:52.799 had been living unannounced under another name, so close to 385 00:23:52.839 --> 00:23:56.400 the property. How could he claim it without causing suspicion 386 00:23:56.440 --> 00:24:01.720 and inquiry. It is a formidable difficulty, and I fear 387 00:24:01.759 --> 00:24:03.880 that you ask too much when you expect me to 388 00:24:04.000 --> 00:24:07.720 solve it. The past and the present are within the 389 00:24:07.720 --> 00:24:10.680 field of my inquiry, but what a man may do 390 00:24:10.720 --> 00:24:14.759 in the future is a hard question to answer. Missus 391 00:24:14.759 --> 00:24:18.599 Stapleton has heard her husband discuss the problem on several occasions. 392 00:24:19.440 --> 00:24:23.400 There were three possible courses he might claim the property 393 00:24:23.440 --> 00:24:27.920 from South America, establish his identity before the British authorities there, 394 00:24:28.480 --> 00:24:31.400 and so obtain the fortune without ever coming to England 395 00:24:31.440 --> 00:24:35.240 at all. Or he might adopt an elaborate disguise during 396 00:24:35.279 --> 00:24:38.519 the short time that he need be in London. Or 397 00:24:38.599 --> 00:24:42.839 again he might furnish an accomplice with the proofs and papers, 398 00:24:43.119 --> 00:24:46.480 putting him in as heir and retaining a claim upon 399 00:24:46.599 --> 00:24:50.599 some proportion of his income. We cannot doubt, from what 400 00:24:50.640 --> 00:24:53.039 we know of him, that he would have found some 401 00:24:53.119 --> 00:24:56.720