WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:03.439 Chapter seven of the Hand of the Baskervilles by Sir 2 00:00:03.520 --> 00:00:07.960 Arthur Kennan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. 3 00:00:09.480 --> 00:00:15.439 Chapter seven, the Stapletons of Merripit House. The fresh beauty 4 00:00:15.480 --> 00:00:18.359 of the following morning did something to efface from our 5 00:00:18.399 --> 00:00:21.239 minds the grim and gray impression which had been left 6 00:00:21.320 --> 00:00:24.960 upon both of us by our first experience of Baskerville Hall. 7 00:00:26.239 --> 00:00:28.760 As Sir Henry and I sat at breakfast, the sunlight 8 00:00:28.839 --> 00:00:32.920 flooded in through the high mullioned windows, throwing watery patches 9 00:00:32.920 --> 00:00:35.640 of color from the coats of arms which covered them. 10 00:00:36.200 --> 00:00:39.159 The dark paneling glowed like bronze in the golden rays, 11 00:00:39.759 --> 00:00:41.799 and it was hard to realize that this was indeed 12 00:00:41.840 --> 00:00:44.320 the chamber which had struck such a gloom into our 13 00:00:44.359 --> 00:00:49.200 souls upon the evening before. I guess it is ourselves, 14 00:00:49.240 --> 00:00:51.640 and not the house, that we have to blame, said 15 00:00:51.679 --> 00:00:55.079 the Baronet. We were tired with our journey and chilled 16 00:00:55.119 --> 00:00:57.600 by our drive, so we took a grave view of 17 00:00:57.600 --> 00:01:00.719 the place. Now we are fresh and well, so it 18 00:01:00.799 --> 00:01:04.079 is all cheerful once more. And yet it was not 19 00:01:04.319 --> 00:01:08.640 entirely a question of imagination. I answered, did you, for example, 20 00:01:09.040 --> 00:01:12.319 happen to hear someone, a woman, I think sobbing in 21 00:01:12.359 --> 00:01:16.359 the night. That is curious, for I did, when I 22 00:01:16.439 --> 00:01:19.599 was half asleep, fancy that I heard something of the sort. 23 00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:22.719 I waited quite a time, but there was no more 24 00:01:22.719 --> 00:01:25.400 of it, so I concluded that it was all a dream. 25 00:01:26.680 --> 00:01:29.519 I heard it distinctly, and I am sure that it 26 00:01:29.560 --> 00:01:32.959 was really the sob of a woman. We must ask 27 00:01:33.000 --> 00:01:36.400 about it right away. He rang the bell and asked 28 00:01:36.439 --> 00:01:40.159 Barrymore whether he could account for our experience. It seemed 29 00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:43.159 to me that the pallid features of the butler turned 30 00:01:43.159 --> 00:01:46.519 a shade paler still as he listened to his master's question. 31 00:01:47.840 --> 00:01:50.439 There are only two women in the house, say Henry, 32 00:01:50.959 --> 00:01:54.480 he answered. One is the scullery maid, who sleeps in 33 00:01:54.519 --> 00:01:57.879 the other wing. The other is my wife, and I 34 00:01:57.920 --> 00:01:59.799 can answer for it that the sound could not have 35 00:01:59.840 --> 00:02:03.680 come from her. And yet he lied as he said it. 36 00:02:04.439 --> 00:02:07.280 For it chanced that after breakfast I met missus Barrymore 37 00:02:07.319 --> 00:02:10.080 in the long corridor, with the sun full upon her face. 38 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:14.439 She was a large, impassive, heavy featured woman with a 39 00:02:14.520 --> 00:02:18.919 stern set expression of mouth. But her telltale eyes were 40 00:02:19.000 --> 00:02:23.280 red and glanced at me from between swollen lids. It 41 00:02:23.439 --> 00:02:26.360 was she then who wept in the night, and if 42 00:02:26.400 --> 00:02:29.360 she did so, her husband must know it. Yet he 43 00:02:29.400 --> 00:02:32.120 had taken the obvious risk of discovery in declaring that 44 00:02:32.199 --> 00:02:36.199 it was not so. Why had he done this? And 45 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:41.360 why did she weep so bitterly? Already round this pale faced, handsome, 46 00:02:41.400 --> 00:02:45.199 black bearded man there was gathering an atmosphere of mystery 47 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:47.840 and of gloom. It was he who had been the 48 00:02:47.840 --> 00:02:50.719 first to discover the body of Sir Charles, and we 49 00:02:50.759 --> 00:02:53.599 had only his word for all the circumstances which led 50 00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:58.280 up to the old man's death. Was it possible that 51 00:02:58.360 --> 00:03:00.719 it was Barrymore, after all, who we had seen in 52 00:03:00.759 --> 00:03:04.080 the cab in Regent Street. The beard might well have 53 00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:08.159 been the same The cabman had described a somewhat shorter man. 54 00:03:08.800 --> 00:03:12.280 But such an impression might easily have been erroneous. How 55 00:03:12.319 --> 00:03:16.159 could I settle a point forever? Obviously the first thing 56 00:03:16.199 --> 00:03:19.479 to do was to see the grimp and postmaster and 57 00:03:19.599 --> 00:03:22.599 find whether the test telegram had really been placed in 58 00:03:22.719 --> 00:03:27.199 Barrymore's own hands. Be the answer what it might, I 59 00:03:27.199 --> 00:03:29.960 should at least have something to report to Sherlock Holmes. 60 00:03:31.319 --> 00:03:34.639 Sir Henry had numerous papers to examine after breakfast, so 61 00:03:34.759 --> 00:03:38.479 that the time was propitious for my excursion. It was 62 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:41.120 a pleasant walk of four miles along the edge of 63 00:03:41.159 --> 00:03:45.000 the moor, leading me at last to a small gray hamlet, 64 00:03:45.319 --> 00:03:48.120 in which two larger buildings, which proved to be the 65 00:03:48.159 --> 00:03:51.800 Inn and the house of Doctor Mortimer, stood high above 66 00:03:51.840 --> 00:03:55.960 the rest. The postmaster, who was also the village grocer, 67 00:03:56.400 --> 00:04:00.759 had a clear recollection of the telegram. Certainly, sir, said he. 68 00:04:01.400 --> 00:04:04.800 I had the telegram delivered to mister Barrymore exactly as directed. 69 00:04:05.719 --> 00:04:09.919 Who delivered it? My boy here, James, you delivered that 70 00:04:09.919 --> 00:04:12.319 telegram to mister Barrymore at the all last week, did 71 00:04:12.360 --> 00:04:17.399 you not? Yes, Father, I delivered it into his own hands, 72 00:04:17.639 --> 00:04:20.639 I asked, well, he was up in the loft at 73 00:04:20.639 --> 00:04:22.759 the time, so that he could not put into his 74 00:04:22.839 --> 00:04:25.639 own hands, For I give it in to missus Barrymore's hands, 75 00:04:26.079 --> 00:04:29.360 and she promised to deliver it at once. Did you 76 00:04:29.680 --> 00:04:33.519 see mister Barrymore now, Sir, I tell you he was 77 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:37.399 in the loft. If you didn't see him, how do 78 00:04:37.439 --> 00:04:40.879 you know he was in the loft? Well, surely his 79 00:04:40.959 --> 00:04:43.920 own wife ought to know where he is, said the postmaster, 80 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:47.800 testily didn't he get the telegram? If there's any mistake, 81 00:04:47.879 --> 00:04:51.720 it is for mister Barrymore himself to complain. It seemed 82 00:04:51.720 --> 00:04:55.160 hopeless to pursue the inquiry any farther, But it was 83 00:04:55.240 --> 00:04:57.800 clear that, in spite of Holmes's ruse, we had no 84 00:04:58.000 --> 00:05:01.240 proof that Barrymore had not been in London all the time. 85 00:05:02.279 --> 00:05:05.720 Suppose that it were so, Suppose that the same man 86 00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:08.120 had been the last who had seen Sir Charles alive, 87 00:05:08.920 --> 00:05:11.120 and the first to dog the new heir when he 88 00:05:11.160 --> 00:05:15.800 returned to England. What then? Was he the agent of others? 89 00:05:15.920 --> 00:05:19.519 Or had he some sinister design of his own? What 90 00:05:19.680 --> 00:05:24.120 interest could he have in persecuting the Baskerville family? I 91 00:05:24.160 --> 00:05:26.920 thought of the strange warning clipped out of the leading 92 00:05:27.040 --> 00:05:30.600 article of the Times? Was that his work? Or was 93 00:05:30.639 --> 00:05:32.959 it possibly the doing of someone who was bent upon 94 00:05:33.040 --> 00:05:38.360 counteracting his schemes? The only conceivable motive was that which 95 00:05:38.399 --> 00:05:41.720 had been suggested by Sir Henry, that if the family 96 00:05:41.759 --> 00:05:45.120 could be scared away, a comfortable and permanent home would 97 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:49.120 be secured for the Barrymoors. But surely such an explanation 98 00:05:49.199 --> 00:05:51.959 as that would be quite inadequate to account for the 99 00:05:52.079 --> 00:05:56.360 deep and subtle scheming which seemed to be weaving an 100 00:05:56.439 --> 00:06:01.120 invisible net round the young Baronetolmes himself had said that 101 00:06:01.160 --> 00:06:03.639 no more complex case had come to him in all 102 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:08.279 the long series of his sensational investigations. I prayed as 103 00:06:08.319 --> 00:06:11.240 I walked back along the gray, lonely road, that my 104 00:06:11.360 --> 00:06:14.959 friend might soon be freed from his preoccupations and able 105 00:06:15.000 --> 00:06:17.680 to come down to take his heavy burden of responsibility 106 00:06:17.720 --> 00:06:22.480 from my shoulders. Suddenly, my thoughts were interrupted by the 107 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:25.360 sound of running feet behind me, and by a voice 108 00:06:25.360 --> 00:06:29.279 which called me by name. I turned, expecting to see 109 00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:32.560 Dr Mortimer, but to my surprise, it was a stranger 110 00:06:32.560 --> 00:06:37.120 who was pursuing me. He was a small, slim, clean shaven, 111 00:06:37.240 --> 00:06:41.959 prim faced man, flaxen haired and lean jawed, between thirty 112 00:06:42.000 --> 00:06:44.560 and forty years of age, dressed in a gray suit 113 00:06:44.879 --> 00:06:48.240 and wearing a straw hat. A tin box for botanical 114 00:06:48.279 --> 00:06:51.720 specimens hung over his shoulder, and he carried a green 115 00:06:51.759 --> 00:06:55.279 butterfly net in one of his hands. You will, I 116 00:06:55.319 --> 00:06:59.759 am sure, excuse my presumption, doctor Watson, said he as 117 00:06:59.759 --> 00:07:03.399 he came panting up to where I stood here on 118 00:07:03.519 --> 00:07:06.079 the moor. We are a homely folk, and do not 119 00:07:06.199 --> 00:07:09.959 wait for formal introductions. You may possibly have heard my 120 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:14.480 name from our mutual friend Mortimer. I am Stapleton of 121 00:07:14.600 --> 00:07:18.560 Merripit House. Your net and box would have told me 122 00:07:18.600 --> 00:07:21.759 as much, said I, for I knew that mister Stapleton 123 00:07:21.839 --> 00:07:25.600 was a naturalist. But how did you know me? I 124 00:07:25.639 --> 00:07:28.519 have been calling on Mortimer, and he pointed you out 125 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:30.720 to me from the window of his surgery. As you 126 00:07:30.879 --> 00:07:35.600 passed as our road lay the same way, I thought 127 00:07:35.600 --> 00:07:39.720 that I could overtake you and introduce myself. I trust 128 00:07:39.720 --> 00:07:42.279 that Sir Henry is none the worse for his journey. 129 00:07:43.279 --> 00:07:46.399 He is very well. Thank you. We were all rather 130 00:07:46.480 --> 00:07:50.040 afraid that, after the sad death of Sir Charles, the 131 00:07:50.160 --> 00:07:53.639 you baronet might refuse to live here. It is asking 132 00:07:53.759 --> 00:07:56.160 much of a wealthy man to come down and bury 133 00:07:56.199 --> 00:07:59.600 himself in a place of this kind. But I need 134 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:02.079 not tell you that it means a very great deal 135 00:08:02.279 --> 00:08:06.920 to the countryside, Sir Henry. As I suppose no superstitious 136 00:08:06.959 --> 00:08:10.920 fears in the matter, I do not think that it 137 00:08:11.000 --> 00:08:14.920 is likely. Of course, you know the legend of the 138 00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:20.040 fiend dog which haunts the family. I have heard of it. 139 00:08:20.040 --> 00:08:23.720 It is extraordinary, how credulous the pheasants are about here. 140 00:08:24.560 --> 00:08:27.000 Any number of them are ready to swear that they 141 00:08:27.000 --> 00:08:30.560 have seen such a creature upon them Moor. He spoke 142 00:08:30.600 --> 00:08:32.879 with a smile, but I seemed to read in his 143 00:08:33.000 --> 00:08:36.960 eyes that he took the matter more seriously. The story 144 00:08:37.080 --> 00:08:40.200 took a great hold upon the imagination of Sir Charles, 145 00:08:40.960 --> 00:08:42.960 and I have no doubt that it led to his 146 00:08:43.159 --> 00:08:48.600 tragic end. But how his nerves were so worked up 147 00:08:48.639 --> 00:08:50.919 that the appearance of any dog might have had a 148 00:08:50.960 --> 00:08:55.080 fatal effect upon his diseased heart. I fancy that he 149 00:08:55.159 --> 00:08:58.320 really did see something of the kind. Upon that last 150 00:08:58.440 --> 00:09:01.840 night in the ew alley. I feared that some disaster 151 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:05.120 might occur, for I was very fond of the old man, 152 00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:09.120 and I knew that his heart was weak. How did 153 00:09:09.159 --> 00:09:14.799 you know that, my friend Mortimer told me? You think then, 154 00:09:15.240 --> 00:09:18.240 that some dog pursued Sir Charles, and that he died 155 00:09:18.279 --> 00:09:23.960 of fright in consequence? Have you any better explanation? I 156 00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:28.360 have not come to any conclusion, as mister Sherlock Holmes. 157 00:09:29.720 --> 00:09:32.559 The words took away my breath for an instant, but 158 00:09:32.639 --> 00:09:35.279 a glance at the placid face and steadfast eyes of 159 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:40.159 my companion showed that no surprise was intended. It is 160 00:09:40.320 --> 00:09:43.120 useless for us to pretend that we do not know you, 161 00:09:43.279 --> 00:09:47.879 doctor Watson said he the records of your detective have 162 00:09:48.039 --> 00:09:51.360 reached us here, and you could not celebrate him without 163 00:09:51.399 --> 00:09:55.799 being known yourself. When Mortimer told me your name, he 164 00:09:55.840 --> 00:09:59.799 could not deny your identity. If you are here, then 165 00:09:59.840 --> 00:10:03.360 it follows that mister Sherlock Holmes is interesting himself in 166 00:10:03.399 --> 00:10:06.720 the matter, and I am naturally curious to know what 167 00:10:06.879 --> 00:10:10.679 view he may take. I'm afraid that I cannot answer 168 00:10:10.679 --> 00:10:14.159 that question. May I ask him if he is going 169 00:10:14.240 --> 00:10:18.279 to honor us with a visit himself? He cannot leave 170 00:10:18.320 --> 00:10:21.720 town at present. He has other cases which engage his attention. 171 00:10:23.039 --> 00:10:26.679 What a pity he might throw some light on that 172 00:10:26.720 --> 00:10:29.679 which is so dark to us. But as to your 173 00:10:29.720 --> 00:10:33.240 own researches, if there is any possible way in which 174 00:10:33.279 --> 00:10:36.399 I can be of service to you, I trust that 175 00:10:36.440 --> 00:10:39.960 you will command me. If I had any indication of 176 00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:43.200 the nature of your suspicions or how you propose to 177 00:10:43.240 --> 00:10:47.039 investigate the case, I might perhaps even now give you 178 00:10:47.080 --> 00:10:51.279 some aid or advice. I assure you that I am 179 00:10:51.320 --> 00:10:54.000 simply here upon a visit to my friend Sir Henry, 180 00:10:54.600 --> 00:10:58.480 and that I need no help of any kind. Excellent, 181 00:10:59.080 --> 00:11:03.559 said Stapleton. You are perfectly right to be wary and discreet. 182 00:11:04.440 --> 00:11:07.120 I am justly reproved for what I feel was an 183 00:11:07.200 --> 00:11:11.200 unjustifiable intrusion, and I promise you that I will not 184 00:11:11.399 --> 00:11:15.600 mention the matter again. We'd come to a point where 185 00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:18.759 a narrow, grassy path struck off from the road and 186 00:11:18.840 --> 00:11:23.639 wound away across the moor. A steep, bolder sprinkled hill 187 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:26.639 lay upon the right, which had in by gone days 188 00:11:26.679 --> 00:11:30.240 been cut into a granite quarry. The face, which was 189 00:11:30.279 --> 00:11:34.200 turned towards us, formed a dark cliff, with ferns and 190 00:11:34.279 --> 00:11:38.200 brambles growing in its niches. From over a distant rise 191 00:11:38.240 --> 00:11:42.799 there floated a gray plume of smoke. A moderate walk 192 00:11:42.840 --> 00:11:45.799 along this moor path brings us to Merry pit House, 193 00:11:46.200 --> 00:11:49.360 said he. Perhaps you will spare an hour that I 194 00:11:49.440 --> 00:11:52.559 may have the pleasure of introducing you to my sister. 195 00:11:54.399 --> 00:11:56.840 My first thought was that I should be by Sir 196 00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:00.200 Henry's side, but then I remembered the pile of papers 197 00:12:00.200 --> 00:12:03.639 and bills with which his study table was littered. It 198 00:12:03.759 --> 00:12:06.480 was certain that I could not help with those, and 199 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:09.519 Holmes had expressly said that I should study the neighbors 200 00:12:09.600 --> 00:12:14.440 upon the moor. I accepted Stapleton's invitation, and we turned 201 00:12:14.440 --> 00:12:18.960 together down the path. It is a wonderful place, the more, 202 00:12:19.480 --> 00:12:23.360 said he, looking round over the undulating downs, long green 203 00:12:23.480 --> 00:12:28.360 rollers with crests of jagged granite foaming up into fantastic surges. 204 00:12:29.320 --> 00:12:32.559 You never toier of the more. You cannot think the 205 00:12:32.639 --> 00:12:37.120 wonderful secrets which it contains. It is so vast and 206 00:12:37.200 --> 00:12:42.159 so barren and so mysterious. You know it well, then, 207 00:12:43.200 --> 00:12:46.799 I have only been here two years. The residence would 208 00:12:46.799 --> 00:12:49.960 call me a new comer. We came shortly after Sir 209 00:12:50.039 --> 00:12:54.080 Charles settled. But my taste led me to explore every 210 00:12:54.159 --> 00:12:57.279 part of the country round. And I should think that 211 00:12:57.360 --> 00:12:59.679 there are few men who know it better than I do. 212 00:13:01.120 --> 00:13:05.919 Is it hard to know? Very hard? You see, for example, 213 00:13:06.519 --> 00:13:09.159 this great plain to the north here, with the queer 214 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:13.120 ills breaking out of it. Do you observe anything remarkable 215 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:16.639 about that? It would be a rare place for a gallop, 216 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:21.360 You would naturally think so, and the thought has cost 217 00:13:21.440 --> 00:13:25.840 several their lives before. Now you notice those bright green 218 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:30.919 spots scattered thickly over it. Yes, they seem more fertile 219 00:13:30.960 --> 00:13:35.200 than the rest Stapleton laughed. He that is the great 220 00:13:35.240 --> 00:13:39.840 grimpen mire, said he. A false step yonder means death 221 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:43.639 to man or beast. Only yesterday I saw one of 222 00:13:43.679 --> 00:13:48.360 the more ponies wander into it me never came out. 223 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:52.039 I saw his head for quite a long time craning 224 00:13:52.080 --> 00:13:55.159 out of the bog hole, but it sucked him down 225 00:13:55.200 --> 00:13:59.080 at last. Even in dry seasons it is a danger 226 00:13:59.120 --> 00:14:03.000 to cross it. But after these autumn rains it is 227 00:14:03.039 --> 00:14:06.480 an awful place. And yet I can find my way 228 00:14:06.559 --> 00:14:10.559 to the very art of it and return alive. By George, 229 00:14:10.600 --> 00:14:15.600 there's another of those miserable ponies. Something brown was rolling 230 00:14:15.639 --> 00:14:19.799 and tossing among the green sedges. Then a long, agonized, 231 00:14:20.000 --> 00:14:23.639 writhing neck shot upward, and a dreadful cry echoed over 232 00:14:23.639 --> 00:14:27.320 the moor. It turned me cold with horror. But my 233 00:14:27.399 --> 00:14:31.759 companion's nerves seem to be stronger than mine. It's gone, 234 00:14:32.200 --> 00:14:36.919 said he. The mire has him two in two days, 235 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:39.919 and many more perhaps, for they get in the way 236 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:42.600 of going there in the dry weather and never know 237 00:14:42.720 --> 00:14:45.480 the difference until the mire has them in its clutches. 238 00:14:46.399 --> 00:14:50.240 It's a bad place, the great grimp and Meyer. And 239 00:14:50.360 --> 00:14:54.519 you say you can penetrate it, Yes, there are one 240 00:14:54.600 --> 00:14:57.320 or two paths which a very active man can take. 241 00:14:57.960 --> 00:15:01.279 I have found them out. But why should you wish 242 00:15:01.320 --> 00:15:06.279 to go into so horrible a place? Well, you see 243 00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:10.080 the hills beyond. They are really islands, cut off on 244 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:14.080 all sides by the impassable mire which has crawled round 245 00:15:14.080 --> 00:15:17.200 them in the course of years. That is where the 246 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:20.279 rare plants and the butterflies are. If you have the 247 00:15:20.320 --> 00:15:24.039 wit to reach em, I shall try my luck some day. 248 00:15:25.080 --> 00:15:29.000 He looked at me with a surprised face. For God's sake, 249 00:15:29.159 --> 00:15:32.039 put such an idea out of your mind, said he. 250 00:15:32.840 --> 00:15:36.960 Your blood will be upon my head. I assure you 251 00:15:37.559 --> 00:15:39.960 that there would not be the least chance of your 252 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:44.679 coming back alive. It is only by remembering certain complex 253 00:15:44.759 --> 00:15:50.240 landmarks that I am able to do it. Hallo, I cried, 254 00:15:50.960 --> 00:15:57.200 what is that? A long, low moan, indescribably sad, swept 255 00:15:57.240 --> 00:15:59.840 over the moor. It filled the whole air, and yet 256 00:15:59.840 --> 00:16:03.559 it was impossible to say whence it came? From a 257 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:07.519 dull murmur. It swelled into a deep roar, and then 258 00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:12.720 sank back into a melancholy, throbbing murmur. Once again, Stapleton 259 00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:15.240 looked at me with a curious expression in his face. 260 00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:20.720 Queer place the more, said he, But what is it? 261 00:16:22.000 --> 00:16:25.120 The peasants say it is the hound of the Baskervilles 262 00:16:25.240 --> 00:16:29.200 calling for its prey. I've heard it once or twice before, 263 00:16:30.000 --> 00:16:33.840 but never quite so loud. I looked round with a 264 00:16:33.919 --> 00:16:37.200 chill of fear in my heart that the huge swelling plain, 265 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:41.600 mottled with the green patches of rushes. Nothing stirred over 266 00:16:41.639 --> 00:16:44.799 the vast expanse, save a pair of ravens, which croaked 267 00:16:44.879 --> 00:16:50.200 loudly from a tour behind us. You are an educated man. 268 00:16:50.720 --> 00:16:54.720 You don't believe such nonsense as that, said I. What 269 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:58.519 do you think is the cause of so strange a sound? 270 00:16:59.000 --> 00:17:03.440 Bogs make queer noises. Sometimes it's the mud settling, or 271 00:17:03.480 --> 00:17:08.000 the water rising or something. No, no, that was a 272 00:17:08.039 --> 00:17:12.960 living voice, Well perhaps it was. Did you ever hear 273 00:17:13.039 --> 00:17:17.400 a bitten booming? No? I never did. It is a 274 00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:22.640 very rare bird, practically extinct in England now. But all 275 00:17:22.759 --> 00:17:26.000 things are possible upon the moor. Yes, I should not 276 00:17:26.079 --> 00:17:29.240 be surprised to learn what we have heard is the 277 00:17:29.240 --> 00:17:33.240 cry of the last of the bittens. It's the weirdest, 278 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:36.880 strangest thing that ever I heard in my life. Yes, 279 00:17:37.079 --> 00:17:41.960 it's rather an uncanny place altogether. Look at the hillside yonder, 280 00:17:42.599 --> 00:17:46.319 What do you make of those? The whole steep slope 281 00:17:46.359 --> 00:17:50.000 was covered with gray circular rings of stone. The score 282 00:17:50.039 --> 00:17:55.039 of them at least, what are they sheep pens? No, 283 00:17:56.079 --> 00:18:00.559 they are the homes of our worthy ancestors. The historic 284 00:18:00.680 --> 00:18:03.839 man lived thickly on the moor, and as no one 285 00:18:03.880 --> 00:18:07.480 in particular has lived there since, we find all these 286 00:18:07.599 --> 00:18:12.559 little arrangements exactly as he left them. These are his wigwams, 287 00:18:12.839 --> 00:18:15.759 with the roofs off. You can even see his hearth 288 00:18:15.799 --> 00:18:19.720 and his couch if you have the curiosity to go inside. 289 00:18:20.440 --> 00:18:23.960 But it is quite a town. When was it inhabited? 290 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:31.359 Neolithic man? No date? What did he do? He grazed 291 00:18:31.359 --> 00:18:34.319 his cattle on those slopes, and he learned to dig 292 00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:37.480 for tin when the bronze sword began to supersede the 293 00:18:37.559 --> 00:18:41.319 stone axe. Look at the great trench in the opposite hill. 294 00:18:42.119 --> 00:18:45.279 That is his mark. Yes, you will find some very 295 00:18:45.319 --> 00:18:49.839 singular points about the moor, Doctor Watson, Oh, excuse me 296 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:55.440 an instant it is surely cyclopades. A small fly or 297 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:59.079 moth had fluttered across our path, and in an instant 298 00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:02.960 Stapleton was rushing with extraordinary energy and speed in pursuit 299 00:19:02.960 --> 00:19:06.640 of it. To my dismay, the creature flew straight for 300 00:19:06.720 --> 00:19:10.519 the great mire, and my acquaintance never paused for an instant, 301 00:19:10.960 --> 00:19:15.519 bounding from tuft to tuft behind it, his green net 302 00:19:15.640 --> 00:19:19.680 waving in the air, his gray clothes, and jerky zigzag 303 00:19:19.720 --> 00:19:23.880 irregular progress made him not unlike some huge moth himself. 304 00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:27.200 I was standing watching his pursuit with a mixture of 305 00:19:27.240 --> 00:19:31.480 admiration for his extraordinary activity, and fear lest he should 306 00:19:31.480 --> 00:19:34.839 lose his footing in the treacherous mire, when I heard 307 00:19:34.880 --> 00:19:38.160 the sound of steps, and turning round, found a woman 308 00:19:38.200 --> 00:19:40.839 near me upon the path. She had come from the 309 00:19:40.880 --> 00:19:43.839 direction in which the plume of smoke indicated the position 310 00:19:43.880 --> 00:19:47.160 of Merripit House, but the dip of the moor had 311 00:19:47.240 --> 00:19:50.920 hit her until she was quite close. I could not 312 00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:53.279 doubt that this was the Miss Stapleton of whom I 313 00:19:53.319 --> 00:19:56.319 had been told, since ladies of any sort must be 314 00:19:56.359 --> 00:19:58.960 few upon the moor, and I remembered that I had 315 00:19:59.039 --> 00:20:02.240 heard some one described her as being a beauty. The 316 00:20:02.279 --> 00:20:05.640 woman who approached me was certainly that, and of a 317 00:20:05.720 --> 00:20:09.160 most uncommon type. There could not have been a greater 318 00:20:09.279 --> 00:20:13.920 contrast between brother and sister. For Stapleton was neutral tinted, 319 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:17.480 with light hair and gray eyes, while she was darker 320 00:20:17.519 --> 00:20:20.680 than any brunette whom I had seen in England, Slim, 321 00:20:20.920 --> 00:20:26.200 elegant and tall. She had a proud, finely cut face, 322 00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:29.440 so regular that it might have seemed impassive were it 323 00:20:29.519 --> 00:20:33.240 not for the sensitive mouth and the beautiful, dark, eager eyes. 324 00:20:34.359 --> 00:20:37.920 With her perfect figure and elegant dress, she was indeed 325 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:42.680 a strange apparition upon a lonely Moorland path. Her eyes 326 00:20:42.720 --> 00:20:44.960 were on her brother as I turned, and then she 327 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:49.200 quickened her pace towards me. I had raised my hat 328 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:52.880 and was about to make some explanatory remark when her 329 00:20:52.920 --> 00:20:55.880 own words turned all my thoughts into a new channel. 330 00:20:57.079 --> 00:21:00.960 Go back, she said, go straight back to London. Instantly, 331 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:05.240 I could only stare at her in stupid surprise. Her 332 00:21:05.279 --> 00:21:08.599 eyes blazed at me, and she tapped the ground impatiently 333 00:21:08.640 --> 00:21:12.440 with her foot. Why should I go back, I asked, 334 00:21:13.200 --> 00:21:16.400 I cannot explain, she spoke in a low, eager voice, 335 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:19.759 with a curious lisp in her utterance. But for God's sake, 336 00:21:20.119 --> 00:21:22.680 do what I ask you. Go back and never set 337 00:21:22.720 --> 00:21:28.519 foot upon the moor. Again. But I've only just come man, man, 338 00:21:28.759 --> 00:21:31.200 she cried, Can you not tell when a warning is 339 00:21:31.240 --> 00:21:34.519 for your own good? Go back to London, start to night, 340 00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:38.079 get away from this place at all costs. Hush, my 341 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:41.519 brother's coming. Not a word or what I've said? Would 342 00:21:41.559 --> 00:21:43.680 you mind getting that orchid for me among the Mayor's 343 00:21:43.720 --> 00:21:47.680 tails Yonder. We're very rich in orchids on the moor, though, 344 00:21:47.720 --> 00:21:49.799 of course you are rather late to see the beauties 345 00:21:49.799 --> 00:21:54.039 of the place. Stapleton had abandoned the chase and come 346 00:21:54.119 --> 00:21:57.200 back to us, breathing hard and flushed with his exertions. 347 00:21:57.839 --> 00:22:01.599 E Loo, Beryl said, and it seemed to me that 348 00:22:01.640 --> 00:22:06.039 the tone of his greeting was not altogether a cordial one. Well, Jack, 349 00:22:06.200 --> 00:22:12.319 you're very hot. Yes, I was chasing as cyclopedies. He 350 00:22:12.440 --> 00:22:15.839 is very rare and seldom found in the late autumn. 351 00:22:16.400 --> 00:22:18.559 What a pity you that I should have missed him, 352 00:22:19.519 --> 00:22:24.000 He spoke unconcernedly, but his small light eyes glanced incessantly 353 00:22:24.039 --> 00:22:28.759 from the girl to me. You have introduced yourselves, I 354 00:22:28.839 --> 00:22:32.599 can see. Yes, I was telling Sir Henry that it 355 00:22:32.640 --> 00:22:34.720 was rather late for him to see the true beauties 356 00:22:34.720 --> 00:22:39.000 of the moor. Why who do you think this is 357 00:22:40.240 --> 00:22:44.119 I imagine that it must be Sir Henry Baskerville. No, no, 358 00:22:44.680 --> 00:22:49.000 said I, only a humble commoner. But his friend my 359 00:22:49.160 --> 00:22:53.240 name is doctor Watson. A flush of vexation passed over 360 00:22:53.279 --> 00:22:57.640 her expressive face. We have been talking at cross purposes, 361 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:02.920 said she. Why you had not very much time for talk? 362 00:23:03.480 --> 00:23:08.160 Her brother remarked, with the same questioning eyes. I talked 363 00:23:08.160 --> 00:23:10.559 as if Dr Watson were a resident instead of being 364 00:23:10.559 --> 00:23:13.839 a merely a visitor, said she. It cannot much matter 365 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:16.079 to him whether it is early or late for the orchids. 366 00:23:17.119 --> 00:23:19.680 But you will come on, will you not, and see 367 00:23:19.680 --> 00:23:23.839 Merripit house. A short walk brought us to it, a 368 00:23:23.920 --> 00:23:27.559 bleaque moorland house, once the farm of some grazier in 369 00:23:27.599 --> 00:23:30.839 the old prosperous days, but now put into repair and 370 00:23:30.880 --> 00:23:35.119 turned into a modern dwelling. An orchard surrounded it, but 371 00:23:35.200 --> 00:23:38.319 the trees, as is usual upon the moor, were stunted 372 00:23:38.359 --> 00:23:41.359 and nipped, and the effect of the whole place was 373 00:23:41.519 --> 00:23:45.680 mean and melancholy. We were admitted by a strange, wizened, 374 00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:49.599 rusty coated old man servant, who seemed in keeping with 375 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:54.200 the house. Inside, however, there were large rooms furnished with 376 00:23:54.240 --> 00:23:56.880 an elegance in which I seemed to recognize the taste 377 00:23:56.920 --> 00:24:00.240 of the lady. As I looked from their windows at 378 00:24:00.279 --> 00:24:05.200 the interminable granite flecked moor, rolling unbroken to the farthest horizon, 379 00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:08.000 I could not but marvel at what could have brought 380 00:24:08.039 --> 00:24:11.839 this highly educated man and this beautiful woman to live 381 00:24:11.839 --> 00:24:16.640 in such a place. Queer spot to choose, is it not, 382 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:20.200 said he, as if in answer to my thought. And 383 00:24:20.400 --> 00:24:24.359 yet we managed to make ourselves fairly happy, do we not? Beryl? 384 00:24:25.319 --> 00:24:28.480 Quite happy, said she, But there was no ring of 385 00:24:28.519 --> 00:24:33.359 conviction in her words. I had a school, said Stapleton. 386 00:24:33.759 --> 00:24:36.640 It was in the north Country. The work, to a 387 00:24:36.680 --> 00:24:41.240 man of my temperament, was mechanical and uninteresting, But the 388 00:24:41.279 --> 00:24:44.240 privilege of living with youth, of helping to mold those 389 00:24:44.279 --> 00:24:48.119 young minds, and of impressing them with one's own character 390 00:24:48.240 --> 00:24:52.759 and ideals, was very dear to me. However, the fates 391 00:24:52.799 --> 00:24:56.799 were against us. A serious epidemic broke out in the school, 392 00:24:56.880 --> 00:25:00.319 and three of the boys died. It never recur covered 393 00:25:00.359 --> 00:25:03.680 from the blow, and much of my capital was irretrievably 394 00:25:03.759 --> 00:25:07.079 swallowed up. And yet, if it were not for the 395 00:25:07.119 --> 00:25:10.720 loss of the charming companionship of the boys. I could 396 00:25:10.759 --> 00:25:14.839 rejoice over my own misfortune, for with my strong taste 397 00:25:14.880 --> 00:25:18.720 for botany and zoology, I find an unlimited field of 398 00:25:18.759 --> 00:25:22.279 work here, and my sister is as devoted to nature 399 00:25:22.319 --> 00:25:26.440 as I am. All this, Doctor Watson, has been brought 400 00:25:26.480 --> 00:25:29.200 upon your head by your expression as you surveyed the 401 00:25:29.240 --> 00:25:33.079