Speaker 1: Chapter five of The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir
Speaker 1: Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Speaker 1: Chapter five, three Broken Threads. Sherlock Holmes had in a
Speaker 1: very remarkable degree the power of detaching his mind at will.
Speaker 1: For two hours. The strange business in which we had
Speaker 1: been involved appeared to be forgotten, and he was entirely
Speaker 1: absorbed in the pictures of the modern Belgian masters. He
Speaker 1: would talk of nothing but art, of which he had
Speaker 1: the crudest ideas from our leaving the gallery until we
Speaker 1: found ourselves at the Northumberland Hotel. Sir Henry Baskerville is
Speaker 1: upstairs expecting you, said the clerk. He asked me to
Speaker 1: show you up at once when you came. Have you
Speaker 1: any objection to my looking at your register? Said Holmes,
Speaker 1: Nor in the least. The books show that two names
Speaker 1: had been added after that of Baskerville. One was Theophilus Johnson,
Speaker 1: family of Newcastle, the other Missus Oldmore and Maid of
Speaker 1: High Lodge, Alton. Surely that must be the same Johnson
Speaker 1: whom I used to know, said Holmes to the porter.
Speaker 1: A lawyer is he not gray haired? And walks with
Speaker 1: a limp. Now, sir, this is mister Johnson, the coal owner,
Speaker 1: a very active gentleman, not older than yourself. Surely you
Speaker 1: are mistaken about his trade, now, Sir, he has used
Speaker 1: this hotel for many years, and he is very well
Speaker 1: known to us. Ah, that settles it, missus oldmore too,
Speaker 1: I seem to remember the name. Excuse my curiosity. But
Speaker 1: often in calling upon one friend, one finds another. She
Speaker 1: is an invalid lady, Sir. Her husband was once mayor
Speaker 1: of Gloucester. She always comes to us when she's in town.
Speaker 1: Thank you. I'm afraid I cannot claim her acquaintance. We
Speaker 1: have established a most important fact by these questions, Watson,
Speaker 1: he continued in a low voice, as we went upstairs together.
Speaker 1: We know now that the people who are so interested
Speaker 1: in our friend have not settled down in his own hotel.
Speaker 1: That means that while they are, as we have seen,
Speaker 1: very anxious to watch him, they are equally anxious that
Speaker 1: he should not see them. Now, this is a most
Speaker 1: suggestive fact. What does it suggest? It suggests? Hullo, my
Speaker 1: dear fellow, What on earth is the matter? As we
Speaker 1: came round the top of the stairs, we'd run up
Speaker 1: against Sir Henry Baskerville himself. His face was flushed with anger,
Speaker 1: and he held an old and dusty boot in one
Speaker 1: of his hands. So furious was he that he was
Speaker 1: hardly articulate, and when he did speak, it was in
Speaker 1: a much broader and more western dialect than any which
Speaker 1: we had heard from him in the morning. Seems to
Speaker 1: me they are playing me for a sucker in this hotel,
Speaker 1: he cried, they'll find they've started into monkey with the
Speaker 1: wrong man unless they are careful. By thunder, If that
Speaker 1: chap can't find my missing boot, there'll be trouble. I
Speaker 1: can take a joke with the best, mister Holmes, but
Speaker 1: they've got a bit over the mark this time. Still
Speaker 1: looking for your boot, yes, sir, and mean to find it.
Speaker 1: But surely you said that it was a new brown boot.
Speaker 1: So it was, sir, And now it's an old black one.
Speaker 1: What you don't mean to say, That's just what I
Speaker 1: do mean to say. I only had three pairs in
Speaker 1: the world, the new brown, the old black, and the
Speaker 1: patent leathers which I'm wearing. Last night they took one
Speaker 1: of my brown ones, and to day they have sneaked
Speaker 1: one of the black. Well, have you got it, Speak out, man,
Speaker 1: and don't stand staring. An agitated German waiter had appeared
Speaker 1: upon the scene. No, sir, I have made inquiry all
Speaker 1: over the hotel, but I can hear no word of it. Well,
Speaker 1: either that comes back before sundown, or I'll see the
Speaker 1: manager and tell him that I go right straight out
Speaker 1: of this hotel. It shall be found, sir. I promise
Speaker 1: you is that, if you'll have a little patience, it
Speaker 1: will be found. Mind. It is for it's the last
Speaker 1: thing of mine that I'll lose in this dead of thieves. Well, well,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, you'll excuse my troubling you about such a trifle.
Speaker 1: I think it's well worth troubling about. Why you look
Speaker 1: very serious over it? How do you explain it? I
Speaker 1: just don't attempt to explain it. It seems the very
Speaker 1: maddest queerest thing that ever happened to me. The queerest, perhaps,
Speaker 1: said Holmes thoughtfully. What do you make of it yourself? Well,
Speaker 1: I don't profess to understand it yet. This case of
Speaker 1: yours is very complex, sir Henry, when taken in conjunction
Speaker 1: with your uncle's death. I'm not sure that all the
Speaker 1: five hundred cases of capital importance which I've handled, there
Speaker 1: is one which cuts so deep. But we hold several
Speaker 1: threads in our hands, and the odds are that one
Speaker 1: or other of them guides us to the truth. We
Speaker 1: may waste time in following the wrong one, but sooner
Speaker 1: or later we must come upon the right. We had
Speaker 1: a pleasant luncheon, in which little was said of the
Speaker 1: business which had brought us together. It was in the
Speaker 1: private sitting room, to which we afterwards repaired that Holmes
Speaker 1: asked Baskerville what were his intentions to go to Baskerville
Speaker 1: Hall and when at the end of the week on
Speaker 1: the whole, said Holmes, I think that your decision is
Speaker 1: a wise one. I have ample evidence that you are
Speaker 1: being dogged in London, and amid the millions of this
Speaker 1: great city. It is difficult to discover who these people
Speaker 1: are or what their object can be. If their intentions
Speaker 1: are evil, they might do your mischief, and we should
Speaker 1: be powerless to pre You did not know, Dr Mortimer,
Speaker 1: that you were followed this morning from my house. Dr
Speaker 1: Mortimer started violently, followed by whom that, unfortunately is what
Speaker 1: I cannot tell you. Have you among your neighbors or
Speaker 1: acquaintances on Dartmoor any man with a black full beard? No?
Speaker 1: Or let me see why? Yes, Barrymore, Sir Charles Butler
Speaker 1: is a man with a full black beard. Ha. Where
Speaker 1: is Barrymore? He is in charge of the hall. We
Speaker 1: had best ascertain if he is really there, or if
Speaker 1: by any possibility he might be in London? How can
Speaker 1: you do that? Give me a telegraph form is all
Speaker 1: ready for Sir Henry. That will do, addressed to mister Barrymore,
Speaker 1: Baskerville Hall. What is the nearest telegraph office, Grimpon? Very good?
Speaker 1: We will send a second wire to the postmaster Grimpen
Speaker 1: telegram to mister Barrymore, to be delivered into his own hand.
Speaker 1: If absent, please return wire to Sir Henry Baskerville, Northumberland Hotel.
Speaker 1: That should let us know before evening whether Barrymore is
Speaker 1: at his post in Devonshire or not. That's so said Baskerville.
Speaker 1: By the way, Doctor Mortimer, who is this Barrmore? Anyhow?
Speaker 1: He is the son of the old caretaker who is dead.
Speaker 1: They have looked after the hall for four generations now,
Speaker 1: so far as I know, he and his wife are
Speaker 1: as respectable a couple as any in the county. At
Speaker 1: the same time, said Baskerville. It's clear enough that so
Speaker 1: long as there are none of the family at the hall,
Speaker 1: these people have a mighty fine home and nothing to do.
Speaker 1: That is true. Did barrymore profit at all by Sir
Speaker 1: Charles's will, asked Holmes. Here and his wife had five
Speaker 1: hundred pounds each. Ah, did they know that they would
Speaker 1: receive this? Yes, Sir Charles was very fond of talking
Speaker 1: about the provisions of his will. That is very interesting,
Speaker 1: I hope, said doctor Mortimer, that you do not look
Speaker 1: with suspicious eyes upon every one who received a legacy
Speaker 1: from Sir Charles. For I also had a thousand pounds
Speaker 1: left to me, indeed, and any one else. There were
Speaker 1: many insignificant sums to individuals, and a large number of
Speaker 1: public charities. The residue all went to Sir Henry. And
Speaker 1: how much was the residue? Seven hundred and forty thousand pounds.
Speaker 1: Holmes raised his eyebrows in surprise. I had no idea
Speaker 1: that so gigantic a sum was involved, said he. Sir
Speaker 1: Charles had the reputation of being rich, but we did
Speaker 1: not know how very rich he was until we came
Speaker 1: to examine his securities. The total value of this estate
Speaker 1: was close on to a million. Dear me, it is
Speaker 1: a stake for which a man might well play a
Speaker 1: desperate game. And one more question, Doctor Mortimer, supposing that
Speaker 1: anything happened to our young friend here, you'll forgive the
Speaker 1: unpleasant hypothesis, who would inherit the estate? Since Roger Baskerville,
Speaker 1: Sir Charles's youngest brother, died unmarried, the estate would descend
Speaker 1: to the Desmonds, who are distant cousins. James Desmond is
Speaker 1: an elderly clergyman in Westminland. Thank you. These details are
Speaker 1: all of great interest. Have you met mister James Desmond. Yes,
Speaker 1: he once came down to visit Sir Charles. He is
Speaker 1: a man of venerable appearance and of saintly life. I
Speaker 1: remember that he refused to accept any settlement from Sir Charles,
Speaker 1: though he pressed it upon him. And this man of
Speaker 1: simple tastes would be the heir to Sir Charles's thousands.
Speaker 1: He would be the heir to the estate, because that
Speaker 1: is entailed. He would also be the heir to the money,
Speaker 1: unless it were willed otherwise by the present owner, who can,
Speaker 1: of course do what he liked with it and have
Speaker 1: you made your will, Sir Henry, No, mister Holmes, I
Speaker 1: have not. I have had no time, for it was
Speaker 1: only yesterday that I learned how matters stood. But in
Speaker 1: any case, I feel that the money should go with
Speaker 1: the title and estate. That was my poor uncle's idea.
Speaker 1: How is the owner going to restore the glories of
Speaker 1: the Baskervilles if he has not money enough to keep
Speaker 1: up the property? House, land and dollars must go together?
Speaker 1: Quite so well, Sir Henry, I am of one mind
Speaker 1: with you as to the advisability of you going down
Speaker 1: to Devonshire without delay. There is only one provision which
Speaker 1: I must make. You certainly must not go alone. Dr
Speaker 1: Mortimer returns with me. But Mortimer has his practice to
Speaker 1: attend to, and his house is miles away from yours.
Speaker 1: With all the good will in the world, he may
Speaker 1: be unable to help you. Now, Sir Henry, you must
Speaker 1: take with you some one, a trusty man who will
Speaker 1: be always by your side. Is it possible as you
Speaker 1: could come yourself, mister Holmes, if matters came to a crisis,
Speaker 1: I should endeavor to be present in person. But you
Speaker 1: can understand that with my extensive consulting practice, and with
Speaker 1: the constant appeals which reach me from many quarters, it
Speaker 1: is impossible for me to be absent from London for
Speaker 1: an indefinite time. At the present instant, one of the
Speaker 1: most revered names in England is being besmirched by a blackmailer,
Speaker 1: and only I can stop a disastrous scandal. You will
Speaker 1: see how impossible it is for me to go to Dartmoor.
Speaker 1: Whom would you recommend? Then, Holmes laid his hand upon
Speaker 1: my arm, if my friend would undertake it. There is
Speaker 1: no man who is better worth having at your side
Speaker 1: when you are in a tight place. No one can
Speaker 1: say more confidently than I. The proposition took me completely
Speaker 1: by surprise. But before I had time to answer, Baskerville
Speaker 1: seized me by the hand and wrung it heartily. Well now,
Speaker 1: and is real kind of you? Doctor Watson? Said he
Speaker 1: You see how it is with me, and you know
Speaker 1: just as much about the matter as I do. If
Speaker 1: you will come down to Baskerville Hall and see me through,
Speaker 1: I'll never forget it. The promise of adventure had always
Speaker 1: a fascination for me, and I was complimented by the
Speaker 1: words of Holmes, and by the eagerness with which the
Speaker 1: baronet hailed me as a companion. I'll come with pleasure,
Speaker 1: said I. I do not know how I could employ
Speaker 1: my time better. And you will report very carefully to me,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. When a crisis comes, as it will do,
Speaker 1: I will direct how you shall act. I suppose that
Speaker 1: by Saturday all might be ready. Would that suit doctor
Speaker 1: Watson perfectly? Then on Saturday, unless you hear to the contrary,
Speaker 1: we shall meet at the ten thirty train from Paddington.
Speaker 1: We had risen to depart when Baskerville gave a cry
Speaker 1: of triumph, and, diving into one of the corners of
Speaker 1: the room, he drew a brown boot from under a cabinet.
Speaker 1: My missing boot, he cried. May all our difficulties vanish
Speaker 1: as easily, said Sherlock Holmes. But it is a very
Speaker 1: singular thing. Doctor Mortimer remarked, I searched this room carefully
Speaker 1: before lunch, and so did I, said Baskerville, every inch
Speaker 1: of it. There was certainly no boot in it. Then
Speaker 1: in that case the waiter must have placed it there
Speaker 1: while we were lunching. The German was sent for, but
Speaker 1: professed to know nothing of the matter, nor could any
Speaker 1: inquiry clear it up. Another item had been added to
Speaker 1: that constant and apparently purposeless series of small mysteries which
Speaker 1: had succeeded each other so rapidly. Setting aside the whole
Speaker 1: grim story of Sir Charles's death, we had a line
Speaker 1: of inexplicable incidents, all within the limits of two days,
Speaker 1: which included the receipt of the printed letter, the black
Speaker 1: bearded spy in the hansom, the loss of the new
Speaker 1: brown boot, the loss of the old black boot, and
Speaker 1: now the return of the new Brown boot. Homes sat
Speaker 1: in silence in the cab as we drove back to
Speaker 1: Baker Street, and I knew from his drawn brows and
Speaker 1: keen face that his mind, like my own, was busy
Speaker 1: in endeavoring to frame some scheme into which all these
Speaker 1: strange and apparently disconnected episodes could be fitted. All afternoon
Speaker 1: and late into the evening, he sat lost in tobacco
Speaker 1: and thought, just before dinner, two telegrams were handed. In
Speaker 1: the first round have just heard that Barrymore is at
Speaker 1: the Hall Baskerville. The second visited twenty three hotels as directed,
Speaker 1: but sorry to report, unable to trace cut sheet of times. Cartwright,
Speaker 1: there go two of my threads. Watson, there is nothing
Speaker 1: more stimulating than a case where everything goes against you.
Speaker 1: We must cast around for another cent. We still have
Speaker 1: the cabman who drove the spy exactly. I have wired
Speaker 1: to get his name and address from the official registry.
Speaker 1: I should not be surprised if this were an answer
Speaker 1: to my question. The ring at the bell proved to
Speaker 1: be something even more satisfactory than an answer, however, for
Speaker 1: the door opened and a rough looking fellow entered, who
Speaker 1: was evidently the man himself. I've got a message from
Speaker 1: the ed Office that a gent at this address had
Speaker 1: been inquiring for number twenty seven O four, said he.
Speaker 1: I've driven my cab this seven years and never a
Speaker 1: word of complaint. AH came here straight from the yard
Speaker 1: to ask you or your face, what you are against me.
Speaker 1: I have nothing in the world against you, my good man,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. On the contrary, I have half a sovereign
Speaker 1: for you, if you will give me a clear answer
Speaker 1: to my questions. Well, I have had a good day
Speaker 1: and no mistake, said the cabman, with a grin. What
Speaker 1: was it you wanted to ask? Sir? First of all,
Speaker 1: your name and address in case I want you again.
Speaker 1: John Clayton three Turpey Street, the borough. My cab is
Speaker 1: out of Shipley's Yard, near Waterloo Station. Sherlock Holmes made
Speaker 1: a note of it. Now, Clayton, tell me all about
Speaker 1: the fair who came and watched this house at ten
Speaker 1: o'clock this morning, and afterwards followed the two gentlemen down
Speaker 1: Regent Street. The man looked surprised and a little embarrassed.
Speaker 1: Why there's no good my telling you things you seem
Speaker 1: to know as much as I do already, said he.
Speaker 1: The truth is that the gentleman told me that he
Speaker 1: was a detective, and I was to say nothing about
Speaker 1: him to any one. My good fellow, this is a
Speaker 1: very serious business, and you may find yourself in a
Speaker 1: pretty bad position if you try to hide anything from me.
Speaker 1: You say that your fare told you that he was
Speaker 1: a detective, Yes he did. When did he say this?
Speaker 1: When he left me? Did he say anything more? He
Speaker 1: mentioned his name? Holmes cast a swift glance of triumph
Speaker 1: at me. Oh, he mentioned his name? Did he? That
Speaker 1: was imprudent? What was the name that he mentioned? His name?
Speaker 1: Said the cabman was mister Sherlock Holmes. Never have I
Speaker 1: seen my friend more completely taken aback than by the
Speaker 1: cabman's reply. For an instant he sat in silent amazement,
Speaker 1: and he burst into a hearty lad A touch, Watson,
Speaker 1: an undeniable touch, said he, I feel a foil as
Speaker 1: quick and supple as my own. He got home upon
Speaker 1: me very prettily that time. So his name was Sherlock Holmes,
Speaker 1: Was it? Yes, sir, that was the gentleman's name. Excellent?
Speaker 1: Tell me where you picked him up and all that occurred.
Speaker 1: He ailed me at half pus nine in Trafalgar Square.
Speaker 1: He said that he was a detective, and he offered
Speaker 1: me two guineas if I would do exactly what he
Speaker 1: wanted all day and asked no questions. I was glad
Speaker 1: enough to agree. First, we drove down to the Northumberland
Speaker 1: Hotel and waited there until two gentlemen came out and
Speaker 1: took a cab from the rank. We followed their cab
Speaker 1: until it pulled up somewhere near here this very door,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Well, I can't be sure of that, but
Speaker 1: I dare say my fair knew all about it. We
Speaker 1: pulled up halfway down the street and waited an hour
Speaker 1: and a half, and the two gentlemen passed us walking,
Speaker 1: and we followed down Baker Street and along, I know,
Speaker 1: said Holmes, until we got three quarters down Regent Street,
Speaker 1: and my gentleman threw up the trap and he cried
Speaker 1: that I should drive right away to Waterloo Station as
Speaker 1: hard as I could go. I whipped up the mayor,
Speaker 1: and we were there under the ten minutes, and he
Speaker 1: paid up his two guineas like a good one, and
Speaker 1: away he went into the station. Only just as he
Speaker 1: was leaving, he turned round and he said, it might
Speaker 1: interest you to know that you've been driving mister Sherlock Holmes.
Speaker 1: That's how I came to know the name I see.
Speaker 1: And you saw no more of him, not after he
Speaker 1: went into the station. And how would you describe mister
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes. The cabman scratched his head. Well, he wasn't
Speaker 1: altogether such an easy gentleman to describe. I put him
Speaker 1: at forty years of age, and he was of middle light,
Speaker 1: two or three inches shorter than you, sir. He was
Speaker 1: dressed like a toff, and he had a black beard
Speaker 1: cut square at the end, and a pale face. I
Speaker 1: doubt now as I could say any more than that
Speaker 1: color of his eyes now I can't say that nothing
Speaker 1: more that you can remember, no, sir, nothing, Well, then
Speaker 1: here is your half sovereign. There's another one waiting for
Speaker 1: you if you can bring any more information. Good night,
Speaker 1: good night, sir, and thank you. John Clayton departed chuckling,
Speaker 1: and Holmes turned to me with a shrug of his
Speaker 1: shoulders and a rueful smile. Snap goes our third thread,
Speaker 1: and we end where we began, said he, the cunning rascal.
Speaker 1: He knew our number, knew that Sir Henry Baskerville had
Speaker 1: consulted me, spotted who I was in Regent Street, conjectured
Speaker 1: that I had got the number of the cab and
Speaker 1: would lay my hands on the driver, and so sent
Speaker 1: back this audacious message. I tell you, Watson, this time
Speaker 1: we have got a foeman who is worthy of our steel.
Speaker 1: I've been checkmated in London. I can only wish you
Speaker 1: better luck in Devonshire. But I'm not easy in my
Speaker 1: mind about it. About what about sending you. It's an
Speaker 1: ugly business, Watson, an ugly dangerous business, and the more
Speaker 1: I see of it, the less I like it. Yes,
Speaker 1: my dear fellow, you may laugh, but I give you
Speaker 1: my word that I shall be very glad to have
Speaker 1: you back, safe and sound in Baker Street once more.
Speaker 1: End of Chapter five,