Speaker 1: The Engineer's Thumb. Of all the problems which have been
Speaker 1: submitted to my friend mister Sherlock Holmes for solution during
Speaker 1: the years of our intimacy, there were only two which
Speaker 1: I was the means of introducing to his notice, that
Speaker 1: of mister Hatherley's Thumb and that of Colonel Warburton's Madness.
Speaker 1: Of these, the latter may have afforded a finer field
Speaker 1: for an acute and original observer, but the other was
Speaker 1: so strange in its inception and so dramatic in its details,
Speaker 1: that it may be the more worthy of being placed
Speaker 1: upon record, even if it gave my friend fewer openings
Speaker 1: for those deductive methods of reasoning by which he achieved
Speaker 1: such remarkable results. The story has, I believe, been told
Speaker 1: more than once in the newspapers, but like all such narratives,
Speaker 1: its effect is much less striking when set forth on
Speaker 1: block in a single half column of print, than when
Speaker 1: the fact slowly evolved before your own eyes, and the
Speaker 1: mystery clear as gradually away as each new discovery furnishes
Speaker 1: a step which leads on to the complete truth. At
Speaker 1: the time, the circumstances made a deep impression upon me,
Speaker 1: and the lapse of two years has hardly served to
Speaker 1: weaken the effect. It was in the summer of eighty nine,
Speaker 1: not long after my marriage, that the events occurred which
Speaker 1: I am now about to summarize. I had returned to
Speaker 1: civil practice and had finally abandoned homes in his Baker
Speaker 1: Street rooms, although I continually visited him, and occasionally even
Speaker 1: persuaded him to forego his bohemian habits so far as
Speaker 1: to come and visit us. My practice had steadily increased,
Speaker 1: and as I happened to live at no very great
Speaker 1: distance from Paddington Station, I got a few patients from
Speaker 1: among the officials. One of these whom I had cured
Speaker 1: of a painful lingering disease. Was never weary of advertising
Speaker 1: my virtues and of endeavoring to send me on every
Speaker 1: sufferer over whom he might have any influence. One morning,
Speaker 1: a little before seven o'clock, I was awake and by
Speaker 1: the maid tapping at the door to announce that two
Speaker 1: men had come from Paddington and were waiting in the
Speaker 1: consulting room. I dressed hurriedly, for I knew by experience
Speaker 1: that railway cases were seldom trivial, and hastened downstairs. As
Speaker 1: I descended my old ally, the guard came out of
Speaker 1: the room and closed the door tightly behind him. I've
Speaker 1: got him here, he whispered, jerking his thumb over his shoulder.
Speaker 1: He's all right. What is it? Then? I asked for
Speaker 1: his manner suggested that it was some strange creature which
Speaker 1: he had caged up in my room. He's a new patient,
Speaker 1: he whispered. I thought i'd bring him round myself. Then
Speaker 1: he couldn't slip away. There is all safe and sound.
Speaker 1: I must go now, doctor, I have my duties just
Speaker 1: the same as you. And off he went, this trusty tout,
Speaker 1: without even giving me time to thank him. I entered
Speaker 1: my consulting room and found a gentleman seated by the table.
Speaker 1: He was quietly dressed in a suit of heather tweed
Speaker 1: with soft cloth cap, which he had laid down upon
Speaker 1: my books. Round one of his hands. He had a
Speaker 1: handkerchief wrapped which was mottled all over with blood stains.
Speaker 1: He was young, not more than five and twenty, I
Speaker 1: should say, with a strong masculine face, but he was
Speaker 1: exceedingly pale, and gave me the impression of a man
Speaker 1: who was suffering from some strong agitation which it took
Speaker 1: all his strength of mind to control. I am sorry
Speaker 1: to knock you up so early, doctor, said he. But
Speaker 1: I have had a very serious accident during the night.
Speaker 1: I came in by train this morning, and on inquiring
Speaker 1: at Paddington as to where I might find a doctor,
Speaker 1: a worthy fellow very kindly escorted me here. I gave
Speaker 1: the maid a card, but I see that she has
Speaker 1: left it upon the side table. I took it up
Speaker 1: and glanced at it. Mister Victor Haviy, hydraulic engineer, sixteen
Speaker 1: a Victoria Street, third floor. That was the name, style
Speaker 1: and abode of my morning visitor. I regret that I
Speaker 1: have kept you waiting, said I, sitting down in my
Speaker 1: library chair. You are fresh from a night journey, I understand,
Speaker 1: which is in itself a monotonous occupation. Or my night
Speaker 1: could not be called monotonous, said he, and laughed. He laughed,
Speaker 1: very heartily, with a high ringing note, leaning back in
Speaker 1: his chair and shaking his sides. All my medical instincts
Speaker 1: rose up against that laugh. Stop it, I cried, pull
Speaker 1: yourself together, and I poured out some water from a
Speaker 1: caraf It was useless, however, he was off in one
Speaker 1: of those hysterical outbursts which come upon a strong nature
Speaker 1: when some great crisis is over and gone. Presently, he
Speaker 1: came to himself once more, very weary and blushing hotly.
Speaker 1: I have been making a fool of myself, he gasped,
Speaker 1: Not at all, drink this. I dashed some brandy into
Speaker 1: the water, and the color began to come back to
Speaker 1: his bloodless cheeks. That's better, said he, And no, doctor,
Speaker 1: perhaps you would kindly attend to my thumb, or rather
Speaker 1: to the place where my thumb used to be. He
Speaker 1: unwound the handkerchief and held out his hand. It gave
Speaker 1: even my hardened nerves a shudder to look at it.
Speaker 1: There were four protruding fingers and a horrid red, spongy
Speaker 1: surface where the thumb should have been. It had been
Speaker 1: hacked or torn right out from the roots. Good Heavens,
Speaker 1: I cried, this is a terrible injury. It must have
Speaker 1: bled considerably. Yes dead. I fainted when it was done,
Speaker 1: and I think that I must have been senseless for
Speaker 1: a long time. When I came to, I found that
Speaker 1: it was still bleeding. So I tied one end of
Speaker 1: my handkerchief very tightly round the wrist and braced it
Speaker 1: up with a twig. Excellent, you should have been a surgeon.
Speaker 1: That's a question of hydraulics, you see, and came within
Speaker 1: my own province. This has been done, said I, examining
Speaker 1: the wound by a very heavy and sharp instrument, a
Speaker 1: thing like a cleaver, said he, an accident, I presume
Speaker 1: by no means what a murderous attack. Very murderous. Indeed,
Speaker 1: you horrify me. I sponged the wound, cleaned it, dressed it,
Speaker 1: and finally covered it with cotton wadding and carbalized bandages.
Speaker 1: He lay back without wincing, though he bit his lip
Speaker 1: from time to time. How is that? I asked? When
Speaker 1: I had finished capital between your brandy and your bandage,
Speaker 1: I feel a new man. I was very weak, but
Speaker 1: I have had a good deal to go through. Perhaps
Speaker 1: you would not better speak of the matter. It is
Speaker 1: evidently trying to your nerves. Oh no, not now. I
Speaker 1: shall have to tell my tale to the police, but
Speaker 1: between ourselves. If it were not for the convincing evidence
Speaker 1: of this wound of mine, I should be surprised if
Speaker 1: they believed my statement, for it is a very extraordinary one.
Speaker 1: And I have not much in the way of proof
Speaker 1: with which to back it up. And even if they
Speaker 1: believe me, the clues which I can give them are
Speaker 1: so vague that it is a question whether justice will
Speaker 1: be done. Ha cried I. If it is anything in
Speaker 1: the nature of a problem which you desire to see solved,
Speaker 1: I should strongly recommend you come to my friend, mister
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes before you go to the official police. Oh,
Speaker 1: I have heard of that fellow, answered my visitor, and
Speaker 1: I should be very glad if he would take the
Speaker 1: matter up, though of course I must use the official
Speaker 1: police as well. Would you give me an introduction to him?
Speaker 1: I'll do better. I'll take you round to him myself.
Speaker 1: I should be immensely obliged to you. We'll call a
Speaker 1: cab and go together. We shall just be in time
Speaker 1: to have a little breakfast with him. Do you feel
Speaker 1: equal to it? Yes? I shall not feel easy until
Speaker 1: I have told my story. Then my servant will call
Speaker 1: a cab and I shall be with you. In an instant,
Speaker 1: I rushed upstairs, explained the matter shortly to my wife,
Speaker 1: and in five minutes was inside a hansom driving with
Speaker 1: my new acquaintance to Baker Street. Sherlock Holmes was as
Speaker 1: I expected, lounging about his sitting room in his dressing gown,
Speaker 1: reading the agony column of the Times, and smoking his
Speaker 1: before breakfast pipe, which was composed of all the plugs
Speaker 1: and dottles left from his smokes of the day before,
Speaker 1: all carefully dried and collected on the corner of the mantelpiece.
Speaker 1: He received us in his quietly genial fashion, ordered fresh
Speaker 1: rashes and eggs, and joined us in a hearty meal.
Speaker 1: When it was concluded, he settled our new acquaintance upon
Speaker 1: the sofa, placed a pillow beneath his head, and laid
Speaker 1: a glass of brandy and water within his reach. It
Speaker 1: is easy to see that your experience has been no
Speaker 1: common one, mister Haley, said. He pray, lie down there
Speaker 1: and make yourself absolutely at home. Tell us what you can,
Speaker 1: but stop when you are tired, and keep up your
Speaker 1: strength with a little stimulant. Thank you, said my patient.
Speaker 1: But I have felt another man since the doctor bandaged me,
Speaker 1: and I think that your breakfast has completed the cure.
Speaker 1: I shall take up as little of your valuable time
Speaker 1: as possible, so I shall start at once upon my
Speaker 1: peculiar experiences. Holmes sat in his big arm chair with
Speaker 1: the weary, heavy lidded expression which veiled his keen and
Speaker 1: eager nature, while I sat opposite to him, and we
Speaker 1: listened in silence to the strange story which our visitor
Speaker 1: detailed to us. You must know, said he that I
Speaker 1: am an orphan and a bachelor, residing alone in lodgings
Speaker 1: in London. By profession, I am a hydraulic engineer and
Speaker 1: have had considerable experience of my work during the seven
Speaker 1: years that I was apprenticed to Venna and Matheson, the
Speaker 1: well known firm of Greenwich. Two years ago, having served
Speaker 1: my time, and having also come into a fair sum
Speaker 1: of money through my poor father's death, I determined to
Speaker 1: start in business for myself and took professional chambers in
Speaker 1: Victoria Street. I suppose that everyone finds his first independent
Speaker 1: start in business a dreary expl experience. To me, it
Speaker 1: had been exceptionally so. During two years, I've had three
Speaker 1: consultations and one small job, and that is absolutely all
Speaker 1: that my profession has brought me. My gross takings amount
Speaker 1: to twenty seven pounds ten every day from nine in
Speaker 1: the morning until four in the afternoon. I waited in
Speaker 1: my little den, until at last my heart began to sink,
Speaker 1: and I came to believe that I should never have
Speaker 1: any practice at all. Yesterday, however, just as I was
Speaker 1: thinking of leaving the office, my clerk entered to say,
Speaker 1: there was a gentleman waiting who wished to see me
Speaker 1: upon business. He brought up a card too, with the
Speaker 1: name of Colonel Lysander Stark engraved upon it. Close at
Speaker 1: his heels came the colonel himself, a man rather over
Speaker 1: the middle size, but of an exceeding thinness. I do
Speaker 1: not think that I have ever seen so thin a man.
Speaker 1: His whole face sharpened away into nose and chin, and
Speaker 1: the skin of his cheek was drawn quite tense over
Speaker 1: his outstanding bones. Yet this emaciation seemed to be his
Speaker 1: natural habit, and you to no disease, for his eye
Speaker 1: was bright, his step brisk, and his bearing assured. He
Speaker 1: was plainly but neatly dressed. And his age, I should judge,
Speaker 1: would be nearer forty than thirty, mister Hatheley, said he,
Speaker 1: with something of a German accent. You have been recommended
Speaker 1: to me, mister Hatheley, as being a man who is
Speaker 1: not only proficient in his profession, but is also discreet
Speaker 1: and capable of preserving a secret. I bowed, feeling as
Speaker 1: flattered as any young man would at such an address.
Speaker 1: May I ask who it was who gave me so
Speaker 1: good a character, I asked, Well, perhaps it is better
Speaker 1: that I should not tell you just at this moment.
Speaker 1: I have it from the same source that you are
Speaker 1: both an orphan and a bachelor, and are residing alone
Speaker 1: in London. That is quite correct, I answered, But you
Speaker 1: will excuse me if I say that I cannot see
Speaker 1: how all this bears upon my professional qualifications. I understand
Speaker 1: that it was on a professional matter that you wish
Speaker 1: to speak to me, undoubtedly so, but you will find
Speaker 1: that all I say is really to the point. I
Speaker 1: have a professional commission for you. But absolute secrecy is
Speaker 1: quite essential. Absolute secrecy, understand, and of course we may
Speaker 1: expect that more from a man who is alone than
Speaker 1: from one who lives in the bosom of his family.
Speaker 1: If I promise to keep a secret, said I, you
Speaker 1: may absolutely depend upon my doing so. He looked very
Speaker 1: hard at me as I spoke, and it seemed to
Speaker 1: me that I had never seen so suspicious and questioning
Speaker 1: an eye. You do promise, then, said he at last, yes,
Speaker 1: I promise absolute and complete silence, before, during, and after
Speaker 1: no reference to the matter at all, either in word
Speaker 1: or writing. I have already given you my word. Very good.
Speaker 1: He suddenly sprang up, and, darting like lightning across the room.
Speaker 1: He fled opened the door. The passage outside was empty.
Speaker 1: That's all right, said he, coming back. I know that
Speaker 1: clarks are sometimes curious as to their master's affairs. Now
Speaker 1: we can talk in safety. He drew up his chair
Speaker 1: very close to mine and began to stare at me
Speaker 1: again with the same questioning and thoughtful look. A feeling
Speaker 1: of repulsion and something akin to fear had begun to
Speaker 1: rise within me at the strange antics of this fleshless man.
Speaker 1: Even my dread of losing a client could not restrain
Speaker 1: me from showing my impatience. I beg that you will
Speaker 1: stay your business, sir, said I. My time is of value.
Speaker 1: Heaven forgive me for that last sentence, But the words
Speaker 1: came to my lips. How would fifty guineas for a
Speaker 1: night's work suit you, he asked, most admirably. I say
Speaker 1: a night's work, but an hour's would be nearer the mark.
Speaker 1: I simply want your opinion about a hydraulic stamping machine
Speaker 1: which has got out of gear. If you show us
Speaker 1: what is wrong, we shall soon set it right ourselves.
Speaker 1: What do you think of such a commission as that?
Speaker 1: The work appears to be light and the pay munificent.
Speaker 1: Precisely so, we shall want you to come tonight by
Speaker 1: the last train where two to Iford and Berkshire. It's
Speaker 1: a little place near the borders of Oxfordshire and within
Speaker 1: seven miles of reading. There is a train from Parrington
Speaker 1: which would bring you in there at about eleven fifteen.
Speaker 1: Very good. I shall come down in a carriage to
Speaker 1: meet you. There is a drive then, Yes, our little
Speaker 1: place is quite out in the country. That's a good
Speaker 1: seven miles from Iiford station. Then we can hardly get
Speaker 1: there before midnight. I suppose there would be no chance
Speaker 1: of a train back. I should be compelled to stop
Speaker 1: the night. Yes, we could easily give you a shakedown.
Speaker 1: That is very awkward. Could I not come at some
Speaker 1: more convenient hour? We have judged it best that you
Speaker 1: should come late. It is to compense you for any
Speaker 1: inconvenience that we are paying you. A young and unknown man,
Speaker 1: a fee which would buy an opinion from the very
Speaker 1: heads of your profession. Still, of course, if you'd like
Speaker 1: to draw out of the business, there's plenty of time
Speaker 1: to do so. I thought of the fifty guineas, and
Speaker 1: of how very useful they would be to me. Not
Speaker 1: at all, said I, I should be very happy to
Speaker 1: accommodate myself to your wishes. I should like, however, to
Speaker 1: understand a little more clearly what as you wish me
Speaker 1: to do. Quite so, it is very natural that the
Speaker 1: pledge of secrecy which we have exacted from you should
Speaker 1: have aroused your curiosity. I have no wish to commit
Speaker 1: you to anything without having it all laid before you.
Speaker 1: I suppose that we are absolutely safe from evesdroppers entirely,
Speaker 1: then the matter stands. Thus you are probably aware that
Speaker 1: Fuller's Earth is a valuable product, and that it is
Speaker 1: only found in one or two places in England. I
Speaker 1: have heard so. Some little time ago I bought a
Speaker 1: small place, a very small place within ten miles of reading.
Speaker 1: I was fortunate enough to discover that there was a
Speaker 1: deposit of Fuller's Earth in one of my fields. On
Speaker 1: examining it, however, I found that this deposit was a
Speaker 1: comparatively small one, and that it formed a link between
Speaker 1: two very much larger ones upon the right and left
Speaker 1: both of them. However, in the grounds of my neighbors,
Speaker 1: these good people were absolutely ignorant that their land contained
Speaker 1: that which was quite as valuable as a gold mine. Naturally,
Speaker 1: it was my interest to buy their land before they
Speaker 1: discovered its true value, but unfortunately I had no capital
Speaker 1: by which I could do this. I took a few
Speaker 1: of my friends into the secret, however, and they suggested
Speaker 1: that we should quietly and secretly work our own little deposit,
Speaker 1: and that in this way we should earn the money
Speaker 1: which would enable us to buy the neighboring fields. Thus
Speaker 1: we have now been doing for some time, and in
Speaker 1: order to help us in our operations, we erected a
Speaker 1: hydraulic press. This press, as I've already explained, has got
Speaker 1: out of order, and we wish your advice upon the subject.
Speaker 1: We guard our secret very jealously, however, and if it
Speaker 1: once became known that we had hydraulic engineers coming to
Speaker 1: our little house, it would soon rouse inquiry, and then
Speaker 1: if the facts came out, it would be goodbye to
Speaker 1: any chance of getting these fields and carrying utar plans.
Speaker 1: That is why I've made you promise that you will
Speaker 1: not tell a human being that you're going to Aiford tonight.
Speaker 1: I hope that I make it all plain. I quite
Speaker 1: follow you, said I. The only point which I could
Speaker 1: not quite understand was what use you could make of
Speaker 1: a hydraulic press in excavating full as earth, which, as
Speaker 1: I understand, is dug out like gravel from a pit.
Speaker 1: Ah said he carelessly. We have our own process. We
Speaker 1: can press the earth into bricks so as to remove
Speaker 1: them without feeling what they are. But that's a mere detail.
Speaker 1: I've taken you fully into my confidence now, mister Hatherley,
Speaker 1: and I have shown you how I trust you. He
Speaker 1: rose as he spoke. I shall expect you then at
Speaker 1: Ifored at eleven fifteen. I shall certainly be there, and
Speaker 1: not a word to a soul. He looked at me
Speaker 1: with the last long, questioning gaze, and then pressing my
Speaker 1: hand in a cold, dank grasp, he hurried from the room. Well,
Speaker 1: when I came to think it all over in cool blood,
Speaker 1: I was very much astonished, as you may both think,
Speaker 1: at this sudden commission which had been entrusted to me.
Speaker 1: On the one hand, of course, I was glad that
Speaker 1: the fee was at least tenfold what I should have
Speaker 1: asked had I set a price upon my own services,
Speaker 1: and it was possible that this order might lead to
Speaker 1: other ones. On the other hand, the face and manner
Speaker 1: of my patron had made an unpleasant impression upon me,
Speaker 1: and I could not think that his explanation of the
Speaker 1: Fuller's earth was sufficient to explain the necessity for my
Speaker 1: coming at midnight, and his extreme anxiety lest I should
Speaker 1: tell any one of my Errand however, I threw all
Speaker 1: my fears to the winds ate a hearty supper, drove
Speaker 1: to Paddington and started off, having obeyed to the letter
Speaker 1: the injunction as to holding my tongue reading, I had
Speaker 1: to change not only my carriage but my station. However,
Speaker 1: I was in time for the last train to Iiford
Speaker 1: and reached the little dim lit station after eleven o'clock.
Speaker 1: I was the only passenger who got out there, and
Speaker 1: there was no one upon the platform save a single
Speaker 1: sleepy porter with a lantern. As I passed out through
Speaker 1: the wicket gates, however, I found my acquaintance of the morning,
Speaker 1: waiting in the shadow upon the other side. Without a word,
Speaker 1: he grasped my arm and hurried me into a carriage,
Speaker 1: the door of which was standing open. He drew up
Speaker 1: the windows on either side, tapped on the woodwork, and
Speaker 1: away we went, as hard as the horse could go.
Speaker 1: One horse interjected, homes, yes, only one. Did you observe
Speaker 1: the color? Yes, I saw it by the side lights
Speaker 1: when I was stepping into the carriage. There was a
Speaker 1: chestnut tired looking or fresh? Oh, fresh and glossy. Thank you,
Speaker 1: I'm sorry to have interrupted you. Pray continue your most
Speaker 1: interesting statement. Away we went, then, and we drove for
Speaker 1: at least an hour. Colonel Lysander Stark had said that
Speaker 1: it was only seven miles, but I should think from
Speaker 1: the rate that we seemed to go and the time
Speaker 1: that we took, that it must have been nearer twelve.
Speaker 1: He sat at my side in silence all the time,
Speaker 1: and I was aware, more than once when I glanced
Speaker 1: in his direction, that he was looking at me with
Speaker 1: great intensity. The country road seemed to be not very
Speaker 1: good in that part of the world, for we lurched
Speaker 1: and jolted terribly. I tried to look out of the
Speaker 1: window to see something of where we were, but they
Speaker 1: were made of frosted glass, and I could make out
Speaker 1: nothing save an occasional blur of a passing light. Now
Speaker 1: and then I hazarded some remark to break the monotony
Speaker 1: of the journey, but the Colonel answered only in monosyllables,
Speaker 1: and the conversation soon flagged. At last, however, the bumping
Speaker 1: of the road was exchanged for the crisp smoothness of
Speaker 1: a gravel drive, and the carriage came to a stand.
Speaker 1: Colonel Lysander Stark sprang out, and as I followed after him,
Speaker 1: pulled me swiftly into a porch which gaped in front
Speaker 1: of us. We stepped, as it were, right out of
Speaker 1: the carriage and into the hall, so that I failed
Speaker 1: to catch the most fleeting glance of the front of
Speaker 1: the house. The instant that I had crossed the threshold.
Speaker 1: The door slammed heavily behind us, and I heard faintly
Speaker 1: the rattle of the wheels as the carriage drove away.
Speaker 1: That was pitch dark inside the house, and the Colonel
Speaker 1: fumbled about, looking for matches and muttering under his breath.
Speaker 1: Suddenly a door opened at the other end of the passage,
Speaker 1: and along golden bar of light shot out in our direction.
Speaker 1: It grew broader, and a woman appeared with a lamp
Speaker 1: in her hand, which she held above her head, pushing
Speaker 1: her face forward and peering at us. I could see
Speaker 1: that she was pretty, and from the gloss with which
Speaker 1: the light shone upon her dark dress, and knew that
Speaker 1: it was a rich material. She spoke a few words
Speaker 1: in a foreign tongue, in a tone as though asking
Speaker 1: a question, and when my companion answered in a gruff monosyllable,
Speaker 1: she gave such a start that the lamp nearly fell
Speaker 1: from her hand. Colonel Stark went up to her, whispered
Speaker 1: something in her ear, and then pushing her back into
Speaker 1: the room from whence she had come, he walked towards
Speaker 1: me again, with the lamp in his hand. Perhaps you
Speaker 1: will have the kindness to wait in this room for
Speaker 1: a few minutes, said he, throwing open another door. It
Speaker 1: was a quiet, little, plainly furnished room, with a round
Speaker 1: table in the center, on which several German books were scattered.
Speaker 1: Colonel Stark laid down the lamp on the top of
Speaker 1: a harmonium beside the door. I shall not keep you
Speaker 1: waiting an instant, said he, and vanished into the darkness.
Speaker 1: I glanced at the books upon the table, and in
Speaker 1: spite of my ignorance of German, I could see that
Speaker 1: two of them were treatises on science, the others being
Speaker 1: volumes of poetry. Then now walked across to the window,
Speaker 1: hoping that I might catch some glimpse of the countryside.
Speaker 1: But an oak shutter heavily bad was folded across it.
Speaker 1: It was a wonderfully silent house. There was an old
Speaker 1: clock ticking loudly somewhere in the passage, but otherwise everything
Speaker 1: was deadly still. A vague feeling of uneasiness began to
Speaker 1: steal over me. Who were these German people, and what
Speaker 1: were they doing living in this strange out of the
Speaker 1: way place? And where was the place? I was ten
Speaker 1: miles or so from Iphord, that was all I knew,
Speaker 1: but whether north, southeast or west I had no idea
Speaker 1: for that matter. Ready, and possibly other large towns were
Speaker 1: within that radius. The place might not be so secluded
Speaker 1: after all. Yet it was quite certain from the absolute
Speaker 1: stillness that we were in the country. I paced up
Speaker 1: and down the room, humming a tune under my breath
Speaker 1: to keep up my spirits and feeling that I was
Speaker 1: thoroughly earning my fifty guinea fee. Suddenly, without a preliminary sound,
Speaker 1: in the midst of the utter stillness, the door of
Speaker 1: my room swung slowly open. The woman was standing in
Speaker 1: the aperture, the darkness of the hall behind her, the
Speaker 1: yellow light from a lamp beating upon her eager and
Speaker 1: beautiful face. I could see at a glance that she
Speaker 1: was sick with fear, and the sight sent a chill
Speaker 1: to my own heart. She held up one shaking finger
Speaker 1: to warn me to be silent, and she shot a
Speaker 1: few whispered words of broken English at me, her eyes
Speaker 1: glancing back like those of a frightened horse, into the
Speaker 1: gloom behind her. I would go, said she, trying hard
Speaker 1: as it seemed to me to speak calmly. I would go. Oh,
Speaker 1: I should not stay here. There is no good for
Speaker 1: you to do. But madam said I. I have not
Speaker 1: yet done what I came for. I cannot possibly leave
Speaker 1: until I have seen the machine. It tis not worth
Speaker 1: your while to wait, She went on, you could pass
Speaker 1: through the door. No one hinders, and then, seeing that
Speaker 1: I smiled, then shook my head. She suddenly threw aside
Speaker 1: her constraint and made a step forward with her hands
Speaker 1: wrung together. For the love of heaven, she whispered, get
Speaker 1: away from here before it's too late. But I am
Speaker 1: somewhat headstrong by nature, and the more ready to engage
Speaker 1: in an affair when there is some obstacle in the way.
Speaker 1: I thought of my fifty guinea fee, of my wearisome journey,
Speaker 1: and of the unpleasant night which seemed to be before me.
Speaker 1: Was it all to go for nothing? Why should I
Speaker 1: slink away without having carried out my commission and without
Speaker 1: the payment which was midiue? This woman might, for all
Speaker 1: I knew, be a monomaniac with a stout bearing. Therefore,
Speaker 1: though her manner had shaken me more than I cared
Speaker 1: to confess, I still shook my head and declared my
Speaker 1: intention of remaining where I was. She was about to
Speaker 1: renew her entreaties when a door slammed overhead, and the
Speaker 1: sound of several footsteps were heard upon the stairs. She
Speaker 1: listened for an instant, threw up her hands with a
Speaker 1: despairing gesture, and vanished as suddenly and noiselessly as she
Speaker 1: had come. The newcomers were Colonel Lysander Stark, and a short,
Speaker 1: thick man with a chinchilla beard growing out of the
Speaker 1: creases of his double chin, who was introduced to me
Speaker 1: as mister Ferguson. This is my secretary and manager, said
Speaker 1: the colonel. By the way, I was under the impression
Speaker 1: that I left this door shut just now. I fear
Speaker 1: that you have felt the draft. On the contrary, said I.
Speaker 1: I opened the door myself because I felt the room
Speaker 1: to be a little close. He shot one of his
Speaker 1: suspicious glances at me. Perhaps we had better proceed to business, then,
Speaker 1: said he, mister Ferguson, and I will take you up
Speaker 1: to see the machine. I had better put my hat on,
Speaker 1: I suppose. Oh no, it's in the house. What you
Speaker 1: dig full as earth in the house. No, no, that
Speaker 1: is only where we can press it. But never mind that.
Speaker 1: All we wish you to do is examine the machine
Speaker 1: and let us know what is wrong with it. We
Speaker 1: went upstairs together, the colonel first with the lamp, the
Speaker 1: fat manager and I behind him. It was a labyrinth
Speaker 1: of an old house, with corridors, passages, narrow winding staircases,
Speaker 1: and little low doors, the thresholds of which were hollowed out.
Speaker 1: By the generations who had crossed them. There were no
Speaker 1: carpets and no signs of any furniture above the ground floor.
Speaker 1: While the plaster was peeling off the walls and the
Speaker 1: damp was breaking through in green, unhealthy blotches. I tried
Speaker 1: to put on as unconcerned an air as possible. But
Speaker 1: I had not forgotten the warnings of the lady, even
Speaker 1: though I disregarded them, and I kept a keen eye
Speaker 1: upon my two companions. Ferguson appeared to be a morose
Speaker 1: and silent man, but I could see from the little
Speaker 1: that he had said that he was at least a
Speaker 1: fellow countryman. Colonel Lysander Stark stopped at last before a
Speaker 1: low door, which he unlocked. Within was a small square room,
Speaker 1: and which the three of us could hardly get at
Speaker 1: one time. Ferguson remained outside, and the Colonel ushered me in.
Speaker 1: We are now said he actually within the hydraulic press,
Speaker 1: and it would be a particularly unpleasant thing for us
Speaker 1: if any were to turn it on. The ceiling of
Speaker 1: this small chamber is really the end of the descending piston,
Speaker 1: and it comes down with the force of many tons
Speaker 1: upon this metal floor. There are small lateral columns of
Speaker 1: water outside which was the force, and which transmit and
Speaker 1: multiply it in the manner which is familiar to you.
Speaker 1: The machine goes readily enough, but there is some stiffness
Speaker 1: in the working of it, and it has lost a
Speaker 1: little of its force. Perhaps you'll have the goodness to
Speaker 1: look it over and to show us how we can
Speaker 1: set it right. I took the lamp from him, and
Speaker 1: I examined the machine very thoroughly. It was indeed a
Speaker 1: gigantic one, and capable of exercising enormous pressure. When I
Speaker 1: passed outside, however, and pressed down the levers which controlled it,
Speaker 1: I knew at once by the wishing sound that there
Speaker 1: was a slight leakage which allowed a regudgetation of water
Speaker 1: through one of the side cylinders. An examination showed that
Speaker 1: one of the India rubber bands, which was round the
Speaker 1: head of a driving rod, had shrunk so as not
Speaker 1: quite to fill the socket along which it worked. This
Speaker 1: was clearly the cause of the loss of power, and
Speaker 1: I pointed it out to my companions, who followed my
Speaker 1: remarks very carefully asked several practical questions as to how
Speaker 1: they should proceed to set it to right. When I
Speaker 1: had made it clear to them, I returned to the
Speaker 1: main chamber of the machine and took a good look
Speaker 1: at it to satisfy my own curiosity. It was obvious
Speaker 1: at a glance that the story of the Full as
Speaker 1: Earth was the merest fabrication, for it would be absurd
Speaker 1: to suppose that so powerful an engine could be designed
Speaker 1: for so inadequate a purpose. The walls were of wood,
Speaker 1: but the floor consisted of a large iron through, and
Speaker 1: when I came to examine it, I could see a
Speaker 1: crust of metallic deposit all over it. I had stooped
Speaker 1: and was scraping at this to see exactly what it was,
Speaker 1: when I heard a muttered exclamation in German, and saw
Speaker 1: the cadaverous face of the Colonel looking down at me.
Speaker 1: What are you doing there, he asked. I felt angry
Speaker 1: at having been tricked by so elaborate a story as
Speaker 1: that which he had told me. I was admiring your
Speaker 1: Full as Earth, said I. I think that I should
Speaker 1: be better able to advise you as to your machine
Speaker 1: if I knew what the exact purpose was for which
Speaker 1: it was used. The instant that I uttered the words,
Speaker 1: I regretted the rashness of my speech. His face set hard,
Speaker 1: and a baleful light sprang up in his gray eyes.
Speaker 1: Very well, said he, you shall know all about the machine.
Speaker 1: He took a step backward, slammed the little door, and
Speaker 1: turned the key in the lock. I rushed towards it
Speaker 1: and pulled at the handle, but it was quite secure,
Speaker 1: and it did not given the least to my kicks
Speaker 1: and shoves. Hello, I yelled, hello, colonel, let me out.
Speaker 1: And then suddenly, in the silence, I heard a sound
Speaker 1: which sent my heart into my mouth. It was the
Speaker 1: clank of the levers and the swish of the leaking cylinder.
Speaker 1: He had set the engine at work. The lamp still
Speaker 1: stood upon the floor where I had placed it. Examining
Speaker 1: the trough by its light, I saw that the black
Speaker 1: ceiling was coming down upon me jerkily. But as none
Speaker 1: knew better than myself with the force which must, within
Speaker 1: a minute grind me to a shapeless pulp, I threw
Speaker 1: myself screaming against the door, and dragged with my nails
Speaker 1: at the lock. I implored the kernel to let me out,
Speaker 1: but the remorseless clanking of the levers drowned my cries.
Speaker 1: The ceiling was only a foot or two above my head,
Speaker 1: and with my hand upraised, I could feel its hard,
Speaker 1: rough surface. Then it flashed through my mind that the
Speaker 1: pain of my death would depend very much upon the
Speaker 1: position in which I met it. If I lay on
Speaker 1: my face, the weight would come upon my spine, and
Speaker 1: I shuddered to think of that dreadful snap. Easier the
Speaker 1: other way, perhaps, And yet had either nerve to lie
Speaker 1: and look up at that deadly black shadow wavering down
Speaker 1: upon me. Already I was unable to stand erect when
Speaker 1: my eye caught something which brought a gush of hope
Speaker 1: back to my heart. I have said that though the
Speaker 1: floor and ceiling were of iron, the walls were of wood.
Speaker 1: As I gave a last hurried glance around, I saw
Speaker 1: a thin line of yellow light between two of the boards,
Speaker 1: which broadened and broadened as a small panel was pushed backwards.
Speaker 1: For an instant I could hardly believe that here was
Speaker 1: indeed a door which led away from death. The next
Speaker 1: I threw myself through and lay half fainting upon the
Speaker 1: other side. The panel had closed again behind me, but
Speaker 1: the crash of the lamp, and a few moments afterwards
Speaker 1: the clang of the two slabs of metal told me
Speaker 1: how narrow had been my escape. I was recalled to
Speaker 1: myself by a frantic plucking at my wrist, and I
Speaker 1: found myself lying upon the stone floor of a narrow corridor,
Speaker 1: while a woman bent over me and tugged at me
Speaker 1: with her left hand, while she held a candle in
Speaker 1: her right. It was the same good friend whose warning
Speaker 1: I had so foolishly rejected. Come, come, she cried breathlessly.
Speaker 1: They will be here in a moment. They will see
Speaker 1: that you're not there. Oh, do not waste the so
Speaker 1: precious time, But come this time. At least I did
Speaker 1: not scorn her advice. A staggered to my feet and
Speaker 1: ran with her along the corridor and down a winding stair.
Speaker 1: The latter led to another broad passage, and just as
Speaker 1: we reached it, we heard the sound of running feet
Speaker 1: and the shouting of two voices, one answering the other
Speaker 1: from the floor on which we were, and from the
Speaker 1: one beneath. My guide stopped and looked about her, like
Speaker 1: one who is at her WIT's end. Then she threw
Speaker 1: open a door which led into a bedroom, through the
Speaker 1: window of which the moon was shining. Brightly. It is
Speaker 1: your only chance, said she. It is high, but it
Speaker 1: may be that you can jump it. She spoke. A
Speaker 1: light sprang into view at the further end of the passage,
Speaker 1: and I saw the lean figure of Colonel Lysander Stark
Speaker 1: rushing forward, with a lantern in one hand and a
Speaker 1: weapon like a butcher's cleaver in the other. I rushed
Speaker 1: across the bedroom, flung open the window and looked out.
Speaker 1: How quiet and sweet and wholesome the garden looked in
Speaker 1: the moonlight, and it could not be more than thirty
Speaker 1: feet down. I clambered out upon the sill, but I
Speaker 1: hesitated to jump until I should have heard what passed
Speaker 1: between my savior and the ruffian who pursued me. If
Speaker 1: she were ill used, then any risk I was determined
Speaker 1: to go back to her assistance. The thought had hardly
Speaker 1: flashed through my mind before He was at the door,
Speaker 1: pushing his way past her. But she threw her arms
Speaker 1: round him and tried to hold him back. Fritz, Fritz,
Speaker 1: she cried in English. Remember your promise, after the last
Speaker 1: time you said it should not be again. He will
Speaker 1: be silent, Oh, he will be silent. You are mad, Elise,
Speaker 1: he shouted, struggling to break away from her. You'll be
Speaker 1: the ruin of us. You've seen too much. Let me pass,
Speaker 1: I say. He dashed her to one side, and, rushing
Speaker 1: to the window, cut at me with his heavy weapon.
Speaker 1: I had let us go, and was hanging with my
Speaker 1: fingers in the window slot and my hands across the sill.
Speaker 1: When his blow fell, I was conscious of a dull pain.
Speaker 1: My grip loosened, and I fell into the garden below.
Speaker 1: I was shaken, but not hurt by the fall, so
Speaker 1: I picked myself up and rushed off among the bushes
Speaker 1: as hard as I could run, for I understood that
Speaker 1: I was far from being out of danger yet. Suddenly, however,
Speaker 1: as I ran, a deadly dizziness and sickness came over me.
Speaker 1: I glanced down at my hand, which was throbbing painfully,
Speaker 1: and then for the first time saw that my thumb
Speaker 1: had been cut off and that blood was pouring from
Speaker 1: my wound. I endeavored to tie my handkerchief round it,
Speaker 1: but there came a sudden buzzing in my ears, and
Speaker 1: next moment I fell in a dead faint among the
Speaker 1: rose bushes. How long I remained unconscious, I cannot tell
Speaker 1: I must have been a very long time, for the
Speaker 1: moon had sunk and a bright morning was breaking. When
Speaker 1: I came to myself, my clothes were all sodden with dew,
Speaker 1: and my coat sleeve was drenched with blood from a
Speaker 1: wounded thumb. The smarting of it recalled in an instant
Speaker 1: all the particulars of my night's adventure, and I sprang
Speaker 1: to my feet with the feeling that I might hardly
Speaker 1: yet be safe from my pursuers. But to my astonishment,
Speaker 1: when I came to look round me, neither house nor
Speaker 1: garden were to be seen. I had been lying in
Speaker 1: an angle of the hedge, close by the high road,
Speaker 1: and just a little lower down was a long building,
Speaker 1: which proved, upon my approaching it, to be the very
Speaker 1: station at which I had arrived upon the previous night.
Speaker 1: Were it not for the ugly wound upon my hand,
Speaker 1: all that had passed during those dreadful hours might have
Speaker 1: been an evil dream. Half dazed, I went into the
Speaker 1: station and asked about the morning train. There would be
Speaker 1: one a reading in less than an hour. The same
Speaker 1: porter was on duty, I found, as had been there
Speaker 1: when I arrived. I inquired from him whether he had
Speaker 1: ever heard of Colonel Lysander Stark. The name was strange
Speaker 1: to him. Had he observed a carriage the night before
Speaker 1: waiting for me? No, he had not. Was there a
Speaker 1: police station anywhere near? There was one about three miles off.
Speaker 1: That was too far for me to go. Weak and
Speaker 1: ill as I was, I determined to wait until I
Speaker 1: got back to town before telling my story to the police.
Speaker 1: It was a little past six when I arrived, so
Speaker 1: I went first to have my wound dressed, and then
Speaker 1: the doctor was kind enough to bring me along here.
Speaker 1: I put the case into your hands, and shall do
Speaker 1: exactly what you advise. We both sat in silence for
Speaker 1: some little time after listening to this extraordinary narrative. Then
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes pulled down from the shelf one of the
Speaker 1: ponderous commonplace books in which he placed his cuttings. Here
Speaker 1: is an advertisement which will interest you, said he. It
Speaker 1: appeared in all the papers about a year ago. Listen
Speaker 1: to this lost on the ninth instant. Mister Jeremiah Hayling,
Speaker 1: aged twenty six, a hydraulic engineer, left his lodgings at
Speaker 1: ten o'clock at night and has not been heard of since.
Speaker 1: Was dressed in et cetera, et cetera. Hah, that represents
Speaker 1: the last time that the colonel needed to have his
Speaker 1: machine overhauled. I fancy good, heavens, cried my patient. Then
Speaker 1: that explains what the girl said. Undoubtedly it is quite
Speaker 1: clear that the colonel was a cool and desperate man
Speaker 1: who was absolutely determined that nothing should stand in the
Speaker 1: way of his little game, like those out and out
Speaker 1: pirates who will leave no survivors from a captured ship. Well,
Speaker 1: every moment now is precious, so if you feel equal
Speaker 1: to it, we shall go down to Scotland Yard at
Speaker 1: once as a preliminary to starting for Eiford. Some three
Speaker 1: hours or so afterwards, we were all in the train together,
Speaker 1: bound from Reading to the little Berkshire village. There were
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes, the hydraulic engineer, Inspector Bradstreet of Scotland Yard,
Speaker 1: a plain clothes man, and myself. Brad Street had spread
Speaker 1: an Ordnance map of the country out upon the seat
Speaker 1: and was busy with his compasses drawing a circle with
Speaker 1: Eifford for its center. There you are, said he. That
Speaker 1: circle is drawn at a radius of ten miles from
Speaker 1: the village. The place we want must be somewhere near
Speaker 1: that line, you said ten miles. I think, sir, that
Speaker 1: was an hour's good drive. And you think that they
Speaker 1: brought you back all that way when you were unconscious,
Speaker 1: They must have done. I have a confused memory too,
Speaker 1: of having been lifted and conveyed somewhere. What I cannot understand,
Speaker 1: said I, is why they should have spared you when
Speaker 1: they found you lying fainting in the garden. Perhaps the
Speaker 1: villain was softened by the woman's entreaties. I hardly think
Speaker 1: that life. I never saw a more inexorable face in
Speaker 1: my life. Oh we shall soon clear up all that,
Speaker 1: said Bradstreet. Well I've drawn my circle, and I only
Speaker 1: wish I knew at what point upon it the folk
Speaker 1: that we are in search of are to be found.
Speaker 1: I think I could lay my finger on it, said
Speaker 1: Holmes quietly. Really now, cried the inspector. You've formed your opinion.
Speaker 1: Come now we shall see who agrees with you. I
Speaker 1: say it is south, for the country is more deserted there,
Speaker 1: and I see east, said my patient. I am for
Speaker 1: the west, remarked the plainclothes man. There are several quiet
Speaker 1: little villages up there, and I am for north, said I.
Speaker 1: Because there are no hills there, and our friend says
Speaker 1: that he did not notice the carriage go up any Come,
Speaker 1: said the inspector, laughing, it's a very pretty diversity of opinion.
Speaker 1: We have boxed the compass among us. Who do you
Speaker 1: give your casting vogue to? You are all wrong, But
Speaker 1: we can't all be. Oh, yes you can. This is
Speaker 1: my point. He placed his finger on the center of
Speaker 1: the circle. This is where we shall find them. But
Speaker 1: the twelve mile drive gasped hapvily, six out and six back.
Speaker 1: Nothing simpler. You say yourself that the horse was fresh
Speaker 1: and glossy when you got in. How could it be
Speaker 1: that if it had gone twelve miles over heavy roads. Indeed,
Speaker 1: it is a likely ruse enough, observed Bradstreet thoughtfully. Of course,
Speaker 1: there can be no doubt as to the nature of
Speaker 1: this gang, none at all, said Holmes. They are coiners
Speaker 1: on a large scale, and have used the machine to
Speaker 1: form the amalgam which takes the place of silver. We
Speaker 1: have known for some time that a clever gang was
Speaker 1: at work, said the inspector. They have been turning out
Speaker 1: half crowns by the thousand. We even traced them as
Speaker 1: far as Ready, But could get no further, for they
Speaker 1: had covered their traces in a way that showed that
Speaker 1: they were very old hands. But now, thanks to this
Speaker 1: lucky chance, I think that we have got them right enough.
Speaker 1: But the inspector was mistaken, for those criminals were not
Speaker 1: destined to fall into the hands of justice. As we
Speaker 1: rolled into Eiford's station, we saw a gigantic column of
Speaker 1: smoke which streamed up from behind a small clump of
Speaker 1: trees in the neighborhood and hung like an immense Ostrich
Speaker 1: feather over the landscape. A house on fire, asked brad Street,
Speaker 1: as the train steamed off again on its way. Yes, sir,
Speaker 1: said the station master. When did it break out? I
Speaker 1: hear that it was during the night, sir, But it
Speaker 1: has got worse, and the whole place is in a blaze.
Speaker 1: Whose house is it? Dr Becker's tell me, broke in
Speaker 1: the engineer, as doctor Becker a Jutman, very thin with
Speaker 1: a long, sharp nose. The station master laughed heartily. No, sir,
Speaker 1: Doctor Becker is an Englishman, and there isn't a man
Speaker 1: in the parish who has a better lined waistcoat. But
Speaker 1: he has a gentleman staying with him, a patient as
Speaker 1: I understand who is a foreigner. And he looks as
Speaker 1: if a little good barkshep beef would do him. Now
Speaker 1: arm the station master had not finished his speech before
Speaker 1: we were all hastening in the direction of the fire.
Speaker 1: The road topped a low hill, and there was a
Speaker 1: great widespread whitewashed building in front of us, spouting fire
Speaker 1: at every chink and window, while in the garden in front,
Speaker 1: three fire engines were vainly striving to keep the flames
Speaker 1: under That's it, cried hapviily in intense excitement. There is
Speaker 1: the gravel drive, and there are the rose bushes where
Speaker 1: I lay. That second window is the one that I
Speaker 1: jumped from. Well, at least, said Holmes, you have had
Speaker 1: your revenge upon them. There can be no question that
Speaker 1: it was your oil lamp, which, when it was crushed
Speaker 1: in the press, set fire to the wooden walls, though
Speaker 1: no doubt they were too excited in the chase after
Speaker 1: you to observe it at the time. Now keep your
Speaker 1: eyes open in this crowd for your friends of last night,
Speaker 1: though I very much fear that they are a good
Speaker 1: hundred miles off by now. And Holmes's fears came to
Speaker 1: be realized, for from that day to this no word
Speaker 1: has ever been heard either of the beautiful woman, the
Speaker 1: sinister German, or the morose Englishman. Early that morning a
Speaker 1: peasant had met a cart containing several people and some
Speaker 1: very bulky boxes, driving rapidly in the direction of Reading.
Speaker 1: But there all traces of the fugitives disappeared, and even
Speaker 1: Holmes's ingenuity failed to discover the least clue to their whereabouts.
Speaker 1: The firemen had been much perturbed at the strange arrangements
Speaker 1: which they found within, and still more so by discovering
Speaker 1: a newly severed human thumb upon a window sill of
Speaker 1: the second floor. About sunset. However, their efforts were at
Speaker 1: last successful, and they subdued the flames, but not before
Speaker 1: the roof had fallen in and the whole place reduced
Speaker 1: to such absolute ruin that, save some twisted cylinders and
Speaker 1: iron piping, not a trace remained of the machinery which
Speaker 1: had cost our unfortunate acquaintance. So dearly, large masses of
Speaker 1: nickel land of tin were discovered stored in an outhouse,
Speaker 1: but no coins were to be found, which may have
Speaker 1: explained the presence of those bulky boxes which have been
Speaker 1: already referred to. How our hydraulic engineer had been conveyed
Speaker 1: from the garden to the spot where he recovered his
Speaker 1: senses might have remained forever a mystery, were it not
Speaker 1: for the soft mold, which told us a very plain tale.
Speaker 1: He had evidently been carried down by two persons, one
Speaker 1: of whom had remarkably small feet, and the other unusually
Speaker 1: large ones. On the whole it was most probable that
Speaker 1: the silent Englishman, being less bold or less murderous than
Speaker 1: his companion, had assisted the woman to bear the unconscious
Speaker 1: man out of the way of danger. Well, said our
Speaker 1: engineer ruefully, as we took our seats to return to London.
Speaker 1: That has been a pretty business for me. I have
Speaker 1: lost my thumb, and I have lost a fifty guinea fee,
Speaker 1: and what have I gained? Experience? Said Holmes, laughing indirectly.
Speaker 1: It may be a value, you know, you have only
Speaker 1: to put it into words to gain the reputation of
Speaker 1: being excellent company for the remainder of your existence.