Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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Speaker 1: LibriVox dot org. Read by Kirsten Ferrari. The Adventures of
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle Adventure five the Five
Speaker 1: Orange Pips. When I glance over my notes and records
Speaker 1: of the Sherlock Holmes cases between the years eighty two
Speaker 1: and ninety, I am faced by so many which present
Speaker 1: strange and interesting features that it is no easy matter
Speaker 1: to know which to choose and which to leave. Some, however,
Speaker 1: have already gained publicity through the papers, and others have
Speaker 1: not offered a field for those peculiar qualities which my
Speaker 1: friend possessed in so high a degree, and which it
Speaker 1: is the object of these papers to illustrate. Some too
Speaker 1: have baffled his analytical skill, and would be as narratives
Speaker 1: beginning without an ending, while others have been but partially
Speaker 1: cleared up, and have their explanations found did rather upon
Speaker 1: conjecture and surmise than on that absolute logical proof which
Speaker 1: was so dear to him. There is, however, one of
Speaker 1: these last, which was so remarkable in its details, and
Speaker 1: so startling in its results, that I am tempted to
Speaker 1: give some account of it, in spite of the fact
Speaker 1: that there are points in connection with it which have
Speaker 1: never been and probably never will be entirely cleared up.
Speaker 1: The year eighty seven furnished us with a long series
Speaker 1: of cases of greater or less interest, of which I
Speaker 1: retain the records among my headings. Under this one twelvemonths,
Speaker 1: I find an account of the adventure of the Paradol
Speaker 1: Chamber of the Amateur Mendicant Society, who held a luxurious
Speaker 1: club in the lower vault of a furniture warehouse, of
Speaker 1: the facts connected with the loss of the British bark
Speaker 1: Sophie Anderson, of the singular adventures of the Greis Pattersons
Speaker 1: in the Island of Ufa, and finally of the Camberwell
Speaker 1: poisoning case. In the latter, as may be remembered, Schulock
Speaker 1: Holmes was able, by winding up the dead man's word,
Speaker 1: to prove that it had been wound up two hours before,
Speaker 1: and that therefore the deceased had gone to bed within
Speaker 1: that time, a deduction which was of the greatest importance
Speaker 1: in clearing up the case. All these I may sketch
Speaker 1: out at some future date, but none of them present
Speaker 1: such singular features as the strange train of circumstances which
Speaker 1: I have now taken up my pen to describe. It
Speaker 1: was in the latter days of September, and the equinoctial
Speaker 1: gales had set in with exceptional violence. All day. The
Speaker 1: wind had screamed and the rain had beaten against the windows,
Speaker 1: so that even here in the heart of great hand
Speaker 1: made London, we were forced to raise our minds for
Speaker 1: the instant from the routine of life, and to recognize
Speaker 1: the presence of those great elemental forces which shriek at
Speaker 1: mankind through the bars of his civilization, like untamed beasts
Speaker 1: in a cage. As evening drew in, the storm grew
Speaker 1: higher and louder, and the wind cried and sobbed like
Speaker 1: a child in the chimney. Sherlock Holmes sat moodily at
Speaker 1: one side of the fireplace, cross indexing his records of crime,
Speaker 1: while I, at the other, was deep in one of
Speaker 1: Clarke Russell's fine sea stories, until the howl of the
Speaker 1: gale from without seemed to blend with the text and
Speaker 1: the splash of the rain to lengthen out into the
Speaker 1: long swash of the sea waves. My wife was on
Speaker 1: a visit to her mother's, and for a few days
Speaker 1: I was a dweller once more in my old quarters
Speaker 1: at Baker Street. Why, said I, glancing up at my companion,
Speaker 1: that was surely the bell. Who could come up to night?
Speaker 1: Some friend of yours? Perhaps, except yourself? I have none,
Speaker 1: he answered, I do not encourage visitors a client. Then,
Speaker 1: if so, it is a serious case. Nothing less would
Speaker 1: bring a man out on such a day and at
Speaker 1: such an hour. But I take it that it is
Speaker 1: more likely to be some crony of the landlady's Sherlock
Speaker 1: Holmes was wrong in his conjecture, however, for there came
Speaker 1: a step in the passage, and a tapping at the door.
Speaker 1: He stretched out his long arm to turn the lamp
Speaker 1: away from himself and towards the vacant chair upon which
Speaker 1: a newcomer must sit. Come in, said he. The man
Speaker 1: who entered was young, some two and twenty at the outside,
Speaker 1: well groomed and trimly clad, with something of refinement and
Speaker 1: delicacy in his bearing, the streaming umbrella which he held
Speaker 1: in his hand, and his long shining waterproof, told of
Speaker 1: the fierce weather through which he had come. He looked
Speaker 1: about him anxiously in the glare of the lamp, and
Speaker 1: I could see that his face was pale, and his
Speaker 1: eyes heavy, like those of a man who is weighed
Speaker 1: down with some great anxiety. I owe you an apology,
Speaker 1: he said, raising his golden pontene to his eyes. I
Speaker 1: trust that I am not intruding. I fear that I
Speaker 1: have brought some traces of the storm and rain into
Speaker 1: your snug chamber. Give me your coat and umbrella, said Holmes.
Speaker 1: They may rest here on the hook and will be
Speaker 1: dry presently. You have come up from the southwest. I see, yes,
Speaker 1: from Horsham. That clay and chalk mixture which I see
Speaker 1: upon your toe caps is quite distinctive. I have come
Speaker 1: for advice that is easily got, and help that is
Speaker 1: not always so easy. I have heard of you, mister Holmes.
Speaker 1: I heard from Major Pendergast how you saved him in
Speaker 1: the Tankerville Club scandal. Ah. Of course he was wrongfully
Speaker 1: accused of cheating at cards. He said that you could
Speaker 1: solve anything. He said too much, that you are never beaten.
Speaker 1: I have been beaten four times, three times by men
Speaker 1: and once by a woman. But what is that compared
Speaker 1: with the number of your successes. It is true that
Speaker 1: I have been generally successful, then you may be so
Speaker 1: with me. I beg that you will draw up your
Speaker 1: chair to the fire and favor me with some details
Speaker 1: as to your case. It is no ordinary one. None
Speaker 1: of those which come to me are. I am the
Speaker 1: last court of appeal. And yet I question, sir, whether,
Speaker 1: in all your experience you have ever listened to a
Speaker 1: more mysterious and inexplicable chain of events than those which
Speaker 1: have happened in my own family. You fill me with interest,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Pray, give us the essential facts from the commencement,
Speaker 1: and I can afterwards question you as to those details
Speaker 1: which seemed to me to be most important. The young
Speaker 1: man pulled his chair up and pushed his wet feet
Speaker 1: out toward the blaze. My name, said, he is John Openshaw.
Speaker 1: But my own affairs have, as far as I can understand,
Speaker 1: little to do with this awful business. It is a
Speaker 1: hereditary matter. So in order to give you an idea
Speaker 1: of the facts, I must go back to the commencement
Speaker 1: of the affair. You must know that my grandfather had
Speaker 1: two sons, my uncle Elias and my father Joseph. My
Speaker 1: father had a small factory at Coventry, which he enlarged
Speaker 1: at the time of the invention of bicycling. He was
Speaker 1: a patentee of the open Shaw Unbreakable tire, and his
Speaker 1: his business met with such success that he was able
Speaker 1: to sell it and to retire upon a handsome competence.
Speaker 1: My uncle Elias emigrated to America when he was a
Speaker 1: young man and became a painter in Florida, where he
Speaker 1: was reported to have done very well. At the time
Speaker 1: of the war, he fought in Jackson's army and afterwards
Speaker 1: under hood, where he rose to be a colonel. When
Speaker 1: Lee laid down his arms, my uncle returned to his plantation,
Speaker 1: where he remained for three or four years. About eighteen
Speaker 1: sixty nine or eighteen seventy he came back to Europe
Speaker 1: and took a small estate in Sussex, near Horsham. He
Speaker 1: had made a very considerable fortune in the States, and
Speaker 1: his reason for leaving them was his aversion to the
Speaker 1: Negroes and his dislike of the Republican policy in extending
Speaker 1: the franchise to them. He was a singular man, fierce
Speaker 1: and quick tempered, very foul mouthed when he was angry,
Speaker 1: and of a most retiring disposition. During all the years
Speaker 1: that he lived at Horsham, I doubt if he ever
Speaker 1: set foot in the town. He had a garden and
Speaker 1: two or three fields round his house, and there he
Speaker 1: would take his exercise, though very often for weeks on
Speaker 1: end he would never leave his room. He drank a
Speaker 1: great deal of brandy and smoked very heavily, but he
Speaker 1: would see no society and did not want any friends,
Speaker 1: not even his own brother. He didn't mind me, in fact,
Speaker 1: he took a fancy to me, for at the time
Speaker 1: when he saw me first, I was a youngster of
Speaker 1: twelve or so. This would be in the year eighteen
Speaker 1: seventy eight, after he had been eight or nine years
Speaker 1: in England. He begged my father to let me live
Speaker 1: with him, and he was very kind to me in
Speaker 1: his way. When he was sober. He used to be
Speaker 1: fond of playing backgammon and drafts with me, and he
Speaker 1: would make me his representative both with the servants and
Speaker 1: with the trade people, so that by the time I
Speaker 1: was sixteen, I was quite master of the house. I
Speaker 1: kept all the keys and could go where I liked,
Speaker 1: and do what I liked, so long as I did
Speaker 1: not disturb him in his privacy. There was one singular exception, however,
Speaker 1: for he had a single room, a lumber room up
Speaker 1: among the attics, which was invariably locked, and which he
Speaker 1: would never permit either me or any one else to enter.
Speaker 1: With a boy's curiosity, I have peeped through the keyhole,
Speaker 1: but I was never able to see more than such
Speaker 1: a collection of old trunks and bundles as would be
Speaker 1: expected in such a room. One day, it was March
Speaker 1: of eighteen eighty three, a letter with a foreign stamp
Speaker 1: lay upon the table in front of the colonel's plate.
Speaker 1: It was not a common thing for him to receive letters,
Speaker 1: for his bills were all paid in ready money, and
Speaker 1: he had no friends of any sort from India, said
Speaker 1: he as he took it up. Pond a cherry postmark.
Speaker 1: What can this be? Opening it hurriedly, out there jumped
Speaker 1: five little dried orange pips, which pattered down upon his plate.
Speaker 1: I began to laugh at this, but the laugh was
Speaker 1: struck from my lips at the sight of his face.
Speaker 1: His lip had fallen, his eyes were protruding his skin.
Speaker 1: The color of putty, and he glared at the envelope,
Speaker 1: which he still held in his trembling head. And kay
Speaker 1: k kay, he shrieked. And then, my god, my god,
Speaker 1: my sins have overtaken me. What is it? Uncle, I
Speaker 1: cried deaf, said he, and rising from the table, he
Speaker 1: retired to his room, leaving me palpitating with horror. I
Speaker 1: took up the envelope and saw scrolled in red ink
Speaker 1: upon me in a flap just above the gum, the
Speaker 1: letter K three times repeated. There was nothing else save
Speaker 1: the five dried pips. What could be the reason of
Speaker 1: his overpowering terror? I left the breakfast table, and as
Speaker 1: I ascended the stair I met him coming down with
Speaker 1: an old rusty key which must have belonged to the
Speaker 1: attic in one hand, and a small brass box like
Speaker 1: a cash box in the other. They may do what
Speaker 1: they like, but I'll checkmate them, still, said he, with
Speaker 1: an oath. Tell Mary that I shall want a fire
Speaker 1: in my room to day and send down to Fordham,
Speaker 1: the Horsham lawyer. I did as he ordered, and when
Speaker 1: the lawyer arrived, I was asked to step up to
Speaker 1: the room. The fire was burning brightly, and in the
Speaker 1: grate there was a mass of black, fluffy ashes as
Speaker 1: of burned paper, while the brass box stood open and
Speaker 1: empty beside it. As I glanced at the box, I
Speaker 1: noticed with a start that upon the lid was printed
Speaker 1: the treble quet which I had read in the morning.
Speaker 1: Upon the envelope. I wish you, John, said my uncle,
Speaker 1: to witness my will. I leave my estate, with all
Speaker 1: its advantages and all its disadvantages, to my brother, your father.
Speaker 1: Whence it will no doubt descend to you if you
Speaker 1: can enjoy it in peace, well and good. If you
Speaker 1: find you cannot take my advice, my boy, and leave
Speaker 1: it to your deadliest enemy, I am sorry to give
Speaker 1: you such a two edged thing, but I can't say
Speaker 1: what turn things are going to take. Kindly sign the
Speaker 1: paper where mister Fordham shows you. I signed the paper
Speaker 1: as directed, and the lawyer took it away with him.
Speaker 1: The singular incident made, as you may think, the deepest
Speaker 1: impression upon me, and I pondered over it and turned
Speaker 1: it every way in my mind without being able to
Speaker 1: make anything of it. Yet I could not shake off
Speaker 1: the vague feeling of dread which it left behind. Though
Speaker 1: the sensation grew less keen as the weeks passed, and
Speaker 1: nothing happened to disturb the usual routine of our lives.
Speaker 1: I could see a change in my uncle. However, he
Speaker 1: drank more than ever, and he was less inclined for
Speaker 1: any sort of society. Most of his time he would
Speaker 1: spend in his room with the door locked upon me inside.
Speaker 1: But sometimes he would emerge in a sort of drunken frenzy,
Speaker 1: and would burst out of the house and tear about
Speaker 1: the garden with a revolver in his hand, screaming out
Speaker 1: that he was afraid of no man, and that he
Speaker 1: was not to be cooped up like a sheep in
Speaker 1: a pen by man or devil. When these hot fits
Speaker 1: were over, however, he would rush tumultuously in at the door,
Speaker 1: and lock and bar it behind him, like a man
Speaker 1: who can brazen it out no longer against the terror
Speaker 1: which lies at the root of his soul. At such
Speaker 1: times I have seen his face, even on a cold day,
Speaker 1: glisten with moisture, as though it were new raised from
Speaker 1: a bed. Well. To come to an end of the matter,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, and not to abuse your patience, there came
Speaker 1: a night when he made one of those drunken sallies
Speaker 1: from which he never came back. We found him when
Speaker 1: we went to search for him, face downward in a
Speaker 1: little green, scummed pool which lay at the foot of
Speaker 1: the garden. There was no sign of any violence, and
Speaker 1: the water was but two feet deep, so that the jury,
Speaker 1: having regard to his known eccentricity, brought in a verdict
Speaker 1: of suicide. But I, who knew how he winced from
Speaker 1: the very thought of death, had much ado to persuade
Speaker 1: myself that he had gone out of his way to
Speaker 1: meet it. The matter passed, however, and my father entered
Speaker 1: into possession of the estate and of some fourteen thousand
Speaker 1: pounds which lay to his credit at the bank. One moment,
Speaker 1: Holmes interposed, your statement is, I foresee, one of the
Speaker 1: most remarkable to which I have ever listened. Let me
Speaker 1: have the date of the reception by your uncle of
Speaker 1: the letter and the date of his supposed suicide. The
Speaker 1: letter awoke ved on March tenth, eighteen eighty three. His
Speaker 1: death was seven weeks later, upon the night of May second.
Speaker 1: Thank you pray proceipt. When my father took over the
Speaker 1: Horsham property, he, at my request made a careful examination
Speaker 1: of the attic, which had been always locked up. We
Speaker 1: found the brass box there, although its contents had been destroyed.
Speaker 1: On the inside of the cover was a paper label
Speaker 1: with the initials of K K K repeated upon it,
Speaker 1: and letters, memoranda, receipts, and a register written beneath these,
Speaker 1: we presume indicated the nature of the papers which had
Speaker 1: been destroyed by Colonel Openshaw. For the rest, there was
Speaker 1: nothing of much importance in the attic, save a great
Speaker 1: many scattered papers and note books bearing upon my uncle's
Speaker 1: life in America. Some of them were of the war
Speaker 1: time and showed that he had done his duty well
Speaker 1: and had borne the repute of a brave soldier. Others
Speaker 1: were of a date during the reconstruction of the Southern States,
Speaker 1: and were mostly concerned with politics, for he had evidently
Speaker 1: taken a strong part in opposing the carpet bag politicians
Speaker 1: who had been sent down from the North Well. It
Speaker 1: was the beginning of eighty four when my father came
Speaker 1: to live at Horseham, and all went as well as
Speaker 1: possible until the January of eighty five. On the fourth
Speaker 1: day after the new year, I heard my father give
Speaker 1: a sharp cry of surprise as we sat together at
Speaker 1: the breakfast table. There he was sitting with a newly
Speaker 1: opened envelope in one hand and five dried orange pips
Speaker 1: in the outstretched palm of the other one. He had
Speaker 1: always laughed at what he called my cock and bull
Speaker 1: story about the colonel, but he looked very scared and
Speaker 1: puzzled now that the same thing had come upon him.
Speaker 1: Why what on earth does this mean, John, he stammered,
Speaker 1: My heart had turned to lead. It is K K K,
Speaker 1: said I. He looked inside the envelope. So it is,
Speaker 1: he cried. Here are the very letters, But what is
Speaker 1: this written above them? Put the papers on the sun dial?
Speaker 1: I read, peeping over his shoulder. What papers? What sun dial?
Speaker 1: He asked, The sun dial in the garden. There is
Speaker 1: no other, said I. But the papers must be those
Speaker 1: that are destroyed. Pooh, said he, gripping hard at his courage.
Speaker 1: We are in a civilized land here, and we can't
Speaker 1: have tomfoolery of this kind. Where does the thing come
Speaker 1: from from? Dundee, I answered, glancing at the post mark.
Speaker 1: Some preposterous practical joke, said he. What have I to
Speaker 1: do with sun dials and papers? I shall take no
Speaker 1: notice of such nonsense. I should certainly speak to the police,
Speaker 1: I said, and be laughed at for my pains. Nothing
Speaker 1: of the sort, then let me do so. No, I
Speaker 1: forbid you. I won't have a fuss made about such nonsense.
Speaker 1: It was in vain to argue with him, for he
Speaker 1: was a very obstinate man. I went about, however, with
Speaker 1: a heart which was full of forebodings. On the third
Speaker 1: day after the coming of the letter, my father went
Speaker 1: from home to an old friend of his Major Freebody,
Speaker 1: who is in the command of one of the forts
Speaker 1: upon Portstown Hill. I was glad that he should go,
Speaker 1: for it seemed to me that he was further from
Speaker 1: danger when he was away from home. In that, however,
Speaker 1: I was in error. Upon the second day of his absence,
Speaker 1: I received a telegram from the Major imploring me to
Speaker 1: come at once. My father had fallen over one of
Speaker 1: the deep chalk pits which abound in the neighborhood, and
Speaker 1: was lying senseless with a shattered skull. I hurried to him,
Speaker 1: but he passed away without ever having recovered his consciousness.
Speaker 1: He had, as it appears, been returning from Fareham in
Speaker 1: the twilight, and as the country was unknown to him,
Speaker 1: and the chalk pit unfenced. The jury had no hesitation
Speaker 1: in bringing in a verdict of death from accidental causes. Carefully,
Speaker 1: as I examined every fact connected with his death, I
Speaker 1: was unable to find anything which could suggest the idea
Speaker 1: of murder. There were no signs of violence, no footmarks,
Speaker 1: no robbery, no record of strangers having been seen upon
Speaker 1: the roads. And yet I need not tell you that
Speaker 1: my mind was far from at ease, and that I
Speaker 1: was well nigh certain that some foul plot had been
Speaker 1: woven around him. In this sinister way I came into
Speaker 1: my inheritance. You will ask me why I did not
Speaker 1: dispose of it. I answer because I was well convinced
Speaker 1: that our troubles were in some way dependent upon an
Speaker 1: incident in my uncle's life, and that the danger would
Speaker 1: be as pressing in one house as in another. It
Speaker 1: was in January of eighty five that my poor father
Speaker 1: met his end, and two years and eight months have
Speaker 1: elapsed since then. During that time I have lived happily
Speaker 1: at Horsham, and I had begun to hope that this
Speaker 1: curse had passed away from the family, and that it
Speaker 1: had ended with the last generation. I had begun to
Speaker 1: take comfort too soon. However, yesterday morning the blow fell
Speaker 1: in the very shape in which it had come upon
Speaker 1: my father. The young man took from his waistcoat a
Speaker 1: crumpled envelope, and turning to the table, he shook out
Speaker 1: upon it five little dried orange pips. This is the envelope,
Speaker 1: he continued. The postmark is London Eastern Division. Within are
Speaker 1: the very words which were upon my father's last message,
Speaker 1: K K K. And then put the papers on the
Speaker 1: sun dial. What have you done, asked Holmes. Nothing, nothing
Speaker 1: to tell the truth. He sank his face into his
Speaker 1: thin white hands. I have felt helpless. I have felt
Speaker 1: like one of those poor rabbits when the snake is
Speaker 1: riding toward it. I seem to be in the grasp
Speaker 1: of some resistless, inexorable evil which no foresight and no
Speaker 1: precautions can guard against. Tut tut, cried Sherlock Holmes. You
Speaker 1: must act, man, or you are lost. Nothing but energy
Speaker 1: can save you. This is no time for despair. I
Speaker 1: have seen the police, ah, but then listen to my
Speaker 1: story with a smile. I am convinced that the inspector
Speaker 1: has formed the opinion that the letters were all practical jokes,
Speaker 1: and that the deaths of my relations were accidents, as
Speaker 1: the jury stated, and were not to be connected with
Speaker 1: the warnings. Holmes shook his clenched hands in the air.
Speaker 1: Incredible imbecility, he cried. They have, however, allowed me a
Speaker 1: policeman who may remain in the house with me. Has
Speaker 1: he come with you to night? No? His orders were
Speaker 1: to stay in the house again, Holmes raved in the air.
Speaker 1: Why did you come to me, he cried, And above all,
Speaker 1: why did you not come at once? I did not know.
Speaker 1: It was only to day that I spoke to Major
Speaker 1: Prendergast about my troubles, and was advised by him to
Speaker 1: come to you. It is really two days since you
Speaker 1: have had the letter. We should have acted before this.
Speaker 1: You have no further evidence, I suppose, than that which
Speaker 1: you have placed before us, no suggestive detail which might
Speaker 1: help us. There is one thing, said John Openshaw. He
Speaker 1: rummaged in his coat pocket, and drawing out a piece
Speaker 1: of discolored, blue tinted paper, he laid it out upon
Speaker 1: the table. I have some remembrance, said he, that on
Speaker 1: the day when my uncle burned the papers, I observed
Speaker 1: that the small unburned margins which lay amid the ashes
Speaker 1: were of this particular color. I found this single sheet
Speaker 1: upon the floor of his room, and I am inclined
Speaker 1: to think that it may be one of the papers
Speaker 1: which has perhaps fluttered out from among the others, and
Speaker 1: in that way has escaped destruction. Beyond the mention of pips,
Speaker 1: I do not see that it helps us much. I
Speaker 1: think myself that it is a page from some private diary.
Speaker 1: The writing is undoubtedly my uncle's. Holmes moved the lamp
Speaker 1: and we both bent over the sheet of paper, which
Speaker 1: showed by its ragged edge that it had indeed been
Speaker 1: torn from a book. It was headed March eighteen sixty nine,
Speaker 1: and beneath were the following enigmatical notices. Fourth Hudson came
Speaker 1: same old platform. Seventh set the pips on Macauley, Paramour
Speaker 1: and John Swain of Saint Augustine ninth. Macauley cleared, tenth,
Speaker 1: John Swain cleared twelfth, visited Parmore or well, thank you,
Speaker 1: said Holmes, folding up the paper and returning it to
Speaker 1: our visitor. And now you must, on no account lose
Speaker 1: another instant. We cannot spare time even to discuss what
Speaker 1: you have told me. You must get home instantly and act.
Speaker 1: What shall I do? There is but one thing to do.
Speaker 1: It must be done at once. You must put this
Speaker 1: piece of paper which you have shown us into the
Speaker 1: brass box which you have described. You must also put
Speaker 1: in a note to say that all the other papers
Speaker 1: were burned by your uncle, and that this is the
Speaker 1: only one which remains. You must assert that in such
Speaker 1: words as will carry conviction with them. Having done this,
Speaker 1: you must at once put the box out upon the
Speaker 1: sun dial as directed. Do you understand entirely? Do not
Speaker 1: think of revenge or anything of that sort at present.
Speaker 1: I think that we may gain that by means of
Speaker 1: the law. But we have our web to weave, while
Speaker 1: theirs is already woven. The first consideration is to remove
Speaker 1: the pressing danger which threatens you. The second is to
Speaker 1: clear up the mystery and to punish the guilty parties.
Speaker 1: I thank you, said the young man, rising and pulling
Speaker 1: on his overcoat. You have given me fresh life and hope.
Speaker 1: I shall certainly do as you advise, Do not lose
Speaker 1: an instant, and above all take care of yourself in
Speaker 1: the meanwhile, For I do not think that there can
Speaker 1: be a doubt that you are threatened by a very
Speaker 1: real and imminent danger. How do you go back by
Speaker 1: train from Waterloo? It is not yet nine. The streets
Speaker 1: will be crowded. So I trust that you may be
Speaker 1: in safety. And yet you cannot guard yourself too closely.
Speaker 1: I am armed. That is well. To morrow I shall
Speaker 1: set to work upon your case. I shall see you
Speaker 1: at Hortammen. No, your secret lies in London. It is
Speaker 1: there that I shall seek it. Then I shall call
Speaker 1: upon you in a day, or in two days, with
Speaker 1: news as to the box and the papers. I shall
Speaker 1: take your advice in every particular. He shook hands with
Speaker 1: us and took his leave. Outside, the wind still screamed,
Speaker 1: and the rain splashed and pattered against the windows. This strange,
Speaker 1: wild story seemed to have come to us from amid
Speaker 1: the mad elements, blown in upon us like a sheet
Speaker 1: of seaweed in a gale, and now to have been
Speaker 1: reabsorbed by them once more. Sherlock Holmes sat for some
Speaker 1: time in silence, with his head sunk forward and his
Speaker 1: eyes bent upon the red glow of the fire. Then
Speaker 1: he lit his pipe, and, leaning back in his chair,
Speaker 1: he watched the blue smoke rings as they chased each
Speaker 1: other up to the ceiling. I think Watson, He remarked
Speaker 1: at last, that of all our cases we have had
Speaker 1: none more fantastic than this, save perhaps the sign of four. Well, yes,
Speaker 1: save perhaps that. And yet this John Openshaw seems to
Speaker 1: me to be walking amid even greater perils than did
Speaker 1: the Shoultos. But have you, I asked, for any definite
Speaker 1: conception as to what these perils are? There can be
Speaker 1: no question as to their nature? He answered, Then what
Speaker 1: are they? Who is this K K K? And why
Speaker 1: does he pursue this unhappy family? Sherlock Holmes closed his
Speaker 1: eyes and placed his elbows upon the arms of his chair,
Speaker 1: with his finger tips together. The ideal reasoner, he remarked, would,
Speaker 1: when he had once been shown a single fact in
Speaker 1: all its bearings, deduce from it not only all the
Speaker 1: chain of events which led up to it, but also
Speaker 1: all the results which would follow from it. As Cuvier
Speaker 1: could correctly describe a whole animal by the contemplation of
Speaker 1: a single bone, so the observer who has thoroughly understood
Speaker 1: one link in a series of incidents should be able
Speaker 1: to accurately state all the other ones. Both before and after,
Speaker 1: we have not yet grasped the results which the reason
Speaker 1: alone can attain to. Problems may be solved in the
Speaker 1: study which have baffled all those who have sought a
Speaker 1: solution by the aid of their senses. To carry the art, however,
Speaker 1: to its highest pitch, it is necessary that the reasoner
Speaker 1: should be able to utilize all the facts which have
Speaker 1: come to his knowledge. And this in itself implies, as
Speaker 1: you will readily see, a possession of all knowledge, which,
Speaker 1: even in these days of free education and encyclopedias, is
Speaker 1: a somewhat rare accomplishment. It is not so impossible, however,
Speaker 1: that a man should possess all knowledge which is likely
Speaker 1: to be useful to him in his work, and this
Speaker 1: I have endeavored in my case to do. If I
Speaker 1: remember rightly, you, on one occasion in the early days
Speaker 1: of our friendship, defined my limits in a very precise fashion. Yes,
Speaker 1: I answered, laughing. It was a singular document. Philosophy, astronomy,
Speaker 1: and politics were marked at zero. I remember botany variable
Speaker 1: geology profound as regards the mud stains from any region
Speaker 1: within fifty miles of town, Chemistry, eccentric anatomy, unsystematic, sensational literature,
Speaker 1: crime records, unique violin player, boxer, swordsman, lawyer, and self
Speaker 1: poisoner by cocaine and tobacco. Those I think were the
Speaker 1: main points of my analysis. Holmes grinned at the last item. Well,
Speaker 1: he said, I say now, as I said then, that
Speaker 1: a man should keep his little brain attic stocked with
Speaker 1: all the furniture that he is likely to use, and
Speaker 1: the rest he can put away in the lumber room
Speaker 1: of his library, where he can get at it if
Speaker 1: he wants it. Now, for such a case as the
Speaker 1: one which has been submitted to us to night, we
Speaker 1: need certainly to muster all our resources. Kindly hand me
Speaker 1: down the letter K of the American Encyclopedia, which stands
Speaker 1: upon the shelf beside you. Thank you. Now, let us
Speaker 1: consider the situation and see what may be deduced from it.
Speaker 1: In the first place, we may start with a strong
Speaker 1: presumption that Colonel Openshaw had some very strong reason for
Speaker 1: leaving America. Men at his time of life do not
Speaker 1: change all their habits and exchange willingly the charming climate
Speaker 1: of Florida for the lonely life of an English provincial town.
Speaker 1: His extreme love of solitude in England suggests the idea
Speaker 1: that he was in fear of something or some one.
Speaker 1: So we may assume, as a working hypothesis that it
Speaker 1: was fear of some one or something which drove him
Speaker 1: from America. As to what it was he feared, we
Speaker 1: can only deduce that by considering the formidable letters which
Speaker 1: were received by himself and his successors. Did you remark
Speaker 1: the post marks of those letters? The first was from Pondicherry,
Speaker 1: the second from Dundee, and the third from London. From
Speaker 1: East London? What do you deduce from that? They are
Speaker 1: all seaports. That the writer was on board of a ship. Excellent,
Speaker 1: We have already a clue. There can be no doubt
Speaker 1: that the probability, the strong probability, is that the writer
Speaker 1: was on board of a ship. And now let us
Speaker 1: consider another point. In the case of Pondicherry, seven weeks
Speaker 1: elapsed between the threat and its fulfillments. In Dundee it
Speaker 1: was only some three or four days. Does that suggest
Speaker 1: anything a greater distance to travel? But the letter also
Speaker 1: had a greater distance to come. Then I do not
Speaker 1: see the point. There is at least a presumption that
Speaker 1: the vessel in which the man or men are is
Speaker 1: a sailing ship. It looks as if they always send
Speaker 1: their singular warning or token before them when starting upon
Speaker 1: their mission. You see how quickly the deed followed the
Speaker 1: sign when it came from Dundee. If they had come
Speaker 1: from Pondicherry in a steamer, they would have arrived almost
Speaker 1: as soon as their letter. But as a matter of fact,
Speaker 1: seven weeks elapsed. I think that those seven weeks represented
Speaker 1: the difference between the mail boat which brought the letter
Speaker 1: and the sailing vessel which brought the writer. It is possible.
Speaker 1: More than that, it is probable. And now you see
Speaker 1: the deadly urgency of this new case, and why I
Speaker 1: urged young Openshaw to caution. The blow has always fallen
Speaker 1: at the end of the time which it would take
Speaker 1: the to travel the distance. But this one comes from London,
Speaker 1: and therefore we cannot count upon delay. Good God, I cried,
Speaker 1: what can it mean, this relentless persecution? The papers which
Speaker 1: Openshore carried are obviously of vital importance to the person
Speaker 1: or persons in the sailing ship. I think that it
Speaker 1: is quite clear that there must be more than one
Speaker 1: of them. A single man could not have carried out
Speaker 1: two deaths in such a way as to deceive a
Speaker 1: coroner's jury. There must have been several in it, and
Speaker 1: they must have been men of resource and determination. Their
Speaker 1: papers they mean to have be the holder of them
Speaker 1: whom it may. In this way you see, k k
Speaker 1: k ceases to be the initials of an individual and
Speaker 1: becomes the badge of a society. But of what society
Speaker 1: have you never, said Sherlock Holmes, bending forward and sinking
Speaker 1: his voice. Have you never heard of the ku klux Klan? I?
Speaker 1: Never have Holmes turned over the leaves of the book
Speaker 1: upon his knee. Here it is said he presently ku
Speaker 1: klux Klan, a name derived from the fanciful resemblance to
Speaker 1: the sound produced by caking arrival. This terrible secret society
Speaker 1: was formed by some ex Confederate soldiers in the Southern
Speaker 1: States after the Civil War, and it rapidly formed local
Speaker 1: branches in different parts of the country, notably in Tennessee, Louisiana,
Speaker 1: the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Its power was used for
Speaker 1: political purposes, principally for the terrorizing of the Negro voters
Speaker 1: and the murdering and driving from the country of those
Speaker 1: who were opposed to its views. Its outrages were usually
Speaker 1: preceded by a warning sent to the marked man in
Speaker 1: some fantastic but generally recognized shape, a sprig of oak
Speaker 1: leaves in some parts, melon seeds, or orange pips in others.
Speaker 1: On receiving this, the victim might either openly abjure his
Speaker 1: former ways or might fly from the country. If he
Speaker 1: braved the matter out, death would unfailingly come upon him,
Speaker 1: and usually in some strange and unforeseen manner. So perfect
Speaker 1: was the organization of the society, and so systematic its methods,
Speaker 1: that there is hardly a case upon record where any
Speaker 1: man succeeded in braving it with impunity, or in which
Speaker 1: any of its outrages were traced home to the perpetrators.
Speaker 1: For some years the organization flourished, in spite of the
Speaker 1: efforts of the United States government and of the better
Speaker 1: classes of the community in the South. Eventually, in the
Speaker 1: year eighteen sixty nine, the movement rather suddenly collapsed, although
Speaker 1: there have been sporadic outbreaks of the same sort since
Speaker 1: that date. You will observe, said Holmes, laying down the volume,
Speaker 1: that the sudden breaking up of the society was coincident
Speaker 1: with the disappearance of Openshaw from America with their papers.
Speaker 1: It may well have been cause and effect. It is
Speaker 1: no wonder that he and his family have some of
Speaker 1: the more implacable spirit upon their track. You can understand
Speaker 1: that this register and diary may implicate some of the
Speaker 1: first men in the South, and that there may be
Speaker 1: many who will not sleep easy at night until it
Speaker 1: is recovered. Then the page we have seen is such
Speaker 1: as we might expect it ran. If I remember right
Speaker 1: sent the pips to A, B and C, that is,
Speaker 1: sent the Society's warning to them. Then there are successive
Speaker 1: entries that A and B cleared or left the country,
Speaker 1: and finally that C was visited with I fear a
Speaker 1: sinister result for C. Well, I think, doctor, that we
Speaker 1: may let some light into this dark place. And I
Speaker 1: believe that the only chance young Openshaw has in the
Speaker 1: meantime is to do what I have told him. There
Speaker 1: is nothing more to be said or to be done
Speaker 1: to night. So hand me over my violin and let
Speaker 1: us try to forget for half an hour the miserable
Speaker 1: weather and the still more miserable ways of our fellow men.
Speaker 1: It had cleared in the morning, and the sun was
Speaker 1: shining with a subdued brightness through the dim veil which
Speaker 1: hangs over the great city. Sherlock Holmes was already at
Speaker 1: breakfast when I came down. You will excuse me for
Speaker 1: not waiting for you, said he. I have, I foresee
Speaker 1: a very busy day before me in looking into this
Speaker 1: case of young Openshaws. What steps will you take? I asked,
Speaker 1: It will very much depend upon the results of my
Speaker 1: first enquiries. I may have to go down to Horsham.
Speaker 1: After all, you will not go there first, No, I
Speaker 1: shall commence with the city. Just ring the bell and
Speaker 1: the maid will bring you up your coffee. As I waited,
Speaker 1: I lifted the unopened newspaper from the table and glanced
Speaker 1: my eye over it. It rested upon a heading which
Speaker 1: sent a chill to my heart. Holmes, I cried, you
Speaker 1: are too late, ah, said he, laying down his cup.
Speaker 1: I feared as much. How is it done? He spoke calmly,
Speaker 1: but I could see that he was deeply moved. My
Speaker 1: eye caught the name of Openshaw and the heading tragedy
Speaker 1: near Waterloo Bridge. Here is the account between nine and
Speaker 1: ten last night, Police Constable Cook of the h Division,
Speaker 1: on duty near Waterloo Bridge, heard a cry for help
Speaker 1: and a splash in the water. The night, however, was
Speaker 1: extremely dark and stormy, so that in spite of the
Speaker 1: help of several passers by, it was quite impossible to
Speaker 1: effect a rescue. The alarm, however, was given, and by
Speaker 1: the aid of the water police, the body was eventually recovered.
Speaker 1: It proved to be that of a young gentleman, whose name,
Speaker 1: as it appears from an envelope which was found in
Speaker 1: his pocket, was John Openshaw, and whose residence is near Horsham.
Speaker 1: It is conjectured that he may have been hurrying down
Speaker 1: to catch the last train from Waterloo station, and that,
Speaker 1: in his haste and the extreme darkness, he missed his
Speaker 1: path and walked over the edge of one of the
Speaker 1: small landing places for river steamboats. The body exhibited no
Speaker 1: traces of violence, and there can be no doubt that
Speaker 1: the deceased beast had been the victim of an unfortunate accident,
Speaker 1: which should have the effect of calling the attention of
Speaker 1: the authorities to the condition of the river side landing stages.
Speaker 1: We sat in silence for some minutes. Holmes more depressed
Speaker 1: and shaken than I had ever seen him. That hurts
Speaker 1: my pride, Watson, he said, at last. It is a
Speaker 1: petty feeling, no doubt, but it hurts my pride. It
Speaker 1: becomes a personal matter with me now, And if God
Speaker 1: sends me health, I shall set my hands upon this gang,
Speaker 1: that he should come to me for help, and that
Speaker 1: I should send him away to his death. He sprang
Speaker 1: from his chair and paced about the room in uncontrollable agitation,
Speaker 1: with a flush upon his sallow cheeks, and a nervous
Speaker 1: clasping and unclasping of his long, thin hands. They must
Speaker 1: be cunning devils, he exclaimed at last. How could they
Speaker 1: have decoyed him down there? The embankment is not on
Speaker 1: the direct line to the station. The bridge, no doubt,
Speaker 1: was too crowded, even on such a night for their purposes. Well, Watson,
Speaker 1: we shall see who will win in the long run.
Speaker 1: I am going out now to the police. No, I
Speaker 1: shall be my own police. When I have spun the web,
Speaker 1: they may take the flies. But not before all day
Speaker 1: I was engaged in my professional work, and it was
Speaker 1: late in the evening before I returned to Baker Street.
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes had not come back yet. It was nearly
Speaker 1: ten o'clock before he entered. Looking pale and worn, he
Speaker 1: walked up to the sideboard, and, tearing a piece from
Speaker 1: the loaf, he devoured it voraciously, washing it down with
Speaker 1: a long draft of water. You are hungry, I remarked, starving.
Speaker 1: It had escaped my memory. I have had nothing since breakfast, nothing,
Speaker 1: not a bite. I had no time to think about it.
Speaker 1: And how have you succeeded? Well, you have a clue.
Speaker 1: I have them in the hollow of my hand, Young Openshaw,
Speaker 1: shall not long remain unavenged. Why Watson let us put
Speaker 1: their own devilish trade mark upon them? It is well
Speaker 1: thought of. What do you mean? He took an orange
Speaker 1: from the cupboard, and, tearing it to pieces, he squeezed
Speaker 1: out the pips upon the table. Of these, he took
Speaker 1: five and thrust them into an envelope. On the inside
Speaker 1: of the flap, he wrote s H for j O.
Speaker 1: Then he sealed it and addressed it to Captain James
Speaker 1: Calhoun bark lone Star Savannah, Georgia. That will await him
Speaker 1: when he enters port, said he, chuckling. It may give
Speaker 1: him a sleepless night. He will find it as sure
Speaker 1: a precursor of his fate as Openshaw did before him.
Speaker 1: And who is this Captain Calhoun, the leader of the gang.
Speaker 1: I shall have the others, but he first, how did
Speaker 1: you trace it? Then he took a large sheet of
Speaker 1: paper from his pocket or covered with dates and names.
Speaker 1: I have spent the whole day, said he over Lloyd's
Speaker 1: registers and files of the old papers, following the future
Speaker 1: career of every vessel which touched at Pondicherry. In January
Speaker 1: and February in eighty three, there were thirty six ships
Speaker 1: of fair tonnage which reported there during those months. Of these, one,
Speaker 1: the Lone Star, instantly attracted my attention, since although it
Speaker 1: was reported as having cleared from London, the name is
Speaker 1: that which is given to one of the states of
Speaker 1: the Union, Texas. I think I was not and am
Speaker 1: not sure of which, but I know that the ship
Speaker 1: must have an American origin. What then I searched the
Speaker 1: Dundee records, and when I found that the bark Lone
Speaker 1: Star was there in January of eighty five, my suspicion
Speaker 1: became a certainty. I then inquired as to the vessels
Speaker 1: which lay at present in the port of London. Yes,
Speaker 1: the Lone Star had arrived here last week. I went
Speaker 1: down to the Albert dock and found that she had
Speaker 1: been taken down the river by the early tide. This morning,
Speaker 1: homeward bound to Savannah, I wired to Gravesend and learned
Speaker 1: that she had passed some time ago. And as the
Speaker 1: wind is easterly, I have no doubt that she has
Speaker 1: now passed the good winds, and not very far from
Speaker 1: the Isle of Wight. What will you do, then, oh,
Speaker 1: I have my hand upon him. He and the two
Speaker 1: mates are, as I learn, the only native born Americans
Speaker 1: in the ship. The others are Finns and Germans. I
Speaker 1: know also that they were all three away from the
Speaker 1: ship last night. I had it from the stevedor who
Speaker 1: has been loading their cargo. By the time that their
Speaker 1: sailing ship reaches Savannah, the mail boat will have carried
Speaker 1: this letter, and the cable will have informed the police
Speaker 1: of Savannah that these three gentlemen are badly wanted here
Speaker 1: upon a charge of murder. There is a flaw, however,
Speaker 1: in the best laid of human plans, and the murderers
Speaker 1: of John Openshaw were never to receive the orange pips
Speaker 1: which would show them that another as cunning and as
Speaker 1: resolute as themselves was upon their track. Very long and
Speaker 1: very severe were the equinoctial gales that year. We waited
Speaker 1: long for news of the Lone Star of Savannah, but
Speaker 1: none ever reached us. We did at last hear that
Speaker 1: somewhere far out in the Atlantic, a ship scattered stern
Speaker 1: post of a boat was seen swinging in the trough
Speaker 1: of a wave, with the letters L S carved upon it.
Speaker 1: And that is all we shall ever know of the
Speaker 1: fate of the Lone Star, end of the five Orange Pips,