Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire. Holmes had read carefully
Speaker 1: a note which the last post had brought him. Then,
Speaker 1: with the dry chuckle which was his nearest approach to
Speaker 1: a laugh, he tossed it over to me. For a
Speaker 1: mixture of the modern and medieval, of the practical and
Speaker 1: of the wildly fanciful. I think this is surely the limit,
Speaker 1: said he. What do you make of it? Watson? I
Speaker 1: read as follows forty six Old Jury, November nineteenth re Vampires. Sir,
Speaker 1: our client, mister Robert Ferguson, our Ferguson and meure head
Speaker 1: Tea brokers of Mincing Lane, has made some inquiry from
Speaker 1: us in a communication of even date concerning vampires. As
Speaker 1: our firm specializes entirely upon the assessment of machinery, the
Speaker 1: matter hardly comes within our purview, and we have therefore
Speaker 1: recommended mister Ferguson to call upon you and lay the
Speaker 1: matter before you. We have not forgotten your successful action
Speaker 1: in the case of Matilda Briggs. We are, sir, faithfully
Speaker 1: yours Morrison, Morrison and Dodd per E j c. Matilda
Speaker 1: Briggs was not the name of a young woman, Watson,
Speaker 1: said Holmes, in a reminiscent voice. It was a ship
Speaker 1: which is associated with the giant rat of Sumatra, a
Speaker 1: story for which the world is not yet prepared. But
Speaker 1: what do we know about vampires? Does it come within
Speaker 1: our purview? Either anything is better than stagnation. But really
Speaker 1: we seem to have been switched on to a grim's
Speaker 1: fairy tale. Make a long arm, Watson, and see what
Speaker 1: v has to say. I leaned back and took down
Speaker 1: the great index volume to which he referred Holmes, balanced
Speaker 1: it on his knee, and his eyes moved slowly and
Speaker 1: lovingly over the record of old cases mixed with the
Speaker 1: accumulated information of a lifetime voyage of the glorious Scott.
Speaker 1: He read that was a bad business. I have some
Speaker 1: recollection that you made a record of it, Watson, though
Speaker 1: I was unable to congratulate you upon the result. Victor Lynch,
Speaker 1: the Forger, venomous lizard or Gila, remarkable case that Victoria,
Speaker 1: the circus Bell, Vanderbilt and the Yeggman, Vipers, Vigor the
Speaker 1: Hammersmith wonder. Hello, Hello, good old Index. You can't beat it.
Speaker 1: Listen to this, Watson. Vamporism in Hungary and again vampires
Speaker 1: in Transylvania. He turned over the pages with eagerness, but
Speaker 1: after a short intent perusal, he threw down the great
Speaker 1: book with a snarl of disappointment. Rubbish, Watson, rubbish. What
Speaker 1: have we to do with walking corpses who can only
Speaker 1: be held in their grave by stakes driven through their hearts?
Speaker 1: It's pure lunacy. But surely, said I, the vampire was
Speaker 1: not necessarily a dead man. A living person might have
Speaker 1: the habit I have read, for example, of the old
Speaker 1: sucking the blood of the young in order to retain
Speaker 1: their youth. You are right, Watson, it mentions the legend
Speaker 1: in one of these references. But are we to give
Speaker 1: serious attention to such things? This agency stands flat footed
Speaker 1: upon the ground, and there it must remain. The world
Speaker 1: is big enough for us. No ghosts need apply. I
Speaker 1: fear that we cannot take mister Robert Ferguson very seriously.
Speaker 1: Possibly this note may be from him and may throw
Speaker 1: some light upon what is worrying him. He took up
Speaker 1: a second letter, which had lain unnoticed upon the table
Speaker 1: while he had been absorbed with the first. This he
Speaker 1: began to read, with a smile of amusement upon his face,
Speaker 1: which gradually faded away into an expression of intense interest
Speaker 1: and concentration. When he had finished, he sat for some
Speaker 1: little time, lost in thought, with the letter dangling from
Speaker 1: his fingers. Finally, with a start, he aroused himself from
Speaker 1: his reverie. Cheeseman's Lamberley. Where is Lamberley, Watson? It is
Speaker 1: in Sussex, south of Horsham, not very far eh and Cheeseman's.
Speaker 1: I know that country homes. It is full of old
Speaker 1: houses which are named after the men who built them
Speaker 1: centuries ago. You get odd li's and harves and carratons.
Speaker 1: The folk are forgotten that their names live in their houses. Precisely,
Speaker 1: said Holmes coldly. It was one of the peculiarities of
Speaker 1: his proud, self contained nature. Though he docketed any fresh
Speaker 1: information very quietly and accurately in his brain, he seldom
Speaker 1: made any acknowledgment to the giver. I rather fancy we
Speaker 1: shall know a good deal more about Cheeseman's Lamberley before
Speaker 1: we are through. The letter is as I had hoped
Speaker 1: from Robert Ferguson. By the way he claims acquaintance with
Speaker 1: you with me, you had better read it. He handed
Speaker 1: the letter across it was headed with the address quoted,
Speaker 1: Dear mister Holmes. It said, I have been recommended to
Speaker 1: you by my lawyers, But indeed the matter is so
Speaker 1: extraordinarily delicate that it is most difficult to discuss. It
Speaker 1: concerns a friend for whom I am acting. This gentleman
Speaker 1: married some five years ago a Peruvian lady, the daughter
Speaker 1: of a Peruvian merchant, whom he had met in connection
Speaker 1: with the importation of nitrates. This lady was very beautiful,
Speaker 1: but the fact of her foreign birth and of her
Speaker 1: alien religion always caused a separation of interests and a
Speaker 1: feelings between husband and wife, so that after a time
Speaker 1: his love may have cooled towards her, and he may
Speaker 1: have come to regard their union as a mistake. He
Speaker 1: felt there were sides of her character which he could
Speaker 1: never explore or understand. This was the more painful, as
Speaker 1: she was as loving a wife as a man could have,
Speaker 1: to all appearance, absolutely devoted. Now for the point which
Speaker 1: I will make more plain when we meet. Indeed, this
Speaker 1: note is merely to give you a general idea of
Speaker 1: the situation, and to ascertain whether you would care to
Speaker 1: interest yourself in the matter. The lady began to show
Speaker 1: some curious traits quite alien to her ordinarily sweet and
Speaker 1: gentle disposition. The gentleman had been married twice, and he
Speaker 1: had one son by the first wife. This boy was
Speaker 1: now fifteen, a very charming and affectionate youth, though unhappily
Speaker 1: injured through an accident in childhood. Twice the wife was
Speaker 1: caught in the act of assaulting this poor lad in
Speaker 1: the most unprovoked way. Once she struck him with a
Speaker 1: stick and left a great wheel on his arm. This
Speaker 1: was a small matter, however, compared with her conduct to
Speaker 1: her own child, a dear boy just under one year
Speaker 1: of age. On one occasion, about a month ago, this
Speaker 1: child had been left by its nurse for a few minutes.
Speaker 1: A loud cry from the baby as of pain, called
Speaker 1: the nurse back. As she ran into the room, she
Speaker 1: saw her employer, the lady, leaning over the baby and
Speaker 1: apparently biting his neck. There was a small wound in
Speaker 1: the neck from which a stream of blood had escaped.
Speaker 1: The nurse was so horrified that she wished to call
Speaker 1: the husband, but the lady implored her not to do so,
Speaker 1: and actually gave her five pounds as a price for
Speaker 1: her silence. No explanation was given, and for the moment
Speaker 1: the matter was passed over. It left, however, a terrible
Speaker 1: impression upon the nurse's mind, and from that time she
Speaker 1: began to watch her mysteries closely, and to keep a
Speaker 1: closer guard upon the baby, whom she tenderly loved. It
Speaker 1: seemed to her that even as she watched the mother,
Speaker 1: so the mother watched her, and that every time she
Speaker 1: was compelled to leave the baby alone, the mother was
Speaker 1: waiting to get at it. Day and night the nurse
Speaker 1: covered the child, and day and night the silent, watchful
Speaker 1: mother seemed to be lying in wait as a wolf
Speaker 1: waits for a lamb. It must read most incredible to you,
Speaker 1: And yet I beg you to take it seriously, for
Speaker 1: a child's life and a man's sanity may depend upon it.
Speaker 1: At last, there came one dreadful day when the facts
Speaker 1: could know longer be concealed from the husband. The nurse's
Speaker 1: nerve had given way. She could stand the strain no longer,
Speaker 1: and she made a clean breast of it all to
Speaker 1: the man. To him, it seemed as wild a tale
Speaker 1: as it may now seem to you, he knew his
Speaker 1: wife to be a loving wife, and save for the
Speaker 1: assaults upon her step son, a loving mother, Why then
Speaker 1: should she wound her own dear little baby. He told
Speaker 1: the nurse that she was dreaming, that her suspicions were
Speaker 1: those of a lunatic, and that such libels upon her
Speaker 1: mistress were not to be tolerated. While they were talking,
Speaker 1: a sudden cry of pain was heard. Nurse and master
Speaker 1: rushed together to the nursery. Imagine his feelings, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: as he saw his wife rise from a kneeling position
Speaker 1: beside the cot, and saw blood upon the child's exposed
Speaker 1: neck and upon the sheet. With a cry of horror,
Speaker 1: he turned his wife's face to the light and saw
Speaker 1: blood all round her lips. It was she, she, beyond
Speaker 1: all quests, who were drunk the poor baby's blood. So
Speaker 1: the matter stands. She is now confined to her room.
Speaker 1: There has been no explanation. The husband is half demented,
Speaker 1: he knows, and I know little of vamporism. Beyond the name.
Speaker 1: We had thought it was some wild tale of foreign parts.
Speaker 1: And yet here in the very heart of the English Sussex. Well,
Speaker 1: all this can be discussed with you in the morning.
Speaker 1: Will you see me. Will you use your great powers
Speaker 1: in aiding a distracted man? If so kindly, wire to
Speaker 1: Ferguson Cheeseman's Lamberley, and I will be at your rooms
Speaker 1: by ten o'clock yours faithfully, Robert Ferguson. PS. I believe
Speaker 1: your friend Watson played rugby for black Heath when I
Speaker 1: was three quarters a Richmond. It is the only personal
Speaker 1: introduction which I can give. Of course, I remembered him,
Speaker 1: said I as I laid down the letter, Big Bob Ferguson,
Speaker 1: the finest three quarter Richmond ever had. It was always
Speaker 1: a good natured chap. It's like him to be so
Speaker 1: concerned over a friend's case. Holmes looked at me thoughtfully
Speaker 1: and shook his head. I never get your limits, Watson
Speaker 1: said he there are unexplored possibilities about you. Take a
Speaker 1: wire down like a good fellow. We'll examine your case
Speaker 1: with pleasure. Your case. We must not let him think
Speaker 1: that this agency is a home for the weak minded.
Speaker 1: Of course it is his case. Send him that wire
Speaker 1: and let the matter rest till morning. Promptly, at ten
Speaker 1: o'clock next morning, Ferguson strode into our room. I had
Speaker 1: remembered him as a long, slab sided man with loose
Speaker 1: limbs and a fine turn of speed, which had carried
Speaker 1: him round many an opposing back. There is surely nothing
Speaker 1: in life more painful than to meet the wreck of
Speaker 1: a fine athlete whom one has known in his prime.
Speaker 1: His great frame had fallen in, his flaxen hair were scanty,
Speaker 1: and his shoulders were bowed. I fear that I roused
Speaker 1: corresponding emotions in him, Hello, Watson, said he, and his
Speaker 1: voice was still deep and hearty. You don't look quite
Speaker 1: the man you did when I threw you over the
Speaker 1: ropes into the crowd at the Old Deer Park. I
Speaker 1: expect I've changed a bit also, but it's this last
Speaker 1: day or two that has aged me. I see by
Speaker 1: your telegram, mister Holmes, that it is no use my
Speaker 1: pretending to be anyone's deputy. It is simpler to deal direct,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Of course it is. But you can imagine
Speaker 1: how difficult it is when you were speaking of the
Speaker 1: woman whom you were bound to protect and help. What
Speaker 1: can I do? How am I to go to the
Speaker 1: police with such a story, and yet the kiddies have
Speaker 1: got to be protected? Is it madness? Mister Holmes, Is
Speaker 1: it something in the blood? Have you any similar case
Speaker 1: in your experience? For God's sake, give me some advice,
Speaker 1: for I am at my wits end very naturally, mister Ferguson.
Speaker 1: Now sit here and pull yourself together and give me
Speaker 1: a few clear answers. I can assure you that I
Speaker 1: am very far from being at my wits end, and
Speaker 1: that I am confident we shall find some solution. First
Speaker 1: of all, tell me what steps you have taken. Is
Speaker 1: your wife still near the children? We had a dreadful scene.
Speaker 1: She is a most loving woman, mister Holmes. If ever
Speaker 1: a woman loved a man with all her heart and soul,
Speaker 1: she loves me. She was cut to the heart that
Speaker 1: I should have discovered this horrible, this incredible secret. She
Speaker 1: would not even speak. She gave no answer to my reproaches,
Speaker 1: save to gaze at me with a sort of wild,
Speaker 1: despairing look in her eyes. Then she rushed to her
Speaker 1: room and locked herself in. Since then she has refused
Speaker 1: to see me. She has a maid who was with
Speaker 1: her before her marriage, Dolory by name, a friend rather
Speaker 1: than a servant. She takes her food to her. Then
Speaker 1: the child is in no immediate danger. Missus Mason. The
Speaker 1: nurse has sworn that she will not leave it night
Speaker 1: or day. I can absolutely trust her. I am more
Speaker 1: uneasy about poor little Jack, for, as I told you
Speaker 1: in my note, he has twice been assaulted by her,
Speaker 1: but never wounded. No, she struck him savagely. It is
Speaker 1: the more terrible as he is a poor, little, inoffensive cripple.
Speaker 1: Ferguson's gaunt features softened as he spoke of his boy.
Speaker 1: You would think that the dear lad's condition would soften
Speaker 1: any one's heart. A fall in childhood and a twisted spine,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, but the dearest, most loving heart within. Holmes
Speaker 1: had picked up the letter of yesterday and was reading
Speaker 1: it over. What other inmates are there in your house,
Speaker 1: mister Ferguson. Two servants who have not been long with us,
Speaker 1: One stable hand Michael, who sleeps in the house, my wife, myself,
Speaker 1: my boy Jack, baby Delores, and missus Mason. That is
Speaker 1: all I gather. That you did not know your wife
Speaker 1: well at the time of your marriage. I had only
Speaker 1: known her a few weeks. How long had this made
Speaker 1: Dolores been with her some years? Then your wife's character
Speaker 1: would really be better known by dolorries than by you. Yes,
Speaker 1: you may say so. Holmes made a note I fancy said,
Speaker 1: he that I may be of more use at Lamberley
Speaker 1: than here. It is eminently a case for personal investigation.
Speaker 1: If the lady remains in her room, our presence could
Speaker 1: not annoy or inconvenience her. Of course we would stay
Speaker 1: at the inn. Ferguson gave a gesture of relief. It
Speaker 1: is what I hoped, mister Holmes. There is an excellent
Speaker 1: train at two from Victoria if you could come. Of
Speaker 1: course we could come. There is a lull at present.
Speaker 1: I can give you my undivided energies. Watson of course
Speaker 1: comes with us. But there are one or two points
Speaker 1: upon which I wish to be very sure before I start.
Speaker 1: This unhappy lady, as I understand, it, has appeared to
Speaker 1: assault both the children, her own baby and your little son.
Speaker 1: That is so, But the assaults take different forms, do
Speaker 1: they not. She has beaten your son once with a
Speaker 1: stick and once very savagely with her hands. Did she
Speaker 1: give no explanation why she struck him, none, save that
Speaker 1: she hated him again and again? She said, so well,
Speaker 1: that is not unknown among stepmothers a posthumous jealousy. We
Speaker 1: will say, is the lady jealous by nature? Yes, she
Speaker 1: is very jealous, jealous with all the strength of her fiery,
Speaker 1: tropical love. But the boy, he is fifteen, I understand,
Speaker 1: and probably very developed in mind, since his body has
Speaker 1: been circumscribed in action. Did he give you no explanation
Speaker 1: of these assaults? No, he declared there was no reason.
Speaker 1: Were they good friends at other times? No? There was
Speaker 1: never any love between them. Yet you say he is affectionate.
Speaker 1: Never in the world could there be so devoted a son.
Speaker 1: My life is his life. He is absorbed in what
Speaker 1: I say or do. Once again, Holmes made a note.
Speaker 1: For some time he sat lost in thought. No doubt
Speaker 1: you and the boy were great comrades before this second marriage.
Speaker 1: You were thrown very close together, were you not very
Speaker 1: much so? And the boy, having so affectionate a nature,
Speaker 1: was devoted, no doubt to the memory of his mother
Speaker 1: most devoted. He would certainly seem to be a most
Speaker 1: interesting lad. There is one other point about these assaults.
Speaker 1: Were the strange attacks upon the baby and the assaults
Speaker 1: upon your son at the same period. In the first case,
Speaker 1: it was so. It was as if some frenzy had
Speaker 1: seized her and she invented her rage upon both. In
Speaker 1: the second case, it was only Jack who suffered. Missus
Speaker 1: Mason had no complaint to make about the baby. That
Speaker 1: certainly complicates matters. I don't quite follow you, mister Holmes.
Speaker 1: Possibly not. One forms provisional theories and waits for time
Speaker 1: or fuller knowledge to explode them. A bad habit, mister Ferguson.
Speaker 1: But human nature is weak. I fear that your old
Speaker 1: friend here has given an exaggerated view of my scientific methods. However,
Speaker 1: I will only say at the present stage that your
Speaker 1: problem does not appear to me to be insoluble, and
Speaker 1: that you may expect to find us at Victoria At
Speaker 1: two o'clock. It was evening of a dull, foggy November day, when,
Speaker 1: having left our bags at the Chequers Lamberley, we drove
Speaker 1: through the Sussex clay of a long winding lane and
Speaker 1: finally reached the isolated and Aniel farmhouse in which Ferguson dwelt.
Speaker 1: It was a large, straggling building, very old in the center,
Speaker 1: very new at the wings, with towering Tudor chimneys and
Speaker 1: a lichen spotted, high pitched roof of horseham slabs. The
Speaker 1: doorsteps were worn into curves, and the ancient tiles which
Speaker 1: lined the porch were marked with the rebus of a
Speaker 1: cheese and a man after the original builder. Within, the
Speaker 1: ceilings were corrugated with heavy oaken beams, and the uneven
Speaker 1: floors sagged into sharp curves. An odor of age and
Speaker 1: decay pervaded the whole crumbling building. There was one very
Speaker 1: large central room into which Ferguson led us. Here in
Speaker 1: a huge old fashioned fireplace with an iron screen behind
Speaker 1: it dated sixteen seventy, There blazed and spluttered a splendid
Speaker 1: log fire. The room, as I gazed round, was a
Speaker 1: most singular mixture of dates and of places. The half
Speaker 1: paneled walls may well have belonged to the original Yeoman
Speaker 1: farmer of the seventeenth century. They were ornamented, however, on
Speaker 1: the lower part by a line of well chosen modern
Speaker 1: water colors, while above, where yellow plaster took the place
Speaker 1: of oak, there was hung a fine collection of South
Speaker 1: American utensils and weapons, which had been brought no doubt
Speaker 1: by the Peruvian lady upstairs. Holmes rose with that quick
Speaker 1: curiosity which sprang from his eager mind and examined them
Speaker 1: with some care. He returned with his eyes full of thought. Hello,
Speaker 1: he cried. Hello. A spaniel had lain in a basket
Speaker 1: in the corner. It came slowly forward towards its master,
Speaker 1: walking with difficulty. Its hind legs moved irregularly, and its
Speaker 1: tail was on the ground. It licked Ferguson's hand. What
Speaker 1: is it, mister Holmes? The dog? What's the matter with it?
Speaker 1: That's what puzzled the vet. A sort of paralysis, spinal meningitis,
Speaker 1: he thought, But it is passing. He'll be all right soon,
Speaker 1: won't you, Carlo. A shiver of assent passed through the
Speaker 1: drooping tale. The dog's mournful eyes passed from one of
Speaker 1: us to the other. He knew that we were discussing
Speaker 1: his case. Did it come on suddenly in a single night?
Speaker 1: How long ago? It may have been four months ago?
Speaker 1: Very remarkable, very suggestive. What do you see in it,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes? A confirmation of what I had already thought?
Speaker 1: For God's sake, What do you think, mister Holmes? It
Speaker 1: may be a mere intellectual puzzle to you, but it
Speaker 1: is life and death to me. My wife, and would
Speaker 1: be murderer my child in constant day. Don't play with me,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, it is too terribly serious. The big rugby
Speaker 1: three quarter was trembling all over. Holmes put his hand
Speaker 1: soothingly upon his arm. I fear that there is pain
Speaker 1: for you, mister Ferguson. Whatever the solution may be, said he,
Speaker 1: I would spare you all I can. I cannot say
Speaker 1: more for the instant, But before I leave this house,
Speaker 1: I hope I may have something definite. Please God, you
Speaker 1: may if you will excuse me, gentlemen, I will go
Speaker 1: up to my wife's room and see if there has
Speaker 1: been any change. He was away some minutes, during which
Speaker 1: Holmes resumed his examination of the curiosities upon the wall.
Speaker 1: When our host returned, it was clear from his downcast
Speaker 1: face that he had made no progress. He brought with
Speaker 1: him a tall, slim, brown faced girl. The tea is ready, Dolores,
Speaker 1: said Ferguson. See that jimistress has everything she can wish.
Speaker 1: She vera ill, cried the girl, looking with indignant eyes
Speaker 1: at her master. She now ask for food. She vera ill.
Speaker 1: She need the doctor. I fright and stay alone with
Speaker 1: her without the doctor Ferguson looked at me with a
Speaker 1: question in his eyes. I should be so glad if
Speaker 1: I could be of use. Would your mistress see doctor Watson?
Speaker 1: I take him. I now ask leave she needs doctor,
Speaker 1: then I'll come with you. At once, I followed the girl,
Speaker 1: who was quivering with strong emotion, up the staircase and
Speaker 1: down an ancient corridor. At the end was an iron
Speaker 1: clamped and massive door. It struck me as I looked
Speaker 1: at it that if Ferguson tried to force his way
Speaker 1: to his wife, he would find it no easy matter.
Speaker 1: The girl drew a key from her pocket, and the
Speaker 1: heavy oaken planks creaked upon their old hinges. I passed in,
Speaker 1: and she swiftly followed, fastening the door behind her. On
Speaker 1: the bed, a woman was lying who was clearly in
Speaker 1: a high fever. She was only half conscious, but as
Speaker 1: I entered, she raised a pair of frightened but beautiful
Speaker 1: eyes and glared at me in apprehension. Seeing a stranger,
Speaker 1: she appeared to be relieved and sank back with a
Speaker 1: sigh upon the pillow. I stepped up to her with
Speaker 1: a few reassuring words, and she lay still while I
Speaker 1: took her pulse and temperature both were high. And yet
Speaker 1: my impression was that the condition was rather that of
Speaker 1: mental and nervous excitement than of any actual seizure. She
Speaker 1: lie like that one day to day. I fraid she'd die,
Speaker 1: said the girl. The woman turned her flushed and handsome
Speaker 1: face towards me. Where is my husband? He is below
Speaker 1: and would wish to see you. I will not see him.
Speaker 1: I will not see him. Then she seemed to wander
Speaker 1: off into delirium. A fiend, A fiend? Or What shall
Speaker 1: I do with this devil? Can I help you in
Speaker 1: any way? No, no one can help. It is finished,
Speaker 1: All is destroyed. Do what I will? All is destroyed.
Speaker 1: The woman must have some strange delusion. I could not
Speaker 1: see honest Bob Ferguson in the character a fiend or devil. Madam,
Speaker 1: I said, your husband loves you, dearly. He is deeply
Speaker 1: grieved at this happening. Again, she turned on me those
Speaker 1: glorious eyes. He loves me, yes, But do I not
Speaker 1: love him? Do I not love him? Even to sacrifice
Speaker 1: myself rather than break his dear heart? That is how
Speaker 1: I love him? And yet he could think of me,
Speaker 1: he could speak of me. So he is full of grief.
Speaker 1: But he cannot understand. No, he cannot understand, but he
Speaker 1: should trust. Will you not see him, I suggested, No, No,
Speaker 1: I cannot forget those terrible words, nor they look upon
Speaker 1: his face. I will not see him. Go now, you
Speaker 1: can do nothing for me. Tell him only one thing.
Speaker 1: I want my child. I have a right to my child.
Speaker 1: That is the only message I can send him. She
Speaker 1: turned her face to the wall and would say no more.
Speaker 1: I returned to the room downstairs, where Ferguson and Holmes
Speaker 1: still sat by the fire. Ferguson listened moodily to my
Speaker 1: account of the interview. How can I sent her the child?
Speaker 1: He said? How do I know what strange impulse might
Speaker 1: come upon her? How can I ever forget how she
Speaker 1: rose from beside it with its blood upon her lips.
Speaker 1: He shuddered at the recollection. The child is safe with
Speaker 1: missus Mason, and there he must remain. A smile made.
Speaker 1: The only modern thing which we had seen in the
Speaker 1: house had brought in some tea. As she was serving it,
Speaker 1: the door opened and a youth entered the room. It
Speaker 1: was a remarkable lad, pale faced and fair haired, with excitable,
Speaker 1: light blue eyes, which blazed into a sudden flame of
Speaker 1: emotion and joy as they rested upon his father. He
Speaker 1: rushed forward and threw his arms round his neck with
Speaker 1: the abandon of a loving girl. Oh Daddy, he cried,
Speaker 1: I did not know that you would you yet I
Speaker 1: should have been here to meet you. I am so
Speaker 1: glad to see you. Ferguson gently disengaged himself from the
Speaker 1: embrace with some little show of embarrassment. Dear old Chap said,
Speaker 1: he patting the flatsen head with a very tender hand.
Speaker 1: I came early because my friends mister Holmes and doctor
Speaker 1: Watson have been persuaded to come down and spend an
Speaker 1: evening with us. Is that mister Holmes that did dective? Yes?
Speaker 1: The youth looked at us with a very penetrating and
Speaker 1: as it seemed to me, unfriendly gaze. What about your
Speaker 1: other child, mister Ferguson asked Holmes. Might we make the
Speaker 1: acquaintance of the baby? Ask missus Mason to bring baby down,
Speaker 1: said Ferguson. The boy went off with a curious shambling gait,
Speaker 1: which told my surgical eyes that he was suffering from
Speaker 1: a weak spine. Presently he returned and behind him came
Speaker 1: a tall, gaunt woman bearing in her arms a very
Speaker 1: beautiful child, dark eyed, golden haired, a wonderful mixture of
Speaker 1: the Saxon and the Latin. Ferguson. Was evidently devoted to it,
Speaker 1: for he took it into his arms and fondled it
Speaker 1: most tenderly. Fancy anyone having the heart to hurt him,
Speaker 1: he muttered, as he glanced down at the small, angry
Speaker 1: red pucker upon the cherub throat. It was at this
Speaker 1: moment that I chanced to glance at Holmes and saw
Speaker 1: a most singular intentness in his expression. His face was
Speaker 1: as set as if it had been carved out of
Speaker 1: old ivory, and his eyes, which had glanced for a
Speaker 1: moment at father and child, were now fixed with eager
Speaker 1: curiosity upon something at the other side of the room.
Speaker 1: Following his gaze, I could only guess that he was
Speaker 1: looking out through the window at the melancholy, dripping garden.
Speaker 1: It is true that a shutter had half closed outside
Speaker 1: and obstructed the view, but nonetheless it was certainly at
Speaker 1: the window that Holmes was fixing his concentrated attention. Then
Speaker 1: he smiled, and his eyes came back to the baby
Speaker 1: on its chubby neck, there was this small puckered mark.
Speaker 1: Without speaking, Holmes examined it with care. Finally, he shook
Speaker 1: one of the dimpled fists, which waved in front of him.
Speaker 1: Good Bye, little man, you have made a strange start
Speaker 1: in life. Nurse, I should wish to have a word
Speaker 1: with you in private. He took her aside and spoke
Speaker 1: earnestly for a few minutes. I only heard the last words,
Speaker 1: which were your anxiety will soon, I hope, be set
Speaker 1: at rest. The woman, who seemed to be a sour,
Speaker 1: silent kind of creature, withdrew with the child. What is
Speaker 1: missus Mason like, asked Holmes. Not very prepossessing externally as
Speaker 1: you can see, but a heart of gold and devoted
Speaker 1: to the child. Do you like her? Jack Holmes turned
Speaker 1: suddenly upon the boy. His expressive mobile face shadowed over,
Speaker 1: and he shook his head. Jackie has very strong likes
Speaker 1: and dislikes, said Ferguson, putting his arm round the boy. Luckily,
Speaker 1: I am one of his likes. The boy cooed and
Speaker 1: nestled his head upon his father's breast. Ferguson gently disengaged him.
Speaker 1: Run away, little Jackie, said he and he watched his
Speaker 1: son with loving eyes until he disappeared. Now, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: he continued, when the boy was gone, I really feel
Speaker 1: that I have brought you on a fool's errand for
Speaker 1: what can you possibly do save give me your sympathy.
Speaker 1: There must be an exceedingly delicate and complex affair. From
Speaker 1: your point of view, it is certainly delicate, said my friend,
Speaker 1: with an amused smile. But I have not been struck
Speaker 1: up to now with its complexity. It has been a
Speaker 1: case for intellectual deduction. But when this original intellectual deduction
Speaker 1: is confirmed point by point, by quite a number of
Speaker 1: independent incidents, then the subjective becomes objective, and we can
Speaker 1: say confidently that we have reached our goal. I had,
Speaker 1: in fact reached it before we left Baker Street, and
Speaker 1: the rest has merely been observation and confirmation. Ferguson put
Speaker 1: his big hand to his furrowed forehead. For Heaven's sake, Holmes,
Speaker 1: he said, hoarsely, if you can see the truth in
Speaker 1: this matter, do not keep me in suspense. How do
Speaker 1: I stand? What shall I do? I care nothing as
Speaker 1: to how you have found your facts, so long as
Speaker 1: you have really got them. Certainly I owe you an explanation,
Speaker 1: and you shall have it, but you will permit me
Speaker 1: to handle the matter in my own way. Is the
Speaker 1: lady capable of seeing us, Watson? She is ill that
Speaker 1: she is quite rational, very good. It is only in
Speaker 1: her presence that we can clear the matter up. Let
Speaker 1: us go up to her. She will not see me,
Speaker 1: cried Ferguson. Oh yes she will, said Holmes. He scribbled
Speaker 1: a few lines upon a sheet of paper. You at
Speaker 1: least have the entree. Will you have the goodness to
Speaker 1: give the lady this note? I ascended again and handed
Speaker 1: the note to Dolores, who cautiously opened the door. A
Speaker 1: minute later I heard a cry from within, a cry
Speaker 1: in which joy and surprise seemed to be blended. Dolores
Speaker 1: looked out. She will see them. She will listen, said
Speaker 1: she at my summons. Ferguson and Holmes came up. As
Speaker 1: we entered the room. Ferguson took a step or two
Speaker 1: towards his wife, who had raised herself in the bed,
Speaker 1: but she held out her hand to repulse him, who
Speaker 1: sank into an armchair, while Holmes seated himself beside him.
Speaker 1: After bowing to the lady, who looked at him with
Speaker 1: wide eyed amazement. Oh I think we can dispense with Dolores,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Oh very well, madam, if you would rather
Speaker 1: she stayed, I can see no objection now, mister fergus
Speaker 1: I am a busy man with many calls, and my
Speaker 1: methods have to be short and direct. The swiftest surgery
Speaker 1: is the least painful. Let me first say what will
Speaker 1: ease your mind. Your wife is a very good, a
Speaker 1: very loving, and a very ill used woman. Ferguson sat
Speaker 1: up with a cry of joy. Prove that, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: and I am your debtor forever. I will do so,
Speaker 1: but in doing so I must wound you deeply in
Speaker 1: another direction. I care nothing so long as you clear
Speaker 1: my wife. Everything on earth is insignificant compared to that.
Speaker 1: Let me tell you then, the train of reasoning which
Speaker 1: passed through my mind in Baker Street. The idea of
Speaker 1: a vampire was to me absurd. Such things do not
Speaker 1: happen in criminal practice in England. And yet your observation
Speaker 1: was precise. You had seen the lady rise from beside
Speaker 1: the child's cot with blood upon her lips. I did it?
Speaker 1: Did it not occur to you that a bleeding wound
Speaker 1: may be sucked for some other purpose than to draw
Speaker 1: the blood from it? Was there not a queen in
Speaker 1: English history who sucked such a wound to draw poison
Speaker 1: from it? Poison the South American household. My instinct felt
Speaker 1: the presence of those weapons upon the wall before my
Speaker 1: eyes ever saw them. It might have been other poison,
Speaker 1: but that was what occurred to me when I saw
Speaker 1: that little empty quiver beside the small bird bow. It
Speaker 1: was just what I expected to see. If the child
Speaker 1: were pricked with one of those arrows dipped in curare
Speaker 1: or some other devilish drug, it would mean death if
Speaker 1: the venom were not sucked out, and the dog. If
Speaker 1: one were to use such a poison, would one not
Speaker 1: try it first in order to see that it had
Speaker 1: not lost its power? I did not foresee the dog,
Speaker 1: but at least I understand him, and he fitted into
Speaker 1: my reconstruy diruction. Now do you understand your wife feared
Speaker 1: such an attack. She saw it made and saved the
Speaker 1: child's life, And yet she shrank from telling you all
Speaker 1: the truth. But she knew how you loved the boy,
Speaker 1: and feared lest it break your heart. Jackie. I watched him.
Speaker 1: As you fondled the child just now, His face was
Speaker 1: clearly reflected in the glass of the window, where the
Speaker 1: shutter formed a background. I saw such jealousy, such cruel hatred,
Speaker 1: as I have seldom seen in a human face. My Jackie.
Speaker 1: You have to face it, mister Ferguson. It is the
Speaker 1: more painful because it is a distorted love, a maniacal,
Speaker 1: exaggerated love for you and possibly for his dead mother,
Speaker 1: which has prompted his action. His very soul is consumed
Speaker 1: with hatred for this splendid child, whose health and beauty
Speaker 1: are a contrast to his own weakness. Good God, it
Speaker 1: is incredible. Have I spoken the truth? Madam? The lady
Speaker 1: was sobbing, with her face buried in the pillows. Now
Speaker 1: she turned to her husband. How could I tell you, Bob,
Speaker 1: I felt the blow it would be to you. It
Speaker 1: was better that I should wait, and that it should
Speaker 1: come from some other leaps than mine. When this gentleman
Speaker 1: who seems to have powers of magic wrote that he
Speaker 1: knew all, I was glad. I think a year at
Speaker 1: sea would be my prescription for Master Jackie, said Holmes,
Speaker 1: rising from his chair. Only one thing is still clouded madam.
Speaker 1: We can quite understand your attacks upon Master Jackie. There
Speaker 1: is a limit to a mother's patience. But how did
Speaker 1: you dare to leave the child these last two days?
Speaker 1: I had told missus Mason. She knew exactly so I imagined
Speaker 1: Ferguson was standing by the bed, choking, his hands outstretched
Speaker 1: and quivering. This. I fancy is the time for our exit, Watson,
Speaker 1: said Holmes in a whisper. If you will take one
Speaker 1: elbow of the two faithful dolores, I will take the other.
Speaker 1: There now, he added, as he closed the door behind him,
Speaker 1: I think we may leave them to settle the rest
Speaker 1: among themselves. I have only one further note of this case.
Speaker 1: It is the letter which Holmes wrote in final answer
Speaker 1: to that with which the narrative begins. It ran thus,
Speaker 1: Baker Street, November twenty first re Vampires, Sir, referring to
Speaker 1: your letter of the nineteenth, I beg to state that
Speaker 1: I have looked into the inquiry of your client, mister
Speaker 1: Robert Ferguson of Ferguson and mure Head Tea Brokers of
Speaker 1: Mincing Lane, and that the matter has been brought to
Speaker 1: a satisfactory conclusion. With thanks for your recommendation, I am
Speaker 1: sir faithfully yours Sherlock Holmes. That is the end of
Speaker 1: the Adventure of the Sussex Vampire by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,
Speaker 1: read by Greg Wagland for Magpie Audio twenty twenty