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