Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Abbey Grange. It was on a
Speaker 1: bitterly cold and frosty morning towards the end of the
Speaker 1: winter of ninety seven that I was awakened by a
Speaker 1: tugging at my shoulder. It was Holmes, the candle in
Speaker 1: his hand, shone upon his eager, stooping face, and told
Speaker 1: me at a glance that something was amiss. Come, Watson, Come,
Speaker 1: he cried, The game is afoot. Not a word into
Speaker 1: your clothes and come. Ten minutes later we were both
Speaker 1: in a cab and rattling through the silent streets on
Speaker 1: our way to Charing Cross station. The first faint winter's
Speaker 1: dawn was beginning to appear, and we could dimly see
Speaker 1: the occasional figure of an early workman as he passed us,
Speaker 1: blurred and indistinct in the oppalscent London Reek. Holmes nestled
Speaker 1: in silence into his heavy coat, and I was glad
Speaker 1: to do the same, for the air was most bitter,
Speaker 1: and neither of us had broken our fast. It was
Speaker 1: not until we had consumed some hot tea at the
Speaker 1: station and taken our places in the Kentish train that
Speaker 1: we were sufficiently thawed. He to speak and I to listen.
Speaker 1: Holmes drew a note from his pocket and read aloud
Speaker 1: Abby Grench, Marsham, Kent, three p thirty a. M My
Speaker 1: dear mister Holmes, I should be very glad of your
Speaker 1: immediate assistance in what promises to be a most remarkable case.
Speaker 1: It is something quite in your line, except for releasing
Speaker 1: the lady. I will see that everything is kept exactly
Speaker 1: as I have found it. But I beg you not
Speaker 1: to lose an instant, as it is difficult to leave.
Speaker 1: Sir Eustace there yours faithfully, Stanley Hopkins. Hopkins has called
Speaker 1: me in seven times, and on each occasion his summons
Speaker 1: has been entirely justify, said Holmes. I fancy that every
Speaker 1: one of his cases has found its way into your collection.
Speaker 1: And I must admit, Watson, that you have some power
Speaker 1: of selection which atones for much which I deplore in
Speaker 1: your narratives. Your fatal habit of looking at everything from
Speaker 1: the point of view of a story instead of as
Speaker 1: a scientific exercise, has ruined what might have been an
Speaker 1: instructive and even classical series of demonstrations. You slur overwork
Speaker 1: of the utmost finesse and delicacy in order to dwell
Speaker 1: upon sensational details which may excite but cannot possibly instruct
Speaker 1: the reader. Why do you not write them yourself? I said,
Speaker 1: with some bitterness. I will, my dear Watson, I will.
Speaker 1: At present. I am, as you know, fairly busy, but
Speaker 1: I propose to devote my declining years to the composition
Speaker 1: of a text book which shall focus the whole art
Speaker 1: of detection into one volume. Our present research appears to
Speaker 1: be a case of murder. You think this, Sir Eustace,
Speaker 1: is dead, then I should say so. Hopkins's writing shows
Speaker 1: considerable agitation, and he is not an emotional man. Yes,
Speaker 1: I gather there has been violence, and that the body
Speaker 1: is left for our inspection. A mere suicide would not
Speaker 1: have caused him to send for me. As to the
Speaker 1: release of the lady, it would appear that she has
Speaker 1: been locked in her room during the tragedy. We are
Speaker 1: moving in high life, Watson crackling paper E B monogram,
Speaker 1: coat of arms, picturesque address. I think that friend Hopkins
Speaker 1: will live up to his reputation, and that we shall
Speaker 1: have an interesting morning. The crime was committed before twelve
Speaker 1: last night. How can you possibly tell by an inspection
Speaker 1: of the trains, and by reckoning the time the local
Speaker 1: police had to be called in. They had to communicate
Speaker 1: with Scotland Yard Hopkins had to go out, and he
Speaker 1: in turn had to send for me. All that makes
Speaker 1: a fair night's work. Well, here we are at Chiselhurst's station,
Speaker 1: and we shall soon set our doubts at rest. A
Speaker 1: drive of a couple of miles through narrow country lanes
Speaker 1: brought us to a park gate, which was opened for
Speaker 1: us by an old lodge keeper, whose haggard face bore
Speaker 1: the reflection of some great disaster. The avenue ran through
Speaker 1: a noble park, between lines of ancient elms, and ended
Speaker 1: in a low, widespread house pillared in front after the
Speaker 1: fashion of palladio. The central part was evidently of a
Speaker 1: great age and shrouded in ivy, but the large windows
Speaker 1: showed that modern changes had been carried out, and one
Speaker 1: wing of the house appeared to be entirely new. The
Speaker 1: youthful figure and alert, eager face of Inspector Stanley Hopkins
Speaker 1: confronted us in the open doorway. I am very glad
Speaker 1: you have come, mister Holmes, and you too, doctor Watson.
Speaker 1: But in indeed, if I had my time over again,
Speaker 1: I should not have troubled you, for since the lady
Speaker 1: has come to herself, she has given so clear an
Speaker 1: account of the affair that there is not much left
Speaker 1: for us to do. You remember that Lewisham gang of burglars.
Speaker 1: What the three randals exactly, the father and two sons.
Speaker 1: It's their work, I have not a doubt of it.
Speaker 1: They did a job at Sydenham a fortnight ago and
Speaker 1: were seen and described rather cool to do another so
Speaker 1: soon and so near. But it is they beyond all doubt.
Speaker 1: It's a hanging matter this time. Sir Eustace is dead then, yes,
Speaker 1: his head was knocked in with his own poker. Sir
Speaker 1: Eustace Brackenstall, the driver tells me exactly one of the
Speaker 1: richest men in Kent. Lady Brackenstall is in the morning room.
Speaker 1: Poor lady, she has had a most dreadful experience. She
Speaker 1: seemed half dead when I saw her first. I think
Speaker 1: you had best see her and hear her account of
Speaker 1: the facts. Then we will examine the dining room together.
Speaker 1: Lady Brackenstall was no ordinary person. Seldom have I seen
Speaker 1: so graceful a figure, so womanly a presence, and so
Speaker 1: beautiful a face. She was a blonde, golden haired, blue eyed,
Speaker 1: and would no doubt have had the perfect complexion which
Speaker 1: goes with such coloring, had not her recent experience left
Speaker 1: her drawn and haggard. Her sufferings were physical as well
Speaker 1: as mental. For over one eye rose a hideous, plum
Speaker 1: colored swelling, which her maid, a tall, austere woman, was
Speaker 1: bathing assiduously with vinegar and water. The lady lay back,
Speaker 1: exhausted upon a couch, but her quick, observant gaze as
Speaker 1: we entered the room, and the alert expression of her
Speaker 1: beautiful features, showed that neither her wits nor her courage
Speaker 1: had been shaken by her terrible experience. She was enveloped
Speaker 1: in a loose dressing gown of blue and silver, but
Speaker 1: a black sequin coul of a dinner dress lay upon
Speaker 1: the couch beside her. I have told you all that happened,
Speaker 1: mister Hopkins, she said, wearily. Could you not repeat it
Speaker 1: for me? Well, if you think it is necessary, I
Speaker 1: will tell these gentlemen what occurred. Have they been in
Speaker 1: the dining room? Yet? I thought they had better hear
Speaker 1: your ladyship's story first. I shall be glad when you
Speaker 1: can arrange matters. It is horrible to me to think
Speaker 1: of him still lying there. She shuddered and buried her
Speaker 1: face in her hands. As she did so, the loose
Speaker 1: gown fell back from her forearms. Holmes uttered an exclamation,
Speaker 1: you have other injuries, madam? What is this? Two vivid
Speaker 1: red spots stood out on one of the white round limbs.
Speaker 1: She hastily covered it. It is nothing. It has no
Speaker 1: connection with this hideous business to night. If you and
Speaker 1: your friend will sit down, I will tell you all
Speaker 1: I can. I am the wife of Sir you Sa
Speaker 1: Di Brackenstall. I have been married about a year. I
Speaker 1: suppose that it is no use my attempting to conceal
Speaker 1: that our marriage has not been a happy one. I
Speaker 1: fear that all our neighbors would tell you that even
Speaker 1: if I were to attempt to deny it. Perhaps the
Speaker 1: fault may be partly mine. I was brought up in
Speaker 1: the freer, less conventional atmosphere of South Australia, and this
Speaker 1: English life, with its proprieties and its primness, is not
Speaker 1: congenial to me. But the main reason lies in the
Speaker 1: one fact which is notorious to everyone, and that is
Speaker 1: that sir Eustace was a confirmed drunkard. To be with
Speaker 1: such a man for an hour is unpleasant. Can you
Speaker 1: imagine what it means for a sensitive and high spirited
Speaker 1: woman to be tied to him for day and night?
Speaker 1: It is sacrilege, a crime, a villainy to hold that
Speaker 1: such a marriage is binding. I say that these monstrous
Speaker 1: laws of yours will bring a curse upon the land.
Speaker 1: God will not let sir, wickedness endure for an instant.
Speaker 1: She sat up, her cheeks flushed and her eyes blazing
Speaker 1: from under the terrible mark upon her brow. Then the
Speaker 1: strong soothing hand of the austere maid drew her head
Speaker 1: down on to the cushion, and the wild anger died
Speaker 1: away into passionate sobbing. At last, she continued, I will
Speaker 1: tell you about last night. You are aware, perhaps, that
Speaker 1: in this house all the servants sleep in the modern wing.
Speaker 1: This central block is made up of the dwelling rooms,
Speaker 1: with the kitchen behind and our bedroom above. My maid
Speaker 1: Teresa sleeps above my room. There is no one else,
Speaker 1: and no sound could alarm those who are in the
Speaker 1: father wing. This must have been well known to the robbers,
Speaker 1: or they would not have acted as they did. Sir
Speaker 1: Eustace retired about half past ten. The servants had already
Speaker 1: gone to their quarters. Only my maid was up, and
Speaker 1: she had remained in her room at the top of
Speaker 1: the house until I needed her services. I sat until
Speaker 1: after eleven in this room, absorbed in a book. Then
Speaker 1: I walked round to see that all was right before
Speaker 1: I went upstairs. It was my custom to do this myself, for,
Speaker 1: as I have explained, Sir Eustace was not always to
Speaker 1: be trusted. I went into the kitchen, the butler's pantry,
Speaker 1: the gun room, the billiard room, the drawing room, and
Speaker 1: finally the dining room. As I approached the window, which
Speaker 1: is covered with thick curtains, I suddenly felt the wind
Speaker 1: blow upon my face and realized that it was open.
Speaker 1: I flung the curtain aside and found myself face to
Speaker 1: face with a broad shouldered, elderly man who had just
Speaker 1: stepped into the room. The window is a long French
Speaker 1: one which really forms a door leading to the lawn.
Speaker 1: I held my bedroom candle lit in my hand, and
Speaker 1: by its light behind the first man, I saw two
Speaker 1: others who were in the act of entering. I stepped back,
Speaker 1: but the fellow was on me in an instant. He
Speaker 1: caught me first by the wrist and then by the throat.
Speaker 1: I opened my mouth to scream, but he struck me
Speaker 1: a savage blow with his fist over the eye, and
Speaker 1: felled me to the ground. I must have been unconscious
Speaker 1: for a few minutes, for when I came to myself,
Speaker 1: I found that they had torn down the bell rope
Speaker 1: and had secured me tightly to the oaken chair which
Speaker 1: stands at the head of the dining table. I was
Speaker 1: so firmly bound that I could not move, and a
Speaker 1: handkerchief round my mouth prevented me from uttering a sound.
Speaker 1: It was at this instant that my unfortunate husband entered
Speaker 1: the room. He had evidently heard some suspicious sounds, and
Speaker 1: he came prepared for such a scene as he found.
Speaker 1: He was dressed in night shirt and trousers, with his
Speaker 1: favorite blackthorn cudgel in his hand. He rushed at the burglars,
Speaker 1: but another it was an elderly man, stooped, picked the
Speaker 1: poker out of the grate and struck him a horrible blow.
Speaker 1: As he passed. He fell with a groan and never
Speaker 1: moved again. I fainted once more, but again it could
Speaker 1: only have been for a very few minutes, during which
Speaker 1: I was insensible. When I opened my eyes, I found
Speaker 1: that they had collected the silver from the sideboard, and
Speaker 1: they had drawn a bottle of wine, which stood there.
Speaker 1: Each of them had a glass in his hand. I
Speaker 1: have already told you, have I not? That one was
Speaker 1: elderly with a beard, and the others young hairless lads.
Speaker 1: They might have been a father with his two sons.
Speaker 1: They talked together in whispers. Then they came over and
Speaker 1: made sure I was securely bound. Finally they withdrew, closing
Speaker 1: the window after them. It was quite a quarter of
Speaker 1: an hour before I got my mouth free. When I
Speaker 1: did so, my screams brought the maid to my assistance.
Speaker 1: The other servants were soon alarmed, and we sent for
Speaker 1: the local police, who instantly communicated with London. That is
Speaker 1: really all that I can tell you, gentlemen, and I
Speaker 1: trust that it will not be necessary for me to
Speaker 1: go over so painful a story again. Any questions, mister
Speaker 1: Holmes asked Hopkins. I will not impose any further tax
Speaker 1: upon Lady Brackenstall's patience and time, said Holmes. Before I
Speaker 1: go into the dining room, I should like to hear
Speaker 1: your experience. He looked at the maid. I saw the
Speaker 1: men before ever they came into the house, said she.
Speaker 1: As I sat by my bedroom window, I saw three
Speaker 1: men in the moonlight down by the lodge gate yonder,
Speaker 1: but I thought nothing of it at the time. It
Speaker 1: was more than an hour after that I heard my
Speaker 1: mistress scream, and down I ran to find her, poor lamb,
Speaker 1: just as she says, and him on the floor, with
Speaker 1: his blood and brains over the room. It was enough
Speaker 1: to drive a woman out of her wits tired there
Speaker 1: and her very dress spotted with him. But she never
Speaker 1: wanted courage, did Miss Mary Fraser of Adelaide. And Lady
Speaker 1: Brackenstall of abbe Grange hasn't learnt new ways. You've questioned
Speaker 1: her long enough, you gentlemen, and now she is coming
Speaker 1: to her own room, just with her old Theresa, to
Speaker 1: get the rest that she badly needs. With a motherly tenderness,
Speaker 1: the gaunt woman put her arm round her mistress and
Speaker 1: led her from the room. She has been with her
Speaker 1: all her life, said Hopkins. Nursed her as a baby
Speaker 1: and came with her to England. When they first left Australia,
Speaker 1: eighteen months ago. Theresa Wright is her name, and the
Speaker 1: kind of maid you don't pick up nowadays. This way,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, if you please. The keen interest had passed
Speaker 1: out of Holmes's expressive face, and I knew that with
Speaker 1: the mystery all the charm of the case had departed.
Speaker 1: There still remained an arrest to be effected. But what
Speaker 1: were these commonplace robes that he should soil his hands
Speaker 1: with them. An abstruse and learned specialist who finds that
Speaker 1: he has been called in for a case of measles
Speaker 1: would experience something of the annoyance which I read in
Speaker 1: my friend's eyes. Yet the scene in the dining room
Speaker 1: of the abbey Grange was sufficiently strange to arrest his
Speaker 1: attention and to recall his waning interest. It was a
Speaker 1: very large and high chamber, with carved oak ceiling, oaken paneling,
Speaker 1: and a fine array of deer's heads and ancient weapons
Speaker 1: around the walls. At the further end from the door
Speaker 1: was the high French window of which we had heard.
Speaker 1: Three smaller windows on the right hand side filled the
Speaker 1: apartment with cold winter sunshine. On the left was a large,
Speaker 1: deep fireplace with a massive overhanging oak mantelpiece. Beside the
Speaker 1: fire place was a heavy oaken chair with arms and
Speaker 1: crossbars at the bottom. In and out through the open
Speaker 1: woodwork was woven a crimson cord which was secured at
Speaker 1: each side to the cross piece below. In releasing the lady,
Speaker 1: the cord had been slipped off her, but the knots
Speaker 1: with which it had been secured still remained. These details
Speaker 1: only struck our attention afterwards, for our thoughts were entirely
Speaker 1: absorbed by the terrible object which lay upon the tiger
Speaker 1: skin hearth rug in front of the fire. It was
Speaker 1: the body of a tall, well made man about forty
Speaker 1: years of age. He lay upon his back, his face upturned,
Speaker 1: with his white teeth grinning through his short black beard.
Speaker 1: His two clenched hands were raised above his head, and
Speaker 1: a heavy blackthorn stick lay across them. His dark, handsome
Speaker 1: aquiline features were convulsed into a spasm of vindictive hatred,
Speaker 1: which had set his dead face in a terribly fiendish expression.
Speaker 1: He had evidently been in his bed when the alarm
Speaker 1: had broken out, for he wore a foppish embroidered night shirt,
Speaker 1: and his bare feet projected from his trousers. His head
Speaker 1: was horribly injured, and the whole room bore witness to
Speaker 1: the savage ferocity of the blow which had struck him down.
Speaker 1: Beside him lay the heavy poker, bent into a curve
Speaker 1: by the concussion. Holmes examined both it and the indescribable
Speaker 1: wreck which it had wrought. He must be a powerful man,
Speaker 1: this elder Randal, he remarked. Yes, said Hopkins, I have
Speaker 1: some record of the fellow, and he is a rough customer.
Speaker 1: You should have no difficulty in getting him, not the slightest.
Speaker 1: We've been on the lookout for him, and there was
Speaker 1: some idea that he had got away to America. Now
Speaker 1: that we know that the ganger here, I don't see
Speaker 1: how they can escape. We have the news every seaport already,
Speaker 1: and a reward will be offered before evening. What beats
Speaker 1: me is how they could have done so mad a thing.
Speaker 1: Knowing that the lady could describe them, and that we
Speaker 1: could not fail to recognize the description exactly, one would
Speaker 1: have expected that they would silence Lady Brackenstall as well.
Speaker 1: They may not have realized I suggested that she had
Speaker 1: recovered from her faint. That is likely enough, if she
Speaker 1: seemed to be senseless, they would not take her life.
Speaker 1: What about this poor fellow Hopkins. I seem to have
Speaker 1: heard some queer stories about him. He was a good
Speaker 1: hearted man when he was sober, but a perfect fiend
Speaker 1: when he was drunk, or rather when he was half drunk,
Speaker 1: for he seldom really went the whole way. The devil
Speaker 1: seemed to be in him at such times, and he
Speaker 1: was capable of anything, from what I hear. In spite
Speaker 1: of all his wealth and his title, he very nearly
Speaker 1: came up. Once or twice. There was a scandal about
Speaker 1: his drenching a dog with petroleum and setting it on fire,
Speaker 1: her Ladyship's dog, to make the matter worse, and that
Speaker 1: was only hushed up with difficulty. Then he threw a
Speaker 1: decanter at that maid, Theresa right, there was trouble about
Speaker 1: that on the whole, and between ourselves. It will be
Speaker 1: a brighter house without him. What are you looking at now?
Speaker 1: Holmes was down on his knees, examining with great attention
Speaker 1: the knots upon the red cord with which the lady
Speaker 1: had been secured. Then he carefully scrutinized the broken and
Speaker 1: frayed end where it had snapped off when the burglar
Speaker 1: had dragged it down. When this was pulled down, the
Speaker 1: bell in the kitchen must have rung loudly, he remarked.
Speaker 1: No one could hear it. The kitchen stands right at
Speaker 1: the back of the house. How did the burglar know
Speaker 1: no one could hear it? How dared he pull at
Speaker 1: a bell rope in that reckless fashion? Exactly, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: Exactly you put the very question which I have asked
Speaker 1: myself again and again. There can be no doubt that
Speaker 1: this fellow must have known the house and its habits.
Speaker 1: He must have perfectly understood that the servants would all
Speaker 1: be in bed at that comparatively early hour, and that
Speaker 1: no one could possibly hear a bell ring in the kitchen. Therefore,
Speaker 1: he must have been in close league with one of
Speaker 1: the servants. Surely that is evident. But there are eight servants,
Speaker 1: and all of good character, other things being equal, said Holmes,
Speaker 1: one would suspect the one at whose head the master
Speaker 1: through a decanter, And yet that would involve treachery towards
Speaker 1: the mistress, to whom this woman seems devoted. Well, Well,
Speaker 1: the point is a minor one, and when you have Randall,
Speaker 1: you will probably find no difficulty in securing his accomplice.
Speaker 1: The lady's story certainly seems to be corroborated, if it
Speaker 1: needed corroboration, by every detail which we see before us.
Speaker 1: He walked to the French window and threw it open.
Speaker 1: There are no signs here, but the ground is iron hard,
Speaker 1: and one would not expect them. I see that these
Speaker 1: candles in the mantelpiece have been lighted. Yes, it was
Speaker 1: by their light and that of the lady's bedroom candle,
Speaker 1: that the burglars saw their way out. And what did
Speaker 1: they take? Well, they did not take much, only half
Speaker 1: a dozen articles of plate off the sideboard. Lady Brackenstall
Speaker 1: thinks that they were themselves so disturbed by the death
Speaker 1: of Sir Eustace that they did not ransack the house
Speaker 1: as they would otherwise have done. No doubt that is true.
Speaker 1: And yet they drank some wine, I understand, to steady
Speaker 1: their nerves. Exactly these three glasses upon the sideboard have
Speaker 1: been untouched, I suppose, yes, and the bottles stands as
Speaker 1: they left it. Let us look at it, hello, what
Speaker 1: is this? The three glasses were grouped together, all of
Speaker 1: them tinged with wine, and one of them containing some
Speaker 1: dregs of beeswing. The bottle stood near them, two thirds full,
Speaker 1: and beside it lay a long, deeply stained cork. Its
Speaker 1: appearance and the dust upon the bottle showed that it
Speaker 1: was no common vintage which the murderers had enjoyed. A
Speaker 1: chain should come over Holmes's manner. He had lost his
Speaker 1: listless expression, and again I saw an alert light of
Speaker 1: interest in his keen, deep set eyes. He raised the
Speaker 1: cork and examined it minutely. How did they draw it?
Speaker 1: He asked. Hopkins pointed to a half open drawer. In
Speaker 1: it lay some table linen and a large corkscrew. Did
Speaker 1: Lady Brackenstall say that screw was used? No, Remember that
Speaker 1: she was senseless at the moment when the bottle was opened.
Speaker 1: Quite so, as a matter of fact, that screw was
Speaker 1: not used. This bottle was opened by a pocket screw,
Speaker 1: probably contained in a knife, and not much more than
Speaker 1: an inch and a half long. If you will examine
Speaker 1: the top of the cork, you will observe that the
Speaker 1: screw was driven in three times before the cork was extracted.
Speaker 1: It has never been transfixed. This long screw would have
Speaker 1: transfixed it and drawn it up with a single pull.
Speaker 1: When you catch this fellow, you will find that he
Speaker 1: has one of these multiplex knives in his possession. Excellent,
Speaker 1: said Hopkins. But these glasses do puzzle me. I confess
Speaker 1: Lady Brackenstall actually saw the three men drinking, did she not? Yes,
Speaker 1: she was clear about that. Then there is an end
Speaker 1: of it. What more is to be said? And yet
Speaker 1: you must admit that the three glasses are very remarkable, Hopkins.
Speaker 1: But you see nothing remarkable? Well, well, let it pass.
Speaker 1: Perhaps when a man has special knowledge and special powers
Speaker 1: like my own, it rather encourages him to seek a
Speaker 1: complex explanation when a simple one is at hand. Of course,
Speaker 1: it must be a mere chance about the glasses. Well,
Speaker 1: good morning, Hopkins. I don't see that I can be
Speaker 1: of any use to you, and you appear to have
Speaker 1: your case very clear. You will let me know when
Speaker 1: Randal is arrested, and any further developments which may occur.
Speaker 1: I trust that I shall soon have to congratulate you
Speaker 1: upon a successful conclusion. Come Watson, I fancy that we
Speaker 1: may employ ourselves more profitably at home during our return journey.
Speaker 1: I could see by Holmes's face that he was much
Speaker 1: puzzled by something which he had observed. Every now and then,
Speaker 1: by an effort, he would throw off the impression and
Speaker 1: talk as if the matter were clear. But then his
Speaker 1: doubts would settle down upon him again, and his knitted
Speaker 1: brows and abstracted eyes would show that his thoughts had
Speaker 1: gone back once more to the great dining room of
Speaker 1: the abbey Grange, in which this midnight tragedy had been
Speaker 1: enacted at last, by a sudden impulse, just as our
Speaker 1: train was crawling out of a suburban station, he sprang
Speaker 1: on to the platform and pulled me out after him.
Speaker 1: Excuse me, my dear fellow, said he, as he watched
Speaker 1: the rear carriages of our train disappearing round a curve.
Speaker 1: I'm sorry to make you the victim of what may
Speaker 1: seem mere whim, But on my life, Watson, I simply
Speaker 1: can't leave that case in this condition. Every instinct that
Speaker 1: I possess cries out against it. It's wrong, It's all wrong.
Speaker 1: I'll swear that it's wrong. And yet the latest story
Speaker 1: was complete, the maid's corroboration was sufficient, the detail was
Speaker 1: fairly exact. What have I to put up against that?
Speaker 1: Three wine glasses, that is all. But if I had
Speaker 1: not taken things for granted, if I had examined everything
Speaker 1: with the care which I should have shown, had we
Speaker 1: approached the case denovo and had no cut and dried
Speaker 1: story to warp my mind, should I not then have
Speaker 1: found something more definite to go upon. Of course I
Speaker 1: should sit down on this bench, Watson, until a train
Speaker 1: for Chiselhurst arrives, and allow me to lay the evidence
Speaker 1: before you, imploring you, in the first instance, to dismiss
Speaker 1: from your mind the idea that anything which the maid
Speaker 1: or her mysteries may have said must necessarily be true.
Speaker 1: The lady's charming personality must not be permitted to warp
Speaker 1: our judgment. Surely there are details in her story which,
Speaker 1: if we looked at it in cold blood, would excite
Speaker 1: our suspicion. These burglars made a considerable haul at Sydenham
Speaker 1: a fortnight ago. Some account of them and of their
Speaker 1: appearance was in the papers, and would naturally occur to
Speaker 1: anyone who wished to invent a story in which imaginary
Speaker 1: robbers should play a part. As a matter of fact,
Speaker 1: burglars who have done a good stroke of business are,
Speaker 1: as a rule only too glad to enjoy the proceeds
Speaker 1: in peace and quiet without embarking on another perilous undertaking. Again,
Speaker 1: it is unusual for burglars to operate at so early
Speaker 1: an hour. It is unusual for burglars to strike a
Speaker 1: lady to prevent her screaming, since one would imagine that
Speaker 1: was the sure way to make her scream. It is
Speaker 1: unusual for them to commit murder when their numbers are
Speaker 1: sufficient to overpower one man. It is unusual for them
Speaker 1: to be content with the limited plunder when there was
Speaker 1: much more within their reach and find a I should
Speaker 1: say that it was very unusual for such men to
Speaker 1: leave a bottle half empty. How do all these unusuals
Speaker 1: strike you, Watson? Their cumulative effect is certainly considerable, and
Speaker 1: yet each of them is quite possible in itself. The
Speaker 1: most unusual thing of all, as it seems to me,
Speaker 1: is that the lady should be tied to the chair. Well,
Speaker 1: I'm not so clear about that, Watson, for it is
Speaker 1: evident that they must either kill her or else secure
Speaker 1: her in such a way that she could not give
Speaker 1: immediate notice of their escape. But at any rate, I
Speaker 1: have shown, have I not? That there is a certain
Speaker 1: element of improbability about the lady's story. And now on
Speaker 1: top of this comes the incident of the wineglasses. What
Speaker 1: about the wine glasses? Can you see them in your
Speaker 1: mind's eye? I see them clearly. We are told that
Speaker 1: three men drank from them. Does that strike you as lightly?
Speaker 1: Why not? There was wine in each glass exactly, But
Speaker 1: there was bees wing in only one glass. You must
Speaker 1: have noticed that fact. What does that suggest to your mind?
Speaker 1: The last glass filled would be most likely to contain
Speaker 1: bees wing, not at all. The bottle was full of it,
Speaker 1: and it is inconceivable that the first two glasses were
Speaker 1: clear and the third heavily charged with it. There are
Speaker 1: two possible explanations, and only two. One is that after
Speaker 1: the second glass was filled, the bottle was violently agitated,
Speaker 1: and so the third glass received the beeswing. That does
Speaker 1: not appear probable. No, No, I am sure that I
Speaker 1: am right. What then, do you suppose that only two
Speaker 1: glasses were used, and that the dregs of both were
Speaker 1: poured into a third glass, so as to give the
Speaker 1: false impression that three people had been here. In that way,
Speaker 1: all the bees wing would be in the last class,
Speaker 1: would it not? Yes, I am convinced that this is so.
Speaker 1: But if I have hit upon the true explanation of
Speaker 1: this one small phenomenon, then in an instant the case
Speaker 1: rises from the commonplace to the exceedingly remarkable. For it
Speaker 1: can only mean that Lady Brackenstall and her maid have
Speaker 1: deliberately lied to us, that not one word of their
Speaker 1: story is to be believed, that they have some very
Speaker 1: strong reason for covering the real criminal, and that we
Speaker 1: must construct our case for ourselves without any help from them.
Speaker 1: That is the mission which now lies before us. And
Speaker 1: here Watson is the Sydenham train. The household of the
Speaker 1: abbey Grange were much surprised at our return. The Sherlock Holmes,
Speaker 1: finding that Stanley Hopkins had gone after report to headquarters,
Speaker 1: took possession of the dining room, locked the door upon
Speaker 1: the inside, and devoted himself for two hours to one
Speaker 1: of those minute and laborious investigations which formed the solid
Speaker 1: basis on which his brilliant edifices of deduction were reared.
Speaker 1: Seated in a corner, like an interested student who observes
Speaker 1: the demonstration of his professor, I followed every step of
Speaker 1: that remarkable research. The window the curtains, the carpet, the chair,
Speaker 1: the rope, Each in turn was minutely examined and duly pondered.
Speaker 1: The body of the unfortunate baronet had been removed, and
Speaker 1: all else remained as we had seen it in the morning. Finally,
Speaker 1: to my astonishment, Holmes climbed up on to the massive
Speaker 1: mantel piece. Far above his head hung the few inches
Speaker 1: of red cord which were still attached to the wire.
Speaker 1: For a long time he gazed upward at it, and then,
Speaker 1: in an attempt to get nearer to it, he rested
Speaker 1: his knee upon a wooden bracket on the wall. This
Speaker 1: brought his hand within a few inches of the broken
Speaker 1: end of the rope. But it was not this so
Speaker 1: much as the bracket itself which seemed to engage his attention.
Speaker 1: Finally he sprang down with an ejaculation of satisfaction. It's
Speaker 1: all right, Watson said he. We have got our case,
Speaker 1: one of the most remarkable in our collection. But dear me,
Speaker 1: how slow witted I have been, and how nearly I
Speaker 1: have committed the blunder of my lifetime. Now I think that,
Speaker 1: with a few missing links, my chain is almost complete.
Speaker 1: You have got your men, man, Watson, man only one,
Speaker 1: but a very formidable person, strong as a lion, witnessed
Speaker 1: the blow that bent that poker, six foot three in height,
Speaker 1: active as a squirrel, dexterous with his fingers, finally remarkably
Speaker 1: quick witted. For this holy genius story is of his concoction. Yes, Watson,
Speaker 1: we have come upon the handiwork of a very remarkable individual.
Speaker 1: And yet in that bell rope he has given us
Speaker 1: a clue which should not have left us a doubt.
Speaker 1: Where was the clue? Well, if you were to pull
Speaker 1: down a bell rope, Watson, where would you expect it
Speaker 1: to break? Surely at the spot where it is attached
Speaker 1: to the wire. Why should it break three inches from
Speaker 1: the top, as this one has done, because it is frayed.
Speaker 1: There exactly, this end, which we can examine, is frayed.
Speaker 1: He was cunning enough to do that with his knife.
Speaker 1: But the other end is not frayed. You could not
Speaker 1: observe that from here. But if you are on the mantelpiece,
Speaker 1: you would see that it is cut clean off without
Speaker 1: any mark of fraying. Whatever you can reconstruct what occurred.
Speaker 1: The man needed the rope would not tear it down
Speaker 1: for fear of giving the alarm by ringing the bell.
Speaker 1: What did he do? He sprang up on the mantelpiece,
Speaker 1: could not quite reach it, put his knee on the bracket,
Speaker 1: you will see the impression in the dust, and so
Speaker 1: got his knife to bear upon the cord. I could
Speaker 1: not reach the place by at least three inches, from
Speaker 1: which I infer that he is at least three inches
Speaker 1: a bigger man than I. Look at that mark upon
Speaker 1: the seat of the oaken chair. What is it? Blood?
Speaker 1: Undoubtedly it is blood. This alone puts the lady's story
Speaker 1: out of court. If she were seated on the chair
Speaker 1: when the crime was done, how comes that mark? No? No,
Speaker 1: she was placed in the chair after the death of
Speaker 1: her husband. I'll wager that the black dress shows a
Speaker 1: corresponding mark to this. We have not yet met our
Speaker 1: Waterloo Watson, but this is our merengo, for it begins
Speaker 1: in defeat and ends in victory. I should like now
Speaker 1: to have a few words with the nurse Theresa. We
Speaker 1: must be wary for a while if we are to
Speaker 1: get the information which we want. She was an interesting person,
Speaker 1: This stern Australian nurse Taciturn suspicious ungracious. It took some
Speaker 1: time before Holmes's pleasant manner and frank acceptance of all
Speaker 1: that she had said thawed her into a corresponding amiability.
Speaker 1: She did not attempt to conceal her hatred for her
Speaker 1: late employer. Yes, sir, it is true that he threw
Speaker 1: the decanter at me. I heard him call my mistress
Speaker 1: a name, and I told him that he would not
Speaker 1: dare to speak. So if her brother had been there,
Speaker 1: then it was that he threw it at me. He
Speaker 1: might have thrown a dozen if he had but left
Speaker 1: my bonny bird alone. He was forever ill treating her,
Speaker 1: and she too proud to complain. She will not even
Speaker 1: tell me all that he has done to her. She
Speaker 1: never told me of those marks on her arm that
Speaker 1: you saw this morning, but I very well know that
Speaker 1: they come from a stab with a hat pin. The
Speaker 1: sly devil. God forgive me that I should speak of
Speaker 1: him so now that he is dead. But a devil
Speaker 1: he was, if ever one walked the earth. He was
Speaker 1: all honey when first we met him, only eighteen months ago,
Speaker 1: and we both feel as if it were eighteen years.
Speaker 1: She had only just arrived in London. Yes, it was
Speaker 1: her first voyage. She had never been from home before.
Speaker 1: He won her with his title and his money and
Speaker 1: his false London ways. If she made a mistake, she
Speaker 1: has paid for it. If ever a woman did, what
Speaker 1: month did we meet him? Well, I tell you it
Speaker 1: was just after we arrived. We arrived in June, and
Speaker 1: it was July. They were married in January of last year. Yes,
Speaker 1: she is down in the morning room again, and I
Speaker 1: have no doubt she will see you. But you must
Speaker 1: not ask too much of her, for she has gone
Speaker 1: through all that flesh and blood will stand. Lady Brackenstall
Speaker 1: was reclining on the same couch, but looked brighter than before.
Speaker 1: The maid had entered with us, and began once more
Speaker 1: to foment the bruise upon her mistress's brow. I hope,
Speaker 1: said the lady, that you have not come to cross
Speaker 1: examine me again. No, Holmes answered in his gentlest voice.
Speaker 1: I will not cause you any unnecessary trouble, Lady Brackenstall,
Speaker 1: And my whole desire is to make things easy for you,
Speaker 1: for I am convinced that you are a much tried woman.
Speaker 1: If you will treat me as a friend and trust me,
Speaker 1: you may find that I will justify your trust. What
Speaker 1: do you want me to do to tell me the truth,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes. No, no, Lady Brakenstall, it is no use.
Speaker 1: You may have heard of any little reputation which I possess.
Speaker 1: I will stake it all on the fact that your
Speaker 1: story is an absolute fabrication. Mistress and maid were both
Speaker 1: staring at Holmes with pale faces and frightened eyes. You
Speaker 1: are an impudent fellow, cried Teresa. Do you mean to
Speaker 1: say that my mistress has told a lie? Holmes rose
Speaker 1: from his chair. Have you nothing to tell me? I
Speaker 1: have told you everything. Think once more, Lady Brakenstall, would
Speaker 1: it not be better to be frank? For an instant?
Speaker 1: There was hesitation in her beautiful face. Then some new
Speaker 1: strong thought caused it to set like a mask. I
Speaker 1: have told you all I know. Holmes took his hat
Speaker 1: and shrugged his shoulders. I am sorry, he said, and
Speaker 1: without another word, we left the room and the house.
Speaker 1: There was a pond in the park, and to this
Speaker 1: my friend led the way. It was frozen over, but
Speaker 1: a single hole was left for the convenience of a
Speaker 1: solitary swan. Holmes gazed at it and then passed on
Speaker 1: to the lodge gate. There he scribbled a short note
Speaker 1: for Stanley Hopkins and left it with the lodge keeper.
Speaker 1: It may be a hit or it may be a miss,
Speaker 1: but we are bound to do something for friend Hopkins,
Speaker 1: just to justify this second visit, said he. I will
Speaker 1: not quite take him into my confidence yet. I think
Speaker 1: our next scene of operations must be the shipping office
Speaker 1: of the Adelaide Southampton line, which stands at the end
Speaker 1: of Pall Mall. If I remember right, there is a
Speaker 1: second line of steamers which connect South Australia with England.
Speaker 1: But we will draw the larger cover first. Holmes's card
Speaker 1: sent into the manager insured instant attention, and he was
Speaker 1: not long in acquiring all the information he needed. In
Speaker 1: June of ninety five, only one of their line had
Speaker 1: reached a home port. It was the Rock of Gibraltar,
Speaker 1: their largest and best boat. A reference to the passenger
Speaker 1: list showed that Miss Fraser of Adelaide with her maid,
Speaker 1: had made the voyage in her The boat was now
Speaker 1: somewhere south of the Siuez Canal on her way to Australia.
Speaker 1: Her officers were the same as in ninety five, with
Speaker 1: one exception. The first officer, mister Jack Crocker, had been
Speaker 1: made a captain and was to take charge of their
Speaker 1: new ship, the bass Rock, sailing in two days time
Speaker 1: from Southampton. He lived at Sydenham, but he was likely
Speaker 1: to be in that morning for instructions if we cared
Speaker 1: to wait for him. No, oh, mister Holmes had no
Speaker 1: desire to see him, but would be glad to know
Speaker 1: more about his record and character. His record was magnificent.
Speaker 1: There was not an officer in the fleet to touch
Speaker 1: him as to his character. He was reliable on duty,
Speaker 1: but a wild, desperate fellow off the deck of his ship.
Speaker 1: Hot headed, excitable, but loyal, honest and kind hearted. That
Speaker 1: was the pith of the information with which Holmes left
Speaker 1: the office of the Adelaide Southampton Company. Thence he drove
Speaker 1: to Scotland Yard, but instead of entering, he sat in
Speaker 1: his cab with his brows drawn down, lost in profound thought.
Speaker 1: Finally he drove round to the charing Cross Telegraph Office,
Speaker 1: sent off a message, and then at last we made
Speaker 1: for Baker Street once more. No I couldn't do it,
Speaker 1: Watson said he as we re entered our room. Once
Speaker 1: that warrant was made out nothing on earth would save him.
Speaker 1: Once or twice in my career, I feel that I
Speaker 1: have done more real harm by my discovery of the
Speaker 1: criminal than ever he had done by his crime. I
Speaker 1: have learned caution now, and I had rather played tricks
Speaker 1: with the law of England than with my own conscience.
Speaker 1: Let us know a little more before we act. Before evening,
Speaker 1: we had a visit from Inspector Stanley Hopkins. Things were
Speaker 1: not going very well with him. I believe that you
Speaker 1: are a wizard, mister Holmes. I really do sometimes think
Speaker 1: that you have powers that are not human. Now, how
Speaker 1: on earth could you know that the stolen silver was
Speaker 1: at the bottom of that pond? I didn't know it,
Speaker 1: but you told me to examine it. You got it, then, Yes,
Speaker 1: I got it. I am very glad if I have
Speaker 1: helped you, But you haven't helped me. You have made
Speaker 1: the affair more difficult. What sort of burglars are they
Speaker 1: who steel silver and then throw it into the nearest pond.
Speaker 1: It was certainly rather eccentric behavior. I was merely going
Speaker 1: on the idea that if the silver had been taken
Speaker 1: by persons who did not want it, who merely took it,
Speaker 1: for a blind as it were, then they would naturally
Speaker 1: be anxious to get rid of it. But why should
Speaker 1: such an idea cross your mind? Well, I thought it
Speaker 1: was possible. When they came out through the French window.
Speaker 1: There was the pond with one tempting little hole in
Speaker 1: the ice, right in front of their noses. Could there
Speaker 1: be a better hiding place? Ah, a hiding place that
Speaker 1: is better, cried Stanley Hopkins. Yes, yes, I see it
Speaker 1: all now. It was early, there were folk upon the roads.
Speaker 1: They were afraid of being seen with the silver, so
Speaker 1: they sank it in the pond, intending to return for
Speaker 1: it when the coast was clear. Excellent, mister Holmes. That
Speaker 1: is better than your idea of a blind. Quite so
Speaker 1: you have got an admirable theory. I have no doubt
Speaker 1: that my own ideas were quite wild, but you must
Speaker 1: admit that they have ended in discovering the silver. Yes, sir, yes,
Speaker 1: it was all you're doing. But I have had a
Speaker 1: bad setback, a setback, yes, mister Holmes. The Randal Gang
Speaker 1: were arrested in New York this morning. Dear me, Hopkins,
Speaker 1: that is certainly rather against your theory that they committed
Speaker 1: a murder in Kent last night. It is fatal, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: absolutely fatal. Still there are other gangs of three besides
Speaker 1: the Randals, or it may be some new gang of
Speaker 1: which the police have never heard. Quite so it is
Speaker 1: perfectly possible. What are you off, Yes, mister Holmes, there
Speaker 1: is no rest for me until I have got to
Speaker 1: the bottom of the business. I suppose you have no
Speaker 1: hint to give me. I have given you one, which well,
Speaker 1: I suggested, a blind. But why, mister Holmes, Why Ah,
Speaker 1: that's the question, of course. But I commend the idea
Speaker 1: to your mind. You might possibly find that there was
Speaker 1: something in it. You won't stop for dinner? Well, good bye,
Speaker 1: and let us know how you get on. Dinner was
Speaker 1: over and the table cleared before Holmes alluded to the
Speaker 1: matter again. He had lit his pipe and held his
Speaker 1: slippered feet to the cheerful blaze of the fire. Suddenly
Speaker 1: he looked at his watch. I expect developments, Watson, when
Speaker 1: now within a few minutes, I dare say you thought
Speaker 1: I acted rather badly to Stanley Hopkins just now I
Speaker 1: trust your judgment. A very sensible reply, Watson. You must
Speaker 1: look at it this way. What I know is unofficial.
Speaker 1: What he knows is official. I have the right to
Speaker 1: private judgment, but he has none. He must disclose all
Speaker 1: or he is a traitor to his service. In a
Speaker 1: doubtful case, I would not put him in so painful
Speaker 1: a position, and so I reserve my information until my
Speaker 1: own mind is clear upon the matter. But when will
Speaker 1: that be? The time has come. You will now be
Speaker 1: present at the last scene of a remarkable little drama.
Speaker 1: There was a sound upon the stairs, and our door
Speaker 1: was opened to admit as fine a specimen of manhood
Speaker 1: as ever passed through it. He was a very tall
Speaker 1: young man, golden mustached, blue eyed, with a skin which
Speaker 1: had been burned by tropical suns, and a springy step
Speaker 1: which showed that the huge frame was as active as
Speaker 1: it was strong. He closed the door behind him, and
Speaker 1: then stood with clenched hands and heaving breast, choking down
Speaker 1: some overmastering emotion. Sit down, Captain Crocker, you got my telegram.
Speaker 1: Our visitor sank into an arm chair and looked from
Speaker 1: one to the other of us with questioning eyes. I
Speaker 1: got your telegram, and I came round at the hour
Speaker 1: you said. I heard that you had been down to
Speaker 1: the office there was no getting away from you. Let's
Speaker 1: hear the worst. What are you going to do with me?
Speaker 1: Arrest me or speak out? Man, You can't sit there
Speaker 1: and play with me like a cat with a mouse.
Speaker 1: Give him a cigar, said Holmes. Bite on that, Captain Crocker,
Speaker 1: and don't let your nerves run away with you. I
Speaker 1: should not sit here smoking with you if I thought
Speaker 1: that you were a common criminal. You may be sure
Speaker 1: of that. Be frank with me, and we may do
Speaker 1: some good play tricks with me, and I'll crush you.
Speaker 1: What do you wish me to do to give me
Speaker 1: a true account of all that happened at the abbey
Speaker 1: Grange last night? A true account, mind you, with nothing
Speaker 1: added and nothing taken off. I know so much already
Speaker 1: that if you go one inch half the strait, I'll
Speaker 1: blow this police whistle from my window, and the affair
Speaker 1: goes out of my hands forever. The sailor thought for
Speaker 1: a little. Then he struck his leg with his great
Speaker 1: sunburned hand. I'll chance it, he cried. I believe you
Speaker 1: are a man of your word and a white man,
Speaker 1: and I'll tell you the whole story. But one thing
Speaker 1: I will say first. So far as I am concerned.
Speaker 1: I regret nothing, and I fear nothing, and I would
Speaker 1: do it all again and be proud of the job.
Speaker 1: Damn the beast. If he had as many lives as
Speaker 1: a cat, he would owe them all to me. But
Speaker 1: it's the lady Mary Mary Fraser. Never will I call
Speaker 1: her by that accursed name when I think of getting
Speaker 1: her into trouble. I who would give my life just
Speaker 1: to bring one smile to her dear face. It's that
Speaker 1: that turns my soul into water. And yet, and yet,
Speaker 1: what less could I do? I'll tell you my story, gentlemen,
Speaker 1: and then I'll ask you, as man to man, what
Speaker 1: less could I do? I must go back a bit.
Speaker 1: You seem to know everything, so I expect that you
Speaker 1: know that I met her when she was a passenger,
Speaker 1: and I was first Officer of the Rock of Gibraltar.
Speaker 1: From the first day I met her, she was the
Speaker 1: only woman to me. Every day of that voyage I
Speaker 1: loved her more, and many a time since have I
Speaker 1: kneeled down in the darkness of the night watch and
Speaker 1: kissed the deck of that ship because I knew her
Speaker 1: dear feet had trodd it. She was never engaged to
Speaker 1: me She treated me me as fairly as ever a
Speaker 1: woman treated a man. I have no complaint to make.
Speaker 1: It was all love on my side and all good
Speaker 1: comradeship and friendship on hers. When we parted, she was
Speaker 1: a free woman, but I could never again be a
Speaker 1: free man. Next time I came back from c I
Speaker 1: heard of her marriage. Well, why shouldn't she marry whom
Speaker 1: she liked? Title and money, who could carry them better
Speaker 1: than she? She was born for all that is beautiful
Speaker 1: and dainty. I didn't grieve over her marriage. I was
Speaker 1: not such a selfish hound as that. I just rejoiced
Speaker 1: that good luck hauld come her way, and that she
Speaker 1: had not thrown herself away on a penniless sailor. But
Speaker 1: that's how I loved Mary Fraser. Well. I never thought
Speaker 1: to see her again. But last voyage I was promoted
Speaker 1: and the new boat was not yet launched, so I
Speaker 1: had to wait for a couple of months with my
Speaker 1: people at Sydenham. One day out in a country lane,
Speaker 1: I met Teresa Wright, her old maid. She told me
Speaker 1: all about her, about him, about everything I tell you, gentlemen,
Speaker 1: It nearly drove me mad, this drunken hound that he
Speaker 1: should dare to raise his hand to her, whose boots
Speaker 1: he was not worthy to lick. I met Teresa again.
Speaker 1: Then I met Mary herself, and met her again. Then
Speaker 1: she would meet me no more. But the other day
Speaker 1: I had a notice that I was to start on
Speaker 1: my voyage within a week, and I determined that I
Speaker 1: would see her once before I left. Theresa was always
Speaker 1: my friend, for she loved Mary and hated this villain
Speaker 1: almost as much as I did. From her, I learned
Speaker 1: the ways of the house. Mary used to sit up
Speaker 1: reading in her own little room downstairs. I crept round
Speaker 1: there last night night and scratched at the window. At
Speaker 1: first she would not open to me. But in her
Speaker 1: heart I know that now she loves me, and she
Speaker 1: could not leave me. In the frosty night, she whispered
Speaker 1: to me to come round to the big front window,
Speaker 1: and I found it open before me, so as to
Speaker 1: let me into the dining room. Again I heard from
Speaker 1: her own lips things that made my blood boil, And
Speaker 1: again I cursed this brute who mishandled the woman I loved. Well, gentlemen,
Speaker 1: I was standing with her just inside the window, in
Speaker 1: all innocence, as God is my judge, when he rushed
Speaker 1: like a madman into the room, called her the vilest
Speaker 1: name that a man could use to a woman, and
Speaker 1: welted her across the face with the stick he had
Speaker 1: in his hand. I had sprung for the poker, and
Speaker 1: it was a fair fight between us. See here on
Speaker 1: my arm where his first blow fell. Then it was
Speaker 1: my turn, and I went through him as if he
Speaker 1: had been a rotten pumpkin. Do you think I was sorry?
Speaker 1: Not I It was his life or mine. But far
Speaker 1: more than that, it was his life or hers. For
Speaker 1: how could I leave her in the power of this madman?
Speaker 1: That was how I killed him. Was I wrong? Well,
Speaker 1: then what would either of you, gentlemen have done if
Speaker 1: you had been in my position? She had screamed when
Speaker 1: he struck her, and that brought old Teresa down from
Speaker 1: the room above. There was a bottle of wine on
Speaker 1: the sideboard, and I opened it and poured a little
Speaker 1: between Mary's lips, for she was half dead with shock.
Speaker 1: Then I took a drop myself. Teresa was as cool
Speaker 1: as ice, and it was her plot as much as mine.
Speaker 1: We must make it appear that Burglars had done the thing.
Speaker 1: Teresa kept on repeating our story to her mistress, while
Speaker 1: I swarmed up and cut the rope of the bell.
Speaker 1: Then I lashed her in her chair and frayed out
Speaker 1: the end of the rope to make it look natural,
Speaker 1: else they would wonder how in the world a burglar
Speaker 1: could have got up there to cut it. Then I
Speaker 1: gathered up a few plates and pots of silver to
Speaker 1: carry out the idea of the robbery, and there I
Speaker 1: left them with orders to give the alarm. When I
Speaker 1: had a quarter of an hour's start, I dropped the
Speaker 1: silver into the pond and made off for Sidnam, feeling
Speaker 1: that for once in my life I had done a
Speaker 1: real good night's work. And that's the truth and the
Speaker 1: whole truth, mister Holmes, if it costs me my neck,
Speaker 1: homes smoked for some time in silence. Then he crossed
Speaker 1: the room and shook our visitor by the hand. That's
Speaker 1: what I think, said he. I know that every word
Speaker 1: is true, for you have hardly said a word which
Speaker 1: I did not know. No no one but an acrobat
Speaker 1: or a sailor could have got up to that bell
Speaker 1: rope from the bracket, and no one but a sailor
Speaker 1: could have made the knots with which the cord was
Speaker 1: fastened to the chair. Only once had this lady been
Speaker 1: brought into contact with sailors, and that was on her voyage,
Speaker 1: and it was someone of her own class of life.
Speaker 1: Since she was trying hard to shield him and so
Speaker 1: showing that she loved him. You see how easy it
Speaker 1: was for me to lay my hands upon you, when
Speaker 1: once I had started upon the right trail, I thought
Speaker 1: the police never could have seen through our dodge. And
Speaker 1: the police haven't nor will they, to the best of
Speaker 1: my belief. Now look here, Captain Crocker, this is a
Speaker 1: very serious matter. Though I am willing to admit that
Speaker 1: you acted under the most extreme provocation to which any
Speaker 1: man could be subjected, I am not sure that in
Speaker 1: defense of your own life, your action will not be
Speaker 1: pronounced legitimate. However, that is for a British jury to decide. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: I have so much sympathy for you that if you
Speaker 1: choose to disappear in the next twenty four hours, I
Speaker 1: will promise you that no one will hinder you, and
Speaker 1: then it will all come out. Certainly it will come
Speaker 1: out the sailor flushed with anger. What sort of proposal
Speaker 1: is that to make to a man? I know enough
Speaker 1: of law to understand that Mary would be held as
Speaker 1: a complice. Do you think I would leave her alone
Speaker 1: to face the music while I slunk away? No, sir,
Speaker 1: let them do their worst upon me. But for Heaven's sake,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes finds some way of keeping my poor Mary
Speaker 1: out of the courts. Holmes for a second time held
Speaker 1: out his hand to the sailor. I was only testing you,
Speaker 1: and you ring true every time. Well, it is a
Speaker 1: great responsibility that I take upon myself. But I have
Speaker 1: given Hopkins and excellent hint, and if he can't avail
Speaker 1: himself of it, I can do no more. See here,
Speaker 1: Captain Crocker will do this in due form of law.
Speaker 1: You are the prisoner, Watson. You are a British jury,
Speaker 1: and I never met a man who was more eminently
Speaker 1: fitted to represent one. I am the judge. Now, gentlemen
Speaker 1: of the jury, you have heard the evidence. Do you
Speaker 1: find the prisoner guilty or not guilty? Not guilty, my Lord,
Speaker 1: said I vox popularly vox day you are acquitted, Captain Crocker.
Speaker 1: So long as the Lord does not find some other victim,
Speaker 1: you are safe from me. Come back to this lady
Speaker 1: in a year, and may her future and yours justify
Speaker 1: us in the judgment which we have pronounced this night.