Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Dancing Men. Holmes had been seated
Speaker 1: for some hours in silence, with his long, thin back
Speaker 1: curved over a chemical vessel in which he was brewing
Speaker 1: a particularly malodorous product. His head was sunk upon his breast,
Speaker 1: and he looked, from my point of view, like a strange,
Speaker 1: lank bird with a dull gray plumage and a black
Speaker 1: top knot so, Watson said he suddenly, you do not
Speaker 1: propose to invest in South African securities. I gave a
Speaker 1: start of astonishment. Accustomed as I was to Holmes's curious faculties,
Speaker 1: this sudden intrusion into my most intimate thoughts was utterly inexplicable.
Speaker 1: How on earth do you know that, I asked. He
Speaker 1: wheeled round upon his stool, with a steaming test tube
Speaker 1: in his hand and a gleam of amusement in his
Speaker 1: deep set eyes. Now, Watson, confess yourself utterly taken, Aback
Speaker 1: said he, I am. I ought to make you sign
Speaker 1: a paper to that effect. Why, because in five minutes
Speaker 1: you will say that it is all so absurdly simple.
Speaker 1: I am sure that I shall say nothing of the kind.
Speaker 1: You see, my dear Watson. He propped his test tube
Speaker 1: in the rack, and began to lecture with the air
Speaker 1: of a professor addressing his class. It is not really
Speaker 1: difficult to construct a series of inferences, each dependent upon
Speaker 1: its predecessor, and each simple in itself. If after doing so,
Speaker 1: one simply knocks out all the central inferences and presents
Speaker 1: one's audience with the starting point and the conclusion, one
Speaker 1: may produce a startling, though possibly a meretricious effect. Now
Speaker 1: it was not really difficult. Buy an inspection of the
Speaker 1: groove between your left forefinger and thumb to feel sure
Speaker 1: that you did not propose to invest your small capital
Speaker 1: in the gold fields. I see no connection. Very likely not,
Speaker 1: but I can quickly show you a close connection. Here
Speaker 1: are the missing links of the very simple chain. One
Speaker 1: you have chalk between your left finger and thumb when
Speaker 1: you returned from the club last night. Two you put
Speaker 1: chalk there when you play billiards to steady the queue.
Speaker 1: Three you never play billiards except with Thurston. Four you
Speaker 1: told me four weeks ago that Thurston had an option
Speaker 1: on some South African property which would expire in a month,
Speaker 1: and which he desired you to share with him. Five
Speaker 1: your check book is locked in my drawer, and you
Speaker 1: have not asked for the key six. You do not
Speaker 1: propose to invest your money in this manner. How absurdly simple,
Speaker 1: I cried, Quite so, said he, a little nettled. Every
Speaker 1: problem becomes very childish when once it is explained to you.
Speaker 1: Here is an unexplained one. See what you can make
Speaker 1: of that, friend, Watson. He tossed a sheet of paper
Speaker 1: upon the table and turned once more to his chemical analysis.
Speaker 1: I looked with amazement at the absurd hieroglyphics upon the paper. Why, Holmes,
Speaker 1: it's a child's drawing, I cried, Oh that's your idea.
Speaker 1: What else should it be? That is what mister Hilton
Speaker 1: Cubit of riding Thorpe, Manor Norfolk, is very anxious to
Speaker 1: know this little conundrum. Came by the first post, and
Speaker 1: he was to follow by the next train. There's a
Speaker 1: ring at the bell, Watson, I should not be very
Speaker 1: much surprised if this were he. A heavy step was
Speaker 1: heard upon the stairs, and an instant later there entered
Speaker 1: a tall, ruddy, clean shaven gentleman, whose clear eyes and
Speaker 1: florid cheeks told of a life led far from the
Speaker 1: fogs of Baker Street. He seemed to bring a whiff
Speaker 1: of his strong, fresh bracing East Coast air with him
Speaker 1: as he entered. Having shaken hands with each of us,
Speaker 1: he was about to sit down when his eye rested
Speaker 1: upon the paper with the curious markings, which I had
Speaker 1: just examined and left upon the table. Well, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: what you make of these? He cried. They told me
Speaker 1: that you were fond of queer mysteries, and I don't
Speaker 1: think you can find a queerer one than that. I
Speaker 1: sent the paper on ahead so that you might have
Speaker 1: time to study it before I came. It is certainly
Speaker 1: rather a curious production, said Holmes. At first sight, it
Speaker 1: would appear to be some childish prank. It consists of
Speaker 1: a number of absurd little figures dancing across the paper
Speaker 1: on which they are drawn. Why should you attribute any
Speaker 1: importance to so grotesque an object? I never should, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: But my wife does. It is frightening her to death.
Speaker 1: She says nothing, but I can see the terror in
Speaker 1: her eyes. That's why I want to sift the matter
Speaker 1: to the bottom. Holmes held up the paper so that
Speaker 1: the sunlight shone full upon it. It was a page
Speaker 1: torn from a note book. The markings were done in pencil.
Speaker 1: Holmes examined it for some time, and then folding it
Speaker 1: carefully up, he placed it in his pocket book. This
Speaker 1: promises to be a most interesting and unusual case, he said.
Speaker 1: You gave me a few particulars in your letter, mister
Speaker 1: Hilton cubit, but I should be very much obliged if
Speaker 1: you would kindly go over it all again for the
Speaker 1: benefit of my friend doctor Watson. I'm not much of
Speaker 1: a story teller, said our visitor, nervously, clasping and unclasping
Speaker 1: his great strong hands. You'll ask me anything that I
Speaker 1: don't make clear. I'll begin at the time of my
Speaker 1: marriage last year. But I want to say first of
Speaker 1: all that though I'm not a rich man, my people
Speaker 1: have been at riding Thorpe for a matter of five centuries,
Speaker 1: and there is no better known family in the county
Speaker 1: of Norfolk. Last year I came up to London for
Speaker 1: the jubilee, and I stopped at a boarding house in
Speaker 1: Russell Square because Parker, the vicar of our parish, was
Speaker 1: staying in it. There was an American young lady there.
Speaker 1: Patrick was the name Elsie Patrick. In some way we
Speaker 1: became friends until before my month was up. I was
Speaker 1: as much in love as man could be. We were
Speaker 1: quietly married at a registry office, and we returned to
Speaker 1: Norfolk a wedded couple. You'll think it very mad, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: that a man of a good old family should marry
Speaker 1: a wife in this fashion, knowing nothing of her past
Speaker 1: or of her people. But if you saw her and
Speaker 1: knew her, it would help you to understand. She was
Speaker 1: very straight about it was, Elsie. I can't say that
Speaker 1: she did not give me every chance of getting out
Speaker 1: of it if I wished to do so. I have
Speaker 1: had some very disagreeable associations in my life, said she.
Speaker 1: I wish to forget all about them. I would rather
Speaker 1: never allude to the past, for it is very painful
Speaker 1: to me. If you take me, Hilton, you will take
Speaker 1: a woman who has nothing that she need be personally
Speaker 1: ashamed of. But you will have to be content with
Speaker 1: my word for it, and to allow me to be silent,
Speaker 1: and as to all that passed up to the time
Speaker 1: when I became yours. If these conditions are too hard,
Speaker 1: then go back to Norfolk and leave me to the
Speaker 1: lonely life in which you found me. It was only
Speaker 1: the day before our wedding that she said those very
Speaker 1: words to me. I'd told her that I was content
Speaker 1: to take her on her own terms, and I have
Speaker 1: been as good as my word. Well. We've been married
Speaker 1: now for a year, and very happy we have been.
Speaker 1: But about a month ago, at the end of June,
Speaker 1: I saw for the first time signs of trouble. One day,
Speaker 1: my wife received a letter from America. I saw the
Speaker 1: American stamp. She turned deadly white, read the letter and
Speaker 1: threw it into the fire. She made no allusion to
Speaker 1: it afterwards, and I made none. For a promise is
Speaker 1: a promise. But she has never known an easy hour.
Speaker 1: From that moment. There is always a look of fear
Speaker 1: upon her face, a look as if she were waiting
Speaker 1: and expecting she would do better to trust me, she
Speaker 1: would find that I was her best friend. But until
Speaker 1: she speaks, I can say nothing. Mind you, she is
Speaker 1: a truthful woman, mister Holmes, and whatever trouble there may
Speaker 1: have been in her past life, it has been no
Speaker 1: fault of hers. I'm only a simple Norfolk squire, but
Speaker 1: there is not a man in England who ranks his
Speaker 1: family honor more highly than I do. She knows it well,
Speaker 1: and she knew it well before she married me. She
Speaker 1: would never bring any stain upon it. Of that, I'm sure. Well.
Speaker 1: Now I come to the queer part of my story.
Speaker 1: About a week ago. It was the Tuesday of last
Speaker 1: week I found on one of the window sills a
Speaker 1: number of absurd little dancing figures like those upon the paper.
Speaker 1: They were scrawled with chalk. I thought it was the
Speaker 1: stable boy who had drawn them, but the lad swore
Speaker 1: he knew nothing about it. Anyway, They had come there
Speaker 1: during the night. I had them washed out, and I
Speaker 1: only mentioned the matter to my wife afterwards. To my surprise,
Speaker 1: she took it very seriously and begged me if any
Speaker 1: more came to let her see them. None did come
Speaker 1: for a week, and then yesterday morning I found this
Speaker 1: paper lying on the sun dial in the garden. I
Speaker 1: showed it to Elsie, and down she dropped in a
Speaker 1: dead faint. Since then she has looked like a woman
Speaker 1: in a dream, half dazed and with terror always lurking
Speaker 1: in her eyes. It was then that I wrote and
Speaker 1: sent the paper to you, mister Holmes. It was not
Speaker 1: a thing that I could take to the police, for
Speaker 1: they would have laughed at me, But you will tell
Speaker 1: me what to do. I am not a rich man,
Speaker 1: but if there is any danger threatening my little woman,
Speaker 1: I would spend my last copper to shield her. He
Speaker 1: was a fine creature, this man of the old English soil, simple,
Speaker 1: straight and gentle, with his great, earnest blue eyes and broad,
Speaker 1: comely face. Love for his wife and his trust in
Speaker 1: her shone in his features. Holmes had listened to his
Speaker 1: story with the utmost attention, and now he sat for
Speaker 1: some time in silent thought. Don't you think, mister Cubit?
Speaker 1: Said he at last, that your best plan would be
Speaker 1: to make a direct appeal to your wife and to
Speaker 1: ask her to share her secret with you. Hilton Cubit
Speaker 1: shook his massive head. A promise is a promise, mister Holmes.
Speaker 1: If Elsie wished to tell me, she would, If not,
Speaker 1: it is not for me to force her confidence. But
Speaker 1: I am justified in taking my own line, and I
Speaker 1: will then I will help you with all my heart.
Speaker 1: In the first place, have you heard of any strangers
Speaker 1: being seen in your neighborhood? No, I presume that it
Speaker 1: is a very quiet place. Any fresh face would cause
Speaker 1: comment in the immediate neighborhood. Yes, but we have several
Speaker 1: small watering places not very far away, and the farmers
Speaker 1: take in lodgers. These hieroglyphics have evidently a meaning. If
Speaker 1: it is a purely arbitrary one, it may be impossible
Speaker 1: for us to solve it. If, on the other hand,
Speaker 1: it is systematic, I have no doubt that we shall
Speaker 1: get to the bottom of it. But this particular sample
Speaker 1: is so short that I can do nothing, and the
Speaker 1: facts which you have brought me are so indefinite that
Speaker 1: we have no basis for an investigation. I would suggest
Speaker 1: that you return to Norfolk, that you keep a keen
Speaker 1: look out, and that you take an exact copy of
Speaker 1: any fresh dancing men which may appear. It is a
Speaker 1: thousand pities that we have not a reproduction of those
Speaker 1: which were done in chalk upon the window sill. Make
Speaker 1: a discreet inquiry. Also as to any strangers in the neighborhood.
Speaker 1: When you have collected some fresh evidence, come to me again.
Speaker 1: That is the best advice which I can give you,
Speaker 1: mister Hilton Cubit. If there are any pressing fresh developments,
Speaker 1: I shall be always ready to run down and see
Speaker 1: you in your Norfolk home. The interview left Sherlock Holmes
Speaker 1: very thoughtful, and several times in the next few days
Speaker 1: I saw him take his slip of paper from his
Speaker 1: note book and look long and earnestly at the curious
Speaker 1: figures inscribed upon it. He made no allusion to the affair, however,
Speaker 1: until one afternoon, a fortnight or so later, I was
Speaker 1: going out when he called me back. You had better
Speaker 1: stay here, Watson. Why because I had a wire from
Speaker 1: Hilton Cubit this morning. You remember Hilton Cubit, of the
Speaker 1: dancing men. He was to reach Liverpool Street at one twenty.
Speaker 1: He may be here at any moment. I gather from
Speaker 1: his wire that there have been some new incidents of importance.
Speaker 1: We had not long to wait for our Norfolk squire
Speaker 1: came straight from the station as fast as a hansom
Speaker 1: could bring him. He was looking worried and depressed, with
Speaker 1: tired eyes and a lined forehead. It's getting on my nerves,
Speaker 1: this business, mister Holmes, said he as he sank like
Speaker 1: a wearied man into an arm chair. It's bad enough
Speaker 1: to feel that you are surrounded by unseen, unknown folk
Speaker 1: who have some kind of design upon you. But when
Speaker 1: in addition to that you know that it is just
Speaker 1: killing your wife by inches, then it becomes as much
Speaker 1: as flesh and blood can endure. She's wearing away under it,
Speaker 1: just wearing away before my eyes. Has she said anything yet, No,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, she has not. And yet there have been
Speaker 1: times when the poor girl has wanted to speak, and
Speaker 1: yet could not quite bring herself to take the plunge.
Speaker 1: I have tried to help her, but I dare say
Speaker 1: I did it clumsily and scared her from it. She
Speaker 1: has spoken about my old family and our reputation in
Speaker 1: the county, and our pride in our unsullied honor. And
Speaker 1: I always felt it was leading to the point, but
Speaker 1: somehow it turned off before we got there. But you
Speaker 1: have found out something for yourself, a good deal, mister Holmes.
Speaker 1: I have several fresh dancing men pictures for you to examine.
Speaker 1: And what is more important, I have seen the fellow
Speaker 1: what the mount who draws them. Yes, I saw him
Speaker 1: at his work, but I will tell you everything in order.
Speaker 1: When I got back after my visit to you, the
Speaker 1: very first thing I saw next morning was a fresh
Speaker 1: crop of dancing men. They had been drawn in chalk
Speaker 1: upon the black wooden door of the tool house, which
Speaker 1: stands beside the lawn in full view of the front windows.
Speaker 1: I took an exact copy, and here it is. He
Speaker 1: unfolded a paper and laid it upon the table. Here
Speaker 1: is a copy of the hieroglyphics. Excellent, said Holmes. Excellent,
Speaker 1: the prey continue. When I had taken the copy, I
Speaker 1: rubbed out the marks. But two mornings later a fresh
Speaker 1: inscription had appeared. I have a copy of it here.
Speaker 1: Holmes rubbed his hands and chuckled with delight. Our material
Speaker 1: is rapidly accumulating, said he. Three days later a message
Speaker 1: was left, scrawled upon paper and placed under a pebble
Speaker 1: upon the sun dial. Here it is. The characters are
Speaker 1: as you see, exactly the same as the last one.
Speaker 1: After that, I determined to lie in wait, so I
Speaker 1: got out my revolver and I sat up in my study,
Speaker 1: which overlooks the lawn and garden. About two in the morning,
Speaker 1: I was seated by the window, all being dark save
Speaker 1: for the moonlight outside, when I heard steps behind me,
Speaker 1: and there was my wife in her dressing gown. She
Speaker 1: implored me to come to bed. I told her frankly
Speaker 1: that I wished to see who it was who played
Speaker 1: such absurd tricks upon us. She answered that it was
Speaker 1: some senseless, practical joke, and that I should not take
Speaker 1: any notice of it. If it really annoys you, Hilton,
Speaker 1: we might go and travel, you and I, and so
Speaker 1: avoid this nuisance. What be driven out of our own
Speaker 1: house by a practical joker, said I? Why we should
Speaker 1: have the whole county laughing at us. Well, come to bed,
Speaker 1: said she, and we can discuss it in the morning. Suddenly,
Speaker 1: as she spoke, I saw her white face grow whiter
Speaker 1: yet in the moonlight, and her hand tightened upon my shoulder.
Speaker 1: Something was moving in the shadow of the tool house.
Speaker 1: I saw a dark, creeping figure which crawled round the
Speaker 1: corner and squatted in front of the door, seizing my pistol.
Speaker 1: I was rushing out when my wife threw her arms
Speaker 1: round me and held me with convulsive strength. I tried
Speaker 1: to throw her off, but she clung to me most desperately.
Speaker 1: At last I got clear, But by the time I
Speaker 1: had opened the door and reached the house, the creature
Speaker 1: was gone. He had left a trace of his presence, however,
Speaker 1: for there on the door was the very same arrangement
Speaker 1: of dancing men, which had already twice appeared, and which
Speaker 1: I have copied on that paper. There was no sign
Speaker 1: of the fellow anywhere, though I ran all over the grounds.
Speaker 1: And yet the amazing thing is that he must have
Speaker 1: been there all the time, for when I examined the
Speaker 1: door again in the morning, he had scrawled some more
Speaker 1: of his pictures under the line which I had already seen.
Speaker 1: Have you that fresh drawing? Yes, it's very short, but
Speaker 1: I made a copy of it, and here it is again.
Speaker 1: He produced a paper on which the new dance appeared.
Speaker 1: Tell me, said Holmes, and I could see by his
Speaker 1: eyes that he was much excited. Was this a mere
Speaker 1: addition to the first? Or did it appear to be
Speaker 1: entirely separate? It was on a different panel of the door. Excellent,
Speaker 1: This is far the most important of all for our purpose.
Speaker 1: It fills me with hopes. Now, mister Hilton cubit, please
Speaker 1: continue your most interesting statement. I have nothing more to say,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, except that I was angry with my wife
Speaker 1: that night for having held me back when I might
Speaker 1: have caught the skulking rascal. She said that she feared
Speaker 1: that I might come to harm for an instant. It
Speaker 1: had crossed my mind that perhaps what she really feared
Speaker 1: was that he might come to harm. For I could
Speaker 1: not doubt that she knew who this man was and
Speaker 1: what he meant by these strange signals. But there is
Speaker 1: a tone in my wife's voice, mister Holmes, and a
Speaker 1: look in her eyes which forbid doubt. And I am
Speaker 1: sure that it was indeed my own safety that was
Speaker 1: in her mind. There's the whole case, and now I
Speaker 1: want your advice as to what I ought to do.
Speaker 1: My own inclination is to put half a dozen of
Speaker 1: my farm lads in the shrubbery, and when this fellow
Speaker 1: comes again, to give him such a hiding that he
Speaker 1: will leave us in peace for the future. I fear
Speaker 1: it is too deep a case for such simple remedies,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. How long can you stay in London? I
Speaker 1: must go back to day. I would not leave my
Speaker 1: wife alone all night for anything. She is very nervous
Speaker 1: and beg me to come back. I dare say, you're right,
Speaker 1: But if you could have stopped, I might possibly have
Speaker 1: been able to return with you in a day. Meanwhile,
Speaker 1: you will leave me these papers, and I think it
Speaker 1: is very likely that I shall be able to pay
Speaker 1: you a visit shortly, and to throw some light upon
Speaker 1: your case. Sherlock Holmes preserved his calm, professional manner until
Speaker 1: our visitor had left us, although it was easy for me,
Speaker 1: who knew him so well, to see that he was
Speaker 1: profoundly excited. The moment that Hilton Cubit's broad back had
Speaker 1: disappeared through the door, my comrade rushed to the table,
Speaker 1: laid out all the slips of paper containing dancing men
Speaker 1: in front of him, and threw himself into an intricate
Speaker 1: and elaborate calculation. For two hours, I watched him as
Speaker 1: he covered sheet after sheet of paper with figures and letters,
Speaker 1: so completely absorbed in his task that he had evidently
Speaker 1: forgotten my presence. Sometimes he was making progress and whistled
Speaker 1: and sang at his work. Sometimes he was puzzled and
Speaker 1: would sit for long spells with a furrowed brow and
Speaker 1: a vacant eye. Finally he sprang from his chair with
Speaker 1: a cry of satisfaction, and walked up and down the room,
Speaker 1: rubbing his hands together. Then he wrote a long telegram
Speaker 1: upon a cable form. If my answer to this is
Speaker 1: as I hope you will have a very pretty case
Speaker 1: to add to your collection. Watson said he, I expect
Speaker 1: that we shall be able to go down to Norfolk
Speaker 1: tomorrow and to take our friend some very definite news
Speaker 1: as to the secret of his annoyance. I confess that
Speaker 1: I was filled with curiosity, but I was aware that
Speaker 1: Holmes liked to make his disclosures at his own time
Speaker 1: and in his own way. So I waited until it
Speaker 1: should suit him to take me into his confidence. But
Speaker 1: there was a delay in that answering telegram, and two
Speaker 1: days of impatience followed, during which Holmes pricked up his
Speaker 1: ears at every ring of the bell. On the evening
Speaker 1: of the second there came a letter from Hilton Cubid.
Speaker 1: All was quiet with him, save that a long inscription
Speaker 1: had appeared that morning upon the pedestal of the sun dial.
Speaker 1: He enclosed a copy of it, which is here reproduced.
Speaker 1: Holmes bent over this grotesque freeze for some minutes, and
Speaker 1: then suddenly sprang to his feet with an exclamation of
Speaker 1: surprise and dismay. His face was haggard with anxiety. We
Speaker 1: have let this affair go far enough, said he is
Speaker 1: there a train to North Walsham to night. I turned
Speaker 1: up the timetable the last had just gone. Then we
Speaker 1: shall breakfast early and take the very first in the morning,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Our presence is most urgently needed. Ah here
Speaker 1: is our expected cablegram one moment, Missus Hudson, there may
Speaker 1: be an answer. No, that is quite as I expected.
Speaker 1: This message makes it even more essential that we should
Speaker 1: not lose an hour in letting Hilton cubit know how
Speaker 1: matters stand. For it is a singular and a dangerous
Speaker 1: web in which our simple Norfolk squire is entangled. So
Speaker 1: indeed it proved. And as I come to the dark
Speaker 1: conclusion of a story which had seemed to me to
Speaker 1: be only childish and bizarre, I experience once again the
Speaker 1: dismay and horror with which I was filled. Would that
Speaker 1: I had some brighter ending to communicate to my readers.
Speaker 1: But these are the chronicles of fact, and I must
Speaker 1: follow to their dark crisis. The strange chain of events
Speaker 1: which for some days made Riding Thorpe Manor a household
Speaker 1: word through the length and breadth of England. We had
Speaker 1: hardly alighted at North Walsham and mentioned the name of
Speaker 1: our destination. When the station master hurried towards us, I
Speaker 1: suppose that you are the detectives from London, said he.
Speaker 1: A look of annoyance passed over Holmes's face. What makes
Speaker 1: you think such a thing, because Inspector Martin from Norwich
Speaker 1: has just passed through. But maybe you are the surgeons.
Speaker 1: She is not dead, or wasn't by last accounts. You
Speaker 1: may be in time to savor. Yet, though it be
Speaker 1: for the gallows, Holmes's brow was dark with anxiety. We
Speaker 1: are going to riding forpe Manor, said he. But we
Speaker 1: have heard nothing of what has passed there. It's a
Speaker 1: terrible business, said the station master. They are shot, both
Speaker 1: mister Hilton Cubit and his wife. She shot him and
Speaker 1: then herself, So the servants say he is dead and
Speaker 1: her life is despaired of dear, dear, one of the
Speaker 1: oldest families in the County of Norfolk, and one of
Speaker 1: the most honored. Without a word, Holmes hurried to a carriage,
Speaker 1: and during the long seven miles drive he never opened
Speaker 1: his mouth. Seldom have I seen him so utterly despondent.
Speaker 1: He had been uneasy during all our journey from town,
Speaker 1: and I had observed that he had turned over the
Speaker 1: morning papers with anxious attention. But now this sudden realization
Speaker 1: of his worst fears left him in a blank melancholy.
Speaker 1: He leaned back in his seat, lost in gloomy speculation.
Speaker 1: Yet there was much a round to interest us, for
Speaker 1: we were passing through as singular a countryside as any
Speaker 1: in England, where a few scattered cottages represented the population
Speaker 1: of to day, while on every hand enormous square towered
Speaker 1: churches bristled up from the flat green landscape and told
Speaker 1: of the glory and prosperity of old East Anglia. At last,
Speaker 1: the violet rim of the German Ocean appeared over the
Speaker 1: green edge of the Norfolk coast, and the driver pointed
Speaker 1: with his whip to two old brick and timber gables
Speaker 1: which projected from a grove of trees. As ridentthorpe Manner,
Speaker 1: said he. As we drove up to the porticoed front door,
Speaker 1: I observed in front of it, beside the tennis lawn,
Speaker 1: the black tool house, and the pedestaled sun dial with
Speaker 1: which we had such strange associations. A dapper little man
Speaker 1: with a quick alert manner and a waxed mustache had
Speaker 1: just descended from a high dog cart. He introduced himself
Speaker 1: as Inspector Martin of the Norfolk Constabulary, and he was
Speaker 1: considerably astonished when he heard the name of my companion. Why,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, the crime was only committed at three this morning?
Speaker 1: How could you hear of it in London and get
Speaker 1: to the spot as soon as I I anticipated it.
Speaker 1: I came in the hope of preventing it. Then you
Speaker 1: must have important evidence of which we are ignorant, for
Speaker 1: they were said to be a most united couple. I
Speaker 1: have only the evidence of the dancing men, said Holmes.
Speaker 1: I will explain the matter to you later. Meanwhile, since
Speaker 1: it is too late to prevent this tragedy, I am
Speaker 1: very anxious that I should use the knowledge which I
Speaker 1: possess in order to ensure that justice be done. Will
Speaker 1: you associate me in your investigation, or will you prefer
Speaker 1: that I should act independently. I should be proud to
Speaker 1: feel that we were acting together, mister Holmes, said the
Speaker 1: inspector earnestly. In that case, I should be glad to
Speaker 1: hear the evidence and to examine the premises without an
Speaker 1: instant of unnecessary delay. Inspector Martin had the good sense
Speaker 1: to allow my friend to do things in his own fashion,
Speaker 1: and contented himself with carefully noting the results. The local surgeon,
Speaker 1: an old, white haired man, had just come down from
Speaker 1: Missus Hilton Cubit's room, and he reported that her injuries
Speaker 1: were serious, but not necessarily fatal. The bullet had passed
Speaker 1: through the front of her brain, and it would probably
Speaker 1: be some time before she would regain consciousness. On the
Speaker 1: question of whether she had been shot or had shot herself,
Speaker 1: he would not venture to express any decided opinion. Certainly,
Speaker 1: the bullet had been discharged at very close quarters. There
Speaker 1: was only the one pistol found in the room, two
Speaker 1: barrels of which had been emptied. Mister Hilton Cubid had
Speaker 1: been shot through the heart. It was equally conceivable that
Speaker 1: he had shot her and then himself, or that she
Speaker 1: had been the criminal. For the revolver lay upon the
Speaker 1: floor midway between them. Has he been moved, asked Holmes.
Speaker 1: We have moved nothing except the lady. We could not
Speaker 1: leave her lying wounded upon the floor. How long have
Speaker 1: you been here, doctor, since four o'clock? Anyone else? Yes,
Speaker 1: the a constable here and you have touched nothing nothing.
Speaker 1: You have acted with great discretion. Who sent for you?
Speaker 1: The housemaid Saunders. Was it she who gave the alarm?
Speaker 1: She and Missus King the cork? Where are they now
Speaker 1: in the kitchen? I believe then? I think we had
Speaker 1: better hear their story at once. The old hall, oak
Speaker 1: paneled and high windowed, had been turned into a court
Speaker 1: of investigation. Holmes sat in a great, old fashioned chair,
Speaker 1: his inexorable eye gleaming out of his haggard face. I
Speaker 1: could read in them as set purpose to devote his
Speaker 1: life to this quest, until the client whom he had
Speaker 1: failed to save, should at last be avenged. The trim
Speaker 1: Inspector Martin, the old gray headed country doctor, myself, and
Speaker 1: a stolid village policeman made up the rest of that
Speaker 1: strange company. The two women told their story clearly enough.
Speaker 1: They had been aroused from their sleep by the sound
Speaker 1: of an explosion, which had been followed a minute later
Speaker 1: by a second one. They slept in adjoining rooms, and
Speaker 1: Missus King had rushed into Saunders. Together. They had descended
Speaker 1: the stairs. The door of the study was open, and
Speaker 1: a candle was burning upon the table. Their master lay
Speaker 1: upon his face in the center of the room. He
Speaker 1: was quite dead near the window. His wife was crouching
Speaker 1: her head leaning against the wall. She was horribly wounded,
Speaker 1: and the side of her face was red with blood.
Speaker 1: She breathed heavily, but was incapable of saying anything. The passage,
Speaker 1: as well as the room, was full of smoke and
Speaker 1: the smell of powder. The window was certainly shut and
Speaker 1: fastened upon the inside. Both women were positive upon the point.
Speaker 1: They had at once sent for the doctor and for
Speaker 1: the constable. Then, with the aid of the groom and
Speaker 1: the stable boy, they had conveyed their injured mistress to
Speaker 1: her room. Both she and her husband had occupied the bed.
Speaker 1: She was clad in her dress, he and his dressing
Speaker 1: gown over his night clothes. Nothing had been moved in
Speaker 1: the study. So far as they knew, there had never
Speaker 1: been any quarrel between husband and wife. They had always
Speaker 1: looked upon them as a very united couple. These were
Speaker 1: the main points of the servants evidence. In answer to
Speaker 1: Inspector Martin, they were clear that every door was fastened
Speaker 1: upon the inside, and that no one could have escaped
Speaker 1: from the house. In answer to Holmes, they both remembered
Speaker 1: that they were conscious of the smell of powder from
Speaker 1: the moment that they ran out of their rooms. Upon
Speaker 1: the top floor. I commend that fact very carefully to
Speaker 1: your attention, said Holmes to his professional colleague. And now
Speaker 1: I think that we are in a position to undertake
Speaker 1: a thorough examination of the room. The study proved to
Speaker 1: be a small chamber, lined on three sides with books,
Speaker 1: and with a writing table, facing an ordinary window which
Speaker 1: looked out upon the garden. Our first attention was given
Speaker 1: to the body of the unfortunate squire, whose huge frame
Speaker 1: lay stretched across the room. His disordered dress showed that
Speaker 1: he had been hastily aroused from sleep. The bullet had
Speaker 1: been fired at him from the front and had remained
Speaker 1: in his body after penetrating the heart. His death had
Speaker 1: certainly been instantaneous and painless. There was no powder marking,
Speaker 1: either upon his dressing gown or on his hands. According
Speaker 1: to the country surgeon, the lady had stains upon her face,
Speaker 1: but none upon her hand. The absence of the latter
Speaker 1: means nothing, though its presence may mean everything, said Holmes.
Speaker 1: Unless the powder from a badly fitting cartridge happens to
Speaker 1: spurt backward, one may fire many shots without leaving a sign.
Speaker 1: I would suggest that mister Cwbot's body may now be removed.
Speaker 1: I suppose, doctor, you have not recovered the bullet which
Speaker 1: wounded the lady. A serious operation will be necessary before
Speaker 1: that can be done. But there are still four cartridges
Speaker 1: in the revolver. Two have been fired and two wounds inflicted,
Speaker 1: so each bullet can be accounted for, so it would seem,
Speaker 1: said Holmes, perhaps you can account also for the bullet
Speaker 1: which had so obviously struck the edge of the window.
Speaker 1: He had turned suddenly, and his long, thin finger was
Speaker 1: pointing to a hole which had been drilled right through
Speaker 1: the lower window sash, about an inch above the bottom
Speaker 1: by George, cried the inspector. However, did you see that
Speaker 1: because I looked for it? Wonderful, said the country doctor.
Speaker 1: You are certainly right, sir. Then a third shot has
Speaker 1: been fired, and therefore a third person must have been present.
Speaker 1: But who could that have been, and how could he
Speaker 1: have got away? That is the problem which we are
Speaker 1: now about to solve, said Sherlock Holmes. You remember, Inspector Martin,
Speaker 1: when the servants said that on leaving their room they
Speaker 1: were at once conscious of a smell of powder. I
Speaker 1: remarked that the point was an extremely important one. Yes, so,
Speaker 1: but I confess I do not quite follow you. It
Speaker 1: suggested that at the time of the firing, the window
Speaker 1: as well as the door of the broom had been open.
Speaker 1: Otherwise the fumes of powder could not have been blown
Speaker 1: so rapidly through the house. A draft in the room
Speaker 1: was necessary for that both door and window were only
Speaker 1: open for a very short time. However, how do you
Speaker 1: prove that because the candle was not guttered? Capital, cried
Speaker 1: the inspector. Capital, feeling sure that the window had been
Speaker 1: open at the time of the tragedy, I conceived that
Speaker 1: there might have been a third person in the affair
Speaker 1: who stood outside this opening and fired through it. Any
Speaker 1: shot directed that this person might hit the sash. I looked,
Speaker 1: and there, sure enough was the bullet mark. But how
Speaker 1: came the window to be shut and fastened? The woman's
Speaker 1: first instinct would be to shut and fasten the window.
Speaker 1: But ullo, what is this? It was a lady's hand
Speaker 1: bag which stood upon the study table, a trim little
Speaker 1: hand bag of crocodile skin and silver. Holmes opened it
Speaker 1: and turned the contents out. There were twenty fifty pound
Speaker 1: notes of the Bank of England, held together by an
Speaker 1: India rubber band. Nothing else. This must be preserved, for
Speaker 1: it will figure in the trial, said Holmes as he
Speaker 1: handed the bag with its contents to the inspector. It
Speaker 1: is now necessary that we should try to throw some
Speaker 1: light upon this third bullet, which has clearly from the
Speaker 1: splintering of the wood, been fired from inside the room.
Speaker 1: I should like to see Missus King the cook again.
Speaker 1: You said, Missus King, that you were awakened by a
Speaker 1: loud explosion. When you said that, did you mean that
Speaker 1: it seemed to you to be louder than the second one? Well, sir,
Speaker 1: it awakened me from my sleep, so it is hard
Speaker 1: to judge, but it did seem very loud. You don't
Speaker 1: think that it might have been two shots fired almost
Speaker 1: at the same instant. I am sure. I couldn't say, sir,
Speaker 1: I believe that it was undoubtedly, So I rather think,
Speaker 1: Inspector Martin, that we have now exhausted all that this
Speaker 1: room can teach us. If you will kindly step round
Speaker 1: with me, we shall see what fresh evidence the garden
Speaker 1: has to offer. A flower bed extended after the study window,
Speaker 1: and we all broke into an exclamation as we approached it.
Speaker 1: The flowers were trampled down, and the soft soil was
Speaker 1: imprinted all over with footmarks. Large masculine feet they were,
Speaker 1: with peculiarly long sharp toes. Holmes hunted about among the
Speaker 1: grass and leaves, like a retriever after a wounded bird. Then,
Speaker 1: with a cry of satisfaction, he bent forward and picked
Speaker 1: up a little brazen cylinder. I thought, so, said he.
Speaker 1: The revolver had an ejector, and here is the third cartridge.
Speaker 1: I really think, Inspector Martin, that our case is almost complete.
Speaker 1: The country Inspector's face had shown his intense amazement at
Speaker 1: the rapid and masterful progress of Holmes's investigation. At first
Speaker 1: he had shown some disposition to assert his own position,
Speaker 1: but now he was overcome with admiration and ready to
Speaker 1: follow without question wherever Holmes led. Whom do you suspect,
Speaker 1: he asked, I'll go into that later. There are several
Speaker 1: points in this problem which I have not been able
Speaker 1: to explain to you yet. Now that I have got
Speaker 1: so far, I had best proceed on my own lines
Speaker 1: and then clear the whole matter up once and for all,
Speaker 1: just as you wish, mister Holmes. So long as we
Speaker 1: get our man, I have no desire to make mysteries,
Speaker 1: but it is impossible at the moment of action to
Speaker 1: enter into long and complex explanations. I have the threads
Speaker 1: of this affair all in my hand. Even if this
Speaker 1: lady should never recover consciousness, we can still reconstruct the
Speaker 1: events of last night and ensure that justice be done.
Speaker 1: First of all, I wish to know whether there is
Speaker 1: any inn in this neighborhood known as Elridge's. The servants
Speaker 1: were cross questioned, but none of them had heard of
Speaker 1: such a place. The stable boy threw a light upon
Speaker 1: the matter by remembering that a farmer of that name
Speaker 1: lived some miles off in the direction of East Ruston.
Speaker 1: Is it a lonely farm, very lonely, sir? Perhaps they
Speaker 1: have not yet heard of all that happened here during
Speaker 1: the night. Maybe not, Sir Holmes thought for a little,
Speaker 1: and then a curious smile played over his face. Saddle
Speaker 1: a horse, my lad said he, I shall wish you
Speaker 1: to take a note to Elridge's farm. He took from
Speaker 1: his pocket the various slips of the dancing men. With
Speaker 1: these in front of him, he worked for some time
Speaker 1: at the study table. Finally he handed a note to
Speaker 1: the boy with directions to put it into the hands
Speaker 1: of the person to whom it was addressed, and especially
Speaker 1: to answer no questions of any sort which might be
Speaker 1: put to him. I saw the outside of the note
Speaker 1: addressed in straggling irregular characters, very unlike Holmes's usual precise hand.
Speaker 1: It was consigned to mister Abe Slaney Elridge's farm, East Russston, Norfolk.
Speaker 1: I think Inspector Holmes remarked that you would do well
Speaker 1: to telegraph for an escort, as if my calculations prove
Speaker 1: to be correct, you may have a particularly dangerous prisoner
Speaker 1: to convey to the county jail. The boy who takes
Speaker 1: this note could no doubt forward your telegram. If there
Speaker 1: is an afternoon train to town, Watson, I think we
Speaker 1: should do well to take it, as I have a
Speaker 1: chemical analysis of some interest to finish, and this investigation
Speaker 1: draws rapidly to a close. When the youth had been
Speaker 1: dispatched with the note, Sherlock Holmes gave his instructions to
Speaker 1: the servants. If any visitor were to call asking for
Speaker 1: missus Hilton Cubit, no information should be given as to
Speaker 1: her condition, but he was to be shown at once
Speaker 1: into the drawing room. He impressed these points upon them
Speaker 1: with the utmost earnestness. Finally, he led the way into
Speaker 1: the drawing room with the remark that the business was
Speaker 1: now out of our hands, and that we must while
Speaker 1: away the time as best we might, until we could
Speaker 1: see what was in store for us. The doctor had
Speaker 1: departed to his patients, and only the Inspector and myself remained.
Speaker 1: I think that I can help you pass an hour
Speaker 1: in an interesting and profitable manner, said Holmes, drawing his
Speaker 1: chair up to the table and spreading out in front
Speaker 1: of him the various papers upon which were recorded the
Speaker 1: antics of the dancing men. As to you, friend Watson,
Speaker 1: I owe you every atonement for having allowed your natural
Speaker 1: curiosity to remain so long unsatisfied. To you, Inspector, the
Speaker 1: whole incident may appeal as a remarkable professional study. I
Speaker 1: must tell you first of all the interesting circumstances connected
Speaker 1: with the previous consultations which mister Hilton Cubit has had
Speaker 1: with me in Baker Street. He then shortly recapitulated the
Speaker 1: facts which have already been recorded. I have here in
Speaker 1: front of me these singular productions at which one might
Speaker 1: smile had they not proved themselves to be the forerunners
Speaker 1: of so terrible a tragedy. I am fairly familiar with
Speaker 1: all forms of secret writings, and am myself the author
Speaker 1: of a trifling monograph upon the subject, in which I
Speaker 1: analyze one hundred and sixty separate ciphers. But I confess
Speaker 1: that this is entirely new to me. The object of
Speaker 1: those who invented the system has apparently been to conceal
Speaker 1: that these characters convey a message, and to give the
Speaker 1: idea that they are the mere random sketches of children.
Speaker 1: Having once recognized, however, that the symbol stood for letters,
Speaker 1: and having applied the rules which guide us in all
Speaker 1: forms of secret writings, the solution was easy enough. The
Speaker 1: first message submitted to me was so short that it
Speaker 1: was impossible for me to do more than to say
Speaker 1: with some confidence that this symbol stood for E. As
Speaker 1: you are aware, E is the most common letter in
Speaker 1: the English alphabet, and it predominates to so marked an
Speaker 1: extent that even in a short sentence, one would expect
Speaker 1: to find it most often. Out of fifteen symbols in
Speaker 1: the first message, four were the same. So it was
Speaker 1: reasonable to set this down as E. It is true
Speaker 1: that in some cases the figure was bearing a flag,
Speaker 1: and in some cases not, But it was probable from
Speaker 1: the way in which the flags were distributed that they
Speaker 1: were used to break the sentence up into words. I
Speaker 1: accepted this as a hypothesis, and noted that E was
Speaker 1: represented by the following. But now came the real difficulty
Speaker 1: of the inquiry. The order of the English letters after
Speaker 1: E is by no means well marked, and any preponderance
Speaker 1: which may be shown in an average of a printed
Speaker 1: sheet may be reversed in a single short sentence, speaking roughly, TAOI, N, S, hr, D,
Speaker 1: and L are the U S numerical order in which
Speaker 1: letters occur. But t ao and I are very nearly
Speaker 1: abreast of each other, and it would be an endless
Speaker 1: task to try each combination until a meaning was arrived at.
Speaker 1: I therefore waited for fresh material. In my second interview
Speaker 1: with mister Hilton Cubit, he was able to give me
Speaker 1: two other short sentences and one message, which appeared since
Speaker 1: there was no flag to be a single word. Here
Speaker 1: are the symbols now in the single word, I have
Speaker 1: already got the two ease coming second and fourth. In
Speaker 1: a word of five letters, it might be sever or
Speaker 1: lever or never. There can be no question that the latter,
Speaker 1: as a reply to an appeal, is far the most probable,
Speaker 1: and the circumstances pointed to its being a reply written
Speaker 1: by the lady. Accepting it as correct, we are now
Speaker 1: able to say that the symbols stand respectively for N,
Speaker 1: V and R. Even now I was in considerable difficulty,
Speaker 1: but a happy thought put me in possession of several
Speaker 1: other letters. It occurred to me that if these appeals
Speaker 1: came as I expected from someone who had been intimate
Speaker 1: with the lady in her early life, a combination which
Speaker 1: contained two ease with three letters between might very well
Speaker 1: stand for the name Elsie. On examination, I found that
Speaker 1: such a combination formed the termination of the message, which
Speaker 1: was three times repeated. It was certainly some appeal to Elsie.
Speaker 1: In this way I had got my l S and I.
Speaker 1: But what appeal could it be? There were only four
Speaker 1: letters in the word which preceded Elsie, and it ended
Speaker 1: in E. Surely the word must be come. I tried
Speaker 1: all other four letters ending in E E, but could
Speaker 1: find none to fit the case. So now I was
Speaker 1: in possession of C, O, M, and I was in
Speaker 1: a position to attack the first message once more, dividing
Speaker 1: it into words and putting dots for each symbol which
Speaker 1: was still unknown. So treated it worked out in this
Speaker 1: fashion dot M dot e r E dot dot e
Speaker 1: s l dot n e dot. Now the first letter
Speaker 1: can only be A, which is a most useful discovery,
Speaker 1: since it occurs no fewer than three times in this
Speaker 1: short sentence, and the H is also apparent in the
Speaker 1: second word. Now it becomes a M M, H E
Speaker 1: r e here a dot e slain s l a
Speaker 1: n e, or filling in the obvious vacancies in the
Speaker 1: name am here abe slaney. I had so many letters
Speaker 1: now that I could proceed with considerable confidence to the
Speaker 1: second message, which worked out in this fashion a dot E,
Speaker 1: L r I dot e s dot here. I could
Speaker 1: only make sense by putting T and G for the
Speaker 1: missing letters, and supposing that the name was that of
Speaker 1: some house or inn at which the writer was staying.
Speaker 1: Inspector Martin and I had listened with the utmost interest
Speaker 1: to the full and clear account of how my friend
Speaker 1: had produced results which had led to so complete a
Speaker 1: command over our difficulties. What did you do, then, Sir
Speaker 1: asked the inspector. I had every reason to suppose that
Speaker 1: this Abe Slaney was an American, since Abe is an
Speaker 1: American contraction, and since a letter from America had been
Speaker 1: the starting point of all the trouble, I had also
Speaker 1: every cause to think that there was some criminal secret
Speaker 1: in the matter. The lady's allusions to her past and
Speaker 1: her refusal to take her husband into her confidence both
Speaker 1: pointed in that direction. I therefore cabled to my friend
Speaker 1: Wilson Hargreave of the New York Police Bureau, who has
Speaker 1: more than once made use of my knowledge of London crime.
Speaker 1: I asked him whether the name of Abe Slaney was
Speaker 1: known to him. Here is his reply, the most dangerous
Speaker 1: crook in Chicago. On the very evening upon which I
Speaker 1: had this answer, Hilton Cubit sent me the last message
Speaker 1: from Slaney. Working with known letters, It took this form
Speaker 1: E L S I E ELSI DOT R E dot
Speaker 1: A R E T O two M E E T
Speaker 1: meet t h y thy g O dot. The addition
Speaker 1: of a P and a D completed a message which
Speaker 1: showed me that the rascal was proceeding from persuasion to threats,
Speaker 1: and my knowledge of the crooks of Chicago prepared me
Speaker 1: to find that he might very rapidly put his words
Speaker 1: into action. I at once came to Norfolk with my
Speaker 1: friend and colleague, doctor Watson, but unhappily, only in time
Speaker 1: to find that the worst had already occurred. It is
Speaker 1: a privilege to be associated with you in the handling
Speaker 1: of a case, said the inspector warmly. You will excuse me, however,
Speaker 1: if I speak frankly to you, you were only answerable
Speaker 1: to yourself. But I have to answer to my superiors.
Speaker 1: If this abe slaany living at Elbridge's is indeed the murderer.
Speaker 1: And if he has made his escape while I am
Speaker 1: seated here, I should certainly get into serious trees. You
Speaker 1: need not be uneasy. He will not try to escape.
Speaker 1: How do you know to fly would be a confession
Speaker 1: of guilt. Then let us go arrest him. I expect
Speaker 1: him here every instant. But why should he come because
Speaker 1: I have written and asked him? But this is incredible,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes. Why should he come because you have asked him?
Speaker 1: Would not such a request rather rouse his suspicions and
Speaker 1: cause him to fly? I think I have known how
Speaker 1: to frame the letter, said Sherlock Holmes. In fact, if
Speaker 1: I am not very much mistaken, here is the gentleman
Speaker 1: himself coming up the drive. A man was striding up
Speaker 1: the path which led to the door. He was a tall, handsome,
Speaker 1: swarthy fellow, clad in a suit of gray flannel, with
Speaker 1: a panama hat, a bristling black beard, and a great,
Speaker 1: aggressive hooked nose, and flourishing a cane. As he walked.
Speaker 1: He swaggered up path as if the place belonged to him,
Speaker 1: and we heard his loud, confident peal at the bell.
Speaker 1: I think, gentlemen, said Holmes quietly, that we had best
Speaker 1: take up our position behind the door. Every precaution is
Speaker 1: necessary when dealing with such a fellow. You will need
Speaker 1: your handcuffs. Inspector, you can leave the talking to me.
Speaker 1: We waited in silence for a minute, one of those
Speaker 1: minutes which one can never forget. Then the door opened
Speaker 1: and the man stepped in. In an instant, Holmes clapped
Speaker 1: a pistol to his head, and Martin slipped the handcuffs
Speaker 1: over his wrists. It was all done so swiftly and
Speaker 1: deftly that the fellow was helpless before he knew that
Speaker 1: he was attacked. He glared from one to the other
Speaker 1: of us with a pair of blazing black eyes. Then
Speaker 1: he burst into a bitter laugh. Well, gentlemen, you have
Speaker 1: the drop on me this time. I seem to have
Speaker 1: knocked up against something hard. But I came here in
Speaker 1: answer to a letter from missus Hilton Cubit. Don't tell
Speaker 1: me that she is in this. Don't tell me that
Speaker 1: she helped to set a trap for me. Missus Hilton
Speaker 1: Cubit was seriously injured and is a death's door. The
Speaker 1: man gave a hoarse cry of grief, which rang through
Speaker 1: the house. You're crazy, he cried fiercely. It was he
Speaker 1: that was hurt, not she who would have hurt little Elsie.
Speaker 1: I may have threatened her, God forgive me, but I
Speaker 1: would not have touched a hair of her pretty head.
Speaker 1: Take it back, you say that she is not hurt.
Speaker 1: She was found badly wounded by the side of her
Speaker 1: dead husband. He sank with a deep groan on the
Speaker 1: settee and buried his face in his manacled hands. For
Speaker 1: five minutes he was silent. Then he raised his face
Speaker 1: once more and spoke with the cold composure of despair.
Speaker 1: I have nothing to hide from you. Gentlemen, said he
Speaker 1: If I shot the man, he had his shod at me,
Speaker 1: and there's no murder in that. But if you think
Speaker 1: I could have hurt that woman, then you don't know
Speaker 1: either me or her. I tell you there was never
Speaker 1: a man in this world loved a woman more than
Speaker 1: I loved her. I had a right to her. She
Speaker 1: was pledged to me years ago. Who was this englishman
Speaker 1: that he should come between us. I tell you that
Speaker 1: I had the first right to her, and that I
Speaker 1: was only claiming my own. She broke away from your
Speaker 1: influence when she found the man that you are, said
Speaker 1: Holmes sternly. She fled from America to avoid you, and
Speaker 1: she married an honorable gentleman in England. You dogged her
Speaker 1: and followed her, and made her life a misery to
Speaker 1: her in order to induce her to abandon the husband
Speaker 1: whom she loved and respected, in order to fly with you,
Speaker 1: whom she feared and hated. You have ended by bringing
Speaker 1: about the death of a noble man and driving his
Speaker 1: wife to suicide. That is your record in this business,
Speaker 1: mister abe Slaney, and you will answer for it to
Speaker 1: the law. If Elsie dies, I care nothing what becomes
Speaker 1: of me, said the American. He opened one of his
Speaker 1: hands and looked at a note crumpled up in his palm.
Speaker 1: See here, mister, he cried, with a gleam of suspicion
Speaker 1: in his eyes. You are not trying to scare me
Speaker 1: over this, are you? If the lady is hurt as
Speaker 1: bad as you say? Who was it that wrote this note?
Speaker 1: He tossed it forward on to the table. I wrote
Speaker 1: it to bring you here. You wrote it. There was
Speaker 1: no one on earth outside the joint who knew the
Speaker 1: secret of the dancing men? How came you to write it?
Speaker 1: What one man can invent, another can discover? Said Holmes.
Speaker 1: There is a cab coming to convey you to Norwich,
Speaker 1: mister Slaney. But meanwhile you have time to make some
Speaker 1: small reparation for the injury you have wrought. Are you
Speaker 1: aware that missus Hilton Cubit has herself lain under grave
Speaker 1: suspicion of the murder of her husband, and that it
Speaker 1: was only my presence here and the knowledge which I
Speaker 1: happened to possess, which has saved her from the accusation.
Speaker 1: The least that you owe her is to make it
Speaker 1: clear to the whole world that she was in no
Speaker 1: way directly or indirectly responsible for his tragic end. I
Speaker 1: ask nothing better, said the American. I guess the very
Speaker 1: best case I can make for myself is the absolute
Speaker 1: naked truth. It is my duty to warn you that
Speaker 1: it will be used against you, cried the inspector. With
Speaker 1: the magnificent fair play of the British criminal law. Slainy
Speaker 1: shrugged his shoulders ill chance, that said he. First of all,
Speaker 1: I want you, gentlemen, to understand that I have known
Speaker 1: this lady since she was a child. There were seven
Speaker 1: of us in a gang in Chicago, and Elsie's father
Speaker 1: was the boss of the joint. He was a clever man,
Speaker 1: was Old Patrick. It was he who invented that writing
Speaker 1: which would pass as a child's scrawl unless you happen
Speaker 1: to have the key to it. Well, Elsie learned some
Speaker 1: of our ways, but she couldn't stand the business, and
Speaker 1: she had a bit of honest money of her own,
Speaker 1: so she gave us all the slip and got away
Speaker 1: to London. She had been engaged to me, and she
Speaker 1: would have married me, I believe, if I had taken
Speaker 1: over another profession. But she would have nothing to do
Speaker 1: with anything on the cross. It was only after her
Speaker 1: marriage to this Englishman that I was able to find
Speaker 1: out where she was. I wrote to her but got
Speaker 1: no answer. After that I came over and as letters
Speaker 1: were no use, I put my messages where she could
Speaker 1: read them. Well, I've been here a month now. I
Speaker 1: lived in that farm where I had a room down below,
Speaker 1: and I could get in and out every night, and
Speaker 1: no one the wiser. I tried all I could to
Speaker 1: coax Elsie away. I knew that she read the messages,
Speaker 1: for once she wrote an answer under one of them.
Speaker 1: Then my temper got the better of me, and I
Speaker 1: began to threaten her. She sent me a letter then,
Speaker 1: imploring me to go away, and saying that it would
Speaker 1: break her heart if any scandal should come upon her husband.
Speaker 1: She said that she would come down when her husband
Speaker 1: was asleep at three in the morning and speak with
Speaker 1: me through the end window if I would go away
Speaker 1: afterwards and leave her in peace. She came down and
Speaker 1: brought money with her, trying to bribe me to go.
Speaker 1: This made me mad, and I caught her arm and
Speaker 1: tried to pull her through the window. At that moment,
Speaker 1: in rushed the husband with his revolver in his hand.
Speaker 1: Elsie had sunk down upon the floor and we were
Speaker 1: face to face. I was healed also, and I held
Speaker 1: up my gun to scare him off and let me
Speaker 1: get away. He fired and missed me. I pulled off
Speaker 1: almost at the same instant, and down he dropped. I
Speaker 1: made a way across the garden, and as I went
Speaker 1: I heard the window shut behind me. That's God's truth, gentlemen,
Speaker 1: every word of it. And I heard no more about
Speaker 1: it until that lad came riding up with a note
Speaker 1: which made me walk in here like a jay and
Speaker 1: give myself into your hands. The cab had driven up
Speaker 1: whilst the American had been talking. Two uniformed policemen sat inside.
Speaker 1: Inspector Martin rose and touched his prisoner on the shoulder.
Speaker 1: It is time for us to go. Can I see
Speaker 1: her first? No, she is not conscious, mister Sherlock Holmes.
Speaker 1: I only hope that if ever again I have an
Speaker 1: important case, I shall have the good fortune to have
Speaker 1: you by my side. We stood at the window and
Speaker 1: watched the cab drive away. As I turned back, my
Speaker 1: eye caught the pellet of paper which the prisoner had
Speaker 1: tossed upon the table. It was the note with which
Speaker 1: Holmes had decoyed him. See if you can read it,
Speaker 1: Watson said he with a smile. It contained no word
Speaker 1: but a little line of dancing men. If you use
Speaker 1: the code which I have explained, said Holmes, you will
Speaker 1: find that it simply means come here. At once, I
Speaker 1: was convinced that it was an invitation which he would
Speaker 1: not refuse, since he never could imagine that it could
Speaker 1: come from any one but the lady. And so, my
Speaker 1: dear Watson, we have ended by turning the dancing men
Speaker 1: to good, when they have so often been the agents
Speaker 1: of evil. And I think that I have fulfilled my
Speaker 1: promise of giving you something unusual for your note book.
Speaker 1: Three forty is our train, and I fancy we should
Speaker 1: be back in Baker Street for only one word of epilog.
Speaker 1: The American Abe Slaney was condemned to death at the
Speaker 1: Winter Assizes at Norwich, but his penalty was changed to
Speaker 1: penal servitude in consideration of mitigating circumstances and the certainty
Speaker 1: that Hilton Cubit had fired the first shot of missus
Speaker 1: Hilton Cubit. I only know that I have heard she
Speaker 1: recovered entirely, and that she still remains a widow, devoting
Speaker 1: her whole life to the care of the poor and
Speaker 1: to the administration of her husband's estate.