Speaker 1: The Lost Special by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The confession
Speaker 1: of Herbert de Lernac, now lying under sentence of death
Speaker 1: at Marseilles, has thrown a light upon one of the
Speaker 1: most inexplicable crimes of the century, an incident which is
Speaker 1: I believe absolutely unprecedented in the criminal annals of any country.
Speaker 1: Although there is a reluctance to discuss the matter in
Speaker 1: official circles, and little information has been given to the press,
Speaker 1: there are still indications that the statement of this arch
Speaker 1: criminal is corroborated by the facts, and that we have
Speaker 1: at last found a solution for a most astonishing business.
Speaker 1: As the matter is eight years old, and as its
Speaker 1: importance was somewhat obscured by a political crisis which was
Speaker 1: engaging the public attention at the time, it may be
Speaker 1: as well to state the fact as far as we
Speaker 1: have been able to ascertain them. They are collated from
Speaker 1: the Liverpool papers of that date, from the proceedings at
Speaker 1: the inquest upon John Slatter, the engine driver, and from
Speaker 1: records of the London and West Coast Railway Company, which
Speaker 1: had been courteously put at my disposal. Briefly, they are
Speaker 1: as follows on the third of June eighteen ninety a
Speaker 1: gentleman who gave his name as Monsieur Louis Caratal desired
Speaker 1: an interview with mister James Bland, the superintendent of the
Speaker 1: London and West Coast Central Station in Liverpool. He was
Speaker 1: a small man, middle aged and dark, with stoop which
Speaker 1: was so marked that it suggested some deformity of the spine.
Speaker 1: He was accompanied by a friend, a man of imposing physique,
Speaker 1: whose deferential manner and constant attention showed that his position
Speaker 1: was one of dependents. His friend or companion, whose name
Speaker 1: did not transpire, was certainly a foreigner, and probably from
Speaker 1: his swarthy complexion, either a Spaniard or a South American.
Speaker 1: One peculiarity was observed in him. He carried in his
Speaker 1: left hand a small black leather despatch box, and it
Speaker 1: was noticed by a sharp eyed clerk in the central
Speaker 1: office that this box was fastened to his wrist by
Speaker 1: a strap. No importance was attached to the fact at
Speaker 1: the time, but subsequent events endowed it with some significance.
Speaker 1: Monsieur Carrettal was shown up to mister Bland's office, while
Speaker 1: his companion remained outside. Mister Bland struck the electric bell,
Speaker 1: summoned mister potter Hood, the traffic manager, and had the
Speaker 1: matter arranged in five minutes. The train would start in
Speaker 1: three quarters of an hour. It would take that time
Speaker 1: to ensure that the line should be clear. The powerful engine,
Speaker 1: called Roachdale number two forty seven on the company's register,
Speaker 1: was attached to two carriages, with a guard's van behind.
Speaker 1: The first carriage was solely for the purpose of decreasing
Speaker 1: the inconvenience arising from the oscillation. The second was divided
Speaker 1: as usual into four compartments, a first class, a first
Speaker 1: class smoking, a second class and a second class smoking.
Speaker 1: The first compartment, which was nearest to the engine, was
Speaker 1: the one allotted to the travelers. The other three were empty.
Speaker 1: The guard of the special train was James mc pherson,
Speaker 1: who had been some years in the service of the company.
Speaker 1: The stoker, William Smith, was a new hand Monsieur Carettel.
Speaker 1: Upon leaving the superintendent's office, rejoined his companion, and both
Speaker 1: of them manifested extreme impatience to be off. Having paid
Speaker 1: the money asked, which amounted to fifty pounds five shillings
Speaker 1: at the usual special rate of five shillings a mile,
Speaker 1: they demanded to be shown the carriage, and at once
Speaker 1: took their seats in it, although they were assured that
Speaker 1: the better part of an hour must elapse before the
Speaker 1: line could be cleared. In the meantime, a singular coincidence
Speaker 1: had occurred in the office which Monsieur Carretel had just quitted.
Speaker 1: A request for a special is not a very uncommon
Speaker 1: circumstance in a rich commercial center, but the two should
Speaker 1: be required upon the same afternoon was most unusual. It
Speaker 1: so happened, however, that mister Bland had hardly dismissed the
Speaker 1: first traveler before a second entered with a similar request.
Speaker 1: This was a mister Horace Moore, a gentlemanly man of
Speaker 1: military appearance, who alleged that the sudden serious illness of
Speaker 1: his wife in London made it absolutely imperative that he
Speaker 1: should not lose an instant in starting upon the journey.
Speaker 1: His distress and anxiety were so evident that mister Bland
Speaker 1: did all that was possible to meet his wishes. A
Speaker 1: second special was out of the question, as the ordinary
Speaker 1: local service was already somewhat deranged by the first. There
Speaker 1: was the alternative, however, that mister Moore should share the
Speaker 1: expense of Monsieur Carretel's train, and should travel in the
Speaker 1: other empty first class compartment, if Monsieur Carretel objected to
Speaker 1: having him in the one which he occupied. It was
Speaker 1: difficult to see any objection to such an arrangement. And
Speaker 1: yet Monsieur Carretel, upon the suggestion being made to him
Speaker 1: by mister potter Hood, absolutely refused to consider it for
Speaker 1: an instant. The train was his, he said, and he
Speaker 1: would insist upon the exclusive use of it. All argument
Speaker 1: failed to overcome his ungracious objections, and finally the pl
Speaker 1: had to be abandoned. Mister Horace Moore left the station
Speaker 1: in great distress after learning that his only course was
Speaker 1: to take the ordinary slow train which leaves Liverpool at
Speaker 1: six o'clock. At four thirty one, exactly by the station clock,
Speaker 1: the special train containing the crippled Monsieur Carattel and his
Speaker 1: gigantic companion steamed out of the Liverpool station. The line
Speaker 1: was at that time clear and there should have been
Speaker 1: no stoppage. Before Manchester. The trains of the London and
Speaker 1: West Coast Railway run over the lines of another company
Speaker 1: as far as this town, which should have been reached
Speaker 1: by a special rather before six o'clock. At a quarter
Speaker 1: after six, considerable surprise and some consternation were caused amongst
Speaker 1: the officials at Liverpool by the receipt of a telegram
Speaker 1: from Manchester to say that it had not yet arrived.
Speaker 1: An inquiry directed to Saint Helens, which is a third
Speaker 1: of the way between the two cities, elicited the following
Speaker 1: reply to James Bland, Superintendent Central l and W see
Speaker 1: Liverpool Special passed here at four fifty two, well up
Speaker 1: to time, Dowster Saint Helen's. This telegram was received at
Speaker 1: six forty. At six fifty a second message was received
Speaker 1: from Manchester, no sign of special as advised by you,
Speaker 1: and then ten minutes later a third more bewildering. Presume
Speaker 1: some mistake as to propose running of special local train
Speaker 1: from Saint Helen's. Time to follow. It has just arrived
Speaker 1: and has seen nothing of it. Kindly, wire advises Manchester.
Speaker 1: The matter was assuming a most amazing aspect, although in
Speaker 1: some respects the last telegram was a relief to the
Speaker 1: authorities at Liverpool. If an accident had occurred at the special,
Speaker 1: it seemed hardly possible that the local train could have
Speaker 1: passed down the same line without observing it, And yet
Speaker 1: what was the alternative? Where could the train be had
Speaker 1: it possibly been sidetracked for some reason in order to
Speaker 1: allow the slower train to go past. Such an explanation
Speaker 1: was possible if some small repair had to be effected.
Speaker 1: A telegram was despatched to each of the stations between
Speaker 1: Saint Helens and Manchester, and the superintendent and traffic manager waited,
Speaker 1: in the utmost suspense at the instrument for the series
Speaker 1: of replies which would enable them to say for certain
Speaker 1: what had become of the missing train. The answers came
Speaker 1: back in the order of questions, which was the order
Speaker 1: of the stations, beginning at Saint Helen's End. Special Past
Speaker 1: here five o'clock, Collins Green Special Past here, six past five,
Speaker 1: Earlstown Special Past here five ten, Newton Special Past here
Speaker 1: five twenty Kenyon Junction. No special train has passed here.
Speaker 1: Barton Moss. The two officials stared at each other in amazement.
Speaker 1: This is unique in my thirty years of experience, mister
Speaker 1: Plann said, absolutely unprecedented and inexplicable, Sir, The special has
Speaker 1: gone wrong between Kenyon Junction and Barton Mosse, and yet
Speaker 1: there is no siding so far as my memory, Sir
Speaker 1: has made between the two stations. The Special must have
Speaker 1: run off the metals. But how could the four fifty
Speaker 1: Parliamentary pass over the same line without observing it. There
Speaker 1: is no alternative, mister Hood. It must be so. Possibly
Speaker 1: the local train may have observed something which may throw
Speaker 1: some light upon the matter. We'll wire to Manchester for
Speaker 1: more information, and to Kenyon Junction with instructions that the
Speaker 1: line be examined instantly as far as Barton Moss. The
Speaker 1: answer from Manchester came within a few minutes. No news
Speaker 1: of missing special, driver and guard of slow train positive.
Speaker 1: No accident between Kenyon Junction and Barton Moss line quite clear,
Speaker 1: and no sign of anything unusual. Manchester, that driver and
Speaker 1: guard will have to go, said mister Bland grimly. There
Speaker 1: has been a wreck and they have missed it. The
Speaker 1: Special has obviously run off the metals without disturbing the line.
Speaker 1: How it could have done so passes my comprehension. But
Speaker 1: so it must be, and we shall have a wire
Speaker 1: from Kenyon or Barton Moss presently to say that they
Speaker 1: have found her at the bottom of an embankment, but
Speaker 1: mister Bland's prophecy was not destined to be fulfilled. Half
Speaker 1: an hour passed and then there arrived the following message
Speaker 1: from the station master of Kenyon Junction. There are no
Speaker 1: traces of the missing Special. It is quite certain that
Speaker 1: she passed here and that she did not arrive at
Speaker 1: Barton Moss. We have detached engine from goods train and
Speaker 1: have myself ridden down the line. But all is clear
Speaker 1: and there is no sign of an accident. Mister Bland
Speaker 1: tore his hair in his perplexity. This is rank lunacyhood,
Speaker 1: he cried. Does a train vanish into thin air in
Speaker 1: England in broad daylight? The thing is preposterous. An engine
Speaker 1: at tender, two carriages, a van, five human beings and
Speaker 1: all lost on a straight line of railway. Unless we
Speaker 1: get something positive within the next hour, I'll take in
Speaker 1: space to Collins and go down myself. And then at
Speaker 1: last something positive did occur. It took the shape of
Speaker 1: another telegram from Kenyon Junction, regret to report that the
Speaker 1: dead body of John Slater, driver of the Special train,
Speaker 1: has just been found among the Gorse bushes at a
Speaker 1: point two and a quarter miles from the junction, had
Speaker 1: fallen from his engine, pitched down the embankment, and rolled
Speaker 1: among the bushes. Injuries to his head from the fall
Speaker 1: appear to be cause of death. Grounds has now been
Speaker 1: carefully examined, and there is no trace of the missing train.
Speaker 1: The country, of course, was, as has already been stated,
Speaker 1: in the throes of a political crisis, and the intention
Speaker 1: of the public was further distracted by the importance and
Speaker 1: sensational developments in Paris, where a huge scandal threatened to
Speaker 1: destroy the government and to wreck the reputations of many
Speaker 1: of the leading men in France. The papers were full
Speaker 1: of these events, and the singular disappearance of the special
Speaker 1: train attracted less attention than would have been the case
Speaker 1: in more peaceful times. The grotesque nature of the event
Speaker 1: helped to detract from its importance, for the papers were
Speaker 1: disinclined to believe the facts as reported to them. More
Speaker 1: than one of the London journals treated the matter as
Speaker 1: an ingenious hoax until the coroner's inquest upon the unfortunate driver,
Speaker 1: an inquest which elicited nothing of importance, convinced them of
Speaker 1: the tragedy of the incident. Mister Bland, accompanied by Inspector Collins,
Speaker 1: the senior detective officer in the service of the company,
Speaker 1: went down to Kenyon Junction the same evening, and their
Speaker 1: research lasted throughout the following day, but was attended with
Speaker 1: purely negative results. Not only was no trace found of
Speaker 1: the missing train, but no conjecture could be put forward
Speaker 1: which would possibly explain the facts. At the same time,
Speaker 1: Inspector Collins's official report, which lies before me, as I write,
Speaker 1: served to show that the possibilities were more numerous than
Speaker 1: might have been expected. Inspector Collins writes, in the stretch
Speaker 1: of railway between these two points, the country is dotted
Speaker 1: with iron works and collieries. Of these, some are being worked,
Speaker 1: and some have been abandoned. There are no fewer than
Speaker 1: twelve which have small gage lines which run trolley cars
Speaker 1: down to the main line. These can of course be disregarded.
Speaker 1: Beside these, however, there are seven which have or have
Speaker 1: had proper lines running down and connecting with points to
Speaker 1: the main line, so as to convey their produce from
Speaker 1: the mouth of the mine to the great centers of distribution.
Speaker 1: In every case these lines are only a few miles
Speaker 1: in length. Out of the seven, four belong to collieries
Speaker 1: which are worked out, or at least two shafts which
Speaker 1: are no longer used. These are the Red Gauntlet, Hero
Speaker 1: Slov Despond and Heart's Ease mines, the latter having ten
Speaker 1: years ago been one of the principal mines in Lancashire.
Speaker 1: These four side lines may be eliminated from our inquiry,
Speaker 1: for to prevent possible accidents. The rail nearest to the
Speaker 1: main line have been taken up and there is no
Speaker 1: longer any connection. There remain three other side lines, leading
Speaker 1: A to the Carnstock Iron Works, B to the big
Speaker 1: Ben colliery C to the Perseverance Colliery. Of these, the
Speaker 1: big Ben line is not more than a quarter of
Speaker 1: a mile long and ends at a dead wall of
Speaker 1: coal waiting removal from the mouth of the mine. Nothing
Speaker 1: had been seen or heard there of any special. The
Speaker 1: Carnstock Iron Works line was blocked all day upon the
Speaker 1: third of June by sixteen truck loads of hematite. It's
Speaker 1: a single line and nothing could have passed at the
Speaker 1: Perseverance line, a large double line which does a considerable
Speaker 1: traffic for the output of the mine is very large.
Speaker 1: On the third of June, this traffic proceeded as usual.
Speaker 1: Hundreds of men, including a gang of railway plate layers,
Speaker 1: were working along the two lines and a quarter which
Speaker 1: constituted the total length of the line, and it is
Speaker 1: inconceivable that an unexpected train could have come down there
Speaker 1: without attracting universal attention. It may be remarked in conclusion
Speaker 1: that this branch line is nearer to Saint Helens than
Speaker 1: the point at which the engine driver was discovered, so
Speaker 1: that we have every reason to believe that the train
Speaker 1: was past that point before his fortune overtook her. As
Speaker 1: to John Slater, there is no clue to be gathered
Speaker 1: from his appearance or injuries. We can only say that,
Speaker 1: so far as we can see, he met his end
Speaker 1: by falling off his engine. Though why he fell or
Speaker 1: what became of the engine after his fall is a
Speaker 1: question upon which I do not feel qualified to offer
Speaker 1: an opinion. In conclusion, the inspector offered his resignation to
Speaker 1: the board, being much nettled by an accusation of incompetence
Speaker 1: in the London papers. A month elapsed during which both
Speaker 1: the police and the company prosecuted their inquiries without the
Speaker 1: slightest success. A reward was offered and a pardon promised
Speaker 1: in case of crime, but they were both unclaimed. Every
Speaker 1: day the public opened their papers with a conviction that
Speaker 1: so grotesque a mystery would at last be solved. But
Speaker 1: week after week passed by, and a solution remained as
Speaker 1: far off as ever. In broad daylight upon a June afternoon,
Speaker 1: in the most thickly inhabited portion of England, a train
Speaker 1: with its occupants had disappeared, as completely as if some
Speaker 1: master of subtle chemistry had volatilized it into gas. Indeed,
Speaker 1: among the various conjectures which were put forward in the
Speaker 1: public press, there were some which seriously asserted that supernatural
Speaker 1: or at least preternatural agencies had been at work, and
Speaker 1: that the deformed Monsieur Caratal was probably a person who
Speaker 1: was better known under a less polite name. Others fixed
Speaker 1: upon his swarthy companion as being the author of the mischief,
Speaker 1: but what it was exactly which he had done could
Speaker 1: never be clearly formulated in words. Among the many suggestions
Speaker 1: put forward by various newspapers or private individuals, there were
Speaker 1: one or two which were feasible enough to attract the
Speaker 1: attention of the public. One which appeared in the Times
Speaker 1: over the signature of an amateur reasoner of some celebrity
Speaker 1: at that date, attempted to deal with the matter in
Speaker 1: a critical and semi scientific manner. An extract must suffice,
Speaker 1: although the curious can see the whole letter in the
Speaker 1: issue of the third of July. It's one of the
Speaker 1: elementary principles practical reasoning. He remarked that when the impossible
Speaker 1: has been eliminated, the residuum, however improbable, must contain the truth.
Speaker 1: It is certain that the train left Kenyon Junction. It
Speaker 1: is certain that it did not reach Barton Moss. It
Speaker 1: is in the highest degree unlikely, but still possible, that
Speaker 1: it may have taken one of the seven available sidelines.
Speaker 1: It's obviously impossible for a train to run where there
Speaker 1: are no rails, and therefore we may reduce our improbables
Speaker 1: to the three open lines, namely the Carnstock Iron Works,
Speaker 1: the Big Ben and the Perseverance. Is there a secret
Speaker 1: society of Klia an English camorra which is capable of
Speaker 1: destroying both train and passengers. Now it's improbable, but it
Speaker 1: is not impossible. I confess that I am unable to
Speaker 1: suggest any other solution. I should certainly advise the company
Speaker 1: to direct all their energies toward the observation of those
Speaker 1: three lines, and of the workmen at the end of them.
Speaker 1: A careful supervision of the pawnbrokers shops of the district
Speaker 1: might possibly bring some suggestive facts to light. The suggestion,
Speaker 1: coming from a recognized authority upon such matters, created considerable
Speaker 1: interest and a fierce opposition from those who considered such
Speaker 1: a statement to be a preposterous libel upon an honest
Speaker 1: and deserving set of men. The only answer to this
Speaker 1: criticism was it challenged to the objectors to lay any
Speaker 1: more feasible explanations before the public. In reply to this,
Speaker 1: two others were forthcoming the Times July seventh and ninth.
Speaker 1: The first suggested that the train might have run off
Speaker 1: the metals and belying merged in the Lancashire and Staffordshire Canal,
Speaker 1: which runs parallel to the railway for some hundreds of yards.
Speaker 1: This suggestion was thrown out of court by the published
Speaker 1: depth of the canal, which was entirely insufficient to conceal
Speaker 1: so large an object. The second correspondent wrote, calling attention
Speaker 1: to the bag which appeared to be the sole luggage
Speaker 1: which the travelers had brought with them, and suggesting that
Speaker 1: some novel explosive of immense and pulverizing power might have
Speaker 1: been concealed in it. The obvious absurdity, however, of a
Speaker 1: supposing that the whole train might be blown to dust
Speaker 1: while the metals remained uninjured, reduced any such explanation to
Speaker 1: a farce. The investigation had drifted into this hopeless position
Speaker 1: when a new and most unexpected incident occurred. This was
Speaker 1: nothing less than the receipt by Missus mc pherson of
Speaker 1: a letter from her husband, James mc pherson, who had
Speaker 1: been the guard on the missing train. The letter, which
Speaker 1: was dated July fifth, eighteen ninety, was posted from New
Speaker 1: York and came to hand upon July fourteenth. Some doubts
Speaker 1: were expressed as to its genuine character, but Missus mc
Speaker 1: pherson was positive as to the writing, and the fact
Speaker 1: that it contained a remittance of a hundred dollars and
Speaker 1: five dollar notes was enough in itself to discount the
Speaker 1: idea of a hoax. No address was given in the letter,
Speaker 1: which ran in this way, my dear wife, I've been
Speaker 1: thinking a great deal, and I find it very hard
Speaker 1: to give you up. The same with Lizzie. I try
Speaker 1: to fight against it, but it will always come back
Speaker 1: to me. I send you some money which will change
Speaker 1: into twenty English pounds. This should be enough to bring
Speaker 1: both Lizzie and you across the Atlantic, and you'll find
Speaker 1: the Hamburg boats which stop at Southampton, very good boats
Speaker 1: and cheaper than Liverpool. If you could come here and
Speaker 1: stop at the Johnston House, I would try and send
Speaker 1: you word how to meet. But things are very difficult
Speaker 1: with me at present, and I am not very happy
Speaker 1: finding it hard to give you both up. So no
Speaker 1: more at present from your loving husband, James mc For
Speaker 1: a time it was confidently anticipated that this letter would
Speaker 1: lead to the clearing up of the whole matter, the
Speaker 1: more so as it was ascertained that a passenger who
Speaker 1: bore a close resemblance to the missing guard had traveled
Speaker 1: from Southampton under the name of Somers in the Hamburg
Speaker 1: and New York liner Vistula, which started upon the seventh
Speaker 1: of June. Missus mc pherson and her sister Lizzie Dalton
Speaker 1: went across to New York as directed, and stayed for
Speaker 1: three weeks at the Johnston House without hearing anything from
Speaker 1: the missing man. It's probable that some injudicious comments in
Speaker 1: the press may have warned him that the police were
Speaker 1: using them as a bait. However this may be, it's
Speaker 1: certain that he neither wrote nor came, and the women
Speaker 1: were eventually compelled to return to Liverpool. And so the
Speaker 1: matter stood and has continued to stand up to the
Speaker 1: present year eighteen ninety eight. Incredible as it may seem,
Speaker 1: nothing has transpired during these eight years which has shed
Speaker 1: the least light upon the extraordinary disappearance of the special
Speaker 1: tree which contained Monsieur Carretel and his companion. Careful inquiries
Speaker 1: into the antecedents of the two travelers have only established
Speaker 1: the fact that Monsieur Carretal was well known as a
Speaker 1: financier and political agent in Central America, and that during
Speaker 1: his voyage to Europe he had betrayed extraordinary anxiety to
Speaker 1: reach Paris. His companion, whose name was entered upon the
Speaker 1: passenger list, says Eduardo Gomez, was a man whose record
Speaker 1: was a violent one and whose reputation was that of
Speaker 1: a bravo and a bully. There was evidence to show, however,
Speaker 1: that he was honestly devoted to the interests of Monsieur Carretal,
Speaker 1: and that the latter, being a man of puny physique,
Speaker 1: employed the other as a guard and protector. It may
Speaker 1: be added that no information came from Paris as to
Speaker 1: what the objects of Monsieur Carratill's hurried journey may have been.
Speaker 1: This compromises all the facts of the case. Upon the
Speaker 1: publication in the Marseilles papers of the recent confession of
Speaker 1: Herbert de Lernac, now under sentence of death for the
Speaker 1: murder of a merchant named bon Balow. This statement may
Speaker 1: be literally translated as follows. It is not out of
Speaker 1: mere pride or boasting that I give this information, for
Speaker 1: if that were my object, I could tell a dozen
Speaker 1: actions of mine which are quite as splendid. But I
Speaker 1: do it in order that certain gentlemen in Paris may
Speaker 1: understand that I, who am able here to tell about
Speaker 1: the fate of Monsieur Caratal, can also tell in whose
Speaker 1: interest and at whose request the deed was done, unless
Speaker 1: the reprieve which I am awaiting comes to me very quickly.
Speaker 1: Take warning, monsieurs, before it is too late. You know
Speaker 1: Herbert de Lernac, and you are aware that his deeds
Speaker 1: are as ready as his words. Hasten then, or you
Speaker 1: are lost at present, I shall mention no names. If
Speaker 1: you only heard the names, what would you not think?
Speaker 1: But I shall merely tell you how cleverly I did it.
Speaker 1: I was true to my employers then, and no doubt
Speaker 1: they will be true to me now. I hope so.
Speaker 1: And until I am convinced that they have betrayed me,
Speaker 1: these names, which would convulse Europe, shall not be divulged.
Speaker 1: But on that day where I say no more in
Speaker 1: a word. Then there was a famous trial in Paris
Speaker 1: in the year eighteen ninety, in connection with a monstrous
Speaker 1: scandal in politics and finance. How monstrous that scandal was
Speaker 1: can never be known save by such confidential agents as myself.
Speaker 1: The honor and careers of many of the chief men
Speaker 1: in France were at stake. You have seen a group
Speaker 1: of nine pins standing also rigid and prim and bending.
Speaker 1: Then there comes the fall from far away and pop
Speaker 1: pop pop. There he are nine pins on the floor. Well,
Speaker 1: imagine some of the greatest men in France as these
Speaker 1: nine pins. And then this Monsieur Caratal, was the ball
Speaker 1: which could be seen coming from far away. If he arrived,
Speaker 1: then it was pop pop, pop, for all of them,
Speaker 1: it was determined that he should not arrive. I do
Speaker 1: not accuse them all of being conscious of what was
Speaker 1: to happen. There were, as I have said, great financial
Speaker 1: as well as political interests at stake, and as syndicate
Speaker 1: was formed to manage the business. Some subscribed to the
Speaker 1: syndicate who hardly understood what were its objects. But others
Speaker 1: understood very well, and they can rely upon it that
Speaker 1: I have not forgotten their names. They had ample warning
Speaker 1: that Monsieur Carretell was coming, long before he left South America,
Speaker 1: and they knew that the evidence which he held would
Speaker 1: certainly mean ruin to all of them. The Syndicate had
Speaker 1: the command of an unlimited amount of money, absolutely unlimited.
Speaker 1: You understand. They looked round for an agent who was
Speaker 1: capable of wielding this gigantic power. The man chosen must
Speaker 1: be inventive, resolute, adaptive, a man in a million, and
Speaker 1: they chose Herbert de Lernac, and I admit that they
Speaker 1: were right. My duties would to choose my subordinates, to
Speaker 1: use freely the power which money gives, and to make
Speaker 1: certain that Monsieur Carretel should never arrive in Paris with
Speaker 1: characteristic energy. I set about my commission within an hour
Speaker 1: of receiving my instructions, and the steps which I took
Speaker 1: were the very best for the purpose which could possibly
Speaker 1: be devised. A man whom I could trust was dispatched
Speaker 1: instantly to South America travel home with Monsieur Carretel. Had
Speaker 1: he arrived in time, the ship would never have reached Liverpool.
Speaker 1: But alas it had already started before my agent could
Speaker 1: reach it, I fitted out a small armed brig to
Speaker 1: intercept it. But again I was unfortunate. Like all great organizers,
Speaker 1: I was, however, prepared for failure, and had a series
Speaker 1: of alternatives prepared, one or the other of which must succeed.
Speaker 1: You must not underrate the difficulties of my undertaking, or
Speaker 1: to imagine that a mere commonplace assassination would meet the case.
Speaker 1: We must destroy not only Monsieur Carretel, but Monsieur Carrattel's
Speaker 1: documents and Monsieur Carretel's companion also, if we had reason
Speaker 1: to believe that he had communicated his secrets to them,
Speaker 1: and you must remember that they were on the alert
Speaker 1: and keenly suspicious of any such attempt. It was a
Speaker 1: task which was in every way worthy of me, for
Speaker 1: I am always most masterful where another would be appalled.
Speaker 1: I was all ready for Monsieur Carotell's reception in Liverpool,
Speaker 1: and I was the more eager because I had reason
Speaker 1: to believe that he had made arrangements by which he
Speaker 1: would have a considerable guard from the moment that he
Speaker 1: arrived in London. Anything which was to be done must
Speaker 1: be done between the moment of his setting foot upon
Speaker 1: Liverpool Quay and that of his arrival at the London
Speaker 1: and West Coast terminus. In London. We prepared six plans,
Speaker 1: each more elaborate than the last. Which plan would be
Speaker 1: used would depend upon his own movements do what he would.
Speaker 1: We were ready for him if he stayed in Liverpool.
Speaker 1: We were ready if he took an ordinary train and
Speaker 1: express or a special All was ready. Everything had been
Speaker 1: foreseen and provided for. You may imagine that I could
Speaker 1: not do all this myself. What could I know of
Speaker 1: the English railway lines. But money can procure willing agents
Speaker 1: all the world over, and I soon had one of
Speaker 1: the acutest brains in England to assist me. I will
Speaker 1: mention no names, but it would be unjust to claim
Speaker 1: all the credit for myself. My English ally was worthy
Speaker 1: of such an alliance. He knew the London and West
Speaker 1: Coast line thoroughly, and he had the command of a
Speaker 1: band of workers who were trustworthy and intelligent. The idea
Speaker 1: was his, and my own judgment was only required in
Speaker 1: the details. We bought over several officials, amongst whom the
Speaker 1: most important was James mac Pherson, whom we had ascertained
Speaker 1: to be the guard most likely to be employed upon
Speaker 1: a special train. Smith the Stoker was also in our
Speaker 1: employ John Slater, the engine driver, had been approached, but
Speaker 1: had been found to be obstinate and dangerous, so he desisted.
Speaker 1: We had no certainty that Monsieur Carretel would take a
Speaker 1: special but we thought it very probable, for it was
Speaker 1: of the utmost importance to him that he should reach
Speaker 1: Paris without delay. It was for this contingency, therefore, that
Speaker 1: we made special preparations, preparations which were complete down to
Speaker 1: the last detail, long before his steamer had sighted the
Speaker 1: shores of England. You will be amused to learn that
Speaker 1: there was one of my agents in the pilot boat
Speaker 1: which brought that steamer to its moorings the moment that
Speaker 1: Cantel arrived in Liverpool. We knew that he suspected danger
Speaker 1: and was on his guard. He had brought with him
Speaker 1: as an escort a dangerous fellow named Gomez, a man
Speaker 1: who carried weapons and was prepared to use them. This
Speaker 1: fellow carried Carotel's confidential papers for him and was ready
Speaker 1: to protect them, either them or his master. The probability
Speaker 1: was that Caratal had taken him into his counsels, and
Speaker 1: that to remove Carotel without removing Gomez would be a
Speaker 1: mere waste of energy. It was necessary that they should
Speaker 1: be involved in a common fate, and our plans to
Speaker 1: that end were much facilitated by their request for a
Speaker 1: special train. On that special train, you will understand that
Speaker 1: two out of the three servants of the company were
Speaker 1: really in our employ at a price which would make
Speaker 1: them independent for a lifetime. I do not go so
Speaker 1: far as to say that the English are more honest
Speaker 1: than any other nation, but I have certainly found them
Speaker 1: more expensive to buy. I have already spoken of my
Speaker 1: English agent, who was a man with a considerable future
Speaker 1: before him, unless some complaint of the throat carries him
Speaker 1: more before his time. He had charge of all arrangements
Speaker 1: at Liverpool, while I was stationed at the Inn at Kenyon,
Speaker 1: where I awaited a cipher's signal to act. When the
Speaker 1: special was arranged for, my agent instantly telegraphed to me
Speaker 1: and warned me how soon I should have everything ready.
Speaker 1: He himself, under the name of Horace Moore, applied immediately
Speaker 1: for a special, also in the hope that he would
Speaker 1: be sent down with Monsieur Carretaut, which might, under certain circumstances,
Speaker 1: have been helpful to it. If, for example, our great
Speaker 1: coup had failed, it might then have become the duty
Speaker 1: of my agent, who have shot them both and destroyed
Speaker 1: their papers. Cannatell was on his guard, however, and refused
Speaker 1: to admit any other traveler. My agent then left the station,
Speaker 1: returned by another entrance, entered the guards van on the
Speaker 1: side farthest from the platform, and traveled down with McPherson
Speaker 1: the guard. In the meantime, you will be, of course
Speaker 1: interested to know that my movements were Everything had been
Speaker 1: prepared for days before, and only the finishing touches were needed.
Speaker 1: The side line which we had chosen had once joined
Speaker 1: the main line, but it had been disconnected. We had
Speaker 1: only to replace a few rails to connect it once more.
Speaker 1: These rails had been laid down as far as could
Speaker 1: be done without danger of attracting attention, and now it
Speaker 1: was merely a case of completing a juncture with the
Speaker 1: line and arranging the points as they had been before.
Speaker 1: The sleepers had never been removed in the rails. Fish
Speaker 1: plates and rivets were all ready for. We had taken
Speaker 1: them from a siding on the abandoned portion of the
Speaker 1: line with my small but comp but a band of workers.
Speaker 1: We had everything ready long before the special arrived. When
Speaker 1: it did arrive, it ran off upon the small side
Speaker 1: lines so easily that the jolting of the points appears
Speaker 1: to have been entirely unnoticed by the two travelers. Our
Speaker 1: plan had been that Smith the Stoker should chloroform John
Speaker 1: Slater and the driver, so that he should vanish with
Speaker 1: the others in this respect, and in this respect only
Speaker 1: our plans miscarritt I expect the criminal folly of Macpherson,
Speaker 1: in writing home to his wife Arstoker did his business
Speaker 1: so clumsily that Slater and his struggles fell off the engine,
Speaker 1: and through fortune was with us so far that he
Speaker 1: broke his neck in the fall. Still he remained as
Speaker 1: a blot upon that which would otherwise have been one
Speaker 1: of the most complete masterpieces, which are only to be
Speaker 1: contemplated in silent admiration. The criminal expert will find him,
Speaker 1: John Slater, the one floor in all our admirable combinations,
Speaker 1: a man who has had as many triumphs as I
Speaker 1: can afford to be frank. And I therefore or lay
Speaker 1: my finger upon John Slater and proclaim him to be
Speaker 1: a floor. But now I have got our special train
Speaker 1: upon the small line two kilometers or rather more than
Speaker 1: one mile in length, which leads, or rather used to
Speaker 1: lead to the abandoned Heartsea's Mine, once one of the
Speaker 1: largest coal mines in England. You'll ask how it is
Speaker 1: that no one saw the train upon this unused line,
Speaker 1: And I answered that along its entire length it runs
Speaker 1: through a deep cutting, and that unless some one had
Speaker 1: been on the edge of that cutting, he could not
Speaker 1: have seen it. There was some one on the edge
Speaker 1: of that cutting. I was there, and now I will
Speaker 1: tell you what I saw. My assistant had remained at
Speaker 1: the points in order that he might superintend the switching
Speaker 1: off of the train. He had four armed men with him,
Speaker 1: so that the train ran off the line. We thought
Speaker 1: it probably because the points were rusty, we might still
Speaker 1: have resources to fall back upon. Having once seen it
Speaker 1: safely on the side line, he handed over the responsibility
Speaker 1: to me. I was waiting at a point which overlook
Speaker 1: the mouth of the mine, and I was also armed,
Speaker 1: as were my two companions. Come. What might you say?
Speaker 1: I was always ready. The moment that the train was
Speaker 1: fairly on the side line, Psmith the stoker slowed down
Speaker 1: the engine, and then, having turned it on to the
Speaker 1: fullest speed again, he and mac Pherson with my English
Speaker 1: lieutenant sprang off before it was too late. It may
Speaker 1: be that it was this slowing down which first attracted
Speaker 1: the attention of the travelers, But the train was running
Speaker 1: at full speed again before their heads appeared at the
Speaker 1: open window. It makes me smile to think how bewildered
Speaker 1: they must have been. Picture to yourself your own feelings. If,
Speaker 1: on looking out of your luxurious carriage, you suddenly perceived
Speaker 1: that the lines upon which you ran were rusted and corroded,
Speaker 1: red and yellow with disuse and decay. What a catch
Speaker 1: must have come in their breath, as in a second
Speaker 1: it flashed upon them that it was not Manchester, but death,
Speaker 1: which was waiting for them at the end of that
Speaker 1: sinister line. But the train was running with frantic speed,
Speaker 1: rolling on the rocking over the rotten line, while the
Speaker 1: wields made a frightful screaming sound upon the rusted surface.
Speaker 1: I was close to them and could see their faces.
Speaker 1: Carratelle was praying. I think there was something like a
Speaker 1: rosary dangling out of his hand. The other roared like
Speaker 1: a bull who smells the blood of the slaughter house.
Speaker 1: He saw us standing on the bank, and he beckoned
Speaker 1: to us like a madman. Then he tore at his
Speaker 1: wrist and threw his despatch box out the window in
Speaker 1: our direction. Of course, his meaning was obvious. Here was
Speaker 1: the evidence, and they would promise to be silent if
Speaker 1: their lives were spared. It would have been very agreeable
Speaker 1: if we could have done so, but business is business. Besides,
Speaker 1: the train was now as much beyond our controls as theirs.
Speaker 1: He ceased howling when the train rattled round the curb,
Speaker 1: and they saw the blank mouth of the mine yawning
Speaker 1: before them. We had removed the boards which had covered it,
Speaker 1: and we had cleared the square entrance. The rails had
Speaker 1: formerly run very close to the shaft for the convenience
Speaker 1: of loading the coal, and we had only to add
Speaker 1: two or three lengths of rail in order to lead
Speaker 1: to the very brink of the shaft. In fact, as
Speaker 1: the lynks would not quite fit, our line projected about
Speaker 1: three feet over the edge. We saw the two heads
Speaker 1: at the window Caratal below Gomez above that they had
Speaker 1: both been struck silent by what they saw, and yet
Speaker 1: they could not withdraw their heads. The sight seemed to
Speaker 1: have paralyzed them. I have wondered how the train, running
Speaker 1: at great speed would take the pit into which I
Speaker 1: had guided it, and I was much interested in watching it.
Speaker 1: One of my colleagues thought that it would actually jump it,
Speaker 1: and indeed it was not very far from doing so. Fortunately, however,
Speaker 1: it fell short and the buffers of the engine struck
Speaker 1: the other lip of the shaft with a tremendous crash.
Speaker 1: The funnel flew off into the air. The tender carriages
Speaker 1: and van were all smashed up into one jumble, which,
Speaker 1: with the remains of the engine, choked for a minute
Speaker 1: or so the mouth of the pit. Then something gave
Speaker 1: way in the middle, and the whole mass of green
Speaker 1: iron smoking coals, brass fittings, wheels would work, and cushions
Speaker 1: all crumbled together and crashed down into the mine. We
Speaker 1: heard the rattle, rattle, rattle as the debris struck against
Speaker 1: the walls, and then quite a long time afterwards, there
Speaker 1: came a deep roar as the remains of the train
Speaker 1: struck the bottom. The boiler may have burst, for a
Speaker 1: sharp crash came after the roar, and then a dense
Speaker 1: cloud of steam and smoke swirled up out of the
Speaker 1: black depths, falling in a spray as thick as rain
Speaker 1: all around us. Then the vapors shedded off into thin wisps,
Speaker 1: which floated away in the summer sunshine, and all was
Speaker 1: quiet again in the hearts eased mine, And now having
Speaker 1: carried out our plans so successfully, it only remained to
Speaker 1: leave no trace behind us. Our little band of workers
Speaker 1: at the other end had already ripped up the rails
Speaker 1: and disconnected the sideline, replacing everything as it had been before.
Speaker 1: We were equally busy at the mine. The funnel and
Speaker 1: other fragments were thrown in, The shaft was planked over
Speaker 1: again as it used to be, and the lines which
Speaker 1: led to it were torn up and taken away. Then,
Speaker 1: without furry, but without delay, we all made our way
Speaker 1: to the countrary, most of us to Paris, my English
Speaker 1: colleague to Manchester, and Macpherson to Southampton. Whence he emigrated
Speaker 1: to America. That the English papers of that date tell
Speaker 1: how thoroughly we had done our work, and how completely
Speaker 1: we had thrown the cleverest of their detectives off our track.
Speaker 1: You will remember that Gomez threw his bag of papers
Speaker 1: out of the window, and I need not say that
Speaker 1: I secured that bag and brought them to my employers.
Speaker 1: It may interest my employers now, however, to learn that
Speaker 1: out of that bag I took one or two little
Speaker 1: papers as a souvenir of the occasion. I have no
Speaker 1: wish to publish these papers. But still it is every
Speaker 1: man for himself in this world. And what else can
Speaker 1: I do if my friends will not come to my
Speaker 1: aid when I want them. Messieurs, you may believe that
Speaker 1: Herbert de Lernac is quite as formidable when he is
Speaker 1: against you as when he is with you, and that
Speaker 1: he is not a man to go to the guillotine
Speaker 1: until he has seen that every one of you is
Speaker 1: all out for new Caledonia. For your own sake, if
Speaker 1: not for mine, make haste, Monsieur de Blanc and General
Speaker 1: Blanc and Baron Blanc. You can fill up the blanks
Speaker 1: for yourselves as you read this, I promise you that
Speaker 1: in the next edition there will be no blanks to fill. P. S.
Speaker 1: As I look over my statement, there is only one
Speaker 1: omission which I can see. It concerns the unfortunate man Macpherson,
Speaker 1: who was foolish enough to write to his wife and
Speaker 1: to make an appointment with her in New York. It
Speaker 1: can be imagined that when the interests like ours were
Speaker 1: at stake, we could not leave them to the chance
Speaker 1: of whether a man in that class of life would
Speaker 1: or would not give away his secrets to a woman.
Speaker 1: Having once broken his oath by writing to his wife,
Speaker 1: we could not trust him any more. We took steps, therefore,
Speaker 1: to ensure that he should not see his wife. I
Speaker 1: have sometimes thought that it would be a kindness to
Speaker 1: write to her and assure her that there is no
Speaker 1: impediment to her marrying again. End of the Lost Special
Speaker 1: by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle