Speaker 1: The man with the twisted lip. Isa Whitney, brother of
Speaker 1: the late Elias Whitney, d d. Principle of the Theological
Speaker 1: College of Saint George's, was much addicted to opium. The
Speaker 1: habit grew upon him, as I understand, from some foolish
Speaker 1: freak when he was at college, for having read de
Speaker 1: Quincey's description of his dreams and sensations, he had drenched
Speaker 1: his tobacco with laudanum in an attempt to produce the
Speaker 1: same effects. He found, as so many more have done,
Speaker 1: that the practice is easier to attain than to get
Speaker 1: rid of, And for many years he continued to be
Speaker 1: a slave to the drug, an object of mingled horror
Speaker 1: and pity to his friends and relatives. I can see
Speaker 1: him now, with yellow pasty face, drooping lids, and pin
Speaker 1: point pupils, all huddled in a chair, the wreck and
Speaker 1: ruin of a noble man. One night, it was in
Speaker 1: June eighty nine, there came a ring to my bell,
Speaker 1: about the hour when a man gives his first yawn
Speaker 1: and glances at the clock. I sat up in my chair,
Speaker 1: and my wife laid her needlework down in her lap,
Speaker 1: and made a little face of disappointment. A patient said
Speaker 1: she you'll have to go out. I groaned, for I
Speaker 1: was newly come back from a weary day. We heard
Speaker 1: the door open, a few hurried words, and then quick
Speaker 1: steps upon the linoleum. Our own door flew open, and
Speaker 1: a lady clad in some dark colored stuff with a
Speaker 1: black veil, entered the room. You will excuse me calling
Speaker 1: so late, she began, and then, suddenly losing her self control,
Speaker 1: she ran forward, threw her arms about my wife's neck,
Speaker 1: and sobbed upon her shoulder. Oh I am in such trouble,
Speaker 1: she cried. I do so want a little help. Why,
Speaker 1: said my wife, pulling up her veil. It is Kate Whitney.
Speaker 1: How you startled me? Kate, I had not an idea
Speaker 1: who you were when you came in. I didn't know
Speaker 1: what to do, so I came straight to you. That
Speaker 1: was always the way folk who were in grief came
Speaker 1: to my wife like birds to a lighthouse. It was
Speaker 1: very sweet of you to come. Now. You must have
Speaker 1: some wine and water and sit here comfortably and tell
Speaker 1: us all about it. Or should you rather that? I
Speaker 1: sent James off to bed. Oh no, no, I want
Speaker 1: the doctor's advice. And help too. It's about Isa. He
Speaker 1: has not been home for two days. I'm so frightened
Speaker 1: about him. It was not the first time that she
Speaker 1: had spoken to us of her husband's trouble, to me
Speaker 1: as a doctor, to my wife as an old friend
Speaker 1: and school companion. We soothed and comforted her by such
Speaker 1: words as we could find. Did she know where her
Speaker 1: husband was? Was it possible that we could bring him
Speaker 1: back to her? It seems that it was. She had
Speaker 1: the surest information that of late he had when the
Speaker 1: fit was on him, made use of an opium den
Speaker 1: in the farthest east of the city. Hitherto his orgies
Speaker 1: had always been confined to one day, and he'd come
Speaker 1: back twitching and shattered in the evening. But now the
Speaker 1: spell had been upon him eight and forty hours, and
Speaker 1: he lay there, doubtless among the dregs of the docks,
Speaker 1: breathing in the poison or sleeping off the effects. There
Speaker 1: he was to be found, she was sure of it,
Speaker 1: at the bar of Gold in Upper Swandham Lane. But
Speaker 1: what was she to do? How could she, a young
Speaker 1: and timid woman, make her way into such a place
Speaker 1: and pluck her husband out from among the ruffians who
Speaker 1: surrounded him. There was the case, and of course there
Speaker 1: was but one way out of it. Might I not
Speaker 1: escort her to this place? And then, as a second thought,
Speaker 1: why should she come at all? I was Asa Whitney's
Speaker 1: medical adviser, and as such I had influence over him.
Speaker 1: I could manage it better if I were alone. I
Speaker 1: promised her on my word that I would send him
Speaker 1: home in a cab within two hours if he were
Speaker 1: indeed at the address which she had given me, And
Speaker 1: so in ten minutes I had left my arm chair
Speaker 1: and cheery sitting room behind me, and was speeding eastward
Speaker 1: in a hansom on a strange errand, as it seemed
Speaker 1: to me at the time, though the future only could
Speaker 1: show how strange it was to be. But there was
Speaker 1: no great difficulty in the first stage of my adventure.
Speaker 1: Upper Swandam Lane is a vile alley lurking behind the
Speaker 1: high wharves which line the north side of the river
Speaker 1: to the east of London Bridge, between a slop shop
Speaker 1: and a gin shop. Approached by a steep flight of
Speaker 1: steps leading down to a black gap like the mouth
Speaker 1: of a cave. I found the den of which I
Speaker 1: was in search ordering my cab to wait, I passed
Speaker 1: down the steps, worn hollow in the center by the
Speaker 1: ceaseless tread of drunken feet, and by the light of
Speaker 1: a flickering oil lamp above the door. I found the
Speaker 1: latch and made my way into a long, low room,
Speaker 1: thick and heavy with the brown opium smoke, and terraced
Speaker 1: with wooden berths, like the forecastle of an emigrant ship.
Speaker 1: Through the gloom, one could dimly catch a glimpse of
Speaker 1: bodies lying in strange fantastic poses, bowed shoulders, bent knees,
Speaker 1: heads thrown back, and chin pointing upward, with here and
Speaker 1: there a dark, lackluster eye turned upon the newcomer. Out
Speaker 1: of the black shadows, there glimmered little red circles of light,
Speaker 1: now bright, now faint, as the burning poison waxed or waned.
Speaker 1: In the bowls of the metal pipes. The most lay silent,
Speaker 1: but some muttered to themselves, and others talked together in
Speaker 1: a strange, low, monotonous voice, their conversation coming in gushes
Speaker 1: and then suddenly tailing off into silence, each mumbling out
Speaker 1: his own thoughts and paying little heed to the words
Speaker 1: of his neighbor. At the farther end was a small
Speaker 1: brazier of burning charcoal, beside which on a three legged
Speaker 1: wooden stool, there sat a tall, thin old man, with
Speaker 1: his jaw resting upon his two fists and his elbows
Speaker 1: upon his knees, staring into the fire. As I entered,
Speaker 1: a sallow malay attendant had hurried up with a pipe
Speaker 1: for me and a supply of the drug, beckoning me
Speaker 1: to an empty berth, thank you. I have not come
Speaker 1: to stay. There is a friend of mine here, mister
Speaker 1: Isa Whitney, and I wished to speak with him. There
Speaker 1: was a movement and an exclamation from my right, and
Speaker 1: peering through the gloom, I saw Whitney, pale, haggard and unkempt,
Speaker 1: staring out at me. My god, it's Watson, said he.
Speaker 1: He was in a pitiable state of reaction, with every
Speaker 1: nerve in a twitter. I say, Watson, what o'clock is it?
Speaker 1: Nearly eleven of what day of Friday, June nineteenth? Good heavens,
Speaker 1: I thought it was Wednesday. It is Wednesday. What do
Speaker 1: you want to frighten a chap for He sank his
Speaker 1: face unto his arms and began to sob in a
Speaker 1: high treble key. I tell you that it is Friday. Man.
Speaker 1: Your wife has been waiting this two days for you.
Speaker 1: You should be ashamed of yourself, so I am. But
Speaker 1: you've got mixed, Watson, for I've only been here a
Speaker 1: few hours. Three pipes, four pipes, I forget how many.
Speaker 1: But I'll go home with you. I wouldn't frighten Kate,
Speaker 1: poor little Kate. Give me your hand, and have you
Speaker 1: a cab? Yes, I have one waiting. Then I shall
Speaker 1: go in it. But I must owe something, find what
Speaker 1: I owe, Watson. I am all off color. I can
Speaker 1: do nothing for myself. I walked down the narrow passage
Speaker 1: between the double row of sleepers, holding my breath to
Speaker 1: keep out the vile, stupefying fumes of the drug, and
Speaker 1: looking about for the manager. As I passed the tall
Speaker 1: man who sat by the brazier, I felt a sudden
Speaker 1: pluck at my skirt, and a low voice whispered walk
Speaker 1: past me, and then look back at me. The words
Speaker 1: fell quite distinctly upon my ear. I glanced down. They
Speaker 1: could only have come from the old man at my side.
Speaker 1: And yet he sat now as absorbed as ever, very thin,
Speaker 1: very wrinkled, bent with age, an opium pipe dangling down
Speaker 1: from between his knees, as though it had dropped in
Speaker 1: sheer lassitude from his fingers. I took two steps forward
Speaker 1: and looked back. It took all my self control to
Speaker 1: prevent me from breaking out into a cry of astonishment.
Speaker 1: He turned his back so that none could see him
Speaker 1: but I. His form had filled out, his wrinkles were gone,
Speaker 1: the dull eyes had regained their fire, And there, sitting
Speaker 1: by the fire and grinning at my surprise, was none
Speaker 1: other than Sherlock Holmes. He made a slight motion to
Speaker 1: me to approach him, and instantly as he turned his
Speaker 1: face half round to the company, once more subsided into
Speaker 1: a doddering, loose lipped senility. Holmes, I whispered, what on
Speaker 1: earth are you doing in this den? As low as
Speaker 1: you can, he answered, I have excellent ears. If you
Speaker 1: would have the great kindness to get rid of that
Speaker 1: sawtish friend of yours, I should be exceedingly glad to
Speaker 1: have a little talk with you. I have a cab outside,
Speaker 1: then pray send him home in it. You may safely
Speaker 1: trust him, for he appears to be too limp to
Speaker 1: get into any mischief. I should recommend you also to
Speaker 1: send a note by the cabman to your wife to
Speaker 1: say that you have thrown in your lot with me.
Speaker 1: If you will wait outside, I shall be with you
Speaker 1: in five minutes. It was difficult to refuse any of
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmbs's requests, for they were always so exceedingly definite
Speaker 1: and put forward with such a quiet air of mastery.
Speaker 1: I felt, however, that when Whitney was once confined in
Speaker 1: the cab, my mission was practically accomplished, and for the
Speaker 1: rest I could not wish anything better than to be
Speaker 1: associated with my friend in one of those singular adventures
Speaker 1: which were the normal condition of his existence. In a
Speaker 1: few minutes, I had written my note, paid Whitney's bill,
Speaker 1: led him out to the cab, and seen him driven
Speaker 1: through the darkness. In a very short time, a decrepit
Speaker 1: figure had emerged from the opium den, and I was
Speaker 1: walking down the street with Sherlock Holmes for two streets.
Speaker 1: He shuffled along with a bend back and an uncertain foot. Then,
Speaker 1: glancing quickly round, he straightened himself out and burst into
Speaker 1: a hearty fit of laughter. I suppose Watson said he
Speaker 1: that you imagine that I have added opium smoking, to
Speaker 1: cocaine injections, and all the other little weaknesses on which
Speaker 1: you have favored me with your medical views. I was
Speaker 1: certainly surprised to find you there, but not more so
Speaker 1: than I to find you. I came to find a friend,
Speaker 1: and I to find an enemy, an enemy, yes, one
Speaker 1: of my natural enemies, or shall I say my natural prey? Briefly, Watson,
Speaker 1: I am in the midst of a very remarkable inquiry,
Speaker 1: and I have hoped to find a clue in the
Speaker 1: incoherent ramblings of these sots, as I have done before. Now.
Speaker 1: Had I been recognized in that den, my life would
Speaker 1: not have been worth an hour's purchase. For I have
Speaker 1: used it before now for my own purposes, and the
Speaker 1: rascally lascar who runs it has sworn to have vengeance
Speaker 1: upon me. There is a trap door at the back
Speaker 1: of that building, near the corner of Paul's Wharf, which
Speaker 1: could tell some strange tales of what has passed through
Speaker 1: it upon the moonless nights. What you do not mean bodies? Aye, bodies, Watson.
Speaker 1: We should be rich men if we had a thousand
Speaker 1: pounds of every poor devil who had been done to
Speaker 1: death in that den. It is the vilest murder trap
Speaker 1: on the whole river side. And I fear that Neville
Speaker 1: Saint Clair has entered it, never to leave it more.
Speaker 1: But our trap should be here. He put his two
Speaker 1: forefingers between his teeth and whistled shrilly, a signal, which
Speaker 1: was answered by a similar whistle from the distance, followed
Speaker 1: shortly by the rattle of wheels and the clink of
Speaker 1: horses hoofs now. Watson, said Holmes, as a tall dog
Speaker 1: cart dashed up through the gloom, throwing out two golden
Speaker 1: tunnels of yellow light from its side. Lands. You'll come
Speaker 1: with me, won't you? If I can be of use. Oh,
Speaker 1: A trusty comrade is always of use, and a chronicler
Speaker 1: still more so. My room at the Cedars is a
Speaker 1: double bedded one the Cedars. Yes, that is mister Saint
Speaker 1: Clair's house. I am staying there while I conduct the inquiry.
Speaker 1: Where is it then, near Lee in Kent? We have
Speaker 1: a seven mile drive before us. But I am all
Speaker 1: in the dark. Of course you are. You'll know all
Speaker 1: about it presently. Jump up here, all right, John, we
Speaker 1: shall not need you. Here's half a crown look out
Speaker 1: for me. Tomorrow about eleven, give her her head so long.
Speaker 1: Then he flicked the horse with his whip, and we
Speaker 1: dashed away through the endless succession of somber and deserted streets,
Speaker 1: which widened gradually until we were flying across a broad,
Speaker 1: balustraded bridge, with the murky river flowing sluggishly beneath us.
Speaker 1: Beyond lay another dull wilderness of bricks and mortar, its
Speaker 1: silence broken only by the heavy regular footfall of the policeman,
Speaker 1: or the songs and shouts of some belated party of revelers.
Speaker 1: A dull rack was drifting slowly across the sky, and
Speaker 1: a star or two twinkled dimly here and there through
Speaker 1: the rifts of the clouds. Holmes drove in silence, with
Speaker 1: his head sunk upon his breast, and the air of
Speaker 1: a man who is lost in thought, while I sat
Speaker 1: beside him, curious to learn what this new quest might be,
Speaker 1: which seemed to tax his powers so sorely, and yet
Speaker 1: afraid to break in upon the current of his thoughts.
Speaker 1: We had driven several miles and were beginning to get
Speaker 1: to the fringe of the belt of suburban villas when
Speaker 1: he shook himself shrugged his shoulders and lit up his
Speaker 1: pipe with the air of a man who is satisfied
Speaker 1: himself that he is acting for the best. You have
Speaker 1: a grand gift of silence, Watson said he. It makes
Speaker 1: you quite invaluable as a companion. Upon my word, it
Speaker 1: is a great thing for me to have some one
Speaker 1: to talk to for my own thoughts are not over pleasant.
Speaker 1: I was wondering what I should say to this dear
Speaker 1: little woman to night when she meets me at the door.
Speaker 1: You forget that I know nothing about it. I shall
Speaker 1: just have time to tell you the facts of the
Speaker 1: case before we get to Lee. It seems absurdly simple,
Speaker 1: and yet somehow I can get nothing to go upon.
Speaker 1: There's plenty of thread, no doubt, but I can't get
Speaker 1: the end of it into my hand. Now I'll state
Speaker 1: the case clearly and concisely to you, Watson, and maybe
Speaker 1: you can see a spark where all is dark to me.
Speaker 1: Proceed then, some years ago to be definite. In May
Speaker 1: eighteen eighty four, there came to Lee a gentleman Neville,
Speaker 1: Saint Clair by name, who appeared to have plenty of money.
Speaker 1: He took a large villa, laid out the grounds very nicely,
Speaker 1: and lived generally in good style. By degrees, he made
Speaker 1: friends in the neighborhood, and in eighteen eighty seven he
Speaker 1: married the daughter of a local brewer, by whom he
Speaker 1: now has two children. He had no occupation, but was
Speaker 1: interested in several companies, and went into town as a
Speaker 1: rule in the morning, returning by the five fourteen from
Speaker 1: Cannon Street every night. Mister Saint Clair is now thirty
Speaker 1: seven years of age, is a man of temperate habits,
Speaker 1: a good husband, a very affectionate father, and a man
Speaker 1: who's popular with all who know him. I may add
Speaker 1: that his whole debts at the present moment, as far
Speaker 1: as we have been able to ascertain, amount to eighty
Speaker 1: eight pounds ten shillings, while he has two hundred twenty
Speaker 1: pounds standing to his credit in the Capital and County's bank.
Speaker 1: There is no reason, therefore to think that money troubles
Speaker 1: have been weighing upon his mind. Last Monday, mister Neville
Speaker 1: Saint Clair went into town rather earlier than usual, remarking
Speaker 1: before he started that he had two important commissions to perform,
Speaker 1: and that he would bring his little boy home a
Speaker 1: box of bricks. Now by the merest chance. His wife
Speaker 1: received a telegram upon this same Monday, very shortly after
Speaker 1: his departure, to the effect that a small parcel of
Speaker 1: considerable value, which she had been expecting, was waiting for
Speaker 1: her the offices of the Aberdeen Shipping Company. Now, if
Speaker 1: you are well up in your London, you will know
Speaker 1: that the office of the company is in Fresno Street,
Speaker 1: which branches out of upper Swandham Lane, where you found me.
Speaker 1: To night, Missus Saint Clair had her lunch, started for
Speaker 1: the city, did some shopping, proceeded to the company's office,
Speaker 1: got her packet, and found herself at exactly four thirty
Speaker 1: five walking through Swandham Lane on her way back to
Speaker 1: the station. Have you followed me so far? It is
Speaker 1: very clear if you remember. Monday was an exceedingly hot day,
Speaker 1: and Missus Saint Clair walked slowly, glancing about in the
Speaker 1: hope of seeing it cab, as she did not like
Speaker 1: the neighborhood in which she found herself. While she was
Speaker 1: walking in this way down Swandham Lane, she suddenly heard
Speaker 1: an ejaculation or cry, and was struck cold to see
Speaker 1: her husband looking down at her, and, as it seemed
Speaker 1: to her beckoning to her from a second floor window.
Speaker 1: The window was open, and she distinctly saw his face,
Speaker 1: which she describes as being terribly agitated. He waved his
Speaker 1: hands frantically to her, and then vanished from the window,
Speaker 1: so suddenly that it seemed to her that he had
Speaker 1: been plucked back by some irresistible force from behind. One
Speaker 1: singular point which struck her quite feminine eye was that,
Speaker 1: although he wore some dark coat, such as he had
Speaker 1: started to town in, he had on neither collar nor necktie.
Speaker 1: Convinced that something was amiss with him, she rushed down
Speaker 1: the steps, for the house was none other than the
Speaker 1: opium den in which you found me to night, and
Speaker 1: running through the front room, she attempted to ascend the stairs,
Speaker 1: which led to the first floor. At the foot of
Speaker 1: the stairs, however, she met this less scar scoundrel of
Speaker 1: whom I have spoken, who thrust her back, and, aided
Speaker 1: by a Dane who acts as assistant, there pushed her
Speaker 1: out into the street. Filled with the most maddening doubts
Speaker 1: and fears, she rushed down the lane, and, by rare
Speaker 1: good fortune, met in Fresno Street a number of constables
Speaker 1: with an inspector, all on their way to their beat.
Speaker 1: The inspector and two men accompanied her back, and in
Speaker 1: spite of the continued resistance of the proprietor, they made
Speaker 1: their way up to the room in which mister Saint
Speaker 1: Clair had last been seen. There was no sign of
Speaker 1: him there. In fact, in the whole of that floor,
Speaker 1: there was no one to be seen save a crippled
Speaker 1: wretch of hideous aspect, who it seems made his home there.
Speaker 1: Both he and the lascar stoutly swore that no one
Speaker 1: else had been in the front room during the afternoon.
Speaker 1: So determined was their denial that the Inspector was staggered
Speaker 1: and had almost come to believe that missus Sinclair had
Speaker 1: been deluded, when with a cry, she sprang at a
Speaker 1: small deal box which lay upon the table, and tore
Speaker 1: the lid from it. Out there fell a cascade of
Speaker 1: children's bricks. It was a toy which he had promised
Speaker 1: to bring home. This discovery and the evident confusion which
Speaker 1: the cripple showed, made the inspector realize that the matter
Speaker 1: was serious. The rooms were carefully examined, and results all
Speaker 1: pointed to an abominable crime. The front room was plainly furnished,
Speaker 1: as a sitting room, and led into a small bedroom
Speaker 1: which looked out upon the back of one of the wharves.
Speaker 1: Between the wharf and the bedroom window is a narrow
Speaker 1: strip which is dry and low tide, but is covered
Speaker 1: at high tide with at least four and a half
Speaker 1: feet of water. The bedroom window was a broad one
Speaker 1: and opened from below. On examination, traces of blood were
Speaker 1: to be seen upon the window sill, and several scattered
Speaker 1: drops were visible upon the wooden floor of the bedroom.
Speaker 1: Thrust away behind a curtain in the front room were
Speaker 1: all the clothes of mister Neville Saint Clair, with the
Speaker 1: exception of his coat, his boots, his socks, his hat,
Speaker 1: and his watch all were there. There were no signs
Speaker 1: of violence upon any of these garments, and there were
Speaker 1: no other traces of mister Neville Saint Clair out of
Speaker 1: the window. He must apparently have gone for no other
Speaker 1: excit could be discovered, and the ominous blood stains upon
Speaker 1: the sill gave little promise that he could save himself
Speaker 1: by swimming, for the tide was at its very highest
Speaker 1: at the moment of the tragedy. And now as to
Speaker 1: the villains, who seemed to be immediately implicated in the matter.
Speaker 1: The Lascar was known to be a man of the
Speaker 1: vilest antecedents, but as by Missus Saint Clair's story, he
Speaker 1: was known to have been at the foot of the
Speaker 1: stair within a very few seconds of her husband's appearance
Speaker 1: at the window, he could hardly have been more than
Speaker 1: an accessory to the crime. His defense was one of
Speaker 1: absolute ignorance, and he protested that he had no knowledge
Speaker 1: as to the doings of Hugh Boone, his lodger, and
Speaker 1: that he could not account in any way for the
Speaker 1: presence of the missing gentleman's clothes. So much for the
Speaker 1: Lascar manager, now for this sinister cripple who lives upon
Speaker 1: the second floor of the Opium Den, and who was
Speaker 1: certainly the last human being whose eyes upon Neville Saint Clair.
Speaker 1: His name is Hugh Boone, and his hideous face is
Speaker 1: one which is familiar to every man who goes much
Speaker 1: to the city. He is a professional beggar, though in
Speaker 1: order to avoid the police regulations, he pretends to a
Speaker 1: small trade in wax veestas. Some little distance down thread
Speaker 1: Needle Street, upon the left hand side, there is, as
Speaker 1: you may have remarked, a small angle in the wall.
Speaker 1: Here it is that this creature takes his daily seat,
Speaker 1: cross legged, with his tiny stock of matches on his lap,
Speaker 1: And as he is a piteous spectacle, a small rain
Speaker 1: of charity descends into the greasy leather cap which lies
Speaker 1: upon the pavement beside him. I have watched the fellow
Speaker 1: more than once before ever I thought of making his
Speaker 1: professional acquaintance, and I have been surprised at the harvest
Speaker 1: which he has reaped in a short time. His appearance,
Speaker 1: you see, is so remarkable that no one can pass
Speaker 1: him without observing him. A shock of orange chair, a
Speaker 1: pale face disfigured by a horrible scar which, by its
Speaker 1: contraction has turned up the outer edges of his upper lip,
Speaker 1: a bulldog chin, and a pair of very penetrating dark eyes,
Speaker 1: which present a singular contrast to the color of his hair,
Speaker 1: all mark him out from amid the common crowd of mendicants.
Speaker 1: And so too does his wit, for he is ever
Speaker 1: ready with a reply to any piece of chaff which
Speaker 1: may be thrown at him by the passers by. This
Speaker 1: is the man whom we now learned to have been
Speaker 1: the lodger at the Opium Den, and to have been
Speaker 1: the last man to see the gentleman of whom we
Speaker 1: are in quest, but a cripple, said I What could
Speaker 1: he have done single handed against a man in the
Speaker 1: prime of life. He is a cripple in the sense
Speaker 1: that he walks with a limp, but in other respects
Speaker 1: he appears to be a powerful and well nurtured man.
Speaker 1: Surely your medical experience would tell you, Watson, that weakness
Speaker 1: in one limb is often compensated for by exceptional strength
Speaker 1: and the others. Pray continue your narrative. Missus Sinclair had
Speaker 1: fainted at the sight of the blood upon the window,
Speaker 1: and she was escorted home in a cab by the police,
Speaker 1: as her presence could be of no help to them
Speaker 1: in their investigations. Inspector Barton, who had charge of the case,
Speaker 1: made a very careful examination of the premises, but without
Speaker 1: finding anything which threw any light upon the matter. One
Speaker 1: mistake had been made in not a resting Boone instantly,
Speaker 1: as he was allowed some few minutes during which he
Speaker 1: might have communicated with his friend the le scar. But
Speaker 1: this fault was soon remedied, and he was seized and
Speaker 1: searched without anything being found which could incriminate him. Their
Speaker 1: word is true. Some blood stains upon his right shirt sleeve,
Speaker 1: but he pointed to his ring finger, which had been
Speaker 1: cut near the nail, and explained that the bleeding came
Speaker 1: from there, adding that he had been to the window
Speaker 1: not long before, and that the stains which had been
Speaker 1: observed there came doubtless from the same source. He denied
Speaker 1: strenuously having ever seen mister Neville Saint Clair, and swore
Speaker 1: that the presence of the clothes in his room was
Speaker 1: as much a mystery to him as to the police.
Speaker 1: As to Missus Saint Clair's assertion the she'd actually seen
Speaker 1: her husband at the window, he declared that she must
Speaker 1: have been either mad or dreaming. He was removed, loudly
Speaker 1: protesting to the police station, while the inspector remained upon
Speaker 1: the premises in the hope that the ebbing tide might
Speaker 1: afford some fresh clue. And it did, though they hardly
Speaker 1: found upon the mud bank what they had feared to find.
Speaker 1: It was nevill Saint Clair's coat, and not Neville Saint Clair,
Speaker 1: which lay uncovered as the tide receded. And what do
Speaker 1: you think they found in the pockets? I cannot imagine. No,
Speaker 1: I don't think you would guess every pocket stuffed with
Speaker 1: pennies and half pennies four hundred twenty one pennies and
Speaker 1: two hundred seventy halfpennies. It was no wonder that it
Speaker 1: had not been swept away by the tide. But a
Speaker 1: human body is a different matter. There was a fierce
Speaker 1: eddy between the wharf and the house. It seemed likely
Speaker 1: enough that the weighted coat had remained when the stripped
Speaker 1: body had been sucked away into the river. But I
Speaker 1: understand that all the other clothes were found in the room.
Speaker 1: Would the body be dressed in a coat alone, No, sir,
Speaker 1: But the facts might be met speciously enough. Suppose that
Speaker 1: this man's boone had thrust nevill Saint Clair through the window.
Speaker 1: There's no human eye which could have seen the deed.
Speaker 1: What would he do then? It would of course instantly
Speaker 1: strike him that he must get rid of the tell
Speaker 1: tale garments. He would seize the coat then, and be
Speaker 1: in the act of throwing it out when it would
Speaker 1: occur to him that it would swim and not sink.
Speaker 1: He has little time, for he has heard the scuffle
Speaker 1: downstairs when the wife tried to force her way up,
Speaker 1: and perhaps he's already heard from his Lascar confederate that
Speaker 1: the police are hurrying up the street. There's not an
Speaker 1: instant to be lost. He rushes to some secret horde
Speaker 1: where he has accumulated the fruits of his beggary, and
Speaker 1: he stuffs all the coins upon which he can lay
Speaker 1: his hands into the pockets to make sure of the
Speaker 1: coat's sinking. He throws it out, and would have done
Speaker 1: the same thing with the other garments, had not he
Speaker 1: heard the rush of steps below, and only just had
Speaker 1: time to close the window when the police appeared. It
Speaker 1: certainly sounds feasible. Well, we will take it as a
Speaker 1: working hypothesis for want of a better. Boone, as I
Speaker 1: have told you, was arrested and taken to the station,
Speaker 1: But it could not be shown that there had ever
Speaker 1: before been anything against him. He had for years been
Speaker 1: known as a professional beggar, but his life appeared to
Speaker 1: have been a very quiet and innocent one. There the
Speaker 1: matter stands at present, and the questions which have to
Speaker 1: be solved what Neville Saint Clair was doing in the
Speaker 1: Opium den, what happened to him when there, where is
Speaker 1: he now? And what Hugh Boone had to do with
Speaker 1: his disappearance, are all as far from a solution as ever.
Speaker 1: I confess that I cannot recall any case within my
Speaker 1: experience which looked at the first glance so simple and
Speaker 1: yet which presented such difficulties. While che la Combe had
Speaker 1: been detailing this singular series of events, we had been
Speaker 1: whirling through the outskirts of the great town until the
Speaker 1: last straggling houses had been left behind, and we rattled
Speaker 1: along with a country hedge upon either side of us.
Speaker 1: Just as he finished, however, we drove through two scattered
Speaker 1: villages where a few lights still glimmered in the windows.
Speaker 1: We are on the outskirts of Lee, said my companion.
Speaker 1: We have touched on three English counties in our short drive,
Speaker 1: starting in Middlesex, passing over an angle of Surrey, and
Speaker 1: ending in Kent. See that light among the trees, that
Speaker 1: is the cedars, and beside that lamp sits a woman
Speaker 1: whose anxious ears have already I have little doubt caught
Speaker 1: the clink of our horses feet. But why are you
Speaker 1: not conducting the case from Baker Street, I asked, because
Speaker 1: there are many inquiries which must be made out here. Missus.
Speaker 1: Saint Clair has most kindly put two rooms at my disposal,
Speaker 1: and you may rest assured that she will have nothing
Speaker 1: but a welcome for my friend and colleague. I hate
Speaker 1: to meet her, Watson, when I have no news of
Speaker 1: her husband. Here we are, woa there WHOA. We had
Speaker 1: pulled up in front of a large villa which stood
Speaker 1: within its own grounds. A stable boy had run out
Speaker 1: to the horse's head, and springing down, I followed Holmes
Speaker 1: up the small winding gravel drive which led to the house.
Speaker 1: As we approached, the door flew open, and a little
Speaker 1: blond woman stood in the opening, clad in some sort
Speaker 1: of light musoline de sois, with a touch of fluffy
Speaker 1: pink chiffon at her neck and wrists. She stood with
Speaker 1: her figure outlined against the flood of light, one hand
Speaker 1: upon the door, one half raised in her eagerness, her
Speaker 1: body slightly bent, her head and face protruded with eager
Speaker 1: eyes and parted lips. A standing question, well, she cried well,
Speaker 1: and then seeing that there were two of us, she
Speaker 1: gave a cry of hope, which sank into a groan
Speaker 1: as she saw that my companion shook his head and
Speaker 1: shrugged his shoulders. No good news, none, no bad no,
Speaker 1: thank God. For that, But come in. You must be weary,
Speaker 1: for you have had a long day. This is my friend,
Speaker 1: doctor Watson. He has been of most vital use to
Speaker 1: me in several of my cases, and a lucky chance
Speaker 1: has made it possible for me to bring him out
Speaker 1: and associate him with this investigation. I am delighted to
Speaker 1: see you, said she, pressing my hand warmly. You will,
Speaker 1: I am sure, forgive anything that may be wanting in
Speaker 1: our arrangements when you consider the blow which has come
Speaker 1: so suddenly upon us. My dear madam said I. I
Speaker 1: am an old campaigner, and if I were not, I
Speaker 1: can very well see that no apology is needed. If
Speaker 1: I can be of any assistance, either to you or
Speaker 1: to my friend here, I shall be indeed happy. Now,
Speaker 1: mister Sherlock Holmes, said the lady, as we entered a
Speaker 1: well lit dining room, upon the table of which a
Speaker 1: cold supper had been laid out. I should very much
Speaker 1: like to ask you one or two plain questions, to
Speaker 1: which I beg that you will give a plain answer. Certainly, madam,
Speaker 1: do not trouble about my feelings. I am not hysterical
Speaker 1: nor given to fainting. I simply wish to hear your real,
Speaker 1: real opinion. Upon what point in your heart of hearts
Speaker 1: do you think that Neville is alive? Churlo Coombe seemed
Speaker 1: to be embarrassed by the question. Frankly now, she repeated,
Speaker 1: standing upon the rug and looking keenly down at him
Speaker 1: as he leaned back in a basket chair. Frankly, then, Madam,
Speaker 1: I do not you think that he is dead? I
Speaker 1: do murdered? I don't say that. Perhaps, and on what
Speaker 1: day did he meet his death? On Monday? Then perhaps,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, you will be good enough to explain how
Speaker 1: it is that I have received a letter from him
Speaker 1: to day. Churlo Combe sprang out of his chair, as
Speaker 1: if he had been galvanized. What he roared? Yes to day?
Speaker 1: She stood sling, holding up a little slip of paper
Speaker 1: in the air. May I see it? Certainly? He snatched
Speaker 1: it from her in his eagerness, and smoothing it out
Speaker 1: upon the table. He drew over the lamp and examined
Speaker 1: it intently. I had left my chair and was gazing
Speaker 1: at it over his shoulder. The envelope was a very
Speaker 1: coarse one, and was stamped with the Gravesend postmark and
Speaker 1: with the date of that very day, or rather of
Speaker 1: the day before, for it was considerably after midnight. Coarse writing,
Speaker 1: murmured Holmes. Surely this is not your husband's writing, madam. No,
Speaker 1: but the enclosure is. I perceive also that whoever addressed
Speaker 1: the envelope had to go and inquire as to the address.
Speaker 1: How can you tell that the name you see is
Speaker 1: in perfectly black ink which has dried itself. The rest
Speaker 1: is of the grayish color, which shows that blotting paper
Speaker 1: has been used. If it had been written straight off
Speaker 1: and then blotted, none would be of a deep black shade.
Speaker 1: This man has written the name, and there has then
Speaker 1: been a pause before he wrote the address, which can
Speaker 1: only mean that he was not familiar with it. It is,
Speaker 1: of course a trifle, but there is nothing so important
Speaker 1: as trifles. Let us now see the letter. Ha, there's
Speaker 1: been an enclosure here. Yes, there was a ring, his
Speaker 1: signet ring. And you are sure that this is your
Speaker 1: husband's hand, one of his hands, one his hand when
Speaker 1: he wrote hurriedly. It is very unlike his usual writing,
Speaker 1: And yet I know it well, dearest, Do not be frightened.
Speaker 1: All will come well. There is a huge error, which
Speaker 1: it may take some little time to rectify. Wait in patience.
Speaker 1: Neville written in pencil upon the fly leaf of a
Speaker 1: book of Tavo size, no water mark. Hum post it
Speaker 1: to day in graves End by a man with a
Speaker 1: dirty thumb. Ah, and the flap has been gummed, if
Speaker 1: I am not very much in error, by a person
Speaker 1: who had been chewing tobacco. And you have no doubt
Speaker 1: that it is your husband's hand, madam none. Neville wrote
Speaker 1: those words, and they were posted to day at graves End. Well, missus,
Speaker 1: Saint Clair. The clouds lighten, though I should not venture
Speaker 1: to say that the danger is over. But he must
Speaker 1: be alive, mister Holmes, unless this is a clever forgery
Speaker 1: to put us on the wrong scent. The ring, after all,
Speaker 1: proves nothing. It may have been taken from him, No, no,
Speaker 1: it is. It is his very own writing. Very well.
Speaker 1: It may, however, have been written on Monday and only
Speaker 1: post it to day. That is possible, if so much
Speaker 1: may have happened between Oh, but you must not discourage me,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes. I know that all is well with him.
Speaker 1: There is so keen a sympathy between us that I
Speaker 1: should know if evil came upon him on the very
Speaker 1: day that I saw him last. He cut himself in
Speaker 1: the bedroom, and yet I, in the dining room, rushed
Speaker 1: upstairs instantly with the utmost certainty that something had happened.
Speaker 1: Do you think that I would respond to such a
Speaker 1: trifle and yet be ignorant of his death. I have
Speaker 1: seen too much not to know that the impression of
Speaker 1: a woman may be more valuable than the conclusion of
Speaker 1: an analytical reasoner. And in this letter you certainly have
Speaker 1: a very strong piece of evidence to corroborate your view.
Speaker 1: But if your husband is alive and able to write letters,
Speaker 1: why should he remain away from you? I cannot imagine.
Speaker 1: It is unthinkable. And on Monday he made no remarks
Speaker 1: before leaving you. No, and you were surprised to see
Speaker 1: him in Swandham Lane very much so was the window open? Yes,
Speaker 1: then he might have called to you. He might he only,
Speaker 1: as I understand, gave an inarticulate cry. Yes, he called
Speaker 1: for help. You thought, yes, he waved his hands, But
Speaker 1: it might have been a cry of surprise. Astonishment at
Speaker 1: the unexpected sight of you might cause him to throw
Speaker 1: up his hands. It is possible. And you thought he
Speaker 1: was pulled back he disappeared so suddenly he might have
Speaker 1: leaped back. You did not see any one else in
Speaker 1: the room. No, but this horrible man confessed to having
Speaker 1: been there, And though a scar was at the foot
Speaker 1: of the stairs, quite so. Your husband, as far as
Speaker 1: you could see, had his ordinary clothes on, but without
Speaker 1: his collar or tie. I distinctly saw his bare throat.
Speaker 1: Had he ever spoken of Swandam Lane? Never had he
Speaker 1: ever showed any signs of having taken an opium? Never?
Speaker 1: Thank you, missus Saint Clair. Those are the principal points
Speaker 1: about which I wished to be absolutely clear. We shall
Speaker 1: now have a little supper and then retire, for we
Speaker 1: may have a very busy day tomorrow. A large and
Speaker 1: comfortable double bedded room had been placed at our disposal,
Speaker 1: and I was quickly between the sheets, for I was
Speaker 1: weary after my night of adventure. Sherlock Holmes was a man, however, who,
Speaker 1: when he had an unsolved problem upon his mind, would
Speaker 1: go for days and even for a week without rest,
Speaker 1: turning it over, rearranging his facts, looking at it from
Speaker 1: every point of view, until he had either fathomed it
Speaker 1: or convinced himself that his data were insufficient it was
Speaker 1: soon evident to me that he was now preparing for
Speaker 1: an all night sitting. He took off his coat and waistcoat,
Speaker 1: put on a large blue dressing gown, and then wandered
Speaker 1: about the room, collecting pillows from his bed and cushions
Speaker 1: from the sofa and arm chairs. With these he constructed
Speaker 1: a sort of Eastern divan, upon which he perched himself
Speaker 1: cross legged, with an ounce of shag tobacco and a
Speaker 1: box of matches laid out in front of him. In
Speaker 1: the dim light of the lamp, I saw him sitting there,
Speaker 1: an old briar pipe between his lips, his eyes fixed
Speaker 1: vacantly upon the corner of the ceiling, the blue smoke
Speaker 1: curling up from him, silent, motionless, with a light shining
Speaker 1: upon his strong set aquiline features. So he sat as
Speaker 1: I dropped off to sleep, And so he sat when
Speaker 1: a sudden ejaculation caused me to wake up, and I
Speaker 1: found the summer sun shining into the apartment. The pipe
Speaker 1: was still between his lips, the smoke still curled upward,
Speaker 1: and the room was full of a dense tobacco haze.
Speaker 1: But nothing remained of the heap of shag which I
Speaker 1: had seen upon the previous night. Awake Watson, he asked, yes,
Speaker 1: game for a morning drive. Certainly then, no one is
Speaker 1: stirring yet, But I know where the stable boy sleeps,
Speaker 1: and we shall soon have the trap out. He chuckled
Speaker 1: to himself. As he spoke. His eyes twinkled, and he
Speaker 1: seemed a different man to the somber thinker of the
Speaker 1: previous night. As I dressed, I glanced at my watch.
Speaker 1: It was no wonder that no one was stirring. It
Speaker 1: was twenty five minutes past four. I'd hardly finish when
Speaker 1: Holmes returned with the news that the boy was putting
Speaker 1: in the horse. I want to test a little theory
Speaker 1: of mine, said he, pulling on his boots. I think, Watson,
Speaker 1: that you are now standing in the presence of one
Speaker 1: of the most absolute fools in Europe. I deserve to
Speaker 1: be kicked from here to Charing Cross. But I think
Speaker 1: I have the key of the affair now. And where
Speaker 1: is it? I asked, smiling in the bathroom, he answered,
Speaker 1: Oh yes, I'm not joking, he continued, seeing my look
Speaker 1: of incredulity. I have just been there, and I have
Speaker 1: taken it out, and I have got it in this
Speaker 1: gladstone bag. Come on, my boy, we shall see whether
Speaker 1: it will not fit the lock. We made our way
Speaker 1: downstairs as quietly as possible, and out into the bright
Speaker 1: morning sunshine. In the road stood our horse and trap,
Speaker 1: with the half clad stable boy waiting at the head.
Speaker 1: We both sprang in and away we dashed down the
Speaker 1: London Road. A few country carts were stirring, bearing in
Speaker 1: vegetables to the metropolis, but the lines of villas on
Speaker 1: either side were as silent and lifeless as some city
Speaker 1: in a dream. It has been in some points a
Speaker 1: singular case, said Holmes, flicking the horse on into a gallop.
Speaker 1: I confess that I have been as blind as a mole.
Speaker 1: But it is better to learn wisdom late than never
Speaker 1: to learn it at all. In town, the earliest risers
Speaker 1: were just beginning to look sleepily from their windows as
Speaker 1: we drove through the streets of the Surrey side. Passing
Speaker 1: down the Waterloo Bridge Road, we crossed over the river, and,
Speaker 1: dashing up Wellington Street, wheeled sharply to the right and
Speaker 1: found ourselves in Bow Street. Sherlock Holmes was well known
Speaker 1: to the force, and the two constables at the door
Speaker 1: saluted him. One of them held the horse's head, while
Speaker 1: the other led us in. Who's on duty? Asked Holmes,
Speaker 1: Inspector Bradstreet. Sir, Ah, Brad Street, how are you? A
Speaker 1: tall stout official had come down the stone flagged passage
Speaker 1: in a peaked cap and frogged jacket. I wish to
Speaker 1: have a quiet word with you, Bradstreet. Certainly, mister Holmes,
Speaker 1: step into my room. Here. It was a small office
Speaker 1: like rooum, with a huge ledger upon the table and
Speaker 1: a telephone projecting from the wall. The inspector sat down
Speaker 1: at his desk. What can I do for you, mister Holmes.
Speaker 1: I called about that beggarman Boone, the one who was
Speaker 1: charged with being concerned in the disappearance of mister Neville
Speaker 1: Saint Clair of Lee. Yes, he was brought up and
Speaker 1: remanded for further inquiries. So I heard you have him
Speaker 1: here in the cells. Is he quiet? Oh? He gives
Speaker 1: no trouble. But he's a dirty scoundrel dirty. Yes. It
Speaker 1: is all we can do to make him wash his hands,
Speaker 1: and his face is as black as a tinker's well.
Speaker 1: And once his case has been settled, he will have
Speaker 1: a regular prison bath. And I think if you saw him,
Speaker 1: you would agree with me that he needed it. I
Speaker 1: should like to see him very much, would you. That's
Speaker 1: easily done. Come this way you can leave your bag. No,
Speaker 1: I think that I'll take it very good. Come this
Speaker 1: way if you please. He let us down. A passage opened,
Speaker 1: a barred door, passed down a winding stair, and brought
Speaker 1: us to a whitewashed corridor with a line of doors
Speaker 1: on each side. The third on the right is his,
Speaker 1: said the inspector. Here it is. He quietly shot back
Speaker 1: a panel in the upper part of the door and
Speaker 1: glanced through. He's asleep, said he. You can see him
Speaker 1: very well. We both put our eyes to the grating.
Speaker 1: The prisoner lay with his face towards us, in a
Speaker 1: very deep sleep, breathing slowly and heavily. He was a
Speaker 1: middle sized man, coarsely clad, as became his calling, with
Speaker 1: a colored shirt protruding through the rent in his tattered coat.
Speaker 1: He was, as the inspector had said, extremely dirty, but
Speaker 1: the grime which covered his face could not conceal its
Speaker 1: repulsive ugliness. A broad wheel from an old scar ran
Speaker 1: right across it from eye to chin, and by its
Speaker 1: contraction had turned up one side of the upper lip,
Speaker 1: so that three teeth were exposed in a perpetual snarl.
Speaker 1: A shock of very bright red hair grew low over
Speaker 1: his eyes and forehead. He's a beauty, isn't he, said
Speaker 1: the inspector. He certainly needs a wash, remarked Holmes. I
Speaker 1: had an idea that he might, and I took the
Speaker 1: liberty of bringing the tools with me. He opened the
Speaker 1: gladstone bag as he spoke, and took out, to my astonishment,
Speaker 1: a very large bath sponge. He eh, you're a funny one,
Speaker 1: chuckled the inspector. Now, if you will have the great
Speaker 1: goodness to open that door very quietly, we will soon
Speaker 1: make him cut a much more respectable figure. Well, I dunno,
Speaker 1: why not, said the inspector. He doesn't look a credit
Speaker 1: to the Bow Street cells, does he. He slipped his
Speaker 1: key into the lock, and we all very quietly entered
Speaker 1: the cell. The sleeper half turned and then settled down
Speaker 1: once more into a deep slumber. Holmes stooped to the
Speaker 1: water jug, moistened his sponge, and then rubbed it twice
Speaker 1: vigorously across and down the prisoner's face. Let me introduce you,
Speaker 1: he shouted to mister Neville, Saint Clair of Lee in
Speaker 1: the County of Kent. Never in my life have I
Speaker 1: seen such a sight. The man's face pealed off under
Speaker 1: the sponge, like the bark from a tree. Gone was
Speaker 1: the coarse brown tint. Gone too was the horrid scar
Speaker 1: which had seemed it across, and the twisted lip which
Speaker 1: had given the repulsive sneer to the face. A twitch
Speaker 1: brought away the tangled red hair. And there, sitting up
Speaker 1: in his bed was a pale, sad faced, refined looking man,
Speaker 1: black haired and smooth skinned, rubbing his eyes and staring
Speaker 1: about him with sleepy bewilderment. Then, suddenly realizing the exposure,
Speaker 1: he broke into a scream and threw himself down with
Speaker 1: his face to the pillow. Great Heavens, cried the inspector.
Speaker 1: It is indeed the missing man. I know him from
Speaker 1: the photograph. The prisoner turned with the reckless air of
Speaker 1: a man who abandons himself to his destiny. Be it so,
Speaker 1: said he, And pray what am I charged with with
Speaker 1: making away with mister Nevills. Oh? Come, you can't be
Speaker 1: charged with that unless they make a case of attempted
Speaker 1: suicide of it, said the inspector with a grin. Well,
Speaker 1: I have been twenty seven years in the force, but
Speaker 1: this really takes the cake. If I am mister Neville
Speaker 1: Saint Clair, then it is obvious that no crime has
Speaker 1: been committed, and that therefore I am illegally detained. No crime,
Speaker 1: but a very great error has been committed, said Holmes.
Speaker 1: You would have done better to have trusted your wife.
Speaker 1: It was not the wife, it was the children, groaned
Speaker 1: the prisoner. God help me, I would not have them
Speaker 1: ashamed of their father. My God, what an exposure. What
Speaker 1: can I do? Chelacombe sat down beside him on the
Speaker 1: couch and patted him kindly on the shoulder. If you
Speaker 1: leave it to a court of law to clear the
Speaker 1: matter up, said he. Of course, you can hardly avoid publicity.
Speaker 1: On the other hand, if you convince the police authorities
Speaker 1: that there is no possible case against you, I do
Speaker 1: not know that there is any reason that the details
Speaker 1: should find their way into the papers. Inspector Bradstreet, would
Speaker 1: I am sure, make notes upon anything which you might
Speaker 1: tell us and submit it to the proper authorities. The
Speaker 1: case would then never go into court at all. God
Speaker 1: bless you, cried the prisoner Passionately, I would have endured imprisonment,
Speaker 1: ay even execution, rather than I have left my miserable
Speaker 1: secret as a family blot to my children. You are
Speaker 1: the first to have ever heard my story. My father
Speaker 1: was a schoolmaster in Chesterfield, where I received an excellent education.
Speaker 1: I traveled in my youth, took to the stage, and
Speaker 1: finally became a reporter on an evening paper in London.
Speaker 1: One day, my editor wished to have a series of
Speaker 1: articles upon begging in the Metropolis, and I volunteered to
Speaker 1: supply them. There was the point from which all my
Speaker 1: adventures started. It was only by trying begging as an
Speaker 1: amateur that I could get the facts upon which to
Speaker 1: base my articles. When an actor, I had of course
Speaker 1: learned all the secrets of making up, and had been
Speaker 1: famous in the green room for my skill. I took
Speaker 1: advantage now of my attainments. I painted my face, and
Speaker 1: to make myself as pitiable as possible, I made a
Speaker 1: good scar and fixed one side of my lip in
Speaker 1: a twist by the aid of a small slip of
Speaker 1: flesh colored plaster. Then, with a red head of hair
Speaker 1: and an appropriate dress, I took my station in the
Speaker 1: business part of the city, ostensibly as a match, but
Speaker 1: really as a beggar. For seven hours I applied my trade,
Speaker 1: and when I returned home in the evening, I found
Speaker 1: to my surprise that I had received no less than
Speaker 1: twenty six shillings and fourpence. I wrote my articles and
Speaker 1: thought little more of the matter until some time later
Speaker 1: I backed a bill for a friend and had a
Speaker 1: writ served upon me for twenty five pounds. I was
Speaker 1: at my WIT's end where to get the money, but
Speaker 1: a sudden idea came to me. I begged a fortnight's
Speaker 1: grace from the creditor, asked for a holiday from my employers,
Speaker 1: and spent the time in begging in the city under
Speaker 1: my disguise. In ten days I had the money and
Speaker 1: had paid the debt. Well you can imagine how hard
Speaker 1: it was to settle down to arduous work at two
Speaker 1: pounds a week, when I knew that I could earn
Speaker 1: as much in a day by smearing my face with
Speaker 1: a little paint, laying my cap on the ground, and
Speaker 1: sitting still. It was a long fight between my pride
Speaker 1: and the money, but the dollars won at last, and
Speaker 1: I threw up reporting and sat day after day in
Speaker 1: the corner which I had first chosen, inspiring pity by
Speaker 1: my ghastly face and filling my pockets with coppers. Only
Speaker 1: one man knew my secret. He was the keeper of
Speaker 1: a low den in which I used to lodge in
Speaker 1: Swandham Lane, where I could every morning emerge as a
Speaker 1: squalid beggar, and in the evenings transform myself into a
Speaker 1: well dressed man about town. This fellow, a Lescar, was
Speaker 1: well paid by me for his rooms, so that I
Speaker 1: knew that my secret was safe in his possession. Well,
Speaker 1: very soon I found that I was saving considerable sums
Speaker 1: of money. I do not mean that any beggar in
Speaker 1: the streets of London could earn seven hundred pounds a year,
Speaker 1: which is less than my average takings. But I had
Speaker 1: exceptional advantages in my power of making up, and also
Speaker 1: in a facility of repartee, which improved by practice and
Speaker 1: made me quite a recognized character in the city. All
Speaker 1: day a stream of pennies, varied by silver, poured in
Speaker 1: upon me, and it was a very bad day in
Speaker 1: which I failed to take two pounds. As I grew richer,
Speaker 1: I grew more ambitious, took a house in the country,
Speaker 1: and eventually married without any When having a suspicion as
Speaker 1: to my real occupation, my dear wife knew that I
Speaker 1: had business in the city. She little knew what. Last Monday,
Speaker 1: I had finished for the day and was dressing in
Speaker 1: my room above the opium den when I looked out
Speaker 1: of my window and saw, to my horror and astonishment,
Speaker 1: that my wife was standing in the street with her
Speaker 1: eyes fixed full upon me. I gave a cry of surprise,
Speaker 1: threw up my arms to cover my face, and rushing
Speaker 1: to my confidant, though a scar entreated him to prevent
Speaker 1: any one from coming up to me. I heard her
Speaker 1: voice downstairs, but I knew that she could not ascend Swiftly.
Speaker 1: I threw off my clothes, pulled on those of a beggar,
Speaker 1: and put on my pigments and wig. Even a wife's
Speaker 1: eyes could not pierce so complete a disguise. But then
Speaker 1: it occurred to me that there might be a search
Speaker 1: in the room, and that the clothes might betray me.
Speaker 1: I threw open the window, reopening by my violence a
Speaker 1: small cut which I had inflicted upon myself in the
Speaker 1: bedroom that morning. Then I seized my coat, which was
Speaker 1: waited by the coppers, which I had just transferred to
Speaker 1: it from the bag in which I carried my takings.
Speaker 1: I hurled it out of the window and it disappeared
Speaker 1: into the Thames. The other clothes would have followed, but
Speaker 1: at that moment there was a rush of constables up
Speaker 1: the stair, and a few minutes after I found rather,
Speaker 1: I confessed to my relief that instead of being identified
Speaker 1: as mister Neville Saint Clair, I was arrested as his murderer.
Speaker 1: I do not know that there is anything else for
Speaker 1: me to explain. I was determined to preserve my disguise
Speaker 1: as long as possible, and hence my preference for a
Speaker 1: dirty face. Knowing that my wife would be terribly anxious,
Speaker 1: I slipped off my ring and confided it to the
Speaker 1: lescar at a moment when no constable was watching me,
Speaker 1: together with a hurried scrawl, telling her that she had
Speaker 1: no cause to fear. That note only reached her yesterday,
Speaker 1: said Holmes. Good God, what a week she must have spent.
Speaker 1: The police have watched this Lascar, said Inspector Bradstreet, and
Speaker 1: I can quite understand that he might find it difficult
Speaker 1: to post a letter unobserved. Probably he handed to some
Speaker 1: sailor custom of his, who forgot all about it for
Speaker 1: some days. That was it, said Holmess, nodding approvingly. I
Speaker 1: have no doubt of it. But have you never been
Speaker 1: prosecuted for begging? Many times? But what was a fine
Speaker 1: to me? It must stop here, however, said Bradstreet. If
Speaker 1: the police are to hush this thing up, there must
Speaker 1: be no more of Hugh Boon. I have sworn it
Speaker 1: by the most solemn oaths which a man can take.
Speaker 1: In that case, I think that it is probable that
Speaker 1: no further steps may be taken. But if you are
Speaker 1: found again, then all must come out. I am sure,
Speaker 1: mister Holmes, that we are very much indebted to you
Speaker 1: for having cleared the matter up. I wish I knew
Speaker 1: how you reach your results. I reached this one, said
Speaker 1: my friend, by sitting upon five pillows and consuming an
Speaker 1: ounce of shag. I think, Watson, that if we drive
Speaker 1: to Baker Street, we shall just be in time for breakfast.