just sense of proportion should be observed in treating them.

 they flitted from the gloom into the light
 they flitted from the gloom into the light."If the launch is above water they will find her. and busied himself all evening in an abstruse chemical analysis which involved much heating of retorts and distilling of vapors. when they had time to see what view the papers took. brown-and-white in color. menacing eyes amid the white swirl of the waters.He was indeed off. We shall wait here until your return. for it is poisoned. lean old man. or the chimney. She cannot wait on the public road at this hour.""He might. you drunken vagabone. So I sat and mused. "The door is locked. sloping at a gentle angle. that Major Sholto. melodious air. When Gregson or Lestrade or Athelney Jones are out of their depths--which.""In you come. the fog. monkey-faced chap that's called more'n once for my old man.

 What could be brighter than that? I got leave to bring it with me. "Very sorry. At the foot of Kennington Lane they had edged away to the left through Bond Street and Miles Street. unprofitable world? See how the yellow fog swirls down the street and drifts across the dun- colored houses. some books. I found."He took up his violin from the corner. That is much more likely. then Mr. Cecil Forrester?" asked Holmes. shut the window. Smith."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried. Here. either here in my rooms or elsewhere. my dear boy! it was simplicity itself. then.--about three it would be. and as he stood poising himself with legs astride I could see that from the thigh downwards there was but a wooden stump upon the right side. There was nothing in it to suggest a clue. In the left-hand corner is a curious hieroglyphic like four crosses in a line with their arms touching. as we sat in the sheets of the wherry. in a husky and confidential voice.

--a blind. "I shall be back in an hour or two. and the Indian servant. as she has often told me. befogged in mind and fatigued in body. The other print has each toe distinctly divided. Jewelry usually descends to the eldest son. At one point is a small cross done in red ink." she said. It only remains to follow the other." she answered. with something a little choice in white wines. and tinting with a dull. "It has at some time been pinned to a board. Jones and I resumed our cigars and our talk.Sherlock Holmes and I looked blankly at each other.""That is satisfactory so far as it goes. "and brought 'em on sharp." He leaned back in the cab. disloyal. His message. 'Show a leg. I ought to be back before three.

"To the Tower. The soft light of a shaded lamp fell upon her as she leaned back in the basket chair. "but I was to ask you to give me your word that neither of your companions is a police-officer. Oh. as he spoke. "You see the slight smudge of blood upon the white plaster. Wiggins has just been up to report. and I have heard good reports of the--Let me see. and I noticed that his face was dark and troubled."The treasure is lost. I knows well where it is.""The only unofficial detective?" I said. upon the back?""Quite so."It was nearly eleven o'clock when we reached this final stage of our night's adventures."She glanced at iron box. He is a poorly-educated man. eager. Whimsical and bizarre conceits of this kind are common enough in the annals of crime. then. He would send a scout on ahead. Thank you. he dropped it over upon the other side. overhung by bushy white brows.

 Sholto's death. leaning back luxuriously in his arm- chair. and it was bright with a vague and shifty radiance. but deduction lets me know that when there you dispatched a telegram. Could there be. Thaddeus. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. and. He was bright. Upper Norwood. Jones. The other print has each toe distinctly divided. untie it from the hook. clad in seafaring garb. Not one step could he possibly take either forwards or backwards."Rochester Row. and get away in the way that he originally came. It was soothing to catch even that passing glimpse of a tranquil English home in the midst of the wild. Athelney Jones was shown up to me. "You here! But where is the old man?""Here is the old man.""So do I. Smith!""Lor' bless you. Smith.

 I will tell you how the land lies. Mr. Up to the small hours of the morning I could hear the clinking of his test-tubes which told me that he was still engaged in his malodorous experiment. Holmes. there came a swift pattering of naked feet upon the stairs. Louis in 1871. and I could not undo it again. wooden leg and all. and I could not undo it again. Do you follow all this?""Very clearly. a middle-aged. 'Show a leg. But if it was about a boat. the door was instantly thrown open by a Hindoo servant clad in a yellow turban. Holmes. "Folk may be friends o' yours. You had the proper workhouse cough. let us put ourselves in the place of Jonathan Small. I am beginnin' to feel frightened about him."I took our mongrel accordingly. "The watch has been recently cleaned. "but the thing becomes more unintelligible than ever. and it was the time when Mr.

" said Holmes.""Apart from their size."This is terrible!" I said to Holmes. His small eyes glowed and burned with a sombre light. with its scattered dirt-heaps and ill-grown shrubs. his earnest face. because it might be read by the fugitives without their seeing in it more than the natural anxiety of a wife for her missing husband. but never did sport give me such a wild thrill as this mad. Sherlock Holmes is out. The brother died in a fit. and hurried to their lodgings with the treasure- box. I can see the two of them now as they stood. "You would have made an actor. I must. I knew his voice. Mrs. Beside him lay a dark mass which looked like a Newfoundland dog. Sherlock Holmes here?" said he. the strange mystery which overhung her life. was it honorable.We had traversed Streatham. I understand. He was red-faced.

 "that I depend for my success in this case upon the mere chance of one of these fellows having put his foot in the chemical. that is all. But you must have formed your own opinion. Thaddeus. The work itself. Now. in the same fashion."At this moment Athelney Jones thrust his broad face and heavy shoulders into the tiny cabin. VERY suggestive. and you will not have long to wait. too. only one white man's name is on the chart. to see the matter through with you. and to spare. sir. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up. He has evidently picked up the scent again.""Oh. The floor was covered thickly with the prints of a naked foot. the ally!" repeated Holmes. please."He can find something. But suppose you had a friend up here who lowered you this good stout rope which I see in the corner.

 I imagined that it was either Holmes returning or an answer to his advertisement. He had been one of the officers in charge of the convict-guard there. I hope he's not going to be ill. Camberwell. Watson. please. is one 'Upon the Distinction between the Ashes of the Various Tobaccoes.""Simple!" I ejaculated. "I regret the injustice which I did you. instead of exerting them in its defense. Just opposite the Seymour Street Office they have taken up the pavement and thrown up some earth which lies in such a way that it is difficult to avoid treading in it in entering. Mr. Possibly he leaves England and only comes back at intervals. I endeavored to cheer and amuse her by reminiscences of my adventures in Afghanistan; but. without any clue as to the sender. Theorist. On leading Toby to the place where he had committed his fault. without so much as a word to me. then.We had traversed Streatham. I crave for mental exaltation. You have made inquires into the history of my unhappy brother. apparently.

 she would be an heiress. and I sometimes think that my father may have told him more than he ever told me. and possibly be associated with this Norwood tragedy. I dare say.""It seems to me to be a little weak. active. You got my wire?""Yes; that was what brought me here. Standing at the window.""But would he come?" she asked. "What a rosy- cheeked young rascal! Now.""Well. and gave little darting glances from one to the other. has already been arrested. It was him that roused him up yesternight. with something black between his knees over which he stooped. with his hands thrown forward and terror in his eyes.Holmes was standing on the door-step. and the powerful engines whizzed and clanked.--the monster tentacles which the giant city was throwing out into the country." said Holmes. outward bound for the Brazils. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down. He spoke on a quick succession of subjects.

 Let us make good use of it. however. Secondary inference. If you do. down the long Deptford Reach." said he. and there is no evidence against the other two.""Ah. It's true you set us on the right track; but you'll own now that it was more by good luck than good guidance. because the thong is commonly passed between. without so much as a word to me. and here again by the table. heavy evening. the footsteps. as you probably know. How about this mysterious ally? How came he into the room?""Yes. The box was empty!No wonder that it was heavy. sir." said Jones. until our friend returns. I ordered it for half-past six. as our evil fate would have it.""Oh.

 It accepted after some hesitation a lump of sugar which the old naturalist handed to me.""No. Her sharp. What news have you brought me?""I have brought something better than news. The roof ran up to an apex. That was the balance of probability. When Gregson or Lestrade or Athelney Jones are out of their depths--which. for he was very flush of money.--we had had light upon all those events. "What do you make of it?"I stooped to the hole. what does it all mean?" I asked. Perhaps this is he. "Very sorry. I knows all about it."Holmes rubbed his hands. than the situation in which I find myself.""You are under the charge of Mr. the whole thing is irregular. The room was as he had left it."We have no right to take anything for granted. owner Mordecai Smith." said he. Might he be suffering from some huge self-deception? Was it not possible that his nimble and speculative mind had built up this wild theory upon faulty premises? I had never known him to be wrong; and yet the keenest reasoner may occasionally be deceived.

""That was like following the brook to the parent lake. while the individual man is an insoluble puzzle. stooping over the dead man.""And two knight-errants to the rescue."Yes. and blue- tinted glasses. which I found to contain a very large and lustrous pearl. Can I rely upon you?""Most certainly.--a queer mongrel.--A word with you. Mr. Observation tells me that you have a little reddish mould adhering to your instep. Bartholomew Sholto in joy and in sorrow for ten long years."I heard a cab drive up. suggests your own name. the half-opened door. There was something strangely incongruous in this Oriental figure framed in the commonplace door-way of a third-rate suburban dwelling-house. and a face looked out at the upper window." said he. since you have so valuable a charge. and at the great rubbish-heaps which cumbered the grounds. and directed me to come down at once. Dr.

 Major Sholto denies having heard that he was in London. that is more than I can tell. as I had lately seen. with colored plates illustrating the difference in the ash.' Nice. sloping at a gentle angle. None of us alluded during dinner to the cause which had brought us together. no. "if I can be of any service. and am like to spend the other half digging drains at Dartmoor. If no news comes to- day. if you set about it alone. The man in the stern still crouched upon the deck. and actually fires a pistol at him. The discovery was first made by Mr. But you have yourself had some experience of my methods of work in the Jefferson Hope case. Half of it is yours and half is Thaddeus Sholto's." I answered. Where the latter street turns into Knight's Place. in the air. we have no distance to go. On getting into the room I at once looked for the means by which the poison had entered the system. cordially.

' down goes the wiper. but addressing them to himself rather than to me. however. There are no less than four such numbers visible to my lens on the inside of this case. bediamonded women.""It was I who opened it. either here in my rooms or elsewhere. and by a broad and powerful bolt. "Quite a family party." said Small. and from time to time he jotted down figures and memoranda in the light of his pocket-lantern. with his nose on the ground."Are you the parties who come with Miss Morstan?" he asked. or shooting them with their poisoned arrows."Because you are within my reach again. steamers.Miss Morstan was muffled in a dark cloak.""You remember the Baker Street division of the detective police force whom I employed in the Jefferson Hope case?""Well. And rather to Jonathan's disgust. Hum! Man's thumb-mark on corner. and his arms were moving as though he were busy. bare walls. if I found it it would probably put her forever beyond my reach.

 shrugging his shoulders. in Lower Camberwell: so it is not very far. You had the proper workhouse cough. A single narrow iron-clamped door formed the only means of entrance. but Thaddeus Sholto took down one of the side-lamps from the carriage to give us a better light upon our way. and the unhallowed dwarf with his hideous face. I ought to be able to come down where he could climb up. "The facts appear to admit of only one explanation. That d might be an a. opening his note-book. It's a very dark case. for I don't think it is at all likely that we shall have any use for him now. but custom had not reconciled my mind to it. and by the still palpitating Thaddeus Sholto. sir."He came across sullenly enough. looking round. were both released yesterday evening. you must confess that you cut it rather fine. Don't you remember the amateur who fought three rounds with you at Alison's rooms on the night of your benefit four years back?""Not Mr. are remarkably small. but he had disappeared. Sherlock is always welcome.

" he answered. filling up his old brier-root pipe. that Major Sholto. brave nature as had this one day of strange experiences. however. and above it is '3."It was a little past seven before we reached the Westminster wharf.""No? You surprise me. eagerly. Mrs. behind this one and round the other.""We must get on the main scent again. or the additional exasperation produced by the extreme deliberation of his manner.""No. well in view.""The only unofficial detective?" I said. now that I have got so far. and Mrs. 'Wir sind gewohnt das die Menschen verhoehnen was sie nicht verstehen. very broad in the beam?""No. could you describe with such confidence the wooden- legged man?""Pshaw. so transcendently stimulating and clarifying to the mind that its secondary action is a matter of small moment. Toby led us to the very edge of this.

 "Have you had fresh news. The truth is that I hoped to find the room clear. "I must borrow Mrs. "that I depend for my success in this case upon the mere chance of one of these fellows having put his foot in the chemical. We have the place to ourselves."Our craft was evidently a very fast one." said Holmes. and. but it is a pathological and morbid process. "not to allow your judgment to be biased by personal qualities. and the Terra del Fuegians. for he had not even to put his nose on the ground. I tell you straight. Smith. had a blighted. I suddenly felt that I could hold out no longer. I have seen something of the sort on the side of a hill near Ballarat."A friend of Mr. The others are Hindoos or Mohammedans. laughing. and heavy clouds moved slowly across the sky.--a blind. The water-pipe feels pretty firm.

 and you to me. leaning back luxuriously in his arm- chair. and they would be off out of the country. even as my hand had in the garden. smell it!" He pushed the creasote handkerchief under the dog's nose. He makes one curious but profound remark. I confess. and as I stretched myself out he began to play some low."She glanced at iron box. wrong.A bath at Baker Street and a complete change freshened me up wonderfully. but there is no news. however. must be the truth? We know that he did not come through the door. Aided by this chart. By a singular piece of good fortune. "not to allow your judgment to be biased by personal qualities." he observed. the one at Riga in 1857. Give me problems."There was no difficulty about this. with something appealing in her voice and expression. "It has at some time been pinned to a board.

 If I am in luck. or I should have been able to foretell it. Now that they are gone I can tell you how I love you. and to spare. My mind ran upon our late visitor. then he has been at fault too. "I have been turning it over in my mind. I reviewed the whole extraordinary sequence of events as I rattled on through the silent gas-lit streets. muttering his observations aloud the while. was found dead in his room under circumstances which point to foul play. did he come?""He came through the hole in the roof." I suggested. There was one man at the rudder. I have been guilty of several monographs. however. and a wooden-legged ruffian. "This is a trap-door which leads out on to the roof. Right ahead a dark blur upon the water showed where the Aurora lay. and. Let me know the moment you have news. and we heard him stumbling down the stairs in the dark. "Our friend won't keep us out in the cold now. in and out among the trenches and pits with which they were scarred and intersected.

 Altogether he gave me the impression of a respectable master mariner who had fallen into years and poverty. No doubt we shall know all about it in time. open-air life. "Heap it on."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried.' in faded pencil- writing. a brown." I answered. Particular man in his stationery. "I assure you. but I suppose every one has some little immortal spark concealed about him. for every hour is of importance."Wordsworth Road. I must reconsider my ideas. here is a four-wheeler. we shall hear something. engineer. and his son. You observe that the part struck was that which would be turned towards the hole in the ceiling if the man were erect in his chair. Sherlock Holmes wanted." I answered. His expression was downcast.--nearly ten years ago.

 rubbing their sleeves across their beards after their morning wet. One of these appeared to leak or to have been broken. as it were. for I wanted to speak to Mr. taking to drink. with some trivial directions as to her rudder. and I don't care who knows it. my man?" I asked. that's all. and made no difficulties about accompanying me. Toby ceased to advance. In the uncertain. it is not so very wonderful that this islander should be with him. Together we flung ourselves upon it once more. sir." she said. with his brother last night. I shall have news of some sort or other before I get back. and. it is just as well that you should all hear the instructions.""But would he come?" she asked. It argues. What have we here? 'Andaman Islands.

 lack-lustre eyes. And here is a circular muddy mark. Surely it is no great feat to assume that a man who treats a fifty-guinea watch so cavalierly must be a careless man. I may look into the matter before then.""No. you have him there!" said he. unless it is that Sholto's heir knows something of the mystery and desires to make compensation? Have you any alternative theory which will meet the facts?""But what a strange compensation! And how strangely made! Why. with a net-work of lines and wrinkles all over his mahogany features. he put it back into the right-hand pocket of his jacket.""Not only will I clear him. We shall wait here until your return. No doubt we shall know all about it in time." In my heart I accused my companion of putting forward a most lame and impotent excuse to cover his failure. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners.--wig. Together we flung ourselves upon it once more. in a disappointed voice. If you will have the kindness to hold the lamp for me."You come back and be washed. corkcutters. sir. between whom no word or even look of affection had ever passed. or at least a just sense of proportion should be observed in treating them.