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28 The Solitary Cyclist from The Return of Sherlock · Sherlock Holmes

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Speaker 1: The adventure of the Solitary Cyclist from the years eighteen
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Speaker 1: ninety four to nineteen hundred one inclusive. Mister Sherlock Holmes
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Speaker 1: was a very busy man. It is safe to say
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Speaker 1: that there was no public case of any difficulty in
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Speaker 1: which he was not consulted during those eight years, and
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Speaker 1: there were hundreds of private cases, some of them of
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Speaker 1: the most intricate and extraordinary character, in which he played
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Speaker 1: a prominent part. Many startling successes and a few unavoidable
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Speaker 1: failures were the outcome of this long period of continuous work.
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Speaker 1: As I have preserved very full notes of all these cases,
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Speaker 1: and was myself personally engaged in many of them, it
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Speaker 1: may be imagined that it is no easy task to
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Speaker 1: know which I should select to lay before the public.
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Speaker 1: I shall, however, preserve my former rule and give the
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Speaker 1: preference to those cases which derived their interest not so
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Speaker 1: much from the brutality of the crime as from the
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Speaker 1: ingenuity and dramatic quality of the solution. For this reason,
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Speaker 1: I will now lay before the reader the facts connected
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Speaker 1: with mis Violet Smith, the Solitary Cyclist of Charlington, and
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Speaker 1: the curious sequel of our investigation, which culminated in unexpected tragedy.
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Speaker 1: It is true that the circumstance did not admit of
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Speaker 1: any striking illustration of those powers for which my friend
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Speaker 1: was famous. But there were some points about the case
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Speaker 1: which made it stand out in those long records of
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Speaker 1: crime from which I gather the material for these little narratives.
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Speaker 1: On referring to my notebook for the year eighteen ninety five,
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Speaker 1: I find that it was upon Saturday, the twenty third
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Speaker 1: of April that we first heard of miss Violet Smith.
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Speaker 1: A visit was, I remember, extremely unwelcome to Holmes, for
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Speaker 1: he was immersed at them moment in a very abstruse
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Speaker 1: and complicated problem concerning the peculiar persecution to which John
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Speaker 1: Vincent Harden, the well known tobacco millionaire, had been subjected.
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Speaker 1: My friend, who loved above all things precision and concentration
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Speaker 1: of thought, resented anything which distracted his attention from the
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Speaker 1: matter in hand. And yet without a harshness which was
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Speaker 1: foreign to his nature, it was impossible to refuse to
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Speaker 1: listen to the story of the young and beautiful woman, tall,
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Speaker 1: graceful and queenly, who presented herself at Baker Street late
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Speaker 1: in the evening and implored his assistance and advice. It
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Speaker 1: was vain to urge that his time was already fully occupied,
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Speaker 1: for the young lady had come with the determination to
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Speaker 1: tell her story, and it was evident that nothing short
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Speaker 1: of force could get her out of the room until
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Speaker 1: she had done so. With a resigned air and a
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Speaker 1: somewhat weary smile, Holmes begged the beautiful intruder to take
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Speaker 1: a seat and to inform us what it was that
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Speaker 1: was troubling her. At least it cannot be your health,
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Speaker 1: said he, as his keen eyes darted over her so ardent.
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Speaker 1: A bicyclist must be full of energy. She glanced down
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Speaker 1: in surprise at her own feet, and I observed the
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Speaker 1: slight roughening of the side of the soul caused by
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Speaker 1: the friction of the edge of the pedal. Yes, I
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Speaker 1: bicycle a good deal, mister Holmes, and that has something
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Speaker 1: to do with my visit to you to day. My
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Speaker 1: friend took the lady's ungloved hand and examined it with
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Speaker 1: as close an attention and as little sentiment as a
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Speaker 1: scientist would show to a specimen. You will excuse me,
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Speaker 1: I am sure it is my business, said he, as
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Speaker 1: he dropped it. I nearly fell into the error of
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Speaker 1: supposing that you were typewriting. Of course, it is obvious
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Speaker 1: that it is music. You observe these spatulate finger ends Watson,
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Speaker 1: which is common to both prefer es. There is a
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Speaker 1: spirituality about the face. However, she gently turned it towards
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Speaker 1: the light, which the typewriter does not generate. This lady
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Speaker 1: is a musician, yes, mister Holmes, I teach music in
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Speaker 1: the country, I presume from your complexion, Yes, sir. Near
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Speaker 1: Farnham on the borders of Surrey, a beautiful neighborhood and
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Speaker 1: full of the most interesting associations. You remember, Watson, that
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Speaker 1: it was near there that we took Archie Stamford, the forger. Now,
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Speaker 1: miss Violet, what has happened to you? Near Farnham on
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Speaker 1: the borders of Surrey. The young lady, with great clearness
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Speaker 1: and composure, made the following curious statement. My father is dead,
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Speaker 1: mister Holmes. He was James Smith, who conducted the orchestra
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Speaker 1: at the old Imperial Theater. My mother and I were
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Speaker 1: left without a relation in the world except one uncle,
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Speaker 1: Ralph Smith, who went to Africa twenty five years ars ago,
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Speaker 1: and we have never had a word from him, since
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Speaker 1: when father died we were left very poor. But one
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Speaker 1: day we were told that there was an advertisement in
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Speaker 1: the Times inquiring for our whereabouts. You can imagine how
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Speaker 1: excited we were, for we thought that some one had
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Speaker 1: left us a fortune. We went at once to the
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Speaker 1: lawyer whose name was given in the paper. There we
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Speaker 1: met two gentlemen, mister Carruthers and mister Woodley, who were
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Speaker 1: home on a visit from South Africa. They said that
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Speaker 1: my uncle was a friend of theirs, that he had
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Speaker 1: died some months before in great poverty in Johannesburg, and
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Speaker 1: that he had asked them with his last breath to
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Speaker 1: hunt up his relations and see that they were in
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Speaker 1: no want. It seemed strange to us that Uncle Ralph,
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Speaker 1: who took no notice of us when he was alive,
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Speaker 1: should be so careful to look after us when he
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Speaker 1: was dead. But mister Carruthers explained that the reason was
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Speaker 1: that my uncle had just heard of the death of
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Speaker 1: his brother and so felt responsible for our fate. Excuse me,
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Speaker 1: said Holmes, when was this interview last December four months ago?
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Speaker 1: Pray proceed. Mister Woodley seemed to me to be a
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Speaker 1: most odious person. He was forever making eyes at me,
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Speaker 1: A coarse, puffy faced, red mustached young man with his
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Speaker 1: hair plastered down on each side of his forehead. I
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Speaker 1: thought that he was perfectly hateful, and I was sure
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Speaker 1: that Cyril would not wish me to know such a person. Oh,
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Speaker 1: Cyril is his name, said Holmes, smiling. The young lady
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Speaker 1: blushed and laughed. Yes, mister Holmes, Cyril Morton an electrical engineer,
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Speaker 1: and we hope to be married at the end of
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Speaker 1: the summer. Dear me, how did I get talking about him?
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Speaker 1: What I wished to say was that mister Woodley was
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Speaker 1: perfectly odious, but that mister Carruthers, who was a much
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Speaker 1: older man, was more agreeable. He was a dark, sallow,
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Speaker 1: clean shaven, silent person, but he had polite manners and
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Speaker 1: a pleasant smile. He inquired how we were left, and,
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Speaker 1: on finding that we were very poor, he suggested that
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Speaker 1: I should come and teach music to his only daughter,
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Speaker 1: aged ten. I said that I did not like to
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Speaker 1: leave my mother, on which he suggested that I should
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Speaker 1: go home to her every weekend, and he offered me
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Speaker 1: a hundred a year, which was certainly splendid pay. So
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Speaker 1: it ended by my accepting, and I went down to
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Speaker 1: Chilton Grange, about six miles from Farnham. Mister Carruthers was
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Speaker 1: a widower, but he had engaged a lady housekeeper, a
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Speaker 1: very respectable elderly person called missus Dixon, to look after
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Speaker 1: his establishment. The child was a dear and everything promised well.
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Speaker 1: Mister Carruthers was very kind and very musical, and we
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Speaker 1: had most pleasant evenings together every weekend I went home
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Speaker 1: to my mother in town. The first floor in my
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Speaker 1: happiness was the arrival of the red mustached mister Woodley.
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Speaker 1: He came for a visit of a week, and oh
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Speaker 1: it seemed three months to me. He was a dreadful person,
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Speaker 1: a bully to every one else, but to me something
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Speaker 1: infinitely worse. He made odious love to me, boasted of
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Speaker 1: his wealth, said that if I married him, I could
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Speaker 1: have the finest diamonds in London. And finally, when I
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Speaker 1: would have nothing to do with him, he seized me
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Speaker 1: in his arms one day after dinner. He was hideously
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Speaker 1: strong and swore that he would not let me go
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Speaker 1: until I had kissed him. Mister Carruthers came in and
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Speaker 1: tore him from me, on which he turned upon his
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Speaker 1: own host, knocking him down and cutting his face open.
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Speaker 1: That was the end of his visit. As you could imagine.
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Speaker 1: Mister Carubs apologized to me next day and assured me
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Speaker 1: that I should never be exposed to such an insult again.
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Speaker 1: I have not seen mister Woodley since. And now, mister Holmes,
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Speaker 1: I come at last to the special thing which has
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Speaker 1: caused me to ask your advice to day. You must
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Speaker 1: know that every Saturday forenoon I ride on my bicycle
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Speaker 1: to Farnham Station in order to get the twelve twenty
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Speaker 1: two to town. The road from Chilton Grange is a
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Speaker 1: lonely one, and at one spot it is particularly so,
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Speaker 1: for it lies for over a mile between Charlington Heath
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Speaker 1: upon one side and the woods which lie round Charlington
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Speaker 1: Hall upon the other. You could not find a more
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Speaker 1: lonely tract of road anywhere, and it is quite rare
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Speaker 1: to meet so much as a cart or a peasant
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Speaker 1: until you reach the high road near Crooksbury Hill. Two
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Speaker 1: weeks ago I was passing this place when I chanced
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Speaker 1: to look back over my shoulder, and about two hundred
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Speaker 1: yards behind me I saw a man, also on a bicycle.
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Speaker 1: He seemed to be a middle aged man with a
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Speaker 1: short dark beard. I looked back before I reached Farnham,
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Speaker 1: but the man was gone, so I thought no more
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Speaker 1: about it. But you can imagine how surprised I was,
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Speaker 1: mister Holmes, when on my return on the Monday, I
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Speaker 1: saw the same man on the same stretch of road.
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Speaker 1: My astonishment was increased when the incident occurred again exactly
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Speaker 1: as before on the following Saturday and Monday. He always
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Speaker 1: kept his distance and did not molest me in any way,
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Speaker 1: but still it certainly was very odd. I mentioned it
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Speaker 1: to mister Carruthers, who seemed interested in what I said,
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Speaker 1: and told me that he had ordered a horse and trap,
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Speaker 1: so that in future I should not pass over these
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Speaker 1: lonely roads without some companion. The horse and trap were
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Speaker 1: to have come this week, but for some reason they
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Speaker 1: were not delivered, and again I had to cycle to
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Speaker 1: the station that was this morning. You can think that
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Speaker 1: I looked out when I came to Charlington Heath, and
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Speaker 1: there sure enough was the man, exactly as he had
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Speaker 1: been the two weeks before. He always kept so far
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Speaker 1: from me that I could not clearly see his face,
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Speaker 1: but it was certainly someone whom I did not know.
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Speaker 1: He dressed in a dark suit with a cloth cap.
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Speaker 1: The only thing about his face that I could clearly
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Speaker 1: see was his dark beard. To day, I was not
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Speaker 1: so alarmed, but I was filled with curiosity, and I
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Speaker 1: determined to find out who he was and what he wanted.
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Speaker 1: I slowed down my machine, but he slowed down his.
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Speaker 1: Then I stopped altogether, but he stopped also. Then I
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Speaker 1: laid a trap for him. There is a sharp turning
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Speaker 1: of the road, and I peddled very quickly round this,
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Speaker 1: and then I stopped and waited. I expected him to
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Speaker 1: shoot round and pass me before he could stop, but
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Speaker 1: he never appeared. When I went back and looked round
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Speaker 1: the corner, I could see a mile of road, but
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Speaker 1: he was not on it. To make it the more extraordinary,
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Speaker 1: there was no side road at this point down which
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Speaker 1: he could have gone. Holmes chuckled and rubbed his hands.
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Speaker 1: This case certainly presents some features of its own, said he.
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Speaker 1: How much time elapsed between your turning the corner and
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Speaker 1: your discovery that the road was clear? Two or three minutes?
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Speaker 1: Then he could not have retreated down the road. And
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Speaker 1: you say that there are no side roads. None. Then
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Speaker 1: he certainly took a footpath on one side or the other.
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Speaker 1: It could not have been on the side of the heath,
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Speaker 1: or I should have seen him. So by the process
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Speaker 1: of exclusion we arrive at the fact that he made
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Speaker 1: his way toward Charlington Hall, which, as I understand, is
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Speaker 1: situated in its own grounds on one side of the road.
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Speaker 1: Anything else, nothing, mister Holmes, save that I was so
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Speaker 1: perplexed that I felt I should not be happy until
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Speaker 1: I had seen you and had your advice. Holmes sat
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Speaker 1: in silence for some little time. Where is the gentleman
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Speaker 1: to whom you are engaged. He is in the Midland
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Speaker 1: Electrical Company at Coventry. He would not pay you a
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Speaker 1: surprise visit. Oh, mister Holmes, as if I should not
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Speaker 1: know him? Have you had any other admirers? Several before
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Speaker 1: I knew Cyril? And since there was this dreadful man Woodley,
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Speaker 1: if you can call him an admirer, no one else.
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Speaker 1: Our fair client seemed a little confused. Who was he
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Speaker 1: asked Holmes. Oh, it may be a mere fancy of mine,
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Speaker 1: but it had seemed to me sometimes that my employer,
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Speaker 1: mister Carruthers, takes a great deal of interest in me.
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Speaker 1: We are thrown rather together. I play his accompaniments in
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Speaker 1: the evening. He has never said anything. He is a
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Speaker 1: perfect gentleman. But a girl always knows ha Holmes looked grave.
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Speaker 1: What does he do for a living. He is a
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Speaker 1: rich man, no carriages or horses. Well, at least, he
14:15
Speaker 1: is fairly well to do. But he goes into the
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Speaker 1: city two or three times a week. He is deeply
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Speaker 1: interested in South African gold chairs. You will let me
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Speaker 1: know any fresh development, Miss Smith. I am very busy
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Speaker 1: just now, but I will find time to make some
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Speaker 1: inquiries into your case. In the meantime. Take no step
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Speaker 1: without letting me know. Good Bye, and I trust that
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Speaker 1: we shall have nothing but good news from you. It
14:44
Speaker 1: is part of the settled order of nature that such
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Speaker 1: a girl should have followers, said Holmes, as he pulled
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Speaker 1: at his meditative pipe. But for choice, not on bicycles
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Speaker 1: in lonely country roads. Some secretive lover beyond all dug
15:00
Speaker 1: But there are curious and suggestive details about the case, Watson,
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Speaker 1: that he should appear only at that point exactly. Our
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Speaker 1: first effort must be to find who are the tenants
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Speaker 1: of Charlington Hall. Then again, how about the connection between
15:17
Speaker 1: Corrubos and Woodley, Since they appear to be men of
15:20
Speaker 1: such a different type. How came they both to be
15:24
Speaker 1: so keen upon looking up Ralph Smith's relations? One more point,
15:29
Speaker 1: what sort of a menage is it which pays double
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Speaker 1: the market price for a governess but does not keep
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Speaker 1: a horse? Although six miles from the station, odd, Watson,
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Speaker 1: very odd, you will go down. No, my dear fellow,
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Speaker 1: you will go down. This may be some trifling intrigue,
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Speaker 1: and I cannot break my other important research for the
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Speaker 1: sake of it. On Monday you will arrive early at Farnham.
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Speaker 1: You will conceal yourself near Charlington. You will observe these
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Speaker 1: facts for yourself, and act as your own judgment advises. Then,
16:06
Speaker 1: having inquired as to the occupants of the hall, you
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Speaker 1: will come back to me and report. And now, Watson,
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Speaker 1: not another word of the matter until we have a
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Speaker 1: few solid stepping stones on which we may hope to
16:19
Speaker 1: get across to our solution. We had ascertained from the
16:24
Speaker 1: lady that she went down upon the Monday by the
16:27
Speaker 1: train which leaves Waterloo at nine fifty. So I started
16:31
Speaker 1: early and caught the nine thirteen at Farnham station. I
16:35
Speaker 1: had no difficulty in being directed to Charlington Heath. It
16:40
Speaker 1: was impossible to mistake the scene of the young lady's adventure,
16:44
Speaker 1: for the road runs between the open heath on one
16:46
Speaker 1: side and an old yew hedge upon the other, the
16:50
Speaker 1: surrounding a park which is studded with magnificent trees. There
16:55
Speaker 1: was a main gateway of leichen studded stone, each side
16:59
Speaker 1: pillar surmounted by moldering heraldic emblems. But besides this central
17:04
Speaker 1: carriage drive, I observed several points where there were gaps
17:08
Speaker 1: in the hedge and paths leading through them. The house
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Speaker 1: was invisible from the road, but the surroundings all spoke
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Speaker 1: of gloom and decay. The heath was covered with golden
17:19
Speaker 1: patches of flowering gorse gleaming magnificently in the light of
17:24
Speaker 1: the bright spring sunshine. Behind one of these clumps, I
17:28
Speaker 1: took my position so as to command both the gateway
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Speaker 1: of the hall and a long stretch of the road
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Speaker 1: upon either side. It had been deserted when I left it,
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Speaker 1: but now I saw a cyclist riding down it from
17:41
Speaker 1: the opposite direction to that in which I had come.
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Speaker 1: He was clad in a dark suit, and I saw
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Speaker 1: that he had a black beard. On reaching the end
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Speaker 1: of the Charlington grounds, he sprang from his machine and
17:53
Speaker 1: led it through a gap in the hedge, disappearing from
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Speaker 1: my view. A quarter of an hour past stand. Then
18:00
Speaker 1: a second cyclist appeared. This time it was the young
18:04
Speaker 1: lady coming from the station. I saw her look about
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Speaker 1: her as she came to the Charlington Hedge. An instant later,
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Speaker 1: the man emerged from his hiding place, sprang upon his cycle,
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Speaker 1: and followed her. In all the broad landscape, those were
18:19
Speaker 1: the only moving figures, the graceful girl sitting very straight
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Speaker 1: upon her machine, and the man behind her, bending low
18:26
Speaker 1: over his handlebar with a curiously furtive suggestion. In every movement,
18:31
Speaker 1: she looked back at him and slowed her pace. He
18:34
Speaker 1: slowed also, she stopped. He at once stopped too, keeping
18:40
Speaker 1: two hundred yards behind her. Her next movement was as
18:44
Speaker 1: unexpected as it was spirited. She suddenly whisked her wheels
18:49
Speaker 1: round and dashed straight at him. He was as quick
18:52
Speaker 1: as she, however, and darted off in desperate flight. Presently
18:57
Speaker 1: she came back up the road again, her head haughtily
19:00
Speaker 1: in the air, not deigning to take any further notice
19:03
Speaker 1: of her silent attendant. He had turned also, and still
19:07
Speaker 1: kept his distance until the curve of the road hid
19:11
Speaker 1: them from my sight. I remained in my hiding place,
19:15
Speaker 1: and it was well that I did so, for presently
19:17
Speaker 1: the man reappeared, cycling slowly back. He turned in at
19:22
Speaker 1: the hall gates and dismounted from his machine. For some
19:27
Speaker 1: minutes I could see him standing among the trees. His
19:30
Speaker 1: hands were raised and he seemed to be settling his necktie.
19:35
Speaker 1: Then he mounted his cycle and rode away from me
19:37
Speaker 1: down the drive towards the hall. I ran across the
19:42
Speaker 1: heath and peered through the trees. Far away I could
19:45
Speaker 1: catch glimpses of the old gray building with its bristling
19:48
Speaker 1: tudor chimneys, but the drive ran through a dense shrubbery
19:54
Speaker 1: and I saw no more of my man. However, it
19:58
Speaker 1: seemed to me that I had done a fairly good
20:00
Speaker 1: morning's work, and I walked back in high spirits to Farnham.
20:04
Speaker 1: The local house agent could tell me nothing about Charlington Hall,
20:08
Speaker 1: and referred me to a well known firm in pall Mall.
20:13
Speaker 1: There I halted on my way home and was met
20:16
Speaker 1: with courtesy from the representative. No, I could not have
20:20
Speaker 1: Charlington Hall for the summer. I was just too late.
20:24
Speaker 1: It had been let about a month ago. Mister Williamson
20:28
Speaker 1: was the name of the tenant. He was a respectable,
20:30
Speaker 1: elderly gentleman. The polite agent was afraid he could say
20:34
Speaker 1: no more, as the affairs of his clients were not
20:37
Speaker 1: matters which he could discuss. Mister Sherlock Holmes listened with
20:42
Speaker 1: attention to the long report which I was able to
20:45
Speaker 1: present to him that evening, But it did not elicit
20:48
Speaker 1: that word of curt praise, which I had hoped for
20:51
Speaker 1: and should have valued. On the contrary, his austere face
20:55
Speaker 1: was even more severe than usual, as he commented upon
20:59
Speaker 1: the things that I had done and the things that
21:01
Speaker 1: I had not. Your hiding place, my dear Watson, was
21:06
Speaker 1: very faulty. You should have been behind the hedge. Then
21:10
Speaker 1: you would have had a close view of this interesting person.
21:13
Speaker 1: As it is, you were some hundreds of yards away,
21:16
Speaker 1: and can tell me even less than Miss Smith. She
21:19
Speaker 1: thinks she does not know the man. I am convinced
21:23
Speaker 1: she does. Why otherwise should he be so desperately anxious
21:27
Speaker 1: that she should not get so near him as to
21:29
Speaker 1: see his features. You describe him as bending over the
21:33
Speaker 1: handlebar concealment. Again. You see you really have done remarkably badly.
21:41
Speaker 1: He returns to the house and you want to find
21:43
Speaker 1: out who he is. You come to a London house agent.
21:48
Speaker 1: What should I have done? I cried with some heat.
21:53
Speaker 1: Gone to the nearest public house that is the center
21:56
Speaker 1: of country gossip. They would have told you every name,
21:59
Speaker 1: from the master to the scullery maid. Williamson. It conveys
22:04
Speaker 1: nothing to my mind. If he is an elderly man.
22:08
Speaker 1: He is not this active cyclist who sprints away from
22:12
Speaker 1: that young lady's athletic pursuit. What have we gained by
22:16
Speaker 1: your expedition the knowledge that the girl's story is true.
22:21
Speaker 1: I never doubted it that there is a connection between
22:25
Speaker 1: the cyclist and the hall. I never doubted that either,
22:30
Speaker 1: that the hall is tenanted by Williamson. Who's the better
22:34
Speaker 1: for that? Well, well, my dear sir, don't look so depressed.
22:38
Speaker 1: We can do little more until next Saturday, and in
22:41
Speaker 1: the meantime I may make one or two inquiries myself.
22:45
Speaker 1: Next morning we had a note from miss Smith recounting
22:49
Speaker 1: shortly and accurately the very incidents which I had seen.
22:54
Speaker 1: But the pith of the letter lay in the PostScript.
22:58
Speaker 1: I am sure that you will respect my comfort, mister Holmes,
23:01
Speaker 1: when I tell you that my place here has become
23:03
Speaker 1: difficult owing to the fact that my employer has proposed
23:07
Speaker 1: marriage to me. I am convinced that his feelings are
23:11
Speaker 1: most deep and most honorable. At the same time, my
23:15
Speaker 1: promise is, of course given. He took my refusal very seriously,
23:19
Speaker 1: but also very gently. You can understand, however, that the
23:23
Speaker 1: situation is a little strained. Our young friend seems to
23:27
Speaker 1: be getting into deep waters, said Holmes thoughtfully as he
23:30
Speaker 1: finished the letter. The case certainly presents more features of
23:34
Speaker 1: interest and more possibility of development than I had originally thought.
23:39
Speaker 1: I should be none the worse for a quiet, peaceful
23:41
Speaker 1: day in the country, and I am inclined to run
23:44
Speaker 1: down this afternoon and test one or two theories which
23:47
Speaker 1: I have formed. Holmes's quiet day in the country had
23:52
Speaker 1: a singular termination, for he arrived at Baker Street late
23:56
Speaker 1: in the evening with a cut lip and a discolored
23:59
Speaker 1: lump upon his forehead, besides a general air of dissipation,
24:04
Speaker 1: which would have made his own person the fitting object
24:07
Speaker 1: of a Scotland yard investigation. He was immensely tickled by
24:11
Speaker 1: his own adventures and laughed heartily as he recounted them.
24:15
Speaker 1: I get so little active exercise that it is always
24:18
Speaker 1: a treat, said he. You are aware that I have
24:21
Speaker 1: some proficiency in the good old British sport of boxing.
24:25
Speaker 1: Occasionally it is of service to day. For example, I
24:29
Speaker 1: should have come to very ignominious grief without it. I
24:34
Speaker 1: begged him to tell me what had occurred. I found
24:37
Speaker 1: that country pub, which I had already recommended to your notice,
24:41
Speaker 1: and there I made my discreet inquiries. I was in
24:45
Speaker 1: the bar and a garrulous landlord was giving me all
24:48
Speaker 1: that I wanted. Williamson is a white bearded man and
24:53
Speaker 1: lives alone with a small staff of servants at the hall.
24:57
Speaker 1: There is some rumor that he is or has been,
24:59
Speaker 1: a lergyman, but one or two incidents of his short
25:03
Speaker 1: residence at the hall struck me as peculiarly un ecclesiastical.
25:08
Speaker 1: I have already made some inquiries out a clerical agency,
25:12
Speaker 1: and they tell me there was a man of that
25:14
Speaker 1: name in orders whose career has been a singularly dark one.
25:20
Speaker 1: The landlord further informed me that there are usually week
25:23
Speaker 1: end visitors, a warm lot sir at the hall, and
25:29
Speaker 1: especially one gentleman with a red mustache, mister Woodley by name,
25:34
Speaker 1: who was always there. We had got as far as
25:38
Speaker 1: this when who should walk in but the gentleman himself,
25:41
Speaker 1: who had been drinking his beer in the tap room
25:44
Speaker 1: and had heard the whole conversation. Who was I? What
25:48
Speaker 1: did I want? What did I mean by asking questions?
25:52
Speaker 1: He had a fine flow of language, and his adjectives
25:56
Speaker 1: were very vigorous. He ended a string of abuse by
25:59
Speaker 1: a vicious back hander, which I failed to entirely avoid.
26:04
Speaker 1: The next few minutes were delicious. It was a straight
26:08
Speaker 1: left against a slogging ruffian. I emerged as you see me.
26:13
Speaker 1: Mister Woodley went home in a cart. So ended my
26:17
Speaker 1: country trip. And it must be confessed that, however enjoyable,
26:23
Speaker 1: my day on the Surrey border, has not been much
26:25
Speaker 1: more profitable than your own. The Thursday brought us another
26:30
Speaker 1: letter from our client. You will not be surprised, mister Holmes,
26:35
Speaker 1: said she to hear that I am leaving mister Carruther's employment.
26:39
Speaker 1: Even the high pay cannot reconcile me to the discomforts
26:43
Speaker 1: of my situation. On Saturday, I come up to town,
26:46
Speaker 1: and I do not intend to return. Mister Carruthers has
26:50
Speaker 1: got a trap, and so the dangers of the lonely road,
26:54
Speaker 1: if there ever were any dangers, are now over. As
26:58
Speaker 1: to the special cause of my it is not merely
27:01
Speaker 1: the strange situation with mister Caruthers, but it is the
27:05
Speaker 1: reappearance of that odious man, mister Woodley. He was always hideous,
27:10
Speaker 1: but he looks more awful than ever now, for he
27:13
Speaker 1: appears to have had an accident, and he is much disfigured.
27:17
Speaker 1: I saw him out of the window, but I am
27:18
Speaker 1: glad to say I did not meet him. He had
27:21
Speaker 1: a long talk with mister Caruthers, who seemed much excited afterwards.
27:26
Speaker 1: Woodley must be staying in the neighborhood, for he did
27:29
Speaker 1: not sleep here. And yet I caught a glimpse of
27:32
Speaker 1: him again this morning, slinking about in the shrubbery. I
27:36
Speaker 1: would sooner have a savage, wild animal loose about the place.
27:40
Speaker 1: I loathe and fear him more than I can say.
27:43
Speaker 1: How can mister Carruthers endure such a creature for a moment? However,
27:48
Speaker 1: all my troubles will be over On Saturday. So I
27:52
Speaker 1: trust Watson. So I trust said Holmes gravely. There is
27:56
Speaker 1: some deep intrigue going on round that little woman, and
28:00
Speaker 1: it is our duty to see that no one molests
28:03
Speaker 1: her upon that last journey. I think, Watson, that we
28:07
Speaker 1: must spare time to run down together on Saturday morning
28:10
Speaker 1: and make sure that this curious and inclusive investigation has
28:15
Speaker 1: no untoward ending. I confess that I had not up
28:19
Speaker 1: to now taken a very serious view of the case,
28:22
Speaker 1: which had seemed to me rather grotesque and bizarre than dangerous.
28:28
Speaker 1: That a man should lie in, wait for and follow
28:30
Speaker 1: a very handsome woman is no unheard of thing. And
28:35
Speaker 1: if he has so little audacity that he not only
28:38
Speaker 1: dared not address her, but even fled from her approach,
28:42
Speaker 1: he was not a very formidable assailant. The Ruffian Woodley
28:46
Speaker 1: was a very different person. But except on one occasion,
28:50
Speaker 1: he had not molested our client, and now he visited
28:54
Speaker 1: the House of Caruthers without intruding upon her present. The
28:58
Speaker 1: man on the bicycle was doubtless a member of those
29:00
Speaker 1: weekend parties at the hall of which the Publican had spoken,
29:04
Speaker 1: but who he was or what he wanted was as
29:07
Speaker 1: obscure as Ever, it was the severity of Holmes's manner,
29:13
Speaker 1: and the fact that he slipped a revolver into his
29:16
Speaker 1: pocket before leaving our rooms, which impressed me with the
29:19
Speaker 1: feeling that tragedy might prove to lurk behind this curious
29:23
Speaker 1: train of events. A rainy night had been followed by
29:28
Speaker 1: a glorious morning, and the heath covered countryside with the
29:33
Speaker 1: glowing clumps of flowering gorse, seemed all the more beautiful
29:37
Speaker 1: to eyes which were weary of the duns and drabs
29:40
Speaker 1: and slate grays of London. Holmes and I walked along
29:44
Speaker 1: the broad sandy road, inhaling the fresh morning air and
29:48
Speaker 1: rejoicing in the music of the birds and the fresh
29:50
Speaker 1: breath of the spring. From a rise of the road
29:54
Speaker 1: on the shoulder of Crooksbury Hill, we could see the
29:57
Speaker 1: grim Hall bristling out from amidst the ancient oaks, which,
30:01
Speaker 1: old as they were, were still younger than the building
30:04
Speaker 1: which they surrounded. Homes pointed down the long tract of road,
30:08
Speaker 1: which wound a reddish yellow band between the brown of
30:11
Speaker 1: the heath and the budding green of the woods. Far away,
30:16
Speaker 1: a black dot we could see a vehicle moving in
30:18
Speaker 1: our direction, Holmes gave an exclamation of impatience. I have
30:24
Speaker 1: given a margin of half an hour, said he. If
30:27
Speaker 1: that is her trap, she must be making for the
30:30
Speaker 1: earlier train. I fear, Watson, that she will be past
30:33
Speaker 1: Charlington before we can possibly meet her. From the instant
30:38
Speaker 1: that we passed the rise, we could no longer see
30:40
Speaker 1: the vehicle, But we hastened onward at such a pace
30:44
Speaker 1: that my sedentary life began to tell upon me, and
30:47
Speaker 1: I was compelled to fall behind. Holmes, however, was always
30:51
Speaker 1: in training, for he had inexhaustible stores of nervous energy
30:55
Speaker 1: upon which to draw. His springy step never slowed, until suddenly,
31:00
Speaker 1: when he was a hundred yards in front of me,
31:02
Speaker 1: he halted, and I saw him throw up his hand
31:05
Speaker 1: with a gesture of grief and despair. At the same instant,
31:10
Speaker 1: an empty dog cart, the horse cantering the reins trailing,
31:14
Speaker 1: appeared round the curve of the road and rattled swiftly
31:17
Speaker 1: towards us. Too late, Watson, too late, cried Holmes, as
31:22
Speaker 1: I ran, panting to his side, fool that I was
31:26
Speaker 1: not to allow for that earlier train. Its abduction, Watson abduction, murder.
31:32
Speaker 1: Heaven knows what block the road. Stop the horse, that's
31:36
Speaker 1: right now, jump in and let us see if I
31:39
Speaker 1: can repair the consequences of my own blunder. We had
31:44
Speaker 1: sprung into the dog cart, and Holmes, after turning the horse,
31:47
Speaker 1: gave it a sharp cut with the whip, and we
31:50
Speaker 1: flew back along the road. As we turned the curve,
31:53
Speaker 1: the whole stretch of road between the hall and the
31:55
Speaker 1: heath was opened up. I grasped Holmes's arm. That's the man,
32:00
Speaker 1: I gasped. A solitary cyclist was coming towards us. His
32:05
Speaker 1: head was down and his shoulders rounded as he put
32:08
Speaker 1: every ounce of energy that he possessed onto the pedals.
32:12
Speaker 1: He was flying like a racer. Suddenly he raised his
32:16
Speaker 1: bearded face, saw us close to him, and pulled up,
32:19
Speaker 1: springing from his machine. That coal black beard was in
32:24
Speaker 1: singular contrast to eyes that were as bright as if
32:26
Speaker 1: he had a fever. He stared at us and the
32:29
Speaker 1: dog cart. Then a look of amazement came over his face. Halloa,
32:34
Speaker 1: stop there, he shouted, holding his bicycle to block our road.
32:39
Speaker 1: Where did you get that dog cart? Pull up, man,
32:41
Speaker 1: he yelled, drawing a pistol from his side. Pull up,
32:46
Speaker 1: I say, or by George, I'll put a bullet into
32:48
Speaker 1: your horse. Holmes threw the reins into my lap and
32:52
Speaker 1: sprang down from the cart. You're the man we want
32:55
Speaker 1: to see. Where is miss Violet Smith, he said, in
32:58
Speaker 1: his quick, clear way. That's what I'm asking you. You're
33:02
Speaker 1: in her dog cart. You ought to know where she is.
33:05
Speaker 1: We met the dog cart on the road. There was
33:07
Speaker 1: no one in it. We drove back to help the
33:10
Speaker 1: young lady. Good lord, what shall I do? Cried the stranger,
33:14
Speaker 1: in an ecstasy of despair. They've got to that hellhound
33:18
Speaker 1: Woodley and the Blackguard Parson. Come man, Come, if you
33:21
Speaker 1: really are her friend, stand by me and will save
33:23
Speaker 1: her if I have to leave mar carcass in Charlington
33:26
Speaker 1: wood He ran, distractedly, his pistol in his hand, towards
33:31
Speaker 1: a gap in the hedge. Holmes followed him, and I
33:34
Speaker 1: leaving the horse grazing beside the road, followed Holmes. This
33:39
Speaker 1: is where they came through, said he, pointing to the
33:42
Speaker 1: marks of several feet upon the muddy path. HULLO, stop
33:45
Speaker 1: a minute, who's this in the bush? It was a
33:49
Speaker 1: young fellow about seventeen, dressed like an ostler, with leather cords.
33:53
Speaker 1: And gaiters. He lay upon his back, his knees drawn up,
33:58
Speaker 1: a terrible cut upon his head. He was insensible, but alive.
34:04
Speaker 1: A glance at his wound told me that it had
34:06
Speaker 1: not penetrated the bone. That's Peter the groom, cried the stranger.
34:12
Speaker 1: He drove her. The beasts have pulled him off and
34:14
Speaker 1: clubbed him. Let him lie. We can't do him any good,
34:19
Speaker 1: but we may save her from the worst fate that
34:21
Speaker 1: can befall a woman. We ran frantically down the path,
34:26
Speaker 1: which wound among the trees. We had reached the shrubbery
34:30
Speaker 1: which surrounded the house when Holmes pulled up. They didn't
34:33
Speaker 1: go to the house. Here are their marks on the left,
34:37
Speaker 1: here beside the laurel bushes, Ah, I said, so as
34:42
Speaker 1: he spoke, a woman's shrill scream. A scream which vibrated
34:47
Speaker 1: with a frenzy of horror, burst from the thick green
34:49
Speaker 1: clump of bushes in front of us. It ended suddenly
34:53
Speaker 1: on its highest note, with a choke and a gurgle.
34:57
Speaker 1: This way they are in the bowling alley, cried the stranger,
35:01
Speaker 1: darting through the bushes. Ah, the cowardly dogs follow me. Gentlemen,
35:06
Speaker 1: too late by the living Jingo. We had broken suddenly
35:10
Speaker 1: into a lovely glade of green sward, surrounded by ancient trees.
35:14
Speaker 1: On the farther side of it, under the shadow of
35:17
Speaker 1: a mighty oak, there stood a singular group of three people.
35:21
Speaker 1: One was a woman, our client, drooping and faint, a
35:26
Speaker 1: handkerchief round her mouth. Opposite her stood a brutal, heavy faced,
35:31
Speaker 1: red mustached young man, his gaitered legs parted wide, one
35:36
Speaker 1: arm akimbo, the other waving a riding crop, his whole
35:41
Speaker 1: attitude suggestive of triumphant bravado. Between them, an elderly gray
35:46
Speaker 1: bearded man wearing a short surplice over a light tweed suit,
35:51
Speaker 1: had evidently just completed the wedding service, for he pocketed
35:55
Speaker 1: his prayer book as we appeared, and slapped the sinister
35:59
Speaker 1: bridegroom upon the back in jovial congratulation. They're married, I gasped,
36:07
Speaker 1: Come on, cried our guide, Come on. He rushed across
36:10
Speaker 1: the glade homes and I at his heels. As we approached,
36:14
Speaker 1: the ladies staggered against the trunk of the tree for support. Williamson,
36:19
Speaker 1: the ex clergyman, bowed to us with mock politeness, and
36:23
Speaker 1: the bully Woodley advanced with a shout of brutal and
36:25
Speaker 1: exultant laughter. You can take your beard off, Bob said
36:30
Speaker 1: he I know you right enough. Well, you and your
36:33
Speaker 1: pals have just come in time for me to be
36:35
Speaker 1: able to introduce you to missus. Woodley, our guide's answer
36:40
Speaker 1: was a singular one. He snatched off the dark beard
36:43
Speaker 1: which had disguised him and threw it on the ground,
36:46
Speaker 1: disclosing a long, sallow, clean shaven face below it. Then
36:51
Speaker 1: he raised his revolver and covered the young ruffian who
36:54
Speaker 1: was advancing upon him with his dangerous riding crop swinging
36:58
Speaker 1: in his hand. Yes, said our ally. I am Bob Carruthers,
37:03
Speaker 1: and I'll see this woman right it if I have
37:05
Speaker 1: to swing for it. I told you what I'll do
37:08
Speaker 1: if you molested her, and by the Lord, I'll be
37:10
Speaker 1: as good as my word. You're too late. She's my wife. No,
37:16
Speaker 1: she's your widow. His revolver cracked, and I saw the
37:21
Speaker 1: blood spurt from the front of Woodley's waistcoat. He spun
37:25
Speaker 1: round with a scream and fell upon his back, his
37:27
Speaker 1: hideous red face turning suddenly to a dreadful, mottled pallor.
37:32
Speaker 1: The old man, still clad in his surplace, burst into
37:36
Speaker 1: such a string of foul oaths as I have never heard,
37:39
Speaker 1: and pulled out a revolver of his own. But before
37:43
Speaker 1: he could raise it, he was looking down the barrel
37:45
Speaker 1: of Holmes's weapon. Enough of this, said my friend, coldly.
37:50
Speaker 1: Drop that pistol. Watson, pick it up, hold it to
37:53
Speaker 1: his head. Thank you you, Carruthers, give me that revolver.
37:59
Speaker 1: We'll have no more violence. Come hand it over. Who
38:02
Speaker 1: are you then? My name is Sherlock Holmes. Good lord,
38:08
Speaker 1: you have heard of me. I see I will represent
38:12
Speaker 1: the official police until their arrival. Here you, he shouted
38:17
Speaker 1: to a frightened groom who had appeared at the edge
38:20
Speaker 1: of the glade. Come here, take this note as hard
38:24
Speaker 1: as you can, ride to Farnham. He scribbled a few
38:27
Speaker 1: words upon a leaf from his notebook. Give it to
38:30
Speaker 1: the superintendent at the police station until he comes. I
38:34
Speaker 1: must detain you all under my personal custody. The strong,
38:39
Speaker 1: masterful personality of Homes dominated the tragic scene, and all
38:44
Speaker 1: were equally puppets in his hands. Williamson and Carruthers found
38:48
Speaker 1: themselves carrying the wounded Woodley into the house, and I
38:52
Speaker 1: gave my arm to the frightened girl. The injured man
38:56
Speaker 1: was laid on his bed, and at Holmes's request, I
38:59
Speaker 1: examine him. I carried my report to where he sat
39:03
Speaker 1: in the old tapestry hung dining room, with his two
39:07
Speaker 1: prisoners before him. He will live, said I what, cried Carruthers,
39:13
Speaker 1: springing out of his chair. I'll go upstairs and finish him. First.
39:18
Speaker 1: Do you tell me that that angel is to be
39:20
Speaker 1: tied to Roaring Jack Woodleigh for life? You need not
39:24
Speaker 1: concern yourself about that, said Holmes. There are two very
39:28
Speaker 1: good reasons why she should, under no circumstances, be his wife.
39:32
Speaker 1: In the first place, we are very safe in questioning
39:35
Speaker 1: mister Williamson's right to solemnize a marriage. I have been ordained,
39:40
Speaker 1: cried the old rascal, and also unfrocked. Once a clergyman,
39:46
Speaker 1: always a clergyman. I think not. How about the license?
39:51
Speaker 1: We had a license for the marriage. I have it
39:53
Speaker 1: here in my pocket. Then you got it by trick.
39:58
Speaker 1: But in any case, a forced marriage is no marriage.
40:01
Speaker 1: But it is a very serious felony, as you will
40:04
Speaker 1: discover before you have finished. You'll have time to think
40:08
Speaker 1: the point out during the next ten years or so.
40:11
Speaker 1: Unless I am mistaken as to you, Caruthers, you would
40:15
Speaker 1: have done better to keep your pistol in your pocket.
40:18
Speaker 1: I begin to think so, mister Holmes. But when I
40:21
Speaker 1: thought of all the precaution I had taken to shield
40:24
Speaker 1: this girl, for I loved her, mister Holmes, and it
40:27
Speaker 1: is the only time that ever I knew what love was.
40:31
Speaker 1: It fairly drove me mad to think that she was
40:33
Speaker 1: in the power of the greatest brute and bully in
40:36
Speaker 1: South Africa, a man whose name is a holy terror
40:40
Speaker 1: from Kimberley to Johannesburg. Why, mister Holmes, you'll hardly believe it.
40:45
Speaker 1: But ever since that girl has been in my employment,
40:48
Speaker 1: I never once let her go past this house where
40:51
Speaker 1: I knew the rascals were lurking, without following her on
40:54
Speaker 1: my bicycle, just to see that she came to no harm.
40:59
Speaker 1: I kept my discs from her, and I wore a
41:01
Speaker 1: beard so that she should not recognize me. For she
41:05
Speaker 1: is a good and high spirited girl, and she wouldn't
41:08
Speaker 1: have stayed in my employment long if she had thought
41:11
Speaker 1: that I was following her about the country roads. Why
41:15
Speaker 1: didn't you tell her of her danger, because then again
41:19
Speaker 1: she would have left me, and I couldn't bear to
41:21
Speaker 1: face that. Even if she couldn't love me, it was
41:25
Speaker 1: a great deal to me just to see her dainty
41:27
Speaker 1: form about the house and to hear the sound of
41:30
Speaker 1: her voice, well, said I you call that love, mister Carruthers,
41:36
Speaker 1: but I should call it selfishness. Maybe the two things
41:39
Speaker 1: go together. Anyhow, I couldn't let her go. Besides, with
41:44
Speaker 1: this crowd about, it was well that she should have
41:47
Speaker 1: some one near to look after her. Then when the
41:51
Speaker 1: cable came, I knew they were bound to make a move.
41:55
Speaker 1: What cable. Carruthers took a telegram from his pocket. That's it,
42:01
Speaker 1: said he. It was short and concise. The old man
42:07
Speaker 1: is dead. Hum said Holmes. I think I see how
42:12
Speaker 1: things worked, and I can understand how this message would,
42:16
Speaker 1: as you say, bring them to a head. But while
42:19
Speaker 1: you wait, you might tell me what you can. The
42:24
Speaker 1: old reprobate with the surplice, burst into a volley of
42:27
Speaker 1: bad language. By heaven, said he. If you squeal on us,
42:31
Speaker 1: Bob Carrothers, I'll serve you as you serve Jack Woodley.
42:36
Speaker 1: You can bleat about the girl to your heart's content,
42:38
Speaker 1: for that's your own affair. But if you round on
42:41
Speaker 1: your pals to this plainclothes copper, it will be the
42:44
Speaker 1: worst day's work that ever you did. Your reverence need
42:48
Speaker 1: not be excited, said Holmes, lighting a cigarette. The case
42:53
Speaker 1: is clear enough against you, and all I ask is
42:56
Speaker 1: a few details for my private curiosity. However, if there's
43:00
Speaker 1: any difficulty in your telling me, I'll do the talking,
43:03
Speaker 1: and then you will see how far you have a
43:05
Speaker 1: chance of holding back your secrets. In the first place,
43:09
Speaker 1: three of you came from South Africa on this game.
43:12
Speaker 1: You Williamson, You Carruthers, and Woodley lie number one, said
43:17
Speaker 1: the old man. I never saw either of them until
43:20
Speaker 1: two months ago, and I have never been in Africa
43:23
Speaker 1: in my life. So you can put that in your
43:25
Speaker 1: pipe and smoke it. Mister busybuddy Holmes. What he says
43:30
Speaker 1: is true, said Carruthers. Well, two of you came over.
43:35
Speaker 1: His reverence is our own home made article. You had
43:39
Speaker 1: known Ralph Smith in South Africa. You had reason to
43:42
Speaker 1: believe he would not live long. You found out that
43:46
Speaker 1: his niece would inherit his fortune. How's that, eh? Carruthers
43:51
Speaker 1: nodded and Williamson swore she was next of kin, no doubt,
43:55
Speaker 1: and you were aware that the old fellow would make
43:58
Speaker 1: no will, couldn't read or write. So you came over,
44:02
Speaker 1: the two of you and hunted up the girl. The
44:05
Speaker 1: idea was that one of you was to marry her
44:08
Speaker 1: and the other have a share of the plunder. For
44:11
Speaker 1: some reason, Woodley was chosen as the husband. Why was
44:15
Speaker 1: that we plied the cards for her on the voyage
44:19
Speaker 1: he won? I see, you got the young lady into
44:23
Speaker 1: your service, and there Woodley was to do the courting.
44:28
Speaker 1: She recognized the drunken brute that he was and would
44:30
Speaker 1: have nothing to do with him. Meanwhile, your arrangement was
44:34
Speaker 1: rather upset by the fact that you had yourself fallen
44:37
Speaker 1: in love with the lady. You could no longer bear
44:40
Speaker 1: the idea of this ruffian owning her. No, by George,
44:44
Speaker 1: I couldn't. There was a quarrel between you. He left
44:48
Speaker 1: you in a rage and began to make his own
44:50
Speaker 1: plans independently of you. It strikes me, Williamson, there isn't
44:56
Speaker 1: very much that we can tell this gentleman, cried Corrovos
45:00
Speaker 1: with a bitter laugh. Yes, we quarreled, and he knocked
45:04
Speaker 1: me down. I'm level with him on that anyhow. Then
45:09
Speaker 1: I lost sight of him. That was when he picked
45:12
Speaker 1: up with this outcast Padre. Here. I found that they
45:16
Speaker 1: had set up housekeeping together at this place on the
45:19
Speaker 1: line that she had to pass for the station. I
45:23
Speaker 1: kept my eye on her after that, for I knew
45:25
Speaker 1: there was some devilry in the wind. I saw them
45:28
Speaker 1: from time to time, for I was anxious to know
45:31
Speaker 1: what they were. After two days ago, Woodley came up
45:36
Speaker 1: to my house with this cable which showed that Ralph
45:39
Speaker 1: Smith was dead. He asked me if I would stand
45:42
Speaker 1: by the bargain. I said I would not. He asked
45:46
Speaker 1: me if I would marry the girl myself and give
45:48
Speaker 1: him a share. I said I would willingly do so,
45:51
Speaker 1: but that she would not have me. He said, let
45:55
Speaker 1: us get her married first, and after a week or
45:57
Speaker 1: two she may see things a bit different. I said,
46:01
Speaker 1: I would have nothing to do with violence. So he
46:04
Speaker 1: went off, cursing like the foulmouthed blagguard that he was,
46:08
Speaker 1: and swearing that he would have her. Yet she was
46:12
Speaker 1: leaving me this weekend, and I had got a trap
46:15
Speaker 1: to take her to the station. But I was so
46:18
Speaker 1: uneasy in my mind that I followed her on my bicycle.
46:22
Speaker 1: She had got a start, however, and before I could
46:25
Speaker 1: catch her, the mischief was done. The first thing I
46:29
Speaker 1: knew about it was when I saw you two gentlemen
46:32
Speaker 1: driving back in her dog cart. Holmes rose and tossed
46:36
Speaker 1: the end of his cigarette into the grate. I have
46:39
Speaker 1: been very obtuse, Watson, said he when in your report
46:44
Speaker 1: you said that you had seen the cyclist, as you thought,
46:47
Speaker 1: arrange his neck tie in the shrubbery, that alone should
46:51
Speaker 1: have told me all. However, we may congratulate ourselves upon
46:55
Speaker 1: a curious and in some respects a unique case. I
47:00
Speaker 1: perceive three of the county constabulary in the drive, and
47:04
Speaker 1: I am glad to see that the little ostler is
47:07
Speaker 1: able to keep pace with them. So it is likely
47:10
Speaker 1: that neither he nor the interesting bridegroom will be permanently
47:14
Speaker 1: damaged by their morning's adventures. I think, Watson, that in
47:18
Speaker 1: your medical capacity, you might wait upon miss Smith and
47:23
Speaker 1: tell her that, if she is sufficiently recovered, we shall
47:26
Speaker 1: be happy to escort her to her mother's home. If
47:30
Speaker 1: she is not quite convalescent. You will find that a
47:32
Speaker 1: hint that we were about to telegraph to a young
47:35
Speaker 1: electrician in the Midlands would probably complete the cure. As
47:41
Speaker 1: to you, mister Carruthers, I think that you have done
47:44
Speaker 1: what you could to make amends for your share in
47:47
Speaker 1: an evil plot. There is my card, sir, and if
47:51
Speaker 1: my evidence can be of help in your trial, it
47:53
Speaker 1: shall be at your disposal. In the whirl of our
47:57
Speaker 1: incessant activity, it is often been difficult for me, as
48:01
Speaker 1: the reader has probably observed, to round off my narratives
48:05
Speaker 1: and to give those final details which the curious might expect.
48:11
Speaker 1: Each case has been the prelude to another, and the crisis,
48:14
Speaker 1: once over, the actors have passed forever out of our
48:17
Speaker 1: busy lives. I find, however, a short note at the
48:22
Speaker 1: end of my manuscript dealing with this case, in which
48:25
Speaker 1: I have put it upon record that Miss Violet Smith
48:28
Speaker 1: did indeed inherit a large fortune, and that she is
48:32
Speaker 1: now the wife of Cyril Morton, the senior partner of
48:35
Speaker 1: Morton and Kennedy. The famous Westminster electricians Williamson and Woodley,
48:42
Speaker 1: were both tried for abduction and assault, the former getting
48:46
Speaker 1: seven years, the latter ten. Of the fate of Carruthers,
48:51
Speaker 1: I have no record, but I am sure that his
48:54
Speaker 1: assault was not viewed very gravely by the court, since
48:58
Speaker 1: Woodley had the reputation of being a most dangerous ruffian,
49:02
Speaker 1: and I think that a few months were sufficient to
49:05
Speaker 1: satisfy the demands of justice.