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The Adventure of the Speckled Band - Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle · Classic Adventure Books - Daily

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Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Speckled Band. On glancing over my
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Speaker 1: notes of the seventy odd cases in which I have,
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Speaker 1: during the last eight years studied the methods of my
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Speaker 1: friend Sherlock Holmes, I find many tragic, some comic, a
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Speaker 1: large number merely strange, but none commonplace for working as
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Speaker 1: he did rather for the love of his art than
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Speaker 1: for the acquirement of wealth. He refused to associate himself
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Speaker 1: with any investigation which did not tend towards the unusual
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Speaker 1: and even the fantastic. Of all these varied cases, however,
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Speaker 1: I cannot recall any which presented more singular features than
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Speaker 1: that which was associated with the well known Surrey family
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Speaker 1: of the Roylots of Stoke, Moran. The events in question
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Speaker 1: occurred in the early days of my association with Holmes,
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Speaker 1: when we were sharing rooms as bachelors in Baker Street.
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Speaker 1: It is possible that I might have placed them upon
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Speaker 1: record before, but a promise of secrecy was made at
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Speaker 1: the time, from which I have only been free during
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Speaker 1: the month by the untimely death of the lady to
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Speaker 1: whom the pledge was given. It is perhaps as well
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Speaker 1: that the facts should now come to light, for I
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Speaker 1: have reasons to know that there are widespread rumors as
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Speaker 1: to the death of doctor grimesby Roylet, which tend to
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Speaker 1: make the matter even more terrible than the truth. It
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Speaker 1: was early in April in the year eighty three that
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Speaker 1: I woke one morning to find Sherlock Holmes standing fully
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Speaker 1: dressed by the side of my bed. He was a
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Speaker 1: late riser as a rule, and as the clock on
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Speaker 1: the mantel piece showed me that it was only a
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Speaker 1: quarter past seven, I blinked up at him in some
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Speaker 1: surprise and perhaps just a little resentment, for I was
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Speaker 1: myself regular in my habits. Very sorry to knock you up,
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Speaker 1: Watson said he, but it's the common lot this morning.
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Speaker 1: Missus Hudson has been knocked up, she retorted upon me,
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Speaker 1: and I on you. What is it then? A fire? No,
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Speaker 1: her client, It seems that a young lady has arrived
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Speaker 1: in a considerable state of excitement, who insists, upon seeing
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Speaker 1: me she is waiting now in the sitting room. Now,
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Speaker 1: when young ladies wander about the metropolis at this hour
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Speaker 1: of the morning and knock sleepy people up out of
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Speaker 1: their beds, I presume that it is something very pressing
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Speaker 1: which they have to communicate. Should it prove to be
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Speaker 1: an interesting case, you would, I am sure wish to
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Speaker 1: follow it from the outset. I've thought at any rate
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Speaker 1: that I should call you and give you the chance,
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Speaker 1: My dear fellow, I would not miss it for anything.
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Speaker 1: I had no keener pleasure than in following Holmes in
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Speaker 1: his professional investigations, and in admiring the rapid deductions as
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Speaker 1: swift as intuition, and yet always found it on a
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Speaker 1: logical basis with which he unraveled the problems which were
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Speaker 1: submitted to him. I rapidly threw on my clothes and
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Speaker 1: was ready in a few minutes to accompany my friend
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Speaker 1: down to the sitting room. A lady dressed in black
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Speaker 1: and heavily veiled, who had been sitting in the window
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Speaker 1: rose as we entered. Good morning, Madam, said Holmes cheerily.
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Speaker 1: My name is Sherlock Holmes. This is my intiman friend
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Speaker 1: and associate doctor Watson, before whom you can speak as
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Speaker 1: freely as before myself. Ah, I am glad to see
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Speaker 1: that missus Hudson has had the good sense to light
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Speaker 1: the fire. Pray draw up to it, and I shall
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Speaker 1: order you a cup of hot coffee for I observe
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Speaker 1: that you are tivering. It is not cold, which makes
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Speaker 1: me shiver, said the woman, in a low voice, changing
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Speaker 1: her seat, as requested, What then it is fear, mister Holmes,
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Speaker 1: it is terror. She raised her veil as she spoke,
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Speaker 1: and we could see that she was indeed in a
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Speaker 1: pitiable state of agitation, her face all drawn and gray,
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Speaker 1: with restless, frightened eyes like those of some hunted animal.
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Speaker 1: Her features and figure were those of a woman of thirty,
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Speaker 1: but her hair was shot with premature gray, and her
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Speaker 1: expression was weary and haggard. Sherlock Holmes ran her over
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Speaker 1: with one of his quick, all comprehensive glances. You must
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Speaker 1: not fear, said he soothingly, bending forward and patting her forearm.
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Speaker 1: We shall soon set matters right. I have no doubt
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Speaker 1: you have come in by train this morning. I see
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Speaker 1: you know me then? No, but I observed the second
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Speaker 1: half of a return ticket in the palm of your
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Speaker 1: left glove. You must have started early, and yet you
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Speaker 1: had a good drive and a dog cart along heavy
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Speaker 1: roads before you reached the station. The lady gave a
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Speaker 1: violent start and stared in bewilderment at my companion. There's
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Speaker 1: no mystery, My dear madam, said he smiling. The left
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Speaker 1: arm of your jacket is spattered with mud in no
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Speaker 1: less than seven places. The marks are perfectly fresh. There
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Speaker 1: is no vehicle save a dog cart, which throws up
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Speaker 1: mud in that way, and then only when you sit
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Speaker 1: on the left hand side of the driver. Whatever your
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Speaker 1: reasons may be, you are perfectly correct, said she. I
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Speaker 1: started from home before six, reached Leatherhead at twenty past,
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Speaker 1: and came in by the first train to Waterloo. Sir,
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Speaker 1: I can stand this strain no longer. I shall go
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Speaker 1: mad if it continues. I have no one to turn to,
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Speaker 1: none save only one who cares for me, and he,
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Speaker 1: poor fellow, can be of little aid. I've heard of you,
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Speaker 1: mister Holmes. I have heard of you from Missus Farintosh,
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Speaker 1: whom you helped in the hour of her sore need.
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Speaker 1: It was from her that I had your address. Oh, sir,
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Speaker 1: do you not think that you could help me too,
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Speaker 1: and at least throw a little light through the dense
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Speaker 1: darkness which surrounds me. At present it is out of
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Speaker 1: my power to reward you for your services. But in
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Speaker 1: a month or six weeks I shall be married with
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Speaker 1: the control of my own income, and then at least
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Speaker 1: you shall not find me ungrateful. Holmes turned to his
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Speaker 1: desk and, unlocking it, drew out a small case book,
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Speaker 1: which he consulted. Farintosh said, he ah, yes, I recall
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Speaker 1: the case. It was concerned with an opal tiera. I
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Speaker 1: think it was before your time, Watson. I can only say, madam,
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Speaker 1: that I shall be happy to devote the same care
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Speaker 1: to your case as I did to that of your friend.
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Speaker 1: As to reward, my profession is its own reward. But
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Speaker 1: you are at liberty to defray whatever expenses I may
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Speaker 1: be put to at the time which suits you best.
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Speaker 1: And now I beg that you will lay before us
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Speaker 1: everything that may help us in forming an opinion on
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Speaker 1: the matter. Alas replied our visitor, the very horror of
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Speaker 1: my situation lies in the fact that my fears are
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Speaker 1: so vague, and my suspicions depend so entirely upon small
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Speaker 1: points which might seem trivial to another, that even he
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Speaker 1: to whom of all others I have a right to
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Speaker 1: look for help and advice, looks upon all that I
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Speaker 1: tell him about it as the fancies of a nervous woman.
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Speaker 1: He does not say so, but I can read it
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Speaker 1: from his soothing answers and averted eyes. But I have heard,
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Speaker 1: mister Holmes, that you can see deeply into the manifold
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Speaker 1: wickedness of the human heart. You may advise me how
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Speaker 1: to walk amid the dangers which encompass me. I am
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Speaker 1: all attention, madam. My name is Helen Stoner, and I
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Speaker 1: am living with my stepfather, who is the last survivor
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Speaker 1: of one of the oldest Saxon families in England, the
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Speaker 1: Roylots of Stoke, Moran, on the western border of Surrey.
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Speaker 1: Holmes nodded his head. The name is familiar to me,
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Speaker 1: said he. The family was at one time the richest
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Speaker 1: in England, and the estates extended over the borders into
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Speaker 1: Berkshire in the north and Hampshire in the west. In
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Speaker 1: the last century, however, four successive heirs were of a
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Speaker 1: dissolute and wasteful disposition, and the family ruin was eventually
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Speaker 1: completed by a gambler in the days of the regency.
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Speaker 1: Nothing was left save a few acres of ground and
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Speaker 1: the two hundred year old house, which is itself crushed
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Speaker 1: under a heavy mortgage. The last squire dragged out his
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Speaker 1: existence there, living the horrible life of an aristocratic pauper,
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Speaker 1: but his only son, my stepfather, seeing that he must
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Speaker 1: adapt himself to the new conditions, obtained an advance from
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Speaker 1: relative which enabled him to take a medical degree, and
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Speaker 1: went out to Calcutta, where, by his professional skill and
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Speaker 1: force of character he established a large practice. In a
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Speaker 1: fit of anger, however, caused by some robberies which had
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Speaker 1: been perpetrated in the house, he beat his native butler
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Speaker 1: to death and narrowly escaped a capital sentence. As it was,
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Speaker 1: he suffered a long term of imprisonment, and afterwards returned
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Speaker 1: to England a morose and disappointed man. When doctor Roylett
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Speaker 1: was in India, he married my mother, Missus Stoner, the
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Speaker 1: young widow of Major General Stoner of the Bengal Artillery.
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Speaker 1: My sister Julia and I were twins, and we were
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Speaker 1: only two years old at the time of my mother's remarriage.
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Speaker 1: She had a considerable sum of money, not less than
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Speaker 1: one thousand pounds a year, and this she bequeathed to
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Speaker 1: Doctor Roylett entirely while we resided with him, with a
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Speaker 1: provision that a certain annual sum should be allowed to
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Speaker 1: each of us in the event of our marriage. Shortly
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Speaker 1: after our return to England, my mother died. She was
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Speaker 1: killed eight years ago in a railway accident near Crewe.
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Speaker 1: Doctor Roylett then abandoned his attempts to establish himself in
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Speaker 1: practice in London and took us to live with him
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Speaker 1: in the old ancestral house at Stoke, Moran. The money
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Speaker 1: which my mother had left was enough for all our wants,
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Speaker 1: and there seemed to be no obstacle to our happiness.
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Speaker 1: But a terrible change came over our stepfather about this time.
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Speaker 1: Instead of making friends and exchanging visits with our neighbors,
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Speaker 1: who had at first been overjoyed to see a Roylot
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Speaker 1: of Stoke Moran back in the old family seat, he
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Speaker 1: shut himself up in his house and seldom came out,
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Speaker 1: save to indulge in ferocious quarrels with whoever might cross
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Speaker 1: his path. Violence of temper approaching to Mania has been
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Speaker 1: hereditary in the men of the family, and in my
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Speaker 1: stepfather's case it had, I believe, been intensified by his
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Speaker 1: long residence in the tropics. A series of disgraceful brawls
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Speaker 1: took place, two of which ended in the police court,
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Speaker 1: until at last he became the terror of the village,
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Speaker 1: and the folks would fly at his approach, for he
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Speaker 1: is a man of immense strength and absolutely uncontrollable. In
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Speaker 1: his anger. Last week he hurled the local blacksmith over
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Speaker 1: a parapet into a stream. And it was only by
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Speaker 1: paying over all the money which I could gather together,
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Speaker 1: that I was able to avert another public exposure. He
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Speaker 1: had no friends at all save the wandering gypsies, and
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Speaker 1: he would give these vagabonds leave to encamp upon the
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Speaker 1: few acres of bramble covered land which represent the family estate,
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Speaker 1: and would accept in return the hospitality of their tents,
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Speaker 1: wandering away with them, sometimes for weeks on end. He
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Speaker 1: has a passion also for Indian animals, which are sent
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Speaker 1: over to him by a correspondent, and he has at
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Speaker 1: this moment a cheetah and a baboon, which wander freely
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Speaker 1: over his grounds and are feared by the villagers almost
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Speaker 1: as much as their master. You can imagine from what
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Speaker 1: I say that my poor sister Julia and I had
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Speaker 1: no great pleasure in our lives. No servant would stay
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Speaker 1: with us, and for a long time we did all
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Speaker 1: the work of the house. She was but thirty at
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Speaker 1: the time of her death, and yet her hair had
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Speaker 1: already begun to whiten, even as mine has. Your sister
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Speaker 1: is dead. Then, she died just two years ago, and
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Speaker 1: it is of her death that I wish to speak
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Speaker 1: to you. You can understand that living the life which
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Speaker 1: I have described, we were little likely to see any
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Speaker 1: one of our own age and position. We had, however,
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Speaker 1: an aunt, my mother's maiden sister, Miss Honoria Westvale, who
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Speaker 1: lives near Harrow, and we were occasionally allowed to pay
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Speaker 1: short visits at this lady's house. Julia went there at
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Speaker 1: Christmas two years ago and met there a half pay
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Speaker 1: major of Marines, to whom she became engaged. My stepfather
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Speaker 1: learned of the engagement when my sister returned, and offered
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Speaker 1: no objection to the marriage. But within a fortnight of
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Speaker 1: the day which had been fixed for the wedding, the
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Speaker 1: terrible event occurred which has deprived me of my only companion.
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Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes had been leaning back in his chair with
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Speaker 1: his eyes closed and his head sunk in a cushion,
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Speaker 1: but he half opened his lids now and glanced across
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Speaker 1: at his visitor. Pray be precise as to details, said he.
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Speaker 1: It is easy for me to be so, for every
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Speaker 1: event of that dreadful time is seared into my memory.
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Speaker 1: The manor house is, as I have already said, very old,
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Speaker 1: and only one wing is now inhabited. The bedrooms in
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Speaker 1: this wing are on the ground floor, the sitting rooms
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Speaker 1: being in the central block of the buildings. Of these bedrooms,
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Speaker 1: the first is doctor Roylant's, the second my sister's, and
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Speaker 1: the third my own. There is no communication between them,
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Speaker 1: but they all open out into the same corridor. Do
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Speaker 1: I make myself plain perfectly? So? The windows of the
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Speaker 1: three rooms open out upon the lawn. That fatal night,
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Speaker 1: Doctor Roylot had gone to his room early, though we
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Speaker 1: knew that he had not retired to rest, for my
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Speaker 1: sister was troubled by the smell of the strong Indian cigars,
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Speaker 1: which it was his custom to smoke. She left her
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Speaker 1: room therefore, and came into mine, where she sat for
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Speaker 1: some time, chatting about her approaching wedding. At eleven o'clock
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Speaker 1: she rose to leave me, but she paused at the
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Speaker 1: door and looked back. Tell me, Helen, said she, have
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Speaker 1: you ever heard any one whistle in the dead of
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Speaker 1: the night? Never said I. I suppose that you could
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Speaker 1: not possibly whistle yourself in your sleep, certainly not. But why,
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Speaker 1: because during the last few nights I have always, about
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Speaker 1: three in the morning, heard a low, clear whistle. I
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Speaker 1: am a light sleeper, and it has awakened me. I
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Speaker 1: cannot tell where it came from, perhaps from the next room,
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Speaker 1: perhaps from the lawn. I thought that I would just
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Speaker 1: ask you whether you'd heard it. No, I have not.
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Speaker 1: It must be those wretched gypsies in the plantation, very likely.
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Speaker 1: And yet if it were on the lawn, I wondered
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Speaker 1: that you did not hear it. Also, Ah, but I
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Speaker 1: sleep more heavily than you. Well, it is of no
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Speaker 1: great consequence at any rate. She smiled back at me,
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Speaker 1: closed my door, and a few moments later I heard
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Speaker 1: her key turn in the lock. Indeed, said Holmes, was
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Speaker 1: it your custom always to lock yourselves in at night? Always?
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Speaker 1: And why? I think that I mentioned to you that
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Speaker 1: the doctor kept a cheetah and a baboon. We had
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Speaker 1: no feeling of security unless our doors were locked. Quite so,
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Speaker 1: pray proceed with your statement. I could not sleep that night.
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Speaker 1: A vague feeling of impending misfortune impressed me. My sister
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Speaker 1: and I you will recollect, were twins. And you know
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Speaker 1: how subtle are the links which bind two souls which
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Speaker 1: are so closely allied. It was a wild night. The
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Speaker 1: wind was howling outside, and the rain was beating and
14:51
Speaker 1: splashing against the windows. Suddenly, amid all the hubbub of
14:55
Speaker 1: the gale, there burst forth the wild scream of a
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Speaker 1: terrified woman. I knew that it was my sister's voice.
15:02
Speaker 1: I sprang from my bed, wrapped a shawl around me,
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Speaker 1: and rushed into the corridor. As I opened my door,
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Speaker 1: I seemed to hear a low whistle such as my
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Speaker 1: sister described, and a few moments later a clanging sound,
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Speaker 1: as if a mass of metal had fallen. As I
15:18
Speaker 1: ran down the passage, my sister's door was unlocked and
15:21
Speaker 1: revolved slowly upon its hinges. I stared at it, horror stricken,
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Speaker 1: not knowing what was about to issue from it. By
15:29
Speaker 1: the light of the corridor lamp, I saw my sister
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Speaker 1: appear at the opening, her face blanched with terror, her
15:35
Speaker 1: hands groping for help, her whole figure swaying to and
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Speaker 1: fro like that of a drunkard. I ran to her
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Speaker 1: and threw my arms round her, But at that moment
15:44
Speaker 1: her knees seemed to give way, and she fell to
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Speaker 1: the ground. She writhed as one who is in terrible pain,
15:50
Speaker 1: and her limbs were dreadfully convulsed. At first I thought
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Speaker 1: that she had not recognized me, But as I bent
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Speaker 1: over her, she suddenly shrieked in a voice which I
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Speaker 1: shall never forget. Oh, my God, Helen, it was the band,
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Speaker 1: the speckled band. There was something else which she would
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Speaker 1: fain have said, and she stabbed with her finger in
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Speaker 1: the air in the direction of the doctor's room. But
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Speaker 1: a fresh convulsion seized her and choked her words. I
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Speaker 1: rushed out, calling loudly for my stepfather, and I met
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Speaker 1: him hastening from his room in his dressing gown. When
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Speaker 1: he reached my sister's side, she was unconscious, and though
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Speaker 1: he poured brandy down her throat and sent for medical
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Speaker 1: aid from the village, all efforts were in vain, for
16:32
Speaker 1: she slowly sank and died without having recovered her consciousness.
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Speaker 1: Such was the dreadful end of my beloved sister. One
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Speaker 1: moment said Holmes, are you sure about this whistle and
16:44
Speaker 1: metallic sound? Could you swear to it that was what
16:48
Speaker 1: the country coroner asked me at the enquiry. It is
16:51
Speaker 1: my strong impression that I heard it, and yet among
16:54
Speaker 1: the crash of the gale and the creaking of an
16:55
Speaker 1: old house, I may possibly have been deceived. Was your
17:00
Speaker 1: sister dressed? No, she was in her night dress. In
17:03
Speaker 1: her right hand was found the charred stump of a
17:06
Speaker 1: match and in her left a match box, showing that
17:09
Speaker 1: she had struck a light and looked about her when
17:12
Speaker 1: the alarm took place. That is important and what conclusions
17:16
Speaker 1: did the coroner come to? He investigated the case with
17:20
Speaker 1: great care, for doctor Roylott's conduct had long been notorious
17:23
Speaker 1: in the county, but he was unable to find any
17:26
Speaker 1: satisfactory cause of death. My evidence showed that the door
17:30
Speaker 1: had been fastened upon the inner side, and the windows
17:33
Speaker 1: were blocked by old fashioned shutters with broad iron bars,
17:36
Speaker 1: which were secured every night. The walls were carefully sounded
17:40
Speaker 1: and were shown to be quite solid all round, and
17:43
Speaker 1: the flooring was also thoroughly examined, with the same result.
17:47
Speaker 1: The chimney is wide, but it is barred up by
17:49
Speaker 1: four large staples. It is certain, therefore that my sister
17:53
Speaker 1: was quite alone when she met her end. Besides, there
17:56
Speaker 1: were no marks of any violence upon her. How about poison?
18:01
Speaker 1: The doctors examined her for it, but without success. What
18:05
Speaker 1: do you think this unfortunate lady died of? Then? It
18:09
Speaker 1: is my belief that she died of pure fear and
18:12
Speaker 1: nervous shock. Though what it was that frightened her I
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Speaker 1: cannot imagine. Were there gypsies in the plantation at the time, Yes,
18:20
Speaker 1: there are nearly always some there. Ah, And what did
18:23
Speaker 1: you gather from this allusion to a band, a speckled band?
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Speaker 1: Sometimes I have thought that it was merely the wild
18:31
Speaker 1: talk of delirium, Sometimes that it may have referred to
18:34
Speaker 1: some band of people, perhaps to those very gypsies in
18:37
Speaker 1: the plantation. I do not know whether the spotted handkerchief
18:41
Speaker 1: which so many of them wear over their heads, might
18:43
Speaker 1: have suggested the strange adjective which she used. Hulms shook
18:48
Speaker 1: his head like a man who is far from being satisfied.
18:52
Speaker 1: These are very deep waters, said he pray, go on
18:54
Speaker 1: with your narrative. Two years have passed since then, and
18:59
Speaker 1: my life life has been until lately lonelier than ever.
19:03
Speaker 1: A month ago, however, a dear friend whom I have
19:05
Speaker 1: known for many years, has done me the honor to
19:08
Speaker 1: ask my hand in marriage. His name is Armitage, Percy Armitage,
19:13
Speaker 1: the second son of mister Armitage of Cranewater, near Reading.
19:17
Speaker 1: My stepfather has offered no opposition to the match, and
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Speaker 1: we are to be married in the course of the spring.
19:23
Speaker 1: Two days ago some repairs were started in the west
19:25
Speaker 1: wing of the building, and my bedroom wall has been pierced,
19:29
Speaker 1: so that I have had to move into the chamber
19:31
Speaker 1: in which my sister died, and to sleep in the
19:34
Speaker 1: very bed in which she slept. Imagine then my thrill
19:38
Speaker 1: of terror when last night, as I lay awake, thinking
19:41
Speaker 1: over her terrible fate, I suddenly heard in the silence
19:44
Speaker 1: of the night the low whistle, which had been the
19:47
Speaker 1: herald of her own death. I sprang up and lit
19:51
Speaker 1: the lamp, but nothing's to be seen in the room.
19:54
Speaker 1: I was too shaken to go to bed again, however,
19:56
Speaker 1: so I dressed, and as soon as it was daylight,
19:58
Speaker 1: I slipped down, got a dog cart at the Crown Inn,
20:01
Speaker 1: which is opposite, and drove to Leatherhead. From whence I
20:04
Speaker 1: have come on this morning with the one object of
20:07
Speaker 1: seeing you and asking your advice you've done wisely, said
20:11
Speaker 1: my friend. But have you told me all? Yes, all,
20:16
Speaker 1: miss Roylott, you have not. You are screening your step father.
20:21
Speaker 1: Why what do you mean? For answer? Holmes pushed back
20:25
Speaker 1: the frill of black lace which fringed the hand that
20:28
Speaker 1: lay upon our visitor's knee. Five little livid spots, the
20:33
Speaker 1: marks of four fingers and a thumb were printed upon
20:35
Speaker 1: the white wrist. You have been cruelly used, said Holmes.
20:41
Speaker 1: The lady colored deeply and covered over her injured wrist.
20:45
Speaker 1: He is a hard man, she said, and perhaps he
20:48
Speaker 1: hardly knows his own strength. There was a long silence,
20:53
Speaker 1: during which Holmes leaned his chin upon his hands and
20:55
Speaker 1: stared into the crackling fire. This is a very deep business,
21:00
Speaker 1: he said, at last. There are a thousand details which
21:03
Speaker 1: I should desire to know before I decide upon our
21:05
Speaker 1: course of action. Yet we have not a moment to lose.
21:09
Speaker 1: If we were to come to Stoke Moran to day,
21:12
Speaker 1: would it be possible for us to see over these
21:14
Speaker 1: rooms without the knowledge of your stepfather. As it happens,
21:18
Speaker 1: he spoke of coming into town to day upon some
21:20
Speaker 1: most important business. It is probable that he will be
21:23
Speaker 1: away all day, and that there would be nothing to
21:25
Speaker 1: disturb you. We have a housekeeper now, but she is
21:28
Speaker 1: old and foolish, and I could easily get her out
21:31
Speaker 1: of the way. Excellent, You are not averse to this trip, Watson?
21:36
Speaker 1: By no means, then we shall both come. What are
21:39
Speaker 1: you going to do yourself? I have one or two
21:43
Speaker 1: things which I would wish to do now that I
21:44
Speaker 1: am in town. But I shall return by the twelve
21:46
Speaker 1: o'clock train so as to be there in time for
21:49
Speaker 1: your coming, and you may expect us early in the afternoon.
21:53
Speaker 1: I have myself some small business matters to attend to.
21:57
Speaker 1: Will you not wait in breakfast? No, I must go.
22:00
Speaker 1: My heart is lightened already since I have confided my
22:03
Speaker 1: trouble to you. I shall look forward to seeing you
22:05
Speaker 1: again this afternoon. She dropped her thick black veil over
22:09
Speaker 1: her face and glided from the room. And what do
22:12
Speaker 1: you think of it all? Watson asked Sherlock Holmes, leaning
22:15
Speaker 1: back in his chair. It seems to me to be
22:19
Speaker 1: a dark and sinister business. Dark enough and sinister enough. Yet,
22:24
Speaker 1: if the lady is correct in saying that the flooring
22:27
Speaker 1: and walls are sound, and that the door window and
22:30
Speaker 1: chimney are impassable. Then her sister must undoubtedly have been
22:33
Speaker 1: alone when she met her mysterious end. What becomes then,
22:38
Speaker 1: of these nocturnal whistles, and what of the very peculiar
22:41
Speaker 1: words of the dying woman? I cannot think when you
22:45
Speaker 1: combine the ideas of whistles at night, the presence of
22:49
Speaker 1: a band of gypsies who are on intimate terms with
22:51
Speaker 1: this old doctor, the fact that we have every reason
22:54
Speaker 1: to believe that the doctor has an interest in preventing
22:56
Speaker 1: his stepdaughter's marriage, the dying allusion to a band, and finally,
23:01
Speaker 1: the fact that Miss Helen's stoner heard a metallic clang
23:04
Speaker 1: which might have been caused by one of those metal
23:06
Speaker 1: bars that secured the shutters falling back into its place.
23:10
Speaker 1: I think that there is good ground to think that
23:12
Speaker 1: the mystery may be cleared along those lines. But what
23:15
Speaker 1: then did the gypsies do? I cannot imagine. I see
23:20
Speaker 1: many objections to any such theory, and so do I.
23:24
Speaker 1: It is for precisely that reason that we are going
23:26
Speaker 1: to stoke Moran this day. I want to see whether
23:28
Speaker 1: the objections are fatal, or if they may be explained away.
23:32
Speaker 1: But what in the name of the devil. The ejaculation
23:35
Speaker 1: had been drawn from my companion by the fact that
23:38
Speaker 1: our door had suddenly been dashed open, and that a
23:41
Speaker 1: huge man had framed himself in the aperture. His costume
23:45
Speaker 1: was a peculiar mixture of the professional and the agricultural,
23:49
Speaker 1: having a black top hat, a long frock coat, and
23:52
Speaker 1: a pair of high gaiters, with a hunting crop swinging
23:54
Speaker 1: in his hand. So tall was he that his hat
23:57
Speaker 1: actually brushed the cross bar of the doorway, and his
24:00
Speaker 1: breadth seemed to span it across from side to side.
24:03
Speaker 1: A large face seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow
24:07
Speaker 1: with the sun and marked with every evil passion, was
24:09
Speaker 1: turned from one to the other of us, while his
24:12
Speaker 1: deep set, bile shot eyes and his high, thin, fleshless
24:16
Speaker 1: nose gave him somewhat the resemblance to a fierce old
24:19
Speaker 1: bird of prey. Which of you is? Holmes asked this
24:24
Speaker 1: apparition my name, sir, But you have the advantage of me,
24:28
Speaker 1: said my companion quietly. I am Doctor grimesby Roylot of Stoke, Moran. Indeed, doctor,
24:35
Speaker 1: said Holmes, blandly, Pray take a seat. I will do
24:39
Speaker 1: nothing of the kind. My stepdaughter has been here. I
24:41
Speaker 1: have traced her. What has she been saying to you?
24:45
Speaker 1: It is a little cold for the time of year,
24:47
Speaker 1: said Holmes. What has she been saying to you? Screamed
24:51
Speaker 1: the old man furiously. But I have heard that the
24:54
Speaker 1: crocuses promise well, continued my companion, imperturbably. Ha you put
24:59
Speaker 1: me off, do you, said our new visitor, taking a
25:02
Speaker 1: step forward and shaking his hunting crop. I know you,
25:05
Speaker 1: you scoundrel. I have heard of you before. You are
25:08
Speaker 1: Holmes the meddler, my friend, smiled Holmes, the busy body.
25:14
Speaker 1: His smile broadened, Holmes the Scotland yard jack in office.
25:19
Speaker 1: Holmes chuckled heartily. Your conversation is most entertaining, said he.
25:24
Speaker 1: When you go out, close the door, for there is
25:25
Speaker 1: a decided draft. I will go when I've said my say.
25:29
Speaker 1: Don't you dare meddle with my affairs. I know that
25:32
Speaker 1: miss Stoner has been here. I trace her. I am
25:35
Speaker 1: a dangerous man to fall foul of. See here, he
25:38
Speaker 1: stepped swiftly forward, seized the poker and bent it into
25:41
Speaker 1: a curve with his huge brown hands. See that you
25:45
Speaker 1: keep yourself out of my grip. He snarled, and hurling
25:48
Speaker 1: the twisted poker into the fireplace, he strode out of
25:51
Speaker 1: the room. He seems a very amiable person, said Holmes, laughing.
25:56
Speaker 1: I am not quite so bulky. But if he had remained,
25:59
Speaker 1: I might have shown him that my grip was not
26:01
Speaker 1: much more feeble than his own. As he spoke, he
26:04
Speaker 1: picked up the steel poker and with a sudden effort,
26:06
Speaker 1: straightened it out again. Fancy his having the insolence to
26:10
Speaker 1: confound me with the official detective force. This incident gives
26:14
Speaker 1: zest to our investigation, however, and I only trust that
26:17
Speaker 1: our little friend will not suffer from her imprudence in
26:20
Speaker 1: allowing this brute to trace her. And now, Watson, we
26:23
Speaker 1: shall order breakfast, and afterwards I shall walk down to
26:25
Speaker 1: Doctor's Commons, where I hope to get some dato which
26:28
Speaker 1: may help us in this matter. It was nearly one
26:32
Speaker 1: o'clock when Sherlock Holmes returned from his excursion. He held
26:36
Speaker 1: in his hands a sheet of blue paper scrolled over
26:38
Speaker 1: with notes and figures. I have seen the will of
26:42
Speaker 1: the deceased wife, said he to determine its exact meaning.
26:45
Speaker 1: I have been obliged to work out the present prices
26:47
Speaker 1: of the investments with which it is concerned. The total income,
26:51
Speaker 1: which at the time of the wife's death was little
26:53
Speaker 1: short of eleven hundred pounds, is now, through the fall
26:56
Speaker 1: in agricultural prices, not more than seven hundred and fifty pounds.
27:00
Speaker 1: Each daughter can claim an income of two hundred and
27:02
Speaker 1: fifty pounds in case of marriage. It is evident therefore,
27:06
Speaker 1: that if both girls had married, this beauty would have
27:09
Speaker 1: had a mere pittance, while even one of them would
27:11
Speaker 1: cripple him to a very serious extent. My morning's work
27:14
Speaker 1: has not been wasted, since it has proved that he
27:17
Speaker 1: has the very strongest motives for standing in the way
27:19
Speaker 1: of anything of that sort. And now, Watson, this is
27:22
Speaker 1: too serious for dawdling, especially as the old man is
27:25
Speaker 1: aware that we are interesting ourselves in his affairs. So
27:29
Speaker 1: if you are ready, we shall call a cab and
27:31
Speaker 1: drive to Waterloo. I should be very much obliged if
27:34
Speaker 1: you would slip your revolver into your pocket. An Ely's
27:37
Speaker 1: number two is an excellent argument with gentlemen who can
27:40
Speaker 1: twist steel pokers into knots. That and a tooth brush
27:43
Speaker 1: are I think all that we need at Waterloo. We
27:47
Speaker 1: were fortunate in catching a train for Leatherhead, where we
27:50
Speaker 1: hired a trap at the station inn and drove for
27:52
Speaker 1: four or five miles through the lovely Surrey lanes. It
27:55
Speaker 1: was a perfect day, with a bright sun and a
27:58
Speaker 1: few fleecy clouds in the heavens. The trees and wayside
28:01
Speaker 1: hedges were just throwing out their first green shoots, and
28:04
Speaker 1: the air was full of the pleasant smell of the
28:06
Speaker 1: moist earth. To me, at least, there was a strange
28:09
Speaker 1: contrast between the sweet promise of the spring and this
28:13
Speaker 1: sinister quest upon which we were engaged. My companion sat
28:17
Speaker 1: in front of the trap, his arms folded, his hat
28:20
Speaker 1: pulled down over his eyes, and his chin sunk upon
28:22
Speaker 1: his breast, buried in the deepest thought. Suddenly, however, he started,
28:27
Speaker 1: tapped me on the shoulder and pointed over the meadows.
28:30
Speaker 1: Look there, said he, a heavily timbered park stretched up
28:34
Speaker 1: in a gentle slope, thickening into a grove. At the
28:37
Speaker 1: highest point from amid the branches, there jutted out the
28:40
Speaker 1: gray gables and high roof tree of a very old mansion.
28:44
Speaker 1: Stoke Moran said he, yes, sir, that be the house
28:47
Speaker 1: of doctor grimesby Roylet, remarked the driver. There is some
28:51
Speaker 1: building going on there, said Holmes. That is where we
28:54
Speaker 1: are going. There's the village, said the driver, pointing to
28:59
Speaker 1: a cluster of roofs some distance to the left. But
29:02
Speaker 1: if you want to get to the house, you'll find
29:03
Speaker 1: it shorter to get over this stile. And so by
29:06
Speaker 1: the footpath over the fields there it is where the
29:09
Speaker 1: lady is walking. And the lady I fancy is miss Stoner,
29:13
Speaker 1: observed Holmes, shading his eyes. Yes, I think we had
29:17
Speaker 1: better do as you suggest. We got off, paid our affair,
29:21
Speaker 1: and the trap rattled back on its way to Leatherhead.
29:24
Speaker 1: I thought it is well, said Holmes, as we climbed
29:27
Speaker 1: the stile, that this fellow should think we had come
29:29
Speaker 1: here as architects or on some definite business. It may
29:32
Speaker 1: stop his gossip. Good afternoon, miss Stoner. You see that
29:36
Speaker 1: we have been as good as our word. Our client
29:39
Speaker 1: of the morning had hurried forward to meet us, with
29:41
Speaker 1: a face which spoke her joy. I have been waiting
29:44
Speaker 1: so eagerly for you, she cried, shaking hands with us warmly.
29:48
Speaker 1: All has turned out splendidly. Doctor Roylett has gone to
29:51
Speaker 1: town and it is unlikely that he will be back
29:54
Speaker 1: before evening. We have had the pleasure of making the
29:57
Speaker 1: doctor's acquaintance, said Holmes, and in a few words he
30:01
Speaker 1: sketched out what had occurred. Miss Stoner turned white to
30:04
Speaker 1: the lips as she listened. Good Heavens, she cried, he
30:08
Speaker 1: has followed me. Then, so it appears he is so
30:13
Speaker 1: cunning that I never know when I am safe from him?
30:15
Speaker 1: What will he say when he returns? He must guard himself,
30:19
Speaker 1: for he may find that there is some one more
30:21
Speaker 1: cunning than himself upon his track. You must lock yourself
30:25
Speaker 1: up from him to night. If he is violent, we
30:27
Speaker 1: shall take you away to your aunt's at Harrow. Now
30:30
Speaker 1: we must make the best use of our time, so
30:32
Speaker 1: kindly take us at once to the rooms which we
30:34
Speaker 1: are to examine. The building was of gray like in
30:38
Speaker 1: blotched stone, with a high central portion and two curving wings,
30:42
Speaker 1: like the claws of a crab thrown out on each side.
30:46
Speaker 1: In one of those wings, the windows were broken and
30:48
Speaker 1: blocked with wooden boards, while the roof was partly caved
30:51
Speaker 1: in a picture of ruin. The central portion was in
30:55
Speaker 1: little better repair, but the right hand block was comparatively modern,
30:59
Speaker 1: and the blind in the windows, with the blue smoke
31:01
Speaker 1: curling up from the chimneys, showed that this was where
31:04
Speaker 1: the family resided. Some scaffolding had been erected against the
31:08
Speaker 1: end wall, and the stone work had been broken into,
31:11
Speaker 1: but there were no signs of any workmen. At the
31:13
Speaker 1: moment of our visit. Holmes walked slowly up and down
31:17
Speaker 1: the ill trim lawn and examined with deep attention the
31:20
Speaker 1: outsides of the windows. This, I take it belongs to
31:24
Speaker 1: the room in which you used to sleep, the center
31:26
Speaker 1: one to your sisters, and the one next to the
31:29
Speaker 1: main building to doctor Roylett's chamber. Exactly so. But I
31:34
Speaker 1: am now sleeping in the middle room, pending the alterations.
31:37
Speaker 1: As I understand by the way, there does not seem
31:40
Speaker 1: to be any very pressing need for repairs at that
31:43
Speaker 1: end of the wall. There were none. I believe that
31:47
Speaker 1: it was an excuse to move me from my room. Ah,
31:50
Speaker 1: that is suggestive. Now on the other side of this
31:53
Speaker 1: narrow wing runs the corridor from which these three rooms open.
31:57
Speaker 1: There are windows in it, of course, yes, but small
32:00
Speaker 1: ones too narrow for any one to pass through. As
32:04
Speaker 1: you both locked your doors at night, your rooms were
32:06
Speaker 1: unapproachable from that side. Now, would you have the kindness
32:09
Speaker 1: to go into your room and bar your shutters? Miss
32:12
Speaker 1: Stoner did so, and Holmes, after a careful examination through
32:16
Speaker 1: the open window, endeavored in every way to force a
32:19
Speaker 1: shutter open, but without success. There was no slit through
32:22
Speaker 1: which a knife could be passed to raise the bar. Then,
32:25
Speaker 1: with his lens he tested the hinges, but they were
32:28
Speaker 1: of solid iron, built firmly into the massive masonry. Hum said,
32:32
Speaker 1: he scratching his chin in some perplexity. My theory certainly
32:36
Speaker 1: presents some difficulties. No one could pass these shutters if
32:39
Speaker 1: they were bolted. Well, we shall see if the inside
32:42
Speaker 1: throws any light upon the matter. A small side door
32:47
Speaker 1: led into the whitewashed corridor from which the three bedrooms opened.
32:51
Speaker 1: Holmes refused to examine the third chamber, so we passed
32:54
Speaker 1: at once to the second, that in which miss Stoner
32:57
Speaker 1: was now sleeping, and in which her sister had met
33:00
Speaker 1: with her fate. It was a homely little room, with
33:03
Speaker 1: a low ceiling and a gaping fireplace, after the fashion
33:06
Speaker 1: of old country houses. A brown chest of drawers stood
33:10
Speaker 1: in one corner. A narrow, white counterpaned bed in another,
33:14
Speaker 1: and a dressing table on the left hand side of
33:16
Speaker 1: the window. These articles, with two small wicker work chairs,
33:20
Speaker 1: made up all the furniture in the room save for
33:22
Speaker 1: a square of wilton carpet in the center. The boards
33:26
Speaker 1: round and the paneling of the walls were of brown
33:28
Speaker 1: worm eaten oak, so old and discolored that it may
33:31
Speaker 1: have dated from the original building of the house. Holmes
33:35
Speaker 1: drew one of the chairs into a corner and sat
33:37
Speaker 1: silent while his eyes traveled round and round, and up
33:41
Speaker 1: and down, taking in every detail of the apartment. Where
33:44
Speaker 1: does that bell communicate with he asked at last, pointing
33:48
Speaker 1: to a thick bell rope which hung down beside the bed,
33:51
Speaker 1: the tassel actually lying upon the pillow. It goes to
33:55
Speaker 1: the housekeeper's room. It looked newer than the other things. Yes,
34:00
Speaker 1: it was only put there a couple of years ago.
34:02
Speaker 1: Your sister asked for it, I suppose, No, I never
34:06
Speaker 1: heard of her using it. We used always to get
34:08
Speaker 1: what we wanted for ourselves. Indeed, it seemed unnecessary to
34:13
Speaker 1: put so nice a bell pull there. You will excuse
34:16
Speaker 1: me for a few minutes while I satisfy myself as
34:18
Speaker 1: to this floor. He threw himself down upon his face
34:22
Speaker 1: with his lens in his hand, and crawled swiftly backward
34:25
Speaker 1: and forward, examining minutely the cracks between the boards. Then
34:29
Speaker 1: he did the same with the woodwork with which the
34:31
Speaker 1: chamber was paneled. Finally he walked over to the bed
34:34
Speaker 1: and spent some time in staring at it, and in
34:37
Speaker 1: running his eye up and down the wall. Finally he
34:40
Speaker 1: took the bell rope in his hand and gave it
34:42
Speaker 1: a brisk tug. Why it's a dummy, said he won't
34:47
Speaker 1: it ring. No, it is not even attached to a wire.
34:51
Speaker 1: This is very interesting. You can see now that it
34:54
Speaker 1: is fastened to a hook just above where the little
34:56
Speaker 1: opening for the ventilator is. How very obs I never
35:01
Speaker 1: noticed that before, very strange, muttered Holmes, pulling at the rope.
35:06
Speaker 1: There are one or two singular points about this room.
35:10
Speaker 1: For example, what a fool a builder must be to
35:12
Speaker 1: open a ventilator into another room when with the same
35:15
Speaker 1: trouble he might have communicated with the outside air. That
35:20
Speaker 1: is also quite modern, said the lady, done about the
35:23
Speaker 1: same time as the bell rope, remarked Holmes. Yes, there
35:27
Speaker 1: were several little changes carried out about that time. They
35:31
Speaker 1: seem to have been of a most interesting character. Dummy
35:34
Speaker 1: bell ropes and ventilators which do not ventilate. With your permission,
35:38
Speaker 1: Miss Stoner, we shall now carry our researches into the
35:41
Speaker 1: inner apartment. Doctor Grimesby Roylet's chamber was larger than that
35:45
Speaker 1: of his step daughter, but was as plainly furnished. A
35:49
Speaker 1: camp bed, a small wooden shelf full of books, mostly
35:53
Speaker 1: of a technical character, an arm chair beside the bed,
35:56
Speaker 1: a plain wooden chair against the wall, a round table,
35:59
Speaker 1: and a large iron safe were the principal things which
36:02
Speaker 1: met the eye. Holmes walked slowly round and examined each
36:06
Speaker 1: and all of them with the keenest interest. What's in here,
36:10
Speaker 1: he asked, tapping the safe. My stepfather's business papers. Oh
36:15
Speaker 1: you have seen inside then, only once, some years ago.
36:19
Speaker 1: I remember that it was full of papers. There isn't
36:22
Speaker 1: a cat in it, for example, No, what a strange idea.
36:27
Speaker 1: Well look at this. He took up a small saucer
36:31
Speaker 1: of milk, which stood on the top of it. No,
36:34
Speaker 1: we don't keep a cat, but there is a cheetah
36:36
Speaker 1: and a baboon ah. Yes, of course, Well, a cheetah
36:40
Speaker 1: is just a big cat, and yet a saucer of
36:42
Speaker 1: milk does not go very far and satisfying its wants.
36:45
Speaker 1: I dare say there is one point which I should
36:47
Speaker 1: wish to determine. He squatted down in front of the
36:50
Speaker 1: wooden chair and examined the seat of it with the
36:52
Speaker 1: greatest attention. Thank you, that is quite settled, said he,
36:57
Speaker 1: rising and putting his lens in his pocket. HULLO, here
37:00
Speaker 1: is something interesting. The object which had caught his eye
37:04
Speaker 1: was a small dog lash hung on one corner of
37:06
Speaker 1: the bed. The lash, however, was curled upon itself and
37:10
Speaker 1: tied so as to make a loop of whipcord. What
37:13
Speaker 1: do you make of that, Watson? It's a common enough lash,
37:17
Speaker 1: but I don't know why it should be tied. That
37:20
Speaker 1: is not quite so common, is it, ah me. It's
37:23
Speaker 1: a wicked world, and when a clever man turns his
37:25
Speaker 1: brains to crime, it is the worst of all. I
37:27
Speaker 1: think that I have seen enough now, Miss Stoner, and
37:30
Speaker 1: with your permission, we shall walk out upon the lawn.
37:34
Speaker 1: I have never seen my friend's face so grim, or
37:36
Speaker 1: his brow so dark as it was when we turned
37:38
Speaker 1: from the scene of this investigation. We had walked several
37:42
Speaker 1: times up and down the lawn, neither Miss Stoner nor
37:45
Speaker 1: myself liking to break in upon his thoughts, before he
37:47
Speaker 1: roused himself from his reverie. It is very essential, miss Stoner,
37:52
Speaker 1: said he that you should absolutely follow my advice in
37:55
Speaker 1: every respect. I shall most certainly do so. Is too
38:00
Speaker 1: serious for any hesitation. Your life may depend upon your compliance.
38:05
Speaker 1: I assure you that I am in your hands. In
38:08
Speaker 1: the first place. Both my friend and I must spend
38:11
Speaker 1: the night in your room. Both Miss Stoner and I
38:15
Speaker 1: gazed at him in astonishment. Yes, it must be so.
38:18
Speaker 1: Let me explain. I believe that that is the village
38:21
Speaker 1: in over there. Yes, that is the crown. Very good,
38:25
Speaker 1: your windows would be visible from there. Certainly, you must
38:29
Speaker 1: confine yourself to your room on pretense of a headache
38:32
Speaker 1: when your stepfather comes back. Then, when you hear him
38:35
Speaker 1: retire for the night, you must open the shutters of
38:37
Speaker 1: your window, undo the hasp, put your lamp there as
38:40
Speaker 1: a signal to us, and then withdraw quietly with everything
38:43
Speaker 1: which you are likely to want into the room which
38:45
Speaker 1: you used to occupy. I have no doubt that, in
38:48
Speaker 1: spite of the repairs, you could manage there for one night. Oh, yes, easily.
38:54
Speaker 1: The rest you will leave in our hands. But what
38:57
Speaker 1: will you do. We shall spend the night in your room,
39:00
Speaker 1: and we shall investigate the cause of the noise which
39:02
Speaker 1: has disturbed you. I believe, mister Holmes, that you have
39:06
Speaker 1: already made up your mind, said Miss Stoner, laying her
39:09
Speaker 1: hand upon my companion's sleeve. Perhaps I have, then, for
39:14
Speaker 1: pity's sake, tell me what was the cause of my
39:16
Speaker 1: sister's death. I should prefer to have clearer proofs before
39:20
Speaker 1: I speak. You can at least tell me whether my
39:23
Speaker 1: own thought is correct, and if she died from some
39:26
Speaker 1: sudden fright. No, I do not think so. I think
39:30
Speaker 1: that there was probably some more tangible cause. And now
39:33
Speaker 1: Miss Stoner, we must leave you, for if Doctor Roylot
39:36
Speaker 1: returned and saw us, our journey would be in vain.
39:39
Speaker 1: Good Bye and be brave, for if you will do
39:42
Speaker 1: what I have told you, you may rest assured that
39:44
Speaker 1: we shall soon drive away the dangers that threaten you.
39:48
Speaker 1: Sherlock Holmes and I had no difficulty in engaging a
39:51
Speaker 1: bedroom and sitting room at the Crown Inn. They were
39:54
Speaker 1: on the upper floor, and from our window we could
39:56
Speaker 1: command a view of the avenue gate and of the
39:58
Speaker 1: inhabited wing of Stoke Manor House. At dusk we saw
40:02
Speaker 1: Doctor grimesby roylot drive past, his huge form looming up
40:06
Speaker 1: beside the little figure of the lad who drove him.
40:09
Speaker 1: The boy had some slight difficulty in undoing the heavy
40:12
Speaker 1: iron gates, and we heard the hoarse roar of the
40:15
Speaker 1: doctor's voice, and saw the fury with which he shook
40:18
Speaker 1: his clinched fists at him. The trap drove on, and
40:22
Speaker 1: a few minutes later we saw a sudden light spring
40:25
Speaker 1: up among the trees as the lamp was lit in
40:27
Speaker 1: one of the sitting rooms. Do you know Watson? Said Holmes,
40:31
Speaker 1: as we sat together in the gathering darkness, I have
40:34
Speaker 1: really some scruples as to taking you to night. There
40:37
Speaker 1: is a distinct element of danger. Can I be of assistance?
40:42
Speaker 1: Your presence might be invaluable? Then I shall certainly come.
40:46
Speaker 1: It is very kind of you you speak of danger.
40:50
Speaker 1: You have evidently seen more in these rooms than was
40:52
Speaker 1: visible to me. No, but I fancy that I may
40:56
Speaker 1: have deduced a little more. I imagine that you saw
40:59
Speaker 1: all that I did. I saw nothing remarkable save the
41:03
Speaker 1: bell rope, and what purpose that could answer, I confess
41:06
Speaker 1: is more than I can imagine. You saw the ventilator too, Yes,
41:11
Speaker 1: but I do not think it is such a very
41:13
Speaker 1: unusual thing to have a small opening between two rooms.
41:16
Speaker 1: It was so small that a rat could hardly pass through.
41:20
Speaker 1: I knew that we should find a ventilator before ever
41:22
Speaker 1: we came to Stoke Moran, My dear Holmes, Oh, yes,
41:26
Speaker 1: I did you remember in her statement she said that
41:29
Speaker 1: her sister could smell doctor Roylott's cigar. Now, of course
41:33
Speaker 1: that suggested at once that there must be a communication
41:35
Speaker 1: between the two rooms. It could only be a small one,
41:38
Speaker 1: or it would have been remarked upon at the coroner's inquiry.
41:41
Speaker 1: I deduced a ventilator. But what harm can there be
41:45
Speaker 1: in that? Well? There is at least a curious coincidence
41:49
Speaker 1: of dates. A ventilator is made, a cord is hung,
41:52
Speaker 1: and a lady who sleeps in the bed dies. Does
41:54
Speaker 1: not that strike you? I cannot as yet see any connection.
42:00
Speaker 1: Did you observe anything very peculiar about that bed? No,
42:05
Speaker 1: it was clamped to the floor. Did you ever see
42:08
Speaker 1: a bed fastened like that before? I cannot say that
42:11
Speaker 1: I have. The lady could not move her bed. It
42:15
Speaker 1: must always be in the same relative position to the
42:17
Speaker 1: ventilator and to the rope, or so we may call it,
42:20
Speaker 1: since it was clearly never meant for a bell pole, Holmes,
42:24
Speaker 1: I cried, I seem to see dimly what you are
42:26
Speaker 1: hinting at. We are only just in time to prevent
42:29
Speaker 1: some subtle and horrible crime. Subtle enough and horrible enough.
42:34
Speaker 1: When a doctor goes wrong, he is the first of criminals.
42:37
Speaker 1: He has nerve, and he has knowledge. Palmer and Pritchard
42:40
Speaker 1: were among the heads of their profession. This man strikes
42:43
Speaker 1: even deeper. But I think, Watson, that we shall be
42:45
Speaker 1: able to strike deeper still. But we shall have horrors
42:48
Speaker 1: enough before the night is over. For goodness sake, let
42:51
Speaker 1: us have a quiet pipe and turn our minds for
42:53
Speaker 1: a few hours to something more cheerful. About nine o'clock
42:58
Speaker 1: the light among the trees was extinguished, and all was
43:01
Speaker 1: dark in the direction of the manor house. Two hours
43:04
Speaker 1: passed slowly away, and then suddenly, just at the stroke
43:08
Speaker 1: of eleven, a single bright light shone out right in
43:11
Speaker 1: front of us. That is our signal, said Holmes, springing
43:14
Speaker 1: to his feet. It comes from the middle window. As
43:18
Speaker 1: we passed out. He exchanged a few words with the landlord,
43:22
Speaker 1: explaining that we were going on a late visit to
43:24
Speaker 1: an acquaintance, and that it was possible that we might
43:27
Speaker 1: spend the night there. A moment later we were out
43:30
Speaker 1: on the dark road, a chill wind blowing in our faces,
43:33
Speaker 1: and one yellow light twinkling in front of us through
43:35
Speaker 1: the gloom to guide us on our somber errand there
43:39
Speaker 1: was little difficulty in entering the grounds, for unrepaired breeches
43:43
Speaker 1: gaped in the old park wall. Making our way among
43:46
Speaker 1: the trees, we reached the lawn, crossed it, and were
43:49
Speaker 1: about to enter through the window, when out from a
43:51
Speaker 1: clump of laurel bushes there darted what seemed to be
43:54
Speaker 1: a hideous and distorted child, who threw itself upon the
43:57
Speaker 1: grass with writhing limbs, and then ran swiftly across the
44:01
Speaker 1: lawn into the darkness. My God, I whispered, did you
44:04
Speaker 1: see it? Holmes was, for the moment as startled as I.
44:09
Speaker 1: His hand closed like a vice upon my wrist in
44:11
Speaker 1: his agitation. Then he broke into a low laugh and
44:15
Speaker 1: put his lips to my ear. It is a nice household,
44:18
Speaker 1: He murmured that is the baboon. I had forgotten the
44:22
Speaker 1: strange pets which the doctor affected. There was a cheetah too,
44:26
Speaker 1: Perhaps we might find it upon our shoulders at any moment.
44:30
Speaker 1: I confess that I felt easier in my mind when,
44:33
Speaker 1: after following Holmes's example and slipping off my shoes, I
44:36
Speaker 1: found myself inside the bedroom. My companion noiselessly closed the shutters,
44:42
Speaker 1: moved the lamp on to the table, and cast his
44:44
Speaker 1: eyes round the room. All was as we had seen
44:47
Speaker 1: it in the daytime. Then, creeping up to me and
44:50
Speaker 1: making a trumpet of his hand, he whispered into my
44:53
Speaker 1: ear again, so gently that it was all that I
44:55
Speaker 1: could do to distinguish the words. The least sound would
44:59
Speaker 1: be fatal to our pla lands. I nodded to show
45:02
Speaker 1: that I had heard. We must sit without light. He
45:06
Speaker 1: would see it through the ventilator. I nodded again. Do
45:11
Speaker 1: not go asleep. Your very life may depend upon it.
45:15
Speaker 1: Have your pistol ready in case we should need it.
45:17
Speaker 1: I will sit on the side of the bed and
45:19
Speaker 1: you in that chair. I took out my revolver and
45:23
Speaker 1: laid it on the corner of the table. Holmes had
45:27
Speaker 1: brought up a long thin cane, and this he placed
45:30
Speaker 1: upon the bed. Beside him. By it he laid the
45:33
Speaker 1: box of matches and the stump of a candle. Then
45:36
Speaker 1: he turned down the lamp, and we were left in darkness.
45:41
Speaker 1: How shall I ever forget that dreadful vigil. I could
45:44
Speaker 1: not hear a sound, not even the drawing of a breath,
45:48
Speaker 1: and yet I knew that my companion sat open eyed,
45:51
Speaker 1: within a few feet of me, in the same state
45:53
Speaker 1: of nervous tension in which I was myself. The shutters
45:57
Speaker 1: cut off the least ray of light, and we wait
46:00
Speaker 1: in absolute darkness. From outside came the occasional cry of
46:04
Speaker 1: a night bird, and once at our very window, a long,
46:08
Speaker 1: drawn catlike whine, which told us that the cheetah was
46:11
Speaker 1: indeed at liberty. Far away we could hear the deep
46:14
Speaker 1: tones of the parish clock, which boomed out every quarter
46:17
Speaker 1: of an hour. How long they seemed those quarters twelve
46:21
Speaker 1: struck and one and two and three. And still we sat,
46:25
Speaker 1: waiting silently for whatever might befall. Suddenly there was a
46:30
Speaker 1: momentary gleam of a light up in the direction of
46:32
Speaker 1: the ventilator, which vanished immediately, but was succeeded by a
46:36
Speaker 1: strong smell of burning oil and heated metal. Someone in
46:40
Speaker 1: the next room had lit a dark lantern. I heard
46:43
Speaker 1: a gentle sound of movement, and then all was silent
46:46
Speaker 1: once more, though the smell grew stronger. For half an
46:50
Speaker 1: hour I sat with straining ears. Then suddenly another sound
46:55
Speaker 1: became audible, a very gentle, soothing sound, like that of
46:59
Speaker 1: a small of steam escaping continually from a kettle. The
47:03
Speaker 1: instant that we heard it, Holmes sprang from the bed,
47:06
Speaker 1: struck a match, and lashed furiously with his cane at
47:08
Speaker 1: the bell pole. Do you see it, Watson, he yelled,
47:11
Speaker 1: do you see it? But I saw nothing. At the
47:15
Speaker 1: moment when Holmes struck the light, I heard a low,
47:17
Speaker 1: clear whistle, but the sudden glare flashing into my weary
47:21
Speaker 1: eyes made it impossible for me to tell what it
47:23
Speaker 1: was at which my friend lashed so savagely. I could, however,
47:27
Speaker 1: see that his face was deadly, pale, and filled with
47:30
Speaker 1: horror and loathing. He had ceased to strike and was
47:34
Speaker 1: gazing up at the ventilator when suddenly there broke from
47:36
Speaker 1: the silence of the night, the most horrible cry to
47:39
Speaker 1: which I have ever listened. It swelled up louder and louder,
47:43
Speaker 1: a hoarse yell of pain and fear and anger, all
47:46
Speaker 1: mingled in one dreadful shriek. They say that away down
47:50
Speaker 1: in the village, and even in the distant parsonage, that
47:53
Speaker 1: cry raised the sleepers from their beds, struck cold to
47:57
Speaker 1: our hearts. And I stood gazing at Holmes, he at me,
48:01
Speaker 1: until the last echoes of it had died away into
48:03
Speaker 1: the silence from which it rose. What can it mean?
48:07
Speaker 1: I gasped. It means that it is all over, Holmes answered,
48:12
Speaker 1: and perhaps after all it is for the best. Take
48:15
Speaker 1: your pistol and we will enter doctor Roylot's room. With
48:19
Speaker 1: a grave face, he lit the lamp and led the
48:22
Speaker 1: way down the corridor. Twice. He struck at the chamber
48:25
Speaker 1: door without any reply from within. Then he turned the
48:28
Speaker 1: handle and entered. I at his heels with the cocked
48:31
Speaker 1: pistol in my hand. It was a singular sight which
48:36
Speaker 1: met our eyes. On the table stood a dark lantern
48:40
Speaker 1: with the shutter half open, throwing a brilliant beam of
48:43
Speaker 1: light upon the iron safe, the door of which was ajar.
48:46
Speaker 1: Beside this table, on the wooden chair sat doctor grimesby Roylot,
48:51
Speaker 1: clad in a long gray dressing gown, his bare ankles
48:55
Speaker 1: protruding beneath, and his feet thrust into red heel less
48:58
Speaker 1: turkish slippers. Across his lap lay the short stalk with
49:02
Speaker 1: the long lash, which we had noticed during the day.
49:04
Speaker 1: His chin was cocked upward, and his eyes were fixed
49:07
Speaker 1: in a dreadful, rigid stare at the corner of the ceiling.
49:12
Speaker 1: Round his brow, he had a peculiar yellow band with
49:15
Speaker 1: brownish speckles, which seemed to be bound tightly round his head.
49:19
Speaker 1: As we entered, he made neither sound nor motion. The band,
49:25
Speaker 1: the speckled band, whispered Holmes. I took a step forward.
49:30
Speaker 1: In an instant, his strange headgear began to move, and
49:34
Speaker 1: there reared itself from among his hair, the squat, diamond
49:37
Speaker 1: shaped head and puffed neck of a loathsome serpent. It
49:41
Speaker 1: is a swamp adder, cried Holmes, the deadliest snake in India.
49:46
Speaker 1: He has died within ten seconds of being bitten. Violence does,
49:50
Speaker 1: in truth recoil upon the violent, and the schemer falls
49:52
Speaker 1: into the pit which he digs for another. Let us
49:55
Speaker 1: thrust this creature back into its den, and we can
49:58
Speaker 1: then remove miss Stoner to some place of shelter, and
50:01
Speaker 1: let the county police know what has happened. As he spoke,
50:05
Speaker 1: he drew the dog whip swiftly from the dead man's lap,
50:08
Speaker 1: and throwing the noose round the reptile's neck, he drew
50:10
Speaker 1: it from its horrid perch, and, carrying it at arm's length,
50:14
Speaker 1: threw it into the iron safe, which he closed upon it.
50:18
Speaker 1: Such are the true facts of the death of doctor
50:20
Speaker 1: grimesby Roylot of Stoke, Moran. It is not necessary that
50:24
Speaker 1: I should prolong a narrative which has already run too
50:26
Speaker 1: great a length by telling how we broke the sad
50:29
Speaker 1: news to the terrified girl, how we conveyed her by
50:32
Speaker 1: the morning train to the care of her good aunt
50:34
Speaker 1: at Harrow, of how the slow process of official enquiry
50:37
Speaker 1: came to the conclusion that the doctor met his fate
50:40
Speaker 1: while indiscreetly playing with a dangerous pet. The little which
50:44
Speaker 1: I had yet to learn of the case was told
50:45
Speaker 1: me by Sherlock Holmes as we traveled back the next day.
50:49
Speaker 1: I had said, he come to an entirely erroneous conclusion,
50:53
Speaker 1: which shows my dear Watson, how dangerous it always is
50:56
Speaker 1: to reason from insufficient data. The presence of the gypsies,
50:59
Speaker 1: and the use of the word band, which was used
51:02
Speaker 1: by the poor girl, no doubt, to explain the appearance
51:04
Speaker 1: which she had caught a hurried glimpse of by the
51:06
Speaker 1: light of her match, were sufficient to put me upon
51:09
Speaker 1: an entirely wrong scent. I can only claim the merit
51:12
Speaker 1: that I instantly reconsidered my position, when, however, it became
51:16
Speaker 1: clear to me that whatever danger threatened an occupant of
51:19
Speaker 1: the room could not come either from the window or
51:21
Speaker 1: the door. My attention was speedily drawn, as I have
51:24
Speaker 1: already remarked to you, to this ventilator and to the
51:27
Speaker 1: bell rope which hung down to the bed. The discovery
51:31
Speaker 1: that this was a dummy, and that the bed was
51:33
Speaker 1: clamped to the floor instantly gave rise to the suspicion
51:36
Speaker 1: that the rope was there as a bridge for something
51:38
Speaker 1: passing through the hole and coming to the bed. The
51:42
Speaker 1: idea of a snake instantly occurred to me, and when
51:44
Speaker 1: I coupled it with my knowledge that the doctor was
51:47
Speaker 1: furnished with a supply of creatures from India, I felt
51:50
Speaker 1: that I was probably on the right track. The idea
51:53
Speaker 1: of using a form of poison which could not possibly
51:55
Speaker 1: be discovered by any chemical test. Was just such a
51:58
Speaker 1: one as would occur to a clever and ruthless man
52:01
Speaker 1: who had had an Eastern training. The rapidity with which
52:04
Speaker 1: such a poison would take effect would also, from his
52:07
Speaker 1: point of view, be an advantage. It would be a
52:09
Speaker 1: sharp eyed coroner, indeed, who could distinguish the two little
52:12
Speaker 1: dark punctures which would show where the poison fangs had
52:15
Speaker 1: done their work. Then I thought of the whistle. Of course,
52:18
Speaker 1: he must recall the snake before the morning light revealed
52:21
Speaker 1: it to the victim. He had trained it, probably by
52:24
Speaker 1: use of the milk which we saw, to return to
52:26
Speaker 1: him when summoned. He would put it through this ventilator
52:30
Speaker 1: at the hour that he thought best, with the certainty
52:32
Speaker 1: that it would crawl down the rope and land on
52:34
Speaker 1: the bed. It might or might not bite the occupant.
52:37
Speaker 1: Perhaps she might escape every night for a week, but
52:40
Speaker 1: sooner or later she must fall a victim. I had
52:44
Speaker 1: come to these conclusions before I had ever entered his room.
52:47
Speaker 1: An inspection of his chair showed me that he had
52:50
Speaker 1: been in the habit of standing on it, which of
52:52
Speaker 1: course would be necessary in order that he should reach
52:54
Speaker 1: the ventilator, the sight of the safe, the saucer of milk,
52:58
Speaker 1: and the loop of whipcord were enough to fight dispel
53:00
Speaker 1: any doubts which may have remained. The metallic clang heard
53:04
Speaker 1: by miss Stoner was obviously caused by her stepfather hastily
53:07
Speaker 1: closing the door of his safe upon its terrible occupant.
53:10
Speaker 1: Having once made up my mind, you know the steps
53:12
Speaker 1: which I took in order to put the matter to
53:14
Speaker 1: the proof. I heard the creature hiss, as I have
53:17
Speaker 1: no doubt that you did also, and I instantly lit
53:20
Speaker 1: the light and attacked it, with the result of driving
53:23
Speaker 1: it through the ventilator, and also with the result of
53:26
Speaker 1: causing it to turn upon its master. At the other side.
53:30
Speaker 1: Some of the blows of my cane came home and
53:32
Speaker 1: roused its snakish temper, so that it flew upon the
53:35
Speaker 1: first person it saw. In this way, I am no
53:37
Speaker 1: doubt indirectly responsible for doctor grimesby Broylett's death, and I
53:42
Speaker 1: cannot say it is likely to weigh very heavily upon
53:44
Speaker 1: my conscience. End of the Adventure of the Speckled Band