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15 The Yellow Face from The Memoirs of Sherlock Holm · Sherlock Holmes

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Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Yellow Face. In publishing these short sketches,
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Speaker 1: based upon the numerous cases in which my companion's singular
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Speaker 1: gifts have made us the listeners to and eventually the
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Speaker 1: actors in some strange drama, it is only natural that
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Speaker 1: I should dwell rather upon his successes than upon his failures.
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Speaker 1: And this not so much for the sake of his reputation.
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Speaker 1: For indeed, it was when he was at his wits
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Speaker 1: end that his energy and his versatility were most admirable.
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Speaker 1: But because where he failed, it happened too often that
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Speaker 1: no one else succeeded, and that the tale was left
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Speaker 1: forever without a conclusion. Now and again, however, it chanced
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Speaker 1: that even when he aired, the truth was still discovered.
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Speaker 1: I have noted of some half dozen cases of the kind.
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Speaker 1: The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual and that which I
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Speaker 1: am about to recount are the two which present the
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Speaker 1: strongest features of interest Sherlock Holmes was a man who
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Speaker 1: seldom took exercise For exercise's sake. Few men were capable
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Speaker 1: of greater muscular effort, and he was undoubtedly one of
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Speaker 1: the finest boxers of his weight that I have ever seen.
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Speaker 1: But he looked upon aimless bodily exertion as a waste
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Speaker 1: of energy, and he seldom bestirred himself, save when there
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Speaker 1: was some professional object to be served. Then he was
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Speaker 1: absolutely untiring and indefatigable. That he should have kept himself
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Speaker 1: in training under such circumstances is remarkable. But his diet
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Speaker 1: was usually of the spairest, and his habits were simple
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Speaker 1: to the verge of austerity. Save for the occasional use
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Speaker 1: of cocaine. He had no vices, and he only turned
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Speaker 1: to the drug as a protest against the monotony of
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Speaker 1: existence when cases were scanty and the papers uninteresting. One
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Speaker 1: day in early spring, he had so far relaxed as
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Speaker 1: to go for a walk with me in the park,
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Speaker 1: where the first faint shoots of green were breaking out
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Speaker 1: upon the elms, and the sticky spear heads of the
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Speaker 1: chestnuts were just beginning to burst into their fivefold leaves.
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Speaker 1: For two hours we rambled about together in silence, for
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Speaker 1: the most part, as befits two men who know each
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Speaker 1: other intimately. It was nearly five before we were back
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Speaker 1: in Baker Street once more. Big pardon, sir, said our
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Speaker 1: page boy as he opened the door. There's been a
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Speaker 1: gentleman here asking for you, sir. Holmes glanced reproachfully at me.
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Speaker 1: So much for afternoon, Walks said, he has this gentleman gone? Then, yes, sir,
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Speaker 1: didn't you ask him in? Yes, sir, he came in.
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Speaker 1: How long did he wait? Half an hour? Sir? He
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Speaker 1: was a very restless gentleman, sir, a walk in and
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Speaker 1: a stamp in all the time he was here. I
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Speaker 1: was waiting outside the door, sir, and I could hear him.
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Speaker 1: At last, he outs into the passage and he cries,
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Speaker 1: is that man never going to come? Those were his
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Speaker 1: very words, Sir. You'll only need to wait a little longer,
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Speaker 1: says I. That I'll wait in the open air, for
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Speaker 1: I feel half choked, says he. I'll be back before long.
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Speaker 1: And with that he ups and he outs, and all
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Speaker 1: I could say wouldn't hold him back. Well, well you
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Speaker 1: did your best, said Holmes as we walked into our room.
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Speaker 1: It's very annoying, though, Watson. I was badly in need
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Speaker 1: of a case, and this looks from the man's impatience
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Speaker 1: as if it were of importance. Hello, that's not your
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Speaker 1: pipe on the table. He must have left his behind him,
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Speaker 1: And I sold briar with a good long stem of
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Speaker 1: what the tobacconists call amber. I wonder how many real
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Speaker 1: amber mouthpieces there are in London. Some people think that
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Speaker 1: a fly in it is a sign. Well, he must
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Speaker 1: have been disturbed in his mind to leave a pipe
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Speaker 1: behind him, which he evidently values highly. Now do you
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Speaker 1: know that he values it highly? I asked, Well, I
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Speaker 1: should put the original cast of the pipe at seven
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Speaker 1: and sixpence. Now it has, you see, been twice mended,
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Speaker 1: once in the wooden stem and once in the amber.
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Speaker 1: Each of these men's done, as you observe, with silver bands,
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Speaker 1: must have cost more than the pipe did originally. The
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Speaker 1: man must value the pipe highly when he prefers to
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Speaker 1: patch it up rather than buy a new one with
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Speaker 1: the same money. Anything else I asked for. Holmes was
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Speaker 1: turning the pipe about in his hand and staring at
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Speaker 1: it in his peculiar, pensive way. He held it up
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Speaker 1: and tapped on it with his long, thin forefinger, as
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Speaker 1: a professor might who was lecturing on a bone. Pipes
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Speaker 1: are occasionally of extraordinary interest, said he. Nothing has more individuality,
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Speaker 1: save perhaps watches and ootlaces. The indications here, however, are
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Speaker 1: neither very marked nor very important. The owner is obviously
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Speaker 1: a muscular man, left handed, with an excellent set of teeth,
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Speaker 1: careless in his habits, and with no need to practice economy.
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Speaker 1: My friend threw out the information in a very offhand way,
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Speaker 1: but I saw that he cocked his eye at mate
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Speaker 1: to see if I had followed his reasoning. You think
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Speaker 1: that a man must be well to do if he
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Speaker 1: smokes a seven shilling pipe, said I. This is Grosvenor
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Speaker 1: mixture at eightpence an ounce. Holmes answered, knocking a little
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Speaker 1: out on his palm, as he might get an excellent
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Speaker 1: smoke for half the price. He has no need to
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Speaker 1: practice economy, and the other points. He has been in
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Speaker 1: the habit of lighting his pipe at lamps and gas jets.
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Speaker 1: You can see that it is quite charred, all down
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Speaker 1: one side. Of course, a match could not have done that.
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Speaker 1: Why should a man hold a match to the side
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Speaker 1: of his pipe, But you cannot light it at a
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Speaker 1: lamp without getting the bowl charred, and it is all
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Speaker 1: on the right side of the pipe. From that I
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Speaker 1: gather that he is a left handed man. You hold
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Speaker 1: your own pipe to the lamp, and see how naturally
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Speaker 1: you being right handed, hold the left side to the flame.
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Speaker 1: You might do it once the other way, but not
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Speaker 1: as a constancy. This has always been held. So then
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Speaker 1: he has bitten through his amber. It takes a muscular,
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Speaker 1: energetic fellow, and one with a good set of teeth
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Speaker 1: to do that. But if I am not mistaken, I
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Speaker 1: hear him upon the stairs, so we shall have something
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Speaker 1: more interesting than his pipe to study. An instant later
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Speaker 1: our door opened and a tall young man entered the room.
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Speaker 1: He was well but quietly dressed in a dark gray suit,
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Speaker 1: and carried a brown wide awake in his hand. I
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Speaker 1: should have put him at about thirty, though he was
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Speaker 1: really some years older. I beg your pardon, said he,
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Speaker 1: with some embarrassment. I supose I should have knocked. Yes,
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Speaker 1: of course I should have knocked. The fact is I
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Speaker 1: am a little upset, and you must put it all
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Speaker 1: down to that. He passed his hand over his forehead
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Speaker 1: like a man who is half dazed, and then fell
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Speaker 1: rather than sat down upon a chair. I can see
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Speaker 1: that you have not slept for a night or two,
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Speaker 1: said Holmes, in his easy genial way that tries a
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Speaker 1: man's nerves more than work, and more even than pleasure.
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Speaker 1: May I ask how I can help you. I wanted
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Speaker 1: your advice, sir. I don't know what to do, and
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Speaker 1: my whole life seems to have gone to pieces. You
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Speaker 1: wish to employ me as a consulting detective, not that
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Speaker 1: only I want your opinion as a judicious man, as
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Speaker 1: a man of the world. I want to know what
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Speaker 1: I ought to do next. I hope to God you'll
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Speaker 1: be able to tell me. He spoke in little, sharp,
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Speaker 1: jerky outbursts, and it seemed to me that to speak
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Speaker 1: at all was very painful to him, and that his
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Speaker 1: will all through who was overriding his inclinations. It's a
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Speaker 1: very delicate thing, said he. One does not like to
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Speaker 1: speak of one's domestic affairs to strangers. It seems dreadful
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Speaker 1: to discuss the conduct of one's wife with two men
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Speaker 1: whom I've never seen before. It's horrible to have to
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Speaker 1: do it. But I've got to the end of my tether,
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Speaker 1: and I must have advice. My dear mister Grant Monroe,
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Speaker 1: began Holmes, our visitor sprang from his chair what he cried.
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Speaker 1: You know my name if you wish to preserve your incognito,
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Speaker 1: said Holmes, smiling, I would suggest that you've cease to
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Speaker 1: write your name upon the lining of your hat, or
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Speaker 1: else that you turn the crown towards the person whom
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Speaker 1: you are addressing. I was about to say that my
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Speaker 1: friend and I have listened to a good many strange
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Speaker 1: secrets in this room, that we have had the good
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Speaker 1: fortune to bring peace to many troubled souls. I trust
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Speaker 1: that we may do as much for you might. I
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Speaker 1: beg you, as time may prove to be of importance,
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Speaker 1: to furnish me with the facts of your case without
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Speaker 1: further delay. Our visitor again passed his hand over his forehead,
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Speaker 1: as if he found it bitterly hard. From every gesture
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Speaker 1: and expression I could see that he was a reserved,
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Speaker 1: self contained man with a dash of pride in his nature,
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Speaker 1: more likely to hide his wounds than to expose them. Then, suddenly,
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Speaker 1: with a fierce gesture of his closed hand, like one
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Speaker 1: who throws reserve to the winds, he began the facts
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Speaker 1: are these, mister Holmes, said he. I am a married man,
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Speaker 1: and have been so for three years. During that time,
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Speaker 1: my wife and I have loved each other as fondly
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Speaker 1: and lived as happily as any two that ever were joined,
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Speaker 1: we have not had a difference, not one in thought
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Speaker 1: or word or deed. And now since last Monday, there
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Speaker 1: has suddenly sprung up a barrier between us, and I
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Speaker 1: find that there is some in her life and in
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Speaker 1: her thought of which I know as little as if
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Speaker 1: she were the woman who brushes by me in the street.
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Speaker 1: We are estranged, and I want to know why. Now.
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Speaker 1: There is one thing that I want to impress upon
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Speaker 1: you before I go any further, mister Holmes, Effie loves me.
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Speaker 1: Don't let there be any mistake about that. She loves
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Speaker 1: me with her whole heart and soul, and never more
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Speaker 1: than now I know it, I feel it. I don't
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Speaker 1: want to argue about that. A man can tell easily
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Speaker 1: enough when a woman loves him. But there's this secret
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Speaker 1: between us, and we can never be the same until
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Speaker 1: it is cleared. Kindly, let me have the facts, mister Monroe,
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Speaker 1: said Holmes, with some impatience. I'll tell you what I
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Speaker 1: know about Fi's history. She was a widow when I
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Speaker 1: met her first, though quite young, only twenty five. Her
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Speaker 1: name then was missus Hebron. She went out to America
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Speaker 1: when she was young and lived in the town of Atlanta,
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Speaker 1: where she married this Hebron, who was a lawyer with
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Speaker 1: a good practice. They had one child. The yellow fever
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Speaker 1: broke out badly in the place, and both husband and
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Speaker 1: child died of it. I have seen his death certificate.
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Speaker 1: This sickened her of America, and she came back to
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Speaker 1: live with a maiden aunt at Pinner in Middlesex. I
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Speaker 1: may mention that her husband had left her comfortably off,
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Speaker 1: and that she had a capital of about four five
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Speaker 1: hundred pounds, which had been so well invested by him
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Speaker 1: that it returned an average of seven percent. She had
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Speaker 1: only been six months at Pinner when I met her.
11:39
Speaker 1: We fell in love with each other, and we married
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Speaker 1: a few weeks afterwards. I am a hop merchant myself,
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Speaker 1: and as I have an income of seven or eight hundred,
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Speaker 1: we found ourselves comfortably off and took a nice eighty
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Speaker 1: pound a year villa at Norbury. Our little place was
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Speaker 1: very countrified, considering that it is so close to tak
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Speaker 1: We had an inn and two houses a little above us,
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Speaker 1: and a single cottage at the other side of the
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Speaker 1: field which faces us. And except those there were no
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Speaker 1: houses until you got half way to the station. My
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Speaker 1: business took me into town at certain seasons, but in
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Speaker 1: summer I had less to do. And then in our
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Speaker 1: country home, my wife and I were just as happy
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Speaker 1: as could be wished. I tell you that there never
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Speaker 1: was a shadow between us until this accursed affair began.
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Speaker 1: There's one thing I ought to tell you before I
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Speaker 1: go further. When we married, my wife made over all
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Speaker 1: her property to me, rather against my will, for I
12:38
Speaker 1: saw how awkward it would be if my business affairs
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Speaker 1: went wrong. However, she would have it so, and it
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Speaker 1: was done well. About six months ago she came to me, Jack,
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Speaker 1: said she. When you took my money, you said that
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Speaker 1: if ever I wanted any I was to ask you
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Speaker 1: for it, certainly, said I. It's all your own, Well,
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Speaker 1: said she, I want a hundred pounds. I was a
13:03
Speaker 1: bit staggered at this, for I had imagined it was
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Speaker 1: simply a new dress or something of the kind that
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Speaker 1: she was after. What on earth for, I asked, Oh,
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Speaker 1: said she in her playful way. You said that you
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Speaker 1: were only my banker, and bankers never ask questions. You know,
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Speaker 1: if you really mean it, of course you shall have
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Speaker 1: the money, said I, Oh, yes, I really mean it.
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Speaker 1: And you won't tell me what you want it for
13:29
Speaker 1: some day perhaps, but not just at present. Jack, So
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Speaker 1: I had to be content with that, though it was
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Speaker 1: the first time that there had ever been any secret
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Speaker 1: between us. I gave her a check and I never
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Speaker 1: thought any more of the matter. It may have nothing
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Speaker 1: to do with what came afterwards, but I thought it'd
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Speaker 1: only right to mention it. Well. I told you just
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Speaker 1: now that there is a cottage not far from our house.
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Speaker 1: There is just a field between us, but to reach
13:58
Speaker 1: it you have to go along the road and then
14:00
Speaker 1: turned down a lane. Just beyond it is a nice
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Speaker 1: little grove of Scotch firs, and I used to be
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Speaker 1: very fond of strolling down there, for trees are always
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Speaker 1: a neighborly kind of things. The cottage had been standing
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Speaker 1: empty this eight months, and it was a pity, for
14:18
Speaker 1: it was a pretty two storied place, with an old
14:20
Speaker 1: fashioned porch and honeysuckle about it. I have stood many
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Speaker 1: a time and thought what a neat little homestead it
14:26
Speaker 1: would make. Well. Last Monday evening, I was taking a
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Speaker 1: stroll down that way when I met an empty van
14:33
Speaker 1: coming up the lane and saw a pile of carpets
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Speaker 1: and things lying about on the grass plot beside the porch,
14:40
Speaker 1: it was clear that the cottage had at last been let.
14:43
Speaker 1: I walked past it and wondered what sort of folk
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Speaker 1: they were who had come to live so near us.
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Speaker 1: And as I looked, I suddenly became aware that a
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Speaker 1: face was watching me out of one of the upper windows.
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Speaker 1: I don't know what there was about that face, mister Holmes,
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Speaker 1: but it seemed to send a chill right down my back.
15:04
Speaker 1: I was some little way off so that I could
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Speaker 1: not make out the features. There was something unnatural and
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Speaker 1: inhuman about the face. That was the impression that I had,
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Speaker 1: and I moved quickly forwards to get a nearer view
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Speaker 1: of the person who was watching me. But as I
15:20
Speaker 1: did so, the face suddenly disappeared, so suddenly that it
15:24
Speaker 1: seemed to have been plucked away into the darkness of
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Speaker 1: the room. I stood for five minutes, thinking the business
15:30
Speaker 1: over and trying to analyze my impressions. I could not
15:35
Speaker 1: tell if the face were that of a man or
15:37
Speaker 1: a woman, it had been too far from me for that.
15:41
Speaker 1: But its color was what had impressed me most. It
15:45
Speaker 1: was of a livid, chalky white, and with something set
15:49
Speaker 1: and rigid about it, which was shockingly unnatural. So disturbed
15:54
Speaker 1: was I that I determined to see a little more
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Speaker 1: of the new inmates of the cottage. I approached a
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Speaker 1: knocked at the door, which was instantly opened by a tall,
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Speaker 1: gaunt woman with a harsh, forbidding face. What may you
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Speaker 1: be wanting, she asked, in a northern accent. I am
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Speaker 1: your neighbor over yonder, said I, nodding towards my house.
16:15
Speaker 1: I see that you have only just moved in, so
16:18
Speaker 1: I thought that if I could be of any help
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Speaker 1: to you in any way. I we'll just ask you
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Speaker 1: when we want, ye, said she, and shut the door
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Speaker 1: in my face. Annoyed at the churlish rebuff, I turned
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Speaker 1: my back and walked home. All evening, though I tried
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Speaker 1: to think of other things, my mind would still turn
16:37
Speaker 1: to the apparition at the window and the rudeness of
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Speaker 1: the woman. I determined to say nothing about the former
16:43
Speaker 1: to my wife, for she is a nervous, highly strung woman,
16:47
Speaker 1: and I had no wish that she would share the
16:49
Speaker 1: unpleasant impression which had been produced upon myself. I remarked
16:53
Speaker 1: to her, however, before I fell asleep, that the cottage
16:56
Speaker 1: was now occupied to which she returned no rep I
17:01
Speaker 1: am usually an extremely sound sleeper. It has been a
17:05
Speaker 1: standing jest in the family that nothing could ever wake
17:08
Speaker 1: me during the night. Whether it may have been the
17:11
Speaker 1: slight excitement produced by my little adventure or not, I
17:15
Speaker 1: know not, but I slept much more lightly than usual.
17:18
Speaker 1: Half in my dreams, I was dimly conscious that something
17:21
Speaker 1: was going on in the room, and gradually became aware
17:24
Speaker 1: that my wife had dressed herself and was slipping on
17:28
Speaker 1: her mantle and bonnet. My lips were parted to murmur
17:32
Speaker 1: out some sleepy words of surprise or remonstrance at this
17:35
Speaker 1: untimely preparation, when suddenly my half opened eyes fell upon
17:39
Speaker 1: her face, illuminated by the candlelight, and astonishment held me dumb.
17:45
Speaker 1: She wore an expression such as I had never seen before,
17:48
Speaker 1: such as I should have thought her incapable of, assuming
17:52
Speaker 1: she was deadly pale and breathing fast, glancing furtively towards
17:56
Speaker 1: the bed as she fastened her mantle to see if
17:59
Speaker 1: she had disturbed me. Then, thinking that I was still asleep,
18:03
Speaker 1: she slipped noiselessly from the room, and an instant later
18:07
Speaker 1: I heard a sharp creaking which could only come from
18:10
Speaker 1: the hinges of the front door. I sat up in
18:14
Speaker 1: bed and rapped my knuckles against the rail to make
18:17
Speaker 1: certain that I was truly awake. Then I took my
18:21
Speaker 1: watch from under the pillow. It was three in the morning.
18:25
Speaker 1: What on this earth could my wife be doing out
18:28
Speaker 1: on the country road at three in the morning. I
18:32
Speaker 1: had sat for about twenty minutes, turning the thing over
18:34
Speaker 1: in my mind and trying to find some possible explanation.
18:38
Speaker 1: The more I thought, the more extraordinary and inexplicable did
18:42
Speaker 1: it appear. I was still puzzling over it when I
18:45
Speaker 1: heard the door gently close again and her footsteps coming
18:49
Speaker 1: up the stairs. Where in the world have you been, Effie,
18:53
Speaker 1: I asked? As she entered. She gave a violent start
18:57
Speaker 1: and a kind of gasping cry when I spoke, And
19:01
Speaker 1: that cry and start troubled me more than all the rest.
19:05
Speaker 1: There was something indescribably guilty about them. My wife had
19:09
Speaker 1: always been a woman of a frank, open nature, and
19:13
Speaker 1: it gave me a chill to see her slinking into
19:15
Speaker 1: her own room and crying out and wincing. When her
19:18
Speaker 1: own husband spoke to her, you awake, Jack, She cried
19:22
Speaker 1: with a nervous laugh. Why I thought that nothing could
19:25
Speaker 1: awake you? Where have you been? I asked more sternly.
19:29
Speaker 1: I don't wonder that you are surprised, said she, and
19:33
Speaker 1: I could see that her fingers were trembling as she
19:35
Speaker 1: undid the fastenings of her mantle. Why I never remember
19:39
Speaker 1: having done such a thing in my life before. The
19:42
Speaker 1: fact is that I felt as though I were choking
19:44
Speaker 1: and had a perfect longing for a breath of fresh air.
19:48
Speaker 1: I really think I should have fainted if I had
19:50
Speaker 1: not gone out. I stood at the door for a
19:52
Speaker 1: few minutes, and now I am quite myself again. All
19:57
Speaker 1: the time that she was telling me this story, she
19:59
Speaker 1: never once looked in my direction, and her voice was
20:02
Speaker 1: quite unlike her usual tones. It was evident to me
20:06
Speaker 1: that she was saying what was false. I said nothing
20:10
Speaker 1: in reply, but turned my face to the wall, sick
20:14
Speaker 1: at heart, with my mind filled with a thousand venomous
20:18
Speaker 1: doubts and suspicions. What was it that my wife was
20:21
Speaker 1: concealing from me? Where had she been during that strange expedition?
20:27
Speaker 1: I felt that I should have no peace until I knew,
20:29
Speaker 1: And yet I shrank from asking her again after once
20:32
Speaker 1: she had told me what was false. All the rest
20:36
Speaker 1: of the night I tossed and tumbled, framing theory after theory,
20:40
Speaker 1: each more unlikely than the last. I should have gone
20:44
Speaker 1: to the city that day, but I was too disturbed
20:47
Speaker 1: in my mind to be able to pay attention to
20:49
Speaker 1: business matters. My wife seemed to be as upset as myself,
20:54
Speaker 1: and I could see from the little questioning glances which
20:56
Speaker 1: she kept shooting at me that she understood that I
20:59
Speaker 1: disbelieve her statement, and that she was at her wits
21:02
Speaker 1: end what to do. We hardly exchanged a word during breakfast,
21:07
Speaker 1: and immediately afterwards I went out for a walk that
21:10
Speaker 1: I might think the matter out in the fresh morning air.
21:14
Speaker 1: I went as far as the Crystal Palace, spent an
21:17
Speaker 1: hour in the grounds, and was back in Norbury by
21:20
Speaker 1: one o'clock. It happened that my way took me past
21:24
Speaker 1: the cottage, and I stopped for an instant to look
21:27
Speaker 1: at the windows and to see if I could catch
21:29
Speaker 1: a glimpse of the strange face which had looked out
21:31
Speaker 1: at me on the day before. As I stood there,
21:34
Speaker 1: imagine my surprise, mister Holmes, when the door suddenly opened
21:38
Speaker 1: and my wife walked out. I was struck dumb with
21:42
Speaker 1: astonishment at the sight of her, But my emotions were
21:46
Speaker 1: nothing to those which showed themselves upon her face. When
21:49
Speaker 1: our eyes met, she seemed for an instant to wish
21:52
Speaker 1: to shrink back inside the house again, and then, seeing
21:56
Speaker 1: how useless all concealment must be, she came forward with
22:00
Speaker 1: a very white face and frightened eyes which belied the
22:04
Speaker 1: smile upon her lips. Ah, Jack, she said, I have
22:08
Speaker 1: just been in to see if I can be of
22:09
Speaker 1: any assistance to our new neighbors. Why do you look
22:13
Speaker 1: at me like that? Jack? You're not angry with me,
22:17
Speaker 1: so said I. This is where you went during the night.
22:21
Speaker 1: What do you mean, she cried, you came here. I
22:24
Speaker 1: am sure of it. Who are these people that you
22:27
Speaker 1: should visit them at such an hour? I have not
22:30
Speaker 1: been here before. How can you tell me what you
22:33
Speaker 1: know is false? I cried? Your very voice changes as
22:36
Speaker 1: you speak. When have I ever had a secret from you?
22:41
Speaker 1: I shall enter that cottage and I shall probe the
22:43
Speaker 1: matter to the bottom. No, No, Jack, for God's sake,
22:46
Speaker 1: she gasped in uncontrollable emotion. Then, as I approached the door,
22:51
Speaker 1: she seized my sleeve and pulled me back with convulsive strength.
22:55
Speaker 1: I implore you not to do this, Jack, she cried,
22:58
Speaker 1: I swear that I will tell you everything someday, but
23:01
Speaker 1: nothing but misery can come of it if you enter
23:04
Speaker 1: that cottage. Then, as I tried to shake her off,
23:07
Speaker 1: she clung to me in a frenzy of entreaty. Trust me, Jack,
23:11
Speaker 1: she cried, Trust me only this once. You will never
23:15
Speaker 1: have cause to regret it. You know that I would
23:17
Speaker 1: not have a secret from you if it were not
23:20
Speaker 1: for your own sake. Our whole lives are at stake
23:23
Speaker 1: in this. If you come home with me, all will
23:26
Speaker 1: be well. If you force your way into that cottage,
23:29
Speaker 1: all is over between us. There was such earnestness, such
23:33
Speaker 1: despair in her manner, that her words arrested me, and
23:37
Speaker 1: I stood irresolute before the door. I will trust you
23:41
Speaker 1: on one condition, and on one condition only, said I.
23:44
Speaker 1: At last, it is that this misery comes to an end.
23:47
Speaker 1: From now you are at liberty to preserve your secret.
23:52
Speaker 1: But you must promise me that there shall be no
23:54
Speaker 1: more nightly visits, no more doings which are kept from
23:57
Speaker 1: my knowledge. I am willing to forget those which are
24:00
Speaker 1: past if you will promise that there shall be no
24:02
Speaker 1: more in the future. I was sure that you would
24:05
Speaker 1: trust me, she cried, with a great sigh of relief.
24:09
Speaker 1: It shall be just as you wish. Come away, oh,
24:11
Speaker 1: come away, up to the house. Still pulling at my sleeve,
24:15
Speaker 1: she led me away from the cottage. As we went,
24:18
Speaker 1: I glanced back, and there was that yellow, livid face
24:22
Speaker 1: watching us out of the upper window. What link could
24:25
Speaker 1: there be between that creature and my wife? Or how
24:30
Speaker 1: could the coarse rough woman whom I had seen the
24:32
Speaker 1: day before be connected with her? It was a strange puzzle,
24:37
Speaker 1: and yet I knew that my mind could never know
24:39
Speaker 1: ease again until I had solved it. For two days
24:43
Speaker 1: after this, I stayed at home, and my wife appeared
24:47
Speaker 1: to abide loyally by our engagement. For as far as
24:50
Speaker 1: I know, she never stirred out of the house. On
24:53
Speaker 1: the third day, however, I had ample evidence that her
24:57
Speaker 1: solemn promise was not enough to hold her back from
25:00
Speaker 1: this secret influence which drew her away from her husband
25:04
Speaker 1: and her duty. I had gone into town on that day,
25:09
Speaker 1: but I returned by the two forty instead of the
25:11
Speaker 1: three thirty six, which is my usual train. As I
25:15
Speaker 1: entered the house, the maid ran into the hall with
25:18
Speaker 1: a startled face. Where is your mistress, I asked, I
25:21
Speaker 1: think that she has gone out for a walk, she answered.
25:25
Speaker 1: My mind was instantly filled with suspicion. I rushed upstairs
25:30
Speaker 1: to make sure that she was not in the house.
25:32
Speaker 1: As I did so, I happened to glance out of
25:34
Speaker 1: one of the upper windows and saw the maid with
25:36
Speaker 1: whom I had just been speaking running across the field
25:39
Speaker 1: in the direction of the cottage. Then, of course I
25:43
Speaker 1: saw exactly what it all meant. My wife had gone
25:47
Speaker 1: over there and had asked the servant to call her
25:49
Speaker 1: if I should return. Tingling with anger, I rushed down
25:53
Speaker 1: and hurried across, determined to end the matter once and forever.
25:57
Speaker 1: I saw my wife and the maid hurrying back along
26:00
Speaker 1: the lane, but I did not stop to speak with them.
26:04
Speaker 1: In the cottage lay the secret which was casting a
26:06
Speaker 1: shadow over my life. I vowed that come what might,
26:10
Speaker 1: it should be a secret no longer. I did not
26:13
Speaker 1: even knock when I reached it, but turned the handle
26:16
Speaker 1: and rushed into the passage. It was all still and
26:20
Speaker 1: quiet upon the ground floor. In the kitchen, a kettle
26:23
Speaker 1: was singing on the fire, and a large black cat
26:26
Speaker 1: lay coiled up in the basket, but there was no
26:30
Speaker 1: sign of the woman whom I had seen before. I
26:33
Speaker 1: ran into the other room, but it was equally deserted.
26:37
Speaker 1: Then I rushed up the stairs, only to find two
26:40
Speaker 1: other rooms empty and deserted. At the top, there was
26:44
Speaker 1: no one at all in the whole house. The furniture
26:47
Speaker 1: and pictures were of the most common and vulgar description,
26:51
Speaker 1: save in the one chamber, at the window of which
26:53
Speaker 1: I had seen the strange face that was comfortable and elegant.
26:58
Speaker 1: And all my suspicions rose into a fierce, bitter flame
27:02
Speaker 1: when I saw that on the mantelpiece stood a copy
27:05
Speaker 1: of a full length photograph of my wife, which had
27:08
Speaker 1: been taken at my request only three months ago. I
27:12
Speaker 1: stayed long enough to make certain that the house was
27:14
Speaker 1: absolutely empty. Then I left it, feeling a weight at
27:18
Speaker 1: my heart such as I had never had before. My
27:22
Speaker 1: wife came out into the hall as I entered my house,
27:25
Speaker 1: but I was too hurt and angry to speak with her,
27:27
Speaker 1: and pushing past her, I made my way into my study.
27:32
Speaker 1: She followed me, however, before I could close the door.
27:36
Speaker 1: I am sorry that I broke my promise, Jack, said she.
27:40
Speaker 1: But if you knew all the circumstances, I am sure
27:43
Speaker 1: that you would forgive me tell me everything, then, said
27:46
Speaker 1: I I cannot, Jack, I cannot, she cried, until you
27:50
Speaker 1: tell me who it is that has been living in
27:52
Speaker 1: that cottage, and who it is to whom you have
27:55
Speaker 1: given that photograph. There can never be any confidence between us,
27:58
Speaker 1: said I, and breaking away from her, I left the house.
28:04
Speaker 1: That was yesterday, mister Holmes, and I have not seen
28:07
Speaker 1: her since, nor do I know anything more about this
28:11
Speaker 1: strange business. It is the first shadow that has come
28:14
Speaker 1: between us, and it has so shaken me that I
28:17
Speaker 1: do not know what I should do for the best.
28:20
Speaker 1: Suddenly this morning it occurred to me that you were
28:22
Speaker 1: the man who advised me. So I have hurried to
28:25
Speaker 1: you now, and I placed myself unreservedly in your hands.
28:30
Speaker 1: If there is any point which I have not made clear,
28:32
Speaker 1: pray question me about it, but above all, tell me
28:36
Speaker 1: quickly what I am to do, for this misery is
28:40
Speaker 1: more than I can bear. Holmes and I had listened
28:44
Speaker 1: with the utmost interest to this extraordinary statement, which had
28:48
Speaker 1: been delivered in the jerky, broken fashion of a man
28:51
Speaker 1: who is under the influence of extreme emotions. My companion
28:55
Speaker 1: sat silent for some time, with his chin upon his hand,
28:59
Speaker 1: lost in thought. Tell me, said he at last. Could
29:03
Speaker 1: you swear that this was a man's face which you
29:06
Speaker 1: saw at the window? Each time that I saw it,
29:10
Speaker 1: I was some distance away from it, so that it
29:13
Speaker 1: is impossible for me to say. You appear, however, to
29:17
Speaker 1: have been disagreeably impressed by it. It seemed to be
29:20
Speaker 1: of an unnatural color, and to have a strange rigidity
29:23
Speaker 1: about the features. When I approached it vanished with a jerk.
29:28
Speaker 1: How long is it since your wife asked you for
29:30
Speaker 1: a hundred pounds? Nearly two months? Have you ever seen
29:34
Speaker 1: a photograph of her first husband? No? There was a
29:38
Speaker 1: great fire at Atlanta very shortly after his death, and
29:42
Speaker 1: all her papers were destroyed. And yet she had a
29:45
Speaker 1: certificate of death. You say that you saw it. Yes,
29:50
Speaker 1: she got a duplicate after the fire. Did you ever
29:53
Speaker 1: meet anyone who knew her in America? No? Did she
29:58
Speaker 1: ever talk of revisiting the pla No, or get letters
30:03
Speaker 1: from it? No? Thank you. I should like to think
30:07
Speaker 1: over the matter a little now. If the cottage is
30:11
Speaker 1: now permanently deserted, we may have some difficulty. If, on
30:15
Speaker 1: the other hand, as I fancy, is more likely the
30:18
Speaker 1: inmates were warned of your coming and left before you
30:21
Speaker 1: entered yesterday, then they may be back now, and we
30:25
Speaker 1: should clear it all up easily. Let me advise you
30:28
Speaker 1: then to return to Norbury and to examine the windows
30:31
Speaker 1: of the cottage again. If you have reason to believe
30:35
Speaker 1: that it is inhabited, do not force your way in,
30:38
Speaker 1: but send a wire to my friend and me. We
30:41
Speaker 1: shall be with you within an hour of receiving it,
30:44
Speaker 1: and we shall then very soon get to the bottom
30:46
Speaker 1: of the business. And if it is still empty, in
30:50
Speaker 1: that case, I shall come out tomorrow and talk it
30:53
Speaker 1: over with you. Goodbye, and above all, do not fret
30:58
Speaker 1: until you know that you really have a cause for it.
31:02
Speaker 1: I am afraid that this is a bad business, Watson,
31:04
Speaker 1: said my companion, as he returned after accompanying mister Grant
31:08
Speaker 1: Munro to the door. What do you make of it?
31:12
Speaker 1: It had an ugly sound, I answered, yes, there's blackmail
31:17
Speaker 1: in it, or I am much mistaken. And who is
31:20
Speaker 1: the blackmailer? Well, it must be the creature who lives
31:23
Speaker 1: in the only comfortable room in the place, and has
31:27
Speaker 1: her photograph above his fireplace. Upon my word, Watson, there
31:31
Speaker 1: is something very attractive about that livid face at the window,
31:36
Speaker 1: and I would not have missed the case for worlds.
31:38
Speaker 1: You have a theory, yes, a provisional one, but I
31:42
Speaker 1: shall be surprised if it does not turn out to
31:44
Speaker 1: be correct. This woman's first husband is in that cottage.
31:50
Speaker 1: Why do you think so? How else can we explain
31:52
Speaker 1: her frenzied anxiety that her second one should not enter it.
31:57
Speaker 1: The facts, as I read them, are something like that
32:00
Speaker 1: this woman was married in America, her husband developed some
32:05
Speaker 1: hateful qualities, or shall we say that he contracted some
32:09
Speaker 1: loathsome disease and became a leper or an imbecile. She
32:13
Speaker 1: flies from him at last, returns to England, changes her name,
32:17
Speaker 1: and starts her life as she thinks afresh. She has
32:21
Speaker 1: been married three years and believes that her position is
32:24
Speaker 1: quite secure, having shown her husband the death certificate of
32:28
Speaker 1: some man whose name she has assumed, when suddenly her
32:32
Speaker 1: whereabouts is discovered by her first husband, or we may
32:37
Speaker 1: suppose by some unscrupulous woman who has attached herself to
32:41
Speaker 1: the invalid. They write to the wife and threaten to
32:45
Speaker 1: come and expose her. She asks for one hundred pounds
32:49
Speaker 1: and endeavors to buy them off. They come in spite
32:53
Speaker 1: of it, and when the husband mentions casually to the
32:57
Speaker 1: wife that there are newcomers in the cottage, she knows
33:01
Speaker 1: in some way that they are her pursuers. She waits
33:04
Speaker 1: until her husband is asleep, and then she rushes down
33:08
Speaker 1: to endeavor to persuade them to leave her in peace.
33:12
Speaker 1: Having no success, she goes again next morning, and her
33:15
Speaker 1: husband meets her as he has told us. As she
33:18
Speaker 1: comes out, she promises him then not to go there again.
33:23
Speaker 1: But two days afterwards, the hope of getting rid of
33:26
Speaker 1: those dreadful neighbors was too strong for her, and she
33:29
Speaker 1: made another attempt, taking down with her the photograph which
33:33
Speaker 1: had probably been demanded from her. In the midst of
33:37
Speaker 1: this interview, the maid rushed in to say that the
33:40
Speaker 1: master had come home, on which the wife, knowing that
33:43
Speaker 1: he would come straight down to the cottage, hurried the
33:46
Speaker 1: inmates out at the back door into the grove of
33:49
Speaker 1: fir trees, probably which was mentioned as standing near. In
33:54
Speaker 1: this way he found the place deserted. I shall be
33:57
Speaker 1: very much surprised. However, if it is still so when
34:00
Speaker 1: he reconnoiters it this evening, what do you think of
34:03
Speaker 1: my theory? It is all surmise, but at least it
34:07
Speaker 1: covers all the facts. When new facts come to our
34:11
Speaker 1: knowledge which cannot be covered by it, it will be
34:14
Speaker 1: time enough to reconsider it. We can do nothing more
34:17
Speaker 1: until we have a message from our friend at Norbury.
34:20
Speaker 1: But we had not a very long time to wait
34:23
Speaker 1: for that. It came just as we had finished our tea.
34:27
Speaker 1: The cottage is still tenanted, it said, have seen the
34:30
Speaker 1: face again at the window. We'll meet the seven o'clock train,
34:34
Speaker 1: and will take no steps until you arrive. He was
34:38
Speaker 1: waiting on the platform when we stepped out, and we
34:41
Speaker 1: could see in the light of the station lamps that
34:44
Speaker 1: he was very pale and quivering with agitation. They are
34:48
Speaker 1: still there, mister Holmes said, he laying his hand hard
34:51
Speaker 1: upon my friend's sleeve. I saw lights in the cottage
34:55
Speaker 1: as I came down. We shall settle it now, once
34:58
Speaker 1: and for all. What is your plan, then asked Holmes,
35:02
Speaker 1: as he walked down the dark tree lined road. I
35:06
Speaker 1: am going to force my way in and see for
35:08
Speaker 1: myself who is in the house. I wish you both
35:11
Speaker 1: to be there as witnesses. You are quite determined to
35:14
Speaker 1: do this, in spite of your wife's warning that it
35:17
Speaker 1: is better that you should not solve the mystery. Yes,
35:20
Speaker 1: I am determined. Well, I think that you are in
35:23
Speaker 1: the right. Any truth is better than indefinite doubt. We
35:28
Speaker 1: had better go up at once. Of course, legally we
35:31
Speaker 1: are putting ourselves hopelessly in the wrong, but I think
35:35
Speaker 1: that it is worth it. It was a very dark night,
35:39
Speaker 1: and a thin rain began to fall as we turned
35:42
Speaker 1: from the high road into a narrow lane, deeply rutted,
35:45
Speaker 1: with hedges on either side. Mister Grant Munroe pushed impatiently forward, however,
35:52
Speaker 1: and we stumbled after him as best we could. There
35:56
Speaker 1: are the lights of my house, he murmured, pointing to
35:59
Speaker 1: a glimmer among the trees. And here is the cottage
36:03
Speaker 1: which I am going to enter. We turned a corner
36:06
Speaker 1: in the lane as he spoke, and there was the
36:09
Speaker 1: building close beside us. A yellow bar falling across the
36:14
Speaker 1: black foreground showed that the door was not quite closed,
36:19
Speaker 1: and one window in the upper story was brightly illuminated.
36:23
Speaker 1: As we looked, we saw a dark blur moving across
36:26
Speaker 1: the blind There is that creature, cried Grant Monroe. You
36:31
Speaker 1: can see for yourselves that someone is there. Now follow me,
36:35
Speaker 1: and we shall soon know all. We approached the door,
36:41
Speaker 1: but suddenly a woman appeared out of the shadow and
36:45
Speaker 1: stood in the golden track of the lamplight. I could
36:48
Speaker 1: not see her face in the darkness, but her arms
36:51
Speaker 1: were thrown out in an attitude of entreaty. For God's sake,
36:56
Speaker 1: don't jack, she cried, I had a presentiment that you
36:59
Speaker 1: would come to see evening. Think better of it. Dear,
37:02
Speaker 1: trust me again, and you will never have cause to
37:05
Speaker 1: regret it. I have trusted you too long, effie, he
37:08
Speaker 1: cried sternly. Leave go of me. I must pass you,
37:12
Speaker 1: my friends, and I are going to settle this matter
37:14
Speaker 1: once and forever. He pushed at one side, and we
37:18
Speaker 1: followed closely after him. As he threw the door open,
37:22
Speaker 1: an old woman ran out in front of him and
37:25
Speaker 1: tried to bar his passage, but he thrust her back,
37:29
Speaker 1: and an instant afterwards we were all upon the stairs.
37:33
Speaker 1: Grant Monroe rushed into the lighted room at the top,
37:37
Speaker 1: and we entered at his heels. It was a cozy,
37:41
Speaker 1: well furnished apartment, with two candles burning upon the table
37:46
Speaker 1: and two upon the mantelpiece. In the corner, stooping over
37:50
Speaker 1: a desk, there sat what appeared to be a little girl.
37:55
Speaker 1: Her face was turned away as we entered, but we
37:59
Speaker 1: could see that she was dressed in a red frock
38:03
Speaker 1: that she had long white gloves on. As she whisked
38:07
Speaker 1: round to us, I gave a cry of surprise and horror.
38:12
Speaker 1: The face which she turned towards us was of the
38:15
Speaker 1: strangest livid tint, and the features were absolutely devoid of
38:20
Speaker 1: any expression. An instant later the mystery was explained. Holmes,
38:26
Speaker 1: with a laugh, passed his hand behind the child's ear.
38:30
Speaker 1: A mask peeled off from her countenance, and there was
38:35
Speaker 1: a little coal black negress with all her white teeth
38:39
Speaker 1: flashing in amusement at our amazed faces. I burst out,
38:44
Speaker 1: laughing out of sympathy with her merriment. But grantman Roe
38:49
Speaker 1: stood staring with his hand clutching his throat. My God,
38:54
Speaker 1: he cried, what can be the meaning of this? I
38:57
Speaker 1: will tell you the meaning of it. The lady sweeping
39:01
Speaker 1: into the room with a proud set face. You have
39:04
Speaker 1: forced me against my own judgment to tell you, and
39:08
Speaker 1: now we must both make the best of it. My
39:10
Speaker 1: husband died at Atlanta. My child survived your child. She
39:17
Speaker 1: drew a large silver locket from her bosom. You have
39:21
Speaker 1: never seen this open. I understood that it did not open.
39:26
Speaker 1: She touched a spring, and the front hinged back. There
39:31
Speaker 1: was a portrait within of a man, strikingly handsome and
39:35
Speaker 1: intelligent looking, but bearing unmistakable signs upon his features of
39:40
Speaker 1: his African descent. That is John Hebron of Atlanta, said
39:45
Speaker 1: the lady, and a nobler man never walked the earth.
39:50
Speaker 1: I cut myself off from my race in order to
39:52
Speaker 1: wed him, But never once while he lived did I
39:55
Speaker 1: for an instant regret it. It was our misfortune that
39:59
Speaker 1: our only child took after his people rather than mine.
40:04
Speaker 1: It is often so in such matches. And little Lucy
40:07
Speaker 1: is darker far than ever her father was, but dark
40:11
Speaker 1: or fair. She is my own dear little girlie and
40:13
Speaker 1: her mother's pet. The little creature ran across at the
40:17
Speaker 1: words and nestled up against the lady's dress. When I
40:21
Speaker 1: left her in America, she continued, it was only because
40:25
Speaker 1: her health was weak, and the change might have done
40:27
Speaker 1: her harm. She was given to the care of a
40:30
Speaker 1: faithful scotchwoman who had once been our servant. Never for
40:35
Speaker 1: an instant did I dream of disowning her as my child.
40:39
Speaker 1: But when chance threw you in my way, Jack, and
40:42
Speaker 1: I learned to love you, I feared to tell you
40:45
Speaker 1: about my child. God forgive me. I feared that I
40:48
Speaker 1: should lose you, and I had not the courage to
40:51
Speaker 1: tell you. I had to choose between you, and in
40:55
Speaker 1: my weakness, I turned away from my own little girl.
40:58
Speaker 1: For three years, I have kept her existence a secret
41:01
Speaker 1: from you, but I heard from the nurse, and I
41:04
Speaker 1: knew that all was well with her. At last, however,
41:07
Speaker 1: there came an overwhelming desire to see the child once more.
41:11
Speaker 1: I struggled against it, but in vain though I knew
41:15
Speaker 1: the danger, I determined to have the child over if
41:17
Speaker 1: it were but for a few weeks. I sent a
41:20
Speaker 1: hundred pounds to the nurse, and I gave her instructions
41:23
Speaker 1: about this cottage, so that she might come as a
41:26
Speaker 1: neighbor without my appearing to be in any way connected
41:30
Speaker 1: with her. I pushed my precaution so far as to
41:33
Speaker 1: order her to keep the child in the house during
41:35
Speaker 1: the daytime, and to cover up her little face and hands,
41:39
Speaker 1: so that even those who might see her at the
41:41
Speaker 1: window should not gossip about there being a black child
41:45
Speaker 1: in the neighborhood. If I had been less cautious, I
41:48
Speaker 1: might have been more wise that I was half crazy
41:52
Speaker 1: with fear that you should learn the truth. It was
41:55
Speaker 1: you who told me first that the cottage was occupied.
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Speaker 1: I should have waited for the morning, but I could
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Speaker 1: not sleep for excitement, and so at last I slipped out,
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Speaker 1: knowing how difficult it is to awake you. But you
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Speaker 1: saw me go, and that was the beginning of my troubles.
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Speaker 1: Next day you had my secret at your mercy, but
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Speaker 1: you nobly refrained from pursuing your advantage. Three days later, however,
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Speaker 1: the nurse and child only just escaped from the back
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Speaker 1: door as you rushed in at the front. One. And
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Speaker 1: now to night, you at last know all. And I
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Speaker 1: ask you what is to become of us, my child
42:35
Speaker 1: and me. She clasped her hands and waited for an answer.
42:41
Speaker 1: It was a long ten minutes before grantman Row broke
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Speaker 1: the silence, and when his answer came, it was one
42:49
Speaker 1: of which I loved to think. He lifted the little
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Speaker 1: child kissed her, and then, still carrying her, he held
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Speaker 1: his other hand out to his wife and turned towards
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Speaker 1: the door. We can talk it over more comfortably at home,
43:06
Speaker 1: said he. I am not a very good man, Effie,
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Speaker 1: but I think that I am a better one than
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Speaker 1: you have given me credit for being. Holmes and I
43:16
Speaker 1: followed them down the lane, and my friend plucked at
43:19
Speaker 1: my sleeve as we came out. I think, said he,
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Speaker 1: that we shall be of more use in London than Innwbery.
43:28
Speaker 1: Not another word did he say of the case until
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Speaker 1: late that night, when he was turning away with his
43:34
Speaker 1: lighted candle for his bedroom. Watson said he, if it
43:40
Speaker 1: should ever strike you that I am getting a little
43:43
Speaker 1: over confident in my powers, or giving less pains to
43:47
Speaker 1: a case than it deserves, kindly Whispernawbery in my ear,
43:54
Speaker 1: and I shall be infinitely obliged to you. That is
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Speaker 1: the end of the Adventure of the Yellow Face. From
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Speaker 1: the Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,
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Speaker 1: read by Greg Wagland, Magpie Audio, twenty sixteen.