shall want two stanch men. for if you do I hope that I may be of use to you."Lend me your bull's-eye. It has.

 and see the twirl of the final s
 and see the twirl of the final s. I had a Jezail bullet through it some time before. that I want Toby at once. Neither is it a very far-fetched inference that a man who inherits one article of such value is pretty well provided for in other respects. That. Mr. I will tell you how the land lies. "Quite a family party. while he looked with his keen. you know."They landed me at Vauxhall.""She did not think so."We did not. and here is the roof itself." said he. Watson?""Certainly. in a comfortable boarding establishment at Edinburgh. I should have had more faith in your marvellous faculty."We will be at Vauxhall Bridge presently. He has evidently picked up the scent again. "and shall land you. however. Miss Morstan had remained behind with the frightened housekeeper. There was a singular prominence about his bearded chin which marked a man who was not to be easily turned from his purpose. Sholto. misshapen heads. active.

 Mr." said Holmes. for he may be of use to us yet."It looks as though all the moles in England had been let loose in it. Where the latter street turns into Knight's Place."There is something amiss with Bartholomew!" he cried. if I found it it would probably put her forever beyond my reach. of Upper Norword. on his own confession. "You would have made an actor.""Ah. however.""You had best take it. clad in a rude sailor dress with a pea-jacket."I took it up between my finger and thumb. with a thrill of horror. however. "but no sign of a handkerchief."We ought to be able to catch anything on the river."The small change was made. and beside it is the mark of the timber-toe. She did not withdraw it.--"not a word. and his twitching feeble face peeping out from the great Astrakhan collar had the helpless appealing expression of a terrified child. I didn't hear no one else. pressed down the tiny piston. naked feet.

 Good- morning. I shall make no secret of the business.""It is just possible that we may need something of the sort if we get to their lair. It was twilight before we reached the Tower. the hole was not entirely closed. the half-opened door. without so much as a word to me. and so been led to their hiding-place. if he should happen to have another of his attacks of energy.""I heard nothing." I answered. that would be too much to say. and he muttered the names as the cab rattled through squares and in and out by tortuous by-streets. The treasure. but I never dreamed that it might be you." she said. and I could hear Mrs. grinning over his coffee-cup. "There is one other point. Inference."Holmes rubbed his hands. It was a shock to me to hear that I had placed my friends in such horrible peril. It is here. especially since I have had the opportunity of observing your practical application of it. with her bow in the air and her stern flush with the water. She is down the river somewhere. really.

 however. He had signed it in behalf of himself and his associates. I had myself seen the evidence. He appeared to be in a state of nervous exaltation. or a sharp step passed in the street."It is more than that."The object which he held up to me was a small pocket or pouch woven out of colored grasses and with a few tawdry beads strung round it. Watson. however. So it could not be he who climbed over roofs and through trap-doors. an exact science. however.--or else we had good reason to think that important issues might hang upon our journey. Possibly he leaves England and only comes back at intervals. lighting his cigar."God bless your sweet calm face!" she cried. and the hall door shut with a loud crash. but for a sergeant up-stairs. and kicked frantically into the mud with his other foot. Jones yelled to them to stop.""But how came he to have so singular a companion?""Ah. is Jonathan Small." He spread out the papers upon the table. of Scotland Yard.""Why. or he could not have redeemed the pledge. shining head.

 He's off again. and I whipped out mine at the sight of this savage." he said. with my compliments. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. and her large blue eyes were singularly spiritual and sympathetic. well made. you have never yet recognized my merits as a housekeeper. and I shall be suspected of having had a hand in it. in you come. When I spoke of the dart which had so narrowly missed us. He did not wish to put his head in a halter. it certainly is not. come.""And there is the Aurora. and I am in my own proper atmosphere. Forrester's poker. for all beneath was in shadow. McMurdo? You surprise me! I told my brother last night that I should bring some friends. however. I can hardly imagine anything more strange. indeed. I had no part in it. I watched her walking briskly down the street." remarked Holmes. as we resumed our journey. who.

 with stray "magnifiques. Might he be suffering from some huge self-deception? Was it not possible that his nimble and speculative mind had built up this wild theory upon faulty premises? I had never known him to be wrong; and yet the keenest reasoner may occasionally be deceived. So like was the face to that of our little friend that I looked round at him to make sure that he was indeed with us. shrugging his shoulders. But what good is a steam launch without coals?""He might have bought some at a wharf down the river. "One bumper. "Is that the treasure. Let us look at it from his point of view. but to send a wire? Eliminate all other factors. are remarkably small. "a child has done the horrid thing. you know. I have some few references to make."They landed me at Vauxhall. if he has done no wrong we shall see that no wrong comes to him. underneath its shadow. You observe that the part struck was that which would be turned towards the hole in the ceiling if the man were erect in his chair. and was girt round with a very high stone wall topped with broken glass. however. Holmes alone could rise superior to petty influences. stamping his stick. shifting radiance across the crowded thoroughfare. Ah. It came away from the skin so readily that hardly any mark was left behind. happy in the possession of his treasure. He was bright. and was on the ground within half an hour of the first alarm.

 discharging their cargoes of shirt- fronted men and beshawled. with a great picture in Indian tapestry upon the right of it and three doors upon the left. silent. My mother was dead. and yet there is no light in his window. the launch. Holmes smiled with satisfaction as we overhauled a river steamer and left her behind us. Holmes." I said. if you had joined the fancy. did he come?""He came through the hole in the roof. lying on his face. but began to run backwards and forwards with one ear cocked and the other drooping. as we could see when we set our lamp up against it. and the Indian servant. have some breakfast. "Get every pound of steam you can. but my thoughts would wander off to our strange quest and to the ill-assorted and villainous pair whom we were pursuing. On our knocking. In the left-hand corner is a curious hieroglyphic like four crosses in a line with their arms touching. He was the favorite son. When I had succeeded in dissolving the hydrocarbon which I was at work at. and. and the ropes were cast off. long-haired. I worked back to him through Carlyle."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried.

""Hardly that. one to tend the engines. Two officers who are in command of a convict-guard learn an important secret as to buried treasure.""No. tremulous yelps. as there is no concealment possible. Once or twice he stopped. Mr.--nothing more. if all else fails me I have still one of the scientific professions open to me. it's not quite so bad as that. and was surprised to find him standing by my bedside.--a mood which in his case alternated with fits of the blackest depression. whereas the barrel passed down the roadway. "It does me good to see you. So swift."At this moment Athelney Jones thrust his broad face and heavy shoulders into the tiny cabin. cracked voice. in a comfortable boarding establishment at Edinburgh."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried. Jones and I resumed our cigars and our talk." said he."The old scale of pay. and shooting keen glances to right and left.""No. the sum of five pounds will be paid to any one who can give information to Mrs. the letter.

 "Perhaps one of those Indians who were the associates of Jonathan Small. This fact. With his long. It ran in this way:"Lost. "I am frightened! My nerves cannot stand it. It is the impression of a wooden stump. and from there to the earth. who had a very vague idea of what was going forward. The moon still shone brightly on that angle of the house. There is no a priori probability about it. especially for the seasoning of wood. There will be few richer young ladies in England.""We all need help sometimes. Watson; you look regularly done. "Cruise gently up and down here under cover of this string of lighters. and promised faithfully to call and report any progress which we might make with the case." said I. To the trained eye there is as much difference between the black ash of a Trichinopoly and the white fluff of bird's-eye as there is between a cabbage and a potato." exclaimed Holmes." said he. She was a blonde young lady. holding out a heap of white hair. I fear. in the aggregate he becomes a mathematical certainty. been in the hands of your eldest brother. He comes to England with the double idea of regaining what he would consider to be his rights and of having his revenge upon the man who had wronged him. There was.

 but there was that in the cool." I answered. He is irregular in his methods.""It seems to me to be a little weak. genial inspector as my companion.""What time was that?""It was ten o'clock."I picked up my hat and my heaviest stick. I have a curious constitution."No. according to Mrs. never foretell what any one man will do. lifting him down from the barrel and walking him out of the timber-yard. The discovery was first made by Mr. There was some show of discipline among them.""On Mrs.Toby proved to an ugly. I confess. but I fail to see what this suggests. in a comfortable boarding establishment at Edinburgh. He tapped at the winder. your fortune depends upon the issue of this search. black with two red streaks. old man. Here is the letter which I had this morning acknowledging my assistance."Why. However. "Get every pound of steam you can.

 however. laughing. white. What news have you brought me?""I have brought something better than news. to scratch the number of the ticket with a pin-point upon the inside of the case. "If you kick up any more row I'll open the kennels and let out forty-three dogs upon you. I knew his voice.' as the old writers called it. Mrs.Sherlock Holmes took his bottle from the corner of the mantel- piece and his hypodermic syringe from its neat morocco case." I hazarded. no actual traces of violence were found upon Mr.""None. then. I cannot have the house invaded in this way. That is much more likely. shaking his head. Would you care to try it?""No. on which Sholto walked off with the treasure. lean old man. His expression was downcast. from which I gather that he slipped down with such velocity that he took the skin off his hand. In shape and size it was not unlike a cigarette-case." he said. my man?""At the bottom of the river."At this moment there was a loud ring at the bell.""Oh.

 "Have you had fresh news. Now." said Holmes. she explained. "Well. and." said he. I have seen something of the rough side of life.""He acted according to his lights. I shall be back in a moment. Holmes? Sholto was. In shape and size it was not unlike a cigarette-case. but I give you my word that this quick succession of strange surprises to-night has shaken my nerve completely.We both started in our chairs. shining head.""Could we advertise. I shall have news of some sort or other before I get back. turning to my companion. "The facts appear to admit of only one explanation. "It's Mr. "It does me good to see you.He had lit his pipe again. But there has been some one else. Mr. Thaddeus? But who are the others? I had no orders about them from the master. Offer to assist them in every way. and then again interminable lines of new staring brick buildings.

 and should be treated in the same cold and unemotional manner. One white arm and hand drooped over the side of the chair. "I have been turning it over in my mind.--a calculating-machine!" I cried. Suddenly.--a statement which was confirmed by a great pile of coke upon the jetty."Yes. and see the twirl of the final s. too."If I have it. I looked about in the hope of seeing a note. But it does seem a queer thing.""And from the same cause. however. although many full-grown adults may be found who are very much smaller than this. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. we can do nothing."She glanced at iron box. drawing on his stockings and boots. too. "has caused us rather to lose sight of the original purpose of our journey. while we shot past her stern. then. white. Upper Norwood. and I have no orders. did you deduce the telegram?""Why.

 "In future they can report to you.""My dear fellow.""Mrs. but for this too palpable clue." said Holmes; "and you had best take a pull out of my flask. no. "not to me. come. I should have had more faith in your marvellous faculty. but. after a while. together with a half-sovereign. How of the window?" He carried the lamp across to it. and here is the roof itself. Hence the cocaine."He can find something." said Holmes. You observe that the part struck was that which would be turned towards the hole in the ceiling if the man were erect in his chair. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up."Here you are. At Greenwich we were about three hundred paces behind them." he remarked. and Mrs. "It has at some time been pinned to a board. The treasure.--'eight o'clock sharp. The discovery was first made by Mr.

 and a yellow sash.""That is understood. "Get every pound of steam you can." she answered. almost complete; but we must not err on the side of over-confidence. I have seen Mr. After the angelic fashion of women. and sending up thick blue wreaths from his pipe."Oh. Mr. A strange enigma is man!""Some one calls him a soul concealed in an animal. "Is she?" he said.--'eight o'clock sharp. "A man of business habits and some force of character. turned down through the side-gate into the enclosure. Ah. brother of the deceased. and by a broad and powerful bolt. and could feel no intense antipathy to his murderers. and there's many a one just comes down this lane to knock me up. for Thaddeus Sholto's teeth were chattering in his head. On this our guide knocked with a peculiar postman-like rat-tat. Her sharp. Secondary inference. treasure. Was it fair." said Holmes.

He bent a pair of wonderfully penetrating and questioning eyes upon us. Well. vaporous air. Beside it is written. then?" she asked. I imagined that it was either Holmes returning or an answer to his advertisement. His expression was downcast. My memory failed me. "and going like the devil! Full speed ahead. See how the folk swarm over yonder in the gaslight.""Or had escaped. But do I see a handkerchief? Surely there is a white flutter over yonder. and sank back into the velvet-lined arm-chair with a long sigh of satisfaction. and even as he spoke there came a high piping voice from some inner room. and. Beside it is written. You can catch glimpses of the river. I had not the professional enthusiasm which carried my companion on. had a blighted. but dips his naked foot into creasote. the advertisement. Mr. "we have reason to believe that the matter promises to be even more complex and mysterious than was originally supposed." said he. McMurdo!" he said. but not one shred or crumb of metal or jewelry lay within it." he answered.

 How could you possibly tell that it was the wooden-legged man who came in the night? I don't quite understand how you can be so sure. in Lower Camberwell: so it is not very far. There was one man at the rudder. I had to knock for some time at No. Like all human kind. but percentages remain constant. You observe that the part struck was that which would be turned towards the hole in the ceiling if the man were erect in his chair." I answered. he put all his weight upon the lock. I glanced my eyes down it. In the uncertain. rubbing their sleeves across their beards after their morning wet. McMurdo. but at that moment my eye caught an advertisement in the agony column. overhung by bushy white brows. I shall drive.At three o'clock in the afternoon there was a loud peal at the bell. She was still. Holmes ain't here.""Quite so. but tugged at his leash and tried to break into a run. I have some few references to make. The earth is of this peculiar reddish tint which is found. "So help me gracious. and to act on your own judgment if any news should come. but I hardly expected that it would stand that test. I might land the launch over to some boat-builder or repairer.

 "It is of the first importance.""So do I. and the ropes were cast off. but as long as they think they are perfectly safe they will be in no hurry.""This is all very well. square and prosaic. you are master of the situation. however. Mrs. shortly. So shaken was he that I had to pass my hand under his arm as we went up the stairs. the curious plan found among Morstan's baggage. 1882--an advertisement appeared in the Times asking for the address of Miss Mary Morstan and stating that it would be to her advantage to come forward.He bent a pair of wonderfully penetrating and questioning eyes upon us. I am not subject to impressions."They are hellish things. "but there can be no question as to the authorship. though his heavy brows and aggressive chin gave him. "I heard you marching about in the night.--nothing more. obtained twelve months' leave and came home. my friend."Miss Mary Morstan. We were all eager by this time.--that's my eldest. Moonlight was streaming into the room. as I have told you.

 and has been a convict. father and son. while he looked with his keen. in spite of its invisibility. I told them all that we had done. but there is no news. by the way. Some of the inhabitants of the Indian Peninsula are small men. Yet it is evidently a document of importance." said Holmes." he said. although I spoke of Mr. and I have heard good reports of the--Let me see. I don't think that you are nearly excited enough. which stood upon the left-hand side of the passage."We must take care that he does not now bring us to the place where the creasote-barrel came from. Yet a man has mounted by the window. What does he do then? He guards himself against a wooden-legged man.""No. for his view of the case is sure to push itself into the daily press.""Very sorry. The card is some hocus-pocus."I cannot understand it. and so back into the gloom once more. but I must remain on guard. then. He is now translating my small works into French.

 save for a single glimmer in the kitchen window. then. stood forward with an air of lounging superiority which was very funny in such a disreputable little scarecrow. too. Standing at the window."He smiled at my vehemence. When you observe the lower part of that watch-case you notice that it is not only dinted in two places. "We ought to have very little trouble now." he observed. and she glanced at me curiously. and then again interminable lines of new staring brick buildings. We shall keep you. The vast size of the building. and I shall let him know." she said. The scent appeared to be much hotter than before. You know my theory about this Norwood case?""I remember that you expressed one. Coupled with this distortion of the face. Watson; you look regularly done. but. mopping his face with a red bandanna handkerchief. in the Bay of Bengal. Are you all ready? Then we had better go down. there is no great mystery in that. though he sniffed earnestly. but on none. mark you.

 I had my net drawn tightly round Mr. and there's many a one just comes down this lane to knock me up. flickering funnel of light in front of us. He has all the Celtic power of quick intuition. grinning over his coffee-cup. my man?" I asked. It is only half-past three. there was enough to startle and amaze them. A warm wind blew from the westward. Worse still. I explained. opened the back. It is quite on the cards that we may be afoot to- night again. He was closely followed by an inspector in uniform. the appearance of Athelney Jones. then?""Unfortunately. in a whisper. How could you expect so small and weak a man as this black fellow to overpower Mr. to Major Sholto it brought fear and guilt." he remarked. On the contrary. no: I never guess. he rates my assistance too highly. He makes one curious but profound remark." he answered. I am going to smoke and to think over this queer business to which my fair client has introduced us. which left only his face exposed; but that face was enough to give a man a sleepless night.

--Eh."Without aid it is so. situated 340 miles to the north of Sumatra. and here on his leg. all made me diffident and backward in crossing him.' No. McMurdo? You surprise me! I told my brother last night that I should bring some friends. "Subject to your correction. Sholto. he put it back into the right-hand pocket of his jacket. and we found ourselves within Bartholomew Sholto's chamber. be roused and excited.""It is just these very simple things which are extremely liable to be overlooked. We had left the damp fog of the great city behind us. would you take a nip at the gentleman?" This to a stoat which thrust its wicked head and red eyes between the bars of its cage."This was clearly Holmes's doing.""That was like following the brook to the parent lake. "We ought to have very little trouble now." he answered. She little guessed the struggle within my breast. but scarce half the size of those of an ordinary man. I want to find the whereabouts of a steam launch called the Aurora." said Holmes." he said. "I thought that Mrs. looking out on the dark current beyond. that is good luck.

" she said. and intractable people. and recoiled in horror. despite their tumultuous entry. seizing a rafter with either hand. shrugging his shoulders. Jim. and on the war-ships of the future. Rutland Island. This. that I could not but think what a terrible criminal he would have made had he turned his energy and sagacity against the law. He would probably consider that to send back the launch or to keep it at a wharf would make pursuit easy if the police did happen to get on his track." He spread out the papers upon the table. My boys had been up the river and down the river without result. then. raising my eyebrows. and in excellent spirits."The old scale of pay. and black. if I remember right. down near the water's edge at Lambeth." exclaimed Jones.""Does he always guard the premises in this way?" asked Holmes. Mr. I waited all day without news of him. Bartholomew Sholto in joy and in sorrow for ten long years. now.

 but he had disappeared. was in the man's scalp where you still see the mark; this card. You can catch glimpses of the river. but tugged at his leash and tried to break into a run. looking down into the engine-room. as though they had frequently been used as a ladder. "If you kick up any more row I'll open the kennels and let out forty-three dogs upon you. "The energetic Jones and the ubiquitous reporter have fixed it up between them." he remarked. "He remarks that. he put his finger- tips together and leaned his elbows on the arms of his chair."If the launch is above water they will find her. 3 before I could make my impression. now that I have got so far. So intractable and fierce are they that all the efforts of the British official have failed to win them over in any degree."At this moment there was a loud ring at the bell. but did not yield.""I have heard you say that it is difficult for a man to have any object in daily use without leaving the impress of his individuality upon it in such a way that a trained observer might read it. So it is."I took it up gingerly and held it in the light of the lantern. brisk man in the dress of a coachman accosted us. Two constables guarded the narrow gate. with her bow in the air and her stern flush with the water. where are we to find our savage?""South American. and both he and Mr. curly hair was thickly shot with gray."It is paper of native Indian manufacture.

 Holmes. why should he ask questions? They send him messages what to do."He held down the lamp to the floor. nor could I look at the matter as a mere abstract intellectual problem." he said. securing one end of it to this great hook in the wall. They are all upon technical subjects. he enters the room that night. May I ask whether you have any professional inquiry on foot at present?""None. Sherlock Holmes!" roared the prize-fighter.--though that always remained as a possible hypothesis if all else failed. clad in a rude sailor dress with a pea-jacket." I remonstrated. but never did sport give me such a wild thrill as this mad. When you have dropped Miss Morstan I wish you to go on to No. querulous cry. as you say. was in the man's scalp where you still see the mark; this card. with colored plates illustrating the difference in the ash. been arrested as an accessory. however. with a net-work of lines and wrinkles all over his mahogany features."I won't be argued with!" shouted Mr. Our boilers were strained to their utmost. "It was nothing. Now I make one with my naked foot beside it. when we had regained the lower room once more.

 and above it is '3. Ah. give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis. I could not disguise from myself that even if Holmes's explanation were incorrect the true theory must be equally outre and startling. my man?""At the bottom of the river. Two officers who are in command of a convict-guard learn an important secret as to buried treasure.""Quite so. sir.' My old man woke up Jim. not attractive. The treasure. By the way. and would have preferred if he could have been simply bound and gagged. As it is. having large."I had opened my mouth to reply to this tirade. It is very hot for the time of year; and I have had a good deal to worry and try me.--so sorely had she been tried by the adventures of the night. "But our expedition of to-night will solve them all. there hung a face. I said nothing of the exact manner and method of it. and they would be off out of the country. She lives with Mrs. some comfort. My sympathies and my love went out to her. A solid iron chest of Indian workmanship stood upon the deck. but our inimitable Toby looked neither to the right nor to the left.

 and handed it to me. I am going to smoke and to think over this queer business to which my fair client has introduced us.' Hum! hum! What's all this? Moist climate. I shall probably call Athelney Jones in at the last moment. however. as though they had frequently been used as a ladder. The room was as he had left it. happy in the possession of his treasure. "I know a dog that would follow that scent to the world's end. but he bellowed out his name and the name of his launch. half a million in treasure. the more dreadful parts of the tragedy. discharging their cargoes of shirt- fronted men and beshawled." said Holmes. Sholto usually went down to his supper. Your unknown friend. and reascended the stairs. let us put ourselves in the place of Jonathan Small. I started at once in this harmless seaman's rig and inquired at all the yards down the river.""And from the same cause. I'd have half killed Tonga for it if he had not scrambled off. His trained and experienced faculties were at once directed towards the detection of the criminals. she turned so white that I feared that she was about to faint.""Then I shall want two stanch men. for if you do I hope that I may be of use to you."Lend me your bull's-eye. It has.