The Valley of Fear Page 7

  Chapter 7

  The Solution

  Next morning, after breakfast, we found Inspector MacDonald and WhiteMason seated in close consultation in the small parlour of the localpolice sergeant. On the table in front of them were piled a number ofletters and telegrams, which they were carefully sorting and docketing.Three had been placed on one side.

  "Still on the track of the elusive bicyclist?" Holmes asked cheerfully."What is the latest news of the ruffian?"

  MacDonald pointed ruefully to his heap of correspondence.

  "He is at present reported from Leicester, Nottingham, Southampton,Derby, East Ham, Richmond, and fourteen other places. In three ofthem--East Ham, Leicester, and Liverpool--there is a clear case againsthim, and he has actually been arrested. The country seems to be full ofthe fugitives with yellow coats."

  "Dear me!" said Holmes sympathetically. "Now, Mr. Mac and you, Mr.White Mason, I wish to give you a very earnest piece of advice. When Iwent into this case with you I bargained, as you will no doubtremember, that I should not present you with half-proved theories, butthat I should retain and work out my own ideas until I had satisfiedmyself that they were correct. For this reason I am not at the presentmoment telling you all that is in my mind. On the other hand, I saidthat I would play the game fairly by you, and I do not think it is afair game to allow you for one unnecessary moment to waste yourenergies upon a profitless task. Therefore I am here to advise you thismorning, and my advice to you is summed up in three words--abandon thecase."

  MacDonald and White Mason stared in amazement at their celebratedcolleague.

  "You consider it hopeless!" cried the inspector.

  "I consider your case to be hopeless. I do not consider that it ishopeless to arrive at the truth."

  "But this cyclist. He is not an invention. We have his description, hisvalise, his bicycle. The fellow must be somewhere. Why should we notget him?"

  "Yes, yes, no doubt he is somewhere, and no doubt we shall get him; butI would not have you waste your energies in East Ham or Liverpool. I amsure that we can find some shorter cut to a result."

  "You are holding something back. It's hardly fair of you, Mr. Holmes."The inspector was annoyed.

  "You know my methods of work, Mr. Mac. But I will hold it back for theshortest time possible. I only wish to verify my details in one way,which can very readily be done, and then I make my bow and return toLondon, leaving my results entirely at your service. I owe you too muchto act otherwise; for in all my experience I cannot recall any moresingular and interesting study."

  "This is clean beyond me, Mr. Holmes. We saw you when we returned fromTunbridge Wells last night, and you were in general agreement with ourresults. What has happened since then to give you a completely new ideaof the case?"

  "Well, since you ask me, I spent, as I told you that I would, somehours last night at the Manor House."

  "Well, what happened?"

  "Ah, I can only give you a very general answer to that for the moment.By the way, I have been reading a short but clear and interestingaccount of the old building, purchasable at the modest sum of one pennyfrom the local tobacconist."

  Here Holmes drew a small tract, embellished with a rude engraving ofthe ancient Manor House, from his waistcoat pocket.

  "It immensely adds to the zest of an investigation, my dear Mr. Mac,when one is in conscious sympathy with the historical atmosphere ofone's surroundings. Don't look so impatient; for I assure you that evenso bald an account as this raises some sort of picture of the past inone's mind. Permit me to give you a sample. 'Erected in the fifth yearof the reign of James I, and standing upon the site of a much olderbuilding, the Manor House of Birlstone presents one of the finestsurviving examples of the moated Jacobean residence--'"

  "You are making fools of us, Mr. Holmes!"

  "Tut, tut, Mr. Mac!--the first sign of temper I have detected in you.Well, I won't read it verbatim, since you feel so strongly upon thesubject. But when I tell you that there is some account of the takingof the place by a parliamentary colonel in 1644, of the concealment ofCharles for several days in the course of the Civil War, and finally ofa visit there by the second George, you will admit that there arevarious associations of interest connected with this ancient house."

  "I don't doubt it, Mr. Holmes; but that is no business of ours."

  "Is it not? Is it not? Breadth of view, my dear Mr. Mac, is one of theessentials of our profession. The interplay of ideas and the obliqueuses of knowledge are often of extraordinary interest. You will excusethese remarks from one who, though a mere connoisseur of crime, isstill rather older and perhaps more experienced than yourself."

  "I'm the first to admit that," said the detective heartily. "You get toyour point, I admit; but you have such a deuced round-the-corner way ofdoing it."

  "Well, well, I'll drop past history and get down to present-day facts.I called last night, as I have already said, at the Manor House. I didnot see either Barker or Mrs. Douglas. I saw no necessity to disturbthem; but I was pleased to hear that the lady was not visibly piningand that she had partaken of an excellent dinner. My visit wasspecially made to the good Mr. Ames, with whom I exchanged someamiabilities, which culminated in his allowing me, without reference toanyone else, to sit alone for a time in the study."

  "What! With that?" I ejaculated.

  "No, no, everything is now in order. You gave permission for that, Mr.Mac, as I am informed. The room was in its normal state, and in it Ipassed an instructive quarter of an hour."

  "What were you doing?"

  "Well, not to make a mystery of so simple a matter, I was looking forthe missing dumb-bell. It has always bulked rather large in my estimateof the case. I ended by finding it."

  "Where?"

  "Ah, there we come to the edge of the unexplored. Let me go a littlefurther, a very little further, and I will promise that you shall shareeverything that I know."

  "Well, we're bound to take you on your own terms," said the inspector;"but when it comes to telling us to abandon the case--why in the nameof goodness should we abandon the case?"

  "For the simple reason, my dear Mr. Mac, that you have not got thefirst idea what it is that you are investigating."

  "We are investigating the murder of Mr. John Douglas of BirlstoneManor."

  "Yes, yes, so you are. But don't trouble to trace the mysteriousgentleman upon the bicycle. I assure you that it won't help you."

  "Then what do you suggest that we do?"

  "I will tell you exactly what to do, if you will do it."

  "Well, I'm bound to say I've always found you had reason behind allyour queer ways. I'll do what you advise."

  "And you, Mr. White Mason?"

  The country detective looked helplessly from one to the other. Holmesand his methods were new to him. "Well, if it is good enough for theinspector, it is good enough for me," he said at last.

  "Capital!" said Holmes. "Well, then, I should recommend a nice, cheerycountry walk for both of you. They tell me that the views fromBirlstone Ridge over the Weald are very remarkable. No doubt lunchcould be got at some suitable hostelry; though my ignorance of thecountry prevents me from recommending one. In the evening, tired buthappy--"

  "Man, this is getting past a joke!" cried MacDonald, rising angrilyfrom his chair.

  "Well, well, spend the day as you like," said Holmes, patting himcheerfully upon the shoulder. "Do what you like and go where you will,but meet me here before dusk without fail--without fail, Mr. Mac."

  "That sounds more like sanity."

  "All of it was excellent advice; but I don't insist, so long as you arehere when I need you. But now, before we part, I want you to write anote to Mr. Barker."

  "Well?"

  "I'll dictate it, if you like. Ready?

  "Dear Sir:

  "It has struck me that it is our duty to drain the moat, in the hope that we may find some--"

  "It's impossible," said the inspector. "I've made inquiry."

 
; "Tut, tut! My dear sir, please do what I ask you."

  "Well, go on."

  "--in the hope that we may find something which may bear upon our investigation. I have made arrangements, and the workmen will be at work early to-morrow morning diverting the stream--"

  "Impossible!"

  "--diverting the stream; so I thought it best to explain matters beforehand.

  "Now sign that, and send it by hand about four o'clock. At that hour weshall meet again in this room. Until then we may each do what we like;for I can assure you that this inquiry has come to a definite pause."

  Evening was drawing in when we reassembled. Holmes was very serious inhis manner, myself curious, and the detectives obviously critical andannoyed.

  "Well, gentlemen," said my friend gravely, "I am asking you now to puteverything to the test with me, and you will judge for yourselveswhether the observations I have made justify the conclusions to which Ihave come. It is a chill evening, and I do not know how long ourexpedition may last; so I beg that you will wear your warmest coats. Itis of the first importance that we should be in our places before itgrows dark; so with your permission we shall get started at once."

  We passed along the outer bounds of the Manor House park until we cameto a place where there was a gap in the rails which fenced it. Throughthis we slipped, and then in the gathering gloom we followed Holmesuntil we had reached a shrubbery which lies nearly opposite to the maindoor and the drawbridge. The latter had not been raised. Holmescrouched down behind the screen of laurels, and we all three followedhis example.

  "Well, what are we to do now?" asked MacDonald with some gruffness.

  "Possess our souls in patience and make as little noise as possible,"Holmes answered.

  "What are we here for at all? I really think that you might treat uswith more frankness."

  Holmes laughed. "Watson insists that I am the dramatist in real life,"said he. "Some touch of the artist wells up within me, and callsinsistently for a well-staged performance. Surely our profession, Mr.Mac, would be a drab and sordid one if we did not sometimes set thescene so as to glorify our results. The blunt accusation, the brutaltap upon the shoulder--what can one make of such a denouement? But thequick inference, the subtle trap, the clever forecast of coming events,the triumphant vindication of bold theories--are these not the prideand the justification of our life's work? At the present moment youthrill with the glamour of the situation and the anticipation of thehunt. Where would be that thrill if I had been as definite as atimetable? I only ask a little patience, Mr. Mac, and all will be clearto you."

  "Well, I hope the pride and justification and the rest of it will comebefore we all get our death of cold," said the London detective withcomic resignation.

  We all had good reason to join in the aspiration; for our vigil was along and bitter one. Slowly the shadows darkened over the long, sombreface of the old house. A cold, damp reek from the moat chilled us tothe bones and set our teeth chattering. There was a single lamp overthe gateway and a steady globe of light in the fatal study. Everythingelse was dark and still.

  "How long is this to last?" asked the inspector finally. "And what isit we are watching for?"

  "I have no more notion than you how long it is to last," Holmesanswered with some asperity. "If criminals would always schedule theirmovements like railway trains, it would certainly be more convenientfor all of us. As to what it is we--Well, that's what we are watchingfor!"

  As he spoke the bright, yellow light in the study was obscured bysomebody passing to and fro before it. The laurels among which we laywere immediately opposite the window and not more than a hundred feetfrom it. Presently it was thrown open with a whining of hinges, and wecould dimly see the dark outline of a man's head and shoulders lookingout into the gloom. For some minutes he peered forth in furtive,stealthy fashion, as one who wishes to be assured that he isunobserved. Then he leaned forward, and in the intense silence we wereaware of the soft lapping of agitated water. He seemed to be stirringup the moat with something which he held in his hand. Then suddenly hehauled something in as a fisherman lands a fish--some large, roundobject which obscured the light as it was dragged through the opencasement.

  "Now!" cried Holmes. "Now!"

  We were all upon our feet, staggering after him with our stiffenedlimbs, while he ran swiftly across the bridge and rang violently at thebell. There was the rasping of bolts from the other side, and theamazed Ames stood in the entrance. Holmes brushed him aside without aword and, followed by all of us, rushed into the room which had beenoccupied by the man whom we had been watching.

  The oil lamp on the table represented the glow which we had seen fromoutside. It was now in the hand of Cecil Barker, who held it towards usas we entered. Its light shone upon his strong, resolute, clean-shavedface and his menacing eyes.

  "What the devil is the meaning of all this?" he cried. "What are youafter, anyhow?"

  Holmes took a swift glance round, and then pounced upon a sodden bundletied together with cord which lay where it had been thrust under thewriting table.

  "This is what we are after, Mr. Barker--this bundle, weighted with adumb-bell, which you have just raised from the bottom of the moat."

  Barker stared at Holmes with amazement in his face. "How in thundercame you to know anything about it?" he asked.

  "Simply that I put it there."

  "You put it there! You!"

  "Perhaps I should have said 'replaced it there,'" said Holmes. "Youwill remember, Inspector MacDonald, that I was somewhat struck by theabsence of a dumb-bell. I drew your attention to it; but with thepressure of other events you had hardly the time to give it theconsideration which would have enabled you to draw deductions from it.When water is near and a weight is missing it is not a very far-fetchedsupposition that something has been sunk in the water. The idea was atleast worth testing; so with the help of Ames, who admitted me to theroom, and the crook of Dr. Watson's umbrella, I was able last night tofish up and inspect this bundle.

  "It was of the first importance, however, that we should be able toprove who placed it there. This we accomplished by the very obviousdevice of announcing that the moat would be dried to-morrow, which had,of course, the effect that whoever had hidden the bundle would mostcertainly withdraw it the moment that darkness enabled him to do so. Wehave no less than four witnesses as to who it was who took advantage ofthe opportunity, and so, Mr. Barker, I think the word lies now withyou."

  Sherlock Holmes put the sopping bundle upon the table beside the lampand undid the cord which bound it. From within he extracted adumb-bell, which he tossed down to its fellow in the corner. Next hedrew forth a pair of boots. "American, as you perceive," he remarked,pointing to the toes. Then he laid upon the table a long, deadly,sheathed knife. Finally he unravelled a bundle of clothing, comprisinga complete set of underclothes, socks, a gray tweed suit, and a shortyellow overcoat.

  "The clothes are commonplace," remarked Holmes, "save only theovercoat, which is full of suggestive touches." He held it tenderlytowards the light. "Here, as you perceive, is the inner pocketprolonged into the lining in such fashion as to give ample space forthe truncated fowling piece. The tailor's tab is on the neck--'Neal,Outfitter, Vermissa, U. S. A.' I have spent an instructive afternoon inthe rector's library, and have enlarged my knowledge by adding the factthat Vermissa is a flourishing little town at the head of one of thebest known coal and iron valleys in the United States. I have somerecollection, Mr. Barker, that you associated the coal districts withMr. Douglas's first wife, and it would surely not be too far-fetched aninference that the V. V. upon the card by the dead body might stand forVermissa Valley, or that this very valley which sends forth emissariesof murder may be that Valley of Fear of which we have heard. So much isfairly clear. And now, Mr. Barker, I seem to be standing rather in theway of your explanation."

  It was a sight to see Cecil Barker's expressive face during thisexposition of the great detective. Anger, amazement, conste
rnation, andindecision swept over it in turn. Finally he took refuge in a somewhatacrid irony.

  "You know such a lot, Mr. Holmes, perhaps you had better tell us somemore," he sneered.

  "I have no doubt that I could tell you a great deal more, Mr. Barker;but it would come with a better grace from you."

  "Oh, you think so, do you? Well, all I can say is that if there's anysecret here it is not my secret, and I am not the man to give it away."

  "Well, if you take that line, Mr. Barker," said the inspector quietly,"we must just keep you in sight until we have the warrant and can holdyou."

  "You can do what you damn please about that," said Barker defiantly.

  The proceedings seemed to have come to a definite end so far as he wasconcerned; for one had only to look at that granite face to realizethat no peine forte et dure would ever force him to plead against hiswill. The deadlock was broken, however, by a woman's voice. Mrs.Douglas had been standing listening at the half opened door, and nowshe entered the room.

  "You have done enough for now, Cecil," said she. "Whatever comes of itin the future, you have done enough."

  "Enough and more than enough," remarked Sherlock Holmes gravely. "Ihave every sympathy with you, madam, and should strongly urge you tohave some confidence in the common sense of our jurisdiction and totake the police voluntarily into your complete confidence. It may bethat I am myself at fault for not following up the hint which youconveyed to me through my friend, Dr. Watson; but, at that time I hadevery reason to believe that you were directly concerned in the crime.Now I am assured that this is not so. At the same time, there is muchthat is unexplained, and I should strongly recommend that you ask Mr.Douglas to tell us his own story."

  Mrs. Douglas gave a cry of astonishment at Holmes's words. Thedetectives and I must have echoed it, when we were aware of a man whoseemed to have emerged from the wall, who advanced now from the gloomof the corner in which he had appeared. Mrs. Douglas turned, and in aninstant her arms were round him. Barker had seized his outstretchedhand.

  "It's best this way, Jack," his wife repeated; "I am sure that it isbest."

  "Indeed, yes, Mr. Douglas," said Sherlock Holmes, "I am sure that youwill find it best."

  The man stood blinking at us with the dazed look of one who comes fromthe dark into the light. It was a remarkable face, bold gray eyes, astrong, short-clipped, grizzled moustache, a square, projecting chin,and a humorous mouth. He took a good look at us all, and then to myamazement he advanced to me and handed me a bundle of paper.

  "I've heard of you," said he in a voice which was not quite English andnot quite American, but was altogether mellow and pleasing. "You arethe historian of this bunch. Well, Dr. Watson, you've never had such astory as that pass through your hands before, and I'll lay my lastdollar on that. Tell it your own way; but there are the facts, and youcan't miss the public so long as you have those. I've been cooped uptwo days, and I've spent the daylight hours--as much daylight as Icould get in that rat trap--in putting the thing into words. You'rewelcome to them--you and your public. There's the story of the Valleyof Fear."

  "That's the past, Mr. Douglas," said Sherlock Holmes quietly. "What wedesire now is to hear your story of the present."

  "You'll have it, sir," said Douglas. "May I smoke as I talk? Well,thank you, Mr. Holmes. You're a smoker yourself, if I remember right,and you'll guess what it is to be sitting for two days with tobacco inyour pocket and afraid that the smell will give you away." He leanedagainst the mantelpiece and sucked at the cigar which Holmes had handedhim. "I've heard of you, Mr. Holmes. I never guessed that I should meetyou. But before you are through with that," he nodded at my papers,"you will say I've brought you something fresh."

  Inspector MacDonald had been staring at the newcomer with the greatestamazement. "Well, this fairly beats me!" he cried at last. "If you areMr. John Douglas of Birlstone Manor, then whose death have we beeninvestigating for these two days, and where in the world have yousprung from now? You seemed to me to come out of the floor like ajack-in-a-box."

  "Ah, Mr. Mac," said Holmes, shaking a reproving forefinger, "you wouldnot read that excellent local compilation which described theconcealment of King Charles. People did not hide in those days withoutexcellent hiding places, and the hiding place that has once been usedmay be again. I had persuaded myself that we should find Mr. Douglasunder this roof."

  "And how long have you been playing this trick upon us, Mr. Holmes?"said the inspector angrily. "How long have you allowed us to wasteourselves upon a search that you knew to be an absurd one?"

  "Not one instant, my dear Mr. Mac. Only last night did I form my viewsof the case. As they could not be put to the proof until this evening,I invited you and your colleague to take a holiday for the day. Praywhat more could I do? When I found the suit of clothes in the moat, itat once became apparent to me that the body we had found could not havebeen the body of Mr. John Douglas at all, but must be that of thebicyclist from Tunbridge Wells. No other conclusion was possible.Therefore I had to determine where Mr. John Douglas himself could be,and the balance of probability was that with the connivance of his wifeand his friend he was concealed in a house which had such conveniencesfor a fugitive, and awaiting quieter times when he could make his finalescape."

  "Well, you figured it out about right," said Douglas approvingly. "Ithought I'd dodge your British law; for I was not sure how I stoodunder it, and also I saw my chance to throw these hounds once for alloff my track. Mind you, from first to last I have done nothing to beashamed of, and nothing that I would not do again; but you'll judgethat for yourselves when I tell you my story. Never mind warning me,Inspector: I'm ready to stand pat upon the truth.

  "I'm not going to begin at the beginning. That's all there," heindicated my bundle of papers, "and a mighty queer yarn you'll find it.It all comes down to this: That there are some men that have good causeto hate me and would give their last dollar to know that they had gotme. So long as I am alive and they are alive, there is no safety inthis world for me. They hunted me from Chicago to California, then theychased me out of America; but when I married and settled down in thisquiet spot I thought my last years were going to be peaceable.

  "I never explained to my wife how things were. Why should I pull herinto it? She would never have a quiet moment again; but would always beimagining trouble. I fancy she knew something, for I may have dropped aword here or a word there; but until yesterday, after you gentlemen hadseen her, she never knew the rights of the matter. She told you all sheknew, and so did Barker here; for on the night when this thing happenedthere was mighty little time for explanations. She knows everythingnow, and I would have been a wiser man if I had told her sooner. But itwas a hard question, dear," he took her hand for an instant in his own,"and I acted for the best.

  "Well, gentlemen, the day before these happenings I was over inTunbridge Wells, and I got a glimpse of a man in the street. It wasonly a glimpse; but I have a quick eye for these things, and I neverdoubted who it was. It was the worst enemy I had among them all--onewho has been after me like a hungry wolf after a caribou all theseyears. I knew there was trouble coming, and I came home and made readyfor it. I guessed I'd fight through it all right on my own, my luck wasa proverb in the States about '76. I never doubted that it would bewith me still.

  "I was on my guard all that next day, and never went out into the park.It's as well, or he'd have had the drop on me with that buckshot gun ofhis before ever I could draw on him. After the bridge was up--my mindwas always more restful when that bridge was up in the evenings--I putthe thing clear out of my head. I never dreamed of his getting into thehouse and waiting for me. But when I made my round in my dressing gown,as was my habit, I had no sooner entered the study than I scenteddanger. I guess when a man has had dangers in his life--and I've hadmore than most in my time--there is a kind of sixth sense that wavesthe red flag. I saw the signal clear enough, and yet I couldn't tellyou why. Next instant I spotted a boot under the window curtain, andthen I sa
w why plain enough.

  "I'd just the one candle that was in my hand; but there was a goodlight from the hall lamp through the open door. I put down the candleand jumped for a hammer that I'd left on the mantel. At the same momenthe sprang at me. I saw the glint of a knife, and I lashed at him withthe hammer. I got him somewhere; for the knife tinkled down on thefloor. He dodged round the table as quick as an eel, and a moment laterhe'd got his gun from under his coat. I heard him cock it; but I hadgot hold of it before he could fire. I had it by the barrel, and wewrestled for it all ends up for a minute or more. It was death to theman that lost his grip.

  "He never lost his grip; but he got it butt downward for a moment toolong. Maybe it was I that pulled the trigger. Maybe we just jolted itoff between us. Anyhow, he got both barrels in the face, and there Iwas, staring down at all that was left of Ted Baldwin. I'd recognizedhim in the township, and again when he sprang for me; but his ownmother wouldn't recognize him as I saw him then. I'm used to roughwork; but I fairly turned sick at the sight of him.

  "I was hanging on the side of the table when Barker came hurrying down.I heard my wife coming, and I ran to the door and stopped her. It wasno sight for a woman. I promised I'd come to her soon. I said a word ortwo to Barker--he took it all in at a glance--and we waited for therest to come along. But there was no sign of them. Then we understoodthat they could hear nothing, and that all that had happened was knownonly to ourselves.

  "It was at that instant that the idea came to me. I was fairly dazzledby the brilliance of it. The man's sleeve had slipped up and there wasthe branded mark of the lodge upon his forearm. See here!"

  The man whom we had known as Douglas turned up his own coat and cuff toshow a brown triangle within a circle exactly like that which we hadseen upon the dead man.

  "It was the sight of that which started me on it. I seemed to see itall clear at a glance. There were his height and hair and figure, aboutthe same as my own. No one could swear to his face, poor devil! Ibrought down this suit of clothes, and in a quarter of an hour Barkerand I had put my dressing gown on him and he lay as you found him. Wetied all his things into a bundle, and I weighted them with the onlyweight I could find and put them through the window. The card he hadmeant to lay upon my body was lying beside his own.

  "My rings were put on his finger; but when it came to the weddingring," he held out his muscular hand, "you can see for yourselves thatI had struck the limit. I have not moved it since the day I wasmarried, and it would have taken a file to get it off. I don't know,anyhow, that I should have cared to part with it; but if I had wantedto I couldn't. So we just had to leave that detail to take care ofitself. On the other hand, I brought a bit of plaster down and put itwhere I am wearing one myself at this instant. You slipped up there,Mr. Holmes, clever as you are; for if you had chanced to take off thatplaster you would have found no cut underneath it.

  "Well, that was the situation. If I could lie low for a while and thenget away where I could be joined by my 'widow' we should have a chanceat last of living in peace for the rest of our lives. These devilswould give me no rest so long as I was above ground; but if they saw inthe papers that Baldwin had got his man, there would be an end of allmy troubles. I hadn't much time to make it all clear to Barker and tomy wife; but they understood enough to be able to help me. I knew allabout this hiding place, so did Ames; but it never entered his head toconnect it with the matter. I retired into it, and it was up to Barkerto do the rest.

  "I guess you can fill in for yourselves what he did. He opened thewindow and made the mark on the sill to give an idea of how themurderer escaped. It was a tall order, that; but as the bridge was upthere was no other way. Then, when everything was fixed, he rang thebell for all he was worth. What happened afterward you know. And so,gentlemen, you can do what you please; but I've told you the truth andthe whole truth, so help me God! What I ask you now is how do I standby the English law?"

  There was a silence which was broken by Sherlock Holmes.

  "The English law is in the main a just law. You will get no worse thanyour deserts from that, Mr. Douglas. But I would ask you how did thisman know that you lived here, or how to get into your house, or whereto hide to get you?"

  "I know nothing of this."

  Holmes's face was very white and grave. "The story is not over yet, Ifear," said he. "You may find worse dangers than the English law, oreven than your enemies from America. I see trouble before you, Mr.Douglas. You'll take my advice and still be on your guard."

  And now, my long-suffering readers, I will ask you to come away with mefor a time, far from the Sussex Manor House of Birlstone, and far alsofrom the year of grace in which we made our eventful journey whichended with the strange story of the man who had been known as JohnDouglas. I wish you to journey back some twenty years in time, andwestward some thousands of miles in space, that I may lay before you asingular and terrible narrative--so singular and so terrible that youmay find it hard to believe that even as I tell it, even so did itoccur.

  Do not think that I intrude one story before another is finished. Asyou read on you will find that this is not so. And when I have detailedthose distant events and you have solved this mystery of the past, weshall meet once more in those rooms on Baker Street, where this, likeso many other wonderful happenings, will find its end.

  PART 2

  The Scowrers