The Hound of the Baskervilles Part 6 (1/2)
Dr Mortimer looked at Holmes with an air of professional interest, and Sir Henry Baskerville turned a pair of puzzled dark eyes upon s of that kind,” said he, ”but it seeot a bit off the trail so far as that note is concerned”
”On the contrary, I think we are particularly hot upon the trail, Sir Henry Watson here knows more about my rasped the significance of this sentence”
”No, I confess that I see no connection”
”And yet, my dear Watson, there is so very close a connection that the one is extracted out of the other 'You,' 'your,' 'your,' 'life,'
'reason,' 'value,' 'keep away,' 'from the' Don't you see nohence these words have been taken?”
”By thunder, you're right! Well, if that isn't smart!” cried Sir Henry
”If any possible doubt remained it is settled by the fact that 'keep away' and 'from the' are cut out in one piece”
”Well, now--so it is!”
”Really, Mr Holined,”
said Dr Morti atthat the words were from a newspaper; but that you should na article, is really one of the s which I have ever known How did you do it?”
”I presuro from that of an Esquimau?”
”Most certainly”
”But how?”
”Because that is my special hobby The differences are obvious The supra-orbital crest, the facial angle, the maxillary curve, the--”
”But this is my special hobby, and the differences are equally obvious
There is as eois type of a Ti half-penny paper as there could be between your negro and your Esquimau The detection of types is one of the e to the special expert in cri I confused the Leeds Mercury with the Western Morning News But a Times leader is entirely distinctive, and these words could have been taken fro probability was that we should find the words in yesterday's issue”
”So far as I can follow you, then, Mr Hole with a scissors--”
”Nail-scissors,” said Holmes ”You can see that it was a very short-bladed scissors, since the cutter had to take two snips over 'keep away'”
”That is so Soe with a pair of short-bladed scissors, pasted it with paste--”
”Guum on to the paper But I want to knohy the word 'moor' should have been written?”
”Because he could not find it in print The other words were all siht be found in any issue, but 'moor' would be less common”
”Why, of course, that would explain it Have you read anything else in this e, Mr Holmes?”
”There are one or two indications, and yet the utmost pains have been taken to reh characters But the Times is a paper which is seldohly educated We may take it, therefore, that the letter was composed by an educated man ished to pose as an uneducated one, and his effort to conceal his oriting suggests that that writing ain, you will observe that the words are not guher than others 'Life,' for example is quite out of its proper place That itation and hurry upon the part of the cutter On the whole I incline to the latter view, since the matter was evidently important, and it is unlikely that the composer of such a letter would be careless If he were in a hurry it opens up the interesting question why he should be in a hurry, since any letter posted up to earlywould reach Sir Henry before he would leave his hotel Did the composer fear an interruption--and frouesswork,” said Dr