The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes Part 5 (2/2)
”What the deuce is he knocking at his own door for?” cried the clerk
Again and azed expectantly at the closed door Glancing at Holid, and he leaned forward in intense excite sound, and a brisk dru frantically across the room and pushed at the door It was fastened on the inner side Following his exae snapped, then the other, and down ca over it, we found ourselves in the inner room It was empty
But it was only for a moment that ere at fault At one corner, the corner nearest the roo to it and pulled it open A coat and waistcoat were lying on the floor, and from a hook behind the door, with his own braces round his neck, was hanging thedirector of the Franco-Midland Hardware Co at a dreadful angle to his body, and the clatter of his heels against the door made the noise which had broken in upon our conversation In an instant I had caught him round the waist, and held him up while Holmes and Pycroft untied the elastic bands which had disappeared between the livid creases of skin Then we carried him into the other roo his purple lips in and out with every breath--a dreadful wreck of all that he had been but five minutes before
”What do you think of him, Watson?” asked Holmes
I stooped over him and examined hirew longer, and there was a little shi+vering of his eyelids, which showed a thin white slit of ball beneath
”It has been touch and go with him,” said I, ”but he'll live now Just open that , and hand me the water carafe” I undid his collar, poured the cold water over his face, and raised and sank his ar, natural breath ”It's only a question of time now,” said I, as I turned away from him
Holmes stood by the table, with his hands deep in his trouser's pockets and his chin upon his breast
”I suppose we ought to call the police in now,” said he ”And yet I confess that I'd like to give them a complete case when they come”
”It's a blessedhis head ”Whatever they wanted to bring me all the way up here for, and then--”
”Pooh! All that is clear enough,” said Holmes impatiently ”It is this last sudden move”
”You understand the rest, then?”
”I think that it is fairly obvious What do you say, Watson?”
I shrugged my shoulders ”I must confess that I am out of my depths,” said I
”Oh surely if you consider the events at first they can only point to one conclusion”
”What do you es upon two points The first is theof Pycroft write a declaration by which he entered the service of this preposterous coestive that is?”
”I am afraid I miss the point”
”Well, why did they want hiements are usually verbal, and there was no earthly business reason why this should be an exception Don't you see,friend, that they were very anxious to obtain a speci it?”
”And why?”
”Quite so Why? When we answer that we have ress with our little problem Why? There can be only one adequate reason So, and had to procure a specimen of it first And noe pass on to the second point we find that each throws light upon the other That point is the request n your place, but should leave the er of this important business in the full expectation that a Mr Hall Pycroft, whom he had never seen, was about to enter the office upon the Monday ”
”My God!” cried our client, ”what a blind beetle I have been!”
”Now you see the point about the handwriting Suppose that some one turned up in your place rote a completely different hand from that in which you had applied for the vacancy, of course the gaue had learned to imitate you, and his position was therefore secure, as I presume that nobody in the office had ever set eyes upon you”
”Not a soul,” groaned Hall Pycroft
”Very good Of course it was of the ut better of it, and also to keep you froht tell you that your double was at work in Mawson's office Therefore they gave you a handsome advance on your salary, and ran you off to the Midlands, where they gave you enough work to do to prevent your going to London, where you h”
”But why should this man pretend to be his own brother?”
”Well, that is pretty clear also There are evidently only two of the you at the office This one acted as your engager, and then found that he could not find you an e a third person into his plot That he was ed his appearance as far as he could, and trusted that the likeness, which you could not fail to observe, would be put down to a faold stuffing, your suspicions would probably never have been aroused”
Hall Pycroft shook his clinched hands in the air ”Good Lord!” he cried, ”while I have been fooled in this hat has this other Hall Pycroft been doing at Mawson's? What should we do, Mr Holmes? Tell me what to do”
”We must wire to Mawson's”
”They shut at twelve on Saturdays”
”Never mind There may be some door-keeper or attendant--”
”Ah yes, they keep a peruard there on account of the value of the securities that they hold I reood; we shall wire to him, and see if all is well, and if a clerk of your nah; but what is not so clear is why at sight of us one of the rogues should instantly walk out of the roo himself”
”The paper!” croaked a voice behind us Thereason in his eyes, and hands which rubbed nervously at the broad red band which still encircled his throat
”The paper! Of course!” yelled Holht so much of our visit that the paper never entered my head for an instant To be sure, the secret must be there” He flattened it out upon the table, and a cry of triumph burst from his lips ”Look at this, Watson,” he cried ”It is a London paper, an early edition of the Evening Standard Here is ant Look at the headlines: 'Criantic attempted Robbery Capture of the Criminal' Here, Watson, we are all equally anxious to hear it, so kindly read it aloud to us”
It appeared from its position in the paper to have been the one event of importance in town, and the account of it ran in this way: ”A desperate atte in the death of one man and the capture of the criminal, occurred this afternoon in the City For some time back Mawson & Williauardians of securities which aate to a su So conscious was the er of the responsibility which devolved upon hireat interests at stake that safes of the very latest construction have been eht in the building It appears that last week a new clerk naed by the firton, the faer and cracksed from a five years' spell of penal servitude By so, under a false name, this official position in the office, which he utilized in order to obtain e of the position of the strong room and the safes
”It is customary at Mawson's for the clerks to leave at eant Tuson, of the City Police, was soentle come down the steps at twenty eant followed the man, and with the aid of Constable Pollock succeeded, after ahiantic robbery had been committed Nearly a hundred thousand pounds' worth of Ae amount of scrip inOn exa the premises the body of the unfortunate watchest of the safes, where it would not have been discovered until Monday eant Tuson The man's skull had been shattered by a blow from a poker delivered froton had obtained entrance by pretending that he had left so e safe, and then made off with his booty His brother, who usually works with him, has not appeared in this job as far as can at present be ascertained, although the police are etic inquiries as to his whereabouts”
”Well, we may save the police so at the haggard figure huddled up by the”Hue mixture, Watson You see that even a villain and murderer can inspire such affection that his brother turns to suicide when he learns that his neck is forfeited However, we have no choice as to our action The doctor and I will reuard, Mr Pycroft, if you will have the kindness to step out for the police”
Adventure IV
The ”Gloria Scott”
”I have some papers here,” said ht on either side of the fire, ”which I really think, Watson, that it would be worth your while to glance over These are the documents in the extraordinary case of the Gloria Scott, and this is the e which struck Justice of the Peace Trevor dead with horror when he read it”
He had picked fro the tape, he handed ray paper
”The supply of ga steadily up,” it ran ”Head-keeper Hudson, we believe, has been now told to receive all orders for fly-paper and for preservation of your hen-pheasant's life”
As I glanced up fro at the expression upon my face