The Return of Sherlock Holmes Part 1 (1/2)

The Return of Sherlock Holmes

by ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

THE ADVENTURE OF THE EMPTY HOUSE

It was in the spring of the year 1894 that all London was interested, and the fashi+onable world dismayed, by the murder of the Honourable Ronald Adair under most unusual and inexplicable circumstances The public has already learned those particulars of the criood deal was suppressed upon that occasion, since the case for the prosecution was so overwhel forward all the facts Only now, at the end of nearly ten years, a links which make up the whole of that remarkable chain The cri to me coreatest shock and surprise of any event ininterval, I findonce more that sudden flood of joy, aed my mind Let me say to that public, which has shown soiven thehts and actions of a very remarkable man, that they are not to blae with them, for I should have considered it my first duty to do so, had I not been barred by a positive prohibition from his own lips, which was only withdrawn upon the third of last ined that my close intimacy with Sherlock Holmes had interested me deeply in crime, and that after his disappearance I never failed to read with care the various problems which came before the public And I even attempted, more than once, for my own private satisfaction, to eh with indifferent success There was none, however, which appealed to edy of Ronald Adair As I read the evidence at the inquest, which led up to a verdict of willful ainst some person or persons unknown, I realized more clearly than I had ever done the loss which the community had sustained by the death of Sherlock Hole business which would, I was sure, have specially appealed to him, and the efforts of the police would have been supplemented, or more probably anticipated, by the trained observation and the alert ent in Europe All day, as I drove upon my round, I turned over the case in my mind and found no explanation which appeared toa twice-told tale, I will recapitulate the facts as they were known to the public at the conclusion of the inquest

The Honourable Ronald Adair was the second son of the Earl of Maynooth, at that tiovernor of one of the Australian colonies Adair's o the operation for cataract, and she, her son Ronald, and her daughter Hilda were living together at 427 Park Lane The youth moved in the best society--had, so far as was known, no eneed to Miss Edith Woodley, of Carstairs, but the engagement had been broken off by n that it had left any very profound feeling behind it For the rest {sic} the man's life moved in a narrow and conventional circle, for his habits were quiet and his nature une aristocrat that death cae and unexpected forht of March 30, 1894

Ronald Adair was fond of cards--playing continually, but never for such stakes as would hurt hiatelle card clubs It was shown that, after dinner on the day of his death, he had played a rubber of whist at the latter club He had also played there in the afternoon The evidence of those who had played with him-- Mr Murray, Sir John Hardy, and Colonel Moran--showed that the game hist, and that there was a fairly equal fall of the cards Adair ht have lost five pounds, but not more His fortune was a considerable one, and such a loss could not in any way affect him He had played nearly every day at one club or other, but he was a cautious player, and usually rose a winner It came out in evidence that, in partnershi+p with Colonel Moran, he had actually won as , some weeks before, from Godfrey Milner and Lord Balmoral So much for his recent history as it ca of the crime, he returned from the club exactly at ten Hiswith a relation The servant deposed that she heard hienerally used as his sitting-room She had lit a fire there, and as it smoked she had opened theNo sound was heard from the room until eleven-twenty, the hour of the return of Lady Maynooth and her daughter Desiring to say good-night, she attempted to enter her son's rooot to their cries and knocking Help was obtained, and the door forced The unfortunate youngnear the table His head had been horriblyrevolver bullet, but no weapon of any sort was to be found in the room On the table lay two banknotes for ten pounds each and seventeen pounds ten in silver and gold, theaures also upon a sheet of paper, with the names of some club friends opposite to them, from which it was conjectured that before his death he was endeavouring to s at cards

A minute examination of the circumstances served only to make the case iven why the young man should have fastened the door upon the inside There was the possibility that the murderer had done this, and had afterwards escaped by theThe drop was at least twenty feet, however, and a bed of crocuses in full bloom lay beneath Neither the flowers nor the earth showed any sign of having been disturbed, nor were there any rass which separated the house fro man himself who had fastened the door But how did he come by his death? No one could have cli traces Suppose a h the , he would indeed be a remarkable shot who could with a revolver inflict so deadly a wound Again, Park Lane is a frequented thoroughfare; there is a cab stand within a hundred yards of the house No one had heard a shot And yet there was the dead man and there the revolver bullet, which had mushroomed out, as soft-nosed bullets will, and so inflicted a wound which must have caused instantaneous death Such were the circumstances of the Park Lane Mystery, which were further complicated by entire absence ofAdair was not known to have any enemy, and no attempt had been made to remove the money or valuables in the room

All day I turned these facts over into hit upon some theory which could reconcile them all, and to find that line of least resistance which -point of every investigation I confess that II strolled across the Park, and found myself about six o'clock at the Oxford Street end of Park Lane A group of loafers upon the pave up at a particular , directed me to the house which I had colasses, who a plain-clothes detective, was pointing out some theory of his ohile the others crowded round to listen to what he said I got as near him as I could, but his observations seeust As I did so I struck against an elderly, deformed man, who had been behindI remember that as I picked them up, I observed the title of one of them, THE ORIGIN OF TREE WORshi+P, and it struck me that the fellow must be some poor bibliophile, who, either as a trade or as a hobby, was a collector of obscure voluize for the accident, but it was evident that these books which I had so unfortunately maltreated were very precious objects in the eyes of their owner With a snarl of contempt he turned upon his heel, and I saw his curved back and white side-whiskers disappear a

My observations of No 427 Park Lane did little to clear up the problem in which I was interested The house was separated fro, the whole not h It was perfectly easy, therefore, for anyone to get into the garden, but the as entirely inaccessible, since there was no waterpipe or anything which could help the most active man to cliton I had not been in my study five minutes when the maid entered to say that a person desired to see e old book collector, his sharp, wizened face peering out from a frame of white hair, and his precious voluht arm

”You're surprised to seevoice

I acknowledged that I was

”Well, I've a conscience, sir, and when I chanced to see you go into this house, as I caht to entleruff in my ed to hi up my books”

”You make too much of a trifle,” said I ”May I ask how you kneho I was?”

”Well, sir, if it isn't too great a liberty, I ahbour of yours, for you'll find my little bookshop at the corner of Church Street, and very happy to see you, I am sure Maybe you collect yourself, sir Here's BRITISH BIRDS, and CATULLUS, and THE HOLY WAR--a bargain, every one of theap on that second shelf It looks untidy, does it not, sir?”

I moved ain, Sherlock Hol at me across my study table I rose to my feet, stared at him for some seconds in utter amazement, and then it appears that I must have fainted for the first and the last tiray mist swirled before my eyes, and when it cleared I foundafter-taste of brandy uponover my chair, his flask in his hand

”My dear Watson,” said the well-reies I had no idea that you would be so affected”

I gripped him by the arms

”Holmes!” I cried ”Is it really you? Can it indeed be that you are alive? Is it possible that you succeeded in cli out of that awful abyss?”

”Wait a moment,” said he ”Are you sure that you are really fit to discuss things? I have given you a serious shock by ht, but indeed, Holmes, I can hardly believe my eyes Good heavens! to think that you--you of all ripped him by the sleeve, and felt the thin, sinewy arm beneath it ”Well, you're not a spirit anyhow,” said I ”My dear chap, I'm overjoyed to see you Sit down, and tell me how you came alive out of that dreadful chasarette in his old, nonchalant manner He was dressed in the seedy frockcoat of the book merchant, but the rest of that individual lay in a pile of white hair and old books upon the table Holmes looked even thinner and keener than of old, but there was a dead-white tinge in his aquiline face which told me that his life recently had not been a healthy one

”I alad to stretch myself, Watson,” said he ”It is no joke when a tall man has to take a foot off his stature for several hours on end Now, my dear fellow, in the matter of these explanations, we have, if I ht's work in front of us Perhaps it would be better if I gave you an account of the whole situation when that work is finished”

”I am full of curiosity I should ht?”

”When you like and where you like”

”This is, indeed, like the old days We shall have tio Well, then, about that chas out of it, for the very simple reason that I never was in it”

”You never were in it?”

”No, Watson, I never was in it My note to you was absolutely genuine I had little doubt that I had come to the end of ure of the late Professor Moriarty standing upon the narrow pathhich led to safety I read an inexorable purpose in his gray eyes I exchanged some remarks with him, therefore, and obtained his courteous permission to write the short note which you afterwards received I left it withthe pathway, Moriarty still at my heels When I reached the end I stood at bay He dreeapon, but he rushed at ae hiether upon the brink of the fall I have soe, however, of baritsu, or the japanese syste, which has rip, and he with a horrible scream kicked madly for a few seconds, and clawed the air with both his hands But for all his efforts he could not get his balance, and over he went Withway Then he struck a rock, bounded off, and splashed into the water”

I listened with amazement to this explanation, which Holarette

”But the tracks!” I cried ”I saith my own eyes, that tent down the path and none returned”

”It came about in this way The instant that the Professor had disappeared, it struck me what a really extraordinarily lucky chance Fate had placed in my way I knew that Moriarty was not the only man who had sworn my death There were at least three others whose desire for vengeance upon me would only be increased by the death of their leader They were all et me On the other hand, if all the world was convinced that I was dead they would take liberties, these men, they would soon lay themselves open, and sooner or later I could destroy them Then it would be time forSo rapidly does the brain act that I believe I had thought this all out before Professor Moriarty had reached the bottom of the Reichenbach Fall

”I stood up and examined the rocky wall behind me In your picturesque account of the reat interest some months later, you assert that the as sheer That was not literally true A few small footholds presented thee The cliff is so high that to climb it all was an obvious impossibility, and it was equally i soht, it is true, have reversed ht of three sets of tracks in one direction would certainly have suggested a deception On the whole, then, it was best that I should risk the climb It was not a pleasant business, Watson The fall roared beneath ive youat me out of the abyss A rass came out in my hand or ht that I was gone But I struggled upward, and at last I reached a ledge several feet deep and covered with soft green moss, where I could lie unseen, in the most perfect comfort There I was stretched, when you,in the most sympathetic and inefficient manner the circumstances of my death

”At last, when you had all formed your inevitable and totally erroneous conclusions, you departed for the hotel, and I was left alone I had iined that I had reached the end of my adventures, but a very unexpected occurrence showed e rock, falling from above, boomed past me, struck the path, and bounded over into the chasht that it was an accident, but a ainst the darkening sky, and another stone struck the very ledge upon which I was stretched, within a foot ofof this was obvious Moriarty had not been alone A confederate--and even that one glance had told uard while the Professor had attacked me From a distance, unseen by me, he had been a witness of his friend's death and ofhis way round to the top of the cliff, he had endeavoured to succeed where his co to think about it, Watson Again I saw that grim face look over the cliff, and I knew that it was the precursor of another stone I scrambled down on to the path I don't think I could have done it in cold blood It was a hundred ti up But I had no ti past e Halfway down I slipped, but, by the blessing of God, I landed, torn and bleeding, upon the path I took to my heels, did ten miles over the mountains in the darkness, and a week later I found myself in Florence, with the certainty that no one in the world knehat had become of me

”I had only one confidant--ies, my dear Watson, but it was all-iht I was dead, and it is quite certain that you would not have written so convincing an account of ht that it was true Several ti the last three years I have taken up my pen to write to you, but always I feared lest your affectionate regard for me should tempt you to some indiscretion which would betraywhen you upset er at the tiht have drawn attention to my identity and led to the most deplorable and irreparable results As to Mycroft, I had to confide in him in order to obtain the money which I needed The course of events in London did not run so well as I had hoped, for the trial of the Moriarty gang left two of its erous members, my own most vindictive enemies, at liberty I travelled for two years in Tibet, therefore, and a some days with the head lama You ian naerson, but I a news of your friend I then passed through Persia, looked in at Mecca, and paid a short but interesting visit to the Khalifa at Khartoun Office Returning to France, I spent some months in a research into the coal-tar derivatives, which I conducted in a laboratory at Montpellier, in the south of France Having concluded this tothat only one of my enemies was now left in London, I was about to return when my movements were hastened by the news of this very remarkable Park Lane Mystery, which not only appealed to me by its own merits, but which seemed to offer some most peculiar personal opportunities I came over at once to London, called in my own person at Baker Street, threw Mrs Hudson into violent hysterics, and found that Mycroft had preserved my rooms and my papers exactly as they had always been So it was, my dear Watson, that at two o'clock to-day I found myself inthat I could have seen my old friend Watson in the other chair which he has so often adorned”

Such was the re--a narrative which would have been utterly incredible to ht of the tall, spare figure and the keen, eager face, which I had never thought to see again In some manner he had learned of my own sad bereavement, and his sympathy was shown in his manner rather than in his words ”Work is the best antidote to sorrow, my dear Watson,” said he; ”and I have a piece of work for us both to-night which, if we can bring it to a successful conclusion, will in itself justify a ed hih before ,” he answered ”We have three years of the past to discuss Let that suffice until half-past nine, e start upon the notable adventure of the empty house”

It was indeed like old times when, at that hour, I found myself seated beside him in a hansom, my revolver in my pocket, and the thrill of adventure in leam of the street-lamps flashed upon his austere features, I saw that his broere dran in thought and his thin lips compressed I knew not ild beast ere about to hunt down in the dark jungle of cri of this rave one--while the sardonic slooood for the object of our quest

I had iined that ere bound for Baker Street, but Holmes stopped the cab at the corner of Cavendish Square I observed that as he stepped out he gave a ht and left, and at every subsequent street corner he took the utmost pains to assure that he was not followed Our route was certainly a singular one Hole of the byways of London was extraordinary, and on this occasion he passed rapidly and with an assured step through a network of mews and stables, the very existence of which I had never known We eloomy houses, which led us into Manchester Street, and so to Blandford Street Here he turned swiftly down a narrow passage, passed through a wooden gate into a deserted yard, and then opened with a key the back door of a house We entered together, and he closed it behind us

The place was pitch dark, but it was evident to me that it was an empty house Our feet creaked and crackled over the bare planking, and my outstretched hand touched a wall fro in ribbons Holers closed roundhall, until I diht over the door Here Holht and we found ourselves in a large, square, empty room, heavily shadowed in the corners, but faintly lit in the centre frohts of the street beyond There was no lamp near, and the as thick with dust, so that we could only just discern each other's figures within My companion put his hand upon my shoulder and his lips close to my ear

”Do you knohere we are?” he whispered

”Surely that is Baker Street” I answered, staring through the dim

”Exactly We are in Camden House, which stands opposite to our own old quarters”

”But why are we here?”

”Because it coht I trouble you,every precaution not to show yourself, and then to look up at our old roo- point of so many of your little fairy-tales? We will see if my three years of absence have entirely taken away my power to surprise you”