Sherlock Holmes Complete Works 1

Chapter 30 Four Signatures 8
While constantly rubbing his hands, Holmes said to me with a pensive air, "Watson, we must make good use of the remaining half hour. Although the case will soon come to light, we must not be too careless to avoid mistakes. The case looks simple, but in fact, there are many mysteries in it."

"Simple?" I asked him involuntarily.

He began like an old professor giving a lecture: "Of course. Be careful of your footprints, don't spoil the scene, and sit in the corner over there. Now get to work. First, this door has not been opened since last night." But then how did they get in and how did they get out? Through the window?" He seemed to be talking to himself, and walked forward with a lamp in his hand, and said loudly: "The window is closed, The frame of the window is also very strong, and it is impossible to remove it. Come, help me to open it. This is far from the roof, and there is no leaking pipe near. It is difficult for people to come up here. Look, Watson, there was a light rain last night, There is a footprint on the windowsill, which shows that someone once stood on it. There is also a mud mark, round, on the floor and next to the table. Great, this is a hard-to-find evidence."

I saw that the mud prints were round, and said to him, "This is not a footprint."

"Yes, it's not a footprint, but it's more important than a footprint. Looking at the trace, you can be sure it's a wooden stake, plus the boot print next to it, a boot with a wider iron shoe. What do you see from it?"

"A man with wooden legs."

"Very true, but there is another man who is very agile. Watson, will you see if you can climb over that wall?"

I stuck my head out of the window, and the moonlight was still faintly reflecting on the horrible house.By the moonlight, the wall could be seen clearly, it was about six feet high, and the wall was smooth, and there was no place to step on it.

I said, "It's impossible."

"That's because there's no help. If someone from the house fastened a thick rope to a hook on the wall and threw the other end out, he could climb up even with wooden legs, provided he was strong enough to catch the rope. Of course, You can go on in the same way, and then his accomplices take back the rope, pile it on the ground, close the window, insert it firmly, and then escape by the same way." Pointing to the rope, he continued: "There is another detail worth noting, that is the A friend with wooden legs, although good at climbing walls, is not a skilled sailor. His hands are not calloused, unlike sailors who are used to climbing masts. I found several blood spots on the rope with a magnifying glass, especially At the end of the rope. From this it can be concluded that he descended the rope with such rapidity that he rubbed a good deal of the skin off his palms."

I said: "Your analysis is reasonable, but the matter is even more confusing. Who is his accomplice? How did he get into the house?"

Holmes repeated thoughtfully: "Yes, there is the accomplice. There is indeed something strange about the traces left by this man. His intervention complicates the case. I think the accomplice has marked a new record in the criminal history of our country— — although there are similar cases in India, and if I remember correctly, in Senegambia, this modus operandi has also occurred.”

"So how did he get in there?" I asked the question again. "The door is locked and the windows are shut. Did it come in through the chimney?"

He replied, "I have also considered the possibility, but the chimney is too narrow for him to pass through it."

"So, how did he get in?" I asked.

He shook his head and said: "You don't always think in the way I said. I have said many times that when you eliminate all impossible factors, the rest, no matter what it is, no matter what The unbelievable must be the probable factor. We already know that he did not enter directly by the door, the window, or the chimney, and we also judge that he did not hide in the house beforehand, because the house There's no hiding place here. So where did he get in?"

"It came in through that hole in the roof," I cried.

"Yes, there is no doubt that he can only come in from there. Watson, you hold the lamp, and we will now go to the upper room together—that is, the secret room where the treasure was found." He stepped on the ladder and climbed with both hands. The rafter turned over into the attic, and then he bent down and took the lamp from me, and I went up likewise.

The loft is about ten feet long and six feet wide.The bottom is a rafter structure, and the middle frame is a thin slat covered with a layer of plaster, so people must step on the rafters one by one when walking on it.The roof is pointed and conical, so it can be said that this is the real roof of this house.There was nothing inside but a thick layer of accumulated dust.

Holmes propped his hands on a sloping wall and said, "You see, this is the secret door leading to the roof. Push the secret door open, and you will get to the roof with a slight slope. This is where the first burglar entered. Look carefully to see if you can find any traces that can reflect his personal characteristics."

He shone the lamp on the floor and examined it for a moment, and the look of wonder came back to his face.I looked towards where his eyes were fixed, and I couldn't help shivering. The floor was covered with bare footprints-clear and complete, but not half the size of ordinary human feet.

I said softly, "Holmes, a child did it."

After his expression settled down, he said: "At first I was also surprised. In fact, it's nothing more than normal. I should have thought of it, but I ignored it for a while. Well, there's nothing up there, let's go down."

After we came down from the attic, I hurriedly asked him, "How do you see those footprints?"

He seemed a little impatient, and just said: "Watson, you follow my analysis method, practice it, think about it, and exchange opinions after a while, so that we can all learn more."

"I really can't figure out why."

"You'll see soon enough. I think it might be worth taking a second look here."

He took out a magnifying glass and a measuring tape, like a well-trained hound, kneeling on the ground, with his face close to the ground, his long and thin nose only a few inches from the ground, groping and checking back and forth in the room.His movements are noiseless and swift.I couldn't help thinking: What a formidable criminal he would be if he used this energy and intelligence to commit crimes!As he checked, he muttered, and suddenly he exclaimed:

"Very fortunate, Watson, the man has stepped on the oil. You see, the oil has come out of the broken bottle, and it smells terrible. There is one of his footprints to the right."

I asked, "Then what?"

"We're going to catch him soon. A wolf can find food by smell, a dog can find smell by smell, and what if it's a specially trained dog? And the smell is so strong. The result must be..., oh, The police are here."

There was the sound of chaotic footsteps, loud conversations and the slamming of doors in the hall.

Holmes said, "How do you feel when you touch his body before they come up?"

I said, "Muscles are as hard as wood."

"That's right, it's harder than the general 'post-mortem stiffness', it's an extremely strong 'contraction', and looking at the twisted and miserable smile on his face, have you gotten any results?"

I said: "The poison that can produce tetanus symptoms is a plant alkaloid similar to strychnine. It is highly poisonous!"

"As soon as I saw the horror on his face, I guessed that he might have been poisoned, so once I entered the house, I tried to find out how the poison got into the body. I found the thorn, which could easily go into the body. Or it was shot into the scalp. You see, the deceased was sitting on a chair at that time, so the thorn tail should be facing the hole in the ceiling. Now let's examine this thorn carefully and confirm it."

I gently picked up the thorn and examined it carefully against the light.It was a long, thin, sharp black thorn, and there seemed to be a dry sticky substance at the tip of the thorn, and the blunt end was rounded with a knife.

"Is this a thorn of some kind that grows in England?" he asked.

"No, definitely not."

"From these data, you should be able to draw a proper conclusion. This is the main point, and everything else is secondary."

While he was speaking, heavy footsteps came to the corridor, and a stocky and squat man in gray clothes stepped into the room.He was rosy-complexioned and massive, with small, shining eyes surrounded by puffy bulges.Behind him was a sheriff in uniform and a trembling Thaddeus?Sholto.

The Humpty Dumpty shouted in a depressing and hoarse voice: "What's going on! Who are these people? Why is this room so lively that it looks like a big courtyard!"

Holmes said calmly: "Mr. Ethelney Jones, you must remember me!"

He said breathlessly: "Oh, of course I remember, you are Sherlock Holmes, the great theorist. How can I forget you, a venerable man, and the case of the patriarch's porch jewels that you explained to us I still can’t remember the causality and deduction of that. You did put us on the right track, but I still think that it was mainly because of your luck that time, rather than relying entirely on some brilliant theory.”

"It was a very simple and easy case."

"Oh, come, come! It's nothing to be ashamed to admit. But what's the matter? It's terrible! The facts are so obvious that there's no need for theory. Luckily, I just happened to be here on another case." Go to Ruowood! I was at the police station when the report was made, how do you think this man died?"

Holmes said coldly: "Oh, don't you say that this case does not require me to use theoretical deduction?"

"Yes, yes, but you can hit the nail on the head sometimes. What's the matter? The facts are so obvious that no theory is needed. The doors are locked and the windows are shut and half a million pounds of treasure is lost. up.

"The footprints have nothing to do with the case. The man may have died in a fit of rage, ah! I have an explanation. Inspector, you all get out. What do you think of it, Mr. Holmes? Sholto." By his own admission, he was with his brother last night. His brother probably died in a fit of rage, and Sholto took the opportunity to take the jewels. What do you think of my analysis?"

"The dead man has locked the door again," said Holmes sarcastically.

"Huh! But there is a flaw here. Let's think about it according to common sense: Thaddeus and his brother used to be together and quarreled, and now the brother is dead, the jewels are lost, and Thaddeus is gone. No one has ever seen his brother again. And depending on the situation, there is always something wrong with Thaddeus. Interrogate Thaddeus well, and he will be obedient."

"You don't know the whole truth," said Holmes. "This poisonous splinter was taken from the scalp of the dead man. There is also this note. And on the table is this queer stone-studded stick." .How do you fully explain all this stuff that exists?"

The fat detective said proudly: "It's not easy. Others can kill with this poisonous thorn, and Thaddeus can as well. And this piece of paper is just a deception. The only question is: how did he get it?" Where did it go out? Ah! There is a hole in the roof of this house."

With great difficulty he got his fat body up the ladder, through the opening, and into the roof.Then, I heard him shouting happily after he found the secret door.

Holmes shrugged his shoulders and said: "Sometimes he can find some evidence and draw some shallow conclusions. There is an old French saying: 'It is harder to live with a fool who has no ideas.'"

Hit Cerny?Jones came down and said: "Facts are better than theory after all. It proves my point. There is a secret door up there that leads to the outside, and it's still half open."

"I drove that."

"So you've found the secret door too. Anyway, that's the way the murderer got out. Sheriff!" he said, as if discouraged.

"Yes, officer." A voice answered from the corridor.

"Bring Mr. Sholto in." After the sheriff and Sholto entered the room, Jones said to Sholto: "Mr. Sholto, I am obliged to tell you that your brother is dead, and everything you said is true. You are not good, and now I am arresting you on behalf of the government."

Sholto spread his hands brazenly, looked at the two of us, and shouted, "Look, I said earlier that they would think so. Now it's confirmed, right?" "

"Don't get excited, Mr. Sholto," said Holmes. "I will clear it all up for you and clear you up."

The detective immediately retorted: "Mr. Theorist, don't make any promises! Don't say too much! The truth is probably not as simple as you imagined."

"Mr. Jones, I will not only vindicate him, but I will give you, without compensation, the facts, the name and characteristics of one of the two murderers who came into this room last night. His name--I totally Certainly, Jonathan Small. He was little, uneducated, short and lithe, with a broken right leg and a wooden prosthesis with a piece of the inside worn away. The forefoot of his left boot was nailed with a rough Square-soled boot with a round iron heel. He is middle-aged, dark-skinned, ex-convict. These clues, and the peeling skin from his palm, may help you, and the other..."

"Oh! There's another one?" Although Jones' tone was pretending to be contemptuous, it was obvious that he was moved by this sophisticated analysis.

Holmes turned on tiptoe and said, "This is a very queer man. I hope to be able to introduce you to these two men before long. Watson, come here. I have something to say to you."

He led me to the stairs, and said: "This accident almost made us forget the real purpose of coming here."

I replied, "That's exactly what I thought. It's not appropriate for Miss Morstan to stay in such a horrible place."

"You're quite right. She has to be sent back. She lives in Lower Camberwell Street. That's Mrs. Cecil Forrester's house. It's not far from here. If you want to come back, I'll be here Waiting for you. But maybe you are too tired?"

"Not at all tired. I don't think I'll be going anywhere until I see the truth of this bizarre incident. I'm well-informed, but to be honest, tonight The series of strange things that have happened here have confused me too. Now the critical point has come, and at any rate, I will work with you to get the truth out of this case."

He replied: "Your joining is the greatest support for me. Now we have to act independently, let this Mr. Jones do whatever he wants. After you send Miss Morstan home, please go to Lambeth Go to No. [-] Pinqin Lane by the river in the district. This room is the third on the right side of the alley. It is a taxidermy shop. The owner is Sherman. You will see a weasel drawn on the window Catch a little rabbit. Knock on the door, get old Sherman up, and tell him I'm going to borrow his Toby right away. Then, you'll take Toby in the carriage."

"Is Toby a dog?"

"It's a very strange mixed-breed dog with an excellent sense of smell."

"Okay, I'll definitely bring it back. It's one o'clock now. If I can change a horse, I'll be back before three o'clock."

Holmes said: "I need to go to Mrs. Burnston and the Indian servant to find out some information. Mr. Thaddeus told me that the Indian servant slept in the attic next door. Come back and study the great Jones." How does sir work, and listen to his sarcasm by the way! "Some people always have to sarcasm before they understand the true meaning of the matter. I'm used to it." Goethe always said Incisive."

(End of this chapter)