The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

actice; but his age, and an affliction of the nature of St. Vitus’s dance from which he suffered, had very much thinned it. The public not unnaturally goes on the

from twelve hundred to little more than three hundred a year. I had confidence, however, in my own y

t Baker Street, and he seldom went anywhere himself save upon professional business. I was surprised, therefore, when, one morning in June, as I sat re

ted to see you! I trust that Mrs. Watson has entirely recovered from all

ery well,” said I, shakin

“that the cares of medical practice have not entirely obliterated t

ast night that I was looking over my old note

on’t consider your

othing better than to have s

, for e

day, if y

r off as B

y, if you

he pra

he goes. He is always re

nd looking keenly at me from under his half-closed lids. “I perceive th

ll for three days last week. I thought, howe

You look remar

, did you

low, you kno

duced i

tain

from

our sli

I was wearing. “How on earth —” I began, but H

hought they might have got wet and been burned in the drying. But near the instep there is a small circular wafer of paper with the shopman’s hieroglyphics upon it. Damp would of co

itself when it was once explained. He read the thought u

lain.” said he. “Results without causes are much more

. What is

in. My client is outside in a fou

hbour, rushed upstairs to explain the matter t

octor.” said he, noddi

ght a practi

establis

Both have been ever sinc

ot hold of the

id. But how

ntleman in the cab is my client, Mr. Hall Pycroft. Allow me to introduce you to

y man, of the class who have been labelled cockneys, but who give us our crack volunteer regiments, and who turn out more fine athletes and sportsmen than any body of men in these islands. His round, ruddy face was naturally full of cheeriness, but the corners of

me, or with more detail if possible. It will be of use to me to hear the succession of events again. It is a case, Watson, which may prove to have something in it, or may prov

looked at me with

right, and I don’t see that I could have done otherwise; but if I have lost my crib and get nothing in exchange I sh

course we clerks were all turned adrift, the twenty-seven of us. I tried here and tried there, but there were lots of other chaps on the same lay as myself, and it was a perfect frost for a long time. I had been taking three pounds a week at Coxon’s, and I had saved about seventy of them, but I soon

y testimonial and application, but without the least hope of getting it. Back came an answer by return, saying that if I would appear next Monday I might take over my new duties at once, provided that my appearance was satisfactory. No one knows how these things are work

p came my landlady with a card which had ‘Arthur Pinner, Financial Agent,’ printed upon it. I had never heard the name before and could not imagine what he wanted with me, but of course I asked her to show him

croft, I beli

swered, pushing a

ged at Coxon

s, s

the staff o

ite

ordinary stories about your financial ability. You remember Parker

een pretty sharp in the office, but I had never dream

a good memo

r,’ I answer

h the market while you have

stock-exchange l

at is the way to prosper! You won’t mind my testi

quarter to a hundred and

Zealand co

dred an

tish Brok

to seven

fits in with all that I had heard. My boy, my boy, y

her people don’t think quite so much of me as you seem to do, Mr. Pinner.

how it stands with me. What I have to offer is little enough when measured by your ability,

Mon

k a little sporting flutter t

o to Ma

Hardware Company, Limited, with a hundred and thirty-four branches in the to

h away. ‘I never he

Pinner, is promoter, and joins the board after allotment as managing director. He knew I was in the swim down here and asked me to pick up a good man cheap. A you

red a year!

ission of one per cent on all business done by your agents, and you

nothing abo

, you know ab

sit still in my chair. But suddenly

gives me two hundred, but Mawson is safe. Now, r

e not to be talked over, and quite right, too. Now, here’s a note for a hundred pounds, and if you

’ said I. ‘When should I

o my brother. You will find him at 126B Corporation Street, where the temporary offices of the compan

how to express my gratit

h I must arrange with you. You have a bit of paper beside you there. Kindly write upon it “I am perfectly willing

, and he put the p

,’ said he. ‘What do you in

Mawson’s in my joy. ‘I’ll

about you, and he was very offensive; accused me of coaxing you away from the service of the firm, and that so

e our small price than

that when he has my offer you’ll ne

of the gutter, and he won’t leave us s

seen him in my life. Why should I consider him in any way

Here’s your advance of a hundred pounds, and here is the letter. Make a note of the address. 126B Corporation Street, an

inary bit of good fortune. I sat up half the night hugging myself over it, and next day I was off to Birmingham in a train that would take m

nies or professional men. The names of the occupants were painted at the bottom on the wall, but there was no such name as the Franco-Midland Hardware Company, Limited. I stood for a few minutes with my heart in my boots, wonde

. Hall Pycro

,’ sa

fore your time. I had a note from my brother this

ing for the offic

secured these temporary premises last week. Com

uncurtained, into which he led me. I had thought of a great office with shining tables and rows of clerks, such as I was used to, and I daresay

my face. ‘Rome was not built in a day, and we have lots of money at our backs, thoug

and he read it ov

w that he is a pretty shrewd judge. He swears by London, you know; and I by Birmingham

my duties

rockery into the shops of a hundred and thirty-four agents in France. The purchase will be

Ho

ook a big red boo

e people. I want you to take it home with you and to mark off all the hardware-s

re classified lis

et me have the lists by Monday, at twelve. Good-day, Mr. Pycroft. If you con

of the points which would strike a business man had left a bad impression as to the position of my employers. However, come what might, I had my money, so I settled down to my task. All Sunday I was kept hard at work, and yet by Monday I had only got as far as H. I went

I underrated the difficulty of the task. This

some tim

to make a list of the furniture s

ry g

A couple of hours at Day’s Music Hall in the evening would do you no harm after your labours.’ He laughed as he sp

ds with delight, and I stared

might be changed by a razor or a wig, I could not doubt that it was the same man. Of course you expect two brothers to be alike, but not that they should have the same tooth stuffed in the same way. He bowed me out, and I found myself in the street, hardly knowing whether I was on my head or my heels. Back I went to my hotel, put my head in a basin of cold water, and tried to think it out. Why had he sent me

Then Sherlock Holmes cocked his eye at me, leaning back on the cushions with a pleased and

u will agree with me that an interview with Mr. Arthur Harry Pinner in the temporary offices of the

an we do i

s of mine who are in want of a billet, and what could be more natura

tle game. What qualities have you, my friend, which would make your services so valuable? Or is it possible that —” He began

walking, the three of us, down Corpo

ur client. “He only comes there to see me, apparently,

gestive,” re

ried the clerk. “That’s he

d him he looked across at a boy who was bawling out the latest edition of the evening paper, and, running over a

e company’s offices into which he has gone. Come w

treet, with his evening paper spread out in front of him, and as he looked up at us it seemed to me that I had never looked upon a face which bore such marks of grief, and of something beyond grief — of a horror such as comes to few men in a lifetime. His brow glistened with perspiration,

, Mr. Pinner!

forts to pull himself together and licking his dry lips before h

“They are friends of mine and gentlemen of experience, but they have been out of a place for some lit

tly smile. “Yes, I have no doubt that we shall be able to do

countant,”

t something of the sor

rk,” s

let you know about it as soon as we come to any conclusion. An

evidently setting upon himself had suddenly and utterly burst asunder. Holmes

m here by appointment to receive

ends should not wait with you. I will be entirely at your service in three minutes, if I might trespass upon your patience so far.” He r

ed Holmes. “Is he g

e,” answer

y s

eads into an

is no

on

furni

empty ye

understand in this matter. If ever a man was three parts mad with te

t we are detecti

t,” cried

pale. He was pale when we entered the ro

by a sharp rat-tat from the

nocking at his own door

y came a low guggling, gargling sound, and a brisk drumming upon woodwork. Holmes sprang frantically across the room and pushed at the door. It was fastened on the inner side. Following his exa

the managing director of the Franco-Midland Hardware Company. His knees were drawn up, his head hung 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 wh

nk of him, Watso

mittent, but his breathing grew longer, and there was a little shiv

water carafe.” I undid his collar, poured the cold water over his face, and raised and sank his arms un

is hands deep in his trousers’ po

,” said he. “And yet I confess that I’d like

scratching his head. “Whatever they wanted to

gh,” said Holmes impatiently.

stand the

fairly obvious. What

“I must confess that I am

he events at first they can o

you make

g of Pycroft write a declaration by which he entered the service of t

id I miss

, and there was no earthly business reason why this should be an exception. Don’t you see, my young friend

d w

rocure a specimen of it first. And now if we pass on to the second point we find that each throws light upon the other. That point is the request made by Pinner that you should not resign your

client, “what a blin

d from that in which you had applied for the vacancy, of course the game would have been up. But in the interval the rogue had

,” groaned

e who might 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 M

is man pretend to

not find you an employer without admitting a third person into his plot. That he was most unwilling to do. He changed his appearance as far as he could, and trusted that the likeness,

“while I have been fooled in this way, what has this other Hall Pycroft b

wire to M

at twelve o

may be some door-ke

count of the value of the securities that they ho

me is working there. That is clear enough, but what is not so clear is why at sigh

hed and ghastly, with returning reason in his eyes, and hands which r

.” 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 what we want. Look

to have been the one event of importance in

ility which devolved upon him in consequence of the great interests at stake that safes of the very latest construction have been employed, and an armed watchman has been left day and night in the building. It appears that last week a new clerk named Hall Pycroft was engaged by the firm. This person appears to have been none other than Beddington, the famous forger

y had been committed. Nearly a hundred thousand pounds’ worth of American railway bonds, with a large amount of scrip in mines and other companies, was discovered in the bag. On examining the premises the body of the unfortunate watchman was found doubled up and thrust into the largest of the safes, where it would not have been discovered until Monday morning had it not been for the prompt action of Sergeant Tuson. The man’s-skull had been shatt

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. How