The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

fficulty which I have experienced in picking out examples which shall in every way answer my purpose. For in those cases in which Holmes has performed some tour de force of analytical reasoning, and

I, as his biographer, could wish. The small matter which I have chronicled under the heading of “A Study in Scarlet,” and that other later one connected with the loss of the Gloria Scott, may serve as examples of this Scylla and Charybdis which are forever threateni

uninteresting. Parliament had risen. Everybody was out of town, and I yearned for the glades of the New Forest or the shingle of Southsea. A depleted bank account had caused me to postpone my holiday, and as to my companion, neither the country nor the sea presented the slightest attraction to him. He loved to lie in the very centr

aside the barren paper, and, leaning back in my chair I fell into a

e. “It does seem a very prepost

lizing how he had echoed the inmost thought of my soul,

ed. “This is beyond anything

eartily at m

ose reasoner follows the unspoken thoughts of his companion, you were inclined to treat the matter as a mere tour de for

, n

hrow down your paper and enter upon a train of thought, I was very happy to have the opportunity of

sions from the actions of the man whom he observed. If I remember right, he stumbled over a heap of stones, look

iven to man as the means by which he shall expres

you read my train of th

eyes. Perhaps you cannot yourself

I can

General Gordon, and I saw by the alteration in your face that a train of thought had been started. But it did not lead very far. Your eyes turned across to the unframed portrait of Henry Ward Beecher, which stands upon the t

ed me wonderfull

your passionate indignation at the way in which he was received by the more turbulent of our people. You felt so strongly about it that I knew you could not think of Beecher without thinking of that also. When a moment later I saw your eyes wander away from the picture, I suspected that your mind had now turned to the Civil War, and when I observed that your lips set, your eyes sparkled, and your hands clinched, I was positive that you were indeed thinking of the gallantry which was shown by

at you have explained it, I confe

it upon your attention had you not shown some incredulity the other day. But the

ope of life as it ebbs and flows through Fleet Street and the Strand. His characteristic talk, with its keen observance of detail and subtle

d Holmes. “Not been long in practice, but has a good deal

the wicker basket which hung in the lamp-light inside the brougham had given him the data for his swift deduction. The light in our window above showed that this

ealthy hue told of a life which had sapped his strength and robbed him of his youth. His manner was nervous and shy, like that of a sensitive gentleman, and the thin white hand which he la

eerily. “I am glad to see that you hav

to my coach

le that told me. Pray resume your seat

yan,” said our visitor, “and

a monograph upon obscure

th pleasure at hearing tha

ad,” said he. “My publishers gave me a most discouraging acc

ed army

beside the question, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, and I quite appreciate how valuable your time is. The fact is that a very singular train of events has occurred recently at my

lcome to both,” said he. “Pray let me have a detailed accou

tion them. But the matter is so inexplicable, and the recent turn which it has taken is so elab

to be a very promising one. After I had graduated I continued to devote myself to research, occupying a minor position in King’s College Hospital, and I was fortunate enough to excite considerable interest by my research into the pathology of catalepsy, and

of which entail enormous rents and furnishing expenses. Besides this preliminary outlay, he must be prepared to keep himself for some years, and to hire a presentable carriage and horse. To do this was quit

ton, who was a complete stranger to me. He came up into my

o has had so distinguished a career a

bow

it to your interest to do so. You have all the clever

iling at the abruptn

t I have my s

s? Not drawn to

, sir!’

I was bound to ask. With all these qu

ged my s

d story. More in your brains than in your pocket, eh? Wh

t him in as

rank with you, and if it suits you it will suit me very well. I have a

hy?’ I

any other speculation

m I to d

o do is just to wear out your chair in the consulting-room. I’ll let you have pocketmoney and everything

me himself to live with me in the character of a resident patient. His heart was weak, it appears, and he needed constant medical supervision. He turned the two best rooms of the first floor into a sitting-room and bedroom for himself. He was a man of singular habits, shunning company and very se

first it was a success. A few good cases and the reputation which I had won in the hospita

ions with Mr. Blessington. It only remains for me now

hould add stronger bolts to our windows and doors. For a week he continued to be in a peculiar state of restlessness, peering continually out of the windows, and ceasing to take the short walk which had usually been the prelude to his dinner. From his manner it struck me that he was in mortal dread of som

ceived the letter which I now read to you.

. Percy Trevelyan. He has been for some years a victim to cataleptic attacks, on which, as is well known, Dr. Trevelyan is an aut

catalepsy is the rareness of the disease. You may believe, then, that I was in

pearance of his companion. This was a tall young man, surprisingly handsome, with a dark, fierce face, and the limbs and chest of a Hercules. He had

ing English with a slight lisp. ‘This is my father, and his h

y. ‘You would, perhaps, care to rema

my father in one of these dreadful seizures I am convinced that I should never survive it. My own nervous system is an e

nd his answers were frequently obscure, which I attributed to his limited acquaintance with our language. Suddenly, however, as I sat writing, he ceased to give any answer at all to my inquiries, an

othing markedly abnormal in any of these conditions, which harmonized with my former experiences. I had obtained good results in such cases by the inhalation of nitrite of amyl, and the present seemed an admirable opportunity of testing its virtues. The bott

. He waits downstairs and runs up to show patients out when I ring the consulting-room bell. He had heard nothing, and the affair remained a complete mystery. Mr. Blessington came in from h

son, so you can imagine my amazement when, at the very same hour this evening,

y apologies for my abrupt departure

was very much surpr

ays very clouded as to all that has gone before. I woke up in a strange room, as it seeme

, naturally thought that the consultation had come to an end. It was not un

terribly; so if you, sir, would kindly step into the waiting-room I shall be

an’s symptoms with him, and then, having prescribed

ercise. He came in shortly afterwards and passed upstairs. An instant later I heard h

en in my roo

ne,’ s

he yelled. ‘Com

half out of his mind with fear. When I went upstairs with

o say those are

ts were the only people who called. It must have been the case, then, that the man in the waiting-room had, for some unknown reason, while I was busy with the oth

ly get him to speak coherently. It was his suggestion that I should come round to you, and of course I at once saw the propriety of it, for certainly the incident is a very singular one, though he appears to comp

kly from his pipe to emphasize each curious episode in the doctor’s tale. As our visitor concluded, Holmes sprang up without a word, handed me my hat, picked his own from the table, and followed Dr. Trevelyan to the door. Within a quarter of an hour

ill. The light at the top was suddenly whisked out,

“I give you my word that I’ll

ageous, Mr. Blessington

with a great heave of relief. “But those othe

f a long scrutiny o

ce at last. “You can come up, and I am s

fat, but had apparently at some time been much fatter, so that the skin hung about his face in loose pouches, like the cheeks of a bloodhound. He was of a sickly co

or coming round. No one ever needed your advice more than I do. I suppose that

these two men, Mr. Blessington, an

us fashion, “of course it is hard to say that. You

n that you

lease. Just have the ki

edroom, which was large a

one investment in my life, as Dr. Trevelyan would tell you. But I don’t believe in bankers. I would never trust a banker, Mr. Holmes. Betwee

ngton in his questionin

vise you if you try t

told you e

a gesture of disgust. ” Goodn

e?” cried Blessingto

ou, sir, is to

e. We had crossed Oxford Street and were halfway down Ha

rand, Watson,” he said at last. “It is an i

ittle of it,”

to get at this fellow Blessington. I have no doubt in my mind that both on the first and on the second occasion that you

he cat

ly dare to hint as much to our specialist. It is a ve

d t

seems to show that they were not very well acquainted with his daily routine. Of course, if they had been merely after plunder they would at least have made some attempt to search for it. Besides, I can read in a man’s eye when it is his own skin that he is frightened for. It is inconceivable that t

l just conceivable? Might the whole story of the cataleptic Russian and his son be a con

lmes wore an amused smile at t

superfluous for me to ask to see those which he had made in the room. When I tell you that his shoes were square-toed instead of being pointed like Blessington’s, and were quite an inch and a third longer than

shion. At half-past seven next morning, in the first dim glimmer of

am waiting for us

the matt

k Street

fresh

k, with ‘For God’s sake come at once. P. T.,’ scrawled upon it in pencil. Our friend, the doct

ck at the physician’s house. He came run

!” he cried with his

t th

has committ

s whi

d himself duri

r had preceded us into what w

he cried. “The police are already upst

you find

unfortunate fellow was hanging in the middle of the room. He had tied his cord to the hook on which the

or a moment in

at last, “I should like to go up

ded, followed

ted and intensified until he was scarce human in his appearance. The neck was drawn out like a plucked chicken’s, making the rest of him seem the more obese and unnatural by the contrast. He was

artily as my friend entered,

on’t think me an intruder, I am sure. Have you

rd somethin

formed any

ou see. There’s his impression, deep enough. It’s about five in the morning, you know, that suicides are mos

d about three hours, judging by th

eculiar about the r

nd. Seems to have smoked heavily during the night, too. He

s, “have you got

have se

gar-cas

s in his co

smelled the single ci

ch from their East Indian colonies. They are usually wrapped in straw, you know, and are thinner for

t by a not very sharp knife, and two have had the ends bitten off by a set of excellent t

!” cried th

d w

r a man in so clumsy a f

at we have

ld they

the fro

rred in th

as barred

o you

ment, and I may be able to give you

inspected that also. The bed, the carpet, the chairs, the mantelpiece, the dead body, and the rope were each in turn examined, until at last

this rope

the bed. “He was morbidly nervous of fire, and always kept this beside h

and I shall be surprised if by the afternoon I cannot give you the reasons for them as well. I will ta

ld us nothing!”

The first two, I need hardly remark, are the same who masqueraded as the Russian count and his son, so we can give a very full description of them. They were admitted by a confe

d Dr. Trevelyan; “the maid and the c

ugged his

ree men having ascended the stairs, which they did on tiptoe, the elde

olmes!” I

ght. They ascended, then, to Mr. Blessington’s room, the door of which they found to be locked. With the help of a wire, however,

een asleep, or he may have been so paralyzed with terror as to have been unable to cry out. These

some time, for it was then that these cigars were smoked. The older man sat in that wicker chair; it was he who used the cigar-holder. The younger man sat over yonder; he k

t of block or pulley which might serve as a gallows. That screw-driver and those screws were, as I conceive, for fixing it up. Seeing the hook, howe

subtle and minute that, even when he had pointed them out to us, we could scarcely follow him in his reasonings. The inspec

spector and the doctor will meet me here at that hour, and I hope by that ti

o four before my friend put in an appearance. From his expression

ws, Ins

got the b

and I have g

them!” we cr

ington is, as I expected, well known at headquarters, and so ar

bank gang,” cri

ly,” sai

gton must hav

y,” sai

as clear as crystal,

looked at each oth

, but the evidence against them was by no means conclusive. This Blessington or Sutton, who was the worst of the gang, turned informer. On his evidence Cartwright was hanged and the other three got fifteen years apiece. When they got out the other day, which was some years be

octor. “No doubt the day on which he was so perturbed was t

about a burglary w

ld he not te

. His secret was a shameful one and he could not bring himself to divulge it. However, wretch as he was, he was still living under the shield of Brit

ed at Scotland Yard that they were among the passengers of the ill-fated steamer Norah Creina, which was lost some years ago with all hands upon the Portuguese coast, some leagues to the north of Op