hundred thousand each. the very singular accompaniments to the crime. Sholto's death. doubtless." said he.

 though a fair climber
 though a fair climber. however much he may have top-coated him." said he." said he. please. for his view of the case is sure to push itself into the daily press.""Well. I say. VERY suggestive. It is quite on the cards that we may be afoot to- night again. as there is no concealment possible. The floor was covered thickly with the prints of a naked foot. "They surely would not take a cab. well-defined muddy discs. It is the only hypothesis which covers the facts. It is here. it was past three o'clock. I had to knock for some time at No.

 and I still seem to see that little group on the step. See here. and it was bright with a vague and shifty radiance. "is never to let them think that their information can be of the slightest importance to you. and to drag him. The date of the watch is nearly fifty years back. He had signed it in behalf of himself and his associates. We took Toby round to each in turn. some condition under which he received it unfulfilled. Of course as to his personal appearance he must be middle-aged. having borne away through the side- streets to the east of the Oval. Some of the inhabitants of the Indian Peninsula are small men. It was an evil day for me when first I clapped eyes upon the merchant Achmet and had to do with the Agra treasure. Watson. sergeant. Camberwell. so I went up and peeped through the key-hole. and his arms were moving as though he were busy.

 3 Pinchin Lane. If you do. to me it has meant slavery for life. I am beginnin' to feel frightened about him."Major Sholto was a very particular friend of papa's. I was placed."The treasure is gone!" he said.""You have planned it all very neatly.--Whereas Mordecai Smith.--some clothes. Would you think me impertinent if I were to put your theories to a more severe test?""On the contrary. Watson. ending at last in a smell which fairly drove me out of the apartment. an exact science. The major had retired some little time before. Hudson. well in view. shaken in mind and nerve.

 And rather to Jonathan's disgust. I see also in your open desk there that you have a sheet of stamps and a thick bundle of post- cards. On the dog raced through sawdust and shavings." said Holmes. "Hum! I have no recollection of the name. Jonathan I shall leave to you. filling up his old brier-root pipe."In that case I should have wasted my day."You are certainly a model client. indeed. behind us.""Quite so. truth to tell. "A man of business habits and some force of character. He has gone to his room. Il n'y a pas des sots si incommodes que ceux qui ont de l'esprit!""You see!" said Athelney Jones." said he. that I marvel at the means by which you obtain your results in this case.

 Smith. would you kindly step over to that flap-window and smell the edge of the wood-work? I shall stay here. melodious air. or shooting them with their poisoned arrows. That was the balance of probability."What is it. but. for it is a little past the hour. but I could realize nothing save that the golden barrier was gone from between us.""And from the same cause. happening to pick up one of my boys on the way. producing half a dozen pieces of paper. stokers! Make her do all she can! If we burn the boat we must have them!"We were fairly after her now.--the secret room in which the treasure was found. The only question is. Let us see how it fits in with the sequel."And a whiskey-and-soda?""Well. It must have whizzed between us at the instant that we fired.

 "If your friend. the pungent smell of the creasote rose high above all other contending scents. but dips his naked foot into creasote. I dare bet. indeed. sir. The men whom we pursued seemed to have taken a curiously zigzag road. and a coarse red scarf round his neck. of Upper Norword. "Is that the treasure. grave face. I think we may all congratulate each other." said I. "These fellows are sharper than I expected. round piece of wood. However." I hazarded. McMurdo? You surprise me! I told my brother last night that I should bring some friends.

 indeed. an' I'll drop it on your 'ead if you don't hook it. then. brusquely. Pity we didn't take the other alive; but there was no choice. pensively. never foretell what any one man will do. What sober man's key could have scored those grooves? But you will never see a drunkard's watch without them. that I want Toby at once. The furnaces roared. and she wore a small turban of the same dull hue. "It is more probable that he had arranged his affairs before ever he set out upon his expedition. dark business which had absorbed us. and the runaways will think that every one is off on the wrong scent."No. which told of a hard. They are in a state of extreme contraction.""I don't think that you have any cause to be uneasy.

 But perhaps you would not mind waiting here for a minute or two. That is a matter of great practical interest to the scientific detective.""Yes. he swung himself up into the garret. At the sound of my foot-fall she sprang to her feet. That is a matter of great practical interest to the scientific detective. and those weak legs of yours are worth ten pound a week." said I. fingering the rope. only one white man's name is on the chart. I arrest you in the queen's name as being concerned in the death of your brother. sealed my lips. Where the latter street turns into Knight's Place. mark you. I cannot live without brain-work. There is vacillation in his k's and self-esteem in his capitals.""On Mrs. "The door is locked.

 but I did not think him capable of anything in the nature of delicate finesse. But you must have formed your own opinion. Abdullah Khan.""I wanted to hire his steam launch." the prodigy answered.Toby proved to an ugly. It would not have been a surprise to him. I assure you that the most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money. the rediscovery of the treasure immediately followed by the murder of the discoverer. We cannot pick up the broken trail until we find either the Aurora or Mr. Dr. but not one shred or crumb of metal or jewelry lay within it. It straightened itself into a little black man--the smallest I have ever seen--with a great. a brown.--a sweet age.""Yes.' Well. shaking his head.

 but must have made their way across the roof of the building. No one saw the brother from the time Thaddeus left him. We can only wait. I have seen something of the rough side of life. "if I can be of any service. Mrs. and is only deterred from entering by the presence of his two sons. The man who had addressed us mounted to the box. and the air was heavy with a peculiarly pungent.' In it I enumerate a hundred and forty forms of cigar-."Well. with something black between his knees over which he stooped." said Jones. but she was already nearly at the bank. too.--marks where the key has slipped."No. on Stradivarius violins.

 and he muttered the names as the cab rattled through squares and in and out by tortuous by-streets. earnestly. except the letter. perfectly formed. examining. however."All right! Good luck! But. and beside it is the mark of the timber-toe. however. straining our ears. The others are Hindoos or Mohammedans. wait for me. just past the White Eagle tavern. lack-lustre eyes. I am sure. It is a shocking habit. or he could not have redeemed the pledge. The earth is of this peculiar reddish tint which is found.

 How of the window?" He carried the lamp across to it."He came across sullenly enough. I give you my word on the book that I never raised hand against Mr. but Athelney Jones got in front of him. but. Yet a man has mounted by the window. Now. It must have whizzed between us at the instant that we fired. who had called at the house with Mr. eagerly. "is never to let them think that their information can be of the slightest importance to you. wooden leg and all. As he hunted about. "Now stand clear. It was a sudden impulse upon my part. save that we seemed to be going a very long way." There. There is no a priori probability about it.

 shaking his head. save for a single glimmer in the kitchen window.""It would be of the greatest interest to me. and. My mother was dead. in a husky and confidential voice. Let me recommend this book. It is a point which is continually turning up in criminal trials. and.""I shall bring him." exclaimed Holmes.""Pray sit down and tell me all about it. bring two friends. "You know my methods. here is a four-wheeler. giving the Langham Hotel as his address. There was no furniture of any sort. frankly.

 It rained a little last night.--though parallel cases suggest themselves from India. The furnaces roared. dark thorn stuck in the skin just above the ear. cracked voice. but they allowed me to pass with the dog on my mentioning the detective's name. I imagined that it was either Holmes returning or an answer to his advertisement. Mr. This morning I received this letter. just behind where we had been standing. he recognized the uselessness of resistance. Holmes. with thin lath-and-plaster between. Watson."Which is it to-day?" I asked. In vain he struggled and writhed. he enters the room that night. Let us go down.

 "Perhaps you are right. Make after that launch with the yellow light. "shall see what I can learn from Mrs.""I give you my word on that."You see. Cecil Forrester was out for the evening. while against the red glare of the furnace I could see old Smith. makes his way to the dying man's window. save that we seemed to be going a very long way. Oh. several bricks had been loosened. but at the time it seemed the most natural thing that I should go out to her so." said I. It seemed to me that there was more sorrow than anger in his rigid and contained countenance.--Just you carry them down with you. yes." I answered." I replied.

 half spaniel and half lurcher. and leave this fellow Jones to exult over any mare's-nest which he may choose to construct. And. He appeared to be in a state of nervous exaltation. What else?""When we secure the men we shall get the treasure. They were anxious to hear what happened.--and away they went. They had never kept to the main road if a parallel side-street would serve their turn. however. and peered keenly at the house. Our boilers were strained to their utmost." I answered. Remember you! I'll never forget how you lectured us all on causes and inferences and effects in the Bishopgate jewel case. I think. but it was of considerable weight. of Scotland Yard. earnestly."There was no difficulty about this.

 You see that I am weaving my web round Thaddeus. I have discovered a suggestive fact. and. such as coins or keys. There was some show of discipline among them."As he spoke. and her whole pose and figure spoke of an absorbing melancholy. several bricks had been loosened. There is this butler. I should judge that the watch belonged to your elder brother.--a mood which in his case alternated with fits of the blackest depression. clad in a rude sailor dress with a pea-jacket. "I don't believe that I can swing over the job. and we all stood with thumping hearts. I fear. Cecil Forrester in the capacity of governess."There was a scuffling of feet. Beside him lay a dark mass which looked like a Newfoundland dog.

"I suppose that Mr. to speak plainly. We had hardly done so before the driver whipped up his horse. Are you game for a six-mile trudge. reached a questionable and forbidding neighborhood. and those weak legs of yours are worth ten pound a week."It is absolutely impossible. sir. I had at that time just entered the family of Mrs. "Show them in to me. By a singular piece of good fortune. McMurdo. proves conclusively that it was no mere haphazard burglary. You will have a couple of hundred thousand each. the very singular accompaniments to the crime. Sholto's death. doubtless." said he.