No. 6 The Man with the Twisted Lip by Arthur Conan Doyle
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finished, however, we drove through two scattered villages, where a few lights still glimmered in_the windows .

we_are on_the outskirts of Lee, said my companion . we_have touched on three English counties in_our short drive, starting in Middlesex, passing over an angle of surrey, and ending in Kent . see that light among_the trees ? that_is_the Cedars, and beside that lamp sits a woman whose anxious ears have already, I_have little doubt, caught the clink of_our horses feet .

but why are_you not conducting the case from baker street ? I asked .

because there_are many inquiries which_must be made out here .Mrs St .Clair has most kindly put two rooms at my disposal, and you_may rest assured that she will_have nothing but a welcome for_my friend and colleague .I hate to meet her, Watson, when I_have no news of her husband . here we_are .Whoa, there, whoa !

we had pulled up in front of a large villa which stood within its own grounds .a stable- boy had run out to_the horses head, and springing down, I followed Holmes up the small, winding gravel- drive which led to_the house . as_we approached, the door flew open, and a little blonde woman stood in_the opening, clad in some sort of light mousseline de soie, with a touch of fluffy pink chiffon at her neck and wrists . she stood with her figure outlined against the flood of light, one hand upon_the door, one half- raised in her eagerness, her body slightly bent, her head and face protruded, with eager eyes and parted lips, astanding question .

well ? she cried, well ? and then, seeing that there were two of us, she gave a cry of hope which sank into a groan as she saw that my companion shook his head and shrugged his shoulders .

no good news ?

none .

no bad ?

no .

thank god for_that . but come in . you_must_be weary, for you_have_had a long day .

this_is my friend, Dr .Watson . he has_been of most vital use to_me in several of_my cases, and a lucky chance has_made it possible for_me to bring him out and associate him with_this investigation .

I_am delighted to_see you, said she, pressing my hand warmly . you_will, I_am_sure, forgive anything that_may_be wanting in_our arrangements, when_you consider the blow which_has come so suddenly upon us .

my dear madam, said I, I_am an old campaigner, and if I were_not I_can very_well see that no apology is needed . if I_can_be of any assistance, either to_you or to my friend here, I_shall_be indeed happy .

now, Mr Sherlock Holmes, said the lady as_we entered a well-lit dining- room, upon_the table of_which a cold supper had_been laid out, i_should very_much like to ask_you one_or_two plain questions, to_which I beg that you_will give a plain answer .

certainly, madam .

do_not trouble about_my feelings . I_am not hysterical, nor given to fainting .I simply wish to hear your real, real opinion .

upon what point ?

in your heart of hearts, do_you_think that Neville is alive ?

Sherlock Holmes seemed to_be embarrassed by_the question . frankly, now ! she repeated, standing upon_the rug and looking keenly down at him as he leaned back in a basket- chair .

frankly, then, madam, I_do_not .

you_think that he_is dead ?

I_do .

murdered ?

I dont say that . perhaps .

and on what day did he meet his death ?

on Monday .

then perhaps, Mr Holmes, you_will_be good enough to explain how it is_that I_have received a letter from_him to- day .

Sherlock Holmes sprang out of_his chair as_if he had_been galvanized .Josef Friedrich, 1906

what ! he roared .

yes, to- day . she stood smiling, holding up a little slip of paper in_the air .

may I_see it ?

certainly .

he snatched it from her in_his eagerness, and smoothing it out upon_the table he drew over the lamp and examined it intently .I had left my chair and was gazing at it over his shoulder . the envelope was a very coarse one and was stamped with_the Gravesend postmark and with_the date of_that very day, or rather of_the day before, for it_was considerably after midnight .

coarse writing, murmured Holmes . surely this_is_not your husbands writing, madam .

no, but the enclosure is .

I perceive also that whoever addressed the envelope had to_go and inquire as_to_the address .

how can_you tell that ?

the name, you_see, is in perfectly black ink, which_has dried itself . the rest is of_the grayish colour, which shows that blotting- paper has_been used . if_it had_been written straight off, and then blotted, none would_be of a deep black shade . this man has_written the name, and there has then been a pause before he wrote the address, which can only mean that he_was not familiar with it . it_is, of_course, a trifle, but there_is nothing so important as trifles . let_us now see the letter .Ha ! there_has_been an enclosure here !

yes, there_was a ring . his signet- ring .

and you_are_sure that_this_is your husbands hand ?

one of_his hands .

one ?

his hand when he wrote hurriedly . it_is very unlike his usual writing, and yet I_know it well .

dearest do_not be frightened . all will come well . there_is a huge error which it may take some little time to rectify . wait in patience .-NEVILLE . written in pencil upon_the fly- leaf of a book, octavo size, no water- mark . hum ! posted to- day in Gravesend by a man with a dirty thumb .Ha ! and_the flap has_been gummed, if I_am not very_much in error, by a person who had_been chewing tobacco . and you_have no_doubt that_it_is your husbands hand, madam ?

none .Neville wrote those words .

and_they were posted to- day at Gravesend . well, Mrs St .Clair, the clouds lighten, though I should_not venture to_say that_the danger is over .

but he_must_be alive, Mr Holmes .

unless this_is a clever forgery to_put us on_the wrong scent . the ring, after all, proves nothing . it may have_been taken from_him .

no, no; it_is, it_is his very own writing !

very_well . it may, however, have_been written on Monday and only posted to- day .

that_is possible .

if_so, much may_have happened between .

Oh, you_must not discourage me, Mr Holmes . I_know that all is well with_him . there_is so keen a sympathy between_us that i_should know if evil came upon him . on_the very day that I_saw him last he cut himself in_the bedroom, and yet I in_the dining- room rushed upstairs instantly with_the utmost certainty that something had happened . do_you_think that i_would respond to such a trifle and yet be ignorant of_his death ?

I_have_seen too_much not to_know that_the impression of a woman may_be more valuable than_the conclusion of an analytical reasoner . and in_this letter you certainly have a very strong piece of evidence to corroborate your view . but if your husband is alive and able to write letters, why should he remain away from_you ?

I_cannot imagine . it_is unthinkable .

and on Monday he_made no remarks before leaving you ?

no .

and you were surprised to_see him in Swandam Lane ?

very_much so .

was_the window open ?

yes .

then he_might_have called to_you ?

he might .

he only, as I understand, gave an inarticulate cry ?

yes .

a call for help, you thought ?

yes . he waved his hands .

but it might_have_been a cry of surprise . astonishment at_the unexpected sight of you_might cause him to throw up his hands ?

it_is possible .

and you thought he_was pulled back ?

he disappeared so suddenly .

he_might_have leaped back . you_did_not_see anyone else in_the room ?

no, but this horrible man confessed to having been there, and_the lascar was at_the foot of_the stairs .

quite so . your husband, as far as you_could_see, had his ordinary clothes on ?

but without his collar or tie .I distinctly saw his bare throat .

had he ever spoken of Swandam Lane ?

never .

had he ever showed any signs of having taken opium ?

never .

thank_you, Mrs St .Clair . those are the principal points about_which I wished to_be absolutely clear . we_shall now have a little supper and then retire, for we_may_have a very busy day to- morrow .

a large and comfortable double- bedded room had_been placed at our disposal, and i_was quickly between_the sheets, for i_was weary after my night of adventure .Sherlock Holmes was a man, however, who, when he had an unsolved problem upon his mind, would go for days, and even for a week, without rest, turning it over, rearranging his facts, looking at it from every point of view until he had either fathomed it or convinced himself that his data were insufficient . it_was soon evident to_me that he_was now preparing for an all- night sitting . he_took off his coat and waistcoat, put on a large blue dressing- gown, and then wandered about_the room collecting pillows from_his bed and cushions from_the sofa and armchairs . with_these he constructed a sort of eastern divan, upon_which he perched himself cross-legged, with an ounce of shag tobacco and a box of matches laid out in front of him . in_the dim light of_the lamp I_saw him sitting there, an old briar pipe between his lips, his eyes fixed vacantly upon_the corner of_the ceiling, the blue smoke curling up from_him, silent, motionless, with_the light shining upon his strong- set aquiline features . so he sat as I dropped off to sleep, and so he sat when a sudden ejaculation caused me to wake up, and I_found the summer sun shining into_the apartment . the pipe was still between his lips, the smoke still curled upward, and_the room was full of a dense tobacco haze, but nothing remained of_the heap of shag which I had seen upon_the previous night .

awake, Watson ? he asked .

yes .

game for a morning drive ?

certainly .

then dress . no one is stirring yet, but I_know where the stable- boy sleeps, and we_shall soon have the trap out . he chuckled to himself as he spoke, his eyes twinkled, and he_seemed a different man to_the sombre thinker of_the previous night .

as I dressed I glanced at my watch . it_was no wonder that no one was stirring . it_was twenty-five minutes past four .I had hardly finished when Holmes returned with_the news that_the boy was putting in_the horse .

i_want to test a little theory of_mine, said he, pulling on_his boots . i_think, Watson, that you_are now standing in_the presence of one_of_the_most absolute fools in Europe .I deserve to_be kicked from here to Charing cross . but i_think I_have the key of_the affair now .

and where is_it ? I asked, smiling .

in_the bathroom, he answered .Oh, yes, I_am not joking, he continued, seeing my look of incredulity . I_have just been there, and I_have taken it out, and I_have got it in_this Gladstone bag . come on, my boy, and we_shall see whether it_will_not fit the lock .

we_made our way downstairs as quietly as possible, and out into_the bright morning sunshine . in_the road stood our horse and trap, with_the half-clad stable- boy waiting at_the head . we both sprang in, and away we dashed down the London road .a few country carts were stirring, bearing in vegetables to_the metropolis, but the lines of villas on either side were as silent and lifeless as some city in a dream .

it_has_been in some points a singular case, said Holmes, flicking the horse on into a gallop .I confess that I_have_been as blind as a mole, but it_is better to learn wisdom late than never to learn it at all .

in town the earliest risers were just beginning to look sleepily from their windows as_we drove through_the streets of_the surrey side .Passing down the Waterloo bridge road we crossed over the river, and dashing up Wellington street wheeled sharply to_the right and found ourselves in bow street .Sherlock Holmes was well known to_the force, and_the two constables at_the door saluted him . one_of_them held the horses head while the other led us in .

who_is on duty ? asked Holmes .

inspector Bradstreet, sir .

Ah, Bradstreet, how are_you ? a tall, stout official had come down the stone-flagged passage, in a peaked cap and frogged jacket . i_wish to_have a quiet word with_you, Bradstreet . certainly, Mr Holmes . step into my room here . it_was a small, office- like room, with a huge ledger upon_the table, and a telephone projecting from_the wall . the inspector sat down at his desk .

what can I_do for_you, Mr Holmes ?

I called about_that beggarman, Boone- the one who was charged with being concerned in_the disappearance of Mr Neville St .Clair, of Lee .

yes . he_was brought up and remanded for further inquiries .

so I heard . you_have him here ?

in_the cells .

is he quiet ?

Oh, he_gives no trouble . but he_is a dirty scoundrel .

dirty ?

yes, it_is all we_can do to_make him wash his hands, and_his face is as black as atinkers . well, when once his case has_been settled, he_will_have a regular prison bath; and i_think, if_you saw him, you_would agree with me that he_needed it .

i_should like to_see him very_much .

would you ? that_is easily done . come this_way . you_can leave your bag .

no, i_think that ill take

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