The Adventure of the Red Circle* by Arthur Conan Doyle
Section [1 | 2 | 3]
the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes the adventure of_the red circle Arthur Conan Doyle

1911

" well, Mrs warren, I cannot_see that you_have any particular cause for uneasiness, nor do I understand why I, whose time is of some value, should interfere in_the matter .I really have other things to engage me ." so spoke Sherlock Holmes and turned back to_the great scrapbook in_which he_was arranging and indexing some of_his recent material .

but the landlady had the pertinacity and also the cunning of her sex . she held her ground firmly .

" you arranged an affair for a lodger of_mine last year," she said- " Mr Fairdale Hobbs ."

"Ah, yes- a simple matter ."

" but he_would never cease talking of it- your kindness, sir, and_the way in_which_you brought light into_the darkness .I remembered his words when i_was in doubt and darkness myself . I_know you_could if_you only would ."

Holmes was accessible upon_the side of flattery, and also, to_do him justice, upon_the side of kindliness . the two forces made him lay down his gum- brush with a sigh of resignation and push back his chair .

" well, well, Mrs warren, let_us hear about_it then . you don't object to tobacco, I take it ? thank_you, Watson- the matches ! you_are uneasy, as I understand, because your new lodger remains in_his rooms and you_cannot_see him . why, bless you, Mrs warren, if I were your lodger you often would_not see me for weeks on end ."

" no_doubt, sir, but this_is different . it frightens me, Mr Holmes . I_can't sleep for fright . to hear his quick step moving here and moving there from early morning to late at night, and yet never to catch so_much as a glimpse of him- it's more than I_can stand . my husband is as nervous over it as I_am, but he_is out at his work all day, while I get no rest from_it . what_is he hiding for ? what has he done ? except for_the girl, I_am all alone in_the house with_him, and it's more than my nerves can stand ."

Holmes leaned forward and laid his long, thin fingers upon_the woman's shoulder . he had an almost hypnotic power of soothing when he_wished . the scared look faded from her eyes, and her agitated features smoothed into their usual commonplace . she sat down in_the chair which he had indicated .

" if I take it up I_must understand every detail," said he ." take time to consider . the smallest point may_be the most essential . you say that_the man came ten days_ago and paid you for a fortnight's board and lodging ? "

" he asked my terms, sir . I_said fifty shillings a week . there_is a small sittingroom and bedroom, and all complete, at_the top of_the house ."

" well ? "

" he_said, 'I'll pay you five pounds a week if I_can_have it on my own terms .' I'm a poor woman, sir, and Mr warren earns little, and_the money meant much to_me . he_took out aten- pound note, and he held it out to_me then and there .' you_can_have the same every fortnight for_a_long_time to_come if_you keep the terms,' he_said .' if_not, I'll have no more to_do with_you .'"

" what were the terms ? "

" well, sir, they were that he_was to_have a key of_the house . that was all right .Lodgers often have them . also, that he_was to_be left entirely to himself and never, upon any excuse, to_be disturbed ."

" nothing wonderful in_that, surely ? "

" not in reason, sir . but this_is out of all reason . he has_been there for ten days, and neither Mr warren, nor I, nor the girl has once set eyes upon him . we_can hear that quick step of_his pacing up and down, up and down, night, morning, and noon; but except on_that first night he has never once gone out_of_the house ."

"Oh, he went out the first night, did he ? "

" yes, sir, and returned very late- after we were all in bed . he_told me after he had taken the rooms that he_would do_so and asked me not to bar the door .I heard him come up the stair after midnight ."

" but his meals ? "

" it_was his particular direction that we_should always, when he rang, leave his meal upon a chair, outside his door . then he rings again when he has finished, and we take it down from_the same chair . if he_wants anything else he prints it on a slip of paper and leaves it ."

"Prints it ? "

" yes, sir, prints it in pencil . just the word, nothing more . here's one I brought to show you- soap . here's another- match . this_is one he left the first morning- daily gazette .I leave that paper with_his breakfast every morning ."

" dear me, Watson," said Holmes, staring with great curiosity at_the slips of foolscap which the landlady had handed to him, " this_is certainly a little unusual . seclusion I_can understand; but why print ? Printing is a clumsy process . why_not write ? what would it suggest Watson ? "

" that he desired to conceal his handwriting ."

" but why ? what can it matter to him that his landlady should_have a word of_his writing ? still, it may_be as_you say . then, again, why such laconic messages ? "

" I_cannot imagine ."

" it opens apleasing field for intelligent speculation . the words are written with a broad- pointed, violet- tinted pencil of a not unusual pattern . you_will observe that_the paper is torn away at_the side here after_the printing was_done, so that_the 'S' of ' soap' is partly gone . suggestive, Watson, is_it not ? "

" of caution ? "

" exactly . there_was evidently some mark, some thumbprint, something which might give aclue to_the person's identity . now, Mrs warren, you say that_the man was of middle size, dark, and bearded . what age would he be ? "

" youngish, sir- not over thirty ."

" well, can_you_give me no further indications ? "

" he spoke good English, sir, and yet i_thought he_was a foreigner by his accent ."

" and he_was well dressed ? "

" very smartly dressed, sir- quite the gentleman . dark clothes- nothing you_would note ."

" he_gave no name ? "

" no, sir ."

" and has had no letters or callers ? "

" none ."

" but surely you or the girl enter his room of a morning ? "

" no, sir; he looks after himself entirely ."

" dear me ! that_is certainly remarkable . what about his luggage ? "

" he had one big brown bag with_him- nothing else ."

" well, we don't seem to_have much material to help_us . do_you say nothing has_come out of_that room- absolutely nothing ? "

the landlady drew an envelope from her bag, from_it she shook out two burnt matches and a cigarette- end upon_the table .

" they were on_his tray this_morning .I brought them because I had heard that you_can read great things out of small ones ."

Holmes shrugged his shoulders .

" there_is nothing here," said he ." the matches have, of_course, been used to light cigarettes . that_is obvious from_the shortness of_the burnt end . half the match is consumed in lighting a pipe or cigar . but dear me ! this cigarette stub is certainly remarkable . the gentleman was bearded and moustached, you say ? "

" yes, sir ."

"I don't understand that . i_should say that only a clean-shaven man could_have smoked this . why, Watson, even your modest moustache would_have_been singed ."

"A holder ? " I suggested .

" no, no; the end is matted .I suppose there could_not_be two people in your rooms, Mrs warren ? "

" no, sir . he eats so little that I often wonder it can keep life in one ."

" well, i_think we_must wait for a little more material . after all, you_have nothing to complain of . you_have received your rent and he_is_not a troublesome lodger, though he_is certainly an unusual one . he pays you well . and if he choses to lie concealed it_is no direct business of yours . we_have no excuse for an intrusion upon his privacy until we_have some reason to_think that_there_is a guilty reason for_it .I've taken up the matter, and I won't lose sight of it . report to_me if anything fresh occurs, and rely upon my assistance if_it should_be needed .

" there_are certainly some points of interest in this_case, Watson," he remarked when_the landlady had left us ." it may, of_course, be trivial- individual eccentricity; or it may_be very_much deeper than appears on_the surface . the first thing that strikes one is_the obvious possibility that_the person now in_the rooms may_be entirely different from_the one who engaged them ."

" why should you_think so ? "

" well, apart from_this cigarette- end, was_it not suggestive that_the only time the lodger went out was immediately after his taking the rooms ? he_came back- or someone came back- when all witnesses were out_of_the way . we_have no proof that_the person who came back was_the person who went out . then, again, the man who took the rooms spoke English well . this other, however, prints ' match' when it should_have_been 'matches .' I_can imagine that_the word was taken out of a dictionary, which would give the noun but not the plural . the laconic style may_be to conceal the absence of knowledge of English . yes, Watson, there_are good reasons to suspect that there_has_been a substitution of lodgers ."

" but for what possible end ? "

"Ah ! there lies our problem . there_is one rather obvious line of investigation ." he_took down the great book in_which, day by day, he filed the agony columns of_the various London journals ." dear me ! " said he, turning over the pages, " what a chorus of groans, cries, and bleatings ! what a rag- bag of singular happenings ! but surely the most valuable hunting- ground that ever was given to a student of_the unusual ! this person is alone and cannot_be approached by letter without a breach of_that absolute secrecy which_is desired . how is any news or any message to reach him from without ? obviously by advertisement through anews paper . there seems no other way, and fortunately we_need concern ourselves with_the one paper only . here are the daily gazette extracts of_the last fortnight .' lady with a black boa at prince's Skating club'- that we_may pass .' surely Jimmy will not break his mother's heart'- that appears to_be irrelevant .' if_the lady who fainted in_the Brixton bus'- she does_not interest me .' every day my heart longs-' bleat, Watson- unmitigated bleat ! Ah, this_is a little more possible . listen to_this: ' be patient . will_find some sure means of communication . meanwhile, this column .G .' that_is two days after Mrs warren's lodger arrived . it sounds plausible, does it not ? the mysterious one could understand English, even if he_could_not print it . let_us_see if_we_can pick up the trace again . yes, here we_are- three days later .'Am making successful arrangements . patience and prudence . the clouds will pass .G .' nothing for a week after_that . then comes something much more definite: ' the path is clearing . if I_find chance signal message remember code agreed- one A, two B, and so on . you_will hear soon .G .' that was in yesterday's paper, and there_is nothing in to- day's . it's all very appropriate to Mrs warren's lodger . if_we wait a little, Watson, I don't doubt that_the affair will grow more intelligible ."

so it proved; for in_the morning I_found my friend standing on_the hearthrug with_his back to_the fire and a smile of complete satisfaction upon his face .

" how's this, Watson ? " he cried, picking up the paper from_the table .' high red house with white stone facings . third floor . second window left . after dusk .G .' that_is definite enough . i_think after breakfast we_must make a little reconnaissance of Mrs warren's neighbourhood .Ah, Mrs warren ! what news do_you bring us this_morning ? "

our client had suddenly burst into_the room with an explosive energy which told of some new and momentous development .

" it's a police matter, Mr Holmes" she cried ."I'll have no more of it . he shall pack out of there with_his baggage . i_would_have gone straight up and told him so, only i_thought it_was but fair to_you to_take your opinion first . but I'm at_the end of_my patience, and when it comes to knocking my old man about-"

"Knocking Mr warren about ? "

"Using him roughly, anyway ."

" but who used him roughly ? "

"Ah ! that's what we_want to_know ! it_was this_morning, sir .Mr warren is a timekeeper at Morton and Waylight's, in Tottenham court road . he has_to be out_of_the house before seven . well, this_morning he had_not gone ten paces down the road when two men came up behind him, threw a coat over his head, and bundled him into a cab that was beside the curb . they drove him an hour, and then opened the door and shot him out . he lay in_the roadway so shaken in_his wits that he never saw what became of_the cab . when he picked himself up he_found he_was on Hampstead heath; so he_took a bus home, and there he lies now on_the sofa, while I_came straight round to_tell you what had happened ."

" most interesting," said Holmes ." did he observe the appearance of_these men- did he hear them talk ? "

" no; he_is clean dazed . he just knows that he_was lifted up as_if by magic and dropped as_if by magic . two at_least were in_it, and maybe three ."

" and you connect this attack with your lodger ? "

" well, we've lived there fifteen years and no such happenings ever came before .I've had enough of him . money's not everything .I'll have him out of_my house before_the day is done ."

" wait a bit, Mrs warren . do nothing rash .I begin to_think that_this affair may_be very_much more

Section [1 | 2 | 3]