No. 9 The Adventure of the Resident Patient by Arthur Conan Doyle
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approached me .I won't weary you with_the account of how we bargained and negotiated . it ended in my moving into_the house next lady- day, and starting in practice on very_much the same conditions as he had suggested . he cam 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 asitting- room and bedroom for himself . he_was a man of singular habits, shunning company and very seldom going out . his life was irregular, but in one respect he_was regularity itself . every evening, at_the same hour, he walked into_the consulting- room, examined the books, put down five and three-pence for every guinea that I had earned, and carried the rest off to_the strong- box in_his own room .

" I_may say with confidence that he never had occasion to regret his speculation . from_the first it_was a success .a few good cases and_the reputation which I had won in_the hospital brought me rapidly to_the front, and during_the_last few years I_have_made him a rich man .

" so_much, Mr Holmes, for_my past history and my relations with Mr Blessington . it only remains for_me now to_tell you what has occurred to bring me her to- night .

" some weeks_ago Mr Blessington came down to_me in, as it seemed to_me, a state of considerable agitation . he spoke of some burglary which, he_said, had_been committed in_the west end, and he appeared, I remember, to_be quite unnecessarily excited about_it, declaring that a day should_not pass before we_should 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 something or somebody, but when I questioned him upon_the point he became so offensive that i_was compelled to drop the subject . gradually, as time passed, his fears appeared to die away, and he had renewed his former habits, when a fresh event reduced him to_the pitiable state of prostration in_which he now lies .

" what happened was_this . two days_ago I received the letter which I now read to_you . neither address nor date is attached to_it .

"'A Russian nobleman who_is now resident in England,' it runs, ' would_be_glad to avail himself of_the professional assistance of Dr .Percy Trevelyan . he has_been for_some_years a victim to cataleptic attacks, on_which, as is well known, Dr .Trevelyan is an authority . he proposes to_call at about quarter past six to- morrow evening, if Dr .Trevelyan will make it convenient to_be at home .'

" this letter interest me deeply, because the chief difficulty in_the study of catalepsy is_the rareness of_the disease . you_may believe, than, that i_was in my consulting- room when, at_the appointed hour, the page showed in_the patient .

he_was an elderly man, thin, demure, and common- place-- by no means the conception one forms of a Russian nobleman . i_was much more struck by_the appearance of_his companion . this_was a tall young man, surprisingly handsome, with a dark, fierce face, and_the limbs and chest of aHercules . he had his hand under the other's arm as_they entered, and helped him to a chair with a tenderness which one would hardly have expected from_his appearance .

"' you_will excuse my coming in, doctor,' said he to_me, speaking English with a slight lisp .' this_is my father, and_his health is a matter of_the most overwhelming importance to_me .'

" i_was touched by_this filial anxiety .' you_would, perhaps, care to remain during the consultation ? ' said I .

"' not for_the world,' he cried with a gesture of horror .' it_is more painful to_me than I_can express . if I were to_see my father in one_of_these dreadful seizures I_am convinced that i_should never survive it . my own nervous system is an exceptionally sensitive one . with your permission, i_will remain in_the waiting- room while you go into my father's case .'

" to_this, of_course, I assented, and_the young man withdrew . the patient and I then plunged into adiscussion of_his case, of_which i_took exhaustive notes . he_was not remarkable for intelligence, and_his answers were frequently obscure, which I attributed to_his limited acquaintance with_our language . suddenly, however, as I sat writing, he cased to_give any answer at all to my inquiries, and on my turning towards him i_was shocked to_see that he_was sitting bolt upright in_his chair, staring at me with a perfectly blank and rigid face . he_was again in_the grip of_his mysterious malady .

" my first feeling, as I_have just said, was one of pity and horror . my second, I_fear, was rather one of professional satisfaction . I_made notes of_my patient's pulse and temperature, tested the rigidity of_his muscles, and examined his reflexes . there_was nothing markedly abnormal in any of_these conditions, which harmonised 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 bottle was downstairs in my laboratory, so leaving my patient seated in_his chair, I ran down to_get it . there_was some little delay in finding it--five minutes, let_us_say-- and then I returned . imagine my amazement to_find the room empty and_the patient gone .

" of_course, my first act was to run into_the waiting- room . the son had gone also . the hall door had_been closed, but not shut . my page who admits patients is a new boy and by no means quick . 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 cam in from_his walk shortly afterwards, but I_did_not_say anything to him upon_the_subject, for, to_tell the truth, I_have got in_the way of late of holding as little communication with_him as possible .

" well, I never thought that I should_see anything more of_the Russian and_his son, so you_can imagine my amazement when, at_the very same hour this evening, they both came marching into my consulting- room, just as_they had done before .

"' I_feel that I owe you a great_many apologies for_my abrupt departure yesterday, doctor,' said my patient .

"'I confess that i_was very_much surprised at it,' said I .

"' well, the fact is,' he remarked, ' that when I recover from_these attacks my mind is always very clouded as_to all that has gone before .I woke up in a strange room, as it seemed to_me, and made my way out into_the street in a sort of dazed way when_you were absent .'

"' and I,' said the son, 'seeing my father pass the door of_the waiting- room, naturally thought that_the consultation had come to an end . it_was not until we had reached home that I began to realise the true state of affairs .'

"' well,' said I, laughing, ' there_is no harm done except that you puzzled me terribly; so if_you, sir, would kindly step into_the waiting- room I_shall_be happy to_continue our consultation which_was brought to so abrupt an ending .'

"' for half an hour or so I discussed that old gentleman's symptoms with_him, and then, having prescribed for him, I_saw him go off upon_the arm of_his son .

" I_have told you that Mr Blessington generally chose this hour of_the day for_his exercise . he_came in shortly afterwards and passed upstairs . an instant later I heard him running down, and he burst into my consulting- room like a man who_is mad with panic .

"' who has_been in my room ? ' he cried .

"' no one,' said I .

"' it's a lie ! he yelled .' come up and look ! '

"I passed over the grossness of_his language, as he_seemed half out of_his mind with fear . when I went upstairs with_him he pointed to several footprints upon_the light carpet .

"'D' you mean to_say those are mine ? ' he cried .

" they were certainly very_much larger than any which he could_have made, and were evidently quite fresh . it rained hard this afternoon, as_you_know, and my patients 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 other, ascended to_the room of_my resident patient . nothing has_been touched or taken, but there were the footprints to_prove that_the intrusion was an undoubted fact .

" Mr Blessington seemed more excited over the matter than i_should_have thought possible, though of_course it_was enough to disturb anybody's peace of mind . he actually sat crying in an arm- chair, and I_could hardly 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 completely overtake its importance . if_you_would only come back with me in my brougham, you_would at_least be_able to soothe him, though I_can hardly hope_that you_will_be_able to explain this remarkable occurrence ."

Sherlock Holmes had listened to_this long narrative with an intentness which showed me that his interest was keenly aroused . his face was as impassive as ever, but his lids had drooped more heavily over his eyes, and_his smoke had curled up more thickly from_his pipe to emphasise 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 we had_been dripped at_the door of_the physician's residence in brook street, one of_those sombre, flat- faced houses which one associates with a west- end practice .a small page admitted us, and we began at once to ascend the broad, well- carpeted stair .

but a singular interruption brought us to a standstill . the light at_the top was suddenly whisked out, and from_the darkness came a reedy, quivering voice .

" I_have a pistol," it cried ."I give_you my word that I'll fire if_you come any nearer ."

" this really grows outrageous, Mr Blessington," cried Dr .Trevelyan .

"Oh, then it_is you, doctor," said the voice, with a great heave of relief ." but those other gentlemen, are they what they pretend to_be ? "

we were conscious of a long scrutiny out_of_the darkness .

" yes, yes, it's all right," said the voice at last ." you_can come up, and I_am sorry if_my precautions have annoyed you ."

he relit the stair gas as he spoke, and we saw before_us a singular- looking man, whose appearance, as_well as his voice, testified to_his jangled nerves . he_was very 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 blood- hound . he_was of a sickly colour, and_his thin, sandy hair seemed to bristle up with_the intensity of_his emotion . in_his hand he held a pistol, but he thrust it into his pocket as_we advanced .

" good- evening, Mr Holmes," said he ." I_am_sure I_am very_much obliged to_you for coming round . no one ever needed your advice more than I_do .I suppose that Dr .Trevelyan has told you of_this most unwarrantable intrusion into my rooms ."

" quite so," said Holmes ." who_are these tow men Mr Blessington, and why do they wish to molest you ? "

" well, well," said the resident patient, in a nervous fashion, " of_course_it_is hard to_say that . you_can hardly expect me to answer that, Mr Holmes ."

" do_you_mean that you don't know ? "

" come in here, if_you please . just have the kindness to step in here ."

he led the way into his bedroom, which_was large and comfortably furnished .

" you_see that," said he, pointing to a big black box at_the end of_his bed ." I_have never been a very rich man, Mr Holmes-- never made but 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 . between ourselves, what little I_have is in_that box, so you_can understand what it means to_me when unknown people force themselves into my rooms ."

Holmes looked at Blessington in_his questioning way and shook his head .

" I_cannot possibly advise you if_you try to deceive me," said he .

" but I_have told you everything ."

Holmes turned on_his heel with a gesture of disgust ." good- night, Dr .Trevelyan," said he .

" and no advice for_me ? " cried Blessington, in abreaking voice .

" my advice to your, sir, is to_speak the truth ."

a minute later we were in_the street and walking for home . we had crossed Oxford street and were half way down Harley street before I_could get a word from my companion .

" sorry to bring you out on_such a fool's errand, Watson," he_said at last ." it_is an interesting case, too, at_the bottom of it ."

" I_can make little of it," I confessed .

" well, it_is quite evident that_there_are two men-- more, perhaps, but at_least two-- who_are determined for some reason to_get at_this fellow Blessington . I_have no_doubt in my mind that both on_the first and on_the second occasion that young man penetrated to Blessington's room, while his confederate, by an ingenious device, kept the doctor from interfering ."

" and_the catalepsy ? "

"A fraudulent imitation, Watson, though i_should hardly dare to hint as_much to our specialist . it_is a very easy complaint to imitate . I_have_done it myself ."

" and then ? "

" by_the purest chance Blessington was out

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