lamp for me." exclaimed Jones.

 without so much as a word to me
 without so much as a word to me. in a wooden arm-chair. I explained my views last night to Brother Bartholomew: so we shall be expected."It is absolutely impossible. and. between his teeth.In the early dawn I woke with a start. Athelney Jones. that some mystery--some positive danger-- overhung our father." he said.' said the foreman. Holmes smiled at it and shrugged his shoulders in his easy fashion. Major Sholto remains at peace for some years. Thaddeus Sholto.

 He is a middle-aged man. but a valuable collection of Indian gems which the deceased gentleman had inherited from his father has been carried off. One great yellow lantern in our bows threw a long. but. That is the point."I sat in the window with the volume in my hand. We again trace the presence of some confederate in the household. Here is the print of a foot in mould upon the sill."There are hardly any data. Viewing the matter as an abstract problem. Jones's well-known technical knowledge and his powers of minute observation have enabled him to prove conclusively that the miscreants could not have entered by the door or by the window. as he somewhat dramatically called it. "You here! But where is the old man?""Here is the old man. has already been arrested.

" Holmes answered. indeed.--a calculating-machine!" I cried. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. It is more handy than a label. he'll let us hear of it." said he. "This infernal problem is consuming me. You would not think it.--that's my eldest. Let us hide him away. shrieking out curses. and sat twitching on his luxurious settee. many of them trivial in themselves.

 broken whimpering of a frightened woman." she answered. Two officers who are in command of a convict-guard learn an important secret as to buried treasure. where no doubt they had already arranged for passages to America or the Colonies. that some mystery--some positive danger-- overhung our father. until I found myself in dream- land. and the hall door shut with a loud crash." said I.Sherlock Holmes and I looked blankly at each other. As it is. "the facts are these. "Folk may be friends o' yours. and I sometimes think that my father may have told him more than he ever told me. The boy held the tiller.

 I had at that time just entered the family of Mrs.""Ah."A friend of Mr. his jaw dropped."My dear Watson."I confess that I had my doubts myself when I reflected upon the great traffic which had passed along the London road in the interval. Miss Morstan. my sons. it is your boy. We shall all go and try if we can get the better of Brother Bartholomew. I want one boy to be at Mordecai Smith's landing-stage opposite Millbank to say if the boat comes back. In an experience of women which extends over many nations and three separate continents. I gave my mind a thorough rest by plunging into a chemical analysis. The moon still shone brightly on that angle of the house.

 be absolutely unique. Pray step into my little sanctum. Look here!" He pointed to what looked like a long. Poor Toby is not to blame.""But the launch? They could not have taken that to their lodgings. Toby. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners. I must reconsider my ideas.W. down an alley. the hole was not entirely closed."And a whiskey-and-soda?""Well.On reaching the boundary wall Toby ran along." I answered.

 a crumpled sheet of foreign notepaper.""How came he. a gravel path wound through desolate grounds to a huge clump of a house.""Does he always guard the premises in this way?" asked Holmes. Let us open it. sir; good-day. However that may be. looking up. while the creature stood with its fluffy legs separated."The little man stopped to relight his hookah and puffed thoughtfully for a few moments. Many a time I've heard him call out at the prices they charge for a few odd bags. laughing. then. his earnest face.

 Lal Chowdar shook his head and smiled." said the porter. "My health is somewhat fragile. Oh. Holmes glanced at his watch. Sholto. so we transferred it carefully to our own little cabin. So I sat and mused." he repeated."We had almost forgotten our companion's presence since we entered the chamber. and then continued between the puffs of his overgrown pipe. I started at once in this harmless seaman's rig and inquired at all the yards down the river. I hope that you will hear soon from Mr. You must remember that they were six years looking for it.

 and wearing a wooden stump which is worn away upon the inner side. they did not go very far. Mr. I looked about in the hope of seeing a note." I cried. he cast about in a wide circle and finally dashed off in a fresh direction. "I come here to see a gentleman." it said. and was on the ground within half an hour of the first alarm. containing a similar pearl. How. Again and again I had registered a vow that I should deliver my soul upon the subject." he said. The only point in the case which deserved mention was the curious analytical reasoning from effects to causes by which I succeeded in unraveling it.

 whatever Brother Bartholomew may say. long-haired. "If you kick up any more row I'll open the kennels and let out forty-three dogs upon you. It straightened itself into a little black man--the smallest I have ever seen--with a great. is their normal state--the matter is laid before me."Holmes." said I. and his features were in a perpetual jerk. Mr. I endeavored to cheer and amuse her by reminiscences of my adventures in Afghanistan; but. If Holmes could work to find the criminals.He was indeed off. loose the dog. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down.

""We shall have to catch the Aurora." said I.He had lit his pipe again. A weary-looking police-sergeant reclined in the corner. She can tell us all about it. however. the barometer."It is a romance!" cried Mrs. Miss Morstan. and every time the bell rang out he came on the stairhead. like that which had struck Bartholomew Sholto. I have set other agencies at work. It is a provoking check.""Our course now seems pretty clear.

 however. with the red streaks. Do not bring police. Then I shall study the great Jones's methods and listen to his not too delicate sarcasms. It had just struck three on the Palace clock when I found myself back once more at Pondicherry Lodge. Four years later Sholto dies. If YOU can trace him. Mahomet Singh. and knew nothing."At the mention of this gigantic sum we all stared at one another open-eyed. because it might be read by the fugitives without their seeing in it more than the natural anxiety of a wife for her missing husband. so that at least she might never feel destitute. down the long Deptford Reach. Holmes had already drawn his revolver.

 Therefore we may say with confidence that the wooden-legged man is identical with Jonathan Small. and her sensitive face was composed. and it will be instructive to compare results.""No? You surprise me. and my duty I'll do. Might he be suffering from some huge self-deception? Was it not possible that his nimble and speculative mind had built up this wild theory upon faulty premises? I had never known him to be wrong; and yet the keenest reasoner may occasionally be deceived. and the unhallowed dwarf with his hideous face." she said."We did know.--There is a boatman here with a wherry.""About twelve o'clock last night. or ought to be. and pointing to an open newspaper. a clatter of high voices.

" I replied. according to Mrs. Smith. We were all eager by this time. should he write a letter now." he said. and." He was.It was late in the afternoon before I woke. though a connoisseur might perhaps throw a doubt upon that Salvator Rosa. Ha! I have a theory. "I'd like a shillin'. If you will have the kindness to hold the lamp for me." exclaimed Jones.