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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (March 12, 1905)
March 12, 190ft. rnE OMAI1A ILLUSTRATED DEE. Return of Sherlock Holmes The Adventure of the Priory School (Copyright, 1904, by A. Con an Doyle and Collier Weekly.) (Copyright, IK, by McClure, Phillips Co.) w kE have had aome dramatic n- trances and exits upon our small tace at Baker treet, but I can not recollect anything mora ud den and atartllnc than the first ap)arance of Dr. Thort.eycroft Huxtable, M. A., Ph.D., etc. HI card, wh.cb teemed too small to carry the weight of hla academic d. tlnctlors, preceded hln. y a few seconds, and then he entered himself so large, so pompous and su ignlnd that ha waa the very embodiment of self-possession and solidity. And yet . his first action, when (he door Vd closed behind him, was to stagger against tin table, whence ha slipped iiuwn upon the flo-jr. and there waa that majestic figure prostrate and Insensible upon our bearskin hearthrug. We had sprung to our teet, and for a few moments me stared In silent amaze ment at tbla ponderous piece of wreckago, which told of some sudden and fatal storm far out on the ocean of life. Then Holmes hurried w'th a cushion for his head, and I with brandy for Ms lips. The heavy, white fate waa aeamed with lines of trou ble, the hanging pouches) under the closed eyes were leaden In color, the looae mouth drooped dolorously at the corners, the. roll ing chins were unshaven. Collar and shirt bore the grim of a long journey, and the hair bristled unkempt from the well shaped head. It waa a sorely stricken man who lay before us. "What la It, Watson?" asked Holmes. "Absolut exhaustion poeslbly mere hun-1 ger nd fatigue," said I, with my finger on the thready pulse, whore tl.e stream of life trickled thin and small. "2lturn ticket from Mackleton, in the north of England." said Holmes, drawing t from the watch pocket. "It is not 12 o'clock ye. II has certainly been an early starter." The puckered eyelids had begun to quiver, and now a pair of vacant, grey eyes looked up at us. An Instant later the man had scrambled on his feet, his face crimson with shame. "Forgive thle weakness, Mr. Holmes, I have been a little overwrought. Thank you. If I might have a glaaa of milk and a biscuit, I have no doubt that I should be better. I came personally, Mr. Holmes, In order to Insure that you would return with me. I feared that no telegram would convince you of the absolute urgency of the case." "When you are quite restored " "I am quite well again. I cannot im agine how I came to be so weak. I wish you, Mr. Holmes, to come to Mackleton with ma by the next train." My friend shook bis head. "My colleague. Dr. Watson, could tell you that we are very busy at present. I nm retained In this case of the Ferrers documents and the Abergavenny murder Is coming up for trial. Only a very Important Ihsub could call roe from London at pres ent." '"Important!" Our doctor threw up his hands. "Have you heard nothing of the abduction of the only aon of the duke of Holdernesse?" "What! the late cabinet minister?" "Exactly. We had tried to keep It out of the papers, but there waa some rumor In the Globe last night. I thought It might have reached your ears." Holmes shot put hla long, thin arm and picked out volume 'H In his encyclopedia of reference. - " 'Holdernesse, sixth duke, K. O., P. C half the alphabet! "Baron Beverley, earl of Carston' dear me, what a list! 'Lord lieu tenant ef Hallamahlre ainca 1800. Married Edith, daughter of Sir Charles Appledore, 1888. Heir and only child. Lord BalUre. Owns about 260,000 acre. Mineral In Lan cashire' and Wales. Address: Carlton House Terrace; Holdernesse Hall, Hallam ahlre; Carston Castle, Bangor, Wales. Lord of the admiralty, 1872; chief secretary of state for' Well, well this man I certainly one of the greatest subjects of the crown." "The greatest and perhapa the wealthiest. I am aware, Mr. Holmes, that you take a very high line In professional matters, and thut you are prepared to work for the work' sake. I may tell you, however, that hln grace has already Intimated that a check for 5,000 will bo handed over to the ' person who ran tell him where his son is, and another thousand to him who cart name the man or men who have taken him." "It I a princely offer," said Holmes. "Watson, I think that we shall accompany Dr. Huxtable back to the north of England. And now, Dr. Huxtable, when you have consumed that milk you will kindly tell me what ha happened, when it happened, how It happened, and, finally, what Dr. Thorney croft Huxtable of the Priory school, near Mackleton, has to do with the matter, and why he comes three days after nn event the state of your chin gives the date to ask for my humble services." Our . visitor had consumed his milk and biscuits.. The light had come back to his eyes and the color to his cheeks, as he set himself with great vigor and lucidity to explain the situation. "I must Inform 'you, gentlemen, that the Priory Is a preparatory school, of which I am the founder and prtnotpal. 'Huxtable's Sidelights on Horace' may possibly recall my name to your memories. The Priory la, without exception, the best and most select preparatory school In England. Lord Lev erstoke, the earl of Blackwater, Sir Cath cart Soame they all have Intrusted their sons to me. But I felt that my achool had reached It zenith when, three weeks ago, the duke of Holdernesse sent Mr. Jamee Wilder, hi secretary, with the Intimation that young Lord Saltlre, 10 years old, his only son and heir, was about to be com mitted to my charge. Little did I think that thle would be the prelude to the most crushing misfortune of my life. "On May t the boy arrived, that being the beginning of the summer term. He waa a charming youth, and he soon fell Into our ways. I may tell you 1 trust that I km not Indiscreet, but half-oonfldencea are ab surd In such a case that he wVs not en tirely happy at home. It Is an open secret that the duke' married life had not been a peaceful one, and the matter had ended In a separation by mutual consent, the duchea taking up her residence In the south of France. , This had occurred very shortly before, and the boy's sympathies are known to have been strongly with hi .mother. He moped after her departure from Holdernesse Hall, and It waa for this reason that the duke . desired to aendi him to my establishment. In a fortnight the boy waa quite at horn with us, and was apparently absolutely happy. "He waa last seen on the night of May ISth that 1. the night of last Monday. Hi room waa on the second floor, and was ap proached through another larger room, In which two boy were sleeping. The boy saw and heard nothing, so that It I certain that young Saltlre did not paaa out that way. Hla window waa open, and there la a stout Ivy plant leading to the ground. W could trace no footmarks below, but It la aura that tbl la the only possible exit. "HI absence waa discovered at T o'clock on Tuesday morning. Hla bed had been slept In. II had dressed himself fully, be fore going off, in bl usual school suit of black Eton Jacket and dark grey trousers. Titer were no sign that anyone had en tered the room, and It la quite oerUln that anything In the nature of cries or a strug gle would hav been beard. Bine Caunler, the elder boy In the inner room, 1 a very light sleeper. "When Lord Saltlre' disappearance was discovered, I at once called a roll of the whole establishment boys, masters and servants. It was then that w ascertained that Lord Saltlre had not been alone In hla flight. Heidegger, the German master, was missing. His room was on the second floor at the farther end of the building, facing the same way as Lord Saltlre'. Ills bed had also been slept In, but he had apparently gone away partly dressed, since his shirt and socks were lying on the floor. He had undoubtedly let himself down by the Ivy, for we could see the marks of hla feet where he had landed on the lawn. His bicycle was kept. In a small shed be aide this lawn, and It also was gone. "He had been with me for two years, and came with the best references,, but he waa a silent, morose man. not very popular either with masters or boys. No trace could be found of the fugitives, and now on Thursday morning, we are as Ign6rant as we were on Tuesday. Inquiry was, of course, made at once at Holdernesse hall. It Is only a few miles away, and we Imag ined that, In some sudden attack of home sickness, he had gone back to hia father, but nothing had been heard of him. The duke Is greatly agitated, and, aa to me, you have seen yourselves the state ' of nervous prostratlpn to which the. suspense and the responsibility have reduced me. Mr. Holmes, if ever you put forward your full powers, I Implore you to do so now, for never In. your life could you have a case which Is more worthy of them." Sherlock Holme' had listened with the utmost intentness to the statement of the unhappy schoolmaster. Hist drawn brows and tho deep furrows between them showed that ha needed no exhortation to concen trate all hi attention upon a problem which, apart from the tremendous interests involved, must appeal so directly to his love of the complex and the unusual. lis now drew out his note book and jotted down one or two memoranda. "Vou have been very remiss in not cor. ing to me sooner," said he, gravely. "Yo start mo on my investigation with a very serious handicap. It Is inconceivable, for example, that this Ivy and this lawn would have yielded nothing to an expert observer." "I am to blame, Mr. Holmes. Ills grace was extremely desirous to avoid all pub lic scandal. He was afraid of his family unhapplness being dragged before thw world. He baa a deep horror of anything of the kind." "But there has been some official Invest! gation?" "Yes, sir, and It has proved most dis appointing. An apparent clue was at once obtained, since a boy and a young man were reported to have been seen leaving a neighboring station by an early train. Only last night we had news that the couple had been hunted down In Liverpool, and they prove to have no connection whatever with the matter In hand. Then It was that In my despair and disappblntmcnt, after a sleepless night, I came straight to you by the early train." "I suppose tho local Investigation was relaxed while this false clue was being fol lowed up?" "It wa entirely dropped." "So that three days- have been wasted. The affair has been most deplorably han dled." "I feel It and admit It" "And yet the problem should1 be capable of ultimate solution. I shall be very happy to look Into It. Hav you been able to trace any connection between the missing boy and this German master?" "None at all." "Was he In the master's class?" "No, he never exchanged a word with him, .so far as I know.'" '. ' '' . "That Is certainly very singular. Had the boy a bicycle?" "No." "Wa any other bicycle missing?" , "No." "I that certain?" "Quite." "Well, now, you do not mean to seriously suggest that this German rode oft upon a bicycle in the dead of the night, bear ing the boy in his arms?" "Certainly not." "Then what 1 the theory In your mind?" , "The bi.cycle may have been a blind. It may have been hidden somewhere, and the pair gone off on foot." "Quite so, bufit seems rather an absurd blind, does it not? Were there other bicy cles In this shed?" "Several.", . "Would he not have hidden a couple, had he desired to give the Idea that they had gone off upon them?" "I suppose he would." "Of course he would. The blind theory won't do. But the incident Is an admirable starting point for an investigation. After all, a bicycle Is not an easy thing to con ceal or destroy. One other question: Did anyone call to see the boy on the day be fore he disappeared?" . "No." "Did he get any letera?" , "Yes, one letter." v . "From whom?" "From his father.'' 1 "Do you open the boys' lerters?" "No." "How do you know it was from the father?" 'The coat of arms was on the envelope, and It was addressed In the duke's peculiar stiff hand: Besides, the duke remembers having written."- , "When had he a letter before that?" "Not for several days." "Had he ever one from France?" "No, never." "You see the point of my question, of course. Either the boy was carried off by force or he went of his own free-will. In the latter case, you would expect that some prompting from outside would be needed to make so young a lad do such a thing. If he has bad no visitors, that prompting must have oome in letters; hence I try to find out who were hia corre spondents." "I foar I cannot help you much. Hi only correspondent, so far as I know, was his own father." "Who wrote to hint on the day of his disappearance. Were the relations between father and son very friendly?" "His grace is never very friendly with anyone. He Is completely immersed In large public questions, and is rather In accessible to all ordinary emotions. But he wa always kind to the boy in his own way." "But the sympathies of the latter were with the mother?" "Yes." "Did he say "so?" "No." "The duke, then?" "Good Heavens, no!", "Then how could you know?" "I have had some confidential talk with Mr. James Wilder, hi grace' secretary. It wa he who gave me the information about Lord Saltlre' feelings." . ' "I see. By the way, that last letter of the duke's wa: It found In the boy's root after be was gone?" "No, he had taken it with him. I think, Mr. Holmes, it Is time that w were leav ing for Euston." "I will order a four-wheeler. In a quar ter of an hour, we shall be at your service. If you are telegraphing home, Mr. Hut table, It would be well to allow the people in your neighborhood to Imagine that the inquiry 1 still going on In Liverpool, or wherever else that redherrlng led your pack. In the meantime I will do a little quiet work at your wn doors, and per haps the scent Is not so cold but that two old hounds Ilk Watson and myself may get a sniff of It." That evening found us In the cold, bra cing atmosphere of the Peak country. In which Dr. Huxtable' famous school 1s situated. It was already dark when we reached It A card was lying on the halt table, and the butler whispered something to his master, who turned to ua with agi tation in every heavy feature. "The duke is here." said he. "The duke and Mr. Wilder are In th study. Come, gentlemen, and I will Introduce you." I waa, of course, familiar with the pic tures of th famous statesman, but the man himself waa very different from his representation. He was a tall and stately person, scrupulously dressed, with a drawn, thin face, and a noee which was gro tesquely curved and long. His complexion was of a dead pallor, which waa more startling by contrast with a long, dwind ling beard of vivid red, which flowed down over his white waistcoat, with his watchchaln gleaming through Its fringe. Such was the 'stately presence who looked stonily at us from the center of Dr. Hux table's hearthrug. Beside him Btood a very young man, whom I understood to be Wilder, the private secretary. He waa small, nervous, alert, with intelligent, light blue eye and mobile features. It was he who at once,', In an lnclslv and positive tone, opened the conversation. "I called this morning, Dr. Huxtable, too late to prevent you from starting for London. I learned that your ob ject was to invite Mr. Sherlock Holmes to undertake the conduct of this case. His grace is surprised, Dr. Huxtable, that you should have tuken such a step without consulting him." "When I learned that the police had failed " "His grace Is by no means convinced that the police have failed." But surely, Mr. Wilder " "You are well awai"e. Dr. Huxtable, that his grace Is particularly anxious to avoid all public scandal. He prefer to take as few people as possible into his confi dence.' "The matter can oe easily remedied," said the brow-beaten doctor; "Mr. Sher lock Holmes can return to London by the morning train." "Hardly that, doctor, hardly that," said Holmes, in his blandest voice. "Tills northern air Is Invigorating and pleasant, so I propose to spend a few days upon your moors, and to occupy my mind aa best I may. Whether I have the shelter of your roof or of the village Inn is, of course, for you to decide." I could see that the unfortunate doctor waa In the last stage of Indecision, from which he waa rescued by the deep, so norous voice of the red-bearded, duke which boomed out like a dinner gong. "I agree with Mr. Wilder, Dr. Huxtable, that you would have done wisely to con sult me. But since Mr. Holmes has al ready been taken into your confidence, it would indeed be absurd that we should not avail ourselves of his service. Far from going to the Inn, Mr. Holmes, I .should be pleased If you would come and stay with me at Holdernesse HalL" "I thank your grace. For tho purposes of my. investigation, I think that it would be wiser for me to remain at the scene of the mystery." "Just as you like, Mr. Holmes. Any in formation which Mr. Wilder or I can give you Is, of course, at your disposal." "It 'wHl 'probably be ' necessary for me to see you at the hall," said Holmes.. "I would only ask you now, sir. whether you have formed any' explanation in your own mind as to the mysterious disappearance of your son?" "No, sir; I have' not." ; "Excuse me If I alludo to that which Is painful to you, but I have no alternative. Do you think that the duchesa had any thing to do with the matter?" The great minister showed perceptible hesitation. "I do not Jhlnk so," he said, at last. "The other most obvious explanation Is that the child has been kidnaped for the purpose of levying ransom. You have, not had any demand of the sort?" "No sir." "One more question, your grace. I un derstand that you wrote to your son upon the day when this incident occurred." "No, I wrote upon the day before." "Exactly, But he received it on that day?" "Yes." "Was ther anything in your letter whloh might have unbalanced him or In duced .him to take such a step?" "No,) sir; certainly not." "Did you post th letter yourself?" The nobleman's reply was Interrupted by his secretary, who broke In with some heat: "HI grace I not In th habit of posting letter himself," said he. "This letter wa laid with the others upon the atudy table, and I myself put them In the post bag." "You are sure this one wa among theml" "Ye; I observed It" "How many letter did your grace writ that day?" "Twenty or thirty. I have a large oor respondence But surely this 1 somewhat Irrelevant." "Not entirely," said Holme. "For my own part" the duke continued. ! "I have advised th police to turn their attention to th outh of Franc. I have already said that I do not believe that th duchess would encourage so monstrous an action, but th lad had the most wrong headed opinions, and it Is possible that he may have fled to her, aided and abetted by thi German. I think, Dr. , Huxtable, that w will now return to th hall." I could see that ther were other ques tions which Holmes would have wished to put, but the nobleman' abrupt manner showed that the Interview was at an end. It was evident that to his Intensely ari tocraUo nature thi discussion of hia intimate family affair with a stranger was most abhorrent and that he feared lest every fresh question would throw a fiercer light Into the diecreetly shadowed corner of hi ducal history. When the nobleman and his secretary had ' loft, my friend flung himself at once with characteristic eagerness Into the Investi gation. The boy's chamber was carefully exam ined and yielded nothing save the absolute conviction that It waa only through the window that he could have escaped. The German master' room and effects gave no further clue. In his case a trailer of Ivy had given way under his weight, and we saw by the light of a lantern the mark on the lawn where hla heels had come down. That one dent In the Bhort, green grass was the only material witness loft of this inexplicable nocturnal flight. Sherlock Holmes left th house alone, and only returned after 11. He had ob tained a large ordnance map of the neigh borhood, and this he brought Into my room, where he laid It on the bed and, having placed th lamp Irf th middle of It, he began to srouke over to, and occasionally to point out object ef Interest with th reeking amber of hi pipe. "This case grow upon me, Watson," said he. "There are decidedly some points of Interest In connection with It. In this early slag I- want you to realise those geographical feature which may have a good deal to do with our Investigation. "Look at this map. Thi dark aquar JMttei' i I a V : .. prar gPst4 mm IL. HOLMES' MAP OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE SCHOOL. I the priory school. I'll put a pin In It. Now, this line is the main road. You see that it runs east and west past the school, and you see also that there is no Bide road for a mile either way. If those two folk passed away by road, It waa this road." "Exactly." "By a singular and happy chance, we are able to some extent to check what passed along this road durlrfg the night in ques tion. At this point where my pipe is now resting, a county constable was on duty from 12. to 6. It is, as you perceive, tho first crossroad on the east side. This man declares that he was not absent from hi post for an Instant, and he is positive that neither boy nor man could have gone that way unseen. I have spoken with this po liceman tonight,, and he appear to me to be a perfectly reliable person. That block this end. We have now to deal with the other. There is an Inn here, the Red Bull, the landlady of which waa ill. She had sent to Mackleton for a doctor, but he did not arrive until morning, being absent at another case. The people at the inn were alert all night, awaiting his coming, and one or other of them seems to have con tinually had nn eye upon the road. They declare that no one passed. If their evi dence Is good, then we are fortunate enough to bo able to block the west, and also to be able to say that the fugitives did not use the road at all." "But the bicycle?" I objected. "Quite so. Wo will come to the bicycle presently. To continue our reasoning: If these people did not go by the road, they must have traversed the country to the north of the house or to the south of the house. That Is certain. Let us weigh the one against the other. On the south of tho house Is, as you perceito, a large dis trict of arable land, cut up Into small fields, with stone walls between them. There, I admit that a bicycle is impossible. We can dismiss the Idea. We turn to the country on the north. Here there lies grove of trees, marked as the 'Ragged yonder, and a narrow neck between. Halloa! halloa! halloa! what have we here?" We had come on a small black ribbon of pathway. In the middlo of It. clearly marked on the sodden soil, was the track of a bicycle. "Hurrah!" I cried. "We have It." But Holmes was shaking his head, and his face was puzzled and expectant rather than Joyous. ' "A bicycle, certainly, but not the bicy cle," said he. "I am familiar with forty two different Impressions left by tires. This, as you .perceive. Is a Dunlop, with a patch upon the outer cover. Heidegger's tires were Palmer's, leaving longitudinal stripes. Avellng, the mathematical mas ter, waa sure upon the point. Therefore, It is not Heidegger's track." "The boy's, then?" "Possibly, if we could prove a bicycle to have been in his possession. But thi we have utterly failed to do. Thi track, as you perceive, waa made by a rider who was going from the direction of the school." "Or towards It?" "No, no, my dear Watson. The more deeply sunk impression Is, of course, the hind wheel, upon which the weight rests. You preceive several places where It has passed across and obliterated the more shallow mark of the front one. It wa undoubtedly heading away from the school. It may or may not be connected with our Inquiry, but we win follow It backward before we go any farther." We did sd, and at-the end of a few hun dred yards lost the track a we 'emerged from the boggy portion of the moor. Fol lowing the path backwards, we picked out another spot, where a spring trickled across It Here, once again, was the mark of a bicycle, though nearly obliter ated by the hoof of cow. After that there wa no sign, but the path ran right on Into Ragged Shaw, the wood which backed dn to the school. From this wood Shaw,' and" on the farther side treteh ; down on a and chfn m his hands, t had smoked two cigarettes before he moved. a great rolling moor. Lower Gill moor, ex tending for ten miles and sloping gradually upwards. Here, at one side of this wilder ness, is Holdernesse hall ten miles by road, but only six across the moor. It is a pecu liarly desolate plain. A few moor farmers have small holdings, where they rear sheep and cattle. Except these; the plover and the curlew are the- only inhabitant until you come to the Chesterfield high road. There is a church there, you see, a few cot tage and an inn. Beyond that the hills become precipitous. Surely It is here to the north that our quest must He." "But the bicycle?" I persisted. "Well, well!" said Holme-, Impatiently. "A good cyclist does not need a high road. The moor Is intersected with paths, and the moon wa at the full. Halloa! what la this?" There waa an agitated knock at the door and an instant afterwards Dr. Huxtable wa In the room. In his hand he held a blue cricket cap,' with a white chevron on the peak. "At last we have a clue!" he cried. "Thank heaven! at last we are on the dear boy's track. It Is his cap." "Where was It found?" "In the van of the gypsies who camped on the moor. Ttiey left on Tuesday. Today the police traced them down and examined their caravan. This wa found." "How do they account for It?" "They shuffled and lied ald that they found It on the moor on Tues day morning. They know where he 1, the rascal! Thank goodness, they are all safe under lock and key. Bather the fear of the law or the duke' purse will certainly get out of them all that they know." "So far, so good," aald Holmes, when the doctor had at last left the room. "It at least bears out th theory that It Is on the aide of the Lower GUI moor that w must hope for result. The police have really done nothing locally, save the ar rest of these gipsies. Look here, Watson! There I a watercourse across the moor. Vou see It marked here on the map. In some part It widen Into a morass. This Is particularly so In the region between Holdernesse hall and the school. It Is vain to look elsewhere for tracks in this dry weather, but at that point there Is certainly a chance of some record being left. I will call you early tomorrow morn ing, and you and I will try if we can throw some little light upon the mystery." The day was Just breaking when I woke to find th long, thin form of Holme by my bedside. He was fully dressed, and had apparently been out. "I have done the lawn and tho bicycle shed," nil he. "I have also had a ramble through the Rugged Shaw. Now, Watson, there Is cocoa ready in the next room. I must beg you to hurry, for we have a great day before us." 1 His eyes shone and his cheek was flushed with the exhileratlon of the master work man who sees his work lie ready before him. A very different Holmes, this active, alert man, from the introspective and pallid dreamer of Baker street. I felt, as I looked upon that supple figure, alive with nervous energy, that it wa Indeed a strenuous day that awaited us. And yet It opened in the blankest dis appointment. With high hope we struck across the peaty, russet moor, Intersected with a thousand sheep put lis, until we came to the broud. light green belt which "Well, well," said he, at last. "It Is, of course, possible that a cunning man might change t'.ie type of hi bicycle In order to leave unfamiliar track. A crim inal who was capable of such a thought I a, man whom I should b proud o do business with. We will leave this question undecided and hark back to our moras again, for we have left a good deal unex plored." , We continued our systematlo survey of the edge of the sodden portion of th moor, and soon our perseverance wa glo riously rewarded. Right across the lower part of the bog lay a miry path. Holmes gave a cry of delight as he approached It. An Impression like a fine bundle of tele graph wires ran down the center of it It was the Palmer tyref "Here is Herr Heidegger, sure enough!" cried Holmes, exultantly. "My reasoning eem to have been pretty sound, Wat sou." "I congratulate you." "But we have a long way still to go. Kindly walk clear of the path. Now let ua follow the trail. I fear that It will not lead very far." We found, however, as we advanced that this portion of the moor la intersected with soft patches, and, though we fre quently lost lght of the track, we always succeeded In picking It up once more. "Do you observe," said Holmes, "that the rider Is now undoubtedly forcing the pace? There can be no doubt of It Look at thla Impression, where you get both tyre clear. The one la a deep aa the other. That can only mean that the rider 1 throwing hi weight on to the handle bass as a man doe when he I sprinting. By Jove! he haa had a fall." There waa a broad. Irregular smudge covering some yard of th track. Then there were a few footmarks, and the tyre reappeared once more. "A side-slip," I Buggested. Holmes held up a crumpled branch of flowering gorse. To my horror, I pre celved that th yellow blossoms were all dabbled with orlmson. On th path, too, and among the heather were .dark stains of clotted blood. "Bad!" said Holmes. "Bad! Stand clear, Watsonl Not an unnecessary footstep! What do I read here? He fell wounded he stood up he remounted he proceeded. But ther I no other track. Cattl on this sld path. He waa surely not gored by a bull? Impossible! But I see no traces of anyone else. We must push on, Watson. Surely, with stains as well as the track to guide us, be cannot escape 'us now." Our search was not a very long one. Tho tracks of the tyre began to curve fantasti cally upon the wet and shining path. Suddenly, as I looked ahead, the gleam of metal caught my eye from amid the thick gorse bushes. Out of them w dragged a bicycle, Palmer tyred, one pedal bent and the whole front of It horribly smeared and slobbered with blood. On the other side of the bushes a shoe waa projecting. We ran round, and there lay the unfortunate rider. He wa a tail man, full bearded, with spectacles, on glass of which had been knocked out The marked the moras between us and Holder, cause of his death was a frightful blow nesae. Certainly, If the lad had gone home- upon tn hea1- which had crushed In part wards, he must have passed this, and he r hul altull. That he could have gone on could not puss it without leaving hi aftor receiving such an Injury said much iu--. oui no sign or hint or the Ger-. ror lne vitality ana courage or we man. nmn rmiM h. . . . ..... . . w v. . . . . 1 .1 k. I - man couid be . een. With a darkening -- my iriBno iruae along the margin, eagerly observant of every muddy stain upon the mossy surface. Sheep murks there were In profusion, and at one place some miles down, cows had left their tricks. Nothli.g. more. cnecK number cue," said Holmes, look. He wore shoes, but no socks, and his open coat disclosed a night shirt beneath It. It was undoubtedly the German master. Holmes turned the body over reverently and examined It with great attention, lie then Bat in deep thought for a time, and I could see by hi ruffled brow that this grim discovery bad not. In h. opinion, advanced Ing gloomily over the rolling expanse of us much In' our Inquiry. mwr. .ncr i another moras Ovwa "It U & ill Us difllsult to know what to do. Watson," said he at last. ' My own Inclination are to push thi Inquiry on, for w have already lost so much time that w cannot afford to waste another hour. , On the other band, we are bound to Inform th police of the discovery and to see that thla poor fellow's body Is looked after." "I could take a note back." "But I need your company and assist ance. Wait a bit There Is a fellow cut ting peat up yonder. Bring him over here and he will guide the police." I brought the peasant across, and Holmes dispatched the frightened man with a note to Dr. Huxtable. "Now, Wateon," said he, "we have picked up two clues this morning. One is the bi cycle with the Palmer tyre, and we see what that haa led to. The other Is thi bi cycle with the patched Dunlop. ' Before we start to Investigate that, let us try to realize what we do know, so as to make the most of It, and to separate the essen tial from the accidental. "First of all, I wish to Impress upon you that the boy certainly left of hi own free will. He got down from hi window and he went off, either alone or with some one. That Is sure." I assented. "Well, now let us turn to this unfortunate German master. The boy was fully dressed when he fled. Therefore, he foresaw what he would do. But the Oerman went with out his socks. He certainly acted on very hort notice." "Undoubtedly." "Why did he go? Because, from his bed room window, he saw the flight of the boy; because he wished to overtake him and bring him back. He seised his bicycle, pur sued the lad and In pursuing him met hi death." 1 "So It would ecm." "Now I come to the critical part of my argument. The natural action of a man In pursuing a little boy would be to run after him. He would know that he could overtake him. But the German does not do so. He turns to his bicycle. I am told that he was an excellent cyclist. He would not do thls-lf he did not see that the boy bad some swift means of escape." "The other bicycle." "Let us continue our reconstruction. He meets his death five miles from the school not by a bullet, mark you, which even a lad might conceivably discharge, but by a savage blow dealt by a vigorous arm. The lad, then, had a companion In his flight. And the flight waa a wlft one, since it took five mile before an expert cyclist could overtake them. Yet w aurvey the ground round th cene of the tragedy. What do we And? A few cattle tracks, nothing more. I took a wide sweep around and there Is no path within fifty yards. An other cyclist could have had nothing to do with the actual murder, nor were there any human footmarks." "Holmes," I cried, "this la Impossible." "Admirable!" he said. "A most illumi nating remark. It Is Impossible as I state It, and therefore I must In some respect have stated It wrong. Yet you saw for yourself. Can you suggest any fallacy?" "He could nbt have fractured his skull In a fall?'.' "In a morass, Watson?" "I am at my wlt'a end." "Tut, tut; we have aolved Bora worse problems. At least we have plenty of ma terial, If we can only use It. Come, then, and having exhausted the Palmer, let u ee what the Dunlop with the patched cover ha to offer us." We picked up the track and followed it onward for some distance, but soon the moor rose Into a long, heather tufted curve, and we left the watercourse be hind us. No further help from tracks could be hoped for. At the spot where we saw the last of the Dunlop tire It might equally to have led to Holdernesse hall, the stately towers of which rose some miles to our left, or to a low, gray village which lay In front of us, and marked the position of the Chesterfield high road. As we approached the forbidding and squalid inn, with th sign of a game cock above the door, Holme gave a sudden groan and clutched me by the shoulder to save himself from falling. He had had one of those violent strains of the ankle which leave a man helpless. With difficulty he limped up to the door, where a squat, dark, elderly man was smoking a black clay pipe. "How are, Mr. Reuben Hayes?" said Holmes. "Who are you, and how did you get my name so pat?" the countryman answered, with a auspicious flash of a pair of cunning eyes. "Well, if printed on the board above your head. It' easy to see a man who Is master of his own house. I suppose you haven't such a thing as a carriage In your stable?" "No; I have not" "I can hardly put my foot to the ground." ' "Don't put It to the ground." "But I can't walk." "Well, then, hop." Mr. Reuben Hayes' manner wa far from gracious, but Holmes took It with admir able good humor. "Look here, my man," said h. "Thi Is really rather an awkward fix for me. I don't mind how I get on." "Neither do I,", said the morose land lord. "The matter 1 very Important. I would offer you a sovereign for the use of a bi cycle." The landlord pricked up his ears. "Where do you want to go?" "To Holdernesse hall." "Pals of the dook, I suppose," said the landlord, surveying our mud-stained gar ments with ironical eyes. Holmes laughed good naturedly. "He'll be glad to see us, anyhow." '.'Why?" "Because we bring him new of his lout son." . The landlord gave a very visible start. "What, you're on hi track?" "He has been heard of in Liverpool. They expect to get him every hour." Again a swift change passed over the heavy, unshaven face. His manner was suddenly genial. "I've less reason to wish the dook well than most men," said he, "for I was his head coachman once, and eruel bad he treated me. It was him that sacked me without a character on the word of a hying corn-chandler. But I'm glad to hear that the young lord wa heard of In' Liv erpool, and I'll help you to take the news to the hall." "Thank you," said Holmes. "We'll have some food first. Then you can bring round the bicycle." "I haven't got a bicycle." Holmes held up a sovereign. "I tell you, man, that I haven't got one. I'll let you have two horse as fur as the hall." "Well, well," said Holmes, "we'll talk about It when we've had something to eat." When we were left alone In the stone-flagged- kitchen, It wa astonishing how rapidly that sprained ankle recovered. It wa nearly nightfall, and we had eaten nothing aliic early morning, so that we pent some time over our meal. Holmes wa lost in thought, and once or twice he walked over to the window and stared earnestly out. It opened on to a squalid courtyard. In the far corner was a smithy, where a grimy lad was at work. On th ether aid were the stables. Holme had at down again after on of these excur sions, when he suddenly sprang out of hi chair with a loud exclamation. "By Heaven, Watson. I believe that I'va got It!" he cried. "Yes. yes, It must b Watson, do you remember seeing any cow track today?" "Yes, several." "Where?" 1 "Well, everywhere. They were at th morass, and again on the path, and again near where poor Heidegger met hi death." "Exactly. Well. now. Watson, how many cow did you see on the moor?" "I don't remember seeing any." "Strange, Watson, that we should e tracks all along our line, bat never cow on the whole moor. Very atrang. Watson, h?" "Yes, It I strsnge." "Now, Watson, mak an effort, throw your mind back. Can you e those .track upon the path?" "Yes, I can." "Can you recall that the tracks wera sometimes like that, Watson" h arranged a number of bread crumb In thi fashion : : I i : "nd sometime Ilk th!" :,t,l ."and occasionally Ilk this" "Can you rem em be that?" "No, I cannot." "But I can. I could swear to It. I Tow ever, we will go back at our leisure and verify It. What a blind beetle I havfj been not to draw my conclusion!" "And what 1 your conclusion? "Only that It is a remarkabl cow whloh walks, canters, and gallop. By Oeorgwl Watson, It wa no brain of a country pub llcan that thought out uch a blind a that. The coast cem to b clear, v for that lad In the smithy. Let u slip out and see what wo can see." There were two rough-haired, unkempt horses In the tumble-down stable. Holme raised the hind leg of on of them and laughed aloud. "Old shoes, but newly shod old shoes, but new nails. This case deserve to be classic. Let us go across to the smithy." The lad continued his work without re garding us. I saw Holmes' eye darting to right and left among the litter of Iron and wood which was scattered atxAit the floor. Suddenly, however, we heard a step behind us, and there was the landlord, his heavy eyebrows drawn down over his savage eyes, his swarthy feature convulsed with passion. He held a short, metal-headed stick In his hand, and he advanced In o menacing a fashion that I was right glad to feel the revolver In my pocket. "You Infernal spies!" the man cried. What are you doing there?" "Why, Mr. Reuben Hayes," said Holmes, coolly, "one might think that you were afraid of our finding something out." The man mastered himself with a violent effort, and his grim mouth loosened into a false laugh, which was more menacing than hla frown. "You're welcome to all you can And out In my smithy," said he. "But look here, mister, I don't care for folk poking about my place without my leave, so the aooner you pay your soore and got out of thi the better I shall be pleased." "All right, Mr. Hayes, no harm meant," said Holmes. "We have been having a look at your horses, but I think I'll walk, after all. It's not far, I believe." "Not more than two mile to th hall gates. That' the road to th left." He watched ua with Mullen eye until we had left his premises. ' We did not go very far along the road, for Holmes stopped the Instant that the curve hid us from the landlord' view. 1 "We were warm, as the children say, at that Inn," said he. "I seem to grow colder every step that I take away from It No, no, I can't possibly leave it." "I am convinced," said I, "that thi Reuben Hayea knows all about it. A mora self-evident villain I never saw." "Oh! he Impressed you in that way, did he? There are the horsesv ther I th smithy. Yes, It is an interesting place, this Fighting Cock. I think' we shall have another look at It In an unobtrusive way." A long, sloping hillside, dotted with grsy limestone boulders, stretched behind us. We had turned off the road, and were mak ing our way up the hill, when, looking in tho direction of Holdernesse hall, I saw a cyclist coming swiftly along. "Get down, Watson!" cried Holme, with a heavy hand upon my shoulder. W had hardly sunk from view when the man flew past us on the road. Amid a rolling cloud of dust, I caught a glimpse of a pale, agt tated rfaoe a face with horror in every lineament, the mouth open, the eyes staring wildly In front. It was like some atrang caricature of the dapper Jamea Wilder whom we had seen the night before. "The duke' secretary!" cried Holmes. "Come, Watson, let us see what he doe." We scrambled from rock to rock, until In a few moments we had made our way to a point from Which we could see the front door of the Inn. Wilder' bicycle was) lean ing against the wall beside it No on waa moving about the house, nor could we catch a glimpse of any face at th window. Slowly the twilight crept down a th un sank behind the high tower of Holderne hall. Then, lh the gloom, we saw th two lamp of a trap light up In the stable yard of the Inn, and shortly afterward heard the rattle of hoofs, a It Wheeled out Into the roud and tr off at a furlou pace In the direction of Chesterfield. "What do you make of that, Watson?" Holmes whispered. "It looks like a flight." "A single man In a dog cart, so far a) X could see. Well, It certainly wa not Mr. James Wilder, for ther he I at th door." . A red square of light bad sprung out of the darkness. In the mlddl of It wa the black figure of the secretary, hi head advanced; peering out lnt the night It was evident that he was expecting some one. Then at last there were step in the road, a second figure waa visible for an Instant against the light, th door shut snd all wa black once more. Five min utes later a lamp was lit In a room upon tho first floor. 'It seems to be a curious class of cus tom tliat is don by th Fighting Cock," said Holmes. "The bar Is on the other side." "Quite so. These are what on may call the prlvste guests. Now, what In th world I Mr. Jamea Wilder doing In that dan at this hour of night, and who I th companion who come to meet him ther? Come, Watson, we must really take a risk, and try to investigate thi a ltttl more closely." Together we stole down to th road and crept acrop to the door of the Inn. Th bicycle still leaned against the wait. Holme struck a match and held It to th bock wheel, and I heard htm chuckle a th light fell upon a patched Dunlop tiro. Up above us wo a lighted window. "I must have a peep through that, Wat son. If you bend your back and support yourself upon the wall, I think that I can manure." An instant later hi feet Wer on my shoulder, but he waa baldly up befor h was down ucaln. "Come, my friend," said he, "our day work has been quite long enough. X think that we have gathered all that w can. It's a long walk to' th school, and th sooner we get slurUd th better." lie .hardly opened Ms lips during that ry truoge across th moor, nor would enter the school when he reached it. but went on to Mackleton station, wheno he could md soni telegrams. TLat at (Continued ea Pag JOttt), wen he