Sherlock Holmes Complete Works 1

Chapter 32 Four Signatures 10
Toby sniffed all the way through the messy potholes in the yard, and came to the bottom of the high wall. After being blocked here, he howled in anxiety.Finally, we came to a corner with a small beech tree.It seems that people often climbed up and down, and the joints of the bricks were worn away, and the corners of the bricks were worn away.Holmes crawled over first, took the dog from me, and I crawled over after that.When I climbed up to the wall, he said: "See the blood on the white ashes? It's the handprint left by the person with the wooden leg. It has been 28 hours since the crime happened. Fortunately, it didn't rain heavily. Toby can still see the blood." Look for the smell of the road."

When we crossed the busy London road, I was a little worried, Toby could still follow the scent, could he identify the murderer?However, Toby's performance gave me reassurance. He wobbled and firmly led the way.Apparently the smell of pomegranate oil here overwhelms other smells.

Holmes said: "Don't think that I solved this case only because one of the perpetrators stepped his foot into the chemical. In fact, other methods can still be used to catch the murderer. However, since the god of luck sent this most convenient method to the In our hands, I should be a great fool if I neglected it. At any rate, some of the problems in the present case which required a little brainpower to solve are made much simpler by this discovery. And from a simple It is obviously difficult to show our achievements if we use clues to solve the case.”

I said: "There are still many merits. Holmes, I always feel that the method you used this time is more puzzling than the method you used in cooperating in the Hopper murder case. For example, why are you so confident?" How about describing the prosthetic?"

"Well, man, it couldn't be easier. I don't want to brag, the whole case is obvious. It goes like this: Two officers in charge of guarding the prisoners got a treasure map. A man named Jonathan S. The Englishman of More drew them this drawing. You don't remember, it was on the drawing of Major Morstein. He signed the drawing himself and signed it for his accomplice. , This is the so-called 'four signatures'. According to this drawing, these two officers, maybe one of them found the treasure and brought it back to England. We can judge that the person who brought the treasure back did not Fully implement their original agreement, why didn't Jonathan Small get the treasure? The answer is obvious, this picture was drawn on the days when Mostan supervised the prisoners. Jonathan Small and his partners are all prisoners, It was impossible to escape, so they couldn't go to the treasure chest to get the treasure."

I said, "That's just speculation."

"Not quite. Not an unfounded hypothesis. Let us first see how the hypothesis fits with the facts. After Major Sholto returned home with the treasure, he lived a few years without incident. Later he received a A letter from India, I am terrified, why is that? What is it written in the letter?"

"The letter said: The prisoners who were fooled and deceived by him have been released from prison." I replied.

"Rather than saying that they were released after serving their sentence, it is more in line with the fact that they escaped from prison, because Sholto knew their sentence. If they were released after serving their sentence, why should he be so panicked? What measures has he taken since then? He was especially wary of a man with a wooden leg. The man with the wooden leg must be Caucasian, otherwise he would not have accidentally injured a Caucasian businessman with a wooden leg. It is now certain that in There is only one Caucasian name on this picture. The others are either Indian or Mohammedan, so we can be pretty sure that the man with the fake wooden leg is Jonathan Small. Do you think the reasoning makes sense?"

"Yes, very clear and concise."

"Well, let us now put ourselves in Jonathan Small's shoes and analyze his train of thought. He has come back to England for two purposes: one for his fair share of treasure, and the other to deceive and deceive him. He found Sholto's place, and most likely bribed someone in Sholto's house. There was a manservant named Ryle Rao, whom we had never met, but according to Mrs. Enston said he was a very bad fellow, and that it was impossible for Small to find the treasure, because no one but the major and one of his faithful servants knew where it was hidden. One day Small suddenly got the major He was afraid that the secret of the treasure would go into the grave with the major. In desperation, he ran to the window of the dying man at the risk of being caught, because the major's two sons He was in front of the bed, but he couldn't enter the house. With great hatred for the dead and eager to get the treasure, he still sneaked into the house that night and searched through the dead's private documents, hoping to find clues to the treasure. Disappointed, he left the note with four signatures as a sign. Obviously, he planned to kill the major first, and then leave the same sign next to the body to show that this was not an ordinary thing. Murder, but for the sake of justice, to avenge your comrades. In the history of crime, such bizarre methods are not uncommon, and some traces of crimes are often pointed out. Do you understand all this?"

"very clear."

"Major Sholto is dead, and the treasure house is still a secret. What should he do? No way, he can only secretly observe every move of Sholto's descendants. It is also possible that he sometimes goes abroad and sometimes comes back to inquire about the results. And when this secret was discovered by Sholto's eldest son, someone told him immediately. This also proved my other point, someone responded to him. Jonathan with a prosthetic leg would never climb over Basolo New Schulto's tall building. So he found a strange accomplice and asked his accomplice to climb over the building first. Unfortunately, this accomplice's foot stepped on creosote, which required Toby Go out and lead an officer like you on half pay limping six miles."

"According to this speculation, the murderer is not Jonathan, but his accomplice."

"Yes. He may have objected to it, for he had stamped his feet in the house. He had no vendetta against the dead to deserve his recklessness, and besides, he did not gladly commit suicide. His colleagues The party was so brutal that he stabbed Basolonio to death with a poisonous thorn. He didn't think about it. When he stepped into the house, it became a fact. He had no choice but to leave a note and bring treasures , and escaped with his accomplices. These circumstances are based on facts, not wild imagination. Speaking of his appearance, you think, the Andaman Island is extremely hot, and he has been detained there for many years. Could it be that he has reached middle-aged skin color Is it dark? You can tell the height of a person by the size of his stride, and as for the beard on his face, Thaddeus? Sholto saw it with his own eyes. That's pretty much it."

"And his accomplice."

"Oh, he, there's not much mystery to deal with. But you'll know all about it in a minute. What a fresh morning air! Look at that red cloud, like a feather on a flamingo, so pretty! The red sun has passed over the clouds of London. There are thousands of people who are illuminated by the sun; I swear, at this moment, there is no other pair who have such a strange mission as the two of us. In such a vast world In the natural world, our little ambition and fighting spirit seem so small! Do you have any thoughts on Jean Paul's work?"

"Certainly. I read Carlyle's first, and then come back to his writings."

"It's like going back from the river to the lake. He once said something profound and meaningful: 'A man's true greatness lies in his ability to realize his own smallness.' You see, there is a comparison and identification here. Power, and that power itself is a sublime testimony. You can find a lot of food for thought in Richart. You didn't carry a gun, did you?"

"I have this cane."

"We may need such weapons as soon as we find the gangster's lair. Jonathan will leave it to you, and if his accomplice is dishonest, I will kill him."

So saying, he drew his revolver, loaded two cartridges, and put it back in the right-hand pocket of his jacket.We followed Toby to the half-cottage villas on the road leading to downtown London.We walked on the winding streets, the workshop workers and dock workers were up, and the housewives were opening the doors and cleaning the steps.Around the corner, the square-roofed tavern was just opening, and stout men were coming out of it, wiping the drips off their beards with their sleeves.The dogs on the street stared at us wide-eyed, but our incomparable Toby was unafraid.It never looks left or right, just rushes straight forward with its nose pointed at the ground, and only occasionally has a burst of rapid groaning from its nose, indicating that the smell of wood oil is still very strong.

We went through Strowham, Breckston, Camberwell, and many side streets, until we came to the east of Ofer, and at last we came to Kennington Lane.Our stalking subjects seem to take odd and crooked paths, presumably to avoid being followed.They will never take the high road as long as there is a small road.At the foot of Kennington Lane they turned left, passed Securities Street, Wells Street, and then Knight Street.Toby stopped walking. One ear drooped and the other stood up, running back and forth.Seems indecisive.Then, it spun around a few more times, kept raising its head and staring at us, as if trying to win sympathy for it in trouble.

Holmes snapped, "What's the matter with Toby? Surely criminals don't escape in carriages or balloons."

I said, "Maybe they stayed here for a while."

"Oh, well, it's moving forward again." My partner said with a sigh of relief.

Sure enough, Toby ran forward again.My friend said happily: "Okay, it's gone again." This time, Toby sniffed around, made up his mind quickly, and rushed forward without hesitation.At this time, Toby no longer needed to smell the smell with his nose, but just straightened the rope and ran forward, as if the smell was stronger than before.Seeing this scene, Holmes' eyes sparkled with excitement, as if a den of thieves was just ahead.

Passing the Nine Elms, we arrived at Proderick and Nelson's Great Timber Yard, next to the White Moor Hotel.Excitedly, Toby passed through the corner gate, rushed into the lumberyard where the sawmillers had begun to work, passed through piles of sawdust and shavings, galloped all the way down the path lined with logs, and finally jumped triumphantly on a The barrel, the barrel was still on the cart.Toby stood on the barrel, tongue out, blinking at us.There was a strong smell of creosote in the air, and the barrels and cart wheels were covered with black oil stains.

Sherlock Holmes and I looked at each other, dumbfounded, and burst out laughing.

(End of this chapter)