Chapter 138 The Hound of the Baskervilles (19)
"But he took his chance at last. Since Sir Childs had made him his friend, and put him in charge of the charity in helping that poor woman, Mrs. Laura Lyons. Since he had A self-styled bachelor, that's why he had a huge influence on her. He promised her that if she and her husband would get a smooth divorce, he would marry her. But his plan suddenly came to a head, when Dr. Mortimer suggested Now, Sir Childs was preparing to leave the estate, and he pretended to agree with it, but he must act at once, or his efforts would be wasted as soon as his victim was gone. He therefore compelled Mrs. Lyons to write The letter, imploring the old man to see her the evening before he left for London, and then preventing her from the appointment with plausible reasons, gave him his long-awaited opportunity.

"He drove back from Combe Tracey in the evening, and had time enough to get his hounds out, and get the luminous paint on, and take the beast up to the gate, and he was sure the old gentleman would be there Waiting there. The dog, at the beck and call of its master, leaped over the gate and chased the unfortunate Sir. He was being chased, screaming, and galloping down the yew-pine alley. Seeing that huge dog in such a dark alley A black monster, with fire from its mouth and eyes, was indeed a terrible thing. So at the end of the lane, he fell down dead from a heart attack and a panic attack. The hound ran along the grassy side of the road, and the baron and ran on the path, so that there were no other traces but human footprints. The dog, seeing him lying still, probably went up and sniffed him, and then turned away after confirming that he was dead, that is, At that time it left the paw-prints seen by Dr. Mortimer. The Hound was called back, and at once brought back to his kennel at Greenping Moor. The police were bewildered by this mysterious incident, The country people were taken aback, and we finally took over the case.

"Sir Charles Baskerville's death ends here. As you can see, the modus operandi was cunning, indeed, and no charges could be brought against the real murderer. And his only accomplice would never have revealed it." The secret, the queer and unimaginable devices which facilitated his plots, Mrs Stapleton and Mrs Laura Lyons, the two women connected with the case, were extremely suspicious of Stapleton. Mrs. Tipton knew that he was going to murder the old man, and that there was the hound; Mrs. Lyons knew neither of these things, but she remembered that the time of the Sir's violent death was the time of the appointment, and the appointment only He knew, and so she was suspicious. But they were all under his control, and he had no fear of them. He succeeded in the first half of the plot, and the more difficult part came later.

"It is probable that Stapleton did not know that there was a legitimate heir in Canada. He soon found out, however, from his friend, Dr. Mortimer, who later told him at length about Henry Basque. Weir's arrival. Perhaps Stapleton's first thought was that he could be killed in London without waiting for this strange young man from Canada to come to Devon. Since his wife refused to help him set a trap After the old man, he didn't trust his wife any more, and didn't even dare to let her leave him for a long time, because he was afraid of losing his power over her. That's why he took her to London with him. I found they lived in Craven Street, Maxwell's Private Hotel, to which I sent to collect evidence, where he kept his wife in her room while he put on a fake beard and followed Mr. Mortimer. to Baker Street, then to the station, and to the Northumberland Hotel. His wife knew more or less of his schemes, but she was terribly afraid of her husband--a fear born of cruel abuse-- —so she dared not write to warn the man in danger, for her life would be in danger if the letter fell into the hands of Stapleton. Finally, as we all know, She managed to compose the letter out of words cut out from newspapers, and addressed the recipient in a disguised hand. A hazard warning has been issued.

"It was very important to Stapleton to have a piece of Sir Henry's clothing, because when he had to use the hounds, he would have something to make the dogs smell and follow, and he did it with the dexterity and daring that is characteristic of him." Come on, we are sure that the hotel servants must have accepted his bribes to help him. Unfortunately, the first shoe he got was a new one, which was of no use to him, and he sent it back, and stole another--this clue was the most instructive for us, for it confirmed to me with certainty that we were dealing with a real hound, since no other hypothesis could explain why a new shoe should So uninterested, but eager to get an old shoe. The more outlandish things should be examined more carefully, which seems to complicate the whole case, if properly thought out and scientifically treated. , is often the place that best explains the problem.

"Then, the next morning, we were visited again by our friends, who had been followed by Stapleton in the carriage. He knew our house and my face well enough, from his general Judging from his behavior, I feel that Stapleton's criminal history is by no means limited to the Baskerville Manor case. It is said that in the past three years, there have been four major burglaries in the West, but so far none The criminal was caught. The last one happened at Foxton Yard in May, and it was unique in that a boy servant was brutally shot trying to catch a lone masked thief. I believe Sta It was in this way that Puton supplemented his dwindling fortune, and he had been a desperado over the years.

"We had already tasted his tact and daring when he managed to escape from us that morning and conveyed my name to me through the coachman. From then on he knew that I had taken over the matter. The case was closed, and knowing that there would be no more chance of his doing so in London, he returned to Dart Moor to wait for the baronet."

"Wait!" said I. "No doubt you have described what happened objectively, but there is one point which you have not explained: what will happen to the hound while the master is in London?"

"I have noticed this, and it is undoubtedly important. There is no doubt that Stapleton has a cronies, although Stapleton will not tell him all his plans and be restrained. At Melipie House There is an old manservant named Anthony, whose connection with the Stapletons dates back some years before, when Stapleton was headmaster of the primary school, so he must have known that his master and mistress were husband and wife. People have fled from the country. 'Anthony' is not common in England, and 'Antonio' ​​is not common in Spain and the Spanish-speaking countries of America. This man, like Mrs. Stapleton, Speaks English very well, but always with a strange tongue-in-cheek accent. I have seen the old man walk across the Green Ping Bog by the path marked by Stapleton. So, it is likely that he was in the absence of his master. He will take care of the hunting dog when he is in the house. Although he doesn't know what is the use of keeping this beast.

"Then the Stapletons returned to Devonshire. Sir Henry and you met them there shortly afterwards. I will add my personal opinion at the time, which you may recall, when I examined The letter with the newspaper type on it, I carefully examined the watermark on the inside of the paper. While examining it, I held it inches from my eyes and felt something like a white jasmine There are 75 kinds of perfumes, and a criminology expert should be able to distinguish all kinds of perfumes. According to my personal experience, more than one case was solved by quickly identifying the type of perfume. The scent Explain that there was a lady involved in the case, and I had already thought of the Stapletons. That's how I was sure of the hound and guessed the culprit before I went to West Country.

"My method is to spy on Stapleton. Obviously, if I were with you, this business could not be done, because it would make him more careful. Therefore, I put everyone-even you - all lied to, I came secretly to the Moor when people thought I was still in London. I didn't suffer as much as you imagine, nor let such trifles disturb the investigation of the case I stayed most of the time at Coombe Tracy, and only when it was necessary to get close to the scene of the crime, I went to live in the cottage on the moor. Cartley came with me, and he pretended to be a country boy, Helped me a lot. He got my food and clean clothes, and while I watched Stapleton, Cartley was always watching you, so I was able to catch all the leads.

"I have already told you that your reports are delivered to me in good time, for they are sent to Coombe Tracy as soon as they reach Baker Street. They have been of great help to me, especially The one about Stapleton's biography happened to be true. I've been able to prove it was the man and the woman, and have at last found a way to know. The fugitive and his connection with Barrymore did turn the case for a time. It is quite complicated, and this is quickly cleared up by you in a very effective way, although I have come to the same conclusion by my own observations.

"I knew all the facts when you found me on the moor, but I had no evidence to put the criminal to death, not even that night when Stapleton attempted to murder Sir Henry, but that led to the The unfortunate fugitive's death hardly proves him guilty of murder. It appears that there is nothing to be done but to catch him on the spot, and to do so we shall have to use Sir Henry as a bait and place him on a single walk. without any protection. We did so, and though our client was terribly frightened by it, we at last obtained the evidence and drove Stapleton to ruin. Putting Sir Henry in danger In this, I admit, this is a great shortcoming in my handling of the case, but we could not have foreseen how terrible and terrifying the beast would be, nor could we have foreseen how suddenly it would come at us. We paid a price for closing the case, but expert Dr. Mortimer assures me that the effect of this price is only temporary. A long journey will not only restore our friend's battered nerves, but also To heal the wounds of his soul, he loved the lady deeply and sincerely, and the saddest thing about the whole case was to him that he too had been deceived by her.

"What follows is the role played by this lady. There is no doubt that she has been under the control of Stapleton for a long time. The cause may be love, perhaps fear, or both, for it is not two A feeling that cannot coexist. This controlling power, at least absolutely effective, at his command, she agreed to pretend to be his sister, although at the time he wanted her to directly participate in the murder, it was discovered that he was very serious about the murder. Her powers of control are also limited. As long as her husband is not involved, she is ready to warn Sir Henry, and she has done so repeatedly. It seems that Stapleton was still jealous when he saw that When the Baron proposed to his wife--though it was part of his own plan--he could not refrain from intervening in a fit of rage, which revealed precisely his self-contained fiery nature. He used the method of conniving with them to maintain an ambiguous relationship, so that Sir Henry often came to Melipie House, so that he would have a good chance to strike sooner or later, but on the day of the incident, his wife suddenly opposed his plan. Knowing something of the death, and she knew that the hound was kept in the shed outside on the evening when Sir Henry came to supper, she denounced her husband's plot, and in a fit of rage he revealed to her for the first time that he had Another love. Her tenderness turned suddenly to deep hatred, and he could see that she would betray him, so he tied her up lest she should have the opportunity to warn Sir Henry. He hoped, no doubt, that When the whole country attributed the baronet's death to his family's misfortune--and they must have thought--he would be able to win his wife to accept the fait accompli and to keep her secret. On this matter, I think, at any rate, his wishful thinking was misplaced, and his fate would be the same if we searched his house. A woman of Spanish blood would never forgive such an insult lightly. Dear Without referring to the records, Watson, I cannot give you a more detailed account of this singular case. I wonder if there is anything important left unexplained?"

"He cannot hope to frighten Sir Henry with his dreadful hound as he frightened old Sir Henry."

"The beast is ferocious, and is only half-fed. Its appearance will, if not kill the man it pursues, at least scare him out of resistance."

"Of course. There remains one problem. If Stapleton inherits, how does he explain the fact that, as heir, why does he keep changing his name and living in seclusion so close to his ancestral home? How can he obtain Inheritance without arousing suspicion and investigation?"

"This is a big problem. If you want me to solve this problem, I'm afraid you expect too much of me. I have investigated the past and present. But what will happen to a person in the future is a difficult question to answer. Mrs. Stapleton had heard her husband talk about it on several occasions, and there were three paths: he might claim the inheritance from South America, have the British authorities there prove his identity, and then Get the property without coming to England; or take the method of concealing your identity while living in London for a short period of time; or find an accomplice and ask him to bring proofs such as documents to prove the identity of his heir, and then obtain the property from the accomplice From what we know of him, he always finds a way out of these difficulties. Ah, my dear Watson, we have been doing serious work for weeks on end, I think, we For a change, let's do something entertaining tonight. I've booked a box at the Yuguenot. Have you ever heard de Rezquet's opera? I hope you'll be ready in half an hour, we You can also stop by for dinner at Mazzini's."

(End of this chapter)

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