The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 163 The Last Greeting (6)
"Aha, call back!" He opened the telegram, looked at it, crumpled it up and put it in his pocket, saying, "Yes, that's it."

"What did you find?"

"Everything came to light!"

"What?" Lestrade looked at him in surprise. "What are you kidding?"

"I've never been so serious in my life. It's an astonishing case, and I think I've got the details out now."

"Who is the criminal?"

Holmes wrote something on the back of one of his cards, and threw it to Lestrade.

"That's the criminal's name," he said, "and you won't be able to arrest him until tomorrow night at the earliest. I hope you don't mention my name at all when this case is mentioned, because I only want to talk to those who have still solved the case." Difficult cases linked together, Watson." We walked towards the station, leaving Lestrade alone.Lestrade's face was full of joy, and he was still looking at the piece of paper that Holmes had thrown to him with great interest.

As we chatted that evening, smoking cigars in our lodgings in Baker Street, Holmes said: "As you have described in your studies in Scarlet and The Sign of Four, in this case we have Had to work backwards from the results to speculate on the cause. I have written to Lestrade to give us the details we need now, which will only be available after he has captured the criminal. Let him do the job It's safe to say that he has no powers of reasoning, but once he knows what he's got to do, he'll do it like a pug dog, and it's certainly this brute force that has carried him through the ranks of Scotland Yard. "

"So your case isn't over yet?" I asked.

"Basically it's over. We've learned who the perpetrator of the case is, although we don't know what happened to one of the victims. Of course, you've drawn your conclusions."

"I presume that you suspect Jim Browner, the porter of the Liverpool steamer?"

"Oh, it's more than suspicion!"

"However, except for some vague clues, I can't see anything."

"Contrary to you, I think it's perfectly clear. Let me just run through our investigation briefly. Do you remember that we didn't know much when we first approached the case. That's often an advantage." ...We didn't form a fixed mindset, but just explored and made inferences from the exploration. Who did we contact first? A very peaceful and respectable lady, she didn't seem to want to hide anything from us, and then The picture that told us she had two younger sisters. Immediately a thought flashed through my mind: that the box was to be sent to one of the three sisters. That thought put it aside for the time being. As for overthrowing it, Affirm it, as I will. Then we came to the garden, remember, we saw strange things in yellow paper boxes.

"The rope used to bind the boxes was of the kind used by sailmakers on sea-going ships. We could smell a smell of sea water from the ropes. The knots were of the usual sailor's kind; the parcel was sent from a port the man's ear had been pierced, and sailors are more commonly pierced than those who work on land. I am sure, therefore, that all the actors in this tragedy must be sought among sailors.

"When I looked at the address written on the package, I found that it was addressed to Miss D. Cushing. The eldest of the three sisters was of course Miss Cushing. Although her initials were 'D', it could equally refer to One of the other two sisters. In this case, our investigation had to start in a completely new direction. So I called on Miss Cushing to get to the bottom of the matter. I was about to assure Miss Cushing , when I said that I was convinced that there must be a misunderstanding, do you remember that I stopped suddenly. The situation is that I saw something at that time, which surprised me very much, and at the same time greatly narrowed the scope of our investigation. scope.

"Watson, you are a doctor, you know that no part of the human body is as different as the ear. It is common sense that everyone's ear is different. In last year's "Anthropology" magazine, you can see me Two short articles were written on this subject. I examined both ears in the carton from an expert's point of view, and took a close look at the anatomy of the two ears. As I gazed at Miss Cushing Well, you can imagine my amazement to see that her ear was so similar to the woman's ear I examined. It is definitely not a coincidence. They both have short ear wings, curled at the top, and the inner ear The cartilage is also similarly coiled. From all features, it is almost the same ear.

"I realized right away that this discovery was extremely important. The fact that the victim was a blood relative of Miss Cushing was obvious, probably close. I started asking about her family, you remember, and she immediately Some extremely valuable details told us.

"First of all, her sister's name is Sarah. She has been living with her sister before, and the address has not changed, so it is very clear how the misunderstanding happened and who the package was sent to. Then, we heard Speaking of the waiter married the youngest sister, and also knew that he had a close relationship with Miss Sarah, so she went to Liverpool to be with the Browner family. They separated because of a quarrel, and for several months after that They had no contact at all. So, if Bronner wanted to send a package to Miss Sarah, he would definitely send it where she used to live.

"Now, the truth is coming out. We already know about the waiter, this guy is emotional and impulsive, you remember, he gave up a good paying job to be with his wife and he drinks a lot. We have reason It is believed that his wife had been killed, and that a man, presumably a seaman, was also killed at the same time. In this way, we can easily think that the motive of this case is jealousy. But why would the murderer take Where is the evidence of this murder sent to Miss Sarah Cushing? Maybe because she was involved in the events that caused this tragedy when she lived in Liverpool. You know, the ship on this route stops at Belfa. Belfast, Dublin and Waterford, and so on, assuming the culprit was Bronner, who was aboard the May Day immediately after committing the crime, Belfast was the place where he could send his grisly The first dock for the package.

"Obviously at this stage there could be another scenario, and while I don't think it can hold up at all, I've decided to make it clear before going any further. Perhaps a lost lover murdered the Bronners, and the man It is possible that the ear of the husband belonged to the husband. This statement will be disagreed by many people, but it is conceivable. So I sent a telegram to my friend Algar in the police service in Liverpool, asking him to check whether Mrs. Bronner At home, did Bronner leave on the May Day. Afterwards, you and I went to see Miss Sarah in Warrington.

"First of all, I am anxious to know the extent to which the family's ears are similar. Of course, she may tell us something very important, but I don't hold out much hope. She must have heard about the case the day before, because in K Royden has made a lot of noise and only she knows who this package was sent to. If she would assist the Justice Department, she would have already reported it to the police. Obviously it was necessary for us to visit her, so we did We found out that she had fallen ill, and the news of the package's arrival had affected her so strongly that she had suffered from a brain disorder. It was further clear to us that she knew all about it, but it was also clear that to get her We'll have to wait a while for help.

"But really, we're not depending on her to help us. Our final answer is waiting for us at the police station, and I've informed Algar there to send it. Nothing could be clearer. Mrs. Bronner's house The door was closed for more than three days. Neighbors thought she was visiting relatives in the south. We learned from the steamship office that Bronner had sailed on the May Day. I figured the steamer would arrive tomorrow night. Thames. As soon as Bronner arrives, he will meet Lestrade, who is not quick-witted but decisive. I am sure we will learn all the details by then."

As Holmes surmised, two days later he received a thick letter containing a note from Inspector Lestrade and a typed document of several pages.

"Lestrade has him," said Holmes, looking at me; "it may interest you to hear what he has to say.

Dear Holmes:
In accordance with the plan we have devised to test our conjectures ("We" is a very interesting word, isn't it, Watson?), I visited the May Day at Albert Dock yesterday afternoon at six o'clock. .The steamer belonged to the Liverpool, Dublin, and London Steamship Line.Through understanding, there was a waiter on the ship named Jim Browner. Because of his strange behavior during the voyage, the captain had to stop his work.I went to his cabin and saw him sitting on a box, with his head on his hands, rocking to and fro.The guy was tall and strong, clean-shaven and dark, and he looked a little like the Aldridge who had helped us with the bogus laundry case.As soon as he knew the purpose of my visit, he jumped up.I quickly blew the siren and called the two marine police officers who were waiting around the corner, but he didn't seem to care, and there was no resistance.He was taken into the back room with his chest, which we thought would contain some incriminating evidence, but it contained nothing but a large sharp knife which most sailors have.We found, however, that we did not need any more evidence, since he confessed immediately upon interrogation at the police station.A stenographer took notes of his confession and typed three copies.One of them is attached to the letter.The case turned out to be as simple as I thought it would be.I would like to thank you for your great help in my investigation.

your loyal friend
Sincerely, G. Lestrade
"Well, the investigation is quite simple," said Holmes. "I don't think he thought it that way when he first invited us, though. Let us see what Jim Browner himself has to say. This is a verbatim transcript of the criminal's statement to Sheriff Montgomery at the Shedwell Police Station.

"'What more can I say? Yes, I have a lot to say. I'll tell it all. You can hang me or leave me alone. You can beat me. I tell you, Since I did that, I haven't even closed my eyes in sleep and never will again, I'm always awake. Their faces are always moving in front of my eyes, sometimes it's his face , more often her face, either his or her. He frowns like a negro; her face is always frightened. Alas, the little white lamb, when she comes from a former She must have been terrified to see the murderous look on the face that was always full of love for her.

"'But it was Sara's fault, a ruined man who cursed her to suffer, and let her blood rot in her veins! I don't mean to justify myself. I know I'm like a beast when I drink. But she Will forgive me, if that woman hadn't come to our house, she would have bonded to me like a rope on a pulley. Because Sarah Cousin loves me, that's the thing She loved me until she knew that I loved my wife's footprints in the dirt more than her whole body and soul, and her love turned to vicious hatred.

"'They are three sisters, the eldest is an honest woman, the second is a devil, and the third is an angel. Sarah is 33 years old. Mary is 29 years old. We have a family together and live a very happy life. There is no woman in Liverpool who is as good as On to my Mary. Then we asked Sarah to come and live with us for a week, and she went from a week to a month, and that's how she became part of our family.

"'I gave up drinking and had a little savings and everything was fine. Good God, who would have thought it would end like this? Never dreamed of it!

"'I often go home on weekends, and sometimes I can stay at home for a week when I have to wait for the ship to be loaded, so I often see my sister-in-law Sarah. She is tall and thin, with a little dark skin, She is nimble, quick-tempered, and always looks haughty with her head up, and her eyes are like sparks from flint. But, I swear, I never thought of little Mary when she was around. God forgive me.

"'There were times when she seemed to like being alone with me, or asking me to go out with her, but it never occurred to me. One night it dawned on me. When I got home, my wife wasn't there, but Sarah was. "Where's Mary? I asked. "Oh, she paid the bill." ’ I was a little fidgety, pacing up and down the room. ‘Unhappy not to see Mary in five minutes, Jim? ’ she said, ‘I’m so sorry that you don’t want to be with me for a while. ’ ‘It’s not like that, girl. As I said, I stretched out my hands to her kindly, and she immediately held my hands, which were so hot. I looked into her eyes, and I understood everything from her eyes. She didn't have to say anything, I didn't have to say anything. I frowned and pulled my hand away. She stood beside me quietly for a moment, then patted my shoulder lightly with her hand. "What a steady Jim! "After speaking, she laughed mockingly, and then went outside the house.

"'Well, Sara has hated me ever since. She's a real hater, too. I'm so stupid to let her live with us like that. But I didn't mention it to Mary because I knew it would break her heart. It was the same as usual. After a while, I noticed something different about Mary. She was so trusting and naive before, but Now she is queer and suspicious, and she is always asking me where I have been, what I am doing, who is my letter from, what is in my pocket, and such inexplicable questions. Every day she becomes more eccentric, My temper is getting worse every day. For no reason, we often quarrel. It really baffles me. At that time, Sarah always avoided me, but she and Mary stuck together all day. I understand now, she How to provoke her, deceive her, and make her come against me. But I was so blind that I didn't see it at the time. Then I broke the ring and started drinking again, but if Mary treats me like before, I'm not going to drink again. She always has a reason to dislike me, and we're getting more and more at odds with each other. And here's Alec Fabayrne coming in, and it's the worst.

"'At first he came to our house for Sarah, but after a while he came to us. The fellow has a way of being pleasant, and wherever he goes he has friends. He's a stylish, haughty young man, handsome, with curly hair. He's traveled almost half the world, and he's well informed, and very talkative. He's funny, I admit. So polite in his manners for a seaman like him Well, I think he must have been an officer on a ship and not a sailor. He was in and out of our house for a month, and it never occurred to me that there were bad ideas behind his gentle, quick-witted face. Something finally made I had doubts about him, and since that day, I can never be calm again.

"'It was only a trifle. Once I came into the drawing-room by chance, and as I entered the door, I saw a look of joy on my wife's face, which faded away when she saw who was coming. Yes. She turned away with a disappointed look on her face. It was too much for me. She probably mistook my footsteps for Alec Fabayrn and no one else. Had I When I found him, I would have killed him, because I lost my temper like a madman. Mary saw the fierce look in my eyes, and she ran and grabbed my sleeve.

"'"Don't, Jim, don't! "she says.

"' "And Sarah? ' I asked.

"'"In the kitchen. "she says.

"' "Sarah," I said, going into the kitchen, "Faybairn will never be allowed in our house again. "

"'"Why? "she says.

"'"Because it was my order. "

"' "Oh," said she, "if my friend doesn't deserve to be in your house, neither do I. "

"'"You can do what you like," I said, "but if Fabayrne shows up here again, I'll give you one of his ears as a souvenir!" "

"'She must have been taken aback by my look because she left my house that night without saying anything.

"'Oh, I still don't know to this day if it was just this woman's magic, or if she thought she could turn me against my wife by teaching her to mess around. Anyway, she was two blocks from our house took a house at the place where sailors were lodged. Fabayrn was often there, and Mary detoured to have tea with her sister and him. I don't know how often Mary went. I followed her one day. , broke in the door, Fabayrn was like a frightened skunk, he climbed the back garden wall and escaped. I swear in front of my wife, if I see her with him again, I will kill Kill her. I brought her home and she was crying and shaking and pale as a piece of paper. There was no more love between us. I could see that Mary hated me and was afraid of me. I just thought of it. Drinking, she still despises me.

"'Sarah, seeing that her stay at Liverpool could not last, went back. She went to live with her sister in Croydon, as far as I know. Things continued in the same way at my house. Then, until last week, All misery and calamity befell.

(End of this chapter)