The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 182 New Detective Case (4)
Some of the ideas of my friend Watson, though limited in number, are surprisingly tenacious.He has been encouraging me for a long time to write a case report of my own.This may have been my own fault, for I often took the opportunity to point out how superficial his description of the case was, and to accuse him of not sticking strictly to facts and figures, but to accommodating worldly tastes. "Try it yourself!" was his retort.And when it's my turn to bring up the pen, I have to admit that the content does have to be expressed in a way that appeals to the reader.The case recorded below seems bound to attract the reader, for it is one of the rarest cases in my possession, and it so happened that Watson did not include it in his collection.Referring to my old friend and biographer, Watson, I will make a point here that it was not from sentimentality and whimsy that I took the trouble to add a companion to my trivial research work, but because Watson Sheng Sheng does have his unique features, but out of his own modesty and his overestimation of my work, he always ignores his own features in his records.A partner who can foresee the development of your conclusions and actions is always dangerous, but it is indeed an ideal partner if every development always surprises him and the future always confuses him.

According to the records in my notebook, the case to be described below took place in January [-], that is, the Anglo-Boer War (the armed conflict between the British and the white Boers in South Africa's Transvaal Province and Orange Free State) Conflict.--Translator's Note) Mr. James M. Dodd came to me just as it was over.He was a tall, vigorous, dark-skinned British citizen.The faithful Watson left me for marriage, the only act of selfishness I knew during our intercourse.I was alone at the time.

My habit is to sit with my back against the window, and invite visitors to sit opposite me, so that the light can fully face them.Mr. James M. Dodd does not seem to know how to begin.I also had no intention of guiding him, because his silence gave me more time to observe him.I thought it would be good to make my client feel my power, so I told him some of my observations.

"Sir, it appears that you have returned from South Africa."

"Yes, yes," he replied in surprise.

"The Yeomanry, right?"

"Exactly."

"It must be the Legion of Middlesex."

"Exactly. Mr. Holmes, you are a fortune teller."

I smiled at his surprise.

"If a stout gentleman came into my house, more tanned than the English climate would allow, with his handkerchief in his cuff instead of his pocket, it would be easy to see where he came from .You have a short beard, which means you are not a regular army. You have the figure of a horseman.As for Middlesex, your card says you are a stock dealer in Throgmorton Street. How can you belong to another Legion?"

"You really have insight into everything, which is admirable."

"I see the same things as you, but I'm used to analyzing the details of my observations. But of course you don't come to discuss observation with me. I don't know what happened at the Old Tewkesbury Manor. What's up?"

"Mr. Holmes! You—"

"Nothing strange, sir. That's where your letter was postmarked, and since you were so eager to ask me to see you, obviously something serious happened."

"Yes, that's true, but the letter was written in the afternoon, and a lot has happened since then. If Colonel Emsworth hadn't kicked me out—"

"Kick it out?"

"Well, almost. Here's a hard man, this Colonel Emsworth. He was the best disciplinary officer in his day, and it was a time when swearing was all the rage. If it wasn't for Godfrey's sake, I will never tolerate the rudeness of the old colonel."

I lit my pipe and leaned back in my chair.

"Can you speak more clearly?"

"I thought I really didn't need to tell you everything." He said with a smile, "I'd better tell the facts. I really hope you can tell me what these things mean. I I didn't close my eyes all night and tried to think about it, but the more I thought about it, the more strange it became.

"Two years ago, when he enlisted in January, [-], Godfrey Emsworth joined our squadron. He was the only son of Colonel Emsworth, a Colonel from the Crimea. Winner of the Order of Victoria in the war, his son has soldier's blood in his body, so he also joined the Yeomanry Cavalry. There is no better lad than him in the whole regiment. Through thick and thin fighting career, we have established a special An ordinary friendship. Later in a fight near Diamond Valley, outside the boundaries of Pretoria, he was shot from a large shotgun. I had a letter from the Cape Town Hospital, and a letter from Southampton A letter from Mr. Holmes. There has been no more, no letter from Mr. Holmes for more than six months, and he is my closest friend.

"When the war was over and we were all back in England, I wrote a letter to his father asking how Godfrey was doing. There was no reply. I waited a while and wrote another letter. This returned a brief He replied dryly, saying that Godfrey had sailed around the world and would not return for at least a year.

"Mr. Holmes, that doesn't reassure me. It's a curious thing. Godfrey is a man of affection and will never forget a close friend so casually. It's not like him." I heard he was the heir to a large estate, and he didn't get along very well with his father. His father, Colonel Emsworth, was a bit queer, and Godfrey's A bit big. I had my doubts about that reply. So, I only started looking into the Godfrey thing last week after I was done with some errands in my own house. But since I'm going to do it, I just let go of other things, and I have to investigate and find out."

Mr. James M. Dodd seemed to be the sort of man who would take the emperor down with a bruise.His blue eyes were menacing and his jaw was set squarely and firmly.

"So, what steps did you take?" I asked him.

"My first step was to go to his house - Tewkesbury Old Manor - to see for myself what was going on. So I wrote his mother a letter first - because his father made me suffer. Enough—and a frontal assault: I said Godfrey was a good friend of mine, and I could tell her a lot of interesting things about our life together, and I was passing by, could I stop by? And so on. I got a I wrote back rather enthusiastically, offering to stay the night, so I went on Monday.

"Tewkesbury Old Manor is a remote place, and it's still five miles to get off at any station. There are no carriages at the station, so I have to walk there, and I still have my suitcase, so I walked there in the evening. That is A large courtyard, row upon row of houses, in a complex topography. I see the house as a hodgepodge of buildings from all ages, from Elizabethan half-timbered foundations to Victorian porches. Panels and tapestries and faded old paintings, a very dark and mysterious old house. There was an old housekeeper, Ralph, who seemed as old as the house, and his wife, older. She was originally Godfrey's Nurse, whom I had heard him speak of, seemed to him to be second only to his mother, and so I liked her, despite her eccentricity. I liked his mother too—she was a very tender, Guinea pig women. Only the Colonel makes me look awkward.

"As soon as we met, we had a fight. I wanted to go back to the station immediately, but when I thought about it, I was leaving, which happened to suit his wishes, so I didn't leave. The servant took me directly to his study At that time, he was sitting behind a messy desk. I saw that he was tall and stooped, with a smoky complexion, an unkempt beard, a nose with red veins that protruded like an eagle's beak, and two gray eyes of evil from under bushy eyebrows. Staring at me. It took me a second to understand why Godfrey rarely mentioned his father.

"'Sir,' said he in a piercing voice, 'I should like to know what is the real purpose of your visit.'

"I said I had made it clear in my letter to his wife.

"'Yes, yes, you said you knew Godfrey in Africa. Of course, we're only listening to you.'

"'I have letters from him in my pocket.'

"'Let me have a look, please.'

"He read the two letters I handed him, and threw them at me.

"'Well, so what?'

"'Sir, your son Godfrey and I were good friends, united by many memories of common experiences, and am I not surprised that he has suddenly disappeared? Is it not natural for me to wish to inquire about him? '

"'Sir, I recall that I have written to you and told you of his condition. He has sailed around the world. He has returned from Africa in poor health, and his mother and I believe that he should take a complete rest and exchange Environment. Please pass on this situation to all friends who care about him.'

"'It will be done,' said I, 'but please tell me the name of the steamer and voyage he took, and the date of departure. Perhaps I can manage to send him a letter.'

"My master seemed perplexed and annoyed at this request of mine. His bushy eyebrows fell over his eyes, and he tapped his fingers impatiently on the table. At last he raised his head with the air of a chess player who notices The opponent has made a threatening move and he has decided how to deal with it.

"'Mr. Dodd,' said he, 'your obstinacy will be found offensive by many, and will think you have reached the point of being vexatious.'

"'You must forgive me, it's all out of friendship for your son.'

"'Certainly. I have fully considered this. But I must ask you to waive these requests. Every family has its own story, which cannot be explained to outsiders, however well-meaning outsiders. My wife would like to hear you very much. Godfrey's past, but I beg you to ignore the present and the future, such inquiries are of no use and will only embarrass us.'

"You see, Mr. Holmes, I have hit a snag, and there is no way around it. I pretend to agree with him, but I swear to myself that I will not rest until my friend is found out. It was a dull evening, and we The three dined in silence in a gloomy old room. The hostess asked me eagerly about her son, but the old man looked unhappy. I bid farewell to my master and went to my guest room. It was a spacious and empty room downstairs, like the rest of the house. But after a year in the South African grasslands no one is very particular about living conditions. I opened the curtains, Looking towards the garden, I found that it was a clear night outside, with the half-circle moon hanging in the sky. Later, I sat by the blazing fire, intending to use the lamp on the table to read a novel to distract my mind. But I was interrupted by the old butler, Ralph, who brought some spare coal.

"'Sir, I'm afraid you'll need coal for the night. It's cold, and the room isn't warm.'

"He didn't go out immediately, but stayed in the house for a while, and when I looked back at him, he was standing there looking at me, as if he was preoccupied.

"'Excuse me, sir, but I couldn't help listening to you talking about Master Godfrey at table. My wife was his nurse, you know, so I was almost his adoptive father, and of course cared for him. Do you mean he's doing well, sir?"

"'He was one of the bravest men in the regiment. He dragged me out of the Boer guns once, and I might not be here today if it hadn't been for him.'

"The old butler rubbed his thin hands excitedly.

"'Yes, sir, that's exactly what it is, and that's what Master Godfrey is. He had courage from his childhood. He climbed every tree on the estate. He was afraid of nothing. He was a good boy, Yes, he was a great lad.'

"I jumped up all of a sudden.

"'Hey!' I said aloud, 'you said he was a good lad. You sounded like he wasn't alive. What's the matter? What happened to Godfrey?'

"I grabbed the old man's shoulders, but he flinched.

"'Sir, I don't know what you're talking about. Please ask the master, he knows. I can't mind my own business.'

"He was about to walk out when I took his arm.

"'Listen,' said I, 'you have to answer a question before you go, or I'll keep you all night. Is Godfrey dead?'

"He couldn't look me in the eye. He was hypnotized. His answer was forced out of his mouth, and it was a horrible, unexpected answer.

"'I'd rather he be dead!' he exclaimed. With that he gave a tug, and ran out of the house.

"Mr. Holmes, you can of course imagine that I returned to the chair in which I was in a very bad mood. There was but one interpretation for me of what the old man had just said. Evidently my friend was involved in some crime. Or at least something dishonorable, a matter of family honor. The stern father sent his son away and hid him from scandal. Godfrey was a reckless daredevil. It is clear that he has fallen into the wrong hands and led to crime. It would be a pity if that were the case, but even so it is my duty to find him and try to help him. I am so anxiously Thinking about it, I suddenly raised my head and saw Godfrey standing in front of me."

My client paused in thought at this point.

"Go on," I said. "Your case is a little peculiar."

"Mr. Holmes, he is standing outside the window with his face pressed against the glass. As I told you, I looked out of the window at night, and the curtains were kept half-drawn. There he was standing where the curtains were opened. window, so I could see his whole body, but it was his face that surprised me. He was pale, I had never seen him so pale. I guess that's what ghosts look like. But his eyes met My eyes, I saw they were the eyes of the living. As soon as he saw me looking at him, he jumped back and disappeared into the night.

"There was something quite astonishing about the man's appearance. Not just the paper-white face, but something subtler--something shady, guilt--which was not at all. Like the frank lad I've known. I'm terrified.

"But a man who's been a soldier for two years and has dealt with the Boers all day long has the nerve to be frightened, and he's quick to act when things happen. As soon as Godfrey got out of the way, I jumped at the window. The window It took me a while to turn the switch on, and then I jumped out and ran quickly down the garden path, chasing him in the direction I thought he was fleeing.

"The trail was long and a little dark, but I always felt like there was something running ahead. I rushed forward and called his name, but it didn't work. I ran to the end of the trail, and there were several forks. It led to several huts. I hesitated, when I distinctly heard a door shut. It did not come from a room behind me, but from a dark place ahead. This is proof enough, Mr. Holmes. What I had just seen was not a phantom. Godfrey had indeed escaped from my sight and closed a door. There was no doubt of that.

"I have nothing else to do. I have had a very restless night, and I have been thinking about this problem, trying to find a theory to explain these phenomena. The next day I think the old colonel's attitude is somewhat relaxed. Now that The hostess claimed that there were several interesting places nearby, so I took the opportunity to ask if it would be okay for me to stay another night. The old man reluctantly acquiesced, which bought me a whole day to observe. I was quite sure It is known that Godfrey is hiding somewhere nearby, but the specific location and the reason for hiding remain to be further investigated.

"This building is so big and crooked that no one will know even if a legion is hidden in it. If someone is hiding inside the building, it will be difficult for me to find him. But the door I heard was not inside the building. I The only thing to do is to go to the garden to find the secret. This is not difficult to do, because the old people are busy with their own affairs, so I can carry out my plan.

"There are a few huts in the garden, but at the end of the garden there is a building of a moderate size-enough for a gardener or a forester. Is it from here that the door is closing? I pretend to be indifferent, as if casually He walked towards it as if walking. At this moment, a short, sharp, bearded man in black and a bowler hat came out of the door. He didn't look like a gardener. Unexpectedly, when he came out, He locked the door and put the key in his pocket. When he turned around and found me, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"'Are you a guest at the house?' he asked me.

"I said yes and that I was Godfrey's friend.

"'It's a pity he's gone on a trip, otherwise he'd be very happy to see me,' I explained again.

"'Yes, yes.' he said as if he had done something wrong. 'Come again at another time.' He said and walked away. But when I looked back, he was hiding in the osmanthus across the garden. Standing behind the tree, watching me.

"I walked round the house and found that the windows were so tightly screened that it appeared to be empty. I dared not pry too boldly, for I knew I was being watched, and if I did not Be more restrained, and you may even be thrown out because of a small loss. So I went back to the building and waited until night to continue the investigation. When it was dark and the voices of people were silent, I slipped out of my window and quietly walked towards the mysterious residence.

(End of this chapter)