The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 50 Four Signatures (34)
"In came Colonel Lysander Stark and a stocky man--with a sorrel beard over his double chin. I knew him to be Mr. Ferguson from the Colonel's introduction. Said the Colonel: "This is my secretary and manager. By the way, I remember that the door was closed just now, and I was worried that the draft would freeze you." I said, "I opened it myself. I feel a little stuffy in the room." ’ He showed his skeptical eyes again, ‘Well, we’d better get on with our business,’ he said, ‘Mr Ferguson and I will take you up to see the machine together.’ I said:’ I think it's better to put on the hat first.' He said: 'Oh, that's not necessary, it's in this house.' I was surprised and said: 'What, you're digging fuller earth in this house?' He Said: 'No, no. We only use this place for pressing bricks. But it's nothing serious. All we want you to do is check the machine and see what's wrong with it.' We went upstairs together, and the colonel asked The lights lead the way, and the fat manager and I follow. The old house is more like a maze, it has many corridors, passages, spiral staircases, low doors, almost all thresholds, because generations It was dented by human footsteps. Upstairs, there was no carpet or furniture to show. The plaster was peeling off, and the green stain was still oozing moisture. I tried to pretend She looked indifferent. Although I don't believe what the lady said to me, I haven't forgotten it in my mind. I pay attention to the two partners around me. Ferguson looks withdrawn and sinister, but I could still tell from his few words that he was British.

"Colonel Lysander Stark finally stopped in front of a low door, and he unlocked it. Inside was a small square room, and the three of us could not enter together. Ferguson stayed outside the door , the colonel led me in. He said: 'Now we're actually inside the hydraulic press, and if someone starts it up, it's going to be a terrible thing for us. The ceiling of this room is where the pistons come down. terminal, which can produce tons of pressure when it drops onto the metal floor. There are some small lateral columns of water on the outside, and the water inside gets pressurized and builds or transmits the pressure you're familiar with. The machine's It is relatively easy to operate, but sometimes it is not so flexible and a part of the pressure is wasted. Please help to check it and guide us what should be done to fix it.' I took the lamp from his hand and thoroughly The machine was inspected. The machine is very large and capable of great pressure. But when I depress the lever, I heard the wind, so I know that there is a small crack in the machine, and the crack allows the water to flow back. .on inspection it was revealed that one of the rubber pads on the transmission rod had aged so it was not holding the rod sleeve that lived in it and moved back and forth. Obviously this was a waste of pressure and I pointed this out to him and he was very pleased Listened carefully, and asked a few practical questions about how to fix the machine. After the explanation was clear, I returned to the main control room. Driven by curiosity, I carefully observed the small The room. One glance at all that is said about that fuller's earth is a lie. The reason is that it would be ridiculous to think that such a powerful device was used for this inappropriate purpose. The walls It is made of wood, but the floor is made of large iron troughs. I observed a layer of metal shavings on it. I bent down and wanted to touch it with my fingers to see what it was, when I suddenly heard There was a muffled cry, and at the same moment I caught sight of the Colonel's gray face staring down at me.

"He asked, 'What are you doing?' and was offended that I had fallen for him. I said, 'I'm admiring your fuller's earth, sir. If only I knew what this machine is really for. If it is, I can give you some other suggestions.' After I finished speaking, I immediately regretted it. His face became more and more ugly, and evil thoughts shot out of his eyes. He said: 'Very good, I I'll let you know all about the machine!' He took a step back and slammed the door shut. I rushed to the door and tugged at the handle, but it was locked so tightly that I didn't even I kicked and kicked, but it didn't budge. I yelled: 'Hey! Colonel, Colonel! Let me out!' In the silence, I heard a voice so sudden that my heart almost trembled. Jumped out of the chest. It was the sound of levers and pipes, and he started the machine! The lamp was still on the floor, where I left it when I checked the iron trough. By the light I saw the roof It was slowly pressing down on me. No one knew what was going to happen better than me. It only took a minute for its pressure to crush me into a meatloaf. I screamed and slammed my body against the room frantically I pleaded hoarsely for the colonel to let me out, but the indifferent metallic sound drowned out my cries. The ceiling was only a foot or two from my head, within reach. At this time, a thought suddenly flashed in my mind. I thought that the pain a person suffers when he dies is related to the posture he takes when he is dying. If I lie on my stomach, the pressure will go to my spine. The thought of the crackling sound when the bones were crushed made me shiver in horror. Maybe that position would be better, but would I have the guts to watch that lump wobble towards me? I couldn't straighten up, and suddenly, something came into my sight, and I immediately gained new hope.

"As I said, the roof and floor were iron, and the walls were wood. As I glanced around, I saw a faint light between the panels. As the panels were gradually Pushing back, the light became brighter and brighter. For a moment, I couldn't believe that it was really a door that could give me a new life. I immediately escaped from there, lying on the ground like a lost soul. The other end of the wall. The panel closed behind me, but the sound of the lamp being crushed and the clanging of iron plates testified to how desperately I escaped. I was pulled down by a woman frantically I just woke up. After waking up, I found myself lying on the stone floor in a narrow passage. She held a candle in her right hand, bent down and pulled me vigorously with her left hand. She is the kind counselor! Now look at Come on, how foolish it was not to take her advice. 'Quick, quick!' she gasped, 'soon they'll be here, and they'll find you're not there. Oh, no more waste It's time, hurry!' This time I listened to her, stood up staggeringly, followed her and ran towards the corridor, and then went down a spiral staircase. Below the stairs was another aisle that was slightly wider. When we ran When we got to the aisle, we heard hurried footsteps and shouts from two people. One was on the floor we had just been on, and the other was on the floor below him, and they responded to each other. My friend stopped, like It's someone who's lost and doesn't know where to go. She opened a door, and the moonlight streamed in through the window. 'You only have one chance,' she said, 'it's high, but you might be able to jump .' As she spoke, a light shone at the end of the passage. I saw the lean figure of Colonel Lysander Stark, with a lamp in one hand and a murder weapon like a butcher's cleaver in the other. .I ran across the bedroom and opened the window and looked down. The garden looked so peaceful in the moonlight, it was just below me, maybe thirty feet away. I put on the ledge, but I hesitated because I don't know what's going to happen between the savior and the villains yet, I can't jump down yet. If she gets beaten, I'm going to go back and save her, no matter what the danger is. The idea just came up In my mind, he was already at the door, and he tried to push her in, but she stopped him with her arms outstretched, and she pushed him back with all her might. 'Fritz, Fritz! ' she shouted in English, 'remember the promise you made to me after the last time? You said you wouldn't let this happen again. He won't say anything! He won't tell anyone else!' ''Are you crazy, Ellis?' he snarled, wrenching himself free from her arms. 'You're killing us. He knows too much, listen to me, you gotta let me go !' He threw her to the ground, came straight to the window, took the heavy weapon and slashed at me. At that time, my body had already left the window, but my hands were still holding the edge of the window sill. I felt a burst of pain , After letting go, I fell into the garden below. I didn't fall, but was shocked. I hurriedly got up, and ran desperately towards the bushes, knowing that I was still very close to danger .But just as I was sprinting, I suddenly felt dizzy and nauseous.I looked down at my hand that was throbbing with pain. Only then did I realize that my thumb had been cut off, and the wound was still gushing blood.I wrapped the wound with a handkerchief, but suddenly I felt a ringing in my ears, and then I passed out among the rosebushes.

"I don't know exactly how long I was in a coma, but it must have been a long time, because when I woke up, the sun was up. My clothes were covered with dew, and my sleeves were soaked with blood from the wound. Violent The pain immediately reminded me of what happened last night, and I couldn't help jumping up at the thought that I might not be far away from those dangerous people. I looked around, but to my surprise, there were no houses here, There is no garden either. It turned out that the place where I lay was in a corner next to the road, and there was a building not far in front. When I got closer, I realized that it was the train station I arrived at last night. If there were no Proof of wounds, I wondered if all the horrible things that had happened during this period were really a nightmare. I stumbled into the station, asked the time of the train, and learned that there would be a train in an hour to Reading. I found out that the man on duty was the same porter from last night. I asked him if he had heard of Colonel Lysander Stark, a name apparently unfamiliar to him. I asked him again if he had noticed There was a carriage waiting here, and he said no. As to whether there was a police station nearby, he said to me, there was one three miles away. It was too far. So I made up my mind to go to the police after returning to the city. It was only after six o'clock when I got back, so I went to treat the wound first. I am very grateful to this doctor for sending me here, and I entrust this case to Here you are, and I will fully listen to you."

After hearing about this unusual encounter, my friend and I fell silent.After some time Holmes took down a collection of clippings from the shelf.

He said: "There's something in it that will interest you. About a year ago, it was in the papers at the time. I'll read it to you: 'Missing Person. Jeremiah Helin.' Mr., 26 years old, professional water conservancy engineer, disappeared after leaving the apartment at ten o'clock in the evening on the [-]th of this month. Wearing...' Wait. Oh, I think this means that the last time the colonel had a major overhaul of his machinery. "

"My God!" said my patient, "doesn't that explain what the lady said?"

"That's right. Obviously, this colonel is a cold-blooded desperado. He will never allow anything to hinder his plan. Just like those professional pirates, they will not leave a life alive on the ship they captured ...well, time is precious now, so if you can bear it, let's go to Scotland Yard and call the police, this is the first step in our measures."

Three hours later, we boarded the train and drove from Reading to a small village in Berkshire.There was Holmes, my patient, Inspector Bradstreet of Scotland Yard, a plainclothes man, and myself in the party.Bradstreet spread out a military map on the seat, and used a compass to draw a circle with Azin as the dot.

"Here," he said, "is a circle drawn with the station at its center and a radius of twelve miles. The place we are looking for is probably somewhere near this sideline. You said it was twelve miles, sir. miles, right?"

"The carriage has been driving for at least an hour."

"Do you think they sent you back from so far while you were unconscious?"

"I think so. I vaguely remember being lifted and carried somewhere."

I said, "What confuses me is, why did they let you go after they found you unconscious? Could it be that the villain relented because of the lady's pleas?"

"This possibility is unlikely. I have never seen such a cold face."

"Oh, we'll figure it out before long," said Bradstreet. "Look, I've drawn the circle, and now my only thought is where to find what we're looking for." That guy."

"I think I know where," said Holmes calmly.

"Really? Can it be done now?" cried the inspector. "You have deduced it! Well, let us see who else thinks as you do. I think it is in the south, where the The countryside is more remote."

My patient said, "I say it's east."

"If it were me, I would think it is in the west." The plainclothes said, "There are also several very secluded villages there."

I said, "I say north, because there are no hills in that area, and our friends have said before that horses have never gone up hills."

The inspector smiled and said, "It seems that there are quite big differences. We've finished talking. Who will you vote for?"

"It's all wrong," said Holmes.

"But we can't all be wrong!"

"Yes, you are all wrong. Come and hear my opinion." He put his finger on the center of the circle, "This is where they are."

"But what about the twelve miles?" said Hatherley.

"Six miles to go, six miles back, it's very simple. You said that when you got into the carriage, you saw the horse was full of life and lustrous coat. Now, if it has run twelve miles, can it still go?" Is that the state?"

"Indeed, this is likely to be a trick." Bradstreet said thoughtfully, "Of course, what this group of people are doing can be confirmed."

"Indeed there can be no doubt," said Holmes, "that they were counterfeiters, and that the machine was used to strike the alloys that substituted for silver."

"We've had a sneaky gang of fellows in the business for some time," said the inspector. "They've been minting half-crowns in bulk. We've traced them as far as Reading, but that's where the trail broke, because They used some kind of counter-detection method to hide themselves. It also proved that they are proficient in this way. But now, they can't get away."

But our inspector was wrong, these guys are destined not to fall into the law.As the train pulled into Ayzin station, a huge plume of smoke was seen billowing from behind the neighboring bushes, like a large ostrich feather hanging over the peaceful countryside.

"Is the house on fire?" Bradstreet asked after the train had left the station.

"Yes, sir," replied the station master.

"When did the fire start?"

"It is said that it was last night, sir. The fire grew bigger and bigger, and it is now a sea of ​​flames."

"Whose house is it?"

"Dr. Beecher's."

The engineer interrupted their conversation: "Please tell me that Dr. Beecher is German and very thin and has a pointy nose, right?"

The station master laughed loudly. "No, sir. Dr. Beecher is an Englishman, and he is the best dressed in this parish. As far as I know, there seems to be a gentleman living with him, and that He is a foreigner, and a sick man, but it seems that if you buy him a good steak, he will never be too greasy."

We didn't wait for the station master to finish speaking, so we hurried towards the direction of the fire.This is a road leading to the top of the hill, and a tall whitewashed building appears before our eyes.Flames were blazing from its windows and all the chinks, and in the garden ahead three fire engines were trying desperately to put it out, but all seemed in vain.

Hatherley suddenly exclaimed excitedly: "Here it is, look at this road, it's a gravel road! Over there is the rosebush where I fainted. That's where I jumped out of - the second window!"

"Then at least you've got your revenge, sir!" said Mr. Holmes. "It was evident that your oil lamp set fire to the plank wall when it was crushed. They must have been too excited to catch you last night, but Ignore the burning that is going on. Now you look carefully to see if there are any of those people from last night in the crowd. But I'm afraid they are a hundred miles away from here."

What happened later proved exactly what Holmes feared.From that day on, neither the pretty lady, nor the sinister German, nor the eccentric Englishman knew where they went.That morning, a farmer saw a wagon carrying several people and some heavy boxes, driving in the direction of Reading.But these guys seemed to have disappeared afterwards, and even a resourceful person like Holmes didn't find any clues about their whereabouts.

The firefighters were puzzled by the pattern and layout of the room, and what made them even more puzzled was that a human thumb was found on a window sill on the third floor.It was around sunset that their efforts finally paid off and the fire was brought under control.But the roof had collapsed, and the scene was in a mess and turned into ruins.Nothing remained but some deformed cylinders, iron pipes, and the machine for which the engineer had paid dearly.

(End of this chapter)