The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 85 Memoirs (14) ([-])
I was taken aback, and when I turned around, the old missionary turned to me.The wrinkles on his face disappeared, the nose became higher, the lower lip did not protrude, the mouth did not shrink, the dull eyes became bright, and the crooked body stretched out.

Then the whole body withered away again, and Holmes disappeared as suddenly as he had come.

"My God!" I exclaimed, "you're scaring the hell out of me!"

"Close precautions are still necessary," whispered Holmes. "I have reason to think that they are following us. Ah, that is Professor Moriarty."

As Holmes was speaking, the train started to move.I glanced back and saw a tall man bursting out of the crowd, waving his hands as if to stop the train.However, it was too late, our train was accelerating and left the station in an instant.

"Because of the precautions we took, you can see that we got away without a hitch." Holmes said with a smile on his face, standing up, taking off his black priest's cap for disguise, and putting it in his handbag.

"Have you read this morning's paper, Watson?"

"No."

"Don't you know about Baker Street?"

"Baker Street?"

"They burned down my house last night. No major damage though."

"Oh my god!"

"They haven't been able to find me since the man who hit me with the bludgeon was arrested. Otherwise, they wouldn't have thought I'd come home. But they've obviously spied on you beforehand, and that's Mo The reason Riati came to Victoria Station. Didn't you leave a hole when you came?"

"I did exactly what you told me to do."

"Have you found the hansom?"

"Yes, it's waiting there."

"Do you know the coachman?"

"do not know."

"That's my brother Mycroft. It's better not to rely on hired people in such a thing. We must now have a plan for dealing with Moriarty."

"Since it's an express train and the steamer is interlinked with this train, I think we've managed to get rid of him."

"I told you that this man's intelligence level is comparable to mine. You obviously don't fully understand what I mean. If I were the tracker, you must not think that I encountered such a small obstacle. I was stumped. How can you underestimate him like this?"

"What can he do?"

"Whatever I can do, he can do."

"What will you do?"

"Book a private car."

"But it must be too late for that."

"It's not too late. The train stops at Canterbury Station, and there's always a delay of at least a quarter of an hour before boarding. He'll catch us on the quay."

"Then people thought we were criminals. Why didn't we arrest him when he came?"

"Then my three months of hard work will be in vain. We'll catch the big fish, but the little ones will go on a rampage and get away. But we'll have them all by Monday. No, at He must not be arrested before then."

"then what should we do?"

"We get off at Canterbury Station."

"and then?"

"Ah, and then we do the cross-country trip, go to New Haven, go to Dieppe. If Moriarty were in my situation, I would have to go to Paris like this, get our checked luggage, and check at the station. Two days' wait. In the meantime, we buy two felt sleeping bags, to encourage the sleeping bag dealers in the countries along the way, and then take a leisurely trip to Switzerland via Luxembourg and Basel."

We got off the train at Canterbury station, but when we got off the train, we had to wait another hour for the train to New Haven.

I was still watching in dismay as the train with my full suitcase sped by, when Holmes tugged at my sleeve and pointed into the distance.

"Look, it's here," he said.

In the distance, a plume of black smoke rose from the Kent forest, and a minute later, a train could be seen galloping towards the station.We had just taken cover behind a pile of luggage when the train rumbled past with its whistle blowing.

"He's gone," said Holmes, watching the train pass rapidly over the hills. "You see, our friend's intellect is limited after all. If he can deduce what I deduce and act accordingly, he will be very happy." It's very superb."

"What will he do if he catches up with us?"

"He's going to kill me for sure. It's an open duel, though. The question is, do we have an early lunch here, or do we go to New Haven and find a restaurant? But New Haven will suffer." Hungry."

We reached Brussels that night, stayed there two days, and reached Strasbourg on the third day.On Monday morning Holmes sent a telegram to Scotland Yard, which we received back at our hotel that evening.Holmes tore open the telegram, and threw it into the stove with a groan.

"I should have expected that!" snorted Holmes. "He's gone."

"Moriarty?"

"Yes, Scotland Yard has the whole gang, but not Moriarty, he's gone. I'm out of England, and there's no one who can deal with him, but I think Scotland Yard has it all. I Look, you had better go back to England, Watson."

"why?"

"Because it's dangerous for you to be with me now. The man's lair has been taken away, and if he goes back to London, he won't be able to escape. From what I know of his character, he is bound to seek revenge on me. At that In the last conversation with me, he has made it very clear. I believe he can do what he said. Therefore, I must persuade you to go back to practice medicine."

Because I have assisted him in investigating cases many times and I am his old friend, it is difficult to agree with his suggestion.We sat in a restaurant in Strasbourg and argued for half an hour about this, but decided to continue our journey that night, and we arrived safely in Geneva.

Roaming along the way, after a fascinating week in the Rhone Gorge, we turned from Leuk to the Jimmy Pass, where the snow was still thick, and then, via Interlaken, to Meiringen.This is a pleasant trip, the mountains are bright and green in spring, and the mountains are covered with snow, but it is still cold winter.But I know very well that Holmes has not for a moment forgotten the shadow that looms over his heart.Whether in a simple Alpine village or a sparsely traveled mountain pass, he cast a vigilant look on everyone who passed us.He was sure that wherever we went we were in danger of being followed.

Once we were passing Jimmy Pass, walking along the depressing border of Mount Daubenne, when suddenly a large boulder fell from the right ridge and rolled into the lake behind us.Holmes immediately ran up the ridge and looked around.In spite of our guide's assurances that rock falls were a regular occurrence in this part of the spring, Holmes was silent and smiled at me with the air of anticipating this occurrence.

Although he was very wary, he was not discouraged.On the contrary, I have never seen him so energetic.He repeatedly mentioned that if he could get rid of the scourge of Professor Moriarty for the society, he would be willing to end his detective career.

"I have not spent my life in vain, Watson," said Holmes. "If my life were to end tonight, I would be as good as dead. Because of my existence, London society is stable. In more than 1000 cases I have handled, I believe that , I have never misused my powers. I am less fond of studying the shallow problems of our society, which are caused by our artificial social conditions, than I am interested in studying the problems raised by nature. If one day , when I have captured or exterminated the most dangerous and capable criminal in Europe, my detective career will be over, and your memoirs will be closed."

I intend to finish my story as briefly as possible.

I would not dwell on the matter, but my sense of duty will not allow me to omit any detail.

On May [-], we came to a small village in Meiringen, the Netherlands, and stayed at the "British Hotel" opened by Peter Steiner the Elder.Old Peter was a clever man who had been a waiter at the Grosvenor Hotel in London for three years and spoke perfect English.On the afternoon of the [-]th, at his suggestion, the two of us set out together, intending to cross the mountains to a small village in Rosenroy to spend the night.He solemnly suggested to us that we could take a little detour in order to enjoy the Reichenbach Falls on the mountainside.

It was indeed a treacherous place.The melted snow merged into a torrent and poured into the abyss. The mouth of the valley where the river poured into itself had a huge fissure. Black Mountain Rocks stood on both sides, and the fissure narrowed downwards. Milky white, boiling water flowed into the bottomless abyss, splashing A torrent poured down from the gap, making a thunderous noise, and the water splashed continuously upwards. The turbulence and noise made people dizzy.We stood on the edge of the mountain and gazed down at the waves crashing against the black rocks below, and listened to the roaring roar of the abyss.

On the hillside, there is a path around the waterfall, which allows people to enjoy the panoramic view of the waterfall, but the path ends abruptly, and tourists have to go back the same way.We had no choice but to go back. Suddenly, we saw a Swiss boy running along the path with a letter in his hand. The letter had the stamp of the hotel we had just left, and it was written to me by the owner.The letter stated that shortly after our departure an English woman arrived in the late stages of tuberculosis.She suddenly coughed up blood, and within a few hours, her life would be in danger. She would be very pleased if an English doctor could treat her, and asked me if I could come back and so on.The kind owner added in a postscript that since the lady flatly refused to be treated by a Swiss doctor, he had no choice but to ask me for help, and he himself would be very grateful if I would oblige.

The plea of ​​a female compatriot whose life is in danger in a foreign country cannot be ignored.But it made me hesitate to leave Holmes.In the end, we both agreed that he would keep the young Swiss messenger with him as guide and companion during my return to Meiringen.Holmes said he would stop by this waterfall for a while, and then walk slowly over the hill to Rosenroy, where I would join him in the evening.As I turned to walk away, I saw Holmes leaning against the rock, arms folded, looking down at the rushing water.Unexpectedly, this was my farewell to him.

When I walked down the hill and looked back, the waterfall was no longer in sight, but I could still see the rugged trail leading up to the waterfall on the mountainside.I remember seeing a man walking quickly up the path.Against the backdrop of the greenery behind him, I could clearly see his black figure.I noticed him, and the way he walked with vigor, but I soon forgot about him because I was in a hurry.

After walking for more than an hour, I arrived in Meiringen.Old Peter was standing at the door of the hotel looking around.

I hurried over and asked, "Is her condition not getting worse?"

He immediately showed surprise, and when I saw his eyebrows raised, my heart couldn't help but feel heavy.

"Didn't you write this letter?" I asked, drawing it from my pocket. "Is there not a sick Englishwoman in the hotel?"

"Of course not!" he exclaimed, "but it has the stamp of the hotel on it! It must have been written by the tall Englishman who came here after you left. He said—"

Before the shopkeeper finished speaking, I ran back along the village road in shock, towards the path I had just walked.I came downhill and walked for more than an hour, but this time I returned uphill. Although I ran as fast as I could, it took more than two hours to reach Reichenbach Falls.Holmes' trekking pole was still leaning on the same rock on which he had leaned when we parted.But he was nowhere to be seen. I called loudly, but there was only the echo from the surrounding valleys.

I shuddered at the sight of trekking poles.He did not, then, go to Rosenroy, and when the enemy attacked he remained on the path, three feet wide, with a steep wall on one side and a deep ravine on the other.The Swiss boy was gone too.He probably left the two opponents to walk away after taking Moriarty's bounty.What happened?Can anyone tell me what happened next?
I stood in panic for a minute or two, trying to compose myself, and then tried to use Holmes' way of thinking to find out the tragedy.It's not difficult.We hadn't reached the end of the trail as we talked, and trekking poles explained where we had stood.Splashed by water all year round, the blackish soil is always soft, even if a bird lands on it, it will leave paw prints.Under my feet, there are two clear rows of footprints leading to the end of the path, but there is no trace of returning.A few yards from the end of the path, the ground was trampled into mud, and the brambles and ferns at the edge of the crack in the path were torn up and fell in the muddy water.I crouched on the edge, looked down, and the water splashed all around me.It was getting dark when I left the hotel, and all I could see now was the glint of water on the black cliffs and the glint of crashing spray far down the canyon.I called out, but there was only the roar of the waterfall.

However, I finally found my friend's last words.

His trekking poles were leaning against a rock outcrop beside the trail.Gleaming on the top of this boulder was the silver cigarette-case which Holmes always carried with him.I picked up the cigarette case, and a small piece of paper under the cigarette case flew to the ground.I opened it and it turned out to be three pages torn from a notebook, addressed to me.It completely shows the characteristics of Sherlock Holmes, the instructions are still accurate, and the writing style is strong and powerful, as if written in a study.

My dear Watson:

I am writing these lines with the kindness of Mr. Moriarty, who is awaiting a final discussion of our problems.He has briefed me on his method of getting rid of the British police and finding out our whereabouts.This further confirms my high opinion of his talents.I am glad to think that I can rid society of its evils, though I am afraid it will bring sorrow to my friends, and you in particular.But, as I have already explained to you, nothing could have been more satisfying to me than this conclusion to my career, which had come to a critical juncture.I confess to you that I let you go, knowing full well that the letter from Meiringen was a hoax, because I was sure that a series of similar events would follow.Please tell Sheriff Patterson that all the evidence he needs to incriminate the gang is in the file rack with the prefix M, and inside is a blue envelope marked "Moriarty."When I left England, I disposed of the property and paid it to my brother Mycroft.Please give my regards to Mrs. Watson, my friend.

your faithful sherlock holmes

The rest can be explained in a few words.After an on-site inspection by experts, the two apparently had a fight, and the two wrestled tightly, staggering and falling into the crack.The most dangerous criminals and the most outstanding detectives of our time will forever be buried in the bottomless abyss of swirling and bubbling.Afterwards, no one saw the Swiss boy again, and he was obviously a minion hired by Moriarty.

The public, I believe, will remember that the complete incriminating evidence gathered by Holmes exposed their organization and the dead Moriarty's iron grip on them.During the course of the proceedings very little was said of the details of their dreadful chief, and now I am compelled to tell the whole story of his crimes.This is due to the attempts of vain defenders to honor Moriarty by attacking Holmes, whom I have always regarded as the best and wisest man I have ever known.

(End of this chapter)