The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes

Chapter 98 The Return (13)
His eyes were bright, his cheeks flushed with excitement, like a craftsman watching his masterpiece near completion.Sherlock Holmes at this time is flexible and alert, quite different from the introverted, thoughtful, pale Holmes in Baker Street.When I saw his flexible body and eagerness to try, I had a premonition that it would be a very tiring day waiting for us.

However, the day got off to a disappointing start.We strode hopefully across the muddy tawny moor, criss-crossed by innumerable trails, to the open green swamp that separated us from Holdereth House.If the boy came home, he would have passed through here, and he would have left a trail, but we couldn't find any trace of the boy or the German.My friend walked sullenly up and down the edge of the wetland, anxiously examining every patch of mud in the wetland, checking for marks.There were sheep's hooves here and there, and nothing but the hooves of cattle a mile or two away.

Holmes looked melancholy and said, looking at the vast undulating wasteland, "There is still a wetland ahead. Let's go and have a look. Look, look! What is this?"

We walked up a narrow, dark path.In the middle of the trail, on the wet dirt, there are bike tracks.

I shouted, "Ah! We found it."

But Holmes shook his head, not showing a happy look, but a little puzzled, as if expecting something.

He said: "Of course it is a bicycle, but it is not that bicycle. There are 42 tracks of bicycle tires that I am familiar with. You can tell that this is a Dunlop tire, and the tire is thicker. German teacher Hedige The tires are Palmer, with stripes. The math teacher Alvelyn knows that well. So it's not a trace of the black bottom grid's bicycle."

"So, this is the child's?"

"It's possible, if we can prove that the kid has a car. But we can't prove it at all. You see, the track of the bicycle shows that the cyclist came from the direction of the school."

"Maybe it's going to school?"

"No, no, my dear Watson. The weight-bearing rear wheels make a deep track. There are a few places where the rear tracks cross the front wheels, and the front tracks are shallow and tend to get buried. Undoubtedly From school. It may or may not be related to our investigation, but before we leave, let's go back and have a look."

We walked back a few hundred yards and came to a swamp where the bike tracks disappeared.We continued along the trail until we came to a place with a spring.Here again there are bicycle tracks, but they are almost obscured by the marks of the hooves of the cows.There is no trace further on, and the trail leads to "Xiaogang", which is the small forest behind the school.The car must have come from a small wood.Holmes sat on a large rock, resting his chin on his hand, lost in thought.I smoked two cigarettes and he didn't move.

After a while he said: "It may be that a cunning man has changed the tires of his bicycle in order to make the trails unrecognizable. I would like to fight a criminal who has figured out such a way." Let's not think about this issue for now, let's focus on the wetland, there are many places we haven't checked yet."

Along the edge of the wetland we continued our systematic examination, and soon made our discovery.In a low part of the marsh there was a muddy track, and Holmes cried out with delight as he approached it.In the middle of the trail it looked like a bundle of wires had rubbed against the ground.This is exactly the trace of the Palmer tire.

Holmes exclaimed with joy: "It must be Mr. Heidigar! My deduction, Watson, is quite correct."

"I congratulate you."

"But we have a lot of work to do. Please, Watson, stay off the trail. We are following this track now. I don't think it will be very far."

We continued on and found that the wasteland was dotted with many small wetlands.The track of the bicycle appears and disappears, vaguely discernible.

Holmes said: "There is no doubt that the cyclist must be accelerating. You can see the track here. The front and rear tires are equally clear and deep. This shows that the cyclist puts all his weight on the handlebars, like the final stage of the race." Like a sprint. Ya! He fell."

In the tracks left by the bike, there are broad, irregularly shaped blotches that extend for several yards.Then there were a few footprints, and then the tracks of the tires came up again.

I reminded him: "The car slipped to one side."

Holmes plucked a bunch of crushed gorse to show me. The yellow flowers were spattered with little purple spots, and to my astonishment, the heather on the path was also covered with congealed blood spots.

"Move your feet, Watson," said Holmes, "and make no unnecessary footprints. What is the situation before me? He fell and hurt himself, got up, climbed up again, and rode on. But there was no trace of another bicycle. The hooves of the cows and sheep are on the other side of the track. He will not be trampled to death by the bulls, will he? No, it cannot be! No one else's footprints can be found here. Watson, we have to go further. We follow the blood And the trajectory of the bicycle, this person must not escape."

We continued to track, and after a while, we saw the tracks of the tires slipping sharply on the wet and slippery trail.I glanced ahead, and suddenly saw a gleaming metal object among the dense gorse bushes.We ran over and hauled out a bike with Palmer tires and a bent pedal and the front of the bike was horribly covered in drops and streaks of blood.On the other side of the bushes a shoe was sticking out.We hurried over to find the poor cyclist lying there.He was tall, bearded, and wore glasses, one of which was missing.He received a fatal blow to the head, which partially shattered his skull.The fact that he can continue to ride after such a serious injury shows that he is full of energy and courage.He was wearing shoes but no socks, and his top was open over a nightgown.There is no doubt that this is the German teacher.

Holmes turned the body over respectfully and examined it carefully.Then he sat down for a moment in thought.His frown showed that, in his opinion, there was nothing useful to our investigation to be found in the hideous corpse.

He concluded by saying: "Watson, I am at a loss as to what to do next. I think we have spent so much time in pursuing the investigation that we cannot afford to waste even an hour. Besides, we must Report the discovery of the body to the police, and take care of the poor man's body."

"I can send the note home for you."

"But I want you to accompany me and help me. Look! There's a man digging peat over there. Call him and send him to the police."

I brought the farmer, and Holmes made the startled man send a note to Dr Huxtable.

Then he said: "Watson, we have two leads this morning. One is the bicycle with the Palmer tires on it, and this car has led us to what we have just seen. The other lead is the Dunlop tires." Before we investigate this clue, let us think about what circumstances we already have in order to make the most of them, and to distinguish the essential from the accidental.

"First of all, I want you to be clear that the boy must have gone away voluntarily. After he came down from the window, he went away either alone or with someone else. There is no doubt about that."

I agree with him.

"Well, let's talk about the unfortunate German teacher. The boy ran away fully dressed. So it proves that he knew what he was going to do. But the German left without his socks on. He must have had some emergency. It’s the situation that makes the move.”

"There is no doubt about that."

"Why did he go out? Because he saw the kid running away from the bedroom window, because he wanted to catch up with him and bring him back. He took his bicycle and went after the kid, and had misfortune on the way. "

"It seems so."

"Now comes the most critical part of my deduction. When a grown man is chasing a child, he naturally runs after him. He is quite sure that he will overtake the child. But instead of doing that, the German teacher got on his bicycle. Go after it. I hear he's a good biker. He wouldn't have done it if he hadn't seen this kid go so fast."

"There should be another bicycle."

"Let's go ahead and imagine the situation: Five miles from the school, he has a misfortune - not a bullet, although even a child would have shot a gun. Mind you, he's given it by a strong arm. A fatal blow. Then the child must have been accompanied, and they were running fast. For a man who was good at riding a bicycle rode five miles to catch up with them. We checked the scene of the tragedy, and what did we find? Except A few hoof marks, but nothing else. I made a wide circle around the scene and found no other trails within fifty yards. Another cyclist might have had nothing to do with the murder, And there's no human footprint there either."

I cried, "Holmes, that's impossible!"

He said, "You're quite right. Things couldn't have gone as I've described them, so there must be something wrong with my inferences, and you've seen that. Can you point out what's wrong?"

"Could it be that he fell and broke his skull?"

"Can a skull be broken in the wetlands?"

"I can't think of any other possible scenario."

"Don't say that. We have solved more difficult cases than this. At least we have a lot of material. The question is how to make good use of it. Now that we have made good use of the clues of the bicycle with Palmer tires, let's look at it now. What a Dunlop bike with thicker tires can offer us."

We found the track of the bike and followed it for some distance, and the moors gradually turned into slopes covered with tall heather, and we crossed a waterway.The trajectory gives us no further clues.At the point where the tracks of the Dunlop wheels ended, there was a road leading to Holderez House on one side, and we could see the spiers of the mansion towering a few miles to the left, and on the other side we could vaguely see a low-lying building. low farm.This is exactly the Chesterfield Parkway shown on the map.

We came to a disgusting looking dirty hotel with a sign over the door of a fighting cock.At this moment Holmes groaned suddenly, and grabbed my shoulder to keep me from falling.Another helpless ankle sprain, which he had once.He jumped to the door with difficulty, where a dark-skinned, older man was squatting, with a black clay pipe dangling from his mouth.

"Good day, Mr. Ruben Hayes," said Holmes.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" asked the countryman, suspiciously in his sly eyes.

"It says so on the sign over your head. It's not hard to tell who's the head of the house. I suppose you don't have a carriage or anything like that in your stable?"

"No."

"My feet can barely touch the ground now."

"Then don't land."

"But how do I walk?"

"Then you just jump and go."

Mr. Ruben Hayes was very rude, but Holmes treated him kindly.

He said, "You see, my friend, it is really difficult for me to walk. As long as I can move forward, I don't mind how I walk."

"I don't mind either," said the eccentric shopkeeper.

"I have important business to attend to. If you will lend me a bicycle, I will pay you a guinea."

The innkeeper pricked up his ears.

"Where are you going?"

"Holderrath Hall."

The shopkeeper looked at our mud-stained clothes and sarcastically said, "Maybe they belong to the Duke?"

Holmes smiled generously, and said: "Anyway, he will be very glad to see us."

"why?"

"Because we're bringing him news of his missing son."

The owner of the shop was obviously taken aback.

"What? Do you have any news?"

"Some say he's in Liverpool and the police will find him soon."

The expression on the shopkeeper's unshaven and gloomy face changed rapidly again, and his attitude suddenly became gentle. He said: "There is a reason why I don't bless him like ordinary people. I used to be the head of his coachman." Well, he treated me very badly, and dismissed me without a good word. Still, I was glad to hear that the young duke might be found in Liverpool. I'll take the news to the duke's house for you. "

"We must have something to eat first," said Holmes, "and then you bring the bicycle."

"I don't have a bicycle."

Holmes produced a gold pound piece.

"Let me tell you, I really don't have any bicycles. I will lend you two horses to ride to the Duke's mansion."

"Well, well, let's talk after we have eaten," said Holmes.

When we were alone in the stone-slab kitchen, Holmes' sprained ankle healed in a flash.It was getting dark by this time, and we hadn't eaten since early morning, so we took some time to eat.Holmes was lost in thought after dinner, and once or twice he went to the window and gazed out.Outside the window was a dirty yard, and in the far corner was a blacksmith's furnace, where a filthy child was at work.On the other side of the yard are the stables.On one occasion Holmes had just come back from the window and sat down, when he stood up abruptly again and exclaimed: "My God! I believe I have figured it out! Yes, it must be so. Watson, you remember seeing Any traces of hooves?"

"Yes, I remember seeing quite a few."

"Where?"

"Oh, a lot of places. On the wetlands, on the trails, and where poor Heidig was killed."

"Exactly. So, Watson, how many cattle have you seen on the heath?"

"I don't seem to see any cows."

"It is very strange, Watson, that there are footprints of cows' hoofs along the way, but there is not a single cow in sight on the whole moor. Isn't it strange?"

"Yes, it is indeed strange."

"Now, Watson, if you think about it carefully, have you ever seen these traces on the trail?"

"Well, I see."

"Can you remember how traces sometimes look like this?" He arranged some crumbs into—"Sometimes like this"—"Sometimes like this by accident"—"Can you remember these? "

"I can't remember that."

"But I remember it being so. I swear it was so. But we can only go back and verify when we have time. I was really careless and didn't come to a conclusion at the time."

"What is your conclusion?"

"It's a strange cow, walking, running, and galloping. I don't think a country innkeeper's mind, Watson, can think of such a deception. There seems to be no difficulty in solving the problem, except that the boy is still in the smithy." There. Let's sneak out and see what we can find."

Holmes lifted the front hoof of one of the two shaggy and ungroomed horses in the crumbling stable, and laughed aloud.

"Old horseshoes, freshly nailed on. The nails are still new. This case is typical. Let us go to the blacksmith's furnace."

As we walked past, the child continued to work, ignoring us.I saw Holmes scanning from right to left the heap of rotting iron and wood on the ground.Suddenly we heard footsteps behind us, the owner of the shop.He frowned tightly, his eyes were fierce, and his dark face was swollen with anger.He held a short club with an iron head in his hand, and came towards us with such a menace that I felt for the pistol in my pocket.

"You two bloody detectives!" he cried. "What are you doing here?"

Holmes said coldly: "Why, Mr. Ruben Hayes, you are probably afraid that we will find out something."

The shopkeeper tried his best to control himself, the corners of his ferocious mouth relaxed, and he smiled falsely.This is scarier than before.

He said: "You may search my blacksmith's furnace as you like. But, sir, you cannot search here and there without my permission, so I want you to pay your bill as soon as possible, and get out of here as soon as possible."

"Well, Mr. Hayes, we mean no harm," said Holmes. "We just looked at your horse. I think I must go on. I don't think the distance is very far."

"It's not more than two miles from here to the gates of the Ducal Palace. Take the road to the left." He looked at us sullenly until we left his hotel.

We had not gone very far, and Holmes stopped short of turning the corner, when we were out of sight of the shopkeeper.

He said: "Living in the hotel is warm, as the children say. It seems that every step outside the hotel feels a little colder. No, we can't leave the hotel."

I said, "I'm sure this Ruben Hayes knows the whole thing. He's the worst villain I've ever met."

"Oh, did he give you such a bad impression? And those horses, and that blacksmith's stove. Yes, this 'Gamecock' inn is an interesting place, let's keep an eye on it."

Behind us is a sloping hillside, scattered with large chunks of gray limestone.We turned off the road and started up the hill when I took a look in the direction of Holderez House and there was a man on a bicycle galloping up.

Holmes put his hands on my shoulders and said, "Watson, squat down." We had no time to hide when this man was speeding past on the road.Through the flying dust, I saw for a split second an excited, pale face—panic in every line, mouth wide open, eyes staring blankly straight ahead.The figure was a caricature of the well-dressed Wilde we saw last night.

(End of this chapter)