Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 112 The Return (23)
"After I entered your house, I checked the window carefully. I found it ridiculous that you thought at the time. You really thought I would believe you when you said that the man broke in through the window in broad daylight and in full view. huh? That's absolutely ridiculous. I just wanted to see how tall someone would have to be to walk by and see the rolls on the table. I'm six feet tall and it takes a while to see, so someone shorter than six feet Not at all. So, I think if there is one of your three students who is above average, it is likely to be this person.

"I came in and found the clue on the table by the window, and I told you about it. I couldn't find anything on the table in the middle. And then you said Gilchrist was a long jumper, which Made me understand the whole process, but I needed some other proofs, which I got shortly.

"This young man has been practicing long jump on the sports field in the afternoon. When he came back, he brought his running shoes. You should be very clear that there are spikes under the soles of the running shoes. When he passed the window, because he was tall, he saw the table. If he hadn't seen the key still hanging on the door when he passed your door, I don't think it would have happened. Impulse made him enter the house, trying to see clearly Whether it was a test paper or not was not too risky, because he could definitely come in pretending to ask questions.

"When he saw that it was indeed the test paper, he couldn't resist the temptation. He put the shoes on the table casually, and what did you put on the chair by the window?"

The young man said, "It's a glove."

Holmes glanced at Bannister with satisfaction. "He just put his gloves on the chair, and then he copied the papers one by one. He figured the tutor would come in by the yard gate so he could see. We all know Mr. Soames came in by the side door, and he Suddenly he heard the mentor’s footsteps approaching the door, and it was impossible to escape, so he picked up his running shoes and ran into the bedroom immediately, but he had already forgotten about the gloves. We saw the scratches on the table lightly, But the end towards the bedroom is very deep, which can prove that the running shoes are going towards the bedroom, and the person is hiding in it.

"One piece of dirt from the spikes was left on the table, and another piece fell in the bedroom. I went to the sports field this morning and saw that the jumping pits were all black clay with yellow fine sawdust sprinkled on it. To prevent athletes from falling, I brought a small piece of black soil as a sample. Mr. Gilchrist, am I right?"

The young man stood up now, and said, "Yes, you are quite right."

Soames said, "Is there anything else you want to tell us?"

"Yes, sir. I was in a state of panic after this disgusting business. I wrote you a letter, Mr. Soames, which I did in a sleepless night. I did it after you found out I wrote it before I was guilty, sir, please read it. I wrote: 'I have decided to withdraw from the examination. I have received an appointment from the Rhodesian Police Headquarters and I am going to leave for South Africa!'”

Soames said, "I'm really glad you didn't plan on cheating on the scholarship, but why did you change your mind?"

Gilchrist looked at Bannister and said, "He helped me."

Holmes said: "Come here, Bannister. I have made it very clear that only you can let him go. You were alone in the room at the time. If you left, you would lock the door. He It is impossible to escape from the window. Please clarify the last doubt, and please explain the reason for doing so."

"Once you know, the reason is much simpler. Though you are very clever, you will never know all about it. I was once the young man's father's housekeeper. I came here as a servant when he was bankrupt." But I never forgot the old master, and in return I took care of his son to the best of my ability. I saw Mr. Gilchrist's for the first time yesterday when Mr. Soames called me over. The glove was on the chair. I knew very well who it belonged to, and of course I knew better what the glove would do if Mr. Soames saw it. He went to you before I dared to move. Then came out my poor master, whom I had raised, and he confessed to me what he had done. It was only natural that I must save him , isn't it? Isn't it natural that I must teach him not to be clever? Can you blame me, sir?"

Holmes rose happily and said: "It is not true. You have figured out the matter, Soames, but we haven't had breakfast yet. Let us go, Watson! As for you, sir, I am sure you will be in the There is a bright future there. Although you fell down this time, we still hope that you will have a bright future." The glasses in the dead man's hand
Here are three very thick manuscripts documenting the work in 1894.It was rather difficult for me to select from this wealth of material some cases which were particularly interesting, but which at the same time showed the peculiar talents of my companion.In going through the case records, we have the annoying case of the red leech, the tragic death of the banker Crossby, the tragedy of Adelton, and the strange case of the burial of the English tomb. At the same time, you can also see the famous Smith-Mortimer succession case.During this period, my friend received a letter of thanks written by the President of France and a French medal for participating in the hunt for the murderer Harnett on Blois Street.Even if these could make for good stories, on the whole I don't think they can even be compared to the Yoxley House case, which has a compelling and gripping plot, including not only the tragic death of the young Willoughby Smith, There are also many ups and downs.

On a windy and rainy night at the end of November, Holmes and I were sitting quietly. At this time, he was using a high-powered magnifying glass to carefully distinguish the writing left on the paper, and I was also concentrating on reading an article. Surgical academic papers.Outside the wind was howling across Baker Street, and the rain was beating heavily on the windows.Oddly enough, living in the city center, where there are man-made structures within a ten-mile radius, one can still feel threatened by nature.As far as I am concerned, I feel that London is so fragile in the face of the great power of nature, and it is not necessarily stronger than a hillock in the field.I leaned against the window and looked at the deserted street.Suddenly, I saw a ray of light appearing in the distance, illuminating the muddy path, and a shining carriage.It was a one-man cab, coming this way from Oxford Street.

My friend put down the magnifying glass, rolled up the paper, and said: "Thanks, Watson, we didn't go out tonight. I have done a lot in sitting down just now. In my opinion, this is only after the fifteenth century." A half-term diary of a repairing house. Listen, what is this sound?"

In the howling wind, there was the clatter of horses' hoofs and the sound of wheels hitting the stone edge of the sidewalk.I saw the carriage stop right in front of our house.

A man got out of the carriage, and I called out, "What is he doing?"

"What's the matter, did he come to see us? Do we have to prepare coats, scarves, overshoes and all kinds of things? Wait a minute! The carriage is gone! This is really wonderful! If If he wants to ask us to go out, he will definitely let the carriage wait outside. My dear Watson, everyone else is already asleep, so go downstairs and open the door."

I recognized the visitor as soon as he walked through the foyer. He was young Stanley Hopkins, a detective with great potential, and my friend had repeatedly shown great interest in his work. .

"Has he come in now?" asked Holmes eagerly.

"Dear friend," my friend said jokingly to him from upstairs, "please come upstairs, I don't think you will have any bad intentions for us on this stormy night! "

The detective made his way up the stairs, his raincoat gleaming from the lights.I helped him take off his raincoat while my companion fanned the fire in the fireplace.

"My dear Mr. Hopkins," said Holmes, "come nearer to the fire, and it will warm your feet. Would you like a cigar? Dr. Watson will give you a cup of hot water with lemon, which is the best medicine." .Did something very important happen when you came here so late at night?"

"It is indeed a matter of great importance, Mr. Holmes. I have been very busy this afternoon. Have you read the thing about Yoxley in the evening paper?"

"I haven't had time to look at things after the fifteenth century."

"It's only a small part of it, and it doesn't correspond to the facts at all, so it doesn't make much difference whether you read it or not. I also found time to go to the scene once. The line is three miles long. It was a quarter past three when I received the call, and at five o'clock I was on the scene, at the former home of Yorksley, where I investigated and collected evidence before catching the last train to Charing Cross Street, another hired carriage is coming to you."

"I suppose you haven't figured out the case yet?"

"Yes, I can find no reason at all for what happened, and, so far as I have been investigating, the circumstances of the matter are as vague as ever. At the beginning of the investigation, the case seemed simple. Mr. Holmes, there is no crime to be found." Motive. The most troublesome thing for me is that I can't find the purpose of the murder. Although this person was killed, there is no reason for anyone to hurt him."

Holmes lit his cigarette, and leaned back deeply in his chair.

He said: "Please tell the matter again in detail."

Stanley Hopkins said: "I have already figured out these facts, but I just don't understand the true meaning of these things. According to my investigation, a few years ago, an old professor named Kellen bought York Sley's former residence. The professor was often ill, and spent half of the day lying in bed, and the rest of the day was limping around the house with a cane; or sitting in a wheelchair, let the servants push him around the garden The neighbors are very willing to communicate with him, and he is recognized as the most knowledgeable person here. Mrs. Marco, the housekeeper in his family, is also an elderly person, and there is another maid named Susan. Tarleton, he has been served by these two men since he came there, and they both have a good reputation. The old professor is working on a monograph of his. About a year ago, he felt that There should be a secretary to help, he has had two, but they are not satisfied. The third is Willoughby Smith, he just graduated from college, the professor likes him very much. His job is mainly to record the contents of the professor's dictation in the morning , and then I have to look up some materials related to tomorrow's work at night. Willoughby Smith, whether he was a child or when he was studying in Cambridge, behaved well, which made the old professor very satisfied. I have seen his certificate Letterhead, he has always been a man of dignified character, gentle character, and hard work. He was such a good young man, but he was killed in the professor's study this morning."

The wind kept roaring, the windows creaked, and my friend and I approached the fireplace in unison.Hopkins is still methodically narrating the story.

He said: "I don't think there is a residence in England that is as isolated from the outside world as the professor's house. For weeks, no one in his family may come out of the door. The professor is only devoted to his work and never cares about everything else. ;Smith knew none of the neighbors around him, and lived the same life as his master; and the two women had no need to step out of the courtyard. The gardener who pushed the wheelchair was called Mortimer, and he received a pension from the army. , he was in the Crimean War, he was a good man. He lived at the other end of the garden, where there were three little houses. Just these people lived in the old house, and, the main road from Kesham to London It was only a hundred yards from the garden gate. There was a latch on the gate, and any one could enter.

"I'm going to tell you about the testimony of Susan Tarleton, only she can give us some information. It happened between eleven and twelve o'clock in the morning, when she happened to be upstairs in the bedroom. Curtains. Professor Coren was resting in bed at the moment. He often did not get up after noon when the weather was bad. The housekeeper was working at the back of the house. The deceased was in his bedroom, which was also his living room. Later She heard Smith go down the passage, and down the stairs into the study, which happened to be the room below her. She did not see him, but she could never have mistaken Willoughby Smith's swift, The sound of powerful footsteps. She did not hear the sound of the study door closing, and after a while, a terrifying cry came out. The cry was mixed with hoarseness and despair, and it was strange and unnatural at the same time. It was a man or a woman's voice. Then there was the sound of heavy footsteps that shook the whole house, and then everything calmed down again. She was really scared and stupid, and it took a while to get off Then she saw that the study door was closed, but when she opened it, she saw Willoughby lying on the floor. At first she did not notice his wound, and when she tried to put him When I lifted it up, I saw blood flowing down from the neck. There was a small but very deep wound on the neck—the carotid artery was severed. The murder tool was the cutting paper placed on the desk. A small knife with a hard back and an ivory handle.

"At first the maid thought he was dead. When she poured cold water on his forehead, his eyes opened slightly for a moment, and he whispered, 'Professor, it's her.' Susan swore these were the dead man's words." He tried to say something more, raised his right hand, and died.

"At this time, the housekeeper also came to the scene of the murder, but she came a step too late and didn't hear what the deceased said before he died. She let Susan look after the body, and ran upstairs to the professor's bedroom by herself. At that time, the professor Sitting on the bed, panicked, for he could hear that something unfortunate must have happened. The steward said with certainty that the professor was still in his pajamas, which Mortimemile usually helped him at twelve o'clock. The professor said that when he heard the tragic cry, he didn’t know anything else, and he couldn’t understand the words of the young man when he was dying! But he thought it was something he said when he was insane. not tall.

"The professor thought he had no enemy at all, and he couldn't explain the murderer's motive. Then he immediately ordered Mortimer to call the police. After a short while, the local police found me and asked me to go with them to the police station Before leaving, they did not touch anything. The sheriff has already ordered that no one should be allowed to approach the house from the path. Mr. Holmes, the conditions are now fully met, and the next step is to use your reasoning Great time."

My friend said humorously with a smile: "Are the conditions really complete? Mr. Sherlock Holmes is still missing. Let's listen to your opinion first, Mr. Hopkins, what do you think of this situation?" What about a murder case?"

"Mr. Holmes, I would like to show you a simple map first. On the map, you can roughly know the location of the professor's study and the location of related places. In this way, you will easily understand my investigation."

I opened the sketch and put it on my friend's lap.Then he got up and walked to him, looking at the sketch behind his back.

"This picture is very simple, and I have drawn the important places. You can imagine other places when I describe them. First, suppose the murderer walked into the study. How did he get in? He will definitely pass by Enter the garden path through the back door. This is because this path is a shortcut leading to the study. If you enter from other places, you will have to take more detours. I think the murderer must have returned from the original path, because the study One of the two exits had already been locked when Susan went downstairs, and the other led to the professor’s bedroom. So, at the beginning, I kept paying attention to the path in the garden. It has been raining recently, and the path is muddy, so I must be able to find it. Out of footprints.

"During the investigation, I found that the murderer was very careful and sophisticated, and no footprints were found on the path. But it was very obvious that someone had walked along the grass on both sides of the path, and the grass had been trampled down. This The man must be the murderer, because the rain only started to fall at night, and the gardener, like everyone else, hadn't been there that morning."

Holmes said, "Stop for a moment. Where does this path lead?"

"On the road."

"How long is the path?"

"About a hundred yards or so."

"I think there must be traces to be found near the gate."

"It's a pity that the road next to the gate is a brick road."

"Then are there traces on the road?"

"The main road is trampled in such a mess that it is impossible to see clearly."

"What a pity. Did the imprint on the grass come in or go out?"

"It's hard to say because the direction of the footprints is not obvious at all."

Holmes grew impatient.

He said: "Indeed, it was raining heavily and the wind was blowing very hard. It was more difficult for me to distinguish the footprints than I was looking at the pieces of paper. This is also a helpless thing. Hopkins, when you don't know what to do about this How did you deal with it?"

(End of this chapter)