Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 33 Adventure History (11)
"I don't want to keep hiding it. Because of me, James and his father had a conflict. Mr. McCarthy wanted us to get married as soon as possible. We were childhood sweethearts. But now he is young, has no life experience, and... and... umm , he is still unwilling to get married, just because of this, they quarreled, and I'm sure it's the reason. "

"Does your father approve of your marriage? What is his attitude?" asked Holmes.

"He disagrees, Mr McCarthy alone supports it."

Holmes cast a thoughtful glance at her, and she blushed instantly.

He said: "Thank you for providing these information. I wonder if I can visit your home tomorrow and meet your father?"

"The doctor may not allow you to see him."

"doctor?"

"Yes, you may not know. My father has been in poor health for these years, and this incident has made him almost collapsed. Now he is lying in bed all day. Dr. Willow said that his condition is very bad, Very fragile nerves. Mr. McCarthy was the only person who knew my father well in the early days in Victoria."

"Oh! In Victoria! It's very important."

"Yes, at the mine."

"That's more true. In the goldfields. From what I understand, Mr. Turner made his fortune there."

"Yes, indeed."

"Thank you very much, Miss Turner, the clues you provided are very important."

"If you hear anything new tomorrow, please inform me immediately. I think you will go to the prison to see James, Mr. Holmes. If you see him, please tell him for me. I believe in his innocence."

"Don't worry, I'll tell you, Miss Turner."

"Now I have to go back. My father is very ill. He is worried that I will leave him. Goodbye, God will bless you." After she finished speaking, she left as hurriedly as when she came, and the sound of the carriage disappeared.

After a moment's silence, Lethreid said: "Holmes, why did you deceive a girl? The case is hopeless. I blush for you. Although I am hard-hearted, I think you are more cruel."

"I think I can vindicate James McCarthy," said Holmes. "Has the prison allowed you to see him?"

"Approved, but the two of us are allowed to go."

"So, I have to think about whether I want to go out. Is there still time to take the train to Hereford to see McCarthy tonight?"

"In time."

"Very well, let's go now. Watson, I'll be back in two hours. I'm worried you'll have a hard time."

I took them to the train station, walked around the street, and went back to the hotel.I lie on the sofa and flip through a cheap novel to pass the boring time.But the unremarkable plot is far less attractive to me than this unpredictable case. Therefore, although my eyes are watching the novel, I am still thinking about the case in my mind.Later, I simply put the novel aside and concentrated on thinking about it.If what the young man said was true, what happened between the time he left, the time he heard the screams, and the time he ran back to that place?How could the criminal's hands and feet be so agile?Why kill an old man in such a cruel way?As a doctor, can't I deduce something from the wounds of the dead?I rang the bell for a local newspaper with an account of the interrogation, and the coroner's autopsy report: The third left parietal bone and the left half of the occipital bone at the back of the deceased's head were ruptured by a heavy blow .While stroking my head, I judged where the deceased was attacked.The killer apparently attacked from behind, which favored the defendant, who was seen arguing face-to-face with his father.However, it is not necessarily true, because he is likely to strike while his father is turning his back.But in any case, this should be told to Holmes.In addition, the deceased said "erat" on his deathbed.What does this refer to?I don't think the deceased must be talking nonsense. Under normal circumstances, people who are about to die after being attacked are very conscious and will never babble.He seemed to be telling his son who the murderer was.However, what does this "Erlat" mean?I thought hard, hoping to find a reasonable explanation.If, as McCarthy said, there was a gray piece of clothing lying on the ground, it must have been left behind by the murderer in his escape, perhaps his overcoat.He was also brave enough to take the clothes from behind McCarthy's back while he was kneeling down, not more than a dozen paces away from McCarthy.The case was too complicated, and Lesred was right.Yet I still believe in the judgment of Sherlock Holmes, and believe that, provided fresh evidence supports his judgment, there may be hope for McCarthy.

Holmes returned very late, and Lethyreid was alone in the city, so he was alone.

After sitting down, he said: "The mercury column on the barometer is very high. I hope it doesn't rain before we scout the scene. It has a lot to do with it. In addition, you must concentrate and be extremely careful when inspecting the scene. It's best not to go out when you're exhausted." Do it. I see McCarthy."

"Anything new?"

"No."

"Didn't he give you any clues?"

"Nothing was offered. I thought he knew who the murderer was, just to cover it up for him. But, so far, he doesn't know anything about it. The lad is handsome, but not very clever, honest and kind youth."

I said, "He'd be a fool if he really didn't want to marry Miss Turner."

"Well, it bothered him a lot, too. McCarthy was really fond of Miss Turner, but he did something wrong a few years ago. McCarthy was a teenager and Miss Turner was in a boarding school." Studied, had been away from home for five years, and was a bit of a stranger to McCarthy. He had an affair with a bar girl in Bristol, and he was married at the marriage registry. No one knew it at the time. But he himself regretted this stupid thing very much. Therefore, when his father urged him to propose to Turner, he was very anxious, but he dared not tell the truth. He knew that his father was very strict. If he knew this He must not be spared, and he couldn't even live without his father. He was in Bristol three days before the accident with his wife, a barmaid. His father didn't know where he was. The point is very critical and worth noting. Unexpectedly, bad things can turn into good things. When he was in prison, the bar girl dumped him immediately. She wrote to him and told him that she was a married woman. Husband They work in the Bermuda docks, so they're not married at all. I think that makes things easier for McCarthy."

"But if he wasn't the murderer, who was it?"

"Oh, who is it? You should pay attention. First, the deceased made an appointment to meet someone by the pond. It is certain that the person is not his son, because he doesn't even know where his son is, let alone when he will come back." .Secondly, before the deceased knew his son was back, someone heard him called 'Cooy'! These two points are the main points of the case. Well, I think we should talk about light topics that have nothing to do with this case. The case Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”

The next day was fine and cloudless, as Holmes had predicted.Lesred picked us up in a buggy at nine o'clock in the morning, and we went together to Hatherley Farm and Boscon Pond.

"I heard an incident this morning that Mr Turner at the estate has deteriorated and his life is at stake," Lesred said.

"I suppose he is an old man," said Holmes.

"Aged about 60, he was in poor health when he was abroad and had been ill for many years. He was devastated by McCarthy's death, he was an old friend of McCarthy's, and he was also a benefactor of McCarthy. As far as I know, he didn't want to Rent leased Hatherley Farm to McCarthy."

"Is there really such a good thing?" asked Holmes.

"Yeah, he's been trying to help him, and everyone around him says he's good."

"But haven't you noticed the strangeness? McCarthy was originally poor and white. In addition to receiving a lot of help from Turner, he also wanted his son to marry Miss Turner, and Miss Turner was the heir to the family property. McCarthy's understanding of this matter The attitude is very firm, as if he is not discussing, but implementing the plan, as long as he speaks out, others must follow through. Isn't this very strange? Miss Turner said these things herself, what do you think?"

Lethreid gave me a wink and said, "We have deduced it by deduction. Holmes, I don't think that we can solve any problems by talking about these deduction on paper. The investigation of the facts alone is enough for us to be busy."

Holmes said humorously: "You are right. For you, it is already very difficult to investigate the facts."

Lesred said excitedly: "In any case, I have grasped a fact that is difficult for you to accept."

"That is……"

"It is that McCarthy was killed by his son, and other claims are not correct."

"Oh, the moonlight is always brighter than the mist," said Holmes with a smile. "Look at Hatherley Farm on the left."

"Yes, there it is."

It was a two-story slate tile roof building that made people feel very comfortable. It was large in size and novel in style. The walls were covered with moss, the curtains were drawn, and there was no smoke from the chimney, which made it look cold. It was deserted, and seemed to be shrouded in a low, gloomy atmosphere.We called the door from outside and the maid came out.At Holmes' request, she shows us the shoes the deceased wore when he died, as well as a pair of shoes that belonged to McCarthy, but they were not the same pair he was wearing at the time.Holmes measured the different places on the two pairs of shoes, and then asked the maid to take us into the yard, where we followed a path which led us straight to Boscombe Pond.

Holmes, who is carefully surveying the scene, will always be different from usual.If you are only familiar with Sherlock Holmes as a thinker and logician, then you will not recognize him at this time.His face was red for a while, and then dark for a while, frowning, his eyebrows were like two black lines, and his eyes were very bright.He bent over, lowered his head, his lips were tightly shut, the veins on his slender neck were protruding, and even his nostrils were dilated, like a hungry beast.If someone talked to him or asked him something at this time, he would act as if he didn't hear him, or answer impatiently.He walked quickly and quietly down the path across the meadow, through the woods, and then to Boscombe Pond.It was a wet swamp, and there were many footprints on it, and there were many footprints on the path and the grass beside it.Holmes walked briskly forward, stopped, and once made a deliberate circle and stepped into the grass.I watched Holmes's every move with great interest, but Lethred, who followed closely behind, always had a look of disdain.

Boscombe Pond, about fifty yards in circumference, was surrounded by reeds, and stood on the border of Hatherley's farm and Mr. Turner's private garden.There is a grove on the shore, through which we can see a house with a red roof, which shows the wealth of the owner.The grove was thick with trees, and there was only a narrow strip of twenty paces or so from the grove to the pond.Lethred told us that the ground where the dead man fell was quite wet, and the traces left by the dead man could be clearly seen after falling to the ground.I felt from Holmes' eager eyes that he was anxious to find many things in this straggly grass.He followed the scent like a police dog for a week, then turned back to Lethred.

He asked, "What did you go to the pond for?"

"I scooped it up with a rake, hoping to find something useful. But goodness..."

"Oh, come on! Come on! I don't have time to listen to your ramblings. There are footprints of your left foot all over here. Moles can follow you, but the footprints disappear when you reach the reeds. I wish I had come sooner." , it looks as if a herd of buffaloes have rolled here. The janitor and the group came from here, and there were their footprints within six to eight feet around the corpse.” He took out a magnifying glass, lay on the tarpaulin He went up, wanted to look more carefully, and said to himself while looking at it: "These footprints belong to McCarthy. He seems to have walked back and forth twice, and some of the footprints are very deep. There is no trace of a heel. It is obvious that he ran once Quickly. That showed he was telling the truth, and he ran back when he heard his father's cry. These are his father's footsteps walking up and down, and this one? It was the butt of McCarthy's gun that hit the ground as he listened to him. Marks. And this! Ha! What are these marks? Toes! Yes, toes! Not ordinary shoes, but square-toed boots! This is walking, that is walking, that is walking again... to get Overcoat. Where did these footprints come from? He looked back and forth, and guided by the disappearing footprints, we came to the edge of the woods and followed a big beech tree. Holmes followed all the way, and at last he was lying on the bed On the ground, he cried out happily. There he turned over the leaves and dead branches, and put some dirt-like things into envelopes. He checked the ground, the bark, and a piece of jagged moss behind the moss with a magnifying glass. The stone, and put the stone away, followed a path through the woods until it reached the edge of the road—where the tracks disappeared.

Only then did he turn back and say, "That's an interesting case. The house on the right must be the concierge. I should talk to Moran, or leave a note for her. Then we'll go back to lunch. You first Get to the carriage and wait, I'll be there soon."

After walking for more than ten minutes, we arrived at the carriage, and then drove back to Rose. Holmes looked at the jagged stone he had picked up all the way.

He pointed to the stone and said to Lethred, "This may interest you, Lethred, it is the murder weapon."

"I don't see anything special."

"It's really nothing special."

"Then how do you judge it as a murder weapon?"

"Because the grass under the stone is still alive, it means that the stone has only been there for a few days. I don't know where the stone came from. Its shape matches the wound of the deceased. Apart from this, there is no evidence of other murder weapons. trace."

"What about the murderer?"

"The murderer must have been a tall man, lame on the left, left-handed, wearing a gray overcoat and high-heeled hunting boots. He smoked Indian cigars in cigar holders and wore a blunt goose-feather Pen, knife, and other traces, but these alone will help us."

Lesred smiled: "You are a skeptic. There are always sets of truths, but the British jury wants evidence."

Holmes said calmly: "You have your method, I have mine, and there will be evidence. I will be very busy this afternoon, and I may have to drive back to London."

"Let the case hang in the air?"

"No, the case is closed."

"However, the mystery remains unsolved."

"It has been untied."

"Who is the murderer?"

"The man I described."

"There are not many residents in this area, and it is not difficult to find the murderer."

Lesred shrugged. "I'm practical, so I don't want to search the whole district for a left-handed lame man. People at Scotland Yard would laugh at me."

Holmes said: "Very well, anyway, the clues have been given to you. Your place is here. Good-bye. I will leave you a note before I go."

Not long after Lesred got out of the car, we also arrived at the hotel.When we walked in, lunch was already ready for us.Holmes looked thoughtful, but said nothing. From his strange expression, I was sure that he might be in trouble again.

After dinner Holmes said: "Sit down a little, Watson, and let us have a chat. I don't know what to do. How about you give me some advice? Have a cigar and let me tell you what I think."

"Let's talk."

"Well, there were two points in McCarthy's testimony that came to our attention at the same time during our initial analysis of the case, but which I thought were in his favor and which you thought were against him, namely: [-]. According to him, before seeing him, his father yelled 'Cui'. Second, he said that his father said 'Errat' before he died. The deceased said something vaguely before he died, but he just listened At this point, we can completely solve the case based on these two points, first assuming that what he said is true.”

"So, what does 'Cooy' mean?"

"Well, I don't think he called his son, because he didn't know that his son was back, so it was purely a coincidence that his son heard him call 'Cui'. The purpose of the dead man's calling was to attract the person he had made an appointment with. I found out that Cooy is a term used among Australians, so we can guess that the person who arranged to meet McCarthy at Boscomb Pond must have been in Australia."

"And what does 'Erlat' mean?"

Holmes unfolded a folded paper on the table and said, "This is a map of Victoria Colony. I telegraphed to Bristol last night for it." He pointed to a point on the map and asked. : "Do you see what this is?"

I read: "Alat."

He moved his hand away and said, "Take a good look."

"Ballerat."

"Yes, that's what the dead man said before he died, but his son only heard the last two words, when he wanted to say that the murderer's name was someone from Ballerat."

"It's wonderful!" I exclaimed loudly.

"Obviously, we can now narrow down our investigation to a very small area. If what McCarthy says is true, it is also true that the murderer had a gray overcoat. At first we only There was a vague understanding, but it's clear now."

"Of course."

"He knew the place well, because it is impossible for a stranger to come to this pond through a farm or an estate."

"Indeed it is."

"So we made the long journey here. By carefully inspecting the scene, I now have a basic understanding of the case, and the general outline of the criminal has also told this stupid fellow Lesred."

"How did you deduce these details?"

"Observe carefully."

"I know that you judge his height by the size of his stride, and his boots by his footprints."

"Yes, his boots are very special."

"Then how do you know he's crippled?"

"The footprint left by his left foot is clearer than that of his right foot. It can be seen that he exerted more force with his left foot. Therefore, it can be judged that he is crippled."

"What about lefties?"

(End of this chapter)