Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 34 Adventure History (12)
"You have seen the medical examiner's identification of the wounds of the deceased. The deceased was attacked on the back, and the wound was on the left side of the head. You think, only a left-handed murderer could hit the left side of his head. When the father and son were talking, the murderer should have Standing behind a tree and smoking, I deduced from the ashes found on the ground that he was smoking Indian cigars. I spent a long time researching this and wrote a paper on 140 five kinds of pipes, cigars and cigarettes Ashes, I have told you before. After I found the ashes, I found the butts in the moss, the butts of Indian cigars like those rolled in Rotterdam."

"Where's the cigar holder?"

"Because there is no trace of the cigarette butt being held in his mouth, I deduce that he used a cigarette holder. The end of the cigar has no bite mark, but it was cut with a knife, but it was not cut neatly. Therefore, I said he brought a handful of cigars. Blunt knife."

I said, "You cast a big net on the murderer, he couldn't escape, and you saved a young life, it was like cutting the noose around his neck. The truth is about to come to light, but the criminal yes……"

"Mr. John Turner is here to visit." The hotel clerk pushed open the door of our room and ushered in the guest, who was an old man I had never seen before.He walked with a limp and looked very old, but his resolute face and well-developed limbs made people feel that he once had a strong body and a special character.He has silver-gray hair, curvy beard, drooping eyebrows, looks dignified, dignified and personable.However, his face was very pale, his lips and the tip of his nose were purple-blue. As a doctor, I could tell at a glance that he was terminally ill.

Holmes said politely: "Please sit on the sofa. It seems that you have received my note?"

"Yes, I received it. You said that in order to avoid gossip, we will meet here."

"I think going to the manor to find you will definitely arouse people's discussion."

"Why do you want to see me? Is there something wrong?" He had a tired expression on his face, but he seemed to know the answer after seeing Holmes' eyes.

Holmes said: "Yes, I know everything about McCarthy." After hearing this, the old man lowered his head, covered his face with his hands, and shouted: "God bless me! I assure you, that young man will not be harmed." A sliver of hurt, and if the court finds him guilty, I will stand up and tell the truth."

"I am very pleased to hear you say that," said Holmes gravely.

"Actually, I wanted to tell the truth a long time ago, but when I thought about my daughter, I was afraid that she would be sad if she found out... If I was arrested, how would she live?"

"Perhaps it is not yet time for arrest," said Holmes.

"what did you say?"

"I'm a private eye, and your daughter asked me to come here and try to save McCarthy."

Mr. Turner said: "I am going to die. It is diabetes. It has been many years. The doctor said that I can live for a month at most. Even if I die, I will die at home."

Holmes got up and sat down at the table. He spread out the paper and pen, and said, "Please tell me the whole story, I will record it, and then you can sign it. I will take it out as a last resort." Save McCarthy. I assure you, use it only when necessary, as this Dr. Watson can attest."

The old man said: "Well, I may not live to the day of the trial, so I don't care about it, but I hope my daughter will not be hurt. I will tell you the whole thing now, although it has been a long time since it happened. It doesn't take long to talk about it.

"You don't know McCarthy at all, he's a monster. I'm telling the truth, God bless you, don't let him get you, he's got me for 20 years, I'm ruining my life In his hands, let me first tell you how he got hold of it.

"It was the 19s. I was mining in the mining area. I was very young, very excited, and not responsible. I dared to do anything. I met some bad guys and ate, drank and had fun all day long. After the mining failure, the six of us were idle partners Became a robber and used to stop and rob traffic. Back then I was known as Black Jack of Ballerat, and people in that area still know the Ballerat Gang.

"Once, we robbed a gold convoy from Ballerat to Melbourne. They had six cavalry escorts, and we happened to have six cavalrymen. We were equally powerful. At first we killed four of their cavalrymen, and soon we also had Three people died, but we got the gold in the end. I put a gun to the head of the coachman, he was McCarthy, and I'm sure if he had been killed, nothing would have happened today. But, I let him go, though I saw him staring at me hard, as if to remember me. I was very rich with the gold, and returned to England without suspicion. We were left The three accomplices of my family went their separate ways after returning to England, and I also made up my mind to go the right way, so I bought the family business today, and used my own money to do some good deeds, so as to make up for my sins. Later I I got married. Although my wife passed away early, I still have a lovely daughter. When she was very young, I swore that I would never do bad things again. In short, I wanted to reborn and tried my best to make up for the mistakes I made, but I still didn’t Thinking of finally falling into McCarthy's clutches. I ran into him in Regent Street one time when I was in town on errands, something to do with investments, and he was shabbily dressed and in very difficult circumstances.

"He pulled me and said: 'Jack, we meet again, you take me and my son, we will become a family with you, otherwise...the UK is a country with the rule of law, I can call the police anytime, anywhere .'

"I had no choice but to take them back to the village. From then on, he began to manipulate me. He occupied the best land, but never paid me rent. My life was not peaceful, I kept thinking about the past, and no matter what I see his sly face everywhere I go. My daughter grew up and it was even worse because he knew I was more afraid of my daughter knowing what I had done than the police, so he always used it As a coercion, I have to give anything I want. I have never been stingy, I will give him everything he wants, land, money, and a house, but then he asked for something that I couldn't give, and that was my daughter.

"At that time, my daughter grew up, and so did his son. I was not in good health, and he wanted his son to take over all my family property. I firmly opposed it. I didn't want the blood of our two families to mix, but Not because I didn't like that guy, just because he had his father's blood on him. Finally, we made an appointment to meet at that pond to end it.

"When I was almost there, he was talking to his son. I hid behind a tree and waited for him, smoking a cigarette, trying to wait for his son to go. But what he said to his son pissed me off, and he persuaded his son Proposing to my daughter and not caring what my daughter thinks, she looks like a whore to him. Can I get past this? I won't live long anyway. I'm still sane and my limbs are strong Powerful, but I know my life is over. If I shut him up forever, then my past and my daughter can be saved. I can't let my daughter take it all for me. I killed him like a head Fearful beast, very glad. His cry called back to his son, and I took refuge in the woods. But I had to go back and get the overcoat I had left there. That's all it was, Mr. Holmes. "

The old man signed the record, and Holmes said: "Well, I have no right to judge you. I hope that there will never be another man who is so overwhelmed by temptations that he cannot control his own life."

"I hope so, sir. What do you plan to do next?"

"In view of your current physical condition, I don't want to do anything. You also know that this case will be accepted by the High Court soon. I will help you keep your confession and never let others know it unless it is absolutely necessary. Anyway, I'll keep it a secret for you."

The old man said solemnly: "Well, goodbye. When you are about to die, if you can think of someone who helped me die in such a peaceful way, you will definitely feel happy." After speaking, he walked away slowly.

Holmes was silent for a moment and said: "May God bless us! Why does fate always play tricks on those isolated and poor people? Whenever I encounter such cases, I always think of the words of the Reverend Baxter. He said: 'Sherlock Sherlock Holmes was able to solve the case entirely by the blessing of God.'”

Later, in the circuit court, James McCarthy was acquitted because Holmes provided his defense counsel with a strong case.Mr. Turner died seven months after we met.It might happen that his son and his daughter are married and living happily ever after, but they have no idea what kind of dark clouds have hung over them in the past.terrible orange pit
I glanced roughly at the records and notes I kept on Holmes' solving the case between 1882 and 1890, and suddenly felt that there were too many interesting materials in front of me, and I didn't know where to start to choose.Some cases have become well-known after being rendered by newspapers and magazines, and some cases have become the subjects of those magazines and newspapers, although they did not provide him with room to display his outstanding talents.There are also some cases, even if he has only figured out some of the links, and many analyzes are just guesswork.For example, there is such a case, not only the plot is bizarre, but also the ending is quite special.While some of the truth about this case remains a mystery to this day, and may remain a mystery forever, I couldn't help but want to share it with more people.

In 1887 we had a series of cases, interesting or not, of which I made more detailed records, which I have kept to this day.Among the titles of these records are the following: "The Case of the Parador Mansion"; "The Case of the Amateur Beggars," a gang that owned a luxurious "club" in the basement of a furniture store; "The Truth about the Wreck of the USS Anderson"; "The Mysterious Case of Glass Peterson's Wizarding Island"; and "The Camberwell Poisoning Case".I recall that in this last case, when Holmes wound the dead man's watch, he found that it had been wound up two hours before, so that the dead man had gone to bed at that time.This inference turned out to be the key to clarifying the case.All these cases, there may be a day in the future, I will sort out and briefly describe them all.But probably none of them is more intricate and grotesque than the one I am about to write about.

It happened to be late September, and the rain at the autumnal equinox was very heavy, and the wind and rain had been blowing all day.At this moment, in London, a city built with human wisdom and hard work, we have no enthusiasm for work, and we have to succumb to the power of nature.It seems to be a ferocious beast that has not been tamed in an iron cage, desperately roaring towards the world through the fence of human civilization.The storm became more violent as the night wore on, and the wind was like a baby crying in the chimney of the fireplace, weeping softly for a while, and whistling loudly for a while.Holmes sat melancholy at one end of the fireplace, indexing the conviction record, while I, on the other, buried myself in a wonderful novel about the sea by Craig Russell.At this time, the howling wind and downpour outside the house seemed to have gradually turned into the pounding of waves, as if echoing and blending with the theme of the novel.My wife was visiting her cousins ​​at the time, so these days I am once again a tenant at my old house in Baker Street. "Hey," I said, looking up to my companion, "the doorbell is indeed ringing. Who's coming tonight? Your friend?"

"Which friend do I have but you? Besides, I don't want to be visited all the time," he said.

"Then, it should be your client?"

"If it's the client, then the case must be serious, otherwise who would be willing to come out at this time? Maybe it's a friend of the landlady's wife."

Holmes guessed wrongly, for soon there were steps in the passage, and then there was a knock at the door.He reached out and turned the lamp that illuminated him to the chair where the guest was about to sit, and said, "Come in."

A young man about 22 years old came in. He was neatly dressed and behaved gracefully. Water dripped from the umbrella in his hand, and the raincoat on his body was shining.Under the lamp, he looked around anxiously, and then I noticed that his face was very pale and his eyes drooped.This look is often a manifestation of being overwhelmed by great worries.

"I should say sorry," he said, putting on a pair of gold-rimmed pince-nez. "I hope I haven't bothered you. I'm afraid the muddy water will stain your tidy house."

"Give me your raincoat and umbrella; I will hang them on their hooks and dry them in a moment," said Holmes. "I suppose you are from the South-West?"

"Yes, I'm from Horsham."

"I guessed from the dirt on your shoes."

"I came here specifically to ask you for advice."

"polite."

"I do need your help."

"That won't be so easy."

"Having heard of Holmes' reputation for a long time, Major Custer told me how you rescued him from the scandal at the Tankville Club."

"Yes, that's right. Someone framed him for cheating with fake cards."

"He said you could fix any problem."

"He's exaggerating."

"He also said you were a victorious general."

"I've also failed - three times to several men and once to a woman."

"However, this cannot be compared with your countless victories at all."

"Yes, generally speaking, I have been successful."

"In this way, you should also succeed in my case."

"Move your chair over a little, please, and talk about your case."

"Not an ordinary case."

"The cases discussed here are not ordinary. My place is almost becoming the Supreme Court of Appeal."

"However, I would like to ask, sir, is there any more mysterious and inexplicable case in your case than what happened in my family?"

"I am very interested in what you have said. Please tell me the main facts first, and then I will ask you some details that I think are the most important." said Holmes.

He said: "My name is John Openshaw, and I actually have nothing to do with this dreadful case myself, which is a legacy of previous generations, and I will start at the beginning of the matter so that you may fully understand it.

"My grandfather had two sons, my uncle Elias and my father Joseph. My father had a small factory in Caventry, and when the bicycle came out he took the opportunity to expand it, And enjoy the patent of Openshaw anti-puncture tires, so the business is very good. Later he sold the factory, which made a huge sum of money and lived a very rich life.

"My uncle Elias lived in the United States when he was young, and later became a plantation owner in Florida. I heard that he managed a good business. During the Civil War, he fought under Jackson and was promoted to colonel under Hood. After Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered, he left the army and returned to the plantation. Three or four years later, about 1869 to 1870, he returned to Europe, at Horsham, Sussex He bought a small piece of land nearby. In fact, he made a fortune in the United States. He left there because he hated blacks and did not approve of the Republican Party giving blacks the right to vote. He was a vicious man, with vulgar words when he was angry, and a very strange temperament. Living in In the past few years, Horsham has hardly been out of the house. I even doubt whether he has been to the city. He has a garden and two or three plots, where he can exercise and exercise every day. He often He doesn't leave the house, but he is a heavy smoker and likes to drink brandy. He is very social and doesn't make friends, not even with his only brother.

"As for me, although he doesn't seem to care much, I actually feel that he likes me. Because when he saw me for the first time, I was a child of eleven or twelve years old. It was 1878, and he had already returned to China. It’s been eight or nine years, and I very much hope that my father will agree to let me live with him. He is also trying to love me in his own way. When he is awake, he likes to fight Shuanglu and play chess with me, and he also agrees that I represent him. Make decisions about things at home and outside the house. So by the age of 16, I was already a little master. I kept all the keys, and I could go wherever I wanted and do whatever I wanted, as long as it didn’t affect His secluded life is fine. But there are exceptions, that is, among the many houses in the attic, there is a room full of dilapidated sundries, which has been locked for many years and no one is allowed to enter. I once curiously asked through the keyhole Peeped inside the room, but didn't see anything except a pile of old boxes and bundles.

"One day in March, 1883, he received a letter with a foreign stamp on it, which seemed unusual to him, as he had no friends of any kind, and bills were always paid in cash, never by letter. He picked up the letter I was very surprised and said: "It is sent from India, and the postmark is from Pondicherry, a port city in southern India. How could it be?" He hurriedly opened the letter, and five dry orange cores fell out of the envelope. I was about to laugh , but saw that his lips were parted, his eyes were wide open, his face was like ashes, and the smile on my face froze in fright, and I heard him scream: 'KKK! God, there is no escape from sin. '

"'Death!' he stood up and went back to his room, leaving me stunned. I picked up the envelope, and inside the flap, just above the glued top, I found three words written in red ink: The letter K was scrawled. There was nothing in it except the five small orange pits. What was it that frightened him? When I went upstairs, he just came down, holding the worn-out key for the roof in one hand, and the other. In one hand was a small brass box like a money box.

(End of this chapter)