Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 79 Memoirs (13)
I got married that summer.One evening not long after we were married, I sat by the fire smoking a pipe and dozing off with a novel in hand, exhausted by a long day's work.My wife has gone upstairs to rest, the hall door has just been locked, and the servants are supposed to be asleep too.I stood up, knocked the cigarette ash and was about to go to bed, when suddenly I heard a doorbell.

I glanced at my watch, it was a quarter to twelve.It was so late, there was no one to visit, it must be sick, and a sick person in desperate need of care.Reluctantly, I walked to the vestibule and opened the door.To my surprise, it was Holmes standing on the stone steps outside the door.

My friend said: "I hope, Watson, it is not too late to disturb you."

"Come on in, dear fellow."

"You seem surprised, but that's no wonder. Now rest assured, it's none other than me. Hey, you still like to smoke the Arcadia blend you smoked before marriage, right? The fluffy ash on your clothes tells You've lost me. You're still used to wearing military uniform, and if you don't get rid of the habit of hiding your handkerchief in your sleeve, you'll never look like a real commoner. Can I stay tonight?"

"of course can."

"You said you had a single male guest room, and I suppose you have no guests now, and the coat rack proves it."

"It's nice to have you here."

"Thanks. I'm going to take up the empty hook on the coat rack, then. Oh, I'm a little sorry, I found out you had a British workman in your house. Any trouble? I hope he didn't come to fix the gutter."

"No, it's gas repair."

"I saw the imprint of his boots on the tarpaulin that covered the floor, and the light fell on it. No, thank you very much, I dined at Waterloo. But it was a pleasure to smoke a pipe with you. "

I gave him the pipe, and he sat across from me, smoking it without a word.I know him very well, if it wasn't for something very important, he wouldn't have come to me so late.So, I waited patiently for him to speak.

He took one look at me and finally said, "You seem to be busy right now."

I replied, "Yes, it's been a busy day. But it's too much for you to say. But I'd like to know how you judge."

He laughed out loud.

"My dear Watson, I know your habits best," said Holmes. "When you go out to see a doctor, you walk when you go near, and take a carriage when you go far. I found that although your boots were worn, they were not worn at all. Dirty, it can be seen that you are very busy now, and you often have to go out to see a doctor by carriage."

I said loudly, "Gao Ming."

"It's actually quite easy. When a good reasoner states his inferences ahead of time, it usually surprises those around him because they ignore the details of the reasoning. You write with a lot of exaggeration, but you also deliberately keep some of it. burden, not to the readers, so I get better results. Now, I am in a similar situation to those readers, because there are several cases that are puzzling. Although I have some clues, but But I lack evidence to justify my reasoning. However, I believe that I will find it sooner or later. Watson, I will find it!"

His eyes were piercing, and his thin face was slightly red.Now, he was no longer as reserved as before, but was very excited, but in just a moment, he returned to normal.When I looked at him again, his face became as stern as that of an Indian, making one feel that it was just a coldly running machine, not a body of flesh and blood.

"There are several points about this case," said Holmes, "which are quite remarkable, and even rather bizarre. I have investigated the whole case, and feel as if I am reaching the end. But if you will help me in this last link, I will be grateful." It's really useful."

"Of course I'd like to help you."

"Could you come with me to Aldershot tomorrow? It's a little far, though."

"I think I can ask Jackson to do my rounds."

"That would be great! I'd like to take the eleven-ten train from Waterloo."

"Then I still have plenty of time to prepare."

"If you are not very sleepy, I will tell you about the case now."

"You were really sleepy before you came here, but you're sober now."

"I'll go into as much detail as I can. You probably already know about it. It's the murder of Colonel Barclay. He was a member of the Royal Munster Infantry in Aldershot. "

"I've never heard of the case."

"It seems that this case has only attracted some local attention. It happened two days ago, and the situation is roughly like this:

"You know that the Munsters are the most famous Irish regiment in the British Army, and have done so well in the Indian and Crimean campaigns, and have continued to do so well ever since. Colonel James Barclay was at the He commanded this army. He fought bravely and was a veteran with a lot of combat experience. Later, because of his heroic performance in the counter-insurgency in India, he was promoted step by step from an ordinary soldier, and finally became the commander of the regiment.

"Colonel Buckley was married as a sergeant to Nancy DeVoy, the daughter of a former sergeant in the regiment. So, as you can imagine, a couple so young at the time in their new surroundings It is certain that there will be some ostracization in the regiment. But they adapt quickly and slowly integrate into it. It is said that Devoy is very popular with the female family members of the regiment, and Buckley is also respected by the officers of the regiment. Add , Devoy was very beautiful, and now despite being married for 30 years, she is still beautiful.

"Therefore, Colonel Buckley's family life has always been happy and happy, and I have learned from Major Murphy that no one has ever heard of a quarrel between the Buckleys. On the whole, he thinks that Colonel Buckley loves his wife more than But his wife loved Buckley. It is said that Colonel Buckley was very anxious when he was not with his wife for a day. And Mrs. Buckley, though deeply in love with her husband and faithful to him, was not very feminine. Gentle. However, they are recognized as a model couple in the regiment. Judging from the relationship between husband and wife, I really can't think of what caused the subsequent tragedy.

"Colonel Barkley has a somewhat eccentric character. Generally he appears strong and lively, but at times he is violent and vindictive, but this temper never flared up in the presence of his wife. I report to another The five officers knew that Major Murphy and the other three had noticed a phenomenon, that is, he often showed a particularly melancholy expression. Major Murphy said that when Colonel Buckley joked with everyone at the dinner table, he seemed There was an invisible hand that often wiped his smile from his face. A few days before the incident, he was depressed and depressed. Seeing him like this, his comrades even connected with some kind of superstition, thinking that his personality This is related to his eccentricity. He is very superstitious and dare not be alone, especially at night. This childish behavior often arouses people's speculation and discussion.

"The Munster Infantry was originally the old [-]th, and the [-]st Battalion had been stationed in Aldershot for several years. Married officers lived outside the barracks. All these years the Colonel lived in a house called 'Lan Quiet' cottage, half a mile from North Camp. The cottage is surrounded by courtyards, and the west side is only thirty yards from the road. They only employ a coachman and two maids, because the Buckleys have no children, usually There are no guests to live in. Therefore, there are usually only the colonel, his wife and three servants in the small villa.

"Now, let me tell you what happened in the villa of 'Lan Jing' between nine and ten o'clock last Monday night.

"Mrs Barclay is a Roman Catholic, and is therefore very interested in the St. George's Charity. The charity is run by the chapel in Watt Street, and gives out old clothes to the poor. She is to attend a meeting of the charity that evening about eight o'clock." As she was leaving the house, the coachman heard her and her husband say something homely, meaning to be back soon. Later, she went to invite Miss Morrison, who lived in a nearby villa, to attend the meeting. The meeting lasted 10 minutes. At about [-]:[-], Mrs. Buckley got up to go home. At the gate of Miss Morrison's house, the two parted to say goodbye.

"The 'Lan Jing' villa has a sunny morning room facing a road, and a glass door leading directly to the lawn. The lawn is thirty yards wide and separated from the road by a wall. The railing. Mrs. Buckley came to this room first on her arrival, before the curtains were drawn, as the room was not generally used at night. She herself lit the lamp and rang the bell for Jane Stewart, the maid. De brought a cup of tea. It was different from her usual habit. The colonel was in the dining room, and when he heard his wife come back, he went to that room too. The coachman saw the colonel passing the corridor and went in. The colonel never can come out.

"Mrs Buckley's tea wasn't ready until about ten minutes later. When the maid came to the door to bring in the water, she was surprised to hear Mr. and Mrs. Buckley arguing fiercely. She knocked on the door, but there was no answer. So she twisted the handle to open the door, but it was locked from the inside. Naturally, she hurried back and told the cook, and the two maids and the coachman came to the door of the sunny morning room, where the people were still noisy. They all said that only the voices of Mr. and Mrs. Buckley were heard at that time. Buckley's voice was very low and intermittent, so none of the three of them could hear what he was saying. But his wife's voice was High, they could hear her sad cry. She repeated: 'You coward! What now? You talk! You are a coward! A coward! Give me back my youth! I will never Can't bear to live with you. You're a coward!' Then they heard Colonel Barclay's horrific cry, the sound of a man falling and a woman screaming at the same time. When they came out, they felt that a tragedy had happened, so they wanted to break in. But the door was so strong that the coachman could not break in, and the two maids were already frightened. However, the coachman suddenly thought of a good way. He hurriedly left the door, walked around To the lawn. The lawn was facing a French window, and one of the windows was left open. I heard that this window is never closed in summer. The driver climbed in easily. At this time, Mrs. Buckley fainted, Down on the sofa, and the poor old soldier in a pool of blood, with his feet on the arm of the sofa and his head on the floor, near the fire fender.

"Seeing that the master was hopeless to be saved, the coachman naturally wanted to open the door quickly. However, an unexpected problem happened, and the key was not inside the door. He searched everywhere in the house but couldn't find it, so he had to go out through the window again and look for the key. A policeman and a doctor came. Since the lady was still awake, she was carried back to her room, but she was considered a suspect. The colonel's body was placed on the sofa, and then the police carefully inspected the scene examine.

"There was a gash about two inches long on the back of Colonel Buckley's head, caused by a sudden blunt force attack. It is easy to speculate as to what the weapon was. A carved wooden club of bone lay beside the body. .The colonel liked to collect weapons during his lifetime, most of which were brought back from the countries he had fought in. The police believed that the wooden stick was also his collection, but the servants said they had never seen this wooden stick. However, if it is compared with other indoor It is really easy to overlook the precious weapons mixed in. The police found no clues in the house, but one thing is confusing: the key is neither in Mrs. Buckley nor in the dead man, nor in the house. Then a blacksmith from Aldershot opened the door.

"These are the details of the case. Major Murphy asked me to go to Aldershot on Tuesday morning to help them solve the case, which I thought would be of interest to you. However, I have the feeling that the case is going to be more serious than I initially expected." Much more complicated.

"Before I made a full inspection of the house, I also questioned the servants, and what they told you was what I just told you. Jane Stewart, the maid, provided an important clue. As soon as she heard the Buckleys in the house but when she was alone outside the door, she said that the Buckleys spoke in such a low voice that she could hardly hear anything, just by the tone of their voice and not by the way they were talking. The content judged that they were arguing. Later, when I pressed hard, she remembered that Mrs. Buckley had mentioned the name David several times. But the Colonel’s name is James, not David. It seems that this David may be their quarrel s reason.

"In this case, one thing that left a very deep impression on the police and the servants was that the colonel's face was distorted and deformed. It is said that the colonel's expression was extremely frightened at that time, and he may have been frightened. This deformation The terrible face made everyone who saw it almost faint with fright. He must have expected some unfavorable ending before, so he often panicked excessively. It is likely that the colonel knew that his wife was going to kill him, which is why the policemen What I wanted to say. The fact that he had a wound on the back of his head does not contradict this assumption, because he may have been trying to turn around to avoid being attacked by others. Mrs. Buckley suffered from acute encephalitis and is still unconscious. There was no way to get the situation from her.

"As far as the police understand, Miss Morrison, who returned with Mrs Buckley that night, also did not know the reason for Mrs Buckley's tantrum when she returned home.

"After gathering these facts, Watson, I smoked several pipes in an attempt to find some crucial points of breakthrough and to get rid of the secondary problems first. One thing is certain, the disappearance of the house key is the main reason in this case. The strangest bit. We searched the whole house very earnestly, but found nothing. Someone obviously took the key on purpose. Since the Buckleys didn't take it, someone else must have been in the house, and it must have been through the window. In. I think that the clues left by the third party can only be found by a thorough search of the lawn. You are well aware of my usual methods of detection, Watson. In this investigation, I have used almost all methods. I finally found some clues. But it wasn't quite what I expected; someone did enter the room across the lawn, and I found five very clear footprints. One of them was on the side of the road, when he climbed over the wall. , the other two are on the lawn, and the remaining two are not clear, they were left on the floor in front of the window when he opened the window to enter the room. In addition, he ran across the lawn, because the toe marks are deeper than the heel marks. However, Even more surprising was his partner, not him.

"His partner?"

Holmes took a piece of paper from his pocket, spread it carefully on his knees, and said, "That's right."

Holmes asked me again: "What do you think this is?"

Some kind of animal's paw print was printed on the paper.It has five claws with very long tips, and the claws are the size of a medium-sized dessert spoon.

I said, "It's a puppy."

"Have you ever heard of a dog climbing a curtain? I found these paw prints on the curtain."

"Is that a little monkey?"

"But not monkey paw prints."

"what is that?"

"It's not a dog, it's not a cat, and it's not a monkey. We're not familiar with this thing. I also tried to judge its appearance from the paw prints. First, it stood still, with fifteen inches between its front and rear paws, and then Adding the head and neck, it would be at least two feet long, and longer if it had a tail. Some additional information is worth considering: The animal walked on the ground with a distance of three inches between each step. From this it can be seen that Judging, although it has a long body, its legs are very short. It does not leave any hair, but its shape is generally similar to what I described. It can also climb curtains, which is a characteristic of carnivores."

"How do you judge?"

"Because there was a cage of a canary hanging in the window and it climbed up the curtains to eat the bird."

"Then what kind of animal is it?"

"It would be a great help if I could name it. Anyway, it's probably a weasel or something, but bigger than we've seen."

"But does it have anything to do with the case?"

"I haven't figured that out yet. But, anyway, we've learned a lot. For example, the lights were on, the curtains were left open, and someone on the road heard them arguing. A strange animal, he ran across the lawn and crawled into the house. Perhaps he killed the colonel or the colonel saw him and fell down in fright and hit his head on the stove. Another strange thing, this man Before leaving, he took the key to the house."

I said, "These discoveries of yours seem to complicate matters."

"Yes, these circumstances show that the case is more complicated than first thought. I have reorganized the whole matter, and have come to a new conclusion, which requires us to approach the case from another point of view. Oh, Watson, I've delayed your sleep, so tomorrow, I'll tell you the rest on the way to Aldershot."

"Thank you very much, but I have been completely attracted by what you said, and I can't stop listening."

"It is certain that Mrs Buckley was quite normal with her husband before she came to the meeting. I remember telling you that, though not very gentle, the coachman was very kind when he heard her speak to her husband. And, there is no doubt that As soon as she got home, she went to the sunny morning room where it was impossible to touch her husband. She was so excited that she ordered the servant to bring her tea. Then, when the Colonel entered, she completely broke out and began to scold him. Therefore, in 07 :30 to nine o'clock, something must have happened, and it changed her feelings for the Colonel. During this time, Miss Morrison was with Mrs. Buckley, so, although Mo Miss Leeson denied it, but she must know what happened.

(End of this chapter)