Sherlock Holmes Complete Works 2

Chapter 44 Return 20
It was not uncommon for Mr Raymond of Scotland Yard to come to Baker Street in the evening.Mr. Holmes always welcomes his presence, because then my friend can find out what is going on at Police Headquarters.Mr. Holmes always listens attentively to the details of this gentleman's handling of the case. At the same time, he will use his profound knowledge and rich experience to put forward some helpful suggestions and opinions to the other party from time to time.

One evening, after talking about the weather and the newspapers, Raymond fell silent, puffing on a cigar.Holmes looked at him eagerly, and asked: "Do you have any unusual case at hand?"

"Ah, Mr. Holmes, I don't want to deny that I have something on my mind. But it is so absurd that I don't want to bother you. I know you are interested in all sorts of unusual things, but I think it has more to do with Dr. Watson. many relationships."

I said, "Is it a disease?"

"Madness, to say the least, and a very strange madness at that. Can you imagine such a thing? People nowadays hate Napoleon and want to smash his portrait."

Holmes leaned back in his chair.

"This matter has nothing to do with me," he said.

"Yes, it's none of our business. But if this man breaks into a house and smashes a Napoleon in someone else's possession, he should be sent to the police instead of the doctor."

Holmes sat up straight again at once.

"Robbery? This is very interesting. Please tell me about the situation in detail."

Remy Reid took out his work log, opened it and looked at it first, so as not to omit any plot when telling the story.

He said: "The first case was reported four days ago. The place where it happened was Moses Hudson's shop. He had a branch in Connington Street that sold pictures and figurines. The clerk had only left the counter that day. After a while, they heard the sound of things colliding with each other, and the clerk ran to the front of the store immediately, and immediately found that a statue of Napoleon had been smashed to pieces. The clerk rushed to the street, and several passers-by said that they had seen A man escaped from the store, but he was still not located. It appeared to be one of the frequent and pointless acts of hooliganism. He reported it to the patrolman as it was, but the plaster It's worth a few shillings at most, so it's not worth our special investigation.

"But last night there was another case, more serious and peculiar than the first.

"The case also took place in Connington Street. Not two or three hundred yards from Mousse Hudson's shop lived a well-known Dr. Barnicker, and many people on the south bank of the Thames lived." I often see this doctor. His house and main practice are in Connington Street. Dr. Barnicot admires Napoleon. His house is full of books, paintings and relics of the French Emperor. Not long ago he Bought from Hudson's shop two replicas of a bust of Napoleon, the famous one, by Devin, the famous French sculptor. He put one in the hall of his house in Connington Street, and the other in the On the mantelpiece of the Brixton Clinic. But this morning Dr. Barnico was surprised to find that his house had been broken into during the night, but nothing was taken except the plaster head. Go. The man took the plaster head outside and smashed it to pieces under the garden wall."

Holmes rubbed his hands back and forth.

"It's a really weird thing," he said.

"I thought this would interest you. Dr. Barnico came to his clinic at twelve o'clock, and when he got there he found the windows open and the floor of the room strewn with the remains of another bust of Napoleon. Fragments. The base of the bust was also broken into fine pieces. There is nothing in either place that would lead us to the culprit, or rather the lunatic, who perpetrated the prank. Mr. Holmes, that is how it happened. .”

"The thing is indeed strange and absurd," said Holmes. "Pray tell me, are the two busts smashed up in Dr. Barnico's house and clinic, and the bust in Hudson's shop, a replica of the same cast?"

"Yes, they are all copies of a model."

"Facts can negate the claim that this man smashed the bust of Napoleon out of hatred for Napoleon. As we all know, there are tens of thousands of statues of Napoleon in the urban area of ​​London. Those who oppose idolatry, no matter who they are, It is impossible to object only from these three replicas. So this view is untenable."

Remy Reid also said: "I thought so too. But Moses Hudson is the only supplier of statues in that district, and these three statues have been in his shop for a long time. Therefore, even if there are tens of thousands of statues in London Statues, but there are probably only three of them in that district. So the madmen in this district start with these three. I want to hear your opinion, Dr. Watson."

I replied: "The endless manifestations of paranoia are all kinds of strange things. There is a phenomenon called by contemporary French psychologists 'paranoid idea', which means that patients are only stubborn on one small thing, and they are stubborn on all other things." People who have read a lot of books about Napoleon are too deeply impressed, or his family inherited some kind of psychological defect caused by the war at that time, and they can completely form a kind of paranoid idea ’, he would be driven into a frenzy of fantasies by the thought.”

Holmes shook his head and said: "My dear Watson, I do not agree with such an explanation. For whatever effect 'paranoid ideas' may have, it would not lead you to think that the paranoid patient would go and find out where these avatars are distributed. Where."

"Then how do you explain the matter?"

"I will not explain anything, but observe that this gentleman follows a certain method in his erratic actions. For example, in Dr. It was taken outside and then smashed; similarly, in the clinic, because there was no danger of alarming others, the bust was smashed on the spot. Experience tells me that nothing should be taken lightly as trivial and irrelevant .Remy Reid, I will not take this matter as a joke, and if you tell me new developments in these matters, I will be very grateful to you."

What my companion was trying to understand developed more quickly and more tragically than he could have imagined.I was in my bedroom early next morning when Holmes entered at the first knock at the door.He held a telegram in his hand and read it aloud to me:

"Come to 131 Pitt Street, Kensington at once. Remy Read."

I asked, "What's going on here?"

"I don't know. Anything could happen. It is very likely that this incident is a continuation of the bust's story. If this is the case, it means that our friend who smashed the bust has already started operating in other parts of London. "

Half an hour later we came to Peter Street, which is located next to one of the busiest areas in London. No. 131 was a neat and beautiful house. As soon as our carriage arrived, we saw a group of curious people crowded outside the fence in front of the house.The carriage passed through the crowd after Holmes hissed.

"My God! It's a murder at least, and the papers of the London newsboys will be sold now. Look! The dead man's shoulders are curled up, and his neck is stretched out, which is definitely the result of violence. The above The steps have been washed clean by someone else, and the others are dry? Oh, there are a lot of footprints! Here, Remired is standing by the front window, and the situation will soon be clear."

Officer Raymond greeted us with a serious expression, and led us into a living room, where we saw an elderly man walking up and down tremblingly.Remy Reid said that this is the owner of the house, Mr. Horace Harker, who is currently working for the Central Newspaper Syndicate.

"It started again because of the bust of Napoleon. Now it's getting more serious," Remired said.

"Murder? To what extent?"

"Yes, murder. Mr. Harker, please tell these gentlemen exactly what happened."

Mr Harker said: "It's an extraordinary thing. I've spent my life gathering news about other people. I've actually done important reporting on a lot of different people, but today I feel distinctly I am at the end of my strength. Mr. Holmes, I have heard your name, and if you can find out the matter, I will not be in vain telling you."

Holmes listened to him in silence.

"It seems to have started with the bust of Napoleon. I bought it four months ago from the second shop next to the Highland Street coaching station. It has been kept in this room. Today, as usual, I wrote at night until early in the morning. I was upstairs in my study at about three o’clock in the morning, and suddenly heard something downstairs. I just listened carefully , but again, the sound is no longer heard. So I thought it was coming from outside, but then 5 minutes later there was a very miserable roar. Sir, that is terrible, this sound will always be in my ears , until I died. I stood there a good minute, petrified, and then took up the blower and went downstairs. I entered the room and saw the windows wide open and the mantelpiece The bust of her is gone.

"You see, anyone who takes a long step through this open window can get straight to the front steps. That's obviously what the robber did, so I opened the door and went out in the dark. , I almost tripped over a dead body. I brought the light from the house, and I saw the man lying on the ground with a big hole in his neck, and a pool of blood dripping around him. He was lying on his back, his feet from the The knees were bent, the mouth was wide open. I immediately blew the whistle, and then I didn't know anything. When I woke up again, I was already in the hall, and this Mr. Police Officer was standing next to me and watching me .”

"Tell me about the victim," said Holmes.

Remy Reid said: "His identity is still unknown. The body is parked in the funeral home. So far, no clues have been found from the body. He is tall and strong, his face is tanned, and he is at most 30 years old. Very poorly dressed. Beside him lay a horn-handled jackknife in a pool of blood. I still don't know whether it was the murder weapon or the dead man's relic. The dead man had no name on his clothes. , and only an apple in my pocket, a piece of string, a map of London worth a shilling, and a photograph. Here, here is the photograph."

It is obvious that the photo was taken quickly with a small camera.The person in the photo has a witty expression, thick eyebrows, and protruding muzzle and nose, and the protruding is very special, just like the face of a baboon.

After examining the photograph in detail, Holmes asked, "How is that bust now?"

"I got word before you came that the statue was smashed to pieces in the garden of an empty house in Camden Street. If you want to see it, go there."

"Yes, I am going to have a look." Holmes inspected the carpet and the window carefully. "This man either has long legs or is very agile. The ground under the window is very low, and the man must be very agile to jump on it." and open the window. But it is easy to jump out again, Mr Harker, and will you go there with us to see the fragment of the bust?"

Mr. Harker sat down at his desk in a low mood.

He said: "I know that the first evening papers are out today, and it must have been written about, but I will do my best to write about it. Such is my fate! Do you remember Doncaston grandstand collapse? I was in the stands at the time and was the only reporter on the scene who witnessed it, but my paper was the only one that didn't publish it because I was so shaken I can't even write. It's a little late for me to start writing about the murder that happened in front of my house."

The house where the bust was broken was only two or three hundred yards from Mr Harker's house, and the bust was smashed in the house, and the grass was strewn with tiny fragments, from which one can imagine the hatred in the man who smashed the bust. How intense and uncontrollable.Holmes picked up a few fragments and examined them carefully, and he seemed to have found a clue, for he had a countenance of concentration and an air of self-confidence.

Remy Red asked, "What did you find?"

Holmes shrugged his shoulders.

(End of this chapter)