The Naval Treaty

The July which immediately succeeded my marriage was madememorable by three cases of interest, in which I had theprivilege of being associated with Sherlock Holmes and ofstudying his methods. I find them recorded in my notes under theheadings of “The Adventure of the Second Stain,” “The Adventureof the Naval Treaty,” and “The Adventure of the Tired Captain.”The first of these, however, deals with interest of suchimportance and implicates so many of the first families in thekingdom that for many years it will be impossible to make itpublic. No case, however, in which Holmes was engaged has everillustrated the value of his analytical methods so clearly or hasimpressed those who were associated with him so deeply. I stillretain an almost verbatim report of the interview in which hedemonstrated the true facts of the case to Monsieur Dubuque ofthe Paris police, and Fritz von Waldbaum, the well-knownspecialist of Dantzig, both of whom had wasted their energiesupon what proved to be side-issues. The new century will havecome, however, before the story can be safely told. Meanwhile Ipass on to the second on my list, which promised also at one timeto be of national importance, and was marked by several incidentswhich give it a quite unique character.

During my school-days I had been intimately associated with a ladnamed Percy Phelps, who was of much the same age as myself,though he was two classes ahead of me. He was a very brilliantboy, and carried away every prize which the school had to offer,finished his exploits by winning a scholarship which sent him onto continue his triumphant career at Cambridge. He was, Iremember, extremely well connected, and even when we were alllittle boys together we knew that his mother’s brother was LordHoldhurst, the great conservative politician. This gaudyrelationship did him little good at school. On the contrary, itseemed rather a piquant thing to us to chevy him about theplayground and hit him over the shins with a wicket. But it wasanother thing when he came out into the world. I heard vaguelythat his abilities and the influences which he commanded had wonhim a good position at the Foreign Office, and then he passedcompletely out of my mind until the following letter recalled hisexistence:

Briarbrae, Woking. My dear Watson,—I have no doubt that you can remember “Tadpole” Phelps, who was in the fifth form when you were in the third. It is possible even that you may have heard that through my uncle’s influence I obtained a good appointment at the Foreign Office, and that I was in a situation of trust and honour until a horrible misfortune came suddenly to blast my career. There is no use writing of the details of that dreadful event. In the event of your acceding to my request it is probable that I shall have to narrate them to you. I have only just recovered from nine weeks of brain-fever, and am still exceedingly weak. Do you think that you could bring your friend Mr. Holmes down to see me? I should like to have his opinion of the case, though the authorities assure me that nothing more can be done. Do try to bring him down, and as soon as possible. Every minute seems an hour while I live in this state of horrible suspense. Assure him that if I have not asked his advice sooner it was not because I did not appreciate his talents, but because I have been off my head ever since the blow fell. Now I am clear again, though I dare not think of it too much for fear of a relapse. I am still so weak that I have to write, as you see, by dictating. Do try to bring him.

Your old schoolfellow,Percy Phelps.

There was something that touched me as I read this letter,something pitiable in the reiterated appeals to bring Holmes. Somoved was I that even had it been a difficult matter I shouldhave tried it, but of course I knew well that Holmes loved hisart, so that he was ever as ready to bring his aid as his clientcould be to receive it. My wife agreed with me that not a momentshould be lost in laying the matter before him, and so within anhour of breakfast-time I found myself back once more in the oldrooms in Baker Street.

Holmes was seated at his side-table clad in his dressing-gown,and working hard over a chemical investigation. A large curvedretort was boiling furiously in the bluish flame of a Bunsenburner, and the distilled drops were condensing into a two-litremeasure. My friend hardly glanced up as I entered, and I, seeingthat his investigation must be of importance, seated myself in anarmchair and waited. He dipped into this bottle or that, drawingout a few drops of each with his glass pipette, and finallybrought a test-tube containing a solution over to the table. Inhis right hand he held a slip of litmus-paper.

“You come at a crisis, Watson,” said he. “If this paper remainsblue, all is well. If it turns red, it means a man’s life.” Hedipped it into the test-tube and it flushed at once into a dull,dirty crimson. “Hum! I thought as much!” he cried. “I will be atyour service in an instant, Watson. You will find tobacco in thePersian slipper.” He turned to his desk and scribbled off severaltelegrams, which were handed over to the page-boy. Then he threwhimself down into the chair opposite, and drew up his knees untilhis fingers clasped round his long, thin shins.

“A very commonplace little murder,” said he. “You’ve gotsomething better, I fancy. You are the stormy petrel of crime,Watson. What is it?”

I handed him the letter, which he read with the most concentratedattention.

“It does not tell us very much, does it?” he remarked, as hehanded it back to me.

“Hardly anything.”

“And yet the writing is of interest.”

“But the writing is not his own.”

“Precisely. It is a woman’s.”

“A man’s surely,” I cried.

“No, a woman’s, and a woman of rare character. You see, at thecommencement of an investigation it is something to know thatyour client is in close contact with some one who, for good orevil, has an exceptional nature. My interest is already awakenedin the case. If you are ready we will start at once for Woking,and see this diplomatist who is in such evil case, and the ladyto whom he dictates his letters.”

We were fortunate enough to catch an early train at Waterloo, andin a little under an hour we found ourselves among the fir-woodsand the heather of Woking. Briarbrae proved to be a largedetached house standing in extensive grounds within a fewminutes’ walk of the station. On sending in our cards we wereshown into an elegantly appointed drawing-room, where we werejoined in a few minutes by a rather stout man who received uswith much hospitality. His age may have been nearer forty thanthirty, but his cheeks were so ruddy and his eyes so merry thathe still conveyed the impression of a plump and mischievous boy.

“I am so glad that you have come,” said he, shaking our handswith effusion. “Percy has been inquiring for you all morning. Ah,poor old chap, he clings to any straw! His father and his motherasked me to see you, for the mere mention of the subject is verypainful to them.”

“We have had no details yet,” observed Holmes. “I perceive thatyou are not yourself a member of the family.”

Our acquaintance looked surprised, and then, glancing down, hebegan to laugh.

“Of course you saw the ‘J.H.’ monogram on my locket,” said he.“For a moment I thought you had done something clever. JosephHarrison is my name, and as Percy is to marry my sister Annie Ishall at least be a relation by marriage. You will find my sisterin his room, for she has nursed him hand-and-foot this two monthsback. Perhaps we’d better go in at once, for I know how impatienthe is.”

The chamber in which we were shown was on the same floor as thedrawing-room. It was furnished partly as a sitting and partly asa bedroom, with flowers arranged daintily in every nook andcorner. A young man, very pale and worn, was lying upon a sofanear the open window, through which came the rich scent of thegarden and the balmy summer air. A woman was sitting beside him,who rose as we entered.

“Shall I leave, Percy?” she asked.

He clutched her hand to detain her. “How are you, Watson?” saidhe, cordially. “I should never have known you under thatmoustache, and I daresay you would not be prepared to swear tome. This I presume is your celebrated friend, Mr. SherlockHolmes?”

I introduced him in a few words, and we both sat down. The stoutyoung man had left us, but his sister still remained with herhand in that of the invalid. She was a striking-looking woman, alittle short and thick for symmetry, but with a beautiful olivecomplexion, large, dark, Italian eyes, and a wealth of deep blackhair. Her rich tints made the white face of her companion themore worn and haggard by the contrast.

“I won’t waste your time,” said he, raising himself upon thesofa. “I’ll plunge into the matter without further preamble. Iwas a happy and successful man, Mr. Holmes, and on the eve ofbeing married, when a sudden and dreadful misfortune wrecked allmy prospects in life.

“I was, as Watson may have told you, in the Foreign Office, andthrough the influences of my uncle, Lord Holdhurst, I roserapidly to a responsible position. When my uncle became foreignminister in this administration he gave me several missions oftrust, and as I always brought them to a successful conclusion,he came at last to have the utmost confidence in my ability andtact.

“Nearly ten weeks ago—to be more accurate, on the 23rd of May—hecalled me into his private room, and, after complimenting me onthe good work which I had done, he informed me that he had a newcommission of trust for me to execute.

“‘This,’ said he, taking a grey roll of paper from his bureau,‘is the original of that secret treaty between England and Italyof which, I regret to say, some rumours have already got into thepublic press. It is of enormous importance that nothing furthershould leak out. The French or the Russian embassy would pay animmense sum to learn the contents of these papers. They shouldnot leave my bureau were it not that it is absolutely necessaryto have them copied. You have a desk in your office?’

“‘Yes, sir.’

“‘Then take the treaty and lock it up there. I shall givedirections that you may remain behind when the others go, so thatyou may copy it at your leisure without fear of being overlooked.When you have finished, relock both the original and the draft inthe desk, and hand them over to me personally to-morrow morning.’

“I took the papers and—”

“Excuse me an instant,” said Holmes. “Were you alone during thisconversation?”

“Absolutely.”

“In a large room?”

“Thirty feet each way.”

“In the centre?”

“Yes, about it.”

“And speaking low?”

“My uncle’s voice is always remarkably low. I hardly spoke atall.”

“Thank you,” said Holmes, shutting his eyes; “pray go on.”

“I did exactly what he indicated, and waited until the otherclerks had departed. One of them in my room, Charles Gorot, hadsome arrears of work to make up, so I left him there and went outto dine. When I returned he was gone. I was anxious to hurry mywork, for I knew that Joseph—the Mr. Harrison whom you saw justnow—was in town, and that he would travel down to Woking by theeleven o’clock train, and I wanted if possible to catch it.

“When I came to examine the treaty I saw at once that it was ofsuch importance that my uncle had been guilty of no exaggerationin what he had said. Without going into details, I may say thatit defined the position of Great Britain towards the TripleAlliance, and fore-shadowed the policy which this country wouldpursue in the event of the French fleet gaining a completeascendancy over that of Italy in the Mediterranean. The questionstreated in it were purely naval. At the end were the signaturesof the high dignitaries who had signed it. I glanced my eyes overit, and then settled down to my task of copying.

“It was a long document, written in the French language, andcontaining twenty-six separate articles. I copied as quickly as Icould, but at nine o’clock I had only done nine articles, and itseemed hopeless for me to attempt to catch my train. I wasfeeling drowsy and stupid, partly from my dinner and also fromthe effects of a long day’s work. A cup of coffee would clear mybrain. A commissionnaire remains all night in a little lodge atthe foot of the stairs, and is in the habit of making coffee athis spirit-lamp for any of the officials who may be working overtime. I rang the bell, therefore, to summon him.

“To my surprise, it was a woman who answered the summons, alarge, coarse-faced, elderly woman, in an apron. She explainedthat she was the commissionnaire’s wife, who did the charing, andI gave her the order for the coffee.

“I wrote two more articles and then, feeling more drowsy thanever, I rose and walked up and down the room to stretch my legs.My coffee had not yet come, and I wondered what the cause of thedelay could be. Opening the door, I started down the corridor tofind out. There was a straight passage, dimly lighted, which ledfrom the room in which I had been working, and was the only exitfrom it. It ended in a curving staircase, with thecommissionnaire’s lodge in the passage at the bottom. Half-waydown this staircase is a small landing, with another passagerunning into it at right angles. This second one leads by meansof a second small stair to a side door, used by servants, andalso as a short cut by clerks when coming from Charles Street.Here is a rough chart of the place.”

rough chart

“Thank you. I think that I quite follow you,” said SherlockHolmes.

“It is of the utmost importance that you should notice thispoint. I went down the stairs and into the hall, where I foundthe commissionnaire fast asleep in his box, with the kettleboiling furiously upon the spirit-lamp. I took off the kettle andblew out the lamp, for the water was spurting over the floor.Then I put out my hand and was about to shake the man, who wasstill sleeping soundly, when a bell over his head rang loudly,and he woke with a start.

“‘Mr. Phelps, sir!’ said he, looking at me in bewilderment.

“‘I came down to see if my coffee was ready.’

“‘I was boiling the kettle when I fell asleep, sir.’ He looked atme and then up at the still quivering bell with an ever-growingastonishment upon his face.

“‘If you was here, sir, then who rang the bell?’ he asked.

“‘The bell!’ I cried. ‘What bell is it?’

“‘It’s the bell of the room you were working in.’

“A cold hand seemed to close round my heart. Some one, then, wasin that room where my precious treaty lay upon the table. I ranfrantically up the stairs and along the passage. There was no onein the corridors, Mr. Holmes. There was no one in the room. Allwas exactly as I left it, save only that the papers which hadbeen committed to my care had been taken from the desk on whichthey lay. The copy was there, and the original was gone.”

Holmes sat up in his chair and rubbed his hands. I could see thatthe problem was entirely to his heart. “Pray, what did you dothen?” he murmured.

“I recognised in an instant that the thief must have come up thestairs from the side door. Of course I must have met him if hehad come the other way.”

“You were satisfied that he could not have been concealed in theroom all the time, or in the corridor which you have justdescribed as dimly lighted?”

“It is absolutely impossible. A rat could not conceal himselfeither in the room or the corridor. There is no cover at all.”

“Thank you. Pray proceed.”

“The commissionnaire, seeing by my pale face that something wasto be feared, had followed me upstairs. Now we both rushed alongthe corridor and down the steep steps which led to CharlesStreet. The door at the bottom was closed, but unlocked. We flungit open and rushed out. I can distinctly remember that as we didso there came three chimes from a neighbouring clock. It wasquarter to ten.”

“That is of enormous importance,” said Holmes, making a note uponhis shirt-cuff.

“The night was very dark, and a thin, warm rain was falling.There was no one in Charles Street, but a great traffic was goingon, as usual, in Whitehall, at the extremity. We rushed along thepavement, bare-headed as we were, and at the far corner we founda policeman standing.

“‘A robbery has been committed,’ I gasped. ‘A document of immensevalue has been stolen from the Foreign Office. Has any one passedthis way?’

“‘I have been standing here for a quarter of an hour, sir,’ saidhe; ‘only one person has passed during that time—a woman, talland elderly, with a Paisley shawl.’

“‘Ah, that is only my wife,’ cried the commissionnaire; ‘has noone else passed?’

“‘No one.’

“‘Then it must be the other way that the thief took,’ cried thefellow, tugging at my sleeve.

“‘But I was not satisfied, and the attempts which he made to drawme away increased my suspicions.

“‘Which way did the woman go?’ I cried.

“‘I don’t know, sir. I noticed her pass, but I had no specialreason for watching her. She seemed to be in a hurry.’

“‘How long ago was it?’

“‘Oh, not very many minutes.’

“‘Within the last five?’

“‘Well, it could not be more than five.’

“‘You’re only wasting your time, sir, and every minute now is ofimportance,’ cried the commissionnaire; ‘take my word for it thatmy old woman has nothing to do with it, and come down to theother end of the street. Well, if you won’t, I will.’ And withthat he rushed off in the other direction.

“But I was after him in an instant and caught him by the sleeve.

“‘Where do you live?’ said I.

“‘16 Ivy Lane, Brixton,’ he answered. ‘But don’t let yourself bedrawn away upon a false scent, Mr. Phelps. Come to the other endof the street and let us see if we can hear of anything.’

“Nothing was to be lost by following his advice. With thepoliceman we both hurried down, but only to find the street fullof traffic, many people coming and going, but all only too eagerto get to a place of safety upon so wet a night. There was nolounger who could tell us who had passed.

“Then we returned to the office, and searched the stairs and thepassage without result. The corridor which led to the room waslaid down with a kind of creamy linoleum which shows animpression very easily. We examined it very carefully, but foundno outline of any footmark.”

“Had it been raining all evening?”

“Since about seven.”

“How is it, then, that the woman who came into the room aboutnine left no traces with her muddy boots?”

“I am glad you raised the point. It occurred to me at the time.The charwomen are in the habit of taking off their boots at thecommissionnaire’s office, and putting on list slippers.”

“That is very clear. There were no marks, then, though the nightwas a wet one? The chain of events is certainly one ofextraordinary interest. What did you do next?

“We examined the room also. There is no possibility of a secretdoor, and the windows are quite thirty feet from the ground. Bothof them were fastened on the inside. The carpet prevents anypossibility of a trap-door, and the ceiling is of the ordinarywhitewashed kind. I will pledge my life that whoever stole mypapers could only have come through the door.”

“How about the fireplace?”

“They use none. There is a stove. The bell-rope hangs from thewire just to the right of my desk. Whoever rang it must have comeright up to the desk to do it. But why should any criminal wishto ring the bell? It is a most insoluble mystery.”

“Certainly the incident was unusual. What were your next steps?You examined the room, I presume, to see if the intruder had leftany traces—any cigar-end or dropped glove or hairpin or othertrifle?”

“There was nothing of the sort.”

“No smell?”

“Well, we never thought of that.”

“Ah, a scent of tobacco would have been worth a great deal to usin such an investigation.”

“I never smoke myself, so I think I should have observed it ifthere had been any smell of tobacco. There was absolutely no clueof any kind. The only tangible fact was that thecommissionnaire’s wife—Mrs. Tangey was the name—had hurried outof the place. He could give no explanation save that it was aboutthe time when the woman always went home. The policeman and Iagreed that our best plan would be to seize the woman before shecould get rid of the papers, presuming that she had them.

“The alarm had reached Scotland Yard by this time, and Mr.Forbes, the detective, came round at once and took up the casewith a great deal of energy. We hired a hansom, and in half anhour we were at the address which had been given to us. A youngwoman opened the door, who proved to be Mrs. Tangey’s eldestdaughter. Her mother had not come back yet, and we were showninto the front room to wait.

“About ten minutes later a knock came at the door, and here wemade the one serious mistake for which I blame myself. Instead ofopening the door ourselves, we allowed the girl to do so. Weheard her say, ‘Mother, there are two men in the house waiting tosee you,’ and an instant afterwards we heard the patter of feetrushing down the passage. Forbes flung open the door, and we bothran into the back room or kitchen, but the woman had got therebefore us. She stared at us with defiant eyes, and then, suddenlyrecognising me, an expression of absolute astonishment came overher face.

“‘Why, if it isn’t Mr. Phelps, of the office!’ she cried.

“‘Come, come, who did you think we were when you ran away fromus?’ asked my companion.

“‘I thought you were the brokers,’ said she, ‘we have had sometrouble with a tradesman.’

“‘That’s not quite good enough,’ answered Forbes. ‘We have reasonto believe that you have taken a paper of importance from theForeign Office, and that you ran in here to dispose of it. Youmust come back with us to Scotland Yard to be searched.’

“It was in vain that she protested and resisted. A four-wheelerwas brought, and we all three drove back in it. We had first madean examination of the kitchen, and especially of the kitchenfire, to see whether she might have made away with the papersduring the instant that she was alone. There were no signs,however, of any ashes or scraps. When we reached Scotland Yardshe was handed over at once to the female searcher. I waited inan agony of suspense until she came back with her report. Therewere no signs of the papers.

“Then for the first time the horror of my situation came in itsfull force. Hitherto I had been acting, and action had numbedthought. I had been so confident of regaining the treaty at oncethat I had not dared to think of what would be the consequence ifI failed to do so. But now there was nothing more to be done, andI had leisure to realize my position. It was horrible. Watsonthere would tell you that I was a nervous, sensitive boy atschool. It is my nature. I thought of my uncle and of hiscolleagues in the Cabinet, of the shame which I had brought uponhim, upon myself, upon every one connected with me. What though Iwas the victim of an extraordinary accident? No allowance is madefor accidents where diplomatic interests are at stake. I wasruined, shamefully, hopelessly ruined. I don’t know what I did. Ifancy I must have made a scene. I have a dim recollection of agroup of officials who crowded round me, endeavouring to sootheme. One of them drove down with me to Waterloo, and saw me intothe Woking train. I believe that he would have come all the wayhad it not been that Dr. Ferrier, who lives near me, was goingdown by that very train. The doctor most kindly took charge ofme, and it was well he did so, for I had a fit in the station,and before we reached home I was practically a raving maniac.

“You can imagine the state of things here when they were rousedfrom their beds by the doctor’s ringing and found me in thiscondition. Poor Annie here and my mother were broken-hearted. Dr.Ferrier had just heard enough from the detective at the stationto be able to give an idea of what had happened, and his storydid not mend matters. It was evident to all that I was in for along illness, so Joseph was bundled out of this cheery bedroom,and it was turned into a sick-room for me. Here I have lain, Mr.Holmes, for over nine weeks, unconscious, and raving withbrain-fever. If it had not been for Miss Harrison here and forthe doctor’s care I should not be speaking to you now. She hasnursed me by day and a hired nurse has looked after me by night,for in my mad fits I was capable of anything. Slowly my reasonhas cleared, but it is only during the last three days that mymemory has quite returned. Sometimes I wish that it never had.The first thing that I did was to wire to Mr. Forbes, who had thecase in hand. He came out, and assures me that, though everythinghas been done, no trace of a clue has been discovered. Thecommissionnaire and his wife have been examined in every waywithout any light being thrown upon the matter. The suspicions ofthe police then rested upon young Gorot, who, as you mayremember, stayed over time in the office that night. Hisremaining behind and his French name were really the only twopoints which could suggest suspicion; but, as a matter of fact, Idid not begin work until he had gone, and his people are ofHuguenot extraction, but as English in sympathy and tradition asyou and I are. Nothing was found to implicate him in any way, andthere the matter dropped. I turn to you, Mr. Holmes, asabsolutely my last hope. If you fail me, then my honour as wellas my position are forever forfeited.”

The invalid sank back upon his cushions, tired out by this longrecital, while his nurse poured him out a glass of somestimulating medicine. Holmes sat silently, with his head thrownback and his eyes closed, in an attitude which might seemlistless to a stranger, but which I knew betokened the mostintense self-absorption.

“You statement has been so explicit,” said he at last, “that youhave really left me very few questions to ask. There is one ofthe very utmost importance, however. Did you tell any one thatyou had this special task to perform?”

“No one.”

“Not Miss Harrison here, for example?”

“No. I had not been back to Woking between getting the order andexecuting the commission.”

“And none of your people had by chance been to see you?”

“None.”

“Did any of them know their way about in the office?”

“Oh, yes, all of them had been shown over it.”

“Still, of course, if you said nothing to any one about thetreaty these inquiries are irrelevant.”

“I said nothing.”

“Do you know anything of the commissionnaire?”

“Nothing except that he is an old soldier.”

“What regiment?”

“Oh, I have heard—Coldstream Guards.”

“Thank you. I have no doubt I can get details from Forbes. Theauthorities are excellent at amassing facts, though they do notalways use them to advantage. What a lovely thing a rose is!”

He walked past the couch to the open window, and held up thedrooping stalk of a moss-rose, looking down at the dainty blendof crimson and green. It was a new phase of his character to me,for I had never before seen him show any keen interest in naturalobjects.

“There is nothing in which deduction is so necessary as inreligion,” said he, leaning with his back against the shutters.“It can be built up as an exact science by the reasoner. Ourhighest assurance of the goodness of Providence seems to me torest in the flowers. All other things, our powers our desires,our food, are all really necessary for our existence in the firstinstance. But this rose is an extra. Its smell and its colour arean embellishment of life, not a condition of it. It is onlygoodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have muchto hope from the flowers.”

Percy Phelps and his nurse looked at Holmes during thisdemonstration with surprise and a good deal of disappointmentwritten upon their faces. He had fallen into a reverie, with themoss-rose between his fingers. It had lasted some minutes beforethe young lady broke in upon it.

“Do you see any prospect of solving this mystery, Mr. Holmes?”she asked, with a touch of asperity in her voice.

“Oh, the mystery!” he answered, coming back with a start to therealities of life. “Well, it would be absurd to deny that thecase is a very abstruse and complicated one, but I can promiseyou that I will look into the matter and let you know any pointswhich may strike me.”

“Do you see any clue?”

“You have furnished me with seven, but, of course, I must testthem before I can pronounce upon their value.”

“You suspect some one?”

“I suspect myself.”

“What!”

“Of coming to conclusions too rapidly.”

“Then go to London and test your conclusions.”

“Your advice is very excellent, Miss Harrison,” said Holmes,rising. “I think, Watson, we cannot do better. Do not allowyourself to indulge in false hopes, Mr. Phelps. The affair is avery tangled one.”

“I shall be in a fever until I see you again,” cried thediplomatist.

“Well, I’ll come out by the same train to-morrow, though it’smore than likely that my report will be a negative one.”

“God bless you for promising to come,” cried our client. “Itgives me fresh life to know that something is being done. By theway, I have had a letter from Lord Holdhurst.”

“Ha! What did he say?”

“He was cold, but not harsh. I daresay my severe illnessprevented him from being that. He repeated that the matter was ofthe utmost importance, and added that no steps would be takenabout my future—by which he means, of course, my dismissal—untilmy health was restored and I had an opportunity of repairing mymisfortune.”

“Well, that was reasonable and considerate,” said Holmes. “Come,Watson, for we have a good day’s work before us in town.”

Mr. Joseph Harrison drove us down to the station, and we weresoon whirling up in a Portsmouth train. Holmes was sunk inprofound thought, and hardly opened his mouth until we had passedClapham Junction.

“It’s a very cheery thing to come into London by any of theselines which run high, and allow you to look down upon the houseslike this.”

I thought he was joking, for the view was sordid enough, but hesoon explained himself.

“Look at those big, isolated clumps of building rising up abovethe slates, like brick islands in a lead-coloured sea.”

“The board-schools.”

“Light-houses, my boy! Beacons of the future! Capsules withhundreds of bright little seeds in each, out of which will springthe wise, better England of the future. I suppose that man Phelpsdoes not drink?”

“I should not think so.”

“Nor should I, but we are bound to take every possibility intoaccount. The poor devil has certainly got himself into very deepwater, and it’s a question whether we shall ever be able to gethim ashore. What did you think of Miss Harrison?”

“A girl of strong character.”

“Yes, but she is a good sort, or I am mistaken. She and herbrother are the only children of an iron-master somewhere upNorthumberland way. He got engaged to her when traveling lastwinter, and she came down to be introduced to his people, withher brother as escort. Then came the smash, and she stayed on tonurse her lover, while brother Joseph, finding himself prettysnug, stayed on too. I’ve been making a few independentinquiries, you see. But to-day must be a day of inquiries.”

“My practice—” I began.

“Oh, if you find your own cases more interesting than mine—” saidHolmes, with some asperity.

“I was going to say that my practice could get along very wellfor a day or two, since it is the slackest time in the year.”

“Excellent,” said he, recovering his good-humour. “Then we’lllook into this matter together. I think that we should begin byseeing Forbes. He can probably tell us all the details we wantuntil we know from what side the case is to be approached.”

“You said you had a clue?”

“Well, we have several, but we can only test their value byfurther inquiry. The most difficult crime to track is the onewhich is purposeless. Now this is not purposeless. Who is it whoprofits by it? There is the French ambassador, there is theRussian, there is whoever might sell it to either of these, andthere is Lord Holdhurst.”

“Lord Holdhurst!”

“Well, it is just conceivable that a statesman might find himselfin a position where he was not sorry to have such a documentaccidentally destroyed.”

“Not a statesman with the honourable record of Lord Holdhurst?”

“It is a possibility and we cannot afford to disregard it. Weshall see the noble lord to-day and find out if he can tell usanything. Meanwhile I have already set inquiries on foot.”

“Already?”

“Yes, I sent wires from Woking station to every evening paper inLondon. This advertisement will appear in each of them.”

He handed over a sheet torn from a note-book. On it was scribbledin pencil:

“£10 Reward.—The number of the cab which dropped a fare at orabout the door of the Foreign Office in Charles Street at quarterto ten in the evening of May 23rd. Apply 221B, Baker Street.”

“You are confident that the thief came in a cab?”

“If not, there is no harm done. But if Mr. Phelps is correct instating that there is no hiding-place either in the room or thecorridors, then the person must have come from outside. If hecame from outside on so wet a night, and yet left no trace ofdamp upon the linoleum, which was examined within a few minutesof his passing, then it is exceeding probable that he came in acab. Yes, I think that we may safely deduce a cab.”

“It sounds plausible.”

“That is one of the clues of which I spoke. It may lead us tosomething. And then, of course, there is the bell—which is themost distinctive feature of the case. Why should the bell ring?Was it the thief who did it out of bravado? Or was it some onewho was with the thief who did it in order to prevent the crime?Or was it an accident? Or was it—?” He sank back into the stateof intense and silent thought from which he had emerged; but itseemed to me, accustomed as I was to his every mood, that somenew possibility had dawned suddenly upon him.

It was twenty past three when we reached our terminus, and aftera hasty luncheon at the buffet we pushed on at once to ScotlandYard. Holmes had already wired to Forbes, and we found himwaiting to receive us—a small, foxy man with a sharp but by nomeans amiable expression. He was decidedly frigid in his mannerto us, especially when he heard the errand upon which we hadcome.

“I’ve heard of your methods before now, Mr. Holmes,” said he,tartly. “You are ready enough to use all the information that thepolice can lay at your disposal, and then you try to finish thecase yourself and bring discredit on them.”

“On the contrary,” said Holmes, “out of my last fifty-three casesmy name has only appeared in four, and the police have had allthe credit in forty-nine. I don’t blame you for not knowing this,for you are young and inexperienced, but if you wish to get on inyour new duties you will work with me and not against me.”

“I’d be very glad of a hint or two,” said the detective, changinghis manner. “I’ve certainly had no credit from the case so far.”

“What steps have you taken?”

“Tangey, the commissionnaire, has been shadowed. He left theGuards with a good character and we can find nothing against him.His wife is a bad lot, though. I fancy she knows more about thisthan appears.”

“Have you shadowed her?”

“We have set one of our women on to her. Mrs. Tangey drinks, andour woman has been with her twice when she was well on, but shecould get nothing out of her.”

“I understand that they have had brokers in the house?”

“Yes, but they were paid off.”

“Where did the money come from?”

“That was all right. His pension was due. They have not shown anysign of being in funds.”

“What explanation did she give of having answered the bell whenMr. Phelps rang for the coffee?”

“She said that her husband was very tired and she wished torelieve him.”

“Well, certainly that would agree with his being found a littlelater asleep in his chair. There is nothing against them then butthe woman’s character. Did you ask her why she hurried away thatnight? Her haste attracted the attention of the policeconstable.”

“She was later than usual and wanted to get home.”

“Did you point out to her that you and Mr. Phelps, who started atleast twenty minutes after her, got home before her?”

“She explains that by the difference between a ‘bus and ahansom.”

“Did she make it clear why, on reaching her house, she ran intothe back kitchen?”

“Because she had the money there with which to pay off thebrokers.”

“She has at least an answer for everything. Did you ask herwhether in leaving she met any one or saw any one loitering aboutCharles Street?”

“She saw no one but the constable.”

“Well, you seem to have cross-examined her pretty thoroughly.What else have you done?”

“The clerk Gorot has been shadowed all these nine weeks, butwithout result. We can show nothing against him.”

“Anything else?”

“Well, we have nothing else to go upon—no evidence of any kind.”

“Have you formed a theory about how that bell rang?”

“Well, I must confess that it beats me. It was a cool hand,whoever it was, to go and give the alarm like that.”

“Yes, it was a queer thing to do. Many thanks to you for what youhave told me. If I can put the man into your hands you shall hearfrom me. Come along, Watson.”

“Where are we going to now?” I asked, as we left the office.

“We are now going to interview Lord Holdhurst, the cabinetminister and future premier of England.”

We were fortunate in finding that Lord Holdhurst was still in hischambers in Downing Street, and on Holmes sending in his card wewere instantly shown up. The statesman received us with thatold-fashioned courtesy for which he is remarkable, and seated uson the two luxuriant lounges on either side of the fireplace.Standing on the rug between us, with his slight, tall figure, hissharp features, thoughtful face, and curling hair prematurelytinged with grey, he seemed to represent that not too commontype, a nobleman who is in truth noble.

“Your name is very familiar to me, Mr. Holmes,” said he, smiling.“And, of course, I cannot pretend to be ignorant of the object ofyour visit. There has only been one occurrence in these officeswhich could call for your attention. In whose interest are youacting, may I ask?”

“In that of Mr. Percy Phelps,” answered Holmes.

“Ah, my unfortunate nephew! You can understand that our kinshipmakes it the more impossible for me to screen him in any way. Ifear that the incident must have a very prejudicial effect uponhis career.”

“But if the document is found?”

“Ah, that, of course, would be different.”

“I had one or two questions which I wished to ask you, LordHoldhurst.”

“I shall be happy to give you any information in my power.”

“Was it in this room that you gave your instructions as to thecopying of the document?”

“It was.”

“Then you could hardly have been overheard?”

“It is out of the question.”

“Did you ever mention to any one that it was your intention togive any one the treaty to be copied?”

“Never.”

“You are certain of that?”

“Absolutely.”

“Well, since you never said so, and Mr. Phelps never said so, andnobody else knew anything of the matter, then the thief’spresence in the room was purely accidental. He saw his chance andhe took it.”

The statesman smiled. “You take me out of my province there,”said he.

Holmes considered for a moment. “There is another very importantpoint which I wish to discuss with you,” said he. “You feared, asI understand, that very grave results might follow from thedetails of this treaty becoming known.”

A shadow passed over the expressive face of the statesman. “Verygrave results indeed.”

“And have they occurred?”

“Not yet.”

“If the treaty had reached, let us say, the French or RussianForeign Office, you would expect to hear of it?”

“I should,” said Lord Holdhurst, with a wry face.

“Since nearly ten weeks have elapsed, then, and nothing has beenheard, it is not unfair to suppose that for some reason thetreaty has not reached them.”

Lord Holdhurst shrugged his shoulders.

“We can hardly suppose, Mr. Holmes, that the thief took thetreaty in order to frame it and hang it up.”

“Perhaps he is waiting for a better price.”

“If he waits a little longer he will get no price at all. Thetreaty will cease to be secret in a few months.”

“That is most important,” said Holmes. “Of course, it is apossible supposition that the thief has had a sudden illness—”

“An attack of brain-fever, for example?” asked the statesman,flashing a swift glance at him.

“I did not say so,” said Holmes, imperturbably. “And now, LordHoldhurst, we have already taken up too much of your valuabletime, and we shall wish you good-day.”

“Every success to your investigation, be the criminal who itmay,” answered the nobleman, as he bowed us out the door.

“He’s a fine fellow,” said Holmes, as we came out into Whitehall.“But he has a struggle to keep up his position. He is far fromrich and has many calls. You noticed, of course, that his bootshad been resoled. Now, Watson, I won’t detain you from yourlegitimate work any longer. I shall do nothing more to-day,unless I have an answer to my cab advertisement. But I should beextremely obliged to you if you would come down with me to Wokingto-morrow, by the same train which we took yesterday.”

I met him accordingly next morning and we travelled down toWoking together. He had had no answer to his advertisement, hesaid, and no fresh light had been thrown upon the case. He had,when he so willed it, the utter immobility of countenance of ared Indian, and I could not gather from his appearance whether hewas satisfied or not with the position of the case. Hisconversation, I remember, was about the Bertillon system ofmeasurements, and he expressed his enthusiastic admiration of theFrench savant.

We found our client still under the charge of his devoted nurse,but looking considerably better than before. He rose from thesofa and greeted us without difficulty when we entered.

“Any news?” he asked, eagerly.

“My report, as I expected, is a negative one,” said Holmes. “Ihave seen Forbes, and I have seen your uncle, and I have set oneor two trains of inquiry upon foot which may lead to something.”

“You have not lost heart, then?”

“By no means.”

“God bless you for saying that!” cried Miss Harrison. “If we keepour courage and our patience the truth must come out.”

“We have more to tell you than you have for us,” said Phelps,reseating himself upon the couch.

“I hoped you might have something.”

“Yes, we have had an adventure during the night, and one whichmight have proved to be a serious one.” His expression grew verygrave as he spoke, and a look of something akin to fear sprang upin his eyes. “Do you know,” said he, “that I begin to believethat I am the unconscious centre of some monstrous conspiracy,and that my life is aimed at as well as my honour?”

“Ah!” cried Holmes.

“It sounds incredible, for I have not, as far as I know, an enemyin the world. Yet from last night’s experience I can come to noother conclusion.”

“Pray let me hear it.”

“You must know that last night was the very first night that Ihave ever slept without a nurse in the room. I was so much betterthat I thought I could dispense with one. I had a night-lightburning, however. Well, about two in the morning I had sunk intoa light sleep when I was suddenly aroused by a slight noise. Itwas like the sound which a mouse makes when it is gnawing aplank, and I lay listening to it for some time under theimpression that it must come from that cause. Then it grewlouder, and suddenly there came from the window a sharp metallicsnick. I sat up in amazement. There could be no doubt what thesounds were now. The first ones had been caused by some oneforcing an instrument through the slit between the sashes, andthe second by the catch being pressed back.

“There was a pause then for about ten minutes, as if the personwere waiting to see whether the noise had awakened me. Then Iheard a gentle creaking as the window was very slowly opened. Icould stand it no longer, for my nerves are not what they used tobe. I sprang out of bed and flung open the shutters. A man wascrouching at the window. I could see little of him, for he wasgone like a flash. He was wrapped in some sort of cloak whichcame across the lower part of his face. One thing only I am sureof, and that is that he had some weapon in his hand. It looked tome like a long knife. I distinctly saw the gleam of it as heturned to run.”

“This is most interesting,” said Holmes. “Pray what did you dothen?”

“I should have followed him through the open window if I had beenstronger. As it was, I rang the bell and roused the house. Ittook me some little time, for the bell rings in the kitchen andthe servants all sleep upstairs. I shouted, however, and thatbrought Joseph down, and he roused the others. Joseph and thegroom found marks on the bed outside the window, but the weatherhas been so dry lately that they found it hopeless to follow thetrail across the grass. There’s a place, however, on the woodenfence which skirts the road which shows signs, they tell me, asif some one had got over, and had snapped the top of the rail indoing so. I have said nothing to the local police yet, for Ithought I had best have your opinion first.”

This tale of our client’s appeared to have an extraordinaryeffect upon Sherlock Holmes. He rose from his chair and pacedabout the room in uncontrollable excitement.

“Misfortunes never come single,” said Phelps, smiling, though itwas evident that his adventure had somewhat shaken him.

“You have certainly had your share,” said Holmes. “Do you thinkyou could walk round the house with me?”

“Oh, yes, I should like a little sunshine. Joseph will come,too.”

“And I also,” said Miss Harrison.

“I am afraid not,” said Holmes, shaking his head. “I think I mustask you to remain sitting exactly where you are.”

The young lady resumed her seat with an air of displeasure. Herbrother, however, had joined us and we set off all four together.We passed round the lawn to the outside of the youngdiplomatist’s window. There were, as he had said, marks upon thebed, but they were hopelessly blurred and vague. Holmes stoppedover them for an instant, and then rose shrugging his shoulders.

“I don’t think any one could make much of this,” said he. “Let usgo round the house and see why this particular room was chosen bythe burglar. I should have thought those larger windows of thedrawing-room and dining-room would have had more attractions forhim.”

“They are more visible from the road,” suggested Mr. JosephHarrison.

“Ah, yes, of course. There is a door here which he might haveattempted. What is it for?”

“It is the side entrance for trades-people. Of course it islocked at night.”

“Have you ever had an alarm like this before?”

“Never,” said our client.

“Do you keep plate in the house, or anything to attractburglars?”

“Nothing of value.”

Holmes strolled round the house with his hands in his pockets anda negligent air which was unusual with him.

“By the way,” said he to Joseph Harrison, “you found some place,I understand, where the fellow scaled the fence. Let us have alook at that!”

The plump young man led us to a spot where the top of one of thewooden rails had been cracked. A small fragment of the wood washanging down. Holmes pulled it off and examined it critically.

“Do you think that was done last night? It looks rather old, doesit not?”

“Well, possibly so.”

“There are no marks of any one jumping down upon the other side.No, I fancy we shall get no help here. Let us go back to thebedroom and talk the matter over.”

Percy Phelps was walking very slowly, leaning upon the arm of hisfuture brother-in-law. Holmes walked swiftly across the lawn, andwe were at the open window of the bedroom long before the otherscame up.

“Miss Harrison,” said Holmes, speaking with the utmost intensityof manner, “you must stay where you are all day. Let nothingprevent you from staying where you are all day. It is of theutmost importance.”

“Certainly, if you wish it, Mr. Holmes,” said the girl inastonishment.

“When you go to bed lock the door of this room on the outside andkeep the key. Promise to do this.”

“But Percy?”

“He will come to London with us.”

“And am I to remain here?”

“It is for his sake. You can serve him. Quick! Promise!”

She gave a quick nod of assent just as the other two came up.

“Why do you sit moping there, Annie?” cried her brother. “Comeout into the sunshine!”

“No, thank you, Joseph. I have a slight headache and this room isdeliciously cool and soothing.”

“What do you propose now, Mr. Holmes?” asked our client.

“Well, in investigating this minor affair we must not lose sightof our main inquiry. It would be a very great help to me if youwould come up to London with us.”

“At once?”

“Well, as soon as you conveniently can. Say in an hour.”

“I feel quite strong enough, if I can really be of any help.”

“The greatest possible.”

“Perhaps you would like me to stay there to-night?”

“I was just going to propose it.”

“Then, if my friend of the night comes to revisit me, he willfind the bird flown. We are all in your hands, Mr. Holmes, andyou must tell us exactly what you would like done. Perhaps youwould prefer that Joseph came with us so as to look after me?”

“Oh, no; my friend Watson is a medical man, you know, and he’lllook after you. We’ll have our lunch here, if you will permit us,and then we shall all three set off for town together.”

It was arranged as he suggested, though Miss Harrison excusedherself from leaving the bedroom, in accordance with Holmes’ssuggestion. What the object of my friend’s manœuvres was I couldnot conceive, unless it were to keep the lady away from Phelps,who, rejoiced by his returning health and by the prospect ofaction, lunched with us in the dining-room. Holmes had a stillmore startling surprise for us, however, for, after accompanyingus down to the station and seeing us into our carriage, he calmlyannounced that he had no intention of leaving Woking.

“There are one or two small points which I should desire to clearup before I go,” said he. “Your absence, Mr. Phelps, will in someways rather assist me. Watson, when you reach London you wouldoblige me by driving at once to Baker Street with our friendhere, and remaining with him until I see you again. It isfortunate that you are old schoolfellows, as you must have muchto talk over. Mr. Phelps can have the spare bedroom to-night, andI will be with you in time for breakfast, for there is a trainwhich will take me into Waterloo at eight.”

“But how about our investigation in London?” asked Phelps,ruefully.

“We can do that to-morrow. I think that just at present I can beof more immediate use here.”

“You might tell them at Briarbrae that I hope to be backto-morrow night,” cried Phelps, as we began to move from theplatform.

“I hardly expect to go back to Briarbrae,” answered Holmes, andwaved his hand to us cheerily as we shot out from the station.

Phelps and I talked it over on our journey, but neither of uscould devise a satisfactory reason for this new development.

“I suppose he wants to find out some clue as to the burglary lastnight, if a burglar it was. For myself, I don’t believe it was anordinary thief.”

“What is your own idea, then?”

“Upon my word, you may put it down to my weak nerves or not, butI believe there is some deep political intrigue going on aroundme, and that for some reason that passes my understanding my lifeis aimed at by the conspirators. It sounds high-flown and absurd,but consider the facts! Why should a thief try to break in at abedroom window, where there could be no hope of any plunder, andwhy should he come with a long knife in his hand?”

“You are sure it was not a house-breaker’s jimmy?”

“Oh, no, it was a knife. I saw the flash of the blade quitedistinctly.”

“But why on earth should you be pursued with such animosity?”

“Ah, that is the question.”

“Well, if Holmes takes the same view, that would account for hisaction, would it not? Presuming that your theory is correct, ifhe can lay his hands upon the man who threatened you last nighthe will have gone a long way towards finding who took the navaltreaty. It is absurd to suppose that you have two enemies, one ofwhom robs you, while the other threatens your life.”

“But Holmes said that he was not going to Briarbrae.”

“I have known him for some time,” said I, “but I never knew himdo anything yet without a very good reason,” and with that ourconversation drifted off on to other topics.

But it was a weary day for me. Phelps was still weak after hislong illness, and his misfortune made him querulous and nervous.In vain I endeavoured to interest him in Afghanistan, in India,in social questions, in anything which might take his mind out ofthe groove. He would always come back to his lost treaty,wondering, guessing, speculating, as to what Holmes was doing,what steps Lord Holdhurst was taking, what news we should have inthe morning. As the evening wore on his excitement became quitepainful.

“You have implicit faith in Holmes?” he asked.

“I have seen him do some remarkable things.”

“But he never brought light into anything quite so dark as this?”

“Oh, yes; I have known him solve questions which presented fewerclues than yours.”

“But not where such large interests are at stake?”

“I don’t know that. To my certain knowledge he has acted onbehalf of three of the reigning houses of Europe in very vitalmatters.”

“But you know him well, Watson. He is such an inscrutable fellowthat I never quite know what to make of him. Do you think he ishopeful? Do you think he expects to make a success of it?”

“He has said nothing.”

“That is a bad sign.”

“On the contrary, I have noticed that when he is off the trail hegenerally says so. It is when he is on a scent and is not quiteabsolutely sure yet that it is the right one that he is mosttaciturn. Now, my dear fellow, we can’t help matters by makingourselves nervous about them, so let me implore you to go to bedand so be fresh for whatever may await us to-morrow.”

I was able at last to persuade my companion to take my advice,though I knew from his excited manner that there was not muchhope of sleep for him. Indeed, his mood was infectious, for I laytossing half the night myself, brooding over this strangeproblem, and inventing a hundred theories, each of which was moreimpossible than the last. Why had Holmes remained at Woking? Whyhad he asked Miss Harrison to remain in the sick-room all day?Why had he been so careful not to inform the people at Briarbraethat he intended to remain near them? I cudgelled my brains untilI fell asleep in the endeavour to find some explanation whichwould cover all these facts.

It was seven o’clock when I awoke, and I set off at once forPhelps’s room, to find him haggard and spent after a sleeplessnight. His first question was whether Holmes had arrived yet.

“He’ll be here when he promised,” said I, “and not an instantsooner or later.”

And my words were true, for shortly after eight a hansom dashedup to the door and our friend got out of it. Standing in thewindow we saw that his left hand was swathed in a bandage andthat his face was very grim and pale. He entered the house, butit was some little time before he came upstairs.

“He looks like a beaten man,” cried Phelps.

I was forced to confess that he was right. “After all,” said I,“the clue of the matter lies probably here in town.”

Phelps gave a groan.

“I don’t know how it is,” said he, “but I had hoped for so muchfrom his return. But surely his hand was not tied up like thatyesterday. What can be the matter?”

“You are not wounded, Holmes?” I asked, as my friend entered theroom.

“Tut, it is only a scratch through my own clumsiness,” heanswered, nodding his good-mornings to us. “This case of yours,Mr. Phelps, is certainly one of the darkest which I have everinvestigated.”

“I feared that you would find it beyond you.”

“It has been a most remarkable experience.”

“That bandage tells of adventures,” said I. “Won’t you tell uswhat has happened?”

“After breakfast, my dear Watson. Remember that I have breathedthirty miles of Surrey air this morning. I suppose that there hasbeen no answer from my cabman advertisement? Well, well, wecannot expect to score every time.”

The table was all laid, and just as I was about to ring Mrs.Hudson entered with the tea and coffee. A few minutes later shebrought in three covers, and we all drew up to the table, Holmesravenous, I curious, and Phelps in the gloomiest state ofdepression.

“Mrs. Hudson has risen to the occasion,” said Holmes, uncoveringa dish of curried chicken. “Her cuisine is a little limited, butshe has as good an idea of breakfast as a Scotch-woman. What haveyou here, Watson?”

“Ham and eggs,” I answered.

“Good! What are you going to take, Mr. Phelps—curried fowl oreggs, or will you help yourself?”

“Thank you. I can eat nothing,” said Phelps.

“Oh, come! Try the dish before you.”

“Thank you, I would really rather not.”

“Well, then,” said Holmes, with a mischievous twinkle, “I supposethat you have no objection to helping me?”

Phelps raised the cover, and as he did so he uttered a scream,and sat there staring with a face as white as the plate uponwhich he looked. Across the centre of it was lying a littlecylinder of blue-grey paper. He caught it up, devoured it withhis eyes, and then danced madly about the room, pressing it tohis bosom and shrieking out in his delight. Then he fell backinto an armchair so limp and exhausted with his own emotions thatwe had to pour brandy down his throat to keep him from fainting.

“There! there!” said Holmes, soothing, patting him upon theshoulder. “It was too bad to spring it on you like this, butWatson here will tell you that I never can resist a touch of thedramatic.”

Phelps seized his hand and kissed it. “God bless you!” he cried.“You have saved my honour.”

“Well, my own was at stake, you know,” said Holmes. “I assure youit is just as hateful to me to fail in a case as it can be to youto blunder over a commission.”

Phelps thrust away the precious document into the innermostpocket of his coat.

“I have not the heart to interrupt your breakfast any further,and yet I am dying to know how you got it and where it was.”

Sherlock Holmes swallowed a cup of coffee, and turned hisattention to the ham and eggs. Then he rose, lit his pipe, andsettled himself down into his chair.

“I’ll tell you what I did first, and how I came to do itafterwards,” said he. “After leaving you at the station I wentfor a charming walk through some admirable Surrey scenery to apretty little village called Ripley, where I had my tea at aninn, and took the precaution of filling my flask and of putting apaper of sandwiches in my pocket. There I remained until evening,when I set off for Woking again, and found myself in thehigh-road outside Briarbrae just after sunset.

“Well, I waited until the road was clear—it is never a veryfrequented one at any time, I fancy—and then I clambered over thefence into the grounds.”

“Surely the gate was open!” ejaculated Phelps.

“Yes, but I have a peculiar taste in these matters. I chose theplace where the three fir-trees stand, and behind their screen Igot over without the least chance of any one in the house beingable to see me. I crouched down among the bushes on the otherside, and crawled from one to the other—witness the disreputablestate of my trouser knees—until I had reached the clump ofrhododendrons just opposite to your bedroom window. There Isquatted down and awaited developments.

“The blind was not down in your room, and I could see MissHarrison sitting there reading by the table. It was quarter-pastten when she closed her book, fastened the shutters, and retired.

“I heard her shut the door, and felt quite sure that she hadturned the key in the lock.”

“The key!” ejaculated Phelps.

“Yes; I had given Miss Harrison instructions to lock the door onthe outside and take the key with her when she went to bed. Shecarried out every one of my injunctions to the letter, andcertainly without her co-operation you would not have that paperin your coat-pocket. She departed then and the lights went out,and I was left squatting in the rhododendron-bush.

“The night was fine, but still it was a very weary vigil. Ofcourse it has the sort of excitement about it that the sportsmanfeels when he lies beside the water-course and waits for the biggame. It was very long, though—almost as long, Watson, as whenyou and I waited in that deadly room when we looked into thelittle problem of the Speckled Band. There was a church-clockdown at Woking which struck the quarters, and I thought more thanonce that it had stopped. At last however about two in themorning, I suddenly heard the gentle sound of a bolt being pushedback and the creaking of a key. A moment later the servants’ doorwas opened, and Mr. Joseph Harrison stepped out into themoonlight.”

“Joseph!” ejaculated Phelps.

“He was bare-headed, but he had a black coat thrown over hisshoulder so that he could conceal his face in an instant if therewere any alarm. He walked on tiptoe under the shadow of the wall,and when he reached the window he worked a long-bladed knifethrough the sash and pushed back the catch. Then he flung openthe window, and putting his knife through the crack in theshutters, he thrust the bar up and swung them open.

“From where I lay I had a perfect view of the inside of the roomand of every one of his movements. He lit the two candles whichstood upon the mantelpiece, and then he proceeded to turn backthe corner of the carpet in the neighbourhood of the door.Presently he stopped and picked out a square piece of board, suchas is usually left to enable plumbers to get at the joints of thegas-pipes. This one covered, as a matter of fact, the T jointwhich gives off the pipe which supplies the kitchen underneath.Out of this hiding-place he drew that little cylinder of paper,pushed down the board, rearranged the carpet, blew out thecandles, and walked straight into my arms as I stood waiting forhim outside the window.

“Well, he has rather more viciousness than I gave him credit for,has Master Joseph. He flew at me with his knife, and I had tograsp him twice, and got a cut over the knuckles, before I hadthe upper hand of him. He looked murder out of the only eye hecould see with when we had finished, but he listened to reasonand gave up the papers. Having got them I let my man go, but Iwired full particulars to Forbes this morning. If he is quickenough to catch his bird, well and good. But if, as I shrewdlysuspect, he finds the nest empty before he gets there, why, allthe better for the government. I fancy that Lord Holdhurst forone, and Mr. Percy Phelps for another, would very much ratherthat the affair never got as far as a police-court.

“My God!” gasped our client. “Do you tell me that during theselong ten weeks of agony the stolen papers were within the veryroom with me all the time?”

“So it was.”

“And Joseph! Joseph a villain and a thief!”

“Hum! I am afraid Joseph’s character is a rather deeper and moredangerous one than one might judge from his appearance. From whatI have heard from him this morning, I gather that he has lostheavily in dabbling with stocks, and that he is ready to doanything on earth to better his fortunes. Being an absolutelyselfish man, when a chance presented itself he did not alloweither his sister’s happiness or your reputation to hold hishand.”

Percy Phelps sank back in his chair. “My head whirls,” said he.“Your words have dazed me.”

“The principal difficulty in your case,” remarked Holmes, in hisdidactic fashion, “lay in the fact of there being too muchevidence. What was vital was overlaid and hidden by what wasirrelevant. Of all the facts which were presented to us we had topick just those which we deemed to be essential, and then piecethem together in their order, so as to reconstruct this veryremarkable chain of events. I had already begun to suspectJoseph, from the fact that you had intended to travel home withhim that night, and that therefore it was a likely enough thingthat he should call for you, knowing the Foreign Office well,upon his way. When I heard that some one had been so anxious toget into the bedroom, in which no one but Joseph could haveconcealed anything—you told us in your narrative how you hadturned Joseph out when you arrived with the doctor—my suspicionsall changed to certainties, especially as the attempt was made onthe first night upon which the nurse was absent, showing that theintruder was well acquainted with the ways of the house.”

“How blind I have been!”

“The facts of the case, as far as I have worked them out, arethese: this Joseph Harrison entered the office through theCharles Street door, and knowing his way he walked straight intoyour room the instant after you left it. Finding no one there hepromptly rang the bell, and at the instant that he did so hiseyes caught the paper upon the table. A glance showed him thatchance had put in his way a State document of immense value, andin an instant he had thrust it into his pocket and was gone. Afew minutes elapsed, as you remember, before the sleepycommissionnaire drew your attention to the bell, and those werejust enough to give the thief time to make his escape.

“He made his way to Woking by the first train, and havingexamined his booty and assured himself that it really was ofimmense value, he had concealed it in what he thought was a verysafe place, with the intention of taking it out again in a day ortwo, and carrying it to the French embassy, or wherever hethought that a long price was to be had. Then came your suddenreturn. He, without a moment’s warning, was bundled out of hisroom, and from that time onward there were always at least two ofyou there to prevent him from regaining his treasure. Thesituation to him must have been a maddening one. But at last hethought he saw his chance. He tried to steal in, but was baffledby your wakefulness. You remember that you did not take yourusual draught that night.”

“I remember.”

“I fancy that he had taken steps to make that draughtefficacious, and that he quite relied upon your beingunconscious. Of course, I understood that he would repeat theattempt whenever it could be done with safety. Your leaving theroom gave him the chance he wanted. I kept Miss Harrison in itall day so that he might not anticipate us. Then, having givenhim the idea that the coast was clear, I kept guard as I havedescribed. I already knew that the papers were probably in theroom, but I had no desire to rip up all the planking and skirtingin search of them. I let him take them, therefore, from thehiding-place, and so saved myself an infinity of trouble. Isthere any other point which I can make clear?”

“Why did he try the window on the first occasion,” I asked, “whenhe might have entered by the door?”

“In reaching the door he would have to pass seven bedrooms. Onthe other hand, he could get out on to the lawn with ease.Anything else?”

“You do not think,” asked Phelps, “that he had any murderousintention? The knife was only meant as a tool.”