Hetookthetime(Pacific)byhiswatch,correctingitforlocaltime。
Hepacedoffthedistancefromthecabinsitetothecorpse,andcorrectedthatfortidaldifferentiation。Hetookthealtitudewithapocket—aneroid,andthetemperaturewithapocket—thermometer。Finallyhesaid,withastatelybow:
\"Itisfinished。Shallwereturn,gentlemen?\"
Hetookupthelineofmarchforthetavern,andthecrowdfellintohiswake,earnestlydiscussingandadmiringtheExtraordinaryMan,andinterlardingguessesastotheoriginofthetragedyandwhotheauthorofitmighthe。
\"My,butit’sgrandluckhavinghimhere——hey,boys?\"saidFerguson。
\"It’sthebiggestthingofthecentury,\"saidHamSandwich。\"It’llgoallovertheworld;youmarkmywords。\"
\"Youbet!\"saidJakeParker,theblacksmith。\"It’llboomthiscamp。
Ain’titso,Wells—Fargo?\"
\"Well,asyouwantmyopinion——ifit’sanysignofhowIthinkaboutit,Icantellyouthis:yesterdayIwasholdingtheStraightFlushclaimattwodollarsafoot;I’dliketoseethemanthatcangetitatsixteento—day。\"
\"Rightyouare,Wells—Fargo!It’sthegrandestluckanewcampeverstruck。Say,didyouseehimcollarthemlittleragsanddirtandthings?Whataneye!Hejustcan’toverlookaclue——’tain’tinhim。\"
\"That’sso。Andtheywouldn’tmeanathingtoanybodyelse;buttohim,why,they’rejustabook——largeprintatthat。\"
\"Sure’syou’reborn!Themoddsandendshavegottheirlittleoldsecret,andtheythinkthereain’tanybodycanpullit;but,land!whenhesetshisgriptherethey’vegottosqueal,anddon’tyouforgetit。\"
\"Boys,Iain’tsorry,now,thathewasn’theretoroustoutthechild;
thisisabiggerthing,byalongsight。Yes,sir,andmoretangledupandscientificandintellectual。\"
\"Ireckonwe’reallofusgladit’sturnedoutthisway。Glad?’George!
itain’tanynameforit。Dontchuknow,Archycould’velearntsomethingifhe’dhadthenoustostandbyandtakenoticeofhowthatmanworksthesystem。Butno;hewentpokingupintothechaparralandjustmissedthewholething。\"
\"It’strueasgospel;Iseenitmyself。Well,Archy’syoung。He’llknowbetteroneofthesedays。\"
\"Say,boys,whodoyoureckondoneit?\"
Thatwasadifficultquestion,andbroughtoutaworldofunsatisfyingconjecture。Variousmenwerementionedaspossibilities,butonebyonetheywerediscardedasnotbeingeligible。NoonebutyoungHillyerhadbeenintimatewithFlintBuckner;noonehadreallyhadaquarrelwithhim;hehadaffrontedeverymanwhohadtriedtomakeuptohim,althoughnotquiteoffensivelyenoughtorequirebloodshed。Therewasonenamethatwasuponeverytonguefromthestart,butitwasthelasttogetutterance——FetlockJones’s。ItwasPatRileythatmentionedit。
\"Oh,well,\"theboyssaid,\"ofcoursewe’veallthoughtofhim,becausehehadamillionrightstokillFlintBuckner,anditwasjusthisplaindutytodoit。Butallthesamethere’stwothingswecan’tgetaround:
foronething,hehasn’tgotthesand;andforanother,hewasn’tanywhereneartheplacewhenithappened。\"
\"Iknowit,\"saidPat。\"Hewasthereinthebilliard—roomwithuswhenithappened。\"
\"Yes,andwasthereallthetimeforanhourbeforeithappened。\"
\"It’sso。Andluckyforhim,too。He’dhavebeensuspectedinaminuteifithadn’tbeenforthat。\"
III
Thetaverndining—roomhadbeenclearedofallitsfurnituresaveonesix—footpinetableandachair。Thistablewasagainstoneendoftheroom;thechairwasonit;SherlockHolmes,stately,imposing,impressive,satinthechair。Thepublicstood。Theroomwasfull。Thetobacco—smokewasdense,thestillnessprofound。
TheExtraordinaryManraisedhishandtocommandadditionalsilence;helditintheairafewmoments;then,inbrief,crisptermsheputforwardquestionafterquestion,andnotedtheanswerswith\"Um—ums,\"nodsofthehead,andsoon。BythisprocesshelearnedallaboutFlintBuckner,hischaracter,conduct,andhabits,thatthepeoplewereabletotellhim。ItthustranspiredthattheExtraordinaryMan’snephewwastheonlypersoninthecampwhohadakilling—grudgeagainstFlintBuckner。
Mr。Holmessmiledcompassionatelyuponthewitness,andasked,languidly:
\"DoanyofyougentlemenchancetoknowwheretheladFetlockJoneswasatthetimeoftheexplosion?\"
Athunderousresponsefollowed:
\"Inthebilliard—roomofthishouse!\"
\"Ah。Andhadhejustcomein?\"
\"Beenthereallofanhour!\"
\"Ah。Itisabout——about——well,abouthowfarmightitbetothesceneoftheexplosions\"
\"Allofamile!\"
\"Ah。Itisn’tmuchofanalibi,’tistrue,but——\"
Astorm—burstoflaughter,mingledwithshoutsof\"Byjiminy,buthe’schain—lightning!\"and\"Ain’tyousorryyouspoke,Sandy?\"shutofftherestofthesentence,andthecrushedwitnessdroopedhisblushingfaceinpatheticshame。Theinquisitorresumed:
\"TheladJones’ssomewhatdistantconnectionwiththecase\"(laughter)
\"havingbeendisposedof,letusnowcalltheeye—witnessesofthetragedy,andlistentowhattheyhavetosay。\"
Hegotouthisfragmentarycluesandarrangedthemonasheetofcardboardonhisknee。Thehousehelditsbreathandwatched。
\"Wehavethelongitudeandthelatitude,correctedformagneticvariation,andthisgivesustheexactlocationofthetragedy。Wehavethealtitude,thetemperature,andthedegreeofhumidityprevailing——
inestimablyvaluable,sincetheyenableustoestimatewithprecisionthedegreeofinfluencewhichtheywouldexerciseuponthemoodanddispositionoftheassassinatthattimeofthenight。\"
(Buzzofadmiration;mutteredremark,\"ByGeorge,buthe’sdeep。\")Hefingeredhisclues。\"Andnowletusaskthesemutewitnessestospeaktous。
\"Herewehaveanemptylinenshot—bag。Whatisitsmessage?This:thatrobberywasthemotive,notrevenge。Whatisitsfurthermessage?This:
thattheassassinwasofinferiorintelligence——shallwesaylight—
witted,orperhapsapproachingthat?Howdoweknowthis?BecauseapersonofsoundintelligencewouldnothaveproposedtorobthemanBuckner,whoneverhadmuchmoneywithhim。Buttheassassinmighthavebeenastranger?Letthebagspeakagain。Itakefromitthisarticle。
Itisabitofsilver—bearingquartz。Itispeculiar。Examineit,please——you——andyou——andyou。Nowpassitback,please。Thereisbutonelodeonthiscoastwhichproducesjustthatcharacterandcolorofquartz;andthatisalodewhichcropsoutfornearlytwomilesonastretch,andinmyopinionisdestined,atnodistantday,toconferuponitslocalityaglobe—girdlingcelebrity,anduponitstwohundredownersrichesbeyondthedreamsofavarice。Namethatlode,please。\"
\"TheConsolidatedChristianScienceandMaryAnn!\"wasthepromptresponse。
Awildcrashofhurrahsfollowed,andeverymanreachedforhisneighbor’shandandwrungit,withtearsinhiseyes;andWells—FargoFergusonshouted,\"TheStraightFlushisonthelode,andupshegoestoahunchedandfiftyafoot——youhearme!\"
Whenquietfell,Mr。Holmesresumed:
\"Weperceive,then,thatthreefactsareestablished,towit:theassassinwasapproximatelylight—witted;hewasnotastranger;hismotivewasrobbery,notrevenge。Letusproceed。Iholdinmyhandasmallfragmentoffuse,withtherecentsmelloffireuponit。Whatisitstestimony?Takenwiththecorroborativeevidenceofthequartz,itrevealstousthattheassassinwasaminer。Whatdoesittellusfurther?This,gentlemen:thattheassassinationwasconsummatedbymeansofanexplosive。Whatelsedoesitsay?This:thattheexplosivewaslocatedagainstthesideofthecabinnearesttheroad——thefrontside——forwithinsixfeetofthatspotIfoundit。
\"IholdinmyfingersaburntSwedishmatch——thekindonerubsonasafety—box。Ifounditintheroad,sixhundredandtwenty—twofeetfromtheabolishedcabin。Whatdoesitsay?This:thatthetrainwasfiredfromthatpoint。Whatfurtherdoesittellus?This:thattheassassinwasleft—handed。HowdoIknowthis?Ishouldnotbeabletoexplaintoyou,gentlemen,howIknowit,thesignsbeingsosubtlethatonlylongexperienceanddeepstudycanenableonetodetectthem。Butthesignsarehere,andtheyarereinforcedbyafactwhichyoumusthaveoftennoticedinthegreatdetectivenarratives——thatallassassinsareleft—
handed。\"
\"ByJackson,that’sso。\"saidHamSandwich,bringinghisgreathanddownwitharesoundingslapuponhisthigh;\"blamedifIeverthoughtofitbefore。\"
\"NorI!\"\"NorI!\"criedseveral。\"Oh,therecan’tanythingescapehim——
lookathiseye!\"
\"Gentlemen,distantasthemurdererwasfromhisdoomedvictim,hedidnotwhollyescapeinjury。ThisfragmentofwoodwhichInowexhibittoyoustruckhim。Itdrewblood。Whereverheis,hebearsthetelltalemark。Ipickeditupwherehestoodwhenhefiredthefataltrain,\"
Helookedoutoverthehousefromhishighperch,andhiscountenancebegantodarken;heslowlyraisedhishand,andpointed:
\"Therestandstheassassin!\"
Foramomentthehousewasparalyzedwithamazement;thentwentyvoicesburstoutwith:
\"SammyHillyer?Oh,hell,no!Him?It’spurefoolishness!\"
\"Takecare,gentlemen——benothasty。Observe——hehastheblood—markonhisbrow。\"
Hillyerturnedwhitewithfright。Hewasneartocrying。Heturnedthiswayandthat,appealingtoeveryfaceforhelpandsympathy;andheldouthissupplicatinghandstowardHolmesandbegantoplead:
\"Don’t,oh,don’t!Ineverdidit;IgivemywordIneverdidit。ThewayIgotthishurtonmyforeheadwas——\"
\"Arresthim,constable!\"criedHolmes。\"Iwillswearoutthewarrant。\"
Theconstablemovedreluctantlyforward——hesitated——stopped。
Hillyerbrokeoutwithanotherappeal。\"Oh,Archy,don’tletthemdoit;
itwouldkillmother!YouknowhowIgotthehurt。Tellthem,andsaveme,Archy;saveme!\"
Stillmanworkedhiswaytothefront,andsaid:
\"Yes,I’llsaveyou。Don’tbeafraid。\"Thenhesaidtothehouse,\"Nevermindhowhegotthehurt;ithasn’tanythingtodowiththiscase,andisn’tofanyconsequence。\"
\"Godblessyou,Archy,foratruefriend!\"
\"HurrahforArchy!Goin,boy,andplay’emaknock—downflushtotheirtwopair’n’ajack!\"shoutedthehouse,prideintheirhometalentandapatrioticsentimentofloyaltytoitrisingsuddenlyinthepublicheartandchangingthewholeattitudeofthesituation。
YoungStillmanwaitedforthenoisetocease;thenhesaid:
\"IwillaskTomJeffriestostandbythatdooryonder,andConstableHarristostandbytheotheronehere,andnotletanybodyleavetheroom。
\"Saidanddone。Goon,oldman!\"
\"Thecriminalispresent,Ibelieve。Iwillshowhimtoyoubeforelong,incaseIamrightinmyguess。NowIwilltellyouallaboutthetragedy,fromstarttofinish。Themotivewasn’trobbery;itwasrevenge。Themurdererwasn’tlight—witted。Hedidn’tstandsixhundredandtwenty—twofeetaway。Hedidn’tgethitwithapieceofwood。Hedidn’tplacetheexplosiveagainstthecabin。Hedidn’tbringashot—bagwithhim,andhewasn’tleft—handed。Withtheexceptionoftheseerrors,thedistinguishedguest’sstatementofthecaseissubstantiallycorrect。\"
Acomfortablelaughrippledoverthehouse;friendnoddedtofriend,asmuchastosay,\"That’stheword,withthebarkonit。Goodlad,goodboy。Heain’tloweringhisflagany!\"
Theguest’sserenitywasnotdisturbed。Stillmanresumed:
\"Ialsohavesomewitnesses;andIwillpresentlytellyouwhereyoucanfindsomemore。\"Heheldupapieceofcoarsewire;thecrowdcranedtheirneckstosee。\"Ithasasmoothcoatingofmeltedtallowonit。
Andhereisacandlewhichisburnedhalf—waydown。Theremaininghalfofithasmarkscutuponitaninchapart。SoonIwilltellyouwhereI
foundthesethings。Iwillnowputasidereasonings,guesses,theimpressivehitchingsofoddsandendsofcluestogether,andtheothershowytheatricalsofthedetectivetrade,andtellyouinaplain,straightforwardwayjusthowthisdismalthinghappened。\"
Hepausedamoment,foreffect——toallowsilenceandsuspensetointensifyandconcentratethehouse’sinterest;thenhewenton:
\"Theassassinstudiedouthisplanwithagooddealofpains。Itwasagoodplan,veryingenious,andshowedanintelligentmind,notafeebleone。Itwasaplanwhichwaswellcalculatedtowardoffallsuspicionfromitsinventor。Inthefirstplace,hemarkedacandleintospacesaninchapart,andlititandtimedit。Hefoundittookthreehourstoburnfourinchesofit。Itrieditmyselfforhalfanhour,awhileago,up—stairshere,whiletheinquiryintoFlintBuckner’scharacterandwayswasbeingconductedinthisroom,andIarrivedinthatwayattherateofacandle’sconsumptionwhenshelteredfromthewind。Havingprovedhistrialcandle’srate,heblewitout——Ihavealreadyshownittoyou——
andputhisinch—marksonafreshone。
\"Heputthefreshoneintoatincandlestick。Thenatthefive—hourmarkheboredaholethroughthecandlewithared—hotwire。Ihavealreadyshownyouthewire,withasmoothcoatoftallowonit——tallowthathadbeenmeltedandhadcooled。
\"Withlabor——veryhardlabor,Ishouldsay——hestruggledupthroughthestiffchaparralthatclothesthesteephillsidebackofFlintBuckner’splace,tugginganemptyflour—barrelwithhim。Heplaceditinthatabsolutelysecurehiding—place,andinthebottomofithesetthecandlestick。Thenhemeasuredoffaboutthirty—fivefeetoffuse——thebarrel’sdistancefromthebackofthecabin。Heboredaholeinthesideofthebarrel——hereisthelargegimlethediditwith。Hewentonandfinishedhiswork;andwhenitwasdone,oneendofthefusewasinBuckner’scabin,andtheotherend,withanotchchippedinittoexposethepowder,wasintheholeinthecandle——timedtoblowtheplaceupatoneo’clockthismorning,providedthecandlewaslitabouteighto’clockyesterdayevening——whichIambettingitwas——andprovidedtherewasanexplosiveinthecabinandconnectedwiththatendofthefuse——whichI
amalsobettingtherewas,thoughIcan’tproveit。Boys,thebarrelisthereinthechaparral,thecandle’sremainsareinitinthetinstick;
theburnt—outfuseisinthegimlet—hole,theotherendisdownthehillwherethelatecabinstood。Isawthemallanhourortwoago,whentheProfessorherewasmeasuringoffunimplicatedvacanciesandcollectingrelicsthathadn’tanythingtodowiththecase。\"
Hepaused。Thehousedrewalong,deepbreath,shookitsstrainedcordsandmusclesfreeandburstintocheers。\"Danghim!\"saidHamSandwich,\"that’swhyhewassnoopingaroundinthechaparral,insteadofpickinguppointsoutoftheP’fessor’sgame。Lookyhere——heain’tnofool,boys。\"
\"No,sir!Why,greatScott——\"
ButStillmanwasresuming:
\"Whilewewereoutyonderanhourortwoago,theownerofthegimletandthetrialcandletookthemfromaplacewherehehadconcealedthem——itwasnotagoodplace——andcarriedthemtowhatheprobablythoughtwasabetterone,twohundredyardsupinthepinewoods,andhidthemthere,coveringthemoverwithpineneedles。ItwastherethatIfoundthem。
Thegimletexactlyfitstheholeinthebarrel。Andnow——\"
TheExtraordinaryManinterruptedhim。Hesaid,sarcastically:
\"Wehavehadaveryprettyfairytale,gentlemen——veryprettyindeed。
NowIwouldliketoaskthisyoungmanaquestionortwo。\"
Someoftheboyswinced,andFergusonsaid:
\"I’mafraidArchy’sgoingtocatchitnow。\"
Theotherslosttheirsmilesandsobereddown。Mr。Holmessaid:
\"Letusproceedtoexamineintothisfairytaleinaconsecutiveandorderlyway——bygeometricalprogression,sotospeak——linkingdetailtodetailinasteadilyadvancingandremorselesslyconsistentandunassailablemarchuponthistinseltoyfortressoferror,thedreamfabricofacallowimagination。Tobeginwith,youngsir,Idesiretoaskyoubutthreequestionsatpresent——atpresent。DidIunderstandyoutosayitwasyouropinionthatthesupposititiouscandlewaslightedatabouteighto’clockyesterdayevening?\"