Kitabı oku: «The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. B1 / Приключения Шерлока Холмса», sayfa 4

“It surprised me.”

“But, surely, it wasobvious. I was then much surprised and interested on glancing down to observe that, though the boots which she was wearing were not unlike each other, they were mismatched; One of them had a slightly decorated toecap, and the other a plain one. One was buttoned only in the two lower buttons out of five, and the other at the first, third, and fifth. Now, when you see that a young lady, otherwise neatly dressed, has come away from home with odd boots, half-buttoned, it is no great deduction to say that she came away in a hurry.”

“And what else?” I asked, keenly interested, as I always was, by my friend's thoughtful reasoning.

“I noted, in passing, that she had written a note before leaving home but after being fully dressed. You observed that her rightglove was torn at the forefinger, but you did not apparently see that both glove and finger were stained with violet ink. She had written in a hurry and dipped her pen too deep. It must have been this morning, or the mark would not remain clear upon the finger. All this is amusing, though rather elementary, but I must go back to business, Watson. Would you mind reading me the advertised description of Mr. Hosmer Angel?”

I held the little printed slip to the light.

“Missing,” it said, “on the morning of the fourteenth, a gentleman named Hosmer Angel. About five feet seven inches in height; strongly built, sallow complexion, black hair, a little bald in the centre, black side-whiskers andmoustache; tinted glasses, slight infirmity of speech. Was dressed, when last seen, in black frock-coat faced with silk, black waistcoat, gold Albert chain, and grey Harris tweed trousers, with brown gaiters over elastic-sided boots. Known to have been employed in an office in Leadenhall Street. Anybody bringing-”

“That will do,” said Holmes. “As to the letters,” he continued,glancing over them, “they are very ordinary. Absolutely no clue in them to Mr. Angel, save that he quotes Balzac once. There is one remarkable point, however, which will no doubt strike you.”

“They are typewritten,” I remarked.

“Not only that, but the signature is typewritten. Look at the neat little 'Hosmer Angel' at the bottom. There is a date, you see, but no superscription except Leadenhall Street, which is rather vague. The point about the signature is very interesting-in fact, we may call it conclusive.”

“Of what?”

“My dear fellow, is it possible you do not see how strongly it is important for thecase?”

“I cannot say that I do unless it were that he wished to be able to deny his signature incase he got caught.”

“No, that was not the point. However, I shall write two letters, which should settle the matter. One is to a firm in the City, the other is to the young lady's stepfather, Mr. Windibank, asking him whether he could meet us here at six o'clock tomorrow evening. It is just as well that we should do business with the male relatives. And now, Doctor, we can do nothing until the answers to those letters come, so we may put our little problem upon the shelf for a while.”

I had had so many reasons to believe in my friend's powers of reasoning and extraordinary energy inaction that I felt that he must have some solid grounds for the the way in which he treated the singular mystery. I had known him to fail only once, in the case of the King of Bohemia and of the Irene Adler photograph; but when I looked back to the weird business of the Sign of Four, and the extraordinary circumstances connected with the Study in Scarlet, I felt that it would be a rare case indeed which he could not solve.

I left him then, still sitting with his black clay pipe, with the sense that when I came again on the next evening I would find that he got all the clues which would lead to the identity of the disappearing bridegroom of Miss Mary Sutherland.

I spent the next day beside the bed of my patient, whose suffering was great. It was about six o'clock that I found myself free and could drive to Baker Street, half afraid that I might be too late to assist at the solving of the little mystery. I found Sherlock Holmes alone, however, half asleep in his armchair. A huge set of bottles and test-tubes, with the strong cleanly smell of chemichals, told me that he had spent his day in the chemical work which was so dear to him.

“Well, have you solved it?” I asked as I entered.

“Yes. A chemical substance it was.”

“No, no, the mystery!” I cried.

“Oh, that! I thought of the salt that I have been working upon. There was never any mystery in the matter, though, as I said yesterday, somedetails are interesting. The only problem is that there is no law, that can touch that awful man.”

“Who was he, then, and what was his object in deserting Miss Sutherland?”

The question was hardly out of my mouth, and Holmes had not yet opened his lips to reply, when we heard a heavy footfall and a tap at the door.

“This is the girl's stepfather, Mr. James Windibank,” said Holmes. “He has written to me to say that he would be here at six. Come in!”

The man who entered was a strong, middle-sized fellow, some thirty years of age, clean-shaven, with yellow skin, with a gently, polite manner, and a pair of wonderfully sharp grey eyes. He shot a questioningglance at each of us, placed his shiny top-hat upon the sideboard, and sat down into the nearest chair.

“Good evening, Mr. James Windibank,” said Holmes. “I think that this typewritten letter is from you, in which you made an appointment with me for six o'clock?”

“Yes, sir. I am afraid that I am a little late, but I am not quite my own master, you know. I am sorry that Miss Sutherland has troubled you about this little matter, for I think it is far better not to discuss it with anyone. It was quite against my wishes that she came, but she is a very impulsive girl, as you may have noticed, and she is not easily controlled when she has made up her mind on a point. Of course, I did not mind you so much, as you are not connected with the official police, but it is not pleasant to have a family misfortune like this noised abroad. Besides, it is a useless expense, for how could you possibly find this Hosmer Angel?”