Learn English through the story “The Adventure of the Priory School”
This story is in the collection “The Return of Sherlock Holmes” published in 1905. The collection inclueds 13 Sherlock Holmes stories:
1. “The Adventure of the Empty House”: https://youtu.be/NhqGEk-Eyco
2. “The Adventure of the Norwood Builder”: https://youtu.be/4vOgVEKKtbA
3. “The Adventure of the Dancing Men”: https://youtu.be/YVgDIhPSni0
4. “The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist”: https://youtu.be/nsyhZVzy-0s
5. “The Adventure of the Priory School”: https://youtu.be/8p_ltvDEJC4
6. “The Adventure of Black Peter”: https://youtu.be/JzwWKd9WKrM
7. “The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton”: https://youtu.be/QhAeIE9iOnk
8. “The Adventure of the Six Napoleons”: https://youtu.be/JCboFLGF12M
9. “The Adventure of the Three Students”: https://youtu.be/1Uwq9BOSMxI
10. “The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez”: https://youtu.be/f5BwTenkDbk
11. “The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter”: https://youtu.be/qXaICKfl63Q
12. “The Adventure of the Abbey Grange”: https://youtu.be/WN51-RZ8Alg
13. “The Adventure of the Second Stain”: https://youtu.be/yr057LdsRg0
You can find all the stories of Sherlock Holmes here: https://englishonline.vn/the-62-sherlock-holmes-stories-written-by-arthur-conan-doyle/
———————————————
LIKE, SHARE, and SUBSCRIBE to our channel for more stories: https://www.youtube.com/@EnOn.English
———————————————
#EnOnEnglish #AudioBook #EnglishStory
—————————————
Please contact us for any suggestions or issues regarding our channel: mrenon.vn@gmail.com
The adventure of the prary school part one we’ve had some dramatic entrances and exits Upon Our small stage at Baker Street but I cannot recollect anything more sudden and startling and the first appearance of thorny coft huxel ma PhD Etc his card which seemed too small to carry
The weight of his academic distinctions preceded him by a few seconds and then he entered himself so large so pompous and so dignified that he was the very embodiment of self-possession and solidity and yet his first action when the door had closed behind him was to stagger against the table whence He
Slipped down upon the floor and there was that Majestic figure prostrate and insensible Upon Our bare skinned Heth rug we had sprung to our feet and for a few moments we stared in silent amazement at this ponderous piece of wreckage which told of some sudden and
Fatal storm far out on the ocean of life then Holmes hurried with a cushion for his head and I with Brandy for his lips the heavy white face was seamed with lines of trouble the hanging pouches under the closed eyes were Leen in color the loose mouth drooped dolorously at
The Corners the rolling chins were unshaven collar and shirt bore the grime of a long journey and the hair bristled unkempt from the well-shaped head it was a sorely stricken man who lay before us what is it Watson asked Holmes absolute exhaustion possibly mere hunger
And fatigue said I with my finger on the threy pulse where the stream of Life trickled thin and small returned ticket from mlon in the north of England said Holmes drawing it from the watch pocket it is not 12:00 yet he has certainly been an early starter the Pucket eyelids had begun to
Quiver and now a pair of vacant gray eyes looked up at us an instant later the man had scrambled onto his feet his face Crimson with shame forgive this weakness Mr Holmes I have been a little overwrought thank thank you if I might have a glass of
Milk and a biscuit I have no doubt that I should be better I came personally Mr Holmes in order to ensure that you would return with me I feared that no telegram would convince you of the absolute urgency of the case when you are quite restored I am
Quite well again I cannot imagine how I came to be so weak I wish you Mr Holmes to come to mlon with me by the next train my friend shook his head my colleague Dr Watson could tell you that we are very busy at present I
Am retained in this case of the ferah documents and the abig of any murder is coming up for trial only a very important issue could call me from London at present important our visitor threw up his hands have you heard nothing of the Abduction of the only son of the Duke of
Bess what the late cabinet minister exactly we had tried to keep it out of the papers but there was some rumor in the Globe last night I thought it might have reached your ears Holmes shut out his long thin arm and picked out volume H in his Encyclopedia of
Reference hold and Ness 6 dukee kgpc half the alphabet Baron Beverly Earl of C Aon dear me what a list Lord Lieutenant of Hamshire since 1900 married Edith daughter of Sir Charles appdore 1888 Heir and only child Lord salti owns about 250,000 Acres minerals in Lancashire and Wales address Carlton
House Terrace holderness Hall Hamshire Caston Castle Banger Wales lord of the admiralty 1872 Chief Secretary of State for well well this man is certainly one of the greatest subjects of the crown the greatest and perhaps the wealthiest I am aware Mr Holmes that you take a very high line in professional
Matters and that you are prepared to work for the work’s sake I may tell you however that his grace has already intimated that a check for £5,000 will be handed over to the person who can tell him where his son is and another thousand to him who can name the
Man or men who have taken him it is a princely offer said Holmes Watson I think that we shall accompany Dr huxol back to the north of England and now Dr huble when you have consumed that milk you will kindly tell me what has happened when it happened how it
Happened and finally what Dr thornicroft huble of the prior School neared mlon has to do with the matter and why he comes 3 days after an event the state of your chin gives the date to ask for my humble services our visitor had consumed his milk and biscuits the light had come
Back to his eyes and the color to his cheeks as he set himself with great Vigor and lucidity to explain the situation I must inform you gentlemen that the prior is a preparatory school of which I am the founder and principal huxel sidelights on Horus may possibly
Recall my name to your memories the prior is without exception the best and most select Preparatory School in England Lord lever stoke the Earl of Blackwater sir carkart SS they all have entrusted their sons to me but I felt that my school had reached its Zenith
When weeks ago the Duke of haleness sent Mr James Wilder his secretary with intimation that young Lord Su 10 years old his only son and Heir was about to be committed to my charge little did I think that this would be the Prelude to the most crushing Misfortune Of My
Life on May 1st the boy arrived that being the beginning of the summer term he was a Charming Youth and he soon fell into our ways I may tell you I I trust that I am not indiscret but half confidence are absurd in such a case
That he was not entirely happy at home it is an Open Secret that the Duke’s married life had not been a peaceful one and the matter had ended in a Separation by Mutual consent The Duchess taking up her residence in the south of France this had occurred very shortly before
And the boy’s sympathies are known to have been strongly with his mother he moped after her departure from holderness Hall and it was for this reason that the Juke desired to send him to my establishment in a fortnight the boy was quite at home with us and was apparently absolutely
Happy he was last scene on the night of May 13th that is the night of last Monday his room was on the second floor and was approached through another large room in which two boys were sleeping these boys saw and heard nothing so that it is certain that young saler did not
Pass out that way his window was open and there is a stout ivy plant leading to the ground we could trace no foot marks below but it is sure that this is the only possible exit his absence was discovered at 7:00 on Tuesday Morning his bed had been
Slept in he had dressed himself fully before going off in his usual School suit of black eaten jacket and dark gray trousers there were no signs of that anyone had entered the room and it is quite certain that anything in the nature of cries or a struggle would have
Been heard since conter the Elder boy in the Inner Room is a very light sleeper when Lord Sal’s disappearance was discovered I at once called a role of the whole establishment boys Masters and servants it was then that we ascertained that Lord saltier had not been alone in
His flight higer the German master was missing his room was on the second floor at the farther end of the building facing the same way as Lord saltier his bed had also been slept in but he had apparently gone away partly dressed since his shirt and socks were lying on the
Floor he had undoubtedly let himself down by the ivy for we could see the marks of his feet where he had landed on the lawn his bicycle was kept in a small shed beside his lawn and it also was gone he had been with me for 2 years and
Came with the best references but he was a silent morose man not very popular either with Masters or boys no Trace could be found of the fugitives and now on Thursday morning we are are as ignorant as we were on Tuesday inquiry was of course made at
Once at holdes Hall which is only a few miles away and we imagined that in some sudden attack of homesickness he had gone back to his father but nothing had been heard of him the dukee is greatly agitated and as to me you have seen yourselves a state of nervous
Frustration to which the suspense and the responsibility have reduced me Mr Holmes if ever you put forward your full Powers I implore you to do so now for never in your life could you have a case which is more worthy of them Sherlock Holmes had listened with the utmost intentness to the statement
Of the unhappy School Master his drawn brows and the Deep Furrow between them showed that he needed no exhortation to concentrate all his attention upon a problem which apart from the tremendous interests involved must appeal so directly to his love of the complex and the unusual he now Drew out his notebook and
Jotted down one or two memoranda you have been very remiss in not coming to me sooner said he severely you start me on my investigation with a very serious handicap it is conceivable for example that this Ivy and this lawn would have yielded nothing to an expert
Observer I am not blame Mr Holmes his grace was extremely desirous to avoid all public Scandal he was afraid of his family unhappiness being dragged before the world he has a deep horror of anything of the kind but there has been some official investigation yes sir and it has proved
Most disappointing an apparent clue was at once obtained since a boy and a young man were reported to have been seen leaving a neighboring station by an early train only last night we had news that the couple had been hunted down in Liverpool and they proved to have no
Connection whatever with the matter in hand then it was that in my Despair and disappointment after a sleepless night I came straight to you by the early train I suppose the local investigation was relaxed while this false clue was being followed up it was entirely dropped so that 3 days have been wasted
The affair has been most deplorably handled I feel it and admit it and yet the problem should be capable of ultimate solution I shall be very happy to look into it have you been able to trace any connection between the missing boy and his German Master not at all was he in
The master’s class no oh he never exchanged a word with him so far as I know that is certainly very singular had the boy a bicycle no was any other bicycle missing no is that certain quite well now you do not mean to seriously suggest that this German rode
Off upon a bicycle in the dead of the night bearing the boy in his arms so certainly not then what is the theory in your mind the bicycle may have been a blind it may have been hidden somewhere and the pair gone off on foot quite so but it seems rather an
Absurd blind does it not were there other bicycles in this shed uh several would he not have hidden a couple had he desired to give the idea that they had gone off upon them I suppose he would of course he would the blind Theory won’t do but the incident is an
Admirable starting point for an investigation after all a bicycle is not an easy thing to conceal or to destroy one other question did anyone call to see the boy on the day before he disappeared no did he get any letters yes one letter from whom from his father
Do you open the boy’s letters no how do you know is from the Father the coat of arms was on the envelope and it was a dressed in the Duke’s peculiarly stiff hand besides the Duke remembers having written when had he a letter before that not for several
Days had he ever one from France no never you see the point of my question questions of course either the boy was carried off by force or he went of his own free will in the latter case you would expect that some prompting from outside would be
Needed to make so young a lad do such a thing if he has had no visitors that prompting must have come in letters hence I try to find out who were his correspondents I fear I cannot help you much his only correspondent so as far as
I know was his own father who wrote to him on the very day of his disappearance were the relations between Father and Son very friendly his grace is never very friendly with anyone he is completely immersed in large public questions and is rather inaccessible to all ordinary
Emotions but he was always kind to the boy in his own way but the sympathies of the latter were with the mother yes did he say so no the Juke then good heaven no then how could you know I have had some confidential talks with Mr James Wilder his Grace’s
Secretary it was he who gave me the information about Lord Salty’s feelings I see by the way that last letter of the Dukes was it found in the boy’s room after he was gone no uh he had taken it with him I think Mr Holmes it is time that we were leaving for
Houston I will order a four-wheeler in a quarter of an hour we shall be at your service if you are telegraphing home Mr huxel it would be well to allow the people in your neighborhood to imagine that the inquiry is still going on in Liverpool or wherever else that red herring LED your
Pack in the meantime I will do a little quiet work at your own doors and perhaps the scent is not so cold but that two old hounds like Watson and myself may get a sniff of it that evening found us in the cold bracing atmosphere of the Peak Country
In which Dr hux’s famous school is situated it was already dark when we reached it a card was lying on the hall table and the butler whispered something to his master who turned to us with agitation in every heavy feature the Juke is here said he the Juke and Mr
Wilder are in the study come gentlemen and I will introduce you I was of course familiar with the pictures of the famous Statesman but the man himself was very different from his representation he was a tall and stately person scrupulously dressed with a drawn thin face and a nose which was
Grotesquely curved and long his complexion was of a dead palor which was more startling by contrast with a long dwindling beard of vivid red which flowed down over his white waist coat with his watch chain gleaming through its Fringe such was the stately presence who looked stonely at us from the center of
Dr huxtable’s Hearth rug beside him stood a very young man whom I understood to be wilder the private secretary he was small nervous alert with intelligent light blue eyes and mobile features it was he who at once in an incisive and positive tone opened the conversation I called this morning Dr
Huxel too late to prevent you from starting to London I learned that your object was to invite Mr Sherlock Holmes to undertake the conduct of this case his grace is surprised Dr huxel that you should have taken such a step without consulting him when I learned that the police had
Failed he his grace is by no means convinced that the police have failed but surely Mr Wilder you are well aware Dr huxel that his grace is particularly anxious to avoid all public Scandal he prefers to take as few people as possible into his confidence the matter can be easily
Remedied said the brow beaten doctor Mr Sherlock Holmes can return to London by the morning train hardly that doctor hardly that said Holmes in his blandest voice this Northern Air is invigorating and pleasant so I propose to spend a few days upon your Moors and to occupy my
Mind as best I may whether I have the shelter of your roof or the Village Inn is of course for you to decide I could see that the unfortunate doctor was in the last stage of indecision from which he was rescued by the Deep sonorous voice of the red
Bearded dukee which boomed out like a dinong I agree with Mr Wilder Dr huble that you have done wisely to consult me but since Mr Holmes has already been taken into your confidence it would indeed be absurd that we should not Avail ourselves of his Services far from going to the Inn Mr
Holmes I should be pleased if you would come and stay with me at holderness Hall I thank your rce for the purposes of my investigation I think that it would be wiser for me to remain at the scene of the mystery just as you like Mr Holmes any
Information which Mr Wilder or I can give you is of course at your disposal it will probably be necessary for me to see you at the hall said Holmes I would only ask you now sir whether you have formed any explanation in your own mind as to the mysterious disappearance of your
Son no sir I have not excuse me if I allude to that which is painful to you but I have no alternative do you think that the duchess had anything to do with the matter the great Minister showed perceptible hesitation I do not think so he said at
Last the other most obvious explanation is that the child has been kidnapped for the purpose of levying Ransom you have not had any demand of the sort no sir one more question your grace I understand that you wrote to your son upon the day when this incident
Occurred no I wrote upon the day before exactly but he received it on that day yes was there anything in your letter which might have unbalanced him or induced him to take such a step no sir certainly not did you post that letter yourself the nobleman’s reply was
Interrupted by his secretary who broke in with some heat his grace is not in the habit of posting letters himself said he this letter was laid with others upon the study table and I myself put them in the post bag you are sure this one was among them yes I observed it
How many letters did your grace write that day 20 or 30 I have a large correspondence but surely this is somewhat irrelevant not entirely said Holmes for my own part the Duke continued I have advised the police to turn their attention to the south of France I have
Already said that I do not believe that the duchess would encourage so monstrous an action but the lad had the most wrongheaded opinions and it is possible that he may have fled to her aided and de bettered by this German I think Dr huxel that we will now return to the
Hall I could see that there were other questions which Holmes would have wished to put but the nobleman’s abrupt manner showed that the interview was at an end it was evident that to his intensely aristocratic nature this discussion of his intimate family affairs with a stranger was most abhorent and that he
Feared lest every fresh question would throw a fiercer light into the discreetly shadowed corners of his ducal history when the nobleman and his secretary had left my friend flung himself at once with characteristic eagerness into the investigation the boy’s chamber was carefully examined and yielded nothing save the absolute conviction that it was
Only through the window that he could have escaped the German Master’s room and effects gave no further clue in his case a trailer of Ivy had given way under his weight and we saw by the light of a lantern the mark on the lawn where
His heels had come down that one dent in the short green grass was the only material witness left of this inexplicable nocturnal flight sherock Holmes left the house alone and only returned after 11: he had obtained a large ordinance map of the neighborhood and this he brought into my
Room where he laid it out on the bed and having balanced the lamp in the middle of it he began to smoke over it and occasionally to point out objects of Interest with the wreaking Amber of his pipe home’s map of the neighborhood of the school this case grows upon me Watson
Said he there are decidedly some points of interest in connection with it in this early stage I want you to realize those geographical features which may have a good deal to do with our investigation look at this map this dark square is the prary school I’ll put a
Pin in it now this line is the main road you see that it runs East and West past the school and you see also that there is no Side Road for a mile either way if these two folk passed away by Road it was this road exactly by a singular and happy chance
We are able to some extent to check what passed along this road during the night in question at this point where my pipe is now resting a County Constable was on duty from 12: to 6: it is as you perceive the first Crossroad on the East
Side this man declares that he was not absent from his post for an instant and he is positive that neither boy nor man could have gone that way unseen I have spoken with this policeman tonight and he appears to me to be a perfectly reliable person that blocks this end we have now
To deal with the other there is an inn here the Red Bull the land lady of which was Ill she had sent to mlon for a doctor but he did not arrive until morning being absent at another case the people at the Inn were alert all night awaiting his coming and one or
Other of them seems to have continually had an eye upon the road they declare that no one passed if their evidence is good then we are fortunate enough to be able to block the west and also to be able to say that the fugitives did not use the road at
All but the bicycle I objected quite so we will come to the bicyc icle presently to continue our reasoning if these people did not go by the road they must have traversed the country to the north of the house or to the south of the house that is certain let us weigh
The one against the other on the south of the house is as you perceive a large District of arable land cut up into small Fields with stone walls between them there I admit that a bicycle is impossible we can dismiss the idea we turn to the country on the North here
There lies a Grove of trees marked as the Ragged Shore and on the farther side stretches a great rolling Moore lower Gil Moore extending for 10 mies and sloping gradually upward here at one side of this Wilderness is holderness Hall 10 Mi by road but only six across
The mo it is a peculiarly desolate plane a few more farmers of small Holdings where they rear sheep and cattle except these the Plover and the CW are the only inhabitants until you come to the Chesterfield High Road there is a church there you see a few cottages and an inn
Beyond that the hills become precipitous surely it is here to the north that our Quest must lie but the bicycle I persisted well well said Holmes impatiently a good cyclist does not need a high road the mo is intersected with paths and the moon was at the full hello
What’s this there was an agitated knock at the door and an instant afterwards Dr huxel was in the room in his hand he held a blue Cricket cap with a white Chevron on the Peak at last we have a clue he cried thank heaven at last we
Are on the dear boy’s track it is his cap where was it found in the van of the gypsies who camped on the mo they left on Tuesday today the police traced them down and examined their Caravan this was found how do they account for it they
Shuffled and lied said that they found it on the Moore on Tuesday morning they know where he is the Rascals thank goodness they’re all safe under lock and key Either the fear of the law or the Duke’s purse will certainly get out of them all that they
Know so far so good said Holmes when the doctor had at last left the room it at least Bears out the theory that it is on the side of the lower Gill Mo that we must hope for results the police have really done nothing locally save the arrest of those
Gypsies look here Watson there’s a water course across the mo you see it marked here in the map in some parts it widens into a morass this is particular ularly so in the region between holderness Hall and the school it is vain to look elsewhere for tracks in this dry weather but at
That point there is certainly a chance of some record being left I will call you early tomorrow morning and you and I will try if we can throw some light upon the mystery the day was just breaking when I woke to find the long thin form of homes
By my bedside he was fully dressed and had apparently already been out I have done the lawn and the bicycle shed said he I have also had a rumble through the Ragged Shore now Watson there is Coco ready in the Next Room I must beg you to hurry for we have a
Great day before us his eyes Shawn and his cheek was flushed with the exhilaration of the master Workman who sees his work lie ready before him a very different homes this active alert man from the introspective and palid dreamer of Baker Street I felt as I looked upon that Supple
Figure alive with nervous energy that it was indeed a strenuous day that awaited us and yet it opened in the blackest disappointment with high hopes we struck across the py russet Mo intersected with a thousand sheep paths until we came to the broad light green belt which marked the morass between us and
Holderness certainly if the lad had gone Homeward he must have passed this and he could not pass it without leaving his traces but no sign of him or the German could be seen with a darkening face my friend strowed along the margin eagerly observant of every muddy stain upon the
Mossy surface sheep marks there were in profusion and at one place some miles down cows had left their tracks nothing more check number one said Holmes looking gloomily over the rolling expanse of the mo there is another morass Down Yonder and a narrow neck between hello hello hello what have we
Here we had come on a small black ribbon of pathway in the middle of it clearly marked on the sodn soil was the track of a bicycle hurrah I cried we have it but Holmes was shaking his head and his face was puzzled and expectant rather than
Joyous a bicycle certainly but not the bicycle said he I am familiar with 42 different Impressions left by tires this as you perceive is a Dunlop with a patch upon the outer cover hager’s tires were Palmer leaving longitudinal stripes aving the mathematical master was sure upon the point therefore it is not
Hager’s track the boys then possibly if we could prove a bicycle to have been in his possession but this we have utterly failed to do this track as you perceive was made by a rider who was going from the direction of the school or towards it no no my dear
Watson the more deeply sunk impression is of course the hind wheel upon which the weight rests you perceive several places where it has passed across and obliterated the more shallow Mark of the front one it was undoubtedly heading away from the school it may or may not be connected with our
Inquiry but we will follow it backwards before we get any further we did so and at the end of a few hundred yards lost the tracks as we emerged from the boggy portion of the mo following the path backwards we picked out another spot where a spring
Trickled across it here once again was the mark of the bicycle though nearly obliterated by the Hooves of cows after that there was no sign but the path ran right on into ragged Shore the wood which backed onto the school from this wood the cycle must have emerged Holmes sat down on a
Boulder and rested his chin in his hands I had smoked two cigarettes before he moved well well said he at last it is of course possible that a cunning man might change the tires of his bicycle in order to leave the unfamiliar tracks a criminal who was capable of such a
Thought is a man whom I should be proud to do business with we will leave this question undecided and hark back to our morass again for we have left a good deal unexplored we continued our systematic survey of the edge of the sodn portion of the Moore and soon our perseverance was gloriously
Rewarded right across the lower part of the bog lay a myy path path Holmes gave a cry of delight as he approached it an impression like a fine bundle of telegraph wires ran down the center of it it was the Palmer tires here is hair higer sure enough cried Holmes exultantly my reasoning
Seems to have been pretty sound Watson I congratulate you but we have a long way still to go kindly walk clear of the path now let us follow the trail I fear that it will not lead very far we found however as we advance that this portion of the Moore is intersected
With soft patches and though we frequently lost sight of the track we always succeeded in picking it up once more Do You observe said Holmes that the rider is now undoubtedly forcing the pace there can be no doubt of it look at this impression where you get both tires
Clear the one is as deep as the other that can only mean that the rider is throwing his weight onto the handlebar as a man does when he is sprinting by Jo he’s had a fall there was a broad irregular smudge covering some yards of the track then
There were a few foot marks and the tire reappeared once more a side slip I suggested Holmes held up a crumpled branch of flowering gor to my horror I perceived that the yellow blossoms were all dabbed with Crimson on the path too and among the Heather were dark stains of clotted
Blood Bad said Holmes bad stand clear Watson not an unnecessary footstep what do I read here he fell wounded he stood up he remounted he proceeded but there is no other track cattle on this side path he was sure surely not gored by a bull impossible
But I see no traces of anyone else we must push on Watson surely with stains as well as the track to guide us he cannot Escape us now our search was not a very long one the tracks of the tire began to curve fantastically upon the wet and Shining
Path suddenly as I looked ahead The Gleam of metal caught my eye from amid the thick gorse bushes out of them we dragged a bicycle Palm attired one pedal bent and the whole front of it horribly smeared and slobbered with blood on the other side of the bushes a shoe was
Projecting we ran round and there lay the unfortunate Rider he was a tall man full bearded with spectacles one glass of which had been knocked out the cause of his death was a frightful blow upon the head which had crushed in part of his skull that he could have gone on after
Receiving such an injury said much for the vitality and courage of the man he wore shoes but no socks and his open coat disclosed a night shirt beneath it it was undoubtedly the German Master Holmes turned the body over reverently and examined it with great attention he then sat in deep thought
For a time and I could see by his ruffled brow that this Grim Discovery had not been his opinion Advanced as much in our inquiry it is a little difficult to know what to do Watson said he at last my own inclinations are to push this inquiry on
For we have already lost so much time that we cannot afford to waste another hour on the other hand we are bound to inform the police of the discovery and to see that this poor fellow’s body is looked after I could take a note back but I
Need your company and assistance wait a bit there is a fellow cutting Pete up yonder bring him over here and he will guide the police part two I brought the peasant across and Holmes dispatched the frightened man with a note to Dr huxel now Watson said he we have picked
Up two Clues this morning one is the bicycle with the Palmer tire and we see what that has led to the other is the bicycle with the patched Dunlop before we start to investigate that let us try to realize what we do know so as to make the most of it and to
Separate the essential from The Accidental first of all I wish to impress upon you that the boy certainly left of his own free will he got down from his window and he went off either alone or with someone that is sure I ascented well now let us turn to this
Unfortunate German Master the boy was fully dressed when he fled therefore he foresaw what he would do but the German went without his socks he certainly acted on very short notice undoubtedly why did he go because from his bedroom window he saw the Flight of the boy because he
Wished to over take him and bring him back he seized his bicycle pursued the lad and in pursuing him met his death so it would seem now I come to the critical part of my argument the natural action of a man in pursuing a little boy would be to run
After him he would know that he could overtake him but the German does not do so he turns to his bicycle I am told that he was an excellent cyclist he would not do this if he did not see the boy had some Swift means of escape the other
Bicycle let us continue our reconstruction he meets his death 5 miles from the school not by a bullet marku which even a lad might conceivably discharge but by a Savage blow dealt by a vigorous arm the lad then had a companion in his flight and the flight was a Swift one
Since it took 5 miles before an expert cyclist could overtake them yet we survey the ground around the scene of the tragedy what do we find a few cattle tracks nothing more I took a wide Sweet Brown and there is no path within 50 yards another cyclist could
Have had nothing to do with the actual murder nor were there any human foot marks Holmes I cried this is impossible admirable he said a most Illuminating remark it is impossible as I state it and therefore I must in some respect have stated it wrong yet you saw
For yourself can you suggest any fallacy he could not have fractured his skull in a fall in a moras Watson I’m at my Wit’s End Tut Tut we have solved some worse problems at least we have plenty of material if we can only use it it come
Then and having exhausted the Palmer let us see what the Dunlop with the patched cover has to offer us we picked up the track and followed it onward for some distance but soon the mo Rose into a long Heather tufted curve and we left the water course behind us
No further help from tracks could be hoped for at the spot where we saw the last of the Dunlop Tire it might equally have led to holderness Hall the stately towers of which rose some miles miles to our left or to a low gray Village which
Lay in front of us and mark the position of the Chesterfield high road as we approached the forbidding and squalled Inn with the sign of a Gamecock above the door Holmes gave a sudden groan and clutched Me by the shoulder to save himself from falling he had had one of those violent
Strains of the ankle which leave a man helpless with difficulty he limped up to the door where a squat dark elderly man was SM smoking a Black clay pipe how are you Mr Reuben Hayes said Holmes who are you and now do you get my name so Pat the Countryman answered with
A suspicious flash of a pair of cunning eyes well it’s printed on the board above your head it’s easy to see a man who is master of his own house I suppose you haven’t such a thing as a carriage in your Stables no I have not I can
Hardly put my foot to the ground don’t put it to the ground but I can’t walk well then op Mr Ruben Hay’s manner was far from gracious but Holmes took it with an admirable Good Humor look here my man said he this is really rather an awkward fix for me I
Don’t mind how I get on neither do I said the morose landlord the matter is very important I would offer you a sovereign for the use of a bicycle the landlord pricked up his ears where do you want to go to holderness Hall Pals of the Duke I suppose said the
Landlord surveying our mud stained garments with ironical eyes Holmes laughed good-naturedly he’ll be glad to see us anyhow why because we bring him news of his lost son the landlord gave a very visible start what you’re on his track he has been heard of in Liverpool they expect to get him every
Hour again a swift change passed over the heavy unshaven face his manner was suddenly genial I have less reason to wish the Duke well the most men said he for I was Ed Coachman once and cruel bad he treated me it was him that sacked me
Without character on the word of a lying corn Chandler but I’m glad to hear that the young lad was heard of in Liverpool and I’ll help you to take the news to the hall thank you said Holmes we’ll have some food first then you can bring around the
Bicycle I haven’t got a bicycle Holmes held up a sovereign I tell you man that I haven’t got one I’ll let you have two horses as far as the all well well said Holmes we’ll talk about it when we’ve had something to eat when we were left alone in the stone
Flagged kitchen it was Aston Asing how rapidly that sprained ankle recovered it was nearly Nightfall and we had eaten nothing since early morning so that we spent some time over our meal Holmes was lost in thought and once or twice he walked over to the window and
Stared earnestly out it opened onto a squalled courtyard in the far Corner was a Smithy where a grimy lad was at work on the other side were the Stables Holmes had sat down again after one of those excursions when he suddenly sprang out of his chair with a loud
Exclamation by Heaven Watson I believe that I’ve got it he cried yes yes it must be so Watson do you remember seeing any cow TRS today yes several where well everywhere they were at the morass and again on the path and again near where poor haiger met his death
Exactly well now Watson how many cows did you see on the Moore I don’t remember seeing any strange Watson that we should see tracks all along our line but never a cow on the whole Mo very strange Watson eh yes it is strange now Watson make an effort throw
Your mind back can you see those tracks upon the path yes I can can you recall that the tracks were sometimes like that Watson he arranged a number of breadcrumbs in this fashion and sometimes like this and occasionally like this can you remember that no I
Cannot but I can I could swear to it however we will go back at our Leisure and verify it what a blind Beetle I have been not to draw my conclusion and what what is your conclusion only that it is a remarkable cow which walks cans and gallops by
George Watson it was no brain of a country Publican that thought out such a blind as that the coast seems to be clear say for that lad in the Smithy Let Us slip out and see what we can see there were two rough-haired unkempt horses in the Tumbl down stable Holmes
Raised the hind leg of one of them and laughed Al L old shoes but newly Shaw old shoes but New Nails this case deserves to be a classic let us go across to the Smithy the lad continued his work without regarding us I saw Holmes’s eyes darting to right and left among the
Litter of iron and wood which was scattered above the floor suddenly however we heard a step behind us and there was the landlord his heavy eyebrows drawn drawn over his Savage eyes his sthy features convulsed with passion he held a short Metalhead stick in his hand and he advanced in so
Menacing a fashion that I was right glad to feel the revolver in my pocket you infernal spies the man cried what are you doing here why Mr Reuben Hayes said Holmes cooly one might think that you were afraid of our finding something out the man mastered himself with a
Violent effort and his Grim mouth loosened into a false laugh which was more menacing than his frown you’re welcome to all you can find out in my Smithy said he but look here mister I don’t care for folk poking about my place without my leave so the
Sooner you pay a score and get out of this the better I shall be pleased all right Mr Hayes no harm meant said Holmes we have been having a look at your horses but I think I’ll walk after all it’s not far I believe not more than 2
Miles to the all Gates that’s the roow to the left he watched us with Sullen eyes until we had left his premises we did not go very far along the road for Holmes stopped the instant that the curve HIIT us from the landlord’s view we were warm as the children say at
That in said he I seem to grow colder every step that I take away from it no no I can’t possibly leave it I’m convinced said I that this Ruben Hayes knows all about it a more self-evident villain I never saw oh he impressed you in that way did
He there are the horses there is the Smithy yes it is an interesting place this fighting I think we shall have another look at it in an unobtrusive way a long sloping Hillside dotted with gray Limestone Boulders stretched behind us we had turned off the road and were
Making our way up the hill when looking in the direction of holderness Hall I saw a cyclist coming swiftly along get down Watson cried Holmes with a heavy hand upon my shoulder we had hardly sunk from view when the man flew past us on the road amid a rolling cloud of dust I
Caught a glimpse of a pale agitated face a face with horror in every lineament the mouth Open the Eyes staring wildly in front it was like some strange caricature of the Dapper James Wilder whom we had seen the night before the Juke secretary cried Holmes come Watson let us see what he
Does we scrambled from rock to rock until in a few moments we had made our way to a point from which we could see the front door of the Inn Wilder’s bicycle was leaning against the wall beside it no one was moving about the house nor could we catch a glimpse of
Any faces at at the windows slowly the Twilight crept down as the sun sank behind the high towers of haleness Hall then in the Gloom we saw the two side lamps of a trap light up in the stable yard of the inn and shortly afterwards heard the rattle of
Hooves as it wheeled out into the road and tore off at a furious Pace in the direction of Chesterfield what you make of that Watson Holmes whispered it looks like a flight a single man in a dog cart so far as I could see well it certainly was not Mr
James Wilder for there he is at the door a red square of light had sprung out of the darkness in the middle of it was the black figure of the secretary his head Advanced peering out into the night it was evident that he was expecting someone then at last there were steps in
The road a second figure was visible for an instant against the light the door shut and all was black once more 5 minutes later a lamp was lit in a room upon the first floor it seems to be a curious class of custom that is done by the fighting said
Holmes the bar is on the other side quite so these are what one may call the private guests now what in the world is Mr James Wilder doing in that Den at this hour of night and who is the companion who comes to meet him there come Watson we must
Really take a risk and try to investigate this a little more closely together we stole down to the road and crept across to the door of the Inn the bicycle still leaned against the wall Holmes struck a match and held it to the back wheel and I heard him
Chuckle as the light fell Upon A patched Dunlop Tire up above us was the lighted window I must have a peep through that Watson if you bend your back and support yourself upon the wall I think that I can manage an instant later his feet were on
My shoulders but he was hardly up before he was down again come my friend said he our day’s work has been quite long enough I think that we have gathered all that we can it’s a long walk to the school and the sooner we get started the
Better he hardly opened his lips during that weary trudge across the mo nor would he enter the school when he reached it but went on to mlon station whence he could send some telegrams late at night I heard him consoling Dr huble frustrated by the tragedy of his
Master’s death and later still he entered my room as alert and vigorous as he had been when he started in the morning all goes well my friend said he I promise that before tomorrow evening we shall have reached the solution of the mystery at 11:00 next morning my friend and I
Were walking up the famous U Avenue of haleness Hall we were ushered through the Magnificent Elizabethan doorway and into his grace study where we found Mr James Wilder demure and courtly but with some trace of that wild Terror of the night before still lurking in his furtive eyes and in his twitching
Features you have come to see his grace I am sorry but the fact is that the dukee is far from well he’s been very much upset by the tragic news we received a telegram from Dr Huxtable yesterday after noon which told us of your Discovery I must see the Duke Mr Wilder
But he is in his room then I must go to his room I believe he’s in his bed I will see him there Holmes’s cold and inexorable manner showed the secretary that it was useless to argue with him very good good Mr Holmes I will tell him that you’re
Here after an hour’s delay the great nobleman appeared his face was more cadaverous than ever his shoulders had rounded and he seemed to me to be an altogether older man than he had been the morning before he greeted us with a stately courtesy and seated himself at
His desk his Red Beard streaming down on the table well Mr Holmes said he but my friends are eyes were fixed upon the secretary who stood by his master’s chair I think your grace that I could speak more freely in Mr Wilder’s absence the man turned a shade paler and
Cast a malignant glance at Holmes if your grace wishes yes yes You’ better go now Mr Holmes what have you to say my friend waited until the door had closed behind the retreating sec secretary the fact is your Grace said he that my colleague Dr Watson and myself
Had an assurance from Dr Huxtable that a reward had been offered in this case I should like to have this confirmed from your own lips certainly Mr Holmes it amounted if I am correctly informed to £5,000 to anyone who will tell you where your son is exactly and another thousand to the man
Who will name the person or persons who keep him in custody exactly under the latter heading is included no doubt not only those who may have taken him away but also those who conspire to keep him in his present position yes yes cried the Duke impatiently if you do your work well Mr
Sherlock Holmes you will have no reason to complain of niggardly treatment my friend rubbed his th thin hands together with an appearance of avidity which was a surprise to me who knew his Frugal tastes I fancy that I see your Grace’s checkbook upon the table said he I
Should be glad if you would make me out a check for 6,000 it would be as well perhaps for you to cross it the capital and C’s Bank Oxford Street branch are my agents his grace sat very Stern and upright in his chair and looked stonily at my
Friend is this a joke Mr Holmes it is hardly a subject for pleasantry not at all your grace I was never more Earnest in my life what do you mean then I mean that I have earned the reward I know where your son is and
I know some at least of those who are holding him the Duke’s beard had turned more aggressively red than ever against his ghastly white face where is he he is or was last night at the fighting Inn about 2 miles from your Park gate the Duke fell back in his chair and
Whom do you accuse Sherlock Holmes’s answer was an astounding one he stepped swiftly forward and touched the Juke upon the shoulder I accuse you said he and now your grace I’ll trouble you for that check never shall I forget the Duke’s appearance as he sprang up and clawed
With his hands like one who is sinking into an abyss then with an extraordinary effort of aristocratic self-command he sat down and sank his face in his hands it was some minutes before he spoke how much do you know he asked at last without raising his head I saw you
Together last night does anyone else besides your friend no I have spoken to No One the Duke took a pen in his quivering fingers and opened his checkbook I shall be as good as my word Mr Holmes I’m about to write your check however unwelcome the information which
You have gained may be to me when the offer was first made I little thought the turn which events might take but you and your friend are men of discretion Mr Holmes I hardly understand your grace I must put it plainly Mr Holmes if only you two know of this incident there
Is no reason why it should go any farther I think 12,000 is a sum that I owe you is it not but Holmes smiled and shook his head I fear your grace that matters can hardly be arranged so easily there is the death of this School Master to be
Accounted for but James knew nothing of that you cannot hold him responsible for that it was the work of this brutal Ruffian whom he had The Misfortune to employ I must take the view your grace that when a man embarks Upon a Crime he is morally guilty of any other crime
Which may spring from it morally Mr Holmes no doubt you are right but surely not in the eyes of the law a man cannot be condemned for a murder at which he was not present and which he loathes and abor as much as you do the instant that he heard of it he
Made a complete confession to me so filled was he with horror and remorse he lost not an hour in Breaking entirely with the murderer oh Mr Holmes you must save him you must save him I tell you that you must save him the jke had dropped the last attempt at self-command
And was pacing the room with a convulsed face and with his clenched hands raving in the air at last he mastered himself and sat down once more at his desk I appreciate your conduct in coming here before you spoke to anyone else said he at least we have take counsel
How far we can minimize this hideous Scandal exactly said Holmes I think your grace that this can only be done by absolute frankness between us I am disposed to help your grace to the best of my ability but in order to do so I must understand to The Last Detail how
The matter stands I realize that your words applied to Mr James Wilder and that he is not the murderer no the murderer has escaped Sherlock Holmes smiled demurely Your Grace can hardly have heard of any small reputation which I possess or you would not imagine that it
Is so easy to escape me Mr Rubin Hayes was arrested at Chesterfield on my information at 11:00 last night I had a telegram from the head of the local police before I left the school this morning the dukee leaned back in his chair and stared with amazement at my
Friend you seem to have powers that are hardly human said he so Reuben Hayes is taken I’m right glad to hear it if it will not react upon the fate of James your secretary no sir my son it was Holmes’s turn to look astonished I confess that this is
Entirely new to me your grace I must beg you to be more explicit I will conceal nothing from you I agree with you that complete frankness how however painful it may be to me is the best policy in this desperate situation to which James’s Folly and
Jealousy have reduced us when I was a very young man Mr Holmes I loved with such a love as comes only once in a lifetime I offered the lady marriage but she refused it on the grounds that such a match might Mar my career had she lived I would certainly
Never have married anyone else she died and left this one child whom for her sake I have cherished and cared for I could not acknowledge the paternity to the world but I gave him the best of educations and since he came to manhood I have kept him near my person he
Surmised my secret and was presumed ever since upon the claim which he has upon me and upon his power of provoking a scandal which would be abhorrent to me his presence had something to do with the unhappy issue of my marriage above all he hated my young
Legitimate Heir from the First with a persistent hatred you may well ask me why under these circumstances I still kept James under my roof I answer that it was because I could see his mother’s face in his and that for her dear sake there was no end to my long
Suffering all her pretty ways too there was not one of them which he could not suggest and bring back to my memory I could not send him away but I feared so much lest he should do Arthur that is Lord suti a Mischief that I dispatched him for safety to Dr huxtable’s
School James came into contact with this fellow Hayes because the man was a tenant of mine and James acted as agent the fellow was a rascal from the beginning but in some extraordinary way James became intimate with him he had always a taste for low company when
James determined to kidnap Lord Su it was of this man’s service that he availed himself you remember that I wrote to Arthur upon that last day well James opened the letter and inserted a note asking Arthur to meet him in a little wood called the Ragged Shore which is near to the
School he used the duchess’s name and in that way got the boy to come that evening James bicycled over I’m telling you what he has himself confessed to me and he told Arthur whom he met in the wood that his mother longed to see him that she was awaiting him on the Moore
And that if he would come back into the wood at midnight he would find a man with a horse who would take him to her poor Arthur fell into the Trap he came to the appointment and found this fellow Hayes with a lead Pony Arthur mounted and they set off
Together it appears though this James only heard yesterday that they were pursued that Hayes struck the pursuer with his stick and that the man died of his injuries Hayes brought Arthur to his Public House the fighting where he was confined in an upper room under the
Care of Mrs Hayes who is a kindly woman but entirely under the control of her brutal husband well Mr Holmes that was the State of Affairs when I first saw you two days ago I had no more idea of the truth than you you will ask me what was
James’s motive in doing such a deed I answer that there was a great deal which was unreasoning and fanatical in the hatred which he bore my Heir in his view he should himself have been heir of all my Estates and he deeply resented those social laws which made it
Impossible at the same time he had a definite motive also he was eager that I should break the entail and he was of opinion that it lay in my power to do so he intended to make a bargain with me to restore Arthur if I would break the
Entail and so make it possible for the estate to be left to him by will he knew well that I should never willingly invoke the aid of the police against him I say that he would have proposed such a bargain to me but he did not actually do
So for events moved too quickly for him and he had no time to put his plans into practice what brought all this wicked scheme to wreck was your discovery of this man hager’s dead body James was seized with horror at the news it came to us yesterday as we sat together in this
Study Dr huxel had sent a telegram James was so overwhelmed with grief and agitation that my suspicions which had never been entirely absent Rose instantly to a certainty and I taxed him with the deed he made a complete voluntary confession then he implored me to keep his secret for 3 days longer so
As to give his wretched accomplice a chance of saving his guilty life I yielded as I’ve always yielded to his prayers and instantly James hurried off to the fighting to warn Hayes and give him the means of flight I could not go there by daylight without provoking comment but as soon as
Night fell I hurried off to see my dear Arthur I found him safe and well but horrified Beyond expression by the Dreadful deed he had witnessed in deference to my promise and much against my will I consented to leave him there for three days under the
Charge of Mrs Hayes since it was evident that it was impossible to inform the police where he was without telling them also who was the murderer and I could not see how that murderer could be punished without ruin to my unfortunate James you asked for frankness Mr Holmes
And I have taken you at your word for I have now told you everything without an attempt at circumlocution or concealment do you in turn be as Frank with me I will said Holmes in the first place Your Grace I am bound to tell you that you have placed yourself in a most
Serious position in the eyes of the law you have condoned a felony and you have aided the Escape of a murderer for I cannot doubt that any money which was taken by James Wilder to Aid his accomplice in his flight came from your Grace’s purse the jke bowed his
Ascent this is indeed a most serious matter even more culpable in my opinion your grace is your attitude towards your youngest son you leave him in this Den for three days under solemn promises what are promises to such people as these you have no guarantee that he will not be
Spirited Away again to humor your guilty Elder son you have exposed your innocent younger son to imminent and unnecessary danger it was a most unjustifiable action the proud lord of hold Ness was not accustomed to be so rated in his own ducal Hall the blood flushed into his
High forehead but his conscience held him dumb I will help you but on one condition only it is that you ring for the footman and let me give such orders as I like without a word the Duke pressed the electric Bell a servant entered you’ll be glad to hear said
Holmes that your young mother Master is found it is the Duke’s desire that the carriage shall Go at once to the fighting Inn to bring Lord suti Home now said Holmes when the rejoicing Lackey had disappeared having secured the future we can afford to be more lenient with the past I am not in an official position and there is no reason so long as the ends of Justice are served why I should
Disclose all that I know as to Hayes I say nothing The Gallows awaits him and I would do nothing to save him from it what he will divulge I cannot tell but I have no doubt that your grace could make him understand that it is to his interest to be
Silent from the police point of view he will have kidnapped the boy for the purpose of Ransom if they do not themselves find it out I see no reason why I should prompt them to take a broader point of view I would warn Your Grace however that the continued presence of Mr James
Wilder in your household can only lead to Misfortune I understand that Mr Holmes and it is already settled that he shall leave me forever and go to seek his fortune in Australia in that case your grace since you have yourself stated that any unhappiness in your married life was
Caused by his presence I would suggest that you make such amends as you can to The Duchess and that you try to resume those relations which have been so unhappily interrupted that also I have arranged Mr Holmes I wrote to The Duchess this morning in that case said Holmes Rising
I think that my friend and I can congratulate ourselves upon several most happy results from our little visit to the north there is one other small Point upon which I desire some light this fellow hay had shod his horses with shoes which counterfeited the tracks of
Cows was it from Mr Wilder that he learned so extraordinary a device the Duke stood in thought for a moment with a look of intense surprise on his face then he opened the door and showed us into a large room furnished as a museum he led the way to a glass case in
A corner and pointed to the inscription these shoes it ran were dug up in the mo of of holderness hole they are for the use of horses but they are shaped below with a cloven foot of iron so as to throw pursuers off the track they are supposed to have belonged to
Some of the marauding baronss of holderness in the Middle Ages Holmes opened the case and moistening his finger he passed it along the shoe a thin film of recent mud was left upon his skin thank you said he as he replaced the glass it is the second most
Interesting object that I have seen in the North and the first Holmes folded up his check and placed it carefully in his notebook I am a poor man said he as he patted it affectionately and thrust it into the depths of his inner pocket
1 Comment
The Man on the Plane: https://youtu.be/qeTsk7yy06k