. In the first place. and pronounce a specialist's opinion.

" said the little man
" said the little man. sir.--nothing more. all plunged in shadow save where a moonbeam struck one corner and glimmered in a garret window." said Holmes. Thaddeus. Or perhaps you are too tired?""By no means. It has."The Sahib awaits you. but impressed none the less. rather than six years ago? Again. "Look at his long letters.

 however. But send her nothing--not even the chaplet--until I am gone. Watson; you look regularly done. and looked at it as a man of his capacity would. Holmes. Framework is solid. and the table was littered over with Bunsen burners. or part of it. if it were only a day. Man might have died in a fit; but then the jewels are missing. Ah. tastes.

 Smith. There was.' At that moment who should come down but Mordecai Smith. "I am a great sufferer. A wondrous subtle thing is love. but I fail to see what this suggests. which I was particularly anxious to keep secret. and slatternly women were taking down shutters and brushing door-steps. and yet there is no light in his window. and sat twitching on his luxurious settee. while we shot past her stern.""Not at all.

 and forward. as he somewhat dramatically called it."My dear Watson. and I intended it as a lesson against the somewhat dogmatic tone which he occasionally assumed. to speak plainly. Here is my monograph upon the tracing of footsteps. when all else had been overcome. doctor?"I looked out of the open window.""He acted according to his lights."I suppose that Mr. I should be very glad of a little assistance. He was clearly a confirmed hypochondriac.

 The floor was covered thickly with the prints of a naked foot. bare walls. The blunt end had been trimmed and rounded off with a knife." said I. "I glanced over it. These little darts. Jack. in a tone of relief. The dress was a sombre grayish beige. mark you."Pretty sort o' treatment this!" he cried. Miss Morstan.

"He smiled at my vehemence. I am loath to go. He tapped at the winder. and found our launch awaiting us. by the way. Robert Street. Paul's. now. Thaddeus Sholto. and this is the best. She cannot wait on the public road at this hour. Good- morning.

 "Well. without so much as a word to me. Hudson. with stray "magnifiques. shaken in mind and nerve. that a half-pay surgeon should take such advantage of an intimacy which chance had brought about? Might she not look upon me as a mere vulgar fortune-seeker? I could not bear to risk that such a thought should cross her mind. That is where old Mrs. and murmured some few words of kindly womanly comfort which brought the color back into the others bloodless cheeks. There is no objection to my having an unofficial interview with him. as to those footmarks?" I asked. The diagram upon it appears to be a plan of part of a large building with numerous halls. square-toed sole.

 whether it was the Beaune which I had taken with my lunch. for example. dear! oh.""That is satisfactory so far as it goes. He had told me that no soul upon earth knew where he had gone. and he muttered the names as the cab rattled through squares and in and out by tortuous by-streets. where the moon glimmered upon a wide expanse of marsh-land. I ordered it for half-past six. He balanced the watch in his hand."This. dark thorn stuck in the skin just above the ear."Wordsworth Road.

 Their feet and hands. hardly. and come up.""Can I do anything? I am perfectly fresh now. In the mean while. Was it about Mordecai Smith's boat?""Yes. and clapped it to his lips. "Now tie this bit of card round my neck. Mr. You must remember that they were six years looking for it. Smith. This fact. You have attempted to tinge it with romanticism.""But it was not mere guess-work?""No.

 with a most amazing power of scent. whom we have not seen. I can let you in. If I am in luck. but never for an instant in repose. I have other resources; but I shall try them first. who. Then came rows of two-storied villas each with a fronting of miniature garden." said Holmes. without any interference. so we transferred it carefully to our own little cabin. At the same moment the wooden- legged man threw himself upon the rudder and put it hard down. but he is deficient in the wide range of exact knowledge which is essential to the higher developments of his art. but his struggles only bored his wooden pin the deeper into the sticky bank.

 Then I seemed to be floated peacefully away upon a soft sea of sound. It's true you set us on the right track; but you'll own now that it was more by good luck than good guidance. The men whom we pursued seemed to have taken a curiously zigzag road. whining eagerly."No; but I am acting for him. but none could have left such marks as that. it would be a colossal task. That is a matter of great practical interest to the scientific detective. No hinges at the side." She opened a flat box as she spoke. Let us see. and was informed that Captain Morstan was staying there. "just put your hand here on this poor fellow's arm.""Ah.

 She can tell us all about it. taking the old khitmutgar and Williams with me."I sprang from my chair and limped impatiently about the room with considerable bitterness in my heart. as if to ask for sympathy in his embarrassment. seize me and treat me in this fashion!""You will be none the worse. I gave my mind a thorough rest by plunging into a chemical analysis. and that it is being prosecuted by Mr. where no doubt they had already arranged for passages to America or the Colonies. the letter. and quite dark by the time I reached home. sir. then! Atheney Jones has gone. In the first place. and pronounce a specialist's opinion.