“I think, Watson,” he remarked at last, “that of all our cases we have had none more fantastic than this. ”
“Save, perhaps, the Sign of Four.”
“Well, yes. Save, perhaps, that. And yet this John Openshaw seems to me to be walking amid even greater perils than did the Sholtos. ”
“But have you,” I asked, “formed any definite conception as to what these perils are?”
“There can be no question as to their nature,” he answered.
“Then what are they?Who is this K. K. K., and why does he pursue this unhappy family?”
Sherlock Holmes closed his eyes and placed his elbows upon the arms of his chair,with his finger-tips together. “The ideal reasoner,” he remarked, “would,when he had once been shown a single fact in all its bearings,deduce from it not only all the chain of events which led up to it but also all the results which would follow from it.As Cuvier could correctly describe a whole animal by the contemplation of a single bone,so the observer who has thoroughly understood one link in a series of incidents should be able to accurately state all the other ones,both before and after. We have not yet grasped the results which the reason alone can attain to.Problems may be solved in the study which have baffled all those who have sought a solution by the aid of their senses.To carry the art, however, to its highest pitch,it is necessary that the reasoner should be able to utilise all the facts which have come to his knowledge;and this in itself implies, as you will readily see, a possession of all knowledge, which,even in these days of free education and encyclopædias, is a somewhat rare accomplishment.It is not so impossible, however, that a man should possess all knowledge which is likely to be useful to him in his work,and this I have endeavoured in my case to do. If I remember rightly, you on one occasion,in the early days of our friendship, defined my limits in a very precise fashion.”
“Yes,” I answered, laughing. “It was a singular document. Philosophy, astronomy,and politics were marked at zero, I remember. Botany variable,geology profound as regards the mud-stains from any region within fifty miles of town,chemistry eccentric, anatomy unsystematic, sensational literature and crime records unique,violin-player, boxer, swordsman, lawyer, and self-poisoner by cocaine and tobacco. Those, I think, were the main points of my analysis.”
Holmes grinned at the last item. “Well,” he said, “I say now, as I said then,that a man should keep his little brain-attic stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use,and the rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he can get it if he wants it.Now, for such a case as the one which has been submitted to us to-night,we need certainly to muster all our resources.Kindly hand me down the letter K of the _American Encyclopædia_ which stands upon the shelf beside you.Thank you. Now let us consider the situation and see what may be deduced from it.In the first place, we may start with a strong presumption that Colonel Openshaw had some very strong reason for leaving America.Men at his time of life do not change all their habits and exchange willingly the charming climate of Florida for the lonely life of an English provincial town. His extreme love of solitude in England suggests the idea that he was in fear of someone or something, so we may assume as a working hypothesis that it was fear of someone or something which drove him from America. As to what it was he feared, we can only deduce that by considering the formidable letters which were received by himself and his successors. Did you remark the postmarks of those letters?”
“The first was from Pondicherry, the second from Dundee, and the third from London.”
“From East London. What do you deduce from that?”
“They are all seaports. That the writer was on board of a ship.”
“Excellent. We have already a clue. There can be no doubt that the probability—the strong probability—is that the writer was on board of a ship.And now let us consider another point. In the case of Pondicherry,seven weeks elapsed between the threat and its fulfilment,in Dundee it was only some three or four days. Does that suggest anything?”
“A greater distance to travel.”
“But the letter had also a greater distance to come.”
“Then I do not see the point.”
“There is at least a presumption that the vessel in which the man or men are is a sailing-ship.It looks as if they always send their singular warning or token before them when starting upon their mission.You see how quickly the deed followed the sign when it came from Dundee.If they had come from Pondicherry in a steamer they would have arrived almost as soon as their letter.But, as a matter of fact, seven weeks elapsed.I think that those seven weeks represented the difference between the mail-boat which brought the letter and the sailing vessel which brought the writer. ”
“It is possible.”
“More than that. It is probable. And now you see the deadly urgency of this new case,and why I urged young Openshaw to caution.The blow has always fallen at the end of the time which it would take the senders to travel the distance.But this one comes from London, and therefore we cannot count upon delay.”
“Good God!” I cried. “What can it mean, this relentless persecution?”
“The papers which Openshaw carried are obviously of vital importance to the person or persons in the sailing-ship.I think that it is quite clear that there must be more than one of them.A single man could not have carried out two deaths in such a way as to deceive a coroner’s jury.There must have been several in it, and they must have been men of resource and determination.Their papers they mean to have, be the holder of them who it may. In this way you see K. K. K.ceases to be the initials of an individual and becomes the badge of a society.”
“But of what society?”
“Have you never—” said Sherlock Holmes, bending forward and sinking his voice—“have you never heard of the Ku Klux Klan?”
“I never have.”
Holmes turned over the leaves of the book upon his knee. “Here it is,” said he presently:
“‘Ku Klux Klan. A name derived from the fanciful resemblance to the sound produced by cocking a rifle.This terrible secret society was formed by some ex-Confederate soldiers in the Southern states after the Civil War,and it rapidly formed local branches in different parts of the country, notably in Tennessee,Louisiana, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Its power was used for political purposes,principally for the terrorising of the negro voters and the murdering and driving from the country of those who were opposed to its views.Its outrages were usually preceded by a warning sent to the marked man in some fantastic but generally recognised shape—a sprig of oak-leaves in some parts,melon seeds or orange pips in others. On receiving this the victim might either openly abjure his former ways,or might fly from the country. If he braved the matter out, death would unfailingly come upon him,and usually in some strange and unforeseen manner. So perfect was the organisation of the society,and so systematic its methods, that there is hardly a case upon record where any man succeeded in braving it with impunity,or in which any of its outrages were traced home to the perpetrators.For some years the organisation flourished in spite of the efforts of the United States government and of the better classes of the community in the South.Eventually, in the year 1869, the movement rather suddenly collapsed,although there have been sporadic outbreaks of the same sort since that date.’
“You will observe,” said Holmes, laying down the volume,“that the sudden breaking up of the society was coincident with the disappearance of Openshaw from America with their papers.It may well have been cause and effect.It is no wonder that he and his family have some of the more implacable spirits upon their track.You can understand that this register and diary may implicate some of the first men in the South,and that there may be many who will not sleep easy at night until it is recovered.”
“Then the page we have seen—”
“Is such as we might expect. It ran, if I remember right, ‘sent the pips to A, B, and C’—that is,sent the society’s warning to them. Then there are successive entries that A and B cleared,or left the country, and finally that C was visited, with, I fear, a sinister result for C. Well,I think, Doctor, that we may let some light into this dark place,and I believe that the only chance young Openshaw has in the meantime is to do what I have told him.There is nothing more to be said or to be done to-night,so hand me over my violin and let us try to forget for half an hour the miserable weather and the still more miserable ways of our fellow men. ”
It had cleared in the morning, and the sun was shining with a subdued brightness through the dim veil which hangs over the great city.Sherlock Holmes was already at breakfast when I came down.
“You will excuse me for not waiting for you,” said he; “I have, I foresee,a very busy day before me in looking into this case of young Openshaw’s.”
“What steps will you take?” I asked.
“It will very much depend upon the results of my first inquiries. I may have to go down to Horsham, after all.”
“You will not go there first?”
“No, I shall commence with the City. Just ring the bell and the maid will bring up your coffee.”
As I waited, I lifted the unopened newspaper from the table and glanced my eye over it.It rested upon a heading which sent a chill to my heart.
“Holmes,” I cried, “you are too late.”
“Ah!” said he, laying down his cup, “I feared as much. How was it done?” He spoke calmly, but I could see that he was deeply moved.
“My eye caught the name of Openshaw, and the heading ‘Tragedy Near Waterloo Bridge. ’ Here is the account:
“‘Between nine and ten last night Police-Constable Cook, of the H Division,on duty near Waterloo Bridge, heard a cry for help and a splash in the water. The night, however,was extremely dark and stormy, so that, in spite of the help of several passers-by,it was quite impossible to effect a rescue. The alarm, however, was given, and,by the aid of the water-police, the body was eventually recovered.It proved to be that of a young gentleman whose name,as it appears from an envelope which was found in his pocket, was John Openshaw,and whose residence is near Horsham. It is conjectured that he may have been hurrying down to catch the last train from Waterloo Station,and that in his haste and the extreme darkness he missed his path and walked over the edge of one of the small landing-places for river steamboats.The body exhibited no traces of violence,and there can be no doubt that the deceased had been the victim of an unfortunate accident,which should have the effect of calling the attention of the authorities to the condition of the riverside landing-stages. ’”
We sat in silence for some minutes, Holmes more depressed and shaken than I had ever seen him.
“That hurts my pride, Watson,” he said at last. “It is a petty feeling, no doubt,but it hurts my pride. It becomes a personal matter with me now, and, if God sends me health,I shall set my hand upon this gang. That he should come to me for help,and that I should send him away to his death—!” He sprang from his chair and paced about the room in uncontrollable agitation,with a flush upon his sallow cheeks and a nervous clasping and unclasping of his long thin hands.
“They must be cunning devils,” he exclaimed at last. “How could they have decoyed him down there?The Embankment is not on the direct line to the station. The bridge, no doubt, was too crowded,even on such a night, for their purpose. Well, Watson, we shall see who will win in the long run. I am going out now!”
“To the police?”
“No; I shall be my own police. When I have spun the web they may take the flies, but not before.”
All day I was engaged in my professional work,and it was late in the evening before I returned to Baker Street.Sherlock Holmes had not come back yet. It was nearly ten o’clock before he entered,looking pale and worn. He walked up to the sideboard,and tearing a piece from the loaf he devoured it voraciously,washing it down with a long draught of water.
“You are hungry,” I remarked.
“Starving. It had escaped my memory. I have had nothing since breakfast.”
“Nothing?”
“Not a bite. I had no time to think of it.”
“And how have you succeeded?”
“Well.”
“You have a clue?”
“I have them in the hollow of my hand. Young Openshaw shall not long remain unavenged. Why, Watson,let us put their own devilish trade-mark upon them. It is well thought of!”
“What do you mean?”
He took an orange from the cupboard, and tearing it to pieces he squeezed out the pips upon the table.Of these he took five and thrust them into an envelope. On the inside of the flap he wrote “S. H.for J. O.” Then he sealed it and addressed it to “Captain James Calhoun, Barque _Lone Star_, Savannah, Georgia.”
“That will await him when he enters port,” said he, chuckling. “It may give him a sleepless night.He will find it as sure a precursor of his fate as Openshaw did before him.”
“And who is this Captain Calhoun?”
“The leader of the gang. I shall have the others, but he first.”
“How did you trace it, then?”
He took a large sheet of paper from his pocket, all covered with dates and names.
“I have spent the whole day,” said he, “over Lloyd’s registers and files of the old papers,following the future career of every vessel which touched at Pondicherry in January and February in ’83.There were thirty-six ships of fair tonnage which were reported there during those months.Of these, one, the _Lone Star_, instantly attracted my attention, since,although it was reported as having cleared from London,the name is that which is given to one of the states of the Union.”
“Texas, I think.”
“I was not and am not sure which; but I knew that the ship must have an American origin.”
“What then?”
“I searched the Dundee records, and when I found that the barque _Lone Star_ was there in January,’85, my suspicion became a certainty. I then inquired as to the vessels which lay at present in the port of London. ”
“Yes?”
“The _Lone Star_ had arrived here last week.I went down to the Albert Dock and found that she had been taken down the river by the early tide this morning,homeward bound to Savannah. I wired to Gravesend and learned that she had passed some time ago,and as the wind is easterly I have no doubt that she is now past the Goodwins and not very far from the Isle of Wight. ”
“What will you do, then?”
“Oh, I have my hand upon him. He and the two mates, are as I learn,the only native-born Americans in the ship. The others are Finns and Germans. I know, also,that they were all three away from the ship last night.I had it from the stevedore who has been loading their cargo.By the time that their sailing-ship reaches Savannah the mail-boat will have carried this letter,and the cable will have informed the police of Savannah that these three gentlemen are badly wanted here upon a charge of murder. ”
There is ever a flaw, however, in the best laid of human plans,and the murderers of John Openshaw were never to receive the orange pips which would show them that another,as cunning and as resolute as themselves, was upon their track.Very long and very severe were the equinoctial gales that year.We waited long for news of the _Lone Star_ of Savannah, but none ever reached us.We did at last hear that somewhere far out in the Atlantic a shattered stern-post of a boat was seen swinging in the trough of a wave,with the letters “L. S.” carved upon it,and that is all which we shall ever know of the fate of the _Lone Star_.
VI. THE MAN WITH THE TWISTED LIP
Isa Whitney, brother of the late Elias Whitney, D.D., Principal of the Theological College of St.George’s, was much addicted to opium. The habit grew upon him, as I understand,from some foolish freak when he was at college;for having read De Quincey’s description of his dreams and sensations,he had drenched his tobacco with laudanum in an attempt to produce the same effects. He found,as so many more have done, that the practice is easier to attain than to get rid of,and for many years he continued to be a slave to the drug,an object of mingled horror and pity to his friends and relatives. I can see him now, with yellow,pasty face, drooping lids, and pin-point pupils, all huddled in a chair, the wreck and ruin of a noble man.
One night—it was in June, ’89—there came a ring to my bell,about the hour when a man gives his first yawn and glances at the clock. I sat up in my chair,and my wife laid her needle-work down in her lap and made a little face of disappointment.
“A patient!” said she. “You’ll have to go out.”
I groaned, for I was newly come back from a weary day.
We heard the door open, a few hurried words, and then quick steps upon the linoleum.Our own door flew open, and a lady, clad in some dark-coloured stuff, with a black veil, entered the room.
“You will excuse my calling so late,” she began, and then, suddenly losing her self-control,she ran forward, threw her arms about my wife’s neck, and sobbed upon her shoulder. “Oh, I’m in such trouble!” she cried; “I do so want a little help.”
“Why,” said my wife, pulling up her veil, “it is Kate Whitney. How you startled me, Kate!I had not an idea who you were when you came in.”
“I didn’t know what to do, so I came straight to you.” That was always the way.Folk who were in grief came to my wife like birds to a lighthouse.
“It was very sweet of you to come. Now, you must have some wine and water,and sit here comfortably and tell us all about it.Or should you rather that I sent James off to bed?”
“Oh, no, no!I want the doctor’s advice and help, too. It’s about Isa. He has not been home for two days. I am so frightened about him!”
It was not the first time that she had spoken to us of her husband’s trouble, to me as a doctor,to my wife as an old friend and school companion.We soothed and comforted her by such words as we could find. Did she know where her husband was?Was it possible that we could bring him back to her?
It seems that it was. She had the surest information that of late he had, when the fit was on him,made use of an opium den in the farthest east of the City.Hitherto his orgies had always been confined to one day, and he had come back,twitching and shattered, in the evening. But now the spell had been upon him eight-and-forty hours,and he lay there, doubtless among the dregs of the docks,breathing in the poison or sleeping off the effects. There he was to be found, she was sure of it,at the Bar of Gold, in Upper Swandam Lane. But what was she to do?How could she, a young and timid woman, make her way into such a place and pluck her husband out from among the ruffians who surrounded him?
There was the case, and of course there was but one way out of it. Might I not escort her to this place?And then, as a second thought, why should she come at all?I was Isa Whitney’s medical adviser, and as such I had influence over him.I could manage it better if I were alone.I promised her on my word that I would send him home in a cab within two hours if he were indeed at the address which she had given me.And so in ten minutes I had left my armchair and cheery sitting-room behind me,and was speeding eastward in a hansom on a strange errand, as it seemed to me at the time,though the future only could show how strange it was to be.
But there was no great difficulty in the first stage of my adventure.Upper Swandam Lane is a vile alley lurking behind the high wharves which line the north side of the river to the east of London Bridge.Between a slop-shop and a gin-shop, approached by a steep flight of steps leading down to a black gap like the mouth of a cave,I found the den of which I was in search. Ordering my cab to wait, I passed down the steps,worn hollow in the centre by the ceaseless tread of drunken feet;and by the light of a flickering oil-lamp above the door I found the latch and made my way into a long,low room, thick and heavy with the brown opium smoke, and terraced with wooden berths,like the forecastle of an emigrant ship.
Through the gloom one could dimly catch a glimpse of bodies lying in strange fantastic poses,bowed shoulders, bent knees, heads thrown back, and chins pointing upward,with here and there a dark, lack-lustre eye turned upon the newcomer.Out of the black shadows there glimmered little red circles of light, now bright, now faint,as the burning poison waxed or waned in the bowls of the metal pipes. The most lay silent,but some muttered to themselves, and others talked together in a strange, low, monotonous voice,their conversation coming in gushes, and then suddenly tailing off into silence,each mumbling out his own thoughts and paying little heed to the words of his neighbour.At the farther end was a small brazier of burning charcoal,beside which on a three-legged wooden stool there sat a tall, thin old man,with his jaw resting upon his two fists, and his elbows upon his knees, staring into the fire.
As I entered, a sallow Malay attendant had hurried up with a pipe for me and a supply of the drug, beckoning me to an empty berth.
“Thank you. I have not come to stay,” said I. “There is a friend of mine here, Mr. Isa Whitney, and I wish to speak with him.”
There was a movement and an exclamation from my right, and peering through the gloom, I saw Whitney,pale, haggard, and unkempt, staring out at me.
“My God!It’s Watson,” said he. He was in a pitiable state of reaction, with every nerve in a twitter. “I say, Watson, what o’clock is it?”
“Nearly eleven.”
“Of what day?”
“Of Friday, June 19th.”
“Good heavens!I thought it was Wednesday. It is Wednesday. What d’you want to frighten a chap for?” He sank his face onto his arms and began to sob in a high treble key.
“I tell you that it is Friday, man. Your wife has been waiting this two days for you. You should be ashamed of yourself!”
“So I am. But you’ve got mixed, Watson, for I have only been here a few hours, three pipes,four pipes—I forget how many. But I’ll go home with you. I wouldn’t frighten Kate—poor little Kate. Give me your hand!Have you a cab?”
“Yes, I have one waiting.”
“Then I shall go in it. But I must owe something. Find what I owe, Watson. I am all off colour. I can do nothing for myself.”
I walked down the narrow passage between the double row of sleepers,holding my breath to keep out the vile, stupefying fumes of the drug,and looking about for the manager. As I passed the tall man who sat by the brazier I felt a sudden pluck at my skirt,and a low voice whispered, “Walk past me, and then look back at me.” The words fell quite distinctly upon my ear. I glanced down.They could only have come from the old man at my side, and yet he sat now as absorbed as ever,very thin, very wrinkled, bent with age, an opium pipe dangling down from between his knees,as though it had dropped in sheer lassitude from his fingers.I took two steps forward and looked back.It took all my self-control to prevent me from breaking out into a cry of astonishment.He had turned his back so that none could see him but I. His form had filled out,his wrinkles were gone, the dull eyes had regained their fire, and there,sitting by the fire and grinning at my surprise, was none other than Sherlock Holmes.He made a slight motion to me to approach him, and instantly,as he turned his face half round to the company once more, subsided into a doddering, loose-lipped senility.
“Holmes!” I whispered, “what on earth are you doing in this den?”
“As low as you can,” he answered; “I have excellent ears.If you would have the great kindness to get rid of that sottish friend of yours I should be exceedingly glad to have a little talk with you. ”
“I have a cab outside.”
“Then pray send him home in it. You may safely trust him,for he appears to be too limp to get into any mischief.I should recommend you also to send a note by the cabman to your wife to say that you have thrown in your lot with me.If you will wait outside, I shall be with you in five minutes.”
It was difficult to refuse any of Sherlock Holmes’ requests,for they were always so exceedingly definite, and put forward with such a quiet air of mastery.I felt, however, that when Whitney was once confined in the cab my mission was practically accomplished;and for the rest, I could not wish anything better than to be associated with my friend in one of those singular adventures which were the normal condition of his existence. In a few minutes I had written my note, paid Whitney’s bill, led him out to the cab, and seen him driven through the darkness. In a very short time a decrepit figure had emerged from the opium den, and I was walking down the street with Sherlock Holmes. For two streets he shuffled along with a bent back and an uncertain foot. Then, glancing quickly round, he straightened himself out and burst into a hearty fit of laughter.
“I suppose, Watson,” said he, “that you imagine that I have added opium-smoking to cocaine injections,and all the other little weaknesses on which you have favoured me with your medical views.”
“I was certainly surprised to find you there.”
“But not more so than I to find you.”
“I came to find a friend.”
“And I to find an enemy.”
“An enemy?”
“Yes; one of my natural enemies, or, shall I say, my natural prey. Briefly, Watson,I am in the midst of a very remarkable inquiry,and I have hoped to find a clue in the incoherent ramblings of these sots,as I have done before now. Had I been recognised in that den my life would not have been worth an hour’s purchase;for I have used it before now for my own purposes,and the rascally Lascar who runs it has sworn to have vengeance upon me.There is a trap-door at the back of that building, near the corner of Paul’s Wharf,which could tell some strange tales of what has passed through it upon the moonless nights.”
“What!You do not mean bodies?”
“Ay, bodies, Watson. We should be rich men if we had £ 1000 for every poor devil who has been done to death in that den.It is the vilest murder-trap on the whole riverside, and I fear that Neville St.Clair has entered it never to leave it more. But our trap should be here.” He put his two forefingers between his teeth and whistled shrilly—a signal which was answered by a similar whistle from the distance,followed shortly by the rattle of wheels and the clink of horses’ hoofs.
“Now, Watson,” said Holmes, as a tall dog-cart dashed up through the gloom,throwing out two golden tunnels of yellow light from its side lanterns. “You’ll come with me, won’t you?”
“If I can be of use.”
“Oh, a trusty comrade is always of use; and a chronicler still more so.My room at The Cedars is a double-bedded one.”
“The Cedars?”
“Yes; that is Mr. St. Clair’s house. I am staying there while I conduct the inquiry.”
“Where is it, then?”
“Near Lee, in Kent. We have a seven-mile drive before us.”
“But I am all in the dark.”
“Of course you are. You’ll know all about it presently. Jump up here. All right, John;we shall not need you. Here’s half a crown. Look out for me to-morrow, about eleven. Give her her head. So long, then!”
He flicked the horse with his whip, and we dashed away through the endless succession of sombre and deserted streets,which widened gradually, until we were flying across a broad balustraded bridge,with the murky river flowing sluggishly beneath us.Beyond lay another dull wilderness of bricks and mortar, its silence broken only by the heavy,regular footfall of the policeman, or the songs and shouts of some belated party of revellers.A dull wrack was drifting slowly across the sky,and a star or two twinkled dimly here and there through the rifts of the clouds.Holmes drove in silence, with his head sunk upon his breast,and the air of a man who is lost in thought, while I sat beside him,curious to learn what this new quest might be which seemed to tax his powers so sorely,and yet afraid to break in upon the current of his thoughts. We had driven several miles,and were beginning to get to the fringe of the belt of suburban villas, when he shook himself,shrugged his shoulders, and lit up his pipe with the air of a man who has satisfied himself that he is acting for the best.
“You have a grand gift of silence, Watson,” said he. “It makes you quite invaluable as a companion.’Pon my word, it is a great thing for me to have someone to talk to,for my own thoughts are not over-pleasant.I was wondering what I should say to this dear little woman to-night when she meets me at the door. ”
“You forget that I know nothing about it.”
“I shall just have time to tell you the facts of the case before we get to Lee.It seems absurdly simple, and yet, somehow I can get nothing to go upon. There’s plenty of thread,no doubt, but I can’t get the end of it into my hand. Now,I’ll state the case clearly and concisely to you, Watson,and maybe you can see a spark where all is dark to me.”
“Proceed, then.”