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<CENTER><P><font face="Verdana"><FONT SIZE=1><A HREF="../dancingwav/d1.wav">THE STRAND MAGAZINE
</A><br>

<A HREF="../dancingwav/d2.wav">Vol. 26 DECEMBER, 1903 </A></FONT></P>

<FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/d3.wav">THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK
HOLMES. </A></FONT>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/d4.wav">By ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE
</A></FONT></P>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/d5.wav">III. --- The Adventure
of the Dancing Men. </A></FONT></P></CENTER>
<blockquote>
<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/1dance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
I</A></FONT></P>
<FONT SIZE=-1>
<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d6.wav">HOLMES had been seated for some hours in
silence with his long, thin back curved over a chemical vessel in which
he was brewing a particularly malodorous product. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d7.wav">His
head was sunk upon his breast, and he looked from my point of view like
a strange, lank bird, with dull grey plumage and a black top-knot. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d8.wav">&quot;So, Watson,&quot; said he, suddenly,
&quot;you do not propose to invest in South African securities?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d9.wav">I gave a start of astonishment. Accustomed
as I was to Holmes's curious faculties, this sudden intrusion into my most
intimate thoughts was utterly inexplicable. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d10.wav">&quot;How on earth do you know that?&quot;
I asked. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d11.wav">He wheeled round upon his stool, with a
steaming test-tube in his hand and a gleam of amusement in his deep-set
eyes. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d12.wav">&quot;Now, Watson, confess yourself utterly
taken aback,&quot; said he. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d13.wav">&quot;I am.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d14.wav">&quot;I ought to make you sign a paper to
that effect.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d15.wav">&quot;Why?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d16.wav">&quot;Because in five minutes you will say
that it is all so absurdly simple.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d17.wav">&quot;I am sure that I shall say nothing
of the kind.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d18.wav">&quot;You see, my dear Watson&quot; -- he
propped his test-tube in the rack and began to lecture with the air of
a professor addressing his class -- &quot;it is not really difficult to
construct a series of inferences, each dependent upon its predecessor and
each simple in itself. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d19.wav">If, after doing
so, one simply knocks out all the central inferences and presents one's
audience with the starting-point and the conclusion, one may produce a
startling, though possibly a meretricious, effect. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d20.wav">Now,
it was not really difficult, by an inspection of the groove between your
left forefinger and thumb, to feel sure that you did NOT propose to invest
your small capital in the goldfields.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d21.wav">&quot;I see no connection.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d22.wav">&quot;Very likely not; but I can quickly
show you a close connection. Here are the missing links of the very simple
chain: </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d23.wav">1. You had chalk between your left
finger and thumb when you returned from the club last night. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d24.wav">2.
You put chalk there when you play billiards to steady the cue. 3. You never
play billiards except with Thurston. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d25.wav">4.
You told me four weeks ago that Thurston had an option on some South African
property which would expire in a month, and which he desired you to share
with him. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d26.wav">5. Your cheque-book is locked
in my drawer, and you have not asked for the key. 6. You do not propose
to invest your money in this manner.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d27.wav">&quot;How absurdly simple!&quot; I cried.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d28.wav">&quot;Quite so!&quot; said he, a little
nettled. &quot;Every problem becomes very childish when once it is explained
to you. Here is an unexplained one. See what you can make of that, friend
Watson.&quot; He tossed a sheet of paper upon the table and turned once
more to his chemical analysis. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d29.wav">I looked with amazement at the absurd hieroglyphics
upon the paper. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d30.wav">Why, Holmes, it is a child's
drawing,&quot; I cried. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d31.wav">&quot;Oh, that's your idea!&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d32.wav">&quot;What else should it be?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d33.wav">&quot;That is what Mr. Hilton Cubitt, of
Riding Thorpe Manor, Norfolk, is very anxious to know. This little conundrum
came by the first post, and he was to follow by the next train. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d34.wav">There's
a ring at the bell, Watson. I should not be very much surprised if this
were he.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d35.wav">A heavy step was heard upon the stairs,
and an instant later there entered a tall, ruddy, clean-shaven gentleman,
whose clear eyes and florid cheeks told of a life led far from the fogs
of Baker Street. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d36.wav">He seemed to bring a whiff
of his strong, fresh, bracing, east-coast air with him as he entered. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d37.wav">Having
shaken hands with each of us, he was about to sit down when his eye rested
upon the paper with the curious markings, which I had just examined and
left upon the table. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d38.wav">&quot;Well, Mr. Holmes, what do you make
of these?&quot; he cried. &quot;They told me that you were fond of queer
mysteries, and I don't think you can find a queerer one than that. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d39.wav">I
sent the paper on ahead so that you might have time to study it before
I came.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d40.wav">&quot;It is certainly rather a curious production,&quot;
said Holmes. &quot;At first sight it would appear to be some childish prank.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d41.wav">It consists of a number of absurd little
figures dancing across the paper upon which they are drawn. Why should
you attribute any importance to so grotesque an object?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d42.wav">&quot;I never should, Mr. Holmes. But my
wife does. It is frightening her to death. She says nothing, but I can
see terror in her eyes. That's why I want to sift the matter to the bottom.&quot;
</A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img14top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img14top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img14top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/2dance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
II</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d43.wav">Holmes held up the paper so that the sunlight
shone full upon it. It was a page torn from a note-book. The markings were
done in pencil, and ran in this way:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d44.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=95 width=367></center></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d45.wav">Holmes examined it for some time, and then,
folding it carefully up, he placed it in his pocket-book. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d46.wav">&quot;This promises to be a most interesting
and unusual case,&quot; said he. &quot;You gave me a few particulars in
your letter, Mr. Hilton Cubitt, but I should be very much obliged if you
would kindly go over it all again for the benefit of my friend, Dr. Watson.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d47.wav">&quot;I'm not much of a story-teller,&quot;
said our visitor, nervously clasping and unclasping his great, strong hands.
&quot;You'll just ask me anything that I don't make clear. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d48.wav">I'll
begin at the time of my marriage last year; but I want to say first of
all that, though I'm not a rich man, my people have been at Ridling Thorpe
for a matter of five centuries, and there is no better known family in
the County of Norfolk. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d49.wav">Last year I came
up to London for the Jubilee, and I stopped at a boarding-house in Russell
Square, because Parker, the vicar of our parish, was staying in it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d50.wav">There
was an American young lady there -- Patrick was the name -- Elsie Patrick.
In some way we became friends, until before my month was up I was as much
in love as a man could be. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d51.wav">We were quietly
married at a registry office, and we returned to Norfolk a wedded couple.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d52.wav">You'll think it very mad, Mr. Holmes, that
a man of a good old family should marry a wife in this fashion, knowing
nothing of her past or of her people; but if you saw her and knew her it
would help you to understand. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d53.wav">&quot;She was very straight about it, was
Elsie. I can't say that she did not give me every chance of getting out
of it if I wished to do so. `I have had some very disagreeable associations
in my life,' said she; </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d54.wav">`I wish to forget
all about them. I would rather never allude to the past, for it is very
painful to me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d55.wav">If you take me, Hilton,
you will take a woman who has nothing that she need be personally ashamed
of; but you will have to be content with my word for it, and to allow me
to be silent as to all that passed up to the time when I became yours.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d56.wav">If these conditions are too hard, then
go back to Norfolk and leave me to the lonely life in which you found me.'
It was only the day before our wedding that she said those very words to
me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d57.wav">I told her that I was content to take
her on her own terms, and I have been as good as my word. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d58.wav">&quot;Well, we have been married now for
a year, and very happy we have been. But about a month ago, at the end
of June, I saw for the first time signs of trouble. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d59.wav">One
day my wife received a letter from America. I saw the American stamp. She
turned deadly white, read the letter, and threw it into the fire. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d60.wav">She
made no allusion to it afterwards, and I made none, for a promise is a
promise; but she has never known an easy hour from that moment. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d61.wav">There
is always a look of fear upon her face -- a look as if she were waiting
and expecting. She would do better to trust me. She would find that I was
her best friend. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d62.wav">But until she speaks I
can say nothing. Mind you, she is a truthful woman, Mr. Holmes, and whatever
trouble there may have been in her past life it has been no fault of hers.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d63.wav">I am only a simple Norfolk squire, but
there is not a man in England who ranks his family honour more highly than
I do. She knows it well, and she knew it well before she married me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d64.wav">She
would never bring any stain upon it -- of that I am sure. </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img13top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img13top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img13top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/3ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
III</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d65.wav">&quot;Well, now I come to the queer part
of my story. About a week ago -- it was the Tuesday of last week -- I found
on one of the window-sills a number of absurd little dancing figures, like
these upon the paper. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d66.wav">They were scrawled
with chalk. I thought that it was the stable-boy who had drawn them, but
the lad swore he knew nothing about it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d67.wav">Anyhow,
they had come there during the night. I had them washed out, and I only
mentioned the matter to my wife afterwards. To my surprise she took it
very seriously, and begged me if any more came to let her see them. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d68.wav">None
did come for a week, and then yesterday morning I found this paper lying
on the sun-dial in the garden. I showed it to Elsie, and down she dropped
in a dead faint. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d69.wav">Since then she has looked
like a woman in a dream, half dazed, and with terror always lurking in
her eyes. It was then that I wrote and sent the paper to you, Mr. Holmes.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d70.wav">It was not a thing that I could take to
the police, for they would have laughed at me, but you will tell me what
to do. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d71.wav">I am not a rich man; but if there
is any danger threatening my little woman I would spend my last copper
to shield her.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d72.wav">He was a fine creature, this man of the
old English soil, simple, straight, and gentle, with his great, earnest
blue eyes and broad, comely face. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d73.wav">His love
for his wife and his trust in her shone in his features. Holmes had listened
to his story with the utmost attention, and now he sat for some time in
silent thought. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d74.wav">&quot;Don't you think, Mr. Cubitt,&quot;
said he, at last, &quot;that your best plan would be to make a direct appeal
to your wife, and to ask her to share her secret with you?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d75.wav">Hilton Cubitt shook his massive head. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d76.wav">&quot;A promise is a promise, Mr. Holmes.
If Elsie wished to tell me she would. If not, it is not for me to force
her confidence. But I am justified in taking my own line -- and I will.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d77.wav">&quot;Then I will help you with all my heart.
In the first place, have you heard of any strangers being seen in your
neighbourhood?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d78.wav">&quot;No.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d79.wav">&quot;I presume that it is a very quiet
place. Any fresh face would cause comment?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d80.wav">&quot;In the immediate neighbourhood, yes.
But we have several small watering-places not very far away. And the farmers
take in lodgers.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d81.wav">&quot;These hieroglyphics have evidently
a meaning. If it is a purely arbitrary one it may be impossible for us
to solve it. If, on the other hand, it is systematic, I have no doubt that
we shall get to the bottom of it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d82.wav">But this
particular sample is so short that I can do nothing, and the facts which
you have brought me are so indefinite that we have no basis for an investigation.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d83.wav">I would suggest that you return to Norfolk,
that you keep a keen look-out, and that you take an exact copy of any fresh
dancing men which may appear. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d84.wav">It is a thousand
pities that we have not a reproduction of those which were done in chalk
upon the window-sill. Make a discreet inquiry also as to any strangers
in the neighbourhood. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d85.wav">When you have collected
some fresh evidence come to me again. That is the best advice which I can
give you, Mr. Hilton Cubitt. If there are any pressing fresh developments
I shall be always ready to run down and see you in your Norfolk home.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d86.wav">The interview left Sherlock Holmes very
thoughtful, and several times in the next few days I saw him take his slip
of paper from his note-book and look long and earnestly at the curious
figures inscribed upon it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d87.wav">He made no allusion
to the affair, however, until one afternoon a fortnight or so later. I
was going out when he called me back. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d88.wav">&quot;You had better stay here, Watson.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d89.wav">&quot;Why?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d90.wav">&quot;Because I had a wire from Hilton Cubitt
this morning -- you remember Hilton Cubitt, of the dancing men? He was
to reach Liverpool Street at one-twenty. He may be here at any moment.
I gather from his wire that there have been some new incidents of importance.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d91.wav">We had not long to wait, for our Norfolk
squire came straight from the station as fast as a hansom could bring him.
He was looking worried and depressed, with tired eyes and a lined forehead.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d92.wav">&quot;It's getting on my nerves, this business,
Mr. Holmes,&quot; said he, as he sank, like a wearied man, into an arm-chair.
&quot;It's bad enough to feel that you are surrounded by unseen, unknown
folk, who have some kind of design upon you; </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d93.wav">but
when, in addition to that, you know that it is just killing your wife by
inches, then it becomes as much as flesh and blood can endure. She's wearing
away under it -- just wearing away before my eyes.&quot; </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img12top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img12top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img12top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/4ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
IV</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d94.wav">&quot;Has she said anything yet?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d96.wav">&quot;No, Mr. Holmes, she has not. And yet
there have been times when the poor girl has wanted to speak, and yet could
not quite bring herself to take the plunge. I have tried to help her; but
I dare say I did it clumsily, and scared her off from it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d97.wav">She
has spoken about my old family, and our reputation in the county, and our
pride in our unsullied honour, and I always felt it was leading to the
point; but somehow it turned off before we got there.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d98.wav">&quot;But you have found out something for
yourself?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d99.wav">&quot;A good deal, Mr. Holmes. I have several
fresh dancing men pictures for you to examine, and, what is more important,
I have seen the fellow.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d100.wav">&quot;What, the man who draws them?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d101.wav">&quot;Yes, I saw him at his work. But I
will tell you everything in order. When I got back after my visit to you,
the very first thing I saw next morning was a fresh crop of dancing men.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d102.wav">They had been drawn in chalk upon the
black wooden door of the tool-house, which stands beside the lawn in full
view of the front windows. I took an exact copy, and here it is.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d103.wav">He unfolded a paper and laid it upon the
table. Here is a copy of the hieroglyphics:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d104.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=51 width=218></center></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d105.wav">&quot;Excellent!&quot; said Holmes. &quot;Excellent!
Pray continue.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d106.wav">&quot;When I had taken the copy I rubbed
out the marks; but two mornings later a fresh inscription had appeared.
I have a copy of it here&quot;:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d107.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=49 width=214></center></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d108.wav">Holmes rubbed his hands and chuckled with
delight. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d109.wav">&quot;Our material is rapidly accumulating,&quot;
said he. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d110.wav">&quot;Three days later a message was left
scrawled upon paper, and placed under a pebble upon the sun-dial. Here
it is. The characters are, as you see, exactly the same as the last one.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d111.wav">After that I determined to lie in wait;
so I got out my revolver and I sat up in my study, which overlooks the
lawn and garden. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d112.wav">About two in the morning
I was seated by the window, all being dark save for the moonlight outside,
when I heard steps behind me, and there was my wife in her dressing-gown.
She implored me to come to bed. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d113.wav">I told
her frankly that I wished to see who it was who played such absurd tricks
upon us. She answered that it was some senseless practical joke, and that
I should not take any notice of it. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d114.wav">&quot;`If it really annoys you, Hilton,
we might go and travel, you and I, and so avoid this nuisance.' </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d115.wav">&quot;`What, be driven out of our own house
by a practical joker?' said I. `Why, we should have the whole county laughing
at us.' </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d116.wav">&quot;`Well, come to bed,' said she, `and
we can discuss it in the morning.' </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d117.wav">&quot;Suddenly, as she spoke, I saw her
white face grow whiter yet in the moonlight, and her hand tightened upon
my shoulder. Something was moving in the shadow of the tool-house. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d118.wav">I
saw a dark, creeping figure which crawled round the corner and squatted
in front of the door. Seizing my pistol I was rushing out, when my wife
threw her arms round me and held me with convulsive strength. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d119.wav">I
tried to throw her off, but she clung to me most desperately. At last I
got clear, but by the time I had opened the door and reached the house
the creature was gone. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d120.wav">He had left a trace
of his presence, however, for there on the door was the very same arrangement
of dancing men which had already twice appeared, and which I have copied
on that paper. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d121.wav">There was no other sign
of the fellow anywhere, though I ran all over the grounds. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d122.wav">And
yet the amazing thing is that he must have been there all the time, for
when I examined the door again in the morning he had scrawled some more
of his pictures under the line which I had already seen.&quot; </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img11top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img11top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img11top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/5ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
V</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d123.wav">&quot;Have you that fresh drawing?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d124.wav">&quot;Yes; it is very short, but I made
a copy of it, and here it is.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d125.wav">Again he produced a paper. The new dance
was in this form:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d126.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=47 width=121></center></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d127.wav">&quot;Tell me,&quot; said Holmes -- and
I could see by his eyes that he was much excited -- &quot;was this a mere
addition to the first, or did it appear to be entirely separate?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d128.wav">&quot;It was on a different panel of the
door.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d129.wav">&quot;Excellent! This is far the most important
of all for our purpose. It fills me with hopes. Now, Mr. Hilton Cubitt,
please continue your most interesting statement.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d130.wav">&quot;I have nothing more to say, Mr. Holmes,
except that I was angry with my wife that night for having held me back
when I might have caught the skulking rascal. She said that she feared
that I might come to harm. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d131.wav">For an instant
it had crossed my mind that perhaps what she really feared was that HE
might come to harm, for I could not doubt that she knew who this man was
and what he meant by these strange signals. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d132.wav">But
there is a tone in my wife's voice, Mr. Holmes, and a look in her eyes
which forbid doubt, and I am sure that it was indeed my own safety that
was in her mind. There's the whole case, and now I want your advice as
to what I ought to do. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d133.wav">My own inclination
is to put half-a-dozen of my farm lads in the shrubbery, and when this
fellow comes again to give him such a hiding that he will leave us in peace
for the future.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d134.wav">&quot;I fear it is too deep a case for
such simple remedies,&quot; said Holmes. &quot;How long can you stay in
London?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d135.wav">&quot;I must go back to-day. I would not
leave my wife alone all night for anything. She is very nervous and begged
me to come back.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d136.wav">&quot;I dare say you are right. But if
you could have stopped I might possibly have been able to return with you
in a day or two. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d137.wav">Meanwhile you will leave
me these papers, and I think that it is very likely that I shall be able
to pay you a visit shortly and to throw some light upon your case.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d138.wav">Sherlock Holmes preserved his calm professional
manner until our visitor had left us, although it was easy for me, who
knew him so well, to see that he was profoundly excited. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d139.wav">The
moment that Hilton Cubitt's broad back had disappeared through the door
my comrade rushed to the table, laid out all the slips of paper containing
dancing men in front of him, and threw himself into an intricate and elaborate
calculation. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d140.wav">For two hours I watched him
as he covered sheet after sheet of paper with figures and letters, so completely
absorbed in his task that he had evidently forgotten my presence. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d141.wav">Sometimes
he was making progress and whistled and sang at his work; sometimes he
was puzzled, and would sit for long spells with a furrowed brow and a vacant
eye. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d142.wav">Finally he sprang from his chair
with a cry of satisfaction, and walked up and down the room rubbing his
hands together. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d143.wav">Then he wrote a long telegram
upon a cable form. &quot;If my answer to this is as I hope, you will have
a very pretty case to add to your collection, Watson,&quot; said he. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d144.wav">I
expect that we shall be able to go down to Norfolk to-morrow, and to take
our friend some very definite news as to the secret of his annoyance.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d145.wav">I confess that I was filled with curiosity,
but I was aware that Holmes liked to make his disclosures at his own time
and in his own way; so I waited until it should suit him to take me into
his confidence. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d146.wav">But there was a delay in that answering
telegram, and two days of impatience followed, during which Holmes pricked
up his ears at every ring of the bell. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d147.wav">On
the evening of the second there came a letter from Hilton Cubitt. All was
quiet with him, save that a long inscription had appeared that morning
upon the pedestal of the sun-dial. He inclosed a copy of it, which is here
reproduced:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d148.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=95 width=293></center></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d149.wav">Holmes bent over this grotesque frieze
for some minutes, and then suddenly sprang to his feet with an exclamation
of surprise and dismay. His face was haggard with anxiety. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d150.wav">&quot;We have let this affair go far enough,&quot;
said he. &quot;Is there a train to North Walsham to-night?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d151.wav">I turned up the time-table. The last had
just gone. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d152.wav">&quot;Then we shall breakfast early and
take the very first in the morning,&quot; said Holmes. &quot;Our presence
is most urgently needed. Ah! here is our expected cablegram. One moment,
Mrs. Hudson; there may be an answer. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d153.wav">No,
that is quite as I expected. This message makes it even more essential
that we should not lose an hour in letting Hilton Cubitt know how matters
stand, for it is a singular and a dangerous web in which our simple Norfolk
squire is entangled.&quot; </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img10top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img10top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img10top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/6ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
VI</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d154.wav">So, indeed, it proved, and as I come to
the dark conclusion of a story which had seemed to me to be only childish
and bizarre I experience once again the dismay and horror with which I
was filled. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d155.wav">Would that I had some brighter
ending to communicate to my readers, but these are the chronicles of fact,
and I must follow to their dark crisis the strange chain of events which
for some days made Ridling Thorpe Manor a household word through the length
and breadth of England. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d156.wav">We had hardly alighted at North Walsham,
and mentioned the name of our destination, when the station-master hurried
towards us. &quot;I suppose that you are the detectives from London?&quot;
said he. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d157.wav">A look of annoyance passed over Holmes's
face. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d158.wav">&quot;What makes you think such a thing?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d159.wav">&quot;Because Inspector Martin from Norwich
has just passed through. But maybe you are the surgeons. She's not dead
-- or wasn't by last accounts. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d160.wav">You may
be in time to save her yet -- though it be for the gallows.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d161.wav">Holmes's brow was dark with anxiety. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d162.wav">&quot;We are going to Ridling Thorpe Manor,&quot;
said he, &quot;but we have heard nothing of what has passed there.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d163.wav">&quot;It's a terrible business,&quot; said
the station-master. &quot;They are shot, both Mr. Hilton Cubitt and his
wife. She shot him and then herself -- so the servants say. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d164.wav">He's
dead and her life is despaired of. Dear, dear, one of the oldest families
in the County of Norfolk, and one of the most honoured.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d165.wav">Without a word Holmes hurried to a carriage,
and during the long seven miles' drive he never opened his mouth. Seldom
have I seen him so utterly despondent. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d166.wav">He
had been uneasy during all our journey from town, and I had observed that
he had turned over the morning papers with anxious attention; but now this
sudden realization of his worst fears left him in a blank melancholy. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d167.wav">He
leaned back in his seat, lost in gloomy speculation. Yet there was much
around to interest us, for we were passing through as singular a country-side
as any in England, </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d168.wav">where a few scattered
cottages represented the population of to-day, while on every hand enormous
square-towered churches bristled up from the flat, green landscape and
told of the glory and prosperity of old East Anglia. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d169.wav">At
last the violet rim of the German Ocean appeared over the green edge of
the Norfolk coast, and the driver pointed with his whip to two old brick
and timber gables which projected from a grove of trees. &quot;That's Ridling
Thorpe Manor,&quot; said he. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d170.wav">As we drove up to the porticoed front door
I observed in front of it, beside the tennis lawn, the black tool-house
and the pedestalled sun-dial with which we had such strange associations.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d171.wav">A dapper little man, with a quick, alert
manner and a waxed moustache, had just descended from a high dog-cart.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d172.wav">He introduced himself as Inspector Martin,
of the Norfolk Constabulary, and he was considerably astonished when he
heard the name of my companion. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d173.wav">&quot;Why, Mr. Holmes, the crime was only
committed at three this morning. How could you hear of it in London and
get to the spot as soon as I?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d174.wav">&quot;I anticipated it. I came in the hope
of preventing it.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d175.wav">&quot;Then you must have important evidence
of which we are ignorant, for they were said to be a most united couple.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d176.wav">&quot;I have only the evidence of the dancing
men,&quot; said Holmes. &quot;I will explain the matter to you later. Meanwhile,
since it is too late to prevent this tragedy, I am very anxious that I
should use the knowledge which I possess in order to ensure that justice
be done. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d177.wav">Will you associate me in your
investigation, or will you prefer that I should act independently?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d178.wav">&quot;I should be proud to feel that we
were acting together, Mr. Holmes,&quot; said the inspector, earnestly.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d179.wav">&quot;In that case I should be glad to
hear the evidence and to examine the premises without an instant of unnecessary
delay.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d180.wav">Inspector Martin had the good sense to
allow my friend to do things in his own fashion, and contented himself
with carefully noting the results. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d181.wav">The
local surgeon, an old, white-haired man, had just come down from Mrs. Hilton
Cubitt's room, and he reported that her injuries were serious, but not
necessarily fatal. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d182.wav">The bullet had passed
through the front of her brain, and it would probably be some time before
she could regain consciousness. On the question of whether she had been
shot or had shot herself he would not venture to express any decided opinion.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d183.wav">Certainly the bullet had been discharged
at very close quarters. There was only the one pistol found in the room,
two barrels of which had been emptied. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d184.wav">Mr.
Hilton Cubitt had been shot through the heart. It was equally conceivable
that he had shot her and then himself, or that she had been the criminal,
for the revolver lay upon the floor midway between them. </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img9top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img9top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img9top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/7ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
VII</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d185.wav">&quot;Has he been moved?&quot; asked Holmes.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d186.wav">&quot;We have moved nothing except the
lady. We could not leave her lying wounded upon the floor.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d187.wav">&quot;How long have you been here, doctor?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d188.wav">&quot;Since four o'clock.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d189.wav">Anyone else?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d190.wav">&quot;Yes, the constable here.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d191.wav">&quot;And you have touched nothing?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d192.wav">&quot;Nothing.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d193.wav">&quot;You have acted with great discretion.
Who sent for you?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d194.wav">&quot;The housemaid, Saunders.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d195.wav">&quot;Was it she who gave the alarm?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d196.wav">&quot;She and Mrs. King, the cook.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d197.wav">&quot;Where are they now?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d198.wav">&quot;In the kitchen, I believe.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d199.wav">&quot;Then I think we had better hear their
story at once.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d200.wav">The old hall, oak-panelled and high-windowed,
had been turned into a court of investigation. Holmes sat in a great, old-fashioned
chair, his inexorable eyes gleaming out of his haggard face. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d201.wav">I
could read in them a set purpose to devote his life to this quest until
the client whom he had failed to save should at last be avenged. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d202.wav">The
trim Inspector Martin, the old, grey-headed country doctor, myself, and
a stolid village policeman made up the rest of that strange company. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d203.wav">The two women told their story clearly
enough. They had been aroused from their sleep by the sound of an explosion,
which had been followed a minute later by a second one. They slept in adjoining
rooms, and Mrs. King had rushed in to Saunders. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d204.wav">Together
they had descended the stairs. The door of the study was open and a candle
was burning upon the table. Their master lay upon his face in the centre
of the room. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d205.wav">He was quite dead. Near the
window his wife was crouching, her head leaning against the wall. She was
horribly wounded, and the side of her face was red with blood. She breathed
heavily, but was incapable of saying anything. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d206.wav">The
passage, as well as the room, was full of smoke and the smell of powder.
The window was certainly shut and fastened upon the inside. Both women
were positive upon the point. They had at once sent for the doctor and
for the constable. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d207.wav">Then, with the aid
of the groom and the stable-boy, they had conveyed their injured mistress
to her room. Both she and her husband had occupied the bed. She was clad
in her dress -- he in his dressing-gown, over his night clothes. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d208.wav">Nothing
had been moved in the study. So far as they knew there had never been any
quarrel between husband and wife. They had always looked upon them as a
very united couple. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d209.wav">These were the main points of the servants'
evidence. In answer to Inspector Martin they were clear that every door
was fastened upon the inside, and that no one could have escaped from the
house. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d210.wav">In answer to Holmes they both remembered
that they were conscious of the smell of powder from the moment that they
ran out of their rooms upon the top floor. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d211.wav">I
commend that fact very carefully to your attention,&quot; said Holmes to
his professional colleague. &quot;And now I think that we are in a position
to undertake a thorough examination of the room.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d212.wav">The study proved to be a small chamber,
lined on three sides with books, and with a writing-table facing an ordinary
window, which looked out upon the garden. Our first attention was given
to the body of the unfortunate squire, whose huge frame lay stretched across
the room. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d213.wav">His disordered dress showed
that he had been hastily aroused from sleep. The bullet had been fired
at him from the front, and had remained in his body after penetrating the
heart. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d214.wav">His death had certainly been instantaneous
and painless. There was no powder-marking either upon his dressing-gown
or on his hands. According to the country surgeon the lady had stains upon
her face, but none upon her hand. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d215.wav">&quot;The absence of the latter means nothing,
though its presence may mean everything,&quot; said Holmes. &quot;Unless
the powder from a badly-fitting cartridge happens to spurt backwards, one
may fire many shots without leaving a sign. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d216.wav">I
would suggest that Mr. Cubitt's body may now be removed. I suppose, doctor,
you have not recovered the bullet which wounded the lady?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d217.wav">&quot;A serious operation will be necessary
before that can be done. But there are still four cartridges in the revolver.
Two have been fired and two wounds inflicted, so that each bullet can be
accounted for.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d218.wav">&quot;So it would seem,&quot; said Holmes.
&quot;Perhaps you can account also for the bullet which has so obviously
struck the edge of the window?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d219.wav">He had turned suddenly, and his long, thin
finger was pointing to a hole which had been drilled right through the
lower window-sash about an inch above the bottom. </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img8top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img8top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img8top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/8ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
VIII</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d220.wav">&quot;By George!&quot; cried the inspector.
&quot;How ever did you see that?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d221.wav">&quot;Because I looked for it.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d222.wav">&quot;Wonderful!&quot; said the country
doctor. &quot;You are certainly right, sir. Then a third shot has been
fired, and therefore a third person must have been present. But who could
that have been and how could he have got away?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d223.wav">&quot;That is the problem which we are
now about to solve,&quot; said Sherlock Holmes. &quot;You remember, Inspector
Martin, when the servants said that on leaving their room they were at
once conscious of a smell of powder I remarked that the point was an extremely
important one?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d224.wav">&quot;Yes, sir; but I confess I did not
quite follow you.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d225.wav">&quot;It suggested that at the time of
the firing the window as well as the door of the room had been open. Otherwise
the fumes of powder could not have been blown so rapidly through the house.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d226.wav">A draught in the room was necessary for
that. Both door and window were only open for a very short time, however.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d227.wav">&quot;How do you prove that?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d228.wav">&quot;Because the candle has not guttered.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d229.wav">&quot;Capital!&quot; cried the inspector.
&quot;Capital!&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d230.wav">&quot;Feeling sure that the window had
been open at the time of the tragedy I conceived that there might have
been a third person in the affair, who stood outside this opening and fired
through it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d231.wav">Any shot directed at this
person might hit the sash. I looked, and there, sure enough, was the bullet
mark!&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d232.wav">&quot;But how came the window to be shut
and fastened?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d233.wav">&quot;The woman's first instinct would
be to shut and fasten the window. But, halloa! what is this?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d234.wav">It was a lady's hand-bag which stood upon
the study table -- a trim little hand-bag of crocodile-skin and silver.
Holmes opened it and turned the contents out. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d235.wav">There
were twenty fifty-pound notes of the Bank of England, held together by
an india-rubber band -- nothing else. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d236.wav">&quot;This must be preserved, for it will
figure in the trial,&quot; said Holmes, as he handed the bag with its contents
to the inspector. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d237.wav">It is now necessary
that we should try to throw some light upon this third bullet, which has
clearly, from the splintering of the wood, been fired from inside the room.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d238.wav">I should like to see Mrs. King, the cook,
again. You said, Mrs. King, that you were awakened by a LOUD explosion.
When you said that, did you mean that it seemed to you to be louder than
the second one?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d239.wav">&quot;Well, sir, it wakened me from my
sleep, and so it is hard to judge. But it did seem very loud.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d240.wav">&quot;You don't think that it might have
been two shots fired almost at the same instant?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d241.wav">&quot;I am sure I couldn't say, sir.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d242.wav">&quot;I believe that it was undoubtedly
so. I rather think, Inspector Martin, that we have now exhausted all that
this room can teach us. If you will kindly step round with me, we shall
see what fresh evidence the garden has to offer.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d243.wav">A flower-bed extended up to the study window,
and we all broke into an exclamation as we approached it. The flowers were
trampled down, and the soft soil was imprinted all over with footmarks.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d244.wav">Large, masculine feet they were, with
peculiarly long, sharp toes. Holmes hunted about among the grass and leaves
like a retriever after a wounded bird. Then, with a cry of satisfaction,
he bent forward and picked up a little brazen cylinder. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d245.wav">&quot;I thought so,&quot; said he; &quot;the
revolver had an ejector, and here is the third cartridge. I really think,
Inspector Martin, that our case is almost complete.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d246.wav">The country inspector's face had shown
his intense amazement at the rapid and masterful progress of Holmes's investigation.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d247.wav">At first he had shown some disposition
to assert his own position; but now he was overcome with admiration and
ready to follow without question wherever Holmes led. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d248.wav">&quot;Whom do you suspect?&quot; he asked.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d249.wav">&quot;I'll go into that later. There are
several points in this problem which I have not been able to explain to
you yet. Now that I have got so far I had best proceed on my own lines,
and then clear the whole matter up once and for all.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d250.wav">&quot;Just as you wish, Mr. Holmes, so
long as we get our man.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d251.wav">&quot;I have no desire to make mysteries,
but it is impossible at the moment of action to enter into long and complex
explanations. I have the threads of this affair all in my hand. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d252.wav">Even
if this lady should never recover consciousness we can still reconstruct
the events of last night and ensure that justice be done. First of all
I wish to know whether there is any inn in this neighbourhood known as
`Elrige's'?&quot; </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img7top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img7top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img7top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/9ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
IX</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d253.wav">The servants were cross-questioned, but
none of them had heard of such a place. The stable-boy threw a light upon
the matter by remembering that a farmer of that name lived some miles off
in the direction of East Ruston. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d254.wav">&quot;Is it a lonely farm?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d255.wav">&quot;Very lonely, sir.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d256.wav">&quot;Perhaps they have not heard yet of
all that happened here during the night?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d257.wav">&quot;Maybe not, sir.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d258.wav">Holmes thought for a little and then a
curious smile played over his face. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d259.wav">&quot;Saddle a horse, my lad,&quot; said
he. &quot;I shall wish you to take a note to Elrige's Farm.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d260.wav">He took from his pocket the various slips
of the dancing men. With these in front of him he worked for some time
at the study-table. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d261.wav">Finally he handed
a note to the boy, with directions to put it into the hands of the person
to whom it was addressed, and especially to answer no questions of any
sort which might be put to him. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d262.wav">I saw
the outside of the note, addressed in straggling, irregular characters,
very unlike Holmes's usual precise hand. It was consigned to Mr. Abe Slaney,
Elrige's Farm, East Ruston, Norfolk. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d263.wav">&quot;I think, inspector,&quot; Holmes
remarked, &quot;that you would do well to telegraph for an escort, as,
if my calculations prove to be correct, you may have a particularly dangerous
prisoner to convey to the county gaol. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d264.wav">The
boy who takes this note could no doubt forward your telegram. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d265.wav">If
there is an afternoon train to town, Watson, I think we should do well
to take it, as I have a chemical analysis of some interest to finish, and
this investigation draws rapidly to a close.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d266.wav">When the youth had been dispatched with
the note, Sherlock Holmes gave his instructions to the servants. If any
visitor were to call asking for Mrs. Hilton Cubitt no information should
be given as to her condition, but he was to be shown at once into the drawing-room.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d267.wav">He impressed these points upon them with
the utmost earnestness. Finally he led the way into the drawing-room with
the remark that the business was now out of our hands, and that we must
while away the time as best we might until we could see what was in store
for us. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d268.wav">The doctor had departed to his
patients, and only the inspector and myself remained. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d269.wav">&quot;I think that I can help you to pass
an hour in an interesting and profitable manner,&quot; said Holmes, drawing
his chair up to the table and spreading out in front of him the various
papers upon which were recorded the antics of the dancing men. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d270.wav">As
to you, friend Watson, I owe you every atonement for having allowed your
natural curiosity to remain so long unsatisfied. To you, inspector, the
whole incident may appeal as a remarkable professional study. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d271.wav">I
must tell you first of all the interesting circumstances connected with
the previous consultations which Mr. Hilton Cubitt has had with me in Baker
Street.&quot; He then shortly recapitulated the facts which have already
been recorded. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d272.wav">I have here in front of
me these singular productions, at which one might smile had they not proved
themselves to be the fore-runners of so terrible a tragedy. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d273.wav">I
am fairly familiar with all forms of secret writings, and am myself the
author of a trifling monograph upon the subject, in which I analyze one
hundred and sixty separate ciphers; but I confess that this is entirely
new to me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d274.wav">The object of those who invented
the system has apparently been to conceal that these characters convey
a message, and to give the idea that they are the mere random sketches
of children. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d275.wav">&quot;Having once recognised, however,
that the symbols stood for letters, and having applied the rules which
guide us in all forms of secret writings, the solution was easy enough.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d276.wav">The first message submitted to me was
so short that it was impossible for me to do more than to say with some
confidence that the symbol <A HREF="../dancingwav/d276.wav"><IMG SRC="d276.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=40 width=53 
ALIGN=ABSCENTER></A>
stood for E.</A> <A HREF="../dancingwav/d277.wav">As you are aware, E is the
most common letter in the English alphabet, and it predominates to so marked
an extent that even in a short sentence one would expect to find it most
often. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d278.wav">Out of fifteen symbols in the first
message four were the same, so it was reasonable to set this down as E.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d279.wav">It is true that in some cases the figure
was bearing a flag and in some cases not, but it was probable from the
way in which the flags were distributed that they were used to break the
sentence up into words. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d280.wav">I accepted this
as a hypothesis, and noted that E was represented by <A HREF="../dancingwav/d280.wav"><IMG SRC="d280.jpg" ALT="Graphic" 
border="0" height=40 width=41 ALIGN=ABSCENTER></A></A>.</P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img6top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img6top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img6top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../10ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section X</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d281.wav">&quot;But now came the real difficulty
of the inquiry. The order of the English letters after E is by no means
well marked, and any preponderance which may be shown in an average of
a printed sheet may be reversed in a single short sentence. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d282.wav">Speaking
roughly, T, A, O, I, N, S, H, R, D, and L are the numerical order in which
letters occur; but T, A, O, and I are very nearly abreast of each other,
and it would be an endless task to try each combination until a meaning
was arrived at. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d283.wav">I, therefore, waited for
fresh material. In my second interview with Mr. Hilton Cubitt he was able
to give me two other short sentences and one message, which appeared --
since there was no flag -- to be a single word. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d284.wav">Here
are the symbols. Now, in the single word I have already got the two E's
coming second and fourth in a word of five letters. It might be `sever,'
or `lever,' or `never.' </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d285.wav">There can be no
question that the latter as a reply to an appeal is far the most probable,
and the circumstances pointed to its being a reply written by the lady.
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d286.wav">Accepting it as correct, we are now able
to say that the symbols <A HREF="../dancingwav/d286.wav"><IMG SRC="d286.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=40 width=76 
ALIGN=ABSCENTER></A>
stand respectively for N, V, and R. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d287.wav">&quot;Even now I was in considerable difficulty,
but a happy thought put me in possession of several other letters. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d288.wav">It
occurred to me that if these appeals came, as I expected, from someone
who had been intimate with the lady in her early life, a combination which
contained two E's with three letters between might very well stand for
the name `ELSIE.' </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d289.wav">On examination I found
that such a combination formed the termination of the message which was
three times repeated. It was certainly some appeal to `Elsie.' In this
way I had got my L, S, and I. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d290.wav">But what
appeal could it be? There were only four letters in the word which preceded
`Elsie,' and it ended in E. Surely the word must be `COME.' I tried all
other four letters ending in E, but could find none to fit the case. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d291.wav">So
now I was in possession of C, O, and M, and I was in a position to attack
the first message once more, dividing it into words and putting dots for
each symbol which was still unknown. So treated it worked out in this fashion:--
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d292.wav">.M .ERE ..E SL.NE. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d293.wav">&quot;Now the first letter CAN only be
A, which is a most useful discovery, since it occurs no fewer than three
times in this short sentence, and the H is also apparent in the second
word. Now it becomes:-- </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d294.wav">AM HERE A.E SLANE. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d295.wav">Or, filling in the obvious vacancies in
the name:-- </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d296.wav">AM HERE ABE SLANEY. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d297.wav">I had so many letters now that I could
proceed with considerable confidence to the second message, which worked
out in this fashion:-- </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d298.wav">A. ELRI.ES. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d299.wav">Here I could only make sense by putting
T and G for the missing letters, and supposing that the name was that of
some house or inn at which the writer was staying.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d300.wav">Inspector Martin and I had listened with
the utmost interest to the full and clear account of how my friend had
produced results which had led to so complete a command over our difficulties.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d301.wav">&quot;What did you do then, sir?&quot;
asked the inspector. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d302.wav">&quot;I had every reason to suppose that
this Abe Slaney was an American, since Abe is an American contraction,
and since a letter from America had been the starting-point of all the
trouble. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d303.wav">I had also every cause to think
that there was some criminal secret in the matter. The lady's allusions
to her past and her refusal to take her husband into her confidence both
pointed in that direction. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d304.wav">I therefore
cabled to my friend, Wilson Hargreave, of the New York Police Bureau, who
has more than once made use of my knowledge of London crime. I asked him
whether the name of Abe Slaney was known to him. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d305.wav">Here
is his reply: `The most dangerous crook in Chicago.' On the very evening
upon which I had his answer Hilton Cubitt sent me the last message from
Slaney. Working with known letters it took this form:-- </A></P>
<center><a href="#Top" onMouseOver="img5top.src='arrowin.jpg'" onMouseOut="img5top.src='arrowout.jpg'"><img SRC="arrowout.jpg" NAME="img5top" BORDER=0 ></a></center>

<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/11ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
XI</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d306.wav">ELSIE .RE.ARE TO MEET THY GO. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d307.wav">The addition of a P and a D completed a
message which showed me that the rascal was proceeding from persuasion
to threats, and my knowledge of the crooks of Chicago prepared me to find
that he might very rapidly put his words into action. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d308.wav">I
at once came to Norfolk with my friend and colleague, Dr. Watson, but,
unhappily, only in time to find that the worst had already occurred.&quot;
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d309.wav">It is a privilege to be associated with
you in the handling of a case,&quot; said the inspector, warmly. &quot;You
will excuse me, however, if I speak frankly to you. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d310.wav">You
are only answerable to yourself, but I have to answer to my superiors.
If this Abe Slaney, living at Elrige's, is indeed the murderer, and if
he has made his escape while I am seated here, I should certainly get into
serious trouble.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d311.wav">&quot;You need not be uneasy. He will not
try to escape.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d312.wav">&quot;How do you know?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d313.wav">&quot;To fly would be a confession of guilt.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d314.wav">&quot;Then let us go to arrest him.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d315.wav">&quot;I expect him here every instant.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d316.wav">&quot;But why should he come?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d317.wav">&quot;Because I have written and asked
him.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d318.wav">&quot;But this is incredible, Mr. Holmes!
Why should he come because you have asked him? Would not such a request
rather rouse his suspicions and cause him to fly?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d319.wav">&quot;I think I have known how to frame
the letter,&quot; said Sherlock Holmes. &quot;In fact, if I am not very
much mistaken, here is the gentleman himself coming up the drive.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d320.wav">A man was striding up the path which led
to the door. He was a tall, handsome, swarthy fellow, clad in a suit of
grey flannel, with a Panama hat, a bristling black beard, and a great,
aggressive hooked nose, and flourishing a cane as he walked. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d321.wav">He
swaggered up the path as if the place belonged to him, and we heard his
loud, confident peal at the bell. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d322.wav">&quot;I think, gentlemen,&quot; said Holmes,
quietly, &quot;that we had best take up our position behind the door. Every
precaution is necessary when dealing with such a fellow. You will need
your handcuffs, inspector. You can leave the talking to me.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d323.wav">We waited in silence for a minute -- one
of those minutes which one can never forget. Then the door opened and the
man stepped in. In an instant Holmes clapped a pistol to his head and Martin
slipped the handcuffs over his wrists. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d324.wav">It
was all done so swiftly and deftly that the fellow was helpless before
he knew that he was attacked. He glared from one to the other of us with
a pair of blazing black eyes. Then he burst into a bitter laugh. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d325.wav">&quot;Well, gentlemen, you have the drop
on me this time. I seem to have knocked up against something hard. But
I came here in answer to a letter from Mrs. Hilton Cubitt. Don't tell me
that she is in this? Don't tell me that she helped to set a trap for me?&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d326.wav">Mrs. Hilton Cubitt was seriously injured
and is at death's door.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d327.wav">The man gave a hoarse cry of grief which
rang through the house. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d328.wav">&quot;You're crazy!&quot; he cried, fiercely.
&quot;It was he that was hurt, not she. Who would have hurt little Elsie?
I may have threatened her, God forgive me, but I would not have touched
a hair of her pretty head. Take it back -- you! Say that she is not hurt!&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d329.wav">&quot;She was found badly wounded by the
side of her dead husband.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d330.wav">He sank with a deep groan on to the settee
and buried his face in his manacled hands. For five minutes he was silent.
Then he raised his face once more, and spoke with the cold composure of
despair. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d331.wav">&quot;I have nothing to hide from you,
gentlemen,&quot; said he. &quot;If I shot the man he had his shot at me,
and there's no murder in that. But if you think I could have hurt that
woman, then you don't know either me or her. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d332.wav">I
tell you there was never a man in this world loved a woman more than I
loved her. I had a right to her. She was pledged to me years ago. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d333.wav">Who
was this Englishman that he should come between us? I tell you that I had
the first right to her, and that I was only claiming my own.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d334.wav">&quot;She broke away from your influence
when she found the man that you are,&quot; said Holmes, sternly. &quot;She
fled from America to avoid you, and she married an honourable gentleman
in England. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d335.wav">You dogged her and followed
her and made her life a misery to her in order to induce her to abandon
the husband whom she loved and respected in order to fly with you, whom
she feared and hated. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d336.wav">You have ended by
bringing about the death of a noble man and driving his wife to suicide.
That is your record in this business, Mr. Abe Slaney, and you will answer
for it to the law.&quot; </A></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/12ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
XII</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d337.wav">&quot;If Elsie dies I care nothing what
becomes of me,&quot; said the American. He opened one of his hands and
looked at a note crumpled up in his palm. &quot;See here, mister, he cried,
with a gleam of suspicion in his eyes, &quot;you're not trying to scare
me over this, are you? </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d338.wav">If the lady is
hurt as bad as you say, who was it that wrote this note?&quot; He tossed
it forwards on to the table. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d339.wav">&quot;I wrote it to bring you here.&quot;
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d340.wav">&quot;You wrote it? There was no one on
earth outside the Joint who knew the secret of the dancing men. How came
you to write it?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d341.wav">&quot;What one man can invent another can
discover,&quot; said Holmes. There is a cab coming to convey you to Norwich,
Mr. Slaney. But, meanwhile, you have time to make some small reparation
for the injury you have wrought. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d342.wav">Are you
aware that Mrs. Hilton Cubitt has herself lain under grave suspicion of
the murder of her husband, and that it was only my presence here and the
knowledge which I happened to possess which has saved her from the accusation?
</A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d343.wav">The least that you owe her is to make
it clear to the whole world that she was in no way, directly or indirectly,
responsible for his tragic end.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d344.wav">&quot;I ask nothing better,&quot; said
the American. &quot;I guess the very best case I can make for myself is
the absolute naked truth.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d345.wav">&quot;It is my duty to warn you that it
will be used against you,&quot; cried the inspector, with the magnificent
fair-play of the British criminal law. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d346.wav">Slaney shrugged his shoulders. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d347.wav">&quot;I'll chance that,&quot; said he.
&quot;First of all, I want you gentlemen to understand that I have known
this lady since she was a child. There were seven of us in a gang in Chicago,
and Elsie's father was the boss of the Joint. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d348.wav">He
was a clever man, was old Patrick. It was he who invented that writing,
which would pass as a child's scrawl unless you just happened to have the
key to it. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d349.wav">Well, Elsie learned some of
our ways; but she couldn't stand the business, and she had a bit of honest
money of her own, so she gave us all the slip and got away to London. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d350.wav">She
had been engaged to me, and she would have married me, I believe, if I
had taken over another profession; but she would have nothing to do with
anything on the cross. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d351.wav">It was only after
her marriage to this Englishman that I was able to find out where she was.
I wrote to her, but got no answer. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d352.wav">After
that I came over, and, as letters were no use, I put my messages where
she could read them. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d353.wav">&quot;Well, I have been here a month now.
I lived in that farm, where I had a room down below, and could get in and
out every night, and no one the wiser. I tried all I could to coax Elsie
away. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d354.wav">I knew that she read the messages,
for once she wrote an answer under one of them. Then my temper got the
better of me, and I began to threaten her. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d355.wav">She
sent me a letter then, imploring me to go away and saying that it would
break her heart if any scandal should come upon her husband. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d356.wav">She
said that she would come down when her husband was asleep at three in the
morning, and speak with me through the end window, if I would go away afterwards
and leave her in peace. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d357.wav">She came down
and brought money with her, trying to bribe me to go. This made me mad,
and I caught her arm and tried to pull her through the window. At that
moment in rushed the husband with his revolver in his hand. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d358.wav">Elsie
had sunk down upon the floor, and we were face to face. I was heeled also,
and I held up my gun to scare him off and let me get away. He fired and
missed me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d359.wav">I pulled off almost at the
same instant, and down he dropped. I made away across the garden, and as
I went I heard the window shut behind me. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d360.wav">That's
God's truth, gentlemen, every word of it, and I heard no more about it
until that lad came riding up with a note which made me walk in here, like
a jay, and give myself into your hands.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d361.wav">A cab had driven up whilst the American
had been talking. Two uniformed policemen sat inside. Inspector Martin
rose and touched his prisoner on the shoulder. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d362.wav">&quot;It is time for us to go.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d363.wav">&quot;Can I see her first?&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d364.wav">&quot;No, she is not conscious. Mr. Sherlock
Holmes, I only hope that if ever again I have an important case I shall
have the good fortune to have you by my side.&quot; </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d365.wav">We stood at the window and watched the
cab drive away. As I turned back my eye caught the pellet of paper which
the prisoner had tossed upon the table. It was the note with which Holmes
had decoyed him. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d366.wav">&quot;See if you can read it, Watson,&quot;
said he, with a smile. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d367.wav">It contained no word, but this little line
of dancing men:-- </A></P>

<P><center><IMG SRC="d368.jpg" ALT="Graphic" border="0" height=47 width=328></center></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=+1><A HREF="../dancingwav/13ldance.wav"><img border="0"  src="../tingsmbl.gif">Section
XIII</A></FONT></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d369.wav">&quot;If you use the code which I have
explained,&quot; said Holmes, &quot;you will find that it simply means
`Come here at once.' I was convinced that it was an invitation which he
would not refuse, since he could never imagine that it could come from
anyone but the lady. <A/></A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d370.wav">And so, my dear
Watson, we have ended by turning the dancing men to good when they have
so often been the agents of evil, and I think that I have fulfilled my
promise of giving you something unusual for your note-book. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d371.wav">Three-forty
is our train, and I fancy we should be back in Baker Street for dinner.
</A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d372.wav">Only one word of epilogue. The American,
Abe Slaney, was condemned to death at the winter assizes at Norwich; but
his penalty was changed to penal servitude in consideration of mitigating
circumstances, and the certainty that Hilton Cubitt had fired the first
shot. </A><A HREF="../dancingwav/d373.wav">Of Mrs. Hilton Cubitt I only know
that I have heard she recovered entirely, and that she still remains a
widow, devoting her whole life to the care of the poor and to the administration
of her husband's estate. </A></P>

<P><A HREF="../dancingwav/d373.wav">
</A></P>
</blockquote></font></font>
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<HR><P><FONT face = "Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans serif" SIZE=-2>http://hua.umf.maine.edu/Chinese/stories/holmes/dancing/dancing.html<BR>Last update: September 2001<BR>Marilyn Shea, 2001</FONT></P><HR>

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