Mexico weekly ledger., 1894-01-25
Bx a. CONAN DOYLE

And his name is?s
ARTHUR Charpentier, sub-l;eutenant
in her majesty's navy" cried Gregson,
pompously, rubbing his fat hands and
initiating his chest.
Sherlock Holmes gave a sigh OF re-
lief and relaxed into a smile.
'Take a seat and try one of these
cigars" he said. I'VE are anxious to
know how you managed it. VIII You
have some whisky and water?"
81 don't mind if / do" the detective
answered. 1.-THE tremendous exertions
which l have gone through during the
last day or two have worn me out.
Not so much bodily exertion, you un-
derstand, as the strain upon the mind.
You will appreciate that, Mr.. Sherlock
Holmes, for we are both brain work.
ers."
"You do me too much honor" said
Holmes gravely. Let us heal how
you arrived at this most gratifying re-
suit"
The detective seated himself in the
armchair and pulled eomplacently at
his cigar. Then suddenly he slapped
his thigh in a paroxysm of amusement.
The fun of it isl he cried, 'thst.
that fool Lestrade, who thinks HIMSELF
! SO smart, has gone off upon the wrong
track altogether. He is after the sec-i
rotary, Stangerson, who had no more
to do with the crime than the babe un-
born. l have no doubt that he has
caught him by this time"
The idea tickled Gregson SO much
that he laughed until he choked.
"And how did you get your clew?"
"Ah, I'll tell you all about it. OF
course, Dr.. Watson, this is strictly be-
tween ourselves. The first difficulty
which we had to contend with was the
finding of this Americans ~antecedents.
Some people would have waited until
their advertisements were answered,
or until parties came forward and vol
unteered information. That is not
Tobias Gregson's way of going to
work. You remember the hat beside
the dead man?"
Eyes," said Holmes; 'by John I'm
derwood Sc Sons, 100 CamberweIl
road"
Gregson looked quite cr~estfallen.
II had no idea that you noticed
that he said. Have you been
there?"
NO"
Hal" cried Gregson, in a relieved
voice; 'tyou should never neglect q
chance, however small it may seem"
"To a great mind nothing is little"
remarked Holmes, sententiously.
"Well | went to Underwood and
asked him if he had sold a hat of that
size and description. He looked e
his books and came on it at once. He
had sent the hat to a Mr.. Drebber, re
siding at Carpenters boarding estab.
lishment, Torquay terrace. Thus I got
at his address,"
"Smart-very smart" murmured
Sherlock Holmes.
Il next called upon Mime. Char
pentier," continued the detective. 81
found her very pale and distressed.
Her daughter was in the room, too
an uncommonly fine girl she is, too;
she was looking red about the eyes
and her lips trembled as I spoke to her.
That didn't escape my notice. I began
to smell a rat. You know the feeling,
Mr.. Sherlock Holmes, when you come
upon the right scent-a kind of thrill
in your nerves. Have you heard of
the mysterious death of your boarder,
Mr.. Enoch ]. Drebber, of Cleveland?'
/ asked.
THE mother nodded. She didn't
seem able to get out a word. The
! daughter burst into tears. felt more
than ever that these people knew
something of the matter.
cat what o'clock did Mr.. Drebber
| leave your house for the tramp /
asked.
LAT eight o'clock she said, gulping
in her throat to keep down her agita-
ton. His secretary, Mr.. Stangerson,
said that there were two trains-one
at 9:15 and one at II. He was to
catch the first
land vas that the last which you
saw of him?'
"A terrible change came over the
woman's face as | asked the question.
Her features turned perfectly livid. II
was some seconds before she could get
out the single word Yes and when 1t
did come out it was in a husky, unnat-
ural tone.
There was silence for a moment,
and then the daughter spoke in a calm,
clear voice:
"'No good can ever come Of false.
hood, mother she said. Let US be
frank with this gentleman. We did see
Mr.. Drebber again.
"'God forgive your cried Mime. Char.
pentier, throwing up her hands and
sinking back in her chair. You have
murdered your brother
ARTHUR would rather that we
spoke the truth the girl answered
firmly.
"'You had best tell me all about It
now,' l said. 'Half-confidences are
worse than none Besides, you do not
know how much we know of it,
ION your head be it, Alice!' cried
her mother; and then, turning to me:
I viii tell you all, sir. Do not imagine
that my agitation on behalf of my Sol
arises from any fear lest he shoult
have had a hand In this terrible affair
He Is utterly innocent OF it. My dreat
is, however, that in your eyes and il
the eyes of others he may appear TO be
compromised. That, however, is sure
ly impossible. His high character, his
profession, his antecedcnts would all
forbid it,
"'Your best way is to make a clean
breast of the facts answered. De
pend upon it, if your son is innocent
he will be none the worse
! perhaps, Alice, you had better
leave us together she said. and hel
daughter withdrew. Now, SIR she
continued, I had no intention of tell
ing You all this, but since my poor
daughter has disclosed it l have nc
alternative. Having once decided tc
speak, l viii tell you all. without omit
ting any particular
at is your wisest course said /.
"'Mr. Drebber has been with u!
nearly three weeks. He and his sec
rotary, Mr.. Stangerson, had been trav
: cling IN the continent / noticed {
Copenhagen" label upon each of thei
\ tr,nnlrr -EAarLknA 49, 49, Ii L.