The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-01-20

cited. That is shown by the Increased |
length of his strides. He was talking |
all the while, and working himself up,
no doubt, into fury. Then the
tragedy occurred I've told you all l
know myself, now, for the rest is mere
surmise and conjecture. We have
good working basis, however, ON which |
TO start. We must hurry up, tor
want to go to Halle's concert, to hear
Norman Neruda, this afternoon
This conversation had occurred while |
our cab had been threading its way
through long succession of dingy
streets and dreary by-ways, In the
dingiest and dreariest of them our
driver suddenly came to II stand.
That's Audley court in there" he
said, pointing to IL narrow slit in the
line of dcad-colored brick. you'll
find me here when you come back"
Audley court was not an attractive
locality. The narrow passage led us
into quadrangle paved with flags and
lined by sordid dwellings. We picked
our way among groups of dirty chill
dren and through lines of discolored
linen until we. came to No. 4G, the
door OF which was decorated with a
small slip of brass, on which the name
Rance was engraved. On inquiry we
found that the constable was III bed, d.
and we were shown into Il little front
parlOr, to await his coming.
lie appeared presently, looking lit
tie irritable at being disturbed III his
slumbers II made my report ut the
office, he said.
holmes took half-sovereign from
his pocket, and played withitpensiyely,
"We thought that We should like to
hearit all from your own lips" D." he said.
II shall be most happy to tell You
anything | can the constable an
swered, with his eyes upon the little
golden disk.
Just let us hear it all in your own
way, as it occurred"
Rance sat down on the horse-hair
sofa and knitted his brows, as though
determined not to omit anything in his
narrative,
IN tell it We from the beginning"
he said MY time is from ten at night
to six in the morning. AT eleven there
was u fight at the White Hart; but, bar
that, all was quiet enough on the beat,
At one o'clock it began to rain, and |
met Harry Murcher-him who has the
Holland Grove beat--and we stood to-
/ gether at the corner of Henrietta
street a-tall;in'. Presently - maybe
about two, or little after--I thought
| | would take u look round, and see
that all was right down the BriX-
ton road. 1t was precious dirty and
/ lonely. Not u soul did meet all the
way down, though a cab or two went
| past me. L was a-strollin' down,
/ thinlsin' between ourselves how un-
common handy four of gin hot would
be, when suddenly CLINT Of light
caught my eye in the window of that
same house. Now, | knew that them
two houses in Lauriston gardens was
empty on account of him that owns
them, who won't have the drains seed
to, though the very last tenant what
lived in one of them died o typhoid
fever. | was knocked all in u heap,
therefore, at seeing light in the win.
dow, and suspected as something was
wrong When got to the door"
You stopped, and then walked back
to the garden gate" my companion in
terruptcd. What did you do that for?'
Rance gave violent jump, and
stared at Sherlock Holmes with the ut
most amazemcnt upon his features.
"Why, that's true, sir" he said
Though how you came to know it
Heaven only knows! Ye see, when
got up to the door, it was so still ant
so lonesome that thought I'd be none
the worse for some one with mc.
amt afeared Of anything on this side
of the grave; but thought that maybe
it was him that died o the typhoid In
specting the drains what killed him
The thought gave me kind o turn
and | walked back to the gate to see i
| could see Murcher's lantern, but ther,
wasn't no sign Of him nor Of anyon,
else"
There was no one in the street,"
"Not a liyin soul, sir, nor asmuch n
q dog. Then pulled myself togethe
and went back and pushed the doc
open. All was quiet inside, SO wen
into the room where the light wa
a-burnin'. There was candle fliclieriu
on the mantle-picce-a red wax one
and by its light I saw
"Yes, know all that you saw. Nor
walked round the room several times
and You knelt down by the body, an
then you walked through and tried th
kitchen door, and then"
John Rance sprang to his feet with
! frightened face and suspicion in hi
eyes. "Where was you hid to see al
| that?" he cried. "It seems to me tina
| you knows deal more than 20
5 should
l Holmes laughed and threw his car
p across the table to the constable
} Don't get arrestlng me for the mul
5 der" he said. 81 am one OF the hound
7 and not the wolf; Mr.. Gregson or Nj
5 Eestrade will answer for that. Go on
! though. What did you do next?"
| Rance resumed his seat, without
=. however, losing his mystifed expre'
t sion. 81 went back to the gate an
4, sounded my whistle. That brough
Y Murcher and two more to the spot"
D WAS the street empty then?'
Y well, it was, as far as anybody tina
could be of any good goes
!; what do you mean?"
r The constables features brondene
. into grin. I've seen many drum
chap in my time he said, "but neve
= anyone 30 cryin drunk us that GOV,
y He was at the gate when came on