Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1901-10-18


an Exchanged Umbrella.
Sherlock Holmes, Jr., was seated at
his desk with his back toward me as l
entered.
Good morning." he said, writing
away without turning his head, that's
fine umbrella you're carrying.
A queer feeling came over me as ne
spoke. Surely, 1 thought, this man
must be in league with unseen powers.
I carried the umbrella under my arm,
and even If had struck the floor with
it, how could he have known that It
was not an old, cheap one-or a cane!
Sherlock" said, you cause my
hair to rise. suppose you will tell
me you know by deduction that carry
fine umbrella, but that will not salts
fly me. There is nothing to deduce
from. cannot account for it only on
the theory that you have second slght
or eyes in the back of your head"
my dear Whatson," he said, smiling
and swinging around in his chair, you
are unusually dull this morning. Don't
you see that l have the mirror over
there hung so that no one can enter the
door without passing within the range
of my vision, even though my back IS
turned? l arranged that all myself.
Who but the greatest Of all deducers
| would ever have thought of it? All,
let me examine your umbrella. Yes, it
| is as 1 supposed. The man who ex-
changed with you is blind. Poor fei-
low! He hasn't been that way long,
though. Are you going to return it to
him?'
Painting with excitement over the
mans wonderful powers, 1 dropped
into chair and stared helplessly at
him for a moment. When l was able
to speak again l asked:
"How do you know he is blind and
that he has been so but short timer
Pardon me, my dear Whatson, if I
decline to answer those questions just
now. You haven't said whether you
intend to return the umbrella or not. "
How am 1 to return it," l asked,
when 1 don't know whose 1t is"
''That should be easy" he said, reach
ing for it, and unbuttoning the strap
that held it neatly folded. Then he
half opened it, exclaiming: GAS guess
ed. Here is little silver plate with his
name on it,
was dumfounded at the mans clev-
erness.
Holmes" said, there is only one
| tn fIa y1,o hoy 70
thought Of doing what you have done.
Oh, If could only deduce as you can.
But his name alone is there, you see.
1t seems to me that we are as far away
from him as ever. How are we to find
him among the hundreds of thousands
of men in this great city?"
"Wait moment" he replied, as he
put on his hat and left the room. In a
few minutes he returned, saying:
He lives at 7643 Paradise road; tele-
phone, West 6309."
had risen as he entered, but l stag.
gered back and fell into chair again.
overcome.
.How do you know all this?'
gasped.
There is city directory in the drug
store across the street, he calmly re
piled. "Do you wish to call him up and
tell him that you have his umbrella
| You can at the same time ask about
his blindness"
Almost overcome by the mans un
canny air I permitted him to conduct
me across the hall into an Office where
there was a telephone that he was per
mitted to use. 1t was as he had said
The man who owned the umbrella ha6
suddenly gone blind little while be
fore, but the doctors were going te
sight.
When we had returned to the great
amateur detectives room said, almost
shuddering:
Now, tell me how you knew he was
blind and that he had lost his sigh
only recently"
He smiled half wearily, half in pity
as he replied:
"Ah, my dear Whatson, I'm afrai(
you'll never become much of deducer
If he could have seen he would never
have taken the old umbrella you carry
mistaking it for his own. And mer
who are long blind develop delicate
sense of feeling that makes it possible
for them to know their own by mere
touch. So it was plain that he wai
blind and that he had not been so Ions
enough to recognize things by feeling
them. Don't bother me any more thi
morning, please. 1 am working on
very abstruse problem. An Ohio maj
resigned public Office the other day
l have been commissioned to find ou
what's the matter with him."-Chicag,
Record-Herald.
SAVED BY HIS WIT.