The Savannah morning news., 1902-08-10

SNOW my IeeungS ana suspicious or the
moment more accurately than my
memory, clear as il Is upon these
tragic events, can possibly do.
Baskerville Hall, Oct. 13.-My Dear
Holmes: Ny previous letters and tele-
grams have kept you pretty well up
to-date as to all that has occurred in
this most God-forsaken corner of the
world. The longer one stays here the
more does the spirit of the moor sink
into ones soul, its vastness, and also
its grim charm. When you are once
out upon its bosom you have left all
traces of modern England behind you.
but on the other hand you are con-
scious everywhere of the homes and
the work of the prehistoric people. On
all sides of you as you walk are the
houses of these forgotten folk, with
their graves and the huge mono
liths which are supposed to
have marked their temples. AS
you look at their grey stone huts
against the SCARED hillsides you leave
your own age behind you, and if you
were to see a skin-clad, hairy man
crawl out from the low door, fitting
flint-tipped arrow on to the string of
his bow, you would feel that his pres
ence there was more natural than your
own. The strange thing is that they
should have lived SO thickly on what
must always have been most unfruit-
full soil. l am no antiquarian, but L
could imagine that they were some un-
warlike and harried race who were
forced to accept that which none 9TH
er would occupy.
All this, however, is foreign to the
nilsson on which you sent me, and will
probably be very uninteresting to your
severely spractical mind. 1 can still
afeav- 1Afn IND
as to whether the sun moved round
the earth or the earth round the sun.
Let me, therefore, return to the facts
concerning Sir Henry Baskerville.
If you have not had any report
within the last few days it is because
up to to-day there was nothing of i'm
portance to relate. Then a very sur
prising circumstance occurred, which
l shall tell you in due course. But,
first of all, 1 must keep you in touch
with some of the other factors in the
situation.
One of these, concerning which
have said little, is the escaped convict
upon the moor. There is strong rea-
son now to believe that be has got
right away, which is a considerable
relief to the lonely householders of the
district. A fortnight has passed since
his fight, during which he has not been
seen and nothing has been heard of
him. 1t is surely inconceivable that
he could have held out upon the moor
during all that time. OF course, so
far as his concealment goes there is
no difficulty at all. Any one of these
stone huts would give him a hiding
place. But there is nothing to eat
unless he were to catch and slaughter
one of the moor sheep. We think,
therefore, that he has gone, and the
outlying farmers sleep the better in
consequence.
We are four able-bodied men in this
household, so that we could take good
care of ourselves, but l confess that
have had uneasy moments when l have
thought of the Stapletons. They live
miles from any help. There are one
maid, an old man-servant, the sister,
and the brother, the latter not g. very
strong man. They would be helpless
in the hands of desperate fellow like
this Noting Hill criminal, if he could
once effect an entrance. Both Sir Hen
ry and l were concerned at their sit
uation, and it was suggested that Per-
kins the groom should go over to
sleep there, but Stapleton would not
hear of it.
The fact is that our friend the bar
onet begins to display a considerable
III III OuT lair Il6lSnDOT. 1t Is not
to be wondered at, for time hangs
heavily in this lonely spot to an active
man like him, and she is very fas-
cinating and beautiful woman. There is
something tropical and exotic about her
which forms a singular contrast to her
cool and Unconditional brother. Yet he
also gives the idea of hidden fires. He
has certainly very marked influence
over her, for l have seen her contin-
Ually glance at him as she talked as if
seeking appreciation for what she said.
l trust that he Is kind TO her. There
is a dry glitter in his eyes, and a firm
set of his thin lips, which goes with a
positive and possibly harsh nature.
You would find him an interesting
study.
He came over to call upon Basker-
vile on that first day, and the very
next morning he took us both to show
us the spot where the legend of the
wicked Hugo is supposed to have had
Its origin. 1t was an excursion of some
miles across the moor to place which
is so dismal that it might have sug-
gested the story. We found a short
valley between rugged tors which led
to an open, grassy space f1ecked over
with the white cotton grass. In the
middle of it rose two great stones
until they looked like the huge cor
roding fangs of some monstrous beast.
In every way 1t correspondent with the
scene of the old tragedy. Sir Henry
was much interested, and asked Sta
pleton more than once whether he did
really believe in the possibility of the
interference of the supernatural in the
affairs of men, He spoke lightly. but II
was evident that he was very much in
earnest. Stapleton was guarded in his
replies, but it was easy to see that he
said less than he might, and that he
would not express his whole opinion
out of consideration for the feelings of
the baronet. He told us of similar
cases, where families had suffered
from some evil influence, and he left
us with the impression that he shared
the popular view upon the matter.
On our way back we stayed for lunch
at Merripit House, and it was there
that Sir Henry made the acquaintance
of Miss Stapleton. From the first mo.
ment that he saw her he appeared to
be strongly attracted by her, and I am
much mistaken If the feeling was NOT
mutual. He referred to her again and
again on our walk home, and since
then hardly day has passed that we
have not seen something Of the broth
er and sister. They dine here Tonight
and there is some talk of our going To
them next week. One would imagine
that such match would be very well
come to Stapleton, and yet | have
more than once caught a look of the
strongest Interpretation in his face
when Sir Henry has been paying soI,1o
attention to his sister. He is much at
tached to her. no doubt, and would
lead a lonely life without har