Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1904-07-09
CHAPTER III.
IN QUEST OF A SOLUTION.

returned. He was bright, eager and
in excellent spirits-a mood which in
his case alternated with fits of the
| blacklist depression.
There is no great my stery in this
| matter" he said, taking the cup of tea
which had poured out for him. The
facts appear to admit of only one ex-
| PLANTATION"
What! you have solved it alreadyP"
| We'll, that will be too much to say.
1 have discovered suggestive fact,
that is all. 1t is, however, very sur-
| gestive. The details are still to be add
ed. 1 have just found, on consulting
the back files of the Times, that Mai
Sholto, of Upper Norwood, late of the
Thirty-fourth Bombay infantry, died
upon the 2sth of April, 1ss2"
II may be very obtuse, Holmes, but
fail to see what this suggests"
No? You surprise me. Look at it
In this way, then. Capt. Morstan dis
appears. The only person in London
whom he could have visited is Mai
| Sholto. Maj Sholto denies having
heard that he was in London Four
years later Sholto dies. Within week
, OF his death Capt. Morstan's daughter
receives valuable present, which is re-
| peated from year to year, and now Gull
inmates in letter which describes her
| as wronged woman. What wrong
can 1t refer 10 except this deprivation
of her father? And why should the
presents begin Immediately after
Sholto's death, unless it is that Sholto's
heir knows something of the mystery,
| and desires to make compensation?
Have you any alternative theory which
! will meet the facts?"
but what strange compensation
And how strangely made! WHY. too
should he write a letter now, rather
than six years agoP Again, the letter
speaks of giving her Justice. What
Justice can she have? 1t is too much
to suppose that her father is still alive.
Ihere is 10 other injustice in her case
that you know Of"
There are difficulties: there are
certainly difficulties" said Sherlock
TONNES, pensively But our expedi-
tlon OF tonight will solve them oil.
An, here is n four-wheeler, and Miss
Morstan is inside. Are YOU all readyp
Then we had better go down, for it is
little past the hour"
picked up my hat and my heaviest
stick, but observed that Holmes took
his revolver from his drawer I'D
slipped it into his pocket 1t was clear
that he thought that our nights work
might be a serious one.
Miss Morstan was mufllcd in n dark
cloak, and her sensitive face was com
posed, but pale She must have been
more than woman If she did not feel
some uneasincss at the strange enter
prise upon which we were embarllinp.
yet her self-control was perfect. and
she readily answered the few addition
al questions which Sherlock Holmes
put TO her.
Maj Sholto was a very particular
friend Of papa's," she said. "IIis let
tiers were full Of illusions to the major.
lie and papa were in command of the
troops at the Andaman islands, so they
were thrSwn n great deal together. Bv
the way, curious paper was found in
papa's desk which no one could under
stand. don't suppose that II is of the
slightest Importance, but thought
you might care To see il. so | brought
il with me, II is here"
Holmes unfolded the paper careful
~ and smoothed it out upon his knee
He then very methodically examined
it all over with his double lens.
ut is paper of native Indian manu-
facture," he remarked. ''It has at some
time been pinned to board The dla-
gram upon 1T appears TO be a plan of
part of n large building with numer-
Gus halls, corridors, and passages. At
one point is a small cross done in red
ink, and above it is 1877 from left in
faded pencil-writing. In the left hand
corner is n curious hieroplvphic like
four crosses in line with their arms
touching. Beside it is written. in very
rough and coarse characters, The SIGN
of the four,-Jonathan Small, Mahomet
Singh, Abdullah Khan, Dost Al<bar.'
No, / confess that I do not see how
this bears upon the matter. Yet it is
evidently a document of Importance.
IL has been kept carefully in a pocket
book; for the one side is as clean as the
other"
1T was in his pocketbook that we
found it,
Preserve it carefully, then, Miss
Morstan, for it may prove to be Of use
to us. begin to suspect that this mat
ter may turn out to be much deeper
and more subtle than I at first sup
posed. | must reconsider my ideas"
lie leaned back in the cab. and I could
see by his drawn brow and his vacant
eye that he was thinking intentlv.
Miss Morstan and chatted in an un-
dertone about our present expedition
and its possible outcome, bat our com
panion maintained his impenetrable re-
serve until the end of our journey.
1t was September evening. and not
yet seven o'clock, but the day had been
dreary one, and a dense drizzlinr fog
lay low upon the great city Mud
colored clouds dropped sadly over the
muddy streets. Down the Strand the
lamps We're but misty splotcbes of diff