The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-02-12


brain. He was the best shot In India
and / expect that there are few better
in London. Have you heard the
Iname?"
mo, / have not
"Well. well such is fame. But,
then. if i remember right. you had
mot heard the name of Professor James
Moriarty who had one of the great
brains of the century. Just give me
down my index of biographies from
the shelf"
He turned over the pages lazily,
leaning back III his chair and blowing
great clouds from mis- cigar ..
My collection of Ms is a fine one
said he. 'Moriarty himself is enough
| 10 make any letter illustrious, and here
is Moran the poisoner, and MerrIdeW
| OF abominablc memory. and Mathews
who knocked out my left canine III
1.-The waiting room al Charing cross, ana
finally, here is our friend of tonight
He handed oyer the book, and /
read: Moran. Sebastian, Colonel.
Unemployed. Formerly First Benga-
lore Pioneers. Born London, lS40.
Son of Sir Augustus Moran, {: b.,
| once British Minister TO Persia. Edu~
Gated Elton and Oxford. Served III
| Jowaki Campaign. Afghan Campaign
| Charasaib (despatches), Sherpnf' ana
Cabnl. Arthur Of Heavy Gam" OF the
I
Months in the jungle IS8D. Ad-
dress: Conduit street Clubs: The
Anglo-Indian. the 'rankevillc, the
| Bagatcllc Card Club"
! On the margin was written, IN
! Holmes precise heand: The second
most dangerous man in London
This Is astonishing" said ], as
/ handed back the volume. the
nan's career is that Of an honorable
| soldier
ut Is true" Holmes answered.
up TO certain point he did Wen.
He was always a man Of iron nerve
and the story is still told in In ia now
he crawled down drain after a
wounded man eating tiger. here are
some trees, watson. which grow to Il
! certain height, and then Suddenly de-
vcIop some unsightly eccer':ricity. You
will sec it often In humans. ] have n
theory that the individual represents
lin his development TIL" whole
procession Of his ancestors, and that
such n sudden turn to good or evil
stands for some strong influence which
came into the line of his pedigree
The person becomes as it We're, the
epitomc Of the history OF his own
family
at is surely rather fanciful."
| well / don't insist upon 1t. what
ever the cause, Colonel Moran began
to go wrong. Without any open scan
dal. he still made India too hot to hold
/ him. He retired, came TO London,
and again acquired en- evil name. 1t
| was at this time that he was sought
out by Professor Noriarty, 20 whom for
q time he was chief of the stan.
| Moriarty supplied him literally with
money, and used him only in one or
two very high class jobs, which no
ordinary criminal could have under
1 4 L., ftn nn-
ton of the death of Mrs. Stewart, of
Lauder. In 1887. Not? Well, / am
sure Moran was at the bottom Of it,
but nothing could be proved. SO clev-
erlv was the Colonel concealed that,
even when the Moriarty gang was
| broken up, we could not incriminate
him. You remember at that date.
when called upon you in your rooms,
nov | put up the shutters for fear of
air guns? No doubt you thought me
| fanciful. L knew exactly what ! was
! doing, for | knew of tho existence of
this remarkable gun, and ! knew also
| that ore of the best shots in the world
would be behind it,. When We were in
Switzerland he followed us with Nor
iarty, and it was undoubtedly he who
gave me that evil five minutes Oh the
Reichcnbach ledge.
You may think that l read the
papers with some attention during
| my sojourn in France, on the look
out for any chance of laying him by
the heels. So long as he was free i'll
London. my life would really not
have been worth living. Night and
day the SHADOW would have been over
me, and sooner or later his chance
must have come. What could l do =?
] could not shoot him at sight, or |
should myself have been in the dock.
There was no use 2ppealing to a mag
iStratC. They cannot interfere on thG
strength of what would appear to
them to be d Wild suspicion. So
could do nothing. But / watched the
later ! should get him. Then came
the death of this Ronald Adair. My
chance had come at last. Knowing
what l did, was il not certain that
Colonel Moran had done it? He had
played cards with the lad. he had fol-
| lowed him home from the club, he
had shot him through the open Win
! dow. There was not q doubt of il.
The bullets alone are enough TO put
| his head i'll Z moose. ] came over al
once. ! was seen by the sentinel. who
would, | knew. direct the COloneFs
attention TO my presence. lie could
not fail 90 connect my sudden return
with his crime, and TO be terribly
alarmed. ! was sure that he would
make an attempt TO get me out Of
the way al CncC, and would bring
round his mur1crouE YEA pon for that
purpose ] left him an excellent mark
in the window, aud having warned
the police that they might be needed
by the way. Watson. you spotted then
presence in that doorway with uner-
ring accuracy--I took up what seem
> cd to me to be Il judiCious post for
| observation. never dreaming that he
!; would choose the same spot for at
tack. Now, my dear Watson. does
Il anything remain for me to explain?
Yes said |. You have not made
il clear what was Colonel Moran
motive IN numbering the Honorable
Ronald Adair''
".th! my dear Watson. there we
como into those realms of conjecture,
where the most logical mind may be
At fault. Each may form his own
hypothesis upon the present evidence
and yours is as likely TO be correct
; as mite
"You have formed one. then?'
81 think that it iH not difficult TO
explain the facts. II came out in
! l -