The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-02-26

suddenly sprang to his feet with an exclamation of surprise and dismay. His face was haggard with anxiety.
 We have let this affair go far eaough," said he. .Is there a train to North Walsham tonight?"
 I turned up the timetable. The last had just gone.
 sqrhen we shall breakfast early and take the very first in the morning. said Holmes. Our presence is most urgently needed. An here is our ex- pected cablegram. One moment Mrs. Hudson there may be an answer. No, that is quite as l expected. This message makes it even more essential that we should not lose an hour in letting Hilton Cubitt know how mat ters stand, for 1t is a singular and a dangerous web in which our simple Norfolk squire is entangled."
 So. indeed is proved and as I come to the dark conclusion of a story which had seemed tO me to be only childish and bizarre, I experienced once again the dismay and horror witt which 1 was filled. Would that l had some bright ending to communicate to my readers, but these are the chronicles of fact, and l must follow to their dark crisis the strange chain of events which for some days made Riding Thorpe Manor household word through the length and breadth of England.
 We had hardly alighted at North Walsham, and mentioned the name of our destination. when the station master hurried toward us. "I suppose that you are the detectives from Lon don?" said he.
 A look of annoyance passed over Holmes face.
 .What makes you think such a thing?''
 Because Inspector Martin from Norwich has just passed through. But maybe you are the surgeons She's not dead-or wasn't by last accounts. You may be in time to save her yet though it be for the gallows"
 We are going to Hiding Thorpe Manor" said he, "but we have heard nothing of what has passed there.
 Its a terrible business said the station master. '"Fhey are shot, both MT. Hilton Cubitt and his wife. She shot him and then herself-so the ser wants. He's dead and her life Is de- spaired of. Dear, dear. one of the oldest families in the county of Nor folk, and one of the most honored.'f E Without a word Holmes hurried to carriage. and during the long seven miles drive he never opened his mouth. Seldom have 1 seen him so utterly Respondent. He had been uneasy dur ing all our journey from town, and I had observed that he had turned over the morning papers with anxious at ' tention. but now this sudden realiza- ton of his worst fears left him in a blank melancholy. He leaned back I in his seat. lost in gloomy speculation. Yet there was much around to interest E us, for we were passing through as singular a countryside as any in Eng land, where a few scattered cottages represented the population of today, while on every hand enormous square lowered churches bristled up from the fiat, green landscape and told of the glory and prosperity of old East An glia. At last the violet rim of the ] German ocean appeared over the green edge of, the Norfolk coast, and the Z driver pointed with his whip to two z old brick and timber gables which pro- jected from grove of trees. That's 2 Riding Thorpe Manor said he.
 As we drove up to the porticoed front , door, I observed in front of it, beside 1.-the tennis lawn, the black tool house { and the pedestalled sun-dial with { which we had such strange associa- z tions. A dapper little man. with a < quick. alert manner and a waxed moustache. had just descended from