The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1905-06-16
THE RETURN OF
SHERLOCK HOTTIES.
Continued from page e.
BY A. CONAN DOYLE.

ing away from the school. 1t may or
NAV not be connected with our in
curry, but we will follow it backward
before we go any farther"
We did so. and at the end of few
hundred yards lost the tracks as we
emerged from the boggy portion of the
moor. Following the patti backward,
we picked out another spot where a
spring trickled across it. Here. once
again. was the mark of the bicycle.
though nearly obliterated by the hoofs
of cows. After that there was no sign,
but the path ran right on into Ragged
Shaw, the wood which backed on to
the school. From this wood the cycle
must have emerged. Holmes sat down
on bowlder and rested his chin in his
hands. | had smoked two cigarettes
before he moved.
"Wel we'll" said he at last. at is
of course possible that a cunning man
might change the tire of his bicycle in
order to leave unfamiliar tracks. A
criminal who was capable of such
thought is a man whom l should be
proud to do business with. We will
leave this question undecided and bark
back to our morasS again. for we have
left Il good deaf uneXplored."
We continued our systematic survey
of the edge Of the sodden portion of the
moor, and soon our perseverance was
gloriouSly rewarded. Right across the
lower part of the bog lay miry path.
Holmes gave cry of delight as he APP
preached it. An impression like fine
bundle of telegraph wires ran down the
center of it. 1t was the Palmer tire.
Here is Herr Heidegger, sure
enough" cried Holmes exultantly. "My
| reasoning seems to have been pretty
sound. Watson"
81 congratulate you"
But we have long way still to go.
Kindly walk clear of the path Now let
us follow the trail l fear that it will
not lead very far
We found. however, as we advanced
that this portion of the moor is inter-
sected with soft patches, and. though
we frequently lost sight of the track,
we always succeeded in picking it up
once more.
do you observe" said Holmes, that
the rider is now undoubtedly forcing
! the pace? There can be no doubt of it,
Look at this impression, where you get
both tires clear. The one is as deep as
the other That can only mean that the
rider is throwing his weight on to the
handle bar, as man does when he is
sprinting. BY .JOve, he has had fallp'
There was a broad, irregular smudge
covering some yards of the track. Then
there were a few fOotmarks, and the
tire reappeared once more.
"a side Slip" l suggested.
Holmes held up crumpled branch
Of Towering gorse. To my horror
perceived that the yellow blossoms
were all dabbled with crimson. On the
path, too, and among the heather were
dark stains of clotted blood.
"Badw said Holmes. Bad! Stand
clear, Watson! Not an unnecessary
footstep! What do l read here? He
fell wounded-he stood up-he remount-
other track. Cattle on this side path
He was surely not gored by bull?
Impossiblel But / see no traces of
any one else. We must push on, Wat
son. Surely, with stains as well as the
track to guide, he cannot escape us
now"
Our search was not very long one.
The tracks of the tire began to curve
= Enthusiastically upon the wet and shining
path. Suddenly, as l looked ahead,
& the CLEAN of metal caught my eye from
a amid the thick gorse bushes. Out Of
them we dragged bicycle, Palmer
a tired, one pedal bent and the whole
s. front of it horribly smeared and slob-
bered with blood. On the other side
of the bushes shoe was projecting.
We ran round and there lay the I'M
fortunate rider. He was tall man,
\ full bearded, with spectacles, one glass
of which had been knocked out. The
cause of his death was a frightful
blow upon the head, which had crush
ed in part of his skull. That he could
have gone on after receiving such an
injury said much for the vitality and
courage of the man. He wore shoes,
but no socks, and his open coat dis
closed a nightshirt beneath it. 1t was
undoubtedly the German master.
Holmes turned the body over rever-
emily and examined it with great at
tention. He then sat in deep thought
for a time,, and l could see by his ruff
fled brow that this grim discovery had
not, in his opinion, advanced us much
in our inquiry
1T is a little difficult to know what
to do, Watson" said he at last MY
own inclinations are to push this in
quiry ON, for we have already lost so
much time that we cannot afford to
we are bound to inform the police Of
the discovery and to see that this poor
Fellows body is looked after"
Il could take a note back"
But l need your company and as
sistance. Wait bit! There is fell
ow cutting peat up yonder. Bring him
over here, and he will guide the po-
ice"
| brought the peasant across, and
Holmes dispatched the frightened man
with note to DIR. Huxtable.
Now, Watson" said he, 1--WE have
picked up two clews this morning. One
IS the bicycle with the Palmer tire,
and we see what that has led to. The
pther is the bicycle with the patched
Dunlop. Before we start to investi-