Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-01

I 64r 7 "oys ready %ds t. t,
listen with atten-
ton to the details of any case upon winch
the detective was engaged, and was able
occasionally, without any active interfer-
ence. to give some hint or suggestion drawn
from his own vast knowledge and expe-
Renee.
on this particular evening Lcstrade had
spoken Of the weather and the newspapers
Then he had fallen silent putting Thought
fully at his cigar. Holmes looked keenly
at him.
Anything remarkable on hand?' be
asked.
oh no, Mr.. Holmes-nothing very par
ticular."
Then tell me about it,
Lestrade laughed
We'll, Mr. Holmes, there is no use deny
ing that there is something on my mind.
And yet it is such an absurd business that
l hesitated to bother you about 1t. On the
other hand, although it is trivial, 1t is UNI
Goubtedly queer, and l know that you have
a taste for all that is out of the common.
But, in my opinion, it comes more in DR..
Watson's line than ours"
"Disease?" said l.
Madness anyhow And a queer mad
ness, too. You wouldn't think there was
any one living at this time of day VINO
had such a hatred of Napoleon the FIRST
that he would break any image OF MIN that
he could see"
Holmes sank back in his chair.
That's no business of mine said he.
Exactly. That's what said. But then
when the man commits burglary In order
To- break images which are not his own.
that brings 1t away from the doctor and on
TO the policeman
Holmes sat up again.
Burglary! That is more interesting. Let
me hear the details"
Lestrade took out his official notebook,
and refreshed his memory from its pages.
The first case reported was four days
ago" said he. 1T was at the shop or
Morse Hudson, who has a place for the
sale of pictures and statues in the Ken
ningtOn road. The assistant had left Inc
front shop for an instant, when he heard
a crash, and hurrying In he found a plaster
bust of Napoleon which stood with several
other works of art upon the counter, lying
shivered into fragments. He rushed out
into the road but. although several passers-
by declared that they had noticed a man
run out of the shop, he could neither see
any one nor could he find any means of
Identifying the rascal. 1t seemed to be one
of those senseleSs acts of HoOliganism
which occur from time to time, and IL
was reported to the constable on the beat
as such. The plaster cast was not worth
more than few shillings, and the whole
affair appeared to be too childish Tor any
particular investigation.
The second case, however, was more
serious, and also more singular. 1t oc-
Cured only last night.
In Remington road and within few
hundred yards of Morse Hudsons shop,
there lives a wen-known medical practi-
toner, named Dr. BarniCot. who has one
of the largest practices upon the south
side Of the Thames. His residence and
principal consulting room is at Remington
% "a
dispeusary at Lower BriXton road, two
miles away. This DR.. Barn!cot IS an en-
thusiastiC admirer of Napoleon, and his
house is full Of books, pictures and relies
of the French emperor. Some little time
ago he purchased from Morse Hudson two
duplicate plaster CasJs OF the famous head
OF Napoleon by the French sculptor Devine.
One Of these he placed in his hall in the
house at Remington road, and the other
on the mantelpiece Of the surgery at Lower
BriXtOn. Well, when DIR. Barnicot came
down this morning he was astonished TO
find that his house had been burgled during
the night, but that nothing had been taken
save the plaster head from the hall. il
had been carried out and had been dashed
savagely against the garden wall. under
which It's splintered fragments We're dis
covered"
Holmes rubbed his hands
This IS certainly very novel said he.
Il thought it would please you. But
have not got TO the end yet Dr. BarnlLot
you can imagine his amazement when, on
arriving there ne found that the window
had been opened In the night and that the
broken pieces Of his second bust were
strcwn all over the room. 1t had beer
smashed to atoms where It stood. II
neither case were there any signs which
could give us a clue as to the criminal oI
lunatic who had done the mischief Now
Mr.. Holmes, you have got the facts"
They are singular, not 10 say groteSque,
said Holmes. May I ask whether tn
two busts smashed in DR. Barnicots rooms
We're the exact duplicates Of the one whicl
was destroyed In Morse Hudson's shop?'
They were taken from the same mould.
Such a fact must tell against the the
DRY that the man who breaks them Is IN
tiueuCeu by any general hatred OF NapO
leon. Considering how many hundreds o
statues Of the great emperor must exis
In London, II Is too much to suppose sucl
a coincidence as that a promiscuous icono
clast should chance to begin upon tire
specimens of the same bust"
''Well. l thought as you DO" said Les
trade. "On the other hand this Mors
Hudson Is the purveyor of busts in tina
part of London, and these three We're th
only ones which had been in his shop 70
years. SO. although, as you say. there a.:
many hundreds OF statues in London, II i
very probable that these three We're tn
only ones in that district. Therefore
local fanatic would begin with them. VIVA
do you think, DR.. Watson?'
There are no limits to the posslbilitie
OF mOnOmdnia,' / answered. There is tn
condition which the modern French psy
biologists have called the 'idee hxe,' which
may be trifing in character and accom-
panied by complete sanity in every othe
way. man who had read deeply abou
Napoleon. or who had possibly received
some hereditary family injury through IN,
great war might conceivably form sucl
an idee fiXe and under its influence b,
capable of any fantastic outrage"
THAT won't do, my dear Watson" sal,
Holmes shaking his head "fpr M np,n11n
of idee fXe' would enable your interestin,
monomaniac to find out where these bust
were situated"
Wei how do you explain it?"
u don't attempt to do SO, would onl.
observe that there is a certain method Ii
the gentlemans eccentric proceedings. Fo
example, in DR.. Barnicot's hall, where 1
sound might arouse the family, the bus
was taken outside before being broken
whereas In the surgery. where there wa
less danger of an alarm, il was smashe
where 1t stood. The affair seems absurd
trifiing. and yet / dare call nothing trivia