The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1906-06-22
That's no business of NINE" said

his own that brings 1t away from tn
doctor and on to the policeman
Holmes sat up again.
Burglary! This is more interesting
Let me hear the details"
Lestrade took out his official note
book and refreshed his memory from
its pages.
The first case reported was four day
ago." said he. ut was at the shop o
Morse Hudson. who has place for tn,
sale of pictures and statues in the Ken
nington Road. The assistant had lef
the front shop for an instant, when hi
heard a crash, and hurryng in hi
found a plaster bust of Napoleon, which
stood with several other works of arr
upon the counter. lying shivered into
| fragments. He rushed out into the road
but although several pasSersby de-
| clared they had noticed a man run GU,
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 Hooigan-
ism which occur from time to time, and
| 1t was reported to the constable on the
| beat as such. The plaster cast was
not worth more than a few shlllngs,
| and the whole affair appeared to be too
! childish for any particular investiga-
ton.
THE second case. however. was more
CURED only last night.
iii Remington Road, and within a
few hundred yards of Morse Hudson's
shop. there lives we'll known medical
practitioner. 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 Road. but he has a
branch surgery and dispcnsary at
I.nNpar Ryi VT
This DR.. Barnicot is an enthusiastic
admfrcr Of Napoleon, and his house is
full of books, pictures and relics of the
French emperor. Some little time ago
he purchased from Morse Hudson two
duplicate plaster casts of the famous
head of Napoleon by the French sculp-
tor, Devine. One Of these he placed in
Road. and the other OH the mantel-
piece of the surgery at Lower Brixton.,
Wen. when Dr. Barnicot came down
this morning he was aStonShed to find.
that his house had been burgled dur
ing the night, but that nothing had
been taken save the plaster head from
the hall. 1t had been carried out and
had been dashed savagely against the
garden wall, under which it's splintered
fragments were discovered"
Holmes rubbed his hands.
This is certainly very novel," said,
he.
Il thought 1T would please you. But
| have not got to the end yet. DR..
Barnicot was due at his surgery at
twelve O'Clock, and you can imagine
his amaZement when, on arriving there
he found that the window had been
opened in the night. and that the
b ,ken pieces of his second bust were
strewn all over the room. 1t had been
smashed to atoms where it stood In
neither case were there any signs which
could give us a clew as to the csiminal
or lunatic who has done the mischief.
Now. Mr.. Holmes, you have got the
facts"
They are singular, not to say
grotesque,' said Mr. Holmes. May I
ask whether the two busts smashed in
Dr. Rarnicot's rooms We're the exact
duplicates of the one which was de-
stroyed in Morse Hudson's shop?"
They We're taken from the same
mould"
theory that the man who breaks them
is Influenced by any general hatred of
Napoleon Considering how many hun
dreds of statues of the great emperor
must exist in London, it is too much to
suppose such Il coincidence as that a
promlscuous iconoclast should chance
to begin upon three specimens of the
same bust"
We'll, 1 thought as you do" said
Lestrade. ION the other hand, this
Morse Hudson is the purveyor Of busts
IN that part of London. and these three
were the only ones which had been in
his shop for years. So, although, as you
say. there are many hundreds of
statues in London, it is very probable
that these three We're the only ones
In that district. Therefore, local
fanatic would haUir wi
do YOU think, DR.. Watson?"
There are no limits to the possibili-
ties of monomania," 1 answered. There
is the condition which the modern
French psychologists have called the
idee fixe,' which may be trihing in
character. and accompanied by COM
plete sanity in every other way. A man
who had read deeply about Napoleon,
or who had possibly received some
hereditary family injury through the
great war, might conceivably form
such an idee fixe' and under it's in
huence be capable of any fantastic out
rage"
THAT won't do, my dear Watson"
said Holmes. shaking his head, "for no
amount of 'idee fixe' would enable your
interesting monomaniac to find out
where these busts We're situated"
We'll, how do you explain it?"
don't attempt to do so. I would
only observe that there is a certain
method In the gentleman's eccentric
proceedings. For Example, in DR..
Barnicots hall. where a sound might
arouse the family. the bust was taken
outside before being broken, whereas
IN the surgery where there was less
danger of an alarm. it was smashed
Where 1t stood. The affair seems alb
surdly trifling, and yet dare call moth
ing trivial when I reflect that some of
my most classic cases have had the
least promising commencement You
Will remember, Watson, how the dread
full business of the Abernetty family
was first brought to my notice by the
depth which the parsley had sunk into
the butter upon "a hot day. 1 can't af-
ford, therefore, to smile at your three
broken busts, Lestrade, and I shall be
Very much obliged to you if you will
let me hear of any fresh development
of so singular chain OF events"
The development for which my friend
had asked came in quicker and an
infinitely more tragic form than he
could have imagined. was still dress
Ing in my bedroom next morning. when.
there was tap ut the door and Holmes
entered, a telegram in his hand. He
read it aloud:
Come instantly, 1S1 Pitt street. Ken
Observation-Disclosures"
What is it., them" asked.
Don't know-may be anything But
II .SDect II is ftoa son,,al ne III 81 rx, ~