The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-02-07

Holmes and myself to spend some weeks in one of our great University 7; towns, and it was during this time that the small but instructive adven- 1 ture which am about to relate befell i us. It will be obvious that any de- ! tails which would help the reader to : exactly identify the college or the criminal would be inJudicious and 4 Offensive. So painful a scandal may { well be allowed to die out. With due discretion the incident itself may, \ However, be described, since it serves | to illustrate some of those qualities < for which my friend was remarkable. VI will endeavor, in my statement, to ] avoid such terms as would serve to II limit the events to any particular *place, or give clue as to the people f Concerned.
 l We were residing at the time in | Furnished lodgings close to a library "A where Sherlock Holmes was pursuing \ some 1aborious researches in early t English charters-researches which t led to results so striking that they \ may be the subject of one of my fu- lure narratives. Here it was that one evening we received a visit from an acquaintance, Mr. Hilton Soames. tutor and lecturer at the College of q St. Luke's. MT. Soames was a tall, spare man, of a nervous and excita- b1e temperament I had always known him to be restless in his man.. hner, but on this particular occasion bhe was in such state of uncon- ftrolIable agitation that it was clear Something very unusual had occur I red.
 |. q trust, MT. Holmes, that you can : spare me a few hours of your val 4 uable time We have had a very painful incident at St Luke's, and really, but for the happy chance of your being in town, l should have t been at loss what to do." J q am very busy just now; and desire no distractions" my friend an X swered. "I should much prefer that xrn, call 1e6 n I# NO, no my dear sir; such a course It is utterly impossible. When once the X law is evoked it cannot be stayed cases where, for the credit of the col | { 1ege, it is most essential to avoid II e scandal Your discretion is as well F.; known as your powers, and you are the one man in the world who can help me. I beg you, MT. Holmes, to do what you can.'
 My friends temper had not inn proved since he had been deprived VA of the congenial surroundings of Ba- ker Street. Without his scrap Y V books, his chemicals, and his home ly untidiness, he was an uncomforta- ] in ungracious acquiescence, while our t VisleUf in hurried words and with N much excitable gesticulation poured t forth his story.
 Holmes, that tomorrow is the first day of the examination for the For ~ tescue Scholarship. I am one of the I examiners. My subject is Greek, and I N the first of the papers consists of a < IE-large passage of Greek translation \ which the candidate has not seen | If This passage is printed on the exam \ E:fnation paper, and It would naturally E be an immense advantage if the can Ef didate could prepare it in advance For this reason, great care IS taker NJ Ito keep the paper secret.
 LlEf "Today, about three o'clock, the | F nnr nf Y skprinters The exercise consists ot fkdnaIf a chapter of Thucydides. I had
 kto read it over carefully, as the tex | Hk1nust be absolutely correct. At four | Efhirty my task was not yet complet < ked. had, however, promised to take kfea in a friends rooms, so l left th' F Iproof upon my desk. was aosen t6ather more than an hour.
 FikE aYcu are aware, MT. Holmes, tha Eour college doors are double.-a gree1
 kHhaSze one within and a heavy oak on F EkVvfthout AS approached my oute kdoor, was amazed to see a key Il kdt For an instant I imagined tha | K ID had left my own there, but on feel | Y fNnp dn my pocket I found that 1t wa I kaIi right " The only duplicate whicl ! | Erexisted, so far as I knew. was tha | \ (which belonged to my servant San San | |IEpister-a man who has looked ate | | tmy room for ten years, ana whos | thonesty is absolutely above suspicion ET found that the key was indeed his l | Sthat he had entered my room to kno1 {lHsif I wanted tea, and that ne na ! livery carelessly left the; Key in th lE door when he came pdtt Ills Ylsl MI to my room must have been 1yithI i Ii a very few minutes of my leaving l I NV His forgetfulness about the key woul have mattered. little upon any any ;t othe n VI nroduced the most deplorable conse
 quences. l.
 ",The moment I looked at my te UE. ble I was aware that some one ha
 o~a6 nJlc l
 Hi proof was in three long slips. l ha tieft them all together. Now, 1oun IEtthat one of them was lylng on tn HEfoor. one was on the side table nea ylfl1be window, and the third was whel MI had left it."
 "The first page % on the +ho hoor' +biI iI f.i where you left it. said he
 aExactly, Mr.. Holmes. You anna;
 me. How could you possibly kno
 that?" .s
 l4iing statement ,.
 t sFor an instant I imagined tn
 Bannister had taken the unpardon
 kf hJe liberty of examining my paper
 tkTIe denied it, however, with the u
 lt most earnestness, and I am convln
 M ed that he was speaking the trut
 VIZ The alternative was that some o1 o1 GI floor. had known that was out, al
 Nj had entered to look at the papers
 iN large sum of money is at stake,
 iI tbe scholarship is a very valuaE
 one and an interruptions man mig
 very well run a risk in order to ga
 tan advantage over his fellows
 ssBannister was very much upset
 +ho incident He had nearly faint
 when we found that the papers h
 wn1oubtedly been tempered with
 wenye him little brandy and left hi
 IcolIapsed in a chair, while I made
 I~nnst careful examination of t
 room. I soon saw that the intrud
 k had left other traces of his presen
 f besides the rumpled papers. On t
 Efab,e in the window were sevel
 " shreds from a pencil which had be Al sharpened A broken tip of le ANlE{was lying there also. iGyioen
 %3the rascal had copied tic paper
 M q great hurry, had broken his pen
 and had been compelled to put fire
 point to it."