Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-06
BY ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE.

4 which | have faced in my long
professional career should have
come to me after my retirement and
be brought, as it were, 10 my very
door. 1t occurred after my withdrawal
to my little Sussex home, when l had
given myself up entirely to that sooth
ing life of nature for which l had so
often yearned during the long years
spent amid the gloom of London. At
this period of my life the good Wat
son had passed almost beyond my ken.
An occasional week end visit was the
most that | ever saw of him. Thus l
must act as my own chronicler. All,
had he but been with me, how much
he might have made of SO wonderful
happening and of my eventual tri-
umph against every difficulty AS it
is, however, | must needs tell my tale
in my own plain way, showing by my
words each step upon the difficult road
which lay before me as / searched for
the mystery of the Lions Name.
My villa is situated upon the
southern slope of the Downs, com
manding a great view of the Channel.
At this point the coast line is entirely
of chalk cliffs, which can only be de-
seconded by a single, long, tortuouS
path, which is steep and slippery. At
the bottom of the path lie a hundred
yards of pebbles and single, even
when the tide is at full. Here and
there, however. there are curves and
hollows. which make splendid swim
ming pools, filled afresh with each
flow This admirable beach extends
for some miles in each direction, save
only at one point where the little cove
and village of Fulworth break the line.
My house is lonely. |, my old house.
keeper and my bees have the estate all
to ourselves. Half a mile off, how
ever, is Harold Stackhurst's we'll
known establishment, the Gables,
quite a large place, which contains
some score of young fellows preparing
for various professions, with a staff
of several masters. Stackhurst him.
self was a well known rowing Blue in
his day and an excellent all-round
scholar. He and were always friendly
from the day / came to the coast, and
he was the one man who was on such
terms with me that we could drop in
on each other in the evenings without
an invitation.
TOWARD the end of July, 1907,
u there was a severe gale, the wind,
blowing up Channel, heaping the seas
to the base of the cliffs and leaving
lagoon at the turn of the tide. On the
morning of which / speak the wind
washed and fresh. 1t was impossible
to work upon so delightful day, and
] strolled out before breakfast to en-.
joy the exquisite air. / walked along
the cliff path which led to the steep
descent to the beach. AS l walked
heard a shout behind me, and there
was Harold Stackhurst waving his
hand in CHEEKY greeting.
What a morning, Mr.. Holmes! L
T CHI n1lf y
Going for a swim, see."
"At your old tricks again." he
laughed, patting his bullying pocket.
eyes. Mcpherson started early, and
expect / may find him there"
F'itZroy Mcpherson was the science
master fine outstanding young fef-
low. whose life had been crippled by
heart trouble following rheumatic
fever. He was n natural athlete,
however. and excelled in every game
which did not throw too great strain
upon him. Summer and Winter he
went for his swim, and, as l am
swimmer myself, / have often Joined
him.
At this moment we saw the man
himself His head showed above the
edge of the cliff where the path ends.
Then his whole figure appeared at
the top. staggering like a drunken
man. The next instant he threw up
his hands and, with a terrible cry,
fell upon his face. Stackhurst and l
rushed forward-it may have been so
yards-and turned him on his back.
He was obviously dying. Those
glazed sunken eyes and dreadful livid
cheeks could mean nothing else. One
giimmer of life came into his face
for an instant. and he uttered two or
three words with an eager air of
warning. They were slurred and in
distinct. but to my ear the last OF
them. which burst in shrek from
his lips. were the lions name" 1t
was utterly irrelevant and unintelli-
gible. and yet / could twist the sound
into no other sense. Then he half
raised himself from the ground, threw
his arms into the air and fell for
ward on his side. He was dead.
My companion was paralyzed by
the sudden horror of it, but /, as may
well he imagined. had every sense on
the alert. And | had need, for it
was speedily evident that we were
in the presence of an extraordinary
case. The man was dressed only in
his Burberry oVercoat, his trousers
and an unlaced pair of canvas shoes.
AS he fell over his Burberry, which
had been SIMPLY thrown around his
shoulders. slipped off, exposing his
trunk. We stared at it in amaZement
Ills back was covered with dark red
lines IS though he had been terribly
fiogSed by thin wire scourge. The
instrument with which this punish
ment had been inflicted was clearly
flexible. for the long angry WealS
curved round his shoulders and ribs.
There was blood dripping down his
chin. for he had bitten through his
lower lip in the paroxysm of his
agony. His drawn and distorted face
told how terrible that agony had
been.
I WAS kneeling and Stackhurst
standing by the body when a
shadow fell across us, and we found
that Ian Murdoch was by our side.
Murdoch was the mathematical coach
at the establishment. a tail. dark, thin
man, so taciturn and aloof that none
can be said to have been his friend.
He seemed to live in some high, abb
Stract region of surdS and comic sec
tions with little TO connect him with
ordinary life. He was looked upon
as an oddly by the students, and
would have been their butt but there
was. some strange outlandsh blood
in the man. which showed itself not
only in his coal.black eyes and
swarthy face. but also in occasional
outbreaks of temper. which could only
be described as ferocious. On one
occa sion. being plag ued by little dog
belonging to Mcpherson, he had
caught the creature up and hurled it
through the plate-gla window. an
action for which Stackhurst would
certainly have given him his dismis-
sal had he not been a very valuable
teacher Such was the strange, COM
pick man who now appeared beside
US. He seemed to be honestly
Smoked the gitvDf hnfnfp him
though the incident of the dog may
AI.,t 4l,c,.n .,-n- n, o...ont ..,.,,,