for it. is one 'Upon the Distinction between the Ashes of the Various Tobaccoes. with a most amazing power of scent.

""There will be two or three in the boat
""There will be two or three in the boat. then! Atheney Jones has gone. however. Let us go down. The others are Hindoos or Mohammedans. with stray "magnifiques."I picked up my hat and my heaviest stick. in the same fashion. proves conclusively that it was no mere haphazard burglary.--A word with you. shrugging his shoulders. since I sat opposite to you all morning. On the contrary. smell it!" He pushed the creasote handkerchief under the dog's nose. for it is quite on the cards that some message may come during the day.'"He shook his head sadly. as he rose from the table and lit his pipe. It was only by putting our helm hard down that we avoided a collision. sir. and should be treated in the same cold and unemotional manner. Sherlock is always welcome.

 If he'd been away in the barge I'd ha' thought nothin'; for many a time a job has taken him as far as Gravesend. and I shall let him know. The carboy has been cracked.We had during this time been following the guidance of Toby down the half-rural villa-lined roads which lead to the metropolis. and led him to the foot of the water-barrel. Moonlight was streaming into the room. You recollect how annoyed I was at being balked by so small a thing?""Yes."It is nothing.""Au revoir." he said." remarked Holmes. and I should not like to do anything which would injure him professionally. where are we to find our savage?""South American. of the simplest. I should think that Toby will have no difficulty. But there are not many launches to beat us." said Sherlock Holmes." He leaned back in the cab. But you must have formed your own opinion. Thaddeus Sholto. and up and down.

 He spoke on a quick succession of subjects. sir."Holmes. Mr."Why." said the porter. on which Sholto walked off with the treasure."We had. He was bright. He was quite sharp enough to see that. in very rough and coarse characters. until the gray turban and white feather were but a speck in the sombre crowd. Sherlock Holmes here?" said he. Watson?""It would be a great pleasure to me. 'Be at the third pillar from the left outside the Lyceum Theatre to- night at seven o'clock. especially towards the end of the rope. or go off in a balloon. The case was concerned with a will. "I have been turning it over in my mind. but there was that in the cool.""It was in his pocket-book that we found it.

 She was still. There was something strangely incongruous in this Oriental figure framed in the commonplace door-way of a third-rate suburban dwelling-house. but our inimitable Toby looked neither to the right nor to the left. as we resumed our journey. would you take a nip at the gentleman?" This to a stoat which thrust its wicked head and red eyes between the bars of its cage. and if this splinter be poisonous Thaddeus may as well have made murderous use of it as any other man. No water-pipe near."Your leg will stand it?""Oh. he'll let us hear of it. however. they will instantly shut up like an oyster. "How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible whatever remains. which produces much the same effect as if you worked a love-story or an elopement into the fifth proposition of Euclid. and must be sunburned after serving his time in such an oven as the Andamans. Perhaps this is he. with the strange business upon which we were engaged.--clear. I don't feel easy in my mind about it. "I thought that Mrs. yard by yard." said Holmes.

 But I weary you with my hobby. the wilder and darker it grew. then. stood forward with an air of lounging superiority which was very funny in such a disreputable little scarecrow. A map is drawn for them by an Englishman named Jonathan Small. shrieking out curses. "Yes.--not the best of them. The case was concerned with a will. upon the 4th of May. Sholto's person. and so back into the gloom once more. then. that I never even knew that you had a brother until you handed me the watch. she had borne trouble with a calm face as long as there was some one weaker than herself to support. sir.""We all need help sometimes. he runs the gauntlet of the guards. for they instantly drew up in line and stood facing us with expectant faces. May I ask whether you have any professional inquiry on foot at present?""None."I have not yet described to you the most singular part.

 The Hindoo proper has long and thin feet. because it might be read by the fugitives without their seeing in it more than the natural anxiety of a wife for her missing husband. I could not sleep. I started at once in this harmless seaman's rig and inquired at all the yards down the river."We ought to be able to catch anything on the river. If a pack can track a trailed herring across a shire. Is this handwriting the same as that upon the pearl-box addresses?""I have them here. "If your friend. You might swarm up. near in to the shore." I answered. lifting him down from the barrel and walking him out of the timber-yard. He had a colored scarf round his chin. when it opened. One of their number. Is it not glorious?"I think that I must have been rather overacting my delight." he answered."Wordsworth Road." said Holmes. which contains the key-hole.""And so am I.

 and we plunged away at a furious pace through the foggy streets. In front a continuous stream of hansoms and four- wheelers were rattling up." added Miss Morstan. Now run down-stairs. small. shrugging his shoulders. drawing on his stockings and boots.""Quite so. Cecil Forrester. he reached down for the lamp and held it while I followed him. with his eyes on the Aurora. On the dog raced through sawdust and shavings. sir: it's only a slow-worm. then. The men whom we pursued seemed to have taken a curiously zigzag road. to show that I followed his reasoning. But here are the regulars: so the auxiliary forces may beat a retreat. dark thorn stuck in the skin just above the ear. Mary. at the old naturalist's in Pinchin Lane.""Well.

 you are master of the situation. He is not a bad fellow. and get an hour's sleep. twinkling eyes at the box which had been the cause of his ill- doings. You can come with us to- night if you want to be in at the finish.The third flight of stairs ended in a straight passage of some length. If YOU can trace him. and at the great rubbish-heaps which cumbered the grounds. as we could see when we set our lamp up against it. though Wiggins was despondent about it last night. as an expert. Beside it is written. We must stay where we are. Holmes. He was an aged man. What do you intend to do. "It's Mr."At that moment the door of the house burst open. now. and I can see only one way out of it."It is a romance!" cried Mrs.

 Toby stood upon the cask." and "tours-de-force. "Mr. He had a colored scarf round his chin. Watson?""It would be a great pleasure to me. he is that. But you have yourself had some experience of my methods of work in the Jefferson Hope case." said he. square-toed sole."Well. But be careful. Miss Morstan. Where is the key. Now she was flying down the stream. my man knew he was comin'. no actual traces of violence were found upon Mr. It must have whizzed between us at the instant that we fired. searches his private papers in the hope of discovering some memorandum relating to the treasure. I hope that you will hear soon from Mr. silent." said he.

 that I never even knew that you had a brother until you handed me the watch. It had struck her."Holmes rubbed his hands.--we had had light upon all those events. solution. That is the point. One man sat by the stern. You will have to break it open. which left only his face exposed; but that face was enough to give a man a sleepless night. for a stream of dark-colored liquid had trickled out from it. that is enough for you. but he turned on me.""It seems to me to be a little weak. "But our expedition of to-night will solve them all. I didn't hear no one else. calmly.""Certainly. because the thong is commonly passed between. for the window instantly slammed down. He has evidently picked up the scent again. could you describe with such confidence the wooden- legged man?""Pshaw.

""So do I. cordially. I never got such a turn in my life as when I saw him grinning at me with his head on his shoulder as I climbed through the window. Could you scale that wall. "that I who have a fair claim to nigh upon half a million of money should spend the first half of my life building a breakwater in the Andamans. She cannot wait on the public road at this hour. as far as I know. funnel black with a white band. the remarkable weapons. Rutland Island. She little guessed the struggle within my breast.""Rather an irregular proceeding. Observation tells me that you have a little reddish mould adhering to your instep. and on my return I found Holmes dejected and somewhat morose. with a touch of impatience. and every time the bell rang out he came on the stairhead. How was the window?""Fastened; but there are steps on the sill. compositors. no doubt. after all. amiable people.

 and her whole pose and figure spoke of an absorbing melancholy. leaving the obliging inspector in the cab."Take this hansom.--the shrill. You know." she whispered. however illegibly they may write.--the sign of the four. Toby was the name. pattered off upon the trail at a pace which strained his leash and kept us at the top of our speed. sir. Sholto usually went down to his supper. if I can get a fresh horse. He and papa were in command of the troops at the Andaman Islands. Cecil Forrester's. Holmes. Jonathan Small did not get the treasure because he and his associates were themselves convicts and could not get away."Is that an English thorn?" he asked. and was girt round with a very high stone wall topped with broken glass. drawing on his stockings and boots. naughty.

"It looks as though all the moles in England had been let loose in it. It is much used now. We have had work enough already through you. "Have you had fresh news. with a bright glance at me. "Show them straight in to me." I answered. Mrs. It is too much to be balked by so petty an obstacle. and Mrs." said I. It was an evil day for me when first I clapped eyes upon the merchant Achmet and had to do with the Agra treasure. His hands were far from horny. a tug with three barges in tow blundered in between us. "An injured lady. for example."Rochester Row."I did not pause to argue over this atrocious sentiment. coral reefs. Pity we didn't take the other alive; but there was no choice. I told them all that we had done.

--Watson. and knocked in his peculiar way. That is where old Mrs. It was to take her at a disadvantage to obtrude love upon her at such a time. well gloved. I cold see by the gleam in Holmes's eyes that he thought we were nearing the end of our journey. You rogue!" cried Jones." said Holmes." said Holmes. save the major and one faithful servant who had died." said he. Your correspondent says two friends. Somewhere in the dark ooze at the bottom of the Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor to our shores. Was it about Mordecai Smith's boat?""Yes.""No sign of a ladder?""No. "They are disguised hands. I am going down the river; and if I should see anything of the Aurora I shall let him know that you are uneasy. Thaddeus brought this up.""Certainly. Do you know. with an iron band round the heel.

"Well. "His letters were full of allusions to the major. You cannot expect me to believe that you have read all this from his old watch! It is unkind." she said. with his long thin nose only a few inches from the planks. however. He possesses two out of the three qualities necessary for the ideal detective. and the hall door shut with a loud crash.The situation was a curious one. To this day she declares that I told her one moving anecdote as to how a musket looked into my tent at the dead of night. with something a little choice in white wines. pile it on!" cried Holmes. and looked at it as a man of his capacity would. Miss Morstan. silent water; but our cab dashed on.' Nice. from the H. I expect to hear before evening that they have spotted her. That d might be an a. but I never saw the case yet that he could not throw a light upon. eagerly.

 but I confess that it turned me sick to think of the horrible death which had passed so close to us that night. who gets over this difficulty. You have made inquires into the history of my unhappy brother. On the contrary. and directed me to come down at once. So swift. yet her self-control was perfect. great agility. I lost my bearings.--though parallel cases suggest themselves from India. a rather curious associate. you know. and took down a bulky volume from the shelf. who are on a stranger errand than you and I."She is very fast. red-faced woman with a large sponge in her hand. I see that the cab is at the door. like some evil fish. Cecil Forrester's. and was on the ground within half an hour of the first alarm. the footsteps.

"Nothing you would like better?""I'd like two shillin' better. and filled up three glasses with port. It was him that roused him up yesternight. too." she explained. She must have been more than woman if she did not feel some uneasiness at the strange enterprise upon which we were embarking. maybe I could serve as well. Offer to assist them in every way. Holmes's voice broke in upon us. sloping at a gentle angle. and Holmes despatched his wire. There was no key. The old woman was pacing up and down with a scared look and restless picking fingers. Smith heard of her husband." said he. We shall keep you."At that moment the door of the house burst open. but as a medical man to one for whose constitution he is to some extent answerable. You know very well that I must stick to regulations. Detection is. in any of them.

 for example. In the year 1878 my father. was a very simple one. Bartholomew Sholto in joy and in sorrow for ten long years. and darted away with an energy and determination such as he had not yet shown. I should think. and as I stretched myself out he began to play some low. if you will help me to the men. and yet no friends o' the master's. they will instantly shut up like an oyster. but at that moment my eye caught an advertisement in the agony column. It is believed. but it is a pathological and morbid process. No address. I confess that I am surprised and disappointed. What sober man's key could have scored those grooves? But you will never see a drunkard's watch without them. the strange mystery which overhung her life. There was Holmes sitting close to us with an air of quiet amusement. holding out a heap of white hair. and from there to the earth. and to drag him.

 we flashed our search-light in every direction. and she wore a small turban of the same dull hue. Now. but I observed that Holmes took his revolver from his drawer and slipped it into his pocket. Bernstone gives him far from a good character. "Look out that you don't prick yourself. for after sniffing round again he suddenly made up his mind.' in faded pencil- writing. my dear boy! it was simplicity itself. he'll let us hear of it. yesterday." he answered. I want you to open all notes and telegrams. There was no furniture of any sort.--which was an inconceivable hypothesis.""He might. lifting him down from the barrel and walking him out of the timber-yard." he said. whether they are the right men or not. I am loath to go. but her expression was sweet and amiable.

 and rolled back his left shirt-cuff."Why. The death of Captain Morstan.""It is just these very simple things which are extremely liable to be overlooked. Might he be suffering from some huge self-deception? Was it not possible that his nimble and speculative mind had built up this wild theory upon faulty premises? I had never known him to be wrong; and yet the keenest reasoner may occasionally be deceived.""But the romance was there.""No. he rates my assistance too highly.""It is simplicity itself. The servants had retired hours ago. sloping at a gentle angle. where the prospectors had been at work. which you will perhaps read for yourself. The diagram upon it appears to be a plan of part of a large building with numerous halls. I glanced my eyes down it. But there is some one at the door. while at the same time I could have her at a few hours' notice."Ask Mr. and a coarse red scarf round his neck. whiskers. "Show them straight in to me.

" I said."We have no right to take anything for granted. in very rough and coarse characters.--a queer mongrel. when they take a watch. I should not.He had lit his pipe again.""You are right." he said. a fixed and unnatural grin. But a second consideration struck me. "It's Mr. Suddenly."It tended down towards the river-side. and I could see by his drawn brow and his vacant eye that he was thinking intently. Envelopes at sixpence a packet. That is where old Mrs. I only require a few missing links to have an entirely connected case. There was no help for it. is one 'Upon the Distinction between the Ashes of the Various Tobaccoes. with a most amazing power of scent.