VOL XXXI
J. S. YOUNG. \VM COOPF.I
YOUNG & COOPER,
I MERCHANT TAILORS $
Have opened at S. E. corner »f and Diamond Streets, Butkr,
with all the later style;, in S • . S;;hi ,<s. Fit and
Workmanship Guara ' t! Prices as low as
the lowe TRY US.
-MAT SALE -
This is the kind of weather to buy
sleighs,robes and horse blankets cheap ai
MARTINCOURT& GO'S.
Come and see us, 128 East Jeftcrs- n St., a few d 01 s above L v.ry
H use.
Diamonds
' 1
. h> T> *i' >E;>,
W *, 1 DI - OLD.
»> fitchc
;!!(•; (li a'l L J>
•ir\A e 11 > t I, , iuiiliSj Bracelet-. K:
. . . Ml; « !i*t< TIJ, butUT 'lihiit
Silverware j;;l,
i«95»3 ffr' ir<7 **"*"
E. GRIEB.
THE JEWELER
fro. 39. Rvith I'xir, i*t H 'll IF, 1A„
ett cl This 011.ee.
LOOK CAREFULLY AT l ill. PKI ES ANb YOU WILL, i
HUNK, BE CONVINCED THAT
111 SKI ST< )>'S
Is the place you wt. b :j y
Ladies fine button sloes, p.tteni up, opu.i ->< $ .8<
•• " " square toe 9<
" grain " 7;
•' fine slippers 4-
" warm, flannel-lined, shoes 7-
" " " slippers
" slippers 2(
" good,heavy, peged shoes 7-
" " standard shoes 8-
" rubbers 2 s
Misses' fine shoes, button /<■
Men's good heavy boots 1 4<
" B& A, calf, congs. and bals tip 90
" extra fine shoes $1 25 *nd 1 50
Boys' good heavy boots, sizes 1-5 1 00
Youths' " " li-13 73
Men's " brogans 70
" " calf boots 1 (jo
Rubber boots and shoes, wool-lined arctics, felt boots for boys and
men, wool stockings at th« lowest prices.
Men's slippers, nicely embroidered, at 50c, 751, and $1; Women' ,
Misses' and Children's s!i;»per~. ai 20c, 50c, 75c and sl.
Are you one ef the fezu that rlnrs u'>t buy of it.r, /so zuc are lookin f
for you, coin- in noon and see us.
B. C. HUSH! TON.
Opposite H jtzl Lo vtv.
Wo. 102 «Ii 1 i. ; > - Fuller PP.
The 0. W. HARDMAN Art Company Limited.
GROUND FLOOR STUDIO.
Finest and most artistic photographs. Hand made portraits .■
specialty. Picture and portrait ( aim .. It m cientions uoik is oi
any value to you have the same clone here.
Beware of tramp artists and inrsponsable parties and stranger
who arc tran.pi*»K through the comfy >< liciting your mtU-is.
Sndio, 118 North Miio St, Bitlar, Pa.
Sweeping Reductions have been Made on all
Winter Clothing, Overcoats, Underwear, Cap, etc.
Our business lias been . . . i our opening nine
months ago, leaving us ii- >i ;1 1 ti l <1 .vhicli are ALL
NEW and which >vo ai :vl!iig t i ~»<,:II rut lacritic rather than
carry them over.
1? ■; it-.: ci.l •!••!. y:f,- „• ..... / i i. ! • i ,
vVnhtng y-m .ill .t Jl,iji'.t
•Vt l. V' i.:• \• ,p fully,
DOUTIIKTT (i HA lIAM.
Cor. Main & Cunningham Sts.
BUTLER, PA.
Job Work <>l nil kinds done
m
Ht 11. \L 'il )[lire.
THE BUTLER CITIZEN.
Overcoats
+ AND ALL +
Heavy
Clothing
COST
AT
THE RACKET STORE,
120 South Main Street, butler, Pa.,
FOR 45 CENTS.
Your choice of
any oil cloth window
shade in the house
Former prices 50
to 90c each. This
offer oood only until
Feb. 10.
Call at
DOUGLASS',
War P. 0. - - 241 S. Ma in St*
l. c- wick:
DK.AI.fcB IS
Huugh and Worked Lumbei
07 ALL XIlTDp*
■3oors, Sash, Blinds, Mouldings
Shingles and Laih
Always In Slock.
-IVIE. HAfK AND PL AST Eh.
U IBO.J opposito'P. <t W. Depot,
C'TIiKK - - Pi
WE WANT TO KEEP
01)K FACTORY RUNNING
DURING THE WINTER.
In. order to do this we offer to
ujtke outside window blinds at ONE
DOLLAR and upwards per window und
inside window blinds at TWO DOLLARS
tud upwards per window.
These are tbe lowest prices evi-r
on window blinds and now i»
iljtj time to take advantage of them.
liespectfully,
S.>Gw Purvis & Co.
W. H. O'BRIEN & SON.
[SncceHnoiß ol bchntte <fc O'Brien.)
Sanitary Pum ben
And Han Fit'erp,
DUAL'•"
> -v jr Pipe,
(TKH Fixturei
Globes at.
v rural (Jus Applia
f; F«-«on St.,opp. Lowry Hoi»
BUTLER, P A -
FRANK KEMPEH,
DEALFIB IN
ISLANKETS,
HARNESS,
A rid everything in
horse and buggy fur
nishing goods—l Tar -
uesH, Collars, "Whips.
I Histers, .Saddles, etc.
A lso trunks and va-
I i.SCN.
!tepuiring done on
short notice.
The largest assort
ment of B-A Horse
blankets in town will
be found a,t. Kemner's.
H. H. JACKSON
Who has bud a years »xp«rieiire
witb one of tbe leading furniture
firms of Piltaburg is now prepared to
ntteod to all furniiure repairing left
*n biw charge, and Mill guurunU-f
good work and satisfaction at
249 S. McKean St , - Butler, Pn.
EUROPEAN * HOTEL.
815 8. Main St., - - Butler, Pa.
ALEX WILLIAMS, Prop'r.
Everything new—Electric light,
K«B and water.
I* Lodging 35, 50 and SI.OO.
* t *Hc|.'ulnr od< >ilh at 25 ei*.
|{<>ardiiig ut fI.OM u day. %*
.: Laicb Counter open ail bight.
-W> LUtil/ tK 1 ftJlOkM
A.. CXJPfArf DOYIjK.
CHAPTER rv\
WHAT JOHN HA SCI HAD TO TELL
It was one o'clock when we left No.
3 Lauriston gardens. Sherlock Holmes
led trie to the nearest telegraph office,
whence he dispatched a long telegram.
He then hailed a cab. and ordered the
driver to take us to the address given
us by Lestrade.
"There is nothing like first-hand evi
dence," he remarked; "as a matter of
fact, my mind is entirely made up
upon the case, but still we may as well
learn all that is to be learned."
"You amaze me. Holmes," said I.
"Surely you are not as sure as you pre
tend to be of all those particulars
which you gave."
"There's no room for a mistake," he
answered. "The very first thing
which I observed on arriving there
was that a cab had made two ruts with
its wheels close to the jurb. Now, up
to last night, we have had no rain for
a week, so that those wheels, which
left such a deep impression, must have
been there during the night. There
were the marks of the horse's hoofs,
too, the outline of one of which was
far more clearly cut than that of the
other three, showing that thikt was a
new shoe. Since the cab was there
after the rain began, end was not
there at any time during the morning
—I have Gregson's word for that—it
follows that It must hjyve been there
during the night, and, therefore, that
it brought those two individuals to the
house."
"That seems simple enough," said I;
"but how about the other man's
height?"
"Why, the height of a man, in nine
cases out of ten, can be told from the
length of his stride. It is a simple
calculation enough though there is no
use my boring you with figures. I
had this fellow's stride, both on the
clay outside and on the dust within.
Then I had a way of checking my cal
culation. When a man writes on a
wall, his instinct leads him to write
about the level of his own eyes. Now,
that writing was just over six feet
from the ground. It was child's play."
"And his age?" I asked.
"WeU, if a man can stride four and
a half feet without the smallest effort,
he can't be quite in the sere and yel
low That was the breadth of a puddle
on the garden walk which he had
evidently walked across. Patent
leather boots had gone round and
Square-toes had hopped over. There
Is no mystery about it at all. lam
simply applying to ordinary life a few
of those precepts of observation and
deduction which I advocated in that
article. Is there anything else that
puzzles you?"
"The finger-nails and the Trichinop
oly," I suggested.
"The writing on the waU was done
with a man's forefinger dipped in blood.
My glass allowed me to observe that
the plaster was slightly scratched in
doing it, which would not have been
the case if the man's nail had been
trimmed. I gathered up some scat
tered ash from the floor. It was dark
in color and flaky—such an ash as is
only made by a Trichinopoly. I have
made a special study of cigar ashes—
in fact, I have written a monograph
upon the subject. I flatter myself that
I can distinguish at a glance the ash of
any known brand either of cigar or of
tobacco. It is just in such details that
the skilled detective differs from the
Oregson and Lestrade type."
"And the florid face?" I asked.
"Ah, that was a mora daring shot,
though 1 have no doubt that I was
right. You must not ask me that at I
the present state of the affair."
I passed my hand over my brow.
"My head is in a whirl," I remarked;
"the more one thinks of it the more
mysterious it grows. How came these
two men —if there were two men—into
an empty house? What has become of
the cabman who drove them? Ilow
could one man compel another to take
poison? Where did the blood come
from? What was the object of the
murderer, since robbery had no part in
it? How came the woman's ring there?
Above all, why should the second inau
write up the German word "rache" be
fore decamping? I confess that I can
not sec any possible way of r»conciling
all these facts."
My companion smiled approvingly.
"You sum up the difficulties of the
situation succinctly and 11," lie said.
"There is much that is ill obscure,
though I have quite made up my mind
on the main facts. As to poor Les
trade's discovery it was simply a blind
intended to put the police upon a wrong
track, by suggesting socialism and
secret societies. It was not done by a
German. The A, if you noticed, was
printed somewhat after the German
fashion. Now a real German invaria
bly prints in the Latin character, so
that, we may hafely say that this was
not written by one, but by a clumsy
imitator, who overdid his part. It was
siinplv a ruse to divert Inquiry into a
wrong channel. I'm not going to tell
you much more of the case, doctor.
You know a conjurer gets no credit
when once he has explained his trick,
and if I show you too much of my
method of working, you will come to
the conclusion that I am a very ordinary
individual after all."
"I shall never do that," I answered;
"you have brought detection as near
an exact science as it ever will bo
brought in this world."
My companion flunked up with plcas
urc at my word* and tho earnest way
in which I uttered them. I had al
ready observed that ho was as sensitive
to flattery ou tho score of his art as any
girl could be of her beauty.
"I'll tell you ouo other thing," ho
wild. "Patent-leathers and Square
toes came In tho same cab, and they
walked down the pathway together as
friendly as possible—arm-in-arm. In all
probability. When tliey got Inside
they walked up and down tho room—
or rather, Patent-leathern stood still
while .Square-toes walked up and
down. I could read all that lu tho
dust; and 1 could read that, an ho
walked, he grew more and more ex
cited. That Is shown by the increased
length of his strides. lie was talking
all the while, and working himself up,
no doubt, into a fury. Then tho
tragedy occurred. I've told you all I
Unow myself, now, for tho rest is mere
surmise and conjecture. We have a
good working basis, however,on which
to start. Wo must hurry up, for I
want to go to llalle's concert, to hear
Korrnan Ncruda, this afternoon."
This conversation had occurred while
our cab had been threading Its way
through a long succession of dingy
streets and dreary by-waya. In the
din(fl<-st and dreariest of them our
driver suddenly came to a stand.
"That's Audley court in there," ho
said, pointing to a narrow slit In tho
line of dead-colored brick. "You'll
find rno here when you come back."
Audley court was not an attractive
locality The narrow passage led us
!U T TLRR. PA.,FHIDAY. FEBRUARY 1(>,
lined by sordid dwellings. We picked
our way among gronps of dirty chil
dren anil through lines of discolored
linen until wc came to No. 40, the
door of which was decorated with a
small slip of brass, on which the name
Ranee was engraved. On inquiry we
found that the constable was in bed,
and we were shown into a little front
parlor, to await his coming.
Lie appeared presently, looking a lit
tle irritable at being disturbed in his
Blumbers. "I made my report at the
office," he said.
[lolmes took a half-sovereign from
his pocket, and played with it pensively.
"We thought that we should like to
hear it all from your own lips," he said.
"I shall be most happy to tell you
anything I can," the constable an
swered, with his eyes upon the little
golden disk.
"Just let us hear it all in your own
way, as it occurred."
Ranee sat down on the horse-hair
sofa and knitted his brows, as though
determined not to omit anything in his
narrative.
"I'll tell it ye from the beginning,"
he said. "My time is from ten at night
to six in the morning. At eleven there
was a fight at the White llart; but, bar
that, all was quiet enough on the beat.
At one o'clock it began to rain, and I
met Harry Murcher—him who has the
Holland Grove beat—and we stood to
gether at the corner of Henrietta
Street a-talkin'. Presently maybe
about two, or a little after—l thought
I would take a look round, and see
that all was right down the Brix
ton road. It was precious dirty and
lonely. Not a soul did I meet all the
way down, though a cab or two went
past me. I was a-strollin' down,
thinkin' between ourselves how un
common handy a four of gin hot would
be, when suddenly a glint of a light
caught my eye in the window of that
sama house. Now. I knew that them
two bouses in Lauriston gardens was
empty on account of him that owns
them, who won't have the drains seed
to, though the very last tenant what
lived in one of them died o' typhoid
fever. I was knocked all in a heap,
therefore, at seeing a light in the win
dow, and I suspected as something was
wrong. When I got to the door —"
"You stopped, and then walked back
to the garden gate," my companion in
terrupted. "What did you do that for?"
Ranee gave a violent jump, and
stared at Sherlock Holmes with the ut
most amazement upon his features.
"Why, that's true, sir;" he 6aid;
"though how you came to know it,
Heaven only knows! Ye see, when I
got up to the door, it was so still and
so lonesome that I thought I'd be none
the worse for some one with me. I
ain ' :ifeared of anything on this side
of tiie grave; but I thought that maybe
It was him that died o' the typhoid in-
spc ;ting the drains what killed him.
The thought gave me a kind o' turn,
and I walked back to the pate to see il
I couldsee Murcher's lantern, but there
wasn't no sign of him nor of anyone
else."
"There was no one in the street?"
"Not a iivin' soul, sir, nor as much as
a dog. Then I pulled myself together
and went back and pushed the door
open. All was quiet inside, so I went
into the room where the light was
a-burnin'. There was a candle flickerin 1
on the mantle-piece—a red wax one—
and by its light I saw—"
"Yes, I know all that you saw. You
walked round the room several times,
and yon knelt down by the body, and
then you walked through and tried the
kitchen door, and then—"
John Itance sprang to his feet with a
frightened face and suspicion in his
eyes. "Where was you hid to see all
that?" he cried. "It seems to me that
you knows a deal more than yon
should."
llolmes laughed, and threw his card
across the table to the constable.
"Don't get arresting me for the mur
der," he said. "I nm one of the hounda
and not the wolf; Mr. Gregson or Mr.
Lestrade will answer for that. Go on,
though. What did you do next?"
Ranee resumed his seat, without,
however, losing his mystified expres
sion. "1 went back to the gate and
sounded my whistle. That brought
Murcher and two more to the spot."
"Was the street empty then?"
"Well, it was, as far as anybody that
could be of any good goes."
"What do you mean?"
The constable's features broadened
into a grin. "I've seen many a drunk
chap in my time," he said, "but never
anyone so cryln' drunk as that cove,
lie was at the gate when I came out,
a-leanin* up ag'n the railin's and
a-singin' at the pitch of his lungs
about Columbine's new-fangled ban
ner, or some such stuff. He couldn't
stand, far less help."
"What sort of a man was he?" asked
Sherlock Holmes.
John Ranee appeared to be some
what irritated at this digression. "He
was an uncommon drunk sort o' man,"
lie said. "He'd ha' found hisst-lf in the
station if wo hadn't been so took up."
"His face—his dress—didn't you no
tice them?" Holmes broke in, impa
tiently.
"1 should think I did notice them,
seeing that 1 had to prop him up—me
and Murcher between us. He was a
long chap, with a red face, the lower
part muffled round—"
"That will do," cried nolmes. "What
became of him?"
"We'd enough to do without lookin"
after him," the policeman said, in an
aggrieved voice. "I'll wager he found
his way home all right."
"llow was he dressed?"
"A brown overcoat."
"Had he a whip in his hand?"
"A whip—no."
"lie must have left It behind," mut
tered my companion. "You didn't hap
pen to see or hear a cab after that?"
"No."
l "There's a half sovereign for you."
my companion said, standing up and
taking his hat. "I am afraid, Kance,
that you will never rise In the force.
That head of yours should be for use
as well as ornament. You might have
gained your sergeant's stripes last
night. The man whom you held In
your hands In the man who holds the
clew of this mystery, and whom we
are seeking. There is no use of argu
ing about It now; i tell you that it Is
so. («me along, doctor."
We started off for the cab together,
leaving our informant incredulous, but
I obviously uncomfortable.
"Tho blundering fooll" Holmes said,
bitterly, as we drove back to our lodg- I
inga. "Just to think of Uls having
buch an Incomparable bit of good luck,
and not taking advantage of it."
"I am rather in the dark still. It Is
true that the description of this man
tallies with your idea of the second
party In this mystery. Put why
should he come back to the house after
leaving it? This Is not the way of
criminals."
"The ring. man. the rujg; thai was
no other way of catching him we can
always bait our line with the ring. I
shall have him. doctor, I'll lay you two
to one that I have him. I must thank
you for it all. I might not have gone but
for you, and so have missed the finest
study I ever came across; a study in
scarlet, eh? Why shouldn't we use a
little art jargon? There's the scarlet
thread of murder running through the
colorless skein of life, and our duty
is to unravel it, and isolate it, and ex
pose every inch of it. And now for
lunch, and then for Norman Neruda.
Her attack and her bowing are splen
did. What's that little thing of Chopin's
she plays so magnificently: Tra-la-la
lira-lira-lay."
Leaning back in the cab, this ama
teur blood-hound caroled away like a
lark, while I meditated upon the many
ledness of the human mind.
CHAPTER V.
OT7R ADVERTISEMENT BRINGS A VISITOR
Our morning's exertions had been
too much for my weak health, and I
was tired out in the afternoon. After
Holmes' departure for the concert, I
lay down upon the sofa and endeav
ored to get a couple of hours' sleep. It
was a useless attempt. My mind had
been too much excited by all that had
occurred, and the strangest fancies
and surmises crowded into it. Every
time that I closed my eyes I saw be
fore me the distorted, baboon-like
countenance of the murdered man. So
sinister was the Impression which that
face bad produced upon me that I
found it difficult to feel anything but
gratitude for him who had removed its
owner from the world. If ever human
features bespoke vice of the most
malignant type, they were certainly
those of Enoch J. Drebber, of Cleve
land. Still I recognized that justice
must be done, and that the depravity
of the victim was no condonement in
the eyes of the law.
The more I thought of it the more
extraordinary did my companion's
hypothesis, that the man hod been
poisoned, appear. I remember how he
had sniffed his lips, and had no doubt
that he had detected something which
had given rise to the idea. Then,
again, if not poison, what had caused
the man's death, since there was
neither wound nor marks of strangu
lation? But. on the other hand, whose
blood was that which lay so thickly
upon the floor? There were no signs
of a struggle, nor had the victim any
weapon with which he might have
wounded an antagonist. As long as
all these questions were unsolved, I
felt that sleep would be no easy
matter, either for Holmes or myself.
His quiet, self-confident manner con
vinced me that he had already formed
a theory which explained all the facts,
though what It was I could not for an
instant conjecture.
He was very late in returning—so
late that I knew that the concert could
not have detained him all that time.
Dinner was on the table before he ap
peared.
"It was magnificent," he said, as ho
took his seat. "Do you remember
what Darwin says about music? He
claims that the power of producing and
appreciating it existed among the hu
man race long before the power of
speech was arrived at. Perhaps that
is why we are so subtly influenced by
it. There are vague memories in our
souls of those mi6ty centuries when
the world was in its childhood."
"That's rather a broad idea," I re
marked.
"One's ideas must be as broad as
nature if they are to interpret nature,"
he answered. "What's the matter?
You're not looking quite yourself.
This Brixton road affair has upset
you."
"To tell the truth, it has," I said.
"I ought to be more case hardened
after my Afghan experiences. I saw
my own comrades hacked to pieces at
Maiwand without losing my nerve."
"I can understand. There is a mys
tery about this which stimulates the
imagination; where there is no imag
ination there is no horror. Have you
seen the evening paper?"
"No."
"It gives a fairly good account of the
affair. It does not mention the fact
that when the man was raised up a
woman's wedding ring fell upon the
floor. It is just aB well it does not."
"Why?"
"Look at this advertisement," he an
swered. "I had one sent to every pa
per this morning immediately after the
affair."
He threw the paper acro» to me,
and I glanced at the place indicated.
It was tho first announcement in the
"Found" column. "In Brixton road
I HI.ANCED AT TUB PLAN INDICATED.
this morning," it rail, "a plain gold
wedding ring, found in the roadway
between the White llart tavern and
Holland grove. Apply Dr. Watson,
2318 Baker street, between eight and
nine this evening."
"Excuse my using your name." he
said. "If I used my own some one of
these dunderheads would recognize it
and want to meddle in tho affair."
"That is all," I answered. "Hut sup
posing anyone applies, I have no ring."
"Oh, yes, you have," said he, hand
ing :nc one. "This will do very well.
It is almost a fac-simile."
"Aud who do you expect will answer
this advertisement?"
"Why, the man in tho brown coat—
our florid friend with the scjnaro toes.
If ho does not come himself he will
send an accomplice."
"Would ho not consider it as too
dangerous?"
"Not at all. If my view of the case
is correct, and I have every reason to
believe that It Is, this man would
rather risk anything than lose the
ring. According to my notion ho
dropped it whilo stooping over Dreb
bcr's Iwjdy, and did not miss it at the
time. After leaving the house he dis
covered his loss, and hurried back, hut
found the jiollce already in possession,
owing to his own folly in leaving the
candle burning. Ho had to pretend to
be drunk in order to allay the suspi
cions which might have been aroused
by his appearance at the gate Now
put yourself in that man's place On
thinking the matter over, it must have
occurred to him that it was posr-ible
that he had lost tho ring in the road
after leaving the house. What would
he do then? He would eagerly look out
for the evening papers, In the hope of
seeing it among the articles found.
Ills eye, of course, would light upon
this. He would be overjoyed Why
should he fear a trap? There won Id
be no reason In his eyes why tho Und-
Ing of the ring should be «onnect"d
with the murder. He would come. 110
will come. You shall see him within
an hour."
"And then?" I asked.
"Oh, you can leave tno to deal with
"I have my old service revolver and
a few cartridges."
"Yon had better clean it and load it.
He will l>e a desperate man, and,
though I shall take him unawares, it
is as well to be ready for anything."
I went to my bedroom and followed
his advice. When I returned with the
pistol the table had been cleared and
Holmes was engaged in his favorite
occupation of scraping upon his violin.
"The plot thickens," he said, as l
entered. "I have just had an answer
U my American telegram My view
of the ease is correct."
"And that is?" I asked, eagerly.
"My fiddle would be better for new
strings," he remarked. "Put your pis
tol in your pocket. When the fellow
comes speak to him in an ordinary
way. Leave the rest to me. Don't
frighten him by looking at him too
hard."
"It is eight o'clock now," I said,
glancing at my watch.
"Yes. He will probably be here in a
few minutes. Open the door slightly.
That will do. Now put the key on the
inside. Thank you! This is a queer
book I picked up at a stall yesterday—
'De Jure inter Gentes' —published in
A VERY OLD AJTD WRINKLED WOMAN
nOBHLED INTO THE APARTMENT.
Latin at Liege, in the Lowlands, in
1642. Charles' head was still firm on
his shoulders when this little brown
backed volume was struck off."
"Who Is the printer?"
"Philippe de Croy, whoever lie may
have been. On the fly-leaf, in very
faded ink, is written, 'Exlibris Guli
olmi Whyte.' I wondered who Wil
liam Whyte was. Some pragmatical
seventeenth century lawyer. I sup
pose. His writing has a legal twist
about it. Here comes our man, I
think."
As he spoke there was a sharp ring
at the bell. Sherlock Holmes rose
softly, and moved his chair in the di
rection of the door. We heard the
servant pass along the hall, and the
6harp click of the latch as she opened it.
"Does Dr. Watson live here?" asked
a clear but rather harsh voice. We
could not hear the servant's reply, but
the door closed, and someone began to
ascend the stairs. The footfall was an
uncertain and shuffling one. A look of
surprise passed over the face of my
companion as he listened to it. I came
slowly along the passage, and there
was a feeble tap at the door.
"Come in!" I cried.
At my summons, instead of the man
of violence whom we expected, a very
old and wrinkled woman hobbled into
the apartment. She appeared to be
dazzled by the sudden blaze of light,
and, after dropping a courtesy, she
stood blinking at us with her bleared
eyes and fumbling in her pocket with
nervous, shaky fingers. I glanced at
my companion, and his face had as
sumed such a disconsolate expression
that it was all I could do to keep my
countenance.
The old crone drew out an evening
paper, and pointed at our advertise
ment. "It's this as has brought me,
good gentlemen," Rhe said, dropping'
another courtesy: "a (fold wedding
ring in the Brixton road. It belongs
to my girl Sally, as was married only
this time twelvemonth, which her
husband is steward aboard a union
boat, and what he'd say if he come
'ome and found her without her ring
1b more than I can think, ho being
short enough at the best o' times, but
more especially when we has the
drink. If it please you, she went to
the circus last night along with —"
"Is that her ring?" I asked.
"The Lord lw> thanked!" cried the
old woman. "Sally will be a glad
woman this night. That's the ring."
"And what may your address be?"
I inquired, taking np a pencil.
"18 Duncan street, Houndsditch. A
weary way from here."
"Tim Brixton road does not lie be
tween any circus and Houndsditch,"
said Sherlock Holmes, sharply.
The old woman faeed round and
looked keenly at him from her little
red-riintned eyes. "The gentleman
asked me for my address," she said.
"Sally lives in lodgings at 3 Mayfleld
Place, Peckham."
"And your name is—"
"M.v name is Sawyer—hers is Dennis,
which Tom Dennis married her—and
a smart, clean lad, too, as long as he's
at soa, and no steward in the company
Mix'
■Kit ri'llal'Elt IIUUOIU HKli SOME LITTIJC
DISTANCE BEHIND.
more thought of; but when on shore,
what with the women and what with
liquor shops—"
"Here is your ring, Mrs. Sawyer," I
interrupted, in obedience to a sign
from my companion; "it clearly be
longs to your daughter, and I am glad
to restore it to the right ful owner."
With many mumbled blessings antl
protestations of gratitude the old
crone packed it away in her pocket,
and shuffled off down the stairs. Sher
lock Holmes sprang to his feet the mo
ment she was gone and rushed into his
room, lie returned in a few seconds
enveloped in sn uls».«*r and a cravat.
"I'll follow her," ho said, hurriedly;
"•ho must bo an accomplice, and will
lead mo to him. Wait up for mo." The
hall door had hurriedly slammed be
hind our visitor before Holmes had de
scended the stair. Looking through
the window I could see her walking
feebly along the other side, while her
pursuer dogged her some little dis
tance behind. "Either his whole the
ory Is Incorrect," I thought to myself,
"or else he will be led now to the heart
of the mystery." There was no ueed
for him to ask me to wait up for him,
for I felt that sleep was impossible
until f heard the result of his adven
ture
It was close upon nine when he set
out. I t>a<l no idea how long fie might
be. but I sat stolidly pulling at my pipe
and skipping over tin- pages of llenri
Murgcr's "Viu de IJohcme." Ten
o'clock passed, and I heard the foot
steps of the maids as they pattered off
to bed. ICleven aud the more stately
bound for the s&iue destination. It was
close upon twelve before I heard the
6harp bound of his latch-key The in
stant he entered I saw by his face that
he had not been successful. Amuse
ment and chagrin seemed to be strug
gling for the mastery, until the former
suddenly carried the day. and he burst
into a hearty laugh.
"I wouldn't have the Scotland Yard
ers know it for tbe world," he cried,
dropping into his chair; "I have chaffed
them so much that they would never
have let me hear the end of it. I can
afford to laugh, because I know that I
will be even with them in the long
run."
"What is it, then?" I asked.
"Oh, I don't mind telling a story
against myself. That creature had
gone a little way when she began to
limp and show every sign of being
foot-sore. Presently she came to a halt,
and hailed a four-wheeler which was
passing. I managed to be close enough
to her to hear the address, but I need
not have been so anxious, for she sang
it out loud enough to be heard at the
other side of the street. 'Drive to 13
Dnncan street, Houndsditeh,' she
cried. This begins to look gen
uine, 1 cried, and having seen
her safely inside, I perched my
self behind. That's an art which every
detective should be an expert at. Well,
away we rattled, and never drew a
rein until we reached the street in
question. I hopped off before we came
to the door, and strolled down the
street in an easy, lounging way. I saw
the cab pull up The driver jumped
down, and I saw him open the door
and stand expectantly Nothing came
out, though. When I reached him he
was groping about frantically in the
empty cab, and giving vent to the
finest assorted oollection of oaths that
ever I listened to. There was no sig-n
or trace of his passenger, and I fear it
will be some time before he gets his
fare. On inquiring at No. 13 I found
that the house belonged to a respeeta
ble paper-hanger, named Keswiclt, and
that no one of the name either of Saw
yer or Dennis had ever been heard of
there."
"You don't mean to say," 1 cried, in
amazement, "that that tottering, fee
ble old woman was able to get out of
the cab while it was in motion, with
out either you or the driver seeing
her?"
"Old woman be d—d!" said Sherlock
Holmes, sharply. "We were the old
women to be so taken in. It must hare
been a young man, and an active one.
too, besides being an incomparable nc
tor. The get-up was inimitable. He
saw that he was followed, no doubt,
and used this means of giving me the
slip. It shows that the man we are
after is not as lonely as I imagined he
was. Wit has friends who are ready to
risk something for him. Now, doctor,
you are looking done-up. Take my ad
vice and turn in."
I was certainly feeling very weary,
so I obeyed his injunction. I left
Holmes seated in front of the smolder
ing fire, and long into the watches of
the night I heard the low, melancholy
waitings of his violin, and knew that
he was still pondering over the strange
problem which he had set himself to
unravel.
[TO BB fJOXTINriI).)
GLORY SURPASSING SOLOMON'S
Louilod'i l.ord .M»jr.»r la a tlorg-om Crea
ture M'lule Arr*J<!<t n Hl» I!
The fountain of municipal honor in
England. says the London Telegraph,
undoubtedly springs from the <uii! i
hall. London, which justly claims to 1c
accounted the most ancient of our
municipal halls, seeing that the lor;!
mayors of the last eight centuries are
with justice assumed to have proto
tvpes in the Roman prefect and the
Saxon fortreye or portgrave. For a
considerable number of years the robes
of the lord mayor, the court of alder
men and the common councilors have
been settled with a precision that none,
save the most reckless of innovators,
would presume to disturb. The lord
mayor himself has his "gold" robe for
the annual Guildhall banquet and for
the times when he proceeds in state
either to the new law courts or to
the houses of parliament. The alder
men have their scarlet gowns, the
sheriffs their distinctive and very
handsome robes and chains, while the
common councilors rejoice in gowns
called "mazarines," it being generally
understood that mazarine is a term for
a dark blue color, although, according
to some lexicographers, mazarine also
means a drinking vessel and an old
way of dressing fowls. Then, again,
when the sovercigu comes into the city
the lord mayor is bound to don a robe
of crimson or purple velvet, trimmed
with ermine. At the time of his in
vestiture, he wears a massive gold
chain, but when he is honored by re
election at the expiration of his term
of office he wears two chains. The
mace of silver gilt, surmounted by a
royal crown and the imperial arms, is
carried before the mayor by the au
thority of the charter of Edward III.;
while the city possesses no less than
four swords, one called the "I'earl,
presented by Queen Hess when she
opened the first royal exchange, and
BO called from it* being richly set with
pearls. This sword precedes tlio chief
magistrate on all occasions of rejoic
ing and festivity. The sword of state
is carried before the lord mayor as an
emblem of his sovereignity within the
city proper; the "black sword is used
■ on fast days in Lent and at the death
1 of any member of the royal family;
while the fourth sword is that placed
close to the lord mayor's chair at the
central criminal court.
A RACE OF TOOTHLESS MEN.
C'oiiilok t Jriier*«lou» Will ll»»« to M«»tl
o»l-e by ArllllrUl Mmm.
There 1# reason to apprehend that
unless some cataclysm occurs to arrest
the progress of civilization our de
scendants will be as toothless as Eu
, roptolemus, king of Cyprus, described
by the historian Fliny as reduced to
nuistieate his food with a structure of
nolid bone, in lieu of teeth. This, at
uny rate. In the opinion of the New
York Tribune, is the Inference to be
deducted from the statistics recently
published by order of the British par
liament, demonstrating the alarming
ly small number of cases of in any way
sound dentition among the English
people. Of 4,004) children attending
the London public schools, there were
only 707 who had sound teeth; while
daring a period of three months fiOfl rc
cuita were rejected by the medical de
partment of the array for purely den
tal reasons. Of course, part of this
state of affairs f» due to neglect of tho
digetttloiu and of the teeth themselves,
a fact demonstrated by the statement
that all the tfirls who entered dome -tic
servicer from tlie London pnblie schools
last year llve-tixths had never even
heard of such a thing as a toothbrn !i
~., p.- ho rt ion that ha.. led theedi.
tional authorities to institute in many
of the metropolitan schools what is
now known as the "toothbrush drill.
Decay otf teeth has aiway* attended
the advance of civilisation and each
barbaric invasion has been followed
by a recovery of sound teeth in the
old world. Under the circumstances lb
snlght be worth while to consider
whether the repeal of the Geary law
■end the opening «>' 1
States to a pacific invasion on the pari
of the Chinese might not go far to lrn
provn the American Jaw. which, ac
cording to medical experts, is in an
immeasurably worse condition than
that of the EnglhJ> -» tact probably
tqt - i-T nrrf' r
THE GREAT BARRIER REEF.
One of the Wonders of tht Adt^
tralian c oast.
One of the wonders of the world is
the great harri-T roof of Anstrali*.
Thi. stupendous rampart of coral,
*tretehicg in au almost unbroken lino
for twelve hundred and fifty miles
iilor.;t the northeastern coast of Aus
tralia. present:; features of interest
which are not to be equaled in any
other quarter of the globe.
Nowhere is the action of the little
murine insect which builds up with un
tiring industry those mighty monu
ments with which the tropical seas are
studdcl more impressive; nowhere are
the wonderful constructive forces of
u. Ira ire apparent. By a simple
process of accretion there has been
reared in the course of countless cen
turies aa adamantine wall, against
which tlio gigantic billows of the l'a«
ciiie, sweeping along in an uninter
re plod course of several thousand
miles, dash themselves in ineffectual
fury.
Inclosed within the range of its pro
tecting arms is a calm inland sea,
eighty thousand square miles in ex
tent, dotted with a multitude of ooral
islets and presenting at every torn ob
jects of interest alike to the unlearned
traveler and the man of science. Ilere
may be witnessed at one hundred dif
ferent points the singular prooess by
which the wavy gelatinous living mass
hardens into stone, then servos as a
collecting ground for the flotsam and
jetsam of the ocean, and ultimately
develops au ibland covered with a lux
urious mass of tropical growth.
Here again, may be seen in the
serene depths of placid pools extraor
dinary forms of marine life, aglow
with the most brilliant colors and pro
ducing in their intinite variety a be
wildering sense of the vastness of the
life of the ocean.
KNOCKEDTHE BRIDE SENSELESS
Od'.t u Unfortunate Inrldrat Gmriaf
Otic of a Rifdal Custom.
A well-known New York drummer
returning from a southern trip relates
the following story as of actual oc
currence at a negro wedding in Char
leston. S. C.:
After the ceremony had been eon
eluded in the most approved style the
groom, who was employed at one of
the phosphate mines, a few miles from
tbe city, bundled his bride into a rude
cart, loaded some household effects
into it and prepared, among salvos of
cheers and best wishes, to take her
home.
At this stripe in the proceedings one
darky, who had traveled and been
prevent as a waiter at the wedding of
come white folks, suggested that tho
proper thing to do was to throw shoes
ufter the departing couple as they
drove away
Tho idea took immensely, and such
a scrambling as followed when the col
ored belles and beaux began to divest
their feet of boots and shoes of various
sizes and weights! Many of the men
had no stockings on beneath their
shoes, but that made no difference.
They all hung back, suppressing
their enthusiasm until the happy
groom brought a bale stick (lowa on
the back of the mule and started his
bridal trip. Then with a howl of joy
the guests burst forth and began a
fusillado which was by no means rel
ished by the happy pair
The air was filled with flying mis
siles. One gigantic boot struck the
groom In the small of the back and
drew from him a wild yell of agony.
Another hurtling through the air with
unerring aim struck the bride full on
the head and knocked her senseless.
This was too much for the groom.
Leaping from his cart, with his bale
stick in hand, ho set about to thrash
every one of the guests. As jnight be
inferred, a wild riot ensued, or was
about to, when a policeman came up
and put a stop to it. Nothing, how
ever. could appease the dusky groom
until the ofllcer assured him that ho
was not the victim of un indignity, but
merely the object of a bridal custom
such as white folks always observed.
The Heathen Woman.
With the exception, possibly, of the
Christian woman, the Hebrew woman,
the Mohammedan woman and a few
other women, there Is no creature more
interesting than the heathen woman.
She possesses all the qualities that
contribute toward making the con
templation of the feminine part of hu
manity tho most engaging, delightful
and bewildering process that occupies
the mind of man. The heathen woman
has virtue, wit, reverence, love, whims,
Independence, tantrums, tears to shed
and smiles. She is as headstrong as a
catboat before a big wind; as gentle
as .I umbo Sho is a delightful entity,
made up of things very good and things
not very good, the gopd fur outweigh
ing all else The heathen woman has
in as high degree as her Christian, He
brew. Mohammedan or other sisters,
that crowning glory of womanhood
maternal love
STAR SHOWERS.
riinen Wheu They reil from tho Ilcavrni
I.lke llall.
The first of the notably "third of a
century" meteoric displays which went
Into the records occurred on November
13, 1709, and was witnessed by Hum
boldt, the scientist traveler. In South
America. Humboldt gave a vivid de
scription of it. which is in boolca on
popular astronomy. Iloupland, an
other scientific writer who also ob
served the display, said that "from the
beginning of tho phenomenon there
was not a space in the firmament equal
in extent to three diameters of tho
moon that was not filled at every mo
ment with bolides and failing stars.
The next of these third of a century
star showers occurred ou tho night of
November 12, 1883, and it lasted ®evcn
or eight hours. During most of this
time tho meteors flying through the air
were as thick as snowflakes in a mod
erate snowstorm. This was seen all
over North America. In the southern
states many of tho slaves were so
frightened by the spectacle, thinking
the end of the world had come, that
some of them died with terror. Hut
the fright was shared in to a large ex
tent by whites also, and all over tho
country.
Thirty-three years later, or In 18<W,
Europe saw almost u > remarkable a
star shower, at the same time In No
vember, which lasted six or seven
hours; but as this country was still
turned toward the sun at that time we
missed most of it. The next year,
though, the shower came when it wis
night here, and :i the atmosphere was
clear it was ol>: erved over the greater
part of the I nil 1 •" tates.
At. this third . f otury law of
periodicity I- e ' • lied we may ex
„.et another of lie. notable display*
in Is'Klor I Mat f• • >'-nc tUac in No-
Tho T»r.ful Truth Toiler.
He—You don't tell white lies'. Your
congratulations upon old McC'aveson s
reaching his eightieth birthday were
very sincere, were they not?
She—Yes. They were addressed to
thot pretty young wifo of liis Truth-
M»« Old I» tor L'coti".a}'.
Father—l wish you would not lacu BO
tight. It Is positively inhuman.
Daughter Why. I thought yon
would bo pleased, father The inate
ri.il for this dress cost five dollars a
yard. Vogue
Lingering;-!
"Ilow many tluiesdid yon kiss lilm.'
"Oulv f'uee We were alone 'jut
i twc my mUsutvs. ' '-r Vmito
No 7