"I had," said he, "come to an entirely erroneous conclusion whichshows, my dear Watson, how dangerous it always is to reason frominsufficient data. The presence of the gipsies, and the use ofthe word 'band,' which was used by the poor girl, no doubt, toexplain the appearance which she had caught a hurried glimpse ofby the light of her match, were sufficient to put me upon anentirely wrong scent. I can only claim the merit that I instantlyreconsidered my
position when, however, it became clear to methat whatever danger threatened an occupant of the room could notcome either from the window or the door. My attention wasspeedily drawn, as I have already remarked to you, to thisventilator, and to the bell-rope which hung down to the bed. Thediscovery that this was a dummy, and that the bed was clamped tothe floor, instantly gave rise to the suspicion that the rope wasthere as a bridge for something passing through the hole andcoming to the bed. The idea of a snake instantly occurred to me,and when I coupled it with my knowledge that the doctor wasfurnished with a supply of creatures from India, I felt that Iwas probably on the right track. The idea of using a form ofpoison which could not possibly be discovered by any chemicaltest was just such a one as would occur to a clever and ruthlessman who had had an Eastern training. The rapidity with which sucha poison would take effect would also, from his point of view, bean advantage. It would be a sharp-eyed coroner, indeed, who coulddistinguish the two little dark punctures which would show wherethe poison fangs had done their work. Then I thought of thewhistle. Of course he must recall the snake before the morninglight revealed it to the victim. He had trained it, probably bythe use of the milk which we saw, to return to him when summoned.He would put it through this ventilator at the hour that hethought best, with the certainty that it would crawl down therope and land on the bed. It might or might not bite theoccupant, perhaps she might escape every night for a week, butsooner or later she must fall a victim.
"I had come to these conclusions before ever I had entered hisroom. An inspection of his chair showed me that he had been inthe habit of standing on it, which of course would be necessaryin order that he should reach the ventilator. The sight of thesafe, the saucer of milk, and the loop of whipcord were enough tofinally dispel any doubts which may have remained. The metallicclang heard by Miss Stoner was obviously caused by her stepfatherhastily closing the door of his safe upon its terrible occupant.Having once made up my mind, you know the steps which I took inorder to put the matter to the proof. I heard the creature hissas I have no doubt that you did also, and I instantly lit thelight and attacked it."
"With the result of driving it through the ventilator."
"And also with the result of causing it to turn upon its masterat the other side. Some of the blows of my cane came home androused its snakish temper, so that it flew upon the first personit saw. In this way I am no doubt indirectly responsible for Dr.Grimesby Roylott's death, and I cannot say that it is likely toweigh very heavily upon my conscience."
IX. THE ADVENTURE OF THE ENGINEER'S THUMB
Of all the problems which have been submitted to my friend, Mr.Sherlock Holmes, for solution during the years of our intimacy,there were only two which I was the means of introducing to hisnotice--that of Mr. Hatherley's thumb, and that of ColonelWarburton's madness. Of these the latter may have afforded afiner field for an acute and original observer, but the other wasso strange in its inception and so dramatic in its details thatit may be the more worthy of being placed upon record, even if itgave my friend fewer openings for those deductive methods ofreasoning by which he achieved such remarkable results. The storyhas, I believe, been told more than once in the newspapers, but,like all such narratives, its effect is much less striking whenset forth en bloc in a single half-column of print than when thefacts slowly evolve before your own eyes, and the mystery clearsgradually away as each new discovery furnishes a step which leadson to the complete truth. At the time the circumstances made adeep impression upon me, and the lapse of two years has hardlyserved to weaken the effect.
It was in the summer of '89, not long after my marriage, that theevents occurred which I am now about to summarise. I had returnedto civil practice and had finally abandoned Holmes in his BakerStreet rooms, although I continually visited him and occasionallyeven persuaded him to forgo his Bohemian habits so far as to comeand visit us. My practice had steadily increased, and as Ihappened to live at no very great distance from PaddingtonStation, I got a few patients from among the officials. One ofthese, whom I had cured of a painful and lingering disease, wasnever weary of advertising my virtues and of endeavouring to sendme on every sufferer over whom he might have any influence.
One morning, at a little before seven o'clock, I was awakened bythe maid tapping at the door to announce that two men had comefrom Paddington and were waiting in the consulting-room. Idressed hurriedly, for I knew by experience that railway caseswere seldom trivial, and hastened downstairs. As I descended, myold ally, the guard, came out of the room and closed the doortightly behind him.
"I've got him here," he whispered, jerking his thumb over hisshoulder; "he's all right."
"What is it, then?" I asked, for his manner suggested that it wassome strange creature which he had caged up in my room.
"It's a new patient," he whispered. "I thought I'd bring himround myself; then he couldn't slip away. There he is, all safeand sound. I must go now, Doctor; I have my dooties, just thesame as you." And off he went, this trusty tout, without evengiving me time to thank him.
I entered my consulting-room and found a gentleman seated by thetable. He was quietly dressed in a suit of heather tweed with asoft cloth cap which he had laid down upon my books. Round one ofhis hands he had a handkerchief wrapped, which was mottled allover with bloodstains. He was young, not more thanfive-and-twenty, I should say, with a strong, masculine face; buthe was exceedingly pale and gave me the impression of a man whowas suffering from some strong agitation, which it took all hisstrength of mind to control.
"I am sorry to knock you up so early, Doctor," said he, "but Ihave had a very serious accident during the night. I came in bytrain this morning, and on inquiring at Paddington as to where Imight find a doctor, a worthy fellow very kindly escorted mehere. I gave the maid a card, but I see that she has left it uponthe side-table."
I took it up and glanced at it. "Mr. Victor Hatherley, hydraulicengineer, 16A, Victoria Street (3rd floor)." That was the name,style, and abode of my morning visitor. "I regret that I havekept you waiting," said I, sitting down in my library-chair. "Youare fresh from a night journey, I understand, which is in itselfa monotonous occupation."
"Oh, my night could not be called monotonous," said he, andlaughed. He laughed very heartily, with a high, ringing note,leaning back in his chair and shaking his sides. All my medicalinstincts rose up against that laugh.
"Stop it!" I cried; "pull yourself together!" and I poured outsome water from a caraffe.
It was useless, however. He was off in one of those hystericaloutbursts which come upon a strong nature when some great crisisis over and gone. Presently he came to himself once more, veryweary and pale-looking.
"I have been making a fool of myself," he gasped.
"Not at all. Drink this." I dashed some brandy into the water,and the colour began to come back to his bloodless cheeks.
"That's better!" said he. "And now, Doctor, perhaps you wouldkindly attend to my thumb, or rather to the place where my thumbused to be."
He unwound the handkerchief and held out his hand. It gave evenmy hardened nerves a shudder to look at it. There were fourprotruding fingers and a horrid red, spongy surface where thethumb should have been. It had been hacked or torn right out fromthe roots.
"Good heavens!" I cried, "this is a terrible injury. It must havebled considerably."
"Yes, it did. I fainted when it was done, and I think that I musthave been senseless for a long time. When I came to I found thatit was still bleeding, so I tied one end of my handkerchief verytightly round the wrist and braced it up with a twig."
"Excellent! You should have been a surgeon."
"It is a question of hydraulics, you see, and came within my ownprovince."
"This has been done," said I, examining the wound, "by a veryheavy and sharp instrument."
"A thing like a cleaver," said he.
"An accident, I presume?"
"By no means."