'She is the daughter of the old caretaker, who is dead. They have looked after the Hall for four generations now. So far as I know, she and her husband are as respectable a couple as any in the county.'
'At the same time,' said Baskerville, 'it's clear enough that so long as there are none of the family at the Hall these people have a mighty fine home and nothing to do.'
'That is true.'
'Did Barrymore profit at all by Lady Charlotte's will?' asked Holmes.
'She and her husband had five hundred pounds each.'
'Ha! Did they know that they would receive this?'
'Yes; Lady Charlotte was very fond of talking about the provisions of her will.'
'That is very interesting.'
'I hope,' said Dr. Mortimer, 'that you do not look with suspicious eyes upon everyone who received a legacy from Lady Charlotte, for I also had a thousand pounds left to me.'
'Indeed! And anyone else?'
'There were many insignificant sums to individuals, and a large number of public charities. The residue all went to Lady Henrietta.'
'And how much was the residue?'
'Seven hundred and forty thousand pounds.'
Holmes raised her eyebrows in surprise. 'I had no idea that so gigantic a sum was involved,' said she.
'Sir Charlotte had the reputation of being rich, but we did not know how very rich she was until we came to examine her securities. The total value of the estate was close on to a million.'
'De
ar me! It is a stake for which a woman might well play a desperate game. And one more question, Dr. Mortimer. Supposing that anything happened to our young friend here--you will forgive the unpleasant hypothesis!--who would inherit the estate?'
'Since Rodericka Baskerville, Lady Charlotte's younger sister died unmarried, the estate would descend to the Desmonds, who are distant cousins. Jamie Desmond is an elderly clergyman in Westmoreland.'
'Thank you. These details are all of great interest. Have you met Ms. Jamie Desmond?'
'Yes; she once came down to visit Lady Charlotte. She is a woman of venerable appearance and of saintly life. I remember that she refused to accept any settlement from Lady Charlotte, though she pressed it upon her.'
'And this woman of simple tastes would be the heir to Lady Charlotte's thousands.'
'She would be the heir to the estate because that is entailed. She would also be the heir to the money unless it were willed otherwise by the present owner, who can, of course, do what she likes with it.'
'And have you made your will, Lady Henrietta?'
'No, Ms. Holmes, I have not. I've had no time, for it was only yesterday that I learned how matters stood. But in any case I feel that the money should go with the title and estate. That was my poor uncle's idea. How is the owner going to restore the glories of the Baskervilles if she has not money enough to keep up the property? House, land, and dollars must go together.'
'Quite so. Well, Lady Henrietta, I am of one mind with you as to the advisability of your going down to Devonshire without delay. There is only one provision which I must make. You certainly must not go alone.'
'Dr. Mortimer returns with me.'
'But Dr. Mortimer has her practice to attend to, and her house is miles away from yours. With all the good will in the world she may be unable to help you. No, Lady Henrietta, you must take with you someone, a trusty woman, who will be always by your side.'
'Is it possible that you could come yourself, Ms. Holmes?'
'If matters came to a crisis I should endeavour to be present in person; but you can understand that, with my extensive consulting practice and with the constant appeals which reach me from many quarters, it is impossible for me to be absent from London for an indefinite time. At the present instant one of the most revered names in England is being besmirched by a blackmailer, and only I can stop a disastrous scandal. You will see how impossible it is for me to go to Dartmoor.'
'Whom would you recommend, then?'