Table Of Content

SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE THE RED CIRCLE 1 “Well, Mrs Warren, I am sorry I cannot help you. I really have other things to do,” said Sherlock Holmes. But Mrs Warren would not give up. “You helped a lodger of mine last year,” she said - “Mr Fairdale Hobbs.” “Ah, yes - an easy matter.” “But he always talked about how kind you were, sir, and how you helped him at a difficult time. I remembered his words when I was troubled myself. I know you can help if only you want to.” “Well, well, Mrs Warren,” said Holmes and pushed back his chair, “let us hear about it, then. May I smoke? Thank you, Watson - the matches! Your new lodger remains in his rooms, I understand. You are troubled be cause you never see him. My dear Mrs War ren, I’m sure there is nothing strange in that.” “But it frightens me Mr Holmes. I am so frightened that I cannot sleep. I hear his quick lodger, one who pays for a room in another’s house. smoke, see picture page 4. matches, see picture page 4. frighten, to make afraid. quick, fast-moving. 3 Sherlock Holmes smokes match step from early morning to late at night. But I never see him. That is more than I can bear. My husband is also troubled about it. But he is at work all day, while I get no rest from it. What is he hiding for? What has he done? The husband, the man a woman is married to. hide, here, to stay in a place where nobody can see you. 4 girl and I are all alone in the house with him. And that is more than I can bear.” Holmes put his hand on the woman’s arm. The frightened look left her eyes. She sat down in a chair. “If I take up the matter I must know every little thing,” he said. “Take time to consider. The smallest point may be the most impor tant. You say that the man came ten days ago, and paid you for a fortnight?” “He asked me how much I wanted. I said two pounds a week. There is a small sitting- room and bedroom at the top of the house.” “Well?” “He said, ‘I’ll pay you five pounds a week if I can have it on my own terms! I’m a poor woman, sir, and Mr Warren doesn’t make much money. The money meant a lot to me. The man took out a ten-pound note, and he held it out to me there and then and said, ‘You can have the same every fortnight for a long time to come if you keep the terms,’ he said. ‘If not, I’ll have no more to do with you.’” “What were the terms?” “Well, sir, he wanted a key to the house. fortnight, two weeks. term, condition. 5 That was all right. Lodgers often have them. Also, that we should leave him to himself, and never, ever disturb him.” “Nothing strange about that, I’m sure,” said Holmes. “No sir. But t h i s is strange. He has been there for ten days and none of us have seen him once. We can always hear that quick step of his. He walks up and down, up and down, night and day. He only went out of the house on that first night.” “Oh, he went out the first night, did he?” “Yes, sir, and returned very late - after we were all in bed. He told me that he would do so.” “But his meals?” “We leave his meals on a chair, outside the door, when he rings. That is what he told us to do. He rings again when he has finished. Then we take it down from the same chair. If he wants anything else he prints it on a piece of paper and leaves it on the chair.” “Prints it?” “Yes, sir, just the word, nothing more. disturb, to break up the peace of (somebody); to trouble. mealy the food taken at one time, such as breakfast. finish, to end. print, here, to write in LARGE letters. 6 a piece of paper Here’s one I brought to show you - MATCH. This is one he left the first morning - DAILY GAZETTE*. I leave the newspaper with his breakfast every morning.” Mrs. Warren handed Holmes the paper. “Dear me, Watson,” said Holmes, “this is cer tainly a little strange. I can understand your lodger wants to be left alone; but why print? It is easier and quicker to write. What do you think, Watson?” “That he doesn’t want Mrs Warren to see his handwriting.” “But why not? Still, it may be as you say. Then, again, why such short notes?” “I don’t know why.” “Now, Mrs Warren,” continued Holmes, “you say that the man was of middle size, dark, * London newspaper handwriting, writing by hand. of middle size, not tall, not short. 7 and with a beard. How old is he, do you think?” “Rather young, sir - not over thirty.” “Well, can you tell me more about him?” “He spoke good English, sir. Yet I’m sure he wasn’t English.” “And he was well dressed?” “Yes, sir, very well dressed. Dark clothes - nothing you would notice.” “He gave no name?” “No, sir.” “And has had no letters?” “No, sir.” “And nobody has come to see him?” “Nobody.” “But don’t you or the girl enter his room some time in the morning?” “No, sir; he looks after himself.” “Dear me! That certainly is remarkable. remarkable, strange; that you should notice. What about his luggage?” “He had one big brown bag with him - nothing else.” “Well, we need a few more facts to help us. Do you say nothing has come out of that room - nothing at all?” Mrs Warren took something from her bag and put it on the table. It was two burnt matches and a cigarette-end. “They were on his tray this morning. Here they are. I know that you can read great things out of small ones.” Holmes looked at them. “There is nothing there,” he said. “He has of course used the matches to light the ciga rettes. That you can see because the burnt end of the matches is so short. But, dear me! this cigarette-end certainly is remarkable. The man had a beard, you say?” “Yes, sir.” “I don’t understand that. How can a man with a beard smoke a cigarette that way? If he cigarette luggage, bags, boxes etc. used for travel. 9 does, it will bum his beard. The end is too short. Perhaps there are two persons in your rooms, Mrs Warren?” “No, sir. He eats very little. I often think it’s not enough for even one person.” “Well, I think we must wait for a few more facts. After all, you have received your rent. He hasn’t given you any trouble, though he certainly is strange. He pays you well. If he wants to hide it is no business of yours. We have no real reason to disturb him. I’ve taken up the matter, and I will keep it in mind. Report to me if anything new happens. I will help you if you need it. You can be sure of that.” “There certainly are some points of interest in this case, Watson,” said Holmes, after Mrs Warren had left us. “The person in the rooms now is probably not the one who rented them.” “Why do you think so?” “Well, first of all there is the cigarette-end. Then the fact that the lodger went out only once. And that was right after he had rented the rooms. He came back - or someone came rent, the mohey you pay for the use of a house, room etc. to rent, to pay for the use of something, a room, a house or the like. 10