Sherlock Holmes at the Breakfast Table

by L. F. E. Coombs

  ‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘he went white and for a moment seemed to hesitate before telling me to show the visitor in.’

  ‘Did you see what name was on the card?’

  ‘There was no name, just a picture of a snake. Here’s the card.’ She handed Holmes a normal-size calling card.

  ‘There’s something I must tell you. Something he forbad me to mention to anyone. However, under the circumstances, I feel free to speak. You see, he was in fearful dread of serpents. Even a picture of one in a book would produce convulsions. He was going to move from here as soon as he could. He inherited the house from his father who died six months ago. He came to settle his father’s affairs. He told me he intended to leave as soon as he could and let his brother have the house.’

  ‘Why did he want to move?’ asked Holmes.

  ‘He did not like living close to the Great Heath because there’s so many vipers there and he feared that they might get into the house.’

  While Holmes was making a careful perusal of the room, the inspector asked the housekeeper if she could describe the visitor who had the left the card that had so agitated the missing scientist.

  ‘He was a gentleman.’

  ‘Yes, yes, but was he bearded or have any outstanding features?’

  ‘Not really, Inspector, just like others who visit Mr Woolnough. I mean did.’

  ‘What happened next?’ asked Holmes.

  ‘I was told to fetch the bag in which he had sufficient clothes always ready for when he was suddenly called to go to some works where they wanted help.’

  ‘So you were not surprised that he suddenly left with a stranger?’

  ‘No, not at all.’

  ‘Surely, Mrs Proud, he told you where he was going?’

  ‘Well, that’s the strange thing. Usually he always tells me where he is going. He seemed confused. It was the visitor who told me they were going to Newcastle. That’s where he often went. So at the time I was not surprised or even worried. It was only after three days and when I had not heard from him that I became concerned. I decided to telegraph the big shipyard company at Newcastle. They replied that he had not been there. They must have told someone in London about the master’s disappearance and that’s why I suppose you gentlemen are here today.’

  ‘Mrs Proud, your information is most helpful. Ah, I nearly forgot. Did you see what the unnamed visitor arrived in? Was it his own carriage?’

  ‘No, sir, it was one of the cabs from the station.’

  We then made our way to the station. One of the cabmen remembered taking someone to the house and then returning with him and Woolnough, who was well known to the cabmen. The booking office clerk also remembered seeing Woolnough with another man on that day. ‘They bought tickets for Summerfield, a station about ten miles down the line. No, they didn’t ask to be booked through to Newcastle.’

  We left Ashendon and returned to Baker Street to study the facts we had gathered and to consider where the scientist may have gone after arriving at Summerfield. Telegrams were sent to all the companies with whom Woolnough dealt. Their replies confirmed that none had been visited by him for at least three weeks. We had just decided that an entirely different approach had to be made when the morning papers carried the news that the body of Woolnough had been found less than half a mile from his house. The reports gave no indication of the cause of death other than it must have been from natural causes because there were no signs of foul play.

  Holmes telegraphed Ashendon and proposed that together we inspect the place where the body had been found. During our train journey down to Hampshire, Holmes explained to Ashendon that ‘the place where his body was found could provide clues to where he has been in the past two or three weeks’.

  ‘But he died from natural causes, Holmes. The police report I have received confirms that there are no signs of foul play. We may be wasting our time.’

  ‘Not at all. I should also like to examine the deceased’s clothing. Can that be arranged?’

  ‘The body and effects are in the mortuary at Winchester.’

  The lane where the body had been found was narrow and muddy and the wide grass verges suggested that at one time it had been part of a Roman road.

  Inspector Andrew led us toward a stile. ‘This is the step on this stile, Mr Holmes, where Mr Woolnough was found sitting, but dead. As you can see, his house is only about a quarter of a mile off. The postman, who uses this lane as a short way back to the town, said “good morning” as he passed. As the deceased, who knew him well, did not answer and was slumped forward, he went up to him to see if he needed help. The rest you know.’

  Requesting that we should not follow him, in order not to add more footprints, Holmes walked slowly along the lane toward the house with his head down, intent on the ground. At a gap in the hedge he walked across the field toward a line of Scots pines.

  When he came back to where we were waiting by the stile he said, ‘There are three items of immediate interest. Firstly, there are no recent wheel tracks of wagons or carriages in the lane. Secondly, there are the footmarks of two men, one of whom was walking backwards, which appear to lead from that gap in the hedgerow. And thirdly and most intriguing are the wheel marks of some vehicle that has come across the field as far as the gap in the hedge. It, apparently, could come no further because of the deep fosse. Watson, if you have your notebook I should be much obliged if you will make a sketch of the wheel tracks for me.’

  We went along the lane to the gap in the hedge and I made a drawing as best I could of the tracks that Holmes pointed out with his walking stick.

  ‘As you can see, gentlemen,’ said Holmes, ‘the wheels are unusually broad. They are very similar to those of the wagons or carts that plied the unpaved roads of the last century. Also, and most strange, are the ridges at intervals across the tracks. Inspector, I note that away across this field there is a distinctive change in the appearance of the countryside.’

  ‘Yes, Mr Holmes, that is the Great Heath. It stretches for over twenty miles from here and goes right over to Sablchester. The land is neither fit for crops or beasts. As the housekeeper mentioned, not many folks around here will venture on to it because of the snakes. They like the dry, sandy soil and some of them are deadly. There’s supposed to be more vipers here than in any other part of the kingdom.’

  At the station none of the railway men or the cabmen, who knew Woolnough well, recalled seeing him arrive by train and walk up the lane. At the mortuary the police surgeon was only able to give the cause of death as heart failure.

  ‘There were no marks or wounds on the body then?’ asked Holmes.

  ‘None. Would you like to see the body?’

  ‘No, thank you. However, I would like to examine his clothing.’

  Holmes made a careful scrutiny of the deceased’s clothes and in particular his boots. From the latter he took a sample of the dirt around the toe of each. Among the personal effects from the pockets was the return half of a ticket for Summerfield, the station some ten miles down the line from where Woolnough had last been seen.

  ‘Now why would he have an unused return half? See, it has not been clipped. Unless, of course, he did not go back home by train. I could find no footprints that indicated someone had earlier walked along the lane from the station.’

  ‘Do you think then, Holmes,’ said I, ‘that he was carried to the stile and left there to give the impression that he had collapsed as he walked home from the station? As you say, there are sets of footprints that may indicate that he was carried by two men from that gap in the hedge, where you asked me to make the drawing of the tracks of a cart or wagon.’

  ‘That, Watson, appears to be what most likely happened. He was carried in a vehicle of some sort as far as the fosse.’

  ‘Holmes, if that is what happened then should we trace those tracks back to their starting point?’ said Ashendon.

  ‘That would obviously be the next step. Unfortunately, as I discovered, once the wheel tracks
passed onto the sandy soil they could no longer be followed.’

  ‘Why? Surely, Holmes, sandy soil accepts and retains tracks and footprints as well as wet soil?’ said I.

  ‘Indeed, Watson. However, it is possible that wind and rain may have obliterated any tracks. We are now forced into finding another way of tracing the place at which the vehicle started, carrying, as I am certain, Woolnough. Although whether he was alive or dead at the time is another unanswered question. You will recall that he and the stranger left the house in a station cab and, when questioned, the cabman and booking clerk remembered that they had caught a down train. What we need to do is to make a fresh start by going to Summerfield, the station named on the return ticket found in Woolnough’s pocket. In the meantime I’ll return to Baker Street to consider the clues we have gathered so far. Ashendon, I’ll telegraph you when we are ready to pick up the trail again.’

  Part Three

  The sounds of snow

  I suppose the activity in a street is one of those background sounds to which we become so accustomed that only when it suddenly stops do we realize that it has been there all the time. Holmes and I had been so absorbed in the Woolnough case that it was not until Mrs Hudson entered the room and said that there had been a heavy fall of snow did we realize that the usual rattle and rumble of cabs, carriages and wagons in Baker Street had been deadened.

  After luncheon Holmes, who was standing at the window, said, ‘Watson, have you the drawing you made of those vehicle tracks?’

  I found the drawing and gave it to him.

  ‘As I thought. Look, you see those tracks being made by that horseless carriage down there? See, it is backing out of the mews. The tracks in the snow are the same as in your drawing.’

  ‘Of course, you are right, Holmes. Woolnough was more than likely carried across the heath and as far as the side of the lane in a vehicle having a similar arrangement of wheels.’

  ‘Therefore, we now have two important facts to consider in this case. An engine, similar to the one in that carriage now leaving a cloud of steam up Baker Street, and an unusual four-wheeled machine. They may be connected. This suggests that Woolnough was willingly or, more than likely, unwillingly involved with a steam driven carriage. Now the question that remains is why was it equipped with very large broad wheels?’

  In response to a telegram, Ashendon joined us at Waterloo station and once more we travelled down to Hampshire. I confess that, as we stood on the platform at Summerfield, I had no idea what we were looking for. I wondered if the others had reached any conclusions.

  Ashendon broke our silence by saying, ‘Can we assume that Woolnough may have gone with the stranger to a house or farm somewhere on the edge of the Great Heath?’

  ‘An excellent suggestion, Ashendon,’ answered Holmes. ‘Let us study your map Watson. It may give an indication of where we should look.’

  The map showed that there were only a few villages on the edge of the heath that were within a mile or two.

  ‘I am of the opinion, gentlemen,’ said Holmes, ‘that had the mysterious vehicle started any further away then Woolnough would have been taken by a different route. For example, by a stopping train going up to London and alighting at a station close to the northern side of the heath.’

  ‘An acceptable conclusion, Holmes,’ said Ashendon. ‘Perhaps we should visit the local agent who deals with property in this area. We could pretend to be interested in buying a house so as not to draw attention to our quest?’

  ‘I agree. We could assume the disguise of a committee looking for a large house and grounds in which to establish a sanatorium,’ said Holmes.

  We visited two agents and explained that we were looking for a large house with spacious grounds that would be suitable for our purpose. We emphasized that the health of the residents would benefit if they were on or close to heath land. Three properties were recommended to us. We declined an offer to have a visit arranged to each of them because, as we explained, we did not want to alert the neighbourhood of our intention, and thus be forced to pay more than was necessary. Therefore, we would, for the time being, just survey them from the outside.

  Armed with details and the locations, we hired a horse and trap and surreptitiously studied the three properties from a distance. Each looked like any other private dwelling. Two appeared to be unoccupied and in a state of disrepair.

  ‘There is a possibility,’ said Holmes, ‘that Woolnough was in one of these three houses at some time, and that he was then taken by the vehicle whose tracks we investigated across the heath to within a short distance from his home.’

  ‘I cannot understand why you have reached such a conclusion.’ I said. ‘You have always been most insistent that one should not try and make the facts fit the anticipated or wished-for result.’

  ‘You are quite right, Watson. I have to confess that I am making an exception to my own rules because, at this moment, I have absolutely no clear idea of what we are looking for, or even of how to proceed further.’

  Such an admission on the part of Holmes was unexpected. However, his doubts and those of Ashendon and myself were dispelled somewhat when we observed the largest of the three houses, which did appear occupied. It had an unusual number of crude extensions and in a secluded part of the grounds was a large barn-like edifice partly hidden by shrubs and trees.

  ‘Those sheds are out of character, I would say,’ said Ashendon. ‘There’s no sign of any animals that would indicate that this is a farm.’

  ‘The largest of the unusual buildings is, I suggest, the first one we should try and penetrate,’ said Holmes. ‘However, I am still questioning why the tracks of the strange vehicle are so broad and why they are so difficult to follow. If, as I conjecture, this is its lair, then we should find its tracks nearby.’

  We then made our way through the garden of one of the unoccupied houses and approached the grounds at the back of the house that appeared to be occupied. We kept as far as possible behind trees and shrubs so as not to be seen. Holmes examined the sandy soil at the boundary of the heath. ‘As I anticipated, there are traces of wheel tracks leading from the heath and they are similar to those we saw in the lane where the body was found.’

  ‘I recommend that we return after dark,’ advised Ashendon. ‘We do not want to attract too much attention. Otherwise those who abducted Woolnough will be warned that they are being watched. It is most important that we find out who they are and what they are doing before any direct action to apprehend them is attempted.’

  Part Four

  A charmed snake

  That night we returned to the suspect house and its unusual outbuildings. As we stood close to the barn-like structure, we became aware that someone was approaching. We quietly slipped back out of sight and watched. Whoever it was stopped in front of the barn, stood still, and gazed across the heath. After a few minutes he turned to the doors of the barn and swung them wide open. As far as we could see there was nothing of interest inside. He then continued to look out across the heath.

  Holmes gripped my arm and whispered, ‘Listen, can you hear a strange whistling and rumbling? It’s getting louder. It’s coming from the heath.’

  I did and nodded my head. Ashendon indicated that he also could hear it.

  The sound increased and then to my astonishment an apparition loomed out of the darkness. It resembled an upturned boat. There was a large gun barrel pointing forward and on top of the hull a cupola from which projected the barrels of a Gatling gun. Underneath were very large and broad wheels. Low down at the front was the menacing shape of a pointed ram. It slowed down as it came closer and I could see that the wheels at the front were swivelling and guiding the machine into the barn. It passed within a few feet of where we stood behind the bushes. I felt the intense heat that radiated from it. As it moved, it made a sound similar to that of the engine of a steam ship. I smelt hot oil and metal. Once it was in the barn the doors swung to and were closed behind it.

  Keeping m
y voice low, I said, ‘Those wheels at the front turned after the manner of the Ackermann steering on horseless carriages.’

  After waiting to make sure that all activity in and around the barn had ceased, we started to explore. We managed to find a way into one of the sheds. Once inside and, by the light from my dark lantern, we could see that there were many pieces of complicated machinery. ‘These are lathes, if I am not mistaken,’ whispered Ashendon. All around were many cylindrical objects and numerous pipes.

  The sudden very loud shout shattered the silence.

  ‘Stop! We have guns and we will shoot if we have to. Keep absolutely still. Secure them hand and foot.’

  We were, as directed, bound hand and foot by unseen persons.

  A voice then said, ‘Sherlock Holmes, I have been expecting you. What took you so long to find me?’

  Out of the dark came Holmes’ reply: ‘You have the advantage, sir. Have we at some time been introduced?’

  ‘Indeed we have. Five years ago, before I became detained for an indefinite period at Her Majesty’s pleasure, our paths crossed on the road to Epping Forest. You had the advantage then. Now I have the advantage.’

  ‘Lempschone, of course. The villain who cold-bloodedly shot and wounded two police officers. Thanks to a soft-hearted judge you avoided the hangman’s noose and later escaped from the Moor.’

  ‘I am sure you now expect me to exact revenge on you and your companions. You would be right. However, first I need to know how you found me and how much you have learned about this place. I expected that Doctor Watson would be with you but I must know the identity of the third member of this gang of midnight burglars. You realize that I would be justified in shooting all three of you on the grounds that I was defending my property and, of course, had no idea who you were. However, that would be such a crude ending to your adventure. Fortunately, I have the means of eliminating you without leaving any clues. However, before taking that step, I am certain I shall be able to force you to divulge how much has been determined about my recent activities.’