l, is to be tied to roaring jack
woodley for life?"
"you need not concern yourself about that," said holmes.
"there are two very good reasons why she should under no
circumstances be his wife. in the first place, we are very
safe in questioning mr. williamson's right to solemnize a
marriage."
"i have been ordained," cried the old rascal.
"and also unfrocked."
"once a clergyman, always a clergyman."
"i think not. how about the license?"
"we had a license for the marriage. i have it here in my
pocket."
"then you got it by a trick. but in any case a forced
marriage is no marriage, but it is a very serious felony,
as you will discover before you have finished. you'll have
time to think the point out during the next ten years or
so, unless i am mistaken. as to you, carruthers, you would
have done better to keep your pistol in your pocket."
"i begin to think so, mr. holmes; but when i thought of all
the precaution i had taken to shield this girl -- for i
loved her, mr. holmes, and it is the only time that ever i
knew what love was -- it fairly drove me mad to think that
she was in the power of the greatest brute and bully in
south africa, a man whose name is a holy terror from
kimberley to johannesburg. why, mr. holmes, you'll hardly
believe it, but ever since that girl has been in my
employment i never once let her go past this house, where i
knew these rascals were lurking, without following her on
my bicycle just to see that she came to no harm. i kept my
distance from her, and i wore a beard so that she should
not recognise me, for she is a good and high-spirited girl,
and she wouldn't have stayed in my employment long if she
had thought that i was following her about the country
roads."
"why didn't you tell her of her danger?"
"because then, again, she would have left me, and i
couldn't bear to face that. even if she couldn't love me
it was a great deal to me just to see her dainty form about
the house, and to hear the sound of her voice."
"well," said i, "you call that love, mr. carruthers, but i
should call it selfishness."
"maybe the two things go together. anyhow, i couldn't let
her go. besides, with this crowd about, it was well that
she should have someone near to look after her. then when
the cable came i knew they were bound to make a move."
"what cable?"
carruthers took a telegram from his pocket.
"that's it," said he.
it was short and concise:--
"the old man is dead."
"hum!" said holmes. "i think i see how things worked, and
i can understand how this message would, as you say, bring
them to a head. but while we wait you might tell me what
you can."
the old reprobate with the surplice burst into a volley of
bad language.
"by heaven," said he, "if you squeal on us, bob carruthers,
i'll serve you as you served jack woodley. you can bleat
about the girl to your heart's content, for that's your own
affair, but if you round on your pals to this plain-clothes
copper it will be the worst day's work that ever you did."
"your reverence need not be excited," said holmes, lighting
a cigarette. "the case is clear enough against you, and
all i ask is a few details for my private curiosity.
however, if there's any difficulty in your telling me i'll
do the talking, and then you will see how far you have a
chance of holding back your secrets. in the first place,
three of you came from south africa on this game -- you
williamson, you carruthers, and woodley."
"lie number one," said the old man; "i never saw either of
them until two months ago, and i have never been in africa
in my life, so you can put that in your pipe and smoke it,
mr. busybody holmes!"
"what he says is true," said carruthers.
"well, well, two of you came over. his reverence is our
own home-made article. you had known ralph smith in south
africa. you had reason to believe he would not live long.
you found out that his niece would inherit his fortune.
how's that -- eh?"
carruthers nodded and williamson swore.
"she was next-of-kin, no doubt, and you were aware that the
old fellow would make no will."
"couldn't read or write," said carruthers.
"so you came over, the two of you, and hunted up the girl.
the idea was that one of you was to marry her and the other
have a share of the plunder. for some reason woodley was
chosen as the husband. why was that?"
"we played cards for her on the voyage. he won."
"i see. you got the young lady into your service, and
there woodley was to do the courting. she recognised the
drunken brute that he was, and would have nothing to do
with him. meanwhile, your arrangement was rather upset by
the fact that you had yourself fallen in love with the
lady. you could no longer bear the idea of this ruffian
owning her."
"no, by george, i couldn't!"
"there was a quarrel betwe
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