untry that i passed over to-night is as flat and
clean as the palm of your hand, and the man we are
following is no fool, as he very clearly showed
to-night. i have wired to overton to let us know any
fresh london developments at this address, and in the
meantime we can only concentrate our attention upon
dr. armstrong, whose name the obliging young lady at
the office allowed me to read upon the counterfoil of
staunton's urgent message. he knows where the young
man is -- to that i'll swear -- and if he knows, then
it must be our own fault if we cannot manage to know
also. at present it must be admitted that the odd
trick is in his possession, and, as you are aware,
watson, it is not my habit to leave the game in that
condition."
and yet the next day brought us no nearer to the
solution of the mystery. a note was handed in after
breakfast, which holmes passed across to me with a smile.
"sir," it ran, "i can assure you that you are wasting
your time in dogging my movements. i have, as you
discovered last night, a window at the back of my
brougham, and if you desire a twenty-mile ride which
will lead you to the spot from which you started, you
have only to follow me. meanwhile, i can inform you
that no spying upon me can in any way help mr. godfrey
staunton, and i am convinced that the best service you
can do to that gentleman is to return at once to
london and to report to your employer that you are
unable to trace him. your time in cambridge will
certainly be wasted.
"yours faithfully,
"leslie armstrong."
"an outspoken, honest antagonist is the doctor," said
holmes. "well, well, he excites my curiosity, and i
must really know more before i leave him."
"his carriage is at his door now," said i. "there he
is stepping into it. i saw him glance up at our
window as he did so. suppose i try my luck upon the
bicycle?"
"no, no, my dear watson! with all respect for your
natural acumen i do not think that you are quite a
match for the worthy doctor. i think that possibly i
can attain our end by some independent explorations of
my own. i am afraid that i must leave you to your own
devices, as the appearance of _two_ inquiring
strangers upon a sleepy countryside might excite more
gossip than i care for. no doubt you will find some
sights to amuse you in this venerable city, and i hope
to bring back a more favourable report to you before
evening."
once more, however, my friend was destined to be
disappointed. he came back at night weary and
unsuccessful.
"i have had a blank day, watson. having got the
doctor's general direction, i spent the day in
visiting all the villages upon that side of cambridge,
and comparing notes with publicans and other local
news agencies. i have covered some ground:
chesterton, histon, waterbeach, and oakington have
each been explored and have each proved disappointing.
the daily appearance of a brougham and pair could
hardly have been overlooked in such sleepy hollows.
the doctor has scored once more. is there a telegram
for me?"
"yes; i opened it. here it is: 'ask for pompey from
jeremy dixon, trinity college.' i don't understand
it."
"oh, it is clear enough. it is from our friend
overton, and is in answer to a question from me.
i'll just send round a note to mr. jeremy dixon,
and then i have no doubt that our luck will turn.
by the way, is there any news of the match?"
"yes, the local evening paper has an excellent account
in its last edition. oxford won by a goal and two
tries. the last sentences of the description say:
'the defeat of the light blues may be entirely
attributed to the unfortunate absence of the crack
international, godfrey staunton, whose want was felt
at every instant of the game. the lack of combination
in the three-quarter line and their weakness both in
attack and defence more than neutralized the efforts
of a heavy and hard-working pack.'"
"then our friend overton's forebodings have been
justified," said holmes. "personally i am in
agreement with dr. armstrong, and football does not
come within my horizon. early to bed to-night,
watson, for i foresee that to-morrow may be an
eventful day."
i was horrified by my first glimpse of holmes next
morning, for he sat by the fire holding his tiny
hypodermic syringe. i associated that instrument with
the single weakness of his nature, and i feared the
worst when i saw it glittering in his hand. he
laughed at my expression of dismay, and laid it upon
the table.
"no, no, my dear fellow, there is no cause for alarm.
it is not upon this occasion the instrument of evil,
but it will rather prove to be the key which will
unlock our mystery. on this syringe i base all my
hopes. i have just returned from a small scouting
expedition and everything is favou
本文链接:
http://m.picdg.com/38_38018/5748830.html