The Adventure of the Abbey Grange by Arthur Conan Doyle Part 1 of Stories of Troubled Marriages

None

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Section four of Stories of Troubled Marriages. This is a
LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or a volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Recording by Lynn Thompson Stories of Troubled Marriages, Section four.

(00:22):
The Adventure of the Abbey Grange by Arthur Conan Doyle,
Part one. It was on a bitterly cold night and
frosty morning, towards the end of the winter of ninety seven,
that I was awakened by a tugging at my shoulder.
It was Holmes, the candle in his hand, shone upon
his eager, stooping face and told me at a glance

(00:43):
that something was amiss. Come Watson, Come, he cried, The
game is afoot. Not a word into your clothes, and come.
Ten minutes later we were both in a cab and
rattling through the silent streets on our way to Charing
Cross Station. The first faint winter's dawn was beginning to appear,
and we could dimly see the occasional figure of an

(01:04):
early workman as he passed us, blurred and indistinct in
the opalescent London Reek. Holmes nestled in silence into his
heavy coat, and I was glad to do the same,
for the air was most bitter, and neither of us
had broken our fast. It was not until we had
consumed some hot tea at the station and taken our

(01:25):
places in the Kentish train that we were sufficiently thawed.
He to speak and I to listen. Holmes drew a
note from his pocket and read aloud Abbey Grange, Marsham, Kent,
three thirty a m. My dear mister Holmes, I shall
be very glad of your immediate assistance in what promised

(01:45):
it to be a most remarkable case. It is something
quite in your line, except for releasing the lady. I
will see that everything is kept exactly as I found it,
But I beg you not to lose an instant, as
it is difficult to leave Sir Eustace there yours faithfully,
Stanley Hopkins. Hopkins has called me in seven times, and

(02:06):
on each occasion his summons has been entirely justified, said Holmes.
I fancy that every one of his cases has found
its way into your collection. And I must admit, Watson,
that you have some power of selection, which atones for
much which I deplore in your narratives. Your fatal habit
of looking at everything from the point of view of

(02:26):
a story instead of as a scientific exercise, has ruined
what might have been an instructive and even classical series
of demonstrations. You slur over work of the utmost finesse
and delicacy in order to dwell upon sensational details which
maykecite but cannot possibly instruct the reader. Why do you

(02:47):
not write them yourself? I said, with some bitterness, I will,
my dear Watson. I will. At present I am, as
you know, fairly busy, but I propose to devote my
declining years to the composition of a text book which
shall focus the whole art of detection into one volume.
Our present research appears to be a case of murder.

(03:07):
You think this so Eustass is dead, then I should
say so. Hopkins's writing shows considerable agitation, and he is
not an emotional man. Yes, I gather there has been violence,
and that the body is left for our inspection. A
mere suicide would not have caused him to send for me.
As to the release of the lady, it would appear

(03:29):
that she has been locked in her room during the tragedy.
We are moving in high life. Watson crackling paper e
B monogram, coat of arms, picturesque address. I think that
friend Hopkins will live up to his reputation, and that
we shall have an interesting morning. The crime was committed
before twelve last night, How can you possibly tell? By

(03:52):
an inspection of the trains and by reckoning the time
the local police had to be called in. They had
to communicate with Scotland. Jarred Hopkins had to go out,
and he in turn had to send for me. All
that makes a fair night's work. Well, here we are
at Chiselhurst station, and we shall soon set our doubts
at rest. A drive of a couple of miles through

(04:15):
narrow country lanes brought us to a park gate, which
was opened for us by an old lodge keeper, whose
haggard face bore the reflection of some great disaster. The
avenue ran through a noble park, between lines of ancient elms,
and ended in a low, widespread house pillared in front
after the fashion of pilladio. The central part was evidently

(04:38):
of a great age, enshrouded in ivy, but the large
windows showed that modern changes had been carried out, and
one wing of the house appeared to be entirely new.
The youthful figure, an alert, eager face of Inspector Stanley Hopkins,
confronted us in the open doorway. I'm very glad you've come,

(04:58):
mister Holmes, and you true doctor Watson. But indeed, if
I had my time over again, I should not have
troubled you. For since the lady has come to herself,
she has given so clear an account of the affair
that there is not much left for us to do.
You remember that Lewisham gang of burglars. What the three
Randalls exactly, the father and two sons. It's their work,

(05:20):
I have no doubt of it. They did a job
at Sydenham a fortnight ago and was seen and described
rather cool to do another so soon and so near.
But it is they, beyond all doubt. It's a hanging
matter this time. Sir Eustace is dead. Then, yes, his
head was knocked in with his own poker. Sir Eustas Brackenstall,

(05:43):
the driver tells me exactly one of the richest men
in Kent. Lady Brackenstall is in the morning room. Poor lady,
she has had a most dreadful experience. She seemed half
dead when I saw her first. I think you had
best see her and hear her account of the fats.
Then we will examine the dining room together. Lady Brackenstall

(06:04):
was no ordinary person. Seldom have I seen so graceful
a figure, so womanly a presence, and so beautiful a face.
She was a blonde, golden haired, blue eyed, and would
no doubt have been the perfect complexion which goes with
such colouring, had not her experience left her drawn and haggard.

(06:25):
Her sufferings were physical as well as mental. For over
one eye rose a hideous, plum colored swelling, which her maid,
a tall, austere woman, was bathing assiduously with vinegar and water.
The lady lay back, exhausted upon a couch, but her quick,
observant gaze as we entered the room, and the alert
expression of her beautiful features, showed that neither her wits

(06:48):
nor her courage had been shaken by her terrible experience.
She was enveloped in a loose dressing gown of blue
and silver, but a black sequin covered dinner dress lay
upon the couch beside her. Her I have told you
all that happened, mister Hopkins, she said wearily. Could you
not repeat it for me? Well, if you think it necessary,

(07:09):
I will tell these gentlemen what occurred. Have they been
in the dining room yet? I thought they had better
hear your ladyship's story first. I shall be glad when
you can arrange matters. It is horrible to me to
think of him still lying there. She shuddered and buried
her face in her hands. As she did so, the

(07:30):
loose gown fell back from her forearms. Holmes uttered an exclamation,
you have other injuries, madam? What is this? Two vivid
red spots stood out on one of the white round limbs.
She hastily covered it. It is nothing. It has no
connection with this hideous business to night. If you and

(07:50):
your friend will sit down, I will tell you all
I can. I am the wife of Sir Eustace Brackenstaal.
I have been married about a year. I suppose that
it is no use my attempting to conceal that our
marriage has not been a happy one. I fear that
all our neighbors would tell you that even if I
were to attempt to deny it, perhaps the fault may

(08:12):
be partly mine. I was brought up in the freer,
less conventional atmosphere of South Australia, and this English life,
with its proprieties and its primness, is not congenial to me.
But the main reason lies in the one fact which
she is notorious to everyone, and that is that Sir
Eustace is a confirmed drunkard. To be with such a

(08:33):
man for an hour is unpleasant. Can you imagine what
it means for a sensitive and high spirited woman to
be tied to him for day and night. It is
a sacrilege, a crime, a villainy to hold that such
a marriage is binding. I say that these monstrous laws
of yours will bring a curse upon the land. God
will not let such wickedness endure. For an instance, She

(08:57):
sat up, her cheeks flushed, her eyes blazing from under
the terrible mark upon her brow. Then the strong soothing
hand of the austere maid drew her head down on
to the cushion, and the wild anger died away into
passionate sobbing. At last, she continued, I will tell you
about last night. You are aware, perhaps that in this house,

(09:21):
or the servants sleep in the modern wing, this central
block is made up of the dwelling rooms, with the
kitchen behind and our bedroom above. My maid, Teresa, sleeps
above my room. There is no one else, and no
sound could alarm those who are in the father wing.
This must have been well known to the robbers, or
they would not have acted as they did. Sir Eustace

(09:44):
retired about half past ten. The servants had already gone
to their quarters. Only my maid was up, and she
had remained in her room at the top of the
house until I needed her services. I sat until after
eleven in this room, absorbed in a book. Then I
walked round to see that all was right before I
went upstairs. It was my custom to do this myself, for,

(10:07):
as I have explained, Sir Eustace was not always to
be trusted. I went into the kitchen, the butler's pantry,
the gun room, the billiard room, the drawing room, and
finally the dining room. As I approached the window, which
is covered with thick curtains, I suddenly felt the wind
blow upon my face and realize that it was open.

(10:28):
I flung the curtain aside and found myself face to
face with a broad shouldered, elderly man who had just
stepped into the room. The window is a long French
one which really forms a door leading to the lawn.
I held my bedroom candle lit in my hand, and
by its light behind the first man, I saw two

(10:48):
others who were in the act of entering. I stepped back,
but the fellow was on me in an instant. He
caught me first by the wrist and then by the throat.
I opened my mouth to scream, but he struck me
a savage blow with his fist over the eye and
felled me to the ground. I must have been unconscious
for a few minutes, for when I came to myself,

(11:10):
I found that they had torn down the bell rope
and had secured me tightly to the oaken chair, which
stands at the head of the dining table. I was
so firmly bound that I could not move, and the
handkerchief round my mouth prevented me from uttering a sound.
It was at this instant that my unfortunate husband entered
the room. He had evidently heard some suspicious sound, and

(11:33):
he came prepared for such a scene as he found.
He was dressed in night shirt and trousers, with his
favorite blackthorn cudgel in his hand. He rushed at the burglars,
but another, it was an elderly man, stooped, picked the
poker out of the grate and struck him a horrible blow.
As he passed. He fell with a groan and never

(11:54):
moved again. I fainted once more, but again it could
only have been for a very few minutes in which
I was insensible. When I opened my eyes, I found
that they had collected the silver from the sideboard, and
they had drawn a bottle of wine, which stood there.
Each of them had a glass in his hand. I
have already told you, have I not that one was

(12:16):
elderly with a beard, and the others young hairless lads.
They might have been a father and his two sons.
They talked together in whispers. Then they came over and
made sure that I was securely bound. Finally they withdrew,
closing the window after them. It was quite a quarter
of an hour before I got my mouth free. When

(12:37):
I did so, my screams brought the maid to my assistance.
The other servants were soon alarmed, and we sent for
the local police, who instantly communicated with London. That is
really all I can tell you gentlemen, and I trust
that it will not be necessary for me to go
over so painful a story again. Any questions, mister Holmes

(12:58):
asked Hopkins. I will not impose any further tax upon
Lady Brackenstall's patience and time, said Holmes. Before I go
into the dining room, I should like to hear your experience.
He looked at the maid. I saw the men before
ever they came into the house, said she. As I
sat by my bedroom window, I saw three men in

(13:18):
the moonlight down by the lodge gate yonder, but I
thought nothing of it at the time. It was more
than an hour after that I heard my mistress scream,
and down I ran to find her, poor lamb, just
as she says, and him on the floor, with his
blood and brains over the room. It was enough to
drive a woman out of her wits tied there and

(13:39):
her very dress spotted with him. But she never wanted courage,
did Miss Mary Fraser of Adelaide, And Lady Bracken's Stall
of abbe Grange hasn't learned new ways. You've questioned her
long enough, you gentlemen, and now she is coming to
her own room, just with her old Teresa to get
the rest that she badly needs. With the motherly tenderness,

(14:01):
the gaunt woman put her arm round her mistress and
led her from the room. She had been with her
all her life. Sirt Hopkins nursed her as a baby
and came with her to England when they first left
Australia eighteen months ago. Theresa Wright is her name, and
the kind of maid you don't pick up nowadays. This way,
mister Holmes, if you please. The keen interest had passed

(14:24):
out of Holmes's expressive face, and I knew that with
the mystery all the charm of the case had departed.
There still remained in arrest to be effected. But what
were these commonplace rogues that he should soil his hands
with them. An abstruse and learned specialist who finds that
he had been called in for a case of measles
would experience something of the annoyance which I read in

(14:45):
my friend's eyes. Yet the scene in the dining room
of the abbey Grange was sufficiently strange to arrest his
attention and to recall his waning interest. It was a
very large and high chamber, with carved oak ceiling of companeling,
and a fine array of deers heads and ancient weapons
around the walls. At the further end from the door

(15:07):
was the high French window of which we had heard.
Three smaller windows on the right hand side filled the
apartment with cold winter sunshine. On the left was a large,
deep fireplace with a massive overhanging oak mantelpiece. Beside the
fireplace was a heavy oaken chair with arms and crossbars

(15:28):
at the bottom. In and out through the open woodwork
was woven a crimson cord which was secured at each
side to the cross piece below. In releasing the lady,
the cord had been slipped off her, but the knots
with which it had been secured still remained. These details
only struck our attention afterwards, for our thoughts were entirely

(15:50):
absorbed by the terrible object which lay upon the tiger
skin hearth rug in front of the fire. It was
the body of a tall, well made man about forty
years of age. He lay upon his back, his face upturned,
with his white teeth grinning through his short black beard.
His two clenched hands were raised above his head, and

(16:11):
a heavy blackthorn stick lay across them. His dark handsome
aquiline features were convulsed into a spasm of vindictive hatred,
which had set his dead face in a terribly fiendish expression.
He had evidently been in his bed when the alarm
had broken out, for he wore a foppish embroidered night shirt,

(16:31):
and his bare feet projected from his trousers. His head
was horribly injured, and the whole room bore witness to
the savage ferocity of the blow which had struck him down.
Beside him lay the heavy poker, bent into a curve
by the concussion. Holmes examined both it and the indescribable
wreck which it had wrought. He must be a powerful man,

(16:56):
this elder Randal, he remarked, Yes, said Hopkins. I have
some record of the fellow, and he is a rough customer.
You should have no difficulty in getting him. Not the scientist.
We have been on the lookout for him, and there
was some idea that he had got away to America.
Now that we know that the ganger here, I don't
see how they can escape. We have the news at

(17:18):
every seaport already, and a reward will be offered before evening.
What beats me is how they could have done so
mad a thing. Knowing that the lady could describe them,
and that we could not fail to recognize the description exactly,
one would have expected that they would silence Lady Brackenstall
as well. They may not have realized I suggested that

(17:41):
she had recovered from her faint. That is likely enough.
If she seemed to be senseless, they would not take
her life. What about this poor fellow Hopkins. I seem
to have heard some queer stories about him. He was
a good hearted man when he was sober, but a
perfect fiend when he was drunk, or rather when he
half drunk, for he seldom really went the whole way.

(18:03):
The devil seemed to be in him at such times,
and he was capable of anything. From what I hear.
In spite of all his wealth and his title, he
very nearly came our way. Once or twice. There was
a scandal about his drenching a dog with petroleum and
setting it on fire, her Ladyship's dog, to make the
matter worse, and that was only hushed up with difficulty.

(18:24):
Then he threw a decanter at that maid, Theresa Wright.
There was trouble about that. On the whole and between
ourselves it will be a brighter house without him. What
are you looking at now? Holmes was down on his knees,
examining with great attention the knots upon the red cord
with which the lady had been secured. Then he carefully

(18:45):
scrutinized the broken and frayed end where it had snapped
off when the burglar had dragged it down. When this
was pulled down, the bell in the kitchen must have
rung loudly, he remarked. No one could hear it. The
kitchen stands right at the back of the house. How
did the burglar know no one would hear it? How
dared he pull at a bell rope in that reckless fashion? Exactly,

(19:08):
mister Holmes, Exactly, you put the very question which I
have asked myself again and again. There can be no
doubt that this fellow must have known the house and
its habits. He must have perfectly understood that the servants
would all be in bed at that comparatively early hour,
and that no one could possibly hear a bell ring
in the kitchen. Therefore, he must have been in close

(19:29):
league with one of the servants. Surely that is evident.
But there are eight servants, and all of good character,
other things being equal, said Holmes, one would suspect the
one or twose head the master threw a decanter, and
yet that would involve treachery towards the mistress, to whom
this woman seems devoted. Well, well, the point is a

(19:51):
minor one, and when you have Randal, you will probably
find no difficulty in securing his accomplice. The lady's story
certainly seems to be corroborate, if it needed corroboration, by
every detail which we see before us. He walked to
the French window and threw it open. There are no
signs here, but the ground is iron hard, and one
would not expect them. I see that these candles in

(20:15):
the mantelpiece have been lighted. Yes, it was by their
light and that of the lady's bedroom candle that the
burglars saw their way about. And what did they take? Well,
they did not take much, only half a dozen articles
of plate off the sideboard. Lady Brackenstall thinks that they
were themselves so disturbed by the death of Sir Eustace

(20:35):
that they did not ransack the house as they would
otherwise have done. No doubt that is true. And yet
they drank some wine I understand, to study their nerves exactly.
These three glasses upon the sideboard have been untouched, I
suppose yes, And the bottle stands as they left it.

(20:55):
Let us look at it. Hello, Hello, what is this?
The three glasses were grouped together, all of them tinged
with wine, and one of them containing some dregs of
beast swing. The bottle stood near them, two thirds full,
and beside it lay a long, deeply stained cork. Its
appearance and the dust upon the bottle showed that it

(21:16):
was no common vintage which the mergers had enjoyed. A
change had come over Holmes's manner. He had lost his
listless expression, and again I saw an alert light of
interest in his keen, deep set eyes. He raised the
cork and examined it minutely. How did they draw it?
He asked. Hopkins pointed to a half open drawer. In

(21:39):
it lay some table linen and a large corkscrew. Did
Lady Brackenstall say that screw was used? No? You remember
that she was senseless at the moment when the bottle
was opened. Quite so, As a matter of fact, the
screw was not used. This bottle was opened by a
pocket screw, probably contained in a knife, and not more

(21:59):
than an an inch and a half long. If you
will examine the top of the cork, you will observe
that the screw was driven in three times before the
cork was extracted. It has never been transfixed. This long
screw would have transfixed it and drawn it up with
a single pull. When you catch this fellow, you will
find that he has one of these multiplex knives in

(22:21):
his possession. Excellent, said Hopkins. But these glasses do puzzle me.
I confess Lady Brackenstall actually saw the three men drinking,
did she not? Yes, she was clear about that. Then
there is an end of it. What more is to
be said? And yet you must admit that the three
glasses are very remarkable, Hopkins. What you see nothing remarkable? Well, well,

(22:46):
let it pass. Perhaps when a man has special knowledge
and special powers like my own, it rather encourages him
to seek a complex explanation when a simpler one is
at hand. Of course, it must be a mere chance
about the glasses. Well, good morning, Hopkins. I don't see
that I can be of any use to you, And
you appear to have your case very clear. You'll let

(23:07):
me know when Randaler's arrested and any further developments which
may occur. I trust that I shall soon have to
congratulate you upon a successful conclusion. Come, Watson, I fancy
that we may employ ourselves more profitably at home. During
our return journey, I could see by Holmes's face that
he was much puzzled by something which he had observed.

(23:29):
Every now and then, by an effort, he would throw
off the impression and talk as if the matter were clear,
And then his doubts would settle down upon him again,
and his knitted brows and abstracted eyes would show that
his thoughts had gone back once more to the great
dining room of the abbey Grange, in which this midnight
tragedy had been enacted. At last, by a sudden impulse,

(23:50):
just as our train was crawling out of a suburban station,
he sprang on to the platform and pulled me out
after him. Excuse me, my dear fellow, said he, as
we watched the reared carriages of our train disappearing round
a curve. I'm sorry to make you the victim of
what may seem a mere whim, But on my life, Watson.
I simply can't leave that case in this condition. Every

(24:13):
instinct that I possess cries out against it. It's wrong,
It's all wrong. I swear that it's wrong. And yet
the lady's story was complete, the maid's corroboration was sufficient,
the detail was fairly exact. What have I to put
up against that three wineglasses? That is all? But if
I had not taken things for granted, if I had

(24:34):
examined everything with care which I should have shown, had
we approached the case de novo and had no cut
and dried story to walk my mind, should I not
then have found something more definite to go upon. Of
course I should sit down on this bench, Watson, until
a train for Chiselhurst arrives, and allow me to lay
the evidence before you. Imploring you, in the first instance,

(24:56):
DI dismiss from your mind the idea that anything which
the maid or her a mistress may have said must
necessarily be true. The lady's charming personality must not be
permitted to warp our judgment. Surely there are details in
her story which, if we looked at it in cold blood,
would excite our suspicion. These burglars made a considerable haul

(25:18):
at Sidnum a fortnight ago. Some account of their man
of their appearance was in the papers, and would naturally
occur to anyone who wished to invent a story in
which imaginary robbers should play a part. As a matter
of fact, burglars who have done a good stroke of
business are, as a rule, only too glad to enjoy
the proceeds in peace and quiet without embarking on another

(25:39):
perilous undertaking. Again, it is unusual for burglars to operate
at so early an hour. It is unusual for burglars
to strike a lady to prevent her screaming, since one
would imagine that was the sure way to make her scream.
It is unusual for them to commit murder when their
numbers are sufficient to overpower one. Anne. It is unusual

(26:01):
for them to be content with a limited plunder when
there was much more within their reach. And finally, I
should say that it was very unusual for such men
to leave a bottle half empty. How do all these
unusual strike you, Watson? Their cumulative effect is certainly considerable,
and yet each of them is quite possible in itself.

(26:24):
The most unusual thing of all, as it seems to me,
is that the lady should be tied to the chair. Well,
I am not so clear about that, Watson, for it
is evident that they must either kill her or else
secure her in such a way that she could not
give immediate notice of their escape. But at any rate
I have shown, have I not? That there is a
certain element of improbability about the lady's story? And now

(26:47):
on top of this comes the incident of the wineglasses.
What about the wine glasses? Can you see them in
your mind's eye? I see them clearly. We are told
that three men drank from them. Does that strike you
as likely? Why not? There was wine in each glass exactly,
But there was beeswing only in one glass. You must

(27:11):
have noticed that fact. What does that suggest to your mind?
The last glass filled would be the most likely to
contain beeswing? Not at all. The bottle was full of it.
And it is inconceivable that the first two glasses were
clear and the third heavily charged with it. There are
two possible explanations, and only two. One is that after

(27:32):
the second glass was filled, the bottle was violently agitated,
and so the third glass received the beeswing that does
not appear probable. No, no, I am sure that I
am right. What, then, do you suppose that only two
glasses were used, and that the dregs of both were
poured into a third glass, so as to give the
false impression that three people had been here. In that way,

(27:56):
all the beeswing would be in the last glass, would
it not. Yes, I am vince that this is so.
But if I have hit upon the true explanation of
this one small phenomenon, then in an instant the case
rises from the commonplace to the exceedingly remarkable. For it
can only mean that Lady Brackenstall and her maid have
deliberately lied to us, that not one word of their

(28:17):
story is to be believed, that they have some very
strong reason for covering the real criminal, and that we
must construct our case for ourselves without any help from them.
That is the mission which now lies before us. And here,
Watson is the sydnum train. End of Section four