September 18, 2025 • 23 mins
06 - Baskerville Hall. The Hound of The Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of the four crime novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a fearsome, diabolical hound of supernatural origin. Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson investigate the case. This was the first appearance of Holmes since his intended death in "The Final Problem", and the success of The Hound of the Baskervilles led to the character's eventual revival.
The Hound of the Baskervilles is the third of the four crime novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serialised in The Strand Magazine from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely on Dartmoor in Devon in England's West Country and tells the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a fearsome, diabolical hound of supernatural origin. Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson investigate the case. This was the first appearance of Holmes since his intended death in "The Final Problem", and the success of The Hound of the Baskervilles led to the character's eventual revival.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter six of The Hound of the Baskerville by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Read by Bob Newfeld, Chapter six Baskerville Hall, Sir Henry
(00:21):
Baskerville and Doctor Mortimer were ready upon the appointed day,
and we started as arranged for Devonshire. Mister Sherlock Holmbs
drove with me to the station and gave me his
last parting injunctions and advice. I will not buias your
mind by suggesting theories or suspicions, Watson said, he. I
(00:42):
wish you simply to report facts in the fullest possible
manner to me, and you can leave me to do
the theorizing. What sort of facts, I asked, anything which
will seem to have a bearing, however indirect upon the case,
and especially the religations between young Baskerville and his neighbors,
(01:03):
or any fresh particulars concerning the death of Sir Charles.
I have made some inquiries myself in the last few days,
but the results have, I fear been negative. One thing
only appears to be certain, and that is that mister
James Desmond, who is the next heir, is an elderly
gentleman of a very amiable disposition, so that this persecution
(01:27):
does not arise from him. I really think that we
may eliminate him entirely. From our calculations. There remain the
people who will actually surround Sir Henry Baskerville upon the moor.
Would it not be well in the first place to
get rid of this Barrymore couple by no means you
(01:48):
cannot make a greater mistake. If they are innocent, it
would be a cruel injustice. And if they are guilty,
we should be giving up all chance of bringing it
home to them. No know, we will preserve them upon
our list of suspects. Then there is a groom at
the hall. If I remember right, there are two Moorland farmers.
(02:11):
There is our friend, doctor Mortimer, whom I believe to
be entirely honest, and there is his wife, of whom
we know nothing. There is this naturalist Stapleton, and there
is his sister, who is said to be a young
lady of attractions. There is mister Franklin of Laughter Hall,
who was also an unknown factor. And there are one
(02:33):
or two other neighbors. These are the folk who must
be your very special study. I will do my best.
You have arms, I suppose yes, I thought it as
well to take them. Most certainly, keep your revolver near
you night and day, and never relax your precautions. Our
(02:58):
friends had already secured the first class carriage and were
waiting for us upon the platform. No, we have no
news of any kind, said doctor Mortimer, in answer to
my friend's questions. I can swear to one thing, and
that is that we have not been shadowed during the
last two days. We have never gone out without keeping
(03:20):
a sharp watch, and no one could have escaped our notice.
You have always kept together, I presume, oh, except yesterday afternoon.
I usually give up one day to pure amusement when
I come to town. So I spent it at the
museum of the College of Surgeon, and I went to
(03:41):
look at the folk in the park, said Baskerville. But
we had no trouble of any kind. It was imprudent
all the same, said Holmes, shaking his head and looking
very grave. I beg you, sir, Henry, that you will
not go about alone. Some great misfortune will befall you
(04:02):
if you do. Did you get your other boot now, sir?
It is gone forever. Indeed, that is very interesting. Well,
good bye, he added, as the train began to glide
down the platform. A bear in mind, Sir Henry, one
(04:23):
of the phrases in that queer old legend which doctor
Mortimer has read to us, and avoid the more in
those hours of darkness, when the powers of evil are exalted.
I looked back at the platform when we had left
it far behind, and saw the tall, austere figure of Holmes,
(04:43):
standing motionless and gazing after us. The journey was a
swift and pleasant one, and I spent it in making
the more intimate acquaintance of my two companions than in
playing with doctor Mortimer's spaniel. In a very few hours,
the brown earth had become ruddy, the brick had changed
(05:03):
the granite, and red cows grazed in well hedged fields,
where the lush grasses and more luxuriant vegetation spoke of
a richer if a damper climate. Young Baskerville stared eagerly
out of the window and cried aloud with delight as
he recognized the familiar features of the Devon scenery. I
(05:24):
have been over a good part of the world since
I left it, doctor Watson, said he, But I have
never seen a place to compare with it. I never
saw a Devonshire man who did not swear by his county.
I remarked, It depends upon the breed of men quite
as much as on the county, said doctor Mortimer. A
(05:44):
glance at our friend here reveals the rounded head of
the colt, which carries inside it the Celtic enthusiasm and
power of attachment. Poor Sir Charles's head was of a
very rare type, half Gallic, half a in its characteristics.
But you were very young when you last saw Baskerville Hall,
(06:05):
were you not. I was a boy in my teens
at the time of my father's death and had never
seen the hall, for he lived in a little college
on the south coast. Thence I went straight to a
friend in America. I tell you it is all as
new to me as it is to doctor Watson, and
I'm as keen as possible to see the moor. Are you?
(06:29):
Then your wish is easily granted, For there is your
first sight of the moor, said doctor Mortimer, pointing out
of the carriage window, over the green squares of the
fields and the low curve of the wood. There rose
in the distance a gray, melancholy hill with a strange,
jagged summit, dim and vague in the distance, like some
(06:52):
fantastic landscape in a dream. Baskerville sat for a long time,
his eyes fixed upon it, and I read upon his
eager face how much it meant to him, this first
sight of that strange spot where the men of his
blood had held sway so long and left their mark
so deep. There he sat, with his tweed suit and
(07:14):
his American accent, in the corner of a prosaic railway carriage.
And yet as I looked at his dark and expressive face,
I felt more than ever how true a descendant he
was of that long line of high blooded, fiery and
masterful men. There were pride, valor, and strength in his
(07:35):
thick brows, his sensitive nostrils, and his large hazel eyes.
If on that forbidding moor a difficult and dangerous quest
should lie before us, this was at least a comrade
for whom one might venture to take a risk, with
the certainty that he would bravely share it. The train
(07:56):
pulled up at a small wayside station, and we all
descended outside. Beyond the low white fence, a wagonette with
a pair of Cobs was waiting. Our coming was evidently
a great event for station master, and porters clustered round
us to carry out our luggage. It was a sweet,
simple country spot, but I was surprised to observe that
(08:20):
by the gates there stood two soldierly men in dark uniforms,
who leaned upon their short rifles and glanced keenly at us.
As we passed the coachman, a hard faced, nile little
fellow saluted Sir Henry Baskerville, and in a few minutes
we were flying swiftly down the broad white road, rolling pasture.
(08:42):
Lands curved upward on either side of us, when old
gabled houses peeped out from amid the thick green foliage.
But behind the peaceful and sunlit countryside there rose, ever
dark against the evening sky, the long, gloomy curve of
the moor broken either jagged and sinister hill. The wagonet
(09:04):
swung round into a side road, and we curved upward
through deep lanes worn by centuries of wheels, high banks
on either side, heavy with dripping moss and fleshy hearts,
tongue ferns, bronzing bracken, and mottled bramble, gleamed in the
light of the sinking sun, still steadily rising. We passed
(09:25):
over a narrow granite bridge and skirted a noisy stream
which gushed swiftly down, foaming and roaring amid the gray boulders.
Both road and stream wound up through a valley dense
with scrub, oak and fur. At every turn Baskerville gave
an exclamation of delight, looking eagerly about him and asking
(09:46):
countless questions. To his eyes, all seemed beautiful, But to
me a tinge of melancholy lay upon the countryside, which
bore so clearly the mark of the waning year. Yellow
leave carpeted the lanes and fluttered down upon us as
we passed. The rattle of our wheels died away as
we drove through drifts of rotting vegetation, sad gifts, as
(10:11):
it seemed to me for nature to throw before the
carriage of the returning air of the Baskervilles. Hello, cried
doctor Mortimer, what is this? A steep curve of health
clad land, an outlying spur of the moor lay in
front of us on the summit, hard and clear, like
(10:32):
an equestrian statue upon its pedestal. Was a mounted soldier,
dark and stern, his rifle poised ready over his forearm.
He was watching the road along which we traveled. What
is this, Perkins asked Doctor Mortimer, our driver half turned
in his seat. That is a convict escape from province town. Sir.
(10:55):
He's been out three days now, and the warders watch
every road and every station, but they've had no side
of him yet. The farmers about here don't like it, sir.
That's a fact. Well. I understand that they get five
pounds if they can give information, Yes, sir, but the
chance of five pounds is but a poor thing compared
(11:17):
to the chance of having a throat cut. You see,
it isn't like any ordinary convict. This is a man
that would stick at nothing. Who is he? Then? It
is Selden, the nodding Hill murderer. I remembered the case well,
for it was one in which Holmes had taken an interest.
(11:38):
On account of the peculiar ferocity of the crime and
the wanton brutality which had marked all the actions of
the assassin. The commutation of his death sentence had been
due to some doubts as to his complete sanity. So
atrocious was his conduct Our wagonette had topped a rise,
and in front of us rose the huge expanse as
(12:00):
of the moor, muttled with niled and craggy cairns and tours.
A cold wind swept down from it and set us shivering.
Somewhere there on that desolate plain was lurking, this fiendish man,
hiding in a burrow like a wild beast, his heart
full of malignancy against the whole race which had cast
(12:22):
him out. It needed but this to complete the grim
suggestiveness of the barren waste, the chilling wind, and the
darkling sky. Even Baskerville fell silent and pulled his overcoat
more closely around him. We had left the fertile country behind,
and beneath us we looked back on it now, the
(12:44):
slanting rays of a low sun turning the streams to
threads of gold, and glowing on the red earth new
turned by the plow, and the broad tangle of the woodlands.
The road in front of us grew bleaker and wilder,
over a huge rock russet and olive slopes sprinkled with
giant boulders. Now and then we passed a moor lent cottage,
(13:07):
walled and roofed with stone, with no creeper to break
its harsh outline. Suddenly we looked down into a cup
like depression, patched with stunted oaks and furs which had
been twisted and bent by the fury of years of storm.
Two high, narrow towers rose over the trees. The driver
(13:28):
pointed with his whip. Baskerville Hall said he Its master
had risen and was staring with flushed cheeks and shining eyes.
A few minutes later we had reached the large gates,
a maze of fantastic tracery and wrought iron, with weather
beaten pillars on either side, blotched with lichens, and surmounted
(13:51):
by the boar's head. To the Baskervilles, the lodge was
a ruin of black granite and bared ribs of rafters,
but face it was a new building, half constructed, the
first fruit of Sir Charles's South African gold. Through the gateway,
we passed into the avenue, where the wheels were again
(14:11):
hushed amid the leaves, and the old trees shot their
branches in a somber tunnel over our heads. Baskerville shuddered
as he looked up the long dark drive to where
the house glimmered like a ghost at the farther end.
Was it here, he asked in a low voice. No, No,
(14:33):
the hue alley is on the other side. The young
air glanced round with a gloomy face. It's no wonder
my uncle felt as if trouble were coming on him
in such a place as this, said he. It's enough
to scare any man. I'll have a row of electric
lamps up here inside of six months, and he won't
(14:53):
know it again. With a thousand candlepower Swan and Edison
right here in front of the hall door. The avenue
opened into a broad expanse of turf, and the house
lay before us. In the fading light, I could see
that the center was a heavy block of building from
which a porch projected. The whole front was draped in ivy,
(15:18):
with a patch clipped bare. Here and there where a
window A coat of arms broke through the dark veil.
From this central block rose the twin towers, ancient quanoladd
and pierced with many loopholes. To right and left of
the turrets were more modern wings of black granite. A
dull light shone through heavy mullioned windows, and from the
(15:40):
high chimneys which rose from the steep, high angled roof.
There sprang a single black column of smoke. Welcome, Sir Henry,
Welcome to Baskerville Hall. A tall man had stepped from
the shadow of the porch to open the door of
the wagonette. The figure of a woman was siluated against
(16:01):
the yellow light of the hall. She came out and
helped the man to hand down our bags. You don't
mind my driving straight home, Sir Henry, said Doctor Mortimer.
My wife is expecting me. Surely you will stay and
have some dinner. No, I must go. I shall probably
(16:22):
find some work awaiting me. I would stay to show
you over the house, but Barrymore will be a better
guide than I. Good Bye, and never hesitate night or
day to send for me if I can be of service.
The wheels died away down the drive while Sir Henry
and I turned into the hall, and the door clanged
(16:43):
heavily behind us. It was a fine apartment in which
we found ourselves, large, lofty and heavily raftered with huge
bulks of age, black and oak. In the great old
fashioned fireplace behind the high iron dogs, a long fire
crackled and snapped Sir Henry, and I held out our
(17:04):
hands to it, for we were numb from our long drive.
Then we gazed round us at the high, thin window
of old stained glass, the oak paneling, the stag's heads,
the coats of arms upon the walls, all dim and
somber in the subdued light of the central lamp. It's
(17:24):
just as I imagined it, said, Sir Henry. Is it
not the very picture of an old family home? To
think that this should be the same hall in which
for five hundred years my people have lived? It strikes
me solemn to think of it. I saw his dark
face lit up with a boyish enthusiasm as he gazed
(17:47):
about him. The light beat upon him where he stood,
but long shadows trailed down the walls and hung like
a black cannoby above him. Barrymore had returned from taking
our luggage to our rooms. He stood in front of
us now with the subdued manner of a well trained servant.
He was a remarkable looking man, tall handsome, with a
(18:10):
square black beard and pale distinguished features. Would you wish
dinner to be served at once? Sir? Is it ready?
In a very few minutes, sir? You will find hot
water in your rooms. My wife and I will be happy,
Sir Henry, to stay with you until you have made
your fresh arrangements. But you will understand that under the
(18:34):
new conditions, this house will require a considerable staff. What
new conditions? I only meant, sir, that Sir Charles had
led a very retired life, and we were able to
look after his wants. You would naturally wish to have
more company, and so you will need changes in your household.
(18:56):
Do you mean that your wife and you wish to
leave only when it is quite convenient to you, sir?
But your family have been with us for several generations,
have they not? I should be sorry to begin my
life here by breaking an old family connection. I seem
to discern some signs of emotion under the butler's white face.
(19:18):
I fear that also, sir, and so does my wife.
But to tell the truth, Sir, we were both very
much attached to Sir Charles, and his death gave us
a shock and made these surroundings very painful to us.
I fear that we shall never again be easy in
(19:38):
our minds at Baskerville Hall. But what do you intend
to do? I have no doubt sir, that we shall
succeed in establishing ourselves in some business. Sir Charles's generosity
has given us the means to do so. And now, Sir,
perhaps I had best show you to your rooms. A square,
(20:01):
balustrated gallery ran round the top of the old hall,
approached by a double stair. From this central point, two
long corridors extended the whole length of the building, from
which all the bedrooms opened. My own was in the
same wing as Baskerville's, and almost next door to it.
These rooms appeared to be much more modern than the
(20:23):
central part of the house, and the bright paper and
numerous candles did something to remove the somber impression which
our arrival had left upon our mind. But the dining room,
which opened out of the hall, was a place of
shadow and gloom. It was a long chamber with a
step separating the dais where the family sat, from the
(20:44):
lower portion, reserved for their dependence. At one end, a
minstress gallery overlooked it. Black beams shot across above our heads,
with a smoke darkened ceiling beyond them, with rows of
flaring torches to light it up, and the color and
rude hilarity of an old time banquet, it might have
been softened. But now, when two black clothed gentlemen sat
(21:09):
in the little circle of light thrown by a shaded lamp,
one's voice became hushed, one's spirit subdued. A dim line
of ancestors in every variety of dress, from the Elizabethan
Knight to the buck of the Regency, stared down upon
us and daunted us by their silent company. We talked little,
(21:32):
and I, for one, was glad when the meal was
over and we were able to retire into the modern
billiard room and smoke a cigarette. My word, it isn't
a very cheerful place, said Sir Henry. I suppose one
can tone down to it, but I feel a bit
out of the picture at present. I don't wonder that
(21:54):
my uncle got a little jumpy if he lived all
alone in such a house as this. However, if it
suits you, we will retire early to night, and perhaps
things may seem more cheerful in the morning. I drew
aside my curtains before I went to bed, and looked
out from my window. It opened upon the grassy space
(22:17):
which lay in front of the hall door, beyond two
copses of trees moaned and swung in a rising wind.
A half moon broke through the rifts of racing clouds.
In its cold light, I saw beyond the trees a
broken fringe of rocks, and the long, low curve of
the melancholy moor. I closed the curtain, feeling that my
(22:40):
last impression was in keeping with the rest. And yet
it was not quite the last. I found myself weary
and yet wakeful, tossing restlessly from side to side, seeking
for the sleep which would not come far away. A
chiming clock struck out the of the hours, but otherwise
(23:02):
a deathly silence lay upon the old house. And then suddenly,
in the very dead of the night, there came a
sound to my ears, clear, resonant, and unmistakable. It was
the sob of a woman, the muffled, strangling gasp of
one who is torn by an uncontrollable sorrow. I sat
(23:25):
up in bed and listened intently. The noise could not
have been far away, and was certainly in the house.
For half an hour, I waited, with every nerve on
the alert, but there came no other sound save the
chiming clock and the rustle of the ivy on the
wall end of chapter six,
Chapter six of The Hound of the Baskerville by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Read by Bob Newfeld, Chapter six Baskerville Hall, Sir Henry
(00:21):
Baskerville and Doctor Mortimer were ready upon the appointed day,
and we started as arranged for Devonshire. Mister Sherlock Holmbs
drove with me to the station and gave me his
last parting injunctions and advice. I will not buias your
mind by suggesting theories or suspicions, Watson said, he. I
(00:42):
wish you simply to report facts in the fullest possible
manner to me, and you can leave me to do
the theorizing. What sort of facts, I asked, anything which
will seem to have a bearing, however indirect upon the case,
and especially the religations between young Baskerville and his neighbors,
(01:03):
or any fresh particulars concerning the death of Sir Charles.
I have made some inquiries myself in the last few days,
but the results have, I fear been negative. One thing
only appears to be certain, and that is that mister
James Desmond, who is the next heir, is an elderly
gentleman of a very amiable disposition, so that this persecution
(01:27):
does not arise from him. I really think that we
may eliminate him entirely. From our calculations. There remain the
people who will actually surround Sir Henry Baskerville upon the moor.
Would it not be well in the first place to
get rid of this Barrymore couple by no means you
(01:48):
cannot make a greater mistake. If they are innocent, it
would be a cruel injustice. And if they are guilty,
we should be giving up all chance of bringing it
home to them. No know, we will preserve them upon
our list of suspects. Then there is a groom at
the hall. If I remember right, there are two Moorland farmers.
(02:11):
There is our friend, doctor Mortimer, whom I believe to
be entirely honest, and there is his wife, of whom
we know nothing. There is this naturalist Stapleton, and there
is his sister, who is said to be a young
lady of attractions. There is mister Franklin of Laughter Hall,
who was also an unknown factor. And there are one
(02:33):
or two other neighbors. These are the folk who must
be your very special study. I will do my best.
You have arms, I suppose yes, I thought it as
well to take them. Most certainly, keep your revolver near
you night and day, and never relax your precautions. Our
(02:58):
friends had already secured the first class carriage and were
waiting for us upon the platform. No, we have no
news of any kind, said doctor Mortimer, in answer to
my friend's questions. I can swear to one thing, and
that is that we have not been shadowed during the
last two days. We have never gone out without keeping
(03:20):
a sharp watch, and no one could have escaped our notice.
You have always kept together, I presume, oh, except yesterday afternoon.
I usually give up one day to pure amusement when
I come to town. So I spent it at the
museum of the College of Surgeon, and I went to
(03:41):
look at the folk in the park, said Baskerville. But
we had no trouble of any kind. It was imprudent
all the same, said Holmes, shaking his head and looking
very grave. I beg you, sir, Henry, that you will
not go about alone. Some great misfortune will befall you
(04:02):
if you do. Did you get your other boot now, sir?
It is gone forever. Indeed, that is very interesting. Well,
good bye, he added, as the train began to glide
down the platform. A bear in mind, Sir Henry, one
(04:23):
of the phrases in that queer old legend which doctor
Mortimer has read to us, and avoid the more in
those hours of darkness, when the powers of evil are exalted.
I looked back at the platform when we had left
it far behind, and saw the tall, austere figure of Holmes,
(04:43):
standing motionless and gazing after us. The journey was a
swift and pleasant one, and I spent it in making
the more intimate acquaintance of my two companions than in
playing with doctor Mortimer's spaniel. In a very few hours,
the brown earth had become ruddy, the brick had changed
(05:03):
the granite, and red cows grazed in well hedged fields,
where the lush grasses and more luxuriant vegetation spoke of
a richer if a damper climate. Young Baskerville stared eagerly
out of the window and cried aloud with delight as
he recognized the familiar features of the Devon scenery. I
(05:24):
have been over a good part of the world since
I left it, doctor Watson, said he, But I have
never seen a place to compare with it. I never
saw a Devonshire man who did not swear by his county.
I remarked, It depends upon the breed of men quite
as much as on the county, said doctor Mortimer. A
(05:44):
glance at our friend here reveals the rounded head of
the colt, which carries inside it the Celtic enthusiasm and
power of attachment. Poor Sir Charles's head was of a
very rare type, half Gallic, half a in its characteristics.
But you were very young when you last saw Baskerville Hall,
(06:05):
were you not. I was a boy in my teens
at the time of my father's death and had never
seen the hall, for he lived in a little college
on the south coast. Thence I went straight to a
friend in America. I tell you it is all as
new to me as it is to doctor Watson, and
I'm as keen as possible to see the moor. Are you?
(06:29):
Then your wish is easily granted, For there is your
first sight of the moor, said doctor Mortimer, pointing out
of the carriage window, over the green squares of the
fields and the low curve of the wood. There rose
in the distance a gray, melancholy hill with a strange,
jagged summit, dim and vague in the distance, like some
(06:52):
fantastic landscape in a dream. Baskerville sat for a long time,
his eyes fixed upon it, and I read upon his
eager face how much it meant to him, this first
sight of that strange spot where the men of his
blood had held sway so long and left their mark
so deep. There he sat, with his tweed suit and
(07:14):
his American accent, in the corner of a prosaic railway carriage.
And yet as I looked at his dark and expressive face,
I felt more than ever how true a descendant he
was of that long line of high blooded, fiery and
masterful men. There were pride, valor, and strength in his
(07:35):
thick brows, his sensitive nostrils, and his large hazel eyes.
If on that forbidding moor a difficult and dangerous quest
should lie before us, this was at least a comrade
for whom one might venture to take a risk, with
the certainty that he would bravely share it. The train
(07:56):
pulled up at a small wayside station, and we all
descended outside. Beyond the low white fence, a wagonette with
a pair of Cobs was waiting. Our coming was evidently
a great event for station master, and porters clustered round
us to carry out our luggage. It was a sweet,
simple country spot, but I was surprised to observe that
(08:20):
by the gates there stood two soldierly men in dark uniforms,
who leaned upon their short rifles and glanced keenly at us.
As we passed the coachman, a hard faced, nile little
fellow saluted Sir Henry Baskerville, and in a few minutes
we were flying swiftly down the broad white road, rolling pasture.
(08:42):
Lands curved upward on either side of us, when old
gabled houses peeped out from amid the thick green foliage.
But behind the peaceful and sunlit countryside there rose, ever
dark against the evening sky, the long, gloomy curve of
the moor broken either jagged and sinister hill. The wagonet
(09:04):
swung round into a side road, and we curved upward
through deep lanes worn by centuries of wheels, high banks
on either side, heavy with dripping moss and fleshy hearts,
tongue ferns, bronzing bracken, and mottled bramble, gleamed in the
light of the sinking sun, still steadily rising. We passed
(09:25):
over a narrow granite bridge and skirted a noisy stream
which gushed swiftly down, foaming and roaring amid the gray boulders.
Both road and stream wound up through a valley dense
with scrub, oak and fur. At every turn Baskerville gave
an exclamation of delight, looking eagerly about him and asking
(09:46):
countless questions. To his eyes, all seemed beautiful, But to
me a tinge of melancholy lay upon the countryside, which
bore so clearly the mark of the waning year. Yellow
leave carpeted the lanes and fluttered down upon us as
we passed. The rattle of our wheels died away as
we drove through drifts of rotting vegetation, sad gifts, as
(10:11):
it seemed to me for nature to throw before the
carriage of the returning air of the Baskervilles. Hello, cried
doctor Mortimer, what is this? A steep curve of health
clad land, an outlying spur of the moor lay in
front of us on the summit, hard and clear, like
(10:32):
an equestrian statue upon its pedestal. Was a mounted soldier,
dark and stern, his rifle poised ready over his forearm.
He was watching the road along which we traveled. What
is this, Perkins asked Doctor Mortimer, our driver half turned
in his seat. That is a convict escape from province town. Sir.
(10:55):
He's been out three days now, and the warders watch
every road and every station, but they've had no side
of him yet. The farmers about here don't like it, sir.
That's a fact. Well. I understand that they get five
pounds if they can give information, Yes, sir, but the
chance of five pounds is but a poor thing compared
(11:17):
to the chance of having a throat cut. You see,
it isn't like any ordinary convict. This is a man
that would stick at nothing. Who is he? Then? It
is Selden, the nodding Hill murderer. I remembered the case well,
for it was one in which Holmes had taken an interest.
(11:38):
On account of the peculiar ferocity of the crime and
the wanton brutality which had marked all the actions of
the assassin. The commutation of his death sentence had been
due to some doubts as to his complete sanity. So
atrocious was his conduct Our wagonette had topped a rise,
and in front of us rose the huge expanse as
(12:00):
of the moor, muttled with niled and craggy cairns and tours.
A cold wind swept down from it and set us shivering.
Somewhere there on that desolate plain was lurking, this fiendish man,
hiding in a burrow like a wild beast, his heart
full of malignancy against the whole race which had cast
(12:22):
him out. It needed but this to complete the grim
suggestiveness of the barren waste, the chilling wind, and the
darkling sky. Even Baskerville fell silent and pulled his overcoat
more closely around him. We had left the fertile country behind,
and beneath us we looked back on it now, the
(12:44):
slanting rays of a low sun turning the streams to
threads of gold, and glowing on the red earth new
turned by the plow, and the broad tangle of the woodlands.
The road in front of us grew bleaker and wilder,
over a huge rock russet and olive slopes sprinkled with
giant boulders. Now and then we passed a moor lent cottage,
(13:07):
walled and roofed with stone, with no creeper to break
its harsh outline. Suddenly we looked down into a cup
like depression, patched with stunted oaks and furs which had
been twisted and bent by the fury of years of storm.
Two high, narrow towers rose over the trees. The driver
(13:28):
pointed with his whip. Baskerville Hall said he Its master
had risen and was staring with flushed cheeks and shining eyes.
A few minutes later we had reached the large gates,
a maze of fantastic tracery and wrought iron, with weather
beaten pillars on either side, blotched with lichens, and surmounted
(13:51):
by the boar's head. To the Baskervilles, the lodge was
a ruin of black granite and bared ribs of rafters,
but face it was a new building, half constructed, the
first fruit of Sir Charles's South African gold. Through the gateway,
we passed into the avenue, where the wheels were again
(14:11):
hushed amid the leaves, and the old trees shot their
branches in a somber tunnel over our heads. Baskerville shuddered
as he looked up the long dark drive to where
the house glimmered like a ghost at the farther end.
Was it here, he asked in a low voice. No, No,
(14:33):
the hue alley is on the other side. The young
air glanced round with a gloomy face. It's no wonder
my uncle felt as if trouble were coming on him
in such a place as this, said he. It's enough
to scare any man. I'll have a row of electric
lamps up here inside of six months, and he won't
(14:53):
know it again. With a thousand candlepower Swan and Edison
right here in front of the hall door. The avenue
opened into a broad expanse of turf, and the house
lay before us. In the fading light, I could see
that the center was a heavy block of building from
which a porch projected. The whole front was draped in ivy,
(15:18):
with a patch clipped bare. Here and there where a
window A coat of arms broke through the dark veil.
From this central block rose the twin towers, ancient quanoladd
and pierced with many loopholes. To right and left of
the turrets were more modern wings of black granite. A
dull light shone through heavy mullioned windows, and from the
(15:40):
high chimneys which rose from the steep, high angled roof.
There sprang a single black column of smoke. Welcome, Sir Henry,
Welcome to Baskerville Hall. A tall man had stepped from
the shadow of the porch to open the door of
the wagonette. The figure of a woman was siluated against
(16:01):
the yellow light of the hall. She came out and
helped the man to hand down our bags. You don't
mind my driving straight home, Sir Henry, said Doctor Mortimer.
My wife is expecting me. Surely you will stay and
have some dinner. No, I must go. I shall probably
(16:22):
find some work awaiting me. I would stay to show
you over the house, but Barrymore will be a better
guide than I. Good Bye, and never hesitate night or
day to send for me if I can be of service.
The wheels died away down the drive while Sir Henry
and I turned into the hall, and the door clanged
(16:43):
heavily behind us. It was a fine apartment in which
we found ourselves, large, lofty and heavily raftered with huge
bulks of age, black and oak. In the great old
fashioned fireplace behind the high iron dogs, a long fire
crackled and snapped Sir Henry, and I held out our
(17:04):
hands to it, for we were numb from our long drive.
Then we gazed round us at the high, thin window
of old stained glass, the oak paneling, the stag's heads,
the coats of arms upon the walls, all dim and
somber in the subdued light of the central lamp. It's
(17:24):
just as I imagined it, said, Sir Henry. Is it
not the very picture of an old family home? To
think that this should be the same hall in which
for five hundred years my people have lived? It strikes
me solemn to think of it. I saw his dark
face lit up with a boyish enthusiasm as he gazed
(17:47):
about him. The light beat upon him where he stood,
but long shadows trailed down the walls and hung like
a black cannoby above him. Barrymore had returned from taking
our luggage to our rooms. He stood in front of
us now with the subdued manner of a well trained servant.
He was a remarkable looking man, tall handsome, with a
(18:10):
square black beard and pale distinguished features. Would you wish
dinner to be served at once? Sir? Is it ready?
In a very few minutes, sir? You will find hot
water in your rooms. My wife and I will be happy,
Sir Henry, to stay with you until you have made
your fresh arrangements. But you will understand that under the
(18:34):
new conditions, this house will require a considerable staff. What
new conditions? I only meant, sir, that Sir Charles had
led a very retired life, and we were able to
look after his wants. You would naturally wish to have
more company, and so you will need changes in your household.
(18:56):
Do you mean that your wife and you wish to
leave only when it is quite convenient to you, sir?
But your family have been with us for several generations,
have they not? I should be sorry to begin my
life here by breaking an old family connection. I seem
to discern some signs of emotion under the butler's white face.
(19:18):
I fear that also, sir, and so does my wife.
But to tell the truth, Sir, we were both very
much attached to Sir Charles, and his death gave us
a shock and made these surroundings very painful to us.
I fear that we shall never again be easy in
(19:38):
our minds at Baskerville Hall. But what do you intend
to do? I have no doubt sir, that we shall
succeed in establishing ourselves in some business. Sir Charles's generosity
has given us the means to do so. And now, Sir,
perhaps I had best show you to your rooms. A square,
(20:01):
balustrated gallery ran round the top of the old hall,
approached by a double stair. From this central point, two
long corridors extended the whole length of the building, from
which all the bedrooms opened. My own was in the
same wing as Baskerville's, and almost next door to it.
These rooms appeared to be much more modern than the
(20:23):
central part of the house, and the bright paper and
numerous candles did something to remove the somber impression which
our arrival had left upon our mind. But the dining room,
which opened out of the hall, was a place of
shadow and gloom. It was a long chamber with a
step separating the dais where the family sat, from the
(20:44):
lower portion, reserved for their dependence. At one end, a
minstress gallery overlooked it. Black beams shot across above our heads,
with a smoke darkened ceiling beyond them, with rows of
flaring torches to light it up, and the color and
rude hilarity of an old time banquet, it might have
been softened. But now, when two black clothed gentlemen sat
(21:09):
in the little circle of light thrown by a shaded lamp,
one's voice became hushed, one's spirit subdued. A dim line
of ancestors in every variety of dress, from the Elizabethan
Knight to the buck of the Regency, stared down upon
us and daunted us by their silent company. We talked little,
(21:32):
and I, for one, was glad when the meal was
over and we were able to retire into the modern
billiard room and smoke a cigarette. My word, it isn't
a very cheerful place, said Sir Henry. I suppose one
can tone down to it, but I feel a bit
out of the picture at present. I don't wonder that
(21:54):
my uncle got a little jumpy if he lived all
alone in such a house as this. However, if it
suits you, we will retire early to night, and perhaps
things may seem more cheerful in the morning. I drew
aside my curtains before I went to bed, and looked
out from my window. It opened upon the grassy space
(22:17):
which lay in front of the hall door, beyond two
copses of trees moaned and swung in a rising wind.
A half moon broke through the rifts of racing clouds.
In its cold light, I saw beyond the trees a
broken fringe of rocks, and the long, low curve of
the melancholy moor. I closed the curtain, feeling that my
(22:40):
last impression was in keeping with the rest. And yet
it was not quite the last. I found myself weary
and yet wakeful, tossing restlessly from side to side, seeking
for the sleep which would not come far away. A
chiming clock struck out the of the hours, but otherwise
(23:02):
a deathly silence lay upon the old house. And then suddenly,
in the very dead of the night, there came a
sound to my ears, clear, resonant, and unmistakable. It was
the sob of a woman, the muffled, strangling gasp of
one who is torn by an uncontrollable sorrow. I sat
(23:25):
up in bed and listened intently. The noise could not
have been far away, and was certainly in the house.
For half an hour, I waited, with every nerve on
the alert, but there came no other sound save the
chiming clock and the rustle of the ivy on the
wall end of chapter six,
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com