September 18, 2025 • 27 mins
13 - Fixing the Nets. 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 thirteen of The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Read by Bobnefeld, Chapter thirteen, fixing the Nets. We're at
close grips at last, said Holmes, as we walked together
(00:23):
across the moor. What a nerve the fellow has. How
he pulled himself together in the face of what must
have been a paralyzing shock when he found that the
wrong man had fallen a victim to his plot. I
told you in London, Watson, and I tell you now
again that we have never had a foeman more worthy
(00:44):
of our steel. I am sorry that he has seen you,
and so was I at first, but there was no
getting out of it. What effect you think it will
have upon his plans now that he knows you are here.
It may to be more cautious, or it may drive
him to desperate meshes at once. Like most clever criminals,
(01:08):
he may be too confident in his own cleverness, and
imagine that he has completely deceived us. Why should we
not arrest him at once? My dear Watson, you were
born to be a man of action. Your instinct is
always to do something energetic. But supposing, for argument's sake,
(01:29):
that we had arrested him to night, what on earth
the better off should we be? For that we could
prove nothing against him. There's the devilish cunning of it.
If he were acting through a human agent, we could
get some evidence. But if we were to drag this
great dog to the light of day, it would not
help us in putting a rope round the neck of
(01:49):
its master. Surely we have a case, not a shadow
of one, only surmise and conjecture. We should be left
out of court if we came with such a story
and such evidence. Or there is Sir Charles's death, found
dead without a mark upon him. You and I know
(02:11):
that he died of sheer fright, and we know also
what frightened him. But how are we to get twelve
stolid jurymen to know it? What signs are there of
a hound? Where are the marks of its fangs? Of
course we know that a hound does not bite a
dead body, and that Sir Charles was dead before ever
the brute overtook him. But we have to prove all this,
(02:33):
and we are not in a position to do it. Well.
Then to night we are not much better off to night. Again,
there was no direct connection between the hound and the
man's death. We never saw the hound. We heard it,
but we could not prove that it was running upon
(02:53):
this man's trail. There is complete absence of motive. No,
my dear fellow, we must reconcile ourselves to the fact
that we have no case at present, and that it
is worth our while to run any risk in order
to establish one, and now you propose to do so.
I have great hopes of what missus Laura Lyons may
(03:17):
do for us when the position of affairs is made
clear to her, and I have my own plan as well.
Sufficient for tomorrow is the evil thereof. But I hope
before the days passed to have the upper hand. At last.
I could draw nothing further from him when we walked
lost in thought. As far as the Baskerville gates, are
(03:41):
you coming up? Yes? I see no reason for further concealment.
But one last word, Watson, say nothing of the hound
to Sir Henry. Let him think that Selden's death was
as Stapleton would have us. Believe he will have a
better nerve for the ordeal which he will have to
undergo tomorrow when he is engaged. If I remember your
(04:03):
report writes to dine with these people, and so am I,
then you must excuse yourself and he must go alone.
Then will be easily arranged. And now if we are
too late for dinner, I think that we are both
ready for our suppers. Sir Henry was more pleased and
(04:25):
surprised to see Sherlock Holme, for he had for some
days been expecting that recent events would bring him down
from London. He did raise his eyebrows, however, when he
found that my friend had neither any luggage nor any
explanations for its absence. Between us, we soon supplied his wants,
and then, over a belated supper, we explained to the
(04:48):
Baronet as much of our experience as it seemed desirable
that he should know. But first I had the unpleasant
duty of breaking the news to Barrymore and his wife.
To him. It may have been an unmitigated relief, but
she wept bitterly in her apron To all the world
he was a man of violence, half animal and half demon,
(05:12):
But to her he always remained the little wilful boy
of her own girlhood, the child who had clung to
her hand. Evil indeed is the man who has not
one woman to mourn him. I'd been moping in the
house all day since Watson went off in the morning,
said the baronet. I guess I should have some credits,
(05:35):
for I have kept my promise. If I hadn't swore
not to go out alone, I might have had a
more lively evening, for I had a message from Stapleton
asking me over there. I have no doubt that you
would have had a more lively evening, said Holmes dryly.
By the way, I don't suppose you appreciate that we
have been mourning over you as having broken your neck.
(05:59):
Sir Henry opened his eyes. How was that the poor
wretch was dressed in your clothes? I fear your servant
who gave them to him may get into trouble with
the police. That is unlikely. There was no mark on
any of them, as far as I know, as lucky
(06:19):
for him. In fact, it's lucky for all of you,
since you are all on the wrong side of the
law in this matter. I am not sure that as
a conscientious detective, my first duty is not to arrest
the whole household. Watson's reports are most incriminating documents. But
how about the case asked the baronet? Have you made
(06:42):
anything out of the tangle? I don't know that. Watson
and I are much wiser since we came down. I
think that I shall be in a position to make
the situation rather more clear to you before long. It
has been an exceedingly difficult and most complicated business. There
are several points upon which we still want light, but
(07:03):
it is coming all the same. We've had one experience,
as Watson has no doubt told you we heard the
hound on the moor, so I can swear that it
is not all empty superstition. I had something to do
with dogs when I was out west, and I know
one when I hear one. If you can muzzle that
(07:24):
one and put him on a chain, I'll be ready
to sway. You are the greatest detective of all time.
I think I will muzzle him and chain him all right.
If you will give me your help. Whatever you tell
me to do, I will do very good. And I
will ask you also to do it blindly, without always
(07:45):
asking the reason, just as you like. If you will
do this, I think the chances are that our little
problem will soon be solved, I have no doubt. He
stopped suddenly and stared fixedly up over my head into
the air. The lamp beat upon his face, and so
(08:05):
intent was it, and so still that it might have
been that of a clear cut classical statue, a personification
of alertness and expectation. What is it? We both cried.
I could see as he looked down that he was
repressing some internal emotion. His features were still composed, but
(08:27):
his eyes shone with amused exultation. Excuse the admiration of
a connoisseur, said he, as he waved his hand towards
the line of portraits which covered the opposite wall. Watson
won't allow that I know anything of arts, but that
is mere jealousy, because our views upon the subject differ.
(08:48):
Now these are a really very fine series of portraits. Well,
I'm glad to hear you say, sir, said Sir Henry,
glancing with some surprise at my friend. But I don't
pretend to know much about these things, and I'd be
a better judge of a horse or a steer than
a picture. I didn't know that you found time for
such things. I know what is good when I see it,
(09:12):
and I see it. Now, that's a Kneller. I'll swear
that lady in the blue silk over Yonder, and the
stout gentleman with the wig ought to be a Reynolds.
They are family portraits, I presume everyone. Do you know
the names? Barrymore has been coaching me in them, and
(09:32):
I think I can say my lessons fairly well. Who
is the gentleman with the telescope. That is Rear Admiral Baskerville,
who served under Rodney in the West Indies. The man
with a blue coat and the roll of paper is
Sir William Baskerville, who was Chairman of Committees of the
House of Commons under Pitt. And this cavalier opposite to me,
(09:57):
the one with the black velvet in the lace, Ah,
you have a right to know about him. That is
the cause of all the mischief, the wicked Hugo who
started the houd of the Baskervilles. We're not likely to
forget him. I gazed with interest and some surprise upon
(10:18):
the portrait, dear me, said Holmes. He seems a quiet, meek,
matted man enough, but I dare say that there was
a lurking devil in his eyes. I had pictured him
as a more robust and ruffianly person. There's no doubt
about the authenticity, for the name and the dates sixteen
(10:39):
forty seven are on the back of the canvas. Holmes
said little more, but the picture of the old Roysterer
seemed to have a fascination for him, and his eyes
were continually fixed upon it during supper. It was not
until later, when Sir Henry had gone to his room,
that I was able to follow the friend of his thoughts.
(11:01):
He led me back into the banqueting hall, his bedroom
candle in his hand, and he held it up against
the time stained portrait on the wall. Do you see
anything there? I looked at the broad plumed hat, the
curling love locks, the white lace collar, and the straight,
severe face which was framed between them. It was not
(11:24):
a brutal countenance, but it was prim hard and stern,
with a firm set, thin lipped mouth, and a coldly
intolerant eye. Is it like any one you know? There
is something of Sir Henry about the jaw, just suggestion perhaps,
(11:44):
But wait an instant. He stood upon a chair, and,
holding up the light in his left hand, he curved
his right arm over the broad hat and round the
long ringlets. Good heavens, I cried in amazement. The face
of Stapleton had sprung out of the canvas. Ah, you
see it now. My eyes have been trained to examine faces,
(12:08):
but not their trimmings. It is the first quality of
a criminal investigator that he should see through a disguise.
But this is marvelous. It might be his portraits. Yes,
it is an interesting instance of a throwback which appears
to be both physical and spiritual. A study of family
(12:29):
portraits is enough to convert a man to the doctrine
of reincarnation. The fellow is a Baskerville that is evident
with designs upon the succession. Exactly. This chance of the
picture has supplied us with one of our most obvious
missing links. We have him, Watson, We have him, and
(12:53):
I dare swear that before tomorrow night he will be
fluttering in our nets, as helpless as one of his
own butterflies. A pin, a cork, and a card, and
we add him to the Baker Street collection. He burst
into one of his rare fits of laughter as he
turned away from the picture. I have not heard him
(13:14):
laugh often, and it has always boded ill to somebody.
I was up betimes in the morning, But Holmes was
afoot earlier still, for I saw him as I dressed
coming up the drive. Yes, we should have a full
day to day, he remarked, and he rubbed his hands
(13:34):
with the joy of action. The nets are all in
place and the drag is about to begin. We'll know
before the day is out whether we have caught our
big lean jaunt Pike, or whether he has got through
the meshes. Have you been on the moor already? I
have sent a report from Grimpen to Princetown as to
(13:56):
the death of Selden. I think I can promise that
none of you will be troubled in the matter. And
I have also communicated with my faithful Cartwright, who would
certainly have pined away at the door of my heart
as a dog does at his master's grave, if I
had not set his mind at rest about my safety.
(14:16):
What is the next move to see, Sir Henry Ah,
here he is. Good morning, Holmes, said the baronet. You
look like a general who is planning a battle with
his chief of staff. That is the exact situation. Watson
was asking for orders, and so do I Very good
(14:42):
you are engaged, as I understand to dine with our friends,
the Stapletons to night. I hope that you will come also.
They are very hospitable people, and I am sure that
they would be very glad to see you. I fear
that Watson and I must go to London. To London, yes,
I think that we shall be more useful there at
(15:03):
the present juncture. The Baronet's face perceptibly lengthened. I hope
that you are going to see me through this business.
The hall and the moor are not very pleasant places
when one is alone. My dear fellow, you must trust
me implicitly and do exactly what I tell you. You can
(15:24):
tell your friends that we should have been happy to
come with you, but that urgent business required us to
be in town. We hope very soon to return, said Devenger.
Will you remember to give them that message if you
insist upon it. There is no alternative, I assure you.
I saw by the baronet's clouded brow that he was
(15:47):
deeply hurt by what he regarded as our desertion. When
do you desire to go, he asked coldly. Immediately after breakfast,
we will drive into Coombe Tracy, but Watson will leave
his things as a pledge that he will come back
to you. Watson, you will send a note to stable
(16:07):
them to tell them that you regret that you cannot come.
I have a good mind to go to London with you,
said the Baronet. Why should I stay here alone? Because
it is your post of duty. Because you gave me
your word that you would do as you were told,
and I tell you to stay all right, then I'll
(16:29):
stay one more direction. I wish you to drive to
Marriupid House. Send back your trap, however, and let them
know that you intend to walk home, to walk across
the moor. Yes, but that is the very thing which
you have so often cautioned me not to do. This
(16:50):
time you may do it with safety. If I had
not every confidence in your nerve and courage, I would
not suggest it. But it is son that you should
do it, then I will do it. And as you
value your life, do not craw across the moor in
any direction save along the straight path which leads from
(17:13):
Meraport House to the Grimpen Road and is your natural
way home. I will do just what you say. Very good.
I should be glad to get away as soon after
breakfast as possible. So as to reach London in the afternoon.
I was much astounded by this program. Though I remembered
(17:33):
that Holmes had said to Stapleton on the night before
that his visit would terminate next day. It had not
crossed my mind, however, that he would wish me to
go with him. Nor could I understand how we could
both be absent in a moment which he himself declared
to be critical. There was nothing for it, however, but
implicit obedience. So we bade goodbye to our rueful friend,
(17:57):
and a couple of hours afterwards, we were at the
station of Coombe Tracy, and had dispatched the trap. Upon
its return journey, a small boy was waiting upon the platform.
Any orders, sir, he will take this train to town Cartwright.
The moment you arrive. He will send a wire to
Sir Henry Baskerville in my name, to say that if
(18:20):
he finds the pocketbook which I have dropped, he is
to send it by registered post to Baker Street. Yes, sir,
and ask at the station office if there is a
message for me. The boy returned with a telegram which
Holmes handed to me. It ran wire received coming down
with unsigned warrant arrive five thirty Lestrade. That is an
(18:46):
answer to mine of this morning. He is the best
of the professionals, I think, and we may need his
assistance right now. Watson, I think that we cannot employ
our time better than by calling upon your acquaintances, Laura Lyons.
His plan of campaign was beginning to be evident. He
(19:06):
would use the baronet in order to convince the Stapletons
that we were really gone, while we would actually return
at the instant when we were likely to be needed.
That telegram from London, if mentioned by Sir Henry to
the Stapletons, must remove the last suspicions from their minds.
Already I seemed to see our nets drawing closer around
(19:29):
that leanjawed pike. Missus Laura Lyons was in her office
and Sherlock Holmes opened his interview with a frankness and
directness which considerably amazed her. I am investigating the circumstances
which attended the death of the late Sir Charles Baskerville,
(19:50):
said he, my friendy doctor Watson, has informed me of
what you have communicated and also of what you have
withheld in connection with that matter. What have I withheld,
she asked defiantly. You have confessed that you asked Sir
Charles to be at the gate at ten o'clock. We
(20:12):
know that that was the place and hour of his death.
You have withheld what the connection is between these events?
There is no connection in that case. The coincidence must
indeed be an extraordinary one. But I think that we
shall succeed in establishing a connection. After all, I wish
(20:33):
to be perfectly frank with you, Missus Lyons. We regard
this case as one of murder, and the evidence may
implicate not only your friend, mister Stapleton, but his wife
as well. The lady sprang from her chair. His wife,
she cried, The fact is no longer a secret. The
(20:56):
person who has passed for his sister is really his wife.
Missus Lyons had resumed her seat. Her hands were grasping
the arms of her chair, and I saw that the
pink nails had turned white with the pressure of her grip.
His wife, she said again, his wife. He is not
(21:17):
a married man. Sherlock Holmbs shrugged his shoulders. Prove it
to me, Prove it to me, if you can do so.
The fierce flash of her eyes said more than any words.
I have come prepared to do so, said Holmes, drawing
several papers from his pocket. Here is a photograph of
(21:41):
the couple, taken in York four years ago. It is
endorsed mister and Missus Vandleur. But you will have no
difficulty in recognizing him and her also if you know
her by sight. Here are three written descriptions by trustworthy
witnesses of mister and Missus Vandleur, who at that time
(22:01):
kept Sir Oliver's private school. Read them and see if
you can doubt the identity of these people. She glanced
at them, and then looked up at us with the set,
rigid face of a desperate woman. Mister Holmes, she said,
(22:22):
this man had offered me marriage on condition that I
could get a divorce from my husband. He has lied
to me, the villain, in every conceivable way. Not one
word of truth has he ever told me. And why why?
I imagined that all was for my own sake? But
(22:45):
now I see that I was never anything but a
tool in his hands. Why should I preserve faith with
him who never kept any with me? Why should I
try to shield him from the consequences of his own
wicked acts. Ask me what you will like, and there
is nothing which I shall hold back. One thing I
(23:07):
swear to you, and that is that when I wrote
the letter, I never dreamed of any harm to the
old gentleman who had been my kindest friend. I entirely
believe you, madam, said Sherlock Holmes. The recital of these
events must be very painful to you, and perhaps it
(23:27):
will make it easier if I tell you what occurred,
and you can check me if I make any material mistake. Thus,
sending of this letter was suggested to you by Stapleton,
he dictated it. I presume that the reason he gave
was that you would receive help from Sir Charles for
the legal expenses connected with your divorce exactly. And then
(23:53):
after you had sent the letter, he dissuaded you from
keeping the appointment. He told me that it would hurt
his self respect that any other man should find the
money for such an object, and that though he was
a poor man himself, he would devote his last penny
to removing the obstacles which divided us. He appears to
be a very consistent character. And then you heard nothing
(24:16):
until you read the reports of the death in the paper. No,
and he made you swear to say nothing about your
appointment with Sir Charles. He did. He said that the
death was a very mysterious one, and that I should
certainly be suspected if the facts came out. He frightened
me into remaining silent. Quite so, But you had your suspicions.
(24:42):
She hesitated and looked down. I knew him, she said,
But if he had kept faith with me, I should
always have done so with him. I think that on
the whole you've had a fortunate escape, said Sherlock Holmes.
You have had him in your power, and he knew it.
(25:02):
And yet you are alive. You have been walking for
some months very near to the edge of a precipice.
We must wish you good morning now, missus Lyons, and
it is probable that you will very shortly hear from
us again. Our case becomes rounded off, and difficulty after
(25:23):
difficulty thins away in front of us, said Holmes, as
we stood waiting for the arrival of the express from town.
I shall soon be in the position of being able
to put into a single connected narrative one of the
most singular and sensational crimes of modern times students of
criminology will remember the analogous incidents of God know in
(25:46):
Little Russia in the year sixty six, And of course
there are the Andersen murders in North Carolina. But this
case possesses some features which are entirely its own. Even
now we have no clear case against this very wiy man.
But I shall be very much surprised if it is
not clear enough. Before we go to bed this night,
(26:10):
the London Express came roaring into the station, and a small,
wiry bulldog of a man had sprung from a first
class carriage. We all three shook hands, and I saw
at once from the reverential way in which Lestrade gazed
at my companion, that he had learned a good deal
since the days when they had first worked together. I
(26:30):
could well remember the scorn which the theories of the reasoner
used then to excite in the practical man. Any thank good,
he asked, the biggest thing for years, said Holmes. We
have two hours before we need think of starting. I
think we might employ it in getting some dinner, And then, Lestrade,
(26:53):
we will take the London fog out of your throat
by giving you a breath of the pure night. Air
of dart More, never been there. Ah well, I don't
suppose you will forget your first visit. End of Chapter thirteen,
Chapter thirteen of The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
Read by Bobnefeld, Chapter thirteen, fixing the Nets. We're at
close grips at last, said Holmes, as we walked together
(00:23):
across the moor. What a nerve the fellow has. How
he pulled himself together in the face of what must
have been a paralyzing shock when he found that the
wrong man had fallen a victim to his plot. I
told you in London, Watson, and I tell you now
again that we have never had a foeman more worthy
(00:44):
of our steel. I am sorry that he has seen you,
and so was I at first, but there was no
getting out of it. What effect you think it will
have upon his plans now that he knows you are here.
It may to be more cautious, or it may drive
him to desperate meshes at once. Like most clever criminals,
(01:08):
he may be too confident in his own cleverness, and
imagine that he has completely deceived us. Why should we
not arrest him at once? My dear Watson, you were
born to be a man of action. Your instinct is
always to do something energetic. But supposing, for argument's sake,
(01:29):
that we had arrested him to night, what on earth
the better off should we be? For that we could
prove nothing against him. There's the devilish cunning of it.
If he were acting through a human agent, we could
get some evidence. But if we were to drag this
great dog to the light of day, it would not
help us in putting a rope round the neck of
(01:49):
its master. Surely we have a case, not a shadow
of one, only surmise and conjecture. We should be left
out of court if we came with such a story
and such evidence. Or there is Sir Charles's death, found
dead without a mark upon him. You and I know
(02:11):
that he died of sheer fright, and we know also
what frightened him. But how are we to get twelve
stolid jurymen to know it? What signs are there of
a hound? Where are the marks of its fangs? Of
course we know that a hound does not bite a
dead body, and that Sir Charles was dead before ever
the brute overtook him. But we have to prove all this,
(02:33):
and we are not in a position to do it. Well.
Then to night we are not much better off to night. Again,
there was no direct connection between the hound and the
man's death. We never saw the hound. We heard it,
but we could not prove that it was running upon
(02:53):
this man's trail. There is complete absence of motive. No,
my dear fellow, we must reconcile ourselves to the fact
that we have no case at present, and that it
is worth our while to run any risk in order
to establish one, and now you propose to do so.
I have great hopes of what missus Laura Lyons may
(03:17):
do for us when the position of affairs is made
clear to her, and I have my own plan as well.
Sufficient for tomorrow is the evil thereof. But I hope
before the days passed to have the upper hand. At last.
I could draw nothing further from him when we walked
lost in thought. As far as the Baskerville gates, are
(03:41):
you coming up? Yes? I see no reason for further concealment.
But one last word, Watson, say nothing of the hound
to Sir Henry. Let him think that Selden's death was
as Stapleton would have us. Believe he will have a
better nerve for the ordeal which he will have to
undergo tomorrow when he is engaged. If I remember your
(04:03):
report writes to dine with these people, and so am I,
then you must excuse yourself and he must go alone.
Then will be easily arranged. And now if we are
too late for dinner, I think that we are both
ready for our suppers. Sir Henry was more pleased and
(04:25):
surprised to see Sherlock Holme, for he had for some
days been expecting that recent events would bring him down
from London. He did raise his eyebrows, however, when he
found that my friend had neither any luggage nor any
explanations for its absence. Between us, we soon supplied his wants,
and then, over a belated supper, we explained to the
(04:48):
Baronet as much of our experience as it seemed desirable
that he should know. But first I had the unpleasant
duty of breaking the news to Barrymore and his wife.
To him. It may have been an unmitigated relief, but
she wept bitterly in her apron To all the world
he was a man of violence, half animal and half demon,
(05:12):
But to her he always remained the little wilful boy
of her own girlhood, the child who had clung to
her hand. Evil indeed is the man who has not
one woman to mourn him. I'd been moping in the
house all day since Watson went off in the morning,
said the baronet. I guess I should have some credits,
(05:35):
for I have kept my promise. If I hadn't swore
not to go out alone, I might have had a
more lively evening, for I had a message from Stapleton
asking me over there. I have no doubt that you
would have had a more lively evening, said Holmes dryly.
By the way, I don't suppose you appreciate that we
have been mourning over you as having broken your neck.
(05:59):
Sir Henry opened his eyes. How was that the poor
wretch was dressed in your clothes? I fear your servant
who gave them to him may get into trouble with
the police. That is unlikely. There was no mark on
any of them, as far as I know, as lucky
(06:19):
for him. In fact, it's lucky for all of you,
since you are all on the wrong side of the
law in this matter. I am not sure that as
a conscientious detective, my first duty is not to arrest
the whole household. Watson's reports are most incriminating documents. But
how about the case asked the baronet? Have you made
(06:42):
anything out of the tangle? I don't know that. Watson
and I are much wiser since we came down. I
think that I shall be in a position to make
the situation rather more clear to you before long. It
has been an exceedingly difficult and most complicated business. There
are several points upon which we still want light, but
(07:03):
it is coming all the same. We've had one experience,
as Watson has no doubt told you we heard the
hound on the moor, so I can swear that it
is not all empty superstition. I had something to do
with dogs when I was out west, and I know
one when I hear one. If you can muzzle that
(07:24):
one and put him on a chain, I'll be ready
to sway. You are the greatest detective of all time.
I think I will muzzle him and chain him all right.
If you will give me your help. Whatever you tell
me to do, I will do very good. And I
will ask you also to do it blindly, without always
(07:45):
asking the reason, just as you like. If you will
do this, I think the chances are that our little
problem will soon be solved, I have no doubt. He
stopped suddenly and stared fixedly up over my head into
the air. The lamp beat upon his face, and so
(08:05):
intent was it, and so still that it might have
been that of a clear cut classical statue, a personification
of alertness and expectation. What is it? We both cried.
I could see as he looked down that he was
repressing some internal emotion. His features were still composed, but
(08:27):
his eyes shone with amused exultation. Excuse the admiration of
a connoisseur, said he, as he waved his hand towards
the line of portraits which covered the opposite wall. Watson
won't allow that I know anything of arts, but that
is mere jealousy, because our views upon the subject differ.
(08:48):
Now these are a really very fine series of portraits. Well,
I'm glad to hear you say, sir, said Sir Henry,
glancing with some surprise at my friend. But I don't
pretend to know much about these things, and I'd be
a better judge of a horse or a steer than
a picture. I didn't know that you found time for
such things. I know what is good when I see it,
(09:12):
and I see it. Now, that's a Kneller. I'll swear
that lady in the blue silk over Yonder, and the
stout gentleman with the wig ought to be a Reynolds.
They are family portraits, I presume everyone. Do you know
the names? Barrymore has been coaching me in them, and
(09:32):
I think I can say my lessons fairly well. Who
is the gentleman with the telescope. That is Rear Admiral Baskerville,
who served under Rodney in the West Indies. The man
with a blue coat and the roll of paper is
Sir William Baskerville, who was Chairman of Committees of the
House of Commons under Pitt. And this cavalier opposite to me,
(09:57):
the one with the black velvet in the lace, Ah,
you have a right to know about him. That is
the cause of all the mischief, the wicked Hugo who
started the houd of the Baskervilles. We're not likely to
forget him. I gazed with interest and some surprise upon
(10:18):
the portrait, dear me, said Holmes. He seems a quiet, meek,
matted man enough, but I dare say that there was
a lurking devil in his eyes. I had pictured him
as a more robust and ruffianly person. There's no doubt
about the authenticity, for the name and the dates sixteen
(10:39):
forty seven are on the back of the canvas. Holmes
said little more, but the picture of the old Roysterer
seemed to have a fascination for him, and his eyes
were continually fixed upon it during supper. It was not
until later, when Sir Henry had gone to his room,
that I was able to follow the friend of his thoughts.
(11:01):
He led me back into the banqueting hall, his bedroom
candle in his hand, and he held it up against
the time stained portrait on the wall. Do you see
anything there? I looked at the broad plumed hat, the
curling love locks, the white lace collar, and the straight,
severe face which was framed between them. It was not
(11:24):
a brutal countenance, but it was prim hard and stern,
with a firm set, thin lipped mouth, and a coldly
intolerant eye. Is it like any one you know? There
is something of Sir Henry about the jaw, just suggestion perhaps,
(11:44):
But wait an instant. He stood upon a chair, and,
holding up the light in his left hand, he curved
his right arm over the broad hat and round the
long ringlets. Good heavens, I cried in amazement. The face
of Stapleton had sprung out of the canvas. Ah, you
see it now. My eyes have been trained to examine faces,
(12:08):
but not their trimmings. It is the first quality of
a criminal investigator that he should see through a disguise.
But this is marvelous. It might be his portraits. Yes,
it is an interesting instance of a throwback which appears
to be both physical and spiritual. A study of family
(12:29):
portraits is enough to convert a man to the doctrine
of reincarnation. The fellow is a Baskerville that is evident
with designs upon the succession. Exactly. This chance of the
picture has supplied us with one of our most obvious
missing links. We have him, Watson, We have him, and
(12:53):
I dare swear that before tomorrow night he will be
fluttering in our nets, as helpless as one of his
own butterflies. A pin, a cork, and a card, and
we add him to the Baker Street collection. He burst
into one of his rare fits of laughter as he
turned away from the picture. I have not heard him
(13:14):
laugh often, and it has always boded ill to somebody.
I was up betimes in the morning, But Holmes was
afoot earlier still, for I saw him as I dressed
coming up the drive. Yes, we should have a full
day to day, he remarked, and he rubbed his hands
(13:34):
with the joy of action. The nets are all in
place and the drag is about to begin. We'll know
before the day is out whether we have caught our
big lean jaunt Pike, or whether he has got through
the meshes. Have you been on the moor already? I
have sent a report from Grimpen to Princetown as to
(13:56):
the death of Selden. I think I can promise that
none of you will be troubled in the matter. And
I have also communicated with my faithful Cartwright, who would
certainly have pined away at the door of my heart
as a dog does at his master's grave, if I
had not set his mind at rest about my safety.
(14:16):
What is the next move to see, Sir Henry Ah,
here he is. Good morning, Holmes, said the baronet. You
look like a general who is planning a battle with
his chief of staff. That is the exact situation. Watson
was asking for orders, and so do I Very good
(14:42):
you are engaged, as I understand to dine with our friends,
the Stapletons to night. I hope that you will come also.
They are very hospitable people, and I am sure that
they would be very glad to see you. I fear
that Watson and I must go to London. To London, yes,
I think that we shall be more useful there at
(15:03):
the present juncture. The Baronet's face perceptibly lengthened. I hope
that you are going to see me through this business.
The hall and the moor are not very pleasant places
when one is alone. My dear fellow, you must trust
me implicitly and do exactly what I tell you. You can
(15:24):
tell your friends that we should have been happy to
come with you, but that urgent business required us to
be in town. We hope very soon to return, said Devenger.
Will you remember to give them that message if you
insist upon it. There is no alternative, I assure you.
I saw by the baronet's clouded brow that he was
(15:47):
deeply hurt by what he regarded as our desertion. When
do you desire to go, he asked coldly. Immediately after breakfast,
we will drive into Coombe Tracy, but Watson will leave
his things as a pledge that he will come back
to you. Watson, you will send a note to stable
(16:07):
them to tell them that you regret that you cannot come.
I have a good mind to go to London with you,
said the Baronet. Why should I stay here alone? Because
it is your post of duty. Because you gave me
your word that you would do as you were told,
and I tell you to stay all right, then I'll
(16:29):
stay one more direction. I wish you to drive to
Marriupid House. Send back your trap, however, and let them
know that you intend to walk home, to walk across
the moor. Yes, but that is the very thing which
you have so often cautioned me not to do. This
(16:50):
time you may do it with safety. If I had
not every confidence in your nerve and courage, I would
not suggest it. But it is son that you should
do it, then I will do it. And as you
value your life, do not craw across the moor in
any direction save along the straight path which leads from
(17:13):
Meraport House to the Grimpen Road and is your natural
way home. I will do just what you say. Very good.
I should be glad to get away as soon after
breakfast as possible. So as to reach London in the afternoon.
I was much astounded by this program. Though I remembered
(17:33):
that Holmes had said to Stapleton on the night before
that his visit would terminate next day. It had not
crossed my mind, however, that he would wish me to
go with him. Nor could I understand how we could
both be absent in a moment which he himself declared
to be critical. There was nothing for it, however, but
implicit obedience. So we bade goodbye to our rueful friend,
(17:57):
and a couple of hours afterwards, we were at the
station of Coombe Tracy, and had dispatched the trap. Upon
its return journey, a small boy was waiting upon the platform.
Any orders, sir, he will take this train to town Cartwright.
The moment you arrive. He will send a wire to
Sir Henry Baskerville in my name, to say that if
(18:20):
he finds the pocketbook which I have dropped, he is
to send it by registered post to Baker Street. Yes, sir,
and ask at the station office if there is a
message for me. The boy returned with a telegram which
Holmes handed to me. It ran wire received coming down
with unsigned warrant arrive five thirty Lestrade. That is an
(18:46):
answer to mine of this morning. He is the best
of the professionals, I think, and we may need his
assistance right now. Watson, I think that we cannot employ
our time better than by calling upon your acquaintances, Laura Lyons.
His plan of campaign was beginning to be evident. He
(19:06):
would use the baronet in order to convince the Stapletons
that we were really gone, while we would actually return
at the instant when we were likely to be needed.
That telegram from London, if mentioned by Sir Henry to
the Stapletons, must remove the last suspicions from their minds.
Already I seemed to see our nets drawing closer around
(19:29):
that leanjawed pike. Missus Laura Lyons was in her office
and Sherlock Holmes opened his interview with a frankness and
directness which considerably amazed her. I am investigating the circumstances
which attended the death of the late Sir Charles Baskerville,
(19:50):
said he, my friendy doctor Watson, has informed me of
what you have communicated and also of what you have
withheld in connection with that matter. What have I withheld,
she asked defiantly. You have confessed that you asked Sir
Charles to be at the gate at ten o'clock. We
(20:12):
know that that was the place and hour of his death.
You have withheld what the connection is between these events?
There is no connection in that case. The coincidence must
indeed be an extraordinary one. But I think that we
shall succeed in establishing a connection. After all, I wish
(20:33):
to be perfectly frank with you, Missus Lyons. We regard
this case as one of murder, and the evidence may
implicate not only your friend, mister Stapleton, but his wife
as well. The lady sprang from her chair. His wife,
she cried, The fact is no longer a secret. The
(20:56):
person who has passed for his sister is really his wife.
Missus Lyons had resumed her seat. Her hands were grasping
the arms of her chair, and I saw that the
pink nails had turned white with the pressure of her grip.
His wife, she said again, his wife. He is not
(21:17):
a married man. Sherlock Holmbs shrugged his shoulders. Prove it
to me, Prove it to me, if you can do so.
The fierce flash of her eyes said more than any words.
I have come prepared to do so, said Holmes, drawing
several papers from his pocket. Here is a photograph of
(21:41):
the couple, taken in York four years ago. It is
endorsed mister and Missus Vandleur. But you will have no
difficulty in recognizing him and her also if you know
her by sight. Here are three written descriptions by trustworthy
witnesses of mister and Missus Vandleur, who at that time
(22:01):
kept Sir Oliver's private school. Read them and see if
you can doubt the identity of these people. She glanced
at them, and then looked up at us with the set,
rigid face of a desperate woman. Mister Holmes, she said,
(22:22):
this man had offered me marriage on condition that I
could get a divorce from my husband. He has lied
to me, the villain, in every conceivable way. Not one
word of truth has he ever told me. And why why?
I imagined that all was for my own sake? But
(22:45):
now I see that I was never anything but a
tool in his hands. Why should I preserve faith with
him who never kept any with me? Why should I
try to shield him from the consequences of his own
wicked acts. Ask me what you will like, and there
is nothing which I shall hold back. One thing I
(23:07):
swear to you, and that is that when I wrote
the letter, I never dreamed of any harm to the
old gentleman who had been my kindest friend. I entirely
believe you, madam, said Sherlock Holmes. The recital of these
events must be very painful to you, and perhaps it
(23:27):
will make it easier if I tell you what occurred,
and you can check me if I make any material mistake. Thus,
sending of this letter was suggested to you by Stapleton,
he dictated it. I presume that the reason he gave
was that you would receive help from Sir Charles for
the legal expenses connected with your divorce exactly. And then
(23:53):
after you had sent the letter, he dissuaded you from
keeping the appointment. He told me that it would hurt
his self respect that any other man should find the
money for such an object, and that though he was
a poor man himself, he would devote his last penny
to removing the obstacles which divided us. He appears to
be a very consistent character. And then you heard nothing
(24:16):
until you read the reports of the death in the paper. No,
and he made you swear to say nothing about your
appointment with Sir Charles. He did. He said that the
death was a very mysterious one, and that I should
certainly be suspected if the facts came out. He frightened
me into remaining silent. Quite so, But you had your suspicions.
(24:42):
She hesitated and looked down. I knew him, she said,
But if he had kept faith with me, I should
always have done so with him. I think that on
the whole you've had a fortunate escape, said Sherlock Holmes.
You have had him in your power, and he knew it.
(25:02):
And yet you are alive. You have been walking for
some months very near to the edge of a precipice.
We must wish you good morning now, missus Lyons, and
it is probable that you will very shortly hear from
us again. Our case becomes rounded off, and difficulty after
(25:23):
difficulty thins away in front of us, said Holmes, as
we stood waiting for the arrival of the express from town.
I shall soon be in the position of being able
to put into a single connected narrative one of the
most singular and sensational crimes of modern times students of
criminology will remember the analogous incidents of God know in
(25:46):
Little Russia in the year sixty six, And of course
there are the Andersen murders in North Carolina. But this
case possesses some features which are entirely its own. Even
now we have no clear case against this very wiy man.
But I shall be very much surprised if it is
not clear enough. Before we go to bed this night,
(26:10):
the London Express came roaring into the station, and a small,
wiry bulldog of a man had sprung from a first
class carriage. We all three shook hands, and I saw
at once from the reverential way in which Lestrade gazed
at my companion, that he had learned a good deal
since the days when they had first worked together. I
(26:30):
could well remember the scorn which the theories of the reasoner
used then to excite in the practical man. Any thank good,
he asked, the biggest thing for years, said Holmes. We
have two hours before we need think of starting. I
think we might employ it in getting some dinner, And then, Lestrade,
(26:53):
we will take the London fog out of your throat
by giving you a breath of the pure night. Air
of dart More, never been there. Ah well, I don't
suppose you will forget your first visit. End of Chapter thirteen,
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