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r ? Reminiscences of Sherlock Holme; (CO.NT1NUTED FROM LAST WEEK. re was an 'excellent hiding-placi which she had arranged. The mirro was so placed that, seated in the dark we could very plainly see the door cp posite. We had hardly settled dowi in it, and Mrs. Warren left us, whet a distant tinkle announced that ou' mysterious neighbor had rung. Pros ^ntly the landlady appeared with tlx tray, laid it down upon a chair besid< mB.' I Caught a Glimpse of a Dark, Beautiful, Horrified Face. the closed door, and then, treading heavily, departed. Crouching together in the angle of the door, we kept our eyes fixed upon the mirror. Suddenly, as the landlady's footsteps died away, there was the creak of a turning key, the handle revolved, and two thin hands darted out and lifted the tray from the chair. An instant later it was hurriedly replaced, and I caught a glimpse of a dark, beautiful, horrified face glaring at the narrow opening of the boxroom. Then the door "crashed to, the key turned once more, und all tor .alienee? Holpies twitched the stair. "I will call again In the evening," inid he to the expectant landlady. "I think, Watson, we can discuss this business better in our own quarters." "My surmise, as you saw, proved to be correct," said he, speaking from the depths of his easy-chair. "There has been a substitution of lodgers. T Jtrl fnrnctws ic thflt Wfi >> Jia I 1 UJU UVl <W ?. . v .. _ should find a woman, and no ordinary woman, Watson." "She saw us." "Well, she saw something to alarm her. That is certain. The general sequence of events is pretty clear, is It not? A couple seek refuge in London from a very terrible and instant danger. The measure of that danger is the rigor of their precautions. The man, who has some work which he must do, desires to leave the woman in absolute safety while ho does it. It is not an easy problem, but he solved it in an original fashion, and so e ffec tivelv that her presence was not ever k: own to tl j .;...ri!ari" who sup,.Iks her with food. The printed messages as is now evident, were to preveni her sex being discovered by her writ ing. The man cannot come near tlx woman, or ha will guide their enemies to her. Since he cannot commu?icat< with her direct, he has recourse to tlx agony column of a paper. So far al is clear." "But what is at the root of it?" "Ah vos U'.iTsr,;.?severely practi cal, as usual! ,What is at the 100 of it all? Mrs. Warren's -whimsies |111 f *A Cipher Message, Holmes." problem enlarge?, rmewhat and at sumes a mere sinister aspect_as w I I j proceed. This much wo can say: u | that It is no ordinary love escapade, y ! You saw the woman's face at the sign !> of danger. We have hoard, too, of the j | attack upon the landlord, which was g ) | undoubtedly meant for the lodger. | These alarms, and the desperate need t( j for secrecy, argue that the matte; is u s one of life or death. The attack upon r Mr. Warren further shows that the ? enemy, whoever they are, are them- ^ -' selves not aware of the substitution 0 i of the female lodger for the male. It S) t is very curious and complex, Watr son." "Why should you go further in it? ^ 3 What have ycu to gain from it?" j!j 3 "What indeed? It is Art for Art's sake, Watson. I suppose when you -( doctored you found yourself studying cases without thought of a fee?" s. "For my education, Holmes." "Education never ends, Watson. It is a series of lessons with the greatest 0 for the last. This is an instructive u case. There is neither money nor s credit in it, and yet one would wisu v to tidy it up. When dusk comes we s; should find ourselves one stage ad- u vaneod in our investigation." Sj When we returned to Mrs. War- g ren's rooms, the gloom of a London nwinter evening had thickened into one e] gray curtain, h dead monotone of color, broken only by the sharp squares ^ of the windows and the blurred haloes j, of the gas lamps. As we peered from the darkened sitting-room of the y< lodging-house, one more dim light j1; glimmered high up through the ob- 0| 6curity. ol "Someone is moving in that room," < ] said Holmes in a whisper, his gaunt and eager face thrust forward to the c] window-pane. "Yes, I can see his shadow. There he is again. He has fo a candle in his hand. Now he is j,j peering across. He wants to be sure tj that she is on the look-out. Now he w begins to flash. Take the message also, Watson, that we may check each y other. A single flash?that is 'A,' a surely. Now, then. How many did c, you make it? Twenty. So did I. JTha' g should mean 'T.' A T?that's intelli- tl gible enough! Another 'T.' Surely 0, this Is the beginning of a second t word. Now, then TENT A. Dead stop. That can't be all, Watson? 'A T T E N T A' gives no sense. Nor is it any better as three words?'A T. ' TEN. TA,' unless 'T.A.' are a person's initials. There he goes again! "What's that? ATTE?why, it is the onoe morel ' A^?whyThe^s repeat-" ^ ing it for the third time. 'ATTEN TA' three times! How often will he repeat it? No, that seems to be the finish. He has withdrawn from the window. What do you make of it, Watson?" "A cipher message, Holme6." jl My companion gave a sudden .] chuckle of comprehension. "And not ' a very obscure cipher, Watson," said t he. "Why, of course, it is Italian! The 'A' means that it is addressed Haw.awaI f Pa to a woman. xj*-?aic. ware!' How's that, Watson?" "I believe you have hit it." "Not a doubt of it. It is a very urgent message, thrice repeated to make it more so. But be.ware of what? i Wait a bit; he is coming to the wini dow once more." i Again we saw the dim silhouette of a crouching man and the whisk of 1 the small flame across the window, as w< the FU'nnls were renewed. They ramo of 1 nore rapidly than he'ore-?so rmifi 1 j .1.. it was nard to follow tli- in. 1 " 'I' 15 III C O L 0* ?'iK'ficclo,? Uh, Kl ! whac's that, Watson? Danger, isn't i:? Yes, by Jove, its's a lamer ^ ; signal. There he goes again! 'PERI.' 3 llalloa, whr' on earth?" i The light ad suddenly gor.e out, i the gliniii!' si. g square of window had 1 di.sappeai . and the third floor formed a dark La. round the lofty building, with its . ;3 of shining easements. sa That last v...::sing cry had been sud- tr t denly cut short. How, and by whom? ( ' The same thought occurred on the in- W slant to us both. Holmes sprang up from where he crouched by the win- , dow. 'u "This is serious, Watson," he cried. of 'There is soiuj deviltry going forward! c W hy sliould such a message stop in ^ such a way? I should put Scotland r' \ard In touch with this business?and ^ yet, it is too pressing for us to leave." "Shall I go for the police?" 01 "We must define the Ritn.itten a tit. tie more clearly. It may bear some a more innocent interpretation. Come, Watson, let us go across ourselves ' and see what we can make of it." As we walked rapidly down Howe " street I glanced back at the building 11 which we had left. There, dimly out- Ci lined at the top window, I could see the shadow of a head, a woman's head, 111 gazing tensely, rigidly, out into the night, waiting with breathless suspense for the renewal of that inter- ei rupted message. At the doorway of ** the Howe street flats a man, muffled ? in a cravat and great-coat, was lean- ai ing against the railing. He started as the hall-light fell upon our faceB. Bt "Holmes!" he cried. ** "Why, Gregson!" said my compan- " j- ion, as he shook hands with the Scote land Yard detective. "Journeys end P' itli lovers' meetings. What brings ou here?" "The same reasons that bring you, expect," said Grcgson. "IIow you ot on to it I can't, imagine." "Different threads, but leading up ) the same tangle. I've been taking te signals!" "Signals?" "Yes, from that "window. They roke off in the middle. We came ver to see the reason. l)ut since it is ife in your hands I see no object in ontinuing the business." "Wait a bit!" cried Oregson, ongrr\ "I'll do you this justice, .Mr. lolmes, that I was never in a case tat I didn't feel stronger for having ou on my side. There's only the one xit to these flats, so wc have him ife." "Who is he?" "Well, well, we score over you for nee, Mr. Holmes. You must give s best this time." He struck his tick sharply upon the ground, on hich a cabman, his whip in his hand, tuntered over from a four-wheeler hich stood on the far side of the ireet. "May 1 introduce you to Mr. herlock Holmes?" he said to the orbtan. "This is Mr. Leverton of Pink* rton's American agency." : "The hero of the Long Island Cave , lystory?" said Holmes. "Sir, I ain I leaseu to meet you." The American, a quiet, businesslike oung man, with a clean-shaven, atchet lace, flushed up at the words f commendation. "I am on the trail f my life now, Mr. Holmes," said he. If I can get Gorgiano?" "What! Gorgiano of the Red CirIc?" , "Oh, he has a European fame, has e? Well, we've learned all about im in America. We know he is at le bottom of fifty murders, and yet e have nothing positive we can take Im on. I tracked him over from New ork, and I've been close to him for week in London, waiting some extse to get my hand on his collar. Mr. regson and I ran him to ground in lat big tenement house, and there's ily the one door, so he can't slip us. here's three folk come out since he "What Brings You Here?" ent in, but I'll swear he wasn't one ' them." "Mr. Holmes talks of signals," said regson. "I expect, as usual, he lows a good deal that we don't." In a few clear words Holmes exained the situation as it had apsarod to us. The American struck s hands.together with vexation. "He's 011 to us!" he cried. "Why do you think so?" "Well, it figures out that way, does not? Here he is, sending out mesges to an accomplice?there are seval of his gang in London. Then sud?nly, Just as by your own account lie as telling them that there was dan;r, he broke short off. What could mean except that from the window ! had suddenly either caught sight " us in the street, or in some way ome to understand how close the anger was, and that he must act ight away if he was to avoid it? /hat do you suggest, Mr. Holmes?" "That we go up at once and see for urselves." "But we have no warrant for his rrest." "He is in unoccupied premises un- ^ er suspicious circumstances," said regson. "That is good enough for le moment. When we have him by le heels we can see if New York ln't help us to keep him. I'll take he responsibility of arresting him ow." Our official detectives may blunder i the matter of intelligence, but nevr in that of courage. Gregson climbed le stair to arrest this desperate mur ?rer with the same absolutely quiet ad businesslike bearing with which c s would have ascended the official aircase of Scotland Yard. The inkerton man had tried to push past im, but Gregson had firmly elbowed im back. London dangers were the _ riyllege of the_ London force. Have Your Money in C Your Bills Wit! -?why; 1st?Its convenient. 2nd?It avoids keeping receipts. 3rd?It pleases the receiver. 4th?It requires no change. 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