I.ASCANDALINBOHEMIA
Ik
I.ToSherlockHolmessheis
altijd
alwaysthewoman.Ihaveseldom
horen
heardhimmentionherundereen
anyothername.Inhiseyessheeclipses
en
andpredominatesthewholeofhergeslacht
sex.Itwasnotthathe
voelde
feltanyemotionakintoliefde
loveforIreneAdler.Allemotions,
en
andthatoneparticularly,wereabhorrenttohiskoude
cold,precisebutadmirablybalancedgeest
mind.Hewas,Itakeit,
de
themostperfectreasoningandobservingmachinedie
thattheworldhasseen,maar
butasaloverhezou
wouldhaveplacedhimselfineen
afalseposition.Henever
sprak
spokeofthesofterpassions,savemet
withagibeandasneer.Theywereadmirablethingsfor
de
theobserver—excellentfordrawingtheveilfrommen’smotivesen
andactions.Butforthetrainedreasonertoadmit
zulke
suchintrusionsintohisowndelicateen
andfinelyadjustedtemperamentwastointroduceeen
adistractingfactorwhichmightthroween
adoubtuponallhismentalresults.Gritinasensitiveinstrument,
of
oracrackinoneofhiseigen
ownhigh-powerlenses,wouldnotbemeer
moredisturbingthanastrongemotioninanaturesuchaszijn
his.Andyettherewasbutone
vrouw
womantohim,andthatvrouw
womanwasthelateIreneAdler,ofdubiousen
andquestionablememory.Ihad
gezien
seenlittleofHolmeslately.Mymarriage
had
haddriftedusawayfromeachother.My
eigen
owncompletehappiness,andthehome-centredinterestswhichriseuprond
aroundthemanwhofirstvindt
findshimselfmasterofhiseigen
ownestablishment,weresufficienttoabsorbal
allmyattention,whileHolmes,wholoathedelke
everyformofsocietywithhishele
wholeBohemiansoul,remainedinourlodgingsinBakerStreet
Street,buriedamonghisoldboeken
books,andalternatingfromweektoweek
weekbetweencocaineandambition,de
thedrowsinessofthedrug,en
andthefierceenergyofhiseigen
ownkeennature.Hewas
nog steeds
still,asever,deeplyattractedbythestudyofcrime,en
andoccupiedhisimmensefacultiesen
andextraordinarypowersofobservationinvolgen
followingoutthoseclues,andclearingupthosemysterieswhichhadbeenabandonedashopelessbytheofficialpolitie
police.FromtimetotimeI
hoorde
heardsomevagueaccountofhisdoings:ofhissummonstoOdessainthe
geval
caseoftheTrepoffmurder,ofhisclearingupofthesingulartragedyoftheAtkinsonbrothersatTrincomalee,en
andfinallyofthemissiondie
whichhehadaccomplishedsodelicatelyen
andsuccessfullyforthereigningfamilie
familyofHolland.Beyondthesesignsofhisactivity,however,
die
whichImerelysharedwithalle
allthereadersofthedailypress,Iwist
knewlittleofmyformervriend
friendandcompanion.Onenight—itwasonthetwentiethofMarch,1888—Iwasreturningfromajourneytoapatient(forIhad
nu
nowreturnedtocivilpractice),toen
whenmywayledmedoor
throughBakerStreet.AsIpassed
de
thewell-remembereddoor,whichmustaltijd
alwaysbeassociatedinmygedachten
mindwithmywooing,andmet
withthedarkincidentsofde
theStudyinScarlet,Iwasseizedmet
withakeendesiretozien
seeHolmesagain,andtoweten
knowhowhewasemployinghisextraordinarypowers.Hisroomswerebrilliantlylit,
en
and,evenasIlookedomhoog
up,Isawhistall,sparefigurepasstwiceineen
adarksilhouetteagainsttheblind.Hewaspacing
de
theroomswiftly,eagerly,withhishoofd
headsunkuponhischesten
andhishandsclaspedbehindhem
him.Tome,whoknewhiseverymood
en
andhabit,hisattitudeandmannervertelden
toldtheirownstory.Hewasat
werk
workagain.Hehadrisen
uit
outofhisdrug-createddreamsen
andwashotuponthescentofsomenieuw
newproblem.Irangthebell
en
andwasshownuptode
thechamberwhichhadformerlybeenindeel
partmyown.Hismannerwasnoteffusive.
Itseldomwas;
maar
buthewasglad,Idenk
think,toseeme.Withhardlya
woord
wordspoken,butwithakindlyeye,hewavedmetoanarmchair,threwacrosshisgeval
caseofcigars,andindicatedaspiritgeval
caseandagasogeneinde
thecorner.Thenhestoodbefore
het
thefireandlookedmeover
overinhissingularintrospectivefashion.“Wedlocksuitsyou,”heremarked.
“I
denk
think,Watson,thatyouhaveputonsevenen
andahalfpoundssinceIsawyou.”“Seven!”
Ianswered.
“Indeed,I
moeten
shouldhavethoughtalittlemeer
more.Justatriflemore,Ifancy,Watson.
En
Andinpracticeagain,Iobserve.Youdidnot
verteld
tellmethatyouintendedtogaan
gointoharness.”“Then,howdoyouknow?”
“I
zie
seeit,Ideduceit.Hoe
HowdoIknowthatyouhebt
havebeengettingyourselfverywetlately,en
andthatyouhaveamostclumsyen
andcarelessservantgirl?”“My
beste
dearHolmes,”saidI,“thisiste
toomuch.Youwouldcertainly
had
havebeenburned,hadyougeleefd
livedafewcenturiesago.Itis
waar
truethatIhadacountrywandeling
walkonThursdayandcamehuis
homeinadreadfulmess,maar
butasIhavechangedmyclothesIcan’timaginehoe
howyoudeduceit.AstoMaryJane,sheisincorrigible,
en
andmywifehasgivenhernotice,maar
butthere,again,Ifailtozie
seehowyouworkitout.”Hechuckledtohimself
en
andrubbedhislong,nervoushandselkaar
together.“Itissimplicityitself,”
zei
saidhe;“myeyestellme
dat
thatontheinsideofyourleftshoe,net
justwherethefirelightstrikesit,theleatherisscoredbyzes
sixalmostparallelcuts.Obviouslythey
heeft
havebeencausedbysomeonedie
whohasverycarelesslyscrapedroundtheedgesofthesoleinordertoremovecrustedmudfromit.Hence,you
zie
see,mydoubledeductionthatyouhad
hadbeenoutinvileweather,en
andthatyouhadaparticularlymalignantboot-slittingspecimenofde
theLondonslavey.Astoyourpractice,ifagentlemanwalksintomyroomssmellingofiodoform,
met
withablackmarkofnitrateofsilveruponhisrightforefinger,en
andabulgeontherightsideofhistop-hattolaten zien
showwherehehassecretedhisstethoscope,Imoet
mustbedull,indeed,ifIdonotpronouncehimtobeanactivememberofthemedicalprofession.”I
kon
couldnothelplaughingathet
theeasewithwhichheexplainedhisprocessofdeduction.“WhenI
hoor
hearyougiveyourreasons,”Iremarked,“thezaak
thingalwaysappearstometobesoridiculouslysimpledat
thatIcouldeasilydoitmyself,thoughatelk
eachsuccessiveinstanceofyourreasoningIambaffledtotdat
untilyouexplainyourprocess.En
AndyetIbelievethatmyeyesareasgoed
goodasyours.”“Quiteso,”heanswered,lightingacigarette,
en
andthrowinghimselfdownintoanarmchair.“You
ziet
see,butyoudonotobserve.Het
Thedistinctionisclear.Forexample,you
hebt
havefrequentlyseenthestepsdie
whichleadupfromthehalltodeze
thisroom.”“Frequently.”
“Howoften?”
“Well,somehundredsoftimes.”
“Thenhowmanyarethere?”
“Howmany?
Idon’tknow.”
“Quiteso!
You
hebt
havenotobserved.Andyetyou
heb
haveseen.Thatisjustmy
punt
point.Now,Iknowthat
er
thereareseventeensteps,becauseIheb
havebothseenandobserved.Bytheway,
aangezien
sinceyouareinterestedinthesekleine
littleproblems,andsinceyouaregoed
goodenoughtochronicleoneof
ortwoofmytriflingexperiences,youmaybeinterestedinthis.”Hethrew
over
overasheetofthick,pink-tintednotepaperdie
whichhadbeenlyingopenuponde
thetable.“Itcameby
de
thelastpost,”saidhe.“Readitaloud.”
De
Thenotewasundated,andzonder
withouteithersignatureoraddress.“There
zal
willcalluponyouto-night,ateen
aquartertoeighto’clock,”itzei
said,“agentlemanwhodesirestoconsultyouuponeen
amatteroftheverydeepestmoment
moment.Yourrecentservicestooneof
de
theroyalhousesofEuropehebben
haveshownthatyouareonewhomaysafelybevertrouwd
trustedwithmatterswhichareofanimportancewhichcanhardlybeexaggerated.Dit
Thisaccountofyouwehebben
havefromallquartersreceived.Beinyourchamberthenat
dat
thathour,anddonotneem
takeitamissifyourvisitorweareen
amask.”“Thisisindeed
een
amystery,”Iremarked.“Whatdoyouimagine
dat
thatitmeans?”“Ihave
geen
nodatayet.Itisacapitalmistaketotheorise
voordat
beforeonehasdata.Insensibly
men
onebeginstotwistfactstosuittheories,insteadoftheoriestosuitfacts.Maar
Butthenoteitself.Whatdoyoudeducefromit?”
Icarefullyexaminedthe
geschreven
writing,andthepaperuponwhichitwasgeschreven
written.“Themanwhowroteitwaspresumably
goed
welltodo,”Iremarked,endeavouringtoimitatemycompanion’sprocesses.“Suchpaper
konden
couldnotbeboughtunderhalve
halfacrownapacket.Itispeculiarlystrong
en
andstiff.”“Peculiar—thatistheveryword,”
zei
saidHolmes.“ItisnotanEnglishpaperatall.
Houd
Holdituptothelight.”I
deed
didso,andsawalarge“E”met
withasmall“g,”a“P,”en
andalarge“G”witheen
asmall“t”wovenintothetextureofthepaper.“Whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
vroeg
askedHolmes.“Thenameof
de
themaker,nodoubt;orhismonogram,rather.”
“Notatall.
The‘G’
met
withthesmall‘t’standsfor‘Gesellschaft,’whichistheGermanfor‘Company.’Itiseen
acustomarycontractionlikeour‘Co.’‘P,’ofnatuurlijk
course,standsfor‘Papier.’Nowforthe‘Eg.’LetusglanceatourContinentalGazetteer.”He
nam
tookdownaheavybrownvolumefromhisshelves.“Eglow,Eglonitz—herewe
zijn
are,Egria.Itisin
een
aGerman-speakingcountry—inBohemia,notver
farfromCarlsbad.‘Remarkableasbeingthesceneofthe
dood
deathofWallenstein,andforitsnumerousglass-factoriesen
andpaper-mills.’Ha,ha,myjongen
boy,whatdoyoumakeofthat?”Hiseyessparkled,
en
andhesentupagrote
greatbluetriumphantcloudfromhiscigarette.“Thepaperwas
gemaakt
madeinBohemia,”Isaid.“Precisely.
En
Andthemanwhowrotethenoteiseen
aGerman.Doyounote
de
thepeculiarconstructionofthesentence—‘Thisaccountofyouwehebben
havefromallquartersreceived.’Een
AFrenchmanorRussiancouldnothebben
havewrittenthat.ItistheGerman
die
whoissouncourteoustohisverbs.It
alleen
onlyremains,therefore,todiscoverwhatiswil
wantedbythisGermanwhoschrijft
writesuponBohemianpaperandpreferswearingeen
amasktoshowinghisgezicht
face.Andherehecomes,
als
ifIamnotmistaken,toresolveal
allourdoubts.”Ashe
sprak
spoketherewasthesharpgeluid
soundofhorses’hoofsandgratingwheelstegen
againstthecurb,followedbyeen
asharppullatthebell.Holmeswhistled.
“Apair,by
het
thesound,”saidhe.“Yes,”hecontinued,glancing
uit
outofthewindow.“Anice
kleine
littlebroughamandapairofbeauties.Ahundredandfiftyguineasapiece.
There’s
geld
moneyinthiscase,Watson,als
ifthereisnothingelse.”“I
denk
thinkthatIhadbettergaan
go,Holmes.”“Notabit,
Dokter
Doctor.Staywhereyouare.
Iam
verloren
lostwithoutmyBoswell.And
dit
thispromisestobeinteresting.It
zou
wouldbeapitytomissen
missit.”“Butyourclient—”.
“Nevermind
hem
him.Imaywantyour
hulp
help,andsomayhe.Hier
Herehecomes.Sitdownin
die
thatarmchair,Doctor,andgiveusyourbeste
bestattention.”Aslowandheavystep,
die
whichhadbeenhearduponde
thestairsandinthepassage,pausedimmediatelybuiten
outsidethedoor.Thentherewas
een
aloudandauthoritativetap.“Comein!”
zei
saidHolmes.Amanentered
die
whocouldhardlyhavebeenlessdan
thansixfeetsixinchesinheight,met
withthechestandlimbsofeen
aHercules.Hisdresswasrich
met
witharichnesswhichwould,inEngland,belookeduponasakintoslechte
badtaste.Heavybandsofastrakhanwereslashedacross
de
thesleevesandfrontsofhisdouble-breastedcoat,terwijl
whilethedeepbluecloakdie
whichwasthrownoverhisshoulderswaslinedmet
withflame-colouredsilkandsecuredatde
theneckwithabroochdie
whichconsistedofasingleflamingberyl.Boots
die
whichextendedhalfwayuphiscalves,en
andwhichweretrimmedatde
thetopswithrichbrownfur,completedde
theimpressionofbarbaricopulencedie
whichwassuggestedbyhishele
wholeappearance.Hecarriedabroad-brimmedhatinhis
hand
hand,whileheworeacrosstheupperdeel
partofhisface,extendingdownpastthecheekbones,een
ablackvizardmask,whichhehad
hadapparentlyadjustedthatverymoment
moment,forhishandwasnog steeds
stillraisedtoitasheentered.Fromthelower
deel
partofthefaceheappearedtobeeen
amanofstrongcharacter,met
withathick,hanginglip,en
andalong,straightchinsuggestiveofresolutionpushedtothelengthofobstinacy.“You
heb
hadmynote?”heasked
met
withadeepharshvoiceen
andastronglymarkedGermanaccent.“I
zei
toldyouthatIwouldcall.”He
keek
lookedfromonetotheandere
otherofus,asifuncertainwhichtoaddress.“Praytakeaseat,”
zei
saidHolmes.“Thisismy
vriend
friendandcolleague,Dr.Watson,die
whoisoccasionallygoodenoughtohelpen
helpmeinmycases.Whom
heb
haveIthehonourtoaddress?”“You
mag
mayaddressmeastheCountVonKramm,een
aBohemiannobleman.Iunderstandthat
deze
thisgentleman,yourfriend,iseen
amanofhonouranddiscretion,whomIkan
maytrustwithamatterofhet
themostextremeimportance.Ifnot,Ishouldmuchprefertocommunicate
met
withyoualone.”Iroseto
gaan
go,butHolmescaughtmebyde
thewristandpushedmeterug
backintomychair.“Itisboth,
of
ornone,”saidhe.“You
mag
maysaybeforethisgentlemanalles
anythingwhichyoumaysaytome.”De
TheCountshruggedhisbroadshoulders.“ThenI
moet
mustbegin,”saidhe,“bybindingyoubothtoabsolutesecrecyfortwee
twoyears;attheendof
die
thattimethematterwillbeofgeen
noimportance.Atpresentitisnottoo
veel
muchtosaythatitisofsuchweightitkan
mayhaveaninfluenceuponEuropeanhistory.”“Ipromise,”
zei
saidHolmes.“AndI.”
“You
zult
willexcusethismask,”continuedourstrangevisitor.“Theaugust
persoon
personwhoemploysmewisheshisagenttobeunknowntoyou,en
andImayconfessatoncethatde
thetitlebywhichIheb
havejustcalledmyselfisnotprecies
exactlymyown.”“Iwasawareofit,”
zei
saidHolmesdryly.“Thecircumstancesareofgreatdelicacy,
en
andeveryprecautionhastobegenomen
takentoquenchwhatmightgrowtobeanimmensescandalen
andseriouslycompromiseoneofde
thereigningfamiliesofEurope.Tospeakplainly,the
zaak
matterimplicatesthegreatHouseofOrmstein,hereditarykingsofBohemia.”“Iwas
ook
alsoawareofthat,”murmuredHolmes,settlinghimselfneer
downinhisarmchairandsloot
closinghiseyes.Ourvisitorglanced
met
withsomeapparentsurpriseatde
thelanguid,loungingfigureofde
themanwhohadbeennodoubtdepictedtohimasde
themostincisivereasonerandmeest
mostenergeticagentinEurope.Holmesslowlyreopenedhiseyes
en
andlookedimpatientlyathisgiganticclient.“IfyourMajesty
zou
wouldcondescendtostateyourcase,”heremarked,“Ishouldbebeter
betterabletoadviseyou.”De
Themansprangfromhischairen
andpacedupanddownde
theroominuncontrollableagitation.Then,
met
withagestureofdesperation,hetorethemaskfromhisgezicht
faceandhurleditupontheground.“Youareright,”hecried;
“Iam
de
theKing.WhyshouldIattempttoconcealit?”
“Why,indeed?”
murmuredHolmes.
“YourMajesty
had
hadnotspokenbeforeIwasawaredat
thatIwasaddressingWilhelmGottsreichSigismondvonOrmstein,GrandDukeofCassel-Felstein,en
andhereditaryKingofBohemia.”“Butyou
kunt
canunderstand,”saidourstrangevisitor,zitten
sittingdownoncemoreandpassinghishand
handoverhishighwhiteforehead,“youkunt
canunderstandthatIamnotaccustomedtodoen
doingsuchbusinessinmyeigen
ownperson.Yetthematterwassodelicate
dat
thatIcouldnotconfideittoeen
anagentwithoutputtingmyselfinhismacht
power.IhavecomeincognitofromPragueforthepurposeofconsultingyou.”
“Then,prayconsult,”
zei
saidHolmes,shuttinghiseyesoncemore.“Thefactsarebrieflythese:
Some
vijf
fiveyearsago,duringalengthyvisittoWarsaw,Imaakte
madetheacquaintanceofthewell-knownadventuress,IreneAdler.De
Thenameisnodoubtfamiliartoyou.”“Kindlylookherupinmyindex,Doctor,”murmuredHolmes
zonder
withoutopeninghiseyes.For
vele
manyyearshehadadoptedeen
asystemofdocketingallparagraphsconcerningmenen
andthings,sothatitwasdifficulttonoemen
nameasubjectorapersoon
persononwhichhecouldnotatoncefurnishinformation.In
dit
thiscaseIfoundherbiographysandwichedintussen
betweenthatofaHebrewrabbien
andthatofastaff-commanderwhohad
hadwrittenamonographuponde
thedeep-seafishes.“Letmesee!”
zei
saidHolmes.“Hum!
BorninNewJerseyin
het
theyear1858.Contralto—hum!
LaScala,hum!
PrimadonnaImperialOperaofWarsaw—yes!
Retiredfromoperaticstage—ha!
Wonen
LivinginLondon—quiteso!YourMajesty,asI
begrijp
understand,becameentangledwiththisjonge
youngperson,wrotehersomecompromisingletters,en
andisnowdesirousofkrijgen
gettingthoselettersback.”“Preciselyso.
Maar
Buthow—”.