I.ASCANDALINBOHEMIA
I.
ToSherlockHolmessheisalwaysthewoman.
Ihave
selten
seldomheardhimmentionherunderanyothername.Inhiseyessheeclipsesandpredominatesthewholeofhersex.
ItwasnotthathefeltanyemotionakintoloveforIreneAdler.
Allemotions,andthatone
besonders
particularly,wereabhorrenttohiscold,precisebutadmirablybalancedmind.Hewas,Itakeit,themostperfectreasoningandobservingmachinethattheworldhasseen,butasaloverhewouldhaveplacedhimselfinafalseposition.
Heneverspokeofthesofterpassions,savewithagibeandasneer.
Theywereadmirablethingsfortheobserver—excellentfordrawingthe
schleier
veilfrommen’smotivesandactions.Butforthetrainedreasonertoadmitsuchintrusionsintohisowndelicateandfinelyadjustedtemperamentwastointroduceadistracting
faktor
factorwhichmightthrowadoubtuponallhismentalresults.Gritinasensitive
instrument
instrument,oracrackinoneofhisownhigh-powerlenses,wouldnotbemoredisturbingthanastrongemotion
emotioninanaturesuchashis.Andyettherewasbutonewomantohim,andthatwomanwasthelateIreneAdler,ofdubiousandquestionablememory.
IhadseenlittleofHolmeslately.
Mymarriagehaddriftedusawayfromeachother.
Myowncompletehappiness,andthehome-centredinterestswhichriseuparoundthemanwhofirstfindshimselfmasterofhisown
einrichtung
establishment,weresufficienttoabsorballmyattention,whileHolmes,whoverabscheute
loathedeveryformofsocietywithhiswholeBohemiansoul,remainedinourlodgingsinBakerStreet,buriedamonghisoldbooks,andalternatingfromweektoweekbetweencocaineandehrgeiz
ambition,thedrowsinessofthedrug,andtheheftigen
fierceenergyofhisownkeennature.Hewasstill,asever,deeply
angezogen
attractedbythestudyofcrime,andbesetzte
occupiedhisimmensefacultiesandextraordinarypowersofobservationinfollowingoutthoseclues,andclearingupthosemysterieswhichhadbeenabandonedashoffnungslos
hopelessbytheofficialpolice.FromtimetotimeIheardsome
vage
vagueaccountofhisdoings:ofhissummonstoOdessainthecaseoftheTrepoffmurder,ofhisclearingupofthesingular
tragödie
tragedyoftheAtkinsonbrothersatTrincomalee,andfinallyofthemissionwhichhehaderfüllt
accomplishedsodelicatelyandsuccessfullyforthereigningfamilyofHolland.Beyondthesesignsofhis
tätigkeit
activity,however,whichImerelysharedwithallthereadersofthedailypress,Iknewlittleofmyformerfriendandcompanion.Onenight—itwasonthetwentiethofMarch,1888—Iwasreturningfromajourneytoapatient(forIhadnowreturnedtocivilpractice),whenmywayledmethroughBakerStreet.
AsIpassedthewell-remembereddoor,whichmustalwaysbeassociatedinmymindwithmywooing,andwiththedarkincidentsoftheStudyin
Scharlach
Scarlet,IwasseizedwithakeendesiretoseeHolmesagain,andtoknowhowhewasemployinghisextraordinarypowers.Hisroomswerebrilliantly
beleuchtet
lit,and,evenasIlookedup,Isawhistall,sparefigurepasstwiceinadarksilhouetteagainsttheblind.Hewaspacingtheroomswiftly,eagerly,withhisheadsunkuponhischestandhishandsclaspedbehindhim.
Tome,whoknewhiseverymoodandhabit,hisattitudeand
weise
mannertoldtheirownstory.Hewasatworkagain.
Hehadrisenoutofhisdrug-createddreamsandwashotuponthescentofsomenewproblem.
Irangthebellandwasshownuptothe
kammer
chamberwhichhadformerlybeeninpartmyown.His
weise
mannerwasnoteffusive.It
selten
seldomwas;buthewasglad,Ithink,toseeme.
Withhardlyawordspoken,butwithakindlyeye,hewavedmetoanarmchair,threwacrosshiscaseofcigars,andindicatedaspiritcaseandagasogeneinthecorner.
Thenhestoodbeforethefireandlookedmeoverinhissingularintrospectivefashion.
“Wedlocksuitsyou,”heremarked.
“Ithink,Watson,thatyouhaveputonsevenandahalfpoundssinceIsawyou.”
“Seven!”
Ianswered.
“Indeed,Ishouldhavethoughtalittlemore.
Justatriflemore,Ifancy,Watson.
Andinpracticeagain,Iobserve.
Youdidnottellmethatyou
willst
intendedtogointoharness.”“Then,howdoyouknow?”
“Iseeit,Ideduceit.
HowdoIknowthatyouhavebeengettingyourselfverywetlately,andthatyouhaveamostclumsyandcarelessservantgirl?”
“MydearHolmes,”saidI,“thisistoomuch.
Youwouldcertainlyhavebeenburned,hadyoulivedafewcenturiesago.
ItistruethatIhadacountrywalkonThursdayandcamehomeinadreadfulmess,butasIhavechangedmyclothesIcan’timaginehowyoudeduceit.
AstoMaryJane,sheisincorrigible,andmywifehasgivenhernotice,butthere,again,Ifailtoseehowyouworkitout.”
Hechuckledtohimselfandrubbedhislong,nervoushandstogether.
“Itis
einfachheit
simplicityitself,”saidhe;“myeyestellmethatontheinsideofyourleftshoe,justwherethefirelightstrikesit,the
leder
leatherisscoredbysixalmostparallelcuts.Obviouslytheyhavebeencausedbysomeonewhohasverycarelesslyscrapedroundtheedgesofthe
sohle
soleinordertoremovecrustedschlamm
mudfromit.Hence,yousee,mydoubledeductionthatyouhadbeenoutinvileweather,andthatyouhada
besonders
particularlymalignantboot-slittingspecimenoftheLondonslavey.Astoyourpractice,ifagentlemanwalksintomyroomssmellingofiodoform,withablackmarkofnitrateofsilveruponhisrightforefinger,andabulgeontherightsideofhistop-hattoshowwherehehassecretedhisstethoscope,Imustbe
langweilig
dull,indeed,ifIdonotpronouncehimtobeanactivememberofthemedicalprofession.”Icouldnothelplaughingatthe
leichtigkeit
easewithwhichheexplainedhisprocessofdeduction.“WhenIhearyougiveyourreasons,”Iremarked,“thethingalwaysappearstometobesoridiculouslysimplethatIcouldeasilydoitmyself,thoughateachsuccessive
beispiel
instanceofyourreasoningIambaffleduntilyouexplainyourprocess.AndyetIbelievethatmyeyesareasgoodasyours.”
“Quiteso,”heanswered,lightingacigarette,andthrowinghimselfdownintoanarmchair.
“Yousee,butyoudonotobserve.
The
unterschied
distinctionisclear.Forexample,youhavefrequentlyseenthestepswhichleadupfromthehalltothisroom.”
“Frequently.”
“Howoften?”
“Well,somehundredsoftimes.”
“Thenhowmanyarethere?”
“Howmany?
Idon’tknow.”
“Quiteso!
Youhavenotobserved.
Andyetyouhaveseen.
Thatisjustmypoint.
Now,Iknowthatthereareseventeensteps,becauseIhavebothseenandobserved.
Bytheway,sinceyouareinterestedintheselittleproblems,andsinceyouaregoodenoughtochronicleoneortwoofmytriflingexperiences,youmaybeinterestedinthis.”
Hethrewovera
blatt
sheetofthick,pink-tintednotepaperwhichhadbeenlyingopenuponthetable.“Itcamebythelastpost,”saidhe.
“Readitaloud.”
Thenotewasundated,andwithouteither
unterschrift
signatureoraddress.“Therewillcalluponyouto-night,ataquartertoeighto’clock,”itsaid,“agentlemanwhodesiresto
beraten
consultyouuponamatteroftheverydeepestmoment.YourrecentservicestooneoftheroyalhousesofEuropehaveshownthatyouareonewhomay
sicher
safelybetrustedwithmatterswhichareofanbedeutung
importancewhichcanhardlybeübertrieben
exaggerated.Thisaccountofyouwehavefromallquartersreceived.
Beinyour
kammer
chamberthenatthathour,anddonottakeitamissifyourbesucher
visitorwearamask.”“Thisisindeedamystery,”Iremarked.
“Whatdoyouimaginethatitmeans?”
“Ihavenodatayet.
Itisacapitalmistaketotheorisebeforeonehasdata.
Insensiblyonebeginsto
verdrehen
twistfactstosuittheories,insteadoftheoriestosuitfacts.Butthenoteitself.
Whatdoyoudeducefromit?”
Icarefully
untersuchte
examinedthewriting,andthepaperuponwhichitwaswritten.“Themanwhowroteitwas
vermutlich
presumablywelltodo,”Iremarked,endeavouringtoimitatemycompanion’sprocesses.“Suchpapercouldnotbeboughtunderhalfa
krone
crownapacket.Itispeculiarlystrongandstiff.”
“Peculiar—thatistheveryword,”saidHolmes.
“ItisnotanEnglishpaperatall.
Holdituptothelight.”
Ididso,andsawalarge“E”withasmall“g,”a“P,”andalarge“G”withasmall“t”
gewebt
wovenintothetextureofthepaper.“Whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
askedHolmes.
“Thenameofthemaker,nodoubt;
orhismonogram,rather.”
“Notatall.
The‘G’withthesmall‘t’standsfor‘Gesellschaft,’whichistheGermanfor‘Company.’Itisacustomarycontractionlikeour‘Co.’‘P,’ofcourse,standsfor‘Papier.’Nowforthe‘Eg.’LetusglanceatourContinentalGazetteer.”
Hetookdownaheavybrown
band
volumefromhisshelves.“Eglow,Eglonitz—hereweare,Egria.
ItisinaGerman-speakingcountry—inBohemia,notfarfromCarlsbad.
‘RemarkableasbeingthesceneofthedeathofWallenstein,andforitsnumerousglass-factoriesandpaper-mills.’Ha,ha,myboy,whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
Hiseyes
funkelten
sparkled,andhesentupagreatbluetriumphantwolke
cloudfromhiscigarette.“ThepaperwasmadeinBohemia,”Isaid.
“Precisely.
AndthemanwhowrotethenoteisaGerman.
Doyounotethepeculiar
konstruktion
constructionofthesentence—‘Thisaccountofyouwehavefromallquartersreceived.’AFrenchmanorRussiancouldnothavewrittenthat.ItistheGermanwhoissouncourteoustohisverbs.
Itonlyremains,therefore,to
entdecken
discoverwhatiswantedbythisGermanwhowritesuponBohemianpaperandpreferswearingamasktoshowinghisface.Andherehecomes,ifIamnot
irre
mistaken,toresolveallourdoubts.”Ashespoketherewasthesharpsoundofhorses’hoofsandgratingwheelsagainstthecurb,followedbyasharppullatthebell.
Holmeswhistled.
“Apair,bythesound,”saidhe.
“Yes,”hecontinued,glancingoutofthewindow.
“Anicelittlebroughamandapairofbeauties.
Ahundredandfiftyguineasapiece.
There’smoneyinthiscase,Watson,ifthereisnothingelse.”
“IthinkthatIhadbettergo,Holmes.”
“Notabit,Doctor.
Staywhereyouare.
IamlostwithoutmyBoswell.
Andthispromisestobeinteresting.
Itwouldbeapitytomissit.”
“Butyourclient—”.
“Nevermindhim.
Imaywantyourhelp,andsomayhe.
Herehecomes.
Sitdowninthatarmchair,Doctor,andgiveusyourbestattention.”
Aslowandheavystep,whichhadbeenhearduponthestairsandinthe
durchgang
passage,pausedimmediatelyoutsidethedoor.Thentherewasaloudandauthoritativetap.
“Comein!”
saidHolmes.
Amanenteredwhocouldhardlyhavebeenlessthansixfeetsixinchesinheight,withthechestandlimbsofaHercules.
Hisdresswasrichwitharichnesswhichwould,inEngland,belookeduponasakintobadtaste.
Heavybandsofastrakhanwereslashedacrossthesleevesandfrontsofhisdouble-breastedcoat,whilethedeepbluecloakwhichwasthrownoverhisshoulderswaslinedwithflame-coloured
seide
silkandsecuredattheneckwithabroochwhichconsistedofasingleflamingberyl.Bootswhichextendedhalfwayuphiscalves,andwhichweretrimmedatthetopswithrichbrownfur,completedthe
eindruck
impressionofbarbaricopulencewhichwassuggestedbyhiswholeaussehen
appearance.Hecarriedabroad-brimmedhatinhishand,whileheworeacrosstheupperpartofhisface,extendingdownpastthecheekbones,ablackvizardmask,whichhehadapparentlyadjustedthatverymoment,forhishandwasstillraisedtoitasheentered.
Fromthelowerpartofthefaceheappearedtobeamanofstrongcharacter,withathick,hanging
lippe
lip,andalong,straightkinn
chinsuggestiveofresolutionpushedtothelänge
lengthofobstinacy.“Youhadmynote?”
heaskedwithadeepharshvoiceanda
stark
stronglymarkedGermanaccent.“ItoldyouthatIwouldcall.”
Helookedfromonetotheotherofus,asif
unsicher
uncertainwhichtoaddress.“Praytakeaseat,”saidHolmes.
“Thisismyfriendand
kollege
colleague,Dr.Watson,whoisgelegentlich
occasionallygoodenoughtohelpmeinmycases.WhomhaveIthehonourtoaddress?”
“YoumayaddressmeastheCountVonKramm,aBohemiannobleman.
Iunderstandthatthisgentleman,yourfriend,isamanofhonourand
diskretion
discretion,whomImaytrustwithamatterofthemostextremebedeutung
importance.Ifnot,Ishouldmuchpreferto
kommunizieren
communicatewithyoualone.”Irosetogo,butHolmescaughtmebythe
handgelenk
wristandpushedmebackintomychair.“Itisboth,ornone,”saidhe.
“Youmaysaybeforethisgentlemananythingwhichyoumaysaytome.”
TheCountshruggedhisbroadshoulders.
“ThenImustbegin,”saidhe,“bybindingyoubothtoabsolute
geheimhaltung
secrecyfortwoyears;attheendofthattimethematterwillbeofno
bedeutung
importance.Atpresentitisnottoomuchtosaythatitisofsuchweightitmayhavean
einfluss
influenceuponEuropeanhistory.”“Ipromise,”saidHolmes.
“AndI.”
“Youwillexcusethismask,”continuedourstrange
besucher
visitor.“Theaugustpersonwhoemploysmewisheshisagenttobeunknowntoyou,andImay
gestehen
confessatoncethatthetitlebywhichIhavejustcalledmyselfisnotexactlymyown.”“Iwasawareofit,”saidHolmesdryly.
“Thecircumstancesareofgreatdelicacy,andeveryprecautionhastobetakentoquenchwhatmightgrowtobeanimmense
skandal
scandalandseriouslycompromiseoneofthereigningfamiliesofEurope.Tospeakplainly,thematterimplicatesthegreatHouseofOrmstein,hereditarykingsofBohemia.”
“Iwasalsoawareofthat,”murmuredHolmes,settlinghimselfdowninhisarmchairandclosinghiseyes.
Our
besucher
visitorglancedwithsomeapparentsurpriseatthelanguid,loungingfigureofthemanwhohadbeennodoubtdepictedtohimasthemostincisivereasonerandmostenergeticagentinEurope.Holmesslowlyreopenedhiseyesandlookedimpatientlyathisgiganticclient.
“IfyourMajestywouldcondescendtostateyourcase,”heremarked,“Ishouldbebetterableto
beraten
adviseyou.”Themansprangfromhischairandpacedupanddowntheroominuncontrollableagitation.
Then,witha
geste
gestureofdesperation,hetorethemaskfromhisfaceandhurleditupontheground.“Youareright,”hecried;
“IamtheKing.
WhyshouldI
versuchen
attempttoconcealit?”“Why,indeed?”
murmuredHolmes.
“YourMajestyhadnotspokenbeforeIwasawarethatIwasaddressingWilhelmGottsreichSigismondvonOrmstein,GrandDukeofCassel-Felstein,andhereditaryKingofBohemia.”
“Butyoucanunderstand,”saidourstrange
besucher
visitor,sittingdownoncemoreandpassinghishandoverhishighwhitestirn
forehead,“youcanunderstandthatIamnotaccustomedtodoingsuchbusinessinmyownperson.Yetthematterwasso
heikel
delicatethatIcouldnotanvertrauen
confideittoanagentwithoutputtingmyselfinhispower.IhavecomeincognitofromPragueforthepurposeofconsultingyou.”
“Then,prayconsult,”saidHolmes,shuttinghiseyesoncemore.
“Thefactsare
kurz
brieflythese:Somefiveyearsago,duringalengthyvisittoWarsaw,Imadethe
bekannte
acquaintanceofthewell-knownadventuress,IreneAdler.Thenameisnodoubtfamiliartoyou.”
“Kindlylookherupinmy
index
index,Doctor,”murmuredHolmeswithoutopeninghiseyes.Formanyyearshehadadoptedasystemofdocketingallparagraphsconcerningmenandthings,sothatitwasdifficulttonameasubjectorapersononwhichhecouldnotatoncefurnishinformation.
InthiscaseIfoundher
biographie
biographysandwichedinbetweenthatofaHebrewrabbiandthatofastaff-commanderwhohadwrittenamonographuponthedeep-seafishes.“Letmesee!”
saidHolmes.
“Hum!
BorninNewJerseyintheyear1858.
Contralto—hum!
LaScala,hum!
PrimadonnaImperial
Oper
OperaofWarsaw—yes!Retiredfromoperaticstage—ha!
LivinginLondon—quiteso!
YourMajesty,asIunderstand,becameentangledwiththisyoungperson,wrotehersomecompromisingletters,andisnowdesirousofgettingthoselettersback.”
“Preciselyso.
Buthow—”.