More From the Deed Box of John H. Watson MD

by Ashton, Hugh

  “May I ask whose invitation was extended to him to dine aboard this ship?” asked Holmes.

  “It was mine, sir. I am the only one on board who has served with him previously, and I had invited him to dine on several previous occasions as a guest of the wardroom. He was a popular guest with the officers.”

  “You had served on ships with him in the past?” asked Holmes.

  “Yes, indeed. It seemed that we were fated to serve together on various ships, and as a result, we became good friends.”

  “Understandably. And in his last post at sea, when he commanded the Iron Duke?”

  “When he took command of her, I was posted here to the Colossus, where I have remained since.”

  “Very good. I have just been informed that he had suffered from some sort of injury that left him with a limp. Do you know how he came by this? We were also informed that you have served with him in the past, so I consider this to be a fair question,” asked Holmes.

  The other’s already ruddy face flushed a little more. “Is it necessary for you to know this, sir?” he asked.

  “The most irrelevant-seeming facts may take on importance in the future. You may rely on my confidence,” Holmes assured him. “If the information has to be made public, there is no need for your name to be associated with it. You may speak as freely in front of Watson here as you may myself – Watson is the soul of tact and discretion.”

  The other spoke, but still with some hesitation. “This is the first time that I have ever told the true story, and I cannot believe that I am telling it to anyone, even now.”

  “I thank you for the trust you are reposing in us,” said Holmes. He sat impassively, his fingers steepled, as the other told his tale.

  “It was while we were serving together on the old Billy Ruffian – the Bellorophon. We were stationed near the Dutch East Indies. We had put into the port at Jakarta, and all of us – the officers, that is – had shore leave, and we took turns, as is usual, in remaining aboard and manning the ship. The natives would swarm round the boat, and try to climb aboard. We needed to keep constant watch in order to prevent them from boarding and thieving from us. One night it was my turn to keep watch in this fashion – all the other officers were ashore – and I heard one of the boats coming back early. When it got closer, I saw that it was not one of our own boats, but one of those operated by the Dutch port officials. There were several of the Dutch police officers in it, and Augustus Wilmott was lying in the boat, unconscious, with his leg bound up in bandages. The police demanded to talk to the Captain, but he was ashore, of course, and they had to make do with me, a mere junior lieutenant at the time, but it seemed I was good enough for them. Naturally, I was worried about Haughton, and I asked what had happened, and how he had sustained his injury. It seemed that he had been in a house of very ill repute indeed, where some very vicious practices went on – I will not enlarge on the details.” Here the good fellow stopped for a while, obviously embarrassed by the tale he was recounting. “Suffice it to say that they are those practices of which mariners are often accused. Loathsome and disgusting vices. In any case,” he went on hurriedly, “it appeared that there had been some heated discussion regarding money, and Wilmott had been involved in some sort of affray. The police had been called, and Haughton had fled, not unnaturally wishing to escape any scandal. He had tripped on some filth and his ankle was twisted, possibly broken. The police identified him as one if the Bellerophon’s crew and brought him to the ship. It seemed that they had no interest in arresting him or taking matters any further – in fact, they seemed keen to keep the whole thing very quiet and not to make any further trouble – but they brought him back to the ship.”

  “I see,” said Holmes. “And you were the only officer on board at the time?”

  “I was, and I was therefore able to put about the story that Wilmott had been attacked, and had slipped and broken his ankle – for so later turned out that this was the case – when eluding his pursuers. The event was so written up in the log.”

  “And I am sure that he was grateful to you for doing this?”

  “Yes, he was.” He seemed reluctant to discuss this aspect of the matter further, however.

  A thought occurred to me, and without thinking, I asked the question that came to my mind. “You were aware that your fellow officer had such, shall we say, predilections,” I burst out, “and yet you continued to be friends with him?” I noticed Holmes glance at me, and then look back at the naval officer with intense interest.

  Ramsey-Moffat turned an even deeper red. “He explained to me, in strict confidence, that the affairs of that evening were an aberration. Or rather, that they were a mistake. He had entered the wrong house, as it were, being mistaken as to the true nature of the residents there. In any case, he told me that this was the first time in his life that such an incident had occurred, and that such would never happen again.” He paused a little. “And to the best of my knowledge, that is the case.”

  “Thank you, Lieutenant Ramsey-Moffat. I hope we will meet at dinner this evening with Captain Glover.”

  “Unfortunately, that will not be possible. Duty forbids.” He pulled out a large ornate watch and examined it. “And duty calls me now.”

  “Well, then, I must bid you farewell, it seems, and thank you for your help.”

  The officer left us, and Holmes turned to me. “I sense trouble here. Deep and dark trouble that bodes ill for the Navy, and even for the safety of the realm.”

  “Because of one foolish incident some years ago that may have been a ghastly mistake?”

  “Indirectly, that might be said to be the case, I suppose. That officer is a plausible liar, though.” He sighed.

  “Holmes,” I exclaimed, somewhat astounded. “Are you insinuating that an officer of the Royal Navy, holding Her Majesty’s commission, has been telling us less than the truth?”

  Holmes smiled. “I will not say that his testimony to us was a tissue of lies from beginning to end, but I fear it was largely untrue.”

  “On what do you base this accusation, Holmes?”

  “Why, on the man’s watch, of course. Or, shall we say, the watch that he pulled out of his pocket. Did you not notice the engraving on it?”

  “I failed to do so.”

  “The initials A.W. cannot under any circumstances be those of Senior Lieutenant Ramsey-Moffat. They could, however be those of a certain other gentleman.”

  “I cannot conceive of any conclusions you can draw from this.”

  “I can conceive of too many, Watson, and none of them is a pleasant one. Let us return the use of the good Captain’s cabin to him, and we will spend the day in the town, seeking what information there is to be had here. And I believe we could spend a very profitable evening by accepting Captain Glover’s hospitality. What do you say to that?”

  “As long as the bill of fare is something other than bully beef and ship’s biscuit,” I laughed. “Very good. Let us follow your suggestions.”

  Before we left the ship, we talked to Captain Glover and accepted the invitation. At my urging, Holmes also told him a little more of the case on which we were engaged, while omitting any mention of the story we had been told by his Senior Lieutenant, and swore him to secrecy. As I had expected, the Captain appeared to be impressed by the confidence reposed in him by Holmes, and promised us every assistance in our work.

  -oOo-

  Holmes was once again pre-occupied as we walked off the ship into the town.

  “Watson,” he said to me suddenly. “Why in the world would that officer tell us that story with all the details? Why could he not have told us the story he recorded in the log?”

  “He wishes to set our minds against the missing man? To prejudice our thoughts against him?”

  “That is my feeling. And again, I ask myself why? Does he wish us to continue our enquiries less zealously? If so, he will be sadly disappointed. To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and you know well, Watson, t
hat if I am pushed in one direction against my will, I will push back with an opposite force, which will exceed the force with which I am pushed. No, Lieutenant Ramsey-Moffat,” he soliloquised, “you make me more, not less, interested in the disappearance of your friend, if friend he truly be.”

  We walked on until we reached the harbourmaster’s office, where Holmes made enquiries as to the identity of the ship that had been described by Fortescue.

  “The Matilda Briggs, registered in Rotterdam,” said Holmes as we emerged from the office. “We now have a name for the ship. It should be easy enough for the Board of Trade to trace her calls at the ports around the coast, and we can then match those to the letters received by the Admiralty. Let us send a cable to the Board of Trade, and ask them to find out more about this ship and where she has berthed recently. Then we will reserve lodgings for the night, as I think we will partake of the Colossus’ hospitality this evening, but spend the night on shore.”

  We sent the telegram, requesting that the reply be sent in care of Captain Glover on board the Colossus, and Holmes returned to the docks while I booked our accommodation at the George Inn. It had cost Holmes a number of florins to obtain it, but in the end he had a little more information about both the Matilda Briggs, and her visit to Portsmouth, as he told me before the fire in the front parlour of the inn.

  “A Dutch skipper, and a dusky crew, possibly from the Indies, by the sound of them,” he summarised rubbing his hands together briskly. “With one or two Dutch officers. A cargo of miscellaneous items, including sacks of grain and cheap tinware. I cannot attach any significance to that. It is strange, but no-one had any recollection of any previous visits by the ship. Typically such vessels will follow a fixed pattern, I believe, and it is unusual for them to break their habits in this way.”

  “What about the men who escorted Lord Haughton to the boat? Did you discover anything?”

  “I was fortunate,” he replied, “in being able to talk with the very boatman who carried the missing man to the Matilda Briggs. He was able to give a full description of the two Dutchman who escorted Haughton. The descriptions meant nothing to me, except that he mentioned that both men were heavily tanned, and spoke very little English. Though they arrived at the boat at the same time as Lord Haughton, it seems that they did not form a party. The boatman was first hired by them to take them to the Matilda Briggs, and following that, he was given to understand that he was to carry Lord Haughton to the Colossus.”

  “What actually transpired?”

  “According to the boatman, Lord Haughton was forced by his companions to mount the accommodation ladder to the coaster, escorted by them. He was received at the top by two of the native crew, and his two Dutch companions re-joined the smaller boat. They then paid him five pounds to return them straight to the dock, and to say nothing to anyone about the event.”

  “He told you all,” I objected.

  Holmes chuckled. “I drew him on a bet. I had gauged him, thanks to the betting slip I observed in his hatband, as a man who was not averse to a wager, and I was right in my assumption. I bet him that he had not carried passengers of more than a dozen nationalities within the past month. I was sure to lose my bet, as I had already counted the flags of fifteen nations on the ships in the harbor. I had to listen to tales of Finns and Swedes and Russians before we came to our Dutchmen, but we arrived there in the end.”

  “And now?” I asked.

  “Now we return to the Colossus. I trust that Captain Glover will forgive us for our sins in not dressing for dinner.”

  -oOo-

  The telegram from the Board of Trade was waiting for Holmes when we boarded the Colossus and entered the Captain’s cabin. “As I thought,” said Holmes, tearing it open and scanning the contents. “There is a perfect correspondence between the ports of call of the Matilda Briggs and the postmarks of the letters received from Lord Haughton. We can therefore conclude that he was being held on board the ship, and maybe still is on board.”

  “Where is the last port of call recorded?” I asked.

  “Gravesend, a few days ago, which corresponds to the last letter received.”

  “And you think that she is now in Holland, with Lord Haughton aboard?”

  “I believe that is what we are intended to think.”

  “May I make a suggestion,” Captain Glover broke in. “Forgive me, gentlemen, but since you were good enough to take me into your confidence, I have been considering the matter. If you would care to use the facilities available to us, we could send a coded cable to the Admiralty, and the Admiralty agents in Holland and elsewhere on the Continent could investigate the matter and discover the whereabouts and possibly even the intentions of this mysterious Dutch vessel. I confess that I fear for Lord Haughton. Though I am not personally well acquainted with him, he is of course known to me, and he enjoys a sterling reputation among his brother officers, and to see him in Whitehall would be of great advantage to all of us who serve at sea.”

  “Then let us adopt your excellent suggestion,” Holmes said to the Captain, who appeared highly gratified that his idea had been taken up by the famous detective. “Would you have any idea how soon we could expect an answer?”

  “Of course, I cannot be sure,” replied Glover, “but it seems to me that this is a question that could be solved within twenty-four hours at the very most. You are probably aware that we have agents in every coastal port on the Continent. During the time we await a reply, I would like to extend the hospitality of the Royal Navy to you both.”

  “Most kind of you,” answered Holmes, “but we have reserved rooms at the George, close by the dock.” The other’s face fell somewhat, as it seemed to me that he was anticipating the cachet of having Sherlock Holmes as a guest of the Colossus, but his countenance brightened to some extent when Holmes added, “We would, however, welcome the use of a room such as this as a base for our operations while we are in this town.”

  “Naturally,” Glover assured us, the smile returning to his weather-beaten face. “My cabin is your cabin, as the Spaniards almost have it.”

  “Your cooperation will not go unremarked, I assure you,” said Holmes. “Now let us draft this message.”

  The message was soon written, and passed to the signalman for encoding and transmission over the Admiralty telegraph system.

  “And now dinner,” invited Captain Glover.

  -oOo-

  After the admirable dinner, we returned to the George, despite the Captain’s protestations, where we turned in and I, for one, slept soundly.

  I was awakened early the next morning by a hammering on my door. On opening my eyes, I perceived that it wanted an hour or more before dawn, and I was somewhat annoyed, if not altogether surprised, by Holmes’ voice bidding me to awake and dress myself. I hurriedly prepared myself for the day, omitting my morning shave, there being no hot water, and went downstairs to meet Holmes, who was waiting in the parlour together with a seaman on which the cap band read “Colossus”.

  “I beg your forgiveness for this early call, Watson,” Holmes apologised to me. “I was myself awakened some time ago by this messenger from the Colossus. Captain Glover has received a reply from Whitehall, and requests us to meet him at the dock. It would appear that the game is afoot.” Even in the dim morning half-light, I could see that his eyes were positively shining with excitement.

  “We are not to meet him on board the Colossus?”

  “It would appear not.”

  We hurried through the darkened streets, following our guide, to a part of the dock which we had not visited the previous day. Captain Glover was waiting for us, a broad smile creasing his face.

  “I would advise you to don these,” he remarked, pointing to two sets of oilskin waterproof clothing, similar to what I now noticed he himself was wearing. “Our vessel today provides less protection against the elements than does the Colossus.” He gestured to the water below, where a sleek vessel rode the waves. A curiously low and rounded hull gave
her the appearance of some sinister sea creature. “Behold Her Majesty’s Ship Daring, which has been described in the press as ‘the fastest ship ever’. She made twenty-eight knots on her trials, approximately thirty-two miles per hour.”

  “I am puzzled,” I said. I admit to having been still somewhat irritated at having been pulled from my warm bed to stand on a cold dockside where a light rain was unmistakably starting to fall, and my tone was somewhat sharp.

  “We are on the trail of your quarry,” Glover explained. “I received a cable from the Admiralty that the Matilda Briggs had departed Cherbourg last night, giving Southampton as her next port of call. I have therefore commandeered the use of the Daring to lie in wait for her and to board her if necessary. The 12-pounder gun should prove a sufficient means of persuasion.”

  “What manner of ship is this?” I asked, looking down. “She seems to be very long compared to her beam.”

  “She is a new type of vessel, which we call a ‘torpedo boat destroyer’, designed for the purpose of protecting the Fleet’s capital ships against the menace of the smaller torpedo boats that are now being deployed by navies around the world.”

  “On this occasion, we do not wish to destroy,” remarked Holmes. “But a fast ship of this type will allow us to make an easy rendezvous with a slow steamer such as the Matilda Briggs, it is true.”

  “I have acquainted the Daring’s skipper, Lieutenant Fanshawe, with the broad outline of our mission, but no more than that,” replied Glover.

  “I take it that you will be accompanying us, then?” I asked Captain Glover.

  “Naturally,” he smiled. “If the life of a fellow officer is at stake, I have no alternative but to assist. In any event, I would not miss such an adventure for the world.” I could not help feeling admiration for such a man, who was willing to expose himself to possible danger (for we had no knowledge of the disposition of the crew of the Matilda Briggs) in defence of his fellows. Truly, I felt, the safety of the nation was assured if it was in the hands of such as Captain Glover.