by David Marcum
HOLMES Northcote? He was released three days ago from Maidstone Prison. What about him?
LESTRADE He disappeared from view almost immediately, Mr. Holmes, but we think we’ve found him again.
HOLMES You think - ?
LESTRADE I put it like that because the man we have is dead and rather horribly mutilated.
HOLMES (HE’S REALLY INTERESTED) Oh?
LESTRADE It’s not a nice thing, sir. The man’s face has been quite burned off with acid. He was killed by a savage blow to the head, and then... Well, there’s not enough of his face left to identify him, but all the rest fits. He’s a big man, muscles well developed from rowing, a good head of hair. We found him this morning in Abney Park Cemetery, of all places, behind one of the tombs. I don’t suppose many decent people will mourn him, but we are still bound to search for his killer. (A BEAT) Anyway, Mr. Holmes, as you took such an interest in Esmond Northcote’s arrest and trial, I thought you might wish to come and see the body.
HOLMES Why not? There are no threads in my current investigation, or none that I can follow today. By all means let us visit the mortuary. Watson, will you come?
WATSON Certainly, Holmes.
LESTRADE Thank you, Doctor. There’ll be a post-mortem, of course, but I may be grateful for your medical knowledge. I shall go and hail a cab.
MUSIC BRIDGE
Scene 7
FX THE MORTUARY, A LARGE COLD BARE ROOM WITH TILED WALLS. A DOOR OPENS, AND LESTRADE, HOLMES, AND WATSON ENTER.
LESTRADE (APPROACHING FROM THE DOORWAY) Here we are, gentlemen - Stoke Newington Mortuary. (TO AN ATTENDANT) Thank you, Jackson. We shan’t need you. (A BEAT) Over here, Mr. Holmes. This is the one.
WATSON (A BEAT, THEN, QUIETLY AND SERIOUSLY –) If I were a squeamish man I should not have taken up medicine as a profession. Even so, I have to say that this is one of the most appalling things I have ever seen. Not even in Afghanistan –
LESTRADE Man’s inhumanity to man, eh, Doctor? I’m no philosopher, but something like this, well, it almost makes me despair for the future of the country.
HOLMES That will do, Lestrade! We must look upon the dead clay before us, not as the mutilated shell of a fellow man, but merely as an object of professional study.
LESTRADE (PULLS HIMSELF TOGETHER) Quite right, Mr. Holmes. Well, the post-mortem will begin at half-past-six this evening - Dr. Barnes can’t be available before then - but there’s no doubt in my mind that death was caused by a blow or series of blows to the back of the head.
WATSON Two blows at least, I should say, with a heavy and very hard object. You can feel where the occipital and parietal bones have been shattered.
HOLMES It’s a brutal business, but it would not be reason enough in itself to bring us all the way from Baker Street. The complete obliteration of the facial features is decidedly unusual, however.
WATSON Thank heaven! All I can say in mitigation is that the destruction of the victim’s face was carried out after death.
HOLMES So I read it, Watson. How long has he been dead?
WATSON You know very well that I can’t give you a definite answer, Holmes, particularly as the body was found out of doors. (A MOMENT WHILE HE CHECKS THE CORPSE) Hmm. The flesh is elastic. Rigor mortis has passed. (A BEAT) My estimation puts the time of death at twelve to twenty-four hours ago.
HOLMES (A BEAT) What of the man’s clothes, Lestrade?
LESTRADE They’re at the police station, Mr. Holmes. You can examine them if you like, but I don’t think they’ll tell you much. The body was dressed only in good quality woollen long johns. No hat, no boots, no outer clothing at all.
HOLMES And no jewellery either, I suppose.
LESTRADE None.
HOLMES Whoever killed this man was determined to eradicate his identity entirely. (A BEAT) Esmond Northcote has disappeared from view, so you think that this is he. There is a superficial resemblance, but I think I can prove to you that you are mistaken.
LESTRADE Oh?
HOLMES Feel the muscles of the forearms, Watson.
WATSON (HE DOES SO) Yes, they’re very well developed, just as the Inspector said.
HOLMES They are indeed. But, if I take the hands in my own and close the fists... Feel those muscles again!
LESTRADE Good Lord!
WATSON (SIMULTANEOUSLY) That’s astonishing! Even without touching it I can see that the muscle of the left forearm is far more highly developed than the other. It stands out like an egg!
LESTRADE Well, that rules out Northcote! He’s right-handed, but this man must have been left-handed - and remarkably strong.
HOLMES No, if he had been left-handed then we would be marvelling at the muscular development of his right forearm. I know of only one activity that can cause the muscle to swell like that. It happens through years of taking the recoil of a rifle.
WATSON (A BEAT) Then you think this is - ?
HOLMES I do.
LESTRADE (ALMOST TO HIMSELF) Tall, well-built, thick dark hair, large feet...
HOLMES Ah! Watson has told you of our current investigation, has he? Yes, Lestrade, this can only be the retired gunsmith, Walter Ruskin.
LESTRADE Another fugitive! But who would want to kill him, Mr. Holmes? And who, in heaven’s name, would want to do that to his body?
HOLMES Who indeed? Lestrade, I must ask you to restrain your natural impatience. There are some further enquiries to be made, but I shall not be able to get the answers until tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, can you arrange for a constable to keep watch overnight on Mr. Henry Staunton’s house?
LESTRADE You think he’s in danger, then? From the person who murdered his cousin? Very well, Mr. Holmes. We’ll go straight to Highgate Police Station, and I’ll make sure that it’s done.
HOLMES Excellent! Now let us gather our belongings and allow the good Jackson to lock up here. I am sure you will not refuse another cigar when we return to Baker Street, and perhaps a glass of brandy - to help keep out the cold, of course.
LESTRADE Thank you kindly, Mr. Holmes. That would be most welcome. And on the way back, maybe you’ll fill in the details regarding this very nasty business.
WATSON Yes, please do, Holmes! * The picture is almost complete in my mind, but there are still some pieces missing. I’m not entirely sure of the connection between the death of Walter Ruskin and the theft of the Grace Chalice...
FX * FADE WATSON’S VOICE AND MORTUARY BACKGROUND UNDER.
MUSIC BRIDGE
Scene 8
FX OPEN AIR BACKGROUND. A FOUR-WHEELER APPROACHES AND STOPS. HOLMES AND WATSON GET OUT.
LESTRADE Ah! There you are, Mr. Holmes! Dead on time - er, if you’ll forgive the expression.
WATSON (AN AMUSED CHUCKLE)
LESTRADE Afternoon, Doctor.
WATSON Good afternoon, Inspector.
HOLMES You’re quite prepared, Lestrade?
LESTRADE All ready, sir.
HOLMES Have you brought just the one constable?
LESTRADE There are two, Mr. Holmes. PC Mayne here has come with me from the station, and PC Rowan has been inside guarding the house since the small hours.* Rowan is expecting us, of course, and he’ll unlock the gate at - well, right now!
FX * WE HEAR ROWAN’S FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING ON THE GRAVEL PATH - RATHER MUFFLED, AS HE’S ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BIG HEAVY WOODEN GATE. HE STOPS AT THE GATE AND INSERTS THE BIG KEY IN THE LOCK, TURNS IT AND OPENS THE GATE.
LESTRADE It’s like a fortress, this place. (TO ROWAN) Thank you, Constable. (A BEAT) Well, in we go...
FX THE FIVE MEN WALK ALONG THE GRAVEL PATH TOWARDS THE HOUSE. THE SOUND FADES OUT.
HOLMES May I ask you and your men to stand back a little, Lestrade? Thank you. Now –
FX HE TUGS ON THE BELL-PULL. WE HEAR THE DISTANT RINGING OF THE DOO
RBELL.
WATSON (LOW) I wonder what he’ll say.
FX THE DOOR OPENS.
STAUNTON (APPROACHING ALONG THE HALL) Thank you, Sarah. I shall take care of this. You may go.
HOLMES (BLANDLY) Good afternoon, Mr. Staunton.
STAUNTON Good afternoon, fiddlesticks! I have a bone to pick with you, Mr. Sherlock Holmes. I specifically told you that I did not wish to call in the police, yet almost immediately you send a uniformed clodhopper to my house... (HE NOTICES LESTRADE, MAYNE AND ROWAN) And, bless my soul, here are yet more policemen! What is the meaning of this, sir?
HOLMES Yesterday, Mr. Staunton, you commissioned me to investigate the theft of a rare and valuable mediaeval chalice. Dr. Watson advised you, if you recall, at least to report your loss to the police.
STAUNTON Well, sir?
WATSON Mr. Staunton, can we not pursue this conversation indoors? We have some rather shocking information for you.
STAUNTON Oh, very well - if you insist. Come through to the study.
HOLMES Come, Inspector. You men will remain here until you are needed.
FX THE THREE MEN ENTER, CLOSING THE FRONT DOOR BEHIND THEM AND SHUTTING OUT THE GARDEN BACKGROUND.
Scene 9
STAUNTON (OVER THE ABOVE: SOTTO VOCE) Policemen in the house now! What is the world coming to?
FX STAUNTON OPENS THE STUDY DOOR.
STAUNTON In here, if you please.
LESTRADE (LOW, TO WATSON) Just like a Bond Street gallery, isn’t it, Doctor?
STAUNTON Well, sir, what information could be so shocking that it requires the presence of a police officer?
HOLMES You told us yesterday. Mr. Staunton, that the only person, apart from yourself and your insurance broker, who knew that you had the Grace Chalice in this house, was your cousin, Walter Ruskin. You also told us that he was above suspicion.
STAUNTON I did, sir, I did. But the matter has been much on my mind since we spoke, and I confess that I am less certain now of my cousin’s innocence. I told him about the chalice just the day after I bought it. That was nine - no, ten - days ago. We next met just six days later. That was our last evening together, and there was at least one occasion during the course of that evening when he had the opportunity to take an impression of my key. Dear me, what a wicked world it is, to be sure.
HOLMES When I went over to Mill Hill, your cousin’s man Perkins informed me that he had left his house at seven-thirty the previous evening and had not returned. As he was punctilious in his habits, the servants were becoming decidedly uneasy. Perkins suggested that I make enquiries here, Mr. Staunton, or at your cousin’s club. Of course, I assured him that his master was not here, and you will not be surprised to learn that he had not been seen at his club for several days. In short, it seemed that Walter Ruskin had disappeared.
STAUNTON Dear me! Well, that seems to settle the matter. Walter Ruskin, a thief! Stealing from his own cousin. Who would have thought it?
WATSON But you can see now that the case has become a matter for the police, Mr. Staunton.
STAUNTON To think that Walter of all people should prove a villain!
HOLMES (GENTLY) But there is more.
STAUNTON Oh?
HOLMES Late yesterday afternoon, Inspector Lestrade here asked us to go over to Stoke Newington to examine a body that had been discovered there. The man had been battered to death. Then his body was stripped, and the facial features disfigured beyond recognition. Nevertheless, I was able to identify the deceased as your cousin, Walter Ruskin.
STAUNTON (DISCONCERTED) Oh! Er - oh, dear! Is - is it possible that my suspicions were mistaken? (A BEAT. THEN, WITH QUIET DESPERATION –) Can there be a madman at large? Er - is the same person responsible for both crimes, do you suppose?
HOLMES I fear that that is the case, Mr. Staunton.
STAUNTON Then I must insist on police protection! Mr, er, Inspector - I really must insist on police protection!
HOLMES It won’t do, you know. Really, it won’t. We have the cabman who brought you back from Abney Park. He distinctly remembers the large leather bag that you carried. I’ve no doubt that it contained your cousin’s clothes - and, most importantly, his boots. You had a use for those boots, I think.
STAUNTON Lies! All lies!
HOLMES Your cousin had agreed to meet you by one of the tombs in the cemetery. I don’t know what reason you devised for the meeting, but it was really very careless of you to leave his body so close to that particular monument. It marks the resting place of Walter Ruskin’s maternal grandfather, Marcus Staunton - whose second son was, of course, your own father.
STAUNTON Lies!
HOLMES I made other enquiries this morning. The results were very enlightening. It seems that in recent years you have been gambling heavily upon the stock exchange, and losing heavily too. You have taken out a substantial mortgage upon this house, a mortgage which is in peril of foreclosure. The considerable debt that you owed to your more wealthy cousin must have been the final provocation, even though it is unenforceable in law.
STAUNTON Dr. Watson, I appeal to you –
HOLMES You resented your cousin’s wealth, and I think you resented the fact that he had bequeathed it to the Royal Humane Society and not to you. The opportunity to buy the Grace Chalice suggested further opportunities to you. You made certain that your cousin, and only he, knew of your purchase, so that when the chalice was removed suspicion would inevitably fall upon him. At the same time, of course, you ensured that the money you owed him need never be paid.
LESTRADE Ingenious, really.
WATSON Too clever by half.
HOLMES You yourself removed the precious object from the safe. I have no doubt that it is carefully hidden somewhere in the house. Your object, plainly, was to claim on the insurance while retaining possession of the chalice. You may even have intended to sell it. Such illicit transactions are not, alas, uncommon. Then, wearing your cousin’s boots, which are at least three sizes larger than your own, you planted those incriminating footprints in the garden, taking long strides to give the impression of a taller man. It was unfortunate for you that the boots were new and could not be easily identified as his, but that could not be helped.
WATSON The notion of a thief climbing over that wall was not wholly satisfactory. But how were the footprints managed? They lead from the garden wall to the study window and back.
HOLMES You are looking at things back to front, Watson. Do you remember the second curious quality of those prints?
WATSON Ah, yes. Yes, of course! The two lines of prints are close but quite separate.
HOLMES Just so. What burglar would ever tread so artistically?
WATSON We were told that an intruder had walked from the wall to the study window and back. Consequently, the footprints appeared to us to confirm our client’s story, whereas –
HOLMES In fact, the person who left those prints had walked from the study to the garden wall and back, taking great care on his return not to tread on any of the impressions made on his outward journey. Had he not stepped so carefully, the fact of an inside job would have been plain to the meanest intelligence. In all probability, then, our client himself was responsible for this charade.
STAUNTON Lies, I tell you! Lies!
LESTRADE Henry Staunton, I arrest you for the wilful murder of Walter Hugh Ruskin. I must warn you that anything you say will be taken down and may be used in evidence.
STAUNTON (AN INARTICULATE CRY OF RAGE)
FX STAUNTON RUSHES FOR THE DOOR BUT IS HELD BY HOLMES AND WATSON.
LESTRADE: Hold onto him, gentlemen, while I get the derbies on him!
FX AFTER A SHORT STRUGGLE LESTRADE HANDCUFFS HIM. THEN HE OPENS THE WINDOW AND BLOWS HIS WHISTLE TO SUMMON ROWAN AND MAYNE.
LESTRADE (CALLING OUT OF THE WINDOW) Rowan! Mayne! Come
in here. I have work for you!
HOLMES Capital! First, I think, Rowan must take our friend here to the police station.
FX BEHIND THE FOLLOWING, WE HEAR STAUNTON BEING FORCED OUT OF THE ROOM BY ROWAN.
HOLMES Then we should set Mayne to work searching the house for the chalice. It is here: I am certain of it. While the good constable is thus occupied, we three shall speak with the housekeeper and the maid. The kitchen is the proper place for that.
WATSON I have rarely felt so relieved at seeing a criminal taken into custody.
HOLMES Envy and resentment have gnawed away at his soul, I fear. He hated his cousin as only a mean man can hate a generous and contented one.
LESTRADE Our case will be complete if we can only find the boots, you know, but there’s little chance of that, now, is there?
HOLMES I am not so sure. For all his elaborate planning, Staunton has been singularly careless. It would not surprise me if Mayne uncovers the boots as well as the chalice.
MUSIC UNDERCURRENT
WATSON (NARRATING) In this, as in so much else, Holmes was correct. The precious cup had been concealed under a flagstone in the wine cellar. Walter Ruskin’s boots were found among Staunton’s own footwear. They proved to fit exactly those clear, sharp prints in the garden of Holly Trees. A few days later came word that the Edinburgh police had apprehended Esmond Northcote and charged him with common assault. He was able to prove an alibi, and left the court a free man. No such conclusion was possible for Henry Staunton. He was hanged at Pentonville Prison, and it seems that the loyal Mrs. Elliott was his only mourner.
MUSIC CLOSING THEME (Fauré: Après un Rève)
The Adventure of John Vincent Harden
by Hugh Ashton
In “The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist”, Watson refers to Holmes being immersed in “... a very abstruse and complicated problem concerning the peculiar persecution to which John Vincent Harden, the well-known tobacco millionaire, had been subjected”. No other details are provided, and we are left to judge for ourselves the complexity of the problem, as well as the nature of the persecution. Now this adventure of Sherlock Holmes has been discovered, and the truth is stranger than the tantalising glimpse given in Watson’s notes.
