“We had an example of his readiness of resource that morningwhen he got away from us so successfully, and also of his audacityin sending back my own name to me through the cabman. Fromthat moment he understood that I had taken over the case inLondon, and that therefore there was no chance for him there. Hereturned to Dartmoor and awaited the arrival of the baronet.”
“One moment!” said I. “You have, no doubt, described thesequence of events correctly, but there is one point which youhave left unexplained. What became of the hound when its masterwas in London?”
“I have given some attention to this matter and it is undoubtedlyof importance. There can be no question that Stapleton had aconfidant, though it is unlikely that he ever placed himself inhis power by sharing all his plans with him. There was an oldmanservant at Merripit House, whose name was Anthony. Hisconnection with the Stapletons can be traced for several years, asfar back as the schoolmastering days, so that he must have beenaware that his master and mistress were really husband and wife.
This man has disappeared and has escaped from the country. It issuggestive that Anthony is not a common name in England, whileAntonio is so in all Spanish or Spanish-American countries. Theman, like Mrs. Stapleton herself, spoke good English, but with acurious lisping accent. I have myself seen this old man cross theGrimpen Mire by the path which Stapleton had marked out. It isvery probable, therefore, that in the absence of his master it washe who cared for the hound, though he may never have known thepurpose for which the beast was used.
“The Stapletons then went down to Devonshire, whither theywere soon followed by Sir Henry and you. One word now as tohow I stood myself at that time. It may possibly recur to yourmemory that when I examined the paper upon which the printedwords were fastened I made a close inspection for the watermark.
In doing so I held it within a few inches of my eyes, and wasconscious of a faint smell of the scent known as white jessamine.
There are seventy-five perfumes, which it is very necessarythat a criminal expert should be able to distinguish from eachother, and cases have more than once within my own experiencedepended upon their prompt recognition. The scent suggested thepresence of a lady, and already my thoughts began to turn towardsthe Stapletons. Thus I had made certain of the hound, and hadguessed at the criminal before ever we went to the west country.
“It was my game to watch Stapleton. It was evident, however,that I could not do this if I were with you, since he would bekeenly on his guard. I deceived everybody, therefore, yourselfincluded, and I came down secretly when I was supposed to be inLondon. My hardships were not so great as you imagined, thoughsuch trifling details must never interfere with the investigationof a case. I stayed for the most part at Coombe Tracey, and onlyused the hut upon the moor when it was necessary to be nearthe scene of action. Cartwright had come down with me, and inhis disguise as a country boy he was of great assistance to me. Iwas dependent upon him for food and clean linen. When I waswatching Stapleton, Cartwright was frequently watching you, sothat I was able to keep my hand upon all the strings.
“I have already told you that your reports reached me rapidly,being forwarded instantly from Baker Street to Coombe Tracey.
They were of great service to me, and especially that oneincidentally truthful piece of biography of Stapleton’s. I was ableto establish the identity of the man and the woman and knewat last exactly how I stood. The case had been considerablycomplicated through the incident of the escaped convict and therelations between him and the Barrymores. This also you clearedup in a very effective way, though I had already come to the sameconclusions from my own observations.
