CHAPTER X
Thorneycroft, greatly embarrassed at the brutal insinuation of Holmes,colored deeply, and didn't seem to know what to say for a moment.
"Why, how should I know? If you've got the goods on anybody, as thequaint American expression has it, go ahead and arrest them," hefinally stammered.
"What peculiar things you _do_ say, Mr. Holmes," said the Countess,leaning forward with interest, as she looked meaningly at LordLauncelot. "I wonder if your remarkable talents will discover who madeaway with my best pair of shoes last night. I missed them the firstthing this morning, as they were the ones I wore Easter Sunday,Monday, and Tuesday, and I wanted to wear them again to-day."
"Why, _my_ shoes are gone, too! I thought at first I had mislaid themin my room, but a thief must have been in the castle!" chorusedeverybody at once, while I heard Holmes quietly chuckle in his throat."If a certain person in high social standing," continued the Countess,"thinks that such outrages, first the theft of the Earl's diamondcuff-buttons and then the theft of our shoes, are to be lightlycondoned because of his close relationship to the Earl, then he isgreatly mistaken!"
And she again looked daggers at Lord Launcelot.
"Oh, come, come, Your Ladyship," protested Holmes with a smile, "youmustn't be too hard on your brother-in-law. I don't think he took theshoes last night. In fact, I am quite sure of it. I'll guarantee toget your shoes back for you before noon to-day, and you can gamble onthat!"
"Why, of course," interposed Launcelot hastily. "Billie Budd must havecome back in the middle of the night, and stolen the shoes, after heescaped yesterday afternoon. I guess he's probably hiding around inthe neighborhood somewhere."
I was just opening my mouth to get off a witticism about who took theshoes, when Holmes, observing me, gave me a warning kick under thetable, so I desisted.
After breakfast was over,--at which meal Inspector Letstrayed ate atleast three times as much as any one else,--Holmes announced he wasgoing down to Hedge-gutheridge to investigate some clues, and wouldnot be back until noon. He signaled to me to accompany him, and whennobody was looking, we hurriedly beat it upstairs to our room, whereHolmes quickly took out a disguise from the suit-case, took off hisregular clothes, and put on the new outfit, which consisted of awell-worn and dirty suit of loud yellow checks, with a dinky littlered cap, broken tan shoes, and a riding-whip to carry in his hand.Then he deftly got out his make-up stuff, and in a moment had fixed alump of flesh-colored wax on the bridge of his long aquiline nose, andpainted his face red with actors' grease-paint until he looked as ifhe had been drunk for a week. Changing his voice, he addressed me in athick Cockney dialect:
"My name is now Dick Henderson, from the Epsom race-track, and don'tyou forget it, old Sawbones, or I'll make hash out of you!"
"All right, Dick, I'm on, as usual. Say, now's a good chance to putback those six pairs of shoes in their respective owners' rooms beforeNatalie and Adelaide, the chambermaids, get up here," I said.
"Good for you, Doc! You betray a gleam of intellect at last. We'llreplace the stolen brogans at once," congratulated Holmes.
We, thereupon, went around to the six rooms and restored the shoes,without encountering anybody who might ask embarrassing questions.
Holmes,--in his elegant disguise,--and I now descended the stairs andquickly slid out of the front door. It was now a quarter after eight.Making his way around the castle, keeping close to the walls, so asnot to be seen from the high windows by any one inside, Holmes led meout to the stables.
Here I hid myself in one of the horses' stalls, and Holmes walked intoanother one, where he found fat little Olaf Yensen, the firstcoachman, currying one of the noble steeds.
"Hello, there, What's-your-name," Holmes called out, addressing Olaf."My name is Dick Henderson. I just came around to ask you what youknow about some of the Earl of Puddingham's eight fine horses herebeing entered in the coming races at Epsom. If you can give me anyinformation about the horses, so I can bet on them with a good chanceto win, why I'll make it worth your while, you know."
And he winked at the coachman, who stood open-mouthed in admiration ofthe false Dick Henderson's noisy clothes.
"You bane a pretty sporty feller, Mister Henderson, but Ay reallyhaven't heard that das Earl is going to have any of dese horses run indas races," replied Olaf, as he scratched his round little head; "butAy tink if he does, this horse here will run, because he is das bestin das Puddingham stables. Yust look at vat a elegant pair of legs hehas,--er, I mean two pair of legs! Oh, my! he can run like das vind,Ay bet you!"
"Well, that's good. What's this wonderful horse's name?" said Holmes,as he took out a notebook and pencil.
"His name bane Ajax II, und Ay take care of him myself. My assistant,Carol Linescu, bane no good, und Ay vouldn't trust him. He bane asleepup in the hayloft now. My name bane Olaf Yensen."
And the coachman went ahead currying the sleek-looking Ajax II, whowhinnied with pleasure as the currycomb slid over his glossy browncoat.
"All right, Olaf. Much obliged to you. Here, have a drink of this,"said Holmes, with a grin, as he took from his hip-pocket a smallbottle of whiskey, which he had thoughtfully provided for just suchoccasions as this, and offered it to Olaf.
"Thanks, Mr. Henderson. _Gesundheit!_" returned Olaf, taking a swig ofthe stuff.
"I heard down at the village this morning," Holmes continued, "as Icame through, that the Earl had eleven very valuable diamondcuff-buttons stolen, and that the celebrated detective from London,Mr. Hemlock Holmes, is here now investigating the case. I wonder whoswiped the shiners, anyhow."
"Oh, my! Oh, my!" and Olaf nearly choked on the whiskey as hespluttered in reply. "Ay know vere one of das cuff-buttons is, allright! Und Ay bet you das long-legged old fake Hemlock Holmes neverfinds it, either! He is a big bluffer. He doesn't do a single thingbut stand around und talk sassy to us fellers at the castle, und sincedas Earl is half-stewed all the time, drinking das expensive vine mitHarrigan das butler, old Holmes, he finds it darned easy to pull dasvool over das Earl's eyes, und make him believe he is earning das bigfee he vill charge him! Ha, ha! He may snoop around here all he likes,but he'll never find das cuff-button, because Ay have got it hid in agoot hiding-place! Mr. Billie Budd, das gentleman from Australia, hetook one pair of das cuff-buttons, und he gave one of dem to me tohide for him, until das excitement blows over, und den I give it backto him, und he pays me a big reward for it, und he takes it in toLondon and sells it for many tousand moneys. He escaped yesterdayafternoon when das big walrus of a police inspector from London triedto arrest him; und he's not far away, Ay bet you."
Holmes had very good control of his facial muscles, and didn't crack asmile while the unsuspecting Olaf dribbled out the whole thing to him,but I, hidden in the next stall, had a hard time suppressing a laughwhen I heard Holmes criticized to his face after that fashion.
"Well, that's very interesting, Olaf, I'm sure," said Holmesingratiatingly. "Would you mind telling me just where this diamondcuff-button is hidden, now?"
Olaf put his tongue in his cheek, and winking at the false race-trackfollower, replied:
"Vat you want to know for? Ay bane taking no chances mit it, so Mr.Budd, ven he comes back, vill get it safe, und pay me das big rewardhe promised me."
"Oh, well; you don't need to tell if you don't want to," repliedHolmes carelessly. "By the way, hasn't this great racer here gotsomething the matter with his left hind hoof? There seems to be a lumpjust above it."
And Holmes pointed to Ajax's hoof, which his quick and discerning eyeshad noticed while Olaf was making his long speech. The shot must havestruck home, for Olaf showed great emotion at once.
"Oh, no, nuttings at all, nuttings at all!" he cried nervously, hishands working convulsively and his face very red. "Das horse he vasborn dat way! Dat's all!"
"He was, eh? It looks kind of funny to me, though," was Holmes's quickreply. "I know something about veterinary surgery, and maybe I can fixit up for you. Here, h'ist up the
re, Ajax!"
And before Olaf could prevent him Holmes had grabbed the horse's legup between his own knees, whipped out his pocket-knife, and scrapedaway at the strange lump between the pastern and the hoof. He found itto be a lump of mud, which rolled out on the straw-littered floor ofthe stall, broke into pieces, and then disclosed to our wondering eyesone of the mysteriously stolen diamond cuff-buttons!
"Great Caesar's ghost!" yelled Holmes at the top of his voice; "here'sone of them, anyhow!"
And he grabbed up the glittering jewel from the floor, and confrontedthe astounded and frightened Yensen.
"So the horse was born with a diamond on his hoof, eh? That beats ababy's being born with a golden spoon in its mouth, as they say someof them are. But hold on a minute, O faithful confidant of theAustralian crook. My name isn't really Dick Henderson. It's," andHolmes suddenly jerked off the false lump on his nose and resumed hisnatural tone of voice, "Hemlock Holmes, at your service! Now you,march!"
As he uttered these words, Holmes pulled out his revolver, covered theshrinking coachman, and motioned him toward the castle.
I now came out of my hiding-place in the next stall, and accompaniedthe strange procession into the castle: Yensen, holding his hands up,his face almost green with fright, in front; Holmes, with his drawnrevolver pointed at him, immediately behind, and yours truly bringingup the rear, while the bulldog barked loudly at us from his kennelnext to the stalls. As we marched along the garden-paths, Holmesdemanded of his victim:
"Say, wasn't Thorneycroft out here at the stable to see you along withBillie Budd, Olaf?"
"Yes, he was, Mr. Holmes," answered the cowering Olaf.
"And they both made it up with you to hide the cuff-button, eh? Nowtell me how you came to put it in such an outlandish place! Talkquick, now!" said Holmes.
"Ay had it hidden up in the hay-loft first, und Ay yust vas taking itout to admire it vile Ay curried das horse, ven Ay heard you comingalong, und Ay got scared, und put some mud over it und shoved it underdas horse's pastern as das nearest place Ay could tink of! Pleasedon't hurt me now, Mr. Holmes. Ay never sviped anyt'ing before!"pleaded Olaf, as he cringed along toward the castle, every othermoment looking around nervously behind him at Holmes's revolver.
"Except that you tried to steal Linescu's boots, according to histestimony," returned Holmes dryly just as we entered the rear door ofthe castle, and proceeded along the corridor toward the library. "Butdon't be afraid. We'll talk about the proper retribution for yourcrime after all the rest of the cuff-buttons are found. Do you knowanything about them?"
"Not a thing, Mr. Holmes,--not a t'ing. The only one Ay saw is das oneyou captured now," replied Olaf.
Holmes marched his captive into the library, where the Earl andThorneycroft, who had been sitting down at the table going over somebills and other papers, jumped up in surprise at the sight of us;while Holmes informed them of his identity beneath the race-trackdisguise. Thorneycroft turned pale when he saw his recent accomplice,Olaf Yensen, in the hands of the avenging detective, and he had tograb the edge of the table to steady himself.
"Your Lordship, here is the first one of the diamond cuff-buttonsrecovered for you, with my compliments," said Holmes triumphantly,laying the gem on the table before the astonished Earl. "Your coachmanis not really the thief,--only a receiver of stolen goods.Thorneycroft," he added, as he turned to the latter, "the game is up!I'm onto you! You stole the cuff-button and gave it to Olaf to hidefor you, and William X. Budd knows where the rest are, and youprobably do, too. Now make a clean breast of it, and avoid furthertrouble."
My partner seated himself in one of the leather easy-chairs, lit acigarette, crossed his legs comfortably, and listened while theconfused and guilty secretary tried to find his voice. The Earl satdown hard in another chair and listened with all his ears.