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 the
quaint American expression has it, go ahead and arrest them," he
finally stammered.
"What peculiar things you _do_ say, Mr. Holmes," said the Countess,
leaning forward with interest, as she looked meaningly at Lord
Launcelot. "I wonder if your remarkable talents will discover who made
away with my best pair of shoes last night. I missed them the first
thing 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 them
in my room, but a thief must have been in the castle!" chorused
everybody 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 diamond
cuff-buttons and then the theft of our shoes, are to be lightly
condoned because of his close relationship to the Earl, then he is
greatly mistaken!"
And she again looked daggers at Lord Launcelot.
"Oh, come, come, Your Ladyship," protested Holmes with a smile, "you
mustn't be too hard on your brother-in-law. I don't think he took the
shoes last night. In fact, I am quite sure of it. I'll guarantee to
get your shoes back for you before noon to-day, and you can gamble on
that!"
"Why, of course," interposed Launcelot hastily. "Billie Budd must have
come back in the middle of the night, and stolen the shoes, after he
escaped yesterday afternoon. I guess he's probably hiding around in
the neighborhood somewhere."
I was just opening my mouth to get off a witticism about who took the
shoes, when Holmes, observing me, gave me a warning kick under the
table, so I desisted.
After breakfast was over,--at which meal Inspector Letstrayed ate at
least three times as much as any one else,--Holmes announced he was
going down to Hedge-gutheridge to investigate some clues, and would
not be back until noon. He signaled to me to accompany him, and when
nobody was looking, we hurriedly beat it upstairs to our room, where
Holmes quickly took out a disguise from the suit-case, took off his
regular clothes, and put on the new outfit, which consisted of a
well-worn and dirty suit of loud yellow checks, with a dinky little
red 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 a
lump of flesh-colored wax on the bridge of his long aquiline nose, and
painted his face red with actors' grease-paint until he looked as if
he had been drunk for a week. Changing his voice, he addressed me in a
thick Cockney dialect:
"My name is now Dick Henderson, from the Epsom race-track, and don't
you 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 put
back those six pairs of shoes in their respective owners' rooms before
Natalie and Adelaide, the chambermaids, get up here," I said.
"Good for you, Doc! You betray a gleam of intellect at last. We'll
replace 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 and
quickly 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 as
not to be seen from the high windows by any one inside, Holmes led me
out to the stables.
Here I hid myself in one of the horses' stalls, and Holmes walked into
another one, where he found fat little Olaf Yensen, the first
coachman, 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 you
know about some of the Earl of Puddingham's eight fine horses here
being entered in the coming races at Epsom. If you can give me any
information about the horses, so I can bet on them with a good chance
to win, why I'll make it worth your while, you know."
And he winked at the coachman, who stood open-mouthed in admiration of
the false Dick Henderson's noisy clothes.
"You bane a pretty sporty feller, Mister Henderson, but Ay really
haven't heard that das Earl is going to have any of dese horses run in
das races," replied Olaf, as he scratched his round little head; "but
Ay tink if he does, this horse here will run, because he is das best
in das Puddingham stables. Yust look at vat a elegant pair of legs he
has,--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 asleep
up in the hayloft now. My name bane Olaf Yensen."
And the coachman went ahead currying the sleek-looking Ajax II, who
whinnied with pleasure as the currycomb slid over his glossy brown
coat.
"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 small
bottle of whiskey, which he had thoughtfully provided for just such
occasions as this, and offered it to Olaf.
"Thanks, Mr. Henderson. _Gesundheit!_" returned Olaf, taking a swig of
the stuff.
"I heard down at the village this morning," Holmes continued, "as I
came through, that the Earl had eleven very valuable diamond
cuff-buttons stolen, and that the celebrated detective from London,
Mr. Hemlock Holmes, is here now investigating the case. I wonder who
swiped the shiners, anyhow."
"Oh, my! Oh, my!" and Olaf nearly choked on the whiskey as he
spluttered in reply. "Ay know vere one of das cuff-buttons is, all
right! Und Ay bet you das long-legged old fake Hemlock Holmes never
finds it, either! He is a big bluffer. He doesn't do a single thing
but stand around und talk sassy to us fellers at the castle, und since
das Earl is half-stewed all the time, drinking das expensive vine mit
Harrigan das butler, old Holmes, he finds it darned easy to pull das
vool over das Earl's eyes, und make him believe he is earning das big
fee 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 a
goot hiding-place! Mr. Billie Budd, das gentleman from Australia, he
took one pair of das cuff-buttons, und he gave one of dem to me to
hide for him, until das excitement blows over, und den I give it back
to him, und he pays me a big reward for it, und he takes it in to
London and sells it for many tousand moneys. He escaped yesterday
afternoon when das big walrus of a police inspector from London tried
to arrest him; und he's not far away, Ay bet you."
Holmes had very good control of his facial muscles, and didn't crack a
smile while the unsuspecting Olaf dribbled out the whole thing to him,
but I, hidden in the next stall, had a hard time suppressing a laugh
when I heard Holmes criticized to his face after that fashion.
"Well, that's very interesting, Olaf, I'm sure," said Holmes
ingratiatingly. "Would you mind telling me just where this diamond
cuff-button is hidden, now?"
Olaf put his tongue in his cheek, and winking at the false race-track
follower, 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 reward
he promised me."
"Oh, well; you don't need to tell if you don't want to," replied
Holmes carelessly. "By the way, hasn't this great racer here got
something the matter with his left hind hoof? There seems to be a lump
just above it."
And Holmes pointed to Ajax's hoof, which his quick and discerning eyes
had noticed while Olaf was making his long speech. The shot must have
struck home, for Olaf showed great emotion at once.
"Oh, no, nuttings at all, nuttings at all!" he cried nervously, his
hands working convulsively and his face very red. "Das horse he vas
born dat way! Dat's all!"
"He was, eh? It looks kind of funny to me, though," was Holmes's quick
reply. "I know something about veterinary surgery, and maybe I can fix
it up for you. Here, h'ist up there, Ajax!"
And before Olaf could prevent him Holmes had grabbed the horse's leg
up between his own knees, whipped out his pocket-knife, and scraped
away at the strange lump between the pastern and the hoof. He found it
to be a lump of mud, which rolled out on the straw-littered floor of
the stall, broke into pieces, and then disclosed to our wondering eyes
one of the mysteriously stolen diamond cuff-buttons!
"Great Caesar's ghost!" yelled Holmes at the top of his voice; "here's
one of them, anyhow!"
And he grabbed up the glittering jewel from the floor, and confronted
the astounded and frightened Yensen.
"So the horse was born with a diamond on his hoof, eh? That beats a
baby's being born with a golden spoon in its mouth, as they say some
of them are. But hold on a minute, O faithful confidant of the
Australian crook. My name isn't really Dick Henderson. It's," and
Holmes suddenly jerked off the false lump on his nose and resumed his
natural tone of voice, "Hemlock Holmes, at your service! Now you,
march!"
As he uttered these words, Holmes pulled out his revolver, covered the
shrinking coachman, and motioned him toward the castle.
I now came out of my hiding-place in the next stall, and accompanied
the strange procession into the castle: Yensen, holding his hands up,
his face almost green with fright, in front; Holmes, with his drawn
revolver pointed at him, immediately behind, and yours truly bringing
up the rear, while the bulldog barked loudly at us from his kennel
next to the stalls. As we marched along the garden-paths, Holmes
demanded of his victim:
"Say, wasn't Thorneycroft out here at the stable to see you along with
Billie 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? Now
tell me how you came to put it in such an outlandish place! Talk
quick, now!" said Holmes.
"Ay had it hidden up in the hay-loft first, und Ay yust vas taking it
out to admire it vile Ay curried das horse, ven Ay heard you coming
along, und Ay got scared, und put some mud over it und shoved it under
das horse's pastern as das nearest place Ay could tink of! Please
don't hurt me now, Mr. Holmes. Ay never sviped anyt'ing before!"
pleaded Olaf, as he cringed along toward the castle, every other
moment looking around nervously behind him at Holmes's revolver.
"Except that you tried to steal Linescu's boots, according to his
testimony," returned Holmes dryly just as we entered the rear door of
the castle, and proceeded along the corridor toward the library. "But
don't be afraid. We'll talk about the proper retribution for your
crime after all the rest of the cuff-buttons are found. Do you know
anything about them?"
"Not a thing, Mr. Holmes,--not a t'ing. The only one Ay saw is das one
you captured now," replied Olaf.
Holmes marched his captive into the library, where the Earl and
Thorneycroft, who had been sitting down at the table going over some
bills and other papers, jumped up in surprise at the sight of us;
while Holmes informed them of his identity beneath the race-track
disguise. Thorneycroft turned pale when he saw his recent accomplice,
Olaf Yensen, in the hands of the avenging detective, and he had to
grab the edge of the table to steady himself.
"Your Lordship, here is the first one of the diamond cuff-buttons
recovered for you, with my compliments," said Holmes triumphantly,
laying the gem on the table before the astonished Earl. "Your coachman
is 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 hide
for you, and William X. Budd knows where the rest are, and you
probably do, too. Now make a clean breast of it, and avoid further
trouble."
My partner seated himself in one of the leather easy-chairs, lit a
cigarette, crossed his legs comfortably, and listened while the
confused and guilty secretary tried to find his voice. The Earl sat
down hard in another chair and listened with all his ears.