see Holmesagain, and to know how he was employing his extraordinary powers.Hisrooms were brilliantly lit, and, even as I looked up, I sawhis tall, spare figurepass twice in a dark silhouette againstthe blind. He was pacing the room swiftly,eagerly, with his headsunk upon his chest and his hands clasped behind him. To me,whoknew his every mood and habit, his attitude and manner told theirown story. Hewas at work again. He had risen out of hisdrug-created dreams and was hot upon thescent of some newproblem. I rang the bell and was shown up to the chamber whichhadformerly been in part my own.His manner was not effusive. It seldom was; but hewas glad, Ithink, to see me. With hardly a word spoken, but with a kindlyeye, hewaved me to an armchair, threw across his case of cigars,and indicated a spiritcase and a gasogene in the corner. Then hestood before the fire and looked me overin his singularintrospective fashion."Wedlock suits you," he remarked. "I think,Watson, that you haveput on seven and a half pounds since I saw you.""Seven!" Ianswered."Indeed, I should have thought a little more. Just a trifle more,I fancy,Watson. And in practice again, I observe. You did nottell me that you intended togo into harness.""Then, how do you know?""I see it, I deduce it. How do I knowthat you have been gettingyourself very wet lately, and that you have a mostclumsy andcareless servant girl?""My dear Holmes," said I, "this is too much. Youwould certainlyhave been burned, had you lived a few centuries ago. It is truethatI had a country walk on Thursday and came home in a dreadfulmess, but as I havechanged my clothes I can't imagine how youdeduce it. As to Mary Jane, she isincorrigible, and my wife hasgiven her notice, but there, again, I fail to see howyou work itout."He chuckled to himself and rubbed his long, nervous handstogether."It is simplicity itself," said he; "my eyes tell me that on theinside of yourleft shoe, just where the firelight strikes it,the leather is scored by six almostparallel cuts. Obviously theyhave been caused by someone who has very carelesslyscraped roundthe edges of the sole in order to remove crusted mud from it.Hence,you see, my double deduction that you had been out in vileweather, and that youhad a particularly malignant boot-slittingspecimen of the London slavey. As toyour practice, if agentleman walks into my rooms smelling of iodoform, with ablackmark of nitrate of silver upon his right forefinger, and a bulgeon the rightside of his top-hat to show where he has secretedhis stethoscope, I must be dull,indeed, if I do not pronouncehim to be an active member of the medicalprofession."I could not help laughing at the ease with which he explained hisprocess of deduction. "When I hear you give your reasons," Iremarked, "the thingalways appears to me to be so ridiculouslysimple that I could easily do it myself,though at eachsuccessive instance of your reasoning I am baffled until youexplainyour process. And yet I believe that my eyes are as goodas yours.""Quite so," heanswered, lighting a cigarette, and throwinghimself down into an armchair. "Yousee, but you do not observe.The distinction is clear. For example, you havefrequently seenthe steps which lead up from the hall to this room.""Frequently.""How often?""Well, some hundreds of times.""Then how many are there?""How many? Idon't know.""Quite so! You have not observed. And yet you have seen. That isjustmy point. Now, I know that there are seventeen steps,because I have both seen andobserved. By-the-way, since you areinterested in these little problems, and sinceyou are goodenough to chronicle one or two of my trifling experiences, youmay beinterested in this." He threw over a sheet of thick,pink-tinted note-paper whichhad been lying open upon the table."It came by the last post," said he. "Read italoud."The note was undated, and without either signature or address."There willcall upon you to-night, at a quarter to eighto'clock," it said, "a gentleman whodesires to consult you upon amatter of the very deepest moment. Your recentservices to one ofthe royal houses of Europe have shown that you are one who maysafely be trusted with matters which are of an importance whichcan hardly beexaggerated. This account of you we have from allquarters received. Be in yourchamber then at that hour, and donot take it amiss if your visitor wear a mask.""This is indeed a mystery," I remarked. "What do you imagine thatit means?""I haveno data yet. It is a capital mistake to theorize beforeone has data. Insensiblyone begins to twist facts to suittheories, instead of theories to suit facts. But
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