Original subtitles

There's a very pretty young woman crossing the street.

And I think she may be coming here.

Incidentally, I have glanced over your latest account of my work.

Oh, yes.

Honestly, I cannot congratulate you upon it.

Detection is or ought to be an exact science.

Observation, deduction, a cold and emotional subject.

You have attempted to change it with a romanticism which has much the same

effect as if you'd worked a love story or an elopement into the fifth

proposition of Euclid.

Euclid.

There's a young lady to see you, Mr Holmes.

It's Mary Morstan. I have no recollection of the name.

Don't go, Doctor. I may need you.

I was right.

Miss Morstan. Good afternoon.

I've come to you, Mr. Holmes, because you once enabled my employer, Mrs. Ethel

Forrester, to unravel a minor domestic complication.

She was much impressed with your kindness and skill.

Thank you.

I can hardly imagine anything more strange, more utterly inexplicable than

situation in which I find myself.

Take your case.

You will, I'm sure. Excuse me.

If your friend would be good enough to remain, he might be of inestimable

service to me.

Of course.

Briefly, the facts are these.

My father was an officer in an Indian regiment.

My mother died when I was still quite a child, and he was forced to send me

home. Despite the fact that I had no relatives here, I was placed in a

comfortable boarding establishment in Edinburgh, and I remained there until I

was 17 years of age.

In that same year, my father...

who was the senior captain of his regiment, obtained a 12 -month's leave

returned home.

He telegraphed to me from London to say that he'd arrived all safe and directed

me to come down at once, giving the Langham Hotel as his address.

His message, as I remember, was full of love and kindness.

On reaching London, I drove straight to the Langham Hotel and was informed that

Captain Morstan was staying there, but that he'd gone out the night before and

had not returned.

So I waited.

All day.

Without news of him.

And that night, on the advice of the manager of the hotel...

communicated with the police.

The next day we advertised in all the newspapers.

Our inquiries left no result.

From that day to this, no word has ever been heard of my unfortunate father.

He came home with his heart so full of hope to find them peace and comfort and

death.

The date?

The 3rd of December, exactly ten years ago.

His luggage?

Remained at the hotel.

Oh, there was nothing in it to suggest a clue from clothes and books and a

considerable number of curiosities from the Andaman Islands.

My father had been one of the officers in charge of the conflict guard there.

What in the face is a mess?

Had any friends in town?

Only one that we know of.

Major Sholto of his own regiment.

The 34th Bombay Infantry.

We communicated with the Major, of course, but he did not seem to know that

brother offered to live in England. It's a singular case.

I have not yet communicated to you the most singular part.

Four years later, an advertisement appeared in the Times.

asking for the address of Miss Mary Morstan and stating that it would be to

advantage to come forward.

There was no name appended.

I had at the time just entered the family of Mrs Cecil Forrester in the

of governor, and on her advice I published my address in the

column.

That same day there appeared through the post a small cardboard box addressed to

me, which I found to contain...

A very large, lustrous pearl.

No word of writing was enclosed.

And since then, every year, upon the same date, there has always appeared a

similar box containing a similar pearl with no clue as to the sender.

They have been pronounced by an expert to be of a rare variety and of

considerable value.

You can see for yourself that they are very handsome.

Your case is most interesting.

Something else has occurred to you.

Yes, and no later than today.

That is why I have come to you.

This letter arrived through the post this morning, which you will perhaps

for yourself.

Envelope, please.

London postmark, October 7.

Man's thumb mark on corner.

Probably postman.

Best quality paper.

Sixpence a packet.

Particular man in his stationery.

Watson.

Be at the third pillar from the left, outside the Lyceum Theatre tonight at

seven o 'clock.

If you're distrustful, bring two friends.

You are a wronged woman and shall have justice.

Do not bring the police if you do or we'll be in vain, your unknown friend.

Well, really, this is a very pretty little problem. What do you intend to

Miss Molston?

Well, that is exactly what I want to ask you. Why, then you and I shall go

together.

Dr. Watson is the very man. Your correspondence has two friends.

But would he come?

I shall be proud and happy if I can be of any service.

Oh, you're both very kind.

I've led a retired life and have no friends whom I could appeal to.

If I'm here at six, it will do, I suppose.

Yes, but you must not be later. Goodbye, Miss Morstan.

Goodbye, Mr Holmes.

Au revoir.

Au revoir.

What now?

What now, dearie?

You're a very attractive woman.

It is of the first importance not to allow your judgment to be biased by

personal qualities.

A client to me is a mere unit, a factor of the problem.

Holmes, you're an automaton, a calculating machine. There's something

inhuman in you at times.

I assure you.

The most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little

children for their insurance money.

And the most repellent man of my acquaintance is a philanthropist who has

nearly a quarter of a million upon the London poor.

However, in this case... I never make exceptions.

An exception disproves the rule. I'm going out. I'll see you in an hour.

Had he any friends in town?

Only one that we know of.

Major Sholto of his own regiment.

There's no great mystery in this matter. The facts appear to admit only one

explanation. You solved it already.

I found on consulting the back files of the Times that Major Sholto of Upper

Norwood, late as the 34th Bombay Infantry, died just six... Years ago.

Mrs. Hudson, you're dreadfully underfoot.

I may be very obtuse, Holmes, but I fail to see what this suggests.

Really? You surprise me. Then look at it this way, then. Captain Morstan

disappears.

The only person in London whom he could have visited is Major Sholto.

Major Sholto denies having heard that he was even in London.

Four years later, Sholto dies.

Within a week of his death, Captain Morstan's daughter receives a valuable

present. which is repeated from year to year and now culminates in a letter

which describes her as a wronged woman.

Now, what wrong can it possibly refer to except this deprivation of her father?

Take mercy.

Go on.

And why should these presents begin immediately after Sholto's death unless

is that Sholto there knows something of the mystery and has asked to make

compensation?

Are you ready, Watson?

And waiting.

Have you any alternative theory that will meet the facts? What strange

conversation. How strange you make.

What time is it?

It'll pass the hour.

Why should somebody write her a letter now rather than six years ago?

Again, the letter speaks of giving her justice. What justice can she have? It

too much to suppose that her father is still alive and there is no other

injustice in her case that you know of.

There are difficulties, but there are always difficulties.

Good evening, Mr. Holmes. I do hope I'm not... Good evening.

By the way, a curious paper was found in Papa's desk, which nobody could

understand.

I don't suppose it is of the plight it's important, but I thought you might like

to see it, so I brought it with me.

The paper appears to be of Indian manufacture.

At some point it has been pinned to a wall.

The diagram upon it appears to be the plan, part of a large building, with

numerous halls, corridors and passages.

There's a cross in red ink.

The thought is written 3 .37 left.

There is a curious hieroglyphic in the final form.

Carter thing, digit thing, juggerish thing, Johnson's small.

The paper has been kept carefully in a pocketbook that one side is as clean as

the other.

It was in his pocketbook that we found it.

Preserve it carefully, Miss Winston.

I begin to prove back that this case may be much deeper and more subtle than I

had at first supposed.

Are you the party who come with Miss Morstan?

I am Miss Morstan and these two gentlemen are my companions.

I must ask you to give me your word that neither of your companions is a police

officer. I give you my word.

I await you.

Show them in, Ketmudga. Show them straight in to me.

Your servant, Miss Most.

Your servant, gentlemen.

Come in, come in, come in, come in to my little sanctum.

I trust you have no objection to...

tobacco smoke, the balsamic odour of eastern tobacco.

I am a little nervous and I find my hookah to be

an invaluable...

You will excuse me, Mr. Sholto, but I am here at your request to learn something

which you desire to tell me.

It is getting very late, and I should wish the interview to be as short as

possible.

Well, it must take some time, for we have to go to

Norwood to see Brother Bartholomew.

We must all see if we can get the

better of Brother Bartholomew.

He is angry with me for taking the course that has seemed

right to me.

You cannot imagine what a terrible fellow he is.

When he is angry.

If we are to go to Norwood, it would perhaps be as well if we were to start

once. No.

No, that would hardly do.

I don't know what he would say if we came upon him in that sudden way. No, I

must prepare you by showing you where we all stand.

To each other.

I must lay...

the facts before you, as I know them myself.

My father, the late Major John Soto,

came to live at Pondicherry Lodge in Norwood

some 11 years ago.

prospered in India and brought back with him a considerable sum of money,

a collection of valuable curiosities, and a staff of native servants.

With these advantages, he lived in great luxury.

My brother and I were at university at the time. We did know, however, that

some mystery, some positive danger

hung our father.

He was very fearful of going out alone, and he employed

two prize fighters to guard him.

William, who drove you here tonight, was one of them. For some reason, he

never told anyone, my father had a marked aversion to men with wooden legs.

On one occasion, he actually fired his revolver at a one -legged man.

A harmless treatment, as it turned out.

Well, I remember we had to pay a considerable sum to hush it up.

Then...

My father believed a letter.

It was obvious to him.

What was in the letter, we could never discover.

For years, my father had suffered with an enlarged spleen, and

from that moment on, he became rapidly worse.

But one night, the doctor informed us there was no hope, and that he wished to

make a last communication to us.

My dear husband, when we

were in India, my friend Boston and I

came into possession of a considerable treasure.

I brought it home with me to this house where it still lies.

On the day that Morstan arrived home from the east,

he came straight to this house

to claim his share.

We gave our word, Grotto.

A promise!

We gave our word and our oath.

A babbling hand.

Another life. Another world. A solemn promise.

You tried to betray me, Morstan.

If you dare to cross me, I'm done.

My God.

The man is dead, your honor. You have nothing to fear, sir. I will arrange

everything. And so it was done, Mr.

Austin. In secrecy, of course, but with respect.

This is disgraceful, Mr. Shelton.

Your father's behavior was quite... Unforgivable. Please, Doctor.

I knew in my heart that he was dead.

My father was not a well man.

I'm only glad he did not suffer.

You're very brave, Miss Morstan.

What concerns me now is the reason for this quarrel.

I cannot imagine how my father came to be involved with that treasure.

I'm afraid that is not clear to me, Miss Morstan. I can only tell you

my father's instructions concerning it.

My... My... Poor Morstan.

The... The greed.

A cursed greed that has been my besetting sins while my life has robbed

the treasure.

Half of which, at least, should be hers.

You see that chapter there on the crinine body?

I had the design of sending it to her.

could not bear to part with them.

You, my son, will see that Miss Morstan gets

her share of the treasure.

Ran to the window and out into the garden, but the intruder was gone.

My father was dead.

We soon had more striking proof that there were secret agencies at work all

around us. The next day, my father's bedroom was broken into, and

this was fixed to his chest.

Remarkable. It is the thick symbol for the numeral four.

What the paper means and who our secret visitor or visitors were, we never found

out.

My brother and I were much excited, as you can imagine, at the pleasure my

father had spoken, but try as we might. We couldn't find it. It was maddening to

think that the hiding place was on his very lips when he died.

We could judge the splendor of the riches by the chaplet that he had taken

The pearls were evidently of great value. And my brother was averse to part

them, for between friends he was a little inclined to my father's fault.

And it was all I could do was to persuade him to allow me to send Miss

detached pearl at regular intervals so that he would not feel destitute.

It was a kindly thought.

It was very good of you.

Oh, well, we were your trustees.

That was the way I looked at it, although my brother did not altogether

in that light. We had plenty of money ourselves.

It would have been in such bad taste to have treated a young lady in so

scurvy a fashion.

Yesterday, an event of extreme importance occurred.

We found the treasure.

Hence my instant communication.

To you, Miss Morton. Now, all we have to do is to drive to Norwood and claim our

share.

We shall be expected, if not entirely welcome, visitor.

You have done well, from first to last, Mr. Shelton.

My health is somewhat fragile.

I am compelled to be a valet juniorian.

We

dug

up every inch of the garden without discovering anything.

Brother Bartholomew is such a clever fellow.

Do you know how he found out where the treasure was?

Tell me.

He made measurements everywhere, all along the top, along the side, inside,

he found out he was four foot out at the top.

We found our father had made a false room, and so he smashed through the lath

and the plaster, and there was the...

The treasure chest lying across the rafts.

He has computed the value of the treasure to be more than one half

sterling.

Mrs. Burnstone.

Mrs. Burnstone is the only lady in the house.

Wait here.

I'm so glad you've come.

I'm so glad you've come, sir.

What a strange place.

It's as if all the moles in England have been let loose in it.

A mess with battle. I'm frightened.

My nose won't stand.

Oh, but I've been sorely tried this day.

Hi, Mrs. Bernstein.

Mr. Bartholomew shut himself in his room and I can't get a word out of him. His

bed hasn't been slept in and he hasn't been down for any food.

I dare not disturb him at his work. You know what he's like when it's at his

work. Look after him, Miss Munster.

Now, do try to calm down. Look, I'm sure everything will be all right. I do hope

you're all right, Miss.

Sit down over here.

Which

is

the door?

No, no, no.

I'm being devilish in this one.

again? What in God's name does it mean?

It means murder.

What time

is that?

I don't know.

Six or seven o 'clock.

I didn't lock the door after I left it.

Must have been the last person to see him alive.

And now he's dead.

Don't think I did it.

Don't think it was me. I wouldn't have asked you. Why should I?

I'm the man.

I'm the man. Now, gently, gently, gently, Mr. Shelton. I suggest that you

down to the police station and tell them everything that you know. We shall wait

here until you return.

Oh.

Look at this.

He did it. It's poisoned.

Well,

we have a little time. Let's make a move.

This is an insoluble mystery to me. It grows darker instead of clearer.

No, no, no, no. It clears every instant. I only require a few missing links to

have an entirely connected case.

Simple as the case seems now, there may be something deeper underlying it.

Now, how did these people come and how did they go?

People? Well, it takes more than one, perhaps more than two.

to remove a heavy treasure chest from a place like this.

The door has not been opened since last night.

So how about these windows?

Snipped on the inside.

Injured.

The roof quite out of reach. No drain right near.

And yet someone has entered this way. Look, Watson.

Is that the scarf on the sill?

And this, and this.

This is a very pretty demonstration.

But that's not a footmark.

Something much more valuable to us. This is the mark of a boot.

And this, and this, the mark of the temple tower.

It would not be mad.

And someone else.

A very able and efficient ally.

Could you scale that wall once more?

Absolutely impossible.

I hate it as it's so, but suppose you had a friend who lowered you this good

stout rope, securing it first to this ring.

I think if you were an active man, you'd be able to swarm up, wooden leg and

all.

You would depart, of course, in the same fashion, and then your friend would

pull up the rope, close the window,

Limit on the inside and depart in the manner he originally came.

Well, the thing grows more unintelligible than ever. How about this

ally? How did he get into the room?

Yes, this ally.

He lifts this case from the regions of the commonplace.

But the door is locked, the window inaccessible.

The grate too small. How then?

You will not follow my precept.

How often have I said to you that once you have eliminated the impossible,

whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

He must have come in through the roof.

Excellent, Watson. Hold this lamp. Let us carry our research to the room above.

The secret room which the treasure was found.

A child has done this horrid thing.

My memory failed me.

Or I should have been able to foretell it.

We'll learn all we can from here. Let us go down.

What is your theory about those footmarks?

My dear Watson, try a little to know this yourself. You know my method. Apply

them. I cannot conceive of anything that will cover the facts.

You will soon.

We're in luck.

Our little ally.

As trod in the creosote.

Oh, you fond of animals, is he? Yes, very good.

Lovely.

Well, well, well.

Quite a nice little place you've got here.

Indeed.

That is the accredited representatives of the Lord, unless I'm very, very much

mistaken. Now, Watson, before they come, what do you make of this poor fellow?

The muscles are... Stiff as a board.

Fade to extreme contraction.

Far exceeding the usual rigor mortis.

Quite thorough.

Coupled with the source of the faith, the Hippocratic smile.

Risa Thadonica, as the old writers call it.

What would that suggest to your mind?

Death from a powerful vegetable alkali, some strictly like substance that

produces tetanus.

Well, uh... Have I...

Come along, gentlemen, to the right.

Up the stairs.

Thorn.

Not an English thorn.

I think it is not right that Miss Morstan remain in this stricken house.

I suggest you slip away and take her home, Watson, and then go on to Three

Lane.

Lambeth and ask for Toby.

Keep pinching me.

I'd rather have Toby's help than that of the whole protective force of London.

Well, here's a pretty business.

Place is as full as a rabbit warren.

I think you may recollect me.

Mr. Thelmy Jones.

Mr. Sherlock Holmes, the theorist. I'll never forget the way you lectured us all

about the Bishopgate jewel case.

True, you set us on the right track then, but I think you'll own now. It was

more by good luck than good guidance. It was a feat of very simple reasoning.

Oh, come now, come.

Never be ashamed to own up.

But, uh... What is all this?

Bad business.

Bad business.

Darn fact, here.

No room for theories.

It's lucky I happened to be up in Norwood on another case when I got the

message.

How do you think this man died?

No, this is not a case for me to theorize over. No, no.

Still, we can't deny you hit the nail on the head sometimes.

Door locked, I understand.

Jewels worth a fortune missing.

How were the windows?

Fastened, but there was a footstep on the sill.

Windows fastened, nothing to do with it. It's common sense.

Man could have died in a fit, I suppose.

Ah, I have a theory.

These flashes come to me sometimes.

Sergeant! Outside, will you, please?

And you too, Mr. Sholto.

What do you think of this, Holmes?

Sholto has confessed.

He was with his brother last night.

Brother dies in a fit. Sholto walks off for the treasure. How about that? Well,

upon the dead man, will he considerately get up and locks the door from the

inside?

Aye. Aye.

There's a flaw there somewhere.

Let us apply common sense to the matter.

They were brothers.

There was a quarrel.

Brother Bartholomew.

Dead. Jewels. Gone. And Master Thaddeus evidently in a disturbed

state of mind.

Disappearance. Oh, well.

Not attractive.

You see, I'm weaving a web.

Around Thaddeus, the net begins to close upon him.

Jones, that splinter, which I

firmly believe to be poisoned, that card and that curiously shaped instrument

were lying there on the table.

Confirms my theory in every respect.

The house is full of Indian curiosities, all points to Thaddeus.

How did he escape?

There is a trapdoor in the roof, Sergeant.

Pray ask Mr. Sholto to step this way.

Easy.

Better than theories, after all. My view of the case is confirmed.

There is a trapdoor communicating with the roof, and it is partly open. It was

who opened it.

Mr. Thaddeus should do. It is my duty to inform you that anything you say will

be taken down and may be used in evidence against you. I arrest you in

Queen's name as being concerned in the death of your brother.

Didn't I tell you? No, don't!

Trouble yourself, Mr. Sholto. I think I can engage to clear you of this charge.

Don't promise too much, Mr.

Theorist. You may find it a harder matter than you think.

Not only will I clear, Mr. Sholto, but I will give you a description of the two

men who were in this room last night. One was a poorly educated man, strong,

active, with his right leg off, wearing a stump worn away on the inside.

His left boot has a coarse, square -toed toe.

He has an iron band around the heel.

He's much sunburned, middle -aged, and has a certain amount of skin missing

the palm of one hand.

And the other one?

He's rather a curious person.

I hope before long to be able to introduce you to the pair of them.

Go to 3 Hinching Lane, Lambert, and ask for Toby.

I'd rather have Toby's help than that of the whole Detective Force of London.

Mr. Toby. Get out of it, you Duncan hooligan. Go on, get out of it, or I'll

my dogs on you, all 43 of them. I'm looking for Mr.

Toby.

I've got a wiper in this bag, and I'll tip it out over your head if you don't

hook it.

It's urgent that I find him.

I won't be arguing with.

One, two, three, and down comes the wiper. Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

I've come for Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Well, who'd have thought it?

There you are, Cocky.

Oh, dear.

Mr. Sherlock Holmes, why didn't you say so? Come in.

Now, mind there, mind there, because he bites up in witches.

Oh, yes, he does, now, Naughty.

Naughty, don't you bite the gentleman.

Because this gentleman is a friend of Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

And any friend of Mr. Sherlock Holmes is a friend of mine.

Don't mind him. He'll just give you a nice friendly squeeze.

I'll give him the run of the room because he keeps down the beetles.

beautiful.

Now, what did you say Mr.

Sherlock wanted?

Toby. Toby?

Yes, Toby.

Oh, well, Toby's number seven there along on the left. Here, you give him

and Toby will go along with you as quiet as a lamb.

Hey, Toby, wake up. Come on. There's work for you to do. A gentleman will

here to see you.

Toby, come on.

That's it.

Doesn't make me laugh sometimes.

Toby!

Come on, Toby.

Come on.

Come on now.

It's all right, Officer. It's Mr. Holmes.

Coachman!

Come on, Toby.

Well done!

You've got Toby!

Here comes Blondin. I'm coming down.

Look at these, Watson.

I find them in the gutter.

Ah, thank you, Mr. Spelton.

Do you smell the clear soap?

Athelny Jones arrested not only Thaddeus, but the gamekeeper, the

and two of the Indian servants. I was lucky to escape myself.

What hell do you think? Watson, are you on for a bit of a trudge? Of course.

You and Toby, game as they come when there's a good holding sense.

Now, find him. Go, Toby.

Then.

Dig, Toby. Dig. Dig.

Dig. Dig. Dig.

Dig. Dig. Dig. Dig. Dig. Dig.

Dig.

Lucky the rain has stopped.

Thanks for lying on the road. I did that fast.

Ah, how sweet the morning air is.

Have you brought your pistol, Watson? No, I have my stick.

We may need it if we get to the land. I think I'll leave it to you.

Leave the ally to me. Come.

Now, what the deuce is the matter with the dog?

They took a boat.

Except they didn't take a cab or a balloon.

They must have been met at the water's edge.

He's lost his character for infallibility.

No, no, no, no. Toby's not the brain.

Those barrels are filled with creosote.

The scent is divided.

Shall I, good Huntsman Watson, cast the dog again and find the true one?

Toby!

Toby!

Well, out of luck.

They've taken a boat from here.

These people are cleverer than I thought.

Now, Watson, these people show preconceived management here.

Mordecai Smith.

You come back here and have your face washed.

Jack! Oh, you young man.

I'll get your dad to give you a proper hiding when he gets back.

Why, what a busy, cheap, young rascal.

Is there anything you'd like, Jack?

I'd like a silly.

Fine young lad you've got there, Mrs Smith.

Oh, bless you, sir, he is that, and forward.

He gets almost too much for me to manage, especially when my man is away

a time.

Ah, it's a pity about that. I was hoping to hire a boat from him, a steam

launch. Why, bless you, sir, it isn't a steam launch that he has gone.

Ah, didn't like the bloke who did the hire.

Not at all. Very rough.

With a wooden leg. Come tapping at our window in the middle of the night. And

why are they away without a word to me?

Now, this man with a wooden leg, was he alone?

Seemed he might have had an animal with him.

A dog?

Doesn't look like no dog to me, sir.

More like something you'd find in the zoo.

It's pretty about the launch.

It's the old green boat with the yellow line.

Oh, no, no, sir, no. The Aurora's just been fresh painted. Black with gold

Ah, yes, of course.

With the white funnel. No, sir, black funnel.

Ah, yes, of course.

Well, thank you, Mrs Smith. Goodbye, Jack.

The main thing with people of that sort is never to let them think that

information is of the slightest importance to you. If you do, they will

instantly shut up like an oyster.

Well, our course seems pretty clear now. What would you do then?

Get on the track of the Aurora.

It would take days, if not months, to search every wharf and landing place

the yard between here and Greenwich.

What do you propose?

As our quarry has no reason to fear that he's being hunted, I propose, first of

all, a bath.

And shave, and then a good meal, and then some hours of sleep. At the same

mobilizing the Baker Street division of the detective police force.

In other words, the irregulars.

This reporter fixed up the case between them. Watson, look at this.

Here.

Mr Jones's training experience with faculties was once directed towards the

detection of the criminal.

His well -known technical knowledge empowers a minute observation.

When it gets better still.

The prompt and... Energetic action in the office of the law shows the great

advantage of a single vigorous and masterful mind.

Isn't it gorgeous to see her in close shape and be arrested ourselves? I

wouldn't answer for our safety now if you had another of those attacks of

energy.

Now, Wiggin, in future, they can report to you and you to me. I cannot have the

house invaded in this way.

Oi! Stop that!

Now,

I want you to find the team boat Aurora.

Aurora?

Owner, Mordecai Smith.

Black with gold trim.

Richmond to Gravesend, both sides of the river.

Right, sir.

How much?

Old scale of pay.

A guinea to the boy who finds the boat.

Here is a day in advance.

If the launch is above water, the Irregulars will find her.

They can go everywhere, fee everything.

If our man had an easy task, this of ours ought to be.

Wooden -legged men are not so common, and this other man must be unique.

The Aborigines of the Andaman Islands may perhaps claim the distinction of

the smallest race upon this earth.

They are a fierce, morose, and intractable people.

They're capable of forming the most devoted friendships when their

has once been gained.

They have always been a terror to shipwrecked crews.

Draining the survivors with their stone -headed clubs or shooting them with...

with poisoned arrows.

These massacres are usually concluded...

By a cannibal feast.

Nice.

Amiable people.

I'll pass day the day after tomorrow.

You're way up your barrel, man. I heard you marching about all night.

You really must get some rest.

I can't sleep.

This infernal problem is consuming me.

No news?

None. None whatsoever.

The whole river's been searched from both sides.

If it's not heard from her husband, it's too much to be bolted by so petty an

obstacle when all else has been overcome.

Enough is enough.

Shovel!

We're a nice little craft.

Aye.

She's a good boat, then.

We put her here in this yard.

Fastest boat on the river.

What's she in for?

Repairs to a rudder. That's the order.

I can't find anything amiss with it.

I want her in the water by six o 'clock tonight.

Fully cold and steam up.

Right, Mr. Smith. She'll be ready.

Six o 'clock sharp, mind.

For I've two gentlemen that'll not be kept waiting.

Right!

It's this Norwood case, Doctor.

I've had a great deal to worry and try me.

And this case is a very dark one, too.

Thank you. I should be most grateful for Mr. Holmes' help.

Your friend is a wonderful man, and not to be beat.

Well, you may be in for a long wait.

No, I don't think so.

Go to Baker Street at once.

If I've not returned, wait for me.

I am close on the track of the Chateau Gang.

Come with us tonight if you want to be in at the kill.

Good. So, he's on the fence again.

He's been at fault too, hasn't he?

Even the best of us are thrown off sometimes.

Yes, Sherlock Holmes?

What is it? Are you Mr. Sherlock Holmes?

No, but I'm acting for him.

Come about this, Edward.

If you have any information, you may give it to me.

There's a reward.

Is that about the steam -lawn Aurora?

I'm telling no one that this is Sherlock Holmes.

No, no, no. Come inside.

I'm a police officer.

You look like one.

No, you will be recompensed for your loss of time. You will not have long to

wait. Sit down.

Cigar, Mr Jones.

Oh, thank you very much.

As I was saying, Doctor, I consider your friend,

Mr Sherlock Holmes, is a man not to be beat.

He would have made a most promising police officer, I don't care who knows

with a little more discipline.

And a lot less theory.

Thank you.

You might offer me one.

You rogue! You would have made an actor, and a rare one. You had the

proper workhouse cough.

And those weak legs of yours, they were ten pounds each.

A police officer. I'm flattered.

Jones, I shall need a police launch at the Westminster Step.

The fastest you have.

Two stout men, yourself, myself, Watson, all of us armed. That is easily

arranged. I will telephone the local station.

We go to the power.

Stop opposite Jameson's yard.

Why did you find the Aurora, then?

Well, I reasoned that the launch couldn't be far off in spite of its

invisibility. So, gentlemen, where could it be?

Well, out of the water, I suppose.

In a repair or boat builder's yacht.

Exactly.

One of my boys is waiting by the yard to give us the signal.

You've planned it all very neatly, Mr. Holmes. But if the affair were in my

hands, I should have a body of police in the yard and arrested them when they

came down. Which would have been never.

This man Small is a pretty shrewd fellow.

Anything suspicious and he would lie snark for another week.

Sir, we're opposite Jacobson's yard now.

Shall we move downstream a little? No.

This mist may be of advantage to us.

We must lie low and wait.

Your boy's signaling. I can see him plainly.

There's the Aurora.

Going like the devil.

She's very fast.

I doubt if we shall catch her. We must catch her.

Pilot on surface!

I'll never forget my fellowship with the happy humans.

Keep the light steady.

I can almost make out his companion.

We're gaining.

Hold it on, Tucker.

Give it all the steam you've got.

I think we gained a little.

I'm sure we should be up there in a minute.

Move the light more to the left.

What's happening on that boat?

Wait.

Wait.

Let him wet himself out.

Will I give you my word, gentlemen?

I never laid hands on young Mr.

Sholto. Of course you didn't.

Your little friend's dart killed him while you were still climbing the rope.

You speak as if you were there.

Major Sholto.

I would have swung for him with a light heart.

But to be lugged over the throne, Sholto, was cursed hard.

You must make a clean breast of it. If you do, I may be of use to you.

Quite a family party.

I'm just going to pull that flush myself.

Now, how are you going, Small?

Here's Meralda at Gravesend.

Outward bound for the Brazils. I've nearly made it.

Another man at the entrance and you're never a part of it.

Where's the key, my man?

At the bottom of the river.

Now, look here.

We've had enough of you tonight.

Bring the cups in, men. I'm warning you.

Sir, I can't.

We're nearly at the steps.

I suggest that we go back to Baker Street, but I think Miss Morstan should

there. Well, that's not the regulation way, Mr. Holmes.

Well, I can at least promise you a nice warming drink.

Very well, gentlemen.

Well, Miss Morstan.

I am pleased and proud to have been able to bring the thief to justice.

Justice?

A pretty justice.

Whose loot is this if it is not ours?

Where is the justice that I should give it up to those that have never earned

it? You forget, Smorino, nothing of this matter.

We cannot tell how far justice may have originally been on your side.

Well, sir, you have been very fair spoken to me.

Though I can see that it's you that I have to thank for these... these

on my wrist.

Still, I bear no grudge for that.

If you want to hear my story, I have no wish to hold it back.

And what I say to you is God's truth.

Every word of it.

When I was a lad, I took the Queen's shilling and was posted out to India

the third buffs.

The crocodiles snuck this off when I was bathing in the Ganges.

Well, the sawbones had my stump in the tar barrel nice and quick.

I was young and strong.

I got my discharge in this fellow.

He's been a good support to me.

So there I was, a cripple at 20.

But I liked it out there.

So I found myself a job as an overseer on an indigo farm.

I was on horseback all day, so that was fine.

But I was never in luck for long.

Without a note of warning, the great mutiny was on us.

I came back to the farm one evening to find my master and all his family had

been murdered.

I didn't wait.

By that same evening, I was in the ford of Agra, the nearest city still held by

the British.

The old ford of Agra. It's a queer place.

Huge.

It's full of passages and rooms.

More entrances than you can count.

There were many gates, and because I was an ex -soldier and British, they put me

in charge of one of them and gave me a couple of thieves who'd stayed loyal to

us.

It was a lonely place.

My two Punjabis were experienced fighting men.

Carter thing and Inderjit thing.

Rebel. No, Sahib.

The fort is safe.

There are no rebels this side of the river.

You must be with us, or you must be silenced forever.

With you? How?

We want you to be rich.

Which is why you British came to this land.

I have no objection to being rich.

Then swear by the bones of your father to raise no hand.

and speak no word against us now or ever afterwards, then you will have

quarter of the treasure.

But there are only three of us.

Jagdish Singh, my foster brother, he must have his share.

There is no time, Sahib.

Decide.

Well, provided the fort is in no kind of danger, I swear...

What would you have done, Mr. Holmes?

I struggle to suspect I'd have done exactly as you did.

Yes, I know the thief.

He's not a man to be trifled with.

One of their local ruggers, Richard's creases, of course, he'd gone in with

rebels.

But he wanted to hedge his bet, just in case the British came out on top.

So he made a plot to get half his treasure hidden in the ford of Agra.

Sending one of his men with it in the guise of a merchant.

And Jagodish Singh, Kartar's brother, to be the guide.

They come to challenge himself in the usual way.

Give him no cause for the fear.

What then?

If he'll do what has to be done.

Who goes there?

Friends, sahib.

Advance and be recognized.

What have you with you?

A box, sahib.

Old box.

Having some family papers.

No good to nobody, sahib.

Only for myself.

Sahib, I am no ordinary beggar.

You will have money, Sahib, and Governor Sahib also.

Take him to the main guard room.

Never was a man more compassed round with death.

had escaped, the whole affair would have come out.

I should have been shot, most like.

Which of you would have held back his market?

Carter was for burning him.

That's their religion.

But such a fire was impossible.

Jagadish was for throwing him down into the great ditch below the fort for the

jackals to clean up.

No doubt he was right.

I was for showing some respect for the dead.

Then we turned to the box.

This box.

Inside were more gems than I could ever even have dreamed of.

143 diamonds of the first water.

including the Great Mogul, the second largest stone in existence.

97 emeralds, 170 rubies, 40 carbuncles,

61 A gates.

Jagadish was right.

It was a great mistake you made, burying the body as you did.

Would you not say so, Watson?

Yes, indeed.

A body not burned in India is soon discovered.

So, you and your three companions were found guilty and sent away for life to

the penal colony on the Andaman Islands.

Blair Island, it was, sir.

Hope Town.

Never was a place worth name.

A place to sweat.

A place to rot.

A place to die.

And I sweated there year after year until your father arrived, Miss Horton.

Corporal!

You will not maltreat the white prisoner.

If it happens again, you'll be court -martialed.

He was our administrative officer and he gave me a nice cushy billet in the

dispensary.

He was as good and kind a Christian gentleman as I ever come across.

And I hold no grudge against him.

Are you, miss?

Thank you.

Well, as I sat thinking about the treasure, I could see all the officers

prison officials that they're drinking and they're gambling.

Major Sholto never had much luck.

Night after night, he was the loser.

Some people are born like that.

It's all up with me, Morstan.

I'm ruined.

I shall have to send in my paper.

I... Don't suppose you could manage another couple of hundred, eh?

I've had a pretty nasty faith in myself.

And I've a daughter back home to support.

And I've got two wretched sons.

Ruined, eh?

Damn pity.

So, you decided to approach your benefactor, Captain Morstan.

He was often in the dispensary. The tropical climate didn't agree with him.

His heart was weak and his blood was all poisoned.

Knowing that he would wish to share any arrangement with his friend, the officer

in command made a shot.

Yes, sir, it seemed the safest way.

It is your own private concern over which, of course, you have the power of

disposing as you think best.

Thank you for that advice, sir. Thank you indeed.

But the fact is, being in the position I am, I need help.

Sort of help.

I need a partner.

Well, I'm sure Major Shulter and myself would like to help you.

If we could.

We could have leave it.

Talk about.

That is, of course, if we can agree as to terms.

There's only one bargain a man in my position can make.

In exchange for my freedom and that of my three companions, we shall give you a

fifth share to divide between you.

A fifth?

That isn't very much.

50 ,000 at the least.

Anyway, how can we possibly give you your freedom? You know it's impossible.

All we need is a boat and provisions.

There are plenty of little yachts and yawls in Calcutta or Madrid.

Well enough to serve our purpose.

If only they were just the one of you.

None!

None or all!

We have sworn it!

The four of us must always act together.

Now... Calm yourself, Sheldon. Calm yourself.

Calm yourself. Think about it, man. Think about it.

Small is the man of his word. He will not abandon his friends.

I think... I think we may very well trust him.

We met the next morning in the small hours.

I had our written agreement in every detail.

We, being officers in the army of Her Majesty Queen Victoria... We, being

officers in the army of Her Majesty Queen Victoria... ...do swear on the

Bible... ...that this agreement will always remain sacred and binding to us.

swear on the Holy Bible... ...that this agreement will always remain sacred and

binding to us.

I gave each of them a plan showing the position of the treasure.

back memories.

Schalter took the next boat to India, found the treasure, and took it back

him to England.

When we had the news, Captain Morstan was as angry as I was.

He swore to me he would go home and settle the matter with Schalter.

And so he would if he lived.

But that was not to be.

From that day, I lived only for vengeance.

I thought of it by day.

I nursed it by night to get to Chateau.

To have my hands on his throat.

That was my one thought.

Bad luck would have it.

One of the islanders had been brought into my dispensary.

More than half dead from a snake bite.

Well, in common humanity, I did my best for him.

Somehow he pulled through and became very devoted to me.

Funny little fellow.

Well, you gentlemen.

Caught a glimpse of him yourselves, no doubt, last night.

He was staunch and true, was little Tonga.

No man ever had a more faithful mate.

Being by trade a fisherman, he had a goodish -sized native boat, and he

to try to escape with me.

After ten days, we were picked up by a trader with a cargo of pilgrims from

Malay bound for Jeddah.

After many months, we worked our way across the world to London.

A remarkable account.

And now I think Miss Morphton might like to see the great Agra treasure.

which will surely make her one of the richest young ladies in England.

Watson? There's no key.

I'm sure our old poker will oblige.

This is your doing, Smalls? Yes.

Yes, I put the treasure away where you shall never lay hand on it.

No living man or woman has any right to it unless it is the three men in the

Andaman convict barracks and myself.

I know now that I cannot have the use of it.

No more can they.

But I have acted all along for them as much as for myself.

It's been the sign of four with us always.

Where is it?

It's where the key is.

And where little Tonga is.

I saw your launch, Miss Catchers, and I saw little Tonga go over the side.

I put the loot in a safe place.

You are deceiving us, Small. If you had wished to throw the treasure into the

Thames... It would have been easier to have thrown box at all.

Easier for me to throw and easier for you to recover.

A man who is clever enough to hunt me down is clever enough to pick up a box

from the bottom of the river.

I am sorry.

I'm glad the treasure is locked.

It's been nothing but a curse to every man who has owned it.

An early death to my poor father.

And slavery for life to me and my companions.

I've spent the first half of my life digging a breakwater in the Andamans.

And I'm likely to spend the other half digging ditches on Dartmoor.

Well, Holmes, duty is duty, and I've gone rather far in bringing him here.

I shall feel...

More at ease when I have our storyteller here under lock and key.

I am obliged to you for your assistance.

Good day to you, Dr. Walton.

Miss Malton.

Ah, after you, small.

You seem a bit handy with that wooden leg of yours.

I feel most ashamed that you, Mr. Holmes, and you, dear Dr. Watson, have

put yourselves into such peril on my behalf. Oh, that's all over and

Mrs. Forrester has sent her carriage for Miss Morstan.

I'll impose on you no longer, gentlemen. You must be exhausted.

Yes, I confess the reaction is already upon me. I feel as limp as a rag for a

week. I'm so very grateful to you for clearing my father's name.

I'm so very grateful to you both.

Seems so unfair.

You've done all the work in this business, and Ethelney Jones gets all

credit.

What remains for you?

For me, the pleasure of having solved an interesting case, almost single

-handed.

And for you, no doubt, the pleasure of writing it up in your usual

florid and romantic style.

What a very attractive woman.

Was she?

I hadn't noticed.

Thank you.