第342页 / 共657页

"Hum! So much for the police-court," said Holmes thoughtfully,

tossing aside the paper. "The question for us now to solve is the

sequence of events leading from a rifled jewel-case at one end to

the crop of a goose in Tottenham Court Road at the other. You

see, Watson, our little deductions have suddenly assumed a much

more important and less innocent aspect. Here is the stone; the

stone came from the goose, and the goose came from Mr. Henry

Baker, the gentleman with the bad hat and all the other

characteristics with which I have bored you. So now we must set

ourselves very seriously to finding this gentleman and

ascertaining what part he has played in this little mystery. To

do this, we must try the simplest means first, and these lie

undoubtedly in an advertisement in all the evening papers. If

this fail, I shall have recourse to other methods."

"What will you say?"