"As far as I can see, the man has been driven out of his senses byfright. The bed has been well slept in, you see. There's his impressiondeep enough. It's about five in the morning, you know, that suicides aremost common. That would be about his time for hanging himself. It seemsto have been a very deliberate affair."
"I should say that he has been dead about three hours, judging by therigidity of the muscles," said I.
"Noticed anything peculiar about the room?" asked Holmes.
"Found a screw-driver and some screws on the wash-hand stand. Seems tohave smoked heavily during the night, too. Here are four cigar-ends thatI picked out of the fireplace."
"Hum!" said Holmes, "have you got his cigar-holder?"
"No, I have seen none."
"His cigar-case, then?"
"Yes, it was in his coat-pocket."
Holmes opened it and smelled the single cigar which it contained.
"Oh, this is an Havana, and these others are cigars of the peculiar sortwhich are imported by the Dutch from their East Indian colonies. Theyare usually wrapped in straw, you know, and are thinner for their lengththan any other brand." He picked up the four ends and examined them withhis pocket-lens.
"Two of these have been smoked from a holder and two without," said he."Two have been cut by a not very sharp knife, and two have had the endsbitten off by a set of excellent teeth. This is no suicide, Mr. Lanner.It is a very deeply planned and cold-blooded murder."
"Impossible!" cried the inspector.
"And why?"
"Why should any one murder a man in so clumsy a fashion as by hanginghim?"
"That is what we have to find out."
"How could they get in?"
"Through the front door."
"It was barred in the morning."
"Then it was barred after them."
"How do you know?"
"I saw their traces. Excuse me a moment, and I may be able to give yousome further information about it."
He went over to the door, and turning the lock he examined it in hismethodical way. Then he took out the key, which was on the inside, andinspected that also. The bed, the carpet, the chairs the mantelpiece,the dead body, and the rope were each in turn examined, until at last heprofessed himself satisfied, and with my aid and that of the inspectorcut down the wretched object and laid it reverently under a sheet.
> "How about this rope?" he asked.
"It is cut off this," said Dr. Trevelyan, drawing a large coil fromunder the bed. "He was morbidly nervous of fire, and always kept thisbeside him, so that he might escape by the window in case the stairswere burning."
"That must have saved them trouble," said Holmes, thoughtfully. "Yes,the actual facts are very plain, and I shall be surprised if by theafternoon I cannot give you the reasons for them as well. I will takethis photograph of Blessington, which I see upon the mantelpiece, as itmay help me in my inquiries."
"But you have told us nothing!" cried the doctor.
"Oh, there can be no doubt as to the sequence of events," said Holmes."There were three of them in it: the young man, the old man, and athird, to whose identity I have no clue. The first two, I need hardlyremark, are the same who masqueraded as the Russian count and his son,so we can give a very full description of them. They were admitted bya confederate inside the house. If I might offer you a word of advice,Inspector, it would be to arrest the page, who, as I understand, hasonly recently come into your service, Doctor."
"The young imp cannot be found," said Dr. Trevelyan; "the maid and thecook have just been searching for him."
Holmes shrugged his shoulders.
"He has played a not unimportant part in this drama," said he. "Thethree men having ascended the stairs, which they did on tiptoe, theelder man first, the younger man second, and the unknown man in therear--"