lothes detective,

rushed through the front entrance and into the room.

"that you, lestrade?" said holmes.

"yes, mr. holmes. i took the job myself. it's good to see

you back in london, sir."

"i think you want a little unofficial help. three

undetected murders in one year won't do, lestrade. but you

handled the molesey mystery with less than your usual --

that's to say, you handled it fairly well."

we had all risen to our feet, our prisoner breathing hard,

with a stalwart constable on each side of him. already a

few loiterers had begun to collect in the street. holmes

stepped up to the window, closed it, and dropped the

blinds. lestrade had produced two candles and the

policemen had uncovered their lanterns. i was able at last

to have a good look at our prisoner.

it was a tremendously virile and yet sinister face which

was turned towards us. with the brow of a philosopher

above and the jaw of a sensualist below, the man must have

started with great capacities for good or for evil. but

one could not look upon his cruel blue eyes, with their

drooping, cynical lids, or upon the fierce, aggressive nose

and the threatening, deep-lined brow, without reading

nature's plainest danger-signals. he took no heed of any

of us, but his eyes were fixed upon holmes's face with an

expression in which hatred and amazement were equally

blended. "you fiend!" he kept on muttering. "you clever,

clever fiend!"

"ah, colonel!" said holmes, arranging his rumpled collar;

"'journeys end in lovers' meetings,' as the old play says.

i don't think i have had the pleasure of seeing you since

you favoured me with those attentions as i lay on the ledge

above the reichenbach fall."

the colonel still stared at my friend like a man in a

trance. "you cunning, cunning fiend!" was all that he

could say.

"i have not introduced you yet," said holmes. "this,

gentlemen, is colonel sebastian moran, once of her

majesty's indian army, and the best heavy game shot that

our eastern empire has ever produced. i believe i am

correct, colonel, in saying that your bag of tigers still

remains unrivalled?"

the fierce old man said nothing, but still glared at my

companion; with his savage eyes and bristling moustache he

was wonderfully like a tiger himself.

"i wonder that my very simple stratagem could deceive so

old a shikari," said holmes. "it must be very familiar to

you. have you not tethered a young kid under a tree, lain

above it with your rifle, and waited for the bait to bring

up your tiger? this empty house is my tree and you are my

tiger. you have possibly had other guns in reserve in case

there should be several tigers, or in the unlikely

supposition of your own aim failing you. these," he

pointed around, "are my other guns. the parallel is

exact."

colonel moran sprang forward, with a snarl of rage, but the

constables dragged him back. the fury upon his face was

terrible to look at.

"i confess that you had one small surprise for me," said

holmes. "i did not anticipate that you would yourself make

use of this empty house and this convenient front window.

i had imagined you as operating from the street, where

my friend lestrade and his merry men were awaiting you.

with that exception all has gone as i expected."

colonel moran turned to the official detective.

"you may or may not have just cause for arresting me," said

he, "but at least there can be no reason why i should

submit to the gibes of this person. if i am in the hands

of the law let things be done in a legal way."

"well, that's reasonable enough," said lestrade. "nothing

further you have to say, mr. holmes, before we go?"

holmes had picked up the powerful air-gun from the floor

and was examining its mechanism.

"an admirable and unique weapon," said he, "noiseless and

of tremendous power. i knew von herder, the blind german

mechanic, who constructed it to the order of the late

professor moriarty. for years i have been aware of its

existence, though i have never before had an opportunity

of handling it. i commend it very specially to your

attention, lestrade, and also the bullets which fit it."

"you can trust us to look after that, mr. holmes," said

lestrade, as the whole party moved towards the door.

"anything further to say?"

"only to ask what charge you intend to prefer?"

"what charge, sir? why, of course, the attempted murder of

mr. sherlock holmes."

"not so, lestrade. i do not propose to appear in the

matter at all. to you, and to you only, belongs the credit

of the remarkable arrest which you have effected. yes,

lestrade, i congratulate you! with your usual happy

mixture of cunning and audacity you have got him."

"got him! got whom, mr. holmes?"

"the man that the whole force has been seeking in vain --

colonel sebastian moran, who shot the honourable ro