Page 47 (1/1)

"What now?" I asked "Toby has lost his character for infallibility"

"He acted according to his lights," said Hol him out of the timber-yard "If you consider how reat wonder that our trail should have been crossed It isof wood Poor Toby is not to blaain, I suppose"

"Yes And, fortunately, we have no distance to go Evidently what puzzled the dog at the corner of Knight's Place was that there were two different trails running in opposite directions We took the wrong one It only remains to follow the other"

There was no difficulty about this On leading Toby to the place where he had committed his fault, he cast about in a wide circle and finally dashed off in a fresh direction

"Weus to the place where the creasote-barrel caht of that But you notice that he keeps on the pavement, whereas the barrel passed down the roadway No, we are on the true scent now"

It tended doards the river-side, running through Belmont Place and Prince's Street At the end of Broad Street it ran right down to the water's edge, where there was a se of this, and there stood whining, looking out on the dark current beyond

"We are out of luck," said Holmes "They have taken to a boat here" Several s about in the water and on the edge of the wharf We took Toby round to each in turn, but, though he sniffed earnestly, he e was a sh the second"Mordecai Se letters, and, underneath, "Boats to hire by the hour or day" A second inscription above the door informed us that a steareat pile of coke upon the jetty Sherlock Holmes looked slowly round, and his face assumed an ominous expression

"This looks bad," said he "These fellows are sharper than I expected They seem to have covered their tracks There has, I fear, been preconcertedthe door of the house, when it opened, and a little, curly-headed lad of six ca out, followed by a stoutish, red-faced woe in her hand