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Holmes and Watson Visit the House

Holmes went out for the morning, but he came back at
lunchtime. We then went by train into the country and took a
taxi to Dr Roylott's house. 'You see,' said Holmes to me, 'our
dangerous friend Roylott needs the girls' money, because
he only has £750 a year from his dead wife. I found that out
this morning. But the gypsies, the whistle, the band - they are
more difficult to understand, but I think I have an answer.'

When we arrived, Helen Stoner showed us the three
bedrooms. We saw her room first.
'Why are they mending your bedroom wall?' asked Holmes.
'There's nothing wrong with it.'
'You're right,' she said. 'I think it was a plan to air-vent
Glossary on
move me into my sister's room.' bell-rope
page 91
'Yes,' said Holmes. We went into Julia's room,
and Holmes looked at the windows carefully.

'Nobody could come in from outside,' he said. Then he
looked round the room. 'Why is that bell-rope there, just
over the bed?'

'My stepfather put it there two years ago. It's for calling a
servant, but Julia and I never used it because we didn't have
any servants. He also put in that air-vent on the wall between
his room and this one.'

Holmes pulled the rope. 'But it doesn't work,' he said.
'How strange! And it's just over the air-vent. That also is
interesting. Why have an air-vent on an inside wall? Air-vents
are usually on outside walls.'

Then we went into Dr Roylott's room. Holmes saw a large
metal box near the wall.

'My stepfather keeps business papers in there,' said Helen.

60 Reader's Book