제ADVENTURE V. THE FIVE ORANGE PIPS장ADVENTURE V. THE FIVE ORANGE PIPS모험 5. 다섯 개의 오렌지 씨앗

When I glance over my notes and records of the Sherlock Holmes cases between the years '82 and '90, I am faced by so many which present strange and interesting features that it is no easy matter to know which to choose and which to leave. Some, however, have already gained publicity through the papers, and others have not offered a field for those peculiar qualities which my friend possessed in so high a degree, and which it is the object of these papers to illustrate. Some, too, have baffled his analytical skill, and would be, as narratives, beginnings without an ending, while others have been but partially cleared up, and have their explanations founded rather upon conjecture and surmise than on that absolute logical proof which was so dear to him. There is, however, one of these last which was so remarkable in its details and so startling in its results that I am tempted to give some account of it in spite of the fact that there are points in connection with it which never have been, and probably never will be, entirely cleared up.

82년부터 90년까지 셜록 홈스가 맡은 사건의 메모와 기록을 훑어보면, 기이하고 흥미로운 특징을 지닌 사건이 너무 많아서 어느 것을 고르고 어느 것을 남겨 둘지 정하기가 쉽지 않다. 그러나 어떤 사건은 이미 신문을 통해 널리 알려졌고, 어떤 사건은 내 친구가 아주 높은 정도로 지녔던, 그리고 이 기록들이 보여 주려는 그 특별한 재능을 발휘할 여지가 없었다. 또 어떤 사건은 그의 분석 능력으로도 풀리지 않아서, 이야기로 쓰면 끝이 없는 시작이 될 것이고, 어떤 사건은 일부만 밝혀져서 그가 그토록 아끼던 완전한 논리적 증명보다는 추측과 짐작에 설명을 기대고 있다. 그런데 이 마지막 부류 가운데 하나는 세부 사항이 너무나 놀랍고 결과가 너무나 충격적이어서, 그와 관련된 몇몇 점이 지금까지 한 번도 완전히 밝혀지지 않았고 아마 앞으로도 그러리라는 사실에도 불구하고 그 이야기를 조금 써 보고 싶은 마음이 든다.

The year '87 furnished us with a long series of cases of greater or less interest, of which I retain the records. Among my headings under this one twelve months I find an account of the adventure of the Paradol Chamber, of the Amateur Mendicant Society, who held a luxurious club in the lower vault of a furniture warehouse, of the facts connected with the loss of the British barque "Sophy Anderson", of the singular adventures of the Grice Patersons in the island of Uffa, and finally of the Camberwell poisoning case. In the latter, as may be remembered, Sherlock Holmes was able, by winding up the dead man's watch, to prove that it had been wound up two hours before, and that therefore the deceased had gone to bed within that time--a deduction which was of the greatest importance in clearing up the case. All these I may sketch out at some future date, but none of them present such singular features as the strange train of circumstances which I have now taken up my pen to describe.

87년에는 크고 작은 흥미를 지닌 사건이 줄줄이 있었고, 나는 그 기록을 가지고 있다. 이 열두 달 동안의 제목들 가운데에는 파라돌 방의 모험, 가구 창고 지하 금고에 호화로운 클럽을 차린 아마추어 거지 협회 사건, 영국 범선 '소피 앤더슨'호 실종과 관련된 사실들, 우파섬에서 그라이스 패터슨 가족이 겪은 기이한 모험, 그리고 마지막으로 캠버웰 독살 사건이 있다. 기억하는 사람도 있겠지만, 이 마지막 사건에서 셜록 홈스는 죽은 사람의 시계 태엽을 감아 보고 그것이 두 시간 전에 감겼으며, 따라서 죽은 사람이 그 시간 안에 잠자리에 들었다는 것을 증명할 수 있었다. 이 추론은 사건을 해결하는 데 가장 중요한 것이었다. 이 사건들은 모두 언젠가 대강 써 볼 생각이지만, 지금 내가 펜을 들어 쓰려는 기이한 일들만큼 독특한 특징을 지닌 것은 하나도 없다.

It was in the latter days of September, and the equinoctial gales had set in with exceptional violence. All day the wind had screamed and the rain had beaten against the windows, so that even here in the heart of great, hand-made London we were forced to raise our minds for the instant from the routine of life and to recognise the presence of those great elemental forces which shriek at mankind through the bars of his civilisation, like untamed beasts in a cage. As evening drew in, the storm grew higher and louder, and the wind cried and sobbed like a child in the chimney. Sherlock Holmes sat moodily at one side of the fireplace cross-indexing his records of crime, while I at the other was deep in one of Clark Russell's fine sea-stories until the howl of the gale from without seemed to blend with the text, and the splash of the rain to lengthen out into the long swash of the sea waves. My wife was on a visit to her mother's, and for a few days I was a dweller once more in my old quarters at Baker Street.

9월 말이었고, 추분 무렵의 폭풍이 유난히 사납게 몰아치고 있었다. 하루 종일 바람이 비명을 지르고 비가 창문을 두드려서, 사람의 손으로 만든 거대한 런던의 한복판에 있는 우리조차 잠시 일상에서 마음을 들어 올려, 우리에 갇힌 길들지 않은 짐승처럼 문명의 창살 사이로 인간에게 울부짖는 거대한 자연의 힘이 있다는 것을 깨닫지 않을 수 없었다. 저녁이 다가오자 폭풍은 더 거세고 요란해졌고, 바람은 굴뚝 속에서 아이처럼 울고 흐느꼈다. 셜록 홈스는 벽난로 한쪽에 시무룩하게 앉아 범죄 기록의 색인을 정리하고 있었고, 나는 다른 쪽에서 클라크 러셀의 훌륭한 바다 이야기 한 권에 푹 빠져 있었다. 그러다 바깥의 거센 바람 소리가 글과 섞이는 것 같았고, 빗소리가 길게 늘어나 파도가 길게 철썩이는 소리처럼 들렸다. 아내는 친정어머니를 찾아가 있었고, 며칠 동안 나는 다시 베이커 가의 옛 방에 머물고 있었다.

"Why," said I, glancing up at my companion, "that was surely the bell. Who could come to-night? Some friend of yours, perhaps?"

"아니," 내가 내 친구를 올려다보며 말했다. "분명히 초인종 소리였는데. 오늘 밤에 누가 올 수 있지? 자네 친구인가?"

"Except yourself I have none," he answered. "I do not encourage visitors."

"자네 말고는 친구가 없네." 그가 대답했다. "나는 손님을 반기지 않거든."

"A client, then?"

"그럼 의뢰인인가?"

"If so, it is a serious case. Nothing less would bring a man out on such a day and at such an hour. But I take it that it is more likely to be some crony of the landlady's."

"그렇다면 심각한 사건이겠지. 그만한 일이 아니고서야 이런 날 이런 시각에 사람이 나오지는 않을 테니까. 하지만 하숙집 주인의 단짝 친구일 가능성이 더 클 것 같네."

Sherlock Holmes was wrong in his conjecture, however, for there came a step in the passage and a tapping at the door. He stretched out his long arm to turn the lamp away from himself and towards the vacant chair upon which a newcomer must sit.

그러나 셜록 홈스의 짐작은 틀렸다. 복도에서 발소리가 나더니 문을 두드리는 소리가 났기 때문이다. 그는 긴 팔을 뻗어 램프를 자기 쪽에서 돌려, 새로 온 사람이 앉을 빈 의자 쪽을 비추게 했다.

"Come in!" said he.

"들어오십시오!" 그가 말했다.

The man who entered was young, some two-and-twenty at the outside, well-groomed and trimly clad, with something of refinement and delicacy in his bearing. The streaming umbrella which he held in his hand, and his long shining waterproof told of the fierce weather through which he had come. He looked about him anxiously in the glare of the lamp, and I could see that his face was pale and his eyes heavy, like those of a man who is weighed down with some great anxiety.

들어온 사람은 많아야 스물두 살쯤 된 젊은이로, 몸단장을 잘하고 옷을 말쑥하게 입었으며, 몸가짐에 어딘가 세련되고 섬세한 데가 있었다. 손에 든 물이 줄줄 흐르는 우산과 반짝이는 긴 방수 외투가 그가 뚫고 온 사나운 날씨를 말해 주었다. 그는 램프 불빛 속에서 불안하게 주위를 둘러보았는데, 큰 걱정에 짓눌린 사람처럼 얼굴은 창백하고 눈은 무거워 보였다.

"I owe you an apology," he said, raising his golden pince-nez to his eyes. "I trust that I am not intruding. I fear that I have brought some traces of the storm and rain into your snug chamber."

"사과를 드려야겠습니다." 그가 금테 코안경을 눈에 대며 말했다. "방해가 되지 않았으면 좋겠습니다. 이 아늑한 방에 폭풍과 비의 흔적을 묻혀 들어온 것 같군요."

"Give me your coat and umbrella," said Holmes. "They may rest here on the hook and will be dry presently. You have come up from the south-west, I see."

"외투와 우산을 주십시오." 홈스가 말했다. "여기 걸이에 걸어 두면 곧 마를 겁니다. 남서쪽에서 올라오셨군요."

"Yes, from Horsham."

"네, 호셤에서 왔습니다."

"That clay and chalk mixture which I see upon your toe caps is quite distinctive."

"구두 앞코에 묻은 진흙과 백악이 섞인 흙은 아주 특징적이거든요."

"I have come for advice."

"조언을 구하러 왔습니다."

"That is easily got."

"조언은 쉽게 얻을 수 있지요."

"And help."

"그리고 도움도요."

"That is not always so easy."

"그건 늘 쉽지는 않습니다."

"I have heard of you, Mr. Holmes. I heard from Major Prendergast how you saved him in the Tankerville Club scandal."

"홈스 씨 이야기는 들었습니다. 프렌더개스트 소령에게서 탱커빌 클럽 스캔들 때 선생님이 그분을 구해 주셨다는 이야기를 들었어요."

"Ah, of course. He was wrongfully accused of cheating at cards."

"아, 그렇지요. 그분은 카드 게임에서 속임수를 썼다는 누명을 썼지요."

"He said that you could solve anything."

"그분은 선생님이 무엇이든 풀 수 있다고 하셨어요."

"He said too much."

"말이 지나치셨군요."

"That you are never beaten."

"선생님은 절대 지지 않는다고요."

"I have been beaten four times--three times by men, and once by a woman."

"저는 네 번 졌습니다. 남자에게 세 번, 여자에게 한 번."

"But what is that compared with the number of your successes?"

"하지만 선생님이 성공한 횟수에 비하면 그게 뭐겠어요?"

"It is true that I have been generally successful."

"대체로 성공해 온 건 사실이지요."

"Then you may be so with me."

"그럼 제 일도 성공하실 수 있겠네요."

"I beg that you will draw your chair up to the fire and favour me with some details as to your case."

"의자를 불 가까이 당겨 앉으시고 사건을 자세히 말씀해 주십시오."

"It is no ordinary one."

"평범한 사건이 아닙니다."

"None of those which come to me are. I am the last court of appeal."

"저에게 오는 사건은 다 그렇지요. 저는 최후의 항소 법정이니까요."

"And yet I question, sir, whether, in all your experience, you have ever listened to a more mysterious and inexplicable chain of events than those which have happened in my own family."

"그래도 선생님, 선생님이 겪으신 모든 일 가운데 저희 집안에서 일어난 일보다 더 수수께끼 같고 설명할 수 없는 일들의 사슬을 들어 보신 적이 있을지 의문입니다."

"You fill me with interest," said Holmes. "Pray give us the essential facts from the commencement, and I can afterwards question you as to those details which seem to me to be most important."

"아주 흥미가 생기는군요." 홈스가 말했다. "처음부터 중요한 사실을 말씀해 주시면, 나중에 제가 가장 중요해 보이는 세부 사항을 여쭙겠습니다."

The young man pulled his chair up and pushed his wet feet out towards the blaze.

젊은이는 의자를 당겨 앉고 젖은 발을 불길 쪽으로 내밀었다.

"My name," said he, "is John Openshaw, but my own affairs have, as far as I can understand, little to do with this awful business. It is a hereditary matter; so in order to give you an idea of the facts, I must go back to the commencement of the affair.

"제 이름은," 그가 말했다. "존 오펜쇼입니다. 하지만 제가 이해하는 한 제 일은 이 끔찍한 일과 별 관계가 없습니다. 이건 집안에서 대물림된 문제예요. 그래서 사실을 알려 드리려면 일의 처음으로 거슬러 올라가야 합니다.

"You must know that my grandfather had two sons--my uncle Elias and my father Joseph. My father had a small factory at Coventry, which he enlarged at the time of the invention of bicycling. He was a patentee of the Openshaw unbreakable tire, and his business met with such success that he was able to sell it and to retire upon a handsome competence.

"할아버지에게는 아들이 둘 있었는데, 제 삼촌 일라이어스와 제 아버지 조지프였어요. 아버지는 코번트리에 작은 공장을 가지고 계셨는데, 자전거가 발명되었을 때 공장을 넓히셨어요. 아버지는 '오펜쇼 안 터지는 타이어'의 특허권자였고, 사업이 크게 성공해서 공장을 팔고 넉넉한 재산으로 은퇴하실 수 있었어요.

"My uncle Elias emigrated to America when he was a young man and became a planter in Florida, where he was reported to have done very well. At the time of the war he fought in Jackson's army, and afterwards under Hood, where he rose to be a colonel. When Lee laid down his arms my uncle returned to his plantation, where he remained for three or four years. About 1869 or 1870 he came back to Europe and took a small estate in Sussex, near Horsham. He had made a very considerable fortune in the States, and his reason for leaving them was his aversion to the negroes, and his dislike of the Republican policy in extending the franchise to them. He was a singular man, fierce and quick-tempered, very foul-mouthed when he was angry, and of a most retiring disposition. During all the years that he lived at Horsham, I doubt if ever he set foot in the town. He had a garden and two or three fields round his house, and there he would take his exercise, though very often for weeks on end he would never leave his room. He drank a great deal of brandy and smoked very heavily, but he would see no society and did not want any friends, not even his own brother.

"삼촌 일라이어스는 젊었을 때 미국으로 이민 가서 플로리다에서 농장주가 되었는데, 꽤 잘살았다고 했어요. 전쟁 때는 잭슨의 군대에서 싸웠고, 그 뒤에는 후드 장군 밑에서 싸워 대령까지 올랐어요. 리 장군이 항복하자 삼촌은 농장으로 돌아가 3, 4년을 더 지냈어요. 1869년인가 1870년쯤 삼촌은 유럽으로 돌아와 호셤 근처 서식스에 작은 영지를 샀어요. 삼촌은 미국에서 꽤 큰 재산을 모았는데, 미국을 떠난 이유는 흑인들을 싫어했고, 흑인들에게 선거권을 넓혀 주는 공화당의 정책이 싫었기 때문이었어요. 삼촌은 독특한 사람이었어요. 사납고 성미가 급했고, 화가 나면 입이 아주 험했고, 성격은 몹시 사람을 피하는 편이었어요. 삼촌이 호셤에 사는 동안 읍내에 발을 들여놓은 적이 한 번이라도 있었는지 모르겠어요. 집 주변에 정원과 밭 두세 뙈기가 있어서 거기서 운동을 했지만, 몇 주씩 방에서 나오지 않을 때도 많았어요. 브랜디를 아주 많이 마시고 담배를 몹시 피웠지만, 사람은 만나지 않았고 친구도 원하지 않았어요. 자기 친형제조차도요.

"He didn't mind me; in fact, he took a fancy to me, for at the time when he saw me first I was a youngster of twelve or so. This would be in the year 1878, after he had been eight or nine years in England. He begged my father to let me live with him and he was very kind to me in his way. When he was sober he used to be fond of playing backgammon and draughts with me, and he would make me his representative both with the servants and with the tradespeople, so that by the time that I was sixteen I was quite master of the house. I kept all the keys and could go where I liked and do what I liked, so long as I did not disturb him in his privacy. There was one singular exception, however, for he had a single room, a lumber-room up among the attics, which was invariably locked, and which he would never permit either me or anyone else to enter. With a boy's curiosity I have peeped through the keyhole, but I was never able to see more than such a collection of old trunks and bundles as would be expected in such a room.

"삼촌은 저는 싫어하지 않았어요. 사실 저를 좋아했지요. 삼촌이 저를 처음 보았을 때 저는 열두 살쯤 된 꼬마였거든요. 삼촌이 영국에 온 지 8, 9년쯤 된 1878년의 일이었을 거예요. 삼촌은 아버지에게 제가 자기와 함께 살게 해 달라고 사정했고, 삼촌 나름의 방식으로 저에게 아주 잘해 주었어요. 술에 취하지 않았을 때는 저와 백개먼이나 체커 놀이를 하는 걸 좋아했고, 하인들이나 상인들을 상대할 때 저를 자기 대리인으로 삼아서, 제가 열여섯 살쯤 되었을 때는 제가 그 집의 주인이나 다름없었어요. 저는 열쇠를 모두 맡았고, 삼촌의 사생활을 방해하지만 않으면 어디든 갈 수 있고 무엇이든 할 수 있었어요. 그런데 딱 하나 이상한 예외가 있었어요. 다락방 위쪽에 잡동사니 방이 하나 있었는데, 늘 잠겨 있었고 삼촌은 저든 누구든 절대 들어가지 못하게 했어요. 저는 소년다운 호기심으로 열쇠 구멍으로 들여다본 적이 있지만, 그런 방에 있을 법한 낡은 트렁크와 꾸러미들 말고는 아무것도 보지 못했어요.

"One day--it was in March, 1883--a letter with a foreign stamp lay upon the table in front of the colonel's plate. It was not a common thing for him to receive letters, for his bills were all paid in ready money, and he had no friends of any sort. 'From India!' said he as he took it up, 'Pondicherry postmark! What can this be?' Opening it hurriedly, out there jumped five little dried orange pips, which pattered down upon his plate. I began to laugh at this, but the laugh was struck from my lips at the sight of his face. His lip had fallen, his eyes were protruding, his skin the colour of putty, and he glared at the envelope which he still held in his trembling hand, 'K. K. K.!' he shrieked, and then, 'My God, my God, my sins have overtaken me!'

"어느 날, 1883년 3월이었는데, 외국 우표가 붙은 편지 한 통이 대령의 접시 앞 탁자 위에 놓여 있었어요. 삼촌은 청구서를 모두 현금으로 치렀고 친구도 전혀 없었기 때문에 편지를 받는 일은 흔하지 않았어요. '인도에서 왔군!' 삼촌이 편지를 집어 들며 말했어요. '퐁디셰리 소인이야! 이게 뭘까?' 삼촌이 서둘러 봉투를 열자, 바싹 마른 작은 오렌지 씨앗 다섯 개가 튀어나와 접시 위로 후드득 떨어졌어요. 저는 그걸 보고 웃기 시작했지만, 삼촌의 얼굴을 보는 순간 웃음이 입술에서 싹 사라졌어요. 삼촌의 입술은 축 늘어지고, 눈은 튀어나오고, 피부는 퍼티 같은 색이었어요. 삼촌은 아직 떨리는 손에 든 봉투를 노려보았어요. '케이, 케이, 케이(K. K. K.)!' 삼촌이 비명을 지르더니 이렇게 말했어요. '맙소사, 맙소사, 내 죄가 나를 따라잡았구나!'

"'What is it, uncle?' I cried.

"'무슨 일이에요, 삼촌?' 제가 외쳤어요.

"'Death,' said he, and rising from the table he retired to his room, leaving me palpitating with horror. I took up the envelope and saw scrawled in red ink upon the inner flap, just above the gum, the letter K three times repeated. There was nothing else save the five dried pips. What could be the reason of his overpowering terror? I left the breakfast-table, and as I ascended the stair I met him coming down with an old rusty key, which must have belonged to the attic, in one hand, and a small brass box, like a cashbox, in the other.

"'죽음이다.' 삼촌은 그렇게 말하고 식탁에서 일어나 자기 방으로 들어가 버렸고, 저는 공포로 가슴이 두근거린 채 남겨졌어요. 봉투를 집어 들어 보니 안쪽 덮개, 풀칠한 곳 바로 위에 빨간 잉크로 K 자가 세 번 휘갈겨 쓰여 있었어요. 마른 씨앗 다섯 개 말고는 다른 건 아무것도 없었어요. 삼촌이 그토록 공포에 질린 이유가 무엇일까요? 저는 아침 식탁을 떠나 계단을 올라가다가, 한 손에는 다락방 것이 틀림없는 녹슨 낡은 열쇠를, 다른 손에는 돈 상자 같은 작은 놋쇠 상자를 들고 내려오는 삼촌과 마주쳤어요.

"'They may do what they like, but I'll checkmate them still,' said he with an oath. 'Tell Mary that I shall want a fire in my room to-day, and send down to Fordham, the Horsham lawyer.'

"'놈들이 마음대로 하라지. 그래도 내가 기어이 외통수를 둘 테다.' 삼촌이 욕을 섞어 말했어요. '메리에게 오늘 내 방에 불을 피워 달라고 하고, 호셤의 변호사 포덤에게 사람을 보내라.'

"I did as he ordered, and when the lawyer arrived I was asked to step up to the room. The fire was burning brightly, and in the grate there was a mass of black, fluffy ashes, as of burned paper, while the brass box stood open and empty beside it. As I glanced at the box I noticed, with a start, that upon the lid was printed the treble K which I had read in the morning upon the envelope.

"저는 시키는 대로 했고, 변호사가 오자 저도 방으로 올라오라는 말을 들었어요. 불이 환하게 타고 있었고, 벽난로 쇠살대에는 종이를 태운 듯한 검고 보송보송한 재가 수북했으며, 그 옆에 놋쇠 상자가 열린 채 텅 비어 있었어요. 상자를 힐끗 보다가 저는 깜짝 놀랐어요. 뚜껑에 아침에 봉투에서 본 그 세 개의 K가 찍혀 있었거든요.

"'I wish you, John,' said my uncle, 'to witness my will. I leave my estate, with all its advantages and all its disadvantages, to my brother, your father, whence it will, no doubt, descend to you. If you can enjoy it in peace, well and good! If you find you cannot, take my advice, my boy, and leave it to your deadliest enemy. I am sorry to give you such a two-edged thing, but I can't say what turn things are going to take. Kindly sign the paper where Mr. Fordham shows you.'

"'존,' 삼촌이 말했어요. '내 유언장에 증인이 되어 다오. 나는 내 영지를 그 모든 이로운 점과 해로운 점까지 함께 내 동생, 곧 네 아버지에게 남긴다. 그러면 틀림없이 너에게 물려지겠지. 네가 그걸 평화롭게 누릴 수 있다면 그거야 좋은 일이지! 그럴 수 없다는 걸 알게 되면, 얘야, 내 충고를 듣고 그걸 네 가장 지독한 원수에게 넘겨 버려라. 이런 양날의 칼 같은 것을 주어서 미안하다만, 일이 어떻게 돌아갈지 나도 모르겠구나. 포덤 씨가 가리키는 곳에 서명해 다오.'

"I signed the paper as directed, and the lawyer took it away with him. The singular incident made, as you may think, the deepest impression upon me, and I pondered over it and turned it every way in my mind without being able to make anything of it. Yet I could not shake off the vague feeling of dread which it left behind, though the sensation grew less keen as the weeks passed and nothing happened to disturb the usual routine of our lives. I could see a change in my uncle, however. He drank more than ever, and he was less inclined for any sort of society. Most of his time he would spend in his room, with the door locked upon the inside, but sometimes he would emerge in a sort of drunken frenzy and would burst out of the house and tear about the garden with a revolver in his hand, screaming out that he was afraid of no man, and that he was not to be cooped up, like a sheep in a pen, by man or devil. When these hot fits were over, however, he would rush tumultuously in at the door and lock and bar it behind him, like a man who can brazen it out no longer against the terror which lies at the roots of his soul. At such times I have seen his face, even on a cold day, glisten with moisture, as though it were new raised from a basin.

"저는 시키는 대로 서류에 서명했고, 변호사는 그것을 가지고 갔어요. 짐작하시겠지만 이 기이한 일은 저에게 아주 깊은 인상을 남겼고, 저는 그 일을 곰곰이 생각하며 이리저리 따져 보았지만 아무것도 알 수 없었어요. 그래도 그 일이 남긴 막연한 두려움은 떨칠 수가 없었어요. 몇 주가 지나도 우리 생활의 일상을 흔드는 일이 아무것도 일어나지 않자 그 느낌은 덜 날카로워졌지만요. 그런데 삼촌에게는 변화가 보였어요. 삼촌은 어느 때보다 술을 많이 마셨고, 사람을 만나는 걸 더 싫어했어요. 대부분의 시간을 방문을 안에서 잠근 채 방에서 보냈지만, 가끔은 술에 취해 미친 듯이 뛰쳐나와 권총을 들고 정원을 이리저리 날뛰면서, 자기는 아무도 두렵지 않고, 사람이든 악마든 자기를 우리에 갇힌 양처럼 가둬 둘 수는 없다고 소리쳤어요. 하지만 이런 발작이 지나가면 삼촌은 영혼 깊은 곳에 뿌리박힌 공포 앞에서 더는 허세를 부릴 수 없는 사람처럼 허둥지둥 집 안으로 뛰어 들어와 문을 잠그고 빗장을 질렀어요. 그럴 때 저는 추운 날인데도 삼촌의 얼굴이 방금 대야에서 들어 올린 것처럼 땀으로 번들거리는 걸 보았어요.

"Well, to come to an end of the matter, Mr. Holmes, and not to abuse your patience, there came a night when he made one of those drunken sallies from which he never came back. We found him, when we went to search for him, face downward in a little green-scummed pool, which lay at the foot of the garden. There was no sign of any violence, and the water was but two feet deep, so that the jury, having regard to his known eccentricity, brought in a verdict of 'suicide.' But I, who knew how he winced from the very thought of death, had much ado to persuade myself that he had gone out of his way to meet it. The matter passed, however, and my father entered into possession of the estate, and of some 14,000 pounds, which lay to his credit at the bank."

"One moment," Holmes interposed, "your statement is, I foresee, one of the most remarkable to which I have ever listened. Let me have the date of the reception by your uncle of the letter, and the date of his supposed suicide."

"The letter arrived on March 10, 1883. His death was seven weeks later, upon the night of May 2nd."

"Thank you. Pray proceed."

"When my father took over the Horsham property, he, at my request, made a careful examination of the attic, which had been always locked up. We found the brass box there, although its contents had been destroyed. On the inside of the cover was a paper label, with the initials of K. K. K. repeated upon it, and 'Letters, memoranda, receipts, and a register' written beneath. These, we presume, indicated the nature of the papers which had been destroyed by Colonel Openshaw. For the rest, there was nothing of much importance in the attic save a great many scattered papers and note-books bearing upon my uncle's life in America. Some of them were of the war time and showed that he had done his duty well and had borne the repute of a brave soldier. Others were of a date during the reconstruction of the Southern states, and were mostly concerned with politics, for he had evidently taken a strong part in opposing the carpet-bag politicians who had been sent down from the North.

"Well, it was the beginning of '84 when my father came to live at Horsham, and all went as well as possible with us until the January of '85. On the fourth day after the new year I heard my father give a sharp cry of surprise as we sat together at the breakfast-table. There he was, sitting with a newly opened envelope in one hand and five dried orange pips in the outstretched palm of the other one. He had always laughed at what he called my cock-and-bull story about the colonel, but he looked very scared and puzzled now that the same thing had come upon himself.

"'Why, what on earth does this mean, John?' he stammered.

"My heart had turned to lead. 'It is K. K. K.,' said I.

"He looked inside the envelope. 'So it is,' he cried. 'Here are the very letters. But what is this written above them?'

"'Put the papers on the sundial,' I read, peeping over his shoulder.

"'What papers? What sundial?' he asked.

"'The sundial in the garden. There is no other,' said I; 'but the papers must be those that are destroyed.'

"'Pooh!' said he, gripping hard at his courage. 'We are in a civilised land here, and we can't have tomfoolery of this kind. Where does the thing come from?'

"'From Dundee,' I answered, glancing at the postmark.

"'Some preposterous practical joke,' said he. 'What have I to do with sundials and papers? I shall take no notice of such nonsense.'

"'I should certainly speak to the police,' I said.

"'And be laughed at for my pains. Nothing of the sort.'

"'Then let me do so?'

"'No, I forbid you. I won't have a fuss made about such nonsense.'

"It was in vain to argue with him, for he was a very obstinate man. I went about, however, with a heart which was full of forebodings.

"On the third day after the coming of the letter my father went from home to visit an old friend of his, Major Freebody, who is in command of one of the forts upon Portsdown Hill. I was glad that he should go, for it seemed to me that he was farther from danger when he was away from home. In that, however, I was in error. Upon the second day of his absence I received a telegram from the major, imploring me to come at once. My father had fallen over one of the deep chalk-pits which abound in the neighbourhood, and was lying senseless, with a shattered skull. I hurried to him, but he passed away without having ever recovered his consciousness. He had, as it appears, been returning from Fareham in the twilight, and as the country was unknown to him, and the chalk-pit unfenced, the jury had no hesitation in bringing in a verdict of 'death from accidental causes.' Carefully as I examined every fact connected with his death, I was unable to find anything which could suggest the idea of murder. There were no signs of violence, no footmarks, no robbery, no record of strangers having been seen upon the roads. And yet I need not tell you that my mind was far from at ease, and that I was well-nigh certain that some foul plot had been woven round him.

"In this sinister way I came into my inheritance. You will ask me why I did not dispose of it? I answer, because I was well convinced that our troubles were in some way dependent upon an incident in my uncle's life, and that the danger would be as pressing in one house as in another.

"It was in January, '85, that my poor father met his end, and two years and eight months have elapsed since then. During that time I have lived happily at Horsham, and I had begun to hope that this curse had passed away from the family, and that it had ended with the last generation. I had begun to take comfort too soon, however; yesterday morning the blow fell in the very shape in which it had come upon my father."

The young man took from his waistcoat a crumpled envelope, and turning to the table he shook out upon it five little dried orange pips.

"This is the envelope," he continued. "The postmark is London--eastern division. Within are the very words which were upon my father's last message: 'K. K. K.'; and then 'Put the papers on the sundial.'"

"What have you done?" asked Holmes.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"To tell the truth"--he sank his face into his thin, white hands--"I have felt helpless. I have felt like one of those poor rabbits when the snake is writhing towards it. I seem to be in the grasp of some resistless, inexorable evil, which no foresight and no precautions can guard against."

"Tut! tut!" cried Sherlock Holmes. "You must act, man, or you are lost. Nothing but energy can save you. This is no time for despair."

"I have seen the police."

"Ah!"

"But they listened to my story with a smile. I am convinced that the inspector has formed the opinion that the letters are all practical jokes, and that the deaths of my relations were really accidents, as the jury stated, and were not to be connected with the warnings."

Holmes shook his clenched hands in the air. "Incredible imbecility!" he cried.

"They have, however, allowed me a policeman, who may remain in the house with me."

"Has he come with you to-night?"

"No. His orders were to stay in the house."

Again Holmes raved in the air.

"Why did you come to me," he cried, "and, above all, why did you not come at once?"

"I did not know. It was only to-day that I spoke to Major Prendergast about my troubles and was advised by him to come to you."

"It is really two days since you had the letter. We should have acted before this. You have no further evidence, I suppose, than that which you have placed before us--no suggestive detail which might help us?"

"There is one thing," said John Openshaw. He rummaged in his coat pocket, and, drawing out a piece of discoloured, blue-tinted paper, he laid it out upon the table. "I have some remembrance," said he, "that on the day when my uncle burned the papers I observed that the small, unburned margins which lay amid the ashes were of this particular colour. I found this single sheet upon the floor of his room, and I am inclined to think that it may be one of the papers which has, perhaps, fluttered out from among the others, and in that way has escaped destruction. Beyond the mention of pips, I do not see that it helps us much. I think myself that it is a page from some private diary. The writing is undoubtedly my uncle's."

Holmes moved the lamp, and we both bent over the sheet of paper, which showed by its ragged edge that it had indeed been torn from a book. It was headed, "March, 1869," and beneath were the following enigmatical notices:

"4th. Hudson came. Same old platform.

"7th. Set the pips on McCauley, Paramore, and John Swain, of St. Augustine.

"9th. McCauley cleared.

"10th. John Swain cleared.

"12th. Visited Paramore. All well."

"Thank you!" said Holmes, folding up the paper and returning it to our visitor. "And now you must on no account lose another instant. We cannot spare time even to discuss what you have told me. You must get home instantly and act."

"What shall I do?"

"There is but one thing to do. It must be done at once. You must put this piece of paper which you have shown us into the brass box which you have described. You must also put in a note to say that all the other papers were burned by your uncle, and that this is the only one which remains. You must assert that in such words as will carry conviction with them. Having done this, you must at once put the box out upon the sundial, as directed. Do you understand?"

"Entirely."

"Do not think of revenge, or anything of the sort, at present. I think that we may gain that by means of the law; but we have our web to weave, while theirs is already woven. The first consideration is to remove the pressing danger which threatens you. The second is to clear up the mystery and to punish the guilty parties."

"I thank you," said the young man, rising and pulling on his overcoat. "You have given me fresh life and hope. I shall certainly do as you advise."

"Do not lose an instant. And, above all, take care of yourself in the meanwhile, for I do not think that there can be a doubt that you are threatened by a very real and imminent danger. How do you go back?"

"By train from Waterloo."

"It is not yet nine. The streets will be crowded, so I trust that you may be in safety. And yet you cannot guard yourself too closely."

"I am armed."

"That is well. To-morrow I shall set to work upon your case."

"I shall see you at Horsham, then?"

"No, your secret lies in London. It is there that I shall seek it."

"Then I shall call upon you in a day, or in two days, with news as to the box and the papers. I shall take your advice in every particular." He shook hands with us and took his leave. Outside the wind still screamed and the rain splashed and pattered against the windows. This strange, wild story seemed to have come to us from amid the mad elements--blown in upon us like a sheet of sea-weed in a gale--and now to have been reabsorbed by them once more.

Sherlock Holmes sat for some time in silence, with his head sunk forward and his eyes bent upon the red glow of the fire. Then he lit his pipe, and leaning back in his chair he watched the blue smoke-rings as they chased each other up to the ceiling.

"I think, Watson," he remarked at last, "that of all our cases we have had none more fantastic than this."

"Save, perhaps, the Sign of Four."

"Well, yes. Save, perhaps, that. And yet this John Openshaw seems to me to be walking amid even greater perils than did the Sholtos."

"But have you," I asked, "formed any definite conception as to what these perils are?"

"There can be no question as to their nature," he answered.

"Then what are they? Who is this K. K. K., and why does he pursue this unhappy family?"

Sherlock Holmes closed his eyes and placed his elbows upon the arms of his chair, with his finger-tips together. "The ideal reasoner," he remarked, "would, when he had once been shown a single fact in all its bearings, deduce from it not only all the chain of events which led up to it but also all the results which would follow from it. As Cuvier could correctly describe a whole animal by the contemplation of a single bone, so the observer who has thoroughly understood one link in a series of incidents should be able to accurately state all the other ones, both before and after. We have not yet grasped the results which the reason alone can attain to. Problems may be solved in the study which have baffled all those who have sought a solution by the aid of their senses. To carry the art, however, to its highest pitch, it is necessary that the reasoner should be able to utilise all the facts which have come to his knowledge; and this in itself implies, as you will readily see, a possession of all knowledge, which, even in these days of free education and encyclopaedias, is a somewhat rare accomplishment. It is not so impossible, however, that a man should possess all knowledge which is likely to be useful to him in his work, and this I have endeavoured in my case to do. If I remember rightly, you on one occasion, in the early days of our friendship, defined my limits in a very precise fashion."

"Yes," I answered, laughing. "It was a singular document. Philosophy, astronomy, and politics were marked at zero, I remember. Botany variable, geology profound as regards the mud-stains from any region within fifty miles of town, chemistry eccentric, anatomy unsystematic, sensational literature and crime records unique, violin-player, boxer, swordsman, lawyer, and self-poisoner by cocaine and tobacco. Those, I think, were the main points of my analysis."

Holmes grinned at the last item. "Well," he said, "I say now, as I said then, that a man should keep his little brain-attic stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use, and the rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he can get it if he wants it. Now, for such a case as the one which has been submitted to us to-night, we need certainly to muster all our resources. Kindly hand me down the letter K of the 'American Encyclopaedia' which stands upon the shelf beside you. Thank you. Now let us consider the situation and see what may be deduced from it. In the first place, we may start with a strong presumption that Colonel Openshaw had some very strong reason for leaving America. Men at his time of life do not change all their habits and exchange willingly the charming climate of Florida for the lonely life of an English provincial town. His extreme love of solitude in England suggests the idea that he was in fear of someone or something, so we may assume as a working hypothesis that it was fear of someone or something which drove him from America. As to what it was he feared, we can only deduce that by considering the formidable letters which were received by himself and his successors. Did you remark the postmarks of those letters?"

"The first was from Pondicherry, the second from Dundee, and the third from London."

"From East London. What do you deduce from that?"

"They are all seaports. That the writer was on board of a ship."

"Excellent. We have already a clue. There can be no doubt that the probability--the strong probability--is that the writer was on board of a ship. And now let us consider another point. In the case of Pondicherry, seven weeks elapsed between the threat and its fulfilment, in Dundee it was only some three or four days. Does that suggest anything?"

"A greater distance to travel."

"But the letter had also a greater distance to come."

"Then I do not see the point."

"There is at least a presumption that the vessel in which the man or men are is a sailing-ship. It looks as if they always send their singular warning or token before them when starting upon their mission. You see how quickly the deed followed the sign when it came from Dundee. If they had come from Pondicherry in a steamer they would have arrived almost as soon as their letter. But, as a matter of fact, seven weeks elapsed. I think that those seven weeks represented the difference between the mail-boat which brought the letter and the sailing vessel which brought the writer."

"It is possible."

"More than that. It is probable. And now you see the deadly urgency of this new case, and why I urged young Openshaw to caution. The blow has always fallen at the end of the time which it would take the senders to travel the distance. But this one comes from London, and therefore we cannot count upon delay."

"Good God!" I cried. "What can it mean, this relentless persecution?"

"The papers which Openshaw carried are obviously of vital importance to the person or persons in the sailing-ship. I think that it is quite clear that there must be more than one of them. A single man could not have carried out two deaths in such a way as to deceive a coroner's jury. There must have been several in it, and they must have been men of resource and determination. Their papers they mean to have, be the holder of them who it may. In this way you see K. K. K. ceases to be the initials of an individual and becomes the badge of a society."

"But of what society?"

"Have you never--" said Sherlock Holmes, bending forward and sinking his voice--"have you never heard of the Ku Klux Klan?"

"I never have."

Holmes turned over the leaves of the book upon his knee. "Here it is," said he presently:

"'Ku Klux Klan. A name derived from the fanciful resemblance to the sound produced by cocking a rifle. This terrible secret society was formed by some ex-Confederate soldiers in the Southern states after the Civil War, and it rapidly formed local branches in different parts of the country, notably in Tennessee, Louisiana, the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Its power was used for political purposes, principally for the terrorising of the negro voters and the murdering and driving from the country of those who were opposed to its views. Its outrages were usually preceded by a warning sent to the marked man in some fantastic but generally recognised shape--a sprig of oak-leaves in some parts, melon seeds or orange pips in others. On receiving this the victim might either openly abjure his former ways, or might fly from the country. If he braved the matter out, death would unfailingly come upon him, and usually in some strange and unforeseen manner. So perfect was the organisation of the society, and so systematic its methods, that there is hardly a case upon record where any man succeeded in braving it with impunity, or in which any of its outrages were traced home to the perpetrators. For some years the organisation flourished in spite of the efforts of the United States government and of the better classes of the community in the South. Eventually, in the year 1869, the movement rather suddenly collapsed, although there have been sporadic outbreaks of the same sort since that date.'

"You will observe," said Holmes, laying down the volume, "that the sudden breaking up of the society was coincident with the disappearance of Openshaw from America with their papers. It may well have been cause and effect. It is no wonder that he and his family have some of the more implacable spirits upon their track. You can understand that this register and diary may implicate some of the first men in the South, and that there may be many who will not sleep easy at night until it is recovered."

"Then the page we have seen--"

"Is such as we might expect. It ran, if I remember right, 'sent the pips to A, B, and C'--that is, sent the society's warning to them. Then there are successive entries that A and B cleared, or left the country, and finally that C was visited, with, I fear, a sinister result for C. Well, I think, Doctor, that we may let some light into this dark place, and I believe that the only chance young Openshaw has in the meantime is to do what I have told him. There is nothing more to be said or to be done to-night, so hand me over my violin and let us try to forget for half an hour the miserable weather and the still more miserable ways of our fellow-men."

It had cleared in the morning, and the sun was shining with a subdued brightness through the dim veil which hangs over the great city. Sherlock Holmes was already at breakfast when I came down.

"You will excuse me for not waiting for you," said he; "I have, I foresee, a very busy day before me in looking into this case of young Openshaw's."

"What steps will you take?" I asked.

"It will very much depend upon the results of my first inquiries. I may have to go down to Horsham, after all."

"You will not go there first?"

"No, I shall commence with the City. Just ring the bell and the maid will bring up your coffee."

As I waited, I lifted the unopened newspaper from the table and glanced my eye over it. It rested upon a heading which sent a chill to my heart.

"Holmes," I cried, "you are too late."

"Ah!" said he, laying down his cup, "I feared as much. How was it done?" He spoke calmly, but I could see that he was deeply moved.

"My eye caught the name of Openshaw, and the heading 'Tragedy Near Waterloo Bridge.' Here is the account:

"Between nine and ten last night Police-Constable Cook, of the H Division, on duty near Waterloo Bridge, heard a cry for help and a splash in the water. The night, however, was extremely dark and stormy, so that, in spite of the help of several passers-by, it was quite impossible to effect a rescue. The alarm, however, was given, and, by the aid of the water-police, the body was eventually recovered. It proved to be that of a young gentleman whose name, as it appears from an envelope which was found in his pocket, was John Openshaw, and whose residence is near Horsham. It is conjectured that he may have been hurrying down to catch the last train from Waterloo Station, and that in his haste and the extreme darkness he missed his path and walked over the edge of one of the small landing-places for river steamboats. The body exhibited no traces of violence, and there can be no doubt that the deceased had been the victim of an unfortunate accident, which should have the effect of calling the attention of the authorities to the condition of the riverside landing-stages."

We sat in silence for some minutes, Holmes more depressed and shaken than I had ever seen him.

"That hurts my pride, Watson," he said at last. "It is a petty feeling, no doubt, but it hurts my pride. It becomes a personal matter with me now, and, if God sends me health, I shall set my hand upon this gang. That he should come to me for help, and that I should send him away to his death--!" He sprang from his chair and paced about the room in uncontrollable agitation, with a flush upon his sallow cheeks and a nervous clasping and unclasping of his long thin hands.

"They must be cunning devils," he exclaimed at last. "How could they have decoyed him down there? The Embankment is not on the direct line to the station. The bridge, no doubt, was too crowded, even on such a night, for their purpose. Well, Watson, we shall see who will win in the long run. I am going out now!"

"To the police?"

"No; I shall be my own police. When I have spun the web they may take the flies, but not before."

All day I was engaged in my professional work, and it was late in the evening before I returned to Baker Street. Sherlock Holmes had not come back yet. It was nearly ten o'clock before he entered, looking pale and worn. He walked up to the sideboard, and tearing a piece from the loaf he devoured it voraciously, washing it down with a long draught of water.

"You are hungry," I remarked.

"Starving. It had escaped my memory. I have had nothing since breakfast."

"Nothing?"

"Not a bite. I had no time to think of it."

"And how have you succeeded?"

"Well."

"You have a clue?"

"I have them in the hollow of my hand. Young Openshaw shall not long remain unavenged. Why, Watson, let us put their own devilish trade-mark upon them. It is well thought of!"

"What do you mean?"

He took an orange from the cupboard, and tearing it to pieces he squeezed out the pips upon the table. Of these he took five and thrust them into an envelope. On the inside of the flap he wrote "S. H. for J. O." Then he sealed it and addressed it to "Captain James Calhoun, Barque 'Lone Star,' Savannah, Georgia."

"That will await him when he enters port," said he, chuckling. "It may give him a sleepless night. He will find it as sure a precursor of his fate as Openshaw did before him."

"And who is this Captain Calhoun?"

"The leader of the gang. I shall have the others, but he first."

"How did you trace it, then?"

He took a large sheet of paper from his pocket, all covered with dates and names.

"I have spent the whole day," said he, "over Lloyd's registers and files of the old papers, following the future career of every vessel which touched at Pondicherry in January and February in '83. There were thirty-six ships of fair tonnage which were reported there during those months. Of these, one, the 'Lone Star,' instantly attracted my attention, since, although it was reported as having cleared from London, the name is that which is given to one of the states of the Union."

"Texas, I think."

"I was not and am not sure which; but I knew that the ship must have an American origin."

"What then?"

"I searched the Dundee records, and when I found that the barque 'Lone Star' was there in January, '85, my suspicion became a certainty. I then inquired as to the vessels which lay at present in the port of London."

"Yes?"

"The 'Lone Star' had arrived here last week. I went down to the Albert Dock and found that she had been taken down the river by the early tide this morning, homeward bound to Savannah. I wired to Gravesend and learned that she had passed some time ago, and as the wind is easterly I have no doubt that she is now past the Goodwins and not very far from the Isle of Wight."

"What will you do, then?"

"Oh, I have my hand upon him. He and the two mates, are as I learn, the only native-born Americans in the ship. The others are Finns and Germans. I know, also, that they were all three away from the ship last night. I had it from the stevedore who has been loading their cargo. By the time that their sailing-ship reaches Savannah the mail-boat will have carried this letter, and the cable will have informed the police of Savannah that these three gentlemen are badly wanted here upon a charge of murder."

There is ever a flaw, however, in the best laid of human plans, and the murderers of John Openshaw were never to receive the orange pips which would show them that another, as cunning and as resolute as themselves, was upon their track. Very long and very severe were the equinoctial gales that year. We waited long for news of the "Lone Star" of Savannah, but none ever reached us. We did at last hear that somewhere far out in the Atlantic a shattered stern-post of a boat was seen swinging in the trough of a wave, with the letters "L. S." carved upon it, and that is all which we shall ever know of the fate of the "Lone Star."