The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Part 4 of 24
The Sleepy Bookshelf
Elizabeth continues reading 'The Red-Headed League' from Sherlock Holmes, unraveling the mystery behind a fake organization created to distr
Key takeaways
- Holmes deduces that the assistant's behavior and physical signs—like worn knees—indicate he was digging a tunnel.
- The Red-Headed League was a ruse to keep Jabez Wilson occupied during daytime hours so the criminal could dig undisturbed.
Main topics
- Sherlock Holmes detective work
- The Red-Headed League mystery
Notable quotes
"The more bizarre a thing is, the less mysterious it proves to be."
Conclusion
Holmes successfully uncovers a criminal plot involving a hidden tunnel
Transcript preview
Speaker 1 (0:00) Hello everyone. Before we begin tonight, I have an exciting new announcement to share with you. Since starting The Sleepy Bookshelf in 2021, we have been looking for new ways to help you sleep. Because we know how much you all love our Jane Austen seasons, I'm pleased to introduce The Sleepy Bookshelf, Just Jane, where we will read Austen's entire catalogue, one novel at a time. New episodes will release every Monday and Wednesday, so click the link at the bottom of the show notes to subscribe and follow along with the first season, Mansfield Park. I hope to see you there, to put down your worries from the day and pick up a good Jane Austen book. Speaker 1 (0:53) Before we get started tonight, I wanted to let you in on a little secret. For the best sleep, there's nothing better than the Sleepy Bookshelf's premium feed. You'll have ad-free access to the entire catalogue, so you don't have to listen to things like this. Plus, exclusive bonus stories in between our longer books. Follow the link in the show notes to learn more, and start your seven-day free trial tonight. Speaker 1 (1:31) Hello, it's Elizabeth, and I'm excited to share with you the newest show from Slumber Studios. It's called Sleepy History, and it's exactly what it sounds like. Intriguing stories, people, mysteries and events from history, delivered in a supremely calming atmosphere. Speaker 1 (1:55) Explore the legend of El Dorado. See what life was like for the Roman gladiators. Uncover the myths and mysteries of Stonehenge. You'll find interesting but relaxing episodes like these on Sleepy History and the same great production quality you've come to know and love from The Sleepy Bookshelf. So check it out. And perhaps you'll have another way to get a good night's rest. Just search Sleepy History in your preferred podcast player. Good evening, and welcome to the Sleepy Bookshelf, where we put down our worries from the day and pick up a good book. I'm your host, Elizabeth. Thank you for being here tonight. This evening we'll be continuing the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. But before we begin... Take a moment to let the day soften around you. Breathe in slowly through your nose and gently out through your mouth, allowing your body to settle. And once more, a deep breath in and a long, easy breath out. Speaker 1 (3:40) Last time, Watson had visited Holmes and found him with Jabez Wilson, a London pawnbroker distinguished by his unusually bright red hair. Wilson had described a strange advertisement for the Red-Headed League, an organisation supposedly established to provide well-paid employment to red-haired men. Speaker 1 (4:13) Encouraged by his reasonably new assistant, Vincent Spaulding, Wilson had applied and secured a position that required him to spend four hours every morning copying the Encyclopedia Britannica while, critically, remaining inside the league's office. Speaker 1 (4:38) For several weeks, Wilson faithfully attended to the peculiar work and collected his generous wages, until one morning he arrived to find the office closed and a notice announcing that the red-headed league had been dissolved. Unable to discover what had happened, he brought the mystery to Holmes. Speaker 1 (5:09) Holmes had questioned him closely about Spaulding, learning that the assistant was intelligent, interested in photography, frequently disappeared into the cellar, and had willingly worked for only half the usual wages, details which had clearly begun to suggest that the Bazaar League had been created for a very particular purpose. Speaker 1 (5:39) And that is where we pick up tonight. So just lie back and relax, as I turn to the next pages of The Red-Headed League. Part 2. What is he like, this Vincent Spaulding? Small, stout-built, very quick in his ways, no hair on his face, though he's not short of 30. Speaker 1 (6:27) as a white splash of acid upon his forehead. Holmes sat up in his chair in considerable excitement. I thought as much, said he. Have you ever observed that his ears are pierced for earrings? Yes, sir. He told me that a gypsy had done it for him when he was a lad. Hmm, said Holmes, sinking back in deep thought. Is he still with you? Oh yes, sir, I've only just left him. And has your business been attended to in your absence? Nothing to complain of, sir. There's never very much to do of a morning. That will do, Mr. Wilson. I shall be happy to give you an opinion upon the subject in the course of a day or two. Today is a Saturday, and I hope that by Monday we may come to a conclusion. Well, Watson, said Holmes when our visitor had left us. What do you make of it all? Why make nothing of it? I answered frankly. It is a most mysterious business. As a rule, said Holmes, the more bizarre a thing is, the less mysterious it proves to be. It is your commonplace, featureless crimes which are really puzzling. Just as a commonplace face is the most difficult to identify. But I must be prompt over this matter. What are you going to do then? I asked. To smoke, he answered. It is quite a three-pipe problem, and I beg that you won't speak to me for fifty minutes. He curled himself up in his chair, with his thin knees drawn up to his hawk-like nose, and there he sat with his eyes closed, and his black clay pipe thrusting out like the bill of some strange bird. Speaker 1 (8:41) I had come to the conclusion that he had dropped asleep, and indeed was nodding myself when he suddenly sprang out of his chair with the gesture of a man who has made up his mind and put his pipe down upon the mantelpiece. Sarasate plays at the St. James Hall this afternoon. He remarked, What do you think, Watson? Could your patience spare you for a few hours? I have nothing to do today. My practice is never very absorbing. Then put on your hat and come. I'm going through the city first. We can have some lunch on the way. I observe there is a good deal of German music on the program, which is rather more to my taste than Italian or French. It is introspective. And I want introspect. Come along. Speaker 1 (9:38) We travelled by the underground as far as Aldersgate, and a short walk took us to Saxe-Coburg Square, the scene of the singular story which we had listened to in the morning. It was a pokey, little, shabby, genteel place, where four lines of dingy two-storied brick houses looked out into a small, railed-in enclosure. where a lawn of weedy grass and a few clumps of faded laurel bushes made a hard fight against a smoke-laden and uncongenial atmosphere. Three gilt balls and a brown board with Jabez Wilson in white letters upon a corner house announced the place where our red-headed client carried on his business. Speaker 1 (10:41) Sherlock Holmes stopped in front of it, with his head on one side, and looked it all over with his eyes shining brightly between puckered lids. Then he walked slowly up the street, and then down again to the corner, still looking keenly at the houses. Speaker 1 (11:07) Finally, he returned to the pawnbroker's and, having thumped vigorously upon the pavement with his stick two or three times, he went up to the door and knocked. It was instantly opened by a bright-looking, clean-shaven young fellow who asked him to step in. Thank you, said Holmes. I only wish to ask you how you would go from here to the Strand. Third right, fourth left, answered the assistant, promptly closing the