Introduction How well my friend Arthur Conan Doyle would tell this story! How exciting and interesting he would make it. I cannot do that. I am no writer. I have been a doctor and a soldier. All I can do is make my report. ut who will read my words "hat will the world be like in #$%& 'erhaps by then nobody will know the names of (herlock Holmes and )ack the *ipper. 'erhaps all Conan Doyle+s wonderful stories will be forgotten. ,here is so much to explain. I must ask my reader to be patient! I had known and worked with (herlock Holmes for almost four years when I -rst met Arthur Conan Doyle ACD I always called him. /ike me0 he was a doctor0 and we 1uickly became old friends. He told me amusing stories of hospital life0 and I raid him about my life as an army doctor in Afghanistan. I often talked to him about (herlock Holmes. At that time most people had never heard of him. 2nly the police and some criminals knew what a great detective he was. ACD seemed to en3oy my stories very much. He was never too tired to hear 4.bout another of Holmes+s cases. "e met many times and en3oyed many good dinners together before I reali5ed that ACD had a special interest in Holmes. He wanted to be a writer0 and had already en3oyed a little success. 6ow he wanted to write about Holmes0 using /e facts of a real case0 but adding his own ideas to the story. I found this an excellent idea. I was happy to think that my dear friend would become famous. I explained the plan to Holmes. He listened in silence0 his pipe in his hand. ,hen he said0 +Can he write0 this friend of yours Can he tell a true story Does he understand the di7erence between facts and lies+ +I think so0+ I said. +He has 3ust begun to write0 but already he is becoming fashionable.+ +8ashionable!+ Holmes said coldly. +How can it interest me that he is fashionable Can a fashionable writer have a serious interest in the facts of one of my cases+ I could not reply. Holmes sat silently0 looking into the -re. At last he said0 +"ell0 he may try. /et him do what he can. 9ou may send him your notes on the Hope case0 "atson.+ I wrote to ACD the next day0 and he began work on the story. He called it A (tudy in (carlet. "hen it appeared in the shops0 I hurried out to buy it0 and then sat for hours in a park reading it. ,he story was excellent fast moving0 exciting and clever. I ran back to aker (treet. I could not wait to give the book to Holmes. He looked up 1uickly as I entered the room. +9ou+re late0 "atson0+ he said. +"ere you ashamed to come here with that book in your hand+ +Ashamed0 Holmes+ I cried. +6o! ACD has done well. I see you have read it. "hy don+t you like it+ I was soon sorry that I had spoken. +/ike it It is rubbish0 wild and fantastic rubbish. He has been careless with the facts0 added all kinds of unnecessary lies0 and made the most stupid mistakes.+ +ut Holmes ... + +I wonder what kind of doctor he is. I am sorry for his patients. I would not be surprised to hear that he had cut o7 a man+s leg because the man had a stomach ache. He is clearly not interested in facts.+ +Holmes0+ I said as calmly as I could0 +a writer does not 3ust report facts. He must make sure that the story is interesting to read. I am sure you understand that.+ Holmes smiled at me sweetly. +:y dear fellow0+ he said. +I forget. 9ou know all about -ne writing. How stupid of me to worry about a few careless mistakes! ut your friend :r. Doyle has shown that he does not
understand how important my work is. He thinks that the criminals I -ght against are stupid0 miserable little beings. ,hey are not. I -ght against evil itself. He has failed to understand that. ,he book is worthless. Away with it0 and with your friend the writer!+ I wondered what to say to ACD0 but there was no need to worry. A (tudy in (carlet was not a success0 and he began to write about other things. (everal years later he decided to write about Holmes again0 but at that time # had other things to think about. I had fallen in love with :iss :ary :orstan. "hen she agreed to become my wife0 I hurried to tell Holmes. I was full of happiness. I can still hear the cold surprise in his voice as he said0 +I cannot pretend to be happy about this.+ ,his hurt me terribly0 but I tried to laugh. +"ell0 Holmes0+ I said0 +I hope you won+t be too lonely when I go home to my wife.+ A shadow passed over his face. +2h no0 "atson0+ he said. +I still have my cocainebottle.+ "as he asking me for help "as it still possible0 then0 to save him 'erhaps. In my heart I know only that my dear friend needed me0 and that I failed him. # ,he -rst murders (herlock Holmes became a detective in #;%%0 four years before I met him. At -rst he en3oyed every case0 but soon he began to -nd the work easy. ,en years later he was famous0 but he was unhappy and bored. +,he modern criminal is so painfully slow and stupid0+ he often said. +I need an interesting case0 "atson0 one which will make me think. Are there no clever thieves or murderers in the world these days+ It is dangerous for a very intelligent man like Holmes to become bored. (ome days he grew violent and once he shot several bullets into the walls of his room. He also began to use cocaine. Does my reader know about cocaine0 I wonder 'erhaps it is no longer used in the world of #$%&. It is a useful medicine0 and doctors rightly give it to patients who are in pain. ut Holmes had no disease of the body. He used cocaine as a drug0 because he en3oyed it. It made the long days seem more exciting. (oon he needed it every day0 and could not live without it. I told him to stop0 but he only laughed at me. +:y dear fellow0 I wish I could! 2nly bring me an interesting case0 a dikilled>0 "atson0 cannot describe the violent and terrible ways in
which they were murdered. ,hey were cut up like meat. ,he stomach of one was opened0 the head of another almost cut from her body. ut this is not the worst. ,here are things that even the newspapers will not describe.+ He showed me a doctor+s report on one of the bodies. As I read it0 a sick feeling carne over me. +"hat man could do this+ I asked. +"hat possible reason could he have to do this to a woman "hy0 Holmes0 why+ He smiled coolly at me. +"hy indeed ,hat is the real interest of this case. In themselves0 these deaths are not important. "omen like that are murdered every week. ut why does this killer cut them up "hy rip the bodies to pieces with a knife ,hat is the 1uestion which makes this case so exciting!0 If anyone can stop these terrible murders0 Holmes is that man0 I thought. ,his case could become his greatest success. At that moment somebody knocked at the door. +Ah0 come in0 Inspector0+ Holmes said. +I understand you have -nally decided to ask me to help you catch this "hitechapel murderer.+ Inspector /estrade did not look very pleased. +6ot at all0 :r. Holmes0+ he said. +I was 3ust passing aker (treet0 and I know you -nd these cases interesting.+ +How kind!+ Holmes said. +'lease tell us. "hen did you arrest the killer I am a little sad0 I must say0 to -nd that you have done it all without me.+ +"e haven+t arrested anyone yet0+ /estrade said0 +but I am very hopeful0 :r. Holmes. 9ou see0 I have in my pocket a letter from the killer himself.+ ,he smile left Holmes+s face. He was suddenly serious. +:ay I see the letter+ he asked. It was written in red0 and the name at the bottom was +)ack the *ipper+. I still remember something of what it said? I love my work. :y knife is nice and ready for the next 3ob. I can+t wait to rip again. Holmes turned to /estrade. +"hat are you doing to stop this murderer+ he asked. +It is clear that he will kill again very soon.+ +=very extra policeman that we have will be in "hitechapel at night0+ /estrade said. +And we have a little surprise for )ack the *ipper.+ He looked at us importantly. +(ome of our best and bravest policemen will be dressed in women+s clothes0+ he said. +"e will stop at nothing to catch this criminal.+ ,here was a moment+s silence. ,hen Holmes and I looked at one another and we both began to laugh. "e could not stop. /estrade turned very red. +I see you are amused by murder0+ he said. +9ou do not wish to work with us. "ell0 I am a busy man. I must leave you. @oodbye0 :r Holmes. @oodbye0 doctor.+ Holmes stopped laughing immediately. +Inspector0+ he said0 +I want very much to work with you. /et us meet this afternoon to discuss our plans.+ ,his made /estrade much happier. "hen he had left0 I said to Holmes0 +9ou have laughed at the police0 but what ideas do you have about these crimes "ho do you think the murderer is+ +I do not know who he is0 "atson0+ he told me0 +but I believe I know what kind of man he is. He is far too intelligent0 too extraordinary a killer for our good friend /estrade and his policemen in dresses to catch. 6o0 he shall be mine. He is the criminal that I have waited for. ,o destroy him will be the greatest success of my life. I dream of it0 "atson! I must destroy him! I cannot fail!+ He was shaking with excitement. I had never seen him like this before. ,hat afternoon he went to (cotland 9ard. "hen he came home0 he was very 1uiet. 6ext day he appeared dressed in old0 dirty clothes. +I am going to "hitechapel0+ he told me. +As you know0 I have rooms in several parts of
/ondon. 8or the next three days I shall live among the poor people of "hite chapel. 6obody will know who I am. I shall talk to them and listen to everything that they tell me.+ +:ay I come with you+ I asked0 but he said0 +6o0 "atson0 you may not. If there is a murder0 I shall send for you. I shall need your help0 old fellow0 have no fear of that!+ I spent a lonely evening in aker (treet. I was asleep when0 at half past two in the morning0 a cab arrived to take me to "hitechapel. Another woman had met a violent death. As I travelled through the dark0 empty streets0 /ondon seemed a strange and ghostly place it lay there like the body of a great animal0 not sleeping but dead. ,he driver took me east0 towards the poorest parts of the city. He stopped in a narrow lane o7 /eadenhall (treet. I saw a group of policemen standing under a light0 and went up to them. Holmes was not there0 but I was introduced to the police doctor. He o7ered to show me the body. +I know you are a doctor0+ he said0 +but I must warn you. 9ou have never seen anything like this before.+ He led me to a dark corner0 where something lay covered on the ground. He held up a light for me to see and pulled back the cover. 6o words can describe the awfulness of what I saw then0 8or a moment my head felt light0 I began to shake and was afraid I would fall. ,he thing on the ground had been a woman0 but it was not a woman now. It was no more than blood and meat0 cut open and ripped up with a terrible0 unnatural violence. I knew now why the killer called himself )ack the *ipper. ,he doctor covered the body0 and I walked back to the group of policemen. +Have you seen :r Holmes+ I asked one of them0 +2h yes0 sir0+ he said. +He was here with Inspector /estrade. ,hey carne straight from the other murder.+ +,he other murder!+ I cried. +Has there been more than one murder tonight+ +"hy yes0 sir. Did you not know+ At that moment I heard the sounds of a horse corning into the lane0 and a cab appeared. +@et in0 "atson!+ a voice shouted0 and Holmes helped me into the cab. +He has escaped0+ he told me. +"e followed him0 but we have lost him.+ His face was sad and tired. +I want to show you something interesting. ,hen we can go home.+ ,he cab took us to a dark and dirty yard. +,he -rst woman died here0+ Holmes said. A policeman was standing in the yard. Holmes took a light from him and shone it on the wall. +/ook at this0 "atson0+ he said. ,hese words were written on the wall? 6o ,ime ,o *ip +It is the murderer+s handwriting0+ Holmes said. +,he same as in the letter that /estrade showed us.+ +"hat is happening+ I cried. +I cannot understand what this killer wants.+ +He wants everybody to be afraid of him0+ Holmes told me. +He wants to be the most evil killer in the world. He had to kill two women tonight0 because he did not have time to cut and rip the body of the -rst. I think he heard somebody corning0 and he had to leave the body and run. ,hen he killed a second time0 and cut that woman+s body to pieces in the way we have seen.+ "e were both silent as the cab took us back to aker (treet0 far from the narrow0 dirty streets of east /ondon. I could not sleep that night. =very time I closed my eyes0 I saw the body of a woman lying in a dark corner0 covered in blood. > 'rofessor :oriarty>
(herlock Holmes was busy with other cases for the next three weeks. ,here were no new murders in "hitechapel0 but people were frightened and angry with the police0 who were no nearer to -nding the killer than before. :y own life was happy enough. I visited my dear :ary :orstan0 and kept this visit a secret from Holmes something which made me feel unusually clever! 2ne day Holmes and I had 3ust -nished breakfast together. He was standing by the window0 when suddenly he gave a cry. +"hat is it0 Holmes+ I asked. +"hat+s the matter+ He turned towards me. His face was white and the look in his eyes was terrible. +:ay I have an hour of your time0 "atson+ he asked in a low voice. +2f course0 but .. .+ +,hen get your hat and coat.+ He ran out of the house. I followed him 1uickly and the next two hours passed in a wild chase all over /ondon. "e 3umped into a cab0 out of it again and onto a train0 ran down narrow streets and in and out of a big hotel. 8inally we came to rest in the peace of a /ondon park. +9ou are a true friend0 "atson0+ Holmes said at last. +9ou came with me without a 1uestion. Did you reali5e that someone was following us+ +I thought so. ut who+ +Can you not guess+ +6o.+ +He calls himself )ack the *ipper.+ +Holmes!+ 8or a moment I found it di
to his plan.+ +His plan+ +9es. I have said that he kills because he is bored and because he wishes for a -ght to the death with me. ,here is a third reason. He wishes to destroy the world we know.+ +He is mad!+ +6o. He is not mad. He is evil itself. He wants to bring fear into our lives0 to make everyone in /ondon afraid to go out at night0 afraid of every sound and shadow. /ondon will become a city of strangers0 seeing danger in every neighbour. How can people live like that + He was silent for a moment. ,hen he said0 +I alone can stop him. And stop him I shall.+ (everal days later0 Inspector /estrade called to see us again. +Are you ready to arrest the "hitechapel killer yet+ Holmes asked him. +"e are continuing to make all possible ... + +=nough0 /estrade! Have you caught him yet+ +In a di
+Holmes0 what did happen "hat went wrong+ +"e did not really fail. :oriarty could not kill anyone because we were there. ut # badly wanted to catch him at his work0 and there I failed.+ +He was there0 then+ +He was there. He saw what I had done0 and reali5ed that he could not kill a woman that night.+ +,hen you did not fail! "e have beaten him.+ Holmes shook his head slowly. +6o0 "atson. "e have not beaten him yet. ,hink how angry he must be! I have stopped him once0 and now he will try harder to kill me. He will go on with his planned murders0 and he will do everything possible to make sure that he succeeds.+ +ut Holmes0 how do we ... + +*emember0 he kills0 waits a week0 kills again and then waits three weeks. (o he will kill again next weekend. # must talk to /estrade. ut tonight0 "atson0 we shall amuse ourselves at the theatre.+ He would say no more0 but that night0 while we were at the theatre0 he disappeared from my side without a word. # did not even see him leave0 and for several days I neither saw him nor heard from him. ,hen0 at dinner time on the night when we had hoped to catch )ack the *ipper at his work0 he suddenly appeared again in aker (treet. +Holmes!+ I cried. +"here have you been+ +Don+t worry0 old fellow.+ He sat down by the -re. +I have been keeping :oriarty busy and playing games with him. He has chased me all over the country0 but0 as you see0 I am still alive. I shall tell you my adventures some other time. /estrade will be here in a minute to discuss tonight+s plan.+ "hen /estrade arrived0 he did not seem at all pleased to see us. +(o0 another of your clever little plans0 :r Holmes0+ he said coldly. +Do you really think we shall see the killer tonight+ +He will be at work tonight0+ Holmes replied. +,he only 1uestion is0 shall we be ready for him I suppose you have done everything that I ordered you to do+ +"e are ready for him.+ +,hen let us go. "e must not keep )ack the *ipper waiting.+ It was a cold0 windy night0 and we were grateful for our thick coats as we sat in the cab. It took us to the big police station in Commercial (treet. Hundreds of policemen were waiting there to begin the night+s work. Holmes and I sat down to wait0 too. After some time I said to Holmes0 +,his waiting is terrible. # wish we could do something.+ +"e can0+ he replied. +"hen a crime is reported. Bntil then we can only wait. ,he murderer could be anywhere out there.+ Holmes picked up a piece of paper and a pencil. +He could. ut I think I know where he is. /ook at this.+ ,his is what he showed me?
=
C
(
6
+,he letters =0 (0 C and 6 are =ddowes0 (tride0 Chapman and 6icholl0 the last four women he has murdered0+ Holmes said. +,he diagram shows the place where each died.+ +And 0 I suppose0 is some unknown woman0 the one that
he plans to kill tonight0+ I said. +ut how do you know where to put the on your diagram+ +/ook again0 "atson0+ Holmes said with a smile. (uddenly0 I understood. +It is a letter :!+ +9es0 "atson. : for murder0 : for .. .+ +:oriarty! Holmes0 do you mean to say ... + +9es. He is writing his name in blood upon the face of "hitechapel. And0 as you see0 I know where he will try to kill tonight0 and where I shall go to meet him.+ +6ot without me0+ I said. +I must come with you.+ "e left the police station 3ust before midnight. 8or the -rst time0 # walked through the narrow streets of east /ondon0 streets that I had seen before only through the window of a cab. 'eople think that murders happen in dark0 empty streets. ,hat is not always true. A strange and horrible fact about the streets where )ack the *ipper murdered women is that they were busier and better lit than most other /ondon streets. ,hey were full of pubs and cheap hotels. At all hours the streets were full of people who were too poor to -nd a bed anywhere0 drunks looking for a bar that never closed0 and all kinds of criminals. 8inally0 there were the women those women who work only at night0 when their more honest sisters are asleep. I studied medicine in /ondon0 and while I was a student I saw something of the lowlife of our capital. I was0 after all0 a healthy young man0 and young men must amuse themselves. ut I had never seen women like these. Holmes stopped several to 1uestion and to warn them0 and I looked at their faces carefully. ,hey were old at the age of twenty0 dirty0 diseased and hopeless. 2ne thing was clear to me they were not like other women. Does it matter0 I began to think0 if )ack the *ipper kills women like these Death by his knife is 1uick. It cannot be worse than the slow and painful death from disease which most often ends their short lives. "e returned to the police station after one o+clock. I was tired and sick at heart. /estrade did not stop talking0 telling us that we should catch no murderers that night. (uddenly0 Holmes 3umped up and walked out into the street. I followed him. +(tay inside0 "atson0+ he said. +9ou are tired0 dear fellow0 and you cannot help me.+ +I am coming with you0+ I said. +6othing will stop me.+ +Come0 then. ut we must hurry. :oriarty is near. I can feel it.+ It began to rain. He walked fast and I almost had to run to keep up with him. His eyes moved restlessly from side to side. (uddenly he stopped0 and stared into the darkness. +,wice0 "atson0+ he said softly. +He will kill twice tonight. "e stopped him killing a woman last time0 so he must kill two tonight.+ efore I could answer0 he was moving again. ,hen he stopped0 and pulled me into a dark corner. (omeone was coming towards us. Holmes spoke in a low voice0 bur I shook with fear at his words. +It is :oriarty.+ A man passed our corner and disappeared into another street. I could not see his face. +*un to the police station and fetch /estrade. He knows what to do0+ Holmes said. +I shall follow :oriarty. Hurry0 man0 hurry!+ ,hen he was gone. I cannot explain why I did not do what I was told. ,he fact is0 instead of going to the police station0 I followed Holmes. 'erhaps I was afraid that my friend could not -ght :oriarty on his own. I ran to the corner of the street. I could 3ust see :oriarty0 walking straight on. ,hen0 to my great surprise0 Holmes turned left0 and disappeared into a house0 while :oriarty reached the end of the street and turned the corner. I could not understand what was happening0 or what I
should do next. "hat if Holmes0 reali5ing that someone was following him0 thought I was one of :oriarty+s men (ome minutes later0 I was still wondering what to do when I heard a door close. A man came out into the street. It was Holmes. He was now richly dressed0 in a hat and a long0 dark coat. He had changed his appearance in several small and clever ways0 but I knew him. I wanted to call to him0 but was afraid he would not be pleased. Instead0 I decided to follow secretly0 ready to help him if he needed me. "e walked and walked. ,he rain became heavier and the streets emptied of people. ,hen a short fat man passed me0 and soon afterwards a girl. (he looked like a woman of the streets0 but younger and prettier than most I had seen that night. (he seemed a little drunk0 and could not walk straight. As she came near to Holmes0 he stopped and spoke to her. ,hey both laughed. 8urther along the street I saw the short fat man0 now standing outside a pub0 watching them. ,hen Holmes and the girl walked o7 together and a few seconds later the man followed them. How I feared for Holmes+s safety! I was sure that the man and the girl were working for :oriarty. ,hey had some plan0 I knew0 to hurt my friend. 'erhaps only I could save him. Holmes and the girl walked on0 the man followed them0 and I followed all three. At last Holmes and the girl stopped at the entrance to a yard. I heard the woman+s voice. I could not hear Holmes+s words0 bur to my surprise I clearly saw him kiss her face. ,hen they entered the yard0 and the fat man crossed the street and went into a house further along. Had he gone to fetch :oriarty0 who would now appear and kill my friend (lowly and carefully0 I made my way into the yard. It was dark0 but I could see a light at a window. ,hen I heard Holmes+s voice. He was in that room. As 1uietly as I could0 I went to the window. ,he curtains were a little too short0 and I could 3ust see into the room. ,he woman was lying on the bed0 drinking from a bottle. Holmes sat with his back to the window0 taking snu7 from a little silver box. He seemed to be in no danger0 but who could say when :oriarty would arrive It was cold and wet in the yard0 but I felt calm again. If :oriarty came0 I was ready to save my friend. I sat down with my back to the wall to wait. I am ashamed to say what happened next0 but I must say it. I fell asleep. I was asleep for two hours. As I woke up0 cold and uncomfortable0 Holmes+s words came back to me0 +He will kill twice tonight.+ I ran to the window0 afraid of what I should see. At -rst I could not understand what terrible thing had happened there. "as it possible0 I wondered0 for a person to explode ,here was blood everywhere. ,hen I recogni5ed the body as the woman who I had seen drinking and talking with (herlock Holmes. He was still with her0 but he was not dead. 6o0 much worse than dead. He was alive. He had a knife in his hand0 and he was cutting up her face and her body. =ven as I watched0 he was carefully cutting the leg down to the bone0 taking o7 a long piece of meat in his other hand. And as he cut the woman to pieces0 he was singing. E :oriarty is dead. As a soldier and a doctor0 I know that a man who is very badly hurt in battle often feels no pain. If he lives0 he remembers nothing about what has
happened to him. After that terrible night in "hitechapel0 I was like that man. ,he next day0 I woke up and found myself lying in a park. :y watch and my money had gone0 and I was cold and dirty. I knew that I had spent many hours drinking0 but I did not know where I had been0 or what had happened to me. I did not want to go to aker (treet0 because I was afraid that Holmes would be there0 but I needed a bath and dry clothes. In the end0 I paid a cabdriver to knock on the door. ,he house was empty0 so I went in. ,here was a telegram from Holmes. +: has escaped us0+ it said. +He is trying to leave the country0 but I am following him.+ I did not know what to think. "as I mad0 or was my best friend0 the man who I had worked with for so many years0 a murderer ,hat evening0 the murder in "hitechapel of a young woman called :ary Felly was reported in the newspapers. ,his murder was more bloody0 more horrible than any that had happened before. It was clear that it was the work of )ack the *ipper. I was still reading the newspaper reports of the murder when /estrade arrived. +@ood evening0 doctor0+ he said. +I+d like a word with :r Holmes.+ I did not know what to say. Did the police already know what Holmes had done ,hen /estrade saw the telegram0 picked it up and read it. +*unning o7 for a little holiday0 is he+ he said. +(ome of us have to work for a living. "e+ve had enough of :r Holmes and the kind of help he gives the police.+ +Come now0+ I said. +Holmes was right. ,here was a murder on the night he told us that there would be.+ /estrade laughed. +2h yes. ,here was a murder all right. "e had hundreds of policemen on the streets0 but we couldn+t stop the murder or catch the killer. ,he police were everywhere G except the little corner of "hitechapel where the girl died.+ He spoke in a low voice as he continued0 +I+ve never seen anything like it. It will be days before I can eat meat again. 9ou+re lucky you didn+t see her0 doctor. "e had to keep the worst thing of all out of the newspapers0 but I can tell you. ,he girl was pregnant. He cut her up0 and he cut up the baby0 too.+ I felt a cold hand touch me. +He will kill twice tonight.+ . +"hat did you say+ +2h0 nothing. "hat are you doing to catch hi m+ +"hat can we do 6obody heard a scream or saw anything.+ He looked again at the telegram. +"ho is this >:>+ he asked. +2h0 he 3ust means the murderer0+ I said. After /estrade left0 I tried hard to think of some other way of explaining what I had seen that night. I had seen Holmes cutting up the body0 but I had not seen him kill the girl. How could my dear friend possibly be this terrible killer 'erhaps it was all part of some clever plan that I did not understand. 8or some days I thought I had found an answer to the problem0 but then a telegram arrived from Holmes0 who was now in (wit5erland. It said0 +: is no more. *eturning (aturday. Holmes.+ (uddenly I reali5ed that I was afraid of seeing him again0 and my worry returned0 stronger than ever. "as he the killer or not I had to know the truth and 1uickly. ,o help me think clearly0 I wrote down what I knew. Is (herlock Holmes the "hitechapel murderer ,he arguments for? # He was in "hitechapel on the nights of the murders0 and alone at the right times. "hen he was out of /ondon or I was with him0 there were no murders.
4 He can change his appearance easily. E He studied medicine. He could easily cut up a body in the dark. He knows the lanes and yards of "hitechapel well. & He can escape from the police because he knows their plans indeed0 he makes their plans. ,he arguments against? # He spends his life -ghting crime. I know my friend. I know he could not do these things. "hen I read what I had written0 I began to wonder how well I knew Holmes. Did he really -ght against crime He took cases because they interested him0 not because he hated crime. It was all 3ust a game to him. He fought crime to amuse himself. It was now late at night. I was terribly tired0 but I knew that I had to decide what to do before Holmes came back. (uddenly0 as I lay back in my chair0 halfasleep0 the terrible picture of Holmes cutting up that girl+s body appeared again before my eyes. ,hen0 -nally0 I knew. It was not what I had seen him do0 but how he had done it. ,hat look of cool amusement on his face. ,he way he sang as he worked. ,he man who could do that could do anything. 6ext day I packed my bags and moved into a hotel. ,hat evening I asked :ary to have dinner with me. I told her that I could not sleep while she lived alone in /ondon and the "hitechapel murderer was free to kill again. I asked her to marry me sooner than we had planned. (he laughed and said she was not afraid of the murderer. He never killed women like her. ut she would marry me as soon as possible0 she said0 because I looked so worried and unhappy. ,hen I wrote a letter to Holmes. +I am sorry that I cannot welcome your home0+ I wrote0 +but I have a reason for that0 the best reason in the world. :ary and I are married. (he was badly frightened by those awful murders in "hitechapel and will feel safer now that I am by her side. +It is wonderful to hear from you that 'rofessor :oriarty is dead. 2f course I look forward to hearing the full story of his death from you. +:ary and I are spending a little time travelling. 'lease write to me at my /ondon club.+ (everal days later0 :ary and I were married0 and we left /ondon. In a 1uiet little town by the sea0 with :ary by my side0 I felt strong enough to face the awful truth about Holmes0 and to think about what I had to do. I could not go to the police with my story. ,hey would think that I was mad. I decided that I would have to watch Holmes carefully. 2nly I could stop him killing again. "hen I returned to /ondon0 I found a letter from Holmes waiting for me at my club. He told me that he was going to *ussia0 to work on a strange and exciting murder case. +I am bored with /ondon0 now that )ack the *ipper is dead0+ he wrote. +'erhaps the foreign criminal has more to o7er me. I shall not return to /ondon for some time. 'lease inform me of your new address.+ After reading this0 I was happier than I had been for many weeks. :ary and I -nished our holiday and moved to a house in /ondon0 not far from aker (treet. I was busy with my work as a doctor0
and we lived 1uietly and happily together. During this time I was sent two wonderful letters by Holmes. He had brought his work on the *ussian mystery to a successful end0 and had gone from *ussia to Ceylon0 where the sudden death of a rich teaplanter o7ered him the interest and excitement he needed. ,he Holmes who wrote these letters to me sounded like the old Holmes that I knew. +He is dangerous when he is bored and uses cocaine0+ I thought. +"hen he is en3oying his work0 /ondon is safe.+ 2ne day in :arch0 as I walked along aker (treet0 I saw a light in Holmes+s window0 and knew that he had returned. I went in0 and he welcomed me like the dear old friend he had been. All evening we sat by the -re0 and he told me everything that had happened in *ussia and Ceylon. ut what I really wanted to hear about was :oriarty+s death0 and about that he said not one word. At last I could wait no longer. +:y dear Holmes0+ I said. +It is almost midnight0 and you still have not told me how :oriarty died!+ At once his face went white0 and his eyes became -xed in a stare. He sat silent and unmoving0 as the seconds passed. ,hen he said0 +I+m sorry0 "atson. I was thinking about something to do with my last case. "hat did you say+ +:oriarty0+ I repeated. +9ou have not told me how he died.+ +He has gone0+ he said. +,hat is all that anyone needs to know about him.+ I asked him to tell me more0 and found out that his -nal meeting with :oriarty had been in (wit5erland0 on a narrow path above a famous waterfall. Holmes had won the argument0 he told me coldly. And that was all that he would tell me. Holmes and I were friends again0 and soon I began helping him with new cases. It was 3ust like old times. I am afraid that I often left my wife alone0 and I did not give enough time to my patients0 but I was happy to see Holmes interested and busy. 2ne day he gave me his cocainebottle. +,ake it0 doctor0+ he said. +I do not need it anymore.+ I was very pleased indeed at this news0 and only one thing that happened at this time worried me. A woman was killed in "hitechapel0 and people began to talk again about )ack the *ipper. I carefully checked where Holmes had been on the night of the murder0 and found that he had spent the evening with two famous foreign detectives. I even spoke to them both secretly0 and so I was sure that Holmes had not been in "hitechapel that night. In #;$ I decided that I must begin to spend less time with Holmes. I wanted to be a success as a doctor0 and I knew that I was not working hard enough for that. :ary and I moved to a new house0 further from aker (treet. ,here was another change0 too. ACD+s story0 A (tudy in (carlet0 which had failed in this country0 was a big success in America0 and he began to write about more of Holmes+s cases. ,o my surprise0 Holmes 1uickly agreed to let him do this. He had been angry when he -rst read A (tudy in (carlet0 but now he seemed amused by what ACD was doing. #;$# began0 and life for me was calm and happy. I was working hard0 and I had little time to spend with Holmes. )ack the *ipper was a thing of the past0 as forgotten as yesterday+s newspapers0 as dead as the women he had murdered. ut )ack was not dead. He was only resting0 and his rest would soon be over. Death at the *eichenbach 8alls
In 8ebruary #;$# a woman called 8lora "hite was killed with a knife in "hitechapel. =veryone thought that the murderer was )ack the *ipper. I alone knew that this was not true. I was sure that +)ack+ had not killed the last two women to die on the streets of "hitechapel. (oon after this0 Holmes left for 8rance. He sent me a strange letter from there which worried me very much. I could not understand a word of it and began to wonder if he was taking cocaine again. ,his was his letter? If you remember the erlin case of +one in three+0 "atson0 everything will be clear to you because . . . the famous @erman professor in 'aris is no longer alive. I heard he was recently killed while studying Jora in the "hite :ountains of my favourite island. /etters and books are appearing soon. *ead them 1uickly but carefully0 as I cannot always follow or understand him myself. /ast night I dreamt and the next day suddenly understood this problem. ,he time comes when he and others will be free not an easy escape. About three weeks after that0 I was sitting alone at home one evening. :y wife was away on a visit. (uddenly0 the door opened0 and Holmes came in. He then ran to the window0 closed it and locked it. +Holmes0+ I cried. +"hat has happened 9ou look terrible!+ He looked old and ill0 and he was shaking with tiredness. +"hat is it+ I asked. +Are you afraid of something+ +2f someone0+ he said. +Did you not get my letter+ +9es0 but I didn+t understand it. "hat is wrong+ Holmes looked at me sadly. +9ou didn+t understand it. Is your wife here+ +6o0 she is a way. Do you want to sleep here I shall make sure that you are in no danger.+ He shook his head. +I cannot rest anywhere. If I sleep0 he will win! I cannot stay here. I would bring evil into your house. ut you can help me0 "atson. I must leave the country tomorrow. "ill you come with me+ +"here are you going0 Holmes+ +@oing I am not going anywhere. I am trying to escape from him. ut he will -nd me again. =verywhere I go0 he will follow me.+ +"ho is he0 Holmes+ I asked. +'rofessor :oriarty0 of course!+ +ut :oriarty is dead0+ I said. +Dead!+ he screamed. +He is trying to kill me! How can he be dead+ +ut you told me that he was dead.+ +I was mistaken0+ Holmes said. +He is not dead. I told you that.+ +9ou told me ut when "here+ +In my letter0 man! ,he erlin case every third world! A very easy hidden message0 "atson. I thought even you ... 2h0 it doesn+t matter. ,he fact is0 :oriarty is alive and free in /ondon. He killed a woman only three weeks ago. He will kill again if I do not stop him. It is a -ght to the death between us. Come with me and help me0 "atson. (ay that you will come!+ +2f course I will come0 old fellow0+ I said. He smiled and lay back in the chair. In a second0 he was asleep. Kuickly0 I gave him an in3ection to keep him asleep. ,hen0 with the help of my cook0 I put him to bed and locked the bedroom door. After that I had a drink and sat down to think about what I must do. 'erhaps I did not understand Holmes+s hidden messages0 but I did understand what was happening to the man. He was mad I knew that now. All that was evil in him he called :oriarty. ,he -ght with :oriarty was a battle that was taking place inside his own head. I had hoped that )ack the *ipper was dead. He was not0 and now another woman had been murdered. I felt that her blood was on my hands. ,he time had come when I must tell Holmes what I knew about him. 8irst0 I had to be sure that I understood
everything. I took a cab to aker (treet0 and went into H2I?!e (?L I did not know what I was looking for0 but I began .c L ,he rooms were untidy0 full of old newspapers. I searched for four hours but found nothing. At four o+clock in the morning I stopped. I went to the window and looked out at the dark sky. (uddenly0 I knew what to do. ,he house opposite0 where Holmes had once seen :oriarty. I ran across the street and broke the lock on the back door of the house. =very room was empty0 all except one bedroom. ,his contained a bed0 a cupboard and a box full of papers. All the papers were about the "hitechapel murders. (ome were cut from newspapers0 others were written by the killer himself. He described each murder with a sick en3oyment of what he had done. Bnder the papers I found some glass 3ars of the kind that are used in hospitals. In them were pieces of women+s bodies. In the last 3ar was the worst thing of all pieces of the body of a little unborn child. "hen I saw that0 all the friendly feelings I had ever had for (herlock Holmes died inside me. 6ow I could go straight to /estrade and ask him to arrest Holmes0 but I chose not to do that. I did not want all =ngland to know what Holmes0 once a good and wise man0 had become. (ome evil things are best hidden from the world. I0 and I alone0 would face him and his crimes. I went out into the cold morning air. I felt strangely calm0 but also excited. Holmes was still asleep. I searched his clothes for drugs and guns0 but found only a little money and his silver snu7box. ,hen I wrote a letter to /estrade. I told my cook to take it to my bank manager. If I failed to return0 I asked him to send it to /estrade. In the letter I told /estrade everything that I knew about (herlock Holmes and the "hitechapel murders. I was very tired0 but I knew that I had to stay awake. I had to watch Holmes all the time. I decided to use the cocaine he had given me. I added water to the drug and put it into a medicine bottle. ,hen I in3ected some into my arm. It was time to look in on Holmes. As I opened the door0 I saw that his bed was empty. He was behind the door. He tried to hit me0 but the drug made me 1uick0 and I 3umped out of the way. +"atson!+ he cried. +Dear fellow! I thought you were :oriarty. 2ne of his men is in your garden. "e must go now! It is too dangerous to stay here!+ ,he man who he had seen was "illiam0 my gardener. +I will go and pack0+ I said. +6o luggage! He must not know what we are doing!+ +/et me take my doctor+s bag0+ I said. +He will think that I am going to visit a patient.+ +=xcellent!+ Holmes said. +I had the same idea myself.+ He did not know that I had packed the cocaine0 money and a gun in my doctor+s bag. Holmes sent me out before him to -nd a cab. "e drove through the streets0 3umped out of the cab0 ran some way0 and found another cab. ut at the station0 Holmes said0 +:oriarty is here. He has followed us. "e must change trains as soon as we can.+ "e 3umped from the moving train0 ran across -elds0 caught another train0 and at last took the night boat from 6ewhaven. 8or -ve days we travelled through 8rance and @ermany in the same wild and cra5y way. Holmes would not say where we were going. I never took my eyes o7 him during those days0 but the right moment to talk to him never came. Holmes seemed stronger than ever0 while I was getting weaker every day. 2nly the cocaine made it possible for me to stay awake. 8inally0 sitting one night in a hotel in (wit5erland0 I knew
that I could not go on much longer. I had told Holmes that next day I wanted to walk over the mountains to the famous *eichenbach 8alls. I decided that I would tell him what I knew about him when we were alone in the mountains. ,he cocaine was almost -nished. "hether I lived or died0 the end must come that day. "e did not begin our walk to the *eichenbach 8alls until the afternoon. Holmes refused to go out before lunch. I was frightened. I had no more cocaine0 and soon I would be too tired to go on. At last we left the hotel0 and started to walk along the mountain paths. Holmes talked happily as we went. He found the mountains very beautiful. "hen we had gone a little way0 I found that I had left my watch at the hotel. It had belonged to my father0 and I wanted to know that it was safe. I told Holmes that I would return to the hotel0 -nd the watch0 and see him later at the 8alls. I hoped that I was doing the right thing0 and that he would not disappear. "hen at last I reached the 8alls0 I could not see him0 and thought for a moment that he had escaped me. ,hen I saw a narrow path which was cut into the rock right above the 8alls themselves. Holmes was standing on that path0 watching the water crash down onto the rocks. ,here was nowhere he could run to. It could not be easier for me. I moved towards him. (uddenly he turned and our eyes met. His look was cool0 untroubled. How could I hope to frighten this man :y heart failed me and I almost fell. He stepped forward to help me0 but I pulled out my gun. +ack!+ I shouted. +Another step and I shall shoot!+ He smiled. +Mery well0 doctor. I understand. +:y hands shook and I almost dropped the gun. +It+s over0 Holmes0+ I said. +I+ve been to the empty house. I know everything.+ He laughed. +Dear fellow! 6obody knows everything!+ I seemed to hear voices coming to me from the water0 and I could now see two Holmeses one on the path and one standing on air. +I+ve found the 3ars0 Holmes0 and the papers. I know you killed them.+ +I killed them "hich ,he 3ars or the papers+ 6othing seemed real. It was getting harder and harder for me to speak. Holmes watched me0 smiling. +I know you did it0 Holmes0+ I shouted. +) watched you cut :ary Felly to pieces. 9ou killed them! /et me hear you say that you did!+ +"hat is it you want me to say+ +(ay you killed them!+ +9ou killed them.+ +I am going to shoot you0 Holmes!+ I screamed. +efore you die0 tell me that you understand what you have done!+ +9ou+re mad0 doctor0+ he said. +And you+re talking rubbish. @o on0 shoot me!+ I shot him. I shot again and again0 but still he stood there. 8inally0 I fell to the ground. I could not move. It seemed a long time before I could say0 +"hy aren+t you dead+ I stared up at him as he stood above me0 calmly inhaling snu7 from his snu7box. +I took the bullets from your gun and put in blanks0+ he said conversationally. +,ell me0 :oriarty0 when did you kill "atson 9ou are very clever. 9ou look almost like him0 but I know who you are. "hen I saw you in3ecting cocaine three times a day0 I knew then for sure that you were not my dear friend. Dr "atson would never0 never take drugs. 9our cocaine is -nished0 isn+t it 'oor :oriarty! Did you not reali5e that my snu7box contains cocaine0 not snu7+ I felt sick and weak. efore my eyes Holmes was changing colour red0 then green0 then blue. I shook my head to clear it0 but he was still talking. +And your letter0 telling /estrade that I was the "hitechapel murderer. "hat rubbish! How (cotland 9ard
would laugh! ut I have the letter here # saw it in your cook+s hand and took it from her while you were calling the cab. 9ou have failed0 :oriarty. I have en3oyed making you run around =urope with me0 but now you must die.+ He took out a long knife. +Holmes!+ I cried. +I am "atson0 your friend0 "atson! I have tried to save you save you from yourself and from the police!+ He held up the knife and stepped towards me. +If you kill me0+ I screamed0 +:oriarty will win! ,hat is what he wants! Fill your only friend0 and :oriarty has won!+ I closed my eyes and waited for the pain and the darkness. It did not come. I opened my eyes and saw that Holmes was looking at me. He had put the knife down. ,he look in his eyes was sadder than anything that I had ever seen. He seemed to see far into both the past and the future0 and to -nd them sad beyond words. +6ever fear0 old fellow0+ he said. +I shall not let him hurt you.+ ,hen he stepped backwards o7 the path. # saw his body hit the rocks far below. Conclusion ,wo days later I woke up. I was in bed at the hotel. (omeone had found me on the edge of the path0 high above the *eichenbach 8alls. After a week I returned to /ondon. I went immediately to the empty house0 where I burned the papers and destroyed the 3ars. I wanted to be sure that nobody would ever know the evil things that Holmes had done. I wanted only the good that was in my friend to live on after his death. I was lucky. ACD had been busy writing more stories about Holmes. ,hese stories were an immediate success. ACD became a famous writer0 and people who had never met Holmes the man0 knew Holmes the storybook detective. As the years passed0 people began to forget that (herlock Holmes had ever been a real person. After Holmes+s death my life was di
