 The Sign of Four
 Synopsis
Holmes is bored and resorting to drugs, to Watson’s disapproval, when MARY MORSTAN calls with a fascinating problem.
Mary’s father was an officer in India, and her mother died when she was a child. She had been brought up in boarding school until the age of seventeen when her father sent for her in London. She travelled to join him but he never appeared – it seemed he had vanished on December 3rd 1878 – ten years ago. She contacted his one known friend, MAJOR SHOLTO, but Sholto claimed he didn’t even know Morstan was in England. Amongst her father’s papers was found a paper of Indian manufacture which read “The Sign of the Four – Jonathan Small, Mahomet Singh, Abdullah Khan, Dost Akbar”. On May 4th 1882, Mary answered an advertisement in The Times which stated it would be advantageous for Miss Mary Morstan to come forward. She published her address in the advertisement column. Since then, she has received a large, valuable pearl every year. Now, she has received a letter telling her that she is a wronged woman, and to meet an unknown friend outside the Lyceum Theatre tonight. She may bring two companions but no police. Watson and Holmes agree to accompany her. Watson is charmed by her, but Holmes is unimpressed, claiming that
“The most winning woman I ever knew was hanged for poisoning three little children for their insurance-money”.
Keeping the appointment, the three are driven to the house of THADDEUS SHOLTO, an eccentric man with a strange story to tell. Thaddeus Sholto tells them that his father had made a fortune in India, but was a strange, paranoid man who was terrified of men with wooden legs. Once he had shot at a wooden-legged tradesman. One day he got a letter from India which terrified him. He died shortly afterwards, having told his sons Thaddeus and BARTHOLOMEW that he owned a great treasure, of which half belonged to Morstan. The two argued over the division of the treasure, and Morstan had a heart attack and died. Afraid of being blamed for his death, Sholto’s father had buried him secretly. But he felt guilty about Morstan’s daughter, and wanted his sons to share the treasure with her. However, he died just before he could tell them where the treasure was.
On the day of their father’s death, the sons saw a fearsome face at the window and ran out to investigate. When they returned their father was dead. The next morning, they found their father’s room rifled, and a sign fixed to his dead chest which read “The Sign of the Four”.
Major Sholto had taken a pearl chaplet out of the treasure box to give to Mary Morstan, and Thaddeus sent Mary a pearl from it every year. Thaddeus and Bartholomew searched for the rest of their father’s treasure for years, and Bartholomew has just found it. Holmes, Mary, Thaddeus and Watson go to Bartholomew’s house to see him and the treasure – but when they get there, they find Bartholomew dead, the treasure gone, and a mysterious note reading “The sign of the four”.
Thaddeus is arrested on suspicion of murdering his brother but Holmes knows better. He sees that Bartholomew Sholto has been killed by a poisoned thorn. He also finds marks indicating that the culprits were a wooden-legged man and a barefoot “savage” midget and the midget has stepped in creosote. Holmes and Watson borrow a dog and follow the creosote tracks. They find a pocket containing more deadly thorns, and follow the tracks to a barrel of creosote. Doubling back on the trail, they find themselves at the banks of the Thames, and realise that the fugitives have hired a boat, the Aurora, from MORDECAI SMITH.
Holmes realises that the boat has been taken into a yard, and he and Watson lie in wait with the police in a police boat. After a thrilling chase, they catch the boat and the criminals. They are one-legged JONATHAN SMALL and his associate TONGA, a four-foot-tall native of the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal. However, the treasure box is empty. Watson is relieved – now Mary isn’t an heiress, he can marry her without it seeming that he’s only after her money. Mary’s relieved too – she has fallen in love with Watson.
Small admits that he’s thrown the treasure into the river, piece by piece. He makes his confession. He was a soldier in India but lost his leg to a crocodile whilst swimming in the Ganges. Then he worked on a plantation until forced to flee by the Mutiny. He found himself guarding a fort, and was persuaded by Singh, Khan and Akbar to join them in their plot of murdering a man in order to get their hands on a rajah’s treasure. The murder was discovered and the murderers imprisoned, but the treasure was successfully hidden.
In prison, Small was guarded by Morstan and Sholto, both of whom were desperate for money. They agreed to help the Four escape for a share of the money, but Sholto double-crossed them all and escaped with the money.
Small eventually escaped with the help of his friend Tonga, and came to England planning to kill Sholto. Sholto was too well-guarded, but Small bribed a servant in his house for information and waited for his chance. When Small heard Sholto was dying, he was determined Sholto should see him before he died. He left the message of revenge on behalf of himself and the rest of the Four. Then came news that the treasure was found, and Small and Tonga hurried to Bartholomew’s house to steal it. Small claims that he told Tonga not to kill Bartholomew Sholto, but Tongo did it before he got there. They escaped, but were tracked down by Holmes, who he wants to publish the story so that all will know what Sholto did.
Watson and Mary get engaged. Holmes groans, saying he really can’t congratulate him, and goes away to take cocaine.
Comments
Like a lot of Conan Doyle’s writing, this is not terribly politically correct! |
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