The Red Hand | Page 4

we
were and are hot on the scent, as I said. It seems as if I had really
shown you primitive man, or his handiwork at all events."
II
Incident of the Letter
ABOUT A MONTH after the extraordinary and mysterious murder of
Sir Thomas Vivian, the well-known and universally respected specialist
in heart disease, Mr. Dyson called again on his friend Mr. Phillipps,
whom he found, not as usual, sunk deep in painful study, but reclining
in his easy-chair in an attitude of relaxation. He welcomed Dyson with
cordiality.
"I am very glad you have come," he began; "I was thinking of looking
you up. There is no longer the shadow of a doubt about the matter."
"You mean the case of Sir Thomas Vivian? "
"Oh, no, not at all. I was referring to the problem of the fish-hooks.
Between ourselves, I was a little too confident when you were here last,
but since then other facts have turned up; and only yesterday I had a
letter from a distinguished F.R.S. which quite settles the affair. I have
been thinking what I should tackle next; and I am inclined to believe
that there is a good deal to be done in the way of so-called
undecipherable inscriptions."

"Your line of study pleases me," said Dyson, "I think it may prove
useful. But in the meantime, there was surely something extremely
mysterious about the case of Sir Thomas Vivian."
"Hardly, I think. I allowed myself to be frightened that night; but there
can be no doubt that the facts are patient of a comparatively
common-place explanation."
"Really! What is your theory then ?"
"Well, I imagine that Vivian must have been mixed up at some period
of his life in an adventure of a not very creditable description, and that
he was murdered out of revenge by some Italian whom he had
wronged."
"Why Italian?"
"Because of the hand, the sign of the mano in fica. That gesture is now
only used by Italians. So you see that what appeared the most obscure
feature in the case turns out to be illuminant."
"Yes, quite so. And the flint knife? "
"That is very simple. The man found the thing in Italy, or possibly stole
it from some museum. Follow the line of least resistance, my dear
fellow, and you will see there is no need to bring up primitive man
from his secular grave beneath the hills."
"There is some justice in what you say," said Dyson. "As I understand
you, then, you think that your Italian, having murdered, Vivian, kindly
chalked up that hand as a guide to Scotland Yard?"
"Why not? Remember a murderer is always a madman. He may plot
and contrive nine-tenths of his scheme with the acuteness and the grasp
of a chess-player or a pure mathematician; but somewhere or other his
wits leave him and he behaves like a fool. Then you must take into
account the insane pride or vanity of the criminal; he likes to leave his
mark, as it were, upon his handiwork."

"Yes, it is all very ingenious; but have you read the reports of the
inquest?"
"No, not a word. I simply gave my evidence, left the court, and
dismissed the subject from my mind."
"Quite so. Then if you don't object I should like to give you an account
of the case. I have studied it rather deeply, and I confess it interests me
extremely."
"Very good. But I warn you I have done with mystery. We are to deal
with facts now."
"Yes, it is fact that I wish to put before you. And this is fact the first.
When the police moved Sir Thomas Vivian's body they found an open
knife beneath him. It was an ugly-looking thing such as sailors carry,
with a blade that the mere opening rendered rigid, and there the blade
was all ready, bare and gleaming, but without a trace of blood on it, and
the knife was found to be quite new; it had never been used. Now, at
the first glance it looks as if your imaginary Italian were just the man to
have such a tool. But consider a moment. Would he be likely to buy a
new knife expressly to commit murder? And, secondly, if he had such a
knife, why didn't he use it, instead of that very odd flint instrument?
"And I want to put this to you. You think the murderer chalked up the
hand after the murder as a sort of 'melodramatic Italian assassin his
mark' touch. Passing over the question as to whether the real criminal
ever does such a thing, I would point out that, on the medical evidence,
Sir Thomas Vivian hadn't been dead for more than an hour; That would