from the desk on which they lay. The copy was there, and the original
was gone."

Holmes sat up in his chair and rubbed his hands. I could see that the
problem was entirely to his heart. "Pray, what did you do then?" he
murmured.

"I recognized in an instant that the thief must have come up the stairs
from the side door. Of course I must have met him if he had come the
other way."

"You were satisfied that he could not have been concealed in the room
all the time, or in the corridor which you have just described as dimly
lighted?"

"It is absolutely impossible. A rat could not conceal himself either in
the room or the corridor. There is no cover at all."

"Thank you. Pray proceed."

"The commissionnaire, seeing by my pale face that something was to be
feared, had followed me upstairs. Now we both rushed along the corridor
and down the steep steps which led to Charles Street. The door at the
bottom was closed, but unlocked. We flung it open and rushed out. I can
distinctly remember that as we did so there came three chimes from a
neighboring clock. It was quarter to ten."

"That is of enormous importance," said Holmes, making a note upon his
shirt-cuff.

"The night was very dark, and a thin, warm rain was falling. There was
no one in Charles Street, but a great traffic was going on, as usual, in
Whitehall, at the extremity. We rushed along the pavement, bare-headed
as we were, and at the far corner we found a policeman standing.

"'A robbery has been committed,' I gasped. 'A document of immense value
has been stolen from the Foreign Office. Has any one passed this way?'

"'I have been standing here for a quarter of an hour, sir,' said he;
'only one person has passed during that time--a woman, tall and elderly,
with a Paisley shawl.'

"'Ah, that is only my wife,' cried the commissionnaire; 'has no one else
passed?'

"'No one.'

"'Then it must be the other way that the thief took,' cried the fellow,
tugging at my sleeve.

"'But I was not satisfied, and the attempts which he made to draw me
away increased my suspicions.

"'Which way did the woman go?' I cried.

"'I don't know, sir. I noticed her pass, but I had no special reason for
watching her. She seemed to be in a hurry.'

"'How long ago was it?'

"'Oh, not very many minutes.'

"'Within the last five?'

"'Well, it could not be more than five.'

"'You're only wasting your time, sir, and every minute now is of
importance,' cried the commissio