laments stretching out and running through them, responsive to every
little rumour or suspicion of unsolved crime. Appreciation of nature
found no place among his many gifts, and his only change was when he
turned his mind from the evil-doer of the town to track down his
brother of the country.

Finding that Holmes was too absorbed for conversation I had tossed side
the barren paper, and leaning back in my chair I fell into a brown
study. Suddenly my companion's voice broke in upon my thoughts:

"You are right, Watson," said he. "It does seem a most preposterous
way of settling a dispute."

"Most preposterous!" I exclaimed, and then suddenly realizing how he
had echoed the inmost thought of my soul, I sat up in my chair and
stared at him in blank amazement.

"What is this, Holmes?" I cried. "This is beyond anything which I
could have imagined."

He laughed heartily at my perplexity.

"You remember," said he, "that some little time ago when I read you the
passage in one of Poe's sketches in which a close reasoner follows the
unspoken thoughts of his companion, you were inclined to treat the
matter as a mere tour-de-force of the author. On my remarking that I
was constantly in the habit of doing the same thing you expressed
incredulity."

"Oh, no!"

"Perhaps not with your tongue, my dear Watson, but certainly with your
eyebrows. So when I saw you throw down your paper and enter upon a
train of thought, I was very happy to have the opportunity of reading
it off, and eventually of breaking into it, as a proof that I had been
in rapport with you."

But I was still far from satisfied. "In the example which you read to
me," said I, "the reasoner drew his conclusions from the actions of the
man whom he observed. If I remember right, he stumbled over a heap of
stones, looked up at the stars, and so on. But I have been seated
quietly in my chair, and what clues can I have given you?"

"You do yourself an injustice. The features are given to man as the
means by which he shall express his emotions, and yours are faithful
servants."

"Do you mean to say that you read my train of thoughts from my
features?"

"Your features and especially your eyes. Perhaps you cannot yourself
recall how your reverie commenced?"

"No, I cannot."

"Then I will tell you. After throwing down your paper, which was the
action which drew my attention to you, you sat for half a minute with a
vacant expression. Then your eyes f