The case which I call ‘The Norwood Builder’ began for us
in a very dramatic way. Holmes and I had just finished a
late breakfast one morning, and we were talking in our sitting
room in Baker Street. Holmes was about to open his morning
newspaper, when we heard a lot of noise outside. A moment
later, someone was knocking at the door, very hard. Then the
door opened and a young man rushed in. His face was pale
and his fair hair and his clothes were untidy. His blue eyes
were frightened. He had obviously been running, and he was
breathing heavily. ‘You’ve got to help me, Mr Holmes,’ he said desperately.
‘The police are following me! Oh, the scandal will break my
poor mother’s heart.‘Sit down, please,’ Holmes said. ‘This is my friend and
helper, Dr Watson. Please tell us who youare.’
‘I’m that most unhappy man, John Hector McFarlane,’ he
replied. He obviously thought that we would recognize the
name, but we did not.
‘Mr Holmes, if the police arrive, please make them wait,’
the young man went on. ‘Don’t let them arrest me until I’ve
told you my story.’
‘Why do they want to arrest you?’ asked Holmes in surprise.
‘What crime will they charge you with?’
‘They’ll charge me with murder, Mr Holmes, but I haven’t
killed anyone,’ he replied. ‘But I will be happy to go to prison if
I know that Sherlock Holmes is investigating my case!’
Holmes is a tall, thin man with long fingers and a long