an arc-and-compass breastpin."
"Ah, of course, I forgot that. But the writing?"
"What else can be indicated by that right cuff so very shiny for five
inches, and the left one with the smooth patch near the elbow where
you rest it upon the desk?"
"Well, but China?"
"The fish that you have tattooed immediately above your right wrist
could only have been done in China. I have made a small study of
tattoo marks and have even contributed to the literature of the
subject. That trick of staining the fishes' scales of a delicate pink
is quite peculiar to China. When, in addition, I see a Chinese coin
hanging from your watch-chain, the matter becomes even more simple."
Mr. Jabez Wilson laughed heavily. "Well, I never!" said he. "I
thought at first that you had done something clever, but I see that
there was nothing in it, after all."
"I begin to think, Watson," said Holmes, "that I make a mistake in
explaining. 'Omne ignotum pro magnifico,' you know, and my poor
little reputation, such as it is, will suffer shipwreck if I am so
candid. Can you not find the advertisement, Mr. Wilson?"
"Yes, I have got it now," he answered with his thick red finger
planted halfway down the column. "Here it is. This is what began it
all. You just read it for yourself, sir."
I took the paper from him and read as follows:
"To the Red-headed League: On account of the bequest of the late
Ezekiah Hopkins, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania, U. S. A., there is now
another vacancy open which entitles a member of the League to a
salary of ? a week for purely nominal services. All red-headed men
who are sound in body and mind and above the age of twenty-one years,
are eligible. Apply in person on Monday, at eleven o'clock, to Duncan
Ross, at the offices of the League, 7 Pope's Court, Fleet Street."
"What on earth does this mean?" I ejaculated after I had twice read
over the extraordinary announcement.
Holmes chuckled and wriggled in his chair, as was his habit when in
high spirits. "It is a little off the beaten track, isn't it?" said
he. "And now, Mr. Wilson, off you go at scratch and tell us all about
yourself, your household, and the effect which this advertisement had
upon your fortunes. You will first make a note, Doctor, of the paper
and the date."
"It is The Morning Chronicle of April 27, 1890. Just two months ago."
"Very good. Now, Mr. Wilson?"
"Well, it is just as I have been telling you, Mr. Sherlock Holmes,"
said Jabez Wilson, mopping his forehead; "I have a small pawnbroker's
business at Coburg Square, near the City. It's not a very large
affair, and of late years it has not done more than just give me a
living. I used to be able to keep two assistants, but now I only keep
one; and I would have a job to pay him but that he is willing to come
for half wages so as to learn the business."
"What is the name of this obliging youth?" asked Sherlock Holmes.
"His name is Vincent Spaulding, and he's not such a youth, either.
It's hard to say his age. I should not wish a smarter assistant, Mr.
Holmes; and I know very well that he could better himself and earn
twice what I am able to give him. But, after all, if he is satisfied,
why should I put ideas in his head?"
"Why, indeed? You seem most fortunate in having an employee who comes
under the full market price. It is not a common experience among
employers in this age. I don't know that your assistant is not as
remarkable as your advertisement."
"Oh, he has his faults, too," said Mr. Wilson. "Never was such a
fellow for photography. Snapping away with a camera when he ought to
be improving his mind, and then diving down into the cellar like a
rabbit into its hole to develop his pictures. That is his main fault,
but on the whole he's a good worker. There's no vice in him."
"He is still with you, I presume?"
"Yes, sir. He and a girl of fourteen, who does a bit of simple
cooking and keeps the place clean--that's all I have in the house,
for I am a widower and never had any family. We live very quietly,
sir, the three of us; and we keep a roof over our heads and pay our
debts, if we do nothing more.
"The first thing that put us out was that advertisement. Spaulding,
he came down into the office just this day eight weeks, with this
very paper in his hand, and he says:
"'I wish to the Lord, Mr. Wilson, that I was a red-headed man.'
"'Why that?' I asks.
"'Why,' says he, 'here's another vacancy on the League of the
Red-headed Men. It's worth quite a little fortune to any man who gets
it, and I understand that there are more vacancies than there are
men, so that the trustees are at their wits' end what to do with the
money. If my hair would only change colour, here's a nice little crib
all ready for me to step into.'
"'Why, what is it, then?' I asked. You see, Mr. Holmes, I am a very
stay-at-home man, and as my business came to me instead of my having
to go to it, I was often weeks on end without putting my foot over
the door-mat. In that way I didn't know much of what was going on
outside, and I was always glad of a bit of news.
"'Have you never heard of the League of the Red-headed Men?' he asked
with his eyes open.
"'Never.'
"'Why, I wonder at that, for you are eligible yourself for one of the
vacancies.'
"'And what are they worth?' I asked.
"'Oh, merely a couple of hundred a year, but the work is slight, and
it need not interfere very much with one's other occupations.'
"Well, you can easily think that that made me prick up my ears, for
the business has not been over-good for some years, and an extra
couple of hundred would have been very handy.
"'Tell me all about it,' said I.
"'Well,' said he, showing me the advertisement, 'you can see for
yourself that the League has a vacancy, and there is the address
where you should apply for particulars. As far as I can make out, the
League was founded by an American millionaire, Ezekiah Hopkins, who
was very peculiar in his ways. He was himself red-headed, and he had
a great sympathy for all red-headed men; so when he died it was found
that he had left his enormous fortune in the hands of trustees, with
instructions to apply the interest to the providing of easy berths to
men whose hair is of that colour. From all I hear it is splendid pay
and very little to do.'
"'But,' said I, 'there would be millions of red-headed men who would
apply.'
"'Not so many as you might think,' he answered. 'You see it is really
confined to Londoners, and to grown men. This American had started
from London when he was young, and he wanted to do the old town a
good turn. Then, again, I have heard it is no use your applying if
your hair is light red, or dark red, or anything but real bright,
blazing, fiery red. Now, if you cared to apply, Mr. Wilson, you would
just walk in; but perhaps it would hardly be worth your while to put
yourself out of the way for the sake of a few hundred pounds.'
"Now, it is a fact, gentlemen, as you may see for yourselves, that my
hair is of a very full and rich tint, so that it seemed to me that if
there was to be any competition in the matter I stood as good a
chance as any man that I had ever met. Vincent Spaulding seemed to
know so much about it that I thought he might prove useful, so I just
ordered him to put up the shutters for the day and to come right away
with me. He was very willing to have a holiday, so we shut the
business up and started off for the address that was given us in the
advertisement.
"I never hope to see such a sight as that again, Mr. Holmes. From
north, south, east, and west every man who had a shade of red in his
hair had tramped into the city to answer the advertisement. Fleet
Street was choked with red-headed folk, and Pope's Court looked like
a coster's orange barrow. I should not have thought there were so
many in the whole country as were brought together by that single
advertisement. Every shade of colour they were--straw, lemon, orange,
brick, Irish-setter, liver, clay; but, as Spaulding said, there were
not many who had the real vivid flame-coloured tint. When I saw how
many were waiting, I would have given it up in despair; but Spaulding
would not hear of it. How he did it I could not imagine, but he
pushed and pulled and butted until he got me through the crowd, and
right up to the steps which led to the office. There was a double
stream upon the stair, some going up in hope, and some coming back
dejected; but we wedged in as well as we could and soon found
ourselves in the office."
"Your experience has been a most entertaining one," remarked Holmes
as his client paused and refreshed his memory with a huge pinch of
snuff. "Pray continue your very interesting statement."
"There was nothing in the office but a couple of wooden chairs and a
deal table, behind which sat a small man with a head that was even
redder than mine. He said a few words to each candidate as he came
up, and then he always managed to find some fault in them which would
disqualify them. Getting a vacancy did not seem to be such a very
easy matter, after all. However, when our turn came the little man
was much more favourable to me than to any of the others, and he
closed the door as we entered, so that he might have a private word
with us.
"'This is Mr. Jabez Wilson,' said my assistant, 'and he is willing to
fill a vacancy in the League.'
"'And he is admirably suited for it,' the other answered. 'He has
every requirement. I cannot recall when I have seen anything so
fine.' He took a step backward, cocked his head on one side, and
gazed at my hair until I felt quite bashful. Then suddenly he plunged
forward, wrung my hand, and congratulated me warmly on my success.
"'It would be injustice to hesitate,' said he. 'You will, however, I
am sure, excuse me for taking an obvious precaution.' With that he
seized my hair in both his hands, and tugged until I yelled with the
pain. 'There is water in your eyes,' said he as he released me. 'I
perceive that all is as it should be. But we have to be careful, for
we have twice been deceived by wigs and once by paint. I could tell
you tales of cobbler's wax which would disgust you with human
nature.' He stepped over to the window and shouted through it at the
top of his voice that the vacancy was filled. A groan of
disappointment came up from below, and the folk all trooped away in
different directions until there was not a red-head to be seen except
my own and that of the manager.
"'My name,' said he, 'is Mr. Duncan Ross, and I am myself one of the
pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. Are you a
married man, Mr. Wilson? Have you a family?'
"I answered that I had not.
"His face fell immediately.
"'Dear me!' he said gravely, 'that is very serious indeed! I am sorry
to hear you say that. The fund was, of course, for the propagation
and spread of the red-heads as well as for their maintenance. It is
exceedingly unfortunate that you should be a bachelor.'
"My face lengthened at this, Mr. Holmes, for I thought that I was not
to have the vacancy after all; but after thinking it over for a few
minutes he said that it would be all right.
"'In the case of another,' said he, 'the objection might be fatal,
but we must stretch a point in favour of a man with such a head of
hair as yours. When shall you be able to enter upon your new duties?'
"'Well, it is a little awkward, for I have a business already,' said
I.
"'Oh, never mind about that, Mr. Wilson!' said Vincent Spaulding. 'I
should be able to look after that for you.'
"'What would be the hours?' I asked.
"'Ten to two.'
"Now a pawnbroker's business is mostly done of an evening, Mr.
Holmes, especially Thursday and Friday evening, which is just before
pay-day; so it would suit me very well to earn a little in the
mornings. Besides, I knew that my assistant was a good man, and that
he would see to anything that turned up.
"'That would suit me very well,' said I. 'And the pay?'
"'Is ? a week.'
"'And the work?'
"'Is purely nominal.'
"'What do you call purely nominal?'
"'Well, you have to be in the office, or at least in the building,
the whole time. If you leave, you forfeit your whole position
forever. The will is very clear upon that point. You don't comply
