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Page 61
"'How do you come to know it?' I asked, in surprise.
"'When my old tutor used to give me an exercise in
trigonometry, it always took the shape of measuring
heights. When I was a lad I worked out every tree and
building in the estate.'
"This was an unexpected piece of luck. My data were
coming more quickly than I could have reasonably
hoped.
"'Tell me,' I asked, 'did your butler ever ask you
such a question?'
"Reginald Musgrave looked at me in astonishment. 'Now
that you call it to my mind,' he answered, 'Brunton
did ask me about the height of the tree some months
ago, in connection with some little argument with the
groom.'
"This was excellent news, Watson, for it showed me
that I was on the right road. I looked up at the sun.
It was low in the heavens, and I calculated that in
less than an hour it would lie just above the topmost
branches of the old oak. One condition mentioned in
the Ritual would then be fulfilled. And the shadow of
the elm must mean the farther end of the shadow,
otherwise the trunk would have been chosen as the
guide. I had, then, to find where the far end of the
shadow would fall when the sun was just clear of the
oak."
"That must have been difficult, Holmes, when the elm
was no longer there."
"Well, at least I knew that if Brunton could do it, I
could also. Besides, there was no real difficulty. I
went with Musgrave to his study and whittled myself
this peg, to which I tied this long string with a knot
at each yard. Then I took two lengths of a
fishing-rod, which came to just six feet, and I went
back with my client to where the elm had been. The
sun was just grazing the top of the oak. I fastened
the rod on end, marked out the direction of the
shadow, and measured it. It was nine feet in length.
"Of course the calculation now was a simple one. If a
rod of six feet threw a shadow of nine, a tree of
sixty-four feet would throw one of ninety-six, and the
line of the one would of course be the line of the other.
I measured out the distance, which brought me almost
to the wall of the house, and I thrust a peg into the
spot. You can imagine my exultation, Watson, when
within two inches of my peg I saw a conical depression
in the ground. I knew that it was the mark made by
Brunton in his measurements, and that I was still upon
his trail.
"From this starting-point I proceeded to step, having
first taken the cardinal points by my pocket-compass.
Ten steps with each foot took me along parallel with
the wall of the house, and again I marked my spot with
a peg. Then I carefully paced off five to the east
and two to the south. It brought me to the very
threshold of the old door. Two steps to the west
meant now that I was to go two paces down the
stone-flagged passage, and this was the place
indicated by the Ritual.
"Never have I felt such a cold chill of
disappointment, Watson. For a moment is seemed to me
that there must be some radical mistake in my
calculations. The setting sun shone full upon the
passage floor, and I could see that the old, foot-worn
gray stones with which it was paved were firmly
cemented together, and had certainly not been moved
for many a long year. Brunton had not been at work
here. I tapped upon the floor, but it sounded the
same all over, and there was no sign of any crack or
crevice. But, fortunately, Musgrave, who had begun to
appreciate the meaning of my proceedings, and who was
now as excited as myself, took out his manuscript to
check my calculation.
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