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Holmes grinned at the last item. "Well," he said, "I say now, as

I said then, that a man should keep his little brain-attic

stocked with all the furniture that he is likely to use, and the

rest he can put away in the lumber-room of his library, where he

can get it if he wants it. Now, for such a case as the one which

has been submitted to us to-night, we need certainly to muster

all our resources. Kindly hand me down the letter K of the

American Encyclopaedia which stands upon the shelf beside you.

Thank you. Now let us consider the situation and see what may be

deduced from it. In the first place, we may start with a strong

presumption that Colonel Openshaw had some very strong reason for

leaving America. Men at his time of life do not change all their

habits and exchange willingly the charming climate of Florida for

the lonely life of an English provincial town.