Cedric was every bit as stunned as I was. “You think the letter is a forgery, then?”
Holmes scanned the document once more before replying. “There is certainly deception at work here, gentlemen. The strong hand and clipped phraseology suggests a writer some years younger than Buttenshaw. It seems clear from your earlier account, Mr. Hughes, that the factory owner cannot in fact read or write. That is why he pulled the ruse of suggesting that he could not sign his son’s school admission papers without his glasses and called for Sophia’s assistance. And yet, he did not ask for his glasses, but allowed her to both read all of the papers and then sign them. That she did not ask for his consent or disclose the nature of what she had just signed demonstrated that this was a familiar practice.”
I was mystified. “So, are you suggesting that Sophia also wrote the first letter?”
Holmes was adamant. “No. The two notes are in completely different hands. This letter was written by a man. He is left-handed, of slender build, and an American by birth. More significantly, he is an accomplished scientist.”
I could not help but laugh out loud at the apparent absurdity of what he had just revealed. “Mr. Holmes, I have no wish to be ungrateful or discourteous to you, but are you really asking us to believe that you can discern all of that from a cursory glance at a handwritten letter?”
I feared that I had insulted the fellow, but Holmes responded with admirable composure, “My methods are unusual, but the results speak for themselves. It is really a process of research, observation, and evaluation, linking all of the available facts. The wording of the letter is short, direct, and offhand. There is no hint of sentiment or feeling, strongly suggesting a male hand. The almost imperceptible thumbprint on the front of the document and the two finger impressions to the rear, demonstrate that the hands of the author are long and slender. I would expect his general frame to be similar. That he is left-handed is evident from the way that the ink has been smudged in parts as his writing hand moves across the page. And the deposit along the bottom edge of the document suggests that he had recent close contact with coal tar, a chemical used in the process of dyeing cloth.”
Cedric and I were both astounded, but a nagging doubt still remained in my mind. “I can see the logic of all that you have revealed so far, but what about his place of birth?”
“A strong suggestion from the word ‘gotten’, which you will note in the second paragraph. However, to understand fully why I believe he is not a native of this country, we must turn to the nature of Miss Buttenshaw’s business meeting in London a few weeks back.”
“Really?” I retorted, staggered that the matter should have any particular relevance to the letter.
“Yes,” said Holmes. “Do you remember the date that the meeting took place and which particular legal firm Sophia visited?”
I thought hard for a few seconds before responding. “Monday, 17th May – I remember, because it was the day after my mother’s birthday. As for the law firm, I believe their name was Dennington and Fanshawe.”
There was no disguising his delight. “Excellent! Then my working hypothesis seems to be solid enough. I should explain, gentlemen, that a major component of my investigative approach is the study of chemistry. I use the science to uncover some of the unseen human traces and concealed clues that others may miss. As such, I pay particular attention to any developments within the scientific field. Dennington and Fanshawe are a very prominent firm of patent lawyers. About a month ago, there was a small piece in the legal section of The Times announcing that the firm is acting for a chemist who has taken out a patent on a new process for dyeing cloth, which uses a compound of coal tar and other chemical elements.”
Cedric could immediately see the likely relevance. “And you believe that this has some connection to the Buttenshaw factory?”
Holmes nodded and brought his hands together. “Without doubt, you see the chemist who secured the patent was a twenty-seven year old Texan . . . by the name of Callum Ford.”
My surprise at the disclosure was palpable, although I could not immediately see what relevance it had to the letter. Holmes then continued, “Buttenshaw told you that he employed the man some five years ago. The young chemist must have come with some considerable reputation or expertise to convince the industrialist to engage his services. But the faith or trust of the older man clearly paid off. With the new dyeing process, the business has gone from strength to strength. So, how did Ford view this rapid expansion? Perhaps he felt that he should benefit from a greater share of the wealth being created.”
I ventured a quick comment. “Mr. Holmes, I did not meet the chemist on any of my visits to Darlington, but both Kenneth and Sophia had mentioned that he had been placed in a position of some responsibility and left to run much of the manufactory single-handedly. From their comments, I had always taken it that they believed him to be more than adequately remunerated for his role. I suspect there may also have been some friction between Ford and Sophia, however, as she admitted to me once that she disliked him coming up to the house and lingering in her father’s study, which he was inclined to do whenever Kenneth was away on business.”
Holmes listened assiduously before commenting. “That is a very significant piece of information. It suggests that the household staff would be used to seeing Mr. Ford at the house and, in his position, the American clearly
