A Study in Scarlet (Serial Edition Cover) — page 39: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

~" oO A STUDY IN SCARLET. ge quite sure of the fact. Even across the street I could see a great blue anchor tattooed on the back of the fellow’s hand. ‘That smacked of the sea. He hada military carriage, however, and regulation side-whiskers. There we have the marine. He was a man with some amount of self-importance and a certain air of com- mand. You must have observed the way in which he held his head and swung his cane. A steady, respecta- ble, middle-aged man, too, on the face of him—all facts which led me to believe that he had been a sergeant.” “Wonderful!” I ejaculated. “Commonplace,” said Holmes, though I thought from his expression that he was pleased at my evident surprise and admiration. ‘“‘I said just now that there were no criminals. It appears that I am wrong—look at this!” He threw me over the note which the com- -missionaire had brought. “Why,” I cried, as I cast my eye over it, “this is terrible! ” “Tt does seem to be a little out of the common,” he remarked, calmly. ‘“ Would you mind reading it to me aloud?” This is the letter which I read to him: “My DEAR Mr. SHERLOCK HoLMEs: There has been a bad business during the night at 3 Lauriston Gardens, off the Brixton Road. Our man on the beat saw a light there about two in the morning, and as the house was an empty one, suspected that something was amiss. He found the door open, and in the front room, which is bare of furniture, discovered the body of a gentleman, SS (C@