Sherlock Holmes: Camberwell Poisoning 02/18/1946 Rathbone & Bruce

Welcome to Choice Classic Radio, where we bring to you the greatest old-time radio shows. Like us on Facebook, subscribe to us on YouTube, and thank you for donating at choiceclassicradio.com. Petri Wine brings you Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce in the new adventures of Sherlock Holmes. The Petrie family, the family that took time to bring you good wine, invites you to listen to Dr. Watson tell us another exciting adventure he shared with his good friend, that master detective, Sherlock Holmes. And I'd like to tell you about my favorite time of day. It's just before dinner. You know when the family's all sitting around in the living room and wonderful things are cooking in the kitchen? Ah, that's for me. And that's the time for a glass of sherry. Because Petri California sherry really makes waiting for dinner a pleasure. That Petri sherry is the perfect before-dinner wine. Just look at its beautiful amber color. And then taste that wonderful Petri sherry. What a flavor. Petri sherry has a rich, nutty flavor that's right from the heart of sun-ripened grapes. And if you like your sherry dry, you know, not sweet, you'll want to get Petri Pale Dry sherry. Or better yet, taste them both. Don't buy one, buy two. Those letters P-E-T-R-I on the label are the personal assurance of the Petri family that Petri Sherry is truly good wine. And now it's time to keep the weekly appointment with our good friend, Dr. Watson. How are you this evening, Doctor? I never felt better, thank you, Mr. Bartell. Draw up your usual chair and make yourself comfortable. Thank you. That's it. I see you've had the old tin dispatch box out again. I suppose you've been going through your notes on tonight's new Sherlock Holmes adventure? Yes, Mr. Bartell. I think you'll find it as pretty a little problem as we ever encountered. The story began in 1887. A very busy year for us, my boy. It was the same year that Holmes solved the case of the Amateur Mendicant Society. who held their meetings in a luxuriously furnished vault below a furniture warehouse. Oh, I remember that story, Doctor. And wasn't 87 the year you both escaped from death in the paradol chamber? It was indeed. You've got a very good memory, Mr. Bartell. The story I'm going to tell you tonight topped off this unusually exciting year. It was late in October and the equinoctial gales had set in with exceptional violence. All day the wind had howled and the rain had beaten against the windows of our Baker Street lodgings. Finally, it was midnight as far as I remember. The storm grew higher and louder, and the wind in the chimney sobbed like a child. Suddenly, much to our surprise, the doorbell jangled, and a few moments later, our midnight visitor stood before us. He was a man of about thirty-five, and as he looked about him anxiously in the glare of the lamp, I could see that his face was pale and that his eyes heavy, like those of a man who was weighed down with some great anxiety. And yet when he spoke, his tone was businesslike, I'm almost aggressive. I've come to you for advice, Mr. Holmes. That's easily obtained. And help. That is not always so easy. They helped the gentleman off his coat, but he wasn't. Here he was. Let me hang it up for you. Thank you, sir. I heard of you, Mr. Holmes, from Major Prendergast. Oh, yes. He said that you could solve anything. I'm afraid he said too much. But you've never been beaten. I've been beaten four times, sir. Three times by men and once by a woman. But supposing you sit down and introduce yourself. My friend's name is Watson, Dr. Watson. How do you do, sir? How do you do, Doctor? My name is Lovelace, Edmund Lovelace. And what brings you to me at this hour of the night, Mr. Lovelace? I'm in terrible trouble, Mr. Holmes. You don't know anything about me, but if you'll accept my case, you can save four lives. I wouldn't say that I know nothing about you, sir. No, it's true that I know little beyond the somewhat obvious fact that, well, you're single, that you keep a dog, but not a manservant, and that you are much preoccupied with your business, which I take to be some form of insurance. Oh, come, come, come. Now, what is this? Well, I'll wager that my friend's right, though. Isn't he, Mr. Loveless? Perfectly. But I'll be hanged if I can see how he knows. Oh, it's a practical application of logic, sir. The briefcase that you carry might at first indicate a barrister or some other professional man, but your brusque business-like manner contradicts that suggestion. An insurance broker who must visit clients at odd hours is the likeliest man to combine that manner with a briefcase of midnight. But the wife and the manservant and the fact that I'm preoccupied with my business. Your couplings don't matter. Each is from a different pair. That would suggest preoccupation. And it's a mistake that neither a wife nor a man-servant would have allowed to pass. Yes, but how about the dog? Oh, surely that's odd, Watson. Oh, I can't see it. I'll let you ponder on that matter while Mr. Lovelace tells us his problem. Mr. Holmes, are you as interested in preventing a murder as in solving one? Naturally I am, Mr. Lovelace. Even more so. But please tell me your story. I live with four cousins of mine in an old house in Camberwell. My grandfather left the house and a sizable fortune to the five of us on condition that we live together and maintain the family unity. It probably wouldn't surprise you to know that we've grown to get pretty much on each other's nerves. What happens if one of you dies, Mr. Loveless? His share is divided among the others. The wonder to me is that not that a murder may take place, but that it has not happened long ago. Who's responsible for the administration of the estate? My cousin Gerald. He's much older than the rest of us, and he's a thoroughly unpleasant, cantankerous man. He gets an extra share in the estate as administrator, and in consequence, he doesn't work. We feel, of course, that he lives off us, and we're continually quarreling with him about it. Sounds like a jolly hustle, though, Mr. Holmes. There's going to be trouble, Mr. Holmes, I know it. Gerald hates us, and he's jealous of our share in the estate. You spoke of a venting murder just now. Yet I can see that you've selected your cousin Gerald as the potential murderer. Am I right? Yes, you are. But don't think it's personal prejudice that makes me suspect him. I have good reason for doing so. Oh, what reason? This evening, just before dinner, I helped Gerald off with his top coat and went to hang it up for him. As I did so, I heard a strange, valid clink in one of his pockets. I slipped my hand inside it and found a hypodermic syringe and a small pile of liquid. I opened the pile and smelled it. Gentlemen, it reeked of bitter almonds. Cyanide, eh? What did you do? I thought of destroying it, but I realized that that would put him on his guard, so I replaced it in his pocket, of course. I warned the others. And we decided that I'd come to you. I had to see a most important client tonight, or I'd have been here earlier. Yes, it seems odd that you didn't come directly to Mr. Holmes as soon as you'd made the discovery, Mr. Loveless. After all, if a potential murderer is walking about with a pocket full of cyanide, I should have thought that itself was more important than business. Well, I... Yes, I... I suppose it might seem so to you, Doctor. That's the most interesting stick you carry, sir. May I examine it? Of course. Here. Thank you. Now I see how you deduced that Mr. Loveless had a dog, Holmes. There are the marks of the dog teeth on the stick Yes my dear Watson but these marks under scrutiny give us even more specific information He a large dog You had him for some years Mr Lovelace and he now old and people Well, you're perfectly right, but I'll be happy if I can see how you can tell that from looking at a walking stick. This stick is covered with teeth marks, therefore it has been carried many times by the dog. Now it's a heavy stick, so only a large dog could have carried it. And the teeth marks also indicate a large jaw. The older marks are deep sunk. Look here. The fresh ones, where the wood is not yet darkened, are shallow. Yes, it's obvious that the jaws are losing their springs. That's very clever of you, Mr. Holmes, but I don't see what it has to do with the case in hand. Neither do I, Holmes, I must confess. No, surely it tells us that your story, Mr. Lovelace, may bear a less terrifying implication than you think. On the other hand, its implication may be even more terrifying. Oh, it's late at night, I feel, that any further delay in this matter would be extremely dangerous. I suggest you get a cab and come to your house in Camberwell at once. Alice, Randolph, I'm glad you're still up. I was able to persuade Mr. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson to come back with me. Gentlemen, this is my cousin, Alice Harley. How do you do? How do you do, Miss Harley? How do you do? And my cousin, Randolph Lovely. How do you do, Mr. Lerner? I told him about the whole business, Randolph, so we can all speak perfectly freely. Let's begin by sitting down, shall we? Randolph and I had just finished a little cold supper. We've been to the theatre tonight. Well, Mr. Holmes, I suppose Edmund told you about finding the hypodermic syringe and the cyanide in Gerald's coat pocket. Yes, indeed. May I ask where your cousin Gerald Lovelace is now? We left the house at seven, but I imagine Gerald went upstairs at eight, as usual. Didn't he, Edmund? On the stroke of eight, Alice. He's very fixed in his habits, Mr. Holmes. He goes up to his room every night at eight. There he reads or works on his accounts and eventually goes to bed any time between ten and one. Well, he might still be up. I should like to speak to him a little later. In the meanwhile, may I ask you two young people, tell me quite honestly your feelings about your cousin, Gerald? And you might as well be frank. I've kept nothing back. All right. Randolph and I hate him. First of all, we're sure he's jealous of our shares in the estate, and then we... Alice and I want to get married, Mr. Holmes, and Gerald won't hear of it. But you're cousins, aren't you? Only second cousins, Dr. Watson. Gerald is dreadfully conventional. He's threatened us that if we do get married, he'll go to court and try to have our shares in the estate annulled. And from the way the will is worded, I wouldn't be surprised if he could do it. So you can see why we have no great love for him. Why we're afraid of him. He sounds an extremely unpleasant person to me. You mentioned there were five cousins in the house. Three of you are here. Mr. Gerald's lovelace is upstairs. Who and where is the fifth cousin? The fifth cousin is my brother, Gilly. He's something of a tragedy, I'm afraid. You see, Gilly's 20, but he never developed mentally beyond the age of eight. He had a bad fall in the hunting field when he was a kid. He's been like this ever since. I'm sorry to hear that, sir. But he's the dearest, most gentle boy you've ever met. And, incidentally, the one person in this house who doesn't hate Gerald. The poor fellow doesn't understand the conditions of the will, I suppose. No. But if he did, I don't think it'd make any difference. I swear that Gilly loves every living thing, especially Gladstone. Gladstone is the name of his dog. His dog? Yes. The dog may be the key to this whole matter. The dog? What makes you say that, Holmes? When a man brings a quick and painless poison home to a house containing an old and feeble dog, it's more than possible that he has obtained that poison quite legitimately to give the dog a merciful death. To kill Gladstone? Oh, no! After all, Alice, dear, he is old and almost blind now. But, Mr. Holmes, if you think Gerald brought home the poison to put Gladstone out of the way, and I admit it sounds perfectly logical, what made you decide to come here tonight? Because I dare not even guess what you may have done by including the thought of murder in this situation. Where is your brother, Gilly? In his room upstairs, asleep. I wonder if we might go up to him. I'd like to talk to him, if you don't mind. And after that, I... I want a few words with your cousin, Gerald Lovelace. He's asleep, Mr. Held. Yes, with a dog in his arm. I'm afraid we'll have to waken him. Gilly? Gilly? It's all right, Preston. We're not going to hurt him. Gilly? Hmm? Who is it? Oh, hello, Alice. Who are these men? They've come to take Gladstone away. No, no, Gilly, we haven't. Of course not, Gilly. We've just come to admire him. Your brother's been telling us what a fine dog he is. Oh, that's different. He... isn't he beautiful? I just had such a wonderful dream about him. Such a wonderful dream. What was it, Gilly? Well, he was all young again. Just a puppy. He was chasing a rabbit across a cliff top. And I was running with him. Oh, Gladstone looked so beautiful. Didn't you, old boy? Of course you did. And, you know, the rabbit went down a hole and Gladstone went down after him. And I went down after Gladstone. And they all had tea with the rabbits. So funny. They all had little green hats on. Hats with feathers. I wanted Gladstone to try one on, but... No, you wouldn't. So sleepy. Come on, Gladstone. Let's go back to the tea party. Poor kid. This world may be a great deal more pleasant than ours, Watson. That's what I'd like to think, Mr. Holmes. Now I'd like to have a few words for your cousin, Gerald. His room's at the end of this corridor. I'm afraid Gilly wasn't much help to you, Mr. Holmes. On the contrary, young lady, he told me exactly what I wanted to know. Here we are. This is Gerald's room. There's no light under the door. He must have gone to sleep. I'm afraid we must waken him, too. That's the heavy sleeper. But he isn't. He's a remarkably light one. Come on, let's go in. Strike a match, will you, old fellow? Match, George. The gas mantle is at the head of his bed, Dr. Watson. Where? Well, he's lying on the outside of his bed. He must be... There's blood on the pillow. Great Scott Holmes, the back of his skull smashed in. He's murdered. Oh, no! Horrible! Yes, Watson. The top of the blows on his head. Look here on the table by his bed. A hypodermic syringe and a broken file. Yes, a broken file. Reeking of bitter almonds. Poor devil. Well, I won't pretend I liked him. But what a ghastly way to die. All they that take the sword shall perish with the sword. So the scriptures say Mr Lovelace The very suspicion of the killing has brought murder to pass Well it too late to prevent it Our job now is to find the killer and see that he brought to justice Dr. Watson will tell you the rest of his story in just a few seconds. Just time enough for me to tell you that if there's one wine that's perfect for any occasion, it's Petri California Sherry. With a bottle of that rich, amber-colored Petri Sherry on hand, you can make that time before dinner a main event. And Petri Sherry is the perfect answer to the question of what to serve when company comes. Serve Petri Sherry alone and let its full, wonderful flavor speak for itself, or serve Petri Sherry with hors d'oeuvres or party sandwiches. And remember, you can serve Petri Sherry proudly because Petrie is the proudest name in the history of American wine. Well, Dr. Watson, so you found Gerald Lovelace dead in one of the bedrooms of the house in Camberwell. What did you do, send for the police? Not at once, Mr. Bartell. Sherlock Holmes persuaded the remainder of the household to give him the opportunity of examining the scene of the crime carefully before the police were sent for. And so, a few minutes before one o'clock that October night, Holmes and I stood alone in the room of death. A gas a little higher, will you, old chap? You know, Holmes, I think you should have sent the police right away. In a case like this, Watson, I prefer to be my own police. When I have spun the web, they may take the flies, but not before. What are the results of your medical examination, old chap? Well, it's exactly as you reconstructed it, Holmes. He was first beaten on the head with that poker lying on the floor. Then he had the full file of cyanide injected into his left wrist. Can you estimate the time of death to back your attention? No, this room's confoundedly hot. He might have died any time from one to five hours ago. Yes. It's now one o'clock, and we know that he was alive at eight. Mr. Edmund Lovelace saw him leave for his room at that hour. Yes, if he was telling the truth. One thing we do know for a fact is that this man was murdered at the exact moment he was going to bed. He's wearing his nightgown and nightgap, but his bed has not been slept in. Well, isn't it possible that the murderer might have killed him shortly after eight and then dressed him in his night clothes to confuse us? No, my dear chap. You will notice that the hypodermic needle passed from the sleeve of his nightshirt. Here. Also, the nightcap is crushed and bloodstained from the blows of the poker. No, Gerald Glovelace had prepared the bed. Yes. With a glass of water on the night table and the prayer book and the watch. Yes. Signs of a prosperous and meticulous man. Mm-hmm. Very fine gold watch and in excellent condition. Uh-huh There's the answer, Watson What do you mean, there's the answer, Watson? I just wound this watch one turn and then it was fully wound That provides us with a time schedule for our... Come on We'll send a servant for the police And while they're on the way, if you'll call everyone together I should like to put a few more questions to this family The End 59, Onslow Square, South Kensington. Thank you. Make a note of these, will you, Watson? At your home. You, Miss Harley, and you, Mr. Randolph Lovelies. Went to the theatre together. Can any independent witness testify as to your movements? Yes, Miss Holmes. We went with friends, the Grant Moresby. They live at the Clarendon Hotel, North Charing Cross. What time did you leave this house? Well, it was about a quarter to eight, wasn't it, Alice? Yes. And after the play, we went to the Café Royale for a little refreshment with our friends, and then came back here. I see. At what time did you arrive back at this house? Just a few minutes before midnight. I remember the grandfather clock in the hall striking just as we went into the drawing room. And your brother Gilly, sir. I hate to waken him again. Have you any idea of his movements tonight? Well, he never goes out after dark, Mr. Holmes. But I spoke to the cook as we came in tonight. She says that he played cards with her until just after ten o'clock. He was fast asleep when I looked in on him shortly after midnight. Thank you. You've made a note of all these facts, Watson. Yes, Holmes. I've got them all down. Good. Then let's be on our way to Baker Street. But the police, Mr. Holmes, they're on their way. I know. Please give them my regards, will you? Apologize for my informality and tell them that I shall have the answer to this matter probably in a little over 24 hours. Holmes, here it is well after midnight. You haven't done a thing on the Camberwell case. No, but you have, old chap. You've checked on all the time alibis and found them valid. I'm much obliged to you. Inspector Lestard was here tonight, you know, and he made some pretty caustic remarks, I can tell you. Oh, didn't you inform him that I'll have the answer to the problem before many hours have passed? I did, but you know, Lestard, he wanted action. He's a habit. Is the watch still running? Another thing. What will Lestard say when he finds that you took the dead man's watch? I've no idea. Oh, why did you take it anywhere? You sound sleepy, old chap. I am confounded to sleep. Why don't you go to bed? What are you going to do? Continue my vigil with my pipe and the watch of a dead man. Watson, Watson, wake up! Oh, what time is it? Five o'clock in the morning. Good morning, you're getting up at this hour. The watch has just stopped. I'm about to rewind it. What are you rewinding it for, Holmes? You waited over 24 hours for it to unwind. When I know how many turns it takes to wind it fully, I shall have the answer to the whole business. Ten. Eleven. You're being confoundedly mysterious, as usual. Fourteen. Fourteen turns and the watch is fully wound. Get your clothes on, old chap. Where are we going on this hour? To the house in Camberwell. Now I know who murdered Gerald Lovelace. Mr. Edmund Lovelace, I'm glad you let us in. Please take us up to your young cousin's room at once. Really? What do you want for us here? Unexpanied a moment. Please take us up to him. Of course, but what brings you here at this hour of the morning? Mr. Holmes knows who murdered your cousin. I'm glad to hear it. It's more than the police seem to know. They were here half the night cross-examining us. Here we are. I don't think we'll bother to knock. Billy. Billy. I'm awake. We heard you coming up the stairs. Didn't we, Gladstone? It's the same man again. You not going to take Gladstone away are you Please don take him away Don worry Gilly We not going to touch him Oh All right then Oh Gilly Yes You really love that dog don you Of course I do. More than anything or anybody. I believe you'd even kill a man who tried to hurt Gladstone, wouldn't you? Oh, yes, sir. I would. Gilly! No. Great. Shut up. Gilly. I don't think you'd really kill a man? I don't think you could. Couldn't I, though? How would you kill him? I'd hit him first. I'd take a poker and hit him on the head so he couldn't fight back. And then I'd take the nasty needle he told me he was going to stick in Gladstone and I'd fill it full of that water he showed me and I'd stick it in him. That's what I'd do. Then he'd be dead. And he couldn't hurt my Gladstone anymore. Not ever. Let's leave him, shall we? Goodbye, Gilly. Those dreams. Goodbye, sir. Good old dad, sir. Are you satisfied, sir? Yes. Poor Gilly. There's no doubt about it, of course. Can there be no one who described the murder to him, and yet he's just given an exact description of its method? What will happen to him? They won't try him. No, no. No little pressure in the right places, and you'll be released to a private nursing home. I'll do everything I can, Mr. Lovelace. Thank you, Mr. Holmes. Thank you very much. Well, Holmes, now that we're back in Baker Street and the whole depressing case is finished with, perhaps you'll tell me how you knew that Billy had committed the murder. Well, consider the time schedules, old fellow. You checked the alibis of the other cousins and found them satisfactory. That meant that Alice Harley and Randolph Lovelace could have committed the crime only at midnight. Edmund, only before ten. Gilly, only around eleven. You said that the time of death could have been at any of those hours. Yes, I did. So how did you pin it down to eleven? The watch gave me the specific answer. When I picked it up, I unthinkingly wound it. made one turn and was then fully wound. Now, when does a methodical, precise man like Gerald Lovelace wind his watch? Just he's going to bed. Exactly, old fellow. So that it was obvious that he was killed precisely one watch stem turn before I wound his watch. Now I'm beginning to see daylight, Holmes. So you let the watch run down. That's what I did. It took 28 hours from one o'clock the night before last until five this morning. Now, how many turns did it take to rewind it? Fourteen, wasn't it? That's right. Therefore, one turn of the watch stem equaled two hours, proving that Gerald Lovelace had been murdered two hours before one o'clock at 11 p.m. When Gilly was the only one who could have done it. You know, Holmes, I still find it hard to believe that boy was capable of such a ghastly crime. He seemed so gentle. Oh, he is, he is. Except when his beloved dog's life was at stake, probably out of some mistaken notion of kindness, as Gerald Lovelace warned the boy of his intentions regarding the dog. It's a sad business, Watson, a sad business. I hate to think that boy is spending the rest of his life in a mental home. I have one prayer for his future. What's that, Holmes? The dog, Dadson, can't live very long. I pray that Gilly does not long outlive him. Doctor, that was a remarkable bit of deduction on the part of Mr. Holmes. Yes, extremely clever, wasn't it? Of course, if I may say so, I was of some small help myself. Small help? Why, Doctor, you practically solved the case by yourself. Oh, I wouldn't go towards it. But, Doctor, you did check all the alibis, didn't you? Yes, I checked where each suspect was at various times. Yes, you checked time. And what's more important than time? Well, I... Why, Doctor, time is even vitally important when it comes to wine. I was wondering how you were going to bring that in. And one thing we do know, Petri took time to bring you good wine. So nobody can miss with Petri wine. It's just got to be good. You know, you can't be in the wine business as long as the Petri family without really learning all about the fine art of making wine. And don't forget, the Petri family has been making fine wine since way back in the 1800s. So, naturally, they've been able to hand on down from father to son, from father to son, the result of generations of experience of turning luscious, sun-ripened grapes into fragrant, delicious wine. No matter what type of wine you prefer, you'll like it more if it's a Petri wine, because Petri took time to bring you good wine. Well, Dr. Watson, what new Sherlock Holmes story do you plan to tell us next week? Well, now, next week, Mr. Bartell, I'm going to tell you a most unusual adventure that Holmes and I had when we were attending a performance at the opera house in Rome. It concerns a famous singer who lost her voice, an understudy who was nearly lynched, and a murder that baffled the police. I call it the adventure of the terrifying cats. Well, that's a story we've got to hear. Thank you, Mr. Bartell. And before you go, I want to talk to our friends about their war bonds. You know, during the war, the best investment we could find was a United States war bond. And for my money, they're still a great investment. They're called United States savings bonds now, and only the name is changed. Savings bonds are sold in the same denominations and give you all the same advantages. And you can buy savings bonds at the same places at your bank or your post office or through the payroll savings plan. So invest all you can in United States savings bonds because you cannot find a better or a safer investment. Tonight's Sherlock Holmes adventure was written by Dennis Green and Anthony Boucher and was suggested by an incident in the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle story, The Five Orange Pips. Music is by Dean Fossler. Mr. Rathbone appears through the courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Mr. Bruce through the courtesy of Universal Pictures. where they are now starring in the Sherlock Holmes series. The Petri Wine Company of San Francisco, California invites you to tune in again next week, same time, same station. Sherlock Holmes comes to you from our Hollywood studios. This is Harry Bartell saying goodnight for the Petri family. Listen every Monday on most of these same stations at 8 o'clock to Michael Shane, followed immediately by Sherlock Holmes. This is the Mutual Broadcasting System.