Exercises

1. How did Sherlock Holmes impress Dr. Watson?

1) He knew what Dr. Watson wanted to say.

2) He knew what Dr. Watson was thinking about.

3) He managed to make a love potion.

4) He played the violin the whole day.

2. What method Sherlock Holmes use to produce an amazing effect on Dr. Watson?

1) He constructed a series of conclusions, each dependent on the previous one and took away all the central elements and showed only the first and the last ones.

2) He constructed a series of conclusions, each dependent on the previous one and showed only the last one.

3) He didn’t construct any series of conclusions and just guessed.

4) It is not mentioned in the text.

3. What did Dr. Watson think of a sheet of paper that Holmes gave him?

1) He thought it was a letter from Mr.Cubitt.

2) He thought it was a puzzle.

3) He thought it meant nothing.

4) He thought it was a child’s drawing.

4. What did Mr. Hilton Cubitt send to Sherlock Holmes?

1) A letter

2) A telegram

3) A letter and a puzzle

4) A postcard

5. What conditions did Elsie have before the marriage? Choose the right variants:

1) To let her be silent about her past.

2) To buy a lot of jewelry.

3) To believe her that she didn’t do anything wrong.

4) To invite all her relatives to the marriage.

6. How long have the Cubitts been married?

1) Six months

2) 10 years

3) 5 years

4) 1 year

7. Did Mr. Cubitt want to talk to his wife directly?

1) Yes, he did.

2) Yes, he did, but he couldn’t.

3) No, he didn’t. He didn’t take care of her.

4) No, he didn’t. He was afraid of her.

8. What was “the homework” for Mr Cubitt?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

9. Choose the right verbs:

She…………… me an opportunity to…………… it over and…………… the wedding if I wanted to…………… so.

1) gave, thought, canceled, do

2) gives, think, cancels, do

3) gave, think, cancel, do

4) had given, think, canceled, did

10. Complete the sentences with these words and expressions:

ago, at first sight, turned white, took it, shook hands, with all my heart

1) She……………, read the letter and threw it into the fire.

2) You told me four weeks…………… that Thurston wanted to buy some South African securities and share them with you.

3) Then I will help you…………….

4) To my surprise she…………… very seriously, and asked me if any more dancing figures appeared to let her see them.

5) …………… one can think that it’s a child’s drawing.

6) He…………… with each of us and was going to sit down.

11. Insert the right prepositions:

at, aside, to, from, for (2), about, in, of, into

1) But…………… a month ago…………… the end of June…………… the first time I saw some signs of trouble.

2) Although I was accustomed…………… Holmes’s curious abilities, this sudden intrusion…………… my thoughts was rather incomprehensible.

3) He looked…………… my point of view like a strange, skinny bird.

4) It consists…………… funny little dancing figures.

5) He put…………… his test-tube and began to lecture like a professor addressing his class.

6) Your cheque-book is locked…………… my table, and you have not asked…………… the key.

12. Complete the table:

II

After the interview Sherlock Holmes was very thoughtful. Several times in the next few days he took this piece of paper from his note-book and looked long at the curious figures on it. He didn’t share his ideas with me. But one day, two weeks later, when I was going out he said to me:

“You had better stay here, Watson.”

“Why?”

“Because Hilton Cubitt called me this morning. Do you remember Hilton Cubitt, the case of the dancing men? He may be here at any moment. As far as I understood there were some new incidents.”

We didn’t have to wait for a long time, because our Norfolk squire came straight from the station as fast as he could. He looked worried and depressed, his eyes were tired.

“It’s getting on my nerves, this business, Mr. Holmes,” he said, as he seated into the armchair. “I feel really bad, I’m surrounded by invisible unknown people, who want something from me and my family. But in addition to that it’s frightening to see that it’s slowly killing your wife. She’s just dying before my eyes, Mr. Holmes!”

“Has she said anything yet?”

“No, Mr. Holmes, she has not. Sometimes I saw that my poor wife wanted to speak, but could not do it. I have tried to help her; but I must say I’m a clumsy man in these things, and scared her off from it. She has spoken about my old family, and our reputation in the county, and our pride and honour. And I always felt it was very close to the point… but somehow she couldn’t go further.”

“But you have found out something, haven’t you?”

“Yes, Mr. Holmes. I have several fresh dancing men pictures for you, and, what is more important, I have seen that man.”

“What, the man who draws them?”

“Yes, I saw him while he was doing it. But I will tell you everything in order. When I got back after my visit to you, the very first thing I saw next morning was some fresh dancing men. They were drawn in chalk on the black wooden door of the tool-house, which stands beside the lawn in front of windows. I took an exact copy, and here it is.” He took out a paper and laid it on the table. Here is a copy of it:

“Excellent!” said Holmes. “Excellent! Pray, continue!”

“When I had taken the copy I washed the marks out. But two mornings later fresh symbols appeared. I have a copy of it here”:

Holmes rubbed his hands and said with delight:

“Our material is quickly growing.”

“Three days later another message was left written on the paper. I found it on the sun-dial. Here it is. The symbols are, as you see, exactly the same as the last one. After that I decided to hide and wait. So I got out my revolver and I sat up in my room, from where I could see the lawn and garden. About two in the morning I was seated by the window, it was very dark, when I heard steps behind me, and there was my wife in her dressing-gown. She tried to persuade me to come to bed. I told her frankly that I wished to see who it was who played such stupid tricks on us. She answered that it was just a silly joke, and that I should not think about it.

“‘If it really annoys you, Hilton, we might go and travel, you and I, and so avoid this nuisance.’

“‘What? It means that we will leave our own house because of some jokers?’ I said. ‘The whole county will be laughing at us.’

“‘Well, come to bed,’ she said, ‘and we can discuss it in the morning.’

“Suddenly, as she spoke, I saw that her pale face became paler, and her hand grabbed mine. Something was moving in the shadow of the tool-house. I saw a dark figure which stopped in front of the door. I took my revolver and was going to run out, when my wife tried to stop me and held me with her arms. I tried to get rid of her, but she held me very desperately. At last I broke free, but by the time I had opened the door and reached the house the man disappeared. He had left some dancing men, but their arrangement was the same, which the previous and which I have copied on that paper. I couldn’t find that man anywhere, although I ran all over the garden. But the amazing thing is that he must have been there all the time, because when I examined the door again, he had drawn some more of his pictures under the line which I had already seen.”

“Do you have that fresh drawing?”

“Yes, it is very short, but I made a copy of it, and here it is.”

Again he showed a paper. The new dance was in this form:

“Tell me,” said Holmes – and I could see that he was very much excited – “was this an addition to the first, or did it appear separately?”

“It was on a different panel of the door.”

“Excellent! This is very important for us. It fills me with hopes. Now, Mr. Hilton Cubitt, please continue your interesting story.”

“I have nothing more to say, Mr. Holmes, except that I was angry with my wife that night. She held me when I could catch this terrible man. She said that she feared that he could hurt me. For a second an idea came to my mind that perhaps what she really feared was that I could hurt him. I could not doubt that she knew who this man was and what he meant by these strange symbols. But my wife has such a tone in her voice, Mr. Holmes, and a look in her eyes which forbid doubt – I am sure that she told me the truth. That’s it, and now I want your advice, what I should do. My own idea is to ask my farm friends to hide in the garden, and when this man comes again we can give him such a lesson that he will leave us in peace.”

“I fear it will not be enough,” said Holmes. “How long can you stay in London?”

“I must come back today. I can’t leave my wife alone all night. She is very nervous and begged me to come back.”

“I think you are right. But then we could return together in a day or two. Anyway, leave me these papers, and I think that I’ll visit your house soon. And we’ll be able to throw some light on your case.”

Sherlock Holmes looked professionally calm until our visitor had left us. But it was easy for me, who knew him so well, to see that he was very excited. The moment that Hilton Cubitt’s left, my friend rushed to the table, laid out all the pieces of paper containing dancing men in front of him and began examining them.

For two hours I watched him – he was very busy copying dancing men and writing letters, he was so completely occupied with this task that he had evidently forgotten about me. Sometimes he was making progress and whistled or sang something. Sometimes he became puzzled, and could sit for hours looking absent-minded. Finally he jumped up from his chair with a cry of satisfaction, and walked up and down the room rubbing his hands together. Then he wrote a long telegram.

“If my answer to this is right, you will have a very pretty case to your collection, Watson,” he said. “I think that we should go down to Norfolk tomorrow. And we will finally solve this puzzle, which worries our friend so much.”

Of course I was filled with curiosity, but I knew that Holmes liked to make his conclusions at his own time and in his own way. So I waited.