Oh, look.
There's been an accident at the house.
Please, miss, please give me the key so I can unlock you.
Be sensible, Doreen.
This nonsense is getting you nowhere.
I demand to be arrested.
Now, just what's going on here?
This young lady, doctor.
Oh, hello, Mr. Armstrong.
Oh, good day, Wilkins.
She's a sufferer.
Suffragette.
We demand that women be given the right to vote.
Yes, yes.
She and some other suffragettes invaded the home of the Honorable Chauncey Pimpleton
and started a demonstration.
Pimpleton?
Why, he's a member of Parliament.
Lives just around the corner.
That's him, sir.
We were getting them to move on, and this young lady broke loose
and chained herself here, sir.
But why did you do it, miss?
Because we want equal rights for women.
That's why.
Yes, but I don't see how chaining yourself to iron railings
is going to obtain for you.
You wouldn't understand.
You're a man.
She probably wants to wear trousers, too.
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
If I wanted to, I would.
Mr. Holmes, can you get her loose?
She slipped the key of the handcuffs down her...
We're waiting for a hacksaw now, sir.
That's right, a hacksaw.
Hack me to pieces while you're at it.
I'm only a woman.
I believe I can help you.
I don't want any help.
She wants to vote.
Now go on home and cook your old man his supper.
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
No, Reverend Lee, I insist upon it.
I'll leave her in your hands if I may, Mr. Holmes.
Coward!
You'd arrest me if I was a man.
Mr. Holmes, may we impose upon you?
I somehow have the impression you already have.
Won't you come up?
Let me introduce ourselves.
This is my fiancée, Miss Doreen Meredith.
First secretary for Give the Women the Vote League.
I'm delighted to meet you, Miss Meredith.
And I'm Henry Travers, personal secretary to Mr. Pimpleton.
Oh, yes, yes, I seem to remember that it was Mr. Pimpleton
who led the attack on the suffragette bill in the house
the other day when it was defeated.
And very, very resoundingly defeated.
Yes, that old stuffed shirt.
He'll be sorry.
I wish you'd get out of this Give Women the Vote League
Doreen, it's dangerous.
Yes, I can see that it has its inconveniences, Mr. Travers,
but I don't really believe that it's dangerous.
Would you call bombs dangerous, Mr. Holmes?
Good heavens, are they using bombs now?
Oh, just a teeny one.
Boris and I made it to blow up a lion.
My dear young lady, you don't blow up a lion, you shoot it.
Who is Boris?
An anarchist.
He's an old deer who wouldn't hurt a fly.
Blowing up lions, anarchists.
Sometimes I don't know where modern England's going.
Well, perhaps Miss Meredith might be good enough
to indicate that direction for us.
Well, it all began at the meeting of the
Give the Women the Vote League.
Miss Agatha Axton, our president, was presiding.
Quiet, ladies, quiet.
I call this meeting of the council in order to consider
our next step in view of the defeat we suffered last week.
As you know, the Honourable...
The Honourable, gosh, even if he is my cousin.
Well, anyway, Chauncey Pimpleton rallied the anti-women forces
in Parliament and defeated our bill by the narrow margin
of 347 to 1.
Boo!
Down with Pimpleton!
Boo!
Pimpleton!
We've got to do something, ladies.
We're not making enough noise in the world.
What would Joan of Arc do?
What would Catherine of Russia do?
They would attack.
They would blow up something.
Blow up something?
How do you do that?
I don't know, but they would do it.
Don't bombs blow up things?
I think they do.
Let's buy a bomb.
Where can you buy one?
I've never heard of a bomb shop.
We could make one.
I'll make one.
Can you?
I don't know.
I've never tried.
I'll get a book.
Good.
But, um, what shall we explode?
Let's explode a lion.
Wonderful.
We'll explode a lion.
A very small one, of course.
Well, anyway, I didn't know how to make a bomb.
So I...
So she advertised in the Times.
Wanted a person who knows how to make a bomb.
Oh, yes, yes.
Dr. Watson and I read the advertisement.
We tried to decipher it under the impression that it was a code.
Never occurred to us for a moment that it meant what it said.
Well, anyway, Boris answered it.
Yes, that's right.
I am the person who makes a bomb.
Sit down.
Please, it is you who advertised?
Yes, it's me.
I'm so glad you answered, Mr. Mr.
Turgoff.
Boris Turgoff.
Do you really know how to make a bomb, Mr. Turgoff?
All over the world I have made bombs.
Big ones and little ones.
Bombs that go...
And bombs that go...
Well, you must understand, we don't want to hurt anyone.
We just want to blow up one of the lines in Trafalgar Square.
I think a little bomb would do.
One that goes...
Do your bombs make a lot of noise?
Not those that go...
Oh, I must ask you just another question.
It's a matter of principle.
Do you believe in the equality of the sexes?
Please, I'm an anarchist.
All I believe in is nothing.
Oh, excuse me.
That sounded funny.
Have you the ingredients for the bomb, please?
Well, I'm afraid you'll think me an awful amateur.
But I don't know what ingredients go into a bomb.
Is nothing.
We'll go to the chemist and buy them.
Here you are, sir.
Everything you ordered.
Glycerol, tolerine, nitrate, and sulfuric acid.
Oh, yes, and gunpowder.
Yes, ma'am.
Be careful, though.
You could make a bomb with what you have here.
Good day.
Glycerol, tolerine, nitrate, and sulfuric acid.
Gunpowder?
Good lord, that's all they can make with the stuff.
A bomb.
It's clever, no?
A green croquet ball.
Who would suspect a green croquet ball?
I'm sure I wouldn't.
Like this, it unscrews in half.
Are you sure it'll work?
With a trigger, yes.
With no trigger, no.
A trigger I must put in.
Have you bought some wire, please?
Oh, no, I'm afraid I forgot.
Would a hairpin be all right?
I'm afraid it's possible.
Hello, darling.
Guess what this is.
Well, it's a croquet ball, of course.
No, it isn't.
Here, let's put it back into the garden.
But, darling!
Fortunately, Boris made the wrong formula.
It was only a small explosion.
And so you made another bomb out of a croquet ball.
Oh, yes, we went to work on it right away.
Where is it?
Here.
Doreen!
Good lord, get it away from her, Holmes!
Well, it won't go off unless it's hit very hard.
Might I see it, Miss Meredith?
Take care, my dear chap.
That's no croquet ball, you know.
That's precisely what it is, Watson.
Just a very ordinary croquet ball with a crest on it.
Why, that's Mr. Pimbleton's favorite croquet ball from his garden set.
And the crest?
The family's.
His uncle's the Earl of Clareborough.
His favorite croquet ball, did you say, Mr. Travers?
Does he always use the green one?
Always.
He plays every afternoon at five.
He's as regular as a clock.
Then if that's his croquet ball, then someone must have...
Exactly, Watson.
Well, then he'll go and play croquet with a bomb.
What time is it now?
Five o'clock.
He only lives just around the corner.
If he's as punctual as Mr. Travers says he is...
He is?
He is.
He was standing here when it happened.
It was his first swing at it.
I've never seen a man so punctual in the history of Scotland Yard.
Oh, really, Mr. Strait.
Was there anyone else with him at the time?
Fortunately, no.
Mr. Pimpleton had invented a game where he played alone.
He always won that way.
Tell him that ball, Holmes, might be another bomb.
Oh, won't be soon, though, will be, Watson.
Any other leads, Mr. Strait?
Well, he received a delegation here in the garden.
Oh, yes, yes.
I seem to have heard something about that.
It's a game Doreen Meredith presented him with a suffragette's petition.
Doreen Meredith.
Yeah, a lovely name.
Yes, she's rather...
Mr. Strait, do you believe the ladies blew him up because he defeated their petition in the house?
Yeah, let me have a go at this.
Well, you know these suffragettes, they're capable of anything.
These wickets aren't in line enough.
No, it's not that, Mr. Strait.
Your swing is wrong, look.
But nevertheless, bombing seems a bit drastic, even for suffragettes.
So is this business of their wanting a vote?
Well, why not give them a vote?
They couldn't do any worse with it than we have.
Oh, hello, sir.
This is Mr. Travers, Mr. Pimpleton's private secretary.
Mr. Holmes, Dr. Watson.
Oh, I've already met...
How do you do, Mr. Travers?
You were already what?
Oh, I've already seen Mr. Holmes down from the window.
I understand that Mr. Pimpleton was the heir of the old heir of Clareborough.
Yes.
Tell me, who is next in line to the title?
Well, possibly I am.
I'm a remote cousin of the Earl's.
Yes, I understand that you were in the garden with Mr. Pimpleton
when the delegation from the suffragette movement called on him.
Yes, I was.
Interesting. Do you play croquet, Mr. Travers?
No, I prefer lawn tennis.
Quite so, quite so.
But you really ought to try croquet, you know.
Under normal circumstances, it's a fascinating and completely harmless game.
From the Pimpleton, Holmes suggested a stroll in Hyde Park.
I suspected what he hoped to find there.
Here in Hyde Park, where vast multitudes of people can gather to hear us
under the banner of free speech,
I call on the women of England to demand equal rights with men.
We cook, we sew, we weave, we weave.
We sew, we scrub.
Why shouldn't we vote?
Throughout the ages, women have been the pawns of men.
Men of England, hold your ground.
Keep women where they belong, in the kitchen.
Women of England, keep out of the kitchen.
Give them the vote now, and in five years' time, they'll be running the country.
Sir, I ask you, are women slaves?
Sir, I ask you, are they capable of voting?
I no speak English.
Haven't you got anything better to do, you... you...
Here now, don't you talk to me like that.
No rioting, please, or I'll have to ask you to move along.
I was moving along anyway.
I'm very particular whom I speak next to.
Ha! Free speech.
You say something men don't like, they tell you to move on.
Well, of course, Miss Meredith, like all prophets, you're ahead of your times.
And, uh, without honor in your own country.
Oh, Miss Meredith, we'd like to ask you a few questions about Boris Turgov.
Oh, poor Boris. He'll never forgive me for getting him in this fix.
He's so gentle, really.
Is who there?
Sherlock Holmes.
You want what?
I'd like to have a word with you, Mr. Turgov.
I'm not going to let you go.
You may have the chance to see the real Boris Turgov.
You don't.
I'm not going to let you go.
This is my good friend, Dr. Watson.
I'm told you manufacture bombs, Mr. Turgov.
but one her young man sets off accidentally, he says.
Do you know where this other bomb blew up?
Yes, in Mr. Pimpleton's garden.
Not the first time that the Turgoff bomb
goes off in the wrong place.
Can you explain how the bomb
became substituted for the croquet ball?
No, I do not go inside the house.
I wait outside.
Then the police come.
And when the police come, Turgoff goes, always.
Without exception.
I see.
Miss Meredith tells me that you sent it to someone
who makes little bags in which to carry bombs.
Yes, a friend of mine I have who makes bomb bags.
Who is he and where does he live?
A Greek named Chantenion.
He lives in Soho at 22 Flower Street.
A Greek named Chantenion?
He says he's a Greek, am I to call him a liar?
Thank you very much, Mr. Turgoff.
Come, Watson.
Mr. Turgoff, I wouldn't manufacture any more bombs
if I were you.
I'm going to Scotland Yard looking for you.
What?
No more bombs?
What am I to make then?
Paper bags filled with air, maybe?
Paper bags?
Now where?
Well, now a visit to Mr. Chantenion,
and then a bit of research at the College of Heralds.
College of Heralds?
You mean where they keep all the records
of the title fairman?
Precisely.
This case started with the theory that women
would get the vote, and I believe that one day they will.
Oh, nonsense.
And the solution of the crime lies in the theory.
You mean some hidden factor we may have overlooked?
Some subtle factor, Watson.
Like a bomb?
He he he.
Ah, Holmes.
Dr. Watson?
Good morning.
Isn't it a wonderful day?
Ah, Mr. Strait, you look very pleased with yourself.
I am, Holmes, I am.
I'm going to give you a sample of Scotland Yard's
finest cotton.
Oh, I'm so glad.
I've been waiting for this.
Oh, I'm so glad.
I've been waiting for this.
You see, Mr. Strait, you know,
I'm not the kind of man who just takes a sample
and puts it in his pocket and goes,
oh, that's a fine cotton.
I'm not the kind of man who just takes a sample
and goes, oh, that's a fine cotton.
I'm not the kind of man who just takes a sample
and goes, oh, that's a fine cotton.
I'm going to give you a sample of Scotland Yard at work.
No magnifying glasses, just plain, ordinary police routine.
Excuse me, Dr. Watson.
Send him in, Wilkins.
Very good, sir.
Send who in?
All the people connected with this bomb business.
Miss Axson, will you sit here, please?
Miss Meredith, will you sit over there?
Mr. Tugger, this, Mr. Holmes, is Miss Doreen Meredith,
the young lady who presented the suffragettes petition
to Mr. Pimpleton.
We found set up in her kitchen a laboratory.
She's been making bombs.
I do not deny it.
I told you we were going to blow up a lion.
A lion?
Oh, come now, Miss Meredith.
We were also able to nab her confederate, this man,
Boris Turgoff, an anarchist.
He makes bombs, too.
The Turgoff bomb.
It is famous.
Wilkins, send in Chen Ten-Yang, will you?
Very good, sir.
Chen Ten-Yang is a naturalized Greek born
in Brazil of Chinese parents.
He makes little bags for carrying bombs.
Fascinating occupation.
Ah, Chen.
Tell me, Chen, did this young lady order a bag from you?
Yes, mister.
Hm.
Did you make this bag?
Yes, mister.
Five shilling, six pence.
That is all, but on price.
I see.
Well, there it is, Holmes.
There you are.
An open and shut case.
Miss Meredith, you are a genius.
She killed her husband, Mr. Turgoff,
and you have a case.
An open and shut case.
Miss Meredith killed Pimpleton because he
was anti-suffragette.
Ingenious, Lestrade.
Really quite ingenious.
You know there's only one thing wrong with it.
What?
Neither Miss Meredith nor Mr. Turgoff are guilty.
Oh, I didn't expect you to agree with me.
You never have.
Well, not always, Lestrade, but sometimes, you know.
Sometimes.
Why only for the rifle, in the state你
of Brother.
With four inmates are beaten to death they
will jump in there.
But what was the issue?
Humbus day.
penalty should go to Lestrade.
Miss Meredith, you
ask why or what reason only?
To be next in line to the title of the Earl of Clerborough.
Wait a minute.
This gentleman had access to it, too.
Together with this lady.
What does that mean?
It's an intriguing title, Clareborough.
First created in 1417, it has an unusual clause in its charter.
Once and only once may the title pass to a female,
if the female be next in line.
That would automatically make her a countess.
So far, that hasn't happened in the history of the title, until now.
I'm the next male member of the family.
It's Agatha. She's older than I am.
I refuse to sit here and...
Watson!
Thank you.
You'll notice, Lestrade, that this bag is identical
to Miss Meredith's.
Chen, who ordered this second bag from you?
This woman, mister.
Chen, why didn't you tell me this?
You no ask me, mister.
This man, he ask me.
And you see, the switch was simple and premeditated, of course.
Why, Miss Axton, how could you?
Preposterous!
Anyway, young man, you have no right to come into my house
and get that handbag.
It's thieving, and it's against the law!
Detain her, Wilkins.
Mr. Holmes, what ever made you think of Aunt Agatha?
Well, I think she's a good woman.
Holmes, what ever made you think of Aunt Agatha?
Well, at least I can tell you this much, Mr. Travers.
I didn't use a magnifying glass.
You see, the true deductive mind knows just when
to substitute routine investigation for deduction.
Are you going somewhere, Lestrade?
I have crossed the room, Mr. Holmes.
I have put on my hat.
I deduce, therefore, that I am leaving.
Routine investigation will reveal the fact, Mr. Holmes,
that I have gone to see the commissioner.
I will ask him to do everything in his power
to encourage the suffragette movement.
We will then no doubt have a woman inspector in this office.
And when Boris gets out of jail, Mr. Holmes,
I will ask him to make me little boss.
I will then go about London blowing up lions!
Good day!
You know, Holmes, I've been worried about his complexion lately.
I think Lestrade needs a rest.
Yes, Watson, yes, I've been trying to agree.
THE END
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