A Study in Scarlet (Serial Edition Cover) — page 135: what you’re looking at

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

A STUDY IN SCARLET. 137 been secured. He crumpled the paper up and said nothing to his daughter, but the incident struck a chill into his heart. The twenty-nine days were evidently the balance of the month which Young had promised. What strength or courage could avail against an enemy armed with such mysterious powers? ‘The hand which fastened that pin might have struck him to the heart, and he could never have known who had slain him. Still more shaken was he next morning. They had sat down to their breakfast when Lucy, with a cry of surprise, pointed upward. In the center of the ceiling was scrawled, with a burned stick apparently, the num- ber 28. To his daughter it was unintelligible, and he did not enlighten her. That night he sat up with ‘is gun and kept watch and ward. He saw and he heard nothing, and yet in the morning a great 27 had been painted upon the outside of his door. Thus day followed day; and as sure as morning came he found that his unseen enemies had kept their register, and had marked up in some conspicuous position how many days were still left to him out of the month of grace. Sometimes the fatal numbers appeared upon the walls, sometimes upon the floors; occasionally they were on small placards stuck upon the garden-gate or the rail- ings. With all his vigilance John Ferrier could not dis- cover whence these daily warnings proceeded. A hor- ror, which was almost superstitious, came upon him at the sight of them. He became haggard and restless, and his eyes had the troubled leok of some haunted creature. He had but one hope in life now, and that was for the arrival of the young hunter from Nevada. (C(O) nn) (C 6)(0)()