[Comprehensive Classics] Detective Mary

I have to say that it was right to invite Dr. Watson to meet the Higgins family.

Through Margaret's introduction, Mary learned that Nicholas Higgins was the union representative of Milton.That means he is a class-conscious worker.

This also makes him different from the Irish youths in the slums of London. Even if Mary blurts out the content of Marx's political economy, Higgins does not regard her as a companion-Mary Bennet's delicate dress and factory owner The identity entrusted by Thornton clearly draws a line between the two.

He is a worker, and she is the young lady who lives on the blood and sweat of the proletariat. This difference in status makes Higgins not easy to trust Mary.

But Dr. Watson was different.

He had come to see a doctor for Nicholas Higgins' daughter, and what father in the world would refuse a doctor to help his sick child?

Mary has said Marger's principle ten thousand times, but it is not as effective as Watson's "Where is the patient?" at this moment.

And Bessie Higgins' condition was worse than Mary imagined.

She was leaning against the bed, with a sallow face and a thin body.Bessie was in good spirits, her eyes lit up when she saw Margaret, she was about to speak, but before she could speak, she coughed a few times.

"You have a good rest," Margaret hurried forward, "I have invited a doctor to show you."

"It's an old problem."

Bessie was optimistic, she waved her hand indifferently: "What doctor do you need?"

Watson raised his eyebrows: "It is precisely because of old problems that we have to face up to its existence, miss."

Bessie tilted her head, she looked at the well-dressed, handsome and upright Watson in surprise, and then smiled: "You are a doctor? Well, how can I refuse the consultation that is delivered to my door?"

Hearing that she cooperated with the treatment, Watson's face looked better.

Mary has been watching Bessie while Watson consults with Bessie.

She looked very young, about fifteen or sixteen—the same age as Lydia.

Thinking of her little sister who was sulking in the Hale couple's mansion, Mary felt sorry for Bessie and couldn't help but feel a headache for Lydia.At the same age, some girls are struggling desperately for survival and food and clothing, while some girls, such as Lydia, are saddened by family reprimands and loss of love.

The gap between people is that big.

The two ladies waited quietly for Watson to finish his consultation. The young doctor looked solemn. He took a deep look at Bessie several times, and finally said slowly, "You know that your pneumoconiosis is very serious, right?"

Mary's heart sank when she heard the word "pneumoconiosis."

it is as expected.

As early as Margaret said that Bessie stopped seeing a doctor because of her "old problem", she had vaguely guessed this result.

Bessie is very young, just at the age of being alive and kicking, facing an infinite future.A fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl from a worker's family, apart from viral diseases, what other illnesses can last for so long?

In the nineteenth century, pneumoconiosis was almost the nightmare of all cotton spinners and miners, a ruthless and cruel "industrial killer".

"Pneumoconiosis?" Margaret didn't seem to understand the word.

"Cotton dust from cotton mills is sucked into the lungs," Watson explained, "and the body, unable to expel them, accumulates and eventually disturbs the organs and produces disease."

As he said that, he looked at Bessie solemnly: "You can no longer work in the factory, miss."

What Watson said was extremely serious, but Bessie didn't seem to take it to heart. Instead, she said with a smile: "Now that everyone is on strike, it's useless for me to think about the factory."

Margaret: "Bessie!"

Bessie: "I'm fine, you can relax. I just took advantage of the strike, so I'll take a good rest."

That's all there is to it.

Even the medical methods of the 21st century cannot reverse the lesions caused by pneumoconiosis. This is an occupational disease that can delay the damage, but it cannot be completely cured.

Watson told Bessie a few more words before getting up and leaving the bedroom. When he walked into the living room, he repeatedly emphasized to Nicholas Higgins: "Bessie can no longer go to work in the factory, she needs to rest."

"I know."

Higgins nodded: "Although she only has me as a father, I work hard enough to support two daughters."

After getting Higgins' promise, Watson was relieved.

He hesitated to speak several times, but finally chose to retract the doctor's order that he blurted out.Seeing his hesitant expression, Mary probably guessed what Watson wanted to say—the best way to recuperate was to send Bessie to the countryside with clean air and a mild environment.But if the Higgins family had this condition, where would they work in Milton?

"I will do my best," Higgins said calmly but gratefully. "Now, let's go back to the topic just now, ladies and gentlemen. Isn't your purpose of coming here to strike?"

Watson's free clinic behavior undoubtedly increased Higgins' favor towards the visitors. Although he still looked unsmiling, he still chose to have an open and honest conversation with the intruders.

"Yes." Mary said.

"You say there's a reason why the price of cotton goes up," Higgins said. "How do you know that?"

Mary asked without answering: "Don't you think the price of cotton has risen a bit fast recently, Mr. Higgins?"

Seeing Higgins' expression, Mary had the answer - of course he knew, he was a worker, whether cotton should go up or not, Higgins knew much better than Mary, the daughter of a squire who was idle.

"There have been no natural disasters or man-made disasters in the past year," Higgins said. "Hampton's factory is fine. Thornton's factory has always used Liverpool's cotton. The original price is a bit high, but it is stable. It should not It went up so much."

"The reason is simple," said Mary, "that there is more cotton than there is demand for."

The cotton that the factory needs is higher than the grain yield of cotton, and the price naturally rises.

Higgins frowned upon hearing this: "How could that be?"

The key point is that cotton, a raw material, can be grown everywhere, not only in Liverpool, but also in many places in the UK, not to mention the cheap Egyptian and American cotton.

Higgins listened, and Mary breathed a sigh of relief.

"While in London," she finally revealed her real intention, "a detective named Sherlock Holmes noticed that many factories in London that imported cotton raw materials from foreign countries had closed down because of supply shortages. Mr. Hamp also planned to pull Mr. Thornton and other partners to change suppliers, and he followed the clues to find the root cause."

"Then what is the root cause that Mr. Holmes found?" It was Watson who spoke.

Mary glanced at Watson in surprise. The young doctor's face was full of concern, and his clear eyes were full of genuine curiosity, as if what Mary was describing was not a simple case investigation, but a bizarre adventure story.

But she still answered Watson: "Some people use illegal means to forcibly monopolize the overseas cotton raw material market, so as to manipulate the life and death of the entire cotton spinning industry. Most overseas suppliers go bankrupt, shrinking the market, and Liverpool's cotton prices naturally rise. gone."

Watson: "Someone is so bold?"

More than that, Mary felt that it was better to hide Moriarty and his real motives now.Let Mr. Holmes explain these things to his good assistant in person, so that Mary will not torture Watson's nerves and heart.

"I was entrusted by Mr. Holmes to investigate Hamp," said Mary. "He thinks Hamp still has useful clues, but he won't tell me, so I need your help, Mr. Higgins. "

"Hamp is a cunning man," said Higgins resignedly. "You think he'll tell me?"

"No, you don't need to ask."

Mary took a deep breath.

After hesitating for a moment, she still said, "What I need is for you to tell the union these facts, and then... let the workers resume work."

Higgins: "..."

Anyone who had been quick-tempered to hear Mary making such a long detour, with the ultimate aim of getting the workers to give up the strike, would have thrown her out long ago.

But Mary felt that Higgins was not a brainless person.

Taking a step back, Watson treated his daughter for free. Even if he was angry with Mary, for Watson's sake, he wouldn't drive her out, right?

Fortunately Mary was right.

Higgins closed his eyes, and after a long time he broke the silence: "I think, Miss Mary, you have said so much, not just to act as Thornton's lobbyist, but for another purpose."

"I hope the workers can help me investigate the case," Mary said bluntly, "to monitor who Hamp met, what letters he sent, what investments he made, what suppliers he changed—even what time he got up, I need to know when to rest."

Mary didn't know how Holmes fit into the society of the street drivers and how he gained the respect of the workers.

She just knew that now, like some of Mr. Detective's cases, she needed someone's help, and she had to use her way to get the support of the workers.

"And in return."

Mary considered her words carefully, and solemnly promised: "I will do my best to collect and organize clues, help Mr. Holmes solve the case, and restore the price of cotton market to normal. In this way, when the price of raw materials decreases, the wages of workers will follow suit. The rise has returned to normal levels. So, Mr. Higgins, you know better than me that the factory owners will not give in, and helping me investigate the case is the only way to solve the root cause of the price increase of raw materials."

After finishing speaking, Mary thought for a while and continued to add: "I will try my best to persuade Mr. Thornton to provide some measures to improve the factory environment, so as to compensate everyone, what do you think?"

"Improve factory environmental measures."

It sounds like Mary is thinking out for the workers, but Higgins is not lightheartedly pleased.

He looked at Mary for a while, and then said: "It's not that perfunctory 'improving the environment' can persuade the workers, miss, those factory owners are much more cunning than you, do you think they can't think of a way to motivate the workers?"

Obviously, Higgins didn't take Mary's words to heart.

"I will explain this to the trade union," Higgins shook his head, "but in order not to startle the snake, this matter can only be known to the trade union representatives. I am afraid that there may be insiders."

"You're very thoughtful," agreed Mary, "and I'm going to persuade Mr. Thornton to sit down with you and have a good talk. What do you think?"

Higgins twitched the corners of his mouth, but he didn't smile: "I'm looking forward to your being able to persuade the gentlemen to give in, miss."

After leaving the workers' gathering area, Mary's mood was heavy.

And she was not the only one with a solemn expression. Dr. Watson looked back at the Higgins family's mansion and sighed heavily: "I have to tell you the truth, Miss Mary, Miss Margaret, Bessie's situation Very bad."

Mary could see it.

She doesn't know medical skills, but anyone can see the state of a terminally ill person with naked eyes.What makes Mary even more uncomfortable is that Bessie has a bright smile and an optimistic personality, but she herself understands her physical condition.

I didn't go to a doctor because there was really no cure, and there was no cure.

"All I can do is to help Mr. Holmes solve the case as soon as possible," Mary finally said, "I will do my best to help other workers."

"I'm interested in this Mr. Holmes after what you said." Watson forced a smile.

Isn't that better!

Mary was afraid that he wasn't interested. If the shadow of death hadn't weighed heavily on Mary's heart, she would have said a few jokes and struck while the iron was hot.

But now Mary couldn't laugh.

If she could, she really hoped she could change this reality.

Mary knew how pneumoconiosis came about and how to prevent it. The factory in the 21st century has strict hygiene standards and precautionary measures, she is very clear.However, due to the economic conditions of the workers, and the limitations of the current social productivity and scientific level, Mary could not promote these measures.

But do something for them, even if it doesn't work, try your best.

Mary's mind wandered, and she began to think about what she could do.