‘The loss of the Alicia appeared destined to become logged amongst one of the great unsolved nautical mysteries until my father decided to speak up.’
All this while Holmes had been sitting with his eyes tight shut in a state of intense concentration. He said not a word and moved not a muscle and so bizarre was his appearance that Miss Lomas was prompted to pause for a moment, raising a questioning glance in my direction, as to whether Holmes was even awake. Holmes answered her doubts himself by suddenly jumping up from his chair and fumbling for a match with which to relight his pipe.
‘Miss Lomas,’ he began, ‘I must congratulate you. To a man as ignorant as myself of nautical matters, your narrative has proved both informative and stimulating. However, to a student of all that is extraordinary and, seemingly, unsolvable your tale is both gratifying and tantalizing. On the surface, the events and circumstances that you have described are impossible to accept. Therefore I must urge you to describe to me your unfortunate father’s version of what took place.’
‘Mr Holmes, I do not seek either your congratulations or your gratification.’ Miss Lomas’s cheeks were flushed as she admonished Holmes for his strange vocabulary. ‘However you refer to my father as “unfortunate” which seems to indicate that you already regard him as a victim of injustice. This fills me with fresh hope.’
‘My dear young lady, you must not take offence at my poor use of the English language. Equally, it would be unwise to build up what may prove to be false hopes at this early stage. Let us just say that I will not prejudge anything that you tell me until I am in full possession of the facts.’ Holmes smiled as he waved her to continue.
All this while Edward Lomas had been sitting in passive silence, upright with both hands flat upon his knees. He now placed his arm comfortingly about his sister’s shoulder. When he spoke it was with a strong, educated tone that belied his youthful, fresh-faced countenance.
‘Mr Holmes, my dearest Mildred, I think it best that I continue with the remainder of our story. My sister might find it difficult to contain her emotions as we must inevitably touch upon an unfortunate weakness in our father’s nature.’ Miss Lomas smiled gratefully at her brother and nodded her agreement to his suggestion.
Edward Lomas betrayed his discomfiture by repeatedly clearing his throat. Holmes offered him a cigarette, which Lomas gratefully accepted.
‘Well, gentlemen, there is no point in beating around the bush. In common with many men of the sea our father has a fondness for rum that manifests itself when he is landbound for any length of time. However his penchant for the camaraderie of the local inns often precludes all else and it has cost him many a lucrative voyage, of late. When he remains indoors he is an intelligent and kindly man and a good and loving father. I should mention also that we lost our poor mother some years ago to the tuberculosis. When once at his cups, however, it is impossible to persuade him to come home and he will spend most of his time and what little money he might have on rum for himself and his old shipmates, who take advantage of his misguided generosity and ridicule him for his jovial nature. He is now more renowned for his singing and amusing tales than ever he was for his abilities aboard ship.
‘Gentlemen, it is precisely because of his reputation as a “rummy” that his claim to have witnessed the last moments of the Alicia before she was lost was never taken seriously. Night after night he would repeat his tale to whoever he could find to listen to him. These persons, however, became progressively fewer, and soon folk began to find his assertions offensive rather than amusing. Those who had lost loved ones when the Alicia went down, employees of Mr Garside, even strangers who knew nothing of him, began clamouring to have him removed from the various taverns he was accustomed to frequent. Eventually he resorted to drinking alone at home and at least there, Mildred and I might enjoy some success in weaning him from his poison.’
At this point I paused from my frantic taking of notes and raised my hand to stop Lomas in mid-narrative.
‘Forgive my interruption, Mr Lomas, but I do not understand how your father’s addiction to alcohol could possibly lead to his incarceration on the grounds of insanity. Indeed, would not his reputation for drinking have saved him from such a fate? Surely his assertions, which everyone seemed to find so strange and offensive, would have been put down to rum rather than brain fever?’ I suggested, whilst noting Holmes’s look of surprised admiration at my timely interruption.
‘Indeed, Dr Watson, and that surely would have been the case were it not for the fact that he continued to make these claims even after our success in sobering him. In fact he began to restate his claims with increased insistence and detail, and began to force these upon the local authorities. He became something more than just the local nuisance and once the police became involved it was only a matter of time before action was taken against him. When he was brought before the local assizes we implored him to desist from these claims of his, but he was insistent and was still yelling them out up to the moment when he was forcibly removed. The last time we saw him he implored that my sister and I, at least, should believe in him. He was locked away in the knowledge that we did and, indeed still do. Now we ask that you help us to clear his name.’
‘I can make no such promise at this stage,’ Holmes replied. ‘However, if you inform me, as exactly as you can, of the claim your father is making, together with the name of the arresting officer, I promise to be on the first available train to Leigh-on-Sea with that express intention, I hope with my friend and colleague Dr Watson in close attendance.’
‘I should be honoured,’ I answered in reply to the three expectant glances cast towards me.
‘Thank you, gentlemen,’ Lomas said with much relief, whereupon Holmes passed him another cigarette.
‘Our father was returning from a night’s fishing trip aboard a small sailing dinghy he used from time to time. On this occasion he was after some dab for our Friday supper and having had little success within the estuary, found himself drifting out towards the open sea. From these depths he pulled out a substantial haul, enough for our supper and leaving him with a surplus to sell on the quayside. By the time that he turned for home it was almost dawn and he was celebrating his catch by way of a small flask containing rum. In the distance he saw a familiar shape moving in the opposite direction. It was, of course, the Alicia. He saluted her by raising his flask aloft, then, remembering how small was the cargo she was supposed to have been carrying, was immediately struck by how low in the water she was sitting.’
Holmes made a gesture towards my notebook. ‘Note that well, Watson; it is, I am sure, of the utmost significance.’ Then he waved towards Lomas to continue.
‘Our father, full of curiosity, promptly turned about and continued watching the Alicia’s progress out into the North Sea. This he was only able to do for a short while, because every so often patches of mist drifted across her course. One such patch of mist appeared on the Alicia’s port side, a patch notable for its large size and density and, to our father’s amazement the Alicia suddenly changed course and began tacking directly towards it!