Holmes
Sherlock

The Adventure of Fëanor's Old Place

It was pitch-dark and without a moon, but Mason led us over the grass lands until a dark mass loomed up in front of us which turned out to be the ancient chapel. We entered the broken gap which was once the arch, and our guide, stumbling among heaps of loose masonry, picked his way to the corner of the building where a steep stair led down into the crypt. Striking a match (he had been given a box by Bilbo), he illuminated the melancholy place - dismal and evil-smelling, with ancient crumbling walls of rough-hewn stone, and piles of coffins, some of lead and some of stone, extending upon the side right up to the arched and groined roof, which lost itself in the shadows above our heads. Holmes had lit his lantern, which shot a tiny tunnel of vivid yellow light upon the mournful scene. Its rays were reflected back from the coffin plates, many of them adorned with the single star with many rays of this old family, which carried its honors even to the gate of Mandos.   "You spoke of some bones, Mr Mason. Could you show them before you go?"   "They are here in this corner." The trainer strode across and then stood in silent surprise as our light was turned upon the place. "They are gone", said he.   "So I expected", said Holmes, chuckling. "I fancy the ashes of them might even now be found in that oven which has already consumed a part."   "But why in the world would anyone want to burn the bones of a man who has been dead for thousands of years?" asked John Mason.    "It would, perhaps feel unseemly for a living person to watch his own skeleton", remarked Holmes.   "What on earth do you mean, Mr Holmes?"   "I mean that when Glorfindel was sent back to Middle-earth, he did, of course, wish to dispose of his previous mortal coil because the sight of it might seem bizarre", said Holmes. "I suspect that he was assisted in this by Wilson, the notorious canary-trainer. Do you remember Wilson?" he added, turned towards me. "He engaged our attention during our investigation of Cardinal Tosca, an inquiry which, you will recall, was carried out at the express wish of His Holiness the Pope. It turned out that Tosca was but a sock puppet for Fëanor; in fact, he was Fëanor's son Celegorm under an assumed identity."   "Holmes! Do you mean that Wilson now has decided to support a claim by Glorfindel to become High King of the Elves?"   Holmes set down his lantern and applauded me.   "Bravo, Watson! Yes, it does seem that the worthy Wilson has had a change of heart. Perhaps he did learn something by that distressful affair concerning Celebrimbor." Öjevind Lång