"
Holmes had looked annoyed, but his brow cleared, and he clapped
me on the shoulder.
"Well, well, my dear fellow, be it so. We have shared the
same room for some years, and it would be amusing if we ended
by sharing the same cell. You know, Watson, I don't mind
confessing to you that I have always had an idea that I would
have made a highly efficient criminal. This is the chance of my
lifetime in that direction. See here!" He took a neat little
leather case out of a drawer, and opening it he exhibited
a number of shining instruments. "This is a first-class,
up-to-date burgling kit, with nickel-plated jemmy, diamond-tipped
glass-cutter, adaptable keys, and every modern improvement which
the march of civilization demands. Here, too, is my dark lantern.
Everything is in order. Have you a pair of silent shoes?"
"I have rubber-soled tennis shoes."
"Excellent. And a mask?"
"I can make a couple out of black silk."
"I can see that you have a strong natural turn for this sort
of thing. Very good; do you make the masks. We shall have some
cold supper before we start. It is now nine-thirty.
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