故事有点长，分两半读完。
前一半发生在贝克街，福尔摩斯住的地方。先是研究了半天那顶帽子。然后给他帽子的警察找上门来，说和帽子一起捡到的鹅吃掉了，但在它肚子里发现了一颗蓝宝石。
福尔摩斯立刻便猜到了这颗宝石就是五天前伯爵夫人失窃的那一颗。虽然当时逮捕了一个水管工，但宝石却一直没有找到。
他让警察立马登报说失物招领，当天晚上这个Mr. Baker果然就来认领他的帽子和鹅。福尔摩斯还了他帽子，赔了他另一只鹅，并趁机问他之前那鹅是哪里买的，特别美味。Mr.Baker告诉他是从the Alpha Inn买的。
After our visitor had left, Holmes and I followed up this lead. We left and made our way through the cold London streets to the Alpha Inn.
Mr.Baker走后，福尔摩斯和华生就立马动身去了Alpha Inn。 店主人说，那批鹅是从Covent Garden Market一个叫做Breckinridge的人那里买的。
“Oh, well, they're not my geese," said the owner. "I got them from a gentleman down in Covent Garden. Breckinridge is his name."
他们立即动身去市场。找到那个人的时候，他正在准备打烊了。当福尔摩斯问他的鹅是从哪里买来的时候，没有想那个人居然怒了。说：你什么意思？你不是今天第一个因为鹅来烦我的人。我从未想过为着区区几只鹅还能惹出这么多麻烦。
To our surprise, Holmes' question made the bird seller angry. "Now look, mister," he said loudly. "What are you getting at? You're not the first person today to bother me about my geese. 'Where are they?' and 'Who did you sell them to?' I never heard such a fuss being made over some fowl."
但是福尔摩斯很懂得怎么去套别人话，他说他只是跟别人找了赌说鹅肯定是乡下养的。那位店主便掏出一个本子对他说：你恐怕要输了。你看，我都记着呢。我卖给Alpha Inn的鹅是城里养的，Mrs. Oakshott， 她就住在伦敦Brixton Road。
“Well, you've lost your bet then, mister," said Breckinridge. "They were raised in town. Here, look at my record book -- it shows who I bought the geese from. And it shows who I sold them to. And the birds I sold to the Alpha Inn were raised by a Mrs. Oakshott. And it says right here she lives on Brixton Road, in London!"
得到了新线索，福尔摩斯和华生便告辞了。他们站在街了犹豫着是立即去还是等明早再去找那位Mrs. Oakshott的时候，他们听到刚刚的店主在冲着一个矮个子男人嚷嚷：别再来麻我啦。我已经受够了关于我的鹅的问题。你自己去问Mrs. Oakshott. 是她的鹅！”
福尔摩斯立即走向这个男人，说他可以帮他。问他叫什么名字。他们发现这个男人，正是伯爵夫人丢失宝石时住的那家酒店的经理，James Ryder.
他们带着这个男人回到贝克街的住处。福尔摩斯拿了蓝宝石，让他坦白从宽。那位Ryder先生最终交待了整个犯案经过。
