Sherlock Holmes

Elementary: Deduces Mr Trevor’s background from his tattoo.
Quotable Quote: ‘(Victor Trevor) was a hearty, full-blooded
fellow, full of spirit and energy, the very opposite to me in most
respects; but we found we had some subjects in common, and
it was a bond of union when I learnt that he was as friendless
as I.’
Problems: Hudson’s role and motivation go unexplained: if he is
a fellow convict, why is he threatening to expose Trevor? (This
would implicate him also.) If one of the crew, why does he not
simply blackmail him? 
Observations: Told largely in flashback by Holmes, this is his first
case and one that spurred him on to make a profession of a
hobby.There appears to be an equal number of clues for either
Oxford or Cambridge being Holmes’ college town.
Verdict: Fascinating in the light it sheds on Holmes’ youth, this
is nonetheless an unfocused tale that veers more towards
swashbuckling piracy than crime detection. 3/5
20) The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual
UK: The Strand Magazine (May 1893, SP); USA: Harper’s Weekly
(13 May 1893,WHH)
The Case: A butler and maid have disappeared, leaving behind a
bag of rusty metal and a few old stones…
Characters: Reginald Musgrave, Richard Brunton, Rachel Howells,
Janet Tregellis, Sir Ralph Musgrave.
S H E R L O C K H O L M E S
• 50 •

---

Locations: 221B Baker Street; Holmes’ lodgings, Montague Street;
Hurlstone Manor House,West Sussex.
Recorded Cases:The Gloria Scott, A Study in Scarlet.
Unrecorded Cases: The Tarleton murders, Vamberry the wine
merchant, the old Russian woman, the singular affair of the
aluminium crutch, Ricoletti of the club foot and his abom-
inable wife.
Holmes: Is very untidy – keeps his cigars in the coal scuttle, his
tobacco in the toe of a Persian slipper, and his unanswered letters
pinned to the mantelpiece with a knife. Shoots a ‘VR’ monogram
in the wall with bullet holes. Keeps piles of case notes all over the
place, and only files them once every year or two. Keeps a
commonplace book (scrapbook). Calls Watson ‘my boy’.
Quotable Quote: ‘You know my methods in such cases,Watson: I
put myself in the man’s place, and having first gauged his intel-
ligence, I try to imagine how I should myself have proceeded
under the same circumstances.’
Problems: The sun’s position relative to the earth would have
changed fractionally over 300 years, leading to an inaccurate
siting of the crown. And why was it twisted so violently out of
shape?
Observations: Holmes’ third case as a consulting detective and,
like the previous story, one in which Watson hardly features,
the narrative being related solely by Holmes. It appears to be
inspired by Poe’s short story The Gold Bug. An adapted version
of the Musgrave Ritual was used in TS Eliot’s play Murder in the
Cathedral. The couplet ‘What was the month? The sixth from
the first’ was omitted from the original Strand text but inserted
into the UK version of The Memoirs.
Verdict: A nicely written treasure hunt with lashings of atmos-
phere. Holmes’ intelligence and reasoning powers are never
more believable. 5/5
T H E C A N O N
• 51 •

---

21) The Adventure of the Reigate Squires
UK: The Strand Magazine (June 1893, SP); USA: Harper’s Weekly
(17 June 1893,WHH)
The Case: A murdered coachman is found clutching a fragment
of a letter…
Date: 14–26 April 1887.