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    A Study in Scarlet
    A Study in Scarlet
    A Study in Scarlet
    Ebook162 pages3 hours

    A Study in Scarlet

    By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

    4/5

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    Dr. John Watson, recently returned from military service in Afghanistan, doesn't know what to make of his new roommate. Sherlock Holmes has profound knowledge of soil composition and sensational literature but knows next to nothing about contemporary politics and is ignorant of the fact that the Earth goes around the sun. Holmes hosts strange visitors at odd hours . . . and claims to be the world's only consulting detective. Soon Holmes and Watson are wrapped up in a mystery involving poison, a woman's wedding ring, and a word scrawled in blood. Will Holmes's science of deduction be enough to unravel the scarlet thread of murder? Taken from the 1887 copyright edition, this is an unabridged version of Scottish author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes novel.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherLerner Publishing
    Release dateJan 1, 2016
    ISBN9781512406443
    Author

    Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

    Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was born on May 22, 1859. He became a doctor in 1882. When this career did not prove successful, Doyle started writing stories. In addition to the popular Sherlock Holmes short stories and novels, Doyle also wrote historical novels, romances, and plays.

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    Reviews for A Study in Scarlet

    4/5

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    • 4/5
      My first ever Holmes. Wonderfully there is much of the modern understanding of Sherlock Holmes clearly laid out on the page. He is perhaps even more self aware than TV and movie adaptations allow describing his mood swings and eccentricities to Dr. Watson even before they move in together.

      There is a remarkable section in the middle where the narrative goes all Fenimore Cooper and we are transported from London to the snowy peaks of Utah. Quite unexpected. This was more fun even than I had expected. Fortunately I have already purchased further volumes.
    • 1/5
      I would have liked it better if most of part 2 didn't feel so completely separate from the rest (and maybe were more accurate and less bigoted), but the detectiving part was alright. Holmes is a bit insufferable, but interesting too.
    • 5/5
      A Study in Scarlet was the first Sherlock Holmes story published. Given its age (1886) it reads surprisingly well with crisp non-florid prose, almost like a novel written in 2017 by someone pretending to be from the 1800s. This is the first Sherlock Holmes I've read. It gives a sense that, while you may be confused, someone else understands the world and answers can be had. That is comforting, like a parent reassuring an anxious child. This is echoed in the name "Sure" as in assurance or confidence; "Lock" as in holding the key to the mystery; and "Holmes" which sounds like "Home", a reassuring feeling. The clues to the mystery are somewhat beside the point, contrived and making sense only after the explanation. Regardless, I really enjoyed it and look forward to dipping into more in a sequential fashion as they were published. Giving 5 stars as the origin story of Sherlock Holmes.For modern readers the Mormon sub-plot is weird and maybe a little offensive. However in the 1880s, they were indeed a novel, strange and exotic people who engaged in massacres and "harems". In the story they come to London, to the homes of the readers. It's a classic "invasion novel" popular at the time, similar to Dracula which saw Eastern Europeans as the invaders. The invasion of London by secretive sub-cultures is a common theme Holmes stories.
    • 5/5
      This is an enjoyable introduction to both Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and it will be interesting to see how their characters develop across the series. I particularly enjoyed the large section that took place on the American Plains (not something you expect in a Sherlock Holmes book!) and how the story unravelled that led up to events being investigated in London. This was particularly well done. I look forward to continuing with the series.
    • 4/5
      This is the first book I have read by the famed creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A Study in Scarlet is Doyle's first book featuring the infamous Sherlock Holmes. Holmes' character has been portrayed in the movies so much that I feel like I already knew the character. Reading the original text by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is, not surprisingly, better than any other theatrical take I have seen. A Study in Scarlet is an easy read that could easily be completed in one day. The edition that I own contains illustrations by the famous caricaturist, Gris Grimly. I am not a fan of graphic novels or even illustrations in books because it distract my own imagination of how things should appear. On the other hand, the illustrations are very impressive so if you are into that kind of thing, I would recommend this edition. Holmes' first adventure in detection in A Study in Scarlet reveals to the world the detectives impeccable deductive powers. Holmes meets his sidekick Dr. Watson in Doyle's freshman detective novel, where the two rent an apartment on Baker Street. It is a widely known fact that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle single handedly revolutionized the science of Forensics and crime scene investigation. There is an in-depth documentary about how Sherlock Holmes' methods were used in Doyle's fiction novels before they were ever used in real life. Knowing this fact makes reading these books much more interesting and entertaining to read. I plan on chronologically reading all the books written by Doyle that feature Sherlock Holmes.
    • 3/5
      I've long felt bad about never having read any of the nine books that make up the Sherlock Holmes canon, so finally I've rectified that... and what an odd little work it is.

      The first half of the book is what's important, historically, but it's the least interesting. Conan Doyle doesn't write natural dialogue, and a result the discussions between Watson and Holmes come across more like a treatise on how detective work - in the real world and in novels - is evolving and progressing. While this is all very very interesting, particularly to someone like myself who has read a lot of Christie and Poe etc, it feels like an essay that has been structured in story form, rather than the other way around.

      On top of this, I concede that I have a bias against this "one really smart quirky man always outdoes everyone" formula. Holmes started it, but it's returned in the last ten years or so to television, and personally I think it just weakens the narrative when every other character functions only as a sounding board for our god of a leading man. Sherlock is cunningly described by Watson as a seemingly paradoxical man who in fact has rational reasons for all of his education and activities, although even the great detective can't seem to fix his (bipolar?) moods. As their friendship is still embryonic at this stage, Watson can give us no insight into Holmes' life, and Holmes offers none, so he remains a cipher. But I'm treating this as a pilot episode, so that's okay. More immediately fascinating are the elements of contemporary life: street beggars working for Holmes, the necessary advantages and disadvantages that came from being a police officer in the era - thrilling stuff.

      The second half is a mixed bag also. Conan Doyle is an admirable prose writer, and his description of the events twenty years prior to the murders is captivating and gripping. On the other hand, it is filled with amazingly anti-Mormon sentiment. I'm no religious sympathiser myself, but I couldn't take it seriously when the narrator assured us that all Mormons kill or destroy anyone who attempts to leave their faith.

      An odd little novel, and I've already started the second one, since I'm very eager to see if Conan Doyle can somehow retain his marvelous leading character, whilst furthering his skills in the other required areas.

      (Two and a half stars)
    • 4/5
      This is the first book about Sherlock Holmes, and begins with his initial meeting and growing friendship with Dr Watson, who narrates the story. It's set in the latter part of the 19th century, and is in two parts. The first shows Holmes' analytical mind and attention to detail as he explains to Watson how he solves a rather unpleasant crime. Part One ends with the perpetrator being arrested.Part Two goes back in time, introducing a man and a young girl travelling rough in the United States after the rest of their group perished. They've given up on finding water, when they're discovered by a band heading to Utah. I don't know how accurate the portrayal of Mormon life and culture in the 19th century is, but it makes an excellent story, albeit quite spine-chilling at times. Ethics and morals are not pointed out, but it gradually becomes clear that there are often two sides to any story, and that the initial clear-cut crime could have quite clear motivations. Recommended to teens or adults who like historical crime fiction. I read it on my Kindle but it's widely available in other forms, mostly inexpensively or (from Project Gutenberg) free.
    • 3/5
      I was very much enjoying this book when all of a sudden I realized I was entirely lost.The writing style, characters, narration and the facts leading up to the mystery were all remarkably good, but in the end I was left completely confused and I found myself questioning if I somehow missed something. After that ridiculous backstory of the murderer, I still have to ask... Who the hell is it? What just happened?I will certainly read more of Holmes as there is much to come back for. I may have to re-read this one to see where I fell off from the story.
    • 4/5
      Mostly good or above and on task Bradley, Stabenow, Child, Tod and Winspear a cut above.
    • 4/5
      I last read this slim novel by Doyle about ten years ago. This must be my fourth or fifth reading, and yet it immediately gripped me again, as Sherlock Holmes always will. This is where we meet Holmes, seeing him always through Watson’s eyes. The first section is fascinating, fast-moving, and utterly charming. The mystery—a murder—provides a chance for Holmes to shine and Watson to marvel, even when irritated by Holmes’ superiority. If somehow you’ve missed a look at the London of fogs, gas lamps, and horse-drawn cabs, please give yourself a chance to meet (and love) characters and stories that have stood both the test of time, and some very dicey adaptations. This is the real thing, and so much fun.
    • 5/5
      Classic (1st) Sherlock Holmes, very well read. The Mormons don't come out so well in this story...
    • 4/5
      I wanted to give this a full 5 stars, but I just couldn't. Still, for my first venture into Doyle's Sherlock Holmes books/stories, I was happy with what I found.

      The thing that turned me off was that after the first part of the book is done and the second begins, I was very confused at what I was reading. There was no transition/introduction mentioning that the story was taking a major change in time, place, characters. It was no longer Sherlock Holmes in London; it was the Mormon migration to Utah.

      But near the end of the book, it all came together and the point of the sudden change was explained. I still think it was too abrupt and could have been done in a different way to preserve the flow, but all-in-all it was a fun read. I'm sure Doyle improved on his writing after this first novel, especially judging by the fact that it's so popular even over a century later.
    • 4/5
      This story is the first work about Homes.For the widespread oh this story, his name has been famous.And this story shows the first contact of Homes and watson.You can know the root oh their relationship, if you read this.
    • 4/5
      3.5 starsThis is the first Sherlock Holmes novel when Dr. Watson first meets Holmes. They become roommates and soon after, there is a murder. The mystery is actually solved in part one of the story, then part two gives more background information on how/why it all happened. It was off and on for me for holding my interest. I was just getting interested in Watson and Holmes getting to know each other, then the murder came about. I lost focus for a bit, then was getting interested again when part one ended, and there was a shift to different characters and a different setting, which caused me to lose interest a bit, once again. Once that got going, I got interested again. I do think I liked this better than the Holmes short stories I've read (although the way it was structured it almost felt like a couple of short stories until it came together in the end!). Overall, I liked it enough to rate it good.
    • 4/5
      Sherlock Holmes, Mormons, murder. Great read!
    • 4/5
      This first story in the Sherlock Holmes original storyline is great. It blew me away. I had no idea it was going to end relating to the Mormon practices of the time!
    • 3/5
      On one hand, it's lovely to meet young Sherlock and Watson before they've formed their scabrous, mean adult exoskeletons, but goddamn is the second half of this book DUMB. On one hand, it's pretty hilarious to see Conan Doyle's version of a BODICE RIPPIN WESTERN. On the other hand HOW THE HELL IS THIS EVER A PUBLISHABLE SENTENCE: "an old-standing and romantic feud, in which love and Mormonism bore a part." Sweet Jesus.
    • 4/5
      A Study in Scarlet is both Doctor Watson's and the world's first introduction to the frustrating, arrogant, and brilliant Sherlock Holmes. Watson in seeking a new flat to in which to live ends up paired with the consulting detective at 22B Baker Street. While at first Sherlock's profession and strange behavior is a mystery to the Doctor, he soon finds himself following Sherlock along in seeking out the truth behind the mysterious death of an American traveler. While I didn't like it as much as I enjoyed the tales in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, the novel is short and a quick read with a compelling mystery.
    • 4/5
      I'd heard great things about this book, and had high expectations after so enjoying the BBC Sherlock take - I wasn't disappointed. It's easy to appreciate why Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson are such iconic, well-loved characters.
    • 5/5
      Sherlock was one of the books I thought I'd never read... until I caught the BBC series. After reading, I think both the series and the books are fantastic in their own ways. This is my favorite of the first three Sherlock books. I'm planning on reading the others at another time. I had to write a review after a previous reviewer said they didn't like the books after seeing the series. It IS possible to enjoy both!
    • 3/5
      This introduction to the legendary Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson is fun to read, especially after all of the adaptations that have followed Arthur Conan Doyle's creation. The first case of murder with the word "Rache" written in blood on the wall provides an entertaining look at how Holmes works. The insertion of the second story is a bit jarring as it's connection to the first case is seemingly so far removed. The setting switches from London to the American West and the roots of Mormonism, depicted by Conan Doyle as a murderous, kidnapping, and enslaving community. The culmination of the stories is satisfactory and puts the focus of the narrative back on Holmes and his investigative skills.
    • 2/5
      I read The Hound of the Baskervilles when I was in high school, but not anything else till I read this--the first Holmes novel, published in 1887. The first hald of the book where we are introduced to Dr. Watson and to Holmes' methods, is of some interest. But the second hald,which tells of events before the muders in the first hald, is creaky and anot much. The Mormons in Utah are the villians, as they are in Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage. I don't think I need read any more Holmes books
    • 3/5
      I think this is the first time I've read a Sherlock Holmes story. They're so familiar from film and TV adaptations that it's good to get back to the original. I was startled by the change of pace in part two, where we're thrown out of 1880s London and into the Mormons' journey to Utah and the story of John and Lucy Ferrier. I'm guessing Conan Doyle doesn't have too many Mormon fans...
    • 4/5
      This is the first Sherlock Holmes I read on my own. I remember reading the hound of baskerville in school, but forced to do so, didn't remember that I enjoyed it.With the movie that came out recently, I found myself wanting to know more about sherlock and watson. There relationship and the type of intrigue that they would solve.I really enjoyed this one, it is short and sweet, but a good read nonetheless.
    • 4/5
      I've read many of the Sherlock Holmes stories, but somehow I missed this first novella that starts the Sherlock Holmes legend. This is the first story where Holmes meets Watson and the world is introduced to Holmes' bizarre behavior and his science of deductive reasoning. SPOILER ALERT - The mystery in this book was strong, but what I really enjoyed was the background story about the two murdered victims and the murderer. The victims are two men who used to be Elders in the Mormon Church. Back in Utah, one of the men forced a young woman to be one of his many wives, even though she was already betrothed to another man. The woman dies of a broken heart and her fiance spends the rest of his life chasing the two men all over the world to avenge his lover's death. I found the portion of the book that didn't involve Holmes and Watson to be fascinating, partly because it showed how some people viewed Mormons during the 19th Century, but also because the story was so well told. It made me wonder if there were other non-Sherlock Holmes stories that could have been written by this great author.
    • 4/5
      Study in Scarlet is in two parts. Part one: "Being a Reprint from the Reminiscences of John H. Watson, M.D., Late of the Army Medical Department." It's here that Dr. Watson and Mr. Sherlock Holmes meet for the first time. Watson, arriving in London and needing a place to stay, learns of Holmes looking to share his apartment. From the very beginning they are thrown together in a murder mystery. Watson is astounded by Holmes's ability to deduce facts from the smallest pieces of evidence.Part two: "Country of the Saints" steps back in time and tells the story of the Brigham Young and the Mormons settling in the plains of Utah. John Ferrier meets up with the four elders, Stangerson, Kemball, Jonston & Drebber and they take him and his young companion in. This story sets the backdrop for the murder mystery Holmes is trying to solve.
    • 2/5
      I was not expecting the Church of Latter-Day Saints but maybe Sherlock was.
    • 4/5
      The first of the Sherlock Holmes stories and an excellent opener. Fully intend to (finally) read all the others... a glaring gap in my literary history.
    • 3/5
      Enjoyed reading this in conjunction with the PBS series, "Sherlock"
    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed the beginning back story of Dr. Watson. How him and Sherlock Holmes first got together as roommates and began the fast track to friendship. I really thought the process of Holmes figuring out mysteries was fascinating. I found myself trying to pick upon the clues and figure them out before he did. I thought the second part of the book about the murder's story was quite sad. But I am looking forward to starting the other Holmes's books.

    Book preview

    A Study in Scarlet - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

    Conclusion

    Part I

    (Being a reprint from the reminiscences of JOHN H.

    WATSON, M.D., late of the Army Medical Department.)

    Chapter I

    Mr. Sherlock Holmes

    IN the year 1878 I took my degree of Doctor of Medicine of the University of London, and proceeded to Netley to go through the course prescribed for surgeons in the army. Having completed my studies there, I was duly attached to the Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers as Assistant Surgeon. The regiment was stationed in India at the time, and before I could join it, the second Afghan war had broken out. On landing at Bombay, I learned that my corps had advanced through the passes, and was already deep in the enemy’s country. I followed, however, with many other officers who were in the same situation as myself, and succeeded in reaching Candahar in safety, where I found my regiment, and at once entered upon my new duties.

    The campaign brought honours and promotion to many, but for me it had nothing but misfortune and disaster. I was removed from my brigade and attached to the Berkshires, with whom I served at the fatal battle of Maiwand. There I was struck on the shoulder by a Jezail bullet, which shattered the bone and grazed the subclavian artery. I should have fallen into the hands of the murderous Ghazis had it not been for the devotion and courage shown by Murray, my orderly, who threw me across a pack-horse, and succeeded in bringing me safely to the British lines.

    Worn with pain, and weak from the prolonged hardships which I had undergone, I was removed, with a great train of wounded sufferers, to the base hospital at Peshawar. Here I rallied, and had already improved so far as to be able to walk about the wards, and even to bask a little upon the verandah, when I was struck down by enteric fever, that curse of our Indian possessions. For months my life was despaired of, and when at last I came to myself and became convalescent, I was so weak and emaciated that a medical board determined that not a day should be lost in sending me back to England. I was dispatched, accordingly, in the troopship Orontes, and landed a month later on Portsmouth jetty, with my health irretrievably ruined, but with permission from a paternal government to spend the next nine months in attempting to improve it.

    I had neither kith nor kin in England, and was therefore as free as air—or as free as an income of eleven shillings and sixpence a day will permit a man to be. Under such circumstances, I naturally gravitated to London, that great cesspool into which all the loungers and idlers of the Empire are irresistibly drained. There I stayed for some time at a private hotel in the Strand, leading a comfortless, meaningless existence, and spending such money as I had, considerably more freely than I ought. So alarming did the state of my finances become, that I soon realized that I must either leave the metropolis and rusticate somewhere in the country, or that I must make a complete alteration in my style of living. Choosing the latter alternative, I began by making up my mind to leave the hotel, and to take up my quarters in some less pretentious and less expensive domicile.

    On the very day that I had come to this conclusion, I was standing at the Criterion Bar, when some one tapped me on the shoulder, and turning round I recognized young Stamford, who had been a dresser under me at Barts. The sight of a friendly face in the great wilderness of London is a pleasant thing indeed to a lonely man. In old days Stamford had never been a particular crony of mine, but now I hailed him with enthusiasm, and he, in his turn, appeared to be delighted to see me. In the exuberance of my joy, I asked him to lunch with me at the Holborn, and we started off together in a hansom.

    Whatever have you been doing with yourself, Watson? he asked in undisguised wonder, as we rattled through the crowded London streets. You are as thin as a lath and as brown as a nut.

    I gave him a short sketch of my adventures, and had hardly concluded it by the time that we reached our destination.

    Poor devil! he said, commiseratingly, after he had listened to my misfortunes. What are you up to now?

    Looking for lodgings. I answered. Trying to solve the problem as to whether it is possible to get comfortable rooms at a reasonable price.

    That’s a strange thing, remarked my companion; you are the second man to-day that has used that expression to me.

    And who was the first? I asked.

    A fellow who is working at the chemical laboratory up at the hospital. He was bemoaning himself this morning because he could not get someone to go halves with him in some nice rooms which he had found, and which were too much for his purse.

    By Jove! I cried, if he really wants someone to share the rooms and the expense, I am the very man for him. I should prefer having a partner to being alone.

    Young Stamford looked rather strangely at me over his wine-glass. You don’t know Sherlock Holmes yet, he said; perhaps you would not care for him as a constant companion.

    Why, what is there against him?

    Oh, I didn’t say there was anything against him. He is a little queer in his ideas—an enthusiast in some branches of science. As far as I know he is a decent fellow enough.

    A medical student, I suppose? said I.

    No—I have no idea what he intends to go in for. I believe he is well up in anatomy, and he is a first-class chemist; but, as far as I know, he has never taken out any systematic medical classes. His studies are very desultory and eccentric, but he has amassed a lot of out-of-the way knowledge which would astonish his professors.

    Did you never ask him what he was going in for? I asked.

    No; he is not a man that it is easy to draw out, though he can be communicative enough when the fancy seizes him.

    I should like to meet him, I said. If I am to lodge with anyone, I should prefer a man of studious and quiet habits. I am not strong enough yet to stand much noise or excitement. I had enough of both in Afghanistan to last me for the remainder of my natural existence. How could I meet this friend of yours?

    He is sure to be at the laboratory, returned my companion. He either avoids the place for weeks, or else he works there from morning to night. If you like, we shall drive round together after luncheon.

    Certainly, I answered, and the conversation drifted away into other channels.

    As we made our way to the hospital after leaving the Holborn, Stamford gave me a few more particulars about the gentleman whom I proposed to take as a fellow-lodger.

    You mustn’t blame me if you don’t get on with him, he said; I know nothing more of him than I have learned from meeting him occasionally in the laboratory. You proposed this arrangement, so you must not hold me responsible.

    If we don’t get on it will be easy to part company, I answered. It seems to me, Stamford, I added, looking hard at my companion, that you have some reason for washing your hands of the matter. Is this fellow’s temper so formidable, or what is it? Don’t be mealy-mouthed about it.

    It is not easy to express the inexpressible, he answered with a laugh. Holmes is a little too scientific for my tastes—it approaches to cold-bloodedness. I could imagine his giving a friend a little pinch of the latest vegetable alkaloid, not out of malevolence, you understand, but simply out of a spirit of inquiry in order to have an accurate idea of the effects. To do him justice, I think that he would take it himself with the same readiness. He appears to have a passion for definite and exact knowledge.

    Very right too.

    Yes, but it may be pushed to excess. When it comes to beating the subjects in the dissecting-rooms with a stick, it is certainly taking rather a bizarre shape.

    Beating the subjects!

    Yes, to verify how far bruises may be produced after death. I saw him at it with my own eyes.

    And yet you say he is not a medical student?

    No. Heaven knows what the objects of his studies are. But here we are, and you must form your own impressions about him. As he spoke, we turned down a narrow lane and passed through a small side-door, which opened into a wing of the great hospital. It was familiar ground to me, and I needed no guiding as we ascended the bleak stone staircase and made our way down the long corridor with its vista of whitewashed wall and dun-coloured doors. Near the further end a low arched passage branched away from it and led to the chemical laboratory.

    This was a lofty chamber, lined and littered with countless bottles. Broad, low tables were scattered about, which bristled with retorts, test-tubes, and little Bunsen lamps, with their blue flickering flames. There was only one student in the room, who was bending over a distant table absorbed in his work. At the sound of our steps he glanced round and sprang to his feet with a cry of pleasure. I’ve found it! I’ve found it, he shouted to my companion, running towards us with a test-tube in his hand. I have found a re-agent which is precipitated by hoemoglobin, and by nothing else. Had he discovered a gold mine, greater delight could not have shone upon his features.

    Dr. Watson, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, said Stamford, introducing us.

    How are you? he said cordially, gripping my hand with a strength for which I should hardly have given him credit. You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.

    How on earth did you know that? I asked in astonishment.

    Never mind, said he, chuckling to himself. The question now is about hoemoglobin. No doubt you see the significance of this discovery of mine?

    It is interesting, chemically, no doubt, I answered, but practically—

    Why, man, it is the most practical medico-legal discovery for years. Don’t you see that it gives us an infallible test for blood stains. Come over here now! He seized me by the coat-sleeve in his eagerness, and drew me over to the table at which he had been working. Let us have some fresh blood, he said, digging a long bodkin into his finger, and drawing off the resulting drop of blood in a chemical pipette. Now, I add this small quantity of blood to a litre of water. You perceive that the resulting mixture has the appearance of pure water. The proportion of blood cannot be more than one in a million. I have no doubt, however, that we shall be able to obtain the characteristic reaction. As he spoke, he threw into the vessel a few white crystals, and then added some drops of a transparent fluid. In an instant the contents assumed a dull mahogany colour, and a brownish dust was precipitated to the bottom of the glass jar.

    Ha! ha! he cried, clapping his hands, and looking as delighted as a child with a new toy. What do you think of that?

    It seems to be a very delicate test, I remarked.

    Beautiful! beautiful! The old Guiacum test was very clumsy and uncertain. So is the microscopic examination for blood corpuscles. The latter is valueless if the stains are a few hours old. Now, this appears to act as well whether the blood is old or new. Had this test been invented, there are hundreds of men now walking the earth who would long ago have paid the penalty of their crimes.

    Indeed! I murmured.

    Criminal cases are continually hinging upon that one point. A man is suspected of a crime months perhaps after it has been committed. His linen or clothes are examined, and brownish stains discovered upon them. Are they blood stains, or mud stains, or rust stains, or fruit stains, or what are they? That is a question which has puzzled many an expert, and why? Because there was no reliable test. Now we have the Sherlock Holmes’ test, and there will no longer be any difficulty.

    His eyes fairly glittered as he spoke, and he put his hand over his heart and bowed as if to some applauding crowd conjured up by his imagination.

    You are to be congratulated, I remarked, considerably surprised at his enthusiasm.

    "There was the case of Von Bischoff at Frankfort last year. He would certainly have been hung had this test been in existence. Then there was Mason of Bradford, and the notorious Muller, and Lefevre of

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