“He was not studying medicine.” [STUD]
From the very beginning of their association, we know that Sherlock Holmes was good at science-related topics, thanks to Dr. Watson's list "Sherlock Holmes—his limits."
But upon preparing to meet him for the first time, after young Stamford talked him up as "an enthusiast in some branches of science," it was only natural for Watson to ask:
“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.”
From the very beginning, we were meant to believe that Sherlock Holmes was an expert chemist. But this was only judged as such by Stamford, who had a limited knowledge as a dresser; and by Watson, who only had enough knowledge of chemistry as any medical man of the time.
Holmes's demonstrations of his chemical expertise may have impressed amateurs, but it's just possible that true experts may have responded as Watson did later in that same story:
“Brag and bounce!” thought I to myself. “He knows that I cannot verify his guess.”
For more on this topic, as explored by Sherlockian chemist Remsen Ten Eyck Schenck in a 1952 issue of The Baker Street Journal, listen to Trifles Episode 403: Baker Street Fables.
Meanwhile, let's see where careers are headed at Baker Street Elementary...
Baker Street Elementary follows the original adventures of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, as they and their friends work through the issues of elementary school in Victorian London. An archive of all previous episodes can be viewed at www.bakerstreetelementary.org.
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