“I have no idea what he intends to go in for” [STUD]
When we first meet Dr. John H. Watson, M.D., he's wallowing in his situation at the Criterion. After running into his old dresser, Stamford, the latter tells Watson of a peculiar student in the chemical laboratory. Watson naturally assumes, “A medical student, I suppose?”
It's a natural question from a medical man. Stamford indicates that Holmes's bedside manner may have been less than ideal for such a profession:
“Holmes is a little too scientific for my tastes—it approaches to cold-bloodedness.”
Yet in denying knowledge of Holmes's intended area of study, Stamford completely missed an opportunity as he expressed horror at Holmes's practices:
“When it comes to beating the subjects in the dissecting-rooms with a stick, it is certainly taking rather a bizarre shape.”
Might this not be the makings of a future coroner? After all, when he came across dead bodies in various stories in the Canon, Holmes took great care to examine the corpses. We're told that he examined Drebber's body carefully, even sniffing the dead man's lips (STUD).
Holmes was able to tell that William Kirwan was shot at a distance of more than four yards, as he examined the wound on the body and noted an absence of powder-blackening on the clothes (REIG).
Indeed, Holmes made a careful study of many dead bodies over the course of his documented career:
- The Sign of the Four — He examines Bartholomew Sholto’s rigid body at Pondicherry Lodge.
- "The Boscombe Valley Mystery" — He studies Charles McCarthy’s body at the crime scene.
- "Silver Blaze" — He looks at the body of John Straker, the murdered trainer.
- "The Cardboard Box" — He examines the severed human ears sent in a package.
- "The Resident Patient" — He investigates the dead body of Blessington.
- "The Norwood Builder" — He inspects Jonas Oldacre’s supposed remains (which turned out to be those of a couple of rabbits)
- "Black Peter"— He examines Peter Carey’s corpse pinned to the wall.
- "The Abbey Grange" — He views Sir Eustace Brackenstall’s murdered body.
- The Valley of Fear — He examines the body of John Douglas in Birlstone Manor.
- "The Bruce-Partington Plans" — He inspects the corpse of Cadogan West, found on the tracks of the Underground.
Sherlock Holmes would have made an excellent pathologist. Is it any wonder that Irregular Bob Katz would want to follow in his footsteps?
Listen to Bob in Episode 93: Nerve and Knowledge, as he and Andy Solberg talk about physicians in the Canon:
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 the Baker Street Elementary website.
0 comments:
Post a Comment