The British have their own way of referring to physicians. Some are Mr, some are Dr, some have FRCS after their name, and some have M.D. Our own John Watson was styled: John H. Watson, M.D. and referred to as Dr Watson. What are the distinctions, the degrees or education indicated, and who can come up with the list of all the physicians and their appropriate professional titles as per the Canon?
Dr Watson’s “Stuff”
We have an extensive catalogue of Mr Holmes’s personal belongings, from dressing gowns to pipes to commonplace books and on and on.
But, what do we know of Dr Watson’s belongings? Who can catalogue those items that are Dr Watson’s personal things? And where no evidence exists, who would care to speculate on Dr Watson’s likely inventory?
Our Own Benoit Guilielmo, JHWS “Cicero” to Present Paper at University of London
Charter Member Benoit Guilielmo of Nice, France will present “The Birth of a Textual Community: Early Sherlockiana (1927-1934)” at the upcoming conference Sherlock Holmes: Past and Present at the Institute of English Studies of the School of Advanced Study, University of London. Congratulations!
The programme is described here: http://www.ies.sas.ac.uk/ies-events/conferences/SherlockHolmes
As one reads the various topics, it becomes clear this is a major academic gathering with serious papers being presented that indicate the Holmesian genre as written by Dr Watson has entered an age of mainstream academia. Note, for instance, “Sherlock Holmes: Modern Literary Virgil,” and “The Spatial Code in Sherlock Holmes Stories.”
Welcome to Melissa Anderson JHWS, “Faith” to Charter Membership
The Society extends a very warm welcome to Melissa Anderson of Peoria, Illinois to Charter Membership.
A Sherlockian since age 13, Melissa is a former Instructor of English Literature and Writing Composition at Bradley, University. She has most recently written and produced a play featuring Sherlock Holmes and is completing a novel of Watson and Holmes titled The Mystery of That Woman.”
Melissa also has the distinction of being the winner of the 221B Cellars essay contest on the topic “Beeswing.” Her entry is an absolute gem of concision and insight packed into 400 words. She won the prize and her essay will be published in the forthcoming inaugural issue of The Watsonian in October. She has also received an offer from another scion group for its later publication.
When not writing about Dr Watson and Mr Holmes, Melissa is a Ministry Assistant at a Peoria church. She is a member of The Sherlock Holmes Society of London and The Hansoms of John Clayton.
Please welcome Melissa with our traditional warmth and Canonical greeting:
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
Dr Watson’s Moons
Dr Watson writes of moons in about thirty instances throughout the Canon. Has anyone worked out the references, the pattern, or the significance of the moons?
Why a Bearskin Rug?
Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson have a bearskin rug in front of the fireplace. Anyone care to speculate on this? Would not a bearskin rug be unusual in Victorian England? Were (are) there bears in Great Britain?
On a separate note, Buttons has it on first authority that Vamberry Wine Merchant bottled the First Edition A Study In Scarlet today. He reports that it is something a bit special in a red wine. A case is being sent to Dr Watson for “medicinal purposes.” www.221bcellars.com.
And, now, back to the bear…
Welcome to Joseph Kruth, JHWS “Marlowe”
The Society is pleased to welcome Mr Joseph Kruth as a Charter Member. Joe has been corresponding regularly and has sent along his delightful biography:It was quiet. No radio or TV allowed on the ward floor. As I was drifting in and out of a swirling yellow fog, a smartly turned-out young women in a crisp Red Cross uniform was approaching – book cart in tow. Maybe a book would clear my head. The book cart had many well-thumbed books including one Sherlock Holmes book. Sadly, I neither remember the book title nor the stories. This was in my adventurous year of 1969. Three years later, in a library, I came across William S. Baring-Gould’s two volume Sherlock Holmes Annotated and spent several hours paging through this weighty tome. Yes, I was hooked. Within a few days I purchased my own Baring-Gould set for about $50 – no small amount of money at the time. However, money well spent.
Through the years, I have endeavored to keep-up on all things Sherlockian:
Seven 3-ring binders containing 526 newspaper clippings, advertisements, book excerpts, etc. Please note: my collection is hard copy-print media. No internet searches.
Also, my main Sherlock Holmes index appropriately sub-titled “Behold the Fruits of Laborious Days and Pensive Nights,” contains 324 entries ranging from books, tapes, DVDs and miscellany.
And, in August 1996, Classic Specialties was gracious enough to publish my small unworthy monograph “I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere.”
In August 1998, I corresponded with the Franco-Midland Hardware Company based in England. After a little time, I passed the 200 question exam and received my Certificate in Holmesian Studies (CHS). I am no longer in contact.
Lastly, it was the Peter Blau newsletter of April 2013 that alerted me to your august John H. Watson Society.
It is time to end with a non-canonical, but appropriate, exit:
“Holmes Again? Always Holmes…Until the End.” Recognize the line?
Thank you.
Joe.
And, Joe, we all warmly welcome you to the Society with our also most appropriate greeting: “You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
We Need Participants! Here is an Incentive!
New exploration that comes from questions that have and have not been asked before is a wonderful thing. It enlivens the discussion, prolongs The Game, and adds colour to our everyday routine. This topic is the passion of all of our members, and everyone of us has something to add to the discussion. Please join in. There are no wrong answers, only unlimited positions to be stated and supported for the enjoyment and benefit of us all.
Incentive: We will award an annual prize for all members attaining the stature of Attending Quiz Physician (details forthcoming). Start now! It will be a very nice prize!
Today’s question:
Who or what is a “scabby sheep” and what is the context? What other veterinary references does Dr Watson write about throughout the Canon?
Welcome to Richard J. Sveum, MD, JHWS “Marco,” BSI, “Dr Hill Barton” to Charter Membership
The Society extends a warm welcome to Dr Richard Sveum, President of the Friends of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection at the University of Minnesota Library. Among his many Sherlockian credentials and memberships are:
» The Maiwand Jezails
» The Baker Street Irregulars (Dr. Hill Barton)
» Friends of the Sherlock Holmes Collections (President)
» The Norwegian Explorers of Minnesota
» The Illustrious Clients of Indianapolis
» The Elusive Bicyclists (The Rattle of our Wheels)
» The Speckled Band of Boston
» The Hounds of the Baskerville (sic)
» The Bootmakers of Toronto
» The Friends of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection
» The Sherlock Holmes Society of London
» The STUD Sherlockian Society
Please join in welcoming Dr Sveum to our Society and extend to him a warm traditional welcome:
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
Welcome to Michael Proudfit, JHWS “Skippy,” to Charter Membership
The Society welcomes Mr Michael Proudfit to Charter Membership. Michael is a long-time member of the Napa Valley Napoleons of S.H. and the Scowrers and Molly Maguires of San Francisco. He was a close friend of Col. Ted Schulz, an Emeritus Founding Member, and he has a near-infallible knowledge of things Canonical.
Please join in extending a very warm welcome to our colleague and friend, Michael Proudfit, with the Society welcome:
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
A Sunday Quiz Question
As Harrison Hunt, Sandy Kozinn, James O’Leary, and Joanne Yates have proven to be deadly accurate in their answers to the previous questions, Buttons has been forced to get off his stool and repair to the library to do research for today’s offering:
“E.C” . . . .? Who is speaking? Which story? What was the screw?
A Truly Difficult Question . . .
Holmes speaks of “… Jupiter descending….” What is he referencing and where does it occur?
Who is Blondin?
In The Sign of Four, Holmes states: “… watch out for Blondin….” What is the significance of this? What is he referring to?
Welcome to Frank Mentzel, JHWS, “Merridew” to Charter Membership
The Society welcomes heartily Mr. Frank Mentzel to Charter Membership.
Frank writes:
I first encountered Sherlock in the summer before Junior High School. I have been a Sherlockian since but only had it become active about 20 years ago. Upon retirement in 2001, the interest became a mania. I am active in several scion societies (which I will list at the end) and have for the past 5 years been teaching “Appreciating Sherlock Holmes,” a Life Enrichment class for a local community college. The course was created in 1989 by the late Phil Sherman (2 Shilling BSI). I have always been know for my bad memory and always tell the class and my fellow Sherlockians that because of that I can enjoy a new Sherlock every time I read a story. I love Sherlock in every form and have a large collection of pastiches and videos as well as a room full of collectibles.
I am active in (in time sequence):
The Six Napoleons of Baltimore
Watson’s Tin Box
The Denizens of the Bar of Gold
The White Rose of York
The Society of the Naval Treaty
The Carlton Club
The Red Circle
The Diogenes Club of Washington, D.C. (in formation)
And we now welcome Frank with the greeting of the Society to members: “You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
Zounds! What Have We Here?
Here are important items and events from Dr Watson’s life. Please reply by clicking on “Comments” and posting a minimum 400 word essay reply on the links between these items and Dr Watson. The prizes for each the first four essays to be posted is a First Edition of The Autobiography of Sherlock Holmes.
A Warm Welcome to a New Charter Member: James C. O’Leary, JHWS “Pippin,” SBB, PSI
The Society is very pleased to welcome our first Praed Street Irregular (PSI) to Charter Membership, an individual who is a charming writer and an enthusiastic Sherlockian: Mr. James C. O’Leary, “Pippin.”Here is the engaging biography he sends along:
“Growing up I had seen Daffy Duck and Bullwinkle J. Moose wear the Holmes’ deerstalker and Porky Pig and Mr. Magoo wear Watson’s bowler, but my first introduction to the detective was in the sixth grade (then the last grade of elementary school) when the class had to read The Hound of the Baskervilles in Scholastic Books “Easy Eye” edition–dark green type on light green, glare-free paper. I will admit that there were a few things that went over my head, such as Holmes’ dry wit (“You saw me, perhaps, on the night of the convict hunt, when I was so imprudent as to allow the moon to rise behind me?”) and Watson’s wonderful word-pictures (“Again the agonized cry swept through the silent night, louder and much nearer than ever. And a new sound mingled with it, a deep, muttered rumble, musical and yet menacing, rising and falling like the low, constant murmur of the sea.”)
In junior high, I sought out Holmes for my own pleasure and the school library had a copy of The Adventures and The Memoirs bound in one volume. When I came to last page with Watson’s stirring epitaph of Holmes, I could believe that the stains on the old and well-worn paper were the tears of past generations of readers.
It wasn’t until high school that I discovered that the Canon didn’t end at “The Final Problem” and that there was a whole world of scholarship and pastiche to help slake an unquenchable thirst. That was the beginning of the Great Boom of the seventies and there always seem to be something new at the bookstore. I found Pinnacle Books paperback editions of the Solar Pons Canon and was made a member of the Praed Street Irregulars by Luther Norris; I subscribed to the Baker Street Miscellanea ($4.00 a year for four issues of incredible scholarship); The Sherlock Holmes Journal and then The Baker Street Journal.
For over thirty years I’ve considered myself a Sherlockian, but it has always been a solitary pursuit. It wasn’t until I went on to the internet in 2010 and discovered Scott Monty and Burt Wolder’s I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere podcast that I was inspired to seek out others. I became a member of the Speckled Band of Boston in 2012 and corresponded electronically with wonderful and generous Sherlockians.”
Thanks,
James
And thank you, James, for this delightful, nostalgic and poignant recalling of our own similar first encounters with Sherlock Holmes, Dr Watson and the adventures that have filled our lives.
Please extend a welcoming and warm greeting to our new friend and fellow Watsonian, James C. O’Leary:
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”
What is the Story? What is this edition? Why Bees?
What is This Edition and What is the Story?
The Debut of the Quiz Page
Welcome to the Quiz Page!
Each day, one of our Watsonians will ask a question for the members to answer, discuss, refute, or otherwise ruminate on, as we further the knowledge and scholarship of the writings of Dr Watson.
Any and all members may simply click on “Comments” and add their questions, answers or contribution to what can be an enjoyable daily exploration of any number of topics. Remember how much fun “Word Power” was in the Reader’s Digest? Well, Quiz Page can be even more fun because we all have an interest in the same topics. But, it begins with you, the interested and supportive member of The John H Watson Society. We can all have some fun and participate for a few minutes each day, or we can just be a “journal” society (which we are already). Let us commit to being both; after all, John H. Watson was a man of action and intellect.
So, please… please… please… come here often and think of the many unanswered questions you have about Dr Watson, Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, or any of the vast catalogue of characters who inhabit the greatest canon of literature ever known.
The first question is posted by the boy in buttons who is seen above in the illustration. His question: “Who are the people in the illustration and what story are they featured in and what is taking place in the scene?
Two New Features Added to The Society Website
Today the Society has added two new features on the website: Quiz Page and Watsonian Limelight.
Quiz Page is what you might expect: a quiz blog for ALL members to post questions, Canonical conundrums, and topics for exploration, explication, and examination. It is meant to be a DAILY stop for a bit of intriguing Canonical conundra and active participation by all.
Watsonian Limelight will highlight a member of the Society each month and provide all of us greater illumination of the member’s accomplishments, interests and creativity. The first limelight is shown upon the Life of Col. Ted Schulz, BSI “The Amateur Mendicant Society” and Founding Member Emeritus of The John H Watson Society.
These are YOUR pages. Please contribute, participate, and assist in the daily, ongoing dialogue that can add so much fun and pleasure to our shared lives of interest in the Watsonian and Sherlocklian milieu. You only have to click on “Comments” and you are in The Game, and, truly, “The game’s afoot!”
Welcome to Michael Dirda, PhD, JHWS “Alex,” BSI “Langdale Pike”
The Society wishes to extend its warm welcome to Michael Dirda, PhD., JHWS, BSI “Langdale Pike.”
Mr. Dirda’s impressive biography reads:
I am an invested member–as Langdale Pike–of The Baker Street Irregulars and write or lecture frequently about literary subjects, including the works of John H. Watson. My most recent book, On Conan Doyle, received the 2012 Edgar Allan Poe Award–for the best biographical/critical work of the year–from the Mystery Writers of America.
For a quarter century I was a staffer at The Washington Post Book World and for the last decade have been a weekly book columnist for The Washington Post. My earlier books include the memoir An Open Book and four collections of essays: Readings, Bound to Please, Book by Book and Classics for Pleasure. As I live by my pen, I’m a regular contributor to The New York Review of Books, an occasional reviewer and essayist for the Times Literary Supplement, a columnist for the online Barnes and Noble Review, and a frequent reviewer for several other literary periodicals, as well as an occasional lecturer and college teacher (most recently at the Bread Loaf School of English and the University of Maryland). Years ago, I earned a Ph.D. in comparative literature (focusing on medieval studies and European romanticism) from Cornell University and before that graduated with Highest Honors in English from my beloved alma mater, Oberlin College. I grew up in the working-class steel town of Lorain, Ohio and have lived in the Washington DC area since 1975.
My work has been lucky enough to be short-listed for the Los Angeles Times Book Award (in current affairs for Bound to Please) and for this year’s Marfield Prize for Arts Writing and to have won the Ohioana Book Award for nonfiction (An Open Book), the Boydston Essay Prize (from the Association of Documentary Editing for an article in the New York Review of Books comparing two editions of The Wind in the Willows), and the Pulitzer Prize in criticism for my reviews and essays. Besides the BSI, I’m a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, the Mystery Writers of America, the Lewis Carroll Society of North America, The Friends of Arthur Machen, The Ghost Story Society, and the North American Jules Verne Society.
I live in Silver Spring, Maryland with my wife Marian Peck Dirda, a prints and drawings conservator for the National Gallery of Art. We have three sons, now in their twenties: Christopher, Michael and Nathaniel.
My current research focuses on popular fiction between, roughly, 1865 and 1930, and some day I hope to write a book about this “Great Age of Storytelling.”
Please join in welcoming Dr. Dirda to the Society with our collegial greeting to members:
“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.”